By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore. (Hebrews 11:11-12)
Sarah Believes When Logic Says Otherwise
There are many things that remain unchanged since the beginning of time, and one of those is how babies are conceived and born. The birth of a baby has remained the same, with only one exception: Jesus Christ. Born of a virgin, Jesus’ birth was the apex of miracles to show the divinity of Jesus before the final birth of the resurrection, which would be the greatest miracle. One of the constants in the human body is the time clock of age when the womb eventually dies. There is no scientific invention that will change this. Fertility declines with age, and the habitation of a woman’s ability to successfully give birth to a baby is determined by the will of God.
When God called Abraham to leave his homeland, he was seventy-five, and Sarah was sixty-five. The promise made to Abraham was to have a seed that would be like the stars of heaven. Abraham and Sarah realized at their age how difficult that promise would be to fulfill, but waiting twenty-five years for the promised son was a blessing from God. Sarah heard the angels tell Abraham she was to have a son, and she laughed to herself, knowing she was past the age of childbearing. Abraham and Sarah were old and well advanced in age. The angel reminded Abraham there was nothing too hard for the Lord. A son was to be born to this aged couple because God had made that promise.
The faith of Abraham is declared as an example of a man believing in the promises of God without doubting. Sarah was an integral part of the plan as the woman who would bear the pregnancy at the age of ninety. Only through the power of God could Sarah conceive and give birth to a healthy son. Many things are impossible without any solution, but Sarah believes in the impossible. Through the power of God, her aged body could conceive a son, carry Isaac to full term, and deliver him safely. Her faith trusted in the power of God to do the impossible.
There is no logical way to explain a ninety-year-old woman walking around pregnant. Her miracle showed the world her faith and trust in the will of God to accomplish the unbelievable. When anyone looked upon Sarah, they saw her faith. Rationality did not explain what the world saw. It did not make sense. To Sarah, it made perfect sense to trust in the Creator to do something extraordinary and powerful. Faith defies logic because God does not work on the rationale of human wisdom. His wonder and power are beyond the imagination of men. If we have Sarah’s faith, we can defy logic and believe in the impossible.
Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37)
The Ear And The Heart
When the apostles were preaching to the crowd in Jerusalem, they were speaking to a group of people who were devoted to God. Jerusalem was filled with worshippers attending the Feast of Pentecost or Feast of Harvest. Pentecost was one of the three annual pilgrimage feasts every male was required to travel to Jerusalem for. Jesus had told the eleven to return to Jerusalem and wait for the power from on high to come. Providentially planned, Pentecost was on the first day of the week, the day Christ rose from the dead.
The coming of the baptism of the Holy Spirit upon the twelve apostles created quite a stir among the people. Hearing the sound of the rushing wind, devout men from every nation who were dwelling in Jerusalem came together to hear the Galileans speak in their own languages. Many were amazed, and some perplexed, seeking to understand what it could mean. Others mocked, suggesting the apostles were drunk. Peter, standing up with the eleven, began to explain the meaning of the series of events, showing how Joel, the prophet, had foreseen the events of the day. The apostle said that Jesus of Nazareth, killed seven weeks earlier, was the Christ, the Son of God. Peter proved his explanation by looking at the life of Jesus, the testimony of the prophet David, and the conclusion that the crucified Jesus was both Lord and Christ.
As Peter was speaking, the crowd listened intently. It is uncertain how many people were gathered to hear the apostles speak. There were likely thousands of people. Luke will confirm that three thousand responded to the words of the apostles, but many did not accept the teaching of God. One thing everyone had in common in the audience was they were all hearing what the apostles were preaching in their own language. No one could excuse themselves that they could not hear the word of the Lord. God had provided, through the Holy Spirit, for the apostles to speak in the exact languages of the nations represented that day. Everyone listened to the message with their ears.
The distance between the ear and the heart is minimal, and yet, so often, it is separated by an eternity. God designed the body in a perfect union when He bookended the spiritual heart with two ears. The heart is metaphorically used for the mind, located directly between both ears. It can be suggested God gave everyone two ears to listen more intently. As the apostles testified and exhorted the crowd to save themselves, the hearts of three thousand souls responded. They heard what everyone else heard, but they heard something deeper. There were the mockers in the crowd who thought the men speaking were drunk. The three thousand realized what Peter was saying was true.
