Ephesians 1

4a According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world

5b according to the good pleasure of his will

7b according to the riches of his grace;

9b according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:

11b according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

19b according to the working of his mighty power,

Please note that I am not addressing the subject matter at hand here but rather trying to understand how it might sound to the lost or even the weak in faith. The tone of speech here can be viewed as favoritism. For those who do not know God at all, or are just getting to know Him for the first time, this might come across as discrimination of the worst kind.

I have spent the last few weeks trying to illuminate God’s character, personality, nature and His relationship with His creation. It is vital to have that proper understanding in order to prevent negative emotions from surfacing. The enemies of the Cross and those weak in the faith will often argue emotionally.

Satan would have you turn your back on God and stop listening. Those negative thoughts delight the enemy. This is why I ask you to know God in all His ways so that you can weigh your thoughts in your studies against your knowledge of who God is in truth.

If your studies lead you to say in your heart, “That doesn’t sound like the God I know!”, re-evaluate your thoughts and pay closer attention to your studies to see God’s person in them.

Exodus 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:

You do not hear this divine name of God all that often. This is my last offering of divine names.

Qanna in the Septuagint: zêlôtês – jealous

Meaning and Derivation: Qanna is translated as “jealous,” “zealous,” or “envy.” The fundamental meaning relates to a marriage relationship. God is depicted as Israel’s husband; He is a jealous God, wanting all our praise for Himself and no one else.

What is the worst thing that can happen in a marriage? Infidelity of course. Worshipping anything but God is infidelity. The worst thing you could be called is an infidel. Sound familiar? The utter hatred towards Christians specifically is rooted in terms of idol worship, infidelity.

It is not true but from an outsider’s point of view, what does that look like? A big house, multiple cars, multiple televisions, bigger, better, smarter, faster, a lack of modesty, a failure in humility, pride, vanity, and a self-centered life.

Now take those outsiders out of the equation. How does your life look to God?

Do you spend enough quiet time with Him alone? Do you read His Word for relationship or for some “other” reason? Isn’t another reason a form of infidelity? Oops, sorry, that was judgmental. Are you judgmental? That belongs to the Lord, not ours to play with.

Do we serve Him? I’ll save you the reading time and not list all the ways we could serve God’s interests. The issue of service should always be in putting God’s interest before our own. Do you serve for any other reason? Is that infidelity? Once again, not for me to judge.

Do you know your calling? That is a tough one. We always lean towards doing things we like to do. God just might train you up to do things you don’t like. Maybe, not my call.

That brings me to this last thought on this subject. Are you in training?

Genesis 14:14b he armed his trained servants

God does not arm the untrained.