Any honest person, however, would have to confess that God hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
Do you want God's respect? The Lord said, “to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.”
Why would the Lord invite those weary from labour to wear a yoke? And then, why would the Lord promise rest by inviting people to labour?
The Lord commanded the apostles to separate themselves and rest a while. Each believer today should examine whether is obeying this command of the Lord.
The world is driven by self-preservation and self-promotion. Individually, the natural man is guided by self-serving motives. This should not be true of saints.
Often the best way to expose one’s motives involves asking and answering the question “Why?” This question may resurface at the judgment seat of Christ.
The Bible likens jealousy to a weapon. Lives are spared when this weapon rests in the bosom of someone with righteous motives. Yet, when the foolish wield this weapon, jealousy leads to destructive outcomes. The very thing that the Lord possesses to protect His people, His land, and His name, can push the ungodly men into an uncontrollable rage. God’s jealousy protects the righteous and consumes the guilty. Yet, the jealousy of an unrighteous man has consumed the lives of many innocent people. The Bible states that “jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame” (Song of Solomon 8:6). Misplaced jealousy is a most dangerous weapon.
Far too many believers today are guilty of a very dangerous practice of usurping authority that does not rightfully belong to them. As an apostle, Paul was given an elevated level of authority. As expressed in his writings, Paul understood that his authority differed from that of the other believers in Corinth. It is important to recognize that the apostles’ authority ended with their deaths. Believers only have the authority given to them in accordance to the holy scriptures. Unfortunately, many well-meaning Christians attempt to claim authority that belonged only to a special group of men that lived during the church’s infancy. This authority was given to them in order to confirm the word (Mark 16:14-20). Authority today resides within the word itself.
In an environment where strife prevails, an angry man thrives. The Bibles points out that this type of person looks for ways to stir up strife. Perhaps he asks questions to get opinions involving others to gauge any dissatisfaction with them. He then turns any small frustration into a larger problem. Perhaps he uses other methods, but the end goal remains the same; he wants to stir up strife. He does this not only in the lives of others, but in his own heart as well. Instead of focusing upon reasons to rejoice in the Lord, he looks for reasons to be frustrated. All the while, he is walking in the flesh and missing out on the fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Galatians 5:22-23).
The days preceding the flood were evil in many ways, but they were specifically identified as days filled with violence. In fact, the LORD specifically told Noah, “The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.” In Ezekiel’s day, the scriptures declare, “the land is full of bloody crimes, and the city is full of violence” (Ezekiel 7:23). The presence of excessive violence expresses much concerning the nature of any time (past or present). Although the Lord promised not to destroy the earth again with a flood, worldwide violence moves the Lord to bring judgment.
