Thorns and thistles

Luke 8:14 “And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard go forth, and are choked with the cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.”

“The Sower went out to sow his seed…”.

The seed is the Word of God…but it is the ground which it falls into we are talking about.

This Word falls in a heart full of thorns. Thorns represent the curse of the fall….or our “old man”…the old nature which is always present.

Jesus said, that these thorns were:

“cares”…..burdens of grief, fear, protection, supply.

“Riches”….a supply of money, houses, or lands….to make us independent of God….or so we think.

“Pleasure of this life”….we think of food, sex, drink, or drugs….but there is also putting our “fun times”, first.

I believe Jesus Christ is able to save to the uttermost,…. all who will come to Him. (Hebrews 7:25)

Therefore these thorns represent that which keeps us from completely giving ourselves to the Lord Jesus.

Something that claims this part of our life,…first.

Jeremiah 4:3 “For thus saith the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.”

We are to prepare our hearts to hear His Word, when we read it….when we hear it….when it is preached.

And when it is heard….because our hearts are prepared…it will bring forth fruit….not thorns.

But where did the thorns originally come from?

There were no thorns and thistles in the garden of Eden.

But when Adam and Eve fell…

Genesis 3:17-18 “And unto Adam He said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it:

cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;

Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field:”

Thorns are actually aborted branches. Both are prickly and injurious. Both can cause infections….

…..both can only be put away…..by effort.

But thorns and thistles shall it “bring forth” unto us. They just pop up….with no effort….for they are of this world….they are of the curse of sin.

We are in a world of sin….and thorns and thistles abound…..in us, by habit or temptation…

….and around us.

They often spring up before the good seed…and if we are not careful to remove or cut them down…..they will choke the new good plant.

Hebrews 6:7-8 “For the earth which drinketh in the rain which cometh oft upon if, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, recieveth blessing from God:

But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing, whose end is to be burned.”

We are to keep our hearts and lives for God….and use every blessing from God (the rain) to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

But if we are careless….then thorns and thistles (the things under the curse…sin)….will definitely spring up in our life…and they are not so easy to deal with then.

Numbers 33:55 “But if you will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell.”

We must deal with all the things of our old man….of cares, riches, and pleasures of this life……because if we leave them, as the Israelites did the cursed inhabitants…they will be thorns in our side….giving us trouble, till we do.

(My brother bought a small plot of land….about fifteen acres…from a neighbor.

Now the neighbor told him to watch for Canadian thistles.

They have a very strong root….so cutting them down will not do any good….they will just spring back up…you have to keep at it.

He told my brother that he had had trouble with them, and if you let them flower….you have let them go too long….for the flowers will dry and spread them all over.

My brother used the ground for pasture for some special cows….so he did not want to spray it.

You guessed it,…..my brother saw them coming up….and was busy….and the next thing you know it they were grown and flowering.

Let me tell you how hard it was to deal with something that was almost as tall as I was…

Chopping them out, without getting “bit” by the prickly nettles….was a very hard job.)

So it is with us….if we are careless…

Proverbs 22:5 “Thorns and snares are in the way of the froward: he that doth keep his soul shall be far from them.”

Froward means twisted, perverted, crooked. And how many crooked paths are put before us everyday….to lead us astray?

A little twist of the way…..what will it hurt?

But the thorns come up and the thistles grow large….before you know it.

Watch ye….is not just good advice for times of trouble….but times of prosperity….and…any time. We need Christ’s guiding hand to lead us away from thorns…..and to lead us in to His fruit of the Spirit.

Isaiah 32:11,13 “Tremble, ye women that are at ease; be troubled, ye careless ones…..gird sackcloth upon your loins.

Upon the land of My people shall come up thorns and briers;….”

To be careless….. is to put our desire for now….what ever it is over the will of the Lord….as though it was not that important.

The answer? To continue to receive the Holy Spirit.

Isaiah 32:15-17 “Until the Spirit be poured upon us from on high….

Then judgement shall dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field.

And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance forever.”

Some believe this is a prophesy concerning the giving of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost….but…

……whenever the Spirit is manifested….there is righteousness and peace…

…not thorns of self will.

