2 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. 2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
The Living Stone and a Chosen People
4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house[a] to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For in Scripture it says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”[b]
7 Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,
“The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,”[c]
8 and,
“A stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.”[d]
They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.
9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Living Godly Lives in a Pagan Society
11 Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
1. Hurt people often transfer their inner anger onto their family and close friends Often those around them become the recipients of harsh tones and fits of rage because they have unknowingly become the vicarious recipients of transferred rage.
2. Hurt people interpret every word spoken to them through the prism of their pain. Because of their pain, ordinary words are often misinterpreted to mean something negative towards them. Because of this, they are extremely sensitive and act out of pain instead of reality.
3. Hurt people interpret every action through the prism of their pain. Their emotional pain causes them to suspect wrong motives or evil intent behind other people’s actions towards them.
4. Hurt people often portray themselves as victims and carry a “victim spirit” Often hurt people can cry “racism,” “sexism” and “homophobia,” or they often use the words “unjust” or “unfair” to describe the way they are being treated, even if there is no truth to this. (That is not to say that sometimes there really is racism or sexism in some instances; this is just used as an example.) Hurt people have a hard time entering into a trusting relationship. Hurt people often carry around a suspicious spirit.
5. Hurt people often alienate others and wonder why no one is there for them They often continually hurt the ones they love and need the most with their self-destructive behavior.
6. Hurt people have the emotional maturity of the age they received their (un-dealt with) hurt. For example, if a girl was raped by a man when she was 12 years old, unless she forgives that man and allows Christ to heal her heart and allay her fears, in that particular area of her life (sexuality with a man) her emotional growth will stop; even when she reaches her later years she may still have the emotional maturity of a 12-year-old.
7. Hurt people are often frustrated and depressed because past pain continually spills over into their present consciousness. In many instances, they may not even be aware of why they are continually frustrated or depressed because they have coped with pain by compartmentalizing it or layering it over with other things over time.
8. Hurt people often erupt with inappropriate emotion because particular words, actions or circumstances “touch” and “trigger” past woundedness. I have been in situations with people in which there was a gross overreaction to a word I spoke or an action that was taken. Although I was shocked and thought this reaction came “out of left field” it was really the person responding to an accumulation of years of hurt and pain that could not help but spill over in various situations. I myself have been in situations where I felt hurt, troubled or overreacted to something because it touched a nerve with what I was still dealing with due to a wound I received in the past. In these situations I have attempted to reason through the situation as objectively as I can with much prayer and introspection so I would not say or do anything damaging to another person or myself.
9. Hurt people often occupy themselves with busyness, work, performance and/or accomplishments as a way of compensating for low self-esteem. Often ministers are not motivated by a love for Jesus but a drive to accomplish. It is important that pastors and ministers be led by the Spirit instead of being driven to succeed.A minister should not preoccupy himself with making things happen. He or she should walk in integrity and humility and allow God to open up doors and provide a ministerial platform according to their assignment for their life and ministry.
10. Hurt people often attempt to medicate themselves with excessive entertainment, drugs, alcohol, pornography, sexual relationships or hobbies as a way to forget their pain and run from reality. Until the church learns to deal with and emphasize the emotional life and health of the believer, the church will be filled with “half-Christians” who pray and read the Bible but find no victory because they do not face the woundedness in their soul
I was looking for the Enemy, but the enemy is Inna Me!! (Please read this!!) Galatians 5:16-24 New International Version (NIV)
16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[a] you want.
18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions
21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
2 My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. 2 Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. 3 If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” 4 have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
5 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong?
8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,”[a] you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,”[b] also said, “You shall not murder.”[c] If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.
12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom,
The Rich and the Poor(NOTES)
Hebrews
13:2 New International Version
2 Do not
forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown
hospitality to angels without knowing it.
Matthew
25:40 New International Version
40 “The King
will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these
brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
James 1:1
New International Version
1 James, a
servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes scattered
among the nations:
James 2:1
New International Version
Favoritism
Forbidden
1 My
brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show
favoritism.
Matthew
22:39 New International Version
39 And the
second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[a]
“Therefore, laying aside all malice all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as new born babes, desire the pure milk of the Word, that you may grow thereby if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” 1 Peter 2:1-3.
1st Obstacle: Unwillingness to take up the cross: Matthew 16: 21-27.
Peter was refusing to take up the cross when he said to the Lord, “far it (the crucifixion) be from you, Lord; this shall not happen to you!” (16:22). The unredeemed mind is not accepting the things of God from His point of view. The unregenerate or fleshly mind is at enmity with God and so cannot comprehend His plans: Romans 8:6-8.
Peter was thinking as a man and letting Satan influence him. Peter needs to learn to die to himself, his own wishes, preferences & opinions. And let Christ rule totally without contradiction and without opposition.
Bearing the cross means, when your self-will and your confident attitude cross the will of God and you humbly choose to follow God’s will, you have taken up the cross.
How many believers and Christians are willing to take up the cross? Many want to enjoy the entertainment in the church and get benefits of being in the church community but not willing to die to self-will nor humble themselves.
So many fights and divisions happening in the churches are due to not willing to take up the cross. As long as you are not willing to take up the cross, you will never grow to spiritual maturity.
