Those Who Forget God

Saturday, October 15, 2016, 6:30 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “For Our Nation.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Psalm 50:16-23 (NASB).

Who Hates Discipline? (vv. 16-21)

But to the wicked God says,

“What right have you to tell of My statutes

And to take My covenant in your mouth?

“For you hate discipline,

And you cast My words behind you.

“When you see a thief, you are pleased with him,

And you associate with adulterers.

“You let your mouth loose in evil

And your tongue frames deceit.

“You sit and speak against your brother;

You slander your own mother’s son.

“These things you have done and I kept silence;

You thought that I was just like you;

I will reprove you and state the case in order before your eyes.

Who are the wicked? Well, wicked means “sinful,” so, in one sense, they are all who have rejected Jesus Christ as Lord and as Savior of their lives. They were born into sin, as we all were, because of the sin of Adam, yet they have not yet been saved from their sins via faith in Jesus Christ, who loved them, and who gave his life up for them so that they could be set free from slavery to sin. Yet, the wicked, in another sense, are all those who actively live wickedly, i.e. who conduct their lives in immorality, hate, deception, and corruption, etc. They are the ungodly, the vile, the crooked and the criminal.

In this Biblical context, they are also the hypocritical who make a profession of faith in God, but yet work against him, and not for him. This is not to say that all who are true Christians never sin. We do, but it should not define us, nor should it be our lifestyle, for if we walk according to our flesh, we will die without Christ, but if by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the flesh, we will live with Christ for eternity (See: Ro. 8:1-14; cf. Ro. 6:1-23). Jesus said that if anyone would come after him, he must deny self and take up his cross daily (daily die to sin and self) and follow (obey) him. He said if we hold on to our old lives (of living for sin), we will lose them for eternity, but if we lose our lives for the sake of Christ, i.e. if we are crucified with Christ in death to sin, then our lives will be saved for eternity (Lu. 9:23-25).

The hypocritical wicked who are spoken of in this psalm are those like the scribes and Pharisees of Jesus’ day. They clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. They make pretenses of righteousness and holiness, but it is just a cover-up for greed, immorality and all manner of evil. Among these hypocritical liars are various church goers, preachers and politicians who claim Christianity as their religion, but whose lifestyles and words speak just the opposite.

According to Wikipedia, there are 230 million Christians here in the USA, which represents over 70% of our population. So, if you are a politician in America, and you want to get the majority of the votes in an election, you just might be working a scheme to appeal to the Christian community, and you might even claim to be a Christian just to get elected.

As well, “church” has become big business in our society today, because it is just like any other business selling a product and marketing that product to its customer base, in hopes that the populace will choose their place of business over all competitors. The church has also become a social club and a place to go for good clean family entertainment. People from all walks of life gather together in “churches” to hear a good band play, to enjoy clean entertainment, to listen to feel-good messages (pep talks), and to make friends. So, preachers may be guilty of making a profession of Christ just to build their businesses, all the while they are manipulating the people and are using them, in many cases, to make names for themselves.

But, even though these hypocritical liars profess to know God/Christ, their hearts are far from him. They hate Jesus’ instructions. Well, they hate the messages they don’t like, but will accept the ones that sound good to their itching ears. They pick out a few verses out of the Bible, out of context, in order to build their doctrine of salvation, while ignoring the bulk of teaching on salvation in scripture, because those scriptures don’t fit with their theology. Thus, they water down the gospel to make it more appealing to human flesh, and they teach that God does not require anything of us – no repentance, no obedience, and no submission to Christ and to his cross. To them, “faith” in Jesus is just words someone utters in a prayer, which is repeated word-for-word after someone else, after which they congratulate him or her that they now have heaven guaranteed to them, no matter how they live from this point forward.

They also bring God down to our level, as though he is altogether like us. In other words, they humanize God, and they lessen his power, rule, authority, sovereignty and divine nature in order to make him more like Santa Claus, or like a doting grandfather in the sky there to grant our every request, but who will never be angry with us, and who will never discipline us, but who will delight in us even when we are in the process of rebelling against him.

This is what is being taught in many Christian circles, that you can “believe” in Jesus, and have the hope of heaven when you die, but that God requires nothing of you, and he is delighted in you and is pleased with you even when you are rebelling against him and/or are living hypocritical confessions of Christ while you despise his instructions and reject his discipline. But, they are wrong. This is not what scripture teaches. Jesus died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. He died that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave himself up for us. His grace is not a free license to continue in sin without guilt and without remorse. His 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.

Who Honors God? (vv. 22-23)

“Now consider this, you who forget God,

Or I will tear you in pieces, and there will be none to deliver.

