Feigning Just

Luke 20:20 KJV
And they watched him, and sent forth spies, which should feign themselves just men, that they might take hold of his words, that so they might deliver him unto the power and authority of the governor.

They "feigned themselves just men." They likely could justify their lie because they believed they were right (just).

I am afraid churches are filled with people who feign themselves just. By far the greater number of them has deceived themselves and believe they are just. They see themselves as righteous and they see themselves as right, even when they take up a cause against the work of the Lord. They are not justified before God, but they are just in their own eyes.

But the Bible gives the true record, Jesus perceived their craftiness and God never fails to see who is truly just and who merely feigns the same. Since our nature is to see ourselves as just men we are dependent upon the Lord to reveal to us what He perceives is the truth about us.

It is not in the asking of questions about the details of religion we will find the answer for justification; it is in listening to the Lord as He searches out our heart.

Sinners Come in All Shapes

Luke 19:7 KJV
And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.

When Jesus went into the house of Zacchaeus they that saw it began to murmur. It really does not matter who we try to reach, someone is going to murmur about it.

They all said Zacchaeus was a sinner. Sinners come in all shapes and sizes.
• The woman taken in adultery was a sinner.
• The man born blind was a sinner.
• Zacchaeus, the tax collector was a sinner.

Jesus sought to reach everyone from the woman at the well to the more well to do. He even ate with Pharisees and scribes, who were, by the way, also sinners, willing to reach them with the Gospel.

I am reminded to ignore the complaints of those who watch me and attempt to reach souls where ever I may have opportunity.

No Mercy Without Merit

Luke 18:13 KJV
And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

Scofield's Notes says," the Bible knows nothing of divine forgiveness apart from sacrifice."

And then describes how even this publican, who, being a Jew, would have been instructed in the Law, understood in that Temple that sacrifices are offered for the atoning of sins. He would not have been thinking of mere mercy, but of mercy springing from the blood sprinkled at God's altar.

So today we have people crying out to God for mercy but some of them are doing it without effect because they hope for mercy with no merit. Mercy is always undeserved, but it is never without merit. Mercy can only come through sacrifice and that sacrifice must be the blood of Jesus Christ.

Mercy comes through appealing to God through the blood of Christ.

First Must He Suffer

Luke 17:25 KJV
But first must he suffer many things, and be rejected of this generation.

That which Jesus suffered was not an accident that caught God off guard or an inevitable clash between that which is holy and that which is worldly; The suffering of Christ: His death, His burial, and His resurrection were planned precursors to the glorious kingdom ordained of God.

Gill says Jesus must suffer and be rejected before that kingdom should come, "...on account of the purposes and decrees of God; the covenant engagements of Christ; the predictions of the prophets of the Old Testament, and his own; and the salvation of his people."

• How above us are the plans of God!
• How infinite are His works.
• How needful it is that we simply trust Him.

Faith, Not Impression

Luke 16:31 KJV
And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

God's Word says that the Moses (the Law) and the prophets is what persuades a man to turn to Christ. Miracles, though used to verify that Jesus is Lord, never have persuaded men to come to Christ. Jesus raised,
• Jairus' daughter
• The widow of Nain's son
• Lazarus, and then
• Rose again Himself
Still numbers are left unpersuaded.

Salvation comes through faith and not impression. No man will come to salvation because something strikes awe in him.

Faith is only and always the gift of God, passed on through hearing the Word of God. So we must tell the Word.

Come Out Of The Pig Pen

Luke 15:17 KJV
And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!

Sinners are not in their right mind.
• The blindness of the devil
• The rashness of the flesh and
• The pull of worldliness
drag us into sinful life choices that just do not make sense.

Like the most modern campaign for American eaters to "think before we eat" if we thought before we acted on the impulse of the flesh we would clearly see the folly of sinfulness.

So this young man; every choice he has made since demanding his father's inheritance, has been insane. Under no normal and wise conditions should a man ever choose what he has chosen. And then, each new choice becomes more insane than the previous one, dragging him deeper and deeper into the darkness of his sin.

But "when he came to himself..." in a moment of clear headedness this young man realized what he had done.

I expect that all of us have those moments, maybe many of them - moments when the light of God pierces through the blindness of Satan and we see what we have gotten into.

The question is what do we do when those moments come?

This young man got out of the pig pen.

And perhaps the greatest lesson from the story is that, when those moments of clear sight come, there is always the opportunity to follow the light out of the darkness.

The Test Of Discipleship

Luke 14:27 KJV
And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.

The Bibles says that there were great multitudes following Jesus when He turned to them and, in words that had to have been taken sternly, gave them a threefold test of discipleship;
The test of devotion.
Vs 26
The disciple must love the Lord above all else. Family and friends cannot be first for the disciple.

The test of witness.
Vs 27
The English word for witness is the same as martyr. The earliest form of witness was martyrdom. The disciple must testify for Christ.

The test of perseverance.
Vs 28-33
There is no turning back in discipleship.

The would be disciple who fails the test is like salt that has lost its savor and is good for nothing.
Vs 34-35
Salt can't lose its saltiness. So a true disciple cannot fail the test. To fail merely proves the one was never a true disciple.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem

Luke 13:34 KJV
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem..."

Our Lord frequently exhibited various emotions during His earthly walk.
• He wept
• He groaned
• He cast out the money changers

It is easy to see here His heartbreak for the city and people of Jerusalem. This place has long been the center of the Worship of the true and living God, but it was not that God needed this place, but that men needed the God who set Himself to be worshiped there.

God seeks in love to gather souls, yet they would not. Like my quail chicks who instinctively fear me from the moment they hatch, man flees God. The sin instinct is to flee from Him rather than to flee to him.

The purpose of true religion is to resist that sin instinct and to flee to Him when all the world tells us to do otherwise.

What Keeps Your Light Burning?

Luke 12:34-35 KJV
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;

The context takes us from covetousness through treasure to light.

Light has to do with our preparation for the Lord's return. The believer is to be a light in this world, declaring that he seeks a better country.

But we can not convincingly make that declaration if we are entangled in this world.

The proof that we look for the Lord's return is that we hold such little worth in this world.

Ask

Luke 11:9 KJV
And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

The context is certainly of prayer and, though the conclusion is to ask for the Holy Spirit it seems obvious that the is not the exclusive petition for which we may ask. The model prayer includes much beside that.

So ask.

Seek the Lord's wisdom in what to ask, but ask Him.
Do not limit your prayer life to one thing or the other, ask.
• Ask the Lord for daily bread
• Ask the Lord for forgiven sins
• Ask the Lord for deliverance from evil and temptations

Ask.
• Ask for grace to forgive and love and seek the good of those who have hurt you.
• Ask for the resources to minister to those who have come to you in need.

