God’s Not Guilty-He Gave Us Dominion
God is Good! God is Love!
Part 2
God is omniscient. God is omnipotent. God is omnipresent.
But, He gave us dominion and free choice.
James 1:12-14 (KJV) 12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. 13 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: 14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
Hosea 4:6 (KJV) 6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. . .
John 17:3 (KJV) 3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
Kimberly- Last week in our study, the first part of “God’s Not Guilty” the question came up from 1 Corinthians 10:13 about how we reconcile this verse with the belief that trials are not allowed or ordained by God.
1 Corinthians 10:13 (KJV) 13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
God created us so that He could have relationship with us. True relationships require free choice. The entire Bible from beginning to end is a love story from the Lord about how He wants to have relationship with us, it was why we were created in His image. Jesus was and is the tangible revelation of God to mankind. The way to get to KNOW God is through His Word, and prayer (conversation with Him). First we must believe and accept Jesus as our savior. Then, as we get to KNOW Him through spending time in His Word and prayer we grow up in our faith in Him.
We live in a time of not only a better covenant, but also a time when the entire Word of God is available at our fingertips all the time. We need to remember that the churches in the New Testament didn’t have this.
1 Corinthians 3:2 (AMP) 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not yet strong enough [to be ready for it]; but even yet you are not strong enough [to be ready for it],
Hebrews 5:12-13 (AMP) 12 For even though by this time you ought to be teaching others, you actually need someone to teach you over again the very first principles of God's Word. You have come to need milk, not solid food. 13 For everyone who continues to feed on milk is obviously inexperienced and unskilled in the doctrine of righteousness (of conformity to the divine will in purpose, thought, and action), for he is a mere infant [not able to talk yet]!
(Kimberly) So we see that Paul had a tendency to eventually tell people that they need to grow up. And, that one of those times was in this same letter to the Corinthians that is going to be our main subject of discussion. It’s hard to teach God’s absolute goodness, grace (provision), and mercy and not have people want to fall back into old pattern’s of living, which is what was happening in Corinth. The church was looking just like the rest of Corinth, eating meat that was sacrificed to idols, having gatherings where sexual immorality (reason for marital advice in Chapter 7) was taking place, there was envying, strife, and divisions, and the list goes on and on. 1 Cor. 6:5 starts out “I speak to your shame.” Paul is righteously angry at the church in Corinth. Chapter 10 begins, ”I would not that ye should be ignorant.” Then he begins contrasting and comparing the exodus of the Israelites to the baptism of new believers in Christ. The commentators say that in this next verse he was trying to soften up just a little bit. .
When we pull this next verse out of it’s context, and do not use the lessons taught in other places in the scriptures to understand it, it can sound like God “allows” bad things to happen in our lives, but if we keep it in context and take the understanding of the scriptures as a whole we find that it agrees with “It is written.”
1 Corinthians 10:13 (KJV) 13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
Matthew Henry says-Paul Cautions Against All Idolatrous, and Other Sinful Practices (10:6-14)
Carnal desires gain strength by indulgence, therefore should be checked in their first rise. Let us fear the sins of Israel, if we would shun their plagues. And it is but just to fear, that such as tempt Christ, will be left by him in the power of the old serpent. Murmuring against God's disposals and commands, greatly provokes him. Nothing in Scripture is written in vain; and it is our wisdom and duty to learn from it. Others have fallen, and so may we. The Christian's security against sin is distrust of himself. God has not promised to keep us from falling, if we do not look to ourselves. To this word of caution, a word of comfort is added. Others have the like burdens, and the like temptations: what they bear up under, and break through, we may also. God is wise as well as faithful, and will make our burdens according to our strength. He knows what we can bear. He will make a way to escape; he will deliver either from the trial itself, or at least the mischief of it. We have full encouragement to flee from sin, and to be faithful to God. We cannot fall by temptation, if we cleave fast to him. Whether the world smiles or frowns, it is an enemy; but believers shall be strengthened to overcome it, with all its terrors and enticements. The fear of the Lord, put into their hearts, will be the great means of safety.
Matthew Henry Concise Bible Commentary.
