Jesus – Page 17 – Praying Pint

14.t. “How do you know me?”

John 1:43 The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

Jesus found Philip. Would this indicate that Jesus was looking for him, or that Jesus came upon him, or that Jesus tracked him down? This is Jesus the Son of God and I am sure He knew exactly where Philip was. Philip, like Andrew, followed and told someone else. Philip tells Nathanael “we have found Him” and then tells him who they have found, “Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph”. The one who Moses in the Law and the prophets wrote. It would appear that Nathanael is a bit of a cynic. “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Note that Philip did not argue with Nathanael, he just said come and see. A good point for us to remember is that it is Jesus who will soften the heart and open the eyes not us. We share but at no time is a person coming to Christ a result of us, it is all of God and His calling. The fact that we shared is actually the direct result of the Holy Spirit of God working through us. Never us, never about us, and never to be claimed by us.

Somewhere in this calling, softening, and eye-opening a person either responds to the Gospel or rejects it. I can tell you this is a mystery to me. I had heard the gospel for over a year but never had an understanding in my heart or have my eyes opened. Then, one special day a neighbor across the street who we hardly knew invited us (my wife and I) to hear an evangelist speak. It was a Thursday night 22 March 1979. On that day my heart understood the need for forgiveness, redemption, and salvation. My eyes were wide open and when the offer to come to meet Jesus at the altar was given. I could not say no. There was no way to say no. No, was not even a thought. It was as if I had no choice. I did not even have to think about it. It was more like having a severe cut to your jugular vein and a doctor being present and asking if you want to be saved. You don’t give any thought to saying no. The urgency in responding yes to be saved left no room for that thought at all.

I am sure there are those who Jesus has softened their heart to understand and has opened their eyes but they do choose to not believe the urgency of their impending eternal death and separation from God. This is a big mystery to me. I could not have said no and yet there are others who easily say it. I am not sure how many times a person will be allowed to reject the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Could it be once or 1,000 times? Some hearts are softened and other hardened – this I do not understand. I am sure the more times the offer of salvation is rejected the easier it is to reject the offer the next time. I guess this is why Jesus said narrow is the path the eternal life and broad is the highway to hell.

It is up to us to share the Gospel. It is up to us to speak of Jesus Christ, forgiveness, redemption, salvation, and repentance. It is up to us to live and speak in such a way that people see Jesus. It is up to us to honor, glorify, worship, follow, trust, and obey Jesus. Be a willing servant to be used and led by Jesus and allow Him to do the work of softening or hardening. Our task is to say “Come see Jesus”

14.s. “And they followed Jesus.”

John 1:35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter).

I really did not give much thought to “John was standing with two of his disciples” before. I guess I just glanced over this and thought John was standing out in some body of water and telling people to repent and be baptized. John the Baptist preached a message of repentance expressed in water baptism and bearing active fruit in one’s life in preparation for the appearing of the Messiah. Mark 1:4 John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. John was sent to call the people to urgent repentance in light of what God would soon bring about. John had disciples who learned from him. Acts 18:25 introduces us to a man named Apollos of whom it is said: “This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John.” While Apollos still needed further instruction and clarification in the faith, accounts like this make it clear that the core of the gospel was preached and taught by John. When John saw Jesus walk by he said to the two disciples standing with him, “look, the Lamb of God”. John preached repentance, confession, baptism, and the coming Messiah. Even unto death, John called people high and low to turn their hearts and their lives from their sin unto God. John preached warning people of the wrath to come. Luk 3:7-10 He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree, therefore, that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” And the crowds asked him, “What then shall we do?”

