Job 18
Bildad gives his second address to Job verse 1
Then answered Bildad the Shuhite
and said
Bildad informs Job he is not making sense verse 2- 4
How long will it be ere you make an end of words?
mark – and afterward we will speak
Wherefore are we counted as beasts
and reputed vile in your sight?
he tears himself in his anger
shall the earth be forsaken for you?
and shall the rock be removed out of his place?
Bildad warns regarding the life of wicked verse 5- 10
Yea – the light of the wicked shall be put out
and the spark of his fire shall not shine
The light shall be dark in his tabernacle
and his candle shall be put out with him
The steps of his strength shall be straitened
and his own counsel shall cast him down
For he is cast into a net by his own feet
and he walks upon a snare
The gin shall take him by the heel
and the robber shall prevail against him
The snare is laid for him in the ground
and a trap for him in the way
Bildad informs of final outcome of the wicked verse 11- 21
Terrors shall make him afraid on every side
and shall drive him to his feet
His strength shall be hunger bitten
and destruction shall be ready at his side
it shall devour the strength of his skin
even the firstborn of death
shall devour his strength
His confidence shall be rooted out of his tabernacle
and it shall bring him to the king of terrors
it shall dwell in his tabernacle
BECAUSE it is none of his
brimstone shall be scattered upon his habitation
His roots shall be dried up beneath
and above shall his branch be cut off
His remembrance shall perish from the street
and he shall have no name in the street
He shall be driven from light into darkness
and chased out of the world
He shall neither have son nor nephew among his people
nor any remaining in his dwelling
They that come after him shall be astonished at his day
as they that went before were affrighted
Surely such are the dwellings of the wicked
and this is the place of him that knows not God
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 2 How long will it be ere you make an end of words? mark, and afterward we will speak. (995 “mark” [biyn] means discern, pay attention, understand, consider, examine, or observe)
DEVOTION: How many of us have three friends that would come to our side when we go through an exceptional experience in our life when we need to be encouraged or comforted? It is a question today because we have become so impersonal in our relationships. We text someone rather than talk with them on the phone. We seem to be ones who would rather be alone when we are going through hard times than to be out in public.
So here we have three “friends” who are trying to come to Job during a hard time with many losses and they are not comforting but accusing him of sin.
Here is the second speech that Bildad started with Job. He asks him a question. It is not a nice question. He is asking Job to stop talking and start listening to what they have to say because what they are saying is the truth but what he is saying can’t be the truth.
He wants Job to discern for himself which sounds better. Is it his statements about what is happening or their statements about what is happening? Once he makes the decision then he will be ready to listen to them and his trial will be over.
When our friends come will they be like Job’s friends or be more like Jesus who came alongside the disciples when they were facing challenges in their lives or in their ministry? We are to be more like Jesus. We are not to be like the “friends” of Job who didn’t want to listen to his words but only their own.
We are to be good listeners if we are going to encourage our fellow believers. Some of them will be suffering because of sins they have not confessed in their life but we can speech to them in a loving manner and not like these so-called friends of Job. Others might be because of their lack of understanding concerning the actions of the LORD to prune their lives of things that stand in their way for faithful service to the LORD.
CHALLENGE: As long as we are alive we need to make decisions regarding what types of friends we are going to be to those who are our friends.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 5 Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out, and the spark of his fire shall not shine. (215 “light” [‘owr] means shine, enlighten, the visual sensation of light in contrast to darkness, to become bright, daybreak, or dawn)
DEVOTION: The problem with the wicked is that they have no light from the LORD. They only have light from the enemy of the LORD. They are speaking for him and not for the LORD.
So whatever they speak is coming from the enemy of the LORD, the devil. The wicked don’t realize who they are representing at times. Some do because of how evil they treat people but there are some who think that they are alright and that they have something to say that will help the world understand the truth of what is darkness and what is light. This is a lie they believe because they are following the thinking of the wicked one whom they serve.
These three “friends” of Job are not speaking anything that is coming from the LORD but from another source who is the devil. They are not understanding the circumstances. They don’t understand the source of their answers. They think they are right.
Today we have many even in the church that are not listening to the right voices. They are listening to the world, the flesh and the devil. This is sad but true. They are not going to the LORD and asking for what HE thinks and what HE wants them to do with the information they have. They seem to be only thinking of themselves and how they sound to each other.
