“Therefore, seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy we faint not.”
To make a long story short, the ministry that Paul wrote about here is the ministry of telling others about Jesus. This ministry was not always welcomed in Paul’s day and it is not always welcomed in our day. Paul suffered greatly for sharing Jesus with his fellow Jews and Gentile pagans. He did not faint, quit, or as the NIV translates it: “We do not lose heart.” The way we would say it today: “We have not become discouraged." Paul would have had many reasons to become discouraged, since everywhere he went there was, as Leonard Ravenhill wrote, “a revival or a riot.” If Paul did not get discouraged in his day, we certainly need to guard against it in our day. Why should we refrain from getting discouraged? Discouragement is plain and simply used by Satan to stop us in our tracks in Christ’s work. If he can get us discouraged, his job will become easier because when we are discouraged we do not serve the Lord. The fact is that at the bedrock of discouragement is self-pity. I know that in my own experience when I have given in to self-pity, I wasn’t any good for Christ, His church, or anything else good that I should have been doing. Think of how the New Testament would be different if Paul had lost heart and had become discouraged, a lot of churches would not have been founded and about one-third of the New Testament would not have been written. We might think that our giving in to discouragement would not be as devastating as this, but for what God wants you to do and for what you can do for your church it would be devastating. I have probably written this in a blog before, but it fits here too well not to use it: Satan had a sale on his “tools” that he used for temptations. A demon was looking over the tools when he noticed a silver wedge on the top shelf with no price tag on it. He asked about the silver wedge and Satan answered him that this wedge was not for sale because it was the wedge of discouragement, and if he could get people discouraged it would be easier to get them to commit other sins. Discouragement does not lead to anything constructive in our lives. I was involved in a prison ministry for over twenty years in two prisons. Sometimes I would miss one of my regular attendees at Bible study and would ask him why? A good many times the reason was that they had become discouraged because of problems at home or some other problem and just didn’t feel right about coming to Bible study. My answer was always that his discouragement was all the more reason to come to Bible study. I could understand that problems at home would be especially distressing for a prisoner, but not coming to Bible study would not solve the problem at home. Discouragement has a way of making us do things that we know are not good for us. This affects our work, our Christian service, our family life, and a number of other things that we do not need to give up on. Discouragement can have a negative effect upon our witness to the world. As alluded to earlier, when we are discouraged we are wrapped up in our own troubles and do not look outside of ourselves. We become selfish, mean-spirited and indifferent about the things that go on around us. This is true of our Christian living as well. It affects our prayer lives, our study of the Bible and our interest in the spiritual welfare of other people. I know that it is not always easy to overcome discouragement, because devastating things can happen to us to cause it. Believe me, I know that the struggle to overcome discouragement is not always easy. Hey, I have worked with churches for over fifty years; do you think that I am not acquainted with the temptation to lose heart? But I intrinsically know that if I allow myself to become discouraged my work will become ineffective. With a lot of prayer, Bible study, fellowship with Christians and the love of the God who wants the best for you, you can overcome whatever may be discouraging you. Bro. Joe
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“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.”
