Category Archives: Hearing from God

Doubt / Lacking Faith, Faith / Trusting God, False Prophets / Teachers, Holy Spirit (hearing from God), Jesus (hearing from God), Miracles, Scripture (e.g. Bible), Seeking God, Study the Word

We Already Have Enough Evidence; We Don’t Need Another Sign

To put Matthew 16 in context, this was not the beginning of Yeshua’s ministry. He had been doing many miracles in public, with many witnesses. He returned sight to the blind, the lame walked, lepers cleansed, demons cast out and so on. Yeshua even points to the two times He miraculously fed thousands with a few loaves of bread. Think about how many witnesses there were and I am sure they told others. It is in this context that the Pharisees and Sadducees come and ask for a sign.

Matthew 16:1-12

Pharisees Test Jesus

      1The Pharisees and Sadducees came up, and testing Jesus, they asked Him to show them a sign from heaven. 2But He replied to them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ 3“And in the morning, ‘There will be a storm today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Do you know how to discern the appearance of the sky, but cannot discern the signs of the times? 4“An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign; and a sign will not be given it, except the sign of Jonah.” And He left them and went away.

      5And the disciples came to the other side of the sea, but they had forgotten to bring any bread. 6And Jesus said to them, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 7They began to discuss this among themselves, saying, “He said that because we did not bring any bread.” 8But Jesus, aware of this, said, “You men of little faith, why do you discuss among yourselves that you have no bread? 9“Do you not yet understand or remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets full you picked up? 10“Or the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many large baskets full you picked up? 11“How is it that you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 12Then they understood that He did not say to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

The Pharisees and Sadducees are supposedly learned men who understand the Torah and the writings of the prophets. Yeshua points out that they should already have enough evidence to know He is Messiah, just as they know how to understand the signs in the sky relating to weather.

I think this may point out that they do not want to accept He is Messiah. They come having already decided He is not, or at least with a strong bias against. They are not openly considering the evidence around them. Thus, they are rebuked.

At this point I think we can all relate to the disciples… Yeshua is trying to teach us or show us something and we just don’t get it at first. We try to figure it out but often we really need to just go back to Him and admit we do not understand and ask for more explanation to understand. I think it worthy to note that he does not rebuke them for not understanding, but rather for thinking it was a comment about not having enough to eat when they had just witnessed great miracles feeding thousands from little food. Yeshua is a bit disappointed that they witness the miracles but still don’t understand they can happen any time He chooses.

The leaven of the Pharisees about which we are warned is the false teaching they bring. We should continue to be wary not to assume all that is taught by any teacher or minister is correct. We are called to test it against the word in the Bible. Even in regards to the teaching of Yeshua we do well to test against other scripture to ensure our understanding. Yeshua will not contradict Himself or YHWH.

We have enough evidence already that Yeshua was Messiah. I would encourage everyone to seek it out and really test it so that they realize that the facts and history actually provide a sound basis for our faith. We are stronger when we understand the evidence for our faith and we can articulate it to others. I would encourage you to review and study resources recommended on our list for Studying the Case for Christianity as Truth on our Books and Other Study Tools page. It is worth investing in to strengthen the foundation of your own faith for when storms come and also to be able to articulate to others the facts and evidence that support Yeshua as Messiah to help them overcome the lies of the world. For many, it is not a strong foundation to simply say, “you need to accept it on faith”. Our faith is based on strong evidence. I would even more strongly encourage parents to invest time in this way to lead their children in a strong foundation that will not fade when challenged in educational institutions or the workplace.

We must challenge and test what is taught as fact as we learn to follow Him in His ways, rather than the ways of man. There was at that time and remains much false teaching within the church. It is up to us to study and compare teachings and ask YHWH for insight through the Holy Spirit.

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Miracles, Study the Word, Submitted / Servant, Through Prophets

Seek Righteousness and Obey His Instructions

The Bible is anything but boring. Chapter after chapter, king after king, the adventure of the historical record takes some surprising turns.

