But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

As we read through that list of “symptoms of the last days”, I’m sure you would agree that the majority if not all of these items listed are prevalent in today’s society. Much of these things are being propagated by the media and education of today as “good things”, or character traits of those that have “made it”. We hear things like, “Make sure to take care of number one (referring to yourself)”, or “I’m just out to get mine.” Society in and of itself if failing and in a downward spiral to torment and destruction. Now all that aside, we have are own inward battles that have yet to be conquered. In analyzing my life and walk with God, I began to dissect the areas of my life that have yet to be surrendered to the cross. I understand that God has a process to maturing His children. A life with Christ is an ongoing surrender, and an ongoing battle. So being of this mindset, I was in a time of sitting and waiting before God. I had no preconceived ideas or agendas, I had so many questions and complaints burning within my soul, but held back. I wanted to “be” with God, and allow Him to speak rather than hearing my own chatter. As I was meditating in stillness, He brought to my attention the story of the feeding of the 5,000. This is a familiar passage of scripture that we find in Matthew 14:15-21 and Mark 6:34-44. Let’s take a look at this event…

When it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, “This place is desolate and the hour is already late; so send the crowds away, that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!” They said to Him, “We have here only five loaves and two fish.” And He said, “Bring them here to Me.” Ordering the people to sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food, and breaking the loaves He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds, and they all ate and were satisfied. They picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve full baskets. There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children.
Matt 14:15-21

When Jesus went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and He felt compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things. When it was already quite late, His disciples came to Him and said, ” This place is desolate and it is already quite late; send them away so that they may go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” But He answered them, “You give them something to eat!”  And they said to Him, “Shall we go and spend two hundred denarii on bread and give them something to eat?” And He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go look!” And when they found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” And He commanded them all to sit down by groups on the green grass. They sat down in groups of hundreds and of fifties. And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food and broke the loaves and He kept giving them to the disciples to set before them; and He divided up the two fish among them all. They all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up twelve full baskets of the broken pieces, and also of the fish. There were five thousand men who ate the loaves.
Mark 6:34-44

This is quite a fascinating story, full of insight and instruction. In meditating on these passages, this event in history began to speak to me. In our quest to finding our significance and destiny, we often get disillusioned by delay or disorder. We can tend to find ourselves frustrated, angry, depressed or despondent. I know I have found myself in some of these places. In looking at this event, I began to see a pattern that Holy Spirit was trying to illuminate in my heart. It was in reference to how God desires to answer the needs of the world around us. We see in these passages, that there was a great multitude of people following Jesus wherever He went. They were desperate in their souls to hear from God and to see success in their lives. How about you? Do you find yourself in that same place? I know I do. We see that the disciples were concerned about these people, they have been following with determination and dedication. Now it was becoming late, and the disciples began to address the physical needs of the people. They needed to eat, and the disciples felt the need to bring this to the attention of Jesus. Isn’t that how we are as well? Do you find yourself approaching God with the obvious, as if the Creator of time and space may have overlooked it. Often times physical needs distract us from spiritual realities. I find it interesting that when presented with the physical need, Jesus throws the responsibility of action back onto the disciples. He tells them, “You give them something to eat!” In Mark’s account of the event, we hear about the disciples rebutting Jesus with another physical response, “Shall we go and spend money on bread to give them something to eat?” I love how Jesus remains heavenly minded. He replies, “How many loaves do you have? Go look!” So we read that they come back with five loaves and two fish. Here is where Holy Spirit really drilled home a revelation to me about God’s divine plan and process of development for our lives. Four things we see Jesus do to meet the needs of the people around Him.

1) Beckoned: The first step in our development process is to be beckoned by God. He has an amazing way of calling people to Himself. Often times it’s through His presence and love, sometimes it’s through trials. Ultimately, He longs for a relationship with you that goes well beyond what your natural senses find reasonable. We see that Jesus took into His hands the substance to meet the need. In our case, we are that substance, we are the “living sacrifices” to God that we read about in Romans 12:1. As we are beckoned by God, forever drawn to His heart, we become an instrument for His glory. We must allow ourselves to be embraced by God. It takes courage to abandon yourself to the will of another, and that is where we live out our faith and intimacy to God. We rest in His hands.

2) Blessed: In this place of yieldedness, God begins to bless our lives. We begin to experience His love, joy, peace and so on. We see that God begins to open doors of opportunities, and closes doors of hindrances. We get to taste of the fruit of true kingdom living. We see how Jesus takes of the bread, looks up to heaven, and blesses it. This is the point in our walk where Jesus presents us to the Father and pronounces blessing over our lives. What a wonderful place to be living in. To experience His greatness in and through your life, nothing is more exhilarating. The place of bliss, until…

3) Broken: This is the place where the honeymoon is over, and the training/conditioning begins. The wonderful and terrifying thing about God is that He loves you so much as to take you as you are, but too much to leave you that way. His ultimate goal for our lives is to be conformed into the image of Jesus. In order for that to happen, we are like clay in the potters hands. It’s up to us whether we will be soft and pliable in His hands, or rigid and uncooperative. Often times we fight against the process of conformity because we don’t like to change. We’ve spent years bringing ourselves to the point where we were at before encountering Christ, that we don’t like to have it all unraveled. In that unraveling, there is a fear that presents itself that we will never be put back together. It takes a total reliance on God to surrender to this refinement. This is where I find myself currently. All I can say it OUCH! Jesus took of the bread, blessed it, then broke it. Many times in scripture we see this breaking of bread. We see it in the Lord’s supper, and we see it in Acts where the church ate together and broke bread (Acts 2:46). This breaking of bread also symbolizes communion and intimate relationship. This breaking process of our lives is done out of complete love and adoration. He longs for us to be more and more like Him. In this place, we take on His plans, pursuits and assignments. We care more about His will then our own. Jesus went through this brokenness process in the Garden of Gethsemane. There He spoke the famous words, “Abba! Father! All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.” (Mark 14:36-37)

