A Spiritual Warfighter’s Tools

If you are a born-again believer in these times, it may seem as if the world is attacking you.  In certain areas of the world this means a physical attack as well as an attack on churches with lock-downs preventing services.  While this may seem hard enough as it is, there is another attack taking place on the born-again believer, and it is a spiritual attack.  Sadly, this is the type of attack that many Christians are the least prepared for and yet is the most dangerous.  So how do we, as believers in the one true God handle all of this?  The answer can be found in Ephesians 6:10-18.

“10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”

Paul is reminding the Church in Ephesus that they need to be strong in the Lord, that their power comes from Him and not from themselves.  This is as true today as it was then!  Our greatest strength in this world has nothing to do with our physical capabilities or the political party that we belong to or any other materialistic thing.  Our strength comes from the one true God!  To believe that we are powerful enough on our own would be like the disciples in Matthew 17:18-20 who could not cast out a demon from a young boy but with one word Jesus Christ commanded the demon to leave.  Jesus then reminds the disciples that if they had greater faith they would have been able to cast out the demon.  This issue here was that the disciples did not believe that God was big enough to cast out the demon, there is nothing more powerful on this earth than our God!  God is the source of all of our strength!

But why do we need to be strong in the Lord?  It is because there is a war going on today, an unseen war, and that is a spiritual war.  We must be strong in the Lord and put on all of His armor so that we can stand against the devil’s schemes.  Our war is one that is “against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12. It is important to note here that there is no verbiage that states that putting on the armor is a one and done type deal. Just like knights who had to put their armor on daily, we to as believers must put on our spiritual armor each and every day. When we slack in putting on one aspect of the Armor, we leave ourselves open to attack.  This could come in confusion of a doctrine, believing that one version of the Bible is superior to others, division in the church, and so many other ways that are to numerous to count.  All of these ways can cause a believer to stumble.

It is important for us to wear the full Armor of God because of who we are fighting against.  While we can never be torn away from God once we belong to Him, “28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.” John 10:28-30 this does not mean that this warfare does not affect the born-again Christian. The old saying, “if you fail to plan you plan to fail” has more truth in this coming study than most realize. While we who are saved cannot lose our salvation, we can be caught in the devils schemes and hurt. This is especially true if we are not prepared. 2 Corinthians, Paul warns the believers in chapter 2 verse 11, “so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes.” We need to be vigilant as our Father wants us ready for anything at a moment’s notice. We must remember what Paul states in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 “3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”.

As we will see in the next several weeks, God does not leave us undefended or unprotected from the spiritual attacks that we face. By studying the Armor of God, we will see how it can be applied to us today.  When we have the Armor of God, we are strong in Him and can stand against what this world will throw at us.

Seek the Truth and encourage one another,

                        Alex

Before the Humble Arrival (IV)

“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic- on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg- or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God; or else a madman or something worse….you can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come up with any patronizing non-sense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”

C.S Lewis[1]

Unfortunately, today there is a growing problem in the so-called church! According to LifeWay Research, 30% of evangelicals believe Jesus Christ was only a good teacher and not God. How sad! “All total, 52 percent of Americans say they believe Jesus was a ‘good teacher, but he was not God,’ according to the survey. Although the poll’s finding about the general population may not be shocking, Ligonier said it is surprising that nearly a third of evangelicals (30 percent) affirm the statement and believe Jesus was a good teacher and nothing more.”[2] This highlights the need to not only study Christology (the study of Jesus Christ) but also study the preincarnation of Jesus Christ in the Old Testament. These visits prove without a shadow of doubt that Jesus Christ is God! As stated last week, only Jesus could show His character through actions THEN BE BORN and make the statements of who He is. He does it in reverse to show His awesome power! No moral teacher, no religious zealot, no political leader, could pull this show of majesty and power as the Son of God could. Jesus Christ is who He said He is, “I am.”

Nevertheless, we want to today continue in part four of our seven-part series reviewing some of the preincarnate appearances of Jesus Christ before His humble arrival in Bethlehem. Today we review, one of the quickest but grandest demonstrations of Jesus Christ as the Son of God!

For this event let us to go to the book of Daniel chapter 3.

At the very start of the chapter we see Nebuchadnezzar the King of Babylon concocting a foolish idea, “Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, the height of which was sixty cubits and its width six cubits; he set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent word to assemble the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all the rulers of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. Then the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers the judges, the magistrates and all the rulers of the provinces were assembled for the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. Then the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all the rulers of the provinces were assembled for the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. Then the herald loudly proclaimed; ‘To you the command is given, O peoples, nations and men of every language, that at the moment you hear the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery, bagpipe and all kinds of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. But whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire” Daniel 3:1-6. Nebuchadnezzar thought himself as God, he believed he was worthy of worship and the image that he had created was to be the focal point of the kingdoms worship. However, our three heroes in the story Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, refused to bend the knee and worship a false god.

As the story continues, we find out that charges are brought against the three who refused to obey the command to worship a false god, in doing so they declared their lives forfeit. They were more interested in following the true God, the living God, the ever-close God, Jesus Christ. “For this reason at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and brought charges against the Jews. They responded and said to Nebuchadnezzar the king: ‘O king, live forever! You, O king, have made a decree that every man who hears the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery, and bagpipe and all kinds of music, is to fall down and worship the golden image. But whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire. There are certain Jew whom you have appointed over the administration of the province of Babylon, namely Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. These men, O king, have disregarded you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image which you have set up.’ Then Nebuchadnezzar in rage and anger gave orders to bring Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego; then these men were brought before the king. Nebuchadnezzar responded and said to them, ‘Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up? Now if you are ready, at the moment you hear the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery and bagpipe and all kinds of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, very well. But if you do not worship, you will immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire; and what god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?” Daniel 3:8-15.

What a pompous statement made by Nebuchadnezzar! “and what god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?” Nebuchadnezzar could do whatever he wanted and to throw three individuals into the fire would be no issue at all. However, as we find out, there is a God who could deliver them out of his hands. Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego refuse to obey and declared their lives to the fire, Daniel 3:16-18. As expected, Nebuchadnezzar becomes enraged and has the furnace heated up seven times more than it was usually heated, “He answered by giving orders to heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually. He commanded certain valiant warriors who were in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego in order to cast them into the furnace of blazing fire. Then these men were tied up in their trousers, their coats, their caps and their other clothes, and were cast into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire. For this reason, because the king’s command was urgent and the furnace had been made extremely hot, the flame of the fire slew those men who carried up Shadrach, Meshach and Abedn-nego. But these three men, Shadrach, Meshack and Abed-nego, fell into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire still tied up” Daniel 3:19-23. These three who have refused to obey, have given over their lives, and have been thrown into the furnace. While they were being thrown in, the fire killed the ones that threw them into the flames. In almost any other case, we would say that this story was over, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego were martyrs to their cause for only worshiping the true God. But God has other plans! These three are about to experience the preincarnated Jesus Christ! How do we know? Just like Abraham’s, and Jacob’s encounter, Nebuchadnezzar has this revealed to him. We are not given how the conclusion comes to this, but apparently it was obvious to Abraham, Jacob, and Nebuchadnezzar. “Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astounded and stood up in hate; he said to his high officials. ‘Was it not three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?’ They replied to the king, ‘Certainly, O king.’ He said, ‘Look! I see four men loosed and walking about in the midst of the fire without harm, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!’ Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the furnace of blazing fire; he responded and said, ‘Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, come out, you servants of the Most High God, and come here!’ Then Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego came out of the midst of the fire. The satraps, the prefects, the governors and the kin’gs high officials gathered around and saw in regard to these men that the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men nor was the hair of their head singed, nor were their trousers damaged, nor had the smell of fire even come upon them. Nebuchadnezzar responded and said, ‘Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, who has sent His angel and delivered His servants who put their trust in Him, violating the king’s command, and yielded up their bodies so as not to serve or worship any god except their own God,’” Daniel 3:24-28.

What we have here is an incredible story of God saving the lives of His followers. While at first glance it would appear that God is only in one small part of this larger story, you would be mistaken. This story actually portrays much more of Christ than when first read. Remember only Jesus Christ can do the actions prior to birth and then be born and make the statement. In this story we see the subtle hints of Jesus Christ.

To better understand, we need to take a pause and reflect on what statements Jesus Christ has said is coming. We know from Daniel chapter 9, that there is decreed a special amount of time specifically for the relationship of God with Israel. This relationship has seven years to play out. These seven years have been called many things from “Jacob’s Trouble” to “The Tribulation” but in the end, it is a focus of seven years with God dealing directly with the Jews. Unfortunately, we do not have the time today to discuss further but in future posts, Lord willing, we will see more of the seven years of Tribulation. But for now, we know that the Bible is clear that it is coming and has not happened yet. We know from Revelation chapter 13, that a mark of the beast will be established and people will be forced to take the mark of the beast. This could be a literal mark of 666, symbolizing the Antichrist’s name, or they will die. While the actual mark is still speculative, we know from Revelation 13:18 that this mark is coming and one day it will happen, in verses 11-17 of Revelation 13 we see that it will be forced.

