Category Archives: Selfishness

Arrogance, Complaining, Consequences of Sin, Drunkenness, Giving, Grace / Patience, Help / Serve Others, Humility, Kindness / Gentleness, Self Control, Selfishness

How We Approach the Needs of Others Matters

Contrast the response to David’s request by Nabal and by his wife, Abigail. It is clear which is pleasing to the LORD. The LORD’s anointing was on David and his men had acted honorably and been helpful to Nabal’s servants. Nabal reacted with selfishness and arrogance and spurned them. Abigail interceded with grace and wisdom and a servant’s heart.

Let us reflect personally on how we respond to situations like this in our lives, even if they are not quite so dramatic as 400 armed men coming to get supplies from us. People around us do have needs. We should pray and ask the LORD to give us the right attitude.

1 Samuel 25:2-38

Nabal and Abigail

      2Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel; and the man was very rich, and he had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. And it came about while he was shearing his sheep in Carmel 3(now the man’s name was Nabal, and his wife’s name was Abigail. And the woman was intelligent and beautiful in appearance, but the man was harsh and evil in his dealings, and he was a Calebite), 4that David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep. 5So David sent ten young men; and David said to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, visit Nabal and greet him in my name; 6and thus you shall say, ‘Have a long life, peace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have. 7‘Now I have heard that you have shearers; now your shepherds have been with us and we have not insulted them, nor have they missed anything all the days they were in Carmel. 8‘Ask your young men and they will tell you. Therefore let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we have come on a festive day. Please give whatever you find at hand to your servants and to your son David.’”

      9When David’s young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all these words in David’s name; then they waited. 10But Nabal answered David’s servants and said, “Who is David? And who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants today who are each breaking away from his master. 11“Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men whose origin I do not know?” 12So David’s young men retraced their way and went back; and they came and told him according to all these words. 13David said to his men, “Each of you gird on his sword.” So each man girded on his sword. And David also girded on his sword, and about four hundred men went up behind David while two hundred stayed with the baggage.

      14But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, “Behold, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master, and he scorned them. 15“Yet the men were very good to us, and we were not insulted, nor did we miss anything as long as we went about with them, while we were in the fields. 16“They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the time we were with them tending the sheep. 17“Now therefore, know and consider what you should do, for evil is plotted against our master and against all his household; and he is such a worthless man that no one can speak to him.”

Abigail Intercedes

      18Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread and two jugs of wine and five sheep already prepared and five measures of roasted grain and a hundred clusters of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs, and loaded them on donkeys. 19She said to her young men, “Go on before me; behold, I am coming after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal. 20It came about as she was riding on her donkey and coming down by the hidden part of the mountain, that behold, David and his men were coming down toward her; so she met them. 21Now David had said, “Surely in vain I have guarded all that this man has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him; and he has returned me evil for good. 22“May God do so to the enemies of David, and more also, if by morning I leave as much as one male of any who belong to him.”

      23When Abigail saw David, she hurried and dismounted from her donkey, and fell on her face before David and bowed herself to the ground. 24She fell at his feet and said, “On me alone, my lord, be the blame. And please let your maidservant speak to you, and listen to the words of your maidservant. 25“Please do not let my lord pay attention to this worthless man, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name and folly is with him; but I your maidservant did not see the young men of my lord whom you sent.

      26“Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, since the LORD has restrained you from shedding blood, and from avenging yourself by your own hand, now then let your enemies and those who seek evil against my lord, be as Nabal. 27“Now let this gift which your maidservant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who accompany my lord. 28“Please forgive the transgression of your maidservant; for the LORD will certainly make for my lord an enduring house, because my lord is fighting the battles of the LORD, and evil will not be found in you all your days. 29“Should anyone rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, then the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living with the LORD your God; but the lives of your enemies He will sling out as from the hollow of a sling. 30“And when the LORD does for my lord according to all the good that He has spoken concerning you, and appoints you ruler over Israel, 31this will not cause grief or a troubled heart to my lord, both by having shed blood without cause and by my lord having avenged himself. When the LORD deals well with my lord, then remember your maidservant.”