“He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me;

And to him who orders his way aright

I shall show the salvation of God.”

Those who think they can claim Christianity and faith in Jesus all the while they continue to live in sin and do as they please need to know that scripture teaches that if we claim to have fellowship with God, but we walk (conduct our lives) in darkness (wickedness), we are liars and the truth is not in us (1 Jn. 1:6). If we walk according to our sinful flesh, we will die in our sins, without God, and without hope. We will spend eternity in the fires of hell (or the lake of fire), and we will not see heaven at all. But, if by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the flesh, we will live with Christ for eternity (Ro. 8:1-14; cf. Ro. 6:1-23). Jesus died in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who have not professed Christ only, but who conduct our lives according to (in agreement with) the Spirit of God. We who are led by the Spirit are the sons of God.

When we truly believe in Jesus Christ as Lord (owner-master) and Savior of our lives, we are crucified with Christ in death to sin, and we are resurrected with Christ in newness of life, “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24). The old has gone. The new has come. When we were slaves to sin, we were free from the control of righteousness, but now that we have become obedient to death to sin, we are slaves of righteousness. This is our sacrifice of thanksgiving to God for what he did for us in dying on a cross for our sins. We give of ourselves to him as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to him, which is our reasonable and acceptable (to God) worship of God.

As well, we are no longer conformed to the ways of this sinful world, but we are transformed of the Spirit of God away from sinful lifestyles, to living and walking in Christ’s righteousness and holiness. This is why Jesus died, and this is the true meaning of salvation, that he saved us not just from the penalty of sin, but that he saved us from slavery to sin and he freed us to walk daily in his righteousness and holiness, all in the power and strength of His Spirit now living within us, and all for his glory and praise. Amen!

For Our Nation / An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: we’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

https://vimeo.com/112351857

In the Day of Trouble

Friday, October 14, 2016, 10:11 p.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “For Our Nation.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Psalm 50:7-15, 23 (ESV).

Is God Pleased? (vv. 7-13)

“Hear, O my people, and I will speak;

    O Israel, I will testify against you.

    I am God, your God.

Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you;

    your burnt offerings are continually before me.

I will not accept a bull from your house

    or goats from your folds.

For every beast of the forest is mine,

    the cattle on a thousand hills.

I know all the birds of the hills,

    and all that moves in the field is mine.

“If I were hungry, I would not tell you,

    for the world and its fullness are mine.

Do I eat the flesh of bulls

    or drink the blood of goats?”

What is our idea of what we believe is acceptable worship of God? If someone were to ask us if we believe God is pleased with us, or with our worship of him, what would we say? And then, if they asked us why we believe that is true, what would then be our response? In other words, on what basis do we place that belief? What is it about our lives or our worship of God that we think brings him pleasure?

Do we regularly attend Sunday morning worship services in a building called “church,” which is governed by a particular church denomination? Do we sing the worship songs, and listen intently as the preacher preaches, and put some money in the offering plate, and shake hands with people during greeting time? Do we serve in some official position within this church, such as deacon, elder, Sunday school teacher, small group leader, or are we on the worship team or the social committee? Or, do we help with church bazars and community outreach? Does God find pleasure in all of these?

What would you think if I told you that you could do all these things, and that God would still not be pleased with you and your worship of him? Would you believe me? Why or why not? Do you believe this (the above) is truly what God requires or desires of us? Or, do you think maybe there is something more to worship of God than just this? Or, in place of this?

The point of what the psalmist is writing about here is that we can do all kinds of good things, or seemingly good things for God, and even in obedience to what we believe are the commands of God for our lives, and still not be offering a sacrifice to God acceptable to him. So, why is that true? It is because there is a difference between doing FOR God what we think is pleasing to him, but on our own terms, and according to our own schedule and ways, and that of living holy lives, pleasing to God, which is our reasonable service of worship of him (See: Ro. 12:1-2).

For instance, do we believe that God is pleased with us participating in service and worship with the institutional church, i.e. the church under the authority of the US government (in the USA) and church denominations? This is a question we all have to answer between us and God, but let me share some thoughts here with you on this subject.

The church is not an institution of men, nor is it a corporation under any federal government of any nation, nor is it a business of human making to be marketed just like any other business. It is a living organism made up of people who have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of their lives, and with Christ Jesus as her head. We, the people of God, are his church. So, if the church willingly brings itself under another head, other than Christ, it is living in spiritual adultery against God, for Christ is to be her only head. Also, by the church incorporating as a business under the federal government, she has become a state church, which is not to be confused with the body of Christ, which is a spiritual entity. We serve a jealous God who will not give his glory to another, so it is not God’s will that we should have any head other than Christ himself.

