“For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9, NLT)
Contrary to what many people think, human reasoning may often get in the way of belief in God. Human rationale can be used to justify wrongdoing, talk you into mistakes, and hold you back from seeing God. If you are prone to put human thought and understanding ahead of simple trust in God’s providence, you are setting yourself up for all kinds of failures.
Even today, many denominations have placed human thought and reasoning above faith. If the Bible says something is wrong but “modern” reasoning deems it understandable, too often people will choose to go with modern reasoning over God’s wisdom. This usually leads to disaster.
When I met June in 1989, I thought her to be a bright and vivacious person. She was a friend of many, a Sunday School teacher, and a well-respected woman at her work and at her church. She was dating a man named Joe from her church, whose father was an elder in the church and leader in the community. The two were head-over-heels in love. Everybody figured they were destined for marriage and many years of joy.
In 1990, June found out she was pregnant. June had some decisions to make. First, she told Joe. In their discussion, June rationalized that if everyone knew about the pregnancy, she would be ashamed to go out in public. She also assumed that Joe’s family would lose their respect for her Because they would be in a rush to get married and June had always wanted a big wedding, June would have to give up that dream as well. Joe promised to drop out of college and marry June. He even offered to do a big wedding before the baby bump began to show. Instead, June decided to hide everything and have an abortion. She told her best friend it was the only logical thing to do. Even though the Bible is against abortion, and there were medical risks with an abortion, June’s mind was fixed. Even though Joe wanted to keep the baby and marry June, that was not enough to keep June from going through with the abortion. She just didn’t want to face the humiliation she assumed would come her way.
Throughout her whole decision-making process, June ignored her faith. Inside her heart, she didn’t want to kill her baby. She abhorred the thought of it. Still, she did not want to face her family and friends with a quick marriage after a surprise pregnancy. She didn’t want to tell her pastor about the need for a quick wedding. She refused to look at how God viewed abortion. She prayed for the strength to “do what she had to do”. As June later told me, “I had every reason to abort the baby.” Sadly, her reasoning soon hurt her deeply. June went ahead with the abortion.
What June failed to see were the spiritual, moral, and psychological repercussions of following her “reasoning”. The abortion hurt herself and her family deeply Within months, June’s relationship with Joe began to unravel. They argued about the abortion. They also argued about how June changed. After the abortion, June fell into a depression. She regretted deeply what she had done. Recent statistics say that as many as 44% of women who have abortions regret it later. Among Christians, the number is much higher. Well, June began to fall apart as regret, shame, and depression dogged her following the abortion. Then, eight months after the abortion, June’s doctor told her that the abortion had scarred her uterus, and she would probably never have children. This further deepened June’s depression.
The ”reasonable” decisions by June to have an abortion and hide her pregnancy had huge consequences and unintended results. June and Joe broke up within a year. June never had children. June also quit attending her church, unable to face Joe and his family. To this day, I have yet to see June smile like she used to. She doesn’t seem joyful anymore. She was married and divorced twice. She is no longer active in her church. That one “reasonable” decision she made forty years ago brought little more than misery for her ever since. From my vantage point, it destroyed her once beautiful relationship with God.
June desperately felt the need for forgiveness following the abortion but wouldn’t allow herself to be forgiven. She lived under a cloud of her own guilt, shame, and regret. This blew up when June’s family found out years later about the abortion. The family now understood why every year June spent that one day (the anniversary of her abortion) bathed in tears.
King David from the Bible knew how June felt. David, too, made “reasonable” decisions to hide his own indiscretions. When David got Bathsheba pregnant in a moment of sinful adultery, David tried to cover up the pregnancy. He even went so far as to murder Bathsheba’s husband and then marry Bathsheba to hide their affair. Ultimately, this blew up in David’s face. Nathan, the prophet, declared publicly David’s sin. Then, their baby died at birth. Thankfully, David threw himself at the mercy of God, admitting his sin and begging for forgiveness. Only in seeking God’s grace would David overcome the many errors in judgement David had made that led to disastrous, sinful consequences.
The scripture for today is a warning about following fallible human reasoning, especially when it goes against the will of God. God told the prophet Isaiah and the people of Israel: “For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9, NLT). At the time when Isaiah proclaimed these words, the people of Israel and Judah had sinned greatly. Not only did their leaders justify their sin, but the priests also went along with everything! This resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem and the sacking of the Temple! Their downfall began when the people stopped obeying God’s word. They followed their own ideas. They listened to their own sinful leaders. Ultimately, human reasoning replaced God’s word. Then, the results became devastating.
Beware when voices inside your head or around you are pushing you to ignore God’s word and “follow your heart”. Beware when political leaders urge you to “trust the science”, even while they manipulate scientific facts. Beware when friends tempt you to do wrong in order to justify a little fun. Beware when situations push you to throw out your faith and values in order to “save face” or “look good”. So often, all these voices will cause you to ignore God’s word, deafen yourself to God’s voice of caution, and put you on a path where human reasoning falls flat before the wisdom of Almighty God.
