Habakkuk's Warning

“Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.” (Hab 2:4 AV)

 

The prophet is speaking of those who do not wish to keep their minds and hearts on the promise of Christ’s coming.  He is speaking to those, who assume a delay means a cancellation, do not set their hearts on a promise.  As a result, those who do not live in the reality of prophecy become lifted up in their own pride, and consequently, fall into sin.  The delay is stated in the previous verse.   “For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” (Hab 2:3 AV)  The actions of those who do not wait for it follows verse four.  Primarily, falling into fleshly vices.  Herein is the point.  If we live as though Christ could return at any minute, then our lives would be completely different.  If we live as though Christ’s return is generations away, then we will not take heed to our actions or choices.

When I attended Bible College, there was a fella who knew all there was to know about prophecy.  That was before the internet age.  Whatever knowledge he had come from hard work.  He read and studied for countless hours.  Today, prophecy news or opinion can be found just about anywhere.  IT doesn’t take an expert to be relatively well informed of coming events on the prophetic timetable.  This, of course, opens the door to conspiracy ideas or far-out biblical ideas that have no basis in scripture, but for the most part, general knowledge of prophetical events is consistent.  To say we are in the last days would be obvious.  We most certainly are.  There is not too much left to occur before the Messiah returns.  It used to bother me when I met someone who was all about prophecy.  I thought they were excessive and not all that useful in the ministry of the church.  I always saw them as someone who wanted to argue all the time about things we cannot fully know.  There are some of those left.  However, for the most part, those in tune with prophecy are not argumentative anymore, but rather encouraging.  To live in the reality of the rapture and second coming is what Jesus had intended for us all along.

Habakkuk is clearly warning us to live in the reality of pending prophecy.  The first battle of God and Magog is shaping up.  The possibility of invasion of Israel grows ever more possible the more we inch down the calendar.  As Israel perfects their Iron Dome, her neighbors will not be too pleased.  As China shores up the market on precious metals, it will not be too much of a stretch for Israel’s neighbors to realize the precious metals hidden in the Dead Sea.  With an anemic government sympathetic to the enemies of Israel in the United States, her enemies will be emboldened to try something in the near future.  All the events of the past are pointing to events in the future.  If we have no interest in the pending return of Christ, then we may become a bit relaxed in our testimony today.  That is Habakkuk’s warning. 

He Knows

“The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.” (Na 1:7 AV)

 

We can apply the underlined phrase in several ways.  We can take it as a challenge and remember the LORD does know who is willing and who is unwilling to exercise faith.  For the LORD to be a strong hold, He looks for those who have faith.  We could also apply it another way.  As another challenge.  We can see it as a challenge to run to the LORD as our strong hold because we have faith.   In so doing, we can take this verse as a promise.  However, there is a third way in which we can understand this.  As a simple statement of fact.  God knows whether I trust Him, or I do not.  This is not hard to understand.  God knows our hearts before we even act.  He knows how much faith we have.  Just look at the LORD’s challenge to Abraham.  He asked Abraham to offer Isaac.  Isaac knew Abraham was not going to kill him because he willingly went to the altar.  God knew what Abraham was going to do and provided a ram before the test.  The only one not fully aware of how much faith Abraham had was Abraham.  God knew.

Any parent who knows his child knows how much that child trusts him.  I have three very trusting children.  One in particular.  You’ll get a kick out of this.  We were on our way somewhere and we had stopped to get a coffee.  I was in the driver’s seat and my youngest was in the passenger seat.  I had come to a complete stop and must have had really sensitive breaks because, at the last second, the breaks seized up.  The car was going at a snail’s pace so the reaction was not all that significant.  However, my son, thinking the car was coming to a complete and smooth stop, began to drink his coffee.  When the breaks seized, it made his coffee jostle ever so slightly.  Not enough to spill all over the place.  Just enough to place a drop or two on his upper lip.  He reacted as though the entire cup of coffee spilled.  It was funny.  As father/son relationships go, one cannot let a good prank go to waste.  We did stop and go maneuvers at almost every intersection because I wanted to see his mounting frustration at not being able to drink his coffee.  Lest you feel sorry for him, this is the son who put salt and or pepper in my water while dining at a restaurant.  So stop feeling sorry for him!  Anyway, for the better part of thirty minutes, and multiple times at each intersection, this dance would occur.  I stop.  I start and stop.  I jerk the car.  Only to see him try to drink at every intersection.  Now that is faith!

Unlike us, God does not know our faith because He desires to play a prank.  He knows our faith that He might show himself strong on behalf of those who trust in Him.  He knows this faith even before He tests this faith.  Knowing our faith, He desires that faith to grow.  Which requires more testing.  But here is the encouraging thing.  When we are faced with situations beyond our control, we must have faith in a God bigger than our circumstances.  If we do, then we have to have faith that God knows we have that faith.  I didn’t know exactly how much faith my son had in me until I tested it.  Not until a jerked the car countless times did I understand how much faith he had.  However, God knows before the testing comes.  Therefore, any testing is a measure of God's knowledge of how much faith we have and not how much we think we have.

