Author: kezha1

Elsewhere in the Scriptures, we read in Ephesians 4:30, that we are not to grieve the Holy Spirit…in other words, we are not to offend or insult the Holy Spirit by our divisive attitudes and behaviors. We think that the world’s clatter can easily drowned out that still small voice of the Holy Spirit (I Kings 19:12), but in reality not nearly as well as we can. Everyday we make choices which to us seem good…ignoring that gentle voice that is imploring us to allow Him to make the very best choice for us. So it’s by our own willfulness and refusing to waive our rights to Him that we effectively snuff out the Holy Spirit’s voice…and with it the sense of warning and restraint that only He can impart…and sadly in the end, our Spiritual life will be impaired for it.

There is much comfort in this verse when we’re at a loss on how to pray for ourselves. When our prayers are silent, with unspoken words captured within unseen tears. But Romans 8:26 tells us that the Holy Spirit is there in our state of weakness and perplexity as to how to pray for ourselves. And rest easy, this is an universal Christian experience. (II Corinthians 12:8-10 and Philippians 1:22-24) Though our inarticulate and jumbled longings of what to pray can leave us feeling even worse…thinking we can’t even make our needs known. But Jesus assures us in Matthew 6:8 that God already knows our needs before they have even left our heart. So go ahead and rest quietly in those silent prayers and groanings of the heart…For God hears our anguished cries and will act. (Exodus 2:24)

This Proverb contrasts two different types of people…the one with humble prosperity and the other that conceals poverty with pretense. In this world of immediate gratification and the fear of missing out, people would rather pin their dreams on unrealistic expectations, fantasies, and self-importance. Their goal is to keep up with the Jones… while dreaming of affluence but refusing to actually work for it. But those who quietly work without fanfare are far better off. They have money in the bank, bills paid, and peace in their heart as good stewards of what God has given them…for they have sought first the kingdom of God.

These verses contrast God’s eternal salvation and self-existence with the temporary nature of things on earth. If we read Psalm 102:27-28, we find that God has no beginning and no end…He always was and will always be…and finally, He has, within Himself, the power of being, thus He requires no assistance from any outside sources to continue to exist. So hence, any earthly opposition is powerless to do lasting harm to those who believe in Him. For only the Lord alone has power over our final destiny. Jesus stressed this is Matthew 10:28 when He said, “Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” So when the world mocks and despises you for your faith, don’t be discouraged, dismayed, or demoralized…for your eternal Father has your back.

My identity in Christ is the very foundational belief of my Christianity and central to the Gospel Message. But as a fulltime caregiver for two loved ones, I must guard against being defined by the title rather than who I actually am. For as my world has gotten smaller & smaller, my self identity has decreased also…and with that comes the real struggle to keep all those sad and pitiful thoughts at bay. What helps are all the Scriptures that show me my identity in Christ – II Corinthians 5:17, Galatians 2:20, Ephesians 1:4-5, Romans 8:1-2, and Ephesians 2:8-10 for a few. And when I focus on them, I can face forward to care for others with Jesus as my model… rather than focusing inward in sadness.

Back in Genesis 49:24, God is called the Rock of Israel…a stone of help…a sure defense, steadfast in faithfulness and permanence. With that in mind, when it’s said for us to stand on the Rock…which should we have more confidence in…our ability to stand, or the Rock on which we stand? Within the passage about the Armor of God in Ephesians 6:10-18, the word “stand” is used in verses 11, 13, and 14, showing that it’s only with the Armor of God that we can withstand the enemy and stand firm. In fact, in verse 10 it starts off by saying, “Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.” Thus our standing then depends entirely on God enabling us to stand…or as Romans 14:1 states, “For the Lord is able to make him stand.”

Here, James is rebuking the person who lives life and makes future plans without any regard for the providence of God. Such a person lives without any consideration for the Divine Sovereignty of God, and just presumes what they want to do will happen. We all do that a lot…trying to second guess God. And what usually happens, is that we fail miserably trying to predict what He’s actually going to do. James goes on in verse 15 to instead preface our plans by saying, “If the Lord Wills”. That’s because in all reality, all future events are conditional to God’s Will.

The lesson of the lilies is to live simply and focus on God, and He will make use of us every minute of the day. For there’s only one way to develop and grow spiritually…and that’s by focusing on Him alone. Stop worrying about your ministry/service to others – simply pay attention to the Lord and His direction – and out of you “will flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:38) The lilies of the field simply are…just as the sun, the stars, and the moon, but just think of the service they render for all mankind. So consider this, the people that have influenced your walk with Jesus the most have not talked you to death, but rather, they have lived their lives like the lilies of the field…simply open and obedient…all the while molding and shaping you into the Godly person you are today.

Only God controls all things with His sovereignty and wisdom. And it’s just plain foolishness to think we have any direct influence over anything. I Thessalonians 4:4 urges us to control our own body, but even then, that’s pretty tough to do. James 3:8 laments that we can’t even tame our own tongue…and Paul bemoaned the fact that what he wanted to do he didn’t, and what he hated, he usually ended up doing. (Romans 7:15) And to this end, we then naively think we can control other people and their actions…which is total craziness. If we can’t control ourselves…we surely can’t control others. We must instead, learn to humbly position ourself before God…trusting in His knowledge and greatness…recognizing both our vast limitations and God’s infinite wisdom.

This verse challenges all Believers to seek the Lord even more earnestly with humility, righteousness, prayer, and obedience. It’s a timeless call for all Christians to purse, with serious intent, a right relationship with God… no matter how wonderful we think it is right now. But the interesting word that Zephaniah uses in this verse is “perhaps”…a tentative word that expresses both Zephaniah’s hope that the humble remnant will find refuge from the Lord’s wrath, but also implies his pessimism that the “shameless nation of Judah will actually seek God and repent.”