4) Broadcasted: So I struggled to find another “B” word to finish up these four points. As I started to research in the dictionary and thesaurus, I ended up with broadcasted. It’s meaning struck me, and explained the final point. It’s meaning is this, to transmit, to speak, perform, sponsor or present, to cast or scatter abroad over an area (as seed in sowing), to spread widely, disseminate, to make something known widely, to reach the greatest number of people. The fourth and final phase of development is where we are broadcasted. Jesus took the bread, blessed it, broke it, then dispersed it out to the people. He was very systematic in His approach as well. When He asked them (the people) to sit, He commanded them to sit down by groups. We see they sat down in hundreds and fifties. There was order to the provision. God has a systematic approach to reaching this world, and He’s going to use you! His desire is that in partnership with heaven and all His resources, that we be scattered throughout the world like seed, to produce results. The great commission commands us to go into all the world and make disciples of nations. That’s a pretty tall order coming from heaven, and it can only be done through committed, trained and refined people of His presence. Those He can trust and count on to be obedient and aggressive in establishing His kingdom and His righteousness on earth as it is in heaven. Will you be one of them? The Bible states clearly in Daniel 11:32…

Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God  shall be strong, and carry out great exploits.

The New American Standard Translation says the same verse like this…

By smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will display strength and take action.

So in summary, cooperate with the process of development God has ordained to take place in your life. In it comes a life full of excitement and fulfillment, and ultimately VICTORY!

 

The post Five Loaves and Two Fish… The Prototype of Development appeared first on BibleTalk.Life.

To reiterate; this is about four men who dared to be different – four men who refused to eat the foods that would cause them to defile themselves and set cause to break the laws of their religious beliefs.

A few days before beginning this new journey through the book of Daniel, I was doing a little online surfing for articles and blogs on how people are coping in light of the downward spiral of the world’s economic systems.

Of course, there a great increase in number of articles and blog entries on how people are coping and saving money, of recent. It is reflecting the times in which we are living.

People are downsizing, particularly with the large population of baby-boomers entering their more senior years. Personal debt and bankruptcies are at an all-time high. Companies are moving their production facilities to cheaper lands, investments are plummeting in the stock market arenas, and people are losing jobs left and right. Oh, what troublesome times we are living in, but should we be surprised?

Aside from the inundation of articles and blogs and frugality, there are a newer substantial amount of blogs and sites for a growing number of people who are now opting out of the societal pressures to look like we have it all made. They are choosing instead, to move with a purposed directive towards a new trend called “voluntary simplicity”. They are the new army or breed of those fighting to step back from the society’s focus on self absorption and indulgence, and the overwhelming pressure to “keep up with the Joneses”.

Living the great American dream is no longer the dream…. in fact, it has become a nightmare! Society is starting to say “we have had enough”. They are opting out, and discarding all the stuff that really isn’t necessary. They are no longer interested in accumulating treasures, and storing the “stuff”.

My own sister-in-law and brother-in-law made a decision, a little over year and a half ago, to sell off their home and all of their world possessions, in order to purchase a large RV motorhome and drive off to discover North America. The timing, they felt, was right. Their kids, now in their twenties, had left home, and being only in their forties themselves, they were young enough to enjoy the concept. They also wanted to do it while they have the health to do it. They were both of tired of their jobs and the rat-race, and were ready for an all-out adventure. So in just a few short weeks, they got rid of their stuff, and were waving farewell. Their challenge and part of the whole exploit would be to see how little they could spend. It would be more like a game, but not a regimented, unbending requirement. They wanted to do it all as simply as they could.

They chose an online trip journal, and daily post their happenings, as well as keep a running tab on their expenditures; namely fuel, food, and overnight fees. Since they have never been big spenders to start with, they spend very little, and have surprisingly, on average, spent only around a thousand a month over the past year, for their new style of living. Internet is picked up randomly here and there, on whatever signals they happen to find along the way, and cell phone pay-as-you-go is a monthly five dollar phone card they keep topped up only for roadside emergencies, should they ever need it.

Board-games, cards, strolls on the beaches, bike rides, dog-walks, and get-togethers with other fellow RV-ers are high on the list of activities. They trade books with other travellers, eat foods in season and with simplicity, pickup cheap dvd movies once in a while to watch on their laptops, they read the headlines and news videos online, and participate in free activities and touristy items as they motor along. It’s a low-key lifestyle they have become accustomed to, and that they absolutely love. So, what started out with intent to be only a couple of years long, has now become a lifestyle, and has progressed into plans for a longer timeframe.

They have chosen, and they have dared to be different.

While there is a part of many of us that may be envious of such a freedom to be able to pick and move like that. I, personally, have to say that I am too busy enjoying this season of writing and ministry. I absolutely love what I am blessed to be doing right now, and of where He has me. I love the simplicity of what we, as a family unit of our own, have chosen for this very busy season in our lives.

While we have never been too passionate about keeping up appearances, we have opted to step out of the influences and to clamp down on spending. Like others, who are choosing to rebel, we are no longer interested in spending our money or time on the unimportant things. Again, like many others, we have chosen to say “no’, and to no longer conform to make the status quo – we choose to store the stuff, instead, where it counts… both personally and spiritually.

Do we, as believers in Christ, want to be strong in our conviction to not be conformed of this world?

