The Right Cup

In this lesson, we’re going to talk about cups. If you’re working on a recipe, there is a certain kind of cup you use for measuring out ingredients. You’ll use some cups for hot chocolate, for holding water, or for serving communion. However, only one of those let you measure its contents precisely. One is authoritative. It follows a set of standards, and the others are not. Likewise, we have many sources we can go to for our Christian practices and beliefs, but only one of those sources is authoritative and the standard by which we should measure ourselves.

Jesus was often questioned by religious leaders about the authority by which He taught. In Matthew 21:23, Jesus enters an exchange with those religious leaders about authority, and He drives them to a conclusion they refuse to admit. In this, He discusses two sources of authority – man and God. II John 9 is but one passage that warns us going beyond the authority of God’s word. Matthew 28:18-19 then records Jesus proclaiming that all authority has been vested to Him.

Romans 1:16-17 calls the gospel God’s power, the revelation of God’s righteousness. If we are going to live righteously in His eyes, the standard by which we measure ourselves will be by Him. James 1:22-25 admonishes us to be doers of that word. We must do more than acknowledge the authority of God’s word. We have to live by it. II Peter 1:3 tells us that we have been granted all we need for spiritual living in this life in the divine power of His word. It does not fall short, does not contradict itself, nor does it need modification. Jude 3 calls this a message “once delivered,” that is it is unchanging and unmoving.

Man's standards are not God’s. Matthew 23:4 speaks to the rules and traditions bound upon the people by the scribes and Pharisees, but Jesus says these are not from God. They go beyond God’s word. However, we are assured by Jesus and by the apostles that the message delivered by those apostles is by His authority through the power of the Holy Spirit. II Timothy 3:16 reminds us that all scripture is brought by the breath of God, and John 14:25-26 records Jesus promising His apostles that the Holy Spirit would be that inspiration.

James 1:25 calls God’s word the perfect law of liberty. It is the authority we should follow if we profess faith in God. It is the standard by which we should measure ourselves if we say Christ lives in us. People change. Traditions change. Laws change. Values and morals change. Society changes. But God’s word does not change. Acts 4:12 reminds us Christ is the authority by which we can by saved. It is not our place to change His word, to ignore His word, or to add to His word. It is ours to humbly follow.

lesson by Herb Smelser

Keeping It Real: Scientific Truth

Science is a great topic – studying our world, our universe, the animals and environment around us, the things that make up our world and keep it a habitable place. It is nothing new, though, that science is sometimes used and manipulated to lead people to specific conclusions that may not always be true. Regardless of your ideological leanings, we can see evidence of people using science and misrepresenting science to push a political cause or agenda, so how should we view this fascinating field as believers in Christ?

The Bible and Science

The Bible and science are not incompatible, but we should never try to make our Bibles into scientific textbooks. Some aspects of it are, in fact, scientifically improbable and impossible to prove. We take these things on faith. Take the age of Earth, for example. The Bible merely says God did it; the Word doesn’t go out of its way to conclusively state exactly how long ago it happened, so is it the best use our our time and efforts to debate such things?

In Job 38:11, God asks Job what he knows of the process of Creation. God points out that Job doesn’t understand, but He doesn’t go out of His way to explain every one of these details about which He questions Job. The Bible is not concerned with being a scientific proof text. Instead, it is concerned with the spiritual truths by which we should live.

John 17:17 records Jesus praying that His followers be sanctified in truth, and He qualifies this, saying, “Thy word is truth.” II Peter 1:3 goes on to say that God’s word gives all we need for godly living in the truth of His word. The specifics of the Bible may not satiate our curiosity regarding this physical world – that is the scope of science. Instead, our Bibles tell us the details of how we must live to be like Him. That is the truth in which we are sanctified.

The Role of Faith

Hebrews 11 begins with a passage we see as a definition of faith – we believe things the Bible says despite the intangible nature of those things. This is not blind adherence, but I Thessalonians 5:19-22 tells us to test our faith and to hold fast to what is good.

In this, we feel we have to get into Christian evidences, again trying to fit science into faith – fitting a field based on skepticism around the trust involved with faith. It doesn’t fit, and we have to live with the fact that there will always be some who will not believe those evidences. Even during His life, Jesus could not convince all who saw and heard Him, even amidst the miracles they saw. Instead, godly living should be where we put our strongest efforts.

John 20:24-29 illustrates faith versus skepticism. Jesus blesses those who believe in Him despite never seeing Him. Likewise, will we believe in the Bible? Will we live by faith? Science is not bad. Through it, we can see God’s love in the world and universe He made, and believing in His role does not necessarily mean you are uneducated or uninformed. The Bible’s truth should guide every aspect of our lives, and we follow that truth in faith – trusting in the unseen hand of a Creator who loves us and wants us to spend eternity with Him.

lesson by Ben Lanius

Jesus, Our Sabbath

In Hebrews 4:9, the writer states, “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God,” and he makes this claim amidst a book targeting those who would slip back into Judaism after being converting to Christianity. If, as the Hebrew writer writes, the entire system of sacrifices and feasts has been done away with, what kind of Sabbath rest would he be describing?

The Importance of the Sabbath

Of all the aspects of the old law, the Sabbath is the most messianic, and it is the only of the Ten Commandments left unrepeated in the New Testament. This command was more than a day of physical rest; it was a system of fellowship and complete faith in God. Exodus 20:8 establishes the principle of the Sabbath day and invokes the Creation in the description, a time when man had perfect union and fellowship with God before sin entered the world. Deuteronomy 5:14-15 expands on this command by additionally commemorating the Exodus from Egypt through keeping the Sabbath.

The Sabbath system was more than the seventh day, though. It included every seventh year as well as every forty-ninth and fiftieth year, where debts were forgiven, slaves were freed, property was restored to the original owners. Redemption, forgiveness, and restoration were all present – including an unfathomable amount of faith required to forsake tending fields, generating income, and preparing provisions for an entire year. Not only were the affluent among the people to sacrifice providing for themselves, but they were to let go much the of wealth they had accumulated between Years of Jubilee. This required absolute and complete trust in God.

Rejecting the Sabbath

In passages like Leviticus 26:34-35 and II Chronicles 36:17-21, Sabbath imagery is tied closely to the benefits of following God’s word as well as in the consequences of forsaking God. This was more than a simple day off. To reiterate, it is the most messianic of the Old Testament commandments. In Jeremiah 17:24 and Nehemiah 13:17-18, among other verses, Israel’s problems are boiled down to dishonoring the Sabbath.

Think of the number of times God’s people failed to show faith in His power to save, in His power to give them rest. Remember the lack of faith prior to the Exodus. Think of their despair before the Red Sea. Think of the many times the people would wish to return to Egypt. Remember their reluctance to enter the Promised Land, again looking back on their slavery in Egypt as preferable to trusting in God’s deliverance; even after Joshua leads them to victory in Canaan, the people fail to drive out the idolators inhabiting the land, failing to possess the land as God would have them. Finally, in Jeremiah 7:24-26, God sums their attitudes up by saying they insisted on going backward instead of forward.

The Old Testament is a story of unrealized rest. The Hebrew writer, in chapter 4 of his book, quotes Psalm 95 in saying that those generations failed to enter God’s rest. He cites that Joshua could not give them rest because of those failures, and he says to us that we must not miss the rest that our spiritual forefathers failed to grasp.

