July 17th - Joshua 24; Acts 4; Jeremiah 13; Matthew 27

sermonindex Jul 17, 2003

"Joshua said to the people, 'You are not able to serve the Lord. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you.'" - Joshua 24:19-20What an awesome verse showing the majesty of God and his love towards us. But also showing his holyness and consequence for sinning against him. He 'is a jealous God' which means he desires for you to worship him and worship him alone.

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Maria Jul 17, 2003

Interesting parallel between Joshua and our reading in Matthew. Joshua said to all the people, "Behold, this stone shall be for a witness against us, for it has heard all the words of the LORD which He spoke to us; thus it shall be for a witness against you, so that you do not deny your God." Joshua 24:27"But all this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures of the prophets." Then all the disciples left Him and fled. Matthew 26:56Meditated this morning on the concept of "denying" Jesus. All the disciples fled, very soon after they promised never to deny Him, just as Israel denied God not too long after they promised never to deny Him.Reading School of Christ by T. Austin Sparks. He writes of the disciples and their sorrow and anguish before and after the death of Jesus - they began to realize that they were failures. God had to bring them to this point, in order to bring them to the end of themselves so that they could walk in the revelation and the power of the Holy Spirit. If they still had "self-righteousness" and false ideals of God, they would not be able to truly testify of Christ. Even so, Jesus allows us to "go our own way" so-to-speak until we come to the end of ourselves. Until we are willing to settle down and realize (as Paris Reidhead puts it) "I'm not and He is and I don't have and He has...In me there is nothing good."Much more in my brain on this subject, but that's all I'll type for now.The Lord is faithful. If only we could truly surrender - not bits and pieces, but ALL of ourselves."The Christian way is different: harder, and easier. Christ says 'Give me All. I don't want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don't want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole tree down…Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked-the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself: my own will shall become yours.'" C.S. LewisBlessings to all,--Maria

sermonindex Jul 17, 2003

The Lord is faithful. If only we could truly surrender - not bits and pieces, but ALL of ourselves.Yes that reminds me of the sacrifices given in malachi, the priests were offering sacrifices that were blemished (not perfect, not full). But God deserves (demands) we offer him the best and hold nothing back. He wants our ALL!"'See!' he said to all the people. 'This stone will be a witness against us. It has heard all the words the Lord has said to is. It will be a witness against you if you are untrue to your God.'" - Joshua 24:27He is 'the stone you builders rejected which has become the capstone.' - Acts 4:11Hmmm I wonder if thats streching it too far but could the 'stone' in joshua be a type of Christ?When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. "I have sinned," he said. "for I have betrayed innocent blood." "What is that to us?" they replied. "That's your responsibility." - Matthew 27:3-4When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. "I am innocent of this man's blood," he said. "It is your responsibility!" - Matthew 27:24Its intresting to see how the cheif priests and pilate both tried to put the blame on someone else but they were guilty in the eyes of God too! "Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed." - Acts 4:27

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crsschk Jul 17, 2003

I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it.Oh, Yes, please! Amen! Amen! Amen!Much more in my brain on this subject, but that's all I'll type for now.The Lord is faithful. If only we could truly surrender - not bits and pieces, but ALL of ourselves.Interesting, myself as well, something is eating at me right now, will try and flesh it out in the proper post, now I just have to find it....Here it is, in the forum:(Lounge) and (topic): Quote by William Gurnall Regarding the book "War On The Saints"_/crsschk\\_

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Maria Jul 20, 2003

"Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were UNEDUCATED and UNTRAINED men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus." Acts 4:13 I've always loved this passage!!"And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all." Acts 4:33

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Maria Jul 21, 2003

"Then say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD, "Behold I am about to fill all the inhabitants of this land—the kings that sit for David on his throne, the priests, the prophets and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem—with drunkenness!" Jeremiah 13:13AMAZING that people think "spiritual drunkenness" is a good thing! The Bible clearly defines this drunkenness as judgement! Also, the New Testament is full of passages that say that Believers ought to be sober in spirit. Examples: Acts 26:25, 1 Corinthians 15:34, 1 Thessalonians 5:6, 1 Thessalonians 5:8, 2 Timothy 4:5, 1 Peter 1:13, 1 Peter 4:7 and 1 Peter 5:8)"But if you will not listen to it, My soul will sob in secret for such pride; And my eyes will bitterly weep And flow down with tears, Because the flock of the LORD has been taken captive." Jeremiah 13:17"If you say in your heart, ‘Why have these things happened to me?’ Because of the magnitude of your iniquity Your skirts have been removed And your heels have been exposed." Jeremiah 13:22"This is your lot, the portion measured to you From Me," declares the LORD, "Because you have forgotten Me And trusted in falsehood." Jeremiah 13:25We MUST remain faithful in keeping with the Scriptures!!"For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching is light; And reproofs for discipline are the way of life to keep you from the evil woman, From the smooth tongue of the adulteress. Do not desire her beauty in your heart, Nor let her capture you with her eyelids. For on account of a harlot one is reduced to a loaf of bread, And an adulteress hunts for the precious life." Proverbs 6:23-28This "adulteress woman" could very well be the counterfeit church."As for your adulteries and your lustful neighings, The lewdness of your prostitution On the hills in the field, I have seen your abominations. Woe to you, O Jerusalem! How long will you remain unclean?" Jeremiah 13:27These "seven abominations" are listed in Proverbs 6:"There are six things which the LORD hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil, A false witness who utters lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers." Proverbs 6:16-19--Maria

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crsschk Jul 21, 2003

Joshua 24:27"Behold this stone shall be a witness to us, for it has heard all the words of the Lord which He spoke to us. It shall therefore be a witness to you, lest you deny your God."Habakkuk 2:10,11 "You give shamefull counsel to your house, Cutting off many peoples,And sin against your soul.For the stone will cry out from the wall,And the beam from the timbers will answer it"Luke 37-40Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty they had seen, saying: " 'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!' Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!"And some of the Pharisees caleed to Him from the crowd, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples." But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out."