Tag: Serve Him only

3.p. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night

Ezra 7:6  Ezra went up from Babylonia. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses that the Lord, the God of Israel, had given, and the king granted him all that he asked, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him.

And there went up also to Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king, some of the people of Israel, and some of the priests and Levites, the singers and gatekeepers, and the temple servants. And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king. For on the first day of the first month he began to go up from Babylonia, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, for the good hand of his God was on him. For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.

This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priest, the scribe, a man learned in matters of the commandments of the Lord and his statutes for Israel: “Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven. Peace. And now I make a decree that anyone of the people of Israel or their priests or Levites in my kingdom, who freely offers to go to Jerusalem, may go with you. For you are sent by the king and his seven counselors to make inquiries about Judah and Jerusalem according to the Law of your God, which is in your hand,

1 Samuel 7:3     And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the LORD and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”

Psalms 1:2    but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.

Psalms 119:96-100     I have seen a limit to all perfection, but your commandment is exceedingly broad. Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.  Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me.  I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation.  I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts.

Matthew 5:19    Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 7:24   “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.

2 Timothy 4:2    preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.

Ezra set his heart to study, to do, and to teach the word of God.  If we just set our heart to read God’s word but are not actively thinking about it and wanting to apply it into our life then it has a very limited chance of influencing how we think, what we say, and how we live. intentionally choosing to be influenced and led by God’s word will have an impact on our conduct, faith in action, prayer, and what we think about.  Our thoughts will be on God.  Our actions will be directed by His word.  Our eyes and ears will be open to see and hear His whispers of leading, encouraging, strengthening, guiding, and giving us wisdom and knowledge to discern eternal from temporal, life-giving from life-taking, heavenly from earthly, holiness from sin, truth from false, refuge from abandonment, peace and rest from anxiousness, generosity from greed, humility from pride, heavenly service from self-serving, and faith from fear and worry.  Studying God’s word is life-giving, life-changing, and eternity life benefitting.  Our lives will be forever changed when it becomes the air and breath of our heart, mind, and soul.

1.w. Now, therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways.

2 Chronicles 11:13  And the priests and the Levites who were in all Israel presented themselves to him from all places where they lived. For the Levites left their common lands and their holdings and came to Judah and Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons cast them out from serving as priests of the Lord, and he appointed his own priests for the high places and for the goat idols and for the calves that he had made. And those who had set their hearts to seek the Lord God of Israel came after them from all the tribes of Israel to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the Lord, the God of their fathers. They strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and for three years they made Rehoboam the son of Solomon secure, for they walked for three years in the way of David and Solomon.

Joshua 22:19    But now, if the land of your possession is unclean, pass over into the LORD’s land where the LORD’s tabernacle stands, and take for yourselves a possession among us. Only do not rebel against the LORD or make us as rebels by building for yourselves an altar other than the altar of the LORD our God.

1 Samuel 7:3-4     And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the LORD and serve him only,

Haggai 1:5    Now, therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways.

When Rehoboam started off his reign unwisely with unmerciful and prideful words there was a fraction that drove him out of their cities and his brother Jeroboam ruled over part of the land.  Jeroboam and his sons drove out the priests and Levites, the very people God had chosen to minister and sacrifice properly unto the Lord God.  He then created his own idols (gods) and appointed his own priests.  There were people who followed their leader in this false worship and abandonment from God, and they did it willingly, without thought, without worry, and with an intentional choice knowing those who do so deserve the wrath of God.  They turned their back on God.  They yielded their heart, mind, and soul to another.  Yet, I don’t want to speak about those who chose to willingly follow after false gods but rather those Levites, priests, and others who had set their hearts to seek God and they left everything and went to Jerusalem and Judah.  They went there because they saw the error of what was being presented to them in place of God.  They went there because they loved God.  They went there because staying where they were would have been wrong in the sight of God.

What is going on in your world that is pulling, dragging, enticing, and deceiving you away from seeking and following after God?  What have you accepted as perfectly ok to do because it is accepted by the people around you?  If for one second can you imagine God standing at your side?  Can you imagine God knowing what was being thought in your mind?  Can you imagine God hearing what you say or we’re going to say?  The truth is that God does know the thoughts and intents of your heart.  He knows the words you speak before they are on your tongue.

