“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. 17. That the man of God may be throughly furnished unto all good works.”
I did a study of the the translation of the Greek word for “throughly equipped.” It can be translated “throughly," "thoroughly," or “fully equipped.” A Christian cannot be completely equipped without some knowledge of Scripture. This is what I brought out of my study of this word for “fully equipped.” It means that a Christian should know the Scriptures. That does not mean to just read the most recent “best sellers” about the Bible, but to read and know the Bible itself. That even means that we should read the “begets and begats.” I find the Bible to be a thoroughly. Interesting book, but some books in the Bible are more interesting than other books. But the entire Bible has a word from God for us. To be “fully equipped” we need to read and study our Bibles. It means that a Christian should live the Scriptures. I do not mean that we should become self-righteous, legalistic Pharisees. What I mean is that we should let what we read make a difference in our lives. (For example, there is a lot in the gospels about loving God and loving people.) We are taught throughout the Bible that there is a right way and a wrong way to live. We are given examples of both ways in the Bible. It is for sure that none of us live the Scriptures perfectly, but we need to absorb what we read into our hearts and let what we read become a part of our daily lives. Thankfully, God is revealed as a forgiving God in the pages of Scripture. It means that a Christian should share the Scriptures. The ultimate revelation of God in the Bible is in the person of Jesus Christ. Hebrews 1:1-2 is a good example of what I mean: “God who at sundry times and in diverse ways spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2. Has in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds.” In Matthew 5:16, Jesus told us: “Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” We should not be ashamed to share Jesus through word and deed by letting our lights shine for Him. I know that I have chosen a big subject and tried to squeeze it into this short article; however, I trust that I have shared enough for you to the see the importance of Scripture in being “fully equipped.” Bro. Joe
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“Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever."
Jesus never changes, because you cannot improve on perfection. Jesus was the only person who lived from birth, to death, to resurrection, yet never sinned. He is the same now as He was when He walked on the earth. I want to share with you what it means to me that Jesus is always the same. Jesus’ love is always the same. 1 John 4:19 records that, “We love Him because He first loved us." What I want you to see is that Jesus loves you. This is so hard for us to grasp, because we know our faults and our short comings, but Jesus loves us in spite of our faults and short comings. Believe me, we all have them, but Jesus loves us in spite of them. You can really sing: “Jesus loves me, this I know……” Jesus’ knowledge is always the same. Jesus knows everything. This is difficult for us to grasp, because we cannot envision someone who knows everything. Well, Jesus knows everything and He knows everything about us. You might be saying, “Oh no, He knows what I did yesterday." That is true, and He also knows everything that you thought yesterday, yet He died on the cross to save you from sin. Jesus; presence is always the same. He made a promise in Matthew 28:20 that has not changed: “Lo, I am always with you to the end of the ages.” Jesus is perfect, He cannot lie, so what He promised two-thousand years ago is still true today. He is only a prayer away from you. He promised His disciples, and us, that He would give us the Holy Spirit to live within us and guide us into all truth. If you belong to Jesus in a faith relationship, you have His presence in your heart and life. If you do not belong in a faith relationship, He is still only a prayer for forgiveness and acceptance away from you. Jesus’ purpose is always the same. The purpose of Jesus has always been to seek and save those who are lost and make them His own. Romans 8:5 tells us that, “While we were yet sinners Jesus died for us.” The Bible never teaches us that you do not need to fulfill some religious ritual to get to Him. You get to Jesus by the simple act of reaching out to Him in faith. This was true of Peter, it was true of Paul, and in the same way it either has been, or can be true of you! It is, indeed true that Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever, Reach out to Jesus His is always ready to receive you. Bro. Joe “You do not have to fight this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. He is with Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Tomorrow go out to face them, for Yahweh is with you.” (HCSB)
