Foundation Series #4: Love Is The Answer

Posted on March 31, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

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1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (KJV) Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

What Is “Love”? Why Is “Love” So Important?

I grew up hearing songs about “love” – and I’m sure you did as well. Whether you like Rock Music, Pop Music, Country Music, or (yuk) Rap Music you’ve all heard bands, groups, and famous singers speak about “love”. Love was advertised on the Soap Operas like General Hospital or The Young and the Restless. It didn’t take me long to figure out the reason they were young and restless is because of their weird ideas about love. Love was on the radio.

George Jones sang about “The Love In Your Eyes”
Another group sang about that “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”
My Momma’s favorite singer Elvis sang
“Can’t Help Falling In Love”
Not having a clue as to what they were saying, a British Band sang
”All You Need Is Love”

Our impression as to what love is has been shaped by what we’ve heard on Radio or seen on Television or in the Movies. They almost got it right when they sang:

Light of the world, shine on me
Love is the answer
Shine on us all, set us free
Love is the answer

Jesus Christ is “The Light Of The World”.

John 8:12 (KJV) … I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

Jesus Christ is God in the Flesh. When the Bible says “God is love” (1 John 4:8, 16) it bids you to look to Jesus. What did Jesus say to those who would heed Him?

John 13:34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. (also John 15:12, 17)

Love GIVES More Than it TAKES

To find the Biblical definition of love you need to turn to Paul’s letter to Corinth. These were saved people. They were born again by the Word of God which liveth and abideth forever (1 Peter 1:23). The Apostle addressed Corinth as:

1 Corinthians 1:2 (KJV) … the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, …

Inwardly they were saved, but outwardly they were a mess! The Apostle told them:

1 Corinthians 3:1 (KJV)  And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.

What Is A BABY? What Characterizes A Baby?

The baby is first of all PRECIOUS. Normal people love babies.
They are so cute!

BUT the “baby” is HEARD. It cries incessantly.
The “baby” wants to be the CENTER of attention.
It screeches “Hey, look at ME!”
The “baby” crawls away from the parents and grabs things.
“Mine!” it shouts!
The “baby” hurts itself by disobeying its parents,
then blames the parent.
Oh, did I mention the “baby” SMELLS.

My children were very generous.
If it smelled, they gave it to me!

Every one of my children peed or pooped on me when they were babies. They threw up on me. I fed them, burped them, then I had to change my shirt. But I tolerated it because they were MY kids, and I loved them. But I expected them to grow up! Every parent wants to see their child grow into mature, functioning citizens that act like they have good sense. The Corinthians were still babes in Christ.

The difference between the “Mature Christian” and the “babe in Christ” is based on whether you TAKE love or GIVE love. The mature believer GIVES. You were created to GIVE Love.

Love Matters So Very Much!

1 Corinthians 13:1 (KJV) Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

You can be highly educated, with many college degrees. You can have the ability to speak numerous languages. But if love is not evident in your life you are only so much noise. Love is to give unselfishly to others. Love is to be concerned for others, and to seek the highest good for them.

The Bible tells us …

John 3:16 (KJV) For God so loved the world, that _______

What did God DO to prove His love? Did He just SAY “I love you” or did He DO something. God loved us, so He did the highest good for us.

John 3:16 (KJV) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

God laid everything down on the table for us. He didn’t just have an emotion, but He DID.

1 Corinthians 13:2 (KJV)  And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

The gift of Prophecy is a God given gift. The gift of Discernment is a God given gift. In fact, faith itself is a gift from God. But if love for others is not in your life then Beloved you are not what God wants you to be.

Several years ago I met a great man who knew a lot about Bible prophecy. It fascinated me to hear Him talk about coming events and the return of our Lord Jesus. I asked the man several times to teach a Wednesday night class to the Church I pastored, but he refused. I asked him to assist me by reaching out to the local Nursing Home, to minister to the elderly saints there, but he refused. He had no time to reach out to others in love. He was less than God wanted him to be because he would not GIVE LOVE.

1 Corinthians 13:3 (KJV) And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

Love is more than emotion – it is proper motivation. It is to give as Christ would have us give. It is to be obedient to Him Who gave all for us. Jesus said:

Matthew 5:43-48 (KJV)  Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy.  [44]  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;  [45]  That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.  [46]  For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?  [47]  And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?  [48]  Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

To love the unlovable is the mark of perfection.
See Love on Heaven’s Throne!
How Do We Know This Is Love?
See The Nail Scars, The Torn Brow.
The whip lines in His flesh.
It is love to do good when bad is done to you.
See Jesus!

The group Crowder illustrates what love is in one of my favorite songs Forgiven:

I’m the one who held the nail
It was cold between my fingertips
I’ve hidden in the garden
I’ve denied You with my very lips
God, I fall down to my knees
With a hammer in my hand
You look at me, arms open
Forgiven, I’m Forgiven!

Jesus had every right to be worshiped. He is Eternal God in perfect Human form. The Scripture declares:

John 1:1-3 (KJV) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

John 1:14 (KJV) And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, …

Christ lowered Himself voluntarily to pay for our sins. He did not love us from afar, but loved us near, where it was harshest. Christ lowered Himself to raise us up. As a Shepherd would lay down His life for His sheep,

John 10:15 (KJV) … I lay down my life for the sheep.

Jesus lay His life down for us all, not in a quick death, but a long torturous one. Oh how He suffered for you and for me. But this is the proof of love – and as He loved we are called to love.

Love’s Portrait

1 Corinthians 13:4 (KJV)  Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

Love is patient with others. See Love hanging on the Cross. “If you are the Son of God come down from that Cross” (Matthew 27:40). Jesus could have come down. “Don’t you realize I could ask My Father for thousands of angels to protect us, and He would send them instantly?” (Matthew 26:53). Oh how patient Christ was with us.

Love is kind to others. Jesus always thought of others before Himself. He did the highest good He could to others. Lepers run after Jesus. “Jesus You could heal me if you would”. The unkind thing would be to say “Get away from me, you leper. You are unclean!” But Jesus said “I am willing” and touched that diseased person – just like He touched that filthy you on the day of your salvation. “I am willing – be cleansed!” (Matthew 8:3)

Love is confident in itself, and does not envy others. God loves you as you are. God has given you what you need. Do not covet another person’s stuff, but be loved of God and be satisfied that He loves you!

Love does not brag on itself. Jesus showed us love over and over again, but particularly just before He was crucified. We read in …

John 13:1-5 (KJV) Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. 2 And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him; 3 Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God; 4 He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. 5 After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded.

Jesus took off all His clothing but His underwear and washed the disciples feet. I have read this passage over and over again for years, but it did not strike me until this day:

Jesus humbled Himself and
SERVED His greatest enemy.

Jesus washed the feet of Judas Iscariot! Jesus knew that Judas was going to betray Him, and yet knelt and washed his feet anyway. Why would He do that? Because that’s what love does.

Love loves regardless as to whether love is loved back.
Love loves regardless as to whether love is loved back.
Love loves regardless as to whether love is loved back.

This is the Love that God calls you to do, dear Christian. John said:

1 John 4:7-8 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. (8) He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

We Are To Radically LOVE
Through God’s Empowering

Romans 8:1, 13-14 (KJV)  And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.  …  [13]  For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.  [14]  For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

God is love. If God is in you, you will love like God. See that woman taken in adultery cast before Him. Will He condemn her? No, but Jesus comes along side of her.

Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.
Woman, where are your accusers?
Go and sin no more.

Love doesn’t see the prostitute, the drug addict, the lesser than, the failure. Love sees each person as being made in the image of God. Love sees the person COULD be. Love carries His Cross down the dusty street while others lovelessly mock and scorn Him. Love bears the nails tearing into His flesh, as an undeserving creation spits and laughs. Love hangs patiently while bearing the sins of the world at a place called Calvary. Love cries “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do”. Love is of God. Unless you are born of God you cannot know true love. But if you are born of God you are capable of great Love as He is Love.

1 Corinthians 13:5 (KJV)  Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

Love does not walk with the ways of the world, nor does it seeks it’s own good first. Love does not think evil of others, but seeks to uplift, to encourage, to do the highest good. Love does what God would do, just as Jesus did. Jesus surrendered everything in order to love. One day a young Scribe came to Jesus and said:

Matthew 8:19-20 (KJV) …. Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.  [20]  And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

Jesus gave up everything in order to reach as many as He could. The King of glory lived as a pauper on this earth. He lowered Himself, and showed us what love is to be. Love doesn’t put self first, but puts God and others first. It does not behave itself unseemly but clothes itself in Godly robes. Love does not think evil of others.

“seeketh not her own”

“Seeketh not her own” in verse 5 is another way of saying Divine Love is not about me – it’s about God and others”

Divine love always stands in the gap for others, interceding for man before Almighty God.

A Christian is compelled to love, ordered to love, and designed to love.
(1 Corinthians 13:5)

Love is filled with JOY over the RIGHT THINGS.

1 Corinthians 13:6 (KJV)  Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

The ancient preacher Jerome said: “The church of Christ has been founded by shedding its own blood, not that of others; by enduring outrage, not by inflicting it.”

The Philosopher and Engineer Archimedes once said “Give me a place to stand and with a lever I will move the whole world.” That was wishful thinking. But Beloved, if we stand on the promises of God and love as He commands WE WILL move THE WORLD!

1 Corinthians 13:7 (KJV) {Love} Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

Love encourages. Most of all, love will not cut and run. Love endures all things. It overcomes. This is why John in the Book of Revelation spoke of overcoming in reference to salvation. Do you remember?

Revelation 2:7 (KJV) … To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

Revelation 2:11 (KJV) … He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

Revelation 2:17 (KJV) To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

You can’t be in love with Jesus one day and at odds with Jesus the next and be saved. The saved love the Lord. The saved stay with the Lord. Whoever is born of God overcomes the world (1 John 5:4).

It Is Time To Be Adults

The Apostle started this Book by telling the Corinthians they were babes in Christ. Now he says:

1 Corinthians 13:11 (KJV)  When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

It’s fine to be a Child when you are born. It’s fine to lay about crying, waiting for momma or daddy to feed you. It’s all right to wet yourself, to be spoon fed. If you are a baby you don’t choose your own wardrobe or your own bed time. But when you grow up you are to put away childish things.

You must all choose to follow Christ, doing as He has commanded. You must get up from your beds and find a place of worship every day. You must read and do His Word. You must get past the diaper stage. You must stop expecting others to do everything. The mega-Churches are filled with babies that paid staff cater to. Beloved, the christian way of life is a Christ centered way of life. The only time someone changed Christ’s diapers was when He was a baby. It’s time to put away childish behavior and childish things. It’s time to quit being spoon fed. It’s time to get up and walk, Beloved, to be the light that Christ has called us to be.

Hebrews 10:23-24 Let us hold fast {not waffle, but HOLD FAST} the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) (24) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:

Let’s let God love through us. Let’s quit being babies, sitting around all day playing on a game console while life passes us by. Let’s love. Let’s love like Christ loved. Let’s move forward into adulthood. Now. This moment.

May God lead you to trust in and be like Christ Jesus our Lord.

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Foundation Series #2: God Is In Control

Posted on March 28, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

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Romans 11:25-29 (KJV) For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. [26] And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: [27] For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. [28] As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes. [29] For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

The Errors Of Man Do Not Stop God’s Sovereign Power

There are Christians in certain denominations today who believe that the Jews were permanently cut off from God when Christ raised up His Church. They teach that Israel has been replaced with a spiritual Israel, and that every Christian is now a spiritual Jew. It is true that the Church of Christ and the Gentiles were “grafted into” the promises of Israel. The Apostle teaches this in this very chapter. We read:

Romans 11:17-21 (KJV) And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree; [18] Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. [19] Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in. [20] Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not high minded, but fear: [21] For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.

Israel is in the Scripture “The Olive Tree” and the Church is known as “The Wild Olive Tree”. Because Israel as a nation rejected Christ as Lord and Savior, because Christ:

John 1:11 (KJV) … came unto his own, and his own received him not.

…because His nation cried out against Him – and led by the Pharisees and Sadducees cried out:

Mark 15:13-14 (KJV) …. Crucify him. [14] Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him.

… because His nation, the nation He cherished, crucified Him though He was an innocent Man, and even said:

Matthew 27:25 (KJV) … His blood be on us, and on our children.

Christ raised up His Church. This was something that the Old Testament Prophets did not fully understand, though several times God alluded to it. When Christ was born of Mary and brought to the Temple on the eighth day to be circumcised according to the Law (Luke 2:21; Genesis 17:12; Leviticus 12:3) an old Prophet named Simeon saw the Christ. The Bible says that Simeon, upon holding the Christ in his arms, praised God:

Luke 2:29-32 (KJV) Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: [30] For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, [31] Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; [32] A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.

