July 31, 2015

The third example of God’s great protection is the dramatic story of the Red Sea. Let me again illustrate God’s protection from a few selected verses:

“Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long. Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. He jammed the wheels of their chariots so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, “Let’s get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt. ”Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward it, and the Lord swept them into the sea. The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived. But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. That day the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.” Exodus 14:19-31

Let me highlight several phrases from this amazing story:

1) “The pillar of cloud (and fire) moved from before them to behind them……”

God literally had their back!

2) “Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side…”

For their protection God covered His people with light and kept the Egyptians in the darkness.

3) “During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion…..”

The last watch of the night was the hours from 2:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. That was generally considered the time of heightened activity by demonic spirits. But during those hours God had them covered!

4) “God turned their destruction into their deliverance – His affection was their protection!”

When His people were sure Moses had led them into a vulnerable place and God had forsaken them to be destroyed by the Egyptians, God proved His love and faithful by miraculously turning their destruction into their deliverance! They learned what you and I must remember, God’s protection is as sure as His love!

This thought reminds me of a precious promise from another portion of I Corinthians, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” I Corinthians 10:13

His affection IS your protection!

July 30, 2015

“The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household.  And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight. “Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it.  Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord's Passover.  For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.” Exodus 12:1-13

“It (love) always protects…..” I Corinthians 13:7

Here is another stirring example of how God protected His people!

He covered them with the blood of a first-born unblemished lamb and the angel of death passed over them while all the first-born of the Egyptians died.

As you know, this event is celebrated today as the Feast of the Passover or simply, Passover.

It is a big deal! It is remembered with great solemnity and celebration every year since this ancient event first happened as recorded above.

Also, it is a big deal because it foreshadowed the time when God’s Lamb would shed His blood to cover our sins and protect us from His wrath.

The plague of the death angel was the tenth of a series of miraculous but devastating plagues God visited upon the Egyptians in support of Moses’ demand that Pharaoh let God’s people go. During each of these plagues that God sent upon Egypt He protected the Hebrews!

God’s affection is His protection!

God has you covered!

God has your back!

The Passover proved it!

July 28, 2015

"It (love) always protects...." I Corinthians 13:7

You know better than to mess around with baby bear cubs if the mama Bear is around. She will protect her cubs and separate you from your body parts.

God built that instinct into the nature of mothers whether they be mother bears, mother birds or FredWes moms! You protect what you love! Husbands protect their wives, parents protect their kids, and brothers protect their sisters and they all do it because of their love for for each other. Quite simply, you protect what you love!

That truth is obvious in the story of the two mothers who came to Solomon to settle a dispute over a child. Solomon wisely asked for a sword to slice the child in half so he could be shared between them. In His God-given wisdom He knew the true mother would want to protect the child and offer to give him to the other woman. That is precisely what happened and the one who was the child's mom offered to give up the. Solomon ordered the child to be given to her.

The word used for "protect" literally means "to cover".

Isn't that a great description of how you protect the people or possessions you love?

You protect your children by covering them with prayer, supervision, rules, and safety equipment.

To protect your family and the possessions in your home you cover it with a roof.

When you want to protect your vehicle you pull it under the cover of a garage or a car port.

Anything you want to protect you cover up to keep it from the elements or from being stolen.

You buy insurance coverage to protect you against the risk of significant financial loss if your car is wrecked or your house is destroyed by fire.

Love protects!

You will demonstrate what you love by what you spend in time, money and energy to protect!

One of the wonderful aspects of God's love is how He protects you!

In the next several posts I will share some specific and inspiring ways God has protected His people!

But in the meantime be encouraged, HE HAS YOUR BACK!

July 27, 2015

"Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited." Romans 12:16

This section of Romans 12 mentions three aspects of this peace:

Giving grace not holding grudges, V. 14

Empathizing with other's emotions, V. 15

Humility helps with harmony, V. 16

These spiritual characteristics are significant be cause they promote peace and unity within a church fellowship. But even more so because they show evidence that you have found spiritual peace within.

The fact that you can extend grace to someone who has hurt you shows a spiritual maturity that comes only from the Holy Spirit.

And being able to celebrate the joys of others as sincerely as you celebrate your own and being able to bear the pain of others is a sure sign of spiritual maturity.

Unless you have arrived at a point of peace and contentment in the Holy Spirit, you will not be able to live like this.

Humility is the third quality of a spiritual person. For the next several posts we are going to think about humility and come to a better understanding of why it is so important within a fellowship of believers.

My favorite definition of humility comes from Dr. Elton Trueblood, the great Quaker scholar and theologian. He wrote, "Humility is not thinking less of yourself, humility is not thinking of yourself at all."

If humility is anything, it is certainly removing your self interest from the spiritual equations of your life. It is being delivered from the natural human inclination to ask, "What's in it for me?" Humility is "seeking first His kingdom and His righteousness". Humility is factoring how you can benefit your brother or your sister.

Humility is a clear indication that your "flesh" has been crucified and that His love rules in your heart.

How do you measure on the humility scale?

Have you removed your self interest to the perimeter of your life?

