God's Will And Hardened Hearts

The Lord answered Moses, "See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your brother will be your prophet. You must say whatever I command you; then Aaron your brother must declare it to Pharaoh so that he will let the Israelites go from his land. But I will harden Pharaoh's heart and multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt. Pharaoh will not listen to you, but I will put my hand into Egypt and bring the military divisions of my people the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the Israelites from among them." (Exodus 7:1-5 CSB)

So Joshua took all this land - the hill country, all the Negev, all the land of Goshen, the foothills, the Arabah, and the hill country of Israel with its foothills - from Mount Halak, which ascends to Seir, as far as Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon at the foot of Mount Hermon. He captured all their kings and struck them down, putting them to death. Joshua waged war with all these kings for a long time. No city made peace with the Israelites except the Hivites who inhabited Gibeon; all of them were taken in battle. For it was the Lord's intention to harden their hearts, so that they would engage Israel in battle, be completely destroyed without mercy, and be annihilated, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. (Joshua 11:16-20 CSB)

Did God ask Moses to tell a lie when He asked Moses to ask the Pharaoh for a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to God? No. If the Pharaoh had accepted the request, it would be so. But it was God's will that the Israelites were to leave Egypt. So God hardened the Pharaoh's heart and he did not accept the request. Finally after the death of all the first born in Egypt, the Pharaoh expelled all the Israelites from his land.

Likewise when the Jews were offered about 50% of Palestine in 1947 by the United Nations, they accepted. If the Arabs had also accepted it, it would be so. But it is God's will that the Jews are to get all of Palestine. He stated it in the Bible and the Koran. So He hardened the hearts of the Arabs, who now called themselves Palestinians, to fight both the Jews and Allah, until they are driven out of the land.

The LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble. (Proverbs 16:4 ESV)

Hirah the Adullamite

Later Judah asked his friend Hirah the Adullamite to take the young goat to the woman and to pick up the things he had given her as his guarantee. But Hirah couldn't find her. 21 So he asked the men who lived there, "Where can I find the shrine prostitute who was sitting beside the road at the entrance to Enaim?"
"We've never had a shrine prostitute here," they replied.
So Hirah returned to Judah and told him, "I couldn't find her anywhere, and the men of the village claim they've never had a shrine prostitute there."
"Then let her keep the things I gave her," Judah said. "I sent the young goat as we agreed, but you couldn't find her. We'd be the laughingstock of the village if we went back again to look for her." (Genesis 38:20-23 NLT)

We have brothers and we also have friends. Sometimes we share things with our friends that we do not share with brothers.

Judah had a friend named Hirah the Adullamite. After Judah went into what he thought was a prostitute, he got his friend Hirah the Adullamite to help him to send the payment.

About three months later, Judah was told, "Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has acted like a prostitute. And now, because of this, she's pregnant."
"Bring her out, and let her be burned!" Judah demanded.
But as they were taking her out to kill her, she sent this message to her father-in-law: "The man who owns these things made me pregnant. Look closely. Whose seal and cord and walking stick are these?"
Judah recognized them immediately and said, "She is more righteous than I am, because I didn't arrange for her to marry my son Shelah." And Judah never slept with Tamar again.
When the time came for Tamar to give birth, it was discovered that she was carrying twins. While she was in labor, one of the babies reached out his hand. The midwife grabbed it and tied a scarlet string around the child's wrist, announcing, "This one came out first." But then he pulled back his hand, and out came his brother! "What!" the midwife exclaimed. "How did you break out first?" So he was named Perez. Then the baby with the scarlet string on his wrist was born, and he was named Zerah. (Genesis 38:24-30 NLT)

Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah (whose mother was Tamar). Perez was the father of Hezron. Hezron was the father of Ram. (Matthew 1:3 NLT)

Taking Up The Cross And Putting On Christ's Yoke

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it. (Matthew 16:24-25 CSB)

Take up my yoke and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:29-30 CSB)

Some Christians believe that there are two categories of Christians, the ordinary believers and disciples. The ordinary believers are those who believe in Jesus and got saved but may not go to church or read the Bible. Disciples take religion seriously. They go to church, read the Bible and preach the good news. They are willing to suffer for Christ. So believers put on Christ's easy yoke while disciples take up their crosses.

Take Up Your Cross And Take My Yoke

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it. (Matthew 16:24-25 CSB)

Take up my yoke and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:29-30 CSB)

Following Jesus is both difficult and easy. We have to take up our cross, which is difficult, and put on His yoke, which is easy. Losing our life is difficult. But if we do not lose our temporal life, how can we gain our eternal life?