If we truly seek and desire God and practice His presence in our life every moment then we will not be pulled, dragged, enticed, or deceived away.  We will see it for what it is and seek direction, courage, strength, and knowledge on what to do and how to do it.

God may lead us away from it but may also direct you to stand firm and proclaim it is wrong.  Either way, staying close to God and seeking Him will always bear fruit in your heart and soul and mind.

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.”  Dr. Allen P. Ross, “The issue then is how deceptive evil is. It might promise and deliver happiness, power, and the good life, but it cannot sustain what it gives.” An excerpt from Enduring Word, “This makes plain our need for a revelation from God. We can’t entirely trust our own examination and judgment. To really know we are on the way of life (instead of the way of death), we need to fear the LORD and receive His wisdom, especially as revealed in His word.” A word from theologian Bruce Waltke, “The way of death is rarely clearly marked. “The safety and destiny of a road are not always as they appear. The deceptive road leads as certainly to death as the plainly marked one.” The importance of trusting in God’s Word instead of what seems right to us cannot be overstated. Diligently studying the Scriptures is never an exercise in futility. The only way to find true assurance that we are not on the way to death is by knowing God’s way to life. We must pass the test as laid out in Scripture or we are deceiving ourselves.

99. If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then put away…

1 Samuel 7:1   And the men of Kiriath-jearim came and took up the ark of the Lord and brought it to the house of Abinadab on the hill. And they consecrated his son Eleazar to have charge of the ark of the Lord. From the day that the ark was lodged at Kiriath-jearim, a long time passed, some twenty years, and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord. And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.

During the time of Eli and prior to Samuel the Israelites fell away from serving God.  Subsequently, God punished them and the Ark of the covenant was taken from them.  However, this did not remain in the hands of its captors long because the hand of God was upon them and then it was returned to the Israelites because of this.

The falling away is a common theme across mankind. this happens when the word of God is not desired nor is it active in their life.

How would people live if this verse concerning eternal destiny was taken seriously: Matt 7:23 “Depart from Me, I never knew you.”

Are the words recorded in 2 Timothy 4:3 a clear description of today’s thoughts? “ For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”

Societies change, people change, morals change and sadly churches change but thank God, His word never changes.  Staying in His word grounds us and protects us from the slippery slope of deception that prevails in our culture today.  Staying in His word feeds, waters, and gives breath to our soul for His honor and glory.  Staying in His word is an intentional choice – choose wisely – return tot he Lord with all your heart and direct your heart to humbly serve, honor, follow, and obey Him.

He is faithful

“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”

 

Joe 2:12
“Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God?

Deuteronomy 4:29-30
But from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the LORD your God and obey his voice.

1 Samuel 7:3
And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the LORD and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”

Acts 26:20
but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance.

Hosea 14:1
Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.

Zechariah 1:3-4
Therefore say to them, Thus declares the LORD of hosts: Return to me, says the LORD of hosts, and I will return to you, says the LORD of hosts. Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.’ But they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the LORD.

“Do not be like your fathers – even when I cried out to them they continued in what they were doing and rejected my pleas”  How would you feel if this is what God is telling your wife, your children, your husband about you? I am confident it is impossible to hear His cry and pleas to return when we spend no time in His word.  We will not seek Him for guidance for our day, we will forget what purpose there is in this life, we will be influenced more and more by what seems right in our own eyes or is socially accepted, we will become deaf and blind to His leading.  God knows all of this and proclaims in His word over and over again “Return to me and I will return to you,” “I will deliver you,” “You will find me,” “Search for me with your whole heart,” “Repent,” “I know your heart, thoughts, and intent,” “I love you so much that I will sacrifice my son for you,” “I will give you peace,” “I will give your strength,” “I will be your rock,” “I will guide your path,” and so many more words of warning and blessing.  Be the father, mother, son, daughter that is spoken of by God as one who did right in His eyes.  Be the one who is a light in the darkness.  Be the one who is able to rightly proclaim God’s word.  Spend time in His word today.