"Set up signposts, Make landmarks; Set your heart toward the highway, The way in which you went. Turn back, O virgin of Israel, Turn back to these your cities." (Jeremiah 31:21, NKJV)
JEREMIAH PROPHESIED to a wayward nation that had lost its way. In a plaintive plea, the Lord cried out, "How long will you wander, O unfaithful daughter?" (v 22). In their beginnings they had been directed by both promises and laws. Their path had been clearly charted for them. God had established a central city from which blessings would emanate – Jerusalem. This is the most blessed city in all history, and the only one of which it is said, "Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen [for] Me to put my name there" (1 Kgs 11:36). In this city was the temple, a location exclusively identified with the living God. They were given the offices of High Priest and priest to bring them before the Lord, and seek their blessing (Ex 29:9-29; Num 1:50-53). God raised up holy prophets, sending them to the people to inform, warn and plead with them (Jer 35:15). There was also the Sabbath day, a single day wholly devoted to the Lord (Ex 20:8-11). The Lord even established three annual feasts to heighten the awareness of Himself among the people (Ex 23:14-14-17).
YET, IN SPITE OF ALL of these provisions, the people "wandered as blind men in the streets" (Lam 4:14), straying from the Lord, forgetting His law, and ignoring His prophets. Jeremiah was sent by God to this people. The Lord commanded him to say what He directed him to speak, and not be afraid of this rebellious people. He put His words in Jeremiah's mouth, and set him "over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant" (Jer 1:7-9). The mighty prophet delivered a troublesome message during disturbing times.SIGNPOSTS. Our text is a marvelous sample of the strength of Jeremiah's message. In it he calls upon the people to "Set up signposts," or make road markers. By this he does not mean to set up signs identifying where they were. Rather, they were to set up signs that told where they were going. They were to clearly mark the path back to their proper abode. This involved holy recollections of their beginnings, and reminders of why the Lord had called and blessed them. This also included exposure to the Law and the Prophets – the Word of the Lord, the temple, and the feasts.
LANDMARKS. These were things that would assist their memories, like the stones piled up in Jordan (Josh 4:6-7), and the faithful observance of the Passover feast (2 Kgs 23:21-23).
THE HIGHWAY. The people were admonished, "Set your heart toward the highway." One version says, "Direct your mind to the highway" (NASB). Another reads, "Consider well the highway" (RSV). The prophet adds, "the way in which you were sent." This was a call to remember how they entered the promised land in the first place. They had been called out of the land of bondage to a land flowing with milk and honey – one that would be ready to receive them, with houses, wells, and vineyards that they had no part in making (Deut 6:11).
THEY HAD JOURNEYED through a wilderness, with all of their needs being miraculously supplied (Neh 9:20). When they confronted enemies, they overcame them (Neh 9:22). Their clothes and shoes did not wear out, and their feet did not dwell, even though they were nomads for forty years (Deut 8:4; 29:5).
THIS HIGHWAY WAS NOT CHARTED BY MEN. It had not been traveled before, and was not on any map made by men. Due consideration of that highway to Canaan would assist the Israelites in making a recovery, once again finding their way back to their God.OUR TIME. We live in a time when many professed believers have lost their way. They are wandering in the timbers of Law like the Galatians (Gal 4:9-11), or have left their first love like the Ephesians (Rev 2:4). Such people have left the highway to glory, and are no longer seeking a city that has foundations (Heb 11:10). They have settled in the world, and the dust of carnality has obscured their vision. What can be done under these circumstances? How can recovery be realized?
SUCH PEOPLE MUST "set their heart toward the highway!" Let them ponder how they first made their way to the Lord on the appointed way. They became single-eyed as they sought forgiveness, grace, and an eternal inheritance. No price was too great to pay. The world was seen as unworthy of their love, and a deep sense of a need for the Lord dominated their thinking. That is the "highway" we all took to the Lord. It was the "what-must-I-do" highway and a "here am I" path. It was clearly marked by the Gospel of Christ, and left the traveler with a keen sense that God had something he needed and fervently desired.
THIS "HIGHWAY" WAS RAISED UP BY GOD in the midst of an impoverished desert (Isa 35:8). It stood in sharp contrast to everything around it, yet on it there was safety and blessing. ow about you? Are you looking toward the highway to heaven? Has it captured your heart? The
ravenous beast cannot walk there, but you can! How blessed to ponder it.
– Given O. Blakely
Monday, May 31, 2010
Friday, May 28, 2010
INNOCENT BLOOD
"Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed THE INNOCENT BLOOD." (Matthew 27:3-4)
THERE CAME A TIME when something of the magnitude of Judas' dreadful transgression came home to him. He realized he had betrayed "THE innocent blood." He was gripped by a fleshly remorse, or the "sorrow of this world which worketh death" (2 Cor 7:10). He "repented himself," which is not like godly sorrow that "works repentance."
WHEN "SIN ENTERED THE WORLD," death entered with it (Rom 5:12). In order to retrieve humanity from death, an undeserved death had to occur; or, to put it another way, an innocent life had to be forfeited. Innocence, in this case, could not be the mere absence of personal guilt; an infant could meet that requirement. It had to be a life lived in the crucible of conflict. The remedy for sin required the offering of one who had confronted the devil in all of his subtlety, without yielding to temptation a single time. That life belonged to Jesus alone, the "innocent blood" (Matt 27:4).
THIS TERM, "THE INNOCENT BLOOD," is common in the old Scriptures. Deut 19:10, 13; 21:8,9; 1 Kgs 2:31; 2 Kgs 21:16; 24:4; Psa 106:38; Prov 6:17; Isa 59:7; Jer 7:6; 22:3,17; 26:15; Joel 3:19). Of these references, six refer to SHEDDING "innocent blood" (2 Kgs 21:16; Psa 106:38; Prov 6:17; Isa 59:7; Jer 22:3,17; Joel 3:19). In these instances, the taking of "innocent blood" brought a curse upon those so doing. Wicked king Manasseh "shed innocent blood very much," doing "that which is evil in the sight of the Lord" (2 Kgs 21:16). In flagrant disobedience, and in alliance with heathen nations, Israel "shed "innocent blood," polluting the land with it (Psa 106:38). God is declared to "hate hands that shed innocent blood" (Prov 6:17). He desolated Egypt and Edom because they "shed innocent blood in their land" (Joel 3:19). Think of the record of innocent blood being shed. Abel was slain by his own brother, because his works were righteous, while those of Cain were wicked (1 John 3:12). Ahab and Jezebel conspired to murder Naboth, because they coveted his vineyard (1 Kings 21). David arranged the death of Uriah because he coveted his wife, Bathsheba (2 Sam 14). Wicked Pharaoh slaughtered innocent children because he was "grieved" with the Divinely directed increase of the children of Israel (Exo 1). Herod mandated the slaughtering of infants in a quest to eliminate Him Who was born, "the King of the Jews" (Matt 2). These were sins against "innocent blood," and they brought a curse upon those committing such atrocities. The shedding of "innocent blood" is strictly forbidden by God!
IN THE CASE OF CHRIST, however, the shedding of "innocent blood" brought a blessing! Christ's life was given for our life. He lost His life that might gain ours. He was "cut off" that we might be "grafted in." He was cursed that we might be blessed! Christ's rejection by God while bearing our sins assured our acceptance by God while receiving His righteousness. Because the Father turned His face from the Son in His death, He now may turn His face toward us with grace and acceptance. How blessed is our condition because of the shedding of this "innocent blood" ! This is the Lord's doing!
IT IS NOT POSSIBLE to come to God apart from Christ, or to enter the holiest without the blood of Jesus. It is not that this is simply not recommended, it is not possible! There is no procedure adequate to replace Jesus! No work can be performed that can obviate the necessity of The Substitute!
OUR DEBT LEGITIMATELY PAID. A debt can be paid vicariously – by one that did not incur the debt. The debt can thus be completely liquidated. This reality is portrayed in the parable of the good Samaritan who willingly volunteered to pay the charges required to fully restore a wounded man (Lk 10:35). Paul also displayed this quality in asking Philemon to charge him with any indebtedness incurred by a returned slave, Onesimus (Phile 18). In the case of humanity, sin incurred indebtedness to God. Sin is an attempt to rob God of His glory, and it cannot be excused. That debt cannot simply be overlooked, it must be paid, and paid in full. Jesus did precisely that when He "redeemed us from the curse of the law" (Gal 3:13). Our redemption involved the complete liquidation of the monumental debt incurred by the sin of our race. That payment is applied to our account by means of faith in the One that made it.
ENTERING THE HOLIEST BY THE BLOOD OF JESUS IS COMING TO GOD WITH A LIVELY AWARENESS OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF CHRIST'S ATONING DEATH. IT IS APPROACHING GOD PERSUADED THAT JESUS HAS CLEARED THE WAY FOR US TO COME.
– Given O. Blakely
THERE CAME A TIME when something of the magnitude of Judas' dreadful transgression came home to him. He realized he had betrayed "THE innocent blood." He was gripped by a fleshly remorse, or the "sorrow of this world which worketh death" (2 Cor 7:10). He "repented himself," which is not like godly sorrow that "works repentance."
WHEN "SIN ENTERED THE WORLD," death entered with it (Rom 5:12). In order to retrieve humanity from death, an undeserved death had to occur; or, to put it another way, an innocent life had to be forfeited. Innocence, in this case, could not be the mere absence of personal guilt; an infant could meet that requirement. It had to be a life lived in the crucible of conflict. The remedy for sin required the offering of one who had confronted the devil in all of his subtlety, without yielding to temptation a single time. That life belonged to Jesus alone, the "innocent blood" (Matt 27:4).
THIS TERM, "THE INNOCENT BLOOD," is common in the old Scriptures. Deut 19:10, 13; 21:8,9; 1 Kgs 2:31; 2 Kgs 21:16; 24:4; Psa 106:38; Prov 6:17; Isa 59:7; Jer 7:6; 22:3,17; 26:15; Joel 3:19). Of these references, six refer to SHEDDING "innocent blood" (2 Kgs 21:16; Psa 106:38; Prov 6:17; Isa 59:7; Jer 22:3,17; Joel 3:19). In these instances, the taking of "innocent blood" brought a curse upon those so doing. Wicked king Manasseh "shed innocent blood very much," doing "that which is evil in the sight of the Lord" (2 Kgs 21:16). In flagrant disobedience, and in alliance with heathen nations, Israel "shed "innocent blood," polluting the land with it (Psa 106:38). God is declared to "hate hands that shed innocent blood" (Prov 6:17). He desolated Egypt and Edom because they "shed innocent blood in their land" (Joel 3:19). Think of the record of innocent blood being shed. Abel was slain by his own brother, because his works were righteous, while those of Cain were wicked (1 John 3:12). Ahab and Jezebel conspired to murder Naboth, because they coveted his vineyard (1 Kings 21). David arranged the death of Uriah because he coveted his wife, Bathsheba (2 Sam 14). Wicked Pharaoh slaughtered innocent children because he was "grieved" with the Divinely directed increase of the children of Israel (Exo 1). Herod mandated the slaughtering of infants in a quest to eliminate Him Who was born, "the King of the Jews" (Matt 2). These were sins against "innocent blood," and they brought a curse upon those committing such atrocities. The shedding of "innocent blood" is strictly forbidden by God!
IN THE CASE OF CHRIST, however, the shedding of "innocent blood" brought a blessing! Christ's life was given for our life. He lost His life that might gain ours. He was "cut off" that we might be "grafted in." He was cursed that we might be blessed! Christ's rejection by God while bearing our sins assured our acceptance by God while receiving His righteousness. Because the Father turned His face from the Son in His death, He now may turn His face toward us with grace and acceptance. How blessed is our condition because of the shedding of this "innocent blood" ! This is the Lord's doing!
IT IS NOT POSSIBLE to come to God apart from Christ, or to enter the holiest without the blood of Jesus. It is not that this is simply not recommended, it is not possible! There is no procedure adequate to replace Jesus! No work can be performed that can obviate the necessity of The Substitute!
OUR DEBT LEGITIMATELY PAID. A debt can be paid vicariously – by one that did not incur the debt. The debt can thus be completely liquidated. This reality is portrayed in the parable of the good Samaritan who willingly volunteered to pay the charges required to fully restore a wounded man (Lk 10:35). Paul also displayed this quality in asking Philemon to charge him with any indebtedness incurred by a returned slave, Onesimus (Phile 18). In the case of humanity, sin incurred indebtedness to God. Sin is an attempt to rob God of His glory, and it cannot be excused. That debt cannot simply be overlooked, it must be paid, and paid in full. Jesus did precisely that when He "redeemed us from the curse of the law" (Gal 3:13). Our redemption involved the complete liquidation of the monumental debt incurred by the sin of our race. That payment is applied to our account by means of faith in the One that made it.
