Some verses i ran across and some rants

I would like to share some verses and passages that stood out to me this morning while perusing the Bible:

Malachi 2:13-17
And this is the second thing you do:
You cover the altar of the LORD with tears,
With weeping and crying;
So He does not regard the offering anymore,
Nor receive it with goodwill from your hands.
14 Yet you say, “For what reason?”
Because the LORD has been witness
Between you and the wife of your youth,
With whom you have dealt treacherously;
Yet she is your companion
And your wife by covenant.
15 But did He not make them one,
Having a remnant of the Spirit?
And why one?
He seeks godly offspring.
Therefore take heed to your spirit,
And let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth.
16 “ For the LORD God of Israel says
That He hates divorce,
For it covers one’s garment with violence,”
Says the LORD of hosts.

“ Therefore take heed to your spirit,
That you do not deal treacherously.”
17 You have wearied the LORD with your words;
Yet you say,

“ In what way have we wearied Him?”
In that you say,

“ Everyone who does evil
Is good in the sight of the LORD,
And He delights in them,”
Or, “Where is the God of justice?”

God takes divorce very seriously...in this society where the divorce rate among Christians is equal to that of non believers, people would do well to heed what the Lord says He feels toward divorce.


1 Peter 3:7-9
7 You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered. 8To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; 9not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing.

Men, you better be careful to treat your wives rightly, or else your prayers will be hindered. When we get into tiffs with other believers (especially over doctrinal issues), instead of insulting them back when they insult us, we are to share words of blessing to them instead.


1 Timothy 1:5-7
But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.6For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion, 7wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions.

For some reason, i equate this verse with people who spend all their time arguing with others over doctrine or minor things like what Bible translation one reads, so much so that there is no instruction in love...only quarreling, dissension, and insults over minor, non-soteriological doctrinal lines. I've been in some knock-down drag out conversations with other believers over such minor Biblical doctrines and details, that I realized how much all parties involved really missed the big picture. Sometimes we can be so microscopic about certain doctrines we adhere to, that we miss the fact that although another fellow believer might not adhere to that exact doctrine (again, I'm not talking about the major doctrines dealing with salvation and who God is, those, in my opinion, fall under the command to combat false teachings) we do, they're still our brother/sister in Christ. Or we may be so adamant about swaying other believers to adhere to our own doctrinal views, that we ignore those sins in our lives that are hindering our relationship with the Lord.

I think many times believers create walls around themselves and only fellowship with those other believers who think the exact way they do on all doctrines, that they isolate and alienate others who may have different views of the same doctrine, but are, regardless, true believers and followers of Jesus Christ. This doesn't even stay in the realm of doctrine...Christians create walls around their cliques in regards to if someone dresses "nicely" in church or if they dress casually, those who have a glass of wine over dinner and those who choose to abstain from all alcohol, whether one favors a particular English translation of the Bible over another, or we even judge a believer only according to what church they go to. Sadly, these types of petty issues are creating such deep dividing lines among the body of Christ, that we spend more time fighting other believers over these minor things than we do going out and preaching the Word to the lost...or encouraging other discouraged believers in the Lord to continue running the race (we choose to tear them down instead if they don't believe in say "once saved always saved")....or even loving each other in the church as the Lord commands us so often in His Word. I've seen Calvinists fight non-Calvinists to the point of pure hate speech pouring out of their mouths toward those believers who didn't adhere to the full TULIP. I've seen Baptists fight non-denominational Christians over the issue of whether the gifts of the Spirit are still applicable to today so much so that both parties are telling each other they're not truly believers...these accusations being based just on that one issue!

You see what i mean by getting so passionate over minor doctrinal issues and other issues that we become "microscopic" in our dealings with the body of Christ? Here are our neighbors and even our own family members possibly on their way to hell, and all we believers can do is fight amongst ourselves. Sometimes we miss the big picture. Does God care whether we go to church in dress shoes or sandals? Or does He care more that we carry out the Great Commission. Does God care more if we believe in limited or unlimited atonement? Or is He more concerned that we develop His love and passion for the lost and those who're truly in need of Him.


2 Timothy 2:19, 22-26
19Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, "The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to abstain from wickedness." 22Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. 23But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels. 24The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, 25with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth,26and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.

Those who claim to be Christians, are to abstain from sinfulness...we are not to act as the world does, as unbelievers do. We are sanctified, set apart in Christ, thus we need to act that way. Let's stick with the Truths that are spelled out in God's Word instead of speculating on those things which are not in God's Word and without which we cannot possibly know. When we run across opposition, we are to be kind (not argumentative), patient, and gentle realizing that it is the Lord who grants repentance not any amount of cajoling and debate on our part.


Titus 1:15-16
To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled. 16They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for any good deed.

Those who profess to know God will think, speak, and act in godly manners. If someone professes to know God and yet thinks, speaks, and acts like those who do not know God, then they do not truly know God (by their deeds they deny Him). This passage calls such people disobedient and worthless. Truly by someone's fruit, people can know if they truly know and love God as they claim. Are we consistently bearing good fruit, or are we consistently bearing bad fruit?


Titus 3:3-7; 10-11
For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another.4But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, 5He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 10Reject a factious man after a first and second warning, 11knowing that such a man is perverted and is sinning, being self-condemned.

We are not saved by any "good" deeds we do, but only by God's mercy. He regenerates and renews us through the Holy Spirit (which dwells within every true believer). The indwelling Holy Spirit can only be attained through belief in Jesus Christ. Because of the blood of Jesus and His gift to us of the Holy Spirit, we have the hope of eternal life. Those in the church who set out to create factions (cliques, rifts) among believers, are said to be living in sin. If after being warned, these people continue in their dissentious ways, they are to be kicked out of the fellowship of believers. It says here such people are condemned (again this is reminding me of people who create cliques and rifts in the body of Christ according to their own doctrines and/or beliefs that are not touched on in the Bible [i.e. what Bible version is the true Word of God, whether or not people should "dress up" to go to church..so on and so forth]). If these personal beliefs/convictions ARE touched on in the Bible, such dissentious people claim one must adhere to their personal convictions or else they are unsaved (even though God Himself doesn't put those particular distinctions on the sheep or goats in His Word). I guess you could call that legalism, but to an extreme.


1 Peter 1:14-17
As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, 15but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior;16because it is written, "YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY."17If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth

If we consider ourselves to be children of God, we are not to live according to the sinful nature, but we are to be holy (set apart from the world) in ALL our behavior. Why? Because if we claim to be children of a holy God, then we should be holy if only for the fact that God is holy. If we claim God as our Father, we need to be like our Father. We are to treat the Lord with reverence and awe as He rightly deserves...and as such we wouldn't be so quick to sin if we respect and reverence the One we claim to follow as One who is deserving of holy lifestyles and behavior on our part.