Mercy Must Be Accepted

“Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.” (Mic 7:18 AV)

 

The question that is posed at the beginning of the verse is for our consideration this morning.  The context of the question is the LORD’s undying mercy.  He has promised to pardon all iniquity of the truly penitent.  He has promised to forgive all confessed sins of the child of God.  He will abundantly pardon.  As far as God is concerned, there is no sin a child of God can do that cannot be forgiven.  As long as we are truly repentant and feel sorrow over what we have done, there is nothing which God will not forgive.  This brings us back to the first phrase.  When we attempt to compare unlimited forgiveness, there is no human comparison.  All human relationships have limits on mercy and grace.  Not God.  So, if we struggle with divine forgiveness, it might be caused by not accepting the conclusion of the first phrase.  No one like God infinitely forgives.  Therefore, it simply must be accepted.

I am a golfing enthusiast.  I don’t play well, but when I do, I really enjoy it!  Technology around the game has changed quite a bit over the last fifty years or so.  When I started, there was very little to chose from.  Clubs were what they were.  The design was pretty much the same.  I started golfing right around the time that metal woods came out.  I learned to gold with wooden clubs.  Irons were pretty much the same from one manufacturer to another.  The only real difference might have been an offset head or different styles of groves. Back in my day, the shafts only came in hickory or metal.  As more golfers joined the sport, the industry realized we needed help.  Most of us were slicers or hookers.  It seemed the more golfers on the course, the more risk of personal injury.  So, club manufacturers began to design clubs for the average or below-average player.  They experimented with clubhead weighting, face design, and face pitch.  They rounded the face of the clubhead, added weight to the bottom as opposed to the top, and reduced the etching on the face of the club.  Some clubs even came offset for the most severe of swings.  Drivers were designed with movable weights inside the clubhead.  This was all to make the clubface more forgiving.  These new clubs work to a point.  No club could completely take out all bad mechanics.  There is a limit to how much a club can forgive our faults.

Part of our difficulty is we cannot accept something which we do not understand.  We can understand something or someone that forgives some or most of the time.  We can understand a mother who says she loves us unconditionally.  She may forgive us for much.  But there are limits. With God, there are no limits.  When it comes to His children, there is never too much sin.  When it comes to those who know Christ, forgiveness is boundless.  That is why there is no one like Him.  No God or god forgives like our God.  If that is the case, then when we seek forgiveness, it must be accepted.  It must be accepted without doubt or debate.  IT must be accepted without our efforts to earn it.  It must be accepted to the point we treat our sin the same way our forgiving Father does.  If He has forgiven us and put our sin in the past, then we must too.   We will never fully understand His grace.  We will never comprehend how a holy God can forgive all.  So, we must stop trying and accept it as it is.  The boundless love of God that forgives all!

Not My Rest

“Arise ye, and depart; for this is not your rest: because it is polluted, it shall destroy you, even with a sore destruction.” (Mic 2:10 AV)

 

Israel had made such a mess of their nation that it wasn’t worth inhabiting.  The rest of which the prophet speaks is the rest promised to Abraham, Isaac, and David.  This rest is a rest of righteousness and peace.  A rest wherein the LORD would reign and the people would willingly follow.  A rest wherein all the enemies of God’s people would be subject to the Messiah and warfare would not be a reality.  A rest from all that troubles Israel as a result of man’s wickedness.  A rest where all the inhabitants would know and worship the God of Israel.  This is what God intended when He planted mankind in the garden of Eden.  He intended a rest.  He intended a paradise.  Like Adam and Eve destroyed what God intended and brought a curse on mankind, Israel marred the inheritance God had given them.  They polluted it.  It was time to abandon any hope of cleaning it up and simply leave it.  What we wish to meditate upon this morning is the relation between a polluted rest and the destruction associated with it.

Learning survival skills is important.  In an emergency, it could save your life.  Packing certain items when traveling long distances or hiking in the woods was a skill we learned.  In our emergency pack, we would include things like matches and fire starters, a whistle, extra batteries, a cord, a compact thermal blanket, a fishing line, and a hook, a compass, a collapsable metal cup, and saline tablets.  The last on the list was extremely important.  There are two essentials when lost or injured in the woods.  The first is shelter.  The second is water.  When it comes to water, there are certain things to look for.  Running water is the best.  Running water cannot foster much bacteria.  If the outdoorsman can find running water, he is not so bad off.  Stagnate water is the worst.  A puddle, no matter how clear it may appear, harbors a lot of nasty imperceptible organisms that cause serious illness, it is best to avoid it altogether.  In a pinch, the camper can boil that water and add his salt tablets to purify that water.  That stagnate pool may look pristine, but it is polluted.  It can take a person’s life.

