II Chronicles 1
Solomon begins his reign over Israelverse 1
And Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom
and the LORD his God was with him
and magnified him exceedingly
Solomon takes all his leaders to Gibeonverses 2-3
Then Solomon spoke to all Israel
to the captains of thousands and of hundreds
to the judges – to every governor in all Israel
the chief of the fathers
So Solomon – and all the congregation with him
went to the high place that was at Gibeon
for there was the tabernacle of the congregation of God
which Moses the servant of the LORD had made
in the wilderness
Solomon consults the LORD at Gibeonverses 4-6
BUT the ark of God had David brought up from Kirjath-jearim
to the place which David had prepared for it
for he had pitched a tent for it at Jerusalem
Moreover the brazen altar – that Bezaleel the son of Uri
the son of Hur – had made
he put before the tabernacle of the LORD
and Solomon and the congregation sought to it
And Solomon went up thither to the brazen altar before the LORD
which was at the tabernacle of the congregation
and offered a thousand burnt offerings upon it
LORD asks Solomon for his requestverse 7
In that night did God appear unto Solomon
and said to him
Ask what I shall give you
Solomon asks for wisdomverses 8-10
And Solomon
said to God
YOU have shown great mercy unto David my father
and have made me to reign in his stead
Now – O LORD God – let YOUR promise to David my father
be established – for YOU hast made me king over a people
like the dust of the earth in multitude
Give me now WISDOM and KNOWLEDGE
that I may go out and come in before this people
for who can judge this
YOUR people that is so great?
LORD gives more than requestedverses 11-12
And God
said to Solomon
BECAUSE this was in your heart – and you have not asked
riches – wealth – honor – nor the life of your enemies
neither yet have asked long life
BUT have asked WISDOM and KNOWLEDGE for yourself
that you may judge MY people – over whom
I have made you king
WISDOM and KNOWLEDGE is granted to you
AND I will give you riches – wealth – honor
such as none of the kings have had that have been before you
neither shall there any after you have the like
Solomon returns to Jerusalemverse 13
Then Solomon came from his journey to the high place that was
at Gibeon to Jerusalem
from before the tabernacle of the congregation
and reigned over Israel
Solomon’s prosperity listedverses 14-17
And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen
and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots
and twelve thousand horsemen
which he placed in the chariot cities
and with the king at Jerusalem
And the king made silver and gold at Jerusalem as plenteous as stones
and cedar trees made he as the sycamore trees that are in the
vale for abundance
And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt – and linen yarn
the king’s merchants received the linen yarn at a price
and they fetched up – and brought forth out of Egypt
a chariot for six hundred shekels of silver
and a horse for an hundred and fifty
and so brought they out horses for
all the kings of the Hittites
and for the kings of Syria by their means
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 1 And Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom, and the LORD his God was with him, and magnified him exceedingly. (1431 “magnified” [gadal] means to grow up, to become strong, to cause to be of major significance or importance, become great, become wealthy, or to powerful)
DEVOTION: All of us want the blessings of the LORD on our life. Here we have Solomon receiving the blessings of the LORD. HE was making Solomon great in the nation of Israel but also learn that other leaders and nations realized that he was blessed of the LORD.
One of the ways he showed the blessing of the LORD was that he strengthened the nation to make it a nation to be feared by other nations. They learned that the LORD was with him and this hindered them from wanting to come up against the nation of Israel in war.
We need to realize that the LORD has given us strength to fight any enemy that we face as individual believer but also, HE has given strength to the church to stand against the powers of the devil and his angels.
We are stronger than any power on earth as well as in heaven. We are to fight our battles with the help of the LORD. We are to turn to HIM for wisdom as we are challenged by this world and the flesh and the devil.
The challenges are coming from all sides today and we need to go to the LORD for HIS strength to fight. If we fight only with our own power we will fail.
It seems that many in the church are trying to win a battle against the enemy in their own strength rather than turning to the LORD for HIS wisdom and strength.
This needs to change if we are going to have the victories as HIS church today. Only as we depend on HIM can we have victory. HE will have victory in the end but for now we have to ask HIM for strength to fight any enemy that comes our way.
CHALLENGE: Are we fighting our battles on our own or are we depending on HIM fully to help us with each battle HE allows in our life or in the life of the church?
