Faith Waiting (Heb. 11:8-10)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-30-03

 

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  Faith Waiting

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                    Reference:  Hebrews 11:8-10

 

            Message of the verse:  “8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.  9 By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; 10 for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.”  (NKJV)       This section, Dr. Wiersbe calls “waiting faith,” and when you read about it you can certainly tell that is a good title for this section that goes until verse twenty-two.  Abraham was an idol worshiper in what is now modern day Iraq, and God called him to go out of that land into a land where God would show him.  I do not know how it was that God called him, but the Bible says that He did.  God did promise him an inheritance, as He does all He calls, and God promised that Abraham would be the father of many nations, which he is.  Abraham was a man, who believed God, and because of this faith in God, God blessed him very much, but God did not fulfill the promises that he has made to him in his lifetime.  Abraham and his family lived in tents, and not in any permanent house, as they were pilgrims in this land that God promised to them.  Each generation faithfully passed on the promise to the next of how God spoke to Abraham and promised his family the “promised land.”  It was not until over 400 years later that Israel took possession of this land, and in a sense they have never until this day possessed all of the land that God said that He would give to them, so they are still faithfully waiting.  It will be given to them in the thousand-year kingdom headed up by Jesus Christ their Messiah.  Abraham had faith that this would be the truth as evidenced in the tenth verse, for he was looking for a city whose designer and builder was none other than God Himself, Abraham was looking towards heaven.

 

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  It took twenty-five years for Abraham and Sarah to have the child that God promised them to have, and I am sure that there were some doubts in there mind, and even their failures were, in a sense, believing God.  I am speaking of them trying to “help” God give them a child through Hagar.  As Warren Wiersbe says of himself that waiting is one of the things that he likes to do least, that is true in my life and always has been.  However God has shown me in these years that I have belonged to Him that waiting does build character into my life and it certainly does increase my faith in Him.  Yes all of us that are in the boat in the midst of this storm that God has seen fit to send us out into are having a hard time waiting on the Lord, but God makes no mistakes and the answer to this problem will be given by God in God’s time, and in the meantime we all must be patience and believe in the promises of His Word, for He will never leave us nor will He ever forsake us.

 

The Word of God was a challenge to my heart today as I read it and as I thought about it this morning.  It also brought refreshment and courage to me too.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I want to continue to rest upon the promises of God while I and others are in this storm that He has sent us into.  As the lady who was at the meeting said we have a great and wonderful God who sees fit to answer our prayers.  I trust the Lord.

The Faithfulness and Faith of Noah (Heb. 11:7)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-29-03

 

My Worship Time                                        Focus:  The faithfulness and faith of Noah

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                               Reference:  Hebrews 11:7

 

              Message of the verse:  “7 By faith Noah, having been divinely warned concerning the things not yet seen, having feared, did prepare an ark to the salvation of his house, through which he did condemn the world, and of the righteousness according to faith he became heir.”  (Young’s)  “It was by faith that Noah built an ark to save his family from the flood.  He obeyed God, who warned him about something that had never happened before.  By faith he condemned the rest of the world and made right in God’s sight.”

            This chapter is about Biblical faith and the people in this chapter have demonstrated Biblical faith in their lives in a very tangible way as the writer brings out when he describes their faithfulness.  Noah the man I am looking at this morning demonstrated a great amount of faith as seen in this passage.  As stated earlier from a quotation about faith Warren Wiersbe said that “true Bible faith is confident obedience to God’s Word in spite of circumstances and consequences,” and this is clearly seen in Noah’s life.  It had never rained before the flood came because in Genesis it says that a mist that came up from the earth watered the earth, so Noah never ever had seen it rain.  God says to Noah that He is going to send a flood upon the earth and that Noah was to build a boat in order to save his family from the flood.  Noah believed God and the Scripture says that he feared God, (this the reverent and good fear to have), and obeyed the Word of the Lord in spite of circumstances and consequences, for it would be logical to believe that for 120 years that it took for him and his sons to build the ark that his neighbors gave him a hard time.  This action by Noah took a tremendous amount of faith on his part.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I believe that the lesson from the life of Noah is to obey the Word of the Lord in spite of circumstances and consequences, and that is what I hope I would do in the storm that I am in at this time of my life.

 

The Word of God was both refreshing and convicting to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I want to be able to stand on the Word of God when it comes to doing what needs to be done in spite of in the worlds eyes it seems wrong.  Like building a boat on dry land and waiting for the Lord to send a flood.