We need to watch out who we allow to give us advice. Is the advice genuinely coming from a fellow believer or from someone who thinks they are a believer but have never made a genuine commitment to the LORD?
Our goal should always be to listen to the voice of someone who is genuinely a student of the Word of God with the ministry of the Holy Spirit in their life with a live that is pleasing to the LORD.
CHALLENGE: There are a lot of people who want to give us advice but we have to make sure we check out their lives and the source of their counsel. Also we have to look at their heart!
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: 7 The steps of his strength shall be straitened, and his own counsel shall cast him down. (3334 “straitened” [yatsar] means to press, be narrow, be in distress, or be vexed)
DEVOTION: Bildad, along with his other two “friends” still think that Job is a sinner and is being judged for his sins. They don’t want to listen to the fact that he is righteous before God. They believe that if he was righteous none of those events would have happened to him.
Bildad doesn’t want to hear any of Job’s words. He mentions in this second address to Job that the wicked have their judgment in this world. They would not thrive. They would live in darkness. The LORD would put traps in front of them all of their life. They would have no strength to face each day. No one would remember them after they died.
All these stated “facts” from his perspective were wrong. While on this earth many wicked individuals seem to have it good. They seem to collect wealth. They seem to be happy. They seem to not have a care in the world. They are not worried about God. They are not worried about judgment coming their way. Their philosophy is eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we will die. Some even think that they will have all their friends in hell that will be waiting to throw the next party. They are not worried about the future.
The Bible informs us that the “steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD.” This chapter is a description of the person who is called “wicked.”
Bildad thought Job fell into this category. He thought that Job was directing his own life his own way. He thought that Job had allowed self to rule over his life instead of the LORD. He instructed him by saying that he was a “wicked” man now. He was going to be vexed at every turn in his life. He was not going to be able to give wise counsel to others.
This is not true of Job but it is true of those without the fear of the LORD. There are people who look at our lives and think they understand all that is going on in them. That is impossible. Only the LORD knows what is going on in our world.
There is a saying that we should not judge someone unless we can walk a mile in their shoes. Remember our responsibility is encouragement. Bildad was not an encourager. He thought he had Job’s life pegged as being full of sin that God was judging. He was wrong.
Let us not become a Bildad in the life of our friends. Let us become a prayer warrior for our family and friends. Let us became an encourager to our Biblical family.
There are people who are not in the family of God. They have never repented of their sins and confessed that they needed Jesus Christ in their life. Those individuals need to take this step of faith and become a follower of the LORD. Share with them the Romans road: Romans 3:23; 6:23, 5:8, 10:9, 10 and finally 10:13. Let them know that the door is open for them to become a follower of the LORD. Those that don’t take this step will spend eternity in a place called Hell. It will be no party.
If you are a Christian encourage your family and friends to become a follower of the LORD.
CHALLENGE: If you have never taken the step to follow the LORD – consider taking this step in your life. Baptism, church attendance, giving money to the church, good works, etc. will never give anyone a free pass to heaven. The ONLY way there is through Jesus Christ.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 10 For snare is laid for him in the ground, and a trap for him in the way. (2256 “snare” [chebel] means rope, cord, fetter, plot of ground, destruction, pain, tacklings, or travail)
DEVOTION: Bildad is right when he tells Job that there are dangers hidden all around us even today. We can’t see all the traps that have been put in front of us by our enemies. Not all people will ever love us. Some will just dislike us but then there are others who will hate us.
The ones who hate us will set traps to cause us to fall. They want to see us fall in any way they can possibly arrange in our life. They are not working for the LORD but for the enemy of every believer. They are working for the enemy of every believer.
So we have to be prepared by the Holy Spirit to see the spiritual pitfalls that are in our path each day. Bildad thinks that Job doesn’t know about these pitfalls but he does and is able to see them.
What things are we not seeing that are in front of us on a daily basis that can take us further away from the LORD rather than closer to the LORD? Our time with HIM is important and there are many things that steal our time each day that we can correct with the help of the Holy Spirit.
We need to watch out for the traps that are set to cause us to wander from a healthy relationship with the LORD. Once we recognize them, we can walk around them instead of into them. Once in a trap it is hard to get out without the help of fellow believers and the Holy Spirit.