As well, much of today’s institutional church has also gone the way of the world, and they are replacing the teachings of Christ with the teachings of men, and they are using the flesh of men to allure people to their meetings, and they use gimmicks and tricks and manipulations to keep people coming back for more. Entertainment has replaced true worship, and books written by mere men are replacing the Word of God. Feel-good messages are taking the place of Spirit-filled, God-inspired messages which confront sin in sinful humans, which call for repentance, and which teach obedience to Christ and to his commandments (his instructions to us). With this, God is not pleased. So, he is calling his body, his followers, to come out from her (Babylon), so that we do not share in her sins and in her punishment, for her sins are piled high to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities (See: Rev. 18).

Perform Your Vows (vv. 14-15, 23)

Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,

    and perform your vows to the Most High,

and call upon me in the day of trouble;

    I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”

The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me;

    to one who orders his way rightly

    I will show the salvation of God!”

So, with what is God pleased? We read in Romans 12 that, in light of what Jesus Christ did for us in dying on a cross for our sins, so that we could be set free from sin, that we should offer ourselves to God as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to him. We should no longer conform to the ways of this sinful world, but we must be transformed in heart and mind of the Spirit of God away from living for sin and self, and to walking in the Spirit in Christ’s righteousness and holiness. Then, by our lifestyles we can demonstrate what is the good, pleasing and acceptable will of God for our lives.

We read, as well, in other scriptures, that Jesus died for us on a cross, not just so we could escape hell and have the hope of heaven when we die, but that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. He died that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us. His grace to us is not a free license to continue in sin without guilt and without remorse. His grace, which brings salvation, 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. As well, if we say we have fellowship with God, but we continue to walk (conduct our lives) in darkness (sin), then he says we are liars, and the truth is not in us. And, if we walk according to the flesh, we will die (without Christ), but if by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the flesh, we will live (with Christ for eternity).

So, if we are truly thankful for Jesus’ blood sacrifice for our sins, then it should be evident by how we live our lives. A sacrifice of thanksgiving, in other words, is not just words we say, but it is actions. If we submit our lives to our Lord in full surrender to his will for our lives, and daily we die to sin and self and we follow (obey) our Lord wherever he leads us, then this, too, is a sacrifice of thanksgiving for all that he has done for us in setting us free from slavery to sin.

So, when we believe in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives, do we take any vows? If so, what vows to God must we perform? I believe that faith, itself, is a vow to God/Jesus Christ of fidelity and faithfulness to walk in his holiness and righteousness and to no longer conduct our lives according to our sinful flesh. For, when we believe in Jesus, we are crucified with Christ in death to sin, and we are resurrected with Christ to newness of life, “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24). Our lives are no longer our own, to be lived how we want, for we were bought back for God with the blood of Jesus Christ, shed on a cross for our sins. We, thus, have an obligation, but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it, but it is to putting to death, by the Spirit, the misdeeds of the body so that we might live with Christ for eternity.

So, when trouble comes, we can call upon God in purity of heart and mind, and he will deliver us, not necessarily out from under the trial, but through the trial we will learn to put our faith and trust in him and to rest in him even more. And, as a result of what he does in our lives, in maturing us through our times of difficulty, the changes he produces in our lives, through our suffering, will bring glory, honor and praise to God. Amen!

For Our Nation / An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: we’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

https://vimeo.com/112351857

Be Still

Friday, October 14, 2016, 1:11 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “Trust and Obey.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Psalm 46 (ESV).

Help in Trouble (vv. 1-3)

God is our refuge and strength,

    a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,

    though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,

though its waters roar and foam,

    though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah

When we allow fear to overtake us, how does that help? Does it ever solve anything? Does it bring peace and relief from our suffering? No, it doesn’t. In fact, it brings tension, and headaches, and ulcers, etc., because it is based in lack of faith, and not in trust in our Lord and in his sovereignty over our lives. And, so fear only makes matters worse, not better. So, instead of fearing our circumstances and the trials and tribulations we face in this life, we need to commit our lives into the Lord’s hands, and trust him to accomplish his will and his purposes through what he is taking us through.

If you say, “I just can’t handle this!” that is a good thing, in a way, because it is admitting that you can’t, in your own strength, resolve your own difficulty. It is bad, though, when we stop there, and we give up hope just because things got much harder than they were before. Once we come to the realization that our best efforts do not move us one step further to resolution of our problems, and that we can’t do this on our own, then we need to take the next step, and that is to commit it all into God’s hands, and then to leave it there. Then, we must trust him to show us the way to go, and then follow him wherever he leads us.

He is With Us (vv. 4-7)

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,

    the holy habitation of the Most High.