Now at this point you might be wondering to yourself, where I am going with this but bear with me. How odd is it that the three Jews, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego are given an ultimatum to worship the image which was 60 cubits high, 6 cubits wide, and with 6 listed instruments? How ironic that the number becomes 666! Furthermore, the furnace is heated to seven times its typical heat. Jacob’s trouble is for seven years! On top of all that, where is Daniel during this time? He is not even in the story, but why? Because he was not there! Historians and Biblical scholars believe that Daniel was either on an errand for the king and was out of country during this time, or the Chaldeans were afraid to mention his name due to Daniel’s high status. Either way, we know that he is not mentioned so he is missing from the story. When you look at all the scripture relating to the Tribulation, be it Old or New Testament, you will see no mention of the Church on earth during the Tribulation. Why? It is because we are gone. There are many who will claim we are here for the entire seven years, and/or we have to be here until God’s wrath comes. I would respectfully disagree and tell them to keep seeing the Word of God for what is says and not what man foolishly speculates.

So, we have a group of Jews who are refusing to bow down and worship an image that hints to 666 and are thrown into a furnace seven times hotter than normal. Nebuchadnezzar, not knowing Jesus, identifies Him with the best title he is able to give Jesus at that time, “Son of the gods.” Nebuchadnezzar is identifying this man as different, He had saved Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego and their garments were not only protected but the three didn’t even smell like smoke. We see that this person has the power to control earthly elements. Now the power to control fire does not mean you are God, nor does it mean you are a good person. Revelation chapter 13 shows the False Prophet will be able to call down fire from Heaven in front of the first Beast. So how do we know this fourth person is God? First, we can tell because of the number four. In my book The Haggai Project, I show through research the number four has strong significance, “4: Is the number of the gospel. There are 4 sides to a cross and four books in the Bible specifically talking about Jesus’ life on earth. There are 4 major Prophets in the Old Testament, ‘Judah, the messianic tribe from which David and Jesus descended, is the 4th tribe of Israel. The first 4 of the 10 Commandments deal with our relationship to God (the last six deal with our relationship to fellow man, hardly a coincidence since 6 is the number of man). Jesus told his disciples to spread the Gospel in 4 places, in Acts 1:8.’ God on the fourth day of creation created the physical elements for light. Some of have argued that another clue as to why the Jews should have known Jesus was coming was because of the argument of the fourth day representing 4 thousand years of mankind and just like on the fourth day, in the fourth century the light arrived. How ironic that the gospel is there for anyone to see but will only be found by those who are seeking God. What seems trivial to some as just numbers will be seen by others as the significance of God’s Word.”[3]

We also know this is Jesus because Nebuchadnezzar is not stopped by any of the three Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego when he proclaims the amazing attributes of God in verses 28-30. Jesus is not done here though, this representation shows that Jesus not only loves the individual, as we saw with Abraham and Jacob, but also the national group which is being represented by Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego in a future event. Jesus has the power to save anyone from anyone, thing, or cause. “ For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39. He still cares for Israel and will one day come back to them. How amazing is Jesus Christ who before His humble arrival has given us so many actions to back up His statements that He would make later.

Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming

JL

[1] Michael C. Bere, Bible Doctrines for Today, Pg. 140

[2] Michael Foust, Christian Headlines, Drifting Away from Scripture: 30 Percent of Evangelicals Say Jesus Was Not God, Poll Shows, August 27th 2020.

[3] Jon-Luke Thomasson, The Haggai Project, Pg. 96

RE-POST FRIDAY

Today’s RE-POST FRIDAY we see the remarkable actions of a courageous woman. CLICK HERE!

God Is Bigger Than Our Rejection!

In the last two weeks, we have looked at the two choices that is presented to everyone.  We can either humble ourselves and turn to God as Nebuchadnezzar did, or we can ignore Him like Balthazar did.  Everyone has this opportunity because God works in the lives of both the believers and the unbelievers.  There is nothing that can stop Him from using someone to complete His work, if we believe something is outside of God’s power to change we are limiting God with limits that He does not have. But what happens if you are one of His and you turn away from the faith?  Will He love you even then?  For that answer, we need to look at one of Jesus Christ’s own disciples, we need to look at Peter.

Peter was a fisherman and one of the first to be called by Jesus Christ to be a disciple.  One account of this can be found in Luke 5:1-11.  Jesus had gotten into Peter’s boat asking him to go a little way from shore so that He could teach the crowd gathered there.  When He was done, He asked Peter to place his net out who replied “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets” Luke 5:5. Peter was already beginning to see that there was more to this man, but he did not yet know who it was.  When Peter let down the net, there were so many fish that the net began to break.  Upon seeing this Peter responded to Jesus, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” Luke 5:8. Peter knew then that this was the one that was foretold about in the Old Testament. Even though Peter knew that he was a sinful man, when Jesus told him to follow he listened. “19 And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men’” Matthew 4:19.

From here Peter continued to follow Jesus throughout His ministry and was even one of the disciples who was there to witness His transfiguration as described in Matthew 17, and he was the disciple to recognize that Jesus was the Son of God, “13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’ 14 They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ 15 ‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’ 16 Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’17 Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’” Matthew 16:13-20.  In these verses Jesus Christ even states that Peter would be the rock that His church would be built upon! What an honor!

So how could a disciple such as Peter be the same one who would eventually deny Jesus Himself?  Peter often looked at the short term of Jesus’s ministries, he failed to see that Jesus came to save the whole world from sin.  This often caused Peter to be rebuked by Jesus, in one occurrence when Jesus was explaining the plan of salvation that God had, “21 From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. 22 Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, ‘God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.’ 23 But He turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.’”

Peter’s failure to see the bigger picture also caused Jesus to have a dire warning for him, “31 ‘Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; 32 but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.’ 33 But he said to Him, ‘Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death!’ 34 And He said, ‘I say to you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me.’” Luke 22:31-34. The man that Jesus was to build His church on, was being petitioned by Satan to be separated from the twelve!  It was only through the prayers of Jesus that Peter was not sifted away. While that is a powerful statement alone, especially when we understand that Jesus is currently at the right hand of God petitioning for us even now, there is a bigger aspect to these verses. 

If you look at verse 32 again, you see that Jesus knew that Peter would fall away.  However, if you look closer, you see that Jesus knew that he would return! With that knowledge, Jesus was already giving Peter his marching orders for after His death, and that was to strengthen fellow believers.  Peter did not understand the significance of what Jesus was telling him, he merely stated that he would never fall away and that he would follow Jesus to death. Again, Peter was looking at the short term instead of seeing the overall picture.  Just as Jesus stated, Peter did deny Him and when “Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had told him, ‘Before a rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.’ 62 And he went out and wept bitterly.” Luke 22:61-62. 

Peter can be an example to those of us who have been following after Jesus for a while, but for whatever reason have turned away from the faith and now have a deep conviction about what has occurred.  To make this clear, this type of conviction is only there for those who truly have made the 180 degree turn and have accepted the free gift of salvation that Jesus Christ offers to all.  While being a born-again believer does not make us perfect while on this earth, we are found righteous before God through the actions of Jesus Christ on the cross and it is through the Holy Spirit that we have this conviction.  It is this same conviction that caused Peter to go out and weep over his actions.  Let us continue to look at Peter though to see what God made of the man who denied Him.

Once Jesus was resurrected, He met with Peter and the other disciples on the shores of Galilee (John 21:4). The men did not recognize Jesus at first but upon His command to throw the fishing net to the right side of the boat, and the amount of fish they brought in, John recognized that it was Him which caused Peter to jump out of the fishing boat to hurry to swim back to Jesus. (John 21:6-7).  It was as they were all eating, that Jesus then puts a charge to Peter, to feed His lambs, to care for His sheep, and to feed His sheep (John 21:15-17).  And this is exactly what Peter does.  If you continue to read what Peter accomplishes, you will see that he had the ability to cause a lame man to walk (Acts 3:1-11) and raised a woman from the dead (Acts 9:36-43).  But more importantly, Peter had the ability to go in front of a crowd but this time he was not denying Christ, he was preaching about Him (Acts 2:14-41).  In this one occurrence, Peter led around three thousand to accept Jesus!  He truly was the stone that God built His church on!

If a man who denied God’s Son could be used in this way, imagine what God can accomplish through you.  If you are someone who may feel that they have ran from God, understand that God never leaves you.  What is even more is that your sins have been forgiven already!  Just as Jesus knew that Peter would deny Him, He also knew that Peter would return.  We all have our orders, “18 Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’” Matthew 28:18-20 and this order remains even if we have turned away.  We can be brought back and still be put to work by God.

