2Co 5:1-10  For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.  (2)  For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling,  (3)  if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked.  (4)  For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened–not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.  (5)  He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.  (6)  So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord,  (7)  for we walk by faith, not by sight.  (8)  Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.  (9)  So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.  (10)  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

To be absent from the body, means we die.  In the context of 2 Corinthians 5: 6 & 8, to be present with the Lord means that we have been given immortality.

Verses which indicate being absent from the body implies death:

2 Corinthians 5:1-2:

For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.  (2)  For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling

2 Peter 1:13-14:

I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder,  (14)  since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me.

2 Timothy 4:6-7:

For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come.  (7)  I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

Verses which indicate being present with the Lord implies immortality:

Philippians 1:21-23:

For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.  (22)  If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell.  (23)  I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.

2 Corinthians 4:14:

knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence.

Psalm 17:15:

As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.

2 Timothy 4:7-8:

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.  (8)  Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

1 John 3:2:

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

Revelation 20:6:

Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.

To summarise the implications of the above verses:

When we die, we cease to have a conscious existence.  Our body reverts to dust and we sleep the sleep of death knowing nothing at all (Eccl. 9:5-6; Psalm 88:10-11).  In this state, we wait for the return of Jesus when he will resurrect the dead and give the faithful, immortality.  From a believer’s point of view, the death part of this experience, is as though it never happened.  From a believer’s point of view, we go straight from our mortal existence, to the resurrection at Jesus’ return — an event yet to occur.  So we can say that when we die, we depart and are with Christ in an immortal existence.

We know that we are not given immortality until the resurrection, as we see in the above verses.  Other verses which confirm this:

1 Corinthians 15:21-23:

For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.  (22)  For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.  (23)  But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.

Isaiah 26:19:

Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise. You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy! For your dew is a dew of light, and the earth will give birth to the dead.

2 Corinthians 5:10:

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

“For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You. When I was made in secret. And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.” -Psalm 139:13-16

From this quotation above it is clear that God knew the author of the Psalm (and presumably many others too) before he was born, and God’s hand was upon him. The hand of God will be always on us all our life, whether for good or bad, depending on our choice:

Dan 12:2  And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

When we were born we do not automatically have an entitlement to eternal life. This only comes when we respond to God’s call:

Rev 3:20  Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

God will not leave us, but we can still leave God.

A related question has been answered on this site before:

Can you reach a point where forgiveness is impossible?

“Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16)

This being said, your question may have a misplaced emphasis. Jesus says “whoever believes and is baptised …” — belief must precede baptism. Those who have expressed a sincere and well-founded belief in Jesus should be encouraged to be baptised as Jesus commanded.

As to how a congregration is organised, this will vary depending on circumstances. The congregration will necessarily engage with many people on different stages in their journey — some just beginning to come to a knowledge of God. It would be inappropriate and counter-productive to suggest that only those who are baptised can interact with a congregation and its services.

On the other hand, some parts of the congregation and its services are special and only have relevance for believers. This is particularly true of the bread and wine. Jesus gave these symbols to his followers to remember him by. They have no relevance to those who have not committed themselves to Christ. Therefore it is usual, and in my view right, that it is expected that only baptised members will take the bread and wine; non-members are asked to refrain.

• The sacrifices were a representation of the atonement/reconciliation/forgiveness of sins the coming messiah would achieve.
• Jesus the Messiah was the tangible reality.
• The sacrifices were the picture illustrating aspects of this amazing salvation to come through Jesus.

The Law of Moses, extensively used physical things to represent spiritual things. It was like a parable to demonstrate to the Israelites their sin and need of redemption. The sacrifices under the law were also like this.  Colossians 2:16-17:

Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath.  (17)  These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.