ENTERING THE HOLIEST BY THE BLOOD OF JESUS IS COMING TO GOD WITH A LIVELY AWARENESS OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF CHRIST'S ATONING DEATH. IT IS APPROACHING GOD PERSUADED THAT JESUS HAS CLEARED THE WAY FOR US TO COME.
– Given O. Blakely
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
GIVE ME UNDERSTANDING!
"Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart. . . . Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments." (Psalms 119:34,73)
AS A MAN ESPECIALLY CLOSE TO GOD, David had a profound appetite for the Word of the Lord. He was not satisfied to merely have an academic acquaintance with Scripture, but desired to understand, or comprehend, this appointed means of sustaining spiritual life. Although noted for being wise, and having a disciplined mind, he sought understanding from the Lord Himself. Five times in the 119th Psalm, he pleads with God to give him this precious understanding (vs 34,73,125,144,169). In this, he provided a noble example for us.
THERE IS A DIMENSION of understanding that goes beyond the reach of the natural mind. Unless we receive assistance from the Lord Himself, we will not be able to appropriate this understanding. David knew this and sought such comprehension from the Lord. He realized he could not observe, or align himself with God's Word, without this understanding. His life could not be godly without a proper understanding.
SUFFICE IT TO SAY, we need Divine assistance in the matter of spiritual understanding. "For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding" (Col 1:9). It is God who "fills" us with wisdom and understanding in spiritual matters, and He does so by personally teaching us. This thought focuses on the unique privilege of being "taught by God." His teaching does not obviate the disciplined involvement of the human heart and mind. Without God's personal instruction, however, all such activities are vain. There is no such thing as life in Christ without Divine involvement.
NOTICE, THE APOSTLE PRAYS the people will be "filled with the knowledge of His will IN all spiritual wisdom and understanding." This involves the knowledge of Scripture, but is not limited to it. The Scripture obtains its power and profitability from God, not from human thought. It is axiomatic that until this type of wisdom and understanding is perceived as coming from God, it simply will be not possessed. It is something for which we must ask (James 1:5).
THE NEW COVENANT IS NOT the induction of a deistic enterprise–i.e., one in which God Himself is uninvolved. In such a case, men imagine God is really not present. It is a situation where things run by laws and principles. Spiritual life is thus thought to run something like a clock that is wound up. It just ticks away automatically, without any personal affiliation with the living God. Emphatically, this is not the case with the regime of Jesus! A Person holds all things together, not an imagined "law of nature" (Col 1:17).
MORE WITNESS FROM DAVIDBecause of his sensitivity to the Lord, David was a "man after" God's own "heart" (1 Sam 13:14; Acts 13:22). As such, I am interested in His observations about the teaching of God. David did have a Bible. It was limited, because revelation was limited. However, he devoured the Scripture he possessed, meditating upon it in the night time, and rising early to ingest its message (Psa 63:6; 119:147,148). Yet, he saw the necessity of Divine tutelage. He wanted to be "taught by God." When counsel was given, David responded in a God-glorifying manner. "I will bless the LORD Who has counseled me; Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night" (Psa 16:7, NASB). Notice that the counsel of God is paralleled with the instruction of David's mind. When God teaches, our minds do become spiritually productive.
THIS WAS INNER INSTRUCTION, not an audible voice like Samuel heard. Of course, God does have access to the heart. He not only sees what is in the heart, He can effectively counsel the heart. He can direct our thinking without violating our wills or compromising His character! No one should shrink from this thought. One of the marks of the New Covenant is, "I will put my laws into their minds" (Heb 8:10). There is such a thing as a mind being "controlled by the Spirit" (Rom 8:6, NIV). This is how God counsels His people, opening realities to them in their minds, expanding their thoughts, and elevating their contemplations. It is true that He uses Scripture, but that in no way removes His personal involvement.
AFTER PAUL HAD WRITTEN to Timothy, declaring the Word given to him, he relied upon the teaching of the Lord. "Consider what I say; for the Lord shall give thee understanding in all things" (1 Tim 2:7, ASV). What a marvelous provision! As our hearts and minds become involved in holy reflection, the Lord becomes involved with us. No wonder the Apostle reminded the Ephesians, "But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus" (Eph 4:20-21, NKJV).
THE WORD OF GOD notifies us that God "directs" people. Solomon said, "The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps" (Prov 16:9). The 37th Psalm records, "The steps of a man are established by the LORD; And He delights in his way" (Psa 37:23). He directs us by teaching us.
– Given O. Blakely
AS A MAN ESPECIALLY CLOSE TO GOD, David had a profound appetite for the Word of the Lord. He was not satisfied to merely have an academic acquaintance with Scripture, but desired to understand, or comprehend, this appointed means of sustaining spiritual life. Although noted for being wise, and having a disciplined mind, he sought understanding from the Lord Himself. Five times in the 119th Psalm, he pleads with God to give him this precious understanding (vs 34,73,125,144,169). In this, he provided a noble example for us.
THERE IS A DIMENSION of understanding that goes beyond the reach of the natural mind. Unless we receive assistance from the Lord Himself, we will not be able to appropriate this understanding. David knew this and sought such comprehension from the Lord. He realized he could not observe, or align himself with God's Word, without this understanding. His life could not be godly without a proper understanding.
SUFFICE IT TO SAY, we need Divine assistance in the matter of spiritual understanding. "For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding" (Col 1:9). It is God who "fills" us with wisdom and understanding in spiritual matters, and He does so by personally teaching us. This thought focuses on the unique privilege of being "taught by God." His teaching does not obviate the disciplined involvement of the human heart and mind. Without God's personal instruction, however, all such activities are vain. There is no such thing as life in Christ without Divine involvement.
NOTICE, THE APOSTLE PRAYS the people will be "filled with the knowledge of His will IN all spiritual wisdom and understanding." This involves the knowledge of Scripture, but is not limited to it. The Scripture obtains its power and profitability from God, not from human thought. It is axiomatic that until this type of wisdom and understanding is perceived as coming from God, it simply will be not possessed. It is something for which we must ask (James 1:5).
THE NEW COVENANT IS NOT the induction of a deistic enterprise–i.e., one in which God Himself is uninvolved. In such a case, men imagine God is really not present. It is a situation where things run by laws and principles. Spiritual life is thus thought to run something like a clock that is wound up. It just ticks away automatically, without any personal affiliation with the living God. Emphatically, this is not the case with the regime of Jesus! A Person holds all things together, not an imagined "law of nature" (Col 1:17).
MORE WITNESS FROM DAVIDBecause of his sensitivity to the Lord, David was a "man after" God's own "heart" (1 Sam 13:14; Acts 13:22). As such, I am interested in His observations about the teaching of God. David did have a Bible. It was limited, because revelation was limited. However, he devoured the Scripture he possessed, meditating upon it in the night time, and rising early to ingest its message (Psa 63:6; 119:147,148). Yet, he saw the necessity of Divine tutelage. He wanted to be "taught by God." When counsel was given, David responded in a God-glorifying manner. "I will bless the LORD Who has counseled me; Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night" (Psa 16:7, NASB). Notice that the counsel of God is paralleled with the instruction of David's mind. When God teaches, our minds do become spiritually productive.
THIS WAS INNER INSTRUCTION, not an audible voice like Samuel heard. Of course, God does have access to the heart. He not only sees what is in the heart, He can effectively counsel the heart. He can direct our thinking without violating our wills or compromising His character! No one should shrink from this thought. One of the marks of the New Covenant is, "I will put my laws into their minds" (Heb 8:10). There is such a thing as a mind being "controlled by the Spirit" (Rom 8:6, NIV). This is how God counsels His people, opening realities to them in their minds, expanding their thoughts, and elevating their contemplations. It is true that He uses Scripture, but that in no way removes His personal involvement.
AFTER PAUL HAD WRITTEN to Timothy, declaring the Word given to him, he relied upon the teaching of the Lord. "Consider what I say; for the Lord shall give thee understanding in all things" (1 Tim 2:7, ASV). What a marvelous provision! As our hearts and minds become involved in holy reflection, the Lord becomes involved with us. No wonder the Apostle reminded the Ephesians, "But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus" (Eph 4:20-21, NKJV).
THE WORD OF GOD notifies us that God "directs" people. Solomon said, "The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps" (Prov 16:9). The 37th Psalm records, "The steps of a man are established by the LORD; And He delights in his way" (Psa 37:23). He directs us by teaching us.
– Given O. Blakely
Monday, May 24, 2010
ABRAHAM AND THE GOSPEL
"And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed." (Galatians 3:8)
THE GOSPEL WAS PREACHED TO ABRAHAM, hundreds of years before the Law was given. This is a remarkable circumstance, and worthy of our consideration. It is as though God could not contain His intention – His determined objective! The nations of the world "shall be blessed." What a marvelous word! A message that does not announce and produce a blessing cannot be Gospel!
BEING BLESSED. Blessing involves both the condition and the awareness of the one being blessed. It speaks of a BENEFIT that itself brings JOY. It is an ADVANTAGE that brings great ELATION to the soul. It is something good FOR us and good TO us.THE WORD "blessing" also includes the idea of liberality or abundance. Men are not "blessed" with mere droplets of advantage, as it were, but "showers of blessing," as promised by Ezekiel (Ezek 34:26).
JUSTIFICATION THROUGH FAITH. The Spirit is specific about the nature of the Abrahamic blessing. The Gospel preached to him, we are told, was spoken in Divine foreknowledge that the Lord would "would justify the heathen through faith." Not that the heathen COULD be justified through faith, but that they WOULD be justified through faith. This is something God Himself would do: "that GOD would justify the heathen through faith."
JUSTIFICATION IS an exceedingly large concept. It includes the complete removal of guilt – something the Law could not do. The law identified guilt, but could do nothing about it. As it is written, "And by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses" (Acts 13:39). In justification, the individual is rendered "holy and without blame" before God "in love" (Eph 1:4). Those who are justified have been "forgiven all trespasses" (Col 2:13), and "washed from their sins" (Rev 1:5). In this they have been richly "blessed." As it is written, "BLESSED are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. BLESSED is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin" (Rom 4:7-8).
JUSTIFICATION ALSO INCLUDES the imputation of righteousness. God's own righteousness is given to us upon the basis of Christ's atoning death, and because of our faith. As it is written, "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be MADE righteous" (Rom 5:19). This is the "righteousness of God" that is revealed in the Gospel (Rom 1:16-17). "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe" NIV (Rom 3:21).
BLESSING, BLESSING, BLESSING! Truly, the Gospel is a proclamation of blessing – joyous benefit! It is no wonder Peter proclaimed, "Unto you first God, having raised up His Son Jesus, sent Him to BLESS you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities" (Acts 3:26). In his first epistle, Peter tells believers they have been called to be blessed: "knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit A BLESSING" (1 Pet 3:9). Paul also affirmed the blessedness of the Gospel. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with ALL SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS in heavenly places in Christ" (Eph 1:3). He even wrote of "the fulness of the BLESSING of the gospel of Christ" (Rom 15:29).
OUR TEXT AFFIRMS, God "preached before the gospel unto Abraham." It does NOT say He preached "A" gospel to Abraham, but THE gospel! The announcement involved a Divine initiative that would pervade the darkness that had enveloped the world. "In thee SHALL all nations be blessed." This promise was repeatedly given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – the fathers. " . . . in thee shall all families of the earth BE BLESSED . . . all the nations of the earth shall BE BLESSED in him . . . and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth BE BLESSED . . . and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth BE BLESSED . . . in thy seed shall all the families of the earth BE BLESSED" (Gen 12:3; 18:18; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14). Peter announced that very blessing is realized in Christ Jesus, who is the focus of the Gospel (Acts 3:25-26).
IF IT BE COUNTERED that the promise was actually to Abraham, and not to us, allow me to state the case more clearly. "So then they which be of faith ARE BLESSED with faithful Abraham" (Gal 3:9).
WHAT A WONDERFUL MESSAGE – a message of blessing! In this case, the Gospel was given before the Law! "God preached the Gospel BEFORE unto Abraham." And, the New Covenant was actually announced before the Old Covenant: "And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed BEFORE of God in Christ, the Law, which was four hundred and thirty years AFTER, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect" (Gal 3:17). What the Gospel announces is superior, and has always been God's intention – from before creation.