The Sabbath of Christ

In Jesus’ ministry, He demonstrates that He not only provides rest to us, but He is that rest for which we not grasp. In Luke 4:16-21, Jesus reads from Isaiah, and the passage from which He reads contains clear overtones of forgiveness of debt, redemption, and release from slavery and captivity – elements of the Jubilee Year. Jesus is saying that He provides that Jubilee.

In Matthew 6, Jesus speaks about not being enslaved to providing for ourselves. Again, this is Sabbath terminology. He calls on us to seek the spiritual first and to trust God when it comes to the physical. Instead of consuming time and energy worrying about our provisions, our faith and trust should be in God so we may dedicate our lives and our energy to Him.

Matthew 11:28-29 reads: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” It is an invitation to rest, even quoting Jeremiah in rest for our souls. Think of the miracles performed on the Sabbath – healing, restoring, cleansing. In Luke 13:10-17, Jesus heals on the Sabbath, and He asks if it is not right for the healed woman to be loosed from the bonds of her illness – released and set free on the day of spiritual release.

Jesus came to offer us redemption, forgiveness, and release. He frees us from the bonds of sin. He provides us perfect fellowship with God. We cannot reject this. Instead, we should be continually diligent to take hold of and maintain our relationship with Christ that gives us a rest beyond anything this world can provide. This is the Sabbath that remains, for, in Christ, every day is the Sabbath, and the New Testament is a perpetual age of Jubilee.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Abigail's Strength

Abigail, in I Samuel 25, is one of the more minor characters in the Old Testament, but she is one from whom we can learn a lesson. She is a strong woman, a wife and eventually a mother, wed to a man defiant to God’s servant David. In a time when women were seen as property, when women had little independence and could face terrible treatment if disobedient to their husbands, Abigail defies hers to give comfort and help to this man protecting their lands. She risks her reputation as a wife and her safety as a woman to do what she knows is right.

God, in contrast, treats women as very valuable in the scriptures. Psalm 128:3 refers to a good wife as a fruitful vine. Proverbs 12:4 compares an excellent wife to a crown; chapter 18:22 calls a wife a good thing. Furthermore, Proverbs 31 heaps great praise upon wives and mothers. In the New Testament, we see Christ, time and again, treating the women in His life with kindness and respect, and Ephesians 5 calls on husbands to care for their wives as they would themselves.

The Story of Abigail

Back in I Samuel 25, we meet Abigail, married to an ill-tempered and poorly behaved man named Nabal. David sends servants to this Nabal for provisions while protecting the region, but Nabal callously turns them away. In response, David and his men prepare to attack Nabal’s household, and this is where Abigail comes in. In verse 14, she learns of David’s intentions, and she quickly collects food for David and his men without involving her husband at all.

In verse 23, Abigail humbles herself before David and asks to bear the guilt for Nabal’s faults. She offers the gift of food she has brought, and she begs forgiveness from David. David praises God for her gift and her presence and sends her home. When she returns home, she finds her husband drunk, so she waits until the next day to tell her husband of the anger David harbors against him. In verse 37, it says Nabal’s heart dies within him. After he dies, David takes Abigail’s hand in marriage, seeing her value and worth.

Lessons from Abigail

We see amazing strength in this woman in her prompt actions, her desire to protect her household and unworthy husband. We see a woman who respects God and His servants. She gives God credit where due, and she demonstrates wisdom and discernment in her actions and her discreetness. Her qualities are numerous, and she is a great example of quiet strength and faithful service, even to a master less than worthy of her respect.

Ephesians 5:22 and 33 as well as Colossians 3:18 talk about wives respecting their husbands, and Abigail somehow manages to show kindness and respect to a man difficult to love, a man who even set himself against a servant of God. She seeks to protect him, even in quiet defiance, and she looks out for his reputation and well-being. She protects her home where her husband does not. She leads where he fails. In doing so, she not only honors her husband, but she shows honor to God as well.

This is the strength of Abigail, a woman in a poor relationship who sees her husband hurtling toward self-destruction, towards harming his own household, and she takes action to protect her husband and those affected by his unwise decisions. We all have times in our lives when we have to be the ones taking initiative. We all have times when we need to look out for others, even when they won’t look out for ourselves. There are times when we must take risks to do what we know is right. There are times when we must all be Abigail, and we can take hope and strength in the example she leaves for us.

lesson by Alan Miller

Identifying with Christ

Not all who teach God’s word in theological classrooms and seminaries really believe the words that they are teaching. In fact, such teachers have influenced some to lose their faith and turn away from the paths of Christ. How, then, can one teach the Bible and the tenets thereof without actually believing all contained therein? Unfortunately, such a faith is sometimes seen as extremist, but Jesus did not come to teach a middle-of-the-road, half-committed, cherry-picked doctrine. His approach was complete and absolute, so where do we stand in comparison to His teachings?

Jesus, On His Identity
Jesus did not come merely professing to be a philosopher or a good man. He did not settle for merely being a respected Rabbi. He did not call Himself a disciple or a spiritual son of God. No, in Luke 4, when reading from the book of Isaiah to the assembled congregation, Jesus claims to be the Messiah spoken of by that prophet. This passage is about one who would bring great change to God’s people, one who would have miraculous powers, and Jesus tells them that those words are fulfilled in Him. These claims would anger the crowd and turn them against Him, but Jesus never backs down from His claim that He was the Messiah who would reach out to both Jew and Gentile.

John 8:58 records Jesus calling Himself, “I AM.” This is a direct reference to the way Jehovah addressed Himself to Moses in the burning bush. Moreover, Jesus claims, “I am the bread of life. “I am the light of the world.” “I am the good shepherd.” “I am the resurrection and the life.” “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” “I and My Father are one.” Where some theologians would call Jesus a teacher of moral platitudes or social reform, Jesus calls Himself God in the flesh. He claims to be more than a good man. He claims to be the source of salvation and eternal life. Matthew 16:24 −25 records Jesus telling His followers to completely deny self to follow Him.

If Jesus was just a man, then He was egotistical to an extreme, and He was a complete fraud. Otherwise, He was the Son of God and savior of the world. There is no real middle ground between those two. Therefore, if we say we believe in Him, then we completely dedicate ourselves to Him and His teachings.

The Inspiration of Scripture
Again, there are many who teach the Bible as a collection of good ideas with parts that are no longer applicable and other parts that can be dismissed entirely. John 12:46-48 has Jesus equating His words with God’s words; rejecting one rejects the other. Then, in John 14:16, Jesus promises that the Holy Spirit will bring all of His words to remembrance, so they can accurately teach others, and we see this promise begin to be fulfilled in Acts 2. The apostles’ teachings were Jesus’ teachings, and II John 9 says the only way to abide in the Father is to abide in the doctrine of Christ. This would include the words in the gospels as well as the words spoken and written by His apostles. II Peter 1:3 simply concludes that God’s divine power has granted all knowledge pertaining life and godliness.

The Faith We Proclaim
When it comes to the name we wear – that of Christians, or those who belong to Christ – how can we proclaim that identity without wholly believing in Christ and refusing to live His will. That name is our identity at all times in all places, worn in good conscience and in complete faith. Matthew 12:30 records Jesus saying we are either entirely for or against Him, and He warns us against trying to serve two masters in Matthew 6:24.

