The Last Word

"And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;..."

Revelation 3:14

"The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen." 

Revelation 22:21

Amen!  The last word--the very last word in scripture.  Amazingly enough, Jesus said that He was the Last Word.  This illumination was given to a church in quite a predicament, but Jesus reminded them that He alone always has the last say.  He is the Alpha, but He is also the Omega.  He is the First, but He is also the Last.  He is the Beginning, but He is also the End.  I just want to remind you that all things will end in Him.  He is the Last Word--the Amen.

I read an interesting article where a Muslim "holy" man claimed that if Egyptian Presidential candidate Mohammed Mursi were elected in that nation's upcoming elections that the capital of Egypt would be moved from Cairo to Jerusalem.  Safwat Hagazy, I don't know who you are, but I know who Jesus is.  He is not only the meek, lowly, and suffering Lamb of Mount Calvary--He is the risen Lord of Lords and soon returning King of Kings.  On the subject of who controls Jerusalem, Jesus is the Amen.  I strongly suggest that you find out what He has to say about the city of Jerusalem, false prophet.  Let me remind you--Jesus Christ alone is the last word!

Jerusalem to become Egypt’s capital under Mursi’s rule, says Muslim cleric

Some of you reading are so overwhelmed.  Whether it is sickness, wayward children, uncontrollable financial burdens, or the destruction of a marriage, you feel as if you are without hope, help, health, or life.  The doctor may have given you the worst case scenario.  Your child may have ran to the four winds to escape your parentage.  The bills are so high in your mailbox that you fear to even open the lid.  Your spouse has said that it is over and that there is no room for reconciliation. The pressure seems so overwhelming that you are not sure where to turn.  There is a place of help--heaven.  There is a person who will send help--even Jesus.  Turn to Him with all that is within you in prayer.  Again, I want to remind you that all things really do end in Him.  Jesus Christ alone is the Last Word!

Preacher, our church attendance is at an all-time low.  We do not have the ability to pay even one bill.  Our altars are dry and no one is being saved.  It seems that all hope is lost, and the only option is to turn off the lights, shut the doors, and move on in defeat.  I came to remind you who it is you serve.  In an instant, He made all there is.  With a word, He called the dead to life!  You don't serve some ordinary god--you are a servant of the Almighty.  Turn to Jesus with all that is within you.  He is the only hope.  Like He promised to Laodicea, if you call--He will come!  Jesus Christ alone is the Last Word!

No matter what the situation, Jesus has the final say.  Why fear about tomorrow--there is grace and assistance in the time of need with Him TODAY.  He is not a liar.  He is LORD.  Call upon Him and He will answer! "Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not (Jeremiah 33:3)."  Trust Him.  Jesus Christ is the Last Word and He is Soon2Come.  Amen!

Dedication in a World Without It -- A Servants Heart

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Romans 12:1-2

An old saying is necessary here to correctly understand the meaning that the Apostle Paul is conveying, "when you see 'therefore' you need to find the reason that it is there for."  So why is it the fourth word seeing it is a connection to prior information?  The preceding three  chapters discuss the removal of Israel as the primary witness to the world due to their hardness of heart towards God's plan of redemption that is revealed in the person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ.  As a result, they were "pruned" from the tree of salvation as a nation for the time period of the church age.  In their stumbling over the rock of offense, Jesus Himself, God made provision for the mostly gentile church to be grafted in.  God is not finished with Israel as a nation!  There are clear promises outlining the national revival that will accompany the return of Messiah.  Also, this does not prevent individuals from salvation who will heed the call of Christ as many Jews have done throughout the last two thousand years.  This concept of their fall bringing salvation to all is summarized in a discourse containing this verse, "Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off (Romans 11:22)."  Notice that last phrase?  This is the reason that the "therefore" is there for.

Seeing that God will deal severely with His children if needs be for the purposes of redemption, Paul warns "therefore" to offer yourself as a living sacrifice.  This is not to earn salvation!  It is the REASONABLE thing to do in the face of such grace and severity for your sake.  It is a reminder about the awesome price of God's grace.  Jesus suffered terribly that you might be saved.  The price He paid personally was astounding.  In view of this great work given freely on your behalf, the sensible thing to do is to totally and completely surrender to His Lordship.  It is the primary act of service and worship God is looking for.  Add to this the statements made by all of the writers of the New Testament and you clearly get the picture that God wishes for us to entirely surrender ourselves.  