It is not how much Bible you know or how many theology degrees or how many titles or positions you hold that matters to God but whether you are willing to deny self and surrender wholly to follow His perfect Will at any cost! Be challenged!LikeCommentShare
3 I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4 Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy.
5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.
Appeal for Loyalty to Paul and the Gospel
6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.
8 So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God.
9 He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,
10 but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
11 And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. 12 That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.
13 What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. 14 Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.
Trust and Encouragement(NOTES)
Matthew
10:8 New International Version
8 Heal the
sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,[a] drive out demons.
Freely you have received; freely give.
2 Timothy
4:6-8 New International Version
6 For I am
already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure
is near. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept
the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the
Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but
also to all who have longed for his appearing.
2 Timothy 1:9 New International Version
9 He has
saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but
because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus
before the beginning of time,
1
Corinthians 1:18-31 New International Version
Christ
Crucified Is God’s Power and Wisdom
18 For the
message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who
are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:
“I will
destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will
frustrate.”[a]
20 Where is
the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of
this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the
wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased
through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews
demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a
stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God
has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of
God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness
of God is stronger than human strength.
26 Brothers
and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were
wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble
birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God
chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly
things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to
nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is
because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from
God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is
written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”[b]
2 Corinthians 11:16-33 New International Version
Paul
Boasts About His Sufferings
16 I repeat:
Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then tolerate me just as you
would a fool, so that I may do a little boasting. 17 In this self-confident
boasting I am not talking as the Lord would, but as a fool. 18 Since many are
boasting in the way the world does, I too will boast. 19 You gladly put up with
fools since you are so wise! 20 In fact, you even put up with anyone who
enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or puts on airs or slaps
you in the face. 21 To my shame I admit that we were too weak for that!
Whatever
anyone else dares to boast about—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast
about. 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they
Abraham’s descendants? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my
mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison
more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again
and again. 24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.
25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three
times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have
been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from
bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in
the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false
believers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I
have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold
and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern
for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into
sin, and I do not inwardly burn?
30 If I must
boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31 The God and Father
of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying. 32
In Damascus the governor under King Aretas had the city of the Damascenes
guarded in order to arrest me. 33 But I was lowered in a basket from a window
in the wall and slipped through his hands.
Acts
28:16-31 New International Version
16 When we
got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with a soldier to guard him.
Paul
Preaches at Rome Under Guard
17 Three
days later he called together the local Jewish leaders. When they had
assembled, Paul said to them: “My brothers, although I have done nothing
against our people or against the customs of our ancestors, I was arrested in
Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. 18 They examined me and wanted to
release me, because I was not guilty of any crime deserving death. 19 The Jews
objected, so I was compelled to make an appeal to Caesar. I certainly did not
intend to bring any charge against my own people. 20 For this reason I have
asked to see you and talk with you. It is because of the hope of Israel that I
am bound with this chain.”
21 They
replied, “We have not received any letters from Judea concerning you, and none
of our people who have come from there has reported or said anything bad about
you. 22 But we want to hear what your views are, for we know that people
everywhere are talking against this sect.”
23 They
arranged to meet Paul on a certain day, and came in even larger numbers to the
place where he was staying. He witnessed to them from morning till evening,
explaining about the kingdom of God, and from the Law of Moses and from the
Prophets he tried to persuade them about Jesus. 24 Some were convinced by what
he said, but others would not believe. 25 They disagreed among themselves and
began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: “The Holy Spirit spoke
the truth to your ancestors when he said through Isaiah the prophet:
26 “‘Go to
this people and say,
“You will be
ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never
perceiving.”
27 For this
people’s heart has become calloused;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise
they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn,
and I would heal them.’[a]
28
“Therefore I want you to know that God’s salvation has been sent to the
Gentiles, and they will listen!” [29] [b]
30 For two
whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came
to see him. 31 He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus
Christ—with all boldness and without hindrance!
James
2:17 New International Version
17 In the
same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
Matthew
25:14-30 King James Version
14 For the
kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own
servants, and delivered unto them his goods.
15 And unto
one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man
according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.
16 Then he
that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them
other five talents.
17 And
likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two.
18 But he
that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord’s money.
19 After a
long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.
20 And so he
that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying,
Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them
five talents more.
21 His lord
said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been
faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou
into the joy of thy lord.
22 He also
that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two
talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them.
23 His lord
said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful
over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the
joy of thy lord.
24 Then he
which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou
art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou
hast not strawed:
25 And I was
afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is
thine.
26 His lord
answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that
I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:
27 Thou
oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my
coming I should have received mine own with usury.
28 Take
therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.
29 For unto
every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him
that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.
30 And cast
ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and
gnashing of teeth.
I am hearing of this Spirit-led movement on the campus of Asbury University, also known as Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky.
No human leader. Spontaneous hunger! Chapel service on Wednesday has not ended. Students are staying all night. No bells and whistles. So refreshing! Here is a report: God is moving at Asbury – in 1970 a 10 day revival broke out at Asbury.
Currently they are on day 3 no plan of stopping. It is now spreading to other universities. Busses are coming!! Never planned all spontaneous Holy Spirit driven. People prostrate, shoes and socks off as the tangible presence of God is among them.
