My Father in Heaven is Perfect

Micah was fascinated by fire.
Every morning,
as he watched his father light the stove
he was confident that he too,
could start the fire responsibly.  

Micah's father told him he was not yet old enough,
but on Micah's next birthday,
he promised that Micah would finally
have the experience of building the fire.


One day, while his parents were busy
Micah decided to practice.
His hand shook as he stared at the flickering match.
He felt pain as the flame suddenly burned his finger.
Startled, Micah dropped the match at his feet.
First a little piece of newspaper flared up,
then a piece of kindling next to it caught fire.

In his inexperience,
Micah was unprepared to deal with the consequences.
In shock, he stared at the flames around his feet.
Lucky for Micah, his father was near by
and stomped out the flames with his work boots. 

Large disasters often happen
because of small choices.
Paradise collapsed
when Adam and Eve ate a piece of fruit.
At first this seems a little arbitrary.
Hadn't God given them all the plants for food?
Oh! Just not that one tree!
Well, if God is so kind, 
why would He make an arbitrary apple law?

According to Webster's,
the word arbitrary means:
random, illogical and uninformed. 
But God was not acting
in a random, illogical and uninformed manner:
 
1.God is definitely not uninformed.
He knew He had an enemy. 
Satan plotted to use Adam and Eve
and the entire human race
in His political rebellion against God. 

2. God never acts in a random manner.
The Bible tells us that Jesus Christ
is the same yesterday, today and forever
and that God is love.
But there can be no love without freedom, 
so Adam and Eve's ability to disobey was proof 
of God's loving and non-controlling nature.

3. There is nothing illogical about God's plan.
He wanted to prevent the human race
from suffering the consequences of sin. 
He warned Adam and Eve
to stay away from the temptation tree.
Despite His warnings,
God knew they would disobey, 
thus the Father and His Son Jesus
sat down together made a plan
to rescue earth's residents from Satan's cruelty. 

Can you think of parental rules
that might seem arbitrary to children?
"Don't play in the street,"
"Don't run with scissors" and
"Leave the matches alone."
These are just a few examples.
Little children are often unaware of the danger around them. 
Loving parents often must use external force
to maintain boundaries in order to keep their children safe.

Adam and Eve hadn't realized it yet,
but sin has its own intrinsic results.
God is the life-giver, while sin is the life-taker.
God didn't create war, decay, or cancer. 
These are the results of a world separated from God.

God had provided a way for Adam and Eve
to avoid all the misery that comes with sin.
If only they would have trusted Him;
we would all be sitting in paradise right now.

It's a good thing God had a plan B!

People often misunderstand the boundaries
that God has outlined for our safety. 
The children of Israel
wandered in circles for forty years
but they died before reaching the promised land,
because their misunderstandings about God
caused them to fear and disobey Him.

The message that God is arbitrary
is one of Satan's biggest lies.
Today, we need guidance more than ever.
God requirements protect us from the dangers of sin,
but God does not desire that His people obey Him
out of a forced obedience from fear and coercion.

God didn't stop Satan
from talking about Him in heaven
or Eve from disobeying Him at creation
and He won't stop us today. 
The only thing God wants from His children is love--
not an obligatory, servile love,
but complete unity with Him.
God wants our appreciation and passion,
which can only be born out of freedom!

God waits patiently for each of us
Will we listen to Satan's lies?
Or will we choose to trust our heavenly Father?



Disobedience Leads to Death

But from the tree of knowledge of good and evil,
you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die. 
Genesis 2:17

The Wages of Sin is Death

The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.
Romans 6:23

Jesus Was Ready To Die
Even Before We Had Sinned

Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world.
Revelation 13:8

Heaven Rejoices Over Our Safety From Sin

I tell you there is rejoicing in heaven
over one sinner that repents...
Luke 15:10

Jesus Never Changes

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.
Hebrews 13:8

God  Actually Sings Over Us!

The Lord your God is with you,
He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
He will quiet you with His love
and He will rejoice over you with singing.
Zephaniah 3:17

Inspirational Thoughts:

"So far from making arbitrary requirements,
God's law is given to men as a hedge, a shield.
Whoever accepts its principles is preserved from evil.
Fidelity to God involves fidelity to man.
Thus the law guards the rights,
the individuality, of every human being.
It restrains the superior from oppression,
and the subordinate from disobedience.
It ensures man's well-being,
both for this world and for the world to come.
To the obedient it is the pledge of eternal life,
for it expresses the principles that endure forever."

Education p. 77