Matthew 7:16 “Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?”

Nothing we can do, without the Holy Spirit’s blessing will yield any good fruit.

The best that human nature can produce for God….is thorns.

Only when we continue to receive the Holy Spirit’s fullness, will we bring forth the fruits of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23)

And, of course, I would be remiss, if I did not mention the worst day for the manifesting of man’s the attitude toward God….

….. when our blessed Lord had a crown of thorns pushed into HIs head….when they mocked Him as a king…

….totally unaware that He is the King of kings.

John 19:2-3 “And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe,

And said, Hail, King of the Jews! And they smote Him with their hands.”

He bore all the curse for us.

Thorns and briers, thorns and thistles…..all are under the curse.

They spring up, unless you cut them out.

They spread out, and interfere with the good plants.

They are strong….not easily removed….unless you get them early.

But by watching,…..and receiving all the Holy Spirit has for us, we can cut out all that is “thorns”,….or of our old man……and bring forth fruit to Christ Jesus our Lord, in blessing.

Hold Thou me up

Psalm 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!

Why must we lose our self-life?

Matthew 16:25 “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it.”

Why must we lose our self-life?

Does not God love me? so why does God want me to change?

Sure, I can give up my sin….the bad things, but why “me”? Would true love to Christ really ask such a question?

The “me” we give up….is not our true personality…..that is saved and brought into complete subjection to Christ, by His Spirit.

The “me” we give up…..is our way of doing things, our attitudes picked up from the world, our narrowness of self…..which always looks for “what will this do for me”.

When I first heard of denying myself, and losing my self-life…..frankly I thought that it would be easy.

After all, I am saved….I want the Lord’s Will…

…..that is all there is to it, right?

….but did I really want His Will? Do I really want to have His life, instead of mine?

Yes, actually I did….

…..and through this process, I learned that.

It is one of the wonderful things that comes from it.

So many,….like I did…..

…..think they have surrendered to the Lord’s Will for their lives, yet constantly reject the Way, that Will is to be brought to pass.

Surely, the Lord would not care if I do this…..this way…after all, it gets His Will done….

….when the reality of it all is, His Will is certainly HIs Way.

How many problems could we avoid, if we would be more attentive to the Lord’s way of doing things.

The whole objective in the Lord’s call to deny ourselves and pick up our cross…..the reality of it….is

……that we might lose our life in ourself….

And even that is not the end….although it is an amazing freedom from the narrowness of self….

….but the end is…..that we might find our life in Christ, which is liberty of the Spirit in all our days.

This losing our self-life is a step by step process of giving over to Christ…..my habits, my ways, and my opinions….and taking on His character….His ways….His thoughts…

…His gentleness,….no one was more gentle than Christ.

I am not talking about “wishy-washy, it is ok” stuff.

I am talking about bending down….and reaching out to those who suffered…and drawing them out to a belief in Him.

(The leper, the man at the pool of Bethesda..John 5:6-8, the Samaritan woman, the demon possessed living in tombs..Mark 5:2-15)

…His boldness in the face of evil.

Twice, driving out the money sellers in the Temple.

Accusing those that did not want Him to heal on the Sabbath of hypocrisy because they would pull one of their sheep out of a pit on this day.

Standing face to face with the mob and Judas, who came to arrest Him,….unlawfully.

…His truth.

He never excused sin…..He forgave it.

…His prayer life.

Many nights alone, all night with His Heavenly Father in prayer.

Praying for Peter when the devil would “sift him as wheat”

…His ministry of warning all that the kingdom of God is come.

Christ came to die…..but He was not silent…..nor did He do nothing, but wait His time.

He “fulfilled all righteousness”….in a world of sin, hatred, and illness.

We, too, need to fulfill all the righteousness we are called to.

And the only way to really finish our work….is to become conformed to Christ, and His character.

To lose our life….we need to come to the place that we see:

It is not Christ for me……unless Christ is formed in me.

That it is not our life we are living…..but an extension of His life, in my circumstances….to His honor.

This can only be by love. The willed tendency of our heart to yield, to give, to be completely His.