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 7 In that night did God appear unto Solomon, and said unto him, Ask what I shall give you. (7592 “ask” [sha’al] means to inquire, to request, beg, consult, or desire)
DEVOTION: The LORD had made a promise to David. HIS promise was that Solomon would build HIS Temple and reign over Jerusalem. The LORD kept HIS promise.
Now Solomon is king. He wants to honor the LORD. He wants to sacrifice to the LORD. He wants to ask the LORD for wisdom and knowledge. The LORD visits him after he made his sacrifice.
During HIS visit with Solomon HE tells him to request anything he wants from HIM. Solomon limited his request to wisdom and knowledge regarding his leadership of the people of Israel. The LORD granted more than his request.
Solomon had the wisdom to inquire of the LORD more wisdom than he presently had. His father gave him good advice regarding what to desire from the LORD. The LORD honored his humility. HE gave him riches, wealth and honor.
Christ told HIS disciples that they would go to the Father and request what they wanted from HIM if they requested it in HIS name. James informs us that we have not because we don’t go to the LORD with our request. We seem to think that HE knows what we need and therefore we don’t have to request it of HIM.
That is not how the LORD works. HE wants us to be dependent on HIM. HE wants us to request what we think we need. HE has promised to answer prayer. HE has promised to never leave or forsake HIS children.
If we are a follower of the LORD Jesus Christ, we need to go to HIM in prayer and request from HIM what would bring glory to HIS name.
Solomon made the right request. We need to request the right things for our service to the LORD.
We need to be sure to give good advice to our children regarding what they want to receive from the LORD. Too often we ask for things that are temporary and not eternal in value. Too often we desire things instead of closeness to the LORD. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.
Solomon had this when he began his reign over Israel. When we go to the LORD with our requests, what do we beg HIM for? We are told to “ask” the LORD in prayer for our daily needs. We sometimes think that we don’t have to “ask” for them because we can provide them for ourselves. Remember this prayer.
God wants to talk with us in prayer and HE can give us more than we desire for on a regular basis if we request the right things. HE commands that we pray. Are we in HIS presence asking for the right requests? Remember we have to watch what we request for as we might receive it and regret it later!!!
CHALLENGE: Meditate on the Word of God. Request from our knowledge of what the LORD reveals to us regarding our need. Train our children to request after meditating on the Word of God. Once this lesson is learned by us and our children, the LORD can truly bless our households.
: 10 Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this YOUR people, that is so great? (8199 “judge” [shaphat] means to rule, to pass judgment, to administer justice, to govern, understood in terms of the rulers role of judging, or to punish)
DEVOTION: If God spoke to you personally and told you to ask from HIM whatever you wanted what would you ask for from HIM? This was the invitation that the LORD gave to Solomon.
Each of us would have to think very hard regarding what we would ask the LORD for if we were given a blank invitation from HIM. Some would ask for health. Some would ask for wealth. Some would ask for the souls of their friends and relatives to be turned over to the LORD.
It is hard to imagine receiving such a invitation from the LORD but HE does give us that invitation. We are told to come to HIM with our requests and HE will listen to them and grant those that will honor HIM.
HE wants us to rest in HIM. HE doesn’t want us to wander around as if there is nowhere to turn when we need something. HE promises rest to the weary. HE promises wisdom to those who ask. HE promises answers to questions we can’t find anywhere else. HE promises strength to face any battle HE allows in our life. HE promises love in an unloving world. HE promises that we can be full of joy.
HIS invitation is open to us every day as we go to HIM with our genuine needs and HE will fill them. Remember that sometimes what we think is a genuine need is not but HE knows the difference and will answer accordingly.
HE was giving Solomon an impossible task of building the Temple and ruling the children of Israel. People don’t want to be ruled. They want to do as they please and expect the LORD to like them that way. Solomon needed wisdom to judge the people according to God’s standard and not the people’s standard. This has to happen today as well with those who are placed in leadership positions. They need wisdom from above not below.
CHALLENGE: God has a standard that all those who follow HIM must hold. This encloses all leaders as well as followers.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 12 Wisdom and knowledge is granted to you, and I will give you riches, and wealth, and honor, such as none of the kings have had that have been before you, neither shall there any after you have the like. (5414 “granted” [nathan] means to hand down, to set, to allow, to surrender, to be transferred to someone, bestow, permit, ascribe, employ, consecrate, dedicate or entrust)
DEVOTION: Solomon was put in a unique position in history. The LORD promised him riches and wealth as an individual and as a nation. HE stated that there would never be anyone else like him in history.
