When God told Noah to build an ark, Noah must have thought to himself, “What’s an ark?”. And even though God gave him explicit, precise and detailed instructions on the assembly of said ark, (verses 14-21)…to Noah it surely would have seemed like just an impossible dream. But it says despite not knowing exactly how he was going about it…Noah did everything just as God commanded. Now likely God hasn’t called you to build a 450′ x 75′ x 45′ boat in your back yard…but there’s probably something He is calling you into right now…and you’re resisting, because to you it’s an impossibility…but to God nothing is impossible. For God will always go before you, giving you precise and detailed instructions… just like He gave Noah.
Month: January 2019
Matthew 3:4-6 ” John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.”
It tells us in Luke 1:17 that John the Baptist ministered in the spirit and power of Elijah…down to the same attire. For the Prophet Elijah was recognized by what he wore – a garment of hair with a leather belt around his waist ( II Kings 1:8). This garb in fact was so powerful that false prophets started copying his dress in order to deceive the people. (Zechariah 13:4) Initially, the curious crowd might have been drawn by the wild-looking man, but when John shouted, “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is near!” divine conviction fell upon them.
Proverbs 1:10 ” My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them.”
Sometimes the hardest thing to do is to not go along with the crowd. Sure, the peer pressure is strong, and we want to fit in and not seem odd…but we also realize what the crowd is about to do is just plain wrong. Deuteronomy 13:8 tells us to not yield to or even listen to the enticements from those who are sinning. And the old excuse of, “Everybody’s doing it!” can’t stand up to the truth if it goes against the word of God. For any words of persuasion, guilt, or deception we hear will never change wrong into right.
Genesis 3:1 ” Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God really say, you must not eat from any tree in the garden?’ “
From the very beginning, Satan has been planting seeds of doubt, distorting and twisting the truth, and appealing to the base human carnal nature. For it tells us in Revelation 12:9 that he is the ancient serpent who leads the whole world astray. And Satan doesn’t need to change his game plan either, for it’s been working effectively for thousands of years. Anytime he can get us to doubt God’s Word, hesitate when God puts a call on our life, or question the Lord’s plan and purpose for us…Satan has won for the time being.
Acts 15:39-40 ” They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.”
Paul and Barnabas were really close friends and partners in the Gospel. Barnabas had been instrumental in bringing the newly converted Saul to introduce him to the Apostles in Jerusalem. And later, the pair were commissioned by the Church in Antioch to go out on their first missionary journey together. Here, they were making ready for their second missionary journey, when Barnabas insisted on taking his nephew Mark along again. But Paul rejected the idea, annoyed that Mark had deserted them half way through the first trip. And so they went their separate ways. Now on the surface, we see discord and disunity between Paul and Barnabas…but by parting company, the Gospel was spread much wider by more people. Sometimes we become very comfortable in the little group we’re part of…and God has to stir up the nest to move us out…in order that His work gets done.
Genesis 1:3 ” And God said, ‘Let there be light’, and there was light.”
God is associated with light, for He created it. But then in I John 1:5, God is called the Light. While in John 8:12, Jesus called Himself the Light of the world. This type of light defines life, salvation, prosperity, wisdom, and justice and something every Believer should be striving for. But how? II Corinthians 4:6 tells us, ” For God, Who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness’, made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” The answer is then easy…it’s Jesus. For when there’s more of Him and less of us that light can shine brightly from within.
Revelation 3:16 ” So, because you are lukewarm – neither hot nor cold – I am about to spit you out of My mouth.”
The biggest trap Believers fall into is complacency…especially if we’ve been a Christian for years. Our spiritual life has become very comfortable because we’ve picked and chosen bits and pieces of the Gospel that suit us. Our life in Christ has slowly become all about us – not others. We’ve become self-satisfied, tepid Christians with no enthusiasm to reach the lost…no thirst to get into His Word…no eagerness to share the Gospel. Complacency means we’re satisfied with the status quo, confident in our own salvation, but not really interested in anyone else. No wonder in this Scripture God is ready to spit lukewarm Christians out of His mouth…they have lost their first love…their zeal…their spiritual fervor. And to Him, they are worthless.
Proverbs 14:12 ” There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.”
Everyday you see people doing what they think is the “right” thing…yes, they’re good people with good intentions…but unfortunately, they don’t have God in their world. Their life consists of works and legalism…with a mental score-sheet that they keep track of their points…thinking that they can somehow work their way to heaven. For they truly believe that a loving God would never deny a good person access to heaven. But Jesus replied to this in Matthew 7:21 when He said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the Will of My Father who is in heaven.” The world has its own standard of what being a good person and doing what seems to be right is…but it sadly falls eternally short of God’s standard.
I Samuel 1:10 ” In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the Lord.”
Over the course of my career as a nurse I have witnessed death first hand. I have comforted countless families as they maneuver through the uncharted territory of fear, sorrow, and unspeakable anguish. But I’ve also realized that it doesn’t get any easier with a lot of experience. Death of a loved one is a heart crushing encounter full of very personal suffering. And a few weeks ago, I still found myself asking, “Why Lord?”, when a young wife and mother was taken from her two small boys and husband on Christmas Eve. But it’s then, I must remind myself that just because my prayers weren’t answered like I wanted, doesn’t mean that God somehow made a mistake.
Romans 12:1 ” Therefore I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.”
Paul was more than just encouraging his fellow Believers here…he was beseeching and imploring them to take that decisive and dedicated step called sanctification. Why? When we first become a Christian we tend to hold on to parts of us that are comfortable, easy, or allow us to cope. But as we journey along with the Lord, He starts to demand we separate ourselves from those things. This process can be painful, but necessary for us to fully become God’s. Holiness or sanctification is being totally His…with nothing withheld…and Paul recognized that this was not only God’s Will but the very least thing we could do in view of the Lord’s sacrifice for us. (I Corinthians 6:20)
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