Drive Them Out

And Joshua answered them, If thou be a great people, then get thee up to the wood country, and cut down for thyself there in the land of the Perizzites and of the giants, if mount Ephraim be too narrow for thee.  And the children of Joseph said, The hill is not enough for us:  and all the Canaanites that dwell in the land of the valley have chariots of iron, both they who are of Bethshean and her towns, and they who are of the valley of Jezreel.  And Joshua spake unto the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power: thou shalt not have one lot only:  But the mountain shall be thine; for it is a wood, and thou shalt cut it down: and the outgoings of it shall be thine: for thou shalt drive out the Canaanites, though they have iron chariots, and though they be strong. 

Joshua 17:15-18

We will look at this passage for the next couple of days.  I came across it in my Bible reading recently and I think that there are some great lessons for us as Christians in it.  Joshua is here talking with the two tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, the two sons of Joseph.  They were in the process of dividing up the Promised Land and Joshua issued a challenge: “If thou be a great people, then get thee up to the wood country, and cut down for thyself there in the land of the Perizzites and of the giants, if mount Ephraim be too narrow for thee.”

These tribes of Israel had some land.  But it was not enough for them.  So Joshua told them to go up and get some more.  He told them to go up to the mountain and take that.  The only problem was that there were Canaanites there who had “chariots of iron.”

Sometimes in our Christian lives, we are challenge to “expand our lives.”  We are challenged to be more or do more.  It usually means a lot more work, but it is worth it.  We should never be content with ourselves and we should always be pressing forward for the Lord!

More Than Conquerors

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:35-39

In the middle of two lists of things that are never going to be able to separate us from the love of God, we find this verse: “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”

The “in all these things” includes tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, and sword.  That is a tough list.  Those are all terrible things.  If and when we find ourselves going through any of those things, we are definitely not going to feel like “conquerors.”  We are going to feel like we are being defeated at every turn.  Discouragement and even depression can set in if we start looking at our situation instead of our Saviour.  But, even in the midst of any and all of those things, we can rest in the promise of this verse: we are more than conquerors in Him.

When it feels like we are losing the battle, just remember this promise.  We may not feel like conquerors every day, but we are.  Our feelings do not change the fact of this verse.  We are conquerors in Him.  What a wonderful Saviour!

The Love of Christ

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:35-39

This passage starts by asking us a simple question: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?”  Then it goes on to answer it in a manner that no person who ever reads it can misunderstand.

There is nothing that is going to separate us from the love of Christ?  There are two lists of things given here that some might think would potentially separate us from His love.  Nothing on either of those lists are going to be able to separate us from the love of Christ.  There are some terrible things on those lists.  There are some powerful things on those lists.  But they will not be able to separate us from His love.

Not even death – the most powerful force in the history of mankind, will be able to separate us from His love.  Our past won’t separate us from His love.  Our future won’t separate us from His love.  Other people will not separate us.  Not even the angels can separate us from His love.

The love of God is in us, on us, and around us.  His love covers our past and lights up our future.  There is NOTHING that will “be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  We can rest in that love every day.

Giving Us All Things

What shall we then say to these things?  If God be for us, who can be against us?  He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? 

Romans 8:31-32

After receiving these encouraging words in verse 31: “If God be for us, who can be against us?,” we find even more encouragement in the next verse.  In verse 32, we find just how much God loves us, just how much He has done for us, and just how much He is willing to do for us.

“He that spared not his own Son…”  God gave His own Son, Jesus, for us.  He sent Him to die on a cross, rejected and alone.  God the Father turned His back on His own Son Who became sin for us.  There are very few earthly fathers who would send their sons to die an agonizing death to save anyone, and for good reason.  Fathers love their sons.  God the Father loves Jesus.  But He “…spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all…”  That shows us how much God loves us.

The verse then goes on to ask us a question: “…how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?”  The question is this: if God is willing to give up His beloved Son Jesus for us, what is there that He is not willing to give us?  Sometimes we wonder if God is willing to help us or to give us something.  We need not wonder.  The answer to this question is that God would obviously “freely give us all things.”  Especially when we look at what He has already given us.

We can be encouraged by that every day of our lives and we can claim that promise every time we pray.  What a wonderful Saviour!

 

 

Rock of Ages (Hymn)

Rock of Ages
Augustus Toplady (1776)

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood,
From Thy wounded side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure;
Save from wrath and make me pure.

Not the labor of my hands
Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;
Thou must save, and Thou alone.

Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to the cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;
Helpless look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.

While I draw this fleeting breath,
When mine eyes shall close in death,
When I soar to worlds unknown,
See Thee on Thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.

“Rock of Ages” is one of my favorite hymns.  This is one of the hymns that has wonderful and deep doctrinal truth in every verse.  I wanted to go through and highlight some things, but there is so much Biblical truth in every verse that I wouldn’t know where to start.  Take some time to think and meditate on the words to this hymn.  I will leave you with what is probably my favorite line of the song: “Foul, I to the fountain fly; Wash me Savior, or I die.”

 

Saturday Psalm (7c)

Behold, he travaileth with iniquity, and hath conceived mischief, and brought forth falsehood.  He made a pit, and digged it, and is fallen into the ditch which he made.  His mischief shall return upon his own head, and his violent dealing shall come down upon his own pate.  I will praise the Lord according to his righteousness: and will sing praise to the name of the Lord most high.

Psalm 7:14-17

In this passage, we get a look at a wicked life.  We then get one verse of praise to the Lord for His righteousness.