To love Him with all our heart, mind, soul, will….this is to lose our lives in our selves…..so we can find His life rising in us.

Let Us Go On

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”

To know about God; that there is One, that He is up there “seeing” to things; is enough religion for some people.

Religion and everyday life are seen by these, as two separate and distinct issues.

Though they may not come out and say it, they agree with those that keep religion on Sunday,……and their real lives, the rest of the time.

Let me tell everyone who names the name of a Christian:

Jesus Christ interferes with life;……namely our life.

He makes claims upon us. He wants us.

Proverbs 23:26 “My son, give Me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe My ways.”

Matthew 10:37-38 “He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more that me is not worthy of me.

And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me , is not worthy of me.”

To know only about God is a knowledge that does not save.

They need to be drawn to Jesus Christ for themselves.

Luke 18:9-12 “And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:

Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.

The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.

I fast twice in the week, I give titles of all that I possess.”

The attitude of some is: that God should be God, and I’ll be me.

They say, in their hearts:

“God,….You stay up there in heaven, watch offer me, keep me from harm, care for me, and take me home to heaven when I die;

I’ll stay down here and do nothing too terrible. I will go to church, read my Bible when I need to and pray whenever I’m in trouble.”

These imagine that the bargain is struck.

So off we go completely convinced, like the Pharisee, we are on good standing with the Lord.

But this is a religion that never touches the heart….that never rises above what is good…..for “me”.

Luke 18:13-14 “And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.”

We have talked of “humbling” before. It means to abase yourself…..place yourself (everything of your self)….under Christ.

Some people reject Christ…..not as Savior….but as Lord.

But the truth is….that it is the Lord Jesus Christ that saves….completely and eternally.

The sincere follower has heard the call of Christ; and has left any bargaining behind. He has decided to follow Christ whithersoever He leads.

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.”

And this decision has far reaching consequences, both to ourselves, and any we come into contact with.

Christ’s life is Eternal Life.

It is Him we receive at new birth, He is our life.

Eternal life is a condition of life, here and now; as well as for eternity.

We receive His nature by the Holy Spirit.

He places the love of God and His Word within, as well as a desire for holiness of life.

Faith, joy, peace, all the graces of God, are at our disposal.

Philippians 3:8-14 “Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,

And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;

If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.

Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.

Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

The prize? This high calling of God in Christ Jesus. This calling is to everyone who is born again.

We are called to bring forth fruit.

We are called to walk together with Christ.

We are called to obtain promises.

We are called to witness of Christ.

We are called to know Christ.

To know Christ: this is the goal of any true follower of Christ.

Not to win salvation: that is in Christ.

Not to win heaven: that is the end of those who belong to Christ.

But to know Christ:

For to know Him is the real gain of all things. Real satisfaction, real joy, real peace.

This is to “go on to know the Lord”

When you do, you will also find His going forth with you in power and loving presence.

To follow on. To go on. To seek. These are words we need to activate in our everyday lives.

And the One we need to follow after is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Malachi

Malachi 1:1 “The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi.”

I love this book,….it has one of my favorite verses in it.

It is written several hundred years after the captivity under Nebuchadnezzar………and over four hundred years before Christ (the fullness of times is come…Galatians 4:4)

God, according to His promise……has brought them back to the land, and told them to build Him a temple, and rebuild their lives.

Those of a willing heart, came back in joy….

…and though there was persecution, and problems….still the Lord has given them encouragement and instruction by His prophets.

And so, the people have built a temple, and returned to the sacrifices for sin, peace, and trespass…..and things are good….for a time…

….but…after a while…

….their greed, and love of money has led them into error and sin….again.

Not of idolatry….which was their sin before the captivity….but of impiety…..a lack of reverence to God.

In Malachi……in four short chapters, God declares His love to Israel….”I have loved you, saith the Lord.” (Malachi 1:2)…

……and shows their dishonor to that love……and to Him.

And how are they dishonoring Him?

Malachi 1:6 “A son honoreth his father, and a servant his master: If then I be a father, where is mine honor? And if I be a master, where is my fear? Saith the Lord of host unto you, O priests, that despise My name. And ye say, Where in have we despised Thy name?”