Judah’s king Jehoshaphat was very concerned, along with the people of Judah, because a coalition of Moabite and Ammonite troops were coming to fight and attempt to destroy them. Jehoshaphat took the matter to the Lord in prayer and 2 Chronicles 20:17 is the answer that he received. The words, “You do not have to fight this battle” stood out to me like a neon sign. How many times have we come upon hard times in our lives and we were trying everything that we could to overcome and failed. This was because we forgot two basic truths that the Bible teaches us: (1) “You do not have to fight the battle.” (2) “The Lord is with you.” We think sometimes that the only resources that we have are those immediately at hand. Frankly, there are things that God expects us to handle, but even then, He wants us to depend on Him and know that He will fend for us. The first thing that Jehoshaphat and Judah were told to do is to “stand still.” This means that they were to quit trying what they had at hand and contemplate on what God could do. When we are going through trying times we need to stand still and get alone with the Lord and put our total dependence upon Him. The psalmist gave us some of the same advice in Psalm 46:10: “Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.” Someone is reading this right now who is struggling with things in his or her life that seem impossible to overcome. Hear the word of God: “Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord.” “Be still and know that (He is) God.” Stop struggling and trust. The second thing that they were told to do is to, “fear not, nor be discouraged.” If we believe that God is standing in the gap for us, we do not need to be afraid. However, if we have fear in our hearts, we just need to ignore that fear and just trust that God will prevail for us. If He lets us go through the valley that we dread, He will be with us and sustain us through it. If He takes us out of the valley that we dread, we will need to remember that He was with us. I can’t promise you that God will deliver you from everything that you face that is tough, but I can promise you that He will deliver you through whatever it is that you are facing. Either way, you are the winner for it. So do not be afraid and do not be discouraged, for God has not forgotten, nor has He forsaken you. Stand still and trust in His power, love and grace. The third thing that they were told to do is: “Tomorrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.” The battle is the Lord’s, but He expects us to obey Him and do our part as He delivers us. What we need to do when we face seemingly hopeless things is to stand still, trust God and then go do whatever it is that He tells us to do. He will not lead us astray. He will not forsake us in the middle of the battle. He will not forget that we are trusting in and depending on Him. Remember, Judah won a great battle that day against a superior foe because they stood still, depended on God and went out to do what He told them to do. The battle is the Lord’s and the victory is ours. Praise God! Bro. Joe “For whosever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
I am aware that the Christian faith is referred to as one of the world’s religions. According to our New Testament, it is not a religion but a relationship – a faith relationship with Jesus Christ. I want to differentiate between the Christian faith and religion. Religion is based on something that you do. An old joke that I have told over the years can illustrate what I mean: An airplane was about to crash, and someone yelled, “quick someone do something religious.” A Baptist preacher jumped up and took up a collection. (This is where you laugh.) The Pharisees in the New Testament had religion. They felt that they were superior because of what they did, or did not do. They were extremely legalistic. Paul countered this argument by writing that salvation through Christ is “not of works, lest any man (or woman) should boast.” (Ephesians 2:10) The Christian faith is based on something that has been accomplished. When Jesus died on the cross, He said: “It is finished.” That is a big “it.” It means that He had accomplished the sacrifice that could save people, as had been promised in the Old Testament. (Refer to Isaiah 53 and Jeremiah 31:31-33) We look to the cross and realize that Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice for our sins. We confess our sins and, by faith, invite Jesus Christ into our lives. When we are saved and are filled with the Holy Spirit, then we do the works that Christ wants us to do. We are not saved by what we do, but by what Christ did on the cross on our behalf. He now lives at the right hand of the Father to intercede for us. (Hebrews 7:25) This is the difference between the Christian faith and religion. Bro. Joe “These that have turned the world upside down have come here too.”