– Given O. Blakely
THE GOSPEL WAS PREACHED TO ABRAHAM, hundreds of years before the Law was given. This is a remarkable circumstance, and worthy of our consideration. It is as though God could not contain His intention – His determined objective! The nations of the world "shall be blessed." What a marvelous word! A message that does not announce and produce a blessing cannot be Gospel!
BEING BLESSED. Blessing involves both the condition and the awareness of the one being blessed. It speaks of a BENEFIT that itself brings JOY. It is an ADVANTAGE that brings great ELATION to the soul. It is something good FOR us and good TO us.THE WORD "blessing" also includes the idea of liberality or abundance. Men are not "blessed" with mere droplets of advantage, as it were, but "showers of blessing," as promised by Ezekiel (Ezek 34:26).
JUSTIFICATION THROUGH FAITH. The Spirit is specific about the nature of the Abrahamic blessing. The Gospel preached to him, we are told, was spoken in Divine foreknowledge that the Lord would "would justify the heathen through faith." Not that the heathen COULD be justified through faith, but that they WOULD be justified through faith. This is something God Himself would do: "that GOD would justify the heathen through faith."
JUSTIFICATION IS an exceedingly large concept. It includes the complete removal of guilt – something the Law could not do. The law identified guilt, but could do nothing about it. As it is written, "And by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses" (Acts 13:39). In justification, the individual is rendered "holy and without blame" before God "in love" (Eph 1:4). Those who are justified have been "forgiven all trespasses" (Col 2:13), and "washed from their sins" (Rev 1:5). In this they have been richly "blessed." As it is written, "BLESSED are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. BLESSED is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin" (Rom 4:7-8).
JUSTIFICATION ALSO INCLUDES the imputation of righteousness. God's own righteousness is given to us upon the basis of Christ's atoning death, and because of our faith. As it is written, "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be MADE righteous" (Rom 5:19). This is the "righteousness of God" that is revealed in the Gospel (Rom 1:16-17). "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe" NIV (Rom 3:21).
BLESSING, BLESSING, BLESSING! Truly, the Gospel is a proclamation of blessing – joyous benefit! It is no wonder Peter proclaimed, "Unto you first God, having raised up His Son Jesus, sent Him to BLESS you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities" (Acts 3:26). In his first epistle, Peter tells believers they have been called to be blessed: "knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit A BLESSING" (1 Pet 3:9). Paul also affirmed the blessedness of the Gospel. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with ALL SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS in heavenly places in Christ" (Eph 1:3). He even wrote of "the fulness of the BLESSING of the gospel of Christ" (Rom 15:29).
OUR TEXT AFFIRMS, God "preached before the gospel unto Abraham." It does NOT say He preached "A" gospel to Abraham, but THE gospel! The announcement involved a Divine initiative that would pervade the darkness that had enveloped the world. "In thee SHALL all nations be blessed." This promise was repeatedly given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – the fathers. " . . . in thee shall all families of the earth BE BLESSED . . . all the nations of the earth shall BE BLESSED in him . . . and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth BE BLESSED . . . and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth BE BLESSED . . . in thy seed shall all the families of the earth BE BLESSED" (Gen 12:3; 18:18; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14). Peter announced that very blessing is realized in Christ Jesus, who is the focus of the Gospel (Acts 3:25-26).
IF IT BE COUNTERED that the promise was actually to Abraham, and not to us, allow me to state the case more clearly. "So then they which be of faith ARE BLESSED with faithful Abraham" (Gal 3:9).
WHAT A WONDERFUL MESSAGE – a message of blessing! In this case, the Gospel was given before the Law! "God preached the Gospel BEFORE unto Abraham." And, the New Covenant was actually announced before the Old Covenant: "And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed BEFORE of God in Christ, the Law, which was four hundred and thirty years AFTER, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect" (Gal 3:17). What the Gospel announces is superior, and has always been God's intention – from before creation.
– Given O. Blakely
Friday, May 21, 2010
ADAM AND JESUS
"And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit . . . The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven." (1 Cor 15:45,47)
HUMANITY IS SUMMARIZED IN TWO INDIVIDUALS; one from earth, and One from heaven. The first man, ADAM, was "made a living soul." The Second Man, JESUS, was "made a quickening spirit." That is, Adam was caused to live, but Jesus causes to live. Life was brought TO Adam, but life is brought BY Jesus. Life was conferred upon Adam, but Jesus confers life. Now that Jesus has been exalted and enthroned, the only life that God recognizes is the life that has been conferred, or given, by Jesus Christ.
MAN IS A TRIPARTITE BEING (composed of three parts). In order of their priority, these parts are identified as "spirit," "soul," and "body." Two thirds of these parts are unseen – the "spirit" and the "soul." Only the quickening and powerful word of God is able to distinguish experientially between these two parts (Heb 4:12). By "experientially," I mean the awareness of the distinction becomes known to the individual.
THE SOULISH PART OF OUR PERSONS is more related to Adam. Our spirit is related more to Jesus, who comes to quicken and restore it "after the image of Him that created him" (Col 3:10). So also it is written, "The first man, Adam, became a living soul. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit" (1 Cor 15:45, NKJV).
A UNIQUE DISTINCTION IS SEEN HERE. Adam's life was derived; i.e., he "became a living soul." Jesus, on the other hand, is Himself the Giver of life. He came to restore the "image" that was marred by Adam – to bring humanity into affiliation with "the Father of spirits." Rather than receiving life, the Lord Jesus gives life – a most unique distinction. Further, the restored image is more precise than the original that was found in Adam. The "new man" is a more perfect image, "after God created in righteousness and true holiness." (Eph 4:24).
FEDERAL HEADS. Adam and Jesus are federal heads of a race; i.e., they are the first of the order over which they preside. Their progenies, or descendants, also bear their likeness. This is the point of Paul's discourse in Romans 5:12- 21. The "natural" part of us is traceable to Adam. The "spiritual" aspect and nature of those who are born again, is traced back to Jesus.
THE IMPACT OF ADAM'S DISOBEDIENCE. Adam's sin brought death to our spirits, i.e., it thrust humanity into a state of alienation from God. The effect of the "first man's" transgression is described in arresting words. "Death" entered the world, and was "passed upon all men" (Rom 5:12). "Through the offense of one," we are told, "many" are "dead" (Rom 5:15). "Judgment to condemnation" resulted from Adam's sin (Rom 5:16,18). "Death reigns" because of that single offense (Rom 5:17). "By one man's disobedience, many were made sinners" (Rom 5:19). Those vivid portrayals are descriptive of spiritual death – a violent interruption of communion with the Living God. Whatever a person may think about perverted views of "original sin" and so-called "total depravity," we do have to contend with these statements of the Holy Spirit. They are meticulously precise, leaving no room for question or doubt.
THE IMPACT OF JESUS' OBEDIENCE. As the "Quickening Spirit," Jesus came to rectify the dilemma brought on by Adam's sin. How marvelously His ministry is portrayed by the Holy Spirit. " . . . much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many" (Rom 5:15). " . . . but the free gift is of many offenses unto justification" (Rom 5:16). Here, the expression "many offenses" refers to God laying the iniquities of us all upon the Lord Jesus – He "bore our sins in His body on the tree" (Isa 53:6; 1 Pet 2:24). Justification was the result! " . . . they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ" (Rom 5:17). " . . . by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life" (Rom 5:18). " . . . by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous" (Rom 5:19).
WE WERE "QUICKENED," or made alive by Jesus, when we were yet "dead in trespasses and sins" (Eph 2:1). That quickening, or spiritual resurrection, took place in the inmost part of our person – our spirit.
SALVATION BEGINS WITH THE RECLAMATION OF YOUR SPIRIT – the essential part of your being. The new birth enables the individual to possess and govern his own soul. Thus Jesus said, "In your patience possess ye your souls" (Luke 21:19). Moreover, the body, or the most external part of our being, is controlled from within. Paul called this "keeping under his body" (1 Cor 9:27).WHAT A MARVELOUS SALVATION is found in Jesus. It is realized by all of His descendants. They are all made alive and righteous.
– Given O. Blakely
HUMANITY IS SUMMARIZED IN TWO INDIVIDUALS; one from earth, and One from heaven. The first man, ADAM, was "made a living soul." The Second Man, JESUS, was "made a quickening spirit." That is, Adam was caused to live, but Jesus causes to live. Life was brought TO Adam, but life is brought BY Jesus. Life was conferred upon Adam, but Jesus confers life. Now that Jesus has been exalted and enthroned, the only life that God recognizes is the life that has been conferred, or given, by Jesus Christ.
MAN IS A TRIPARTITE BEING (composed of three parts). In order of their priority, these parts are identified as "spirit," "soul," and "body." Two thirds of these parts are unseen – the "spirit" and the "soul." Only the quickening and powerful word of God is able to distinguish experientially between these two parts (Heb 4:12). By "experientially," I mean the awareness of the distinction becomes known to the individual.
THE SOULISH PART OF OUR PERSONS is more related to Adam. Our spirit is related more to Jesus, who comes to quicken and restore it "after the image of Him that created him" (Col 3:10). So also it is written, "The first man, Adam, became a living soul. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit" (1 Cor 15:45, NKJV).
A UNIQUE DISTINCTION IS SEEN HERE. Adam's life was derived; i.e., he "became a living soul." Jesus, on the other hand, is Himself the Giver of life. He came to restore the "image" that was marred by Adam – to bring humanity into affiliation with "the Father of spirits." Rather than receiving life, the Lord Jesus gives life – a most unique distinction. Further, the restored image is more precise than the original that was found in Adam. The "new man" is a more perfect image, "after God created in righteousness and true holiness." (Eph 4:24).
FEDERAL HEADS. Adam and Jesus are federal heads of a race; i.e., they are the first of the order over which they preside. Their progenies, or descendants, also bear their likeness. This is the point of Paul's discourse in Romans 5:12- 21. The "natural" part of us is traceable to Adam. The "spiritual" aspect and nature of those who are born again, is traced back to Jesus.
THE IMPACT OF ADAM'S DISOBEDIENCE. Adam's sin brought death to our spirits, i.e., it thrust humanity into a state of alienation from God. The effect of the "first man's" transgression is described in arresting words. "Death" entered the world, and was "passed upon all men" (Rom 5:12). "Through the offense of one," we are told, "many" are "dead" (Rom 5:15). "Judgment to condemnation" resulted from Adam's sin (Rom 5:16,18). "Death reigns" because of that single offense (Rom 5:17). "By one man's disobedience, many were made sinners" (Rom 5:19). Those vivid portrayals are descriptive of spiritual death – a violent interruption of communion with the Living God. Whatever a person may think about perverted views of "original sin" and so-called "total depravity," we do have to contend with these statements of the Holy Spirit. They are meticulously precise, leaving no room for question or doubt.
THE IMPACT OF JESUS' OBEDIENCE. As the "Quickening Spirit," Jesus came to rectify the dilemma brought on by Adam's sin. How marvelously His ministry is portrayed by the Holy Spirit. " . . . much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many" (Rom 5:15). " . . . but the free gift is of many offenses unto justification" (Rom 5:16). Here, the expression "many offenses" refers to God laying the iniquities of us all upon the Lord Jesus – He "bore our sins in His body on the tree" (Isa 53:6; 1 Pet 2:24). Justification was the result! " . . . they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ" (Rom 5:17). " . . . by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life" (Rom 5:18). " . . . by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous" (Rom 5:19).
WE WERE "QUICKENED," or made alive by Jesus, when we were yet "dead in trespasses and sins" (Eph 2:1). That quickening, or spiritual resurrection, took place in the inmost part of our person – our spirit.
SALVATION BEGINS WITH THE RECLAMATION OF YOUR SPIRIT – the essential part of your being. The new birth enables the individual to possess and govern his own soul. Thus Jesus said, "In your patience possess ye your souls" (Luke 21:19). Moreover, the body, or the most external part of our being, is controlled from within. Paul called this "keeping under his body" (1 Cor 9:27).WHAT A MARVELOUS SALVATION is found in Jesus. It is realized by all of His descendants. They are all made alive and righteous.
– Given O. Blakely
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
SEEING THE INVISIBLE
"By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing Him who is invisible." (Hebrews 11:24-27).
