Categories
Tag: christianity
Categories
The Great Mountain
There are moments in life that we call, “mountain top experiences.”
Like a GPS (global positioning satellite), our minds can take us back to places and locations where we fought battles that effected our hearts and minds.
Sometimes, the struggles wrestled within our spirits, and barrages of attack where even our bodies were worn down to the point where we couldn’t see a way through the craggy pass.
There is a place on top the mountain for you.
God has established it there.
Text: Daniel 2:31-35
(31) Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible.
(32) This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,
(33) His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.
(34) Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.
(35) Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.
I am preaching tonight from this thought:
The Great Mountain
It is 606 B.C., and four young men (teenagers really) have been forcibly taken from their homes in the nation Judah, and marched 880 miles into a land of exile to serve Nebuchadnezzar in the gentile city of Babylon, in the land of Shinar.
In Babylon, their captors try to rob them of their identity and these four Hebrew boys (Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah) receive new Babylonian names (Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego).
It might seem simplistic to say this, but I rise to tell you once again that your adversary, the devil, seeks to devour you.
Jesus said, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”[1]
He wants to erase all identifying markers from your life that would remind you of your identity.
You are a child of the living God. Your Father is the One who created you and made you. You are part of His people and the sheep of His pasture.
You can rest sure tonight in your identity in Jesus.
This foe would love to put on you a name of shame that marks you as his possession, but we serve the only wise God – Jesus Christ.
There are places in Scripture where people received new names, either by the LORD or some loved one because they refused to allow some negative moniker be put on them for the rest of their life.
How would you like to go around with name “Ichabod” (“no glory”[2])? Why Ichabod? Why No Glory?
“And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband. And she said, The glory is departed from Israel: for the ark of God is taken.”[3]
Every time Ichabod entered a room they all knew he was named for the day God’s presence left the children of Israel when the Philistines in battle took the Ark of the Covenant.
“…The glory is departed…”
There was no one there to say, “NO! We are not going to call him by that name.”
And he went his entire life with that name of shame upon him.
There is Rachel, she is dying, and she is getting ready to pass this life after giving birth to her second son with Israel.
“And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin.”[4]
Benoni = son of my sorrow[5]
Benjamin = son of the right hand[6](“right hand” symbolizing strength)
You have a name given to you, by the Lord. Do not let the enemy put a name on you that separates you from His presence, and hinders you from reaching your potential in Christ, and in life.
Names like: Loser, Failure, Liar, Thief, Addict, Useless – some of the many names the father of lies has tried to put on you.
But, Jesus, “the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God,” has a name for you.
What is that name?
Will you choose to wear it?
Isaiah 62:1-4
(1) For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.
(2) And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name.
(3) Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.
(4) Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah [my delight[7]], and thy land Beulah [to marry[8]]: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married.
God has a great name for you. He wants to delight in you, you are the apple of His eye, and He loves you with an unfailing love.
The name of Jesus Christ is the name we take on when we are baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins.
That name is “a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord…”[9]
You became espoused to Jesus Christ the moment baptism took place. Why? Because you were baptized in His name.
If you have not been baptized in His name, then you have not taken on the family name.
You need to take on that name because in Jesus “dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.”[10]
When you take on that name in water baptism all the characteristics of God are available to you.
Let’s talk about our Husband:
- Isaiah 54:5, “For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.”
- Our secular culture today resists the Creation account in Genesis, but when you stop believing in the Creation then you lose contact with your Husband.
- You were made in the image of God.
- Matthew 28:18, “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.”
- 2 Corinthians 11:2, “…I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.”
- When were you espoused to the Husband? When you were born again of water and Spirit.
- When you went down in the waters of baptism and took on His name as the preacher said, “I now baptize you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost,” and you came up out of that water a new creature in Christ Jesus taking on His name.
- Ephesians 3:14-19, “(14) For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, (15) Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, (16) That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; (17) That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, (18) May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; (19) And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.”
Our identity is complete in the Lord Jesus Christ, and we are filled with all the fullness of God, and He has a great love for you.
So, never allow satan the pleasure of calling you by some other name because you have been called by the only saving name that is above every name:
“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”[11]
“Jesus is the One, Yes, He’s the only One”[12]
We love the fight, the grit, the determination and the dedication of these four young men to Jehovah:
- Daniel and the lion’s den – he refused to stop praying
- The three Hebrew children and the fiery furnace (Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah) – they would not bow to an idol. They were told to bow, they were commanded to bow, but they refused to bow.
Don’t bow to an enemy who wants nothing but your destruction.
Do not compromise yourself for other people.
David Johnson & Jared Runck point out the parallels present in the time of Daniel and today:[13]
- People are allowed to believe anything at all so long as they don’t happen to believe their beliefs are right and the beliefs of others are wrong.
- There is only one way to be saved: you must be born again of water and Spirit to enter into the kingdom of God.[14]
- This is the Word of God, this is what Jesus said, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.”[15]
- Nebuchadnezzar didn’t care what Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego believed, or who they worshipped, as long as they bowed to his great image (Dan. 3:5-6).
- Martin Luther King, Jr: The most dangerous type of atheism is not theoretical atheism, but practical atheism —that’s the most dangerous type. And the world, even the church, is filled up with people who pay lip service to God and not life service. And there is always a danger that we will make it appear externally that we believe in God when internally we don’t. We say with our mouths that we believe in him, but we live with our lives like he never existed. That is the ever-present danger confronting religion. That’s a dangerous type of atheism.