 

Pleasing To God (Heb. 11:5-6)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-28-03

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Pleasing to God

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 11:5-6

 

             Message of the verse:  “5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death; AND HE WAS NOT FOUND BECAUSE GOD TOOK HIM UP; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.(NASB95)  “It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—‘suddenly he disappeared because God took him.’  But before he was taken up, he was approved as pleasing to God.  So, you see, it is impossible to please God without faith.  Anyone who wants to come to Him must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”  (NLT)  “5  By faith Enoch was translated—not to see death, and was not found, because God did translate him; for before his translation he had been testified to—that he had pleased God well, 6  and apart from faith it is impossible to please well, for it behoveth him who is coming to God to believe that He is, and to those seeking Him He becometh a rewarder. (YLT)

            In the story of Able in yesterday’s diary his brother killed him because he was faithful to God, and in today’s story of Enoch he was taken away to be with God without dying because he was faithful and pleasing to God.  Many students of the Bible believe that this is a picture of the Rapture of the Church spoken of in 1Thes. 4:13-18. I like the Young’s translation of this verse because it leaves out the word God in the first part of the verse and simply says “impossible to please well.”  It surely refers to God, but the word for God is not in the Greek text.  Verse six says that whoever wants to be please God must believe that He is, but it goes on to say a bit more on how we are to please God, and that is that we must make a consecrated effort to sincerely seek Him.  In the book of James chapter two, and verses nineteen, and twenty, James says that it takes more than just knowing that there is a God to be pleasing to Him, and the reason he gives for this argument is that the Devil and his demons too, believe that there is a God.  “You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.  But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  There is no doubt that God has had a wonderful impact on my life since He saved me in January of 1974.  I knew little about who He truly was before He save me, but I did believe that he existed for many years before that wonderful event.  In one of the translations the end of verse says that we are to diligently seek God, and that is what I want to do with my life is to take the time to truly find out about God by reading and studying His Word each day, speaking and listening to God through prayer, and to do better in memorizing and meditating on His Word as I go through my day.

 

The Word of God was indeed refreshing to me as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  As I stated yesterday these steps of faith that I am writing down on this spiritual diary are steps that must have a reference from the Bible for me to stand on and put my trust in God in.  I am still very much thinking about the storm that the Lord has put many, including myself and wife in, and that is the huge problem we possibility of loosing our entire life savings.  This gives me a righteous anger that a fellow believer who has the trust of many other believers to help them with their income would allow himself to get his life in such a bad state spiritually so that the evil one would be able to take advantage of his weakness in order to put a heavy burden on their lives.  At the same time I am praying for Andy that God would be pleased to revive his life, and not just for the sake of those who have trusted him, although that is a good reason to pray for his revival, but that the Lord God would be lifted up and receive glory and honor from this.  I do trust the Lord to see me through this storm that He has sent us out into because His Word says that He will pray for us, and that He will come to us in the midst of this storm, and that He will even take the time to give us more faith as we go through this storm, and that He will see us through to the other side of this storm.

 

Able's Sacrifice (Heb. 11:4)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-27-03

 

My Worship Time                                                                       Focus:  Abel’s sacrifice

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Hebrews 11:4

 

            Message of the verse:  “4  By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.  “4 By faith Abel made a better offering to God than Cain, and he had witness through it of his righteousness, God giving his approval of his offering: and his voice still comes to us through it though he is dead.”  (BBE)

            This whole story unfolds in Genesis 4:1-10, and I have read and heard about how Able knew how to give the proper sacrifice to the Lord, and that Cain knew but refused to give a blood sacrifice.  I believe that when Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, and when God came down to the garden to provide clothes for them that He used a lamb to get the skins in order to give them clothing.  I also believed that when He did this that He knew someday that His Son would be the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world.  It could have been at this point that God explained to Adam & Eve about sacrifices, at any rate I do believe that they did know, and that God was the One who did explain it. 

            Able was the first martyr who died because of his faith, as Cain latter killed him.  This is part of what faith in the Lord is and it was shown by Able, and that is one way that it speaks to us today.  Able believed the truth that God had given to him and he acted on that truth no matter what the consequence was to him.

 

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As we are going through this storm concerning our investments, there are things that we as believers should do and there are things that we should not do, and I believe that the way that we are to know what and what not to do are given in the pages of the Scripture.  Just like Able stood on the principles of the Word of God so others and hopefully I will do the same so that God may see fit to bless us for our obedience to His Word.