I watch a lot of train rides and flyovers while I study or read.  They are a good distraction if my mind begins to wander.  There are some truly beautiful places on this majestic planet created by the infinitely creative hand of God.  It is a wonder to behold the beauty of this world.  However, it has been polluted.  When I watch those train rides along rivers or lakes, especially in parts of the world where regulations are nonexistent, I am reminded that no matter how beautiful they may appear, chances are, they are not sources of high-quality water.  The point of our meditation is very simple.  The world, no matter how beautiful it may appear to the eyes, has been polluted by the wickedness of mankind.  Even if we see a place that the heart thinks it would be content to settle in, the truth of the matter is, there is still wickedness in every corner.  This filthy world is not our home.  This is not our rest.  The LORD will call us out of here and it would be silly to pursue a rest where there is none.  We need to accept that we live in a fallen world and until we are in glory with our Savior and friend, we will never be completely and wholly content.  I, for one, am glad this is not my rest.  If I don’t pull back my expectations of what this world can do for me, then it will destroy me.

Is Anger a Good Thing?

“Then said the LORD, Doest thou well to be angry?” (Jon 4:4 AV)

 

Surprisingly, sometimes the answer to that question is yes.  Anger is an emotion given by God for the purpose of preservation.  Anger is meant as a reactionary emotion that motivates immediate change.  Sometimes, anger is necessary.  In the situation above, it was completely unjustified.  Jonah was angry God blessed his enemies.  He was angry at the fruit that came from his preaching.  How insanely ironic.  Jonah did not want to go to the capital city of his nation’s enemies. A nation that would invade Israel a generation later.  A nation that harassed their borders and stole their livelihood.  This is to whom Jonah was sent.  The prophet desired judgment on his enemies.  He was angry they repented and judgment was postponed.  Can you imagine?  A preacher who gets mad because sinners get right!  This is the basis for the question above.  What I would like to consider this day is there might be other reasons for which it is not good for us to be angry.  Specifically speaking, it is not good for us to remain angry.

Who hasn’t suffered a self-inflicted wound? All of us have.  I worked in a pizzeria.  I cannot begin to tell you the number of times I have burned myself.  I have scars on my hands and arms from injuries incurred in a factory.  Cuts, burns, etc litter my extremities.  There are a few spots where molten plastic burned my arms or hands and they are permanently discolored.  What happens when we hurt ourselves unexpectedly?  Our immediate response is fear and anger.  What have I done?  Will I live?  How bad is it?  At the exact same time, we are angry that circumstances which we did not plan immediately interrupted our world.  Our situation immediately changed and now I have to gain control.  Our anger, or fear, causes us to run to the first aid station or sink.  The adrenalin rush brought on by anger and or fear is the motivating hormone that causes us to get our situation back under control.  There were several times I ran to the wash sink.  Oil or grease burns were the worst.  They keep burning.  The only solution is to stop the burning process quickly.  Once the injury is address, and our situation returned to a relative state of normalcy, peace came back to our hearts.  There were a few times when I burned myself so badly I had to administer burn cream and warp it up with a bandage.  Back to the ovens, I went.  It did no good to remain angry at the injury.  All that did was to amplify the pain above the task I was to complete.  Best to put the pain in the back of my mind and worry about the duties before me.  In doing so, the pain became less noticeable.

The Bible teaches us to be angry and sin not.  It is ok to be angry.  What is not ok is to remain in anger.  Let not the sun go down upon your wrath.   “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:” (Eph 4:26 AV)  If anger is meant to motivate us to take action that protects us, that which we are stewards of, or that which is important to God, then so be it.  Once an action is taken then anger is meant to abate.  What anger is not allowed to do is seethe.  Once the problem has been addressed, then contentment should replace anger.  Jonah was not right to be angry at the revival of Nineveh.  Because his anger was not righteous anger, he remained.  He was angry at the withering of the gourd.  This shows us his anger lingered.  It was transferred from one set of circumstances to the next. But because the LORD made the connection between the gourd and the repentance of Nineveh, this suggests Jonah’s anger lingered.  Anger, if used properly, can be a good thing.  However, anger that is harbored turns to envy, malice, bitterness, or several other outcomes.  It is not good.

It All Belongs To Him

“And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S.” (Ob 1:21 AV)

 

The last seven verses are our meditation this day.  The kingdom shall be the LORD’s.  The millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ is that to which the prophet is referring.  As we know, the LORD has given the kingdoms of this world over to the influence of Satan.  God is still in control.  However, He has allowed the Devil to work his influence in them.  And, without exception, he has been successful in the fall of every kingdom and nation ever established by the hand of mankind.  This would include Israel.  This would include our own beloved United States.  When the Devil revealed all the kingdoms of the world to our LORD and offered them to him, he wasn’t kidding.  Satan has them in his power.  At least some power.  But the statement above puts this all in perspective.  Although the LORD has allowed Satan a certain level of influence and ownership over the kingdoms of the world, Jesus is coming back and He will control it all.  They shall be the LORD’s and there is nothing Satan or mankind can do about it.

