Is God More Tolerant Than He Used to Be?

June 7, 2015 (6/27/10)

Is God More Tolerant Than He Used To Be?                      NOTES NOT EDITED

2Sam. 6:1-8

SIS: Many people live as if God has changed His standards in regard to sin, but He has not.

If you are somewhere near 60 years of age, you will recognize this picture [SLIDE: JENNER ON WHEATIES BOX].  This is a picture of Bruce Jenner on the coveted, Wheaties Box.  After the 1976 Winter Olympics, Jenner was dubbed the World’s Greatest Athlete, after setting new records and gaining the gold medal in the Decathlon.  Today, his record stood until 1991 (it was reevaluated after a change in the scoring tables by the Olympic Committee in 1985).  Jenner’s record in the Decathlon still ranks 25^th forty years later.

Bruce Jenner made history in 1976.  He made history again in 2016 at the age of 65.  Here is a recent picture of Jenner on the cover of Vanity Fair magazine [SLIDE].  I am sure you noticed quite a “transformation.”  Jenner is undergoing treatment know as “gender reassignment therapy” and everything that goes with it.  He now wants to be a she and the media has exploded.

Recently, the famed tennis star of a generation ago, Billie Jean King, herself a lesbian, was quoted in a headline saying, “Billie Jean King says Caitlyn Jenner helps transgender tolerance.”

People have reacted in various ways to Jenner’s transformation.  Disgust would be one reaction.  Adoration, such as with Billie Jean King, would be another.  Apathy is the reaction of many—the public just doesn’t care.  For many, this is just one more episode in a ridiculous episode of “Keeping Up With the Kardasians.” 

I believe there is something more to this story that begs for commentary from the pulpits of America.  I don’t support joking about it—though it almost begs for comedic input.  I certainly do not support any kind of hostility toward those that are caught up in the craze to blur gender lines and traditional values regarding sexuality.  But, if God exists, and if God has revealed Himself in the Bible, and if in that revelation God calls Jenner’s situation, “an abomination,” and if such an abomination would lead to eternal condemnation by God, then I believe anybody who loves God and is commanded to love others, must say something.  Billie Jean King praised Jenner for raising “tolerance” for transgender and homosexual issues. 

But, has God become “tolerant” of such behavior.  God calls this new “tolerance” for sexual sin, “an abomination” (Lev. 20:13) and describes it as “unnatural and shameless” (Rom. 1:27).  All those that practice such sins, according to God, will spend eternity in the punishment of the “lake of fire” (Rev. 21:8).  If God exists, then His standard of truth is what matters—not man’s preferences.

The new political “buzz word” in the late 20^th century to now has been, “tolerance.”  Tolerance means a “fair, objective, and permissive attitude toward opinions, beliefs, and practices that differ from one's own.”  Notice the words “permissive attitude” stuffed in the middle of this Dictionary.com definition.  Fairness and objectivity are one thing, permissiveness is something else.  Tolerance has come to mean full acceptance of, or even promotion of a full range of immoral issues.  Society calls for a “permissive attitude” in regard to divorce,

lying, witchcraft, homosexuality, abortion on demand, and a whole litany of other issues.  Society is most certainly more “tolerant” of what once was frowned upon, or even considered “deviant.”

But, has God’s attitude toward such evils changed?  Has God become more tolerant?  Even so-called Christian theologians have speak of “two Gods” in the Bible:  the mean, demanding, legalistic God of the O.T. versus the kind, always positive, always loving God of the N.T., which never displays anything that might look like, “judgment.”  The oft-misquoted verse, “Judge not lest ye be judged” (Mt. 7:1-3)” is ubiquitous in online discussions.

With the wand of tolerance People have conjured a “safer” God, more manageable God than the Holy God, Yahweh--but God has not changed.

There are many, many examples in the O.T. (as well as new) demonstrating the udder, and even terrifying holiness of Yahweh.  Let us read one such reference to give context to our study this morning:

^{2 Sam 6:1-86}  David again brought together out of Israel chosen men, thirty thousand in all. 2 He and all his men set out from Baalah of Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the Name, the name of the LORD Almighty, who is enthroned between the cherubim that are on the ark. 3 They set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new cart 4 with the ark of God on it, and Ahio was walking in front of it. 5 David and the whole house of Israel were celebrating with all their might before the LORD, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, sistrums and cymbals.  6 When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled. 7 The LORD's anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down and he died there beside the ark of God.  8 Then David was angry because the LORD's wrath had broken out against Uzzah, and to this day that place is called Perez Uzzah. 