- In our day, we feel the constant pressure to conform and to be accepted, but that only occurs if you worship their gods (small “g” gods) and cease to worship the One True God.
- To stand when everyone else bows…to pray when all others fall silent. You can do that because “we serve the God who delivers from fiery furnaces and lion’s dens.”[16]
These mountain experiences were also proving grounds for their faith: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.
Do you think it was easy for these four men to face down everybody? The peer pressure must have been at least as intense as the heat of that furnace.
However, it all began a long time ago when they were teenage boys and the refused to eat the king’s meat.
Do you want to know how to be successful in God? It is in the consistent every day practices and disciplines of faith. Every day growing your faith by doing the right thing one day at a time.
Do not compromise yourself and give up the principles of the Word of God to be accepted by a society that simply wants to destroy you and count you unworthy of the Living God.
Do not allow yourself to turn back to the valley below while climbing the mountain.
You belong spot on top of The Great Mountain.
There is no time to preach about Mt. Horeb, Mt. Sinai. Mt. Moriah, Mt. Gilboa, Mt. Nebo, Mt. Tabor, Mt. Carmel, the Mount of Olives, or Mt. Zion.
No time to tell the stories related to those places where mighty men and women saw their faith’s reward.
Life will take you to a mountain.
We talk about how beautiful it is on the top of the mountain, but nobody wants to talks about the struggle to get to the top of the mountain. We like the valley, the well-watered plains, and we often sing:
When I’m low in spirit I cry Lord lift me up I want to go higher with Thee
But nothing grows high on a mountain so He picked out a valley for me
And He leads me beside still waters somewhere in the valley below
And He draws me aside to be tested and tried in the valley He restoreth my soul[17]
We like it there in the valley. It’s green and plush. The Shepherd has placed us by a stream where we can be restored, but you have to get up at some point and climb that mountain in your life.
It matters really matters what mountain you are climbing, and if you are going to give your all, or not.
Just make certain you make it to The Great Mountain
The Great Mountain
Isaiah 2:1-5
(1) The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
(2) And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
(3) And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
(4) And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
(5) O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the LORD.
In our text, Daniel shares a vision of a great image.
That vision is a prophetic look at four major world powers that would rise and fall:[18]
- Head of gold = Babylon = Lion
- Breast and arms of silver = Media-Persia = Bear
- Belly and thighs of brass = Greece = Leopard
- Legs of iron = Roman empire = Dreadful and Terrible Beast[19]
These kingdoms, each in their own time, would become the dominating power in that part of the world, and would conquer the other kingdoms and territories near themselves.
Nevertheless, the Word of God tells us that there was a stone hewn out of the mountain that struck the feet of the great image and that stone became a Great Mountain.
That Great Mountain – The Great Mountain – The Stone, the Rock, the mountain, is the Lord Jesus Christ.
The “LORD’S house” that Isaiah told us would be “established in the top of the mountains,” which is going to fill the whole earth…
…Just prior to the coming of the Lord for His Bride, the whole earth will have heard of Jesus Christ, and The Great Mountain will have filled the whole earth.
That House, on The Great Mountain, is the Church.
The Great Mountain is the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Children of Israel (2 million of them with their animals) were wandering in the wilderness and had a water supply problem, and they murmured against Moses:
And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying, What shall I do unto this people? they be almost ready to stone me. And the LORD said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thine hand, and go. Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.[20]
Paul later tells us the identity of that Rock at Mt. Horeb:
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.[21]
The Holy Ghost is a River tonight that comes out of the Rock.
…Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.[22]
Jesus Christ is the Rock and the Stone
- Daniel 2:45, “Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.”
- Deuteronomy 32:31, “For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges.”
- Deuteronomy 32:3-4, “(3) Because I will publish the name of the LORD: ascribe ye greatness unto our God. (4) He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.”
- Psalm 18:2, “The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.”
- Psalm 18:31, “For who is God save the LORD? or who is a rock save our God?”
- Psalm 95:1, “O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
- Isaiah 2:10, “Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty.”
How do you “Enter into the Rock?” How do you get in Jesus? Peter told us on the Day of Pentecost how to do that:
…God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.[23]
The answer is simple.
Obey the plan of salvation and be born again of water and Spirit.
That is how to enter into the Rock.
Upon this Rock
Matthew 16:13-18
(13) When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
(14) And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
(15) He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
(16) And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
(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.
(18) And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
“Thou art Peter” = Petros – “a (piece of) rock.”[24]
You are a small pebble, Peter, I’m not going to build My church on you…
“And upon this Rock” = Petra – “a (mass of) rock.”[25]
I am going to build My church on this massive boulder, this Stone hewn out of the mountain, which is going to come and crush the feet of this worldly governmental system…
…and establish an eternal Spiritual kingdom that cannot be destroyed.”
That is what Isaiah was prophesying about: “And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains…”[26]
Jesus declared it: “Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”[27]
You are the Church; you are God’s House sitting in the top of the mountain – The Great Mountain – Our Lord Jesus Christ.
No foe can defeat Him; nothing can overcome Him, or supersede Him.
You can be like the foolish man who builds his house upon the sand, if you want to, or you can be like the wise man who says, “I’m going to build my house upon the Rock.
I am going to build my life upon Jesus. I am going to trust in the words of the Master and know that He is going to be with me no matter where I go.
God is with me.”
God is with you.
What have you built upon?
Have you built upon the Rock? The Rock is here to touch, heal, save, deliver and redeem you, if you will simply turn your heart to Him.
