Are You Listening?

Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door,  and knock:  if any man hear My voice,  and open the door,  I will come into him, and will sup with him,  and he with Me.”

If any man (person) hear My Voice.

Are we hearing what Jesus is saying to us? Each day?

Jesus said:

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

Take heed how ye hear.  If we have been born again,  then we,  as His children are to hear what He is telling us:  in this set of circumstances [sometimes this is the only way He gets through to us],  by His Holy Spirit through the Word, or by direct communication in our spirits.

He speaks to us.

The promise here is:  If you have the Holy Spirit within you,  and have heard Him;  more will be given you.  More light, more ability, more knowledge, more everything we need.

And this is because we hear Him. 

But the promise also says:  If you are one who has heard the invitation of Christ Jesus,  and answered it with all the right words.  

But it has been just that, an answer of words;  not an answer of a life open to and receptive to Christ.

Then that which he “seems to have”, he does not.

[Not that that person can not be saved by opening their heart to Jesus Christ, but that they, have not as yet been.]

Remember,  when Jesus Christ saves a life,  He claims that life.

He will not be used as a “fire escape” from Hell;    but He is a Savior, from sin.

Matthew 1:21 “And she shall bring forth a son,  and thou shalt call His name Jesus:  for He shall save His people from their sins.”

Romans 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”  

When we are saved;  from that time on we are bought with a price and no longer our own.  

Luke 8:16 “No man,  when he hath lighteth a candle,  cover it with a vessel,  or putteth it under a bed;  but setteth it on a candlestick,  that they which enter in may see the light.”

This is what we are to do with what we hear:  light a candle.   

By our obedience to what Jesus says,  we are manifesting Him in this lost world.  We are lighting a candle.

It is amazing when you go into a dark room…really dark.  Blackness seems to surround you.   Then to light a candle, there, will make the darkness flee.

True the whole room will not be as light, as it is around the candle;  but it will force the darkness into the corners, away from the light….even a small one, like a candle.

Raise that lit candle up,  and more light will be shone around,  for you are not blocking the light, but it shines all around.

Amazing, right?   The Lord Jesus uses this example for that very reason:  a candle can bring a lot of light,  if it is placed where “they which enter in may see the light.”

In another place, Jesus accused the religious lawyers of hindering those which would “enter in” to the kingdom of God. (Luke 11:52)

Let us not do this.  Instead let us hear Him,  and recieve the light He gives by His Word, and Holy Spirit;  and then let us shine the light, by holding up Christ Jesus to others.

Ephesians 4:21 “If so be that ye have heard Him,  and have been taught by Him,  as the truth is in Jesus:”

Are we hearing Him?  Are we learning from what we have heard?   Are we holding on to it, and sharing Christ?

(Years (yes, lots of years) ago,  I was called to preach.  I had recently been brought back to God; my rebellion and sin forgiven, and taken care of.  I had started to go to church, and after a while I had been asked to sing a song for the church services.

I sang “Trust and Obey”.  

Well, I sang it, and sat down;  and the minister had his message.   Then the Lord Jesus called me to be a preacher!

I could not believe it;  me?  The way I had been?  This must be some mistake!

But the Lord spoke plainly to me:   “You sang it [Trust and Obey],  now, do it!”

So I went forward and committed my life to be a preacher of God’s Word.)

Jesus Christ always shows us the truth, for He is Truth.  And as we face the truth,  He gives us grace.   Grace is the unmerited favor of power: the power in our lives to do what He has said…to be obedient to all His words to us.

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

Will we receive Christ Jesus as Savior of our sin?

Will we hear His voice, and learn of Him?

Will we answer His call to lift our lights, and shine them in this dark world?

Well, if we will,  He has everything we need.  He can tell us everything we need.  He is everything we need.  

Whom shall He teach knowledge?    

Isaiah 28:9-10 “ Whom shall He teach knowledge?  And whom shall He make to understand doctrine?  Them that are weaned from the milk,  and drawn from the breast.

                              For precept must be upon precept,  precept upon precept;  line upon line,  line upon line;  here a little, and there a little.”

If we would go on to maturity in the faith of Christ,  this is the way we will go.

