Posts Tagged ‘Jeremiah’

imagesJeremiah lived 600 years before Christ. Jacob’s descendants had divided into two kingdoms: Israel in the north and Judah in the south. Many of the people served idols and were immoral.

God called Jeremiah to make His message known. He was a true prophet of God. There were also many false prophets in the land, who told the people what they wanted to hear. In Jeremiah, chapter 23, God warns the people not to listen to false prophets. And He warns the false prophets, that He will punish them. From this chapter we learn important truths that can help us avoid false teachers today.

Peter warns Christians of all ages: “But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways” (2 Peter 2:1,2).

There were false prophets in the Old Testament, there will be false teachers among us as well.

Jesus warned: “Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many” (Matthew 24:11). The fact that there are many false teachers among us and that many people listen to them is simply a fulfillment of the word of Christ.

He also said: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves” (Matthew 7:15). False teachers are false not only in doctrine but also in their appearance. They pretend to be something they are not. On the inside they are vicious wolves who kill and scatter the sheep. But they wear a sheepskin to trick the sheep.

Paul told the elders at Ephesus: “For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves” (Acts 20:29,30).

John warned: “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).

These warnings of Christ and His apostles would be futile if there were no way to distinguish between those who speak the truth and those who teach error.

When one considers the thousands of preachers and priests in the world, it is obvious that most of them are not speaking for God because they teach conflicting things.

One man I baptized started reading the Bible because different priests in his own church were teaching different things.

His reaction was: “Since the priests say different things, I will read the Bible for myself. What it says will certainly be right.” The first time I met him he said: “I don’t know where it will lead me, but I have decided to do what the Bible says.” I thought, “If he really means that, he will become a Christian.” And he did. Have we decided to do what the Bible says?

God has given us the Holy Scriptures so we can test the spirits.

What does God think about false teachers? “Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” (Jeremiah 23:1). They will be punished for their evil deeds: “You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings” (Jeremiah 23:2).

In verses 9 and 10 Jeremiah laments the terrible state of the land “because of the prophets.” “For both prophet and priest are profane” (verse 11). Profane means ‘secular’, ‘not holy’.

The prophets and priests were supposed to be spiritual and holy. Instead, they were secular.

A tourist visiting a monastery in Italy was astounded by a sign in botched English: “We harbor all kinds of diseases and have no respect for religion. Please donate some small arms for our hospital.”

False teachers do indeed harbor all kinds of spiritual diseases and have no respect for true religion.

A preacher was invited to work with a small church of Christ in a mission area. He replied that he was willing to come if he could have a big salary and a house that was nice enough to impress the business people of the community.

Beware of false prophets, preachers and priests. They are more concerned about worldly things than spiritual values. Jesus said to the religious leaders: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.” … “Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness” (Matthew 23:25 and 28).

In Jeremiah 23, God says that He will bring disaster on the false prophets. The prophets of the northern kingdom caused Israel to err through idol worship. (Do some religious leaders today encourage people to bow down before images?)

Of the prophets in the southern kingdom, God says: “Also I have seen a horrible thing in the prophets of Jerusalem: they commit adultery and walk in lies; they also strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns back from his wickedness. All of them are like Sodom to Me, and her inhabitants like Gomorrah” (Jeremiah 23:14).

False teachers strengthen the hands of evildoers. This is explained in verse 17: “They continually say to those who despise Me, ‘The Lord has said, “You shall have peace” ‘; and to everyone who walks according to the dictates of his own heart, they say, ‘No evil shall come upon you.’ ”

This explains why false teachers are so popular! They are politically correct. They go along with the times. They adapt their message so it will not offend society. They tell people what they want to hear.

Are people who follow their own heart in our time told by some religious leaders that no evil will come upon them? Do some religious leaders condone the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah? Do some preachers say that no evil will come upon those who Jesus says commit adultery because of divorce and remarriage (Matthew 5:31,32; 19:9)?

Beware of false prophets, preachers and priests who tickle the itching ears of evildoers (2 Timothy 4:3,4).

“For from the prophets of Jerusalem profaneness has gone out into all the land” (Jeremiah 23:15). They were profane themselves, and profaneness spread from them to the whole country. We live in a secular society. We must be careful that we do not become a secular church by listening to bootlicking false teachers.

“Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They make you worthless; they speak a vision of their own heart, not from the mouth of the Lord” (Jeremiah 23:16). False teachers tell you what they think, rather than what God says.

