Resource Manager Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 01 June 2011 Joshua 18Isaiah 24Hebrews 6; 7 “THE EARTH LIES DEFILED UNDER ITS INHABITANTS” Isaiah 24 is a very disturbing chapter for, although it may have some application to the collapse of God’s people in the immediate generations after Isaiah, it contains many prophecies which clearly indicate a latter day application. The climax of the prophecy is in the last verse! “Then the moon will be confounded and the sun ashamed for the LORD of hosts reigns on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem and his glory will be before his elders.” We know how Jesus referred to the sun and moon [Matt. 24:29, 30] as a symbol to describe events that affect the spiritual and national leaders in the world at the time of his return. Isaiah’s prophecy says, “On that day the LORD will punish the host of heaven, in heaven, and the kings of the earth, on the earth.” [isaiah 24:21] Parts of the book of Revelation appear to distinctly point to spiritual rulers, “a great red dragon that appeared in heaven” [Rev. 12:3]. When we come next week to Isaiah 34 we will read how “all the host of heaven shall rot away” [isaiah 34:4] and “my sword has drunk its fill in the heavens” and “descends for judgement upon Edom, upon the people I have devoted to destruction” [isaiah 34:5] Many understand Edom, when occurring in a latter day context, to refer to Gentile nations. Early in today’s chapter we read of human financial dealings being affected and it is implied that they collapse. “The buyer … seller …lender … creditor … debtor … The earth shall be utterly empty and utterly plundered; for the LORD has spoken this word.” [isaiah 24:2, 3] This particularly affects “the highest people of the earth languish. The earth lies defiled under its inhabitants … a curse devours the earth, and its inhabitants suffer for their guilt” [isaiah 24:4-6] Then we noted that “all joy has grown dark; the gladness of the earth is banished.” [isaiah 24:11] Isaiah 24:14-16 belong to the end of the chapter when “from the ends of the earth we hear songs of praise of glory to the righteous one” [isaiah 24:16] Who hear and utter these songs of praise? We will read of this tomorrow – look at Isaiah 25:8, 9 “ …let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation” when “the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces.” -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 02 June 2011 Joshua 19Isaiah 25Hebrews 8; 9 "I WILL BE MERCIFUL TOWARD THEIR INIQUITIES" Our Hebrews reading includes a long quotation [Hebrews 8:8-12] from the prophet Jeremiah which starts with “Behold the days are coming” and ends with “for they shall all know me (the LORD) from the least of them to the greatest. For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” The letter shows how the old covenant through Moses had come to an end because “Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises.” [Hebrews 8:6] Once again we see how the Bible has to be taken as a whole if we are to properly grasp what God has revealed to us. We serve a merciful God, but we cannot expect him to be merciful if we have no inclination to seek to know him. What a marvellous picture we have in Isaiah today of what the result will be of those better promises! “He will swallow up death for ever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces … It will be said on that day, Behold this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us ... ” [isaiah 25:8, 9] Death swallowed up for ever! The whole world becomes a Garden of Eden. There are marvellous verses in the next chapter, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you.” [isaiah 26:3] because such know that God has been and “will be merciful toward their iniquities” Yet this chapter has a sobering comment about “he who does not learn righteousness” [isaiah 26:9,10]. There are those, of whom it is stated, “They are dead, they will not live; … they will not arise; to that end you have visited them with destruction and wiped out all remembrance of them.” [isaiah 26:14]. A fitting conclusion to our thoughts is the last verse of our Hebrews reading, “so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” [Hebrews 9:28]-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 3, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2011 03 June 2011 Joshua 20; 21Isaiah 26; 27Hebrews 10 "IF WE GO ON SINNING DELIBERATELY" When we do our readings at the start of every day we like to look for something positive and encouraging to think about and comment upon, but we cannot ignore the scriptures which tell us we must show our hope and our faith in that hope. We are sad that some say that once you are saved – you are always saved – regardless. Our readings today in Hebrews 10 spells out very plainly that this is not true. We read, “let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment” [Hebrews 10:24-26] and Hebrews 10:29 says such have “outraged the spirit of grace” that has been theirs because of their initial faith. The chapter ends by encouraging the reader to make sure they “are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.” And we can also note how the previous chapter ended with the words, “Christ will appear a second time … to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” May all those who are reading these words be in that category.-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 4, 2011 04 June 2011 Joshua 22Isaiah 28Hebrews 11 "THE CONVICTION OF THINGS NOT SEEN" How many have a “conviction” about anything today? Especially a conviction that is so strong that it permanently changes the course of their lives? The challenge of this question becomes even greater when the evidence on which that conviction is based is intangible; it is something which cannot be seen, something for which there is no ‘hard’ evidence? It is also something which is going to totally change the course of our life! A vital factor in causing a “conviction” of this nature, is “faith.” This is what that very significant chapter in the Bible in Hebrews [Hebrews 11] is all about. For regular readers of the Bible this is a chapter with which it is possible to become, sort of, over-familiar. We must all be conscious that God’s word is not just a book for our intellectual appreciation. It is a book which constantly challenges us as to our direction in life. So many are “schooled” into knowing about Jesus Christ and what he and his followers taught