The Aroma of Christ

Ouch! Did that thorn stick you when you tried to pick that rose? Roses are surrounded by thorny branches. Jesus Christ was and is the rose of the human race. He is the Son of God who came down from heaven and became like us except without sin. He flourished here on earth despite the thorns around Him. Though given a crown of thorns, crucified, and buried, He resurrected from the dead on the third day. He is alive forevermore!

Jesus Christ is the only Son of David who didn’t lose His throne. Thanks to Christ, King David will never lack a son to sit on his throne just as God promised.

However, that promise seemed to fail at various times in history.

For example, Manasseh was a descendant of King David who lost his throne. God’s Word says that “Manasseh seduced Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord had destroyed before the children of Israel. The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they would not listen. Therefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the army of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh with hooks, bound him with bronze fetters, and carried him off to Babylon.” [1]

Manasseh lost his throne, gained the Lord and then regained his throne. God’s Word says, “Now when he was in affliction, he implored the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers and prayed to Him; and He received his entreaty, heard his supplication, and brought him back to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God.” [2]

Praise be to God for His love, grace and forgiveness towards wicked seducers like Manasseh. God forgave him, and even placed him back on the throne again.

Other sons of David lost their thrones as well. King Jehoahaz reigned three months before being taken captive to Egypt where he died. [3]

King Jehoiachin reigned three months before being arrested and taken as a prisoner by the king of Babylon. He never returned to Jerusalem. [4]

King Zedekiah reigned over Jerusalem eleven years before being taken to Babylon. He never returned to Jerusalem. [5]

However, there was a rose, an outstanding son of David amidst the thorns. His name was Josiah.

When Josiah became king, he “went up to the house of the Lord with... all the inhabitants of Jerusalem... and he read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant which had been found in the house of the Lord.” Then, he “made a covenant before the Lord, to follow the Lord and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people took a stand for the covenant.” [6]

He listened to the Word of God. He got the people of his nation to listen to the Word of God. Then, both he and they made a covenant, a binding agreement to stand with God’s Word. But their stand for God did not end with words only, they replaced that which was crooked in the country with that which is straight.

He removed idols from the house the Lord and burned them. He removed idolatrous priests from the priesthood. “He tore down the ritual booths of the perverted persons that were in the house of the Lord.” He defiled the places where idolatry was practiced. He defiled Topheth where people burned their children to the false god Molech. He removed horses and chariots that were dedicated to false gods from his army. He destroyed the houses of worship that Solomon had built to the false gods Ashtoreth, Chemosh, and Milcom. He “put away those who consulted mediums and spiritists [fortune tellers].” He executed all the priests of the high places who were there, on the altars, and burned men’s bones on them. He reversed a long trend of forsaking and denying the Lord within his lifetime. [7]

He “commanded all the people, saying, ‘Keep the Passover to the Lord your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant.’ And they did. [8]

Kings and people should honor the Lord and His Word. Serve the Lord with gladness! Be a rose amidst the thorns as Jesus was and is!

As King David wrote, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the Law of the Lord, and in His Law, he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, which brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper. The ungodly are not so but are like the chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” [9]

We flourish as we abide in Christ.

It is a bad decision for kings and people to try to overthrow the rule of God and His anointed. It does not end well, but ‘blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.” [10]

One person in God is a majority as the Psalmists put it, “I will not be afraid of 10,000’s of people who have set themselves against me all around.” “Salvation belongs to the Lord. Your blessing is upon Your people.” [11]

God has brought us into His family via His Son Jesus Christ. He has anointed us with His Holy Spirit to reign. Not to sit on earthly thrones and wear earthly crowns, but to have the power to convert and transform nations of people as we testify to them about Jesus and pray for them.

The Apostle Paul put it this way, “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And who is sufficient for these things?” [12]

Who is sufficient to flourish and influence with the aroma of Christ? Those of us who abide in Him. Like a marriage! We love Him! We walk with Him. His Spirit brings forth His fragrance.

“For we are not, as so many, peddling the Word of God; but as of sincerity, but as from God, we speak in the sight of God in Christ.” [13]

We are not peddling, we are fragranting. Our Creator, Sustainer and Redeemer is God. We are His flowers filled with the extravagant aroma of Christ. Those who receive Him live forever.

[1] 2 Chronicles 33:9-11
[2] 2 Chronicles 33:12-13
[3] 2 Kings 23:30-31, 34
[4] 2 Kings 24:2, 8, 12-16; 25:27-30
[5] 2 Kings 24:17; 25:1-7
[6] 2 Kings 23:2-3
[7] Kings 23:4-8, 10-13, 20, 24
[8] 2 Kings 23:17-18
[9] Psalm 1
[10] Psalm 2
[11] Psalm 3:6, 8
[12] 2 Corinthians 2:14-16
[13] 2 Corinthians 2:17

The Healer of Nations

Have we lost the Law of God? What happens when people lack God’s Law? God does not break His Law, so how can He walk with those who do?

When King Josiah was 26 years old, during the 18th year of his reign, the lost writings of God’s Law were rediscovered. Carpenters, builders and masons were in the midst of repairing God’s house, and there it was. Hilkiah the priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.” Shaphan took God’s Law to King Josiah and read it before him. [1]

King Josiah tore his clothes and exclaimed, “Great is the wrath of the Lord that is aroused against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the Words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us.” [2] He did not just give God an honorable mention at the end of a political speech, he feared God both for his life and for the life of his nation. His faith in God’s Word yielded fruits of repentance. From that point forward, he set out to bring his nation’s laws into conformity with the Law of God. He realized that his nation was on the brink of being rightfully and utterly destroyed for ignoring and denying God and God’s commands.

After Josiah humbled himself, Huldah the prophetess had a word from the Lord for him. “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: concerning the Words which you have heard—because your heart was tender, and you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants, that they would become a desolation and a curse, and you tore your clothes and wept before Me, I also have heard you, says the Lord. Surely, therefore, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace; and your eyes shall not see all the calamity which I will bring on this place.” [3]

The only way up was down. Humbly down before God! Josiah did that and God took notice.

King David walked with and served God. He wrote, “The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy. The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works. The Lord upholds all who fall and raises up all who are bowed down.” [4]

We have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. Not one of us deserves to have God walk with us. It is only by grace, compassion, control of His anger and great mercy that God is able to walk me and you. We should thank and praise the Lord for His kindness in this regard.

Josiah’s grandfather, King Manasseh, had led the nation to worship idols, burn their children to idols, practice witchcraft and fortune telling. He defiled the house of the Lord. The Lord had said during his days, “I will wipe Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down.” [5]

The Lord advises us, “Do not put your trust in princes, nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help. The Lord watches over the strangers; He relieves the fatherless and widow; but the way of the wicked He turns upside down.” [6] We should not expect of people what only God can do. We should pray for our leaders that they would have compassion on foreigners, the fatherless and widows. We should pray that they would fear to do evil in God’s sight.

Why, because, “The Lord preserves all who love Him, but all the wicked He will destroy.” [7]

Why, because our lives depend on God’s charity toward us. “ The eyes of all look expectantly to You, and You give them their food in due season. You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing.” [8]

Why, because, “He does not delight in the strength of the horse; He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy.” [9]

Why, because the Lord puts us back together after we are broken and He holds us together from falling apart again. “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” [10]

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ.” [11]

The Lord does for our inner man, our soul, what no other can do, namely, blesses us with His Holy Spirit. “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.” [12]

Let us pray for a move of the Spirit of God on our nations. That people all over this world would turn to God as King Josiah did. Bring forth the fruits of repentance! Throw off that which dishonors God and embrace that which does! Let us pray for a mindset to serve the Lord.

“We need You Lord to be merciful to us, forgive us and heal us.”

[1] 2 Kings 22:1-10
[2] 2 Kings 22:11-13
[3] 2 Kings 22:14-20
[4] Psalm 145:8-9, 14
[5] 2 Kings 21:13
[6] Psalm 146: 3, 9
[7] Psalm 145:20
[8] Psalm 146:15-16
[9] Psalm 147:10-11
[10] Psalm 147:3
[11] 2 Corinthians 1:3-5
[12] 2 Corinthians 1:21-22

Prayer Victories From The Lord

How desperate are you for the Lord to answer your prayers? The Lord encourages us to pray with desperation...

