951 E Dalby Rd,
Union WA 98592
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PO Box 232
Union WA 98592
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New Community Church of Union
New Community Church of Union
Sunday Services: 8:15 AM Online & 10:30 AM in person at the Church building
Children's Sunday School & Adult Fellowship Time - 9:30—10:30 AM
Daily Devotion October 2021
Daily Devotion October 2021
10/30/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/z8T0br5JfAA
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: Why not just accept the injustice and leave it at that? Why not . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Dr. Josh Moody’s sermon titled “Praying in the Spirit” based on Ephesians 6:10-20 with the emphasis on verses 18-20. Pastor Moody said that persevering, persistent, spiritual praying is an essential requirement for spiritual warfare for all Christians. It’s also essential for the effective boldness of gospel preachers. Paul gave us two pointers for how to pray:
· Pray at all times.
· Pray in the Spirit: We can determine what this means by going back in Ephesians and reviewing what Paul has said. In 2:18 we read: For through [Jesus] we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. Part of praying in the Spirit is praying through Jesus allowing us access to God. When we pray in the Spirit, we pray because of the gospel.
Four verses later we read: In [Jesus] you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. Part of praying in the Spirit is the communal prayer that we pray as God’s people together. Only one person is being heard, but we are praying together. God, by his Spirit, is building us into a dwelling place.
In Ephesians 3:14-19 we read: For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Part of praying in the Spirit is to have the power to grasp just how much God loves you. The magnitude of God’s love is beyond simple comprehension. One of the ministries of the Holy Spirit is to open our eyes and hearts to the extraordinary love God has for his people. We can’t take it all in without the help of the Spirit.
Ephesians 4:3 says: eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Part of what it means to pray in the Spirit is to be united with one another. We have been made one through Christ’s work on the cross, and now we make every effort through the bond of peace to experience unity. Part of praying in the Spirit is praying in a united way with the absence of rancor, division, anger, and dissention. Ironically, what some people teach about what it means to pray in the Spirit ends up being fantastically divisive. Praying in the Spirit brings unity—one heart.
Ephesians 4:30 says: And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
To not pray in the Spirit would be to have corrupt talk come out of your mouth—to have bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, slander, and/or malice.
To pray in the Spirit means to be kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving toward others.
Ephesians 5:18 says: And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit. To be filled with the Spirit is the opposite of alcoholic drunkenness. We find out what being filled with the Spirit means in the next three verses: addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Praying in the Spirit reflects the work of the Spirit which is the opposite of drunkenness. It is characterized instead by singing to one another—congregational singing.
Besides the spiritual side, there’s also the practical side to praying that Paul emphasizes:
· Praying at all times in the Spirit
· Praying with all prayer and supplication
· Keeping alert with all perseverance: Some people have said that for the Christian, prayer should be as natural as breathing. That does not appear to be what Paul is saying; he says we have to persevere. Prayer is work; it takes effort. I don’t have to be alert to breath, but I have to be alert to pray—you have to stay awake. A cup of coffee may help you stay awake as you pray. Perhaps when the offering plate is passed, options for coffee should be passed as well—right before the congregational prayer.
In Matthew 24:42, Jesus said, “Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.”
In Matthew 26:41, Jesus said, “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
We’re to be alert and pray—Jesus could return at any moment. We’re to be alert and pray—temptation is right at our door.
Who are we to pray for? We’re to pray for all the saints—those who are faithful in Christ Jesus (see 1:1). Saints are not biblically some group of super-elite, extra-holy people. Saints are true Christians—followers of Christ.
Specifically, Paul asks for prayer for himself. Gospel preachers should ask to be prayed for. It’s important that the congregation of a church prays for its preachers. When a person preaches the gospel, he is involved in a particularly intense way with spiritual warfare. He’s an ambassador to proclaim the gospel to the church and to the world. Gospel preachers need to be prayed for by God’s people. Prayer for the pastor is good for the church and good for the kingdom.
Paul asks for prayer specifically that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel. Paul is asking that when he opens his mouth to speak, he will be given the right words to say by God in order to explain the word properly. Pray for God to give your preacher the right message and the right words to explain the word.
Paul also asks for boldness to proclaim the mystery of the gospel. The word boldness can be translated clarity, freedom, fluency of speech. This is what Paul asks prayer for as he prepares to go before what may be the emperor. You need to pray that your preacher has the boldness to stand on the truth when the general ideology of the day is not in favor of the authority of Scripture. Pray that your preacher would have the boldness to preach the truth even if he is attacked, and he will be attacked. Pray that in spite of the attacks, your preacher will have clarity, freedom, and fluency of speech. Preachers are not to hide behind the pulpit and give the congregation what they want to hear; preachers are to speak with boldness the truth of the gospel.
To sum it up, Paul is teaching us that the persevering, persistent, spiritual praying is an essential requirement for the spiritual warfare for all Christians and also for the effective boldness of gospel preachers. How can we do that?
· Pray until you pray. Pray with perseverance. Too often we pray a little bit and then give up. We need to start praying and continue praying until we reach that point where we are really talking to God: pray until you pray. Pray until your mind is no longer distracted. The only way to reach that point is through perseverance.
· The practicality of prayer: Make a schedule. Make a list. Set an alarm clock.
· The spirituality of prayer: Prayer is not simply mechanistic; it’s not simply a system. There is a spirituality to prayer. When we pray until we pray, and we pray with a united voice in the Spirit, we sense that we are in the presence of God. We feel: God is here! God is at work!
Verse Completion: . . . watches over your life. Psalm 121:7 (NLT)
10/29/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/WlILURVJ5NE
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: The Lord keeps you from all harm and . . .(completion at the end)
Dr. Josh Moody is the pastor of College Church in Wheaton, Illinois. He recently started a series titled “Spiritual Warfare”. The eighth and final sermon in this series is titled “Praying in the Spirit”. It is based on Ephesians 6:10-20 with the emphasis being on verses 18-20. Today we will begin a recap of that message.
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak. Ephesians 6:10-20 (ESV)
Christians are taught that prayer is important, and yet most Christians find prayer difficult. Sometimes our minds get off track while we are praying. Sometimes we fall asleep while praying. Sometimes we wonder if our prayers are being heard. We pray for something for years, but nothing seems to be happening. There’s a gap between what we feel is important and what we experience.
Paul is telling us that persevering, persistent, spiritual praying is an essential requirement for spiritual warfare for all Christians. It’s also essential for the effective boldness of gospel preachers. As we look at the book of Ephesians, we discover what Christ has done and what we are to do in light of what Christ has done. Throughout the book there is an ongoing theme of the new creation—the Church, the body of Christ. The great hope for the world, God’s grand purpose, is God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule—the Church. The great hope for racial reconciliation, the great hope for social transformation, is not the tech companies in Silicon Valley; it’s us—the Church. This is why we come to church. This is why we commit to church. This is why we give our lives to church. It’s not because we like religious, social clubs. God has created a new society, and because of it we need to live a certain way, invest in it, and be ambassadors for the message of Christ as God’s new community.
The armor of God is an extended metaphor of what this means. It echoes what Christ has done and what we are to do. The verbs are imperatives or commands:
· Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might (verse 10).
· Put on the whole armor of God (verse 11).
· Stand therefore (verse 14).
These are things we are to do in light of what Christ has done.
Then we come to verbs in the past tense (or aorist tense in Greek):
· Having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace (verse 15).
· Take the helmet of salvation (verse 17). This is past tense because it’s something Jesus has done. We are to live in the reality of what Christ has done. That’s how this new society, the great hope of the whole world—the Church, becomes what it is meant to be as we put on the armor of God and live in the reality of who we are because of what Christ has done.
When Paul comes to prayer at the end of this passage, it is not described as a piece of armor. The verb “praying” reveals ongoing action. Prayer is intended to be the animating and empowering of this new humanity. Prayer is an essential requirement. Praying is the animating power of the whole armor of God. Prayer is hugely significant. Notice how the word “all” is emphasized in verse 18: Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with allperseverance, making supplication for all the saints. He didn’t say to pray sometimes or make supplication for some of the saints. The emphasis is on all. Persevering, persistent, spiritual praying is an essential requirement for spiritual warfare for all Christians and for the bold effectiveness of preachers.
Paul teaches about prayer in a characteristically simple way. Prayer is not complicated. Jesus said, “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Give us this day our daily bread,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. (Matthew 6:5-13).
Praying is not overly complicated. Fancy words are not necessary. Complicated terminology is not needed. If words such as justification, sanctification, and glorification are used in your prayers, your prayers are not more likely to be heard.
The prophets of Baal thought they could get the attention of their god with some strange actions recorded in 1 Kings 18:27-29: And at noon Elijah mocked them saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.
Elijah’s prayer was very simple: “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back” (1 Kings 18:36b-37).
Paul describes how to pray, who to pray for, and what to pray. He gives us two pointers for how to pray:
· Pray at all times: It’s possible to pray while you are doing something else. While listening to the sermon you can be praying for the pastor. While listening to someone’s problem, you can be asking the Holy Spirit for the right words to say to the person. When a businessman is making a deal, he can be praying for wisdom. It’s possible to have different tracks going on in your mind at the same time, so you can be praying at all times in that sense.
Paul could also mean having set times of praying during the day without breaking the pattern.
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Pastor Moody’s sermon with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . watches over your life. Psalm 121:7 (NLT)
10/28/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/CT5WPNV0ecU
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: . . . this sin [sexual immorality] is like a little yeast that . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Pastor Del McKenzie’s message titled “Ministry of the Spirit”. He started to answer the question: How does the Holy Spirit speak truth to us and guide us in the truth?
· By placing a hunger in our hearts.
· By bringing conviction—showing us where we are wrong.
· By illuminating our minds. 1 Corinthians 2:14 says: The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
The Holy Spirit reveals the mystery that’s in Jesus. A mystery can’t be discerned apart from divine revelation—God illuminating the heart and mind. Colossians 2:2-3 says: My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Colossians 4:2-3 says: Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. People can’t understand who Jesus is unless the Holy Spirit reveals him to them.
People can’t understand on their own that Jesus is perfectly God and perfectly man at the same time. Titus 2:13 clearly states that Jesus is God. The Holy Spirit illuminates our minds by revealing that Jesus is the only Savior who can save us from our sins. It’s Jesus who is the solution to the needs of mankind.
The Holy Spirit reveals to us that Jesus is Lord. Romans 10:9 says: That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 1 Corinthians 12:3 says: Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. We become believers by proclaiming that Jesus is Lord. That was the great confession of the early church. In the early Roman Empire, people were forced to say, “Caesar is Lord,” or suffer the consequences of not saying it. To a Christian, Jesus is Lord of all.
Jesus said, “The world cannot accept [the Holy Spirit], because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (John 14:17). Until those of the world open their hearts to the Holy Spirit, they will not see and understand that Jesus is Lord.
· By glorifying Jesus. Jesus said, “[The Holy Spirit] will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you” (John 16:14). To glorify means to put on a high pedestal. Synonyms for glorify include: extol, exalt, honor, lift up. We need to be doing all these things to the name of Jesus. Our attitude should always be: Anything I have accomplished has been done through Christ in me. He gets all the credit.
Jesus is supreme. Colossians 1:18 says: And [Jesus] is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. He is the ruler of all. He gives direction to his Church. Jesus gives us the fulness of God. We need to glorify him, exalt him, extol him, and uplift him. Glorifying Jesus is the supreme and outstanding characteristic of the Holy Spirit’s ministry. Someone has said there’s a rivalry of divine humility in the Godhead: The Son glorifies the Father. The Spirit glorifies the Son.
God is to be glorified, not man. Much of what claims to be the work of the Holy Spirit today is the glorifying of man, not the glorifying of Jesus. One of the ministries of the Holy Spirit is to enable us to glorify Jesus. It’s a problem when we think we know too much. It’s during those times when the Holy Spirit needs to be teaching us. However, he can’t teach us anything if we’re not listening to him. If you wonder if something is the work of the Holy Spirit, put it to the test. The test is: Does it glorify Jesus? If it does, it’s the work of the Holy Spirit. Jesus needs to be our ever-present, personal Savior and Lord.
A special ministry of the Holy Spirit is to magnify Jesus. A Christ-centered ministry is a Holy Spirit-driven ministry. A Holy Spirit-driven ministry will be a Christ-centered ministry. A life filled with the Holy Spirit and governed by him has only one ambition—glorify Jesus. It should be the thrill of a person’s heart to be able to glorify Jesus.
Are you letting the Holy Spirit make Jesus real to you or do you look at Jesus as simply a historical figure or great teacher? Are you allowing the Holy Spirit to impress in your heart and mind the magnitude of Jesus, the magnificence of Jesus, the glory of Jesus? Don’t resist the Holy Spirit. Ask him and expect him to make Jesus real to you. He will do it. It’s one of his ministries.
Verse Completion: . . . spreads through the whole batch of dough? 1 Corinthians 5:6b (NLT)
10/27/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/LxqHo2Pvfm0
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a . . . (completion at the end)
On Monday Pastor Del McKenzie continued his series of messages on the Holy Spirit with his third talk titled “Ministry of the Spirit”. Today we will start a recap of his insights.
The Holy Spirit is God, a Person, and a Spirit. Being a Spirit, he does not have flesh and bones as Jesus had. His job is to carry on the work of Jesus. We can expect and ask for companionship from the Holy Spirit. He will be with us as a companion to walk through all of life. We can also expect and ask for the Holy Spirit to give us life—spiritual life, divine life, real life, abundant life, physical life, emotional life.
Another ministry of the Holy Spirit is to make Jesus real to us. Some of the key passages about the Holy Spirit are found in chapters 14-16 of John. Our churches, our people, and our country are in great need of an outpouring of God’s life. Nothing else will save us. Nothing else will reverse what’s happening in our churches and the world. We hope this study of the Holy Spirit will help us tune in to him.
