After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, "Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under a tent."
Nathan replied to David, "Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you."
But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying:
"Go and tell my servant David, 'This is what the LORD says . . . ' "
"I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like all the names of the greatest men on earth. And I will provide a place for my people Israel . . . Wicked people will not oppress them anymore… I will also subdue all your enemies. " 'I declare to you that the LORD will build a house for you: When your days are over and you go to be with your ancestors, I will raise up your own offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. . . I will never take away my love from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. . . .' " I Chronicles 17: 1-13

God is not a "Taker"; God is a "Giver." Whatever we give to God, He will give it back to us "a good measure, pressed down shaken together and running over (Luke 6:38). When we give faithfully to him in our tithes and offerings, He promises to open the windows of Heaven upon our lives and pour out so much blessing that we won't even have room to contain it (Malachi 3:10). Try it, it works because God is not a man that He should lie. If God were to lie for a moment, He would cease to be God; because He would have no basis of righteousness.

There is something very extraordinary about giving generously to God. I am perfectly aware that the subject of giving has been blatantly abused by some pastors who have taken undue advantage of God's children, even to the point of fleecing God's children and making merchandise of them. But this does not negate the evidence of Scripture that God looks down with great favor on generous givers. In fact, Scripture makes it clear that when we give generously to God, He will give generously back to us because God loves generous givers.

Generous giving comes out of a grateful heart and that is what touches the heart of God. David recognized that God had been extremely gracious to him. God had elevated him from an unnoticed shepherd to the position of a king. He was now living in a palace built of cedar. Out of gratitude, he felt the need to build a house for the ark of God which was being housed in a tent at the time. This decision was born out of pure gratitude to God. God was deeply touched.

So what came out of this generous desire? Several blessings:
First: God promised to make David like the names of the greatest men on all the earth. The fulfillment is borne out by the fact that thousands of years after the death of David, people are still being named after him! We constantly talk about how David defeated Goliath.

Second: God promised to subdue all his enemies before him. What a blessing!

Third: The LORD promised to build the house of David. This was more than a physical dwelling place. This referred to the legacy and posterity of David! The truth is, "except the LORD builds a house, the laborers will be building in vain." (Psalm 127:1) Do you want God to build your house? Then build His house first. Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness and He will add all other things to you. (Matthew 6:33) He will build not just your physical home but your relationships, marriage, career, business and even your reputation long after you are gone from the earth.

Fourth: God promised that His love will never depart from David's house. Do you want a generational blessing of God's love to follow your children? Then invest in building the house of God. Does this peak your interest and get your attention? Well, try it. Build God's house and God will surprise you with incredible favor. God will watch over His word to perform it in your life. Amen.

4Toluilori:
After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, "Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under a tent."
Nathan replied to David, "Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you."
But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying:
"Go and tell my servant David, 'This is what the LORD says . . . ' "
"I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like all the names of the greatest men on earth. And I will provide a place for my people Israel . . . Wicked people will not oppress them anymore… I will also subdue all your enemies. " 'I declare to you that the LORD will build a house for you: When your days are over and you go to be with your ancestors, I will raise up your own offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. . . I will never take away my love from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. . . .' " I Chronicles 17: 1-13

God is not a "Taker"; God is a "Giver." Whatever we give to God, He will give it back to us "a good measure, pressed down shaken together and running over (Luke 6:38). When we give faithfully to him in our tithes and offerings, He promises to open the windows of Heaven upon our lives and pour out so much blessing that we won't even have room to contain it (Malachi 3:10). Try it, it works because God is not a man that He should lie. If God were to lie for a moment, He would cease to be God; because He would have no basis of righteousness.

There is something very extraordinary about giving generously to God. I am perfectly aware that the subject of giving has been blatantly abused by some pastors who have taken undue advantage of God's children, even to the point of fleecing God's children and making merchandise of them. But this does not negate the evidence of Scripture that God looks down with great favor on generous givers. In fact, Scripture makes it clear that when we give generously to God, He will give generously back to us because God loves generous givers.

Generous giving comes out of a grateful heart and that is what touches the heart of God. David recognized that God had been extremely gracious to him. God had elevated him from an unnoticed shepherd to the position of a king. He was now living in a palace built of cedar. Out of gratitude, he felt the need to build a house for the ark of God which was being housed in a tent at the time. This decision was born out of pure gratitude to God. God was deeply touched.

