Ep.1204: Am I Fighting For or Against God?
Facing the things we do and think that put us in opposition to God
CHAPTERS
Theme Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:22
As a Christian, we never want to be in a situation where we end up fighting against God. Yet, we may end up in this position more often than we’d expect. To fight FOR God is to stand for His principles, His Plan and His purposes as outlined in Scripture. This sounds simple, but it really isn't. We find ourselves fighting against Him when we are misinformed or misguided and we take a stand for something that is less than godly. Sometimes we mistakenly or purposefully misrepresent God’s word or focus on motivation that is less than spiritually pure. It is easy to look at our thoughts and preferences and interpret them as “God’s will” for us and then pursue them with confidence. So, how do we know if we are really on God’s side or someone else’s in these circumstances?
Are we or aren't we?
To determine if we are fighting against God is not as easy as you might think. Loving God does not automatically make us lifetime members of the "I fight for God Club." This dilemma is aptly displayed in what we know about the life of the Old Testament prophet Jonah. Jonah was a mouthpiece of God. He was chosen to bring God’s messages to the people and to bring them in line with the Creator’s righteous ways. Jonah was told by God (notice he was told, not asked) to preach to the city of Nineveh about their sinful ways. The end result was that Jonah DID preach but he did NOT want to. Jonah fought for God in his mission but fought against God in his heart.
It is sooooo subtle
As odd as this sounds, this is a common challenge, as fighting against God can happen in a variety of different ways. The Bible gives us examples of the creative subtlety we as humans use to appear as spiritually-minded when we are actually going in a different direction. One example of this creative subtlety has to do with identifying and calling out legitimate issues. We can observe someone being wrong or unjust while working in God’s service. We might react to this with focus and indignation. Perhaps we present evidence to show how it is fighting against God, and we would be right. We can and should demand change. The subtlety begins here, as the change we demand fits our personal agenda and not a higher godly agenda. We initially stood for God, only to fight against Him in our proposed solution to the problem.
Check out our November 15, 2021 podcast, “Am I Fighting For or Against God?” for more. We look at several biblical examples of how we can end up fighting against God, even when we don’t mean to. Identifying when and how we fight against God is one thing, but searching out ways to prevent it is another. Join us for some very practical scriptural tactics that can help us overcome our broken, human approach to godliness. Let’s fight the right fight!
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