My question….do we hunger for God? What are the conditions to revival? Would we sense this outpouring? We need to become desperate for God. It’s clear we are but we each have to know it. That thought alone should drive us to the ground. Come Holy Spirit Come!!!!
It all started with an S.O.S. from a counselor at a conference where I was speaking. I’d just extended an invitation for young men and women who wanted to make a commitment to following Christ. There were many young people in the counseling room after that, and a counselor came back and said, “You’ve got to talk to Kelly. She’s really hard.”
Well, I went back and sat down with her, and she seemed to really shut down. After some small talk to try to break the ice, I said, “Kelly, why are you here in the counseling room?” She said, “I want to know Christ.” I said, “Well, that’s great. Why?” She said, “Because part of me is missing.”
I showed her some Scripture that showed her that it was Christ who was missing from her life. And I said, “It sounds to me like you’re ready to open your life to Jesus.” And then her face turned very, very unexpressive and she said, “If you only knew how many times I’ve come and prayed and accepted Christ and nothing has ever happened.”
I was stuck for a moment. What do I do, just have her go through it again? It was like always meaningless and it didn’t work. I said, “Lord, if there’s something You know and I don’t, would you tell me what it is?” And then He gave me one question for Kelly, and it made all the difference. It might change everything for you.
I’m Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about “The One Step We Miss.”
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Corinthians 7:10. It identifies for us the step we so often miss. “Godly sorrow,” it says, “brings repentance that leads to salvation.” Now, in that conversation with Kelly, the question I asked her that broke the log jam was this: I said, “Kelly, all those times you’ve made a commitment to follow Christ, did you ever tell the Lord you’re really sorry for your sins, you’re sad about your sins, and you’re ready to change?” She said, “No.” Oh, Kelly had said yes to Christ a number of times, but she missed the other step – saying “no” to sin.
I explained to her, “You can’t hold Jesus in one hand and junk in the other – that junk is what He died for; that’s the junk that killed Him.” When you start to name the sins of your life and you start to confess them to the Lord, you finally realize what it is you need a Savior from. And then you go to that cross to be saved from that sin; from your sin.
Repentance is so often the missing page in our Gospel. In God’s Word it says you have to have Godly sorrow that leads to repentance that leads to salvation. There’s no real conversion until you repent. Jesus told His disciples to “preach repentance and faith.” There’s no real power in your life if you keep sinning; until you let your heart be broken over your sin because of what it did to Jesus; what it took for Him to pay for it on the cross.
When I told her the step she’d missed, tears came to her eyes. She said, “I’m so sick of the junk! I want to get away from it.” Then confession began, and saving faith reborn.
Could it be that the reality you’ve been looking for begins with you being sorry for the sins that have broken God’s heart and drove His Son to the cross? Maybe this could be the day that it really comes together for you.
If you say to Jesus, “You know, Lord, you were supposed to run my life. I hijacked it. I’ve been running it, and I know now I have broken your heart. It cost you your life to pay for that rebellion against you. And I turn from the running of my own life. And Jesus, I am now pinning all my hopes on what you did on the cross. When you died on that cross it was my sin you were dying for. Jesus, right here, right now, I’m Yours.”
See. repentance isn’t some good work you do to get Jesus. No, it’s simply realizing that when you turn to Him, you’re turning your back on the sin He died for.
You want to make sure you belong to Him? That’s what our website is for. Please go there – ANewStory.com.
18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”[a]
20 Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.
22 Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.
26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.
27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are,
29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”[b]
Wisdom and Foolishness(NOTES)
1
Corinthians 1:18-3:4 New International Version
Christ
Crucified Is God’s Power and Wisdom
18 For the
message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who
are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:
“I will
destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will
frustrate.”[a]
20 Where is
the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of
this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the
wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased
through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews
demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a
stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God
has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of
God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness
of God is stronger than human strength.
26 Brothers
and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were
wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble
birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God
chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly
things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to
nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because
of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that
is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written:
“Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”[b]
2 And so it
was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with
eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.[c] 2
For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him
crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. 4 My
message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a
demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on
human wisdom, but on God’s power.
God’s Wisdom
Revealed by the Spirit
6 We do, however,
speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or
of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. 7 No, we declare God’s
wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory
before time began. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they
had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 However, as it is
written:
“What no eye
has seen,
what no ear has heard,
and what no
human mind has conceived”[d]—
the things God has prepared for those who
love him—
10 these are
the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.
The Spirit
searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11 For who knows a person’s
thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the
thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 What we have received is not the
spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand
what God has freely given us. 13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us
by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual
realities with Spirit-taught words.[e] 14 The person without the Spirit does
not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them
foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through
the Spirit. 15 The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but
such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, 16 for,
“Who has
known the mind of the Lord
so as to instruct him?”[f]
But we have
the mind of Christ.
The
Church and Its Leaders
3 Brothers
and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as
people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid
food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You
are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are
you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? 4 For when one says, “I
follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?
At our house as the kids were growing up, you didn’t have to wait for the Fourth of July to have fireworks. No. All you had to have was one of those days when one of my sons declined an assignment with these wonderful words, “Nah, that’s women’s work!” Oh, no! No, don’t wait for the Fourth of July. No, my wife and daughter were nowhere near excited about that particular philosophy of life. They had a problem with that idea that there are certain jobs that a man is above. Actually, I have a problem with that idea. Actually, I think God has a problem with it.