Because of the neglect of the false prophets, the people did not repent: “I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran. I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in My counsel, and had caused My people to hear My words, then they would have turned them from their evil way and from the evil of their doings” (Jeremiah 23:21,22).

We have been warned. We must distinguish between what comes from God and what comes from man: “ ‘The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream; and he who has My word, let him speak My word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat?’ says the Lord. ‘Is not My word like a fire?’ says the Lord, ‘and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?’ ” (Jeremiah 23:28,29).

If a man has a dream and wants to tell it, ok, but he should not claim that it came from God. Man’s word is chaff. God’s word is nutritious grain. They who have God’s word must speak it faithfully. It is powerful, like a burning fire and a hammer that pulverizes rocks.

Peter said: “If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God” (1 Peter 4:11).

How can we distinguish between the word of man and the word of God? Through Isaiah, God commanded the people: “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20). We recognize false teachers by comparing what they say with the word of God.

There are false teachers among us, just like there were false prophets in the Old Testament. Do not listen to them. False teachers are secular, more concerned about popularity than purity. Their profaneness spreads like cancer. False teachers strengthen the hands of evildoers, comforting them in their sin rather than calling them to repentance. God has given us the Scriptures so we can know the difference between the word of man and the word of God. “To the law and to the testimony!” Beware of false teachers.

Roll-of-money“If a person gets his attitude toward money straight, it will help straighten out almost every other area in his life.” Billy Graham

What an incredible statement above by Billy Graham. In today’s economy and uncertain future, money has become the number one reason for worry in this nation,and throughout the world. We see people who used to have as much faith as money, now lose their faith as well as their money. Along with that loss comes a lack of understanding of how they went from rags to riches.

Today is one of those days where I could go on and on about a subject, but instead, I would like you to look at the scriptures below and pick the ones that apply to your situation and see if you can change your place by obeying God‘s Word. Some of the passages will apply to people who are comfortable in their finances as well as to those who don’t have enough money to buy food. Either way. like Billy Graham says, if you get your attitude towards money right, the rest will fall into place. I encourage you to pray on this and let me know if it makes any difference.

Luke 6:38 Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full–pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.”

Proverbs 11:24 Give freely and become more wealthy; be stingy and lose everything.

Proverbs 22:9 Whoever is generous will be blessed because he has shared his food with the poor.

Malachi 3: 10″ Bring one-tenth of your income into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the LORD. “See if I won’t open the windows of heaven for you and flood you with blessings.

2 Corinthians 9: 6-7 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Deuteronomy 15:10 Give generously to the poor, not grudgingly, for the LORD your God will bless you in everything you do.

Mathew 6:2 When then you give money to the poor, do not make a noise about it, as the false-hearted men do So that your giving may be in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will give you your reward.

Jeremiah 17:10 “I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.”

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

  1. God can’t get tired.
    Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary.
    Isaiah 40:28
  2. God can’t take on a job he can’t handle.
    Ah, Lord God! Behold, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for you.
    —Jeremiah 32:17
  3. God can’t be unholy.
    And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”
    —Isaiah 6:3
  4. God can’t be prejudiced.
    In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears him and works righteousness is accepted by him.
    —Acts 10:34-35
  5. God can’t break a promise.
    My covenant I will not break, nor alter the word that has gone out of my lips.
    —Psalm 89:34
  6. God can’t remember sins he’s chosen to forget.
    I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake; and I will not remember your sins.
    —Isaiah 43:25
  7. God can’t make a loser.
    Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ.
    2 Corinthians 2:14
  8. God can’t abandon you.
    Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, he is the one who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.
    —Deuteronomy 31:6
  9. God can’t stop thinking about you.
    How precious also are your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with you.
    —Psalm 139:17-18
  10. God can’t stop loving you.
    Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.
    —Jeremiah 31:3

A professor in a world-acclaimed medical school once posed this medical situation — and ethical problem — to his students: “Here’s the family history: The father has syphilis. The mother has TB. They already have had four children. The first is blind. The second had died. The third is deaf. The fourth has TB. Now the mother is pregnant again, The parents come to you for advice. They are willing to have an abortion, if you decide they should. What do you say?”

The students gave various individual opinions, and then the professor asked them to break into small groups for “consultation.” All of the groups came back to report that they would recommend abortion.

