Do you have a personal opinion of God.

If we asked a hundred people their opinion about God ? We would likely get a hundred different answers back. Typically peoples opinions usually come from their life experiences, education, upbringing, influences, and how they feel in general, or even how successful they are and so on, so when asked the question what's your opinion about God? We can always expect a variety of responses.

Although some don't have the strongest faith, they still enjoy getting involved in religious banter and are always happy to give their honest opinion. People enjoy a Punch and Judy show, and a religious debate can sometimes be like that as occasionally these debates can become a bit polarised and slightly overheated.

So should people have a strong opinion about God? even if they themselves have little or no faith? And how much do we really understand Gods true character ?

If I myself were in the company of a group of business professionals who were chatting for instance about the Asian stock markets, or in the company of fine doctors debating about 'septal myectomy' procedures, I think I may just remain silent for fear of feeling ignorant and inadequate. I certainly couldn't add anything to their debate. So it begs the question: why do people generalise on the subject of God when they know so little about his character?

Everyone of course is very much entitled to an opinion, however, I feel the arguments made by those of a secular mindset can only ever be conjecture, as more often than not they tend to have a subjective outlook in the field of religious theology. Either way, I've never heard an unbeliever or atheist get close to the truth.

Then there are some that are influenced by celebrities or world famous scientists/professors, and even although most of them are self confessed atheists, these intellectuals also enjoy indulging in this kind of rhetoric. I've also listened to a lot of these debates on social media platforms and the one common denominator here is that everyone seems to have something to say about God and religion.

No matter what your opinion is, I would encourage people not to listen to intellectual atheists or scientists on this subject as potentially their opinions could be more damaging to you than the worst disease imaginable! Just because someone is smart and popular or worldly wise, doesn't necessarily mean they understand the important things about God’s true character, or the gospel of Jesus Christ and its very likely that an unbeliever/atheist will only have a peripheral view, which will ultimately draw us away from the truth.

If you allow yourself to be influenced by secular opinions, it could be very damaging to your soul. Even if we studied every religion in existence, and pick the brains of the greatest minds in the world, we will still struggle to understand Gods character or what he requires of us. Some may ask; well who's opinion should we trust? and why should we listen to the writers personal opinion? answer : You shouldn't! as I myself don't have a personal formed opinion about God…

At least not anymore !

The last time I had a personal opinion about God was before I knew him or understood anything about his character, and I can tell you for sure that that view (albeit very innocent) was based on a particular religion. I believe my personal formed opinion at that time was of little or no value to anyone.

So I say, only God himself can allow us understand his ways and his character, and he does this by convicting us of the Holy Spirit. Only he can change us from the inside, and give us a new heart which is his divine way and this is what leads to a higher understanding. The bible calls it being born again. John 3:3.

When we receive the gift of Salvation through Christ's atoning sacrifice, God justifies us.

Thereafter begins a process of sanctification as the Lord imparts his grace on to us and imputes the Holy Spirit within, purifying our souls and putting a certainty deep in our hearts of his existence, therefore leading to an increase in our faith, wisdom, and knowledge.

But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him. 1 John 2:27

After justification, he imparts by grace gifts of the spirit - wisdom, discernment, prophesy, and many other blessings, and these gifts naturally teach us the higher virtues in life- more joy and peace in our hearts, more patience, self control, humility, and of course much more love for others, even those who are undeserving.

So as God prepares us to receive him, it's easier to understand that when we are re born or 'born again' our personal formed opinion about him (prior to this change) becomes almost irrelevant, as his Holy Spirit now lives within us giving us a more comprehensive and divine understanding of his character, which of course has little to do with our own opinion or our ability to absorb information. Instead its something much and beyond human intelligence, and can sometimes be very hard to explain to unbelievers, atheists and those of a backslid mindset.

Gods love.

We have all heard the term that God loves a sinner or God loves us all unconditionally. These are very dangerous statements as they can lead to a misunderstanding of Gods love. When this message is preached, some may get the impression that God loves them just the way they are, and no matter what they do, he will always love them. This can lead to complacency in ones mind and a deception in the soul.

The late RC Sproul (Ligonier Ministries) taught that the Lord has a Beneficent love for all mankind, both believers and unbelievers. 'The rain falls on the just as well as the unjust'.

But the agape love which God has, is directed first at Christ and all that are in Christ, which is salvific love and is not shared with the impenitent. In other words, God loves the saved unconditionally but not the unsaved. In fact the Bible teaches that God abhors the wicked and remains in a constant state of anger with them.

The Lord tests the righteous, but the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates Psalm 11:5.

If you read the four gospels of Christ, (New Testament) then study the words and the way Jesus spoke to us, notice how simple and beautiful his teachings were, yet his words had a Godly and heavenly splendour about them that penetrated deep into our hearts. Over the centuries, there have been great authors, speakers, and prophets who have influenced us with words of wisdom, but I don't believe anyone has ever come close to Christ's teachings.

