Holding To Hope We Profess
Let us hold fast the profession of our faith
without wavering; (for He is faithful that
promised:"
( HEBREWS 10:23)
"Hope deferred maketh the heart sick;
but
when the desire cometh, it is a tree of
life."
Proverbs 13: 12
We are told in Proverbs that there are two effects
of "hope". When hope is delayed,
it sickens the heart. When it is realized it
comforts both body and soul. There are
many examples of Saints in the Bible who had
heart-sickness.
David, in Psalms 42- 1-3 was in distress as he
waited upon the Lord. The answer came as he
patiently trusted.
The disciples in Luke 24: 17 were sad and their
conversation
revealed the distress of their hearts. Their
eyes had been "holden" that they
had not recognized their Master as he talked with
them.
There are people today who do not recognize the
Savior when
he speaks to them. Jesus said the disciples
were "slow of understanding". Many
today are also slow of understanding. Until their
eyes are opened, they do not recognize Jesus as
Lord and Savior.
May we always pray for the "eyes of our
understanding" to
be enlightened and opened to see the Lord and hear
him
also say "Peace be still". He will
open our understanding
that we might understand the Scriptures as in Luke
24: 45.
This should result in our also worshipping the
lord with great
joy, praising and blessing God as the disciples in
the end
of this chapter.
He is our heart's desire and his wisdom and
understanding
when received is a "tree of life".
Blessings in Christ,
Jo Ann
J. p.'s Inspirations (c) 2001
Hold On To The Good
Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat
prophecies with contempt. Test everything.
Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of
evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22 NIV
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for
teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in
righteousness,
2 Timothy 3:16 NIV
When we read of the Scripture being inspired, we
understand
inspiration means "God breathed" in
Hebrew meaning.
God put words in the mouths of prophets and was
with them in all they spoke. They were his
spokesman and were qualified as they had received
the gift of prophecy and also wrote words which
were accepted as our Holy Bible.
God's words are referred to as "fire"
because they purify and burn out the things in
lives that are like unto wood, hay or
stubble. Zeal of the Lord is also referred
to as "fire of the Lord," We see this
term abused much today as to the purpose of the
fire of the Lord. It can be termed
rightfully as a "righteous indignation or
zeal", a holy jealousy for the things that be
of God. Fire comes from a word which means
burning, flame, or hot.
The angel of the Lord appeared to Moses in a
"flame of fire" out of the midst of a
burning bush which was not consumed. {Exo. 3:
2} Our God is also referred to as "a
flame of fire" or a "consuming
fire", as he consumes and destroys sin and
the things that be of sin. He replaces it
with light, holiness and the zeal of his
Spirit. In Daniel 7: 9, the throne of the
Lord was like "the fiery flame" and the
wheels of his throne were like burning fire.
A fiery stream issued and came forth from before
Him.
God moves in mysterious ways as his ways are not
our ways nor his thoughts our thoughts. His
thoughts are higher than ours but his will and
ways can easily be determined by searching the
Scriptures. Within the Bible there are
recorded words that are
only a reference to words spoken as God inspired
the writer to include them in his Holy
Writ. One example is the words of the
parable of the rich man who thought and said to
himself,
"take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry,
for tomorrow you may die." These were
his thoughts only, and as such are not a command
for us, but only written as an example while
showing thoughts and the foolishness of men laying
up treasures for self and not for God. This
is the thoughts of many today who seek success
instead of salvation for their souls. God
desires we prosper and be successful, but we are
to put Him as first in all we do to lay up
treasures in heaven.
The Spirit of the Lord is within us and all who
receive the Lord. His fire can also be in words of
those who proclaim his truths if they are God's
words as set forth according to Scripture.
We are commanded not to "quench the
Spirit" or put out the fire of the
Lord. His Spirit is referred to as
fire when God told Jeremiah he would "make
his words as 'fire' in his mouth".
Jer. 5: 14. The word was in Jeremiah as a
"burning fire shut up in his bones" and
what is in the heart, proceeds out of the mouth.
He declared 'his persecutors would stumble and be
greatly ashamed; their confusion would never be
forgotten as they would not prosper'. This is also
for our example. The Word of the Lord is a sure
Word. When we have the fire of the Lord within our
hearts, the enemy of our souls shall not
prosper.
"Is not my word like as a fire sayeth the
Lord and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in
pieces?" (Jer. 23: 29) . The fire of God's
word will tear down the strongholds and schemes of
the enemy until unrighteousness is consumed that
righteousness of God may prevail. God's Word
tells us "the light of Israel shall be for a
fire", and his "Holy One for a
flame". 'The eyes of the Lord' as seen
by John in Rev. 1: 14 were described as a
'flame
of fire' also. This speaks of His purity as
in Habakkuk 1: 13. Fire is an emblem of the purity
of God and will destroy the works of darkness.
May we test those things that proclaim to be of
God in this day and age, despise not prophecy, and
know God's Word is a sure word. It is for
teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in
righteousness to be more like Christ or as one
discipled by God's Word. A disciple is one
who follows the Lord in all his ways and does not
despise his discipline. We must hold on to
the good as commanded and be stedfast and
unmovable, always abounding in the work of the
Lord.
Blessings in Christ,
Jo Ann
J. P.'S Inspirations (c) 2002
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