“I cry out to the Lord with my voice.”
“I pour out my complaint before Him.”
“I declare before Him my trouble.” [1]

David’s spirit was overwhelmed within him. Those who hated the Lord had laid traps for him. No one acknowledged him. No one cared for his soul. [2]

What did he do? He cried out, poured out and declared his trouble to the Lord. People constantly brought their troubles to Jesus and He helped them. They came boldly to Him.

“Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise Your Name. You shall deal bountifully with me.” [3]

The Lord tells us how to pray: “He who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” [4] David prayed with confidence and diligence...

“Hear my prayer”
“Give ear to my supplications!”
“In Your faithfulness answer me.”
“I spread out my hands to You.” [5]

Is your need time-sensitive? You may pray petitions from the Bible like these...

“Answer me speedily.”
“Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning.”
“Deliver me, O Lord.” [6]

A good prayer to pray is for deliverance from lies. The devil is always telling lies against the Lord and against people. “Rescue me and deliver me from... lying words, and... falsehood—that our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters may be as pillars, sculptured in palace style; that our barns may be full, supplying all kinds of produce; that our sheep may bring forth 1,000’s and 10,000’s in our fields; that our oxen may be well laden; that there be no breaking in or going out; that there be no outcry in our streets. Happy are the people who are in such a state; happy are the people whose God is the Lord!” [7]

When Hezekiah’s nation was surrounded by an enemy army. The enemy had told Hezekiah that his situation was hopeless and that God would not help him. Hezekiah demonstrated to the Lord his inner grief with outward actions. He tore his clothes and put on sackcloth. He asked Isaiah the prophet to pray. Do you know anyone who prays to the Lord? Ask them to join you in prayer for the need you have. Jesus urged us to pray together. Hezekiah didn’t hide his problem. He brought it out into the open to his prayer partner Isaiah, saying, “This day is a day of trouble.” He asked Isaiah to lift up a prayer. Isaiah prayed and got a word of faith from the Lord. He knew by faith that the victory was won before it manifested in the physical realm. [8]

Hezekiah placed his prayer in written form before the Lord in the Lord’s house. I have seen this done where people write their prayer requests on sticky notes and stick them to a cross in the church sanctuary. Hezekiah ended his prayer, saying, “Now therefore, O Lord our God, I pray, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord God, You alone.” [9] He connected his need for an answered prayer to God’s honor.

Jesus said, “Whatsoever you shall ask in My Name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you shall ask any thing in My Name, I will do it.” [10] This is why we always pray in the Name of Jesus.

God answered Hezekiah’s prayer by sending one angel to slay 185,000 enemy soldiers in the night. When the enemy leader returned to his home country, his sons killed him. [11]

After that, Hezekiah learned that he only had a short time to live. He wept bitterly before the Lord. The Lord told him, “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord. And I will add to your days 15 years.” [12]

James wrote, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” [13]

Faith in Christ’s shed blood on the cross to wash away one’s sin is what makes a person righteous before God. Such a one is a righteous person and therefore can pray prayers of faith in God’s power and willingness to help in time of need. As the writer of Hebrews put it, “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” [14]

[1] Psalm 142:1-2
[2] Psalm 142:3-4
[3] Psalm 142:7
[4] Hebrews 4:6
[5] Psalm 143:1, 6
[6] Psalm 143:7-9
[7] Psalm 144:11-13
[8] 2 Kings 19:1-7; Matthew 18:19-20
[9] 2 Kings 19:14-19
[10] John 14:13-14
[11] 2 Kings 19:35-37
[12] 2 Kings 20:1-6
[13] James 5:16
[14] Hebrews 4:16

Living For God

All His prophets, every seer said, “Turn from your evil ways.”

“The Lord testified against Israel and against Judah, by all of His prophets, every seer, saying, ‘Turn from your evil ways, and keep My commandments and My statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by My servants the prophets.” [1]

Did the people listen to them?

No, they stiffened their necks, refusing to believe in the Lord. They rejected a covenant relationship with God. They were into idols. They sacrificed their sons and daughters with flames unto idols. They practiced witchcraft and fortune telling. They did evil. Thus, the Lord removed them from their pleasant land and dispersed them to places of mistreatment. The Lord “afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast them from His sight.” “...as He had said by all His servants the prophets.” [2] These exiles were intended to bring them to repentance, and salvation from a worse place, namely hell.

The Lord has provided prayers for us in the Psalms to pray against evil. “O, that You would slay the wicked, O God! Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men. For they speak against You wickedly; Your enemies take Your Name in vain. Do I not hate them, O Lord, who hate You? And do I not loathe those who rise up against You? I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them my enemies.” [3]

Murderers and blasphemers destroy nations. We should not allow a TV to spew murder and blasphemy into our homes because as we do we join with those who support such evils.

The Lord says, “Do not be deceived: evil company corrupts good habits.” [4]

The Lord teaches us to pray for purity: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.” [5]

We should pray against the influence of evil, “Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked; do not further his wicked scheme, lest they be exalted. Selah” And know that the Lord will be with us if we do, “Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your Name; the upright shall dwell in Your presence.” [6]

Pray to be kept from temptation and delivered from evil. “Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips. Do not incline my heart to any evil thing, to practice wicked works with men who work iniquity; and do not let me eat of their delicacies.” [7]

God advises us, “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy. Happy is the man who is always reverent, but he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity.” [8]

Though we aim to live right before God, our good deeds never match the standard of God’s holiness. We all sin says the Bible and need God to forgive us. Praise God that “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.” [9]

Now, we live and thrive by God’s grace. The Apostle Paul did! He wrote, “By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” [10]

Now, we live and thrive in the hope that God has given us. He says, “In Christ all shall be made alive.” Soon, “God will be all in all.” [11] That which opposed our Lord will be no more.

Those of us who have believed in and professed Christ as our Lord and Savior will be raised from the dead, as the Scripture says, “The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body it is raised a spiritual body. And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” [12]

Amen! “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” [13]

[1] 2 Kings 17:13
[2] 2 Kings 17:14-15, 17-18, 20-23
[3] Psalm 139:19-22
[4] 1 Corinthians 15:33
[5] Psalm 139:23-24
[6] Psalm 140:8, 13
[7] Psalm 141:3-4
[8] Proverbs 29:13-14
[9] 1 Corinthians 15:3-4
[10] 1 Corinthians 15:10
[11] 1 Corinthians 15:23, 29
[12] 1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 49, 51-52, 57
[13] 1 Corinthians 15:58

Speaking in Tongues and Prophesying

The Lord says, “Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.” [1]

Love for God and love for God’s people is why we should desire spiritual gifts.

The Holy Spirit anointed the Christians in Corinth with spiritual gifts and also with teaching about them. He emphasizes at the beginning and at the ending of His teaching on the gifts that Christians should desire them. His teaching is clear on this topic and should neither be doubted, denied nor spoken against by anyone in the body of Christ.

The Holy Spirit says, “He who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.” [2] He is saying that this tongue is given by God as a prayer language... to speak to God. “In the spirit he speaks mysteries” indicates that the person doesn’t understand what he is praying but nevertheless it is a valid and beneficial gift. We don’t always know what exactly food is doing for our bodies, but we know that it is good for the body so we eat. So, we should be willing to partake of this spiritual gift and not deny it.

The Holy Spirit says, “He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself...” “I wish you all spoke with tongues.” “For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.” “I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all.” “Do not forbid to speak with tongues.” [3]

So, prayer language builds up the praying one. The Holy Spirit wants to give this prayer language to everyone. It is like wind in one’s sails to pray. You don’t know what the Spirit is praying but He is praying through you. Singing in tongues is also a gift of the Holy Spirit. Paul testified that he spoke in tongues more than all the Corinthian Christians. He needed the edification to carry out the Lord’s great commission, and so do we. He says not to forbid the prayer language.

I find that I switch back and forth during my prayer time. I pray in tongues, and as I do people and situations come to mind that I pray about with my understanding... in English. By praying in tongues I extend my prayer time to cover more people and more situations with prayer. I can pray for an hour at a time. What a wonderful gift!