that we need to ask (ourselves) – has the message reached their heart – as well as their head? Is God’s message influencing their (and our) thinking so that it has become a conviction that changes their (our) lives? Hebrews 11 gives us a string of examples to think about, all are appropriate to us in various ways and, if they are very familiar to us, have they lost their power to influence the way we think – and therefore act? Maybe the most appropriate one for us in the 21st Century is Hebrews 11:7. “By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he … became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.” Noah had “the conviction of things not seen.” We are living in a world that has just about become as blind as the people of Noah’s day. Had they ceased to believe there was a God? Probably not; but there was no substance to their belief. At best it was just a ‘notion’ as to the originator of things. Today we have many who deride any form of belief in a God, their “conviction” is that there is no God and they are broadcasting their belief with increasing vigour, claiming they “know” all the answers! They have a “conviction”! And ourselves? The words of Elijah, another remarkable man of faith, ring in our ears as he stood on Mount Carmel and challenged the worshippers of Baal, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions” [1 Kings 18:21] Their limping was fatal and Elijah was to flee for his life. He thought he was the only one with “conviction” but God knew better, he knew there were “seven thousand in Israel” [1 Kings 19:18] who had real belief in him. How many today? Are you among them? -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2011 05 June 2011 Joshua 23; 24Isaiah 29Hebrews 12 "SHALL THE POTTER BE REGARDED AS THE CLAY" A number of times in the Old Testament [especially Jeremiah 18; 19] God is described as a potter. God shapes and makes all that exist, he is the Creator. In Isaiah today [isaiah 29] we have an intriguing mix of Divine messages. Isaiah lives in a spiritual environment similar to ourselves and his message to the people is, “You turn things upside down! Shall the potter be regarded as the clay, that the thing made should say to its maker, ‘He did not make me’; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, ‘He has no understanding’?” [isaiah 29:16] Today, especially in the last few years, there is a determined denial of God and the truth of creation in “educated” countries. God’s methods in creation are far beyond our comprehension, all that the scientists have been doing is examining the nuts and the bolts, they are blind to the whole picture. It is tragic, because these human attitudes are a denial of the power of the Holy Spirit, a blasphemy for which there is no forgiveness [Matt. 12:31]. Those who regard the potter “as the clay” are those “whose deeds are in the dark, and who say, ‘Who sees us? Who knows us?” [isaiah 29:15] But those who read the Bible and reflect carefully about what they read are not in the dark! This chapter also contains a vision of the last days! Isaiah 29:1 gives us “Ariel” as a code name for Jerusalem, “the city where David encamped” and we more clearly read “in an instant, suddenly, you will be visited by the LORD of hosts with thunder and with earthquake and a great noise, with whirlwind and tempest, and the flame of a devouring fire. And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel (Jerusalem), all that fight against her and her stronghold and distress her, shall be like a dream, a vision of the night … so shall all the multitude of all the nations be that fight against Mt. Zion.” [isaiah 29:5-8]. There is no event in past history that fits the scene described here. It has been individual nations that have fought against Jerusalem. In Isaiah 29:11 we read, “the vision of all this has become like the words of a book that is sealed”. Is the unsealing about to occur for those who really believe in God? Read Daniel 12:4, 9. Let us keep our eyes open to understand what the potter is about to do.-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2011 06 June 2011 Judges 1Isaiah 30Hebrews 13 “THAT NO ROOT OF BITTERNESS” When our back fence collapsed under the weight of ivy and other creepers we had a big challenge when putting up the new fence! It was in digging out the roots of the ivy – very difficult - the entire root had to be found if we were to avoid future problems. We thought of this as we read Hebrews 12 and the phrase “the root of bitterness” [Hebrews 12:15]. The context is, “see to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God, that no root of bitterness springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled”. Human beings are no different to plants. We may not realize it, but if our minds allow wrong ways of thinking to take root, these become habits. Getting rid of them is not easy, especially if they have gotten in deep! It is vital we dig out all those ‘roots ‘before God does – when it will be too late! John the Baptist used the same word when he said the “axe is laid to the root of the trees” [Matt. 3:10]. When the axe went to work – it was too late! We started reading the book of Judges today. Joshua had died and many of the tribes failed to root out all the idol worshipping inhabitants as they had been told to do – instead they put them to forced labour – useful economically, but a recipe for future problems as we are going to read. Hebrews 11 has that great list of the faithful for us to imitate. Did you notice how these are described at the start of Hebrews 12 as “so great a cloud of witnesses’ followed by these words, “so let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely” [Hebrews 12:1] Like Ivy!! In today’s chapter [Hebrews 13] we noted, “keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have” [Hebrews 13:5] - advice which is the very opposite to the attitude around us. Money is essential, but loving it, is destructive. People are not content, they forever want more – an attitude which puts down roots into our thinking until it destroys the wholesomeness of our lives. There is a vital point in Hebrews 13:9 - “it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace” and when that happens you put down good healthy roots. The last words in this epistle are “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you all” Grace? It is the loving favour of our Lord that should inspire us to get rid of bad roots and plant “grace” and rejoice in the