Concerning the sacrifices, God had laid down some very specific laws that they were to follow….

….and had given them priests to enforce these.

The priests were to sacrifice nothing that was blemished, torn, or too old….

…for each sacrifice showed forth the Great Sacrifice of Christ.

But after returning from captivity….building houses, and estates again….and the temple…

….their affection became consumed by making “more”…..more money, more cattle, more land.

And in the process, they began to bring “second-hand” sacrifices to God….

….thinking He would not mind….after all He is getting a sacrifice!

And at the heart of this dishonoring of His sacrifice…..were the priests.

They should have stood with God, and made the people aware of their sin….but instead, they encouraged it.

Malachi 1:7-8 “Ye offer polluted bread upon Mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted Thee? In that ye say, The table of the Lord is contemptible.

And ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? And if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil?

Offer it now unto thy governor; will he be please with thee, or accept thy person? saith the Lord of hosts.”

God is very practical…..

….He tells these “worshippers”…….to take these animals to the governor…..

…find out what he thinks of your present?

He is mocking them,….for He knows no man would except a defective present….

…..yet they were bring these to Him.

(They bring the blind, for they have no “sight” or understanding in their sacrifice and worship….they are blindly giving for show.

They bring the lame and those ready to die…”sick”….because that is the state of their hearts toward God.

Malachi 1:14 “But cursed be the deceiver, which hath in his flock a male, and vowels, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing: for I am a great King, saith the Lord of hosts, and My name is dreadful among the heathen.”)

But that is not all…..the people had begun to put away their wives, and marry women of the land….

It wasn’t really divorce as we know it. The old wives were merely put into another house, and the husband would get a new wife.

The first wives were coming to the priests and weeping (looking toward the mercy seat)…..but the priests did nothing….

….but God heard.

Malachi 2:13-14 “And this have ye done again, covering the altar of the Lord with tears, with weeping, and with crying out, insomuch that He regarded not the offering any more….

Yet ye say, Wherefore?

Because the Lord hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.”

And the third sin was with their tithes:

They were to give the first portion of their goods to God,….

……a sign that they were all His,….and that they thankfully received what He gave them.

Malachi 3:7-8 “Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from Mine ordinances, and have not kept them.

Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts.

But ye said, Wherein shall we return?

Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed Thee? In tithes and offerings.”

These three things symbolize our everyday life in the world….things which should be sanctified to the Lord, as Christians…

….our spiritual life….worship and work….how we do, when we do, what we do.

….our family life….to our parents, our spouses, to our children.

….our financial life….giving God control of our finances…(Matthew 6:31-33)

Impractical, you say?

Frankly, there is nothing so impractical,…..as a Christian giving only part of his life to Christ.

When God is in control of our lives…in every way……we are blessed…if not with everything we want….with everything we need, for now.

Malachi 3:10 “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in My house, and prove Me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts,

if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”

The Lord has opened His heart to them…..then He speaks of opening the windows of heaven….if they will return to Him,….and honor His Word.

And then here is one of my favorite verses: I love this….our God is so Personal….He sees everything….He is Almighty…..yet…

….speaks as if He bends down to catch these words, spoken between believers!

Malachi 3:16 “Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another:

And the Lord hearkened and heard it,

And a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name.”

(In every age, God has His godly remnant….those that look to His honor, and trust on His word….

….even in the worst of times….there will be such a remnant in the Tribulation period)

I love this!

Those that feared Him…..reverence and love was what He spoke to them about…..

(Though the majority thought, “It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept His ordinance….”Malachi 3:14

Those wrapped up in this world always thing of “profit and loss”…..but forget their souls…Matthew 16:26)

….yet, for those that loved the Lord,….they “spake often to one another”

…..comforting and encouraging each other in the Word of the Lord…..

And when they did…..He leaned down and “hearkened and heard it”.

And when God hears, He answers (1 John 5:14-15)….

Malachi 4:2 “But unto you that fear My name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in His wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves in the stall (under His special care and protection).”

God would remember….and write their names…..in His book of remembrance,….

…..for those that “thought upon His name”.

The word, “thought” here, means “valued”…those that valued His Name….and Him.