Think of the words of Paul in this passage from the first verse of  Romans, "Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ..."  Not even his position as an apostle was as important as his position as a servant to the Lord.  Furthermore, there can be no ministry for Christ that does not stem from the priority of servitude!  This is why many of the New Testament writers mention that they are servants first and foremost.  Consider the following examples:

"Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ,..."  2 Peter 1:1

"James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,..." James 1:1

"Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James,..."  Jude 1:1

"The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:..."  Revelation 1:1

Of these, James and Jude are most interesting,  Being the children of Mary and Jesus' half-brothers, they dare not mention their relationship to Him.  To His own family, being a servant of Christ was the appropriate position, the top priority, and the reasonable response.  So where does that leave us?  It should leave us at His feet desiring to accomplish His will and purposes seeing that He is Soon 2 Come!

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Dedication in a World Without It

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Romans 12:1-2

Homosexual super-heroes, flesh-eating zombies, pastors fasting for abortion rights, theologians arguing whether the SON of God was a male or female, rampant divorce among Christians:  what in the world is going on?  These current news headlines are all symptoms of a missing element in many pulpits.  What ever happened to wholly dedicated believers striving to live holy unto the LORD as God gave biblical direction and the presence of the Holy Spirit as support?  What we desperately need is dedication to God in a world without it.

For centuries offering a sacrifice was the basic means by which men and women worshiped God.  Because Christ's atonement soon put the practice out of business, we have lost touch with the spiritual meanings associated with offering up of a defenseless animal to be destroyed due to our personal sin. It was God's way of letting us sense the awfulness of our sin.  A life had to perish to keep us from perishing.  Jesus seemingly changed all of that, or did He?  No, the awfulness of sin, and the danger of self deception in all things spiritual led the Holy Ghost to have Paul pen the words above.  God, through Paul, is begging for us to offer ourselves in complete dedication.  We are to offer ourselves in view of Christ's offering for us; it is the reasonable thing to do!  Not a dead nor cold sacrifice, but a vibrant living sacrifice.  A sacrificial life lived outwards from the place of sacrifice--the altar.   A life lived in clear view of the cross.

Why should we live devoted and dedicated lives?  Because we are not our own.  We are bought with a price.  A  man offering a sin offering had to dispatch the animal that was being offered for his sin while placing his hand on the head of the unfortunate animal.  It was his means of acknowledging that the sacrifice had taken his judgment.  Is this not what we do?  Christians should understand the substitutionary sacrifice that Jesus made for them--He paid their personal redemptive price.  "For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's (1 Corinthians 6:20)."  As LORD, Jesus has full rights and authority to demand how we should present ourselves!  He demands that we be His obedient servants!

There is much more to say here, but this will be the start.  In the meantime, take a moment and ask the holy Spirit to illuminate your service to God.  Is it pleasing and acceptable, or is their need for fresh dedication.  

A Starting Point

Well, this is a starting point in more ways than one.  It seems that I have had a tough time over the past few weeks thinking of something to write.  I guess it was like a writer's block.  The only way to deal with it, I guess, is to get back on the horse that threw me and try again.  Here are a few thoughts from a recent sermon I shared.  Blessings!

And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the sAnd there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites....econd bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it: And build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down.

Judges 6:11 & 25-26

Gideon was very much a coward when the Lord found him.  According to verse 11, he was threshing wheat at a wine press in order to hide from the Midianite invaders who plagued the land of God's people.  Imagine, God's warrior, a member of the chosen and favored people, hiding in a wine press to thresh wheat.  Gideon must have thought that the enemy would not look at a place usually used to crush grapes as a place to find wheat to steal. What a parallel!  First, what are the shadows or types portrayed in the wheat and the grapes?  Are they not the chief ingredients of bread and wine, the very symbols of the body and blood of Jesus Christ?  Gideon in failing to advance against an enemy that God would gladly allow him to conquer if he would just quit hiding and go to battle against hell's forces in obedience.  It sounds like today when so many "believers" are hiding in the four walls of their church while the enemy advances against their family, friends, and community to wreak havoc and destroy souls for eternity.  There are too few warriors in the battle and laborers in the vineyard.  Many of today's sons and daughters of Heaven say, "Just give me enough "salvation" to get by, Lord, and I will be content."  They are contented with a scrap of glory occasionally in a service, one that makes them happy that the "Spirit" is moving.  They call this the move of the Spirit, yet the power of the Holy Spirit is not to make us happy, contented, or just to feel good.  On the contrary, His presence is for us to be a powerful witness for Christ to a world on a downward slide to destruction.  God wants warriors in the battle, laborers in the vineyard, not contented children hiding in the four walls of their church feeling good that they have enough to get by.  Get in the fight and quit hiding your "talents" (Matthew 25:14-30).  

