Sunday School Lesson for May 25, 2014: The Greatest Commandment, Leviticus 19:18, Deuteronomy 4:35, 6: 1-9, Mark 12: 28-34

Wayne’s two cents worth

Leviticus 19:18
“‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.

God has the authority to command you to love. Did you get that? As a Christian, will you obey? His expectation is that you will… if you love Him.

Deuteronomy 4:35
You were shown these things so that you might know that the LORD is God; besides him there is no other.

God’s Word is His witness. The Bible says it. Our spirit, by the unction of His Spirit says, “Amen”.

Deuteronomy 6:4-5
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

Ephesians 3:20
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

I hate moving furniture, especially sleeper sofas, refrigerators and pianos. Those three items have required every bit of strength and balance that I could muster. Every bit. But somehow, each time I’ve had to move one of these items, I got it done. And yet, I can still feel the pain associated with the heavy lifting required in each of these instances, especially pianos. This is the effort God would have us to invest in our pursuit of Him; all of our heart, mind, soul and strength. “Lord. If I give you all of me, what’s left for me?” There’s something about ‘all’ isn’t there? Selfishly, we have a hard time relinquishing ‘all’. I’m here to tell you beloved, there is nothing to fear in surrendering ‘all’ to the Lord. You see, He will reciprocate by blessing you abundantly above  ‘all’ that you can ask or even think according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus, our Lord. He’ll give you His ‘all’ for your ‘all’. Do you really want to miss out on that?

Deuteronomy 6:6-9
These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

         

          A little extreme you think? Look around you. Extreme is an absolute everywhere you look. The world is ‘extremely’ twisted. Indeed, the harvest is ripe, but it’s going to take people who are extreme in their commitment to God, extreme in their pursuit of Holiness, extreme in our love for the brethren, then beyond that for the lost and dying..

Mark 12:28-34
[ The Greatest Commandment ] One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” ²⁹ “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.^[a] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’^[b] 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^[c] There is no commandment greater than these.”

 ³² “Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. ³³ To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

 ³⁴ When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.

For a moment, let your guard down, Jesus did. So did the teacher of the law that asked Him this next question. Jesus had just parried some tough questions from the Sadducees and this teacher had some appreciation for the way Jesus had answered. He approached Jesus with an air appreciation and sincerity; animosities set aside for the moment. Important for what occurs next. Listen to Jesus’ answer, “The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” Jesus doesn’t argue, but rather agrees with the teacher. In doing so, he strikes a chord of commonality and fellowship with the teacher. Wow! Really? What happens next? Jesus continues to explore the common ground that He and this teacher of the law share: Love the Lord with all you have within you and love your neighbor as yourself. That’ll preach, won’t it? Sure will.. The teacher of the law thought so too! So much so that he once again applauded Jesus’ response, this time by affirmation and repetition.. My grandmother used to say, “You’ll catch more flies with honey than you will with vinegar.” Jesus is reeling this teacher of the law in right this moment… Here it comes.

          The teacher not only repeats the what Jesus said, but he makes the point that loving your neighbor is more important than burnt offerings and sacrifices. What! (this is where you hear the tires squealing as the speeding car brakes to an immediate halt… This is truly a ‘Selah’ moment (Stop, Listen, Ponder and Meditate on this). You see, the teacher has just stepped away from the primary tenets of his belief system; justification by works, to a greater truth preached by Jesus; that love covers sin. Your love for your neighbor offers more righteousness on your behalf than any offering you could make. I’m just saying..

          Note Jesus’ response. He makes note of the wisdom of the teacher’s response. What did that look like? A smile? A pat on the shoulder? A chuckle from deep in his belly? Who knows, but for just a moment He affirms this teacher of the law. Imagine that? How many know that Jesus truly is not a respecter of persons. No matter your position in life, your social status, Jesus love you and, if you’ll let Him, He’ll start a relationship with you right where you are. Finally, pay attention to Jesus’ final statement, “You’re not far from the Kingdom.” Beloved, loving God and loving your neighbor are major tenets of every religion known to man, but… (another Selah moment) .. the only way to the Father is through the Son. Jesus lays out the welcome mat and …. the teacher and his fellow religious leaders… walk away. Beloved, Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. You cannot come to the Father except by Him.