1 Peter 2:2 “As newborn babes,  desire the sincere milk of the word,  that ye may grow thereby:”

The Lord Jesus would teach us knowledge:  about Himself,  and about ourselves (who can really see the way we are without His truth?), and about the world around us (the snares, and phonies there).

Teach means to point out;  like the Lord pointing His finger and saying,   “Look,  this is the way things really are.”

Psalm 32:8 “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go:  I will guide thee with mine eye.”

And the Lord “shall make us to understand doctrine”.  In other words,  what we hear, we will understand with our minds:  we will not be confused about what He is saying to us.  The Holy Spirit will give us understanding.

For precept must be upon precept;  line upon line.

[precepts in the Bible, are God’s prescriptions.  They are like medicine which He gives us for our spiritual health.  They may not taste good going down, but will make us well.]

Growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord is by steps.   Putting one foot in front of the other.   A little victory here,  a larger one next.     There are falls,  but He is ever ready to pick us up.

And at every forward step, He celebrates with us, giving us joy and peace;  giving us His grace for the next step.

We can go on till our affections have reached maturity.  For the walk of a Christian comes down to:   Lord,  what is next?

1 Corinthians 13:11 “When I was a child,  I spake as a child,  I understood as a child,  I thought as a child:  but when I became a man,  I put away childish things.”

Paul is talking about charity, or love here.  Putting away our natural anger, and jealousy, and fear;  we are to go on and yield to the love God puts in our hearts.   Love to Him and others.     The more we love Him, the more we trust and obey Him.

Obedience does not save us;  the Lord Jesus Christ does that.  But we will never know Him in power, till we obey Him.

1 John 3:18 “Little children,  let us not love in word,  neither in tongue;  but in deed and in truth.”

1 John 2:5 “But whoso keepeth His word,  in him verily is the love of God perfected:  hereby know we that we are in Him.”

We are to be children of light, and shine that light:

1 Thessalonians 5:5, 8 “Ye are all the children of light,  and the children of the day:  we are not of the night,  nor of darkness.

                                          But let us,  who are of the day,  be sober (serious about doing God’s Will),   putting on the breastplate of faith and of love;  and for a helmet,  the hope of salvation.”

The Lord teaches us little by little; pointing out to us:   the way to go,  how to use the means of grace He gives us,  and giving us His light and love all along the way with Him.

The Temptation of Christ Jesus 

Matthew 4:1 “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.”

Jesus was “led up of the Spirit”.   This temptation, then, was God’s Plan and Purpose for His Son.

He was in all points tempted, like as we are, the writer to the Hebrews revealed. (Hebrews 4:15)

So this temptation shows us how to act when we, too, are tempted.

First, notice that our hardest temptations come after we have gotten more Spiritual power and grace.   

Jesus had just been baptized by John the Baptist, and the Holy Spirit had come down upon Him without measure,  as He came up from the water.  A Voice had announced that Jesus was  God’s Beloved Son!  And that He was well pleasing in God’s sight!

But then He was tempted.

Matthew 4:2-4 “And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights,  he was afterward an hungered.

And when the tempter came to him,  he said,  If thou  be the Son of God,  command these stones to be made bread.

But he answered and said,    It is written,  Man shall not live be bread alone,  but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”

Jesus was hungry.  He had been fasting for forty days, and nights;  so when He could, He wanted to break the fast by food.

But when tempted by the devil to change stones into bread, so He could satisfy His hunger,  and prove that He was the Son of God;  Jesus refused.

But He did not just say “No”,  but rebuked the suggestion by quoting “It is written”.

What the Scriptures say,  help us to live right, and know what to do.

The suggestion of the devil, was that because Jesus was the Son of God, He could do what ever He wanted,  have whatever He wanted,  whenever He wanted, by simply  commanding it to be so. 

Of course Jesus could,  but that was not why He became man.  It was ever to do the Father’s Will, that He came, and that was what He lived for and died by.

So should we do the Father’s Will for us.  It puts us in the wonderful position of being able to stand back from suggestions and plans, and seeking His Will in everything.

That puts temptations in a new light.  It is not:  “You want this, it is not too awful, why not do it?”

It is:  “Is this what the Lord would have me to do, now?”

Notice this first temptation was for bodily wants.

Matthew 4:5-7 “And the devil taketh him up into the holy city,  and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple.  