CHALLENGE: Don’t think that there are no traps in your path today!! That is the trick of the enemy to cause us to think those thoughts. You have been warned.
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: 19 He shall neither have son nor nephew among his people, nor any remaining in his dwellings. (8300 “remaining” [sariyd] means one who lives through affliction, sometimes referred to collectively as a remnant or group of survivors, or escaped)
DEVOTION: In the culture of Job’s time period was important to have children and grandchildren to carry on the work of the father or grandfather. They were mainly farmers or individuals who raised animals for profit.
We know that Job was wealthy before the LORD allowed Satan to test him regarding his faithfulness to the LORD even in hard times. This was going on for a while as this is the second speech of Bildad. He was informing Job that because of his unwillingness to repent of his sins he would have no descendants in the future because the LORD judges those who are sinners and unwilling to repent of their sins.
Bildad knew beyond a doubt that all that was happening to Job was because of sin and that his future was not good regarding leaving his property and possessions to a future generation.
It is important for us to realize that we are not going to take anything with us to heaven if we are believers. We can send things ahead if we are faithful to the LORD. This should be our main concern but we can also be concerned about those who follow us in our families.
We need to be sure that we leave our children and grandchildren memories of our faithfulness to the LORD. Those who are believers can leave a heritage of faith while those who are not willing to follow the LORD will leave a heritage of doubt regarding the need to follow Jesus Christ.
The end result will be those who are faithful to the LORD will give an example to follow that can go on for generations. The wicked will not have a heritage that will profit the next generation because they will give them the false hope that they are doing well when in reality they are on their way to a place called hell for eternity.
CHALLENGE: What type of heritage are we living to our family? Is it one that is pleasing to the LORD or one that would lead the next generation away from the LORD? Our answer is important.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign) verse 21
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Bildad the Shuhite (second speech) verse 1-21
Wants Job to end his words
Thinks Job thinks their word are vile
Thinks Job is walking in a snare
Not have food
Driven from light to darkness
Job verse 1- 21
Has too many words
Counts counselor’s beasts
Thought to be angry with the world by friends
Friend thinks his counsel shall be cast down
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Vile verse 3
Anger verse 4
Wicked verse 5, 21
Robber verse 9
Afraid verse 11
Knows not God verse 21
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Know God verse 21
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
Death verse 13
Perish verse 17
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QUOTES regarding passage
18:2 Since Job showed no signs of running out of things to say, Bildad began to wonder if there was no end to his defense. The verbs are plural, an irregularity hard to explain. Perhaps Bildad was lumping Job with all those who defended their righteousness in the face of what Bildad considered positive proof to the contrary. “Be sensible” is an insult as well as an imperative because it implies that Job had not been sensible. (Alden, R. L. (1993). Job (Vol. 11, p. 194). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)
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The context suggests that Bildad is trying to curb Job’s speech, rather than hindering the friends, or setting traps for them. (Andersen, F. I. (1976). Job: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 14, p. 203). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.)
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18:1–21 Bildad, like his predecessor, ruthlessly attacked Job in his second speech (cf. chap. 8) by telling Job to stop complaining and to become sensible (v. 2). Next he turned to scorn (vv. 3, 4). Then he turned to another long tale of the bad outcomes the wicked experience (vv. 5–21). (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Job 18:1–21). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
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Bildad opened his second speech with the same words he used in his first speech: “How long?” (Job 18:2; 8:2) and Job said the same thing when he replied (19:2). The friends were growing impatient with each other because their conversation seemed to be getting nowhere. George Bernard Shaw compared the average conversation to “a phonograph with half-a-dozen records—you soon get tired of them all.” (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be Patient (p. 65). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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Eliphaz, in his description of the fate of the wicked (15:20–35), had focused on how the wicked person experiences terror and insecurity all through his life. Here Bildad concentrates on the final days of the wicked, describing how he is trapped by death (8–10), torn from his dwelling, and brought before the lord of the under-world (14). 13–14 Death was represented in ancient mythology as a king ruling over the underworld. Death’s firstborn will be one of his offspring, such as disease, and the terrors are his agents who drag people from life down into his kingdom. (Clines, D. J. A. (1994). Job. In D. A. Carson, R. T. France, J. A. Motyer, & G. J. Wenham (Eds.), New Bible commentary: 21st century edition (4th ed., pp. 471–472). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press.)
