Freedom in the Fire

I was going through some old sermon notes and came across this thought that I decided to post here.  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were placed into the fiery furnace as punishment.  In fact, the expectation was that they would die in there.  The Bible says in Daniel 3:20-21 that they were bound before they were thrown into the fire.  Yet we read in verse 25 that they were walking around in the fire no longer bound, so it was in the fire that they were freed.  It was perhaps by the fire they were freed.  The fire did not harm them, but it likely destroyed whatever bound them.  We can trust that whatever situation we face, whatever its source - even things intentionally designed, like the fiery furnace, to destroy us - that God can not only bring us out, but He can bless us in the situation and bring us out better than we were when we went in.

Tonight I read...1 Samuel 17

As you can see or easily figure out, some days I don't read and some days I read but don't post.  Thus we've skipped several days and a few chapters and tonight I'm posting about 1 Samuel 17.  This chapter, which includes David's defeat of Goliath, is filled with many lessons.  I'm sure that, like me, you've heard countless sermons preached from this chapter.  What struck me as I read it this time is how David's humility and obedience put him in a position for God to use him.  We find David going back and forth between his father's home, where he helped care for the sheep, and Israel's army, where he took supplies to the army.  On one particular trip, David had taken the supplies his father told him to take and was seeking out his brothers when he heard Goliath's challenge.  His faithful service as a "lowly" shepherd had provided him opportunities to fight lions and bears, experiences he shared with King Saul to convey his readiness to fight Goliath.  Had he resisted his father's instructions, he would not have heard Goliath's challenge.  We like David must be faithful over every task, large or small, that God entrusts to us.  We never know but that He might be preparing us to defeat our own Goliath.

Last Night I Read...1 Samuel 11

As usual, it's been a long time since I posted here.  I recently began journaling somewhat regularly on the scriptures I'm reading and thought I'd blog those entries.  I thought about adding my previous entries here, but that would get confusing with dates and such, so I'll just start from what I'm reading today.  Well, as you can see from the subject of this post, I'm actually beginning with what I read last night.  For anyone who might read this, these are simply my thoughts on what I read.  It's in no way meant to be scholarly, authoritative, or definitive and it could certainly differ greatly from what the Lord reveals to you when you read the same passage.  Even so, I pray you find some blessing in my words.  And now, on to 1 Samuel 11.

Note: I mostly read the New Living Translation.  All links in this post (and likely future posts) are to the New Living Translation of the Bible on Bible Gateway.


What struck me in this chapter was the faith that the people of Jabesh-gilead had in Saul.  He was newly appointed king.  The Bible tells of no exploits of Saul's to this point that would give them a reason to trust him.  Yet in verse 9 we read that "There was great joy throughout the town.." when the message arrived from Saul that help was on the way.  And not only did the people rejoice, but they acted on what they had been told.  In verse 10 they issued a challenge to their enemies based on what Saul had told them.  What better demonstration of faith is there?  As James 2:18 states, "I will show you my faith by my good deeds."  What we believe is the seed and what we do is the fruit.  Do we have the same faith in God that the people of Jabesh-gilead had in Saul?  It occurred to me as I reread this paragraph that the people's faith in Saul was an extension of their faith in God because they knew God had appointed Saul to be king.  Do we trust the people and situations that God has placed in our lives or do we expect God to work in our lives only in a one-on-one way?  This brings to mind the oft-told joke about the person who drowned waiting on God to save them from the flood because they didn't recognize the boats and the helicopter as being sent by God.  We need to be open to God working in ways we might not expect.

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.
   “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine." Isaiah 55:8

Of further note is Saul's response when the people wanted to kill the "scoundrels" (see 1 Samuel 10:27) who did not think him fit to be king.  He says in verse 13, "No one will be executed today, for today the Lord has rescued Israel!"  Saul understood that their focus should be on the Lord rather than on him.  We would do well to emulate Saul, to ignore slights against us and to instead focus on the Lord.

Who is my neighbor? Thoughts on The Parable of the Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-37 NKJV

Who is my neighbor?

