Who Me?
Today’s Passage –Matthew 26
(Second Milers also read – Psalms 71 – 75; Proverbs 15
“And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it I? (Matthew 26:22)
“But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.” – (Matthew 26:56)
After reading this morning’s passage, I was determined to write a new blog post in defense of Peter. I can certainly identify with Peter. In this passage we see Peter at his worst. In v 35, he self-righteously declares that he could never deny the Lord. Did you ever have that “not me” attitude? I have. Later in the passage we see Peter following afar off, and then finally we see him swearing while he vehemently denies even knowing the Lord. I am guilty of these actions as well. Peter, forgive me for ever saying anything bad about you in a message, for I am no better than you are – in fact, I have been worse. I am just thankful that all of my sinful actions aren’t recorded in the Book for all to see.
“But like Peter, I can’t even watch and pray, one hour with you, And I bet, I could deny you too.” (from “Grace By Which I Stand” – Keith Green)
The remainder of this blog is a re-post of what I had written previously regarding thoughts from Matthew 26:
Bear with me for a moment while I tell you a little bit about my morning so far. My alarm clock went off as it does every morning at 5 AM. I am supposed to actually get up at that time in order to take my morning “walk with the Lord”. This morning I didn’t actually get out of bed until close to 6, and then I had to rush over to the church for our corporate Saturday morning prayer meeting. During the prayer meeting, I read an excerpt out of Leonard Ravenhill’s book, “Why Revival Tarries”. Ravenhill states in his book:
“The tragedy of this late hour is that we have too many dead men in the pulpits giving out too many dead sermons to too many dead people.”
“By our attitude to prayer we tell God that what was begun in the Spirit we can finish in the flesh…. Yet ministers who do not spend two hours a day in prayer are not worth a dime a dozen, degrees or no degrees.”
I was already feeling pretty bad about my lack of spiritual character and then I came home and read chapter 26 from Matthew’s gospel. If ever there was a passage of Scripture that demonstrates our utter helplessness without the Lord, it is this chapter. When I have morning’s like this, and read chapters like this, I am reminded that I am indeed “but dust”. The problem is that most of the time I actually convince myself that I am God’s gift to the ministry. I often like to look at other people and think about all of their flaws and weaknesses, but most of the time I can’t think of any of my own. Oh, how clever and deceitful our flesh is. In this chapter, we will see how some of the greatest Christians that ever lived failed in their flesh as well. By the way, I am not trying to find comfort from the fact that my weak flesh has some good company. We are not supposed to compare ourselves amongst ourselves anyway; but I do find comfort knowing that our Lord continues to love this bunch of spiritual losers (myself included), in spite of all of their failures.
Consider some points from this passage:
1 “But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste?” – (Matthew 26:8) When the disciples observed a woman who worshipped the Lord by pouring a very expensive ointment on Him, they were angry. Why should any of us be angry when someone else expresses their love and devotion to the Lord. Who are we to judge anyone else’s motives, even when we might not agree with their particular action.
2 “Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples. … But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled. … Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew.” – (Matthew 26:35, 56, 74) Notice in these verses the pride of, not only Peter, but all of the disciples. They all boasted about their ability to stay true to the Lord. Unfortunately, we also see that when their faith is tested that it fails miserably.
3 “Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder. … Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me. … And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?” – (Matthew 26:36, 38, 40) Notice in these verses that the disciples could not even stay awake and pray with the Lord for one hour; and this was when the Lord could really have been blessed by their support.
4 “Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast. And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master; and kissed him.” – (Matthew 26:48-49) Here we see the ultimate act of the flesh – a complete betrayal of the Lord.
