1 Samuel 8:5
“And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.”
I was sitting at a restaurant with a friend of mine when a couple from his church walked in. He waved at them as they were going to their seat and told me that they were from his church. Honestly, the family looked a bit rough, but this preacher greatly complimented them by telling me that their children were some of the best youth in his church. He told me not to let their appearance fool me because they seemed to have their family life under control as evidenced by their children.
1 Samuel 3:8
“And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child.”
We all know the story very well. Samuel was just a young boy who was given to the LORD as a fulfilled promise by his mother. He grew up in a culture of corruption where the leader, Eli, would not deal with the sins of his sons. It was not the ideal atmosphere for Samuel to grow up in, but he did grow up and turn out right.
- The Winner is the Loser
- Temperance
- Duty
- God's Divine Intervention Depends on Prayerful Intercession
Four great sermons for the week of 11/08/15 are now up at Baptist City.
Judges 18:9
“ And they said, Arise, that we may go up against them: for we have seen the land, and, behold, it is very good: and are ye still? be not slothful to go, and to enter to possess the land.”
The verse above is the response from five men who spied out the city of Laish. These men came back with the report that Laish was careless with their defense and was ready to be taken. They challenged Israel to “Arise…” and “…be not slothful to go, and to enter to possess the land.” They were challenging the men to not let their slothfulness be the hindrance of their progress in taking the Promised Land.
Judges 1:1
“Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass, that the children of Israel asked the LORD, saying, Who shall go up for us against the Canaanites first, to fight against them?”
Joshua made a tragic mistake that imperiled the future of Israel’s spirituality. The mistake he made was that he did not train someone to take his place when he was gone. This was spiritual suicide. Because he didn't train someone to take his place, the people strayed from the LORD and did their own thing.
Joshua 18:8
“And the men arose, and went away: and Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying, Go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come again to me, that I may here cast lots for you before the LORD in Shiloh.”
Opportunity may lie at your door, but you must open the door to realize the opportunity. Israel had the opportunity to possess the Promised Land, but they faced several obstacles before the opportunity became reality. You also have a Promised Land that God has for you, but what you do with the obstacles that stand in your way will determine whether or not you possess it. Let me show you some of the obstacles and give you some suggestions on how to deal with them.
Sunday, 11/1/15 1 Pet
2:1-2, Wherefore laying aside all malice,
and all guile, and hypocrises, and envies, and all evil speakings, as newborn
babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby. A
practical tip: cleanse your mind before reading His word. Ezra prepared his
heart beforehand and God’s hand was on him. Hos 4:1, Hear
the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel: for the Lord hath a
controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth,
nor
mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. Never fall into the trap of only
looking for “sweet blessings” from the Bible (at home or at church.) God may
need and want to scold you and correct you.
Deuteronomy 31:4
“And the LORD shall do unto them as he did to Sihon and to Og, kings of the Amorites, and unto the land of them, whom he destroyed.”
Israel could have easily thought they had seen everything after seeing God deliver them from Egypt and the wilderness. Yet, that was just the beginning. God said this much in the verse above when He says, “And the LORD shall do unto them as he did to…” God was reminding them that what they saw Him do in the past was just the beginning.
The four terrific sermons for the week of 11/01/15 are now up at Baptist City.
- The Beginning is at the End of the End
- Lonely at the Top
- The Bacteria of Discontent
- Proper Use of Spiritual Gifts
Enjoy!
Deuteronomy 20:1
“When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, and a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God is with thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.”
Every person will at some point in their life take on a project that is bigger than they seemingly can handle. It doesn't mean they shouldn't have taken on this project, because God will God can give us these projects so that we will rely on Him more. If we never take on projects that are bigger than us, pride will fill our hearts because we will think that every victory is of our own making.