Hold Thou me up

Ps 119:114-117 “Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in Thy Word.

Depart from me, ye evil doers: For I will keep the commandments of my God.

Uphold me according to Thy Word, that I may live: and let me not be ashamed of my hope.

Hold Thou me up, and I shall be safe: and I will have respect unto Thy statues continually.”

This is a prayer for the keeping power of God to “uphold”, or “hold Thou me up”….in the position that I have obtained through the Holy Spirit.

“There are so many enemies….within me, and temptations in this world….hold on to me, Lord Jesus.

I do not want to fear,….hold on to my peace.

I do not want to be angry,….hold on to my love.

I do not want to go my own way….hold me up by Your Word.”

Christ Jesus taught us to pray: “Lead us not into temptation”. For temptation is dangerous…though we do not often see it’s poison…..

….but dangerous situations call for extra watchfulness and prayers to our God, that He would stretch out His right hand….and help us.

This may not be immediate deliverance;….but His hand…holding us up…out of the mire of this world….

….the attitudes and emotions…the love of money or power…the misery and sorrow of failures (and who does not have them?)…or ingratitude.

Isaiah 41:13 “For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.”

Psalm 17:5 “Hold up my goings in Thy paths, that my footsteps slip not.”

He helps us “hold fast” in His paths….those that are shown us in His Word.

We can not keep from sin, unless we keep to His Word.

Psalm 17:4 “Concerning the works of men, by the Word of Thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer.”

When temptations are about…when the world’s siren call comes….and the devil tricks….

…..then we must pray…..hold Thou me up in Thy Word…..

….give me understanding to know….and grace to do……so that we may hold out against these temptations…and find His “way of escape” (1 Corinthians 10:13)

The Word is what Jesus used, when He was tempted by the devil. (Luke 4:4, 8, 12)

He could have easily used His deity to defeat the devil….

…..but instead….showed us the weapon we should use, when under attack….”It is written”…the Word of God.

The Word of God is called “the sword of the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17)….for it is by His reminding us of His Word….and by His power through it…that it is effectual for us….against our enemies…now.

(A few verses that have helped me:

1). Romans 14:22 “Hast thou faith? Have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing that he alloweth.”

What we know we should not do…..we should not do, that our conscience stays yielding to the Holy Spirit.

2). 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 “Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort:

Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”

Our testimonies about what God has done for us….though they seem little to us…carry a great deal of weight with the Holy Spirit….they are reality…and He blesses them.

3). Ephesians 5:16 “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”

Each day brings things we never expected….so be prepared in the Lord…by prayer, before you begin the day.

4). Philippians 2:13 “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.”

Praise God for this….and I ask for it often….”work in me, Lord”…..it is both: to will….for I am sometimes “unwilling” in this thing. And to do….for I am often lazy in this thing.

5). Colossians 3:15-16 “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts….and be ye thankful.

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom;…”

We must yield and stand upon His peace,……and HIs Word must be listened to.

6). 1 Thessalonians 5:8 “But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation.”

In how many scriptures does God call us to stand with Him….in light….in this world?

7). 1 Thessalonians 5:17 “Pray without ceasing.”

We are to be before Him at all times, wherever we are….then our whole life is in an attitude to pray.

8). Jude 21 “Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”

One of my favorites…..anytime you think you are drifting from God….pull yourself back….To the one constant in your life….God’s love of us…..even when we are quite unloveable. It is like walking in the sunny side of the street!)

The Psalmist says:

Hold Thou me up…..and I shall be safe…

…my own learning, or experience, or skill will not help in times of temptation…..for we are only tempted by something our hearts are interested in.

James 1:14 “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away by his own lusts, and enticed.”

(Lust is….I want this…and I want it now….whatever this is.)

But Christ Jesus has made a way to escape temptation:

1 Corinthians 10:13 “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, Who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”

Ps 119:114-117 “Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in Thy Word.

Depart from me, ye evil doers: For I will keep the commandments of my God.

Uphold me according to Thy Word, that I may live: and let me not be ashamed of my hope.

Hold Thou me up, and I shall be safe: and I will have respect unto Thy statues continually.”

In His hands we are safe….He holds us up….He is our hiding place….His Word guides and enlightens us….and His Holy Spirit empowers us.

Hallelujah, What a Savior!

What seest thou, Amos?

Amos 7:7-8 “Thus He showed me and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in His hand.

And the Lord said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline, Then said the Lord, Behold, I set a plumbline in the midst of My people Israel: I will not again pass by them anymore.”

A plumbline is a line with a heavy pointed weight on the end of it. Held up for a wall in building……..it shows whether the wall is straight…or crooked.

No matter how high you build it….or with what you build….if the wall is not straight (though it may appear so), it is out of alignment, and hinders more building.