This has been a constant theme throughout the year for me.  One more reminder that no matter what man does, Jesus is returning and taking it all back again.  One of the most traumatic events in my grade school years was when my English teacher stepped out from his classroom for a call and left us students alone.  There was no adult supervision at all.  No secretary.  No parent.  No employee.  I think he thought it was going to be a quick call.  As things go, students left unsupervised devolve into pretty bad behavior.  Our class was no different.  There were conversations that didn’t need to happen.  There was monkey business like throwing pencils into the ceiling to see if they would stick.  There was a spitwad competition or two.  And our favorite game of paper football broke out all across the room.  Me?  I was always a loner.  I was a quiet person who didn’t engage others all that much.  One of my nemeses, who was not liked by most classmates, decided the best way to gain popularity was to pick on the quiet kid.  This he did to his own hurt.  When the class was in an uproar cheering my self-defense techniques on, in walked the teacher.  Immediately the class came under control.  Everything ceases without him uttering a word.  Knowing the situation, he sent my nemesis to the principles and returned me to my seat.  The classroom may have surrendered to the lawless, but only for a time.

This is how we need to look at current events.  Sure, horrible things are going on in the world.  Our own nation has been given over to the ungodly.  And it’s only going to get worse.  We read or watch the news only to hear one more decision by our leadership that takes us further down the road to godlessness.  We do that because the drama of it all stirs our passions.  We get angry and upset over things of which can do anything to change.  We get agitated and irritated not because there is little we can do, but because we have forgotten the LORD will assume control wresting it away from our great adversary.  The kingdom is the LORD’s and He will take it back.  There is nothing that will stop it.

Permission to Sin?

"Come to Bethel, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years:” (Am 4:4 AV)

 

At first glance, it might appear as though the LORD is giving permission or even telling the people of God to go ahead and sin.  The very first phrase says exactly that.  Which should make the reader pause and take note.  Whenever something in scripture seems a bit off, rather than assume a mistake has been made, the diligent saint should sit up, take note, and read more carefully the context of the puzzling statement.  We know God does not accept sin.  In fact, He detests it.  Would He really tell the people of God to exercise themselves in wickedness?  The next verse gives us the answer.   “And offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven, and proclaim and publish the free offerings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.” (Am 4:5 AV)  Again, it seems as though the LORD is encouraging them to act contrary to the law.  Leaven was not permitted as part of the offering.  Leaven was symbolic of false doctrine.  Free offerings were to be done in private.  The last phrase of verse five tells us exactly what is going on here.  The children of Israel wanted it so.

When I served as an altar boy, I saw a lot of hypocrisy.  Not that hypocrisy is exclusive to any one religion.  It is not.  It is just as rampant in the faith of my early years as it is in the faith I hold today.  But it was much more obvious in the faith of my youth.  Time and space would not permit me to tell you of all the experiences I had with ministers of churches who lived one way and proclaimed another.  It would be one thing if they were attempting to overcome their failures while still preaching righteousness.  That is the way of the gospel.  However, too many times I witnessed calloused ministers living exactly like those to whom they served with not desire to be different or set an example for others to follow.  We have all witnessed some depiction of a religious cleric who offers some religious service and then shows this person imbibing with his congregation.  I often get asked by family members if that was how it really was.  Pretty much, yes.

But this hypocrisy is just as prevalent in fundamentalism.  We stand against homosexuality while we support professional sports that celebrate it.  We stand against abortion while we do nothing about the promiscuity in our own pews.  We have the same tendencies of living in sin and covering that sin with our pride-filled sacrifices or service because we love to have it so.  We preach against mixed-gender roles all the while we quote “happy wife, happy life.”  We make our own lives and expect God to bless them.  We have gotten comfortable with a certain level of sin balanced with an equal amount of religion.  As long as the religion balances out the transgression, then we deem ourselves to be OK.  This is what Israel did.  This is what almost all religions do.  This is not acceptable.  This stinks in the nostrils of a holy God.  What is the answer?  God loves obedience and faith far more than He does sacrifice.  Trust the LORD and obey Him in all things.  That is the answer.  To do any less is to offend the One who we claim we are worshipping. 

Uncertain Blessings Are Still Worth Pursuing

“Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?” (Joe 2:14 AV)

 

There is some disagreement regarding this verse.  Even among Hebrew scholars.  They do not agree on who is leaving the blessing behind him.  Some read it as the backslidden nation of Israel.  Others, God.  I am of the latter opinion.  The verses before it encourage backsliding Israel to repent and the reason for repentance is found in verse 14.  That God might return from His current direction of harsh judgment for Israel’s sin.  Some might point to the second half of the verse and wonder why the LORD would leave a meat or drink offering.  The same school of thought that believes this is God repenting and returning read this to mean that God would leave behind him the means for the penitent people to offer meat and drink offerings to the LORD.  The point Joel is making is that if we walk with God, there is a chance He will bless and provide the means by which we might worship and serve Him.