Simeon was quoting the Old Testament Scriptures of Isaiah 42:6-7; 49:6; 60:1-2. Jesus came not just to save Israel, but to save the Gentiles as well. The first preachers of the Church declared and quoted Isaiah when reaching out with the Gospel to redeem the Gentiles. The Apostles Paul and Barnabas preached to the unbelieving Jews:

Acts 13:46-48 (KJV … It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. [47] For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. [48] And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

God wanted to reach all with His glorious Gospel, that wonderful Word of salvation found in Christ. Christ was to be a Savior and Lord both the Israel, as well as to the Gentiles. But the nation Israel rejected the Light of God, so Christ raised up His Church. The Nation of Israel is “cut off” from God because of unbelief. Yet the Apostle wants the Church to know that the Church has NOT replaced Israel. God made certain promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and God always keeps His promises.

I say again – God ALWAYS keeps His Promises!

God is able, and God is Sovereign. So God tells us in our focal text today:

Romans 11:25-29 (KJV) … blindness in part is happened to Israel, UNTIL the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. [26] And so ALL Israel shall be saved…

God shall save ALL ISRAEL. Does this mean that God will save every Jew? Absolutely not! Our Lord Jesus told the Pharisees who WERE JEWS that:

John 8:44-47 (KJV) Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. [45] And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. [46] Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me? [47] He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

These unbelieving Jews were not of God, for they rejected Christ. Every Jew who dies rejecting Christ are rejected of God in the afterlife. The unbelieving Jew … just like the unbelieving Gentile – will suffer the eternal wrath of God.

Romans 2:9-11 (KJV) Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; [10] But glory, honor, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: [11] For there is no respect of persons with God.

But God shall save “all Israel”. That nation belongs to Him. He has made promises that He will keep. The Apostle says:

Romans 11:29 (KJV) …For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

What God has said will stand.
What God decrees will come to pass.

God chose the nation Israel as His own. God is sovereign in His choice. Though Israel rejected Christ as a nation, even this rejection worked out to the purpose of God. Because Israel rejected Christ the preaching of the Gospel went beyond Israel’s territories and into the whole world. The Gentiles who received Christ by faith were grafted into God’s promises to Israel. Because we believed in Jesus were were brought into the Family of God:

Galatians 3:26 (KJV) For ye are ALL the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

What does God mean by “all”? He meant whosoever believes on the name of Jesus shall be saved:

Galatians 3:28-29 (KJV) There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. [29] And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

You who have received Christ are spiritually circumcised. You are grafted into the Family of Abraham.

Romans 2:28-29 (KJV) For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: [29] But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Colossians 2:9-11 (KJV) For in {Christ} dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. [10] And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: [11] In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:

God grafted us who are Gentiles into His Family. He gave us His Spirit, and made us a part of His New Covenant. But God has not forgotten Israel, and God will one day save ALL ISRAEL. For God is Sovereign. God has promised!

Defining God’s Sovereignty

God is above all things and before all things. He made all things for Himself – including YOU. The Bible says:

Colossians 1:16-17 (KJV) For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: [17] And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

Nothing evolved that God did not make evolve. Nothing is created that god did not make. God is the First Cause of all things. God knows all thing. There is nothing that He cannot know. The Scripture says:

Romans 11:33-36 (KJV) O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! [34] For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? [35] Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? [36] For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.

God can do all things that He wants to do. The Bible says:

Jeremiah 32:17-19 (KJV) Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee: [18] Thou shewest lovingkindness unto thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them: the Great, the Mighty God, the LORD of hosts, is his name, [19] Great in counsel, and mighty in work: for thine eyes are open upon all the ways of the sons of men: to give every one according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings:

God is in control of all things. God knew that Israel would reject Christ when He came to this earth. You may ask, “If God knew that Christ would be rejected by Israel then why send Him in the first place?” The answer is simple. God made promises to the forefathers Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David. In these promises God told these saints – believers in Christ – that He would bless the whole world through them. This is why Jesus was born a JEW and not a GENTILE. God told Abraham:

Genesis 12:3 (KJV) … in THEE shall ALL families of the earth be blessed.

Christ in His lineage can be traced all the way back to Abraham (see Matthew 1:2-16; Luke 3:23-38) and through the line of David. In fact, Christ’s lineage can be traced all the way to Adam. God made promises to fallen man through these people that He will keep. But God also prophesied of the Christ who would come that:

Isaiah 53:3-7 (KJV) He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. [4] Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. [5] But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. [6] All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. [7] He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

The entirety of the life of Christ was published in the Old Testament prophesies hundreds of years before He ever came. Yet Christ was sent of the Father anyway. Why? Because God promised. Everything worked out to the glory of God, showing forth His majesty and power. Even Jesus’ betrayal by Judas Iscariot was prophesied:

Zechariah 11:12-13 (KJV) And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. [13] And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.

Matthew 27:3-4, 7-8 (KJV) Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, [4] Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that…. [7] And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in. [8] Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day.

Matthew 27:9-10 (KJV) Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by {Jeremiah}1 the prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value; [10] And gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord appointed me.

God knows what is going to happen. God controls what is going to happen, making all things come out as He desires and plans. Dr. Adrian Rogers said:

“The name Jehovah is used some 6,800 times in the Bible. It is the personal covenant name of Israel’s God. In the King James Version of the Bible, it’s translated Lord God. Not only does it speak of God’s strength, but also it speaks of the sovereignty of God and the goodness of God. The root of this name means “self-existing,” one who never came into being, and one who always will be.”

Our God never changes. What He has purposed, that will He do. He told Israel:

Malachi 3:6 (KJV) For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

The reason that Israel and every Jew on the face of this earth is not wiped out and obliterated from history is because God never changes. His Word endures – and He has the power, the infinite power, to keep His promises. Theologian Sam Storms stated:

“… God is dependable! Our trust in him is therefore a confident trust, for we know that He will not, indeed cannot, change. His purposes are unfailing, His promises unassailable. It is because the God who promised us eternal life is immutable that we may rest assured that nothing, not trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword shall separate us from the love of Christ. It is because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever that neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, not even powers, height, depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 8:35-39)!”

Limitations Of God’s Sovereignty

Our God is in control. He can do anything He pleases – but He does have limits in His power.God cannot do anything that is foreign to His character. God does not abide in untruth or lies. The Bible says:

Numbers 23:19 (KJV) God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

God keeps His Word – period! God also does no evil. The Lord may allow evil to persist or allow the devil for a time to seem to be in control. But God never does nor condones evil. The Bible says:

James 1:13-15 (KJV) Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: [14] But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. [15] Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

The devil does evil. The lost do evil. Even Christians may at times do evil. When God made us in His image He gave us a certain freedom of will. We can make bad choices. God cannot. Evil is foreign to God’s nature. God also cannot contradict Himself. What was sinful in the Old Testament is sinful today. What was wrong then is wrong now. God is moral, absolutely moral, and He establishes what is intrinsically right or wrong. When God told Adam:

Genesis 2:16-17 (KJV) And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: [17] But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

this was an absolute. By man the fall of man came. God promised death to Adam for disobedience, and on the day he disobeyed God he died. This put man into a terrible position. God cannot forgive man without a payment being made. The wages of sin is death. How can God bring man back from death if man – being dead – can bring nothing to the Living God to redeem himself? There is only one way.

God had to become Man.
God had to become Sinless Man.
God cannot wipe the slate clean,
Nor change His promise.

Because of Adam’s failure and the immutability of the nature of God the supernatural birth of Christ was necessary. The Scripture declares:

Romans 5:12 (KJV) Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Romans 5:15-19 (KJV) But not as the offense, so also is the free gift. For if through the offense of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. [16] And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offenses unto justification. [17] For if by one man’s offense death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) [18] Therefore as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. [19] For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

Jesus Christ entered humanity to pay for our sins, for ALL of our sins. Christ had to come because of the Sovereignty of God. God made a way for salvation through Him and only Him. When Christ presented Himself to Israel, He presented Himself as the Son of God Who came to take away the sins of the world. The Father said of the Son:

This is My Beloved Son, In Whom I am WELL PLEASED (Matthew 3:17)

The demons said of Christ: “Thou art the Son of God” (Mark 3:11)

Peter said of Jesus: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Matthew 16:16)

The Centurion who crucified our Lord said:

“Truly this was the Son of God” (Matthew 27:54)

Many Jews as well as Gentiles have received Christ as Lord and Savior. But Israel as a nation has not yet received Him. But Israel will. Israel will go through tribulation, but in the end Christ will rule that nation. I look forward to the day when our Savior and Lord returns with His people to rule from Jerusalem (Revelation 20:2-7). God is able. God has promised. God will do what He has said. Praise God forever more! The gifts and calling of God are without repentance. What He has said, what He has promised, He will do. God is not done with His Israel – not by a long shot. When Christ returns to the earth He will establish Himself as King from Jerusalem (Luke 1:32–33). The Covenant promises that God made demand a literal and physical return of Jesus to establish His kingdom. The Abrahamic Covenant promised Israel a place, a people, and a Potentate (Genesis 12:1–3). The Palestinian Covenant promised Israel the land of Canaan (Deuteronomy 30:1–10). The Davidic Covenant promised King David a Son who would rule forever (2 Samuel 7:10–13). Israel will be regathered when Christ returns (Matthew 24:31), and that nation will believe in our Jesus. The Prophet Zechariah declared:

Zechariah 12:8-10 (KJV) In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them. [9] And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. [10] And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and THEY SHALL LOOK UPON ME WHOM THEY HAVE PIERCED, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

Jesus is coming again. Israel will be saved. And – precious believer in Christ – you shall see it with your eyes one day. What an awesome God we serve!

May God touch your hearts with His Word.

1From the site gotquestions.org: A seeming difficulty is the fact that Matthew attributes the prophecy to Jeremiah, not Zechariah. The explanation is two-fold. First, Jeremiah also bought a field at the Lord’s command (Jeremiah 32:6-9). Second, the Hebrew Bible was divided into three sections: the Law, the Writings, and the Prophets. The Prophets began with Jeremiah, and it was common for people to refer to the whole section (which included Zechariah) as “the book of Jeremiah.”

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Foundation Series #1: The Lordship of Christ For His People

Posted on March 25, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

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Romans 10:8-13 (KJV) But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. 12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. 13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

What is “The Word of Faith which we preach”? A person is saved by faith in Jesus Christ. The early Protestant Church used several Latin phrases to describe Christian faith apart from Romanism:

Sola Scriptura – “by Scripture alone”
Sola Fide – “by Faith alone”
Sola Gratia – “by Grace alone”
Solus Christus – “through Christ alone”
Soli Deo Gloria – “glory to God alone”

The intent of these five Solas was to emphasize that you do not work your way to Heaven!

The Catholic Church through its system of priests and popes had established a works type of Christianity. In order to be saved the Saints were prayed to, the pope revered, the local pastor called the “father” had to be obeyed and confessed to. If the professing Catholic refused to submit to the Lordship of the Catholic Church then that person was deemed hell bound. The Protestant Reformation rose up out of and apart from Catholicism and declared NO. The Protestant said:

I believe what the Scripture says – period!
I believe salvation is by faith in Christ alone.
I believe that salvation is a gracious Gift from God.
I believe this gift comes through Christ alone.
And I give all glory to God for my salvation.

This is foundational to our faith. Salvation is a free gift. It is a “Word of Faith that we preach”. What did the early Apostles preach about salvation? How did the Apostle Paul present the Gospel? He says in our focal text:

Romans 10:9 (KJV) … thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved

Salvation comes by believing in Christ as SAVIOR and LORD. Notice that Jesus is called LORD Jesus. The believer – in order to be saved – is commanded to confess Christ as Lord. What does this mean?

CONFESS is the Greek word ὁμολογέω homologéō, (pronounced hom-ol-og-eh’-o). This word is used in the Bible to mean:

To say the same thing as another says
To agree with God
To declare openly and profess publicly
To covenant or enter into contract with

One preacher named Ezekiel Benson describes homologeo as “A Divine Handshake with God”. What are you as a believer to “CONFESS”? How dis the early Church present the Gospel of Christ? Read with me:

Act 10:36 … Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)
Act 11:17 .. who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ..
Act 15:11 .. the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved ..
Act 16:31 … Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved..
Act 20:21 .. faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
Act 28:31 … teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ..

The “Word of faith which we preach” is faith toward “The LORD Jesus”. When you “confess” or state publicly “Jesus is Lord” in agreement with God this is the first action required of salvation. Theologian and Pastor J.M. Boice in his book Philippians: An Expositional Commentary (Grand Rapids, Mich. Baker Books):

“The Greek word for LORD is kurios, the word used by citizens of the Roman empire to acknowledge the divinity of Caesar. This title was never used of the emperors until they were thought to be deified through a religious ceremony; therefore, it was used as a divine title. Within the empire there was a test phrase used to check the loyalty of the people. It was Kyrios Kaiser, and it meant “Caesar is Lord.” Christians who would not say these words were later singled out from pagans and executed. In those days when a Christian insisted that Jesus is Lord he meant that Jesus, not Caesar, is divine. …”

To publicly proclaim “Jesus is Lord” was a dangerous thing for a Christian in the Roman Empire. It was a commitment that the believer made. Jesus demands that those whom He saves follow Him unashamedly and publicly. He said:

Luke 9:23-26 (KJV) {Jesus} said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. 25 For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away? 26 For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels. (also Matthew 16:24-26; Mark 8:38)

Christ Saves “His” People

Jesus called people to salvation as Lord God. He was born to reign over His people. The Angel told Joseph that the Child she was carrying:

Matthew 1:21-23 (KJV) And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. 22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

Jesus is Lord. He gave His life for HIS PEOPLE. Salvation is a free gift for whosoever will believe. You must “believe that God has raised Him from the dead”. You must confess Him as Lord, and believe Him as the Conquerer of death, the Savior of the world. This is what causes salvation in a person.

