Let Us Draw Near

1 Samuel 14:36 KJV

And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and spoil them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them. And they said, Do whatsoever seemeth good unto thee. Then said the priest, Let us draw near hither unto God.

While Saul planned a raid on the Philistines the priest urged they first draw near to God. 

I find in this what should ultimately be the duty of every Christian since we are all made priests through Jesus Christ. 

The world plans things. They execute with more or less success their

• plans and
• programs and
• strategies

for conquest and spoil.

• Sometimes they have the good of people in mind
• Many times their only motive is self-serving

In either case, Christians are best used as salt and light when, while the world makes their plans, we urge them to draw near to God. 

The passage has a particular application to the preacher too. If there is anyone whose focus ought to be on calling men to draw near to God it is the preacher. Every Christian has a duty. The pastor has that duty more so, for he has given his life and has been called of God for this very work. Others may get preoccupied and forget. The pastor had better never get so preoccupied. 

Believe the Bible, Not Preconceived Opinions

1 Samuel 11:6 KJV

And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those tidings, and his anger was kindled greatly.

Here is an example of how we tend to interpret events of life and even the very Word of God off of our own preferences and background. We fail to see that there may be validity in another side because we don't want to see that validity. 

This passage clearly says that the Spirit of God came upon King Saul and that he was also filled with anger. The objections to Saul's anger here are a few:

• We know that he was chosen by a God rejecting people
• We know that Saul would soon reject God himself

Therefore we cannot use anything in the life of Saul as a positive example of a Biblical truth. 

I will give that Saul was chosen to be king after the insistence of a people who had rejected God from being their king. I will also give that Saul quickly turned from being a king after Gods heart. 

However the passage is clear; the Spirit of God here came upon him and his anger was kindled greatly. 

That a preacher would fail to see this as an instance of righteous indignation practiced by a man other than Jesus Christ can only be attributed to bringing a preconceived opinion to the passage. And that a congregation would hear and agree with his tainted interpretation, yea that preachers would follow such a tainted interpretation, can only be explained by their own preconceived notion that anger is a bad thing. We have all witnessed the devastating effects of an angry person. We may have been that angry person. And, having experienced that anger is most often a negative emotion; we look to mortify anger by calling it a sin. When, as in this case, a passage shows up which seems to teach against our preferred position, we accept any interpretation of the passage that reinforces what we already believe, namely that anger is a sin. 

But we do this in a dozen other ways as well. We want to believe a thing is either good or bad, right or wrong, because our experience has led us to see that thing in a particular light. We therefore look for ways to justify what we want to believe. Rather than accepting the Bible for what it says and approving of preachers who preach what it says, we tend to gravitate to preachers and churches that reinforce what we want to believe regardless of what it says. 

Gods Word is true. We must accept it for what it says rather than heap to ourselves to contortionists who make it say something entirely different and thereby appease the people.

Never Forsaken

Romans 11:2 KJV

God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew. Wot ye not what the scripture saith of Elias? how he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying,

Paul gives assurance that God had not cast away His people and that despite the fact that

They had killed the prophets 

Vs 3

God had placed before them a stumbling block

Vs 9-10

They as branches had been broken from the root of the tree

Vs 17

They had been broken off because of their own unbelief

Vs 20

If God would not abandon Israel for all of that then we may trust that God will not abandon us

• Though we are absolutely sure we deserve it
• Though it might often feel as if He has abandoned us

Still, God is faithful to His Word; He will never leave us or forsake us. 

Never Justified to Disobey the Bible

1 Samuel 8:5 KJV

And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.

Israel felt like they had justifiable cause to seek a king like the rest of the nations; it appeared to them that to allow the status quo would mean submission to Samuel's sons who were obviously not of the same heart as Samuel. They sought a change believing that change to be 

• Practical
• Typical and
• For the good long term

It just wasn't in accordance with the plan of God. 