Seek the Truth and encourage one another,

Alex

Before the Humble Arrival (III)

“I know men; and I tell you that Jesus Christ is not a man. Superficial minds see a resemblance between Christ and the founders of empires, and the gods of other religions. That resemblance does not exist. There is between Christianity and whatever other religions the distance of infinity…. Everything in Christ astonish me. His spirit overawes me, and His will confounds me. Between Him and whoever else in the world, there is no possible term of comparison. He is truly a being by Himself. His ideas and sentiments, the truth which He announces, His manner of convincing, are not explained either by human organization or by the nature of things….The nearer I approach, the more carefully I examine, everything is above me- Everything remains grand, of a grandeur which overpowers. His religion is a revelation from an intelligence which certainly is not that of man….One can absolutely find nowhere, but in Him alone, the imitation or the example of His life…I search in vain in history to find the similar to Jesus Christ, or anything which can approach the gospel. Neither history, nor humanity, nor the ages, nor nature, offer me anything with which I am able to compare it or to explain it. Here everything is extraordinary.”

Napoleon Bonaparte[1]

As stated over the last two weeks, many today are attempting to redefine Jesus Christ as being only a man. Some have gone as far as to question His existence entirely. Yet, for those who truly look at the accounts discussed in the Word of God, we can see how real Jesus Christ is! Jesus Christ is not just a man and not just a God but one hundred percent man and God at the same time, He is truly one of a kind!

When we study the glimpses of Jesus prior to His humble arrival in Bethlehem, we come to undoubtedly one of the strangest written events of Jesus Christ. Jacob, the second son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham, is certainly one of the most devious individuals in the Bible. He not only steals his brother’s blessing in Genesis chapter 27, but also runs away from dealing with his brother in Chapter 27-28.  The name Jacob even means “usurper.” Still the account found in Genesis chapter 32 can only be described as unique. Jacob meets angels of God and realizes that he is in the camp of God, Genesis 32:1-2. While there he wrestles with God.

“Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When He saw that he had not prevailed against him, He touched the socket of his thigh; so the socket of Jacob’s thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with Him. Then He said, ‘Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.’ But he said, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me.’ So He said to him, ‘What is your name?’ And he said ‘Jacob.’ He said ‘Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.’ Then Jacob asked Him and said, ‘Please tell me your name.’ But He said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And He blessed him there. So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said, ‘I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved.’ Now the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over Penuel, and he was limping on his thigh. Therefore, to this day the sons of Israel do not eat the sinew of the hip which is on the socket of the thigh, because He touched the socket of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew of the hip” Genesis 32:24-32.   While our study is not over Jacob’s life, it is unique that he would do whatever it took to receive a blessing from God. Any person who has wrestled knows the amount of energy and focus such a task takes, to do it for such an amount of time as Jacob did is incredible.

In verse 30, Jacob gives us the credibility needed to connect this encounter as God wrestling with him. However we can further reason that the specific representation of the trinity in this situation from John 1:18, “No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.” He as in Jesus Christ, has “explained” or in layman’s terms “revealed, shown or brought to light” God for us to see. Thus, based on this, we can connect this encounter of this Man wrestling with Jacob as only Jesus Christ. Elmer Towns stated rather eloquently, “Since Christ is the only one of the three persons of the Trinity to be seen, we are left to believe…Christ appeared to Jacob and wrestled with him during the night. Jacob recognized the next morning he had met with God.”[2]

Yet, we can further see the character of Jesus Christ in the Man who wrestled with Jacob. The Man wrestled with him when presumably at anytime could have dislocated his hip. He showed restraint against man, this is a subtle but vital clue in understanding that this is Jesus Christ. One must only look at all the encounters of Jesus Christ with the Pharisees and other confrontational incidents to know that Jesus Christ showed an amazing amount of restraint. Satan actually helps highlight the capacity of the power of Jesus Christ’s authority to order angels in Matthew 26. Here Satan has finally been given his permission to use Judas to betray Jesus and have the Son of God arrested. The very thought of God being arrested by man is laughable but Jesus, in submission to the Father’s plan, allowed it. During Christ’s arrest, He confirms that He is willfully restraining Himself from what He could do, “Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels? How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?” Matthew 26:53-54. Self-control is in fact one of the best examples of God’s presence. He can do what He wants at anytime but He will resort to what is necessary for the sake of those He is working with, which in this case is Jacob. Jacob needed to understand that God has preserved Jacob’s life and the coming encounter with Esau was to be left in God’s hands.

Nevertheless, as we study the appearances of Jesus Christ before His humble arrival in Bethlehem, we must continue to find the relevance as to why this is important for us today. The subtle lesson of this encounter is a single event of the overall grander scale and nature of God with all of us. Jesus Christ is willing to do whatever it takes to help us come to grips with Him. In the case of Jacob, Jesus needed to wrestle and physically hold him back to get Jacob to trust Him with the coming encounter of Esau in Genesis chapter 33. Jesus’ willingness to do whatever it takes reminds me of the gospel of Luke in chapter 15 when Jesus sheds light on His actions as the Good Shepherd with those who He seeks, “What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ I tell you that in the same, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance” Luke 15:4-7.

We can see the loving character of Jesus; He will do whatever it takes to wake up the individual. In the grander scheme, Jesus, with humility and restraint, gave up His own life for us, so that while we were still sinners, He died for us! We can see from this preincarnate encounter with Jacob that Jesus’ love and commitment to doing whatever is necessary, is already there! His character is timeless! This means we can take hold of His never changing character and hold His promises as faithful and true! If He says He is coming back for us, we can take it to the bank, because He has never broken a promise and His character is that of loving to the point of restraining Himself to do what is necessary to get our attention. What an amazing God we have! Typically, a person would make a statement and then show their actions to coincide with those statements made. However, only Jesus Christ could show up prior to His birth in Bethlehem, perform such actions of devotion, restraint, love, and so much more and then be born of a virgin and make the statements/declaration about Himself. We can take what He says in the New Testament as a verified fact, because He has already verified it with His literal actions in the Old Testament. You would not know this unless you studied Jesus in the Old Testament to fully understand Him in the New Testament.

Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming

JL

[1] Michael C. Bere, Bible Doctrines for Today, Pg. 140

[2] Elmer. Towns, Concise Bible Doctrines, Pg. 121

RE-POST FRIDAY

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Two Choices Part 2

Last week we looked at Nebuchadnezzar who was a proud man and who thought that his reign was succeeding on his will alone.  He failed to recognize God’s authority in his life and that decision led him to become more like a beast than a man.  It was only after Nebuchadnezzar had bowed his knee to God and realize that God works in the lives of unbelievers as well as those who belong to him, did Nebuchadnezzar regain his kingdom and all the honor that went along with it.  We saw how God will use times when we are comfortable in our lives to send us situations that will either cause us to lean on Him or to turn from Him.  This week we will look at another man who had a choice to follow after God, but instead of turning to Him like Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar kept the idols that were in his heart.

Belshazzar was the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar, he had heard of the events that occurred in Daniel chapter 4 but did not take Nebuchadnezzar’s lesson to heart.  Instead Belshazzar continued to be prideful and secure in his own castle. So sure, was Belshazzar, that he even held a feast for all his nobles while Babylon was under siege. He believed that there was no way that the Medes and Persians would break down the walls.  He knew that Babylon was fortified enough to last several years under siege, so he was comfortable.

Not only did he hold an elaborate feast, Belshazzar also called for the gold and silver cups from Jerusalem that Nebuchadnezzar had brought to Babylon to be used (Daniel 5:2).  Belshazzar and others who drank from the cup than began to praise false gods of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone (Daniel 5:4).  Belshazzar then saw something that caused him to become pale and his knees to tremble (Daniel 5:6).  A human hand appeared on the wall across from him and wrote out a message (Daniel 5:5).  Belshazzar called for his advisors to see what they could make of the message, none were able to decipher it (Daniel 5:8).  Belshazzar was then reminded of Daniel who had been able to help solve problems like this in the past (Daniel 5:12). 

Daniel was indeed able to decipher the message on the wall, but it was certainly not good news for the king.  Daniel reminded Belshazzar that even though he knew of what had happened to Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar had not humbled his heart and instead had put himself against God when he drank from the sacred cups and praised false gods (Daniel 5:17-23). Daniel then continues to rebuke the king, Belshazzar had honored gods who do not “see or hear or know, but the God in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored” Daniel 5:23.  Daniel then interprets the message for Belshazzar, “26 This is the interpretation of the matter: Mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end; 27 Tekel, you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting; 28 Peres, your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.””.  Unlike with Nebuchadnezzar, God did not wait to carry out His sentence. That very night Belshazzar was slain and Darius the Mede took control of Babylon (Daniel 5:31).

Belshazzar can be used as an example for many in today’s world.  Especially if you are an American Christian, you have heard at one time or another different aspects of the Bible.  Just like Belshazzar who had heard of what had happened to his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar, we know the stories but we often ignore them, and thus we have a false sense of security that we can do things on our own.  We begin to build up idols in our hearts, and as is seen in Psalm 115:4-8 we become like our idols. “But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. 5 They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. 6 They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell. 7 They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats. 8 Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.”  We place our trust in idols of our own making, idols that have mouths, eyes, ears, and noses but all of that is worthless because these idols hold none of the power of the only true God who breathes life into His creations, ““The Spirit of God has made me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.” Job 33:4.  Our idols offer us a false sense of security, just as Belshazzar had with the siege going on behind his walls.  And just like Belshazzar, God will still reach us when we feel we are content in this world and who we are in it.  In Belshazzar’s case, it was a literal writing on the wall, for those today it may be a worldwide lock down causing you to reflect on what is truly important to you. 