The Holy Spirit also gives the gift of prophecy. This does not mean adding words or subtracting words from the Bible. It means having a word, impression, vision or dream from God that edifies or helps the Church.

The Holy Spirit says, “He who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.” “He who prophesies edifies the church.” “Since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.” “In the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may teach others also, than 10,000 words in a tongue.” “You can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be encouraged. And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets.” “Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy.” [4]

The Holy Spirit gives the prophetic gift to comfort, exhort (build up) and edify the Church, that is, the members of the body of Christ. His goal is to edify (feed) the Lord’s sheep with revelation, wisdom, understanding, teaching and knowledge that helps us to navigate our walk with our Good Shepherd and to serve Him. Those who are receivers from the Lord should be encouraged to receive from Him and share what He is giving them. It should be done one by one. Everything that is said is subject to the prophets. In other words, it should align with the Bible, and the Holy Spirit should bear witness with our spirit that what was shared was indeed from God.

The Holy Spirit, when welcomed and asked to move among the members, orchestrates a heavenly time with God.

“Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret. But if there is no interpreter, let him keep silent in church, and let him speak to himself and to God. Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge. But if anything is revealed to another who sits by, let the first keep silent for God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.” [5]

So, liberty should be allowed for the Holy Spirit to give someone a psalm, a teaching, a revelation, a tongue message ( if there is someone is there who can interpret) and a prophecy. He does express boundaries. Two or three! Leave time for the preacher to preach what the Lord has given him! The others are to judge what is being said and done against what the Bible says. God is not the author of confusion means that the Holy Spirit will not give a message that contradicts the Bible. It also means that people should not be trying to speak over one another. The Lord says, “Love does not behave rudely, does not seek its own.” [6]

The Apostle Paul was not expressing his personal opinion when he wrote about spiritual gifts. He wrote, “If anyone thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things which I write to you are the commandments of the Lord.” [7]

The Lord Jesus wants the members of His Body, the Church, to receive from Him via His Spirit and speak with words that are like arrows hitting a target. Words that are timely and beneficial to everyone involved! Words that help! Words that nourish His sheep!

Moses asked Joshua, “Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!” [8]

[1] 1 Corinthians 14:1
[2] 1 Corinthians 14:2
[3] 1 Corinthians 14: 4-5, 14-15, 18, 39
[4] 1 Corinthians 14: 3-6, 12, 18, 24-25, 31-32, 39
[5] 1 Corinthians 14:26-33
[6] 1 Corinthians 13:6
[7] 1 Corinthians 14:37
[8] Numbers 11:29

Disciples Enjoying God’s Goodness and Mercy

Are you a disciple of Jesus? The Lord says, “Come, follow Me.” He is eager to disciple you. [1]

Apostles of Jesus focus on finding disciples and teaching them. [2]

The Lord discipled King Jehoahaz even when he was an unwilling participant in the matter. The Lord allowed Jehoahaz to be oppressed. Then, Jehoahaz prayed. The Lord heard him. The Lord delivered him.

Jehoahaz “did evil in the sight of the Lord” and “the anger of the Lord was aroused against Israel, and He delivered them into the hand of Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of Ben-Hadad the son of Hazael, all their days. So Jehoahaz pleaded with the Lord, and the Lord listened to him; for He saw the oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria oppressed them. Then the Lord gave Israel a deliverer, so that they escaped from under the hand of the Syrians; and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents as before.” [3]

What does the Lord do for those He loves? He disciplines them. “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.” [4] The Lord wants you and me close to Him.

Jehoahaz and his people were neither destroyed nor cast out from God’s presence because of God’s promise to Abraham. That promise was a Seed that would come from Israel who would have descendants like the stars of heaven. That Seed is Jesus Christ. Jehoahaz was saved from destruction because of the righteousness of another given unto him, namely, Jesus Christ. [5]

“Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. But the Lord was gracious to them, had compassion on them, and regarded them, because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not yet destroy them or cast them from His presence.” [6]

Praise God for His grace that maintains us in a good relationship with Him.

Psalm 138 is about thanking God because He is good and mercy endures forever. Psalm 138 provides 23 reasons to give thanks to the Lord for His enduring mercy including this one in verse 23: “Who remembered us in our lowly state, for His mercy endures forever.”

“Thank You Lord for Your goodness and mercy towards us.”

The early church disciplined members who needed discipline. For example, there was a man in the Corinthians Church who was having an immoral relationship with his father’s wife, likely his stepmother. Paul instructed the Church to “hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.” [7]

There is much focus nowadays on providing relief to bodies that are suffering, but not enough focus on saving souls that are in danger of an eternity without God. The worst calamity anyone can experience is eternity in hell. True compassion is to do whatever it takes to save the erring one’s soul from hell. This is what the Lord does. He allows suffering and oppression to soften the hearts of those who have hardened their hearts to Him. His goal is not to inflict harm, but to break down the individual’s sinful nature and bring them to repentance, ultimately leading to their restoration and salvation.

And what does the Lord do for the repentant sinner. He fills him or her with His Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit fills us with love. This renewal of the soul is comparable to a resurrection from the dead so that one can truly live again. Live a life of love for God and others!

What is God’s love like? “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.” [8] To love as the Lord loves is a wonderful blessing!

[1] Matthew 4:19; 28:19-20
[2] Acts 19:1, 9
[3] 1 Kings 13:2-5
[4] Revelation 3:19
[5] Genesis 15:5-6; Galatians 3:16, 19, 29
[6] 1 Kings 13:22-23
[7] 1 Corinthians 5:1-5
[8] 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

The Spiritually Gifted Body of Christ

The body of Christ, that is His Church, is spiritually gifted. That which belongs to Christ belongs to us because when we believed in Him, He grafted us into His body, the Church.

The Lord reveals insights to us in His Holy Word about His body. He wants us to understand His body and how it works. “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant. Therefore, I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.” [1]

Jesus says that the one who professes that He is Lord is in His body. He or she has the Holy Spirit. So, other members in the body of Christ should not discount such a one because he or she does not manifest a particular spiritual gift. He compares that to an eye saying to a hand, “I have no need of you” which is not true. [2] The hand is needed. Eyes should not arrogantly exclude hands from their gatherings because they want every Christian to be an eye.

The Holy Spirit gives members in the body of Christ various gifts for the excellent functioning of the body of Christ here on the earth. So, we can do the work of Christ. So, we can represent Him well.

“There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.” [3]

Diverse gifts, differing ministries, diverse activities, but the same Spirit of God is at work in all of us for the good of us all. Praise the Lord! The Holy Spirit is distributing these gifts to the believers and followers of Jesus Christ. Our physical bodies are a reflection of the body of Christ. Jesus connects with us others who serve Him, and they complete us. [4]

“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.” “We have all been made to drink into one Spirit.” “The body is not one member but many.” “God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.” “If they were all one member, where would the body be? [5]

The Lord says, “There should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.” [6]

We should not exclude fellow Christians because they lack certain spiritual gifts, nor should we exclude Christians because they have them. “God has appointed these in the Church.” The Lord says, “Earnestly desire the best gifts.” [7]

Jesus revealed to us how we can be His witnesses. He said, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” He follows up His teaching on spiritual gifts in the body of Christ with an entire chapter of verses on how to love one another. [8]

So, let us receive Christ and all that He has for us. Seek and receive spiritual gifts from His Spirit as a service unto Him and His body. Use the gifts Christ has given you. Do it out of love for God and love for neighbor.

[1] 1 Corinthians 12:1, 3
[2] 1 Corinthians 12:21
[3] 1 Corinthians 12:4-11
[4] 1 Corinthians 12:12
[5] 1 Corinthians 12:13-14, 18-19
[6] 1 Corinthians 12:25-26
[7] 1 Corinthians 12:28, 31
[8] John 13:35, 1 Corinthians 13

The Anointing of the Holy Spirit

The Lord anoints His servants with the Holy Spirit. He anointed Jehu for a mission. Jehu’s name means “Yahweh is He.” Yahweh [the Lord] was He who anointed Jehu to do what he did.

God’s remnant of believers had long endured the scorn of evil leaders. Such leaders persecute and kill God’s servants. Many passages in the Bible urge us to stand with Christ and pray during such difficult seasons.

