God Values "Ordinary" People - By Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org
So, Israel was reduced to starvation by the Midianites. Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help. -Judges 6:6
John Wesley said, "Give me a hundred men who love God with all their hearts and fear nothing but sin, and I will move the world."
God effectively changed a culture through one man named Gideon who was willing to stand in the gap and make a difference. Gideon wasn't perfect, but God saw potential in him. He made it into the exclusive list of courageous men and women in Hebrews 11 who put their faith into action.
What I find interesting about Hebrews 11, the Heroes' Hall of Faith, is that God never mentions their sins. He tells us about their accomplishments through faith, but He never mentions their flaws or their shortcomings (although other verses do).
Gideon's world was messed up. It had been two hundred years since Israel had seen the walls of Jericho fall by the power of God. Things had changed because they didn't finish the job. God told Israel to drive out the inhabitants of Canaan, and Israel obeyed partially. As a result, the Canaanites had come back and grown stronger. Ultimately they were ruling over them.
The Israelites were devastated. They were hungry, hurting, and humiliated, and they started calling on God. He sent His answer in the form of Gideon. God goes out of His way to find ordinary people so that He gets the glory.
When we look at someone like Gideon, it gives hope to those of us who are on the ordinary side. God often will use the unqualified to do the unexpected. The Lord can change the world with an ordinary person who will say, "Lord, I am willing to be that person." Will you step forward? God can do a lot with a little. God can do a lot with you.
A Heart for God A Vision for the World
Acts 13:16-22I sometimes like to walk through a cemetery and read the epitaphs on the tombstones. It's interesting to see what words are used to sum up a person's life. This may seem like a morbid pastime, but it's actually a great way to reassess our own lives. We're each going to leave a testimony of some kind when we die. Have you ever wondered what your loved ones will write on your gravestone? What words do you want inscribed there?
In our passage today, the apostle Paul tells us God's evaluation of David: He described him as "a man after My heart, who will do all My will" (v. 22). What an awesome testimony of a life well lived! The Lord wasn't describing a perfect man, but one whose life was centered on God's interests and desires.
David's many psalms attest to the fact that his relationship with the Lord was the most important aspect of his life. His passion was to obey God and carry out His will. However, that doesn't mean he was always obedient. Who can forget his failure with Bathsheba? But even when he sinned by committing adultery and murder, his heart was still bent toward God. The conviction he felt and his humble repentance afterward proved that his relationship with the Lord was still his top priority.
If God was writing a summary of your life, how would He describe you? Does your heart align with His, or have you let it follow the pleasures and pursuits of this world? Unless we diligently pursue our relationship with the Lord, we will drift away from Him. Maybe it's time for a course correction.
Snares
“Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.” (1 Timothy 3:7)
A snare is a trap normally used to catch an unwary wild animal, but each of the five times the word (Greek pagis) is used in the New Testament, it refers to devices used by the great deceiver, Satan, to trap unwary human beings.
There is, first of all, the snare of worldly involvement. “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth” (Luke 21:34-35).
There is the snare of rejecting God’s Word, both the written Word and the living Word. When Israel repudiated Christ, God said: “Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompence unto them” (Romans 11:9, quoting Psalm 69:22). The desire for riches can be a snare. “They that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition” (1 Timothy 6:9).
Satan has many other “devices” (2 Corinthians 2:11) by which he seeks “an advantage of us.” Not even “bishops” or other full-time Christian ministers are immune, for our text is a warning to prospective bishops against “the snare of the devil.” It is the responsibility of every true “servant of the Lord” to be “gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves . . . that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will” (2 Timothy 2:24-26). We must both avoid Satan’s snares ourselves and seek to deliver those who have been thus ensnared. HMM
The Christian's Lifestyle: Our Behavior
“This I say . . . that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk.” (Ephesians 4:17)
This succinct command quickly is followed by a sweeping description of the impotent mind of the Gentiles of that day in contrast to the utterly changed condition of the believer (whether Jew or Gentile). The non-Christian Gentiles had a darkened perceptive ability, rendering them alienated because of the ignorance that was in them, and an overall blindness of their heart that was the root cause of their inability to function, even to feel, in the same way as the children of God (Ephesians 4:18-19; compare Romans 1:21-32; 2 Corinthians 4:3-4).
The saint of God, however, is told to discard the old man and to put on the new man (Ephesians 4:20-24), as though that simple picture of a powerful reality is adequate instruction to fulfill the earlier command. No longer is the child of God to be corrupted by the deceitful lusts of his or her old condition, but having learned Christ and been taught by Him is to be renewed in the spirit of their mind. A transformation is now possible through the new mental (intellectual, spiritual) abilities given to us by Christ (Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 2:16).