2 Kings 3 shows some interesting aspects. There is an Israelite king who has turned from Yahweh and does things in the way of his parents instead. There is a more righteous king, working alongside the first that sets the example of seeking out the prophet of Yahweh. There is an uprising, or rebellion, and a war. There is a miracle to provide water. And at the end there is a bit of mystery about exactly why the attacking armies decided to call off the siege after the Moabite king sacrificed his own son on the wall of a besieged city.

2 Kings 3

Jehoram Meets Moab Rebellion

      1Now Jehoram the son of Ahab became king over Israel at Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years. 2He did evil in the sight of the LORD, though not like his father and his mother; for he put away the sacred pillar of Baal which his father had made. 3Nevertheless, he clung to the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel sin; he did not depart from them.

      4Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep breeder, and used to pay the king of Israel 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams. 5But when Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. 6And King Jehoram went out of Samaria at that time and mustered all Israel. 7Then he went and sent word to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight against Moab?” And he said, “I will go up; I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.” 8He said, “Which way shall we go up?” And he answered, “The way of the wilderness of Edom.”

      9So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom; and they made a circuit of seven days’ journey, and there was no water for the army or for the cattle that followed them. 10Then the king of Israel said, “Alas! For the LORD has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.” 11But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not a prophet of the LORD here, that we may inquire of the LORD by him?” And one of the king of Israel’s servants answered and said, “Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.” 12Jehoshaphat said, “The word of the LORD is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.

      13Now Elisha said to the king of Israel, “What do I have to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother.” And the king of Israel said to him, “No, for the LORD has called these three kings together to give them into the hand of Moab.” 14Elisha said, “As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look at you nor see you. 15“But now bring me a minstrel.” And it came about, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him. 16He said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Make this valley full of trenches.’ 17“For thus says the LORD, ‘You shall not see wind nor shall you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, so that you shall drink, both you and your cattle and your beasts. 18‘This is but a slight thing in the sight of the LORD; He will also give the Moabites into your hand. 19‘Then you shall strike every fortified city and every choice city, and fell every good tree and stop all springs of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.’” 20It happened in the morning about the time of offering the sacrifice, that behold, water came by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.

      21Now all the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to fight against them. And all who were able to put on armor and older were summoned and stood on the border. 22They rose early in the morning, and the sun shone on the water, and the Moabites saw the water opposite them as red as blood. 23Then they said, “This is blood; the kings have surely fought together, and they have slain one another. Now therefore, Moab, to the spoil!” 24But when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites arose and struck the Moabites, so that they fled before them; and they went forward into the land, slaughtering the Moabites. 25Thus they destroyed the cities; and each one threw a stone on every piece of good land and filled it. So they stopped all the springs of water and felled all the good trees, until in Kir-hareseth only they left its stones; however, the slingers went about it and struck it. 26When the king of Moab saw that the battle was too fierce for him, he took with him 700 men who drew swords, to break through to the king of Edom; but they could not. 27Then he took his oldest son who was to reign in his place, and offered him as a burnt offering on the wall. And there came great wrath against Israel, and they departed from him and returned to their own land.

If I am to highlight one or two things for consideration, there are many, I suggest we look at the response of Elisha when the kings ask of him about the battle. Elisha  basically says to the king who was leading people in sin and doing things in the way of his parents (somewhat) rather than Yah’s way that he would not even talk to him if it were not for the righteous king with him.  It is good for us to be around righteous people to be sure. It is better for us to learn and adapt our lives to follow in their righteous example. Do not expect Yahweh to just fix your problems when you call on Him if you insist on living according to your own path rather than His.

I also see this as a good example to demonstrate some online tools for additional study. Consider verse 27 where it says after a sacrifice to a false god, “there came a great wrath against Israel” that leads to the attacking armies leaving. I include a link to a parallel commentary view which you can review in BibleHub.com (and other great websites have similar resources).

One final thought… to experience the miracle of water, the armies had to obey the instructions of the prophet, even though they may have seemed strange. The same trenches used to catch water, was used to lead the Moabites into a trap by the LORD. Obedience, even when it does not make sense, is key to experiencing all that Yahweh has for you.

Seek righteousness, seek relationship with the LORD and obey His instructions and things will go well with you.