God told Elijah to anoint Jehu as king over Israel and avenger. Once anointed, Jehu fulfilled God’s Word via Elijah by killing King Ahab’s heir to the throne (Jehoram), King Ahab’s wife (Queen Jezebel) as well as the King of Judah (Ahaziah) who joined in alliance with Jehoram. Jehu ensured that the 70 sons of Ahab and the 42 sons of Ahaziah were put to death as well as the priests of the false god Baal. [1]

“Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets, and said to him, ‘Get yourself ready, take this flask of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth Gilead. Then take the flask of oil, and pour it on his [Jehu’s] head, and say, thus says the Lord: I have anointed you king over Israel.’” [2]

The Lord’s anointing empowered Jehu to embody the Word of the Lord.

As the son of the prophet anointed Jehu, he said these words, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: I have anointed you king over the people of the Lord, over Israel. You shall strike down the house of Ahab your master, that I may avenge the blood of My servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord, at the hand of Jezebel.” [3]

There will be similar reckoning in the last days of an evil regime by the Lord.

“Rejoice over her, you heavens! Rejoice, you people of God! Rejoice, apostles and prophets! For God has judged her with the judgment she imposed on you.” “In her was found the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people, of all who have been slaughtered on the earth.” [4]

In the days of Jehu, Queen Jezebel promoted harlotry and witchcraft. The blood of God’s servants was on her hands. Jehu had her thrown down from a high tower. [5]

Jehu had his guards and officers slay the priests of the false god Baal, destroy Baal’s temple and eliminate Baalism from the land. [6]

The Psalmist wrote, “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so He gives His beloved sleep.” [7]

Those who build on the unreliable promises of deniers of the Lord do need to stay up late and eat the bread of sorrows because it is just a manner of time until all that they have sought to accomplish in their rivalry against their Creator will crumble. Those who compete with God, always fail.

God’s beloved sleep peacefully. They also have time to enjoy their families. The Psalmist continues, “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed but shall speak with their enemies in the gate.” [8]

One tell-tale sign of Satanic activity is war against families and children. The enemy does not want husbands and wives to remain committed to one another. He does not want us to raise up children to perpetuate the human race. He has convinced people in many lands to rejoice in killing unborn humans. It is satanic.

Children are a blessing from the Lord. Blessed are those who have a quiver full of children.

The Psalmist asks the Lord to shame and turn back those who hate Zion... referring to the place where the culture of God thrives. He declares in his prayer that the wicked man shall perish, “Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; do not plunder his resting place; for a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, but the wicked shall fall by calamity.” [9]

The Psalmist encourages us not to fret because of evildoers. Be patient! Their days are coming to an end. “Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the wicked; for there will be no prospect for the evil man; the lamp of the wicked will be put out. My son, fear the Lord and the king; do not associate with those given to change; for their calamity will rise suddenly, and who knows the ruin those two can bring? [10]

God blesses those who judge rightly. “He who says to the wicked, ‘You are righteous,’ him the people will curse; nations will abhor him. But those who rebuke the wicked will have delight, and a good blessing will come upon them.” [11]

All this being said, let us come back to Him to whom we owe everything: Jesus Christ. What did Jesus on the night He was betrayed? “The Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’ In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.’ For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.” [12]

Though we have good intentions to bring about goodness in the world, we will ultimately fail our mission if we forget what the Lord did for us. We need to remember via bread and cup the Lord’s death. He died for us that we might live eternally. He wants all people to be saved. So, while as righteous people, we pray for, work toward and hope for evil regimes to fall, we must also pray for those who are under Satan’s power and darkness to turn from Satan to God, and from darkness to light. God has converted numerous persecutors of Christians to become His servants. Those who have perpetrated great evil have become valiant publishers of the Gospel.

First comes the cleansing of sin by faith in the blood of Christ, then, comes the infilling of the Holy Spirit by which we serve God faithfully.

The Apostle Peter denied the Lord three times at the very moment that Jesus was being tried in the public square. He wept bitterly. He repented. Later, Jesus told Peter, “When you are converted, strengthen your brothers.” Peter was already a believer in Jesus. Jesus referred to Peter’s conversion on the Day of Pentecost. From that day forth Peter faithfully testified for Jesus! How? The Holy Spirit baptized Peter with power from on high. Just what we all need! Let us pray that more and more of God’s people will receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit for God’s glory and for Christ’s mission on earth to be accomplished. [13]

[1] 1 Kings 19:16, 2 Kings 9:1-33, 10:7-28
[2] 2 Kings 9:1, 3
[3] 2 Kings 9:6-7
[4] Revelation 18:20, 24
[5] 2 Kings 9:22-37
[6] 2 Kings 10:25-27
[7] Psalm 127:1-2
[8] Psalm 127:3-5
[9] Psalm 129:5, 15-16
[10] Psalm 129:19-22
[11] Psalm 129:24-25
[12] 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
[13] Luke 22:32, Acts 1:4, 2:4, 5:41

Pure Gold

“To the messenger of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God.” [1]

“Thus says the Lord’ is the introductory phrase used most frequently in messages from God to people. In this passage, our resurrected and glorified redeemer Jesus Christ identifies Himself as the faithful and true witness. His testimonies are 100% dependable. Creation began with Him.

Now, that we know who is speaking to us, let us listen to what He has to say to us.

“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” [2]

What do you get when you mix cold and hot water together? The answer is lukewarm water!

How many of us are in comfortable places where we feel at liberty to turn the Lord on and turn Him off as we would a TV with a remote? One minute, we are praying, reading our Bible and worshipping God, and the next minute, we Him turn off and act as though He is does not matter. When we do this, we are being hot and cold with the Lord. We are yielding a lukewarm, mediocre, unworthy witness for the One whose hands and feet were pierced for us on the cross for us.

“Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked—I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.” [3]

Gold that has been withheld from the Refiner’s fire is not pure. Dross compromises gold’s beauty and strength. Who can remove the dross from our lives? Can we? No, only Jesus! Jesus is the Messiah that the prophet Malachi spoke of, saying...

“Who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderers’ soap. He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord An offering in righteousness.” [4]

Among those who produce fine products, a conscientious employee with excellent production skills is cherished. The goldsmith wants an excellent refiner. The cleaner seeks one who is excellent at removing stains. The Lord is looking for servants who give Him their best effort. Their sacrifices, their self-denials, their going the extra mile, say to Him...

“Lord, you are more precious than silver,
Lord, you are more costly than gold.
Lord, you are more beautiful than diamonds,
And nothing I desire compares with you.” [5]

Actions demonstrate what is in our hearts. Little action little love. No offerings no value.

“As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” [6]

Repentance should not be an outcast among God’s people. We should welcome the gift of repentance into our gathering places. We need Jesus to correct us. We need Jesus to guide us.

“Do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?” [7]

No one reaches professional status without yielding body, soul and mind to the disciplines that fine tune abilities. Is Jesus a hobby to us or our all and all?

Our Lord is calling out to us, saying, “Come, follow Me.” “Be My disciple!” “Learn from Me!”

“Yes, Lord, my door is open to You. Please do come in and refine me. Make me pure gold! I want to be with You and with Your Father in Your eternal kingdom.”

[1] Revelation 3:14
[2] Revelation 3:15-16
[3] Revelation 3:17-18
[4] Malachi 3:2-3
[5] More Precious than Silver, by Lynn Deshazo (C) Integrity’s Hosanna! Music
[6] Revelation 3:19-22
[7] Romans 2:4

Faith in the Miracle-Performing God

“Abba Father, please forgive us for doubting You. Please help us and our leaders to believe Your Word to us. Help us to simply receive from You. In the Name of Your Son Jesus, I pray. Amen.”

Naaman was the commander of the army of the king of Syria. He “was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper.” The Lord blessed Naaman’s wife with a servant girl from Israel. She informed her mistress that a prophet in Samaria could heal her husband. This girl had faith in God and faith in God’s servant. Her expressed confidence in God, yielded a deal proposal from the King of Syria to the King of Israel: $250,000 worth of silver, $2,978,640 worth of gold (in today’s US currency), along with ten expensive clothing outfits, about 5.5 million dollars in exchange for Naaman’s healing! [1]

This deal almost failed due to Israel’s king’s lack of faith in God. He tore his clothes in anguish. He assumed that the King of Syria was saying to either heal Naaman or prepare for war. A miracle was in the making but Israel’s king lacked discernment because he did not know the Lord. Thankfully, God intervened. He let Elisha know what was happening. Elisha said to Israel’s King, “Please let him come to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.” [2]

The king of Israel complied. Naaman arrived.