      32Then David said to Abigail, “Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me, 33and blessed be your discernment, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodshed and from avenging myself by my own hand. 34“Nevertheless, as the LORD God of Israel lives, who has restrained me from harming you, unless you had come quickly to meet me, surely there would not have been left to Nabal until the morning light as much as one male.” 35So David received from her hand what she had brought him and said to her, “Go up to your house in peace. See, I have listened to you and granted your request.”

      36Then Abigail came to Nabal, and behold, he was holding a feast in his house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was very drunk; so she did not tell him anything at all until the morning light. 37But in the morning, when the wine had gone out of Nabal, his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him so that he became as a stone. 38About ten days later, the LORD struck Nabal and he died.

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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, Blessed, Consequences of Sin, Discipline / Guidance From God, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Faith / Trusting God, Obeying God, Pride, Protector / Deliverer, Selfishness, Spiritual Warfare, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

If God Is With You, Who Can Be Against You?

When YHWH is with you, you can not lose. When He is against you, you can not win. Saul was king and was trying to trap David so that he would be killed by the Philistines. Saul knew that David had the hand of YHWH upon him. He was that jealous and that driven against David. Study of earlier scripture in this chapter reminds us that Saul was acting this way in large part because “… an evil spirit from God came mightily upon Saul… ” (1 Samuel 18:10).

Saul even uses his daughter as bait in a trap to try to get David killed fighting Philistines, but with YHWH on his side, David succeeds every time and increases in his esteem and name among the people of Israel.

It can be a bit difficult to fully digest that an evil spirit came upon Saul from God, but that is the translation of the scripture. I suppose we could study it further for more nuance, but Saul was experiencing the results of choosing to please the people over choosing to please YHWH. The hand of blessing was removed and difficulty came in its place. We should take heed in our lives as well, that we seek to please YHWH more than man.

1 Samuel 18:20-30

David Marries Saul’s Daughter

      20Now Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David. When they told Saul, the thing was agreeable to him. 21Saul thought, “I will give her to him that she may become a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” Therefore Saul said to David, “For a second time you may be my son-in-law today.” 22Then Saul commanded his servants, “Speak to David secretly, saying, ‘Behold, the king delights in you, and all his servants love you; now therefore, become the king’s son-in-law.’” 23So Saul’s servants spoke these words to David. But David said, “Is it trivial in your sight to become the king’s son-in-law, since I am a poor man and lightly esteemed?” 24The servants of Saul reported to him according to these words which David spoke. 25Saul then said, “Thus you shall say to David, ‘The king does not desire any dowry except a hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to take vengeance on the king’s enemies.’” Now Saul planned to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines. 26When his servants told David these words, it pleased David to become the king’s son-in-law. Before the days had expired 27David rose up and went, he and his men, and struck down two hundred men among the Philistines. Then David brought their foreskins, and they gave them in full number to the king, that he might become the king’s son-in-law. So Saul gave him Michal his daughter for a wife. 28When Saul saw and knew that the LORD was with David, and that Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved him, 29then Saul was even more afraid of David. Thus Saul was David’s enemy continually.

      30Then the commanders of the Philistines went out to battle, and it happened as often as they went out, that David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul. So his name was highly esteemed.

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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.

Born Again (spiritually), Faith / Trusting God, Humility, Obeying God, Purposeful / Intentional, Seeking God, Selfishness, Through Prophets

Yeshua Must Increase, But I Must Decrease

How many of us truly live our lives in like manner to John the Baptist? His greatest testimony perhaps was his attitude of humility and his focus on serving YHWH in his appointed role, always pointing toward Yeshua.

John 3:22-36

John’s Last Testimony

     22After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He was spending time with them and baptizing. 23John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there; and people were coming and were being baptized— 24for John had not yet been thrown into prison.