Sometimes, it may be difficult for you to understand why God’s word says one thing when the world says another. You may not understand why God is not responding right away when you pray. It may not seem fair that your way ahead is not clear. As Paul proclaimed in Romans 11: “Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!” (Romans 11:33, NLT). You need God’s wisdom. You need to follow the Holy Spirit. It may not make sense all the time, but I can assure you; God’s wisdom is great, and God’s thoughts are greater than your thoughts!
I will end with something that Charles Stanley learned in his work for the Lord:
“Be prepared—at times, the Lord’s instructions may not make sense to you. In fact, it’s a principle you must embrace if you wish to know the Father: God doesn’t require you to understand His will, just obey it, even if it seems unreasonable.
Think about it. Why would the Lord ask Abraham to leave his home without telling him where he was going (Genesis 12:1–2)? Or why would God promise Abraham a son at age seventy-five, and then wait twenty-five years to fulfill His word? Humanly, it doesn’t make sense.
But that’s the point. You are not supposed to understand the Father—His desire is that you would honor Him as God—as the sovereign One who transcends all earthly limitations. Because when You do, He does the miraculous on your behalf and your faith grows strong.
Reason will always interfere with faith. As long as you’re looking for everything to make sense, you’re not fully depending on omnipotent God. Friend, give up your earthbound notions and allow Him to show you who He really is.” (p. 22, Every Day in His Presence).
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Help me, dear Lord God, to trust in you fully. When I don’t understand a situation, instruct me. When I don’t know which way to turn, let me turn to You in prayer. When I need illumination, point me to Your Word. When I am at wits end, let Your Holy Spirit shine some light on what to do!
I am so thankful for Your wisdom, oh Lord! I feel blessed by the teachings of Jesus, by His actions and reflections, by His steadfast love. Keep me aligned with Your plan for me. Keep my feet planted on the path that leads to righteousness.
I pray today for those who have followed the kind of human reasoning that is destructive and sinful. So many have fallen for the loudest voices, trusted in lies, and gave up on Your wisdom. I have no doubt that sin and sadness will envelop their pursuit. I am amazed at those who do not want to say “I’m sorry”, those who refuse to admit when they are wrong, those whose pride goes before a fall. May all these lost souls heed Your truth before it’s too late.
Finally, remind me, oh Lord, that Your wisdom is beyond my own. I don’t know as much as I think I do. I am gullible to temptation. I lose focus. I find it hard to obey when it is the best way forward. Shine a light upon my weakness and Your strength! Amen.
Even today, many denominations have placed human thought and reasoning above faith. If the Bible says something is wrong but “modern” reasoning deems it understandable, too often people will choose to go with modern reasoning over God’s wisdom. This usually leads to disaster.
When I met June in 1989, I thought her to be a bright and vivacious person. She was a friend of many, a Sunday School teacher, and a well-respected woman at her work and at her church. She was dating a man named Joe from her church, whose father was an elder in the church and leader in the community. The two were head-over-heels in love. Everybody figured they were destined for marriage and many years of joy.
In 1990, June found out she was pregnant. June had some decisions to make. First, she told Joe. In their discussion, June rationalized that if everyone knew about the pregnancy, she would be ashamed to go out in public. She also assumed that Joe’s family would lose their respect for her Because they would be in a rush to get married and June had always wanted a big wedding, June would have to give up that dream as well. Joe promised to drop out of college and marry June. He even offered to do a big wedding before the baby bump began to show. Instead, June decided to hide everything and have an abortion. She told her best friend it was the only logical thing to do. Even though the Bible is against abortion, and there were medical risks with an abortion, June’s mind was fixed. Even though Joe wanted to keep the baby and marry June, that was not enough to keep June from going through with the abortion. She just didn’t want to face the humiliation she assumed would come her way.
Throughout her whole decision-making process, June ignored her faith. Inside her heart, she didn’t want to kill her baby. She abhorred the thought of it. Still, she did not want to face her family and friends with a quick marriage after a surprise pregnancy. She didn’t want to tell her pastor about the need for a quick wedding. She refused to look at how God viewed abortion. She prayed for the strength to “do what she had to do”. As June later told me, “I had every reason to abort the baby.” Sadly, her reasoning soon hurt her deeply. June went ahead with the abortion.
What June failed to see were the spiritual, moral, and psychological repercussions of following her “reasoning”. The abortion hurt herself and her family deeply Within months, June’s relationship with Joe began to unravel. They argued about the abortion. They also argued about how June changed. After the abortion, June fell into a depression. She regretted deeply what she had done. Recent statistics say that as many as 44% of women who have abortions regret it later. Among Christians, the number is much higher. Well, June began to fall apart as regret, shame, and depression dogged her following the abortion. Then, eight months after the abortion, June’s doctor told her that the abortion had scarred her uterus, and she would probably never have children. This further deepened June’s depression.