So what came out of this generous desire? Several blessings:
First: God promised to make David like the names of the greatest men on all the earth. The fulfillment is borne out by the fact that thousands of years after the death of David, people are still being named after him! We constantly talk about how David defeated Goliath.

Second: God promised to subdue all his enemies before him. What a blessing!

Third: The LORD promised to build the house of David. This was more than a physical dwelling place. This referred to the legacy and posterity of David! The truth is, "except the LORD builds a house, the laborers will be building in vain." (Psalm 127:1) Do you want God to build your house? Then build His house first. Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness and He will add all other things to you. (Matthew 6:33) He will build not just your physical home but your relationships, marriage, career, business and even your reputation long after you are gone from the earth.

Fourth: God promised that His love will never depart from David's house. Do you want a generational blessing of God's love to follow your children? Then invest in building the house of God. Does this peak your interest and get your attention? Well, try it. Build God's house and God will surprise you with incredible favor. God will watch over His word to perform it in your life. Amen.

Why does God allow evil and suffering to exist?

Michael547:

Why does God allow evil and suffering to exist?

Suffering and Evil also affects your God too. Do not blame him, he is also a victim

1) God could change everyone’s personality so that they cannot sin. This would also mean that we would not have a free will. We would not be able to choose right or wrong because we would be “programmed” to only do right. Had God chosen to do this, there would be no meaningful relationships between Him and His creation.

Instead, God made Adam and Eve innocent but with the ability to choose good or evil. Because of this, they could respond to His love and trust Him or choose to disobey. They chose to disobey. Because we live in a real world where we can choose our actions but not their consequences, their sin affected those who came after them (us). Similarly, our decisions to sin have an impact on us and those around us and those who will come after us.

2) God could compensate for people’s evil actions through supernatural intervention 100 percent of the time. God would stop a drunk driver from causing an automobile accident. God would stop a lazy construction worker from doing a substandard job on a house that would later cause grief to the homeowners. God would stop a father who is addicted to drugs or alcohol from doing any harm to his wife, children, or extended family. God would stop gunmen from robbing convenience stores. God would stop high school bullies from tormenting the brainy kids. God would stop thieves from shoplifting. And, yes, God would stop terrorists from flying airplanes into buildings.

While this solution sounds attractive, it would lose its attractiveness as soon as God’s intervention infringed on something we wanted to do. We want God to prevent horribly evil actions, but we are willing to let “lesser-evil” actions slide—not realizing that those “lesser-evil” actions are what usually lead to the “greater-evil” actions. Should God only stop actual sexual affairs, or should He also block our access to pornography or end any inappropriate, but not yet sexual, relationships? Should God stop “true” thieves, or should He also stop us from cheating on our taxes? Should God only stop murder, or should He also stop the “lesser-evil” actions done to people that lead them to commit murder? Should God only stop acts of terrorism, or should He also stop the indoctrination that transformed a person into a terrorist?

3) Another choice would be for God to judge and remove those who choose to commit evil acts. The problem with this possibility is that there would be no one left, for God would have to remove us all. We all sin and commit evil acts (Romans 3:23; Ecclesiastes 7:20; 1 John 1:. While some people are more evil than others, where would God draw the line? Ultimately, all evil causes harm to others.

Instead of these options, God has chosen to create a “real” world in which real choices have real consequences. In this real world of ours, our actions affect others. Because of Adam’s choice to sin, the world now lives under the curse, and we are all born with a sin nature (Romans 5:12). There will one day come a time when God will judge the sin in this world and make all things new, but He is purposely “delaying” in order to allow more time for people to repent so that He will not need to condemn them (2 Peter 3:9). Until then, He IS concerned about evil. When He created the Old Testament laws, one of His goals was to discourage and punish evil. He judges nations and rulers who disregard justice and pursue evil. Likewise, in the New Testament, God states that it is the government’s responsibility to provide justice in order to protect the innocent from evil (Romans 13). He also promises severe consequences for those who commit evil acts, especially against the "innocent" (Mark 9:36-42).

In summary, we live in a real world where our good and evil actions have direct consequences and indirect consequences upon us and those around us. God’s desire is that for all of our sakes we would obey Him that it might be well with us (Deuteronomy 5:29). Instead, what happens is that we choose our own way, and then we blame God for not doing anything about it. Such is the heart of sinful man. But Jesus came to change men’s hearts through the power of the Holy Spirit, and He does this for those who will turn from evil and call on Him to save them from their sin and its consequences (2 Corinthians 5:17). God does prevent and restrain some acts of evil. This world would be MUCH WORSE were God not restraining evil. At the same time, God has given us the ability to choose good and evil, and when we choose evil, He allows us, and those around us, to suffer the consequences of evil. Rather than blaming God and questioning God on why He does not prevent all evil, we should be about the business of proclaiming the cure for evil and its consequences, Jesus christ. Amen.