strength it develops in our minds. -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2011 07 June 2011 Judges 2; 3Isaiah 31James 1 “COUNT IT ALL JOY” With these words [James 1:2] James begins his letter. List the things that you “enjoy” in your life. Your age will probably influence your selection of things which are most enjoyable to you. But many joys are temporary – for that hour – or that day. But what may astonish you is what James sees as that which the brethren should count as “all joy”!! He says it is “when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect that you may be perfect …” [James 1:3, 4] James sees that the growth of character is the greatest joy. Now it is generally agreed that James was the half-brother of Jesus and the gospels tell us that his brothers did not believe in him and tried to deter him from what he was doing [John 7:3-5; Mark 3:21; Mark 3:31-35]. At the time of his crucifixion they abandoned their mother and did not come with her to the foot of the cross [John 19:25, 26] What agonizing was in the mind of James at this stage. Yet we learn that Jesus made a special appearance to him [1 Cor. 15:7] after the resurrection. Then they joined with their mother in associating with the disciples after he ascended to heaven [Acts 1:14]. It is a fascinating story to piece together and to visualize the agonising thoughts of James in these trials of his life which surely is behind some of the thoughts he expresses in his letter. James goes on to write, “Blessed is the man (or woman) who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love him” [James 1:12] Now look carefully at what he writes and apply it to our situation now. Are we entering a time of trial? James encourages all to think positively about the purpose for believers, from God’s perspective, that lies beyond a time of trial that will build up our character in ways that are pleasing to God. We will make mistakes, like James did – and Peter and others – and some failed the test and went their own way. But we must say as some of them did, “Lord to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life … ” [John 6:66, 68] -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2011 08 June 2011 Judges 4; 5Isaiah 32James 2 " ... CRIED OUT TO THE LORD FOR HELP” As we read on in the book of Judges we see how many times “the people cried out to the LORD for help” [Judges 4:3]. We read the same words yesterday [Judges 3:9] and we will read them again in Judges 6:6 and Judges 10:10. In between these events they “again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD” [Judges 4:1] It has been like that so often in the world. When things have been really bad many have gone to church for prayer. Earlier in the 20th Century when there have been droughts and fires there have been, at least on the part of some, prayers for rain or other relief, which many churches have encouraged. But today – at least in Australia with all its material blessings and prosperity, the voice of prayer is almost silent – despite disastrous floods and fires in the last year or two. What must God think? What will he do next? Isaiah prophesied during the reign of bad king Ahaz and also during that of Hezekiah, who was largely good. We read his prophecy today that “in little more that a year you will shudder … tremble you women who are at ease, shudder you complacent ones” [isaiah 32:10, 11] We wonder what a true prophet would say today? This state of things will continue, says Isaiah, reaching a climax of fearsome troubles, as Isaiah also prophecies, “until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field … and righteousness abide … and the affect of righteousness will be peace … quietness and trust forever” [isaiah 32:15,17] God keeps revealing to Isaiah glimpses, sometimes quite large ones, of the ultimate future of the world when “a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule in justice” [isaiah 32:1] It is a vision which inspires us to cope with the spiritual darkness that is covering the world – and that vision will need to be very clear in our minds and accepted with complete faith to endure the time when people shudder and tremble at what comes upon the world because of the anger of God.-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2011 09 June 2011 Judges 6Isaiah 33James 3; 4 "BE OUR ARM EVERY MORNING, OUR SALVATION IN TIME OF TROUBLE" We were rather overwhelmed by the range of appropriate thoughts in all our readings this morning! God’s words through Isaiah, quoted above [isaiah 33:2] arrested our attention. Jesus is the “arm of the Lord” – soon we will read Isaiah’s famous 53rd chapter [isaiah 53] which starts “to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed.” [see the cross reference in John 12:38] God accomplished salvation for us through Jesus. He looks for all those who accept that salvation, or are seeking for it, to look to him at the start of every day. The whole verse in Isaiah says, “O LORD, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in time of trouble.” To Isaiah and those listening to him as a man of God in those continuously troubled times, we see many messages which are meaningful to us today. “The LORD is exalted … he will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the LORD is his treasure.” [isaiah 33:5, 6] We must try hard to understand how, having a mind which is in awe of God is a “treasure” of great value. In contrast, “the sinners of Zion are afraid; trembling has seized the godless; who among us can dwell with the consuming fire?” [isaiah 33:14] The fearful attitudes that overwhelmed the godless then, will be replicated in the final fearful time as our world reaches its climax. We read 5 days ago in Hebrews of the “removal of things that are shaken … in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.” [Hebrews 12:27-29] Think about fire. It destroys – but also cleanses ready for a totally new start. Australian bushfires illustrate this. So what happens to those who survive “everlasting burnings”? The next verse in Isaiah tells us, “He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly … and shuts his eyes from looking on evil … your eyes will behold the king in his beauty.” [isaiah 33:15, 17]-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 10 June 2011 Judges 7; 8Isaiah 34James 5 “THE LAST DAYS” Today we completed reading the letter of James; it is full of interest with many thought provoking verses. James is the leader of the Jerusalem