Monthly Archives: October 2024

GOD’S LIBRARY

Christian Life, ,

The Bible is a library of books with one author, the Holy Spirit, and one theme, the story of God and people. The Bible is  a miracle of unity although it was written by more than forty people over more than 2000 years. It’s the only book in the world that is indestructible, despite every human effort to wipe it out; universal…its characters include everyone who has ever lived and will live; and is powerful enough to affect the destiny of every person who reads it.

The Bible bears testimony to itself, that it is the very word of God, infallible in its message, divine in its authorship, and eternal in its duration.

There is no other book on earth like the Bible. People either love it, believe it, and experience eternal life through its message, or they hate it, fear it, run from it, or even  try to discredit it by ridiculing, denying, or twisting its message.

The Bible is divinely protected, divinely inspired, and divinely empowered to transform the lives of all who read and believe the one who wrote it.

The Bible is God’s gift to all people on earth.

However, the Bible also speaks of heavenly books which record the names and biographies of every person from the beginning of time, and books that record each person’s destiny.

Let’s examine a few of these books.

Psalms 139:16 NIV
[16] “Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

God’s record of our lives was written even before we lived. That’s amazing! How can anyone write a biography before the main character was even born? So astonishing is God’s omniscience that He has done that! His “library” contains the life story of everyone who has lived on earth, even those who have never seen the light of day.

What would God say to those who have snuffed out the lives of their unborn babies for the sake of convenience? What happened to their story?

Then there is the book of life. What is this “book of life”?

“Revelation 20:15 declares, “If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” The Book of Life, in this context, is the set of names of those who will live with God forever in heaven. It is the roll of those who are saved. This Book of Life is also mentioned in Revelation 3:5; 20:12; and Philippians 4:3. The same book is also called the Lamb’s Book of Life because it contains the names of those who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lord Jesus (Revelation 13:8; 21:27).

“God keeps good records. He knows His own, and He has set the names of His children permanently in His book.”
(https://www.gotquestions.org – article “What is the Book of Life?”)

Moses refers to God’s “book” in his plea on behalf of Israel. He was willing to forfeit his own place in heaven for the sake of his wayward people. God refused his request. Everyone must take responsibility for his/her own life. He said.

Exodus 32:32-33 NIV
[32] “But now, please forgive their sin—but if not, then blot me out of the book you have written.” [33] The Lord replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book.”

Is it possible to have one’s name erased from God’s book, blotting out the record of one’s life forever because of persistent sin?

Revelation 20:11-12, 15 NIV
[11] Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. [12] And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books….
[15]”Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.”

God assures us that the names of those who persevere in faith and obedience will never be erased from His book. On judgement day, their names will be found written in the book of life.

Revelation 3:5 NIV
[5] “The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels.”

Are there other books in God’s library?

Revelation 20:12-13 NIV
[12]”And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened….”

We don’t know what is written in these books. Let’s look a bit deeper.

What does God record in these books?

Jesus, speaking to the Pharisees…

Matthew 12:34-37 NIV
[34]”You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. [35] A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. [36] But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. [37] For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

What did the Pharisees say?

Matthew 12:24 NIV
[24]”But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”

It’s all becoming clear.  According to Jeremiah…

Jeremiah 17:9 NIV
[9]”The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”

According to Jesus…

Luke 6:45 NIV
[45] “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.”

…which means that God’s books record everything we have said!

Our spoken words betray our hidden hearts, it’s up to us to put into our hearts what is good, true, and wholesome.

How can we change what is concealed in our hearts?

Philippians 4:8-9 NLT
[8]” And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. [9] Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.”

Romans 12:2 NLT
[2]” Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

How can we ensure that our names will be in the Lamb’s book of life?

It seems that the names of every human being has been  written in God’s books before time began. Only persistent unbelief and the sinful lives which are the fruit of unbelief will obliterate those names from God’s books. Cut off from God in hell, it will be as though they never existed.

