Exodus 17:15-16 – The Lord, Our Banner

Exodus 17:15-16
15 And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovahnissi:
16 For he said, Because the Lord hath sworn that the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

-“Jehovah-Nissi” is Hebrew for “The Lord our Banner” and carries with it the idea of a rallying point for soldiers.  Just as U.S. soldiers would rally behind the American flag, so too should Christian soldiers rally behind God.  That means that as God has pledged to war against Amalek in every generation, we should also be ready to battle with our own Amalek (in the Bible, Amalek is a type of our flesh).  This war is played out in our lives every day just as it has for thousands of other lives over thousands of years.  The Lord swears to always do battle with Amalek (the flesh), which should serve as a reminder that the flesh is always fighting against us.  We are expected to take up a position behind the Lord and fight back. 

Joshua 24:14-15 – I Will Choose The Lord

Joshua 24:14-15
14 Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord.
15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

-The simplest statements are often the most profound.  Here Joshua simply tells the people to choose: God or other.  We are still called to make that same choice.  The names of the idols may have changed; instead of Baal and Zeus we have things like wealth and popularity, but an idol is an idol no matter what you call it.  Whatever that thing is that keeps you up at night or whatever that thing is that helps you sleep at night, if it’s not the Lord it has to be let go.  The next time you want to read your bank statement, choose to read your Bible instead.  The next time you decide to check your number of Facebook friends, check into your prayer closet.  Don’t be afraid to make the choice that Joshua made.  Don’t be afraid to declare “I will choose the Lord.” 

Matthew 15:17-19 – Out of the Heart

Matthew 15:17-19
17 Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught?
18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.
19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:

Have you ever heard the expression “give a person enough rope and they will hang themselves”?  Why would this saying be true?  Simply put, our words and actions will ultimately be defined by what we have in our hearts.  The Bible tells us that whatever we think in our hearts, that’s what we are (Proverbs 23:7) and, unfortunately, the whole human race is full of dark hearts.  But there is hope!  Jesus taught that we can be defined not just by evil in our hearts but by good as well:  “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” (Luke 6:45)  In that case, how we go about filling our hearts with goodness becomes the million-dollar question.  As with all things in God’s economy, the answer is very simple and was given to us by David in Psalm 119:11. “[God’s] word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”

2 John 1:7-11 – A Deceiver and an Antichrist

2 John 1:7-11
7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
8 Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.
9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
10 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
11 For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.

Think about verse 7 carefully.  We don’t have to deny that Jesus Christ has come, we just have to fail to confess it.  If someone comes to you and tells you how great God is, how wonderful and merciful God is, but they don’t proclaim the Bible’s truth about Jesus, don’t give them your blessing.  These “godly” people are in fact the exact opposite of God and so severe is their evil, that to even associate with them is to take on responsibility for their deeds.  Consider Matthew 10:32-33,“Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.”  In the middle of Jesus’ statement lies that third group that John mentions.  If you confess Jesus, He’ll confess you, if you deny Jesus, He’ll deny you.  Who’s left?  If you confess not Jesus, He’ll confess not you.  Think about that; even if you weren’t denied, you’ll still stand before God without an advocate; and where will that leave you?  “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” (1 John 2:1)

Isaiah 8:19-20 – To the Law and to the Testimony

Isaiah 8:19-20
19 And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?
20 To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.

-All of verse 19 is a single statement made by “they.”  “They” will tell you to look for God, but “they” will tell you that He can be found in all sorts of strange places.  God’s answer to these suggestions is always the same, “look in the Bible”, which is what “the law and the testimony” in verse 20 is referencing.  People rely on feelings and leadings it seems almost exclusively these days.  Now if God speaks to someone’s heart, I’m not going to contradict that.  But, why do we get so hung up on waiting for God to give us directions when he’s already drawn up a road map for us?  God is certainly happy when people want to seek Him, but never forget that He gave us 66 books in the Bible so we could find Him.  Why would we look somewhere else?  What are we hoping to find that He hasn’t already covered?

