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Before the altar, part 15

2011-11-27T12:08:00.000-08:00

What God is trying to tell me with the altar, what He is trying to teach me is that it is true that the place is important, as it resembles "Heaven on earth". (Psalm 5:7; Ephesians 2:21; Ephesians 3:17) Since God dwells in me and in His earthly physical temple as well and because He dwells on His throne in heaven, it is my goal to maintain that purity of spirit, maintain the reverence He deserves. (Psalm 11:4; Psalm 65:4; Habakkuk 2:20) Otherwise, my worship is such a special place. It is a blessed place (Exodus 40:9; Leviticus 8:10,11) and it represents that place that Jesus has gone up to heaven to prepare for me. (John 14:2)

What a sacred place His place of worship is, from the beginning of time! How sanctified those who were called to be His priests! (1 Chronicles 23:32) How specific the design of His building was as shown in 1 Kings 8:8; Exodus 38:24) and the ceremony to be carried on within it, as laid out in Leviticus 14:13. How specific the behavior was to be when one was of the order of Levi, as outlined in 2 Chronicles 29:5 and 2 Chronicles 30:7. And how specific the behavior was among those numbered in His! (2 Chronicles 35:5; Ezra 9:8). God's place is, always has been and always will be a holy place. Psalm 24:3 asks, "Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in His holy place?" Psalm 24:4 answers by saying those with clean hands and a pure heart. Psalm 46:4 describes the place as the city through which a river runs through. And Psalm 68:17 says that God keeps up His holy place, describing it as a sanctuary, with tens of thousands and thousands of thousands of His chariots. He has legions upon legions to keep up His place. Are any of us truly worthy, in and of ourselves? No. God's place is so holy and so protected that there is no passport that would bring us there, except that of the blood of Jesus Christ. Because God's place is the place of everlasting peace, and in order to do that, He must keep order. HE must keep order, no one else has that responsibility because no one else is worthy of it. We are all capable of doing anything at any time. So even if His physical place is destroyed and burned to the floor, the Spiritual realm goes ever on. Why then was it important for the people of Israel to rebuild their city and their Temple that was destroyed by the Babylonians and the Assyrians? It is a reminder of the power and presence of God. This is why assembling with one another today is important. We will not forget Jesus broke the bread and passed the cup and said eat and drink this and think of me if in memoriam we do it together and for the united purpose that we believe Jesus came, Jesus died, Jesus was buried, and Jesus arose. But it also involves humility and contriteness, as in Isaiah 57:15, of a heart that desires not to ride with one's own legions, but with the one that could have called 10,000 angels, as the hymn says. God has sanctioned that there is a portion of His land that His children on earth will live in and on. And those places are sacred and shall be treated as such. And one who is not contrite and humbled before Him cannot enter in the Spiritual realm. As Jesus said in Matt 23:25, the cup must be cleaned from inside out, not just the outside, as the Pharisees were wont to do. That is the only way for anyone to enter heaven.

Before the altar part 14

2011-11-08T10:01:00.000-08:00

When I come before the altar with my own intentions, and have put my traditions and my rules and regulations according to what I wish to see, I am as bad as an infidel, as loathsome a creature as if I never knew God. I defile the purpose of my God to live in peace with mankind. This is what people did to Stephen, as because of their traditions and vehement application of such they stoned him to death. (Acts 6:13). And this is what the people did in Acts 21:28 to Paul because they didn't want to hear his preaching. When it comes to the point that I am not willing to even listen to the teaching of a preacher, then I have effectively become close-minded and ineffective. Just because I receive the message of what others may speak doesn't mean I agree with it. It is just that all have a free will and the right to express this. No, once I become close-minded to someone, how can I expect him or her to open up to me? I remember a time when I was passionate about being right, a time when I would throw away letters if the person writing me told me that they wanted to do something other than what I was doing as a Christian, and I would never talk to those people again, at least not for a long time. How childish of me! Christ listened to everyone, and He presented His view to everyone. And if there were those that accepted him, fine and all the better. But it is not love to cut someone off because of a disagreement of viewpoints. (Hebrews 9:12,25) If I even try to live by traditions, I might as well say that the sacrifice of small goats and sheep will save me. In reality I know the truth. Only the blood of Christ saves me. Not all people look at being a Christian from this angle. Some are not aware of the truth of the statement that Christ and only Christ saves me. But does that mean I should not listen to what they wish to say?

Before the Altar part 14

2011-10-16T13:20:00.000-07:00

The only way to answer that is to ask myself what my relationship with God is. Am I relying on what men say, or am I reading and studying for myself, as the scriptures are useful so that I can be His workman, as Paul in 2 Timothy 3:16-17? God equips me with a free will so that I can make choices and ability to use this properly. He above all wants to be wants to be informed of my slightest need, my littlest concern. Daniel 9:17-26 is such a beautiful prayer by one of God's greatest servants, who would never abandon God because it was not fashionable. And yet there have been times when I would abandon God's worship for what I thought was God's worship, whne I would have added things into his worship to make it more attractive to others. That is not my purpose. If I attract people into worship, it is because of what God has to offer to others, not what my selling God offers others; I reap what I sow. Am I sowing something pleasing to Him? Or am I sowing something that pleases others and me? Which may or may not be in synch with what God wants. If we give ourselves over to that which would please each other there are several things that could happen. We could decide we don't like meeting on Sundays, because it interferes with our sports or more seriously because we can't get there because of the hours we work. (An argument for offering more than one service all day long on Sunday.) We could decide we don't need the Lord's Supper to commemorate Jesus' life on this earth and the price he paid for us. We could decide that public confession should be made to only the elders and deacons. We could decide that if we had things, icons, statues, it might help up pray better. I could decide that those standing in front of us singing have better voices than me and I can stop singing and listen. God says I am equal to everyone, so I shouldn't feel as though I can's sing in His presence without offending Him. He made and loves my voice. As for Sundays, I know how hard it is to go to church on Sundays because I work third shift and have since 1998. I have missed some services to b e sure, but I go when I can. My desire?To partake in the remembrance of Jesus and why He came to earth. And the benefit? A stronger relationship via the faith that God tells me I must have in order to please Him. I know that if i do as He tells me and listen to His word, worship on Sundays, and partake in the Lord's Supper and rejoice in song with Him, then I can without hesitation call myself His. If I live like that everyday, I can really do that.

Before the altar part 13

2011-10-09T06:11:00.000-07:00

Same mountain (as Isaiah's), same God. What a wonderful concept? All together praising and singing only to Him, all together around His altar. The whole problem arises when there are groups or portions of groups that want to take what is God's house of prayer and use it to sell their concept of God. Believing that what they sell can help those who need it to concentrate on God actually means that people need an image to focus on, because God has none. When in reality, God's image is us. We were made in His image according to Genesis 1:27. So if there is anything to focus on, to see God, we need to look around us at our brethren. Which make me want to try to be more holy and humble if I am to reflect Him. If He calls me to creat a temple within me, then I need to clean my cup from the inside, rather than to show my cleanliness from the outside, I need to create His temple His way. (Exodus 26:7) and clean that which is unclean. (Joshua 22:19) I need to be holy, because within me is His tabernacle. (Psalm 15:1; Psalm 61:4; Psalm 76:2). And the whole purpose is not finding things to make me feel holy but to actually be holy. In Hebrews 8:2,5, the writer says, "A minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the LORD has pitched and not man, who serves unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle, for 'See' saith He,"that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.'" He wants me to do things His way, not in ways that make me feel as though I am really worshipping, but to really worship Him. If I truly desire to worship Him this way, then my worship is reverent and true. (Psalm 5:7; Psalm 11:4). How do I make my worship this way, what do I need to do to purify my heart for Him. I must seek to do His will. Can I spell it out in words or pages? Probably not, because then it becomes a checklist for someone weaker in faith than myself, or else I become a teacher of falseness because at that point people follow me. There is not one person other than God that can tell me or anyone else who has chosen to follow Him what He wants. Do I seek Him? Or do I seek an image of Him presented by man? Do I seek to influence those who look up to me as someone who has this holiness thing down? Or am I truly holy, going to worship in my heart and in His tabernacle that He has built within me? How do I know His Will?

Before the altar part 12

2011-09-25T11:57:00.000-07:00

Let's take the holiness of the inside of the cup that Jesus talks about one step further. If this is true, if being holyis much more than going and being associated with a church, then how do I get to the point that I can truly bring my gifts to the altar and be in the act of acceptable worship to Him? How do I become God's priest? I've been promised the spirit of Salvation once I obediently come to Him in baptism and realize that my life is dross without Him in it. Is that all that is neccessary to become His priest? Isn't there something else I need to do, some test to perform, something I can check off and say I graduated to bigger and better things now and can be called holy? No. What is so wonderful about God is that He determines who His priests are, who is holy in His sight. And it is at that point we obey God. Fully. When we said we believe everything although we may not think everything will come to pass but because it is God we believe what He says. One way or another we believe what He says will come to pass. And a reader of Scripture can see this when reading the life of Jesus. While going to all the Jewish festivals, He nevertheless never hesitated to point out that He was the way, the truth, and the light, or that He was resurrection, or that He was the bread of life. And His message was, "Come with me, this is the easy part." If anything once I am His I am a royal citizen because He is King. Once I have made my decision to follow Jesus to God then I am His princess, I am His priest. I am His. That makes me and others who follow Him special in God's eyes and yet all equal. While my talents are not equal to others, He treats me the same as He would the most gifted preacher in the universe. I have a place in His family, in His church, and am an important structure in the spiritual building. I am important in bolstering His kingdom and He has told me that my capacity for love can be as meaningful to someone in need as the most stirring liturgy or most impressing sermon by the most famous preacher. And regardless of whether I have 10 talents or 2 talents, I and others will be on the mountain worshipping Him together when we are His. (Isa 56:7)

Before the Altar part 12

2011-09-12T04:19:00.000-07:00

What a sacred place His place of worship is, from the very beginning of time! How sanctified those who were called to be His priests. (1 Chronicles 23:32) How specific the design of His building and the ceremony within it (Leviticus 14:13) is only indicative of how much He desires my obedience and our obedience to His word. When God says He wants the building made of cedar and olive tree and inlaid in gold and when He says He wants the lamb for the sacrifice slaughtered in a particular way and the blood applied to His altar in a particular way, they were to do it, or like Eli's sons were going to go up in smoke. (I Samuel 2:12ff) Truly that is the way He expects me to treat His worship, to do what He wants me to do. If I, if as His people we who worship Him, do as He says and follow His commands, He counts us as His. (2 Chronicles 35:5; Ezra 9:8) We will be like those numbered specially as His priests, of the house of Levi (2 Chronicles 29:5; 2 Chronicles 30:7; Leviticus 6:16; Leviticus 10:17) God's place is a holy place and when I and my brethren are in it we are to act as His and be holy for He is holy. (Psalms 44:4; Psalms 68:17) and God's place will never die, because He has chosen not just to build it physically in the church, but in each and everyone that believes in Him and calls Him Father. This is even true during the physical destruction of the earthly places of worshipping God or the physical destruction of my body by those who would take the right to worship God away from me. The altar, the church is more than a physical spot. (Matthew 24:15) That's why it was so important for the people to build such a temple, to go to such lengths as in Ezekiel 41:4 and Ezekiel 42:13, i.e. the specifications of the tabernacle, the doors to such, the floors where it was held, the house itself. The whole concept of the altar and church involve an attitude found in Isaiah 57:15, where there is an attitude of humility and contriteness, of having a heart to follow the One who rides with the twenty thousand angels in chariots as spoken of in Psalm 68:17. It involves so much more than setting apart a portionof the land to increase the size of the church. That is outside stuff. Jesus had plenty to say about a cup that was only clean from the outside and not the inside as well. (Matthew 23:25)

Before the Altar part 12

2011-07-24T07:21:00.000-07:00

Seeing the destruction of Israel traceable to those actions gave me a wake-up call to realize who is it that I really follow. Am I following the God who Saves, or am I following man-made gods of those who want to lead but who do so with stipulations attached, those who say repent and be baptized and...or those who say all you have to do is pray Jesus into your heart and send us $25.00 and you'll be saved? That is the quickest way to cause impurities to be on God's altar, and what God desires to know is am I following this or am I following just Him? I must watch my ways, for while it may not seem as though He is there, God is watching my every move, every action, and know my every motive. God knows my every attitude, good or bad. is it OK to have a bad attitude. Sure, but deal with it. It's neither good nor bad to feel, its just human, but when it becomes good or bad is when we allow that emotion to control our actions. Do I have enough self-control to behave in a God-like manner even when those around me don't? God knows and He forgives when I fall. But I must learn from my mistakes or He will not pick me up one of those time and I will not only skin my knees ut I will hurt my ribs. So what does my attitude need to be? Well, I like Hezekiah in 2 Kings 20:8 as he looks to God to heal him. And God can heal me of all things, I just have to admit that I am wrong or even if I have a right to be angry, I have no right to act out that anger via violence either verbal or physica. Because when I deliberately set out to hurt someone what is the difference between my "righteous" anger and someone else's selfish anger?

Before the Altar part 11

2011-06-26T10:14:00.000-07:00

One thing we must consider, our actions can and do affect others, no matter if we see it or not. When I lie, or curse, or whatever, someone sees me, and that someone may not see Christians in a favorable light because of what I do. Let's take this deeper. Consider Solomon. Because of Solomon's lusts, Israel was doomed. (2 Kings 16:8) Were the people payinf for what Solomon did? Yes and no. There are instances where a man's actions -- in direct disobedience to God -- cause God to punish His people. (Joshua 7) But more importantly, Solomon's life was out in the open, for all to see. And not only did the people he ruled see, but foreigners saw it as well. If Solomon can lead his life and worship false gods in addition to God the Almighty and God does nothing, why should anyone worry about worshipping other and false gods? After all who truly is to say who is the true God? If this type of honoring God suited Solomon, why shouldn't it suit the people under his rule?

Before the Altar part 10

2011-05-29T05:08:00.000-07:00

The altar is a sanctuary, a place I can go and cry. (I Samuel 1:7; 1 Samuel 7:4) And I can go in front of Him, just as I am, a saved sinner, one who comes to Him with my broken heart. (2 Samuel 12:20). If I examine the Old Testament correctly, I see trouble from the start. While Solomon was indeed supposed to build the Temple which he did in I Kings 6:37, as well as in 1 Kings 7:40 and 1 Kings 8:10-63, he nonetheless took a foreign bride. This was not neccesarily a bad thing but in Solomon's case...well suffice it to say that he gave up God to follow foreign idols. He allowed his wives to tell him what to do interms of how to worship and that it would be OK if he wanted to use false gods as long as he mentioned God occasionally. God was a loving God that would forgive Solomon that. If there had been penitence. But the mere fact that the people around Solomon took an example and assumed that was OK resulted in doom. As I read it, it was because of this that Isreal fell finally in AD 70. It was the result of traditional practices that led to worship of false gods and muddying the waters for people that wanted to worship the True God. Isreal fell because of its laws, its practices of weighing to heavily upon rules, upon using the letter of the law to get what they could from poor folk in the guise of leading them to what it took to get them to heave. And being focused on the laws, not the end result of those laws. And that is me, when I tell God,"I did this, this, this and that and aren't I a good girl and when do I get my gold star, God?"

Before the Altar; Part 9

2011-04-08T15:46:00.000-07:00

Now when I do not focus on God, when my behaviour reflects my lack of focus on God then I really need to understand that God will not stand for it. 1 Peter 4:17, "For this time si come that judgment must begin." If that is the case then my time is coming where God will show His ultimate displeasure with my behaviour. And if I were wise I would repent now, before the ultimate, ultimate, ultimate judgement comes. He holds me accountable for my actions. Because I am His child, His son's (and ultimately His, although it is not though of like that) blood gives me an out -- but I must be willing to walk and obey Him. And I must give Him my best, not to perform for Him, but just to bring Him what He brought to me. (Exodus 23:19; Exodus 34:26)

Before the altar Prat 8

2011-02-27T00:39:00.000-08:00

When am I cut off from His worship? When do I stop receiving His blessings? (Joel 1:16). Could it be when I show dissension? Could it be when I don't give Him what He desires or wants me to give Him? (Micah 4:2; Zechariah 7:2). Obviously it's not when I use things in the temple that I am told by law they are forbidden to touch, such as the shew bread that David ate when he was hungry. (Matthew 12:4) What behaviour takes me from God and makes my worship vain? And what does God deem appropriate behavior? (1 Timothy 3:15) As High Priest, Jesus allows us into a one-on-one communication with God. (Hebrews 10:21) and as a Christian I only have one High Priest that I need to follow. There are two ways to look at observance of God's Word. One is according to word-for-word. The other is the overall theme of peace and understanding as well as acting and being God's child. The two basic commands were 1) love the LORD your God with all your body, soul, mind, and heart and 2) love your neighbor as yourself. How hard that is depends on whether I want to add my prejudices to the letter of the law. If my focus is on Jesus, though, then if someone else is concerned about how I conduct my life, that is his or her difficulty and I am not responsible for how that person thinks. If I am focusing on Jesus, chances are I will do as He says and love God above all else and then love my neighbor. That leaves no room for sinful behavior. If I conduct my life differently from the way other people do, but am not engaged in sin, is it wrong? Not according to God and Jesus. I am God's child and He is my only judge.

2011-02-08T08:00:00.000-08:00

Who seems to get the blessing? Who does God grant His blessing upon? Hebrews 7:9 says that the blessing from God are bestowed on the lesser. This is no more evident than in the High Priest, Jesus (Hebrews 8). He was not rich, in fact he was ridiculed and despised of men and by hanging on the cross became the lowliest of the low, yet God bestowed upon Him. Because of Him, me and you and you and you and all those who put Him on and die to self, have salvation and a new and eternal life. If I walk with Him, and stay the course, I have a seat at the foot of the right hand of the Father. Look at Jacob, taking Esau's birthright (Genesis 27:37) The lesser getting the blessing. Jacob was born a little later than Esau. And Jacob was the one Isaac blessed first. But Jacob was also a thief and a liar. And he wrestled with God, and he understood that God was the one and only God. The least shall be first.