The Lord was standing, with a plumbline to measure Israel’s righteousness….and it was not coming out straight…

In previous visions Amos had seen judgement come upon Israel……and the Lord had listened to the pleas of His prophet for His people….for mercy….

….but now He did not permit Amos to intercede….judgement had to come for those who were “crooked”.

Israel was built on God Word……upon sacrifices which pictured Christ Jesus….upon a Law, that if followed, lead to blessings….

…but they “perverted” their way…or made them crooked.

Jeremiah 3:21 “A voice was heard upon high places, weeping and supplications of the children of Israel: for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten the Lord their God.”

Israel was to have been a “wall”. A bulwark for God in the midst of the world’s idolatry.

Yet now, they were like a wall out of plumb,…unable to manifest His strength, and His honor against His enemies.

And here is the plumbline, with which God measured Israel:

Amos 3:3 “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”

(The Lord wanted His people to come and “agree” with Him, in the ways of their lives….all the parts of their life.

He wants the same with us…..

…Life is many agreements with Him….bringing us to the place in our experience that we are fully submitted to His Will….and the way He is going to bring His Will to pass….with me.

We might be a “church goer”, or someone who is busy with serving others,….but if that is hiding something in your life that you are refusing to give to the Lord Jesus Christ….then we are out of plumb….we are not coming to the agreements with Christ that He wants.

“My son, give Me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe My ways.” Proverbs 23:26 “Observe”, here, means to maintain and obey in the Hebrew)

One of these agreements He wanted with Israel, was….they were to be His people,…..accepting His honor….

…..and they were to honor Him….

…they were to worship Him in heart and life,…not just in words.

This would have made them a wall…straight and strong….honoring HIs Name, His Word, and praising Him…and He would have strengthened them, and given them victory against their enemies. (Psalm 8:1-2)

Yet, now, God holds the plumbline to measure their straightness (Matthew 7:13-14)

Those who conform to His Word, were saved….but those who were “out of plumb” with Him, would be judged.

He had sent Amos to warn them…..to tell them, He will not pass by this….

……will they come and agree with Him?

That was for Israel,….but what about us…..His people now….His church?

Christ Jesus said that in the last days:

Matthew 24:12 “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.”

Why shall their love wax cold? Because of iniquities.

(An iniquity is anything unequal to our high calling in Christ Jesus.)

This is not open sin…..but something which might even seem Ok…..but which we, who belong to Him,…..should not do….

(I could suggest: certain movies, certain books, making fun of people, wanting “bad things” to happen to our enemies…….any thing which puts you out of place with the convictions of the Holy Spirit, as a Christian…

…and this can be done as an individual…or a group. This is personal….for our convictions are personal from Him.)

When we commit iniquity….the Holy Spirit will convict us….He will remind us that we belong to Christ….

….soon, if we will not listen…..our love of Christ is turned into…just a duty to Christ….

….our service becomes obligations…..which makes us “weary in well doing” (Galatians 6:9)

Like a ship in the harbor against a pier….that is not moored properly.

The gentlest waves push it against that pier (the very place of safety) and can completely ruin it…..without it ever being in stormy seas.

The very obediences to Christ, which bring joy to our hearts, and purpose to our lives….can by “small” iniquities, become “burdens”…..which can wreak our joy and peace.

But when we line up everything in our life,….with the plumbline of “For His Sake”.

When what we do, or not do…..is just that…..”For His Sake”…..then our wall is straight….and strong.

Our service takes on a lightness,….when it is a matter of love for Him.

Have we lost our joyful yielding to His Voice?

Amos 3:3 “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”

Moses and the mountains

In scripture, mountains represent two things….impossible difficulties, which only God can surmount (and we all have those in our lives)….

….and places of close, personal dealing with God; where we grow intimately closer to Him.

Moses had several such experiences in the mountains.

Exodus 3:1-3 “Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.

And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.”

Here Moses “turns aside” from his everyday routine……and meets God.

He hears His Voice in a bush which burned, without burning up….on a mountain.

This was his calling….”come close to Me, and go for Me…..and deliver My people from the bondage of Pharaoh”.

Moses is given God’s Word….and told…”return unto thy people”.

(Our calling is often among the people around us…whether in our own home or church, or town…..though it may lead elsewhere.)

Moses did that….bringing them by God’s Word, out of Egypt….and across the Red Sea, on dry ground.

Three months later:

Exodus 19:1-3 “In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai.

….and there Israel camped before the mount.

And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain, saying….”

Again Moses hears God’s Voice,….this time with a promise for His people….

Exodus 19:5-6 “Now therefore , if ye will obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people; for all the earth is mine:

And ye shall be unto a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. Those are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.”

