When Is It Okay To Play God?

Here’s the biggest question that man faces in life: when is it okay to play God? The answer is simple: only when our actions reveal our hearts are in line with His will. Any other time it’s off limits, especially when we feel we owe it to another human being. When is it okay to play God? When our behavior resembles Jesus’ behavior. The fruit we produce is above the law, when it glorifies our Heavenly Father. When is it okay to play God? Not when we feel the need to abuse the power we’ve been given. Playing God isn’t our job. Being like Jesus is. And Jesus was fully human and fully God, but He was a humble servant, obeying God in every aspect, without ever abusing His power. So I guess I need to rephrase my answer to the question. When is it okay to play God? Never. But it’s our duty to be like Jesus every day. And if that means “playing God”, then we must submit to the sanctifying process God has for every believer.

1 This change of plans greatly upset Jonah, and he became very angry. 2 So he complained to the Lord about it: “Didn’t I say before I left home that You would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that You are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people. 3 Just kill me now, Lord! I’d rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen.”4 The Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry about this?”5 Then Jonah went out to the east side of the city and made a shelter to sit under as he waited to see what would happen to the city. 6 And the Lord God arranged for a leafy plant to grow there, and soon it spread its broad leaves over Jonah’s head, shading him from the sun. This eased his discomfort, and Jonah was very grateful for the plant.7 But God also arranged for a worm! The next morning at dawn the worm ate through the stem of the plant so that it withered away. 8 And as the sun grew hot, God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on his head until he grew faint and wished to die. “Death is certainly better than living like this!” he exclaimed.9 Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry because the plant died?”“Yes,” Jonah retorted, “even angry enough to die!”10 Then the Lord said, “You feel sorry about the plant, though you did nothing to put it there. It came quickly and died quickly. 11 But Nineveh has more than 120 ,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?” Jonah 4:1-11

Forfeit All Of God’s Blessings…

When a person worships a false god, they forfeit all of God’s blessings, or at least lose the ability to recognize and acknowledge them. It’s one more reason to be careful where we direct our attention. It may end up robbing us of the One place where true joy, significance, purpose, rest, and everlasting peace come from.

8 Those who worship false gods turn their backs on all God’s mercies. Jonah 2:8

God Always Has His Best Waiting For Us….

When we read Romans 8:28, believers are comforted and pagans roll their eyes in unbelief. But what do believers see in this verse? Do we really believe God can use tragedy, or evils acts for our good? What about rape, murder, or death? Can God use that for our good? Here in Jonah chapter one we get a small glimpse of this concept in actions. Jonah is running away from God. God told him to go preach to the city of Nineveh, the Babylonian capital. Jonah despised these people. He didn’t want to do it, so he found a ship going in the opposite direction. While on the ship a huge storm came. It was all Jonah’s fault. So to save the lives of all the boat’s crew, Jonah told them to throw him overboard. Whether Jonah actually died or not is another blog post, but the point I want to make is this: Jonah’s tragedy led to the boat’s crew repentance and serving God. Whether his death or suffering (whichever happened to get his full attention), it got the attention of the ship’s inhabitants, and changed their hearts. This is one Biblical example of God using “all things” (in this case bad) for the good of the men on board (and eventually Nineveh, and Jonah as well). Just because we lack the spiritual sight to always recognize God’s hand in all events, doesn’t mean He’s not there working it out for our good. Like I always say, “no matter how we feel about something, even if we don’t see it, we have to go with what we know to be true”. Even if it costs us our life. God always has His best waiting for us. If He didn’t, He would tell us He does.

