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And now back to our study�
Ephesians 1:3-4 – Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.
Verses 3-14 contain only five sentences. Personally, I find that Paul's exceedingly long and drawn out sentences sometimes make it difficult to focus on the point he is making, but if we break it down into phrases, the meaning becomes clear.
BREAK IT DOWN!!
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" – In other words, 'Praise and worship be to God, the father of Jesus'. The rest of the verses in this passage tell us why God deserves our praise.
"who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing" – Who does 'us' refer to? It hearkens back to the Saints of verse one, and includes all those who belong to Christ. It includes old and young, male and female, Jew and Gentile, believers in Paul's day, as well as you and I.
What spiritual blessings do we enjoy as a result of being a child of God? These would include forgiveness/redemption/justification through the blood of Christ, grace, our adoption as children of God and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. They are not material or temporal things related to this physical world, but they are spiritual gifts which prepare us for our eternal home in heaven.
Do you give praise to God for blessings related to your earthly life, such as clothes, food, housing, etc? You are right to do so, for all blessings come from God; but do you also give regular thanksgiving and praise to God for your spiritual blessings which make you fit for an eternal heavenly home? Or do we sometimes begin to take those things for granted? The Christian would do well spend some time ruminating on our upcoming transition from life on earth to life in Heaven. A renewed focus on the heavenly should affect the way we live on earth. It also helps put a lot of things into proper perspective!
"in the heavenly places" – The word 'places' is not the best choice, when translating from Greek to English. Maybe the word 'matters' or 'things' would be better. The meaning of the phrase is that God blesses us in Christ with regard to things pertaining to heaven or things that prepare us for heaven.
"even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world" – Perhaps in the past, as you quickly read this passage, you missed the awesome significance of this phrase. The blessings of salvation, grace, adoption by God and the illumination of the Holy Spirit were bestowed upon us before the foundations of the world!
Have you ever given someone a last minute gift? Maybe you forgot to buy them something for Christmas or their retirement and so you rush out and get the first thing you see, just to have something to give them? Is it possible that you have received a gift that you felt was given without much thought on the part of the giver? Has someone ever given you a gift that had no value or meaning? This is NOT the case with God.
That's not what I wanted!
Salvation and the gift of the Holy Spirit were never an afterthought. They were not given to us by chance. They were not given to us in a haphazard manner because God was caught off guard by the fall of man. They are not crumbs from the table of God. God is not 'going with the flow' and making things up as we race toward the end of this age.
Rather, these spiritual gifts are the direct result of intention and design on the part of God Almighty! This means that God had planned to give them to us before he even created planet earth. He planned to give them to us long before the fall of man. He planned to give them to YOU before you were even born. These gifts are priceless and they flow from God to us as a part of his eternal purpose and plan that was in place from ages past!
God chose to do this, which clearly implies that he had a choice. He could easily have refused to grant these blessings, but because of his great love for us, he did not.
"that we should be holy and blameless before him" – The purpose or the end result of these blessings is that we become holy and blameless before God. God did not choose us because we were holy; we are holy because God has chosen and redeemed us through Christ. Only through the blood of Jesus can we stand blameless before God.
1 Peter 1:18-20 - �you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you, who through him are believers in God�
So� given the astounding spiritual blessings that God has poured out upon us, and considering that we did absolutely nothing to deserve them, we should forever be in a state of praise and worship towards him (which is where Paul started in verse 3).
We tend to think of praise and worship as something we do with our mouths, or with musical instruments. This is correct, but it actually only scratches the surface of praise.
Webster's dictionary defines praise as this: To extol in words or song, to glorify on account of perfections or excellent works, to do honor to; to display the excellence of.
How do we do honor to God? How do we display his excellence?
I Peter 2:9-11 says this: But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own; that you should show forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light: Who in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. Dearly beloved, I beseech you as aliens and exiles, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul�
Peter explains that we honor God and display his excellence to the lost world by living a holy life; a life that reflects the holiness and love of Christ himself. According to Colossians 3, we are to put off the deeds of the old man and, as in verse 12-14, we are to "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do you. And above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection".
So, how are you honoring God and displaying his excellence to a lost world? Please write in and share with us. Tell us about a time when you were 'God's hand extended' to another individual. What was the circumstance? What was their reaction? How was God glorified?
We would also like to hear from those of you who were going through a rough time and a Christian showed forth God's praise by ministering to you. What were the circumstances? How did you feel before the person came along to help? How did you feel afterward? Did it make a difference in your walk with God?
My name is Pat and I will be hosting this online Bible study for the Kipton church. As with all my Bible studies, you will get the most out of it if you ask questions, share your experiences and, most importantly, take some time to meditate on the Word of God that is being presented. We are delighted to have you join us!
For the next few months we will be considering the New Testament book of Ephesians. Let's begin with some background information on this epistle.
INTRODUCTION TO EPHESIANS: This book was written by the apostle Paul during his imprisonment in Rome, around 60-62 A.D. It is one of four letters known as the 'prison' epistles. Can you name the other three?
They are Philippians, Colossians and Philemon. If you answered correctly, feel free to reward yourself with candy!
The letter was written to the church at Ephesus, although they may not have been its only recipient. It seems that there are several early manuscripts that do not contain the phrase "at Ephesus". This has led to the speculation that the book may have been a 'circular' letter, which refers to an identical letter sent to several different churches, each with a specific church's name inserted into it. If this was the case, multiple churches would have received the exact same copy of the letter. However, I would like to point out that this is only scholarly speculation, and in the end it really does not matter. The Holy Spirit has preserved the book for us as a part of the Bible and it applies to Christians of all generations - including us!
What was the city of Ephesus like back in the time of Paul's writing? It was one of the most celebrated cities of Asia Minor, located about 40 miles south of Smyrna near the mouth of the river Cayster (this would be the extreme western part of modern day Turkey). Its position made it a busy center of commerce. The Pulpit Bible Commentary says "it was the highway into Asia from Rome; its ships traded with the ports of Greece, Egypt and the Levant".
We would expect such a city to have abundant wealth. As with many wealthy places, Ephesus was notorious for luxury and licentiousness (unrestrained by law or morality; excessive, immoral). It is common for big wealthy cities to have a number of poor and homeless people. Wealthy communities also attract crime. Therefore we would assume that these elements were present in Ephesus too.
What about the cultural and religious life in Ephesus? History asserts that about half of the inhabitants of this area were Asiatic (eastern culture) and half Greek (western culture), although the noted historian Josephus tells us that a considerable number of Jews were also present in the city. As we would expect, both the culture and the religious practices of that day were an amalgam of East and West. While the practice of sorcery and magic was common, Ephesus was most famous its worship of the goddess Diana (also called Artemis). This false god sprang from Western culture, however, the style of worship often incorporated mystical elements from the East. As you probably recall, the temple of Diana at Ephesus was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. More information about it is readily available, if you want to find it.
To summarize, Ephesus was a notorious city; it was wealthy, luxurious and excessive. At the same time, we would expect to see homelessness, crime and sexual immorality. It had a culturally diverse population. Its religious practices were a combination of both eastern and western thought. I don't know about you, but all this seems vaguely familiar to me� I think it could describe many of the cities we live in today. We could probably take Ephesus, drop it in the middle of America someplace, and no one would really think it was that strange!
This was the situation that Paul walked into as he began to spread the gospel of Christ in Ephesus back in the book of Acts. Paul himself tells us that he spent 3 years in Ephesus, actively preaching the gospel (you might want to consider reading Acts chapters 19 and 20. It will probably take less than 10 minutes and will provide you with some useful information). He faced much opposition in that city but the scripture tells us in Acts 19:20 that "the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily".
Of course, Paul could not stay in Ephesus forever. In Acts chapter 20 he bids the Ephesians a heartfelt and tearful farewell as he heads off to Jerusalem. We will skip ahead in the narrative by saying that Paul winds up in a Roman prison where he is essentially under "house arrest". He is confined and under guard, but he can have visitors as he awaits trial for some very serious charges. It was during this time that he wrote the prison epistles, including Ephesians. So, Paul has a history with the Christians of Ephesus. He is well acquainted with them, their struggles and the opposition that Christianity faced in that area.
Now that we have an adequate background for this epistle, let us examine it from the beginning.
Ephesians 1:1-2 - Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
The salutation of this letter reveals the authority on which Paul writes to them. He does not write to them on his own authority, or indeed the authority of any man, but the authority of God the Father and his resurrected Son, who appointed him as the apostle to the Gentile world. Therefore, his words should be taken as truth and should be used as a guide for living the Christian life.
The salutation also addresses the church as individual saints. Webster's dictionary defines a saint as "a holy or godly person".
Let me as ask you this: Do you consider yourself a saint? Before you blurt out an answer, let me give you something to consider:
In the Old Testament, the tabernacle was considered holy. What made it holy? Was the goat hair in the curtains holy? Was the acacia wood or the gold holy? No, the tabernacle was holy because it was the dwelling place of God.
Was the grand and glorious temple of Solomon holy? It sure was. What made it holy? Was it the cedar wood or the dressed stone or the gold and brass? No, it too was holy because it was the dwelling place of God's presence.
Were the temple sacrifices holy? Yes. Was it because the ancient Jews actually found the original 'holy cow'? Of course not! The sacrifice was holy because it was dedicated to God.
Were the Old Testament priests holy? Yes� because they were divinely chosen and set apart by God for his service. In the same way, the Sabbath was holy because those 24 hours were separated for God's use, while the rest of the hours in the week were for common use.
So, as a Christian, are you holy? YES!! You are the temple of the Holy Spirit of Almighty God. Your life has been sacrificed to Him. You are part of a chosen generation and a royal priesthood. In a sense, your whole life is a Sabbath because it is set apart for God's use! As a Christian, you are automatically a saint of God, not because of anything you have done, but because you have been set apart for him and his purposes.
Now, just as a matter of clarification, I want to be sure that you understand that in addition to being a holy (set apart) saint of God, every Christian has a responsibility for personal holiness. This issue will be discussed later on in Ephesians chapter 4, but until then, I want to point out that as a Christian, your pursuit of personal holiness will continue until the day God calls you home. Personal holiness is an entirely separate issue from being a saint. Again, more discussion on this will follow.
For now, let's get back to Paul's salutation. Paul speaks of the grace and peace of God to each saint. Grace and peace are both gifts from God the Father to his children. They are gifts that Christ paid for with his death on the cross, which we can readily see from the following scriptures:
John 1:17 - For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 53:5 - But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
Basically, grace should be understood as a state of favor with God which all Christians abide in. Peace is the state of mind that results from being in right standing with God.
Here then, is a big difference between the people of God and the people of the world. People of the world will lose or gain peace as their circumstances change. As children of God, we can be at peace throughout any trial or storm of life, because our peace is not dependent upon circumstances, but upon that blessed relationship we share with our heavenly father. Jesus himself says to us in John 14:27 - Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world gives, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Notice that this presents each of us with a wonderful door of opportunity to demonstrate the love of Christ to the unsaved world. When you endure a trial with peace, the unsaved will notice. They will want to know how you are keeping it all together when you should be falling apart. They will want to know how to obtain the peace that you have, and thus you will have a chance to share Christ with them.