I’m Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about “Men’s Work – Women’s Work.”
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from John 13. I’ll begin reading at verse 2. We’re going to read an episode from the life of the most secure man who ever lived; a man who had nothing to prove – the ultimate man, Jesus Christ. “The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power and that He had come from God and was returning to God; so He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist.”
Okay, now wait. Here’s the most complete man that ever lived, and He is demonstrating His sense of manhood and identity in a very graphic way, in a surprising way. He knows who He is. He’s coming from God; He’s going to God. He’s got it together, and He demonstrates that as it says in verse 5, “He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him.”
Here’s the only Son of God. He’s not too good to do the lowliest job in the house. Well, the real man is man enough to choose to be a servant; to pitch in on the dirty work; to be as manly doing the laundry as he is lifting some heavy furniture; to be as macho changing a diaper as he is changing spark plugs.
Not too long ago there was an interesting comment from the wife of a friend of mine who had just come back from a great tour of speaking…kind of the conquistador, you know, and they loved him where he was. He came in and he wanted to tell all his war stories of how much they loved him there, and his wife said, “Honey, do you know you always come home like a spoiled king.” Ohhh… and you know what? He had to admit, she was right. He said, “I wanted the world to revolve around me.”
Well, I’ll tell you, there’s nothing very manly about coming home like a spoiled king. It’s small; it’s selfish. Jesus was just coming off Palm Sunday with the cheers of the crowd still ringing in His ears, and yet He went and washed the disciples’ feet. How many of us men make our wives feel totally insignificant by implying that what she does all day long is too unimportant for us to touch?
See, the sign of a real man is that he makes a woman feel important. And he does that when he arrives in her world like the Cavalry arriving just in time. He demonstrates his manhood when he serves his wife. Not because he’s a wimp, but because he’s secure and strong enough to love her in the ways that really mean something to her.
You demonstrate your dignity, not by how many people do things for you, but how many people you do things for. That’s manhood! Jesus, the ultimate model of manhood – a muscular carpenter – can be a foot washer. The mighty Son of God can be a servant. That’s the kind of real man that a woman loves to love.
As a child of God, you are chosen—according to the purpose of God, by the power of God, for the glory of God.
And that is the greatest, most empowering, most life-giving truth in the universe.
Ephesians 2:10 says that “we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (ESV).
God predestined that your life would be filled with good works, to the praise of his glory. That means that the burden of “fixing” your life is not on you. God has already decreed and supplied the power for it!
Many people feel so defeated, thinking they have to summon the will to overcome a particular sin or heal their marriage or be a bold witness for the gospel.
But that’s the wrong picture of the Christian life. God has already provided the power for you to do the good works he planned for you.
You can be confident in his plan to use you, because Jesus said that’s why he chose you: “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you” (John 15:16).
The Bible teaches that you are chosen, not to unravel the mysteries of how God has worked in your past but to give you confidence of what God wants to do in your future.
When you think you’ve failed miserably as a Christian—and you will sometimes—you can have the strength to get up. Proverbs 24:16 says, “The righteous falls seven times and rises again.”
If you are discouraged by how much you fall, remember that the righteous person shows their righteousness not by never falling but by getting back up.
Falling just demonstrates that you are not perfect. Getting back up when you fall demonstrates that you believe the gospel.
21 Do not be afraid, land of Judah; be glad and rejoice. Surely the Lord has done great things! 22 Do not be afraid, you wild animals, for the pastures in the wilderness are becoming green. The trees are bearing their fruit; the fig tree and the vine yield their riches. 23 Be glad, people of Zion, rejoice in the Lord your God, for he has given you the autumn rains because he is faithful. He sends you abundant showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before. 24 The threshing floors will be filled with grain; the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
25 “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten— the great locust and the young locust, the other locusts and the locust swarm[a]— my great army that I sent among you. 26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full, and you will praise the name of the Lord your God, who has worked wonders for you; never again will my people be shamed. 27 Then you will know that I am in Israel, that I am the Lord your God, and that there is no other; never again will my people be shamed.
6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness[a] will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. 9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
“If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, 10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.
Living Right Over Empty Rituals(NOTES)
Isaiah 58
New International Version
True
Fasting
58 “Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.
2 For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them.
3 ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’ “Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.
4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness[a] will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. “If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.
11 The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.
12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
13 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,
14 then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
Isaiah
58:1-12 The Message (MSG)
Your
Prayers Won’t Get Off the Ground
58 1-3 “Shout! A full-throated shout! Hold nothing back—a trumpet-blast shout! Tell my people what’s wrong with their lives, face my family Jacob with their sins! They’re busy, busy, busy at worship, and love studying all about me. To all appearances they’re a nation of right-living people— law-abiding, God-honoring. They ask me, ‘What’s the right thing to do?’ and love having me on their side. But they also complain, ‘Why do we fast and you don’t look our way? Why do we humble ourselves and you don’t even notice?’