Ask.
And it shall be given unto you.

Seek To Be Justified, But Not This Way

Luke 10:29 KJV
But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?

This lawyer
Came to the right man
Jesus Christ is the only one qualified to answer the question which is the great commandment. Man's opinions on this matter hold no weight. Only God is qualified to answer the question.

Asked the right questions
A man needs to know what the expectations of the Lord are. True enough; the law was not given that a man would obtain righteousness through its keeping. God had another thing in mind. To find out the mind of God; this was wise indeed.

But he gave the completely wrong response
Coming under conviction he should have appealed to the Lord's mercy and found that God Himself was willing to justify him. Instead he did what is the natural and satanic thing, he wanted to justify himself. He did not want to confess his guilt and seek justification from God. He wanted to maintain his own god like status. God was willing to justify him through Jesus Christ. But he would rather justify himself.

This is our trouble too. When confronted with our sin rather than humbling ourselves and confessing it, we seek to justify and excuse it.

What Spirit Is That?

Luke 9:55-56 KJV
But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of.
For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.

I am reminded that one of these two is the beloved apostle.

John is a man who is noted for loving Jesus and instructing believers to love one another. But here, and on their way to Calvary, John is asking if they should send fire down to consume a city. Samaria has rejected Christ. He is on His way to Jerusalem and sends to find a place of lodging there, but He is rejected because He is determined to go to Jerusalem.

This looks like it has every reason in the world to justify judgment, but that spirit is not of the Lord. God does chasten today, but it is very likely that the spirit in man that seeks to chasten is not of the Lord. Our spirit ought always to be to seek and to save, not to rain judgment down.

When those times come that judgment must happen, the Christian heart must not rejoice in it, but trust God that He would be glorified by it.

Ours ought always to be to seek salvation of sinners and reconciliation of brethren.

How Ye Hear

Luke 8:18 KJV
Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have.

In the context it is obvious the possession is the light of life, eternal life. It is received through hearing (the Word of God) and some hear it, but have not fully received it.

Jesus said take heed how ye hear. Having pastored these many years I have witnessed a number of ways people might hear the Word.

Some hear with the intellect.
They look for doctrinal accuracy; they strain to hear that thing they believe gives cause to criticize the preacher.

Some hear for entertainment.
They have favorite preachers and judge one to be better than another based upon their ability to stir and keep a crowd.

Some hear impatiently.
They are busy over a number of things even while the Word is preached.

Some hear passively.
Their ears no doubt note the voice, but the message is not getting through.

Others hear spiritually.
The Word that is preached takes root even while it is preached. They are encouraged or convicted or instructed or stirred by the Word itself.

Jesus then said of this possession that those that have it will get more of it; a saved person grows. But those who only seem to have it will lose that part they seem to have.

A person should take heed right here.
Some seem to have this light of life, but Jesus said they do not have it in fact.
• It might be others believe they are possessors of eternal life.
• It might be they believe themselves to be possessors of eternal life.
But they only seem to have it. And in the end, they will lose even that which they seemed to have.

Take heed; do we possess the light of Jesus Christ or do we merely think we have it?

Faith and Works

Luke 7:40 KJV
And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on.

Luke 7:50 KJV
And he said to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.

When Jesus showed Simon the woman's testimony, He pointed out her works. But when he addressed her concerning her own salvation He spoke of faith.

Only faith saves, but only works bears testimony of salvation. Work is essential, not to the saving of the soul but to the ministry toward others.

Here is the balance between faith and works. Faith saves and leads to the works that ministers the love of God to others.

The Manic-Depressive Personality

Joshua 7:11 KJV
Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff.

The root lesson of this verse is that Israel, and for that matter the people of God, are a unity. We rise and fall together.
• As a church and
• As families.
One in the body impacts the body as a whole.

The context is a demonstration of what modern day man would call the manic-depressive. The world has labeled, (and too often Christians have bought into it) as a disease, what is nothing more than sin left alone.

First Israel was ecstatic, confident and high.
They had won a huge victory at Jericho and they felt very good about it.

But when they lost at Ai
They immediately ended in the depths of depression.

They then fall on their face before God
But He refused to let them stay there. This was a matter of sin. Deal with the sin and the despair will disappear.

What is the cure for the manic depressive?

First, seek God.
Although Israel was in the place God gave them, they did not seek God in Ai. Too many claim to be saved and attend church but they do not get their directions for life from God.

Second search out the sins in life.
Do not expect that because you do not realize it is a sin in your life that you can get away with it until God convicts you. Set your life along side the holiness of God and dig out what is sin. Discover it. Ask God to reveal it.

Third, have no mercy on the sin.
It is the cause of the manic depressive personality.
• It must be mortified.
• It must be dealt with.
• It must be stoned, burned and buried.

Fourth, get up.
Do not lay down defeated. Having dealt with the sin, seek God's direction and move forward once again.

They Forsook All

Luke 5:11 KJV
And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him.

Luke 5:28 KJV
And he left all, rose up, and followed him.

Two times in this chapter we find the report that someone forsook all or left all to follow the Lord. Previous to this Simon and James and John had become disciples of Christ. But a new thing happens here. It is not until this chapter that they gave up the old man to follow the Lord. They had, as it were, attempted to put new wine in their old bottle and it wasn't working. Not until they forsook all could they truly follow Christ.

So could they be genuine believers without forsaking all?

The Bible says in John 6 that when Jesus had preached His hard sayings everyone forsook Him. Everyone except those who had forsaken all.

No.

We cannot serve two masters.

We must forsake all that we cling to in this world if we would follow Christ into the next.

What Brought Them Out Brought Them Forward

Joshua 4:23 KJV
For the LORD your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over:

The same God that brought Israel out of slavery will bring them forward into newness of life.

There are at least two ways to view the two partings:
First, as a nation.
It was through this impossible feat that God delivered them and through the same impossible feat that God gave them the land of the Canaanites.
The God who saves us is not shortened after our salvation. After forty years of living after the flesh Israel needed to see, as we do today, that God is very able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.

The second view is to take into consideration that we are looking at a brand new generation.
Those who had crossed the Red Sea were all dead by now. These are their children and children's children. 1 Corinthians 10 says that the Red Sea was a baptism. Now it is their children's turn. They cannot go on their parent's baptism. What is the spiritual experience of Mom and Dad does not translate to their children. Each generation must meet God personally and each new generation must follow Him as their own God.

My Father and My Mother and My Brethren

Joshua 2:13 KJV
And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death.

Rahab's concern is not only for the saving of herself but also for those she loved.
• She believed that the God of Israel is the true God.
• She believed that destruction and wrath were imminent.
• She believed that salvation was possible by seeking it.
But she could not ask for it for herself alone. Others must be saved too.