Sinai was where God entered into a covenant relationship with Israel….there they became a nation, not just a family.

Four times Moses went up into the mountain:

(Exodus 19:19-20) When God came down on Mt. Sinai, Moses was called up in the mountain for instruction to the people.

(Exodus 24:12-13) God called Moses the first time to receive instruction for the Tabernacle and to get the Ten Commandments written on stone….these tablets he threw down and broke, when the people sinned, worshipping the golden calf…Exodus32:19.

(Exodus 32:30-33) Moses went up to God in the mountain to intercede for Israel, because of their sin with the golden calf.

(Exodus 34:1, 4) God called Moses up to the mountain to receive a new tablet containing the Ten Commandments….and saw His glory.

Each time God spoke to him, giving Moses His pattern for access to Him.

(And often our mountain experience is when we have new insight from God for our lives….which brings us into a closer relationship with Him.

Like Moses we have often prayed…..”I beseech Thee, show me Thy glory.”

But we notice, Moses had to leave the people at the bottom of the mountain….and even Joshua, his minister….was left at a low level.

He had to travel up….alone. Most of the time, we too, need to leave the crowd, to gain closer union with God.)

The next mountain Moses climbed was about thirty nine years later….that mountain was mount Hor, for it was time for Aaron, the high priest (Moses brother)…..to die.

Numbers 20:25-26 “Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up unto mount Hor:

And strip Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son: and Aaron shall be gathered unto his people, and shall die there.”

All three went up the mountain, but only two: Moses and Eleazar, now as high priest, came down, to continue to minister.

It was time for Aaron to die….and that shows that there is a time for all of us…whether sickness, or accident….death will come to those we love. He was not alone….Moses and his son were there….and God, of course….to take his hand.

And they mourned for Aaron for thirty days.

(Sometimes our mountain experience is grief…..grief is one of those things that is very hard to deal with…for often we do not know how it will affect us.

I have seen solid people fall apart….in grief.

I have seen the faithful….question God for a time.

I have seen children, bewildered….because parents lack the courage to speak about these things [instead of giving hope and confidence in God to these little ones, they give vague answers….which are not answers.]

Some cry and mourn out loud….and others silently.

Some grow angry that there was not more time….thinking of things unsaid, or things undone.

But grief….is our heart’s feeling, when a loved one goes away [in the Hebrew it means “to carve”….and their loss will “carve a place for them that is empty…unfilled in us”.]

It hurts us, for we will miss them, and their voice….speaking to us.

But, like all “hurts”….there is our Beloved Physician, Jesus Christ…..who fills their loss with good: good memories, good courage, good peace….

…..and it is good, if we like Moses and Israel here….take time to mourn.

“Mourn” means to pour out your hurt (that means the hurt is gone, but not the memories)…and for us Christians….we should pour it out to God.)

The next mountain that Moses climbed was Pisgah.

It was on the far side of Jordon….for he could not go into the land because in his anger he disobeyed God, the second time he brought water from the Rock.

(The Rock symbolized Christ….giving life giving water to His people. Moses struck it once in Horeb (Exodus 17:6)….this showed that all the blessings we receive, are because Jesus was smitten for us.

…..the next time he was to bring water from the Rock, Moses was to speak to it…showing Christ Jesus in ascension glory, giving blessing to His people, from heaven, when we ask.

But Moses, in anger struck the Rock again….having a fit, and disobeying God.

After all God had showed Moses, his temper-tantrum barred him from Canaan. Deuteronomy 32:51)

On Pisgah, God showed Moses the land:

Deuteronomy 3:27 “Get thee up into the top of Pisgah, and lift up thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward, and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes: for thou shalt not go over this Jordan.”

Deuteronomy 34:1, 5 “And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho: and the Lord showed him all the land…

So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord.”

This time the mountain brought him, not just to see the Lord’s glory….but the Lord Himself in heaven.

His work was done….now his ministry he had accomplished by shepherding the second generation, would be blessed….but without him, for under Joshua (who was Moses helper. Exodus 24:13) all Israel went in to possess the Land.

(This is a great mountain….for when we die, as Christians, we are in the hands of God….our spirits and souls go with Him….but our body stays here(Deuteronomy 34:6) for a while….one day it will be raised to a glorified body, as well.

Moses work was done….and he had prepared others to go on…..are we preparing for our final journey….and for others to go on without us?)

But there is one more mountain for Moses: and this is a Hallelujah one!

Luke 9:28-31 “And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, He (Jesus) took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.

And as He prayed, the fashion of His countenance was altered, and His raiment was white and glistering.

And, behold, there talked with Him two men, which were Moses and Elijah:

Who appeared in glory, and spake of His decease which He should accomplish at Jerusalem.”