God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved;

    God will help her when morning dawns.

The nations rage, the kingdoms totter;

    he utters his voice, the earth melts.

The Lord of hosts is with us;

    the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

If we have believed in Jesus Christ to be Lord (owner-master) and Savior of our lives, and by the Spirit we have been crucified with Christ in death to sin, and we have been resurrected with Christ to newness of life, then we are the city of God, the Jerusalem from above, and heirs of the promise. For, when we believe in Jesus, we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit of God, and now we are the Lord’s temple in which he dwells. Because God now lives within us via his Spirit, we have him continually with us helping us, leading and guiding us, encouraging and comforting us, and giving us hope and healing. We are not without resources, for our God is all powerful and he is able to do whatever needs to be done. Nothing is impossible with God!

Our Fortress (vv. 8-11)

Come, behold the works of the Lord,

    how he has brought desolations on the earth.

He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;

    he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;

    he burns the chariots with fire.

“Be still, and know that I am God.

    I will be exalted among the nations,

    I will be exalted in the earth!”

The Lord of hosts is with us;

    the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

God brings difficulties into our lives as well as he brings peace and deliverance. As we are coming into this time of the end, where the beast is rising and is conquering nations and peoples and Christians, things are going to increasingly become more difficult. And, I believe it is for a good purpose, and that is to bring God’s people, who have gotten lazy about their relationships with him, to surrender their all to him, and to let him truly be Lord (owner-master) of their lives. And, I believe it is for the salvation of human lives that such troubles should come, so that people will look to God instead of to themselves for their own deliverance.

So, when trials come our way, which they will, and with increasing measure, we should not let them undo us, but we should commit our lives into the hands of God, and trust him with our circumstances. We should believe him for deliverance, either through the trials or out from under the trials, which come to test our faith. We need to believe that God has a plan and a purpose for them all, even though we may not yet see what that is. And, we must believe that God is going to gain the victory through whatever he takes us through, so that his name will be honored throughout the earth. Amen!

Trust and Obey / John H. Sammis / Daniel B. Towner

When we walk with the Lord

in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will,

He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Not a shadow can rise,

not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt or a fear,

not a sigh or a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey.

Not a burden we bear,

not a sorrow we share,
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief or a loss,

not a frown or a cross,
But is blessed if we trust and obey.

But we never can prove

the delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favor He shows,

for the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey.

Then in fellowship sweet

we will sit at His feet.
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way.
What He says we will do,

where He sends we will go;
Never fear, only trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

On Our Own

Thursday, October 13, 2016, 5:25 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “You Raise Me Up.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Psalm 44:1-8 (ESV).

To the choirmaster. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah.

O God, we have heard with our ears,

    our fathers have told us,

what deeds you performed in their days,

    in the days of old:

you with your own hand drove out the nations,

    but them you planted;

you afflicted the peoples,

    but them you set free;

for not by their own sword did they win the land,

    nor did their own arm save them,

but your right hand and your arm,

    and the light of your face,

    for you delighted in them.

You are my King, O God;

    ordain salvation for Jacob!

Through you we push down our foes;

    through your name we tread down those who rise up against us.

For not in my bow do I trust,

    nor can my sword save me.

But you have saved us from our foes

    and have put to shame those who hate us.

In God we have boasted continually,

    and we will give thanks to your name forever. Selah

When we are going through difficult times, and our faith is being tested, we should not fret or worry, and we should definitely not take matters into our own hands. It does not mean we sit back and do nothing, but that we inquire of the Lord as to what steps he would have us take, and then we follow where he leads us. If we don’t do this, we will just be spinning our wheels but going nowhere, and we may even be fighting against God, for if he wants us to go through something, for his purposes, our efforts will be in vain if we try to go against him.

If we are to be set free from our troubles, it will be God who does it, and not ourselves. So many times throughout the Old Testament God’s people did not wait on him, but took matters into their own hands, and every time it blew up in their faces. We cannot outwit God! We cannot thwart his purposes, no matter how hard we may try. Our best solution always is to submit to his will for our lives, to call on him to save us, and to seek his counsel as to what steps he would have us to take next.

We also have to remember that we are in a spiritual battle, not a physical one, although it has its physical aspects to it (See: Eph. 6:10-20). Ultimately our enemy is Satan and he is still out to destroy Jesus, and his gospel of salvation, and his followers and messengers. The weapons we use to fight our enemy are also not physical weapons of warfare, but the armor of God – the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and our feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace; the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. And, we need to pray in the Spirit with all kinds of prayers and requests.