A good many things that we find in modern Christian practice looks a lot more like Israel demanding a king than believers trusting God.  Years ago I spoke with a friend who is a part of the Conservative Baptist Denomination. His objection he said to the independent Baptist position had to do with the selection of pastors when a church is in need of a preacher. Without a denomination, he could see no efficient way for that church to find a preacher. Now, to be sure, many churches have been damaged by calling a pastor whose doctrinal convictions did not match that of the church. But the fact that sometimes a bad man gets put into a church when it is up to the church to find their own pastor in no way alters the Biblical precedent of independent churches whose only head is Christ. In other words, that an independent Baptist Church is capable of calling a bad man to be their pastor in no way justifies supplanting Christ as that church's head and putting some denominational board in His place. 

This same logic is what has led to the addition of trustees as a church office rather than the two offices we find in the Bible. It has led to divorced men being called as pastors rather than waiting for a man who meets the bible qualifications. It has led to men involving churches in worldly affairs, believing those affairs are important enough to supplant the biblical mission of the church. 

A friend if mine was recently counseled by well meaning Christians to take a course of action that is indeed contrary to the Bible, but appeared to them to give him greater leverage to accomplish a higher purpose. To his credit my friend elected to obey God and leave it to God to do what He chooses. 

The Effectiveness of the Gospel

Romans 9:6 KJV

Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel:

Though there are reasons to have as Paul described it "great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart" on account of those who are not saved and who turn aside from the faith, this is not to say that the Word of God is without effectiveness. Like the Jews who had every advantage and yet only a remnant of them turn out to be genuine followers of the Lord, so we discover that very few of those who have tasted the blessings of Christian faith are really disciples of Jesus Christ.

• Though they may put on a show and act the part of the believer
• Though they may pretend to serve God for a time
• Though they, through the strength of their own flesh, push themselves forward in Christian circles a while

sooner or later they stumble in the path. Christ must carry us through the way that leads to eternal life or we would all stumble. It is this that eventually reveals that their faith was not the true deal. 

But though we see a lot of stumbling, that does not mean that the Bible has been ineffective. There are also those who, though having every reason to stumble, just go on. 

A friend of mine who recently went to be with the Lord was one of those. He got saved. And his faith sustained him through every sort of trial. He did not understand why everything that happened to him happened.

His lot was to become a fundamental Baptist, a group of Christians that have always been the smallest contingent of believers. We have never been the popular church movement.

• His parents mocked a ridiculed him for his weight and for his faith. As far as I remember neither of them ever got saved but he kept on going.
• He faced a time when he had to attend church without his wife, but he kept on going.
• He struggled with finances. But he kept on going.
• There were those who rejected him because of his weight. But he kept on going.
• When I left Astoria and it became obvious that he could not stay in the church, he stepped out into a lifelong dream as an evangelist and kept on going.
• When he got MS and became bound to a wheelchair he kept on going.
• When he had a breakdown that changed his personality. He kept in going. 

He and others like him demonstrate the effectiveness of the gospel. 

Just Enough to Want More

Romans 8:23 KJV

And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

Paul's description of the saved in this verse is, [those] "which have received the first fruits of the spirit." 

He claims that what we as Christians possess is like an earnest:

• It speaks of something much grander to come
• It is pleasant
• It is rich but
• It comes short of the fullest expectation

What the Christian receives at salvation is just enough to make us hungry for the full fare. We receive at our salvation enough insight into heaven to make us realize we are not there yet. 

So what the Christian receives is a reason to groan. We learn at salvation that the promise of God is not ours in the fullest sense. We receive at salvation, a dissatisfaction with earth. And we receive this, not from men but from the Spirit of God. It is God dwelling in us that finds earth in its present state an unnatural place to live. 

The Spirit causes us to groan and then within us prays with groaning a that cannot be uttered. 

Let the War Continue

Romans 7:23 KJV

But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

The Apostle was not afraid to frankly speak about the difficulties he had with the law of sin in his flesh. He said it often confused him so that the good that he would he did not and the evil that he would not he did. He said that it frequently brought him into captivity to the law of sin. He said he saw no escape, no deliverance except through Jesus Christ. 

