290 Job 12 – 14; Matthew 15.21 – 15.39
Before we get into chapter twelve we need to review chapter 11 of Job. In chapter 11 you will remember that Zophar has made three accusations against Job. Of the three friends it is highly likely that Zophar was the youngest since he spoke last. Here are the three accusations: Job is guilty of sin (Job 11:1-4); Job is ignorant of God (vv. 5-12); and Job is stubborn in his refusal to repent (vv. 13-20). It is in 12 -14 that Job answers all three of these accusations: He declares God’s greatness (Job 12) and he maintains his own innocence (Job 13), and because he has no hope, he sees no reason as to why he should he repent? (Job 14) This angry approach to helping someone who is suffering is not recommended by anyone in the counseling profession. When we suffer or when someone else suffers the question of sin has to arise because there are times God will discipline His children. We must search our own hearts with the help of the Holy Spirit to see if we have gone astray. If nothing is revealed then we should pray and ask God to forgive us of any unknown sin that may be in our lives. Sometimes we suffer for the sake of our Lord. One man has affirmed this when he said, “It is not why I suffer that I wish to know, but only whether I suffer for Your sake.”Levi Yitzhak of Berditcher
A woman who has a sick daughter is pestering the disciples and Jesus. Finally Jesus engages her about her persistence and here is some of the conversation:
Matthew 15:25-28 (MSG)
25 Then the woman came back to Jesus, went to her knees, and begged. "Master, help me."
26 He said, "It's not right to take bread out of children's mouths and throw it to dogs."
27 She was quick: "You're right, Master, but beggar dogs do get scraps from the master's table."
28 Jesus gave in. "Oh, woman, your faith is something else. What you want is what you get!" Right then her daughter became well.
This woman was not going to be denied. Her daughter was sick and she wanted the Master to set things right. I am an on the side of we must keep bringing our requests before the Lord. Our merciful Savior understands if we go too far. What have you not prayed for in a while? Pray for it again today. Trust God and let go.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
289 Friday, October 16, 2009
289 Job 9 – 11; Matthew 15.1 – 15.20
In Job 9 and 10 we find Job asking three questions that gives us insight into a soul that is suffering. The three questions are as follows: :
(1) “How can I be righteous before God?” (9:1-13)
(2) “How can I meet God in court?” (vv. 14-35) and
(3) “Why was I born?” (10:1-22; see v. 18).
The question that Job proposes about his righteousness has more to do with vindication and not salvation. Job wants to prove his innocence before God. Job then talks about some of the attributes of God and realizes that this would be impossible. Next the question has to do with meeting God in court which still has to do with proving his innocence. Job imagines several situations of meeting God in court and again realizes the futility of his thinking. The next question goes to the heart of what many think when in pain. Job is basically saying; ‘you made me and invested in me so why are you destroying me?’ God had not revealed to Job the purpose of his suffering and Job felt he needed to know why this was happening to him. If Job was not guilty of sin then why? God was using Job to defeat Satan at this time and place. In Job we see the unseen world at work and how this unseen world affects the seen world. We have to have faith that God is in charge in the unseen world. What questions do you have of God that has not been answered? Can you trust the Lord until they are answered or until you meet Christ face to face?
We find Christ in Matthew 15 confronting the Pharisees once again. They thought they had found a loop hole in some of God's commands, but they were only fooling themselves. Here is Christ's answer to them,
Matthew 15:7-9 (MSG)
7 Frauds! Isaiah's prophecy of you hit the bull's-eye:
8 These people make a big show of saying the right thing, but their heart isn't in it.
9 They act like they're worshiping me, but they don't mean it. They just use me as a cover for teaching whatever suits their fancy."
We must guard our hearts in this life. We must ask God to help us not to be frauds, but rather to be transparent before God and others with a heart full of genuine faith. May this be your prayer today.
In Job 9 and 10 we find Job asking three questions that gives us insight into a soul that is suffering. The three questions are as follows: :
(1) “How can I be righteous before God?” (9:1-13)
(2) “How can I meet God in court?” (vv. 14-35) and
(3) “Why was I born?” (10:1-22; see v. 18).