TheBillyonaire:


Suffering and Evil also affects your God too. Do not blame him, he is also a victim

Ok.....where does suffering and evil originate from?

Michael547:

Ok.....where does suffering and evil originate from?

Evil ,manifests as resistance/lag to flow of resources/energy, so its best to flow with it. Moving in contra direction results in feeling of suffering.

All Religious people must suffer, it is not a curse, it is expected from a people who see lag and resistance as suffering of participating in inventing systems that leads to evolution of consciousnesses.

So there is a degree of ignorance where ever there is suffering.

TheBillyonaire:


Evil ,manifests as resistance/lag to flow of resources/energy, so its best to flow with it. Moving in contra direction results in feeling of suffering.

All Religious people must suffer, it is not a curse, it is expected from a people who see lag and resistance as suffering of participating in inventing systems that leads to evolution of consciousnesses.

So there is a degree of ignorance where ever there is suffering.

What is the source of the the resources/energy? What exactly is the resources/energy?

Michael547:

What is the source of the the resources/energy? What exactly is the resources/energy?

The Universe as well as the entities in it.

TheBillyonaire:


The Universe as well as the entities in it.

What exactly is the resources/energy that we must not resist?

In a world where people are constantly grasping for deeper meaning, deeper spirituality, and a higher purpose, energy healing is one more New Age philosophy that presents itself as very desirable to human beings. Born with sin, we all come into the world with the strong belief that we are the center of the universe—that we are in control of our health, our bodies, our lives, our circumstances, and our destinies. Those who have not turned to God for Truth have no choice but to search for it within themselves.

The practice of energy healing is not in itself a religion, but it is a pathway to one’s own spirituality. It leads us on a personal journey that encourages us to focus on ourselves and how our energy is in sync with the energies of the cosmos, the earth, and all other life. Through this, we can supposedly be taught to heal ourselves by using clairvoyance to “visualize” where the negative energy is in order to determine the cause of the problem, whether it is physical, emotional or spiritual.

Reiki, a widely used energy healing technique, was said to have been developed by a Buddhist monk who used cosmic symbols for healing. Reiki claims to work by removing obstructions to the flow of life force energy throughout the body. These obstructions are allegedly caused by negative thoughts, actions, or feelings, which some believe are the fundamental cause of illness. Many even claim that employing this method is the way Jesus obtained His healing power, rather than attributing His power to the fact that He is God.

The use of energy healing encourages us to put our full trust in ourselves and our own bodies, which is a form of worship. For most who participate in energy healing, no recognition is given to the one true God, nor does He receive any praise for healing. The person using these methods of healing has made himself into his own god. Getting involved in energy healing is spiritually dangerous, to say the least.

The Bible tells us that Jesus is the One who came to heal. “Then Jesus said, 'Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest'” (Matthew 11:28). God does not want or expect us to help ourselves. He is the source of life, of all that is good and true. Those who refuse to acknowledge Jesus will never come to a place of spiritual healing. “For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them” (Matthew 13:15). Amen.

4Toluilori:
After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, "Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under a tent."
Nathan replied to David, "Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you."
But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying:
"Go and tell my servant David, 'This is what the LORD says . . . ' "
"I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like all the names of the greatest men on earth. And I will provide a place for my people Israel . . . Wicked people will not oppress them anymore… I will also subdue all your enemies. " 'I declare to you that the LORD will build a house for you: When your days are over and you go to be with your ancestors, I will raise up your own offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. . . I will never take away my love from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. . . .' " I Chronicles 17: 1-13

God is not a "Taker"; God is a "Giver." Whatever we give to God, He will give it back to us "a good measure, pressed down shaken together and running over (Luke 6:38). When we give faithfully to him in our tithes and offerings, He promises to open the windows of Heaven upon our lives and pour out so much blessing that we won't even have room to contain it (Malachi 3:10). Try it, it works because God is not a man that He should lie. If God were to lie for a moment, He would cease to be God; because He would have no basis of righteousness.