Through our Lord we fight off Satan’s evil attacks against us. Now Satan does use human beings and the things of this world, and its creatures, to fight against us to try to discourage and to dishearten us, or to try to get us to give up hope. But, the answer is not to fight them with the weapons of this world, but with the armor of God. When we are using the Lord’s armor, his way, and according to his will, we will gain the victory, but victory comes in many different forms.

For instance, if a follower of Christ loses his job, or is cast out by his friends and family, or is shunned by his co-workers, or if he faces enormous persecution or is even killed for his faith and testimony for Jesus Christ, this does not mean he hasn’t won the battle, or that he is not victorious. True victory has more to do with standing strong in the battle, trusting God, and letting him lead, than it has to do with whether or not we are ever delivered, in this life, from our troubles and difficulties. Sometimes God delivers us from our circumstances, but often he delivers us through them.

The main thing here is that we need to find our strength and solutions in the Lord and NOT in ourselves. We need to put our trust FULLY in God, and NOT in humans, who are bound to fail us. If our trust is in the Lord, and we are resting in him, and believing him to see us through to victory, then we will be at peace, and he will fill us with his joy. And, he will lead us and guide us in the way he would have us go.

One day soon our Lord is going to return for us, and he is going to take us to be with him forever. Our foe will never again be allowed to touch us, for sin, crying, pain and sorrow will be no more, and we will forever be with our Lord. On this we can rest our hope.

YOU RAISE ME UP / Brendan Graham / Rolf Loveland

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders
You raise me up to more than I can be.

http://www.thestraitgate.org/music/you-raise-me-up-selah/

You Show Us How

Wednesday, October 12, 2016, 10:07 p.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “For Our Nation,” but he also put in mind the song “Sweet Little Jesus Boy.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Psalm 43:1-4 (NASB).

An Ungodly Nation (vv. 1-2)

Vindicate me, O God, and plead my case against an ungodly nation;

O deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man!

For You are the God of my strength; why have You rejected me?

Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?

We, as followers of Christ, live among the ungodly people of this sinful world. So, we need to shine the light of God’s truth to them, as Jesus did when he walked the face of this earth. Yet, when we do, we should expect that we will face the same kinds of treatment as Jesus received for telling people the truth. When people are steeped in sin, they don’t want the light of the truth shone on them, and so many of them will hate us, and will reject us, and persecute us, and they will speak all manner of evil against us.

We are coming into a time in the USA when Christians are about ready to face the same kinds of persecution as other nations of the world have had to suffer for many generations. Many of our leaders in the government and in the institutional church have helped to pave the way for this. All-out war has been declared against Christianity in our world today, but not Christianity as many people think of it, but against those who hold to the testimony of Jesus and who obey (keep) his commandments (See: Rev. 12:17). The world (including the worldly church) opposes the gospel as taught by Jesus and by his NT apostles, and so they oppose the gospel’s messengers, too.

Yet, we are not to let persecution dissuade us from sharing the gospel with a dying world. Jesus showed us how to respond to persecution, even when he was dying, and he showed us how to live godly and holy lives pleasing to Him. We need to follow his example which he set for us. We can’t let the persecution and hatred of others get us down or keep us from living for Jesus and following after his light and truth. We have to want God’s approval far above or in place of approval from human beings, or we won’t survive when things get really tough, which they will. We can’t be people pleasers and God pleasers, too. We have to care more about people and their salvation than we care about ourselves and what others think about us if we are going to be effective witnesses in sharing the gospel with people. One day we will be vindicated, but it may not be in this life on earth.

Your Light (vv. 3-4)

O send out Your light and Your truth, let them lead me;

Let them bring me to Your holy hill

And to Your dwelling places.

Then I will go to the altar of God,

To God my exceeding joy;

And upon the lyre I shall praise You, O God, my God.

In America, especially, it can be so easy to get comfortable and to want our easy chairs and our restaurants and the conveniences of stores nearby and the comforts of home and TV and games, etc., and to forget about God, or to compartmentalize our spiritual lives from our secular lives. It may not be that we forget about God entirely, but that he is not entirely Lord (owner-master) of our lives. We fit him in as is convenient with our schedules, instead of planning our schedules around him and what he wants for our lives. Instead of inquiring of him and asking him what he wants for us today, we go our own way and then we expect him to bless our plans. If we are awake in the middle of the night, and we can’t sleep, for instance, is he first on our minds? Or, do we go to our TVs, smart phones, tablets and the like?

This is not a time in our history to keep playing games and watching TV shows and surfing the net and it leading many to wrong places. Satan is on a rampage because his time is running out, and he is after us full force. We, as a nation, and as the church in this nation (USA), need to wake up! And, we need to have open eyes to see where this world of ours is heading. The beast is rising, and nations are being conquered, including the USA, and Christians are being persecuted and killed for their faith in Jesus at alarming rates. We probably don’t even have all the statistics at hand, because much of this is probably being done under the radar, i.e. it is being done without other people noticing because those doing it are deceiving the masses that something else is taking place, instead.