In John 15:26 Jesus told his disciples: “When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me. And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning.” To testify means to witness to just as we see in the courts of law today. In this verse it means to give a good report—to substantiate the person. It’s a good witness. The Holy Spirit confirms who Jesus claims to be, what he did, and the way he did it. The Holy Spirit confirms and testifies to Jesus as he dwells in us. Jesus confirms that the Holy Spirit is truth:
· “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13a).
The world is not living in the truth. It lives in a darkness of understanding, not understanding who Jesus is. The world lives in a darkness of morals. Fortunately, we have the Spirit of truth who speaks to us truth and guides us in the truth. One tool the Holy Spirit uses is the word of truth—the Bible. The Holy Spirit draws us to the Scriptures. He also draws us to people of truth. How does he do this?
· By placing a hunger in our hearts. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6).
· By bringing conviction—showing people they are wrong and have a need. We have sin and need Jesus to forgive our sin. Without conviction, there’s no sense of need. Without conviction, we won’t see our need of a Savior.
· By illuminating our minds. 1 Corinthians 2:14 says: The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The Holy Spirit shows us who Jesus is. He testifies to the truth of Jesus. Jesus said, “All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you” (John 16:15).
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Pastor Del’s message with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . light for my path. Psalm 119:105 (NLT)
10/26/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Songs for the Day: https://youtu.be/L6wDW2PkXjk
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: For the Kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk; it is . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Pastor Del McKenzie’s sermon titled “What in the World Is God Doing?” based on Titus 2:11-14. Pastor Del said that God is calling out people through redemption. Jesus paid the price for our redemption—his death on the cross. Redeem means to buy back. Jesus buys people back from their slavery to sin. Pastor Del reminded us that salvation can’t be bought, earned, deserved, begged, borrowed, stolen, produced; it’s free in Jesus.
What do we do with God’s grace? We receive it, accepting what God is offering to us.
In verse 12 we see that God’s grace teaches us. With the teaching we begin to learn, understand, experience, and apply grace. One thing grace teaches us is to say “no” to ungodliness and worldly passions. Each one of us is the sum total of our yeses and noes. We have said “no” to things we shouldn’t have said “no” to, and we have said “yes” to things we shouldn’t have said “yes” to. We are to say “no” to things that are not like God. We are to say “yes” to things that are like God.
In Titus 1:8 the elders are to love what is good. In 2:3 the older women are to teach what is good. In 2:7 we are to set an example for young men by doing what is good. In 3:1 people are to be subject to rulers and authorities and do whatever is good. In 3:8 believers are to be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. In 3:14 we are to learn to devote ourselves to doing what is good. We should be saying “no” to ungodliness and “yes” to godliness. We are to say “no” to the desires of our sinful nature. Our sinful nature pulls us to do bad rather than good. Our sinful nature comes out in ungodly words, ungodly attitudes, ungodly actions, and selfish desires.
Titus 2:12 also tells us how we are to live. We are to live self-controlled or disciplined lives: orderly, productive, not dysfunctional. We’re also to live morally upright lives. We don’t have to wait until we get to heaven to live a godly life; we are to live a godly life now. A godly life is a life of goodness and godlikeness. We’re to be holy—set apart. We’re to be the kind of people God wants us to be. Until Jesus returns we are to live godly lives. We’re to be light to a dark world. We’re to be salt to the world. We’re to be a pleasant fragrance to those around us. 2 Corinthians 3:18 tells us: And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
We’re to be doing good while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13). Hope is anticipation and expectation. Jesus said, “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour” (Matthew 25:13). Everything we’re going through now will be worth it when we see Jesus.
The lyrics to When We See Christ are as follows:
Oft times the day seems long, our trials hard to bear,
We're tempted to complain, to murmur and despair;
But Christ will soon appear to catch His Bride away,
All tears forever over in God's eternal day.
It will be worth it all when we see Jesus,
Life's trials will seem so small when we see Christ;
One glimpse of His dear face all sorrow will erase,
So bravely run the race till we see Christ.
Sometimes the sky looks dark with not a ray of light,
We're tossed and driven on, no human help in sight;
But there is one in heav'n who knows our deepest care,
Let Jesus solve your problem – just go to Him in pray'r.
Life's day will soon be o'er, all storms forever past,
We'll cross the great divide, to glory, safe at last;
And we'll all share the joys of heav'n – a harp, a home, a crown,
The tempter will be banished, we'll lay our burden down.
The lyrics to What a Day that Will Be are as follows:
What a day that will be
When my Jesus I shall see
And I look upon his face
The one who saved me by his grace
When he takes me by the hand
And leads me through the Promised Land
What a day, glorious day that will be
There'll be no sorrows there
No more burdens to bear
No more sickness and no more pain
No more parting over there
But forever I will be
With the one who died for me
What a day, glorious day that will be
God is trying to redeem us from all wickedness, and we need to cooperate.
Are you a person who has responded to the grace of God? John 1:12 tells us: Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
If you are a person who has responded to the grace of God, are you living that life of grace? Is your life made up of mostly yeses to God or mostly noes to God? Is your life mostly saying “yes” to sin and “no” to righteousness? Our lives are the sum total of our yeses and our noes. Do you have some purifying to do? Jesus gave himself for us to redeem us from sin and to purify for himself a people of holiness and godliness. Bring your wrong yeses and your wrong noes to God. Perhaps you’ve been saying yes to jealousy, greed, bitterness, addiction. Pray and ask God to turn those yeses into noes. Perhaps you’ve been saying “no” to God when he has said, “Spend time with me. Let’s talk.” It’s time to change that “no” into a “yes”. Are you learning or simply floating through life? Are you looking forward to that blessed hope of seeing Jesus?
Verse Completion: . . . living by God’s power. 1 Corinthian 4:20 (NLT)
10/25/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/3p8THfJihuc
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: Let me be united with all who fear you, with those who know your laws. May I be blameless in keeping your decrees; then . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday Pastor Del McKenzie preached a sermon titled “What in the World Is God Doing?” Today we will start a recap of his message based on Titus 2:11-14:
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
We will attempt to exegete Scripture—pull out what it says; we won’t be doing any eisegesis—reading into Scripture what we want to read into it. We want to pull out of Scripture what it says and find application to our lives.
We come to church for two reasons: to hear from God through his word and for God to hear from us through our worship.
What is God doing in our world? The atheist says God’s not doing anything because nothing can do nothing. The atheist doesn’t expect anything from God. The deist says we don’t know what God is doing. God created the world and left it to operate on its own. It’s our responsibility to take care of the earth that he has put us on. Likewise, the deist doesn’t expect anything from God. The theist believes God is the creator, sustainer, ruler, and controller. The theist expects great things from God, because God is living and active—involved in the lives of people. God is in control, but he gives us the opportunity to make decisions.
Starting at the bottom of our text and working our way up, it says that God is working in the lives of people that are his very own, purifying them and calling them together. God is not trying to save the world, change the world, stop global warming, stop socialism, stop communism, eliminate poverty, or solve church fights. God is calling out people for himself.
Who is God? He is the God of the Bible. He is the God of revelation, revealing himself in Jesus, the Son of God. The Old Testament word for God is Elohim. It occurs more than 2500 times in the Hebrew Bible. The New Testament word for God is Theos. He goes by other names such as Jehovah or LORD. He has names that reveal his nature and character: Strong One, All Powerful, Omnipotent, Almighty, Creator. He is the source of life, light, love and is fully revealed in Jesus Christ. God, through Jesus, is drawing people unto himself. He is calling out people for his name and his glory and his heaven.
How is God doing what he’s doing in the world? He is calling out people through redemption. Jesus paid the price for our redemption—his death on the cross. Redeem means to buy back. Jesus buys people back from their slavery to sin.
When I was in high school I bought a Remington .22 rifle for $30. When I went to college I needed money so I sold the rifle to help pay for college. Years later I had the opportunity to buy the rifle back for $235, and I did. I redeemed my rifle. I had to pay a high price, but I got it back. Jesus has redeemed us, and he paid a lot more than $235; he paid for us with his life.
The lyrics to the song I Will Sing of My Redeemer are as follows:
I will sing of my Redeemer
And His wondrous love to me;
On the cruel cross he suffered
From the curse to set me free
Sing, oh sing of my Redeemer
With his blood, he purchased me
On the cross, he sealed my pardon
Paid the debt, and made me free
I will tell the wondrous story
How my lost estate, to save
In his boundless love and mercy
He, the ransom freely gave
I will praise my dear Redeemer
His triumphant power I'll tell
How the victory he giveth
Over sin, and death, and hell
Before Jesus redeemed us we were slaves to sin. Slaves are unable to redeem themselves. Isaiah 55:1-2, 6-7 tells us: “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.
Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.”
We are saved through redemption and through grace. Titus 2:11 says: For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. 1 Peter 5:10 tells us: And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen. Grace is free giving. It’s by the free giving of God that we have salvation. Ephesians 2:8-9 says: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.
Salvation can’t be bought, earned, deserved, begged, borrowed, stolen, produced; it’s free in Jesus. Salvation is when God reaches down and draws us to himself, puts faith within us, and we respond with belief in the Lord Jesus Christ, and we are pardoned having our sins forgiven. We are made new creatures as we are transformed to be more like Jesus. He will return to take us to heaven to be with him forever.
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of wisdom from 84-year-old Pastor Del.
Verse Completion: . . . I will never be ashamed. Psalm 119:79-80 (NLT)
10/23/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/2ms-IasUFBs
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: Stop deceiving yourselves. If you think you are wise by this world’s standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise. For the wisdom of this world is . . . (completion at the end)
Today we will complete the recap of Dr. Josh Moody’s sermon based on Exodus 14-15:21. Yesterday we looked at Chapter 14. The heart of the story is found in the thirteenth and fourteenth verses:
13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
Pastor Moody summarized the story into the following: The Lord will fight for us. Stand firm. Fear not. See the salvation of the Lord.
Let’s move now to the first 21 verses of Chapter 15 using the English Standard Version:
15 Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the Lord, saying,
“I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his riderhe has thrown into the sea.
2 The Lord is my strength and my song,
and he has becomemy salvation;
this is my God, and I will praise him,
my father's God, andI will exalt him.
3 The Lord is a man of war;
theLord is his name.
4 “Pharaoh's chariots and his host he cast into the sea,
and his chosenofficers were sunk in the Red Sea.
5 The floods covered them;
theywent down into the depths like a stone.
6 Your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power,
your right hand, OLord, shatters the enemy.
7 In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries;
you send out your fury; itconsumes them like stubble.
8 At the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up;
thefloods stood up in a heap;
the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea.
9 The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake,
Iwill divide the spoil, my desire shall have its fill of them.
I will draw my sword; my hand shall destroy them.’
10 You blew with your wind; the sea covered them;
they sank like lead in the mighty waters.
11 “Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods?
Who is like you, majestic in holiness,
awesome inglorious deeds, doing wonders?
12 You stretched out your right hand;
the earth swallowed them.
13 “You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed;
you haveguided them by your strength to your holy abode.
14 The peoples have heard; they tremble;
pangs have seized the inhabitants of Philistia.
15 Now are the chiefs of Edom dismayed;
trembling seizes the leaders ofMoab;
all the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.
16 Terror and dread fall upon them;
because of the greatness of your arm, they are stillas a stone,
till your people, O Lord, pass by,
till the people pass by whomyou have purchased.
17 You will bring them in and plant them on your own mountain,
the place, OLord, which you have made for your abode,
the sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands have established.
18 The Lord will reign forever and ever.”
19 For when the horses of Pharaoh with his chariots and his horsemen went into the sea, the Lord brought back the waters of the sea upon them, but the people of Israel walked on dry ground in the midst of the sea. 20 Then Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women went out after her with tambourines and dancing. 21 And Miriam sang to them:
“Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.”
The song in Chapter 15 is divided into two sections. Verses 2-12 are retrospective—looking back at what God had done when he rescued them from the Egyptian army at the sea. Verses 13-18 are prospective—looking to the future even though many of the tenses are in the past tense. Moses is looking to the future when they will enter the Promised Land. He’s looking at it as good as done. He’s describing the future as if it’s already been accomplished because it’s so sure.
Paul does the same thing in Romans 8:30:
30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
Glorified is in the past tense but it hasn’t happened yet. Our glorified state is so certain, if we are in Christ, because God is sovereign in our salvation. It’s so certain it can be described in the past tense.
The chorus to Moses’ song is found in the second part of 15:1:
“I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his riderhe has thrown into the sea.
Then we come to Miriam’s part in 15:23:
“Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.”
What was likely happening here is antiphonal singing was taking place where there are two choirs. The women with Miriam would sing their part in Verse 23, and in response the men with Moses would sing their part in Verse 1.
We see Hebrew parallelism in the two lines of 15:6:
6 Your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power,
your right hand, OLord, shatters the enemy.
This could easily be sung with antiphonal singing—one choir singing the first line and a different choir singing the second line.
Egyptian poetry had a similar parallelism. Moses, trained by the Egyptians, uses that style and puts in it the salvation of the Lord and created the pattern for Hebrew poetry. There’s nothing “holy” about the style Moses used; it came from Egypt.
The song of Moses appears in Revelation 15:3-4:
3 And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
“Great and amazing are your deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
O King of the nations!
4 Who will not fear, O Lord,
and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
Our passage of Scripture teaches us: The Lord fights for us. Stand firm. Fear not.
How do we do this? Let me answer that with this question: What story do you tell yourself about your life, the life of the Church, the life of your family? It should be this story—the story of the exodus of the Israelites. It’s the story of the exodus of Christians. It’s a story of redemption. The story we need to be telling ourselves is: The Lord fights for us. Stand firm. Fear not.