Well, we are going to stop here for today, but don't worry - We will be back soon! I want to take some time to hear testimonies from all of you. Revelation 12:11 says that the saints of God overcome by the blood of the lamb of the word of their testimony. So let me start a dialog with this:
Was there ever a time when you were in a trial and you felt God's peace overshadow you? What was the end result? Did others notice? Can you share a word of encouragement with all those reading this post who are currently in the midst of a storm?
Acts 16:11-12 – So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samorthrace, and the following day to Neapolis and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days.
In Acts 16, Paul is in the midst of his second missionary journey, accompanied by Silas and Luke. Timothy also joins the group in Lystra. This was not just another weekend event - this missionary journey lasted approximately 3 years and covered nearly 3000 miles! That's a lot of travel!
In verses 11-12 the scripture tells us that Paul and company bypassed two smaller cities [Samorthrace and Neapolis] in order to come to Philippi.
Philippi was a larger city, situated on the road of a flourishing trade route. That infers a couple of things:
Goods and exotic item were brought into sea ports, transported to Philippi, then on to the rest of the Roman world. Other goods went in the opposite direction – they left Philippi to be loaded onto ships and passed to other foreign countries. So Philippi is a business hub and a center of wealth.
There would also be a lot of people in Philippi. The city would have a permanent population as well as a transient or temporary population of people who came there just for business and trade. Because of this, we would expect a very diverse spectrum of people in that city on any given day. These people could literally have come from anywhere in the known world.
God desires for his love and forgiveness to be known in that great city. He wants all of those people to find a personal relationship with him. Also, if the gospel were introduced into this city, people would take it to the ends of the earth. So, how will the gospel be spread in this great city?
Well, things begin on the Sabbath.
Acts 16:13 – And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together.
On that day Paul and company went outside the gates of the city to the riverside, where they expected to find a place of prayer. Why would they go there? Why do you suppose they did not go into the synagogue, which was their normal M.O.?
Answer: Most likely, because one did not exist. It took a minimum of 10 Jewish men to open a synagogue. Scholars assume that Philippi did not have enough.
Notice that they did not start rounding up people to open a synagogue. They were not trying to network with the most influential people in the city. They did not post anything on social media (okay, I know they couldn't do that, but even if they could have, they wouldn't). They began by earnestly seeking the place of prayer, because prayer is the key that would release the power of God in Philippi.
One of the people in the place of prayer was Lydia.
Acts 16:14 –One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshipper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul.
Lydia is from the Greek city of Thyatira in Asia Minor. She was not born a Jew, but she is a proselyte, or a convert to the Jewish faith. From this, we know that she must have felt a need for God in her life. This is not unusual; God places a desire for him in the life of every person including you! If you think back, you will probably remember when you felt that your life was lacking something and you recognized your need for God. Then, the Holy Spirit led you to accept Christ. This is what was happening to Lydia.
We know that Lydia was a seller of woolen fabrics dyed purple (Purple fabric was quite the rage at that time. Funny how people are always obsessed with the latest in fashion). Possibly she was the agent of some business in Thyatira or possibly she was an independent business woman.
The scripture speaks of her household, though no mention is made of her husband. Scholars have conjectured that she was a widow as well as a wealthy property owner and that she was well known in her community.
That also means she had a life much like ours in many respects. She is not lying around the house checking her Facebook page and playing video games on her phone or Xbox after sleeping in until noon.
Rather, she gets up in the morning and goes to work. She has pressures and deadlines and perhaps some supply problems or quality control issues. Work is probably taking up a decent amount of her time, just as it does for us.
She also has a family to love and care for. Perhaps some of her children or grandchildren need her help. Maybe she takes care of her elderly parents. Does any of this sound familiar?
How easy it would have been for this very busy woman to find an excuse NOT to pray: I'm so tired� there is so much to do�. I will do it later� I need to relax for a few minutes, etc. Yet we find that Lydia made time to be in the place of prayer. She made it a priority in her life.
What about you? I know you are busy; we all are. Have you made prayer a priority in your life? Remember, the battle for Philippi was not won in the natural realm. It was won in the spiritual realm first (through prayer) then it manifested in the natural realm. Do you want to see changes in your life and the lives of those around you? Then pray!
Lydia sought out the place of prayer. For her, it was a riverside location. Where is your place of prayer? It could be your armchair, your bedroom, your car or on your daily walk. It really does not matter. You just need a time and place to be alone with God.
Find your place of prayer!
What happens in the place of prayer? You find God Almighty. You enter into his presence with thanksgiving and praise. You lay your needs and requests before his throne. You bare your heart and soul to your heavenly Father. You begin to wage spiritual warfare to free those around you from the strongholds of Satan.
It's the place where you hear God's voice. It's the place of power, peace, comfort and strength. It's a place where faith is built and strengthened. It's the place where your battles will be won; only then will you see those changes manifest in the natural realm.
It's not a place you find by accident. It's a place you find on purpose. It's a place you have to create and make time for. Think of a typical day in your life from morning until bedtime. Don't you have more than enough stuff to occupy your time? Don't you often go to bed thinking 'tomorrow is another day – I'll have to tackle this or that tomorrow because I ran out of time today?'
Prayer can and will be squeezed out of your life in a heartbeat if you let it.
Consider this: God expects us to pray. He is waiting for us to enter his throne room. He is waiting for your permission to act in your life. Talk to him! We (this generation) have full access to God's presence – something that past generations longed for, but could not have. Let's use it! It is up to us to make prayer a priority.
So, busy Lydia expends time and effort to be in the place of prayer. And sure enough, something happened to her and her family that day. She hears the life changing gospel of Jesus Christ from the lips of Paul himself. She accepts Jesus as her Lord and Savior. She becomes Paul's first convert in Europe! Her circumstances are permanently changed. And apparently, it wasn't just her. Her whole house was saved and is baptized.
Acts 16:15 – And after she was baptized and her household as well, she urged us saying, "If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay." And she prevailed upon us.
So what happened next? Read the rest of Acts 16 and you will find the miraculous power of God at work in that great pagan city. The kingdom of light confronted the kingdom of darkness in a very public showdown that confirmed God's power and authority.
Here is the broad picture, though you really would benefit from reading it yourself: Paul and Silas are beaten and thrown in prison for preaching Christ and setting a slave girl free of a demonic power. At midnight, they are PRAYING AND SINGING PRAISES TO GOD.
All of a sudden there is an earthquake that opens all the doors. They jailer is about to kill himself, but Paul steps in. The jailer and his how household find Christ. The next day the city magistrates allow Paul and Silas to be set free, but Paul refuses. He makes it a point that the magistrates were wrong and he wants a public apology – once again another opportunity to publicly declare Jesus Christ. It had to be the story on the lips of every citizen and visitor to that area, from the lowliest slave to the highest magistrate.
The battle for Philippi and the great display of God's power began in the seemingly quiet and insignificant place of prayer.
How does Lydia's story end?
Acts 16:40 – So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers (new converts) they encouraged them and departed.
As more and more people heard about and saw the power of God, they believed the testimony of Paul and his fellow travelers. They accepted Jesus as savior. They came to regular meetings at Lydia's house. Scholars agree that Lydia's house became the church in Philippi.
She is considered to be one of the women mentioned in Philippians 4.
Philippians 4:3 – Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.
So, if you have ever received guidance or wisdom or comfort from the book of Philippians, at least part of that credit would belong to Lydia.
What impact can her example have on our lives? Let me stress my main point once again, in case you missed it: Prayer is the key to change!
Prayer is the place to begin making changes in your life and the lives of those around you. As you pray, God will do things that you could never do. He will open up doors of opportunity. He will give you guidance and instruction. He will change your circumstances. He will show forth his great power. He will open people's hearts to the gospel. He will confront the kingdom of darkness and give you the victory over it. He will use you in ways you never imagined.
I don't think Lydia realized the impact her home church would have on the entire kingdom of heaven. What can God accomplish through you? Why don't you renew your commitment to the place of prayer and find out!
Do you have a testimony about prayer that you would like to share? We would love to be strengthened and encouraged by your testimony. Please write in a share with us!
Over the course of the summer, we are going to take a look at several bible characters instead of opening up a single book. I hope you enjoy these stand-alone studies!
Genesis 16:1 – Now Sari, Abram's wife had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar.
Abram and Sarai had lived in Egypt for a short time, during a period of famine in Canaan. The scripture tells us that while they were there, Pharaoh gave them many gifts, including male and female servants/slaves (Genesis 12:16). It is entirely possible that Hagar was one of these servants. This may also help explain how she came to be the specific property of Sarai as opposed to an ordinary household slave.
What do you suppose life was like for Hagar? The scripture says nothing about it, but I think we could make some general assumptions.
From a religious standpoint, we know that all Egyptians were polytheistic. This means that they believed in and worshipped multiple gods. This would have been Hagar's belief as well.
Given that she was a slave, I doubt Hagar had the fun, idyllic childhood that we strive to give our children. It appears that she had some tough breaks. Perhaps her parents or grandparents were also slaves; perhaps she was an orphan or a spoil of war.
Regardless of how it occurred, her situation is permanent. She has no hope of escaping her slave status. She will never be a princess or a lady of the court or the wife of a noble. She will never learn to read or write. She will never be wearing the latest fashions. She has no chance to earn her freedom. In fact, she is nothing more than chattel (personal property). A person in this situation likely has a low level of self esteem. Did she have any adults in her life speaking words of encouragement and hope into her life? We will never know, but overall, this was probably NOT the life that most little girls dream of living!
On the other hand, there was also some stability and goodness in Hagar's life. She was in a situation where she was not being abused. Abram and Sarai were very wealthy, so Hagar probably never went hungry or thirsty and she always had shelter and clothing. Abram served the one true God Yahweh, and he made sure that his whole household served him too. Therefore, Hagar would have been instructed in the ways of God.
And so, for a time, life was uneventful for Hagar. That is, until Sarai got an idea to help God produce children for her husband.
Genesis 16:2 – And Sarai said to Abram, "Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her." And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.
So, Hagar the slave becomes the concubine of a very wealthy, free man. It was a position of prestige that was far beyond anything she could ever have hoped for. Then things get ever better - she becomes pregnant!
Unfortunately, Hagar does not handle her good fortune very well. She oversteps her bounds and begins to treat Sarai with contempt. Sarai responds by using her authority to treat Hagar 'harshly'.
Can you imagine the family dynamic in that house? We have two women, in the same house, both of whom made some very bad decisions and as a result, all peace is gone. It is now a place of jealousy and strife. There is palpable tension (perhaps even loathing) between the two.
For Hagar, what seemed to be a blessing quickly turned into an unbearable situation. Things were so bad, she fled, intending to return to Egypt. She was willing to face life as a single mom at a time when that status left her very few choices in life.
On the way there, she stops at a spring of water, where she is confronted by an 'angel of the Lord', or as we know him, Jesus. The Lord asks her a very thought provoking question:
Genesis 16:8 – And he said, "Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?"
The Lord then tells her to return to Sarai and submit to her. He also reveals to her that she will bear a son, who will be the father of a mighty nation. Wow! What a privilege for a slave girl! What a miracle! Her offspring will not follow in her footsteps. He will be a free man, with many descendants – a free man who can choose his own future!
