Samuel’s Sermon – 3.17.09

The prophet Samuel was God's faithful servant all the days of his life. For the greater part of his ministry, Israel was still a Theocracy – God ruled over the nation. Samuel provided leadership during that time and is often considered the last of the judges. But in 1 Samuel 8, the people expressed their desire for a king to reign over them "like all the other nations." When Samuel took the matter to the Lord he was told that the people had not rejected him but had rejected God's rule over them.

God warned the people what their desire for a king would lead to, but the people ignored Him, and God gave them what they wanted. Saul is anointed in chapters 9-10 and leads Israel into battle in chapter 11.

In 1 Samuel 12, Samuel addresses the nation and reproves them for rejecting God's rule over them (v. 12). He calls down thunder and rain on the day of wheat harvest, proving to Israel their great wickedness (vv. 17-18). The people become fearful and ask Samuel to pray for them (v. 19).

Samuel's response is instructive, and it'd do us well to familiarize ourselves with the simple, all-important truths laid out in his sermon:

1 Samuel 12:20 And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart;

Samuel reminds them that past failures are no excuse to go on failing but provide reason to get up and keep pressing toward the mark (Proverbs 24:16; Philippians 3:14).

1 Samuel 12:21 And turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain.

Samuel reminds them of the emptiness, the vanity, the meaninglessness of following anything or anyone but the Lord (Ecclesiastes 1:14; John 6:68; 2 Corinthians 4:18; Mark 8:36-37).

1 Samuel 12:22, 24 For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name's sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people…Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.

Being mindful of the Lord's love, His provision, and His promise to never forsake us are enough to make us want to keep giving Him our all (Romans 12:1-2; Hebrews 13:5; 2 Corinthians 5:14; 1 John 4:19).

1 Samuel 12:23 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way:

May we be faithful to pray for one another, to encourage and exhort one another – that God would plant these simple truths in our minds and burn them in our hearts and keep us walking in the light of His truth (1 Thessalonians 5:17, 25; Hebrews 3:13; 1 Timothy 4:12).

It Just Makes Sense – 3.12.09

Jeremiah 7:8-10 Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit. Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not; And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations?

As I read through books like Jeremiah that describe the horrible spiritual condition the Jewish people were in, I am often shocked to realize how often we as Christians are guilty of the very same things.

Take this passage for instance. The Jews Jeremiah preached to thought that being one of God's chosen people and showing up every now and then in the right place of worship justified the wicked lives that they were living.

I believe it's safe to say that such an attitude is prevalent in the churches of America. And it shouldn't come as any surprise. The church has failed to heed the warning in Jude 1:4 about certain men who would creep in unawares and turn the grace of God into lasciviousness – that is, use God's free gift of salvation as an excuse to live whatever kind of life you want.

There may not be much we can do about the sad state of "Christianity" in America, but what we can do and what we need to do is determine whether or not there any traces of such an attitude in our own hearts.

Now, you ought to be a Christian, and you ought to go to the right kind of church – one that believes and preaches the word of God, without apology. Not only that, you ought to be involved in the outreach ministry of that church just as much as possible.

But God's not OK with your just being a Christian, going to the right church, and participating in the evangelism every now and then – IF you think that means you're OK and/or use it as an excuse to pursue the course you've charted out for your own life.

Young person, I'm so glad you're in the right kind of church, and I praise God for every time you join us in spreading the gospel message to your community. But God wants more than that. God deserves more than that. He wants your heart. He expects and He accepts nothing less than absolute surrender to HIS WILL for your life.

The fact that God Almighty sent His Son to die for our sins so He could offer us a free gift of eternal life and put us into His church is not an excuse to do whatever you want with your life. When you think about it, it's actually a really good reason to do whatever HE WANTS with your life.

Romans 12:1-2 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

On Taking Correction – 3.11.09

Jeremiah 8:4-6 Moreover thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the LORD; Shall they fall, and not arise? shall he turn away, and not return? Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast deceit, they refuse to return. I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright: no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle.

Jeremiah is one of my favorite Bible characters. He prophesied during the final days of the kingdom of Judah. The nation had long ago forsaken their God and His law, and the consequences for doing so were just about to fall. Before the end of Jeremiah's ministry, the nation was taken captive into Babylon.