Belshazzar had the opportunity to heed his grandfather’s lesson and humble himself to God, however, he chose not to.  This choice resulted in God turning against him.  Belshazzar’s kingdom was divided amongst the Medes and Persians, a fact that Daniel had predicted in Daniel chapter 2 (this was also why Daniel was not interested in being made the third ruler in the kingdom, he knew that the kingdom would be divided amongst the Medes and Persians, God had already shown Daniel this). Belshazzar’s false security failed him when confronted with God’s will.  By failing to humble himself to God, God was against Belshazzar.

We all have the choice to humble ourselves to God or not. As we saw last week if we choose to humble ourselves, we will be saved just as Nebuchadnezzar was.  But if we choose not to humble ourselves then we are choosing a path that goes against what God would will for us.  God wants all to come to Him and acknowledge Him “3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.” 1 Timothy 2:3-6. However, if we take on the attitude of Belshazzar then God will be against us just as He was against Jerusalem in Jeremiah 21.  What is interesting about this passage is that God used Nebuchadnezzar to bring His people back to Him.  We all have two choices we could make when the God breaks through our false sense of security.  We can either turn to God like Nebuchadnezzar, or we can ignore him and be separated from God forever as Belshazzar was.

Seek the Truth and encourage one another,

                        Alex

Before the Humble Arrival (II)

“The deity of Jesus Christ, is pivotal in Christianity, for without Jesus being God, His statements are meaningless.”   

There are many today who would claim that Jesus Christ was only a man and did not exist before He was born in Bethlehem. These scoffers are sadly found in churches and church leadership today. Yet, as we started last week in studying the preincarnation of Jesus Christ, we are seeing how very real He was prior to His humble arrival. Today in part two in our series, we focus on one of the most misunderstood and read over passages found in the Bible.

A promise by a visitor!

Now the Lord appeared to him (Abraham) by the oaks of Mamre, while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day. When he lifted up his eyes and looked, behold, three men were standing opposite him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth, and said, “My Lord, if now I have found favor in Your sight, please do not pass Your servant by. Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree; and I will bring a piece of bread, that you may refresh yourselves; after that you may go on, since you have visited your servant”. And they said, “So do, as you have said.” So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah, and said, “Quickly, prepare three measures of fine flour, kneed it and make bread cakes.” Abraham also ran to the herd, and took a tender and choice calf and gave it to the servant, and he hurried to prepare it. He took curds and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and placed it before them; and he was standing by them under the tree as they ate. Then they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “There, in the tent.” He said, “I will surely return to you at this time next year; and behold, Sarah your wife will have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door, which was behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; Sarah was past childbearing. Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?” And the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, when I am so old?’ Is anything too difficult for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” Sarah denied it however, saying “I did not laugh”; for she was afraid. And He said, “No, but you did laugh.” Genesis 18:1-15.

Here we see several key points to help us understand who this individual is. Let us start first with the name “Lord.” This word in Hebrew is the proper name of God, it is “Yhvh.” The first time the word is used is in Genesis 2:4, “This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made earth and heaven.” Simply put, this verse is describing God, for only He can create anything. Thus, we now have a conundrum, we have two verses describing Lord in two different ways. Genesis 2 shows His power to create the known universe, while we also have Lord being used in Genesis 18:1-15 as being a man. The scripture describes this man as being tired. Abraham was allowed to prepare a meal to refresh the Lord, “and I will bring a piece of bread, that you may refresh yourselves; after that you may go on, since you have visited your servant” Genesis 18:5. So here we see two distinct natures that help identify the characteristics around the word Lord. Imagine, Abraham is sitting and attempting to cool down in the hot sun and suddenly he has three men in front of him, one of whom he identifies immediately as God.

How did Abraham immediately know? I have no idea, for the scripture does not say. But I can only assume that Abraham was permitted to know. Additionally, the Lord knows the thoughts of Sarah when she is not even in His presence. In verse 12, Sarah laughs to herself about being told by the Lord that she is going to have a son. When confronted by the Lord on the matter, she is afraid and then corrected again when she tries to say she did not laugh in verse 15. The Lord knows the thoughts, Jesus Christ is also identified as knowing the thoughts of people, “Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, ‘every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand” Matthew 12:25. The similarities continue to prove that both individuals are one. Nevertheless, this is not the end of the story. For we are about to see more evidence as to this man being God incarnate.

 “Then the men rose up from there, and looked down toward Sodom; and Abraham was walking with them to send them off. The Lord said, ‘Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed? For I have chosen him, so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring upon Abraham what He has spoken about him.” And the Lord said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave. I will go down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.” Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the Lord. Abraham came near and said, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” So the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.” And Abraham replied, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes. Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, will You destroy the whole city because of five?” And He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” He spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose forty are found there?”  And He said, I will not do it on the account of the forty.” Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there” And he said, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord; suppose twenty are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on the account of the twenty.” Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on the account of the ten.” As soon as He had finished speaking to Abraham the Lord departed, and Abraham returned to his place.”  Genesis 18:16-33.

This helps outline the characteristics of the Lord, spoken in Genesis, is in fact, Jesus Christ. In verses 18 and 19, we see that the Lord is prophesying He would bless the nations through Abraham. Also, in verse 25, we see Abraham as identifying the Lord as the Judge of all the earth. There is no one who is capable of judging the World but God, “but they will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead” 1 Peter 4:5. Jesus Christ, is further shown to ultimately judge all those who are in the world found in Revelation, “Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, everyone one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s’ name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” Revelation 20:11-15. We can tell just from these two clues that this person is God!

So out of Genesis chapter 18 we have identified the Lord as having specific qualities that will help identify if the Lord as described in Genesis 18, is Jesus Christ. Verse 1 identifies Lord as being God with His name. Verse 5 shows the Lord could get tired, when we examine John 4:6 we see Jesus being tired, “and Jacob’s well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.” Verse 17 shows the Lord as prophesying of what will happen to Abraham, we see Jesus Christ being referenced as a Prophet in Acts 3:22-23, “Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren; to Him you shall give heed to everything He says to you. And it will be that every soul that does not heed that prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.” Verse 16 shows the Lord walking, look at any of the gospels we can clearly see Jesus Christ’s entire ministry was done on foot with Him visiting locations and stopping to give lessons, signs, and to fulfill specific prophecy.

I would lastly argue that this is Jesus Christ because of the nature of the Lord’s departure from Abraham in verse 33. When He was done talking, He just departs. Jesus in all of the gospels is quick to continue to where He is needed, and He is deliberate in His actions and concluding those actions.

Wrapping up, we are seeing the uniqueness of Jesus Christ as being God. Any argument of Jesus Christ being only a man is inherently wrong and lacks a clear and full study of all the scripture to see Him in completeness! He is fully man and fully God, we have His pre-incarnation visits to prove His authenticity as God prior to His humble arrival in Bethlehem.  But what is the take home value of knowing this? What is the “SO WHAT FACTOR” of the Genesis 18 account? The Genesis 18 account does two things for us in studying Jesus Christ, it shows His authenticity in His ability to prophecy (promises to Abraham and actions against Sodom and Gomorrah), but also with passing of judgment on individuals and whole groups within Sodom and Gomorrah. In Genesis 18, Jesus Christ is not bound by man’s limitations. Yet, during His 33 years of life, He chooses to orchestrate within man’s limitations. Hebrews testifies this in chapter 2, “But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone” Hebrews 2:9.

The second take away for us studying this is confirming Jesus’ own statements found in John 8, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.’ So the Jews said to Him, ‘you are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?’ Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.’” John 8:56-58. This is vitally important; Jesus Christ’s statements are backed with previously written scripture. It is not one of His followers claiming His righteous character and actions, but rather those who came before! This shows Jesus Christ is in fact God! Moses, through the power of the Holy Spirit, wrote down what Jesus stated to Abraham. This helps confirm what Jesus did in the four gospels. His pre-incarnation visit to Abraham helps shed light our marvelous God.

Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming

JL

RE-POST FRIDAY!

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Two Choices Part 1

We all have two choices when it comes to God, we can choose to follow Him or we can choose to ignore Him.  This is the choice that awaits for everyone and we all must come to terms with it at some point in our lives.  While we all have the choice to accept Him or not, that does not mean that God waits until we have decided to follow Him or not to begin work in our lives.  God the Father created a salvation plan for the whole world, God the Son completed that plan, and God the Holy Spirit convicts us all of our sins.  But that is not all, for those who choose to accept Jesus Christ’s free gift of salvation, the Holy Spirit then seals us into His family.  That still does not mean that He does not work in the lives of the unbelievers, and for the next two weeks we will take a look at two different men and their responses to the work of God in their lives. This week I want to look at Daniel chapter 4 and see one man’s reaction to God’s work in his life. 