3-5 “Well, here’s why: “The bottom line on your ‘fast days’ is profit. You drive your employees much too hard. You fast, but at the same time you bicker and fight. You fast, but you swing a mean fist. The kind of fasting you do won’t get your prayers off the ground. Do you think this is the kind of fast day I’m after: a day to show off humility? To put on a pious long face and parade around solemnly in black Do you call that fasting, a fast day that I, God, would like?
6-9 “This is the kind of fast day I’m after: to break the chains of injustice, get rid of exploitation in the workplace, free the oppressed, cancel debts. What I’m interested in seeing you do is: sharing your food with the hungry, inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad, being available to your own families. Do this and the lights will turn on, and your lives will turn around at once. Your righteousness will pave your way. The God of glory will secure your passage. Then when you pray, God will answer. You’ll call out for help and I’ll say, ‘Here I am.’ A Full Life in the Emptiest of Places
9-12 “If you get rid of unfair practices, quit blaming victims, quit gossiping about other people’s sins, If you are generous with the hungry and start giving yourselves to the down-and-out, Your lives will begin to glow in the darkness, your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight. I will always show you where to go. I’ll give you a full life in the emptiest of places— firm muscles, strong bones. You’ll be like a well-watered garden, a gurgling spring that never runs dry. You’ll use the old rubble of past lives to build anew, rebuild the foundations from out of your past. You’ll be known as those who can fix anything, restore old ruins, rebuild and renovate, make the community livable again
Matthew
25:35-40 New International Version
35 For I was
hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me
something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes
and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you
came to visit me.’
37 “Then the
righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or
thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and
invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick
or in prison and go to visit you?’
40 “The King
will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these
brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
🌞 My friend was going through some difficult challenges in her life and family. I didn’t know what to say or do, and I told her so. She looked at me and said, “Just be near.” That’s what I did, and later on we started talking about God’s love.
🙇♀ Many times we don’t know how to respond when others are grieving, and words may do more harm than good. Serving others requires that we understand them and find out what they need. Often we can help by meeting practical needs. But one of the best ways to encourage those who are suffering is to be near — to sit beside them and listen.
🙇♂ 🙇♂ God is near to us when we call out to Him. “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles,” the psalmist says. “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit.” By putting ourselves in the shoes of others and allowing our hearts to feel compassion, we can help those who are hurting. We can be near them as God is with us and sit close to them. At the right time, the Holy Spirit will give us the words to say, if they are needed. — Keila Ochoa
God, grant grace throughout this day
To walk the straight and narrow way,
To do whatever in Thy sight
Is good and perfect, just and right.
— Huisman
The best way to encourage others may be to just be near.
🌞 Car racing legend Bobby Unser faced the toughest race of his life—and won. He and a friend, Robert Gayton, were snowmobiling in New Mexico when both of their sleds quit working.
Snowdrifts as high as their chests, temperatures as low as zero, and winds as stiff as 70 mph hampered their attempt to find shelter. They even had to spend one night in a snow cave they made.
Late the next day they found a barn with a heater and a phone. After the rescue, Unser said, “Every decision we made had to be right.” He and his friend had experienced a terrifying struggle with the elements they couldn’t control as they did everything possible to stay alive.
🙇♀ We are living in a world that is hostile to our spiritual survival. Every day we go up against forces that could destroy us. Some are internal — our pride and selfish desires. Some are external forces — ungodly media influences, acquaintances who don’t support our faith, the stresses of life. Wrong decisions as we face these “blizzards” can lead to destruction.
🙇♂ Every move we make – each word and action – must be done in His name. We must live according to God’s principles and act as we think Jesus would. That will make every move count. — Dave Branon
May everything we do—
By word or deed or story—
Be done to please the Lord;
To Him be all the glory. — Roworth
When making a decision, ask, “What would Jesus do ?”
3 I foretold the former things long ago, my mouth announced them and I made them known; then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass. 4 For I knew how stubborn you were; your neck muscles were iron, your forehead was bronze. 5 Therefore I told you these things long ago; before they happened I announced them to you so that you could not say, ‘My images brought them about; my wooden image and metal god ordained them.’ 6 You have heard these things; look at them all. Will you not admit them?
“From now on I will tell you of new things, of hidden things unknown to you. 7 They are created now, and not long ago; you have not heard of them before today. So you cannot say, ‘Yes, I knew of them.’ 8 You have neither heard nor understood; from of old your ears have not been open. Well do I know how treacherous you are; you were called a rebel from birth.
Isaiah 48:17 NIV
17 This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.
Not By Our Own Devices (NOTES)
Isaiah 48:1-2 New International Version
Stubborn
Israel
48 “Listen
to this, you descendants of Jacob,
you who are called by the name of Israel
and come from the line of Judah,
you who take
oaths in the name of the Lord
and invoke the God of Israel—
but not in truth or righteousness—
2 you who
call yourselves citizens of the holy city
and claim to rely on the God of Israel—
the Lord Almighty is his name:
Numbers
23:19 New International Version
19 God is
not human, that he should lie,
not a human being, that he should change
his mind.
Does he
speak and then not act?
Does he promise and not fulfill?
Numbers
23:19 King James Version
19 God is
not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent:
hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make
it good?
