We Submit - God Equips - Acts 13-14

Acts 13:1 (ESV)

Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.

God uses many people to accomplish His purpose.  He uses ordinary people to do the extraordinary work of teaching the gospel. Saul (Paul) in the above passage will become the most known of all those mentioned.  Thousands were saved but never mentioned by name.   Others, like the above, are called out by name.   Their service to the gospel is mentioned on many occasions.   God does not have to use men to teach the gospel but He chooses to do so.  And although Paul is the one who gets the highlights, there were many in the church at Antioch who could teach and did teach.   In this verse they are called prophets and teachers.   Notice how Luke refers to Barnabas and Saul (Paul):

Acts 14:14 (ESV)

But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd, crying out,

God takes ordinary people and promotes them to higher and higher status.   But that is God’s work, not ours.   We are to step up to speak the gospel.  That is a command.   It is God who moves us into positions of greater influence.   

God Intervenes - Haggai

Haggai 1:1 (ESV)

In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the hand of Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest:

When Judah and Israel were taken captive there were three returns.  In the first return they came back and started to rebuild the Temple.  But they gave up on the work and began to focus on themselves.   God, in response, speaks to Haggai and sends him to speak truth to them.  This is God’s formula.   God sees our distractions in life and then sends someone to speak truth to us.   It will be Haggai’s message that gets them backed focused on the work and the Temple will be rebuilt.    This is why it is important for us to read God’s word each day.  It will refocus us.  It will inspire us to complete the work God gave us to do.   It will teach us how to do the work.  It will remind us as to why we are doing the work.  The nation started to return to their old habits of neglect for God and rebellion against Him.   God intervenes with His spoken word.   That is a rejoicing thought.   

Do You Plan? Why? Ecclesiasties 5-6

2011 - 

Ecclesiastes 6:12 (ESV)

For who knows what is good for man while he lives the few days of his vain life, which he passes like a shadow? For who can tell man what will be after him under the sun?

We spend a lot of time in this life, planning. We plan our days, weeks and months. We plan our weekends. We plan our vacations that are meant to get us away from planning. We plan our retirements. We even plan our funerals. We want them to go exactly as we would have liked had we been there. We even plan where we will be laid to rest. Solomon, the preacher of this text, tells just how futile that planning is. Our lives are but vapor and we plan them as though they are stone. We plan like we are statues but God allows life to force us to be dancers. But perhaps the most foolish thing we do is plan for the future. Yet, only God knows the future. The only plan we should make for the future is where we will spend enternity after our futile lives are over. We must relax in God's plan for that. The question asked in this verse of Ecclesiates is answered by God. He can tell us what will be after us. We must trust His plans for this life and the life after that. Man spends much time plannning this life when he should realize God is the conductor. Man spends little time planning for the next life when he should realize God is the judger.  

All this is why God ends the questions asked in this book with those closing lines:

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 (ESV)

The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.

A Life Blessed by God - Psalms 128-130

MY LIFE:

Psalms 128 (ESV)

A SONG OF ASCENTS.

Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD,

who walks in his ways!

You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands;

you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.

Your wife will be like a fruitful vine

within your house;

your children will be like olive shoots

around your table.

Behold, thus shall the man be blessed

who fears the LORD.

The LORD bless you from Zion!

May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem

all the days of your life!

May you see your children’s children!

Peace be upon Israel!

Those that fear the Lord have a life blessed by the Lord.   

Generational Sin - 2 Chronicles 33-36

2 Chronicles 33:21-25 (ESV)

Amon was twenty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned two years in Jerusalem. And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, as Manasseh his father had done. Amon sacrificed to all the images that Manasseh his father had made, and served them. And he did not humble himself before the LORD, as Manasseh his father had humbled himself, but this Amon incurred guilt more and more. And his servants conspired against him and put him to death in his house. But the people of the land struck down all those who had conspired against King Amon. And the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his place.

Amon does not get much press in this book of 2 Chronicles.   The press he does get, however, paints a pretty bad situation for him.   His father, Manasseh, started down a wrong road when he became king at 12.  His parents must have been so pleased (NOT!).   He lead Judah into a bad moral place but then repented and turned it around.   Now his son Amon is in charge, but he didn’t get the memo from his father.    We can read above about what happens.   Dad did eventually repent, but that didn’t carry over.  This is the difficulty with generational sin.   We can repent but our children have already learned about our bad behavior.   We can only hope they see our repentance and turn themselves from the very sin we taught them.   Amon does not.  But his son, Josiah, will.   God can only explain that cycle.   But we are responsible to repent and pray God does a work in the lives of our children.  

The LORD Is Our Portion - Deuteronomy 10-12

Deuteronomy 10:9 (ESV)

Therefore Levi has no portion or inheritance with his brothers. The LORD is his inheritance, as the LORD your God said to him.)

This might be one of the hardest truths to live out in our faith toward God.  The tribe of Levi is an example and/or template for all believers.  Whereas the rest of the tribes will be allotted a portion of the promised land, Levi will get no land.   There “lot” in life was the LORD.    That almost makes having God as your “lot” is a consolation prize.   Having a special relationship with God IS NOT a consultation prices.     We tend to put all things of this earth as our preferred “lots” in life.  But unless we are willing to give up all for God (as the tribe of Levi was required to do), we can’t really fully embrace what God wants for us.  In addition, we will actually miss out on what God actually has for us.   This is a weekly prayer list to remind us to be like the tribe of Levi ... making Him our portion:

Luke 14:33 (ESV)

33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

NOTHING IN YOU THAT HAS NOT DIED WILL EVER BE RAISED FROM THE DEAD. 

(C.S. Lewis- Mere Christianity)

MONDAY

Luke 14:26 (ESV)

26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

TUESDAY 

Matthew 10:39 (ESV)

39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

WEDNESDAY 

Matthew 16:25 (ESV)

25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

THURSDAY 

Mark 8:35 (ESV)

35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it.

FRIDAY 

Luke 9:24 (ESV)

24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.

SATURDAY 

Luke 17:33 (ESV)

33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it.

SUNDAY 

John 12:25 (ESV)

Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

Quit Judging Others - James 4-5

James 4:12 (ESV)

There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?

God reserves the right to judge people.  We do not.  There are a number of verses in God’s word about God being THE judge:

Isaiah 33:22 (ESV)

For the LORD is our judge; the LORD is our lawgiver;

the LORD is our king; he will save us.

Psalms 50:4 (ESV)

He calls to the heavens above

and to the earth, that he may judge his people:

Ecclesiastes 12:14 (ESV)

For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.

Hebrews 12:23 (ESV)

and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect,

There are also a lot of verses, like the above, that tell us NOT to judge others:

Matthew 7:1 (ESV)

“Judge not, that you be not judged.

Luke 6:37 (ESV)

“Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven;

John 8:7 (ESV)

And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Romans 2:1 (ESV)

Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things.

James 2:13 (ESV)

For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

We are not the judge of others.  We don’t have the holiness to do so.  God is the perfect judge because He is perfectly holy.   Only those without sin can judge those with sin.