When three thousand people listened to the gospel’s message, their hearts were pricked, cut, pierced, and moved by the power of conviction. There were no arguments or debates. They asked the apostles what needed to be done to avert the wrath of God for killing His Son. There was no doubt they needed to be saved. First, the ear heard the message, and then the heart reacted. The three thousand did not wait for a more convenient time to sort things out. There was no delay in how they responded to what they heard because their hearts burned within them. It took the ears and the heart to bring three thousand people to the power of the gospel.
After Peter and the eleven exhorted the crowd with more preaching, the feet of three thousand people took action. What began with the ears and the hearts became the action of the feet to obey what Peter said. The apostle told the three thousand to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins. Those who responded did something few people do today. They obeyed without arguing. Why? They heard the gospel, and their hearts accepted the word as truth. Then, they did exactly what God told them to do without debate or discussion.
The world needs ears that are open to the word of God and hearts receptive to the teaching of Jesus. There is no doubt what the Bible teaches about salvation. People hear the gospel’s message, but their hearts are not pierced. When their hearts fail, their feet fail. The plea of God is to open your ears and accept in your heart the gospel of Jesus Christ so that you can act upon what you have heard to have your sins washed away in the blood of Jesus. Hearing alone will not save you. Believing alone will not save you. Peter told them to repent and be baptized. They heard it. Their hearts believed it. Three thousand people became children of God that day. What are you hearing? Do you believe the word of God? Are you ready to accept without question what God expects of you? Check your ears and your heart.
But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28)
Servitude Begins With A Mop
Dave Thomas, founder of Wendy’s Hamburgers, describes his philosophy for humble service. “I got my M.B.A. long before my G.E.D. I even have a photograph of me in my M.B.A. graduation outfit: a snazzy knee-length work apron. I guarantee you that I’m the only founder among America’s big companies whose picture in the corporate annual report shows him wielding a mop and a plastic bucket. That wasn’t a gag; it was a case of leading by example. At Wendy’s, an M.B.A. does not mean a Master of Business Administration. It means Mop Bucket Attitude. It’s how we define satisfying the customer through cleanliness, quality food, friendly service, and atmosphere.”
Jesus taught His disciples that to be great in the kingdom of God, one must become a servant. The world prides itself on being in control and having power. Success is measured by how great a person can become without regard for others. The name of the game is to grab the gold ring at any cost. Dave Thomas understood that the principle of succeeding is found in humility. The work ethic is best defined by leading by example. Jesus became the ultimate example of showing how to be great in servitude.
The disciples of Jesus argued about who was to be great in the kingdom. Jesus took a little child and placed the young boy in the midst of the disciples, telling them that greatness was found in the humble heart of a child. Arrogance and pride can elevate someone to great heights in the corporate world, but they can become empty victories without servitude. Children do not possess a prideful heart. They can play with other children with a pure heart. Sadly, pride is learned early when taught by parents to excel at any cost.
Humility is the spirit of serving. Anyone who wants to follow Jesus Christ must be like the Savior. What greater example of humility can be given than considering the Son of God leaving His place with the Divine and becoming a man? Jesus was God, yet He took on the physical form of His creation to save the world from sin. The Son of God suffered all the humiliations of the flesh to the point of death on the cross because He humbled Himself to serve humanity. To be like Christ, the follower must have the spirit of humility.
A Christian is a person possessed of a humble heart. They consider all the wonderful blessings of a graceful God who has blessed them with all spiritual blessings in Christ. The joy of forgiveness moves the heart to see how great the sacrifice of Jesus was to save them. A child of God can be nothing more than a servant to others to show them the love of God. To be great, learn how to humble yourself before the love of God.
The days of our lives are seventy years; and if by reason of strength they are eighty years, yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away. Who knows the power of Your anger? For as the fear of You, so is Your wrath. So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. (Psalm 90:10-12)
Happy Birthday
I was born sixty-eight years ago, and while I was the center of attention, I remember nothing. My conception was unexpected and untimely. Five siblings preceded me, and the surprising news of a new baby was difficult, considering my closest sibling was only eleven months apart. There were medical concerns with my brother, and this weighed heavily on my parents. The family was not dirt-poor but grass-poor. We never went hungry, but putting food on the table was difficult. Through the gracious acts of our church family, we were provided for. Our father worked hard and did his best to provide a home. There was no air conditioning or carpets on the floor. The Jim Walter home we lived in gave us all we needed. Box fans in the windows helped move the air through the central Florida summers. Two single gas heaters warmed a small portion of the house on the rare cold days.