Let us observe something from this text:  Uzzah was not killed because of his good intentions, but because of his violation of God's laws.  Good intentions combined with wilfull ignorance leads to tragedy.  God's decrees are commands, not suggestions.  And they are eternal.  Good intentions are no excuse for bad theology!

1.  God’s Nature Never Changes (Mal. 3:6; James 1:17)

^Mal.3:6 “I the Lord do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. ⁷ Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty

^{Jam 1:17} Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Seen from a logical viewpoint, there are several reasons why it is impossible for God to change. First, if anything changes it must do so in some chronological order. There must be a point in time before the change and a point in time after the change. Therefore, for change to take place it must happen within the constraints of time; however, God is eternal and exists outside of the constraints of time (Psalm 33:11; Psalm 41:13; Psalm 90:2-4; John 17:5; 2 Timothy 1:9).

Second, if anything changes it must change for the better or the worse, because a change that makes no difference is not a change. For change to take place, either something that is needed is added, which is a change for the better, or something that is needed is lost, which is a change for the worse. But since God is perfect, He does not need anything. Therefore, He cannot change for the better. If God were to lose something He would not be perfect; therefore, He cannot change for the worse.

Third, when someone changes his/her mind, it is often because new information has come to light that was not previously known, or the circumstances have changed that require a different kind of attitude or action. Because God is omniscient, He cannot learn something new that He did not already know. So, when the Bible speaks of God changing His mind, it must be understood that the circumstance or situation has changed, not God. So when Exodus 32:14 and 1 Samuel 15:11-29 talk about God changing His mind, it is simply describing a change of dispensation, and outward dealings, toward man.

2.  His Truth Never Changes (Isa. 40:8; Ps. 119:89,152; Mt. 5:18)

The Christian concept of truth is found in the word, "alētheia," which is Christianized from classical Greek by the Apostles' undestanding of 'emeth.  The common foundation shared between the words is the idea of a "sure foundation."  Alētheia translates the idea of "reality as opposed to something that is merely apparent.  For example, in classical Greek thinking, a mirage is not alētheia, because it is not real.  The Hebraic idea of "truth" ('emeth) focuses upon the "reliability of an idea or thing."  Truth is that which is "trustworthy," rather than “treachorus.”

 

With these two ideas together we get the Christian concept of truth being that which corresponds to reality, and is therefore completely reliable.  This is the sense of "absolute" truth, as opposed to "relative truth."  That which is only relative cannot be changeless and therefore is unreliable.

The measure for "truth" is God's Word.  2 Samuel 7:28 expresses this idea: ⁷ “O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, you have revealed this to your servant, saying, ‘I will build a house for you.’ So your servant has found courage to offer you this prayer. ²⁸ O Sovereign Lord, you are God! Your words are trustworthy ('emeth, true).

In the Biblical sense of the word, truth, there can be only one of two measures of truth. One, is to make man and his wisdom the foundation for truth.  The other is to make God and His eternal Word the measure of truth.  There is no middle option. Here is how the Word states the matter:

Isa 40:8  The grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of our God stands forever."

Ps 119:89 Your word, O LORD, is eternal;

it stands firm in the heavens.

Ps 119:152 Long ago I learned from your statutes

that you established them to last forever.

Mt. 5:18  ⁸ I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

I think it is telling that people will accept the idea of "relative truth" very readily when speaking of religion and eternal matters, but would never "tolerate" the use of relative truth in other areas of life.

How long would you continue to fly with an airline whose motto was "Your Aircraft Is Designed And maintained by Persons Who Believe Safety is "Relative."

 How excited would you be about going under the scalpel of a surgeon who told you: "You know, I never bothered much with anatomy in Med school, since all medical truth is relative anyway"?

How long would you leave your child in a school where the chemistry teacher said to her, "You're free to drink from either that container of H2O or that beaker of H2SO4. After all, they're both clear liquids and we're only talking about a couple of molecules here or there, so imbibe whatever you prefer"?

The fact of the matter is that "truth really matters."  It cannot be subject to change at the whim of man.  It must--and is--solidly founded in the timeless character of God as revealed in His Word.

3.  His Standards Never Change (Lev. 11:44-45; 1Pe. 1:14-16)

^{Lev 11:44-45} I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves about on the ground. ⁴⁵I am the LORD who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.

^{1 Peter 1:14-16}  As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."

Justice demands a foundational standard.  For example, the punishments for “stealing,” for example, may be different depending upon the situation—but the standard is the same.  A toddler takes a toy – there is a gentle scolding.  A teen steals a candy bar – there is punishment and restitution. An adult steals a car –  the result is prison.