The new man, which we are responsible to wear like a body-enveloping cloak, is created for us by the omniscient Creator in righteousness and true holiness. We have been given a specially created new man to wear (externally visible), which will show (exhibit, demonstrate, make clear) the spiritual difference between the Gentiles and the saints of God.
The 17 commands that follow (Ephesians 4:24-5:7) address every aspect of the Christian walk, all relating to a lifestyle of truth, giving specific contrast between the unbelieving Gentile and the saint. HMM III
Things to Keep
“And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.” (Matthew 19:17)
The two main Greek words for “keep” in the New Testament both mean more than just “obey,” though this meaning is certainly included. They also mean “guard” and “preserve.” We are thus told by Christ, in our text above, to guard and obey God’s commandments.
The same urgent command to keep what God has given is applied to many other entities in Scripture. For example, Paul stresses that we are to “keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called” (1 Timothy 6:20). In other words, false science (evolution) and vain babbling (humanistic philosophies) will seek to destroy the tenets of God’s truth, so we must always be diligent to guard and protect these truths.
Each person is also urged to “keep himself unspotted from the world” and to “keep thyself pure” (James 1:27; 1 Timothy 5:22). The forces of darkness make perpetual attacks against the spiritual and moral integrity of the Christian, so we must constantly be alert to protect ourselves against their enticements. Then, we must also endeavor “to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3) and to “keep yourselves in the love of God” (Jude 1:21), for the enemy will continually try to sow discord and bitterness among God’s people.
There are many verses that stress the keeping of His commandments (e.g., John 14:15) and the keeping of His words (e.g., 1 John 2:5). Finally, in the very last chapter of the Bible, the Lord sums it all up, as it were, when He promises: “Blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book” (Revelation 22:7). HMM
| Tragic Ignorance “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.” (Romans 10:3) There are several important doctrinal truths about which unbelievers—and sometimes even Christians—seem tragically ignorant, with an ignorance affecting their very lives and destinies. Perhaps the most tragic is that mentioned in our text. Paul was writing specifically of the Jews, but the same ignorance is found in countless others—people who seek to earn salvation by their own religious and moral works rather than through faith in the imputed righteousness of Christ, who died for their sins. There is also widespread ignorance concerning death and life beyond the grave. “I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14). With respect to Christian life and ministry, Paul says: “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant” (1 Corinthians 12:1). Yet, most Christians neglect to develop or use their gifts, mainly because of ignorance concerning their proper function as described in 1 Corinthians 12, 14; Romans 12:3-21; Ephesians 4:7-16, and other key passages. We urgently also need to be instructed concerning the deceptions of the wicked one: “Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices” (2 Corinthians 2:11). For all who seek instruction rather than ignorance, let them study God’s Word, for “all scripture . . . is profitable for . . . instruction in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). HMM |
“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13)
The spiritual life of Solomon can, to a great degree, be traced through his writings as recorded in the Bible. They are not straightforward history but are rather in a poetic style that reveals his inner thoughts throughout his life. At the beginning of his reign over Israel, he asked God for “an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad” (1 Kings 3:9), and he subsequently became renowned for his wisdom (e.g., 3:28; 4:29).
Unfortunately, as is well documented in Scripture, his thirst for human wisdom led him into compromise and disobedience, setting the stage for national apostasy and idolatry upon his death. The book of Ecclesiastes chronicles a series of experiments that he conducted in search for the highest human good, but each forced him to conclude that “all is vanity” (Ecclesiastes 1:2, etc.), that there is no humanly discernible pattern in the affairs of men. However, he concludes, life is the gift of God and should be enjoyed (3:13). Furthermore, he recognized the eventual judgment of God and concluded it best to live in obedience to God’s commands (e.g., 3:16-17).
Our text summarizes the entire book of Ecclesiastes. Here is the secret of human fulfillment. Note the two complementary commands, “fear God” and “keep his commandments.”
A true reverence for God necessarily results in obedience to His commands. Wise Solomon knew it, and Christ and the New Testament writers reinforced it (John 14:15; 1 John 5:2; etc.). Life’s harsh realities and seeming paradoxes are at times incomprehensible to us. Only by adopting a proper attitude toward life and God can we cope. JDM
The Word and the Spirit
“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:12)
How is it that some people can read a biblical passage and find it either tedious, confusing, or even foolish, whereas others will receive great understanding and blessing from the very same passage? The answer is that the first group are animated only by the spirit of the world, “the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2), whereas the others are indwelled by the Spirit of God, having received the Holy Spirit when they trusted Christ for forgiveness and salvation.