 

The Word of God was challenging to my heart as well as very instructive.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To take hold of the promises of God as we go through the storm of investments.  To learn more of what we should do from the Word of God and the wisdom of godly brothers and sisters in the Lord, and then by faith act upon these things that we know is right to do.

The Description of Faith (Heb. 11:1-3)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-26-03

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  The description of faith

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Hebrews 11:1-3

 

            Message of the verse:  “1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.  2 For by it the men of old gained approval.  3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.”  (NASB)  “What is faith?  It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen.  It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see.  God gave his approval to people in the days of old because of their faith.  By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.”  (NLT)

            This is the third section in the book of Hebrews which Dr. Wiersbe calls, “A Superior Principle—Faith.”  The first section was that Christ was a superior Person and the next was that Christ has a superior Priesthood, and these ought to encourage us to put our trust in Him, which is demonstrated by faith. 

            True Bible faith is confident obedience to God’s Word in spite of circumstances and consequences.  This description is from “Be Confident” written by Dr. Warren Wiersbe and it is how he describes true Biblical faith.  He goes on to talk about three words in Hebrews 11:1-2 which summarize what true Biblical faith is:  1. Substance, 2. Evidence, and 3. Witness.

Substance means to stand under to support.  An example from the building would be the foundation in which the entire structure stands on.  This is what believer’s stands upon, and of course the object of his faith is Jesus Christ.  The word evidence means conviction, which is how it is translated in the NASB.  “This is the inward conviction from God that what He has promised, He will perform.”  Witness is translated in the NASB as approval, and in the KJV it is translated a good report.  This is how the Strong’s Concordance describes this word:  “to be a witness, to bear witness, i.e. to affirm that one has seen or heard or experienced something, or that he knows it because taught by divine revelation or inspiration.”  This word is used twice in verse four, and one time in verse 5, and also one time in verse 39.  Hebrews 12:1 calls the people that are written about in chapter eleven “so great a cloud of witnesses.”

            As I stated in an earlier SD entry this section of Hebrews has stemmed from chapter 10:38 where the writer quoted Habakkuk 2:4, “The just shall live by faith.”  As believers the blood of Jesus Christ justifies us, and we are now to live by faith, which means as stated above as, “True Bible faith is confident obedience to God’s Word in spite of circumstances and consequences.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I look at this description of faith I can see that in order to increase my faith I need to continually be in the Word of God so that I can know what His Word says about circumstances that arise in my life and how to handle them in a true Biblical way.  For instance I have learned that a good Biblical principle is not to owe money to others if you do not have to do so, and I blew that by borrowing money on our house to invest in Haven Equity and now there is some doubt as to when or whether we will get this back.  My mistake, and by the grace of God we will receive our money back and I will pay off the loan and never again borrow from it again to invest in anything.  The point to all of this is to believe what the Lord says in His Word and act upon it.

 

The Word of God was challenging, and it was refreshing to me, and it was also convicting to my heart as I read and studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Just a little side note on this section that is in my diary each and every day, and that is that I would hope that the things that I step out on faith in this section from now on would be things that are already promised or taught in the Scriptures. Today’s entry will be that the Lord will care for our moneys that we have invested with Haven Equity, that we will receive them back.  I do not know any specific promise from the Scriptures that will say that God will take care of this return of money, however His Word does say that He will take care of those who tithe to Him, and that if we confess our sins to Him He will be faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  He will give us peace in the storms of life, He will pray for us in the storms of life, and He will even send us into the storms of life for our good and for His glory, so there are many things in His Word that are principles for this situation. 

 

Today is January 27, 2017, some fourteen years after what is described in this Spiritual Diary and I can say that even though we have never received any payment from those who actually stole our money that God has been and always be faithful, and for that I praise His name.  Many lessons were learned from this difficult situation that we went through and for that I am thankful.