MOSES IS ONE OF THE GREAT. He was identified as "very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth" (Num 12:3). He did not have the opportunity of living in a godly home after he was "nursed," although he was afforded some tutelage by his godly mother, Jochebed. He was born in hard times, when his people were slaves in the land of Egypt, which worshiped idols. He was also born when male babies were to be killed. His parents recognized at his birth that he was an unusual child, and determined to see that he was spared. Scripture informs us they were "not afraid of the king's command" (Heb 11:23). When his mother could no longer hide him, she constructed an ark of bulrushes, daubed it with asphalt and pitch, and placed him in some reeds by a river bank. You will recall that Pharaoh's daughter discovered the babe. Moses' sister, Miriam, told Pharaoh's daughter she would find a Hebrew woman who could nurse the child (his own mother), and was given leave to do so. The Egyptian princess then told Moses' mother to take the child and nurse him for her, even giving her wages to do so – not knowing she was the baby's mother (Ex2:3-10).
AFTER BEING RAISED in Pharaoh's house, the time finally came for Moses to fulfill his appointed role – leading Israel out of Egyptian bondage, and being used of God to give the Law. At this point, our text says he "refused to be called the son of Pharaoh' daughter." The time for making a decision had arrived, and he chose "to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin for a season." In this case, "sin," was remaining identified with Egypt, and enjoying its opulence. Sin would have involved rising to the heights in Egypt, as the "son of Pharaoh's daughter." Instead of embarking on a sure Egyptian career path, he considered "the reproach of Christ greater riches than all the treasures in Egypt." Faith told him the seeming advantages of Egyptian superiority would be short-lived.
LITTLE WAS KNOWN OF THE coming Messiah at this time – only that He would come through the woman (Gen 3:15), and would come through the seed of Abraham – the Offspring through Whom the world would be blessed (Gen 22:18). Moses chose identity with the lineage of Christ, knowing it would incur the "wrath of the king." He "forsook Egypt," knowing God would reward his decision, and, in respect of God's view of his determination, "not fearing the wrath of the king."
MOSES LEFT THE TEEMING ACTIVITY of Egypt to dwell relatively alone in the desert. From the palace of a king to the desolation of a desert. How would he survive? We know from Scripture that it was forty years before he would be used to accomplish the exodus of the people of God from Egypt. We are told that, in his decision, the forsaking of Egypt, and the desolation of isolation, "he endured as seeing Him who is invisible." How is such a thing possible?
THIS IS THE DESCRIPTION OF FAITH – it is faith that "sees Him who is invisible." Faith is the eye of the soul, able to penetrate beyond the veil of the flesh and the realm of the seen. Seeing Him who is invisible is being convinced of His reality, persuaded of His promises, and assured of His blessing. Moses was more certain of God than he was of Pharaoh that is why he did not "fear the wrath of the king." O, he knew Pharaoh would be angry, but he knew God was greater than Pharaoh. His thinking was dominated by the consideration of the Living God, not the possibilities of wicked Pharaoh. He thought more about what he would receive from the Lord, than what might come his way from Pharaoh. His considerations enabled him to survive – to "endure."
I CALL YOU TO THE SAME ACTIVITY – seeing Him who is invisible. Your faith can "see Him," even though your eyes cannot. You can be persuaded of His reality. You can be convinced of His blessing. You can be assured of His reward. But You must consider Him, ponder Him, seek for Him with all of your heart. When He makes Himself known to you, or draws near to you, you have seen Him! Do not the Scriptures say, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you" (James 4:8). Jeremiah's words are still true, "And you will seek Me and FIND ME, when you search for Me with all your heart" (Jer 29:13). That is when you are seeing Him!
YOU WILL BE ABLE to "endure" in the strength of the vision of faith. You will survive the assaults of temptations, and the oppositions of the world. Life itself, which can be a burden, will be endured with all of its complexities and disappointments when you "see Him who is invisible." Check your vision! Are you seeing "Him who is invisible?"
– Given O. Blakely
MOSES IS ONE OF THE GREAT. He was identified as "very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth" (Num 12:3). He did not have the opportunity of living in a godly home after he was "nursed," although he was afforded some tutelage by his godly mother, Jochebed. He was born in hard times, when his people were slaves in the land of Egypt, which worshiped idols. He was also born when male babies were to be killed. His parents recognized at his birth that he was an unusual child, and determined to see that he was spared. Scripture informs us they were "not afraid of the king's command" (Heb 11:23). When his mother could no longer hide him, she constructed an ark of bulrushes, daubed it with asphalt and pitch, and placed him in some reeds by a river bank. You will recall that Pharaoh's daughter discovered the babe. Moses' sister, Miriam, told Pharaoh's daughter she would find a Hebrew woman who could nurse the child (his own mother), and was given leave to do so. The Egyptian princess then told Moses' mother to take the child and nurse him for her, even giving her wages to do so – not knowing she was the baby's mother (Ex2:3-10).
AFTER BEING RAISED in Pharaoh's house, the time finally came for Moses to fulfill his appointed role – leading Israel out of Egyptian bondage, and being used of God to give the Law. At this point, our text says he "refused to be called the son of Pharaoh' daughter." The time for making a decision had arrived, and he chose "to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin for a season." In this case, "sin," was remaining identified with Egypt, and enjoying its opulence. Sin would have involved rising to the heights in Egypt, as the "son of Pharaoh's daughter." Instead of embarking on a sure Egyptian career path, he considered "the reproach of Christ greater riches than all the treasures in Egypt." Faith told him the seeming advantages of Egyptian superiority would be short-lived.
LITTLE WAS KNOWN OF THE coming Messiah at this time – only that He would come through the woman (Gen 3:15), and would come through the seed of Abraham – the Offspring through Whom the world would be blessed (Gen 22:18). Moses chose identity with the lineage of Christ, knowing it would incur the "wrath of the king." He "forsook Egypt," knowing God would reward his decision, and, in respect of God's view of his determination, "not fearing the wrath of the king."
MOSES LEFT THE TEEMING ACTIVITY of Egypt to dwell relatively alone in the desert. From the palace of a king to the desolation of a desert. How would he survive? We know from Scripture that it was forty years before he would be used to accomplish the exodus of the people of God from Egypt. We are told that, in his decision, the forsaking of Egypt, and the desolation of isolation, "he endured as seeing Him who is invisible." How is such a thing possible?
THIS IS THE DESCRIPTION OF FAITH – it is faith that "sees Him who is invisible." Faith is the eye of the soul, able to penetrate beyond the veil of the flesh and the realm of the seen. Seeing Him who is invisible is being convinced of His reality, persuaded of His promises, and assured of His blessing. Moses was more certain of God than he was of Pharaoh that is why he did not "fear the wrath of the king." O, he knew Pharaoh would be angry, but he knew God was greater than Pharaoh. His thinking was dominated by the consideration of the Living God, not the possibilities of wicked Pharaoh. He thought more about what he would receive from the Lord, than what might come his way from Pharaoh. His considerations enabled him to survive – to "endure."
I CALL YOU TO THE SAME ACTIVITY – seeing Him who is invisible. Your faith can "see Him," even though your eyes cannot. You can be persuaded of His reality. You can be convinced of His blessing. You can be assured of His reward. But You must consider Him, ponder Him, seek for Him with all of your heart. When He makes Himself known to you, or draws near to you, you have seen Him! Do not the Scriptures say, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you" (James 4:8). Jeremiah's words are still true, "And you will seek Me and FIND ME, when you search for Me with all your heart" (Jer 29:13). That is when you are seeing Him!
YOU WILL BE ABLE to "endure" in the strength of the vision of faith. You will survive the assaults of temptations, and the oppositions of the world. Life itself, which can be a burden, will be endured with all of its complexities and disappointments when you "see Him who is invisible." Check your vision! Are you seeing "Him who is invisible?"
– Given O. Blakely
Monday, May 17, 2010
ANGELIC PROMINENCE
"Bless the LORD, ye His angels, that excel in strength, that do His commandments, hearkening unto the voice of His word." (Psa 103:20)
THE "ANGELS OF GOD" play a prominent role in the activities of humanity. They are an unseen enumerable host, faithful to their God. Their exclusive activity is doing the will of the Lord. The phrase "angels of God" is an intriguing one. It not only indicates a significant number, but their commitment to doing the will of God. The "elect angels" never operate independently. They never seek their own will, compete against God, or resist His good pleasure. They are thus called the "holy angels" and "the elect angels" (Mark 8:38; 1 Tim 5:21).
THE PSALMIST SPOKE TO ANGELS, admonishing them to bless the Lord. "Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word. Bless ye the LORD, all ye His hosts; ye ministers of His, that do his pleasure" (Psa 103:20-21). Again, it is written, "Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye Him, all His hosts" (Psa 148:2). This indicates that they have a will, and are devoted to the execution of the will of the Lord. They "excel in strength" above frail humanity, yet dedicate that strength to doing God's pleasure – a noble example for us all!
MINISTERS FOR THE HEIRS OF SALVATION! We are specifically told the role of angels in the divine economy. As great as angels are, when compared to the Lord Jesus Christ they are "all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" (Heb 1:13-14). While their ministry often includes authority and stewardship (Rev 14:18; 16:8; 18:1), they always operate under the Headship of the exalted Christ. When God brought "the Firstbegotten into the world, He saith, And let all the angels of God worship Him" (Heb 1:6). It is as though the ministry of angels is brought to its apex in Christ: "sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation." It can be affirmed that this is the reason for their existence, for, apart from those angels who fell, they are never mentioned apart from the context of humanity. The appointed ministry of angels immediately relates to the "heirs of salvation" – those who are in Christ Jesus. All of their mighty deeds prior to Jesus were but introductory to their primary work; ministering to the heirs of salvation.
SALVATION'S GREATNESS IS THIS ACCENTUATED. Too long the church has suffered from restricted views of its salvation. Its self-conceived programs and methodologies have dimmed the greatness of redemption. The result has been neglect of the "great salvation," which thrusts one into a state of condemnation. With sober tones the Spirit queries, "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation . . . ?" (Heb 2:3). To ask the question is to answer it. There will be no escape for those so despising the abundant and free gift of salvation!
THE CONSIDERATION OF THE "ANGELS OF GOD" accentuates the greatness of our salvation! Here is an enumerable company of mighty messengers whose purpose it is to serve the saints! This is a vast number of personalities, characterized by wisdom and strength, devoted to assisting the "heirs" to appropriate their salvation! With swiftness and dispatch, they execute the will of the Lord in these matters. They do not work on long-range strategies, but deal with issues of the moment. They can alter circumstances and direct our path. They can strengthen in ways transcendent to human ability. Angels can deliver from enemies and protect in danger. In their ministry toward the saints, we know of no handicaps they possess. They are not stymied by the enemies that often confound us. They do not encounter insurmountable obstacles in their ministry toward us. In their own capacity as ministers, they are omnipotent, because they are sent forth by the Lord.
THE PROPHETS FREQUENTLY REFERRED to the Lord as "the Lord of hosts" (Psa 24:10; Isa 3:1; Jer 11:20; Mal 4:3). "God of hosts" is also a common term ascribed by the prophets to the Lord (Psa 80:14; Isa 10:23; Jer 35:17; Amos 5:15). This vast number of supreme intelligences are at His constant disposal. How glorious they are in appearance, and how mighty they are in the execution of His will! And what is their purpose? Why are these "hosts" before the Lord? What is the work to which they are assigned? Why are there so many of them? Is it to serve the Lord like slaves serve a king, gratifying personal needs? Indeed, it is not! The Lord is God – He has no "personal needs," as ordinarily perceived. This multitude of heavenly hosts are designated as "ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation."
THE DIVINE OBJECTIVE for the creation of man was the extension of God's Person and will. The Lord determined that man would rule over the works of His hands, being the appointed executor of His will and kingdom. The world was created as an arena in which the drama of redemption would be unfolded. It was a place where the enemy would be overcome, and the saints perfected for their eternal reign with Christ. The role of angels is to assist the "saints" in the appropriation of the salvation to which they have been appointed.
IF YOU ARE EVER TEMPTED to have small thoughts of salvation because of the condition of the church, think of the angels. They are not weak! They have not diminished in their strength! They are not unfaithful! They are still strong, and swiftly execute the will of the Lord. And, they are "ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation." You are the reason for angels – an enumerable company of angels! You can count on them working in your behalf.