We do not have to listen to the world or to disenchanted teachers to lose our faith; we can do that by looking at God’s word and doing nothing. We cannot simply play at being Christians. We cannot be content with simply being good people. We cannot be content with simple morality. If we would be complete, we should deny self, change to what Christ would have us be, leave behind all that separates us from God, and follow Christ.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Defined By Faith

The Old Covenant is more than a codified list of commands. It is more than a list of “dos and don’ts.” What it comes down to, in the midst of those detailed commands and expectations, is a system of faith and a covenant of relying on God more than others or self. It is predicated entirely upon faith, and – though our covenant, its terms, and its sacrifice are different – our relationship with God is no different today. Our lives in God are predicated entirely on our faith. On that faith rests the foundation of our spiritual lives.

II Corinthians 5:7 tells us we walk by faith rather than sight, similar to Hebrews 11:1, defining faith as the evidence of things we cannot see. Romans 3:28 then simply states we are saved by faith, and our salvation in faith is no different than the children of Israel’s justification through faith. For our faith then informs our conduct and our personal surrender to God’s will, truly understanding it by putting that faith into practice.

Faith Beyond Rationale

Faith is not always purely logical. Remember Abraham. In Genesis 12, God tells Abraham (then Abram) to leave his life behind him to inhabit a land he had never seen. Hebrews 11:8 tells us that Abraham obeys by faith, not knowing where he was going. Later, Abraham is asked to offer up Isaac, his only son, and Paul makes reference to this event in Romans 4:1-3, citing Abraham’s great faith. The Hebrew writer speaks of Abraham’s faith in the resurrection of his son.

Think of crossing the Red Sea. Think of the bronze serpent. Think of Joshua and Caleb encouraging the people to take the Promised Land. Consider Job, in Job 31, expressing his lack of understanding; then, in 40:3, after God provides an answer to Job, he relents and lays his fate in God’s hands. Even going as far as I Corinthians 1, Paul describes the gospel itself as something that goes against our reason and wisdom, yet it is God’s power to save.

We can read through Hebrews 11 and see person after person who do seemingly impossible things, who face insurmountable odds, who accomplish great deeds, because of their faith. Does this look like a faith that is inactive? In James 2:17-26, we see that faith without action is empty and lifeless. It is more than an acknowledgement of God. It is living for and by God.

Faith in Action

Again, look to Abraham in Genesis 22. It is in verse 12 that the angel proclaims, “for now I know that you fear God.” Did Abraham not already have a faithful heart? We know he did, but there is a difference between thought and action. Feelings are not actions. We can know about God intellectually; we can feel a relationship with God; we can understand God’s word. Without putting that knowledge and those feelings into action, though, our faith is empty. This may involve some significant sacrifices in our lives, but none of those can match what Abraham was willing to sacrifice in faith.

This is not, however, salvation dependent upon our own abilities or our checklist. Trusting in God and obediently yielding to Him in all things will abase self rather than elevate self. Our hope, trust, and confidence is placed entirely in what God has done and will do for us – no more and no less. We cannot lessen our faith by falling into inactivity, nor can we constrain it by relying on traditions and rituals, placing confidence in the flesh.

Faith – a complete, living faith – does require action. It requires obedience. It compels us to change our lives, but it is not a reliance on self. In Galatians 2:20-21, Paul plainly states that his faith drives self out of the equation of his life, living by and relying completely upon the teachings and promises of Christ, not nullifying God’s grace but by putting faith in that grace into action. Just as God wanted the children of Israel to wholly rely on Him in all things, He wants the same commitment from us today. We must crucify self, let Christ live in us, and take up a life defined by our faith.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Warnings from Hebrews

The book of Hebrews was written to people who are likely second-generation Christians who are still struggling with the tensions between the traditions of Judaism and the teachings of Christianity. Many had, currently or at one time, relatives who would have seen Jesus as a false teacher. They would have had family and friends reject them, and the temptations would have been great to slip back into the traditions of their past. In this light, the Hebrew writer includes five warnings in his epistle to these struggling Christians.

Neglect

Hebrews 2:1 encourages them and us to give all the more earnest heed to the teachings of Jesus and His inspired apostles, confirmed by signs and wonders from God, lest we drift away in neglect. Hebrews challenges us to ask ourselves how we plan to escape judgment if we neglect and reject so great a salvation, a salvation planned from the foundations of the world.

John 20:30-31 concludes that the miracles and signs recorded in that gospel are for confirming our faith. Like those steps overviewed every time we get on a plane, have we heard God’s word so much that we filter it out? Ephesians 2:8 reminds us of the role grace plays in our salvation. While we were sinful, vile, and disobedient, God sent His Son as an unmerited gift of propitiation. God has given us a gift in salvation and eternal life in His Son, and the Hebrew writer makes sure we understand that we should not neglect so great a gift.

A Hardened Heart

In Hebrews 3, the author repeatedly quotes the 95th Psalm, saying, “Today, if you hear His voice…” He calls on us, in verse 12, to take care we do not develop an unbelieving heart, and he uses the next several verses to help us overcome unbelief – exhort each other, share in Christ, hold confidence, even to fear failure. We need to be aware that it is possible to harden our hearts and miss salvation.

We may simply choose unbelief, but I Corinthians 10:6-13 warns us to learn from the mistakes of those who came before us, lest we be overconfident in our faith and slip into arrogant disobedience. This is why the Hebrew writer warns us against becoming hardened to God’s word, for it can happen without us realizing it.

Immaturity

No one likes being called immature, and, when we most dislike it is when we are most guilty of it. In Hebrews 5:11-14, the author does just this. He admonishes his readers for being too spiritually immature to understand some things they should. He goes on in chapter 6 to then encourage maturation, so they and we do not fall away despite having tasted of the heavenly gift.

When we are not growing spiritually, skepticism, indifference, and apostasy may find room to creep in. An arm kept in a cast for several weeks quickly becomes smaller and weaker than the arm being used every day. Growth takes effort on our part, and it is something we should be working toward every day.

Falling Away

In Hebrews 10:26-31, the author addresses the dangers of deliberate sin, specifically quoting from Deuteronomy 32. Again, these are things his readers are familiar with from Moses’ teachings, but now it is being applied to rejecting Christ’s sacrifice, a sacrifice sealing a covenant greater than the one brought by Moses.

Refusal

The author uses the illustration of Esau in Hebrews 12:16-17, who refused to acknowledge the worth of his family birthright. This is compared to our own spiritual birthright, standing before the holy mountain, and we are warned, in verse 25, to not refuse the one who speaks to us now (Jesus Christ according to chapter 1:1).

Conclusion

In Jeremiah 44, after God calls on His people time and again to listen to His word, the prophet makes a final appeal. In verse 16, though, the people state they will not listen. Rather than refusing the word of grace, we should receive it gratefully, knowing the promises and gifts that come from our God who delivered Him.

God’s word can work in our lives if we avoid turning our back, hardening our heart, and closing our hearts to it. His word can change us from sinful creatures without hope into sanctified children with the hope of eternity. No one can force us to soften ourselves to His word, though. It has to come from within. We need to heed these warnings just as much as those second-generation Christians, holding to our faith despite anything that might try to take it from us.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Resolute Resolutions

I’m not the type of person to make resolutions when a new year comes. It’s not that I have anything against self-improvement. It’s not like I don’t want to be a better person. I don’t hold anything against others making resolution, but I’ve just grown a little jaded about resolutions over time. It’s almost as if we make resolutions simply to break them, and we make these resolutions with full knowledge that we will not keep them. Some resolutions, however, are worth keeping, and we don’t have to look any farther than our Bibles to find a few.

Resolute Examples

We see, in Daniel 1:8, that Daniel resolves to eat no unclean food while in captivity. Even though he is away from the temple, away from many of his peers, away from the priests and Levites, he resolves to do what is right in God’s eyes. This pattern then continues throughout the rest of his life.

