The Work Goes On

Acts 5:12 “And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people;  and they were all with one accord in Solomon’s porch.”

To be of “one accord” is to be in complete subjection to Christ Jesus.  The accord is with Him.  We agree with what He wants for us.   This is what they all were here. 

On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Ghost was given to the believers gathered in Jerusalem,  as Jesus had told them to do.  Many were saved under Peter’s message of:

Acts 2:38 “Then Peter said unto them,  Repent, and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins,  and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

But as soon as there was a church,  there was also opposition. (Our Adversary, the devil, seeks to wreck anything of God.)

Acts 5:17-18 “Then the high priest rose up,  and all they that were with him,  (which is the sect of the Sadducees)  and were filled with indignation.

                         And laid their hands on the apostles,  and put them in the common prison.”

Peter and John had been threatened before,  and told by the religious rulers, not to preach in Jesus name.  (It is a Name at which every knee shall bow one day. Philippians 2:9-11)

But they continued to speak and preach in the Name of Jesus;  for they told them “we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

So now they were put in prison.

Yet,  The Lord sends His angel and delivers them.

Acts 5:19-20 “But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors,  and brought them forth,  and said,   

                         Go,  stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.”

A command was given them to go right back in the temple,  right where these religious rulers would be able to find them,  and preach “all the words of this life”.    

What Jesus had taught,  and how He had be crucified, and raised up the third day;  to save all who would receive Him.

Acts 5:21-22, 25 “And when they heard that,  they entered into the temple early in the morning,  and taught.   But the high priest came,  and they that were with him,  and called the council together,…and sent to the prison to have them brought.

                              But when the officers came,  and found them not in the prison,…

                              Then came one and told them, saying,   Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple,  and teaching the people.”

This was what the Lord wanted,  both to encourage His disciples, and to awaken the religious rulers (If they would be awakened) to His Presence with His own, and the power of His Word.

When they were brought again from the temple to the council,  the high priest asked them:

“Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name?”

Now, under the Old Testament Law, they should have obeyed the high priest;    But…

Acts 5:29 “Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said,   We ought to obey God rather than men.”

Then Peter begins to preach to them:  (How many times have they heard?  Yet Jesus Christ is presented again…how long-suffering  He is, “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9)

Acts 5:30-32 “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus,  whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.

                          Him hath God exalted with His right hand to be a Prince and a Savior,  for to give repentance to Israel,  and forgiveness of sins. 

(But you have to acknowledge you are a sinner)

                           And we are His witnesses of these things;  and so is also the Holy Ghost,  whom God hath given to them that obey Him.”

Hearing this,  the council “was cut to the heart”—simply they knew absolutely within themselves,  that Jesus was God’s Son, and they were being offered forgiveness and a way to come to Him.

But they refused again this mercy:  “When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them.” (Acts 5:33)

Yet one man, Gamaliel,  stood up.  He knew the Law, and trusted in the God of that Law.  

He spoke of how God brings to nothing those who say they are something,  when they are not.

He gave some examples,  and concluded:  

“Refrain from these men, and let them alone:  for if this counsel or this work be of men,  it will come to nought:

But if it be of God,  ye cannot overthrow it;    lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.” (Acts 5:35-39)

Now I believe that each man knew they were fighting against God:  had been and were.

So they agreed with Gamaliel, hoping to ease their guilty conscience.

What did they do?    They could not kill them, or imprison them (if  God wanted them out).

But they beat them, and threatened them again, not to speak in Jesus’s Name.

Acts 5:41-42 “And they departed from the presence of the council,  rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His Name.

                         And daily in the temple,  and in every house,  they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.”

Joy and rejoicing should be our heart’s reward for obedience.  Courage and Strength also come to those who obey Him.

Today the work goes on.

Are we entering into our part?   

Temperance

Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is  love,  joy,  peace,  long suffering,  gentleness,  goodness,  faith,

                                   Meekness,  temperance:  against such there is no law.”

We have talked of the fruit of the Spirit before,  but I wish to speak of:     Temperance.

We have heard of moderation in all things.  This is a good policy for many things;  but temperance here is a fruit of the blessed Holy Spirit.

It is the ability to master everything which comes to us, in our lives.  (Not let them master us.)

As Christians,  we face fears, tempers, passions,  and opinions on all sides.

But the Holy Spirit within gives us help with all of these.  He gives us God’s love,  God’s joy and peace,  and yes,  God’s right-thinking.