The question that Job proposes about his righteousness has more to do with vindication and not salvation. Job wants to prove his innocence before God. Job then talks about some of the attributes of God and realizes that this would be impossible. Next the question has to do with meeting God in court which still has to do with proving his innocence. Job imagines several situations of meeting God in court and again realizes the futility of his thinking. The next question goes to the heart of what many think when in pain. Job is basically saying; ‘you made me and invested in me so why are you destroying me?’ God had not revealed to Job the purpose of his suffering and Job felt he needed to know why this was happening to him. If Job was not guilty of sin then why? God was using Job to defeat Satan at this time and place. In Job we see the unseen world at work and how this unseen world affects the seen world. We have to have faith that God is in charge in the unseen world. What questions do you have of God that has not been answered? Can you trust the Lord until they are answered or until you meet Christ face to face?
We find Christ in Matthew 15 confronting the Pharisees once again. They thought they had found a loop hole in some of God's commands, but they were only fooling themselves. Here is Christ's answer to them,
Matthew 15:7-9 (MSG)
7 Frauds! Isaiah's prophecy of you hit the bull's-eye:
8 These people make a big show of saying the right thing, but their heart isn't in it.
9 They act like they're worshiping me, but they don't mean it. They just use me as a cover for teaching whatever suits their fancy."
We must guard our hearts in this life. We must ask God to help us not to be frauds, but rather to be transparent before God and others with a heart full of genuine faith. May this be your prayer today.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
288 Thursday, October 15, 2009
288 Job 6 – 8; Matthew 14
Let the games begin or in this case let the discussion begin. Job's friends had been silent for seven days and I would think that later on he wished they would have been silent for another seven days. You will see some friends trying to help with logic and truth, but not doing it in love. In Ephesians 4:15 we learn that we are suppose to speak the truth in love.
So we will witness some controversy instead of healing and help. Hear what a wise man once wrote:
“But what Satan could not do with all his Sabeans, and all his Chaldeans, and all his winds from the wilderness to help him, that he soon did with the debating approaches and the controversial assaults of Eliphaz, and Zophar, and Bildad, and Elihu. Oh, the unmitigable curse of controversy!” Alexander Whyte
Job's friend Eliphaz answers Job's words instead of answering Job's heart. A wise and good friend will know when to be very truthful and then will know when to have a softer approach. If a person does not learn this they can easily stir up controversy. Controversy does not heal and it does not help in situations like these. Ask God to help you to be a wise friend.
There was confusion over the identity of Jesus. Herod had beheaded John the Baptist, but when he heard about what Jesus was doing he thought John had come back from the dead. When Jesus had heard of the death of John he tried to slip off by himself, but was soon discovered. Jesus is in own grief and now he has been spotted by a crowd. Here is Christ's response,
Matthew 14:14 (MSG) 14 When he saw them coming, he was overcome with pity and healed their sick. He was overcome with pity.
Christ had mercy on them. Sometimes we have to give mercy even when we have very little to give. Today ask Christ to help you give to someone that needs some mercy. Mercy may come in kind words, a word of blessing for them, a time of prayer for them, or it could be giving them some money. May the Lord have mercy on us all. Amen
Let the games begin or in this case let the discussion begin. Job's friends had been silent for seven days and I would think that later on he wished they would have been silent for another seven days. You will see some friends trying to help with logic and truth, but not doing it in love. In Ephesians 4:15 we learn that we are suppose to speak the truth in love.
So we will witness some controversy instead of healing and help. Hear what a wise man once wrote:
“But what Satan could not do with all his Sabeans, and all his Chaldeans, and all his winds from the wilderness to help him, that he soon did with the debating approaches and the controversial assaults of Eliphaz, and Zophar, and Bildad, and Elihu. Oh, the unmitigable curse of controversy!” Alexander Whyte
Job's friend Eliphaz answers Job's words instead of answering Job's heart. A wise and good friend will know when to be very truthful and then will know when to have a softer approach. If a person does not learn this they can easily stir up controversy. Controversy does not heal and it does not help in situations like these. Ask God to help you to be a wise friend.
There was confusion over the identity of Jesus. Herod had beheaded John the Baptist, but when he heard about what Jesus was doing he thought John had come back from the dead. When Jesus had heard of the death of John he tried to slip off by himself, but was soon discovered. Jesus is in own grief and now he has been spotted by a crowd. Here is Christ's response,
Matthew 14:14 (MSG) 14 When he saw them coming, he was overcome with pity and healed their sick. He was overcome with pity.
