Luke 17
Our treatment of young believers verse 1- 2
Then said HE to the disciples
It is impossible but that offenses will come – BUT WOE to him
though whom they come
It is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck and he cast into the sea
THAN that he should offend one of these little ones
Our treatment of other believers verse 3- 4
Take heed to yourselves – If your brother trespass against you – rebuke him
and if he repent – FORGIVE HIM
and if he trespass against you seven times a day
and seven times in a day turn again to you – saying
I repent – You shall FORGIVE HIM
Our need to increase our faith verse 5- 10
And the apostles said unto the Lord
Increase our faith
And the Lord said
If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed
you might say to this sycamine tree
Be you plucked up by the root
and be thou planted in the sea
and it should obey you
BUT which of you having a servant plowing or feeding cattle
will say unto him by and by – when he is come from the field
Go and sit down to meat?
And will not rather say to him
Make ready wherewith I may sup – and gird yourself
and serve me – till I have eaten and drunken
and afterward you shall eat and drink?
Does he thank that servant because he did the things
that were commanded him?
I think not
SO likewise ye
when you shall have done all those things which are
commanded you – say
We are unprofitable servants
we have done that which was our duty to do
Jesus heals ten lepers – one was thankful verse 11- 19
And it came to pass as HE went to Jerusalem
that HE passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee
And as HE entered into a certain village
there met HIM ten men that were lepers
which stood afar off – and they lifted up their voices
and said
Jesus – Master – have mercy on us
AND when HE saw them – HE said unto them
Go show yourselves to the priests
AND it came to pass – that – as they went – THEY WERE CLEANSED
and one of them – when he saw that he was healed – turned back
and with a loud voice GLORIFIED God
and fell down on his face at HIS feet
giving HIM thanks
and he was a Samaritan
AND Jesus answering said
Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?
There are not found that returned to give glory to God
save this stranger
AND HE said unto him
Arise – go your way – your faith has made you whole
Pharisees ask concerning kingdom of God verse 20- 21
And when HE was demanded of the Pharisees
when the kingdom of God should come
HE answered them and said
The kingdom of God comes not with observation
neither shall they say – Lo here! Or – Lo there!
FOR behold the kingdom of God is within you
Disciples instructed regarding kingdom of God verse 22- 36
And HE said unto the disciples
The days will come – when you shall desire to see one of the
days of the Son of man
and you shall not see it
And they shall say to you
See here – Or – see there – go not after them – nor follow them
FOR as the lightning – that lights out of the one part under heaven
shines unto the other part under heaven
SO shall also the Son of man be in HIS day
BUT first must HE suffer many things – and be rejected of this generation
and as it was in the days of Noah
SO shall it be also in the days of the Son of man
They did eat – they drank – they married wives – they were given in marriage
UNTIL the day that Noah entered into the ark – and the flood came
and destroyed them all
Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot – they did eat – they drank
they bought – they sold – they planted – they builded
BUT the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained
fire and brimstone from heaven – and destroyed them all
EVEN thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed
IN THAT DAY – he which shall be on the housetop
and his stuff in the house – let him not come down to take it away
and he that is in the field – let him likewise not return back
Remember Lot’s wife
Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it
and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it
I tell you – IN THAT NIGHT there shall be two men in one bed
the one shall be taken – and the other shall be left
two women shall be grinding together
the one shall be taken – and the other left
Disciples question verse 37
And they answered and said unto HIM
Where Lord?
And HE said to them
Wheresoever the body is
thither will the eagles be gathered together
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 2 It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. (4624 “offend” [skandalizo] means to put a stumbling block or impediment in the way, to entice to sin, to cause a person to begin to distrust and desert one whom he ought to trust and obey, to cause to fall away, cease believing, to give up his faith or cause to sin)
DEVOTION: Those who are adults and believe are to make sure that those who are babies in Christ mature under our ministry. Our children’s ministries have to be the best we can do each Sunday and Wednesday.
Parents and grandparents are very important in the growth of their children and grandchildren. If the parents or grandparents don’t know the LORD it can affect the relationship their children and grandchildren have with the LORD.
Too often we don’t realize how important our actions at home can affect our children. If they see one thing at church and one thing at home and there is no consistency it causes problems. If the grandparents are close and claim to be believers and the grandchildren see them not honoring the LORD by their actions and by their attendance at church it affects the grandchildren.