Only persistent faith in Jesus and perseverence in obedience and holiness, which God guarantees to those who have been supernaturally born into His kingdom, will ensure that our names are never erased from God’s books.

Adherence to the truths written in God’s book on earth will ensure that my name is indelibly recorded in God’s books in heaven.

OPTIONS! 2

Christian Life, ,

Let’s first examine a different way of understanding life. Despite what we experience with our senses, in the world there is an unseen realm, in which two kingdoms operate. The Bible calls them, “the dominion of darkness,” ruled by a powerful spirit being who tried to dethrone God and take over, and “the kingdom of light” which is God’s realm and government in the universe.

Isaiah 14:12-14 NLT
[12] “How you are fallen from heaven, O shining star, son of the morning! You have been thrown down to the earth, you who destroyed the nations of the world. [13] For you said to yourself, ‘I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God’s stars. I will preside on the mountain of the gods far away in the north. [14] I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most High.’ “

The kingdom of light is the kingdom of God. This is the realm of God’s government over all creation. After His victory over Satan, sin, and death, God the Father gave Jesus, the Son, authority over the universe and the title, Lord.

Philippians 2:6-11 NLT
[6] “Though he was God, he (Jesus) did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. [7] Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, [8] he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. [9] Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, [10] that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, [11] and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

This was the final nail in Satan’s coffin. Satan has always tried to deceive people into believqing that he is Lord. He wants to be in charge. So he tells them what to do but hides the consequences until it’s too late.

In God’s kingdom, light rules. Nothing is hidden in darkness. God has told us everything we need to know about sin, righteousness, and judgment.

1 John 1:5 NLT
[5] “This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all.”

“Light” and truth are the same thing. God is light…truth, so everything He says is true. When Jesus came to earth, He was God’s Word in human form. He came to be the light for everyone born into the world.

John 1:4-5 NLT
[4] “The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. [5] The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.”

What is John saying? He is telling us that Jesus came to reveal the truth about God and us. By doing so He showed us by His words and actions, who is really in charge. He defeated the devil in the wilderness, He drove out demons who tormented people, He rose from the dead to reveal His power over the devil’s final weapon, death. He promised to raise those who believe in him to eternal life.

John 11:25-26 NLT
[25] “Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. [26] Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”

Now, the point is, everyone born into the world is dead to God’s rule in their lives. Sin has cut them off from God because they are born with Adam’s nature to sin.

Ephesians 2:1-2 NLT
[1] “Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. [2] You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.”

The problem is that, among all the choices people have to make, life in the dominion of darkness offers only the options available in that kingdom.

Let me illustrate. If you live, say, in America, you cannot choose to do what is available only in South Africa. You cannot visit a game park in America to see African wildlife in the wild. You will see bears and wolves, but not lions and elephants.

So, life in the dominion of darkness offers you only those choices that are part of Satan’s rule, ways that will damage you and eventually kill you, i.e., cut you off from the source of life and light forever. Your options are limited to doing wrong.

However, when God transfers you into His kingdom through faith in Jesus, you come under His government, in this life. He gives you the opportunity to choose to do what is right as well as to do what is wrong.

Why didn’t He remove the option of making wrong choices now, in this life? It would save us so much trouble if we weren’t obliged to choose between right and wrong.

That’s the point! God does not want robots. He wants people to love and worship Him by choice, not because we have no other option. So, He left the old sinful nature in us to train us for His eternal kingdom by choosing to serve Him and others instead of indulging ourselves. He also gave us a new nature, alongside the old, His own nature of righteousness and holiness…and He gave us His Word and His Spirit to help us overcome the old sin nature we always followed. By learning to do the right thing, we confirm the righteousness Jesus gave us by His perfect life. We no longer believe Satan’s lies and do what he says because…

Satan is not Lord; Jesus is Lord.
Satan said Adam would not die if he disobeyed God. He did die and so do we all.
Satan says sin is nice and don’t worry about the consequences. So much for that lie!
Satan says that to be happy we must scratch every itch. Lies again! Happiness is not about self-satisfaction. It’s about serving God and others first.