Who gets the blessing? Who does His will? If I am leading those about me to seek not His will but to look for that which they can get out of a service then I am misleading those around me and I am accountable. (Isaiah 9:15,16) If what I seek is a service that has pep, that has umph, that has sugar-coating, rip-roaring, tear-jerking messages with a preacher that won't quit, I may or may not be looking for ways to please God. How will I know whether I am pleasing God? Do I understand why and where God needs me? Do I understand that God is in all of history? (Isaiah 36:15-21) Do I understand God's great power? (Isaiah 37:10,23) Do I understand that I cannot hide from him? (Isaiah 40:27; Isaiah 45:9) Is what I am doing a mockery to Him? Do I delude myself in thinking that what I do is pleasing to Him, when I am not tending to His people, not tending to keep His message alive, not tending to His purpose for me and others? (Isaiah 52:5; Isaiah 65:7; Jeremiah 4:10; Jeremiah 17:15) Where is my belief? (Jeremiah 20:7) Does my worship represent an expression of me to God or does my worship display recognition of the glory of God? In 2 Chronicles 5:1, the priests couldn't even stand to minister because God's glory was so wonderful and God had basically displayed Himself. Sometimes during singing, I stop and listen and I can hear resonance of voices of the congregation from singing, and I feel His pleasure and glory. When I go before God's altar, and am with Him praying and allowing Him to communicate with me, I am His princess. (2 Chronicles 22:12) If I walk and talk with Him and worship only Him all for Him and not for me, then His temple will be built within me. (2 Chronicles 24:13) And if I allow idols to take over the worship of God, if I allow myself to be more concerned with what I am getting out of service and presentation of God rather than seeing and being with God Himself, my temple will eventually be destroyed. (2 Chronicles 33:2; 2 Chronicles 36:9) And it will take a renewal of my faith, a return to find and rebuild and restructure my life to fit God's desires and will for me. (Ezra 5:18,15; Ezra 7:20,23; Nehemiah 6:10) In the days of the nation of Israel after the Babylonian invasion, the temple was destroyed, but that was the physical temple. God could never be destroyed. And the proof of that was the constant rebuilding of the temple. This is true with me. While I may destroy my life with my idols, while I may allow things to take my focus from God, while my worship may turn to that which entertains me rather than that which uplifts and nurtures my spirit and teaches me to commune with God, which I begin to see that I have done wrong, God will take me and remold and rebuild within me a heart after His heart. It brings tears to my eyes to remember not the times before I put on Christ in baptism but those times after that I have chosen to stray and follow my intentions rather than God's. It brings tears to my eyes because God has never ceased to take me back and to continue to do so. (Psalm 42:4; Psalm 52:8). I know brethren that are so hurt that they feel that God could never take them back. This is not true. God has an altar that, when we sacrifice that which would take me away from Him so that we can be with Him,, He shines His Glory upon all of us. And the angels rejoice. It is in those times that I most appreciate my brethren, when we stand before His altar, and worship the King, sacrificing our selfish desires and all our lusts so that we can be purified by His Spirit. (Psalm 55:14; Ecclesiastes 5:1; Isaiah 2:3)

Before the Altar part 7

2010-12-27T02:43:00.000-08:00

Above all the altar is a place for benedictions in worship. It is the place that God designated for the Levites and that tribe of Israel. (Deuteronomy 10:8; Deuteronomy 21:5) It is where God segregates out those He chooses for whatever job He chooses, such as in Numbers 6:23-26 when Aaron was chosen to bring the message to the children of Israel and to bring them the blessings from the Lord. And it was with His blessing that He came in glory to His people and He dwelt among them as Aaron raised his hands making the sacrifice to God. And God was pleased. (Leviticus 9:22,23) And in His blessings, He gives them land and tells them to possess it. A rich land, splendid. Only if they possess it. So while God's blessings are unconditional it nonetheless does involve obedience to God to reap full benefits from His blessings. Much as if we don't have faith and don't act on that faith, we cannot hope to reap full benefits from God's blessings.

God doesn't really need an altar to bring benedictions to His people. For instance, He blesses His creation in Genesis 1:22 and tells them to fill the earth, blessing them in this. And He blesses man, whom He created in His own image and gives them His blessing to be fruitful and multiply and have dominion over ever creature in the earth. (Genesis 1:28) And then this blessing is extended when He destroyed creation in Noah's time, that Noah would be fruitful, multiple and all creation would then be fearful of him and his people. (Genesis 9:12) And then there is one of the first altars, that of Melchezidek, when He blesses Abraham (through Melchezidek) and also the most High God (again through Melchezidek). (Genesis 14:19,20)

Before the Altar (part VI)

2010-12-05T05:42:00.000-08:00

Above all the altar is a place for benedictions in worship. It is the place that God designated for the Levites and that tribe of Isreal. (Deuteronomy 10:8, Deuteronomy 21:5) It is where God segregates out those He chooses for whatever job He chooses, such as Numbers 6:23-26 when Aaron was chosen to bring the message to the children of Isreal and to bring them the blessings from the LORD. And it was with His blessing that He came in glory to His people and He dwelt among them as Aaron raised his hands making the sacrifice to God. And God was pleased. (Leviticus 9:22,23) And in His blessings, He gives them land and tells them to possess it. A rich land, splendid. Only if they possess it. So while God's blessings are unconditional it nonetheless does involve obedience to reap the full benefits from God's blessings. Much as when we do not act out on our faith we may not reap the full benefits that God wants us to have.

Before the Altar part 5

2010-11-27T12:37:00.000-08:00

Do I treat the altar where I worship as though a sanctuary? Is it His sanctuary? Am I doing His will in His sanctuary, or am I doing something to elevate me, although at the time it may not seem so. Do I treat it as precious? (Leviticus 19:30) Do I treat Him as though His way is what I wish to follow and that He truly is a great God? (Psalms 77:13) How do I think of His house? (Psalms 84:4) Because if I think of the church as just church and put God as an afterthought, without considering if He is there or praying to Him about His service, then church is just wood and nails with a roof on top, support beam,s on top of walls sitting on a slab or a raised level floor. Nothing holy, nothing happy. It becomes a tool to make me feel good about completing a check list, that I do this or go there or sing here or associate with this group or that group instead of jogging or going to the ball games like some do on Sunday mornings. Unless my sole purpose exists for praying and honoring Him (Isaiah 56:7) and sharing Him with everyone (Hebrews 10:25), church means nothing. Unless I am lifting others up and demonstrating His life and love to everyone I come in contact with, and unless the whole meaning behind going before is altar is so that I can be like Him and that He can teach me how to walk and talk in His light then all I do is meaningless. I am no longer the living sacrifice that Paul tells me to be in Romans 12:1. I am merely going through the motions of what it means to be a Christian. I am not a sacrifice to Him, but a shadow of His created, a display of His handiwork like a block of wood. I do things not Christ's way but my way. If I do not understand that regardless of what I do, if my heart is not to serve Him rather than what I get out of service, then I am totally selfish. I need Job's attitude in Job 10:2,9,15, to tell God not to condemn me but to see me as I am and show me His mercy. Oh, how I long for His steady hand that Job longed for in Job 13:21. How I long to have a relationship with Him that is pure, yet one in which I can kneel at His feet and He lifts me up as His daughter! How I pray for that! How I pray to rely on Him and not care about what my friends and family think. (Job 16:20) It doesn't matter to me what my enemies think, or really what people I don't know think of me. What matters are my friends and family and their opinions. And it is that which I must fight to realize that God is the only one I should fear, the only one I should care about whether I hurt or not, realizing that if I do harm to my fellow man I am indeed hurting God. God will same me from those that hurt me. (Psalms 3:1,2,7) and He will hear my call. (Psalms 4:1) He knows when I am suffering, either from illness or physical hurt, or from pain caused by others or my own selfishness. He will give me wisdom. (Psalms 5:8, Psalms 7:1,2,6,7) He considers me always when I come before the altar with my requests, when I am on my knees desiring His infinite compassion (Psalms 9:13,14) and when I am angry at what appears to be His slowness of response. (Psalms 10:1,12,15). He is listening, and considering His response in a timely fashion and He knows when I come to the altar with a pure heart that trusts and obeys Him (Psalms 16:1, Psalms 17:1, 2, 6-9,13,14). He knows my pleas and what kind of heart they are coming from.

Before the Altar part 4

2010-11-21T01:27:00.000-08:00

Adam is my ultimate progenitor, for it is through him I see all the ways I might escape if I use my head. But instead, I lay blame on someone else,as Adam did Eve and then ultimately I lay blame on God. (Genesis 2 and 3) The war ensues between myself and God, though I don't want to admit it, and until I acknowledge this war as foolishness on my part I will never see my sin. I will never understand that sin is never and will never be hid from Him, no matter how small. I must acknowledge this uncleanness before I can heal. (Isaiah 6:5; Isaiah 59:12) Until I realize that I have not changed from my progenitor in that he sinned and that my immediate ancestors were in the same state as I am, because they were and are self-absorbed as I am. I forget that God is the one in control and I cannot tell Him what to do and when to do. I don't understand why He does what He does or why He wants certain things of me. When I humble myself before God and come to the altar, meaning offering myself as the living sacrifice Paul spoke of in Romans 12:1, then and only then am I ready for Him and His forgiveness. (Psalms 119:176; Psalms 130:3) When I am honest with Him (Jeremiah 3:13,25) only then can He mold my heart like a potter with clay. But if I am not honest with Him and I do not come to Him out of the depths of a humble heart, the devestation to my well-being and well-seeking is torrential. (Jeremiah 14:7,20; Lamentations 1:18; Lamentations 3:42) I cannot hope to gain His hope with sin. It will not happen and when I bring that to worship, when I bring my will, my worship is in vain and He cannot and will not bless me. That includes what I believe He will accept as improvements in worship, rather than actually doing His will and bringing myself to the altar as and only me. What I can do does not matter to God. How I do what I do does not matter to God. Who I am internally, that is the key to being pure, and I truly want to praise Him. But is that really what He wants? Doesn't He want my abilities or does He just want me? When Jesus sat at the Last Supper with His apostles it was an intimate meal between friends and some strong conversation between friends. Is that not what God wants, time to be with all of us collectively? Praising Him, yes, but being united with Him in the purpose of corporate communication. What a wonderful blissful day it will be when all of the saints will be singing their hearts out, to and with the Almighty in one accord.

2010-11-08T10:20:00.000-08:00

This is where confession comes in. When I have God's Spirit and it is working or rather I am allowing it to work within me, my heart is soft as molten lead and God can refine me. Then I have real power and really move mountains. When I deny the Spirit, my heart hearkens and I cannot move a speck of dirt. But when I am accepting of my guilt and I confess it before God (Nehemiah 1:6,7) then I go before the throne, God's Spirit descends upon me even further (Leviticus 5:5) and it extends to an acknowledment that I and my ancestors are unclean and need Him. (Leviticus 6:10) I am consumed with repentance that I so desperately need. (Psalms 31:10) I also come to understand the consequences (Numbers 5:5-7) and my delivery from them, the sin that I hid, and future sinful behaviour. (Judges 10:1-5, I Samuel 12:10) God gives me ample opportunity to repent. He wants my whole heart. (I Kings 8:47) and a humble heart. (Ezra 9:6; Nehemiah 9:2, 33-35; Job 7:20; Job 40:4,5) He knows the depression I go through when I keep inside that I have sinned. (Psalms 28:13). Psalms 31 and 32 show me how much confession is a relief to me and binds me to God because I come to realize who I am and what the power of God is. By confessiong in front of His throne, I am dealng with and remembering that I dealt with the fact that 1) He made me, as He did the rest of the universe, 2) I am not the one in control of nature but He is. I am so blemished I cannot count the times I should have had the stripes that Jesus took for my sins. And then I realize the ultimate nature of sin, the separation from God and my allowing the crack in my relationship with Him. (Psalm 51:3,4)

Before the Altar part IV

2010-11-02T07:49:00.000-07:00

Where am I when I accept Christ as my Lord and Savior? What kind of faith do I have? Enough to believe as the centurion did in John 4:50, 51, that my son is already risen from the dead, or that Tabitha is actually sitting up and staring at Peter (Acts 9:40)? What kind of faith do I truly have? Do I have so much faith that I just know whatever physical ailments may try to take me, God is still greater? He is listening to me and only me. And that happens even when I cry out for Him to save me, "Save me, Lord, You are my only Hope!" If I do that then I am finlly and foremost His that very minute. No guarantees for the futher and don't even say that I couldn't have really accepted Christ to begin with if I, years later, abandoned Him. No one knows my heart, no one can read my mind, nor can I read anyone else. How can anyone judge the quality of my worship, except God, which He does through His Word. He uses that as His standard rahter than using man's standards, as should I, for no man is my God, except for the Almighty Himself.

Before the altar Part III

2010-10-17T04:10:00.000-07:00

God in His infinite wisdom had another purpose. In being able to be in the temple, the worship was purer, simpler, with few accoutrements to distract men (because remember women were not to enter the temple proper but had their own court) This got people's minds focused on God. Similarly this calls us all to consider our bodies and minds temples of the LORD. What clutters my mind? When I look at the worship service, what is it that distracts me? And what am I going to do about it? The quietness and solitude of worship service is equated in Isaiah 30:29 as, "Ye shall have a song, as in the night when holy solemnity is kept and gladness of the heart as when on goeth with a pipe to come into the mountain of the LORD to the mighty One of Isreal." Do I hold His service in that same solemnity? Am I glad to be in His presence? Is it like a breath of fresh air to me? Worship was so much of the apostles' lives, every single day, that it was second nature to them. And when it came time for them to suffer in prison, it was not a problem to sing praises to God (Acts 16:25). Just as with Jesus, because worship was so much a part of His life, such that pryaing constantly to Him in any circumstance was not a problem (Luke 6:12), and He could sleep as the boat filled with apostles was slipping through a storm into certain doom. (Matthew 8:23-27) Am I on my knees before God? Is my face bowed to the ground, as Abrahma and Moses did so often in the Father's presence? Do I recognize Jesus and in doing so, recognize His Lordship?

Before the Altar part 2

2010-10-09T05:39:00.000-07:00

One could then say that our fellowship is the most important element in our worship. But is this so? Is fellowship the only thing that is important? Should I fellowship for fellowship's sake? If I do that, I will be disappointed, most certainly and I could endanger my soul. (Galatians 6:1-2) I could do what Sir Thomas More warned against A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS, and consider if I fellowship now for fellowship's sake would I be willing to go to hell when that similar fellowship involves something shady, just for the sake of fellowship? I must remember that Christ is the root of my fellowship. That He is the one who will direct my paths. (Proverbs 3:5) and brings others into my life so that I will not be alone. The sole purpose for the church is to learn what our relationship with God. What OUR relationship with God is, collectively, to fellowship, surely, but commemorate why we are here to begin with. The church as it is evolves in several media, first at the temple. Then the Christian got away from the temple and worshipped in houses (Acts 20:7, Romans 16:5, 1 Corinthians 16:19, Colossians 4:15, Philamon 1:2) because homes were safe havens, and smaller groups fit in more locations. The work of Christ could be spread even further.

THE ALTAR OF GOD

2010-09-26T06:01:00.000-07:00

What is important about the place of the altar? Does it commemorate that spot that God first spoke to a man (Genesis 12:7) and lauded him for his acceptance of God's power and Kingship? Or is it the place that God chose to speak to my spiritual forefathers and then to me? God is a most wonderful God that is alone worthy of worship and recognition. I am only an iota although by bringing me into relationship with Himself He has made me an important part of His life. He says, "No fear, child, no fear" and He protects me. The altar and the church become a place for me to commemorate Him by my fellowship with others ("do this in memory of me" - Luke 22:19), all He has done for me, all He has blessed me with, particularly the relationships, the kinship with others who have put Christ on and been called God's children. The church is not a museum to look at items and to say, "I wonder what happened back in..." It is not a place in mothballs, but a place to be taken out of mothballs, a living memorial in which I do things because of Jesus and Who He was and is and hence because of God and Who He is. I putt aside all the false gods, all the walls, anything that might distract me from God and come to Him in my purest,most solitary state. I acknowledge that nothing can keep me from Him and that He reigns supreme. (Job 1:5) I have confessed Him as LORD and Lord (Matthew 16:19) He is King and He is also the one that rules over all the universe. I confess before Him my needs more and more. I confess my needs to be with others. (Acts 16:34) For it is not good for a person to be alone. (Genesis 2:!8). I with my brethren are of one accord, one spirit, one faith, one baptism, one life, as a chorus makes one sound, as a chorus of dancers makes a single movement, all parts working together. (Ephesians 4:4). This is why it is important to commemorate Him, so that I don't forget that He has made many different others but they are nonetheless similar to me in goal and they arrive at similar conclusions about God. When my life, and other people's lives, are pure and unadulterated, when my heart connects to others, and we beat together, different yet similar, I have united myself with others even though I have differences of opinions and thoughts, etc. I am united to others in my differences, in education, in opinion, in health, in strength, and in weakness. It is the perfection of the musical term, "harmony". And there is peace in God as we delve in prayerful relationship with Him. (Acts 12:12) Because we are the same in Him.

Thank God for God

2010-09-06T09:37:00.000-07:00

Some leaders are godly men and leaders who want to serve their God and their people. In Joshua 4:1-11, for example, Joshua does as God commands and told the people to set up the 12 stones to ford the river. Why? As a memorial to what God did for His people and to commemorae what He put in place many, many years prior to even the 10 commandments that lead to those same commandments. It was God directing the pathways of his people by setting the 12 tribes, it was God that sent Joseph into Egypt, it was God to direct the movement and paths of the ark of the covenant which held the covenant between God and His people. Such men allowed God in their lives to really carry forth His plan for His people, by following God's direction to make certain clothing or parts of clothing in remembrance of the sacredness of His people, as in Numbers 15:38-39, and also the leading His people out of Egypt in Exodus 13:-11-16.

I thank God for teachers that demonstrate Jesus in their lives and work as God appointed them to work, as it says in Ephesians 4:11 and 1 Corinthians 12:28 and 29. Those teachers are not afraid of the truth, and they are willing to teach as Jesus did, in the temple in Luke 19:47. And they are willing to expound the truth of Jesus, and proclaim His origin and authority, much as Jesus did in Luke 24:27. I thank God for Jesus for explaining without a doubt His authority and His wisdom and those preachers that acknowledge this and feed me with His Word accordingly.

Give God the Thanks part 12

2010-08-09T13:45:00.000-07:00

But if I remain thankfully and happily in His rest, truly His, he will give me a place to live. (Isaiah 14:2-6). I cannot in this scheme of things deny Him or His power or His ability to protect me. (Isaiah 33:5-24). I cannot do anything apart from Him. I must acknowledge Him. I must defend Him as His soldier. And the church, I must defend them too for they are my family. (Isaiah 35:1-10)

God gives us leaders. He puts people in our lives that are leaders both secular and spiritual. Whether those are godly leaders depends on the individual heart and soul of that particular leader. Those leaders may or may not lead us in a godly manner. Why then does God permit that for His people? Realize not all people ruled by leaders are God's people. And God's peopelare under the authority of Christ. Although in Romans 13:1-7 we are also to be mindful of leaders that are in secular office, that doesn't mean that those leaders are particularly godly. We follow them because they were put there by God. And our prayer is that they will turn toward God and acknowledge Him in what they do.