The sad thing is that it didn't have to be that way. As we read through the Old Testament and watch God's chosen people drift further and further away from Him, we also read of how God in His grace and in His mercy sent His prophets to warn the people and urge them to repent so His judgment would not have to fall.

Problem was 2 Chronicles 36:16 But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.

Now, I hope you won't misunderstand what I'm about to say, but I believe we as Christians must understand this. I believe that God anticipates our failures and our shortcomings. I don't think the fact that we fall flat on our faces – often – takes Him at all by surprise. Psalm 103:14 For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.

Yes, He hates sin. Yes, He must deal with sin in your life and in my life. But know that God is not sitting up in heaven with a lightning bolt ready waiting to strike it down in your direction should you happen to step out of line. He knows you are going to step out of line, and He'll definitely chasten you for it. But like He did with Israel, what He's going to do FIRST is give you some space to REPENT.

He's going to send some correction through His word, through His Holy Spirit, through your pastor, through your parents, through a Christian friend. He's going to give you an opportunity – many opportunities – to get your shortcomings straightened out and to make things right.

Why was Judah's backsliding perpetual? Why did they sink deeper and deeper into sin – to the point of no return? Why did God's judgment fall upon them in the harshest of ways? Because in their pride, they refused to repent. They simply could not – rather they would not – take correction.

Brother, sister, God knows you're not perfect. He's commanded you to work at it, and He expects you to involve yourself in the process. But He knows that you're human. He knows that you're going to fall. That's not an excuse to sin. That's a good reason to humble yourself and decide that you need correction, and when God sends it, you're going to respond the right way. Proverbs 24:16 For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again...

The number one factor in your Christian growth will be your ability to properly take correction. Bro. James made that statement in a sermon he preached on Cain not long ago (click here to listen), and I believe he nailed it. God knows we're not perfect. The sooner we recognize that and quit excusing that and allow Him to help us remedy that, the better off we'll be.

Balaam – 3.6.09

1 Corinthians 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

The Bible, especially the Old Testament, is full of examples – both good and bad – for the purpose of showing us, among other things, God's judgment on the wicked and His blessing on the righteous.

One such example on the negative side is found in the (true) story of a man named Balaam in Numbers 22-24. His error is obvious to anyone who reads the account. Jude 1:11 identifies it as as running greedily after reward. 2 Peter 2:15 says he loved the wages of unrighteousness.

His story is a perfect illustration of the truth of 1 Timothy 6:9-10 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

Here's the gist of the record. The nation of Israel is advancing on their way into Canaan, and Balak, the king of Moab, wants to hire ($$) Balaam the prophet to pronounce a curse upon them. Balaam took the matter to the Lord and had to refuse the offer because God had already blessed Israel.

But Balak wouldn't take no for an answer. So he sent to Balaam a second time and stepped up the pressure by sending more honorable princes and offering a more sizable reward. When Balaam takes the matter to the Lord again in Numbers 22:18-20, he is told that he can go with the men unto Balak, but he can only speak the words that God gives him.

Then the Bible says that when he got up in the morning and went with them, God's anger was kindled against Balaam (vv. 21-22). I didn't quite understand why that was so when it seemed that God had given the OK in v. 20.

But what I failed to notice was that the approval God granted (v. 20) was a conditional one – If the men come to call thee, rise up, and go with them…

In v. 21, Balaam rises up and goes, BUT THERE'S NEVER ANY MENTION OF THE CONDITION OF GOD'S APPROVAL BEING MET. And so God's anger was rightly kindled.

It's pretty obvious that Balaam's mind was made up as to what he wanted to do (get the reward $$), and he was looking for any excuse to go forward with his own desires.

He got the excuse he was looking for, and there's not much doubt that he was compensated for his service (he couldn't curse Israel, but he did help Balak Revelation 2:14 cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication).

In looking to this example, may we be reminded to approach God and His word with an honest and humble heart that says Psalm 143:10 Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness. And may we be reminded the rewards God grants to the faithful far outweigh the destruction (1 Timothy 6:9-10) that comes with the wages of unrighteousness.

The Man God Hated – 3.3.09

Romans 9:13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.

