"His heart is established, he shall not be afraid, until he see his desire upon his enemies." Psalm 112:8
I am going to start at the end of this verse and work my way back this morning. We have an enemy, a very real adversary. The Bible lets us know that our enemy is not flesh and blood, but demonic forces that are led by the devil who is out to steal, kill and destroy us. This enemy is relentless in his plan to destroy us. His attacks come in all forms and through different sources. But I have good news for you concerning this enemy-- he has been defeated!!! Jesus dealt him a "head blow" at the cross, He destroyed his works, he is a defeated adversary. But although he is defeated he still keeps trying to destroy us, He won't give up. He comes to destroy us through trials, difficulties, hardships, sickness, conflicts, on so on. But again, even in those personal, ongoing attacks we still have the assurance that he is defeated. We also have the promise that there is coming a day when our enemy will be completely destroyed once and for all. "And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen." (Romans 16:20)
So now let me move to the middle of the verse. Until that day comes when he is destroyed and cast out once and for all, until we see his defeat in our own personal trails, there is a characteristic that the righteous man/person should exhibit- "He shall not be afraid". Until that time comes, we should be living in peace, not fear. How is that possible when the adversary is raging, when the attacks are strong, when the situation looks like defeat instead of victory?
Let's now move to the very beginning of the verse. It's because "his heart is established." Literally it means that his heart is at rest because it is leaning upon something. We don't have to be anxious, fearful, worried, fretful, with feelings of defeat because our heart is resting upon the Lord. It is resting upon His promises, upon His provisions, upon His word, upon His strength, upon His victory. Our hearts are resting by faith in our Lord who is the One who has already destroyed and will destroy the adversary that comes against us.
When your heart is established in the Lord and His word, you have nothing to fear- not even the enemy- because you are resting upon an unmovable, unshakable, solid Rock, which is the Lord Himself.
Have a great day. Until we see our enemy's destruction, we must let the peace of God rule and reign in our hearts, and this is done by leaning upon Him and His promises.
For further reading:
Ephesians 6:11,12
John 10:10
Genesis 3:15
1 John 3:8
Colossians 2:15
Revelation 20:10
Philippians 4:6,7
Monday, September 7, 2009
Friday, September 4, 2009
"At The Gate"
"And for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth in judgment, and for strength to them that turn the battle to the gate." Isaiah 28:6
"And for strength to them that turn the battle to the gate." Gates give access and entry into a place. In the Bible days cities were often enclosed within walls, so if you entered into the city you had to go through the gate. At night the gates were closed so that no one could enter in.
When an enemy would come to attack a city, the goal of those protecting it was to stop them at the gate- at the entrance and not allow them to come in and take over the city. It would be easier to insure victory if the adversary was stopped at the gate, once they got into the city the battle would be more intense.
The lesson we learn here is that when the enemy comes to attack our lives, we need to stop him at the "gate". We need to stop him at the place of access and not allow him to come in. To coin a phrase, we need to "nip it in the bud"- stop it before it gets started, don't allow it to come any further, stop it right there at the "starting" place. In our case, stop the enemy before he has a chance to advance into our lives and set up his strongholds and bondages.
Many are wrestling with things in their lives because they did not stop it at the gate. When that temptation came, they didn't capture it then and there. They gave into it and as a result it gained access into their lives, so now they are always battling with it. This is why you must battle the enemy at the gate. In doing so he is prevented from coming any further and taking over.
We have been given strength through Christ to be victorious in preventing the enemy from gaining access into our lives, but we have to do battle against him. And the battle is more easily won at the gate. Let me give a note of encouragement here to those who did not fight him at the gate but gave him access and are having to battle him constantly. The same Jesus who gives strength and victory at the gate is the same Jesus who will give strength and victory to drive out the enemies that have already gained access. So don't give up... drive him out!!!
Have a great day. When the enemy tries to gain access into your life, don't let him make it past the gate, stop him there.
"And for strength to them that turn the battle to the gate." Gates give access and entry into a place. In the Bible days cities were often enclosed within walls, so if you entered into the city you had to go through the gate. At night the gates were closed so that no one could enter in.
When an enemy would come to attack a city, the goal of those protecting it was to stop them at the gate- at the entrance and not allow them to come in and take over the city. It would be easier to insure victory if the adversary was stopped at the gate, once they got into the city the battle would be more intense.