I want us now to go back and consider the question all of the disciples asked themselves in v 22, when the Lord stated that one of them would betray Him – “Is it I?” The disciples knew that they all were weak enough to betray the Lord, and they all thought that it was a real possibility that they might be the one. I want to ask the question to myself as well, and then answer it.Yes it’s me. Yes, I have gotten indignant and jealous because of what others have done to express their love and worship to the Lord. Yes, I have been proud and self-righteous, and confident in my own flesh as Peter was; and yes, I have certainly denied the Lord more than once by either an action or attitute, or a lack of action. And yes, I have slept when I should have been praying, studying, preparing, soulwinning, counselling, etc. And, Yes I know that my flesh is capable of even betraying the Lord. It’s me, it’s me, it’s me Oh Lord; and I am certainly standing in the need of prayer. “Oh wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death.”
Lord, deliver me from this self-righteous, proud, boastful, and always failing flesh. Help me to completely put my trust in You, and help me to never try to steal any of your Glory. Strengthen me through Your Word and through a personal, quiet time of fellowship, prayer and worship. And most of all help me to be faithful to you, and to never deny You or betray You again.
Thank the Lord that even though we are often unfaithful to Him, HE WILL NEVER LEAVE US OR FORESAKE US!
Posted in Thoughts from Matthew by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Where Lord?
Today’s Passage –Matthew 24 – 25
(Second Milers also read – Psalms 66 – 70; Proverbs 14)
“Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.” – (Matthew 24:40-42)
For many years I have misunderstood the above verses. On the surface these verses seem to be speaking about the rapture of the church, which is an event yet in our future, when the Lord Jesus Christ will return and take His Bride (the Church) from this earth, and bring her back to Heaven with Him. Consider the following verses that refer to the rapture of the church:
“Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” – (Acts 1:11)
“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” – (John 14:1-3)
“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” – (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)
“After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said,Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.” – (Revelation 4:1)
Note regarding the above verse in Revelation 4 – Revelation chapter 1 deals with the Apostle John’s vision of the Lord in Heaven chapters 2 & 3 are all about the Church Age. When you get to chapter 4, there is no longer a mention of the Church again. The Church (the Bride) has been brought up to Heaven (“come up hither”).
All of the these (not including Matthew 24:40 – 42) passages deal with the Rapture of the Church, but there is another wonderful picture of this event taken from the tradition of the Jewish Wedding. In Bible days when a marriage was arranged, the Groom first came to the Bride’s home and paid the price for the Bride. Then the Groom would return to his father’s home and prepare a home for himself and his new bride. When all of the preparations were finished, the Groom would return to pick up the Bride and take her to the new home. By the way, the Bride never knew when the Groom was going to come, so she had to be ready all the time. A celebration would take place for several days back at the Father’s house, and then the whole procession would return to the Bride’s parent’s home. All of this is a wonderful picture of Christ coming to earth (the Bride’s home), and paying for our sins. He is now back in Heaven preparing a place for us, and someday soon He will return for us and bring us to our new home in Heaven where we will celebrate for seven years (Marriage Supper of the Lamb). At the end of the seven years, we will return to the earth with the Lord.
There is a lot more that could be said about this event called the rapture, but I just wanted to briefly explain what it entails. However, the verses above from Matthew 24 do not deal with the rapture of the Church. The entire context of Matthew chapter 24 deals with the Tribulation Period. Now the Tribulation Period is what will take place on the earth after the church has been taken away via the Rapture. The purpose of the Tribulation Period is to awaken Israel from their spiritual slumber and have their eyes opened to the Truth about their Messiah. Notice Matthew 24:15:
“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)” – (Matthew 24:15)
This is obviously a reference to the Tribulation Period.
Now this brings us back to our original text verses at the top of the page (remember them – I know it was a long time since you looked at them). I said at the beginning of this post that for many years I was confused about these verses. On the surface they certainly seem to be talking about the rapture, meaning that the people that were taken away were raptured by the Lord to go to Heaven. However, the context simply does not support this interpretation. What then do these verses refer to, and where are these folks taken to? The answer to that question can be found in Luke 17, which is a parallel passage to Matthew 24. Notice what it says in vv 31 – 37:
“Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed. In that day, he which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it away: and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back. Remember Lot’s wife. Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it. I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.” – (Luke 17:30-37)
The disciples ask the Lord where they will be taken. He tells them that they will go where the eagles (vultures) are gathered together. This is a reference to Armageddon:
“And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.” – (Revelation 19:17-18)
I just thought that I would try to clear up a common confusion regarding these verses. I must confess that I do not understand a lot about these future events, but I think that I have the proper interpretation of these verses.