Elisha gave to Naaman the instruction that he himself had received from the Lord. At first, Naaman was not willing to comply with the Lord’s instructions. The Lord wanted Naaman to humble himself. To wash seven times in the Jordan River! Naaman needed to hear God’s Word, trust God’s Word and obey God’s Word if he wanted the Lord to heal him of an incurable disease. Naaman had imagined God working in a different way. He wanted God to do the work for him without him having to believe God’s Word. Thankfully, Naaman servants urged him, saying, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then when he says to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’? So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.” [3]

Naaman declared, “Indeed, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel.” [4]

God’s servant Elisha discipled “sons of the prophets” in a similar fashion to the way Jesus discipled His twelve apostles. There were “sons of prophets” in Bethel and Jericho. In the Old Testament, “sons of prophets” refer to a group of disciples or a school of prophets, not necessarily physical sons.

They were with Elisha: “And the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, ‘See now, the place where we dwell with you is too small for us. Please, let us go to the Jordan, and let every man take a beam from there, and let us make there a place where we may dwell.’ So, he answered, ‘Go.’” But they wanted Elisha to go with them just as the disciples of Jesus wanted Jesus to remain with them. So, he consented to do so. While constructing the larger school, one of the laborers lost an axe’s head in a body water. He informed Elisha. Elisha relied on God to resurface the axe from the water, and God did it. Elisha mentored his disciples to believe God for miracles. [5]

Oh that we would all believe God’s Word! Elisha, by the grace of God, was able to inform his king in advance of where and when an enemy army would attack his country. Twice! He didn’t need a futuristic satellite or radar system. God was his eyes. [6]

Later, God helped Elisha to capture an entire army of enemy soldiers. He relied on God to do it. God blinded the soldiers momentarily until Elisha led them to his king in defeat. Thankfully, God’s servant Elisha had faith that one man with God is a majority. By the way, God also used divinely imposed blindness in Genesis 19:11, Acts 9:8 and Acts 13:11 to redirect people. [7]

Sadly, after God did these miracles, Israel’s king was prepared to behead Elisha. His kingdom was under siege by an enemy army. Some women had ate a child to survive. The king blamed God’s faithful servant for his nation’s plight not his lack of faith in God. [8]

Oh that we all would believe God’s Word! His Word is more powerful than any two-edged sword. “The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds.” [9]

The Word of the Lord came to Elisha. Who is the Word of the Lord? Jesus is! Jesus spoke to Elisha, not in bodily form, but by His Spirit. Elisha told the king that by tomorrow the price of food would drop. There would be food in abundance. And it happened! God scared the enemy army off. They fled in such panic that they left their supplies behind. [10]

Let us pray for faith in God and in His Son Jesus Christ in these last of the last days!

“And He [Jesus] spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; saying, there was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: and there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, avenge me of mine adversary. And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I fear not God, nor regard man; yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ And the Lord said, ‘Hear what the unjust judge says. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man comes, shall he find faith on the earth?’” [11]

[1] 2 Kings 5:1-6
[2] 2 Kings 5:7-8
[3] 2 Kings 5:9-14
[4] 2 Kings 5:15
[5] 2 Kings 2:3,5, 6:1-6
[6] 2 Kings 6:8-12
[7] 2 Kinga 6:14-23
[8] 2 Kinga 6:24-33
[9] Hebrews 4:12; 2 Corinthians 10:4
[10] 2 Kings 7:1-20
[11] Luke 18:1-8

Jesus is the Reason I Love God’s Word

“O, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” [1]

His mercy endures forever! In whom does the human race find mercy? In Christ, God the Father’s Son! The goodness of God is revealed to people via Christ. And His mercy is not fleeting, here today and gone tomorrow! No, it is everlasting. Praise the Lord!

“I called on the Lord in distress; the Lord answered me and set me in a broad place.” [2]

I only asked for relief from distress, but He gave me much more than I asked for and much more than I imagined. He set me in a broad place. The broad place includes the vastness of His knowledge, wisdom, discernment, power and understanding. The broad place includes the righteousness of Christ accredited to my account. The broad place includes His indwelling and abiding Holy Spirit. The broad place includes the Kingdom of God! All eternity in heaven with God!

“The Lord is on my side. I will not fear. What can man do to me?” [3]

The broad place includes the Lord’s protection and provision. One of the Lord’s angels can take out 185,000 enemy soldiers in a moment. The Lord can provide food via ravens, and by making small portions into large portions. God plus one equals a majority.

“It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.” [4]

Millions and billions are spent on campaigns to elect people to rule, but the Lord is the ruler over all people. He comes to us in the person of His Son freely. He turns tides that people cannot turn. He changes the night into day.

“All nations surrounded me, but in the Name of the Lord, I will destroy them. You pushed me violently, that I might fall, but the Lord helped me.” [5]

The Lord is no pushover and neither are those who trust in Him.

“The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.” [6]

Whereas I used to sing silly songs that were meaningless and irrelevant, singing to the Lord has become a source of strength and salvation for me. He inhabits my praises as I worship Him in Spirit and truth and gives me faith to do great exploits for Him.

“The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Save now, I pray, O Lord; O Lord, I pray, send now prosperity. Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord! We have blessed you from the house of the Lord. God is the Lord, and He has given us light; bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will praise You; You are my God, I will exalt You.” [7]

It doesn’t matter which authority figure or how many people reject Jesus as Messiah because God has appointed Him to be the cornerstone on which people last forever. This will never change no matter how the world changes. The day that we rejoice in is the day that God’s Son came to Jerusalem to give His life as a ransom for us all. The One we bless, the Name we name is Jesus Christ! He is the light of the world. We praise and exalt Him!

“Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the Law of the Lord! Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart!” [8]

Psalm 119 exalts the blessing of God’s Law. It follows Psalm 118 which prophesies of Messiah. Only after we receive Jesus do we begin to hunger and thirst for God’s Word so greatly.

Jesus is the reason that we are undefiled in the way. Jesus is the reason we walk comfortably and gladly in the Law of the Lord. Yes, blessed are we who share His testimonies with others. Blessed are our hearts when we are loving Him! Praise the Lord!

[1] Psalm 118:1
[2] Psalm 118:5
[3] Psalm 118:6
[4] Psalm 118:8-9
[5] Psalm 118:10, 13
[6] Psalm 118:14
[7] Psalm 118:22-28
[8] Psalm 119:1-2

Is It Because

The Lord chose Israel to be the nation through whom He would reveal Himself to the world. He gave us the Scriptures and Messiah via Israel. But sadly, Israel often provoked God to anger by turning from Him to serve idols. Such was the case, with King Ahaziah.

Ahaziah fell from an upper room. Rather than turning to the Lord, he sent messengers to inquire of a foreign god. God gave Elijah a word for his king. [1]

Elijah stopped the kings messengers from reaching the foreign nation. He told them the Lord’s message for the king. “Go, return to the king who sent you, and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore, you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” [2]

The king was angry at Elijah. He sent a captain with 50 men to arrest him, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them. The king sent another captain and 50 men, and they too were consumed by fire from heaven. The king sent a third group of soldiers, but this time, their captain fell on his knees and pleaded with Elijah to let his life and the life of his men be precious in his sight. So, the Lord sent Elijah with them to the king. [3]

Elijah said to the king, “Thus says the Lord: because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of His Word? Therefore, you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.” “ So Ahaziah died according to the Word of the Lord which Elijah had spoken...” [4]

God is gracious and longsuffering, but ultimately judges His betrayers who lead others astray from Him. Ahaziah was such a leader.

The Psalmist wrote by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, declaring a truth: “Ël אֵל GOD shall hear, and afflict them, even He that abides of old. Selà סֶלָה. Because they have no changes, therefore they fear not Élöhîm אֱלֹהִים GOD.” [5] If God does not take drastic measures at times, people will not change.

