Marching Forth!

" You shall not see your brother's ox or his sheep going astray, and hide yourself from them; you shall certainly bring them back to your brother ."   Deuteronomy 22:1-2     Our natural tendency is to avoid involving ourselves in other people's business.  Just like the story of the Good Samaritan, when we see trouble our instincts tell us to pass on the other side.  The Priest and Levite would have known Deuteronomy 22:4 which read, " You shall not see your brother's donkey or his ox fall down along the road, and hide yourself from them; you shall surely help him lift them up again ."  While they obeyed the letter of the Law, they ignored the implications of the Law.  A man is certainly of more value than a donkey or ox!   There is this perception in many Christians that the role of correction or confrontation of sin falls only to the pastor.  This is not true!  As children of God, we all have the freedom and responsibility to seek to re...

We have an amazing capacity to complicate what God has made simple.  Take the call of God, for instance.  There are certain things every believer is called to do without exception:  abide in the Vine, share the Gospel, to teach new believers, pray without ceasing, to love one another as Christ loves us, and to live for the glory of God to name a few.  What often trips people up is defining their personal role in the Body of Christ.  Because the clouds have not parted with a beam of light, no lightning has struck their path, or the risen LORD has not appeared to them in a vision, they waffle and remain uncertain concerning what they are to do.  And most often, unfortunately, use their freedom in Christ to do little or nothing. One of the roles most neglected in the Body of Christ is the teaching of children.  I was told early in ministry that "10% of the people in church do 90% of the work," and there is much evidence to support this.  This may o...

" And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose ."   Romans 8:28 There are few verses as loaded as this to blast our doubts concerning the sovereignty of God.   Countless books have been written on the subject, and more sermons preached besides.  Because of the prolific and often flippant use of this scripture, we can be numb to the reality of the promise contained within.  It is one thing to quote this verse:  do we actually believe it is true? The Bible teaches us that we do not see things as God sees.  We are limited in sight.  We cannot see the good in a 20-year-old man who lost limbs in war and is now confined to a chair.  We mourn with those who suffer debilitating illness, and shake our heads over the pain of separation of parents as they bury their only child.  There are many things we can see no good in, and frankly there is no good in them.  Deat...

" So the LORD was with Judah. And they drove out the mountaineers, but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the lowland, because they had chariots of iron . " Judges 1:19   This verse is intriguing because it points to man's failure in spite of God's power, authority, and sovereignty.   Are chariots too hard for God to destroy?  The LORD was with Judah but they remained incapable of complete victory over their enemies.  God made the wheels of the Egyptian chariots fall off as their army pursued Israel through the Red. Sea.  God made Sisera's 900 chariots as nothing and killed every man of his army with the sword.  Joshua told the children of Joseph to drive out the Canaanites, but the people complained that their enemies had chariots of iron.  Joshua 17:18 reads, " ... but the mountain country shall be yours. Although it is wooded, you shall cut it down, and its farthest extent shall be yours; for you shall drive out the Canaanites, though the...