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Come, Let Us Reason Together
September 09, 2011
"Come, let us reason together" is a call from God to a sinful Judah and Jerusalem to turn from their sins and accept His instruction. When we reason with God, reason prevails -- that is, God wins! He will always be right and we will always be wrong if we try to take Him on. Abraham tried it, Moses tried, Jonah tried it -- and God won every time!
Bernie Parsons
Come, Let Us
Reason Together
By
Bernie Parsons
Presented to the Blockhouse Bottom church of Christ 09-09-2011
I knew an older preacher who was fond of asking folks from various denominations to attend our “gospel meetings” (revivals) saying, “Come, let us reason together”. In fact, that was one of his favorite sayings and one of his mottoes.
However, the context was a call for God’s people of Jerusalem and Judah to repent of their sins and turn their hearts back to God. They had turned aside to murder, thievery, bribery and had failed to look after the widows and fatherless.
Isaiah 1:15 "And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood.
16 Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;
17 Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”
You can read on to discover those sins that they were committing, and the fact that God vowed the vengeance of destruction upon the unrighteous among them. When it comes to reasoning with God, God’s ideas and ways always win out over ours.
Proverbs 3:5 “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."
We are not fit to argue with God, to persuade Him that we are right.
Romans 9:19 "Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
20 Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?"
We must not blame God, as some do when things don’t go as well as they had anticipated in their lives.
Abraham argued with God about destroying Sodom and Gomorrah – and how did that work out? God told Abraham his intentions, Genesis 18:17. In verses 23-33, Abraham reasons with God about the righteous in the city. Let me share part of that to you.
Genesis 18:23 "And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
24 Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
25 That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
26 And the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes."
He went on to argue all the way down to ten righteous souls, and God agreed. We know how that turned out for Sodom and Gomorrah! God was right, and Abraham was wrong.
Moses argued with God about being the spokesman for the Israelites. He said that he was not equipped to do the job.
Exodus 3:10 "Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.
11 And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?"
Moses also said that he was not a good speaker, but the Lord argued otherwise.
Exodus 4:10 "And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.
11 And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD?
12 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say."
Who was the winner of this argument? God, or Moses?
Men often think that they are smarter than God. Their way is a better way than His. They chose to ignore what God has said, or else they tend to make up rules and laws for others to follow.
Jeremiah 14:14 "Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart."
Jeremiah 23:25 "I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed.
26 How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart;”
Jeremiah 23:30 “Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour.
31 Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He saith.
32 Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD."
1 Peter 4:11 "If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen."
We are charged to speak as God spoke, yet many are bold to invent their own doctrines.
Matthew 15:8 "This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men."
Romans 10:2 "For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.
3 For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God."
2 Timothy 3:4
“Traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn
away.
6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly
women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,
7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
We have no business making up rules, creating hoops for believers to jump through. I have no authority to create laws and say, “God said” – and neither do you! We should be zealous of good works, but good works come from God, not from within man’s imagination.
Psalms 1:1 "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night."
Matthew 22:37 “Jesus said unto him: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”
Isaiah 1:16 “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;
17 Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”
We can be white as snow! But, only if we allow God to reason with us!