assembly of believers that you read about in Acts 15:13 He was probably the half brother of Jesus as we noted 3 days ago. As the chief spokesman for the believers at Jerusalem not long before the city was encircled and finally destroyed by the Roman armies in AD 67-70, his comments in his final chapter are mainly directed at the situation that had developed there. This is about 30 years after that dramatic Day of Pentecost in 30 AD. There is fairly conclusive evidence that James was martyred in AD62. So James is writing to warn them of their approaching last days and he says, “weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you, your riches have rotted … You have laid up treasure in the last days … you have lived on the earth in luxury and self indulgence.” [James 5:1-3; 5:5] How true this is of life today in most countries! Remember how we read in 2 Tim. 3 the reference to conditions in the last days [2 Tim. 3:1] This was primarily about the condition of believers! They had only “a form of godliness”. But James continues, “Be patient (steadfast) therefore brothers until the coming of the Lord … establish your hearts … the judge is standing at the door” [James 5:7,8] These words apply so much to the world today as we approach the end of the times of the Gentiles (non-Jews). The total godlessness around us is as much a sign to us of the nearing “end” as is the mounting crisis in the Middle East surrounding God’s Holy Land. “Behold, we consider those blessed who remain steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job” [James 5:11] James sees Job as an example and they are both an example to us – as is the book of Judges we are now reading when “everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” [Judges 21:25] -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 11, 2011 11 June 2011 Judges 9Isaiah 351 Peter 1 “PREPARING OUR MINDS FOR ACTION” The above words jumped out at us in 1 Peter 1:13. What action are we preparing for? In one sense, each morning we need to prepare our minds for action to make that day count in service before God. We must be ready to cope with each days challenges. Believers through the centuries have encountered times of crisis and challenges in their lives. The Jewish exiles to whom Peter was writing were suffering persecution, with greater persecution coming as a result of the Jews rebellion against Rome in AD 67-70. But Peter writes of those “who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” [1 Peter 1:5] We conclude Peter is being inspired to write what is meaningful for our days as well as his. The end of the Gentile age will parallel the end of the Jewish age. Peter further writes, “if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials so that the tested genuineness of your faith – more precious than gold … may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” [1 Peter 1:6, 7]. He writes of the time when the truly faithful will “rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith” [1 Peter 1:8, 9]. Our Isaiah reading [isaiah 35] has wonderful words about this time when the faithful “come to Zion with singing: everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away” [isaiah 35:10] So let us, start each day, by “preparing our minds for action …having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth …” [1 Peter 1:13, 22], an obedience shown by our love for one another “earnestly from a pure heart … through the living and abiding word of God” [1 Peter 1:22] that we feed we on every day. -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 12, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 12 June 2011 Judges 10; 11 Isaiah 361 Peter 2 5 WORDS THAT DESCRIBE TODAY In the opening verse of our chapter today in Peter’s First letter there are 5 words which seem to describe one or more of the attitudes to be seen in nearly all people today. Peter tells his readers that they, having come to believe in and serve Jesus Christ, must make sure their attitudes change from what they formerly were. He writes, “So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander” [1 Peter 2:1]. It is these attitudes which are undermining the quality of life today. Of course, they have always existed, but in today’s largely godless society these attitudes are seen virtually everywhere. Peter is writing to converted Jews living in other lands whom he calls the “elect” [1 Peter 1:1] meaning they had been elected or chosen by God. Peter tells them they are “like newborn infants” and they should “long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up to salvation” [1 Peter 2:2]. Notice the point being made there. The source of this “spiritual” milk is God’s Word; there is a vital need to feed on it every day unless we “grow” our salvation is in jeopardy. To begin with you cannot absorb a big meal, but your sense of need for it will grow over time. You will appreciate more and more the wonder of the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ a sacrifice to cover the sins of each one of us when we commit our lives to serve him. Peter goes on to say, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness” [1 Peter 2:24] Think of what these words mean for you personally.-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 13, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2011 13 June 2011 Judges 12; 13Isaiah 371 Peter 3; 4; 5 “THE HIDDEN PERSON OF THE HEART” We are surrounded on every side with inducements to get us to buy all kinds of things. The shops are full of goods, presented as attractively as possible – today we also have the internet. It is noticeable how many of these goods are related to things that claim to improve a person’s external appearance or make our home look better! Peter writes about the foolishness of being caught up into thinking too much about how we look on the outside! How we are adorned is of no importance as long as we are neat and tidy. Although for some of us, there will be times when the nature of our employment will make this impossible. Peter wrote, “do not let your adorning be external – the braiding of hair, the putting on of clothing (expensive clothes CEV) – but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a meek (gentle) and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious” [1 Peter 3:3-4] This advice applies just as much to men as it does to women. That which is “hidden” is only seen by God, and what he sees is what matters. Four times in the Old Testament we come across the phrase “the splendour (or beauty) of holiness”, David uses it twice in the Psalms. Psalm 96 is a hymn designed to be sung in the Kingdom age when Christ reigns and it will be evident as to who has developed the inner beauty for God to see. God sees “beauty” in our heart, that is, he sees the way we think, and, as a result, the way we talk and act. We read of the prayer, “the beauty (favour) of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands …” [Psalm 90:17]. What a beautiful time the Kingdom Age will be – that will be the most wondrous adorning. We need to adorn ourselves now in the right way to make sure we are there.