I have seen estranged children wonder if returning to their parents would result in acceptance and love.  I have seen these estranged children assume they will never be treated with unconditional love.  They remain estranged because they falsely believe they have erred to the point they can never be loved again.  There are several which come to mind.  One such family had a daughter.  She grew up in a Christian home.  This young lady had begun the life of promiscuity while still under her father’s roof.  Mom and dad both shared their disappointment.  Yet, their daughter could not stop.  She left home in the arms of one of her lovers only to bounce around from one relationship to another.  When I met her, she has repented of her wicked life and was living with some girlfriends.  She was part of our singles class.  In speaking with her, we encouraged her to re-establish her relationship with her parents.  Although she was on her own, she struggled rather adversely in the circumstances she created.  She needed help.  She needed support.  She needed guidance.  She made an assumption she would not know for certain unless she re-connected with her parents.  She cut herself off from potential love and compassion because she assumed there was no more grace for her.

Whatever our reasons, we are foolish to think God will not change His course of direction if we do so ourselves.  There is always hope.  God’s grace is infinite.  God’s mercy is everlasting.  When we estrange ourselves from the presence of God, He must deal with it.  But that does not imply He has permanently cut us off.  In fact, the Bible teaches us quite the opposite.  To the contrite and broken-hearted, God loves them with an everlasting love beyond our comprehension.  As to the blessing?  Only God knows what He has prepared for those who return.  It may not be much.  It may not be hardly anything at all.  Or, it may be a treasure trove of restoration for the purpose of serving Him!  What a promise!  The question is one we should ask ourselves.  Who knoweth if he will…leave a blessing behind Him?

Never Completely Destroyed

“O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help.” (Ho 13:9 AV)

 

What a verse of encouragement!  Hosea is the prophet to a failed Ephraim.  The ten northern tribes are about to fall to the Assyrians (modern-day Iran).  Assyria would come, invade the territory, and carry off a vast majority of the Hebrew population back to Nineveh.  The book of Hosea is fourteen chapters, so this verse appears towards the end of the book.  After hearing much correction and warning, the LORD saw fit to give them a light at the end of a coming tunnel.  They would suffer for their disobedience.  Even their condition is not fully understood until they go through the invasion and captivity.  Israel did to herself what almost all of us do.  She destroyed herself.  She refused to live in faith and obedience to God.  This faith and obedience are the means of blessings from God.  Not just because He desires to bless, but because that is how creation is organized.  Israel, like us all, has decided they want to live in their own sin and pragmatism.  This inevitably leads to destruction.  The good news is, even though we may destroy ourselves, God is still our help.

Coming to a place of ruin is more than disheartening.  It is devastating.  In my few years of working as a school bus driver, driving the little ones was my greatest pleasure.  My first route was to pick up special needs kids and drop them off at a special school.  Then my next two routes were pre-K children.  Picking them up to go to a half-day school, then dropping them back off at home.  The last route was the special needs children which I dropped off at home.  Both sets of children were precious.  But it was those pre-K children who were a ton of fun!  We did special days on our bus.  One, in particular, was a baseball fan day.  I had half who wore White Sox stuff (yuk) and the other half, Cubs (Yeah).  On my bus were these two young boys who were best friends.  They were inseparable.  They sat together, they played together, they participated together.  The thing about young children is they can be very temperamental.  Anything can set them off.  So, we spent our time singing silly songs to keep their mind off their trouble long enough to get them home.  One afternoon, I picked up the children and they had made a special art project to send home.  These two boys were having fun and one of the boys ripped his project.  He was devastated.  It was his own fault for not watching what he was doing, but to him, his whole world fell apart.  There was nothing I could do to calm him down.  The only word of encouragement I could share is that I knew his daddy and his daddy could work miracles.  His daddy would fix it better than new.  Dad was at the stop and I told him to story.  His daddy affirmed that he could fix his son’s project better than it was before.  That was all this young man needed.  He had destroyed something of which he has spent time and emotion to make, and his hope was not in what he could do, but what his daddy could do.

When I read the verse above, I am immensely encouraged.  Sometimes we think we have made one too many wrong choices.  Whether it be sin, or lack of wisdom, or weak faith, we make those decisions and suffer the consequences.  We go to our knees and confess our sin.  But in the back of our minds, we think we have made way too many bad choices that even God cannot fix it all.  Let us consider Israel.  Carried off into captivity, the ten northern tribes have been mostly scattered throughout the world for almost twenty-five hundred years.  They rejected Christ the first time and have suffered great tragedy because of it.  One would think through all the wrong moves and lack of faith, there would be no future for Israel.  Yet, they are back in the land and following the reign of the Antichrist, we begin anew in the millennial reign of Christ a fully restored nation.  If God can do that with a nation, He can do that with a person.  We may have destroyed our lives, He is always our help.