Christ had mercy on them. Sometimes we have to give mercy even when we have very little to give. Today ask Christ to help you give to someone that needs some mercy. Mercy may come in kind words, a word of blessing for them, a time of prayer for them, or it could be giving them some money. May the Lord have mercy on us all. Amen
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
286 Tuesday, October 13, 2009
286 Job 3 – 5; Matthew 13.24 – 13.58
For seven days Job had been silently suffering and now he breaks his silence. He does not curse God, but the pain has grown unbearable to the point that he curses the day he was born. This is Job's lament of all that has happened to him including the loss of his health. He is in emotional, spiritual, and physical pain. If he were only dead then he could be in Sheol which is where the dead rest with no pain. When a person suffers they will lament. God does not expect us not to. Jesus Christ was hurting in the garden and expressed His emotions to the Father. Job expresses something that we need to listen to when he says,
Job 3:25 (MSG) 25 The worst of my fears has come true, what I've dreaded most has happened. The worst of my fears has come true. This is what we try to avoid in our thoughts and in our discussions--the worst of our fears.
We know that Job lived through all that he went through and had to face his fear(s). Our prayer to God is that the Lord would help us to face our fears and to ground us in our faith in God.
Here is an interesting teaching of Jesus,
Matthew 13:37-41 (MSG)
37 So he explained. "The farmer who sows the pure seed is the Son of Man.
38 The field is the world, the pure seeds are subjects of the kingdom, the thistles are subjects of the Devil,
39 and the enemy who sows them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, the curtain of history. The harvest hands are angels.
40 "The picture of thistles pulled up and burned is a scene from the final act.
41 The Son of Man will send his angels, weed out the thistles from his kingdom,
What we sometimes do not understand is that the wheat and thistles grow up together. It is not our job to separate the wheat from the thistles. God is going to send his angels to weed out the thistles from his kingdom. The implication for us is that in any church, or church organization there will be wheat and thistles. If you believe you are a believer, a follower of Christ, then follow that path with all your heart. Focus on getting your life right and keeping your life right.
For seven days Job had been silently suffering and now he breaks his silence. He does not curse God, but the pain has grown unbearable to the point that he curses the day he was born. This is Job's lament of all that has happened to him including the loss of his health. He is in emotional, spiritual, and physical pain. If he were only dead then he could be in Sheol which is where the dead rest with no pain. When a person suffers they will lament. God does not expect us not to. Jesus Christ was hurting in the garden and expressed His emotions to the Father. Job expresses something that we need to listen to when he says,
Job 3:25 (MSG) 25 The worst of my fears has come true, what I've dreaded most has happened. The worst of my fears has come true. This is what we try to avoid in our thoughts and in our discussions--the worst of our fears.
We know that Job lived through all that he went through and had to face his fear(s). Our prayer to God is that the Lord would help us to face our fears and to ground us in our faith in God.
Here is an interesting teaching of Jesus,
Matthew 13:37-41 (MSG)
37 So he explained. "The farmer who sows the pure seed is the Son of Man.
38 The field is the world, the pure seeds are subjects of the kingdom, the thistles are subjects of the Devil,
39 and the enemy who sows them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, the curtain of history. The harvest hands are angels.
40 "The picture of thistles pulled up and burned is a scene from the final act.
41 The Son of Man will send his angels, weed out the thistles from his kingdom,
What we sometimes do not understand is that the wheat and thistles grow up together. It is not our job to separate the wheat from the thistles. God is going to send his angels to weed out the thistles from his kingdom. The implication for us is that in any church, or church organization there will be wheat and thistles. If you believe you are a believer, a follower of Christ, then follow that path with all your heart. Focus on getting your life right and keeping your life right.
Monday, October 12, 2009
285 Monday, October 12, 2009
285 Job 1 – 2; Matthew 13.1 – 13.23
Before we get started in the book of Job I thought it would be good to be reminded of what St. Augustine once said:
“Trust the Past to the mercy of God, the present to His love, and the future to His providence.” Job was a real person who had a real story. This is not a work of fiction. We find a man who is righteous before God and who has been blessed beyond our wildest dreams. God allows Satan to take it all away, including his children! What was Job's response?
Job 1:21-22 (MSG)
21 Naked I came from my mother's womb, naked I'll return to the womb of the earth. God gives, God takes. God's name be ever blessed.
22 Not once through all this did Job sin; not once did he blame God.
What an amazing attitude in this man! We would all do well to try and emulate this attitude found in Job. Complaining never gets you where you need to go. We have many more chapters to go and so the story is not over. We will learn how to deal with pain and suffering and how to deal with people who come around in our down times.