At that place, Hagar acknowledges the true God by saying this:
Genesis 16:13 – So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, "You are a God of seeing", for she said, "truly here I have seen him who looks after me".
So Hagar returns to Sarai and bears a son for Abram. He is named Ishmael.
This is a very interesting narrative, don't you think? Hagar is a very strong character. Let's look at her life again, and draw some parallels with our own lives.
Hagar had a rough childhood. Either she was an orphan or she was taken from her parents at a very young age and given to a foreigner as a slave. How was your childhood? Maybe you can sympathize with her. Maybe your parents were either not around or maybe they did not care for you as parents should. Maybe they did not speak words of encouragement and affirmation to you. Even worse, perhaps they abused you.
Know this – God was well able to overcome the difficult childhood that Hagar experienced and he is able to do the same for you! Don't let Satan whisper in your ear that you cannot be an active, successful part of God's kingdom because of your past. Don't let him deceive you into believing that you have done things that cannot be forgiven. That is a lie! God awaits you with open arms; he has big plans for you. Hagar never imagined that her son would grow up to be the father of a vast nation. What does God have in store for you that you have not imagined?
Despite her rough upbringing, Hagar was important to God. She may have been considered just 'property' to everyone else, but not to God! He loved her so much that he appeared to her in person, to give her direction and guidance. He spoke words of affirmation to her, assuring her that she would bear a son who would be a free man and a father of descendants.
God loves and cherishes you just as much! Psalms 139 tells us that God knows when we sit down and when we stand up. He knows our thoughts and is acquainted with all our ways. Know this – YOU are very, very important to Him!
You may have noticed as you read this scripture that Hagar didn't always make right choices. Some of the problems she experienced (like her friction with Sarai) were of her own making.
I think all of us, at times, have done the same thing. We have all made decisions we regretted. Here is the interesting part. Notice how God handled this situation. He does not deliver her from the situation, rather, he tells her to go back and submit (wow – that sounds difficult)! Rather than delivering her, He walks with her through the difficulties.
God often answers us in the same way. He always forgives us when we sin, but most of the time we must walk through the consequences of that sin. For instance, if we made the decision to steal from a local store and we got caught, we would receive punishment through the court system. God will forgive us, but it is unlikely that he would 'magically' make our sentence go away. Rather, he will walk with us through the situation, using our mistake to shape our spiritual character and make us into a better Christian.
If you are in the midst of a trying or difficult circumstance that you are at least partially responsible for, take heart! Be encouraged in the midst of that thing, because God is using it for your good! He is right there beside you, and he will see you through until the end.
As you recall, God asked Hagar two things: where she had been and where she was going. Her reply was that she was running away from Sarai. She did not seem to know exactly where she was going, did she? But there is good news - God knew exactly where she was going! He already knew that he would use this opportunity to reveal to her the amazing, rewarding, unique plan he had in store for her life.
So, where are you coming from? A place of regret or heartache, like Hagar? Where are you going in life? Do you know? God does. He is willing to do the same thing for you as he did for Hagar. He is just waiting for you to turn towards him and seek his face. Don't delay! Do it now.
I hope you found encouragement and strength from this lesson about Hagar. Please feel free to write in and share your experiences with us. Also, if you have a favorite bible character you would like to study, let me know!
Second Kings chapter 6 reveals a most wonderful and inspiring instance of God's power. Let's set the stage. In verses 8-12 we find that the king of Syria (probably Ben-Hadad) had been raiding the nation of Israel. This was not an official war where the two nations fought against each other, but rather a kind of guerrilla warfare where the Syrians would take a limited number of troops and dash across the border to undefended places stealing people, flocks and goods. Then they would quickly return home.
God made Elisha aware of this, and he began to warn the king of Israel (probably Jehoram) where these attacks would take place. King Jehoram would station troops there, and consequently the raid would be called off.
The scripture implies that this happened on numerous occasions and eventually, the king of Syria began to suspect there was a spy or a mole in his camp who was leaking his plans to Israel.
Eventually word reaches the king of Syria that his secrets are being revealed to the king of Israel by Elisha the prophet of God. As we might expect, the Syrian leader sends a mass of troops to go and take Elisha prisoner.
2 Kings 6:13-14 – And he [king of Syria] said, "Go and see where he [Elisha] is, that I may send and seize him." It was told him, "Behold he is in Dothan." So he [king of Syria] sent there horses and chariots and a great army, and they came by night and surrounded the city.
This is the point in the narrative when Elisha's servant makes his appearance, although we can assume he has been with Elisha all this time, and is well aware of what has been happening.
2 Kings 6:15 – When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?"
2 Kings 6:16-17 – He [Elisha] said, "Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them." Then Elisha prayed and said, "O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see." So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
In case you have not read this particular portion of scripture, I don't want to leave you with a cliff-hanger! You can read the entire story for yourself, but for now, let me give you this synopsis: Elisha asks to God to strike the troops with blindness. This is not a literal blindness where you have loss of sight, but a kind of mental stupor where the men did not recognize Elisha. Elisha then convinces the Syrian troops to follow him to the Israelite capital of Samaria, where Elisha gives the troops into the hands of the king.
At that point their mental blindness is gone and they realize they are prisoners. The king of Israel wants to kill them; however, Elisha tells him to feed the men and then send them home. The king of Israel does so, and the raids ceased from that day forward.
What an interesting and entertaining story! However, God did not give us the Bible to entertain us. 2 Timothy tells us that all scripture is given for doctrine and instruction for righteousness. So what is God telling us in this passage of scripture?
This scripture has many implications for the church at large and also for the individual.
The church: Let's examine the overall picture of what is happening. The nation of Israel represents God's people. The Syrians are the enemy. Notice how the enemy tries guerrilla warfare tactics against God's people.
This is a picture of what is happening today. Satan and his troops are continually striking and warring against the church. And sometimes, the circumstances look grim. We look around and we see corruption in the church or we see worldliness being accepted in Christian circles. We see the church lose ground in social issues such as abortion and prayer in the schools.
But the news isn't all bad. God has provided offensive and defensive weapons for the church. First and foremost, we have the blood of Jesus and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. The victory of the church is guaranteed.
Matthew 16:18 – And I tell you, you are Peter. And on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
I would encourage you to take steps to be a part of the global kingdom of God. Become involved with ministries that share the gospel world-wide. Pray for the ministry you have chosen. Your prayers can make all the difference! Be sure to read testimonies of how these organizations are fighting against the kingdom of darkness. You will see victories taking place.
Close to home, I suggest you take time to be informed about social issues in your own neighborhood and in this nation. At the very least, make informed decisions on election day. You might even want to consider taking a more active role. Though the battle may be hard fought, you will find that the church is winning victory after victory.
The individual: Think about this passage of scripture again, but this time put your name in the place of the unnamed servant of Elisha:
When [your name here] rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And [your name here] said, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?"
Is it possible that you got up today, took a look around and saw that you were surrounded by an enemy? Maybe you didn't even have to get out of bed. Maybe that giant problem was the first thought that entered your mind upon wakening.
That enemy could be a sickness, or a financial problem, or a broken relationship that you can't seem to mend. It may be a wayward child or a spouse who is making destructive decisions. It could be an unsaved loved one or a family member with an addiction or a legal issue. Whatever the case, let's start by acknowledging that the problem is real and serious. The army that surrounded the servant was no joke. They were skilled professional soldiers that could have killed him and Elisha at any moment.
As the servant stood there gazing at the soldiers, the enormity of his trouble overwhelmed him. He could not see a way out. He felt there was no hope of his situation changing. He felt he had reached the end of the line. At that point, fear over took him. In the midst of his hopelessness, he called out to the man of God.
Good call on the part of the servant! Anytime we face a problem, step one is to call out to God in prayer. Prayer should be our first option each and every time.
The bible describes God as the God who sees and hears. He is never sleeping. In fact, his 'eyes run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show himself strong on the behalf of them whose heart is perfect towards him' [2 Chronicles 16:9].
What happens next in the story? Does God snap his fingers and cause the army to disappear? No. Rather, God encourages the servant with a glimpse of what is happening in the spiritual realm. The chariots and horsemen of fire were a representation of God's presence and might. God uses that vision to open the spiritual eyes of the servant who then realizes the truth: the forces of God far outnumbered the forces of his enemy. Or, as the praise song goes, God was surrounding the enemy that was surrounding his servant. What a comforting thought!
When the servant began to look at his problem through his spiritual eyes and not his fleshly eyes, fear, anxiety and hopelessness were instantly broken. Faith rose up and hope in God was restored. In an instant of time, he understood that Almighty God, the most powerful being in the universe was watching out for him the whole entire time.
How do you look with your spiritual eyes or your eye of faith? Well, first off you need to be familiar with the word of God. You need to know and understand God's promises to his children. Then, you look at your problem through the filter of what God says.
For example, maybe you have an addiction. The world says you are unlikely to break that habit. The addiction itself may look like a giant. You may think it is more powerful and bigger than you are. Maybe your friends and family have given up on you; they say you will never be free of it.
But the word of God says differently. The word says you have been healed by the stripes of Jesus. The word says you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. The word says that when the Son (Jesus) sets you free, you are free indeed!
As you meditate on these scriptures, and think of your problem in light of what God says, the magnitude of your problem will start decrease and faith in God will begin to increase. You will begin to understand that the power of God working on your behalf is much bigger and way more powerful than the forces of your enemy [in this case addiction]. Faith should cause praise to rise up as well. Give into your urges to praise God at all times.
Notice in our scripture text that after the servant saw the forces of God, Elisha [and presumably the servant] took charge of the situation and led their enemy around until they had been captured.
With God's help, you can do the same thing. Once your spiritual eyes have been opened, you can then move forward in the struggle, taking command of the situation, knowing that God has your back and victory is within your grasp.
1 John 5:4 - For whoever is born of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.
While God certainly could just wave his hand and make your troubles vanish, he will rarely do this for a couple of reasons. First, he wants your faith in him to increase. This only happens in battle situations. As you win, your faith increases. As your faith increases, you will allow God's power to move through you in increasingly bigger and bigger ways. This is a great testimony to others; they will see your faith and it will assist them in their own battles. It will lift up the name of Jesus and sinners will be brought to salvation in him. Also, fighting the enemy together brings you and God into a more intimate relationship with each other, which is something He greatly desires.
Here is something to consider: When you face a trial, Satan will try to tell you it is all your fault. He will tell you that God isn't going to help you because you sinned. He will tell you that God is mad at you or that He cannot help you. But if you look through your spiritual eyes, you will find that nothing could be further from the truth! Don't believe his pack of spiritual lies! Instead, know that this is something God has allowed that will mature you spiritually, give you victory and bring glory to his name, even if it was your fault!
So, what are you waiting for? The battle between the forces of Syria and Elisha/his servant ended in victory for the people of God. I suspect that right now, you have an enemy who is surrounding you. God wants to give you the victory as well. Will you join the battle?
Today, we are looking at the New Testament priest Zechariah. You may or may not remember him, but I bet you remember his son – John the Baptist!