      25Therefore there arose a discussion on the part of John’s disciples with a Jew about purification. 26And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, He is baptizing and all are coming to Him.” 27John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. 28“You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent ahead of Him.’ 29“He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine has been made full. 30“He must increase, but I must decrease.

      31“He who comes from above is above all, he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. 32“What He has seen and heard, of that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. 33“He who has received His testimony has set his seal to this, that God is true. 34“For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God; for He gives the Spirit without measure. 35“The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. 36“He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

Let us prayerfully and with humility approach our lives with the intent for Yeshua to increase and our own focus on self to decrease. Let this permeate our wants and desires. Let it guide our choices and behaviors. It means choosing against our own wants at times and focusing on His. It is hard to do without the help of the Spirit.

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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?, Born Again (spiritually), Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Purposeful / Intentional, Repenting from Sin, Seeking God, Selfishness, Sin Nature, Teachable, Wickedness / Evil

Seek The Light; Reject The Darkness

It is interesting that Nicodemus came to Yeshua by night, as if to avoid being seen, and yet claims he knows that Yeshua has come from God as a teacher. But none the less, I will give Nicodemus some credit for coming to Yeshua to learn more when his peers would likely have pressured him to reject Yeshua all together. We will sometimes have to make similar decisions if we are to learn more about and grow in relationship with Yeshua. Many of those around us will pressure us not to do so.

Though we may struggle, like Nicodemus, to fully understand being “reborn”, it is none the less a real experience and an important one. Yeshua clearly states that we must be born of water (natural birth) and of the spirit (spiritual birth or rebirth) if we are to see the kingdom of God. Being born of the Spirit has to do with our submitting to Christ as Lord and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit within us as helper for us to experience the kingdom of God, to see things the way God sees things rather than just from our own perspective focused on self.

We must look to Christ and believe He died for our sins and rose again. He came to create a way for us to be forgiven and reconciled to God… it is the only way and not one of many. We must love the Light (aka Christ) more than the darkness (aka sin and self).

John 3:1-21

The New Birth

      1Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; 2this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” 3Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

      4Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?”5Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7“Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8“The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

      9Nicodemus said to Him, “How can these things be?” 10Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? 11“Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony. 12“If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13“No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man. 14“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; 15so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.

      16“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 17“For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. 18“He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19“This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. 20“For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21“But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”

Do not be content to simply claim with words that you follow Christ. Test yourself against your life choices and attitudes. Ask YHWH to help you. Our actions will reflect truly whether or not we seek the Light of the darkness more than our words. Our behaviors and actions do not save us, but they certainly reflect our heart and whether or not we believe in Christ as savior and submit to Him.  Do not fool yourself into thinking you are submitted as it is your own salvation at risk. Test yourself against the truth of scripture… against your actions and attitudes.

Ask the Spirit to guide you and be willing to recognize you need to change to be more like Christ. It is not a journey we complete in this life, but rather one we continue on throughout our life. So if you have found yourself complacent and satisfied that you are as much like Christ as you “need to be”, then take that as a warning and check yourself. As with any journey, when you believe you have arrived, that is as far as you will ever go.

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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.

Abortion, Consequences of Sin, Discerning / Judging, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, Homosexual Behavior, Hypocrisy, Jesus (hearing from God), Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Justice / Judgment, Rebuke Wrong Behavior, Selfishness, Wickedness / Evil

Woe To You Hypocrites

Yeshua does not pull punches. He does not go around behind someone’s back talking about them. He goes right to them and speaks the truth boldly when it is called for. There are other times where He takes time to build relationship first, as with the Samaritan woman at the well. In Luke 11 when He confronts the Pharisees and lawyers, He is very direct.

The warnings apply for us too. Let us heed them. Are we more concerned with managing outward visible signs of our faith or actually internalizing and living out our faith in all aspects of our lives. Do we just make a good impression on the outside, but on the inside there is wickedness or selfishness?

