To take God at His word is to accept His word on anything without further verification. If He said it, He meant it. “God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: hath He said, and shall He not do it? or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good?” (Numbers 23:19 KJV). Treat God’s words with the same respect you would want God to treat your words. If you say what you do not mean, then treat God in the same fashion. If that sounds horrifying, then give God’s Word the respect it deserves! When interpreting or arriving at a conclusion on the meaning of anything in Scripture — including Bible prophecies — the interpretation that justifies God the most in making it understandable is the goal. If the plain or literal sense is most understandable, then God’s Spirit has communicated His message to you. If it only makes sense figuratively, poetically, or allegorically, then so be it. Our goal is to best justify God for whatever He said — literal or figurative. If the biblical translation of the original text makes the meaning obscure, then the modern reader is disadvantaged in arriving at a proper interpretation. If the biblical settings of the OT or NT recipients of the original texts are not understood, again, the modern reader is disadvantaged. Philip was used in the salvation of the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8), because he understood the context and meaning of Isaiah 53, which was being read. Whether God uses a Bible translation, a Bible scholar, Philip the Evangelist, or a humble cross reference, such as the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, it is the Holy Spirit illuminating and teaching the text. “But the anointing [Holy Spirit] which ye have received of Him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in Him” (1John 2:27 KJV). Glory to God!
Justifying God
What About Job?
When it comes to suffering, what about Job? Didn’t it prove that even good people have to suffer, and suffering was not necessarily a sign of God’s anger because we have done something wrong? Was Job wrong for expecting deliverance from his suffering? Weren’t Job’s friends condemned by God for attacking Job? Wasn’t Elihu not condemned by God because he attempted more to justify God than just condemn Job? Didn’t Job finally confess, “Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not” (Job 42:3 KJV) and repented? God is sovereign. We are earthly soldiers in a Cosmic War between the Almighty and the forces of Lucifer. If my suffering or death is needed for the Lord God Almighty to achieve His Final Triumph over the Wicked One, Thy Kingdom come, and Thy Will be done. And, if my deliverance will frustrate the wicked and encourage the godly, do unto me Lord, as You will. Amen and amen.
We Need A Miracle 