This is temperance:

Proverbs 30:7-9 “Two things have I required of Thee;  deny me them not before I die:

                          Remove far from me vanity and lies;  give me neither poverty or riches;  feed me with food convenient for me:

                          Lest I be full,  and deny Thee,  and say,   Who is the Lord?     Or lest  I be poor,  and steal,  and take the name of my God in vain.”

Proverbs are mostly Solomon’s sayings, and he is asking the Lord, that before he grows old and dies,  he wants to learn two important things;   so he asks God to “remove” or cast away from him vanity and lies.

Vanity is that nothingness that the world is full of.   

The world would tell us that we should all look like this model, or that actress or athlete.

Or the world would get us to concentrate on physical,  or intellectual pursuits.

Solomon did all of these:

Ecclesiastes 1:16-17 “I communed with mine own heart,  saying,      Lo, I am come to great estate,  and have gotten more wisdom than all they that have been before me in Jerusalem:  yea,  my heart hath great experience of wisdom and knowledge.

                                    And I gave my heart to know wisdom,  and to madness and folly:  I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.”

Ecclesiastes 2:8-9, 11 “I gathered me also silver and gold,  and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces:  I gat me men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men,  as musical instruments,  and that of all sorts.

                                  So I was great,  and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem:  also my wisdom remained with me.

                                    Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought,  and on the labor that I had labored to do:  and, behold,  all is vanity and vexation of spirit,  and there was no profit under the sun.”

His conclusion from all his experiences in the goods of the world?

Ecclesiastes 12:13 “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:   Fear God, and keep His commandments:  for this is the whole duty of man.”

He wanted to be removed from vanity,  “And lies”.    The world is full of them.  Try this toothpaste and your smile will brighten a whole room!    (There are many lies, which are passed around each day;    silly ones,  and serious ones.)

“Give me neither poverty nor riches;    Lest I be full, and deny Thee”:         I will begin to trust in my riches and not in You.

“Lest I be poor, and steal,  and take the name of my God in vain.”:          I will be angry that I do not have what others have;  and try and get it in unlawful means (there are many kinds of thieves),  

And curse you for “making me do it.”  (we often blame God for what we have gotten ourselves into)

“Feed me with food convenient for me:”.  This is the same prayer as:

“Give me this day my daily bread.” (Matthew 6:11)

Someone has said:   This is not,  Give me my daily cake,…..but bread.

It means, that we are asking the Lord to provide for us what we need.  To give us enough:

Enough peace, money, food, family, friends, joy,…enough to get us through our lives;  with Him.

Because I must remind you,  that temperance is a fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  

Temperance is to master a thing—not to let it master you.

And the Holy Spirit bears that fruit within us and through us, as we yield to Him in each situation.

Are we growing in grace?

2 Peter 3:18 “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.   To Him be glory both now and forever.  Amen.”

Peter knew a lot about this;  having denied the Lord three times, once even before a maid.  

Yet he was restored,  and became the first preacher of the gospel after Pentecost.    Three thousand were saved that first day.(Acts 2:41)

He had grown some since he had bragged about his loyalty;  and then failed Jesus so terribly.

But he knew he was not done growing;  he had a lot more to learn.  And so when he was old,  he warned others about this very thing:

2 Peter 1:10, 12-13 “Wherefore the rather, brethren,  give diligence to make your calling and election sure:  for if ye do these things ye shall never fall:

                                Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things,  though ye know them,  and be established in the present truth.

                                Yea, I think it meet,  as long as I am in this tabernacle (body),  to stir you up by putting you in remembrance:”

God’s way of revealing His will,  is called Light.  If we will face the truth about what we are, and how we are,  grace (the unmerited favor of power) will be applied.

John 1:17 “For the law was given by Moses,  but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.”

For He came to save His people from their sin. (Not just the guilt, although that is marvelous;  but the power of that sin in our lives.)

As Christians,  this is an act of our will:  we confess our sin, and turn from it.

As we get obedient to the light we have, more light is given.

And with the light,  is the means of obeying Him.

Hebrew 5:12 “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers,  ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God;  and are become such as have need of milk,  not of strong meat.”

Here are the Hebrew Christians;  they had been Christians first,  so they should have grown in grace the most.

But instead of growing;  they had stayed babes in Christ.  Taking only the milk of the Word,  and could not as yet understand the weightier things of His Will.

Hebrews 5:13 “For everyone that uses milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness:  for he is a babe.”

“Unskillful” here, means inexperienced.   After all these years,  and all that they had gone through (persecution, others joining them in belief, and even ministering to their needs when the days of famine came);  yet they remained inexperienced.

How?  Why?

Simply, they failed to use the Word given them as they should.  They failed to meet the demands of that Word.