Are your actions showing evidence that you "love God with all your heart and all your soul and your neighbor as yourself?"

Will you humbly assess your heart today?

July 26, 2015

^"Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord." Psalm 27:14 (Amplified Bible)

This one summary verse captures the essence of being free from fear - have faith in the Lord! When life doesn't make sense and you are tempted to fear just wait courageously. Yes, that's right - just wait!

In thinking of this I wonder if one of the reasons so many Christians struggle with fearfulness is because so many struggle with waiting on the Lord. Could that be?

Waiting seems so passive. You want to do something active and make something happen. While there are times that is necessary, waiting on the Lord is not one of the them. While you are waiting you are praying to God and hoping in Him. And you are watching to see how He will work.

When you wait on God you are saying, "I trust in you, Father and I have placed my hopes in you. I know you are at work in this circumstance and I will wait to see what you are doing and let You show me what I need to do."

Does that make sense?

Another way to say it is, "Waiting on the Lord conquers fear."

Let's talk about why that is:

One thing that causes fear is the need for control. The truth is, life is beyond your ability to control it. It is too complex and too unpredictable for any mortal to control it. So, feeling a need to be in control while knowing that there are things beyond your control is frightening!

But as you patiently wait upon God you are, in effect, saying to Him, "God I know I am not in control of my life so I will allow you to be in control and I will watch to see what You do!" That will relieve your fear.

Another common cause of fear is a lack of confidence. When you do not have confidence in yourself you feel powerless and overwhelmed by life, which induces fear. A lack of confidence causes you to doubt your ability to be successful and contributes to the fear of failure.

By waiting on the Lord you say to Him, "I am placing my confidence in You! I trust You to do what is best for me and enable me to do what You want me to do."

That confession of faith in God removes fear!

One more common cause of fear is a lack of courage. When you feel afraid to speak up or take a stand for yourself, for others, or for your beliefs you live in fear of others who seem more courageous.

Often a lack of courage is really a lack of commitment. Fully committed people have strong convictions and those convictions inspire courage. Courage arises from true convictions and faith in those convictions overcomes the fear of not defending them.

For example, a conviction that freedom is worth defending is what gives a man the courage to become a soldier and go into battle. He isn't courageous by nature, but he is committed to remaining free.

Waiting on the Lord demonstrates the courage of your convictions. Believing that He will do what His Word says He will do gives you courage to overcome your fears!

Do you often struggle with fear?

Is fear the dominant emotion of your life?

Does fear keep you from realizing your dreams?

Could your fear be a result of control issues? Could it be a lack of confidence or do you lack courage?

Take it to the Lord and wait before Him.

July 25, 2015

"There is a way that appears to be right but in the end it leads to death." Proverbs 16:25

"In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes." Judges 21:25

If it was easy to do the right thing everyone would be doing it.

These verses emphasize the importance of understanding what is right and what is wrong.

If you do what seems right to you, you will do wrong every time because your moral compass is corrupted.

When you have everyone doing what is right in his own eyes you have chaos and chaos can easily degenerate into anarchy.

That is pretty much how it was in the days of Noah before God destroyed the evil doers with the flood.

We are perilously close to that today.

What can we do to turn the tide?

The answers are found in I Corinthians 13:4-8, the Scripture we have been studying this summer.

We need to live in the love of Jesus and love people to life.

“Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” I Corinthians 13:6

It’s quite clear. If you don’t have the love of God operating in your life, you will delight in evil and find it a struggle to do what it right.

Let’s face it we live in a culture that DOES delight in evil. In fact, it glorifies evil and ridicules what is right and good. This explains how an abortion doctor can casually much on a salad and swill wine while she explains how she can kill an innocent child in the womb in such a way as to preserve its organs to be sold. And then people in their movement actually try to defend these actions.

But since we are honoring truth it is important to recognize evil dwells in our hearts and if we do not allow the Holy Spirit to deal with it and fill us with His power and purity, we will also delight in evil.

July 24, 2015

"Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth." I Corinthians 13:6

Okay, I shared a couple of big ideas - truth defines what is right and truth defines what is real, but what do those mean to you in every day living?

That's a GREAT question!

The answer - it means good decision-making! It means having strong weapons for resisting temptation!

In the final mention of things love isn't we see love does not delight in evil. That means you must know what is evil and what is good. How can you know that?

You know that by knowing what is true!

Love commits to what is true. When tempted emotionally or physically or morally people who love God and who love truth ask, "Is this right?" Then they ask, "Is this real or is it temporary?"

This is another way of asking, "Is this the wise thing to do?"

Take a moment and reflect back on some of the tragic decisions you have made. How different would you life be today if you would have paused to ask these two questions before you made a decision?

If you love God and if you love life you must love truth more that you love evil. If the love of God is present and active in your life you will love truth more than evil. And when you love truth more than evil you will make decisions based on what is right and what is real!

To see how this works, study Matthew 4:1-11.

How did Jesus determine what was right?

How did He decide what was real?

Jesus asked delighted in the truth to make it possible for you to delight in His love!