The Apostle Paul, on his first missionary journey, preached in the Jewish synagogue at Antioch of Pisidia that by Jesus "all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses." (Acts 13:39)
The gentiles were interested because Paul included them in God's plan of salvation. The Jews were not upset at this point because they had always accepted gentiles into their faith if the gentiles were willing to be circumcised and follow all of their laws.
However, when Paul spoke the next week, at invitation of the gentiles, "almost the whole city came to hear the word of God," and "when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy and spoke against those things which were spoken by Paul...." (Acts 13:44-45)
The Jews that were filled with envy were the Jewish religious leaders, comparable to the preachers, elders and bishops of the Christian church today. These men were jealous that another preacher had come to town and had commanded a larger audience than their own.
Because of their envy, these religious leaders immediately disputed what Paul was saying without first examining it for the truth. They were blinded by their envy.
The two-fold application of this passage requires the believer to ask himself:
1. Does envy in my life prevent me from looking for truth?
2. Are the religious leaders in the church I attend more interested in attaining those things they envy that in searching for the truths of God's Word?
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Friday, August 14, 2009
Envy is Foolish
Proverbs 23:17 says, "Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long." The subject of the envy is the sinner. Psalm 73 explains more fully that the reason sinners are envied by the righteous is that they prosper in this world.For example, Ps 73: 12 says, "Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches."
However, in Ps 73:22, the writer says he was foolish and ignorant to envy the wicked. He came to that realization after the Lord showed him that the end of the wicked is destruction.
Ps 37:1-2 gives the same message: "Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb."
Not only is the prosperity of the wicked short-lived, this prosperity does not encompass spiritual prosperity. Isaiah 57:21 says, "There is no peace, saith my God, for the wicked."
Rather than envy the wicked and be a fool, the believer is to fear the Lord and be wise. 1 Ti 6:6 says, "...godliness with contentment is great gain." The antidote to envy, then (as stated is the first Proverb quoted), is to be in the fear of the Lord all the day long. Joshua 1:8 says to meditate in the Word day and night--that is the way to "be in the fear of the Lord all the day long" and that is the way to have "godliness with contentment" and that is the way to find relief from foolish envy. May the Lord be praised!
However, in Ps 73:22, the writer says he was foolish and ignorant to envy the wicked. He came to that realization after the Lord showed him that the end of the wicked is destruction.
Ps 37:1-2 gives the same message: "Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb."
Not only is the prosperity of the wicked short-lived, this prosperity does not encompass spiritual prosperity. Isaiah 57:21 says, "There is no peace, saith my God, for the wicked."
Rather than envy the wicked and be a fool, the believer is to fear the Lord and be wise. 1 Ti 6:6 says, "...godliness with contentment is great gain." The antidote to envy, then (as stated is the first Proverb quoted), is to be in the fear of the Lord all the day long. Joshua 1:8 says to meditate in the Word day and night--that is the way to "be in the fear of the Lord all the day long" and that is the way to have "godliness with contentment" and that is the way to find relief from foolish envy. May the Lord be praised!
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Labor Not To Be Rich
Proverbs 23:4 says, "Labor not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom." The "Labor not" in this verse refers to overworking--someone so taken with riches that he works all the time for more (obsessed.)
Proverbs 23:5 says,"Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven." This proverb may not seem to be the case all the time, but add the following to it: 1 Timothy 6:7, "For we brought nothing into this world and it is certain we can carry nothing out."
There will be a time that riches will fail to be of assistance!
If a person is instructed not to set his eyes, or his heart, upon riches, then upon what should his heart be set? Colossians 3:2 says, "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth." "Things above" are the things pertaining to God and His Word. Meditation on God's Word leads to obedience to His Word, which in turn leads to "good success" (Jos 1:8.) One thing good success means, in addition to having freedom from sin, is to have contentment. 1 Ti 6:8 says, "And having food and raiment let us be therefore content." This contentment with little--little prestige, little status, little in the way of material wealth--is given to the believer who truly believes this truth. The Apostle Paul said, "...I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content...I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." (Ph 3:11-13)
This contentment, and freedom from sin, eludes those who would be rich. 1 Ti 6:7 says, "They that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition."
The question is this: Does the person reading these Bible passages believe them or not?
Proverbs 23:5 says,"Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven." This proverb may not seem to be the case all the time, but add the following to it: 1 Timothy 6:7, "For we brought nothing into this world and it is certain we can carry nothing out."
There will be a time that riches will fail to be of assistance!
If a person is instructed not to set his eyes, or his heart, upon riches, then upon what should his heart be set? Colossians 3:2 says, "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth." "Things above" are the things pertaining to God and His Word. Meditation on God's Word leads to obedience to His Word, which in turn leads to "good success" (Jos 1:8.) One thing good success means, in addition to having freedom from sin, is to have contentment. 1 Ti 6:8 says, "And having food and raiment let us be therefore content." This contentment with little--little prestige, little status, little in the way of material wealth--is given to the believer who truly believes this truth. The Apostle Paul said, "...I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content...I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." (Ph 3:11-13)
This contentment, and freedom from sin, eludes those who would be rich. 1 Ti 6:7 says, "They that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition."
The question is this: Does the person reading these Bible passages believe them or not?
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Wisdom from God
Proverbs 19:20 says, "Hear counsel and receive instruction, that thou mayest be wise in the latter end."