Jesus is praying on the mountain, and His Father sends Him Moses, representing the Law….and Elijah, representing the Prophets to talk to Him….

……about “His decease which He should accomplish at Jerusalem”.

Moses finally got into the Land, in his glorified body,….standing on a mountain, talking to the Son of God/ the Son of Man, Jesus Christ, face to face.

And what other subject would they have?….but the great work Christ would accomplish for Salvation at Jerusalem….what a conversation that would have been!

(And this mountain show us that, in heaven, we will be able to talk to Jesus face to face….in our glorified bodies….and with other believers.)

The “mountain” experiences of our lives are there to bring us closer to the Lord…to give us a desire to grow even more closer.

What of us? Are we “turning aside” from our everyday lives, to hear God’s voice…even on the more difficult mountains of experience?

Are we seeking a closer view of God, no matter what others feel about Him?

God has mountain experiences for us….do we want them?

Moses did….and had them….do we?

Come let us Reason together

Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow, though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”

This is one of my favorite verses in the Old Testament.

Think of it! The Almighty God wants us to come and give Him our reasons for our behavior.

And He will listen to them, and then, He will give us His reasons for His Way of doing things!

I have always been amazed at that much love to us!

This is reality, sinking deep within your soul. This requires honesty.

We can all blurt out feelings,….things which we may or may not really mean.

But Christ Jesus wants us to get honest, with ourselves (with the help of His Holy Spirit) about what is going on.

And then to tell Him.

“Come” , shows that we are far away from Him. So Come, now.

“Let us” means that this is not one-sided, but “us” talking.

(What a nice word, “us”, when it is the Lord and I)

“Reason together” means that we come, wanting to tell our side, but willing to be corrected, and go to His side.

This is intelligent conversation.

“Though your sins be as scarlet”: and who can say that their’s is not? Not me!

“They shall be white as snow”: by His cleansing us in His precious blood.

He died to save us; was raised to empower us; and intercedes for us in all we do.

If we are born again, He gave us His Holy Spirit, Who is with us always…..Who

helps us to get honest, for He is the God of all Truth;…….and helps us interpret our emotions, so we can see where we truly are,…..and what we truly want.

With God with us, even when we are out of the Way, He will help us.

He is the Creator,…we are His creatures. He created us, for He has a Purpose for us.

And we must come;……always we must come to Him, for all we need.

If we learn the lesson of coming before His throne, as creature before the Creator: knowing our weakness, and His Might, then we have learned a lesson which will be the corner stone of our life.

He calls: Come now, let us reason together.

He wants to hear from you.

And you to hear from Him.

A Certain King made a marriage for His Son

Matthew 22:2-6 “The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,

And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.

Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.

But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:

And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.”

The Lord told this parable about the preparation for the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:6-9).

The first servants sent forth were the prophets in the Old Testament….and Israel “would not come”.

God had wanted a Theocracy….where He was their king, but Israel refused to have Him as their king.

The second servants were the disciples which were sent out to preach the kingdom of God is at hand, when Jesus was on earth. (Matthew 10:5-7)

Everything was ready for the kingdom to be set up then….but “they made light of it, and went their ways”….

….”one to his farm”….(farms were quite complete in themselves)….to his own little world, without God.

….”another to his merchandise”….looking for profit from God, not to obey Him.

….”the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them”….John the Baptist was refused, and then beheaded…and he was the forerunner of Christ.

The message having been refused by Israel….God sends Rome against Israel and destroys Jerusalem (70 A.D.) (Matthew 22:7)

God sends other servants to bring in guests to His Son’s marriage supper.

Matthew 22:9-10 “Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.

So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.”

Some believe this to be the church sent out into the world with the gospel….

2 Peter 3:9, 13-14 “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for the new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot, and blameless.”

….others believe it to be the Jewish believers, sealed and sent out in the Tribulation period….preaching Christ as the true Lord and Son of God, to Israel again.

Revelation 7:3, 9, 14 “Saying, Hurt not the earth,….till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes,…

….And he said unto me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”

As the parable says….His servants went out and the “wedding was furnished with guests”.

Now you would think that would be the end of it….but…(and I believe this to be the true message of this parable Jesus is telling, for us today……we are to be ready to meet the King…and there is only one way to be ready.)

There are two calls given by the gospel:

The general call, which is heard by many….who hear it and only respond to the promise of the call….and not to receive Christ.

Then there is the effectual call, which is heard by those who open up their hearts and lives to Christ.

It is termed effectual, because it effects a real change in the Ruler, and direction of our life.

Matthew 22:11-14 “And when the king came into see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:

And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.

Then said the king to the servants, bind him hand and foot, and take him a way, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

For many are called, but few are chosen.”

Are you wearing the wedding garment which is the righteousness of Christ imputed to all who receive Him by faith?