“But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Matthew 6:20 (NIV)

It is all about setting our boundaries. We can choose to be a part of what is happening around us or to standout and be unique – to dare to be different and set apart.

We can certainly live in the world, but we don’t have to live of it.

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Rom 12:2 (NIV)

Part of the study of His Word, is the factor of application; taking what you learn and applying it to your own life. So with an awareness of our own financial situations, and with the conviction of my faith – for the length of time that I am studying this amazing book of the Bible, I am personally committing to eat simply and at home (as much as possible), to not to spend any unnecessary money on what could be construed as frivolous items, and to live my life as simply as possible. I shall commit to purging out my belongings in order to downsize our home to its’ simplest form, and its’ most mobile, move-ready basics. Not because I have to to, or because circumstances may force it in the future… but simply, because I want to.

We can learn much from the example of four men. Four men, who opted to take a stand for the simpler things – to eat with the simplicity of a diet of strictly vegetables and water, (and not the indulgent diet of a royal palace), and of whose bodies and minds ultimately reflected its intrinsic value. Four men, who chose to not be conformed to the patterns of the world around them, but to take a stand for righteous faith and respect for the Law.

Four men, who dared to be different.

The post Four Men Who Dared to Be Different~ Part 2 appeared first on BibleTalk.Life.

Yes, indeed, the prolific abundance and resources of the royal kingdom were being invested into the physical bodies of the finest specimens in the kingdom – all handpicked and chosen to be trained for the king’s service.

There was only one hitch.

There were a couple of men, who didn’t want to touch it with a ten-foot pole. In their Hebrew culture the foods were considered unclean, and eating them would have defiled the Law to which they would stanchly defend and preserve. To break that Law, would be to sin against their God.

Let’s read the first chapter of Daniel, in the New International Version, and see how the actual story is recorded…

1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the articles from the temple of God. These he carried off to the temple of his god in Babylonia and put in the treasure house of his god.

3 Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility- 4 young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians. 5 The king assigned them a daily amount of food and wine from the king’s table. They were to be trained for three years, and after that they were to enter the king’s service.

6 Among these were some from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. 7 The chief official gave them new names: to Daniel, the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.

8 But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. 9 Now God had caused the official to show favor and sympathy to Daniel, 10 but the official told Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned your food and drink. Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men your age? The king would then have my head because of you.”

11 Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, 12 “Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.” 14 So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days.

15 At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. 16 So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.

17 To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds.

18 At the end of the time set by the king to bring them in, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service. 20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom.

21 And Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.

While it was, no doubt, probably an honour to have been chosen, (and most assuredly the family and friends, of those that made the cut, were proud of their loved ones), it was apparent that not everyone was willing to compromise!

Four men, who dared to be different. Notice the court officials even tried to change their names. Talk about losing your identity, and just becoming another one in the crowd!

It was all about motive, pleasure and self indulgence; the king’s, his courts’, his interns’, and his nations’. Oh, how this parallels our life, here in the present day, and from within our western culture!

Indeed, we are living in a modern-day version of Babylonia! After all, it wasn’t just the name of a place, it was a culture, a way of life, and a philosophy for living!

The world is our oyster! Our eyes and ears can now hear and see and experience the voices of influence from around the world in a nano-second, through technology and media, all as never before in history – all implying that we really are the center of our own universe!

Think about it. We are enraptured with pleasure for ourselves – our five senses are never dulled and they too, are fed their finest!

Education is now available through means and sources never dreamed or perceived in years past; physical health is scientifically explained, altered, reproduced, and cloned in peitre dishes; and dictionaries have words that are now considered parts of everyday speech – words that would make even an animal blush!

Our hands fondle the finest of textures and objects in their purest, natural form or their man-made, artificial counterparts. Our palettes exercise the diversity of cultures and tastes, and exotic aromas fill our nostrils, taking our imaginations to distant lands across the globe.

We can feed not only our bodies, but our egos! We can choose to find ourselves, remake our appearance, access unlimited banks of knowledge, get cash at the touch of a button or the swipe of a card, and cross oceans and continents in a heartbeat!

We have choices like no other time, or nations, in history; and, we tell ourselves it is entirely possible to have it all!

Well they too, had it all, and it was being offered to them on a silver platter, literally. However, they made a choice, and like Mary would, many years later, they chose what was better!

Four men, who dared to be different.

The post Four Men Who Dared to Be Different ~ Part 1 appeared first on BibleTalk.Life.

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

We are created and patterned after God. We are a direct reflection, a mirrored image of God. God intended for us to walk and talk like Him. Adam was designed to function and flow as God does. His spirit was identical to God’s, and it was full of life and creative power.

And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. Genesis 2:7

And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. Genesis 2:21-22

God created the human bodies for Adam and Eve because they were spirits, just like God. God gave them bodies so that they would have legal right to rule and reign as God instructed them to.

Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Genesis 1:28

God’s intention for mankind was to be like Him. We were created for His enjoyment and for fellowship. We were given free will over our lives, and God’s desire is that we would will to love Him and long to worship Him. He designed us to succeed in life, and to fulfill the destiny call on our lives. We see this in Ephesians 2:10

For we are His workmanship , created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

All this being said, it’s time we address the effects of sin in our lives. The effects of sin, unchecked and unattended to, leave a residue on our lives that tarnish us from shining the way we were designed to. It would be like owning antique silver and not taking the time to polish it. Eventually it becomes dull and loses it’s brilliance and brightness. Our lives are very much the same. Without the consistent yielding to the Holy Spirit and His work in conviction and correction, we will become spiritually dull and stagnant. The challenge with sin, when not properly dealt with, can often paint a distorted image of who we are. There is a tendency to begin to identify with that sin, and we soon see ourselves in light of that. It is the same with past hurts and failures. When those circumstances are not brought under the blood of Jesus, we will consistently re-live them over and over. In Mark 10:46-52 we read about the story of “Blind Bartimaeus” and his miracle.

