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TABLE OF CONTENTS
(1) WHAT IS TRUTH?
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(1) WHAT MUST I DO
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(1) CHASING THE WIND
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(1) HOW IMPORTANT IS FAITH?
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(1) CURTAIN UP
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(1) CUT OFF FROM OUR LIFELINE
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(1) WHERE AM I?
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(1) CAPACITY COUNTS
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(1) ARROGANCE - THE OUTWARD EXPRESSION OF PRIDE
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(1) A HEAVY PRICE TO PAY
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(1) FOCUS ON THOUGHT
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WHAT IS
TRUTH?
That question was asked, without feeling or
conviction, by Pilate, the Roman governor who questioned Jesus after His
arrest and trial before the religious Jewish leaders. Pilate did not wait for
an answer to his question, but went out and spoke to those who were demanding
that Jesus be crucified and said to them, “I find no fault in this man.”
Whenever the Bible speaks of THE TRUTH, it is
referring to the sum total of Bible Doctrine as revealed to mankind through
the infallible Word of God. The Bible is said to be the very thinking of
Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:16)
As a believer learns and applies THE TRUTH in his
life on a daily basis, that truth will protect him from all kinds of evil
influence. (Psalm 91:4) (Ephesians 6:10-17)
God’s TRUTH will live throughout eternity. (Psalm
117:2) God’s TRUTH is forever settled in heaven (Psalm 119:89)
Solomon said we should BUY THE TRUTH and pay the
price for it. That means we must learn, believe and apply God’s Word every
day so we may eventually become mature believers whose lives will honor the
Lord.
John 1:14 tells us that Jesus Christ, the God-Man,
is full of GRACE and TRUTH.
In John 8:31 & 32, Jesus told people who believed
in Him, “If you continue to learn, believe and apply My Word, you will know
THE TRUTH, and THE TRUTH will set you free.”
When Jesus told His disciples not to worry,
because He was going away, one of them said, “We don’t know where you are
going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered, “I am THE WAY, THE TRUTH
and THE LIFE. No man can come to the Father except by personal faith in Me.
(John 14:1-6)
God’s will is to have no one perish, but that
everyone should be saved. (2 Peter 3:9) However, each one of us has been
given a free will to believe or to reject God’s provision for salvation, so
the Lord graciously extends an invitation to everyone in Acts 16:31: “BELIEVE
IN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND YOU WILL BE SAVED.’
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WHAT
MUST I DO
When man tries to please God by his own works, that
is RELIGION. On the other hand, CHRISTIANITY is God working to please man.
There has always been a battle between God’s work
and man’s work, and the first illustration of that truth took place after the
man and woman disobeyed the Lord and ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good
and Evil. When Adam and Eve saw that they were naked, they attempted to cover
themselves with fig leaves. That covering was not acceptable to the Lord, so
He killed a lamb and covered them with its skin. By doing that, the Lord
presented the Gospel message of salvation, showing them that an innocent
substitute would have to pay for their sin, and they believed it.
Adam and Eve taught their two sons how to worship
the Lord, and at the proper time, they each presented an offering to Him.
Cain was a farmer, and he brought his most beautiful produce as an offering.
Abel was a shepherd, and he brought a lamb as his sacrifice. The mental
attitude of each man was the issue. Cain was proud of what he had
accomplished, but in humility Abel believed God’s promise of salvation and
offered the only acceptable sacrifice.
During the three-year ministry of the Lord Jesus
Christ on earth, the people who opposed Him the most were the religious
leaders in the nation … the Scribes and Pharisees. Jesus verbally lashed out
at them and called them hypocrites, because they appeared to be clean and
righteous outwardly in the sight of men, but inside they were filled with all
kinds of evil. (read Matthew 23:23-36 and Luke 11:39-54)
When men asked Jesus, “What shall we do that we
might work the works of God?” He replied, “This is the work of God … that you
believe in the One whom God has sent.” (John 6:28,29)
All throughout human history men have worshipped the
works of their own hands. The prophet Isaiah tells us how men make idols out
of wood and stone and bow down to worship them. (Isaiah 2:8) What is human
history? It is composed of every thought, every action, every decision and
every motive of human beings from the creation of man in the Garden of Eden to
chapter 21 of Revelation where God promises a new heaven and a new earth.
This comes from the OMNISCIENCE of God.