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18:14 the king of terrors. Death, with all its terrors to the ungodly, personified. (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Job 18:14). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
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Ver. 14. His confidence shall be rooted out of his tabernacle, &c.] That which his confidence was placed in, his wealth and riches, his family, particularly his children, in all which he placed his confidence of future prosperity and happiness; these should be all taken away from him, and his house cleared of them all; or his good, sound, and healthful constitution, on account of which he promised himself long life, this he should be deprived of, and it should be taken out of the tabernacle of his body; or his hope and confidence of eternal happiness in another world, this should perish, and be as the giving up of the ghost: or the words may be rendered, he shall be rooted out of his tabernacle, which was his confidence; that is, his soul shall be taken out of his body by death, in which it dwelt as in a tabernacle, and where he hoped to have had a long continuance; death is a rooting of a man out of it, and even out of the world, see Psal. 52:5. and it shall bring him to the king of terrors; either famine, by which his strength is weakened, or destruction that is at his side, or the first-born of death, or his vain confidence: or this may be the sense, thou (O God) wilt bring him, or cause him to go to the king of terrors; to death; all men are brought unto it, but not all unto it as a king of terrors; as good men, such as Simeon, the Apostle Paul, and others, but wicked men. Death is a king, it reigns, it has a large empire, even the whole world; its subjects are numerous, all, high and low, rich and poor, great and small; and the duration of its reign is long, it reigned from Adam to Moses, from Moses to the coming of Christ, and from thence to this day, and will to the end of the world, and it reigns with an irresistible power: and this king is a king of terrors to wicked men; it is, as Aristotled calls it, the most terrible of terribles; it is terrible to nature, being a dissolution of it; and it must be terrible to mere natural men, who have nothing to support them under it, and no views beyond the grave to comfort them, and cause them to go cheerful through it; but, on the other hand, have not only the bitterness of death to endure, but have terrible apprehensions of a future judgment that comes after it. Some render it, the king of darkness, extreme darkness, blackness of darkness, utter darkness, which wicked men at death are brought unto. Jarchi interprets it of the king of demons, the devil; and to be brought to him is to be brought to hell and eternal damnation: so some render it, terrors shall bring him to his kingf, the devil; or rather terrors shall come upon him like a king, in a very grand, powerful, and formidable manner. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 3, pp. 340–341). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
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FROM MY READING:
NAMES AND WORSHIP
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Matthew 28:19
Further evidence for the deity of Christ is the way in which the names of God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son are coupled together. There are several examples of this. Christ Himself said, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” Romans 1:7 speaks of “God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.” In 2 Corinthians 13:14, in the so-called apostolic benediction, we read, “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all.” First Thessalonians 3:11 says, “Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you.” And, indeed, you will find it in James 1:1, “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
A further piece of evidence supporting the divinity of Christ is that divine worship is ascribed to Him. He accepted such worship from men and women when He was on earth. You will find that in Matthew 28:9 and in Luke 24:52. But you get it also by way of exhortation in 1 Corinthians 1:2 where Paul refers to “all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.” That is worship. In 2 Corinthians 12:8-9 Paul tells us, “For this thing I besought the Lord thrice”–that this is the Lord Jesus Christ is quite clear from the context. In Acts 7:59 we read of Stephen, as he was being stoned, “And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Indeed, our Lord Himself already prepared us for all this when He said, “That all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father” (John 5:23).
A Thought to Ponder
The names of God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son are coupled together.
From God the Father, God the Son, pp. 269-270, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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Like a Symphony
Make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Philippians 2:2
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Choose Life
“I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.” (Deuteronomy 30:19)
Shortly before his death, Moses restated the law and the covenant between God and His people summed up in the greatest commandment: “Thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might” (Deuteronomy 6:5).
Furthermore, Moses claimed that “this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven…Neither is it beyond the sea” (Deuteronomy 30:11-13). Nothing about it was hard to understand. “But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it” (Deuteronomy 30:14).
Indeed, the evidence that God is Creator, Judge, Provider, and Redeemer is all around us. Our text informs us that “heaven and earth” are witnesses of God’s nature. We have more than enough information than we need in order to respond. In fact, these things “from the creation of the world are clearly seen” so that those who reject are “without excuse” (Romans 1:20). Indeed, to ignore the evidence of creation and the Flood, one must be “willingly…ignorant” (2 Peter 3:5). Rejection is foolishness.
