Our High Priest

Heb 4:14  Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. Heb 4:15  For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Heb 4:16  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

 Though He was truly God, truly the Son of God, yet He was also truly human.  God in His wisdom and His love has appointed to us a perfect High Priest, one to plead our case in heaven.  If we would read on in the 5th chapter of Hebrews, it emphasizes that Jesus was one of us, is one of us. He was and is truly a person, a human.  He has all the same emotions that you and I have.  He has fears, disappointments, and frustrations. Jesus knows by experience what we are going through and can fully understand when we come to Him. Therefore, we ought to bring all of our cares and concerns to Him with confidence that He understands.  Do you have needs?  Take them to the One who truly understands and has the power to provide what we need.    

Revive

(Hab 3:2 KJV)  O LORD, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid: O LORD, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy.

Habakkuk lived in a time that the children of Israel had went away from God.   In light of the threatened judgment of his day, Habakkuk feared. He prayed for mercy and a renewal of the work of God, in the midst of years, in his own day. To revive means to bring back to life, to restore vigor, to renew after neglect. We live in a dark day when many have abandon God.  We need to seek God to revive His Work again.  To first revive His own work, His own interests, His own church.  One of our most earnest prayers should be for the awakening and reviving of the work of God.  Many have lost hope of seeing God work and have quit earnestly praying for revival.  God is able to revive us again.  God is able to work as He has worked in times past.  Our God remains the same.  His mercy and compassion is the same. His power is the same. God is able to do more than we can even imagine, just as He has in the past.  Consider the threatened judgment on peoples who take the path our society is taking.  Seek God for a reviving in ourselves and in the work of God. 

Beware of bitterness

(Heb 12:15 KJV)  Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

 Beware of bitterness.  Bitterness is resentment, it makes us sour in our attitude and spirit; it produces a hostile attitude.  Bitterness usually arises from a real or supposed ill-treatment.  It is a smoldering anger, resentment, ill will, animosity, enmity.  It produces a harshness that results in intentional unkindness, sharp words.  Beware of bitterness.  Don’t let it take root.  It is a poison that will sour everything it comes in contact with, and eventually, kill you spiritually.  Look diligently, don’t fail of the grace of God.  Leave situations in God’s hands.  Don’t brood on them.  Don’t let hurt and anger progress to bitterness.  Don’t let someone else’s sin cost you your spiritual life.  Beware of bitterness.  Don’t let it take root in you. 

Ebenezer

(1 Sam 7:12 KJV)  Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the LORD helped us.

 In the context of this passage, God had provided the children of Israel a miraculous deliverance from the armies of the Philistines. They earnestly sought God’s help and He answered them miraculously. Samuel set up a memorial stone to commemorate this great event.  He called the name of the place Ebenezer, which means “hither to hath the Lord helped us”.  It is by the grace and help of God that we have come this far. God has brought us safely to today. We can have confidence that God will lead us safely on.  We can have confidence and hope for the future because God is with us.  God has brought us this far and will continue to help us as we rely on Him.  Hitherto hath the Lord helped us……and we are confident He will lead us safely home.  Trust Him.

They had been with Jesus

(Acts 4:13 KJV)  Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

 We are affected by those people we choose to spend time with, our friends rub off on us. Did you ever had a kid or another friend start talking or acting a certain way and right away you know who they have been spending time with?  Why?  Because they begin to act like them, talk like them, pick up certain attitudes.  When we spend serious time with God, those around us will take note, will notice that we have been changed.  In our text, it was the boldness or courage to speak about the things of God that caught the attention of those around. We are not ashamed of those whom we really choose to be our friends, those who we really like, those who we choose to be around.  If we have found a true friend in Jesus, one who sticks closer than a brother, we are not ashamed to be identified with Him.  Our society often brings a shame on those who really identify with Jesus.  We all want to fit in, and often we are tempted to hide our identification with Jesus.  Spending time in the presence of God and in the things of God helps us over come this temptation to deny Him.  Is it evident that we have been with Jesus?

In His presence

(Psa 84:1 KJV) How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!

 Another translation renders this passage “How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD Almighty!”  How lovely and pleasant is the place where God inhabits, where the presence of God abides. There is no more pleasant place for one who knows the Lord, one who loves the Lord.  In His presence is found security, safety, peace, joy and satisfaction.  Purpose to live in the presence of God.  Talk to Him, confide in Him. Live with a consciousness of His presence. There is no place of greater satisfaction in this life.