And so we can go on. Now we have two sets of options…believe the Lord or believe the devil. If we believe the Lord and do life His way, the outcome is peace in our hearts…real, lasting peace. He has our backs and we can call on Him at any time, anywhere for both the wisdom and the strength to make the right choices.

Philippians 4:6-7NLT
[6] “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
[7] Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

This option has a solid foundation in truth.

Hebrews 10:20-22 NLT
[20] “By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. [21] And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, [22] let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.”

Follow the devil’s options and you’re on your own and the consequences are real.

Can you see, then, that all the diagnoses the clever boffins make about what they call “disorders” but are really the consequences of sin, and their treatment are useless? Tranquillisers will never forgive sin. Only the blood of Jesus, through faith in Him, will cleanse our guilty consciences and give us peace.
That takes care, permanently, of the many “disorders” doctors treat which, in the end, only bring in the money!!!

OPTIONS! – 1

Christian Life, ,

Despite the result of Adam’s terrible decision, there is one thing God never took away from humans…the right to choose. It’s this power to think, choose, and make decisions that makes us responsible for what we say and do, and accountable to God for our actions and their consequences. Our decisions and choices affect us and those around us continually whether we like it or not.

Unfortunately, many people, if not most people, don’t accept or live by this truth. Like Adam, they play the “blame game” because it’s easier to blame someone or something else for whatever wrong they do than to take responsibility for the choices they make.

People have been taught to believe that their “mental illness” is a medical condition over which they have no control, which is given a fancy diagnosis behind which they shelter and hope that the drugs they swallow faithfully will cure their condition. So, they live as victims of people and circumstances, hiding behind other people’s words or behaviour as an excuse for their sin.

There is a plethora of mental “diseases” filling hundreds of text books which psychiatrists, who having spent many years studying and practicing what they have learned, inflict on sufferers to no avail. Patients are locked up in psychiatric facilities to keep them from harming others. Families wring their hands in despair because medical science is nowhere near to helping their loved ones overcome their condition even after years of treatment.

Imagine if all this research and knowledge were dumped for the Bible’s simple diagnosis…sin…and the powerful and effective remedy, faith in the blood of Jesus which provides forgiveness and peace!

God has never tried to hoodwink humans into believing that the devil or anyone else is responsible for what we do. He wrote it bluntly in His manual for living.

Ezekiel 18:19-20 NLT
[19] “‘What?’ you ask. ‘Doesn’t the child pay for the parent’s sins?’ No! For if the child does what is just and right and keeps my decrees, that child will surely live. [20] The person who sins is the one who will die. The child will not be punished for the parent’s sins, and the parent will not be punished for the child’s sins. Righteous people will be rewarded for their own righteous behavior, and wicked people will be punished for their own wickedness.”

That’s clear, isn’t it?

You see, Jesus attributed everything bad we think or do to unbelief in Him which is what God judges. So, sin and all its consequences, are the fruit of refusal to turn away from selfish, sinful behaviour and to entrust our lives to Jesus.

Does this also include “mental illness”? Surely it must because mental issues are the outcome of sinful behaviour…feelings of fear, guilt, and shame. These hidden emotions produce all kinds of “disorders” which psychiatrists try to treat with counsel or medication instead of uncovering the roo cause.

John 3:18-20 NLT
[18]“There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. [19] And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. [20] All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed.”

Since people love their sin and refuse to turn away from their unbelief, the consequences are death…to peace, contentment, and freedom which are the fruits of choosing to live in the light, in the truth of who God is and what He has said.

The devil, who is the powerful influence over the world’s systems, has lied to us. He says that selfish indulgence is the way to live, so people choose selfish indulgence and blame others when they feel bad.