Many people today believe in a type of Christianity that has never been taught by either Apostles or Prophets. There are many who teach that you can receive Christ as Savior alone and be saved. They go even further and state that you can receive Christ as Savior and stay in your sins, that your sins no longer matter to God. Beloved, this is a false Gospel. What did the early Apostles preach? What did Peter preach on the Day of Pentecost? He said:

Acts 2:36-39 (KJV) Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, BOTH LORD AND CHRIST. 37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? 38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 39 For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

Peter clearly stated that God made Jesus BOTH Lord and Christ. He is LORD. He is the Messiah, the Savior. He is CHRIST. When the hearers heard this Word of Faith they said “What shall we DO?”. What did Peter tell them? Did He say “just believe that, and go on home. You’re saved now.”? No, Peter didn’t. Peter said:

Repent – turn from following other gods
Be Baptized – be obedient to Christ

Christ is BOTH LORD and SAVIOR. Christ commanded Baptism (see Matthew 28:19-20 – teach all nations, BAPTIZING them in the Name..). Gods calls His people into the Kingdom of His dear Son. Jesus is “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (1 Timothy 6:15; Revelation 1:5; Revelation 17:14; 19:11-16; Deuteronomy 10:17). Where is salvation found? The Apostle says in another place:

Romans 6:18-23 (KJV) Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. 19 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. 20 For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. 21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. 22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The word translated SERVANTS is the Greek δουλόω douloō which means SLAVES. When we were unsaved and in the world we were enslaved by our sins and by the world, just as Israel was enslaved by Egypt. But freed from captivity we became servants or slaves unto God, just as Israel was. When God saves a person it is so that person can serve HIM and HIM ALONE. Where does salvation come? From Jesus Christ OUR LORD. Pastor John MacArthur wrote in his book The Gospel According to Jesus:

“The gospel call to faith presupposes that sinners must repent of their sin and yield to Christ’s authority.”

He is LORD. Jesus promised eternal life to “His sheep” in:

John 10:7-11, 27-28 (KJV) … Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. 9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. 10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. … 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

Sheep follow a Shepherd. Jesus is the Shepherd. He is Lord of His people. He said My sheep HEAR MY VOICE and THEY FOLLOW ME. To whom does Christ give eternal life? To those “who follow Me”. Jesus is the Door of the Sheep. Through Christ a person can “enter in and be saved”. When you receive Christ as Shepherd you also recognize that you are His sheep. When you receive Christ as the Door you know that which opens the door is to receive Him as both Savior and Lord.

Faith in The Lord Jesus Always Results In A Changed Life

When a person is saved that person repents of their old way of life and runs to Christ. You place yourself under the Lordship of God in Christ. When you do this, God begins to work in you. Your life changes. The Bible says:

2 Corinthians 5:17 (KJV) Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

You do not have the same desires that you had before you met Christ. He is Lord, and as Lord begins to effect a change in you through His Spirit. We who belong to Christ crucify the flesh, daily dying to that old way of life:

Galatians 5:22-24 (KJV)22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. 24 And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

We no longer chase after the same evils. We are at the point of salvation the Children of God, and we are called to act accordingly. We have repented of our old life, and repent daily. We repent, turning from that old sinful way, and turn toward the LORD Jesus Christ. Sins cannot be blotted out apart from repentance (Acts 3:19; Luke 24:47).

What Is Repentance?

To “repent” is the Greek metanoia, which means “to change the mind”. Prior to repentance we followed anything BUT God. After repentance we follow Christ. Biblical repentance is ALWAYS accompanied by a CHANGE in BEHAVIOR. We read:

Acts 26:20 (KJV) … that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.

John the Baptist preached the same truth:

Matthew 3:8 (KJV) Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:

When you have been saved by faith in the Lord Jesus the Holy Spirit enters your life and changes your behavior patterns. You cease living in the darkness of sin and begin to walk with God in the light.

We are not saved by our works – but once saved we will work for God.

Titus 3:4-8 (KJV) But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, 5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; 6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; 7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 8 This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.

We are not saved by our works – but once saved we will work for God.
We respond positively to the Lordship of Christ.
We enter and live by His Kingdom standard.

Saved by God in Christ we serve the Lord. We are careful to maintain good works knowing that we are of His family. As Christ’s sheep we follow Him.

The saved love Jesus.
The Child of God surrenders to Him.
We willingly obey Him.

John 14:15 (KJV) If ye love me, keep my commandments.

John 14:21-24 (KJV) He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. 22 Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? 23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. 24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.

To love Jesus is to obey Jesus. He is Lord. He is Lord of His people. How do I know that I am saved? The Bible is quite clear:

1 John 2:3-6 (KJV) And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. 6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.

Genuine believers may stumble in their faith, but they will never fall. It has been said that salvation is one repentance unto God the day you are born again, but daily repentance unto God as you live for Him. The genuine Christian lives for the Lord. Here’s a few more Scriptures that emphasizes this great truth:

Romans 14:7-8 (KJV)7 For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. 8 For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (KJV)19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Pastor and Theologian John Piper stated:

“In Colossians 2:6 Paul says, “As therefore you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so live in him.” This is the way we should speak to new believers: you received Jesus in all his offices when you received him for salvation. You did not receive a half-Christ. He is Prophet, Priest and King—and he is this for you. This is the One you received. Now live in him in a way that befits his offices. If you reject him in any of his offices you reject the Christ and are left with one of your own making who cannot save.”

Christ Is Lord Of His People

Romans 10:12-13 (KJV) For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. 13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Your actions do not save you, but your allegiance does. If you have called upon the name of the Lord then your heart is ready to follow Jesus. We must never cheapen salvation by saying that a person may receive Christ as Savior but not as Lord. The broad road that leads to destruction is to follow the world and worldliness. What did Jesus say?

Luke 13:23-27 (KJV) Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, [24] Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. [25] When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are: [26] Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. [27] But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.

Who is cast away from the presence of the Lord? Workers of Iniquity. Those who are living like the worldling, like the unsaved. If you are living like a child of hell on this present earth you will leave this life and go to the home you so richly deserve. Those who enter Heaven are those who love and obey the Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostle said “If you live according to the flesh you will die” (Romans 8:13). God demands that His Blood Bought children do good. A lost person does lost things. God will judge the lost.

Romans 2:4-11 (KJV) Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? [5] But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; [6] Who will render to every man according to his deeds: [7] To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life: [8] But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, [9] Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; [10] But glory, honor, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: [11] For there is no respect of persons with God.

Let us all live for Jesus, if you are indeed saved. He is Lord! He is Savior! And He promises to never leave His people, His sheep, His Church. Praise God for His unspeakable gift! May God touch your hearts with His Word.

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The Lord’s Release

Posted on March 24, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

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Deuteronomy 15:1-2 (KJV) At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release. 2 And this is the manner of the release: Every creditor that lendeth ought unto his neighbor shall release it; he shall not exact it of his neighbor, or of his brother; because it is called the LORD’S release.

“At The End Of Every Seven Years”

The Law of God is filled with SEVENS!

The first SEVEN established was the weekly Sabbath. This is the very first Law that God gave us. Before Adam was created and placed in Eden the Scripture says:

Genesis 2:2-3 (KJV)  And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.  [3]  And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had RESTED (שָׁבַת shabath) from all his work which God created and made.

God SABBATHED on the seventh day, and set it aside for mankind.

When God flooded the earth with water during the time of Noah, God did so because man would not heed His Law. Once Noah and his family entered the Ark seven days later the flood waters began to cover the earth (Genesis 7:10). All who believed God’s Word were saved. Those who did not died in the waters. When the water decreased and Noah and his family rested we read:

Genesis 8:4 (KJV)  And the ark RESTED (נוּחַ nuwach) in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat.

The Ark did what it was intended to do. It saved believing mankind, and excluded the unbeliever who drowned in the Flood. When Noah and his family left the Ark God gave them SEVEN Laws to live by (see Genesis 9). These Laws were:

Not to worship idols
Not to curse God
To establish courts of justice
Not to commit murder
Not to commit adultery or be sexually immoral
Not to steal
Not to eat flesh torn from a living animal

When God raised up the nation of Israel and saved them from enslavement to Egypt He gave them a Law filled with SEVENS.

The Sabbath rest was given in the Law of Moses:

Exodus 20:8-11 (KJV)  Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.  [9]  Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:  [10]  But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:  [11]  For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

C.H. Spurgeon noted “Next, there were feast days one month in seven—and then there came every seventh year, a year of rest for the land in which they did not till it, but left it to lie fallow. Then after the seven sevens were complete, there came on the 50th year, an extraordinary year of rest, in addition to the usual one—this was called the year of Jubilee. ”

God gave SEVENS to His people to remind them how gracious He is.

The Lord’s Seven Year Release

In our text today the Lord speaks of the SEVEN Year Release. In Israel then – just as in every country – there were poor Israelites and rich Israelites. God did not want His people to suffer deprivation.

God is LOVE (1 John 4:7-21)

If you are saved by God Who is love, you in turn are supposed to love others, especially your brother and sister. God made a provision among His people where a person who was impoverished could sell themselves to a rich Israelite. God told His people:

Deuteronomy 15:7-8 (KJV) If there be AMONG YOU a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother:  [8]  But thou shalt OPEN THINE HAND WIDE unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth.

God had given all of Israel a gracious blessing when He led them out of Egypt and established them in Canaan. God was so good to them! If God saves you, and blesses you, then you, dear friends, are to be gracious to others as God is gracious. That’s what this chapter is about. God told His people to look after one another. He commanded them that if an Israelite sold themselves to another Israelite in order to satisfy a debt, then on every SEVENTH YEAR the one in debt would be released from bondage and their debt forgiven. God even went further with this Law. He said:

Deuteronomy 15:9-11 (KJV)  Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart, saying, THE SEVENTH YEAR, THE YEAR OF RELEASE, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou givest him nought; and he cry unto the LORD against thee, and it be sin unto thee.  [10]  Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him: because that for this thing the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto.  [11]  For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt OPEN THINE HAND WIDE UNTO THY BROTHER, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land.

God told His people to not be greedy, and to certainly not attempt to write a loophole into this Seventh Year. God told them that to withhold help from another because the Seventh Year was at hand was EVIL, and would surely be punished. To be generous to others is what God required of His people.

If you have received GRACE, you should give GRACE.
If you give GRACE, God gives greater GRACE.
This is “The Lord’s Release”

Christ Is Our Release Today

As we look at this text today we find great truths in it that apply to the Christian. Our Lord Jesus did not come to ERASE the Law. He said:

Matthew 5:17-18 (KJV)  Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.  [18]  For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

The JOT and the TITTLE were tiny marks found in the Hebrew written language. Jesus said that He would fulfill the Law.

Jesus DID fulfill the Law.
He fulfilled CIRCUMCISION.
He fulfilled ANIMAL SACRIFICE.

Under the Law the rite of CIRCUMCISION brought you into the Family of God. But CIRCUMCISION was only enacted on the male, not on the female. God gave the practice of circumcision to Abraham (see Genesis 17:10-14) and said:

Genesis 17:14 (KJV)  And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, THAT SOUL SHALL BE CUT OFF from his people; he hath broken my covenant.

You lost your place in Abraham’s Family if you were not circumcised as men. Women were not circumcised. Further, the Law commanded that every sin be covered in the Blood of an animal sacrificed on an altar by a priest. The Law said:

Hebrews 9:22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and WITHOUT SHEDDING OF BLOOD IS NO REMISSION.

The rituals of circumcision and shedding of Blood were written into the Law. These rituals were given to Israel until Christ came. The Bible tells us:

Galatians 3:22-26 (KJV)  But the scripture hath concluded ALL UNDER SIN, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.  [23]  But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.  [24]  Wherefore the LAW WAS OUR SCHOOLMASTER TO BRING US UNTO CHRIST, that we might be justified by faith.  [25]  But after that faith is come, we are NO LONGER UNDER A SCHOOLMASTER.  [26]  FOR YE ARE ALL THE CHILDREN OF GOD BY FAITH IN CHRIST JESUS.

When Christ came He fulfilled the Law as He was sent to do. The blood of animals and the bloody practice of circumcision showed us all the terror of sin. Sin puts a barrier between us and God.

To remove the barrier of sin the Jewish male was to be circumcised – to shed intimate blood to be in God’s family. The Jewish person whether male or female were to shed animal blood to cover their sins.