Many times people were cut to their heart and asked “What then shall we do?” From the warnings of the wrath of God to come, people made intentional choices to repent, confess, and be baptized. Some of these men stayed on with John. We see Andrew was one of the two and when he heard John say “behold the Lamb of God” they immediately followed Jesus. Andrew did something else too, he first went and told his brother, Peter, “We have found the Messiah”. To the heart that is seeking, Jesus will be seen. If the warning about the coming wrath of God is rejected the need for Jesus will never be seen as needed. Sin is always at the door of our heart, knocking and trying to open the door to entice us to live for self, rely on self, and deny there is any need to change. There is a yielding that allows this door to open just as there is a firm resistance to keep it closed. It is an intentional choice and both become easier over time. Yielding day after day to sin will harden the heart to the point where the door is wide open and wrong seems right and false seems true. The intentional choice doesn’t even need to be made anymore because this way of life has become common, regular, and established. Resisting day after day will keep the door firmly closed. The intentional choice to keep the door closed is made every waking moment. God’s Word will strengthen the resistance and give power to the weak who intentionally choose to resist. Sometimes we don’t even know what to resist until God’s Word reveals it to us. That is the power of His Word. Be mindful of your heart and bath it in God’s Word every day.

14.r. “no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

John 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

John 5:32   There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true.

Matthew 11:27     All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

Hebrews 1:1-2     Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets,  but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.

1 John 4:9    In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.

John said; “I myself did not know Him” “And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God”. Jesus said; “no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.” “yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.” God sent His Son into the world that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.”

When Jesus Christ is rejected so is the testimony about Him. Think about how many times you make judgments for or against someone or something based on the testimony of one person. That person may have a bias, deceit, fraud, false pretense, etc…. and yet their word printed or spoken is taken as truth while truth and testimony of Jesus Christ recorded and proclaimed by hundreds is rejected. Why is this? “The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” They choose to believe a lie and they choose to reject the truth. Testimony after testimony about Jesus Christ, the Love of God, salvation, redemption, forgiveness, eternity, eternal life, and heaven are chosen to be rejected. They have rejected the Son of God and His revelation of God’s grace, mercy, and love. It is in this choice to believe a lie over the truth of Jesus Christ they are given strong delusion to further enhance their false belief.

Imagine a person/company builds you a house and says it can never catch fire, it is fireproof. Then imagine a person coming to your house, knocking on the door to warn you that your house is on fire, and you say no it is not, I don’t believe you. Another after another comes knocking on your door and says your house is on fire you must believe me or you will surely die. Time and time again you reject what they are saying and then the fire marshal comes with a fire truck and firemen and knocks on your door and says you must get out before the fire kills you. You still maintain your house is not on fire because it is fireproof. You have a piece of paper from the builder that says you paid for and bought a fireproof house. You do not and will not believe it is possible your house will catch fire and burn. Your hopes and trust and belief had consequences. The result of this is your death. You refused to believe the truth. So it is with everyone who rejects Jesus Christ, the truth, and believes the lies, God is not real, His Son is not real, I am not that bad, God loves everyone so I am loved by God and He will not judge me or cast me into Hell, I am a good person on my own, I do not need to confess, I do not need forgiveness, I do not need redemption, my house is not burning down.

Belief in Jesus Christ means there is a reliance, trust, and clinging to Him alone. It means you have come to the knowledge of His holiness and your sinfulness. It means you come to the knowledge and understanding of there being only one way to be right with God and that is through belief in Jesus Christ. It means you have surrendered all thoughts of being self-righteousness before God and with all your heart, mind, and soul you are clinging to, relying on, and trusting in Jesus Christ alone. Because of this belief you humbly serve, honor, follow, obey, and rely on Him. Believing the truth of Jesus Christ results in eternal life. Believing in anything else is believing a lie and results in eternal death, Hell.

14.j. “And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Proverbs 8:22-31    “The LORD possessed me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of old.  Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth.  When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water.  Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth,  before he had made the earth with its fields, or the first of the dust of the world.  When he established the heavens, I was there; when he drew a circle on the face of the deep,  when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep,  when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth,  then I was beside him, like a master workman, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always,  rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the children of man.

Colossians 1:17    And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

Hebrews 1:10    And, “You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands;

Psalms 33:6    By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.

Isaiah 45:12    I made the earth and created man on it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host.

John 8:12    Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

We think of Jesus Christ as our redeemer and savior. We trust in God’s Word that says He sent His Son into the world to redeem the lost and whosoever believes in Him will have eternal life. Do you ever give thought to where He came from? It may give you a greater appreciation for His love for you. Before the beginning and before creation and before heavenly hosts, earth, and living plants and creatures Jesus Christ was. He existed in eternity. He is Holy, Pure, and True. He willingly came to earth, taking on the form of man, healed the sick, blind, deaf, lame, paralyzed, dead, proclaimed the day of salvation, suffered, died, and rose again all for the single purpose – to redeem the lost and give hope to the perishing. Think about the grace, mercy, and love He displayed for you. For certain you did not deserve this gift of eternal life but in and through His power, might, and love He came and bore your sins so that you might have eternal life.