Think also of Joshua, in Joshua 24:14-15, challenging the people of Israel to choose their allegiance between Jehovah and other gods. Joshua is resolute in his faith, and his example impacts his entire generation and the one to come after him.

In Acts 19:21, Paul resolves to go to Jerusalem despite the trials that will face him there. He purposes in his heart that this is the path he will take. Again, his resolute nature impacts many more than himself.

Being Truly Resolved

We should be resolute followers of Christ, but our resolutions cannot be lip-service. Simply making the statement does not make us follow it. Nor can we be purposeful because of peer pressure, for we cannot maintain a resolution if we lack individual commitment. If we are to serve God the way He deserves to be served, it takes a sincere determination of will that we will put our all into working for our God.

How could Daniel keep himself pure in God’s eyes despite all the ungodly influences around him? He and his companions could maintain their faith because they were determined to do so. Joshua, as well, sincerely wanted to serve God despite the seemingly insurmountable challenges associated with that service. Paul, Peter, Timothy, Titus – determination of will is what separates them from the pretenders of their day.

We should so want to do what is right. We need to be determined and we need a heart willing to sacrifice for that resoluteness. Paul, in Romans 12:1-2, speaks of spiritual service in terms of sacrifice, holiness, transformation, renewal, and proving. Long before Daniel, Joshua, or Paul demonstrated their own spiritual resoluteness, they had particular mindsets. We need to change our minds to be followers of God. Colossians 3:2 tells us to set our minds on things above, for we have died to all else. Philippians 2:5 simply calls on us to have the mind of Christ. When we set our minds to be like His, we can do anything.

This determination, however, requires a compliance of our hearts. In Matthew 22:35-40, one asks Jesus what the greatest of the commandments is. Jesus answers with two, and they both come down to love – loving God and loving our fellow man. We may readily submit to God intellectually while our hearts remain far from Him. Romans 10:8-10 reinforces the need of both heart and mind in faithful service to God. Finally, Ephesians 6:6, in the context of discussion serving earthly masters, admonishes us do God’s will from the heart.

Conclusion

Our spiritual resolutions do not have to be empty. Will you resolve to be a more faithful servant to God in all things? Philippians 4:13 encourages us that we can do anything in Him who strengthens us. We can rid ourselves of skepticism, uncertainty, and indifference if we are determined to have a Christ-like mind. We can be holy in an unholy society if we but yield our hearts and our minds to our Creator.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Wait Upon the Lord

In Psalm 27, we see David writing about coming through trials by the grace of God. Remember David spends much of his young life fleeing a murderous King Saul. His wife is taken from him to be given to another man. Priests who help David are murdered by Saul. A city David delivers from possible enslavement betrays him to Saul. He lived in what shelter he could find in woods and in caves. Later, David would have to flee from Absalom, usurping the throne. Time and again, David faced distress, trials, and discouragement.

Among all of this, we have Psalm 27, where David calls God his light and salvation. David asks, in verse 1, who he should fear. He expresses confidence in God’s deliverance and ultimate salvation. He trusts in God’s protection, and he sings praises to the God in whom he trusts. David calls on God to never hide from him or forsake him. Where all others may turn from David, he trusts in the God of his salvation. He concludes by admonishing any reading this psalm to wait on the Lord and take courage in Him.

David’s Patient Trust

In the first six verses, David declares his trust in God. His focus is on God’s house, His temple, His tabernacle. David expresses a desire to be where God is, and, in faith, he looks forward to that reunion with his Lord. Verses 7-12 then expresses the difficulties David faces in his faith. He pleads for God’s continual presence, knowing difficulties surround him at every turn.

Finally, verses 13-14 conclude with ultimate confidence. Wait on the Lord. This is the difficult part, for we are creatures that like instant gratification. We are a culture of instant rice, same-day delivery, and ten-minute oil changes. We do not like to wait, but, when it comes to God, we must be patient, for He is patient with us.

A Fellowship with God

Waiting on the Lord requires continued fellowship with God. In I John 1:6-7, we have fellowship with God, one to another, when we walk in the light, when we follow His ways, the path He set out before us. This is built upon a life of prayer. I Thessalonians 5:17-18 calls on us to pray continually. We see this in David’s life, in thanksgiving, in praise, in petition, in repentance. In all things, David would turn to God. For us to have fellowship with Him, we must continually turn to Him.

Maintaining our fellowship with God takes continuous effort. Hebrews 2:1, Hebrews 4:6, Hebrews 6:1 – these verses and more highlight the effort it takes to maintain our relationship with God. We have to stay in the fight. Remember Elijah, in I Kings 19, when Jezebel puts a price on the prophet’s head. Elijah flees to Mount Horeb where God appears in a quiet voice, pushing Elijah to continue his work and to prepare others to participate in that work. Elijah’s work lasted his whole life and extended beyond it. His relationship with God was a continual effort, and ours is as well.

Waiting on the Lord

Once we’ve established that relationship, we have to work with God on His timeline and on His terms. There are some things He simply does not promise us. He never promised to remove our trials. See those under persecution in Acts 4. They do not pray for God to remove all obstacles. Rather, in verse 29, they pray for strength and boldness. Also, God never promised us to make life easy. In fact, we know the Christian life brings trials and difficulties.

The most difficult thing is that God does not have to explain Himself. Remember Job. He asked God for that very thing before being humbled in God’s presence. He has promised, however, to strengthen our hearts and hold us up. James 1:2-3 tells us our trials will make us stronger, and James 5:15-16 shows us those trials equip us to then help others through theirs. Finally, James 4:6-8 promises us that the nearer we draw to God, the nearer He will come to us. Like David, we can turn to God in all things, growing closer to God while facing our trials, looking to a future with Him. As David writes in Psalm 28:6, we can trust in Him, bless Him, and pray Him. He is the Rock of our salvation.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Good King Hezekiah

In II Kings 18, we read of a king in Judah called Hezekiah. The scriptures tell us there was no one like him before or after him of those kings of Judah. In the first month of his reign, Hezekiah begins to restore Jehovah worship. He tears down idols and idolatrous places of worship. He stands up to overwhelming forces due to his steadfast faith in the Lord. What is it, though, that really made him such a great man? Why is it that the Bible tells us no king before or after him was greater?

Factors Working Against Him

It was not his father who made him great. His father Ahaz, recorded in II Kings 16, was very wicked. In II Kings 16, Ahaz engages in child sacrifice. He shuts up the temple of the Lord. He participates in excessive idolatry, and he leads the nation of Judah into those same practices. Hezekiah is not the product of his father. Still, remember II Timothy 1:5, Proverbs 3:1, and Ephesians 6:4. God does want us to set the proper examples for our children. He does care about the responsibilities of parenthood, but Ezekiel 18:20 reminds us that children can do well despite our parents. Hezekiah was great despite his upbringing.

Unfortunately, neither was Hezekiah great because of his family legacy. In II Kings 21, we read of Hezekiah’s son Manasseh, who rebuilds the idols, even placing alters to false gods in God’s temple. Manasseh restores child sacrifice to the land of Judah. Now Manasseh does repent in his old age, but his actions lead to deep personal loss on his own part. Hezekiah may have been a great king, but the legacy he left was far from great.

In II Kings 20, we see that pride does not make Hezekiah great while he shows off his great possessions to the Babylonian emissaries – people from that same nation that would eventually enslave Judah. Proverbs 16:18 reminds us that pride precedes a fall, and Hezekiah’s pride did not please his God.