1 The Lord gave this message to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Announce My judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.”3 But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the Lord by sailing to Tarshish.4 But the Lord hurled a powerful wind over the sea, causing a violent storm that threatened to break the ship apart. 5 Fearing for their lives, the desperate sailors shouted to their gods for help and threw the cargo overboard to lighten the ship.But all this time Jonah was sound asleep down in the hold. 6 So the captain went down after him. “How can you sleep at a time like this?” he shouted. “Get up and pray to your god! Maybe He will pay attention to us and spare our lives.”7 Then the crew cast lots to see which of them had offended the gods and caused the terrible storm. When they did this, the lots identified Jonah as the culprit. 8 “Why has this awful storm come down on us?” they demanded. “Who are you? What is your line of work? What country are you from? What is your nationality?”9 Jonah answered, “I am a Hebrew, and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.”10 The sailors were terrified when they heard this, for he had already told them he was running away from the Lord. “Oh, why did you do it?” they groaned. 11 And since the storm was getting worse all the time, they asked him, “What should we do to you to stop this storm?”12 “Throw me into the sea,” Jonah said, “and it will become calm again. I know that this terrible storm is all my fault.”13 Instead, the sailors rowed even harder to get the ship to the land. But the stormy sea was too violent for them, and they couldn’t make it. 14 Then they cried out to the Lord, Jonah’s God. “O Lord,” they pleaded, “don’t make us die for this man’s sin. And don’t hold us responsible for his death. O Lord, You have sent this storm upon him for Your own good reasons.”15 Then the sailors picked Jonah up and threw him into the raging sea, and the storm stopped at once! 16 The sailors were awestruck by the Lord’s great power, and they offered Him a sacrifice and vowed to serve Him.17 Now the Lord had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights. Jonah 1:1-17

Truth Matters….

Truth matters. It protects those who hold it dear to their hearts and refuse to compromise. It will protect and defend us when we are attacked by evil. It will set us free from the power of sin. When we speak truth, we never have to worry about what we said. Hold on tight to truth, for it sets us free from a world full of lies. Remember the Truth is a Person.

5 Every word of God proves true. He is a shield to all who come to Him for protection. Proverbs 30:5

Knowing God’s Will Is Only Part Of Life….

Knowing God’s will is only part of life. Doing it is the other part. Train yourself to see life through God’s eyes, for that is the first part of living a life that’s pleasing to God. The other part is disciplining ourselves by living it out in obedience. These two things when done together are called the sanctifying process. In order to be sanctified, we must become more like Jesus, by doing what Jesus did. Being aware of God’s will is half the battle, the other half is putting what we know to be true into action.

9 Rescue me from my enemies, Lord; I run to You to hide me.10 Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God. May Your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing.11 For the glory of Your name, O Lord, preserve my life. Because of Your faithfulness, bring me out of this distress.12 In Your unfailing love, silence all my enemies and destroy all my foes, for I am Your servant. Psalms 143:9-12

His Retribution Is Unparalleled….

If there’s one trait about God that every believer tends to not know, it’s His retribution is unparalleled. His full knowledge of facts in every case is complete. His judgements are final. His punishments and disciplines are accurate. When people do evil to others, and then gloat about it, God’s retribution will prevail. It will be complete, deserved, more intense, and reciprocated to the evil doer. Revenge belongs to God because His vengeance cannot be replicated by man. Leave it up to Him, and satisfaction will follow. Ignore Him and take it on yourself, and you’ll find no peace, and no resolve. Evil gets back exactly what it tries to dish out, but to a greater degree of intensity. Evil gets back more than it can handle.

 12 “You should not have gloated when they exiled your relatives to distant lands.You should not have rejoiced when the people of Judah suffered such misfortune.You should not have spoken arrogantly in that terrible time of trouble.13 You should not have plundered the land of Israel when they were suffering such calamity.You should not have gloated over their destruction when they were suffering such calamity.You should not have seized their wealth when they were suffering such calamity.14 You should not have stood at the crossroads,killing those who tried to escape.You should not have captured the survivors and handed them over in their terrible time of trouble. 15 “The day is near when I, the Lord, will judge all godless nations!As you have done to Israel,so it will be done to you.All your evil deeds will fall back on your own heads. Obadiah 1:12-15

Never Be Lost….

True believers may suffer, and some may die because of their faith, but God will see to it that they will never be lost. Now that’s true comfort and security.

8 “I, the Sovereign Lord,am watching this sinful nation of Israel.I will destroy it from the face of the earth.But I will never completely destroy the family of Israel,”says the Lord.9 “For I will give the command and will shake Israel along with the other nations as grain is shaken in a sieve, yet not one true kernel will be lost.