God is the God of Many Atributes

Elijah used sarcasm when he rebuked the priests of Baal. He said; "whats the matter are your gods sleeping", when he challenged them with His miracles from God that their god could not do.

It is appropriate at times to use sarcasm to show someone how foolish is a false judgment or belief system.

We have been pummelled these days with many false teachers and doctrines in the church that are causing people to think more like the world than Christ.

1 Kings 18:26-28 "…26 And they took the bull that was given them, prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, shouting, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no sound, and no one answered as they leaped around the altar they had made. 27 At noon Elijah began to taunt them, saying, “Shout louder, for he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or occupied, or on a journey. Perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened!” 28 So they shouted louder and cut themselves with knives and lances, as was their custom, until the blood gushed over them.…"

Modern Christianity suggests that because God is a God of love that He is nothing else except that. God is the God of many things and one of them is justice. To show mercy to the wicked man who is unrepentant would be unloving to the one the wicked man harmed.

To require the harmed person to remain friends with the unrepentant is to punish the harmed one while coddling the one who has harmed not only that but to coddle the perpetrator of sin is to offend our Holy God.

Proverbs 6:12-19

"A worthless person, a wicked man, Walks with a perverse mouth; He winks with his eyes, He shuffles his feet, He points with his fingers; Perversity is in his heart, He devises evil continually, He sows discord. Therefore his calamity shall come suddenly; Suddenly he shall be broken without remedy. These six things the LORD hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren."

When the wicked man has been given the gospel and refused it we are to walk away and leave the results of our conversation to God. We are not responsible to try to convince someone with good sounding arguments to entice them to trust in Christ except and if they want to listen.

Romans 10:17

"17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

It is God's word we use through the power of the Holy Spirit and it is the work of God on that person to convince or leave alone. God knows exactly what a resistant unbeliever needs we do not.

Before a man can trust in Christ He must want to hear the truth. When someone does not want to hear we are to walk on down the road to someone else who might want to hear.

We find out if someone wants to hear when we begin to speak. The first rejection is enough for us to walk on. Then God may send someone else but our job is finished unless the person comes back and this time wants to hear more.

We are never to fight with unbelievers, this is a foolish tactic to intimidate others. We are not to force others in the church to listen to us when there is a disagreement. We are to act respectfully, share our wisdom and walk on if they don't want to hear.

Forcing someone through intimidation or punishment never changes a heart. It may cause someone to pretend to change their mind to avoid being treated rudely, but it never changes a heart.

Hearts are changed by Christ when He changes it in response to a person's desire to know the truth. God will never change a heart against a person's will.

Ephesians 2:1-10

1"And you were dead in the trespasses and sins

2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—

3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,

5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—

6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."