Joshua 6:1
Now the gates of Jericho were securely barred because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in.
Joshua 5:15
The commander of the LORD’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
Joshua 6:20
When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.
Wouldn’t you know it? All the way to the brink of God’s promise and here stands a wall. A wall, a buttress, an obstacle between you and your dream. What do you do? Give up. Quit. “Well, it wasn’t meant for me”. There’s a little bit of that in all of us isn’t there. Imagine God commanding Israel to walk around that fortified wall six consecutive days. What kind of conversations were going around Israeli camp fires each night? Do you think the tone may have changed as they became more confident walking in the shadow of the enemy’s walls without being harmed? Faith. God marched His children right up to the face of the wall day after day, encouraging them, building their faith, day in and day out, by repetition. Each day, walking up to that that opposed them and then walking back to camp with a building confidence that what God had promised, He was able to perform. They may not have had a shout in them on day one, but on day seven they were primed for victory, primed to over come. Much like an athlete who trains for a contest, Israel was training for reigning. It was short and didn’t sound or feel anything like boot camp, but that’s exactly what it was: boot camp. Coming out of the wilderness, God had seasoned a people that could obey, but could they fight? Upon coming to the edge of the promised land, God commanded that circumcision be immediately be re-instituted… after forty years. Ouch! No argument, no dissension, the Israelites got out the knives and obeyed. In a hurry. Ouch! Really, ouch! So God had a people that would obey, but none that could fight. God had a plan: Take a sword in one hand and a shield in the other and follow me. Jesus said something like that to His followers: “Take up your cross and follow me”.
“Follow me as I follow Christ” Paul exhorted. Believers young and old throughout the Church age have done just that; taken up the Sword of the Sprit, which is the Word of God and the Shield of Faith, Faith in God, and following Christ into victorious, glorious eternal life. Taking up the cross is not the burden some suppose, not when you are following Christ. His burden is light, His yoke is easy. He invites you, invites you to a place of rest and healing and blessing, but a willingness to follow Him into battle. We are more than conquerors when we take our cross and follow. It doesn’t matter how much you know when you start, just that you get started. Open a bible, visit a church, just turn off the radio and the TV and spend a few quiet moments in prayer. Follow Him right up to the face of what frightens you the most, the largest obstacles, the greatest strongholds in your life and watch the walls come tumbling down. Shout; for God has given you the victory!
.wb
Hebrews 11:30
By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the army had marched around them for seven days.
Hebrews 11:3
By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
Romans 8:31
What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Sunday School Lesson for June 19, 2011: God Protects His People (Joshua 2:2-9, 15, 16, 22-24)
Romans 2:11
For there is no respect of persons with God.
James 4:6
But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”
Romans 4:7-8
7 “Blessed are those
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
8 Blessed is the one
whose sin the Lord will never count against them.”[
Joshua 2:9
and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land
Joshua 6:22
Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the prostitute’s house and bring her out and all who belong to her, in accordance with your oath to her.”
It could not have been easy for Rahab. Prostitution is a hard, hard way of life. While she may have been well to do at some level, prosperity had not come without a price. How did she get here? God only knows. How much pain? How much had been broken? How much physical abuse had she suffered? How many broken promises had she endured? Was she beautiful? Probably. Depends on who you asked. But you don’t see the boot prints in the middle of her back. And while it’s easy to make Rahab solely a victim (makes us feel better, doesn’t it?), she was hardly a paragon of virtue. She was a prostitute. She was a survivor. She’d made some hard choices, but they were just that: her choices. She was a convincing liar. When she lied to the King’s men and told them that the Israeli spies had departed her abode, they spent days chasing, tracking, following an imaginary trail created out her spoken words… and nothing else. Liar. Yeah, she had that down. And you know what about a liar? A liar will steal, cheat, what ever it takes. She was a survivor.
However, God saw something in Rahab, something that was there from the beginning. Something that looked like… Him. In her years, in her experiences, she’d heard about the God of Israel, The God of Heaven and Earth. She acknowledges in Joshua 2: v.11 that the God of Israel was truly God. How she find that out? When did she become convinced? Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. At some point, you begin to maybe understand that maybe the Israeli spies were not so much sent to spy out the city of Jericho as to rescue Rahab, God’s chosen, out of it? Selah.
God’s Chosen? Really? Beloved, God had a plan for Rahab… from the beginning. God redeems Rahab. Not only does He redeem her, but He establishes her as royalty in Israel. He gives her a name eternally linked with the lineage of David, Israel’s greatest king, and Jesus, the Hope of all mankind. She goes from despised to distinguished, from a place of infamy and shame, as a prostitute to a place of eternal renown in the venerable ‘Hall of Faith’ in Hebrews, chapter 11. I have a lot more to say about Rahab. What was life like for her in Israel? Was she immediately accepted? A stranger in a strange land? Different ethnicity, different language, what kind of obstacles lay before her? Another time perhaps.