The Bible begins by telling us that Zechariah was a priest of the division of Abijah. This division is not really significant for our purposes, but just by way of interest, back in the era of the monarchs, King David split the priesthood up into 24 divisions based on the names of the adult males descended from Aaron. He then created a rotating schedule, so that each division ended up serving in the temple for two weeks a year.
This continued until the people went into captivity. Upon their return, only four of the divisions remained; the rest died in captivity. As their numbers once again grew, they again divided themselves up into 24 divisions using the old names. So we know that Zechariah was, without question, a Levite and a priest, however, he may have been serving under the division of Abijah even though he was descended from another family member (you can read it for yourself in 1 Chronicles 24).
Anyway, in verse 5 Luke also reveals that Zechariah had a wife named Elizabeth, who was also a descendant of Aaron. So both of them were from the tribe of Levi. We are told that they both served God in righteousness:
Luke 1:6 – And they were both righteous before God walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord.
The people who lived under the Old Testament law had a multitude of commandments to try and keep (seriously – have you read Exodus and Leviticus?). Keeping them all would be quite an accomplishment indeed!However, the overall meaning of the scripture is not that they were actually perfect people, but that they were faithfully observing both the moral and ceremonial institutions of the law. They were certainly making Jehovah the center of their lives and they were fair in their dealings with others.
Interestingly, we see that despite their service to God, they had some problems in life. I bet you can relate to that – I know I can.
Luke 1:7 – But they had no child because Elizabeth was barren and both were advanced in years.
In our society, there is no shame or stigma attached to not having children. So it is sometimes hard for us to imagine that back in the days of Zechariah,there was a lot of shame and embarrassment associated with being childless. The couple without children were often considered as being under some judgment from God, leading to speculation that they had sinned in some way.
To add to their dilemma, they were both 'advanced in years'. Every day that passed made it look less and less likely that they were ever going to have a child.
Luke tells us that Zechariah was serving out his week of temple service when he was chosen by lot to burn incense before the Lord in the Holy Place (since some of the priestly duties were better than others, they used lots to assign jobs).
Incense was burned twice daily. One priest would go into the Holy Place and remove the ashes from the altar. After he departed, another priest would bring a pan of fresh burning coals from the brazen altar. After he left, a third priest (in this case Zechariah) would come and burn the incense before God. As the smoke ascended, he would make intercession for the people, while at the same time, a whole crowd was outside praying.
So Zechariah is in the Holy Place about to offer the incense and prayers, when all of a sudden, he sees an angel.
Luke 1:11 – And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
The wording here is interesting. It does not say that the angle suddenly arrived; it says that Zechariah finally saw him. The angel may have been there for quite some time. How many times are we surrounded by God's angels of protection but we don't see it?
Anyway, Gabriel has a two part message for Zechariah. The first part is for him personally.
Luke 1:13-14 - �your prayer has been heard and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness�
How amazing is that? A personal notification that God was going to give Zechariah and Elizabeth the deepest desire of their hearts! Not only a child, a son! Their prayers have been answered! But wait – there's more! Not only will Elizabeth and Zechariah be blessed, John will be a blessing to the whole Jewish nation! God is going to use him to prepare the hearts of the Jewish people for the soon coming Messiah, whom they have been waiting for, for literally hundreds of years.
Luke 1:14-17 - �and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord�and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah�to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.
Now, stop and consider this scenario: if you saw an angel right this moment and he told you that God was giving you the deepest desire of your heart, what would your response be?
For most of us, the response would be unbounded excitement and gratitude, right? We would jump up and down and rejoice and burst out with audible thankfulness. We would already be making plans. We would definitely try to get a selfie with the angel. Then we would tell him to wait a minute, while we either send out a mass text or a tweet, letting everyone know that we were blessed!
The priest, however, does none of that. Apparently, he has a moment of weakness and unbelief, despite the heavenly message.
Luke 1:18 – And Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years."
For future reference, calling your wife "advanced in years" is a bad idea, but doubting a direct promise of God that comes straight from an angel who stands in His presence is an even worse idea! What was he thinking?
Luke 1:20 – And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.
So Zechariah is immediately unable to speak. Most scholars believe he was also struck deaf, based on Luke 1:62 which says that when the baby was born, they "made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him [the baby] to be called" (if he could hear, they could just ask him instead of making signs).
Meanwhile, as all this is taking place, the crowd outside is getting restless. Zechariah has been in the Holy place an unusually long time, and they are wondering what is going on.
Eventually he comes out, but obviously, he can't tell them anything. They realize he had seen a vision of some kind, but that is about all they can determine. He ends up finishing his week of service, then going home.
Are you married? Imagine what it would be like to live with a spouse that could not speak or hear for the better part of a year. Be honest – Aren't there times when that sounds like a desirable condition? But all joking aside, I bet it was frustrating.
Since communication was difficult, I wonder if Zechariah stopped communicating every little thought that popped into his mind. I think he began to really consider what he wanted to say before he made the effort to communicate. I bet that when he did make the effort, he had something meaningful to say. He sure had lots and lots of time to think about how his words affected his life.
Well, as we would expect, the words of the angel are indeed fulfilled in their time.
You already know the end of the story; Elizabeth gives birth to a son, Zechariah names him 'John' as instructed, and instantly the priest is once again able to speak and hear. Now he bursts out with vocal praise to God. People take note of John as a person of future interest; it is clear that the hand of the Lord was upon him.
So, what can we glean from the experience of Zechariah?
Answer: THE THINGS THAT YOU SPEAK MATTER TO GOD.
Let me say it again: Just as in the case of Zechariah, your words affect your life. God is listening and he wants you to pay attention to what you are saying.
Matthew 10:36 – I [Jesus] tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.
When Zechariah responded to the angelic messenger, he spoke words of unbelief, instead of faith and thanksgiving. Remember, he was living under the old covenant (not the age of grace), which means he spoke unbelief in the very presence of God. He deserved to be struck down and killed, but God did not do so. He showed mercy to Zechariah and used him to teach us this powerful lesson about our words at the same time.
The bible has much to say about what you speak. Here are two of many, many examples:
Proverbs 18:21 - Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.
1 Peter 3:10 - For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile�
We live in an era where communication is astonishingly quick and easy. No other generation has ever had the potential to speak as we do. Not only do we speak to people in person, we can call, text, Snapchat, skype, instant message, tweet, Facebook, YouTube and on and on and on�
But I have to wonder - in this age of constant talking, are we saying things of value?
If our tongue really does have the power to give life and death, shouldn't we pay attention to what we are saying? Is it really a good idea to just communicate anything and everything that pops into our minds? Have you ever said/posted/tweeted/shared something that you later regretted?
Do any of these things sound familiar:
I'll never get out of debt.
It's too late for me to find a spouse. I will always be alone.
kids are addicted/living in sin/making wrong choices. I don't think they will ever change.
Nothing every goes right for me. I never get any good breaks.
I'm losing my mind.
I probably have Alzheimer's. My memory is shot.
I am so stupid.
I'll never have a son, I am too old (that one was from Zechariah)!
The good news is that we can learn from the lesson of Zechariah and going forward, we can change the way we speak.
First, let's take a look at how our words function in the spiritual realm.
Joyce Meyer tells us in her book, "Power Words, What You Say can Change Your Life", that words are like containers of power that you sow into your life. They can contain power to destroy or power to create, depending on what you speak.
When you speak words that destroy, such as 'I give up, my marriage will never work', you are sowing destruction in your life in the spiritual realm. If you speak words that are life-giving such as 'I believe God is going to is going to heal my marriage', you are sowing life and blessing into your situation in the spiritual realm.
Now that we have a better understanding of how our words affect ourselves and others, what can we do to ensure that we speak words of faith, encouragement and affirmation instead of unbelief and destruction?
Once again, the bible has the answer. Jesus tells us that the words we speak are a product of what we are thinking.
Matthew 12:34-35– You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.
Matthew 15:18-19 – But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts�
Our thoughts determine what we speak. The words we speak play a big role in what happens in our lives. The key, then, is to gain control over our mind and thoughts.
I'm sure you have already figured out that despite your salvation you may still have thoughts of lust, envy or (like Zechariah), unbelief. [Also, many times we speak destructive words out of pure habit]. That is because your mind/thought life is not instantly regenerated when you receive Christ as your savior. Rather, it is sanctified over time as you strive to control it. Gaining control over your thoughts is part of spiritual warfare.
2 Corinthians 10:5 – We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ
You can choose to fill your mind with the things of God like scripture or praises or testimonies of God's grace and mercy. You can dwell on stories of triumph and love. When you dwell on those things, you will speak praise, thanksgiving and words of life to yourself and others.
Philippians 4:8 - Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Stop and do a quick inventory of what you are watching, what you are reading and what video games you are playing. Which of these things does your mind dwell on? Do they affect you positively, negatively or not at all? What is coming out of your mouth as a result of what your mind is dwelling on?
Obviously, this little lesson is not an exhaustive study of the power of words and the importance of our thoughts. It is up to you to look for good Christian sources to further assist you in making changes in your life. Please do so!
In the meantime, what choices can you make right now that would make your thoughts (and by default your words) more pleasing to God and more beneficial to yourself and others? Are you willing to take the first step? If you could ask Zechariah, I bet he would tell you to get started, because these issues are vitally important.
Let me offer you some words of ENCOURAGEMENT: You can do all things (including this) through Christ. With study and discipline, you can control your thoughts and bring them captive under Christ. You can speak blessing into your situation. It won't happen overnight. There may be some struggles. You may make mistakes from time to time, but getting your thoughts and words under control is going to make a big difference in your life.
Proverbs 21:23 - Whosoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps his soul from troubles.
Let me offer you some RELIEF: You don't have to do this on your own! There are many, many good sources available to you from other believers who have taken control over this area of their lives. They can offer you advice and helpful insights. More importantly, the Holy Spirit is living right there inside your heart and it is his job to sanctify your life – including your thoughts and words! He is standing by right now to help.
Let me offer you some words of STRENGTH: Speaking words of faith can break bondages in your life. It can open the door for God to move in miraculous ways. Even though this may be a long term process, the rewards will be worth it. Take the first step today!
There are several women in the Bible named Mary, but we know that our text refers to Mary the sister of Lazarus because the scripture tells us so:
John 11:1-2 – Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. (It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.)
It appears as though this trio of siblings were very close to Jesus. The scripture tells us that Jesus loved all three of them:
John 11:5 Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.
Therefore, it is not surprising to us that Jesus stops in Bethany to see them when he is on his way to Jerusalem to be crucified. As we would imagine, they have a dinner for Jesus. The host of the dinner was Simon.
Matthew 26:6 – Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper�
Let's take a small detour in our study. What do you know about leprosy?
It was an incurable skin disease that caused sores or nodules on the skin. One of its prominent characteristics is loss of feeling in the part of the body affected by the leprosy. Because they did not feel pain, lepers would often severely injure themselves.
Leprosy also deforms the body by causing the hair and nails to fall off. It destroys or distorts the bones and joints, especially in the hands and feet. It also caused general muscle atrophy. It was a horrible disease that had no cure.