Hezekiah’s Great Stature

Despite these things, we cannot discount II Kings 18:5.

…There was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those who were before him.

Why? Because he sought God’s word first. II Chronicles 31:20-21 tells it all.

Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and right and faithful before the LORD his God. And every work that he undertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandments, seeking his God, he did with all his heart, and prospered.

He may not have been the leader the people wanted, but he was the leader they needed. He spoke out against, and removed, evil. II Kings 18:4 records him purging idolatry from the nation, even idolatry introduced by his own father. In II Chronicles 31, we can read the details of his restoration of true Jehovah worship in Judah – to the point of inviting their rival brethren from the northern kingdom of Israel to that worship.

Hezekiah sought to know and do God’s word. He sought to restore true worship in the land and purge all forms of evil from among his people. Finally, II Kings 18:5 tells us that Hezekiah trusted in the Lord. In II Kings 19:14, when Hezekiah receives an ultimatum from an unstoppable enemy, we see the king abandon self, go to the temple, spread the letter out on the floor of the temple, and prayed.

Conclusion

That the same could be said of us! Could God claim about you or me, “There was none like him/her,” in our efforts to follow God’s word, in keeping evil from our lives, and in trusting Him in all things. Nothing can keep us from that standard – our upbringing, our culture, our flaws. We can be like Hezekiah, setting our hearts to serve the Lord. We may never be great in the world’s eyes, but we can be good and faithful servants to our Lord, great in His eyes.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Christianity is Not a Detour

What do we do when we come up on detours in our daily commutes? Do we ignore them and get stuck in a position where we have to turn around? Do we follow them? Have you ever been on a detour where you’ve been unquestionably lost? We might have missed a sign while following other cars; a marker may have been misplaced or marked incorrectly; and we unquestioningly ended up in entirely the wrong place. We not only completely avoided the dangerous area of road, but we also managed to accidentally avoid our destination.

A Road, Not a Detour

In John 17:15, Jesus prays for the well-being of His disciples, and He prays that they might have the protection they need to keep them from evil. See, our faith is not a detour around the trials and temptations of this world. Instead, it is a path right through the dangers of our world to lead us to a safe destination in the end. In this same prayer, Jesus prays that His disciples not be “of the world,” in verse 14, even while they live “in the world” (verse 11). Where our faith is the road we travel, the things of this world can serve as detours themselves, distracting us from our chosen path.

In Luke 6:12-13, when Jesus chooses his disciples, He does not conduct interviews, check references, or cite popular opinion polls. No, instead He prays to God for guidance. When we seek out these other things – popular opinion, following others – we are easily detoured. Only by trusting in God and living prayerfully can we hope to keep on the correct path without diversion. Then we can be in the world without being of the world, just as a ship must be in the sea without the sea being in the ship.

Remembering Our Surroundings

Staying on God’s path does not mean disregarding this world He created. In fact, the deeper our connection with God, the deeper our connection with the world around us. Knowing Christ awakens a more powerful concern for those around us. Even though it’s a pain, road construction usually makes our commutes a little better when it is finished. Can we say the same about ourselves? Do we leave this world a better place when we pass by?

Roads always have to be torn up before they can be rebuilt, and we will have disagreements and moments or stress with our fellow workers in Christ. We might feel torn up, or we might tear into another. We can, however, learn from those times and work toward building each other up, reconstructing ourselves into a stronger church. The problem comes when a road is torn up and forgotten. Sometimes we might hurt a brother or sister, tear them down unintentionally even, and be negligent in our responsibility to build them back up.

Bringing Others to God’s Road (And Keeping Ourselves On Too)

Remember Saul of I Samuel 17:11. All he did was complain about Goliath, looking to man for the solution instead of to God. What about Paul and Silas in prison. Instead of dealing with their situation as ones with no hope, they lived the path they followed and brought another along with them in the end. WHen we’re working with others, are we trying to bring them to God’s highway or to our own?

When we come to a crisis in our spiritual path, how do we respond? In Genesis 22, Abraham responds to a crisis presented by God with faith and obedience. We will be tested in this life. We will come to forks in our road. When we hit these rough spots, we should be relying on God’s directions more than man’s. We can scour all over our Bibles and see people who have responded to crisis in faith (Paul, Apollos, Timothy) versus those who were detoured by roadblocks in their paths (Demas, John Mark, Ananias and Sapphira). Who will we be more like?

What road are you on? Have you chosen broader and easier paths, or have you chosen to walk in Jesus footsteps up the narrow way of salvation? Only one will take you to a final destination with God, but, in striving toward that goal, we cannot be derailed by the detours in our lives. If we place our faith and hope in Him, if He is the source of our strength and hope, then we can find our way home, even when they way seems dark.

lesson by Mike Mahoney

To Be with Jesus

Matthew 14 records the events surrounding Peter walking on the water. Peter and the other apostles are on a boat without Jesus in verse 22. The waters become rough; the weather begins to storm; and Jesus appears upon the water. Peter calls out to Him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Unfortunately, when Peter see the wind kicking up the water, his faith falters and Jesus must save Him.

What possessed Peter to say to himself, “I want to get out of this boat and walk to Jesus,” in the middle of this storm? We speak of Peter’s rashness, of his impulsivity, of his good intentions. How many of us would have simply stayed in the boat? More important than these factors though may have been his desire to be like Jesus and to be with Jesus.

Remember Jesus washing the apostles’ feet in John 13. At first Peter resists, but, when Jesus says Peter could have no part with Him without this washing, Peter then requests his whole body to be washed. Also, in John 21, when Peter realizes Jesus’ identity, he again leaps into the sea to get to Jesus. Whatever the cost, Peter wants to be like Jesus, and he wants to be with Jesus.

Like Peter, we occasionally act and speak before thinking. More than these, we should be like Peter in our desire to be like and with the Lord. Philippians 2:5 calls on us to be like Christ in humility and obedience. I Peter 2:21 instructs us to follow in His steps. In John 14:3, Jesus promises we can be with Him one day, and Matthew 11:28 extends an invitation to come and be close to Christ, laying our burdens at his feet.

Matthew 16:24-26 tells us how we can have a part with Him, how we can be with Him and like Him. We must put self and self-interest to death, and fix our gaze firmly on Him. We have to get out of that boat if we are going to draw closer to Him. This involves getting outside our comfort zone and make sacrifices. Yes, when Peter took his eyes off the Lord, however, he began to sink beneath the waves. We need to keep Jesus firmly in our sights, but it begins with that first step.

Like Paul in Philippians 3:13-15, we should be continually pressing forward. Colossians 3:1 calls on us to set our minds on things above. We need to determine that, wherever we are spiritually, it’s time to get out of the boat and approach Jesus, striving always to be like Him and with Him.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Lord God Almighty

There’s a book called America’s Four Gods that points out that, while some 90% of Americans claim a belief in God, we view God in diverse ways. We may view Him as authoritative, critical, distant, or benevolent. We might see God as judgmental being who loves His creation but intercedes and punishes actively based on our choices. In contrast, we might see God’s handiwork in everything but be reluctant to see Him willing to condemn individuals. We may imagine a God who looks upon us judgmentally but don’t believe He intercedes in this life, or we might view God as a cosmic force that set the universe in motion and now is largely uninvolved and unknowable.

How we view God impacts how we view world events, how we approach politics, how we participate in society. The problem lies in trying to make God fit into a neat little box. We limit God by defining Him with human concepts. Our concepts of Him are too small in comparison to what we see in scripture.