And that is the way it is with true conversion. The one who is born again has a supernatural desire to see others saved as well. They cannot help but be so. The truth of wrath is too real to them to keep it as a secret sort of salvation. They must warn others and, being convinced they have the means of salvation they must convince others to come into that means with them.

Today

Luke 10:2 KJV
Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.

Yesterday I got my third picking of green beans from our garden. I planted a lot of green beans this year: more than anything else, because we like them and because the seed went farther than the seeds for anything else.

Picking the beans is not easy work. By the time I am done I am very sore. We also picked squash and zucchini and had to pick it all because it was getting too big.

All of this meant that Anita spent all day putting up the produce.

And I got to thinking about the harvest. When it comes ripe you have to either
• eat it up or
• put it up or you will ultimately
• give it up.
It will not keep.

So in the spiritual world, what God is doing in our lives must be responded to. We must not put off the word of God as it is preached to us. We must not ignore or otherwise procrastinate when God is doing a work in our lives.
• It will not keep.
• It will not wait.
What God is doing, He intends to do now.

Today is the day, now is the time. Respond to God today.

People Like This

Luke 1:23 KJV
And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.

What an amazing testimony has Zacharias.
First. He was doing his ministry according to the order for the priesthood.
He did HIS job.

Second, he did it for years with a broken heart.
Though he and his wife were well-striken in years, the desire and prayer for a child had not diminished. Still, he kept on.

Third, the Bible says that even after the two very BIG events of
• a promised child and
• his speech being taken from him
he still stayed and finished his days of ministry before returning home.

Lord, give us people like this today!

For I Know

Deuteronomy 31:27 KJV
For I know thy rebellion, and thy stiff neck: behold, while I am yet alive with you this day, ye have been rebellious against the LORD; and how much more after my death?

Deuteronomy 31:29 KJV
For I know that after my death ye will utterly corrupt yourselves, and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days; because ye will do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger through the work of your hands.

Moses knew the hearts of the people to be both rebellious and of a corrupt nature. And no wonder.
First, he had the experience of 40 years.
• He had seen their rebellion.
• He had heard their murmuring.
• He had witnessed how quickly they could be turned aside to other gods.

Secondly Moses knew his own heart.
While he had been a humble and meek servant of the Lord, still he would not personally enter into the Promised Land because of his unbelief.

Now, against this rebellious and corrupt nature; God placed the Law. It was "a witness against thee".

God's law both highlights our nature as sinful and points us to a way of life. Covered as it was, in that ark, the people were forever reminded that blood atoned for the breaking of the Law, which is sin. Christ's blood shed at Calvary forever atones for that sin and provides access into the holiest place with God.

For Those There; and Not

Deuteronomy 29:14-15 KJV
Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath;
But with him that standeth here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day:

While the covenant and oath was first to the Jews this text tells us plainly that it belongs to even those that were not there that day.

Let the Gentile peoples take heed.
Ignorance of God's covenant and oath does not excuse us from it.
• We are as responsible for our sins as ever a Jew was.
• We are as guilty of rebellion as if we had been standing before God when He gave out the Word and
• We are as needy of Jesus Christ as any of the children of Israel.

But too,
Let the Gentile take heart.
We have every bit the access to the promises of God for
• Redemption
• Forgiveness of sins and
• Salvation from eternal damnation.

No one is excluded from the grace of God. Though we were not there when the covenant and oath was given, we still bear responsibility to it and may partake in the blessings of it.

Is America a Cursed People?

Deuteronomy 28:15-16 KJV
But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:
Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.

Is America cursed? The media argues the point whenever any well known preacher says it. How dare any man, even a preacher, to say that God would judge us! But God defines what is a cursed people in Deuteronomy 28. All we have to do is see it.

America                                                                    Not

Vexation and Rebuke Vs 20                                   Pestilence Vs 21
Americans are not well liked in the world

Illness Vs 22                                                            Sword and drought Vs 22
Americans have illnesses that are known only in
wealthy Western cultures

Fleeing from enemies Vs 25                                   Scorching sun Vs 23-24
We have now left at least three battlefields before the
victory was secured: Viet Nam, First Gulf and Iran

No allies Vs 26                                                        The botch of Egypt Vs 27
Fewer and fewer nations of the world will side with us.

Madness and blindness Vs 28-29
Americans are hopelessly blind to the course we are currently
taking. We are blind to the curses we endure right now.

Immorality and divorce Vs 30-31
America's divorce rate, and America's tolerance, even glorying
in our immorality is a sure sign of judgment. It is so bad that even
preachers now justify divorce and compromise the Scriptures
to allow for divorced men to serve in the pastorate.

The scattering of the family Vs 32, 41
A mark of our blindness; we encourage our children to grow up
and move so far away we only see them infrequently, if at all.
We marry them off to people whose homes are so far away that
we inevitably split some family.

The overtaking of our land by other nations Vs 33-34, 43
Go to almost any convenience store, service station or motel in America
and it becomes obvious that we are giving our business away to people
who have no intention of integrating among us but only to take our wealth
and give it to their homeland.

Weakness Vs 35-37
If we use this allegorically we may easily see that America is becoming
a weak and tired people, We are losing our ability to be a leader in the world.

Poor economy, little product Vs 38-40, 44
Too much of American product is made in another land. We live as a nation on
that money we have borrowed from nations that are philosophically our enemies.
Recently our own military considered purchasing aircraft made by other countries.
Even when we do make a product in the United States much of it is outsourced to
businesses outside of America.

Ten out of the fourteen curses are easily identified with America's current circumstances. No question about it; America is cursed.

Watch

Mark 13:37 KJV
And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

I count four times in this chapter Jesus says "take heed. "

Mark 13:5 KJV
And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you:

There will be those who, satanically inspired, will seek to deceive you and draw you after false Christs. Deception is a tool of the devil and is active in the world today. Deception renders the lost blind to the gospel. Deception prevents the believer from surrendering fully to Christ. Take heed of deception.

Mark 13:9 KJV
But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them.

There will be dangers that come from leaders and governments, both political and spiritual. This world is a dangerous place for the person who is surrendered to Christ. We do not take heed to avoid the danger. We take heed that our message is of the Holy Ghost despite the danger.

Mark 13:23 KJV
But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.

There is among us a place to find the warnings concerning these troubles. Jesus has given us His Word and it forewarns us of all these things. Ours is to know the Word of God clearly and carefully.

Mark 13:33 KJV
Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.

There is this one uncertainty; we "know not when the time is". Therefore we are told to watch and pray.

So all of these "take heeds" l become summed up in this one word, "watch."

Remember Our Lowly Stock

Deuteronomy 24:22 KJV
And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt: therefore I command thee to do this thing.