This was more of a Bible study than a devotion this morning, but that’s OK – we love to study the Bible, don’t we?
Posted in Thoughts from Matthew by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
Every Thing’s OK – The Saturday Morning Post by Pastor Ted Stahl
Good morning! I was reading the news last week, when I came to this artical about a teenage girl who was ridiculed for wearing a Romney/Ryan t-shirt to school. What was scary is that the article mentioned what the teacher had told this sixteen-year-old student, Samantha Pawlucy. Student Samantha Pawlucy, “said that during class, Gaymon pointed out the shirt, questioned why she was wearing it and told her to leave the classroom. Gaymon, Pawlucy said, said it was a “Democratic” school and compared it to wearing a “KKK” shirt.” (Teen Returns to School After Romney T-Shirt Flap – Associated Press Philadelphia October 9, 2012).
The scary part was that the teacher had allegedly said this was a “Democratic” school. Call me naive, but I had always believed that schools should teach a student HOW to think, not WHAT to think. Immediately a question was answered for me from 2Thessalonians chapter 2.
“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.” (2Thessalonians 2)
My questions have always been: “What kind of lie?”, and “How could the world believe it?”
It all starts with our children: America’s future generations. Let me give you a couple of quotes…
“Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it.” – Adolph Hitler, Dictator of Nazi Germany, and murderer of 6 million Jews.
“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth’s the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.” – Joseph Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda for Nazi Germany, and one of Adolph Hitlers closest associates.
Don’t think it could happen? Think about the Theory of Evolution, how it became the fact taught in schools today. The teachers taught evolution as fact for years, and now everyone believes the lie. But there is a two-fold plan of action we can take, and should take. The plan starts with 2Chronicles 7:14…
“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
Fess up to it: this mess is our fault. We dropped the ball. We’ve allowed a hand full of atheists to speak what the fool had said in his heart – that there is no God. And the people believed the lie. Tell God that you accept the responsibility of dropping the ball, ask His forgiveness. Then ask Him what you can do in picking up the dropped ball again. The second part of the plan is the truth. Joseph Goebbels said in his quote that the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie. If you look at how Jesus responded to the tempting by the devil, for every one of the devil’s temptations, Jesus responded with the TRUTH of God’s Word. We need to do the same.
Jesus said, “…I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6); “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32).
Can we believe a lie?
“Yes We Can.”
At what cost are we going to believe a lie? Our freedom?
America needs to get back to it’s Christian roots. Until our government changes it, we a still a nation whose laws and workings are based on the Holy Bible: we are a Christian nation.
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands: one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
Peace! (John 8:32)
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Today – Would We Be In The Prison Or At The Party?
This is a second post from this morning’s passage. Scroll down to view the other post – “Thankful for the Crumbs”, or click here.
There were so many great stories from today’s reading, that I decided to offer a second post. This one was from the account in Matthew 14:1 – 12
“But when Herod’s birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod. Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask. And she, being before instructed of her mother, said, Give me here John Baptist’s head in a charger.” – (Matthew 14:6-8)
In this story, we see King Herod hosting a big party at his palace. No doubt, all of the important and influential people of Judaea were there. The politicians were all present, along with the wealthy businessmen, famous actors, and superstar athletes. I bet the press was even there snapping pictures of all of these socialites who were dressed in their best robes.
As the evening went along, however, and the people began to loosen up from all of the wine and strong drink that was being consumed, Herodias’ daughter began dancing before the crowd. By the way, Herodias was Herod’s brother’s wife, but Herod took her for himself. Herod was so pleased with this young girl’s lewd dancing that he promised to reward her with anything she desired, up to half of his kingdom. The girl conspired with her mother, and asked for the head of John the Baptist.