God loves to be longed for….He loves to be sought;

For He sought us Himself with such longing and love;

He died for desire of us….Marvelous thought;

And waits for us, to be with Him in heaven, above.

God leaves this book…..and the Old Testament…..

….with a finger pointing to the coming of His Son….and to the prophet (John the Baptist. Malachi 4:5-6)…

….that will be sent, to awaken those that look for Christ,….

…..to prepare themselves….to prepare their hearts….to prepare their families for….the “great and dreadful day of the Lord.”

Great for those who received Him…..dreadful for those who thought that they could in any way….”get rid of” the Son of God.

We, too, are waiting for Christ Jesus (the rapture)…..and it is time we prepare our hearts for His return.

Are we giving Him our best, our all, in all our everyday happenings?

In this world, of so many “things”…..what do we “value”?

Don’t come short, when it comes to God’s Promises

Hebrews 4:1 “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.”

Have you ever tried to reach up or out to something and it is just out of reach?

This is the way many of us think about the promises of God. They are great and we want them;…..but they seem just out of reach.

But God never intends His Word to be seen, and not used. He intends us to have what He promises us.

Faith reaches out and gets what God has for us.

Every promise in the Word, and every promise given to you personally, is nothing until entered into by faith.

And there can never be completed faith, without obedience.

Promises are only promises, until we have them.

First, we apprehend them by faith.

That is, you see that God has this for you, personally, and you reach out in belief to His Word.

When you do, you should have the hope (remember hope is the confident expectation that God will do what He says) of these promises by the assurance of the Holy Spirit within.

Second, you apprehend these promises, by obedience. You live them.

Sometimes there are conditions to the promises the Lord gives, like the seed on the ground:

one, a hard walking path—no receiving there.

Others on rocks and thorns, which received by faith, but never put it to use.

The last, the good ground, which was tilled and received it by faith, (it says it “keeps” it) and also put it to use. Some thirty-fold, some sixty-fold, some an hundred-fold.

(Mark 14:14-20)

Without the element of faith, there is nothing.

For faith is that which makes the things of God, real to us, so that we can apprehend them.

(Apprehend here means that we have them in hand. They are ours.

Like a felon is apprehended…only when they have him….not when they are just looking for him.)

Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

It is a true substance. It exists within you by the Holy Spirit.

It gives us the proof within us, to use the word God gives us. In other words, you know it.

Faith is what is within us that reaches out to God in times of trouble, in praise, for help, for comfort, and for fellowship.

Hebrews 11:3,6 “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made by things which do appear.

But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.”

By faith we understand, or perceive truths which were mysteries before.

And again, we are to use our faith, and reach out to God in obedience, and get what He promises.

Hebrews 4:2 “For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.”

Let us not lose what He promises, by not believing Him.

But let us gain all that He has for us to have, through the Holy Spirit, and His promises, which He wants to give.

Let us apprehend His promises to us, and gain one hundred-fold for Christ Jesus,……..in believing obedience to His Word.

God’s Due Order

1 Chronicles 15:13 “For because ye did it not at the first, the Lord our God made a breach upon us, for that we sought Him not after the due order.”

Now David wanted to bring the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. There he had set up the Tabernacle. This was God’s will, to bring the Ark to Jerusalem and set up His worship there.

(The Ark was the symbol of the Presence of God with them. In the Tabernacle, in the Holy of Holies, above the mercy seat, which was the gold cover on the top of the Ark, dwelt the Presence. Inside were the Ten Commandments.)

But the “way” to move it, was important.

So:

1 Chronicles 13:1. “And David consulted with the captains of thousands and hundreds and with every leader.”

They decided that they would put it on a new cart, like the Philistines did.

(The Philistines had taken it in battle, and after God had sent judgements upon them, they had returned the Ark to Israel, in a new cart. This was the last time it had been moved.)

But David did not consult with God, as to His Way of carrying the Ark.

(What the enemies of God do, is not what the people of God should do.)

But they gathered together, and put the Ark on the new cart, with men around it; and started toward Jerusalem.

2 Samuel 6:6-7, 9 “And when they came to Nachon’s threshingfloor, Uzzah put forth his hand to the Ark of God, and took hold of it; for the oxen shook it.

