1 Cor 10: 1-6
Num 14: 19-20
God was with the Israelites in the form of a cloud by day and fire by night. They were fed supernaturally, given drink the same way, and all of them passed safely through the Red Sea. They had visible and tactile evidence of the awesome powers of God. Yet, all but 2 of them grumbled, complained, tried and tested God (and that means around 2 million people minus 2...that is a lot of grumbling). He wasn't sufficient for them. His provision wasn't sufficient for them. They were lustful and craved carnal pleasures instead.
It wasn't just a temptation for them, it's a temptation for us as well. We at NLC are on the verge of monumental growth. We are already seeing God's awesome power first hand in our healed marriages, in our loved ones who are calling on the name of Jesus for the first time, in the loosening of the chains that were once binding some of us, and in many, many countless ways. James is on top of his game, and is leading us from a Spirit-filled level that is second to none. Yet, if we aren't mindful, and forget the “examples” God has graciously given us in His Word, we, like the Israelites, will be tempted to grumble and complain, to be disquieted and dissatisfied with the provision God offers us.
He is leading us to our promised land, He is opening the way for hearts to be healed, for souls to be saved, for lives to be changed. I dare say He is guiding us to lead the way for a whole community to know His name!
Take heart, and have faith. Be like Joshua and Caleb, who believed God, who took Him at His very word. All 13 men who scouted out the promised land reported that “surely it flows with milk and honey”. They even brought some of the fruit from the land back and showed it to Moses, Aaron and the entire congregation. But, they also saw giants. There are giants in our way as well. But they are not here to defeat, they are here to be defeated so that the name of God will be glorified! Don't be tempted to believe what your eyes are seeing when you know it is contrary to the vision God has given us. Joshua and Caleb saw the giants as well, the same as the others. The difference was, they CHOSE to BELIEVE GOD.
Remember His glory and His signs, and remind those that God has placed under you. As for the rest of the Israelites, they were forgiven, but they did not make it to the promised land. Let's choose to believe and let's enter the land - together...with not one missing.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Hope
Jeremiah 29:11 – For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.
What a promising verse. Who wouldn't be comforted knowing that God has thoughts and plans for them? One translation says “...They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” I know a few people who could use some hope.
Well, Hope is here. It is found among these verses, and it is found all through the Word. Let's take a look, though, at exactly what we are hoping for. Back up to verse 10, “...When seventy years are completed...I will visit you and keep My good promise to you...”. Wow, seventy years! So just before this tremendously popular verse of encouragement, God has basically said, “But you have to wait seventy years for it”.
That is a long time. But when we delve a little deeper and read a little further, we realize that His plan for them is worth waiting for, and that it may not be what some might expect. Maybe you're thinking new car or a new house (a few verses earlier He does tell them to build houses, dwell in them and plant gardens and eat of them). However, that is not His plan. God is providing for their necessities (and for yours, too), but His plan involves something more, something deeper.
The next couple of verses reveal the heart of God with terms like “call upon Me”; “come and pray to Me”; “seek Me”, “inquire for”, “require Me”, and “search for Me with all your heart”. This is God's plan, these are His thoughts. That we, His precious, chosen people, would seek Him with everything we have. Then His amazing promise comes “I will hear and heed you”, and “Then you will...find Me”.
Our God is a God who is madly, deeply, crazy jealous for YOU. For you to know Him, seek Him, inquire of Him, and require Him in everything. Thankfully, it doesn't always take seventy years for us to “get” it. Maybe your heart has forgotten, and this is your reminder, that He is our hope. Seek, call, inquire, require and search for Him. “Then you will...find Me when you search for Me with all your heart”.
What a promising verse. Who wouldn't be comforted knowing that God has thoughts and plans for them? One translation says “...They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” I know a few people who could use some hope.
Well, Hope is here. It is found among these verses, and it is found all through the Word. Let's take a look, though, at exactly what we are hoping for. Back up to verse 10, “...When seventy years are completed...I will visit you and keep My good promise to you...”. Wow, seventy years! So just before this tremendously popular verse of encouragement, God has basically said, “But you have to wait seventy years for it”.
That is a long time. But when we delve a little deeper and read a little further, we realize that His plan for them is worth waiting for, and that it may not be what some might expect. Maybe you're thinking new car or a new house (a few verses earlier He does tell them to build houses, dwell in them and plant gardens and eat of them). However, that is not His plan. God is providing for their necessities (and for yours, too), but His plan involves something more, something deeper.
The next couple of verses reveal the heart of God with terms like “call upon Me”; “come and pray to Me”; “seek Me”, “inquire for”, “require Me”, and “search for Me with all your heart”. This is God's plan, these are His thoughts. That we, His precious, chosen people, would seek Him with everything we have. Then His amazing promise comes “I will hear and heed you”, and “Then you will...find Me”.
Our God is a God who is madly, deeply, crazy jealous for YOU. For you to know Him, seek Him, inquire of Him, and require Him in everything. Thankfully, it doesn't always take seventy years for us to “get” it. Maybe your heart has forgotten, and this is your reminder, that He is our hope. Seek, call, inquire, require and search for Him. “Then you will...find Me when you search for Me with all your heart”.
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