Elijah on the Move

Quick lessons from Elijah in 1 Kings 19:

Elijah had just been the architect of massive showdown verse the prophets of Baal. God showed the people who was God by bringing fire down at ELijah's word and then Elijah had the people kill all 450 prophets of Baal. This incurred the wrath of the Queen Jezebel. She wanted Elijah dead.

Elijah gets scared and runs to the wilderness. God send His angel to tenderly feed him and take care of him. Elijah is strengthened by the food and goes 40 days and 40 nights to Mt. Horeb. There he finds a cave and God asks: What are you doing here?" Then God passes by and He is not in the Wind, the earthquake or the fire but in the small voice that Elijah hears.

Then God tells him what to do: Go and annoint two Kings and the prophet Elisha. Which Elijah does.

1. Sometimes God leads us on and makes us obey and then reveals His will for us. Elijah had to follow God and seek Him and travel where God wanted and then hear God's plan.

2. God is separate from the miracles he causes to occur. He is the still small voice not the blazing fire, earthquake or wind. We need to ask God to be able to hear His voice. Let us seek Him and not just the big spectacular occurences God can bring about.

3. We are not alone even if we think we are alone. God is with His people and always has other believers. Let us pray for our fellow believers.

4. Sometimes God gives us only enough for our need now and for the immediate future. Elijah was fed twice for the 40 day journey.

5. The best news: God wants to use us in exciting ways. We must be pure and not regard sin in our life, even a small amount. God will use us for His purposes and this is the best blessing of all.

Go! Mt.16:13-20

Jesus asked his disciples who men said that he was. Some people at that time believed Jesus to be John the Baptist or Elijah or Jeremiah or one of the prophets. Then Jesus asked the disciples who they thought he was. Peter replied "You are the Christ! The son of living God!" Mt. 16:13-20.

I was thinking this could be used on non-Christians as a way to tell them the good news of how to be saved. Ask them for their understanding of who the world thinks Jesus is and then gently ask them who they think Jesus is. Then hopefully a way would be open to share the gospel. This would take some boldness. I pray I could have that boldness and bear fruit for God.

Another interesting thing about that passage is that it is God who reveals who Jesus is. We cannot understand Jesus or who he is without God revealing it to us. Their is no room for boasting in our knowledge of God. It all comes from Him.

James says....James 4:1-2

James says our lust creates fights, wars and quarrels within ourselves and with other people. We lust and then we fight. We lust after things and we don't get them and we get mad and angry and irritable and selfish. Ja. 4;1-2 This has been happening to me for years. All of sudden I am fighting with my wife or my kids or I am mad and i don't even know why.

By forsaking all lust, God has showed me that it was my lust that was ruining my life and my relationships. Oswald Chambers says when we obey God's commands, God gives us clarity and understanding. Our obedience gets rid of confusion. I can attest this is so true. Wholeheartedly obey Jesus. With all your heart get rid of the little sins that are hidden inside of you. Then you will see clearly. As Jesus said, take the plank out of your own eye then you will see clearly to cast the speck out of your brother. Mt. 7: 3-5

Lust is selfish and selfishness leads to quarrels and greed and idolatry. Get rid of all lust. Not a little bit but all of it. Purpose in your heart to not go back to lust, not even in a small way.
Let Jesus be glorified.

Little Foxes have ruined my vineyard!

September 14, 2009

God is Holy! Holy, Holy Holy is the Lord God Almighty!
There is no sin in Him! None at all. He has no evil.
Jesus is Lord! He is the sinless Son of God who reigns forever!
He is the Savior of all who believe in Him!

God's holiness has been a hard lesson for me to learn. I've been saved for 25 years.
I believed in Jesus back in November 1983. He showed me my sin and I believed in Him and called on the name of Jesus for salvation. He cleansed and forgave all my sin. I was filled with the Holy Spirit. I started to grow in Jesus and forsake all my sin. I learned to walk with Him.

However, somehow I never really committed with all my heart. I 've kept the sin of lust around for these past 25 years and I know God has struck the work of my hands for it. He has caused me to never be that successful but always stuck because I kept lust in my heart. But now I repent of even the littlest amount of lust. I forsake all lust. I want to be pure as He is pure. I want to be Holy as He is Holy. I want to be perfect as He is perfect. No more looking at women for even a second or gazing at a suggestive image or movie or TV show.

God help me and all who read this to be Holy and blameless. Flee even thoughts of sexual immorality. Remember a few dead flies ruin the perfume and its the little foxes that ruin the vineyard (Song of Solomon).

I am shocked and saddened that is has taken me this long to really commit to not lusting. How blinded I have been. Gad have mercy on me and all who are enslaved by lust and sin.