And saith unto him,  If thou be the Son of God,  cast thyself down:  for it is written,  He shall give his angels charge concerning thee:  and in their hands they shall bear thee up,  lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

Jesus said unto him,  It is written again,  Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

Jesus had quoted Scripture, so now the devil quotes it.  Again he says, “If thou be the Son of God”.

Here the temptation is for public announcement.  Cast yourself down from the pinnacle of the temple.  What a better way to prove the fact that You are the Son of God!  

And it is said in the Scriptures,  so God will have to do it.

Sneaky.  

For God would certainly do it, and those that saw it, might have been awed into following Jesus for awhile, because of it.  

But that is not true believing.  It would have been useless, for the heart will only follow what it loves.   

And awe is not love.

But Jesus refused it, for it was not the Father’s Way of announcement.  His Way was for Jesus to go about preaching, “the kingdom of heaven is at hand”.  He was to do good to all. (Matthew 4:17)

Certainly it was not as exciting as angels catching Him.   But it was what God wanted.

The devil’s suggestion was just tempting God; and Jesus refused it and quoted that Scripture:  “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”  

(To tempt God is to make  God prove Himself or His Word,  by demanding that He do something for us,  now.    Do this,  or we won’t trust You.)

This second temptation had been for Fame, and prestige.   He would be Famous,  everyone would know He was the Son of God!

How often we get trapped into “seeking” these.

Matthew 4:8-10 “Again,  the devil taketh him up unto an exceeding high mountain,  and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world,  and the glory of them:

And saith unto him;  All these things will I give thee,  if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

The saith Jesus unto him,  Get thee hence, Satan:  for it is written,   Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God,  and him only shalt thou serve.”

Some say that the devil had no right to offer the kingdoms of the world,  but he is the prince of this world:

Luke 4:5-7 “And the devil,  taking him up into a high mountain,  showed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.

And the devil said unto him,  All this power will I give thee,  and the glory of them:  for it is delivered unto me;  and whomsoever I will give it.

If thou therefore wilt worship me,  all shall be thine.”

The temptation here is:  Forget the path to the cross.   If You will fall down and worship me, You can have all the kingdoms and the power of them…now;  without the suffering and  shameful death of the cross.

This was the devil’s attempt to destroy Who Jesus was:   “I will  give you all I have, to make God finally submit to me, in the person of His Son.”

Of course Jesus refused this:

But after this final suggestion,  Jesus commands the devil to depart;  quoting the verse, “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

Jesus would do all the Father’s Will.   And He was confident that those kingdoms would be His,  God’s Way; and that was through the suffering of the cross, to resurrection and glory.

The third temptation was for personal power, and glory; without suffering.

And does not the devil tempt us in the same ways:

1)See to your needs  first.  Yes, your a Christian, but God has not “forbidden” you to do this,  so He probably doesn’t care.  Big temptation.

2)If you are going to have a ministry for God,  make it flashy.   People will remember you.  They will admire you.  They will think you are great!  (There is a whole lot of “you” in that “ministry”)

3)If you  will just go along with the world,  you could skip a whole lot of trouble.   Sure, you can look like a Christian, but you don’t have to walk in that “narrow”way.  

In other words, “Go ahead, lose your Christ’s Life, to have your self life”. (Matthew 16:25)

These, and others like them, are the things the devil tempts us with 

(For he tempted our Lord the same way.)

Looking to the Father’s Will, Jesus went through these temptations, standing on the Word of God.  

Jesus left the place of temptation by placing Himself in the Father’s hands by the Word of God.   

He did all the work the Father had for Him, and finished it.

So we need to look to Jesus, and go through all He has purposed for us,  with Him.  

He will empower us, to the measure of our devotion and obedience, by the Holy Spirit to know and to do His Will.

Blessed

Psalm 65:4 “Blessed is the man whom thou choosest,  and causest to approach unto thee,  that he may dwell in thy courts:  we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house,  even of thy holy temple.”

Blessed means twice happy!

God sees us blessed;   How do we see ourselves, in His work?

When He chooses us,  He causes us to draw near to Him.  Would we resist that drawing?

When I was first brought back into the right way, after wandering away from God;  I was in awe, that  He loved me enough to welcome me back.

My thought was to grow closer to Him.  Nearer, Nearer, I prayed.  That is what I want.