The Psalmist prayed, “Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but to Your Name give glory, because of Your mercy, because of Your truth. Why should the Gentiles say, ‘So where is their God?’ But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases. Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they do not speak; eyes they have, but they do not see; they have ears, but they do not hear; noses they have, but they do not smell; they have hands, but they do not handle; feet they have, but they do not walk; nor do they mutter through their throat. Those who make them are like them; so is everyone who trusts in them.” [6]

God created us for His glory. That is a good thing! He made us well. Properly functioning, in a relationship with Him, this happens. We should not frustrate the grace of God by leaning on objects or people who are not God. Turn to Him! Call upon Him! Love God! He does amazing things as we love Him and seek to bring Him glory!

The Psalmist testified of the Lord’s faithfulness, saying, “Gracious is the Lord, and righteous; yes, our God is merciful. The Lord preserves the simple; I was brought low, and He saved me. Return to your rest, O my soul, for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you. For You have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet from falling. I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living.” [7]

The Lord could have delivered Ahaziah from death if he had turned to Him. He could have had a wonderful testimony about the Lord to share with others. The Lord is good at making messages out of messes.

The Lord blesses us! Let us bless Him!

“He [God] will bless those who fear the Lord, both small and great. May the Lord give you increase more and more, you and your children. May you be blessed by the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” “We will bless the Lord from this time forth and forevermore. Praise the Lord!” [8]

[1] 2 Kings 1:1-4
[2] 2 Kings 1:5-6
[3] 2 Kings 1:7-15
[4] 2 Kings 1:16-17
[5] Psalm 55:19
[6] Psalm 115:1-8
[7] Psalm 116:5-9
[8] Psalm 115:13-15, 18

Such Were Some of You

The good news of Jesus shows up in verses throughout the Bible, and sometimes during the least expected moments. For example, when Paul is writing about unrighteous people not inheriting the Kingdom of God, he speaks of fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, homosexuals, sodomites, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, and extortioners. But then, surprise, he adds, and such were some of you. [1]

Such WERE some of you. Praise God! Meaning that God no longer views them that way. Why? Paul continues, “But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the Name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.” [2]

The past labels that previously defined them were no more. They no longer live under those shadows. When they believed in Jesus and professed Him as their Lord and Savior, God forgave their sin and redefined them as His children. Their sins are washed away. They are sanctified. Set apart for God. They are RIGHT before God because they believe in His Son and His Spirit lives in them. The Holy Spirit replaced servanthood to sinful flesh with servanthood to the Most High God! Praise the Lord!

“He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.” [3] Now, we work in co-operation with God. The Holy Spirit helps us to co-operate with Christ and bring honor to our Heavenly Father. We no longer serve sin. We have privilege and power to help others and to glorify God!

“Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” [4]

The “bought with the price” refers to the redeeming work of Christ our Savior on the cross. The perfectly sinless Son of God paid a great price to wipe out our sin and to make way for the Holy Spirit to live in us. Now, we glorify God as His Spirit leads, guides and empowers us.

This is vitally important because we live in a sinful world. Some of the same evil behaviors of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel are happening today. Leaders need people who are filled with the Holy Spirit to come alongside of them and redirect them in the way of the Lord.

That person could be you. It could be me. What does God’s Word say about Elijah? He was a man of like passions with us. God worked through him because he prayed.

“Elijah was a man of like passions with us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain; and it rained not on the earth for three years and six months. And he prayed again; and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.” [5]

King Ahab wanted a neighbor’s property and offered to give him a better property or to pay him for it. The neighbor did not want to sell. When Queen Jezebel heard about it, she organized assassins to kill the neighbor and afterwards presented his property to her husband. [6]

“Then the Word of the Lord came to Elijah.”

Who is the Word of the Lord? Jesus Christ is called God’s Word. [7] Now, Jesus did not come to Elijah in the flesh. He was not yet embodied in human flesh, but He came to Elijah by His Spirit. The Lord told Elijah what to say to King Ahab. When Elijah spoke to Ahab, he did not speak for himself. He spoke for the Lord. Elijah told his king, “Thus says the Lord.” Elijah told King Ahab his sin by the Spirit of the Lord.

“Ahab had sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the Lord, because Jezebel his wife stirred him up. And he behaved very abominably in following idols, according to all that the Amorites had done, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel.” [8]

King Ahab lived in an ivory palace yet murdered and stole his neighbor’s property. He and his wife multiplied the number of false prophets in the land. False prophets spread fake news. They demanded faith in lies, and doubt of truth. [9]

The prophet Micaiah had both a vision and a word for Ahab. He said, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd.” Ahab rewarded Micaiah by having him thrown in prison and by giving him only water and bread to drink and eat. [10]

Rulers who practice propaganda, palace building, and perversion devalue their subjects. They defile a person. They ruin a person. Then, move onto their next victim. They are slaves to sin. They need to be set free. They need to hear the truth. They need someone sent to them by the Lord who will not be intimidated by their threats or punishments.

Who is better to approach an ungodly ruler than someone who was once enslaved to sin, but who is now washed clean by the blood of Jesus and filled with the Spirit of God. God used such people in the past. The Pharoah of Egypt noted that Joseph had the Spirit of the Lord. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon noted the Spirit of the Lord in Daniel. The Apostle Paul spoke to King Agrippa by the Spirit of the Lord. [11]

May God help us, the-such-were-some-of-you, to trust God that He can come alongside rulers through us and redirect them to take the path of the Good Shepherd.

[1] 1 Corinthians 6:9-11
[2] 1 Corinthians 6:11
[3] 1 Corinthians 6:17
[4] 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
[5] James 5:17-18
[6] 1 Kings 21:8-10
[7] John 1:1, 14
[8] 1 Kings 21:17-26
[9] 1 Kings 21:15; 22:6, 39
[10] 1 Kings 22:17, 27, 39
[11] Genesis 41:38; Daniel 4:9, 18; 5:11, 14; Acts 26:27-29

Keep Yourself From Idols

LSD Law defines artistic license as a term used to describe the freedom that artists have to change or exaggerate facts or details in their work for creative purposes. It is a type of license that allows artists to take liberties with reality in order to create something that is more interesting or expressive.

The Bible has more than 100 verses that urge us not to take “artistic license” with it.

Some of the last words of the Bible are, “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.” [1]

The whole curse on creation and humanity began with the devil taking “artistic license” with what God told Adam and Eve. He convinced them to believe a lie about God: “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’ ‘You will not certainly die,’ the serpent said to the woman. ‘For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’” [2]

Recently, Angel Studios has produced a number of so-called Christian movies. But truth blended with lies is like a drop of poison in a plate full of food. It is deadly. Angel Studios was founded by Mormon brothers. It is based in Utah. The Mormons base a portion of their beliefs on added and contradictory words to the Bible. In 1823, Joseph Smith said he was visited by an angel who directed him to a buried book of golden plates. These plates inspired him to take “artistic license” with the Bible.

Some Christians and Christian organizations collaborate with Mormons. This is a violation of God’s Word: “Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.” [3]

The devil mixes in lies with truth to make it harder for the listener to discern between the two. He transforms himself into an angel to deceive people. “And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.” “Even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.” [4]

Jesus told Pilate, “The reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” [5]

Jesus stuck steadfastly with what God His Father told Him to speak, “I have not spoken on My own, but the Father who sent Me has commanded Me what to say and how to say it. And I know that His command leads to eternal life.” [6]

A good shepherd does not alter the Word of God because his flock’s eternity depends on hearing and believing and professing truth. The truth sets people free.

When someone told the prophet Micaiah to alter his prophesy to agree with what others were saying, he responded, “As the Lord lives, whatever the Lord says to me, that I will speak.” [7]

The Lord warns us, “Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?” [8]

Do the words or scenes line up the Bible? Can you find what they said in the Bible? Did they quote the verse accurately or alter it?

“Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” [9]

Jesus warned of false prophets before He returned. The news media spreads false reports. Politicians lie. There are cult members going door to door attempting to persuade people to follow their leaders. Scam emails! Scam text messages! Scam phone calls! Con-artist sales people! False advertising!

The Lord Jesus and His apostles laid down their lives for their followers. Jesus taught His disciples to be servants. Only the Holy Spirit of God changes self-serving sinners into cross-bearing lovers who lay down their lives for God and others.