Verse 14 gives us the setting for the text: “But and if you suffer for righteousness sake, happy are you: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled.” When Peter wrote this, suffering was not something that Christians might have to deal with. It could be downright fatal to be a Christian in those days. He also counseled them not to be afraid of those who would terrify them because of their beliefs. It is getting so in our day that we have to deal with this in a way, and it will only get worse. In our text, Peter tells them, and us, how to handle the situation. It was good advice for Peter’s original recipients and it is good advice for us as well. First, Peter advised them to “sanctify the Lord God in your hearts.” NIV translates it: “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord…” The idea is to that if you want to be ready to face the challenges of the world give your whole heart to Jesus and make Him Lord. Living the Christian faith is always concerned with our hearts. That is why we are warned in Proverbs 4:23 to: "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.” We have Jeremiah’s take on this for his day in Jeremiah 29:13: “And you shall seek me, and find me, when you shall search for me with all your heart.” Throughout the Bible we are reminded that the Lord wants our whole heart. Peter also reminded them that they should make Jesus the Lord of their lives. If we are not one hundred percent in Jesus’ corner, we will not be ready to confront the issues of the Christian faith. Second, Peter advised them to be ready to “give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you.” This means that as we confront the world with the gospel, we need to know what we believe and why we believe it. It is for sure that we will not be good defenders of the gospel if we do not know the Bible. Christians need to spend time in the Bible, at the expense of every other book in their lives if they want to be effective witnesses for Jesus. Christians cannot have a radiant and compelling witness for Jesus if we do not read and study His word. Do you know why Jehovah’s Witnesses can claim to gain many converts from various mainline churches? It is because people do not know what they believe, and someone who has memorized a spiel from the teachings of a heretic, can twist them around their little fingers. We need to know the Bible and we need to know what we believe about the Bible. What are we defending? We are defending “the hope that is in (us).” Our hope is Christ and our hope is in Christ. We are not defending our denomination’s reputation, nor are we defending our church’s reputation. We are defending the hope that we have in Christ. Christ is our hope, He is the hope of the world, and He is the hope of the people that we encounter with the gospel. Third, Peter advised them as to how they were to “give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.” The NIV translates this as: “with gentleness and respect.” In other words, we are not to defend our faith in an arrogant, know-it-all attitude. We are not to be accusative of the people to whom we are talking. We are not to argue with them about what they believe. I am at a point in my life that if I am trying to tell someone about Jesus and they want to argue, I don’t go any further. We cannot argue people into the kingdom of God. I would add that we cannot talk people into the kingdom. It is the Holy Spirit that convinces them, we are the witnesses, and the Holy Spirit is the convincer. This is good advice and we need to take it seriously. Bro. Joe “And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.”
You know the parable: A man en route to Jericho from Jerusalem was beaten, robbed and left for dead on the side of the road. A priest happened by, looked at the man, and “passed by on the other side.” Later, a Levite happened by, looked at the man, and “passed by on the other side.” Then what we call, “the Good Samaritan” happened by and stopped to help the man. The focus of this article will be on the priest and Levite, who both went to the other side of the road instead of helping the man. What does “the other side” represent to us? First, the other side is the easiest side. The priest and Levite saved a lot of time. Obviously, both of these men considered their time too valuable to spend it with a dying man. They also saved themselves a lot of bother. Not only would helping a dying man be time consuming, it would be bothersome as well – all of that blood, you know. They just did not want to be bothered. Sadly, the priest and Levite are still alive in spirit. There are many church members who do not have time for people, nor do they want to be bothered with people. Other people’s problems can be so messy. Let us pray that we will not be “priests" or "Levites.” Second, the other side is the most pleasant side. It is not pleasant to bind up wounds. Perhaps the Jewish religious leaders did not want to get their hands dirty or get blood on their clothes. After all, they would have been considered unclean. Most human problems are unpleasant. We have to minister to others in spite of it. It is also not pleasant to be a witness to suffering. It is easy to stay uninvolved in life’s suffering. We can tell ourselves that people are not really hurting or really hungry, etc. Priests and Levites are still among us, and it could be you or me if we are not careful. Third, the other side is ultimately the most expensive side. It cost the Samaritan to leave the other side: Luke 10:34-35: “And (he) went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatever you spend more, when I come again, I will repay you.” But it also cost the priest and Levite to “pass by on the other side.” It did not cost them money, but it did cost them before God. Surely, God was not pleased that they chose to pass by the man. It also caused, or should have caused, them to lose self-respect. I’m not asking you, or myself, to pick up every hitch-hiker that we see. I am asking us to be aware of human suffering and minister to those who are suffering. The cost of “the other side” will be higher than dealing with suffering humanity. Ask yourself: When you stand before God, would you prefer to be the Samaritan, or the priest and Levite? This will help you understand why I wrote that "the other side is ultimately the most expensive side." Do not live on the other side. Notice suffering and hurting people around you, have compassion on them and lend a helping hand. Take the time, bother, and money to be a “good Samaritan.” Jesus thinks that we should. Bro. Joe “You shall march around the city, all you men of war; you shall go all around the city once, this you shall do six days.”