Thank God for God part 11

2010-07-17T13:28:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful chapter describing who is in control, and why we should respect and be reverent to Him. Because there are rules in this universe not to appease God, but because that is what is most healthy for us to follow. Why doesn't He want single people to engage in premarital sex of any kind? Physically because promiscuity leads to STDs and pregnancies with which unwed parents are quite unprepared to deal. Understand what I mean by premarital, because that differs from generation to generation in human terms. In God terms premarital means sex without commitment. Have two people decided to spend the rest of their lives together? That's all it took for Isaac and Rebekkah. There was no formal bride-in-white gown, groom-in-tux marriage. But he announced that Rebekkah was his, there was an exchange of a dowry and the deed was done. They were together forever. Premarital means to have sex without commitment, to do it wantonly, lustfully, with anyone. That does not please God. That includes phone sex, cyber sex, oral sex, etc. If there is no sense of commitment it is premarital. Or extramarital. Hebrews Chapter 4 is such a wonderful book because it gives a reason that I must treat God and what He wants with respect. Number one I cannot hide from Him. I may cover myself with fig leaves but I cannot hide from Him. He knows me. He knows my innermost thoughts. He knows when I am trying to be good. He knows when I am wanting to sin. he knows when I stray and when I am on the road with Him. Number two, I am from a disobedient crowd. But I am told that I should work out my own salvation, and labor to stay in His rest and put all things in His hands, not trying to take control, because after all I have no control, then He will keep me. That means He will protect me. From storms, from rain? Maybe...but I believe it is from Satan that He will protect me. What was Adam and Eve's big sin? Pride, yes, but it was thinking that they were God and they wanted complete control of their lives. That happens so often with me,that I am surprised God still wants me around. But He does and He speaks the desire through the leadership and fellowship of the church. If I walk in His light, accepting His rest and peace and live in that rest and peace because quite frankly once I accept Him I am already home, if I stay true to Him and listen to His voice like that of the Good Shepherd (John 10:11) calling upon His name (Revelation 3:12; Revelation 1:3-10) God's rest is mine. But, and I have always found this interesting, that takes work. That takes discipline. It takes continually renewing one's mind (Romans 12:2). It takes saying "no". For I am not static but a dynamic creature, and because the universe is heading toward entropy and the loss of energy I must use the talents, the tools and the mind that God gave me to produce enthalpy and gain of energy to remain in His rest. It takes as much energy to stay perfectly still as it does to move around, just redirected. God promises protection, He promises a life in heaven, He promises food and shelter and companionship and that He will always love me...He also promises me sorrows on earth...so that it isn't all rosy in Him and He knows that. Any preacher that says differently is not reading His Scripture carefully. That's why this thing works and that is why it is hard to follow...

2010-07-10T13:58:00.000-07:00

Thanks be to God for things that really matter. To me what really matters is my home. Where is my real home? Why should I worry when there are dangers? In 2002 the US was imminently in danger of a war with Iraq. So is my home in danger? Maybe my earthly home. Not my real home. God gives me a home in heaven, not a mystical kingdom where there are Dances of Sugar Plum Fairies and from which I must wake up to once again face troubles on earth. No, God is wonderful in that He has made a place for me in heaven. My heritage and my home are here in Jerusalem. (Galatians 4:26). But the Jerusalem that my heritage and home are set is spiritual, it is actual but it is not here on earth, and God loves me enough to provide for me designs it. Because I am in His church, I alsoe have a counterpart home in the spiritual Jerusalem. Hebrews 4 talks about both the spiritual rest I must enter into as a Christian and at the same time how I must walk in order to be a citizen. "Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, "As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For He spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise. And God did rest the seventh day from all His works. And in this place again. If they shall enter in my rest. Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief. Again, He limiteth a certain day, saying in David,'Today if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts. For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that has entered into His rest, he has also ceased from his own works, as God did from His. Let us labour to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. For the word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow and is a discerner of thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:1-6)

Thank God for God part 9

2010-07-03T06:47:00.000-07:00

In my inner most beings, He hears me. (Psalm 130:1-8). When I am in trouble, He knows it and listens to me while I plead to Him. (Psalm 140:1-13). Even though He hears me and provides all things, I still ask Him. Is this always necessary? Not always. But sometimes it helps keep Him in my mind in the loop although in reality He is always in the loop. I don't know why there are times God wants to hear it from me and there are times He has no problem rushing to my aid. Someday I hope to figure it out, or at least some day I hope to ask Him,, except that I am reminded of the blessing that He gives me without me asking, such as my friendships and my cats. Neither one did I actively seek, but in the Church, God has seen to it that I have many friends and at home God has seen that two cats have come my way to give me enjoyment. Nevertheless, sometimes things don't come my way until I ask. Why? Is it because God wants to see just how important these things are to me? Or is it because by hearing myself ask for things stirs up just how important those things are to me? In any case, God distributes as He sees fit, and saves me from those who would want me hurt in His timing. I can say, "Help me!" as often as I want to. If it is according to God's purpose that I am in chains a little while there shall I be. He doesn't like to see me suffer and so has supplied me with hymns and sweet memories of friendships with brethren. And in the meantime I am dragged and drawn and quartered, either physically, emotionally or mentally or all three. And still I cry out (Psalm 143:1-2). And still He gives me peace, like He did Peter in Acts, when he was in chains and was able to sleep.

Thanks be to God part 9

2010-06-27T04:37:00.000-07:00

And so are the words, "Deliver us" over and over. David used them, Daniel, Nehemiah, Moses, even Jesus and now I use them. Deliver me, deliver us, save us from our enemies, save us from those who would want us harmed. Save me God because there are those who don't care about You and they mock me and give me gall to drink. (Sound familiar?) (Psalm 59:6-17; Psalm 69:1-30). And then Jesus in Matthew spoke those wonderful words, "Blessed are those who are persecuted for my sake, for their reward is in heaven." Heaven is the only place that matters. Heaven is where God is, heaven is my one true home. Anything down here will turn to rubble, not heaven. It was the reason for writing "How Firm a Foundation", because in heaven there is an immovable foundation. So no matter if I am sinking in the mire, as in Psalm 69, God still knows what the matter is and that it's going to be OK, I will be alright. Thanks be to God for being such a wonderful protector and shield. And for giving me this day and the next and however many He chooses to give me for His sake.

Thanks be to God part 8

2010-06-20T02:48:00.000-07:00

As David said, "Stablish thy word unto thy servant, who is devoted to thy fear. So shall I have wherewith to answer Him that reproacheth me: for I trust in thy word. And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth; for I have hope in thy judgments. Remember the word unto thy servant upon which thought hast caused me to hope. Thy hands have made me and fashioned me. Give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments. I am thine, sav me, for I have sought thy precepts; uphold me according to thy word, unto thy mercy and teach me thy statutes. I cried with my whole heart, hear me, O LORD; I will keep thy statutes. I cried unto Thee, save me." (Psalm 119:38, 42,43,49,73,94,116,124,145,146,153,173-176) When Jesus prays for God to give us our daily bread in the Our Father He is praying not just to be fed although that is fundamental to be sure, but He s asking as well for wisdom. God's wisdom. And this God freely gives. He gives me wisdom because of His great mercy and love for me. He could let me fend for myself, but He knows that I would sink rapidly and so thourgh His great powers He gives me His wisdom and His knowledge of His will. And by using these I can never stray far, not without being able to run back to Him. In another psalm, Psalm 143:11,12, "Quicken me, O LORD, for Thy Name's sake, for thy righteousness' sake, bring my soul out of trouble, and of thy mercy, cut off mine enemies, and destroy all them that affect my soul, for I am Thy servant."

Thank God for God part 6

2010-06-13T01:51:00.000-07:00

But I not only need bread. I need physical and spiritual strength (Psalm 79:10-12) coming from Him. I need others to see Him working in my life, so that what I say about Him bears witness in my walk. People are more likely to look for actions rather than for words. For my enemies (Psalm 83:1,2,18) as well as my friends, I need to be a witness of Him in my life. All of my life. I nmeed to demonstrate Him privately and publicly. And I need to show my love for Him always. When it seems He has gone, oh, how my enemies reproach Him and me for His sake. (Psalm 106:67) But this is life, that all is for Him and only Him. He gives me my bread that His name be glorified and His life magnified through the instrument that He has created within me. (Psalm 115:1,2)

Thanks Be to God (part 5)

2010-05-29T06:54:00.000-07:00

Here's a scary thought. How often in the simplest things do I forget Him (God)? Joshua 9:14, for instance, describes the desire of the LORD to remember Him in the eating of a meal and the consequences of forgetting Him in that. If I need further example, what of Jesus giving thanks before feeding the multitude with the loaves and fishes. (Matthew 14:19, Matthew 15:36, Mark 6:41, Luke 9:16) and the Last Supper He had with His apostles. (Matthew 26:26,27; Mark 8:6,7; Luke 22:29; John 6:11,27; I Corinthians 11:24). Paul in Acts 27:35 gave thanks for the meal. Paul in Romans 14:6 likened praying and thanking God for a meal to thanking God for all things. While Romans 14 is specifically about that fact that not all people are spiritually equal, even though God looks at us that way, whether I am fasting or eating or whether I think of one day as more important than another or not, if in my heart I am thanking God for many blessings He grants me and not lording it over people (I Timothy 4:3-5), putting restrictions on them that don't exist according to God, then God will bless me in all things. Christ prayed. Why should I not pray the same prayer of thanksgiving for what God blesses me with? Why should I not take to heart that He give me these things not because I deserve them, but because He love me? It really makes the blessing more special. Then I am not just living on bread of this earth. And every meal is like the Lord's Supper, for it is sanctified in Him.

Thank God for God part4

2010-05-08T05:24:00.000-07:00

Psalms 109:21-27 describes me when I am crying out for sustenance. Feed me, O my Lord, because I cannot feed myself. Give me physical sustenance, give my spiritual life a boost as well. Give me the peace that Peter had to sleep in prison knowing he was going to be killed. And then I pray for everyone else as I ask that God's peace lay on them, too. (Acts 12:5-17) God can get me out of my prison in this world, as He can liberate anyone from their prison, or at least allow us contentment in those prisons wherever I or my brethren may be. Only if I believe and walk in His will. Only if I accept His will as being final. So when I ask Him to feed me, and pray for His peace to engulf me, I am more or less saying I believe or rather I'd better mean I believe that what He says is true.

2010-05-02T11:11:00.000-07:00

In that light, let's consider "The Our Father". That prayer known as the "Lord's Prayer". What a marvelous, worshipful prayer remembering and reminding me of Who God is and His purpose for my recognition of Him. Like Exodus 33:12,16, the "Our Father" is a prayer to God to go with me and my people, to shed His grace upon us, to lead us to Canaan and not leave me ever. What a prayer of persistence the Lord's Prayer is, like the widow in Luke 18:1-7 who kept coming back again and again to plead her case, proving her wish was more important than the possible impending judgment against her. She wanted justice above all things. Or in Luke 11:5-8, when the friend gives another friend whatever he needs. No mater what he asks or how much it costs. The "Our Father" acknowledges He can do this as well. No matter what or how much the cost. He can make wet rocks burn (I Kings 18:22-35). He can solve whatever little twitches and glitches of faith I may be living in. He can take the impossible and make it possible. But it only comes from Him. I am just an instrument, a channel, not a true creator, although He can use those talents He has endowed me with to demonstrate His creative ability and make me look talented and creative and original. And as His friend and daughter, God delivers me from evil in so many ways. And evil can come in so many forms. Either from enemies (2 Kings 19:15-20) or from my own family whether or not spiritual. (Genesis 32:9-72) And through all of this, I must acknowledge that it is only He that can deliver me from evil, redeeming me. God delivers me, makes me whole in His own time, allowing me to cry out when I so desperately want deliverance. When I like Moses pray in the wilderness for His forgiveness He so richly gives me and asks one thing: Follow Him. But I am rebellious. I am part of a rebellious people. The reason the sentence, "Forgive us this day our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us" is in the "Our Father" is so that I know the strength of what I am asking of the Heavenly Father. If I am going to ask for forgiveness for my transgressions, I must be willing to grant others my forgiveness, over and over again, no matter how many time whoever transgresses against me. It is the ultimate wearing of Christ.

Thank God for God, part 2

2010-04-23T12:45:00.000-07:00

It may seem to me sometimes that those that lead me in church do things that I don't understand and pray for things that I really wouldn't. As I read David, I see things there that I cannot reconcile with what my Savior taught. David prayed for strength against his enemies (Psalms 5:10; Psalms 6:10; Psalms 9:20) and to destroy those of evilness, so that purity could prevail amongst those he would lead. (Psalms 10:2; Psalms 25:3; Psalms 31:17,18) When I first read this, the question popped into my mind, "What about turning the other cheek?" He also prayed his enemies be dealt with justly (Psalms 28:4; Psalms 40:14,15; Psalms 54:5; Psalms 58:7) There are prayers that his enemies be smite down, that God thwart and confound his enemies, that those who were haughty and proud be leveled and ashamed of themselves. And as I read this more and more, the question continued to pop into my head that if David as a leader is beloved of God, then what of Christ, who is my spiritual leader and who I also know is beloved of God? Does that make what Christ said about turning the other cheek (Matthew 5) any less relevant than what David said about praying for the destruction of his enemies? I read Psalms again and this time came to another conclusion, that Christ's teaching is no different than what David prayed.David was praying to God to maintain the purity of his people, to excise that which was evil. In the same breath that Jesus said to pray for our enemies did he not specify that I must hate my father, mother, etc and love God? I believe that I am expected to treat my enemy thus. Those that do me wrong, while I love them I must hate what they are doing if what they are doing displeases God. I must pray like David prayed in Psalms 83 that what they do be like stubble in the wind, a fire that consumes them, and pray that evil and double-minded ones become confounded. I must pray that they do not like the situation they are in, the lifestyle they lead of intrigue and treachery become desolate and dead-end, so that they may see God's life is the only life of happiness. (Psalms 69:23-38) I must be in mourning over them, because my life is affected by those that would hurt me and only God can help me. (Job 3:1-11). I must above all things love God, obey God, and because He loves all, even my enemies. I must as Christ says love them too. But I must hate what control and power satan has over them. Therefore, I must pray that the evilness be removed from them and that purity to me and my people be returned and respected. So when my leaders pray for the defeat of enemies, it ins not for the personal defeat but the defeat of that which controls them, that which guides them to their paths of destruction. This is clearly prayed for in Psalms 140:9, 10. Let the mischief of their own lips cover them, he asks God. The inference is that let his people be pure in thought and deed and those that would cause trouble be destroyed. Destruction of that which causes His people pain is not foreign at all. Jeremiah prayed this prayer in chapter 11 verse 20 and chapter 12 verse3 so that God would destroy that which treats His people unrighteous. Jeremiah repeatedly asks for the LORD to remember him (Jeremiah 15:15), to avenge him (Jeremiah 17:18), to save His children from utter destruction at evil's hands. (Jeremiah 18:21-23) Most scary of all, but most necessary to maintain purity in spirit is the prayer of the leadership of the congregation to pray for those who are spiritually absent, that God may work with them to bring them back. Jeremiah takes this a step further. He asks that the evilness be brought and exposed in front of His people (Lamentations 1:22) so that they may repent. And then to punish them according to what they have done. Paul in Galatians 1:8,9 pleads this case as well. He pledges that if he or any angel brings a gospel other than the one Christ taught then they are to be condemned. Those are powerful words and not what I expect from followers of the Lamb. But even the Lamb was angry at the misuse of God's House for private financial gains. (Matthew 21:21; Mark 11:15) That is not what worship is all about, and it is the godly leaders that keep me on track so that I don't desecrate the temple, either external to me that is the corporate body of Christ or the internal temple that God has built in me since my rebirth through Christ.It is by realizing that it is God who deals with my enemies and not me that I can truly respect what my leaders do, so that I can trust them. It is the attitude that Paul had in Acts 20:36 after speaking to the elders and wishing them well before continuing on his missionary trip. He prayed with them all, going before the throne of God in humility and being Christ-like. (Philippians 2:1) Again we see this attitude of humility in Acts 21:5 when after much has been accomplished during the day all gathered around and prayed. And again in Acts 24:25. God must be in everything, must be in all things for us to be successful. Nothing, not our worship, not our taking of the Lord's Supper, or listening to sermons, or in prayer, nothing is worth anything without the presence of God.No step we take will be More important than our allowing God to make it for us.

Thanks be to God!!!!

2010-04-17T06:26:00.000-07:00

America was built on a simple principle, "In God We Trust". That motto is on the money I use. It was in the hearts of those gentlemen now referred to as the founding fathers. And while those men were property and slave owners, in reality they were no different than me. Temptations loomed in front of them as much as they loom in front of ne, and they gave in just as I do. The resepct for the founding fathers lies not in their humanness, but in their love of God, enough to acknowledge His presence on money and in the legal document of the day as well as on the buildings erected for courts and legislation. This country was intentioned never to deny the presence of God, and to maintain the respect the founding fathers had for the Heavenly Father. Many early places in scripture have this same respect for God. The leaders, because of their respect for God were entitled to respect themselves by praying for them. (Deuteronomy 11:29,30; Deuteronomy 27:11,13; Deuteronomy 33:11) When articles of God were present, the eladers respected those items, and so did the people they were leading. (Joshua 8:33,34) And when the leaders of Israel who followed God with all their heart praye for protection, they were not doing this to protect just themselves but also their peopel. (Judges 16:28; II Samuel 16:10-12) Godly leaders often prayed for strength, both for themselves and those they were leading. (Nehemiah 4:4-5) Those who listened to the wise counsel of their leaders were counted as righteous. (Job 27:7) I thank God for wise and protective leaders.

Dream a little Dream part8

2010-04-10T10:40:00.000-07:00

As Jews and later Christians, God's people were to be so totally dependant and submissive to God. This is David's sentiment in Psalms 45:2-16. There is beauty in obeying His laws and seeking His will and none of His word or obedience to His word was meant for outer attractiveness but fot he inner soul to be molded to God. We must be prepared and know where we are going and to be ready for anything, being alert and ready to shine as one of His children. (Matthew 25:1-4)

2010-04-03T06:05:00.000-07:00

What happens when the dream turns sour? What happens when I take it upon myself to worship God according to my dream and not His dream? What happens when I don't follow the law as dictated in Leviticus 16:13, Leviticus 19:30 and Leviticus 21:12? These are specific situations for consecrating and anointing God's Holy Tabernacle, the pace where the presence of God is most preeminent. When I don't make His alter and tabernacle holy, or treat it as such, or I don't call for it's anointing, or if somehow I have defiled it by wanton error and sin (Leviticus 4:13,15) what will happen to my dream? There have been times when I have chosen to divide rather than to make peace, to add my desires onto what God truly says, rather than to be loving and accepting as God and His precious son are. (1 Corinthians 11:18; 1 Corinthians 15:9; Galatians 1:13). What happens to God's dream? God is above all things, whether good or evil. God is wonderful and our praises should continuously and constantly be centered upon Him and only for Him. (Psalms 89:7; Psalms 111:1) God's dream will not shatter, there are always more who will come to His weeding banquet and that His son will invite. My participation if I chose as in Ezekiel 23:39 to profane the worship with innocent blood and coldness will be interrupted, perhaps permanently as God will destroy at least that portion this is defiling Him. (I Corinthians 3:17). He will take me down for destroying the image of His church. By the same token, when I acknowledge His true dream, the dream of His people under Christ, as in Matthew 16:18, then He shall acknowledge that I am part of Him and that His Son is the head of the church. (Ephesians 1:22,23). My dream will become to rejoice with the LORD in that which will come regardless of suffering because I know the prize that comes at the last days. (Collosians 1:24)

Dream a little dream part 7

2010-03-27T12:49:00.000-07:00

God's dream for me is not fantasy. It is a very real goal and has existed since before Adam and Eve and before He formed the earth into what He wanted in order to support life. He wants me to come to Him. The grandeur of His desires and dreams for me is shown through His desires and dreams for Israel in 1 Chronicles 22:19m; 1 Chronicles 24:15; and 1 Chronicles 28:10. God warns His people, including me centuries later to heed what He says about keeping His temple undefiled. (2 Chronicles 20:8; 2 Chronicles 29:18-21; 2 Chronicles 32:8-19) I share His dream. I have a dream to be in His heavenly sanctuary, and that is why I Am in the representation of it on earth. I have a dream to build as He wants me to build a part and parcel of it and to sit and sing with Hm in it, to bring Him myself as an offering, just to serve Him. (Nehemiah 10:30) He tells me in John 1 I am His child. I want to be with Him in His sanctuary (Isaiah 16:12; Psalms 150) I want to walk in those high places where He lives. (Psalms 74:3,7; Psalms 77:13; and Psalms 78:19) I have a dream that all who believe in Him believe in Him totally and in His way. I have a dream there are no divisions in His church. I want to be a part of Zion, as described by David. I want to be in that spiritual home that is represented here on earth by the church. Therefore I want to make sure that the church has nothing that could be confused with what is in the world. I want to build it to be like His temple of worship with internal glue and bonds. (Psalms 65:29, Psalms 48:9; Psalms29:9) It is where God sits on His throne, as in Isaiah 6:1, and it is from where He delegates all those who will demonstrate His great power. (Malachi 3:1) Only His power, only His power, not man's power. It is not where we should come but where we do come to see Him in all His reverence, in all His Magnificent Presence. It is where we come to realize that our power is not really our power after all. It in fact only comes from Him. (Jeremiah 50:5) But also I want to realize that I am His temple. Within me is built that when I put Him on in obedience. Because of this, I need to acknowledge Him daily, in this, not just when I am in His presence because after all I am never not in His presence. In that regard, daily praising Him becomes a part and parcel of my relationship with Him. (Luke 24:53; Psalms 9:11; Psalms 48:11; Psalms 74:2) and realize I am in His holy city when I join with my brethren in church. And when we are together, His Zion is completed. His temple has all the stones He requires of it, and not one of those needs to be renamed with our name or some preacher we admire but with His and His Son's holy name.