“We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true. And we are in Him who is true by being in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.” [10]

[1] Revelation 22:18-19
[2] 1 John 2:9-11
[3] Genesis 3:1, 4-5
[4] 2 Corinthians 11:14, Galatians 1:8
[5] John 18:37
[6] John 12:49-50
[7] 1 Kings 22:14
[8] 1 Corinthians 5:6
[9] Acts 17:11
[10] 1 John 5:20-21

The Wind in My Sails Who does Not Fail

The Word of the Lord came to Elijah. Who is the Word of the Lord? Jesus! But He came to Elijah by His Spirit. He gave Elijah guidance as He is prone to do. He guided Elijah to safety and to provision. The Lord provided a river for Elijah to drink from and ravens to bring him meat and bread twice per day. [1]

After that, the Word of the Lord came to Elijah again. He directed Elijah to a town in Sidon to meet a widow. The Lord had commanded that widow to provide for him. She was on her last handful of flour and her last jar of cooking oil, but never mind, the Lord gave Elijah faith to tell her to use them and that they would last until more food became available. She “did according to the Word of Elijah; and she and he and her household ate for many days. The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the Word of the Lord which He spoke by Elijah.” [2]

After that, the widow’s son died, but the Lord answered the prayer of Elijah and resurrected her son from the dead. Elijah told her, “See, your son lives!” She responded, “Now by this I know that you are a man of God, and that the Word of the Lord in your mouth is the truth.” [3]

During the drought, Queen Jezebel massacred the Lord’s prophets, that is except for Elijah and except for 100 prophets that the king’s household manager (Obadiah) hid in caves. The king had sent people to every “nation and kingdom” to hunt for Elijah but the Lord always kept Elijah a step ahead of the king’s assassins and they failed to kill him. After this, the Word of the Lord told Elijah to present himself to the king, which he did. [4]

The Lord was with Elijah. Rather than the king seizing control of him, he commanded the king to

“gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, the 450 prophets of Baal, and the 400 prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.” And the king did it. [5]

Elijah exhorted the crowd that gathered, saying, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him.” He declared to them, “The God who answers by fire, He is God.” And the people responded, “It is well spoken.” [6]

Elijah repaired the “repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down. He called upon the Lord, saying to Him, “Let it be known that I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your Word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.” “The fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench.” “The people saw it, fell on their faces; and said, ‘The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!’” [7]

Mission accomplished! Elijah obeyed God’s Word and people acknowledged and professed that the Lord is God. Professions of faith in God is the goal of every messenger of God.

When the Lord saved Israel out of the hand of those who hated them, it was that they would “believe His Words and “sing His praise.” [8]

The Lord “satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with goodness.” [9]

The Lord “breaks the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron in two.” [10]

The Lord “sent His Word, healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” [11]

The Lord rescues those who “are at their wits’ end” when “they cry out to Him in their trouble. He brings them out of their distresses. He calms the storm, so that its waves are still. He guides them to their desired haven.” [12]

What do those who call upon the Lord have to say about Him? Just this, “Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies.” [13]

The Lord is the wind in my sails who does not fail. I testify that the Lord has guided me by His Word to safety and provision numerous times. He has healed me. He has filled me with love, joy and peace. He has often helped me to take on challenges greater than myself and to prevail. “Praise the Lord!”

[1] 1 Kings 17:2-7
[2] 1 Kings 17:8-15
[3] 1 Kings 17:20-24
[4] 1 Kings 18:1-10
[5] 1 Kings 18:19-20
[6] 1 Kings 18:21-20, 29
[7] 1 Kings 18:30, 36-39
[8] Psalm 106:8-12
[9] Psalm 107:9
[10] Psalm 107:16
[11] Psalm 107:20
[12] Psalm 107:25-30
[13] Psalm 108:13

Blessing is Better than Boasting

King David set forth a good example for us to follow, saying, “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy Name!” [1]

The Apostle Paul wrote, “Let no one boast in men. For all things are yours: and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.” [2]

Let our hearts, our minds, our voices and our strength be unto the Lord! Bless His Name!

What has the Lord done for us? Let us not forget all His benefits!

He forgives all our iniquities. He heals all our diseases. He redeems our life from destruction. He crowns us with lovingkindness and tender mercies. He satisfies our mouth with good things. He renews our youth like the eagle’s. He replaces oppression with righteousness. He makes known His ways to us. He is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in mercy toward us. He removed our transgressions from us. As a father pities his children, the Lord pities us.” [3]

Let us be like those of whom the Lord said in His Word, he “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord.” His “heart was loyal to the Lord all his days.” [4]

To bless the Lord is better than boasting in self or in people. Paul urged the Corinthian Christians to shun the carnal thought-life. He wrote, “For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men? For when one says, ‘I am of Paul,’ and another, ‘I am of Apollos,’ are you not carnal? Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.” [5] God increases – bless His Name!

The surest foundation to build on is the profession of Jesus Christ as one’s Lord and Savior, for that is who He is. All glory to Christ!

“For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” [6]

“Therefore let no one boast in men.” “You are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.” [7] Bless His holy Name!

[1] Psalm 103:1
[2] 1 Corinthians 3:21, 23
[3] Psalm 103:3-13
[4] 1 Kings 15:11, 14
[5] 1 Corinthians 3:3-7
[6] 1 Corinthians 3:11
[7] 1 Corinthians 3:21, 23

Following the Lord Involves Receptivity

Following the Lord involves receptivity. The Lord’s ways are perfect, so how can we say, “We follow the Lord” when we live in a hap-hazard lackadaisical way? Haphazard lackadaisical actions are disorganized, unplanned, and characterized by a lack of enthusiasm or care. “Lackadaisical” describes someone who puts forth minimal effort. [1]

God looks at the heart. [2]

The Psalmist describes the paths of the Lord to follow:

“I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me. A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will not know wickedness. Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will destroy; the one who has a haughty look and a proud heart, him I will not endure. My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; he who walks in a perfect way, he shall serve me. He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house; he who tells lies shall not continue in my presence.” [3]

He follows the Lord with the ponderances of his heart and with his eyes. He follows the Lord in the kinds of influencers he embraces and shuns. He follows the Lord in the kinds of speech he accepts and rejects. (By the way, lies and deceit often flow from TV programs.) He humbly and meekly chooses the Lord’s perfect way, though it denies his flesh the sinful food it craves.

“The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom, and before honor is humility.” [4]

There are numerous examples of people who followed the Lord in the Bible. The Lord honored them by including them in His story.

The prophet Ahijah had a word from the Lord for King Jeroboam. He declared, “My servant David, who kept My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart, to do only what was right in My eyes; but you have done more evil than all who were before you...” “Therefore behold! I will bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam and will cut off from Jeroboam every male in Israel, bond and free; I will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as one takes away refuse until it is all gone.” [5]

David followed the Lord, Jeroboam did not. God spoke of Jeroboam as trash to be taken out. God trashes those who trash Him. Hell is an incinerator, except that the soul does not die, so it suffers forever in that place. [6]

The Lord sets forth the apostle Paul as a good example for us to follow. Paul kept his eyes on Jesus and relied on the power of the Holy Spirit to follow Jesus.

“I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” [7]

Paul experienced many trials as he walked with the Lord but knew by the Spirit of God that dwelt within Him that the Lord would richly reward Him for trusting in Him. He wrote...

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” [8]

Why was Paul so sure of the Lord’s blessings?

“God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.” [9]

Following the Lord involves receiving from the Lord. The Holy Spirit gave Samson strength. The Holy Spirit gave Gideon courage. The Holy Spirit gave prophets and apostles God's Word. Even Jesus spoke of being anointed by the Spirit to do the works that He did.

“The flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.” Jesus said, “Watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” [10]

Paul pointed his followers to the Holy Spirit for training and discernment.

“These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” [11]

Lately, I’ve been praying at the on-start of my prayer time, “Holy Spirit be the wind in my sails. Help me to pray.” He does. The Lord is the best leader and the best supplier of what we need to follow Him. May the Holy Spirit help us to follow the Lord when the herd around us is going in the opposite direction, but also help us to bring the herd with us, if possible, by the power of the Holy Spirit working via the Word of God in Christ Jesus.