We have thirteen grandchildren that we are praying for regularly. We talk to them about the LORD. We try to encourage them to grow in the LORD. We give them books and magazines to help them grow in the LORD. We are important to them and they are important to us.
As parents we tried to raise our children to love the LORD. All four made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ and are trying to raise their children to honor the LORD through their lives and attendance at church. We have six of our grandchildren baptized by immersion. The many of the others have been dedicated to the LORD.
The only hope can be a family that does their best to make sure their children and grandchildren know the LORD. It is a God-given responsibility. We answer to the LORD for the first years of their lives and they answer for the adult part of their life. We need to give them a good start.
CHALLENGE: Keep your children from falling into sin by proper instruction and prayer.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 5 And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. (4102 “faith” [pistis] means assurance, belief, fidelity, conviction of the truth, trust, doctrine, persuasion of a thing or pledge to be faithful)
DEVOTION: The disciples were taught by the LORD to take heed to themselves. They were to live in the truths that HE was teaching them. They were to be sure that they keep a close daily watch on their actions. They were going to be the example people would follow after HE died on the cross and ascended into heaven.
Part of the instruction dealt with the truth that they were going to have people sin against them. They were going to have people tell lies about them. They were going to have people who would not listen to their teachings. This included fellow believers.
If this happened they were to rebuke their brother in love with the mission of reconciliation to the truth of the Word of God. If the brother listened to the rebuke and changed his attitude they were to forgive him.
Now it wouldn’t be hard to do this if it only happened once but Jesus is telling them that they have to do it seven times a day. Ouch!! And if they repented of their offence against them they were to forgive them.
That would not be easy for them and it is not easy for us. We don’t like people saying or doing bad things against us. We are their fellow believer but they are doing us harm.
CHALLENGE: Obedience to the LORD is not easy but it commanded and we need to put it into practice in our daily walk with HIM. Forgiveness of those who hurt us is hard but commanded.
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: 16 And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan (2168 “thanks” [eucharisteo] means being grateful or pray)
DEVOTION: Are we an entitlement people? Do we think that this started in our generation? Here we have the LORD instructing the disciples about not offending new believers. HE is teaching about forgiving those who offend us. The disciples are asking HIM to increase their faith. HE gives them an illustration of a mustard seed type of faith that can move trees into the seas. The next illustration is of an obedient servant.
Now along the road HE meets ten lepers who want mercy. HE tells the to go to the priest for confirmation of healing. On their way to the priest one realizes that he is healed. He returns to Christ and glorifies God. He fell at the feet of Jesus. He gave a word of gratitude to HIM. He was a Samaritan.
Remember that Samaritans were not liked by the Jews. They were half-breeds: part Jew and part Gentile. There was a real animosity between the races. It is thought that the other nine were Jewish and rejected the ministry of Jesus.
One of things we have to deal with in our lives is a short memory. Many times we are blessed of the LORD a week ago with what we consider a big blessing and we are grateful to him for his gift of a blessing.
However, we sometimes fall into the trap of saying to the LORD, “What have you done for me TODAY?” We are individuals who would like big blessings every day. We have them but don’t realize that we have them. We want MORE.
What is enough? A little bit more. It is a problem. If we could look at our lives from the LORD’S perspective, we would know that we are blessed. However, we have a problem looking at our lives from his perspective. Our old nature gets in our way. Here is an example of an individual coming to the LORD to express his gratefulness. The LORD asks “Were there not ten cleansed?” Where are the other nine?
Are we grateful for the blessing we have in the LORD? Do we tell HIM so daily? Do we continually want more blessings? HE wants to give us blessings but HE also wants us to give HIM glory. Do we have a testimony of being a thankful person? Or are we a grumbler?
CHALLENGE: Ask someone close to you if you are a thankful person or a grumbler? If you are afraid of the answer – change!!!
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
:33 Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it, and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it. (2225 “preserve” [zoogoneo] means to bring forth alive, to give life, to keep in the state of having life or being alive, keep alive, to be born alive, or to cause to continue to live)
DEVOTION: Too often we are more concerned with getting ahead in this world. We work to make as much money as we can and then are too tired to be the witness we should be for the LORD.
We try not to offend anyone by telling them about Jesus because we don’t want to lose them as friends or acquaintances. We want everyone to like us. We tend to be people pleasers. We don’t want to hurt anyone and don’t want anyone to hurt us.