It was, after all, the Holy Spirit who inspired the Scriptures to begin with. “Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost” (2 Peter 1:21). “All scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2 Timothy 3:16), that is, “God-breathed,” where the “breath of God” is none other than the “Spirit of God.” Concerning his own divinely inspired writings, Paul said: “We speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth” (1 Corinthians 2:13).
Likewise, it is the same Spirit indwelling each believer who illumines, and confirms, and applies His own Scriptures to the individual Christian who reads or hears them. “The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). On the other hand, Jesus promised His disciples that “when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13).
This He does through the Scriptures He inspired, with blessings abundant as we study them prayerfully and with believing and obedient hearts. HMM
Why Are People Reluctant to Go into Missions?John Piper
When I spoke at Missions in the Main Hall Sunday night, I tried to give a biblical response to possible obstacles that are in the way for some people that may keep them from moving forward toward missions. My prayer is that God would use these responses to call more of you to go. Here are eight objections and a biblical response.
1. "I am not smart enough."
“Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.” (1 Corinthians 1:20-21)
“Consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise.” (1 Corinthians 1:26-27)
2. “My body and my personality are not strong enough.”
“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” (2 Corinthians 4:7)
“[Christ] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
3. "I am not a good speaker."
“Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.” (1 Corinthians 1:17)
“Moses said to the Lord, ‘Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.’ Then the Lord said to him, ‘Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” (Exodus 4:10-12)
4. "I am afraid of the horrors I read about in the newspapers."
“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore (katartisei--“mend” or “repair” your horribly disfigured body when the lions in the coliseum are through with you), confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” (1 Peter 5:8-10)
5. "I am afraid I won't be fruitful"
Your responsibility is not to be fruitful but to be faithful. “And [Jesus] said, ‘The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” (Mark 4:26-29)
“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.” (1 Corinthians 3:6-7)
6. “There is plenty to do here.”
True, but there is a division of labor and God calls some to MISSIONS, not just evangelism. The difference is seen in Romans 15:19-24: “So that from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum I [Paul] have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ; and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named. . . Now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions . . . I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain.”
How could Paul say there was no room for work when there were millions in that region to be evangelized? Because evangelism is not missions.
7. "I am not married."
The best spouse is found on the path of obedience. “An excellent wife [or husband!] who can find? She [and he!] is far more precious than jewels” (Proverbs 31:10). The finding is exceedingly hard. It will happen on the road of obedience.
8. "I fear that when I get there it might turn out I made a mistake and will come home with shame."
Which is worse, shame for having endeavored to follow Christ in missions, or fear to venture? Shame before others for making a mistake will not hurt you; it will humble you and can make you more useful in a new situation. But fear will make you useless everywhere.
Consider Ecclesiastes 11:4 and what it says about risk: “He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap.” Meaning: without taking the risk of sowing when the seed might be blown away and reaping when the rain might ruin the harvest, you will starve.
Oh, how precious is the freeing word of God,
Pastor John
Palm Sunday
Luke 19:28-44
Hindsight is always 20/20. Yet while we are in a particular situation, we tend to make things out to be what theyaren’t and infer wrong meanings. We kick ourselves, thinking, If only I had known then what I know now!
Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem must have been one of those moments for His disciples. It had appeared to be such a wonderful day for them--and it was, but for different reasons than they realized. They thought the Messiah had come to reestablish Israel’s power in the world. But God had something else in mind.
The disciples weren’t the only ones who had misconceptions about the Messiah. Many Jews of the day expected Him to be an earthly king. When the crowds heard Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, they cheered, “Hosanna! ” which means, “Save now!” They saw Him as their new King, come to bring salvation from political and societal oppression. He raised the dead--no doubt he could also restore the kingdom of David and free them from Roman rule.
Seated upon a donkey, Jesus resembled a ruler returning to his city in peacetime, loyal subjects lining his path with coats and palm fronds. Even the Pharisees were there watching in indignation, saying, “Look, the world has gone after Him” (John 12:19).
This week, think back to those times when circumstances looked one way but turned out to be something else entirely. Remember when you realized God was different than you imagined and saw His will unfold in surprising ways. Look for an opportunity to share your insight with a friend or loved one.
The Value of Seeking the Lord
Psalms 119:1-8
We all have ambitions and desires. And while these are not necessarily wrong, we should analyze our priorities: Where do I invest my time and energy? What or who occupies my thoughts? As important as our earthly pursuits, responsibilities, and relationships may be, they cannot compare to the value of a life spent seeking the Lord.
First of all, consider what it means to seek something. The word connotes a strong desire and an energetic quest to achieve it.Suppose you discovered a very productive vein of gold on your property. You wouldn’t just stroll out and look at it occasionally. No, you would gather some equipment and diligently go out each day to chip away at the rocks and collect the precious metal.