Titus 1:1-2 King James Version
1 Paul, a
servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s
elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;
2 In hope of
eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
Isaiah
42:8 King James Version
8 I am the
Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my
praise to graven images.
What comes to mind when you hear the word “revival”? A widespread movement sparked by a prayer meeting or a sermon? Outdoor services held under a tent? An emotional experience?
Our parent ministry, Life Action Ministries, defines revival as “a renewed relationship with Jesus that revolutionizes relationships with others.” It’s not something you can schedule on a calendar. It’s not a feeling you conjure up during a worship service, nor is it synonymous with evangelism. It’s a Spirit-induced change of heart that transforms both your vertical and horizontal relationships.
While revival can gain momentum and affect hundreds or thousands, it cannot begin until at least one individual completely surrenders his or her life and will, saying “Yes, Lord.”
The Impact of One Revived Heart
In 2 Kings 22, we find an example of how one man’s tender heart changed the course of an entire nation. The story takes place during the reign of Judah’s young leader, King Josiah, who ordered that the house of the Lord receive some much-needed maintenance. However, what’s notable in this chapter is not the repairs made at the temple but King Josiah’s response to a discovery made within it.
For years, the divided nations of Israel and Judah lived in direct opposition to God’s Law, having both figuratively and literally lost track of the written words of the Lord. But that all changed when the high priest found the forgotten scroll among the rubble and took it to the king. Upon hearing the words read aloud, King Josiah realized how the nation of Judah had failed to keep the Law, and he mourned over their sins. The passage says the king tore his clothes, humbled himself, and wept (vv. 11, 13, 19).
God did not ignore King Josiah’s cry for mercy:
“Because your heart was penitent, and you humbled yourself before the LORD . . . and you have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the LORD” (v. 19).
God delayed His just punishment against the kingdom. Because of one man’s humble response and reverence for God’s Word, an entire generation was saved from sure destruction.
The characters in this narrative have long since left this world. But our God has not. He is still alive, watching over His people. Judgment is coming, but there is yet hope. The God who answered Josiah’s plea for mercy promises to hear the prayers of “he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word” (Isa. 66:2).
Who Needs Revival?
While the fate of the nation may not depend upon you (who knows?), what about your family or community? Is there a repeated generational sin that needs to stop with you? Your refusal to acknowledge and repent from destructive habits or sinful behaviors can affect not only yourself but your children and grandchildren and close community.
We need the Lord’s help to overcome sin and temptation. That’s why we must cry out for mercy. When you rely on yourself for personal reform, you are scorning God’s wisdom and grace. Self-reliance cheapens and discredits the cross, blinding you to your sin and your need for a Savior. You must come to a place of full surrender and brokenness for God to continue His work in your heart.
Revival is not for the unsaved; it’s for the children of God who have drifted away from following His Word. It’s for believers who have become allured and ensnared by lust and worldly pleasures. It’s for the self-righteous, the ignorant, the rebellious. It’s for you, and it’s for me. We cannot content ourselves to simply pray for revival for the masses. Revival begins with the reflection you see in your mirror.
Let It Begin with Me
The late Del Fehsenfeld, Jr, founder of Life Action Ministries, described well the effects of personal revival: “Revival awakens in our hearts an increased awareness of the presence of God, a new love for God, a new hatred for sin, and a hunger for His Word.”
Do you need an increased awareness of God’s presence? Have you left your first love? Do you see your sin for what it really is in God’s sight? Do you hunger for God’s Word like your life depends upon it? Have you let things or people take over your affections for God? Is there anything you have withheld from Him?
If the Spirit is convicting you right now, don’t ignore His prompts. Isaiah 55:6 tells us to “seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near.” Your very desire to see and know and love God is God-initiated (1 John 4:19). If He has brought to mind anything that has stolen away your affections from your First Love, humbly repent and mourn over your sin. Then stake your hope in the character of a holy God who is “merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (Ex. 34:6).
To help you honestly examine your need for revival, ask yourself the following questions drawn from Seeking Him, a study on revival by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth and Tim Grissom. Confess each sin that God exposes, and praise Him for His power to forgive.
Was there a time in my life when I placed all my trust in Jesus Christ alone to save me?
Do I love to read and meditate on the Word of God?
Are my personal devotions consistent and meaningful?
Do I apply God’s Word to my everyday life?
Am I quick to admit when I am wrong?
Am I willing to give up all sin for God?
Is my conscious clear with every person?
Does my schedule reveal that God is first in my life?
Does my checkbook reveal that God is first in my life?
Do I love what God loves and hate what God hates?
Am I allowing Jesus to be Lord of every area of my life?
Am I devoted to Jesus, filled with His joy and peace, and making Him the continual object of my affection?
Am I more concerned with what God thinks about my life than with what others think?
Father, how good You are to your undeserving children. You are patient and kind and good, even though we are faithless, proud, and selfish. Thank You for loving the unlovable. Thank You for initiating a love story and pursuing me, holding me, keeping me, saving me. I love You, Lord. May those words not be a struggle to say but a joy to shout. Help me to know the height and depths and breadth and length of Your love. May it overwhelm me and overjoy me. I want it. I crave it. I need it. Help me to believe that in Christ Jesus it is mine! Thank You!
1 But now, this is what the Lord says— he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. 3 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush[a] and Seba in your stead. 4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life.