That Word says:  believe, and obey.  

Believe they did;  but obey they only did partially.     They trusted God would do;  but expected that He would do without their cooperation.  (And if you are going to get experience;  doing nothing will not work.)

Every true Christian stands in need of nourishment.   We must “eat” the Bread of Life which is Christ.

That involves fellowship in finding His Will,  and obeying it.

We must “drink” the water of Life freely which is His Holy Spirit.

That involves yielding ourselves to His guidance and convictions.

If we are to become strong Christians,  and not babes,  we need to grow. 

We need to use what He gives us and gain experience with Him. 

(If Jesus were here on earth, and came and invited you to follow Him,  would you?But, though He is not here on earth;  He is still inviting us to:   Come and Follow Me into the everyday experiences of today, tomorrow, and onward.  That is experience worth having.)

Hebrews 5:14 “But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age,  even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”

We have spiritual senses, as well as natural ones.   

We are to have “hearing ears” to hear what the Lord says to us.   There is no audible voice;  but the internal Voice which guides us.

We are to have “seeing eyes” by are eyes of faith.

We are to have the sense of “smell”.   This Spiritual sense tells us if a thing is good or rotten, just like our nose does.   It is discernment.

And we have “taste”.   We are called to taste and see that the Lord is good. (Psalms 34:8)

That means,  we are to experience His sweetness in the comfort, help, and word He gives.

It is of the Holy Spirit, as all of these are:  but we are to use His enabling,  and learn by the experience.  This is how we grow in grace.

If we sit on the sidelines;  we certainly may be Christians,  but we will not grow in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,  and become strong, mature adults.

That is why Jesus Christ is still calling us to,  “Come, and Follow Me.”

Because as we do,  we learn and grow.

Roots of Bitterness

Hebrews 12:15 “Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God,  lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you,  and thereby many be defiled;”

Roots of bitterness.  We all have them.   Most of the time they are well hidden;  roots,  that’s all. 

But then,  some memory stirs;  or some person reminds us of someone else and what they did to us;   and   “Bam”:

The hurt is there all over again,  and with it, the resentment, anger, “bitterness” of the experience can be felt once more.

And the wiles of the devil, our Adversary, are there to prompt and urge them to “grow”.    The Word says,  “springing up   trouble you”.

We believe this “bitterness” covers the whole spectrum of our lives.

From the first memory (And mine was when I was still in the crib, at three);

To the last happening, which caused you to be hurt.

You see, as Christians, we have a means of dealing with this resentment.

It is through the faculty of honesty,  which is a gift of the Holy Spirit, by the way. We are not naturally honest.

Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things,  and desperately wicked:  who can know it?”

If God left the description there;  then there would be no hope.

But thankfully,  He did not.  (Has He ever left us without a way to come to Him—no.)

Jeremiah 17:10 “I, the Lord search the heart,  I try the reins,  to give every man according to his ways,  and according to the fruit of his doings.”

“I”,  that is, God searches the heart, and tries the reins (which was the center of a person:  the will).  

To give every man according to his ways:  Or the habit of his life:

If your habit is to turn to the Lord, whenever you are hurt or you fail;  then God will give you grace and more grace to help and lift you up. 

If the habit of your life is to hide your hurts, and failures;  then God will (at least He has with me) let you continue to “fester” like a sore;  until the wound within gets so infected…..you must bring it to the Great Physician.

When you face the reason for the resentment with the Lord Jesus by your side,  in honesty;  then the power of the Lord Jesus, can make the hurt and anger dissolve and you can be done with it.

It won’t just subside;  but be as nothing.

My Experience: 

There was a man that wronged me.   Not just once,  but again and again.  He continued to do it, still.

And every time I thought about him,  I became angry all over again.  It was getting worse and worse.

Finally, taking it to the Lord, and confessing that I can not do anything about the way I feel about this man.

Please help me.

So the Lord showed me that man in my mind,  down on his knees before me.   

Completely in my power.   And the Lord said,  You can do anything to him.  What will you do?

Looking at that man,  I felt the anger come up all over again….and then:

I realized I would do nothing to this man.   Nothing.

The hate and anger was gone, and I laughed.  Really laughed:  at him, myself, and the whole situation.

Only God can give you laughter for hurt, and hate.   But He can.

From the first thought of “Why have You, Lord, let this happen to me?”

To the last,  “I won’t let them get by with this.”

We can be saved.  Saved for joy and peace,  and yes,  laughter.

Come, and get honest with the Lord:  Ask the Holy Spirit’s help—He will.

And remove—pull up those roots of bitterness,  and be free from resentments—to joy in the Lord.