• There was no self-help program
• There was no medical cure
• There was no plan of action he could take

That would assure him victory in his war against the law of sin in his flesh. His hope was and would always be Jesus Christ. 

But this does not mean Paul gave in to the enemy. This is not a document of surrender. He used the word "warring" in a present continuous tense. This fight still raged on. And though in the book of Philippians he says he had not yet attained his victory. We know from II Timothy that he fought a good fight until Jesus gave him that victory in the end. 

There is only one victor, it is Jesus. But there is yet a command to fight. Surrender to this enemy is no option. 

Let the war against sin continue.

Affliction in the Physical and of the Property

1 Samuel 6:4-5 KJV

Then said they, What shall be the trespass offering which we shall return to him? They answered, Five golden emerods, and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines: for one plague was on you all, and on your lords.

Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods, and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel: peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.

Though no mention of the plague of mice is made previous to this, it is obvious that the Philistines viewed the affliction of their bodies and of their land equally as chastening for having God's Ark. 

• The physical affliction because they chose to take the Ark
• The affliction of property because they brought it to their own country

I am reminded that the original curse included both chastisement for Adam and Eve, and upon the earth. Our choices not only bear an impact on our lives but on those around us and often on those things we possess. 

• Times of drought
• Pockets with holes
• Infestations of pests

All can be consequences of sin as equally as can be some form of physical affliction or displeasure. Therefore when we seek to make restitution for sin we should include not only confessions and apologies but also financial and material restoration. Zaccheus, for instance, promised to restore fourfold to those he had wronged. He not only apologized, but he also returned what he had taken. 

Why Didn't They Surrender?

1 Samuel 4:7-9 KJV

And the Philistines were afraid, for they said, God is come into the camp. And they said, Woe unto us! for there hath not been such a thing heretofore.

Woe unto us! who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty Gods? these are the Gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness.

Be strong, and quit yourselves like men, O ye Philistines, that ye be not servants unto the Hebrews, as they have been to you: quit yourselves like men, and fight.

This is such an interesting reaction on the part of the Philistines and it reminds me that we can never predict the reactions of the world to spiritual things. True, the Jews were mistaken in their use if the Ark. It was never meant to be a good luck talisman. But the Philistines were right to be afraid of it, as was proven when they took it to their home. 

Why didn't they surrender when the Ark came?

• They had heard what the God of the Jews had done in Egypt. 
• They knew how God had caused the walls of Jericho to crumble. 
• They presumably knew about the Red Sea and the Jordan River

Why didn't they surrender under the influence of such terrifying prospects?

Men do not do the rational thing when it comes to faith in God. Just as being saved is not accomplished through a settling of the mind on spiritual things but by grace through faith, so disbelieving is in itself a kind of "anti-faith." It is a religion all its own based upon certain improve able principles the unbeliever believes as tenaciously as the believer believes God. And it is precisely because the unbeliever believes in his unbelief that he will frantically fight what he sees as belief. 

• He should surrender to God
• He should concede to God
• He should now before God

He often chooses instead to fight that much more furiously against God. 

The Cure for Fretting

1 Samuel 1:1 KJV

Now there was a certain man of Ramathaimzophim, of mount Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephrathite:

Hannah had an adversary

The Bible says that Peninnah, Hannah's adversary, provoked her the make her fret. This is the work of that adversary of every child of God, Satan. He provokes us to make us fret

• That despite the comfort of the Saviour
• That despite the love the Saviour has for us

The provocations of the devil seem to be constant and can happen anywhere from inside the home to inside the church house. 

We can do little about the provocations but we can do much about the fretting:

• We can pray and bring out requests to God
• We can dedicate ourselves and our things to God
• We can rejoice in our relationship with God and
• We can rest assured of answers coming from God

The cure to fretting is to focus on our advocate instead of our adversary. 

Ways to Make it Good

Ruth 3:2 KJV

And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to night in the threshingfloor.

This demonstration of the grace of God serves as a reminder that, as bad as things might look, God has ways to make it good. 