Shalom (“peace” in Hebrew)

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Blessed, Consequences of Sin, Curse, Miracles, Miracles, Obeying God, Submitted / Servant, Through Prophets, Unteachable / Foolish, Wickedness / Evil, Worldliness

Do You Want a Blessing or a Curse?

Yahweh’s prophets are not to be taken lightly. The seem to be given significant power and authority in and of themselves without having to go ask Yahweh first in every case. There is no indication that Elisha went to God to ask for a response to the mockers or the stream. He spoke on the LORD’s behalf and had authority to curse or bless on His behalf.

At some level, 2 Kings 2 reflects the overall choice we have in serving God and being blessed, or rejecting Him and being cursed. We should take it seriously, though clearly our culture at large does not.

Deuteronomy 11:26-28

    26“See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: 27the blessing, if you listen to the commandments of the LORD your God, which I am commanding you today; 28and the curse, if you do not listen to the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside from the way which I am commanding you today, by following other gods which you have not known.

2 Kings 2:15-25

Elisha Succeeds Elijah

      15Now when the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho opposite him saw him, they said, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” And they came to meet him and bowed themselves to the ground before him. 16They said to him, “Behold now, there are with your servants fifty strong men, please let them go and search for your master; perhaps the Spirit of the LORD has taken him up and cast him on some mountain or into some valley.” And he said, “You shall not send.” 17But when they urged him until he was ashamed, he said, “Send.” They sent therefore fifty men; and they searched three days but did not find him. 18They returned to him while he was staying at Jericho; and he said to them, “Did I not say to you, ‘Do not go’?”

      19Then the men of the city said to Elisha, “Behold now, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees; but the water is bad and the land is unfruitful.” 20He said, “Bring me a new jar, and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him. 21He went out to the spring of water and threw salt in it and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘I have purified these waters; there shall not be from there death or unfruitfulness any longer.’” 22So the waters have been purified to this day, according to the word of Elisha which he spoke.

      23Then he went up from there to Bethel; and as he was going up by the way, young lads came out from the city and mocked him and said to him, “Go up, you baldhead; go up, you baldhead!” 24When he looked behind him and saw them, he cursed them in the name of the LORD. Then two female bears came out of the woods and tore up forty-two lads of their number. 25He went from there to Mount Carmel, and from there he returned to Samaria.

Ask me if I want a blessing or a curse? Blessing, of course. But if we truly want that then we need to seek and submit to Yahweh through Yeshua. We build relationship and we will want to live according to His ways to be pleasing to Him. He cares how we live.

Ask most folks if they want a blessing or a curse, and they will say blessing. Look at how they live their lives, and in many cases you will see they are selecting the opposite answer and may not even realize it.

Prayerfully reflect on this before Yahweh. Ask Him to help you see any gaps in your relationship with Him, any areas where you are not choosing Him and His ways. Then change in those areas.  Pray for others as well.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Interceding for Others, Learning To Pray Effectively, Miracles, Miracles, Submitted / Servant

If Your Desire Is to Serve Yahweh, Ask Boldly

Of course we could read 2 Kings 2 and focus on Elijah getting taken up in a chariot of fire. What an extraordinary event! However, today, I want to focus on Elisha. He was a loyal servant of Elijah and of Yahweh. When asked what he wanted, he did not go small, but it was all focused on serving Yahweh. He was not selfish or self serving.  We know this fully by continuing to read on through 2 Kings to see how Elisha used the gift given to him.

2 Kings 2:1-14

Elijah Taken to Heaven

      1And it came about when the LORD was about to take up Elijah by a whirlwind to heaven, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. 2Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here please, for the LORD has sent me as far as Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. 3Then the sons of the prophets who were at Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that the LORD will take away your master from over you today?” And he said, “Yes, I know; be still.”

      4Elijah said to him, “Elisha, please stay here, for the LORD has sent me to Jericho.” But he said, “As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they came to Jericho. 5The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho approached Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that the LORD will take away your master from over you today?” And he answered, “Yes, I know; be still.” 6Then Elijah said to him, “Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me to the Jordan.” And he said, “As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on.

      7Now fifty men of the sons of the prophets went and stood opposite them at a distance, while the two of them stood by the Jordan. 8Elijah took his mantle and folded it together and struck the waters, and they were divided here and there, so that the two of them crossed over on dry ground.