– Given O. Blakely
THE "ANGELS OF GOD" play a prominent role in the activities of humanity. They are an unseen enumerable host, faithful to their God. Their exclusive activity is doing the will of the Lord. The phrase "angels of God" is an intriguing one. It not only indicates a significant number, but their commitment to doing the will of God. The "elect angels" never operate independently. They never seek their own will, compete against God, or resist His good pleasure. They are thus called the "holy angels" and "the elect angels" (Mark 8:38; 1 Tim 5:21).
THE PSALMIST SPOKE TO ANGELS, admonishing them to bless the Lord. "Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word. Bless ye the LORD, all ye His hosts; ye ministers of His, that do his pleasure" (Psa 103:20-21). Again, it is written, "Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye Him, all His hosts" (Psa 148:2). This indicates that they have a will, and are devoted to the execution of the will of the Lord. They "excel in strength" above frail humanity, yet dedicate that strength to doing God's pleasure – a noble example for us all!
MINISTERS FOR THE HEIRS OF SALVATION! We are specifically told the role of angels in the divine economy. As great as angels are, when compared to the Lord Jesus Christ they are "all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" (Heb 1:13-14). While their ministry often includes authority and stewardship (Rev 14:18; 16:8; 18:1), they always operate under the Headship of the exalted Christ. When God brought "the Firstbegotten into the world, He saith, And let all the angels of God worship Him" (Heb 1:6). It is as though the ministry of angels is brought to its apex in Christ: "sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation." It can be affirmed that this is the reason for their existence, for, apart from those angels who fell, they are never mentioned apart from the context of humanity. The appointed ministry of angels immediately relates to the "heirs of salvation" – those who are in Christ Jesus. All of their mighty deeds prior to Jesus were but introductory to their primary work; ministering to the heirs of salvation.
SALVATION'S GREATNESS IS THIS ACCENTUATED. Too long the church has suffered from restricted views of its salvation. Its self-conceived programs and methodologies have dimmed the greatness of redemption. The result has been neglect of the "great salvation," which thrusts one into a state of condemnation. With sober tones the Spirit queries, "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation . . . ?" (Heb 2:3). To ask the question is to answer it. There will be no escape for those so despising the abundant and free gift of salvation!
THE CONSIDERATION OF THE "ANGELS OF GOD" accentuates the greatness of our salvation! Here is an enumerable company of mighty messengers whose purpose it is to serve the saints! This is a vast number of personalities, characterized by wisdom and strength, devoted to assisting the "heirs" to appropriate their salvation! With swiftness and dispatch, they execute the will of the Lord in these matters. They do not work on long-range strategies, but deal with issues of the moment. They can alter circumstances and direct our path. They can strengthen in ways transcendent to human ability. Angels can deliver from enemies and protect in danger. In their ministry toward the saints, we know of no handicaps they possess. They are not stymied by the enemies that often confound us. They do not encounter insurmountable obstacles in their ministry toward us. In their own capacity as ministers, they are omnipotent, because they are sent forth by the Lord.
THE PROPHETS FREQUENTLY REFERRED to the Lord as "the Lord of hosts" (Psa 24:10; Isa 3:1; Jer 11:20; Mal 4:3). "God of hosts" is also a common term ascribed by the prophets to the Lord (Psa 80:14; Isa 10:23; Jer 35:17; Amos 5:15). This vast number of supreme intelligences are at His constant disposal. How glorious they are in appearance, and how mighty they are in the execution of His will! And what is their purpose? Why are these "hosts" before the Lord? What is the work to which they are assigned? Why are there so many of them? Is it to serve the Lord like slaves serve a king, gratifying personal needs? Indeed, it is not! The Lord is God – He has no "personal needs," as ordinarily perceived. This multitude of heavenly hosts are designated as "ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation."
THE DIVINE OBJECTIVE for the creation of man was the extension of God's Person and will. The Lord determined that man would rule over the works of His hands, being the appointed executor of His will and kingdom. The world was created as an arena in which the drama of redemption would be unfolded. It was a place where the enemy would be overcome, and the saints perfected for their eternal reign with Christ. The role of angels is to assist the "saints" in the appropriation of the salvation to which they have been appointed.
IF YOU ARE EVER TEMPTED to have small thoughts of salvation because of the condition of the church, think of the angels. They are not weak! They have not diminished in their strength! They are not unfaithful! They are still strong, and swiftly execute the will of the Lord. And, they are "ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation." You are the reason for angels – an enumerable company of angels! You can count on them working in your behalf.
– Given O. Blakely
Friday, May 14, 2010
OUR BLESSED POSITION
"Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness.
BEAUTIFUL FOR SITUATION, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King. God is known in her palaces for a Refuge." (Psalm 48:1-2)
THE PLACE OCCUPIED BY THE SAINTS OF GOD is altogether glorious! It is marked by the blessing of the Lord, which "makes rich, and He adds no sorrow" (Prov 10:22). The Psalm under consideration boldly declares this to be the case. The "city of our God" is a synonym for the people of God – those among whom God Himself dwells. The "mountain of His holiness" speaks of the elevated realms in which they dwell – called in the Apostolic doctrine, "heavenly places." "Mount Zion" is the place of blessing, and is where "the great King" bestows His blessing. It is where the blessing of God is realized, experienced, and no longer something about which men merely speculate. In these realms "God is known," or comprehended, by the heavenly citizenry. He is their refuge, joyfully embraced and known by all. It is a blessed "situation," indeed!
SATAN IS AGGRESSIVE to turn the eyes of believers away from their real habitat. He tempts them to look at their circumstances, and ponder their lot in earthly life. With hateful initiative he tempts them to judge according to appearance, look at things that can be seen, and evaluate their status by their earthly circumstance. Those who fall into his snare will be discomfited, cast down, becoming morose, and discouraged.
THIS WORLD IS NOT GOOD to the people of God. Jesus said, "in the world, exalted shall have tribulation" (John 16:33). He also revealed the reason for their hatred. "because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you" (John 15:19). That situation was not the cause for storing up canned goods, fleeing for safety into a desert, or compromising their testimony. Rather, Jesus admonishes, " . . . but take courage; I have overcome the world." This simply is a circumstance with which the saints must live. However, they are to take courage, and not be intimidated by it.
WE HAVE BEEN "raised us up together [with Christ], and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Eph 2:6). It is God Himself who raised us into these marvelous realms – He who is "rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses and sins." He made us alive [or sensitive] to Himself "with Christ." That condition is evidence that "by grace we are saved" (Eph 2:4-5). Now, in these heavenly realms where God has placed us with Christ, we are "blessed with all spiritual blessings" (Eph 1:3). We got there by grace. We stay there by grace. We enjoy the benefits of this loft realm by grace.
EVERYTHING REQUIRED TO MAKE IT SAFELY from earth to glory is provided for us. The Scripture refers to these resources as "all things that pertain to life and godliness" ( Pet 1:3). They are staggering in number, and remarkable in effectiveness. This is why we are admonished to seek them, long for them, and develop an appetite for them. The Holy Spirit puts it this way. "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God" (Col 3:1-3). You can have them if you want them bad enough to desire and seek them. What is more, your personal faith will enable you do fulfill both of these requirements.
I ENCOURAGE YOU TO TAKE TIME to look away from your circumstance to the Lord who loved you and gave Himself for you. Cease for a while to ponder what this world has done to you, and consider what your Savior has given to you. Turn your eyes away from things that are seen – temporal things – and let your heart and mind dwell upon the unseen things that are hidden in Christ Jesus.
THIS WORLD HAS NOT RESERVED anything of eternal consequence for you, but God has. It is written, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" (1 Pet 1:4).
SURELY YOU CAN SEE IT. The church of the living God is "beautiful for situation" – or "beautiful in elevation" (NKJV). It has been placed in high places, into which Satan and his wicked horde cannot enter (Eph 2:6). It is too high for the world to molest them, and too exalted for "the flesh" to survive. It is close to God and far from the world; near the blessing, and far from the cursing. Beautiful for situation, indeed!
– Given O. Blakely
BEAUTIFUL FOR SITUATION, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King. God is known in her palaces for a Refuge." (Psalm 48:1-2)
THE PLACE OCCUPIED BY THE SAINTS OF GOD is altogether glorious! It is marked by the blessing of the Lord, which "makes rich, and He adds no sorrow" (Prov 10:22). The Psalm under consideration boldly declares this to be the case. The "city of our God" is a synonym for the people of God – those among whom God Himself dwells. The "mountain of His holiness" speaks of the elevated realms in which they dwell – called in the Apostolic doctrine, "heavenly places." "Mount Zion" is the place of blessing, and is where "the great King" bestows His blessing. It is where the blessing of God is realized, experienced, and no longer something about which men merely speculate. In these realms "God is known," or comprehended, by the heavenly citizenry. He is their refuge, joyfully embraced and known by all. It is a blessed "situation," indeed!
SATAN IS AGGRESSIVE to turn the eyes of believers away from their real habitat. He tempts them to look at their circumstances, and ponder their lot in earthly life. With hateful initiative he tempts them to judge according to appearance, look at things that can be seen, and evaluate their status by their earthly circumstance. Those who fall into his snare will be discomfited, cast down, becoming morose, and discouraged.
THIS WORLD IS NOT GOOD to the people of God. Jesus said, "in the world, exalted shall have tribulation" (John 16:33). He also revealed the reason for their hatred. "because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you" (John 15:19). That situation was not the cause for storing up canned goods, fleeing for safety into a desert, or compromising their testimony. Rather, Jesus admonishes, " . . . but take courage; I have overcome the world." This simply is a circumstance with which the saints must live. However, they are to take courage, and not be intimidated by it.
WE HAVE BEEN "raised us up together [with Christ], and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Eph 2:6). It is God Himself who raised us into these marvelous realms – He who is "rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses and sins." He made us alive [or sensitive] to Himself "with Christ." That condition is evidence that "by grace we are saved" (Eph 2:4-5). Now, in these heavenly realms where God has placed us with Christ, we are "blessed with all spiritual blessings" (Eph 1:3). We got there by grace. We stay there by grace. We enjoy the benefits of this loft realm by grace.
EVERYTHING REQUIRED TO MAKE IT SAFELY from earth to glory is provided for us. The Scripture refers to these resources as "all things that pertain to life and godliness" ( Pet 1:3). They are staggering in number, and remarkable in effectiveness. This is why we are admonished to seek them, long for them, and develop an appetite for them. The Holy Spirit puts it this way. "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God" (Col 3:1-3). You can have them if you want them bad enough to desire and seek them. What is more, your personal faith will enable you do fulfill both of these requirements.
I ENCOURAGE YOU TO TAKE TIME to look away from your circumstance to the Lord who loved you and gave Himself for you. Cease for a while to ponder what this world has done to you, and consider what your Savior has given to you. Turn your eyes away from things that are seen – temporal things – and let your heart and mind dwell upon the unseen things that are hidden in Christ Jesus.
THIS WORLD HAS NOT RESERVED anything of eternal consequence for you, but God has. It is written, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" (1 Pet 1:4).
SURELY YOU CAN SEE IT. The church of the living God is "beautiful for situation" – or "beautiful in elevation" (NKJV). It has been placed in high places, into which Satan and his wicked horde cannot enter (Eph 2:6). It is too high for the world to molest them, and too exalted for "the flesh" to survive. It is close to God and far from the world; near the blessing, and far from the cursing. Beautiful for situation, indeed!
– Given O. Blakely
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
SANCTIFIED BY FAITH
" . . . among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Me." (Acts 26:18)
THOSE WHO WALK BY FAITH differ radically from the rest of the world. The reason for this difference, however, is not merely a peculiar life style. It is true that some who are professing allegiance to Christ are unique only because of their habits of life – generally what they do NOT do. With those in Christ, however, faith is the distinguishing factor.
FAITH LINKS US WITH the "world to come," and, by that very fact, disconnects us from this world. We are "in the world, but not of the world," and that makes us different (John 15:19!
A BRIEF OVERVIEW of some of the accomplishments of faith is appropriate. Those who "walk by faith" enjoy these benefits in abundance.
JUSTIFIED BY FAITH. The basis for our complete acquittal from sin and reception of the righteousness of God, is our faith in Christ. The achievements required for our acceptance belong to Christ. Faith effectively obtains what God provides. God is thoroughly satisfied with Christ's vicarious sacrifice. Our unreserved acceptance of that atonement removes our sin from us as far as the East is from the West. "Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law" (Romans 3:28). "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith"(Galatians 3:24). "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified" (Galatians 2:16).