Jesus says that we are to not worry about saving our life. Our life is in HIS hands and we need to trust HIM to take care of us. If we give our all to HIM, we might lose our life but we at the same time save it.
Once we are sold out for Christ to the world it seems like we have lost our life or our way. They think we are crazy. They don’t understand why we change our habits to serve the LORD. Yet, the LORD says that when we get to this point in our life, we are preserving it. We are preserving it for eternity in heaven.
Our present life will only last a few years compared to eternity. Our priority needs to be to honor the LORD no matter what. Once this happens, we can preserve our soul for the rest of our life to serve the LORD for as long as HE gives us breath.
CHALLENGE: What are we doing to preserve our eternal life today?
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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)
Days of Lot verse 28, 29, 32
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
Lord verse 5, 6, 37
Healing of Ten lepers verse 11- 19
Jesus verse 13, 17
Master verse 13
Son of man verse 22, 24, 26, 30
Suffer verse 25
Rejected of this generation verse 25
Revealed verse 30
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
God glorified verse 15, 18
Kingdom of God verse 20, 21
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Little ones verse 2
Brother verse 3
Servant verse 7- 9
Samaritan verse 16
Stranger verse 18
Days of Noah (Noe) verse 26, 27
Days of Lot verse 28, 29
Sodom verse 29
Lot’s wife verse 32
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Offend little one verse 1, 2
Trespass verse 3, 4
Unprofitable servant verse 10
Reject Christ verse 25
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Take heed verse 3
Rebuke trespass verse 3
Repentance verse 3, 4
Forgiveness verse 3, 4
Faith verse 5, 6, 19
Commands to obey verse 10
Duty verse 10
Mercy verse 13
Glorify God verse 15, 18
Thankful verse 16
Save verse 33
Preserve life verse 33
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Jerusalem verse 11
Samaria verse 11
Galilee verse 11
Priests verse 14
Pharisees verse 20
Church (New Testament people of God)
Disciples verse 1, 22
Apostles verse 5
Last Things (Future Events)
Kingdom of God verse 20, 21
Heaven verse 24
In the day verse 30
In that day verse 31- 37
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QUOTES regarding passage
5–6 The apostles may have felt that this kind of forgiveness would demand more faith than they had (v. 5). The “mulberry tree” (v. 6) in Luke corresponds to the mountain in Matthew 17:20; 21:21; and Mark 11:23. In each instance the object is to be disposed of in the “sea” (probably Galilee). The black mulberry tree (KJV “sycamine,” not to be confused with “sycamore”) grew quite large, to a height of some thirty-five feet, and would be difficult to uproot. The mustard seed is proverbially small, a suitable metaphor for the amount of faith needed to do the seemingly impossible. Jesus’ answer to the request for additional faith seems to be that they should use the faith they had to petition God. (Leifeld, W. L. (1984). Luke. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (Vol. 8, p. 994). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
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17:5–10. Jesus also taught that His followers have responsibilities toward God. The first responsibility is to have faith. When the disciples asked Jesus for more faith, He answered that they needed not more faith but the right kind of faith. Even the smallest amount of faith (like a mustard seed, the smallest seed; cf. 13:19) could do amazingly miraculous things, such as uprooting a mulberry tree, a tree with deep roots (17:6). (Martin, J. A. (1985). Luke. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 248). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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We might have expected the disciples to respond with the prayer, “Increase our love!” Certainly love is a key element in forgiveness, but faith is even more important. It takes living faith to obey these instructions and forgive others. Our obedience in forgiving others shows that we are trusting God to take care of the consequences, handle the possible misunderstandings, and work everything out for our good and His glory.
Mature Christians understand that forgiveness is not a cheap exchange of words, the way squabbling children often flippantly say “I’m sorry” to each other. True forgiveness always involves pain; somebody has been hurt and there is a price to pay in healing the wound. Love motivates us to forgive, but faith activates that forgiveness so that God can use it to work blessings in the lives of His people.