When Saul met the Lord 

Acts 9:3-5 “And as he journeyed,  he came near Damascus:  and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:  

                     And he fell to the earth,  and heard a voice saying unto him,  Saul,  Saul,  why persecutest thou Me?   

                      And he said,   Who art thou,  Lord?   And the Lord said,   I am Jesus whom thou persecutest:  It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.”

Saul, a very religious Pharisee, had become enflamed against the followers of Jesus, after seeing Steven (the first martyr of the church) die.

Now here was the way a man who was true,  would die.  

Forgiving his killers, and asking God not to lay it to their charge.   Steven saw the heaven’s open and Jesus sitting on the throne, high and lifted up. (Acts 7:55-60)

But Saul would not believe his  testimony.  

That would make his nation guilty of condemning and killing their own Messiah (which they did).

No!  He would not believe it.  And the more Saul worked at not believing,  the madder he got.  

He devised a plan to destroy this belief.   He would persecute Jesus followers, and cause them to be stoned, too.

He would get rid of this Jesus.

But when some of the disciples in Jerusalem fled to other cities (the apostles, and a lot of other disciples did not),  Saul determined to search them out and bring them back and stone them.

So off to Damascus he goes.  He has letters which entitles him to grab these believers and arrest them and take them to Jerusalem for judgement.

He is fully empowered:  first by hate;  and by the established religious rulers which crucified Christ.

Riding along,  quite sure nothing is going to stop him.

But one thing he could not be empowered for:  the meeting with Christ Jesus, Himself.

First, there is light:  “a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun…”(Acts 26:13)

God always gives light first.  Then we are able to come out of the darkness.  

Then He gives His Word.

Acts 26:14 “When we were fallen to the earth,  I heard a voice speaking unto me,  and saying in the Hebrew tongue,    Saul,  Saul,  why persecutest thou Me?

It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.”

This got his attention!   Here was Someone he had been persecuting.  How could this be?

So he asks who this Person is.

Acts 26:15 “And I said,  Who art thou,  Lord?        And He said,   I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.”

Twice Jesus says how Saul had persecuted Him.   But it was His believers Saul had beaten and stoned.

But when anyone hurts a child of God,  they are hurting Jesus.

Acts 9:6 “And he trembling and astonished said,   Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?….”

Saul, empowered of man;  meets Jesus Christ the Almighty God:  And yields.

Jesus Christ was now Saul’s Lord;  and that changed everything!     And the first thing it changed was Saul’s Purpose:

Acts 26:16-18 “But rise and stand upon thy feet:  for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose,  (Here it is,  his purpose from now on!)

to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things that thou hast seen,  and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;

                           Delivering thee from the people,  and from the Gentiles,  unto whom now I send thee,  

                           To open their eyes,    and to turn them from darkness to light,  and from the power of Satan unto God,  that they may receive forgiveness of sins,  and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Me.”

If you read this,  it reads just like the experience he, himself had.

His eyes were open by light;  so he was to witness of Jesus Christ and give this light all over the known world.

He was under the power of Satan when he refused to believe Steven’s witness, and instead gave himself over to hate, and viciousness.

So Saul/Paul was to turn others from the power of Satan unto God.

His Message:

Forgiveness of sins by Christ Jesus, and our inheritance given in Jesus;   Then we are set aside for our purpose, the moment we are born again by faith in The Lord Jesus Christ 

When Saul met the Lord,  everything changed.    And Paul’s ministry changed the world.  He preached before kings, soldiers, religious rulers, and idolaters.

Everywhere, he preached Christ.

His own testimony was:

1 Corinthians 2:1-2, 4-5 “And I,  brethren,  when I came to you,  came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom,  declaring unto you the testimony of God.

                        For I determined not to know anything among you,  save Jesus Christ,  and Him crucified.

                         And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom,  but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

                         That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men,  but in the power of God.”

                         

When Saul/Paul met the Lord Jesus Christ for himself,  everything changed.

True North on the Compass of your Life

There is a magnetic north, which is not true north.

You can navigate with magnetic north for short trips.  It will get you in the general vicinity.

But to navigate accurately, especially for long trips, over long distances and time;  you must be able to ascertain true north.

Proverbs 29:18 “Where there is no vision,  the people perish:  but he that keepeth the law,  happy is he.”

As Christians, we should all have a vision or goal to which we are working.

And this goal  should come from the Lord.

We are never without purpose.

Ephesians 2:8-10 “For by grace are ye saved through faith;  that not of yourselves:  it is the gift of God:

                                 Not of works,  lest any man should boast.