There is something very extraordinary about giving generously to God. I am perfectly aware that the subject of giving has been blatantly abused by some pastors who have taken undue advantage of God's children, even to the point of fleecing God's children and making merchandise of them. But this does not negate the evidence of Scripture that God looks down with great favor on generous givers. In fact, Scripture makes it clear that when we give generously to God, He will give generously back to us because God loves generous givers.

Generous giving comes out of a grateful heart and that is what touches the heart of God. David recognized that God had been extremely gracious to him. God had elevated him from an unnoticed shepherd to the position of a king. He was now living in a palace built of cedar. Out of gratitude, he felt the need to build a house for the ark of God which was being housed in a tent at the time. This decision was born out of pure gratitude to God. God was deeply touched.

So what came out of this generous desire? Several blessings:
First: God promised to make David like the names of the greatest men on all the earth. The fulfillment is borne out by the fact that thousands of years after the death of David, people are still being named after him! We constantly talk about how David defeated Goliath.

Second: God promised to subdue all his enemies before him. What a blessing!

Third: The LORD promised to build the house of David. This was more than a physical dwelling place. This referred to the legacy and posterity of David! The truth is, "except the LORD builds a house, the laborers will be building in vain." (Psalm 127:1) Do you want God to build your house? Then build His house first. Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness and He will add all other things to you. (Matthew 6:33) He will build not just your physical home but your relationships, marriage, career, business and even your reputation long after you are gone from the earth.

Fourth: God promised that His love will never depart from David's house. Do you want a generational blessing of God's love to follow your children? Then invest in building the house of God. Does this peak your interest and get your attention? Well, try it. Build God's house and God will surprise you with incredible favor. God will watch over His word to perform it in your life. Amen.

There are millions of Christians out there who over the years had contributed money to build houses for God, yet as we speak, they can't even afford a land for themselves talkless of a house. What do you say about that?

There is a saying: “Good is its own reward.” But we may also wonder whether God rewards us in other ways if we obey His Word. Does being good earn us additional blessings and benefits aside from the pleasant feeling? This question can have two answers, so we’ll look at both of them.

First of all, God’s pleasure at obedience is documented over and over in Scripture, especially in the Old Testament (Psalm 91:14–15; Isaiah 58:13–14). God’s covenant with Israel at Sinai was very much conditional, as it was based on their obedience, and His promises to bless them depended on whether or not they kept His commands (Leviticus 3). The Old Testament records the consequences Israel experienced when they kept or broke the covenant (Deuteronomy 8:19–20; Daniel 9:11–12). When Israel obeyed, God prospered them (Exodus 15:26). When they defied Him, He brought judgment (2 Kings 24:2–3). During that time in human history, God offered tangible rewards for obedience to His commands.

By the time Jesus came to earth, the leaders of Israel had added to God’s law and turned it into a religious system without the relationship. They believed themselves righteous because they followed the system of rules they had set up. They assured themselves that they were God’s favorites because they were descendants of Abraham and because they were so religious.

However, Jesus rebuked the religious leaders of the day, saying, “You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men’” (Matthew 15:7–9). The Pharisees were obedient to the letter of the law in some respects, but they nullified other parts of the law by their own traditions. They were rebuked because whatever show of obedience they had was motivated by self-righteousness, not love for God. Those who were promised rewards for obedience were rebuked many times because their obedience was not from the heart and was incomplete (Isaiah 29:13; Malachi 2:13–17; 3:8–15; Matthew 23:15–28).

So, what about now? Does God reward us for being obedient to His Word? We can better answer this question by recognizing that God’s Word is the instruction manual for our lives. When we apply its principles, our consciences are clean and our lives function as they were designed to function. Consider it this way: a man purchases an unassembled swing set for his children. He is not the engineering type and has no experience in working with tools. But if he reads the manual and consults with people who have assembled such things before, he will be able to set up the swing set the way it was designed, and he and his children will be greatly rewarded for his trouble. If he ignores the owner’s manual, however, he’s courting frustration and possibly disaster. There are built-in rewards for simply following instructions.

Psalm 1:1–4 explains it this way: “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.” When we follow the way of wisdom, we reap better experiences, and those better experiences produce rewards such as material provision, relational benefits, and mental and emotional health. Those are God’s rewards for people who follow His instruction.

God’s reward to those who obey His Word can seem like natural consequences. For example, a child obeys God’s Word and honors his parents. He finds that he is blessed with closer familial relationships, less conflict, and more trust. Are these the direct blessings of God for obedience or the natural consequences of treating parents well—or both? Another example: a teenager obeys God’s Word and avoids sexual immorality. She finds that she is blessed with less complicated romantic relationships, fewer heartaches, and an absence of STDs. Is she experiencing the direct blessing from God for obedience or the logical outcome of choosing the path of abstinence—or both?