Man can do nothing for his salvation. It is FAITH
ALONE IN CHRIST ALONE … no work of any kind that man may add to that is
acceptable to God.
“BELIEVE IN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND
YOU WILL BE SAVED.” (Acts 16:31)
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CHASING THE WIND
King Solomon was at the very top of the ladder of
success. He was wealthy, successful and wise and able to have anything he
wanted in life, but after obtaining all the things he desired, he was not
content. (Ecclesiastes 2:1-11)
Solomon was a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, and
he began his 40-year reign loving the Lord and doing His will, but when he was
old, Solomon allowed his many wives to turn him away from the Lord. He built
idol temples for his wives, and when he personally bowed down to them, the
Lord became very angry about his idolatry. (1 Kings 11:1-8)
Solomon lived many years of his life out of
fellowship with the Lord, and during that time he tried many experiments in a
search for happiness outside of God’s plan for his life. After he named his
sin to the Lord and was back in fellowship with Him, Solomon wrote
Ecclesiastes and tells us what his life was like when he ‘chased the wind’ in
his frantic search for happiness.
Even though the Lord had given Solomon more wisdom,
riches and honor than anyone who had lived before him or after him, he turned
away from God and began to think thoughts that were contrary to God’s Word.
(1 Kings 3:9-13)
Solomon began to think as an Evolutionist, who
believes there is no God. He looked at life from the viewpoint of a
Universalist and said to himself, “there is no eternal destiny for man … all
creatures return to dust when they die.” Then he became Agnostic in his
thinking and decided he wasn’t sure about what truth really was. Finally, he
became a Humanist and began to look at everything from man’s viewpoint rather
than God’s viewpoint. (Ecclesiastes 3:18-22)
When Solomon became old and was back in fellowship
with the Lord, he took a good look at himself and came to the following
conclusion: “Young people … put your trust in the Lord now, and learn to
honor Him while you are young, for that is the whole duty of man. You have
been placed on this earth to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ, and not to glorify
man.” (Ecclesiastes 12:1-13)
There will be a final judgment for all men. Hebrews
9:27 tells us, “There is an appointed time for a man to die, and after that he
will be judged.” Acts 4:12 says there is salvation in no one but Jesus
Christ. Therefore, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be
eternally saved.” (Acts 16:31)
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HOW IMPORTANT IS FAITH?
Faith must always have an object to make it
meaningful. Whatever this life has to offer is meaningless and futile unless
we personally put our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ who died on a cross as
our substitute for sin. God offers eternal life with Him when He says,
“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:31)
Both visible and invisible heroes in the sight of
God are those who have believed in Christ and then find and live in God’s plan
and purpose for their lives. The faith of many visible heroes is described in
the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, God’s ‘hall of fame’. In each case, those
listed in that chapter became great men and women of God, because they
believed and applied God’s Word in their lives.
From the beginning of time, this principle has been
true … “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing comes by the Word of God.”
(Romans 10:17)
In Romans 14:23 the apostle Paul says, “Whatever is
not of faith is sin.” And the writer to the Hebrews warns us, “Without faith
it is impossible to please the Lord. (Hebrews 11:6)
The faith of Ebed-Melech, an Ethiopian eunuch in the
court of Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, kept him from being slain by the
Chaldeans. Ebed-Melech was not one of the better known heroes found in the
scriptures, but the Lord took special note of his faith when he rescued the
prophet Jeremiah from certain death in a dungeon. (Jeremiah 39:15-18)
Jeremiah prophesied to the nation of Judah and had
been giving them stern warning that they would be attacked and captured by the
Chaldeans, but the people refused to listen. However, the king took
compassion on the prophet and questioned him privately. After their
discussion king Zedekiah commanded that Jeremiah be kept in the prison court
and fed daily until all the food in Jerusalem was gone. (Jeremiah chapter 37)
Afterward, tremendous pressure was placed upon
Zedekiah by his princes, and he agreed to let them put Jeremiah into the
prison dungeon. They lowered him into the dungeon with cords, and he sunk
down into the mire at the bottom of the pit and left there to die. (Jeremiah
38:4-6)
When Ebed-Melech heard what the princes had done to
Jeremiah, he spoke to the king about it. When Zedekiah realized Jeremiah’s
plight, he told Ebed-Melech to take thirty men and go to the prison to rescue
God’s prophet. They promptly went to the prison, tied old rotten rages
together and secured them with cords. They lowered the cords into the pit and
told Jeremiah to put the rags under his armpits, and they pulled him out of
the mire. (Jeremiah 38:7-13)
This man, Ebed-Melech, was an invisible hero, and
you and I may also become heroes in the sight of God if we will obey His
voice.
