Back to School Rally 2012
Today’s Passage – Ezekiel 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 – 2 Corinthians 1 – 4; Proverbs 31)
Scripture Memory for July – John 3:1 – 21
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 3:5 & 6
Read last year’s post from this passage – “The Watchman”
Tonight is our annual Back to School Rally at the church. We are very excited to be able to host this event for the young people in our community along with some students from churches throughout the rest of the state. If you are in our area, we invite you to come and take part. Brother Mike Clark will be our main speaker, but we will also hear from many other area preachers. There is no charge for the event, and there will be lots of food and fun for the kids. Each kid will receive a BTS Rally backpack filled with some surprises. If you need more information, you can go to our church website (www.jerseyshorebaptist.com), or call the church (609 – 748 – 4955).
I am also very happy that the summer is coming to an end, and we are entering my favorite time of the year – the fall. Don’t misunderstand me, I love the summer; but by the time September rolls around I am ready to get back to the more regular routine that the school year brings. It is a shame that too many of us get away from some things during the summer months that are important to our relationship with God. I have discovered that the school year gives us a wonderful opportunity to hit the reset button, and get back to some things that are important:
1 Back to a schedule – It grieves me that our kids are sleeping late during the summer months. The summer vacation was originally intended to allow the young people to help out with the farm work that needed to be done in the sumer months. Today, it is just a time for kids to be lazy. They get up late, play video games all day, and stay up late watching TV. Maybe I exaggerate a little, but you know what I mean. Our schedules tend to get “out of whack” in the summer times. The coming of the fall usually forces us to be more routine. Make sure this fall that you schedule some time for devotions in the morning.
2 Back to soulwinning – It is a proven fact that our soulwinning outreach suffers during the summer months. Many churches will shut down church-wide soulwinning altogether due to lack of participation. Let’s get back to going soulwinning this fall.
3 Back to the Scriptures and Supplication (Prayer) – Make it a goal to be more consistent in your Bible reading, Bible study, Bible memorization, and prayer this fall.
4 Back to Standards – One of the benefits of the colder weather is that people are forced to put more clothes on. Christians tend to let their dress standards dip in the summertime.
Take a spiritual inventory of your life, and if there are some things that you have let slide this summer, then get back to them as the school year begins.
Posted in Thoughts from Ezekiel by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Hitting Rock Bottom
Today’s Passage – Lamentations 4 – 5 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text)
(Second Milers also read – 1 Corinthians 13 – 16; Psalms 146 – 150; Proverbs 30)
“They that did feed delicately are desolate in the streets: they that were brought up in scarlet embrace dunghills.” – (Lamentations 4:5)
“The hands of the pitiful women have sodden {means – boiled} their own children: they were their meat in the destruction of the daughter of my people.” – (Lamentations 4:10)
My dad once told me that people need to hit “rock bottom” before they can start climbing back up. Such was the cas for the nation of Judah (Israel) in the passage that we read today. The Book of Lamentations is a very sad passage of Scripture. In these last two chapters of the book we see the end result of a nation that turns its back on the Lord. Israel was once the crowned jewel of all of the earth. At one point in their history they had experienced the marvelous blessing of God, with all of the provision and protection that came along with it. What happened? Slowly, they began to think that their prosperity was not a result of the favor that God had bestowed upon them. Instead, in their pride, they believed that all of the good things that had come their way were the result of their own works and wisdom. God was gradually pushed out of their minds; and as God was slowly losing His preeminence in their eyes, sin began to move in. At first it was very small and subtle, but eventually the nation became engulfed in full-scale immorality and idolatry.
Surprisingly, God did not bring about judgment immediately. He lovingly and patiently pleaded with the people, warning them about the eventual consequences of their actions. At some points in their history, the people even heeded the warnings, and turned back to the Lord, at least temporarily, and managed to postpone the judgment. Eventually, however, God’s patience ran out and the judgment that they long deserved came. These chapters in Lamentation portray a vivid picture of the payment that will eventually come upon any people that turn their back on God. What a shame!
I wonder how long it will be before God’s patience runs out on America. We have certainly been turning our back on the Lord for the past several decades. We’ve removed God from our schools and government. We murder innocent babies by the millions. We have thrown the towel in on decency and morality. We have become consumed with material things, and have forsaken the things that really matter. God cannot be pleased with this once godly nation. In recent years we have seen a number of natural and un-natural disasters that have hit our nation and our world. Were these events just natural occurrences or isolated coincidences, or is God trying to get our attention? I can’t answer that question definitively; but I do know that God allowed all of these events and may have even caused the natural ones, and He could have prevented them. I think that it is very likely that we will see more of the same in the future. I don’t think our economy will get much better, either. Things are getting rough out there. The prosperity and protection that we experienced for years is vanishing away. The only hope that we have is in turning back to God.