God's Word mentions repeatedly that Israel was a slave in Egypt. Because they were slaves in Egypt they were
• To be kind to strangers
• Never to hate the Egyptians
• Make provisions for the poor and the traveler.
God ends chapter 24 by reminding them to remember they were bondmen.

It would do us all well to remember we come from lowly stock. Our heritage is not that of which one would boast.
• We are sinners, redeemed out of the waste.
• We were strangers from God and His covenants.
• We have been raised to this place before God only through His grace.

May we never forget!

One, Two Three

Mark 11:11 KJV
And Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple: and when he had looked round about upon all things, and now the eventide was come, he went out unto Bethany with the twelve.

This chapter marks the beginning of the last week of the Lord's life. It contains three days and three visits to Jerusalem.

Day one, Triumphal Entry
He looked round about on all things. He surveys the city for the great event.

Day two, He cast the money changers from the Temple and teaches.
His house must be prepared for the great event.

Day three, He is questioned by the scribes and He teaches the parables of Mark 12.
He describes the consequences of the great event.

See More Than You See

Mark 10:14 KJV
But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.

Sometimes just the order of things in the Bible teaches volumes.

Chapter 9, in teaching them about the greatest in heaven, Jesus took a child in His arms and taught them to receive children. Here we are just one chapter further into the Word and those same disciples were rebuking people for bringing children to Jesus.

No wonder the Lord was displeased.

There is a lesson here about children's ministries, but there is also a lesson about lessons. Chapter nine is concerning the subject of greatness: it appears that the disciples may have so focused on that part of the lesson they did not see the second lesson about children. This chapter comes along to clarify that second lesson's validity.

We too can be so focused in our minds about one thing in the Scriptures that other and equally important lessons escape us. A man may be so caught up in a mountain view that he does not see the eagle soaring in the same frame.

Learn to take in all, or at least as much of the truth of God's word as possible. Refuse to allow your mind to have such a narrow focus that it misses everything that is not in its already determined search.
• Learn
• Grow
Let Christ be your teacher rather than just using the Bible to find what you want to teach.

Man

Mark 9:32 KJV
But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him.

The Word of God is, among other things, a remarkable study of man. We have in this chapter the contrast between the saved and the lost.

The lost come running together, vs. 25, to see the side show.
A demoniac was about to be healed. I wonder if the language doesn't suggest Jesus cast out the demon BEFORE the crowd could gather for the spectacle.

Then we have the man who believed even with unbelief.
This seems to me to be a description of every believer. The more we believe the Lord, the more we realize how little we trust Him.

Finally there are the disciples.
They are,
• Afraid to learn what they don't know
• Jealous over who is greatest
• Angry at anyone who isn't with them

True lessons in humankind!

The Value of the Soul

Mark 8:35-37 KJV
For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.
For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

In today's Christianity most do not see the problem here.
• There is, in their opinion, no exchange to be made.
• They can, they believe, have the world and have their soul.
This sort of thinking suits the modern day mentality but not the Word of God. No such compromise with the world has been hammered out with Christ. The expectation still is (vs 34) "let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me."

Nothing in this world is worth the loss of the soul. Modern men have come to feel eternity without God is not so bad so long as life now is grand. We have,
• Devalued the worth of our soul
• Inflated the worth of the world and
• Trivialized the price of hell.

May God give us eyes to see our error!

He Cannot Be Hid

Mark 7:24 KJV
And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid.

He could not be hid...
It is the nature of the presence of God that He cannot be hid. Where ever God is
• There is truth
• There is light

Light always drives away darkness just as truth always drives away the lie.
• The presence of the Lord confronts evil and sin.
• The presence of the Lord exposes error.
He just cannot be hid.

The Damage of Unbelief

Mark 6:6 KJV
And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.

That Jesus Christ could enter the town where He has grown up;
• They knowing best His testimony since a child
• They being best able to compare His testimony with the claim of deity
• They seeing Him heal sick folk (though it was but a few) and
• He, having preached with such authority among them:

That they would not believe was a wonderment to the Lord.

We ought to take care to cultivate a heart of faith and belief in the things of the Lord. We ought to be cautious lest an evil heart of unbelief well up in us and much damage is done in our souls.

All The Truth

Mark 5:33 KJV
But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.

She told Him all the truth.
• About her illness
• About her efforts to be healed
• About her thoughts concerning Him
• About touching His garment
• About shrinking back in the crowd.

While Jesus would have known these without her confessing them, the disciples would not have know and consequently, we know all these things only because she told Him all the truth.
Jesus did not need to speak to her as much as
• We needed her to tell all the truth so we could know what had happened and
• She needed to tell all the truth to become accustomed to being an open witness for Christ.

And we learn from her to be equally forthcoming.

The Candle and the Candlestick

Mark 4:21 KJV
And he said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick?

A candle is not to be hidden but on a candlestick. Light is only useful when it is set out and up.

Our church parking lot has light set twenty feet in the air. The higher they are, the more ground they will light. So is the light the Christ places in those who are His. Our Christian light needs to shine. We need to give ourselves devotedly to let the world see the light.

And if that light be in us it should not be so difficult. All that must happen is that we set the light out.

The candlestick, according to Revelation chapter one is the church. So when the candle, which is the believer, is placed in the church and then sets to work for God in that church, the light becomes compounded and more brilliant.

Those Drawn To Christ

Mark 3:9 KJV
And he spake to his disciples, that a small ship should wait on him because of the multitude, lest they should throng him.

Jesus had opportunity to minister to and heal multitudes but He is continually seen withdrawing from doing so.
• He commanded that they would not make Him known
• He requested a ship so the crowd could not throng Him
• He took His twelve into several retreats

True enough, He had compassion on the multitudes and would not send them away hungry, but He did send them away.

There are two kinds of people who seem to be drawn to Jesus:
One kind comes for what they believe He can do for them.
It is that crowd that never lasts and it is that crowd He seems to shy away from. Not that He does not love them, nor that He will not do them some good, but they are not His true disciples.
The other kind comes because He alone has the Words of eternal life.
It is Christ alone who can spare us from the wrath which is to come. It is Christ alone who can redeem us and make us whole spiritually. And it is this group the Lord invests in.

How Is It With Our Children?

Deuteronomy 12:25 KJV
Thou shalt not eat it; that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the LORD.

Deuteronomy 12:28 KJV
Observe and hear all these words which I command thee, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee for ever, when thou doest that which is good and right in the sight of the LORD thy God.

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.

Once in chapter eleven and twice in this chapter I find this same concern of the Lord. What goes with us will almost surely go with our children too.

If we observe to do what is right with the Lord the likelihood is that our children will as well. But if we begin to compromise; if we follow after only some of what God chooses and live much of what we please, then we can expect that it will not go so well for us and certainly not for our children.