When things around you are falling apart and there seems to be no reason for you to rejoice and give praise to Jesus Christ remember who it is that gave His life just for you.

14.c. ‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,”

Malachi 3:1 “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts

Matthew 11:10-11    This is he of whom it is written, “‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’

Luke 7:26-28    What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.  This is he of whom it is written, “‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’  I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”

John 1:6-7    There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.  He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him.

Acts 13:24-25    Before his coming, John had proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.  And as John was finishing his course, he said, ‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but behold, after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.’

Isaiah 40:3-5  A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Acts 19:4    And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.”

After the prophet Malachi, there was no prophetic voice heard for approximately 500 years. With a prophet at least the people had a choice to listen to and obey what was being said. Amos foretold of this time; 8:11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. Without a prophet, there were multiple groups formed who were claiming the right to interpret scriptures and lead the people. The understanding of God diminished and confusion ruled. New traditions and rules were common. Along comes John the Baptist and though he was clearly revealed in scripture, John was not recognized as the prophet/messenger preparing the way. The famine of hearing the word of the Lord has an effect on mankind. Jesus Christ was not recognized.

Imagine what it must have been like for that first generation to have no more prophets. Generations after this one surely must have been looking for one to come for scriptures were full of examples of prophets sent by God to lead, warn, plead, and encourage the people. Yet, when John the Baptist arrived he was not recognized as the messenger preparing the way for the Messiah. A famine of God’s Word has an effect. It starves the heart mind and soul of the Bread of life and living water. Today there is a famine but it is not caused by Jesus Christ but rather by intentional choice. The intentional choice to neglect God’s Word. Self-induced famine. What do you suppose replaces this eternal life-giving food? Things of this world and it’s shallow satisfaction of the present and denial of the future cost to the heart, mind, and soul is what it replaces. After a while of self-induced famine the heart, mind, and soul live on the dung of this world and think it tastes good. Their hunger for the bread of life and living water is not even a memory anymore. Do you find yourself unsatisfied, confused, anxious, and worried? It could be a sign that you are starving. Come to the Word of God and eat freely from its words. You will find a fulfilling satisfaction with an unending hunger for more.

12.r. “Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the day of the Lord’s anger.”

Zephaniah 2:1 Gather together, gather yourselves together, you shameful nation, before the decree takes effect and that day passes like windblown chaff, before the Lord’s fierce anger comes upon you, before the day of the Lord’s wrath comes upon you. Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, you who do what he commands. Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the day of the Lord’s anger.

Psalms 105:4    Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually!

Isaiah 55:6-7    “Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near;  let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Jeremiah 3:13-14    Only acknowledge your guilt, that you rebelled against the LORD your God and scattered your favors among foreigners under every green tree, and that you have not obeyed my voice, declares the LORD.  Return, O faithless children, declares the LORD; for I am your master; I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.

Hosea 7:10    The pride of Israel testifies to his face; yet they do not return to the LORD their God, nor seek him, for all this.

1 Thessalonians 4:1    Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God,

2 Peter 3:18    But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity.

The announcement of judgment in chapter 1 is understood as a warning and as an invitation to repentance. Gather together as a demonstration of national mourning and repentance. Zephaniah proclaimed; “this is what will happen to you if you do not repent.” There was a sense of urgency and a call to repent before it was too late. There is nothing worth showing for all we accomplish in a day if we neglect what is most important: getting right and staying right before God. It is a seemingly easy life to let days pass away day after day without giving much of a thought to living for and humbly serving, honoring, following, obeying, and trusting God. One of Satans most powerful lies isn’t that there is no God, or no bible, or no truth – often the most powerful lie that affects and entices so many is that there is no hurry or urgency to humbly, repent, seek, desire, serve, follow, and grow in understanding and knowledge of Jesus Christ. Warnings from God to a nation needs to be heeded by both the humble and the proud. It would be easy to think this warning does not concern me. Rest assured that at times of national danger and crisis even the meek and humble must urgently seek the Lord.