The New Testament tells us about that Rock, the Stone, and we understand who Jesus is: And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.[28]
In the Old Testament, the Lord wrote the Ten Commandments on stone:
- Exodus 31:18, “And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.”
- Exodus 32:15-16, “And Moses turned, and went down from the mount, and the two tables of the testimony were in his hand: the tables were written on both their sides; on the one side and on the other were they written. And the tables were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, graven upon the tables.”
Moses came down from Mt. Sinai with the Law written on tables of stone by the finger of God.
He sees the children of Israel doing what they should not be doing and he destroys those tables of stone in exasperation.
You would think that destroying those stone tablets is what stopped Moses from entering the Promise Land.
The reason was that he disobeyed God’s Word, not because he broke stones tablets, but because he broke God’s Word.
Do not break the Word of God through disobedience.
It is established on the Rock, because those stones are a type of Jesus Christ.
That was the Word of God, given to the people of God in the wilderness, and the Bible is says that “Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.”[29]
God hewed the tables of stone out of the mountain, and God’s Word was inscribed on them.
Jesus Christ is that Word made flesh – the Stone hewn out of the mountain.
The Church is established upon the Rock.
We stand upon the firm foundation of who Jesus is.
So, no enemy, no foe, can defeat you, or put a name on you that is not identified with Jesus Christ
Unless you allow it.
You have been baptized in His name. You have been established upon the Rock, and wherever you go, you take the Rock with you because you are in mountain of the Lord’s House on the top of the mountain – The Great Mountain – an ever-growing mountain.
“Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end….”[30]
How and when does the Stone destroy the image?
How and when does it destroy the godless system of this carnal world?[31]
Through the preaching of the Word, the preaching of Jesus Christ – The Great Mountain – the spreading of the Gospel destroys the kingdoms of this world.
That is how the stone in Daniel’s vision broke the great image.
Daniel 2:34-35, “Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.”
The Great Mountain is the Lord Jesus Christ; on top of that mountain is the Church, the kingdom of God.
In addition, we, the Church, will preach Jesus until the Gospel is preached throughout the whole earth.
The message of Jesus Christ is filling the whole earth right now.
When that happens then Daniel’s vision is fulfilled: “and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.[32]
“And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”[33]
[1] John 10:10
[2] Brown-Driver-Briggs’ Hebrew Definitions. H350
[3] 1 Samuel 4:21-22
[4] Genesis 35:18.
[5] Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries. H1126.
[6] Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries. H1144.
[7] Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries. H2657.
[8] Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries. H1166.
[9] Philippians 2:9-11
[10] Colossians 2:9-10
[11] Acts 4:12
[12] Otis Wright. Jesus is the One, Yes, He’s the Only One.
[13] David P. Johnson & Jared S. Runck. (2017). Handbook on the Prophets. Word Aflame Press: Weldon Springs, MO. p. 84-85
[14] John 3:1-8
[15] Mark 16:16
[16] David P. Johnson & Jared S. Runck. (2017). Handbook on the Prophets. Word Aflame Press: Weldon Springs, MO. p. 84-85
[17] Dottie Rambo. (In the Valley) He Restoreth My Soul.
[18] Purpose Institute. (2019). Old Testament Studies. #6104 – Major Prophets. Lesson 4: The Book of Daniel. p. 5.
[19] Daniel 7:1-28
[20] Exodus 17:4-6
[21] 1 Corinthians 10:1-4
[22] John 7:37-38
[23] Acts 2:36-39
[24] Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries. G4074.
[25] Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries. G4073.
[26] Isaiah 2:2
[27] Matthew 16:18
[28] John 1:14
[29] John 1:1-3
[30] Isaiah 9:7
[31] Ibid.
[32] Daniel 2:35
[33] Matthew 24:14
Categories
Religious, But Lost
Text: Jeremiah 1:4-10
(4) Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
(5) Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
(6) Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.
(7) But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.
(8) Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.
(9) Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
(10) See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.
Ancillary: Jeremiah 29:11
(11) For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
Moses
He is walking one day along a path when he turns to inspect something he has noticed for some time, but never investigated…
A bush that burns but is not consumed…
There, in that holy place, he meets the I AM and receives a calling that changed his life and resulted in the formation of a nation.
Here, in the The Exodus, we meet God as Savior.[1]
400 years in Egypt have turned a small tribe of 70 Hebrews into a mighty tribe of 2-7 million.
They have become, through no fault of their own, a threat to Egypt and so the Pharaoh of that day, forgetting the salvation brought by the hand of Joseph, enslaves these children of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Children of promise enslaved.
You know the story, Moses comes to Pharaoh and delivers the Word from the I AM, “Let My People Go.”
Refusals and plagues ensue until eventually the Egyptian ruler let’s God’s people go.
When they leave, they make a journey, over the Red Sea, on dry ground, and their enemies are never seen again – Water Baptism.
On Mount Sinai God gives Moses the Ten Commandments and these Hebrew descendants of Jacob become a nation and take on his new name – Israel.
The Law – The Torah – 613 Commandments containing “248 Positive Commandments (do’s) and 365 Negative Commandments (do not’s).” [2]
The Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:3-17):
- Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
- Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image…
- Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain…
- Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
- Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
- Thou shalt not kill.
- Thou shalt not commit adultery.
- Thou shalt not steal.
- Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
- Thou shalt not covet…
Then they travel the wilderness for forty years
Why? An evil report…
After those long years, God sends Moses to Mount Nebo where he views the Land Promise and dies.
Moses introduced Israel to God as Savior and as the God of their Exodus who brought them out of bondage and made them into a nation.