The scene of this text is in the city of Thessalonica because of what Paul did in a synagogue. What did he do? He preached Jesus to those present. Some of the people believed, but those who did not believe started a riot. The KJV says that they “took of them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city in an uproar: and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people.” They took Jason and other Christians to the “rulers of the city” and that was when they accused the Christians of turning “the world upside down.” What this meant was that the Christians were trying to get them to change. What a compliment! When was the last time a group of unbelievers accused your church of trying to turn their world upside down? This might be understandable, since the Christian faith is not as revolutionary now as it was then, but we need to consider that we might be a little more revolutionary. The county that I live in, in the Bible belt of Georgia, is eighty-five percent unchurched. What would it mean if we began to “turn the world upside down”? First, it would mean that our own world had been turned upside down. Do you think that the main preacher, Paul, had not had his world turned upside down? He went from being a critic of Christians to a champion for Christ overnight. The world of all of the Christians of Thessalonica had been turned upside down. Maybe our world needs to be turned upside down. Perhaps then we could be more serious about our faith in Christ, and in our dedication to Him. In a way this would turn our worlds upside down. It would mean that we were spending more time in prayer and Bible study, which would mean that we would have to give up some of the other things that we enjoy doing. It would mean that we begin to act in love towards other people, and not always so attentive of ourselves and our petty concerns. Though it was different, all of these things happened in the lives of early Christians like Paul, and in this case in the lives of Christians in Thessalonica. If their worlds had not been turned upside down, they would not have been accused of turning the world upside down. Second, it would mean that instead of turning the world upside down, we would be trying to turn the world right-side up. This was what those early Christians were trying to do. Remember, the accusation of “turning the world upside down” was made by unbelievers. It was not bragging by believers. They were trying to get people out of their pagan religions to Christ – which would turn their world right-side up. Trying to get people to believe in Christ and give their lives to Him is a noble purpose, and anyone who has turned from unbelief to belief will readily admit that their world has been turned right-side up. Turning the world right-side up is the daily task of every Christian. First, we should rejoice that our world is right-side up and live so that others could see how good that is. Then, we should tell others about what it means. One of the greatest joys of a Christian is to see the changed life of someone to whom he or she has witnessed. Obviously, I am not advocating starting a riot in our communities.(On second thought, it might come to that today.) I am advocating that we be about the business of telling the world about Jesus as the Christians in this text were doing. Bro. Joe "Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. 7. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.”
This is Isaiah’s call to Israel to repent. The idea was that God was ready to receive them if they would just seek Him. This is always true. He is never reluctant to forgive and receive us when we come to Him. In verse 7, Isaiah described to them how to seek the Lord. First, he wrote: “Let the wicked forsake his way.” This is a call to repentance, for repentance means to forsake the way we are presently living and return to the Lord. It is possible that we would not refer to ourselves as “wicked,” but that is a shallow view of what the word means. There were, no doubt, people in Israel who were living terribly wicked lives, and there were probably others who were just spiritually indifferent. Spiritual indifference might not be seen as wicked, but it is, because not to care about the things of the Lord, and not to care about moral laxity, is part of the problem. It is easier sometimes to bring a person to Christ who is living a blatantly sinful life, than one who just does not care. We need to look into our hearts and minds and repent of wickedness when we find it. So the first way to seek the Lord is to repent. Second, he wrote: “…and the unrighteous man his thoughts.” This is a call to rethink, if that is a word. (My computer seems to think so.) We know that “the thought is the father of the deed,” so we need to watch our thoughts. What we think about really determines the way we live. Frankly, it seems to be easier to watch our deeds than our thoughts. The human mind is Satan’s workshop. (You have no doubt heard that "an idle mind is the devil’s workshop.") Satan wants us to think unwholesome thoughts. (Come on, you know what I mean.) Satan also wants us to think hateful thoughts. We might have one or the other worked out, but, look out, because Satan will try to get you one way or the other. Just as lustful thoughts, can lead to unwholesome deeds, hateful thoughts can lead to hating people and hateful deeds. Third, he wrote: “…and let him return to the Lord.” We can return to the Lord. To actually repent, we have to understand that we have wandered away from God’s will. You might have made a decision at some time in your life to change your ways. To just want to change is insufficient. What God wants from us is really changed lives. In our case, it is a faith relationship with Jesus Christ. Fourth, here is the result when we repent, rethink and return to the Lord: “…and He will have mercy upon Him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.” This is what we receive when we seek the Lord. Bro. Joe “Take what is yours, and go your way: I will give unto the last even as unto you. 15. Is it not lawful for me to do what I will my own? Is your eye evil, because I am good? 16. So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many will be called but few chosen.”