For when you had an audience with a king….a proper garment was provided to you….you did not go in, with your own garments on.

This man, however, appeared before the king without it….representing all who firmly believe they are ready for His kingdom to come….but are not.

There are many good people….yet their goodness does not lead them to faith.

There are many people who have a knowledge of God,….but knowledge does not give us faith.

All our righteousness is as filthy rags….

Isaiah 64:6 “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”

If we trust in our own goodness, kindness, or right living….we certainly will be “taken away” in our iniquities (iniquities is anything unequal to our high calling in Christ Jesus)…

……we can only be “ready” to come before the King if we come to Christ and receive Him as Lord and Savior…..and put on Christ.

Romans 13:14 “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.”

For anyone to be saved, they must turn from their “own ways”, and come to Christ.

Have you heard the call to receive the Lord Jesus Christ, and have you come to Him?

Or are you still making excuses and going your “own way”?

Have you Heard the Lord call you?

Song of Solomon 5:2 ” I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.”

This is a story of a believer, who has gone to sleep. But she hears the voice of her Lord, in her heart, and she awakes.

So far, so good.

Then with her understanding, she hears Him call to her to open to Him.

This opening up of her life, is different than the Salvation she has already experienced. For He calls her, His sister; being joint-heirs with Christ.

Romans 8:16-17 “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified together.”

She has had fellowship with the Lord; and has gone on in that fellowship to be called His dove.

Now a dove can see only one thing at a time, and this has been her experience in Christ; keeping her eyes on Him.

Song of Solomon 1:15 “Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves eyes.”

Matthew 6:22 “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.”

He calls her His undefiled. This shows, that in that love relationship, she has gone on with Him;…..so she is being saved from the defilements of the world, and self.

1 John 2:15 “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”

But this calling, here, is a deeper calling, for Jesus calls her, as the One who sweat great drops of blood as in the garden (Luke 22:44).

But there seems to be a hinderance to His call,….

Song of Solomon 5:3 “I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?”

It would seem that having experienced so much of Her Lord, she has become a little proud. (Remember, one of the things the Lord deals with His own about is the “pride of life”)

“I have put off my coat”…….simply means she had begun to put off the old man with it’s deeds.

Colossians 3:9 “Lie not one to another, seeing ye have put off the old man with his deeds;”

Was she now to be defiled by working in the world?

“I have washed my feet”……..All her sins were confessed, up to date. And she had been cleansed from them. If she ventures out into the world to work for Jesus, won’t she again be contaminated by it?

These might have been very good questions,…..if…..Jesus were not the One calling her to go out with Him,…..to the work of bringing souls to Christ.

Song of Solomon 5:4-5 “My beloved put his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him.

I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock.”

The ancient doors used to have holes in them by the handle, so that when someone dear would come, they would put perfume (myrrh) on the inside of the door handle, to show they had been there.

Though she had hesitated to go further with the Lord,…..for what she thought were good reasons;……still she loves Him and is moved to go and open her hearts door again to His Call.

When she does, her hands drip with the perfume of myrrh.

(Myrrh was used to anoint the bodies of the dead, before burial, and was one of the treasures brought to Jesus at His birth by the wise men.)

So Jesus Christ is calling this loved one to go with Him into the experience of intercession, and travail for those He wants saved…..

and to work for those who are babes in Christ,….to help them, grow up in Him.

Often, this is a hard work, for it recognizes our imperfections, as well as those of others.

Also, it is a long work; it is not done in a day, or even a week; but till Christ be formed in them.

Galatians 4:19 “My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you,”

But she had opened,……..but she found Him gone.

Christ never retracts a calling; but He often withdraws the feeling of His presence, to prove us.

Will we become angry?

Or will be seek Him?

Song of Solomon 5:6 “I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer:”

She seeks Him. She sought Christ Jesus in the usual means….of prayer and church services…..hoping to find Him there.

She calls to Him to speak to her again, but it seemed as if He was refusing to call again.

She had come so far with Him, and now she had failed Him, the dearest Friend she had ever had.

She wanted to go back to the way things were….but the call had come, and she was either going to seek till she did find,……or yield to the pride she had shown earlier.

What follows is a conversation between her, and those who would seek Him also.

“What is thy beloved more that another beloved?” They ask. (Song of Solomon 5:9-16)

Then she describes His Greatness, His strength in times of her weakness,…….and that He is the altogether lovely One to her.

Song of Solomon 5:16 “His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.”

When she describes Him, she realizes that He has never left her, but proved her love to Him.

Did she love Him?…….Or His gifts?

She loved Him, and found Him.

They were united in the work as well as in life.

Theirs was a love relationship; And true love follows to the end, for the Loved One.