Of all the battle strategies given in the history of mankind, this has to be one of the most unusual. I’m sure that you know the story behind the attack on Jericho, where God told the Jews to go around the city once a day for six days. Then they were to go around the city seven times on the seventh day. After the seventh time around the city, the priest blew the trumpet, the people shouted and the “walls of Jericho tumbled down.” The Jews were then able to go into the city and take it over. There are some lessons in this incident for us. The first lesson is that we need to obey God, no matter how bizarre His plan might seem to us. Like Joshua, we need to remember that He is God and does not really think like we do. God knows what we need to do and how we need to do it, whether we understand it or not. Isaiah 55:8 informs us that according to God: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.” God is just not like us and He does not think like we do – thank God. When Saul of Tarsus, who became Paul the Apostle, was saved, at first there were Christians who did not want to have anything to do with him. We can’t be too hard on those people, because we probably would have had the same reaction. Why did they doubt? My guess is that they thought that if God wanted someone to witness especially to Gentiles, He would find a good Gentile, save him and call him to the task. It was difficult for them to comprehend that God would find the meanest Jew that He could find, save him, and send him to the Gentiles. Which all goes to prove that God’s thoughts are not our thoughts and God’s ways are not our ways. Our job is to obey God whether we understand His strategy or not. The second lesson is that there is no wall too thick or too high for God to overthrow. The walls were impenetrable to Joshua and his fellow Jews, but they were not impenetrable to God. There are probably some “walls” in our lives that are impenetrable to us, but we need to remember that they are not impenetrable to God. There might be a habit that we would really like to overcome, but it has become so ingrained in our minds and hearts that, like a thick wall, it just seems impossible to make it come down. We need to remember that we do not have a habit that God cannot help us overcome. There might be a person in our lives who has hurt us a lot, and we are having a difficult time forgiving him or her. I know from experience that forgiveness does not always come easily, particularly if the person really and truly hurt us in some significant way. But Jesus, who was always willing to forgive those who wronged Him, will enable us to forgive as well. It might be that we have doubts about God, the Bible and the church. The only way that doubt is a sin is if we succumb to it and let Satan have his way. John the Baptist evidently had some concerns about whether or not Jesus was truly the Messiah, because he sent some of his disciples to ask Jesus about. Evidently, when Jesus gave His answer and John’s disciples took the answer back to him, John’s doubts were relieved. The wall of doubt can fall as we seek God’s knowledge about the matter. The third lesson is that when God tells us that we can be victorious, we can be victorious. There is a lot of negativism in America today concerning the Christian faith, but that does not mean we are defeated. The world will defeat us if Satan has his way. Jesus told Peter at Caesarea Philippi that “the gates of hell could not prevail against” His church. We are the church and Jesus has given us the victory in spite of our weaknesses and in spite of our failures. God has assured us that our faith in Him is the “victory that has overcome the world." Turn your walls over to God and watch them come tumbling down. Bro. Joe “Come before (the Lord’s) presence with thanksgiving…”
How can we come into the presence of the Lord without being thankful? After all, the only reason that we have access to Him is because He allows it by grace. We have an understanding of being in the Lord’s presence that the psalmist did not have. The psalmist lived before the “veil of the temple was torn in two.” Because of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, we are in His presence at all times. Not only should we “come before His presence with thanksgiving;” we should live in His presence with thanksgiving. There are at least three areas of our lives that we should approach the Lord in thanksgiving: when we worship, when we work, and when we witness. We should approach the Lord in thankful worship on a daily basis. Sunday worship is not enough. Every Christian should set aside a time for Bible reading and prayer each day. It is safe to say that every great Christian, throughout Christian history, has disciplined himself, or herself, to have devotions every day. How else can we express our thankfulness to Him for all that He has done in our lives? If you do not have a devotional time in your daily routine, you need to start one now. Also, we should be aware of God’s presence every moment of every day and be thankful that He is with us. We should also approach the Lord in thankful worship in corporate worship with our church. Sunday should be a day of worship and praise with our fellow