Genesis 17:1 records God appearing to Abraham, proclaiming Himself as “God Almighty.” Appearing to Jacob in Genesis 35:11, God again calls Himself El Shaddai – God Almighty. Revelation 1:8, God is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the everlasting, the almighty. These are the terms with which we should view God. He is the almighty God.

Nothing Too Hard

Jeremiah 32:17 records the prophet proclaiming that nothing is too hard for God, and God reinforces the point rhetorically in verse 27. Why is nothing too hard for Him? He is God Almighty. Only one for which nothing is too hard could mold us and shape us from our imperfections and impurities into sinless and spotless souls.

This power is seen in Isaiah 7:10-14 when God prophecies the virgin birth of Emmanuel, God with Us. What is impossible for man is possible for God. Outside the laws of nature, outside biological impossibilities, Mary brings forth Jesus in Matthew 1:18-25 having never been with a man. Luke 1:35 calls this child holy and the Son of God. Only the Almighty could accomplish this.

In Romans 1, Paul calls the gospel God’s power unto salvation, and he echoes this in I Corinthians 1:18. In John 6, after the feeding of the thousands, Jesus makes an object lesson, drawing parallel between the bread and His own body. In verse 63-38, after many turn from Him, Jesus explains this power is not in the body but in His words, those words Peter calls eternal life. I Peter 1:23 says we have been born again through God’s imperishable word. The Almighty saves us through His imperishable word.

Finally, in Acts 2, we see Peter preaching to the people at Pentecost that God has raised up Christ they murdered, and God has exalted Him as king. Ephesians 1:20-23 reiterates this – that God raised Christ, exalted Him, and has given Him all authority. This same Christ humbled Himself, according to Philippians 2, even unto physical death, but now every knee will bow before Him. Only the Almighty could bring Christ back from the dead and exalt His name above all others.

Conclusion

There are two things only deity can do – speak of things to come as if they already happened and give life to the dead. Christ was raised to die no more, and I Corinthians 15:20 tells us He sets a precedent for His people. II Corinthians 4:14 assures us that He who could raise Christ can raise us as well. Our God Almighty can defeat death, can clothe our corruptible and mortal selves with the incorruptible and immortal (I Corinthians 15:54). That is what our God is capable of.

We can define God in numerous ways. We can try to categorize or limit Him in our own ways, but He is Lord God Almighty. For Him, nothing is too hard, and in Him we place our faith, hope, and trust.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Prayer Works

Psalm 65:2 calls our God, “You who hears prayers.” As we examine our own personal prayer lives, do we view God’s listening to our prayers casually? It may be something we do if we can find the time or if we have a particularly pressing matter. It is something we take for granted. If God, however, does not take our prayers lightly, then we should not approach prayer casually.

Think of Elijah at Mount Carmel in I Kings 18, whose quiet, reserved prayer was answered resoundingly where the antics of the idolatrous priests were ignored. Remember Hezekiah, in II Kings 18-19 who turns to God in simple prayer against overwhelming odds. Finally, Daniel, in Daniel 6, continues to pray to God despite the law, and God saves him from a death sentence for his crime of prayer.

These stories are not just here to give us things to cover in Bible class or to talk about how God used to interact with His people. They are here to remind us that prayer works.

Defined By Prayer

In I Chronicles 4, we find ourselves in the middle of genealogical records, and, in verses 9-10, we run into a brief mention about a man named Jabez (meaning pain). We are told he is more honorable than his brethren, that he prays to God, and that God grants his prayer. We know nothing more about this man other than that he prayed to God. That is the snapshot we have of him: a man who calls on God for blessings and protection from evil.

Christians of the First Century devoted themselves to prayer. Acts 1:14, Acts 1:24, Acts 2:42, Acts 4:24, also within Acts 10, 6 12, 16, 20, 21 – we see Christians giving themselves to prayer time and again. These are defined by their prayer lives.

Measured By Prayer

We’ve had numerous lessons on how and why to pray. We know it works. Why not use it? It is a measure of our spirituality, our humility, and our faith. Of the many things Paul prays for in his recorded words, spiritual needs come first. In Matthew 6, in the Lord’s Prayer, only one physical need is mentioned. The more spiritually minded we are, the inclined we will be to kneel before God in prayer.

Before Jesus gives an example of prayer in Matthew 6, Jesus admonishes His audience not to pray in showy ways, in a proud manner. Instead, like the publican in Luke 18:9-14, we should approach God in humility, and that humility is rooted in our faith. I Peter 3:15 calls on us to sanctify Christ, and I Peter 5:6 tells us to humble ourselves in that sanctified presence. Ephesians 3:20-21 expresses Paul's’ faith that God is capable of doing more than we can imagine. We simply need to have faith in His power.

We have the time to pray. We have reason to pray. The question is one of humility, of faith, and of spirituality. God hears our prayers, and prayer works. We should be like those First Century Christians, like that briefly mentioned Jabez, and be defined by devoting ourselves to prayer.

lesson by Tim Smelser

A Faithful Hope

Hope is what directs our footsteps toward our heavenly goal. It drives our faith and our service. I Peter 3:15 encourages us to be able to answer for the hope within us, encouraging us that we must be living as if we do indeed have hope, a hope others will see in us. In Titus 2:13 tells us we should be looking forward to a hope of glory. Our hope is an earnest expectation, a desire whose realization we earnestly wait.

A Confident Hope

Addressing those who did not believe in the resurrection, Paul writes in I Corinthians 15:13-19 that Christ’s own resurrections serves as a foundation for the hope we have in our own. This hope is more than a vague notion. It is something exercised in our faith and our service to God, driving that faith and being reinforced by faith in turn. According to Galatians 5:5, this hope is something we should be eagerly awaiting.

Hebrews 12:1 assures us with a great cloud of witnesses that we can reach for our hope, just as Jesus did in his own lifetime. Hebrews 6:1 encourages us to press on toward our completion, and verses 17-19 reminds us that God has promised us, has sworn to us, that our hope is real and attainable. Our hope in Heaven is not something abstract or fantastical. It is a real hope. It is something in which we can place confidence.

Images of Our Hope

In Revelation 21-22, John sees three pictures of Heaven in his vision. Beginning in verses 1-5, John sees a holy land with the gulf of separation between man and God forever removed. It is pictured as a place of joy and life. It is a tabernacle, the dwelling place of God. It is a place where God lives with His created in perfect fellowship.

Then, verses 9-27 picture a new city, an emblem of perfect protection for God’s people. He describes the beauty and majesty of the city, the strength of its walls and gates, the security of its foundations. This is a city no man can siege or overtake. The gates are pictured as pearls, objects of beauty created in pain just as our hope may cause us to face pain ourselves before we can enter those gates.

Finally, Revelation 22:1-5 describes a tree of life surrounding a life-giving river. It is an image of a garden. It provides perfect provision for God’s people. This is a picture that returns to the beginning – to Eden. The curse of sin is gone. There is no darkness, no pain, and no sorrow. It is a place filled with the light of God’s love.

Conclusion

The tabernacle provides perfect fellowship. The city offers perfect protection. The garden provides perfect provision. Our hope is one where God provides for our every need and where we live with Him in eternity for all eternity. In contrast to those of Ephesians 2:12 who have no hope, we can be made near to God in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ (verse 13). He invites us to draw near in Him. He offers us a hope that this world could never equal. Will you accept the gift of that hope?

lesson by Tim Smelser

A Dependable Faith

In I Timothy 6:11, Paul encourages the young preacher to feel carnality and worldliness, encouraging him to seek after things like meekness, patience, and faith. Then, in II Timothy 2:22, Paul calls on Timothy to flee youthful lusts but to rather pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace. Then, in Galatians 5 draws a contrast between the fruits of the world and the fruits of the spirit, and verse 22 describes these good fruits as peace, love, and faithfulness. Having faith and being faithful repeatedly appear as necessary elements to our godly walk.