Beloved, whatever your past, or present, God has a future plan for you, a plan for eternal future and a hope, a plan to make you the head and not the tail, a plan to Bless you if you will trust Him. You may be a little rough around the edges, Rahab certainly was. You may not think God could use you or Bless you. Why you? Why should He? Beloved, why not you? Nothing is too hard for Him. He sent His Son for just this purpose: to save you. Good News. Come and get it. Rahab did.
Blessings,
.wb
Matthew 1:5-6
5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,
Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,
Obed the father of Jesse,
6 and Jesse the father of King David.
Hebrews 11:31
By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.
1 Corinthians 1:26
26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise;
Proverbs 31:30
Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised.
For there is no respect of persons with God.
James 4:6
But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”
Romans 4:7-8
7 “Blessed are those
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
8 Blessed is the one
whose sin the Lord will never count against them.”[
Joshua 2:9
and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land
Joshua 6:22
Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the prostitute’s house and bring her out and all who belong to her, in accordance with your oath to her.”
It could not have been easy for Rahab. Prostitution is a hard, hard way of life. While she may have been well to do at some level, prosperity had not come without a price. How did she get here? God only knows. How much pain? How much had been broken? How much physical abuse had she suffered? How many broken promises had she endured? Was she beautiful? Probably. Depends on who you asked. But you don’t see the boot prints in the middle of her back. And while it’s easy to make Rahab solely a victim (makes us feel better, doesn’t it?), she was hardly a paragon of virtue. She was a prostitute. She was a survivor. She’d made some hard choices, but they were just that: her choices. She was a convincing liar. When she lied to the King’s men and told them that the Israeli spies had departed her abode, they spent days chasing, tracking, following an imaginary trail created out her spoken words… and nothing else. Liar. Yeah, she had that down. And you know what about a liar? A liar will steal, cheat, what ever it takes. She was a survivor.
However, God saw something in Rahab, something that was there from the beginning. Something that looked like… Him. In her years, in her experiences, she’d heard about the God of Israel, The God of Heaven and Earth. She acknowledges in Joshua 2: v.11 that the God of Israel was truly God. How she find that out? When did she become convinced? Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. At some point, you begin to maybe understand that maybe the Israeli spies were not so much sent to spy out the city of Jericho as to rescue Rahab, God’s chosen, out of it? Selah.
God’s Chosen? Really? Beloved, God had a plan for Rahab… from the beginning. God redeems Rahab. Not only does He redeem her, but He establishes her as royalty in Israel. He gives her a name eternally linked with the lineage of David, Israel’s greatest king, and Jesus, the Hope of all mankind. She goes from despised to distinguished, from a place of infamy and shame, as a prostitute to a place of eternal renown in the venerable ‘Hall of Faith’ in Hebrews, chapter 11. I have a lot more to say about Rahab. What was life like for her in Israel? Was she immediately accepted? A stranger in a strange land? Different ethnicity, different language, what kind of obstacles lay before her? Another time perhaps.
Beloved, whatever your past, or present, God has a future plan for you, a plan for eternal future and a hope, a plan to make you the head and not the tail, a plan to Bless you if you will trust Him. You may be a little rough around the edges, Rahab certainly was. You may not think God could use you or Bless you. Why you? Why should He? Beloved, why not you? Nothing is too hard for Him. He sent His Son for just this purpose: to save you. Good News. Come and get it. Rahab did.
Blessings,
.wb
Matthew 1:5-6
5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,
Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,
Obed the father of Jesse,
6 and Jesse the father of King David.
Hebrews 11:31
By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.
1 Corinthians 1:26
26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise;
Proverbs 31:30
Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Sunday School Lesson for June 12, 2011: God Expects Obedience (Joshua 1:7-18)
1 Samuel 15:22
… Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice...
Isaiah 1:19
If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land…
1 John 3:22
And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
I apologize for the jump off. Last week was the beginning of the last quarter in this volume of the Lesson Standard. The theme for this quarter is: God instructs His people. That’s you and I. Why do we need instruction? Because God’s way’s are higher than ours. When you visit a foreign country, for politeness sake, it’s important to observe, at least some of the customs of your hosts. However, if you are planning an extended stay or permanent relocation to that foreign locale, your survival may hinge on your ability to learn and apply the language and customs of the society you are becoming a part of. The same is true for the believer. When we believed, we became foreigners on two fronts: You’ve suddenly separated yourself spiritually from family, loved ones and acquaintances. You are no longer like them. Secondly, you are an alien, literally in a new ‘Kingdom’. In this new kingdom it is absolutely imperative that you align yourself with the leadership and direction of the King. You are either for Him or against Him. Therefore it is contingent that you listen, learn and apply yourself. Doesn’t that sound like good advice? Listen, Study, Learn and Apply. Throughout Scripture believers are exhorted to do exactly that.