Loving Corn More Than Clods

“And Ephraim is as an heifer that is taught, and loveth to tread out the corn; but I passed over upon her fair neck: I will make Ephraim to ride; Judah shall plow, and Jacob shall break his clods.” (Ho 10:11 AV)

 

This verse needs a little explaining before we can apply it.  Ephraim is another name for the ten northern tribes of Israel.  Judah and Jacob are other names for the two southern tribes.  The fact Ephraim loves to tread out the corn is not a good thing here.  She has a fair neck which means it was not used under the heavier burden of plowing and breaking clods.  According to the law, when the ox treads out the corn, the husbandman was not to muzzle him.  This afforded the ox the privilege to enjoy the fruits of his labor.  He ate as he went.  This made the task of treading out the corn an enjoyable one.  The prophet is comparing the ten northern tribes against the two southern tribes as it applies to the hard work of spiritual growth versus the fruit that comes by it.  The warning to Ephraim is because they preferred the blessings that came of spiritual work at the hands of others and did not yield the neck to the yoke of hard labor, she would ride away. Or, putting it another way, she would be carried off to Assyria and suffer for her spiritual laziness.

You know that guy!  That guy that shows up after all the work is done offers to help, but since there is nothing left to do, he sits down, enjoys the pizza, and goes home thinking he did his part.  Remember those work days?  Or, there is that child who notices the family is gathered in the kitchen helping mom put together a meal and when all the work is done, he carries a plate to the table and thinks he has done a great chore.  He sits down and enjoys the labor of others when he did little to contribute.  All the prep work that goes into a successful harvest far outweighs the harvest itself.  Having noticed this in my years of living in the agricultural culture, I noticed the time, equipment, and effort to prep a field and plant it took much more than harvesting.  There is the bushhogging to start off a field.  All those pesky little trees that grew up over the last few years have to come done.  Then there is the initial plowing and gathering of all those cutting that are gathered and burned.  Then there is the disking and re-disking.  Following that are chemical treatments to balance out the soil.  There is a gathering of rocks and piling them.  There is initial irrigation.  Then, after about two to three months of prep work, a crop is planted.  This may only take a few days.  When the harvest comes, only about one-fourth the time and effort are required to harvest.  It goes rather quickly.  All the hard work comes at the beginning.  Not at the end.

We want to enjoy the blessings of spiritual life without the hard work that goes into it.  For Ephraim, they wanted to enjoy the blessings of the law that others were following without following it themselves.  They ate the fruit that Judah’s repentance and obedience afforded the nation without doing so themselves.  We have that is churches all across our nations.  Saints who enjoy the preaching and ministry provided by the faith and obedience of others while unwilling to dedicate themselves to holiness and faith.  We want to enjoy the fruits that come from the work the preacher puts into his sermons without doing the hard work of devotions, study, and meditation.  We want more people to come to church and rejoice when they do, but do not participate in soul-winning or inviting those who we know.  We sit in our pews and soak up the efforts of others with a clear conscience while we do little to produce that which we enjoy.  Ephraim was unethical at best.  At worst, they took for granted what others did for them and refused to join in the hard spiritual work which produced the fruit which they loved.  For this, God removed them.  Because they enjoyed the fruits of spiritual blessings provided by others while living in disobedience, God put them under bondage until they learned to labor in spiritual matters.

Precaution Does Not Replace Faith

“The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD.” (Pr 21:31 AV)

 

For me, this verse has particular application this morning.  Note this verse does not prohibit amassing horses against the day of battle.  This is wise and prudent.  Solomon had a good deal of horses and chariots.  His father before him amassed weapons of war.  This is not the wrong thing to do.  And, this is not what Solomon is indicating.  There is a balance here.  The word of God tells us to be wise and prudent.  Scripture indicates we should do everything we can to be responsible and safe.  This is true for a nation.  This is true for an individual.  We put locks on our doors.  We take vitamins or medication.  We put up fences, handrails, and anti-skid coatings.  We do all this to protect what God has given as an exercise of good stewardship.  However, to be naïve to think all our precautions can keep us safe without the hand of God is not realistic.  God could, if He so desired, keep us from all conceivable harm that we would not have to take any precaution.  He could organize the economy of the world that no matter what we did, or failed to do, we would not see any harm.  But that is not how the LORD organized it all.  He expects us to learn responsibility and FAITH!

Who hasn’t been afflicted by a bully or two?  It is almost a right of passage. I have had a lion’s share of it.  Praise the LORD I didn’t have a dad who made me completely fight my own battles.  He wanted us to learn how to defend ourselves.  He couldn't be there for every incident.  But he wasn’t the kind of dad who refused to come to his son’s defense if the need arose.  This was such the case in our neighborhood.  There were a few times the neighborhood punks took advantage of us.  Even to the point of physical beatings.  We would travel in pairs or trios.  We would avoid certain streets.  We would ride our bikes everywhere we could.  We would get to know friends in the neighborhood.  However, from time to time, no matter how careful we were, trouble found us.  When we could come home a bit bruised, my father would hop in the car and cruise around looking for our adversaries.  On one such occasion, we had found them, followed them, and my father confronted parents warning of police involvement if they didn’t harness their children.  No matter how careful we were, we knew our father had us covered.