In the same way, seeking the Lord is not a quick and occasional encounter, but a wholehearted effort to know Him more intimately and follow Him more closely. Those who unreservedly pursue this kind of fellowship with God are determined to spend time with Him; they also want to forsake anything that could hinder growth in their relationship with the Lord. God’s committed followers boldly claim His promises and trust Him to fulfill His Word. Their experiences with the Lord bring amazing satisfaction yet cause them to hunger for more of Him.
The Christian life is meant to be a pursuit of God. To walk through the door of salvation and stand still, never drawing any closer to Him, is to miss the treasures that are available in Christ. Those who seek Him soon discover that knowing Him is the greatest reward of all.
What Is Your True Purpose
1 Samuel 16:6-13
What do you live for each day? A pay raise? Retirement? Then perhaps you've discovered the reality that basing aspirations on getting ahead in this world typically ends in disappointment. People with a misguided sense of direction often wonder why they feel unfulfilled.
Maybe you've already realized a goal of saving for the future or moving up the corporate ladder. You give to charity and volunteer at church, but somehow still feel a sense of insignificance or aimlessness. If so, there is a truth you need to hear: God gives each of us life for a very specific reason: to serve Him. Nobody finds inner peace without reconciling this fact. Our society teaches us that pleasure, prosperity, position, and popularity will make us happy--but living in the service of self always leaves an emptiness no earthly reward can fill.
Besides, worldly philosophy won't stand the test of time. Few of us are going to live even 100 years. So whatever we'll become in this life, we're in the process of becoming that right now. Consider David: he was anointed king long before actually assuming the role (1 Sam. 16:12). He spent many years serving the purpose of God in insignificant places while developing into a great man. As his story shows, discovering God's purpose for your life is the surest path to success.
Our heavenly Father's purpose for our lives comes from His heart of love--which is perfect. None of us can foretell the great things He has in store for us, but we can trust His plan completely. Surrender to Him today and say, "Not my will, Lord, but Yours be done."
Visit
�Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.� (Acts 15:14)
Our English word �visit� has come to mean a social call, but not so in the Greek, where it can mean to inspect, to look upon in order to help, or benefit.
For example, when Christ said �sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not� (Matthew 25:43), He had in mind more than a social call. The prisons of the day were miserable places with no amenities whatever. Prisoners desperately needed help from the outside. Paul wrote to Timothy from his Roman prison: �The cloke that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee� (2 Timothy 4:13). By better understanding the word �visit,� Christ�s teaching takes on a richer meaning involving more the idea of a personal commitment.
The events surrounding the birth of the Messiah were considered a �visitation� by Zacharias when he prophesied over the baby Jesus: �Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people . . . the dayspring from on high hath visited us� (Luke 1:68, 78). After Christ raised to life a dead boy, the people exclaimed, �A great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people� (Luke 7:16).
In that light, consider our text for today as James explained to the church leaders Paul�s ministry to the Gentiles. With our expanded understanding of the word �visit,� we could now expand the verse to read, �how God for the first time did look upon the Gentiles, in order to help them. In doing so, He took out of them a people for His name.� God, in His grace, has done all that was necessary to help us, to bring us out of bondage to sin, and to stamp on us His holy name. JDM
Holy Brethren
�I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren.� (1 Thessalonians 5:27)
There is probably no word more misused�even abused�than the word �holy.� In our day and age, it usually conjures up an image of sanctimoniousness, or even hypocrisy, and thus often becomes a term of snide ridicule.
Nevertheless, it is a biblical term of highest significance, most often used in connection with God Himself, the Holy Spirit. Since it is also used in connection with things (�the holy place,� as in Hebrews 9:12), it does not in itself necessarily have a moral connotation. Its basic meaning is evidently �set apart� and can refer either to people or objects that have been dedicated to God and His service.
Christians are all �holy brethren� in this sense, regardless of their individual behavior. They are all also called �saints� (same word as �holy� in the Greek�e.g., 1 Corinthians 1:2, even though many of the �saints� at Corinth were far from Christlike in their actions).
By all means, however, we who are called �holy brethren� ought to try, by God�s grace, to bring honor to such a name rather than ridicule. �Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to him that appointed him� (Hebrews 3:1-2).
The term �saints,� or �holy brethren,� applies both to men and women, of course, and to believers of Old Testament times as well as New Testament. Peter, for example, mentions �the holy women� who honored and served the Lord �in the old time� (1 Peter 3:5), and also the �holy men of God� through whom God gave the Old Testament Scriptures (2 Peter 1:21). The eternal admonition of God to all believers of every age is, �Be ye holy; for I am holy� (1 Peter 1:16). HMM
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