                                 For we are His workmanship,  created in Christ Jesus unto good works,  which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”

For we are His workmanship, molded into the character of Christ Jesus, for good works:  For which He has made full provision, so we might walk in them.

This is our purpose.

If we are to navigate our life through this wicked world;  from here all the way to heaven,  we need to find true north.

So,  what is true north for each Christian?

The True North for each of us is  making Jesus Christ, Lord of our lives.

And He is not Lord of us, until we determine to obey Him.

If we were talking about a car;  His Lordship is the power in the engine,  and our obedience is the wheels which is the motion.

And of course He is driving.

John 7:17 “If any man will do His will,  he shall know of the doctrine,  whither it be of God,  or whither I speak of myself.”

John 7:17 (LNT) “If any of you really determines to do God’s will, then you will certainly know whether My teaching is from God or merely My own.”

I rarely use any other translation but the King James Version. But this translation in the LNT describes what I have found to be so:   We need to “really determine” to do God’s Will.   

“If any man will do His will” also describes it;  it is, of course by our will,  which is the action to do anything.   We need to will it.

But for myself, at least,  this is a picture of digging in and that: “I’m going to do this no matter what it cost me” determination.

That is what making Jesus Christ our Lord  takes.

We know His will by doing it.   If we do it today,  then tomorrow when we seek His Will,  it will come easier.

(And of course, if we hesitate and put it off,  tomorrow it will be harder to find it)

The world’s influence, and our old selves, and the devil are against us.

The old me will tell me,  “Well,  if I was still in charge, I would not require you to pray so much.   After all,  we’re busy.   God knows what we need.”

And the world will say,  “Why not laugh at that joke?  So what,  it was a little “bad”.    A little won’t hurt.”

But if Jesus is Lord to me,  it is not what I would do,  or what the world says is OK,  but where He leads, and how He would have me to go.

It is a process.   I believe you can commit yourself to the Lord, as Lord;  but then it is a matter of putting everything in our lives in His order.

No, it is not a list that is handed out;  but a conviction from the Holy Spirit within which shows us the way.

This is His order:

Philippians 2:12-13 “Wherefore my beloved,  as ye have always obeyed,  not as in my presence only,  but now much more in my absence,  work out your own salvation with fear and trembling:

                                    For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.”

Notice that we are to work out what God works in.   We are to work out the salvation from sin that Christ Jesus works in us,  by His Holy Spirit.

Then we have that true north on the compass of our lives;  and we will surely get safely to our destination.

Amos;  and our calling.

Amos 7:14-15 “Then answered Amos,  and said to Amaziah,   I was no prophet,  neither was I a prophet’s son  but I was a herdsman,  and a gatherer of sycamore fruit: (wild figs)

                            And the Lord took me as I followed the flock,  and the Lord said unto me,   Go prophesy unto My people Israel.”

He was not a prophet or a prophet’s son,  but called from being a shepherd and gathering wild figs,   he was called to preach repentance to Israel, that they might remember their Shepherd, and bring forth fruit to God.

Israel and Judah had separated.   In Jerusalem was the temple.  And the king of Israel was afraid that Israel would go back to Judah to worship at the Temple.

So he set up two idols to worship.  He told them that these were just a representation of God;  but he lied to them.

Israel apostatized.   They had begun to worship the idols which were calves.  

 This was great sin.  God is a jealous God, and so He sent them prophets to rebuke the king, the people,  and this sin.  

But the practice stuck.  They refused to be healed of it.  And so finally, after many years;  God was going to send Israel into captivity.   

And to a terrible people: cruel and vicious , the Assyrians.

But before He did,  He sent Amos to call them to repentance, and to tell them what was going to happen if they refused to hear, this last time.

Amos 3:1-2 “Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you,  O children of Israel,  against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt,  saying, 

                       You only have I known of all the families of the earth:  therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.”

It was because Israel knew the Lord, He was God,  that He was going to punish them for turning away from Him.  They had seen His works,  they had been given His Word,  and they knew He was the real God.

Light brings responsibility.     When we know to do good and do it not,  that is sin. (James 4:17)

And sin added to sin,  is spitting in the face of God.   

He is long-suffering, and merciful;  but He knows when enough is enough.  

He decides when drastic measures are called for; and that is to finally bring all who will hear His Words, to return to Him.

They knew that what they were doing was against God’s Commandments and laws;  yet they continued in them,  because they thought they could get by with it. 

Ecclesiastes 8:11-13 “Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily,  therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.