Have you heard the Lord call you? Perhaps you have hesitated, too. Listen to the love in your heart for Jesus, and answer His call.

Jeremiah 29:13 “And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.”

His, has been and is an everlasting love, for us.

Mightily Grew the Word and Prevailed

Acts 19:20 “So mightily grew the Word of God and prevailed.”

And how is it, that the Word grew?

Background:

Paul was in Ephesus. He had been preaching there for about two years….”so that all they that dwell in Asia (Minor) heard the Word of the Lord Jesus…”

He had also, by the Holy Spirit, worked miracles.

Acts 19:10-12 “And this continued by the space of two years; so that all they that dwell in Asia heard the Word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.

And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul:

So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs and aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.”

When we hear the Word…it makes demands on our life; which we either yield to, or refuse.

All, in this area, had heard….God was making demands on their lives about His Son, Jesus Christ…

And by Paul, the Lord was healing many from spiritual and physical illness.

Paul not only preached the Word of God, concerning Jesus Christ,….but that Word prevailed (had the victory over) in Paul….so it could prevail, through Paul.

But when God does a work, then there are always those that seek to mimic it, especially for money…..some were even using the names of Jesus and Paul…

Acts 19:13, 15-16, 20 “Then certain…took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth.

And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?

And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them and overcame them….so they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

This was known to all….dwelling at Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.

So mightily grew the word of God, and prevailed.”

The Name of the Lord Jesus was magnified….for God showed that He will not honor the use of His Name,…… except by those who believe and receive Him, as Lord and Savior.

His Name is powerful only to those who shelter beneath Him, in believing obedience.

The Word of God is the instrument of salvation.

1 Peter 1:23 “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.”

Now this Word lives and abides.

If it is not a living Word to you, you have not heard it aright.

If the Word does not make demands on your life, you have not heard it aright.

The gospel must wound, before it can heal.

It wounds our pride: we are sinners, like everyone else.

It wounds our reason: we can do nothing to save ourselves.

It wounds our hearts: it points out our secret sins.

“And the Name of the Lord Jesus was magnified”.

Here was the prevailing influence. He showed that He would honor His servants…..but not those who did not know Him, and only wanted to use Him (Matthew 7: )

“And fear fell on them all”….the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom….and it drew many to believe on the Lord Jesus, through HIs Word.

The fear that Jesus Christ knew their heart’s motives as well.

Acts 19:18-19 “And many that believed came, and confessed, and showed their deeds.

Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver.”

And many that believed came and confessed…

God requires honesty….getting right with Him….and your brethren.

And showed their deeds,….to know the healing power of forgiveness from these things.

Acts 19:19 “…and burned them before all men:…”

This was an act most necessary to have done with it all.

And the results?

Acts 19:20 “So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.”

God’s Word was being shared….and it was having the victory in the lives of these people.

Do we want to know the power of the Word of God?

Then we must give ourselves to God….to be prevailed upon.

If we, in believing obedience act upon what I know He requires of me now….I will know that prevailing power for myself.

There is for each of us, that power that is “exceeding, abundantly, above all that we ask or thing….according to the power that works within us”. (Ephesians 5:20)

Are we born again? Are we sheltered under Him, and obedient to His Word?

Then that Word will prevail in us…..and through us.

It is in knowing His Will, and doing it.

And as His children, we are as responsible to know His Will,….as to do it.

In our progressive walk before the Lord, we must always leave the better…..for the best.

This must always be done if the Word of God is to prevail through me…..it must prevail in me….where I am….with the circumstances I am in now.

Our Calling as Jesus’ Disciples

Matthew 16:24-25 “Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross, and follow Me.

For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it.”

What is a disciple? A disciple is one who is a learner and follower of someone, or some doctrine.

To be a disciple of Jesus Christ, we must follow and learn of Him.

Jesus says here, that to be my follower, you must deny yourself (your wants, plans, likes and dislikes) and pick up your cross.

What is my cross? It is anything the Lord wills for me, which cuts across my will. In other words: anything to which we would say, “I won’t”.

The message of the cross is that you were alive when you were put on; and you were dead when they took you off.

Simply, “my cross” is the things that will put to death in me….the rebellion, or resentment, or selfishness which exists in me.

So I can follow after and have His life in me.

As I deny myself, He creates in me that character of Christ, and giving me freedom from sin and self.

And this you must will, for our cross deals with our wills.

“If any man will”.

(When the Lord showed this to me, I was struggling with the way the Lord did things.

I did not realize how much I argued with the Lord, about His will. He showed me how much I asked, “Why?”

Why this? Why that way?….How many “whys” had I asked? How many times had I questioned Him….the Almighty God.

Who did I think I was? Yet I had done it again and again.

When He showed me this, I felt sick,…I could not even think “why?” without it hurting just a little bit.