The song of Nearer My God to Thee,  seemed to play in my head, often.

“Even though it be a cross that raises me…”.  

The “pig pen” of the world I had experienced;  I wanted the “home” of closeness with God.

Blessed I was, and am, for God’s mercy to me.

This Psalm typifies God’s great arms.  Drawing us, even when we run away.

Calling us, even when we have refused before.

“We shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house,”

For Christians, the closer we get to the Lord,  the more satisfied we are.  The further away from God,  the more opportunity for things to come in between us.   These cause barriers.

The barriers we place, between the Lord and ourselves, cause discontent.

And discontent is to be dissatisfied.

And when we are dissatisfied,  we start looking for other things.

There are many temptations in the world,  the best place to be safe is in the holy temple of fellowship and nearness to the Lord.

Blessed is the one who is close to the Lord.

Blessed, also, is the one who is given opportunity to get near to the Lord again.

Most blessed is the one who never looks for any other satisfaction,  than in Him.

The Power of the Word of God

Psalm 119:9 “Wherewithall shall a young man cleanse his way?  By taking heed thereto according to Thy word.”

[Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible.  It is divided into 22 sections, a number according to the Hebrew Alphabet.  Almost every verse has a reference to God’s Word. (Commandment, Statutes, Precepts, Testimonies, Way, Law, Judgments, and Righteousness)]

These verses (9-16) deal with the power of the word of God to cleanse, and to keep the soul from the influence of the world.

So God shows a test-case:  a young man.   He is just starting into the world.  And there are a lot of natural attractions to draw him away from God.  Things untried, which could lead him into a path away from God.

Is the Word of God able to keep him?  

Yes.  For the light of the Word draws the soul, showing it the whole scene,  not just what the world would present.   

(Psalm 119:105 “Thy Word is a lamp until my feet, and a light unto my path.”)

Psalm 119:10 “With my whole heart I have sought Thee:  O let me not wander from Thy commandments.”

The Word of God shows things in there true character.  

It does not “sugar-coat” the darkness which the “highs”, “fun”, or “following the crowd”,  can bring;  but shows it plainly.

It brings God into the picture before him.  The world would leave God out of everything.  Saying, “He will ruin everything.  He is so narrow-minded.”

(The world sees the “narrow way” [Matthew 7:13-14) as restricting, and harsh.  But every child of God which walks in this way, finds it freeing.  We are watched over, guided, provided for even in trials,  and most of all,  we are never alone.)

But God’s Word testifies that God always has His children’s best interests at heart.  He draws them with the Word, which opens up everything before them 

The soul, when sees what God says, believes and gets freedom, or the power of choice.  

(We are not able when we are first born again to be free from the besetting sins which so easily plague us.   They come back again and again.  

But as we deny ourselves, and follow Christ, we begin to be free from these things;       for the power of the Word and the Holy Spirit enable us to master ourselves and our circumstances.  At the same time we know our need of Christ more and more.  

This is a blessed paradox:  We are more free, yet more dependent.  It really comes down to the “master” we choose.

This is sanctification, or willing to be set aside to God.  This is freedom: closer to God, further from sin.)

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

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

And with that freedom, there is such enlargement of heart, mind, and will.  

There is power in the Word,  by His Spirit.  And by our obedience we bring that power within our own set of circumstances.

Psalm 119:11 “Thy Word have I hid in mine heart,  that I might not sin against Thee.”

Since it is hid in the heart,  it begins to mold and shape it.  Opening it up to more of the love, and peace of God.

Praise God:  Where the Word is taken in our hearts,  it leads.    When the Word of God is written on my heart,  it brings joy.

Joy is a choice fruit of the Spirit.  It lifts us, it strengthens us, it teaches us to believe and trust the Lord.

Psalm 119:14-16 “I have rejoiced in the way of Thy testimonies,  as much as in all riches.

                               I will meditate in Thy precepts, and have respect unto Thy ways.

                               I will delight myself in Thy statutes:  I will not forget Thy Word.”

The young man,  who was the “test-case”,  and we, ourselves, can find the power of God’s Word in our circumstances,  now.  

Light given, sight received,  and power to enable.

Listen to some of the other verses in this psalm:

Psalm 119:28 “My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen Thou me according unto Thy word.”