So, we need the Lord to shine his light of truth on us and to lead us in the way he wants us to go, but this will not happen if we have our faces buried in everything but him. So, he will bring upon us some divine discipline and correction in order to get our attention, and in order to pull us away from all which pulls us away from our pure devotion to him. He wants us to have undivided hearts, but we can’t have that if we are still far too attached to this world and all it has to offer us in the way of comfort and pleasure. Sadly, it often takes some divine discipline (trial) from God for us to be brought to his holy hill, i.e. so that we will sit at his feet and listen to him speak his truths to our hearts, so that we can then obey what he shows us.

Sweet Little Jesus Boy / Robert MacGimsey

…This world treats You mean Lord

Treats me mean too

But that's how things are done down here

We didn't know it was You

Didn't know You'd come to save us all…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cZUKFiN-lw

For Our Nation / An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: we’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

https://vimeo.com/112351857

Forgotten by God?

Wednesday, October 12, 2016, 3:00 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “For Our Nation.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Psalm 42 (NASB).

My Soul Thirsts (vv. 1-2)

As the deer pants for the water brooks,

So my soul pants for You, O God.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God;

When shall I come and appear before God?

How many of us truly pant for God? How many of us eagerly desire his presence with us, and long (ache, crave) to meet with him each day? How many of us thirst for God like we do a cold glass of water when our throat is parched? If we don’t yearn for our Lord in this way, why not? If we do, what brought us to that place? Sadly, when things are going well for us, we may not desire our Lord in this way, but it may take some hardship or some type of adversity in our lives to truly get us to hunger for God like we hunger to have our bellies filled, or like we long for our comfort and our sleep.

My Tears (vv. 3-4)

My tears have been my food day and night,

While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

These things I remember and I pour out my soul within me.

For I used to go along with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of God,

With the voice of joy and thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival.

If our tears are our food day and night, then we are definitely going through trials of some kind. I am presently going through a difficult one – something I had not faced ever before, so I empathize with the psalmist. Yet, the Lord has been encouraging me greatly. He has been putting hymns and scriptural songs in my head to encourage me, such as “He Giveth More Grace.” And, he reminded me of what Job said: “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?" (Job 2:10). You know, God never promised us that we would not go through tough times. In fact, he promised us that we would if we are his followers, and that we would share in the sufferings of Christ. Paul said that these come so that we might learn to rely on God and not on ourselves.

Somehow, especially in America, I think, we have gotten the notion that, if we believe in Jesus, that all should go well with us all the time, and that we should never have to suffer. There must be a lot of people who believe this. Otherwise, why would so many people, when suffering, blame God and assume that God is somehow falling down on the job because we are not immediately relieved of our difficulties. That is why people would say, “Where is your God?” because they assume God is somehow AWOL if he allows his servants to go through hard times. But, God didn’t say we wouldn’t have to suffer. He said we would, but that he would be with us in our trials, that he will strengthen us, and that he will see us through.

Do you remember what Joseph said about his suffering? He said, "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive” (Gen. 50:20). Satan means to harm us, because he wants us to stop doing the work of the Lord, but God allows suffering in our lives for our good and for the salvation of human souls. So, when we have seeming hindrances to our walks of faith, or to Christian ministry, we should not let that discourage us. We shouldn’t stop doing what God has called us to do unless God closes the door. And, we should not allow Satan to rob us of our joy, either. Our joy should not be based on our circumstances, but on the giver of joy, our Lord Jesus!

Hope in God (vv. 5-8)

Why are you in despair, O my soul?

And why have you become disturbed within me?

Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him

For the help of His presence.

O my God, my soul is in despair within me;

Therefore I remember You from the land of the Jordan

And the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.

Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;

All Your breakers and Your waves have rolled over me.

The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime;

And His song will be with me in the night,

A prayer to the God of my life.

So, what is the remedy for despair? Hope in God. So, how does that work exactly? For one, when we are in despair it is because we are believing Satan’s lies and we are not fully trusting in what is truth. We may feel that we got a raw deal, or that we were tricked in some way, if what we have been taught is that being a Christian means we will be happy all the time and that we won’t have to suffer, or that God would never allow or bring suffering into our lives. So, we have to put off those lies, and put on and accept the truth. Our joy can’t be relative to our circumstances, but has to be based in our Lord, and in who he is, and in what he has done for us in saving our souls, and for giving us new lives in Christ Jesus, our Lord.