God has done that for you tonight, He has put into place a way for you to exit sin, addiction, bondage, wickedness and given you a new name and put you into a holy nation:
(9) But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: (10) Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy” (1 Peter 2:9-10).
Israel rejoiced in this identity, but in time they lost sight of something important – Relationship.
They had the covenant, but they lost the relationship.
Jeremiah
Over the course of 800 years, from Moses and The Exodus to Jeremiah’s day, these Israelites had turned away from and back to Jehovah – their Savior – untold times.
They would fall away and God would allow an enemy to rise up to chastise them and they would repent.
They would backslide and same process would take place again…
It became a cycle that denigrated the relationship God wanted with them to mere ritual and religion.
Would you want a relationship with someone who treated you like that?
They were Religious, But Lost.
These covenant people would sin, eventually feel guilty, offer the required sacrifice, go on their way forgiven — until they sinned again.
They had covenant with God, but no companionship with Him.
Into this atmosphere of sin, repent, sin, repent, sin, repent, we are introduced to Jeremiah. God knew and had a plan for him before he was ever conceived by his parents:
“Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.”[3]
That passage alone is a primer on God’s view on the sanctity of life…
Jeremiah then tries to get out of his calling, much like Moses before him, and he tells God, “I cannot speak: for I am a child.”[4]
And the Lord replied, Don’t say, ‘I’m too young,’ for you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you.[5]
You see, Jeremiah had a job to do
While Moses introduced the people to God as Savior, Jeremiah’s job was to introduce Him as God the Judge.[6]
So, The Exile of Judah becomes the main message of this young prophet as he begins his prophetic ministry at the age of 20.
He sorrows, laments, grieves, lives in depression at times as he deals with the loss that he witnesses over the course of 40-50 years.
Why? Because somewhere along the way these covenant people lost sight of their relationship with God and simply did not follow Him
WHEN THEY DID FOLLOW HIM it was with mere formalism, religiosity and ritual.
They knew what to do, but not how to do.
“He that knoweth to do good…”
Jerusalem falls, the Temple is destroyed, all the best and brightest young men and women are gathered by the Babylonian king and sent into exile.
And adding insult to injury, every time Jeremiah would open his mouth to speak the Word of God he was horribly mistreated. He prefigures Christ as a Suffering Servant with both his lamentations and his mistreatment.[7]
He was mistreated, imprisoned, beaten, lied on and abused – FOR THE WORD OF GOD – by kings, prophets, friends and even family.
This “son of Hilkiah” could have been a priest, but God ordained Him to be a Prophet.[8]
As such, he was mistreated, to the point where he said, “O LORD, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived: thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me. For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the LORD was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily. Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay” (Jeremiah 20:7-9).
In this environment of destruction and disappointment, heartache and hurt, fear and frustration, Jeremiah writes a prophecy of Hope and healing from the Lord (Jeremiah 29:4-14):
(4) Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon; <<Marduk v. Jehovah = no match. Jehovah did this>>
(5) Build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them;
(6) Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished.
(7) And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.
(8) For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed.
(9) For they prophesy falsely unto you in my name: I have not sent them, saith the LORD.
(10) For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.
(11) For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
(12) Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.
(13) And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
(14) And I will be found of you, saith the LORD: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the LORD; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.
Deliverance and return is on the way. Even for the Religious, But Lost
You who love and want a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus still desires to dwell in the midst of His people.
He still wants relationship with you.
The Danger of Religion is that you lose relationship with Jesus and become religious, but lost:
- Repentance is not about confession to change, but you just want to relieve guilt.
- Your clean robe of righteousness (bag of sins is full) becomes dirty with sin and you pray, “I’m sorry, Lord. Please forgive me.”
- The routine of repentance has nothing to do with change, but in just “feeling” better.
- You feel better now, since you confessed, you’ll be ok until you forget what the guilt felt like and then you sin again. Why not? Your robe of righteousness is clean now anyways (your bag of sins is empty now).
- How can you maintain a relationship with someone who treat you like that?
- God is not into religion, but He loves relationship![9]
The People of Judah has lost that connection of relationship with God. Their behavior towards one another and their worship of God was addressed by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 7:9-11):
(9) Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not; (10) And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations? (11) Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD.
It appears that Jeremiah is listing the Ten Commandments in reverse order to show that God is more interested in righteous behavior (right relationship) than in covenantal position.[10]
How you treat your neighbor is more important and a more clear indicator of your relationship with God than if you are born again and speak in tongues all the time.
If you speak in tongues all day long and don’t know how to treat your neighbor right then you are Religious, But Lost.
“He is a God of completion, not competition.” –Harold Hoffman
Come to Jesus – Get to Know Him – treat each other right
It’s all about relationship
[1] Runck, Jared S. and David P. Johnson. (2017). Handbook on the Prophets. Weldon Spring, MO: Pentecostal Publishing House.
[2] Hecht, Mendy. The 613 Commandments (Mitzvot). Accessed: 3/20/2023. https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/756399/jewish/The-613-Commandments-Mitzvot.htm
[3] Jer. 1:5
[4] Jer. 1:6
[5] Jer. 1:7, NLT
[6] Runck, Jared S. and David P. Johnson. (2017). Handbook on the Prophets. Weldon Spring, MO: Pentecostal Publishing House.
[7] Purpose Institute. (2019). #6104 – Major Prophets – Lesson 2: Jeremiah and Lamentations.
