god is more tolerant than he used to be
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God Is More Tolerant than He Used to Be. Is it Now Safer to Sin?. Is God Is More Tolerant Today?. How do we answer those who insist that God is more tolerant today than He was in the Old Testament?. Today Everything H as C hanged. No more stories of Nadab and Abihu - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
GOD IS MORE TOLERANT THAN HE
USED TO BE Is it Now Safer to Sin?
Is God Is More Tolerant Today?
How do we answer those who insist that God is more tolerant today than He was in the Old Testament?
Today Everything Has Changed
No more stories of Nadab and Abihu No accounts of people like Uzzah We want to know whether we are free to
sin We want to know whether it is safer for
others to do wrong today
God Unchanging
We can affirm that God has not changed His standards are the same He has chosen to interact with people
differently
Amazing Consistency
The attributes of God revealed in the Old Testament are affirmed in the New
In the Old Testament we see the severity of God but also His goodness
We see His strict judgments, but also His mercy
The same balance of attributes is found in both Testaments
The penalties also have not changed and His mercy also remains immutable
God Unchanging
God’s nature does not change God’s standards do not change God has not changed and will not change
in the future
I the Lord do not change. Malachi 3:6 NIV
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8 NIV
God’s Administration Has Changed
Why are the Old Testament penalties not carried out?
God’s judgments abide, but His method of managing them has changed.
This change in management can be represented in three contrasts between Mount Sinai and Mount Zion (Calvary). Hebrews 12:18-29
Sinai vs. Calvary
Sinai was covered with clouds; Zion is filled with light
Sinai is symbolic of judgment and death; Zion is symbolic of life and forgiveness.
The message of Sinai was “Stand back!” The message of Zion is “Come near!”
The Old Covenant versus the New Covenant
Jesus is the mediator of “a new covenant” (Heb. 12:24)
Under the Old Covenant
God made a covenant with the entire nation
There was no separation between religion and the state
There was no freedom of religion in the Old Testament era
Under the New Covenant
Jesus taught it would be possible for His followers to live acceptably under a pagan government
First, God would no longer deal with one nation, but with individuals from all nations
Second, in our era, we are to submit, as far as possible, to worldly authorities
Our Agenda As a Church
Is not to take over nations, politically speaking
It is the transformation of nations through the transformation of individuals
Why do we not put people to death today as was done in the
Old Testament?
We have no authority to judge those who are outside the fellowship of believers
The state is to penalize those who commit certain crimes
All the behaviors that merited the death penalty in the Old Testament are infractions for which we now discipline believers within the church
It is foolish for us to think that we can sin with impunity just because Christ has come
Immediate, Physical Judgment versus Future, Eternal Judgment
The greater the grace, the greater the judgment for refusing it
We should never interpret the silence of God as the indifference of God
We must come to Sinai before we come to Zion