That is – until Christ came. The Law of God “was a shadow of good things to come” (Hebrews 10:1). If the animal sacrifices could cleanse us from sin then they would have been done but ONCE. The Bible says:

Hebrews 10:3-4 (KJV)  But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.  [4]  For it is NOT POSSIBLE THAT THE BLOOD OF BULLS AND OF GOATS SHOULD TAKE AWAY SINS.

The Law taught that we ourselves could not permanently erase our sins. The Law was a schoolmaster that taught us that we needed the Messiah to come. The Law – through its shedding of blood from animals without blemish – demanded that animal sacrifices be made over and over. It demanded that men be circumcised, or be cast out of the Family of God. But then Christ came.

Oh, Praise God for the coming of Christ!
It is with His Blood that our sins are covered.
It is with His sacrifice that we enter the family of God.
He fulfilled the bloodiness of the Law.

Hebrews 10:10-14 (KJV)  By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ ONCE FOR ALL.  [11]  And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:  [12]  But this man, after he had OFFERED ONE SACRIFICE FOR SINS FOR EVER, sat down on the right hand of God;  [13]  From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.  [14]  For BY ONE OFFERING he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.

The Law could not save anyone. It can point out sin, and teach of the need of the Messiah. But only Messiah can save. His Blood was offered once and for all. He freed us by His shedding of Blood from sin and selfishness. His offering was once and for all. And by ONE OFFERING Jesus has made us “perfect” and acceptable to God our Father. We who are His are circumcised with a circumcision made without hands. Read these happy words with me:

Colossians 2:11-14 (KJV)  In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:  [12]  Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.  [13]  And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;  [14]  Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

Christ was circumcised on the eighth day according to the Law (Luke 2:21). Christ died on the Cross as the once and for all sacrifice for sins. When you receive Him as Lord and Savior – casting yourselves upon Him – then what He did is placed on your your account by God the Father. Praise Him!

Ephesians 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

1 Peter 1:18-21 (KJV)  Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;  [19]  But with the PRECIOUS BLOOD OF CHRIST, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:  [20]  Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,  [21]  Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

Jesus Christ paid a debt that we could not pay.

This is what we see in the Law. The Law showed us to be bondslaves to sin and to death. But Christ came and paid our debt. He freed us from sin just as Israel was freed from Egypt. He covers us with His Blood. Does it matter now whether we are circumcised or not? The Scripture says:

Galatians 5:6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.

Galatians 6:15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.

Praise Him! If you have received Christ as Lord and Savior then His life has replaced the blood letting of the Law. And listen to me, Beloved. Saved you are not LAWLESS. Let me say that a few more times.

SAVED you are NOT LAWLESS.
You are STILL to be obedient to God’s Law.
You are commanded to follow Christ.
You are commanded to be holy as God is holy.

What saith the Scripture?

Ephesians 5:1-8 (KJV)  BE YE THEREFORE FOLLOWERS OF GOD, AS DEAR CHILDREN;  [2]  And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savor.  [3]  But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;  [4]  Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.  [5]  For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.  [6]  Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.  [7]  Be not ye therefore partakers with them.  [8]  For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:

There are some that teach that once you become a Christian then you may walk contrary to the Law of God. Beloved, it is not so. Jesus fulfilled the blood of the Law, but did not eradicate morality.

Because of Christ the morality of the Law
is greater upon the Christian.

When Jesus taught, He BUILT FENCES AROUND THE LAW. Rather than eradicate the morality of the Law Jesus erected barriers to protect the commands of God. In one instance Jesus said:

Matthew 5:19-22 (KJV)  Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  [20]  For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.  [21]  Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:  [22]  But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

Jesus took the Sixth Commandment – Thou shalt not murder (Exodus 20:13) – and put a fence of love around it. To carry a grudge against your brother or sister for whom Christ died is as bad as murdering someone. To lust in your heart after a woman (Matthew 5:28, 32) is as bad as committing adultery (Exodus 20:14). Saved by the Blood of Christ you are called to love all – and especially those within the family of God.

That is the heart of our text that we read today. Read it with me one more time.

Deuteronomy 15:1-2 (KJV) At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release. 2 And this is the manner of the release: Every creditor that lendeth ought unto his neighbor shall release it; he shall not exact it of his neighbor, or of his brother; because it is called the LORD’S release.

The Israelite was not to hold indebtedness against another Israelite. They were to be RELEASED every seventh year. The Israelite was indebted to God because He saved them from Egypt and gave them His Promised Land.

Dear Christian, God saved you with a mighty hand when He sent Christ to bear your sins and your failures. When you received Him as Lord and Savior your debts were paid. They were paid not so that you sell yourselves back into slavery with sin and the world, but were paid in full so that you can freely live in God’s Presence. Having been saved freely (for salvation is a free gift from God) you should love others as you have been loved. If the Israelite was supposed to forgive their brother’s debt, then we have a much greater obligation to forgive. We are to love one another fervently. We are to love God with all our hearts and all our works.

We are obligated to love and follow Him Who saved us.
Following Him we will find blessedness and peace.
Following Christ we will love.
We will release our brothers or sisters from their debts.

Deuteronomy 15:13-15 (KJV)  And when thou sendest him out free from thee, thou shalt not let him go away empty:  [14]  Thou shalt furnish him liberally out of thy flock, and out of thy floor, and out of thy winepress: of that wherewith the LORD thy God hath blessed thee thou shalt give unto him.  [15]  And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt, and the LORD thy God redeemed thee: therefore I command thee this thing to day.

As you have been blessed of God, so you should bless others. And you should REMEMBER. REMEMBER that when Christ died for you, you were a sinner with no concern for God. Yet Christ died for you. REMEMBER that you still stumble – as do we all – and yet “the blood of Christ keeps on cleansing us”:

1 John 1:7-9 (KJV)  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.  [8]  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  [9]  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

It is amazing to me that any Christian would carry a grudge against another Christian. We are to forgive as God forgave us. The Blood of Christ keeps on cleansing us from sin. Oh glory, we need not do penance to pay for our sins. Christ paid for them all. So when a lost person sins against you – forgive him anyway.

Matthew 5:44-45 (KJV)  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;  [45]  That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

Both Great And New Commandments Demand Love

Love your brother or sister in Christ. If they offend you, remember you offended God. Love them anyway. You failed God but He keeps on loving you. Let love define us. Let love define His Church. Jesus gave us His Church a Great Commandment and a New Commandment. The Great Commandment states:

Mark 12:30-31 (KJV)  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.  [31]  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

Whereas the New Commandment says:

John 13:34-35 (KJV)  A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.  [35]  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.

Every seven years those who were bondslaves in Israel were to be released. Yet if the servant willingly wanted to stay in the household of the Master:

Deuteronomy 15:16-17 (KJV)  And it shall be, if he say unto thee, I will not go away from thee; because he loveth thee and thine house, because he is well with thee;  [17]  Then thou shalt take an awl, and thrust it through his ear unto the door, and he shall be thy servant for ever. And also unto thy maidservant thou shalt do likewise.

The servant could choose to stay because of love. If that servant chose to stay then the Master of the house would put his ear on the doorpost of that home, and the Master would pierce his ear with an awl. There is one more beautiful principle found in this text that applies to us who are Christ’s today.

We permanently belong to Jesus.
We willingly belong to Jesus.

When Jesus died on the Cross for my sins, He was pierced through with nails, thorns, and a spear. He died for me. Because He died for me, I live for Him. I am indebted to my Jesus. I have willingly put my ear on the doorposts of Heaven, and my Jesus has pierced my ear through. I no longer belong to myself. I belong to Jesus. Beloved, to Whom do you belong? If you have been saved by faith in Christ then you are NOT your own – you are BOUGHT with a price (1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23). I belong to Jesus. Do you?

If you do not, today is the time to look toward Him and be saved. Confess Him as Savior and Lord. Let Him lead you out of Egypt and into the Promised Land where He rules and reigns. Oh, what a glory it is to know Christ and enjoy His Presence! Will you not come? Oh that God would lead you to come and dine at His table this very day!

May God touch your hearts with His Word.

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Praying Like Jesus #9: Jesus Prayed With Purpose

Posted on March 21, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

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Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

Have you ever started your day badly … and had it be bad all day long?

A young Kindergarten Teacher was having a bad day. She woke up late, rushed to school without breakfast, and it seemed as if one bad thing after another kept happening. Little Sally got sick – and showed it all over the floor. The kids wouldn’t be still and listen. It was a really rough day. But – praise God – it was almost done. If she could just get little Johnny out the door! There he sat struggling to get his boots on. So she decided to help. She got on her knees and helped him pull the boots on. They were really tight. Just as she got them on little Johnny said …“Teacher, they’re on the wrong feet!”

So she struggled helping him pull them back off. As she finally got them off and on the right feet little Johnny said …“These aren’t my boots.”

She wanted to kill him but knew that would get her a jail sentence. So she struggled once more to pull the boots off. Just as she got the boots off little Johnny said:“They’re my brother’s boots. But my mom made me wear them today.”

She didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. Taking a deep breath she wrestled the boots back on little Johnny’s feet. She put his coat on, then asked him “Where are your mittens?”. Little Johnny smiled and said,“I stuffed them in the toes of my boots.”

Tell me again why you don’t pray
first thing in the morning!

Our Lord Jesus prayed, and He prayed with purpose. Jesus knew that the enemy is not flesh and blood:

“We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12)

The devil is real. The fallen angels we call demons are real. These forces apply their influence on humans, and are the forces behind the evil that abounds in the world at any given time. Jesus knew this, so He prayed. He prayed with purpose. He prayed before making major decisions. Let’s read our focal text:

Luke 6:12-19 (KJV)  And it came to pass in those days, that {Jesus} went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.  [13]  And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles;  [14]  Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,  [15]  Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes,  [16]  And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.  [17]  And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases;  [18]  And they that were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed.  [19]  And the whole multitude sought to touch him: for there went virtue out of him, and healed them all.

Why did Jesus spend all night in prayer?

Jesus Knew His Ministry Would Be Difficult

Jesus knew His ministry was going to be extremely difficult. The forces of evil – not flesh and blood, but working through flesh and blood – had taken over the Temple of God. The Pharisees had attacked Jesus for picking corn and eating it on the Sabbath (Luke 6:2). Jesus used the Scripture to answer their condemnation. In the Temple there is a table on which Shewbread is kept (Leviticus 24:5-9). The Shewbread was only to be eaten by the priests according to the Law. But when David and his men were running for their lives Ahimelech the priest allowed the fleeing men to eat Shewbread to keep them from starving. God never condemned that action because the Sabbath was instituted as a day of rest for His children. The Pharisees were angered at Jesus, but could do nothing about it.

His supposed violation of the Sabbath was a bur under their saddles.
They fumed, and waited.

Then another Sabbath comes, and Jesus comes to the Synagogue to teach. In that holy place the Pharisees watched Jesus like a hawk, hoping He would do wrong. Jesus saw a man with a withered hand, and He saw the Pharisees. Jesus asked them:

Luke 6:9 (KJV) … I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it?

The Pharisees refused the answer, and Jesus healed the man. The Bible says “they were filled with madness” (Luke 6:11). The devil had hold of their hearts.

And Jesus spent the night in prayer.

Jesus prayed for evil abounded in the Temple and in the Synagogue. Shouldn’t we pray, because much of the Church in America has become a nesting place for evil, a safe haven for satan. Rome was out of control, and God sent His Son to redeem His Israel … but His own would not receive Him.

John 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

Jesus prayed all night.
He prayed with purpose.

Jesus Prayed So He Could Choose The Right Leaders

We do not know what words He used nor how many tears He shed, but we know after a night of prayer He chose His twelve Apostles. Jesus did not just arbitrarily pick twelve leaders. He chose these men out of a larger group of followers because He knew they were the ones the Father wanted Him to choose. Read our focal text:

Luke 6:13 (KJV)  And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles;

The word “apostle” is the Greek APOSTOLOS (pronounced ap-os’-tol-os) which means “a sent Ambassador or Commissioner”. The Apostles were given special power by Jesus and were meant to be leaders in the early Church. There were many disciples who followed Jesus at this time, but Jesus only chose twelve.

Why twelve?
Because there are twelve tribes in Israel.

These men would carry His Gospel message to all Israel, sharing that He is the Promised Messiah, the Savior. None of these men were Seminary Trained or Scribes. They were not Rabbis or gifted and recognized teachers. They were men from the common people. They were not illiterate, but not Doctors. Who were these twelve? We read again:

Luke 6:14-16 (KJV)  Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,  [15]  Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes,  [16]  And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.

  • Simon is a married fisherman (Mark 1:29-31; 1 Corinthians 9:15). He was named “Peter” or “Cephas” which means “The Rock” (1 Corinthians 1:12; 3:22; 9:5; 15:5; Galatians 1:18; 2:9,11,14). Simon Peter would be the leader of the Apostles after Christ’s ascension into glory. He along with James and John was of Christ’s “Inner Circle” of leadership.

  • Andrew was Simon Peter’s brother. Andrew was a former disciple of John The Baptist who led Simon Peter to Christ. Both Andrew and Peter came from Bethsaida (John 1:44) and were Galilean fishermen (Mark 1:16; Luke 5:2-3; John 21:3).