Luke 11:37-54

Woes upon the Pharisees

     37Now when He had spoken, a Pharisee asked Him to have lunch with him; and He went in, and reclined at the table. 38When the Pharisee saw it, he was surprised that He had not first ceremonially washed before the meal. 39But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the platter; but inside of you, you are full of robbery and wickedness. 40“You foolish ones, did not He who made the outside make the inside also? 41“But give that which is within as charity, and then all things are clean for you.

      42“But woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithe of mint and rue and every kind of garden herb, and yet disregard justice and the love of God; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. 43“Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the chief seats in the synagogues and the respectful greetings in the market places. 44“Woe to you! For you are like concealed tombs, and the people who walk over them are unaware of it.”

      45One of the lawyers said to Him in reply, “Teacher, when You say this, You insult us too.” 46But He said, “Woe to you lawyers as well! For you weigh men down with burdens hard to bear, while you yourselves will not even touch the burdens with one of your fingers. 47“Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and it was your fathers who killed them. 48“So you are witnesses and approve the deeds of your fathers; because it was they who killed them, and you build their tombs. 49“For this reason also the wisdom of God said, ‘I will send to them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and some they will persecute, 50so that the blood of all the prophets, shed since the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation, 51from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the house of God; yes, I tell you, it shall be charged against this generation.’ 52“Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge; you yourselves did not enter, and you hindered those who were entering.”

      53When He left there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be very hostile and to question Him closely on many subjects, 54plotting against Him to catch Him in something He might say.

Ask the Spirit to help you evaluate your walk with Christ. Ask Him to show you any areas where you may just be “going through the motions” or not fully committed and submitted to the Lord and His ways. We have a culture around us that constantly tries to pull us away from Christ and His ways. Even in our church community there are many who will focus on “good enough” or “better than most” or “I help people”, or “I am a good person”…  but these are insufficient standards. We are to live to God’s standard. That requires us constantly submitting our lives to Him in all areas.

We can not say be fully committed to Him by attending church weekly and then turn around and not oppose something like abortion, the murder of millions of innocent lives, just because it is accepted culturally.  We can not pay a tithe and then accept and endorse homosexuality, which God clearly condemns. Should we accept removing any reference to God in our government and schools and public spaces just because our sinful culture demands it? Are we here just to be liked and make friends with everyone while they live sinful lives rejecting Christ on their way to hell? We should not be “silent” or “private” Christians. The Lord did not hide the light but put it on a lampstand for all to see.  We should be living in the example of Christ and that includes calling out sin appropriately and, at times, directly and with boldness… even when those hearing the message will hate us for it.

Pray for boldness and the leading of the Holy Spirit in your life. When He leads, obey and follow.

Woe unto any of us who pay lip service to Christ but live in hypocrisy by not living submitted to Him.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Discerning / Judging, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Purposeful / Intentional, Righteous, Righteousness / Serving God, Selfishness, Sin Nature, Teachable, Unteachable / Foolish, Wickedness / Evil, Worldliness

Let There Be Light Rather Than Darkness In You

Yeshua is the light of the world. He shown brightly as He walked this earth and taught people about the kingdom of God. He taught truth. He called out evil for what it is and did so directly. Many unbelieving people rejected Him. They could not see the truth of Christ as Messiah right before their eyes. God did not hide Christ but raised Him up publically for the light to shine brightly.

The truth of Christ is still with us today and available to lead us through the historical record of the Bible and through the Spirit of God who dwells amongst believers. Pray that the Lord would open your eyes so you could see clearly the truth of Christ… that your eye would be clear and thus your whole body full of light. We must first accept Christ and then we can, with the help of the Spirit, transform our hearts and minds to His service rather than our own desires.