• Naomi had left Israel under a famine. It was a bad time 
• Her husband and sons died in a foreign land. It must have been a terrible time
• Orpah returned to her own people and, while Naomi approved of it and even suggested it, it would have meant more Loss of Naomi. This is a bad time 

By the time Naomi returned to her own country she was so downhearted and depressed she refused her own name and just wanted to be remembered for her pain. 

But God was at work. Ruth returned with her, providing a glimmer of hope. Ruth was of great character which gave Naomi a means of survival. Then God stepped in. The hap was that Ruth gleaned in the field of an eligible near kinsman. Ruth found the husband Naomi said couldn't be had and Naomi nursed a baby she could not have dreamed would be in her family. 

As dark as a day might seem there is always a reason to have hope in Jesus Christ. 

Orpah Kissed Naomi but Ruth Clave to Her

Ruth 1:14 KJV

And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her.

I see in this passage a contrast that has happened to me over and over during the years of ministry. There have been some who have clung to me. They have become fast friends who have both benefitted and been beneficial to the ministry God has placed me in. They are there in good times and bad. They are there when they agree and even when they disagree. 

On the other hand, there have been numbers who have departed, some who were angry for sure but more who left pretending to still be friends. They have kissed me on the cheek as it were while they packed their bags to abandon what we have been called to do 

• One family urged me not to feel uncomfortable when we saw each other at various fellowship meetings
• Another family announced to the church that there were zero problems between us as they said goodbye and moved their membership to another local church
• Still, another family wrote an open letter proclaiming how the only thing that would make their new membership at the church just blocks away from ours was if I and the pastor of their new church were co-pastors together. They zealously wrote that, should that happen, they would be on the front pew "amening" the both of us as we preached 

They "kissed me" but then they forsook me. 

Now all of this is to be expected I suppose. I am far from perfect and could never perfectly pastor any person. But this contrast is also apparent in people's responses to Jesus. I see some who love the Lord with all of their heart and soul and mind and cleave to Him regardless of pain and loss. I see others who claim to believe and love God but live in total disobedience to Him and His Word. They kiss Him on the cheek as they betray Him for the world. 

A simple kiss is no substitute for truly cleaving to the Lord. 

Why?

Judges 21:3 KJV

And said, O LORD God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to day one tribe lacking in Israel?

These men asked why such a thing had come upon them.

• Why had Benjamin so sinned that it was necessary to judge them?
• Why had the judgment become so severe that they were now in danger of the extermination of that entire tribe? 

Reading this account, and the account of the whole book of Judges, it is not difficult to see at all. They did every man what was right in his own eyes. No one was obeying God's Word. 

It is an observation that very often those who complain "Why?" are those who least wish to obey God. They do things without consulting God, often believing they are doing it in the service of God, and when it goes awry, blame the judgment upon God. Too often they do exactly as these Jews do and, in a rash effort to resolve the trouble they created, do equally evil. 

When one finds himself constantly asking "Why?" it may be time to

• Stop
• Get some sound counsel and
• Start obeying the Bible

rather than his own ideas of right and wrong  

They Do It Anyway

Romans 1:32 KJV

Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

The Bible speaks of a people who know the judgment of God and sin against Him anyway. At least one generation this passage must target is our own.

• Never before have more people been aware of the Bible and its message.
• Never before has the Word of God been preached in one form or another to as many nations and yet
• Never before have men so blatantly and maliciously turned against the message of the Bible to do and have pleasure in them that do sin

God be merciful. 

The Hope of Israel

Acts 28:20 KJV

For this cause therefore have I called for you, to see you, and to speak with you: because that for the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain.

Paul told the Jews in Rome that it was for the hope of Israel he was bound. Jesus is not merely the hope of the Christian and not just generally the hope of the world, Jesus is specifically the hope of Israel. 

That people so long ago called out from out of the world to be a blessing to all nations

• Needed a hope
• Needed a blessing
• Needed a Saviour

Paul, who was called to be a preacher among the Gentiles, never forgot that the gospel was given first to the Jews. Though he fervently served to win Gentiles to Christ he was forever anxious to win whatever Jews he could as well. Being in Rome, he began his work by carefully expounding to them from the Scriptures why Jesus was their promised Christ. He offered the hope of Israel to every man he could.