(No matter how I “feel”,  Your strength is there for me.  Let me see it)

Psalm 119:45 “And I will walk at liberty: for I seek Thy precepts.”

(His precepts, are His prescriptions for my spiritual health.  He writes them, like medicine:  which may not taste good going down, but heals.)

Psalm 119:114 “Thou art my hiding place and my shield:  I hope in Thy word.”

(We are always “hidden” in Christ, and behind Him.   In Him, and can never be forsaken.   Behind Him,  for as He leads, we are protected.)

Psalm 119:165 “Great peace have they which love Thy law; and nothing shall offend them.” 

(Have you ever met a person which could not be offended?  they forgive freely,  and they have great peace;  for they are founded upon a solid Rock of Love.)

Psalm 119:176 “I have gone astray like a lost sheep;  seek Thy servant;  for I do not forget Thy commandments.”

(We are always the sheep of His pasture.  We are always cared for, lest we slip or stumble;  His word is always our prop.)

Let us use the power of His Word to us,  and be strong in the Lord.

Elisha and the cruse of Salt

2 Kings 2:19  “And the men of the city said unto Elisha,  Behold,  I pray thee,  the situation of this city is pleasant,  as my lord seeth:  but the water is nought,  and the ground barren.”

The city of Jericho was situated near the Jordan River;  it was a beautiful city, but the spring water that watered the land was bitter and caused the crops to fail.

Jericho was rebuilt under a curse.  (Joshua 6:26).   I am only mentioning this because the world system we live in is also under a curse.  One day there will be a new heaven and earth,  but now we are called to live here for Christ Jesus.

To “build” here, as though this was our final home;  and not keep our hearts for Heaven, will cause any Christian to be barren, and not produce the fruit of joy and peace in the soul.

The men of Jericho, hearing that Elisha had been anointed by the Holy Spirit to be prophet after Elijah, came to him and asked that he would seek God for help to heal the waters.

2 Kings 2:20 “And he said,   Bring me a new cruse (jar) and put salt therein,  and they brought it to him.”

Salt, we know is a preservative.  We, as Christians,  are to be the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13),   to preserve it (the part we have influence in) from God’s Wrath, until the day appointed. 

We are to honor the Holy Spirit within us, and witness of Christ’s life.

But this healing the waters was not to cost them nothing.  They were to buy a new cruse (jar) and the salt,  and bring it to him.

The Lord was not going to heal,  till they did this.   It would have cost them little,  but it would have showed their willing diligence to be obedient to God’s requirements.

When they did this,  Elisha was instructed to:

2 Kings 2:21-22 “And he went forth unto the spring of the waters,  and cast the salt in there,  and said,    Thus saith the Lord,  I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or barren land.

                              So the waters were healed unto this day,  according to the saying of Elisha which he spake.”

The salt, itself, was not the healer.   Nor was Elisha.

The salt was the means God wanted used,  and Elisha was the instrument the Lord used, for that time.

This is a picture of how we, as Christians, can be fruitful in this barren world.

The world looks good, but without the “living waters” of the Holy Spirit springing up in us,  we won’t bring forth fruit, in this world.

The Lord requires new, clean vessels;  by being born again.   And we need to be salt;  the preserving power of the Holy Spirit working through us to a sad world.

That is simply doing what were told by God, and that will preserve us and those around us.

The waters were healed,  not just for a day or two.   They could have harvests of plenty.

God wants that for each life He saves:   To bring forth the fruits of the Holy Spirit within (to have His joy and peace, even in this world);  and to manifest His gospel without.

(Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance….”)

                                  

Demas

Col. 4:14 “Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you.”

Philemon 23-24 “There salute the Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus;       Mark , Aristarchus,  Demas,  Luke, my fellow laborers.”

              

2 Timothy 4:9-10 “Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me:     For Demas hath forsaken me,  having loved this present world,  and is departed unto Thessalonica;….”

It matters a great deal Who or what we love.

Demas is an example of this.

He was found in the writings of Paul as a fellow-laborer.   If Paul had taken him with him, then surely he would have seemed faithful.

Yet, when Paul was arrested the second time,  Demas forsook him, having loved “this present world”.

(Paul was arrested two times.   Once in Jerusalem, and sent before the Roman governor,  where he appealed unto Caesar.  