                                      Tho a sinner do evil an hundred times,  and his days be prolonged,  yet surely I know it shall be well with them that fear God,  which fear before Him:

                                       But it shall not be well with the wicked,  neither shall he prolong his days,  which are as a shadow;  because he feareth not before God.”

                                       

So Amos came up to Israel, and preached repentance to the people, and at Bethel. (This was one of the places where the idols were.)

Amos 7:1-3 “Thus hath the Lord God showed unto me;  and,  behold,  He formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth;…

                        And it came to pass,  that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land,  then I said,  O Lord God,  forgive,  I beseech Thee: by whom shall Jacob arise?  For he is small.

                        The Lord repented for this:  It shall not be,  saith the Lord.”

                       

First, it was grasshoppers to eat the grass to feed the flocks.   But at Amos prayer,  God “repented” or stopped His judgement, so that all would not be destroyed.

(This show us how important our prayers are.   The Lord hears the prayers of the righteous,  and many times it is our prayers that change a situation for good.)

Second, God sent scorching heat to lay waste the waters they counted on.

But again Amos prayed for them, and God halted the judgement that way.

But the third time, The Lord showed Amos a plum line. (A plumb line is a line with a weight on the bottom to hold it down straight.)

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

                        And the Lord said unto me,  Amos,  what seest thou?  And I said,  A plumb line,   Then said the Lord,  Behold,  I have a set a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel:  I will not again pass by them any more:”

God would put a plumb line in the midst of His people.   If they would “straighten out” their lives by turning back to Him, they would be spared.

But those who refused, and remained “crooked”,  would fall as a wall which leans.

And how did God want them to repent?

First to return unto Him.

Amos 5:4 “For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel,  Seek ye Me,  and ye shall live:”

                      Second, The Lord wanted them to treat the poor with dignity, and fairness.

Amos 8:4-6 “Hear this,  O ye that swallow the needy,  even to make the poor of the land to fail, 

                       Saying,  When will the new moon be gone,  that we may sell corn? And the sabbath,  that we may set forth wheat,  making the ephah (like a bushel) small,  and the shekel (their money) great,  and falsifying the balances by deceit?

                        That we may buy the poor for silver,  and the needy for a pair of shoes;  yea,  and sell the refuse of the wheat?”

 

The title of this is Amos; and our calling.

As Christians,  we too, are called to our family, our friends, our church, and our nation:  to pray for and to seek their good.   

And the greatest good we can pray for,  is for them to know and love The Lord, and to treat others as they want to be treated,  with dignity and respect.

Under the idolatry of Israel,  many were destroyed spiritually,  long before God sent them out of their land, in judgement.

He sent prophets to preach His Words,  and chastening circumstances so they would see His hand.

Finally, He sent them out of the good land, to sift them as wheat:

Amos 9:9-10 “For, lo,  I will command,  and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations,  like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.

                         All the sinners of My people shall die by the sword,  which say,  The evil shall not over take  or prevent us.”

But even as Amos left Israel to return to being a shepherd,  he heard a promise:

God would not utterly forsake His people.   

They would have to go through terrible trouble to finally learn the lesson He would have easily taught them,  had they listened and turned to Him.

But…

“In that day will I raise up….and I will build…saith the Lord that does this.  I will bring again…and I will plant.  (Amos 9:11-15)

The Lord sent Amos to preach repentance to “all who will” hear.

And we are all called to witness to our Lord Jesus Christ.   To let our lights so shine that all may see our good works and glorify our Father which is in heaven.

To Know the Lord

Hosea 6:3 “Then shall we know,  if we follow on to know the Lord:  His going forth is prepared as the morning;  and He shall come unto us as the rain,  as the latter and former rain unto the earth.”

“Then”. 

This is time word: not before, but “then”.

“Then” what?   We shall we know Lord,  “If” we follow on to know the Lord.

This might seem like a revolving door.  We will know, if we follow on to know.

But Jesus said the same thing when He was here:

John 8:31-32 “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on Him,   If ye continue in My words,  then are ye My disciples indeed;  

                          And ye shall know the truth,  and the truth shall make you free.”

Now these people believed on Him;  but they were to continue to believe and obey His word.     Then they would know the truth, and the truth would make them free.  (Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. John 14:6)

You see,  we are called to a walk with Jesus.   That is taking each step, each day, each forward move:  with Him.

And what does He promise those who “follow on”?

“His going forth (with us) is prepared as the morning;”

As certain as this old earth keeps turning, there will be sunrise tomorrow.

There may be clouds, or the day dark and dreary;  but the sun will be there: prepared as the morning.

He knows everything that will come to us each day.  He is there, preparing in us the grace we need to deal with each thing.