The lesson we learn here is that when the enemy comes to attack our lives, we need to stop him at the "gate". We need to stop him at the place of access and not allow him to come in. To coin a phrase, we need to "nip it in the bud"- stop it before it gets started, don't allow it to come any further, stop it right there at the "starting" place. In our case, stop the enemy before he has a chance to advance into our lives and set up his strongholds and bondages.
Many are wrestling with things in their lives because they did not stop it at the gate. When that temptation came, they didn't capture it then and there. They gave into it and as a result it gained access into their lives, so now they are always battling with it. This is why you must battle the enemy at the gate. In doing so he is prevented from coming any further and taking over.
We have been given strength through Christ to be victorious in preventing the enemy from gaining access into our lives, but we have to do battle against him. And the battle is more easily won at the gate. Let me give a note of encouragement here to those who did not fight him at the gate but gave him access and are having to battle him constantly. The same Jesus who gives strength and victory at the gate is the same Jesus who will give strength and victory to drive out the enemies that have already gained access. So don't give up... drive him out!!!
Have a great day. When the enemy tries to gain access into your life, don't let him make it past the gate, stop him there.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
"The Throne"
"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4:16
A throne is the seat of authority by a ruling sovereign. It's a place of exaltation. It's a place of royalty, dignity and power. You and I have been given access to come boldly before a throne. But not just any throne. It's not the throne of a mere man or another person. It's the throne occupied by God Himself. It's the throne of the King of kings and Lord of lords. It's the throne of the One who created and rules the universe. It's the throne that is exalted above all the thrones of men.
Are you taking advantage of the access that you have been given to come before His throne? Often, we stand afar off when we are in need instead of coming to His throne for help. What is your need today? Come before His throne and make your request known through prayer and supplication. His is a throne where we find grace. It's a throne where there is mercy. It's a throne where we can find strength, peace, joy, comfort. At His throne we find everything we need in our time of need.
God desires that you approach His throne. At Jesus' death when the veil of the temple was rent, the "veil" that separated God and His throne from mankind was rent also. Every hindrance, every obstacle has been removed out of the way so that we might come before Him. Don't stand outside His court. Don't keep struggling with your need. Go before His throne. It's a throne of grace. That means He will not turn you away and you will find what you need.
Have a great day. You have been given access to come before the throne of God, so go before His throne of power and grace when you are in need.
A throne is the seat of authority by a ruling sovereign. It's a place of exaltation. It's a place of royalty, dignity and power. You and I have been given access to come boldly before a throne. But not just any throne. It's not the throne of a mere man or another person. It's the throne occupied by God Himself. It's the throne of the King of kings and Lord of lords. It's the throne of the One who created and rules the universe. It's the throne that is exalted above all the thrones of men.
Are you taking advantage of the access that you have been given to come before His throne? Often, we stand afar off when we are in need instead of coming to His throne for help. What is your need today? Come before His throne and make your request known through prayer and supplication. His is a throne where we find grace. It's a throne where there is mercy. It's a throne where we can find strength, peace, joy, comfort. At His throne we find everything we need in our time of need.
God desires that you approach His throne. At Jesus' death when the veil of the temple was rent, the "veil" that separated God and His throne from mankind was rent also. Every hindrance, every obstacle has been removed out of the way so that we might come before Him. Don't stand outside His court. Don't keep struggling with your need. Go before His throne. It's a throne of grace. That means He will not turn you away and you will find what you need.
Have a great day. You have been given access to come before the throne of God, so go before His throne of power and grace when you are in need.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
"Respond To The Answer"
"Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me." Mark 10:21
Yesterday we discussed the fact that not everything that hinders us from getting to Jesus and following Him is something that it obvious. Sometimes it's not those external things that are recognizable but often it's internal things. We also said that if we don't know what that thing is we can go to Jesus and ask Him like the rich young ruler did.
This morning I want to talk about what to do when the Lord does show us what the hindrance is. When He shows us, we have to make a choice to either receive what He says or reject it, to either heed it or ignore it. When He reveals it to us, we have to do something about it. We might need to repent. We might need to make some changes. We might need to do some sort of work. We might need to let something go. But there will be something that we have to do.
When the Lord reveals to you that thing that is hindering, what do you do with the information? Will you be like the rich young ruler and turn away because you aren't able- or don't want to- do that which the Lord is showing you is your solution? We may want to know what the problem is but if we aren't willing to do the solution, we will always live a hindered life. But if we will do what needs to be done to get rid of the problem/hindrance then we will live an abundant life fulfilling the purpose and plan of God, which is-- follow Me.
Have a great day. When you know what the answer to your problem is, what are you going to do with your answer?