In this way we become a light as well. Let us not hide our light, our faith in Christ, under a lampstand. Even if we must face adversity, let us shine forth for all to see. If we accept the world’s view of truth, we will be filled with darkness rather than light. Pray for the Spirit to lead and guide you and help you see clearly and understand the truth of God’s word and build relationship with Him.

Luke 11:29-36

   29As the crowds were increasing, He began to say, “This generation is a wicked generation; it seeks for a sign, and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah. 30“For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. 31“The Queen of the South will rise up with the men of this generation at the judgment and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. 32“The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.

    33“No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it away in a cellar nor under a basket, but on the lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. 34“The eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is clear, your whole body also is full of light; but when it is bad, your body also is full of darkness. 35“Then watch out that the light in you is not darkness. 36“If therefore your whole body is full of light, with no dark part in it, it will be wholly illumined, as when the lamp illumines you with its rays.”

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Blessed, Curse, Fear / Reverence for God, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Self Control, Selfishness, Wickedness / Evil

Shall We Choose Wickedness or Righteousness?

Yeshua pulls no punches. He can be very straight and direct. The time of His earthly ministry was unlike any other in history… God Himself in human form walking amongst us and revealing Himself to us. For those who reject Him face to face and deny Him when He shows up right before them… even others who rejected Him will condemn them for they had the greatest sign of all. They had Jesus in the flesh and then his death and resurrection, the sign of Jonah.

Luke 11:29-32

The Sign of Jonah

     29As the crowds were increasing, He began to say, “This generation is a wicked generation; it seeks for a sign, and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah. 30“For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. 31“The Queen of the South will rise up with the men of this generation at the judgment and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. 32“The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.

We have the earthly ministry of Yeshua recorded and available practically at our fingertips through the written word and now online access as well. We can carry a Bible(s) with us on our phones everywhere we go. Generally speaking we have amazing time on our hands with which to seek Him, pray, worship, study the word. We can say we are busy, and we can allow ourselves to be busy… but by and large we are not desperately seeking our next meal to survive. We fill our time with games and videos and all manner of trivial distractions. But do we fill our time with building relationship with the Lord?

We have time and access to our Lord and a record of His works and who He is. We have clearly documented history of the sign of His death and resurrection. If we are to reject Him still, than we truly are a wicked generation as was the generation which rejected Him during His earthly ministry.

Put God first. Seek Him first. Do not wait for Him to have the leftover time you don’t fill with other busyness.  Seek first the kingdom of God and everything else shall be given to you. This is the way to experience His blessings in abundance.

 Matthew 6:33

33“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Each of us has an opportunity to decide for ourselves… shall we choose righteousness and blessings? or wickedness and selfishness and the curse that goes with it?

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Abortion, All Powerful / King of All, Discerning / Judging, Homosexual Behavior, Humility, Justice / Judgment, Obeying God, Persecution / Glorifying God, Protector / Deliverer, Purposeful / Intentional, Selfishness, Strife, Wickedness / Evil, Worldliness

For The LORD Will Not Abandon His People

There are certainly times when we look around us and see wickedness rotting out our culture and the people of the world. Often we see the wicked oppress or attack the righteous, perhaps at times for no other reason than to feel better about their own wickedness by influencing others to join them rather than call them out for their sin.

Pray for the plans of the wicked to be destroyed and the righteous to be elevated. For the LORD will not abandon His people. Pray for repentance in the wicked that they would turn from sin and humble themselves before the Lord.

Psalm 94

The LORD Implored to Avenge His People.

     1O LORD, God of vengeance,
God of vengeance, shine forth!

      2Rise up, O Judge of the earth,
Render recompense to the proud.

      3How long shall the wicked, O LORD,
How long shall the wicked exult?

      4They pour forth words, they speak arrogantly;
All who do wickedness vaunt themselves.

      5They crush Your people, O LORD,
And afflict Your heritage.

      6They slay the widow and the stranger
And murder the orphans.

      7They have said, “The LORD does not see,
Nor does the God of Jacob pay heed.”