Now they came to Jericho. As He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road begging. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 Then many warned him to be quiet; but he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called. Then they called the blind man, saying to him, “Be of good cheer. Rise, He is calling you.” 50 And throwing aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus. 51 So Jesus answered and said to him, “What do you want Me to do for you?” The blind man said to Him, “Rabboni, that I may receive my sight.” 52 Then Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the road.

This story always makes me laugh. It is such a great depiction of modern Christianity today. Here is a story of a man who was blind. Not only the fact that he was blind, but that he is actually identified as “Blind Bartimaeus, son of Timaeus”. Can you imagine being in a condition so long that you are known by that condition. That is how it was in those days. When you had a condition, sickness or disease, you were identified by it. When those who were spotting with leprosy, they were immediately condemned to wearing a garment that identified them as a leper. These “garments” are just as real today as they were back then. The only difference is that today we carry them in our identity or mental picture of ourselves. So through our Christian experience, we come to a place of desperation. We hear that Jesus is coming by. How? It happens all the time when we are attending a service, Bible study, or conference and we begin to see God moving in healing and miracles. It’s in those times that we begin to stretch out are faith amidst the normal doubt we usually live in by having this condition facing us day by day. How often in our stance of faith, as we start to cry out and believe, do we come across those around us who tend to bring us down. Faith-killers, that speak about your condition and circumstance rather than agreeing with you in your faith confession. It was the same for Bartimaeus. Those around him were telling him to shut up and don’t bother. Yet Bartimaeus was not willing to live in that identity any longer. He reached a point in his life where desperation met destiny. In that split moment of time, his faith met His power! Jesus calls him over. This reminds me of those times where people kept their faith stand, persisting through the negativity around them, and God begins to work miracles in their lives. What happens to those around them that were negative? All of a sudden, they want to get around you, they want to join in your encouragement and joy. The same is for Bartimaeus, after being called by Jesus, the people around him start to get excited for him. This is a great lesson in keeping your eyes and faith on Jesus. As mush as God puts people in our lives to stand with us, we must remember that our confidence is in Christ and Christ alone. People will always disappoint us, and we will always disappoint others. We are not perfect, but we’re being perfected! So when Bartimaeus hears that Jesus is calling him, it says that he threw aside his garment. When we come into the presence of God, we must come to the place where we “cast our garments“. We must be persistent and aggressive in rejecting all images of ourselves that keep us broke, busted and disgusted. We have to get into the Word of God, which is the spiritual mirror for our lives. It shows us who we really are in Christ and the beauty and splendor of our true nature. Casting aside all doubt, fear, failures and past sins committed, we are to come before God in confidence!

Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace , so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:16

Our identity must be on and in Jesus alone. The purpose of this message was to bring to our attention that very point. Our identity is in Jesus! God bless you.

The post Cast Off Your Garments — Changing Positions, Changes Conditions! appeared first on BibleTalk.Life.

God is our caretaker; He knows exactly what we need.

And He said to His disciples, “For this reason I say to you, do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. “Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds! And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life’s span? If then you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you? You men of little faith! And do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink, and do not keep worrying. For all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek; but your Father knows that you need these things. But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.”  Luke 12:22-32

In our trusting and abiding in Him, all our wants are fulfilled. Often times we don’t trust or abide in Him and therefore our motives and intentions are tainted.

What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.  James 4:1-3

So our goal is to keep our eyes on Him.

Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He will do it.  Psalm 37:3-5

Vs.2 “He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.

In our walk with God, often times we tend to take control of situations. We sometimes get an attitude of, “Okay God, I can take it from here…” When we start to get into this attitude, we begin to operate in our own strength. Eventually we burn out. We come to realize that God’s grace is no longer on our lives to perform at an optimum level. This is how so many believers experience burnout. It’s a tragedy and quite unnecessary because God called us to live in His peace. So as our Caretaker, often times he allows us to “burnout” and come to a place of brokenness before Him. He removed His grace and ability off our lives to “MAKE us lie down in green pastures”.

Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience.  Hebrews 4:11

The children of God wandered in the wilderness for forty years because of disobedience and unbelief. They never experienced God’s rest in the Promised Land. Disobedience and unbelief cripples our walk with God. When we decide that we can do it better or faster than God our own way, eventually we get taken to the “woodshed”. He sits us down and begins to deal with our heart, exposing the wall of disobedience and pride we built. When we come to the realization that God knows what’s best for us, we see that it’s impossible to progress in life and ministry on our own strength. It’s in that moment in time and destiny that God grants us, out of His kindness, to come before Him with a repentant heart to change and be healed. These are unavoidable occurrences in the life of believers. We must be continually crushed so that our carnal desires are brought into subjection to God’s will. It’s in that crushing, that like a rose being crushed, releases a sweet perfume.  Often many people get stuck in this phase of growth. Giving up our control is one of the hardest acts of love we ever have to face. For those who willingly choose to hand over their control on life, they will experience life in a more fulfilling way. God will pick us up and call us to walk with Him again, not ahead or behind, but WITH Him. This is where “He leads me beside quiet waters”. In that place, we have total confidence and total peace. We can rest in the fact that our Caretaker, the Lover of our soul, will guide us to a deeper place in His heart.

