Marching Forth!

I hadn't planned on posting today, but sometimes things God reveals are too amazing and exciting to keep to yourself!  I am always delighted to discover new things in what was familiar like when Jesus spoke from the cross, " My God, my God, why have your forsaken me ?" and I learned He was reciting the first line of Psalm 22 .  Realising Psalm 22 was connected to Jesus the Messiah who suffered on Calvary deepened my understanding of the pointed statement Jesus made to orthodox Jews which was previously lost on me.  He spoke in the hearing of people who fulfilled the word verbatim written by David a thousand years before in their accusations against Him. After God brought the children out of Egypt with mighty wonders, at His command Moses sent one ruler of each tribe into Canaan to spy out the land God had given them.  After surveying the land for 40 days, taking stock of strongholds, fortifications, and the people, the spies brought back ripe fruit of the land....

Most of us have closets which contain many options of clothes and shoes to suit the occasion.  We have clothes we wear to the office, formal gatherings, to paint or do yardwork, or pajamas to sleep in.  Our future plans and activities make an impact on clothes we wear.  Our wardrobe decisions are also affected depending if we are hosting guests or are home alone.  Many clothes we wear to "dress up" can be stifling and uncomfortable, and it is a pleasant feeling to change from these tight or complicated garments into loose, breathable fabric.  After wearing boots or tight shoes all day what a relief it is to pull them off! Whilst our favourite clothes may not be appropriate to wear every day, there is one thing followers of Jesus ought to be clothed with at all times:  humility.  See what  1 Peter 5:1-5 says:  " The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of...

" For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel: "Seek Me and live; 5 but do not seek Bethel,n or enter Gilgal, nor pass over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nothing ." Amos 5:4-5 During our study of the book of Amos at Calvary Chapel Sydney the LORD has impressed upon me the importance of seeking Him.  Religious activity was in full swing in the northern kingdom of Israel, but the people worshiped the works of their own hands.  They went to "holy" sites like Bethel, Gilgal, and Beersheba, places of antiquity where pillars and monuments had been set up by the patriarchs--not for worship, but in response to the revelation of God, His presence, and covenant.  When Abraham planted a tamarisk tree, Isaac dug a well in Beersheba, Joshua directed the elders to set up a monument of stones from the Jordan in Gilgal, or Jacob set up a stone in Bethel it was never intended to be the idolatrous shrines t...

When the tribes of Ruben, Gad, and Manasseh looked upon the prime cattle country east of the Jordan, they requested that land be deemed their inheritance.  At first Moses was angry with them for stopping short of entering the land of promise, but they assured him they did not shrink from the task which lay before them of driving out the enemies so all tribes could enter their inheritance.  They would pass over Jordan armed for battle to assist their brethren obtain the land God allotted to each one, and then they would return to their own families on the east side of the river.  In the end Moses agreed to the request of the three tribes, and they also kept their word to fight beside their brethren. In 1 Corinthians 10:11 Paul explained what happened concerning the children of Israel in the Old Testament had been provided as relevant examples for Christians today.  Like the children of Israel had been given an inheritance and rest they needed to labour to enter so...

I read a passage of scripture last night which reminds me when it seems all hope is lost, God is able to do the miraculous and unexpected.  The Bible is filled with instances where God's almighty power overruled the natural laws He established in the universe, and sometimes with almost comedic effect.  Elisha was a prophet filled with the Holy Spirit through whom God did many miracles, and there was a notable occasion after his death mentioned in  2 Kings 13:20-21 :  " Then Elisha died, and they buried him. And the raiding bands from Moab invaded the land in the spring of the year.  21  So it was, as they were burying a man, that suddenly they spied a band of raiders; and they put the man in the tomb of Elisha; and when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet ." Burying a man according to the ancient Hebrew tradition did not involve burying the body in dirt but to lay the body in a tomb or crypt typicall...

From the mouths of babes God has ordained praise, and He also has been glorified by the mouth of crooked, greedy prophets like Balaam.  After he was asked to curse Israel from afar, Balaam said in  Numbers 23:22-23 , " God brings them out of Egypt; He has strength like a wild ox. 23  "For there is no sorcery against Jacob, nor any divination against Israel. It now must be said of Jacob and of Israel, 'Oh, what God has done !'"  There is no one more powerful or intimately involved with what is commonly called "spiritual warfare" than God, and there is no sorcery or divination which works against Him.  Victory depends primarily not on what we do but what God has done. The focus of many genuine believers can be more on what we need to do to be protected and victorious rather than extolling and believing what God has said and done.  God spoke to His people in  Isaiah 54:16-17 :  " Behold, I have created the blacksmith who blows the coals in...

" Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did. 24  But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, 25  and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man ." John 2:23-25 No one naturally resembles Jesus in character because He is God made flesh.  What strikes me about this passage is how Jesus did not commit Himself to men--even professing believers--because He knew what was in them, and in their flesh there was nothing good.  To "commit" in this sense is to "put faith in or entrust."  Jesus was able to love people completely without reservation, giving Himself for the good of others.  At the same time there was not a shred of self-interest in His motivation in loving people generously.  We often go wrong at this point because we often have motives and expectations which are hidden from our eyes.  We judge o...