Dream a little dream (part 5)

2010-03-19T14:05:00.000-07:00

How much do I believe God is who He says He is? Just how holy am I ready to believe He is? And how holy is He? What does separation mean? God told His people to be holy. (Exodus 25:8; Leviticus 19:30; Leviticus 21:12). And He expects that of me as well. God delegated a specific group to maintain the purity of the temple and to be the priests, the holy men of His people. (Numbers 3:28; Numbers 4:12; Numbers 7:9; Numbers 8:19; Numbers 10:21) God made this delegation of His people responsible for good leadership. And they were accountable for leading the people down the right paths. Now, because of Christ, I am part of that royal priesthood, as Peter says in 1 Peter 2:5. I and I alone am accountable for my choice of whether to be led by God or my own idols. If I am unclean, I cannot call myself part of His congregation, at least not without hypocrisy. (Numbers 19:20) I am to look after His physical house in the Church and His spiritual house in me. (I Chronicles 9:29)

2010-03-13T05:05:00.000-08:00

The House of the LORD is a sacred entity, a sovereign place where we gather together. All of us must be careful not to destroy that image of all the nations flowing to it because of that holiness. (Isaiah 2:2; Jeremiah 17:26). It is the difference, the holiness, the highness that makes God so attractive, not whether He is able to perform miracles and pull things out of His hat or that He can be portrayed as Bozo or a bafoon. Men like Jeremiah gave up much for Him. That appears foolish but nonetheless all will be saved if they follow God's teachings. Hezekiah in Isaiah 37.14 knew the seriousness and solemnity of worship to God and his attitude was that same way. He brought his concerns to God, to His altar. And there will not always be those that agree. Some have accepted the style of life that led to bringing an "anything goes" attitude with the church and those tend to proclaim their right of expression. (Jeremiah 20:1,2; Jeremiah 26:2, 7) and it soon becomes apparent that we cannot tell who is of God and who is not. (Jeremiah 28:1,5). The House of the LORD is always something to be cherished, and many times men make it into a den of theives with their greed and polity. The only way to really come back is a humble succession. (Jeremiah 41:5)

2010-03-06T12:10:00.000-08:00

I read in the Old Testamenta about David setting people over the House of the LORD (1 Chronicles 6:31, 1 Chronicles 23:14; 1 Chronicles 26:12) and how important the upkeep of the House of the LORD is. The House of the LORD represents physically the image of the Heavenly Realm that God sets before us, and if I am not careful, the image in the Temple or House of the LORD the message I give to other people may be confusing about God. Am I confused about my God? Are those I worship with also confused about the depth of God? Worship is a serious, reverent participation in which my brethren and I must purify ourselves spiritually, just as those approaching the Temple had to do physically. (2 Chronicles 33:15) Jesus even cautioned the Pharisees to clean the inside of the cups they bore, because while they looked shiny and fine, their insides were dirty and rotten and empty (Matthew 23:25). What I must guard against is that which would pollute the House of the LORD that is within me (1 Corinthians 3:16) and that which is physically on this earth will be taken care of by my God, who apportions me as I have faith and talent. (2Chronicles 33:15) What all and myself must guard against is, in trying to be all things to all people, not to forget the sanctification with which I am told by God to maintain in the statement, "Be ye holy as I am holy."

Dream A little Dream

2010-02-27T06:23:00.000-08:00

Is the LORD pleased with me? Do I please Him in what I do? Do the people I am associated with please Him? Look at 2 Samuel 12:22, and there is my answer. God wants me. He want me for His sake because He wants to make me part of His people. Not for what i can do, or have done, or will do. Not whether I cna preach, teach, or play an instrument or sing. But because of me. And He loves me.Knowing that should make me want to worship Him His way (2 Samuel 15:31) and make me more likely to come to Him,c alling upon Him so that others may come to believe Him as well. (I King 19:16,19) I should know that because He loves me, He will do all He can at His most perfect time so that I am protected and kept sheltered. (1Chronicles 5:20). Know that is pleases God to call me one of His, I am grateful that He is so powerfula and that He has chosen me, and I acknowledge His power and supremacy, because in Him nothing else will prevail. (2 Chronicles 4:11) I also attain humilit, because I know that God hears me and knows my affliction. And He cares. (2 Chronicles 33:12,13) And it strengthens me against those who would afflict and chide and punish and beat me in an attempt to keep me from doing the will of God. (Nehemiah 4:4,5,9; Nehemiah 6:9,14) In Nehemiah's time there were those who would undermine the work of the Isrealites in rebuilding their temple. There were those who denied and chastised the builders, even charging at the with swords to keep them from building the building to God. And Nehemiah encouraged His own not to give but to remember the task ahead of them and complete the task (The race as Paul would call it in Philippians). And Nehemiah called upon God for protection, reminding Himof His covenant and His mercy. (Nehemiah 9:32)

Dream a little Dream (part 3)

2010-02-20T08:16:00.000-08:00

And how do I come to understand exactly what Zion means? I can read all the abstracts, all the commentaries, go to all the seminars and classes offered by various churches and still be unclear as to what Zion is. I believe that is the way God wants it. Not that He deliberately wants to muddy the waters, but that He wants us to realize that for all the uses I have for knowledge, that unless I use it according to His way and for the testimony of Him, knowledge is worthless. Knowledge is only to be used as a combative tool to protect us against untruths of satan, not to build our character. Living our lives in the Spirit does that. So that in Jesus' terms knowledge = truth and truth = understanding God's greatness = life and finally life + Spirit = character. This is what I see over and over, and most explicitly in Paul's letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 8:1) when he says, "Knowledge puffs up but love builds up". It is not what I know that is of major concern to God, although He doews what me to come to know Him, becasue He knows that knowledge comes by reading what He says in His Word. The more I read, the more I know. And the more I realize the less I know. And if I use God's knowledge right, I am humbled in its granduer. The main item God wants of me is love, and the resultant obedience. He wants me to have Moses' attitude in Exodus 24:7, "He took the book of the covenant and read in the audience of the peole: and they said, "All that he LORD hath said will we do and be obedient." God wants me to be obedient in all things both big and small.

Dream a little dream (part 2)

2010-02-13T08:57:00.000-08:00

Is Zion where the LORD lives, as the Psalmist in Psalms 132:15 says? Does He chose to be in a place that I know nothing about, can't even conceive or perceive of, and is it something that I am in danger of losing if I am not careful? (Psalms 137:1) Does my sin lead me further and further from His habitation? And my repentance brings me closer to Him, because I come to realize how solemn a time it is to be with Him. (Joel 2:1,15). Zion is the spiritual representation of His physical temple in Jerusalem, according to the scripture. (Psalms 65:29; Psalms 48:9; Psalms29:9) It is where God sits on His throne as in Isaiah 6:1 and it is where He delegates to those who He has chosen to demonstrate His power. (Mal 3:1) It is a place we all join n order to derive our power, the source of which is God. And it is where I must realize that I need to acknowledge Him daily, give Him praise daily (Luke 24:53) and acknowledge Him as my Father (Psalms 9:11, Psalms 48:11, Psalms 74:2) and realize that I am in His holy city, when I join with my brethren (Matt 23:16). Where the notion came from that Israel would be rebuilt and Jesus would sit there I don't have a clue. Israel as it is now is not accepting of Jesus as the Messiah, although He truly is. And Israel as it is not is not the seat of His body. It is a place of great turmoil and warring between descendants of David and descendants of Ismail. If we take everything in scripture as being literal, then Jezebel will come back to life as will Babylon so that the Book of Revelation can be taken as written. No, because the bible is a book filled with parables allegories and actual events the reader m st be well aware of which is which. And therefore when the author speaks of the New Israel or the New Jerusalem, he is speaking of the Church, the congregation of God's family in Zion, heaven.

Do You have a Dream

2010-02-07T05:00:00.000-08:00

Where is Zion? Is it actually a place that I can visit? Is it some place I can go to know where Jesus spent His boyhood? In the bible there are many listings for Zion, but unlike any other place no real definitive location is given. And so, depending who you talk to, Zion has very different meanings. To a Jew, Zion represents the Promised Land and their hope of returning to their beloved Palestine. To a Christian, Zion represents heaven: the land of milk and honey, where there will be no more tears and where our heavenly Father has a mansion made up with rooms for each of us. If we take Zion to mean heaven, or even the Promised Land, it seems there should be better terminology to describe such a place as Zion, which, according to some, translates in Hebrew as "parched place". Then again this makes sense considering that God's thoughts are not our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8) and that His sole purpose for picking His people was not because they were the best or the brightest but because they were. These people, not unlike my brethren and myself were just ordinary, everyday, run-of-the-mill people. And God created in them an extraordinary existence, an ability to do powerful things, if they let God do the doing. Not unlike my brethren and I. So Zion, while meaning a dry land also means that deep down this land was made of you and me because God will do extraordinary things in us and through us, that all may know He is God. He makes gold out of the desert sand, flowers out of the dung heap, and a saved soul out of something with no hope at all.

Sing a Song part 17

2010-01-30T09:02:00.000-08:00

So there are two reasons: 1) There is no clear cut use in the New Testament of instruments during the early church and 2) it may indicate mourning for a time until we are all together in heaven. There is of course the third and most obvious, and that is the performance using an instrument. God doesn't want my performance. He wants my person. God doesn't need my performance to promote His Word. If the bible itself, if the presence of Christ and His apostles aren't good enough to enter into the spiritual temple courts, then what will I add by using instruments? Nothing I can do will add to what is already God's, in fact I am warned not to do that in Revelations (Rev 22:18). In fact, the use of instrumentation seems to come back in Revelations 5:8,9 and in Revelations 18:22. In Revelations 18:22, it say, "Babylon will have no more joy, no music". And who is Babylon? Babylon is me. It is you. It is anyone and any country that denies God, either intentionally or unintentionally. While people may mean well, and they have the choice, they must understand that God had a purpose in everything and that they must be strong in the faith, not strong in their own gods. God understands that things made of our own hands leads us to pride and worshipping those things which will nto and cannot bring us closer to God. Only by realizing that God did not choose for us what we can do or our power or stature or beauty but because of ourselves can we possibly realize what it is to be God's children. Then and only then can we sing, "Just as I am".

2010-01-23T12:24:00.000-08:00

What of 1 Corinthians 13:1? This says, "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal." The purpose here is to show how out of place it would be to not have love in one's heart. Both those who say there should be no instruments and those that say there should must keep this in mind, to love one another with the grace of God. Should there be instruments? God seems to become displeased with the use of instruments if it interferes with the focus on Him? As in Amos or Jeremiah. It was not always the case that He was displeased with instruments. For instance, in 2 Chronicles 30:21, the priests praised God and the use of instruments is well recorded. Also this is seen in Joshua 6:8. But this changes to mourning and sadness in 2 Chronicles 35:25 and Daniel in Daniel 3:5-15 refused to bow down to idols or listen to the music that was presented to the king. Instruments have many uses, particularly in Luke 15:25 to celebrate the return of the prodigal son. The lack of instruments was to denote sadness, as the people don't want to play (Psalms 137:2-4) and not even the king wants to hear instruments (Dan 6:5). Could it be an expression that these are the last days and being in mourning that although someday I will be in heaven that when I now come before God I need to be in mourning and so there should be no instrumentation?

2010-01-16T04:55:00.000-08:00

What did Jesus say on this? Didn't He say He came to fulfill? This is true, and in Matthew 9:23 is a good example of this. He didn't come to destroy the temple. God's people already were going to unwittingly do that by their legalism and lack of true faith in God and His power. Jesus didn't come to destroy the status quo, part of which contained instruments. What He wanted to change was the party atmosphere and the laws that bound people to performance rather than being heartfelt. At the Last Supper, in Mark 14:26, Jesus and the apostles sang a hymn. It didn't mention instruments were there, as are mentioned in passages where there are actual instrument used. There are those who would say it didn't mention the lack of instrumentation. Did they or didn't they have instruments? In Ephesians 5:19, "Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the LORD" and in Colossians 3:16, "Let the word of Christ dwell in your heart richly to all wisdom: teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the LORD". And in Hebrews, "Saying, I will declare Thy Name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto Thee." The operative word is sing. Does "psalms" refer to the use of instruments? It could be both. In this instance, I would think that it just meant the use of then voice rather than the use of the stringed instrument. As mentioned above, isn't it interesting that none of the music has come down through the generations, but the words have, and the significance of that is that the words are more important than the music, although in my heart I can still sing using my own melody to the same words toward God. The whole focus of this not to see if I can use instruments, actually a moot point, but to see how much I want to be concerned about being in His presence in His throne room. After all,I think Paul worshipped God singing from prison with more focus that I can in my freedom to use or not use an instrument because His focus was on the Almighty and mine would be on practicing and getting the notes right. If I have to practice before worship that becomes performance during worship and is not totally me.

Sing a Song part 17

2010-01-09T07:43:00.000-08:00

Both Isaiah (Is 30:29,32) and Jeremiah (Jer 31:4) speak of using songs and instruments once again to praise God. When? Are we to decide this? No, God is. It appears in Revelation 14:23 and in Revelation 18:2 that this will happen in heaven, when there is no competition, no jealousy, no jockeying for position as the highest in God's Kingdom. There are references by Paul to the psalms (which could either be songs sung with or without an instrument). Paul also says, "Speak" (Ephesians 5:17) and his point is not about making music at a,,, but to know what one is singing so that worship is in the mind and the heart. Daniel in Dan 3:5 also warned against the use of instruments in false worship to a King that was denying God. When do I deny God by the use of instruments? One instance was given above, when I say to God that my voice is not as good as the instrument that I have fashioned, that what God has allowed on this earth is nowhere as good as what I can do with my hands or feet. I am denying that God is above all and can create something so beautiful our of something that may sound horrible to the normal ear. Does that mean that He changes my voice? No, but He allows me to rejoice in my weakness and humility, to know that He is the focus, not my voice. And not my instrumentation. What are the instances when I deny God? By saying that my instrument can portray Him better than His Word. Think about this, why don't we have a copy of David's music to the Psalms? Or better said, why are only the words presented in God's Word. Why are the words all that is left of the Psalms? Perhaps because God wants us to meditate and think about Him. Can music aid? Certainly but it does not instruct nor increase our knowledge of Him. To put it another way is the prophet Amos. Amos is the prophet that gives methe word of warning. Amos is like a cold rag that slaps me across the face when the heat of a passion that is inconsistent with God takes place. I thank God for Amos. In Amost 6:15, the prophet warns the people of Isreal for being complacent in their Judaism, for lounging and feasting and taking the music as entertainment for their benefit. He chastises them for making God an errand boy, playing their instruments with a crude imitation of religion. Amos in Amos 8:10 then warnsof the mourning that is to come because of this. "And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentations; and i will bring up sackcloth upon all loins and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son and the end thereof of a bitter day." When I become complacent in my Christianity, when I am to the point that I say, "I am fine and oding well" and don't add the words, "because of God, not me" I am truly forgetting what it is God has done for me. He got me through three major surgeries. He showed me my sin when I thought, I rationalized, that He wouldn't mind. He showed me that I needed more compassion, more love toward my brethren, and above all He gave me salvation through His Son. How much more can He give me? Only He knows and I love Him so. And I will sing to Him always. This is what He wants. From me. Singing is personal to Himand it is to be so to me as well. What of instruments? Instruments demonstrate what a human cna do, a voice is what God has done. While I love instruments, my best worship is done using my voice to His glory.

Sing a song part 17

2010-01-02T05:24:00.000-08:00

Instruments were not always used by God's people in the Old Testament. There were times that music was sung acapella, for instance in mourning or in times of trouble. (Daniel 9:18; Psalms 137:2; Ezekiel 26:13) More often then not is the distinction between the Old and the New Testament, the use of instruments to praise God. For example, Elisha himself used a harpist to prophecy or perhaps put him in the right frame of mind. (2 Kings 3:15) King Solomon knew singing was good and a great expressor of the soul. But he also saw vanity in trying to surround oneself with instruments for the sake of gathering together the finest of instruments and musicians to get the best sound. (Ecclesiastes 2:8) Solomon also knew that the sole purpose behind gathering was just for his pleasure. (Ecc 2:10, 8:11) Isaiah saw how men can get carried away with instruments and not really use them to praise God but to praise the work of man in display of a tangible image of God. (Ezekiel 26:13, 33:32; Isaiah 5:12, 14:11, 16:10, 24:8,9) And Isaiah warns God's people that they need to focus back as in King David's day. (Isaiah 23:16, 30:29,32) And really in truth, God's people in the New Testament don't use instruments mostly because they are on the run or having to worship in secret or in prison. Jesus Himself set the example of the Lord's Supper in remembrance of Him. Could it be that I should be in mourning because this world is not my home and I am to be striving toward heaven?