He will rise with us;  hit the highway with us;  go into our work place, or school with us;  and all along the way He will:     “Come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain upon the earth.”

Rain in scripture speaks of His mercy:

This rain was essential for a good harvest in Israel.

You had to have the early rain to soften the ground;  and the latter rain to grow the crops.

All this was by the mercy of God.

And He will come unto us:  in the circumstances we are in now, today;  and “rain” the blessing of grace and mercy for us.  (He will be there; guide us, help us, and lift us up;  in this time,  whatever is going on.)

He wants us to know Him as Lord and Savior.  

He wants us to know Him more each day:  what He wills for us, and what He will do for us.

He has prepared each grace that we need;  “prepared as the morning”—it is sure.

And He wants us to go with Him, into all our circumstances and relationships;  and know more and more of Him: “to follow on to know”.

For “then”,  we will know:  

And let’s face it:  knowing the Lord is:  truth,  life,  and everything we will want.

He fills our hearts and lives with joy:  “If” we continue in His word.

The Rich Ruler

Mark 10:17 “And when He was gone forth into the way,  there came one running and kneeled to Him,  and asked Him,   Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?”

Here is a man seeking eternal life (In Luke 18:18 he is called a ruler).   And he comes to the right place:  to Jesus.

But Jesus first points this young man to God.

Mark 10:18 “And Jesus said unto him,   Why callest thou Me good?  There is none good but one,  that is,  God.”

He was showing this seeker that eternal life, does not come through following a certain set of rules.

But eternal life comes by receiving, and following Him.  Through the Son of God,  Who was right before him.

If He was good, and none was good but God:  then He was God (which He was).

But since this rich ruler was asking what he should do,  Jesus points him to God’s Word.  

Jesus was drawing out of this man what his heart was really like, for it is only as we see our real need, that it can be met.

Mark 10:19 “Thou knowest the commandments,  Do not commit adultery,   Do not kill,  Do not steal,  Do not bear false witness,  Defraud not,  Honor thy father and thy mother.”

Jesus quotes the second half of the Ten Commandments.  The part that deals with our relations with people. 

(The first half deals with honoring God, and not worshipping idols, not taking the Lord’s name in vain, and the Sabbath rest, to honor God’s works)

Mark 10:20 “And he answered and said unto Him,   Master, all these have I observed from my youth.

This young man falls short of getting what Jesus is really telling him.    Standing right before him was God’s Way of Salvation, in His Son;  yet he is intent on finding something to do.

“I have kept them all.    Yet, I know I do not have eternal life by doing what I am doing.    So,  what more can I do.   What don’t I have?”

Instead of asking, “what more can I do?”;  he should have been asking,  “Can I come after You?   For only You can lead me into eternal life.”

Mark 10:21 “Then Jesus beholding him loved him,  and said unto him,   One thing thou lackest:  go thy way,  sell  whatsoever thou hast,  and give to the poor,  and  thou shalt have treasure in heaven:  and come, take up the cross,  and follow Me.”

Jesus loved him.   Jesus could look into every heart and He knew that this man really wanted Eternal life. 

But Jesus also saw the problem.   He had given this man the part of the law which dealt with people for a reason.  

The problem was:  his riches and possessions.  

They had his heart all tied up.   Nothing could get in,  he was so full of them.

So the answer was: give away to other people your possessions.  Free up your heart from the grip of them, and come and follow Me.

This man had followed the Law:  he had not taken from any one, whether by false accusation, or theft.  He had not committed adultery.   He had honored his father and mother.

But he was very rich—he had “great possessions”.

Jesus was not bargaining with this man.   He was telling him what hindered his heart from finding eternal life.

Mark 10:22 “And he was sad at that saying,  and went away grieved:  for he had great possessions.”

Whether this man ever did what Jesus said, or whether he let eternal life go, to hang onto his riches;  he went away.

He turned from the Person Who was the answer;  and went away.

Mark 10:23-25 “And Jesus looked round about,  and saith unto His disciples,   How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!  

                            And the disciples were astonished at His words,  but Jesus answereth them again,  and saith unto them,  Children,  how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!

                             It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle,  than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.”

Jesus is saying, that it is very hard for people who have “trusted” in other things;  to let go of them, and “Come and take up the cross, and follow Me”.

It is Jesus that saves, not Jesus and…

But you have to let go of what you are hanging on to;  to take hold on Christ.

“Who then can be saved?”  His disciples asked.

Mark 10:27 “And Jesus looking upon them saith,   With man it is impossible,  but not with God:  for with God all things are possible.”

