Lipstick. Pantsuits. Meat-eating. Jewelry. And A Petty GOD.

[antcreations]

Millions of people are dying of HIV/AIDS --- do you think GOD is more concerned about women wearing lipstick?

Babies are being blown to bits in war zones around the world --- do you think GOD is more upset about women wearing pantsuits to church?

Hundreds of millions don’t have ANYTHING to eat --- do you think GOD would be more frustrated at meat-eaters?

What kind of GOD are we preaching? Surely not the GOD who was the father of Jesus --- who, incidentally, said nothing about pantsuits, lipstick, jewelry or meat (this last which He himself not only ate, but prepared and served to others).

Jesus said a good deal about pouring out your life in love and mercy for the world.

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Full article HERE.

[Guest]

If enough bad things happen, will He stop caring which day is the Sabbath too?

[John317]

The article makes some good points, but one of the problems with the article is that it associates Joe Cruz's book, Creeping Compromise, with people who fell for Ernie Knoll. It fails to recognize that probably most people who read and approve of Joe Cruz's book never believed in Ernie Knoll's message. Those people who accepted Ernie Knoll also accept the Bible and the Spirit of prophecy.

The article also is wrong to make it appear that God cares nothing about how people dress or eat. The Bible shows clearly that God has an interest in both. One can't very well believe in the Spirit of prophecy and reject the view that God is leading His people back to the original diet for the purpose of being in good health.

It's true that the world has all those terrible problems in it--- problems that make meat-eating and even smoking look irrelevant, and perhaps the Sabbath unimportant-- but it would be foolish to think that God is only concerned with those much more pressing issues. People could and do use the same argument to defend extramarital sex, claiming that at least they are loving one another and that God must have much more important concerns than whether two adults consent to sleep together.

It isn't that God is petty or picky about pantsuits, lipstick, jewelry or meat; it's that those things are symptoms of our relationship with Him. It does no good to take off the jewelry if we wish we could keep it on. Some people don't see anything wrong with some of those items, and it would be wrong to concetrate on them. What we need to concentrate on is Christ and His commandments.

The bottom line is that those things are up to the individual to decide on the basis of persuasion and personal conviction, and while we should talk about them, we shouldn't make people feel that they are not accepted by God or by other members of the church because they wear pantsuits or eat clean meat or wear jewelry.

[John317]

Millions of people are dying of HIV/AIDS --- do you think GOD is more concerned about women wearing lipstick?

This kind of question could have been asked during every decade of this world's history, including the decades when Ellen White was writing about diet and health and the clothes people wear. During much of that time, there was a civil war going on, with thousands being blown to bits and people being cruelly enslaved by other humans, and many starving to death. But did that mean God did not reveal visions to her about what we should eat?

Why, then, should we think God has changed since those times?

Is God more concerned about wearing lipstick than about people dying of AIDS? Of course not. But the very way it is asked is liable to give people impression that since God is concerned about the great evils of the world, God is not concerned with what might be considered the smaller things. It doesn't work that way. The Bible is full of examples of how God's concern for horrible suffering and for the larger issues doesn't at all preclude God from being concerned with what people are liable to consider unimportant details of their life.

[Bravus]

I think you meant 'petty' rather than 'pretty'.

I think the flaw in the thinking of the original post is assuming God is as limited as we are in His attention. An omnniscient God does not need to ration his attention - He can attend to everything all the time.

That raises other questions, but it makes sense to at least ask them within the context of an accurate understanding of God.

[John317]

I agree, Bravus. I do think the article's writer is to be commended for trying to get us to see the world's larger problems for the serious issues that they are.

[Gerr]

I personally don't mind my palefaced wife to wear a little make-up with a simple tasteful jewelry. But I do mind very much if she were to fix herself up like a hooker. Have read Leviticus lately?

[aldona]

If enough bad things happen, will He stop caring which day is the Sabbath too?

No...but He may have to repeat His statement about the Sabbath being made for man, and not man for the Sabbath...

...or the one about straining out gnats, and swallowing camels...

...or the one about tithing mint and cumin, but forgetting the weightier matters like mercy...

I'm sure there are others, but these are just the ones that come to mind right now.

Besides, the Sabbath features in the 10 Commandments. Last time I checked; lipstick, pant suits, meat eating and jewelry did not.

AJ (not into lipstick or jewelry, but has been known to eat clean meats and often wears pant suits)

[Woody]

Thanks for the disclosure AJ

[Dr. Shane]

"Where no wood is, there the fire goeth out: so where there is no talebearer, the strife ceaseth." (Prob. 26:20)

If someone belongs to the Seventh-day Adventist church and wants to be unhappy; if they want to be critical; if they want to have a negative attitude; then I would recommend reading Spectrum Magazine.

If they want to have a positive outlook; if they want to be pleasant and happy; if they want to be a joy to be around; I would recommend staying away from stuff like Spectrum Magazine and Adventist Today.