Call Their Bluff!

“Now it came to pass, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the LORD had commanded [him] to speak unto all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the people took him, saying, Thou shalt surely die.  Why hast thou prophesied in the name of the LORD, saying, This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate without an inhabitant? And all the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of the LORD.” (Jer 26:8,9 AV) Then Jeremiah said…  “As for me, behold, I [am] in your hand: do with me as seemeth good and meet unto you. But know ye for certain, that if ye put me to death, ye shall surely bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants thereof: for of a truth the LORD hath sent me unto you to speak all these words in your ears. Then said the princes and all the people unto the priests and to the prophets; This man [is] not worthy to die: for he hath spoken to us in the name of the LORD our God.” (Jer 26:14-16 AV)

Sometimes all it takes is calling the Devil’s bluff!  Big words, no action!  The people, priests, and prophets tried to intimidate the man of God into silence.  All he did was tell them it wouldn’t change his calling!  If there were going to kill him, they were going to kill him!  He wasn’t daring them to kill him.  He was simply accepting it as a possibility and that if he was, he had a clear conscience.  If they were going to kill him, he could face the LORD knowing he did his job.  They would be the ones to have to account to the LORD for the murder of His prophet.

We give up way to easy!  We compromise way too soon!  I say we do what we should do and suffer whatever consequences may come our way!  If the devil threatens our liberty or life, so be it.  He was going to take it anyway. Better we stand and call his bluff.  If he is bluffing, we might just get him to back off.  The world is the same.  Sue us! What can you possibly do.  The only reason the world persecutes the believer is because it gains it something.  If there is no gain, then it stops.

Time to grow a bit of a backbone!  Time to call the bluff!  Time to say we are not afraid to suffer for the cause of Christ!  Time to say that eternity, and not the world, is the final say in all that matters!

Maybe?

“Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah.” (Jer 1:14-15 AV)

Could we be seeing a precursor to a fulfilment of prophecy happening right before our eyes?  The President of the United States will be, or has already, recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel with plans to move his embassy there.  What if other nations follow?  Would this be a fulfillment of the passage above?  If so, how close are we to the return of the LORD?  Perhaps in our lifetime?

When I was younger, prophecy held no interest to me.  I saw way too much arbitrary interpretation and application of it and enough arguments between prophecy buffs to dissuade me from taking it seriously.  However, there is crown promised to those who have a passion for the return of the LORD to His kingdom.  “Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” (2Ti 4:8 AV)

Now, there have been many speculations that have definitely not been a fulfilment of prophecy.  The most notable was the EU as the ten-nation confederation.  They are way beyond ten.  There was the RCC being the one world religion.  Yet, they are not the largest religious organization in the world and Ishmael’s descendants will never convert.  So, could the above verses be a prophecy of the recognizing of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel?  Maybe not.  But just perhaps maybe it is!

Satisfaction Guaranteed

“He shall see of the travail of his soul, [and] shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.” (Isa 53:11 AV)

The Bible clearly tells us the LORD is not pleased with the death of the wicked.  He would much rather save the wicked than to damn them.  Yet, He is satisfied.  He is satisfied with the knowledge He did what He could to save them.  He is satisfied that His soul was in travail.  He is satisfied there was no greater act of love that could have been shown and every opportunity to repent and receive would be offered to them.  He is satisfied!

There is another way to look at it, too.  Even if only one person accepted Christ, He would have been satisfied.  That shows the value of the individual soul to the LORD Jesus Christ.  He is not a numbers guy.  He is not pessimistic that unless all come to Him, His death meant little.  Sure, the LORD’s heart breaks at the thought of any soul who rejects Him.  But equally so, He is satisfied at the prospect of each individual who does come to Him!

As preachers, we could learn a lot from this attitude.  Sometimes we allow ourselves to focus on the failures and fail to see the successes.  If we are pure numbers guys, then we are all failures.  Less come to Christ then those who don’t.  And significantly so.  Less walk with God when they do get saved than those who don’t walk with God.  Less surrender for service than those who don’t.  At His death, Christ only had three!  One disciple and two ladies.  Yet, He hung on the Cross satisfied!  As long as we do all that we can do, then we should be satisfied.  Otherwise, we are telling those who are faithful that they are not enough!

Law is Honorable

“The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness’ sake; he will magnify the law, and make [it] honourable.” (Isa 42:21 AV)

Just because mankind has ignored the laws of God doesn’t mean the LORD has.  It may take some time, but the LORD will make His law relevant again.

There is an interesting phenomenon occurring in our nation.  Sexual harassment is all over the place. At least those being accused of it are.  It started with accusations leveled against a very conservative senatorial candidate from the state of Alabama.  The left went after him with all sorts of accusations.  Mostly false.  However, this tactic has backfired.  Now, the perverts on the left are being outed.  From a famous movie director to a leftist news-anchor to a well-loved congressman, this accusation is far reaching and broad.  Intended to sink professing Christians and conservatives, it seems the left is guiltier of the very thing which they are trying to pin on their competition.  It just goes to show the truth of the verse above.  God’s law is supreme and no one is above it.

This should really strike some fear into our hearts.  Fear that the LORD will not hide nor relax the law no matter who we are.  The law will be honorable again.  The law will be pre-eminent.  The law will be magnified so that mankind will be subject to it again.  No exceptions.  No do overs.  No bending of the rules to accommodate individual liberty.  The law will be honorable again.  It will be a good thing.  A right thing. A righteous thing.  A thing to be admired and followed.