He was tried and released for a while, traveling west.  Then arrested again when he came back through Rome.)

Whether Demas was from a wealthy family,  or from the poor section of people, it does not say.   He was apparently saved, and joined Paul’s ministry. 

He is always mentioned with Luke, so perhaps he was a colleague, or student of his.

Paul wrote:

2 Timothy 3:1, 10-12 “This know also,  that in the last days perilous times shall come.

                      But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life,  purpose, faith, longsuffering,  charity, patience, 

                       Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra;  what persecutions I endured:  but out of them all the Lord delivered me.

                        Yea, and all that shall live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.”

But at a certain time,  Demas looked around and saw the way things were going for Christians,  and decided that he did not love Christ Jesus enough to suffer and die as a testimony for Him.

He was going to leave Paul, and head out.  He would go back to the world.  He loved it more than Christ.

What does it mean, “this present world”?    Simply,  Demas wanted his blessings here.  There had probably been many wonderful things he had seen Paul do.  Many coming to the Lord, and people being healed, lives changed.  Wow!

But when it came to himself, and “gaining or losing”  here,  he did not love the Lord more than  what he could get out of life now.

Matthew 16:24-26 “Then said Jesus unto his disciples,   If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself,  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.

                      For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world,  and lose his own soul?  Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Luke 17:33 “Whosoever will seek to save his life shall lose it;  and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.”

This life is a short expanse of time.  For it is just time.   But the everlasting Kingdom and the rewards there, are for eternity.

Demas may be rewarded with good things now.  

But Paul will have his good things forever.

2 Timothy 4:16-17 “At my first answer no man stood with me,  and all men forsook me:  I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge.

                         Not withstanding the Lord stood with me,  and strengthened me;  that by me the preaching might be fully known,  and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.”

Picture Paul:  alone, standing before Caesar and a crowd of people, who were always around him.  Onlookers, or favor seekers; standing and hearing this Paul preach about Jesus Christ, his Lord.  

No man stood with him before Caesar.  

It mattered who you had to stand with you.   If it was a man of influence, then Ceasar might take into account that he might need that man’s influence sometime, and so be lenient on Paul.

But no man did.  

Yet Paul did not want any to be charged before God with this sin.  He forgave them, and prayed that God would forgive them. 

But God stood with him.

2 Timothy 4:18 “And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work,  and will preserve me unto His heavenly kingdom:  to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.”

I must admit, ridicule, slander, and persecution are not things I want to have happen to me, either.   But I love my Lord Jesus Christ.

I want the Lord Jesus Christ to stand with me;  therefore I must stand with Him, even in the perilous times.

It matters, Who or what we love,  for that effects every decision we make.

Let us love the Lord Jesus Christ with all our hearts,  that we may be faithful to Him, unto the end.

Ask and Ye shall Receive

Matthew 7:7-11 “Ask and it shall be given you;  seek, and ye shall find;  knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

                           For everyone that asketh  recieveth;  and he that seeketh findeth;  and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

                           For what man is there of you,  whom if his son ask bread,  will he give him a stone?   

                           Or if he ask a fish,  will he give him a serpent?  

                            If ye then,  being evil,  know how to give good gifts unto your children,  how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask Him?”

First, let me ask you:   do you want what God has for you?

Then ask for it—you will receive an answer.

But sometimes it is an answer that has a fulfillment,  later.

So what do you do?   You seek for the means of getting the fulfillment.   And use it—that is seeking.

(Perhaps it is a promise that needs to be accomplished:  for overcoming sin, for spiritual growth, for healing, for meeting your needs [yes, God is interested in every part of you;  your wellbeing, safety, and finances])

What can the means be?  Prayer is a great means.  It is not reminding the Lord of what He said,  but showing the Lord that you expect Him to do it. 

This is the knocking:  you keep after this promise.

Ezekiel 36:36-37 “Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the Lord build the ruined places, and plant that  that was desolate:   I the Lord have spoken it, and I will do it.

(Here is the promise,  but what did Israel do with it?   It saddened the Lord that they did not seek for it enough to inquire after it.)

                                  Thus saith the Lord God;   I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them;…”

Belief is a great means: 

It strengthens you against the whispers of the Adversary, the devil, that God is not going to do this for you.   (“Sure,” he whispers, “God might do it for others,  but not for you.”)