Our Lord’s image of the mustard seed conveys the idea of life and growth. The mustard seed is very small, but it has life in it and, therefore, it can grow and produce fruit (Mark 4:30–32). If our faith is a living faith (James 2:14–26), it will grow and enable us to obey God’s commands. “Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass” (Ps. 37:5). Forgiveness is a test of both our faith and our love. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, pp. 243–244). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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17:5 Increase our faith! Lit. “Give us more faith.” They felt inadequate in the face of the high standard He set for them. (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Lk 17:5). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
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So if somebody has offended you, do not tell it to anyone else. Go to him who has done the wrong and rebuke him for it. “And if he repent, forgive him.” Go straight to the one who has offended you; tell him exactly what he has said or what he has done that is grieving you. That takes real manhood. Sometimes it is so much easier to go round muttering and talking to other people about offences instead of going to the one who has done the wrong and telling him what is on your mind. We are great for avoiding our own responsibility. We would rather pass it on to someone else. We would rather bring a charge before the church. But Jesus plainly tells us we are never to bring a matter like that to the church until we have first gone to the person himself. Go to your brother and rebuke him, and if he says, “I am sorry; I did not mean it that way,” or “I am sorry, forgive me,” then you will be able to straighten the matter out at once, and you are not to say anything about it again; that should be the end of it. If we would act on these words more fully how many hurt feelings would be saved; how many church strifes would be avoided! You say, “Well, I talked to him about it, and he said he repented, and I forgave him; but he did the same thing again. What am I to do now?” The Lord says, “And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.” This is enough to make almost anybody lose confidence in a man: he says, “I repent,” and then he does it again and again. I cannot believe in a person like that, you say. Never mind that; you do not have to believe in him if you will only forgive him. If he trespasses seven times in a day and says, “I repent,” then you are to forgive him. Remember on another occasion (Matt. 18:21, 22) Peter said, “Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, until seventy times seven.” I am afraid none of us have ever had to forgive that many times. Of course, we are not called upon to proclaim forgiveness until the other person professes to repent. I do not have to run after someone, calling, “I forgive you! I forgive you!” He is likely to say, “I do not want you to forgive me; I do not need your forgiveness.” But we are to maintain always an attitude of mercy and to love him until at last he breaks down and says he repents. Then we are to forgive as freely as God forgives us.
The third lesson we have here is that of the power of faith. When Jesus told these things to His disciples, they looked at Him, as much as to say, “You are setting up a standard so high we cannot attain to it.” They exclaimed, “Lord, increase our faith. And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.” Do not misunderstand that. He did not mean that we are to go about demonstrating our power over nature. Faith, you know, is believing God, and faith leads one to act in accordance with His revealed will. Now if God reveals to you that you should pray that some sycamine tree be plucked up and cast into the sea, He will give faith for it; but that is not the customary thing. What the Lord is teaching is that if you have real faith, you will be able to triumph in spite of all outward circumstances. You have heard of the Irishman who said, “I learned to trust God, and He has done such wonderful things for me that if He tells me to jump through a stone wall I’ll jump, and I know He will make a way through.” But do not jump if God has not told you to do it! Faith leads us to act in accordance with the Word of God, and when we do God can be depended upon to see us through. (Ironside, H. A. (1947). Addresses on the Gospel of Luke. (pp. 521–524). Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers.)
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Ver. 5. And the apostles said unto the Lord, &c.] Either on account of what was now said by Christ concerning offences, and forgiving injuries; being conscious to themselves of their own weakness to withstand temptations; and fearful lest they should be stumbled and offended with what they should meet with; or that they should give offence to others: and being also sensible of what spirits they were of, and of the difficulties of conquering them, and mastering the resentment of their minds, when injured and provoked; and also the necessity of divine assistance, of having fresh supplies of grace, and of having their graces, and particularly faith, strengthened, and drawn into a lively exercise; or on account of their not being able to cast out a devil from one that was possessed, Matt. 17:19, 20 when words, to the same purpose, were spoken by Christ, as in the following verse; on occasion of one or other of these, though more likely the former, the apostles addressed Christ in this manner, increase our faith, both the faith of working miracles, and the grace of believing in him: by which, as they express their sense of the weakness, and imperfection of their faith; and their great desire to have it increased, which might be for their comfort, and his glory; so they acknowledge his divine power, and that he is the author and finisher of faith; and that as the beginning, so the increase of it is from him: wherefore faith is not of a man’s self, or the produce of man’s free will and power, but is the gift of God; and even where it is, it is not in man to increase it, or add to it, or to draw it forth into exercise; this also is the operation of God. And if the apostles had need to put up such a petition to Christ, much more reason have other men. (Gill, J. (1809). An Exposition of the New Testament (Vol. 1, p. 666). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
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The disciples listened to all of this in complete astonishment. “Increase our faith,” they said. “If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine [mulberry] tree, be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you” (17:5–6). No wonder the disciples asked for more faith! The Lord bluntly told them that they did not need more faith. The smallest amount of faith could accomplish the miraculous. Faith is not measured by its bigness or littleness. What is needed is not so much a large faith as a living faith—faith in the Lord Himself and in His indwelling Holy Spirit. Surely, that is an infinite resource suitable for any occasion! (Phillips, J. (2009). Exploring the Gospel of Luke: An Expository Commentary (Lk 17:3–6). Kregel Publications; WORDsearch Corp.)