Andrew Wommack says-Note 11 at 1 Corinthians 10:13: There are no unique temptations, but the devil likes to make us think there are. If he can convince us no one understands, that no one has ever had this problem before, then he can isolate us and take away our hope. However, any temptation we face is just some variation of the same old thing. It may come in a different size box, be wrapped in different paper, and have a different bow, but the contents are the same. Understanding this defuses much of the power of temptation.
In context, Paul was warning these Corinthian believers, who thought they could eat meat offered to idols without any temptation on their part, to think again. The temptation that the Israelites encountered in the wilderness, which drew them back into idolatry, was still around. If these Corinthian believers flirted with sin, they would be tempted. Therefore, “flee from idolatry” (1 Corinthians 10:14).
Note 12 at 1 Corinthians 10:13: Even though temptation is universal to mankind, we are not left on our own. God is faithful. Jesus was tempted in all points like as we are, and yet He overcame every time (Hebrews 4:15). Part of His ministry is to specifically aid us in overcoming temptation (Hebrews 2:17-18). This verse gives us God’s word that He will not suffer us to be tempted beyond our ability.
Most of us have experienced times when we thought we couldn’t resist another minute. Either we were wrong, or we were on the verge of a breakthrough. The Lord promised that He would not allow us to be tempted above what we are able to bear. So, at those times when we can’t stand another minute, we need to stand two, and this promise will pull us through.
Note 13 at 1 Corinthians 10:13: Some people have interpreted this verse to say that the Lord is the one who brings temptation into our lives and that this is His promise that He will not put on us more than we can bear. That is not so. James 1:13 says, “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man”. It’s our own lust that draws us into temptation (James 1:14). Also, Satan can come against us without any solicitation on our part, as he did with Jesus (Matthew 4:1-10 and Luke 4:1-13). It is not a sin to be tempted; it is sin to yield to temptation.
This scripture is not attributing the responsibility for temptation to the Lord, but rather, the Lord is saying there are limits as to how far He will allow us to be pressured under temptation. Even when we reach this limit, this verse does not promise that the Lord will remove the situation. He provides a way of escape, but we have to take it. We can rest assured that anyone who yields to temptation failed to see or just plain rejected God’s way of escape. God is faithful to this promise.
Andrew Wommack's Living Commentary.
David Prior says-The injunction of 10:12, Therefore let any one who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall, is not merely a warning-shot across the bows of Corinthian super-spirituality. No doubt it includes that, but there would be little need for Paul to talk in the evocative language of verse 11, if all he wants to convey is the spiritual danger of thinking that we have moved beyond the reach of certain temptations. The root meaning of peirasmos is not so much temptation (13) as ‘testing’. Paul is warning the Corinthians, ‘You are facing many powerful testings because of the weakness of your spiritual resources; but the major point about temptation/testing is not the force of sin’s attractiveness, but the make-or-break nature of your trial. Are you going to come through them with a tougher resilience and acuter faith in the living God? Or will your determination to endure to the end have been subtly sapped?’
Equally, let anyone today who feels like devaluing the significance of the Exodus as determinative for the kingdom of God be careful lest he finds himself overtaken by violent and irresistible events; and let anyone who thinks he does understand the tempestuous forces at work in today’s world reconsider his theological appraisal in relation to such particular events as the North/South struggle and the nuclear menace. No Christian who thinks he is impervious to these forces has begun to appreciate that, in the turbulence of today’s global village, nobody can claim to have found a position of permanent stability (that is the force of the perfect tense hestanai = ‘stand’). There is only one place for that security:
Isaiah 33:5-6 The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high; he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness; and he will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is his treasure.
1 Corinthians 10:12 is, therefore, not so much a personal summons to take the vulnerability of being a Christian disciple more seriously, as an eternal perspective on the activity of God in history, and particularly in salvation-history; if people blessed with all the ‘supernatural’ blessings lavished on the children of Israel in the time of Moses, if these people fell, and went on falling in different ways, then the Christians at Corinth certainly had no immunity. And if, furthermore, we happen to be those upon whom the end of the ages has come, then we are facing all that Paul meant by the phrase ‘the impending distress’ and much more.