God always acts above and beyond our expectations.

When the Father sent his son into the world, the Jews at that time thought a great warrior or leader would come and liberate them from Roman oppression. Instead he sent his begotten son Jesus, a meek and humble servant, who demonstrated agape love, miracles and healings and many of the people were simply amazed, in other words, the true word of God manifest itself and penetrated their humble hearts.

When Jesus picked his apostles, they were simple fisherman, not the great leaders of the church that you might expect. In fact the only church leader or Pharisee that humbled himself to Jesus was Nicodemus. Jesus taught Nicodemus : A man must be 'born again' before he can see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3) How is it then that when Jesus preached the truth, most of the Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes at that time hated and rejected him? Why did God's love and truth have this affect?

These jewish Pharisees were seen as most pious, and Jesus described them as white washed tombs, beautiful on outside, but inside full of dead men's bones and unclean. (mat 23:27) Everything they do for men to see !

These high priests were fastidious in their religious ways with the law of Moses written in their hearts. They spent all day teaching Gods commandments and praying in the holy temple, yet when Gods very own son came along, it caused a deep hatred and indignation among them. Surely they should have been overjoyed to see Jesus, the promised Messiah had finally arrived, The King of all Kings was standing before them with the power of the Almighty, yet he was hated and rejected by these men. They even had access every day to the OT scriptures prophesying the coming of the messiah,(Isaiah 53) but still they condemned him.

When Jesus performed miracles that they knew must have been from God, they called it demonic and conspired to have him killed mainly because of fear, and their own sense of self importance, and of course this was all driven by their pride, the mother of all sins. So let's get this into perspective ; God did not allow men who zealously worshiped him to see him because they were hiding terrible sins in their hearts.

Question: Why would God not just send a Messiah from heaven that stood seven feet tall with the strength of the mighty Samson, and all the wisdom of Solomon that was painfully obvious to all of us? Because simply put, God's great power and glory is manifested through weakness, meekness and brokenness, NOT the mighty and proud! This is Gods character, this is his way and his will and this demonstrates how God always acts beyond our expectations and imaginations.

The Pharisees and Sadducees of that era were hypocrites and full of self aggrandisement and when Jesus spoke the truth to them, it exposed them for who they really were, as Gods truth manifest a deep hatred in their hearts. Although they knew the law of Moses, they had no real love or humility, nor did they understand Gods true character, just like the modern day scientist or atheist! None of their traits were compatible with Gods ways.

They say; A man convinced against his will, is of the same opinion still. Pride ego and hatred are of course all charms of the devil and for this reason they were unable to see the true God. In all this, we begin to understand the real character of God and we begin to see his grand design and how his thoughts are not the thoughts of mere men.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. Isaiah 55: 8-9.

So I must therefore encourage all those who have a 'personal opinion' in these matters to take the utmost care in everything they say. Our tongue, which is one of the smallest organs in your entire body has complete control over a very large vessel, and that vessel is us.

The words that come from our mouth can find favour with the Almighty but can also start a forrest fire! We should never say anything against Gods Holy Spirit, even if we are very young and inexperienced in life, as there are some things which are unforgivable. I must reiterate : We should never insult God or his Spirit as we will not be forgiven.I would also say never utter the words Jesus Christ unless its in deep reverence and love.

And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell. James 3:6

If The Lord would condemn the Pharisees for their hypocrisy, ie those who seeked him out day and night with absolute zeal, what then would he think of the shallow opinion of an intellectual atheist or someone who carelessly insults him. If you’re seeking out God in anyway, you won't find him through secular opinions based on life's experiences, and you won't find him in a common religious debate. To understand Gods character is to receive God himself, there can be no other way.

Not everyone that attends church on a Sunday truly loves God or has been truly baptised by the Holy Spirit. There are those that daydream throughout church services and attend these places out of a Sunday habit, and some others that attend have a deep sense of guilt or even condemnation in their hearts. These people have a faith in God that is parked up and not moving forward in the way God desires. Their faith is in their pastor or priest or the tradition of their church and they put all their trust in that to get them into Heaven.

On the other hand there are many many Christians who attend church on Sunday's and love the Lord deeply and of course understand many aspects of his true character, but we must be fully aware of what is being taught week in week out in these churches. If you attend a church and all you hear are sugar coated sermons and never hear anything on the subject of eschatology or the fires of hell, then you’re not receiving the true and full gospel and you are being denied the truth.

Jesus himself preached more about the fires of hell than on anything else. God wants us to hear and read everything that's in the Bible otherwise he wouldn't have allowed it to be written. I can tell you that the Lord has no interest at all in our particular brand of Christianity, or which Religion we practise, he pays no attention to the traditional values of unspiritual churches, or how many times we kneel down then stand up or practise all the rites and rituals created by men.