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FROM MY READING:
Old Testament WORDS for Today by Warren W. Wiersbe
The prophet Hosea called Ephraim (the northern kingdom) a half-baked people. They were not the Lord’s “through and though” but half-baked, worshiping the Lord halfheartedly from hearts devoted to idols. Believers today can commit the same sin by making the same mistakes the people of Ephraim made. (p. 182)
God cannot bless and use unprepared workers, and yet there are today preachers, teachers, singers, administrators, mothers, fathers, and other workers who are unfit to serve but by their “service” are weakening the cause of Christ. (p. 183)
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Treasures from the Greek New Testament by Kenneth S. Wuest
After we have been purchased as His bondslaves, and have been liberated from our old master Satan, out of pure gratefulness of heart we say to our Lord, “Lord Jesus, we want to serve Thee as Thy bondslaves forever.” Our position as His bondslaves is not one of compulsion, but of free will energized by an imparted divine nature and a supernaturally imparted love. Therefore, we are His bondslaves and His freemen at the same time, a thing impossible in the case of earthly slaves. Thus is solved one of the delightful paradoxes of Holy Scripture. (p. 52)
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1 Timothy 4
The effective teaching of the truth in the Scriptures will benefit both the teacher and the hearers.
INSIGHT
Anyone who has tasted the maturity given from the Lord to those who serve Him over time will testify that it did not come quickly or easily. Paul writes that we should exercise ourselves to godliness; that “bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things” (v. 8). Like an athlete, a Christian should rejoice with a rigorous course of training – knowing that the more demanding the training, the greater will be the spiritual prowess at the end. The present discomfort is fitting him or her for more victorious effort later. Present pain = later gain. This message is difficult to communicate and even more difficult to learn. But to this end we must labor (v. 10).
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“WE OUGHT ALSO…”
Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. 1 John 4:11
The question is, what do you do about those people who seem to irritate you and are a problem to you and who really make things rather difficult? Here is John’s answer: “If God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.” This means something like this: Instead of giving way to that instinctive feeling that I have, instead of speaking or acting or reacting at once, I stop and I talk to myself. I remind myself of the Christian truth that I believe, and I apply it to the whole situation. Now that is something that you and I have to do. This life of which the New Testament speaks is full of the intellectual aspect. It is not a feeling. You do not wait until you feel like loving other people—you make yourself love other people (“we ought”). According to the New Testament, Christians can make themselves love other Christians, and they are failing sadly if they do not do so.
How do they do it? They remind themselves of this truth: “If God so loved us.” In other words, this is the procedure. The first thing I do when I feel irritated and disturbed and bewildered and perhaps antagonistic is to look at myself. Now that is half the battle. We all know perfectly well from experience that in this kind of problem the whole difficulty is that we are always looking at the other person and never at ourselves. But if I start with myself—if God so loved me—what do I find?
But usually I instinctively feel that I am being wronged, that I am not being dealt with fairly. I feel it is the other person who is difficult. “One minute!” says the gospel; “stop for a moment and look at yourself and remind yourself of exactly what you are.” The gospel brings us immediately face to face with this self that is in us that is the cause of all these troubles.
A Thought to Ponder Christians can make themselves love other Christians.
(From The Love of God, pp. 68-69, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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The Called
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
This great promise has been an immeasurable source of strength and comfort to Christians, especially during times of trial. It is specifically directed, however, only to those who are “the called.”
Recognition of those who are “the called” is best achieved through their synonymous description as “them that love God.” There are also numerous other Scriptures that further describe them. There are two Greek words (each occurring 11 times) that specifically refer to those who are members of this select group: One of these words is kletos (“called”); the other is klesis (“calling”). Another very important term is ekklesia, meaning “called out,” which occurs 115 times and is almost always translated “church.” That is, a true church is composed of people who have been specially called by God out of the world system, then joined together in a local church to fulfill the purposes of their divine calling.
