Category: gospel

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John the Baptist…

John the Baptist the servant of God

Mark 1; Luke 3; Matthew 3 The Traits of a True Servant of God

The prophets Isaiah and Malachi prophesied that God would open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing to his people in due season. John the Baptist was that blessing that came in the form of the true servant, humble and announcing that the kingdom of God/Heaven was now before the people and the nation. He challenged the status quo, challenged the hearts to repent of what Malachi called the false righteousness of works, and challenged the religious establishment. He knew he was not the Messiah and proclaimed as such to the religious leaders when asked. He pricked the hearts and many yielded to the message of the gospel. He obeyed the Law and yet challenged men to listen to the heart of God.

The mark of a faithful and true servant is that they do not take center stage, usurping the main speaker. John was that chosen one who offered to do the work of the ministry serving expecting nothing in return but God’s blessing. Jesus summarized his work and life: “Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” [Matt 11:11] “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” [Matt 11:15]

Is this how we serve?

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Immanuel!

Jesus is Immanuel

Matt 1 and Luke 2:1-38 The 400 yrs. of silence have ended, and God’s plan is revealed through the gospel writers of Matthew, the Jewish publican, and Luke, the Gentile physician. Also, that we might know and believe, Paul the Pharisee turned Believer, wrote: Gal 4:4 “But when the appropriate time/the appointed time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law,” Both Matthew and Luke record the events surrounding our Savior’s birth, but long ago in eternity past, God’s plan was set in motion. He sent forth his Son born of a virgin to fulfill the words of the prophet Isaiah: “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.” [Is 7:14]

John the Baptist prepared the way by preaching a message of repentance and noted that Jesus was the Lamb of God who came to take away the sin of the world. [John 1:35] Jesus is that perfect Lamb. John, the Apostle, records what that message was and is: 1Jo 4:10 In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Do you know Him?

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The Gospel Message from the Tree of Life

The Gospel Message

Ezekiel 47God forbade Adam and Eve to eat from the tree in the middle of the garden. God removed them from that beautiful garden when they chose to disobey for He had said: “you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will surely die.” [Gen 2:17] When they disobeyed they died, not physically but spiritually. But, now in the New Jerusalem, Ezekiel sees a river extending from the threshold to the Dead Sea with its healing powers. Along that river is the Tree of Life, no longer in the Garden, but along the river banks. Its leaves are offered to heal and its fruit to feed.

No longer will the Dead Sea be dead but a living and vibrant sea full of fish of all kinds. Men will fish, and men will eat. That is a picture of the transforming power of the gospel. We have the gospel message that heals the “Dead Sea” of men’s hearts and its fruit; the Word of God, to feed their hearts and minds.

Jesus used that picture as he taught the disciples. He said to them: “feed my lambs” and “feed my sheep,” and we do that with His life-changing message of love and hope.

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Bame-shifting

You are responsible

Gen 1 to 18 and Ezekiel 18 “The problem of blame-shifting.”

Theology is the study of God, and today’s lesson is about upside-down theology. From Gen 1 to 18, we learn that what was perfect was destroyed by sin. First, Adam blamed Eve, then Eve blamed the serpent, and so it has gone since time began. Here the elders sat before Ezekiel complaining (maybe in their hearts?) that they were in this fix, meaning in Babylon, because of their father’s sin. Ezekiel asked them just as God asked Eve and then Cain; “what have “YOU” done, not what has your father done. Each is responsible to live righteously or live in sin. You can’t use the thinking of Flip Wilson: “he made me do it.”

 Ezekiel told them, “the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.” [Ezek 18:20] We are all responsible for choosing righteousness or wickedness/sin. We all must stand before God alone, and God will not hear our complaint that “it was because of so and so” or “he made me do it.”  Ezekiel then points out the beauty of God’s mercy. “For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,” declares the Lord God. “Therefore, repent and live.” [Ezek 18:32]

May we all stop and thank God that we are not responsible for another’s sin.

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God’s Remnant

WE are the remnant

Ezekiel 5 to 8 Today we live in a world that seems turned upside down. What was in yesterday is out today. Who was in yesterday is out today. However, this one thing we know: God is the same yesterday as He is today. [Heb 13:8] He may scatter as he told Ezekiel over and over, but no matter where they would be, He is sovereignly orchestrating His plan; no matter the time, circumstance, or season. No one can say they did not know: “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.” [Rom 1:20]

Ezekiel is the “man of the hour” for the captives by the River Chebar. Even though far from home, God will retain a remnant. Just as then, Paul reminds us: [Rom 11:5] “So in the same way at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace.” The remnant is “saved…not by works of righteousness that we have done but on the basis of his mercy,” [Titus 3:5]. God has left his remnant so that His truth and the gospel of peace may be carried far and wide to a lost and dying world.