Selah,

.wb

John 14:6
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

p.s. I’d be honored to have you view this teaching at:  http://youtu.be/eD0nT3LD2vA

Sunday School Lesson for January 6, 2013: Proclaiming Christ (Philippians 1)

Psalm 31:15

My times are in your hands; deliver me from the hands of my enemies, from those who pursue me.





2 Peter 3:9

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.





“Absence makes the heart grow fonder”



Four years. That’s how long it had been since Paul last visited the churches at Philippi. Imprisonment separated him from the relationships he so cherished; fellowship with his spiritual children. Remarkably, in that time, the churches grew. And, they remembered Paul. In the first few verses, Paul gives us a wonderful picture of the kind of people make up the fellowship at Philippi. In verse one, he refers to them as ‘holy people’. In verse six, he makes note of their ten year ‘partnership’ in the gospel. This speaks to a church that is focused on the purposes of the Kingdom of God. In verse one, Paul recognizes two distinct levels of leadership in this fellowship, and the fact that he addresses the ‘overseers’ (plural) indicates that there is peer to peer accountability built into the highest level of these churches. This appears to be a very healthy fellowship in spite of Paul’s extended absence. Now take a moment and re-read verses four through eight very slowly. You get a real sense of how deeply Paul cares about body of believers. He loves them, he cares for them, he longs deeply for them. All of this speaks to the passion and intimacy.





Romans 8:28

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.





Genesis 50:20

But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.





Psalm 40:16

Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: let such as love thy salvation say continually, The LORD be magnified.





“It’s not about me”



Now Paul turns his attention to some of the concerns on the hearts of the Philippians. It seems that some have come into their midst preaching Christ out of envy and contention. They justify their actions by pointing to Paul’s imprisonment, intimating that Paul must, somehow, been outside of God’s will. By contrast, Paul takes the high road. Separated from this beloved fellowship by years and miles, Paul maintains he same hopeful perspective with which he opened this letter. After all, it’s not about him, not really. It’s always about Jesus. Always. The beauty of Paul’s response is that he demonstrates the attitude that the Philippians and we should follow: take no offense at the hurt words directed towards him, keep Jesus first and finally, no matter the circumstances, praise God. Rejoice in the Lord.





Philippians 1:21

For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.





2 Peter 1:13

Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance;





A personal perspective



Seven Thirty in the morning on this past New Year’s day, I was awakened by moderately severe chest pains. Let me give you a little background. My dad suffered his fist massive heart attack at age thirty five. By age forty four, he had suffered two more. Additionally, several of my uncles died from heart related issues. So, for me, chest pain is not taken lightly. This particular pain radiated from behind my breastbone, through my shoulders and neck and down my back between my shoulder blades. In addition, my right hand turned cold and tingly. “Is this it?”, I wondered. I got out of bed and started moving around to try to get comfortable. It didn’t work. I moved from place to place around the house, trying to find something that would work, a place where I could be comfortable, but to no avail. Nothing worked. After a few long moments, I decided that it was time to start looking ahead, preparing for an eventual outcome. First things first; time to ‘make peace with my Maker’. Have any of you ever faced a situation so packed with uncertainty that it brought you to this point? Illness or accident? Maybe you’re a veteran of military service? My wife has had two encounters with cancer, but for me, this was a first. Let me tell you that, for me, the process took all of a very … few seconds. After all, Christ settled it for me at the cross. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. During my journey as a believer, I’ve faced my share of uncertain circumstances, illness, finances, relocation; real challenges. In a few of those situations, not all but, a few, I really received an unction (thanks Rachel), an assurance from the Holy Spirit that everything was going to be okay. Oftentimes, I’ve found that before I could find a place in my spirit to pray about a circumstance, God would answer. In fact, not only would God answer in assurance, but He would prompt me, by His Spirit, to rejoice, to thank Him for the victory. That was the case on this day. In just a very few seconds, the Holy Spirit reminded me that “to die is gain”.