I remember nothing of the first part of my life in infancy, and I had no control over those days. All of my needs were met with love and care. In time, I became conscious of who I was and the family to which I was born. My language was English with an American culture. I was born in central Florida. All of my influences came from the culture surrounding me. I learned early the value of the connection with the church. Our family of eight piled into the green Ford Econovan every time the doors were open and always arrived thirty minutes early.
I had little choice about anything during my early years and formative times. I had nothing to do with my birth. My coming into the world was not under my control. As a small baby, I relied upon my family to care for and protect me. I seemed to have trusted my siblings not to sell me to some passing caravan. Living on Maryland Avenue was a romantic time of life in a Norman Rockwell setting. As I grew older, something notable changed. I began to make decisions for myself. I went to school and graduated from high school. After three years in the Army, I went to college. A few years later, I met a beautiful young lady who had experienced the same life beginnings as I. We married and were blessed with four beautiful children. They shared the same life beginnings as we did.
The beginning of a person’s life is not under their control. A child is born because of the choice of two people. They have no say, power, or influence to decide yes or no. When a child is born, the choice has been made by two people. As a young infant, the child cannot fend for themselves, requiring the attention and care of others. If a baby is left without care, they will die. This law of life is true for everyone. I speak English because I was born in an English-speaking country. If a child is born in China, they will be influenced by the Chinese culture. Every nation brings children into the world under that culture’s influence. The common factor for every human being is that no one has a choice about whether they are born.
There is a story told of a man who sued his parents for not asking him if he wanted to be born. Anyone can see the absurdity of this question. It reminds us that our beginnings came without choice. God designed the world in this fashion. When a child is conceived in the womb, God sees the child form and grow through His divine knowledge. God gives life to the seed to produce a human being. Man does not give life to the seed. Life comes from God alone. What is remarkable about the birth of a child is that, through the power of God, a man, and woman conceive a child that will become a full-size human being who will engage in life’s activities and never cease to exist. The world is full of more than eight billion souls who have come from the womb. Again, none of these billions of souls had a choice about birth.
The common factor shared by everyone is that while there was no choice about birth, God has given man a choice about another birth. Ironically, another birth that all humanity will experience is the eternal birth. Everyone is an immortal creature that will never cease to exist. An eternal birth takes place when the body ceases from life and dies. It must be noted that death kills the body, but it does not destroy the eternal nature of a human being. When I became conscious of who and what I was, I became accountable to the God who formed me. These past sixty-eight years have been a process of choice. I made good choices, bad choices, and terrible choices. Bill Hall said that life is not about the absence of regrets but the desire to live with the fewest of regrets. That has been hard to follow.
Every person enters a time of accountability to God regardless of gender, nationality, or historical time of birth. Life begins without a choice, but it will end with a choice. I had no control over my physical birth, but everything that has to do with my eternal birth is my decision and mine alone. Jesus came to offer the world a better way to choose, one that comes with everlasting life and joy. The gospel of two declares the choice of eternity is either in Heaven with God or Hell with the devil. I cannot change what has brought me into this world, but I must choose where I will spend eternity. God has given me the ability to choose right and wrong. If I choose evil, I am to blame. Jesus has provided a way for me to know a life that will set me free.
The sadness of the world is to know how many billions of people die each day unprepared for a choice they could have made. No one has power over their birth, but everyone controls their destiny. God loved the world so much that He gave His only begotten Son to show men the right choice. Celebrating a birthday is a wonderful experience; by God’s grace, more will be shared. I know I will one day remove this earthly garment of flesh and enter a world without words. The only thing that will matter is being found in Christ. That will bring joy to the choice I have made to serve the Lord. Happy birthday, friend. Are you making the right choice?
Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were astonished at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, “Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mark 10:23-25)
Trusting In The Wrong Things
Riches and wealth have been around since the beginning of time. Man is the only creature to give his life for gold in a river. A bear, walking in the same river and seeing the same gold, will only look for a fish. He will not heed the glistening of the gold because he knows there is no value in something that will not sustain life. The bear desires to feed his stomach to survive. Gold will not do that. Wars have been fought over riches. Money has ruined families, destroyed friendships, and led to murder, drugs, and prostitution. Men have spent their lives amassing the largest cache of money possible and leaving it all when they die.