Back in Bible times, a leper was considered unclean, and they were required to live outside the city or camp. If they moved among the people, they were forced to yell "leper" out loud, so people knew they were coming by. They were essentially outcasts in their society. Life was hopeless for the leper, because there was no cure for this disease.
So, why would a leper be sitting at the table eating with healthy men?
The answer is: He wouldn't!
Therefore, we conclude that at some point in time Jesus cured Simon of his leprosy (he certainly was not cured by medical science). That would explain why Simon hosted the dinner and why Jesus attended.
Notice that even though he was cured, the stigma of the disease was still associated with Simon. They didn't call him 'Simon the clean' or 'Simon who was healed', did they? No, they still referred to him as Simon the leper.
Anyway, they had a big dinner party.
I imagine that as they reclined at the table, they did many of the same things we do. They probably told stories, shared memories, enjoyed the food, laughed and perhaps discussed the issues of their day. At this time, the Passover was right around the corner and the city of Jerusalem was overflowing with people who had come to celebrate the feast. As this was the Passover when Jesus would die, there was a lot to talk about.
In the midst of this celebration, an unusual event occurs.
Mark 14:3 - �as he [Jesus] was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head.
The word 'ointment' does not quite convey the proper meaning of the text. This was actually a very expensive perfume; it was a liquid, used solely to give a pleasant fragrance. What she broke was the seal, not the container itself. John tells us that the amount of the perfume was a Roman pound, which is about 12 ounces (about the size of a can of soda pop).
We are not surprised that this perfume runs down his body, all the way to his feet, as noted in the gospel of John:
John 12:3 - Mary� anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
It is easy to imagine the love and gratitude that motivated Mary. She sees Jesus at the table and no doubt remembers the hours she spent sitting at his feet, listening to his words about the kingdom of Heaven. Through his teaching, she found wisdom, forgiveness of sin and peace. Next to Jesus reclines her brother, alive and well! The very one who had been dead in the grave for four entire days now sat next to her savior, laughing and eating. Jesus had resurrected and restored him to Mary and Martha!
Perhaps too, she remembered Jesus' own words of his impending death. She could see the hate and fury of his enemies and she may have sensed that time was short for Jesus.
If she wanted to honor him, now was the time. If she waited, her opportunity would be lost.
So, having freely received life and goodness from Jesus, she desires to show love in return - no gift could have been too costly or too precious for her savior!
Of course, there were those who did not understand her motivation:
Matthew 26:8-9 – and when the disciples saw it, they were indignant saying, "Why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor."
Imagine, for a moment, that you are Mary. You are acting out of pure, loving motives. You 'go out on a limb' to serve Jesus in a way that no one else has ever done. You did not hold anything back; you gave of your money, your time and yourself. You have 100% of yourself invested in this act of love and devotion.
And then�your act of love is publicly scorned and questioned by those closest to Jesus. I imagine the words of the disciples cut her deeply, probably to her very core. Maybe she felt her face turning red. Perhaps she had to choke back some tears at this stinging rebuke. Maybe she wanted to run and hide. Can you imagine the embarrassment she felt?
Immediately, before she is forced to try and defend her actions, Jesus weighs in on the issue. He defends Mary in front of the whole gathering.
Matthew 26:10-11 – But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, "Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me."
Now, don't make the mistake of thinking that God does not care for the poor. Nothing could be further from the truth. Even in the Old Testament law, God made provisions for taking care of the poor.
Clearly, there is something else going on here. The disciples, who were looking for an immediate end to the Roman government and an equally immediate coming of the kingdom of God, did not seem to fully understand that Jesus was about to die. Jesus uses this opportunity to once again clearly confirm his death.
He then honors Mary by saying that her act of love would be proclaimed to the whole world!
Mark 14:9 – And truly I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.
And so, ever since that time, her story has been shared with generation after generation.
Which people in this biblical account do you most clearly identify with?
Perhaps you are like Simon the leper. Maybe you were once an outcast in your community. It could have been for any number of reasons. Maybe you were the one who abused alcohol or drugs. Maybe you were the one who needed attention and affirmation and you sought it in multiple partners of the opposite sex. Maybe you were the one who was harsh and judgmental toward others.
Regardless of the circumstances, know this: like Simon, you can be forgiven and set free!
There is nothing you can do that Jesus cannot forgive! He paid the price for ALL sin, even the sins we like to classify as 'big' ones. All you need to do is repent and ask him to forgive you. He will cleanse you with his blood and make you into a new creature in Christ. Don't wait – he is willing to do it now!
What has you in bondage? There is no chain that our God cannot break! Don't wait – ask him now.
John 8:36 - He whom the Son sets free is free indeed.
This narrative shows that people will remember your past. At first, that may depress you, especially if you know you are no longer the person who did those awful things. But what this really is, is a testimony opportunity. When someone remembered Simon as the leper, he could respond, "True! I used to be a leper, but Jesus has set me free! Now I am totally healed. Would you like to be free of your bondages? Jesus can do it for you!"
If you past has been washed by the blood of Christ, it is no longer an embarrassment, it is a testimony. Rather than being ashamed of it, use it as a chance to testify to the goodness of Christ. Your testimony could really encourage someone else.
What about Mary? I think we can all identify with her in some regards, which is one of the reasons I believe God preserved this lesson for us three times in the New Testament.
We saw that Mary gave Jesus a precious gift, a gift that no one else could give. What about you? What gifts can you offer him? One thing you can offer is your praise.
Since you have been uniquely made, and you have unique life experiences, you praise and worship God in a unique way. For example, Mary had her brother raised from the dead and restored to her. Can you imagine the praise that she gave to Jesus for that?
I can't give God praise for resurrection in the same way that Mary did, because no one in my family has ever been raised from the dead. However, you and I probably have some neat instances of things that God has done for us that Mary did not experience. As a result, we have reasons to praise and rejoice in God our savior that Mary did not have. What unique praise can you give him?
What about your talents and skills? No one else paints like you, welds like you, or nurses like you. The bible tells us that whatever we do, we should do it with all our might as unto the Lord.
Colossians 3:23 – Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men
The disciples, particularly Judas Iscariot, felt that Mary's act of service was a waste. The truth is, acts of spiritual devotion are often scorned by the world as fanatic or foolish. Those who do not have a relationship with Christ cannot understand our deep love for him, and they cannot understand that we would do anything for him, even if it seems foolish or embarrassing or illogical to the world.
Think back to when you were dating your spouse. Did you do things that seemed silly to others, but they meant a lot to that special person in your life? You didn't care what others thought, did you? The only thing that mattered was the opinion of the one you loved.
Know this: No act of service to God is a waste. When you love and serve him, he accepts and cherishes every act of love you give to him. When your service is unique, like Mary's, that makes it more special, not less!
Did you notice that Mary did not allow others (or their opinions) to keep her from Christ? She could easily have said to herself 'I'll wait until there aren't so many people around' or 'What will people say about me if I do this' or 'I bet someone else would be better at this than I will be' or 'what if something goes wrong'. She didn't let any of those thoughts stop her, did she?
Let me share a biblical truth with you. Mary served by ministering to Jesus' body in a physical sense. Now that Jesus has been glorified, he is the head of the church and we are what�. His body!
1 Corinthians 12:27 – Now you are the body of Christ, and members in particular.
Perhaps you have been serving the body of Christ and you were criticized for it. Maybe someone told you that you have no business serving in a certain capacity in the church. Maybe you did something, but the fruit of it is not yet evident and it looks like a failure. Maybe you are placing limits on your service to God based on the opinions of others. If that applies to you, I encourage you to look for affirmation from Christ, not people. He is the one you are serving. As he continues to open doors, I encourage you not to give up or to wait – continue serving!
The fragrance of Mary's devotion filled the entire house, and probably spilled outside. People noticed it even if they didn't see it. Good deeds are like a perfume released into a room. They affect many more people than you know. Why don't you release your acts of service to Christ and let him use them to reach as many people as he wants? When you get to heaven, you may very well find out that you impacted people you didn't even know about.
Finally, we find that the apostle Paul had a lot to say about love and service.
1 Corinthians 13:1-2 – Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angles, and have not love, I am become as sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
As Christians, we can get wrapped up in religious activity, without really loving those we are supposed to be serving. If we serve out of a loving heart like Mary did, we can be sure that we please our Lord and have an impact on our world.
So, let me offer your some encouragement: If you are serving the body of Christ in love, continue to do so, even when others criticize. God will sustain and reward you in the end.
Let me offer you some relief: Let guilt go. Your past is in the past and it has been forgiven and forgotten by your savior. It has been cast as far from you as the east is from the west. If others remember the past, don't be embarrassed – use that as an opportunity for testimony.
Let me offer your some strength: The love of Christ is so deep and so wide, that we cannot comprehend it. He loves us unconditionally. He loved us while we were yet sinners. He loved us so much that he gave the ultimate gift – his only Son. In light of such love, can we not fully love him in return?
Caleb is a very popular bible hero. If you named one of your sons after him, you are not alone. In 2018 Caleb was the 45th most popular boys name in the United States.
We first find Caleb in Numbers chapter 13. As you probably remember, this is the portion of scripture that tells us about the time that Moses sent 12 men into Canaan to spy out the land that God was giving them. There was one representative from each of the tribes of Israel. The scripture tells us that Caleb was the representative of the tribe of Judah.
Numbers 13:6 – from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh;
Moses instructed them to find out about the people of the land. Were they strong or weak? Did they live in camps or strongholds? Where there many people or few? Was the land rich or poor? Did it have trees or not? In general, Moses was asking them for an overall picture of the land and its inhabitants. He also instructed the men to bring back some of the fruit of the land.
So, off they went. I wonder if they went secretly or if there was a public celebration as they left. How do you picture their departure? Either way, I suspect the Israelites frequently thought about them while they were gone.
Can you imagine the anticipation of the people during that time? Israel had been in slavery for the past 400 years. They had waited and waited (and waited!) for God to rescue them and lead them into the Promised Land - a land that was flowing with milk and honey!
The Promised Land would be the fulfillment of the promises made to their forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It was to be a place of peace and rest. A place of prosperity. A place where they could govern themselves. A place where they could freely worship Jehovah. They had waited so long and now it was within their grasp!
I bet you could feel the excitement and electricity in the air as the people waited for the men to return. I bet that every day they speculated about what the Promised Land was like!
Meanwhile, the spies were hard at work. They traversed the land from north to south and from east to west. Eventually they came to the valley of Eshcol where they cut down a cluster of grapes that was so big, it took two men to carry it!
Numbers 13:23 – And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs.
Try to picture the scene as the 12 representatives came back into the camp carrying that fruit! Once they were spotted, news of their return must have spread like wildfire.
Moses gathered all the people together at Kadesh to hear the report of the spies. Once everyone was assembled, they began to speak.
Fact number one: the land was indeed prosperous and wonderful; it was all they could ever hope for.
Numbers 13:7 – And they told him [Moses], "We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit."
I can picture the people getting more and more excited, like it was Christmas morning. I can feel the anticipation building within them. At last they were coming into their inheritance!