“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.” – (2 Chronicles 7:14)
Sometimes when we think about passages like these we think only of the lost world around us. In our mind we blame the situation that our country is in on the unbelievers out there; but according to the verse above both the blame and the solution rest in the hands of God’s people. If “my people” didn’t get away from God in the first place then we wouldn’t have to get back to God today. Our churches and our families are gradually, slowly, subtly, and almost unconsciously moving away from the Lord. We need to repent, and revive, and radically move back to where we once were. How about you? Are you as close to the Lord now as you used to be at some point in your past. Do you allow things into your life and home now that you once wouldn’t even think of? How is your devotional life: your Bible reading and prayer time. Have you quietly slipped away in your personal relationship with God? These are hard questions, but we must give them some serious thought. Our flesh will rebel against the effort. It never wants to admit failure, but we must carefully and prayerfully take inventory of our spiritual lives. I want the blessings of God on my life, my ministry, my family, my church, and my nation. I’d be willing to bet that you do to. God hasn’t moved – we have. We need get back to where He is.
Posted in Thoughts from Lamentations by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Great Is Thy Faithfulness!
Today’s Passage – Lamentations 1 – 3 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text)
(Second Milers also read – 1 Corinthians 9 – 12; Psalms 141 – 145; Proverbs 29)
Scripture Memory for July – John 3:1 – 21
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 119:105
“This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.” – (Lamentations 3:21-24)
I love the Biblical significance of the rainbow. God showed Noah the rainbow and told him that it would be there in the sky at the end of the rainstorm to remind God’s people that the rain is coming to an end. For Noah it was a precious reminder, as he had just experienced the destruction of every living creature on the earth through a deluge of water. To us, the rainbow is still a symbol of hope. In our passage in Jeremiah today, we do not see an actual rainbow but we do see the hope that all of God’s children can see even when it feels like it’s all over. In these chapters we read about Israel after the destruction that came through the hands of the Babylonians. It was a horrible time for God’s people – possibly the lowest point in their history. Jeremiah had warned the people for many years that judgment was imminent because the people of God had forsaken the Lord. Well, here in Lamentations, there are no more warnings, just the account of the total humiliation and destruction of Jerusalem, Israel, and the people of God.
The first two chapters of this book are very sad indeed; and chapter three starts out as bleakly as the first two; but when we get to verse 21, we can finally get a glimpse of hope. Jeremiah recalls that God is merciful and compassionate, and as he wrote in The Book Of Jeremiah, “he will not make a full end” of them. You see, Jeremiah remembers here that God loves His people, even though He had to correct them. God’s correction would not last forever. In fact, Jeremiah reminds the people that God’s compassion is new every morning. I love that statement. Aren’t you glad that God never runs out of compassion?
Christian, you may be experiencing in your life right now the correcting hand of God. I know that I have had my share of correction through the years. It is certainly not pleasant. However, there are two things that we need to remember about God’s correction. First, we must remember that God does not correct us to get even. He disciplines us for our own good, purely out of love for us. He is trying to bring us back to where we need to be – for our own good. Secondly, we need to keep in mind that God’s correction will not last forever. I remember as a child, I sometimes thought the punishments that I had received at the hands of my parents would never end; but they always did. The sun always came up, and the rainbow eventually appeared to signify the end of the storm. If you are experiencing the loving correction of our Heavenly Father today, take heart: there is hope, His compassions are new every morning.
Posted in Thoughts from Lamentations by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
Just for Ladies – by Camille Stahl
Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 51 – 52 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text)
(Second Milers also read – 1 Corinthians 5 – 8; Psalms 136 – 140; Proverbs 28)
Scripture Memory for July – John 3:1 – 21
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 92:1 – 4
The Study of Women in the Bible
This Week – The Widow Of Zarephath, Who Gave Her All.
And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth. And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. (1 King 17:8-15)
The great famine that Elijah prophesied, would effect many lives, not just wicked King Ahab. When Elijah became hungry, and the ravens fed him no more, God provided another food source, a widow, who’s name is not mention. She didn’t have a storage shelter filled with food and water, she just had a great need. I always wondered what she thought when Elijah first ask her to give him some of the last of her food. She knew this was the last meal she and her son would eat before their death and yet she gave. God kept his promise and supplied food for Elijah, the widow and her son, and they lived. I wonder why God did not continue to supply Elijah with food through the ravens or some other way. Instead, He sent Elijah to a poor woman. It seemed that she would not be a likely candidate to provide food for anyone, but God graciously allowed this woman to become part of His plan. God reached out to her who had nothing, accomplishing much.