      9When they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask what I shall do for you before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said, “Please, let a double portion of your spirit be upon me.” 10He said, “You have asked a hard thing. Nevertheless, if you see me when I am taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if not, it shall not be so.” 11As they were going along and talking, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire and horses of fire which separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind to heaven. 12Elisha saw it and cried out, “My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw Elijah no more. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces. 13He also took up the mantle of Elijah that fell from him and returned and stood by the bank of the Jordan. 14He took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him and struck the waters and said, “Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?” And when he also had struck the waters, they were divided here and there; and Elisha crossed over.

I have heard an expression, “Not to ask is not to receive”. While this is certainly not always true, there is some general truth to it. Let us come before our LORD and ask, especially when what we ask for is intended to help us serve and glorify Him rather than glorify ourselves.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Arrogance, Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Humility, Protector / Deliverer, Through Prophets, Unteachable / Foolish, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Humble Yourself to Hear What Yahweh Has to Say

Yahweh responds favorably to those who humble themselves before Him. He does not respond favorably to those who reject Him in favor of false gods or who are arrogant in standing against Him and His messengers. Let us listen to His message, even when it convicts us in our sin. Let us repent rather than get angry at the messenger or the one who sends them.

2 Kings 1

Ahaziah’s Messengers Meet Elijah

1Now Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. 2And Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber which was in Samaria, and became ill. So he sent messengers and said to them, “Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I will recover from this sickness.” 3But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?’ 4“Now therefore thus says the LORD, ‘You shall not come down from the bed where you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” Then Elijah departed.

5When the messengers returned to him he said to them, “Why have you returned?” 6They said to him, “A man came up to meet us and said to us, ‘Go, return to the king who sent you and say to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed where you have gone up, but shall surely die.’”’” 7He said to them, “What kind of man was he who came up to meet you and spoke these words to you?” 8They answered him, “He was a hairy man with a leather girdle bound about his loins.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

9Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him, and behold, he was sitting on the top of the hill. And he said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’” 10Elijah replied to the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

11So he again sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he said to him, “O man of God, thus says the king, ‘Come down quickly.’” 12Elijah replied to them, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

13So he again sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. When the third captain of fifty went up, he came and bowed down on his knees before Elijah, and begged him and said to him, “O man of God, please let my life and the lives of these fifty servants of yours be precious in your sight. 14“Behold fire came down from heaven and consumed the first two captains of fifty with their fifties; but now let my life be precious in your sight.” 15The angel of the LORD said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he arose and went down with him to the king. 16Then he said to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of His word?—therefore you shall not come down from the bed where you have gone up, but shall surely die.’”

Jehoram Reigns over Israel

17So Ahaziah died according to the word of the LORD which Elijah had spoken. And because he had no son, Jehoram became king in his place in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah. 18Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

Take note  that He demonstrates power against His people who stand against Him in 2 Kings 1, rather than pagans or gentiles. While He will not always act as clearly in our eyes as He did here through Elijah, the principal remains the same.

Ahaziah seems to suffer from a similar problem as Ahab before him. He does not listen to the message from Yahweh. Instead he gets angry at the messenger. He misses the whole point and chooses not to repent in this situation. We should take care to listen to the message of Yahweh’s word, even when it stands in judgment against our mistakes. Repent and get right with our Father rather than hate and abuse the messenger.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Am I on the path?, Jesus (hearing from God), Parables, Seeking God, Share the Good News, Study the Word

The Sower and the Four Soils… and What Does it Mean for Me?

We will focus today on the parable of the sower, or as it is sometimes called the parable of the four soils. I plan to come back to the section on why Yeshua taught in parables as it deserves some depth of discussion on its own.

Matthew 13:1-23

Jesus Teaches in Parables

      1That day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea. 2And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach.

      3And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; 4and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. 5“Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil. 6“But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 7“Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. 8“And others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. 9“He who has ears, let him hear.”

An Explanation

      10And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” 11Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. 12“For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. 13“Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.

14“In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND;
YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE;

      15FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL,
WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR,
AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES,
OTHERWISE THEY WOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES,
HEAR WITH THEIR EARS,
AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN,
AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.’