When we look around at what is happening in our country it is clear God is sending a strong message to return to Him. How much more confusion, chaos, disease, rioting, hate, and division need to take place before our hearts humbly seek and call out to Jesus Christ. In times of prosperity, many fall away from seeking and desiring Jesus Christ. Their hearts and minds get consumed with things of this world. Ease of life has led them astray and down paths of neglect and complacency. Tell me it is not true. Tell me you have not neglected or been complacent in your walk with Jesus Christ. Look around and tell me all that has happened in the last 6 months. This did not happen by chance it is the Hand of Jesus Christ at work. These are more than subtle warnings. They are actual judgments upon the world and our nation. Through this many hearts will turn to Him but a greater number will harden their hearts and minds even more. Many will just see this bad luck and not even give Jesus Christ a second thought. May Jesus Christ open our eyes to the work of His hands and give us a clear vision of our need to repent and seek Him.

12.m. “For behold, the LORD is coming out from his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity”

Habakkuk 3:16 I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.

Daniel 10:8    So I was left alone and saw this great vision, and no strength was left in me. My radiant appearance was fearfully changed, and I retained no strength.

Isaiah 26:20-21    Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until the fury has passed by.  For behold, the LORD is coming out from his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity, and the earth will disclose the blood shed on it, and will no more cover its slain.

2 Thessalonians 1:6-9    since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you,  and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels  in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.  They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might,

A time is coming when God will carry out His wrath and anger upon all who defy Him. Prophets saw what was to happen in the future to all of those who, in their defiance, hatred, pride, self-power, self-assurance, and wickedness, reject God and His Holiness. The scriptures reveal God’s use of defiant men and nations to carry out judgment on His children for neglecting His way. It reveals time and time again how He uses wayward men and nations to carry out judgment and draw His people back. Do you ever wonder how far a person or nation needs to wander away from God before He will unleash His anger and wrath? It is not good to play games with our Christian walk. It appears many Christians want to see how close they can get to the world and its lures of fleshly temptations. It appears as though they want a taste of it and thinks this one taste will not contaminate or affect them. God wants all of our hearts, minds, souls, and strength. He will not share the hearts, minds, and souls with those who choose worldly and fleshly living. How many times in scripture do we hear of how the people of God day after day would dilute their walk with Him to a point where they no longer honored, served, followed, obeyed, or saw any need to trust and rely on Him. They did this without giving a single thought of God’s Holy judgment, anger, or wrath. In these times, God would warn and call out to His people through prophets. He would warn them of His pending judgment and what was going to happen to them. Time and time again they neglected these prophetic warnings. We do well to desire that God will show us what is in our hearts and minds. We do well to want to hear the Holy Spirit speak into our lives. We do well to humbly seek these so that we live in humble surrender to His will, living in such a way that He is honored, glorified, praised, and worshiped. Oh that God would show us how far we have wandered away from what it means to live for Him.

12.c. “It will surely come; it will not delay.”

Habakkuk 2:2 “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.

Daniel 8:19 He said, “Behold, I will make known to you what shall be at the latter end of the indignation, for it refers to the appointed time of the end.

Acts 1:7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.

2 Thessalonians 2:6-8 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.

Daniel 11:27 And as for the two kings, their hearts shall be bent on doing evil. They shall speak lies at the same table, but to no avail, for the end is yet to be at the time appointed.

Psalms 27:14 Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!

Isaiah 30:18 Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.

Micah 7:7 But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me.

James 5:7-8 Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.

2 Peter 2:3 Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

The news these days seems to relish in digging up as much mud as they can. They throw it on the clear water of life and then continue to stir it up, mix it up, and cloud it up to the point where it is impossible to see worth in anything at all. The muddy waters are a mixture of half-truths and sometimes lies. It is hard to tell their intent or to what purpose they are focused on. Much of the mud they cloud the waters of life with, most hearers would never have heard of unless these pessimistic and “the sky is falling” proclaimers had told them. We do well to keep the likes of them out of our heads.