      8Pay heed, you senseless among the people;
And when will you understand, stupid ones?

      9He who planted the ear, does He not hear?
He who formed the eye, does He not see?

      10He who chastens the nations, will He not rebuke,
Even He who teaches man knowledge?

      11The LORD knows the thoughts of man,
That they are a mere breath.

      12Blessed is the man whom You chasten, O LORD,
And whom You teach out of Your law;

      13That You may grant him relief from the days of adversity,
Until a pit is dug for the wicked.

      14For the LORD will not abandon His people,
Nor will He forsake His inheritance.

      15For judgment will again be righteous,
And all the upright in heart will follow it.

      16Who will stand up for me against evildoers?
Who will take his stand for me against those who do wickedness?

      17If the LORD had not been my help,
My soul would soon have dwelt in the abode of silence.

      18If I should say, “My foot has slipped,”
Your lovingkindness, O LORD, will hold me up.

      19When my anxious thoughts multiply within me,
Your consolations delight my soul.

      20Can a throne of destruction be allied with You,
One which devises mischief by decree?

      21They band themselves together against the life of the righteous
And condemn the innocent to death.

      22But the LORD has been my stronghold,
And my God the rock of my refuge.

      23He has brought back their wickedness upon them
And will destroy them in their evil;
The LORD our God will destroy them.

There is evil of many shades around the world. Some openly persecute and execute Christians, such as is common in some Muslim dominated countries. Others just constantly try to shame Christians for standing up for God’s instructions in life and pointing out sin in the society around them or for just refusing to participate in the sinful culture around them. They use lawsuits and lawmakers to discriminate against Christians living out their beliefs. They stir up anger and strife against businesses, calling for boycotts.

These same people are willing to murder unborn babies for their own selfishness and demand that it be free. They demand that Christians embrace and support and participate in homosexual marriage. They take no accountability for their own lives and just demand government pay them so they can buy what they have not earned.

Pray for repentance and revival. Pray for the righteous to rise up and be moved by God to take back our local, state, and national government proudly and without fear standing for and living out our beliefs. Then listen for how God wants you to be active and engaged in this revival and allow Him to direct you. Prepare yourself that if you are to serve Him, you will likely have to make changes in your own life and may likely face adversity and conflict… as He did.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Faith / Trusting God, Generous, Guide, Help / Serve Others, Kindness / Gentleness, Love, Obeying God, Purposeful / Intentional, Seeking God, Selfishness, Wise, Worldliness

What It Means To Truly Be Great

Many seek greatness. Sadly, most of us use the wrong standard to define what it means to truly be great. We seek fame or fortune. We let the world define greatness as someone being more important than others… being served and adored by others. This is completely backwards.

Listen to how Yeshua defines greatness…

Luke 9:46-48

      46An argument started among them as to which of them might be the greatest. 47But Jesus, knowing what they were thinking in their heart, took a child and stood him by His side, 48and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; for the one who is least among all of you, this is the one who is great.”

Yeshua demonstrated greatness by coming, full of glory and power, to serve rather than to be served. He ministered to others sharing the gospel and healing many. He did not seek comfort or fame. He often told others not to tell anyone about the healing He provided. He suffered and died for our sins… to serve us while we were yet sinners who reject Him. He willingly went to the cross for us.

Reflect on your life and your goals. What do you pursue? Are you chasing personal gain or true greatness as a servant of God and others. Pray the Lord would open the eyes of your heart so you could fully submit to Him and lay down your life for Him, as He did for us.