Yesterday we discussed the fact that not everything that hinders us from getting to Jesus and following Him is something that it obvious. Sometimes it's not those external things that are recognizable but often it's internal things. We also said that if we don't know what that thing is we can go to Jesus and ask Him like the rich young ruler did.
This morning I want to talk about what to do when the Lord does show us what the hindrance is. When He shows us, we have to make a choice to either receive what He says or reject it, to either heed it or ignore it. When He reveals it to us, we have to do something about it. We might need to repent. We might need to make some changes. We might need to do some sort of work. We might need to let something go. But there will be something that we have to do.
When the Lord reveals to you that thing that is hindering, what do you do with the information? Will you be like the rich young ruler and turn away because you aren't able- or don't want to- do that which the Lord is showing you is your solution? We may want to know what the problem is but if we aren't willing to do the solution, we will always live a hindered life. But if we will do what needs to be done to get rid of the problem/hindrance then we will live an abundant life fulfilling the purpose and plan of God, which is-- follow Me.
Have a great day. When you know what the answer to your problem is, what are you going to do with your answer?
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
"Another Weakness"
"And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years." Mark 5:25
Last week we talked about Zacchaeus who wanted to see Jesus but couldn't. We discovered that it was his own weakness, his height, that made him unable to see Jesus- not the crowd, even though it was large and may have been a hindrance. This morning I want to talk about someone else who wanted to get to Jesus but also had a weakness that made it difficult- the woman with the issue of blood.
Both Zacchaeus and this woman wanted to get to Jesus but they each had a weakness that made it difficult. The difference between the two was: Zacchaeus' was obvious, his problem was easy to recognize- he was short and could not see above the crowd. The woman's problem was not so obvious. She was sick but she was still up and about even though she was weak. I'm sure she didn't look the picture of health, but she probably didn't look like a "walking corpse" either.
Often the things that hinder us from getting to the Lord, from seeing Him, from loving Him wholeheartedly, from serving Him, from following Him are obvious, we know what they are. They are "external"- like Zacchaeus. But then there are some hindrances in our lives that we don't easily recognize- the "internal" ones- as was the case with this woman. We are often like the rich young ruler who came to Jesus wanting to know what his problem was that was keeping him from eternal life/following Jesus. He was doing what the law commanded- the "external"- but there was something else, something "internal" that he still lacked.
Is that you this morning? Is there something that is keeping you from following Jesus but you just can't seem to "put your finger" on it because it is not obvious? Jesus had the young ruler's answer; He knew exactly what the problem was. He knows what your problem is too even when you don't. Do what Zacchaeus and the woman did, make a step of faith and go to Him. Ask Him, "What is that 'internal' thing that hinders me?". He loves you and desires a relationship with you, therefore, He will tell you.
Have a great day. Is the thing that hinders you from following Jesus external or internal?
Last week we talked about Zacchaeus who wanted to see Jesus but couldn't. We discovered that it was his own weakness, his height, that made him unable to see Jesus- not the crowd, even though it was large and may have been a hindrance. This morning I want to talk about someone else who wanted to get to Jesus but also had a weakness that made it difficult- the woman with the issue of blood.
Both Zacchaeus and this woman wanted to get to Jesus but they each had a weakness that made it difficult. The difference between the two was: Zacchaeus' was obvious, his problem was easy to recognize- he was short and could not see above the crowd. The woman's problem was not so obvious. She was sick but she was still up and about even though she was weak. I'm sure she didn't look the picture of health, but she probably didn't look like a "walking corpse" either.
Often the things that hinder us from getting to the Lord, from seeing Him, from loving Him wholeheartedly, from serving Him, from following Him are obvious, we know what they are. They are "external"- like Zacchaeus. But then there are some hindrances in our lives that we don't easily recognize- the "internal" ones- as was the case with this woman. We are often like the rich young ruler who came to Jesus wanting to know what his problem was that was keeping him from eternal life/following Jesus. He was doing what the law commanded- the "external"- but there was something else, something "internal" that he still lacked.
Is that you this morning? Is there something that is keeping you from following Jesus but you just can't seem to "put your finger" on it because it is not obvious? Jesus had the young ruler's answer; He knew exactly what the problem was. He knows what your problem is too even when you don't. Do what Zacchaeus and the woman did, make a step of faith and go to Him. Ask Him, "What is that 'internal' thing that hinders me?". He loves you and desires a relationship with you, therefore, He will tell you.
Have a great day. Is the thing that hinders you from following Jesus external or internal?
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