Fact number two: The inhabitants of the Promised Land were fierce and numerous. There were Hittites and Amorites and lots of other 'ites' living there. In fact, there were even descendants of Anak there. FYI, Anak is the name of a race of people, not an individual. The Anakim were people known to be of giant stature. Remember Goliath of David and Goliath? He was one of their descendants.
Fact number three: The cities were well fortified and protected.These people were not going to willingly hand Israel the keys to their kingdom and walk away.
It is interesting to note that all 12 spies acknowledged these facts. There was no dispute about the situation they faced. Yet we have two very different responses to the facts.
Numbers 13:30 – Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, "Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it."
Caleb (and Joshua) believed the promise of God. They trusted that God was well able to fight for them and with them; he would defeat their enemies and they would take their inheritance. If God was for them, who could be against them? They wanted to claim their inheritance without delay. If Caleb had his way, Israel would probably have attacked that night!
But then, the other ten spies who were trusting in themselves and not God, encouraged the people not to go.
Numbers 13:31 – Then the men who had gone up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are."
They went on to say that they felt like grasshoppers compared to the giants living in the land.
Sadly, the whole congregation of Israel sided against Joshua and Caleb. They grumbled against Moses and Aaron. Then they turned their backs on God. They wished they were dead and that they had never left Egypt! In fact, they talked about choosing a leader and going back! Can you imagine?
Numbers 14:2-4 – "Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Why is the Lord bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?" And they said to one another, "Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt."
Of course, Moses, Aaron, Joshua and Caleb all tried to reason with them. They begged them not to rebel against God.
Numbers 14:9 – "Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them."
You already know how this ends. Despite the begging and pleading of Caleb and the others, the people rebelled. They picked up stones intending to kill Moses, Aaron, Joshua and Caleb, but God had enough. He intervenes and eventually sentences them to wander in the desert until everyone aged 20 and over died.
However, God makes a couple of exceptions:
Numbers 14:24, 30 – But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it. Not one [of the Israelites aged 20 or over] shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.
Sure enough, the people wander in the desert for 40 years until the unbelieving generation died. Joshua and Caleb must have seemed really old to all the rest of the Israelites!
Eventually, just as God promised, he took the next generation into the Promised Land. Despite the 40 year delay, Caleb had not forgotten the promise of God. In fact, he brought it up before the people of Judah when Joshua was assigning them their inheritance. Caleb reminds Joshua that he had been ready, willing and able to conquer his inheritance 40 years earlier, but was unable to because of those around him. Now he had another chance to claim his inheritance, and he was going to take it!
Joshua 14:10-12 - And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the Lord spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day 85 years old. I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming. So now give me this hill country of which the Lord spoke on that day�it may be that the Lord will be with me and I shall drive them out just as the Lord said.
So Joshua gave Caleb Hebron for his inheritance; and Caleb stepped up and took it.
Personally, I love movies and stories that tie up all the loose ends and give the viewer or reader a happy ending. I feel like that is what God did in this case. Eventually, Caleb received the inheritance he had been promised.
What about us? What can we learn from Caleb?
DON'T GIVE UP: Have you been waiting a long, long time for God to fulfill a promise for you? Maybe you have been praying for a spouse or for a child. Maybe you have been waiting for God to save your loved one or heal your body. Maybe you are asking God to take your ministry to the next level. Maybe you are seeking a promotion at work. Whatever it is, does it seem to be taking forever? If so, you have an example in Caleb.
Sometimes God asks us to wait. We don't always know why. Perhaps we are not yet mature enough to get what we are asking for. Sometimes we must wait for God's perfect timing. Maybe God is using our lives as a testimony to others.
During the times of waiting, the enemy will come and try to get you to give up. He whispers things in your ear during your most vulnerable times. See if any of this sound familiar:
God has forgotten you.
You know you are not worthy to receive that. Obviously, God feels the same way or he would have given it to you by now.
You might as well give up - it's too late for your promise to come to pass.
You are too old (or too young).
Stop kidding yourself – God's promises are for the spiritual elite.
I imagine that the enemy also spoke similar words of discouragement to Caleb, but he ignored them and held on tight to the promise of God. Because he did not give up, he eventually got his reward.
Sometimes, the enemy does not speak directly into our ear, but he speaks through those around us.
Sometimes your best friend or your parents or your spouse are the ones who try to discourage you from standing firm. Sometimes they are the ones who encourage you to give up and move on. That was the case with Caleb. Of the 12 spies, ten of them told Caleb to give up, the Promised Land was just a dream. After that, more than a million people (literally) said the same thing, yet he put his trust in God and did not give up.
Remember, like the Israelites, those around you have a right to believe that their circumstances are greater than God's power. They can choose to believe that God has forgotten them. They have the right to quit and let go of God's promises, but they can't force you to give up, unless you choose to do so!
Be on your guard during the waiting season. This is no time to give up, even if others tell you to!
Looking for another example? The same thing happened to Abraham. God promised him a son, but Abraham went years and years without seeing that promise fulfilled. The scriptures tell us that he did not give up, but trusted God and stayed strong in his faith.
Romans 4:20-21 – No unbelief made him [Abraham] waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.
I encourage you to follow in the footsteps of these two men. Keep your eyes off the problem and on the one who is able to bring the promise to pass! God is the great I AM. Remember, nothing – NOTHING- is impossible for him!
Luke 1:37 – For with God nothing shall be impossible.
When you are tempted to quit, remind yourself and your naysayers that nothing is too hard for God!
Then, begin to praise him for his strength, power and glory. As Abraham knew, praising God strengthens your faith. It keeps you from giving up.
BEWARE OF BITTERNESS: Let's be honest� if there ever was a person in all of history who had the right to play the "LIFE IS UNFAIR" card, it was Caleb. He did all the right things, but wound up suffering because of those around him. Had he taken his eyes off of God and looked at his neighbors, he could easily have become bitter.
Can you see how it might happen?
"Well today is my 45th(or 50th or 60th or 70th�) birthday, but it sure isn't a happy one. I should be spending this birthday in my new house, but instead I am still here in this stupid desert"
"I am so tired this morning! I don't feel like packing up and marching any more but thanks to my countrymen, that is exactly what I have to do!"
"Manna – again! If it wasn't for my fellow Israelites, I could be eating lamb and drinking my own wine right now!"
"My life stinks and it's their fault!"
Can you see how it might happen to you? Maybe you missed out on some opportunities because you grew up poor. Maybe a doctor misdiagnosed your condition and you have permanent health issues because of it. Maybe your spouse left you for someone else.Regardless of what happened, keep this in mind:
Other people cannot negate the promises of God in your life – only you can do that – so don't be bitter!
The writer of Hebrews warns us against the destructive influence of bitterness.
Hebrews 12:15 – See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no 'root of bitterness' springs up and causes trouble�
Let me give you some truth - even if you grew up poor and missed some opportunities, God can overcome that and bring to pass his perfect plan for your life.
Your physical/mental/emotional issues are not a surprise to God, nor are they a stumbling block for him. God is still in the healing and deliverance business. Hestill has a divine plan specifically tailored for your life, and he will bring it to pass if (like Caleb) you trust him.
Let's take this one step further. Maybe you are personally responsible for some of the mess in your life. Maybe you were the one who made some bad decisions and the repercussions are enormous and permanent.
Perhaps you were once addicted to alcohol/drugs or had an abortion or broke some laws and spent time in jail. Once you stand up and take responsibility for what has been done, then you need to put it all under the blood of Christ and let it go. None of these things (once they are under the blood of Christ) can negate God's plan for you!
So again, follow Caleb's example. Do not blame others or become bitter. Instead, forgive and keep your eyes on God. Unlike humans, God keeps all the promises he makes!
Ps 12:6-7 – The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times. You, O Lord, will keep them�
Hebrews 10:23 – Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.
MEDITATE ON THE PROMISE: I believe that Caleb kept the words of God's promise close to his heart. I believe that he rehearsed them in his mind on a daily basis. Maybe he meditated on them while he marched through the desert each day. Perhaps they were the last thing he thought of as he went to sleep, and the first thing that came to mind in the morning.
Maybe when his children were born, he held them on his lap and told them not to worry, because the promised inheritance was on the way. When his family became discouraged, he gave them hope by quoting that promise. He could rejoice, because he knew his situation would have an ending point. The trial would not last forever. The fulfillment of the promise was coming.
Notice that when he finally comes before Joshua to claim his inheritance, he speaks with authority, like someone who has kept a tight grip on a legal contract:
Joshua 14:10-12 - And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the Lord spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day 85 years old. I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming. So now give me this hill country of which the Lord spoke on that day�it may be that the Lord will be with me and I shall drive them out just as the Lord said.
What about you? Is your promise close to your heart or have you lost it amongst discouragement? Is it on your mind at bedtime and in the morning or are you busy thinking about the problem? Do you keep it in prayer? Do you praise God for its completion even before you see it? You should. The scriptures say:
God gives life to the dead and calls and calls into existence the things that do not exist (Romans 4:17).
Meditate on your promise knowing that someday, in God's perfect timing, it will become a reality. Rejoice knowing that your waiting will eventually end. Rest in the peace of God's love for you, as he takes you into your Promised Land.
Let me give you some encouragement: Don't give up! God has not forgotten you. He is still on the throne and actively working in your life. He loves you more than you can imagine.
Let me give you some relief: Nothing in your past can disqualify you from God's will for your life. God is famous for bringing the dead back to life. If he has to do that in your situation, he will; you have not surprised him in any way.
Let me give you some strength: You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. As a child of the Most High God, you don't just endure the waiting period – you can thrive in it when you know that he is in control. You can relish in it, knowing that your faith strengthens others. At the end of the wait, you will have not only the fulfillment of your promise, but you will have greater faith and a closer walk with your savior.
When we begin to think of our favorite bible characters, Jonah is often mentioned. Perhaps that is because it was a favorite of ours when we were children. The story appeals to kids because it has elements of adventure, danger and gross body fluids. When you first hear the story, it amazes you! After all, it's an everyday occurrence when a man eats a fish, but when a fish eats a man, well, the rest of us take notice!
As adults, we still cherish the story of Jonah. Let's take a closer look for some of the lessons it holds for us today.
Jonah 1:1 - Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, "Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me."
Nineveh was located in the nation of Assyria. It was originally founded by Nimrod.
Genesis 10:8, 10-11 – Cush fathered Nimrod: he was the first on earth to be a might man. The beginning of his kingdom was Babel� in the land of Shinar. From that land he went into Assyria and built Nineveh�
In Jonah chapter 3 we are told that it was an 'exceedingly great' city, meaning that it was large. Jonah tells us that it was three days journey in breadth. Since 20 miles was the distance a soldier could travel in a day, commentators assume that the city was roughly 55-60 miles in diameter. However, not all of the land was densely covered with streets and buildings. The city also included farm land. Scholars estimate the population to be around 600,000 people.
The sin of the city had reached a point where God decided to act. Rather than destroy them, he wants to make himself known to them, and give them a chance to repent. This is exactly what we would expect. God's holiness demands an accounting for sin, but his mercy always provides a way of escape from judgment, if man is willing to accept it.
God's concern for Nineveh and its heathen people is also a foreshadowing of his ultimate plan for all of mankind. I Timothy 2:3-4 tells us that salvation "� is good and pleasing in the sight of God our savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."
