Does God Ever Not Tell the Truth?

1/10/2025

Question: What is the problem with either—the character of—or the spiritual understanding of...

A person who walks through Hobby Lobby, sees a verse on a plaque about prayer, and gets mad because “that Verse doesn’t work!”?

Arrogance—(God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.) When we walk in humility, He gives the Grace/provision to SEE deeper... When we are quiet and soft and acknowledge that we are NOT God and that His ways are not ours, and that the world doesn’t revolve around little ole us, then His Grace flows toward such Humility, and we have the Faith and Trust and desire to See things His ways (instead of sitting back and judging Him with our little xy mind1).

They are still self-focused thinking in terms of “working” as if the verse is for self-serving purposes. Getting mad might show they value their own xy analysis of the thing rather than turning to God and asking him something, crying out to him for more understanding rather than passing their judgment on it.

For one thing, I don’t have any right to be angry about anything I don’t understand about God or what He does. The clay and the Potter. Just because something didn’t seem to “work” I wouldn’t want to assume it was God’s fault but my faulty understanding. That would be arrogance. And lack of understanding of what prayer really is.

They are all about “self.” What they need, what they want, and God answering their every desire. Instead of, “What can I give? What can I lay down for you, God? I trust you, God, for you have a plan and a purpose that is beyond my understanding.” And Believing Him!

Yes. The person’s world is entirely about his/her self, and every verse should “work” to one’s own advantage when we are actually called to die to self.

Understanding that it’s not just “a verse” up for debate, but a letter from the heart of GOD. And His heart can be explored for a million lifetimes.

The “it doesn’t work” response indicates that the person is operating in the wrong “reference frame.” Everything revolves around them. It is a character problem. The “you’ll see it when you believe it” phenomenon requires letting go of yourself.

It seems to me (not sure about this) that there may be some lack of understanding involved too. By God’s grace, he gives revelation/understanding/a clue. A glimpse of a different reference frame that we can then choose by faith to operate from. Maybe? It seems that way to me—that I have gained understanding so that when I might have been “angry,” I can realize that my perspective is wrong and change—quickly. But that understanding is totally grace and nothing achievable on my own. The “understanding” part is totally a gift and must be received as a gift (in humility, surrender of self, and character).

It is calling God a liar to say that what He says doesn’t work or isn’t true. Which seems to be, at its root, equivalent to saying, “I am God”—by definition. :/

That person does not see that God’s words are from another dimension and can’t be understood with our brain. When you know, like Abraham did, that God is God, then there’s no way you would get mad.

God is God, and I am not! Any disconnect is on me, not God Most High. If you don’t see that, you do not know God or even believe what you have heard of Him. He and His words are NEVER up for debate from our little ole minds. Be appalled at yourself, bow down to your Creator, and ask for forgiveness and freedom from self!

It’s calling God a liar. Saying it’s His fault. Instead of, “I haven’t touched that yet, God—take me there, please.” Humility and Trust.

The whole concept of a “verse” that “works” or “doesn’t work” sounds like a superstitious belief in magic words rather than a trust in a real Person and a walk with God.

Agreed. With all the above. This can also be the case: “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures” James 4:3 NIVUK.

Failure to trust that there’s a bigger picture and plan than we can see or understand, as discussed here: The Plan

The problem I see is that the perspective/character views God as a means to some end.

“That verse doesn’t work [to achieve goals that I think are good on a timetable I understand, therefore obedience to God isn’t a very good means to the ends that I’m pursuing].”

God has His own goals and his own timetable, and He doesn’t owe us any insight into that—though He does provide some at times after we abandon—because He treats the abandoned as friends. But at no point does He owe us any insight into the explanation of His goals, methods, or timetable—it’s His business.

All spot on.

You can’t change God’s will, you get to *participate* in God’s will.

You don’t get your own plane to fly, but be grateful He lets you sit in the plane with him and play with the knobs. It’s HIS airplane. HIS timing when to land or when to take off.

If he sees a storm ahead and has to make a change of course, who are we to complain about that just because we don’t see the storm ahead? He is trying to work “everything” together for everyone’s good. Not just working things together for “your” good.

Don’t take one verse and say “this is what God is like.” That’s just one thing He said—like a piece of a puzzle. One piece isn’t the whole puzzle. He is a person. He isn’t defined by the things He says. You aren’t defined that way any more than a piece of your neck isn’t your entire being, even if it has your DNA in it.

When you ask for something, you don’t know what God knows. He knows what circumstances make you more like Him and that might be without your prayer answered. “I tried praying about this or that and It didn’t work.” Those words indicate it was selfish and just about you. It’s like a video game that you tried and “didn’t work.”

“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?” Job 38:4

“I put my hand over my mouth.” Job 40:4

God is God, and he is love. He is good and does good. And I don’t have to understand it.

It is also unbelieving and not loving Jesus to say, “I know it’s all my fault that my prayers aren’t being answered or this verse isn’t ‘working.’ I know it’s my fault and not God’s! But I just don’t know what’s wrong with me. I just keep messing up, so I’m just gonna kinda ignore it and hope nothing goes too badly.” Following God takes passionate and persistent Belief in the Unseen!

To even “think” you can judge an outcome “righteously” based on events or how something “should look” is total satanic arrogance. Abraham offers Isaac, Joseph goes to prison, Jesus is crucified. You would have cursed God’s unanswered “not working” promise then too. Don’t think you are on His side if you have opinions of how something should be done or executed.

The miracle crossing seems to fit as an example...

The self seeking people:

“Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us?

Versus Moses’ heart of faith and trust:

But Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today. The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” I don’t know what is going to happen next, but it is going to be very cool. :-)

Versus the Lord’s actual answer: :-)

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the people to get moving!” :-)

Jeremiah... “Why is my pain unending and my wound grievous and incurable? Will you be to me like a deceptive brook, like a spring that fails?”

This is what the Lord says:

“If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me: if you utter worthy, not worthless words, you will be my spokesman.”

Job... “Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him.”

David...(as his cries to God were seemingly being ignored) “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (This was striking to me because part of the Answer was known 1000 years later as David was quoted and fulfilled by Jesus himself on the cross—as he was dying for the sake of David’s sins, Eve’s sins, and for the rest of mankind.)

Jesus... “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”

1In this conversation, the XY-axis versus the Z-axis is being used as an illustration of the difference between eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil vs eating of the Tree of Life. XY-axis living is a “flat” natural living of good vs evil. Z-axis is a supernatural Zoe life in Jesus. Back