Okay, so now what? It occurred to me that, if I wasn’t going to die, then the longer I continued in this condition, the greater the risk that my quality of life going forward might be affected, if, in fact, I was having a heart attack. So as much as I didn’t want to spend New Year’s Day in the emergency room (this will have been my third time since 1990 for various issues), I got my son to drive me to the emergency room. At that point my motivation was that I desired to be the husband and father that I can be to my wife and children for as long as the Lord allows. It was time to go see about myself. As it turns out, what I was suffering from was acute bronchitis. Not to be taken lightly. I’ve had problems with bronchitis and pneumonia over the last several years, but never an episode like this. But, the good news was (is) that I wasn’t going to die of a heart attack last Wednesday. Halleluiah!

Paul had not seen the people to whom he was writing for some time, maybe as long as four years. In that he was literally bound (chained) to stand before Cesar, it was uncertain that he would ever behold their faces again. Yet, what could he do besides remain hopeful and faithful. Why would he communicate any other thing to these believers at Philippi? Why wouldn’t he remind them that what awaits us exceeds our greatest imaginations? And yet, having resolved that eventuality within his spirit, his heart immediately turns to these believers and the thought that for as long as Christ allowed him to remain, he would use that time to their benefit. Not only did his continuing faithfulness abound to their benefit, it abounds to ours. Thank you Father, for your servant Paul. I’ll close with this thought. For as long as the Lord allows us to remain, Let us follow Paul’s example, as he followed the example of Christ.



Blessings,



.wb

Sunday School Lesson for December 30, 2012: Christ’s Love for the Church (Ephesians 5:15–6:9)

1 Samuel 1:13

Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk



1 Samuel 1:14

and said to her, “How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine.”



1 Samuel 1:15

“Not so, my lord,” Hannah replied, “I am a woman who is deeply troubled. I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring out my soul to the LORD.



Isaiah 28:7

And these also stagger from wine and reel from beer: Priests and prophets stagger from beer and are befuddled with wine; they reel from beer, they stagger when seeing visions, they stumble when rendering decisions



Ephesians 5:18

Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,



Accept no substitutes. Before Christ, many of us indulged in any number of carnal pleasures in search of a spiritual experience. We were tempted to drunkenness, debauchery, ultimately disaster by the allure of a transcendent experience that would, somehow allow us to escape the bounds of our physical limitations to ascend to some otherworldly existence, if but only for a moment. The verse above, Isaiah 28:7, seems to indicate that that the prophets and priests of ancient Israel were not above imbibing in strong drink as a way to get into the spirit (small ‘s’). In the early church, Paul is warning the new believers at Ephesus not to succumb to the temptation of a temporary ‘high’, but rather, to be filled with the Spirit of God, a prolonged experience with and in the very Presence of God, accessible through the shed blood of Christ Jesus.



Ephesians 1:13

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,



And now that you’ve been filled, stay filled… with worship…



Ephesians 5:19

speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord,



God’s idea of a deep, continual spiritual experience:



Ephesians 5:21

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.



A life of submission is spiritual.



Ephesians 5:22

Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.



1 Peter 3:1

Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives,



Ladies first. Why?



Proverbs 31:30

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.



If there is a reason to draw attention to yourself, should not that reason be godliness? New clothes, fancy outfits, make up, hair, you name it.. nothing more beautifully adorns a woman than the Spirit of God. Partnered with a Godly man, she becomes, in most cases, the ‘better half’ of a real power couple. The first example of covenant on the earth was the marriage covenant. Where is there a more powerful agreement than between a husband and wife who are on one accord.



Ephesians 5:25

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her



Colossians 3:19

Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.



1 Peter 3:7

Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.



