Men Always Ought to Pray and not Lose Heart…

 Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart,—Luke 18:1

Such a sweet reminder to me last night from the very heart of my God.  Each one of us will face times of adversity in this life.  When we do, what will be our response?  Will we faint and fear or, as David does in Psalm 61, will we cry out to God in our distress?  Beloved…be like David…instead of fearing and fretting, pray.  

Read with me a portion of Psalm 61:

1 Hear my cry, O God;

Attend to my prayer.

2 From the end of the earth I will cry to You,

When my heart is overwhelmed;

Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

David does not give in to futility and fear.  He goes to God, trusting that his voice will be heard: 

“Hear my cry, O God” 

He asks the Lord to deliver him: 

“Lead me to the rock that is higher than I” 

David asks God to take him to a place of safety that he himself cannot attain on his own strength.  May we do the same.  May we remember God in the midst of a storm and choose faith over fear. 

13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed

That I would see the goodness of the LORD

In the land of the living.

14 Wait on the LORD;

Be of good courage,

And He shall strengthen your heart;

Wait, I say, on the LORD!—Psalm 27:13-14

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.—Philippians 4:6-7

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.—1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.—Hebrews 4:14-16

1 I love the LORD, because He has heard

My voice and my supplications.

2 Because He has inclined His ear to me,

Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live.

3 The pains of death surrounded me,

And the pangs of Sheol laid hold of me;

I found trouble and sorrow.

4 Then I called upon the name of the LORD:

"O LORD, I implore You, deliver my soul!"

5 Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;

Yes, our God is merciful.

6 The LORD preserves the simple;

I was brought low, and He saved me.

7 Return to your rest, O my soul,

For the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.

8 For You have delivered my soul from death,

My eyes from tears,

And my feet from falling.—Psalm 116

Surrounded With His Favor…

 But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You. For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous: With favor You will surround him as with a shield.--Psalm 5:11-12

Dear Girls,

I read these verses this morning.  What comfort we have in our Lord.  He may deal with others in judgment but we who hope in Him can ever shout for joy because He defends us. He protects us.  He covers us. He is our refuge...strong and sure. We can be joyful in Him , because He blesses us and surrounds us with His favor like a shield.  We are bullet proof.  God has got our back!  He is on our side.  He is near...for in Him we live and move and have our beings.  There is nothing to fear or be anxious about...what can man do to us?  Maybe they can kill the body but when we awake...we awake in His likeness!  He knows we are weak and remembers that we are dust.  He has no illusions about us and yet He surrounds us with His favor like a shield.  We can depend on Him to make our way straight before His face. We can depend on His grace, goodness strength and mercy which is always with us for the journey that lies ahead...and when we  look to Him, we are radiant and our faces are not ashamed.  

Love

Mom

Read the verses below and extol His holy name! 

Let them shout for joy and be glad, Who favor my righteous cause; And let them say continually, "Let the LORD be magnified, Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant." --Psalm 35:27

Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; Let such as love Your salvation say continually, "The LORD be magnified!"  But I am poor and needy; Yet the LORD thinks upon me. You are my help and my deliverer; Do not delay, O my God. --Psalm 40:16-17

Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, My servants shall eat, But you shall be hungry; Behold, My servants shall drink, But you shall be thirsty; Behold, My servants shall rejoice, But you shall be ashamed; Behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart, But you shall cry for sorrow of heart, And wail for grief of spirit.  You shall leave your name as a curse to My chosen; For the Lord GOD will slay you, And call His servants by another name; So that he who blesses himself in the earth Shall bless himself in the God of truth; And he who swears in the earth Shall swear by the God of truth; Because the former troubles are forgotten, And because they are hidden from My eyes. --Isaiah 65:13-16

But as it is written: "EYE HAS NOT SEEN, NOR EAR HEARD, NOR HAVE ENTERED INTO THE HEART OF MAN THE THINGS WHICH GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM." --1 Corinthians 2:9

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever. --Psalm 23:6

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. --Romans 8:28

After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, "Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God! For true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her." Again they said, "Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!" And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, "Amen! Alleluia!"  Then a voice came from the throne, saying, "Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!" And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! --Revelation 19:1-6

The Rich Man and Lazarus…

 19 "There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. 20 But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, 21 desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

24 "Then he cried and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.' 25 But Abraham said, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26 And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.'

27 "Then he said, 'I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.' 29 Abraham said to him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.' 30 And he said, 'No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' 31 But he said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.'"—Luke 16:19-31 (emphasis mine)

Prior to salvation when I would hear this Scripture read in the Catholic Church where I grew up, I agreed with the rich man.  If God could just send someone back to us from the dead that would go a long way in saving many.   Interestingly, even at my young age I noted that the rich man still treated Lazarus as if he were below him in status.  Hell did not cleanse him from his wrong thinking. 

The rich man thought that people could be persuaded to repent and believe if God sent someone back to them from the dead. I love Abraham’s response. 