For you will go out with joy and be led forth with peace.  Isaiah 55:12

The best description of our walk with God is ballroom dancing. When you watch a couple ballroom dancing, it’s a fluid motion. It’s graceful and elegant; it’s in sync and exciting. What most may not understand, it that even though both partners are sharing the same space, and both have a part to play in the dance, one is always leading. That is how our lives are to be with God. We are to walk in grace and virtue. We are to walk so close to God that we share the same space. We are to be in sync with His movements as He leads the dance of our lives. As the world watches our lives, they should be moved with excitement and awe. Let God lead your life.

Vs.3 “He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.

The walk with God is one of restoration. He restores our soul to one that is lost in Him, one of intimacy. Our mind, will, and emotions are fixated on Him as He guides us in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. The paths we walk in right standing with Him are paths for character growth in our lives. These are the paths that teach us what it is to be loving, merciful, forgiving and so on. These paths prepare us to handle the relationships we face in the world. It’s what forms Christ-likeness in our lives. Like traveling through a path or trail in the woods, there is always going to be unexpected terrain. It can be rough, slippery and full of surprises. We need to allow God to be the Guide. When we are walking in His footsteps, are foundation is secure. We keep a steady pace because God knows how to get us through every situation. The only thing that causes delays is when we fail to trust Him. Hold on to His hand as He holds on to your heart.

Vs.4 “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

In this walk with God, we will have many mountaintop victories. He always causes us to triumph, but soon it will be time for promotion. Every time God is pleased with us, He sends us into the valleys or wilderness experiences.

After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased. Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.  Matthew 3:16-4:1

When time for promotion comes, you transition from exaltation to isolation. Jesus experienced the greatest manifestation of glory at His baptism. Quite a mountaintop experience, but God wanted to promote Him into ministry. For that purpose, Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness. It’s in these wilderness experiences, that our carnality and fleshly desires get tested and purged. The greatest opportunity for us to fall is in our moments of victories. When we are in a time of celebration, we tend to let our guard down. That is usually when the enemy strikes the most. We often times get prideful and boastful in what we came out of, that we lose sight of the One who led us through. That is the purpose of being led back into the wilderness. We can only grow in God to the level of depth in suffering we experience. We go through the valley of the shadow of death to take us to new levels of faith and understanding of who we really are. We come to realize that the shadow of death is our fleshly carnal man. Our physical body is perishing day by day, and it is a shadow of who our spiritual man really is. We must die to our flesh in order to live in our spirit, and recognize that our physical life is but a vapor. Our spiritual man, who we really are, is seated with Christ in heavenly places.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.  Ephesians 2:4-6

We realize that even in these times of isolation, God is still with us. The very nature, character and Spirit of Jesus is in us, therefore we have nothing to fear. It’s in these times of isolation, that we get refined or pruned to bear more fruit. It’s the training ground to learn how to walk by faith and not by sight. We learn how to conduct ourselves in private so that when we have public ministry, we have developed the character and conviction needed to walk worthy of the calling.

Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  Ephesians 4:1-3

The only way to learn this posture is in the discipline of the Lord. Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. God’s rod is for discipline. This is where discipleship comes from. He longs for us to learn the disciplines of godliness in order to present to the world, kingdom obedience. His staff is for boundaries. A shepherd’s staff was used to hook the sheep’s neck to pull him back within boundaries. So is it with God. He uses this time of isolation to establish boundaries in our lives to know where our influence and calling resides. This is so that we learn what we are to do, and how to do it right. It also teaches us to be comfortable in our calling, and not to over extend ourselves into someone else’s calling. Every believer has their part to play in kingdom growth. When we die to our own passions and pursuits, God is able to fitly join us together so that every part doing its share causes growth. When Jesus came out of the wilderness, He came in the power and authority of the kingdom.

Vs.5 “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Coming out of these valleys or wilderness experiences, you will walk in the wisdom and the power of God. You will have God’s heart and passion. He then prepares a table before you in the presence of your enemies. He allows you to sit and dine with Him in the midst of challenges.

Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.  Revelation 3:20

You will be able to rest and have peace in His presence. All it takes is a heart that is centered on Him. It’s in that place of rest and fellowship with Him, that we become fascinated with Him. In His presence, there is fullness of Joy. That Joy is a strength against the enemy. Our joy confuses the enemy. In this place of intimacy and fellowship, our hearts yield over to Him in worship. This is the heart cry that extends to Him in love and adoration. To sit with Him and experience the waves of love flowing from His heart causes us to respond in like manner. Our very lives become a worship song before Him. Our worship silences the enemy. We are called to live in this place. In this place we are no longer concerned about the posture of worship. The true position in worship is not hands lifted up, not on our knees or on our face prostrate before Him. The only position we are called to live in worship, is overwhelmed. That’s God’s heart for us, to be so overwhelmed and consumed by His majesty and glory that we reflect and resonate all that He is to a world around us. We become covered in His glory and anointing. You have anointed my head with oil; my cup overflows. The oil of the Lord keeps us fresh. In His presence, we are continually filled with His Spirit, and carry the freshness of the dew of heaven. It allows us to not get stagnant or dried up in ministry to the world. We will always have a fresh message from the throne because we are in a constant state of communion with Him. That is the true power and strength of ministry.

Vs.6 “Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

We can have a confidence that God’s goodness and kindness will continually be on our lives as we allow Him to shape and mold us for success. David, as he penned this psalm, knew that his heart toward God was pure. He had a confidence that God’s love would never cease. He firmly made the choice that he would dwell in the house of the lord forever. He knew the significance of intimacy with God.

How lovely are Your dwelling places, O LORD of hosts! My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.  Psalm 84:1-2

For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.  Psalm 84:10-11

David was said to be a man after God’s own heart. God’s heart is for continual intimacy and fellowship. He longs for us all throughout the day.