Christians. Again, all great Christians took time for this. If we are truly thankful, why would we have to be begged or manipulated into publicly worshipping God? Public worship identifies us with the people of God, and indentifies us with all of the great people of God – past and present. We should go about our work in our chosen professions in a spirit of thanksgiving. Work was ordained in the Garden of Eden. Even before they sinned, Adam and Eve were told to tend the Garden. Work was not punishment; it was a privilege. Work did not become burdensome until sin entered the picture. The original words for work and worship are almost indistinguishable. We are not to just be thankful on our knees, but we are to be thankful as we go about our daily work. After all, we work in God’s presence each day. We should do Christian work, church work and otherwise in a spirit of thanksgiving. We should not begrudge the time that we spend in serving the Lord. We should be thankful for this work because the Lord allows us to work for Him. We are not doing God any favors. He favors us by letting us serve Him. Remember this as you go about your work for Him in your church and community – and be thankful. Every Christian is a witness for Jesus. We should not be afraid of this. We should be thankful. Again, witnessing is not our burden, it is our privilege. Witnessing should be a natural overflow of thanksgiving for what Jesus has done for us. How can we be aware that we live in His presence daily and not yearn to witness for Him in some way. The first witness that we have is our lives. If we live thankfully before Him each day, people will see our lives and, perhaps, want what we have. You have probably heard the hymn: “Living for Jesus, a life that is true, living for Jesus in all that I do. Living for Jesus a life that is free, this is the pathway of blessing for me…” All of the above gives us good reason to “come before "God’s presence with thanksgiving.” Remember that being thankful is not just a November thing, it is an every day thing. Bro. Joe “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.”
I believe that one of the main tenets of the Christian faith is joy. The Bible is filled with texts about joy. I have preached a lot of sermons and written a lot of articles about joy over the years. But in the text above, Jesus said that we are blessed, or happy, when we mourn. What in the world is Jesus talking about? Then we read in James 4:9: “Be afflicted and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.“ Do we have a contradiction here? It is not a contradiction. The Bible teaches us to be joyful, but we cannot be joyful about everything. The same Christian heart that has the capacity to be joyful should also have a deep capacity to mourn. Christian mourning does not erase Christian joy. Jesus has given us His joy (John 15:11) and it can never be taken away from us. But, for example, when we see people doing something that might destroy their lives we certainly can’t laugh it off. We should mourn for them. When we realize that someone is not a Christian and is about to die, this is certainly something to mourn about. We should mourn about our own sins until we seek God’s forgiveness for them. Jesus and James were not calling us to a lifestyle of mourning, but were reminding us that there are real things to mourn about in this world. I have daily joy in the Lord and enjoy my fellowship with Him. But when I look at the condition of our world today, I have to mourn as well. When I read about what is happening in Syria, for example, I cannot laugh it off and say it doesn’t matter because it’s not touching me. When I read about Christians being persecuted in places like China and Iran, I mourn for those brothers and sisters in Christ who do not have the freedom to worship their Lord. I mourn when I read about people who are starving to death in Africa. It breaks my heart to see children bloated from malnutrition, while their leaders live in luxury. It causes me to mourn when I read about women who are in disastrous marriages where their husbands beat them unmercifully. I mourn when I read about the boys who were sexually abused by the assistant coach at Penn State. I mourn when I see churches divided, not by great doctrinal issues, but by the clashing of egos. I think that we all mourn when we lose loved ones to death. I don’t mean to depress you, but you will have to agree that there are things that cause us to mourn, and if we do not mourn because of them there is something spiritually wrong with us. This is the concern of Jesus and James in the two texts that we have seen. We who have the joy of the Lord also need to have the capacity to mourn over things that we should mourn over. Jesus gave a promise with His statement on mourning: “they shall be comforted.” When we mourn, it does not destroy our faith in Jesus. It does not cause us to blame Him and wonder why people have to suffer. When we mourn, Jesus brings the comfort of the Holy Spirit into our lives. This is partially what Jesus meant when He told us in Matthew 11:28: “Come unto me all ye that labor and heavy laden and I will give you rest.” Christian mourning does not cause us to get depressed; rather, it makes