16“But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. 17“For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The Sower Explained

      18“Hear then the parable of the sower. 19“When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. 20“The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. 22“And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 23“And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.”

Reflect on this teaching from Yeshua from two perspectives:

  • You as the soil
  • You as the sower

I strive to be the fertile soil and to a large degree I believe I fit that category more than the others. There are, however, times when I let the worries of the world come and choke out the joy of the LORD in my walk with Him. I need to keep working on this to be sure, and I need His help. Which type of soil are you?

Notice that the sower and the seed are consistent throughout all four scenarios. It is not the word of God that is in question in any of these outcomes, but rather the people receiving the message. Thus, if we are obeying our mandate in the great commission to go and make disciples of all the world, we must not judge our effectiveness by the outcome with specific individuals. There is more going on than just us as sowers and God’s word as the seed.

This is also why we are instructed not to simply dwell on one person in trying to “force” the gospel on them. If they reject it, we are to move on, or “shake the dust from our feet” (What does it mean to shake the dust off your feet_ _ GotQuestions.org). What good would it do for the sower to simply keep throwing seed on the path or the rocky soil? What if there is more fertile soil just “down the road” that he could find if he would shift his focus?

What changes should you make specific to your life in light of today’s scripture?

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, False Prophets / Teachers, Is the Old Testament Relevant Today?, Justice / Judgment, Repenting from Sin, Submitted / Servant, Through Prophets, Wickedness / Evil, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

The Lord Sent Forth a Deceiving Spirit

1 Kings 22 will stretch you a bit if you really read and think about it. Do not allow yourself to come in constrained by what you already think God will or will not do. Instead, read it for what it says and really reflect on it. After you read today’s scripture we have some points to reflect on identified below in this article.

1 Kings 22:1-40

Ahab’s Third Campaign against Aram

      1Three years passed without war between Aram and Israel. 2In the third year Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel. 3Now the king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know that Ramoth-gilead belongs to us, and we are still doing nothing to take it out of the hand of the king of Aram?” 4And he said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to battle at Ramoth-gilead?” And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”

      5Moreover, Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please inquire first for the word of the LORD.” 6Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle or shall I refrain?” And they said, “Go up, for the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.” 7But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not yet a prophet of the LORD here that we may inquire of him?” 8The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the LORD, but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.” But Jehoshaphat said, “Let not the king say so.” 9Then the king of Israel called an officer and said, “Bring quickly Micaiah son of Imlah.” 10Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah were sitting each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets were prophesying before them. 11Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made horns of iron for himself and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘With these you will gore the Arameans until they are consumed.’” 12All the prophets were prophesying thus, saying, “Go up to Ramoth-gilead and prosper, for the LORD will give it into the hand of the king.”

Micaiah Predicts Defeat

      13Then the messenger who went to summon Micaiah spoke to him saying, “Behold now, the words of the prophets are uniformly favorable to the king. Please let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak favorably.” 14But Micaiah said, “As the LORD lives, what the LORD says to me, that I shall speak.”

      15When he came to the king, the king said to him, “Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we refrain?” And he answered him, “Go up and succeed, and the LORD will give it into the hand of the king.” 16Then the king said to him, “How many times must I adjure you to speak to me nothing but the truth in the name of the LORD?”

17So he said,
“I saw all Israel
Scattered on the mountains,
Like sheep which have no shepherd.
And the LORD said, ‘These have no master.
Let each of them return to his house in peace.’”

18Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?”

      19Micaiah said, “Therefore, hear the word of the LORD. I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him on His right and on His left. 20“The LORD said, ‘Who will entice Ahab to go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?’ And one said this while another said that. 21“Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD and said, ‘I will entice him.’ 22“The LORD said to him, ‘How?’ And he said, ‘I will go out and be a deceiving spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ Then He said, ‘You are to entice him and also prevail. Go and do so.’ 23“Now therefore, behold, the LORD has put a deceiving spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; and the LORD has proclaimed disaster against you.”