-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2011 14 June 2011 Judges 14; 15Isaiah 382 Peter 1; 2 “IT WAS FROM THE LORD” The account of Samson’s life is a challenging one. He was a man of contrasting passions. He had a passion to serve the LORD. We read yesterday, “the young man grew, and the LORD blessed him. And the spirit of the LORD began to stir him … [Judges 13:24, 25] However today we read how he saw “one of the daughters of the Philistines” [Judges 14:2] wanting her “as my wife.” This is hard to comprehend and his parents argue with him but he insists, “Get her for me, for she is right in my eyes” [Judges 14:3]. The next verse has a remarkable comment, “His father and mother did not know that it was from the LORD, for he was seeking an opportunity against the Philistines” [Judges 14:4]. We perceive from this, as in other places in Scripture, that God makes use of human desires in those he calls to serve him, they serve a purpose in his over-riding plan. Men and women have freewill – but God has foreknowledge and sometimes weaves their impulsive actions into his purpose! [Consider Romans 8:29]. What a dramatic life Samson experienced, he killed God’s idol worshipping enemies; when he died he killed more than he did when he was alive; again “it was from the LORD.” However, lest we are tempted to think that God can accommodate into his purpose all manner of bad behaviour on the part of those with whom he has a relationship. Now look at what Peter writes in his 2nd letter [2 Peter 2] about the gross immorality he was witnessing. People have “eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin … they have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children.” [2 Peter 2:14]. But in his 1st chapter [2 Peter 1] there is a very positive message. He writes of all the different qualities that we must add to our faith. “Make every effort to supplement your “faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful …” [2 Peter 1:5-8] With these qualities “you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire” [2 Peter 1:4]. The broad way and the narrow way has never been more apparent that today!-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 15, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2011 15 June 2011 Judges 16Isaiah 392 Peter 3 “WHAT SORT OF PEOPLE” As Peter completes his second letter he asks a question “Since all these things are thus to be dissolved what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of the Lord …” [2 Peter 3:11, 12] What is to be dissolved? He writes that it is “the heavens and the earth” [2 Peter 3:7]. But this is not to be understood as the physical heavens and earth; this is clear when he writes that “we are waiting for the heavens and the earth in which righteousness dwells” [2 Peter 3:13] We understand “heavens and earth” as meaning rulers and the people they rule over. The present rulers and people (especially those who encourage the permissive laws the rulers put in place) are to be removed, in the same way (but not by the same means) as the very first “world that then existed” was destroyed; that is, the world Noah grew up in [2 Peter 3:5, 6]; all the people and rulers were no more! This is going to happen again, it is all going to be “dissolved” Peter says. So what sort of people ought we to be? If our answer is that we are not aiming to be holy or trying to be godly, then we will be classed in with that which is to be “dissolved.” Peter foresees that people will be saying “Where is the promise of his coming?” [2 Peter 3:4] Time has gone on and on and people “overlook this one fact … that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” [2 Peter 3:8] He then writes in the next verse very significant words, “The Lord is not slow to fulfil his promise, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” [2 Peter 3:9]. Now turn up and read 2 Peter 3:10! ------- - DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 16 June 2011 Judges 17; 18Isaiah 401 John 1; 2 "THE GRASS WITHERS, THE FLOWER FADES BUT ... " Parts of Isaiah 40 were recognised as special by the compiler of the text of Handel’s Messiah for he “mined” words in several verses to use in the Oratorio. The chapter starts, “Comfort, comfort my people says your God”. The chapter then continues, “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, and her iniquity is pardoned” God was giving the prophet, and those who heeded him, a picture of the city’s ultimate future because soon after Isaiah’s time Jerusalem was destroyed because of her godlessness. But the time would come when “the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” [isaiah 40:5]. But until that time the picture is dismal because of the blindness in the attitudes of those who live there to the ways of God. “All flesh is grass …” [isaiah 40:6] and grass has no lasting beauty. There is only one thing that lasts! Grass quickly becomes nothing in times of drought, fire and flood. But of course the message is a spiritual one, “all flesh is grass” – and what a ragtag mass of humans exist throughout the world today! Isaiah 40:8 is the verse we must remember, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” And those who embrace the word of God will also stand forever and, among other things, will witness the glory promised to Jerusalem. -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2011 17 June 2011 Judges 19 Isaiah 411 John 3; 4 “HIS LOVE IS PERFECTED IN US” John’s deep reflections on the nature of “perfected” love, is a challenge to us, we must read his words very carefully. 