us lean on Jesus and take these sorrows to Him. We are comforted because mourning leads us to prayer, and when we pray we find the peace of the Lord. Jesus and James are not calling us to be depressed, but they are calling us to care. A heart that is filled with the joy of Jesus is a caring heart, and a caring heart is empathetic with the suffering of the world. Jesus and James are not calling us to live unhappy lives. They are calling us reach out and help others who are in need. This will not drive us to unhappiness, but it will drive us to agape love. Agape love is an active love. (John 3:16 comes to mind.) Go on in the joy of the Lord, but realize that it is not wrong to mourn things that should be mourned. Bro. Joe “As you have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all (people), especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”
This verse is preceded by a reminder not to “be weary in well-doing: for in due season you shall reap if you faint not.” Remember that Paul was adamant that salvation is by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, and not of works. But he also wrote that when we are saved we are to do the works that God has appointed us to do. (Read Ephesians 2:8-10.) It has always been God’s will that His people do good. Several years ago, I listened to a preacher’s tapes who constantly said, “It is better to be a ‘do gooder’ than to be a ‘do badder.’” The very fact of the Spirit of God in our lives demands that we do good. Notice that Paul wrote that as the Galatians had “opportunity” they should “do good to all people.” We are to be aware of the opportunities to do good that arise in a day. When we encounter some situations, we should be attuned to whether they are God-given opportunities or not. There have been times that I have been casually talking to someone and they would say something that would awaken me to an opportunity to do good. That might have been to witness to them about Jesus, or just listen to what they had to say. Sometimes the best that we can do is to just be quiet and listen. When I was in clinical training years ago, which was training in counseling, we were told to do more listening than we did talking. I found that for the most part this is a true technique. Sometimes what a person needs at that moment with you is to have your undivided attention and your friendship. Just be aware of the opportunities that God puts in your way on a daily basis. Paul wrote that we are to “do good unto all people…” This means that we are to look for opportunities to do good to people who are not Christians, or not part of our church. Often, doing good for a non-Christian will be the best witness that we can give. At least we know that people will listen to us if they know that we care for and listen to them. We are to do good for them even if they do not respond positively to the Gospel. We can’t make a person go into the kingdom, but we can give them a positive view of what a Christian is. We might say that this would make us a little like Jesus. Don’t misunderstand me, I wish that everyone that I witnessed to accepted Jesus, but that just does not happen, and because it doesn’t, doesn’t mean that I should then act unchristian. But Paul also wrote that we are “do good….especially unto them which are of the household of faith.” If you have had any experience with church, you know the importance of this advice. Sometimes we Christians can be awfully unchristian towards each other. Breaches in church fellowship are probably the number one reason that many churches do not grow. I do not have any statistics on this, but that it is so just seems like common sense to me. People who are not Christians, or people looking for a church, cannot be impressed with ill-treatment of fellow church members. Jesus gave us the key to “doing good” in Matthew 5:13 and 14 when He referred us as “the salt of the earth” (vs. 13) and “the light of the world” (vs.14). As “salt of the earth,” we add flavor to life and we preserve the righteousness that is given to us by Jesus. As the“light of the world” we are to shine so that people “can see (our) good works, and glorify (our) Father who is in heaven.” (vs. 16) If we are to serve as“salt” and “light” to an increasingly hostile world, we must do good to all people and to our fellow Christians. It is our responsibility to let people see Jesus in us, and at work in us, by the good things that we do and say on a daily basis. Let’s do it! Bro. Joe Matthew 3:1-2: “In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2. And saying, Repent ye for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Matthew 4:17: “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” The Bible teaches us about the kingdom of heaven. It presents this kingdom in two parts: there is a future kingdom, which will last for eternity and there is a present kingdom that is here and now. It is this present kingdom that Jesus’ disciples lived in and that we presently live in. Both John the Baptist and Jesus presented a “kingdom of heaven that is at hand.” What they both meant was that Jesus is here and that where He is, is where the kingdom is. Specifically, Jesus said “repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” What He meant was that the king is here. The kingdom had not revealed itself in believers at that time, but the king was present. We look forward to living, worshipping and serving in the future kingdom, but at the present time we are living, worshipping and serving in the present kingdom, where Jesus rules and reigns in the lives of believers. Jesus spoke of the kingdom in a present sense when He said in Matthew 6:33: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.” If the kingdom is not a present reality, why seek it? In Luke 17:20-21, Jesus spoke of His kingdom as being “within you.” “And when He was demanded of the Pharisees when the kingdom of God should come, He answered and said, The Kingdom of God does not come with observation. 