 

 

Living by Faith (Heb. 10:37-39)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-23-03

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Living by faith

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 10: 37-39

 

            Message of the verse:  “37 For, yet a very little and the One coming will come, "and will not delay.’ (Hab. 2):3 38 ‘But the just shall live by faith;" "and if he draws back,’ ‘My soul is not pleased in him.’ (Hab. 2:4) 39 But we are not of those withdrawing to destruction, but of faith, to the preservation of the soul.”  (Greens)  “For in just a little while, the Coming One will come and not delay.  And a righteous person will live by faith.  But I will have no pleasure in anyone who turns away.  But we are not like those who turn their backs on God and seal their fate.  We have faith that assures our salvation.”  (NLT)

            If I am not mistaken this is the promise that the writer has wrote about in verse 36.  It is a quotation from the OT books of Isaiah and Habakkuk that the writer is using to show the promise of God to them that continue fast in their faith.  As stated before the Habakkuk 2:4 passage is used in three New Testament books and in each book the emphases is on a different part of the verse.  In the case of Hebrews the phrase being emphasized is “by faith.” 

            Also as stated before the writer is writing to Jewish believers who are tempted to go back into Judaism and he is encouraging them not to do that a seen in verse 38b where he says “and if he draws back, My soul is not pleased in him.”  The one whom He is pleased in is the one who walks by faith as the first part of verse 38 speaks of.  He goes on to say that those who are believers are not withdrawing to destruction but because of the believer’s faith will have our soul’s preserved.

            I want to quote Warren Wiersbe on his comments on verse 39:  “The believer who lives by faith will ‘go on to perfection’ (6:1).  But the believer who lives by sight will ‘draw back unto perdition’ (10:39).  What is ‘perdition’ in this context?  The Greek word translated ‘perdition’ is used about 20 times in the New Testament and is translated by different words:  ‘perish’ (Acts 8:20), ‘die’ (Acts 25:16), ‘destruction’ (Rom. 9:22), and ‘waste’ (Matt. 26:8).  The word can mean eternal judgment, but it need not in every instance.  I personally believe that ‘waste’ is the best translation for this work in Hebrews 10:39.  A believer who does not walk by faith goes back into the old ways and wastes his life.

            “The saving of the soul’ is the opposite of ‘waste.’  To walk by faith means to obey God’s Word and live for Jesus Christ.  We lose our lives for His sake—but we save them!  (See Matt. 16:25-27).  In my own pastoral ministry, I have met people who turned their back on God’s will and (like Israel) spent years ‘wandering in the wilderness’ of waste.”

            “But we can be confident!  As we walk by faith, our great High Priest will guide us and perfect us!”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I want to be one of Christ’s followers who learns to walk by faith, as I surely need to do so in the storm of life that I find myself in at this present time.  I would pray that the Lord will give me wisdom as to what I am suppose to do in a tangible way.  I know the first thing He would want me to do is to pray, as praying should not be something done as a “last resort,” on the contrary it should be the very first thing to do.

 

The Word of God was indeed challenging to me as I read it this morning, and at the same time it was refreshing.

            My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord in these circumstances that I find myself in.  To be open to the Lord’s voice as He speaks to me through His Word and by His Spirit, and also in this storm that He has lead me into.

Continue To Trust in the Lord (Heb. 10:34-36)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-22-03

 

My Worship Time                                               Focus: Continue to trust in the Lord

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 10:34-36

 

            Message of the verse:  “34 You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.  35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.  36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.”  (NIV)  “You suffered along with those who were thrown into jail.  When all you owned was taken from you, you accepted it with joy.  You knew you had better things waiting for you in eternity.  Do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord, no mater what happens.  Remember the great reward it brings you!”  (NLT)

            The author of this letter encourages his readers to continue on in the faith that they began with when they were being persecuted for the cause of Christ and had lost their property because of the faith in Christ.  They also had sympathy for those who were put into prison for the cause of Christ.  In verse 36 the writer tells these people that they need to continue to persevere so that when ever they have done the will of God they will receive the promise.  He was encouraging his readers to continue on in the Christian faith and not to turn back into Judaism.  As stated before these people were tempted to return to the bondage of the Law and not stay with the freedom of the Lord.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I would like to quote a portion of the verse note from the “Life Application Study Bible” that has to do with these verses.  “Hebrews encourages believers to persevere in their Christian faith and conduct when facing persecution and pressure.  We don’t usually think of suffering as good for us, but it can build our character and our patience.  During times of great stress, we may feel God’s presence more clearly and find help from Christians we never thought would care.  Knowing that Jesus is with us in our suffering and that He will return one day to put an end to all pain helps us grow in our faith and our relationship with Him.” 

 

The Word of God was very refreshing to my heart as I read and studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I trust the Lord for the future of the investments that are in serious doubt as of this time.  The Lord knows that we are going through a very tough time right know and we believe that it is the Lord who has directed us into this storm for our good and for His glory, and so I want to continue to trust the Lord in this situation.