What song are you singing? What song goes around and around in your head? Is it this? The Lord fights for us. Stand firm. Fear not. Is this the tune of your life?
6 Your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power,
your right hand, OLord, shatters the enemy.
What principle do you believe? We all have principles by which we live. Determine the principle you live by. Write it out. A good place to start is: The Lord fights for me. I need only to stand firm. I have nothing to fear.
Verse Completion: . . . foolishness to God. 1 Corinthians 3:18-19a (NLT)
10/22/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/8hyBJwTKmQ8
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: I have hidden your word in my heart, that . . .(completion at the end)
Dr. Josh Moody is the pastor of College Church in Wheaton, Illinois. He recently started a series in Exodus titled “A Rescued People” during the evening service. The fifth sermon is based on Exodus 14-15:21. Today we will begin a recap of that message starting with this passage of Scripture using the English Standard Version:
14 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon; you shall encamp facing it, by the sea.3 For Pharaoh will say of the people of Israel, ‘They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.’ 4 And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord.” And they did so.
5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, “What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?” 6 So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him, 7 and took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. 8 And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. 9 The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon.
10 When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. 11 They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” 13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
15 The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. 16 Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. 17 And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. 18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”
19 Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, 20 coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night[a] without one coming near the other all night.
21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. 22 And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. 23 The Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. 24 And in the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, 25 clogging[b] their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily. And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from before Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.”
26 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.” 27 So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared. And as the Egyptians fled into it, the Lord threw[c] the Egyptians into the midst of the sea. 28 The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen; of all the host of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea, not one of them remained. 29 But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.
30 Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. 31 Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.
Why is this story important? It teaches us about God’s sovereignty in salvation. People have questions about God’s role in salvation and our personal responsibility in salvation. Many of us wrestle with anxiety and fear, and this story teaches God’s people how not to be afraid and why we should not be afraid. The reason why we shouldn’t be afraid is because God is sovereign in salvation. This story also helps us with the strategy of our lives and the strategy of our ministries. It shows us how to win battles.
The message of this story is told in verses 13 and 14:
13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
The message is: The Lord will fight for us. Stand firm. Fear not.
The Israelites had no weapons or military training, and they were being pursued by the most elite military troops with all the latest equipment. It would be like you and me being pursued by the Navy SEALs. One can understand their fear.
Did the events described here really happen? Professor Sir Colin Humphreys is a world-renowned Cambridge University scientist who wrote a book titled The Miracles of Exodus: A Scientist’s Discovery of the Extraordinary Natural Causes of the Biblical Stories. Professor Humphreys is a Christian scientist of the highest caliber. In his book he describes how God used natural elements to make the events in Exodus happen. We see in verse 21: 21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. We may look at this as God is super ordaining natural processes to make them happen at a precise moment in time to accomplish his will.
Another way we could look at this is as a sui generis event—a unique event where there is no possible natural explanation. For example, when Jesus turned water into wine, that was a sui generis event. It’s something God did. Either way, the sea was parted by God’s power at that particular moment. It really did happen.
The Lord will fight for us. Stand firm. Fear not. See the salvation of the Lord. The way to be released from your fears is to have the fear of God. Let God do the fighting. Stand firm.
The salvation that takes place here in Exodus is an incomplete salvation that is later fulfilled in the New Testament. Luke 9:28-31 tells us of Jesus’ transfiguration: 28 Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white. 30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,[a] which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.
When Luke writes about Jesus’ departure, he’s referring to his death and resurrection, but the word that Luke uses for his departure is his exodus. This exodus is about that exodus when Jesus rescues us from our sins.
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Pastor Moody’s sermon with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:11 (NLT)
10/21/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/Uxviwvjyg1w
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Pastor Del McKenzie’s message “Spirit of Life”. He said there are at least seven kinds of life that the Holy Spirit gives to those who ask for it, expect it, and receive it. The Holy Spirit imparts:
1. Spiritual Life.
2. Eternal Life.
3. Divine Life.
4. Physical Life. We are alive by the life of the Holy Spirit. Romans 8:11 says: And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
Isaiah 53:4-5 says: Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.
Matthew 8:14-17 says: When Jesus came into Peter’s house, he saw Peter’s mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever. He touched her hand and the fever left her, and she got up and began to wait on him.
When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases.”
Healing is in the ministry of Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of life, takes that healing and gives life to our mortal bodies. We can trust the Holy Spirit to be our healer. We may go to the doctor, but it’s because we believe God wants us to be healed.
There’s three kinds of healing:
· Natural healing: our bodies heal themselves through our immune system.
· Supernatural healing: when antibiotics and other medications are used for healing.
· Divine healing: when God the Spirit pours life into a body. We should be able to trust God for divine healing.
5. Real Life: 1 Timothy 6:18-19 says: Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. We take hold of the life that is truly life by faith in Jesus and by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit takes the things of Jesus and makes them real to us. He who has the Son has life.
Jesus told us about people who had a counterfeit life in Matthew 7:21-23: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”
We live in a world of counterfeit lives—people who are sour, snarly, snarky, empty, and angry. They are this way because they don’t have the real life. Real life is found in Jesus.
6. Full Life: Jesus said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). The full life is an abundant life, an overflowing life. The Holy Spirit brings to us this full life Jesus talked about. There’s a false shepherd in our world today—Satan. He takes away from life and brings death. Jesus is the good shepherd that brings life to his people. Half-dead Christians are missing the work of the Holy Spirit, because he brings a full life.
John 7:37-39 says: On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
The Spirit of life gives us abundant life.
7. Emotional Life: Romans 14:16-18 says: Do not allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.
There are a lot of unhappy people in our world—people who lack joy in the Holy Spirit. There are a lot of people in turmoil; they lack peace in their lives. When the Holy Spirit abides in us, we have emotional health. The fruit of the Spirit include love, joy, and peace—emotions. As life flows into the vine, it produces fruit. As life from the Holy Spirit flows into us, it produces fruit in our lives (see Galatians 5:22-23).
When we grieve the Holy Spirit, we stop this life flowing into us. Ephesians 4:29-32 tells us how we can grieve the Holy Spirit and how we can please the Holy Spirit: Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Life, life, eternal life!
Jesus alone is the giver;
Life, life, abundant life!
Glory to Jesus forever!
I trust that all of us will walk with the Holy Spirit in an ever-increasing way so his life can be poured into us so we can experience the abundant life.
Verse Completion: . . . relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 2:4 (NLT)
10/20/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/JvU1N97Ym0I
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name goes all the glory for . . . (completion at the end)
On Monday Pastor Del McKenzie continued his series of messages on the Holy Spirit with his second talk titled “Spirit of Life”. Today we will start a recap of his insights.
Last week we looked at a ministry of grace of the Holy Spirit—to provide companionship. We saw that there are things we can do to nurture that companionship. What else can we expect from the Holy Spirit? Romans 8:1-2 says: Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.
Here the Holy Spirit is identified as the Spirit of life. We can ask the Holy Spirit for life and expect him to give life to us. We are living in a world of death. The COVID pandemic has spread death and continues to spread death around the world. The aging process brings death. There are many marriages that are dying. Families suffer relational deaths. Some say our country is dying. We live in a world of death, but God has provided a wonderful answer—the Holy Spirit who gives us life. It is my hope that this study will help you receive this life and walk in this life.
There are at least seven kinds of life that the Holy Spirit gives to those who ask for it, expect it, and receive it. The Holy Spirit imparts:
1. Spiritual Life. John 3:1-8 tells us: Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”
How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!”
We have to have a physical birth to have physical life. We have to have a spiritual birth to have spiritual life. Paul said in Ephesians 2:1-5: As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
Death means separation from God. All of us were dead. That death makes us ungodly, and that’s why our world is filled with ungodliness: meanness, persecution, abuse, and the like. We have had rotten things happen to us, and we have done rotten things to others.
The Holy Spirit gives us spiritual life so our souls are alive. We’re in bad shape without that life. We don’t have the power to get away from the sin we are in, and we can’t pay for our sins because we have nothing to pay with. We can’t help ourselves because dead people can’t help themselves. A chainsaw isn’t very useful in cutting wood unless it is brought to life by starting the engine. We aren’t useful in the kingdom of God until the Holy Spirit brings us to life by his power. An engine is to a car what the Holy Spirit is to us. A car without an engine is useless. Likewise, we are useless without the Holy Spirit in our lives. The Holy Spirit enters us and gives us spiritual life when we are born again.
2. Eternal Life. Jesus said, “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:14-15). Several verses later John says, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him” (verse 36). Eternal life is the opposite of eternal death which is separation from God throughout eternity. Eternal life is being united with Christ throughout eternity. 1 Timothy 1:17 says: Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen. 1 Timothy 6:15b-16 says: God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen.
Eternal life is more than a time factor. It’s a relationship to an eternal God, eternal Word, eternal Church. When we are born again, we inherit eternal life as children of God. Ephesians 1:13-14 says: And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
3. Divine Life. 2 Peter 1:4 says: Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
Jesus prayed, “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (John 17:20-23).
Jesus has a divine nature. We have a human nature, but we get to participate or share in a divine nature—God in us. We don’t become God, but God shares himself with us. Divine life is imparted to us.
A.W. Tozer asked the question, “How shall we think of the Spirit?” and then went on to answer it: The Bible and Christian theology agree to teach that He is a Person, endowed with every quality of personality, such as emotion, intellect, and will. He knows, He wills, He loves; He feels affection, antipathy and compassion. He thinks, sees, hears and speaks and performs any act of which personality is capable.
The ministry of the Holy Spirit is to give us divine life, spiritual life, and eternal life. It’s no wonder that he is called the Spirit of life. The Holy Spirit takes the things of Jesus and makes them real to us. 1 John 5:12 tells us: He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
The lyrics to the song “Abundant Life” are as follows:
Under the burdens of guilt and care
Many a spirit is grieving,
Who in the joy of the Lord might share,
Life everlasting receiving.
Life, life, eternal life!
Jesus alone is the giver;
Life, life, abundant life!
Glory to Jesus forever!
Bearing our burden of guilt,
there came One who is strong to deliver;
Bringing to men, through His wondrous name,
Life “more abundant” than ever.
Burdened one, why will you longer bear
Sorrows from which He releases?
Open your heart and, rejoicing,
share Life “more abundant” in Jesus!
There’s a wonderful life found in the spiritual life—eternal life, divine life.
Tomorrow we will continue the recap of Pastor McKenzie’s message with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . your unfailing love and faithfulness. Psalm 115:1 (NLT)
10/19/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/Q85BGo-ipJU
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: Then Jonathan said to the young man who was carrying his armor, “Come and let us cross over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; perhaps the LORD will work for us, for . . . (completion at the end)
Today we will continue the recap of Pastor Michael’s sermon titled “The Sin and Salvation Cycle” based on Judges 2:1-3:6. We left off yesterday with Pastor Michael saying that the faith we hold closely, our children will hold loosely, and not be held by our grandchildren at all. There must be a purposeful praying for future generations. What Joshua and his generation held dear, the next generation held loosely, and the following generation knew God not at all. Each generation must decide on their own that God is vitally important to their lives. The way the physical world operates is based on spiritual principles that God puts in place. God must be central in our lives. That truth needs to be passed on to the next generation. What we hold loosely will not be passed on to future generations.
Life gets ugly when we don’t remain in Christ. When we step outside of a relationship with Christ, Romans 1:21-28 tells us what happens: For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.
Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.
God doesn’t want us to be outside of the boundaries of Christ. God loved us so much he gave his one and only Son so that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (see John 3:16). God doesn’t want us to be at odds with him. In order to bring us back, he gives us over to sin and a lifestyle that gets ugly. He hopes the ugliness will make us long to be at peace with God and desire to have a beautiful life with God. God desires for us to reach a place of repentance and turning to him.
Judges 2:16-19 shows us lives of disobedience and defeat: Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them out of the hands of these raiders. Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped them. Unlike their fathers, they quickly turned from the way in which their fathers had walked, the way of obedience to the LORD’s commands. Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the LORD had compassion on them as they groaned under those who oppressed and afflicted them. But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their fathers, following other gods and serving and worshiping them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.
The Israelites got into a terrible sin cycle where they lived a life of sin, got fed up with the ugliness of that life apart from God, repented, got back into a right relationship with God, let the relationship grow cold, and started a sinful lifestyle again. Every time the Israelites called out to God, he heard and answered. It’s the same for us today. We’re going to see this cycle repeated throughout the book of Judges. Have you ever seen this cycle repeated in your own life? Sometimes there’s a false repentance that takes place. We want God to bail us out of our dire circumstances, but we don’t want to give up our evil practices and stubborn ways. That’s a dangerous place to be. It puts us in a place that is against God. The result is a life of chaos.
When we as individuals, communities, or nations say we no longer want to hear the voice of God, the result will be chaos, confusion, deceit, moral decay, and death. Why did the nation of Israel spiral down so quickly? They refused the voice of God. They got tired of hearing they were wrong. They got tired of hearing there was sin in their lives. They got tired of being told they needed to change their ways. They got tired of hearing the lifestyle they were living was wrong. That’s what happened in Israel, and that’s what’s happening in our country. When we no longer want to hear the voice of God, we are welcoming Satan into our lives.
We need to hear the voice of God! We can hear what God has to say when we read the Bible, come to church, attend a Home Team, or when a brother or sister in Christ encourages us or challenges us. In order to have a relationship with Jesus (the head), we need to have a relationship with the body of Christ (the Church). 1 Corinthians 12:27 says: Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. You are wrong when you say, “I’m in a right relationship with the head of the Church, but I don’t like his body, and I don’t need it.” We really do need each other.