Those who had wealth and riches before him would not have as much as he would have. Those who came after him would not have as much as he would have. He would be the only one who could accumulate the type of wealth and riches that are described during his reign over Israel.
Only God could make such a statement because HE knows the beginning of creation until the end of creation because HE planned it and HE would never make such a statement unless it was true.
HE is omniscient. HE knows the past, present and future. There is nothing that HE doesn’t know. Sometime there are people who limit God to being someone who just knows the past and may know some of the present but say HE doesn’t really know the future because it hasn’t happened yet. They are individuals that don’t understand HIM. They are individuals that don’t understand the Word of God and its teachings.
When God makes a statement, it is always true. HE never lies. HE never exaggerates what is going to happen in the future. HE knows exactly what is going to happen because that is what HE planned before the foundation of the world.
When the LORD makes a statement regarding any time period, HE is speaking the truth and we better believe what HE has to say because it is going to happen. We need to plan accordingly.
Only those who have a genuine relationship with HIM will be entering heaven not all those who think they are entering. It is based solely on our genuine relationship with Jesus Christ. It is not based on our single prayer at a meeting, our giving to the church, our attendance at a church, or out baptism. It is based on a changed life that wants to honor the LORD daily through genuine service to HIM.
CHALLENGE: Remember WHO your salvation is based on.
: 15 And the king made silver and gold at Jerusalem as plenteous as stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycamore trees that are in the vale for abundance. (7230 “abundance” [rob] means multitude, plenty, more than adequate supply, great quantity, great number, or be increased.)
DEVOTION: Solomon is describing all the wealth that is being accumulated during his reign over Jerusalem. Jerusalem was a very stony area and so when he stated that there was just as much silver and gold in Jerusalem as common stones, he was saying that there was a great wealth of precious stones in the city.
He also wanted the people to know that the trees that were more valuable for building were going to be available as much as those that were common to the land.
The wealth of Israel grew under the reign of Solomon to the point that the nations around knew that the LORD was blessing Israel. God was blessing them because of their worship of HIM.
God will bless us today with another kind of wealth today. HE wants us to store our wealth in heaven and not count on it down here on earth. Too many times Christians are praying for wealth down here rather than storing up treasures in heaven.
We are here now to be a witness of the wealth that is provided through salvation to those we meet and give a witness to on a daily basis. The LORD provides for our every need. To some that is not enough but that is what the LORD wants us to be satisfied with while we are here. If we are serving HIM while we are here, we will have treasures in heaven. We will be rewarded with crowns as well as rewards when we stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ.
Too some it might seem like nothing but to those who will receive it there will be tears of joy. Imagine standing in heaven and seeing all the individual we have influenced for service to the LORD. The ones we witnessed to that received Christ as their Savior and who then in turn witnessed to others who became believers.
We don’t seem to understand that our reward in heaven will bring us greater joy than all the wealth of earth. It is a concept we need to learn and understand because it will help us face each day with a different attitude toward the service, we are giving HIM here on earth.
CHALLENGE: The Pharisees received their reward on earth for all their giving to the LORD. We should want our reward in heaven where it is not seen of men but of God.