Our heavenly Father again expresses his desire through the apostle Peter Acts 10:34-35:
So Peter opened his mouth and said: "Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him."
So, we see that God sends Jonah to the people of Nineveh that they might believe in him, repent and be spared from judgment.
Jonah, however, chooses to completely ignore God. In fact, he tries to run from God by booking passage on a cargo ship to Tarshish.
Why do you suppose that Jonah overreacted to the command of God? Go ahead and think about that for a bit. We will present a likely answer later in the lesson.
God responds to Jonah's rebellion by stirring up a great storm on the sea; scripture says it threatened to break the ship apart. Obviously, the crew was afraid and they all prayed to their gods to spare them.
Meanwhile, Jonah is asleep in below decks until the captain of the vessel wakes him up and instructs him to get on his knees as well! [So much for the old theory that people with a guilty conscience can't sleep at night!]
Since the storm seemed to be getting worse instead of better, the crew decided to cast lots and determine who was responsible for their situation. Guess who comes up as the guilty party – Jonah!
Jonah then confesses everything to the crew. He explains that he is a Hebrew and he serves Jehovah, the God who made the earth and the sea. He also mentions that he was running away from God. This really got their attention. The seamen then asked what they should do to get the sea to calm down, before they all died.
Jonah responded this way:
Jonah 1:12 – He said, "Pick me up and hurl me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you, for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you."
The crew was unwilling to do this, because they feared it would be like throwing him to his death. So, they vainly tried to get to shore but when they could not, they prayed and then tossed him overboard.
Jonah 1:14-15 – Therefore, they called out to the Lord, "O Lord, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not on us innocent blood, for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you." So they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging.
As you recall, God had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah.
I often wonder about the way that happened. Do you think Jonah saw the fish approaching and tried to get away? Can you imagine that moment of panic as he saw the gargantuan beast bearing down on him? What do you suppose went through his mind when he realized he was going to be swallowed? On the other hand, maybe he never saw it coming. Maybe the fish came up behind him and he didn't even see it until it was too late. Or maybe he was drowning and the fish seemed like a safe haven. Who knows? Perhaps we'll have the chance to ask him one day!
However, there is no need to speculate what he did after he was swallowed; the scripture tells us that he prayed.
Jonah 2:1-2 – Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish saying, "I called out to the Lord, out of my distress, and he answered me, out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice."
I have never been in the belly of a great fish, and my guess is that you haven't either, but I am imaging a grim situation. There would be a lot of sea water, plus I bet it would be pitch black. There might be other fish or sea life that had also been swallowed. Any air would certainly not be fresh (fish breath – yuck!). You can read Jonah's description of the conditions in the fish's belly in the remainder of chapter 2.
One part of the prayer I want us to take particular notice of:
Jonah 2:7 – When my life was fainting away, I remembered the Lord and my prayer came to you, into your holy temple.
As a result of that prayer, God had the fish vomit Jonah up on dry land.
Now that God has Jonah's attention, he again instructs him to travel the 500 miles to Nineveh and tell them to repent or the city would be overthrown. This time Jonah obeys.
The people of Nineveh believed God. They called for fasting and repented from the greatest among them to the least. Even the king removed his royal robes, put on sack cloth and sat in ashes as a sign of repentance. He decreed that no one in the kingdom should eat or drink, but everyone should call out to God and turn from violence and evil so that they might be spared from destruction.
The result is exactly what we would expect – since the people chose to repent, God's mercy wins over judgment; the entire city is spared.
Jonah 3:10 –When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.
Sounds like a great thing to me, how about you? Jonah would disagree with us. He was mad that God spared the city! In chapter 4 verse 2 he actually complains that God is 'a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster'. He goes so far as to say that he wishes God would kill him, for it is better to be dead than alive if the people of Nineveh are spared!
Hmmm� how strange! When people complain about God, they don't usually mention his abundant mercy and love. Normally, those are things we cherish about God. Clearly, something is bothering Jonah. Did you have a chance to consider what that might be?
The Jewish people had a very strong national identity. That identity was based upon them being the chosen people of God. Some of the elements of that national identity were circumcision, possession of the Law of God, sacrifices, prophetic words, signs and wonders, supernatural protection and provision, etc. Therefore, Jonah was very unwilling that any Gentile nations should find peace with God, because he feared that the Jews would lose their special relationship to Jehovah. He feared that the Gentiles would infringe upon the special place of the Jews.
What he failed to realize of course, was that God's love is much too vast to be limited to one people group. As prior scriptures have shown, it is God's will that all mankind be in right relationship with him.
God will save people from every 'tribe, tongue, people and nation'. He has enough love and blessings for the Gentiles as well as the Jews!
Clearly, Jonah did not understand the full scope of God's plan for mankind. This explains his great reluctance (rebellion) to share the message of salvation with the people of Nineveh.
Instead of rejoicing in what God was doing, Jonah has a tantrum and then he builds a temporary booth just outside the city. He sits down to see what would happen.
Little did he realize, but God had already made a decision regarding the people and animals of Nineveh. God was now going to deal with his prophet in a very tender way; he is going to attempt to give Jonah a glimpse of how precious the Gentiles were to him.
To this end, God causes the rapid growth of a giant plant, which provided Jonah with shade to comfort him.
The scripture says that Jonah was not just glad to have the plant, he was exceedingly glad. I can believe that. I know how much I love the shade of a tree on hot summer days! Any relief from the blazing sun is most welcome.
Jonah had about one day to enjoy that shade before God sent a worm to kill the plant.
As the plant withered and died, God turned up the heat. There was a scorching east wind and the sun beat down so hot, that Jonah almost fainted. Keep in mind that God was not doing this to be mean, rather he was using this situation to teach Jonah a very important lesson.
When the plant withered and died, Jonah again becomes bitterly angry. In fact he makes a second request for God to let him die (chapter 4, verse 8).
At that point, God confronted him about his attitude. God said to him "Do you do well to be angry for the plant?"
To which Jonah responded, "Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die."
Then God shares this revelation of his love with Jonah:
Jonah 4:10-11 – And the Lord said, "You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?"
Fortunately, God's point was very clear and Jonah kept his zipped up at this point! That ends the book of Jonah.
While there are a number of useful lessons for adults in this passage of scripture, I am going to limit my comments to two things.
First of all, there is a message in this narrative about toxic relationships. Specifically, this applies to romantic relationships as well as ordinary friend relationships between two women or two men.
Notice how selfish Jonah was to those around him, especially the crew of the ship. We assume that the sailors on the ship to Tarshish were just ordinary men, earning a living for their families, when they make the acquaintance of Jonah. Immediately afterward, as a consequence of spending time around him, they find themselves in a place of storm and upheaval. All peace and rest was gone; they were afraid and worried from that moment on.
At that point, in order to preserve their lives, they begin to toss all the cargo overboard. So now their peace is gone, their confidence is gone and they are going broke or at least losing a great deal of money, all because of Jonah. Things are so bad, they are in danger of losing the entire ship. And how does Jonah treat them? With utter disregard! He is busy sleeping in the hold. He isn't a bit concerned about the disaster that he is bringing upon all the crew of the ship and their families. He does not care one bit if they go broke or even die!
As you know, the captain forces him to get up. When the lot falls on Jonah and it is determined that he is the sole cause of all the destruction, how does he react? In a most shameful manner! He tells the crew of the ship that if they toss him overboard, the storm and upheaval will cease and they will be fine.
You see, if Jonah was a real friend, he would have taken responsibility for his actions. He would have asked the crew help him up onto the edge of the ship and he would have jumped in himself in order to save them. Instead, he puts all the pressure on the innocent sailors to literally pick him up and toss him overboard!
Of course, they are stunned and very unwilling to throw Jonah to certain death; but notice that he does not feel the same about them. Again, he was very willing for these men to die or go bankrupt for his bad choices!
Eventually, after doing everything in their power to ride out the storm, the sailors pray for forgiveness and toss him overboard. Only then were they able to pick up the pieces of their lives and business.
Does any of this sound familiar? Do you have any toxic relationships like the one between Jonah and the crew? Do you know certain people that always bring upheaval and drama to your life? Do they somehow sap all your energy, your peace and even your finances? Are they putting you in a position where you feel like you are fighting for your life?
Ask yourself this question: Is that person helping or hindering your ministry and your relationship to God? Are you so weary from that relationship that you have no time to seek God and his plans for you? Is your relationship with this person squeezing out the time you should be spending with your family? As a result of this relationship, do you do things that you would never do otherwise? Does this person influence you to make poor choices?
If so, you need to break off the relationship. Just like the sailors, you may balk at the idea. It may be uncomfortable, because they are not going to leave willingly. They will make you do the dirty work. But for your own sake and the sake of your ministry, you may need to do it immediately!
Do not be worried about being alone. God is standing by to bring you the right spouse; one who will assist you in ministry, not bring you down. He has plenty of good people who will be glad to enter into a friend relationship with you; a relationship that will bring you closer to the Lord and help you grow spiritually.
The final thing I want to point out about the story of Jonah is this: God is sovereign over all things. Clearly in this narrative God is sovereign over nature (the storm, the fish), but he is also sovereign over your life. He is vastly greater than all your failures, shortcomings or mistakes.
Even though Jonah made some poor choices that left him in dire circumstances (the belly of the fish), as soon as he called out to God, God was there.
The same is true for you and me. There is no mistake we can make that will test the limits of God's power. There is no mistake we can make that will thwart God's plans for the universe. Even if you made some poor choices, God is ready and waiting for you to call upon him. The moment you reach out to him, he will be there. In fact, the bible says that Jesus is knocking on the door of your heart right now. He desires to fellowship with you!
Revelation 3:20 - Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hears my voice, and opens the door, I will come in to him, and eat with him, and he with me.
We have all blown it at one time or another; all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. We have all made some bad choices or been rebellious a time or two. But remember, you are not a finished product. The Holy Spirit is actively at work in your life, continuously making you over into the image of Christ. So put your sins under the blood and get back on your feet. Forget what lies behind and strain forward to what lies ahead. Press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus!
Let me give you some encouragement: Don't be discouraged about the mistakes you've made. God isn't finished with you yet. The Holy Spirit will continue to work in you until the day Christ returns or calls you home.
Let me give you some relief: If you are in a relationship that is poisoning you, you have the right to lovingly but firmly end it. You don't have to continue to carry around people that take all of the life out of you. Turn them over to God; he has the strength to deal with them.
Let me give you some strength: God gave Jonah the wisdom the opportunity and the ability to speak to the people of Nineveh. So don't fret – God will also provide all you need to accomplish the good works he has planned for you.
I suspect Zerubbabel is not on the short list of famous bible characters - but he should be! If you are not really sure who he was, read on. His story will encourage you and challenge your faith.
Zerubbabel was a man who had the privilege of seeing the promises of God fulfilled in his lifetime. Indeed, he himself played a part in God's plans. Let's begin by reminding ourselves of the situation Zerubbabel walked into.
The nation of Israel had a long history of rebelling against the Lord and serving false gods. God warned them many times that if they did not repent and follow him whole heartedly, he would remove them from the Promised Land and send them into captivity.