The sacrifices were introduced:

• To make people aware of their own sinfulness.     Hebrews 10:1-18:

For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near.  (2)  Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness of sins?  (3)  But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year.  (4)  For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.  (5)  Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, “Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me;  (6)  in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure.  (7)  Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God, as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.’”  (8)  When he said above, “You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings” (these are offered according to the law),  (9)  then he added, “Behold, I have come to do your will.” He does away with the first in order to establish the second.  (10)  And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.  (11)  And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.  (12)  But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God,  (13)  waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet.  (14)  For by a single offering he has perfected for all timethose who are being sanctified.  (15)  And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying,  (16)  “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,”  (17)  then he adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.”  (18)  Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

• For the forgiveness of sins. The people identified with the animal by laying their hands on the sacrifice’s head, or by eating the sacrifice. Lev 4:27-31:

”If anyone of the common people sins unintentionally in doing any one of the things that by the LORD’s commandments ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt,  (28)  or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring for his offering a goat, a female without blemish, for his sin which he has committed.  (29)  And he shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and kill the sin offering in the place of burnt offering.  (30)  And the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar.  (31)  And all its fat he shall remove, as the fat is removed from the peace offerings, and the priest shall burn it on the altar for a pleasing aroma to the LORD. And the priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be forgiven.

The Passover lamb and the associated requirements are a particularly clear shadow or type representing Jesus.  Consider the following shadows from the Old Testament in relation to Passover and the realities they represent:

Exodus 12:5:

Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats,

cf 1Pe 1:18-19:

knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold,  (19)  but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.

Exodus 12:7:

“Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it.

cf 1 John 1:7:

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

Exodus 12:8:

They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it.

cf 1 Corinthians 5:7-8:

Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.  (8)  Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Jesus was slain at approximately the same time as the Passover lamb.  We read in  John 18:28 how at the trial of Jesus, the Jewish rulers didn’t want to be defiled by entering the Roman governor’s headquarters.  If they were defiled they couldn’t eat the Passover lamb:

Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the governor’s headquarters. It was early morning. They themselves did not enter the governor’s headquarters, so that they would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover.

Jesus himself gives us explanations of the significance of the shadow of the Passover feast.  He explains how his body was given for us and how his blood was the new covenant. Luke 22:19-20:

And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”  (20)  And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

This passage gives further insight to the shadows of the sacrifices in the Old Testament.  We are taken back to the Old Covenant – a shadow of the New Covenant, and similarities in the covenant God made with the Israelites in the wilderness.  Exodus 24:6-8:

And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar.  (7)  Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.”  (8)  And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.”

1. Peter’s wife (Mark 1:30; 1 Cor 9:5);
2. Peter’s mother-in-law (Mark 1:30);
3. Mary of Bethany (Luke 10:38-42; John 12:1-3; Matthew 21:17; Mark 11:11);
4. Martha of Bethany (Luke 10:38-42; John 12:1-3; Matthew 21:17; Mark 11:11);
5. Joanna, wife of Cuza (Luke 8:3; 24:10);
6. Susanna (Luke 8:3);
7. Salome, wife of Zebedee and mother of James and John (Matthew 27:56;  Mark 15:40; 16:1);
8. Mary Magdalene (Luke 8:2; 24:10; John 20:10-18);
9. Mary, mother of James the younger and Joseph (Matthew 27:56; Mark 15:40);
10. “Many others” (Luke 8:3; Matthew 27:55; Mark 15:41).

If I’ve missed any, I’m sure readers will add them in the comments.

This is one of several reasons that show that the actual number of Israelites who left Egypt and entered Canaan was much lower than traditionally understood. Other reasons are:

1. The total population of Egypt at the time has been variously estimated by historians at between 2-5 million people. Were there millions of Hebrews included in this population?
2. The difficulty of millions of people travelling together along a road out of Egypt and then crossing the Red Sea in one night.
3. The implausibility of a threat from just 600 Egyptian chariots to millions of people.
4. The difficulty of maintaining latrine arrangements in a camp of millions of people, where each person had to walk outside the camp for each visit according to the law, especially for the Levites who were camped in the middle of the twelve tribes. Imagine a city that you know. Being an Australian I think of Brisbane with just over 2 million people. Now imagine a camp in the desert where the entire population of Brisbane was camped in a square around a 1200 square metre tabernacle. Everyone would have to walk outside the camp with their shovel for a bathroom visit!
5. What size was Jericho? If the army of Israel was 600,000 strong then it must have been many kilometres in circumference. But the entire army had to travel around it seven times in a day! Actually ancient cities with very few exceptions were very much smaller than that. Most archaeologists believe that Jericho was only a few hectares (less than four) and contained thousands or at most tens of thousands of people. If that is the case then an invasion force of 600,000 should have had no trouble overcoming it even without the miracle that God performed, and we would need to imagine 600,000 men walking around a small stockade!
6. The Bible emphasizes the formidable task facing Israel in the conquest of Canaan.
   