Having the Right Focus on Suffering (Heb. 10:32-33)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-21-03

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  Right focus on suffering

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 10:32, 33

 

            Message of the verse:  “32 But recall the former days in which, after you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle with sufferings:  33 partly while you were made a spectacle both by reproaches and tribulations, and partly while you became companions of those who were so treated;” (NKJV) “Don’t ever forget those early days when you first learned about Christ.  Remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrible suffering.  Sometimes you were exposed to public ridicule and were beaten, and sometimes you helped others who were exposed to public ridicule and were beaten, and sometimes you helped others who were suffering the same things.”  (NLT)

            I believe that the writer is taking his readers back to the time when they first accepted the Lord and afterwards they went though sufferings for the sake of the Lord.  He is laying the groundwork for the next section that he will bring up to them and that is living by faith.  This section will go through chapter thirteen and verse 38 and this is the verse that some say is the key verse in the book of Hebrews, which is quoted from Hab. 2:4 and is also used in Romans and Galatians.  The verse reads, “the just shall live by faith,” and the “by faith” is the part the author wants to get across in this section.  Paul in Romans emphasizes “the just” and in Galatians “shall live.”   In these verses the author is beginning to encourage his readers, since he had to be forceful to them in the previous verses.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I see in these verses that in the life of a believer there are times when you struggle and there are times when you will suffer for your faith.  Living in the USA all of my life I have not been persecuted for my faith like those who live in other countries of the world, although I do believe that the time is coming when being a believer in Jesus Christ in the USA will bring about persecution, and my prayer is that I will not bring down the name of Jesus Christ if God sees fit to bring persecution into my life.

 

The Word of God brought a challenge to my heart this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord as we go through the uncertainty of what will happen to our investments.  I believe that the Lord will bring us through this storm that He has put us into, and see us through to the other side of it.

 

The Lord Will Judge (Heb. 10:30-31)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FORD 05-20-03

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  The Lord will judge

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 10:30, 31

 

            Message of the verse:  “30 For we know Him who said, ‘VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.’ And again, ‘THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.’

31 It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”  “30 For we know the one who said, ‘I will take vengeance.  I will repay those who deserve it.’  He also said, ‘The Lord will judge his own people.’  31 It is a terrible thing to fall into the hand of the living God.’”

            Again I would like to say that I believe that these two verses are first of all intended for believers with an application to the unbeliever.   In verse thirty this is something that all believers should take comfort in, and it is also a verse that has a direct connection with the financial situation that Sandy and I are going through at this time.  We need to trust the Lord to deal with those who are doing wrong in this situation.  In verse thirty-one all one has to do is read the life of David in the OT to see that it surely was a terrifying thing for him to fall into the hands of the living God as he suffered much from the affects of forgiven sin.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I have already mentioned some of the spiritual meaning that these verses have for my life today.  I also want to mention that I need to take sin very seriously in my life, meaning that I need to weigh the consequences of sin when ever I am tempted to sin and then remember 1Cor. 10:13.

 

The Word of God was challenging to my heart this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord to work things out for good and for His glory pertaining to the investments mess that we are in.

Believers Beware (Heb. 10:28-29)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-19-03

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Believers beware

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 10:28-29

 

            Message of the verse:  “28 Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.  29 How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?”  (NASB)  “Anyone who refused to obey the Law of Moses was put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.  Think how much more terrible the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God and have treated the blood of the covenant as if it were common and unholy.  Such people have insulted and enraged the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to his people.”  (NLT)

            In verse 28 the writer is getting his information from Deut. 17:2-7 which talks about a person who deliberately sins and is then punished by stoning.  I still believe that the writer is speaking to believers in this passage; however I still believe this passage has an application to those who are unbelievers and are considering the Christian faith, but then after they understand it turn away from it without receiving forgiveness in Christ Jesus for their sins. 