In the parable of the “Workers in the Vineyard,” Jesus proved a point to His disciples, and to us, about who is most important in God’s kingdom. In the parable, the vineyard owner goes into town and begins to hire workers for the day. The first workers hired agreed to a denarius as their pay. (A denarius was the day’s wage for that time.) He went out three other times and hired workers. The last hired probably worked only an hour. When the time for the workers to be paid came, the owner paid all of them a denarius. Those who had worked all day were irate, because they thought they should be paid more. The owner reminded them that they agreed on a denarius for that day’s work, besides; the owner reminded them that He could pay what he wanted to pay since he was the owner. We have to admit that we cringe a little when we read this parable. It does seem a bit unfair. But Jesus is making points here that we need to know about working in the kingdom and the rewards for it. First, since all of Jesus’ disciples were Jews, he was reminding them, and future generations that Gentiles would be rewarded the same as Jews, though the Gentiles were late coming into the kingdom. If God wanted to include Gentiles in His kingdom, that was His business, and He could reward Gentiles as well as Jews. Second, the parable is a reminder to us that we do not serve in God’s kingdom for what we can get from Him. There is always a danger that we will think that God owes us more than He does others. We might think that we have been Christians from an early age, and God certainly owes us more than He owes those who came into kingdom late. Let’s use “deathbed repentance” as an example. There are people who do not believe that one can be saved just before his or her last breath. But if God wants to save someone in their last hour, why would we be upset that He wanted to do so? Who can be saved is God’s prerogative, not ours. What I mean is that no matter when one repents and asks to be saved, it is God’s prerogative to save him or her. It is not our task to decide who can come into the kingdom; rather, it is our task to witness to others in order for them to be included in the kingdom. Third, the parable is a reminder that there are no “big I’s” and “little you’s” in the kingdom of God. After all, we were not saved to get what we can from God, either here or in eternity. We are saved to serve Him and not to lord it over other people. We are supposed to serve Jesus out of love for Him and thankfulness to Him for being our Savior. The rewards for this service are up to God. Service for our Savior is its own reward. I have gotten to the point in my life that I just thank God that He allows me to serve Him. He doesn’t owe me anything for it, and I owe Him my whole being for allowing me to do it. It should be the same for all of us, whether we are choir members, song leaders, Sunday School teachers, deacons, missionaries, etc. We should have the same attitude toward our witness for Him to the world. He has empowered us to do it, and allows us to do it in spite of our own sins. Let us not quibble over who will be “first” and who will be “last.” We just have to leave that up to God. Bro. Joe “Now thus says the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and He that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name: thou art mine.”
These good words from Isaiah to Judah and Israel are true for us in Jesus Christ. I think, like me, you probably need some encouragement. Here are the words of encouragement: First, we were created by God: “For thus saith the Lord that created thee.” We are not an accident of history. According to the biblical creation narrative, we are God’s masterpiece. If you will think of the intricacies of the human body, you can see why. The Christ who created you knows you and loves you. Second, the message of “fear not” is a word of encouragement. With of all of the negative news that we have heard and seen over the last few months, this is, indeed, a word of encouragement. We don’t have to be afraid because God is with us. His presence is enough to alleviate our fears. (Read Psalm 23:4.) Third, this is a message of redemption: “For I have redeemed thee.” “Redeemed” is a word that we get from ancient slave markets. The “redemption price” was the cost to buy freedom from slavery. Jesus died on the cross as the “redemption price” for our souls. We can live in the freedom of the forgiveness of sins, and can look forward to eternity with Jesus in heaven. Now, isn’t that encouraging!!!! Fourth, we are in God’s family: “For I have called thee by thy name..” When Jesus redeemed us by our faith in Him, He took us into His family and He knows us by name. There are probably some famous people that you would like to be on a first name basis with, well, the Lord has called us by name. That should be famous enough to encourage us. In John 10:14, Jesus said: “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep and am known of mine.” What a great promise!!! Think of it, the God of the universe knows our names. In fact, He knows everything about us and still loves us. Come on, get encouraged, for if you know Jesus, your name is written in heaven and He knows your name. Fifth, we are God’s possessions: “…thou art mine…” Most men probably were amazed when their wives would have them, well the God of the universe claims us as His. Of course, you know that we have Jesus to thank for that blessing; I think that you will agree that this verse has given us some great reasons to be encouraged. So, come on and get encouraged. Do it! Bro. Joe “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for the saints.”