“Not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called” (1 Corinthians 1:26). No I.Q. test, or physical exam, or social standing is used as a criterion; neither are any human achievements. “[God] hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began” (2 Timothy 1:9).
God’s call was strictly by grace, according to His own eternal purpose! The means by which God calls is the gospel: “Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 2:14). No wonder, then, that we can know that all things work together for good on behalf of those whom God has called, and who therefore love God! (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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PRIDE
O wretched man that I am (Romans 7:24)
Self-sufficiency, self-consciousness—oh, to get away from the self!
“O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” (Romans 7:24). How can I get away from this wretched, ugly self I am always thinking about? Isn’t that the cry of every man and woman convicted of sin by the Holy Ghost? Now the effect of 1 John 4:9-10 is to expose all that, and I really am not prepared to listen to people who tell me that they glory in the revelation of God’s love unless they have dealt with themselves. There is no value in any striving to keep the tenets of the Christian faith unless those tenets have made you see yourself in the world, unless they have flashed upon you in such a way as to make you see the manifestation of self; that is what the love of God always does. “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us.” It is incredible that God could love such a person as I have been describing. That is the amazing thing! That is love, says John.
Therefore, if you believe and know all that, it makes you see yourself as you are, and do you see what happens at once? The moment you see yourself like that, you cry with John Bunyan:
He that is down need fear no fall,
He that is low in pride.
John Bunyan meant that when I see myself as I really am, nobody can insult me. It is impossible, because they can never say anything that is bad enough about me. Whatever the world may say about me, I am much worse than they think. When we see ourselves in the light of this glorious gospel, no one can hurt us, no one can offend us.
A Thought to Ponder: Self-sufficiency, self-consciousness—oh, to get away from the self! (From The Love of God, p. 70, Dr. Martyn Looyd-Jones)
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The church should care for widows, and the elders who lead the church should also receive respect.
INSIGHT
There are those in the church who feel that they have the gift of confrontation, and others the gift of rebuke. While we may smile at this, there are indeed those who have an acute sense of justice, gravitating toward exhortational ministries. These people provide an important balance in the church, but they must be cautious to wield their words with truth and grace. Paul writes that we should “not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, the younger men as brothers, the older women as mothers, the younger as sisters, with all purity” (vv. 1-2). The point is that such ministries are always to be done in a spirit of grace, truth, and love.
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The Eyes of the Lord
“For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.” (2 Chronicles 16:9)
Since God in His essence is Spirit (note John 4:24) and is omnipresent, one might wonder how He could have physical eyes. The fact is, however, that the Bible frequently refers to His eyes. In fact, this phrase, “the eyes of the LORD,” occurs no less than 21 times in the Bible.
While this is hard to understand in one way, it is wonderfully clear when we remember God is omnipotent and omniscient, as well as omnipresent. “He that formed the eye, shall he not see?” (Psalm 94:9). We may not be able to understand the actual seeing mechanism of spiritual eyes; nevertheless, “the eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good” (Proverbs 15:3).
The prophet Zechariah reminds us not to “[despise] the day of small things,” for they will be observed by “the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth” (Zechariah 4:10). The phrase is used first of all in connection with those terrible times when “the wickedness of man was great” and “the earth was filled with violence” (Genesis 6:5, 11). Yet God could still see righteous Noah there. “Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD” (Genesis 6:8), and he and his family were saved through the awful worldwide Flood.
The last usage of the phrase is in Peter’s epistle, quoting Psalm 34:15: “For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil” (1 Peter 3:12). We do well to remember always that one of the great names of God is “Thou God seest me” (Genesis 16:13) and then conduct ourselves accordingly, aware that our God is indeed watching us with deep love and concern. (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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Atheist Group Demands Football Coach Stop Praying with Players, Says It’s ‘Unconstitutional’
A national atheist group is demanding a Missouri school district investigate two high school coaches who allegedly have prayed with players – an action the group calls illegal and unconstitutional.
Head football coach Jeff Wallace and assistant football coach David Stucky of Cameron High School in Cameron, Mo., have prayed with players and discussed Bible verses with them before and after games, according to the Freedom From Religion Foundation, which also says the coaches have led players in a postgame prayer at the 50-yard line.
The foundation, which represents atheists, agnostics and “freethinkers,” sent a letter to Superintendent Matt Robinson in late October, urging him to conduct an investigation.