1 John 3 starts, “See what kind of love the Father has given to us that we should be called the children of God, and so we are.” What a wonder to be “children of God” What kind of love is this!? Does love come in many “kinds”? Yes, it does, and some of the “kinds” do not deserve to be called love. God’s love is demonstrated in Jesus. Consider his Son’s compassion toward the underprivileged, the helplessly ill, the grieving, the children, the mentally deranged and the needy of all kinds. The spirit of true love must lie on the surface of our minds ready to be manifested in every situation we encounter, also every communication we make - so it is not just limited to the times we are face to face. It’s demonstration is proof that we are “abiding” in him. Jesus said, “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love” Keeping commandments!? Is that showing love? Well, remember what Jesus said the commandments were! [Matthew 22:36-40] Jesus continues, “just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things have I spoken to you that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” [John 15:10,11] Think of the things that give people “joy” today – and reflect on the contrast in what Jesus must mean! Returning to 1 John we notice how 1 John 2 ends, “Abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming” [1 John 2:28]. By being imitators of Christ we abide in him. John says that if anyone ignore a brother (or sister) in need and “closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide him?” [1 John 3:17] The answer is obvious! The verse which we need to remember above all is “if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.” [1 John 4:12]-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 18, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2011 18 June 2011 Judges 20Isaiah 421 John 5 "THAT YOU MAY KNOW THAT YOU HAVE ETERNAL LIFE" The climax to John’s First Epistle contains some challenging words with its totally positive statements about knowing “you have eternal life.” We conclude he is encouraging his readers to think positively, not to be fearful, but to know that God loves them and, as Peter puts it, God is “not wishing that any should perish” (2 Pet. 3:9) a point made about believers and his “patience” toward them, rather than about the godless world. The names of believer’s are recorded “in the book of life” [Philippians 4:3] and in that sense they have eternal life. But believers must not ignore the warning that Christ has the power to remove names from that book! The message of Jesus was, as we will read next week, “To the one whole conquers (or overcomes) … I will never blot his name out of the book of life.” [Rev. 3:5]. John writes, “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world” [1 John 5:4] and then adds, this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith.” A true faith, not a blind faith, gives us the clearness of vision to live courageously and overcome the things that can hinder and distract us – such believers really do have Jesus Christ in their lives every day. This is the point John makes in 1 John 5:12, “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.” So we can fully appreciate the point in 1 John 5:13, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.” There can be times when we will cease to “know” and our heart falters in its vision of the unseen. But note how John commented on this earlier, “whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.” [1 John 3:20] Next week we read the 2nd and 3rd chapters of Revelation with its letters from Christ to the seven churches. Each letter ends with a point about the blessings to come on the one who conquers and overcomes the obstacles this life puts in their path – and “we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” [Romans 8:37] Let us keep responding to his love.-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 19, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2011 19 June 2011 Judges 21Isaiah 432 John 1; 3 John 1 “WALKING IN TRUTH” Today we read those two short personal final letters written by the Apostle John. As we started reading [2 John 1] we were impressed by the fact that four times in the first 3 verses he uses the word Truth. We read, to “love in truth” to “know the truth” and “walking in truth”. That last phrase especially jumps out at us. In John’s Gospel he recorded the words of Jesus about this – for eg John 8:31-32. Truth is not just something you know, it is something you do; a principle by which you live, that is in evidence in all your decisions. John is alarmed that “many deceivers have gone out into the world” [2 John 1:7] who evidently have changed what the Apostles taught for such are “those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh”. They were a group of converts who thought they could re-interpret what they had been taught by their own reasoning. After accepting the teaching that Jesus was the Son of God and had brought God’s message to human beings (John 5:19-20, etc), these deceivers were saying Jesus could not really have been a human being; as he was a Son of God, he could not have been flesh and blood. This is serious, John says that such “a one is a deceiver and the antichrist,” and immediately comments, “Watch yourselves, so that you do not lose what you have worked for” [2 John 1:8]. He further says that anyone who “does not abide in the teaching of Christ does not have God.” [2 John 1:9]. He describes those who taught wrongly as doing “wicked works” [2 John 1:11] While in the end there is one particular “antichrist” – there are a multitude of forerunners, all guilty of distorting the original “truth” and that has been the case ever since. It would wonderful if all Christians could be of one mind, but it is impossible, human nature being what it is. We are in awe, thinking of the time when Christ, on behalf of the Father has the final say as to whether we receive his wondrous eternal blessings. We noted the reasons held out against those he rejects. In John’s third and final letter he writes more about “walking in the truth” [3 John 1:3,4] and those like Diotrephes [3 John 1:9] who do not do so. Let us make sure we know the truth and then make sure we walk in it in word and in deed. Truth never changes. [Ephesians 4:4-6; 4:14-15] -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 20, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 20 June 2011 Ruth 1; 2Isaiah 44Jude 1 "A FULL REWARD BE GIVEN YOU BY THE LORD" The account of Ruth’s faithful support of her mother-in-law Naomi invites our meditation on the principles involved. Imagine the frame of mind of Naomi! Her husband in seeking sustenance for his wife and sons in time of drought travels to the foreign