21. Neither shall they say, Lo here! Or lo there! For behold the kingdom of God is within you.” Again, the kingdom is portrayed as present reality in His people. There are many more examples but I think that those given above are sufficient to prove the point. Where is the present kingdom? Though Jesus spoke of the present kingdom before Pentecost in Acts 2, we see a powerful manifestation of it on that day when the Holy Spirit began His work within believers. As far as believers were concerned, the kingdom came with power that day. The present kingdom is within believers and reveals itself through the indwelling Holy Spirit. All true believers make up the present kingdom. This kingdom is contained within churches, which are made up of believers. What are signs of the present kingdom? The first sign is the king’s presence – the presence of Jesus. This presence was certainly revealed on the day of Pentecost. The presence of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers is certainly a sign of the present kingdom. The indwelling Spirit is necessary for an individual to enter the kingdom and to advance the kingdom. After all, the Holy Spirit does not glorify Himself, but He glorifies Jesus. The second sign is the king’s rule. The kingdom is present wherever Christ is ruling and reigning in the lives of believers. This rule is evident when one has accepted Jesus as Savior, received the Holy Spirit and his or her life is changed. They are still subject to the world’s laws, but not the world’s rule. That is why Paul wrote to Roman Christians that they should not be“conformed to the world,” but to be transformed by the renewing of their minds The third sign of the present kingdom is the King’s power. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 4:20: “For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power.” The book of acts gives evidence that where the kingdom of God is, God’s power is revealed. There is a coming kingdom when all other rule and authority will be put down, and only God’s kingdom will stand. Until then, we are His kingdom, because, through the Holy Spirit, Jesus is present in our lives. Meanwhile, He has put us about His kingdom’s work. Bro. Joe “Call unto me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.”
The prophet, Jeremiah, lived and wrote at a critical time in Jewish history. During his lifetime, the Jews were taken captive into Babylon, and Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed. In fact, after he wrote the words in our text, he reminded the people of the bad things that were about to happen, then in verses 6-7 he gave a promise of better days to come: “Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and reveal unto you them abundance of peace and truth. 7. And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will rebuild them, as at the first.” In this context I want us to see this verse as a personal promise to us. Keep in mind that in the context of the verse all was not good for God’s people, but they were reminded that God would do a work in their lives in the future. Everything will not go our way either, but we can know that God is present with us, leading us through all of the good and the bad things that happen in our lives. First, we have a promise that if we call on Him, God will answer us. Sometimes people think that God has not answered their prayers, when He really has. They just did not recognize the answer when it came. God answers our prayers in His time and in His will. But we can be assured that when we call upon God, He will answer us. Some people have given up on prayer because they think that it has not really done any good in their lives. These people see prayer as an escape valve from the problems of life and when they encounter problems, they think that God has forgotten them. This is not possible, for God never forgets us, and He answers our prayers according to what is best for us. Believe the promise of this text, that if we call upon God, He will answer. Second, we have a promise that He will show us “great and mighty things.” Keep in mind that anything that God does for us is great and mighty. Perhaps we think that if we have not had a “Red Sea experience,” God has not done a great and mighty thing in our lives. Keep this in mind: Anything that God does in our lives is great and mighty. We do not get to define what great and mighty thing God might do in our lives. Just the fact that God hears and answers our