The Blame Game

DEVOTION

THE REVELATION

THE BLAME GAME

Rev 16:8-9

8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was given power to scorch people with fire. 9 They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him.

NIV

Well this is just too much now. Some scholars are absolutely convinced the sun could not actually get hotter, well these are not only scholars but supposed theologians. How who one who studies God not think he has the power to make the sun hotter? Instead they prefer to once again look at history and think this sun represents the French Empire and that the king was beheaded after a great war ensued causing much calamity, intense calamity on the empire. What are they thinking? Certainly they are not thinking about the power of God and his efforts to bring people to their knees, or if this is simply judgments because of their insistence to refuse him. In either case we do see as a result of this calamity the people actually cursed his name. It is interesting the people who refuse the idea of God, who want to live according to their own thinking, curse his name. How can people live according to their own thinking if they are aware there is a God to curse? If people know about God, enough to curse his name, then why would they not want to consider the consequences of their behaviors? If people curse his name, then they are painfully aware the reason the sun is hotter and they are being scorched by its intense heat is because he has caused it. When these people go through this calamity they curse his name instead of thinking perhaps the reason is because of their behavior. What is wrong with people? Are we like that in anyway? We know God, well at least as much as he has revealed of himself to us, yet do we insisted on doing things our own way at times? Are there areas in our life that we refuse to repent from? Do we continue to make all our own life decisions because that is what we want, instead of doing what God wants in our life? Are we just living our own way but have incorporated God into our lives, making him a part of our life, but not the Lord of our life? If we experience any calamity no matter the size of it, do we blame God, or do we consider there may be a reason for it, and that is to see an error in our thinking or in our behavior. It is true that because he loves us, he disciplines us as any parent would discipline their children. When we see undisciplined children acting out in public places, we think poorly, not of the child, but of the parent, because of the lack of discipline and therefor perhaps because of the lack of true love. God is bringing these plagues not so much to punish, but to discipline these people, but they will have nothing to do with him, cursing his name instead. We cannot afford to even consider not changing, correcting or forsaking some behavior, some thinking if God brings it to our attention by whatever method he so chooses. If we resist his direction, his correction, his discipline in any way, are we in fact cursing his name? The Greek word used here means to vilify which is in essence saying God is the blame for this trouble. God is causing this to happen to me. God is the cause, which comes right to the victim mentality of this world today. We have to take responsibility for our own actions, our own behaviors. These people did not, they blamed God. We cannot afford to do that, we have to see the cause and effect of our behaviors, knowing God is moving in our lives to bring us to the place he desires us to be, both physically and spiritually. If there is any blame for any calamity it is not God’s fault but ours. No blame game here.