• We see that fleshed out in Israel today; a people who are nothing like the promises God made them.
• We see it too among many Christians whose walk with God is not wholly for the Lord, they are not seeing their kids growing up to follow Christ.

 The reason so many are leaving the church after reaching adulthood is not because of what they learned at church but because of what they learned at home. The fault of the church is that it has too long tolerated half hearted Christianity as being the real thing (probably because that keeps them in the church and that keeps them giving) and not insisting that true faith always leads to true godliness.

This One Thing

Deuteronomy 10:12-13 KJV
And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,
To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?

The word of God is written in such a way as to make these requirements seem, small, easy to be accomplished. God does not require much for Israel to be are right with Him. Only,
• Fear the Lord thy God.
• Walk in all His ways.
• Love Him
• Serve Him with all the heart and soul.
• Keep His commandments and statutes.

No big deal. But no man is able to do this perfectly. Israel never did keep these five. Of all that God commands, if we boil it down to just this, we still can't keep the requirements. And that is the major point of the law: we can't do it. God never intended that we do this for our righteousness. He has provided a better way in Christ, our Righteousness.

This is something I can do. I can trust Christ for righteousness. I can lay all my sin on Him and believe He is able to keep my soul before God.

And this is all I need to do. Christ does the rest in me.

Remember, Observe and Consider

Deuteronomy 7:18 KJV
Thou shalt not be afraid of them: but shalt well remember what the LORD thy God did unto Pharaoh, and unto all Egypt;

Deuteronomy 8:1 KJV
All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers.

Deuteronomy 8:5 KJV
Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD thy God chasteneth thee.

Here are three admonishing words given to the Jews, but have some implication for Christians too.
First, remember what God did in Egypt.
When fear begins to overwhelm and when the enemy appears too powerful to face, remember what God has done. His power has not abated and His hand is not shortened. He is still able to fight for us.

Second, observe to do His commands.
Obedience to the Lord does not come naturally but supernaturally. If we are to obey the Lord we will need to study His Word and seek His enablement.

Third, consider that just as a father chastens his children so does the Lord His people.
This is not meant to bring fear into our hearts, but comfort. God will not leave us to ourselves. His plan is to bring His people up, to parent them and guide them and train them until they be formed into the image of Christ.

If God Had a Wish

Deuteronomy 5:29 KJV
O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!

I am sure God is sovereign. But I am also aware that, for the sake of bringing man to worship Him out of love, He has allowed the devil to influence this world and He has given man the right to disregard Him if they please.

Here we find people whose plan is to have Moses speak with God and bring the message back to them. They say that all that God tells Moses they will hear and they will do. God's response is "O, that there were such a heart in man..."

God's great desire is that
• Man would fear Him from the heart, that
• We would keep His commandments, and that
• It would be well with our children

That desire will be fully the realized in the eternal future, when God's plan is finalized that the mankind that enters eternity will be such
• That love and fear of God,
• That keep His commandments without the rod, and
• That go into eternity in perpetual wellness.

Consideration

Deuteronomy 4:39 KJV
Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the LORD he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else.

The difference between knowing something and having it in our heart might be defined by the word consideration. Reflecting on the things of the spirit; allowing them to slowly and deeply sink in, these are the things that make truth dwell in us. God promises to bless the one who meditates upon the Word of God, and not just reads it. Consider this in your heart;
The Lord is God and there is none else.
• There is no other God in which to turn.
• There is no other God upon which we should give worship.
• There is no other God whose commands we should obey.

The Lord is God in heaven and in earth.
• He is not just the God of the mountains, but also of the valleys.
• He is not only God in a perfect environment but in the dark world too.
• He is not only God of His dwelling, he is God of the devil's habitation.

Not In Vain

1 Corinthians 15:58 KJV
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

Andrew Murray in his book, Working for God points out that, "after fifty seven verses of exultant teaching concerning the mystery and the glory of the resurrection life in our Lord [there is] ...just one verse of practical application." The whole chapter on the resurrection glories boils down to this - always abound in the work of the Lord.
• Never slow down
• Never give up
• Never faint.

Though there may be times when it appears that the labor is not going so well, though you will sometimes not see the fruit and the produce of your work you may be assured of this truth.

Your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
• Labor on in the Lord
• Labor with anticipation and fervor and hope
Your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Cities and Suburbs

Numbers 35:8 KJV
And the cities which ye shall give shall be of the possession of the children of Israel: from them that have many ye shall give many; but from them that have few ye shall give few: every one shall give of his cities unto the Levites according to his inheritance which he inheriteth.

The cities of given to Levi remind me of today's tithe:
• They were given for the cares for those who were their ministers
• They were given so those ministers could be scattered among the people
• They were given in proportion to their possessions:
Those who had many cities were to give many; those who had fewer cities were to give fewer, each tribe according to their gift.

The cities not only provided for the Levites a place to live but a means of making a living. Around each city was a designated space called the suburbs and it was in that space the Levites could raise their own crops and meet their own needs.

God has provided that those who give their lives would be provided for. The Levites and the priests do not answer directly to the ministry of today, but in principle that same is true. God cares for those who take up the care of His flock.

That's How!

Matthew 23:33 KJV
Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

This chapter is filled with the accusations of Christ against the scribes and Pharisees. When the devil accuses it is nothing for the brethren because our Saviour advocates for us. But when God points his finger at our sin, how miserable must be our case!

And the question Christ brings is one every man must ask himself. When confronted with such sin, "how can we possibly escape damnation?" It is the work of the Holy Ghost to bring us to see our miserable and helpless condition. It is impossible for us to escape the judgment for our sins.

It would not be difficult for us to say, based upon this passage that it would be impossible for these Pharisees to escape. And we would not be far off. But with God nothing is impossible.

We have proof in the account of Saul. This Pharisee of the Pharisees this persecutor of the saints not only escaped the damnation of hell himself but has accounted for the saving of countless numbers through two millennium.

It is God.
That is how a soul escapes damnation.

In the middle of sin; in the heat of his own way Christ confronted Saul of Tarsus, called him and converted Him.

That is how any soul escapes the damnation of hell.

Live!

Numbers 33:1
These are the journeys of the children of Israel, which went forth out of the land of Egypt with their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron.

Something I have been noticing for several days now:
• It was in chapter 27 that God said Moses was to die and Joshua was chosen to replace him.
• Then in chapter 31 God told Moses to enter battle with the Midianites and then he would die.
• Today I read through chapter 34 and Moses has still not gone to be with the Lord.

This does not mean that God doesn't say what He means.

Perhaps the chronology is blended some. After all it is Moses who wrote this and he could not have done that had he died on the spot.