Last week’s lesson: ‘God Keeps His Promises’ opened the quarter with the children of Israel finally coming to the land of promise after forty years in the wilderness. In that lesson, God shows Joshua the potential of His promises to Israel. The same is true for us today. When God reveals Himself, He reveals Himself, through Jesus, as the Giver of every good and perfect gift. The possibilities before us are limitless. God wants His people to prosper.
This week He begins to reveal how that will be accomplished: He will provide, but they must follow and obey.. in the moment! The Lesson Commentary I use give’s a wonderful illustration on this point in this week’s lesson. The segment uses the illustration of Military boot camp, the training period during the first few weeks of a new recruit. In boot camp, new recruits learn the importance of immediately obeying the commands and instructions of their commanders. After one recruit came home to visit after the completion of boot camp, his father asked him what he had learned, he replied he’d learned the meaning of the word ‘now’.
Why focus on the importance of ‘now’? Because God’s interaction with you is immediate and constant. He’s not on His way. He’s near you at all times. So near, He only need whisper, in that still small voice. His Word is near to you: in your mouth and in your heart. When he speaks, we as believers must be moved to obey in the ‘now’. In the moment, each moment, we must trust Him and demonstrate our trust by obedience. The Israelites learned this lesson the hard way. God had brought them to this very place forty years earlier and they missed their moment through hesitancy, unbelief and disobedience. Caleb and Joshua, because of their faith, were the only fighting men of Israel’s army to survive that episode and earn the opportunity to enter into their inheritance. The others died in the desert over that forty year period.
This time the instruction was be strong and very courageous. To trust the hand of the Lord, trust His love for them, His desire for their success. The same is true for us. We have to trust Him, trust that He loves us, cares for us, only wants the best for us, and will protect us and Bless us. The question is do we obey in the moment, reaching out and holding on to His unchanging hand? It’s a daily task for the believer: trusting, obeying, believing, growing through obedience into the confident, healthy, empowered Christian God wants us to become. I’m in. What about you?
Enjoy the lesson,
.wb
… Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice...
Isaiah 1:19
If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land…
1 John 3:22
And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
I apologize for the jump off. Last week was the beginning of the last quarter in this volume of the Lesson Standard. The theme for this quarter is: God instructs His people. That’s you and I. Why do we need instruction? Because God’s way’s are higher than ours. When you visit a foreign country, for politeness sake, it’s important to observe, at least some of the customs of your hosts. However, if you are planning an extended stay or permanent relocation to that foreign locale, your survival may hinge on your ability to learn and apply the language and customs of the society you are becoming a part of. The same is true for the believer. When we believed, we became foreigners on two fronts: You’ve suddenly separated yourself spiritually from family, loved ones and acquaintances. You are no longer like them. Secondly, you are an alien, literally in a new ‘Kingdom’. In this new kingdom it is absolutely imperative that you align yourself with the leadership and direction of the King. You are either for Him or against Him. Therefore it is contingent that you listen, learn and apply yourself. Doesn’t that sound like good advice? Listen, Study, Learn and Apply. Throughout Scripture believers are exhorted to do exactly that.
Last week’s lesson: ‘God Keeps His Promises’ opened the quarter with the children of Israel finally coming to the land of promise after forty years in the wilderness. In that lesson, God shows Joshua the potential of His promises to Israel. The same is true for us today. When God reveals Himself, He reveals Himself, through Jesus, as the Giver of every good and perfect gift. The possibilities before us are limitless. God wants His people to prosper.
This week He begins to reveal how that will be accomplished: He will provide, but they must follow and obey.. in the moment! The Lesson Commentary I use give’s a wonderful illustration on this point in this week’s lesson. The segment uses the illustration of Military boot camp, the training period during the first few weeks of a new recruit. In boot camp, new recruits learn the importance of immediately obeying the commands and instructions of their commanders. After one recruit came home to visit after the completion of boot camp, his father asked him what he had learned, he replied he’d learned the meaning of the word ‘now’.
Why focus on the importance of ‘now’? Because God’s interaction with you is immediate and constant. He’s not on His way. He’s near you at all times. So near, He only need whisper, in that still small voice. His Word is near to you: in your mouth and in your heart. When he speaks, we as believers must be moved to obey in the ‘now’. In the moment, each moment, we must trust Him and demonstrate our trust by obedience. The Israelites learned this lesson the hard way. God had brought them to this very place forty years earlier and they missed their moment through hesitancy, unbelief and disobedience. Caleb and Joshua, because of their faith, were the only fighting men of Israel’s army to survive that episode and earn the opportunity to enter into their inheritance. The others died in the desert over that forty year period.