If the goal is spirituality, how many of us ‘really spiritual men’ are praying regularly with our wives? Do we recognize that that they are co-heirs with us of the Grace of God? While scripture teaches that there are none given in marriage in Heaven, Peter (above) implies that a husband and wife share in the eternal inheritance in Glory. What does that look like? Fellas, love your wives as Christ loves the church and gave Himself for her. If we are blessed with a wife (I am), love her (I do). The Bible tells me that Christ saw me (and you, us) and the thought of us being joined with Him as the Church brought Him joy as He endured the suffering and shame of the cross. Husbands, love your wives like that.



Colossians 3:20

Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.



Is this even possible? :)  As a dad, I must believe that it is and I must repeat it over and over, oftentimes to myself. :) The responsibility is mine’s to train them for obedience to their mother and me first, then to the Lord. After all, the whole point of godly marriages is to produce godly offspring unto the Lord. Did you know that?



Malachi 2:13-15

13 Another thing you do: You flood the LORD’s altar with tears. You weep and wail because he no longer looks with favor on your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands. 14 You ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD is the witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant.

15 Has not the one God made you? You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring.[a] So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful to the wife of your youth.

“Be fruitful and multiply”, He commanded them. God seeks to populate the heavens and the earth with godly people. That will be accomplished through the preaching of the Gospel and through the raising of godly children. He desires to expand and mature his Church from generation to generation. With families as the active units within a church, children have a great inheritance awaiting them if their parents will persevere..

Joel 2:28

[ The Day of the LORD ] “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy

Let me close with this: Our kids have work to do. Kingdom work. God intends that blessings flow from generation to generation, that within the inheritance apportioned to you and your wife, that it would be increased as it abounds to your children and grandchildren.

Be encouraged. God is not finished with us yet. Blessings!

.wb

Sunday School Lesson for December 23, 2012: Alive in the Light of Christ (John 1:1-14; Ephesians 4:17–5:14)

Proverbs 8:27

I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep,



Genesis 1:1

[ The Beginning ] In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.



Genesis 1:3

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.





Merry Christmas! We celebrate the birth of Jesus this week, but are reminded in the first segment of this week’s lesson that, before the beginning, He is, and that the day that we celebrate as his ‘birthday’ was, in fact, the day that God launched His plan on earth, in earth in the person of His Son for our redemption. And so we rejoice. We rejoice in the understanding that God saw fit to love the unlovable, to free us from the bondage of sin and cleanse us in his marvelous light. Our hearts sing with joy as we are reminded of the great burdens that have been removed from us by the appearing of His Son. We have been given life eternal, and more than that, we’ve been given a place in which to live it (a new Heaven and a new Earth) and a family (the Church) with whom to share it. More so, our eyes have been opened. We were once blind and could not see. We’ve been given the precious gift of being able to behold Him; Jesus, full of Grace and Truth. More beautiful, more magnificent, more lovely than anything imaginable. Jesus. It is of no wonder that we that we are in awe of Him, that the very thought of Him sometimes takes our breath away. His name is Marvelous, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, Savior! The very thought of Him brings joy! Let us be reminded that, while every day is cause for celebration in the life of Christians, Jesus is the reason for this Season!





Psalm 56:13

For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.



Psalm 89:15

Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, LORD.



1 Thessalonians 5:5

You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.





In the second part of this week’s lesson, we return to Ephesians, where Paul exhorts us to succumb to righteousness, to give in to Life. To shun the works of evil and live a life of self-control, peace and love in Christ, Jesus. Be encouraged beloved. It is a process. A process that will continue for as long as we abide here on earth. The beauty of our predicament is that Christ is with us. Every moment of every hour, we are not forsaken. Our hope is not in our ability to overcome by ourselves, but rather, our ability to overcome through Christ. Please read the passages below from Ephesians 4 and 5. Paul, “the prisoner of the Lord”, pleads with us to remember what we believe, to practice what we preach and to be ever mindful of whose we are and whom we serve. We are the children of God. We demonstrate that in our behavior before Him and our love towards others. Walk in the light. Celebrate the abundant life He has imparted to you by putting that life on display: a life full of truth, righteousness and godliness. Hate sin, reject darkness, stand for righteousness. Love one another. Live a life of humility before God and man. And….enjoy the journey.





Blessings and Peace be upon you as we celebrate our Savior, Jesus Christ this Christmas!