WARNING!! Things are tough now, but be warned, they will get tougher. The prices of everything are going up (except our paychecks). Our country, as a whole, is in a drought. With less rain there will be less food, which drives up prices. There are so many people out of work, but will we give? You say “We have no way to pay the bills”, but the work of the Lord must go on. It takes money to keep the doors open at the church. People are dieing and going to hell every minute.
Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. (Malachi 3:8-9)
Fret not. All is not doom and gloom with God. God promises to take care of His children when we obey Him.
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. (Malachi 3:10)
I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed. (Psalms 37:25-26)
God is no respecter of persons. He took care and greatly blessed the widow and her son; He’ll take care of, and bless us.
Prolong your life. If your not tithing, I challenge you to start. To you who are tithing, don’t stop.
GIVE.
Thank You
1 John 5:13
Posted in Just for Ladies by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
A Word to the Shepherds
Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 49 – 50 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text)
(Second Milers also read – 1 Corinthians 1 – 4; Psalms 131 – 135; Proverbs 27)
Scripture Memory for July – John 3:1 – 21
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalms 92:1
“My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace.” – (Jeremiah 50:6)
“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock. The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them. … Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them.” – (Ezekiel 34:2-4, 10)
“The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.” – (1 Peter 5:1-4)
“I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” – (John 10:11)
“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.” – (John 10:14)
In our Bible reading passage today from the Book of Jeremiah, God is sending His warning of judgment to the nation of Babylon because of their treatment of the nation of Israel. The interesting thing about this is that God actually allowed the Babylonians to conquer His people because the Israelites had turned their backs on Him. Notice the statement in Jeremiah 50:6: “My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray”. Notice that God states very clearly here that the reason His people had gone astray was because the shepherds were not doing their jobs. The shepherds of Israel were the spiritual and political leaders who had lead the people of God into apostasy and immorality.
Our nation today is also failing due to the fact that the shepherds are not doing their jobs. Our political leaders are leading people in a godless path, and the spiritual leaders are not much better. There is little that I can do to influence the political direction of our country, but as one of God’s “under-shepherds”, I can do my part to see that the flock that God has entrusted to my care is healthy. But, what is the job of the “under-shepherd” (pastor) of a New Testament church?
1 Provide for the flock – “feed the flock of God which is among you” – It is the job of the pastor to make sure the people of the church are getting the whole counsel of the Word of God. The pastor should be making sure that the people are getting a healthy diet of sound Bible doctrine. Too many churches are limiting the tie that is spent in teaching and preaching, and are replacing it with forms of entertainment. I am not opposed to some of the other things that we do in our church services, but they should not replace the time spent in the Word. The further away our nation gets from God, the more we will need to be strengthened by the Word.
2 Protect the flock – There are a lot of things out there that will hurt God’s people. It is the job of the pastor to warn the people against false teachers who lead them astray doctrinally. We also have the obligation to stand strong and hold the line in the area of morality. The world, the flesh, and the devil are all pushing our churches into immodesty and immorality. It is the pastor’s job to see to it that carnality and worldliness are kept as far away from the church as possible. The pastor should also be the first one to offer help to the hurting and even the straying Christian.
3 Pattern for the flock – This is perhaps the area where we fail the most. Many times we do not practice what we preach. We are to be “enamples” to the flock. It seems that there has been a tsunami lately of moral failure in the pulpits of many of America’s leading churches. This both grieves me, and scares me. It grieves me because it has cause some of “the enemies of God to blaspheme”. In other words it has given strength to the crowd that opposes God. It scares me because I know that some of these men were far better Christians than I. I don’t want to fall. I must do whatever I can to stay humble, because moral destruction cannot come unless there is pride because pride always precedes destruction.
America is failing today. God’s people, for the most part are failing today, and it is all my fault because I am one of those “under-shepherds” that have been entrusted by God to watch out for the flock. Pray for the shepherds.
Posted in Thoughts from Jeremiah by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
Unconditional Love
Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 46 – 48 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text)
(Second Milers also read – Romans 13 – 16; Psalms 126 – 130; Proverbs 26)
Scripture Memory for July – John 3:1 – 21
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 89:1
“Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, saith the LORD: for I am with thee; for I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have driven thee: but I will not make a full end of thee, but correct thee in measure; yet will I not leave thee wholly unpunished.” (Jeremiah 46 – 48)
The Book of Jeremiah is book of judgment: most of it dealing with the coming captivity for the people of Judah in the land of Babylon. However, these three chapters that we have read to day deal with the judgment that God had prepared for three nations: Egypt, the land of the Philistines, and Moab. All three of these nations have had a bad history with God’s people Israel. For most of history these nations have been bitter enemies of the people of God. God would not spare these nations when he judged them: they would not receive the mercy that Judah would receive. Notice in the above verse that God says regarding His people that He would correct them “in measure”, but he would not make a full end.