A Calvinist is one who believes that before God ever created man, He ordained some to salvation and eternal life and others to damnation and eternal death. Such a doctrine is obviously not supported by scripture but is simply a belief system forced upon the word of God by a misinterpretation of certain passages, such as the one above (which is a quote from Malachi 1:2-3).

God did not make a sovereign decree of hatred toward Esau before time began. In fact, His reasons for doing so were anything but arbitrary.

Deuteronomy 7:9-10 Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations; And repayeth them that hate him to their face, to destroy them: he will not be slack to him that hateth him, he will repay him to his face.

We love God because He first loved us, right (1 John 4:19)? Do you know why God hates certain people (Psalm 5:5)? BECAUSE THEY HATED HIM FIRST! He repayeth them that hate him to their face.

Let me show you why God hated Esau.

• Hebrews 12:16 says he was a fornicator and a profane person.
  
• Genesis 25:34 says that he despised his birthright – that is the blessings to which He was entitled as a result of His grandfather's (Abraham) covenant with GOD – and sold it for a mess of pottage.
  
• Genesis 27:36 says He was only concerned about the physical blessings he thought he had coming his way.
  
• Genesis 26:34-35 says that Esau took 2 Hittite wives unto Himself, which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah.
  
• In Genesis 28:6-9 he took another Canaanite wife simply out of spite to his parents.
  

Nice guy, huh?

Now, I said earlier that God hates those who hate Him first. And now I've showed you what a rotten slob Esau was. But I don't have any verses that say Esau hated God. What I do have is a statement made by Jesus Christ in John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. Based on that statement, I would argue that Esau's pattern of rebellion against the commands of God was evidence of the condition of his heart – one that warranted a return of God's hatred toward him.

Cross-reference Deuteronomy 7:9-10 with 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

According to both promises, God is not slack concerning His promise – that is He cannot and He will not withhold rightful judgment from the sinner – but it is never His desire, it was never His plan for any to perish in the flames of eternal hell.

Esau could've been forgiven. Esau could've been restored. But he sought the blessing, not repentance (Hebrews 12:17). In like manner, the wicked people God hates (Psalm 7:11) could be forgiven if they'd only turn back in repentance to the One they've offended (Acts 3:19). Problem is they refuse to do so.

Psalm 10:4 The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.

Sabbath Year – 2.27.09

To be completely honest, I often find the book of Leviticus a dry read. I know it's a great book with all kinds of pictures and types of the Lord Jesus Christ, but I'm not very good at seeing all that. So when the Lord shows me something from this book, it's definitely an exciting thing for me.

In Leviticus 25, God prescribes both the Sabbath year and the year of jubilee to the nation of Israel. Every seventh year, the Israelites were to give their land a rest. They were not to sow or reap their fields. Then following every seventh seventh year (or every 50th year) was a special Sabbath year known as the year of Jubilee. Again during that 50th year the Israelites were not to sow or reap their fields.

If you're like me, when you read that you've got to be wondering, well then how are they going to eat? And just as that question reaches the tip of the tongue, God gives an answer.

Leviticus 25:18-22 Wherefore ye shall do my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them; and ye shall dwell in the land in safety. And the land shall yield her fruit, and ye shall eat your fill, and dwell therein in safety. And if ye shall say, What shall we eat the seventh year? behold, we shall not sow, nor gather in our increase: Then I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years. And ye shall sow the eighth year, and eat yet of old fruit until the ninth year; until her fruits come in ye shall eat of the old store.

All along God had promised physical blessings to Israel for their obedience to His law. If they were faithful, He would send the rain and increase their crops and give them peace and plenty. Here God gives a specific promise to triple the crops on the year just before the Sabbath year. Thus, they'd have enough left over to get them through that Sabbath year (as well as every 50th year through the year of Jubilee).

If you're familiar with the history of the nation of Israel, you'll remember that the southern kingdom (Judah) was in captivity in Babylon for 70 years. (The northern kingdom was taken captive to Assyria and never made such a return.) The length of that captivity was foretold by Jeremiah the prophet (check it out – Jeremiah 25:9-11; Jeremiah 29:10-11). But do you know why it lasted 70 years?

2 Chronicles 36:20-21 And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: To fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.