Habakkuk is told to make the vision plain and understandable. Make it so plain that the people who read it will run away/turn away from that which is causing what is proclaimed to be coming. Even so, there are many who read and hear it and give it no continued thought. It is as though they don’t believe it at all or say it will never happen in my lifetime so why think about it. Or, they may think that they have time for doing something about it later. All of these lead to a life that forfeits the grace, mercy, and love of God. It allows a person to think there is no danger in waiting and there is no consequence for waiting, and no worry in waiting. All of which is false. The time of salvation is NOW. The time of God’s grace, mercy, and love are NOW. Jesus Christ is coming again, soon. No one knows when death will knock on their door. No one knows when their end will come. It could be today, tomorrow, or years from now. Trust me, many people have waited for another time to trust in Jesus Christ and have died before they thought they would. The day of salvation is NOW. Right NOW. Just because you see no imminent danger does not mean it is not there. Don’t allow the things and news of this world to muddy up your vision of the need for Jesus Christ. Do not allow this muddiness to rob you of purpose in this life and eternal life in heaven.

11.f. “To open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God”

Micah 7:8 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me. I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against him, until he pleads my cause and executes judgment for me. He will bring me out to the light; I shall look upon his vindication. Then my enemy will see, and shame will cover her who said to me, “Where is the Lord your God?” My eyes will look upon her; now she will be trampled down like the mire of the streets.

Isaiah 60:19-20    The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.  Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended.

Psalms 97:11    Light is sown for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart.

Psalms 112:4     Light dawns in the darkness for the upright; he is gracious, merciful, and righteous.

Psalms 27:1   The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Malachi 4:2   But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall.

John 8:12    Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Acts 26:18    to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

Revelation 21:23    And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.

Talk about faith and power through Jesus Christ – “when I fall, I shall rise, when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me”!! How many times have you been in darkness? Not the light associated with light and dark but darkness in your soul. I am sure you can relate to this type of darkness when your heartaches, your mind can’t seem to get out of the rut of some rejecting or negative thought, and no matter how hard your try the light of resolve for the darkness seems out of reach. Days seem to drag on and you hope tomorrow is better somehow. this is how it goes when we are looking from within our own self-reliance to overcome the darkness that is robbing light from our days. Maybe we could learn to trust Jesus Christ more. Maybe we could rely on Him more. Maybe we could call out to Him more. Maybe we could believe in Him more. Maybe we could claim His promises more. I am confident that if we did we too could say, “when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.”

11.a. “And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth.”

Micah 5:1 Now muster your troops, O daughter of troops; siege is laid against us; with a rod they strike the judge of Israel on the cheek. But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel,whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel. And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace.

John 7:42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the offspring of David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?”

Matthew 2:6 “‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”

Luke 2:4-7 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

1 Corinthians 1:27-28 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,

Matthew 2:1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship. When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet.

From Micah, we read of the importance that was to come from Bethlehem. This prophecy from Micah was quoted in Mathew chapter 2 by the chief priests and scribes. They knew the Messiah would come from Bethlehem. They quoted the verse to Herod when asked: “where the Christ was to be born”. Do you ever wonder what it was that kept them from acknowledging Jesus Christ? Do you ever wonder what it was that kept them from believing in the miracles, healings, and His death and resurrection? These were people who knew scripture and believed in the one true God. And yet, they failed to see the redeemer and savior Son of God. Their lives had the appearance of piety. They proclaimed to know the way too honoring and pleasing God. What was it that kept them deaf and blinded to the Son of God? The fact of the matter is that they trusted more in what they were doing than what Christ did. They trusted in their works as a means of being made right before God. Their hearts, minds, and souls were not surrendered to Jesus Christ but rather given to self-reliance and pride. We aren’t so much different. We trust in self, and much more so when things are going smooth and well in our lives. We lean on our own understanding and make provision in our minds why we are right before God. Our eyes are blind to how far we have followed after things of this world. Our ears are deaf to the Word of God because we choose to live apart from it and allowing it to speak into our hearts. Our hearts, minds, and souls, must be totally surrendered in humble submission before Jesus Christ. It is then we will begin to see that the things of this world are distracting us away from a fruit-filled life of honoring, glorifying, following, obeying, and relying on Jesus Christ.