Again Jesus points to God, and God’s only Way of Salvation in His Son,  Jesus Christ.

I hope this rich ruler came back and received eternal life by Jesus Christ;  but the answer is the same today for everyone who seeks true life:

“Come and take up the cross, and follow Jesus.”

In Him is eternal life.

Jesus and the Children

Matthew 18:12-14 “How think ye?  If a man have a hundred sheep,  and one of them be gone astray,  doth he not leave the ninety and nine,  and goeth into the mountains,  and seeketh that which has gone astray?

                               And if so be that He find it, verily I say unto you,  he rejoicieth more of that sheep,  then of the ninety and nine which went not astray.

                               Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven,  that one of these little ones should perish.”

Jesus thinks children are very important.  The training and guiding them to come to Him, is vital.

Jesus would have them all come to Him and be saved.

“..it is not the will of your Father in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.”

And in order for that to happen,  He will go out and search for them.

In Mark it says:

Mark 10:13-14, 16 “And they brought young children to Him,  that He should touch them;  and His disciples rebuked those that brought them.

                                But when Jesus saw it,  He was much displeased,  and said unto them,   Suffer the little children to come unto Me,  and forbid them not;  for of such is the kingdom of God.

                                And He took them up in His arms,  put His hands upon them,  and blessed them.”

He was displeased that the disciples wanted to keep the children away.  He took them up in His arms and blessed them.

Children who are brought up to love the Lord, and know His love for them personally,  may stray far,   when they grow older. (My son was one of these.)

But they will be brought back, for He is always their Shepherd.

Matthew 18:12-13 “How think ye?  If a man have a hundred sheep,  and one of them be gone astray,  doth he not leave the ninety and nine,  and goeth into the mountains,  and seeketh that which is gone astray?

                                 And if so be that he find it,  verily I say unto you,  he rejoiceth more of that sheep,  than of the ninety and nine which went not astray.”

And why does He rejoice so, over that one?

Because, they are always in His plans and purposes.

Matthew 18:10-11 “Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones;  for I say unto you,  that in heaven their angels do always behold the face of My Father which is in heaven.

                                  For the Son of man came to save that which was lost.”

The children are especially mentioned when He comes into Jerusalem.  He is praised by the multitude;  but they fade away.  

But the children come into the Temple with the blind and the lame, after Jesus drives out the moneychangers.  And they keep on praising Him.  

When they are complained about,  Jesus says God has ordained them for praise.

Matthew 21:15-16 “And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did,  and the children crying in the temple,  and saying,  Hosanna to the Son of David;  they were sore displeased,  

                                 And said unto Him,   Hearest Thou what these say?  And Jesus said unto them,   Yea;  have ye never read,  Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings Thou hast perfected praise?”

Psalm 8:2 “Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings hast Thou ordained strength because of Thine enemies,  that Thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.”

After Christ arose, and Peter is forgiven his denials of Jesus, and given his ministry for the rest of his life;  he was told first:

John 21:15 “So when they had dined,  Jesus saith to Simon Peter,   Simon, son of Jona,  lovest thou Me more than these?   He saith unto Him,  Yea, Lord;  Thou knowest that I love Thee.   He saith unto him,   Feed my lambs.”

Sometimes I feel that we are like the Israelites in Egypt under the Pharaoh which killed so many children.   (Exodus 1:22)

Our Adversary, the devil, is seeking to limit the influence of Christ Jesus,  so how better, than to destroy our children. 

Pharaoh drowned them in the Nile, and how many children are being “drowned” in things of this world:  the internet, peer pressure, violence.   There are many others, but all are choking the true “life” in Christ, out of our children.

It does not matter whether they are rich or poor,  the answer is as Jesus said, “Bring them unto me.”

(Many say that a whole generation is already gone:  Maybe so,  and maybe [and let us all pray so] the Shepherd is going out now to rescue these lost ones.)

Proverbs 2:1-2, 9 “My son,  if thou wilt receive My words,  and hide My commandments with thee;  

                                 So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thy heart to understand;

                              Then shalt thou understand righteousness,  and judgement,  and equity;  yea, every good path.

That is what we want for our children,  the “good path”,  wherein is righteousness and peace.

Matthew 18:12-13 “…If a man have a hundred sheep,  and one of them be gone astray,  doth he not leave the ninety and nine,  and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray?

                                 And if it so be that he find it,  verily I say unto you,  he rejoiceth more of that sheep,  than of the ninety and nine which went not astray.”

The Lord Jesus loves our children,  let us love them also, with our prayers for their salvation, and our witness of all the good God has done for us.