Because Israel refused to give up her evil practices and stubborn ways, Judges 2:20-23 tells us what happened: Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel and said, “Because this nation has violated the covenant that I laid down for their forefathers and has not listened to me, I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. I will use them to test Israel and see whether they will keep the way of the LORD and walk in it as their forefathers did.” The LORD had allowed those nations to remain; he did not drive them out at once by giving them into the hands of Joshua.
Even though Israel was unfaithful, God remained faithful to his word.
Judges 3:1-5 tell us: These are the nations the LORD left to test all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience): the five rulers of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites living in the Lebanon mountains from Mount Baal Hermon to Lebo Hamath. They were left to test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the LORD’s commands, which he had given their forefathers through Moses.
The Israelites lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. They took their daughters in marriage and gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their gods.
You may hear some people say that interracial marriage is wrong based on these verses. What was wrong was they were marrying people who did not follow God. 2 Corinthians 6:14-17a says: Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
“Therefore come out from them and be separate,” says the Lord.
If the people in the Promised Land had been God’s chosen people and if they were listening to the voice of God and doing what God asked of them, there wouldn’t have been any problem with intermarriage. As it was, God knew if the Israelites married the people in the Promised Land, they would end up serving the gods they served rather than Jehovah. And that’s exactly what happened. When the Israelites married into heathen nations, in order to keep peace in the family, they served the gods of the heathen nations. However, peace with God is more important than peace with the family. In order to keep peace with God and keep peace in the family, the Israelites were not to marry unbelievers.
We read in Joshua 23:12-16: “But if you turn away and ally yourselves with the survivors of these nations that remain among you and if you intermarry with them and associate with them, then you may be sure that the LORD your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, they will become snares and traps for you, whips on your backs and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land, which the LORD your God has given you.
“Now I am about to go the way of all the earth. You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises the LORD your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled; not one has failed. But just as every good promise of the LORD your God has come true, so the LORD will bring on you all the evil he has threatened, until he has destroyed you from this good land he has given you. If you violate the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the LORD’s anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you.”
Joshua told the Israelites not to step outside of the covenant. He told them not to leave God. He told them not to be stubborn. He told them not to serve other gods. He told them not to allow other people to live in the land they were taking because they would draw the Israelites away from God. But the Israelites did it anyway. Joshua told the Israelites: “Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD” (Joshua 24:14-15).
Who are you going to serve? Are you stuck in a cycle of sin? Repent, return to God, and remain with him. You can be in a right relationship with God through Christ. Follow him all the days of your life.
Verse Completion: . . . the LORD is not restrained to save by many or by few.” 1 Samuel 14:6 (NASB)
10/18/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/5CLafssD6bM
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: The King will reply, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday Pastor Michael continued the introduction to the book of Judges as he preached the second sermon in this series titled “The Sin and Salvation Cycle” based on Judges 2:1-3:6. Today we will start a recap of that sermon.
Judges 1-3:6 is an introduction to the book. Chapter 1 was about the physical history of Israel—what they did. Judges 2-3:6 transitions into the spiritual history of Israel. The spiritual state of a nation explains the physical history of a nation. The spiritual always underlies the physical. In Chapter 2 we start to get into the redemptive history of Israel which is more than just the physical history. It’s the spiritual reality behind why the physical history took place.
Judges 2:1-5 explains Chapter 1 and introduces us to Chapter 2:
The angel of the LORD went up from Gilgal to Bokim and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land that I swore to give to your forefathers. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars.’ Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this? Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be thorns in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you.”
When the angel of the LORD had spoken these things to all the Israelites, the people wept aloud, and they called that place Bokim. There they offered sacrifices to the LORD.
As the Israelites obey God, they start to conquer the Promised Land. However, their conquest is not complete, and people are allowed to live in the Promised Land that did not fear God. That was a serious problem! God had promised to give the land to the Israelites, but they weren’t trusting God to use them to accomplish what God had promised. The angel reminded the Israelites what God had said: I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars.
God explained to Moses in Exodus 34:10-16 how things were going to work:
Then the LORD said: “I am making a covenant with you. Before all your people I will do wonders never before done in any nation in all the world. The people you live among will see how awesome is the work that I, the LORD, will do for you. Obey what I command you today. I will drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land where you are going, or they will be a snare among you. Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles. Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
“Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices. And when you choose some of their daughters as wives for your sons and those daughters prostitute themselves to their gods, they will lead your sons to do the same.
There was to be a covenant between God and the Israelites. Yahweh was to be their God, and the Israelites were to be his people. God would bless his people, but there were stipulations to those blessings. If the people failed to follow what God said, there would be curses. The Israelites were not to make treaties with the people who were living in the land they were entering. God knew if they did, the Israelites would end up following other gods, and that’s exactly what happened. The angel said, “Why have you done this? Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be thorns in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you.”
We find something very similar in Numbers 33:55-56: “’But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land, those you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will give you trouble in the land where you will live. And then I will do to you what I plan to do to them.’”
The attitude of the Israelites was: “We really don’t need God as much as Joshua said we do. He was pretty fanatical about God. I don’t want to be like that. And Moses was way over the top. He said to do whatever God says to do and not do whatever God says not to do. He’s far too black and white for me. That’s not the world I live in. That’s not me. His words impact my life in a very negative way. His desires and preferences are not necessarily my desires and preferences. I like doing things my way. Besides, all those things we were told are simply suggestions!”
It’s interesting that when things went wrong for the Israelites (and go wrong for us), they (and we) right away blame God. They liked the blessings part of the covenant and they kept them in the forefront of their thinking. They didn’t like the curses part of the covenant, so they tended to forget about them sweeping them under the rug—out of sight; out of mind. They weren’t faithful to the covenant, and yet they blamed God for not being faithful when the blessings stopped and the curses began. All along God was faithful. He did exactly what he said he would do. God is always faithful. He always keeps his word. The wrong is in us, not God.
Fortunately, the Israelites came to their senses and said, “God, you are right; we were wrong.” They repented and renewed the covenant. We see this in Judges 2:4-5.
In the next part of the introduction, we see a transition from the physical into the spiritual. Here we get some insight into the spiritual condition of the Israelites: After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take possession of the land, each to his own inheritance. The people served the LORD throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had seen all the great things the LORD had done for Israel.
Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of a hundred and ten. And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath Heres in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash (Judges 2:6-9). We find almost the same words in Joshua 24:29-31, but the order of events is different. The book of Joshua is saying there’s hope for the people because even though Joshua has died, they are still serving God. Judges says the people are serving God as long as Joshua is alive, but now that he has died the future is in question. There appears to be a foreshadowing that says, “This is not going to go well for the Israelites,” especially after the angel said, “Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this?”
In Judges 2:10-13 we read: After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD and served the Baals. They forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They provoked the LORD to anger because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths.
This does not mean that the next generation had no idea who God was. It does not mean they knew nothing of their history in Egypt. The word “knew” in verse 10 refers to experiential knowledge. They didn’t experience God for themselves. They didn’t take the faith of their fathers and make it their own. They didn’t have a relationship with God. Their attitude was: “That was fine for my parents and grandparents, but my generation is different from theirs. The world is different now. They were simple people and had a simple faith, but the world is more complicated now. There’s so much more going on these days.” The covenant was not seen as something that was important to their lives. They added to the covenant and subtracted from the covenant at will. God’s words were not internalized.
There’s always the danger that when our children leave home, they will not enter their new world through the narrow gate. There is a real danger that they will enter through the wide gate and get on the broad road that leads to destruction—the road many are on (see Matthew 7:13-14). The faith that we hold closely, our children will hold loosely, and not be held by our grandchildren at all. There must be a purposeful praying for future generations. What Joshua and his generation held dear, the next generation held loosely, and the following generation knew God not at all. Each generation must decide on their own that God is vitally important to their lives. The way the physical world operates is based on spiritual principles that God puts in place. God must be central in our lives. That truth needs to be passed on to the next generation.
We live in a world that says God is okay but not vitally important. The world says God has his place in the universe, but he doesn’t need to be the central part of our lives. What happens when God is not central to our lives? We see the answer in Judges 2:14-15: In his anger against Israel the LORD handed them over to raiders who plundered them. He sold them to their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist. Whenever Israel went out to fight, the hand of the LORD was against them to defeat them, just as he had sworn to them. They were in great distress. Life got ugly for the Israelites.
When we step outside of a relationship with Christ, life gets ugly. That’s a spiritual axiom—that’s the way life is. We simply cannot live life outside of the boundaries of a covenant with Jesus and be at peace with God. Peace with God only comes through a right relationship with Jesus where we are following him, obeying him, listening to him, and remaining in him. Jesus said, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me” (John 15:4)
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Pastor Michael’s sermon with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . You did for me. Matthew 25:40 (NIV)
10/16/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/OnJFGtAXxGs
Complete the Verses & Name the Book:
· “If you will fear the LORD and serve Him, and listen to His voice, and not rebel against the command of the LORD, then . . .
· “And if you will not listen to the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the command of the LORD, then . . . (completions at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Dr. Josh Moody’s sermon titled “The Sword of the Spirit” based on Ephesians 6:10-20 with the emphasis being on verse 17b: and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pastor Moody said there needs to be a balance of feeling and thinking in our churches. We need a balance of Spirit and Word. Pastor Moody pointed out that the sword of the Spirit, the word of God, is the words found in Scripture—they are words God has spoken. They are words fully and divinely inspired even though they are also human-authored words.
The only way for us to understand what the Spirit says is for the Spirit to be at work in us. 1 Corinthians 2:9-11 says: But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”—these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
When I was studying theology and academic material, I found there were brilliant people who came up with the most bizarre, idiotic ideas about the Bible. How can that be? A person needs the work of the Spirit to actually see what God is saying. Hebrews 12:14 says: Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. We have to have the work of the Spirit in our lives in order to understand Scripture. That doesn’t mean we don’t have to use our brains. 2 Timothy 2:7 says: Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything. As we think, God gives us insight.
The third part of our text is the word. What is meant by the word? They are the actual, written words in the Bible—Scripture. In context, Paul has already talked about the belt of truth. The belt of truth is more general, theological ideas. It involves apologetics and the truth about who God is. We need the belt of truth! But the sword of the Spirit is different from the belt of truth. It’s specific—the word of God. When Jesus is tempted by the devil in Matthew 4, he does not say, in order to defeat the forces of darkness around him, “My theological supposition is the following . . .” What Jesus does say is, “It is written . . . It is written . . . It is written . . .” When the devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread,” Jesus answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:3-4) When a lawyer asked Jesus, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” (Luke 10:25-26) John 10:33-36 says: The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.” Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be broken—do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?" When Paul said “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,” he was referring to the actual, written words of Scripture.
As you look through church history, the use of the written words of Scripture has been the definitive answer when the church has come under attack. It’s our only spiritual weapon. Martin Luther did right when he used the sword of the Spirit to say: “The righteous shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17b). He used the actual, written words of Scripture.
To win our spiritual battles, we need to use our only spiritual weapon which is to say what God says. How do we do that? Here are four ways:
1. Weaponization. James does not say, “There’s nothing you can do about the devil. Run away from him.” What he does say is, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded (James 4:7b-8). Too many times, Christians today are defeatists saying, “The world is going to hell in a handbasket. There’s nothing we can do about it.” That’s not the Bible’s approach. We are to take out the sword of the Spirit. The Church needs to change its attitude. We’re not pacifists. Our battle is not against people, it’s against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. We’re talking about using the sword of the Spirit, the word of God, to engage against injustice and evil. The word of God is our only spiritual weapon. Our attitude needs to be, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” We are not to trivialize the forces of darkness, but we are to draw the sword.
2. Spiritualization. We tend to approach the Scriptures as something informational, intellectual, or educational but rarely as something spiritual. Sunday mornings are not a time of merely teaching; they’re a spiritual moment. We’re engaged in a spiritual war. It’s a moment of worship. We rebalance the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. When Jesus was talking to the Sadducees about the resurrection, he said, “You are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God” (Matthew 22:29). We need to know the Scriptures and the power of God because they go together just as the sword of the Spirit and the word of God go together.
3. Memorization. If we are to use the sword of the Spirit, we need to know the word of God. It needs to be written in our minds and hearts so we can speak the words of God. I’m often asked what my favorite Scripture verse is. It’s always what I’m studying at the moment.
Growing up in the Church of England, I was given a confirmation Bible that had the following verse written in it: “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). The verse right before it says: This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. The reason it’s worded “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth” is because silent reading had not been discovered in ancient times. The picture here is someone speaking over the words of God as they read them so the words are absorbed, understood, and internalized, so the words become part of the hearer. The result is the words are memorized. Psalm 119:11 says: I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. The best way to memorize Scripture is to read it a lot. Why are you able to quote some of the lines from your favorite movie? It’s because you’ve seen it numerous times. You’ve memorized the lines.
When we think about warfare and a time when we are in a battle, we can’t call a timeout and go get our weapon. We need to have our weapon readily available at all times. When we memorize Scripture, our weapon is readily available for use at any given time.
4. Utilization. This involves actually using God’s word as an individual, as a family, as a church. I talked to a man who knew Billy Graham well. He said he never entered the room where Billy Graham was without seeing Billy Graham’s Bible open. Do you want an effective ministry? Be grounded in God’s word. Billy Graham’s famous phrase was, “The Bible says . . .” Jonathan Edwards is known to us as an intellect but his contemporaries knew him as the one who studied the Scriptures more than anyone else.
To win the spiritual battles, we need to use our only spiritual weapon which is to say what God says.
Verse Completions:
· . . . both you and also the king who reigns over you will follow the LORD your God.
· . . . the hand of the LORD will be against you, as it was against your fathers. 1 Samuel 12:14-15 (NASB)
10/15/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/jpoBc-f4RIc
Complete the Verses & Name the Book:
· Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world . . .
