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“ Summary, Part 3 (final) ” F. WE ARE ABLE TO LOVE OTHERS ONLY AS WE KNOW GOD. This is where every other religion is found wanting. 1 JOHN 4:20 makes the logical statement that one who hates a brother cannot love God. MATTHEW 5:44-48 should be read in light of the parable of the Samaritan. Love for a neighbor does not mean a gushing affection, but hands and feet quick to help one in need. G. WE LEARN HOW TO LIVE A LIFE PLEASING TO GOD ONLY AS WE KNOW GOD. ROMANS 8:8 says that we cannot please God in the flesh. ROMANS 12:1 calls for our lives to be living sacrifices. Such lives bring sacredness everywhere, to every situation, no matter how mundane. H. WE ARE PREPARED TO DIE ONLY IF WE KNOW GOD. It is good that we don’t know the number of our days. Imagine how we would live our lives if we did! ECCLESIASTES 12:6-7 tells of that day. Are you prepared to meet God? ISAIAH 55:6-7 tells us that now is the day of salvation. In ROMANS 6:21, Paul asks what eternal value the wicked find in their works.
Ian Migala (10/14/2013)
from Minneapolis, Minnesota
“ Summary, Part 2 ” b. Only as we know God can we live meaningfully in the present. EPHESIANS 5:16 cautions us to redeem the time, for the days are evil. PSALM 124:8 reminds us that created things don’t help us, but the Creator Himself. PSALM 16:5 tells us that all in our hands comes from God’s generosity for our good. c. Only as we know God are we able to make wise preparations for the future. From the eternal perspective, the Christian can see how God has brought him all the way through his life; he should infer the same to the end of his days. PSALM 146:5 connects blessing to such hope. d. Only as we know God can we prepare for eternity. For the Christian, God’s counsel leads to light, not darkness (PSALM 73:24). Solomon’s “vanity” is comparable to Macbeth’s nihilism. E. WE ARE ABLE TO LOVE GOD ONLY AS WE KNOW GOD. This is the first great summary commandment. How can we love someone we don’t know? How can we not love someone Who is perfect? MARK 12:30 is utterly foundational to the Christian life. DEUTERONOMY 7:9 parallels 1 JOHN 4:10, 19 in that God first loved us, and has mercy for those who keep His commandments. JOHN 8:42 tells that we cannot know God and reject the Son.
Ian Migala (10/14/2013)
from Minneapolis, Minnesota
“ Summary, Part 1 ” Continuing from last week: II. WHY SHOULD WE STUDY THE EXISTENCE AND ATTRIBUTES OF GOD? D. WE ARE ABLE TO MAKE SENSE OF LIFE ONLY AS WE KNOW GOD. The mess of confusion in the world is the result of its rejection of God. As sanctification is not glorification, the elect struggle with this as well. 1. Only as we know God can we begin to truly understand the meaning of life. Though we may not understand His reasons, we have faith that what He brings about is righteous and for our good. Though Jesus began with immature obedience, He learned obedience through suffering. God is a God of hope, even for the most persecuted Christian. 2.Only as we know God can we make sense of history. History is a testament of God’s rule over the world. PSALM 135:6 is a statement of God’s sovereignty. a. Only as we know God are we able to wisely evaluate (and learn from) the past. As we know that God is not a God of chance, but a deliberate creator, we glean not only physical science from the creation but theological truth. Knowledge of God gives us understanding of the creation and its purpose: His glory.