Jesus promised a rich and satisfying life to those who believe in Him.

John 10:10 NLT
[10]”The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”

How can we have this life?

John 10:9 NLT
[9] “Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures.”

We can only enter into this abundant life by, first, trustingvJesus’ promises for the forgiveness of all our sin, the very reason for our mental disorders, second, cleansing from all our wicked ways and, third, the new life Jesus gives to those who follow Him.

Who is the thief? In the context of Scripture, the religious leaders, who led people astray by their wrong teaching. The same can apply to anyone, including medically trained people, who teach us that we are “sick” and need their treatment to recover.

So, what’s the real problem with us?
We have chosen to look for the rich and satisfying life by ignoring God’s way and trying to do life on our own. Bad choice. It doesn’t work… never will! God created us in His image, to live in harmony with Him, His way. Any other way leads to disintegration, falling apart.

How, then, can we overcome the issue of bad choices?

To be continued…

GOT QUESTIONS?

Bible Study, ,

Did you know that God Ioves to answer our questions? Don’t be shy to ask Him. However, don’t be surprised if He does not answer you in the way you think He will. He doesn’t always respond the way we anticipate.

Take Job, for example. Job’s many questions, after the catastrophic loss of everything except his life, centred on two dilemmas; “Where are you, God!” and “Why did you do this to me?”

His many arguments, protesting his innocence before men and God, got him nowhere. His friends insisted on his guilt and God said nothing until…finally…Job ran out of steam.

Job 31:35-40 NLT
[35] “If only someone would listen to me! Look, I will sign my name to my defense. Let the Almighty answer me. Let my accuser write out the charges against me. [36] I would face the accusation proudly. I would wear it like a crown. [37] For I would tell him exactly what I have done. I would come before him like a prince. [38] “If my land accuses me and all its furrows cry out together, [39] or if I have stolen its crops or murdered its owners, [40] then let thistles grow on that land instead of wheat, and weeds instead of barley.” Job’s words are ended.

Then God spoke, finally, when Job had nothing more to say, violently, from out of a whirlwind, but He did not answer Job’s questions. His response was, in a nutshell, …”I’m not obliged to answer your questions or explain my ways, but you are obliged to trust me!”

Why did God not respond to Job’s desperate need to know what God was doing? Job knew nothing of the wager between God and Satan. Had God told him what lay behind his terrible suffering, He would have ruined Job’s greatest lesson in life…faith in God, no matter what!

What do we learn from Job? We may never know why bad things happen to us. However, our trust in God is based securely on who He is, regardless of whether He answers our questions or not.

Let’s turn to another, “Where are you, God? What are you doing?” situation in the life of one of God’s great Old Covenant prophets, Elijah!

Elijah prophesied during the reign of Ahab, one of Israel’s many apostate kings. In response to Israel’s idolatry, a drought ravaged the country for more than three years. God hid Elijah from Ahab’s wrath until He finally sent him to confront the king with his sin. Ahab refused to listen… so, to demonstrate who is really God, Baal or the God of Israel…

Elijah called the prophets of Baal to an impossible challenge on Mount Cartmel, make a sacrifice without fire. Baal’s prophets could not induce their god to send fire on their sacrifice… but God did, in the most spectacular way…on Elijah’s bull, burning sacrifice and altar, and the ground around it, drenched with water, to ashes!

This victory gave Elijah the go-ahead to order the extirmination of all Baal’s prophets, enraging Queen Jezebel, the real power behind the throne. She vowed to kill Elijah, sending him on a frantic, forty-day journey all the way to Mount Sinai in Arabia to escape her murderous intention.

Elijah was devastated and disillusioned by the outcome. He fell into deep depression. Why had God not orchestrated a great revival in Israel? Had He not shown His great power to His people?

Instead, Elijah felt abandoned, alone, helpless, a single prophet against the tide of the unbelief and apostasy of his people. Better he die in the desert than face an angry queen.