   Exo 23:29  I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the wild beasts multiply against you.

   How could there have been a problem of wild animals taking over if there were millions of Israelites? Until very recent times the whole land has not had such a large population, and certainly not many millions.

It is possible to say: “The Bible says it so I must believe it”. But the Bible, rightly understood, does not say things that cannot be true. We should not switch off our God-given brain when we read God’s Word.

EXPLANATION

The best explanation seems to be that ambiguity in the meaning of the word translated “thousand” has led to confusion to scribes later in Israel’s history. The word can also mean “chief”, “clan” or “troop”.

For example:

Jos 22:14  and with him ten chiefs, one from each of the tribal families of Israel, every one of them the head of a family among the clans of Israel.

The word translated “clans” is the same word usually translated “thousand”. Even though for many of the reasons above the scribes must have puzzled at it, they conscientiously transcribed the numbers as they understood them. If this explanation is correct then the number of military-aged men was 5550, giving a total population of about 20,000 people. That number of people would have been an enormous challenge for Moses to manage. But it is much easier to understand than 100 times that number! These significant advantages seem to outweigh the problems that the idea causes.

For more detailed explanations look at these two links:

http://www.noble-minded.org/exodus.html

http://kiel0.home.xs4all.nl/ColinHumphreysNumbers1.pdf

Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?

God allows some societies to exist until they become so depraved that he ends them.  (See examples below)  But he gives people time to repent.  This applies then to the Amorites and it applies now.  We read in 2 Peter 3:9:

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

Although God was patient and gave the the Amorites time to change, they did not repent from their evil ways.  When their iniquity reached its full measure, Israel executed God’s judgement on them.  (See below, verses describing some of the reasons God didn’t like the Amorites)  We can see other examples of this idea of iniquity reaching its full measure.  Jesus says to the scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 23:32:

Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers.

Their fathers had killed God’s prophets, and they, the scribes and Pharisees, were doing the same iniquitous deeds – going so far as to murder the son of God, thus bringing God’s judgment on them, as we know happened in AD70, when the Romans ended Jewish society in Judea.  The apostle Paul refers to this in 1 Thessalonians 2:14-16:

 For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews,  (15)  who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and oppose all mankind  (16)  by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they might be saved–so as always to fill up the measure of their sins. But God’s wrath has come upon them at last!

Examples of societies God terminated:

Society before the great flood -  Genesis 6:5-8:

The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.  (6)  And the LORD was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.  (7)  So the LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.”  (8)  But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.

Sodom – Genesis 18:20-21:

Then the LORD said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave,  (21)  I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.”  Gen 19:24-25  Then the LORD rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the LORD out of heaven.  (25)  And he overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.

Judah when Josiah was king – 2 Kings 22:16-20:

Thus says the LORD, Behold, I will bring disaster upon this place and upon its inhabitants, all the words of the book that the king of Judah has read.  (17)  Because they have forsaken me and have made offerings to other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the work of their hands, therefore my wrath will be kindled against this place, and it will not be quenched.  (18)  But to the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the LORD, thus shall you say to him, Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Regarding the words that you have heard,  (19)  because your heart was penitent, and you humbled yourself before the LORD, when you heard how I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and you have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the LORD.  (20)  Therefore, behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace, and your eyes shall not see all the disaster that I will bring upon this place.’” And they brought back word to the king.

The Jews (they will be restored when they repent) – 1 Thessalonians 2:14-16:

  …  For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews,  (15)  who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and oppose all mankind  (16)  by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they might be saved–so as always to fill up the measure of their sins. But God’s wrath has come upon them at last!