We are that remnant with a message of hope that many need. Are our feet prepared to carry this “good news of peace,” [Eph 6:15]

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One Way

There is one way to God

  

Ezekiel 1 to 4 The ways of God are unsearchable, so says Paul: Rom 11:33 “Oh, the depth of God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How unsearchable are his judgments, and how unfathomable are His ways.” Do you find it hard to wrap your mind around the way God is, the way He works, and His timetable? Do you stand in awe as Ezekiel must have done?

How do you respond when you see the glory of God? Do you like Ezekiel and others who have had this experience, fall upon your face in humble adoration? What is yur response as you listen to this marvelous book of prophecy? How do you understand the vision of God and His charge?

God called Ezekiel to speak to a specific people whose language he knew, whose ways he knew. God is calling you and me to the same path. Will we share the good and bad news with those God places in our path?

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I Won’t!

Will you obey

Jeremiah 43: There is a phrase that says: “There is a sucker born every minute.” It seems that in Jeremiah’s day that statement was more than true. Having seen the devastation of the land, the temple, and the carrying off of prisoners, the ones left still did not trust their faithful prophet, Jeremiah. Over and over he had said to yield to their captors, trust God and you will live but they would not. And so we see that the fools decided the words of Jeremiah were untrue, packed up and went to Egypt, and sure enough, trouble followed them. They never returned to Israel, just as God said. They were of the Dennis the Menace generation. I am sitting down on the outside but standing up on the inside. I refuse to admit I am wrong, I refuse to obey, yet are the first to complain when trouble comes their way. 

Today the gospel is free but many refuse to listen and submit to God’s ways. They still think that their works are better than God’s ways. Clearly, as Paul wrote: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” [Eph 2:8-9]

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You can “know” God or just “about” God…

You can know God or just about God

Jeremiah 10 to 14 is all about Jeremiah reminding the people that they can “know” God, not just “about” God. Paul reminded the reader of Romans this truth: “since the creation of the world his invisible attributes – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, because they are understood through what has been made. So people are without excuse.” [Rom 1] in sharp contrast to the idol worshipers. Jeremiah boldly told the people of Judah that idols are man-made blocks of wood covered in silver; they must be hammered to stand upright, they have no ears to hear and no mouths to speak. All who worship them “will prove to be stupid and ignorant.” [Jer 10:14]

In the book of Ruth, Orpah “knew about” God from Naomi. but Ruth “knew God.” We can discern that because of their response. Orpah knew about God, but she turned and went back to Moab when Naomi said, go home. Ruth, however, did not and insisted on going not back to Moab but forward to Bethlehem. That is the picture of the gospel. We either turn back to the world or move forward toward the “house of Bread” Bethlehem.

You can “know” God, not just “about” God. The question is, where are you?

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It is Time…

It is time

Ps 136 and 2Chron 6-7 God Calls—we follow.

Turned on a dime is a phrase we use to point to when all of life changes—in a moment in time. The Israelites point to Egypt as that point when all of life changed, and they began to follow God. Over and over they remind themselves of that moment. God called, and they followed. Centuries later, Jesus came; He called and said, “follow Me.” Some did, and their lives forever were changed; others ignored or refused, and they missed the greatest blessing ever. We call that a watershed moment in which they made a choice and their lives were forever changed. If you are a believer in Christ, you can point to that moment when all of your past was washed away as you crossed the Red Sea or the Jordan River. You heard God’s call, and you left your Egypt and followed God. You did it because His mercy endures forever. You did it because Egypt was a land of death, and following God meant life forever. 

Share with us your watershed moment when you chose to follow Jesus.

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“Blindsided by Men yet God gets the Glory”

Our mistakes

Joshua 9-10 Have you ever made a snap judgment only to find it blow up in your face? The Israelites did just that when the Gibeonites entered the Israelites camp and deceived them by wearing rags and carrying moldy bread, along with a tale of their journey. Their deception included meekly approaching the camp of the Israelites who accepted them at face value.

But as quickly as they deceived the Israelites, they now found out that their cleverness just might be their undoing and the Israelites will learn a hard lesson in accepting others without checking in with God. This unlikely friendship has turned the Gibeonites into enemies in the land and others seeing them as betrayers. Without Israel’s help, they would have been defeated. Even though the Israelites were not happy with the leaders for their rash decision to accept the Gibeonites, they fulfilled their promise of protection and God will use this experience to bring Him glory and teach the Israelites never again to accept others on what they see rather than checking in with God.

Remember the truth of Romans 8:28 “all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” God used Joshua’s error in not seeking God’s wise counsel regarding the Gibeonites to bring honor to Himself. God can and will use our mistakes to honor Himself. We often only see the cloud’s underside, but the silver lining, although hidden, will be revealed, so God gets the credit, not us.

When was the last time you didn’t check with God? Did you stop and give Him praise for how He used your mistake to bring about His good?

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