How to Stop Questioning What God Says in His Word
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Since the beginning of time, people have been questioning what God says!
They questioned His Word when it was spoken directly to them and we question it today as we read and study the Word.
We love to quote motivational and encouraging verses because they feel good to us, but sometimes we struggle with the Word when it appears to be in contrast to what WE want or what WE feel or what WE believe we know about the Lord.
Learn how questioning what the Lord says can lead to treading into dangerous territory, as well as who is leading you there!
Questioning God – Did God Really Say…?
As I mentioned, calling God’s Word into question has been going on since the Garden of Eden.
In Genesis 2:15-17 we read:
“Then Adonai Elohim took the man and gave him rest in the Garden of Eden in order to cultivate and watch over it. Then Adonai Elohim commanded the man saying, ‘From all the trees of the garden you are most welcome to eat. But of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil you must not eat. For when you eat from it, you most assuredly will die!'”
tlv
So we see that Adam and Eve were given the Garden of Eden and all that it afforded them. All the blessings of the Lord were theirs, including the very presence of Adonai! Genesis tells us the Lord walked in the garden in the cool of the day (Genesis 3:8) and spoke with them.
They were given ONE restriction! God gave them the fullness of His blessings with ONE restriction. Mankind and the Lord in relationship with one another! Paradise!
But an enemy was in the midst of the garden. The serpent wasn’t having any of this!
In Genesis 3:1 we read:
“But the serpent was shrewder than any animal of the field that Adonai Elohim made. So it said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from all the trees of the garden’?”
tlv
The enemy took the one thing mankind was restricted from and made them call into question God’s Word.
Did God REALLY say that you must not eat from that tree??? Are you SURE that is what He said? Surely a God who wants to give you all things wouldn’t keep that one thing from you so if He DID then it had to be because He wants to keep you from being as powerful as He is! He is trying to keep something good from you!
“God is withholding power from you! He is withholding good from you! God says don’t touch that tree because He is keeping better things from you! And you can have it all if you just don’t listen to Him!”
And that serpent hasn’t stopped that message, even today! “God is withholding something from you”, “God doesn’t want you to be happy”, “God would rather bless that other person than you”. The lies have persisted for millenia.
We Still Question God’s Word Today
People will always question whether or not what the Word says is interpreted correctly in an effort to justify certain actions or behaviors. When they come across a verse that seems to indicate what they are doing is wrong they will say “Well, doesn’t that really mean….?” or “Well that is just a matter of interpretation and can mean different things.”
We begin to create Scripture of our own making so that we can interpret it any way we like so it fits into whatever box we want to put God in.
After all, we often don’t want to make uncomfortable changes in our lives. We don’t want to give up things we enjoy! So GOD must be wrong, not us.
God commands us not to create a god in our own image and when we interpret scripture in a way that suits our situation, we are saying “To me, God is….” and creating a god of our own making; a god who is ok with what we do.
TO ME it says…
TO ME God is…
TO ME it means…
These are all idols as much as if we erected a golden calf in our own living room! We’ve created a god that suits us and we worship THAT one instead of the One who says “I am Hashem your God!” (Exodus 20:2)
The Serpent in Our Garden
When we are tempted, when we are faced with decisions in life, when we are struggling with sin, the serpent in our garden whispers to us and asks us if the Word is REALLY what God meant or are we misinterpreting it somehow and if we ARE getting it right, then God must be afraid of us becoming too powerful for Him somehow!
It is a lie the enemy has used since creation and with good reason; it’s an effective one.
All along the enemy’s mantle are metaphorical trophies with human faces for each and every God-Follower he has led astray and he has a spot dusted off for yours too.
You are his prize! Don’t let him have you! Take every thought captive!
Every time he can lead you further away from the Lord, every time he can make you question the Word, every time he can distract you with lies, he dusts off that mantle as he chips away at your faith!
He WANTS you to call into question everything in God’s Word because that reveals to you exactly who he is!
All along the enemy's mantle are metaphorical trophies with human faces for each and every God-Follower he has led astray and he has a spot dusted off for yours too. Share on XEve’s name in Hebrew is Chava. The root of this name is Chaya, meaning ‘living’. The Hebrew phrase “l’chaim” means “to life” with “chaim” being from that same root word.
In Genesis 3:20 it says:
“Now Adam named his wife Eve (Chava) because she was the mother of all the living.”
(TLV – parentheses mine)
Chava was the mother of the living but the serpent wanted to bring sin and death. He is the destroyer! He wanted to make sure the children of Chava never had a chance.
Job 1:7 tells us:
“The Lord said to Satan, ‘From where do you come?’ Then Satan answered the Lord and said, ‘From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.‘”
NASB
He prowls around the earth looking for opportunities to lead the children of Chava, the children of life, to death!
In Genesis 3:15 we read:
“I will put animosity between you and the woman— between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will crush his heel.”
tlv
It didn’t stop with Chava. It continues on with her children; with you and with me. God’s Word breathes life into our lives but the enemy spews lies and death!
Stop speaking to the very things God says you need to be stomping on!
Stop speaking to the very things God says you need to be stomping on! Share on X
What Does the Bible Say About the Truth of God's Word
Psalm 119:160 TLV
"Truth is the essence of Your word, and all Your righteous rulings are eternal."
Proverbs 3:5-6 CJB
"Trust in Adonai with all your heart; do not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him; then he will level your paths."
Joshua 1:8-9 TLV
"This book of the Torah should not depart from your mouth—you are to meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will make your ways prosperous and then you will be successful. Have I not commanded you? Chazak! Be strong! Do not be terrified or dismayed, for Adonai your God is with you wherever you go.”
Psalm 86:11 NASB
"Teach me Your way, O Lord;I will walk in Your truth;Unite my heart to fear Your name."
Psalm 119:89 NASB
"Forever, O Lord,Your word is settled in heaven."
What Does the Bible Say About Changing God's Word
Proverbs 30:5-6 TLV
"Every word of God is purified.He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. Do not add to His words, or else He will rebuke You and prove you a liar."
Deuteronomy 12:32 NASB
"Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it."
Numbers 23:19 NASB
“God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?"
2 Timothy 2:15 NASB
"Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth."
Revelation 22:18-19 NASB
"I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book."
Heeding God’s Word
God’s Word is true and firm. We do not have the right to change it to suit our needs. It is clear that doing so is nothing short of rebellion and if you lead others astray you will bear that responsibility as well.
The enemy wants you to feel restricted and burdened by the Word, but it is anything but burdensome. It is freedom! It is freedom from sin and death.
Do not believe the enemy’s lies! Do not believe him when he entices you to be rebellious! When he speaks lies to you, counter those lies with the truth of what God says in His Word! He is already defeated! Remind him of that fact!
CJB – Taken from the Complete Jewish Bible by David H. Stern. Copyright © 1998. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Messianic Jewish Publishers, 6120 Day Long Lane, Clarksville, MD 21029. www.messianicjewish.net.
NASB – “Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation“
Tree of Life (TLV) – Scripture taken from the Holy Scriptures, Tree of Life Version*. Copyright © 2014,2016 by the Tree of Life Bible Society. Used by permission of the Tree of Life Bible Society.
I love this! It’s such a great reminder that we can’t make God into what we want Him to be. He is the One who was, is, and will be.
Thank you so much Ashley!
Diane, the deceiver still causes us to question God’s word and His ways. How sad it is when we still listen to him. I think he often uses old wounds to justify his case.
Yes he most definitely uses those old wounds. I know that is where he tends to strike at me the most. He causes me to associate things today with old wounds of yesterday in an attempt to make me react that way. So you are totally right!!