      24Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, “How did the Spirit of the LORD pass from me to speak to you?” 25Micaiah said, “Behold, you shall see on that day when you enter an inner room to hide yourself.” 26Then the king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah and return him to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king’s son; 27and say, ‘Thus says the king, “Put this man in prison and feed him sparingly with bread and water until I return safely.”’” 28Micaiah said, “If you indeed return safely the LORD has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Listen, all you people.”

Defeat and Death of Ahab

      29So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah went up against Ramoth-gilead. 30The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into the battle, but you put on your robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle. 31Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, “Do not fight with small or great, but with the king of Israel alone.” 32So when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “Surely it is the king of Israel,” and they turned aside to fight against him, and Jehoshaphat cried out. 33When the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him.

      34Now a certain man drew his bow at random and struck the king of Israel in a joint of the armor. So he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn around and take me out of the fight; for I am severely wounded.” 35The battle raged that day, and the king was propped up in his chariot in front of the Arameans, and died at evening, and the blood from the wound ran into the bottom of the chariot. 36Then a cry passed throughout the army close to sunset, saying, “Every man to his city and every man to his country.”

      37So the king died and was brought to Samaria, and they buried the king in Samaria. 38They washed the chariot by the pool of Samaria, and the dogs licked up his blood (now the harlots bathed themselves there), according to the word of the LORD which He spoke. 39Now the rest of the acts of Ahab and all that he did and the ivory house which he built and all the cities which he built, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 40So Ahab slept with his fathers, and Ahaziah his son became king in his place.

I am not going to be able to develop all the interesting themes inside this scripture. Instead, I am going to highlight what I hope are some thought provoking things to consider and prayerfully reflect on for each of you.

  • Ahab, king of Israel, is upset because Ramoth-gilead is controlled by Aram. Back in 1 Kings 20, Yahweh gave victory to Ahab over Aram. However, instead of seizing full victory, Ahab instead made a deal with the king of Aram.  It is Ahab’s own fault, but we never hear Ahab internalize that and accept responsibility for his actions and their repercussions.
  • Despite the previous experience relying on the 450 prophets of Baal, which Elijah confronted on Mount Carmel in 1 Kings 18, Ahab has once again surrounded himself with false prophets who will tell him whatever he wants to hear. They even try to pull Micaiah in on it. Ahab strongly resists hearing from a true prophet of the LORD, because he blames them for bringing bad news. Once again, Ahab avoids connecting his wicked actions with the consequences he does not like. He blames the true messenger from Yahweh instead. This is the same reaction we see from Ahab throughout his story in 1 Kings with Elijah as well. He has learned nothing.
  • Micaiah delivered a message at first that was what Ahab wanted to hear, but it was deceptive and intended to bring him to defeat. There are a number of things about this part which are intriguing.
    1. Did Micaiah lie about what the LORD told him to say? or did the LORD tell His prophet to deceive King Ahab?
    2. It appears from what Micaiah says that the LORD was intentionally deceiving Ahab to lead him to defeat in battle. He sent a deceiving spirit to convince Ahab’s prophets to lead him to defeat by telling him what he wanted to hear.
    3. Ahab was so used to hearing “bad news” from the LORD’s prophets, he knew that what he heard from Micaiah at first was not right.  (As an interesting side note, there was no way for Micaiah to win with Ahab, even when he tells him what he wants to hear.)
  • Do not overlook point 2, above. We often disregard the thought that the LORD would deceive someone, but he clearly does in this situation. It reminds me of when the LORD sent an evil spirit to harass Saul (1 Samuel 16:14). It is just something most of us as Christians don’t think the LORD would do, but it is there in scripture. We need to seek to understand who He is fully and take care not to define Him in our own minds as to what He will or will not do.  For some additional thoughts about the LORD using a deceiving spirit, consider Why did God use a lying spirit to deceive Ahab_ _ GotQuestions.org. 
  • Ahab puts Micaiah in prison as if to punish him or make him somehow change his mind to make Ahab win instead of lose. Once again, Ahab misses the point. Micaiah has no authority to change what the LORD has chosen.  He is only a messenger. Micaiah tries to make that point by emphasizing that if Ahab returns, then the LORD has not spoken through him.
  • We are probably all tempted to say that Micaiah was treated unfairly and why would Yahweh allow it? None the less, that is what happened. There is no guarantee that we get “fair” treatment from the wicked when we serve the LORD or we always get God’s protection to keep us from persecution. We are to serve Him anyway.