Isaiah 43:10-12 NIV
10 “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. 11 I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. 12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed— I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “that I am God.
God’s Promises Fear Not(NOTES)
Isaiah 42:7, 23-25 New International Version
7 to open
eyes that are blind, to free captives
from prison and to release from the
dungeon those who sit in darkness.
23 Which of
you will listen to this
or pay close attention in time to come?
24 Who
handed Jacob over to become loot,
and Israel to the plunderers?
Was it not
the Lord,
against whom we have sinned?
For they
would not follow his ways;
they did not obey his law.
25 So he
poured out on them his burning anger,
the violence of war.
It enveloped
them in flames, yet they did not understand;
it consumed them, but they did not take it
to heart.
Isaiah 42
New International Version
The
Servant of the Lord
1 “Here is
my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen
one in whom I delight I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations.
2 He will
not shout or cry out, or raise his
voice in the streets.
3 A bruised
reed he will not break, and a
smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth
justice;
4 he will not falter or be discouraged till
he establishes justice on earth. In
his teaching the islands will put their hope.”
5 This is
what God the Lord says—the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out, who spreads out the earth with all that
springs from it, who gives breath to
its people, and life to those who walk
on it:
6 “I, the
Lord, have called you in righteousness;
I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles,
7 to open
eyes that are blind, to free captives
from prison and to release from the
dungeon those who sit in darkness.
8 “I am the
Lord; that is my name! I will not
yield my glory to another
or my praise to idols.
9 See, the
former things have taken place, and
new things I declare;
before they
spring into being I announce them to
you.”
Song of
Praise to the Lord
10 Sing to
the Lord a new song, his praise from
the ends of the earth,
you who go
down to the sea, and all that is in it,
you islands, and all who live in them.
11 Let the
wilderness and its towns raise their voices;
let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of Sela
sing for joy; let them shout from the
mountaintops.
12 Let them
give glory to the Lord and proclaim
his praise in the islands.
13 The Lord
will march out like a champion, like a
warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle
cry and will triumph over his enemies.
14 “For a
long time I have kept silent, I have
been quiet and held myself back. But now, like a woman in childbirth, I cry out, I gasp and pant.
15 I will
lay waste the mountains and hills and
dry up all their vegetation; I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools.
16 I will
lead the blind by ways they have not known,
along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into
light before them and make the rough
places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.
17 But those
who trust in idols, who say to images,
‘You are our gods,’ will be turned
back in utter shame.
Israel
Blind and Deaf
18 “Hear,
you deaf; look, you blind, and see!
19 Who is
blind but my servant, and deaf like
the messenger I send?
Who is blind
like the one in covenant with me,
blind like the servant of the Lord?
20 You have
seen many things, but you pay no attention;
your ears are open, but you do not listen.”
21 It
pleased the Lord for the sake of his
righteousness to make his law great
and glorious.
22 But this
is a people plundered and looted, all
of them trapped in pits or hidden away
in prisons. They have become plunder,
with no one to rescue them; they have been made loot, with no one to say, “Send them back.”
23 Which of
you will listen to this or pay close
attention in time to come?
24 Who
handed Jacob over to become loot, and
Israel to the plunderers? Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned? For they would
not follow his ways; they did not obey
his law.
25 So he
poured out on them his burning anger,
the violence of war.
It enveloped
them in flames, yet they did not understand;
it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.
1
Corinthians 13:5 New International Version
5 It does
not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps
no record of wrongs.
1 Peter
4:8 New International Version
8 Above all,
love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
2 Kings
23:13 New International Version
13 The king
also desecrated the high places that were east of Jerusalem on the south of the
Hill of Corruption—the ones Solomon king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the
vile goddess of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the vile god of Moab, and for Molek
the detestable god of the people of Ammon.
Ezekiel
20:32 New International Version
32 “‘You
say, “We want to be like the nations, like the peoples of the world, who serve
wood and stone.” But what you have in mind will never happen.
“I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.
13 “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
15 Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. 16 I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.
17 “As for you, if you walk before me faithfully as David your father did, and do all I command, and observe my decrees and laws, 18 I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father when I said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to rule over Israel.’
19 “But if you[a] turn away and forsake the decrees and commands I have given you[b] and go off to serve other gods and worship them, 20 then I will uproot Israel from my land, which I have given them, and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. I will make it a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples.
21 This temple will become a heap of rubble. All[c] who pass by will be appalled and say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ 22 People will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—that is why he brought all this disaster on them.’”
Promises and Consequences(NOTES)
2 Kings
25:1-8 New International Version
25 So in the
ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month,
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army.
He encamped outside the city and built siege works all around it. 2 The city
was kept under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.
3 By the
ninth day of the fourth[a] month the famine in the city had become so severe
that there was no food for the people to eat. 4 Then the city wall was broken
through, and the whole army fled at night through the gate between the two
walls near the king’s garden, though the Babylonians[b] were surrounding the
city. They fled toward the Arabah,[c] 5 but the Babylonian[d] army pursued the king
and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his soldiers were separated from
him and scattered, 6 and he was captured.
He was taken
to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where sentence was pronounced on him. 7 They
killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes. Then they put out his eyes, bound
him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon.