This time the instruction was be strong and very courageous. To trust the hand of the Lord, trust His love for them, His desire for their success. The same is true for us. We have to trust Him, trust that He loves us, cares for us, only wants the best for us, and will protect us and Bless us. The question is do we obey in the moment, reaching out and holding on to His unchanging hand? It’s a daily task for the believer: trusting, obeying, believing, growing through obedience into the confident, healthy, empowered Christian God wants us to become. I’m in. What about you?
Enjoy the lesson,
.wb
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Sunday School Lesson for June 5, 2011: God Keeps His Promise (Joshua 1:1-6; 11:16-23)
Joshua 1:7
7 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.
Joshua 1:8
8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
Joshua 1:9
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Joshua 21:45
45 Not one of all the LORD’s good promises to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.
2 Peter 1:4
4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature
Almost everything we do, in one way or another, is based on the honor system. In some way, re absolutely rely on some absolutes remaining absolute. We learn it as babies. We depend on our parents and guardians for everything. As we grow, we become familiar with our surroundings and trust that they will remain reasonably stable and unchanged. We indentify with our family and learn to give and receive trust in our familial environment first, then as we venture out, we develop relationships with our neighbors, we make friends, we explore new places, tentatively at first, developing confidence in new surroundings and relationships. What we seek, in all this discovering, are relationships and environments that can be trusted.
What then of God? Have you trusted Him entirely? If not, why not? All of His promises are ‘Yes’ and ‘Amen’. Because He is all powerful, He can’t fail and, subsequently, He won’t fail you. He has no limitations. No boundaries. There are no obstacles He can’t overcome. There is nothing,’ no’ ‘thing’ too hard for Him. And because He loves you, there is no good thing that He will withhold from you. Nothing! What then? What are His conditions? Simple: Trust and obey Him ... with your whole heart.. continuously. Hold nothing back, give it all to Him. It’s all His anyway. Once you have released your ‘self’ to Him, relinquished your ‘self’ and your ‘selfishness’ to Him., traded your desires to Him for desire of Him you will find and experience Peace. Peace that surpasses your ability to understand. You will develop a confidence in Him that will enable and empower you to overcome every obstacle you’ll encounter. It’s a little like waking up one morning and discovering that you’ve been given ‘super powers’. Beloved, you have been given super power: God’s Grace and Favor toward you is unlimited and immeasurable. And it’s eternal. He never takes it back, never changes His mind, never regrets His decisions toward you. You never disappoint Him, ever. Isn’t that good news?
Rest assured! Rest … Assured.
Blessings,
.wb.
Psalm 106:12
12 Then they believed his promises
and sang his praise.
Romans 4:21
21And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
7 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.
Joshua 1:8
8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
Joshua 1:9
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Joshua 21:45
45 Not one of all the LORD’s good promises to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.
2 Peter 1:4
4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature
Almost everything we do, in one way or another, is based on the honor system. In some way, re absolutely rely on some absolutes remaining absolute. We learn it as babies. We depend on our parents and guardians for everything. As we grow, we become familiar with our surroundings and trust that they will remain reasonably stable and unchanged. We indentify with our family and learn to give and receive trust in our familial environment first, then as we venture out, we develop relationships with our neighbors, we make friends, we explore new places, tentatively at first, developing confidence in new surroundings and relationships. What we seek, in all this discovering, are relationships and environments that can be trusted.
What then of God? Have you trusted Him entirely? If not, why not? All of His promises are ‘Yes’ and ‘Amen’. Because He is all powerful, He can’t fail and, subsequently, He won’t fail you. He has no limitations. No boundaries. There are no obstacles He can’t overcome. There is nothing,’ no’ ‘thing’ too hard for Him. And because He loves you, there is no good thing that He will withhold from you. Nothing! What then? What are His conditions? Simple: Trust and obey Him ... with your whole heart.. continuously. Hold nothing back, give it all to Him. It’s all His anyway. Once you have released your ‘self’ to Him, relinquished your ‘self’ and your ‘selfishness’ to Him., traded your desires to Him for desire of Him you will find and experience Peace. Peace that surpasses your ability to understand. You will develop a confidence in Him that will enable and empower you to overcome every obstacle you’ll encounter. It’s a little like waking up one morning and discovering that you’ve been given ‘super powers’. Beloved, you have been given super power: God’s Grace and Favor toward you is unlimited and immeasurable. And it’s eternal. He never takes it back, never changes His mind, never regrets His decisions toward you. You never disappoint Him, ever. Isn’t that good news?
Rest assured! Rest … Assured.
Blessings,
.wb.
Psalm 106:12
12 Then they believed his promises
and sang his praise.
Romans 4:21
21And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
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