God Always Has Our Good In His Mind - 3

And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. (Hebrews 11:6 NLT)

We must always believe that God is good to us. This is fundamental in our relationship with God.

Whether it is Adam and Eve in a newly created, perfect and sinless world, or we in the current imperfect sinful world, or our descendants in a future restored sinless world in the coming millennium rule of Christ, we have to believe that God always has our good in His mind.

Past
But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:4-5 ESV)
Adam and Eve could not believe that God had their good in His mind. They chose to believe in the serpent who told them that God wanted to prevent them from becoming like God. Thus their unbelief caused sin to enter the world.

Present
We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28 CSB)
Today we live in an imperfect world, where there is good in bad and bad in good. We have to believe by faith that all the things that happened to us, whether good or bad, is for our good.

Future
When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the nations which are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. (Revelation 20:7-8 NASB)
In the near future, the Anointed One will return to earth to rule for a thousand years in a restored perfect and sinless world with Satan locked in the bottomless pit and a whole generation will grow up without knowing what sin is. Then Satan will be released after a thousand years. It will then be the turn of the generation who know not sin to decide if God has their good in His mind.

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11 BSB)

If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?" (Luke 11:13 CSB)

How God Prove Himself To Be God

Indeed, ask now from one end of the heavens to the other about the days that long preceded you, from the day that God created man on earth: Has anything as great as this ever happened or been reported? Has a people ever heard the voice of God speaking out of the fire, as you have, and lived? Or has any god tried to take as his own a nation out of another nation - by trials, signs, wonders, and war, by a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors - as the LORD your God did for you in Egypt, before your eyes? You were shown these things so that you would know that the LORD is God; there is no other besides Him. (Deuteronomy 4:32-35 BSB)

How does God prove Himself to be God? God proved that He is God by establishing the nation of Israel and foretelling their history in His revelation to His prophets. Anyone can write a book, but only God can create a nation and tell its history in advance.

It is impossible or difficult for men to prove God's existence. The finite cannot prove the infinite. The temporal cannot prove the eternal. The creature cannot prove the creator. Thus only God can provide His own proof that He is God.

Who is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and set it before me, since I appointed an ancient people. Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen. (Isaiah 44:7 ESV)

Everything I prophesied has come true, and now I will prophesy again. I will tell you the future before it happens." (Isaiah 42:9 NLT)

Tell us the coming events, then we will know that you are gods. Indeed, do something good or bad, then we will be in awe when we see it. (Isaiah 41:23 CSB)

All the nations gather together, and the peoples assemble. Who among them can declare this, and show us the former things? Let them bring their witnesses to prove them right, and let them hear and say, It is true. (Isaiah 43:9 ESV)

Moving Mountains - Bible versus Chinese Idiom Story

Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. (Mark 11:23 ESV)

The Bible says that faith can move mountains (Matthew 17:20, Matthew 21:21, Mark 11:23).

Now there is also a Chinese idiom story called "A Foolish Old Man Moves Mountains (愚公移山)" taken from 《列子·湯問》.

Here is an English translation quoted from Chinese Idiom Story - 愚公移山:

QUOTE
Once upon a time, there were two large mountains - Taihang Mountain and Wangwu Mountain, which sat in front of an old man Yu's house. Because the mountains blocked the way, the Yu's families had to walk many extra miles in order to go out. One day, Yu called together the whole family to discuss removing the mountains. His wife shook her head and said, "Where are we going to put the earth and sand we dug out?" The others said, "We can dump it in the sea."

The next day in the early morning, Yu began digging the mountain with his families. An old man called Zhi Sou (智叟) saw them working and laughed: "Mr. Fool, you're so old and weak. Why do you want to remove the mountains? You won't be able to remove it even before you die!" Yu smiled and said, "Your mind is so stubborn and old. If I die, there will be my sons. Sons will have grandsons and grandsons will have sons. There will be no end, but the mountain will not grow. As time goes on, the mountains will be removed one day!" Zhi Sou said nothing and left.
UNQUOTE

Which way is more credible to you? The Bible's faith in God or the Chinese idiom story's faith in men?

Have you seen mountains jumping into the sea? I have never. The Bible's method seems incredible. At least the Chinese idiom story provide a practical method of digging the mountain bit by bit. Both are unlikely to succeed but there may be a fluke chance that the foolish old man's descendants may finish the job.

Then we look at history. We look at the Bible-based European civilization and the humanistic Chinese civilization. Science and all the benefits of modern civilisation came from Europe, not China. How do you explain that?

There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. (Proverbs 14:12 ESV, BSB, HCSB)