PROPITIATION THROUGH FAITH. Christ's blood – or the forfeiture of His life – becomes the covering for our sin. If we are identified with His death, God cannot see our sin – it is covered by the blood. It is glorious to contemplate that we have been "baptized into His death" (Rom. 6:3-5) – the death that caused Jesus to be our Propitiation. "Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God" (Romans 3:25).
HEARTS PURIFIED BY FAITH. A pure heart is requisite to the indwelling of the Spirit, as well as every acceptable expression. Faith cleanses the heart by lifting it from the realm of the curse into the bosom of the Father. "And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith" (Acts 15:9).
CHILDREN OF GOD BY FAITH. Do not hesitate to receive the Word of the Lord on this matter. We are God's children by means of our faith. That is the basis of our relationship to Him, and the cause behind all of our appointed responses to the Gospel. "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:26).
RIGHTEOUSNESS BY FAITH. Even though our righteousness is imputed, it is nevertheless very real. In Christ, we are effectively separated from sin in the eyes of God – and His view is the true view. Those to whom righteousness has been "imputed" are, in fact, "doeth righteousness" (1 John 3:7). Once this is perceived, sin loses its power. "Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference" (Romans 3:22). "And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith" (Philippians 3:9).
ACCESS TO GOD BY FAITH. What does it take to gain access to the living God? You certainly cannot DO enough to merit a welcome from the Lord. However, your faith brings you into His Presence. Your persuasion of the truth of the Gospel gains you an audience with God Himself. "By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God" (Romans 5:2).
KEPT BY THE POWER OF GOD THROUGH FAITH. Every believer is concerned about persevering to the end. After all, the crown of life will be given only to those that "overcome" (Rev. 2:10). How is this achieved? Faith brings God into the scenario! You are, in fact, kept by God's power, and that power is activated, so to speak – or focused upon you – by your faith! "Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" (I Peter 1:5).
WAITING FOR THE HOPE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. Those in Christ acknowledge that in this world they are not what they ought to be. However, they live in expectation of the day when they will obtain the full measure of righteousness they desire. Their faith enables them to wait confidently for that time. "For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith"(Galatians 5:5).
CHRIST DWELLS IN OUR HEARTS THROUGH FAITH. You have as much of Christ as you have of faith! He takes residence in your heart, working through you, to the degree that you are convinced of His Person and accomplishments. "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love" (Ephesians 3:17).
THE NATURE OF OUR RESPONSE to all of this is quite clear. At the end of our life, we are to be known as those who "kept the faith."
– Given O. Blakely
THOSE WHO WALK BY FAITH differ radically from the rest of the world. The reason for this difference, however, is not merely a peculiar life style. It is true that some who are professing allegiance to Christ are unique only because of their habits of life – generally what they do NOT do. With those in Christ, however, faith is the distinguishing factor.
FAITH LINKS US WITH the "world to come," and, by that very fact, disconnects us from this world. We are "in the world, but not of the world," and that makes us different (John 15:19!
A BRIEF OVERVIEW of some of the accomplishments of faith is appropriate. Those who "walk by faith" enjoy these benefits in abundance.
JUSTIFIED BY FAITH. The basis for our complete acquittal from sin and reception of the righteousness of God, is our faith in Christ. The achievements required for our acceptance belong to Christ. Faith effectively obtains what God provides. God is thoroughly satisfied with Christ's vicarious sacrifice. Our unreserved acceptance of that atonement removes our sin from us as far as the East is from the West. "Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law" (Romans 3:28). "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith"(Galatians 3:24). "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified" (Galatians 2:16).
PROPITIATION THROUGH FAITH. Christ's blood – or the forfeiture of His life – becomes the covering for our sin. If we are identified with His death, God cannot see our sin – it is covered by the blood. It is glorious to contemplate that we have been "baptized into His death" (Rom. 6:3-5) – the death that caused Jesus to be our Propitiation. "Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God" (Romans 3:25).
HEARTS PURIFIED BY FAITH. A pure heart is requisite to the indwelling of the Spirit, as well as every acceptable expression. Faith cleanses the heart by lifting it from the realm of the curse into the bosom of the Father. "And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith" (Acts 15:9).
CHILDREN OF GOD BY FAITH. Do not hesitate to receive the Word of the Lord on this matter. We are God's children by means of our faith. That is the basis of our relationship to Him, and the cause behind all of our appointed responses to the Gospel. "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:26).
RIGHTEOUSNESS BY FAITH. Even though our righteousness is imputed, it is nevertheless very real. In Christ, we are effectively separated from sin in the eyes of God – and His view is the true view. Those to whom righteousness has been "imputed" are, in fact, "doeth righteousness" (1 John 3:7). Once this is perceived, sin loses its power. "Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference" (Romans 3:22). "And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith" (Philippians 3:9).
ACCESS TO GOD BY FAITH. What does it take to gain access to the living God? You certainly cannot DO enough to merit a welcome from the Lord. However, your faith brings you into His Presence. Your persuasion of the truth of the Gospel gains you an audience with God Himself. "By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God" (Romans 5:2).
KEPT BY THE POWER OF GOD THROUGH FAITH. Every believer is concerned about persevering to the end. After all, the crown of life will be given only to those that "overcome" (Rev. 2:10). How is this achieved? Faith brings God into the scenario! You are, in fact, kept by God's power, and that power is activated, so to speak – or focused upon you – by your faith! "Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" (I Peter 1:5).
WAITING FOR THE HOPE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. Those in Christ acknowledge that in this world they are not what they ought to be. However, they live in expectation of the day when they will obtain the full measure of righteousness they desire. Their faith enables them to wait confidently for that time. "For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith"(Galatians 5:5).
CHRIST DWELLS IN OUR HEARTS THROUGH FAITH. You have as much of Christ as you have of faith! He takes residence in your heart, working through you, to the degree that you are convinced of His Person and accomplishments. "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love" (Ephesians 3:17).
THE NATURE OF OUR RESPONSE to all of this is quite clear. At the end of our life, we are to be known as those who "kept the faith."
– Given O. Blakely
Monday, May 10, 2010
THE PRICE OF EXCELLENCE
"Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ" (Phil 3:8).
SOME THINGS ARE "LOST" because they are taken away by someone else. Scripture calls this "the spoiling of your goods" (Heb 10:34). It is when a person is plundered or robbed, when possessions are forcefully taken from him against his will. Still others have experienced the Lord leaving them, and they did not even know it – like Samson: "And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him" (Judg 16:20).
BUT THIS IS NOT THE KIND OF LOSS to which our text refers. Here, things were "counted" or "considered" a loss. These things were actually still available to Paul, but he forfeited them in preference of something else. He lost them by choice. He chose to take hold of something else. Some people may be willing to forsake the quest for something they are not able to acquire in the first place. Paul, however, not only forsook what could be possessed, he left what was already in his hand, casting it aside because he saw something better.
THE WORD "LOSS" also carries the thought or disadvantage, of something that worsens our situation. In this text, however, Paul takes "everything" apart from Christ, regardless of its seeming value, and considers it a loss, disadvantage, and something potentially damaging. To keep such things constituted a liability. While having them, it was quite possible to lose access to the things he now preferred. He sensed that he could not hold them both in his hands, so he discarded the things that put him in jeopardy, keeping the things that brought the greater benefit.
THIS IS NOT INTENDED to be an academic definition. Rather, it is a comparison; a judgment made when "everything" is laid along side "the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." Paul had already declared this was his manner of thinking in the past: "But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ" (verse 7). Now he tells us it is still the way he thinks.
IN THE WORLD, it is possible to get swept up in momentary pleasures, forgetting essential and profitable things. When we come to our senses, we regret that we were so distracted as to forget important matters – matters having to do with our eternal destiny. But this is not the situation in this text. The things counted loss were REALLY inferior and unworthy of being at the center of Paul's thinking. He was not being robbed in this forfeiture. Something better in every sense of the word had been found. In this regard, Paul was a sort of template of real Kingdom experience.
AND WHAT IS THIS BETTER THING? It is "the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." It is "the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord" (KJV). This "knowledge" is not surpassing (or more excellent) in outward appearance, but in ultimate reality – reality that will survive the end of the world and the day of judgment! It is a superior knowledge and experience with which nothing can favorably compare.
HERE WE SEE A PERSON – even Paul – can be in Christ, and acknowledge Him as Lord, yet be lacking in a fuller and personal acquaintance with Him. In salvation, we do not perceive the fulness of Christ's person at the first, nor do we come into possession of the experiential fulness of the blessing He brings. All of the "spiritual blessing" (Eph 1:3) are within our reach when we are raised up and made to sit together with Christ in heavenly places (Eph 2:6). However, they are personally appropriated in the process of spiritual growth. Further, that growth involves the willing forfeiture of inferior things in favor of the superior.
REDEMPTION HAS MADE JESUS MORE ACCESSIBLE to the saved than ordinarily perceived. Far too much contemporary religion allows the individual to remain at a comfortable distance from Christ, not coming into the greatness of the knowledge and experience that is available to those who are "new creatures.
"THE KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST JESUS" is not academic knowledge or erudition. Such knowledge is of the earth, and does not satiate, or satisfy, the soul or gladden the heart. This is the fellowship with Christ, into which we have been called (1 Cor 1:9). It speaks of a relationship where Christ "manifests" Himself to the individual (John 14:21). It is where the person actually "learns" from Christ (Matt 11:29) and is "taught by Him" (Eph 4:21). These are Scriptural expressions that should produce no questions among those who wear His name.
THERE IS A SATISFACTION in this knowledge that brings great peace, joy, and stability to the soul. It equips the person to live triumphantly in this world, serving the Lord with gladness and singleness of heart. This knowledge is, in fact, nothing less than "eternal life" (John 17:3; 1 John 5:20). It is confirmed to be the superior knowledge by experience alone. The heart can be satisfied with nothing less. This is the knowledge referenced in Ephesians 3:19: "And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge." It is the experience of Christ's love, care, tutelage, and protection.
– Given O. Blakely
SOME THINGS ARE "LOST" because they are taken away by someone else. Scripture calls this "the spoiling of your goods" (Heb 10:34). It is when a person is plundered or robbed, when possessions are forcefully taken from him against his will. Still others have experienced the Lord leaving them, and they did not even know it – like Samson: "And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him" (Judg 16:20).
BUT THIS IS NOT THE KIND OF LOSS to which our text refers. Here, things were "counted" or "considered" a loss. These things were actually still available to Paul, but he forfeited them in preference of something else. He lost them by choice. He chose to take hold of something else. Some people may be willing to forsake the quest for something they are not able to acquire in the first place. Paul, however, not only forsook what could be possessed, he left what was already in his hand, casting it aside because he saw something better.
THE WORD "LOSS" also carries the thought or disadvantage, of something that worsens our situation. In this text, however, Paul takes "everything" apart from Christ, regardless of its seeming value, and considers it a loss, disadvantage, and something potentially damaging. To keep such things constituted a liability. While having them, it was quite possible to lose access to the things he now preferred. He sensed that he could not hold them both in his hands, so he discarded the things that put him in jeopardy, keeping the things that brought the greater benefit.
THIS IS NOT INTENDED to be an academic definition. Rather, it is a comparison; a judgment made when "everything" is laid along side "the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." Paul had already declared this was his manner of thinking in the past: "But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ" (verse 7). Now he tells us it is still the way he thinks.
IN THE WORLD, it is possible to get swept up in momentary pleasures, forgetting essential and profitable things. When we come to our senses, we regret that we were so distracted as to forget important matters – matters having to do with our eternal destiny. But this is not the situation in this text. The things counted loss were REALLY inferior and unworthy of being at the center of Paul's thinking. He was not being robbed in this forfeiture. Something better in every sense of the word had been found. In this regard, Paul was a sort of template of real Kingdom experience.
AND WHAT IS THIS BETTER THING? It is "the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." It is "the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord" (KJV). This "knowledge" is not surpassing (or more excellent) in outward appearance, but in ultimate reality – reality that will survive the end of the world and the day of judgment! It is a superior knowledge and experience with which nothing can favorably compare.
HERE WE SEE A PERSON – even Paul – can be in Christ, and acknowledge Him as Lord, yet be lacking in a fuller and personal acquaintance with Him. In salvation, we do not perceive the fulness of Christ's person at the first, nor do we come into possession of the experiential fulness of the blessing He brings. All of the "spiritual blessing" (Eph 1:3) are within our reach when we are raised up and made to sit together with Christ in heavenly places (Eph 2:6). However, they are personally appropriated in the process of spiritual growth. Further, that growth involves the willing forfeiture of inferior things in favor of the superior.