God let the land rest for 70 years while Judah was captive in Babylon because the land had missed that many Sabbaths. That means for 490 years Judah had ignored God's commandment regarding the Sabbath year (or 434 if you calculate in the year of Jubilee). But why?

I can think of 2 reasons. First, maybe they got greedy and didn't want to miss out on the profits they could make every seventh year. 1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

But I believe the second and more plausible explanation is this. Remember how God had promised to make provision to get the Israelites through the years they were to give the land a rest? But that extra blessing was dependent on their obedience. So when the nation lived in rebellion to God's law they were unable to make it through the Sabbath years because they did not harvest any extra crops during the years leading up to the Sabbath year. That should've made them realize their condition and repent, but instead they ignored God's clear commandment and sowed and reaped right through that year of rest.

This is just one more clear example of the fact that one act of disobedience always leads to another act of disobedience. One sin will always lead to another. You might say yourself, "I know it's wrong, but it's just this one thing, and I'll only do it this once. I can handle it. It'll be OK." God says you're deceived. Once you take the first step downward on that slope of sin, you find it more slippery than you could've ever imagined.

Your best bet is to always remain on the higher ground with your feet firmly planted on the Solid Rock.

New & Everlasting Covenant – 2.24.09

First, let's review:

EDENIC COVENANT: God keeps His word. Man fails to keep God's requirements.

ADAMIC COVENANT: Sin brings a curse, but Jesus bore that curse for us.

NOAHIC COVENANT: God will never again destroy the earth with fire (though He will renovate it by fire).

ABRAHAMIC COVENANT: The great Hebrew nation will forever inherit the land of promise.

MOSAIC COVENANT: Governed by the law of God.

DAVIDIC COVENANT: With David's son upon the throne.

Now, because of Israel's agreement with God at Mount Sinai, in order for the promise God made to Abraham to be fulfilled, somehow the nation must be enabled to keep and be governed by the law of God. And David is going to need some kind of help getting up out of the grave (especially after his adultery and murder) in order to sit on the throne that God promised would be his forever.

From the very first covenant we learned that God always keeps His promises. And when we examine what the Bible says about this new and everlasting covenant, we find that it was all made possible by what Jesus Christ did when He bore mankind's sin upon the cross.

This new covenant could thus be considered THE FINAL FULFILLMENT OF THE ABRAHAMIC, MOSAIC, AND DAVIDIC COVENANTS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.

You see, as a result of Jesus Christ's mediatorial (think I made that word up) work on the cross: on the day when the nation repents and turns to Him, God will save the entire nation of Israel in a day; He will indwell them with His Spirit; He will put His law in their hearts; He will plant them in the land from whence they shall never be removed; and He will rule over them as King with David as their prince.

You'll just have to read the following passages that describe the wonders of these new covenant blessings: Jeremiah 31:31-37; Jeremiah 32:37-44; Isaiah 54:7-10; Isaiah 61:7-11; Ezekiel 16:59-63; Romans 11:25-29; Hebrews 8:6-13; Hebrews 10:16-18. And Christ's role in making all this possible: Luke 1:67-75; Hebrews 12:24; Isaiah 42:1-7; Isaiah 43:5-9.

Now, I call your remembrance to Romans 9:4 (the covenants pertain to Israel) and Ephesians 2:12 (Gentiles strangers to the covenants of promise). But I would be amiss to point out the fact that we as Christians do indeed get in on some of these new covenant blessings, like:

• our sins and iniquities remembered no more
  
• indwelt by the Spirit of God
  
• His law put in our hearts
  
• the hope of the resurrection
  

The question poses itself: How can this be, if the covenants are strictly for Israel? Well, it goes back to what we discussed just over a month back (Joseph, Jesus, & the New Covenant – 1.16.09). When Jesus Christ shed His blood and died on Calvary's cross, only to rise again 3 days later, it was as if he "killed two birds with one stone." That same payment for sin made possible both our individual salvation (and birth into the family of God and baptism into the body of Christ) AND the fulfillment of all the covenants God had made with His chosen people, the nation of Israel.

Hebrews 13:20-21 Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

So while Jesus died on the cross to make a propitiation for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2), the blessed results of His doing so are varied and without number.