[1] vocabulary.com
[2] 1 Samuel 16:7, Proverbs 21:2, Jeremiah 17:10, Luke 16:15
[3] Psalm 101:2-7
[4] Proverbs 15:33
[5] 1 Kings 14:8-13
[6] Matthew 8:12, 13:42, 50, 25:46; Luke 16:24; Revelation 14:11
[7] 1 Corinthians 2:2-5
[8] 1 Corinthians 2:9
[9] 1 Corinthians 2:10, 12
[10] Galatians 6:17; Matthew 26:41
[11] 1 Corinthians 2:13-14

Eager for His Appearance

“All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.” “He is coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, and the peoples with equity.” [1]

How have the people of the earth seen the salvation of our God? Via His Gospel! Now, our Lord’s return is imminent. His return ends sin and the pain it causes. Praise the Lord!

“Moses and Aaron were among His priests, and Samuel was among those who called upon His Name; they called upon the Lord, and He answered them.” “You answered them, O Lord our God; You were to them God-Who-Forgives, though You took vengeance on their deeds.” [2]

“Thank You Father for correcting us. Thank You Father for forgiving us.”

“A true witness delivers souls, but a deceitful witness speaks lies.” “The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to turn one away from the snares of death.” [3]

“Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for being a true witness to us. Thank You for promising to us victory over death. Please help us to be messengers of eternal life to others. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.”

“I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” [4]

“Yes, praise You Father God for Your grace. Thank You for enriching us with utterance (giving us a voice), with knowledge (of Your kingdom), with a firm faith in the testimony of Your Son Jesus Christ including gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit. Thank You for keeping us in fellowship with Your Son and for placing within us an eager anticipation of the day of Your Son’s return.”

“The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” “We preach Christ crucified.” [5]

“Yes, Father, let us be cross-eyed. Always knowing Your Son is the Lamb without blemish, the perfect sacrifice, atoning for our sins, and redeeming us from our failures.”

“You are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption—that, as it is written, ‘He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.’” [6]

“I’m so glad I'm a part of the Family of God, I’ve been washed in the fountain, cleansed by His Blood! Joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod, for I'm part of the family, the family of God.” [7] “We glory in You Lord!”

I look forward to being with God and with all the people in the Bible who have been like family to me throughout at my life, to help me to know and walk with the Shepherd of my soul.

[1] Psalm 98:3, 9
[2] Psalm 99:2, 8
[3] Proverbs 14:25, 27
[4] 1 Corinthians 1:4-9
[5] 1 Corinthians 1:18, 23
[6] 1 Corinthians 1:30-31
[7] Words and music by Bill and Gloria Gaither

The Law of Love

The Lord asked King Jehoiakim a very profound question before he was taken away into captivity. The Lord spoke to him through His servant Jeremiah. “Shall you reign because you enclose yourself in cedar? Did not your father eat and drink and do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Was not this knowing Me? says the Lord. Yet your eyes and your heart are for nothing but your covetousness, for shedding innocent blood, and practicing oppression and violence.” [1]

King Josiah was Jehoiakim’s father. Josiah had purged the land of false prophets and priests. He reinstituted the observance of Passover which had fallen by the way side due to the previous kings who worshipped idols. He stood up for the poor and needy against those who were taking advantage of them, and the Lord stood up for him.

Jehoiakim raised taxes. He built himself a beautiful palace and did not pay the workers. He put to death innocent people. When he died, he was buried with the burial of a donkey. No one mourned the loss of him. [2]

King Solomon wrote by the Spirit of the Lord, “There is one who makes himself rich yet has nothing; and one who makes himself poor yet has great riches.” [3]

Love for God and for others is great riches! Egotistical goals achieved do not satisfy.

The Apostle James wrote by the Spirit of the Lord, “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.” [4]

Let love flow! It will flow to the lowest places where people need and appreciate it the most.

The Lord says not to be partial to the rich over the poor. Don’t be judges with evil thoughts. God has chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him. He says that mercy triumphs over judgment. He mentions Rahab the former harlot who, given the opportunity, believed in Him, as an example of a person whose faith did His work. [5]

King Solomon wrote by the Spirit of the Lord, “Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.” [6]

The Apostle Paul wrote by the Spirit of the Lord, “Now I urge you, brethren, to note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple.” [7]

So, it is best to be filled with love for God and love for people, and not to be drawn away by the bling of the proud. The Lord says, “The God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.” [8] In other words, the taunts of those who are serving themselves and persecuting the Lord’s servants will soon end, and the Lord’s servants will survive thanks to God’s grace.

King David wrote by the Spirit of the Lord, “Blessed is the man whom You instruct, O Lord, and teach out of Your law, that You may give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit is dug for the wicked. For the Lord will not cast off His people, nor will He forsake His inheritance. But judgment will return to righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it.” [9]

When the Lord returns, the wrongs will be gone, and the rights will be forever. Blessed are the instructed of the Lord and blessed are we as we hold to His promises and live according to His law of love.

[1] Jeremiah 22:15-17
[2] Jeremiah 22:9, 13, 18-19
[3] Proverbs 13:7
[4] James 1:27
[5] James 2:1-13, 23-26
[6] Proverbs 10:12
[7] Romans 16:17-18
[8] Romans 16:24
[9] Psalm 94:12-15

Proclaiming His Love Far and Wide

Solomon spread out his hands toward heaven and said: “Lord God of Israel, there is no God in heaven above or on earth below like You, who keep Your covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts.” [1]

The God of Israel is God alone. He keeps covenant. In today’s vernacular we say, “Promises made promises kept.”

Every person that has ever lived as needed His mercy. God has never needed ours. He will still be around long after this current heaven and earth have been replaced by the new ones.

Though Solomon was exceedingly rich, he knew that he needed the Lord to hear his prayers so he said to the Lord, “ Yet regard the prayer of Your servant and his supplication, O Lord my God, and listen to the cry and the prayer which Your servant is praying before You today... when You hear, forgive.” [2]

Next, Solomon described future catastrophes that would come upon his nation, and asked God to hear the prayers and forgive the sins of those future generations when they turned back to Him, confessed His Name and made supplication to Him.

When defeated before enemies! When without rain! When famine! When foreigners come to Jerusalem to pray to Him! When soldiers cry out to Him amidst battles! When captives in foreign lands! [3]

He said with a loud voice to the assembled people of his nation, “Let your heart therefore be loyal to the Lord our God, to walk in His statutes and keep His commandments, as at this day.” [4]

A nation’s collective blessing or demise is contingent on a love relationship with the Lord. Solomon’s father David believed and professed this truth. He wrote, “Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, even the Most High, your dwelling place, no evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; for He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.” [5]

God giving His angels to watch over us is His mercy. A mercy especially granted to those who take refuge in Him! To take refuge in Him is to be close to Him. To be in Him. To be in Christ by being filled with the indwelling Holy Spirit.

“Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My Name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him My salvation.” [6]

God desires a love relationship with you. In a love relationship with the Lord you reap the benefits of that relationship, such as honor from the Lord, help from the Lord, satisfaction from the Lord, and salvation by the Lord.

“It is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises to Your Name, O Most High; to declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, and Your faithfulness every night.” [7]

Thanking, singing, proclaiming God’s goodness, His lovingkindness and His faithfulness! How? These are the overflows of a love relationship with the Lord.

The Apostle Paul expressed His love for God by preaching the Gospel of Christ’s redeeming love far and wide. “In mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum I have fully preached the Gospel of Christ. And so I have made it my aim to preach the Gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man’s foundation.” [8]

“Dear Heavenly Father, please help us Your people to serve and honor You with all our hearts, minds, souls and strength that peoples of every nation might know of how You sent Your Son to be the sacrifice to remove their sins before You and to open the way for Your Holy Spirit to dwell in them. May Your Word run very quickly throughout the earth, and may You bless us to be the ones who get to proclaim it far and wide. In Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen!”

[1] 1 Kings 8:22-23
[2] 1 Kings 8:28, 30
[3] 1 Kings 8:33-53
[4] 1 Kings 8:61
[5] Psalm 91:9-11
[6] Psalm 91:14-16
[7] Psalm 92:1-2
[8] Romans 15:19-20