I see in the passage a man getting things in order. Moses did not receive a death sentence and give up living. He used every day of life to live fully and serve God wholly even when that day would be his last day.

And there is in this a great lesson for us to never give up. I would say
• Raising up a leader of Israel
• Defeating the Midianites and
• Giving a recording of the travels of Israel in the wilderness
Was a pretty fair work for a man who had one foot in the grave!

Live!
• Even when the body begins to wax old and the strength begins to decay.
• Even when the doctors tell you the worst;
Live!

It may be a man can accomplish more in his last days on earth than he ever accomplished when he had his whole life ahead of him.

Blind Pride

Matthew 21:38
But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.

How blind a man can become who has taken advantage of God's grace!

• It was the lord who had planted this vineyard and it was the lord who had let it out to these husbandmen.
• It was the lord who had been gracious in their treatment of the servants.

Why they would not fear when they killed the heir and why they would presume that they would keep the inheritance is beyond reason except that they, being emboldened by their previous sins and blinded by their own pride could not think right?

And so it is with man today. God has planted this great garden we call life. He has let it out to us to tend and use for His good pleasure. But we have mistreated it. We have done with it as we have pleased. From time to time God has sent to us witnesses to call us into account, but we have shunned them. In the case of the lost, He sent his Son to save them but we have denied Him and wicked man crucified Him. Now we have a generation so emboldened in sin as to presume there is no God. They have determined that this inheritance may be seized upon by us. And they disregard any warnings of future reprisals. Would to God our eyes were opened to the grace of God before it is eternally too late.

Servanthood

Matthew 20:26-28
But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;
And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

Matthew Poole says that by these instructs our Lord means:
"1. To distinguish his kingdom from the kingdoms of the world. …
2. To condemn ambition and pride in his disciples, as making them most unfit for this kingdom."

Our Lord values servanthood above leadership. Jesus came not to be a leader but to be a servant, not to organize and inspire a movement, but to give His life.

The highest ideal a man may aspire to is a life given for the sake of God and of others. May our Lord so impress upon us our tendency to sin and to reverse this concept.

Ours is to spend ours lives for the good of others and for the glory of God.

Lacking

Matthew 19:20
The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?

The rich young ruler had no trouble approaching Christ to ask about eternal life. He was not hesitant to say that he had kept the laws of God (and went so far to ask the Lord to be specific) but he still knew he lacked something. He knew he did not possess eternal life.

I believe there is in every unsaved man this same sense of lack. Though they may not speak of it; thought they may deny it and cover it up, still this sense of failure before God exists. They may have added to their lives things intended to ease the conscience over this lack, but still, the lack is there. When the young man admitted his need, Jesus drew deeper and instructed him to give away his wealth and follow Christ.

It seems to me this is the process of coming to faith. We have to get past morality. We have to go deeper than good works. The Lord will bring us to that one thing we cling to that is not God. When we let go of that and follow Christ, we are where eternal life dwells. It must be Christ alone.

Not that every believer must forsake all in order to be saved but every believer must let go of it all to be saved. Christ alone. That is our hope.

Faith, Prayer and Fasting

Matthew 17:20-21
And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

Jesus said two very important things about why the disciples could not cast out the demon.

• It was because of their unbelief.
• It was because this kind required prayer and fasting.

Prayer and fasting are effective tools only when supported by faith. Or else prayer and fasting are those tools that serve to increase our faith. No real work is accomplished simply because we go without a meal; the why is the key. The faith, the belief is the answer to it all. It is the faith that transforms the work of a man to the work of God through the man.

Gospel Christ or Righteous Christ

Matthew 16:17
And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

Matthew 16:23
But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

Peter hears from our Lord one of the highest compliments and the harshest rebukes almost the one right after the other.

It provides us with a warning that walking with Christ must be done diligently and with care moment by moment. Not that Peter could have lost his salvation; it is obvious that his relationship with Christ continues, and that unaffected, but that closeness, blessedness of daily rejoicing in Christ must be tended to. Satan is ever diligent to throw us off track. We must be therefore so much more diligent to watch the track.

And see where Satan threw him off: on the doctrine of the Gospel. Satan's message through Peter was that we do not need the Gospel Christ, only the righteous Christ. We do not need, so said Satan, a substitute, we only need an example and an encourager. If only we had Jesus as a leader, says Satan to man, we would not need a Saviour.

May God helps us to always see and be happy to hear rebukes that lead us back to the Gospel.

Balaamism II

Numbers 24:25
And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.

The story of Balaam is a sad commentary on what happens when one who walks with God compromises with the world. Balaam enters into a relationship with Balak that was contrary to the will of God. He knew it, but chose to enter into it anyway because God didn't kill him for doing it.

But watch his frustration and misery throughout chapters 23-24. He appears to be trying to get Balak to obey the Lord. He gets Balak to offer sacrifice after sacrifice, he hears the message of God and returns it to Balak, but what does he get in return?

• Balak chides him
• Balak berates him and, in the end
• Balak disappoints him

When it is all said and done Balaam has nothing bettered anything.
• He has not converted Balak
• He has not honored the Lord (though he did bring the Lord's message)
• He has not been promoted

It all sounds like worldly Christianity today. There is such an attempt to convert the world by joining the world. But what has been the result? We have so called churches filled with false professors and a handful of frustrated believers who think that by putting up with the worldly they will somehow reach the worldly.

In the end,
• God will not be honored through these efforts
• The lost will not be truly converted by these efforts and
• The compromising believers will lose rewards in heaven because of these efforts.

Balaam would have been much better off joining the camp of Israel. And we will be much better off coming out of this world and clearly identifying with Christ.

Balaamism

Numbers 22:5
He sent messengers therefore unto Balaam the son of Beor to Pethor, which is by the river of the land of the children of his people, to call him, saying, Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt: behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against me:

Scofield's Notes have some very insightful things to say about "Balaamism."
"Balaam is the typical hireling prophet, seeking only to make a market of his gift. This is "the way of Balaam" (2Pe_2:15) and characterizes false teachers. The "error" of Balaam" (Jud_1:11) was that he could see only the natural morality -- a holy God, he reasoned, must curse such a people as Israel. Like all false teachers he was ignorant of the higher morality of vicarious atonement, by which God could be just and yet the justifier of believing sinners (Rom_3:26). The "doctrine of Balaam" (Rev_2:14) refers to his teaching Balak to corrupt the people whom he could not curse; (Num_31:16); (Num_25:1-3); (Jam_4:4). Spiritually, Balaamism in teaching never rises above natural reasonings; in practice, it is easy world-conformity."

• Watch Balaam as he hears the message from God and struggles with obeying the Lord or accepting promotion.
• See him as he makes a vain show of piety, insisting he cannot but speak what God has said and yet
• Notice that in the end, it is man, not God he really serves
Is this not exactly what we see in so much of Christianity today?

