I was listening to a Christian broadcast radio show this evening, and it was one of those call-in shows, something like “Ask the Pastor”, where the host took live phone calls and answered questions. I was privy to an excellent Q&A started by a 10-year old boy. The question went something like this: Do angels have free will like men do? And if God loves His angels, why did the angel Satan turn away from God?
The pastor explained how angels and men have their own will and can make choices on their own. He also noted that Satan chose to try to elevate his glory to that of God’s. And that God above all, honors choice. The pastor referred back to scripture and explained that when Satan rebelled, he also turned one-third of the angels in heaven toward rebellion against God, thus showing that angels indeed do have a choice…just like every human has a choice.
This got me thinking: Everything in creation is under the law of God in one way or another. His majesty is evident in His creation: the laws of physics, the laws of the universe, the laws of thermodynamics, the laws of light and energy, the laws of life and all of its processes. The only thing not under the law of God is choice. And if you think about it, this is what makes choice valuable…to God! The choice to love God is precious in His sight; if God had made us without this choice and we “automatically” loved God, then there would be no intrinsic or pure value in it for Him! So our choice to love God, brings Him glory and is the supreme desire of His heart. Do you believe that?
The one power that we all have, even despite God’s omnipotence, is our choice. The choice to love God, the choice to seek His face, the choice to accept the sacrifice and resurrection of the Son of Man, the choice to forgive, and our choice to live in the curse or to live in the blessing. God will not intervene in this extremely mysterious and powerful human affair. God loves us so very much, that He has done everything that He possibly can do to draw us to that sought after choice of Him! But He will not tread on your personal choices. They are your choices and yours alone. And God honors a persons right to choose…even to death…
We all need to understand this biblical principle: God created man to be not just another creation, but rather a prized creation! He created us to be companions, friends (even Jesus tells us this), and we are even created in His image. We are special…I don’t pretend to understand this or even fathom the immense implications…but we are His hearts desire! That is ridiculously, overwhelmingly, unapproachably, and undeniably the most profound part of true wisdom. Do we even understand the incredible beauty in this gift? No. Do we grasp the magnitude of this undeniable Truth? No. The fact remains, the divine and eternal beauty of it is quite simply that the choice of loving God is His hearts desire. Did you know that you personally can bless God? We all know and read about and hopefully have experienced God blessing us, but do we even stop to recognize that we have the supernatural ability to bless the God of the universe? Think about that my friend. It is true, as Scripture testifies, as Christ and the Holy Spirit testify, and as the forefathers of our church testify: choosing God and His love is the only real choice in life; because without Him, it really isn’t life at all. Do you choose Him or have you chosen Him? You can execute the most powerful force in the universe today and everyday by choosing the One that seeks and desires your heart above all else. We love Him because He first loved us, and He beckons us to honor Him because He first honored us! How does He honor us? He honors us by making us His first choice for relationship, friendship, and love. That is mind-boggling; isn’t it?
A Simple Prayer of Worship:
Dear God! We choose You today. We honor You as You have honored us! We reach out to You as You reach out to us in love. How amazing and loving and merciful You are God! Regardless of how unworthy we feel to do so, we bless You and love You back Holy Father!
disciplegideon 