I thank God that He loves me unconditionally and that, even though there are times when He needs to correct me and chasten me, He never stops loving me. We know that there is a principle throughout the Bible of reaping and sowing; but I know that God has not caused me to reap in judgment to the same degree what I sowed in disobedience. On the other hand, I have reaped far more blessing than I deserve. God has been very good to me: He loves me, and I am not very lovable most of the time. I am His child: I came in through the door, Jesus Christ; and God will never kick me out of the house. It’s mind boggling; but I am not complaining. People who do not know God misunderstand this unconditional love: they claim that it sounds like a license to sin. However, his unconditional love for me has constrained me, and His grace has taught me to deny ungodliness. When I think about His love, I want to sin less and serve more.
I thank God for His correction; but even more, I thank God that no matter how bad I get, He never stops loving me!
Posted in Thoughts from Jeremiah by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Refrigerate After Opening – The Saturday Morning Post by Pastor Ted Stahl
Good morning! Have you ever seen the warning on a jar of food, warning you to “Refrigerate After Opening”? You would think that with all the preservatives used in processed food today, they would last forever. Preservatives like Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Nitrite, and Butylated Hydroxyanisole.
Yummy! (As a rule of thumb: if you can’t pronounce it, you probably shouldn’t eat it).
Refrigeration is a good way to preserve food. Although, when that big storm blew through and knocked out power for a week, I was told that my house smelled like Armageddon. And when we got home, we found it did! All the food in the refrigerator needed to be thrown out. I guess some of these man-made preservatives did not work too well under extreme conditions.
There is only one perfect preservative. He is the Holy Spirit. The Bible tells us, “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” (Ephesians 4:30)
If you could lose your salvation, it would not be a perfect salvation, it would not be God’s salvation. It would be a salvation based on what I do, and not on what Christ did. Look at what King David wrote, “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul. The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.” (Psalm 121).
Jesus even told 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).
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” And, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (John 3:16-18 and Romans 10:13).
What kind of preservative do you have?
Peace. (John 19:27-30)
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
The Truth Sometimes Hurts
Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 37 – 40 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text)
(Second Milers also read – Romans 5 – 8; Psalms 116 – 120; Proverbs 24)
Scripture Memory for July – John 3:1 – 21
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 61:1 – 3
“Then Zedekiah the king sent, and took him out: and the king asked him secretly in his house, and said, Is there any word from the LORD? And Jeremiah said, There is: for, said he, thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.” – (Jeremiah 37:17)
Therefore the princes said unto the king, We beseech thee, let this man be put to death: for thus he weakeneth the hands of the men of war that remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words unto them: for this man seeketh not the welfare of this people, but the hurt.” – (Jeremiah 38:4)
How would you like to have the job that God gave to Jeremiah? He was sent to warn the people of Judah about the imminent invasion from the King of Babylon. He told them that they needed to submit themselves to Nebuchadnezzar because this judgment was of God. He pleaded with King Zedekia of Judah, and told him that if he would submit to Babylon that it would go well with him and his family and Jerusalem would not have to be destroyed; but he would not listen. So what did Zedekiah and the princes of Judah do? Did they say, “Thank you Jeremiah for loving us enough to tell us the Truth from God?” No, they threw him in prison: a place so filthy that he sunk in the mire.
The day that we live in is not much different. For the most part, people are not interested in the truth. They want preachers who will tell them what they want to hear. The televisions and radios are filled with these messengers who itch the ears. They are hirelings, not true preachers of the Truth. Now, to be honest, there aren’t too many preachers in America being thrown in a miry prison today for their preaching; but I believe that there are many that would like to put us there. It can get very discouraging sometimes, but we must remember that our reward comes not from those that we speak to, but from Whom we speak for. Remember, history bares witness that Jeremiah was right. Men wouldn’t acknowledge it right away, but God rewarded Jeremiah with his freedom and his home, not to mention the crowns that he received in eternity. What happened to the guys that threw him in prison? They were all slain, except for King Zedekiah; but he had his eyes plucked out just after he saw his sons slain.