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)
Solomon’s conversation with Godverses 7-12
Ask of Godverse 8
Solomon asked from the heartverse 11
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
High place that was at Gibeonverses 3, 13
Tabernacle of the LORD in Gibeonverses 3, 5
Ark of Godverse 4
Brought up from Kirjath-jearim
Tent for Ark in Jerusalemverse 4
Brazen altarverses 5, 6
Solomon offered 1,000 burnt offeringsverse 6
Tabernacle of the congregationverses 6, 13
brought to Jerusalem
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Moses the servant of the LORDverse 3
Bezaleel the son of Uriverse 5
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal)verses 1, 5, 6, 9
God – Elohim (Creator)verses 1, 3, 4, 7-9, 11
LORD his Godverse 1
Tabernacle of the congregation of Godverses 3, 6
Ark of Godverse 4
Tabernacle of the LORDverse 5
LORD Godverse 9
Promiseverse 9
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)
Enemiesverse 11
Egyptverses 16, 17
Hittitesverse 17
Syriaverse 17
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Ask for richesverse 11
Ask for wealthverse 11
Ask for honorverse 11
Ask life of enemiesverse 11
Ask for long lifeverse 11
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Strengthverse 1
Presence of the LORDverse 1
Magnified by the LORDverse 1
Servant of the LORDverse 3
Sacrificeverse 6
Askverses 7, 11
Giftsverse 7
Mercyverse 8
Promisesverse 9
Wisdomverses 10-12
Knowledgeverses 10-12
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Solomonverses 1-17
Son of David
Magnified by LORD
God appeared to
Ask for wisdom and knowledge
Give wisdom, knowledge, riches, wealth
Honor
Reigned over Israel
Gathered chariots and horsemen
1,400 chariots
12,000 horsemen
Silver and gold plenteous as stones
Davidverses 1, 4, 8
Israelverse 2
Moses the servant of the LORDverse 3
Jerusalemverses 4, 13
Bezaleel the son of Uriverse 5
son of Hur
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
The highest number of usages is found in II Chr, where it is used to describe the various quantities of materials and efforts required by Israel’s and later Judah’s kings (II Chr 1:15; 2:8; 4:18, et al.). (White, W. (1999). 2099 רָבַב. (R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke, Eds.)Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Chicago: Moody Press.)
1:7–12 God appeared to him that same night in a dream and asked him what he most desired (v. 7; 1 Kgs. 3:5). Solomon’s request for wisdom and knowledge in ruling the people so pleased the Lord that He also promised him unparalleled riches, wealth, and honor. In a sense, God appears to every believer and asks him what he wants. What we want in life largely determines what we get. (MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments. (A. Farstad, Ed.) (pp. 444–445). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.)
11–12. We have here God’s gracious answer. And in the overflowing bounty of the Lord, how sweetly doth it remind us of what the apostle saith, that God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think. Ephes. 3:20. But I hope, after what was observed in the parallel passage, (1 Kings 3) that the Reader is running beyond his views of Solomon king of Israel, to contemplate in all this our Almighty Solomon, God the Father’s Jedidiah (his beloved) shadowed forth in his furniture for the kingdom of his people. Jesus indeed, in his mediatorial character, was not only filled with wisdom and knowledge, and all the treasures hidden with him: but he is emphatically ended Wisdom itself, even the Wisdom of God for salvation. Reader! behold then the Lord Jesus entering upon his kingdom, and in the constitution of his Person, in his offices, in all his characters, acts, and relations, unfolding to his church and people, the most sovereign proofs of wisdom, grace, and riches. How lovely is it to behold the features of the Redeemer, shadowed forth in any of his people! (Hawker, R. (2013). Poor Man’s Old Testament Commentary: 1 Kings–Esther (Vol. 3, pp. 428–429). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.)
1:7–13. That night the Lord responded to Solomon’s expression of worship by appearing to him (in a dream; cf. 1 Kings 3:5) and inviting him to request whatever he wanted. Because Solomon was young and inexperienced (1 Chron. 22:5; 29:1) he was apprehensive about his ability to rule the great nation (as numerous as the dust of the earth; cf. Gen. 13:16) over which God had placed him. So he requested that he might receive wisdom and knowledge to lead the people (2 Chron. 1:8–10). “Wisdom” (ḥoḵmâh) refers to discernment and judgment while “knowledge” (maddā‘) means practical know-how in everyday affairs.
The unselfish character of Solomon’s choice prompted the Lord to grant not only what Solomon … asked for but also more. God said He would also give Solomon wealth, riches, and honor unlike any other king of Israel (vv. 11–12; cf. 1 Chron. 29:25). (Merrill, E. H. (1985). 2 Chronicles. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 620). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
1:11, 12 Solomon’s request for wisdom centered on God’s people and how he could best serve them, not on his own gain. Once Solomon had demonstrated this spirit of servanthood, God granted many unsolicited blessings (Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. (1999). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible commentary (p. 535). Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers)
Ver. 7. In that night did God appear unto Solomon, &c.] From hence to the end of ver. 12 it is the same with 1 Kings 3:5–13. see the notes there.