Let the World Drive

Acts 27:15 KJV

And when the ship was caught, and could not bear up into the wind, we let her drive.

Having not heeded the Apostle's warning they find themselves in perilous circumstances. Those whose lives were spent manipulating the wind and sea for their own purposes, those who deemed themselves experts in driving ships found themselves overpowered. They were forced to let go the ship and let the storm drive her wherever she pleased. 

This passage, being often used as a type for life; it feels like our world is in such a storm right now and the so called experts

• Experts in education
• Experts in socialization
• Experts in politics
• Experts in world issues
• Experts in science

Have simply committed the ship to the storm to let her drive. The world is out of control. The downhill slope of degeneration is steeper now than it has ever been. Not America only but all the world is spinning into decay. 

The good news is that, just as there was in that ship, there are a handful of people, however small the number, who still hear the voice if God and still see the path of salvation. In such dire circumstances Paul cheered the souls and calmed the fears of these powerless experts. 

The Bible makes it clear that not everyone will make it safely to shore from this storm driven life. But everyone could be saved if they would only come to trust the wonderful Saviour, Jesus Christ. 

Never Routine

Acts 26:30-32 KJV

And when he had thus spoken, the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and they that sat with them:

And when they were gone aside, they talked between themselves, saying, This man doeth nothing worthy of death or of bonds.

Then said Agrippa unto Festus, This man might have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed unto Caesar.

Paul poured his heart out before Festus and Agrippa, giving them his testimony

• from youth
• through conversion
• to a lifetime of serving Jesus

He ended with an appeal for faith on the part of Agrippa and the rest. But when all was said and done they just walked away as if it were another day in the local courts. It appears that Paul's "sermon" had no more power than any other speech these men had heard in their careers. 

A preacher can often feel just like Paul might have felt after this effort. People file in to the church auditorium, they sing the songs, hear the sermon and then walk away visiting with one another about the football game they are about to enjoy. It appears that the sermon was just routine. 

But was it?

Though as far as we know neither Festus nor Agrippa were ever converted, the message Paul preached was recorded forever into the Holy Word of God. God listened that day. God impressed this defense so deeply into the mind of Luke that when penning this account he could give eternity the words of the sermon delivered to Agrippa but meant for every human soul. 

And I am convinced God listens to every heartfelt and honestly delivered sermon a man of God preaches. Whether it is to a handful of people or a stadium full; whether it has immediate results or is essentially ignored by the audience, God hears, God cares. God is our true audience. 

They Sure Can Hold a Grudge!

Acts 25:2-3 KJV

Then the high priest and the chief of the Jews informed him against Paul, and besought him,

And desired favour against him, that he would send for him to Jerusalem, laying wait in the way to kill him.

I am impressed with how long the Jews held their grudge against Paul.

• Felix had kept him bound two years
• By this time Felix is replaced
• Who knows where Lysias has been assigned?
• The Jews from Asia are certainly not nearby

The fact is that none of Paul's original accusers were even available. 

• But still, the chief priests wanted Paul dead so badly that it is their first order of business with Festus
• And still, there are liers in wait ready to assassinate Paul

After two years their fury with Paul has assuaged none. This man who cared so deeply for the Jews that he said he could wish himself accursed for them is so hated by them that they refuse to be pacified with anything less than his demise. 

The evil heart of the world against Christ's followers can be nothing less than satanically inspired.

• Nothing else explains their hatred
• Nothing else explains the lengths by which they will go to destroy the faith

Nothing but the promises of God can sustain the people of God in this evil world. And nothing but the return of Christ can change the downward course of this world. 

Figures Can't Lie, But Liars Can Figure

Acts 24:6 KJV

Who also hath gone about to profane the temple: whom we took, and would have judged according to our law.

I was impressed with the tactics of Tertullus before Felix this morning. I see first

His gracious words toward Felix 

The fact is that the Jews hated the Roman occupation of their country. Surely the leading Jews employed Tertullus because he was able to act as if he truly did honor Felix and his office.