Sing a Song part 16

2009-12-26T11:52:00.000-08:00

To put it another way, there is no doubt that David was permitted by God to use instruments. (I Samuel 10:5,6) There is no doubt that David used them to praise God, to play songs of thanksgiving or remorse or sadness or anxiety. No doubt He loved to hear David play and sing to Him. In the most practical sense of the term, David's life was worship, although sometimes false worship, but nonetheless worship to God, as God was in front of David's mind and heart, even though there were times he chose to ignore the true God, much like Adam. This presence of God is acknowledged in Psalms 81:1-3 and Psalms 87:7. He praises, gives thanks, and lives his life with God in his music. Psalms 95:1-2 and Psalms 92:1-3 indicate that David's heart is pure and not for anything but worship of God. His people's intentions were this too because they sang to God. This is recorded so many times in the Old Testament. In I Kings 1:40, God's people for example sang with instruments and the mind of the people was on God, not on how they could sharpen their instruments or skill in order to better portray God. A good comparison might be to the tongues of angels that Paul spoke of in I Corinthians 13. If he didn't have love, then what did it matter whether he could play the entire Tchaikovsky Concerto in C# minor like Horowitz? David was happy to sing to God, was happy to play to God. And this joy is shown in Psalms 104:33, 105:2, 135:1,23 and 144:9. David also had a passion to sing to God, as in Psalms 84. David in Psalms 81 displays such a yearning for the presence and capacity to praise God with all His being. Nothing David did would ever be enough. Why? Because David knew that God is in control. He is the one entitled to praise and glory. He controls rain, sun, all strength and music more than any other entity one can depict. He is above all. (Psalms 8:1-9) All the earth, all the heavens are under His control. He chooses the weaklings among all the people in the earth in order that He is believed above all others and that people know His strength, His wisdom, and not anyone else's which is far inferior to anything He can put forth. Who but He could make the beasts of the field to lie down with the birds of the air? Only the heavenly Father.

Sing a Song part 15

2009-12-19T06:24:00.000-08:00

Bringing this subject to another point and that is why Jesus didn't say anything about the use of music. The only thing He did say is that we were to come together and share bread and wine and do it in His memory. He made a reference to instruments in Matthew 11:17 in the context to call the Pharisees and Sadducees childish and legalistic in order to say that there were those, including Jesus Himself, that were ostracized because of His teachings. Yet Jesus didn't come to change the infrastructure of Judaism but to bring something quite new. Something heartfelt. Something joyous. And our music should not be a dividing point. It should not be a point of contention that those who want to use instruments believe that those who don't want to use instruments are so totally off base and vice versa. Who is right but God? Who is good but God?

On the flip side of the coin, why don't all of us participate in singing? I have stood next to people, the most solemn of looks on their faces even during songs like, "Thank you Lord for loving me" and "The steadfast love of the LORD",not even moving their mouths. Could it be that they are taking Paul's words in Ephesians 5:19, "Sing and make music in your hearts to the LORD" literally? Could it be they are embarrassed because of their singing voice? I am not here to judge; we all have something that we wish we could do better. But that is the smae pride displayed in the reasoning that someone who uses and instrument because his or her voice isn't good enough. God made us. He made me short, with a bad back and heart problems, whether or not He put those there or allowed the genetics to occur, doesn't matter. I don't think that those were intentioned as stumbling blocks. I fully believe it is so that He can say, "My grace is sufficient for you". (II Corinthians 12:9). It is not the power of our singing but the Joy of the LORD, which will give us strength. God knows I don't have a great singing voice, but it pleases Him when I praise Him and worship Him in song. Would an instrument make that person more close to God or would it help a person worship God. Perhaps but then one is second guessing God, since what he or she is telling God is that the voice He gave him or her or allowed him or her to have is just not good enough and that he or she can do better. That is indeed sad, to think that one can improve upon God and God's thoughts.

Sing a Song part 15

2009-12-12T06:11:00.000-08:00

Even though God did allow instruments for a time, does this mean that was to be forever? Remember the new covenant was different than the old and that whatever came before was nailed to te cross because it took men's minds away from God. Instrumentation and music had become like the rest of worship. A pretty outer surface of an alabastar jar. Jesus wanted to put meaning back into all men's lives. Jesus wanted men to give of themselves totally, not just part of themselves.

Sing A Song part 14

2009-12-06T01:12:00.000-08:00

So then the argument goes that David used instruments. David's heart was pure before God. Did David use instruments while he prayed before God? Is that not what our worship is, an extension of prayer before God? Our minds are so concentrated and so focused on totally pleasing Him that even the songs we sing should be mind felt as well as heart felt. Paul spoke about that in many passages but in particular I Corinthians 14:15. Besides David obviously pleased God in his use of instruments or certainly God would have redirected him. Also in Habakkuk 3:1-19, instruments were directed by the prophet, who was a man of God, and who was making what would probably today be called a "praise song", but in fact was quite common of religious folk, like David and Habakkuk and is also seen in Ezra 3:9,10 and Nahum 12:27,28. Why didn't God say anything at that time? When one thinks about it, these men are directing groups of people in worship or are they merely directing people's mind to worship. Those are two different doxologies. One leads people in their collective approach to the throne of God, the other to stir people to gather to have a collective approach to the throne of God. To direct to go worship the subscribes to using the instruments worship and commingling that with worship. To direct in worship is to point the public mind at that time when they would be collectively in worship to God. Or instrumentation was used in celebration of God, not necessarily a time of worshipful gathering together to listen and commune with God but certainly a time direct people to worship God at some given opportunity. God is the singing God; let us not forget that. God loves music and song and for us to define those specifics would be difficult at best. If we define those specifics we are also putting God in a box. The use of instrumentation in itself would not displease God. The purpose for using them and the manner of using them would indeed have a great deal to do with pleasing God. Do we need an instrument to praise Him in song? Well, some might because they are self-conscious about their voice. That is reverse pride. After all, God made people, so certainly all human voices lifted in praise to God are pleasing to Him. Not all of us are Luciano Pavarotti or Maria Callas. Not everyone can sing. But it is the effort, the desire within one's heart, when delights that one is God's instrument and that He loves them so much that He called them His children and called them to be brethren with Christ Jesus His only begotten.

Sing a Song Part 13

2009-11-28T12:49:00.000-08:00

The big argument is whether or not God said "no" to instruments directly. Actually and truthfully, no, He didn't directly say, "Thou shall have no musical instruments." He did say, "Thou shall have no other gods before Me" (Ex 20:3) And many times like man's writing and dancing that becomes our god, our idol. We fashion and fix and edit and chop and whittle until we have what we think is perfect. Not what God thinks is perfect. What is perfect in God's eyes? Do we strive to do what is perfect according to God, or do we strive to say,"Well, not everyone likes it this way or that way so we need to do it the best way that everyone will feel comfortable. Now does that make sense? No indeed! To be looking for comfort when worshipping God is ridiculous because it will never happen. God is not the God of comfortableness. He is the God of comfort, when we mourn or are in pain. We should be striving to see what God wants out of each and everyone of us not to see how we can present ourselves that would make us more lovable, make us more of what the world wants us to look like because that will bring people to church. I want people to come to church as the next person, and on earth that is what I should strive to accomplish according to Jesus. But what I am not here to do is to paint a picture that is my image of God. I was made in His image, not the other way around. Do I in my worship actually look to God and kneel in submission to His Will for me in worship? Or am I confined to the belief that "He made me, when I speak of Him, it must be from Him and therefore Him and I must share this with everyone because God made me and every sound, utterance, movement comes from Him. " I wish that were true, but it would nullify the Garden of Eden episode with Adam and Eve doing what they please by eating the apple given by Satan. Adam and Eve were certainly made by God, but still had a free will. And so do we. We have a free will, so that we will come to Him not as robots but so that we can come to the final conclusion, "Not my will but Thine."

Sing a Song part 12

2009-11-21T07:07:00.000-08:00

Go to concerts, see musicals, enjoy!!! I know I do. But remember those are interpretations of one man, or two men, or however many wrote the libretto and music. While God gave Man talent, that talent is not what should be on display in worship. The true test of worship is whether each nman is getting hunmbe before God without any personal crutches and saying to God, "Just as I am". This cannot be done with an instrument. The people in the Old Testament proved that.

Another way to put this is the following. My strengths and my abilities come from Him (Psalms 46:1), but what of my weaknesses. Paul talked about the thorn in flesh (11 Corinthians 12:7) and Jacob was bruised at the hip. All things then emanate from God and it is my choice whether to concentrate on the defiencies or those qualities which are abounding. That may lead to pride and that is why I have to learn self-control. Nevertheless that doesn't come from anyone but God. No instrument, no dancing, no script can give me the mercy and wisdom that God and the study of His Word can do (Psalms 57:1, Psalms 5:1, Psalms 32:1, Psalms 55:1, Psalms 67:1, Psalms 6:1, Psalms 4:1, Psalms 60:1, Psalms 74:1, Psalms 56:1, Psalms 89:1, Psalms 78:1, Psalms 21:1). No instrument can provide the righteousness that God can through a relationship with Him (Psalms 58:1) nor can it provide me with salvation (Psalms 59:1, Paslams 142:1, Psalms 88:1, Psalms 54, Psalms 7:1) Nothing teaches me thanksgiving that is in the LORD, not like a true relationship with Him does (Pslams 75:1, Psalms 92:3) I cannot even praise Him with the same vigor using an instrument that I can with just my whole heart and soul and spirit. (Psalms 9:16, Pslams 42:1,Psalms 151:5, Psalms 98:6, Psalms 33:7, Psalms 71:22, I Chronicles 13:7-8, 1 Chronicles 15:27-28, 1 Chronicles 23:5, 2 Chronicles 7:6, Psalms 8:1-8, Pslams 81:1-5, Psalms 84:1-12). David knew instruments were no substitute for humility of flesh and blood. (Psalms 19:16, Psalms 53:1) Nothing substitutes for the mind and soul of God's creation. (Psalms 44:1, Psalms 45:1) God may have created the talent to fashion and play instruments and the intelligence to do so, but nevertheless, the instruments are still man-made, with man-made imprints on them, and they can and will become idols, as wil writing and dancing become idols if I consider that God is being worshipped by my use of these. While God is giving me my intelligence and will, He also tells me when using my creativity is appropriate and when it is not.

2009-11-14T09:27:00.000-08:00

This is the same struggle all Christians face. What is the right way to worship God? Do we worship Him in our homes, in a building, in small groups, in large groups? The answer is quite simple. Yes. We worship God in our homes, buildings, and small and large groups. But mostly we worship Him in our lives, all of our lives, every day. Every breath we take is to worship Him. If that is the case, then coming together should be no different. I cannot hide myself from Him, for He knows me, He knew me when I was being made. He knows how I was made, and that I am perfect in His eyes the way I am. I am physically not equipped with a wonderful singing voice. It is sufficient but I won't get a Grammy with it. I am also short of stature. I am overweight. I am...many, many other sorts of inadequacies, and God wants me still. He loves me as I am. He knows that in the long run, those inadequacies exist but are of no consequence, and He loves me for my soul, particularly when I, me, myself,devote my soul to Him and allow His Spirit to live in me and take those inadequaceis and make me strong where I am weak. God's voice is beautiful and it sings through me when I humble myself and share that voice. Instruments are fine, but they are a crutch to hide who I really am. Shouldn't I be more interested in sharing who I really am, rather than offering God something "better". or at least in my estimation? I am nmot perfect, but in God I am perfect. I reach for God, not perfection in and of itself. I am reaching for Him to create perfection in me, so that when we meet I can be perfect as He is.

2009-10-31T07:08:00.000-07:00

Isaiah says it best. In Isaiah 5:12 and again in 14:11, the harp and the viol were silenced because the musicians were not geared toward worshipping God or to please him, but to produce something which by the interpretation which is supposed to represent God. Jeremiah in Jeremiah 48:36 sees the sadness of what God's people had become and through this the instruments display such sadness. Isaiah warns (Isaiah 5:12, 14:11, 24:8) as does Amos in Amos 5:3 of the use of instruments for interpretation, merely the tip of the ice berg of how far God's people had strayed from Him. And they had no clue of this. Isaiah says that God's thoughts are not my thoughts and His ways are not my ways. (Isaiah 55:8) When I think of worshipping God with instruments, I think of worshipping God with a medal or prayer beads or various liturgies or the seasonal prayer book. That may be a spur, but it is not worshipping God. It does nothign for my relationship with God, only my representation of what I think God wants of me. The only reason I have come to worship Him after all is to understand better Who He is, to know Him, to grasp Him, to share Him. Not my interpretation of Him.

Now please don't get me wrong. Music and instruments are indeed useful and sometimes inspiring in expressing how one feels about God. Such a wonderful expression can elicit peaceful and uplifting or thoughtful feelings and an audience will pick up those emotions. But is this truly worship, or are we like in some theatrical performance picking up on an emotion that the writer and composer what us to feel? How is this worship, if it is the interpretation of the artist rather that God's Word which evokes a feeling in man? Is this not more a worship of the artist than God? That's why I love knowing what scriptures are behind the hymns,and I love even better putting God's Word to music. The feelings that are evoked are purely from God's Word, to me and personal between me and God, not the artist and his interpretaton in between.

Sing a Song part 9

2009-10-17T10:58:00.000-07:00

Instruments were obviously part of the Jewish worship service. (Ezekiel 28:13, Amos 6:5) Instruments were also a source of Solomon feeling empty. (Ecclesiastes 2:8), gaining as much opulence and as much treasure so that he could bring the finest musicians and for what? For worship? Solomon later says the only worship to God is with the whole heart. If you can do that and perfect an object, then more power to you. Daniel sees that musical instruments were being used to call people to worship false gods. (Daniel 3:5,7,10) Of course, instruments were used to summon people to worship the one true God in the temple. Nevertheless it was something that all peoples used, much as the universal signal for a play to begin is flickering the lights to enter the theater. Was it important to use instruments? In Job 21:2-12, people hear the tones of musical instruments and are happy. Also in Job 30:31, because of his sorrows, the instruments were making sorrowful tones. But are these important in our relationship with God? Can a musical instrument bring us closer to God, lead us to knowing God more, or even give us some information regarding God? Are they supposed to? I don't think so. An instruments is a work of art, much like a still life or portrait. And as such only reflects the artist's depiction of a particular work. Even a composition only reflects a composer's depiction of some theme, regardless of whether the music is baroque,romantic, impressionistic or expressionistic. Our music is an image of us, given talents by God to make the music to be sure, but the music we make is ours to God. Our music by singing to God, each of us, regardless of talent because God made each of us with vocal cords to be able to sing to Him. God is the singing God (Zephaniah 3:17)and in His image we are singers to Him. What if we try to perfect that singing? There is really nothing wrong with trying to blend voices better, or to be in a chorus, or even to have that chorus accompanied by instruments. But we must remember that that chorus is perfected by the interpretation of a human being, and that God has given us what we need to worship Him. Again let me reiterate, nothing wrong with that interpretation. But is it necessary for worship, or is it even doing the best of God's will that we can? I believe that God likes simplicity. God love me to come before Him, nothing elaborate, and praise Him and bring Him that which makes me joyous and that which makes me sad. Me. Myself. Not my interpretation of my existence on earth.Not my feelings of God. But me. My essence. And a chorus doesn't bring that out in me. It makes me focus on singes, on "I wold have done it this way" or "I don't like that interpretation" or "I prefer that interpretation" or Doesn't that express God?". Actually something may lead one to God, true. Something may spark an idea or a memory, but unless it is backed by His Word, that idea is just my thought of what God is, and not the truth of Who God is.

Sing A Song Part 8

2009-10-10T09:24:00.000-07:00

The origin of instruments biblically is given in Genesis 4:21. In this passage the father of musical instruments, Jubal, is mentioned. Specific musicians were anointed and appointed for praise worship in 1 Chronicles 23:5. This appears in 2 Chronicles 5:12-13, 23:1-18, 31:2, 35:15-25 as well as in Ezra 2:64, Ezra 3:10,11. The musicians were even given an office in 2 Chronicles 7:6, 1 Chronicles 16:4-6, 1 Chronicles 16:4-6, 1 Chronicles 23:5-6, and 1 Chronicles 25:1. The musicians even went before David to announce wars or worship to God. (2 Chronicles 29:23-26) as well as going before other kings (I Kings 10:2, 2 Chronicles 9:11) and the announcements and pronouncements got rather large. (I Chronicles 15:20, Genesis 31:27, Exodus 15:1, 20,21)

2009-10-03T09:46:00.000-07:00

The Book of Revelations as is does mention instruments and this does throw a kinker into the whole picture. The emphasis on the Book of Revelations is not the presence of instruments but the "new song". (Rev 5:8,9;Rev 14:2,3; Rev 15:2,3) and the writer makes it plain that a new song is to be sung only by those redeemed from earth. The text says 144,000. Is that all that will be going to heaven? If that is the case, I may be in trouble, because I have missed the numbering by being born so late in the history of the world. I really don't have a clue how many will be going to heaven or hell. What I do know about the writer John is that he was originally Jewish and he was probably expressing what was the symbol for the perfect number. What that is God only knows.If you look the number 144,000 it is 36,000 times 4, which means it is a perfect square. Meaning as the scripture says, "Not everyone who says, LORD, LORD, will enter the gates of heaven. " (Matthew 7:21) Is it up to us to know how many people are going to heaven or hell? Not according to Paul in Romans 14:10.

All that John was describing was the perfect square as it were. Something that denoted perfection.

So what does music have to do with all of this? Probably to know that at any span of time that God gives me or anyone else, time for repentance and purity is urgent and short. I must consider what is His way, what He wants, and praise Him, not being judgmental to my brethren, but letting God tell me what is His way. What that means is that I must consider which is the absolute purest and best way to worship Him, in accordance with His will.

Let's continue.

2009-09-26T06:49:00.000-07:00

In Numbers 12:42 there is a good example of a chorus. In Numbers 3:19 there is instruction to those that play stringed instruments. In Exodus, women were led by Miriam in song and praise using tamborines. Instruments were used also in Joshua 6:8, and instructions were given how to make instruments in Numbers 10:2. And when the temple was built, there were various groups of singers. (Ezekiel 40:44) But once one gets to the New Testament and specifically the New Testament church where did the instruments and choruses go, according to the bible? Were these no longer considered godly? Obviously, there is a point in time that God did in fact accept or allow the presence of His temple of certain instruments. Trumpets, drums, horns, maybe to call such a big assortment of people to worship. But not in the New Testament. Only God knows why. It does give one pause to think.