Nothing is impossible for our God

(Jer 32:26 KJV)  Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying, (Jer 32:27 KJV)  Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me?

 We need help from God.  Many times we become frustrated with our own inability to work things out. Many times we become frustrated with the delay in seeing our prayers answered. Here is the question that God challenges Jeremiah with:  “Is there anything too hard for me”?   Is there anything impossible for me? In this passage God emphatically assures Jeremiah that there is nothing too hard or impossible for Him. “I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. As Creator of the heaven and earth there is nothing impossible for Him. Impossible means that certain abilities are not possessed by a person or thing.  Impossible means that it lacks the power to do something.  Our passage tells us that there is nothing beyond God’s ability or power.  Nothing is impossible, nothing is too hard.  God is not bound by the physical laws of creation.  What is your need?  Is it beyond your own ability and power?  Then go to the One that there is nothing too hard for.   

Close

Jas 4:8a  Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you…

 We all know what it is to drift from God.  We all know what it feels like to feel very distant from God.  Listen!!  It is never God’s fault!! If we are not close to God, it is our fault. God desires close fellowship with us.   We are the ones prone to wander.  We are the ones who neglect. God has promised that if we will draw nigh to Him, He will draw nigh to us.  God will always do His part.  We can be as close to God as we want to be.  Set aside some time to clear the way and spend time with God.  The refreshing and strengthening of His closeness is more than worth the effort.

God of the night

(Psa 74:16 KJV)  The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun.

 As Christians, we are not exempt from trouble, set backs, and disappointments. Sometimes the night is long and dark. Sometimes we cannot see God, cannot make sense of what is happening in life.  You may not know where God is, but God knows where you are at.  God is God in the good times; He is God in the bad.  God is the God of the day, but God is also God of the night. The new day will dawn, but until that time, remember the night belongs to the Lord also.  Trust Him.

In His favor

(Psa 5:11 KJV)  But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee. (Psa 5:12 KJV)  For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.

 Those who trust the Lord are compassed about with favor as a shield; living daily under the shield of God’s favor. God’s favor is His delight,  His pleasure, His goodwill.  To be favored is to be treated with preference, with special advantages.  What an awesome privilege is afforded to those who trust in God.  We are surrounded with His favor, under the shield of the delight and pleasure of the all mighty God … surrounded by His favor, by His delight, by His goodwill toward us.  God looks down with favor, with delight, with pleasure, on those who love Him.  To live in God’s favor is to lack nothing, to fear nothing.  Trust Him. There is no safer or better place to be….purpose to live in His favor.

On our side in the battle

(Exo 23:22 KJV)  But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.

We are in a battle.  At its core, this is a spiritual battle, waged in the hearts and minds of men and women.  But it is also being waged in our society.  God has promised to be an enemy to those who are our enemy, to oppose those who oppose us.  In this battle, we have an ally, a powerful ally.  Who or what can withstand God?   Who or what can oppose God?  God has promised to fight for those who truly love and obey Him, those who have aligned themselves fully with Him…if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak.  No matter what advantage that which opposes us has, no matter how powerful, it is no match for God.  No matter the battle, internal or external, God is our ally.  Trust Him.  Continue to fight the fight of faith depending on Him.

God hears and answers prayer

(Psa 65:2 KJV)  O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.

 Our God answers prayer.  Throughout time, the mark of the true and living God is that He hears and answers prayer. It’s what distinguishes Him from all false Gods, false religions. This is simple, but it is foundational to our relationship with God.  We must believe, we must know, that God answers prayer, that God hears and answers OUR prayers. Every attribute of God is seen in the fact that He hears and answers prayer; His wisdom and knowledge, His holiness, His power, but most of all, His love and concern.  Pray.  Continue to pray. Be assured that God hears your prayer and, in the right time, He will answer.  

Never alone

Psa 34:7  The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.   

 God’s angels are pictured as camping around God’s children to protect and help them. This is just another part of God’s plan and provision for us.  This truth should strengthen our trust and confidence in God.  We are never alone, God is always with us and God has angels watching over us.  Greater are those that are with us than those that are against us.  Trust Him.

Is it time?

Hag 1:1  In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month, came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet unto Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, saying, Hag 1:2  Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, This people say, The time is not come, the time that the LORD'S house should be built. Hag 1:3  Then came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying, Hag 1:4  Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses, and this house lie waste?