The life of the wicked is marked by many things.  A few of them are listed in this passage: iniquity, mischief, falsehood, and violence.  I think we would all agree that those are all marks of the wicked man.

Iniquity is simply sin.  The wicked man’s life is characterized by sin.  Mischief is something that is not often linked with wickedness, but it is here.  People seem to get into mischief when they don’t have anything to do.  The wicked man is characterized by doing stupid things – mischief.  He “brings forth falsehood.”  The wicked man is a liar and lies are part of his nature.  He is characterized by his lies.  He is violent.  The just man is a peaceful man.  The wicked man is characterized by his love for and use of violence.

Verse 15 describes the wicked man as digging a pit and falling in it.  That really is a perfect description of the wicked man.  He spends his time trying to destroy others and ends up destroyed himself.

The Psalm ends on a positive note, with the Psalmist praising the name of the Lord and praising Him for His righteousness.  We can be thankful for the Lord and thankful for His righteousness and thankful that He has taken us out of the ranks of the wicked!

 

If God Be For Us…

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.  Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.  What shall we then say to these things?  If God be for us, who can be against us?

Romans 8:28-31

We looked yesterday at verse 28 and at the fact that “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”  Today, we see the end of this passage in verse 31: “What shall we then say to these things?  If God be for us, who can be against us?”  That is a powerful statement.

Sometimes in life we get discouraged.  Sometimes we think that everything and everyone are against us.  Sometimes it feels like we are alone in the midst of a great battle and that we are losing that battle.  We look at the world and the Devil and we feel so weak and insignificant.

It is during those times we should remember the words of verse 31, “If God be for us, who can be against us?”  God Himself – the Creator of the world, is on our side.  God Himself is for us.  Who can stand against Him?  God is greater than everything else in all of the universe.  And that God is “for us.”  There is nothing and there is no one that we need to fear with Almighty God on our side.

That can be a huge encouragement in our darkest hours!  “If God be for us, who can be against us?”

All Things Work Together

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Romans 8:28-29

These are famous verses and they are famous verses for a good reason.  “…all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”  Those words have been a comfort and an encouragement to many, many people throughout the years.  They can settle our hearts and minds today if we will let them.

Most of the things that we spend our time worrying about are really pretty small.  Most of the things that we allow to produce stress in our lives are things we shouldn’t be giving a second thought to.  If we will understand that “all things work together for good…” it will take away a lot of the little stresses that creep into our lives.

It is encouraging to know that God is in complete control.  It is encouraging to know that He knows about every situation in our lives.  He knows where it came from and He knows where it is going.

One of the reasons we worry and stress about things is that we cannot see the end from the beginning.  All we can see is a (usually) temporary inconvenience.  But God knows the end from the beginning.  And God knows what His plan is for us and for everyone else.  So, whatever it is that happens to us is part of that plan.  When we accept that fact, we can rest in that fact.  God is working things together in the way that He wants them.  That is a comforting thought!

 

Following the Spirit in Prayer

Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

Romans 8:26

We often hear things during sermons and read things in Christian literature that deal with the subject of “following the Holy Spirit.”  We often hear (and know) that we should be “led by the Spirit.”  We know that we should allow the Holy Spirit of God to help us and to guide us through life’s decisions and through life’s trials and tribulations.  But this verse gives us another aspect to being led by the Spirit: being led by Him in our prayers.

The disciples famously asked Jesus to “teach us to pray.”  They understood that they needed help in the matter of prayer, and the Lord Jesus helped them by giving them an example prayer, which we now call “the Lord’s prayer.”  We should be as wise as the disciples were and we should be asking the same question.

This verse tells us that we do not know how to pray as we ought.  I don’t know if that means that we don’t know what we should be praying for or if it means that we don’t even know how to pray or if it means both.  But it definitely means that we have a lot of work to do in the matter of prayer.  We need to be led by the Spirit in the matter of prayer.  We need to be sensitive to His leading when comes to our prayers.  There are things we should be praying for and about that maybe we don’t.  He will guide us if we will follow.

Fortunately, even our feeble and insignificant attempts at prayer are heard and answered – also due to the Spirit.  He makes “intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”  It is good that we have such an intercessor because, despite our good intentions, we don’t even know how to pray!  Let us follow His guidance in the prayer today and every day!

Hope and Faith

For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?  But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

Romans 8:24-25

Hope is a very powerful thing.  Having hope can get us through many trials, tribulations and dark nights.  Charles Spurgeon once said “Hope itself is like a star – not to be seen in the sunshine of prosperity, and only to be discovered in the dark night of adversity.”  The previous verses in this chapter deal with the fact that all of nature (even our own bodies) are groaning under the curse of sin, awaiting the day that curse will be lifted.  These verses tell us that, even in all of that suffering, we can (and should) have hope.

It is the fact that we are dealing with all of the problems that the curse of sin has caused that allows us to have hope in the future and in God’s promises of the future.    To use a silly illustration, I can hope that I will have pizza for supper.  But if I am currently eating pizza for supper, there is no hope.  My hope has come to pass.  That is the way it is for Christians right now.  We have hope, but we have hope in something that we cannot see at this time.

When we look around at the world around us, there is suffering, trouble, and strife everywhere we look.  But we have hope and we “with patience wait for it.”  We have faith in what God has said in His Word.  We have faith that we will do as He said.  That faith gives us hope, and hope is a powerful thing indeed!