  • James the Son of Zebedee was of Christ’s inner circle along with Peter and his brother John. He was martyred by King Herod Agrippa I (Acts 12:2).

  • John the Son of Zebedee was of Christ’s inner circle. He lived the longest of the Apostles, and wrote the Gospel of John, 1-3 John, and Revelation.

  • Philip was from Bethsaida.

  • Bartholomew was a native of Cana in Galilee. He carried the Gospel to India.

  • Matthew was a tax collector that Jesus saved (Matthew 9:9; 10:3). He was also called Levi the Son of Alphaeus (Mark 2:14; Luke 5:27).

  • Thomas has the distinction of doubting Christ’s resurrection.

  • James the Son of Alphaeus was Matthew’s half brother.

  • Simon called Zelotes. The Zealots were a nationalist group of rebels who advocated violence as a means of liberation from Rome.

  • Judas the brother of James was also called Lebbaeus or Thaddaeus (Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13). The only words ever recorded that he said are in John 14:22.

  • Judas Iscariot acted as treasurer for the Apostles. He was the only Apostle from Judea. Jesus knew that his heart was traitorous, but chose Him according to the will of God (Luke 22:21; Matt. 26:20-21).

Jesus chose each of these men carefully after a night of prayer with His Father. These men (minus Judas Iscariot) would carry His message after Jesus ascended to Heaven. They were the future of the Church that Christ would build.

The most important decision in any organization is its leadership. Bad leaders make bad decisions!

Jesus made sure that He chose the men that would best meet the needs of the Church in Jerusalem and beyond.

Jesus Prayed So God’s Power Would Work Through Him

Luke 6:17 (KJV) {Jesus} came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases;

When Jesus healed people while the walked this earth He did not do so using His own power. The Bible tells us in:

Philippians 2:5-8 (KJV)  Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:  [6]  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:  [7]  But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:  [8]  And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

The phrase “made Himself of no reputation” is the Greek “alla kenoo heautou kenoo” which literally means “He emptied Himself”. When Christ came into this world He came into this world as fully God and perfect Man. He is called “God with us” (Matthew 1:23). Dr. J. Vernon McGee said before he went to be with Jesus:

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man” (Hebrews 2:9). He had to be a sacrifice that was acceptable. I couldn’t die for the sins of the world. I can’t even die a redemptive death for my own sins. But He can! How can Jesus be a Savior? Because He is Emmanuel, God with us. How did He get with us? He was virgin born. I say again, He was called Jesus; He was never called Emmanuel. But you cannot call Him Jesus unless He is Emmanuel, God with us. He must be Emmanuel to be the Savior of the world.”

Jesus Christ came to this earth to be “God with us”. He is incarnate, the Eternal Son of God Who robed Himself in humanity. What a fantastic truth this is. But Jesus did not walk on this earth using the power of God that was and is rightfully His. He “emptied Himself” is what we are told in Colossians. That does not mean that Jesus ceased to be God, but it means that He voluntarily refused to use His Divine power while He walked on this earth. He set aside His independent authority as the second member of the Godhead, and completely submitted Himself to the will of God.

So how did Jesus do the miraculous things that He did?
He used “The Finger of God”.
What do I mean?
Compare these two recorded texts where Jesus spoke.

Luke 11:20 But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.

Matthew 12:28 But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.

Jesus prayed all night long so that the Holy Spirit would work through Him. Jesus did the miraculous things He did because He was in harmony with both the Father and the Spirit.

Jesus followed the will of God The Father,
and was empowered by God the Spirit.

Jesus had a superhuman thing He needed to do – He needed to heal people. When Jesus went to Nazareth (His home town) He read from Isaiah 61🕐🕐:1 ..

Luke 4:18 (KJV)  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

Jesus prayed so that the Spirit of the Lord could use Him to heal the multitudes. Jesus prayed so that the Spirit of the Lord could cast out unclean spirits from the people of Israel. The Bible says:

Luke 6:18-19 (KJV) And they that were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed.  [19]  And the whole multitude sought to touch him: for there went virtue out of him, and healed them all.

The virtue that went out of Jesus was the power of the Holy Spirit flowing through Him. Jesus operated within the limitations of humanity.

Jesus got weary as other men do (John 4:6)
Jesus became thirsty as we all do (John 19:28)
Jesus was limited in knowledge as a man is (Matthew 24:36)
Jesus willingly limited Himself for our sakes.

Jesus Is Our Example In Prayer

As Colossians tells us, Jesus limited Himself for our sakes. This is why the text starts:

“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Jesus”
(Philippians 2:5)

Jesus knew that we would be His hands and feet in this fallen world. Because of that He showed us how we are to live our lives out for the Kingdom of God. We are to love God and one another with all our hearts. We are to store up His Word in our hearts. We are to obediently follow our Father, and do as Jesus did.

And we MUST do God’s work in God’s power!

It is through prayer that we, like Jesus, learn what the will of the Father for our lives is. One day Jesus had been preaching and ministering all day when the disciples came to Him. They begged Jesus:

John 4:31 (KJV) … Master, eat.

Jesus had not eaten, and they were worried about Him. But Jesus was not hungry. He told them:

John 4:32 (KJV) … I have meat to eat that ye know not of.

This confused His disciples. They began asking one another “Did you bring Him something to eat?”. None had fed Him. But Jesus found satisfaction in obedience to God. He said:

John 4:34 (KJV) … My meat is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to finish His work.

Though Jesus is the Son of God and God Himself (see Hebrews 1:8) He nonetheless subjected Himself to the will of the Father, which is right. The Father is the Leader of the Godhead. Jesus wants to do the Father’s will. Jesus wants His purpose to be one with the Godhead. To know God’s will and purpose, we must know God. And the only way to know God is to spend time with God in prayer and in His Word. Jesus tells us:

John 14:12 (KJV)  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

How can this be? How can we do the works of Christ? How can we do GREATER works than Christ did? God must work through us. God must use us. Only in Him and through Him can we do the super human, supernatural things of God. This type of power only comes by prayer. We must pray as Christ prayed. We must be serious about our prayer lives, or we will effect no lives for God.

May God touch your hearts with His Word.

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Walking With My Lord

Posted on March 18, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

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Deuteronomy 13:1-4 (KJV) If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, {2} And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; {3} Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. {4} Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.

As Israel moved into the Promised Land, they would move among many peoples with many ideologies and theologies. In other words, nearly every nation Israel passed through had its own god, and that god was not the God of the Holy Bible! So God our Father established parameters that His people whom He loved were to follow.

In America today the Church that Jesus died for is in much the same position that Israel was in. We find ourselves surrounded by strange world views and bizarre philosophies. Relativism is in, and absolute truth is out. Truth can be bent based on your point of view. There was a Rock group called Buffalo Springfield that was popular when I was only 9 years old and still in Elementary School. The song was called “For What It’s Worth”, and the lyrics actually made sense. Back when I was young you could understand what the bands were saying. One part of the song popped into my mind right now:

There’s battle lines being drawn;
Nobody’s right if everybody’s wrong …

Since you’re a Gospel and Country Music crowd I’ll stop there, but I have to say that what they sang was TRUE. Truth is absolute, and does not change based on your opinion. If you step off the roof of a ten story building you will die. That’s truth. It doesn’t matter if what you believe is contrary to that or not. Truth is truth. You can step off a ten story building believing you’re a bird, but you will only be goo in but a few moments. Period. It doesn’t matter what political party or color you are. Truth is truth. Our Lord Jesus stood in front of Pilate – His soon to be executioner – and said:

John 18:37 (KJV) …. for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.

Jesus bears witness to the truth. There is an absolute truth. Jesus said that He came to bear witness to it … and those who are true will hear HIS Voice. Of course, Pilate was a politician, and they never change. The Pontius Politician responded to Jesus saying:

John 18:38 (KJV) … What is truth? …

Though he found no fault in Jesus and told the people the same he nevertheless crucified an innocent Man. Why? Because the world and the devil will do its best to make truth flexible and relative. The world and its devil will kill any who believe in the absolute truth that Christ witnesses to. The world says:

Everything’s right
Nothing’s wrong
There is no moral imperative
Just do what you will
And God will look the other way

To which God responds:

Hogwash! There Is Absolute Truth

Deuteronomy 13:1-2 (KJV) If there arise1 among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, {2} And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them …”

People often watch various “religious programs” on the television or hear their figure heads preach on radio or podcast. When what they are saying is questioned they respond:

But they’ve got a BIG Church
But they do MIRACULOUS things
But they’ve been endorsed by so and so
But they’ve been to such and such a Seminary
But my uncle Bobsy said he saw them …
But they feed so many children

and so on, and so on. People speak of the outward signs or miraculous things these prophets or preachers do. What is interesting in this text today is that God said someone can do miraculous things and still NOT be walking with our Lord. God said:

IF they do a miraculous thing,
AND it come to pass,
BUT they try and lead you away from Me
THEN LOOK OUT!

The Apostle told us that we who are Christ’s children by faith are not in a battle with flesh and blood:

Ephesians 6:12 (KJV) For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Though there are times when we feel our enemy IS flesh and blood or humans, but the Apostle said definitively NO!

The evil driving the martyrdom, manipulation, and misinformation about and to the Christian is NOT flesh and blood or human but
a fallen angel we call satan.

When Lucifer became lifted up with pride and rebelled against God the Bible says that he led a third part of the angels (Revelation 12:4) to rebel with him. Satan and his forces (called “principalities, powers, and rulers of darkness”) are behind the fall of Adam. It is the devil who is behind the relative truth movement. Shall I tell you what Jesus thinks of this? He said:

John 8:44 (KJV) … the devil … He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.”

The vain philosophies of this world that lead away from the Creator God are but lies from the pregnant belly of satan. The devil – that old dragon – led a third of the angels in rebellion against God, and leads the fallen world to resist its Creator.

The Devil Doesn’t Want You To Know God Or His Word

He and his evil followers want to draw you away from the Real God and His Real Word, this Holy Bible. When they entice you to depart from God what should your response be?

Deuteronomy 13:2-3 (KJV) “… Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; {3} Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams…”

Don’t listen to them. Do what Jesus did when tempted of the devil. Jesus said “It Is Written”, then quoted God’s Scripture.

Matthew 4:4 (KJV) “… It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”

Matthew 4:7 (KJV) “… It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

Matthew 4:10 (KJV) “… Get thee hence, Satan: for It is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

The Phrase “It Is Written” Is Found 63 Times In The New Testament, In Most Instances From Christ’s Own Mouth

I treasure the works of Charles Stanley, Adrian Rodgers, J. Vernon McGee, C.H. Spurgeon, John Walvoord, John Wesley, John MacArthur, Dwight L. Moody, and too many others for me to name. These are all great men of God. However, my ultimate source of Absolute Truth is the Word of God, not what these men have said. The final authority for the believer must be, as Jesus made it, “It is written“. Otherwise, you will be led away after other gods!

Remember That The Devil
Can And Will Quote Scripture!

If It Is Of God It Will Lead You To God

Deuteronomy 13:4 (KJV) Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.

If what you are listening to is from God’s Word and God’s Throne, then that teaching will not elevate the FLESH nor will it magnify SIN, but it will draw you to God’s side.

The Bible teaches us that the works of the flesh, that is, the outflow from the Old Sin Nature is always selfish or self serving. The Apostle said:

Galatians 5:19-21 (KJV) Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, {20} Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, {21} Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

If you walk in darkness you are not walking with God. If you walk in the flesh you are not walking with the Spirit of God. If you are walking with God the fruit or output of your life will be like Christ. The Scripture says:

Galatians 5:22-23 (KJV) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, {23} Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”

Note that the text says the FRUIT of the Spirit. There are many works of evil attributed to the devil and the flesh, but only ONE FRUIT with many flavors from the Lord. Now look at the flavors of the produce of God: love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance. Each flavor in the fruit of the Spirit supports the other flavors. The quality of life in Christ is amazing, and blessed. If you wish to have a blessed, satisfying life, then you must orient your life so as to follow after Jesus and not after the gods of this world.

Let’s Take An “I” Exam

  • If “I” am a Christian then “I” am designed to walk with God. God saved Israel to walk with Him, to follow after Him. God save me to follow Him. The Scripture says:

Romans 14:7-8 (KJV) For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. {8} For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.

“I” do not belong to me. “I” do not belong to the devil’s world. “I” belong to Christ. He purchased me with His Blood. “I” am bought with a price that Jesus paid on Calvary (see 1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23).

2 Corinthians 6:16 (KJV) … what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

Ephesians 2:10 (KJV) For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

As you have been given Grace from God, you are to be gracious to others. As the Scripture says:

Acts 20:35 (KJV) I have showed you all things, how that so laboring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.

  • If “I” am a Christian then “I” am to walk in the clearly revealed truths of God’s Bible. I am not to argue with that truth, but to live so as to support it.