If I had to summarize to a key point for today’s scripture, I would probably highlight the failures of Ahab and warn each of us to take heed not to fall in that trap. Do not blame God’s messengers for bad things that happen to us. Instead, seek to repent and humble ourselves before God. God showed even Ahab mercy when he did so in 1 Kings 21:27-29. Seek godly advice, even when it may not be what we want to hear. Do not seek a bunch of people who simply tell you what you want to hear. Take accountability for our actions and the implications that has on our own lives.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Fear / Reverence for God, Grace / Forgiveness, Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, Jesus (hearing from God), Repenting from Sin, Salvation, Seeking God, Submitted / Servant

Yeshua Teaching About ‘the Unpardonable Sin’ Should Catch our Attention

There are a few verses in Matthew 12 which should catch the attention of any person serious about drawing near to our Creator. Yeshua speaks about the unpardonable sin and clearly states that there is no “neutral” when it comes to our relationship with the LORD. We are either with Him, or against Him. It is that simple. There is no gray. Neutral then falls in the category of “against”.

Matthew 12:30-32

The Unpardonable Sin

      30“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.

      31“Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. 32“Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.

There can be much interesting study and discussion about the “unpardonable sin”. I will not fully develop all that here in this article. I believe the unpardonable sin is to continually reject the Holy Spirit as He seeks to draw you to Him and to our Creator. All else can be forgiven through the grace of God demonstrated by the sacrifice of Christ on our behalf on the cross.

We can be forgiven, but we must accept  Christ as our Lord. If we reject Him, we reject the forgiveness He already provided.

In a small way, I can compare it to someone trying to give you a great gift, like a car. They can buy it for you, but if you refuse to accept it and take the keys, then you have walked away from the gift.

The reason it is unpardonable is not because God wants to hold a grudge for this one. Quite the opposite, He is offering forgiveness to us in this scenario through the Holy Spirit drawing us to Him. However, if forgiveness comes through submission to Christ, then how can we be forgiven the sin of rejecting the Holy Spirit as it seeks to draw us to Him?

In the example with the car above, we would not get angry with the person offering to give the car, but rather the responsibility for not receiving the gift remains solely with the one who would not accept it. So too, we should not get angry with God because people choose to reject His free gift of forgiveness.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Powerful / King of All, Demons, Healer, Miracles, Spiritual Warfare

Yeshua Plunders a Strong Man’s House

Ok. Yes. I am having a bit of fun and trying to grab your curiosity with the title. Read on and you will see where this is referring to Yeshua’s teaching, not mine.

The context of Matthew 12 is that Yeshua was doing many healings on Sabbath. The Pharisees were trying to trap Him to be able to condemn Him. Many were healed. The Pharisees could not accept this obvious sign of Yeshua as Messiah, so they acted as if spiritually blinded and unable to see the obvious in front of them while other more simple people saw and believed.

Matthew 12:22-29

The Pharisees Rebuked

      22Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. 23All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?” 24But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”

      25And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself will not stand. 26“If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27“If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges. 28“But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29“Or how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.

We see obviously that Yeshua has by the power of God, authority and power over demons. The Pharisees were so blinded by their pre conceived conviction that this was not Messiah, that they were grasping at straws to explain away His miracles. They were desperate. When some cast out demons in the name of God (verse 27) the Pharisees were content to claim it was God. However, when Yeshua did so, they claim something completely different. Yeshua points out their hypocrisy as a starting point.

Yeshua also points out rightly that it makes no sense for Him to cast out demons if it is by the power of Satan. That is like Satan attacking himself. That is not very logical. The last argument Yeshua makes is also solid. How can Yeshua, or anyone, cast out demons if not first having the power to bind Satan to prevent him from interfering? He uses a metaphor about plundering a strong man’s house. Satan is the strong man and Yeshua is plundering it in this comparison, as He drives out a demon. As a side bar, I find it interesting to apply this metaphor where our LORD is “plundering” anything, we don’t think in those terms. However, the metaphor is very appropriate to the point Yeshua is making.