I think we could call much if not most of Christianity today Balaamism. There is a show of seeking God and there is access to God in many of the churches today, but there is no real intention to obey and follow Him.
• They salve their consciences with the fact that they have a show of worship and
• They justify what they do by reasoning God did not forbid them from doing it but
• They cannot see the real truths of atonement.
• They press for a worldly morality, not able to see a higher morality that is in Christ and
• They choose the easy and the worldly road.

Is there an answer to modern day Balaamism? Of course there is because in Christ there is always hope. The answer must always be in an absolute surrender to Christ and a coming out of the world. No portion of this world will ever be pleasing to God. No amount of reason and justification will make compromise with this world acceptable to God. No sort of apparent success will ever be proof enough that a worldly course is within the will of God. Only absolute surrender to Christ will reverse the course of Balaamism in the churches of today.

Marching On!

Numbers 21:22
Let me pass through thy land: we will not turn into the fields, or into the vineyards; we will not drink of the waters of the well: but we will go along by the king's high way, until we be past thy borders.

A similar story is recorded in chapter twenty with these significant differences:
First in the case of Edom, Moses emphasizes that they are brethren. Though generations had drifted the families apart Moses never forgot the relationship. Obviously Edom did

Second in the case of Edom, Moses went around rather than fighting. He did appeal twice but on the second refusal he departed.

Third Aaron died between Edom and Sihon.

Scofield says that the wanderings of Israel ends with Aaron's death and it is from there Israel marches to the Promised Land. It is not difficult to see a new spirit in Israel as they become warlike right away, defeating Arad, Bashan and Og. This is the Lord's doing but it is something to seek the Lord for; we need to be a people on the march and not merely a people who are wandering.

• We need to be a people of purpose and direction, not just a people who survive the day.
• We need to be a people of victory and backbone and not really a people who back away from standing for Christ.

Clean for Unclean

Numbers 19:9-10
And a man that is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer, and lay them up without the camp in a clean place, and it shall be kept for the congregation of the children of Israel for a water of separation: it is a purification for sin.
And he that gathereth the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: and it shall be unto the children of Israel, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among them, for a statute for ever.

A man that was clean was instructed of the Lord to minister on behalf of the congregation in a manner that would make them unclean.
At first thought I considered the work of the missionary who leaves homeland to try to reach souls for Christ, or I thought of the witness, who steps into a risky place sometimes because he longs to see souls saved.

But though each person is needed in the ministry it is not a true type of the minister because the New Testament counsels that as we try to reach these people we do so with fear "hating even the garment that is spotted by the flesh." we are not to make ourselves unclean in our desire to see another become clean.

This man is rather a type of Jesus Christ, who became sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Christ alone became unclean that we could be made clean. Then for three days and three nights He was separated from His Father in the grave before He arose victorious over sin and death.

I am clean because He became unclean for me.

Moses

Numbers 17:10
And the LORD said unto Moses, Bring Aaron's rod again before the testimony, to be kept for a token against the rebels; and thou shalt quite take away their murmurings from me, that they die not.

The text does not tell us how Moses was to take away their murmurings, unless it was in the saving of Aaron's rod as a testimony against the rebels.

What the Bible does say is that Moses did as the Lord said. What an example Moses is of humility and faithful service to the Lord. These are a people who had
• Forfeited the Promised Land
• Challenged Moses and Aaron's authority and
• Murmured against them when God caused the earth to swallow Korah Dathan and Abiram.

These were a people who had caused that Moses himself would not go into the Promised Land (though I am not discounting Moses' own sin and the waters of Meribah) and he spent the rest of his life ministering to people who would wander until they died. Still Moses consistently ministered to them for their good.

I sometimes believe that we are living in such days when the majority of mankind have forfeited the grace of God upon themselves. Sin, humanism and pride have so swallowed up men that I wonder if we aren't just wandering around until this one last generation has passed.

Even if that is the case the task of the believer today is to serve God by attempting to be a blessing to men.

May God help me to be a blessing.

They Didn't Spoil God's Plan

Numbers 15:2
Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land of your habitations, which I give unto you,

In chapter 14 Israel is sentenced to wander in the wilderness for 40 years as a result of their unbelief at Kadesh Barnea. It is worth taking note though, that immediately following the sentence God gives them instructions about what to do when they do enter the Promised Land.

Though they have forfeited their own entrance God wanted them to know they could not forfeit His promise for all of Israel and for all of time.

Our own sins may cost us. The consequences may be severe, but God's promises are sure and eternal and inviolable by men. What God has said is true and sure regardless of men and no man, or generation of men, is able to spoil His promise.

The Work of Love

Matthew 9:2
And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.

It is easy to see in this account, that the purpose of the Lord was the forgiving of sin.

The faith of this man's friends caused them to bring him to Jesus and brought Christ to forgive his sin. Any other blessing, any other work the Lord would do was secondary to that work and was meant only as a sign that He had done this work.

If the chief characteristic of Divine life in us is love and its work of blessing men then the chief blessing is to bring to them, not the message of healing, or prosperity or of peace with others; but to bring to them the message of peace with God because of forgiven sins.

And this work is meant of the Lord to bring good cheer. Jesus did not say, "be of good cheer, you will walk again." but "be of good cheer your sins are forgiven."

I note that the multitudes were impressed with the healing and not the forgiving of sins. But the multitude also forsook Jesus over His hard sayings. It is the forgiveness of sins and the word of eternal life that will keep us next to Christ. It is that message that we must bless men with.

Don't Tell!

Matthew 8:4
And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.

As He was coming down from preaching His Sermon on the Mount there came a leper to Christ who believed Christ, if only he were willing, could make him clean. Christ was willing and he was healed. And then Christ gives this man a remarkable commandment, don't tell. He had received such a miracle in his body. The change was
• Immediate
• Complete and
• Thoroughly life changing.Yet Jesus' command to him was not to tell anyone what Jesus had done. He was supposed to obey the Mosaic instructions for a leper who had been healed and everyone who knew him would immediately see he was healed. But he was not to set out to purposely tell.

I have wondered at these many times in the Word where Jesus told men not to tell. There are some other times, as in the case of the possessed man of Gadera, that he was specifically instructed to go and tell. We have our explanations of course, but all of them are speculations because the Bible doesn't tell us why some were to tell and others were not (with the exception of when the reason was that Christ's time was not yet come).

It seems to me that the lesson is that
Everyone telling is not Christ's will.
Some should not tell because the Lord has some other purpose for them. Others should not tell because their testimony is not right. I know some so called Christians I wished would not call themselves such.