His deflection of bitterness toward Lysias

I see in this an under the breath way to vent against the Romans. He accuses Lysias of interference in their own affairs. It is as much as saying that they wouldn't have had to bother Felix at all except that Lysias prevented them from killing Paul right then. 

His accusations against Paul

Made out to sound as if they had real evidence against Paul, they neglect to tell Felix that those very Jews who were eyewitnesses to Paul's supposed crimes in the Temple were: one, not from Jerusalem and, two, not present at this proceeding. Those Jews who had assented that the words of Tertullus were so were not even witnesses to the fact. 

All this reminds me of something my father in law used to say; "Figures can't lie, but liars can figure." Lies couched in the right context can be very convincing. Tertullus seems to have been the right man to spin a myriad of lies into a convincing argument. 

Momentary Visitations

Acts 23:11 KJV

And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome.

No question, these were tense times for the Apostle. Though God had warned him and he was ready to be bound or to give his life for the cause of Christ, this would have indeed been stressful. His nerves must have been tried as he faced

• the jeers of the Jews
• the threats of the Romans and
• the multiplicity of answers to the counsel

Paul had nearly been torn apart that day by the opposing parties within Judaism. This night the Lord came to cheer him. It would be one of a handful of such visitations meant to strengthen him through these difficulties. God did not give him these sorts of visitations every night. And just because there was such a visitation was no sign that the pressure would ease up. It was after the visitation Paul learned of forty men who had sworn an oath to kill him. No, the pressure was still there but so was God's promise. 

And so it must be with us.

We don't experience daily and constant miracles and manifestations of God. We do have times in our walk when we sense the unusually near presence of God. We have times when, in our personal times of devotion, God's Word becomes especially alive for us. There are times when a church service will be more than a little meaningful for us. These times are meant to cheer us and encourage us. They do not mean our battles are over. We faced trouble before and we will face them again. The "visitation" was only meant to encourage us on our way. What we do have in the middle of every trial is this assurance, God's promises are certain.

Go in the strength of that assurance. 

A Curious Medley

Judges 18:19-20 KJV

And they said unto him, Hold thy peace, lay thine hand upon thy mouth, and go with us, and be to us a father and a priest: is it better for thee to be a priest unto the house of one man, or that thou be a priest unto a tribe and a family in Israel?

And the priest's heart was glad, and he took the ephod, and the teraphim, and the graven image, and went in the midst of the people.

Here is, as one commentary puts it, "a curious medley of low morality and deep religious feelings". Such is often the case of man. Our nature, though corrupted, is a spiritual one and seeks a means to worship even in the most debased of lifestyles. Many of the worst offenders in sin have been church-going and often respectable church members. Sometimes, as in the case of this priest, they are in the ministry, but for all the wrong reasons. 

We experience in our day a sad number of men who see their calling, not to faithfully minister to those God puts in their lives, but to build up a ministry; to advance in the ministry. Because they seek to advance, nearly anything that leads to such advancement is considered to be of God. They will gladly take from another ministry and view it as a gift from the Lord, seeing that it makes their own ministry seem more successful. To steal a family from one church to add that family to his own is to not only steal the family but the tithes, the spiritual gifts and the time that God had given to the other church. These, who see no authority over their lives but that of success, happily take what belongs to another as their own, calling it the blessing of God. 

And if they are challenged for their theft, as Micah challenged these thieves? They chide him as a fool and urge him to keep silence. They might do him worse harm than just the loss of God's gifts if he pursues in his quest to see those returned. 

The Pastors' Dilemma

Acts 21:18-20 KJV

And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.

And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.

And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law:

When Paul reported to James and the other elders present in Jerusalem they rejoiced in the news of the Gentile conversions but they confessed to Paul their dilemma; they pastored thousands of Jewish believers who, though professing Christ, had never separated themselves from their old culture. These pastors found themselves in the position of compromising truth (at the very least suppressing it) in order to maintain their large congregations. Their compromise - and Paul's submission to their request, led to Paul's arrest. 