“Coach Wallace’s conduct is unconstitutional because he endorses and promotes his religion when acting in his official capacity as a school district employee,” the letter says. “… When a public school employee acting in an official capacity organizes and advocates for team prayer or worship, he effectively endorses religion on the District’s behalf.”
The letter points to Supreme Court cases that have struck down school-sponsored prayer.
Parents of several players, though, told local television stations that they support the coaches’ actions. The parents also said the allegations aren’t accurate. The 50-yard line gathering, parent Jeff Speer said, is voluntary and doesn’t involve school-led prayer.
“They just say, ‘Okay, everybody bow your heads,’ and they have a moment of silence and everyone does their own individual prayer,” Speer told KCTV. “Other teams join. We’ve had almost every team we play this year come out, join on their own.”
Cameron resident Tim Harrell, whose son played before graduating in 2015, also backed the coaches. (Christian Headlines by Michael Foust)
“It’s sad that they’re coming down on [the coaches] because Cameron hasn’t had a good team in a few years,” Harrell told Fox 4 in Kansas City. “I think [they’re] building character among the boys.”
Robinson, the superintendent, released a statement to the media. It read: “The District will be performing an investigation into the allegations and concerns raised by the FFRF, pursuant to District’s non-discrimination policy and policy regarding religious expression, to determine whether District policy has been violated. The District will also take immediate interim measures to protect students from further possible violations of District policy. No local complaints were brought to the attention of administration of the school district.”
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Wesley Aarum writes: I am once again going through the book of Revelation and the judgment that is soon going to fall on this world is almost unbelievable. I watch all that is happening in our world and from the Bible perspective you can see how things are setting up for the rule of the Anti-Christ. The Globalists want a one world ruler and they are soon going to have their wish. Our wonderful country is fast coming to an end but there is still hope that God, in His infinite mercy, will grant us one last chance before the Rapture. That one chance is a nation-wide Awakening that will sweep millions into the Kingdom.That of course will only happen in answer to Prayer. God gives us so many promises of what He can and will do if we will Pray! Dear Christians we have no excuse not to call on God for this miracle.I challenge you, yes I beg you, let’s determine in our hearts and make a covenant with our Heavenly Father that with His help we will become the Prayer Warrior He desperately wants us to be. II Cor. 5:10 is going to happen and when we stand before that throne how thrilled we will be if we have been that prayer warrior and we hear Jesus say to us “Well done thou good and faithful servant,….. enter into the joy of thy Lord.” .Matt. 25:21 This is ‘soul-winning through prayer. I start with asking God for a personal revival in my life and then when that is accomplished.I labor in prayer for the Christians and then the unsaved in our nation. God help all of us to determine to be that person God wants us to be and see Him sweep across our country with such conviction saints will get right with God and sinners will be converted. to Him. God bless all of you reading this!
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DAILY HOPE
Today’s Scripture
Numbers 33-34
“Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” George Santayana is known for saying many catchy phrases to express his skepticism and view of life and society. History does have similarities and cycles that appear to repeat themselves but always with a slight twist!
Israel is on the cusp of entering the land of promise which the Lord had stated they would inhabit. They had been to the entrance of the land once before and because of unbelief and rebellion they were turned away and made to wander in the wilderness! Moses recounts the history of the journey and key points that occurred while travelling to the land God had promised Israel. A trip that should have taken two weeks continued for 40 years!
History does not repeat itself in this instance. Instead, the Lord gave Moses’ instructions for conquering the land (33:50-56). They would occupy the land but a stern warning was given to Israel if they failed to drive out the inhabitants. If Israel allowed the former occupants to remain in the land, these people would become pricks in Israel’s eyes and thorns in her side (33:55).
Further instruction was given in regard to boundaries and how they were to be established in the land once it was conquered. While the locations of the boundaries are not always easily identified, a general outline can be established from the Mediterranean Sea eastward to the Sea of Galilee and down the Jordan River to the Dead Sea. Reuben, Gad and half the tribe of Manasseh had acquired the land east of the Jordan River. Joshua and Eleazar were to be the leaders that divided the land between the tribes and designated what each tribe received. Each tribe was to appoint a leader to represent them in this process of appropriation.
Mark Twain stated, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it does rhyme.” Like the nation of Israel, we can often sin, repent, and follow afresh the Lord’s teaching. The problem arises when we learn enough to not commit the same infraction but do one that is similar. May we learn to flee the appearance of sin and not walk close to the line of temptation (1 Timothy 6:11).
In Expectant Hope, Pastor Miller
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