Monday, December 28,
2015, 9:11 p.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “In Faithfulness He Leads Me.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart.
I read Matthew 11:12-19, 28-30 (NIV84).
Forcefully Advancing (vv. 12-15)
From
the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been
forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. For all the Prophets and
the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the
Elijah who was to come. He who has ears, let him hear.
John the Baptist was called of God, even before he was born,
to be the messenger prophesied about in the Old Testament who would prepare the
way for the ministry and ultimate life sacrifice of Jesus Christ - our Messiah,
Savior and Lord (God). Jesus gave his life up for us on the cross so that we
might be forgiven our sins and be delivered out of slavery to sin. The prophets
of old, as well, foretold the coming of the Christ, our Messiah, who would take
away the sins of the world. In addition, the law was put into effect to lead us
to Jesus Christ until he came. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of all the law
and the prophets. And, he is the embodiment of the kingdom of heaven, which is
concerning his life, death, resurrection, ascension into heaven, his sending of
his Spirit, the life of the church (his body), his coming again to judge and to
take us to be with him forever, his millennial kingdom reign on the earth, and
the new heavens, the new earth, and eternity with God in glory.
Although many translations translate verse twelve to say that
the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and that violent men take it by force, neither
the context of the passage, nor the Greek language bear that out, from what I
can tell. While it is true that violent men are advancing against the kingdom
of heaven, against our Lord, and in opposition to his gospel of salvation, and in
hostility toward his servants and witnesses, I don’t believe that is what is
meant here. In context, this is speaking of John as a messenger of God,
preparing the way for Christ, and of the prophets who came before him, who were
also God’s messengers. These men, in the power of God, advanced the kingdom of
God forcefully, i.e. persuasively, powerfully, insistently, and urgently, and
with much determination, faithfulness, and purpose of heart and mind. They did
this by being obedient to God’s leading, his call on their lives, and by
telling the people what God gave them to say.
This is what we should be doing, too. As Christ’s Body, his
representatives, and his messengers in this world, we should be safeguarding,
upholding and defending the truth of God’s Holy Word against all evil and
opposing forces, in particular against all that would malign the word of God
and would try to bring it into disrepute, or that would try to distort the
truths of scripture in order to deceive and to persuade people to follow after
lies. We should also be maintaining and continuing in our walks of faith with
Jesus Christ, and we should not be guilty of straying from his word or from our
pure devotion to him. We should be faithful and steadfast in faith. Our very
lives, as well as our words, should be influencing the world around us away
from lifestyles of sin, and to faith in Jesus Christ – to repentance and
obedience to his commands – all in the power and working of the Spirit of God
within us. We should be giving the world the message that Jesus came to set us
free from our captivity to sin, and that he will empower us to live for him in
his righteousness. Amen!
This Generation (vv. 16-19)
“To
what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the
marketplaces and calling out to others:
“‘We
played the flute for you,
and you did not dance;
we
sang a dirge,
and you did not mourn.’
For
John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son
of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a
drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and “sinners.”’ But wisdom is proved right
by her actions.”
There are always going to be people in this life who will
not approve of us, and who will find something about us they don’t like. There
will be those who think we should act a certain way or do certain things which
fit in with the culture or with what they might consider to be the norms of
society. If we are different (unique), they might think us strange, weird, quirky,
crazy, extreme, or whatever tag they might assign to us, as they did to Jesus
and to John. But, different is not necessarily bad. It is perfectly ok to go
against the flow, providing you are going God’s way and not the way of sin. In
fact, God’s messengers throughout Biblical history were not popular, not
generally well received, and not accepted by society as a whole. Yet, there
will be those who will try to convince you that there is truth in numbers, and
that if you seemingly stand alone that you must be wrong, but that is bad
theology.
The majority is not always right. In fact, scripture teaches
that the way to heaven is narrow, and that few find it, but that the way to
destruction is broad, and that many travel that path to their own demise. Many
are teaching that we must immerse ourselves in the culture of our day, and that
we should blend in with the world so the world will accept us, with the premise
that they, too, will accept the message of the gospel of salvation. Yet, the
gospel is opposed to this sinful world and to blending in with our culture. It
teaches us to come out from the world of sin and to be separate, and to touch
no unclean thing. God commands that we be holy, which means to be set apart
(unlike, different) from the world, because we are becoming like Christ. And,
God’s grace teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions and to
live self-controlled, upright and godly lives while we wait for Christ’s
return. A godly life is a life separate from the world, and set apart unto God
and his service.
So, we will face pressure to conform to the ways of this
world and to compromise our faith and convictions in order to not stand out,
but to be accepted by others. Yet, it is not for the acceptance of humans that
we live, breathe and worship God with our lives. It is God’s approval we must
seek, not the praise of humans. We might be mocked, hated, made fun of,
disapproved, rejected and persecuted for our stand for Christ and for his
gospel, and for our commitment to “forcefully advancing” the kingdom of heaven,
but that is ok. God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in times
of trouble. He will give us all we need to endure, to stand strong, to fight
the enemy with the armor of God (Eph. 6), and to keep on keeping on in sharing
the gospel of our salvation, even against great opposition. We just need to
trust him, rest in his love and in his promises, and never ever give up!
Rest for the Weary (vv. 28-30)
“Come
to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my
yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you
will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
In Faithfulness He
Leads Me
An Original Work /
March 20, 2013 / Based off Various Scriptures
(Ps. 26:3; 86:11;
91:4-5; 111:7-8; 119:73-76; Is. 25:1,4&9; 42:6-7; Hos. 2:16-20)
Teach me Your ways, Lord, and I’ll walk in them.
Give me a pure heart. I’ll fear Your name.
Your love is always, ever before me.
Continually I’ll walk in Your truth.
You will cover me with feathers.
Under Your wings I’ll find refuge.
My Lord’s faithfulness will be my
Comfort and my shield.
The works of His hands are faithful and just.
Trustworthy are all of His precepts.
Your hands have made me, and they have formed me.
Give understanding of Your commands.
I have put my hope, O Lord, in Your word.
Your teachings, O Lord, are righteousness.
Lord, in faithfulness You have
Afflicted me so I may learn of
Your unfailing love and comfort
And Your truthfulness.
You are my husband; You have betrothed me
In love, compassion and faithfulness.
O Lord, You are my God, I’ll exalt You.
In faithfulness You’ve done wondrous things.
You’ve been a refuge for those who’re needy;
A shelter in storms; shade from the heat.
This is the Lord, we trusted in Him,
Let us be glad and rejoice
In His salvation which He
Provided through the Lamb.
Open the blind eyes; free all the captives.
Tell them of Jesus: “Be born again!”
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