And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the Ark of God.

And David was afraid of the Lord that day, and said, How shall the Ark of the Lord come to me?”

The way God had told Israel to carry the Ark, was on the shoulders of the Priests. They were to put staves (long poles) through the places on the Ark, and carry it on their shoulders.

One man died because of David’s error, and they could not bring the Ark any further. Instead they carry it into a house nearby.

Three months pass. The household where the Ark stayed was greatly blessed.

So David knows it was not their moving it, that was wrong; but the due order for the move: the way God wanted.

David then finds out what the Lord had said to Israel about moving the Ark:

1 Chronicles 15:2 “Then David said, None ought to carry the Ark of God but the Levites: for them hath the Lord chosen to carry the Ark of God, and to minister unto Him for ever.”

1 Chronicles 15:11-13, 15 “And David called for.. the priests, and for the Levites,…

And said unto them, Ye are the chief of the fathers of the Levites: sanctify yourselves, both ye and your brethren, that ye may bring up the Ark of the Lord God of Israel unto the place that I have prepared for it.

For because ye did it not at the first, the Lord our God made a breach upon us, for that we sought Him not after the due order.

And the children of the Levites bare that Ark of God upon their shoulders with the staves thereon, as Moses commanded, according to the word of the Lord.”

When they got everything according to God’s due order, they brought up the Ark of the Lord to Jerusalem in joy and singing, with blessing.

What was the difference?

One was the reasonable way which everyone agreed on.

One was God’s way.

His due order. And how important that is.

We think, if a job is done, it does not matter how it got that way; but God never thinks that way.

He has a way; a higher way of doing things.

Isaiah 55:8-9 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither your ways My ways, saith the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.”

When His due order is honored, He gives blessings upon blessings.

When it is disregarded, He will not bless as He wants.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”

All scripture is given for our learning. So we can profit from others: their mistakes,….and successes.

Let us honor God, and seek out His due order in our lives, and be blessed.

This is surely what He wants for us.

Ephesians 6:15 “And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;”

The Roman’s hobnail sandals, were for their sure footing in all kinds of terrain.

They were hard on the bottom, with little spikes to grab into the earth.

They had leather straps which tied the leather leggings….so that their ankles and legs were supported, and protected.

In the Christian life, we need sure footing, if we are to walk through this world,….and all it’s situations;

….and resist the Adversary of our souls.

That solid footing is provided by the gospel of peace. The gospel of peace, is that Word from the Lord to us about our peace….

…Judicial peace because we are born again…Hallelujah

…”Peace be still” to the storm around us.

…Hold your peace, and let Me fight for you.

We stand in His Word….on His promises to us….to uphold and keep us.

(In the world we have all sorts of things….”bombarding” us.

Not just temptations….although they are there…

….but things of our common life….bills, illness, fights with family and co-workers,….all the things with cause us to worry, and become fearful.)

But there is a place of rest, and peace of mind for every Christian.

John 16:33 “These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

This peace is God’s hiding place for every believer….

Psalm 91:1 “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

That “secret place” is a place of covering and protection….so is His promises to us.

Philippians 4:7 “And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Isaiah 26:3 “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee.”

Peace “keeps” us….

For it settles our “ruffled feathers”…..it soothes our weary minds….it keeps us from sinning with our lips…..it protects us from charging after the “pie in the sky”…..

….and mostly…..importantly….it keeps us attached to God….for He is our peace….it is His arms about us.

If we do not learn how to depend upon the promises of God for peace,……than we will not have sure footing……to be able to stand against the wiles of the Adversary.

Why is it our feet? Why not our minds, or breastplate?

Because it is in our everyday life….our everyday circumstances….that we run into strife, anger (ours or others), hurt, and worry.

It is as we are walking along in the Lord’s Way, that we are attacked…..and if we do not have sure footing in God’s promises to us….then we can be thrown off balance and knocked down.

Worry, anxiety, tension, fear….meet all of these with the Gospel of peace…a promise for you from His Word.

One that you can get a hold of…and one that can get a hold of you.

The Lord wants to garrison your walk with Him….with His peace.

