Until the Lord's Coming

Thursday, November 01, 2012, 2:28 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with the song “Trust Him” playing in my mind. I read James 2, and then I spent some time in prayer, and then I went back to sleep.

Trust Him / An Original Work / August 15, 2012

Based off Psalm 27:14

Wait for the Lord; be of courage;

Be strong and take heart today.

Do not fear when foes attack you.

Trust in God always.

He will rescue you in times

Of trouble and distress,

He’ll comfort you in all ways

As you trust Him with your life today.

Trust in Him always.

God is with you; He’ll not leave you.

You can always count on Him.

He will fulfill all He promised

Before you began.

His word teaches you

All that you need for this life.

Let Him lead you. Open your heart;

Let his truth envelope you today.

Listen and obey.

Love your Lord God; follow Jesus.

Repent of your sins today.

Make Him your Lord and your master;

Trust Him and obey.

Follow Him where’er He leads you

In His service; be His witness,

Telling others about Jesus’

Price that He did pay

For your sins always.

I woke again at 8:22 a.m. with the song “The Lord’s Prayer” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. I read James 2 again and I also read chapters 3-5. When I got to chapter 5, I saw an immediate connection between these two songs and the message in James 5 (NIV 1984):

Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered innocent men, who were not opposing you.

Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. Don’t grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!

Brothers, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.

Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your “Yes” be yes, and your “No,” no, or you will be condemned.

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.

My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

The Cries of the Harvesters

Who are these rich people who have hoarded wealth and who have failed to pay their workmen in today’s world? Certainly this could apply to big business and corporations, to government leaders, to churches (as businesses), and/or to people in general. If we pile up wealth and stuff for ourselves and we don’t share with those in need, or with those for whom we have been given the responsibility to provide, or to whom we have made a commitment to pay wages, or to whom we have an obligation to care for, or if we actually rob from people what is rightfully theirs, then we are guilty.

Two examples come to mind. When the government of the U.S. takes money from its citizens on the promise that they are setting aside this money to save up for their retirements, and then they take that money and use it on other programs and/or give it away to those who did not earn it, and then the money is gone when the people do retire, then they are guilty, I believe, of stealing the workers’ earnings (not paying them). I am not against social programs to help the truly needy people of this nation, but I am against senseless spending of the taxpayers’ money on things that are excessive and frivolous, such as giving checks of $8,000 to homebuyers who buy a repossessed home, or bailing out companies who have been fraudulent in their dealings with people, or spending the money on unnecessary programs that have no value whatsoever. There is a lot of government abuse of taxpayers’ money, in particular in the Social Security program, I believe.

Another example that comes to mind is how many churches will spend so much money on fluff and on the stage production, advertising, marketing schemes, big buildings and accessories, etc. for the purpose of building big churches, i.e. big businesses of men, and yet they will give so little to the needy, to mission’s projects, and to the spreading of the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Not only do they do this monetarily, but their time and focus of their ministry often accentuates the outward show, i.e. appearance and performance, in order to draw in large crowds of people, and they will neglect the spreading of the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world in need of a Savior. Their focus is on being successful in the eyes of men and they will frequently cast aside the truths of God’s word, and even those who are teaching the truths of God’s word, so that their man-made efforts will not be hindered in any way, and so they will be able to succeed in their mission.

God looks down from heaven and he sees these abuses of wealth and power, and he promises judgment. The cries of his harvesters, i.e. of those who are out harvesting his field by spreading the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, have reached the ears of the Lord and he will judge those who are guilty of taking for themselves what they don’t need and who are guilty of withholding from those to whom they have an obligation to provide. This includes those who withhold the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ from people in order to gain worldly success and power and disciples for themselves.

Be Patient

When we see all these abuses in government and in our churches, it might be tempting for us to wonder where God is in all of this, or to wonder why he doesn’t do something about all the injustice going on within the government and within the church. When we see the gospel of Jesus Christ being so diluted, and the church in America in such a state of apathy and with such a willingness to put up with the diluted gospel, and we see the people of God so caught up in the ways of this world to where it is hardly distinguishable between the world and the church anymore, we need to be patient and wait on God’s timing to act. And, when we cry out to God for revival of our nation, and for the Lord to open blinded eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God so they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are being sanctified and made holy in Christ Jesus, we need to be patient and wait on the Lord and his timing for him to act. He is slow to anger and abounding in love, and he is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Yet, we need to remain firm in our commitment to follow Christ and to continue to teach the truth of his gospel.

We should Pray

In everything, we should pray. And, we should pray in faith, believing that God will do all that he said he would do, and that his words will not return void. We should confess our sins one to another so that nothing hinders our prayers from being answered, and we should continue to call upon God in faith, believing in all the promises he made even before he gave us the breath of life. And, we should persevere in preaching the true gospel, because only the true gospel gives life and freedom from slavery to sin. When we preach the truth of the gospel (see Eph. 4:17-24) that believing in Jesus Christ means dying to our old lives of sin, being transformed in heart and mind of the Spirit of God, and becoming new in Christ Jesus, created to be like him in all holiness and righteousness, then we can help to turn a sinner from the error of his ways and save him from eternal damnation, and God will cover (blot out; forgive) his sins with the blood of Jesus Christ. Amen! We just have to keep praying in faith, believing that God will bring a spiritual awakening in our nation and that through that awakening many people will come to Jesus Christ and the true gospel will be restored.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father which art in heaven,

Hallowed be Thy name.

Thy kingdom come,

Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:

For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.