Edom - Ezekiel 35:3-7:

and say to it, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, Mount Seir, and I will stretch out my hand against you, and I will make you a desolation and a waste.  (4)  I will lay your cities waste, and you shall become a desolation, and you shall know that I am the LORD.  (5)  Because you cherished perpetual enmity and gave over the people of Israel to the power of the sword at the time of their calamity, at the time of their final punishment,  (6)  therefore, as I live, declares the Lord GOD, I will prepare you for blood, and blood shall pursue you; because you did not hate bloodshed, therefore blood shall pursue you.  (7)  I will make Mount Seir [another name for Edom] a waste and a desolation, and I will cut off from it all who come and go.

Verses detailing some of the reasons God didn’t like the Amorites:

1 Kings 21:26:

He acted very abominably in going after idols, as the Amorites had done, whom the LORD cast out before the people of Israel.

Leviticus  chapter18 &  chapter 20 describe the disgusting practices of the people of the land that resulted in God destroying them.

Leviticus 18:24-30:

“Do not make yourselves unclean by any of these things, for by all these the nations I am driving out before you have become unclean,  (25)  and the land became unclean, so that I punished its iniquity, and the land vomited out its inhabitants.  (26)  But you shall keep my statutes and my rules and do none of these abominations, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you  (27)  (for the people of the land, who were before you, did all of these abominations, so that the land became unclean),  (28)  lest the land vomit you out when you make it unclean, as it vomited out the nation that was before you.  (29)  For everyone who does any of these abominations, the persons who do them shall be cut off from among their people.  (30)  So keep my charge never to practice any of these abominable customs that were practiced before you, and never to make yourselves unclean by them: I am the LORD your God.”

Leviticus 20:22-23:

“You shall therefore keep all my statutes and all my rules and do them, that the land where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out.  (23)  And you shall not walk in the customs of the nation that I am driving out before you, for they did all these things, and therefore I detested them.

Deuteronomy 12:29-31:

“When the LORD your God cuts off before you the nations whom you go in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land,  (30)  take care that you be not ensnared to follow them, after they have been destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire about their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods?–that I also may do the same.’  (31)  You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the LORD hates they have done for their gods, for they even burn their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods.

Ezra 9:10-11:

“And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken your commandments,  (11)  which you commanded by your servants the prophets, saying, ‘The land that you are entering, to take possession of it, is a land impure with the impurity of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations that have filled it from end to end with their uncleanness.

Psalm 106:34-38:

They did not destroy the peoples, as the LORD commanded them,  (35)  but they mixed with the nations and learned to do as they did.  (36)  They served their idols, which became a snare to them.  (37)  They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons;  (38)  they poured out innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was polluted with blood.

• When the people of Israel were to invade and take possession of the promised land – when they were to confront their enemies – Moses encouraged them with the following words recorded in Deuteronomy 31:3-6:

The LORD your God himself will go over before you. He will destroy these nations before you, so that you shall dispossess them, and Joshua will go over at your head, as the LORD has spoken.  (4)  And the LORD will do to them as he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them.  (5)  And the LORD will give them over to you, and you shall do to them according to the whole commandment that I have commanded you.  (6)  Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”

• Moses also encouraged Joshua with similar words recorded in Deuteronomy 31:7-8:

Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land that the LORD has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall put them in possession of it.  (8)  It is the LORD who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”

• After the death of Moses, God encouraged Joshua, the new leader of Israel – Joshua 1:5-9:

No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you.  (6)  Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.  (7)  Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go.  (8)  This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.  (9)  Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

• David wrote of the time he was confronting the Philistines who seized him in Gath, in Psalm 56:3-11:

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.  (4)  In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me?  (5)  All day long they injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil.  (6)  They stir up strife, they lurk; they watch my steps, as they have waited for my life.  (7)  For their crime will they escape? In wrath cast down the peoples, O God!  (8)  You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?  (9)  Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me.  (10)  In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise,  (11)  in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?

• Paul was encouraged by God on at least 2 occasions, when he had to face difficult situations
• In Corinth – Acts 18:9-10:

And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent,  (10)  for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.”

• In Jerusalem – Act 23:11:

The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.”