· For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes . . .
· The world and its desires pass away, but the man . . . (completions at the end)
Dr. Josh Moody is the pastor of College Church in Wheaton, Illinois. He recently started a series titled “Spiritual Warfare”. The seventh sermon in this series is titled “The Sword of the Spirit”. It is based on Ephesians 6:10-20 with the emphasis being on verse 17b. Today we will begin a recap of that message.
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak. Ephesians 6:10-20 (ESV)
If you’ve been around Christian circles for any length of time, you know that there is a lack of balance in our churches in this regard. You can go to churches that are Spirit kinds of churches or you can go to churches that are Word kinds of churches. As a Christian movement we are lacking balance.
The Pentecostal revival movement began in the early twentieth century. The Third Wave Movement began in the 1980s with John Wimber and others. A key teaching was that the preaching of the gospel must be accompanied with signs and wonders. The emphasis was on miracles, speaking in tongues, healing, and prophecy. In reaction to that, among more conservative-minded churches and denominations, came the emphasis on the Bible and truth. Sound doctrine played an important role for determining truth rather than personal experience.
The issues of church history have impacted us, but there's also the history of the world. We are at a point in time where we're inheritors of the Enlightenment rationalization that gave birth to science, reason, and that way of approaching life. And there's been reactive movements to that—the 19th century romantic movement, the 1960s and the 70s sexual revolution. Right now we're going through another reactive movement with the emphasis on authenticity, feelings, experience, life contexts and so on. The emphasis here is on the feeling side of things rather than on the thinking side of things. That, of course, then influences the church to be split along the same point of tension. We can see why there is a very evident lack of balance.
We only have one spiritual weapon—the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. When there’s a lack of balance, we’re not going to be using our weapon properly.
Not only are things out of balance, there’s also a lack of credibility. For a century or more, encased within the ivory tower experience of the intellectual elites, there has been a lot of historical criticism of the Bible. In the last twenty to thirty years this criticism has disseminated through popular culture. That means the Bible is not seen as credible for many people today. When a Christian attempts to share their faith and says, “The Bible says . . .,” the person hearing thinks or says, “But the Bible is just a bunch of myths. It’s not historically accurate.” If we allow that kind of thinking to prevail, it becomes much more difficult to use the sword of the Spirit.
The word of God are the words found in Scripture. If people view the words found in Scripture as not being credible, then those words are not going to be used by Christians until that issue is addressed.
There’s the belief in some churches that the Bible is not practical. Consequently, you can attend a service and not have the Bible opened. A person who believes there’s nothing in the Bible that can be applied to his life is not going to read the Bible.
We are in a spiritual battle: For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. In order to win the spiritual battle, we need to use our only spiritual weapon, which is to say what God says.
Our text for today has three parts:
1. the sword
2. the Spirit
3. the word
What Paul means by sword, according to many people, can be traced back to the book of Isaiah where the Messiah puts on spiritual armor and uses the sword as his words. Isaiah 49:2a says: [The LORD] made my mouth like a sharp sword. The sword slays injustice and evil. One way of looking at this is that because the Ephesians were the messianic community, we also are the messianic community and therefore need to put on God’s spiritual armor and use the spiritual weapon of speaking God’s word.
The Old Testament uses the sword not only as messianic armor but also as the word of God itself spoken by the prophets. Hosea 6 describes how God through the prophets slays those who are opposed to the truth. God’s word is a cutting force that cuts through evil and injustice and establishes righteousness. God’s word is the prophetic word itself. Similarly, in the New Testament there’s an emphasis on the sword being the cutting power of the actual words of God.
Paul said in 2 Corinthians 6:2b-7: Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left.
The weapon we have is speaking what God is saying. Hebrews 4:12 says: For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Revelation 19:15a says: From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations.
Why is it the sword of the Spirit? Why not the sword of Jesus or the sword of God? The Holy Spirit is intimately involved in not only revealing the written words of God but also illuminating them for us so we can understand them. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says: All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. The idea behind God-breathed is wind or breath. In other words, God’s words are spirited out—breathed out by the Spirit. 2 Peter 1:19-21 says: And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. Right here we have the Christian doctrine of Scripture. The Bible is a library of different books written by different human authors. It has historical context, and you can see the personality of human authors, but at the same time it is completely inspired—breathed out by God. The term used to describe this is verbal plenary inspiration. The actual words are fully and divinely inspired even though they are also human-authored words. There’s a human author, but there’s also a divine author.
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Pastor Moody’s sermon with the second half.
Verse Completions:
· . . . the love of the Father is not in him.
· . . . not from the Father but from the world.
· . . . who does the will of God lives forever. 1 John 2:15-17 (NIV)
10/14/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/Wt2vc93Q6Jk
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: Now Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, and the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel. But the LORD thundered with a great thunder on that day against the Philistines and confused them, so that . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Del McKenzie’s message “Introduction to the Holy Spirit.” that included two foundational truths about the Holy Spirit:
1. The Holy Spirit is God.
2. The Holy Spirit is a person.
Pastor Del also spoke on the companionship of the Holy Spirit. He said the companionship of the Holy Spirit comes out of his personality and deity. Today we will continue the recap of Pastor Del’s message as he begins to talk about a third truth concerning the companionship of the Holy Spirit.
· His companionship comes out of his power. Power is the ability to do something. The Holy Spirit has the ability to do things for us and in us. He has the ability to meet our needs as only God can do. We may experience times of darkness, heaviness, and blackness that come over us—emotional things. The Holy Spirit is the one who can meet our deep needs. He is the one who brings light to our dark world. There are times when we can experience disappointments in life. How people handle the disappointments of life will determine what kind of quality of life they have. Disappointments can lead to discouragement, despondency, despair, and depression.
As our companion, the Holy Spirit walks us through those difficult times. He talks us through those times. Sometimes we experience an emptiness or loneliness. With the Holy Spirit in us and beside us, we can be alone and yet not be lonely. When we experience difficult times, may we hear the Holy Spirit saying, “Let’s talk.” God never leaves us alone. We can be surrounded by people and still be lonely. In times of loneliness, people can make poor choices. We need to remember the Holy Spirit is always with us, and he has the power to draw us out of loneliness.
Sometimes we experience times of helplessness or hopelessness. We need to remember the situation is not helpless because the Holy Spirit is our helper. He’s the one who comes alongside us and walks with us. Hebrews 4:16 says: Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Whatever need we face, the Holy Spirit is there to help us. We may experience fear, anxiety, worry, doubt, incredulity (unwilling or unable to believe something). The Holy Spirit brings the faith of Jesus. Galatians 2:20 says: I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. The Holy Spirit has the gift of faith that he gives us. He has the fruit of faithfulness that he gives us. Trusting the Holy Spirit is the answer to fear and anxiety. People fail us, but the Holy Spirit never fails us. He is our companion who is always available to walk with us.
The Holy Spirit takes the life of Jesus and makes it real to us. John 16:12-15 has these words of Jesus: “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.”John 7:37-39 says: On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. The Holy Spirit walks with us through every aspect of life.
What is your plan for developing this companionship? We develop companionship with people. It’s something we do. We have to do something to develop companionship with the Holy Spirit. We can start our day by saying, “Good morning, Holy Spirit. Thank you for another day. Thank you for being with me through this day. Thank you for sleep. Thank you for a measure of health today.” Any amount of sleep is a gift of the Holy Spirit. Any amount of health is a gift of the Holy Spirit. Any day is a gift of the Holy Spirit. We can walk through the day responding to the Holy Spirit. When we hear him say, “Come, let’s talk,” then we need to meet with him and talk.
The Holy Spirit is here to provide us with companionship. Let’s work at developing that companionship.
Verse Completion: . . . they were routed before Israel. 1 Samuel 7:10 (NASB)
10/13/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/my90e3a_nlM
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: But we believe that we are saved through . . . (completion at the end)
On Monday Del McKenzie started a series of messages on the Holy Spirit. Today we will be doing a recap of his first message titled “Introduction to the Holy Spirit.”
What do you think of when you think of the Holy Spirit? There’s much uncertainty about the Holy Spirit, confusion, and disagreement. Let’s explore what the Bible says about the Holy Spirit. The Bible is the only authoritative source of information on the Holy Spirit.
A good place to start a study on the Holy Spirit is with the words of Jesus found in John 14:15-16: “If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.” John has a lot of information on the Holy Spirit found in chapters 14-16.
As we go through this series we will be taking a look at the ministries of the Holy Spirit, or as I call them, the ministries of grace. The Holy Spirit is a Spirit of grace. Zechariah 12:10 says: “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.” When we think about the grace of God, we think about the throne of grace. The ministries of grace are free ministries that the Holy Spirit gives to us.
There are some facts about the Holy Spirit that are foundational and basic:
· The Holy Spirit is God. John 16:7 has the following words of Jesus: “But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” Jesus was saying that after he left, he would send another Counselor exactly like himself. Jesus is God, and the Holy Spirit is God.
· The Holy Spirit is a person. He has all the characteristics, attributes, personality, intellect, emotions, will, and self-awareness of a person. He knows who he is and what he is about. That is different from the rest of creation. A man by the name of Farr said, “A person is that which when speaking says ‘I’, when spoken to is called ‘you’ and when spoken of is called ‘his’ or ‘him’.” That’s personality. The Holy Spirit is not a force, a power, some kind of an influence, some kind of a concept; he is a person. The Holy Spirit was sent to us by Jesus, and the Holy Spirit is here to have a relationship with us.
One of the ministries of the Holy Spirit is to provide people with companionship. We need to think of the Holy Spirit as a companion.
· His companionship comes out of his personality. The word for the Holy Spirit used in John 14:15-16 is paraclete from the Greek word paraklētos. It means one who comes alongside. The Holy Spirit walks with us. Galatians 5:25 says: Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 13:14 says: May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Fellowship is companionship. It’s been said that fellowship is defined as two people in a boat. They are together. The Holy Spirit is in the same boat with us. Amos asked in 33:3, “Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?” The Holy Spirit is also within us.
The word paraclete has a rich and deep meaning, and that’s why translators have translated it differently. Some have said the Holy Spirit is a lawyer who comes alongside of us in our time of need. Some have translated it as counselor. Others have said helper. Hebrews 4:16 says: Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. We need help—divine help that comes from God alone!
The Holy Spirit has all the aspects of personality that Jesus had. Jesus carried on conversations with people; he asked questions of people; he answered questions of people. He had insights into the lives of people. Jesus shared his personality with people. In Acts 4:13 we read: When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
We can relate to another person; we cannot relate to an object, idea, or force. The Holy Spirit’s companionship comes out of his personality. He is a person, and we can relate to him as a person.
· The companionship of the Holy Spirit comes out of his deity. Jesus is God. Titus 2:13 says: while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Jesus said in John 14:16, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth.” The Holy Spirit is God. He has all the characteristics of God and all the character qualities that God has. He has all the attributes of God. He does the works of God. As we walk with the Holy Spirit, we walk with God. Our personality is united with his personality.
A. W. Tozer wrote, “How can one personality enter another? The candid reply would be simply that we do not know, but a near approach to an understanding may be made by a simple analogy borrowed from the old devotional writers of several hundred years ago. We place a piece of iron in a fire and blow up the coals. At first we have two distinct substances, iron and fire. When we insert the iron in the fire we achieve the penetration of the fire by the iron. Soon the fire begins to penetrate the iron and we have not only the iron in the fire but the fire in the iron as well. They are two distinct substances, but they have comingled and interpenetrated to a point where the two have become one.
“In some such manner does the Holy Spirit penetrate our spirits. In the whole experience we remain our very selves. There is no destruction of substance. Each remains a separate being as before; the difference is that now the Spirit penetrates and fills our personalities and we are experientially one with God.”
We don’t refer to the Holy Spirit as “Buddy” or some other light name. He is God. He is to be responded to with reverence and godly fear. We don’t contribute to him. He is absolutely perfect and self-contained. Our response to the Holy Spirit needs to be one of deep reverence, deep respect, honor, and giving glory.
Jesus had a relationship with people. He was a companion to the disciples and others. The Holy Spirit is also God and a great companion. One of his ministries is to provide us with companionship. Because he is divine, he can relate to us in ways another human being can’t relate to us.
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Del McKenzie’s message with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are. Acts 15:11 (NASB)
10/12/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/sL1DNipyurM
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines and said, “Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it return to its own place, that it may not kill us and our people.” For there was a deadly confusion throughout the city; the hand of God was. . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Pastor Michael’s sermon on the background and history of the book of Judges that included the covenant, failure on the part of the Israelites to keep the covenant, and God’s faithfulness in keeping the covenant. We left off saying that in reading Judges we see how not to live before God. We see what humans are capable of when they are outside the covenant. We see what happens to individuals and nations when they fail to live in a right relationship with God. As we go through Judges you will see similarities with what was going on in Israel and what is going on in our country today. Sinful nature comes out in sinful ways.
As we read through the stories in the Bible, we need to discern between descriptive stories and prescriptive stories. Descriptive stories tell how life was. Prescriptive stories tell how life should be. A lot of what we read in the Old Testament are descriptive stories. They show what life is like when a person isn’t in a right relationship with God. Prescriptive is God telling us how we should be living. We often see in prescriptive writing the words, “Thus says the LORD . . .” The Sermon on the Mount is an example of prescriptive writing.
We need to be discerning as we read so we don’t read a descriptive writing and think that is what God is telling us to do. For example, the story of David and Bathsheba is descriptive. God is not telling us to do what they did. There is a prescriptive part of this story that comes at the end when Nathan tells David that what he did was wrong and David said, “I have sinned against the LORD.” (see 2 Samuel 12:1-14) The prescriptive part of this story is to not have sex outside of marriage. The descriptive part is David and Bathsheba did have sex outside of marriage. In the book of Judges we find a lot of descriptive writing. Judges describes the downward spiral involving decay, sin, and ugliness that happens when people step outside of a relationship with God.