Matthew 10:39

39“He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, All Powerful / King of All, Complaining, Consequences of Sin, Contentment, Discipline / Guidance From God, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Faith / Trusting God, Fear / Reverence for God, Grace / Forgiveness, Humility, Interceding for Others, Praise / Worship / Glorify God, Repenting from Sin, Selfishness, Thankfulness, Through Prophets

“I Would Never Act That Way”

Hollywood could not dream up a story as wild and exciting, with as many surprise turns, as that of the Lord delivering His people from Egypt to the promised land. A persecuted slave class of people being lifted up out of bondage through plagues and mighty miracles. Through moments of faith and moments where the faith utterly fails and they are disciplined by the Lord. A righteous man, Moses, interceding on their behalf each time they repent. There was no easy road. What irony that they were too afraid to take the promised land but then had to fight many other nations along their now extended journey. Don’t skip the details, read back through… the ground swallowed up some who rebelled, and not snakes through the camp causing mayhem and repentance. A bronze serpent as a symbol to save them… what a wild ride… and it’s all true, historical events.

We get the opportunity  to learn from the Lord through exciting and unexpected plot twists that His people actually experienced first hand.

As we read the historical events of Numbers 21, we once again see a roller coaster ride for the Israelites. They are attacked by Arad and beaten initially. They turn to the Lord and He gives them absolute victory. Then not long after, the people get impatient again and speak against the Lord. What a tiresome bunch for the Lord to tolerate… but let’s take care, as we still often act in much the same way. We forget His last blessing or victory so quickly once the next challenge or wait is in front of us. We are naturally impatient and selfish and often do not long remember the victories He has given us.

With rebellion in speaking out against the Lord, comes punishment… righteous punishment. All of us deserve correction from time to time, and a loving Father disciplines those He loves. Then comes the question of how we receive that rebuke… with humility leading to repentance or with resentment leading to further separation from the Lord. The Israelites at least turn toward the Lord for help again once they punishment of the snakes was upon them. Moses interceded for them with the Lord and the Lord forgave them.

At least for awhile, they remained more patient on their ongoing journey.

Numbers 21:1-20

Arad Conquered

     1When the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming by the way of Atharim, then he fought against Israel and took some of them captive. 2So Israel made a vow to the LORD and said, “If You will indeed deliver this people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities.” 3The LORD heard the voice of Israel and delivered up the Canaanites; then they utterly destroyed them and their cities. Thus the name of the place was called Hormah.

      4Then they set out from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the people became impatient because of the journey. 5The people spoke against God and Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food.”

The Bronze Serpent

     6The LORD sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. 7So the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, because we have spoken against the LORD and you; intercede with the LORD, that He may remove the serpents from us.” And Moses interceded for the people. 8Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he will live.” 9And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.

      10Now the sons of Israel moved out and camped in Oboth. 11They journeyed from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim, in the wilderness which is opposite Moab, to the east. 12From there they set out and camped in Wadi Zered. 13From there they journeyed and camped on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness that comes out of the border of the Amorites, for the Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites.

14Therefore it is said in the Book of the Wars of the LORD,
“Waheb in Suphah,
And the wadis of the Arnon,

      15And the slope of the wadis
That extends to the site of Ar,
And leans to the border of Moab.”

      16From there they continued to Beer, that is the well where the LORD said to Moses, “Assemble the people, that I may give them water.”

      17Then Israel sang this song:
“Spring up, O well! Sing to it!

      18“The well, which the leaders sank,
Which the nobles of the people dug,
With the scepter and with their staffs.”
And from the wilderness they continued to Mattanah,

19and from Mattanah to Nahaliel, and from Nahaliel to Bamoth, 20and from Bamoth to the valley that is in the land of Moab, at the top of Pisgah which overlooks the wasteland.

Don’t fool yourself that each of us is not able to act in similar fashion as the Israelites did in Numbers 21. It is all too easy to declare, “I would never act that way.” We are still vulnerable toward focusing on our selves rather than God, focusing on our current challenge rather than our past victories with Him, grumbling against Him when things are not going how we want them to go. Pray for the Spirit to help us remain faithful to the Lord through even the tough times, remain thankful for all the victories He has handed to us in the past, and trust in Him that He will be with us through to the end of our current and future challenges. He is a loving Father! Let us rejoice and praise Him and not speak against Him!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.