When we are confronted, we don’t generally have life threatening situations to deal with, but there are many other confrontational situations.  Paul gives the following excellent advice about confronting evil in Ephesians 6:10-18:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  (11)  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.  (12)  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.  (13)  Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.  (14)  Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,  (15)  and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.  (16)  In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;  (17)  and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,  (18)  praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints

Jesus also gives excellent advice about difficult situations involving others sinning against us and how we should confront them.  Matthew 18:15-17:

“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.  (16)  But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.  (17)  If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.

To summarize advice from the Bible to God’s children fearful of confrontation:

• Be strong and courageous because God will not leave or forsake us.   (This assumes we are faithful children of God.)  Neither should we fear nor be dismayed and we should be careful to follow God’s commands that we may have good success wherever we go.
• When we are afraid, we should put our trust in God – trust God, don’t fear man.
• We should put on the armour of God – this enables us to stand firm.  This armour is:
  Truth
  Righteousness
  Faith
  Salvation
  The word of God
  Prayer
  Perseverance

Romans 8:31

If God is for us, who can be against us?

 What’s your thought on David’s thinking when he decided he just had to have Bathsheba?

David obviously knew it was wrong to commit adultery with his Uriah’s wife, Psalm 51:1-3 shows this:

 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.  (2)  Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!  (3)  For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.

Doubtless, David was tempted by carnal desire.  James 1:14-15 has a good description of how it works:

But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.  (15)  Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

I met this man 13 years older than me, I’m 31 he’s 43.  And he let me and my kid’s move in with him and he told me that he wanted to marry and that he would take care of me and that he had all this money and he was stable at his age and I believed him and six months later found out he was lying about everything even his age.

So I’m asking, would God send a liar to be with me?

You ask two questions:

1. Does God protect us from harm?
2. Would God send a liar to be with you?

First question – does God protect us from harm?

God protects his children from harm sometimes, but not at other times.  God uses circumstances to refine the characters of his children.

Examples of God protecting his children from harm:

• When Elisha and his servant were surrounded by the Syrian army, God sent his army, unseen, to protect them – 2 Kings 6:17

Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

• Psalm 91:1-3

 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.  (2)  I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”  (3)  For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence.

• Psalm 34:6-7

This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.  (7)  The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.

• Psalm 91:14-16

“Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name.  (15)  When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.  (16)  With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”

These verses show that God delivers us, but not always straight away.   We often experience trouble, but are saved out of it by God.  It is part of life to experience trouble and harm.  Consider the experiences of the apostle Paul mentioned in 2 Corinthians 11:23-27 :

Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one–I am talking like a madman–with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death.  (24)  Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one.  (25)  Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea;  (26)  on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers;  (27)  in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.

And the sufferings of the son of God:

Mark 10:33:

“See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles.  (34)  And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”

Consider also the experiences of some of the faithful, recorded in Hebrew 11:35-40:

Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life.  (36)  Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.  (37)  They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated–  (38)  of whom the world was not worthy–wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.  (39)  And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised,  (40)  since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.

But through all these afflictions, God was with them.  They will receive their ultimate deliverance at the resurrection when Jesus returns to earth.  The challenge for us is to remain faithful to God through all our afflictions.  James 1:12:

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

Second question – would God send a liar to be with me?

Bad things happening to us, can be the result of various factors.  We know that God tests people.  We know that God puts pressure on people to develop their characters.  But we also know that there are many evil people out there who will take advantage of the naïve.  The book of Proverbs gives us some very good advice.  For example, Proverbs 14:15-16 :

The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps.  (16)  One who is wise is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is reckless and careless.

Proverbs 22:3:

The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.

In life, we need to be very careful about our friends and who we become involved with.  God gives us extensive advice in Scripture, which if we follow it, protects us from evil people.  It is very important to become very familiar with this advice by reading daily from God’s word.  It is also very important to pray for God’s guidance before we make any decisions, like making a marriage commitment.

There are two sorts of people – those who love God and those who don’t.  If we sincerely love God, we will be looked after – Romans 8:28:

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Those who don’t love God, do not have this blessing.  Proverbs 15:29:

The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.