The LORD your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with his love, He will rejoice over you with singing.  Zephaniah 3:17 NIV

We as believers often have an identity crisis. Most struggle with their relationship with God, because of past hurts, broken or unbalanced family structure, or a poor self-image. The only way to bring healing and wholeness to our lives is through a total yielding to God. To be a true New Testament believer, we must be comfortable with God’s presence, God’s voice and God’s Word. We have to be balanced in these three areas to truly be a people who know our God and do great exploits.

…but the people who know their God shall prove themselves strong and shall stand firm and do exploits [for God].  Daniel 11:32 AMP

Our intimacy with God intimidates the enemy. Our strength is in our union with the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Our surrender to the will of God allows us to stand firm, and be a light to the world. In that stance, we find total fulfillment. David was quick to praise and magnify the Lord above every circumstance, and he experienced a life of victory and joy amidst trial and pain. This verse describes it well…

I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.  Psalm 27:13

David learned through his many years in the fields, shepherding the family flocks, that God loved him. He learned to be secure in his relationship with God, and through that, he conquered fear at an early age. Goliath was not a monumental battle in the eyes of David, because he spent years learning the pathway to greatness in the fields. Through his intimacy with God, he was strengthened with might to defeat lions and bears. God was pleased with David and wanted to promote him to be king of Israel. In reading the life of David, you can see how he faced many valleys and times of wilderness trials. David learned in his youth how to rely on God and remain in a place of fellowship and worship. In that, David did mighty things for God, and so can you.

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“After He had removed him, He raised up David to be their king, concerning whom He also testified and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will do all My will.

My heart’s desire is to have that spoken about my life, to be a man after God’s own heart. So as I was meditating about the life of David, there are so many attributes we can attribute to his success. David was a man of…

Worship – The heart expression to God

Courage – The faith expression in the midst of trials

War – the righteous expression to sin and indifference

All these things could be a teaching of themselves. Yet the attribute I am most moved by and rarely hear about regarding the life of David, is his revelation of inheritance. David was the youngest of eight sons. His daily chores were to tend to the family sheep. A simple and rather unnoticeable job that to most would be tedious and probably boring. It’s within those times that he wrote many of the psalms we read about today, especially Psalm 23 (of which I will be posting a teaching on). The time came for Samuel to anoint the next king of Israel as Saul had willingly disobeyed the Lord. We see the account of this in 1 Samuel 16:1-13…

1 Now the LORD said to Samuel, ” How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have selected a king for Myself among his sons.” 2 But Samuel said, “How can I go? When Saul hears of it, he will kill me.” And the LORD said, ” Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’ 3 “You shall invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you shall anoint for Me the one whom I designate to you.” 4 So Samuel did what the LORD said, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and said, ” Do you come in peace?” 5 He said, “In peace; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” He also consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they entered, he looked at Eliab and thought, “Surely the LORD’S anointed is before Him.” 7 But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “The LORD has not chosen this one either.” 9 Next Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “The LORD has not chosen this one either.” 10 Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse , “The LORD has not chosen these.” 11 And Samuel said to Jesse , “Are these all the children?” And he said, ” There remains yet the youngest, and behold, he is tending the sheep.” Then Samuel said to Jesse , “Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.”
12 So he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the LORD said, ” Arise, anoint him; for this is he.” 13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward. And Samuel arose and went to Ramah.

Now we leap ahead to the story of Goliath. David was instructed by his father Jesse to go and deliver food and supplies to his brothers on the battle field. Upon arriving, David hears the taunts of Goliath, the champion of the Philistines. So David begins to inquire about the rewards that would be gained to the one that defeats Goliath. The word of that inquiry reaches King Saul’s ears and soon David finds himself before Saul. We see this account in 1 Samuel 17:31-37…

31 When the words which David spoke were heard, they told them to Saul, and he sent for him. 32 David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail on account of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” 33 Then Saul said to David, ” You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth.” 34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, 35 I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him. 36 “Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted the armies of the living God.” 37 And David said, ” The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”

How can David be so bold? Many would say that it is because he spent so much time in worship and communion with God. Others would say that the rewards sounded good. I think that those claims definitely played a part. Yet I submit to you that what gave David the courage and boldness to act was his revelation of inheritance. Let me explain this out. David was the youngest boy, given the boring job. Yet he lived with the revelation of inheritance. It says in John 10:11-14…

11 ”I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12 “He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 “He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep.

David had the courage and boldness to attack the lion and the bear because they came to challenge his inheritance! David was faithful and alert doing the tedious, boring job because he saw that flock as his inheritance. He knew that someday that flock would be handed down to him, and in his eyes, nothing would steal that from him. Now leaping back to the story of Goliath, David once again arose in boldness and courage because he saw someone challenging the existence of the nation of Israel. The Philistines wanted to destroy the Israelites and that triggered the prophetic word that has been deposited in David. David knew that he was going to be king someday, and he was not about to let anything step in the way of his inheritance! I submit that the average Christian today does not have a revelation of their God-given inheritance. Paul knew of this back in his day. He penned the prayer in Ephesians 1:15-23…

15 For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, 16 do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Paul prayed that our eyes of understanding would be enlightened to know…

The hope of our calling

The riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints

The surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe

Every believer must gain revelation in the calling of God on their lives as each person has one. We must gain revelation in how marvelous and mind-blowing our inheritance is as saints. We must gain revelation in how much power is available to the believer with Christ living in them! Ephesians 3:20 says…

20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us.