Most of us know that God will eventually use Gideon to use water pitchers, torches, and trumpets with only 300 men to overthrow the enemy.  However, El Shaddai must first convince a weakling to go forth in the power of the Holy Spirit.  In order to do this, the Lord shows up personally.  All of our great feats for the Lord start at the very same place.  They start with a one on one, up close, and personal relationship and revelation of Christ in our life.  Gideon would ever be the chicken that he was were it not for the realization that the Christ, himself, is our strength.  All moves of God start with personal devotion to God and a revealing of His will and power in our lives.   So many pray and discuss revival, but they always put it off on someone else.  "If the preacher would just preach and pray harder."  "If the musicians would just play better"  "If we could afford to get the right evangelist."  There is always an excuse for those wishing to circumvent their obligation to renewal.  Don't allow excuses to destroy those you are called to be a witness to!

Once, in a class discussing the teaching of elementary children the topic of social studies, we debated what was age appropriate for children to learn.  What most feel is appropriate is to teach this field of study in a pattern of concentric circles.  Let me explain.  It doesn't make sense to teach a first grader about world history, now does it?  They have no way to conceptualize their own state, much less the world.  How about starting with what the child is familiar with--family.  In the next grade the teacher might branch out to the local community--still something close and familiar to the child.  The point is to make the circle of learning larger each year from state, to nation, to continent, to the world.  This is exactly what God does with Gideon to prepare him for greatness.  Gideon will not be effective in a large ministry if he cannot be effective sharing truth with his family.  "(For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God? 1 Timothy 3:5)" God has him start by tearing down the idols that are destroying his family and friends.  Gideon very well could have said, "Thanks Lord", as the town wanted to string him up for meddling with their complacency.  However, God protected him, and it was Gideon who would later be used of God for national revival and not the neighbors.  Notice the circles?  God started with him, branched out to family, and then the community before he went to lead the nation back to Yahweh!  

An Ancient Wine Press

One last point.  When God begins to use you, don't get the bighead!!  Gideon eventually must have thought that his strength was his own.  He should have remembered where God found him.  He was hiding in a hole in the ground used to make wine.  Like the point of a song about Balaam's donkey that Don Francisco wrote, "When the Lord starts using you, don't you pay it any mind.  He could have use the dog next door if He'd been so inclined."  

Will The Men of God Please Stand Up! Deborah, Barak, and Abimelech

"And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali, and said unto him, Hath not the LORD God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?  ...And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go."

Judges 4:6 and 8

Sometime back I began a study of the chiastic structure found in the Book of Judges here on Active Christian Media.  As a quick reminder, a chiasm is an ancient literary device that placed a symmetric pattern into the text.  The purpose was to highlight a specific theme.  This device is very common, and it is found in the New Testament as well.

The theme of the entire book of Judges is apostasy.  The further one gets from the first great Judge, Othniel, the worse things are for ancient Israel.  Negative traits in Israel's leaders began to be exposed as the time of the Judges unfolds in the text.  All judges before Gideon are positive judges who ruled a united nation while all after Gideon are mostly negative judges who allowed tribal bickering to separate the people of Israel.  The last of the judges to be considered in the study of this pattern are Deborah and Barak who are contrasted with Abimelech.  The picture below will highlight their similarities and differences.

