When God says, “No.”Having been involved in the raising of a handful or so of kids, and since I once was a kid myself, and having worked with people for more than three decades I can say with some confidence that we, people, young and old, don’t like to be told “No.” That little word just doesn’t come in any flavor we like. It is prone to ruin a good day, sour our attitudes, make us mad, cause us to forget good manners, make us instantly ungrateful, invite us to scheme, turn on defiance, and engage us in rebellion.What about you when God says, “No?” And He does say “No,” any parent with even a little bit of maturity and wisdom does so, not because they are mean but because of precisely the opposite, because they desire what is good and best. There is no one better to guide us then God, our Heavenly Father. There is no one wiser, more loving, and better than Him. Yet somehow we still don’t like to be told, “No,” not even from Him. It is another indictment of our sinfulness, we would rather chose our own desires and impulses, engage in our own plans and lusts than trust in the infinite wisdom and goodness of God.Both the Bible (God’ written Word) and human history are full of illustrations of people being told by God, “No,” or “Don’t,” and then doing what they want to do anyway. The consequences and results of living a life that defies God, blows Him off in some way or another is predictable, it lacks the blessing of God and reaps the discipline, judgment, and wrath of God.However, there are also those who heard God say, “No,” and responded well:
- When King David wanted to build a temple, God told him, “No, not you” (1 Chronicles 22:7-8).
- God told the prophet Jeremiah not to marry (Jeremiah 16:2).
- The apostle Paul asked for healing and deliverance and God told him, “No, my grace will do” (2 Corinthians 12:7-9).
We need to learn from these and others like them how to handle it when God says, “No.” No tantrums, no unfaithfulness, no grumpiness, no scheming or rationalizing our way around it, no complaining, no feeling sorry for ourselves, but rather continued devotion, full obedience, and a willingness to adjust our lives, our hearts, our minds, and our attitudes to every word from God, even if that word is, “No.”