The apostle Paul reminds every believer that just as
they received Christ Jesus the Lord by faith in Him, now the believer must
also walk by faith. (Colossians 2:6 and 2 Corinthians 5:7)
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CURTAIN UP
Imagine that you are attending a play that you’ve
been anxiously waiting to see for a long time. You enter the theater, sit
down and look at your program. Soon, the lights are turned down, the curtain
opens and your eyes take in the beautifully arranged scenery on the stage.
You wait for the actors to appear, BUT NOTHING HAPPENS!
Did you come to the theater to see a play, or did
you come to just look at lovely scenery?
When you become a Christian by faith in Jesus
Christ, the Lord sets the stage on which you are to be an active participant,
and your script is the Word of God.
Just being eternally saved is not the end … it is
just the beginning of your life as an ambassador for Christ. In 2 Corinthians
5:18-20 the apostle Paul tells us that we are ambassadors for Christ, and as
such, we are instructed to take the message of salvation to a lost and dying
world.. Just as an ambassador who is sent from the United States to a foreign
country needs special training for that job, so we, as ambassadors for Jesus
Christ, must have special training, and that is called SPIRITUAL GROWTH.
Spiritual growth is obtained through Divine
guidance from God’s Word. We need training and education in spiritual matters
in order to gain Divine viewpoint on life. Where do we get this education?
With the help of a pastor-teacher who has been appointed for you, and has been
called by God for the job, and is a man who has learned the original languages
of scripture so that he may give his hearers an accurate interpretation of
God’s Word.
Proverbs 3:5 & 6 tell us to, “Trust in the Lord
with all your heart (mind), and do not depend upon your own thoughts. In all
your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.”
Philippians 1:6 says we should “Be confident of
this very thing … the Lord who has begun a good work in you will continue it
until Jesus Christ comes back for His bride, the Church-age believers.
Ephesians 4:1 tells us to “Walk worthy of the
vocation to which you have been called.” (every single Christian is in
full-time service for the Lord … that is our vocation. Everything else we do
in life is considered to be our avocation.
The object of every believer should be to know
Jesus Christ. You can never truly know someone unless you know how he thinks,
and the apostle Paul tells us that ‘the Bible is the mind of Christ’. (1
Corinthians 2:16)
Ephesians 6:11-17 says we must put on the full
armor of God so that we may defend ourselves against the subtle attacks of the
devil.
In 1 John 2:15-17 the apostle John tells us that
we should not set our affections on the world system in which we live. If we
do, the love for the Father is not in us.
Philippians 3:14 urges every believer in Jesus
Christ to press toward the goal the Lord wants him to reach. God has a
perfect plan for each one of us, and He has rewards for believers in time and
in eternity when they fulfill that plan.
2 Timothy 2:15 says we should “Study to show
ourselves approved by God, a workman that need not be ashamed, but correctly
understanding and applying Bible doctrine in our lives.”
Are you willing to fulfill God’s purpose for your
life?
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CUT
OFF FROM OUR LIFELINE
The written communication of Bible Doctrine, which
1 Corinthians 2:16 says is the very thinking of Jesus Christ, is the lifeline
for every believer.
In this Church Age, the Lord has provided
pastor-teachers to build up those who are part of the body of Christ, that is,
those who have personally put their faith in Christ alone and have eternal
life. Men who have been given the gift of pastor-teacher and who learn the
original languages of scripture, which enables them to teach God’s Word
accurately, are able to help believers mature so they may become fit for
service to the Lord. They also protect believers from false teaching and from
the aimless thoughts of our cosmic system controlled by Satan, the god of this
world. (Ephesians 4:11-14)
The apostle Paul commended the believers in Berea
for their readiness to receive God’s Word and for their searching of the
scriptures on a daily basis. (Acts 17:11)
1 John 5:19 tells us that the whole world lives in
Satanic thinking. Only when we make God’s thoughts our own, by receiving and
believing His Word, can our lives be changed so we can be used to bring glory
to the Lord Jesus Christ.