[8] Jeremiah 1:1
[9] Partially derived from Harold Hoffman’s teaching on 1/16/2022. Heart Attack (Lesson 3). https://www.youtube.com/live/GrCM32v1haA.
[10] Runck, Jared S. and David P. Johnson. (2017). Handbook on the Prophets. Weldon Spring, MO: Pentecostal Publishing House.
Picture Credit: Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn. (1606-1669). Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem. Accessed: 3/30/2023. http://www.rembrandtpainting.net/complete_catalogue/storia/jeremiah.htm.
The late J. T. Pugh preaching “Playing the Composition of Life In Another Key.”
https://www.dropbox.com/s/jp9sklyjexc1em6/Playing%20the%20Composition%20of%20Life%20In%20Another%20Key.mp3?dl=0
I have always had a high regard for Bro. Pugh’s preaching and depth since the first time I heard him preach. Then I met the man and all that regard increased. In fact, as a young man, I would often say that I could gauge a young minister’s depth and maturity by what they thought, or said, about Bro. Pugh. Perhaps that was wrong of me, but I must admit that I still think this way.
Listen and let this man’s ministry continue to bless you.
Categories
That’s Entertainment
Philippians 4:18, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
In 1985, Neil Postman argued; in his seminal work Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business, that the public had an oppressive addiction to entertainment through the content available on television.[1] Today, media and technology have advanced to the place where this entertainment addiction has risen to epidemic proportions.
The use of gaming consoles, televisions, smartphones, laptops, personal computers, mp3 players, DVDs, tablets, and so on has swept our culture. These technologies entertain people from the cradle to the tomb. It is common today to see a 4 year old playing a game on a mobile device while nearby a74 year old is playing a Scrabble game on a smartphone.
Other forms of entertainment include: movies, sporting events, amusement parks, outdoor activities, and even literature. It’s not our suggestion that Christians divorce themselves from all forms of entertainment, but that we choose our entertainment based upon the principles of our faith found in the Word of God.
As Christians we understand the necessity of adhering to Paul’s teaching when considering what choices we make regarding our entertainment. Therefore, we need to be vigilant when it comes to the content of entertainment we allow into our homes, minds, and even the church house.
With that in mind, Texas pastor and writer Rodney Shaw suggests that Christians ask themselves the following questions when making entertainment choices:[2]
- Can I maintain my Christian witness and engage in this activity?
- Can I glorify God in this activity?
- Can I invoke the blessings of God, praying in the name of Jesus, for my involvement in this activity?
- Does this activity leave me feeling as if I have compromised my values?
- Would I be comfortable inviting my spiritual mentor to engage in this activity with me?
- Does this activity promote godly attitudes and behaviors?
- Do I leave this activity more or less equipped for the spiritual life?
- Does this activity appeal to my carnal nature, i.e., the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, or the pride of life?
- Does this activity portray, promote or condone behaviors, attitudes or philosophies which are condemned in the Bible?
- Do I feel guilty, like I am violating my conscience, or the need to repent after I have engaged in this activity?
- Am I committed to ceasing my involvement in any activity which turns out to be in violation of biblical principles, including but not limited to turning off a device or walking out of a venue?
- How does my commitment of time and resources to this activity compare to my commitment to spiritual disciplines and participation in the life of the church?
[1] http://www.amazon.com/Amusing-Ourselves-Death-Discourse-Business/dp/014303653X
[2] http://rodneyshaw.wordpress.com/2011/01/13/questions-to-help-christians-make-entertainment-choices/ . Accessed: 2/18/2012.
[Originally posted on 18 February 2012 on https://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2012/02/%5D
Gal. 6:7-10
7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. 9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. 10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.
The Law of Harvest:
Gal. 6:7, “…Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.”
Consider your seed:
What are you sowing, or planting in your life?
What habits are you developing?
What behavior do you manifest outwardly to others on a day-to-day basis?
What are the secret thoughts that you consider in the privacy of your mind?
What types of music, television programming, movies, and Internet sites do you allow to enter your spirit being through your sense gates?
What kind of conversations do you entertain?
Whatever answers you may have to these questions, one thing is certain; you will reap what you’ve sown:
Sow love and you’ll receive love
Sow hate and you’ll receive the same
Sow kindness and you will receive it in turn
Sow cynicism and others will mistrust you as well
The Apostle is clear on this one issue:
You get what you sow.
You can’t plant an orange tree and expect apples.
You can’t alter the inevitable law of harvest – – like begets like.
Romans 6
1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? 2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? 3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: 6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 7 For he that is dead is freed from sin. 8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: 9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. 16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. 18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. 19 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. 20 For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. 21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. 22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The inevitable law of harvest declares that you will end up in one of two places.
You Choose: Heaven or Hell
The choice of Hell, which designates you as a servant of sin, will reveal certain undeniable indicators in your life (i.e. the works of the flesh: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like [Gal. 5:19-21]). When you yield yourself to these you are making a decision to do so.
The choice of Heaven, designating you as a servant of righteousness, will be seen by the presence of the Fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance (Gal. 5:22-23). Yielding to the Holy Ghost is also a conscious decision that you make.