Ver. 13. Then Solomon came from his journey to the high place that was at Gibeon, &c.] Or rather without the supplement, the words may be read as in the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin versions, Solomon came from the high places; having sacrificed there, so Vatablus; ל being put for מ, as R. Jonah observes; but the Targum agrees with us, he “came to the high place which is in Gibeon, and from thence to Jerusalem;” and to the same purpose Kimchi; having been there, he came to Jerusalem: from before the tabernacle of the congregation; which was at Gibeon, where he had been sacrificing: and reigned over Israel; in great splendour and prosperity. From hence, to the end of the chapter, the same things are said as in 1 Kings 10:26–29. see the notes there. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 3, p. 49). London: Mathews and Leigh).
FROM MY READING
(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!!)
On Being A PASTOR by Derek J. Prime & Alistair Begg
“Much study wearies the body” is the practical comment of the writer of Ecclesiastes (12:12), and since there is really no end to study, we need to beware of getting its importance out of perspective. Our study is not an end in itself: Its purpose is the proper feeding of Christ’s flock. One of the advantages of our calling is that we are both shepherds and teachers, so that our time is not to be given completely to study. Too much study is bad for us; it needs to be linked with other activities. (p. 114-115)
“The minister of the gospel,” A. W. Pink wrote, is to be no slacker rand shirker, but rather “ a workman that needeth not to be ashamed” (2 Tim. 2:15). Whether he rises early or … finds it more expedient to burn the midnight oil, he is in honor and duty bound to spend at least as many hours in his study as does the farmer in his field, the clerk in his office, or the laborer in the factory. He has no warrant to expect God to use him unless he be industrious and denies himself. (p. 115)
George Whitefield recorded in his diary one night after having preached in Bristol, “The congregation consisted of thousands, and God enabled me to lay before them His threatenings and promises, so that none might either despair or presume. Oh that I may be taught of God rightly to divide the Word of truth!” (p. 116)
All study of the Scriptures is fruitless without divine illumination. (p. 116)
Moralism is Not the Gospel (But Many Christian Think It Is)
by Dr.Albert Mohler
One of the most amazing statements by the Apostle Paul is his indictment of the Galatian Christians for abandoning the Gospel. “I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel,” Paul declared. As he stated so emphatically, the Galatians had failed in the crucial test of discerning the authentic Gospel from its counterfeits.
His words could not be more clear: “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you have received, he is to be accursed!” [Gal. 1:6-7]
This warning from the Apostle Paul, expressed in the language of the Apostle’s shock and grief, is addressed not only to the church in Galatia, but to every congregation in every age. In our own day — and in our own churches — we desperately need to hear and to heed this warning. In our own time, we face false gospels no less subversive and seductive than those encountered and embraced by the Galatians.
In our own context, one of the most seductive false gospels is moralism. This false gospel can take many forms and can emerge from any number of political and cultural impulses. Nevertheless, the basic structure of moralism comes down to this — the belief that the Gospel can be reduced to improvements in behavior.
Sadly, this false gospel is particularly attractive to those who believe themselves to be evangelicals motivated by a biblical impulse. Far too many believers and their churches succumb to the logic of moralism and reduce the Gospel to a message of moral improvement. In other words, we communicate to lost persons the message that what God desires for them and demands of them is to get their lives straight.
In one sense, we are born to be moralists. Created in God’s image, we have been given the moral capacity of conscience. From our earliest days our conscience cries out to us the knowledge of our guilt, shortcomings, and misbehaviors. In other words, our conscience communicates our sinfulness.
Add to this the fact that the process of parenting and child rearing tends to inculcate moralism from our earliest years. Very quickly we learn that our parents are concerned with our behavior. Well behaved children are rewarded with parental approval, while misbehavior brings parental sanction. This message is reinforced by other authorities in young lives and pervades the culture at large.
Writing about his own childhood in rural Georgia, the novelist Ferrol Sams described the deeply-ingrained tradition of being “raised right.” As he explained, the child who is “raised right” pleases his parents and other adults by adhering to moral conventions and social etiquette. A young person who is “raised right” emerges as an adult who obeys the laws, respects his neighbors, gives at least lip service to religious expectations, and stays away from scandal. The point is clear — this is what parents expect, the culture affirms, and many churches celebrate. But our communities are filled with people who have been “raised right” but are headed for hell.
