Wednesday, March 21, 2007

The Solitariness of God - Part Six

I've been sick with a headache since Sunday afternoon, and when I get them, they're pretty bad, and leave me unable to function. The worst of it was yesterday, and though I still feel it a bit today, I'm feeling much better. I'm not sure if it was a sinus headache, or because of a lack of caffeine.

In the second to last paragraph of Chapter 1 of A. W. Pink's Attributes of God book he says this:

"Nor is God known by the intellect. "God is Spirit," (John 4:24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth) and therefore can only be known spiritually. But fallen man is not spiritual; he is carnal. He is dead to all that is spiritual. Unless he is born again, supernaturally brought from death unto life, miraculously translated out of darkness into light , he cannot even see the things of God (John 3:3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God"), still less apprehend them (1 Corinthians 2:14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned). The Holy Spirit has to shine in our hearts (not intellects) in order to give us "the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."


This hit home with me because of a conversation I had with my oldest brother, a retired history teacher. He calls himself an atheist. He, my oldest daughter and I, talked for quite a long time about science, and evolution a couple of weeks ago. Right before our conversation ended, I began asking him if he had ever lied. I was trying to show him that we have all broken God's law, and there was a penalty to be paid for our sin. He couldn't understand that, which to me is simple. It's simple to me because the Lord has opened my eyes, and my ears, and has saved me. It's something I've been thinking about ever since our conversation. My prayer is that He would do the same for my brother, and my other lost family members.