Belief, on the other hand says:  I am staying with the Lord.  I know He knows  my circumstance….I also know He will help me in it,  bring me through it,  and be with me in it.   We “knock” by believing.  Even to the point of telling the Lord: “I believe,  help my unbelief.”    He will.

(Mark 9:23-24 “Jesus said unto him,   If thou canst believe,  all things are possible to him that believeth. 

                            And straightway the father of the child cried out,  and said with tears,  Lord,  I believe; help Thou mine unbelief.”)

Obedience is another means:   Sometimes we just have to get up and do what is next,  and next;  leaving the final outcome to God.  The “knocking” is the obedience.

Mark 11:12-15 “And on the morrow,  when they were come from Bethany,  He was hungry:

                           And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves,  He came, if haply He might find anything thereon: and when He came to it,  He found nothing but leaves;  for the time of figs was not yet. 

(If a fig tree had leaves,  it ought to have fruit; since the fruit comes on the tree before the leaves.  But it did not.)

                           And Jesus answered and said unto it,  No man eat fruit of thee hereafter forever.  And His disciples heard it.

                           And they came to Jerusalem…..”

They did not hang around and see if it was going to happen;  they went into Jerusalem where the Lord cleansed the Temple the last time.  They had a day of work to do.  And did it.

Mark 11:19-22 “When even was come,  He went out of the city.

                             And in the morning,  as they passed by,  they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.

                             And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto Him,   Master, behold, the fig tree which Thou cursedst is withered away. 

                             And Jesus answering said unto them,   Have faith in God.”

We ask, because we need.   He answers many different ways:  with further instructions,  with promises,  with power at the moment.  

(How wonderful are His ways!  How many lessons I have learned by them.)

We seek, because the need is still there, and we need to know the means God is going to use.

And we knock, because we know God has heard, and encouraged us to keep going to get the blessing.   And when He opens, He will give it.

He does not give “look alike” blessings,  which are the stone for bread, the snake for the fish (eel).   

But He knows how to give “good gifts” to those of His children which ask Him.

Go down to the Potter’s House.

Jeremiah 18:1-2 “The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord saying,  Arise,  and go down to the potter’s house,  and there will I cause thee to hear my words.”

Jeremiah was God’s Prophet.  He spoke to Judah for God.  But when callled to go to the potter’s house, he did not refuse,   because God spoke to him.  

He  went, without question, to hear what God would say,  even through a mere potter.

He didn’t say. “Hey, Lord, I am your prophet.  I don’t need to go to a potter’s house.  You know he only makes pots,  but I give your message to priests, the king, and the people.”

No, Jeremiah wanted to hear the Lord’s Word, no matter how it came.

Jeremiah 18:3-4 “Then I went down to the potter’s house,  and,  behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.  

And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter:  so he made it again another vessel  as seemed good to the potter to make it.”

Now the potter uses clay and water (lots of water) to make the clay very pliable in his hands.

The two are mixed together, and when the clay seems soft enough; the shaping  starts.

The potter starts the wheel and puts the clay on; and begins to shape the vessel he wants to make.

But the vessel was marred,  because the clay had a hard spot.  The water had not been absorbed into that part of the clay, so when the potter’s hand was trying to form it,  it refused to bend,  and so it destroyed the pattern,  marring the vessel.

Often we are the same way.  The Holy Spirit has spoken to us, trying to work the “water” of the Lord’s Word in us, and we just refuse to hear.  

(In scripture water is a picture of the Holy Spirit working through the Word;  Ephesians 5:26 “That He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word.) 

It becomes a dry, hard spot in our life.  Then when the Lord is forming us according to His Will, we become marred, and unable to be molded into what He wants. (Sometimes the hard part tears a hole in the vessel,  sometimes it just will not bend, or yield to the Potter’s hand.)

“So he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.”

So what does the potter do?  What did He do with Israel?  And what does God do with us?

Does He give up on us?  No.

Jeremiah 18:6 “O house of Israel,  can not I do with you as this potter?  Saith the Lord.   Behold,  as the clay is in the potter’s hand,  so are ye in Mine hand,  O house of Israel.”