There is nothing inherently wrong with riches. Currency is required to conduct business, whether it is salt, precious jewels, or paper currency. A modern version is trying to use electronics as money. A piece of paper backed by authority is worth its face value. When the United States was divided as a country, the southern states created their own currency that became worthless after the war. Those who trusted in the Confederate dollar were left empty. The worth of money rises and falls. World economies influence world currencies, making some rich and some poor. Trusting in riches is a fickle experience.
Jesus had watched a wealthy man walk away from Him. The man came to Jesus seeking eternal life. He understood there was more to life than the world he knew and wanted to secure a place in eternity. After Jesus told him what he needed to do to be saved, he walked away sorrowfully. He was unwilling to part with his riches. The wealth he was accustomed to was his security blanket. As a Jew, he was an obedient child of God, living under the covenant of the Law of Moses with a clear devotion to duty. He failed because he believed wealth was more important than his relationship with God.
Trust is a pattern of thought that embeds one’s belief in a certain area with an exclusion of other things. Riches and wealth can be used for many good things, which is commendable before God. Many of the great people of scripture were very wealthy, including Job, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Boaz, and Saul of Tarsus at one time. Jesus said it was hard for the rich to enter the kingdom of God. Wealthy people can become Christians, but the riches of this life can hinder obedience. If a man trusts in wealth instead of God, he cannot be a disciple of Jesus.
The rich man was told to sell all his wealth, give his money (all of it) to the poor, and follow Jesus. He could not let go of his wealth to follow Jesus. Sadly, he died and left all his riches and was not rich for eternity. He trusted too much in something worthless. Money has such a strong pull over people’s hearts that many will never obey the gospel because they love money. The greed of another dollar drives people to work jobs that rob them of their spirituality. They believe their happiness comes from houses, cars, boats, recreation, and the newest toys. Jesus teaches that if a man trusts in riches, he cannot be a disciple of God. The two are not compatible or comparable.
It matters what a person trusts in for his hope. There is nothing in this world worth holding on to because all things of this life will disappear. The hope of Christ and the love of God will endure forever and will bring the wealth of eternity. If there is a lesson from the story of the rich ruler, trust in God and leave the riches for the blessings shared with others. Trusting in God brings happiness. Riches will never bring you true happiness.
Then Gideon made it into an ephod and set it up in his city, Ophrah. And all Israel played the harlot with it there. It became a snare to Gideon and to his house. (Judges 8:27)
Making Something Evil Out Of Something Good
Gideon led the people of Israel to a great victory over the Midianites, Amalekites, and all the people of the East in a battle that heavily favored the enemy. The armies against Gideon were as numerous as locusts, and their camels were without number. Gideon faced an army that was like the sand by the seashore in multitude. Through the power and grace of God, Gideon led an assault group of three hundred men armed with trumpets in every man’s hand, with empty pitchers and torches inside the pitchers.
At the beginning of the middle watch, the forces under Gideon blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands. This terrified the enemy, who began to run around in confusion and fear, killing everyone in their way. What the enemy did not realize was that they were killing their own men. The Lord set every man’s sword against his companion throughout the whole camp. In the confusion, the army fled away, closely followed by the people of God. More than one hundred and twenty thousand men died that day, routing the enemy with a great victory.
When the battle was over, Gideon asked a favor of the people. He wanted the earrings from the plunder to be given to him. The earrings were made of gold from the people who were Ishmaelites. They spread out a garment, and each man threw the earrings from his plunder into it. The gold earrings weighed forty-three pounds, not including the royal ornaments and pendants, the purple clothing worn by the kings of Midian, or the chains around the necks of their camels. Gideon made an ephod and set it up in his city, Ophrah. An ephod is “a close-fitting outer garment associated with worship. It was a kind of long vest, generally reaching to the thighs.” (Vines)
Whatever the design of the ephod would become, it symbolized the success of the people of God over an enemy that could not have been defeated without the help of God. In hindsight, it may have been better not to create the ephod as it became a snare to Gideon and the people who worshipped it as an idol. Remarkably, the people played the harlot with it, meaning they used the ephod as an outward emblem to give reverence and glory. This would take the hearts of the people away from true worship and lead them to fall back into idol worship of Baal immediately after the death of Gideon. The people of Israel did not remember the Lord their God, who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies that surrounded them. Furthermore, after the death of Gideon, the people discounted and reviled Gideon’s family.