King Nebuchadnezzar was a proud man, and his pride eventually caused God to turn his mind into that of an animal. When you compare Nebuchadnezzar before chapter 4 of Daniel to his actions at the end of chapter 4 you can see something radical has happened in his life. Nebuchadnezzar was a man who would throw people into a furnace for not worshiping his golden image (Daniel 3), it was certainly his way or the highway.  Now even though Nebuchadnezzar had seen God protect Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego from the furnace, he refused to accept God’s mighty hand. This was not a man who would think to bow his knee to God.

Daniel Chapter 4 sees Nebuchadnezzar at ease in his kingdom, he had conquered his enemies and his days were filled with doing only what he pleased.  It was in this place of comfort that God sent Nebuchadnezzar a dream that caused him to be filled with fear.  The dream was that of a giant tree, “ 11 The tree grew large and strong and its top touched the sky; it was visible to the ends of the earth. 12 Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit abundant, and on it was food for all. Under it the wild animals found shelter, and the birds lived in its branches; from it every creature was fed. 13 “In the visions I saw while lying in bed, I looked, and there before me was a holy one, a messenger, coming down from heaven. 14 He called in a loud voice: ‘Cut down the tree and trim off its branches; strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the animals flee from under it and the birds from its branches. 15 But let the stump and its roots, bound with iron and bronze, remain in the ground, in the grass of the field. “‘Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live with the animals among the plants of the earth. 16 Let his mind be changed from that of a man and let him be given the mind of an animal, till seven times pass by for him. 17 “‘The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of people.’18 “This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, had” Daniel 4:11-18.  Nebuchadnezzar was afraid of his dream and called all of his counselors to him to see what they made of it.  None were able to make any sense of the dream except for Daniel, who had to give the king the troubling news.

Nebuchadnezzar was alarmed and must have subconsciously known that the tree in his dream was in fact himself, based on the symbolism of the tree being referenced as “it” and the discussion in the vision referencing a verdict against “him.” Daniel would later confirm this assumption,“20 The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, with its top touching the sky, visible to the whole earth,21 with beautiful leaves and abundant fruit, providing food for all, giving shelter to the wild animals, and having nesting places in its branches for the birds— Daniel 4:20-22.  And it is here that we begin to see God’s work in the life of the unbelieving king.  God had sent this dream as a warning to Nebuchadnezzar, change your ways or your kingdom will be taken from you.  Not only will the kingdom be taken from him, Nebuchadnezzar would also be driven away from mankind to dwell with the beasts.  Unfortunately, Nebuchadnezzar does not heed the warning, and a year later all that was foretold of him came true.  “29 Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?”31 Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. 32 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.” Daniel 4:29-32.

Nebuchadnezzar failed to acknowledge that God was sovereign, and it was through God that Nebuchadnezzar had any authority. Due to his pride, Nebuchadnezzar spent seven years living as a beast, he was driven from the royal palace, he ate grass, his hair became unkempt, and he walked on all fours until his nails grew into claws (Daniel 4:33).  It was only after the seven year time frame did Nebuchadnezzar lift his eyes to heaven to acknowledge that his authority was given only through God.  Once Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged God’s authority in his life, his mind was returned to him.  As if having reason returned to him wasn’t enough, God also allowed Nebuchadnezzar to return to reigning, and still on top of that God granted Nebuchadnezzar surpassing greatness (Daniel 4:36).

Nebuchadnezzar is a great example of one response we have to God when He calls to us.  So often in our times of comfort we look around and believe that it is our own doing that has led to this.  We begin to look toward ourselves for our happiness rather than realizing where it truly comes from, and we become prideful.  The Bible is clear about how the actions of the prideful brings destruction, “When pride comes, then comes dishonor,” Proverbs 11:2 is just one example. When our hearts are filled with pride, we have no room for God, it is here that God will place us into a situation that will either cause us to lean on Him or to continue to try and fail to do it on our own.

God gave Nebuchadnezzar that chance, the dream was a warning to have him realize that all authority comes from God, “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God” Romans 13:1. God will also give us a chance to acknowledge Him. This chance is different for every person, for me it was a filling of emptiness, of knowing that there had to be more to the life that I was living.  Nonetheless, no matter how this chance presents itself, we all must come to a realization of who God is and if we will remove our prideful self from our hearts to allow Him to work in us. “28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” Romans 8:28.  God works in our lives to complete His purpose, even if we choose not to accept Him as we will see next week.  However, if we take on the attitude of Nebuchadnezzar and lift up a prayer to God acknowledging His sovereignty, than we can be restored.  In Nebuchadnezzar’s case, his mind was restored to him as well as the kingdom.  For us, this restoration takes place in uniting us to God, we are no longer bound by sin and instead are placed in God’s family.

When we take on the attitude of Nebuchadnezzar, we are removing our pride that we are in control of our own happiness.  God works through our lives whether we are Christians or not. “One's pride will bring him low, but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor” Proverbs 29:23. Pride indeed brings us low, just as it brought Nebuchadnezzar to behaving like an animal and not a man.  But just like Nebuchadnezzar, when we turn to God we receive His grace, “6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:“God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble” James 4:6. When we turn to God, our situation becomes not our own, but His.  When we see God working in our lives it is difficult not to praise Him.  A fact that Nebuchadnezzar found out as well, “37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, exalt and honor the King of heaven, for all His works are true and His ways just, and He is able to humble those who walk in pride.” Daniel 4:37.

Seek the Truth and encourage one another,

                        Alex

Before the Humble Arrival (I)

“It has been said that Christ is Christianity. False religions can continue without their leaders; cults can arise and their leaders be soon forgotten. But Christ is Christianity. Without Him Christianity has no meaning.”[1]

Unfortunately, in recent years churches and church leadership have swayed in their dedication to understanding who our blessed hope truly is in our daily life. Many claim to be spiritually rich and have almost denied the need for Jesus to be that intimate savior. This has caused a not so subtle issue in the church with spiritual transformation being considered, “wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked” Revelation 3:17b.  Where we once were emboldened by God many in the church now find themselves to be embarrassed or ashamed to be associated with the Jesus of the Bible. This is regrettable, because the need for Jesus Christ has not changed, we are still in need of Him. This post is not directed at admonishing churches, or even church leadership but rather focusing on who Jesus Christ is. In recent months it has become apparent that the world is starting to pull the attention of the Christian away from Christ.

In the book of Matthew, we see a great example of why we need to keep focused on Jesus and not the world.

“Immediately He made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away. After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone. But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘it is a ghost!’ and they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.’ Peter said to Him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’ And He said, ‘Come!’ and Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately, Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, ‘you of little faith, why did you doubt?’ When they got into the boat, the wind stopped. And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying ‘you are certainly God’s Son!’” Matthew 14:22-36. The more we are focused on Jesus Christ, the more we see that this world is nothing to fear at and we should do what Jesus has told us to do.

Nevertheless, there are many today who are focused on only a part of Jesus Christ, and this is unfortunate since Jesus Christ is found throughout all of the Bible. If a true study of God’s Word is reviewed and reflected on you can find Jesus throughout the entire Bible, in all 66 books.

 For the next seven weeks we are going to go over who is Jesus Christ. This study will focus on one of the most skipped aspects of Jesus Christ, we are going to study together the preincarnate Jesus Christ. Do not let the terminology scare you away, all “preincarnate” means is “before incarnated” or “before the virgin birth.” Why should we do this study? Because it is the foundation in everything that a Christian is and holds dear. “An honest person cannot study the life and ministry of Jesus Christ as taught in the Bible and not be impressed with His influence. The years Jesus traveled throughout Galilee and Judea have had a greater impact upon civilization than any other thirty-year period in the history of the world. Jesus taught a limited group for a limited time, yet his teachings have outlived those who taught a lifetime. Though Jesus Christ was not personally engaged in the arts, He has furnished the theme for more poems and songs, paintings and sculptures than any artist in history…An honest student of history cannot deny the earthly life of Jesus Christ. The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ is the second Person of the Trinity; as such He is equal with God in nature, yet submissive in office. What the Bible says about God, it also maintains about Jesus Christ. Moreover, since God is eternal, Jesus Christ existed before His birth in Bethlehem. The Son of God was born into this world as you or I because He had a human birth. But the Bible also describes His birth, ‘the Word became flesh.’ Jesus Christ existed from eternity past. Since the evidence in the documents overwhelmingly attests to the life and ministry of Jesus on earth, they also attest to His eternal past. Jesus was the Son of God in the Old Testament’ this is the doctrine of preexistence. Jesus Christ has always existed and has no point of beginning. This is the doctrine of eternality. The eternality of Christ means He is not limited by time, has no beginning, and will have no end. The preexistence of Jesus Christ means He existed before His birth in Bethlehem. Because Christ existed before His earthly birth, His eternality gives Him godlike qualities. This concept of preexistence and the proofs of eternality support the proofs of the deity of Christ.”[2]

As Christians we need to understand who our Lord really is and to do this, we need to study the entire Bible to see the full revealed picture of our loving God. This is needed because we are living in the end times which are described as having antichrists and those who would bring false doctrine, “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned’ and in their greed they will exploit you with false words’ their judgement from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep” 2 Peter 2:1-3. While the Church will not be here for the Tribulation period, the hour of testing which will soon be upon the world, we are told the “truth will be maligned,” thus our need to keep Christ centered is needed even more. So, as we begin this study, keep your Bible open and ready, for we are about to see Jesus as the “I Am” prior to His arrival in a humble manger.

Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming

JL

[1] Michael C. Bere, Bible Doctrines for Today, Pg. 127

[2] Elmer L. Towns, Concise Bible Doctrines, Pg. 117-118.

RE-POST FRIDAY!

Today’s RE-POST FRIDAY reflects on a previous post regarding a warning to Christians and those who claim to be Christians. CLICK HERE!

Are You Prepared?

Imagine that you and a set of friends were planning a road trip.  In one car, one friend made sure that the car was full on gas, one made sure that the tires were in good condition, one brought a map, one brought emergency food and water, and yet another brought a portable charger.  This group knew what was needed to make the trip a success and was prepared, they got to the destination safely with no issues.  The second car however, had another story.  The friend that was in charge of filling up the car misjudged how much gas was needed for the trip and forgot their card to pay for gas, one friend forgot to get that squeaky wheel looked at that eventually lead to a popped tire, one friend thought the bag of emergency food and water was taking up to much room and left it behind, one friend thought that there would be enough cell service and they wouldn’t need a map, and the last remembered the portable charger but did not bring any cords to charge their phones.  This car never made it to the destination.  While this might seem a humorous story when you consider the actions of the people in the two cars and compare it to the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25:1-13, we see that there is a much bigger picture here.

In the parable, it is not a destination that the ten friends are trying to reach, instead is it for an appointed time. More specifically a wedding feast.  For those who do not understand the marriage customs of the Jews (specifically Galilean region), after the engagement the bridegroom would go away to prepare a house for his beloved. The bride and groom would not see each other again until this house was prepared and the father of the groom told his son that it was time to bring his bride home.  This would not occur until after midnight on an unknown night, the groom and his friends would then go to bring home the bride, who while the house was being prepared was preparing her wedding gown with her friends.  Once the bride and groom were reunited the feast would begin, but if you were not prepared to go outside to meet the wedding party you were not allowed into the feast.

We see a similar situation occurring in Matthew 25:1-13. The ten women all set out to meet the bridegroom, and when the arrival of the bridegroom was delayed the women began to fall asleep (25:5).  When the announcement that the groom was on his way came the women rushed to trim their lamps, and five discovered that they did not have enough oil to keep their lamps lit.  The foolish five demanded oil from the five that came prepared (25:8) but in the end had to rush to the market to buy more oil, thus resulting in arriving after the door to the wedding feast was closed. They were not allowed entry while the five that were prepared were allowed into the wedding feast (25:10-12).

This parable is being played out before our eyes even today.  Everyone can be found in this parable, you are either part of the prudent five who had oil or you are part of the foolish five who, when the groom arrived, had to leave and look for oil. Now before we continue, we need to understand what the oil represents. The oil symbolizes the Holy Spirit. “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, Because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners” Isaiah 61:1. The action of having an anointing typically happened for two reasons, first was to make something apart as being holy and dedicated to the Lord. The second reason was to commission with authority on a person. It is ironic that the Church, which is set apart and dedicated to God as the Bride of Jesus Christ, is also signified as given and will be given authority. This falls hand in hand with the idea of the oil in the five prudent virgins being those who are truly saved and have the Holy Spirit of God in them. However, if you are interested in knowing more of such symbolism look into Exodus 30:30, Leviticus 4:3-5, Numbers 3:3, 1 Samuel 16:13, Zechariah 4:1-6, and so many more.

If those who have the oil are those who are saved in Jesus Christ and have the Holy Spirit of God in them, then who are the others? Those who belong with the foolish five are the false believers in the church.  They are the ones who believe that they will make it to the feast, in actuality the kingdom of heaven, based on association or on their works.  They believe that by going to church, volunteering to help in the church, and/or surrounding themselves with true believers, that this will be enough to get them to the kingdom of heaven. They believe that the true believers they surround themselves with or the good deeds they do will be enough to keep their lamps burning.  But they failed to see what is truly needed, they are not one of those who is recognized as having oil because they have never accepted that Jesus Christ is the only means to salvation.  And as we have seen in the parable, the foolish five have their lamps snuffed out and are unable to make it to the feast.

The prudent five on the other hand, have realized that the bridegroom may be delayed, yet eagerly wait for Him. They have the assurance of the oil that they will be ready when the time comes. What an encouragement for those who are saved, who realize that the Holy Spirit or the “oil” is inside of them. When the announcement that the bridegroom is on his way and the feast is about to begin, they have enough oil and will be allowed entry to the feast.  The prudent five are the true born-again believers.  They have accepted Jesus Christ’s free gift of salvation and are anxiously awaiting His return.  They know that the bridegroom may delay but stand firm in the faith even through hard times and times of uncertainty.  It cannot be stated enough that the knowledge that Jesus Christ will return for His bride, the church, keeps the prudent going.  They are the ones who even in the times that we are seeing now and even when things in this world get worse, their faith is not shaken.  And when Christ returns for His bride, those who are prudent, who have accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior, will be allowed entry into the wedding feast, the kingdom of heaven.

Do you know which group you belong?  If you have any doubt in your mind, or you know that you  belong with the foolish, repent, accept and receive that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He was born of a virgin, completed a perfect life, died on a cross for your sins, was raised to life on the third day, and is currently seated at the right hand of God. Accept Him as your Lord and Savior and you will be given enough “oil”, the Holy Spirit, to keep your lamp lit. Remember it is truly a free gift of eternal life which is found in no other name than Jesus Christ, and with His Holy anointing you will be able to read the parable and truly know which group you belong in. For those who are saved and have oil, we need to be watchful and know the signs of the times we live in, for a day is coming where we will finally have an answer to, ““Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” Matthew 25:13

Seek the Truth and encourage one another,

                        Alex

In 2020

In 2020, we are witnessing the younger western world Christian generation go through an environmental metamorphosis. For previous generations what was not only acceptable but encouraged, is now being turned against and hated. What Isaiah warned and prophesied against has come about, “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!” Isaiah 5:20. Many turn from the faith and run to darkness for answers! News reports show a dramatic rise in witchcraft and other paganist beliefs. Just two years ago, “According to a study by the Pew Research Center, there are now 1.4 million mainstream Presbyterians in the United States but 1.5 million who identify as Wiccans or pagans.”[1] This is not including all other forms of beliefs and practices which identify as something else. For the born-again believer who is growing up in this reality, they are having to witness the result of the change. What was first deemed acceptable by some Christians, such as yoga, and allowed in the Church, is now being recognized as having a direct link to the embracing of such religions, “Experts believe that the explosion in the witch population is due to millennial women’s embracing of new-age spirituality, mindfulness, meditation, and yoga.”[2] Nevertheless as the younger generation of Christians who will have to grow up in a world of being the minority, we should not be afraid, our loving Lord and Savior has given us His Word to guide and help us. As younger believers seek guidance from the older believers, we can look at 1 Peter chapter 5 for help on such manners, but also with understanding we have a roaring lion who is out to devour us!  

“You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble” 1 Peter 5:5. We need to be seeking the guidance that spiritually older believers have to offer to us. One of the biggest things we can see on the news and in our entertainment, is the idea of pride and living for the moment. This sadly will not only keep you from learning from God in His Word, but also cause Him to have to do what is necessary to keep you focused on Him. I once heard it said, “Lord please let me be a quick student.” Some of the hardest lessons I have learned in life were because of my pride in not wanting to listen to God and what He was trying to teach me.

We need to humble ourselves under what God is wanting to teach us and allow Him to mold us into the person He wants us to be, not what we want to be, “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God” 1 Peter 5:6a. This can be hard, especially in today’s world where so many Churches are not preaching the Word of God and are all about tickling the ears! We need to listen and wait on His timing, “that He may exalt you at the proper time,” 1 Peter 5:5b. He has a plan for you and I. If we wait for His will, just like in Joshua’s day, we can see God work! “Now Jericho was tightly shut because of the sons of Israel; no one went out and no one came in. The Lord said to Joshua, ‘See I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and the valiant warriors. You shall march around the city, all the men of war circling the city once. You shall do so for six days. Also seven priests shall carry seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark; then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. It shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people will go up every man straight ahead” Joshua 6:1-5. We need to wait on the Lord’s timing, we are not going to do anything that He desires without His calling and on His timing. But that does not mean we sit and wait, but rather, “casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you” 1 Peter 5:5c. What an incredible statement, “He cares for you” with knowing that we can be rest assured that no matter what is coming in 2020 or in 2021, we have the living God on our side.