3 John 1:3-4 (KJV) For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even as thou walkest in the truth. {4} I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

We who are Christians walk in truth, Bible truth. We love His Word and seek to live it out each day of our lives. Jesus prayed for His Church, saying:

John 17:17 (KJV) Sanctify them (set them apart, dear Father) through Thy truth: Thy word is truth.

The reason that God the Son sent the Holy Spirit to the life of the believer is to “guide us into all truth” (John 16:13). The devil is the thief who seeks to rob you of joy. Jesus said:

John 10:10 (KJV) The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

The only way you will ever experience the “peace of God that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7) is to fill your heart and your hands with God’s Truth. There is an old saying that states:

What’s down in the well comes up in the bucket!

If worldliness is stored in your heart then your daily output will be the same as a lost person. But if God’s Word is stored in your heart then your daily output will be to walk with God.

  • If “I” am a Christian I am to follow after God or walk in God. The flesh will not be my driving force, but what God commands of me.

Galatians 5:16 (KJV) This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

Deuteronomy 13:4 (KJV) Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.

“Cleaving” unto God is an intimate term. When Adam first saw Eve he said:

Genesis 2:24 (KJV) Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

Just as Adam bound himself to Eve at the intimate level, we are to bind ourselves to God our Father that same way. We are to be “One” with God in our thoughts and in our actions. We are to walk AFTER God:

Romans 8:1 (KJV) There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

The believer is not under condemnation because he or she is indwelt by and empowered by the Holy Spirit of God. This indwelling Spirit directs us to live righteously, just as Christ did:

Romans 8:4 (KJV) That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

The righteousness of the Law can never be fulfilled by the unbeliever trying in his own power to do right. But the righteousness of the Law is naturally fulfilled by the God filled, God controlled believer. We walk after God!

  • If “I” am a Christian I am to put my faith in my God and His Word. The Scripture says:

2 Corinthians 5:7 (KJV) (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

Christian, God calls you to do amazing things for Him. He calls you, like Israel, to impossible situations. He does this so that you will learn to rest in His Word and in His Promise. The battle cry of the Christian is:

Philippians 4:13 (KJV) I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

I rely on my God. I trust my God even when the situation looks dire, for I know that He is faithful. I choose BLESSING and not CURSING for my life.

Jeremiah 17:5-8 (KJV) Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. {6} For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. {7} Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. {8} For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.”

You can see the difference between cursing and blessing when you look at the life of the Shepherd King David. When David trusted God he destroyed a giant called Goliath (see 1 Samuel 17). But when David began to trust in himself and “numbered his people” (see 2 Samuel 24; 1 Chronicles 21) he brought a curse on himself and on those around him. Seventy thousand people died (1 Chronicles 21:14) because David numbered Israel. Choose who you will serve, dear one. If you choose the Lord you will be blessed. If not, you will bring a curse upon yourself.

  • If “I” am a Christian I will walk in love with others. Every time we enjoy the Lord’s Table I quote this scripture:

1 John 1:7 (KJV) … if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

God brings believers together so we can walk together loving Him and His Children. The Apostle said:

Ephesians 4:1-3 (KJV) I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, {2} With all lowliness and meekness, with long suffering, forbearing one another in love; {3} Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

The walk of the believer should be in sharp contrast to the walk of the unbeliever, as day is different from night. That which characterizes the Christian walk is the peace of God, honoring our Savior with all that we do.

Romans 13:13-14 (KJV) Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. {14} But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.

You are either God’s Child by faith in Christ or you are not. If you are not, Christ calls you to salvation by faith in Him. He will save you, dear one, if you will but unconditionally surrender to Him. Do so this very day. Follow Him in truth and in sincerity. Oh, how I pray that your hearts be settled on following Him. Here and only here is there peace and joy forever more. Praise You, dear Jesus. Thank You, dear Father. Blessed Spirit, lead me to You for Your glory.

1Qal Imperfect quwm {pronounced koom} , to come to power

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Jesus Prayed With Song In His Heart

Posted on March 14, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

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Hebrews 2:9-12 (KJV)  But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.  [10]  For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. [11] For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,  [12]  Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.

Hebrews chapter 2 quotes a LOT of songs from the Hebrew Hymnbook we call “Psalms”. For instance, in verse 6 there is two questions asked.

Hebrews 2:6 (KJV) …. What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him?

This question comes from the eighth song in the Hebrew Hymnal, which sings:

Psalm 8:3-4 … When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; 4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

That’s a good question that an arrogant person will never ask. The arrogant and prideful worship themselves and not God. They create idols. The Christian well aware of Grace and of our brokenness often asks God:

Father, Why Do YOU Love Me So?

God made the angels of starlight, way up high in the sky. Yet man is made of the dust of the ground (Genesis 2:7). God took this pile of dirt, KISSED it, and gave us something the angels do not have.

God made us in His image and in His likeness!
God put us in charge of His creation.

Our hearts should sing with the Hebrew Hymnbook. We should praise Him and give glory to Him! Oh, what a wonderful God we serve.

Psalm 8:5-6 … For thou (O God) hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. 6 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

God placed all of creation under man’s hands.
He did not give the world to the angels
But to us who are lower than the angels

We should be astonished that God loves us so. This should make us sing and praise His Holy Name. But then – given all things and blessed beyond measure – man fell. Adam sinned. You would think with that sin that God would wipe His hands of us. That’s what WE would do if we were betrayed. If we gave someone everything, and that someone turned on us, then our natural response would be to have nothing to do with them.

But God loves us so.
That’s the impact of the focal text today.
But we see Jesus.
We failed God, but rather than abandoning us,
God came to us.
We were crowned with glory and honor, and gave it all away.
But we see Jesus – God Become Man.

Hebrews 2:9 (KJV) But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

Jesus – the eternal Word made flesh Who came to dwell among us (John 1:14), the One Who is Immanuel or God with us (Matthew 1:23) – was made lower than the angels so He could die for us. Jesus came to us to taste death for every man. He died for all. He died for you, and died for me.

But we see Jesus – Setting us apart as His Family!

Hebrews 2:11 (KJV)  For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,

When we receive Christ as Savior and Lord we are made one with Him. We are identified as sons and daughters of God because we have received Him. Jesus is not ashamed to call us “brethren” or “family”. By His Blood we have been bought.

But we see Jesus – SINGING!

Hebrews 2:12 (KJV) Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.

Jesus Christ sings to the Father in the midst of His Church. He sings praises unto the Father because of God’s salvation. The reason there is a Hebrew Hymnbook called Psalms is because of Jesus. This text is a quotation from that Hebrew Hymnbook:

Psalms 22:22 (KJV)  I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.

The twenty-second song in the Hebrew Hymnbook – Psalm 22 – speaks of our Jesus. While Jesus hung on the Cross He quoted this song. Compare the two texts:

Matthew 27:46 (KJV) And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

Psalms 22:1 (KJV) … My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?

While Jesus hung on Calvary, the crowd mocked Him. Compare the song to Matthew’s account:

Matthew 27:42-43 (KJV) He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. 43 He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.

Psalms 22:8 (KJV)  He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.

Jesus quoted from songs as He hung on the Cross. I do not know if He actually sang from the Cross, but I do know He sang before He went to the Cross. He sang with His disciples before He was betrayed.

But we see Jesus – Singing on the way to Calvary.

Mark 14:26-28 (KJV)  And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives. (see also Matthew 26:30)

Jesus sang. I believe Jesus sang a lot of His earthly life. Do you know why I believe this? Because Jesus quoted the Hebrew Hymnbook we call “Psalms” more than any other book in the Old Testament.

When called to verify His ministry He quoted Psalm 78:24
Calling Himself the Chief Cornerstone He quoted Psalm 118:22
Foretelling Jerusalem’s Destruction Jesus quoted Psalm 118:26
Talk of His betrayal Jesus quoted Psalm 41:9
Dying on the Cross He quoted Psalm 22:1
Committing His Spirit to the Father Jesus quoted Psalm 31:5

I could go on and on, but I’ll stop here. Before Jesus and His disciples left that first Lord’s Supper the commentaries said they probably sang the great Hallal (the selection of songs found in Psalms 113-118).

But We See Jesus Singing To Glorify God.
His Work Would Destroy Satan’s Hold On Creation.

Hebrews 2:14-15 (KJV)  Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;  [15]  And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Jesus sang because He knew that His work would free us from sin and Satan. Jesus sang because He knew that as our Great High Priest He would redeem us from hell, and keep us redeemed forever more.

Hebrews 2:17 (KJV)  Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.

Singing hymns and praying is what the family of God does. We sing because He sings. We look up to God and praise Him in song. The birds sing daily without having to be told to do so, because they were made by God. We too should sing and praise Him. Jesus sings in the midst of His Church, in the midst of His family.

Singing In The Heart To God
Is Evidence Of The Filling!

The Church is commanded to sing from the heart. The Lord says:

Ephesians 5:18-21 (KJV)  And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;  [19]  Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;  [20]  Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;  [21]  Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

Singing brings us into harmony with our God Who sings, and with our neighbor. We are in one accord when we sing. It is for this reason God calls us to sing.

Pray Until You Can Sing
Sing From A Christ Filled Heart
Praise God For All That You Have
You Have Every Reason To Sing, Dear Believer.
Sing with our Jesus!

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The Days Of Heaven Upon The Earth

Posted on March 11, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

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Deuteronomy 11:18-21 (KJV) Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. 19 And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. 20 And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates: 21 That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth.

When I read or hear the word of man my heart is often discouraged. I read with shock and dismay how many are leaving the Church that Jesus built and are turning to Eastern Religions like Buddhism. One man who claims to be a pastor stated:

“I was surprised to learn how Buddha and Jesus were so similar in their settings. Their messages were so similar that, to a people who were in many ways stuck in oppression, there was a way to find hope or change.”

That is discouraging to me because God
specifically forbids idolatry in His Bible.

When we engage in idolatry we turn away from the Living God and magnify ourselves and our self made gods above Him Who made us and loves us.

In the very context of our Deuteronomy 11 passage we read of a time in Israel’s history when Korah (a Levite or minister of God) and Dathan and Abiram (from the tribe of Reuben) lead 250 men in revolt against Moses and Aaron. The story is told in detail in Numbers 16. God had Moses stand before the tents of Dathan and Abiram. He then called upon those who followed them to repent, to get away from the tents of these rebels. Those who refused to repent died in one of two ways. Those closest to Dathan and Abiram, the Bible says:

Numbers 16:31-33 (KJV) … that the ground clave asunder that was under them: 32 And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. 33 They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation.

What happened to the 250 rebels? The Bible says that:

Numbers 16:35 (KJV) … there came out a fire from the Lord, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men…

Though God’s people initially repented, the next day they returned to their idolatry. God sent a plague upon Israel, killing 14,700 people (Numbers 16:48-50). There would have been more dead but Moses sent Aaron to stand between the living and the dead; and the plague was stayed (Numbers 16:48). This is the picture of the believer who stands up for the Lord. This is also a picture of our Christ, Who protects us from the evil one.

The word of man and idolatry brought HELL upon the earth.
What does this have to do with our text?
Everything!
The word of man and vain religions the world follows brings DEATH.
The Word of God brings LIFE.

Proverbs 12:28 In way of righteousness (God’s Way) is LIFE; and in the pathway thereof there NO DEATH.

When I hear the word of man I am discouraged and bewildered and confused. But when I hear the Word of God my heart is lifted up. God says and promises such blessings for those who hear HIM and HIM ALONE. Did you notice what God promised? Oh, do not miss it! At the beginning of chapter 11 He warns of hell upon the earth. But in the last 8 words of the text we read today promises:

as the days of heaven upon the earth

God promises “days of Heaven upon the earth” to those who love Him and follow Him. There is no blessing in idolatry and in a self serving religion. There is blessing in hearing and obeying Him.

You may think there can be no Heaven on this earth, but you would be wrong. The first Heaven described to us in the Bible is the Heaven that was in the Garden of Eden. Every day was a perfect day. It was a perfect environment. The Bible says:

Genesis 2:5-7 (KJV) And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. 6 But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. 7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

It was with a kiss that God breathed life into man. There were no storm clouds in the sky. There was no sickness, death, nor pain. The Bible says:

Genesis 2:8-9 (KJV) … the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9 And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

God gave man absolute liberty.
God gave unlimited YES’s and only one NO.

Genesis 2:16-17 (KJV) … the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

God’s NO was for man’s benefit. “If you eat it, you will die that very day”.

God was not speaking of physical death – though that would eventually come. But God spoke of spiritual death.

To disobey God would bring confusion and an end to Paradise. To disobey God would cause us to lose the best thing we ever had. What was the best thing we ever had? It was companionship with God. To walk with God daily. This is what Heaven is all about. When people think of HEAVEN they think of the place.

Heaven is where there is no suffering.
Heaven is where there is peace.
Heaven is a Buddhistic Nirvana.
Heaven is where I get everything I want.
Heaven is a street of gold.
Heaven is my fellowship with my relatives once more.
Heaven is … you fill in the blank!

Are these things HEAVEN? No. Heaven is not an experience you will enjoy. Heaven is not absolute self gratification. Heaven is COMPANIONSHIP WITH GOD.