The Law of Distribution:
Gal. 6:10, “…let us do good unto all men…”
1 Cor. 7:1-24
1 Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. 2 Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband. 3 Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband. 4 The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife. 5 Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency. 6 But I speak this by permission, and not of commandment. 7 For I would that all men were even as I myself. But every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner, and another after that. 8 I say therefore to the unmarried and widows, It is good for them if they abide even as I. 9 But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn. 10 And unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, Let not the wife depart from her husband: 11 But and if she depart, let her remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the husband put away his wife. 12 But to the rest speak I, not the Lord: If any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away. 13 And the woman which hath an husband that believeth not, and if he be pleased to dwell with her, let her not leave him. 14 For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy. 15 But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to peace. 16 For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband? or how knowest thou, O man, whether thou shalt save thy wife? 17 But as God hath distributed to every man, as the Lord hath called every one, so let him walk. And so ordain I in all churches. 18 Is any man called being circumcised? let him not become uncircumcised. Is any called in uncircumcision? let him not be circumcised. 19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God. 20 Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called. 21 Art thou called being a servant? care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather. 22 For he that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord’s freeman: likewise also he that is called, being free, is Christ’s servant. 23 Ye are bought with a price; be not ye the servants of men. 24 Brethren, let every man, wherein he is called, therein abide with God.
According to my former Pastor, Michael Seebaugh, of Parkersburg, WV, the beauty of this passage on marriage is that it reveals to us a beautiful present that is best described as the Gift of Perspective:
1. Your experiences prior to conversion and the subsequent ones afterwards give you a particular point-of-view that is unique to you.
2. Paul’s writing concerning marriage gives us insight into the fact that married couples, single individuals, divorced people, widows, and widowers all have various experiences that can benefit others.
3. Couples married for 50 years have wisdom in their perspective that the young married couples would be wise to heed.
4. The Church body is full of people who have many types of experiences and these are necessary for the distribution of the Gospel to the whole world.
What has God given to you that has been vitally important in your continual walk with Him?
Something He gave to you that you couldn’t have made it without?
Jesus?
Mercy?
Grace?
Godly Examples?
Pastors?
Holy Bible?
Godly Parents?
Salvation?
Love?
Faith?
Fruit of the Spirit?
Church?
Family?
Strength?
Prayer?
Praise?
Worship?
Holy Ghost?
Desire?
Wisdom?
Knowledge?
Apostles?
Evangelists?
Teachers?
Prophets?
These examples of God’s gift to you are the very things that He desires you to distribute to others. We need to learn how to distribute to others what God has produced in our lives.
Heed these words of wisdom:
“The mercy you show is the mercy you’ll know.” – LouAnne Kuntzman
Rev. Seebaugh also suggests the following as Principles of Distribution:
1. You can’t distribute (give, divide, disperse, administer, bestow) what you don’t have.
Look at the seven sons of Sceva (Acts 19:13-20). God will bring exponential growth to what you do have if you give it to Him (John 6:1-14)
2. You don’t have to produce the product, but you do need to be able to access it for yourself and for distribution. God is Love. You don’t produce that, but you do possess it, and can access it. You need seed if you intend to sow.
3. You need to be located where people can access your product easily. Are you approachable? Don’t hide behind your “shyness.”
4. You should be focused on how to get the product to the client. Are you “soul conscious?” Do you look for opportunities to distribute?
5. You need to have lots of room for your product. Your product is the testimony of God’s goodness in your life – – It is like seed to the sower. Sow seed by distributing it anywhere and everywhere you possibly can.
The diversity of gifts and offices were distributed for the purpose of Christian maturity in the Body of Christ – – the Church.
Eph. 4:11-16
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.
The law of harvest and the law of distribution are cyclic — they are similar to the law of cause and effect (causality).
Eph. 6:8, “Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.”
Luke 6:35-36
35 But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. 36 Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. 37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven: 38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
This passage (verse 35) is the ultimate test for some: “…love ye your enemies…do good, and lend, hoping for nothing…”
You cannot hold back from sowing into others for any reason.
Verse 38 is significant because it contains the promise of harvest for those who distribute what they have to others, and your level of harvest is directly linked to your level of distribution.
Don’t distribute as rich people do, but as the certain poor widow: “For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living” (Mark 12:44).
Jesus Christ has distributed to you the Holy Ghost, which is Christ in you, and you are responsible to distribute the Gospel of Jesus Christ to others, in order that they can experience the same phenomenon.
This is why you are commanded by Jesus to “go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” It is here where we plainly see the law of distribution working in tandem with the law of harvest: “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover” (Mark 16:15-18).
You are not told that every one will believe and obey the Gospel, but you are told that those who do receive what you distribute will receive an unprecedented harvest.
Refuse the excuse, “I have nothing to give.” Distribute what God has already given freely to you and you will witness a harvest. It is inevitable.
Originally posted on 26 May 2007 on http://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2007/05/law-of-harvest-law-of-distribution.html
Categories
Why Does God Try the Righteous?
The psalmist David wrote, “The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth.”[1]
In this passage, when we read that God “trieth” it simply means that this is God’s way of “examining, scrutinizing, proving, and testing” the hearts of those who are His people, and these tests are for the purpose of preparing us for greater responsibility and spiritual growth.[2]
The apostle Paul makes it quite clear that the process of being approved by God follows a particular process: “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”[3]
As this process takes place we witness the varying degrees of preparation God places us in as they accomplish, work out, and achieve God’s purpose for our lives. Therefore, in the end, what we think of as pressures, stressors, or trials are tools God uses as a means to bring about a patient, enduring, sustaining, perseverant, and steadfast quality to our Christian character. When this quality is part of our spiritual nature we have become God-proven because our character has been tried and He can then trust us for greater measures of responsibility and authority.
