south

Division of the Mount

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

“Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.

For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle.

And His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.” Zechariah 14:1-4 (KJB)

STUDY HELPS: Isaiah 13:9, 16; 64:1; Joel 2:1; 3:2; Malachi 4:1; Matthew 24:28; Revelation 19:17;

The Gate

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

“And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. Then said one unto Him, ‘Lord, are there few that be saved?’ And He said unto them, ‘Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the Master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and He shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are: then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in Thy presence, and Thou hast taught in our streets. But He shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from Me, all ye workers of iniquity. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. And they shall come from the east, and the west, and from the north, and the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God. And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last.’” Luke 13:22-30  (KJB)

The gate is narrow.  Jesus speaks of the narrow gate in another place as well (Matthew 7:13-14) which seems to imply with difficulty, due to blockages, hindrances, or obstacles in the way.

The needle’s eye passage of Scripture could apply here as well,

“Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Matthew 19:23-24

Though this passage is speaking directly of the rich who are encumbered with the dangers of wealth toward the spirit; it can also apply to the religious but lost crowd.  Letting, like the Pharisees, the knowledge of Scripture, theology, and pride keep them from knowing the Person of the great salvation that is available to all who will receive Him as a little child.

The end result of rejecting God’s plan of grace and salvation is not good.  Read again the words of Jesus.  Jesus is God’s plan of grace and salvation.

Sunrises and Sunsets

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

“The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose. The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits. All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.” Ecclesiastes 1:5-7 (KJV)

Since the beginning of time on earth the sun has never failed to rise in the east, neither has it ever failed to set in the west. At least that is the terms men have used for millennials of time.

I have been on this earth for a short 22,217 days; and everyday the sun has risen and set. I have missed a few of those; at least in seeing them. Some days have been clouded over, but I have known that the sun did rise, and it did set. I love sunrises. For the past 15 years or so I have been up in the morning early enough to witness all of them. Maybe missing a few days sleeping in. Everyday the sun rises and sets it is a reminder that God’s Word is true.

Notice Solomon’s words of the wind; going south, then north, and whirling about. Wind can be ferocious and fearful. On May 22, 2011 much of the city of Joplin, Missouri was destroyed by a tornado. Our son and his wife lost their home in that storm. Thankfully they, nor their dogs had a scratch on them, even though they were in the house when the tornado hit.

Winds can be refreshing. Winds can be wild, twisting masses of terror. Winds can be a short gust which makes you wonder, “Where did that come from?”, and then nothing. Jesus said of the wind,

“The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” John 3:8

One evening (July 20, 2015) I was mowing our front yard.  When I started the temperature was 100 degrees. I was about to take one last break from the heat; had pulled the mower into the shade on the east side of the house, when I looked and saw clouds moving in, then thunder and lightening. That is when I decided I better just go ahead and finish the mowing. I finished the mowing, got the mower into the shed, shut it off, and the rain began. Wow! Could not have planned it better myself.

The sun was shining, the wind was blowing, and the rain was pouring from the skies filled with lightening and thunder. God is so wonderful. His Son is so glorious. He is so worthy of our worship and praise.

All these things of God’s created order are reminders of God’s care. God’s care of His creation; His people, His world. Just as the order God gives this earth, and the Universe is sure; His love for you and me is sure. He loves us so much He sent His Son Jesus to die in our place for our sins.

He is sure. He is stedfast. He is faithful to do all that He has said He would do. Believe Him.  Trust Him.