“Then He called His twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases. And He sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick. And He said unto them,
‘Take nothing for your journey, neither staves, nor scrip, neither bread, neither money; neither have two coats apiece. And whatsoever house ye enter into, there abide, and thence depart. And whosoever will not receive you, when ye go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet for a testimony against them.’
And they departed, and went through the towns, preaching the gospel, and healing every where.” Luke 9:1-6 (KJB)
Dust
If I Have Rewarded Evil Unto Him that Was at Peace with Me
“O LORD my God, in You do I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me: Lest he tear my soul like a lion, rending it in pieces, while there is none to deliver. O LORD my God, if I have done this; if there be iniquity in my hands; if I have rewarded evil unto him that was at peace with me; (yes, I have delivered him that without cause is my enemy:) let the enemy persecute my soul, and take it; yes, let him tread down my life upon the earth, and lay my honor in the dust. Selah.” Psalm 7:1-5 (KJV)
As believers and followers of Jesus Christ we put our complete faith and trust in Him. It is a good thing not to be concerned about those who might persecute us due to our faith, but we ought always pray for them, and that they would come to the faith of Christ as well.
There are none who can deliver as our GOD and King who we believe, know, and receive through the death, burial, and bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Our prayer can and should be that of David as he prayed this prayer – “If I have done this; if there be iniquity in my hands; if I have rewarded evil unto him that was at peace with me…”, then, we can know that we will be aware when we have behaved ourselves unseemly toward another of Adamkind. We ought to always love our neighbor as we love ourselves; and that is seen the the final six Commandments God gave us.
In David’s prayer he even asks for his judgment to be swift and sure concerning his evil treatment of those who were at peace with him. I would say we ought to always be a good neighbor, no matter who that neighbor might be. Difficult? With some neighbors, NO! With other neighbors, Sometimes, and maybe always. The responsibility of being a good neighbor is mine, the Christians, not the neighbor’s.
If we mistreat someone who is peaceful toward us, then, we need not complain when we are treated likewise by someone else. There is still, and always will be application of Paul’s words, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man sows that shall he also reap.” (Galatians 6:7).
The LORD is Good
What do you think of when a roaring, howling, powerful storm comes; with flashes, and bolts of lightening, and sounds of crashing, rolling thunder? It is a fearful thing when we see these things. Many people have just recently survived such storms, suffering great loss, and we pray for you, and offer condolences to those who have lost loved ones.
I am a strange sort of man I guess; but storms fascinate me. Lightening is a wonder to behold. I have been on the edge of a tornado in my car, and kept driving, even though I could not see much past the hood of the car. It is a fearful thing. More fearful is to be on the wrong side of God. Hear the words of Nahum the prophet to the Assyrians, their capital city Nineveh…
“God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on His adversaries, and He reserveth wrath for His enemies. The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet. He rebuketh the sea, and maketh it dry, and drieth up all the rivers: Bashan languisheth, and Carmel, and the flower of Lebanon languisheth. The mountains quake at Him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at His presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein. Who can stand before His indignation? And who can abide in the fierceness of His anger? His fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by Him. The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in him. But with an overrunning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue His enemies.” Nahum 1:2-8 (KJV)
It could be said that Nahum’s prophecy is a continuation of Jonah’s. When Jonah went to Nineveh and preached of God’s judgment, the people, the whole city repented; yet that repentance was only one generation, and then God sent Nahum to warn them.
Does God, the LORD judge evil? That is a question that many people ask; even today. The answer to that is “Yes!” God does judge evil. It just is not always according to our allotted time. Why can a wicked person live for years without illness, or grief, and seemingly be blessed with the world’s riches, and pleasures and never experience God’s justice? He/She does, or she/he will.
The LORD is Good. Let us consider this. It could be that God in His goodness and grace is allowing that individual time to repent and change their way, coming to God through Christ Jesus.
The LORD is mighty, He is Almighty, He holds the storms of this life in His hand. He knows the beginning and He knows the end. This life is not about me, or you, or all those who are suffering from sickness, disease, pain, sorrow; from storms or shooters. This life is about GOD, and His power and glory to Him. He has made a way for sinful humanity to come into His holy presence; and that is through the cross of Jesus Christ who suffered the most horrendous thing any man could ever bear. Not only did He suffer the physical pain and agony of the cross, but He the holy Son of God was denied the face of His Father as He bled and died for us. He in fact experienced Hell for us there.
The LORD is Good.
No Hurt; No Destruction
“And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, saith the LORD.” Isaiah 65:24-25 (KJV)
These verses are a promise to the “Blessed of the LORD” (65:23). The prophecy is still speaking of the Servant.
The Servant was beaten, despised, and rejected by His own. He was crucified, buried, and rose again from the grave (Isaiah 53; Matthew 27, 28; Mark 15; Luke 24, John 20-21; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8). He is Servant because He chose to leave heaven to become a man, that He might die for the sins of the whole world.
Though the iniquities of the world were placed on Him, and though He died with those sins on Him, in His burial He carried them all away, and they are cast away as far as East is from West; they are cast into the deepest parts of the sea; never to be retrieved; never to be held against those who will receive this gift of heaven; this gift of grace.
The eternal benefits are living in His eternal kingdom with Him. For the people of Israel they will live under His glorious reign on the new earth. All will be heard, and He will answer. There will be no more threat from wild animals. The wolf and the lion; both have been predator animals, carnivores for most of the existence of the earth; they will be mild, pleasant, peaceful animals.
The rulers of this present world are searching for peace, working for peace, and it is to no avail. It will not happen because of the wickedness, the conniving, deceiving, scheming, lying, cheating, thieving ungodly ways of mankind.
Jesus is coming soon. Hear and believe. Receive Him, and live with Him eternally.
Quickly Perishing
When I look at our society today I see so many who are quickly perishing, and are completely unaware of it. Why do I say they are unaware of it? They live as though there was no end. They live as though there is no God. They live as though they will answer to no one.
We are all fickle at times. We can so easily be led astray, be deceived and deluded. There is something we all must realize and that is, that, there is more to life, than “Me”. “Me” will one day end, and then what. Hear what the apostle Peter has written,
“For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.” 1 Peter 1:24-25 (KJV).
It is a terrible thing for man who is quickly perishing to give so much confidence and power to things which we cannot take with us. I heard the story of a woman who was married to a wealthy man, on his death bed, who wasn’t leaving anything to her, and wanted it all cashed out before he died and, then, put into his coffin with him at his burial. She went and cashed everything out, and the day of the funeral put a box in the coffin before they closed the lid. A friend who was with her asked, “What was in the box?”, and she proceeded to tell her of her deceased husband’s request, and that she had placed it in the box. She went on to say, “I deposited the money in my checking account, and wrote him a check. Now he can cash it any time he chooses.”
Any one with any sense knows when you die, that, silver, gold, or paper money will be of no service to you. It too will rot, rust, decay, and one day blow away in the wind with the rest of the dust.
There is only the “word of the Lord” that endures for ever, and that will be in the lives of those who put their faith and trust in Him through His Son Jesus Christ, and His death, burial and resurrection. “Forever, O LORD, Thy word is settled in heaven.” (Psalm 119:89). Those who will come to God the Father through God the Son will have an eternity with Him in glory. Call on His name today.
-Tim A. Blankenship
The Fire and Hammer 