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Amo 8:11 “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord GOD, “when I will send a famine on the land— not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.
Amo 8:12 They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the LORD, but they shall not find it.
In context this was for Israel in captivity. But, it could be applied to those who are only taught by our schools a godless humanism or those caught up in movements not of God. Instead of the ten commandments on the blackboards of schools and in public places we have political correctness; words about racism, and streets painted with Black Lives Matter. There are cries to take away our guns and to defund the police. You can see the powers of darkness in all of this.
Churches that no longer preach the gospel message, have strayed from their purpose. They are promoting self help and get rich by seeking all you can get now, in this life, Instead of preparing for the eternal life. I see a problem with churches that are becoming as the world in their "programs" and their music. People looking for God, leave empty and perplexed.
I admire those who were faithful in sharing God's word. Many of these people are still sharing through tapes of past sermons, even after they have left this life and are with Jesus. I admire and enjoy the words of Billy Graham, Adrian Rogers, J Vernon McGee, D. James Kennedy, Oswald Chambers and others who have gone to the Lord. There are many gifted preachers in the land and in the churches and we live in an evil time. We have the light of God's word to keep the darkness from snuffing out the light. Keep it shining.
Song: This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine...let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.
This Little Light of Mine
Psa 6:1 To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David. O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath.
Psa 6:2 Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing; heal me, O LORD, for my bones are troubled.
Psa 6:3 My soul also is greatly troubled. But you, O LORD—how long?
Psa 6:4 Turn, O LORD, deliver my life; save me for the sake of your steadfast love...
This Psalm was to be made into music using stringed instruments according to the Sheminith. The concordance was not sure what the meaning was, it may have been an eight stringed instrument, or a notation to be played in a lower octave, as in a man's lower voice...
Looking for Sheminith on YouTube , I found a wonderful men's quintet from the Solomon islands.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xoki-IrKiz4
Luk 8:4 And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable:
Luk 8:5 A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.
Luk 8:6 And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.
Luk 8:7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it.
Luk 8:8 And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Jesus explained to his disciples the meaning of the parables. Most people see the four examples as being four levels of people seeking to do the will of God. It could also be the steps of progress of one person seeking to know his Shepherd. My chicken thinks I am his shepherd. She follows me around, gets as close as she can to where I almost step on her if not careful. I would never seek to harm my chicken. Our LORD is our shepherd who leads us, but do we love him with the devotion even of the lowly hen?
Jesus explains the four types of soil, or hearts.
Luk 8:11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
Luk 8:12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
Luk 8:13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.
Luk 8:14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.
Luk 8:15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
Now I believe that our salvation is the work of God through faith in Jesus, and once saved we are always saved, by his grace and not by our works. However we should seek to grow in faith and commitment following salvation.
Rom 10:8 But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
Rom 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Rom 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Rom 10:11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
Let us return to Jesus' explanation.
Luk 8:12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
The first example shows that satan came and took the word out of their hearts, they were not saved from their sins, there was no salvation because they did not believe in their hearts.
The second example shows that the word was received with joy, but the garden was not cared for and they were not strong in faith.
The third example shows that there was too much junk in the life and the progress was choked out.
The forth example shows the word falling in a prepared heart with an increase of good fruit. I learn from this that before we write off someone because they do not act as a Christian, perhaps they need help in growing into maturity. A fruitful Christian is totally dedicated to helping others to grow in faith. The devil comes immediately to snatch away the word, so knowing this we must be dedicated by reading the word with understanding. The Bible word is the sword of truth against the thief and liar. God loves us so much. He will help us as we face the worlds dangers. Come to him as a chick to the mother hen. We were made in the image of God, not a chicken. So let's be what God intended for us.
Mat 22:31 And as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God:
Mat 22:32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living.”
Mat 22:33 And when the crowd heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.