Heaven was on the earth in a place called Eden until man’s word took precedence over God’s Word. Heaven will one day be on the earth once more. When the Apostle John saw the end of evil in the new Heaven and new earth how did John describe Paradise reborn? He said:

Revelation 21:3-4 (KJV) And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Why is there no more suffering at end of time? It is not the environment, but it is the Person of God. Heaven is all about God. God is with men. There is no racism or hatred or evil, for God is with us. He dwells in the midst of His people. God Himself shall be with them and be their God. No one will be chasing after false gods, nor will anyone be elevating themselves to the status of god. God will be God, and we will be His Children. There will be no death, sorrow, crying, or pain because God will touch us. As He breathed life into Adam with a kiss, so will He breath into us eternal life and love. If you have received the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior and your only Savior, for He has said:

John 14:6 (KJV) … I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

You cannot come into the Presence of God the Creator and Father except through Christ.

Buddha will not get you there. Good works will not get you there. Lifestyle changes will not get you there. Unless you come to the Father through the Son you shall never inherit Heaven. Period. Jesus told those who not believe in Him:

John 5:37-40 (KJV) And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape. 38 And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not. 39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. 40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

There is life only in Christ, in repenting of the false gods and false ways, in cleaving to my Jesus. Too many of you who are “religious” have listened to the words of the thief, or thieves. That so called pastor is a “thief” who was ordained probably by “thieves”. Jesus said:

John 10:10 (KJV) The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Christ came to give you and I abundant and eternal life. He came so that we can experience days of Heaven on the earth. The Bible tells us that it was written:

John 20:31 (KJV) But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

If you are a Christian you can remember “days of Heaven upon the earth”. The first time I experienced Heaven on earth was when God kissed my soul through His Gospel. I left home when I was 16 years old. I chased after things that I thought would bring me happiness. Alcohol, drugs, things I am now ashamed of. But one day someone invited me to a Church service. I went to Church that day expecting to go through the same old boring routine I grew up suffering under. The mindless catechisms we had to learn. The rituals we did. The songs that we drearily sang. But I went because it was a friend who had encountered a day of Heaven upon the earth, and wanted to share this with me. I went that day, and actually heard the Gospel preached. And I had a day of Heaven upon the earth. Jesus reached out to me. He saw my sin sick soul, and saw my aching heart filled with loneliness and need. Just as He did with Adam He put His nail scarred hand on this walking pile of dust – and He kissed me with Grace. Oh Beloved, the kiss of God is such Heaven!

I breathed out human evil and human ways,
And inhaled life from the Son of God!

I went home that day and lay in a lonely bed where I used to weep. Now I wept with joy. I looked upward, and over and over praised the God Who died for me and rose again to lead me upward. This was a day of Heaven upon the earth. The prodigal son had come home!

I have not forgotten our Deuteronomy text. This text is a formula for finding “Days of Heaven upon the earth”. What does God command of us? How can we experience His presence in our lives?

Deuteronomy 11:18 (KJV) Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.

The ancient Jew – probably inspired by those who had no genuine relationship with Him as Father – took these verses quite literally. They created the phylacteries or tefillin which were small square leather boxes that were worn in pairs during weekday morning prayers. The word phylactery comes from a Greek word that means “safeguard, protection, or amulet”. The phylactery was strapped to the arm (shel yad) and the other to the forehead (shel rosh). Inside the phylacteries were verses from the Bible (usually Exodus 13:1–10, 11–16; Deuteronomy 6:4–9; 11:13–21). Jesus chastised the Pharisees for wearing phylacteries:

Matthew 23:5 (KJV) But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,

God did not call Adam to ritual worship, nor does He call His children to the same thing today. Counting beads, genuflecting, or wearing religious symbols without loving God is worthless. What does God want of us? He tells us:

Deuteronomy 11:13 (KJV) … ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul,

God wants us to love Him as He is, to honor Him as God. He wants us to store His Word in our hearts, so much so that our worldview is God’s view. God wants us seeing the world through His eyes and His Word. He wants our hands to do the things He said do because we love Him. We are to obey Him. Our God is the “Lord of hosts, who tests the righteous, who sees the heart and the mind”. He sees where your heart is pointed. And where your heart is, that is your God. If God is yours and you are God’s then:

Your eyes will behold Him
Your feet will follow after Him
Your hands will serve Him
Your lips will praise Him
Your ears will listen for Him
Your heart will rejoice in Him

Jesus said in:

John 14:21-24 (KJV) He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. 22 Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? 23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. 24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.

God does not manifest Himself to the world, nor to the worldly. He manifests Himself to those who love Him and follow Him. Jesus said “If you love Me, you will keep – do – My commandments. And if you DO what I have said then both I and the Father will come and live with you.” Beloved, this is the days of Heaven upon the earth, to know that God is with you and loves you.

Deuteronomy 11:19 (KJV) And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

If God’s Word is in your life, then you will share His Word with your children and with those of your household. You will dwell on His Word not just occasionally, but all the time. When at home (when thou sittest in thine house), when at work or the market (when thou walkest by the way). You will heed God’s Word at the end of your day (when thou liest down) and at the daybreak (when thou risest up).

Deuteronomy 11:20 (KJV) And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates:

People who know you will be able to see that you are God’s Child whether at home (the door posts of thine house) or at work (and upon thy gates).

Deuteronomy 11:21 (KJV) That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth.

It is Heaven upon earth to follow the Lord. Will you join me? Will you repent, and turn to Jesus Christ believing? Will you seek the Father through His Son? Will you hear His Word and believe that He loves you? If so, you will have days of Heaven upon the earth.

May God touch your hearts with His Word!

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Praying Like Jesus #7

Posted on March 11, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

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Photo by Lucas Lenzi on Unsplash

Jesus Prayed With A Thankful Heart

1 Thessalonians 5:15-18 (KJV) See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men. [16] Rejoice evermore. [17] Pray without ceasing. [18] In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Colossians 4:2 (KJV) Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;

In the news today I read how the FDA just announced approval for a new severe depression drug. The article went on to note that over 16 million Americans suffer from depression. That amazes me. I do not want to be patronizing, but as a retired Airman I have travelled to many of the countries around the world. I’ve been in Japan, Germany, Korea, Egypt, the Phillipines, Thailand, and England to name a few. In America we have unprecedented freedoms, freedoms that other countries dream of having. Though it is expensive we have access to the finest medical care in the world. We have absolute freedom to worship where ever we want to worship. In Egypt we had to post guards around our tents during our Sunday Chaplain services lest a local Muslim find out we were worshiping the Lord and attack us. Yes, that’s the truth. I have noticed poverty in other countries, and poverty in the United States. Yet in the United States even our poor are many times overweight. That’s not the case in other countries. I’m sure you’ve all seen pictures of children in other countries with skeletal arms and legs and puffed up, worm filled bellies. I have yet to see ANYONE in America in that condition. Not even the sojourning homeless we see periodically at the entrance to the mall and the Walmart.

We are blessed in this country. We are blessed beyond measure by God, though many barely acknowledge His awesome Presence!

It is certain that depression can be attributed to a chemical imbalance in the brain, but much more comes from ingratitude. When the human appetite is filled to overflowing and we neglect that the bounty came from a gracious and faithful Creator, then any perceived lack becomes an opportunity for depression and murmuring. Scott Hubbard of Desiring God Ministries wrote:

“When Paul says that God “richly provides us with everything to enjoy” (1 Timothy 6:17), he really means enjoy. God’s ocean of gifts is meant for swimming. … But the simple pleasures of earth are never completely safe in the hands of sinners — even redeemed ones. Without care, we feast on the abundance of God’s house and forget that it is his house. We eat and eat, and gradually neglect the host. Eyes lower from heaven to earth. Spiritual senses dull. “Desires for other things” begin to choke the word (Mark 4:19). In moments like these, it is one of God’s severe mercies to deal with us as he dealt with Israel, and to send us into the wilderness.”

The Father Gave The Son Many Wilderness Experiences

It is significant that before Jesus began His ministry of Grace and healing
that He was “Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness
to be tempted of the devil” (Matthew 4:1).

Jesus’ Life Did Not Begin With Blessing,
But With Things That Looked Like Cursing.

Jesus was born in a stable, and laid as a baby in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn” (Luke 2:7). Jesus spent His first few years on this earth as a fugitive. Before Jesus ever began ministering – while He was still in diapers – King Herod wanted to kill Him. The Angel of God told Joseph “take the young Child and His mother and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him” (Matthew 2:13). Many people suffer depression because of the suffering of their childhood. I understand. I’ve been there. But if any should be depressed, it should have been Jesus. When His ministry began He was constantly hounded by Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes. Jesus was sought out and pursued by the sick and diseased once it was discovered that He has the power to heal. Jesus was sent to this earth to preach the Gospel. The Gospel has the power to bless! Jesus said:

Luke 4:18-19 (KJV) The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because HE HATH JesusReadingScriptureANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, [19] To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

People Pursued Jesus For The Wrong Reasons. He Came To Preach The Gospel, But Humanity Focused On His Miracles.

It is God’s Gospel that lifts up the Poor, the broken hearted, the captives, and the blind. It is the Gospel that focuses us on the Coming of our Lord. It is the Gospel that is the most important thing in the world. The Gospel teaches that God loves us so much that He sacrificed the much for us. Yet throughout His ministry people chased after Jesus not for the eternal blessing of the Gospel, but for temporal healings. Often Jesus told people when He healed them:

Don’t tell anyone Who healed you!
(see Matthew 8:4; Mark 7:36; Luke 5:14)

Why? Because humanity chased after Jesus for the wrong reason. After Jesus fed the five thousand plus people with five small loaves of bread and two fish (Matthew 14:17ff) the next day He was approached by a huge crowd looking for another free meal. Jesus refused to feed them, saying:

John 6:26-29 (KJV) … Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. [27] Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed. [28] Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? [29] Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

Jesus came preaching the Gospel, but many ignored the Gospel while seeking temporal blessings. If anyone should have been depressed it should have been Jesus. Yet Jesus was never depressed.

Jesus Was Always Thankful

As Jesus preached the Gospel and was ignored and even persecuted He maintained a thankful heart. We read:

Matthew 11:20-24 (KJV) Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, BECAUSE THEY REPENTED NOT: [21] Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. [22] But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you. [23] And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. [24] But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.

Many preachers – myself included – could become depressed at the wholesale faithlessness of the people around them. But Jesus was not depressed. At the end of upbraiding these cities for a failure to repent Jesus prayed:

Matthew 11:25-26 (KJV) … I THANK THEE, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. [26] Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight.

Jesus recognized the Sovereignty of God and praised the Father though it seemed like His ministry was fruitless. Jesus did what God tells us to do. Instead of worrying or feeling inadequate or threatened Jesus thanked the Father. He did as the Scripture commands:

1 Peter 5:6-7 (KJV) Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: [7] Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

He was confident of the love of God the Father, and confident of God’s power to handle whatever might come His way. Jesus prayed with a thankful heart. Jesus thanked God though rarely was He thanked.

Of The Thousands Of People That Jesus Healed During His Ministry, Very Few Ever Thanked Jesus For What He Did.

One day Jesus went to the home of a leper He had healed by the name of Simon. You’ll find the story in Luke 7:36-50. As Jesus sat there at Simon’s table a “woman of the city, which was a sinner” came into the house. She took an Alabaster Box of perfume. The Bible says that she:

Luke 7:38 (KJV) … stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.

As Simon watched this spectacle he judged both Christ and the fallen woman. Jesus perceived what Simon was thinking. He told Simon:

Luke 7:44-48 (KJV) … Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. [45] Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet. [46] My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. [47] Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little. [48] And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.

It is the thankful and repentant heart that is blessed by Christ. This woman went away from Simon’s house that day with the greatest gift of all. She was saved from her sins and adopted into the Family of God because she was thankful and repentant. The greatest gift God has given us is Himself and His Heaven.

The Thankful Heart Is The Whole Heart

In another of the very few times in Scripture where Christ was thanked is found in Luke 17. The Bible tells us that:

Luke 17:12-14 (KJV) And as {Jesus} entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: [13] And they lifted up their voices, and said, JESUS, MASTER, HAVE MERCY ON US. [14] And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.

Now Jesus could have healed these ten men – miserable lepers – immediately if He wanted to do so. Yet God often requires our obedience for our blessing. In the Old Testament God established a Law for Lepers. If a Leper was ever to be considered “clean” then he had to be examined by the priest, who then would offer a sacrifice unto God (see Leviticus 14:2-3). Jesus told the lepers “Go and show yourselves unto the priests”. None were healed until they obeyed His command. So all ten go to the priests and sure enough, praise the Lord, their leprosy was healed.

Luke 17:15-16 (KJV) And ONE of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, [16] And fell down on his face at his feet, GIVING HIM THANKS: and he was a Samaritan.

Only ONE returned to Jesus. Only ONE humbled himself before the Lord and GAVE JESUS THANKS. No one else did. Ten were healed, but only ONE returned to Jesus and thanked Him. Notice what our Lord said:

Luke 17:17-19 (KJV) And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? [18] There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. [19] And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.

