Man must spend his strength on things that matter. In doing so, we must focus our efforts upon the right things while working through and by God's power.
In every way, God is greater than man. A man would have to be a thief to claim equality with God. Yet, Christ thought it not robbery to be equal with God.
In establishing His covenant with Israel, God promised them He would have respect unto them, make them fruitful, and multiply them.
The land cannot continually endure the stress of producing the same crops without some time of rest for renewal. Man is no different.
In the tribulation, there will be many who will love “not their lives unto the death.” Their love for the Saviour will surpass their love for life itself.
Unsurprisingly, much of the world’s amusement seems to be driven by demeaning, mocking, or humiliating others. In other words, one man’s pain is another man’s pleasure. Samson had been a thorn in the flesh of the Philistines for quite some time, but now he was a sightless, weak prisoner. As the Philistines gathered to celebrate his capture and humiliation, they called for Samson so that they could take pleasure in his suffering. One would think that it takes a heartless people to find satisfaction in the humiliation of others, but unfortunately far too many people take pleasure in such events. Far too frequently, men receive the greatest satisfaction when others are abused for their enjoyment. This ought not so to be!
The words chastening and punishment are like many Bible words that share an overlapping meaning but also exhibit certain variants. A Bible-believer always trusts that God carefully chose His words to accomplish His expressed purpose in any given passage. On the surface, it would seem like the words punish (Leviticus 26:24) and chastise (Leviticus 26:28) seem completely interchangeable, but a thorough study of the whole counsel of God reveals distinctions. One area in which there appears to be a distinction involves the intended purpose of execution. Punishment is the infliction of judgment for the sake of justice, while chastening is the application of judgment for the sake of correction.
Loyalty is a godly trait, and like most godly traits, difficulties can accompany it. The story of David and Uriah serves as a prime example. David sinned against the Lord when he committed adultery with Bathsheba, Uriah’s wife. His actions caused her to become expectant with child. In an attempt to cover his wickedness, he sent for Uriah, his faithful soldier. David knew that his only opportunity to hide his sin from man was for Uriah to go home to Bathsheba. However, Uriah was a faithful soldier. He simply refused to enjoy the comforts of being with his wife while his fellow soldiers were enduring the hardness of battle. Uriah instead chose to sleep at the door of the king’s house. This loyalty caused David to reevaluate his devious plan and escalate the consequences. He decided to order Uriah to the hottest part of the battle insuring certain death. It was not just the enemy that killed Uriah, but also his loyalty to an unfaithful man!
Many Bible passages connect watchfulness and prayer. While preaching sounds the trumpet of alarm in the ears of men, prayer sounds the alarm in the ears of God. As a watchman, each believer has a responsibility to his brother or sister in Christ. While some believers are spiritually sleeping, unaware of their present danger, other believers ought to be standing upon the tower of watchfulness and calling upon the Lord. This was the point of Paul’s teaching in Ephesians 6:18 when he said, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.”
Should prayer be kept private or can it be done in publick? For various reasons, some believers have grown increasingly concerned about the appropriate places to call upon the Lord. In Matthew 6:5-6, the Lord rebuked the publick prayers of the hypocrites and suggested that His people should enter into their closets to pray. The Lord Himself followed this pattern by seeking a “solitary place” in which to pray (Mark 1:35). Does this mean that the Lord opposed all publick prayer? It is important to consider the whole counsel of God. Obviously the Lord was not displeased with the publick prayer meeting held by believers in the early church – He answered their prayer by freeing Peter (Acts 12:12). Furthermore, the Lord expressed His will – for men to “pray every where.”