I stopped asking why, and really started working at denying myself.)

When the cross has done it’s work, you no longer resist His will in anything.

It is not instant obedience, but it is final obedience. You will do His will.

But then Jesus goes on to say, “Whosoever will save his life, shall lose it.”

What does this mean? Jesus is saying: we are going to live our life our way,….or His way.

We may be a person who puts off things as long as they can. Doing only when the time is about up. That is our natural way.

God may let us go on in our way for a while,……but one day will require us to see things done early;…..right away….because He wants to teach us His way. And bless us there.

It may be the opposite: we may be someone who gets up and gets things done, so they can have the rest of the day for themselves.

And God says, “Wait till later”.

It is hard to wait; you are thinking of all the things you could do later. But God is trying to show us how to yield to Him, in all situations to Him.

There are many natural “ways”. Some habits, and some are extensions of our personality, which we need to lose, by denying ourselves.

Then we can “find” our life in Christ Jesus. We find as we deny our way, that the way God works things out, is best.

We find that the words we say become His words.

We find that our reactions…become action, taken by direction of the Holy Spirit.

(It is amazing, when you consider His life flowing through you.)

Of course, we still have to will it, for the action of our lives comes through our will.

If we try and save our self life, we will surely lose it; for it was never intended for you to have a life apart from God.

We were always in His plans and purposes.

When God says If we “save” our life, we will “lose” it….what does He mean?

It is losing time, it is losing opportunity for usefulness, and it is losing our life’s joy and blessing which He has for us.

It may mean for some….the loss of the feeling of His Presence with us….He is not gone….but we do not have His inward guidance, or comfort like we should….in a world where temptations abound, and anger rules.

But if we will, His love draws us forward.

His Holy Spirit empowers us onward.

His Purpose (His will and way) lift us homewards.

Blessing and Cursing

Deuteronomy 11:26-29, 32 “Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse;

A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day:

And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.

And it shall come to pass, when the Lord thy God hath brought thee in unto the land whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt put the blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the curse upon mount Ebal.

And ye shall observe to do all the statutes and judgments which I set before you this day.”

This was what the Lord had commanded Moses to tell Israel, on the far side of Jordan; right before he died.

Now Israel had come in to Canaan by crossing Jordan…..been circumcised (for during the time in the wilderness, they were not),…

…held the first Passover since Egypt,…

…and taken and destroyed Jericho, and Ai.

Then,…..though there was hardly any land that was theirs….

……they believed God and went to Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerizim…..all of them….all Israel went up to the place appointed.

Here the blessings and the cursing was to be read before all the people.

Joshua 8:30-34 “Then Joshua built an altar unto the Lord God of Israel in mount Ebal,

As Moses the servant of the Lord commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of whole stones, over which no man hath lifted up any iron: and they offered thereon burnt offerings unto the Lord, and sacrificed peace offerings.

And he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote in the presence of the children of Israel.

And all Israel, and their elders, and officers, and their judges, stood on this side the ark and on that side before the priests the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord,….half of them over against mount Gerizim, and half of them over against mount Ebal; as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded before, that they should bless the people of Israel.

And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessings and cursing, according to all that is written in the book of the law.”

Here on mount Gerizim, they were to read aloud the blessings God would perform if they were obedient….in the land He was giving them.

(Deuteronomy 28:1-14, it is a beautiful record of prosperity, and fruitfulness to themselves, each other, and the nations around them, in their obedience and devotion to the Lord their God.)

Here on mount Ebal, they were to read aloud the cursing God would perform if they were rebellious and disobedient.

(Deuteronomy 28:15-68; it is a terrible record of people gotten “fat” or comfortable in their lives, so that they forget God and His goodness….coming under the hand of idol worship, famine, diseases, and then their enemies…all because they forgot and forsake God:

Deuteronomy 28:47 “Because thou servest not the Lord thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things;”)

It is a beautiful thing to see Joshua so diligent and eager to perform this duty, which Moses commanded them to do.

(Joshua was a diligent servant of the Lord, both in heart and in battle. And here is an example of his love of God’s Word.

At the end of his life, he stated his life’s determination:

“….but as for me, and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15)

And there, on mount Ebal (where the curse was read) they sacrificed burnt offerings,….offerings for sin, and whole burnt offerings, showing they were completely His.

There they sacrificed peace offerings, showing that they celebrated the peace they had with God….even before their enemies.

It was a spiritual seal, on the land God gave them.

It was to show that God’s Law and commandments were now to rule in this land.

All would hear about it, and know these Israelites were different…(in the middle of the conquest of the land, they were claiming it in the name of God, and His Principles)….

….their God was different….He was letting everyone know that He would be honored in this land.