This text is fittingly at the end of Paul’s discussion on “the whole armor of God.” After all is said and done, we should pray for “the saints,” ie, pray for fellow Christians, or as I have entitled this article “pray for each other.” Let’s see what this verse teaches us about prayer. Paul wrote that we should be in prayer at all times, especially in praying for each other. The word for “all times” can be translated "at all seasons." The season of prayer for each other is to be continual. For example, if one of your fellow Christians comes to mind, this could be your clue that they need your prayers immediately. “Supplication” means to make entreaty on behalf of your brother or sister in Christ. You might not know what the need is for the person for whom you pray, but God does. For example I make supplication all of the time for missionaries, without knowing their specific needs, but God will know how to answer. Of course, many times we will know the need, and make entreaty for that need. We are to persevere in prayer. This means that we are to keep on keeping on praying for each other. We should keep at it until the answer comes. I have been the recipient of a lot of your prayers over the last few years. At one point, people all over Georgia were praying for me. Believe me I felt those prayers. I think that God has helped me through your prayers.. One thing that we do not need to overlook in this text is “in the Spirit.” This means that we are to follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit in praying for each other. Earlier, I mentioned that if a name comes to your mind, that might be your clue to pray for the person. The Holy Spirit knows the need of the person for whom you pray. I also want to add that it is not just other people who need our prayers, but that we NEED to pray. Prayer is one of our greatest acts of faith. Think of it, when we pray, we are holding someone else before the throne of grace. I know that it excites me when I think someone is holding me up before the throne of grace. It excites me to know that the people I am praying for are being held up before the God of the universe. When you think about it, it is exciting, isn’t it? Bro. Joe “And I said, My strength and my hope has perished from the Lord: 19. Remembering my affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. 20. My soul has them still in the remembrance and is humbled in me.”
The title of “Lamentations” would suggest to us that it would include some complaints. Our text is in the middle of one of the prophet Jeremiah’s complaints. Let me illustrate that he shows us how to complain. You’ve got to stay with me to the end to discover what I really want to show you. First, the prophet Jeremiah, had spent years telling the nation of Judah that they would fall to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. At the time of this writing, Jeremiah’s prediction was in the process of coming true. It does not help when we know that God is going to judge people, or that we are right when we tell them. It speaks well of Jeremiah that he was not jumping with glee that his prophecies of doom had been fulfilled. He saw people that he loved taken into Babylonian captivity. Second, because of his predictions of doom, Jeremiah had been mistreated over and over again by his own people. In reading through the Book of Jeremiah, I have been impressed that every time they imprisoned him, or as on one occasion, they threw him into an empty water cistern where he sunk to his knees, he stuck by the message that the Lord had given him to share with his people. He did not back off on his prediction of doom one iota, or as Hebrew would have it “one shwa.” (sp) He is an example to us that we need to stick by whatever message we would have from God for our own people, but that we are not to rejoice in the ravages of sin. There is no note of self-righteousness in Jeremiah’s complaints. Third, here is the result of Jeremiah’s complaint in Jeremiah 3: 21-23: “This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. 22. It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. 23. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” In the midst of all that Jeremiah experienced at the hands of his own people, and all that his beloved Judah was encountering in their defeat at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, Jeremiah did not forget the true nature of the sovereign and holy God that he served. We do not need to lose sight today of the Lord today as He has been revealed through His Son Jesus Christ. We can wake up every morning with the thought that: “His compassions fail not…They are new every morning….Great is (His) faithfulness.” This is how to complain! Let your complaints end in praise! Bro. Joe |
AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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