“Congratulations,” the professor said, “You just took the life of Beethoven!”

 

Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

 

Psalm 139:13-16 For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

  1. God can’t get tired.
    Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary.
    Isaiah 40:28
  2. God can’t take on a job he can’t handle.
    Ah, Lord God! Behold, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for you.
    —Jeremiah 32:17
  3. God can’t be unholy.
    And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”
    —Isaiah 6:3
  4. God can’t be prejudiced.
    In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears him and works righteousness is accepted by him.
    —Acts 10:34-35
  5. God can’t break a promise.
    My covenant I will not break, nor alter the word that has gone out of my lips.
    —Psalm 89:34
  6. God can’t remember sins he’s chosen to forget.
    I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake; and I will not remember your sins.
    —Isaiah 43:25
  7. God can’t make a loser.
    Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ.
    2 Corinthians 2:14
  8. God can’t abandon you.
    Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, he is the one who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.
    —Deuteronomy 31:6
  9. God can’t stop thinking about you.
    How precious also are your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with you.
    —Psalm 139:17-18
  10. God can’t stop loving you.
    Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.
    —Jeremiah 31:3

scroogeAt the end of last year, the Wall Street Journal reported that Michael Eisner, CEO of Walt Disney, had exercised $7.3 million in stock options. He then sold 4 million Disney shares for a pre-tax profit of $374 million. After taxes he netted somewhere around $130 million. This is not bad money in anyone’s book.

We hardly know what to think of numbers that large, yet we see them in the news every day. Salaries of professional ballplayers have begun to reach these levels. Lottery winners, especially winners of the PowerBall jackpots, take home multiple millions of dollars. Government agencies and programs work with sometimes billions of dollars.

We may think, “These people aren’t even called! Why are they being blessed?” We say this because we often equate happiness, contentment and blessing with money—even though we know rationally that money cannot buy these things. Money has not bought the Kennedy or Hemingway families anything truly good, but when we read of someone’s financial gain, we tend to be envious.

Why do the wicked prosper, while God’s chosen people barely scrape by? Many of the heroes of the Bible were wealthy: Abraham, Joseph, David, Solomon, Job, Esther and others. Yet now, God does not seem to be using a large bank account as a form of blessing—judging from my bank account.

Complaints of Old

We are not alone in this complaint. Several Old Testament figures were just as perplexed as we are. Notice Jeremiah’s prayer:

Righteous are You, O Lord, when I plead with You; yet let me talk with You about Your judgments. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why are those happy who deal so treacherously? (Jeremiah 12:1)

Job has the same lament:

Why do the wicked live and become old, yes, become mighty in power? Their descendants are established with them in their sight, and their offspring before their eyes. Their houses are safe from fear, neither is the rod of God upon them. Their bull breeds without failure; their cow calves without miscarriage. They send forth their little ones like a flock, and their children dance. They sing to the tambourine and harp, and rejoice to the sound of the flute. They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment [in peace, Moffatt] go down to the grave. (Job 21:7-13)

This question pops up in the Psalms as well: “Lord, how long will the wicked, how long will the wicked triumph?” (Psalm 94:3). It seems to offend the human sense of justice and order when the unrighteous are not crushed immediately and to our satisfaction. We want evil cursed and destroyed and good blessed and promoted uniformly no matter what.

Sometimes we make things more complicated than they have to be. God’s plan is really very simple: Obedience and faith lead to salvation (Matthew 6:33). If we are truly seeking His Kingdom, we will be faithful and obedient to God. This simple blueprint guides our Christian lives.

Yet we have trials, and we search for the “why” of it all. We look for deep, earth-shattering answers. The answers, however, may be so simple that we have glossed over them in our pursuit of the deep things.

After puzzling over the reasons why blessings seem to accrue to the wicked, David hit upon a simple answer and wrote it as Psalm 37. His solution is concise and easy to remember: Do good, trust God and don’t worry. What could be more clear? It makes a terrific motto to live by.

It is easier to say than do, though.

An Apparent Contradiction

The Psalms and Proverbs are full of verses bemoaning the success of the corrupt and calling upon God for understanding. Sometimes it seems that David and Solomon exploded in frustration, and their writings served as means to vent their concerns. But God heard them and gave them answers, which we can usually find somewhere in the context of their questions.