.wb

Sunday School Lesson for December 16, 2012: Part of One Body in Christ (Ephesians 4:1-16)

Psalm 133:1


How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!



2 Chronicles 30:12

Also in Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the LORD.



Colossians 3:14

And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.



I’ve been absent from this space for some time. Please bear with me as I feel my way through. As I write this this week, the nation is gripped in sadness over the death of some twenty seven people, most of whom are children, in the state of Connecticut. Please remember these families in your prayers. In what should be the most joyous time of the year for most of us, as we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, so often turns into a time of loneness, despair and hopelessness for so many who are overwhelmed by the pressure of day to day life. Both within the Church and without, there are people whose burdens are great. I would point all of us to Christ, who never allows a burden greater than we can bear. The beauty of the celebration surrounding this season is that it allows us to re-calibrate, to re-focus our hearts toward our Lord, to find a place of quietness and comfort in Christ.

In that vein, let us turn our attention to this week’s lesson. Please note that Paul is writing to us from prison. Even so, he regards himself as “a prisoner for the Lord”. Paul encouraged his readers from a place of desperation. Being a Christian in Ephesus in Paul’s day, would not have been an easy task. Ephesus was a place full of ‘spiritual wickedness in high places’. Idolatry was prevalent, as was corruption and greed. Believers were challenged on every hand to compromise their beliefs in order to ‘get along’. It was important to Paul to encourage the believers in Ephesus to bond together in unity and to understand that they were one in and with the Lord of all creation, Jesus Christ. His opening plea for unity points out that there is the strength of their bond was that they are literally part of one Church, one Hope, one Baptism, one faith, one Spirit, one Father; God and one Lord; Jesus. If God is with you, who can be against you? I’m reminded of Elijah asking God to reveal his ‘Host’ to his servant.

2 Kings 6:17

And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.



Beloved, it is no small affair to be part of the driving force of all creation. You are never alone. You are never abandoned.

Paul goes on to reveal God’s purpose for us, that we become mature believers, not tossed to and fro by every challenge that comes our way. I won’t spend much more time here except to say this: a mature body of believers is a body that is poised to deliver the redemptive power of the Gospel to a starving world in Love. Jesus ascended into Heaven, but he left us here. He left us here, with His Holy Spirit in order to minister to the lost, the hopeless, the despair-ate (desperate). Let’s get to work.



Selah,

.wb

Sunday School Lesson for August 5, 2012: Praise for God’s Justice (Psalm 146; Exodus 21–23; Isaiah 58)

Psalm 146:6 (The Message)
Instead, get help from the God of Jacob, put your hope in God and know real blessing!





Hebrews 13:6
So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.





Psalm 121:1
I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.







        All of mankind benefits from His marvelous benevolence. Those of us called to the Truth have the added benefit of knowing Him from whom our help comes. This Psalm asks us to broaden our experience, to look around us and see who else looks to him for help, sustenance, hope. He causes it to rain on the just; you and I. He also brings the same life giving rain on the unjust; the ‘thems’. Oftentimes, we are closed off to the ‘thems’. We don’t ‘see’ them among us. We overlook ‘them’. There are in our blind spot. They live amongst us, but they don’t often worship with us, therefore we don’t consider them to be part of our ‘family’.





Psalm 146:7
He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets prisoners free,





Psalm 9:9
The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.





Psalm 103:6
The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.





        But God see them. He sees them and He loves them. I want you to know… that God fights for the weak. He hears and responds to the cry of the poor. In quiet and sometimes not so quiet desperation, they cry out to Him… and He hears. I want you to know… that God yearns for the fatherless, the widow, the outcast, the down trodden.





Psalm 146:8
the LORD gives sight to the blind, the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down, the LORD loves the righteous.





Psalm 145:14
The LORD upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.