This experience results in the establishment of hope in our lives, which is the “joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation” and the understanding that because I came through previous trials intact then I’ll make it through this one as well because God is with me.[4]
____________
Sources:
[1] Psalm 11:5
[2] Brown, Driver, Briggs and Gesenius. “Hebrew Lexicon entry for Bachan”. “The KJV Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon”. http://www.biblestudytools.net/Lexicons/Hebrew/heb.cgi?number=974&version=kjv.
[3] Romans 5:1-5
[4] Thayer and Smith. “Greek Lexicon entry for Elpis”. “The KJV New Testament Greek Lexicon”. http://www.biblestudytools.net/Lexicons/Greek/grk.cgi?number=1680&version=kjv.
[Originally posted as God “Tries” the Righteous on 20 August 2007 at http://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2007/08/god-tries-righteous_20.html]
Categories
Stephen’s Defense (video)
Categories
The Potter’s Work of Grace
Text: Isaiah 64:8, “But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.”
The Potter’s Work of Grace
Jeremiah 18:1-6
(1) The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
(2) Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words.
(3) Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.
(4) And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
(5) Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
(6) O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.
GRACE is more than just a prayer we say before we eating a meal.
The Grace of God has been understood simply as “unmerited favour,” but such a definition robs the grace of God of its true meaning, purpose, and intent.
Some say that since we live in this “age of grace,” or the “church age,” and that God is not going to judge a believer as strictly as He did in other periods of time, but this flies in the face of many passages in the New Testament that defy such a wrongheaded view.
In our time, Grace, and the “age of grace,” has been relegated to some kind of “get out of jail free” card where the individual can act, do, live and be whatever they’re able get by with as long as they say, “I’m sorry,” somewhere along the way between their birth and their death.
This is not the case.
The notion that God’s grace never comes with judgment is incorrect.
Grace is a teacher, and as all students know, sometimes the best lessons learned came from encounters with discipline, and grace is the discipline God uses to instruct His people.
How many remember the “rod of correction,” the “board of education,” or the dreaded words “go to the principal’s office?”
These, sometimes drastic measures came about, usually, because a student/child would not listen, follow instructions, or behave properly.
So, in order to find a quicker way to get a student to be more, shall we say, “cooperative with the learning process,” various forms of discipline were applied.
Some might say that I am forgetting that God loves us and would not punish us, but that in itself is erroneous.
Let’s take a look at the Word of God:
- 156 times in the New Testament the word GRACE (charis) is used, it means “the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life; including gratitude.”[1]
- When a child of God is properly educated by grace, the heart of the student has been changed and molded by the Holy Ghost (our counselor, guide, and help) inside of us, and the proof of that divine influence is reflected in how we live our lives. We live a life of grace.
- When we say that we live a life of grace we are saying, “We live disciplined lives,” because grace is discipline.
- And just to be sure: DISCIPLINE can also be called “chastisement, reproof, a warning, restraint, correction, doctrine, instruction, or rebuke.”
- The person that has allowed grace to teach them, influence their heart, and manifest itself their life is going to naturally be filled with gratitude.
- Titus 2:11-14, “(11) For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, (12) Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; (13) Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; (14) Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”
- I want you to catch that tonight. God’s primary method of instruction for the believer in the New Testament is Grace.
- Grace is the great teacher of self-denial, and as we submit ourselves to God’s influence we learn how to deny “ungodliness [wickedness] and worldly lusts [desire],” and how to “live soberly” (moderately [balanced] with a sound mind), “righteously, and godly, in this present world.”
- Why? Because Jesus is coming for us.
- Lift your arm and with your opposite hand pinch that pink stuff we call skin. If your neighbor won’t give them a gentle pinch tonight and tell them, “You’re fleshy.” Now, tell someone else, “You’re carnal.”
- There’s nothing wrong with admitting that. In fact, Paul wrote to the church in Rome and said, “I am carnal, sold under sin” (Ro. 7:14).
- So, being human, we are predisposed to rebellion and sin because of this flesh, even the believer, even the saint of God, sometimes has to be instructed by God through grace in some way other than a pleasant reminder to BE GOOD.
- In some way other than just a feel good, goosebump, run the aisle, dance all over the church.
- Your praise
- There are some who revel in a cheap sort of grace that reveals their selfish desire to receive the benefits of serving God without changing their lifestyle of sin.
- Then there are others who are simply ignorant of the disciplines that come from grace. So, God, in His love, disciplines the erring member to bring about a positive change in their life.
- Hebrews 12:5-11, “(5) And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: (6) For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. (7) If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? (8) But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. (9) Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? (10) For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. (11) Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.”
- If you have felt the chastisement of God, you should rejoice. He loves you. He wants you to live holy, and be ready for His coming.
- Grace is the discipline of love God uses to teach you.
The Sign of Being Born Again
The Evidence of Being Born Again
Taking on the Divine Nature – the Grace of God: 2 Peter 1:1-11
(1) Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
(2) Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
(3) According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
(4) Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
(5) And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
(6) And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
(7) And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
(8) For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(9) But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
(10) Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
(11) For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
No wonder the definition includes the idea of GRATITUDE.
GRACE (charis) is “the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life; including gratitude.”[2]
[1] Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance. G5485
[2] Ibid.
Categories
Freedom’s Hope
Text: John 8:31-38
(31) Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
(32) And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
(33) They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?
(34) Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
(35) And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
(36) If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
(37) I know that ye are Abraham’s seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.
(38) I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.
Freedom’s Hope
She is the Statue of Freedom and she is bolted to the top of our nation’s Capitol Dome.
FREEDOM: Achieved[1]
[A]ll persons held to service or labor within the District of Columbia
by reason of African descent are hereby discharged and freed.”