This is of the Holy Spirit, not something you do…..it is not your hanging on to Him….but your yielding to Him….His Word…..His promise to you.

Then He does the guarding and protecting. And He does all things well.

(My daughter, when she was just beginning High School, was in a study room that was chaos. She could not do her work for the constant noise, and antics.

The teacher that was suppose to monitor the room, just ignored the situations.

She would enter in if there things being thrown around….but mostly, the noise she would ignore.

Finally, she became so frustrated, she began to just sit there, waiting till the time was up.

I told her, that what she needed was peace……

She said, “yes, peace and quiet, so I can get my work done.”

So I told her to pray…..right before she went in….asking for peace for herself.

A few days later, she told me that the noise was not any better….

….but that, instead, she had like a barrier to it in her mind…..she could really concentrate on her studies!

And get them done.)

God’s peace comes to us….and grounds us….in Him. We feel His presence,….we know His help,….we rest in His keeping us.

This is God’s sure footing for us.

Guidance

James 3:3 “Behold, we put bits in the horses mouth, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body.”

There are two ways to break a horse. Gently, over time, getting the horse to accept you, and your weight on him; till the horse and you become partners.

He is mastered, but by love.

Or severely, which makes the horse accept you and your weight—now, by wearing down it’s resistance.

He is mastered, but by force of circumstances.

How would you like to receive your guidance from the Lord?

We can be brought to the place that we are directed by the force of circumstances; which is like the bit and bridle.

We must do, because we have no choice in the matter.

But this is not what the Lord Jesus Christ would have for us.

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

This is gentle guidance. Remember one look from the Lord sent Peter out weeping.

The Lord would have us, all look to Him for our guidance, if we would just see Him as He is. The Creator, and Sustainer of the Universe is our Lord and Savior.

He loves us, and wants us to enter into—with Him—all the joys of service to Him.

For in Him is glorious liberty of spirit!

True freedom is freedom from the power of our sin, and self.

The bondage of…..I have to do this (which can be any addiction),

…..and the bondage of…..I want to do this (how many “things” we want: no contentment, just want).

We can be free from these, by the liberty of the Holy Spirit’s control.

The closer to God we get, the more freedom we have.

I will instruct and teach you, in the way that you shall go.

What this means, is that He will go with you in each step, showing you what to do, and helping you do it.

So often, we refuse the gentle way, for one reason or another.

We fight with Him,……even though we want what He is leading us into.

I have found that no one likes to be told what to do….and obedience is the first lesson we must learn….obedience, without knowing the way….but knowing Christ;

Obedience, without our “two cents” being added….just bowing to His Way.

We need to understand that the Lord must lead us(or we will surely go the wrong way). But how will He lead us?

Psalm 32:9 “Be not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee (or trample thee).”

The “something” which hinders, is our unbroken will. Like the horse, or mule; we must be broken or mastered, to be usable.

It is the method of the breaking which is spoken of here.

He wants us to yield to Him, which is what we do when we “look to Him”….

Isaiah 45:22 “Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.”

For the look of faith and trust, in Christ Jesus our Lord, is yielding.

If we are looking to Him, we are looking away from other things. Choosing Him.

And when we look?

Ephesians 1:18 “The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.

And what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power,”

We need to know….

….and we need this mighty power in our everyday walk; instructing us and teaching us in the way we must go.

I want that gentle instruction of His eye.

How do you want to be guided?

Repentance

2 Corinthians 7:10 “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.”

Repentance is a wonderful gift from the Holy Spirit to us. He takes our feet from the miry clay…..from drowning in our own choices……and He sets our feet on the Rock that can not move.

He convicts us of sin (which is a great mercy, otherwise we would continue in it to our hurt)….

….and by that conviction, He works the desire within us, to leave our sin.

Repentance is a turning from our sin….we bring it out into the light before God, and confess it…..then will to turn from it, and the habit of doing it…

….turning instead, to God.

(To turn from the sin, and the turning to God,…is once for all…..

….but the battle with the Adversary, often includes the day by day refusing to yield to the temptation….and getting the grace and help from the Holy Spirit at that time….

