Sheep Food

  It is not the will of God for anyone to perish...but that all should come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9)...and Jesus clearly warned us all that ‘unless we repent...we will all...likewise perish’ (Luke 13:1-5). His words, not mine. And that was not a threat, but a warning offered in love. Remember...He did not come to condemn us but to save us (John 3:18). ‘Repent from what’, you may ask? How about anything in our lives that is contrary to His nature and character! Remember, Jesus came to set the captives free (Luke 4:18) and He did point out that ‘anyone who commits sin is a slave to sin’ (John 8:34) so if we use our context clues here, we should be able to see that it is ‘sin’ that we are turning from in every area of our life. You might take a second and read Hebrews 12:1-4 to get started here today. Are we not told there to ‘lay aside every weight that slows us down and every sin which so easily ensnares us...’? I should point out that he says ‘every sin’, and not just the ‘b...

  You are probably familiar with that OT passage that declares: “Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.” (2 Chron. 20:15). Perhaps you have quoted it to yourself on more than one occasion when faced with daunting circumstances in your life. However, it should be pointed out that while the battle is indeed the Lord’s, as is the victory (Prov. 21:31), that does not mean your role in this conflict is relegated to being some spectator. Yeah...give that one a moment or two if you would please. We’re continuing on as we look back at the story of how Joshua led the Israelites into the promised land and their ensuing victory over their first test, the city of Jericho. (Joshua 6) We’ve been looking at this subject of ‘sanctification’ and how there is a land in need of clearing of everything which is opposed to God and His character and likeness, which mainly ...is our carnal flesh nature (Rom. 8:7-8; James 4:4). Today, it is ...

  I’m sure some will question, if not disagree outright with what I’m about to say here, but I am thoroughly convinced from all I have come to learn from scripture...that this process of abiding in Jesus, where He begins to ‘sanctify’ us, cannot even begin to take place until...we have fully surrendered our heart to Him. I mean...that’s what we ‘say’ we are doing when we walk that aisle and ‘repeat that prayer’, is it not? Yet, how many of us failed to get the ‘memo’ that God would actually ‘test’ our hearts to see how serious we were about this? (Deut. 8:2; 1 Thess.2:4) I mean really, if you arranged for a local mechanic to overhaul the engine in an older model car of yours, it’s not like he can begin the work until you have delivered the car to his garage and handed him the keys...right? And what about that rich, young ruler who expressed interest in getting in on this ‘eternal life’ offer? What kept him from joining the group with Jesus? It was that ‘one thing’ he was not r...

  When Jesus called for Lazarus to ‘come forth’ out of the tomb where his dead body had been placed four days earlier, we read that he “who had died came out bound hand and foot with grave clothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth...” (John 11:44) ... ...and the very first order of business as dictated by Jesus in that same verse... was directed to those with Him as He told them: “Loose him, and let him go.” Lazarus had been ‘made alive’ and yet...he had some ‘bondages’ that needed to be removed from his newly raised body. Would you please turn to Eph. 2 and read vs. 1-2. We ‘who were dead’ (in sin and trespasses)...have been ‘made alive’. Please note the ‘past tense’ wording that says that we “once walked according to the course of this world and according to the prince of the power of the air...the spirit (demon) who now works IN... the sons of disobedience...”. Paul goes on to elaborate how this ‘spirit’ operated in and through us, and still does today among those who ha...

  I understand why so many NT believers today tend to shy away from spending time reading back in the OT books, especially with all that jabber about ‘wrath and law’. I mean, who’s got time for that when we are in a dispensation living 'under grace' and a ‘better covenant with better promises’, right? (Heb. 8:6) [emphasis please, on ‘better promises’] The only thing you might want to take in to consideration here, is that a lot of those ‘promises’ God made to the early descendants of Abraham were quite impressive. And if you belong to Christ, what are we told about being ‘heirs’ ...in Gal. 3:26-29? I mean, take a quick moment to look at a couple of those promises God made to them in Ex. 23:25-27 and Deut. 7:14-15. Are those not appealing to anyone reading here today? And while on this particular subject, have you ever given much thought to this idea that if God did not want His people way back then to suffer from sickness and disease, along with infertility and miscarriages...

  Can we ‘pull the curtain back’ here today and have an honest discussion? Let’s talk about some of those ongoing ‘struggles’ that so easily beset or ensnare many professing 'believers’ today (Heb. 12:1). I mean don’t most if not all ‘Christians’ admit to still struggling with ‘sin’ on a daily basis? Why is that? Maybe it’s jealousy that you have never been able to overcome, despite your many tearful prayers of confession to God. For some, it’s been a pride issue that you know resides in you, but being set free of it has eluded you for unknown reasons . No doubt many would admit to being entangled with sexual compulsions and desires that have worn you down to an empty shell of defeat and self-loathing. And do we even want to talk about the variety of ‘addictions’ that control us? If you would like a more exhaustive list of areas that have bound many people, please jot down Rom. 1:29-31; Gal. 5:19-21; Mark 7:21-23, 1 Tim. 1:9-10; 2 Tim. 3:1-4, and Eph. 5:3-4. You’ll find everyt...

  “All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way;” (Isa. 53:6) Well there you go – God’s assessment of all of humanity in one metaphor. There was good reason God likened us to sheep...they are not brilliant animals (Jer. 4:22). And not that I have ever worked with or around sheep, nor any livestock for that matter, I’ve come to learn that when ‘sheep’ stray...they usually don’t fare well and can end up in unfortunate circumstances. Paul would later write and summarize the condition of all humanity in more specific language, explaining how we ‘all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God’ (Rom. 3:23). He declared this after quoting the writings of old in his letter affirming our condition, saying how ‘there is none righteous, no not one...who understands’ (10-11) and how ‘destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace they have not known and there is no fear of God before their eyes’ (16-18). But Jesus often chose to refer t...