Though the idea is not popular today nor is it "politically correct", the LORD intended for a man to stand up and be the judge of Israel  just as he meant for men to be the priest of the home and the leader of the family unit.  However, in the absence of one qualified, God will use "whosoever will" to accomplish his divine purposes.  Deborah is a great leader and a prime example of a wonderful woman of God who was divinely anointed, appointed, and used to bring greatness to the land of Israel when a man of God would not stand true and take his ordained place of leadership.  Barak would not even go to battle unless Deborah was nearby.  Even Deborah seems to understand this as she pleads with the brave (?) Barak to take his position as the head of the armies of Israel in order to repulse the enemies of the nation that were bringing severe oppression.  Thank GOD for a brave women who stand when men of God balk at their assignment!  Thank God for anyone who sees a need and heeds the call to service!  Since Barak would not heed and lead, notice that it is a woman who is credited with the victory.  Consequently, Abimelech, the tainted judge, is also humiliated in a similar fashion as Israel's enemy, Sisera, was.

So the question for today is, where are the men of God leading and guiding as the priests of the home and men of God in the church?  Study after study shows that children are greatly effected by the faith of their father.  Not to demean the place of a mother at all, but there is something to be said for a man who will stand up and take his place even as Christ took the place of leadership over His bride, the church.  It is certain that God wants men who will love their wives as Christ loved the church and giving Himself for her.  Surely, the LORD wants men who will train their children as is prescribed in scripture.  The influence of fathers on children cannot be under emphasized.  Neither can their influence in prayer and worship in the church be under emphasized as well.  Man of GOD, will you not take a place of leadership in the home?  Will you not take the time to train and guide your children in the ways of God and be a leader in church as well? Stand up for your faith in the site of all and be a leader for Christ's sake!

Please do not take this post from the context in which it was meant!  This is not an indictment against women and their overwhelmingly valuable place in the home and church.  It is not meant to be demeaning nor negative against the role of women in the body of Christ.  Take it as the admonition that it is meant to be.  In a time when the family is just as fragmented as ancient Israel was in the days of the last judges, with rampant divorce and fatherless homes, take it as a plea for the men of God to stand up in America and lead the heart of the family back to the foot of the cross.  Quit neglecting your God ordained duties and lead!

Stay Focused On The Word: Ehud and Jephthah

And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat.

Judges 3:20

And said unto him, Thus saith Jephthah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon:

Judges 11:15

In our study of the Book of Judges and its chiastic structure we have noticed that Gideon teaches us that Christians need to end well while Othniel and Samson remind us that relationships do matter. Two other judges in the pattern, Ehud and Jephthah, reiterate the need to stay focused on GOD and His word.  Their lives are also contrasted in the pattern so that there is a positive and negative parallel to their actions and attitudes.

Look at the comparisons and contrasts of their lives.  Both delivered Israel after the nation was in bondage for 18 years.  Both battled with Transjordan kings.  Both sent messages to the kings that they were anointed to deliver Israel from.  Ehud sent a secret message while Jephthah sent two messages through couriers.  Ehud's message was sent in the name of God while Jephthah sent his messages in his own name.  Ehud captured the fords of Jordan with the assistance of the Ephraimites where he killed hundreds of the Moabite enemies trying to cross.  Jepthah, however, captured the same fords but killed hundreds of Benjamites, an Israeli tribe.  Ehud ruled over a united Israel for 80 years, but Jephthah ruled over a fragmented Isreal for only 6 years (grief over his daughter?) as it again seems that sin cut his judgeship short.

Ehud was a successful judge over Israel.  He understood clearly that God was the center of his success.  As a left handed man, he was able to conceal a dagger on the right side of his body when he entered into the chambers of King Eglon of Moab with a tribute from the people of Israel.  Judges 3:15 assures us that it was the LORD who called this man to be Israel's deliverer, so he boldly follows the direction of God.  Jephthah did not get the same call as Ehud.  It was the elders of Gilead who sought out Jephthah to be their deliverer.  Jephthah was later anointed by the LORD but only after the foolish vow he is so infamous for.  It is evident that he did not have the same acknowledgement of divine assistance that Ehud did.