Did God respond to Elijah’s unspoken question…”Why, God?” Yes, He did! How did He answer? Unlike His violent response to Job, God first demonstrated to Elijah that His real power did not lie in catastrophic natural phenomena like earthquake, wind, and fire. It was not the supernatural fire that fell on the altar that would change His people. Something else would need to effect the change He repeatedly promised through the centuries.

1 Kings 19:11-12 NLT
[11] “Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. [12] And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper.”

God spoke gently to His disillusioned prophet. He whispered comfort and reassurance. “You are not alone, Elijah…”

1 Kings 19:18 NLT
[18] “Yet I will preserve 7,000 others in Israel who have never bowed down to Baal or kissed him!”

Elijah had to learn that he was a player in God’s unfolding plan of redemption. For Elijah, he was part of the “not yet”, but he still had a task to do for the Lord in this plan.

So, God reassured him that His purpose was on track. Elijah’s role was to do what God told him to do in the confidence that all would be accomplished in God’s time and in God’s way. Elijah’s obedience reveals his eventual trust in God’s purposes although he would not live to see the end result.

What do we learn from Elijah’s dilemma?

Once again God doesn’t always give straightforward answers. He does not owe us explanations or reveal the future, although we often discover reasons and meaning long after the event. Whatever His answer, or lack of response, He is painting on a bigger canvas, writing a bigger story than we can ever imagine. Our task is to do our bit faithfully, to carry out our calling, however big or small it may seem, because it is a vital part of what God is doing.

Our question should not be “Why?” but “What?” What do you want me to do…to be, to fulfill my part in your big story?

Our third question comes from the lips of another of God’s prophets. Habakkuk also questioned God, this time not “What are you doing?” but, “Why aren’t you doing anything?”

Habakkuk 1:2 NLT
[2] “How long, O Lord, must I call for help? But you do not listen! “Violence is everywhere!” I cry, but you do not come to save.”

To Habakkuk, it seemed that God was indifferent to the terrible things happening in his country.

Habakkuk 1:3-4 NLT
[3] “Must I forever see these evil deeds? Why must I watch all this misery? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight. [4] The law has become paralyzed, and there is no justice in the courts. The wicked far outnumber the righteous, so that justice has become perverted.”

God appeared unfazed by the wickedness of His people, unmoved by the injustice and cruelty happening in His land. Why did He not intervene with some sort of action?

God responded to Habakkuk’s question with an answer so horrifying that it shocked him.

Habakkuk 1:6-7, 11 NLT
[6] “I am raising up the Babylonians, a cruel and violent people. They will march across the world and conquer other lands. [7] They are notorious for their cruelty and do whatever they like… “

God takes responsibility for calling this wicked nation into being. He gives Habakkuk a detailed description of their power to harm and destroy but…

He also holds them accountable for what they do!

[11] “They sweep past like the wind are gone. But they are deeply guilty, for their own strength is their god.”

Habukkuk protests at God’s strategy. This is not what He expected from a holy God.

“But, why, God? How can you do this, using such a vicious people to punish your own nation? What kind of justice is that!”

Habakkuk 1:12-17 NLT
[12] “O Lord my God, my Holy One, you who are eternal— surely you do not plan to wipe us out? O Lord, our Rock, you have sent these Babylonians to correct us, to punish us for our many sins. [13] But you are pure and cannot stand the sight of evil. Will you wink at their treachery? Should you be silent while the wicked swallow up people more righteous than they? [14] Are we only fish to be caught and killed? Are we only sea creatures that have no leader? [15] Must we be strung up on their hooks and caught in their nets while they rejoice and celebrate? [16] Then they will worship their nets and burn incense in front of them. “These nets are the gods who have made us rich!” they will claim. [17] Will you let them get away with this forever? Will they succeed forever in their heartless conquests?”