land of Moab; the sons find wives there, but then tragedy, her husband and both her sons die! One of her daughters in law insists on returning to Bethlehem with her, she has a great sense of responsibility to support her mother-in-law and this includes serving her mother-in-law’s God. [Ruth 1:16] We may know the story well, but the main lesson to be drawn is how God can use human beings who have a spirit of loyalty and integrity of action - to make them part of his greater purpose. After a time of anxiety, faithfully endured, blessings start to flow. Ruth’s loyalty comes to the notice of Boaz and he becomes her protector. “All that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has been fully told me, and how you left your father and mother and your native land and came to a people you did not know before.” [Ruth 2:11] Then he adds “The LORD repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge!” [Ruth 2:12]. How much will those with the spirit of Ruth need the refuge of the LORD as the spiritual drought in this world becomes even more intense! But how many have the spirit of Ruth? How many, come within the Lord’s all seeing eye and receive the “full reward”? We will see how this poignant story ends tomorrow when Boaz and Ruth become the great grandparents of David. As a result Ruth gets a mention in the New Testament [Matt. 1:5] as part of the special line of descent that leads to the Lord Jesus. -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 21, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 21 June 2011 Ruth 3; 4Isaiah 45Revelation 1; 2 "I THE LORD SPEAK TRUTH, I DECLARE WHAT IS RIGHT" Our chapter in Isaiah [isaiah 45] is very challenging and, it seems to us, that God caused two largely complete scrolls of Isaiah, more than 2,000 years old, to be found to silence the scoffers. The verses that jumped out at us demanding that we particularly think about them are, “I am the LORD, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me.” [isaiah 45:5] And again,“I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity” [isaiah 45:7]. Why does God “create calamity”? To challenge us – often to deliver those who trust in him, strengthening, in that way, their faith. Some misunderstand God’s role in creating calamity (the AV version has “evil”) and invent a “Satan” as the cause of calamity, but we read in today’s chapter of Revelation, Revelation 2:9,13,24 that ‘satan’ is a label to describe trouble makers and that such a ‘satan’ even has a throne in a particular place. One could use the word, ‘enemy.’ Hitler was the ‘satan’ when we were young. Returning to Isaiah we note that the prophet says, “Truly you are a God who hides yourself” [isaiah 45:15] In what sense is that? What does Isaiah mean? We humans need to apply our intelligence to realize that, seeing that all things in the natural world around us work so wonderfully together (until disrupted by some of the things man is doing) there must be a Master designer! Our faith is an essential ingredient if we are to fully see the meaning of life. “Does the clay say to him who forms it ‘What are you making?’” [isaiah 45:9] Next, God challenges us by saying, “Ask me of things to come” [isaiah 45:11] and next week we will read in that dramatic Chapter, Isaiah 53, such a detailed prediction about the work of Christ in giving his life as a sacrifice – followed by his resurrection – to be a light for all those who are looking for genuine spiritual light to illuminate the real meaning of their lives. Finally we noted Isaiah 45:23, “from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall not return: to me every knee shall bow, and every tongue swear allegiance.” In the final climax of life on earth, only such who do this will be alive. The Garden of Eden will be restored, the earth, as we also read today will be “the paradise of God.” [Rev. 2:7]-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 22, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2011 22 June 2011 1 Samuel 1Isaiah 46; 47Revelation 3; 4 "I WILL CONFESS HIS NAME BEFORE MY FATHER" The messages that were sent to the 7 different communities of believers detailed in Revelation 2; 3 are remarkable. We conclude that these are representative of the various types of Christian communities that have existed ever since that era. One particular message caught our attention today, the words that were written to Sardis [Rev. 3:1]. You “have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead” – was the message. But, the message also includes, “you still have a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments (of righteousness), and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy.” [Rev. 3:5]. Of such, Jesus says, “I will confess his name before my father” [Rev. 3:5]. What will Jesus “confess”? What is a “name”? We recall the promise God made to King David, “I will make for you a great name, like the names of the great ones of the earth” [2 Sam. 7:9]. This is “name” in the sense of reputation or fame, as many modern versions translate it. Quite a number of Scriptures tell us how God made a name for himself, we will soon read an example of this in Isaiah – Isaiah 63:12,14. In the light of these examples we conclude that when Jesus says of those few in Sardis that he will “confess” their “name before my father” - he means he will confess the reputation that such have made for themselves. We meditate and imagine it will be names or reputations such as “patient endurance” [Rev. 2:2] “not grown weary” [Rev. 2:3] “hold fast” [Rev. 2:25] and many other particular qualities of a Christ-like character. Such, says Jesus, I will make a pillar in the temple of my God” [Rev. 3:12,21] adding, “… and I will write on him the name of my God … and my own new name…. I will grant him to sit with me on my throne.” May we all, in true humility, so live that we make a name for ourselves that our Lord will lovingly confess before his Father when he returns to this earth and we can join in the proclamation, “’Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!’” [Rev. 4:8]-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2011 23 June 2011 1 Samuel 2Isaiah 48Revelation 5; 6 "AND THEY SHALL REIGN ON THE EARTH" The drama of the book of Revelation is now unfolding before us; much of it is seen to have been completed in events during the centuries since Jesus ascended into heaven. There have been so many times when believers have been tested as to whether they really believed. with