            The question is whether or not a believer can get himself into such a mess as described in these verses, can a believer trample under foot the Son of God, and do some of the other things described in these verses?  My answer is that I do believe that it is possible for a believer to do such things, because of the sin nature or flesh that they have within them.  If a believer continues to follow the deeds of the flesh then he can get himself into a position where he will do some of the things that are described in this passage.  Now the question is what will happen to this believer who does these things?  Paul deals with this issue in 1Corthians where he speaks about some people who have died prematurely because of sin.  (See 1Cor. 11:30)  1John 5:16 says this:  “ If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make request for this.”  In conclusion I will again say that believers can act in way that disgraces the name of their Savior and Lord in such a way that the only thing that God will do for them is to take them home early so that they do not continue to disgrace the name of Jesus Christ.  There is another example of this in Acts chapter five that is familiar with most students of the Bible, where God took home two believers very suddenly.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I as a believer in Jesus Christ must be continually checking on my faith to make sure that it is real, and not in vain.  Paul speaks of this and I think that it is in 2 Corthians where this is found, but I am not quite sure of the exact passage.  As a blood bought believer in Jesus Christ who would be on my way to hell without this pardon that He has given me, should always be living my life to bring honor and glory to the Lord because of His wonderful gift of salvation that He has given to me.   “2Corinthians 13:5 Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you--unless indeed you fail the test?”  I am thankful to the Lord for showing this verse to me.

 

The Word of God was a big challenge to me as I read it this morning.

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord in these times of difficulty, as there are a lot of people who are going through the same thing that Sandy and I are going through.  To trust the Lord who has led me out into this storm of His choosing.  I am comforted that Jesus Christ is praying for us as we go through this storm, that He knows all about this storm, that He will come to us in this storm, that He will help us grow because of this storm, and that He will see us through this storm.  I am so thankful for the message that Pastor Tim Konuch brought to us yesterday, as it was a message that the Lord knew we needed and He provided just what we needed.

 

Christ is the Only Sacrifice for Sin (Heb. 10:26-27)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-17-03

 

 

My Worship Time                              Focus:  Christ is the Only Sacrifice for Sin

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Hebrews 10:26, 27

 

            Message of the verse:  “26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.”  (NASB)  “Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received a full knowledge of the truth, there is no other sacrifice that will cover these sins.  There will be nothing to look forward to but the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume his enemies.”  (NLT)

            As in the other exhortations that are in this book there are different views on whom the author is writing about, whether he is speaking to believers or to non-believers.  As in all of the other exhortations that are in this book I believe that the author is writing to believers and am encouraged from reading the writings of Dr. Warren Wiersbe to strengthen my beliefs along this line of thinking.  In verse 26 the author is speaking about sinning deliberately and the fact that in the OT their was not a sacrifice for this kind of sin, a sin that David committed and fell upon the mercy of God because he knew that there was no sacrifice to care for it. 

            The exhortations that are in Hebrews continually go spiritually downward in direction and this is the furthest downward for a believer to go, and that is despising the Word of God.  The despising of the Word of God is a willful sin as seen in the latter part of verse 26 where is says “the knowledge of the truth.”  I want to say that this can also pertain to an unbeliever who continues to turn down the offer that God has given to him for salvation and there is no other sacrifice for him if he indeed rejects the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for his salvation.  There comes a time in an unbeliever’s life when the Spirit of God will give up on Him and he will someday experience the “raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.” 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  This is a warning that I as a believer need to take very seriously and also on a personal level pray for Andy that he would stop his downward spiral and get his life back on track so that it will be honoring to the Lord.

 

The Word of God was challenging to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord to give me victory over fear, to continue to trust the Lord for peace in our financial problems that we are going through at this time in our lives.

Faith, Hope, and Love (Heb. 10:24-25)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05-14-03

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Faith, hope, and love

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 10:24 -25

 

            Message of the verse:  “And let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more, as you see the day drawing near.”   (NASB)  “And let us consider one another to provoke to love and to good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”(MKJV)

            It is possible that some of these Hebrews believers were not coming to worship with the other believers because of their desire to go back into Judaism and when this happens the others miss out on what the have to offer at the worship service.  It seems that God calls people to a certain assembly to worship Him and to use their gifts that He gave them for the good of others and when they do not come the assembly will miss out on these gifts.  The verse says that we as believers should consider how to stimulate each other to love and to good deeds.  This is stated in another version “stir up” like Paul had said to Timothy that he should stir up the gifts that God has given to him.  Dr. Wiersbe says that the three virtues of the Christian faith are all present here in verses 22-25 and these are faith, hope and love.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As we all are at this retreat I believe that this is a great verse for me to consider and I would hope that the Lord would allow me to stimulate different members of the group to love and good deeds.

 

The Word of God was very timely to my present situation; it was refreshing, and also a challenge to my heart.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord to defeat fear in my life so that I will learn more about becoming a man who is more and more like my Savior and Lord; Jesus Christ.