In Isaiah 55:8-11, God says, “My thoughts are not
your thoughts, and your ways are not My ways. Just as the heavens are higher
than the earth, so are My thoughts and ways above yours.”
Hebrews 4:12 tells us that God’s Word is alive and
powerful and it is sharper than a two-eged sword. It can separate the soul
and spirit of a man and divide the joints and marrow of his being.
When the Lord Jesus Christ began His earthly
ministry, Satan tempted Him in three different ways to act contrary to the
Father’s plan for His life. In each case, Jesus responded to the temptation
with the written Word of God.
“HEAVEN AND EARTH SHALL PASS AWAY,. BUT MY WORDS SHALL
NOT PASS AWAY.” (Matthew 24:35)
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WHERE AM I?
If you have believed that the Lord Jesus Christ
died on the cross to pay the penalty for your sins, you are a Christian.
Just as you recognize that you are a citizen of
the United States of America, as a Christian, you must also understand that
you are living during a special time known in theology as the dispensation of
the CHURCH AGE.
In the original language of scripture, Hebrews 1:1
tells us that God designed the ages (dispensations) and divided them into many
portions for specific purposes.
The Church Age is unique from all other
dispensations, because it is an age when no prophecy is being fulfilled.
Events we see occurring today are considered by many to be the fulfillment of
Old Testament prophecy, but the Bible clearly teaches that those events are a
mere setting of the stage for what will follow this particular time in
Biblical history.
The Church Age began on the Day of Pentecost and
will continue until the rapture, or resurrection, of all who believe in Christ
during this age. According to 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18, that event is called a
mystery, because it was unknown by the prophets of old.
God the Holy Spirit plays a very important part
during this Church Age. The moment you were born again, the Holy Spirit
baptized you into Christ. The word baptism means identification, and you were
identified with Jesus Christ. You are now in two places at once … you are on
earth in a physical body, but as far as God the Father is concerned, you are
already in heaven with His Son, Jesus Christ.
When you name your known sins to God, you are in
fellowship with Him, and the indwelling Holy Spirit gives you divine power to
fulfill God’s plan and purpose for your life. Old Testament believers had
limitations, because only a few were endued with the power of the Holy Spirit
for special service, such as certain kings and prophets. Spiritual growth for
believers in those days was reached by believing the promises of God and
trusting in them. (see Hebrews chapter 11 for great heroes of faith in the
Old Testament)
Motivation is extremely important, so if we are
consistent with our intake of God’s Word, we will develop self-motivation by
learning, believing and applying God’s thoughts in our everyday lives.
There are many, many distractions all around us in
this cosmic system, and Satan would like to see us live by human viewpoint
rather than by filling our minds with God’s Word and gaining discernment to
know God’s will and purpose for our lives.
“Love not the world, neither the things that are
in the world. If any man loves the world, the love for the Father is not in
him.” (1 John 2:15)
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CAPACITY COUNTS
Having capacity is to have the ability to receive
something, retain it and enjoy it. If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, and
you are growing spiritually by learning and applying God’s Word to your
experience on a daily basis, you will gain capacity for happiness in your
soul.
Capacity to enjoy life comes from a God-given
ability … NOT from the things you are able to accomplish by your own ability.
Bible Doctrine (God’s Word learned, digested and
applied) results in the believer thinking divine viewpoint. All the world can
offer is human viewpoint, and it is a dead end street to finding real and
meaningful happiness.
God the Holy Spirit is the teacher of the Word of
God. He is the one who causes a person to be born-again so the child of God
can understand and appreciate the things of God. (John 6:63) Timothy tells
us that “All scripture is God-breathed, and is profitable for doctrine
(teaching), for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness,
so that the man of God may become mature, completely equipped to perform good
works.” (works that are pleasing to God) (2 Timothy 3:16)
As you grow in the grace and knowledge of God, you
will learn to have the capacity to appreciate your problems as well as your
blessings, and you will discover that when you can successfully pass both
adversity and prosperity tests, you will become a better person.
Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 10:18 that no one
is promoted unless God promotes him. How will you know that you are being
promoted by God? Because your promotion will not result in confusion. You
will never have the capacity for promotion if you try to get it by cheating or
stealing.
A believer must first learn and apply the Word of
God before he has the capacity to receive the blessings of God in his life.