Why would the girl and her mother want John the Baptist dead? Because John the Baptist was the only one that had enough guts to speak out against the adulterous relationship that Herodias had with King Herod.
The thought that I got this morning from this passage is this: Would the Christians of today be in the prison with John, or at the party with Herod? I fear that most of us are so enamored with this worldly crowd that we would be right there with them. Where are the John the Baptist’s today that boldly speak out against the wickedness that is rampant in the world today? We are so afraid to stand out – apart from the crowd. Shame on us.
“Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,” – (2 Corinthians 6:17)
Posted in Thoughts from Matthew by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Thankful for the Crumbs
Today’s Passage –Matthew 14 – 15 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Psalms 46 – 50; Proverbs 10)
Scripture Memory for October – Matthew 5:1 – 16
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Ephesians 4:32
Read “Characteristics of a Healthy Sunday School Class” by Pastor Chappell
Read another post from this passage – “Keeping Your Focus in the Storm”
“But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.” – (Matthew 15:26-28)
What a great truth from the Scripture this morning. While Jesus was walking with His disciples in the area of Tyre and Sidon, a Gentile woman persistently begged the Lord for help with her devil-possessed daughter. Jesus at first ignored the woman, and then told her and the disciples that he was sent only to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel”. The woman would not give up, but continued to seek the Lord’s help. He finally told her that it wasn’t meet (suitable, right) to take the children’s (meaning the Jews) meat and cast it to the dogs (meaning the Gentiles). The woman then made a remarkable statement. She basically told the Lord that she recognized that she was totally unworthy of His help, but she knew that it would be a very small thing for an all powerful God to slip a scrap of help under the table. Jesus commented on the woman’s great faith. There was another similar incident in the Bible, where another Gentile (the Centurion in Matthew 8 and Luke 7) recognized the power of the Lord. The Lord also remarked about his faith, saying that it was greater than any He had seen in Israel. It is very interesting that these strangers to the faith of Israel could see something that many of the Jews could not.
I would like to pull a couple of thoughts about this woman’s faith. First, I like the fact that she recognized her unworthiness. The Lord actually called her a dog. I do not think that the Lord was trying to hurt this woman. He knew exactly what He was doing, and He knew exactly what the woman would do. He was using this event to teach the disciples and us a very important lesson. This woman gets an A for Humility 101. She recognized her unworthiness. The fact of the matter is that the disciples were also totally unworthy and undeserving of all that the Lord had done for them; and we are also undeserving. It is amazing to me how pompous we are. We think that we somehow are entitled to all that we have. The truth is that we really deserve Hell and nothing more. It is only by the grace of God that we are blessed the way we are.
The other thought that I want to bring out is that because this humble woman recognized how small she was, she was able to see how big Jesus is. Until we deflate our egos, we will never fully understand the power and magnificence of God. This woman knew that she was asking the Lord to something miraculous, but she also understood that the miracle that she was asking for would be nothing for an omnipotent God to perform. How big is your God? What problem do you have that only God can fix? Why not make yourself small, and come to a big God and ask him to throw down a few crumbs from His table.
Posted in Thoughts from Matthew by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Just for Ladies – by Camille Stahl
Today’s Passage –Matthew 12 – 13 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Psalms 41 – 45; Proverbs 9)
Scripture Memory for October – Matthew 5:1 – 16
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – 1 Timothy 1:17
“Freeze” or “Get Over Here Now!”
“And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.” (1Kings 19:12)
I would like to take a different approach to this week’s Ladies Bible Study. As I stated last week, before I start the blog, I pray and ask God to use a situation from the week before. This week’s blog is from an experience I had from selling at another yard sale.