31 But he said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.'"

Belief is a spiritual process not an intellectual one. I can believe something in my mind but not necessarily believe it with my heart.  As a kid I believed much of what I read in Scripture with my intellect but I did not believe it enough to live my life in accordance with its precepts or stake my eternal destiny on what it said. Believing did not change how I behaved day in and day out. Many, many years later, when I was finally ready to believe what the Bible said with my heart…with everything that I am…my actions followed what my heart believed.  The internal change was evidenced in my outward behavior. 

Romans 10:17 tells us that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.  Beloved…the gospel itself is the power of God to salvation. 

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.—Romans 1:16

12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.—Hebrews 4:12

having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,—1 Peter 1:23

Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.—James 1:18

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.— John 1:12-13

It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe." For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him. 65 And He said, "Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father."—John 6:63-65

Walvoord aptly points out that just a short time later Jesus did raise a man from the dead, another man named Lazarus (John 11:38-44). The result was that the religious leaders began to plot more earnestly to kill both Jesus and Lazarus (John 11:45-53; 12:10-11).  

The Parable of the Lost Sheep…

 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. 2 And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.” 3 So He spoke this parable to them, saying:

4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ 

7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.—Luke 15:1-7

This is a famous parable...most people probably get its meaning, but maybe you are like me and have not really rethought its meaning since you first heard it as a child.  Having done that (rethought its meaning) this morning, I am feeling...well...sheepish.

I have loved this particular parable since I was a child for two reasons.  The first is because I really love animals, and the second is because I personally HATE to lose anything.  For example, when my children were little, I would take care to ensure that when a toy or puzzle was put away it had all its pieces.  If it didn’t, a search would ensue. I could really relate to the Shepherd’s joy in finding the sheep that was lost. 

Today as I read, I observed a word in verse 7 that I had not noticed in all my previous readings.  The word was “just”, and that one little word made me rethink the entire parable.  Read the verse again and notice how the “just” person is defined. 

 7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance

Do you see why I am feeling sheepish?  Inserting myself into the story, I am the lost sheep who was found!  The other 99 are the ones who are really lost because they think they are righteous and, therefore, have no need of repentance. The Bible says that there is none that are righteous...no not one...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Beloved....the Son of Man came to seek and save that which was lost. He came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.  The joy of God Himself is when a blinded, lost “sheep” comes to repentance. 

Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.—Hebrews 12:2

For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.—2 Peter 2:25

The Parable of the Great Supper

15 Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, "Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!"

It was a commonly held belief among the Jews that only the Jews would be invited to the heavenly feast. Christ tells a different story.  His parable includes the Gentiles.

16 Then He said to him, "A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, 17 and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, 'Come, for all things are now ready.'

Guests were pre-invited.  Apparently, no one declined the invitation. The expectation was that all would come.  According to John MacArthur, the pre-invited guests refer to the people of Israel, who had been told by the OT to be ready for the arrival of the Messiah.

18 But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, 'I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.' 19 And another said, 'I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.' 20 Still another said, 'I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.' 

Once the guests were notified that all was ready they began to make excuses.  All of the excuses seemed valid on the surface but digging deeper the insincerity could be exposed.

21 So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.'

The master upon hearing becomes angry and orders the servant to go out quickly and bring in the poor, maimed, lame and blind. These were people the Pharisees of Jesus’ day saw as unworthy. 

22 And the servant said, 'Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.' 23 Then the master said to the servant, 'Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

There was still room.  Beloved…God wants none to perish but all to come to eternal life in His Son. The highways and hedges here, again, according to MacArthur, refer to the Gentile nations. He also says that the word compel means not by force or violence but by persuasion. 

24 For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.'"

Those who refused or disdained the invitation were shut out of the banquet. Their excuses may have seemed good and reasonable to them but there is truly no excuse for turning down the Kingdom of God when Jesus offers it, given that our eternal destiny rests on our response.  

Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.—2 Corinthians 6:2

He came to His own and His own did not receive Him.—John 1:11

34 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing! 35 See! Your house is left to you desolate; and assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see Me until the time comes when you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'"—Luke 13:34-35

Wrestling with God…Genesis 32

 Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob's hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him. And He said, "Let Me go, for the day breaks." But he said, "I will not let You go unless You bless me!" So He said to him, "What is your name?" He said, "Jacob." And He said, "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed." --Genesis 32:24-28

To My Daughters,

Jacob was left alone...Solitude for some is the last place they want to be.  Solitude means being alone with yourself...alone with your thoughts, fears and anxieties.   This is where we find Jacob, alone and probably filled with anxiety and fear.   Perhaps understanding with heart knowledge for the first that he was not in control...that no amount of deceiving and conniving would save him or his family from harm.  It is here, at his point of need, where His God  met him.