You and I are in a covenant relationship with God. We’re not in the old covenant we read about in the Old Testament, we’re in a new covenant. When Jesus was having the Last Supper with his disciples, he said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you” (Luke 22:20b). We are in a new covenant with God through Jesus. The way we get to be in a right relationship with God is through Jesus. In the old covenant it was through the laws. When we step outside of the covenant of Jesus, life gets ugly and we look like the book of Judges. Judges is a book of the horror of life without God. As we go through the book we will see our world, our nation, and ourselves in a lot of these stories.
Israel was divided into twelve tribes. Each tribe had a leader. Each tribe was divided into clans, and each clan had a leader. Each clan was divided into families, and each family had a leader. During the time of Judges, each clan is going to claim its land.
Today, when we think of judges, we think of the courtroom and we picture a person with a black robe and gavel who makes important decisions. Another meaning for judge in Hebrew is one who leads and delivers his people. This latter definition is what describes a judge in the book of Judges. The book could have been given the title “Deliverers.” In this book we have the cycle of covenant, failure, and deliverer.
Read Judges, Chapter One.
Recall that Joshua and Caleb were the only two spies who came back with a good report when the twelve spies were sent into the land of Canaan, and they were the only two of the twelve who were allowed to enter the Promised Land.
For the most part we read of blessings but when we get to verse 19 we read: The LORD was with the men of Judah. They took possession of the hill country, but they were unable to drive the people from the plains, because they had iron chariots. Then we read in verse 21: The Benjamites, however, failed to dislodge the Jebusites, who were living in Jerusalem; to this day the Jebusites live there with the Benjamites. Also in verse 27 we read: But Manasseh did not drive out the people of Beth Shan . . . The Israelites were starting to walk away from God. We see many more examples of the tribes not doing what God told them to do.
God had told the Israelites to move into the land of the Canaanites and take over the land. The Israelites were told not to live among the Canaanites because if they did they would start to think the way the Canaanites thought, do what the Canaanites did, and take on the morals of the Canaanites. God told the Israelites they would not be able to take the land of the Canaanites if they didn’t follow his directions. They would not be able to enjoy the blessings God had in store for them if they didn’t follow his commands. What’s happening here is the Israelites are falling short of God’s glory. They are not listening to God.
In Judges 2:1-3 we read: The angel of the LORD went up from Gilgal to Bokim and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land that I swore to give to your forefathers. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars.’ Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this? Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be thorns in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you.”
Because the Israelites are not faithful to the covenant, God begins to enact the curses of the covenant. God is faithful to the covenant; the Israelites are not. The nation of Israel was completely dependent upon God for their physical and spiritual success. When they stepped outside the covenant, God began to enact the curses of the covenant. God was showing Israel they were in a wrong relationship with him, and he was calling them to come back.
We are in a new covenant, and our covenant is with Jesus. God is with us when we follow Jesus. When we step outside of following Jesus, Jesus begins to enact the promises of the new covenant: If you step outside of faith with me, I will be faithful to you to do what it takes to bring you back to me. We are faced with chaos and confusion until we say, “Jesus, forgive me. You are my only God. I’m back to have a relationship with you and follow your will for my life.”
The story of Judges is our story. We get out of covenant and experience failure, but Jesus stands with open arms inviting us back into relationship with him. When we live life outside of Jesus, sin catches up with us and we spiral down. Sin will take you farther than you want to go. Sin will keep you longer than you want to stay. Sin will cost you more than you want to pay. A life out of covenant with Jesus is a life of chaos, confusion, undiscipline, stress, lack of God’s presence, lack of God’s protection, and a lack of God’s provisions.
Israel became like the Canaanites instead of the other way around. 2 Corinthians 6:14 says: Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). 1 John 1:9 says: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Verse Completion: . . . very heavy there. 1 Samuel 5:11 (NASB)
10/11/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/AS6tQYJVO80
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I am full of joy over you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday Pastor Michael gave the background and history of the book of Judges as he began a new series on the book. His text was the first chapter. Let’s begin a recap of that message.
Judges spans a timeframe from after the death of Joshua up to the first king of Israel, Saul. Israel was delivered from slavery under the leadership of Moses. Joshua took over the leadership after Moses died, and led the Israelites into the Promised Land. He remained a leader until the age of 110. After he died there wasn’t anyone in place to take over as leader. The Israelites didn’t have any clear direction. It was as time of confusion and disarray.
They still had the covenant given by God through Moses, but they were unsure of how to operate with the covenant. It’s important for us to understand the importance of the covenant because from Moses on, all that happens is based on the covenant. Covenant means how two parties are going to be in relationship with each other. Ancient Near East covenants were usually made between two warring nations. The stronger nation would subdue the weaker nation and tell them what they would have to do in order to keep their nation. As long as both parties abided by the terms of the covenant, there was peace between the two nations.
When God made a covenant with Israel, that covenant was different from the typical covenant made between two nations during ancient Near East times. God told Israel, “I will be your God and you will be my people.” The covenant was God saying, “Here is how we are going to live in a relationship with each other.” Under the covenant, God’s people would not be his subdued people; they would be his blessed people. The covenant was not a reminder that they were beaten in war; it was a reminder that they were loved by God. The covenant people were to live in such a way that the whole world would understand who God is. The covenant wasn’t about conquest; it was about grace. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament are about God’s grace.
The covenant can be found in numerous places in the Bible including Deuteronomy 28. Covenants were made up of two parts. One part said, “If you listen to me, this is what I will do for you.” The other part said, “If you don’t listen to me, this is what will happen to you.” In the first fourteen verses of Chapter 28 we read about the blessings associated with obedience to the covenant. Here are the first six verses:
If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God:
You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.
The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.
Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed.
You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.
We also find in this chapter the curses for disobedience found in verses 15-68. Here are verses 15-19:
However, if you do not obey the LORD your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:
You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country.
Your basket and your kneading trough will be cursed.
The fruit of your womb will be cursed, and the crops of your land, and the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.
You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out.
The Israelites had their part in the covenant—follow God, listen to God, obey God, keep God as the only God in their lives. God had his part in the covenant—he would be their God, he would bless them with an abundance of good things, he would prosper them.
The Israelites are trying to live in this covenant. By the time we get to Judges, the Israelites have started walking away from the promises of God and are no longer living in a covenant with God. The book of Judges is a book about failures. It’s a story about missing the mark and living outside the covenant. It’s a tragedy. It’s a story of the rejection of God. Judges is a book of how not to live before God; how not to have a relationship with God. Fortunately, it’s not a story only about failure; it’s also a story of God’s faithfulness. God remained faithful to the covenant even though the Israelites did not.
Judges is a book about chaos, confusion, and moral decay. It shows what happens to those who fail to be the people of God, but it also shows God’s faithfulness. In the covenant agreement God said, “If you serve me, I’ll do all these great things for you. If you don’t serve me, all these bad things are going to happen to you. But if you call out to me, I will begin again to enact the blessings of the covenant.” When the Israelites called out to God, he was faithful to his word.
We see the cycle of falling away from God followed by repentance in a number of places in Judges:
· Once again, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and because they did this evil the LORD gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel (3:12). Again the Israelites cried out to the LORD, and he gave them a deliverer—Ehud(3:15a).
· After Ehud died, the Israelites once again did evil in the eyes of the LORD. So the LORD sold them into the hands of Jabin, a king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor (4:1-2a). They cried to the LORD for help (4:3b).
· Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD. They served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites and the gods of the Philistines (10:6a). Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD, “We have sinned against you, forsaking our God and serving the Baals” (10:10).
· Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, so the LORD delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years (13:1).
In Judges we see how not to live before God. There were some ugly things that took place. There was a lot of bloodshed. There are examples of coarseness and baseness in the sins that were committed. We see what humans are capable of when they are outside the covenant. We see what happens to individuals and nations when they fail to live in a right relationship with God. As we go through Judges you will see similarities with what was going on in Israel and what is going on in our country today. Sinful nature comes out in sinful ways.
Tomorrow we will continue the recap of Pastor Michael’s sermon with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . innocent about what is evil. Romans 16:19 (NIV)
10/9/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/oqLa4EWyuhA
Complete the Verses & Name the Book:
· Then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it to the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon. When the Ashdodites arose early the next morning, behold, Dagon . . .
· But when they arose early the next morning, behold, Dagon . . . (completions at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Pastor Channing’s sermon based on Exodus 7-13. We left off with him asking, “What can we learn from these plagues?” First of all, we learn that nothing can thwart the Lord’s plans whether it be the most powerful nation, the most powerful person on the earth, the media, the culture, the devil, or anything else. Nothing will stop the Lord from accomplishing his purpose. The Lord’s name will be exalted on the earth. That is what will be accomplished. Secondly, we learn that there is no one like our God. He will magnify himself through his judgments and his mercy. Thirdly, we learn that judgment is coming. As bad as the plagues were, they were a precursor to what was coming. This is a foreshadowing of God’s ultimate judgment that will come upon the whole earth. In Revelation 15:1,3-4 we read:
Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished. And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations! Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
In Revelation 16 we find the seven bowls of God’s wrath. The first bowl is harmful and painful sores that come upon the people who bore the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. This is similar to the plague of boils. However, unlike the boils that were experienced only by the Egyptians, the harmful and painful sores in Revelation are experienced by everyone on earth who bore the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.
The second bowl results in the sea becoming like the blood of a corpse. The third bowl results in rivers and springs becoming like blood. These two plagues are far more extensive than turning the Nile River into blood.
The fifth bowl was darkness. Revelation 16:10-11 says: The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in anguish and cursed the God of heaven for their pain and sores. They did not repent of their deeds. This reminds us of the ninth plague of darkness experienced by the Egyptians and the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart.
The sixth bowl is described in Revelation 16:13-14: And I saw, coming out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs. For they are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty. This reminds us of the second plague when the frogs were spread throughout Egypt.
The seventh and final bowl is described in Revelation 16:21: And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people; and they cursed God for the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe. This reminds us of the plague of hail experienced by the Egyptians.
God has one unfolding plan throughout history. His judgment is from the beginning to the end. His final judgment is coming. Revelation 20:12b-15 describes in part this judgment: Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Israel’s story is our story, and that should make us tremble. We never want to be in a place where we experience the wrath of God.
As we look at Exodus 12 we see that in the midst of the judgment there is mercy. A deliverance for God’s people is planned by God. The deliverance comes through the blood of a lamb. The Passover was an epic event in Israel’s history. It even changed the way they calculated dates and counted time. This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you (12:2).
The lamb was to be without blemish, a male a year old. The blood of the lamb was to be put on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which the lamb was eaten. The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt (12:13). The Israelites needed to be delivered from the wrath of God just as the Egyptians needed to be delivered from the wrath of God. They were guilty before a holy God and deserved just wrath. God in his mercy provides a way of redemption. The lamb is sacrificed in their place shedding its blood to rescue the people from God’s wrath so that when he sees the blood, he passes over.
God’s plan of salvation has never changed. We are in bondage, not as slaves in Egypt, but we’re in bondage to sin. The bondage of sin leads to judgment and destruction. Just as God provided a way of escape for the Egyptians and Israelites, he provides a way of escape for us in our bondage to sin—the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 5:7b: For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Jesus is the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.
Just as the Israelites were saved by the blood of the lamb, we need to be saved by the blood of the Lamb—Jesus. Hebrews 9:26b says: But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. We’ve seen the judgment of God in Exodus, and now we see the mercy of God in Exodus. Nothing has changed. The judgment of God and the mercy of God surrounds us today.
As we consider the mercy of God, what should our response be? First of all we should worship God. Exodus 12:27b tells us: And the people bowed their heads and worshiped. We are to do the same thing. We are to marvel at God’s mercy and grace. Secondly, we need to respond to God’s mercy. If you do not know the Lord Jesus, you are under God’s wrath. There is salvation in no one else but Jesus alone. By confessing your sin and turning to Jesus for salvation, you can have life. If you have received Jesus as your Lord and Savior, let this passage of Scripture give you a renewed focus to share the gospel. Your neighbor may be a “good person” but apart from the blood of the Lamb, your neighbor is going to face eternal judgment. Let’s share the good news of the gospel with others.
2 Peter 3:9-13 says: The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
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 God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
Let us remember in these last days that every day the Lord gives us is a day of mercy to bring many into his kingdom.
Exodus 12:43-13:16 is about remembrance. God wants his people to remember his acts of judgment and mercy. God knows we are a people prone to forget. We need to be reminded. We come to church on Sundays because we are leaky vessels. We’re no different from the Israelites. Every week we need to hear: Jesus is Lord. Repent and turn to him. He is your Savior, your Rock, your Redeemer. We need to hear that every week because we forget.
The Passover meal is a time of remembrance. It’s a time of passing the baton on to the next generation. We remember that God’s people have been bought with a price—the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. These days we don’t celebrate the Passover or the Feast of Unleavened Bread, but we do participate in the Lord’s supper—communion. 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 says: For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Before the Passover took place, God gave instructions for what his people were to do. On the night when Jesus was betrayed, he gave his disciples instructions on what they were to do.
We are called to tremble because of the judgment of God. We are called to rejoice because of the mercy of God. We are called to remember the judgment and mercy of God.
God is in control. We stand in awe as we remember his judgments and his mercy. Our hope is in Jesus alone—the Lamb of God. Charles Spurgeon said, “My hope lives not because I am not a sinner, but because I am a sinner for whom Christ died. My trust is not that I am holy, but that being unholy, he is my righteousness. My faith rests not upon what I am or shall be or feel or know, but in what Christ is and what he has done and what he is now doing for me.”