God does not always define reward the same way we do. When we think of God rewarding us for behaving well, we usually think of tangible, material goodies. But God has eternity in mind. The Bible and ensuing history are filled with examples of people who obeyed the Lord at great cost to themselves. Scripture’s godly men and women often did not appear to reap any earthly rewards for their obedience, yet many are listed in the Hall of Faith as people whose rewards are in heaven. Hebrews 11:39–40 summarizes: “All these were approved through their faith, but they did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, so that they would not be made perfect without us.”

Obedience to the Word includes obedience to the gospel, and that carries great reward. When we accept God’s offer of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, we are pronounced righteous in His sight (2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:13). There is no longer any condemnation waiting for us because, in His grace, God considered the sacrifice of His Son as sufficient payment for the great debt we owed Him (Romans 8:1; Ephesians 2:8–9; Colossians 2:14). As part of that salvation, we are promised an eternity in glory with Him.

None of salvation’s benefits are a reward for our performance. Forgiveness and heaven are gifts granted to us because of God’s great love. The most unworthy criminal who cries out in repentance on his deathbed will receive the same pardon and eternity in heaven as the missionary martyred on the mission field (Luke 23:39–43; Matthew 20:1–16). However, Jesus does promise many different kinds of rewards in heaven for every deed done in His name on earth (Mark 9:41; James 1:12; Revelation 22:12). When we walk in fellowship with Him, keeping our sins confessed and our lives free of besetting sins, we are rewarded daily with fruit from the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23), communion with God (James 4:7–, and power to resist the attacks of Satan (Ephesians 6:10–17). Whatever struggles we face on earth in order to obey God’s Word will be overly compensated in eternity with rewards we cannot even imagine (Romans 8:18). Amen.

Supporting God's work here on Earth is very good
However, God doesn't live in Block and cement house
He lives in us through his spirit
Build that house in your inside"soul"
Let him inhabit in you

The clause unless the Lord builds the house does not imply that the Lord has a hammer and nails and actually performs construction work. Rather, it speaks metaphorically of the Lord’s direct involvement in our lives. The Hebrew word for “house” in Psalm 127:1 appears nearly a thousand times in the Bible. It is used literally to refer to temples, palaces, and homes, and figuratively to refer to households and families—all of which are important structures in a person’s life. The word represents not only a primary dwelling place but also one’s sense of self-identity, security, and place in this world. We cannot reasonably hope to have a fulfilling, truly successful life without our heavenly Father’s help, guidance, and protection over our “house.”

No matter how skilled or diligent the workers are, “the work of the builders is wasted” (NLT) unless the Lord builds the house. He is the master carpenter of our lives. He is the source of wisdom, which is the most valuable building material: “By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures” (Proverbs 24:3–4).

Here’s some of what else the Bible says about God’s sovereignty in building the “house” of our lives: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5–6). “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” (Proverbs 19:21).

David revealed that “all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm 139:16). The Lord told Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations” (Jeremiah 1:5). His plan for us is just as certain, written from eternity: “For He chose us in [Christ] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will” (Ephesians 1:4–5).

So the Lord has a plan for us, and we have the responsibility to cooperate in that plan. The builders of the “house” in Psalm 127:1 do not stop working, but they do recognize that they need God’s direction and blessing in their work. That is to say, we labor, but we remember that, unless the Lord builds the house, our labor is in vain.

Jesus used a similar metaphor in His Sermon on the Mount, where He warned that “everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash” (Matthew 7:26–27). The foolish man labored on his house, but he foolishly left the Lord out of the process.

The rich fool in Jesus’ parable had attained all types of worldly accomplishments, but at the pinnacle of his success God required of him his life. “Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” God asks him (Luke 12:20). The rich man in Luke 16 was likewise quite successful, but he dies in verse 22; in the next verse, he is in Hades in torment. “Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain.”

Trying to accomplish anything without God’s blessing, apart from His wisdom, is foolish. It leads to futility in the end and to the lament of Ecclesiastes 1:2: “Everything is meaningless.”

Psalm 127:1, with its condition that the Lord builds the house, contains both a warning and a promise. If you want success, align your personal plans with God’s plan for your life; when that happens, ultimate failure becomes impossible, and ultimate success is guaranteed. Amen .