Christ the Hope of Jews and Gentiles, Romans 15: 8-13.

Excellent research. Well written. Are you ready to see the Messiah? It is here.

A Voice in the Wilderness

Christ the Hope of Jews and Gentiles

When we closed our last post, we were counseled to welcome others, just as the Messiah has welcomed us. God nor Paul have changed their minds, and so we continue with Romans chapter 15, starting at verse 8.

Romans 15:8 CJB  For I say that the Messiah became a servant of the Jewish people in order to show God’s truthfulness by making good his promises to the Patriarchs,

I appreciate how the CJB centers our focus on the Jewishness of Paul’s letter when it says, the Messiah became a servant of the Jewish people. “The Messiah” is, of course, talking about Jesus, as we of non-Jewish understanding call him.

The Messiah came in order to do what?

• To show God’s truthfulness (CJB).

The CEV translation tells us “that Christ came as a servant of the Jews to show that God has…

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Why Should Christians Gather?

One Small Voice

In my prior post (Jesus Don’t You Care?) I related how Scripture declares the intimate relationship each Christian can have with God directly through faith in Christ and the Holy Spirit God sends into every believer’s heart. In this post, I want to explain briefly what we all seem to know instinctively–we need each other!

So, why should Christians gather with each other? Isn’t a direct relationship with God enough?

John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

Hebrews 10:24 And let us take thought of how to spur one another on to love and good works, 25 not abandoning our own meetings, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and even more so because you see the day drawing near.

I. We have physical bodies and God does not.

• Our physical bodies…

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Jesus Don’t You Care?

Excellent reminder in times like this.

One Small Voice

Although I looked, I could not find a copyright for this picture.

One day Jesus called his disciples into a boat, and they headed out across a large lake. But Jesus fell asleep. While he slept, a violent windstorm came down on the lake. The waves became huge and started swamping the boat. They were in danger of drowning. At this point, the disciples could bear it no longer. They shouted at Jesus and woke him up, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” Well, that woke him up. He rebuked the wind and the raging waters. The storm subsided, all was calm. (Adapted from Luke 8:22-24)

In this narrative, who was asleep? The text says that Jesus, God in the flesh, slept, unaware that a monstrous storm had arisen, threatening to capsize and sink the boat that carried the disciples. But was Jesus the only one in the boat who…

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How much faith do you have?

Judges 13 This chapter reveals a God who cares for His people even if they don’t seem to care for Him. God loves all His people, especially barren women and wants to bless these them. For four chapters, we read about Samson, the son of Manoah and “Mrs. Manoah.” It is the “Mrs.” that has the initial contact with the angel of God. It is she that quoted verbatim his words to her husband, Manoah. But, like Zechariah, when Manoah heard that his wife would bear a child, he needed more confirmation. And, both sons, John the Baptist and Samson would be a Nazarite.

Mr. Manoah may not have understood all the details about Samson’s birth, but he is commended for his obedience and faith as he entreated the Lord.  And like Jacob, he wanted to know the name of the “man of God.” He needs confirmation on all accounts. After seeing the miracle of the flame and the rising of the angel to heaven, he then has a crisis of belief: “surely we will die for we have seen God.”  Not so, Mrs. Manoah! She was perceptive: look at the evidence, God answered our prayer, he accepted our offering, he wouldn’t have shown us these things or let us hear things like this! How great was her faith! And God blessed her with a son.

When God speaks, do we believe Him 100 %! Or do we need more confirmation like Manoah and Zechariah did?

 

God’s Patience

There is a pattern that becomes very evident in this book and it is what we read in Judges 10:1 “The Israelites cried out for help to the Lord: “We have sinned against you. We abandoned our God and worshiped the Baals.” How many times does a nation have to walk around the wilderness to get the message that God is God and He will not share His glory with another? The patience of God is mind-boggling! And here we are in the 21^st century viewing this same pattern and God is still patient with us today.

Judges 9-12 reveals that once again the nation started out correctly but soon diminished into chaos and idolatry. It is then that they come back to God in tears and repentance only to remain that way until the judge died and the people are left without a godly leader. Yet the patience of God is remarkable. He allows us to wallow in the mire but is ready to forgive and reinstate us to a higher state. How often are we like Thomas Jefferson when we come to chapters like these? When Jefferson found a passage he didn’t like he took scissors to it. But, we are not to be like that because God has placed these chapters in here for a reason that we might learn and apply biblical principles to our lives.

What lessons is God teaching you as you read this book?

 

 

How to Handle Misunderstandings

Joshua 22 It has been seven long years since the tribes who had received land on the east of the Jordan. These tribes made a promise, and they kept it to.the.letter.! Joshua reminded them that their faithfulness is worthy of reward.  As they neared the crossing of the Jordan, they stopped and built an impressive altar. God didn’t require it; Joshua didn’t require it. It was something they decided to do on their own. It wasn’t wrong to do it, but soon rumors flew ‘back home,’ and it became a stumbling block. How often do others misunderstand our motives and emotions lead rather than the head?

They jumped to the only conclusion before them; they were apostatizing! They needed discipline! That happens to us as well, and it is then that a level headed person is necessary to quell the outcry. Phinehas wisely said wait a minute; let’s go to find out about this altar.

