Thursday, September
19, 2013, 8:17 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with this song:
My Heart’s Desire
/ An Original Work / June 29, 2013
Based off Rm. 10; Lu. 9:23-26; Ep. 4:20-24
Loved Ones, Oh, my
heart’s desire
Is that you might come
to Jesus.
Many appear zealous
for God,
But they do not trust
in Him.
They have not
submitted to the One
Who saved them from
their sins;
Not forsaken their
sins,
Nor have they obeyed
their King.
The word of the Lord
is near you:
The word of faith we’re
proclaiming:
That you must confess
your faith
In Jesus as your Lord
and King:
Believe in Him as your
Lord,
And follow Him
where’er He leads.
Share the gospel; be a
witness,
And meet others’
needs.
Beautiful are the feet
of those
Who bring the good news
of Jesus:
Anyone who would come
to Him
Must deny himself
today;
Die to sin and self,
and
Let the Spirit
transform you in heart;
Put on your new self
in Jesus,
Yielding to the cross.
Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I am still feeling led
to continue using passages both from Ezekiel and from the book of Acts. I read Ezekiel 11 and Acts 9 today in the ESV.
Many Appear Zealous
“I
will judge you at the border of Israel, and you shall know that I am the Lord.
For you have not walked in my statutes, nor obeyed my rules, but have acted
according to the rules of the nations that are around you.” ~ Ez. 11:1b-12
But
Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord,
went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at
Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might
bring them bound to Jerusalem. ~ Ac. 9:1-2
In the time of Ezekiel, the Jews were God’s covenant people.
He gave them the commands to turn from their lives of sin and to walk in his
ways, just as he does today with those who would choose to follow Jesus as
their Lord and Savior (CF Eph. 4:17-24). So, they represent God’s covenant
people today, the church, who are not walking in the ways of their God.
Saul/Paul was a Jew and a Pharisee. He followed the letter
of all the Jewish laws. Since he lived in the time when Jesus Christ had lived,
died, and had risen again, and had ascended back to the Father, and thus in the
time period in which God made a new covenant through faith in Jesus Christ, he
was no longer part of God’s covenant people, for the old order of things had
passed away and now the new covenant had come. So, he represents those who think
they know God, and who are even zealous for God, but who have never submitted
their lives to the Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, he was a non-believer in
Jesus.
A New Spirit
And
when they come there, they will remove from it all its detestable things and
all its abominations. And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will
put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give
them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and
obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. ~ Ez. 11:18-20
Now
as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven
shone around him. And falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him,
“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And
he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city,
and you will be told what you are to do.” ~ Ac. 9:3-6
The people of God of Ezekiel’s time were in great need of
revival and renewal in their relationship with God. Saul was in great need of
conversion, away from his old life of religious hypocrisy and unbelief, to new
life in Jesus Christ. From these two examples here, I see three basic types of
people within today’s church, though there is also a 4th.
1)
I see that there are those who are unbelievers
in Jesus Christ. They have rejected Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of their
lives. Saul/Paul had rejected Jesus and was also persecuting Jesus through how
he treated the Lord’s servants and witnesses.
2)
I also see those who think they know God/Jesus,
and who are religiously following a set of man-made rules or even, perhaps,
some of the 10 commandments, but whose hearts are far from God. I believe many
within today’s church have bought into a false gospel of salvation (absent of
repentance and obedience), so they think they know Christ, but truly they do
not know him for they have not forsaken their lives of sin, and they have not
chosen to walk with him in obedience.
3)
And, I see those who have come to true faith in
Jesus Christ at some point in their lives, but who have turned back to some of
the ways in which they used to live, and who are acting and believing according
to the ways of the world, instead of according to the ways of God and his word.
When Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, he did not
die merely to remove the punishment (eternal damnation) of sin from our lives
so we could go to heaven one day. He did not die just so we could be
positionally saved by his grace. He died so we could walk in freedom from
bondage to sin and to live and walk according to his truth day by day. And, it
is his desire that we not only come to know him, but that we truly trust him
with our lives, that we forsake our detestable idols, and that we allow him to
give us new or renewed hearts, minds, and lives fully devoted to him and to his
service.
How Much He Must
Suffer
But
the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my
name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show
him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” So Ananias departed and
entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord
Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you
may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” And immediately
something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he
rose and was baptized; and taking food, he was strengthened. ~ Ac. 9:15-19a
Once Saul/Paul believed in Jesus Christ as his Lord and
Savior, and he chose to accept God’s call upon his life, and he began to preach
the gospel of Jesus Christ, he did suffer much persecution and threats against
his life. He would now represent the 4th group of people within the
church – fully committed followers of Jesus Christ. The Jews plotted to kill
him, for he was no longer on their side, but had moved to the side of the “opposition,”
in their thinking. They may have seen him as a traitor to the cause, for he had
been very zealous in his pursuit of followers of Christ to persecute, arrest
and to kill them. Even the Christians were afraid of him and were hesitant to
trust him, so he had a very rough beginning to his new life in Christ.
Though the believers did eventually accept him as one of
their own, the Jewish leaders continued to pursue him and to persecute,
imprison, and beat him, as well as they made many attempts upon his life. Yet,
Jesus said we would suffer as he suffered if want to be his true disciples. If
someone tells you the Christian life is happy-happy all the time and is about
having fun and playing games, they are feeding you lies. Jesus said that we can
expect to be hated, persecuted and even killed for our testimony for him and
for his saving grace. Yet, we must die daily to sin and to self and follow
Jesus Christ (See Lu. 9:23-25).
He Preached Boldly
For
some days he was with the disciples at Damascus. And immediately he proclaimed
Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” And all who heard him
were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those
who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring
them bound before the chief priests?” But Saul increased all the more in
strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus
was the Christ. ~ Ac. 9:19b-22
Despite the threats against his life, and despite all the
rejection and persecution he now faced, Paul spoke boldly in the name of Jesus
Christ. Amen! May we find encouragement in this story and may we follow his
example of tenacity, determination, and perseverance in preaching boldly the
gospel of Jesus Christ despite all opposition, rejections, persecutions and
even threats against our lives. Amen!
Fully Ready! / An
Original Work / June 19, 2013
Based off Acts 20-22, 26; Mt. 28:18-20; Ac. 1:8
Why are you weeping
and breaking my heart?
I’m fully ready to
suffer for Christ.
If I must die for the
sake of His name,
I am convinced it will
not be in vain.
Glory to God and to
His Son Jesus,
Who has redeemed us;
bought with His blood.
May I speak to you?
Jesus came to me;
Asked of me, “Why do
you persecute me?”
He said, “Now get up
and stand on your feet.
Go, and you’ll be told
all I have for you.
I have appointed you
as a servant,
And as a witness; you
have been sent.”
“Go into the world and
preach the gospel.
Open the blind eyes.
They will receive sight.
Turn them from
darkness to the light of Christ;
From power of the evil
one to God,
So they may receive
forgiveness of sins,
And a place among
those who’re in heav’n.”
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