One can tell a lot about himself by how he looks at the law.  Does he see it as an obstruction or inconvenience?  Does he see it as a duty?  Or, does he see it as something honorable which should be pursued?  It is that third level which we should aspire to!

An Equal Opportunity Condition

“To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him? The workman melteth a graven image, and the goldsmith spreadeth it over with gold, and casteth silver chains. He that [is] so impoverished that he hath no oblation chooseth a tree [that] will not rot; he seeketh unto him a cunning workman to prepare a graven image, [that] shall not be moved.” (Isa 40:18-20 AV)

What first struck me was the term impoverished.  In fact, they are so impoverished.  At first glance, taking the verse by itself, I thought that poverty might be a cause for idolatry.  If a person is poor, maybe they are more apt to fall into unbelief or sin.  However, the previous verse states the wealthy do the same.  Their idols are of precious metals.  The impoverished make their idols out of wood.  Both make them.  Idolatry and sin are not relegated to one class above the next.  Sin and unbelief is an equal opportunity condition.

There is a program that has caught the imagination of this country.  It is called Live PD.  A program that follows different law enforcement agencies throughout the country.  What fascinates most is the complete lack of reality on the part of most perps.  A total disconnect from the world around them.  Their logic is at the fourth-grade level.  There is no moral compass.  No brain processes.  No reality.  One wonders how they got that way.  It was and still is, sin.  Then, we compare the professionalism of the police against those with whom they are dealing and assume the police are completely moral and normal.  This is not true.  The drug addict may worship his substance. But the law-abiding citizen has his idols, too.  That police officer, no matter how professional he may be, is still a sinner in need of redemption!

This should change the way we look at people.  It doesn’t matter how well they are dressed or how poorly they appear.  They are lost and without Christ.  It doesn’t matter if the are addicted to crack or a Starbucks latte, they are in need of Christ.  It doesn’t matter if they earn six figures or are on food stamps, they need Christ!  All men everywhere need Christ!

No Celebrities at Calvary

“Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we [him] no more.” (2Co 5:16 AV)

The context here is the ambassadorship of every believer to the lost around them.  Paul is saying he no longer sees men as he once did.  He does not know them after the manner of flesh, but rather, as they all are – lost souls in need of Christ.  He no longer interacts with men as society would demand.  He respects men for their position’s sake, but he does not idolize them or revere them to the point of being unable to witness to them.  Just as he can no longer consider the LORD Jesus in the manner in which he knew him – in the flesh – he can no longer see others as he once saw them.  Jesus Christ is not glorified.  He no longer retains the limit human body He once inhabited.  Paul can no longer know Jesus Christ after the flesh.  But as He is – the King of kings and LORD of lords – the only wise potentate!

It is interesting what happens when the saint walks with God.  We are not all that impressed with the fame of man.  Years ago, my sons and I caddied at an exclusive golf club.  In doing so, we had the privilege of meeting and working for some very well-known golfers.  Luke Donald, Phil Mickelson, Jim Lovell, and a retired Chicago Bears football player were the most well-known.  There were others.  A part owner of the Cleveland Browns, a top executive with CBS, and enough multi-millionaires to shake a stick at.  However, the longer one caddies for these men, the more one realizes they are not all that much different than anyone else.  They are still a soul for whom Christ died.

I don’t know if the LORD was able to use me to reach any of them.  Yet, one thing I always mentioned.  When they asked of my family and occupation, I readily told them I was a bi-vocational Baptist pastor who worked with folks in the inner-city.  It gave an open door to witness to them.  Who knows what the LORD did with the few years at the club?  One thing is for sure, we can no longer know men after the flesh.  After the spirit, yes.  After the flesh, no.

Turn On The LIGHT!

“For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.” (Lu 2:30-32 AV)

A wonderful description of the ministry of Christ!  A light!  A light gives hope and direction.   A light illuminates the dark, ridding the soul of all fears.  A light gives warmth is a cold, dark, and foreboding world.  If the days or nights seem hopeless, a sole candle in the middle of the room gives an air of comfort.  Jesus is that light that lightens the Gentiles.

I was seventeen years old and the LORD turned my world upside down.  Moving away from all my friends and working more hours that a senior in high school should, I soon found myself confused and with no purpose in life.  Having attended three different high schools, it soon become awfully lonely.  With teachers and counselors pressuring me to come up with a plan for life, there was nothing on the horizon that gave any answers.  It was so bad, I was toying with ending it all.

Then a miracle happened.  Someone at work began to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.  At first, I rejected it because it went contrary to what I had always believed.  I had always believed it took effort on my part, good works so to speak, in order to go to heaven and have a relationship with God.  The Bible says something completely different.  After months of wrestling with what to do with Christ, the Holy Spirit was successful in convicting my heart and encouraging me to put all my trust and faith in Jesus Christ and Him alone!  Praise be to God.

Finally, there was a peace like I had never experienced before.  There was hope!  The LORD had as yet given me a direction and specific purpose in life, but with the communication lines now open, it would only be a matter of time until the LORD did so for me!  There was a light at the end of the tunnel.  Soon, the tunnel wouldn’t even exist!  He is that light!  Trust Him today!