May 5, 2026:

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame….[until]

But the Lord God called to the man, ‘Where are you?‘ Adam answered, ‘I heard You in the garden. I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.’”

(Genesis 2.25; Genesis 3.9-10)

TODAY’S REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

Satan had done it. Did God allow it? That is an eternal question whose answer is known only in Heaven and in Hell. On earth it is only considered and the answers create more questions than answers. But, if there are still more questions, there is still at least one more answer; even if the answer is “Because.” It is a confounded answer and defies the resolution of our human mind and human spirit. “Because” is the invocation of faith and reason. Paul wrote, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.” Faith becomes the reason and reason depends on faith. Why? Because things of this world were born out of the confines of faith. They are the reason why God created them in the first place. It is because God knows that faith moves mountains and causes flatlands to rise up. God knows that faith can cause rivers to flow and equally cause them to be swallowed up. God knows that faith, even as small as a tiny mustard seed, is so powerful (like the atom) that lives once on the verge of death and fallen asleep can be awakened…even in the hands of those whose reason is fueled by faith. Jesus said it many times, “Your faith had made it so.” Yes, their faith was in Him and in Him alone. In their desperate hours, all else had failed and even God was considered absent though He was never far away. Their eyes could not see Him. Their ears could not hear Him. Their senses could not grasp Him. He was there nonetheless. What had they put their faith in, if not Him? What had they put their hope in, if not Him? What had they called love, if not Him? And still, if He was there, why didn’t He intervene and prevent the tragedies from happening in the first place? Maybe this was the very dialogue that was recorded in Genesis 2 and 3? The answers we must seek are more fueled by faith than human reason. If we are inspired by the very breath of God, his ruach, His indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the temples fearfully and wonderfully made from dust, then doesn’t it stand to reason that imbedded in us is the “reasoning by faith”?

The Holy Spirit is a fire, a flame, a mighty presence like a burning bush waiting to be invoked and brought forth. Yet, it is obedient to its very nature being of God and very God. It cannot act indiscriminately. It cannot have a will of its own. It cannot because to do so, it will no longer be of God and thus all life would cease. This is what Satan couldn’t reason for himself. As Lucifer in the heavenly court, the Spirit fueled his gift of worship and praise of the One True Holy God. But, he was a creature, too, a creature of Heaven in realms beyond the reach of humankind. Still, he was a creature nonetheless and as such could choose as all others to believe and become one in faith, in hope and in love….true love. Yes, love that is powerful, emotive and creative which brings glory and honor to God and becomes reflected in all who share in it. They receive as they give. As they are given, they can receive. The cycle of life can be endless, it is already for those who stay within the circle. Oh, the words of that old hymn, “May the circle be unbroken, by and by, Lord, by and by.” But, creatures cannot behold the fullness of God’s glory. They fell a fullness of it but as an emptiness within. They seem to think that taking is what makes fulfillment. It is just the opposite. It is in the giving. Lucifer considered the taking as giving seemed not to satisfy. We do not know the reason for his question. We know only that it had to exist. Either God remained silent so that Lucifer in the midst of the greatest truth of all could consider it for himself, or Lucifer did not like the answer “It is better to give than to receive.” It must have become a bitter song in his mouth. He must have spewed it out like tepid water. The image resounds in the words of the Resurrected Christ in His Revelation to John when speaking of Ephesus whose faith was neither hot nor cold but lukewarm. Lucifer found the word from God unsatisfying. Indeed, he must have called it a lie if for no other reason than “…because he could.” Because…. a confounding and powerful answer that speaks truth only in faith and in trust in God. No wonder children have such a difficult time obeying parents and teachers who are left with no other answer than because. It is not an answer of deficiency. It is an answer that commands respect for the calling to submission before the One True God. Jesus said, “If any seeks to become first and a leader among men, then let them become the servant of all.” Jesus would also say, “For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve!” Why? Because!

So, Satan did it. He asked the question of “why” and spoke in the same breath the answer of his choosing “because.” Except it wasn’t a why and because of faith. Rather, it was one of faithlessness. Did God allow it? Perhaps. Why? Because…. “no greater love is there than this that a man would submit himself to death so that others would live.” God, being in very nature love, had to allow the choice. It was a painful and necessar decision if life was going to have meaning and purpose beyond Him saying “Because… I said so.” Adam and Eve had no knowledge of such a thing. It was in them. It had to be awakened. God was with them. He would not be shaken. He is with us even now in our “eighth day” moments when the hard questions of life are asked “Why…” We must trust God’s answer as the best one, “Because…. I love you not for a moment but for all eternity.”

TODAY’S PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness but as righteous works of faith, hope and love in Jesus’ name. AMEN.