The ”reasonable” decisions by June to have an abortion and hide her pregnancy had huge consequences and unintended results. June and Joe broke up within a year. June never had children. June also quit attending her church, unable to face Joe and his family. To this day, I have yet to see June smile like she used to. She doesn’t seem joyful anymore. She was married and divorced twice. She is no longer active in her church. That one “reasonable” decision she made forty years ago brought little more than misery for her ever since. From my vantage point, it destroyed her once beautiful relationship with God.
June desperately felt the need for forgiveness following the abortion but wouldn’t allow herself to be forgiven. She lived under a cloud of her own guilt, shame, and regret. This blew up when June’s family found out years later about the abortion. The family now understood why every year June spent that one day (the anniversary of her abortion) bathed in tears.
King David from the Bible knew how June felt. David, too, made “reasonable” decisions to hide his own indiscretions. When David got Bathsheba pregnant in a moment of sinful adultery, David tried to cover up the pregnancy. He even went so far as to murder Bathsheba’s husband and then marry Bathsheba to hide their affair. Ultimately, this blew up in David’s face. Nathan, the prophet, declared publicly David’s sin. Then, their baby died at birth. Thankfully, David threw himself at the mercy of God, admitting his sin and begging for forgiveness. Only in seeking God’s grace would David overcome the many errors in judgement David had made that led to disastrous, sinful consequences.
The scripture for today is a warning about following fallible human reasoning, especially when it goes against the will of God. God told the prophet Isaiah and the people of Israel: “For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9, NLT). At the time when Isaiah proclaimed these words, the people of Israel and Judah had sinned greatly. Not only did their leaders justify their sin, but the priests also went along with everything! This resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem and the sacking of the Temple! Their downfall began when the people stopped obeying God’s word. They followed their own ideas. They listened to their own sinful leaders. Ultimately, human reasoning replaced God’s word. Then, the results became devastating.
Beware when voices inside your head or around you are pushing you to ignore God’s word and “follow your heart”. Beware when political leaders urge you to “trust the science”, even while they manipulate scientific facts. Beware when friends tempt you to do wrong in order to justify a little fun. Beware when situations push you to throw out your faith and values in order to “save face” or “look good”. So often, all these voices will cause you to ignore God’s word, deafen yourself to God’s voice of caution, and put you on a path where human reasoning falls flat before the wisdom of Almighty God.
Sometimes, it may be difficult for you to understand why God’s word says one thing when the world says another. You may not understand why God is not responding right away when you pray. It may not seem fair that your way ahead is not clear. As Paul proclaimed in Romans 11: “Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!” (Romans 11:33, NLT). You need God’s wisdom. You need to follow the Holy Spirit. It may not make sense all the time, but I can assure you; God’s wisdom is great, and God’s thoughts are greater than your thoughts!
I will end with something that Charles Stanley learned in his work for the Lord:
“Be prepared—at times, the Lord’s instructions may not make sense to you. In fact, it’s a principle you must embrace if you wish to know the Father: God doesn’t require you to understand His will, just obey it, even if it seems unreasonable.
Think about it. Why would the Lord ask Abraham to leave his home without telling him where he was going (Genesis 12:1–2)? Or why would God promise Abraham a son at age seventy-five, and then wait twenty-five years to fulfill His word? Humanly, it doesn’t make sense.
But that’s the point. You are not supposed to understand the Father—His desire is that you would honor Him as God—as the sovereign One who transcends all earthly limitations. Because when You do, He does the miraculous on your behalf and your faith grows strong.
Reason will always interfere with faith. As long as you’re looking for everything to make sense, you’re not fully depending on omnipotent God. Friend, give up your earthbound notions and allow Him to show you who He really is.” (p. 22, Every Day in His Presence).
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Help me, dear Lord God, to trust in you fully. When I don’t understand a situation, instruct me. When I don’t know which way to turn, let me turn to You in prayer. When I need illumination, point me to Your Word. When I am at wits end, let Your Holy Spirit shine some light on what to do!
I am so thankful for Your wisdom, oh Lord! I feel blessed by the teachings of Jesus, by His actions and reflections, by His steadfast love. Keep me aligned with Your plan for me. Keep my feet planted on the path that leads to righteousness.
I pray today for those who have followed the kind of human reasoning that is destructive and sinful. So many have fallen for the loudest voices, trusted in lies, and gave up on Your wisdom. I have no doubt that sin and sadness will envelop their pursuit. I am amazed at those who do not want to say “I’m sorry”, those who refuse to admit when they are wrong, those whose pride goes before a fall. May all these lost souls heed Your truth before it’s too late.
Finally, remind me, oh Lord, that Your wisdom is beyond my own. I don’t know as much as I think I do. I am gullible to temptation. I lose focus. I find it hard to obey when it is the best way forward. Shine a light upon my weakness and Your strength! Amen.