May this message from the Exodus remind us that our hope is in the Lord. He is in control. He will be exalted through his judgments and through his mercy. Let us remember this as we share the gospel with those who are perishing. His plan for this world is really mind blowing. He's given us a part in his story, so let's do our part.
Verse Completions:
· . . . had fallen on his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD. So they took Dagon and set him in his place again.
· . . . had fallen on his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD. And the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off on the threshold; only the trunk of Dagon was left to him. 1 Samuel 5:2-4 (NASB)
10/8/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/tstEas8yiUk
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you . . . (completion at the end)
Eric Channing is an associate pastor at College Church in Wheaton, Illinois. He recently gave the fourth sermon in a series called “A Rescued People” during the evening service. His sermon is based on Exodus 7-13. Today we will begin a recap of that message.
And the LORD said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. You shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall tell Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go out of his land. But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. The Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them. Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the LORD commanded them. Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh (Exodus 7:1-7).
Do you ever wonder if God is in control? Sometimes doubt sneaks into our lives especially when we suffer hardships. After eighty years of slavery, the Israelites wondered if God was in control. Things went from bad to worse. Now they experienced impossible expectations of their workload, and Pharaoh was killing their baby boys. However, God’s plan of redemption to rescue his people has never changed. As we read Exodus 7-13, we are called to stand in awe of God as we remember his judgments and his mercy.
In 7:8-13 we see God at work. When Aaron cast down his staff, it turned into a serpent. Surprisingly, Pharaoh’s magicians did the same thing. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. The belief at the time was that an animal that swallowed other animals took on the powers of everything it swallowed. God showed he had power over all other gods. Still Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the LORD had said (verse 13). We will see that this is a constant pattern with Pharaoh.
What was the purpose of the plagues? The answer is found in 9:16: But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. In 12:12b we read: and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD. God is demonstrating his power that will be seen by the Egyptians and the Israelites. The plagues and the deliverance from slavery is something that is to be remembered by God’s people.
The first plague, the turning of the Nile River into blood, has a purpose that is found in 7:17a: Thus says the LORD, “By this you shall know that I am the LORD.”Egypt had three gods associated with the Nile: Osiris—the god of the cycle of Nile floods that Egypt relied on for agricultural fertility, Nu—the god of life, Hapi—the god of the flood. The Egyptians worshiped the Nile. It brought life and prosperity. With the turning of the Nile into blood, God is executing judgments on their gods.
In 7:22 we read that the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts. You may wonder how that is possible. The magicians were under the power of the devil. The enemy does have power, but it’s limited power. After just two plagues, the magicians were no longer able to replicate the plagues. When the magicians tried to produce gnats, they could not. Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the LORD had said (8:19).
The fourth plague is flies and there is a division between the Egyptians and the Israelites. The swarms of flies only affect the Egyptians. Again we see the purpose of the plague of flies: that you may know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth (8:22b).
The fifth plague of the livestock dying only affects the Egyptians. Pharaoh hardens his heart. The sixth plague is boils, but the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh. The seventh plague is hail. The hail struck down everything that was in the field in all the land of Egypt, both man and beast. And the hail struck down every plant of the field and broke every tree in the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, was there no hail (9:25-26). At this point Pharaoh said, “This time I have sinned; the LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong” (9:27b). But again he hardened his heart once the hail was gone. The eighth plague is locusts, but again the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart. The ninth plague is darkness for the Egyptians, but Pharaoh’s heart is hardened.
The final plague is threatened—the death of the firstborn child in each family and the death of the firstborn beast owned by each family. Let’s go back to the time before any of the plagues happened when God was giving Moses instructions:
And the LORD said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go. Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’” (4:21-23)
What can we learn from these plagues? First of all, we learn that nothing can thwart the Lord’s plans whether it be the most powerful nation, the most powerful person on the earth, the media, the culture, the devil, or anything else. Nothing will stop the Lord from accomplishing his purpose. The Lord’s name will be exalted on the earth. That is what will be accomplished. Secondly, we learn that there is no one like our God. He will magnify himself through his judgments and his mercy. Thirdly, we learn that judgment is coming. As bad as the plagues were, they were a precursor to what was coming. This is a foreshadowing of God’s ultimate judgment that will come upon the whole earth. In Revelation 15:1,3-4 we read:
Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished. And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations! Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Pastor Channing’s sermon with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . will be saved. Romans 10:9 (NIV)
10/7/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/nH8ZWF1Ag5k
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: And Eli said to Samuel, “Go lie down, and it shall be if He calls you, that you shall say, . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Josh Maurer’s message called “A Rescued People” based on Exodus 5-7:7. We left off with: Then Moses turned to the LORD and said, “O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all” (Exodus 5:22-23). Pastor Maurer was looking at others who experienced suffering in their lives such as Job. We will now continue the recap we started yesterday.
Jesus suffered on the cross and cried out to God, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46b) The cross was God’s idea before it was the Pharisees’ idea, Pilate’s idea, or anyone else’s idea. Even though the cross was God’s idea, those that participated in his crucifixion were guilty of sin. They had a choice to make, and they chose the wrong path. In order to get right with God after what they did, they had to repent of their sins. We’re in the same boat. We are morally responsible for our actions, and we have active participation in our choices. At Pentecost, when Peter was talking to those who were responsible for the death of Jesus, he said, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do? And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:36-38).
In order to be forgiven for their sins, they had to repent even though the cross was God’s idea planned before the foundation of the world—God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility. How these two fit together is a mystery. God did not give us this story in Exodus to confuse us. He wants us to find it assuring and a confident-building truth in him who is sovereign over all. God is the only one who has ultimate authority to change anything of ultimate significance in your life.
The question Moses is asking God is, “Why? Why are you not acting in accordance with your word?” God answers in Exodus 6:1-8:
But the LORD said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.”
God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the LORD. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make myself known to them. I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the LORD.’” There is something about God’s being, essence, and nature that is crucial for Moses, the Israelites, and the Egyptians to know that would not be known any other way apart from things happening the way they did. There’s a message in the name of the LORD—Yahweh, I AM. His name points to his being.
Let’s take a look at the significance of the name Yahweh (what it means for God to be God):
· His absolute being means he never had a beginning.
· He will never come to an end.
· He is in himself absolute reality.
· He is utterly independent.
· Everything else that exists is dependent on him.
· Everything is as nothing when it is compared to him.
· He is constant: the same yesterday, today, and forever.
· He is the ultimate standard of truth, goodness, and beauty.
· He does whatever he pleases.
· He is the most important and most valuable reality.
Whenever we see LORD in Scripture, it is referring to Yahweh, God’s personal name, and we are meant to understand by it, all these implications. It's precisely this name that God wills and desires to communicate through the providential design of the events leading up to and including the Exodus. God is using these providential events to fully make known his name. In fact, every time we see the word LORD we should also think of Jesus for he himself said, “I and the father are one” (John 10:30). Jesus also said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58). In one of the most stunning texts of the identification of the Son with the Father in the New Testament, Jude 5 says: Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. Jesus saved the people out of Egypt! When we think of the LORD, we should also think of Jesus.
The answer to Moses’ question, “O Lord, why have you done evil to this people,” comes in two interwoven parts: God is saving his people from slavery in this way so the Israelites might know the fullness of his name in his great acts of salvation and judgment, and so the Egyptians might know the same. The acts of judgment that come in the form of plagues are the result of Pharaoh’s hard heart. But God caused Pharaoh’s heart to be hard, and that is what caused the imposing of the heavier burden which made the lives of the Israelites worse than they were before. Nevertheless, apart from all these providential events, including the misery of the Israelites, God would not be known the way he intends to be known to the Israelites and the Egyptians.
In Exodus 7:3-7 we see the LORD’s response to Moses continuing:
But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. The Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them. Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the LORD commanded them. Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.
If you are approaching 80 years of age or you are in your 80s, the Lord is not done with you. There is still much you can do for his kingdom. God used Moses and Aaron in their old age, and he can use you, too.
God’s answer to Moses’ question about why God chose to use the methods he did to bring about the redemption of the Israelites is: God’s purpose is to display his true nature as utterly sovereign and free to judge and to save. In that display, God is to be known for who he really is. He wants to be known by his people in glad-hearted worship, thanksgiving, and praise, and God wants to be known by the Egyptians in awestruck wonder of his power and might.
God intends through the twists and turns in the story of the Exodus and through the twists and turns of your own stories, to make known the full panorama of his perfections in salvation and judgment. He wants to reveal himself—I AM the LORD. The acts of redemption and judgment reveal something about who God is. All of this climaxes in the death and resurrection of Christ many years later. Jesus is the pinnacle of God’s revelation of judgment and salvation.
The lyrics to the hymn, God Moves in a Mysterious Way, include in part the following words:
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense
But trust Him for His grace
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face
His purposes will ripen fast
Upholding every hour
The bud may have a bitter taste
But sweet will be the flower
The Israelites experienced the frowning providence and the bitter taste of the bud, but God’ smiling face behind it all was intent on the sweetness of the flower. Remember this when you are experiencing affliction as a child of God. He is working out all the details in your life for your ultimate good.
Why the delay in the rescue of the Israelites? We find the answer in the story of Lazarus and the delay of Jesus going to see him:
So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was (John 11:3-6).
The demonstration of the love that Jesus had for Lazarus was to let him die before going to where he was. This only makes sense in the light of the gospel. Your darkest days as a Christian and God’s abiding goodness to you in those very days only make sense in the light of the gospel. Jesus is the resurrection and the life. Even the worst enemy, death, is turned into the servant of Jesus.
Jesus said to [Martha], “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die” (John 11:25-26).
In your darkest days, cling to Jesus who is life. Pour your soul out to him in complete honesty. Remember the day is coming when you will feast in the new creation, and you will weep no more.
Verse Completion: . . . ‘Speak, LORD, for Thy servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. 1 Samuel 3:9 (NIV)
10/6/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/2wIGduU0ces
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to . . . (completion at the end)
Josh Maurer is an associate pastor at College Church in Wheaton, Illinois. He recently gave the third sermon in a series called “A Rescued People” during the evening service. His sermon is based on Exodus 5-7:7. Today we will begin a recap of that message.
God saw the affliction of his people in Egypt, he heard their cry, he knew their suffering, and he decided to come down and deliver them from their slavery and bring them to the promised land. God was moved by the groaning of his people. He remembered his covenant with Abraham and appeared to Moses, revealing the fulness of his name—Yahweh, “I AM WHO I AM.” God called Moses and Aaron to be his spokesmen. Moses was called to be the deliverer. And the people believed; and when they heard that the LORD had visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped (Exodus 4:31).
The idea of knowing the LORD is seen in 5:2 (Pharaoh), 7:5 (Egyptians), and 6:7 (Israelites):
· But Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice an let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.”
· The Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them.
· I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
Clearly, the idea of knowing the LORD is prominent. It’s like a thread running through this passage of Scripture.
The reason for the genealogy of Moses and Aaron found in 6:14-25 is to make evident the credentials of Moses and Aaron as bona fide Levites.
In 5:1-21 we see the intensified plight of the Israelites. They should have seen it coming because God said to Moses: I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, so that he will not let the people go (4:21b).
When Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and moreover, I will not let Israel go,” he was being arrogant. His “lack of knowledge” is not an intellectual problem but a moral problem. Pharaoh does not recognize God’s authority over him.
Pharaoh sees the Israelites as lazy. In 5:8 he says they are idle. In 5:17 Pharaoh says to the foremen of the Israelites, “You are idle, you are idle.” Consequently, he placed on the Israelites a heavier workload and attempts to turn the Israelites against Moses by calling Moses a liar (see 5:9). Pharaoh wants the Israelites to turn on one another because a house divided against itself cannot stand.
The reason Pharaoh put unrealistic demands on the brick making was to remind the Israelites who they were—slaves of Pharaoh. Imagine the state of exhaustion experienced by the Israelites. The Israelite foremen were beaten when the quota of bricks was not made. We know why the Israelites weren’t able to produce the quota of bricks—it was an impossible order. When they plead their case before Pharaoh, it gets them no relief. They then go to Moses and blame Aaron and him for their predicament. You can see Pharaoh’s tactic of turning the Israelites against each other is working.
Instead of being rescued from their plight, the situation for the Israelites goes from bad to worse. Their general disposition is that of a broken spirit (see 6:9). The Israelites are discouraged, despondent, depressed, weary, exhausted—hope is gone. Have you ever been there? In seeking to obey the Lord and be faithful to him, your life goes from bad to worse. It makes one wonder what God is doing providentially in and through what is happening.
Sometimes we need help getting through the rough times in our lives, and the Psalms can be a great teacher for us (see Psalm 13). We need to remember Paul’s words from Philippians 1:6: And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
The Israelites didn’t have Psalm 13 while they were in slavery, but if they had, I’m sure they would have been praying it:
How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? (Psalm 13:1-2)
As bad as the situation was for the Israelites, it’s not the biggest problem in our text: Then Moses turned to the LORD and said, “O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all” (Exodus 5:22-23). Moses is accusing God of doing evil and not delivering his people! He is blaming God for the affliction the Israelites are experiencing. There is a great mystery here. What we do know is God is sovereign over every situation including suffering, pain, and sin. Joseph said to his brothers, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Genesis 50:20). In Job 1:21-22 we read: And [Job] said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.”
In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Pastor Maurer’s message with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. 2 Peter 3:13 (NIV)
10/5/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/936BapRFHaQ
Complete the Verse & Name the Book:
”He keeps the feet of His godly ones,
But the wicked ones are silenced in darkness;
For not by might shall a man prevail.
Those who contend with the LORD will . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday we started a recap of Pastor Michael’s sermon ”Planted by God” based on Psalm 1:1-6. Pastor Michael said that we have two choices before us: the way of the righteous or the way of the wicked. We are told blessed is the one who doesn’t follow the wicked, and blessed is the one who does follow the righteous. Now we will recap the second half of his sermon.