Joshua wrote the words of the law upon the stones he used for the altar, so all could read….and remember them.

(You will notice, when you read Joshua, how many times they wrote on stones, or piled up stones for remembrance of a mighty act of God for them.

These would have been a great comfort, if they had done what was told them: teach your children what God has done for us….talk of the Lord, when you are walking, or in your house. Deuteronomy 6:6-7)

This honoring God’s Word, would have taken a whole day, at least; maybe more, for all of them went.

Their camp was at Gilgal, yet they were at Mt. Ebal and Gerizim.

The enemies could have come up against the women, children, as well as the troops among them….

….but according to God’s Word, they went up and honored the Lord…and His law, here in Canaan….and God honored them.

God has set before each man by His Word the blessings in His Son, Jesus Christ….

Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

….and the cursing by refusing Him.

Mark 16:15-16 “And He (Jesus) said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature:

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; and he that believeth not shall be damned.”

They are written plainly for all who will read and see….to come to Him.

And we Christians, as Joshua, are to be diligent in our duty of manifesting the Word….

….even in the midst of our battles….we are to honor the Lord’s Word….that they might be seen and heard of all.

How am I filled with the Spirit?

Years ago, I asked the Lord this very question. Feeling a need in my ministry…I prayed and kept praying till I got this answer:

“To be filled with My Holy Spirit…you need to be emptied from the fullness of yourself.”

I said, “I have consecrated my life to you….I have given my life to be your preacher; I witness and pray for others, I work at being obedient to Your commands…..what more should I do?”

(Did you notice how many “I”s there are? Ouch! Obviously, being emptied of self is a tall order!)

So I asked….”How do I empty myself out?”

The answer was quite simple….I cooperate with the Holy Spirit, and bring everything that says, “This is me…my way of doing a job, my way of preaching on a text, my way of saying things”……to God….until, everything I am (habits and characteristics) and everything I do, says “This is Him.”

He showed me that this is my life’s work….to me conformed to His image, here and in all my days.

He must reign in my life, by a deliberate act of my will….my willing it, for all the things of my life.

Matthew 6:10 “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”

Subjection has become a “bad word” today. (Of course to the wrong elements, it is.)

But subjection to Christ is freedom.

“What!, you say, that can’t be.

Subjection is bondage;…..you have to do.”

But the reality of the subjection to Christ, is a love relationship.

(In all the conversation which I shared with you, between the Lord and I….there was the knowledge of His Presence, both in rebuke…”You are a preacher, and you do not know this?”

And in a sense of a love-calling…..”Do this for Me.”)

It is to know that He loves….you

(No, it is not just the knowledge of the head, having heard it so many times).

It is a closeness of His Spirit,…..a sweetness of His Voice (even when He corrects us),….and such a sense of rest of heart, and mind (and my mind usually goes around in circles pretty good).

Hosea 11:4 “I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love: and I was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws, and I laid meat unto them.”

Jesus Christ came as a man to show us the great love He had for us:

By His life in subjection to His Father. (“…for I do always those things that please Him.” John 8:28-29)…

By His sacrifice to save us from our sins (and they are the real bondage)….

And by His resurrection, to give us all things in Him.

Song of Solomon 8:7 “Many waters can not quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned.”

We can not give anything for the Love of God, for He has loved us with an everlasting love. (Jeremiah 31:3).

Before we were born, God loved us; by the Love of His Will.

It was not because there was anything in us that drew Him to us (definitely not as far as I am concerned).

Nor was it because He saw what we would do for Him, after conversion. Or because of what we would become.

No, He loved us because of one reason: He willed to do so.

Matthew 6:10 says, His kingdom come, His will done in earth, as it is in heaven.

And Jesus taught that we should pray this.

In heaven it is done willingly, joyfully, completely. But also with fullness of power.

He has this sort of power for us; but to get it down here into us we need to have His kingdom come with in us.

He showed me, that we should not ask……How much do I have of God?

But, how much does He have of me?

For we are filled with the Holy Spirit to the degree or extent, that we are willingly emptied of ourself life.

Imagine jars filled with water. Now, imagine you are going to fill them with another liquid.

They won’t mix, so one of them will “push” the other out.

The one comes in; and the water flows out.

This is the filling of the Holy Spirit. He flows in, at new birth.

But if we just let Him have that much of us, it is like a skim of oil on top of the water.

But when we yield to Him, be obedient to His direction, and give up our way…….then He keeps flowing in,…..and our self life, flows out.

We have more “want to”, more power to do, and more knowledge and joy in the doing.

This is to be being filled with the Holy Spirit;….and it is only as we submit to Christ’s rule in us; as subjects to King Jesus….

Under His command, doing His Will.

Ephesians 5:17-18 “Wherefore be not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;”