On Friday I was with two of the ladies from church. The house we were at was on a busy road. Of course, no one did the speed limit. Anyway, one of the ladies was baby sitting an eighteen month old boy, which she does for a living. Some of the time he was sitting in his stroller, but at other times he was walking around being carefully watched. Later during the day, we played ball with him, rolling the ball on the ground, and then he’d get it and return it to us. At this point I’m thinking, ‘what will happen if he starts to walk in the wrong direction? We’ll have to get up real fast to get him’. Well don’t you know he started walking towards the house. His baby sitter said freeze, and he stopped, turned around and came right back to her. Wow!! No yelling, just one word. How many eighteen month old kids do you know who would do that? I thought of how much time and patience had to go into training him to do that. Because of the relationship he had with his baby sitter, he obeyed immediately. Just a side note, he was in no danger at anytime.
Now lets go to Saturday morning at the yard sale. Mom, Dad, and a daughter about eight years old park across the street to come to the sale. They all get out and the mom starts yelling at her daughter. The little girl stayed by her parent’s side as they crossed the road. When they all got into the yard, the little girl was attracted to the dolls and toys while the parents were looking at the things that they were interested in. Again, mom was yelling ‘get over here now, don’t touch anything……’. The girl didn’t seem to be doing anything wrong other than ignoring her mother. She was in the yard, not anywhere near the road or in any danger, but the mom continued to shout at her.
Sometime later I notice the little girl sitting on a child’s chair that was for sale, playing with some toys that were purchased for her. Mom and Dad were talking with the ladies who were running the yard sale holding the items they bought. There was no more yelling. Mom didn’t say anything about her daughter not being by her side. As a matter of fact, Mom didn’t seem concerned where her daughter was, as she had her back towards her as she was talking. What changed? When it was time to go, Mom yelled “Let go” and at first the little girl just sat there. Mom yelled again, but she still stayed seated. Then it was Dad’s turn. He politely called her name and said “its time to go”. She got up, and walked across the street with them as Mom yelled at her “get over here and cross with us”.
I know by now your asking yourself where is she going with this. Lets take the babysitter. Much time, effort and patience (long suffering) went into training the baby to listen. But the end results was obedience. It’s like our relationship with God. Got has not only given us time, effort and patience, He’s given us His life. We have the Bible, God’s instructions. It teaches us to ‘freeze’ when we need to, to get us to walk in the right direction, and stay out of danger. The Bible also tells us how much He loves us. There are many examples from the Bible of people who obeyed God. Lets take a look at a couple. Mary, the Mother of Jesus, is the first woman who comes to mind.
“And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.”(Luke 1:26-28)
“And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.” (Luke 1:30)
“And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” (Luke 1:35)
“And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.” (Luke 1:38)
Mary could have thought ‘what are you crazy? I have a wedding to prepare. I don’t have time for this…. and went on her way ignoring the words of the Angel. But she obeyed (freeze) and was blessed.
Next is Mary Magdalene.
“And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils,” (Luke 8:2)
Mary wanted to stay close to Jesus not only to protect her from the ‘Evil One’, but to change her life from darkness to light, from the power of satan to the power of God. Because of her faithfulness to the Lord , she was the first one to witness the resurrected Christ. And there are others. Do we have what it take to obey Him like a little child?
On the other side, we have someone who wants the same results, but does not want to put the time and effort into the training. That’s the way Satan treats us. He wants us to ‘get over here now’ into a danger zone, away from God’s will. If we don’t listen, he’ll continue to hound us through trials and tribulations (get over here now!). When he has us, he’ll let us play in our sin until it’s time to move away from God again. An example of this is Eve: she ate of the fruit that God said not to eat (get over here now!). Job’s wife said, ‘Curse God and die’. Herodias disobeyed through revenge and murder. Sapphira also listened to Satan, which resulted in death, (get over here now!). There are many other examples.
So the question for today is will you ‘freeze’? The Bible instructions us when to freeze, and which way to turn. Or, will you turn a deaf ear (get over here now!). Will you join me in prayerfully resisting the devil, and walk side by side,day by day with Christ. He loves you and is waiting to take your hand.