The Lord is only interested in what's in our hearts. He wants us to have a deep faith and a love for others, even our worst enemies! With God, It's about relationship, not religion and he wants us to think of the less fortunate and give kindly to good causes that progress his kingdom. He wants us to practise our faith everyday of the week, not just on Sunday's.

Our main focus needs be on the good news which is the gospel of Christ.

If your were ever seeking God in nature with your own eyes, then go and climb a hillside or a mountain and marvel at his incredible work. Gaze at the beautiful countryside as far as the eye can see, feel the sun beat down on your face and feel the gentle breeze on your face. We can see the miracle of Gods work in this way. Or perhaps look deep into the eyes of a child and see the twinkle in their eye, and as you feel an instant love for the innocent, then there you will see the good works of God.

Now as you close your eyes, see him now through the eyes of your heart. Seek him out in personal prayer with a whisper, with love and the deepest repentance in your heart, this is how the Lord wants to hear from you. You will understand his nature if you allow his word to penetrate beyond your outer brain, into your mind, then soaked into your emotions, then deeper down to your soul and into the cavities of your will and finally giving birth to the true Holy spirit which he imputes in us.

If the Lord is willing to touch your heart, only then will we understand his true character as each one of us receives wisdom, understanding, and a Godly knowledge. If you really want to find God, then you can, and will, however you must seek him with the utmost sincerity which goes much and beyond simple curiosity.

But what we ultimately seek can only come from God, like a beautiful gift from heaven, through him, from him, and by his grace only. I can tell you for sure that his Holy spirit is with the poor, the lost children, the oppressed, the widows and the persecuted all over the world. God is working all the time to penetrate people's hearts and he speaks and works through his chosen ones, which is all part of his complex but wonderful character.

If you have always had a superficial view or perhaps felt somewhat befuddled by world religions, then there is a simple way to circumvent all the confusion. God is raising up a new church as we speak. This is a church without walls as the Holy Spirit is moving swiftly and penetrating the souls of individuals. The Spirit of God is sweeping through the world and touching the hearts of those he has chosen , just like a fisherman casting his net in the sea.

These individuals are non denominational by nature, and not necessarily part of any world religion. This is like a remnant church where the body of Christ are the individual followers - the true saints of God. They are just ordinary folks who's hearts have been stirred and the Lord is drawing them closer to him. I can tell you that the only way to connect with heaven is through devoted prayer. No matter where you are you can talk to God, just like talking to a very close friend.

If you find a quiet moment, just speak gently, the Lord already knows your heart so you can tell him everything that's on your mind. God hears you directly, there's no need for any intercession through priests, pastors or even guardian angels. Your relationship with God is the most personal one you will ever have! Jesus tells us:

All that the father giveth me shall come to me. and the one who comes to me, I shall not cast out. John 6:37

It is written that one day soon we will all stand before his almighty throne to give an account of our lives. Romans 14:10. This is the point where all those that didn't believe and trust in Jesus Christ will surely realise they were in grave error! No one can ever begin to imagine what that will feel like, to come before the creator and have absolutely nothing to offer, knowing that your fate is already sealed. There will be no bargaining on Judgement day, and there will be no more forgiveness or mercy as God will honour all your decisions in this life.

Now is the time to consolidate your relationship with God, his mercy is available while we live and breathe, but he will remove that mercy at the great white throne and judgement will swiftly follow. Don't let your heart deceive you, your iniquity in this life will condemn you for all eternity!

For those who are saved, their place will be at the Judgement seat of Christ where they will receive their reward. Which throne do you choose? So I give you the gospel, the Christ, the son of man, and the Lord says: believe in me and repent of your sins. This is the new covenant in the new testament and this is the good news God wants you to hear.

There can only be one truth, and that truth is only in Christ which is God's promise. That the son came into the world and was sacrificed and suffered and died on a cross to be raised to life, and our sins should be forgiven. You cannot enter Gods kingdom stained with sin, and you cannot enter with a works based religion that denies the blood of Christ, and you cannot enter with a superficial worldly understanding that teaches only partial truths.

Jesus said , I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this? John 11:25-26

You will not enter his Kingdom if you allow your own moral standards to supersede Gods highest decrees! So therefore he has shown us the way to enter through the narrow gate and have eternal life. It's written that a fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (proverbs 9:10) , so If you have a stirring in your heart, then find a quiet moment and speak a short prayer to the Lord with sincere repentance.

A divine understanding is much and beyond our personal opinion and no matter the state of our souls, if he is willing, God will truly forgive, justify and sanctify us as he desires a much deeper relationship with us.

The Creator of the entire universe has a wonderful plan for our lives, way and beyond all of our expectations.

In Jesus name, Amen.