1 Samuel 14:6 – There is no restraint to the LORD to save.

1 Samuel 14:6
6 And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the LORD will work for us: for there is no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few.

-Jonathan was confident that just he and his armor-bearer would be able to defeat the Philistine garrison because, if the Lord was on their side, victory was assured.  The key phrase that I want to focus on is “there is no restraint to the LORD to save.”  Even now, there are things we’ve asked the Lord for that may yet be unanswered; souls in need of salvation, financial burdens, broken homes, the list goes on and on.  Don’t give up and don’t stop believing.  Remember the truth that led Jonathan to victory, “there is no restraint to the Lord to save.”  Just because God hasn’t resolved a circumstance doesn’t mean He can’t do it.  Just because a circumstance has gone on for a while doesn’t mean it’s beyond God’s reach.  “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear.” (Isaiah 59:1)

Proverbs 30:8-9 – Daily Bread, Day-by-Day

Proverbs 30:8-9
8 Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me:
9 Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.

-When the Lord Jesus gives us the model prayer, He directs us to ask the Father for our daily bread. (Matthew 6:11)  Why does He limit the request to daily instead of asking for some extra to keep back?  The Lord understands how prone we are to go astray.  If we have too little, we will sin and bring reproach to God. (v9)  If we have too much, we will become satisfied in our own strength and forget the Lord. (Hosea 13:6)  It can be a hard truth to bear, but sometimes the answer to the question of why the Lord has not given us more than we have is because we cannot handle it.  The Lord specializes in making people prosperous; unfortunately, history has shown that prosperous people do not specialize in maintaining godliness.

Mark 11:12-14, 20-22 – Fruit or Nothing But Leaves?

Mark 11:12-14, 20-22
12 And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry:
13 And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet.
14 And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever. And his disciples heard it.
20 And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.
21 And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away.
22 And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.
 
-The appearance of leaves on the fig tree gave a good indication that the tree was fruit-bearing.  However, in this case, when Jesus went in for a closer inspection, He found that it bore no fruit at all.  So it is with many who claim the Kingdom of God; they may appear so much like a fruit-bearing Christian that none of us can tell the difference.  But the Lord sees what we cannot.  “The Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)  God will not be fooled by the mere appearance of righteousness, we must all “bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance.” (Luke 3:8)  What is the only fruit worthy of repentance?  Jesus tells us in verse 22; “Have faith in God.”

Matthew 27:15-17, 21-22 – Jesus or Barabbas?

Matthew 27:15-17, 21-22
15 Now at that feast the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would.
16 And they had then a notable prisoner, called Barabbas.
17 Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ?
21 The governor answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas.
22 Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified.

-Barabbas, the ‘notable prisoner‘ who gained freedom in Jesus’ place.  He led a rebellion in the city which resulted in his capture.  He no doubt possessed some endearing and charismatic qualities in order to convince a number of Jews to stand behind him in rebellion.  The snare that was laid before the Jews in this account is the same snare that faces all of us in life.  It’s not always a choice between Jesus and something ugly, most of the time it’s a choice between Jesus and something charming, something that’s not easy to say “no” to.  The Jews made the wrong choice and sealed their fate with the words “His blood be on us, and on our children.” (Matthew 27:25)  The choice between Jesus Christ and anything else is really no choice at all as there can be no escape for those who neglect so great a salvation. (Hebrews 2:3)

Romans 8:35-39 – United With The Love of God

Romans 8:35-39
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

-Paul was persuaded that those of us who have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ can never be separated from Him.  With all that Paul experienced, I think it’s safe to trust his opinion and the rest of the Bible certainly reinforces that idea.  Notice verse 30; nothing “shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  It’s important that the verse doesn’t simply say that nothing can separate us from God, because certainly all of humanity is joined to the Lord.  No one can separate themselves from Him.  But there are many who will one day face the wrath of God and the damnation of God.  On the other hand, every day for all of eternity, those who are in Christ can look forward to experiencing the love of God.  To be in Christ means never having to feel uncertainty or worry at the thought of dying or meeting God; we know where we stand with God because we know who is standing for us “at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)