While rumors are flying, the two and a half tribes were rejoicing! So Phinehas and ten leaders presented their conclusion while the altar builder’s hearts fell into the pit of their stomachs. But in quietness and humility, they began to explain that they built a memorial not an altar of sacrifice.

How do you respond when you are right before God but others see it differently?  Matthew 18 tells us to go one on one to determine what the truth is. Before you are gearing for war, hear the other side out.

Grace and Mercy

Joshua 19-21  The Israelites still had not conquered all the land, so Joshua sent teams out to scout out the land, and to bring him their findings at the camp at Shiloh. The men journeyed through the land and mapped it and its cities out into seven regions on a scroll. Without maps, we would be spatially blind because they are an abstract image of locations. Thus the chapters in Joshua give us spatial relevance as to where the tribes were to claim land ownership as part of their inheritance.

Joshua parcels out their inheritance based on those maps. In this chapter, we find that Simeon was given land within the boundaries of Judah, thus fulfilling Jacob’s prediction that Simeon would experience dispersion because of his sin with Levi in the city of Shechem after their sister’s rape.  Which brings us to the lesson we need to learn: your sin will find you out. God remembers and looks for us to admit our sin, but if we do not, He allows for sin to come to fruition before punishing. Jacob reminded both that their knives were weapons of violence, and thus both sons would be scattered. The Levites were foolish slaughtering foreigners but were zealous in defending God’s honor at the Golden Calf incident. Simeon is the only tribe not blessed by Moses and is later is placed in “protective custody” in the land of his brother Judah. Levi was later exalted not because of who he was or what he had done but only by God’s grace. Simeon’s curse remained because he did not seek God’s mercy.

 God hates sin and its fruit. Let us learn from Simeon!

Grace and Mercy are free at the throne of God. Seek it!

A Promise Made is a Promise Kept

Joshua 16    The wonder girls of Zelophehad find their way into the council again to remind Joshua that Moses made them a promise of land, and to that day it had not been kept. These are wise women whose outward appearance is sheer beauty, and they have the brains to go with it. Notice their plan of action; go before the Eleazar, the priest, Joshua, and the leaders. These girls have insight and wit, and three times is a winner. Joshua assigned them land among their uncles, just as Moses had commanded.

What can we learn from these five gals? First, if you want something bad enough, you have to be willing to place your stake in the ground, and they were. Secondly, unlike some today, these gals were bold and yet humble, and the leaders listened. There is a principle here for us to glean about seeking God the Father’s gifts, which come down from heaven. His gifts do not change; just the timing. James reminds us that if we are deficient in wisdom, go and be bold before the Father just as they did. The author of Hebrews tells us that we can confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace whenever we need help.

So what are you waiting for? God is in the business of granting wisdom, gifts, and a spirit of tenacity. Remember, a promise made is only as good as a promise kept.

How Faithful are you in Waiting?

Joshua 14:  How would you describe yourself? Are you a patient person or impatient?

Caleb is a hero that has been on the sidelines waiting. Waiting is the hardest test God has given to us in so many ways. We want the answer now, but Isaiah tells us that God’s ways are higher than ours. His answers are, in fact, so precious that we can claim the principle that Jeremiah told the exiles in Babylon.  Jeremiah said to them, listen, God has a plan; to prosper you, to show you how to become His treasure. God has a plan for a future that will shine like the heavens because it will be filled promises.

Caleb had waited patiently for 40+ years to see the Promised Land. He and Joshua were the only two of the Egyptian slaves to believe God’s promise. Because of the unbelief of others, they had to wait. Sometimes that is just like us. Our dreams seem to be on hold. Add to that, God has us do laps around the wilderness with others who refuse to believe in our vision. Why does he do that? He wants us in the perfect spot for His plan to come to fruition. It might be hard, uncomfortable—think camping night after night, eating manna day after day.

Are you waiting for the birth of a vision that you have held onto what seems forever? Take a lesson from Caleb. God’s timing is perfect; His plan is higher and grander than you could ever imagine.

Psalm 37 reminds us to trust in the Lord and don’t fret!  God rewards those who rely on Him. That is what happened to Caleb.

Will you trust Him? Will you wait on Him?

Lessons from the Gibeonites

Joshua 9 – 10 Have you ever been duped? To be duped means another has taken advantage of you in some clever way. Take a lesson from Joshua who was deceived or duped by the Gibeonites.

One of the lessons Moses sought to impress upon his servant was to always check with God before stepping out. Joshua is learning this lesson fast and furiously. First, he failed to check with God about Ai, and now he fails to check with God about the Gibeonites. In both circumstances, Joshua failed, but God still used him in His service, and that is something we need to remember. Just because you failed once doesn’t mean God can’t and won’t use you. God uses imperfect people to complete His perfect plan.

God allows tests into our life to check our understanding of His Word. He also allows them to test our faith and obedience to Him. The city of Ai and the tribe of the Gibeonites was Joshua’s test. What is yours?

The Gibeonites were cunning and deceitful, and we will meet those people as we traverse the world. Joshua assumed they had a good motive from all appearances, but they were lying. We can only see through the lies and facades with God’s eyes. Joshua is an example of allowing his own eyes and the pity he felt for the Gibeonites to lead him rather than God’s eyes.

We must be discerning, and the only way we can be is through prayer and scripture and yes, sometimes seeking wise counsel. Joshua failed on all points; how about you?