The seduction of moralism is the essence of its power. We are so easily seduced into believing that we actually can gain all the approval we need by our behavior. Of course, in order to participate in this seduction, we must negotiate a moral code that defines acceptable behavior with innumerable loopholes. Most moralists would not claim to be without sin, but merely beyond scandal. That is considered sufficient.
Moralists can be categorized as both liberal and conservative. In each case, a specific set of moral concerns frames the moral expectation. As a generalization, it is often true that liberals focus on a set of moral expectations related to social ethics while conservatives tend to focus on personal ethics. The essence of moralism is apparent in both — the belief that we can achieve righteousness by means of proper behavior.
The theological temptation of moralism is one many Christians and churches find it difficult to resist. The danger is that the church will communicate by both direct and indirect means that what God expects of fallen humanity is moral improvement. In so doing, the church subverts the Gospel and communicates a false gospel to a fallen world.
Christ’s Church has no option but to teach the Word of God, and the Bible faithfully reveals the law of God and a comprehensive moral code. Christians understand that God has revealed Himself throughout creation in such a way that He has gifted all humanity with the restraining power of the law. Furthermore, He has spoken to us in His word with the gift of specific commands and comprehensive moral instruction. The faithful Church of the Lord Jesus Christ must contend for the righteousness of these commands and the grace given to us in the knowledge of what is good and what is evil. We also have a responsibility to bear witness of this knowledge of good and evil to our neighbors. The restraining power of the law is essential to human community and to civilization.
Just as parents rightly teach their children to obey moral instruction, the church also bears responsibility to teach its own the moral commands of God and to bear witness to the larger society of what God has declared to be right and good for His human creatures.
But these impulses, right and necessary as they are, are not the Gospel. Indeed, one of the most insidious false gospels is a moralism that promises the favor of God and the satisfaction of God’s righteousness to sinners if they will only behave and commit themselves to moral improvement.
The moralist impulse in the church reduces the Bible to a codebook for human behavior and substitutes moral instruction for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Far too many evangelical pulpits are given over to moralistic messages rather than the preaching of the Gospel.
The corrective to moralism comes directly from the Apostle Paul when he insists that “a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus.” Salvation comes to those who are “justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.” [Gal. 2:16]
We sin against Christ and we misrepresent the Gospel when we suggest to sinners that what God demands of them is moral improvement in accordance with the Law. Moralism makes sense to sinners, for it is but an expansion of what we have been taught from our earliest days. But moralism is not the Gospel, and it will not save. The only gospel that saves is the Gospel of Christ. As Paul reminded the Galatians, “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.” [Gal. 4:4-5]
We are justified by faith alone, saved by grace alone, and redeemed from our sin by Christ alone. Moralism produces sinners who are (potentially) better behaved. The Gospel of Christ transforms sinners into the adopted sons and daughters of God.
The Church must never evade, accommodate, revise, or hide the law of God. Indeed, it is the Law that shows us our sin and makes clear our inadequacy and our total lack of righteousness. The Law cannot impart life but, as Paul insists, it “has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.” [Gal. 3:24]
The deadly danger of moralism has been a constant temptation to the church and an ever-convenient substitute for the Gospel. Clearly, millions of our neighbors believe that moralism is our message. Nothing less than the boldest preaching of the Gospel will suffice to correct this impression and to lead sinners to salvation in Christ.
Hell will be highly populated with those who were “raised right.” The citizens of heaven will be those who, by the sheer grace and mercy of God, are there solely because of the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ.
Moralism is not the gospel.
2 Kings 1
The Lord sends Elijah to inform Ahaziah that he will die.
INSIGHT
Ahab and Jezebel have become famous for their irreverence and disregard for the Law of the Lord. Yet Ahaziah, the son of Ahab, goes beyond them in his blatant disregard for the Lord. After an accident, he inquires of Baal-Zebub, the pagan god of Ekron, whether or not he will recover. Elijah informs the messengers that Ahaziah will die. No longer afraid, Elijah has been strengthened from his previous failure. We must always look at failure as an opportunity to grow. (Quiet Walk)
REVIVAL OFTEN STARTS WITH ONE PERSON
And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation…which was without the camp.