If we think this is all too much for us, Paul characteristically comes to us with a classic word of encouragement: God is faithful (13). We can rely implicitly on him. We may feel that our own personal trials are too great and beyond the ability of anyone to grasp, let alone to alleviate. But no temptation (= trial/test) has overtaken you that is not common to man. God has himself been along this path in Jesus. He knows how much we can endure. He also knows the way he is taking, the way through the valley, the way of escape, the day of release, and the joy of endurance because victory is secure: all these he has himself experienced.
The way of escape (ekbasis) is almost exactly the same word as ‘exodus’, and Luke describes the redemptive death of Jesus as the ‘exodus’ he will achieve at Jerusalem. God himself provides the oppressed and sorely tried with his exodus. He is not vindictive. He is not waiting to hit the presumptuous with punishment. Nor are we on our own; we are in this situation along with countless others, for whom the time of testing is equally, if not more, nerve-racking. It is the certain consummation of an exodus already achieved that enables us to endure: we see the light at the end of the tunnel and we press on.[1]
That was from “The Message of 1 Corinthians by David Prior”
Kimberly-All of these commentators are saying that the temptation or testing comes from the world, the devil, and/or fleshly desires, and it is not a sin to be tempted or tested, it is a sin to give in to the temptation or test. Paul was exhorting the Corinthians to not give in to the idol worship that was going on all around them, by reminding them of the Israelites in the Exodus.
God did not tempt or test the Israelites in the Exodus, they began to doubt God, even after all He had brought them through, and went back to their old ways of idol worship and sexual immorality, it made God mad and He brought judgement upon them. Our judgement was brought upon Christ, but Paul was exhorting them not to take that for granted. Because we need to remember what James said in 4:7 and what Paul also said in Romans 6:16:
Kimberly-Submit is a lot like yield. . . look at James 4:7 again, “Submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” And now, let’s take a look at Romans 6:16.
Romans 6:16 (KJV) 16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Andrew Wommack- on Romans 6:16. This is one of two reasons presented in this chapter (first–Romans 6:2) as to why Christians don’t sin. It is because it gives the author of sin (Satan) control over us. If we sin, God still loves us, but Satan will eat our lunch and pop the bag.
Note 8 at Romans 6:16: This is the second argument that Paul presented in this chapter as to why Christians don’t live in sin (see note 2 at Romans 6:2). The legalistic Jews were pursuing sinless lives so that they could earn God’s favor. Paul had conclusively proven that no one could keep the precepts of the Law and that the Law was never given for the purpose of justification (see note 4 at Romans 3:19 and note 14 at Romans 3:31). Therefore, he was explaining that Christians still seek to live holy but for different reasons.
This second reason Paul gave for holiness in our lives as believers is that when we obey sin, we yield ourselves to Satan, the author of that sin. Notice the use of the personal pronoun “whom” in this verse. Yielding to sin is yielding to a person–Satan. God doesn’t impute the sin to us (see note 2 at Romans 5:13), but the devil does (see note 3 at Romans 5:14). Our actions release in us either the power of Satan or the power of God.
Therefore, although God is not imputing our sins unto us, we cannot afford the luxury of sin because it allows Satan to have access to us. When we do sin and allow the devil opportunity to produce his death in our lives, then the way to stop that is to confess the sin, and God is faithful and just to take the forgiveness that is already present in our born-again spirits and release it in our flesh, thereby removing Satan and his strongholds (see note 11 at Romans 4:8).
Note 9 at Romans 6:16: The Greek word that was translated “servants” twice in this verse is “DOULOS,” and it denotes “a slave” (Strong’s Concordance) (see note 1 at Romans 1:1). Therefore, Paul was not speaking of an infrequent error on our part but rather a servile condition where one “gives himself up wholly to another’s will” (Thayer’s Lexicon). So Paul was stating that those who abandon themselves to sin are in actuality becoming slaves of the devil (see note 8 at this verse), while those who obey righteousness are actually yielding themselves to the Lord. This is the second reason in this chapter as to why a Christian should live holy. Andrew Wommack's Living Commentary.
1 Corinthians 10:21-24 (KJV) 21 Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils. 22 Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he? 23 All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not. 24 Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth.