Hosea 12:4 identifies this Man with whom Jacob wrestled as the Angel of the Lord. He is also identified as God, a pre-incarnate appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ.  In verse 30 Jacob names the place of his struggle as Peniel which means literally the face of God.  Jacob wrestled and struggled with God Himself! 

Most of us can relate to Jacob.  Our own self-will  keeps us from God's best and away from the right path.  God wanted to do a work in Jacob, but Jacob was not in a place of surrender.  For in God's world the way into His presence and to  victory is in surrender.   Jacob did not surrender...not until God crippled him.  God did not want to cripple him, but sometimes (okay, most times) God has got to weaken us to enable us to see ourselves for the miserable, weak, helpless sinners that we are.  A good shepherd will break a wandering lamb's leg to save its life.  He will then carry that lamb on his shoulders until its legs heal.  By the time the healing occurs the lamb has grown to love the shepherd and wants to remain close to his side. 

This is what God did to Jacob.  Jacob had a tendency to stray, go his own way and do things in his own strength.  There is a way that seems right to man, the bible says, but its end is destruction.  Jacob's limp would always remind him of his weakness...it was a wound from a Faithful Friend who loved Him, wanted the best for him and most importantly did not want to see him perish.  Jacob now understood as the apostle Paul did that when he was weak, he was strong.

And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.  Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.--2nd Corinthians 12:7-10

God had blessed Jacob materially..now He wanted to bless Him even more abundantly.  He wanted to fill Jacob with Himself and place His desires on His heart.  This is what Jacob wanted...this is what he desired.

And He said, "Let Me go, for the day breaks." But he said, "I will not let You go unless You bless me!" 

Jacob's struggle, as ours are til the day we die, was with himself.   His spirit was willing but his flesh was weak.  We are our own worst enemy...me, myself and I always get in the way of the work God wants to do in our lives..  The Angel of God responds to Jacob's demand for a blessing by asking him what his name was.  Now God did not ask him his name because he did not know it.  He asked him his name because he wanted Jacob to face who he was in his flesh...a deceiver and a heel catcher.  If Jacob wanted to be blessed by God he needed to admit who he was and allow His God to change Him.  Upon this admission, Jacob got a new name.  Israel....which literally means ruled by God or God empowered prince.  God cannot trust us with His work and His power unless we are under His authority...surrendered to His will.  Jacob was crippled in the battle but victory was his because now instead of being ruled by self...He was ruled by God and became one of the patriarchs of God's chosen people.

Ask God to rule in your life.  Lay down your will and accept His.  Look at yourself...really look.  Admit your need and God will meet you.  Even if you have been walking with the Lord a long time there will be much you will find as the Lord peels away the "you" layers that you have not laid down.  Ask God to show you these.  Know that as you lay them down, you are not laying down anything that is good for you.  You are laying down those things that interfere with all that God has for you...the things that interfere with the work He wants to do in you and through you.  As you surrender to Him by faith and allow Him to rule your life, His grace will be there and His goodness and mercy will abound. 

Love

Mom

On Making Peace…

 57 "Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right? 58 When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort along the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge, the judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. 59 I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite."—Luke 12:57-59

Jesus’ point here in these verses is that we should do whatever we have to do to be reconciled with our Father in Heaven before it is too late. He wanted the people to be as spiritually wise as they were worldly wise. It makes perfect sense from an earthly perspective to do what we can to be reconciled to our adversaries especially if we can avoid being thrown in prison as a result. How much more, then, if our Adversary is the Lord and that prison is eternal!  

16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.—John 3:16-17

One of the Godly “Khaseed”…

But know that the LORD has set apart for Himself him who is godly; The LORD will hear when I call to Him.—Psalm 4:3

This was so good to read this morning. In love, the Lord had set David apart for Himself.  Because He had done this, the Lord would hear David when he called. Walvoord says that David describes himself as one of the godly “khaseed” an object of God’s covenantal loyal love…His steadfast unchanging love.  David was in God’s protective care.  He could rejoice even in the face of opposition. God would hear and respond to his prayers. 

As a believer in Jesus, I am the same.  

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.—1 Peter 2:9-10

Truly, I stand in awe.  God hears my prayer.  Like David, He will answer me when I call.  My God is for me, and He is on my side.  I can trust in His steadfast, loyal love.  

14 "Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him;

I will set him on high, because he has known My name.

15 He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble;

I will deliver him and honor him.

16 With long life I will satisfy him,

And show him My salvation."—Psalm 91:14-16

16 As for me, I will call upon God,

And the LORD shall save me.

17 Evening and morning and at noon

I will pray, and cry aloud,

And He shall hear my voice.

18 He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me,

For there were many against me.

19 God will hear, and afflict them,

Even He who abides from of old.—Psalm 55:16-19

When I cry out to You,

Then my enemies will turn back;

This I know, because God is for me.

10 In God (I will praise His word),

In the LORD (I will praise His word),

11 In God I have put my trust;

I will not be afraid.

What can man do to me?—Psalm 56:9-11