We can explore this issue of the wicked prospering within the context of Psalm 37. This psalm is more like a sermon than a prayer because it primarily contains instructions rather than praise or petitions. David’s purpose in it is to explain the apparent contradiction between God’s promise to judge men according to their works and real life, where the wicked often prosper and the obedient suffer.

We can break down the teaching of Psalm 37 into seven major areas:

1. David cautions us not to worry about the prosperity of the wicked. He writes:

Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. . . . Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way. . . . Do not fret—it only causes harm. (verses 1, 7-8)

Jesus includes this point in the Sermon on the Mount, telling us not to worry about our life, our food and clothing and the troubles of tomorrow (Matthew 6:25-34). Calm down! Do not become worked up over it!

2. David describes the character of the wicked:

The wicked plots against the just, and gnashes at him with his teeth. . . . The wicked have drawn the sword and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, to slay those who are of upright conduct. . . . The wicked borrows and does not repay. . . . The wicked watches the righteous, and seeks to slay him. (verses 12, 14, 21, 32)

Their evil is obvious to all, especially God. We can be certain that the wicked have not fooled Him.

3. David contrasts the character of the wicked to the righteous:

But the righteous shows mercy and gives. . . . He is ever merciful, and lends; and his descendants are blessed. . . . The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom, and his tongue talks of justice. The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide. (verses 21, 26, 30-31)

The difference in their characters is sharply defined, and we can rest assured that character is what dictates the outcome of our lives.

4. David shows the end of the wicked:

[Evildoers] shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. . . . For evildoers shall be cut off. . . . For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; indeed, you will look diligently for his place, but it shall be no more. . . . The Lord laughs at him, for He sees that his day is coming. . . . But the wicked shall perish; and the enemies of the Lord, like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away. . . . [T]he descendants of the wicked shall be cut off. . . . I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a native green tree, yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; indeed I sought him, but he could not be found. . . . But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; the future of the wicked shall be cut off. (verses 2, 9-10, 13, 20, 28, 35-36, 38)

We can know for a certainty that the unrighteous will get what is coming to them. God always gives the correct punishment at exactly the right time. It is out of our hands, so we need not concern ourselves over it.

5. David proclaims the reward of the upright:

He shall give you the desires of your heart. . . He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. . . . But those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. . . . But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. . . . [T]heir inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. . . . For those who are blessed by Him shall inherit the earth. . . . [T]hey are preserved forever. . . . The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell in it forever. . . . He shall exalt you to inherit the land. . . . But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord. (verses 4, 6, 9, 11, 18-19, 22, 28-29, 34, 39)

If God is on our side, we have nothing to fear from the wicked, and we can look forward to blessings beyond anything we could ever imagine (Ephesians 3:20)!

6. David explains that we can expect these blessings and rewards, not because we are innately wonderful and good, but because God is faithful:

[T]he Lord upholds the righteous. The Lord knows the days of the upright. . . . The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholds him with His hand. I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread. . . . For the Lord loves justice, and does not forsake His saints. . . . The Lord will not leave [the righteous] in [the wicked’s] hand, nor condemn him when he is judged. . . . He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in Him. (verses 17-18, 23-25, 28, 33, 39-40)

The picture in verse 24 is very comforting. David describes God as a Father, holding His child by the hand. The child has just learned to walk and is not very steady. When he stumbles—and he will—he does not fall completely because the Father pulls him back upright. God perfectly fulfills all the obligations He placed on Himself to do on our behalf. This is another reason we have no need to fear or worry.

7. Lastly, David provides us with solutions to this dilemma:

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the Lord. . . . Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him. . . . Cease from anger, and forsake wrath. . . . Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell forevermore. . . . Wait on the Lord, and keep His way. . . . Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright; for the future of that man is peace. (verses 3-8, 27, 34, 37)

These are David’s instructions on how we should handle our envy of the wicked man’s prosperity: Do good, trust God and don’t worry! If we patiently continue doing the things that God has commanded us to do—focusing on our own character, rather than complaining about another’s—the scales of justice will come into their proper balance in God’s time.

No Concern of Ours

Why do the wicked prosper? Some succeed due to Satan’s influence. God may allow others to grow wealthy to try our character. Many have natural talents, a kind of Midas’ touch, whereby everything they do brings them gain. A few, like the lottery winners, roll in wealth because of time and chance. There are many reasons why uncalled and unrepentant people seem so successful.