2009-09-19T08:02:00.000-07:00

Many people say that if there were instruments in the Old Testament why do some congregations say they can't have them? The fallacy is clear in that argument. There were kings in the Old Testament times, and even through New Testament times. Are there kings in Isreal now? In some nations that profess to be Christians, yes there are kings. But do those kings have a purpose in leading God's people. Not in the same way as Isreal's kings. The same could be said for worship. The Jews went to Temple and sacrificed animals to worship. Do we do that now? Notwithstanding Christ came and made the final sacrifice, the one that meant something. (Hebrews 1:1) Even things in the Old Testament changed. First Abraham was allowed to maintain his idols, even though his faith was in God. Then God told the people just to worship Him. (Deuteronomy 5:6) Priests used to wear phylacteries on their heads. Now that we are all priests and we are supposed to count the costs before we accept Christ, we don't wear those on our head but the Word is written on our hearts. And we are to keep it there. (Romans 10:1-10). All throughout the Old Testament are differences between those that play instruments and sing. For instance, in I Chronicles 15:22, Chemiah was appointed to make songs and give instructions, perhaps to musicians but certainly to those who would be singing. Further instruction was given in 1 Chronicles 25:7,8. And there was a great deal of joy here because it was felt that these things were what God wanted His people to do, and they wanted to do their best for God. In 2 Chronicles 23:13 Athaliah wanted to stop that joy, not only singing, but singing to the One and Only God, the joy of singing songs to the LORD, the joy of playing instuments with the joy that emanated from knowing God and and realizing that He was the author and is the author of all musical talent. (although in present times one wonders, but that is only man trying to improve on what God has given them and expressing desires away from what God wants). And there are those like Ataliah trying to dispel the joy of singing to God and realizing that one's talents come from God, the Father, for the edification of those watching. Davidwas certainly one not to dispel this joy. When he expressed the joy of the LORD it was usually a party like atmosphere. 2 Samuel 6:15 was not exception. This was a party, a celebration of the recovery of the ark, the history and meaning of what was to be God's people. The party was replete with trumpets and heralds and dancing. Was God pleased? I don't read where He came down with thunderbolts in disdain. But then neither do I read about Him coming down and saying, "This is my son with whom I am well pleased." He allowed joy to be spread and instruments to be used. Even during congregational worship in 2 Chronicles 29:27,28 there are trumpets and instruments but they are comissioned, ordained by David, as it were, to accompany burnt offerings. Again, though, do we now have burnt offerings and how would that enhance our relationship with God if it did? The whole church, the entire New Testament is based on our relationship with God. Certainly the Old Testament has a lot to say about our relationship with God but Jesus freed us fromt he Old Testament traditions and reasons for worshipping or doing daily tasksby being the final sacrifice and nailing the Old Covenant to the Cross. Is the use of an instrument going to enhance that relationship more than coming to God just as I am? If I play to God with an instrument other than the one He gave me, how close am I becoming to God? Or am I truly giving Him back what He has given me? Maybe. Am I acknowledging that fact? Perhaps. What pleases God more, bringing Him a song that I have practiced so that i can play it perfectly in His presence or to come to Him humbly and tell him that I am truly nothing without Him. In other words am I trying to please God or am I tyring to be what I think He wants of me? Am I performing for Him, or am I dropping to my knees before Him?

The Singing God part 7

2009-09-12T12:20:00.000-07:00

Let me preface this by saying that I played piano, and can still play, in training for 13 years and then continuing to play after that. I love music, musicals, shows, etc. But just because I love music and singing and instrumenments has nothing to do with whether or not this is to be used in my worship to God. It pleases me to hear a huge orchestra. How does God feel about that in worship. I ask the readers of both opinions to keep an open mind.

The Singing God part6

2009-09-05T08:21:00.000-07:00

God allowed David to write Psalms and give instructions, yet He also struck David's family down and put David in exile for a time. God allowed Solomon to do what he wanted, ie marry alien women that were polytheistic and at the same time build a glorious temple to God, but God would later strike down the Kingdom of Isreal. God allowed Solomon to build this rich country but because he started to follow idols, which may have been the use of elaborate instruments as is done in idol worship, God split the kingdom in two then caused one to disappear and then the other to be dispersed because they could not give up their idols in money and worhsip, including the type of music that was being used, whether instrumental or no. God allowed muscial instruments because His people were involved in reverence to Him. By the time Jesus came, musical instruments, like prayer, became a matter of pride. There truly is no use of them seen in the New Testament. While nothing is said against them, really nothing is said for their use either. What was the purpose for allowing such instruments in worship? And what example do we see in Christ?

The Singing God Part V

2009-08-29T10:37:00.000-07:00

The Singing God, you say? Who is this, this singing God? Zephaniah 3:9-20 describes Him perfectly. Some would shy away fromever thinking of God as being so frivolous as to sing. No, that's not reverant for God to be singing. And God expects our head to be bowed and us to be in constant fear of Him. Do I really believe that? I don't see any where in the scripture that would make me think it is irreverant of God to sing. While I believe in reverance, I see nothing wrong with thinking that God sings. God has a voice and uses it,much as He wants ujs to, whether or not we can carry a tune. On the other hand, I cannot think of another subject that is more controverial than the use of musicin worship services. I cannot think of another subject that has divided more people, something that satan can use and has used to keep God's people separated from one another and unable to complete Hs work because of their differences. What inhibits evagelism more? Selfish desires toboldly pronounce my right to be different and my right to express myself tot he Deity. I even had a woman who was visiting the Church I was attending tell me that I mustn't like music because the church where I worshipped used acapella music. That simply is not true. Music is a big part of my life. But my worship does not involve instruents because I want to come to Him with my brethren without the constraints of instruments or idols.

The Singing God Part IV

2009-08-23T18:25:00.000-07:00

I just love David. He had such a handle on this singing God. David, player of the lyre, singer, composer, bravest of the brave (if you've ever danced in front of an audience as an adult you know what I mean). The Psalms even come with instructions for musicians and singers. For instance, the chief musician instructed his people to play like "Hind of the Dawn" and "lilies" and playing in lamenting tones and singers to sing poignantly. More than mere historical references, these are instructions to people to conduct themselves in solemn fashion and yet a joyous fashion and to elicit an emotion of solemnity and joy from the people as a form of worship. As well it was an indication that there was a time and a place for emotions and expressions as well as for garnering knowledge and giving praise any time, and an appropriateness to conducting themselves in the playing and singing of music as well as praising and praying. To throw ourselves into this thing for all of our lives, not just one minute or an hour of worship, but to break out in song whatever the occasion all of our lives with all of our hearts. And for a time that was pleasing to God, until people got caught up in "this is the wrong way to sing this and this is the right way to play this". God doesn't care if you come to Him unpracticed, as long as you come to Him. He will sing to you for He is the singing God. And in Psalms 68:4-35,David tells me to sing His praises, sing joyfully and praise His holy and wonderful Name. He is the God that brings me together with my bretheren, and He is the God that triumphs over the world. David understands about the Creator and His works andthe praises He so richly deserves. (Psalms 98:1-9). David exemplifies the attitude of being joyful in the LORD. And God allows instruments in worship as long as it was to His glory. As seen again in Psalms 149:1-9 and 150:1-6,music is celebrated as such. But what I suspect happened is that music became too complicated for common folk to follow, and Chronicles indicates this because it was the Levites and several others that were involved with the music, indicating that it was out of the commoners hands and that only those that were truly skilled were used to play music to the LORD. This is not what God wants. God gave us voices so that we could raise our voice in song to Him, regardless of whether it is audible or not. Choosing only the best players and singers and making music so complicated it required a music major to play emphasizes that the focus of worship was beginning to move away from God and follow man's image or interpretation of God,being under the misconception that God want the perfect to come to Him. In Jesus all are invited to come to Him.

Singing with God, part 3

2009-08-15T12:22:00.000-07:00

Music is such a peripheral topic that it makes God cry when people cannot agree on what is actually in His Word. I suspect it invokes His wrath at time. There are people who say an instrument helps their voice becuase they have no singing voice. That's foolishness. You are blessed with the voice that God gave you. I am not a wonderful singer, but I sing with the voice He gave me. He blessed me with such a voice so that I in turn could bless Him. So, if I sing off-key, to God it's perfect because I am giving back what He gave to me. If I were to use an instrument in lieu of my voice, it would be as though I was telling God, "Oh, I know you gave me this voice, but I can do better with this guitar". How sad! To think I can do any better than God, the Almighty.

2009-08-08T04:20:00.000-07:00

When it is just I and God, though, and no one else, and my walls are down, would it hurt to put my instrument down and give Him myself without saying, "Wait a minute God, that's not good enough"? Surely God thinks its good enough for me just to bring myself to Him. God gave me a voice, and it is weak, and it cannot perform sustenuto or even vibrato, and it has trouble staying on key. ButGod wants me to sing nevertheless and in Him my singing is beautiful. That after all is what singing is to God. Like prayer. He wants all of me. No borders, no boundaries, nothing to hide me from Him. Me, the real me. I don't know, but at the Last Supper I suspect there were no instruments to be found. After all, it does say in Matthew 26:30 they sang a hymn, not they played a hymn. I suspect there were no instruments in the house churches and catacombs, mostly because it would not have been convenient to have them but what about because they wanted to follow the Last Supper. I believe they would have been found a distraction. Jesus wanted all of His apostles' love and devotion, not for them to focus on playing an instrument.

Sing a Song...

2009-08-02T06:51:00.000-07:00

When I consider music or rather the use of instruments to produce such do I ever consider what my involvement is in the production of such? Am I so wrapped up in performing my praise that I forget the simplicity of Christ is in the two pieces of wood hung drosswise and that it matters not whether I can play an instrument or whether I can perform any of the "fine arts"? What does matter is, am I doing all I can to give God a purified worship, one which is just of myself and no one else? That is, how is my relationship toward God growing and how am I most obedient to him? In and of itself there is nothing wrong with the use of instruments. But where is my focus. Am I getting into those areas that demand all of my attention and none of my attitude? When I sing, am I singing from my heart? When I play an instrument do I play the perfect note or am I striving to please Him? Where does my praise come from? Do I sing from my soul and mind? I know that everyday is not the same. Because of my humanity I may not feel like singing but merely mumbling the words. But where does my heart lay? Worse still am I seeking perfection in my instrument or in my voice and am I in a constant mode of correction to make it perfect because I believe that is what God wants?

2009-07-25T15:38:00.000-07:00

There were and are also false teachers. Isaiah 28:9-10 even makes fun of them by penning their words to their followers. The wording was repetitious, almost sonorous and displays the idea of the ludicrous nature ofthe Pharisee's teaching. This is reiterated in Matthew 23:13-29, in Jesus' sermon about various woes that will come upon the Pharisees and their followers. In fact in looking at Matthew 5:1-48, in which Jesus instructs His apostles about the meek and the poor in spirit and those that mourn, etc. etc., in the Sermon on the Mount, as well as teaching them about divorce and praying and fasting, Jesus shows His followers how to look out for false teachers and to be wary of what they are teaching. Mark 12:35 also displays the scribes as false teachers, because of their interpretation of who the Messiah is. And there was a warning about being a false teacher, witout even knowing that one is a false teacher, given in James 3:1 which says that one shouldn't seek to be a teacher because the responsibility is stricter than for those that are not teachers. That doesn't mean tht people who are students are immune to the responsibility of spreading the gospel. No, the responsibility is there as well, according to Galatians 6:6. Hence all of God's children have the responsibility not to spread things that are not the truth about God's Word.

Teach me that I might teach...part 9

2009-07-19T06:29:00.001-07:00

When I think of ministers and preachers, I don’t really think of teachers, but so very often they are indeed involved in that. Teaching is something that keeps knowledge in the hands of the people and allows people to grow strong in God. As well teaching allows new knowledge or new ideas to be examined and to see if these are in synch with God’s word. Never ever be afraid to attend lectures at a secular college because of what it might teach you about various controversial issues. The point is to absorb and prescribe those issues and filter out what is not in teaching the bible, that is what does not agree with God’s word. The reason God had officials teach the Law in 2 Chronicles 17:7-9 is because they were the ones most versed in that Law, as were the priests. Much as in various colleges Physics is taught by people versed or becoming versed in that topic, and German literature teachers are taught by those who have some knowledge and experience with that topic. I know that my best teachers were experts in their field or else had a wide range of experiences that were attesting to the fact that they could claim to have knowledge and were getting a degree that agreed with that statement. The worst teachers I have ever had were those who had no knowledge of their subject, because they were drafted to teach English History from having taught Typing. God provided His people with a means to gain knowledge of His Word, and He made sure this Word was spread, as in Nehemiah 8:7-8. It could be said that all of the Old Testament was to teach all of God’s people Who God is and what He expects of us. For example, in Leviticus 11:44-47, the LORD speaks and tells them to follow His ways, to make themselves (consecrate) holy because He is. Does that mean perfect? No, and the Old Testament as well as the New Testament stress that God’s people can indeed come back to Him time and time again by just asking for forgiveness. (I John 1) All they have to do is follow Him, and obey His commandments. That means following the footsteps of our prime example, Jesus. After all, all teaching has its focal point in Jesus, whose teaching in Luke 4:6-21 demonstrated that He indeed was the fulfillment of prophecy in Isaiah, lending credibility to His claim to being the Son of God. And what I love most about teachers and preachers is that they give us standards from God’s Word that I can search and verify as truth. This has always been so between God and His people. For instance, Moses and the elders in Deuteronomy 27:1-26 gave God’s people commandments that had been given by God to them. They thereby instructed the people how to proceed according to the commandments and standards God set out. In this way Moses and the elders taught and led God’s people in how to conduct themselves in accordance with God’s Word. In Deuteronomy 31:19, the people were lead to sing, the song intended to tell the people where they came from and what God intended for them, much as I am led in song to know God deeper through songs in that I can see God’s Word and encouragement. God gives me a history and a way to conduct myself and preachers and teachers instruct me in these facets in accordance to His Word.

Teach me to teach,...part 8

2009-07-11T12:10:00.000-07:00

Elders and church leaders are themselves to be looked up to as leaders in the church. According to Paul’s teaching in 1 Timothy 3:3-13, elders and leaders must be good examples of godly lives, demonstrating that God controls them and therefore they also show the Fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5). That way I and the rest of the flock can learn from their example, much as a child that hears and sees parents will learn from that example. Further, what is my relationship with an elder and leaders? I learn from 1 Peter 5:1-9 that I am not to be a burden to them, but a blessing. What is my relationship like? Do I question them? When I do, because it is my right to do so, but when I do, do I present things humbly, objectively? Do I show proper respect to the leaders and elders? Is there humility in my thought and manner? Otherwise God will resist me, as He resists the proud and exalts the humble. God knows my heart, He knows when I am taking things personally, and He knows that only when I look at things objectively after much prayer that I can talk to those in authority, if I, through speaking with God, must speak with them. Sometimes God will tell me not to do so, that I am not the appropriate one, even though the leaders may be in error. It is not just a matter of bringing this before the elders, it is also a matter of how I treat my brothers that also happen to be doing the work of God. If I am incapable of bringing the matter to them in a manner that is not conducive to peacefulness, then it is up to someone else who can. Above all else, God does the correction, whether I or someone else is His tool.

Teach me to teach, part 7

2009-07-03T11:25:00.000-07:00

I am one of His people. His church is in fact looked upon as His people. He looks upon us and watches as we pray. Should we pray for His people (Ps 122:6,9), the good will be sought out. And He will bless me, because I have chosen to be one of His people and to be His child. (Ps 125:5,6) And God is a healer, the repairer of broken relationships, the provider of light along whatever path I travel (Is 58:12) And it is He who builds the spiritual building within me, and those who call themselves His.

Biblically, according to Acts 1:15-26, disciples and apostles were teachers of the early church. This later was also distributed to deacons. Disciples were different than apostles. Apostles were in direct contact with Jesus, and disciples knew Jesus and were taught by Him, but the contact was not as close. Paul calls himself the last apostle (1 Cor 4:9) and the least of them in I Corinthian 15. Actually, a disciple just meant a follower, a believer to the point of accepting His teaching and living them out, and Jesus had many of those, many who may have seen Him at a glance but not spoken with Him, many who never saw Him. Apostles on the other hand were special, enjoying a special relationship with Christ. In Acts 6:2-6, there shows the difference, as from the disciples is appointed apostles with the action of the apostles directed by God. Acts 11:22-30 demonstrates the Church’s growth in terms of teaching, giving, and being of good fruit and one accord. This is again shown in Acts 15:1-31. Paul and Barnabas try to show that the church is not about binding things on people, nor forcing others to be just like them. But the church was about allowing for differences in people. Did they lay down guidelines? Surely, they did, and there are four that the church was to follow: not to consume blood, meat from strangled animals, meat in front of idols, or becoming involved in fornication. I think it is interesting that in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he speaks that the only reason not to eat meat sacrificed to an idol is when it causes a brother to stumble. If that brother has a problem with the fact that that idol represents something that replaces God and therefore meat sacrificed to that idol is pledging allegiance to the other god, then don’t eat that meat. On the other hand, if it causes no one any problems, eat the meat, because idols were merely objects in truth.

Teach me to teach...Part VI

2009-06-27T11:58:00.001-07:00

A reproof, a rebuke or an exhortation to bigger and more moral things is not necessarily as bad as it seems, at least to the innocent or not so innocent bystander. If these things are done in love, with a velvet boxing glove, then peace and love can be obtained. If one carries a big stick and speaks softly, more results are really attainable. 2 Tim 4:2, Titus 1:13, and Titus 2:15 are brilliant affirmations about the kindness of being tough and doing so in a way that is kind. I am, at the same time, admonished not to follow those who will not follow God. (Titus 3:7, 10,11) Does this mean “Don’t speak to them”? I hardly think so. What it means is that do not be linked to these people. Do not socialize, do not develop an intimate relationship with, and any of the other connotations of this. I am instructed to treat people with kindness, that doesn’t mean I have to be linked to them. I have a friend that has chosen to follow a way that is unacceptable to Christ, the way of legalism. (Gal 2 and 3) She and her husband have chosen this way after many discussions with the elders of the church and have decided that the best way to worship God is to follow Jewish precepts while embracing Christ. So be it. They are happy in this. But I cannot follow them. I cannot be accepting of what they believe, nor can I give them indications that I am willing to believe they are going in the right direction. Either I am for Him and what His son said, or I am against Him. And God exhorts me not to add anything to His word, in Revelations 22:19. At the same time, I am told to be compassionate and kind and holy in Jude 22.

Teach me to teach, that I might teach Part IV

2009-06-20T05:38:00.000-07:00

And a teacher can show us how to be in one accord, how to join in with singing with one another songs of praise to God, how I can teach the person standing next to me in church just by sincerely singing and having harmony with my brethren. I sing to my God, and for the purpose of singing to Him as He sang to me before I was even born. I sing so that in my song there is praise, lifting others up, admonishing some, instructing others and above all unity in the Spirit of the body. (Col 3:16) I must allow God’s word to consume me, and a teacher can help me in this regard. By singing in church for the sake of God, I am acknowledging that God loved me enough to send His son in to this world so that I may have eternal life and not perish in my sins. (John3:16) I must be taught to be willing to do whatever it takes to stay family, because that, too, is God’s will. The love I have for my brethren will demonstrate that I am His. Even when I suffer, as in 1 Thess 2:14-15, “For you, brothers, become imitators of God’s churches in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own countrymen the same things those churches suffered from the Jews, who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to all me.” When I am truly in Him, I share freely with all in His family, I break bread in remembrance of Christ, and I love as He did, putting their needs ahead of mine. I Corinthians 11:22 describes greed and selfishness that strife and individual desires produce. The chapter is a great admonisher because it convicts me of not being serious in my love for God when I refuse to come to the defense and aid of my brethren, or when I allow my sinful desires, lusts, and misinterpretations to harbor and separate me from my brothers. The separateness defiles God’s temple, as spoken of in I Corinthians 3:17, because it leads me to instant gratification and a life of constantly trying to fill a hole with pleasures instead of God. I do not treat God as seriously as I do the cares of this world. And I become lost in my addictions to seeing and doing things that make me feel better and temporarily happy. Teachers can show me that eternal peace is much better than temporary happiness because temporary happiness is just that…temporary. Those desires only last for the moment and may not return. On the other hand, the peace which passes understanding will never leave.