Eventually, due to their continued rebellion, God sentenced them to 70 years of captivity in Babylon.He fulfilled this decree through king Nebuchadnezzar.
Jeremiah 25:8-9 – Therefore thus says the Lord of Hosts: Because you have not obeyed by words, behold I will send for all the tribes of the north, declares the Lord, for Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants�
So Nebuchadnezzar attacked Judah and laid siege to Jerusalem. He captured and deported people in a number of phases. Daniel, who would later be thrown into the lion's den, was actually taken in one of the first waves of captives. The final fall of the nation occurred in 586 BC. The scripture says that Babylon's soldiers killed the Israelites indiscriminately and without compassion; they killed not only soldiers but women, children and old people. It was a very great slaughter (see II Chronicles 36:17-21).
II Chronicles also reveals that all the temple treasures as well as the treasures of the King of Judah were captured as spoil and taken to Babylon.
The entire nation of Judah (except for the very poorest of the poor people) either died or was taken captive to Babylon. What dark days these were for the chosen people of God! They must have been full of despair as they left their homeland and marched to the land of Babylon� their beautiful homes – gone! All the possessions that they worked so hard for – gone! Their fields and vineyards – now possessed by others! Their families – fate unknown! The temple of God – destroyed!
Let us note that God chastised them; but did not destroy them, nor did they forfeit their place as God's chosen people.In fact, long before they were taken captive God declared that they would be in exile for 70 years but at the end of that time, he would bring them back to their land.
Jeremiah 29:10 – For thus says the Lord: When 70 years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you [the children of Israel], and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place.
During those dark years, as the remnant of Israel settled in Babylon and began a different life, the promise of restoration must have seemed a long, long way away. We can easily imagine how that future promise would take a back seat to the immediate needs of the day. After all, very few of those who marched to Babylon would live to see the restoration of Israel.
All too soon the days turned into weeks and the weeks into years (does that sound familiar?). The people of Israel married and had children and put down roots and built the best life they could in Babylon.
Because they were cut off from the temple and its worship practices, the Jews began to put a significant emphasis on prayer and fasting. Many scholars believe that this was the time that the synagogues were first developed.
To be sure, prayer and fasting are good things. Nevertheless, the people settled for something that was less than God's best for them. They lost their hunger for the land, the temple and its sacrifices. They were missing out on the divine presence of God dwelling in their midst. Eventually, a generation arose that had never seen the Promised Land or the temple. Consequently, desire for a life in Judah began to diminish. Clearly, their current circumstances caused them to lose focus on the promise of restoration.
However, God has always been and will always be, faithful to his promises. In fact, God says this to us:
Jeremiah 1:12 – �I am watching over my word to perform it.
Did you catch that? God watches over his promises to make sure that he does all he said he would do. God is so perfectly faithful in all he has promised! If he said it, it will surely come to pass!
Were you aware that God named Israel's deliverer long before he was even born or before they even went into captivity? That's right – nearly 150 years before Cyrus ascended his throne, he was named by our God as the one who would deliverer Israel from Babylon! Look was the prophet Isaiah had to say:
Isaiah 45:1, 4, 13 – Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus�For the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen, I call you by your name. I name you, though you do not know me; I have stirred him [Cyrus] up in righteousness, and I will make all his ways level; he shall build my city and set my exiles free, not for price or reward, says the Lord of Hosts.
So, while it seemed to the exiles that God was doing nothing and was nowhere to be found, nothing could have been further from the truth.
God is like a conductor. He is orchestrating multiple nations and events as well as individual people to bring about the fulfillment of all he has promised.
Like a crescendo, he causes new nations to emerge and grow strong, while he allows other nations to slip into decline and silence. He raises up new rulers with new ideas. He allows technology and science to advance. He sends words of encouragement to his people through the prophets. Here and there he allows super abundant years of harvest, so that supplies can be prepared. He reignites a longing for himself and his ways in the hearts of his people. He takes seemingly discordant notes and fits them perfectly into the harmony, making all things ready for the fulfillment of his promise.
And all the while, his focus on the individual person has not diminished. He sees every injustice. He hears every prayer. He knows every need. He feels the sorrow and the longing in the heart of each of his children. Each person that God has created is like a perfect note in his symphony; each one is needed to make the melody complete.
As we mentioned previously, the nation of Judah was sentenced to 70 years in captivity. Therefore, according to the promise of God, they could expect to return home in 538 BC. History proves that God did as he promised. The Medes and the Persians defeated Babylon in 539 BC, one year before the promise was to be fulfilled.
Here is an interesting question – who was king of Babylon when it fell to the Medes and Persians? According to Daniel chapter 5, it was Belshazzar, the same king who saw the supernatural handwriting on the wall that was interpreted by Daniel (again, the same Daniel who was previously thrown into the lion's den)!
We would expect that Daniel would come into contact with Cyrus. We would also expect Daniel to share the ancient prophesies that mentioned Cyrus by name. Particularly, this one:
Isaiah 44:28 – [God] who says of Cyrus, 'he is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose; saying of Jerusalem, 'She shall be built', and of the temple, 'Your foundation shall be laid'.
So, one year later or exactly 70 years since the captivity, Cyrus made a decree that the people of Israel were free to go home and rebuild the temple of God!
Ezra 1:2-3 – Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel – he is the God who is in Jerusalem.
At that point, any Jew who wished to return home was free to do so and more than 42 thousand did just that!
Ezra 2:64-65 – The whole assembly together was 42,360 besides their male and female servants, of whom there were 7,337 and they had 200 male and female singers.
One of the people in that group was our man Zerubbabel the son and/or heir of Shealtiel. Not only was he part of that first wave of Israelites to go back to the Promised Land, he was their leader!
What inspired him to undertake such a monumental task? Well, Zerubbabel had not forgotten what God promised. He meditated on that promise. He allowed it to burn within his heart and mind. He did not settle for life in Babylon, even though that would have been much easier in some respects. He was ready to claim the promise of God and move on to a place of victory. He wanted all that God had in store for him – and (spoiler alert) he got it!
After the long journey to arrive in Judah, the settlers immediately built an altar and re-established the sacrifices to the Lord. How good that victory must have felt to the returning settlers! But there was more to be done. In the second year, the foundation of the new temple was laid. What a reason for rejoicing! Yet, there was still more to be done.
It was at this point that their adversaries came against them. They pretended to be interested in helping to build the temple, but Zerubbabel, knowing what was in their hearts, refused to allow them to help. This refusal was the first step in a very protracted legal battle, which at times forced a work stoppage.
For fifteen years, the battle raged on. Sometimes, Zerubbabel and company gained ground. Sometimes their enemies were temporarily victorious. Sometimes, they became a bit complacent, and work stopped.
During those times, God sent words of encouragement (and sometimes rebuke) to Zerubbabel through the prophets Haggai and Zechariah. In fact, God sends a very profound and important message to Zerubbabel through the prophet Zechariah.
Zechariah 4:6 – Then he said to me, "This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Hosts.
What an amazing truth! Zerubbabel was going to be victorious, but not because of his own power or military might orlegal maneuvering. The promises of God would be fulfilled by the Spirit of God! Victory was assured!
Just to make things very, very clear God also prophesied this through Zechariah:
Zechariah 4:9 – The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also complete it.
Sure enough, Zerubbabel completes his task - the temple is rebuilt. The government who opposed him was ordered to provide all the animals needed for the daily sacrifice. Two more waves of settlers return to the Promised Land. The walls of Jerusalem are rebuilt and its gates are replaced. God performed many more miracles on behalf of his people. In short, God fulfilled every promise that he made to Israel!
If we could speak with Zerubbabel today, what do you think he would want us to understand?
First and foremost, God always keeps his promises. Remember, God watches over his word to perform it. He did it back in the day of Zerubbabel and he is still doing it today.
So, what promises can you lay claim to? Did you have a word of prophesy spoken over your life at some point? Perhaps God dropped a promise into your heart through the Holy Spirit. Perhaps he is stirring you up to do a work for him, just the same as he did with Zerubbabel. Maybe you read a promise in the scriptures and as soon as you did, it started taking root in your heart.
What has happened to these promises? Have they been fulfilled? If not, why?
As we studied, the majority of the Israelites settled for life in Babylon. They allowed the immediate needs of the day to crowd out the promise of restoration. They missed out on having the presence of God in their midst. I encourage you not to make the same choice. Don't let the immediate and overwhelming tasks of your day crowd out the promises of God. They are worth fighting for! Make room for them.
I encourage you to take a second look at your promises. Write them down or put them in your phone, if you haven't already. Look at them in the morning or before you go to bed at night. Allow the Holy Spirit to reignite a fire in your heart.
If you do, I am sure that God will open a door for you, just as he did for Zerubbabel and the other 42 thousand people who were looking for fulfillment of the promise. Then, by faith, walk through that door.
Make no mistake – when you answer that call and walk through that door, it will be a step of faith. You won't have all the answers when you begin. The settlers did not know what awaited them on the journey to Jerusalem. They did not know how they would make a living when they arrived. They did not know if they would be welcomed or ostracized. There was no exact or complete plan for rebuilding the temple. They gave up a life of certainty for a life of faith. If you want to claim the promises of God in your life, you also must take a step of faith.
The good news is that God has an amazing, 100% track record of faithfulness (Think of it this way: He has 5 full stars after billions of reviews). If you step out, he will show up and keep his promises to you.
I think Zerubbabel would also like us to know that when we face opposition to our promises, God intervenes with strength and power. I bet that Zerubbabel stayed awake some nights worrying (I don't know that for certain, but it would be human nature to do so). He probably wondered what his next legal move should be. He may have fretted over the strength of his enemies or the size of the opposition. I bet it seemed like it was taking forever to get anything done. But in the midst of that, God sent Zechariah to encourage Zerubbabel in his work. Remember, God declares that the victory is won by the power of the Holy Spirit, not the strength or determination of man.
Whew! What a relief for us all! If we will do our part – take that step of faith and diligently do all that we know to do, the Holy Spirit will make the rest happen. Does that mean that all will be smooth sailing? Ha! No way! When we step out to do something for God, there will always be opposition from our enemy, Satan. The good news is that we don't have to rely on our own strength or intelligence or power to fight him. The Spirit of God will take care of that for us! He is right by our side, watching over our progress, ensuring victory.
Romans 8:31 - If God be for us, who can be against us?
This brings up another point – how close is your relationship to the Holy Spirit? If you are struggling to claim your promises, you might want to seek a fresh infilling of the Spirit. Ask him to equip you and give you strength for the task. Ask him for a new spiritual gift. He will bring you supernatural wisdom and understanding. He will be with you as your promise is fulfilled!
Let me give you some encouragement: Don't let your promises slip away under the burden of your everyday life. Put some of that stuff aside, and reacquaint yourself with the things God wants to do through you!
Let me offer you some relief: It's not your power, your might or your resources that will get the job done. Don't try to do God's part for him. He already has that covered.
Let me offer you some strength: Seek the Holy Spirit. He is standing by to comfort, lead, guide, open doors and bring provision. He will stay with you as you claim that promise! Then, testify about your victory to encourage others!