REDEMPTION HAS MADE JESUS MORE ACCESSIBLE to the saved than ordinarily perceived. Far too much contemporary religion allows the individual to remain at a comfortable distance from Christ, not coming into the greatness of the knowledge and experience that is available to those who are "new creatures.
"THE KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST JESUS" is not academic knowledge or erudition. Such knowledge is of the earth, and does not satiate, or satisfy, the soul or gladden the heart. This is the fellowship with Christ, into which we have been called (1 Cor 1:9). It speaks of a relationship where Christ "manifests" Himself to the individual (John 14:21). It is where the person actually "learns" from Christ (Matt 11:29) and is "taught by Him" (Eph 4:21). These are Scriptural expressions that should produce no questions among those who wear His name.
THERE IS A SATISFACTION in this knowledge that brings great peace, joy, and stability to the soul. It equips the person to live triumphantly in this world, serving the Lord with gladness and singleness of heart. This knowledge is, in fact, nothing less than "eternal life" (John 17:3; 1 John 5:20). It is confirmed to be the superior knowledge by experience alone. The heart can be satisfied with nothing less. This is the knowledge referenced in Ephesians 3:19: "And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge." It is the experience of Christ's love, care, tutelage, and protection.
– Given O. Blakely
Friday, May 7, 2010
ENTERING CORRECTLY
"But as for me, by Thine abundant lovingkindness I will enter Thy house, at Thy holy temple I will bow in reverence for Thee." (Psalm 5:7)
WHILE A LOT OF HOARY TRADITION has surrounded, what men call, "going to church," some observations concerning attending an assembly of believers are in order. Some people attach no value whatsoever to going to a place dedicated to the Lord. They see the New Covenant as liberating men from any obligation to assemble, or meet together in the name of the Lord. By thinking in this manner, they have attached too much significance to their own opinions, and have exaggerated their own spiritual strength.
THE LORD PROMISED special benefits to those who were "TOGETHER." The Psalmist affirmed God would "command" a blessing on such a gathering (Psa 133:1-3). Jesus said He would personally be present where "two or three are gathered TOGETHER" in His name (Matt 18:20). God especially acknowledged those who "spoke often" to one another during the decaying times of Malachi (Mal 3:16-17). When Peter was imprisoned, believers were found "gathered praying" (Acts 12:12). The believers at Troas "gathered TOGETHER" in an "upper chamber" (Acts 20:7-8). Paul spoke of the Corinthians being "gathered TOGETHER" "with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Cor 5:4).
SUCH HOLY CONCLAVES are anything but a perfunctory formality – although they are often so viewed by nominal Christians. The gathering of saints, however, should not be viewed as a mere formality, obligation, or a neighborhood get-together.
DAVID KNEW THE LORD could not be confined to a building constructed by men. Yet, he longed to be where there were no distractions, and he could concentrate on the Lord. He even envied the sparrows because they could nest near the Lord's altars (Psa 84:30). He was personally "glad" when they said to him, "Let us go into the house of the Lord" (Psa 122:1). That was a good frame of mind. To be in the Lord's house was so important to David that he envied the sparrows who found a place to nest there. "Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God" (Psa 84:3). A heart like that is of great price in the sight of God!
AND HOW IS IT THAT he would enter into the house of the Lord? He acknowledges he would do so "in Thine abundant lovingkindness." By this he means he knew it was the Lord's mercy that allowed him to come into the Divine presence. He would also come into the Lord's proximity in contemplation of that mercy, lovingkindness, and grace. He would not come presenting the works of his own hands, but in joyful remembrance of the tender mercies of the Lord.
HE DID NOT COME out of a sense of mere duty or obligation, but in recognition of the mercy and lovingkindness of God – and there is a big difference in those perceptions. To be sure, slothful Christians are admonished, "forsake not the assembling of yourselves together, as the manner of some is" (Heb 10:25). Such people need to be exhorted and stirred up to do what the remembrance of the Lord would compel them to do. Those who duly consider the tender mercies of God will NOT be guilty of that transgression! They know God's grace has made them what they are in Christ. That is why they are accepted "in the Beloved" (Eph 1:6). They "COME" into His house, and are not driven there like wayward sheep.
WHATEVER VIEW YOU MAY ENTERTAIN about structures and times of meeting for the people of God, it is good to ponder being reverent when entering into His presence. "I will bow in reverence for Thee," David acknowledged. Some of us have noted a strange absence of this mind-set among professed believers. There appears to be too much casualness, and too little consciousness of a gracious God.
SOME BOAST THEY ARE ALWAYS in the presence of God, and do not need a special place to meet Him – but I do not believe them. Jesus, who dwelt in the bosom of the Father (John 1:18), "often resorted" to Gethsemane for prayer. It was so common for Him to do so that even Judas "knew the place" (John 18:1-2). He also was found regularly in the synagogue (Lk 4:16) and the Temple (Lk 21:27). Are these pretenders stronger than Christ? I think not. Those who imagine they have advanced so far they have no need for special places and the people of God are not wise. Even Jesus "desired" to eat His last Passover with His disciples (Lk 22:15). It was also His "custom" to be in the synagogue on the Sabbath day (Lk 4:16). That is simply the manner of the Kingdom.
MAY THE SPIRIT OF DAVID be brought to fruition in you. Come into His Presence with an awareness of His Person and tender mercies, bowing before Him. Come "with gladness" and "with singing" (Psa 100:2). Tune your heart before you come to the Lord, and you will receive more from Him. Let your mind survey the things that have been revealed. Contemplate His rich promises. Consider His goodness and truth. You will be blessed in your deed.
– Given O. Blakely
WHILE A LOT OF HOARY TRADITION has surrounded, what men call, "going to church," some observations concerning attending an assembly of believers are in order. Some people attach no value whatsoever to going to a place dedicated to the Lord. They see the New Covenant as liberating men from any obligation to assemble, or meet together in the name of the Lord. By thinking in this manner, they have attached too much significance to their own opinions, and have exaggerated their own spiritual strength.
THE LORD PROMISED special benefits to those who were "TOGETHER." The Psalmist affirmed God would "command" a blessing on such a gathering (Psa 133:1-3). Jesus said He would personally be present where "two or three are gathered TOGETHER" in His name (Matt 18:20). God especially acknowledged those who "spoke often" to one another during the decaying times of Malachi (Mal 3:16-17). When Peter was imprisoned, believers were found "gathered praying" (Acts 12:12). The believers at Troas "gathered TOGETHER" in an "upper chamber" (Acts 20:7-8). Paul spoke of the Corinthians being "gathered TOGETHER" "with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Cor 5:4).
SUCH HOLY CONCLAVES are anything but a perfunctory formality – although they are often so viewed by nominal Christians. The gathering of saints, however, should not be viewed as a mere formality, obligation, or a neighborhood get-together.
DAVID KNEW THE LORD could not be confined to a building constructed by men. Yet, he longed to be where there were no distractions, and he could concentrate on the Lord. He even envied the sparrows because they could nest near the Lord's altars (Psa 84:30). He was personally "glad" when they said to him, "Let us go into the house of the Lord" (Psa 122:1). That was a good frame of mind. To be in the Lord's house was so important to David that he envied the sparrows who found a place to nest there. "Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God" (Psa 84:3). A heart like that is of great price in the sight of God!
AND HOW IS IT THAT he would enter into the house of the Lord? He acknowledges he would do so "in Thine abundant lovingkindness." By this he means he knew it was the Lord's mercy that allowed him to come into the Divine presence. He would also come into the Lord's proximity in contemplation of that mercy, lovingkindness, and grace. He would not come presenting the works of his own hands, but in joyful remembrance of the tender mercies of the Lord.
HE DID NOT COME out of a sense of mere duty or obligation, but in recognition of the mercy and lovingkindness of God – and there is a big difference in those perceptions. To be sure, slothful Christians are admonished, "forsake not the assembling of yourselves together, as the manner of some is" (Heb 10:25). Such people need to be exhorted and stirred up to do what the remembrance of the Lord would compel them to do. Those who duly consider the tender mercies of God will NOT be guilty of that transgression! They know God's grace has made them what they are in Christ. That is why they are accepted "in the Beloved" (Eph 1:6). They "COME" into His house, and are not driven there like wayward sheep.
WHATEVER VIEW YOU MAY ENTERTAIN about structures and times of meeting for the people of God, it is good to ponder being reverent when entering into His presence. "I will bow in reverence for Thee," David acknowledged. Some of us have noted a strange absence of this mind-set among professed believers. There appears to be too much casualness, and too little consciousness of a gracious God.
SOME BOAST THEY ARE ALWAYS in the presence of God, and do not need a special place to meet Him – but I do not believe them. Jesus, who dwelt in the bosom of the Father (John 1:18), "often resorted" to Gethsemane for prayer. It was so common for Him to do so that even Judas "knew the place" (John 18:1-2). He also was found regularly in the synagogue (Lk 4:16) and the Temple (Lk 21:27). Are these pretenders stronger than Christ? I think not. Those who imagine they have advanced so far they have no need for special places and the people of God are not wise. Even Jesus "desired" to eat His last Passover with His disciples (Lk 22:15). It was also His "custom" to be in the synagogue on the Sabbath day (Lk 4:16). That is simply the manner of the Kingdom.
MAY THE SPIRIT OF DAVID be brought to fruition in you. Come into His Presence with an awareness of His Person and tender mercies, bowing before Him. Come "with gladness" and "with singing" (Psa 100:2). Tune your heart before you come to the Lord, and you will receive more from Him. Let your mind survey the things that have been revealed. Contemplate His rich promises. Consider His goodness and truth. You will be blessed in your deed.
– Given O. Blakely
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
NEWNESS IN OUR TIME
"Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them." (Isa 42:9)
WE ARE LIVING IN A TIME that cries out for an outbreak of spiritual newness and freshness. Here and there awakenings are occurring, but we need one in our area, and among the people with whom we have been identified. A spirit of mediocrity has settled over the professed church, and a cloak of casualness and indifference is suffocating the lives of many. This is a time when some are longing for another fulfillment of the promise, "Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert" (Isa 43:19). There is a wilderness in the Christian world that can be turned into "a pool of water," and dry land that can receive "springs of water" (Isa 41:18). It is still possible for the desert to "blossom as the rose" (Isa 35:1), waters to break out in the wilderness, and "streams in the desert" (Isa 35:6).
HOW WILL IT HAPPEN? How can such refreshment and renewal occur? It will begin like all Divine workings, with a "small beginning." It will start with a seed, and grow into a tree. It will not be initiated with the wisdom of men. That is not how God works. He will begin with something that is "foolish" and "weak" in the eyes of the world (1 Cor 1:27).
THE WORK WILL BEGIN where there are faith and hope – where men are calling upon the name of the Lord. It will be preceded by a longing – a "looking for" the good working of the Lord (Lk 2:38). Valid beginnings include a hunger and thirst for righteousness (Matt 5:6), and a determination to seek, ask, and knock (Matt 7:7-8). The "love of the truth" will be prominent (2 Thess 2:10), and a disdain will be held for lifeless religion (2 Tim 3:5).
THE EYES OF THE LORD CONTINUE TO "run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him" (2 Chron 16:9, NKJV). He is looking for someone He can use, someone with a cause He can undergird. He is looking for stewards who will be "faithful," handling the truth to His glory (1 Cor 4:2). Such individuals will be faithful custodians of that truth.
WE MUST MAKE IT OUR AIM to embrace the cause of Christ and the purpose of God. Our hearts are to be set on being laborers in His vineyard, with no competing interests. There is a Divine work to be done, and we can be part of it!
WHERE SUCH SOULS ARE FOUND, a Divine beginning is being revealed. That is precisely how God begins His works. He starts with an Abraham in Ur of the Chaldees who will do what He says. He finds a Moses in the wilderness who will investigate a burning bush, and obey the voice of the Lord. He will start with a Gideon who is faithfully threshing wheat at night, or a holy quartet (Peter, Andrew, James, and John) who will leave earthly interests to follow Jesus. He also stirs up the spirits of people to do His work.
BEFORE A WORK CAN SPREAD FOR GOD'S GLORY, it must be worthy of spreading. The seeds of Divinity must be in it, and the life of God must be in the people. If this is the case, look not on the appearance. The work may be small now, but it will not stay small! The Word of God can grow, increase, be multiplied, and prevail (Acts 12:24; 19:20).