Whether it is a medical issue or a car issue, we can do what we can do and should do, to ensure the best possible outcome.  We carry insurance.  We eat right.  We exercise.  We get plenty of rest.  However, no matter what we do, we cannot prevent everything.  This is where faith comes in.  Carry that insurance.  Take care of yourself.  Balance that checkbook.  But in the end, the outcome is in the hand of God.  We cannot live without faith.  This is why God created man.  He created us to live according to faith in Him.  To do any less is to fail in our purpose.  When those safeguards fail, how do we feel?  Is God in control or isn’t He?  Will He counter the offensive and bring victory another way?  Will He remain faithful when we have done our best to be good stewards?  Will He meet us in the time of need when the horses have been hewn or the chariots were broken apart?  Will He rescue when the precautions fail?  According to Solomon, that is exactly how we should approach every battle.  We have resources.  But those resources are no guarantee.  God is our defense.  And, our faith should settle there.

A Door Of Hope

“And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.” (Ho 2:15 AV)

 

What a verse!  Let me give a bit of context here.  The prophet is comparing what happened in the past with what will occur for Israel in the future.  The subject is Israel.  The promise is from God to provide a way by which Israel can return to her land and prosper physically and spiritually.  She will return much like she did when she escaped Egypt.  She stared in Palestine under Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  She fled into Egypt because she lacked faith. This caused her to become enslaved in Egypt for over 400 years.  When she returned, she came to the valley of Achor. So named after Achan, the man who cursed Israel due to his lust and materialism.  After God judged Achan and his family at the valley of Achor, He blessed her and gave her great victories from that time forward.  At the time of the writing of this book, the ten northern tribes were warned of the invasion of Assyria for their idolatry.  They would be carried away into captivity.  This warning did not come without a promise of restoration.  As Israel returned from Egypt, they would return from Babylon.  As Israel returned from Babylon, they will return from the wilderness when Jesus comes back.  That door has been open on three separate occasions.  This door of hope is a hope of reconciliation with a God whom we have offended.

I have had a few opportunities to minister to inmates.  There have been a few times when I went to a local jail to encourage a saint who had gotten themselves in serious trouble.  I cannot even imagine what it must be like to hear those iron bars close behind you as you are locked in for the night.  One of the jails I went to was different than others that I have visited.   It was a small county lockup.  Really small.  The building was no bigger than an average house.  When I met with the inmate, there was a clear view from his perspective of the front entrance.  Every time he had a visitor, his eyes were focused on the entryway behind his visitor.  Glass doors revealed freedom beyond those doors.  Other views only showed more confinement.  The yard.  The depot.  Maintenance.  But the front entrance was all about freedom.  That door was a door of hope.  A way back to a better life improved by the lessons learned inside.  That door of hope made the sentence feel all that much shorter.  As long as he could see the sunlight through those glass doors, each day was bearable.

We have a door of hope.  We don’t have to stay in prison.  Our door of hope is found in 1Jo 1:9 and Heb 4:16.  Our door of hope has one word on it.  Mercy.  On the side posts, there appears grace and forgiveness.  This door of hope goes through the valley of Achor.  The valley where that which offends God has been dealt with.  The valley of Achor where that which displeases God dies off and is buried.  The valley of Achor where lays the sins of God’s people and to the west lies a door.  The door of hope where once again, the saint can live in liberty and joy.  He can do so because he knows his God has absolved the saint of all sin and has restored him to full fellowship among the trinity.  This door of hope is never closed.  It is always open.  All it takes is for the believer to desire to walk through.

It Still Goes On

“And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.” (Da 12:9 AV)

 

This is good advice.  For Daniel and us.  Daniel received a vision of all the kingdoms that would afflict Israel until the coming of Christ.  The purpose of the book of Daniel is to reassure Israel through one occupation after another that the Messiah will come and restore the kingdom promised to Israel.  The book of Daniel does not mention those kingdoms or nations which sought worldwide dominance if they did not afflict Palestine.  China, Germany, or Japan are not mentioned because they did not occupy Palestine while Israel was a nation.  Only those kingdoms which invaded Israel are of concern.  Daniel receives visions of what will occur in the latter days just prior to Christ’s first coming, and what will transpire during the tribulation period.  Some of what is mentioned in chapters ten and eleven have already occurred and were meant to point Israel to her Savior.  Some have yet to be fulfilled.  The point the LORD is making to Daniel is to him, all those things are future and he would never see them.  So, go your way and continue your ministry because what will happen is closed and sealed until the time appointed of the LORD.

