I Did It My Way

God has given each person free will, even as He is not willing that any person should use that gift for his or her own destruction.  Yet, to some extent, we all do.  Whether you are a Christian or not, rebellion is part of your DNA.  One one extreme is the atheist who rejects God, or worse, the person who is merely indifferent.  On the other extreme is that petty sin that tempts you do choose it when God has something better.  Proverbs 14:12 speaks to this.  So does Proverbs 16:25.  The principle is so important it appears virtually verbatim in two separate scriptures.

There is a way that seems right to a person...

But its end is the way that leads to death.

Proverbs 14:12 (NET)

The prophet Isaiah said basically the same thing to the Hebrews as Jerusalem was about to be overtaken by the Babylonians.  The reason God was allowing such a hostile takeover was because the nation as a whole had turned its back on God, with most folks "doing it my way".  

You were secure in your wickedness;

you said, "No one sees me."

Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray.

You said toyourself, "I exist and there is no one else."

But, 

Disaster will happen to you; you will not know how to avert it.

And it will fall on you, but you will be unable to ward it off.

Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.

Isaiah 46:10-11

As I read these verses, particularly verse 10, I think about so many people today who say this same thing.  It breaks my heart, because some of those I love believe this.  This godless, worldly philosophy is of the Devil and is the essence of atheism.

This philosophy is prevalent in our public schools and universities.  And, it is one explanation for why so many of our young people go astray in their later teens and 20s.  This is an outworking of the phrase, "Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray."  This happened even to King Solomon, who was judged to be the wisest man of his day!  We need to pray diligently for our young ones, as they are under tremendous pressure to abandon their faith.  The message pervades our world; they hear it everywhere.

People who believe this satanic philosophy do so for a variety of reasons, but one reason is central:  they want to hold on to their sin.  They love their sinful lifestyle, at the core of which is "self-determination", the ability to determine one's own path.  The anthem of this belief system is a "golden-oldie" from the mid-20th century crooner, Frank Sinatra - - "I Did It MY Way!" 

Rebellion is foundational to this movement.  It began with the first being to rebel against God, Satan, and has continued down through the centuries as he has continued his campaign to draw people away from the one, true Source of Life.

'I exist, and there is no one else."  Such self-centeredness!  Of course, if others "do not exist", we do not have to care for them, true?  We don't have to be considerate of their needs.  If GOD does not exist, then we can happily continue in our sins, true?  How very convenient...

For the Christian, our theology turns this belief system on its head.  There is no self-determination in Christianity, no "self-actualization", as Abraham Maslow called it.  There is only "God-actualization" and "God-determination".  A brother quoted Proverbs 3:5-6 yesterday, and it is so applicable here. 

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart.

Don't depend on your own ability to understand.

In all your ways, give Him your allegiance, 

And HE will direct your paths."

Our faith is counterintuitive to our culture in present-day America.  It runs "against the grain."  To many whose eyes are clouded and ears clogged, it makes no logical sense.  It is offensive.  Many call it "ignorant".  Listen to what God says, through the apostle Paul about true wisdom: {The Message}

"Don't fool yourself.

Don't think that you can be "wise" merely by being up-to-date with the times.

Be God's fool - - - that's the path to true wisdom.

What the world calls "smart", God calls stupid.

It is written in Scripture, 

'He exposes the chicanery of the chic.

The Master sees through the smoke screens of the know-it-alls.'  "

1 Cor. 3:18-20

God has made it abundantly clear in Isaiah 44 and 45 (and elsewhere throughout the Old and New Testaments) that HE is in control, that our "self-determination" will lead us to disaster.  He gives us the free will to either follow Him or not.  

Let's choose wisely.

Ah Father!  My heart breaks.  I beg You not to forsake those who wander from the Truth.  Please continue to woo them by Your Holy Spirit.  I am so grateful for Your promise to fling Your arms open wide and receive us, yes, even run out to meet us in our repentance, as the father of the prodigal son did in Luke 15.  Oh dear God!  Let today be the day.  In Jesus' name, amen.