Yet, that does not mean we can be complacent, but be sober minded and knowing what is going on in the world, “be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world” 1 Peter 5:8-9. We are soon entering a state in the world, where all Christian believers will be in similar circumstances, where the world will be actively against and openly hostile towards us! Though this might sound scary, we have Jesus Christ who is with us, “After you have suffered for a little while, the God of grace who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect confirm, strengthen and establish you” 1 Peter 5:10. He is eagerly watching us and is there to help us. Remember what Jesus Christ said to those believers who would suffer for His name and righteousness sake, “because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth” Revelation 3:10. As possibly the final generation within the Church, it is ever more important that we go back and reflect on the first generation Church and see what characteristics we should be reflecting, for our commissioning by Jesus Christ has not changed, we are to “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you” Matthew 28:20a. Some might say this commissioning was for the disciples only, I would just remind them of the final part of Jesus Christ’s statement which He is making directly to us in this generation, “and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” Matthew 28:20b. So, let us take up the responsibility as the coming generation, lean on the Lord, and do what He has told us to do.

Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming

JL

[1] https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=181e80d6-a180-4bed-bdbf-4b2e981f72db

[2] https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6404733/Number-Americans-practice-witchcraft-estimated-high-1-5-MILLION.html

Freed From Sin

For those who have come to the realization that we cannot measure up to God’s standard based on our own merits and good works, we must accept that the only way to be rectified with God is through His Son, Jesus Christ.  Once we see that we have this free gift of salvation that Christ offers to those who are willing to accept Him, we must come to the question that Paul asks in Romans 6, do we continue in our sinful ways? Paul answers this question in a most absolute way, if we are among those who have died to sin then may it never be that we continue in it (Romans 6:2).

But why is it that we are free from the chains of sin?  Paul continues to answer this as he states that those of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus, baptized by the Spirit not just a water baptism, have also been baptized into His death.  When Christ became the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the whole world, buried and then rising to life again, He defeated the hold that sin has on those who accept Him.  When we accept this sacrifice, we have also been buried with Him (Romans 6:4).  Sin no longer has a hold on us because we become new creatures. “17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). “6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;” (Romans 6:6). Our past sins no longer have any hold on us because we become a new creation in Christ. We take on the likeness of Christ not just in the likeness of His death, but also the likeness of His resurrection (Romans 6:5). This does not mean that we will not make mistakes, our sin nature is still there, but it means that the punishment of death is no longer applicable to us.  Sin no longer has us bound because through our baptism into the death of Christ, we become new.

Through Paul’s explanation that we have died with Christ, we also see that we will also live with Him (Romans 6:8). He is talking about the spiritual death which we who are living in Christ, have also died in Christ. Our sins were placed on the cross and are no longer attributed to us for punishment. Though we might die in this body, we are living in Christ. Spiritual death, is where sin has caused a permanent separation from God and does not allow second chances, for those who are not saved this is what awaits you, “then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life, and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to the deeds. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, everyone one of them according to the deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire,” (Revelation 20:11-15). But for those who are saved, who have their name written in the book of life, they are Christ’s. So we who are supposed to be imitators of Christ need to understand that when Christ died for the sins of the world, He was raised from the dead, and this allowed Him to have mastery over death.  “10 For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God” (Romans 6:10).  This should be our response to sin, we must consider ourselves dead to sin but alive in Christ (Romans 6:11).  Sin no longer has hold on us, we no longer offer our ways as instruments of unrighteousness, but instead offer ourselves as instruments of righteousness to God (Romans 6:13).  We must die daily to our sinful nature and instead live as Christ lives, offering our actions to the glory of the Living God.

Paul continues to state that we are not under the law, for our salvation cannot come through the law, but our salvation comes through grace.  This does not allow us to continue in our sins because we are not under the law because we either continue in our sins and allow sin to continue its mastery over us, or we present ourselves to God and through obedience to Him we are righteous.  When we become obedient to God we have been freed from our sins and are instead slaves of righteousness (Romans 6:18).  When we were slaves to sin, no matter how good of a person we thought we were, our actions lead to further sins and ultimately the second death.  We saw this when we looked at how we cannot be saved through the law.  If we are guilty of one action that separates us from God, then we are guilty of them all.  But when we accept His free gift of salvation then we become slaves to righteousness which results in sanctification.  And the outcome of sanctification is eternal life.  “5 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1).

Seek the Truth and encourage one another,

                        Alex

Challenges for the Christian

A few years ago I was hiking deep in the Montana mountains and enjoying nature. I had gone by myself and was looking for tracks of elk and mule deer. I had spent most the day high in the mountains where I could see for miles, but occasionally I would go deep into some of the lower valleys looking for where they might bed at night. When I was higher up, it was easier to see where I was and where I was going. However, when I went down into the valley, I found that it was very easy to get turned around and lost. If you have ever been in this type of scenario, you understand the unnerving feeling that befalls on you when you quickly realize you are lost. Your troubles and worries of before vanish and you are confronted with the very present, very creepy feeling of “I am lost,” and the dangers of the present take over! Luckily for me, I had trained for such a scenario and knew the first steps to take. Once I realized that I was turned around and that I needed to find my direction again I had to first calm down and look for high ground. I knew I had several hours before it was dark but just needed to get a better sense of my location. Instead of staying in fear and staying disconnected in the valley, I went looking for high ground. Thirty minutes later I found myself coming out of the valley and realized that I was still on the western side of the very mountain I was on. I now had my location centered and the feeling of fear and dread quickly vanished for the thrilling view that God had presented to me on the mountain.

Christians similarly can find ourselves lost at times when we are not connected continuously with Christ. I am not talking about salvation, but rather the ever present leaning on the Lord God for our foundation. When we disconnect, we put away our Bibles and will quickly find ourselves lost. Fear and dread become a present danger and we are now lost in a valley which we shouldn’t be lost in. A common issue that many Christians who are struggling with fear, dread, and depression have in common is their lack of time with Jesus Christ. Now I am not talking about the app that tells you a daily Bible verse, or the little one to two page devotional we do, or even the schedule plan to read the Bible in a year. These are not wrong but it does distract at times from having a real connection with God. We need to be in His Word daily and allowing Him to guide and enrich us as He sees fit. Without this, we will soon become lost in our own valleys and entrapped by the fear and dread which can haunt those who are stuck in such a situation. Without God’s Word being present in our lives, we are vulnerable to listening and following the distractions of this world, “the naïve believes everything, but the sensible man considers his steps. A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is arrogant and careless” Proverbs 14:15-16. As those who are saved, our salvation cannot be taken away, “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor heights, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” Romans 8:38-39. This discussion is not about assurance of salvation, but as believers we need to take root in knowing that when we fail, He does not fail. So when we are lost in the valley, we are still not lost from God.

As Christians, the 21st century has turned into a time where our “time” is running at a pace never dreamed of before. We focus in on the year 2020 and we have been disconnected from our spiritual community and yanked into a valley of fear, dread, and misinformation. We read the headlines and they predict millions will die, we watch the news and we see violence in the streets, and for some of us we walk outside and see the real life dangers that have embraced 2020. Unfortunately as Christians we have become entrapped with staying focused on the situation of the valley we find ourselves in, instead of seeking the Lord and finding our foundation with Him. I want to offer up three challenges for us as believers to start doing. These challenges are simple and can be orchestrated differently based on your personal situation and location in the world.

Challenge 1:

Reexamine our personal time in God’s Word. We need to connect with Him, we need to be with Him. I understand that we have busy lives, but do not allow the business of our life to distract us from the very reason we have life. I would encourage you to spend additional time daily that is separate from you typical Bible study and dig in deep. Ask Him to share in you what He wants to. Spend time praising Him with a Psalm, two good ones to start with are Psalm 117 and Psalm 115. Keep the Bible commentaries, the self-help books, and all the other distractions aside and allow Him and you to spend that time together. On top of all of that, read the Proverbs of the day. For instance if it is the 3rd, read chapter 3, if it is the 7th, read chapter 7. The longer you are in the presence of the Lord, the more He can change you. Look at Moses who after coming down from the Mountain, was changed! “When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God” Exodus 34:29. If you spend the time with Him, He will transform you into what He needs you to be.

Challenge 2:

Do not forsake gathering together. As Christians we are designed to be the body of Christ. The Book of Ephesians states, “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; One Lord one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all” Ephesians 4:1-6. We need to be with one another, we need to be encouraging one another. So, no matter what that looks like, you need to be connected with other brothers and sisters in the body of Christ. We have the luxury in living in the digital age and have this at our disposal, be intentional and spend that time with our fellow believers even if you cannot meet in person.

Challenge 3:

Focus on the times we live in. We currently are coming closer to a time that all previous generations of believers have longed to see, the return of our Blessed Hope Jesus Christ for His Church. I know there are many who will say that the rapture is not in the Bible and today I am not going to argue with the scoffers. If you have questions regarding this topic CLICK HERE.
But we need to be studying and understanding what the Bible says. I would challenge you to start studying Bible prophecy and see how quickly what is foretold is coming closer. Revelation is the only book of the Bible that gives a blessing to those who study it. If you have questions on Bible prophecy and want to know more, we have a weekly study on Saturday going over Bible prophecy in the news and other resources, CLICK HERE. Titus 2, which is the foundational scripture for Mill House Ministries, describes the need for us to stay vigilant as our Blessed Hope comes closer, we are to encourage one another. “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness, and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds. These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority. Let no one disregard you” Titus 2:11-15.