The human heart tends to take something good and make it evil. The ephod of Gideon could have been a symbol of God’s power, but it turned into a stumbling block. It seems the heart wants to connect to some outward emblem instead of finding the true worship that begins in spirit and truth. The cross is a powerful image of God’s love and grace. For many, it becomes a piece of jewelry contradicting the image of the individual’s lifestyle. It seems that wearing a cross will make one holy. A building can become an ephod. People can be worshiped in such a way the glory of God is dimmed. Rituals will become more relevant than truth.
There are many ephods in the world that satisfy the soul, but God is not pleased. The staff Moses made to stop the plague became a symbol of idolatry and was named Nehushtan. Hezekiah destroyed it during his reign. People still look for the Ark of Noah and the Ark of the Covenant. The Roman Catholic Church is filled with ephods claiming to be the cross of Jesus to His supposed shroud and thousands of other relics. Putting gold on an idol does not change it from being idolatry. Jesus Christ is to be worshiped, and He needs no ephods to clarify who He is. God has given man the Bible to know the truth about worship. Put away the ephods and worship the one true God as He commands.
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. (Hebrews 11:8-10)
Abraham – Faith Leaves Everything Behind
Abraham was a man of faith who believed in the promises of God. His faith was like that of Abel, Enoch, and Noah, who understood the importance of true worship. Abraham was a man who trusted what God said to be the right answer regardless of what human wisdom would suggest. Moses writes that Abraham was seventy-five years old when God called him. Abraham’s calling was not just to move his family from one place to another. God tested Abraham’s faith by telling him to go out to a place to receive an inheritance without knowing where that place was and the purpose of the promise. Abraham could not imagine it would take twenty-five years for the reality of God’s promise to be fully shown in the birth of Isaac.
Faith is not an act that a man does without some evidence. There is an invisible attribute of the character of God that is embraced without doubt and becomes evidentiary. Abraham’s faith did not develop when he was seventy-five. Abraham’s life was dedicated to worshiping God in spirit and truth and trusting that what God promised was real. Abraham had a history with the Lord. He relied on that history to formulate his faith that when the Lord came to him and told him to go out to a place he would receive as an inheritance, he immediately took up the journey without knowing where he was going. Why would Abraham take his family and make such a journey? His faith had been established that God’s word was always right. He did not understand the motives behind the request of the Lord, but he did not argue. There was no reason to argue because he acted as a man who knew God was right about everything.
Abraham would live to be one hundred and seventy-five years old. God called him at seventy-five, but the promise of Isaac was not fulfilled until Abraham turned one hundred. He would live another seventy-five years after the promise of a son was fulfilled. Isaac was seventy-five when his father died. The final one hundred years of his life were spent living in tents in a land he never possessed as his own or realized the formation of a nation from his seed. Of the three promises God gave Abraham, he only realized one but gained the others in faith. He did not complain to God about coming up short on the promises. The Lord had told him the land of Canaan would be given to him and that his seed would make a great nation. On a starlit night, God told Abraham his seed would be as numerous as the stars in the heavens. Abraham did not live long enough to realize those promises but gained them in faith.
The faith of Abraham believed in something he did not see but knew by the word of God that all that was promised by the Lord was true. Hope springs from the fountain of faith, pouring the waters of belief in the heart to wait for something unseen. It is real because God promised it. Abraham looked for the city of hope, whose builder and maker is God, and upon the foundation of belief, made the promises true. That is our faith. There are many promises God has made, and He will keep all those promises if we have faith like Abraham. My faith must be that I am willing to leave everything to gain Christ. The land of promise is yet to come. We see that promise realized by faith and live each day with great faith like Abraham. Pack your bags. We have somewhere to go.
So David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?” Then the young man who told him said, “As I happened by chance to be on Mount Gilboa, there was Saul, leaning on his spear; and indeed the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him. Now when he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I answered, ‘Here I am.’ And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ So I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’ He said to me again, ‘Please stand over me and kill me, for anguish has come upon me, but my life still remains in me.’ So I stood over him and killed him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my Lord.” (2 Samuel 1:5-10)
The Consequence Of Lying
Saul was the anointed of God as King of Israel. As the leader of the nation of the Lord, Saul held a position of prominence before the Lord God as leader of His people. His reign would last for forty years and was marked with a spirit of disobedience and arrogance. Saul hated David. Much of Saul’s reign was spent chasing David like a flea in the wilderness. On more than one occasion, David had the opportunity to kill his foe but refused to lay a hand on the anointed of God. David respected the will of the Lord, choosing not to defile the divine ordinance that placed Saul on the throne.