He takes the hard clay out ,  and then adds more water till the clay is completely pliable, so that the rest of the clay is reusable: to be able to be made into what the Lord wants.  

The hard spots in us are varied:    

They are those things the Lord has told us to do, and we have put off.

We know what the Lord is telling us.  We know what we should do; but we think we have a better plan.  

We even come to believe that the Lord will not care…it is such a small thing.

But it becomes a hard place, and comes between us and God in our lives, until it is removed.

Or this hard spot is a resentment we have left unconfessed (why should I confess this attitude?  They did this to me.  Let them apologize first!),  so it festers into something between the Lord and us.    

[I will tell you, speaking from personal experience, that these things are deadening.    They make you insensible to God’s voice.   Any attitude , hurt, or affections which pushes you away from God (His call, His love, His power to do for you) causes real separation.   Forgiveness is freedom—do not let anyone tell you different.   Forgiving someone frees you from their control.  They can not hurt you anymore;  for forgiveness lifts you above them.]

But once these (and any other “hard” places) are removed,  the Holy Spirit can add the water of the Word to us, making us pliable in His hands; so he can form us into a Vessel unto honor, meet for the Master’s use.

(Pliable to His hands.   See what He does!  His hands in us, and for us—for He shapes our circumstances, our path, as well as us.)

2 Timothy 2:19-21 “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal,  The Lord knoweth them that are his.  And,   Let every one that name  the the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth;  and some to honor and some of dishonor.

If an man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.”

Do you want to be “prepared”?  Nothing coming between you and your Lord?

Ready to face any challenge, or call?   

Then yield;  give yourselves into the hands of the Almighty Potter,  and let Him work within you—and see what He will work for you.

Always to Pray

Luke 18:1 “ And he(Jesus)spake a parable unto them to this end,  that men ought always to pray,  and not to faint;”

To faint means to weaken in purpose.

In other words,  we are to continue to pray, and not give up the purpose of our prayers,  even when they are not answered right away.

Then He tells this story:

Luke 18:2-3 “…There was in a city a judge,  which feared not God,  neither regarded man:  

                       And there was a widow in that city;  and she came unto him,  saying,  Avenge me of mine adversary.”

Here are the two persons involved in Jesus parable:

A judge,  who could do what he wanted in his court. (Probably a Roman judge, because Jewish judges were in threes).  Who cared about no one;  not God or man.  But he only cared for himself.

And a widow,  who was usually the poorest and lowest of the decent people in the city.  She would have no family to speak for her,  no money to bribe this judge;  so she did what she could do to get relief from the one who was harassing her.

She asked this judge to “Avenge her”.   This would have been like a restraining order today.   Something to keep him from do damage to her.

This is like prayer?   

Yes,  for we shall see,  she prevailed,  not because of the kindness of the judge….he had none.

Not because she had influential friends…she did not.

But because she kept coming back and asking him, and asking him, and asking him.

Luke 18:4-5 “And he would not for a while:  but afterward he said within himself,  though I fear not God,  nor regard man;   

                       Yet because this widow troubleth me,  I will avenge her,  lest by her continual coming she weary me.”

This “weary” here, means that she might ruin his reputation.  Since he cared for no one, but himself;   he answered her request because of selfish motives.

He did not want her to make him look bad, by being in his court so often.

So he gave her that restraining order against her adversary,  just to get rid of her.

Christ Jesus says that God shall avenge His people, when they pray the same way:  with diligence for an answer, against our Adversary, the devil.   He interrupts our prayers,  try’s to make us tired of praying,  gives us doubts, etc.

Luke 18:7-8 “And shall not God avenge his own elect,  which cry day and night unto him,  though he bear long with them?

                       I tell you that he will avenge them speedily.   Nevertheless,  when the Son of man cometh,  shall he find faith on the earth?”

To stay after God for our prayers, shows we really want what we pray for.

And that we believe He will answer us.  That is faith,  for it holds on to God for an answer.  Heavenly Father, avenge me of my adversary.

Christ Jesus honors faith in Him. (And again,  faith holds on to God.)

For faith honors God.  

In this world of troubles (and who can say they do not have some),  Jesus says we are “always to pray, and not to faint”.

Hang on to Me,  He says;  I hear, and will avenge or restrain your Adversary when you pray….if you ask Me.