— D.C. Emancipation Act, April 16, 1862
T he Statue of Freedom was cast from Crawford’s plaster model at Clark Mills’ foundry in the District of Columbia. In 1859 an Italian craftsman demanded more money for the job. Mills then turned to one of his enslaved men, Philip Reid, to separate the five sections of the plaster model. Reid then worked on casting the sections in bronze. Once the casting was completed in 1862, workmen erected the statue section by section atop the Capitol Dome. The final section was bolted in place on December 2, 1863 with thirty-five guns firing a salute to Freedom. If Philip Reid was present on that day, he was there as a free man. The D.C. Compensation Emancipation Act had ended slavery in the District of Columbia on April 16, 1862.
FREEDOM: Phillip Reid and the Statue of Freedom[2]
“I have endeavored to represent Freedom triumphant.”
— Thomas Crawford, 1855
The nineteen-foot six-inch bronze statue of Freedom crowns the cast-iron Dome of the Capitol. Sculptor Thomas Crawford’s second design represented Freedom as a female figure clad in classical robes, bearing a sheathed sword and shield, and wearing a liberty cap.
Secretary of War Jefferson Davis, a slaveowner from Mississippi who would later become president of the Confederacy, objected to the liberty cap “as the badge of a freed slave” and suggested that Crawford change the statue’s headgear to a helmet. The sculptor followed Davis’s instructions, and Freedom wears a helmet composed of an eagle’s head and feathers. Neither Davis nor Crawford could know that an enslaved African American would play a critical role in casting the statue.
The statue of Freedom was cast from Crawford’s plaster model at Clark Mills’s foundry in the District of Columbia. After an Italian craftsman in 1859 demanded more money for the job, Mills turned to one of his slaves, Philip Reid, to separate the five sections of the plaster model. Reid then worked on casting the sections in bronze.
Once the casting was completed in 1862, workmen erected the statue section by section atop the Capitol Dome. The final section was bolted in place on December 2 with thirty-five guns firing a salute to Freedom. If Philip Reid was present on that day, he was there as a free man. The D.C. Emancipation Act had ended slavery in the District of Columbia on April 16, 1862.
What a juxtaposition, a contrast, an irony…
The sculptor, Thomas Crawford, designed her, and Jefferson Davis had him make changes to her because of the symbolism of freedom her first design represented to the slaves.
The Italian who cast her mold was greedy and demanded more money. So, Clark Mills, the owner of Mill’s Foundry, turned to his slave, and in between 1859 and 1862 this slave worked on Freedom.
Philip Reed, a slave, was responsible for separating the molds and then casting the five sections in bronze.
Those sections were then bolted, one section at a time, to the top of the capitol dome.
On December 2, 1863, the last section was bolted and Freedom stood “triumphant in war and peace.”
By the time the last bolt was tightened Philip Reed, and all the slaves in the District of Columbia were freemen and freewomen.
The U.S. Congress freed them on April 16, 1862.
Could the Hope of Freedom been the force behind Philip Reed’s careful and expert work of the Statue of Freedom.
Perhaps, Freedom as an ideal moved him along his given path.
He was enslaved bodily, but his mind and heart and soul were free.
I’m not free, yet, but one day…
Then that one day came and was free.
What does it mean “to be free?”
Thayer’s Greek Definitions:
- freeborn
- in a civil sense, one who is not a slave
- of one who ceases to be a slave, freed, manumitted
- free, exempt, unrestrained, not bound by an obligation
- in an ethical sense: free from the yoke of the Mosaic Law
Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries: “unrestrained (to go at pleasure), that is, (as a citizen) not a slave (whether freeborn or manumitted), or (generally) exempt (from obligation or liability): – free (man, woman), at liberty.”
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/free:
- enjoying personal rights or liberty, as a person who is not in slavery: a land of free people.
- pertaining to or reserved for those who enjoy personal liberty: they were thankful to be living on free soil.
Freedom is Liberty
There is a freedom beyond chains and physical bondage.
It comes only from Jesus Christ.
The Lord has planned our release, and it is foreshadowed in the Old Testament in the way:
“At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release. And this is the manner of the release: Every creditor that lendeth ought unto his neighbour shall release it; he shall not exact it of his neighbour, or of his brother; because it is called the LORD’S release….And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt, and the LORD thy God redeemed thee: therefore I command thee this thing to day” (Deuteronomy 15:1-2, 15).
But, Israel didn’t keep the Law of Release, the Law of Freedom, and they were judged for it:
Jermiah 34:17, “Therefore thus saith the LORD; Ye have not hearkened unto me, in proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother, and every man to his neighbour: behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, saith the LORD, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.”
Isaiah 58:6, “Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?”
True Freedom has happened when:
- We are released from all the chains of wickedness, wrong, iniquity
- The heavy weights of sin and the burdens of the past are removed
- We free the broken, bruised, crushed, discouraged, oppressed, and the struggling.
- We break every oppressive bond of enslavement.
Freedom is here for you today: Luke 4:16-21
(16) And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
(17) And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
(18) The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
(19) To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
(20) And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
(21) And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.
Today is your Day of Hope, your Day of Freedom – Freedom’s Hope
After his freedom, Philip Reid signified his new found freedom by changing the spelling of his last name to “Reed.”
Today, you can also have a name change as you receive your freedom.
John 8:36, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”
[1] SOURCE: https://uschs.org/explore/from-freedoms-shadow-freedom/. Accessed: 7/3/2022.
[2] Ibid.
The Pillar and Ground of Truth 