We need challenged to pick up the burden for the work of God and move forward.  We also need challenged to examine our priorities.  It is easy to let legitimate things crowd out our time and energy for the work of God.  The people to whom this passage was originally addressed had met much opposition and difficulty in their work.  Yet, they were without excuse for their neglect. The difficulty of the work at hand is no excuse - This is God’s Work!! It is the most important thing in the world!!  It is the salvation of souls and the saving of lives from destruction.  It is the preserving and advancing of society.  It is the only source of good in this dark world.  It is the only hope our society, our country and our world has to avert disaster. Too often we fail to show the importance of God’s work in our choices in life.  Let’s take an honest look at ourselves.  What are we focused on?  What are we giving our lives and energy to?  In light of the needs around us, do our choices and priorities make sense?  May God help us to be focused on what God is focused on.

God will avenge

(Rom 12:19 KJV)  Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

 We need to be careful how we react to the wrongs done to us.  One of our first impulses is to “get even”, to react with anger.  We are to be different.  We are to control our anger. Don’t give any place to anger and a vindictive attitude.  Don’t dwell on the injustices done to you and give anger an opportunity to grow.  Instead, replace it with trust in God.  God will do what is right.   Nobody gets away with anything in the end.  Trust God, let’s live like ones who have a God to look out for us.

God will take care of His own

(Isa 3:10 KJV)  Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.

 One of the dangers we face is the paralyzing fear of what the future holds.  I don’t know what it holds, but if God does not intervene, the future doesn’t look bright.  This verse was addressed to the faithful during a time of judgment. God is just and looks after those who obey.  We have a safe retreat; God is our refuge.  This doesn’t mean we will not suffer.  It doesn’t mean that we are exempt from the effects of God’s judgment.  But it does mean that God will love and care for us in the midst of whatever is happening.  Pray for God to intervene; pray for an awakening, a revival.  Then fully trust the future to God; fully trust our future to God.  He will be faithful and just in whatever He does.

Always the same

(Heb 13:8 KJV)  Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

 We live in a constantly changing world.  Change brings uncertainty; change is one of our biggest sources of stress.  In a world where everything changes, one thing remains the same:  God is the same.  God never changes.  He is the same, yesterday, today and forever. Created things have a beginning and ending, but not God, the Creator. He cannot change for the better, because He is perfect;  He cannot change for the worse,  He does not get stronger, or weaker, as time goes by.  He does not grow wiser, because He has always known all things. He isn’t getting older, He isn’t getting tired.  In a world that is always changing, God remains the same.  We know Him.  We can trust Him.  We can trust His Word. We can trust His Promises. He is where we turn to find stability and security in an ever changing world.

Continue

(Eccl 11:4 KJV)  He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. (Eccl 11:5 KJV)  As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all. (Eccl 11:6 KJV)  In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.

This passage reminds us to continue in our calling, to continue to work to build up the Kingdom of God, no matter how we think the future looks. The truth is, we don’t know what the future holds, so don’t let it cause us to become discouraged.  It takes confidence in God to continue to sow when we don’t see favorable conditions, when it looks like we are wasting our time and effort.  Verse 5 reminds us there are many things which God does that we don’t understand. There will always be some reason to wait, to not sow.   If we spend our time trying to figure these things out, we will always be waiting for a more opportune time, trying to calculate the wind, trying to predict the rain. The world desperately needs a move of God.  Let’s do our part by continuing to sow the seed, to spread the Word.  Continue to invest of ourselves in the work of God;  our time, our energy, our hopes, our dreams, our resources, our very lives. The harvest may be many days, but the harvest will come.  Keep sowing.

Forget not all His benefits

(Psa 103:1 KJV)  Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. (Psa 103:2 KJV)  Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: (Psa 103:3 KJV)  Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; (Psa 103:4 KJV)  Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; (Psa 103:5 KJV)  Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

 In difficult times, it is often easy to become distressed and become disillusioned.  This passage encourages us not to forget all the Lord’s benefits. It is good to rehearse the many benefits of salvation and God’s goodness.  His love is never ending; His compassions and mercies are new every day.  Let your mind dwell on His goodness and let His praise well up in your heart.  Allow His many benefits to turn your heaviness into praise.  Bless the Lord, don’t forget His many benefits.          

He will answer

(Jer 33:2 KJV)  Thus saith the LORD the maker thereof, the LORD that formed it, to establish it; the LORD is his name;  (Jer 33:3 KJV)  Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

 Are you in the midst of a trial, in the fire? Call on Him who is able to deliver. He has promised He will answer.  Expect great things; look forward with anticipation of God’s working.  Show your faith and trust in a faithful, loving God.  His way is best.  Call on Him and He will answer.