prayers is a great and mighty thing. It might be that He has healed you and restored you to health after a time of sickness. That is a great and mighty thing. It might be that He helped you resolve a problem with a person at work that was robbing you of joy. That is a great and mighty work. It might be that he simply helped you through a personal problem that you were dealing with, and restored you to joyful living. That is a great and mighty work. Everything that God does in our lives, from the simplest thing to the greatest thing, is a great and mighty work. One of my main prayers for people that I pray for daily is that God will do a work in their lives that will lift them up and give them victory. Third, God has promised to show us “great and mighty things, which you do not know.” Keep in mind that God is always aware of what is going on in our lives, down to the minutest detail. It is also true that He is always working in our lives whether we are aware of it or not. Isn’t it exciting to think that He is going to do things in our lives that we have never been done before – things that we do not know? God is full of surprises, and He will act in our lives sometimes in ways that will leave our minds spinning. In fact, God wants to do new things in your life today. You might think that your life is humdrum, but if you are serving God this is not true. As you call upon God, remember that He is going to do things in your life that you do not know and did not expect. Call upon Him and find out!!!! Bro. Joe “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me and know my thoughts. 24. And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
What do I mean by “A Daring Invitation”? Look at the first four words of the text: “Search me, O God…” David invited the God of the universe, the God who sees all, knows all and is all-powerful to search him and "know his thoughts." I would call that pretty daring. God already knows us inside and out, but to invite Him into our innermost and maybe secret places is to ask Him to let us know what He knows about us and to change us accordingly. If there is one word that we have a problem with when it comes to our “own business” it is change. Let’s see what David is inviting God to search. He asked God to search him and “know my heart.” He was not referring to the pump that made the blood flow through his body. David was referring to his innermost being, where all of his longings were, and where all of the things that he treasures were. When we say that something is in our hearts, we mean that it is indelibly stamped on our psyche and that we hold it very dear. Some of these things in our hearts may be noble and uplifting, and God could really use those things in our hearts. But some of these things could be trifling, forbidden and just downright sinful. These are the things that we are not likely to want to remove from our hearts unless God intervenes and shows us the error of our ways. Think of some of the things that you hold in your heart, the things are the very dearest to you and see if you would really want to let God in on them. This is what David was inviting God to do in his life. He asked God to “try me and know my thoughts.” Think of the boldness and daring of inviting God to try us based on our thoughts. Are all of your thoughts pure? (Are you laughing yet?) What thoughts have you had lately that you would not really want God to know that you had? I’ve got news for you – He already knows your thoughts. But it will be good for you to invite God into your thoughts in order for Him to purify them. (I’m speaking for myself as well.) Would you want other people to know your thoughts about them? If you wouldn’t, the chances are that your thoughts for them would be frowned upon by God. We need to memorize Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there by any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” I think that all of us could use this advice. He asked God to “see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” That is daring, for surely David knew that God would find some wicked way in him. I don’t know whether this psalm was written before Bathsheba or after, but either way, God surely found lust in him. David, like us, wanted God to help him do better, but his self will overcame him in that matter. This is a lesson for us, that when we invite God into our hearts and thoughts, we need to listen to what He finds there. However, I think that this kind of praying helped David to live as good a life as he did - his sins notwithstanding. God did not make David perfect, but I think that He kept David out of a lot of things that he would have done had he not prayed prayers like this. How bold are you in inviting God into your heart and thoughts? How bold are you in asking God to search your heart, to know your thoughts and to ask Him to change you? It takes bold praying like this for us to grow and change the things that need changing in our lives. Think honestly about yourself and find any “wicked way” that might be in you and ask God to forgive it. That is good advice for all of us. Bro. Joe |
AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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