“Study to show yourself approved by God, a workman
that need not be ashamed, but handling the Word of God accurately.” (2
Timothy 2:16)
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ARROGANCE - THE OUTWARD
EXPRESSION OF PRIDE
An arrogant person places himself above what he
knows is the established and primary will of God, and he attempts to establish
his own authority. First, he justifies in his own mind that he's doing the
right thing. Then after carrying out his desire, he deceives and assures
himself that his actions were justified. Finally, he becomes totally absorbed
in himself and ends up being a complete fool. There are hundreds of cases we
could examine throughout the Bible, but let's look at three outstanding
Biblical characters who did this and consider how we may profit from their
mistakes. In each case, the discipline God placed upon these individuals for
their acts of arrogance was extremely significant.
MOSES was the most humble man on the face
of the earth. (Numbers 12:3) The first forty years of his life were in Egypt,
where he gained all the wisdom the ancient Egyptians had to offer. (Acts
7:20-22) At age 40, Moses learned that he was not Egyptian, but Hebrew.
Shortly after that, Moses saw an Egyptian physically mistreating a Jew, so
Moses killed the Egyptian and then fled into the wilderness to escape the
wrath of Pharaoh. After Spending the next 40 years working as a shepherd in
the desert, God spoke to Moses from a burning bush and told him he had been
chosen to deliver the Children of Israel out of Egyptian slavery and take them
to the Promised Land. (Acts 7:23-34) The Lord used Moses to deliver about two
million adult males, along with their wives, children and animals, and they
wandered 40 years in the wilderness. During those years, Moses trusted the
Lord to handle every problem, in spite of
the constant complaining of the Children of Israel. However, in the
40th year of wandering and putting up with the people, it became too much for
Moses, and he disobeyed a direct command from the Lord. By his action, Moses
placed himself above the will of God, and he was not permitted to enter the
Promised Land. (Numbers 20:12) In order to understand why Moses received this
discipline, we must know that before the completion of the canon of scripture
in about 90 A.D., God spoke to mankind through dreams, visions and direct
conversation. Now, He speaks to us only through the written WORD we call the
BIBLE. There were many illustrations used by the prophets of old and by
certain designated men like Moses. When God used those men, they were expected
to follow His directions exactly, because the illustrations were designed by
God the Father as teaching aids regarding the Person of Jesus Christ. For
example, shortly after leaving Egypt, the people complained that they had no
water to drink, and the Lord told Moses to strike the rock and He would
provide water for them. (Exodus 17:6) Near the end of the 40 years of
wandering in the desert, the people again complained bitterly that they had no
water. This time, even though the Lord instructed Moses to speak to the rock
and He would provide water for the people, Moses became angry and said,
“Listen, you rebels! Must Aaron and I bring water out of this rock for you?”,
and then he struck the Rock three times. (Numbers 20:8-12) Hundreds of years
later the apostle Paul tells us “that Rock was Christ”. (Corinthians 10:4) The
first time when the Lord told Moses to strike the Rock, His purpose was to
teach the people that their Messiah would be smitten to provide eternal life
for them. The second incident when Moses was told to speak to the Rock, it was
to teach the people about the risen Christ. Jesus Christ was to die only once
for sin. (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)
DAVID was called “a
man after Gods own heart”. (Acts 13:22) However, he also placed himself
above the specific and known will of God when he made a decision that affected
the lives of a number of people. It happened in the spring after David had
been king for 17 years, and he knew it was time for Israel to fight the
Ammonites. Even though he knew he should have been leading his troops, David
sent his nephew Joab into the battle, while he remained in Jerusalem. Early
one evening, David arose from his bed and took a stroll on the palace roof
where he saw a beautiful woman bathing on the roof of her house below. He
inquired about her, and was told by his servant, “she is Bathsheba … the Uriah
the Hittite. (2 Samuel 11:1-3) Knowing that the woman was the wife of one of
his officers, David sent for her, had a sexual relationship with her and sent
her home. After a short time, Bathsheba sent word to David that she was
carrying his child, so David promptly ordered Uriah to return to Jerusalem,
under the pretext that he had called him from the battlefield to find out how
the battle was going. Hoping to cover his sin of adultery, David ordered Uriah
to go down to his house, but Uriah slept in the officers quarters and did not
go down to his house as ordered. David was disturbed that his plan had failed,
so the next night he made Uriah drunk, thinking that now he would surely want
to spend time with his wife, but again Uriah refused and also reminded David
that the officers code which the king himself had established forbids officers
to spend time with their wives while the other men are on the battlefield.