a genuine attitude of humility, the words of Jesus and his disciples and the Apostles. At the moment, many are recalling that this year marks 400 years since the impressive A.V. (Authorised Version) of the Bible was first printed. We can reflect on the agonies endured by believers during the 16th and 17th centuries when there was much strife among Christians. Worthy men, such as Tyndale were persecuted and even put to death for daring to go against the will of the established Church. Also, there is ample evidence that many realized how the teachings of Jesus had been distorted by their religious leaders. Yet history is ever repeating itself for in both of our Old Testament readings we saw how the recognized leaders behaved badly. Their exercise of authority so often led to corruption: this seems inevitable when there is no awe of God in human minds. In 1 Samuel 2 there is an account of the sins of the sons of Eli, the Levitical priest. His sons were totally blind to the all seeing eye of God and Eli himself was weak willed. Again, in Isaiah 48 - this chapter began by stating, “Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel … who swear by the name of the LORD and confess the God of Israel, but not in truth and right.” This is followed by the observation that God keeps warning them but eventually acts – and that action is very sudden! Verse 3 states, “they went out from my mouth and I announced them; then suddenly I did them …” [isaiah 48:3]. The reason for delay? God states; “For my name’s sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off.” [isaiah 48:9] How long will God delay his anger as this world becomes ever more ungodly? Returning to reading Revelation we meditated on how times of great trouble lead genuine believers to pray ever more earnestly and we have the scene of “golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.” [Revelation 5:8]. What do we pray about today? The ultimate answer opens up to a scene of “ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom of priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.” [Revelation 5:9,10] -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 24 June 2011 1 Samuel 3Isaiah 49Revelation 7; 8; 9 "A GREAT MULTITUDE THAT NO ONE COULD NUMBER" The book of Revelation, while containing many visions of a symbolic nature that indicate the fate of the godless, also includes some plain statements of the future for those who are in awe of their Creator and who spend their lives aiming to serve him in an acceptable way. Today’s chapter, Revelation 7, first has a picture of those “sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel” [Revelation 7:4]. Then the vision opens out in Revelation 7:9-10; “after this I looked, and behold a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’” This event was prefigured when Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey and the crowd “took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him” [John 12:13] and the crowd said, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.” These words will find their real fulfilment when Jesus comes again. The symbol of the white robes is explained in v.14 (of Revelation 7:14) “These are the ones coming out of great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” We can clearly understand the symbolic language here. As we read on into Revelation 9 we see more symbolic language about the terrible fate of the godless as this world ends. Also in Revelation 8 we read with great interest the word “wormwood” which has the same underlying meaning as the word Chernobyl where the Russian nuclear tragedy occurred and where even now the terrible detail of the disaster is coming to light – in the wake of the Japanese disaster. We read, “A third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the water …” [Revelation 8:11] Revelation 9 tells us that the final terrible judgements come, “but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads” [Revelation 9:4] will suffer. We started with the quote about those “sealed from every tribe in Israel” and we can see that this ties in with today’s Isaiah reading, “Thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Behold , I will lift my hand to the nations … and they shall bring your sons … and your daughters … Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.” [isaiah 49:22,23] Then Israel will know! But the question for us is - will I be among that “great multitude”? -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted June 25, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2011 25 June 2011 1 Samuel 4Isaiah 50Revelation 10; 11 "JUST AS HE ANNOUNCED TO HIS SERVANTS THE PROPHETS" The book of Revelation makes allusions to the Old Testaments prophets in every chapter. We have a list of 700 such quotations and allusions. In today’s reading we are told “that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.” [Revelation 10:7] Reading Revelation is somewhat like walking around a dwelling and looking in through different windows and getting different perspectives on what is often the same scene. The particular scene that captures our interest the most is the events revealed by the seventh angel. When “the seventh angel blew his trumpet ... loud voices in heaven say ‘The Kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.’” [Revelation 11:15] and the 24 elders (first mentioned in Revelation 4:4,10) say, “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty; who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time of the dead to be judged, and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.” [Revelation 11:16,17] This is both a joyful and a sombre picture of the climax of human history when the nations rage: it is a time of reward for “those who fear your name” – but what of those who do not? Today Isaiah has a personal message for us. He is living in difficult times and writes, “The Lord GOD has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary. Morning by morning he awakens my ear … [isaiah 50:4] So we feel it is very good, if not essential, to hear God’s words “morning by morning.” We notice his question to those who hear his message, “Who among you fears the LORD and obeys the voice of his servant? Let him who walks in darkness and has no light trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God” [isaiah 50:10]. Let us all do that.-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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