8 On the
seventh day of the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar king
of Babylon, Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard, an official of the
king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem.
2 Chronicles 36:11-14 New International Version
Zedekiah
King of Judah
11 Zedekiah
was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem
eleven years. 12 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord his God and did not humble
himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke the word of the Lord. 13 He also
rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him take an oath in God’s
name. He became stiff-necked and hardened his heart and would not turn to the Lord,
the God of Israel. 14 Furthermore, all the leaders of the priests and the
people became more and more unfaithful, following all the detestable practices
of the nations and defiling the temple of the Lord, which he had consecrated in
Jerusalem.
2 Chronicles 1:3-13 New International Version
3 and
Solomon and the whole assembly went to the high place at Gibeon, for God’s tent
of meeting was there, which Moses the Lord’s servant had made in the
wilderness. 4 Now David had brought up the ark of God from Kiriath Jearim to
the place he had prepared for it, because he had pitched a tent for it in
Jerusalem. 5 But the bronze altar that Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, had
made was in Gibeon in front of the tabernacle of the Lord; so Solomon and the
assembly inquired of him there. 6 Solomon went up to the bronze altar before
the Lord in the tent of meeting and offered a thousand burnt offerings on it.
7 That night
God appeared to Solomon and said to him, “Ask for whatever you want me to give
you.”
8 Solomon answered
God, “You have shown great kindness to David my father and have made me king in
his place. 9 Now, Lord God, let your promise to my father David be confirmed,
for you have made me king over a people who are as numerous as the dust of the
earth. 10 Give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may lead this people, for who is
able to govern this great people of yours?”
11 God said
to Solomon, “Since this is your heart’s desire and you have not asked for
wealth, possessions or honor, nor for the death of your enemies, and since you
have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people
over whom I have made you king, 12 therefore wisdom and knowledge will be given
you. And I will also give you wealth, possessions and honor, such as no king
who was before you ever had and none after you will have.”
13 Then
Solomon went to Jerusalem from the high place at Gibeon, from before the tent
of meeting. And he reigned over Israel.
2
Chronicles 7:1-10 New International Version
The
Dedication of the Temple
7 When
Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt
offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. 2 The
priests could not enter the temple of the Lord because the glory of the Lord
filled it. 3 When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of
the Lord above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the
ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying,
“He is good;
his love endures forever.”
4 Then the
king and all the people offered sacrifices before the Lord. 5 And King Solomon
offered a sacrifice of twenty-two thousand head of cattle and a hundred and
twenty thousand sheep and goats. So the king and all the people dedicated the temple
of God. 6 The priests took their positions, as did the Levites with the Lord’s
musical instruments, which King David had made for praising the Lord and which
were used when he gave thanks, saying, “His love endures forever.” Opposite the
Levites, the priests blew their trumpets, and all the Israelites were standing.
7 Solomon
consecrated the middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple of the
Lord, and there he offered burnt offerings and the fat of the fellowship
offerings, because the bronze altar he had made could not hold the burnt
offerings, the grain offerings and the fat portions.
8 So Solomon
observed the festival at that time for seven days, and all Israel with him—a
vast assembly, people from Lebo Hamath to the Wadi of Egypt. 9 On the eighth
day they held an assembly, for they had celebrated the dedication of the altar
for seven days and the festival for seven days more. 10 On the twenty-third day
of the seventh month he sent the people to their homes, joyful and glad in
heart for the good things the Lord had done for David and Solomon and for his
people Israel.
46 And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, 49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. 50 His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. 51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. 52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. 54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful 55 to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.”
Open To Being Chosen(NOTES)
1
Corinthians 4:6 New International Version
6 Now,
brothers and sisters, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for
your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, “Do not
go beyond what is written.” Then you will not be puffed up in being a follower
of one of us over against the other.
1 Samuel
2:1-10 New International Version
Hannah’s
Prayer
1 Then
Hannah prayed and said:
“My heart
rejoices in the Lord;
in the Lord my horn[a] is lifted high.
My mouth
boasts over my enemies,
for I delight in your deliverance.
2 “There is
no one holy like the Lord;
there is no one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God.
3 “Do not
keep talking so proudly
or let your mouth speak such arrogance,
for the Lord
is a God who knows,
and by him deeds are weighed.
4 “The bows
of the warriors are broken,
but those who stumbled are armed with
strength.
5 Those who
were full hire themselves out for food,
but those who were hungry are hungry no
more.
She who was
barren has borne seven children,
but she who has had many sons pines away.
6 “The Lord
brings death and makes alive;
he brings down to the grave and raises up.
7 The Lord
sends poverty and wealth;
he humbles and he exalts.
8 He raises
the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap;
he seats
them with princes
and has them inherit a throne of honor.
“For the
foundations of the earth are the Lord’s;
on them he has set the world.
9 He will
guard the feet of his faithful servants,
but the wicked will be silenced in the
place of darkness.
“It is not
by strength that one prevails;
10 those who oppose the Lord will be broken.
The Most
High will thunder from heaven;
the Lord will judge the ends of the earth.
Luke 1:48
New International Version
48 for he
has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on
all generations will call me blessed,
Luke 1:49
New International Version
49 for the Mighty One has done great things
for me—