Teach me that I might teach

2009-06-13T03:52:00.000-07:00

Even though a child is cruel, God chooses to give them His blessing. And as instruments of His blessings, He instructs the elder ones, such as Jacob, Moses, Joseph (Deut 33:1-29; Gen 49:1-33; Gen 47:7-10) to dedicate and bless His people and to remind them of the Father in God. And God does something really interesting in the blessing. It appears that the younger and lesser has always gotten the better part of His blessings or the first blessings. (Gen 48:8-22; Gen 28:1-4; Gen 27:23-31) Could this be to demonstrate that the law of primogenitor is incorrect, that man’s ways are not God’s ways? Could it be? I’m not certain. But I do know that God considers the least shall be first, the last shall precede and so forth. That is part of His role as the protective Father, looking after those who would otherwise perish in the cruelty of mankind, cruelty that was learned from childhood and somehow not discouraged.

And I need to look to my teachers in the church to teach us the truth. That I am part of the fold and that all we are is sheep in need of a shepherd. My teachers need to show me that we have a Shepherd that will lead us to heaven and the peace that passes understanding. (Acts 20:28) And my teachers show me that I can make a contribution, as Paul writes about in Ephesians 4:15, 16, no matter where I come from, no matter what my background is or how different it is from everyone else, no matter if I am rich or poor or what my race is or educational background. I am part of the whole and with me the “we” is a well-oiled machine and without me the “we” misses something. God created all of us for the purposes of growing in Him, for the sole purposes of demonstrating His power, and the more elements in the “we” the stronger His body is. And the whole key issue that teachers need to emphasize to me, is how I can better serve, not just what I can get involved in, but in making my heart conjoined to His heart, not just how and what I can learn about Him, but what I allow to absorb into my being. How quick am I to say, “Not my will…” to Him? My teachers can demonstrate how I can effect a change in attitude. In eastern religions the importance of a teacher ranked with how one understood their higher power. It is the same with God. A teacher, a good teacher, explains and exhorts his or her students to not only know of God, but how to become part of God and to experience the spiritual relationship with Him. For that to happen, a teacher must show that I can only lift up with a teaching and not with a talent. Talent can only carry me so far, teaching will show me how best to use that talent for the purposes of being one of God’s children. (1 Cor 4:4)

Teach me so that I may teach...part III

2009-06-05T17:13:00.000-07:00

Children are cruel. They are raw, they are loud, they are mean. These are gross stereotypes, but for good parents, those who are not raw, loud, and mean would soon follow their peers. I was not born good. Nor was I born bad. I was just born. Left to my own devices and without the guidance of my parents I would not know manners, I would not know right from wrong, and I would not believe in God. Parents are gifts to their children from God, and they are emissaries of God to teach morals and wisdom and to guide along the straight and narrow. They are also givers of love. For the most part. Those who aren’t like this make God truly upset, because they are not being what He intended His children to have. When a parent abuses a child, God cries and is angry and makes Him repent of making that parent a parent.

Teach me...Part III

2009-05-29T17:28:00.000-07:00

Above all God desires me to be His child. And to be His child, He wants me to play nice with other children, and not to forsake other children. (Heb 10:25) He wants me to get along with others, to be as a family together. He wants me to learn from my elders and parents (Joshua 8:35; 2 Chronicles 20:13; 2 Chronicles 31:11; Ezra 8:21; Neh 8:2,3; Neh 12:43) He wants my parents to be an example to me. He wants to be an example to me. He wants me to at least be learning as His older children (my parents in the Lord) are learning. More importantly, He wants me to learn to worship Him and that example comes from my parents. And this applies literally to when I was a physical child as well. As a young one must be taught how to do things the way God wants them. That was the purpose of the Sedar at Passover, to pass on knowledge of what God did and why, and that is the purpose for bringing my child or children, if I ever have children, to church with me. Knowledge and wisdom of why and how God wants me to worship Him. Does this mean there can be no “children’s church” as some congregations have? That is up to each man’s conscience and really there is nothing biblically to stop either way. If one is to take the bible literally, then children are brought into the assembly, and so should I. Jesus himself went into the temple and was learning along with the scribes and teachers of the Word. That was at age 12. But I believe that as long as the principles of the how and why are taught in child’s church and that it is a replica of what is going on in the adult worship then there is no harm done. The problem arises when children’s churches become free-for-all and no lessons are really taught. Then can I honestly say that I am not going according to His Word, and am doing a disservice my child or children, should I be blessed by God with them.

Teach me that I may teach

2009-05-24T12:44:00.000-07:00

God is just. And inclusive in that, God is the judge. And in His view He cannot look upon evil or sin. He cannot look upon my sin anymore than He could any other person from Moses’ time, or David’s time, or even Jesus’ time. But there are people to plead my case before Him, much as there is at other times: Moses (Exodus 1;) Jeremiah (Jer 14:21)and of Jesus as a helper (I John 2:1 –I now have an advocate). All of these men have taught me to say the same thing, “Please, God, for Holy Name’s glory, don’t punish.” And the one thing that God shows me that keeps me on the straight and narrow that Jesus will go the extra mile for me, but if I continually let him down (Jer 18:20,21) he has no other recourse than to let God render judgment upon me. If I do not heed Jesus’ teaching, I have only myself to blame. As does anyone else. Especially my spiritual leaders. They must do God’s will, for the sole demonstration of God’s Almighty power. (Joel 2:7) so that the unbeliever may understand God is God.

2009-05-08T14:37:00.001-07:00

In 1 Kings 18:36, 39, Elijah is about to make an evening sacrifice, “Alright, God, “ he says, “Remember how good I’ve been as ymy true and faithful servant. Let’s show ymy people the One and Only True God.” This is a pleas for God to show who is boss. Teach His people obedience and the reason for such. When I was in grammar school, one of the quickest ways to get me to read and learn something is to give me a reason. And if the teachers wouldn’t give me a reason, at least give me a reason to trmet them that my best interest was in their intent for me to learn. God is the same way. He doesn’t always ansIr why until He is done teaching me. And that was the same whether the student was Daniel, or Jonah, or Joseph, or Elijah. When Elijah requested a refresher cmyse, he didn’t want anything major, jmet something that would catch the people’s attention that they Ire really on the wrong track with idol worship. And something without the benefit of human “Deux ex machina”. Asa asked for God to teach the enemy during war time (2 Chronicles 4:11). Many of the lessons that Ire asked for Ire so that those who didn’t believe that God was the Only True God would really see a light bulb go off in front of their eyes so they might repent. Some didn’t, but God was patient. And Moses stopped God, reminding Him of the unbelievers that might look upon God as being too harsh and not something they would want to embrace. I think God likes it when I consider other angles and ask Him questions, like any great teacher would. I think He likes it when His qualities of goodness and mercy are considered and called to His attention so that others won’t think of Him as being a God steeped in evil. (Num 14:13-18) It teaches me how to really speak to Him of His everlasting mercy and that He gets more flies with that honey rather than meing His vinegar. It teaches me communication with others, becamee if I don’t tell them of His mercy, who can comprehend His love and the fact that He could make me a pillar of salt if He wanted to, but He has called me to accept His son’s word that his blood cleanses me continuomely. It teaches me that He knows me more than I will ever realize, that I cannot hide sins, whether from a long time ago that I thought Ire gone and dealt with, or from the present which Ire after all built in the past. It teaches me to be Nehemiah, and remind God that He is a God of refuge (Neh 1:8,9; Neh 9:52) and then to be like David in Ps 74:10 – 23 and Ps 9:19,20; Ps 38:16 even when I am old and gray to rely upon God and communicate that need to Him to tell Him of Himself. Not that He needs to know who He is, but I am the one who when voicing it am reminded of His great and wonderful persona. With His words, God teaches me to ask Him to flex His mmecles a little (with jmetice), show His love a lot (with compassion) and to show evidence that indeed He does exist (as Creator of creation).

Teach me... Part 1

2009-05-02T04:55:00.000-07:00

What does it mean to teach? To be taught? To learn? Other than the dictionary definition of Merriam-Ibster, “To camee to know”, what does that mean, especially when considering Jesme and God? Jesme had no blackboard, and yet I can visualize him in front of a classroom, students gathered around him and he quoting the scriptures, becamee realize he was a rabbi and knew the teachings of God’s Word with proficiency. I can see the applications to real life as the parable of the talents or the mmetard seed or the wheat and chaff. I can see him bringing to life all his principles for to his pupils, such that when they left for the day they Ire not the same as when they initially sat down. And what a wonderful, gloriome enigma God and His son are! My mind is so small I cannot comprehend the depth and breadth of God, the dimensionless scope of His being and how He and His son are so conjoined they are totally in synch and loving each and everyone of me. God knows all things at all times, something else which jmet boggles my mind. Nevertheless, I honestly believe God expects me to remind him of what He has told me and my spiritual forefathers, surely not for His memory by any stretch of the imagination, but as a mental exercise for me, that God way back when knew that I needed to know He knew, that there was a reason and a season for all things. Why? Certainly for my strengthening. He has already ansIred His promises many times over to Abraham and Moses.. But also He wants to convey to me on a personal level that I need to convey to others and influence another’s faith or at least point out what they may not know about God.

There are no Jews, Greeks, etc part 37

2009-04-25T03:23:00.000-07:00

What is so wonderful about God in the grand scheme of His people is that all play an important and vital role. God is no respecter of men as it says in Acts. And as the title of this chapter and devotional say, there is no Jew, no Greek, no male, nor female. What this means is that women were never intentioned to be robots. God fully intentioned that women would be responsible for their own actions. For example, in Deuteronomy 22:21-28, if a man leads a woman astray and she follows, she is punished; yet if she does not follow him into sin, she is vindicated. God protects women the same way He protects men, with a way out. The truth always wins out, and those that follow the truth are to be admired. Other traits to be admired in women are resourcefulness, working diligently and unceasingly, and in kindness and unselfishness. And women do all this quietly. All these are qualities described in Proverbs 31:10-31, often called “the Worthy Woman”. Women in Exodus were also described as being protectors, as Pharoah’s daughter was to Moses in Exodus 3. In the kingdom of Judea, in 2 Kings 11:1-18, Jehosheba protects Joash so that he could rule and later remove Athaliah from the midst of the Isrealites so that they could be faithful to God. God thus used women as a way to keep the family going, not only by giving birth but by provided examples and teaching family members (Numbers 36:1-13). And God delighted in women that walked in holy ways both in their heart and in deed, and He actually shared divine information with them, as in 2 Kings 22:14. This demonstrates that all humans were created in His image. And the same intent is expressed in 2 Chronicles 34:22-28. These scriptures and Numbers 27:1-11 are indicative that women are to be treated fairly. This is reiterated in Joshua 17:3-6. Women are also shown to give God praise during times of trial, much as Hannah in 1 Samuel 2:1-10. And God blesses such women and looks after them as in Ruth 4:3-9. In Judges 5:1-31, Deborah as a woman of God demonstrates another woman that had God’s heart and hand because she was willing to step aside and let Barak lead troops into battle. And of course the godly women in Luke 1:41-59 are examples of how God blesses and protects women

There are no Jews, no Greeks, etc...part 36

2009-04-19T04:23:00.000-07:00

While it is so that there is no male or female in Christ, spiritually, and in the grand scheme of things, in the physical world, women are to be submissive to men. That does not mean enslaved, nor does that mean that women cannot rule countries or sit as judges or be senators. What that means is that under certain circumstances women are submissive to the leadership of men. One of those circumstances is in church. Isaiah 3:6-25 speaks about this. Women had become show-offs and prideful and they forgot that God made them and they should follow God. Since women have a definition in the flesh, they also have a hierarchy in the flesh. The connection to this is that in this world man is the head of woman. That is what 1 Corinthians is speaking about, not about the literal maintaining of a woman’s hair length, but of the figurative covering representing the submission of woman to man. The relationship between men and women is interesting in this regard, if woman is submissive to man, then why are women considered equal spiritually. The reason being is that is the way God planned it. I know that sounds like parents saying, “Because I said so”. But it truly is the way God planned to do things. In fact, during old testament times, men had to purify themselves when they came in contact with women. (Numbers 31:9-34)

There are no Jews, no Greeks, etc... Part 36

2009-04-11T04:06:00.000-07:00

Women, like men, are told how to purify themselves after being through situations that would render them unclean. (Leviticus 15: 19-33) God obviously wanted women to be a part of His worship as much as men. And in the New Testament many women are prominently mentioned by Paul as a huge part of the work force of the church. And as such then the chapter in Proverbs (Proverbs 31) speaking about the worthy woman should be an example of a godly woman to me and how they should be respected by members of the congregation.

At first it would seem that how men are to treat women various from Old Testament to New Testament. In Numbers 5:11-31, for instance, is described how men were to deal with a woman who may or may not be defiled but the husband was jealous and the various ordeals that the woman is put through by the priest. Numbers 30:3 describes a woman making a bond. In Leviticus 12:1-7, this is never more evident as there are regulations what to do when women bear children and how to purify her so that she can come into the company of men again. There were in the temple, Court of Women which was outside of the temple courts, similar to the Court of Gentiles and other Courts that were around the temple but not inside of the Temple. But does this mean that women were to be regarded any differently by men, or is that just man’s interpretation of God’s law? More than likely it is the latter, especially since these regulations and other laws were nailed to the cross as spoken of in Colossians 3:17. There is after all no Jew, no Greek, no Male and no Female as far as God and Jesus are concerned. In Him we are the same.

There are no Jews, no Greeks, etc.. Part 35

2009-04-04T16:20:00.001-07:00

Women also were a metaphor for the righteousness that could be seen in Israel. Women were shown as keeping things close to their heart (Luke 3:19) and delicate (Jeremiah 6:2). They were also seen as those that maintained the purity of the race. (Genesis 24:3-5), as well as those that maintained the honor. (Exodus 22:17)

Then there were those who maintained silent submission, as Ruth did to Boaz in chapters 2 and 3. What is silent submission? For women, it is so hard to follow because of women’s liberation who claim that submission means slavery to men. Then again there are men that mentally and physically abuse women so that they won’t express themselves. But this is not God’s idea of submission. God’s idea is that women have a role in life and worship. I believe it goes along with reading and understanding what is meant by “should” and “must”. “Should” expresses a desire that something be done, “must” is a command. So this would indicate that there is a reconciliation of scriptures. 1Timothy 2:10-15 is reconciled with 1 Corinthians 11:3-16. And this silent submission would also explain how there could be the lifting of hands in worship. Does the fact that I don’t lift my hands in a worship service mean I am not obeying the scripture? No not at all. All it means is that this is how I am keeping order in worship. Lifting holy hand can be done in my heart, much as I can sing in my heart. It has to do with what my attitude is. Do I want to obey God or man? God tells me to “be silent and know that I am your God.” So I will lift my hands to Him in my heart. So I will make melody to Him in my heart. I think it has to do with what is the better vs. the best way to worship Him.

There are no Jews, no Greeks, etc.. Part 35

2009-04-04T16:20:00.000-07:00

There are no Jews, Greeks, etc

2009-03-29T13:55:00.000-07:00

God listens to women, and in that way He also lets everyone know that He listens. Women that were abused, much as Israel was. And there was justice done. (Genesis 34:1-2) God vindicated his people as much as He did with Dinah and her rape. There were those who weren’t interested in their own welfare but that of loved ones. For instance, Zipporah who put herself between God and Moses and consecrating him before God followed through on killing him. (Exodus 4:25). Then there was Rahab, who protected the two spies and enabled them to report back to Joshua. (Joshua 2:1) In Numbers 25:6-8, women are used to prevent plagues from Israel. And the use women as a metaphor for Israel is clear, as demonstrated above. At points in time Israel was not always the God-fearing nation that God desired it to be. And women are not always portrayed as sugar and spice and everything nice. Women were shown as cannibals (II Kings 6:28,29), purveyors of evil ( II Kings 23:7, II Kings 22:10-13, Revelations 17:4, 18; Zechariah 5:7,8), people who strike fear into godly men (Nehemiah 6:14), connivers and manipulators for their own gain (Esther 5:14, Esther 6:13, and Matthew 14:8), greedy and self-seeking (Isaiah 4:1, Psalms 78:63, Judges 11:37). Women were shown as being ambitious, as in Ezekiel 13:17-23. Women were shown as lacking understanding (Job 19:17), as blaming God for all of their problems (Job 2:9), as being flippant about how they carried on their life (Isaiah 32:9,11), as being whores (Hosea 1:2, 3:1), and adulteresses (Matthew 14:34). There were specific women that reminded the reader of Israel. For example, Bathsheba involved in sin in 2 Samuel 11:4,4, and 27 and 2 Samuel 12:9-10. Then there were women who tempted Solomon spoken of in Nehemiah 13:26. And Jezebel in 1 Kings 18:4-13 and 1 Kings 19:2. There was also Herod’s wife in Mark 6:18-28 and Matthew 14:6-14 who put her daughter as a temptation for Herod to kill John the Baptist. This woman misled her husband so that he lost his soul. And what of Sapphira in Acts 5:1-11 who went along with the sin of her husband, Ananias and cheated the LORD.

There are no Jews, Greeks, etc Part 34

2009-03-22T08:18:00.000-07:00

Women are told by Paul to keep silence in church as in I Corinthians 14:34,35 and to be faithful in I Timothy 3:11. The old women are told to take care of and teach young women inTitus 2:3-5. This does mean that women couldn’t be spiritual stalwarts. In Esther 4:15-17, Queen Esther told Mordecai and her people to fast and pray while she spoke to the king on their behalf. Nor does it mean that women are not honored. In Luke 2:37 is a description of Anna, the prophetess who was considered wise. The widow in Luke 21:2-4 was championed for giving out of her poverty. Mary, the sister of Lazarus, was honored in Luke 10:42 by Jesus because of her choice to sit with Him rather than busy herself around the house. And then at Lazarus’ death, Jesus loved both of the sisters, as described in John 11:5 and wept with them about Lazarus. Women were also the first to see Christ when He arose. (Mark 16:1; Luke 23:55- Luke 24:1- 10) Pilate’s wife was also shown as being wiser and more courageous than Pilate. (Matthew 27:19) Jerusalem itself was called the “mother of us all” by Paul in Galatians 4:26. Tabitha in Acts 9:36 was said to be of good words and deeds. In Acts 18:26, Priscilla and Aquila were said to have taught Apollos to have a better understanding of God. In Romans 16:1-2 Paul commends Phoebe and in Romans 16:15, he commends Julia for their works for the LORD. Then there is Timothy’s grandmother which Paul also honors in 2 Timothy 1:5. Paul also acknowledges the women of the church that work hard in Philippians 4:3. Women are also honored for their purity, in Revelations 14:4, and for chastity and loyalty in 2 Chronicles 11:2 and then for their ability to feel sorrow and compassion and weep, in Ezekiel 8:14.

There are no Jews,Greeks, etc...