Kimberly-Verse 24 is speaking of decisions, examples that we set as Christians leading and/or pushing other Christians on to be better, or if we continue in sin, claiming to be Christians it will lead them astray. For instance, drinking alcohol in and of itself, is not a sin, but being a drunkard is a sin. The act of drinking a bit too much every once and a while is not what Paul was talking about in Romans 6:16 either, but becoming a slave to alcohol was. Needing a buzz (or more) every night or every weekend, is the same as being a slave to alcohol. So as a Christian if our having an alcoholic drink encourages someone, that may drink but is not a slave to alcohol, that Christianity is possible, instead of impossible, then it’s ok. However, if it encourages someone who has a drinking problem that they can continue on in their problem, then we have just become a major stumbling block. (Understand that the legalistic stance of no alcohol ever in any amount can also be a stumbling block.) It is all about “the love of”, do you love God more than anything else, or do you love alcohol, or money, or whatever your weakness may be. For the Corinthians it was idols. The letter to the Corinthians was so important because the success of the church was going to be the success of the future of Christianity. The whole letter is dealing with things that they were doing wrong. He was trying to put order back in the church.
When we love the Lord with all that we are, and we say, verbally of the Lord that He is Good, that He is our refuge and our fortress. When we lift Him up high in our lives then all other things become less, they become more trivial. Our success, our life more abundant, our provision, our joy in the Lord, which is our strength, is all about our faith and relationship with the Lord. As we speak words of God’s Goodness out to the world around us, we are sowing seeds, and we will reap a harvest of good. But if we speak strife, envy, enmity, we are then also sowing seeds, and also then we will reap what we have sown.
Psalm 91:1-16 (KJV) 1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. 3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. 4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. 5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; 6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. 7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. 8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. 9 Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; 10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. 11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. 12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. 13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. 14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. 15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. 16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.
Kimberly- Through loving the Lord, we can enter into His secret place and dwell there. . . We never have to fear, even the dark. “He prepares a table for me in the presence of my enemies.”
Matthew 28:18-20 (KJV) 18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Mark 16:15-18 (KJV) 15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. 17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
Psalm 8:3-9 (KJV) 3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; 4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? 5 For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. 6 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: 7 All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; 8 The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. 9 O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!
Andrew Wommack-The following verses describe the lessons to be learned by considering the creation that God has made. However, the creation has to be considered to get this revelation. There are millions of people every day who see God’s creation and yet don’t see these truths.
Note-Psalms 8:4
Man looks small and insignificant next to the vastness of God’s creation. Yet the Lord put us first in the fact that He sent His only begotten Son to die for us (John 3:16). Thank You, Jesus (2 Corinthians 9:15)! Those who don’t see man’s relative insignificance have not considered God’s creation accurately (Psalms 8:3).
Note-Psalms 8:5
The actual Hebrew word that was translated “angels” here is ELOHIYM. This is the dominant word used for “God” in the O.T. This is the only instance in the O.T. where this Hebrew word was translated “angels.” This is probably due to the translators’ reluctance to say man was created a little lower than God, but that is exactly what this verse is saying.
Note-Psalms 8:6
One meaning of “dominion” is “sovereignty.” God made man sovereign over the earth. Those who proclaim God’s absolute sovereignty over the earth and the affairs of men ignore this truth.
Andrew Wommack's Living Commentary.
My summary, the dominion that God gave us is in our words and our actions. We decided many years ago to decree and verbally declare that “As for me and my house we will serve the Lord.” Stop saying, “I’m only human.” But instead, “Submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee.” It is really hard to totally trust and have faith in God if you believe that He will cause or “allow” a person to go through death, sickness, divorce, etc. God is good, and there is no variableness, the devil is bad, but he only has the power over us that we give him, because Jesus Christ defeated him at Calvary.
Romans 6:16 (KJV) 16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
I want to live life abundantly. I’m not perfect, I still screw up, but I’m forgetting that which is behind and pressing toward the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. We are all called, actually commanded, by Jesus to go and spread the gospel of Christ. I passionately want people to really KNOW, to really BELIEVE in God’s Goodness, in His Love, in His grace (which means provision)! I have been through a lot, but God is my refuge and my rock, and I am living the Psalms 91 life.
[1] Prior, D. (1985). The message of 1 Corinthians: life in the local church (pp. 170–172). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