So all of this being said, I would like to encourage you to dig up all the prophetic words spoken over your life. Recall them and continue to get them deep within your spirit. Allow your creativity to help you imagine what it would be like when those prophetic words come to pass. Begin to imagine what it feels like to be released into that prophetic word. As you do that, that prophetic word will begin to energize you, and bubble up within you to begin to “call those things that be not as though they are” Romans 4:17. Paul instructed Timothy regarding this very issue. He said in 1 Timothy 1:18 and 1 Timothy 4:14-15

This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight.

Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery.

I pray that this teaching encourages your heart to keep the press and finish the race. It’s to the glory of God that we re-discover who we are and what we are to do. Be blessed and grow in the grace and favor of almighty God. Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen. Jude 24-25

The post Inheritance – Why We Fail To Attain What Is Rightfully Ours appeared first on BibleTalk.Life.

The Bible says in Isaiah 55:8-12,

8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways
And My thoughts than your thoughts.
10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
And do not return there without watering the earth
And making it bear and sprout,
And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
11 So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;
It will not return to Me empty,
Without accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.
12 “For you will go out with joy
And be led forth with peace;
The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you,
And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.

How is it that the mountains, the hills, and even the trees have a better clue as to the success of our lives then we often do? It’s because they have no unbelief! It says in Romans 8:18-22

18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
19 For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.
20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope
21 that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.

All of creation is waiting for you and me to be revealed. Creation is groaning in birth pains until now. When is the divine “now” for you? I believe that the world is waiting for our faith to work through our love. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” We need to walk in a “NOW” faith and begin to create our world. God has created us in His image. The whole world God created was framed through the spoken word, and so is ours. Our job is to speak things into existence, walk in the love of God, and remain thankful and grateful of what the Lord is doing currently in our lives. I think the first part of that comes easy to people. Speaking out our desires is easy as it doesn’t require too much humility or patience. The second part of walking in love, well that’s a whole new game. That requires an inner work of the Holy Spirit to develop fruit of conformity to His image. Now the third part can be even that much more challenging. Thankfulness and Gratefulness requires humility to truly be genuine. It will separate our “wants” from our “needs”. I’m reminded of the song “Give Thanks”

Give thanks with a grateful heart,
Give thanks to the Holy One,
Give thanks because He’s given Jesus Christ, His Son,
And now, let the weak say, “I am strong,”
Let the poor say, “I am rich,”
Because of what the Lord has done for us,
Give thanks

So regarding the timing of God, the best encouragement and advice I could give is this…

1) Call forth the plan and purpose of God
2) Walk in the unfailing love of God
3) Remain in a heart of gratefulness and thanksgiving

So in the spirit of this message, thank you for spending time to read this. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. 2 Corinthians 13:14

The post The Timing Of God… Never When You Want It… Always When You Need It! appeared first on BibleTalk.Life.

In the midst of the raging tempest, Jonah was down deep into the belly, or hull, of the ship fast asleep. It is a natural inclination to shrink away from those around us, when we feel guilty about something and to hide out, and Jonah was no different from the rest of us. Pulling the covers over his head probably seemed like a good idea at the time, and it was simply a place to escape and shut off the truth that was no doubt permeating his thoughts. It was a temporary solution to what was going to be a never-ending problem.

Meanwhile, overhead, the fellow shipmates were wildly throwing things overboard in their panic to lighten their load, and avoid sinking into the surging waters. We are not told, but since they were a ship from a major port we could most likely assume they were regular sailors of the sea, and that their terror in the midst of the storm was evidence that things were truly of magnitude proportions.

Now they were all in it together; Jonah was running from fear, of perhaps failure more than anything, (aside from God’s possible wrath), and the men feared their own deaths at sea.

Doing all they could do in their natural circumstances, they were doing the exhaustive heaving of their cargo overboard, and at the same time, their circumstances were causing their own mortality to stare them in the face. They were calling on their gods and nothing was breaking in their situation. And all the while he is down there snoozing. Things were about to get ugly… Is the word “mutiny” ringing any bells with anyone? In all likelihood, it was probably crossing their fleshly minds about then.

The story continues with the captain in charge of the ship coming to the slumbering Jonah…

6 “The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us, and we will not perish.” 7 Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.”

Most likely due to both frustration and fear, they were already deducing that Jonah and his sin was probably the cause of all their problems – and that he was responsible for the mess that they were in.

8 “So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” 9 He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.” 10 This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)”

Did you catch how quick they were to lay blame, and point fingers? They take no responsibility for their own sinful roles of seeing help in the wrong places in this saga, instead they choose to wager as to who is to be blamed for their crisis. The gamble was only a corroboration of what he had already told them. It was also an opportunity for him to confess his guilt with his own words and to absolve themselves of any wrong-doing – they knew he was attempting to hide, but from what? They had to know, so they inquired of him as to the cause of his running.

It would seem to be a strange time to be asking questions, particularly since he had already explained his plight to them. But again, the reiteration that sin effects not only ourselves, but those around us, also causes one to acknowledge that others will also reap those repercussions, particularly when the one who sins is in close proximity to us. As a teacher/preacher/prophet he was going to be held answerable for his actions. He was reflection the state of his own people, and likewise was going to be held responsible for his actions just as Israel would be. The storm was God’s tool of verification and they were not about to mess with Him when they now knew He was in control of all of it.

11 “The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?” “

Sure enough, when trouble hits, both the innocent and wicked people will cry out for God, and they asked Jonah to do it on their behalf. The bottom line is that even in their desperation to save themselves, they were not going to touch what they recognized as a “man of God”, and they correctly presumed he would know the solution to their dilemma – the act of appeasing God for the sins that had taken place.

12 “”Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.””

He was taking responsibility for his actions; and bless him, he was sparing the innocent in this tale, of their possible outcome. It was a true parallel of sparing the nation of Israel.