SPEAKING FOR THE BRETHREN at the Word of Truth fellowship in Joplin, the kingdom realities with which we are becoming familiar in our refreshing gatherings are from God. We ourselves are being changed by them, and our views of God and His work expanded. We, and other kindred spirits, may presently be involved in a "small beginning," but we must not despise it as others. If God has given us a foundation to put in place, He will help us to finish the building that is to be placed upon it.
SMALL BEGINNINGS NEED Haggais and Zechariahs to encourage the workers (Ezra 5:1; 6:14). They need laborers whose hearts have been stirred up to put their hand to the work. Where such encouragements and devotion are found, the Lord will make men strong to finish the work!
IT ONLY REMAINS FOR US to be sure we have embraced the Lord's will – that we are working on His building. If we are, "He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil 1:6). The work He has ordained will be completed! You can believe that!
CONCLUSION. As we embark on the second half of this year, it is possible for spiritual newness to be experienced by all of us. It will not be something that can be put into the lifeless molds of religious tradition. It is ever true, "Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved" (Matt 9:17). The freshness of Divine life cannot be contained in old "church ways" and manners. Just as eight hour work days were abandoned in the building of the Temple, so "religion as usual" must be abandoned when fresh things from God are being received.
I ADMONISH YOU to put your hand on the plow, and live with a sense of holy expectancy. Do not be caught up in the spirit of the times, or give yourselves to lifeless religious forms and worldly analyses of the Scriptures. Get involved in the work of the Lord, like the builders of Nehemiah's time. Work with both the sword and the trowel for the glory of God (Neh 4:17).
– Given O. Blakely
WE ARE LIVING IN A TIME that cries out for an outbreak of spiritual newness and freshness. Here and there awakenings are occurring, but we need one in our area, and among the people with whom we have been identified. A spirit of mediocrity has settled over the professed church, and a cloak of casualness and indifference is suffocating the lives of many. This is a time when some are longing for another fulfillment of the promise, "Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert" (Isa 43:19). There is a wilderness in the Christian world that can be turned into "a pool of water," and dry land that can receive "springs of water" (Isa 41:18). It is still possible for the desert to "blossom as the rose" (Isa 35:1), waters to break out in the wilderness, and "streams in the desert" (Isa 35:6).
HOW WILL IT HAPPEN? How can such refreshment and renewal occur? It will begin like all Divine workings, with a "small beginning." It will start with a seed, and grow into a tree. It will not be initiated with the wisdom of men. That is not how God works. He will begin with something that is "foolish" and "weak" in the eyes of the world (1 Cor 1:27).
THE WORK WILL BEGIN where there are faith and hope – where men are calling upon the name of the Lord. It will be preceded by a longing – a "looking for" the good working of the Lord (Lk 2:38). Valid beginnings include a hunger and thirst for righteousness (Matt 5:6), and a determination to seek, ask, and knock (Matt 7:7-8). The "love of the truth" will be prominent (2 Thess 2:10), and a disdain will be held for lifeless religion (2 Tim 3:5).
THE EYES OF THE LORD CONTINUE TO "run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him" (2 Chron 16:9, NKJV). He is looking for someone He can use, someone with a cause He can undergird. He is looking for stewards who will be "faithful," handling the truth to His glory (1 Cor 4:2). Such individuals will be faithful custodians of that truth.
WE MUST MAKE IT OUR AIM to embrace the cause of Christ and the purpose of God. Our hearts are to be set on being laborers in His vineyard, with no competing interests. There is a Divine work to be done, and we can be part of it!
WHERE SUCH SOULS ARE FOUND, a Divine beginning is being revealed. That is precisely how God begins His works. He starts with an Abraham in Ur of the Chaldees who will do what He says. He finds a Moses in the wilderness who will investigate a burning bush, and obey the voice of the Lord. He will start with a Gideon who is faithfully threshing wheat at night, or a holy quartet (Peter, Andrew, James, and John) who will leave earthly interests to follow Jesus. He also stirs up the spirits of people to do His work.
BEFORE A WORK CAN SPREAD FOR GOD'S GLORY, it must be worthy of spreading. The seeds of Divinity must be in it, and the life of God must be in the people. If this is the case, look not on the appearance. The work may be small now, but it will not stay small! The Word of God can grow, increase, be multiplied, and prevail (Acts 12:24; 19:20).
SPEAKING FOR THE BRETHREN at the Word of Truth fellowship in Joplin, the kingdom realities with which we are becoming familiar in our refreshing gatherings are from God. We ourselves are being changed by them, and our views of God and His work expanded. We, and other kindred spirits, may presently be involved in a "small beginning," but we must not despise it as others. If God has given us a foundation to put in place, He will help us to finish the building that is to be placed upon it.
SMALL BEGINNINGS NEED Haggais and Zechariahs to encourage the workers (Ezra 5:1; 6:14). They need laborers whose hearts have been stirred up to put their hand to the work. Where such encouragements and devotion are found, the Lord will make men strong to finish the work!
IT ONLY REMAINS FOR US to be sure we have embraced the Lord's will – that we are working on His building. If we are, "He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil 1:6). The work He has ordained will be completed! You can believe that!
CONCLUSION. As we embark on the second half of this year, it is possible for spiritual newness to be experienced by all of us. It will not be something that can be put into the lifeless molds of religious tradition. It is ever true, "Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved" (Matt 9:17). The freshness of Divine life cannot be contained in old "church ways" and manners. Just as eight hour work days were abandoned in the building of the Temple, so "religion as usual" must be abandoned when fresh things from God are being received.
I ADMONISH YOU to put your hand on the plow, and live with a sense of holy expectancy. Do not be caught up in the spirit of the times, or give yourselves to lifeless religious forms and worldly analyses of the Scriptures. Get involved in the work of the Lord, like the builders of Nehemiah's time. Work with both the sword and the trowel for the glory of God (Neh 4:17).
– Given O. Blakely
Monday, May 3, 2010
THEN YOU WILL KNOW
"And many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and THOU SHALT KNOW THAT THE LORD OF HOSTS HATH SENT ME unto thee" (Zech 2:11). "The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and THOU SHALT KNOW THAT THE LORD OF HOSTS HATH SENT ME unto you" (Zech 4:9). "And they that are far off shall come and build in the temple of the LORD, and YE SHALL KNOW THAT THE LORD OF HOSTS HATH SENT ME unto you. And this shall come to pass, if ye will diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God" (Zech 6:15).
"THEN YOU WILL KNOW that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you." These are the words of the revealing angel who was making these things known to Zechariah (4:1,4,5), and with whom he was talking (4:2,5,13). They were also words the prophet would no doubt relay to Zerubbabel and the people. A project was under way to rebuild the Temple, and it was headed up by Zerubbabel. However, the work was not progressing as well as was desired. As a consequence, discouragement was setting in, and some people began to doubt that the work could ever be finished – even though God Himself had commanded that it be done.
NOW COMES A WORD FROM HEAVEN that the completion of the building of the Temple would confirm that the work itself had been ordained and commissioned by God. Although the work involved the labors of men, it was not originated by them.
THIS WAS AN APPOINTED WORK – one that was initiated from heaven, and into which men were drawn by God. The Lord had "stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia" to commission that the temple be built (2 Chron 36:22; Ezra 1:1; Isa 45:13). He had also summoned kings Darius are Artaxerses to the work, moving them to command the work to be done (Ezra 6:14). The spirits of the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, the priests, the Levites, and others, had been "raised," or stirred up, by God to "go up to build the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem" (Ezra 1:5). Ezra had been moved to prepare the people for the Temple by returning to holiness (Ezra 10:10-16). Nehemiah had been moved to rebuild the walls around the holy city (Neh 2:13-18). There was no question about it, this was the work of God!
THE POINT, HOWEVER, was the completion of the work – finishing what God had commissioned to be done. The angel apprizes the prophet that when the house of God was completed, then he and the people would "know the Lord of hosts" had sent him.TWICE HEARD. This is not initial knowledge, but confirming knowledge. It is when the truth comes home to the heart the second time. David referred to this kind of knowledge when he said, "God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God" (Psa 62:11). This is the knowledge that confirms the soul – the inner witness that brings stability. It is a deeper knowledge that is more related to faith than the intellect.
THE ANGEL HAS ALREADY MENTIONED this kind of knowledge twice to Zechariah. "For, behold, I will shake mine hand upon them, and they shall be a spoil to their servants: and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me" (2:9). And again, "And many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto thee" (2:11). What a precious knowledge this is!
EZEKIEL. The Lord frequently speaks of this kind of knowledge – the knowledge that comes from seeing the fulfillment of what He has promised. How poignantly it was revealed to Ezekiel. "And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: THEN SHALL YE KNOW that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD" (Ezek 37:14). And again, "And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel: AND YE SHALL KNOW that I am the LORD" (Ezek 20:38).
ISAIAH. Isaiah also spoke in this manner when he foretold the restoration of the Jews. "Thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; AND THOU SHALT KNOW that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me" (Isa 49:22-23).
JOEL. In his declaration of the era of the New Covenant, Joel also mentioned this kind of knowledge. "The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
SO SHALL YE KNOW that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more" (Joel 3:17).JESUS. Jesus also spoke in this manner. "When ye have lifted up the Son of man, THEN SHALL YE KNOW that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things" (John 8:28).
IT IS MY PRAYER that you will have some of these confirming experiences – times when you will be able to say, "Now I know!"
– Given O. Blakely
"THEN YOU WILL KNOW that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you." These are the words of the revealing angel who was making these things known to Zechariah (4:1,4,5), and with whom he was talking (4:2,5,13). They were also words the prophet would no doubt relay to Zerubbabel and the people. A project was under way to rebuild the Temple, and it was headed up by Zerubbabel. However, the work was not progressing as well as was desired. As a consequence, discouragement was setting in, and some people began to doubt that the work could ever be finished – even though God Himself had commanded that it be done.
NOW COMES A WORD FROM HEAVEN that the completion of the building of the Temple would confirm that the work itself had been ordained and commissioned by God. Although the work involved the labors of men, it was not originated by them.
THIS WAS AN APPOINTED WORK – one that was initiated from heaven, and into which men were drawn by God. The Lord had "stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia" to commission that the temple be built (2 Chron 36:22; Ezra 1:1; Isa 45:13). He had also summoned kings Darius are Artaxerses to the work, moving them to command the work to be done (Ezra 6:14). The spirits of the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, the priests, the Levites, and others, had been "raised," or stirred up, by God to "go up to build the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem" (Ezra 1:5). Ezra had been moved to prepare the people for the Temple by returning to holiness (Ezra 10:10-16). Nehemiah had been moved to rebuild the walls around the holy city (Neh 2:13-18). There was no question about it, this was the work of God!
THE POINT, HOWEVER, was the completion of the work – finishing what God had commissioned to be done. The angel apprizes the prophet that when the house of God was completed, then he and the people would "know the Lord of hosts" had sent him.TWICE HEARD. This is not initial knowledge, but confirming knowledge. It is when the truth comes home to the heart the second time. David referred to this kind of knowledge when he said, "God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God" (Psa 62:11). This is the knowledge that confirms the soul – the inner witness that brings stability. It is a deeper knowledge that is more related to faith than the intellect.
THE ANGEL HAS ALREADY MENTIONED this kind of knowledge twice to Zechariah. "For, behold, I will shake mine hand upon them, and they shall be a spoil to their servants: and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me" (2:9). And again, "And many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto thee" (2:11). What a precious knowledge this is!
EZEKIEL. The Lord frequently speaks of this kind of knowledge – the knowledge that comes from seeing the fulfillment of what He has promised. How poignantly it was revealed to Ezekiel. "And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: THEN SHALL YE KNOW that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD" (Ezek 37:14). And again, "And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel: AND YE SHALL KNOW that I am the LORD" (Ezek 20:38).
ISAIAH. Isaiah also spoke in this manner when he foretold the restoration of the Jews. "Thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; AND THOU SHALT KNOW that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me" (Isa 49:22-23).
JOEL. In his declaration of the era of the New Covenant, Joel also mentioned this kind of knowledge. "The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
SO SHALL YE KNOW that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more" (Joel 3:17).JESUS. Jesus also spoke in this manner. "When ye have lifted up the Son of man, THEN SHALL YE KNOW that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things" (John 8:28).
IT IS MY PRAYER that you will have some of these confirming experiences – times when you will be able to say, "Now I know!"
– Given O. Blakely
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