Wrapping this up, if we as believers recognize we are in a valley, we might need to come to grips that it is because we have forsaken our time with the Lord. We have unplugged and desperately need to reconnect back to Him. These three challenges are numbered by importance, first you need to have that personal time with Him. You need to be with Him in His scripture! Second, we need to be in fellowship with other believers, be that via technology or in person we need that time with the Body of Christ. Thirdly, recognize the times we are living in and adjust accordingly. We need to get to work doing what God has told us to do. Tell the gospel to anyone willing to listen and help embolden and warn of the coming wrath. We will not be here for that hour of testing, but we can rest assured that tribulation in our present age is still here. We need to study God’s Word and be ready to refute those who are attempting to distort the truth of who Jesus Christ is.

This challenge is not only a challenge to you the readers, but also to us here on the Mill House Ministries staff. We want to help encourage and build you up. If you ever have a time you need prayer, answers to questions, or resources, please reach out to us at our contact page.

Remember we have a God who is living and is mightier than anything this world can throw at us, let us lean on Him and allow Him to guide us out of the valley that 2020 has brought us into.

Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming

JL

RE-POST FRIDAY!

Today’s post is a reflection on the transition from Blessed Hope Podcast to Mill House Ministries, for those who are wanting to hear the podcast and see how the ministry changed this would be a great article to read! CLICK HERE!

Roman’s Road

After last Wednesdays post, Everyone’s Day in Court, you might feel inadequate for God and His impossible standard for us to meet. We have all come into this world as sinners, and last week’s post may have left you feeling as if there is nothing that can be done to rectify this situation.  Well this week I am going on a brief look throughout verses in the Book of Romans to see how we can be saved and be rectified with God.

Last week we saw that we can sin not just by physical actions but also through our thoughts.  “23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23.  No matter how hard we try we cannot make ourselves righteous with God. “10 As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; 11 there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. 12 All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” Romans 3:10.

What is the result of falling short of the glory of God?  Romans 6:23a explains it clearly “23 For the wages of sin is death”, this is a sobering idea for those who believe that if they are a good enough person they will make it to heaven on their own.  We have already seen that we have all fallen short of the plan that God has for us, we have all sinned, and this sin resulted in a separation from God, not only while we are on earth but permanently when we die.  However, the rest of Romans 6:23 shows that humanity’s hope is in Christ alone. “but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23b.

How amazing it is that even though we have all fallen short, God has offered us a gift of salvation.  And what is even more amazing is that this gift is free! We do not need to work for our salvation! But why is this? Well look at Romans 5:8 “8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” We have a God who showed us His love for us while we were sinners and undeserving of it.  He sent His own Son to die for us. “7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die.” Romans 5:7 our nature is not to put others before ourselves, but our God cares for us so much that He sent His Son to die for us while we were undeserving.  This salvation is the free gift that God gives us.

But how do we receive this salvation?  Romans continues to answer this question, “9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.” Romans 10:9-10 and again in Romans 10:13 “13 For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” We can receive this salvation only when we confess that we are sinners that we have all fallen short of God’s design and that we need Jesus to intercede for us, that He lived a perfect life, that He died on the cross and was resurrected on the third day, and He is alive today.  When we call on His name, we are saved.  It is not about us, it never was, salvation is for God alone to give and He gives it freely to those who seek Him.

Now that we have seen how salvation is received, what is the result of salvation?  We find that answer in Romans 5:1-2 “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God”, and Romans 8:1 “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” We have been justified through faith alone, in Christ alone, and we have now been granted peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  We have been justified through God’s grace and not by our own merit and this justification is for us to boast in the glory of God.  We have been made new through Jesus Christ and are no longer condemned. “21 But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus” Romans 3:21-24.

I hope now that if you are reading this and you have held to the idea that you can claim righteousness based off of your own merit you now see that this is an impossible task.  We have all fallen short of the glory of God, we all need a Savior who can bring us justification before God the Father. That Savior is Jesus Christ the Son of God, through faith alone, in Christ alone we are found righteous and made new, we are no longer condemned.  I ask that if you see now that Christ is the only way to rectify yourself to God the Father that you take a moment to pray that Jesus would come into your life. “4 Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes” Romans 10:4. If you ever have questions or want to talk to us, feel free to reach out to the staff at Mill House Ministries at our contact page.

Seek the Truth and encourage one another,

                        Alex

Dear Reader

Today I wanted to take a step back from going deep into the Word of God and open up to you all a little bit about myself. I believe that telling your testimony or of the works that God has done in your life can be a very encouraging gift for the reader and person telling. I want to hopefully do that for you today. I will be honest; I was uncertain at first as to why this was on my heart. I have been planning on going deep like we did with Jude, but felt I needed to take a step back and open up to you, the reader.

I know we are living in crazy days, yet it is important that we do more than just reflect on the Word of God, but rather embrace His Word. I believe Psalm 25 puts it clearly, “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul, O my God, in you I trust, Do not let me be ashamed; Do not let my enemies exult over me. Indeed, none of those who wait for you will be ashamed; Those who deal treacherously without cause will be ashamed. Make me know your ways, O Lord; Teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me for you are the God of my salvation; For you I wait all the day.” Psalm 25:1-5.

We need to be waiting each and every moment like it is the moment our Lord and Savior is coming back. I was asked recently if this would be tiring, waiting all the time? I simply smiled and told them that waiting on the Lord has been taken out of context. People think waiting on the Lord means we are just waiting for Him to do something and He is just absent. Waiting on the Lord is actually an active thing.

He is there for me when the world is persecuting and being its normal evil self, He is there! “Turn to me and be gracious to me, For I am lonely and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged; Bring me out of my distresses. Look upon my affliction and my trouble and forgive all my sins” Psalm 25:16-18. Waiting for the Lord means that the Lord is not missing but is with you. For those of us who are saved in Jesus Christ, the verse in proverbs is literal “But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother” Proverbs 18:24b.  For a believer waiting on the Lord means having the Lord at the controls of your life as we live it.

Over the past several years, I have moved across the nation to a place with no family minus my wife. Yet, God was with us all the way. When we found out that we were going to be parents, my wife and I realized that God was with us in the preparation and planning of this little one. We still have no idea why He moved us across the nation, nevertheless, I remember what Timothy is told by Paul in 2nd Timothy, “Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything” 2nd Timothy 2:7. This verse has two applications to it. First being the obvious, the Lord will help you understand the Word of God, we know this from John 16, “I have many more things to say to you but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of Truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak’ and He will disclose to you what is to come” John 16:12-13. But the verse from Timothy also has application regarding our lives at times. When we are confused on why God has us in a certain place or at a certain time with a specific problem, He might be attempting to teach, show, or instruct us in something specific in our life. He does this so that we do not become complacent in this world, which is why I am so glad that I go through the challenges that God has ordained for me to go through, it is why you should be glad about them as well. I am reminded that our challenges are not to degrade us, but rather to edify us in the body of Christ, remember we are not of this world those of us who are saved, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” Romans 12:2. We have a God who loves us and wants to be with us. I most of all need to remember that at times, we need to slow down and reflect on what God is doing right now in the present with our lives. Yes, we know that our past was sinful flesh, we know our future is glory in Christ Jesus, but the current is God speaking to us what He is wanting us to learn.

In summary, I wanted to highlight that at times we might not know what is going on in our current personal predicaments, let us not forget to stop and observe what God is trying to do in our lives in the moment. Maybe take a step back from the thousand-foot view and see the microscopic view and see the small lesson that Christ might be attempting to show us. We need to address each second in complete anticipation and obedience to God’s will, this is the true wait upon the Lord scenario. We need to keep mindful with the time He has allotted us. I have been serving God through Mill House Ministries and I plan on continuing to serve Him in this ministry as long as He wants me to. I love writing each and every week to you all. If you ever have questions, prayer requests, or just need a personal encouraging word, please contact us at the ministry. “Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you” Philippians 3:1.

Finally, no matter what happens over the next couple months, let us not forget to seek after the Lord and truly do what Titus 2 is all about, ”For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory  of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed and to purify for Himself a people or His own possession, zealous for good deeds. These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority. Let no one disregard you” Titus 2:11-15. As we continue on with our studies and postings, no matter where God takes you the reader and us the writers, let us not forget that we serve a God who is greater than anything that can happen in our lives. I will end on this, “What a mighty God we serve, What a mighty God we serve, angels bow before Him, Heaven and earth adore Him, what a mighty God we serve.”[1]

Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming

JL

[1] Song by Hezekiah Walker

RE-POST FRIDAY!

Today’s post is a reflection on our first ever post on Mill House Ministries, for those who want to know a little bit more about the ministry this would be a great article to read! CLICK HERE!