The one who has been truly converted will need no command to tell.
His very life will be a more powerful testimony than any words could ever be. Others speaking about what Christ has done in him will be much more effective than anything he can personally say. No doubt there is a Bible mandate to be witnesses. But the sort of witness we are in these days is to be called into question. We have changed witnessing into a science that needs neither the filling of the Holy Spirit upon the witness or the calling of God upon the "witnessee" to be successful and it has turned Christianity into one of the biggest sources of derision in the world today.

What Is Your Fruit?

Matthew 7:16
Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
The Lord said we could know the authenticity of the prophet by his fruit. It should not be difficult then to see whose ministry is of the Lord and whose is man made. It is just a matter of examining the fruit. And herein lies some of our trouble.

First, we ignore obvious fruit.
We see things that are in contradiction of the Word, but because we don't want to rock the boat or perhaps we like the prophet, so we ignore fruit of the wrong sort.

Second we look for the wrong things as right fruit.We think of
• Excitement
• Enthusiasm
• Largeness and the
• Impressive
as the right fruit. We have plugged in worldly values as spiritual fruit.

Genuine fruit, on the other hand, would be things like
• Humility
• Christlikeness
• A sojourner's mentality
• Meekness
• Concern for the glory of God and
• Etc.

We will know them by their fruit but we must know how to find fruit!

Trust

Matthew 6:27
Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
Just as a man has no power to add to his height or physical presence, our Lord suggests we not add to our financial stature through human means. It is sure that a person may hedge himself toward a more prosperous future through education and through earnest pursuit. But that focus is not the most valuable one.

Our Lord says it would be better to pour ourselves into knowing the Lord and trust the Lord to care for us.

It is still a matter of the heart; where our treasure is, there will our heart be also.

My purpose in life is to be to follow after Christ. He will provide and care for me as I do that. He always has. I am confident He will continue to do the same.

Righteousness

Matthew 5:20
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.

The focus of the Sermon on the Mount is the matter of the heart. The righteousness we must have for heaven is a righteousness that stems from the heart.

And in order for the heart to have righteousness it must be made new; it must possess Christ. No man can make himself have a new heart. It is impossible to will ourselves to love a person or a thing. This must come of God.

Love may be won. A man may win the love of a woman for instance and the Bible tells us that God wins our love by first loving us.

When we suffer for righteousness' sake it is suffering for Christ and not for doing the right thing.

Angels

Matthew 4:11
Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

The book of Hebrews tells us the angels also minister unto us.
• How real
• How helpful
• How substantial
this ministry must have been for our Lord. He had been so sorely tried and it had been such a real struggle, though it was a spiritual struggle. Now the devil left him and the angels came. The angels did not come while the devil tempted him, but after.

Perhaps the ministry of the angels is not to support us in our times of temptation but to refresh and heal and lift us up after the battle is over. Or perhaps they had been battling in the unseen realm and, when the battle was over gathered around our Lord.

The ministry of the angels is real, it is substantial and I want to accept it is fact and rest in that ministry.

Fifty

Numbers 8:25-26
And from the age of fifty years they shall cease waiting upon the service thereof, and shall serve no more:
But shall minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus shalt thou do unto the Levites touching their charge.

The Levites were to wait upon the service of the tabernacle from twenty five years old until they were fifty. After fifty they were to cease from the service and from then on minister with their brethren in the tabernacle. Because of some other texts I believe that means they changed from the physical labor of the ministry to more spiritual and mentoring type ministries.

Being now fifty two years old I am aware that in my younger years I did not know very much though I did think pretty well of my accomplishments. But I also know, now that I am over fifty, that I still don't know much. Perhaps I am more unsure of what I know than any time previous in my life. I am certainly not qualified to be a mentor. Further, I am not sure I know anyone that I believe does know any more than I do. I am fearful of men who presume to teach because I see so little that I perceive to be of God.

May the Lord guide and help us!

Wise Men

Matthew 2:3
When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

When the word of the wise men, that He who was to be king of the Jews had been born, the Bible says that Herod was troubled.

We know, of course, why. He was troubled for his job. A rightful king, whether really from God or just perceived to be by the people, meant problems for his own reign. Loss of power, problems managing the people and associated troubles with the Romans, would be the only results to these claims so far as Herod could see.

But the Bible says that all of Jerusalem was troubled with him. I can assume some of those troubles are related. If Herod was troubled that in itself could mean trouble in Jerusalem. That the man was violent is obvious from his future actions in Bethlehem. Jerusalem would have known what he was capable of before Bethlehem and it would certainly have troubled them. But the testimony of the Jews reveals that they were not on a whole honestly seeking the King of the Jews. Christ came to them but they received Him not. Religion has a way of becoming its own movement and losing its sole function of bringing men to Christ. Jesus can Himself become a problem for the religious man. He disturbs the plans men in religion have set in motion.

The wise men seem to have been a different sort. Though we think of them as kings, wealthy and powerful what they really are is a dispossessed and sojourning people, probably few in number, they gave what was valuable to Christ and left homes, society, properties and what would have been considered worldly successes just to find Jesus. So willing to follow the Lord were they that when they left Israel, at the warning of the angel of God, they went another way. What they were used to, what was their custom, was abandoned to be honest followers of the Lord.

May that also be my testimony.

All Man and All God

Matthew 1:1
The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

The key characters so far as the plan of God for the Christ are Abraham and David.
• No mention is made of Isaac and Jacob, though their roles are vital.
• No mention of Judah, whose tribe the Messiah was to come. There is also no mention of Solomon whose family genealogy this is. (Though Christ's blood is not in Solomon)

The characters that sum up the line of the Saviour are David and Abraham.
Abraham represents and establishes the humanity of Christ. As the father of the Jewish race and the father of those that believe, Christ was born into that line.

David represents the kingly aspect of Christ. Though He is all man, he is also royalty, Sovereign and all God. Though David was only human, the Bible makes it clear that this son of David would not see the physical corruption David's body did.

He is God.

The Beginning and the End

Revelation 22:1
And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

Revelation 22:3
And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:
The throne of God and of the Lamb...
This throne seems to be as opposed to the throne of David that was the promise of Israel. That promise having been fulfilled the eternal plan has gone on to better things.

Israel is no longer the people of God, in fact in this eternal vision people don't seem to be the focus at all, but God and the Lamb. There are, of course, people there, but they are where they really always belonged, in the background.

The Bible doesn't end on the note of mankind. It ends on the note of God.

May my days begin and need in God.

A Refreshing Future

Revelation 21:6
And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.

"I will give unto him that is athirst" there is a unique element in these words in that John has been translated into what is still future for us but his message comes back to those of both his and our present.

What God will do is intended to refresh those who keep the future in our minds. God's consummated plan comforts the far sighted child of God perhaps more than small blessings today.