I know I have mentioned this before, but I worked in a factory that had changed hands several times.  Twice, to be exact.  Without leaving the building, over seven years, I worked for three different companies.  The first changeover was rather traumatic.  It was the first time for many employees in a situation like this.  Many details were unknown.  Who would be retained and who would be terminated was the biggest concern.  Benefits and vacation time were also a concern.  Change of personnel, assignments, or policy entertained the mind.  Many questions.  The one constant was the date of transfer.  In one case, we found out after the fact.  The other time, we knew ahead of time when the transfer of ownership was to happen.  The only constant through these transitions was the order from our customers that needed to be filled.  It didn’t matter whose name was on the building, the lines had to run, the product had to go out, and orders shipped.  All the anxiety regarding the future did not change the duties of the present.  The business still had to function.  Putting it another way, when the LORD opened the door for me to leave my secular employment and go into ministry full-time, there was a lag time.  I knew two or three months prior that I was leaving.  This didn’t change my duties.  My heart may have been turned more towards my calling, but the lines still had to run.

One of the first books I purchased after Jesus saved me was Will Jesus Return in 1984?.  Obviously, He did not.  Then I read Late Great Planet Earth.  I wanted to know all about the end times.  I loaded about a half-dozen end-time websites to keep up on events as they pointed to Christ’s return.  As websites and the internet expanded, this number only grew.  The highest I ever got was twenty-four.  That is twenty-four separate websites dedicated to end-time prophecy in the news.  A bit excessive, don’t you think?  I was no prophecy scholar by any stretch of the imagination.  I couldn’t tell you who the Antichrist will be or who the two witnesses will be.  But there is a working knowledge of the basics.  God gave Daniel extensive knowledge of end-time events.  When all was said and done, however, it was the day-to-day ministry that took priority.  I knew a few dear saints that are up on the latest prediction.  They have their favorite TV prophet or author that has the latest and best.  They are so taken by the subject they are of little use in any other ministry.  Souls still need saving today!  There are hurting believers who still need a shoulder today.  There is nothing we can do to hasten the coming of Christ nor can events pointing to it cease our present duties.  The line still has to run.  The product still has to go out.  There are still orders to fill.  So, go thy way.

Don't Fret; It's Ours

“And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.” (Da 7:27 AV)

 

There is great angst among God’s people over the condition of our world and nation.  We see troubling trends that do not bode well for the gospel.  We see laws and our culture changing to satisfy the wicked and perverse.  We see liberty to share our faith with others coming into conflict with the rulers that be.  It seems like the whole world has gone completely crazy.  We wonder how much longer this world will continue to head in the direction it is until things change to glorify God.  We erroneously think that we can effect change by way of a voting booth.  This will never happen.  The most prosperous and wicked kingdom in the entire history of mankind came by way of the voting booth.  Rome rose to heights by a government somewhat like our own.  Yet, wickedness was her downfall.  We want righteousness.  We want purity.  We want all the temptations of the flesh removed from the marketplace.  We want the sanctity of marriage and family honored in the manner which God intended.  What we need to keep in mind is that which we desire is not of this world.  It will come.  But it will only come by the return of Jesus Christ.

Growing up in the wintery climate of western NY, playing in the snow was a normal activity.  One year, for Christmas, our parents got us these plastic snow brick makers.  It was open-ended on one side with a handle on the opposite side.  Perhaps six inches by six inches by twelve inches or so, these red plastic molds made the perfect snow bricks.  As we played, we had to share these molds with our siblings.  Over the years, the elder children learned a sneaky way of getting what they wanted.  They helped their younger siblings build their ‘fort’ with the understanding the younger would later help them build theirs.  This project often spanned several days.  The elder siblings never became anxious or envious at the forts of their younger siblings.  They knew what was coming.  The younger siblings had little imagination and tired easily.  After a few short hours, forts of the younger siblings were built, and on to the mansions that awaited the elder sibling’s we went.  The elders had an eye on what will be.  Not on what is.  The younger sibling built their forts in the front yard.  The elders in the back.  They knew there was more room and snow than the front.  They knew they had time and resources.  What the younger children concocted would not even be compared to what their imaginations dreamt of.  Their kingdom awaited and it was far better than what smaller minds could plan.

Israel and the church have a promise.  This promise is of a coming kingdom with Christ as her sole head.  This kingdom will be established in righteousness and true holiness.  No more crime.  No more sodomy.  No more disrespect to the One true God.  No more persecution.  No more war.  No more hunger.  No more wickedness.  This kingdom is promised to the saints.  There are no amount of arms or voting that can usher in the kingdom.  At least not from our efforts.  To waste emotional and spiritual equity working for, and trying to hasten the promise, only diverts our attention away from the task at hand.  We are to be the light that shines in a dark place.  The light of hope in a dark world.  We are to spread the love of Christ to anyone willing to accept it.  Read that verse above and know God will not go back on His word.  The world to come is far better than anything we could ever establish.  Wait on Jesus!  He is coming back and no one will vote Him out of office!  Glory!