(Samuel 11:6-11) Then David placed himself above the law and sent Uriah back
into battle with a letter to Joab ordering him to set Uriah on the front line
“so that he may be wounded and die.” (Samuel 11:6-11) After Uriah
died, David married Bathsheba, and the child was born. For more than a year,
David was out of fellowship with the Lord, he refused to admit his sin, so the
Lord sent Nathan the prophet to David with a story that made David confess his
sin and take a four-fold discipline for his actions.
- Kings 15:5 records that “David
did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of his life
except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite”.
PAUL was the greatest of all
the apostles. His ministry was to be to the Gentiles, and the Lord wanted him
to go to Rome. However, because he had a strong personal desire to see his old
friends in Jerusalem, he disobeyed the know will of God, even though he was
warned several times not to go to Jerusalem, and the results were disastrous
for Paul. (Acts 21:4-13) Paul told his fellow Jews in Jerusalem how the Lord
had used him to reach many Gentiles with the Gospel, and in return they
accused him of teaching some of the Jews he had encountered among the Gentiles
not to follow the Law of Moses. Then they were able to convince Paul that he
should make a religious vow and then enter the temple to convince those in
Jerusalem that he was still faithful to their teachings. Some Jews from Asia
had come to the temple that day, and when they saw Paul, they stirred up all
the people, dragged Paul out of the temple, and were intending to kill him.
Roman soldiers heard that Paul was beaten in the street, and they rescued him,
bound him and took him into the castle for questioning. Paul asked whether
they knew it was against the law to scourge a Roman citizen, and when the
Centurion heard that, he released Paul from his bands and commanded that the
Jewish chief priests and their council appear and question Paul in a Roman
court of law. (Acts 21:18-26) Paul did eventually get to Rome, not as a
prisoner of Rome, not as a private citizen. He witnessed to several kings
during an approximate seven years of imprisonment. During which he wrote
Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon. Finally, Paul appealed that
he be sent to Rome and present his cause before Caesar. He spent two years in
prison in Rome during the reign of Nero, and was then executed. Through all
the trials and tribulations Paul had to endure, the Lord’s will was
accomplished. Paul certainly had many opportunities to witness to and convert
many Gentiles to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
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A HEAVY PRICE TO PAY
In the fifth generation in King David’s line lived a
man by the name of Jehoshaphat. He was the fourth king to rule the nation of
Judah after the kingdom was divided. Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he
became king, and he ruled for 25 years. He loved the Lord, and in the third
year of his reign he sent princes, priests and Levites throughout all the
cities of Judah to teach the people the five books of Moses … Genesis, Exodus,
Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.
Jehoshaphat had great wealth and honor, and he
maintained a large standing army in Jerusalem. The fear of the Lord was upon
all Israel’s enemies, including the Philistines and the Arabians, and they
paid tribute to him. The Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the
ways of David and did not worship idols as many did in Israel. (2 Chronicles
17:3,4)
One day, Ahab, the apostate king of Israel, sent for
Jehoshaphat and asked him to help in their fight against the Syrians who were
threatening Israel. Even though Jehoshaphat knew he should separate from
ungodly believers, he agreed to help Ahab, and he went to Samaria to see him.
Ahab was married to a very beautiful but evil and
idolatrous woman by the name of Jezebel. She was the daughter of the king of
Tyre and Sidon, and when Ahab brought her to Samaria, she introduced the
worship of Baal to the people. 450 prophets of Baal ate at Jezebel’s table,
and she also had 400 other false prophets who taught the people to worship
Astarte, a goddess of fertility. (1 Kings 16:31,32 and 1 Kings 16:18,19)
Ahab prepared a great feast in honor of Jehoshaphat
and persuaded him to help in their fight against the Syrians. Jehoshaphat
asked if they might seek the Lord’s guidance before going out to battle, so
Ahab promptly sent for the 400 false prophets and asked them, “Should we go
out to battle against the Syrians or not?” They agreed unanimously and
replied, “Go, and you will be victorious.”