Ten were cleansed, BUT ONLY ONE WAS MADE WHOLE. Did you get that? Jesus told Him:

Arise, and go thy way: Thy FAITH has
made thee WHOLE

Wholeness is not found in healing of disease, but in reuniting the soul to God through Christ. This is what makes whole – the faith that humbles us and magnifies God by praise!

We should all be thankful to God for His abundant blessings. You may not have a huge bank account. You may have health problems. You may struggle physically. Regardless as to whatever limitations you have, if you have responded to the Gospel of Salvation and belong to the Lord because of Christ, then you should be thankful! God is your Portion, and a glorious eternity your destination. Praise God for His wonderful gifts! God tells those Who are His:

Psalms 50:14-15 (KJV) Offer unto God THANKSGIVING; and pay thy vows unto the most High: [15] And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.

It brings glory to God when we thank Him for what He has done, and call upon Him as we belong to Him. God is my Portion, my Father, my Savior, my Rock. Yes there are times when we, like Jesus, are led into the wildernesses of life. Yet Good is faithful. I say again:

God is faithful!
The Lord thy God is faithful (Deuteronomy 7:9)
God is faithful with His Saints (Hosea 11:12)
God is faithful in our call (1 Cdorinthians 1:9)
God is faithful when we are tried (1 Corinthians 10:13)
Our God will never leave nor forsake us (Matthew 28:20)

When worry comes our way, and it will, let us turn that WORRY into PRAYER. Go to your Father in the Name of Christ. The Bible declares that we are to:

Philippians 4:6-7 (KJV) … {Do not worry} but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. [7] And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

God does not want us to be worried, to fret and be consumed of troubles. When the devil brings a worry your way, take it to the Cross. The Bible tells us FOR EVERYTHING:

by PRAYER
and SUPPLICATION (Humility)
with THANKSGIVING

…let your requests be made known unto God. The Apostle went on to say:

Philippians 4:8 (KJV) Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

When we pray with thankful hearts we look UPWARD instead of DOWNWARD. We do as that old song said:

When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God has done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
*Count your many blessings, see what God has done.
Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.

Jesus appreciated all the things that His Father had provided. He tells us not to worry, that God is indeed faithful.

Matthew 6:31-33 (KJV) … {Do not worry} saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? [32] (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. [33] But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

We like Jesus need to occupy our minds not with worry, gloom and doom. We do not need to look at what we DON’T have but what we DO have. We have a faithful Father Who knows what we need even before we ask Him. If we focus on doing His Will by promoting His Kingdom Gospel then “all these things shall be added unto you”.

The Cure For Depression? A Thankful Heart

Are you depressed? Then do as God has directed.

Psalms 92:1-5 (KJV) … It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: [2] To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night, [3] Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound. [4] For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands. [5] O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep.

It is said that “misery loves company”. Do not focus on being miserable, or on your lack. Do as Jesus did and praise the Lord not just on the mountaintop but also in the valley. Jesus thanked the Father for hearing Him

John 11:41 … Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.

Praise God that He does hear us. He hears the sinner’s prayer when that sinner repents and calls on the Name of the Lord Jesus. He hears the saint’s prayer when the child that He loves cries out.

Psalms 106:1 (KJV) Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

God’s patience endures. He waits, dear sinner, that you might come to Him by Christ. His mercy endureth. You have been given another day to seek Him and to rest in Him. Have you done so? Oh Beloved, come to Him Who is faithfully calling you.

Psalms 107:1-2 (KJV) O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. [2] Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;

Jesus has conquered death, that great enemy of mankind. Jesus has conquered sin and the devil. He has destroyed the enemy. The Father does not ignore us, but listens to us who are His. He always has, and always will. Look upward! If you are not saved, look upward and know that Christ came for you, too. He loves you and gave Himself for you. If you are His Child by faith then look upward. You may be in a valley, but you are not alone.

2 Corinthians 9:15 (KJV) Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.

May God touch your hearts by His Word.

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Praying Like Jesus Series #6

Posted on March 7, 2019 by bibleteacherorg

The Shepherd’s Prayer (part 2)
Jesus Prayed For The Unity Of His Church

John 17:11-23 (KJV)  And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.  [12]  While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.  [13]  And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.  [14]  I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.  [15]  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.  [16]  They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.  [17]  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.  [18]  As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.  [19]  And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.  

[20]  Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;  [21]  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.  [22]  And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:  [23]  I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

branislav-belko-1301372-unsplash.jpgPhoto by Branislav Belko on Unsplash

Last Wednesday we looked at the “Shepherd’s Prayer” in John 17. As Jesus was preparing for the Cross of Calvary He prayed not that He would avoid that trial, but that His Church would be in one accord. Jesus had already set His mind on the Cross. He no longer saw Himself as “in the world”. He said:

John 17:11 (KJV)  And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. 

Jesus spoke as if the Cross had already happened, spoke as if He was already crucified, buried, resurrected, and on the right hand of God the Father. He spoke this way because His mind was not set on satisfying the world, nor those who are of the world. Jesus was focused 100 percent on doing what the Father told Him to do. He prayed that the disciples whom He was going to leave would be as committed to obeying and living by the Word and Will of God as He was.

Jesus Prayed That His Church Be One
With God – Not With The World

Jesus prayed to His Father and every Christian’s Father:

Holy Father, keep through thine own name
those whom thou hast given me

Let’s break this down. Our Father is the “Holy Father”. This term occurs only here in the Bible. The word “Father” emphasizes that every Christian is born into the Family of God. God is not merely “God” to us, but He is the “Father”, the Head of the Godhead, the One Whom we obey.

The Christian is a walking miracle.

We were born in this world, and this world was in our hearts. But Christ calls us out of the world and into an intimate relationship with the Father. Being “Born Again” is more than to be religious. A religious leader called Nicodemus came to see Jesus at night. Jesus told this Rabbi:

John 3:3 (KJV) … Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot SEE the kingdom of God.

No one can “see” (εἴδω eídō, pronounced i’-do) the Kingdom of God unless they are “born again”. The word “see” means “to perceive with the senses”.

Before a baby is born it knows nothing but darkness and warmth and the beat of its mother’s heart. But once the baby is born it leaves the darkness of the womb and enters into the world to see light. But that baby can only perceive the things of this world because of sin resident in it. We are born the first time as sinners. This is why the Bible says:

Romans 3:23 (KJV)  For ALL have SINNED, and come short of the glory of God;

We are bound in darkness like that baby. We must be brought into the light. The person born into this world can only perceive that which is around them. They must be born again so that they can enter into the family of God. It is the Word of God that causes our new birth. The written Word tells us of Christ’s Gospel. That Word is planted in our hearts. When we believe that Word God through His Spirit causes us to be born into His Family.

1 Peter 1:22-23 (KJV)  Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:  [23]  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

Jesus prayed that the Father would “keep” (τηρέω tēréō, pronounced tay-reh’-o) those sheep saved by God’s Gospel. This word means “to post a guard over”. Jesus prayed that every believer be guarded by the Father so that they would stay the course of the faith. He wanted these born again “Sheep” to be protected from evil. Jesus guarded the disciples while He was with them on the earth. Jesus prayed:

John 17:12 (KJV) While I was with them in the world, I kept (τηρέω tēreō) them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept (φυλάσσω phylássō, foo-las’-so – to guard so as to keep safe), and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.

He guarded the sheep that the Father gave Him before Calvary. Now Jesus asks that the Father guard these sheep. He also notes that one was not kept. Why was he not kept? Because Judas Iscariot was “the son of perdition”. “Perdition” is the word ἀπώλεια apṓleia, (pronounced ap-o’-li-a) which means “child of destruction”. It was prophesied that Judas Iscariot would betray Christ in:

Psalms 41:9 (KJV)  Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.

Psalms 109:6-8 (KJV)  Set thou a wicked man over him: and let Satan stand at his right hand.  [7]  When he shall be judged, let him be condemned: and let his prayer become sin.  [8]  Let his days be few; and let another take his office.

John 13:18 (KJV)  I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me.

The one who was lost was Judas Iscariot, but he was lost because he was never “found”. Though he ministered alongside the other eleven Apostles and was daily with Jesus outwardly, inwardly his heart was not God’s property. Jesus kept His disciples safe from the world, but Judas never left the world in his heart. He is the picture of the outwardly converted Church member who inwardly cares nothing for the Father not His Kingdom. The unbeliever disguised as a Christian will in time show their true colors. They do not stand with the Father nor the Son but with “Satan at their right hand”, ever willing to become part of the fallen world once more.

John 17:13-16 (KJV)  And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.  [14]  I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.  [15]  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.  [16]  They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

Jesus prayed in the world – but not of the world. He prayed that the Christian would have the joy of Christ in themselves. How do we receive this joy? We maintain a separateness from the world. Jesus left His disciples in the world to make a difference, but we cannot make a difference while we are worldly. Jesus prayed not that we would be taken out of the world, but that the “evil” of this world would not mark us. We are called to be light in the midst of darkness. A.W. Pink noted:

“It was, therefore, protection from “the evil” (Gr. ek tou ponerou) in the world that they needed. This phrase could mean “evil,” generally, or it could be a reference to “the Evil One”: Satan. Other occurrences of the phrase, elsewhere, encourage us to interpret it as referring to “the devil” here (cf. Matt. 6:13; 1 John 2:13-14; 3:12; 5:18- 19). However, both ideas may have been in Jesus’ mind.”

The focus of every Christian is to be in one accord with the Word of God, and in one accord with one another.

The Apostle in another place equates oneness or friendship with the world as spiritual adultery. We read:

James 4:4 (KJV)  Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

The Christian is called of Christ to have a demonstrated world view that is in harmony with God and His Word, and in disharmony with the darkness. The only way a candle can be part of the darkness is to have your fire blown out. Jesus was called a “friend of sinners” by the Pharisees, as He said:

Luke 7:34 (KJV)  The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners!

Jesus came to save the lost (Luke 19:10), but He did not come to justify lostness. Jesus came to save the sinner from sin, but He never winked at sin. Jesus befriended all who He met, but never justified the acts of darkness. What Jesus did He taught His disciples. What He did He teaches us. Jesus declared:

They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

Christian, you are IN the world but not OF the world. If you are a Christian you have been “translated” into God’s Kingdom:

Colossians 1:13-14 (KJV)  Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:  [14]  In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Jesus Prayed That His Church Be Focused
On God’s Word Not On The Devil’s World

John 17:17 (KJV)  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

The word rendered “sanctify” is the Greek ἁγιάζω hagiázō, (pronounced hag-ee-ad’-zo) which means to separate, to cleanse, to consecrate or dedicate to God”. It can be rendered “to make holy”. God is holy. Jesus taught us to pray:

Matthew 6:9 Our Father which art in heaven,
Hallowed (ἁγιάζω hagiázō) be thy name.

God is holy, apart from sin.
We who are His are to be holy, apart from sin.

Just as Jesus was sanctified by the Father (John 10:36) we who are sons of God are sanctified by the Father. We believe the Word of God. We form our worldview based on the teachings of God’s Word. The Holy Spirit of God sets us apart (Romans 15:16) to serve God. There is no salvation without sanctification. Let me say that a few more times.

There is no SALVATION without SANCTIFICATION.

Before God set us apart from the world we were OF the world. We followed the sin pattern of the world. But once we came to Christ through the preaching of the Gospel; once we received Christ as He is (for He IS Lord and Savior) then we changed. The Scripture declares clearly:

1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (KJV)  Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankindsodomites,  [10]  Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.  [11]  And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

At the point of salvation the once born sinner becomes born again. We are moved from worldliness to godliness. We are to live our lives having and demonstrating the Mind of God.

Jesus prayed:

John 17:20-21 (KJV) Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;  [21]  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

What we are told today by the “Modern Church Growth Experts” is that in order to reach the world we must become like the world. This is not what Jesus prayed nor said. Jesus said that the way to convince the world of the authenticity of out faith is that we become like the Trinity of God. Jesus Christ walked in perfect union with the Father. He said “if you have seen ME you have seen the FATHER” (John 14:9). Jesus prayed:

That they all may be ONE; as thou, Father, art in me,
and I in thee, that THEY ALSO MAY BE ONE IN US

Jesus as God the Son is “One” or in perfect union with the Father. God the Father is “One” or in perfect union with the Son. Jesus prayed that we who are saved would be in perfect union with the Godhead. Father, Son, nor Spirit ever suffered from disharmony BUT for that one moment that Christ bore our sins on Calvary (for He said in Matthew 27:46 “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?”). At all other times the Godhead acts with ONE mind to fulfill the will of God. Jesus prayed that we would be equally unified. That we would “be one”:

John 17:22 (KJV)  And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:

When we walk in harmony with God’s Word and with one another then the world sees the Kingdom of God in us. It is not compromise that will reach the world, but commitment to Christ. Let us live our lives so as to fulfill our Great Shepherd’s prayer.

John 17:23 (KJV) I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

May God touch your hearts with His Word!

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