The Necessity of Faith

We understand the importance of faith from passages like Hebrews 11:6 that tell us we cannot please God without having faith in Him and being faithful to Him. I Timothy 4:12 records Paul calling on Timothy to be an example of faith. James 2 draws a contrast between the shallow faith of demons and the active faith of true believers. John 12:42 tells of those who believed in Jesus but would not profess their faith. In Matthew 6, during the sermon on the mount, Jesus speaks to our basic trust in God leading up to verse 30. Our faith defines our lives, motivates our actions, and informs every decision we make. This is complete faith.

How do we grow this faith?

• Romans 10:17 reminds us that faith comes from our exposure to God’s word, by teaching and by study.
• Returning to James 2, verse 23 exemplifies Abraham as one who practiced his faith, whose experiences served to strengthen the faith he put into action.
• In Matthew 9:24, a man seeking Jesus’ intervention cries out to Him to, “Help my unbelief.” Prayer is another avenue for developing faith. Wisdom comes from asking.

We should be doing more reading and studying. We should be living our faith more actively. We should be asking for God to strengthen our faith.

A Dependable Faith

Where having faith is a living testimony of our belief in God, being faithful as God is faithful implies reliability and dependability. I Thessalonians 5:23-24, II Thessalonians 3:3, Hebrews 10:23, Hebrews 11:11 – these passages and more emphasize God’s faithfulness. We can rely on Him. We can depend on Him. If we are living to emulate the qualities we see in His nature, He should likewise be able to depend upon us.

The ultimate sign of God’s faithfulness is in the resurrection of Christ. In Psalm 16:10, the psalmist prophecies that God’s holy one will not see corruption. There is a difference between Jesus, being alive and well, raising others from the dead and Jesus going Himself to death, trusting in the Father to raise Him up on the third day. How then do we commit ourselves better to our faith?

• Our duty as Christians. II Timothy 2:21 describes us as set apart and useful to God’s work, and I Thessalonians 1:2-3 speaks to our endurance, our steadfastness, and our love in doing God’s work.
• The spread of the gospel. I Peter 3:15 calls us to be prepared to speak about our faith, and II Timothy 2:15 calls on us to be diligent in our preparation to share God’s word.
• Being Good Stewards. The parable of the wedding feats, the parable of the talents – these illustrate the faithfulness and reliability we should have with our resources and opportunities in this life.

Conclusion

Not only should God be able to rely on us, but our fellow Christians should see us as equally dependable. Hebrews 11:39-40 admonishes us that all those who came before us depend on us to continue the work they have started. When we are unfaithful in our service, we invalidate the efforts of our predecessors. When we are faithful, however, we create an unbroken chain between those assembled on the Day of Pentecost and those we pass God’s work to who will come after us.

Can God count on us? Can the saints count on us? We should be working daily to develop our faith in God and our faithfulness to God. We trust in Him so much. We depend on Him to fulfill us, to redeem us, to save us. The question to us is simple: Can He depend on us?

lesson by Tim Smelser

Spiritual Security

Note: This devotional was part of a song service centered around the song How Shall the Young Secure Their Hearts? It also contains references to other hymns if you pay attention and follow the readings.

What does it mean to us to feel secure? When we have a sense of security, we feel safe. We feel protected. We feel shielded from harm. We treasure our security. We value and protect it.

We wear seat belts to feel secure in our cars, have airbags and car alarms to increase that sense of security. We invest in GPS systems to make us feel secure in unfamiliar areas. We want to live in neighborhoods that make us feel safe. We install security systems to protect our homes. We even have a Department of Homeland Security to protect us on a larger scale, or we may give a special blanket to a young child to add a feeling of security in their small world.

We trust in these products, services, and infrastructures to provide a measure of security in the unpredictable lives we have while on this world. Those who seek Christ, however, seek a refuge greater than anything man can provide. More than seeking security for our bodies or our possessions, we look after Christ to secure our souls.

• Hebrews 6:17-19 refers to our hope in Christ as an anchor that secures us against the storms of this life and calls Him our refuge.
• Psalm 46:1-3 calls God a refuge and our strength in times of trouble.
• In II Timothy 1:8-12, Paul places the foundation of our hope and refuge in God's promises, His testimony, His word.

On what do you rely for security? How do you secure your heart? In what is your anchor fastened? Upon what foundation is your refuge built? Christ and His word are our strong foundation. He is the rock in which we can secure our anchor of hope. In Him, we can truly find that peace surpassing all understanding, that peace of mind that can only be found in spiritual security.

devotional by Robert Smelser

A Spiritual Checkup

How do we measure up? We have various standards we try to measure in our lives. How fit are we financially, physically? How fit are we as families? Along with these, we should also be measuring the fitness of our faith. Are we comfortable sitting in an average standard of faith? Are we spiritually unhealthy, or do we hold ourselves to a higher standard?

Romans 14:22-23 speaks to having a healthy faith, but how do we know where we stand? How do we measure up? How do administer a spiritual check-up?

Checking On Our Faith
I Peter 1:6-7 talks about the proof of our faith, enduring under trials as purifying tests. A new faith is full of life and vigor, but the trials and troubles of life can shake that faith. If our faith is only a mood or a feeling, it has no foundation. Rather, faith is commitment, and a committed faith more easily endures the tests of our lives. Truths that we grasp in the light of day do not have to be discarded during the dark times of our lives.

Romans 14:12 says each one of us will give an account to God. Our spiritual fitness is important our entire lives.

Tens Steps to a Spiritual Checkup

• Understand Disagreements. Know that differences of opinions will exist. Titus 3:9 warns us against foolish controversies over minor disagreements. I Corinthians 12:25-26 reminds us to be united in our care for each other, and I Corinthians 1:10 warns us about divisions over disagreements.
• Balance Over Extremism. Romans 14 and Ecclesiastes 7:15-18 speaks to balance in our lives. The balance we have in ourselves will influence how we view others and how others view us.
• Accept Our Doubts. I Peter 2:1-3 invites us to always study, to always double-check our faith. II Timothy 2:5 encourages us to be diligent in our investigation of God’s word. We should always be seeking for answers.
• Be Understanding, Not Judgmental. Romans 14:10-13 warns against judgment used as an obstacle. We like to throw stones. We fall into a trap of judgmental standard. Jesus, in Matthew 7, warns us against judging more strictly than God does.
• Give and Receive Trust. We need to know each other in our shared vulnerabilities. We need to know how to give and accept help. Romans 15 admonishes us to bear each other, even during times of burden.
• Value Individuality. We all have different qualities we bring to God’s service. We use those qualities together, and Romans 12:6-8 encourages us to embrace our individual gifts and qualities.
• Serve from Love. We offer our service, not as an obligation, but as a joy because of our love for each other. Romans 12:10 calls on us to preference one another and to be devoted in service to each other.
• Be Strengthened By Trials. I Peter 4:12 reminds us we may suffer for our faith. These times can tear us down, but we can help each other survive and grow stronger. James 1:2-4 tells us these trials build up faithful endurance.
• Security is in God. From what do we derive our sense of security – our achievements, our job, our friends? Ephesians 6:6-7 reminds us that our goal is not to be great in man’s eyes. Rather, we seek respect in God’s eyes.
• A Foundation in Our Relationship with God. Instead of our faith being rooted in rituals, obligations, or social pressures, our faith must be rooted in a loving relationship with God. I John 4:7-11 speaks to the love God shows us and the love we should willingly share in return. We have a foundation of love between us, God, and our fellow man.