Thank You
(1John 5:11-13)
Posted in Just for Ladies by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
What Is Your House Built Upon?
Today’s Passage –Matthew 7 – 9 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Psalms 31 – 35; Proverbs 7)
“Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.” – (Matthew 7:24-27)
I so enjoy reading these familiar passages from the New Testament. Frankly, there are so many great truths contained in these passages that I have a tough time deciding what to write about. I opted this morning to jot down some thoughts about the concluding verses in “The Sermon on the Mount”, where Jesus likens the wise man to a man that builds his house upon a rock. He goes on to explain that a foolish man will build his house upon the sand.
The simple principle being taught here by the Lord is that we need to build our lives and our families upon the solid principles found in the Word of God. God knows what is best for us. When we listen to Him, and yield our lives to His will and His Word, we will live fruitful, blessed, and abundant lives; enjoying the marvelous protection and provision that only He can give. There are so many other Scriptures in the Bible that support this truth, but I will just share one other passage with you:
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” – (Psalm 1:1-6)
Why is it that so many of God’s people don’t ever get a hold of this truth? I am not talking now about lost people: they don’t know any better. But, why is it that so many Christians choose to build their lives on the sinking sand produced by the philosophies of this world? Years ago, when my wife and I first started out in our Christian life, we determined that we were going to do the best that we could to build our home according to the principles found in the Word of God. Many of our friends thought that we were a little extreme with some of the things that we did, but I can honestly say that we have no regrets. As the song says, God has blessed our lives “beyond measure”. In fact my only regrets are that there were times that we could have followed the Lord a little more closely.
How about you? Are you building your house upon the rock of the Lord Jesus Christ? Are you daily tuning in to the broadcast from Heaven; or are you content to listen to all of the babble coming from the talking-heads of this sin cursed world? I choose God. He has never done me wrong yet; and I know that I can trust Him to keep my house standing until until I have finished all that He has for me to do here on the earth.
Posted in Thoughts from Matthew by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Not Guilty – The Saturday Morning Post by Pastor Ted Stahl
Good morning! Are you glad you’re saved? Whenever I read Proverbs chapter 6, I always thank the Lord for my salvation. You see, there are three verses in this chapter that would make me cringe. Those verses are Proverbs 6:17 through 19. They contain a list of our attributes that the Lord hates. God’s Word says: “These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.” (Proverbs 6:16-19).
Before July 23, 1995, I was not 100% sure that when I died I would go to heaven. Every time the sixth day of the month would roll around, I would dread reading this chapter. If I was standing before a judge, and the charges were read, it would have sounded a little like this…
“You have been found guilty of the following charges. Of having a proud look – GUILTY! Of having a lying tongue – GUILTY! Of having hands that shed innocent blood – GUILTY! Of having a heart that deviseth wicked imaginations – GUILTY! Of having feet that are swift in running to mischief – GUILTY! Of being a false witness – GUILTY! And of sowing discord umong the brethren – GUILTY!”
Do those verses in Proverbs chapter 6 make you cringe whenever you read them? Are you 100% sure that you are going to heaven? Let me give you the best advise ever given to me. This advice came from Dr. Bob Gray, at the invitation after the evening service on July 23, 1995. I had asked him a question about my salvation. The simple advice he gave me has stuck with me all these years. This is what Dr. Gray told me. He said, “I can’t tell you whether or not you are saved, but if you are not 100% sure, you need to take care of it now.”
And that’s what I did. Our salvation, where we will spend eternity is something we all need to take care of. Twice in Ezekiel chapter 18, God plainly tells us that the soul that sinneth, it shall die. And we all have sinned. Romans 3:10 and 3:23 tell us this: “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one…” and “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God…”
And then we have to deal with 1John 1:10, “If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”
This just means that if you say you are not a sinner, you just called the only Righteous, True, and Holy God, a liar. That would make you the liar. Revelation 21: 8 tells us, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
But Jesus died on the cross to pay the price for our sins, including the sin of telling lies. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23).