Also, don’t miss out on the fact that demon possession is a real thing and is different than healing sickness. This still exists today. Demons have not gone away. I can not say for sure if the man was physically in need of healing (mute, blind) and demon possessed or physically in need of healing because he was demon possessed. I tend to think it was blind, mute, and demon possessed as three independent problems he experienced. Yeshua addressed all three!

We must pray for those who are demon possessed and drive out demons in the name of Yeshua. Too often today we just prescribe heavy medications with no hope of ever getting off them, not  addressing the real issue.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Compassion, Compassionate, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Healer, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, Help / Serve Others, His Ways Are Not Our Ways, Kindness / Gentleness, Love, Loving / Kind, Miracles, Miracles, Peace / Rest, Unteachable / Foolish, Wickedness / Evil

Our Messiah Provides Thought Provoking Context Regarding Sabbath

Yeshua provides us thought provoking commentary regarding Sabbaths in Matthew 12. He was confronted by Pharisees seeking to condemn Him by finding Him guilty of violating the letter of the law of Torah. They were not interested in learning from His reply, but we should be as His servants and disciples.

Matthew 12:1-21

Sabbath Questions

      1At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples became hungry and began to pick the heads of grain and eat. 2But when the Pharisees saw this, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples do what is not lawful to do on a Sabbath.” 3But He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he became hungry, he and his companions, 4how he entered the house of God, and they ate the consecrated bread, which was not lawful for him to eat nor for those with him, but for the priests alone? 5“Or have you not read in the Law, that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple break the Sabbath and are innocent? 6“But I say to you that something greater than the temple is here. 7“But if you had known what this means, ‘I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT A SACRIFICE,’ you would not have condemned the innocent.

Lord of the Sabbath

      8“For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

      9Departing from there, He went into their synagogue. 10And a man was there whose hand was withered. And they questioned Jesus, asking, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—so that they might accuse Him. 11And He said to them, “What man is there among you who has a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will he not take hold of it and lift it out? 12“How much more valuable then is a man than a sheep! So then, it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” 13Then He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand!” He stretched it out, and it was restored to normal, like the other. 14But the Pharisees went out and conspired against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.

      15But Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. Many followed Him, and He healed them all, 16and warned them not to tell who He was. 17This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet:

      18“BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN;
MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL is WELL–PLEASED;
I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM,
AND HE SHALL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES.

      19“HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT;
NOR WILL ANYONE HEAR HIS VOICE IN THE STREETS.

      20“A BATTERED REED HE WILL NOT BREAK OFF,
AND A SMOLDERING WICK HE WILL NOT PUT OUT,
UNTIL HE LEADS JUSTICE TO VICTORY.

      21“AND IN HIS NAME THE GENTILES WILL HOPE.”

There are a handful of really important points.

  • If we are simply trying to find a reason to condemn Christ or those who follow Him, we will not learn anything about our LORD. We will simply go about trying to set traps and miss the opportunity to grow in relationship with Him.
  • Yeshua does not deny the Sabbath or the Sabbath instructions are important.
  • Yeshua highlights that there are times when certain needs may take priority over following the letter of the law for Sabbath. He states that in this case it is about compassion, truly caring for people which is more important than strict adherence to the law. Of course, this puts great responsibility on us to know our LORD and to apply this carefully and not simply disobey whenever convenient.
  • Yeshua is Lord of the Sabbath. He has authority over it. This is also a claim to being divine… being God and not simply a prophet or a teacher.
  •  Yeshua was deeply aware of prophecy and careful to act in keeping with what the God previously declared about Messiah so as not to contradict what God had said.
  • I find it really interesting that He warned the people healed not to say who He was. He was obviously not concerned about Pharisees knowing He was healing. He did so in front of them, deliberately. What a different approach than what we would expect from a man. Men typically want recognition or personal gain. God’s ways are not our ways.

To read more about Sabbath, consider our teaching, Remember the Sabbath.

The Barnes Notes for Matthew 12, on BibleHub.com, provides more background and context well laid out. However, we must always remember that the notes and commentary are supplemental tools representing someone else’s study and conclusions… they are not part of the infallible word of God. Test them.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.