The Philistines fought against Israel with fierce combat, killing many of the Israelite soldiers. Three of Saul’s sons were killed: Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua. Following hard after Saul, archers hit him and severely wounded him. When David returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, a messenger came to him on the third day. The man’s clothes were torn, and his head was covered in dust. He tells David he has come from the camp of Israel and the battle had not gone well for the people. The man tells David that Saul and Jonathan are dead. To ensure the news was accurate, David asked the man how he knew Saul was dead. The man relates the events of Saul’s death.
Mount Gilboa was the place where Saul died. The stranger was on the mountain by chance and noticed the king leaning on his spear with the chariots and horsemen following hard after him. Saul called out to the man, asking who he was. The man told Saul he was an Amalekite. Saul asked the man to stand over him and kill him. So, the man obeyed the king and killed him. He took his crown and bracelet to prove the king was dead and came to David with the news. Later that evening, David calls for the man and asks him why he killed the anointed of the Lord. Then, David called to one of his soldiers to execute the man, which he did.
David executed the man because he had defiled the covenant of God and killed the anointed of the Lord. Unknown to David, the story the man told was a lie. He did not kill Saul. As the battle grew fierce with the Philistines pressing hard on him, Saul, mortally wounded, commanded his armorbearer to kill him with his sword. The armorbearer refused because he was greatly afraid. It could have been the armorbearer understood the nature of God’s anointed and refused to obey the word of the king. Finding no other alternative, Saul took a sword and fell on it. The Philistines killed the armorbearer that same day.
The Amalekite sought glory for killing Saul and was executed. His lie was for his own self-glory, seeking favor with David. The man did not realize that David’s character was just and truthful. It is possible David did not believe the man’s story. Bragging about killing Saul was a death sentence for harming the anointed of God. Lying served its own purpose. In the account of the early church, Ananias and Sapphira lied to God and were struck down immediately.
Thankfully, God does not strike down liars because fewer people would walk the face of the earth. Lying is a natural part of life that can easily be done without guilt. In some circles, lying is expected and demanded. The problem is the same as the Amalekite. God hates lying. He will not strike someone down if they lie, but those lies will not be forgotten. Liars are always included in the list of those cast into the lake of fire. The sins of the Amalekite were found out at the throne of God when David had him killed. Lie in this life and you will not stand before God guiltless. And be reminded the difference between a white lie and any other convenient lie is still a lie, and God hates lies.
Put them in fear, O Lord, that the nations may know themselves to be but men. (Psalm 9:20)
David’s Foreign Policy
The king of Israel knew very little about the world outside his domain. Israel had been a nation for just over four hundred years, with only three kings ruling over a united country. It would be another thousand years before the Roman Empire would rule the world, and the Son of God would come. Knowledge of the nations was limited, but David understood that one important characteristic of all people is that no matter how great the nation or powerful the army, every nation is made of men.
David battled the Philistines throughout his rule. He had read of the ancient Egyptians through the writings of Moses. The threat of the Assyrians and Babylonians was hundreds of years away. God would use Gentile nations to punish His people for disobedience. During the time of the Roman Empire, the eternal plan for the salvation of humanity was established, and the kingdom of God began in Jerusalem. The church has been in existence for two thousand years. It will continue without interruption until the coming of Jesus. Nothing will destroy the kingdom of God. That is not the case with the kingdoms of men.
Nations are the representative power of a collective people forming a united purpose and mind under a common belief. Great nations have ruled the world. The world has been engulfed in flames from nations that desired global power. At the end of the day, every nation is nothing but dust in the bucket from the eyes of God and formed by man with all the weaknesses and frailties of the human spirit. God allowed nations to be formed following the failed attempt to build a tower to the heavens. The Tower of Babel is so named because it was where the tongues of the nations were created, and each tongue began its own distinctive society. All the nations of the world derived from the land of Shinar.
David ruled over the greatest nation in the world because God was the king. When the people of Israel obeyed the will of God, no nation could stand before them. Solomon took the nation to the greatest it had ever been, and even the Queen of Sheba was awe-struck. After the death of Solomon, the nation divided, and the Assyrians destroyed the northern ten tribes. The Babylonians conquered the remaining Jews, and Israel was never independent again until the final destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. Israel forgot God, and God broke His covenant with them.
