As a child I frequently heard the words, “BECAUSE I SAID SO!” At that point I understood that arguing was futile and I had better get with the program. When was the last time you heard a parent speak those words and mean it? We hold open the refrigerator door for 15 minutes while our children decide what should be cooked for dinner then we patiently empty closets and drawers as they pick out their wardrobe for the day so they can participate in all the fun activities we have planned for them; that is if they decide the activities are fun. Their philosophy is, “Nothing is final until I get what I want!!!” We have raised a generation of negotiators.
Our Philosophy of Negotiation now defines every area of life including our relationship with God. How many times have we transformed our prayer closet into a negotiating table? Kneeling before the throne, we present a dire situation which needs an immediate answer, when God comes through with a plan, the negotiations began. “God, I can accept this, but this detail has to go; I’m willing to give on this item but what will you give in return?” We need a renewing of our mind so that we can understand, GOD DOES NOT NEGOTIATE!!!!
God has a plan which holds specific promises, that plan will be fulfilled and the promises will come to pass, because HE SAID SO!! II Peter 3:9 states, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” We have confused longsuffering with negotiation. Although, God may appear to be negotiating with some people as He patiently waits for them to come to Him, don’t fool yourself, He will have it HIS WAY!
Leading the Children of Israel through the wilderness, Moses asked God for water. God instructed Moses to hit the rock with his staff. Moses obeyed and God delivered water. As the journey continued and the thirst increased, Moses was instructed to speak to the rock for the water. In anger Moses hit the rock with his staff and out flowed the life-giving water. Was Moses so important to God that he could do it his way? Was God negotiating? NO!!! God was patient. He was with Moses for the entire 40 years in the wilderness, and He was with Moses at the end of his life, however, because Moses did not do it God’s way, he was not allowed to enter the Promised Land.
Another great example of God’s “NO NEGOTIATION” Philosophy is Jonah’s famous escapade. God commanded Jonah to journey to Ninevah with the warning, “Repent or be destroyed.” Jonah decided Ninevah wasn’t really his idea of a luxury resort so he boarded a ship to Tarshish. God said, “You want to negotiate my plan? Fine, I’ll pick the location; here’s a large fish, let’s see how the negotiations go in the fish’s belly!! It didn’t take Jonah long to see it God’s way. After three days, he was on his way to Ninevah to deliver a message of repentance that would save an entire city.
God has a salvation plan for everyone. He doesn’t modify it or negotiate the details to fit your specifications. Psalms 119:89 declares, “Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven.” Do not mistake the longsuffering of God for negotiation. God is not standing before an open refrigerator door or emptying out the closet waiting for you to make your choice. The plan has been established and His Word is settled!!!