This prophet had to learn an important lesson.

Isaiah 55:8-9 NLT
[8] “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. [9] For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.”

God is not interested in superficial solutions to deep-seated problems. He cannot impose on people right living when their hearts are rotten. He must do a thorough work on the inside to effect change in behaviour and attitude. He must change the way they think before He can work grace in their hearts and lives.

What better way to change hearts than to plunge them into the kind of suffering that would teach them to re-evaluate their allegiance to the demons they worshipped by their idolatry! Let them taste life in a nation given to idol worship. His people treated one another by the dictates of their man-made idols. They were cruel and unfeeling in their wickedness. Now let it be done to them, living in a land without God.

Habakkuk 2:4 NLT
[4] “Look at the proud! They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked. But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.”

Can you see where God is going? “Habakkuk, you must realise that God is concerned with the individual.” Yes, the nation of Israel is guilty, yes, the Babylonians are guilty, but every righteous person lives by faith in God and confirms that righteousness by faithfulness to God.”

This principle reappears in the New Covenant as God’s only acceptable way to live in fellowship with Him.

Only when God’s people realise that they can never attain true rigteousness by self-effort will they learn to trust in God for His mercy. Hard experience was to only way to change their thinking.

How Habakkuk celebrated his new-found understanding of God’s ways! Tremble he would at the severity of God’s solution, but beyond the suffering lay the hope of a people changed, with new hearts and new ways, eventually.

After their captivity in Babylon, God promised…

Ezekiel 36:25-27 NLT
[25] “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. [26] And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. [27] And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.”

Habakkuk would wait in hope and faith for the fulfilment of God’s promise, even if he never saw it in his lifetime. He would be the one to trust in God regardless of his circumstances.

Habakkuk 3:16-19 NLT
[16] “I trembled inside when I heard this; my lips quivered with fear. My legs gave way beneath me, and I shook in terror. I will wait quietly for the coming day when disaster will strike the people who invade us. [17] Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, [18] yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! [19] The Sovereign Lord is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights.”

What can we learn from God’s answer to Habakkuk’s question?

  1. God doesn’t answer the way we think. Although God’s answer shocked Habakkuk, He did answer the prophet with an extended explanation which clarified his understanding of God’s apparent inactivity.
  2. Once again, God is painting on a bigger canvas than we can see.
  3. God requires us to walk by faith in Him, even if bad stuff is happening. He knows what He is doing but we must trust Him without knowing.
  4. Despite our suffering, He provides grace to persevere because His outcome is good.
  5. No matter who is responsible for our suffering, God holds them accountable and He will judge them justly.

Got questions? Ask Him! He will answer you in His time, His way, exactly according to what you need.

PRAYER WORRIER, PRAYER WARRIOR, OR TRUE WORSHIPPER?

Prayer,

There is a movement in the world-wide church that has inadvertantly divided prayer into what I call “prayer worriers”,
“prayer warriors”, and the rest of us.

“Prayer worriers” make up the bulk of Christians who treat prayer either as a kind of spiritual 911, a 60-minute delivery service, or a repair and maintenance workshop! Prayer is the way to save the situation, get what we want, or fix or get things done. Crises, needs, or concerns drive us to ask God for help. Once the crisis is over and the situation back to normal, we settle down to continue living until…we need God again.

“Prayer warriors,” on the other hand, are those people who have a special calling to engage in spiritual warfare against the devil and his works. They are highly esteemed in the church. They are the intercessors who do the work of prayer for the rest of us so that we can live in relative peace and comfort. They identify and “come against” the powerful spirit beings who rule on earth and mess with God’s people. They do “prayer walks” and “Jericho marches” to “pull down strongholds” which loose the Holy Spirit to do His work! When trouble arises anywhere, we must call in the intercessors! There are even international organisations and prayer houses set up to teach people how to be “intercessors”.