Conclusion
How do we measure up? How would God measure our spiritual fitness? Each day, we should be working up to God’s standard. Today’s home runs won’t matter in tomorrow’s game. How are we growing in faith? We should be going after our faith with our entire heart, and, if we are doing that, we can help each other with their spiritual fitness. Our foundation and our attitudes will determine the success or failure we have in measuring up to the Bible's standard of faith.

lesson by Mike Mahoney

A Faithful Hope

The Bible is full of individuals who stand up and declare the word of the Lord in the face of public and political opposition. People like Moses, Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah, and more – these face threats, persecutions, and ridicule for delivering a message that the people do not necessarily wish to hear. Among these great messengers is a man named Jeremiah, commonly known as the weeping prophet for the bitterness of his message to the prophet.

In Lamentation 1, we see Jeremiah writing a song of mourning, told from the perspective of the city as it is being besieged. He calls the city a widow. He writes of Jerusalem’s enemies mocking the city and taking joy in her demise. Jerusalem mourns her lost children. Then, in chapter 3, the prophet begins to insert his own voice, bemoaning the tragedies he is forced to witness. It is a book of sorrow and pain over the destruction of God’s holy city.

A Glimmer of Hope
In the midst of this, in Jeremiah 3:21-25, the prophet remembers hope:

But this I call to mind,and therefore I have hope:
The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
The LORD is my portion, says my soul, therefore I will hope in him.
The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.

In the middle of sorrow and despair, Jeremiah remembers God’s mercy and the renewal available in Him. He remembers hope in God’s faithfulness. All of us face failure in our lives. We face difficulties, sorrow, and ridicule. Like Jeremiah, we can remember the portion we have in Jehovah.

Hope in God’s Faithfulness, Mercy, and Renewal
Jeremiah calls God’s mercies unending. Psalm 136 repeats again and again that God’s steadfast love endures forever. His mercies, His compassion, His love is faithful and enduring. In Luke 1:76-79, Zechariah praises God for the endurance of His tender mercies, and Romans 15:1-9 exults God for His mercy and calls the Lord a God of hope, of endurance, and of comfort. Ephesians 1:1-7 says God makes us alive in Christ because of His mercy and love. We know the God’s mercy does not fail, and we can trust in those mercies to deliver us.

Jeremiah also speaks of having hope in his God. In Psalm 130 calls on God’s people to hope in Him, in His love and His mercies. Psalm 31:24 and Psalm 38:15 both express hope in God’s deliverance and His mercy. I Thessalonians 5, Paul contrasts hope with hopelessness, and he writes that we should wear hope of salvation like a helmet in verse 8. Romans 8:24 simply states that our salvation is based upon hope, and Paul goes on to make the case that hope sustains us in the face of every trial this world can throw at us. Finally, Hebrews 6:17-20 speaks of our hope anchoring our souls. In the middle of this world’s tragedies and difficulties, this is the hope we can have.

We hope for renewal in God, and II Corinthians 5:17 calls those who live in Christ new creatures. Chapter 4:16-18 of the same book tells us we look away from our former physical concerns to spiritual hopes. We are renewed in the image of our Creator and Savior, and Romans 6 tells us we raise to walk in newness of life after our conversion to Christ. Ephesians 4:17-24 calls on us to clothe ourselves in newness and renewal, discarding our former selves and replacing that with a new creation. We all want a fresh start, and God promises we can be renewed in Christ when we sacrifice self and allow Him to transform our lives.

We can hope these things because God is faithful, and, if He is faithful to us, we should be as faithful to Him. I Corinthians 1:9 begins a very difficult letter with the assurance that God is indeed faithful. Hebrews 10:22-23 calls on us to hold onto our hope in a faithful God, and I John 1:9 assures us God’s forgiveness is faithful. If we place our hope in Him, if we trust His mercy, if we are faithful – then we can trust His faithfulness to us.

Conclusion
Jeremiah 3:21-25 stands as a testament of faith in a faithful God. God is good to the soul that seeks Him and waits on Him. Our renewal is found in Him alone, and our responsibility then is to seek Him and come to Him on His terms. He is available to us. The Jerusalem of Jeremiah’s time never turns to embrace God’s mercy and deliverance. They fall into captivity because of their slavery to sin. We, however, do not have to share that fate. We can take hold of the hope we have in God. We can trust His mercies and find renewal in Him. He can be our hope if we faithfully trust in Him.

lesson by Tim Smelser

A Spiritual Revolution

July 4th is a celebration of the American Revolution. An event that transformed our country, philosophically, and politically. More transformative than that revolution is the spiritual revolution Jesus teaches in his sermon on the mount. During His life, the scribes and Pharisees took the power of God’s salvation and turned it onto a bland set of rules accommodating to their own interests. Jesus sees that stagnation and disrupts their assumptions and beliefs. We need the same today. Now, like then, we need a spiritual revolution.

Matthews 5-7 have a distinct path that separates worldly behavior from spiritual behavior, worldly priorities and spiritual priorities, and Matthew 7:24 sums up this challenging sermon with an illustration of two builders – one building upon rock and the other upon sand. These houses represent the purpose of our lives, either built upon a strong foundation or a shifting one.

Building On the True Foundation
By all appearances, both of these builders initially succeed in Matthew 7:24-27. They both want the same thing. They both accomplish the same thing. Both homes are completed. The focus is not the houses so much as the foundations they are built upon.

In Isaiah 28, as God is warning Judah about their wickedness, He looks forward in verse 16 to a foundation stone set in Zion. When Paul in Romans 9 and Peter in I Peter 2 quote these verses, they conclude that the foundation of Isaiah of Christ Jesus. Whoever believes on Him will not be shaken. Ephesians 2:20 calls Jesus the chief cornerstone of our spiritual foundation. Without a strong foundation, nothing can stand.

In Matthew 7, the word Jesus uses for “rock” is the same “rock” upon which his church will be built in Matthew 16:18. It is not a small rock you might toss around. It is a strong stone, but this foundation is not enough alone. Throughout the sermon on the mount, Jesus challenges his audience to faithfully commit themselves to God’s service. Our faith is what seals us to that foundation upon which we build our lives.

The Spiritual Revolution of the Mount
Jesus’ primary audience in this sermon are people who know the law and the prophets. He is warning these against pretend discipleship among those who believe in God but are religiously shallow. Starting in Matthew 5 and going through chapters 6 and 7, Jesus returns time and again to those professing faith without obedience to the God of that faith.

He presents a choice to those around Him. They and we are continually building the houses of our lives, and He challenges us to choose between a foundation of religious pretense or one of truly faithful obedience. One choice leads to ruin and the other to safety. Going through the motions does not automatically place us on the true foundation. We must serve our Savior in faith, obedience, and humility to seal ourselves to Him.

If we are truly committed to Christ, nothing can shake us from His rock. In John 10:27-29, Jesus says none who follow Him can be snatched from Him. Paul, in Romans 8:28-39, asserts that no power of man or nature can separate those who love God from His love for us. His rock is unshakable. The floods can rise. The rains can beat down. The winds can tear, but nothing can shake a foundation built upon the Lord.

lesson by Tim Smelser