"A certain lawyer" asked this question of Jesus in Luke 10:29.  I have heard many sermons based on this parable.  But one thing I don't think I've ever heard anyone say is that being a neighbor is up to us.  Perhaps it's been said but not in a way that it struck me, but the Holy Spirit said it to me this way today.  Sometimes we think being a neighbor is something that happens by chance when someone moves into our neighborhood or when we move into theirs.  Perhaps we think of a neighbor as someone who is friendly to us or does something kind for us.  But in the parable, the neighbor was the giver, not the recipient.  The Samaritan, the man who was the neighbor, chose to love.  He chose to serve.  He didn't sit and wave at his next door neighbor as they cut their grass.  He didn't wait for them to bring cookies to welcome him to the neighborhood.  He saw someone in need - a stranger, someone who perhaps considered him an enemy - but he chose to help.  And not just to help, but to help sacrificially.  We see in verse 35 that he gave all he had for the man's care and promised to cover any additional costs the innkeeper might incur.  He shows us that being a neighbor is active rather than passive. We show that we are a neighbor by our actions.  The priest and the Levite took no action on behalf of the wounded traveler.  They were not neighbors.  The Samaritan was the neighbor.

I think there's more to come from this, but I'll stop here for now.

Faith

It doesn't take faith to step into the waters after God has already parted them.  Faith is stepping into the waters as they run and trusting God to part them.

The priests will carry the Ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth. As soon as their feet touch the water, the flow of water will be cut off upstream, and the river will stand up like a wall. Joshua 3:13 NLT

Untouchable

I'm reading the book of Daniel and was struck one day this week as I read 3:27.  We learn earlier in chapter 3 that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had been tied up and thrown into a furnace so hot that it killed the soldiers who got close enough to put them in.  King Nebuchadnezzar sees four men (instead of the three that were thrown in) walking around in the "roaring flames" unbound and unharmed.  He calls the three men out of the fire.  They come out and we read in verse 27 (New Living Translation):

Then the high officers, officials, governors, and advisers crowded around them and saw that the fire had not touched them. Not a hair on their heads was singed, and their clothing was not scorched. They didn’t even smell of smoke!

They had been in the midst of the flames but someone who hadn't seen them there wouldn't know it.  They were in the fire but it had not touched them.  And so it can be with us.  While we may bear physical signs of battle, God's presence with us (like His presence as the fourth person in the furnace) and His promise never to leave or forsake us give us "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding" (Philippians 4:7 NKJV) and "joy inexpressible and full of glory" (1 Peter 1:8 NKJV).  I've often heard of and even met people who are exuberant and joyful and positive despite what appear to be crushing circumstances.  God desires to give us beauty for ashes, but we must surrender our ashes to Him so our hands and hearts are free to accept the beauty He has for us.

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me...
To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

Isaiah 61: 1a, 3 NKJV

Glory to God indeed!

Don't Let Go!

Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.  Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him.  And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.”

But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”

So He said to him, “What is your name?”

He said, “Jacob.”

And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.” (Genesis 32:24-28 NKJV)

It is easy to think this passage is about Jacob demanding something that was being withheld from him.  However this is not the case.  We know that God desires to bless us abundantly.

Bring all the tithes into the storehouse,
That there may be food in My house,
And try Me now in this,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“If I will not open for you the windows of heaven
And pour out for you such blessingThat there will not be room enough to receive it. (Malachi 3:10)

But sometimes we are our own roadblock.  Well, maybe you're not but I am.  What the Genesis passage is really about is commitment and perseverance.  Jacob is willing to put in the time and effort to get what God has for Him.

Some of us pray and then complain that God didn't answer.  Perhaps God answered and we missed it.  Do we listen for an answer or do we say what we have to say and then go on our way?  We want a word from the Lord but we don't read His Word.  God is always speaking.  Are we listening?  As the saying goes, if you're feeling far from God, guess who moved?

Like Jacob, we must not give up.  Let us commit to hold on and get our blessing.

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14 NKJV)