Exodus 33:7
Here is profound teaching. This Tabernacle was a kind of tent that Moses set up in the middle of the congregation, in the middle of the camp of Israel, where he and others would pray, a “tent of meeting” where people might go together to meet with God. The tent of meeting—it is such a significant and such a wonderful term. The Nonconformist fathers generally referred to their places of worship as meeting houses, and it is a good old term. You see, it is a place not so much where people meet with one another, though that is included, but the essential meaning is this—the place where they meet with God.
It is important that we should understand that Moses was clearly led to take this peculiar action. He took this Tabernacle out of the center of the camp and put it outside, far off from the camp. This was an action taken by Moses himself. And I must pause with that, because you will always find as you read the history of these movements of the Spirit in the long story of the Christian church that generally the very first thing that happens, and which eventually leads to a great revival, is that one man, or a group of men, suddenly begin to feel this burden, and they feel the burden so much that they are led to do something about it.
Martin Luther, a very ordinary kind of monk, suddenly became aware of this burden. And it so burdened him that he was led to do something about it. Just one man, and through that one man, God sent that mighty movement to the church.
A Thought to Ponder
Generally one man suddenly begins to feel this burden, and he feels the burden so much that he is led to do something about it.
(From Revival, pp. 162-163, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
The Incarnation of Christ
“Christ Jesus…being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.” (Philippians 2:5-7)
“Great is the mystery of godliness,” Paul exclaimed as he summarized the incarnation (1 Timothy 3:16). No mere words, even those inspired by God Himself, can completely express what transpired when “the Word was made flesh” (John 1:14). There are, however, a few clues in this marvelous Philippians passage.
The choice of the Greek word morphê to express what Jesus possessed prior to His becoming the God-man is important. This “form” of God is not the Greek word that one would choose to express the visible or outward shape—that word would be schêma. Morphê emphasizes the character, the being, that makes the being what it is.
Interestingly, morphê is also used to tell us that Jesus took on the “form” of a servant: “[He] made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:7). Jesus “voided” the morphê that He rightfully possessed as God and “received” (passive) the morphê of a servant or slave (doulos). Then, “in the likeness [homoiôma, similitude] of men” He came to be [ginomai, to come into existence].
We may never fully understand what transpired in the councils of Triune eternity. But this we can know and believe: Jesus became man for men, and He alone saved us from our sin and justly granted us eternal life.
(HMM III, The Institute for Creation Research)
Christianity has always been concerned about body and spirit, mind and matter, the spiritual and the physical. This was why wherever Christianity spread, believers established hospitals and schools alongside churches. In China, for example, Western medicine was an essential ingredient of the growth of Christianity. Many important Chinese Christians were first introduced to Christianity and Western learning via medicine.
Shi Meiyu was born in Jiujiang, China. Her father was a Methodist pastor, and her mother was the principal of a school for girls in the city. They taught her the Chinese classics, as well as Christian literature. They also broke with Chinese tradition and refused to bind her feet.
Meiyu’s parents were especially impressed with the work of American missionary Dr. Katharine Bushnell. Although best remembered for her groundbreaking book God’s Word to Women, Bushnell got her start as a medical missionary of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Inspired by Dr. Bushnell’s medical work, Meiyu’s father decided that she should become a doctor. To prepare her for medical school, seven-year-old Meiyu was sent to Rulison-Fish School, the premier girls’ school in China founded by iconoclastic Methodist missionary Gertrude Howe. Howe was a single woman who had scandalized the male missionaries in China by adopting four Chinese girls and raising them as their mother.
Howe lived a very frugal life, saving money so that in 1892 she could take her five best students to her alma mater, the University of Michigan. These included Shi Meiyu and her adopted daughter Kang Cheng. Having tutored them in mathematics, chemistry, physics, and Latin, they passed the entrance exam with flying colors. Four years later, they graduated together as the first Chinese women to receive a medical degree from an American university.
Meiyu and Cheng returned to Jiujiang and opened a one-room hospital. It was popular and always filled to capacity. In just the first ten months, the hospital had served 2,300 outpatients and made hundreds of house calls. A physician from Chicago, Isaac Newton Danforth, gave them money to establish the Elizabeth Skelton Danforth Hospital in Jiujiang. Shi Meiyu supervised this 95-bed, 15-room facility for the next 20 years. They treated up to 5,000 patients per month and oversaw the training of more than 500 Chinese nurses. Their work included translating textbooks and training manuals.
(Break Point)
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