“Come now, and let us reason together.” (Isaiah 1:18)
Is it right for a mere mortal stained by sin and self-absorption, to reason with God? As long as we understand the biblical meaning of the word “reason” in the above context, it is not only right, but it is commanded. Let’s take a look.
First, here is what it does not mean to “reason” with our Redeemer. It does not mean that we come to the throne room of heaven in the posture of the criminal defense attorney and plead our case of wrongdoing by defending ourselves and making excuses for our actions. Self-justification is as unwelcomed as it is unwarranted when we stand before the revealed truth of Scripture knowingly having violated it. Second, it does not mean we engage in arguing with the Almighty regarding any set of circumstances. What it does mean is we come humbly and boldly to the throne of grace . . . according to His will.
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 1 John 5:14
When we are operating from the organizing principle that directed the entire life of Jesus – “yet not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42), then we can be assured that God will hear and respond to our reasoning. Now the only way we can effectively reason with our Redeemer according to the will of God is to know and understand the will of God, and that comes primarily through meditating on and marinating in the sacred Scriptures. Remember, God had His Word written down so that we would read it. He could have left it up to the Holy Spirit to inspire, motivate, and guide us. But He did not!
Because Jesus was in constant communication with His Father in heaven, He was always sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit into the will of His Father. There are many ways to commune with God, but the two primary ways is prayer and the reading of the Word. The more time we spend in these two disciplines, the more we will be aligned with God’s will. And the more we are aligned with God’s will, the better we will be able to “reason” with our Redeemer.
This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!
Grace for the Race 