Let’s look at what God does for the righteous:
The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. He guidesme in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever (Psalm 23). There’s joy, abundance, prosperity, nourishment, acceptance, love, assurance, and everlasting life for the righteous. Prospering before God means we are right before God, and therefore God is on our side. We are children of God. Romans 8:28 says: And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Prospering means God is working in our lives for the good even when evil and harmful things come our way. God brings good out of the bad.
It’s a different story with the wicked. They don’t receive God’s prospering, nourishment, and peace. Verse 4 says: Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Chaff is the useless stuff that surrounds the good part of grain. It dries up at harvest time and gets blown away by the wind. This is in contrast to the tree of the righteous that flourishes, yielding an abundance of fruit. The fruit is helpful to others and brings joy to others. There’s no nourishment, goodness, or helpfulness in chaff. Chaff has no future.
When I was transplanting the tree in my yard, I inadvertently broke one of the limbs. I had planned to trim that branch off the tree, but I forgot about it until the next spring when I surprisingly noticed leaves appearing on the broken branch. I thought the branch was dead, but it was clearly alive. However, when we had our heat spell in June, the branch withered and died. The branch wasn’t able to receive the nourishment it needed in order to survive. That’s the picture of the wicked. The wicked may look like they are flourishing for a time, but there’s no nourishment, protection, or peace from God. When the storms of life hit the wicked, their lives wither because they aren’t walking with God. The wicked have chosen a different path that leads away from God.
Verse 5 says: Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. On Judgment Day, the wicked will not stand and be counted with the righteous. They don’t belong with the righteous. Righteous and wicked don’t belong together. They are opposite of each other, and they don’t receive the same from God. The righteous receive eternal life which means they live with Jesus for eternity, but not so the wicked.
Verse 6 says: For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. God’s presence is with the righteous now here on earth and will be with the righteous in heaven. The presence of God never leaves the righteous. The righteous never leave the presence of God. They experience the peace that only God can give. We are able to sit with God and eat with God as we form a relationship with God. The wicked don’t have the same life as the righteous here on earth, and they won’t have the same life as the righteous in heaven. The righteous have eternal life. The wicked have eternal death.
Jesus said: “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it” (Matthew 7:13-14). It’s easy to find yourself on the broad road and remain there. It’s difficult to find the narrow road and remain on it. If you make no choice for God, you have made a choice against him, and you are on the broad road. Millions of people are on the broad road. Which road are you on? You have a choice to make: narrow or broad. Who do you walk with? Who do you stand with? Who do you sit with?
Talking about Jesus, Peter said, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John14:6). Romans 5:8 says: But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Salvation is a free gift. Ephesians 2:8-9 says: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. Jesus said, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me” (Revelation 3:20).
What path are you on today? It’s a choice you have to make. It’s the most important choice you will ever make. It’s a choice you can’t put off. It’s a choice that leads to everlasting life or everlasting death. Choose Jesus who died on the cross for the forgiveness of sins. It is through Jesus that we have everlasting life.
If you choose to be counted with the righteous, pray this prayer with me: Dear Jesus, I want to follow you. I want to be counted with the righteous. I want to know your nourishment in my life. I want to know your presence in my life. I want to know your presence for eternal life. Jesus, forgive me of my sins. Forgive me of my wickedness. I believe you died on the cross for me. I believe you rose again on the third day. Jesus, I ask you into my life to be my Lord and Savior so I can walk with you, and stand with you, and sit with you. In your name I pray, Jesus. Amen.
Verse Completion: . . . be shattered; 1 Samuel 2:9-10a (NASB)
10/4/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/936BapRFHaQ
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: (said to Ruth by Boaz): ”And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you whatever you ask, for all my people in the city know that you are . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday Pastor Michael gave the sermon ”Planted by God” based on Psalm 1:1-6. Today we will recap the first half of that gripping sermon.
We’ve all had choices. We’ve all made choices. We all make choices. In fact we are told that on the average, we daily make around 35,000 choices. However, only a handful of the choices we make are life-changing, but those choices are very important: go to college or not go to college, what vocation, marry or not marry, have kids or not have kids, who my friends will be, etc. When it comes to spiritual choices, the choices we make have eternal consequences, and yet we sometimes don’t take time to ponder those choices very carefully.
When we are faced with big decisions, we are told to list the pros and cons and weigh each one carefully. When it comes to spiritual things, we have a lot of help in arriving at the proper choice—God’s word, the Bible.
As we read through Psalm 1, we are faced with two choices.
Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.
Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
We see in this passage of Scripture that we are presented with two choices: righteousness or wickedness. We have a choice of walking with God or walking away from God.
Let’s take a look at three verbs we find in the first verse: Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. When you walk with someone, you are taking the same path they are on. Your steps are measured with their steps. You walk side-by-side with them.
When you stand with another person, you are counted with them. You stand up with them. What they stand for, you stand for. What they stand against, you stand against.
When you sit with someone you are enjoying their company. Leisure and rest are involved. Sitting could involve sharing a meal together. The sharing of free time or down time is involved.
The person who walks, stands, or sits with others is identifying themselves with that group. Verse 1 also labels the people it’s referring to: wicked, sinners, and mockers. A wicked person has no desire to do what is right. They have no interest in the will of God, the ways of God, or the word of God. A wicked person cares only about himself, and he does that which pleases himself.
A sinner is a person with a lifestyle that is walking away from God. A sinner is unrepentant of the sin in his life. A sinner does whatever he wants with no regard for God and his will.
A mocker has no regard for truth. He doesn’t respect God or his followers. He doesn’t care that God’s word says: Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life (Galatians 6:7-8).
The words wicked, sinner, and mocker are used to describe those who have no relationship with God. These words describe those who don’t care about the spiritual realities in life. They turn their faces away God, walk away from God, deny there is a God, and don’t think there’s right and wrong. The wicked, sinners, and mockers are those who want nothing to do with God. They turn away from God and do their own thing. They are people who are proud, arrogant, self-centered, gossipers, slanderers, divisive, angry, quick-tempered, deceptive, uncaring, unkind, mean-spirited. They are those Paul describes in Galatians 5:19-21: The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
The psalmist goes on to describe another group of people in verse 2: But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. This group of people have made a different choice from that of the wicked, sinners, and mockers. They delight in the law of the LORD—the words of God. They take joy in God’s words. They enjoy reading or hearing the words of God. They want to know God more. They want a relationship with God. They don’t want to walk with the wicked, stand with the sinners, or sit with mockers. They want to know what is right, just, fair, true, and good.
They meditate on God’s law day and night. Meditation is not “emptying your mind”; meditation is filling your mind with God’s words. The righteous want to know how to live rightly before God. Meditation involves mulling over God’s words—chewing on them, digesting them. God’s words are constantly in their minds, thoughts, and conversations.
We have two choices before us: the way of the righteous or the way of the wicked. We are told blessed is the one who doesn’t follow the wicked, and blessed is the one who does follow the righteous. How are we blessed? The remainder of the psalm shows us.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. I had a flowering tree in my yard that was not doing well. I decided to help it out by transplanting it in a place where it would receive more sunlight and a place that would be more conducive to flourishing. God does something similar with us. He takes the righteous and puts us in a place where our roots can grow. Nourishment for our roots is available. No matter how stressful life can get, there’s always life-giving nourishment from God. God nourishes the righteous.
The “fruit” of the tree I transplanted were beautiful, pink flowers. The tree wasn’t able to produce many flowers before I transplanted it, but after being transplanted, the tree had the opportunity to produce an abundance of flowers year after year. I wanted the tree to be something that was useful, helpful, and something that would bring others and me great joy. The righteous are people who help others. They are joyful and flourishing. Their lives overflow into others’ lives and bring joy, blessing, and encouragement. God nourishes the righteous, and therefore they are helpful to the kingdom of God. God places the righteous in places where they can have the most impact for him.
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Pastor Michael’s sermon with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . a woman of excellence. Ruth 3:11 (NASB)
10/2/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/OUCBb3YHFPc
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: For what will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, . . . (completion at the end)
Yesterday we recapped the first half of Dr. Josh Moody’s sermon based on Exodus 3-4. We left off with Pastor Moody referring to Exodus 4:13: But [Moses] said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” In 3:4 we see God calling Moses out of the burning bush, and Moses responding with, “Here I am.” Now in 4:13 we see him saying, “Here I am . . . send him.” We’ve all thought that at times, haven’t we? Moses is very human, and that encourages us, but at the same time it keeps us from idolizing our human leaders.
The divine Rescuer is very prominent in this passage of Scripture. We see a contrast with the final fulfillment pointing to Christ. In 3:2 we start to read: And the angel of the LORD appeared to him. In the Old Testament, the angel of the LORD is often a description for the preincarnate Christ. It’s a theophany—an appearance of the visible manifestation of God to humankind. This stupendous Being is beyond Moses’ ability to understand or grasp. In 3:4 God calls out to Moses from the burning bush. In Deuteronomy 33:16b, when Moses was at the end of his life and reflecting back on it, he said, “. . . and the favor of him who dwells in the bush.” For Moses, God is the One who dwells in the bush.
In 3:5 we read: Then [God] said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” The point is not that the physical ground is holy; the point is God is there and anywhere around where God is it’s holy. It’s the Person who makes it holy, not the place.
In 3:14, God said to Moses, I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” The very nature of God is eternally existent, and that is revealed to Moses.
God is in the burning bush saying that he’s heard the suffering of his people. Where’s God? In the burning bush. This is the God we worship—the God who is incarnate, suffered, and died on a cross. He’s the God of the burning bush. And there’s more. In Numbers 21:9 we read: So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.In Exodus 4:6-7 we read: Again, the LORD said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh.
The God of the Bible, Yahweh, is the God of the burning bush—the God who knows our pain, feels our pain. He’s the God of blood and sacrifice, in our place, that we might be rescued.
In the New Testament we have circumcision explained in Colossians 2:11-12: In [Jesus] also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. Circumcision is done by the hand of Christ through trust in the blood of Christ resulting in regeneration and new life.
At the end of this passage we find the response of the people: And the people believed; and when they heard that the LORD had visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped (4:31). Moses was not a perfect leader, but he spoke God’s words and the people believed and worshiped. This text contrasts the incompleteness of the human rescuer with the perfectness of the divine Rescuer. Therefore, when God’s imperfect but faithful leaders point us to the perfect Rescuer, we are to bow and worship Him.
Verse Completion: . . . and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? Matthew 16:26 (NASB) See also Mark 8:36
10/1/21
Good morning. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Song for the Day: https://youtu.be/Dl5iPXltMH4
Complete the Verse & Name the Book: Now Naomi had a kinsman of her husband, a man of great wealth, of the family of Elimelech, whose name was. . .(completion at the end)
Dr. Josh Moody is the pastor of College Church in Wheaton, Illinois. He recently started a series in Exodus titled “A Rescued People” during the evening service. The second sermon is based on Exodus 3-4 which Pastor Moody read aloud to the congregation. Today we will begin a recap of that message.
We have divided the book of Exodus into three parts: rescue, revelation, and religion. Exodus is the story of how God rescues his people, speaks to his people, and meets with his people. Repeatedly we are shown how these three parts are incomplete—there’s more to come. The final horizon that will come is Christ.
As we read about the rescue we see that it is being set up with the call of the rescuer. The rescuer, Moses, is quite incomplete, and yet God uses him. There’s a contrast with the Rescuer who in the salvation history story found in the Bible is finally revealed in the New Testament, but he’s actually right here, too. This is a story about the incompleteness of human rescuers leading us to worship the divine Rescuer.
One of the great questions facing us today is: Who do we listen to? When we go to social media, we see so many messages from so many people about so many different things. How do we know who to listen to? Here we have a story about God’s imperfect but faithful rescuer pointing us to the perfect gospel. God’s people do listen and bow and worship the one, true God. The key is the word of God was faithfully communicated by Moses in spite of his failures. As we try to decipher who in the religious community we should listen to, we should determine if the individual is pointing us to Christ and to the gospel. When God’s imperfect but faithful leaders point us to the Perfect gospel, we are to bow and worship our perfect Lord.
The incompleteness of Moses is found in multiple places in the story. In 3:1 we see him keeping the flock of his father-in-law at the age of 80. Earlier, he had been putting himself forward as the rescuer until he ended up killing someone and having to flee. At the age of 80 he is physically shepherding sheep, and he’s not a particularly heroic figure at this point.
In 3:13 we read: Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” Why did Moses ask God this question? One possibility is that in the Egyptian religion of the time, Egyptians were fascinated by the name of their gods, and they gave particular significance to the names. The Israelites had been in Egypt for a long time and were also interested in the connection between a name and the essence and authority of that name. That may be why Moses is asking the question, but the point is Moses doesn’t immediately go to the Israelites when he is called by God to do so.
In 4:1 we read: Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’” Not a particularly heroic response. It may remind us of ourselves in our own prayer lives: God says, “Go, and tell your neighbor about Jesus,” and we respond with, “But, Lord, they won’t listen to me.” Moses is very human just like us.
In 4:10 we read: But Moses said to the LORD, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” Again Moses objects to the Lord’s direction for his life.
In 4:13 we read: But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” In 3:4 we see God calling Moses out of the burning bush, and Moses responding with, “Here I am.” Now in 4:13 we see him saying, “Here I am . . . send him.” We’ve all thought that at times, haven’t we? Moses is very human, and that encourages us, but at the same time it keeps us from idolizing our human leaders.
Tomorrow we will continue this recap of Pastor Moody’s sermon with the second half.
Verse Completion: . . . Boaz. Ruth 2:1 (NASB)