I remember here the old hymn, “It is Well with my Soul.” If you have not ever done so, you should look up the history to that song, and what took place in the poet’s life just prior to him penning those words. His soul was not well because all was going well for him, but because of God’s grace in his life, and because he was trusting in God despite his circumstances.

Where is Your God? (vv. 9-11)

I will say to God my rock, “Why have You forgotten me?

Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?”

As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries revile me,

While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

Why are you in despair, O my soul?

And why have you become disturbed within me?

Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him,

The help of my countenance and my God.

God’s love for us is also not based on our circumstances. Just because we are going through hard times does not mean God has forgotten us. In fact, it may be to the contrary. It may be that he sees we need some divine discipline and/or correction in our lives to get us back on track, because we have become lazy or complacent about our walks of faith and our service for him. Or, it may be that he sees we need to mature in a certain area of our lives or that we need to develop perseverance and godly character, or he may be preparing us for a specific ministry in which we will have to suffer for his name, and so he is getting us ready in advance. So, never assume that just because you don’t get immediate relief from suffering that God is AWOL.

Also, don’t assume, if things are going well in your life, that you have the blessings of God. There are many wicked people who appear to be very successful in this life, and who seem to have no troubles. Do you remember the words of Jeremiah, the prophet of God? He said, “Righteous are You, O LORD, that I would plead my case with You; Indeed, I would discuss matters of justice with You: Why has the way of the wicked prospered? Why are all those who deal in treachery at ease?” (Jer. 12:1). God’s response to him was: "If you have run with footmen and they have tired you out, Then how can you compete with horses? If you fall down in a land of peace, How will you do in the thicket of the Jordan?” (Jer. 12:5). The lesson is this: If we get so easily discouraged in a time of peace, then how will we manage when things get much worse, which they will? (See: Rev. 13, for example).

If we are at all paying attention to what is going on in the world, and in the USA, if that is where we live, we have to see the signs of the times in which we now live, and we have to realize that we are living in perilous times, as was prophesied in the Old and New Testaments. The beast is rising. Nations are being taken down and conquered. Christians are being severely persecuted throughout the globe, and the false prophet is hard at work at deceiving the minds of naïve people.

Many of our leaders are leading us to join in solidarity with them in joining hands with all the people of this world in unity, so that we might live together as one family, regardless of religion or lifestyle. They are leading the world toward a one-world government and a one-world religion, and things are heating up pretty quickly. So, if we can’t survive what trials we have now, we won’t survive when things get much worse, so we need to put our hope in God, regardless of our circumstances, and allow ourselves to be joyful because of who he is and because of his love for us in saving us.

For Our Nation / An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: we’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

https://vimeo.com/112351857

A New Song

Monday, October 10, 2016, 4:40 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “We’ve a Story to Tell to the Nations.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Psalm 40:1-10 (NASB).

Out of the Pit (vv. 1-3)

I waited patiently for the Lord;

And He inclined to me and heard my cry.

He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,

And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.

He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;

Many will see and fear

And will trust in the Lord.

I’ve been doing a lot of crying today, and calling out to God in my distress. I am going through a very uncomfortable trial right now, but the Lord is speaking his words to my heart, and he is guiding me through it all. I need much wisdom in this, so I am praying for his guidance and direction.

I am leading a Bible study on Wednesday nights. We are studying the book of John. This Wednesday we are covering John 6:15-21. It was right after Jesus fed the five thousand. He went on a mountain by himself. The disciples got into a boat and set off across a lake. It was dark. Jesus had not yet joined them. A strong wind was blowing, and the waters grew rough. They saw someone walking on the water coming toward them, and they were afraid. It was Jesus. He said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” They willingly took him into the boat with them, and immediately they reached their destination.

I had written questions last week for everyone to answer for this week. I went back over those today, and God spoke clearly to my heart. What I am going through is like being on a boat in the middle of a lake in the dark where I can’t see what lies ahead, and I don’t understand it all. The temptation to be afraid is blowing strong against me, and the circumstances are quite rough at this moment, but the Lord is there, and he is speaking, and he is saying, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” So, I am taking him into my boat (my circumstances) with me in prayer, crying it all out to him, and praying that he would bring me safely through this. My destination is ultimately heaven, but the destination that is immediately before me is to learn what he wants to teach me through this, and to grow in his love and his grace.

He is giving me his strength and courage and determination, and he is filling me with his peace, even in my storm. And, he is helping me to keep praising him, believing that he will carry me through this, and to not let this bring me down, but to keep singing, and to keep smiling and trusting in Him. You see, he doesn’t always deliver us from the difficulty, or at least he doesn’t always do so immediately, but he will carry us through these times. We just have to put our trust in him, and keep leaning on his everlasting arms.