…..till the victory is complete…for God never leaves us in sin….but His deliverance is powerful and complete.)

True repentance is sorrow over the sin……

….not sorrow for ourselves…..or for the consequences of our sin.

True repentance leads us out of sin, and into a new life of victory.

But there is the sorrow of this world….

…..a sadness for our “mistakes”.

Seeing them as “wrongs”, “faults”,……which really blames our parents, our circumstances, and God….for making us what we are.

We are here, in this mess, because of them.

And there is another sorrow of this world…..a sorrow for what might happen because of our sin….

….this is not repentance….but self-pity.

These are “sorrows of this world, which worketh death”….for they do not lead to Christ….but to despair or resentment.

Let us again state: Repentance is a choice gift from the Holy Spirit.

It is a gift….it can be received and the fruit of that, is salvation in Christ.

Or it can be rejected, and the fruit of that, is self-importance….my opinion of myself or what I want, is more important than the truth of God in my life.

An example……Simon the sorcerer:

When persecution started against the believers in Jerusalem,….many left the city,…..and went other places, preaching the gospel.

This was the beginning of…”to all the world”.

Acts 8:5-6, 12 “Then Phillip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.

And the people of one accord gave heed unto those things which Phillip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.

But when they believed Phillip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.”

But….

Acts 8:9, 10 “But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one:

And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.”

Simon was the big man of the city. He had influence, and by that influence….he had power.

The people there had thought that he had God’s power….but when the true power of God came, along with the preaching of Christ….

….then his power was shown for what it was….and many believed in the truth, and on Christ Jesus.

You might think that here was going to be the battle…

…but the battle was not outwardly….but inwardly…..in Simon.

Acts 8:13 “Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Phillip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.”

This sounds wonderful….and it appeared that Simon was a true believer….but was he a believer in Christ….or in the miracles?

….For you can not reach out to Christ….

….without leaving your world behind…

…that is repentance.

When we say we believe in the Lord Jesus as our Lord, and Savior……then, soon, something will come up to show that….to evidence our faith (Hebrews 11:1)

And we will choose:

Christ and His Way…..or self, (self-glory, self-esteem, self-pity,….but self, in some form).

The Apostles, Peter and John, came down to Samaria, hearing the good news that had received Christ.

They prayed for them to receive the Holy Spirit,….for it had not come upon them yet.

And when Simon saw that…

Acts 8:18-19 “And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the Apostles hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,

Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay my hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.”

Now I would like to give Simon the benefit of the doubt…..

But this was exceedingly wicked…..

…….you can not purchase God, the Holy Spirit.

You can not put Him in your pocket and draw Him out….when you want to….like a servant to you…..no!

Simon only wanted to “use” the Holy Spirit, to make himself look powerful!

Peter, looking at Simon….got right to the heart of his problem: his heart had never been given to Christ….just to the power he had seen….

…secretly wanting it…..so he could be that important man in the city again.

Acts 8:20-21 “…..Thy money perish with thee because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchase with money.

Thou hast neither part or lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.”

Nothing Simon had seen….the joy of people converted, the healing of the sick, the giving of the Holy Spirit….

….had drawn him away from lust of power….for himself over others….to make him the center of their lives.

What could be done?

Simon had never repented of his true life and lust….

….so Peter tells him to do so…there was hope, if he wanted it.

Acts 8:22-23. “Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God that perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.

For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness (a hardness of heart) and in the bond of iniquity (the lust of sin).”

Here is real mercy…..for to repent, is to clear away the old…..by confession to God……so that when we reach out to the new…..our hands are empty.

Acts 8:24 “Then answered Simon and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.”

I want to tell you how sad this makes me…..

…Instead of being joyful that there was still the opportunity for repentance….

….Simon merely asks Peter to pray for him.

Not for the repentance….but that he would not suffer “these things”…..

….Oh, how much we lose when we do not repent.

Again, repentance is a choice gift from God to us…..by it, He takes our feet from the miry clay….from drowning in our own choices……and leads them to the Rock of Jesus Christ.

Are we receiving the Lord’s gift of repentance?

The Godly sorrow for a time, reaps eternal rewards, if we will have it.