How ridiculous this sounds and what an insult to the Lord and His Word!

What does the Bible teach us about prayer in contrast to this imposition of human nonsense?

First, the church is primarily God’s family on earth. They are sons and daughters of God who have been born again into His family through faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus. They have been made alive and are being transformed into the likeness of Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit in them.

Hebrews 2:10-14 NLT
[10] “God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation. [11] So now Jesus and the ones he makes holy have the same Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters. [12] For he said to God, “I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters. I will praise you among your assembled people.” [13] He also said, “I will put my trust in him,” that is, “I and the children God has given me.” [14] Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death.”

There is no hierarchy in God’s family. Jesus is our elder brother and we are all one in Him. There are functions in this family for the benefit of one another, not for anyone to lord it over the rest. Its leaders are servants, not overlords, sacrificially serving its members for the good of all.

Second, God is our heavenly Father who has given us all equal access to Him through Jesus. There are no superior pray-ers in His family.

Hebrews 10:19-22 NLT
[19] “And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. [20] By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. [21] And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, [22] let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.”

From the lips of our supreme model and mentor,
Jesus, came this instruction…

Matthew 6:9 NLT
[9]”Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.”

No earthly father restricts access to himself except to special family members. All God’s children are privileged to approach Him personally and individually. He calls us all to draw near to Him. The only qualification is through Jesus.

John 14:6 NLT
[6] “Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

James 4:8 NLT
[8] “Come close to God, and God will come close to you….”

Third, prayer has a much higher purpose than dealing with the devil, which Jesus did at the cross…

Colossians 2:13-15 NLT
[13] “You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. [14] He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. [15] In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.”

… or meeting needs, which the Father does for us because He knows…

Matthew 6:8 NLT
[8]… Your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!”

Matthew 6:31-33 NLT
[31]“So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ [32] These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. [33] Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

God is a good Father. He takes care of all our needs without our nagging and pleading.

What is God’s deepest desire for His children?

1 John 1:3 NLT
[3]”We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.”

Fellowship!

John 4:23-24 NLT
[23]”But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. [24] For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

Worship!

Through His plan of redemption, God has opened the circle of His divine family, the Godhead… Father, Son, and Holy Spirit…to allow us to participate with them in their love and unity. Through His mercy and by His grace, He calls us to come in.

Needs are only triggers to the greater purpose of fellowship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit which leads us to worship God in all the wonder and beauty of His person.

Consider these profound expressions of God’s way.

2 Peter 1:3-4 NLT
[3] “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. [4] And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.”

2 Corinthians 1:20 NLT
[20]” For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory.”

This is the way of the true “prayer warrior”, putting everything that happens in this life into its true perspective.

2 Corinthians 3:16-18 NLT
[16] “But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
[17] For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. [18] So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.”

This is the goal of prayer…not getting things done, or meeting needs, or defeating the devil, or even establishing God’s kingdom on earth. These are all stepping stones and peripheral to God’s one great goal. Worship! God accomplishes everything He plans in the universe and takes care of all our concerns by His sovereign power and wisdom as we worship Him.

Why is worship paramount in every detail of our lives, even to the simple things like eating and drinking?

1 Corinthians 10:31 NLT
[31] “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

Worship is not something we do. Worship happens when we do something! Worship happens when we honour God in everything we say and do.

Colossians 3:17 NLT
[17]”And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.”

Paul stated this truth simply and clearly to the pagans in Athens…

Acts of the Apostles 17:28 NLT
[28] “For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’”

The more we recognise this truth, as Jesus said, “Without me, you can do nothing,” the more we acknowledge God in all our ways, the closer we come to true worship.

And the outcome? Moving in harmony and oneness with the Lord, He lives His life and accomplishes His will through us. As Jesus did on earth, our lives become prayer and worship happens!!!

Matthew 4:4, 7, 10 NLT
[4] But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”
[7] Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.’”
[10] “Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’ ”