2009-03-15T04:53:00.000-07:00

Women in biblical times were used by God to display how people in general dealt with enslavement. For instance, Esther was made queen to King Ahseuerus in Persia, who was given to violence and who considered the Jews his slaves. And how did Esther deal with this, and how are we told to deal with the kind of domination that Esther had to deal with? Proverbs 11:16,22 indicate that by being gracious and shining in her personality is the way to regain favor. Proverbs 12:4 indicates that a women with virtue honors her husband. Finally, Proverbs 14:1-22 tells that wise women build their house with knowledge, love, truth, and mercy. Proverbs 19:13 and 14 indicates that the LORD pleases a man with a prudent wife and that foolish women do nothing but ruin a household. Proverbs 21:9-19 and Proverbs 27:15 and 16 indicate that contentious, angry women do nothing but make their household miserable and even bring it into ruin. And this sentiment is reiterated in Proverbs 30:21-23. There are also women that are portrayed as being worse than death because of how they trap and delude others for selfish gain. (Ecclesiastes 7:26-28) Women are also shown as being impudent. (Esther 1:11,12).

There are no Jews, no Greeks, etc part34

2009-03-06T11:27:00.001-08:00

When God uses women, there is an element of accountability that also rings true for men. God uses women as an example to demonstrate the accountability that we all have. Never is this more true than in Genesis 3:16, in which God tells us that because of Eve’s actions, there will be suffering in childbirth and rulership of the husband. And this would hold true for future generations of women, not just her. Please understand this is not original sin but for sure because women and men were no longer in the Garden of Eden, the consequences of Eve’s actions could be felt. Rulership was also evident in Esther 1:20, especially in the relationship between men and women outside of Christ or in Esther’s case outside of the Hebrew religion. King Ahasuerus definitely ruled over everyone including his wife and all were to treat him as Lord and master. This is difficult for women today to understand because they feel liberated; nevertheless in the grand scheme of things men are still protectors over women and still rule. This doesn’t mean control, but in making governing decisions within the body, in making those decision which involve maintaining existence men rule over women. Women take care of the house and training the children in their roles

There are no Jews, No Greeks, etc... part 33

2009-02-28T06:41:00.000-08:00

God also uses women as an example of how He will deliver His people. In Ezekiel 13:17-23, women are shown as humble beings coming to God. In Numbers 31:15-16, while some have the plague the women who come to God are spared. And as bad leaders as they were shown in Isaiah, women could also be good leaders too. For instance, Deborah in Judges 4:4,5 showed that she was truly a woman of God and wanted to follow Him and obey Him. In this scripture and those that follow, Deborah defers her leadership in battle to that of her nephew, Barak, because she knew that in battle and in conquering modes, men are to lead. This is also the scripture in I Corinthians 11:7-10 that men are the head of women. Even though in Christ there is no male, no female, no Jew, no Greek. (Galatians 3:28). Why can both of these be true? Christ has come to make all one in Him, and we all work together, and none are least important than the other. But because the earth is still ruled by principles and laws of nature, there must be a hierarchy while we are on this earth. And that hierarchy puts men as leaders. That doesn’t say they are better than women. What it does say is the order of things. Another example is in Nehemiah 6:14. Women were quite helpful in rebuilding the temple. Also in Luke 2:36-38, the prophetess Anna was considered honorable and great. Also Candace, who was used by God to send the eunuch on a road trip and who met Philip and was taught what he needed to do to accept Christ. Finally, Micah 6:4 implies that women were as important as men in forming the nation of Israel. And therefore their importance cannot be understated. Women were after all the vocal part of the celebrations, for example, in Exodus 15:20,21. Miriam had a timbrel in her hand as the women danced and sang Moses’ victory. And in David’s victory over the Philistines in I Samuel 18:6, women came out and danced. Even those that were not Israelites rejoiced. (2 Samuel 1:20) Women were also a great comfort to Jesus. (Matthew 27:55-66, Mark 15:40-47) And it was to women that Jesus first appeared upon His rising from the dead. Women were also of great faith. Women were also shown to have great faith. For instance, Lydia in Acts 16:14,15, and women in Acts 17:4-34 were extremely devoted and had great faith in Christ. In Ruth 1:2, 2:3-4, and 3:1, women were shown to be devoted to their husband and his people, much as Christ’s church is to be devoted to Him and His family and to count God as Father.

There are no Jews, no Greeks, etc.. Part 33

2009-02-21T06:20:00.000-08:00

There are many allusions to Israel by using women. The likeness to the horrendous treatment of women to sorrows that overtake Israel is shown again in Lamentations 5:11. This is a good example of what the Old Testament does for us and how we are to note the example and either follow that example or be warned of what will happen if we do follow that example. The likeness really demonstrates just how pitiful things had gotten in Israel and Judah. The scriptures also say that Israel needs protection, much as women in Ruth 3:11. This shows God’s desire to protect His people and to preserve the line to Jesus. (Matthew 1,Luke 1) Then again the image of women was not always as those that are pure and need protection. In Isaiah 32:9-11, women are shown to have been carefree and not obedient to God for so long that God is no longer so protective of them. In Jeremiah, Israel is being likened to a forgetful maid in forgetting God and thus their duties to the Father. In Ecclesiastes 7:26, Solomon describes seductive, entrapping women and finds them worse than death because they lead to death and make one forget about God. How does one escape such? By pleasing God. And this is by focusing on God away from seductresses. Women are also used to describe how bad influences corrupt, much as Israel was corrupted by outside, ungodly influences. All the way back to Genesis 3:6, women could be bad influences, and Israel is warned to stay firm and keep focused on what it knows is the truth. Another example is Jezebel in 1 Kings 21:25. Jezebel stirred up trouble much as those women that gossip against one another and people in general. Women are shown to be idol worshippers, and leading their children to be so. (Jeremiah 7:18). And in Nehemiah 13:26, men are warned against women that would cause them to sin, even a man such as Solomon. Women in Isaiah 3:12 are shown to be among the poor leaders and those leaders that take God’s people astray and in utter confusion, due to pride and selfishness. Indeed women are shown in Romans 1:26 to be given to unnatural desires and sinful natures, and God lets them, because this is what they wanted. Because God wants all to come to Him of free will, not because they are supposed to, not because that is what is expected of them, but that is what they wish to do. He wants His people to want to please Him. And women are compared to Israel in Ezekiel 16:32 to being adulterous because of how easily they fall in with those who do not do as God wants. Hosea 4:13,14, also use women to describe the unfaithfulness of Israel. Paul speaks of silly women in 2 Timothy 3:6. Further women are shown as being disobedient, as in Genesis 19:26 and Luke 17:32 and jealous as in Genesis 30:1. And the ultimate disobedience, Eve, in Genesis 3:1 and revisited in 1 Timothy 2:14.

There are no Jews, No greeeks, etc...part 33

2009-02-15T11:31:00.000-08:00

Women are the ones who feel and convey those feelings more than men. For instance, women have a stronger sense of sorrow than men. As in Judges 11:37, women will mourn together for a given circumstance. The metaphor of a woman’s grief is so strong that the writer of Lamentations uses it to describe the mourning in Israel. (Lamentations 4:10) And who else but a daughter could dance with innocence and joy of seeing their protectors and their fathers and bolster their confidence. (Judges 11:34, Judges 21:21, Jeremiah 31:13). Honorable fathers and brothers were protectors of their sisters, as shown in Genesis 34:5. This is why Paul speaks about husbands in Ephesians 5 and how they are to act toward their wives and vice versa. So women do indeed play a significant role in God’s kingdom. Women are also shown as being able to eke out a living for themselves and labor for themselves in the absence of a man. (Isaiah 4:1). At the same time, women were considered to be a commodity. (Matthew 15:25) This is particular written about in Psalms where women have to get on without a husband. (Ps 78:63) And it is sad that when God, because of the stubbornness of the people or sometimes He allows others to overcome others, makes men, women and children captive and there really is nothing we can do to get ourselves out of bondage. (Lamentations 1:18, Ezekiel 30:17-18, Deuteronomy 32:35) For some reason, God chooses to care for women either through providing them with a husbands, with specific guidelines given in Ephesians 5:22-30, or when there are those women who are not married, there are men in the church who will help them through various difficulties. (I Corinthians 11:1-12).

There are no Jews, no Greeks, etc. part32

2009-02-08T11:46:00.001-08:00

At the same time, we have to realize that women physically cannot keep the enemies out, as written in Nahum 3:13. Women were not considered among those that could protect the city of Ninevah. This reference was a warning to Ninevah that describe the wrath that resulted from proceeding against God. Women were considered the weakest of humans and this meant that the men fighting were poor fighting stock and that they could never defeat God. But women were shown as strong in other areas, nurturing, caring for family, distributing love, for example. David spoke of this, in that the love he felt for Jonathan in friendship went beyond that of a woman (2 Samuel 1:26), meaning the love felt was even stronger and higher than that of a woman. This was and is a woman’s asset, that they have a great deal of love, compassion, and their abilities to raise God and to ensure they are trained in God. (Isaiah 49:15) That doesn’t mean women cannot lead. There have been many capable leaders. It simply means that women are not the one’s who can ultimately physically protect against a warring enemy. Men on the other hand need women to help them. Does this mean women need to be with men? Or that men need to be with women? Not always going to happen! So often women are by themselves, especially widows, and it often falls upon them to build up and repair the house, tend the fields, in general keeping the home going. Men on the other hand are the protectors and keep the enemy out and also bring in the tools and the items with which women can build and maintain the household and cause it to grow.

There are no Jews, Greeks, etc....Part 31

2009-01-24T11:30:00.000-08:00

I cannot speak of women without speaking of the disturbing trend. Men wanting to dress as women and vice versa, men desiring to be women and desiring to have relationships with other men as women would have relationships with men. I am not talking about disguising or playing the part of the opposite gender. No I am talking about actually living as one of the opposite gender because that person feels strongly they were born the wrong gender. How sad a statement! How far from God that person has fallen, how much God is displeased with that very idea! Romans 1 speaks over and over how men will have forsaken God and He will let them do as they want but they will not inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. (I Cor 6:9) How sad that is! Some of the those who would be so useful to God just destroy themselves by their actions. But it boils down to being satisfied with the life God has given us. I know what it is like not to be particularly happy with what I have had to deal with, but I also know that I have had and am learning that God puts us in various positions for a purpose and that it all works out for His greater purpose. Men and women must be happy as men and women because they must know that why God created them and that God sent His Son and that God truly loves them. I know that as children boys are made fun of for being artistic and girls made fun of for being athletic. I also know that there are plenty of artistic masculine men and of athletic feminine women, and people learn to deal with the criticism. We must grow up and be God’s children, not children of satan. Women are as important to God as men are, but because humans are cruel and possessive and abusive without God then women are held down and not considered as people. So all problems result from when we don’t put God first, spousal abuse, homosexuality, perversion, stealing, murder, and any other sin. None of us, not men or women, must give in to sin. We must learn to be strong because God is strong.

There are no Jews, Greeks, etc..

2009-01-17T11:39:00.000-08:00

And for the most part, the distinctions between men and women are still that way today. Because it comes natural to do that. It’s a cliché, but it is true: men are truly hunters, simply because they go out, busy themselves with bringing home the bacon, or the money to buy the bacon. And the women are the gatherers, simply because they are the ones to pick the fruit and vegetables and get water and go down to the river to wash clothes and nurse and educate children how they are to take their roles in society. This sounds chauvinistic, and indeed most women would frown on this description. But if we are honest, then we will know this is the only true way in which we can function in a healthy manner and maintain our relationships in marriage. And it is the only way women can survive this life modestly, as Paul speaks to Timothy about in 1 Timothy 2:9,10. Women must be modest, they must realize the importance of their roles of the ones that teach the children manners and propriety, or of what their role is. Women must put the emphasis not on fashion shows but on being godly and to doing good works. This sentiment is reiterated in 11 Peter 3:3,4. Remember that women are to have hearts made of incorruptible material, like men—led by the law of the Spirit, the commandment of Jesus as spoken by Peter in 1 Peter 3:7. Men are to acknowledge and honor their wives, because they are partakers of the inheritance in God. Many times, women see themselves as being described as being the weakest of the species. Is that accurate? Probably not, but we all have our strengths and weakness and women need men just as much as men need women. We cannot make it through this life without some interaction with each other, even if there are those that do not marry. This is shown in Isaiah 19:16, Jeremiah 50:39 and Jeremiah 51:30. The women in these passages may be seen as being weak and in need of protection by men from those that would do harm. I don’t know that I would think of women who need protecting as being weak in any other way except that there are some women who cannot fend of people that would do harm, and while there are those who are police officers and soldiers, men are the ones that train various women to fend off attacks. Why? Because men know how evil other men are. In Nehemiah 3:13, women, in being women, couldn’t keep the enemy out of the walls of Jerusalem, weren’t equipped to defeat those that would tear down the walls.

There are no Jews, no Greeks, etc...

2009-01-11T12:58:00.000-08:00

God obviously looks upon women with favor, because the body of Christ is likened to the Bride of Christ, as seen in Revelations 21:2, 9. But does this favor of women happen all the time? No, but it is the desire of God to favor women. Only when men place their desires and their intentions on women do things go awry. In Ezekiel, women are considered to be precious, such that the daughters that are lost during a description of a loss would be considered the worst loss and devastation of all. (Ezekiel 26:6-8).

Women are also looked upon with favor because they are the first to notice when things need tending to, probably since they themselves are involved in every aspect of everyday life. Matthew 26:29 and John 18:16, 17, demonstrates this. The women recognized Peter as one of Jesus’ disciples. Why is this so important? Because it recognizes the existence of Jesus with witnesses other than His followers. The women were the first to recognize Jesus after He arose, much as they were the first to note He was gone. Although women were low on the totem pole, God used them and He took and takes them seriously. Women could and can pick up on the unusual, for instance in Acts 12:13,14 when Peter was released from prison. Rhoda met him at the door and delayed the message he was bringing to the household. Only those of faith would have and could have believed her.

There are no Jews, Greeks, etc Part 31

2008-12-27T08:35:00.000-08:00

The main issue here is what is in the heart of a woman. Does she mean to do and does she do good, like Hannah in I Samuel? Or is she a Jezebel? Does she actually sing praise along with the men in Ezra 2:6, praising and honoring God? Or is she involved with sin, as the women involved with Eli’s sons (I Samuel 2:22) and as Bathsheba with David (II Samuel 11:4).

A big issue where God talks about women is women as mothers. Women as mothers are presented in Scripture as being as important as men being fathers, exhibiting care, love and joy with their children. Exemplified is this in Hannah (I Samuel 2: 19) who made Samuel a coat whenever she visited him at the temple. And women are resourceful. Look at the woman that is described in Proverbs 31. They know how to provide for their home, not only by way of cooking, cleaning, and chores, but providing an income for the family. Also women are seen grieving in times of mourning. (Acts 9:39) God cares for women in various circumstances, as seen in Ruth 2:8, even if women have been made servants (Song of Solomon 1:6). And He favors those who stay pure. (Esther 2:9,11). In fact, the marriage bed and the entire concept of marriage itself is favorable and pleasing to God. Surely marriage is something that everyone seeks at one time in their life or another, because we are all seeking a mate. But when this is not pleasing is when we seek a mate without involving God in the equation. For only then will He provides women with good men to take care of them. Only if they will stay pure and patient with God, and their relationship with God is such that they know that He will provide for them, will God be pleased with their marriage. What some women don’t realize or don’t want to admit is that many times they are anxious about becoming married because they are afraid of being along. But, women can take care of themselves, as demonstrated in Gen 22:9, and worked hard as servants in Exodus 2:16 and laborers in Isaiah 27:11. What women forget is that God indeed does know the depths of a woman’s heart, and what loneliness is like. God hears women, and does provide.

There are no Jews, no Greeks, etc. Part 30

2008-12-20T13:45:00.000-08:00

A point about women. Does Paul's not allowing women to speak in church mean women don’t have the strength or purpose in character of a man? Hardly. Look at Esther in Esther 2:9 regarding her beauty and her strength of character. Then when one examines the women in Exodus 15:20 and Genesis 24:65 –67 and how those women were a great comfort to men. Ezra 2:65 as well shows women side by side with men, singing God’s praises. God even commands women to be part of the worship in Deuteronomy 31:12. That is so logical, after all, all of us were made in His image, and are to be involved in the purification and presentation rights (Luke 2:22) and in praying (Acts 1:14, Acts 12:12,13). There is no Jew, no Greek, no male…This brings up another issue. If Paul is convinced that our souls are great equalizers, as the previous sentence would imply, why then does Paul make such a big deal over women’s heads being uncovered? (I Corinthians 11:5) I truly believe that it dates back to Eve, who without a head (or one to which she would submit) was deceived. (II Corinthian 11:3) This is why women are lead by men. Does that mean that women are incapable of leading? No, and I certainly don’t believe Paul believed that. What I do believe is that Paul understood that a woman had to take advice from a man and be lead by a man. (I Corinthians 14:34, I Timothy 2:11) and listen to a man by keeping silent. Does that mean keep her opinions locked up? Not necessarily. But there is a time and a place for everything. As well, how women were to follow men was similar to how Christians are to follow God, in submission and humility, keeping silent and listening before speaking. (Genesis 18:26, Exodus 35:25,26) One’s own opinions are much less important than God’s truths and certainties. And the will of God remains supreme forever, and something to pay attention to.

There are No Jews, no Greeks, etc... Part 29

2008-12-13T07:00:00.000-08:00

Remember, above all, God is in control of us, as says in Psalms 22:27-31. God loves us and has provided a way for us to be in His body. And there is only one body, one Lord, one faith, one baptism. (Eph 4:5-6) Only in God can we be sure whether or not we are following His precious will. Only in Him will we all be able to exist in peace. This according to Isaiah 4:1-6 does not exclude the Jews because there is a remnant that will believe in Christ. And this is not just in the 1st century but a promise for all time. God is God forever.

Then of course there is the focus that God places on women, because after all without women there would not be men or vice versa. God created two of a kind so that we know our limitations, so that we know we depend on each other and need each other even if we are merely friends, simply because of the different ways we react, think, emote all because of the variation in hormones that run through our bodies. The focus that God places on women is never more clear than in Genesis 1:27, in which the scope of freedoms afforded the human race are shown. He considers both sexes equally important in creation, because of the viewpoints and individuality each of us has parts of male and female in us, and depending upon which happens to be stronger, that is the one in which will dominate and God makes us male or female. Both are equally important in creation (Genesis 2:21-23) and throughout life. I could not survive without my male friends, and they say they have a tough time surviving without me. Like recombinant DNA, femaleness is a part of man and maleness is a part of woman. Both come from each other (I Corinthians:11:3-16) and because genes that God uses to create living things, He was able to fashion woman by changing sequences, adding here, subtracting there to get female from male rib bone. Man and woman are not so different, only by blueprint, as a whole, yet immensely different individually as men differ from men individually. And in the hierarchy of earth yes women are indeed different from men, as men are different from other men and women are different from other women. Women are so different in that they approach things more emotionally than men. Paul uses the example of Eve being easily deceived (II Corinthians 11:3) by the serpent, that is by the serpent playing on the emotion of the situation, the high she got from thinking that yes indeed there was a way to be God, not just like Him but Him and have knowledge of the entire universe. And the passage goes on to explain that Adam was not deceived like Eve into transgression, although he certainly followed suit, perhaps out of avoidance of being alone. That is to be in sin and happy meant more than being right and lonely.