Every nation is made up of men who serve at the will of God. The Lord raises nations to His will, and He destroys nations. There are no “superpowers” because at the greatest height of a nation’s glory, God reminds them, they are “superpower dust.” Every nation should fear God because they are but men. Despots have tried to rule the world and failed because God is greater. There will never be a time when one nation will rule the world. God will not permit it because nations are made up of men.
Sometimes, men fear what the future will hold in the politics of the world. David gave the answer three thousand years ago. Any nation that forgets God will perish. All nations are made up of men who will fail without God. Only when a people fear the Lord for His righteousness and truth will a nation be exalted. History is the great storyteller of all the nations that thought themselves greater than God and found themselves to be men. There is comfort in knowing how great God is and how small man is. God’s love is to care for His people. He wants to exalt them. Nations are nothing but dust, but the dust God used to create man is His objective. He sent His Son to die for the man of dust. Thank God for His love.
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)
Walking In Ephesians
John Wayne had one of the most iconic walks in movie history. No matter what role he played, his cowboy swagger was identifiable immediately. Everyone is known by the way they walk in the world. This can be explained as their influence, example, pattern, or character to be known for a trait that identifies them. Some people are known as being cranky because they are always fussy and ill-tempered. A woman can be perceived as a flirt or a man a conceited bore who worships himself. Others are known as honorable people because of their truthfulness. Happy people are easily identified with dispositions of laughter. The world is filled with millions of personalities defined by how they walk in life. A person’s gait can define them not only in a physical way but also in how they walk before the Lord.
Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church was a message of walking before the Lord. He reminds the saints that they are the workmanship of Jesus Christ, who created them for good works. Living in Ephesus as a Christian was a difficult life because of the idolatry and paganism that filled society. Paul wanted the Christians to remember that their example before others was paramount to showing the world the light of Jesus. Walking in the footsteps of Jesus would make them different than the world around them.
In the face of a hostile world, Christians must walk worthy of the calling with which they were called. Jesus redeemed the Christian from God’s wrath, and the saved must show their love for God by walking as the redeemed. Paul was in prison when he wrote his letter to Ephesus. This should admonish the saints to consider his example of walking in a manner worthy of Christ as a prisoner. He did not revile or curse his captors. Paul’s example was one of faith, whether in prison or not. Some were put in prison and sought revenge with ungodliness. The heart of the Gentile was to act like the world and try to get even with those who troubled them. Paul reminds Christians that their walk in the Lord differs from those who walk in the futility of the mind.
To walk in Christ is to walk in love. The life of the Christian is motivated by the love of Christ. When Christians leave an example in their community, they are known as people of love because they walk in love. Their walk has no harshness, cursing, murmuring, complaining, or ungodly speech. When people see the Christian’s walk of life, they realize a life changed by the One who gave Himself up for them as an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. The Christian walk has an aroma to it. It reflects the scent of godliness.
The world walks in darkness, but the Christians walk in the light. Those who walk in darkness cannot see where they are going. They live without hope, full of despair in a world that is not kind to them. For Christians, the light is the only place to walk because they can see clearly everything God reveals to them. Walking as children of light means carrying the light of Christ in their lives and illuminating their community with the grace of God. Those in darkness will always see a light because they stand in contrast to the darkness. Walking in the light means abiding by the doctrines of Christ as the measure of their life path.
Finally, Paul wants the saints to walk with a careful (circumspect) mind about them. Walking requires an awareness of the surroundings. If a man chooses to walk without concern for how he is and where he is walking, he will always find trouble. Walking circumspectly is to walk with a careful spirit. In the Christian life, walking with an awareness of God and His Son in the Holy Spirit will help to keep one from the evil one. Satan is a force to be reckoned with and never taken lightly. Without careful steps, the devil will cause one to follow the wrong path. Being mindful of each step will guard the heart and help it follow the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
The real question is, what does God see in my walk of life? Secondarily, what does the world see? Everyone has a walk of life, and impressions are left to our character and heart with each walk. God wants to see His children walking in the light as people redeemed by the blood of His Son. It is impossible to walk in the light and walk in darkness. If you are walking and it is dark where you are, you are in the wrong place. Walk in the light. That is the way God wants His children to walk. Walk in the workmanship of God, worthy of the calling to which you were called, and stop walking like those in the world. The Christian walks in love, walks as children of light, and walks with wisdom. How are you walking?
The Heaton File 