The possible sacrifice of his daughter is one of the most controversial stories in the entire text of scripture.  Indeed, it is hard to say whether or not this girl was killed as a sacrifice.  Many sources say she was but many others give alternatives to her sacrifice.  One thing is for sure about God and His revelation in the Bible, he does not hide the ugliness of the deeds of men to make the story line go well.  It is very possible that this daughter was sacrificed although it was never the intention of God for such a bizarre sacrifice to take place.  That is the point.  Jephthah seemed to be directed more by his ideas than the word of God, which is a very common attitude in our day.  Leviticus 27 gives clear direction as to how to redeem people who were vowed.  God may be trying to show us that the people of Israel, through their continued apostasies, were drifting ever further from the rock solid foundation of the Word of God.

So many are modern day Jephthahs.  In a time with more Bibles printed than in any other time period in human history we seem to have a mostly biblical illiterate society.  Many who do study the word want to twist and contort it their own destruction rather than trust God for what it reveals.  Study after study show that, like Israel, the church is drifting further from the truth of the word and sound doctrine while adding to or subtracting from its message with men's teachings and traditions.  Furthermore, this was a prophetic sign of the end of days. Those teachings and traditions will pass away, my friend, but the Word of the LORD will endure forever.  Be like Ehud whose success involved delivering God's message and not his own!

One last thought!  If men are telling you how greatly anointed and blessed you are and they seem to be forcing ministry on you, seek God wholeheartedly for confirmation.  Don't be like Jephthah.  God may have used him, but he may have not have been the person God wanted. We are only successful in any endeavor if the LORD calls us to it.  Again, just a thought!

Relationships Do Matter! Othniel and Samson

And she said unto him, Give me a blessing: for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the nether springs.

Judges 1:15

The post "Gideon--Israel's Turning Point" revealed two points.  First, the book of Judges is written in a chiastic pattern when the main judges of Israel are considered and Gideon is the center point of the pattern's revelation.  Second, it is not how you start the race that counts but how you finish.  If Gideon is the center point, who comprise the beginning and the end of the pattern?  As the title suggests, it is Othniel and Samson.  There is a direct correlation between their life actions and attitudes.  Furthermore, they add to the concept of ending well while also revealing that relationships do matter.  Relationships can bless or mar our work and witness for Christ.  What is salvation in the first place?  Is it not a fellowship or relationship with Christ and His atoning suffering?  Furthermore, one dynamic of our relationship with Christ is personal relationship with others.  Do you remember the two greatest commandments that Jesus gave?  Love God--Love others; so relationships do matter!

The chart above shows that the major life highlights of these two judges match equally.  Othniel was not unequally yoked to an unbeliever, so his wife was a major blessing to him.  It was his wife, Achsah, who procured the blessing of the upper and lower springs in the desert region that they inherited from her father, Caleb.  She completed Othniel by extending his territory and blessing.  Surely Achsah stood firmly with her husband in prayerful support while he served as Israel's Judge for 40 years.  The keeping of their vows is further proof of their deeper vow of relationship to God.  Their rule was a time of blessing and prosperity for that land and its people, Israel.

In direct contrast we have Samson.  Continually he is seen in bad relationships with unbelieving pagan women that adversely affect his work and ministry.  His mistress, Delilah, robs him of his strength and covenant blessing.  His former father-in-law, unlike Caleb to Othniel, is a source of anguish for him. Samson is seen constantly marring every vow he took including his marriage vows and vows to God.  With no prayer partner, his ministry is one of compromise that is clearly half that of Othniel's--he rules 20 years as sin cut his reign short.  His story does not end well and his rule was one of chaos, confusion, and disorder.  With such a lax view of and concession on marriage, I wonder if that is why Israel is soon dealing with the issue of homosexuality in the Book of Judges?

Marriage in America is in trouble.  Yet, every study ever conducted shows that couples who regularly attend worship together publicly and pray together privately have lasting, healthy marriage relationships.  Furthermore, our "fear of the LORD", a sincere relationship with Christ, begs us to serve each other greater than self as we seek harmony in the home. In turn, these two relationships affect every other inter-personal relationship we have either for blessing or curse.  With National Marriage Week running from February 7th-14th, why not seek God and His word about your current relationships with Him and others.  At home, take time to fall in love with your spouse and rededicate your home to Christ as a sanctuary for biblical values.

Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways.  For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.  Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.  Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the LORD.  The LORD shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.  Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children, and peace upon Israel.

Psalm 128