Saul and Uzzuh did it Why not us too!

There are so many people who think as long as their heart desires to worship God it doesn't matter how they do it, whether it is His way or their own way, all is good, this is not the truth.

God rejected Saul for doing the sacrifices that Samuel was supposed to do. He ignored God's mandate thinking that his heart was alright because he was going to do something for God that God had given to Samuel to do. God rejected Saul for doing things his own way instead of what God commanded.

Remember when Saul was impatient and did the sacrifices that Samuel was supposed to do? Uzzuh saw the ark of the covenant teetering and reached out his hand to steady and God killed him for it. Uzzuh and Saul are examples of men who thought they could do what they wanted because they were doing something for God.

1 Samuel 13:10-14 "10 But as soon as he finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him and to greet him.

11 But Samuel said, “What have you done?” And Saul said, “Since I saw that the people were scattering from me, and that you did not come at the appointed time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Michmash,

12 I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not asked the favor of the Lord.’ So I worked up the courage and offered the burnt offering.”

13 But Samuel said to Saul, “You have acted foolishly! You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you, for the Lord would now have established your kingdom over Israel forever.

14 But now your kingdom shall not endure. "

God gave the priestly role of sacrificing for the people to Samuel but Saul ignored Gods' way to do things his own way.

Is is any wonder that the churches are full of apostasy, the people seek after pleasure more than God and the nation as a whole is an abomination to the world while the people in it pridefully cry out, "God bless America"? We have no reason to expect more blessings when we disrespectfully use God's blessing to enhance and enlarge our sin.

Saul was told that his nation would not endure because God didn't want a leader of the Lord's people who disregarded the commands of God.

Matthew 7:21-23

I Never Knew You

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"

Our modern culture might say something like this: "but Lord didn't we sing hymns on Christ-mass and also on Easter for you?"

Perhaps God might reply something like, "that wasn't for me it was for your pleasure. You gave yourselves gifts, practiced paganism, praised one another and mostly ignored me." If the holidays were really for Christ then we would stop doing all the ritualistic practices God never commanded.

Some people claim they celebrate Halloween for God, as long as they put God's title to their desired holiday they are all alright because they are doing it for God.

I believe it is an abomination to God for people to take pagan things adding the name of God to satisfy their own desire for man-made rituals that make them feel good.

Ephesians 4:17 "So I say this, and affirm in the Lord, that you are to no longer walk just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their minds,"

What makes us think God would be happy with paganism mixed with the portions of His word that please us? The holidays are not really for God as so many claim, they are for those who enjoy their rituals.

God worked in my heart years ago when I began to question the holiday systems because of the ungodly attitudes I saw from people who were "religious" but had no fruit of God's Spirit.

I questioned God what was it that seemed so "Off." Then He began to expose the paganism associated with these man-made holidays and their implications. It wasn't very long before I lost all interest in them even dreading the season of the year when they emerged once again, year after year, so glad when each one passed.

We can be sure when the secular world loves the holidays there must be something wrong with them. Unsaved people who do not attend church gatherings don't practice the one observance God did give, it is of no interest to them, which is the Lord's supper. This is the only celebration Christ gave to His followers and it is the one most Christians and all seculars' ignore.

"Come let us reason together", is the phrase God gives us, that we might think with our minds according to His principles and commands not our emotions and never according to the culture.

around us.

No one will be born again who does not confess their sinfulness and desire to be changed by Christ.

https://youtube.com/shorts/9sWMrGlBOYQ?si=I6raVMiP5YKD-sxF

Trusting Christ Alone Always

https://youtube.com/shorts/0Xs3_K_VmYE?si=wHBaIQy19OSQS8Do

Faith in Faith is not Faith in Jesus Christ

https://youtube.com/shorts/mOfVzk9weXk?si=COiUubyxqfEpGvxf

Shamed for Obeying God!

Jesus Christ was shamed by the religious leaders of His day for doing good.

The Pharisees accused Christ of healing on the Sabbath. Notice they were concerned more about Him observing a particular day than they were about the salvation and healing He provided people.

This is the mentality of most if not all church gatherings today. The majority of church attendees are more concerned about their rules and rituals than they are about the souls who attend.

Not only do church attendees adhere to rules and rituals their leaders have devised to keep the people under their control, but they also judge others who do not follow their rules.

As born-again believers, we are free to ignore the rules and rituals of men to follow the commands and principles of God. Those who place us under bondage to their idea of "religion" care little about their own character or the character of brothers and sisters in the church, their focus is on outer appearances not inner character.

The believer's life is not based on what others think of us or on outer appearances, it is based on our relationship with Christ. Seeking Him and pondering Him every day so that He can make us into what we should be according to His Word.

When the rules and rituals become the focus while the name of Christ is rarely uttered from the lips of those who attend gatherings, you can be sure there is no love in a "religious" group such as this.

Those who say; "don't judge" the loudest are those who judge the most. Why do I say this: because when not being judged is more important than character growth we know that self is on the throne. Those who fear being judged know there is something to judge about themselves so the discourage God's righteous judgment.

We are all supposed to judge every matter and we are to judge in honesty ourselves so that we can grow in holiness.

1 Corinthians 2:14-16 "…14The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 The spiritual man judges all things, but he himself is not subject to anyone’s judgment. 16“For who has known the mind of the Lord, so as to instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ."

Believers do not judge others to be superior to anyone. We judge everything to come in line with God's principles and we are not to judge others for about things we are also doing.

Matthew 7:1-6

Judging Others

7 “Do not judge, so that you will not be judged.

2 For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.

3 Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?

4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and look, the log is in your own eye?

5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye!

6 “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces."

We are to judge according to God's Word. We do not judge anything according to our own ideas, we judge them according to what God told us.

Colossians 2:21-23

21 “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” 22 (which all refer to things destined to perish with use)—in accordance with the commandments and teachings of man? 23 These are matters which do have the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and humility and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence."

Every rule man proclaims must be evaluated by the principles of God in the Bible. If the rule is good, fine, follow it, but we are sinning when we require others to follow rules God never made while judging the character of someone else based on those man-made rules.

Often we are judged according to the rules of men that God never commanded, even called rebellious because we didn't adhere to them. There are times when we follow man-made rules that are not against God's Word, but other times we see no benefit Spiritually in following the man-made rules so we are free tp ignore them. Those who love us will allow us to choose which rules we follow.

Often those who love their man-made rules are the most judgmental of all and are those who ignore many of God's commands, in other words, they are worldly and hypocritical. Their outer appearance is far more important than character substance.

Matthew 23:5-7

"But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men."

In our modern day we might substitute the word "Rabbi" with "Pastor." The men of our day like to be called a title that elevates them and the congregations love to elevate them because it relieves them of the responsibility of seeking Christ for themselves, praying alone in their homes and hearing from Christ themselves.

Many people will willingly hear from a "pastor" but will not seek Christ themselves. They go to the "pastor" for advice and never bend the knee at home to hear from Christ. I know this because of how embarrassed church attendees become when we speak of Christ outside the church building or when the person speaking of Christ is not the "pastor."

Rules and rituals bring happy feelings of satisfaction but that is all, they do not produce a Christlike character nor do they add anything to our relationship with Christ. He told us to walk by faith, not by sight. The only ritual He gave us was the Lord's supper and the head covering and lack of covering for the men. these things are symbols of the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ and the covering symbolizes the relationship between Christ and His church.

All other rituals are dead and useless except for "feelings" sake. They are not done to honor Christ they are done to satisfy feelings within those who love them.