Have you ever wondered why some get what the Scriptures say and others don't? Christ's disciples sure were asking questions like these. This is why we have Christ saying, in verse 12,
“Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears.”
People who get what the Scriptures are saying have a ready heart. They have a heart that is receptive to spiritual truth. Pray that your heart will continue to be receptive to God's truth. Pray this for your family, friends, and relatives as well. In case you are wondering, this receptive heart does not mean you automatically become a theologian or understand everything that is in the Bible. A ready heart means you get most of what God is wanting to do in and through your life. You are open to His Spirit and to His truth.
Before we get started in the book of Job I thought it would be good to be reminded of what St. Augustine once said:
“Trust the Past to the mercy of God, the present to His love, and the future to His providence.” Job was a real person who had a real story. This is not a work of fiction. We find a man who is righteous before God and who has been blessed beyond our wildest dreams. God allows Satan to take it all away, including his children! What was Job's response?
Job 1:21-22 (MSG)
21 Naked I came from my mother's womb, naked I'll return to the womb of the earth. God gives, God takes. God's name be ever blessed.
22 Not once through all this did Job sin; not once did he blame God.
What an amazing attitude in this man! We would all do well to try and emulate this attitude found in Job. Complaining never gets you where you need to go. We have many more chapters to go and so the story is not over. We will learn how to deal with pain and suffering and how to deal with people who come around in our down times.
Have you ever wondered why some get what the Scriptures say and others don't? Christ's disciples sure were asking questions like these. This is why we have Christ saying, in verse 12,
“Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears.”
People who get what the Scriptures are saying have a ready heart. They have a heart that is receptive to spiritual truth. Pray that your heart will continue to be receptive to God's truth. Pray this for your family, friends, and relatives as well. In case you are wondering, this receptive heart does not mean you automatically become a theologian or understand everything that is in the Bible. A ready heart means you get most of what God is wanting to do in and through your life. You are open to His Spirit and to His truth.
284 Sunday, October 11, 2009
284 Psalms 148 - 150; Matthew 12.22 - 12.50
If you have not caught on as of yet the last few Psalms are praise crazy! We know people who go overboard as fans, or go all out for a particular candidate, but can a person go overboard in their praise of God? The answer is never, no way, it can't happen. Perhaps there may be a person who is out touch with social graces and may praise God in a situation that is deemed a time for mourning. The Bible tells us to mourn with those who mourn and to rejoice with those who rejoice. We can praise God for what He has done and for who He is. We will be doing this for all eternity. Make it your practice to have a daily praise time. When you praise the Lord you are automatically refocusing your eyes to things above.
We need discernment in order to live a life fully committed to the Lord. People were accusing Jesus of working with the devil in order to heal people and to deliver people. This is why Jesus stuck this verse in the middle of the conversation, Matthew 12:33 (MSG)
33 "If you grow a healthy tree, you'll pick healthy fruit. If you grow a diseased tree, you'll pick worm-eaten fruit. The fruit tells you about the tree.
We shall know them by their fruits. We must be careful not to just sit around and become fruit inspectors. Christ gave us this insight so we can have some idea where a movement or an individual is coming from. In the mean time, we must be sure that by God's grace we produce good fruit.
If you have not caught on as of yet the last few Psalms are praise crazy! We know people who go overboard as fans, or go all out for a particular candidate, but can a person go overboard in their praise of God? The answer is never, no way, it can't happen. Perhaps there may be a person who is out touch with social graces and may praise God in a situation that is deemed a time for mourning. The Bible tells us to mourn with those who mourn and to rejoice with those who rejoice. We can praise God for what He has done and for who He is. We will be doing this for all eternity. Make it your practice to have a daily praise time. When you praise the Lord you are automatically refocusing your eyes to things above.
We need discernment in order to live a life fully committed to the Lord. People were accusing Jesus of working with the devil in order to heal people and to deliver people. This is why Jesus stuck this verse in the middle of the conversation, Matthew 12:33 (MSG)
33 "If you grow a healthy tree, you'll pick healthy fruit. If you grow a diseased tree, you'll pick worm-eaten fruit. The fruit tells you about the tree.
We shall know them by their fruits. We must be careful not to just sit around and become fruit inspectors. Christ gave us this insight so we can have some idea where a movement or an individual is coming from. In the mean time, we must be sure that by God's grace we produce good fruit.
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