Knowing that these were not the Lord’s prophets,
Jehoshaphat questioned, “Is there no prophet of the Lord in Israel from whom
we may ask counsel? You know these men are false prophets.” Ahab answered
reluctantly, “Well .. yes … there is one man, but I hate him! His name is
Micaiah, and I didn’t send for him because he never has anything for me but
bad news.”
Jehoshaphat replied, “You should have more respect
for one of the Lord’s prophets.”
After that reprimand, Ahab summoned one of his
officers and ordered, “Take Micaiah out of prison and bring him here to me.”
While they waited for Micaiah, the 400 false
prophets continued to encourage both kings to go to war with Syria and assured
them that Israel would surely be victorious.
The soldier who brought Micaiah before the kings
warned him that he should agree with the false prophets who told the king he
would have victory over Syria, so when Ahab questioned, “Micaiah … shall we go
out to battle with the Syrians or not?” his answer was, “Go, and you shall be
victorious!”
Ahab turned to Jehoshaphat and said, “You see how
this man prophecies evil against me?”
Then Abah looked at Micaiah and said in anger, “How
many times have I told you not to lie to me? Now answer truthfully … what is
the word from the Lord?”
Micaiah responded, “The Lord has revealed to me in a
vision that you will be destroyed if you fight against Syria. The Lord said
He asked His angels who stood around the heavenly throne, ‘Who will go down
and convince Ahab to go into battle with Syria and die on the battlefield?
One of the angel volunteered saying, ‘I will go and put a lying spirit in the
mouths of Ahab’s prophets.’ “
Ahab turned to Jehoshaphat and said, “You see how
this man prophecies nothing but evil against me?”
Then the spokesman for the false prophets slapped
Micaiah across the mouth and said, ‘Which way did the spirit of the Lord go
from me to you?”
Before Micaiah could reply, Ahab stood up, pointed
his finger at the prisoner and ordered, “Take this man back to prison and feed
him moldy bread and stale water until I return from the battlefield!”
As he was being dragged away, Micaiah turned and
said to the king, “If you do return to Samaria, the Lord has not spoken
through me!”
Ahab and Jehoshaphat decided to go into battle, but
to save his own hide, Ahab devised a plan for them to disguise themselves by
exchanging robes, but his plan backfired. Enemy soldiers surrounded
Jehoshaphat and were about to take him captive, because they thought he was
Ahab, but when Jehoshapht cried out to the Lord for help, they released him.
Then a Syrian soldier shot an arrow at random and the arrow hit Ahab between
the shoulders. He stayed propped up in his chariot the rest of that day and
then he died.
What a heavy price he had to pay for his deception
and for disregarding the Word of God.
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FOCUS ON THOUGHT
Believer ….. are you willing to focus your mind on
the things of the Lord because you’re interested in what He has to say to you
through His Word when you can find time away from your busy schedule, or
because you desire to dedicate yourself to finding the narrow road that leads
to an abundant life? You can always find time to do what you really want to
do.
Unless you fill your mind with Bible doctrine,
which is the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16), you will be influenced by
the cosmic system controlled by Satan. This world is a classroom or college
that Satan uses to influence mankind to think his thoughts rather than
focusing on God’s thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-11). Satan influences mankind by the
use of words. He uses scripture but he distorts and twists it to suit his
purpose.(Genesis 3:1-4 and Matthew 4:1-11)
We are constantly being bombarded every day
through many kinds of media with everything except a correct teaching of God’s
Word, which is available if the believer truly desires to have it. (Proverbs
2:1-15) In Ephesians 4:17, the apostle Paul warns us that our soul is a
vacuum that breathes in either human viewpoint or Divine Viewpoint. Man’s
mind becomes blinded when he has negative volition toward God’s Word. It is
much easier to be passive and allow our mind to absorb the world’s thinking,
but either Bible doctrine will fill your mind or the useless thoughts from the
cosmic system.
In this Church Age, every believer is indwelt by
God the Holy Spirit the moment he believes in the Lord Jesus Christ dying as
his substitute for sin. However, being filled and controlled by the Holy
Spirit depends upon keeping short accounts with God regarding known sin in his
life. The believer must learn to recognize when he has sinned, and then he
must name his sin to the Lord. (1 John 1:9, Psalm 66:18, and Isaiah 59:2 are
some of the verses that teach this truth,) When we are in fellowship with the
Lord, the Holy Spirit can teach us the Word of God.
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