Pastors find themselves in this dilemma almost daily. People come into our churches making professions of faith but dragging with them the baggage of their old culture and way of life. We want to give them time to grow so we say little about the baggage. But after a while we become somewhat dependent upon the person and more or less used to their baggage. In time, if we are not aware, we may even find ourselves defending their baggage. 

This scenario is the root if much of the spiritual and moral declension in churches. We want to reach people, the world is growing darker and darker so churches embrace more and more of the darkness in order to reach people. 

There is only one answer to this dilemma; to do as Paul taught and preach "not as pleasing men, but God which trieth our hearts". We may not have the thousands any more, but we will begin to climb out of the darkness if compromise. 

Christian, be thankful for a preacher who urges you to change your culture. It might be uncomfortable and often irritating, but it is the only way you will learn to walk in the spirit and not in the flesh. 

To Use a Friend

Judges 14:20 KJV

But Samson's wife was given to his companion, whom he had used as his friend.

The language here is different than we would use today. The implication is that this man was like Samson's best man. He was responsible for the festival and for communication between the bride and the groom. It is in this connection he likely developed a relationship with the bride son that, when Samson left apparently angry, he assumed the role of the groom and stole his bride. 

But there are no mistakes in the Bible and this phrase (used as his friend) would mean something very different today; it implies that the relationship was false. That he only used him but that he was not his true friend. The actions of this companion prove that he was never truly Samson's friend or he would not have taken his bride. 

There are so many subtleties in the passage that it is hard to sort them out:

• Samson his from his parents that he sought an occasion to avenge them of the Philistines
• Samson also hid from them where he had gotten the honey
• Samson hid from his companions and bride what was the answer to his riddle
• Samson was hiding from his companions his intent to avenge Israel of them

Albert Barnes well writes, "It should be noted carefully that the practical lesson against ungodly marriages comes out most strongly in this case and that the providential purpose which out of this evil brought discomfiture to the Philistines, has nothing to do with the right or wrong of Samson’s conduct."

To use a man as a friend and not to be his true friend, regardless of the reason, is never the right conduct.

Preservation of Benefits Over the Elevation of God

Acts 19:27 KJV

So that not only this our craft is in danger to be set at nought; but also that the temple of the great goddess Diana should be despised, and her magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worshippeth.

Demetrius betrays what are his true motives and what are the motives of all that are in the world. The worship of Diana was famous in Ephesus but it was also by that worship he made his wealth. While he could appeal to the masses in Diana's defense, his motive was, first and foremost, to maintain his wealth and livelihood. 

So must we be on constant guard for this conflict within our own hearts. 

• On the one hand we are believers
• On the other, we derive benefits from our faith

We have to be always watchful that we do not let the preservation of our benefits take precedence over the elevation of our God. 

Separation of Church and State

Acts 18:14-15 KJV

And when Paul was now about to open his mouth, Gallio said unto the Jews, If it were a matter of wrong or wicked lewdness, O ye Jews, reason would that I should bear with you:

But if it be a question of words and names, and of your law, look ye to it; for I will be no judge of such matters.

I cannot say that Gallio was a good man or that he did his job justly but he was on the fringe of understanding the doctrine of separation of church and state. As the deputy of the region, Gallio was responsible to maintain civil government. He knew that and though he did not follow through on his responsibilities (verse 17; he allowed the beating of Sosthenes by the local Greeks) he did acknowledge having authority over such matters. 

But he also recognized that place where he had no authority; over matters of faith and spiritual ideas. Pilate came very near to the same comprehension though not quite as developed as Gallio. These men saw intrinsically that these spiritual matters were out of their hands. They did not respond properly to the pressure of the people but they did have some illumination into the differences in authority. 

Years of experience has demonstrated that

1. The separation of church and state is vital to the freedom of conscience all men seek

2. The nature of humanity nearly always prevents those in authority from grasping what they know in their heart must be true.

Despite the obvious truth of separation of church and state, men in power almost always apply state authority over spiritual matters. 

We must teach about urge on and expose even the slightest breech of such separation.