Jesus was speaking to the Sadducee's who did not believe in an afterlife. Jesus spoke of historical people of faith as not being dead, but alive. The soul and spirit do not die. The body returns to dust but the soul returns to God who is a righteous judge. Not only this but Jesus existed with the Father before coming to earth in a human body. Abraham was aware of the coming of Jesus, who is the way, the truth and the life. (John 14:6)
John 8:56 Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.”
John 8:57 So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?”
John 8:58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”
John 8:59 So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.
2Co 5:1 For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
2Co 5:2 For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling,
2Co 5:3 if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked.
2Co 5:4 For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
2Co 5:5 He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
2Co 5:6 So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord,
2Co 5:7 for we walk by faith, not by sight.
2Co 5:8 Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
The Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins and by faith in him we receive eternal life. Because he overcame death, so shall we.
I met a friend that I knew from the college band that I had not seen in fifteen years. He spoke to me "the Lord is good" and we were as brothers again. The place we were at was at the Veterans cemetery, a beautiful setting for a funeral and a final burial. We were there for a musician friends funeral. It was a military funeral with the traditional honors and the presenting of the flag to the widow. The widow read a poem about bicycling in heaven in meadows of flowers and under a star filled sky. Her husband loved to ride his bicycle in marathons with friends. People get sentimental, but we tend to make up stories about heaven that are not based on truth. Give me the evidence of the Bible. The promise that in Jesus Christ we will be clothed in a new body and be with him forever.
2Co 5:8 Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
We have life in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Mat 5:43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
Mat 5:44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
Mat 5:45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
Mat 5:46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
Mat 5:47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Mat 5:48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
I see a picture of these verses in the story of Job.
Job was considered by the LORD to be a just man, he was allowed to be put to the test by the devil. His friends came to be with him trying to explain why he was so tormented in his body. The friends were agreeing that Job must have sinned to have been so afflicted. Their "comfort" added to the pain that Job suffered. I think in this we should learn that we do not have to find a reason and to put the blame as to the cause of a tragedy in a life. Often I hear "he doesn't have enough faith". Stop judging and blaming. Try to be a friend without the foolish words. In the end of the story of Job the LORD was angry with Job's friends.
Job 42:7 After the LORD had spoken these words to Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite: “My anger burns against you and against your two friends, for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.
Job 42:8 Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.”
This was Job's opportunity to get even and to punish his accusers, but instead he behaved as one of God's children. He prayed grace for his friends and the LORD restored Job doubling his fortune, including an increase in his family.
Job 42:10 And the LORD restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before.
Job 42:13 He had also seven sons and three daughters.
Now we can see why it is best to pray for our enemies. You may save a soul and you will certainly prosper in your spirit, and be blessed in your needs.
Job 42:1 Then Job answered the LORD:
Job 42:2 "I know you can do everything. You make plans, and nothing can change or stop them.
The LORD makes plans and how can we know them? The Bible is an accurate guide to what was, what is, and what will be. Hundreds of prophecies have been fulfilled and will be fulfilled about the plans of God. The question that we might ask is, what are your plans for me, LORD? He has given us commands. If you are a disciple of Jesus Christ he has given to us the great commission.
Mat 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Mat 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Mat 28:20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Shutting down the churches during the pandemic may have been the plan of God. But keeping the church closed is not the plan of God. We are to go into all the nations with the good news that Jesus has paid the price for our sins by his death, and that he is risen returning to the Father in heaven and He is coming back again. We can get this message out through the media, but we also need personal contact, baptizing the new believers to show the world and the spiritual world that we identify with Jesus. This is a symbol of being buried with Christ and being resurrected to new life.
When I was saved by Jesus in 1959, my entire family, father, mother, and two brothers all were baptized to show our belief in Jesus Christ as our savior. Baptism is an act of obedience following your profession of faith. Life goes on and we make personal goals and plans.
James warned us about making plans in our arrogance.
Jas 4:13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—
Jas 4:14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.
Jas 4:15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”
Jas 4:16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.
With the China virus being world wide. Everyone's plans are unsure. One thing is for sure God is in control and his purpose he will do.
