Question & Answer by Pastor Filmore

What Relationship Are You In?

Relationship being related, connection by origin or marriage, kinship. When God made man, we were related by origin, by kinship, and by marriage. When God created man, we were made to be just like him, with all of the attributes of God. That is what God wanted and that is what He intended. If you can read or understand the context of this article, you are in position to choose your relationship with God or to decide against that relationship. Following is God's choice for man. Genesis 1:26-27, "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." God is holy, righteous, faithful, perfect, pure, and He is a God of love. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on Him shall have everlasting life. Then there came the test of choice. Even though God created us to be like Himself, He also created us with the power to choose. He yet wanted us to choose to love Him for who He is and not out of obligation. Genesis 2:8-9, "And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9 And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil." What more could they ask for, they were made in God's image and likeness, they were naked and unashamed as depicted in Genesis 2:21-25, "And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. 24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. 25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed." Which relationship did Adam and Eve choose? As we continue to read the scripture, we discover that they chose to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. There are consequences to decisions that we make. The consequences of their actions are found in Genesis 2:15-18, "And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 18 And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him." They were faced with two choices and so are we. Let us choose wisely. God is not a man that He should lie and Adam and Eve died, first spiritually then naturally. Eve was beguiled (fooled) by the serpent and Adam simply ate what was offered by his wife. It does not matter, they both ate and they both died. Every man born after Adam was born in sin but God had a remedy. Man is God's crowning glory and He made provisions to restore man back to his original state. Matthew 1:21, "And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins." God made us originals, please don't accept a counterfeit. The gift of God is free, but you and I must work out our salvation with fear and trembling. Yes, it is about our relationship with God but there is a price to pay; obedience to the Word of God. No, we can't earn our right to be God's children but God does require that we walk in His ways and to keep His statutes. Here is how that is accomplished as found in Philippians 3:14 , "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." Also you have to understand that our strength and life is in the Lord Jesus Christ as related in Galatians 2:20-21, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. 21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain." Relationship takes the agreement of two and God will not force you to be in a relationship, even with Him. Let Christ live in us so that we would not frustrate the grace of God. Let us live wholly for the Lord. We have the spirit of the living God abiding in us so that we can truly say that the Lord is our help. We are not afraid to stand alone for the truth of God; yet we are not alone because our creator God is standing with us and will never abandon us. Choose Jesus and the relationship that He offers; it's worth it, it guarantees eternal life and not eternal damnation. Right is not always in the majority but it is always right.