Preachers, keep preaching to us the Truth. As painful as it may be at times, we need you to tell us what we are not willing to admit to ourselves. It may seem like the people don’t care, but many of them are listening; some might even be listening secretly like Zedekiah was. Keep on delivering the Truth. The Word will not return void.
People, cheer on the man of God as he delivers the Word of God. He loves you and is trying to help you and your family to have the very best from God. Your question on your heart everyday ought to be “is there any word from the Lord?” When you read your Bible and when you go to church, you ought to be hungering for the Word and words of God.
Posted in Thoughts from Jeremiah by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Call Unto Me
Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 33 – 36 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text)
(Second Milers also read – Romans 1 – 4; Psalms 111 – 115; Proverbs 23)
Scripture Memory for July – John 3:1 – 21
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 55:17
“Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not” (Jeremiah 33:3)
There are so many wonderful truths in the passages that we have read today that I had a hard time deciding which one to write about. For instance, while reading chapter 35, my attention was drawn to the account of the Rechabites, who were faithful servants to the their father, Jonadab, and also to the Lord. It would benefit you greatly to do a little study on this family. (See previous post, “Who Are the Rechabites?” ) I was also interested in chapter 36, where Jehudi, a servant of the king of Judah, actually took a knife and cut out the Word of God and burned it in the fire. There is a lot that we could say about that, and many parallels can be made to what the world and some Christians are doing to the Word of God.
I finally elected, however, to write about Jeremiah 33:3. This verse is certainly one of the more familiar verses in the Bible, which has provided much encouragement and comfort to the people of God for millennia. In it’s immediate context this verse is written to the people of Judah through the prophet Jeremiah. The city of Jerusalem and the entire land of Judah was being devastated by the armies of Babylon; but God showed them from this passage that there was yet hope, and that He would restore the land to her former glory. In verse 15, there is a wonderful prophecy concerning the “Branch”, who is none other than our Lord Jesus Christ, who would come and set up a righteous kingdom.
In a broader application of this passage, all Christians can be encouraged by this wonderful truth. God wants His children to call upon Him; and He will answer us. This is one of the many wonderful prayer promises in the Bible. I have listed some other prayer promises below. It is a glorious thought to realize that we have a God that wants us to have an intimate relationship with Him. He loves us and He desires to bless us, and show us some things; just as an earthly father desires to show things to a child that he loves. What a wonderful God we serve.
Do you have a burden today? Call unto God. Are you in need of direction? Call unto God. God wants to encourage us and direct us as we serve Him.
“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” – (Matthew 7:7-8)
“If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” – (John 15:7)
“Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” – (Mark 11:24)
“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” – (Philippians 4:6)
“And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.” – (1 John 5:14-15)
Posted in Thoughts from Jeremiah by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
Investing for the Future
Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 30 – 32 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text)
(Second Milers also read – Acts 25 – 28; Psalms 106 – 110; Proverbs 22)
Scripture Memory for July – John 3:1 – 21
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 51
“So Hanameel mine uncle’s son came to me in the court of the prison according to the word of the LORD, and said unto me, Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin: for the right of inheritance is thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I knew that this was the word of the LORD.” – (Jeremiah 32:8)
“Behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely:” – (Jeremiah 32:37)
In chapter 32 of the Book of Jeremiah there is a very interesting story. Jeremiah the prophet is in jail; the nation of Israel is in a complete mess; the Babylonians have already taken a good number of the citizens of Israel into captivity; and the final invasion by Nebuchadnezzar into the land is imminent. You would not think that this would be a good time to be purchasing real estate in the land of Israel. However, God had told Jeremiah, who in turn told the people, that though things were going to be horrible for a number of years, God was going to give the people of Israel their land back; and He was going to prosper them once again. Of course, this is one of those dual purpose prophecies: it was fulfilled back in this Old Testament period, but it will ultimately be fulfilled when Christ returns.
The bottom line is that Jeremiah had enough faith in the Word of God to invest his money in a piece of land that was at that time worthless. He knew that God would do what He said that he would do, and that someday the property would be very valuable. I don’t know how much land is worth in Israel today; but I know this: someday it will be priceless because Christ will make Israel the capital of His World government. I am putting my money on Israel, and on God. He will do what He says He will do. You can bank on it.
We also need to be investing more into eternity. The Bible is clear that the investments that we make into the Lord’s work here on earth will yield a great deal of interest someday in eternity; not to mention the temporal blessings that also come while we are still here. We need to believe the Word of God as Jeremiah did in this passage, and God says that our investments in Him are very secure. We really cannot depend on the fact that our earthly retirement accounts, or social security, will be there for us in the future; but we can trust that God will always be there to take care of our every need.
Posted in Thoughts from Jeremiah by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.