How Blessed (vv. 4-5)

How blessed is the man who has made the Lord his trust,

And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.

Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders which You have done,

And Your thoughts toward us;

There is none to compare with You.

If I would declare and speak of them,

They would be too numerous to count.

We are blessed (joyful, fulfilled, peaceful) when we make the Lord our trust. If my trust was not in the Lord right now, I would be going crazy over this situation. He is my only peace! If I did not know that he allowed this in my life for a purpose, and that he is going to carry me through this, it would be difficult to bear. I am not promised immediate relief or smooth sailing, but I am promised his continued presence with me, his grace, his love and his power and strength to make it through.

I also have to stay focused on the big picture, not that I know all that that is exactly, but I have to stay focused on Christ, and on where we are headed, and I have to have an eternity perspective of the whole situation. In other words, I know my God is working all these things for good in my life, and I believe in the lives of others, too, and that he has eternal purposes for this, which he is going to accomplish. And, so I must keep my eyes fixed on Jesus, and not on my circumstances, believing him to work it all out for his praise and glory.

I Delight (vv. 6-8)

Sacrifice and meal offering You have not desired;

My ears You have opened;

Burnt offering and sin offering You have not required.

Then I said, “Behold, I come;

In the scroll of the book it is written of me.

I delight to do Your will, O my God;

Your Law is within my heart.”

There is a huge difference between following a set of rules and true obedience. We can go through all kinds of forms of religion, and we can do all the right things, seemingly, and appear religious and godly on the outside, but still not be walking in obedience to God. Our Lord does not want what we are willing to sacrifice for him, or give to him of our time and talents, etc., if it is on our own terms.

There are many “good deed doers” in this world who don’t know God at all! Jesus died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us. He wants us, as living sacrifices, given over to him, living holy lives pleasing to God. In other words, he wants all of us, not just what we are willing to sacrifice. He wants us listening to him with receptive ears, and following him wherever he leads us, even if he leads us through some tough times.

I Have Proclaimed (vv. 9-10)

I have proclaimed glad tidings of righteousness in the great congregation;

Behold, I will not restrain my lips,

O Lord, You know.

I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;

I have spoken of Your faithfulness and Your salvation;

I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth from the great congregation.

One of the end goals God may have for us as a result of going through some tough times is that we will proclaim him and his righteousness in the great congregation (in the church, worldwide). He will want us to give praise to him, not just because he delivered us out of our difficulties, which he may not do, or which he may not do immediately, but because of what he taught us through them, and because of how we learned to rest in his grace and strength through them. The purpose of this would be so that we can encourage other believers in Jesus, who are going through difficulties, with the comfort we received from our Lord. There are many followers of Christ throughout the world going through enormous suffering for their testimonies for Christ and for his gospel, and they need to be encouraged.

Sometimes, too, when things are going well for us, we may become lax in our commitments to proclaim our Lord and his salvation to the world, and even within the church, because not everyone who meets with the church is truly saved. So, when we go through hardships, and we call on God in our despair, and he answers us, and he strengthens us and helps us, it helps us to refocus and to retool, i.e. to reequip for his service. So, our trials thus work good in our lives in drawing us closer to our Lord and in producing within us much seriousness of purpose. And, having gone through them, we are much more eager to share the gospel message of hope and healing with the world around us so that many will be saved.

The glad tidings of righteousness we are to proclaim, though, are not that Jesus died merely so we could escape hell and go to heaven when we die. He died so that through faith in him we might be crucified with him in death to sin, and be resurrected with him to newness of life, “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24). His grace to us is not a free license to continue in sin without guilt and without remorse. His grace, which brings salvation, 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 (Tit. 2:11-14). When we were still under the control of sin, we were free from the control of righteousness. Now that we have been set free from sin - if we have - we are to be servants of his righteousness.

We’ve a Story to Tell to the Nations

H. Ernest Nichol

We've a story to tell to the nations,

that shall turn their hearts to the right,

a story of truth and mercy,

a story of peace and light,

a story of peace and light.

We've a song to be sung to the nations,

that shall lift their hearts to the Lord,

a song that shall conquer evil

and shatter the spear and sword,

and shatter the spear and sword.

We've a message to give to the nations,

that the Lord who reigneth above

has sent us His Son to save us,

and show us that God is love,

and show us that God is love.

We've a Savior to show to the nations,

who the path of sorrow has trod,

that all of the world's great peoples

may come to the truth of God,

may come to the truth of God.

For the darkness shall turn to dawning,

and the dawning to noonday bright,

and Christ's great kingdom shall come on earth,

the kingdom of love and light.