13 “Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. 14 Then they cried to the Lord, “O Lord, please do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, O Lord, have done as you pleased.” 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. 16 At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him.”

Jonah’s chances, of surviving the storm, were not likely a reality in their minds. The intensity was only worsening as they went along. The idea of shedding innocent blood was also not an avenue that they wanted to pursue either, as there was accountability for that too. So, they tried to head back, but it was clear there was only one option. Finally in their desperation, they pleaded for His mercy, and tossed Jonah overboard.

At the calming nature of the sea, the men actually then started to repent from their past and to worship the One True God. Unfortunately, it had come from fear, and not with a pure heart motive. They promised a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows, most likely to give Him even more of what was due Him, when they landed.

17 “But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.”

This was a dramatic conclusion to the first portion of his journey… being swallowed up into the belly of a fish. Ironically it was another parallel to the earlier time when he opted to hide in the belly of the ship. Once again, he was residing in the deep, dark, place…

The scripture says God prepared a great fish, and much debate exists today as to the type of fish it was, but that is not of true relevance to this actual story. It is the miraculous ability for Jonah to breathe life while in the captivity of that environment. It was a divinely orchestrated miracle that would mirror the effects of not only Jonah’s sin, but also that of both Israel and Nineveh.

A prophet is often marked by experiences that make them empathetic, sympathetic, and compassionate for the people to which they speak.

It is not always about the heart choosing the right thing…but more often than not the heart choosing the wrong thing.

Poor old Jonah still may not even have known it at that point, but he was going back to Nineveh.

The post Going Back to Nineveh – Part 2 appeared first on BibleTalk.Life.

Not too long ago, a friend and I were having a conversation online, and he commented how he felt like David. Now, feeling like David isn’t such a bad thing, as David was a man after God’s own heart, and so my friend. He is also a worshipper, just like David was. So in his contemplative state, that was a good place to be.

As for me, I just had to chuckle. It was one of those days, and I felt like Jonah. It was like I had been swallowed up and spit out on the beach, and now I was heading back to Nineveh to finish what I should have done in the first place. Truthfully, I could have saved myself a lot of time, especially since I knew I would have to deal with it eventually – as we always do.

Since one of the purposes of this blog, is to bring the relevance of scripture and to parallel it with the journeys of our own lives, perhaps we will break this into a couple of small bite-sized chunks for a couple of days, and take pause to think about our connection to “the something familiar” in each of us.

The “something familiar” in this lesson is that “we all have a tendency to want to run from something in our lives”, and Jonah was no acceptation. So let’s check out his story and see what transpired with him….

Going Back to Nineveh

Let’s start at the beginning of Jonah’s story in Jonah 1:1-3 (NIV)…

“1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.”

The bottom line? God spoke. The man had a mission to fulfill, and he opted not to do it. Not only that, he ran from it.

Jonah’s father’s name was Amittai. It was the Hebrew word for “truth”. “Truth-telling” was most appropriate to a prophet and this must have been a powerful accountability reminder to Jonah in more ways than one. So, facing the truth that was staring him in the face was unavoidable – he had been instructed and commissioned.

He knew exactly what his assignment was. This prophet of the Lord was being sent to provoke His people to them to a place of repentance. God was pointedly sending him to Nineveh, into a dangerous, powerful, threatening, heathen culture; not for its’ own benefit, but also for the purposes of shaming Israel. Just imagine, the city could possibly be turned around by one single prophet that was on his first preaching assignment – while they themselves had missed the messages of various, prolific, prophets from the past and their current day. So really, just how would that look for them?

No doubt, it didn’t feel like a good position for Jonah to want to be put into as they would have no excuses, and neither would he.

Jonah’s choice was to run.

Let’s face it, if all those previous guys couldn’t accomplish what God had sent them there to do, what were the chances that he would? Who could blame him for feeling that way? He would most likely seen as some young prophet spouting words, or perhaps even appearing to them to be a false prophet. Perhaps Jonah’s flesh would even end up getting in the way. No doubt, he probably would have liked to see them going down far more than watching them get right with God. Either way, he had a message to give and he was opting out.

The consequences of withholding the information were not going to be fun. There is an awareness that sin never effects just the person committing it – it effects all those around them too, so one has to wonder what was going through his mind at that very moment. Somebody was going to pay for his deliberacy of omission.

True, Jonah felt weak and inadequate, (we find out just how so in Jonah 4:2, later on), it was because he saw how little he had helped in bringing his own people to God. The other bottom line? He forgot that God was going to help him in his divine calling as a prophet.

“4 Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. 5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.”

The ship was going down, and in their panic they began tossing the stuff overboard to keep from sinking. In their turmoil, they called upon their own gods and idols for help. Jonah however, was oblivious. Lying down and sleeping was probably his way of coping and hoping it would all go away.

Really, what he sought was a little peace and quiet… but did he really think he could run from God? Psalm 137:7-10 would have been a familiar word to him…

“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”

So why did he think that he would be able to escape the land of Israel, and the prophetic anointing that was on his life?

Seriously, how often do we just want to pull the covers over our head and wish that it would all go away? Do we ourselves think that God is just going to let us off the hook, when He asks us to do something? Even Jonah knew the real answer to that one.

Take this time and ask yourself, “what has He been asking you to do that you are running from, or procrastinating about”.

What is that purpose and destiny He is calling you to? Do you already know? Have you ever even asked? Have you thought about the passions of your heart, and the dreams that you once had? You will often find the answers have been there all along.

You do know you are going to end up doing it eventually, right?

We can either work with Him, or against Him… His methods may not always make sense right away, but they will certainly work.

He will always win, and eventually we will find ourselves “going back to Nineveh”… to finish what we should have done in the first place.

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