Someone has said that a person trying to accept the view of everyone is like man standing in the middle of the road: he likely will get hit from cars incoming in both directions.

Some erroneously believe that grace means, "free from the law to do as I please."  Grace actually means, "free from the law so I can please God."  The difference between these two approaches to God's standard is the difference between eternal hell and eternal heaven.

The Bible teaches "imputed righteousness." This means that salvation involves not only the "removal" of the penalty of sin, but the "imputation" of Christ's righteousness which gives us the power to have an ever increasing level of victory over sin.  Christ did not die to make us "neutral" in the eyes of God, but to make us "righteous"--that is, living right--in the eyes of God.  Salvation involves both a "minus" and a "plus”—subtraction AND addition.

God REQUIRES, we continue in the grace and righteousness He bestowed upon us in Christ at salvation.  This is called "sanctification.

4.  His Judgment Never Changes (Ez. 18:19-20; Ro. 6:23)

^{Ezek 18:20}  The soul who sins is the one who will die.

^{Rom 6:23} For the wages of sin is death,

Some folk are betting on God Changing his mind on judgment.

I read once of a JUDGE upon the close of a trial saying to the newly accused man:  “That’ll be 30 years in prison.” The MAN protested, “But, Judge.  I won’t live that long.” The JUDGE kindly responded: “Well son, just do what you can.”

In the days of the westward expansion in north America, when men saw that a prairie fire was coming, what would they do? There was no way for them to outrun it or guess the safe route out. The pioneers took a match, burned the grass in a designated area around them, and then they would take their stand in the burned area and be safe from the threatening prairie fire. As the roar of the flames approached, they would not be afraid. Even as the ocean of fire surged around them there was no fear, because fire had already passed over the place where they stood.  Christians escape judgment NOT BECAUSE God lowered His standard of holiness, but because, in Christ, God fulfilled His standard of holiness.

Some people are counting on God changing His mind about the penalty for sin at the judgment.  It will not be so.  There is no escaping the judgment. There is only one safe place to stand and that is where the match of God's judgment has been struck: The foot of the cross.

5.  His Mercy Never Changes (Ps. 103:11-12; Ro. 6:23)

What is mercy?  The application of God's love in place of God's wrath based upon Christ's sacrifice.

^{Ps 103:11-12, 17} For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great is his love for those who fear him; 12 as far as the east is from the west,so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

...............................................

17 but from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children—

Rom 6:23  the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Titus 3:4-6  ⁴ But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, ⁵ he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.

A politician received a campaign portrait back from photographer.  “This picture does not do me justice.”  Photographer: “Sir, with a face like yours you don’t need justice – you need mercy!”

Emperor Napoleon was a feared military general.  On one occasion a mother pleaded for mercy for her son who had disgraced himself in battle.  Napoleon barked, “But your son does not deserve mercy.”  Mother: “It would not be mercy if he deserved it, and mercy is what I ask.”  Napoleon: “Then I will give him mercy.”

If our Pledge of Allegiance were to truly reflect being “One Nation Under God,” it would need to be amended slightly.  Instead of the ending, “with liberty and justice for all,” the ending, “with liberty and mercy for all” might better reflect mankind’s true need.

Mercy does not mean that God will ignore sin.  Mercy is the nature of God put into actions to provide payment for our sin.  Mercy is love in action.

Modern man prefers a God that is more “tolerant of evil” than Yahweh, the God of the Bible.  This makes it more comfortable for people to sit on the fence in regard to moral matters.  A mythical story is told of a girl at a Christian summer camp.  She was not a believer.  She was not “against” Christianity, but she was not “for” Christianity either.  She was content to “sit on the fence.”  Time passed and the children all had died.  Judgment Day arrived for each of them.  Jesus came for those that had accepted Him, and had made a choice to follow Him.  They entered into Heaven with Jesus.  Satan came for those who had not accepted Jesus.  That group included the young girl who was content to “sit on the fence.”  The girl protested strongly, “But, I did not take either side.  I was tolerant of all views.  I stayed on the fence.”  Satan, “That’s right.  But I own the fence!”

The latest political buzz word in our culture is tolerance.  Many, including many who call themselves, Christian, act as if God has somehow become “more tolerant of sin than He used to be.” This is a grievous error, and eternal miscalculation.  God has not changed his mind on sin.  God has not changed His standards for holy living.  God has not changed the judgment that will surely come for all who live in rebellion.  When it comes to living a holy, acceptable life in the eyes of the Lord – we cannot put our hope in the lie that God is more tolerant than he used to be.  In fact, in this day of grace – the standard for righteousness is even higher.  God’s standard is Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ never changes:

“He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Heb. 13:8)

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