WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?

There is a sad behavior in society that needs to be addressed; it’s gone on far too long. We need to stop pretending to be God! We each need to ascertain the implication of what we do or plan to do before doing it. If we heed this admonition, we wouldn’t do some of the things we might otherwise do.

What behaviors do I have in mind? Those that question who God is, His power, ability, wisdom, right, and ownership.

Starting with ownership and right, the Bible says God created the world and all that is in it; He owns it all!

●      “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him” (Psalm 24:1). God is the owner!

●      “When he [God] spoke the world began! It appeared at his command” (Psalm 33:9). God created it, and therefore, He is the owner!

●      “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for all the world is mine and everything in it” (Psalm 50:12). God is the owner!

Have you ever created anything? If so, wouldn’t you be the owner and also claim the rights to it? And if you were the owner, would you need another person’s permission to do with it as you please? How would you feel and respond if, without your permission, people took it upon themselves to make changes to what was legally yours?

And when it comes to power and ability:

My mind goes all the way back to what happened around the time Moses was born. A new pharaoh, who knew nothing about Joseph or what he had done for Egypt in the past, came to power. Fearing the rapid growth of the Israelites, this pharaoh made changes that negatively affected God’s people. One of those changes was authorizing midwives to kill all Jewish baby boys at birth. He feared the Israelites would someday serve as allies to the enemies of Egypt if war ever broke out (see Exodus 1:8-22).

What right did this pharaoh or his officials have to reduce the male population? None! But most likely, it didn’t dawn on them that they were overstepping their boundaries; they were out of line. By their actions, they implied that God didn’t know what He was doing when He created baby boys; instead, He should have created girls.

Many years later, this attitude is still prevalent; innocent babies are aborted because the parents might be inconvenienced in some way by the baby’s existence. Some of the excuses for abortions for teenagers are: the parents are too young, need to finish school, or have no money. And for adults, the excuses include:  the parents already have enough children and can’t afford to feed another mouth, or their jobs are too demanding; another child would be a burden.

If the world and everybody in it belong to God, what right does anybody have to be killing these babies? How would you like someone barging into your house and throwing out your furniture because you have too much? Who do you think should make the decision as to how many pieces of furniture you should have, and how many are too many in your house? The last time I checked, it should be you, the owner, making such decisions!

How about the racial tension that goes on in society? God created all the races for His pleasure, enjoyment, and purpose. He did not assign any group as superior or inferior. In fact all races descended from the same couple, Adam and Eve! With the exception of color, everything else is the same in all humans. And when God says all have sinned, He meant all people --in all races (see Romans 3:23). And when He sent His Son Jesus to die, it was for all people (see John 3:16). All who are saved through Christ will be in heaven, no matter their racial background, and those who remain unsaved will spend time together regardless of their racial background (see Matthew 25:31-41).

Now those who have a problem with the existence of one race or the other imply that God made a mistake in creating that race, and that the world would have been better without them! And those who think the population of certain races should be reduced are putting themselves above God! How dare they? God will reduce the population when He wants to! He gets to decide when, how, and why; after all, “Our God is in the heavens, and he does as he wishes” (Psalm 115:3). 

This reminds me of the devil’s aspiration: “I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God’s stars. I will preside on the mountain of the gods far away in the north. I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:13-14). Since then, he has been in competition with God, and is the power behind those who are all puffed up, thinking they know better than God and can and will fix His ‘mistakes.’ How rude, and how arrogant! These people are claiming authority that has never been offered to them; they are assuming a role that strictly belongs to God. 

Are you caught up in this behavior? What do you think you are doing when you mess with another person’s property? You are being disrespectful, proud, and arrogant! Let’s stop messing with God’s property, and mind our own business; enough is enough! It is okay to notice and even comment on differences like complexion, accent, etc., but please, stop interfering with God’s property! He does not need you going behind Him to undo or redo His work!

You’ve never created a human, and until you do, choose to be okay with God’s creation. Keep your hands off His property; He does not need you to grade His work or okay it! If He should ever need your input, He’ll let you know; He knows where to find you. Meanwhile, if you are so unhappy with this world, feel free to go build your own!