In the end it doesn’t matter! Our neighbors’ fortunes are completely out of our hands. God will deal with them when it is appropriate, and only He knows when that time will come. What is under our control is how we respond to it and—far more importantly—how we handle what God has given us. Rather than gaze enviously at our neighbors’ wealth, we should strive to reach the apostle Paul’s example: “I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content” (Philippians 4:11). He writes in I Timothy 6:8-10:

And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

The pursuit of wealth is a path that is likely to end in trouble and unhappiness. If we keep God’s way, the blessings will come automatically, as God sees fit. Whether we prosper financially or not, we know that God has our best interests at heart (Romans 8:28). We can rely on Jesus’ promise in Matthew 6:33 that God will give us all that we could ever need if we keep our focus on the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.

It is that simple. Do good, trust God and don’t worry!

by Mike Ford
Forerunner, “Ready Answer,” September-October 1998
Did you know the Bible is the most popular book in the world? Even though it’s the most popular, I cann assure you that it’s the least read, and this is the thing that I just don’t understand. Not reading the Bible is like saying you’re going to cook something new without the recipie. It’s like going to a new destination without a map. It’s like trying to live a Spirit filled life without the Spirit. It just doesn’t work.
Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?Jeremiah 23:29

What is needed for the cold spirit and the hard heart? A consuming fire and a hard-hitting hammer. And that is exactly what God says that his Word is.

Perhaps you have experienced the warming radiance and the resistance-shattering power of God’s Word. When it is preached, when it is read, when it is sung it is nothing less than the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes.

Recognizing this kinetic energy that is contained in the pages of God’s Word, do you take full advantage of this spiritual weapon? Do you strap it on before every battle? Do you ignite your heart with it daily? Do you read it to your children? Do you share it with your friends? Is it your answer to life’s problems, your retreat when you are under attack, your offense against Satan‘s dominion?

When the Word of God comes with the Spirit of God to the hearts of God’s people, there is unspeakable, other-worldly power at work. It is an uncontrollable spiritual fire, it is a perfectly weighted hammer in the hand of the great Sculptor. May it defend you today, may it inspire you today, may it engulf you today, may it shape you today.

bible1Today I can search dozens of translations of the bible for a phrase and get a list of a thousand results within a fraction of a second. I can download commentaries and bible dictionaries that are longer than the bible itself. I can go to the library and borrow (for free) any one of thousands of Christian books and studies. I can download sermons from the internet and listen to them every day as I drive to work. I can read Christian devotionals online and receive them daily in my email. I can go on YouTube and watch full videos of some very gifted preachers. What a tremendous access to Christian resources we have that no other generation in the whole of earth’s history ever had! Not even 20 years ago in the thousands of years of Earth’s history did we have this kind of access.
What’s so special about this generation, why do we deserve this? More importantly, how did the myriads of God’s people before us ever get by without this luxury? What about a few centuries ago when people couldn’t even afford a bible in their own home? How did they get to know God? How could they meditate on God’s word without being able to read it at home?
You know, while it was difficult for those people, perhaps in some ways it was a blessing. Since they did not have all of God’s word at their fingertips they were forced to do what most of us today have never done – rely on the Holy Spirit!
Can you imagine if the bible only had five verses? How you would cherish and meditate on those five verses! Imagine if you had to walk five miles to church in the freezing rain just to hear a sermon? Don’t you think you’d appreciate that single sermon you heard more than the hundreds of others you’ve listened to in the leisure of a Sunday morning in an air conditioned building?
It’s far too easy to take for granted what we have today, and this generation has more access, more responsibility, and less appreciation for these blessings than ever before. Let us cherish every word from God that He gives us. Instead of going through five chapters of the bible in one day, let it suffice us to grab onto one passage which the Holy Spirit has spoken to us about. We should pray about it, think deeply about it and appreciate it as though that were the only word that God has given to us. Instead of jumping around busying our mind with more and more words, we’ve got to get a single word from the Holy Spirit and sit at the Lord’s feet with it. The bible is just another book without the Holy Spirit.
Jeremiah 15:16 “Your words were found and I ate them, And Your words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart”
If the Holy Spirit gives you a word, don’t jump on to the next verse simply for the sake of finishing your chapter for the day. Eat that word! Digest it. Cherish it, take it to heart. The few words God gives you should be the joy and the delight of your heart – those are the ones you need.
I don’t need to go through the Bible fifty times in my life. If the Bible goes through me once, then I’ll be happy”