And this is the promise that Jesus gives us… “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.” (John 6:37-40).
You are not guaranteed tomorrow. The Bible tells us that now is the time of salvation (2Corinthians 6:2). Tomorrow may be too late to call on the name of the Lord and ask His forgiveness. “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13).
Then, when the devil points his crooked finger at you, and with a sinister voice cries, “Guilty! Guilty!”; you can here Jesus say, “My blood paid for that.”
Then God the Father will pronounce your sentence: “Not guilty. Enter thou into the the joy of thy Lord!”
Peace. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Stout Words
Today’s Passage –Malachi 1 – 4 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Psalm 16 – 20; 02 Proverbs 4)
Scripture Memory for July – Matthew 5:1 – 16
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Isaiah 40:31
Read “Harvest Days” by Pastor Chappell
“Your words have been stout against me, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee? Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts? And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.” – (Malachi 3:13-15)
As I was reading this morning, the phrase, “your words have been stout against me”, caught my eye. That word “stout” is not a word that we use often in our vernacular. In the context of this passage, the word means strong or bold. God was telling Israel that they have been very bold about what they had to say about God. The passage goes on to speak about the pride of the people. It is always a dangerous thing when God’s people become large in their own eyes. Remember what the prophet Samuel told King Saul:
“And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel?” – (1 Samuel 15:17)
Saul had become too big for his breeches. He started to call his own shots; he didn’t need God any more. The people of Israel and Judah had the same problem in Malachi’s day. They were proud and boastful; and they no longer feared the Lord.
Our society today is much the same way, and perhaps even worse. We are a proud people. We boldly live a godless lifestyle, and almost dare God to do something about it. We shake our fists in the face of God, and proudly declare our independence. We say with our words and our actions, “We don’t need you God – stay out of our lives. We will live as we please.” Our words and actions are “stout” against God. Even in the church their is a haughty attitude of independence. God help us. We need to get back to fearing God again. God needs to be magnified in our sight, and self needs to be minimized.
“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” – (2 Timothy 3:1-5)
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Look and Live
Today’s Passage –Zechariah 10 – 14 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Psalms 11 – 15; Proverbs 3)
Scripture Memory for July – Matthew 5:1 – 16
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 27:15
Read – “Touchdown!” from Zechariah 14
“And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.” – (Zechariah 12:10)
“In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.” – (Zechariah 13:1)
“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:” – (Romans 11:25-26)
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.” – (Numbers 21:8)
The Bible makes it very clear in the Book of Romans that Israel, as a nation, is right now blind to the Truth of the gospel. They just can’t see that Jesus was and is their Messiah. This does not mean that there will not be individual Jews that will trust Christ as Saviour, but as a whole they have been blinded because they rejected Christ when He first came to them:
“He came unto his own, and his own received him not.” – (John 1:11)
There is coming a day, however, when the blindness of Israel will be taken away, and they will be able to recognize “me whom they have pieced”. The verse goes on to say that they will mourn, “as one mourneth for his only son”. In chapter Zechariah 13:1, the Scripture goes on to say, “in that day there shall be a fountain opened … for sin and for uncleanness”. The day referred to in this verse is the same day that Israel looks upon and mourns for the One whom they pierced. Cleansing for sin only comes after we recognize our sin, and our rejection of the Saviour.
This is the exact same process that God uses to cleanse us from our sins today. God opens our eyes so that we can see the one whom we have pierced, because it is our sin that put Him on that cross. When we see our sinful condition, and realize that Jesus took all of that sin upon Him on the cross, our eyes begin to open; and when our eyes open, so does that fountain of cleansing that removes the stain of our sin from us. What an awesome God we serve!
“There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel’s veins; and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.”
Posted in Thoughts from Zechariah by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.