Q. Tucson, Ariz. "What does Num bers 14:34 mean when it speaks of God's breach of promise?" A. Some would try to put the Lord in an area of not keeping His Word. The verse you refer to is where Moses is pleading for his people's pardon. They vowed they wouldn't go into the land. For this opposi tion to His will they would have to forfeit their physical lives. You see, the person who has the wisdom of God and who is looking to the Lord for His direction, will do whatever the circumstances require accord ing to the Holy Spirit's leading. The disobedient, self-willed Israel ites were to experience by bitter knowledge the breaking of God's promise which was the ownership of the land under the Abrahamic Covenant. When any legal trans action, if a bilateral contract, is broken on one side, it certainly nullifies the other. This is exactly what took place. Q. Eugene, Ore. "Did the Old Tes tament saints, such as Saul and Sol omon, possess eternal security?" A. We should identify that impor tant term from Scripture. The Bible reminds us that as many as God justified, He also sanctified; as many as He sanctified He also glor ified; as many as He did foreknow He also did predestinate; and so on (Romans 8). The language is very clear. Redemption was not completed until Jesus Christ came in manifestation of God. He was the Son incarnate in human flesh. Salvation was completed by the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord Jesus (I Corinthians 15:1- 4). While the Old Testament re demption was not completed this
verse 12 shows. If Moses had gone in faith he would not have lost his temper, gotten out of patience with the people of Israel, and would have honored the Lord. He has ba sically rebelled against the Word of God. A similar offense cost Aaron his two sons, Nadab and Abihu (Leviticus 10:3). God puts each of us in a position of privilege and responsibility. We, as with Is rael, are warned, "Be ye clean, ye that bear the vessels of the Lord" (Isaiah 52:11). We naturally have much sympathy for Moses. Remem ber, he did disobey God. The Lord cannot play favorites. He is only on the side of righteousness. There was a compounding of a number of transgressions of which Moses was guilty. Q. Lapeer, Mich. " Why didn't Christ ever write anything during His lifetime?'' A. We are not specifically told the answer to that question. We do find Him writing in the sand at the time when the woman caught in adultery was brought to Him (John 8:6, 8). It is only speculation as to what He actually wrote on the ground. Perhaps one evident reason why our Lord never had anything in written form of a permanent na ture is that it would have been worshipped and held in reverence more than any other portion of Scripture. Keep in mind, the words of Jesus found in the Bible are no more inspired than the words of Paul or some other writer, having been moved by the Holy Spirit. All of Scripture is given by inspiration of God. Holy men of old spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
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