Who would say he did not want to be wise? What is wisdom and how is it attained? James 3:13-18 gives a clear account of true wisdom, i.e., wisdom from God, and distinguishes godly wisdom from earthly wisdom, or wisdom of man. According to James 3: 17-18, "... the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace."
Notice the tone of this passage: peace, mercy, gentleness, purity, righteousness. True wisdom is not self-seeking or grasping. In dealing with others, God's wisdom has no ulterior motives, lies, deceptions or manipulations.
How can one attain God's wisdom? Proverbs 19:20 says, "Hear counsel and receive instruction, that thou mayest be wise in the latter end." What counsel? What instruction? Proverbs 9:10 says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." One cannot even begin to be wise in a godly sort of way until he fears the Lord. And one cannot fear the Lord until he comes to know Him. John 1:12 says, "...as many as received him (Jesus), to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name."
If the Lord has granted salvation to a person and the believer has a fear, or reverence, of God, then the instruction that will make him wise is found in Joshua 1:8, "...meditate (on God's Word) day and night."
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Bondage to Sin
The Apostle Paul gives a vivid illustration of the law of sin and death and how a person subject to this law is a slave, in bondage to his own sin. Ro 7:19 states, "For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do."
Anyone who has ever tried to "turn over a new leaf" or get free from some nagging habit should be able to understand what it is like to want to do the right thing, but to fail at it over and over. Try going through the day without lying at all or without coveting or lusting after anything. It is easier to understand the bondage to sin than it is to understand freedom from this bondage to sin.
People like to say, "The devil made me do it" or"I'm only human." In reality, a person who enjoys sin fits the description in John 3:19, "...men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."
Rather than a person making excuses for sin or pretending there is no sin in his life, why should he not read over the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20) and see how many violations there are in his life daily? A good look at the extent of sin in one's life, the utter pervasiveness of it, should make the freedom from sin as stated in Romans 8:2 a most compelling topic.
Anyone who has ever tried to "turn over a new leaf" or get free from some nagging habit should be able to understand what it is like to want to do the right thing, but to fail at it over and over. Try going through the day without lying at all or without coveting or lusting after anything. It is easier to understand the bondage to sin than it is to understand freedom from this bondage to sin.
People like to say, "The devil made me do it" or"I'm only human." In reality, a person who enjoys sin fits the description in John 3:19, "...men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."
Rather than a person making excuses for sin or pretending there is no sin in his life, why should he not read over the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20) and see how many violations there are in his life daily? A good look at the extent of sin in one's life, the utter pervasiveness of it, should make the freedom from sin as stated in Romans 8:2 a most compelling topic.
Monday, August 10, 2009
This Wonderful Freedom
This wonderful freedom from sin and death, as stated in Ro 8:2, is available to whom? That well-known verse, John 3:16, states that whosoever believes in the Son of God should not perish but have everlasting life. The first criterion for freedom from sin and death is that a person believes in Jesus as his Lord and Savior. The non-believer does not share in this promise of everlasting life.
The second criterion for this freedom from sin and death is an understanding that the Word of God, including this verse, is true and is applicable to the believer's life.
And thirdly, even while believing that God grants freedom from sin, a believer must choose to live in this freedom rather than to continue living in sin. In Ephesians 4:17-20, the Apostle Paul told the gentile believers at Ephesus, "... henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ."
The second criterion for this freedom from sin and death is an understanding that the Word of God, including this verse, is true and is applicable to the believer's life.
And thirdly, even while believing that God grants freedom from sin, a believer must choose to live in this freedom rather than to continue living in sin. In Ephesians 4:17-20, the Apostle Paul told the gentile believers at Ephesus, "... henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ."
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Free from the Law of Sin and Death
Just as Jos. 1:8 speaks of the Book of the Law and Ps 1:2 speaks of the law of the Lord, Romans 8:2 speaks of law--the law of sin and death. The law of sin is illustrated in Ro 6:16, "Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness."
Sin is characterized as a slave master and the person in sin is in bondage to this master. Sin causes a barrier between man and God. Isaiah 59:2, "But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear." Ultimately, sin leads to death (Ro 6:23), including eternal separation from a good and righteous God.
While Ro 8:2 speaks of this law of sin and death, it also speaks of another law--the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. The writer of Romans found life in Jesus. Ro 8:2, "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." The slave master, sin and death, does not hold Jesus in his grips (Jesus did resurrect from the dead.) Neither does this slave master hold in his grips those that belong to Jesus.
The freedom of which this passage speaks is the same freedom seen in John 8:36; it is freedom from a life of sin followed by eternal death. This freedom gives life where there was previously death and righteousness where there was previously sin. For all these things, Brethren, ought not we to rejoice day and night!
Sin is characterized as a slave master and the person in sin is in bondage to this master. Sin causes a barrier between man and God. Isaiah 59:2, "But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear." Ultimately, sin leads to death (Ro 6:23), including eternal separation from a good and righteous God.
While Ro 8:2 speaks of this law of sin and death, it also speaks of another law--the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. The writer of Romans found life in Jesus. Ro 8:2, "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." The slave master, sin and death, does not hold Jesus in his grips (Jesus did resurrect from the dead.) Neither does this slave master hold in his grips those that belong to Jesus.
The freedom of which this passage speaks is the same freedom seen in John 8:36; it is freedom from a life of sin followed by eternal death. This freedom gives life where there was previously death and righteousness where there was previously sin. For all these things, Brethren, ought not we to rejoice day and night!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)