“See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil” (Deuteronomy 30:15). The choice is between blessing (v. 16) and cursing (v. 19). All lines of reasoning point toward the God of the Bible as the one true God. “Therefore, choose life,” as our text encourages us, “That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life” (v. 20).
(JDM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) is fighting to have the ministerial housing allowance removed from the tax code and declared unconstitutional. A federal judge has already ruled in their favor. It’s time to stand up and protect our churches—and ministers like you who rely on the housing allowance.
In October 2017, U.S. District Court Judge Barbara Crabb from the Western District of Wisconsin declared the ministerial housing allowance unconstitutional. Judge Crabb’s decision is on hold and has been appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. And that’s where you come in.
We have an opportunity to remind the court of the importance and constitutionality of this time-honored tradition by filing a friend-of-the-court brief in the case. But we need to do so now. The more pastors, like you, who are willing to sign their names and stand up to this attack from anti-religion activists, the more influential this brief will be. Every signature makes a difference. (CBAmerica: Help Defend the Ministrerial Housing Allowance)
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Many people in this world-atheists, agnostics, and those in pseudo-Christian cults-say that Jesus was merely a man, not God. What’s more, these people say Jesus never claimed to be God. The Incarnation-the doctrine that Jesus was one person with two natures, one human, one divine-is an anti-biblical and absurd idea invented by the church in later centuries, these skeptics opine.
The gospel of John certainly dispels that notion. In chapter 8, John writes that the religious leaders of His day picked up stones to slay the Lord Jesus Christ because He made Himself equal with God. The Jewish leaders were men of Jesus’ time and culture. They understood Jesus’ meaning far better than 21st-century skeptics. And as far as they were concerned, Jesus was committing the blasphemy of claiming to be God-a capital offense. (Quiet Walk)
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THE CROSS AND OURSELVES
The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
Luke 19:10
The first thing the cross does is to show us to ourselves. Of course, we always defend ourselves, do we not? It isn’t my fault, we say, it is his. If only he understood. Or take husbands and wives, when they separate from one another. You listen to the story of the husband: “This woman is impossible!” Then you listen to the woman: “This man of mine, I could not live with him. He is an impossible man!” It is always somebody else, is it not? We are never wrong, we are very wonderful. If only we could be understood. It is always somebody else, always that other person.
Do you know what the gospel does, what the cross does? It shows you to yourself. And nothing else in the whole world does that but the cross. There is nothing that will ever humble a man or a nation but the cross of Christ. The cross tells us the simple, plain truth about ourselves.
Think of it like this. Why did the Son of God ever come into this world? Why did He leave the courts of glory? Why was He born as a little babe? Why did He take unto Him human nature? There is only one answer. He came because man could not save himself. He said that. “The Son of man,” he says, “is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). And when I look at the cross and see Him dying there, what He tells me is this: You have nothing whereof to boast. The cross tells me that I am a complete failure, and that I am such a failure that He had to come from heaven not merely to teach and preach in this world, but to die on that cross. Nothing else could save us.
A Thought to Ponder: And when I look at the cross and see Him dying there, what He tells me is this: You have nothing whereof to boast. (From The Cross, pp. 143-144. By Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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Snares
“Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.” (1 Timothy 3:7)
A snare is a trap normally used to catch an unwary wild animal, but each of the five times the word (Greek pagis) is used in the New Testament, it refers to devices used by the great deceiver, Satan, to trap unwary human beings.
There is, first of all, the snare of worldly involvement. “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth” (Luke 21:34-35).
There is the snare of rejecting God’s Word, both the written Word and the living Word. When Israel repudiated Christ, God said: “Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompence unto them” (Romans 11:9, quoting Psalm 69:22). The desire for riches can be a snare. “They that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition” (1 Timothy 6:9).
Satan has many other “devices” (2 Corinthians 2:11) by which he seeks “an advantage of us.” Not even “bishops” or other full-time Christian ministers are immune, for our text is a warning to prospective bishops against “the snare of the devil.” It is the responsibility of every true “servant of the Lord” to be “gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves . . . that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will” (2 Timothy 2:24-26). We must both avoid Satan’s snares ourselves and seek to deliver those who have been thus ensnared. (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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Something is SERIOUSLY wrong when the world is offended by everything but SIN.
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