        There are a couple of reasons people find themselves ‘bowed down’. One is voluntary; an act of submission and worship, something we can all use more ofJ. The other is involuntary and comes as a result of the circumstances that life brings our way. There are many who are bowed down among us. They silently bear the pains and burdens of a life gone awry. They are bowed by the weight of the world (figuratively) on their shoulders. God sees them, He sees all that are bowed down and He cares. Whether it is a ‘Mephibosheth’; who was afflicted from his youth, or a ‘Ruth’; a stranger in a strange land, there is room at the King’s table for the least among us.





Luke 4:18
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free,



Mark 16:15
He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.





        The beauty of what we do is that;’ they’re right here’. There are people among us who need help. Open your hearts, open your minds. Pay attention to your surroundings. Listen to the stories of despair that are around you. There’s something you can do. You’ve been empowered, but for what cause? That cause is before you Beloved. It’s His cause: the plight of the poor, the weak, the hungry. May we (me included) remove the blinders from eyes and see who God sees among us and, in agreement with Him, roll up our sleeves and reach out a helping hand to those who need it. Most of the time, they are just an arms length away.





Shalom,



.wb

Sunday School Lesson for July 29, 2012: Jehoshaphat Makes Judicial Reforms (2 Chronicles 19:4-11)

2 Chronicles 17:3
The LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he followed the ways of his father David before him. He did not consult the Baals





2 Kings 3:14
Elisha said, “As surely as the LORD Almighty lives, whom I serve, if I did not have respect for the presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not pay any attention to you.





2 Chronicles 19:3
There is, however, some good in you, for you have rid the land of the Asherah poles and have set your heart on seeking God.”







            A bit of a preamble: Jehoshaphat was not a perfect man, but he was a godly man; a man who sought after God, as did his father, David (not his actual father, but his spiritual father, in that he followed David’s example in worship). While he was a godly man, he sometimes made the mistake of aligning himself with people of questionable character. After one such occasion, one in which he nearly lost his life, he returned to Jerusalem, and began the reforms that we read about in today’s lesson.







2 Chronicles 19:5
He appointed judges in the land, in each of the fortified cities of Judah.





Ephesians 4:11
So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,





        The first impression that I draw from today’s lesson is that Jehoshaphat’s actions to institute spiritual reform in the land of Judah bear a marked resemblance to the way that God establishes order in His Church. Jehoshaphat appointed judges to rule righteously among the people of God. They were to judge not according to reasoning of men, but according to the reverent fear of God. In similar fashion, Christ elevates men and women who have a heart for Him to offices within His Church to provide governance within as it reaches out to the community.





2 Chronicles 19:7
Now let the fear of the LORD be on you. Judge carefully, for with the LORD our God there is no injustice or partiality or bribery.”





Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.







        Those men and women appointed by God are given divine insight from God. They are not called to be perfect, but rather to be pure of heart: to have a heart that is searchable, sensitive to the penetrating gaze of our loving Father, who sees everything. Jehoshaphat instructed the men of Judah to keep in mind that when they administered justice, it was not by man’s authority that they did so, but by God’s. It was not a responsibility to be taken lightly. After all, these were the people of God for whom they were responsible.

        Beloved, there are no perfect churches. The people who govern the churches in our various communities are but servants. Thorough the preaching of the Gospel, they offer hope to the lost, a light to those who seek a way out of darkness. As those who come to hear are changed, these servants of God offer sustenance; the very Bread of Life, through the same preaching and teaching of God’s word. They teach us to practically apply God’s principles for living to our daily existence, thus inviting God’s Presence and favor in to our lives personally. They do this, not necessarily by being great leaders, though we oftentimes admire them and emulate them for their perceived leadership abilities. They best accomplish God’s purposes by following Him, by continually and faithfully pursuing the heart and desire of our Father.







1 Corinthians 11:1
Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.





1 Timothy 4:6
If you point these things out to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed.







        Jehoshaphat brought reform to the land of Judah and, in doing so, he brought revival to the hearts of its inhabitants; God’s people. We too, can individually have a restorative influence on our community at large. Be a light, a mirror of God’s influence in your church, in your home, on your job, in the community you live in. The revival that we long for may be on the very tip of your tongue. God’s Rest awaits us. Be encouraged.





Blessings,



.wb