Did We Forget? (Jul 27)

Joshua 18:1-3

1 And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them. 2 And there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes, which had not yet received their inheritance. 3 And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the LORD God of your fathers hath given you?

It's time to come back to God. It's time to return to looking for Him and seeking to know Him. I look around and I see people that have forgotten where they're going and also perhaps forgotten from whence they came. I see people distracted by something else, that have lost sight of the true goal. I see people that were once very excited about God's Word and the journey that they were on to grow in faith and be in fellowship with God and His people. I see people that have become caught up with smaller issues and forgotten the overall plan of God for their lives. I can think of specific instances where certain people came excited to hear God's Word; they participated; they hung on every word—their countenance proclaiming the great work that God was doing in their hearts. I look now and see people that don't care to be here; they don't care to hear anything; there seems to be little or no interest in the lesson / sermon / etc. and that God is desiring to do great things.

You know, when you go on a trip, you have a point of origin and a destination. There is probably going to be a lot of stuff along the way—some of it interesting, some of it fun, maybe some of it difficult—but you've basically got a trip from here to there. Now doesn't it sound silly to forget your destination somewhere mid-trip? I'm not talking about getting lost. I'm talking about going somewhere different and abandoning your original plan. I'm talking about getting so very close to the destination but doing something different when you get there instead of what was on your itinerary. We don't normally do that sort of thing. Last May, when my grandmother died, I packed up my car, went and picked up my sister and brother-in-law and all their stuff, and headed out for St. Clair Shores, Michigan. I had the trip all laid out in my head—US-422W, I-79N, I-80W, I-280N, I-75N, I-275N, I-696E, 11 Mile Rd E, Jefferson Ave N—and I stuck to the plan. Did I get distracted by some other destination along the way and just abandon my trip and do something else? No! I had a purpose for the trip (and I also had other people depending on me to help them get to the destination as well).

I look around and I see people that planned out the trip, thought a lot about it, and even packed their cars, but never got on the road. I see people that got all the way there and did something else instead of the intended plan. I see people that stopped at a rest stop half-way or three quarters of the way there and felt so comfortable, that they never got back on the road. Did we forget where we're going?? Did we forget that there was something (or someOne) that we were looking for? Did we forget the goal—forget the plan—forget the purpose? Did we forget where we came from—that there was a reason that we wanted to seek God—that we were lacking and needed God's salvation? Did we forget?

Revelation 2:2-5

2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: 3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. 4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

Choose Life (Jul 20)

Deuteronomy 30

1 And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee,

2 And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;

3 That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.

4 If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the LORD thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:

5 And the LORD thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.

6 And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

7 And the LORD thy God will put all these curses upon thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, which persecuted thee.

8 And thou shalt return and obey the voice of the LORD, and do all his commandments which I command thee this day.

9 And the LORD thy God will make thee plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, for good: for the LORD will again rejoice over thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers:

10 If thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, and if thou turn unto the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.

11 For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off.

12 It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it?

13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it?

14 But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.

15 See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;

16 In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it.

17 But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them;

18 I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it.

19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

20 That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

Returning to Your Vomit? (Jul 13)

The other day, I was doing a few things in the basement. I turned to get some water from the utility tub and was startled to see a baby mouse huddled in the corner of the tub. It looked scared because it couldn't find a way out of the tub. I found a box and scooped it up and took it outside. I took it to the far end of the yard and let it out in the ditch that is filled with weeds, brush, and trees. I figured that was a better spot than in the basement, and certainly better than the utility tub! A few days later, I was once again in the basement, and I looked in the utility tub and sure enough, there were now two mice in the tub. One was dead and the other was curled in a tiny ball in the corner. Once again, I grabbed a box, scooped both of them into it, and then left them both in the brush at the far end of the yard. Now, I doubt that either one was the same mouse that I had freed days earlier, but it struck me that I could rescue a mouse from the tub one day only to find a mouse in the same predicament again days later.

Let's suppose (or pretend) that one of them was the same mouse. The utility tub acted as an entrapment that meant certain, albeit eventual, death for the mouse. I don't know if it fell in or if there was something in the tub that was attracting it there, but it appears that the mouse went into the tub for some reason, not knowing that there was no way back out. How many times would I have to rescue the mouse from this entrapment before it was too late and the mouse succumbed to death? Remember, one of the mice was dead, and it probably wasn't long before the other would have been as well.

Proverbs 26:11

As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool returns to his folly.

I know that this is a gross analogy, but I'm sure we've all seen a dog do it. After they throw up, they turn back to it like it's a special treat. We would never do this and are disgusted at the very thought. But the scriptures say that just as the dog returns to this disgusting thing, the fool returns to his folly. A fool can be warned about and turned away from his folly, but sooner or later, he will return and once again be ensnared by his former trappings. How many times must this fool be rescued from his folly before it becomes his demise? It would be wise for him to take heed to the warnings and leave his place of sin, never to return. But that is not what happens. Against all common sense, the fool returns to his folly. As silly as it seems for the dog to return to his vomit, how often do you and I hear warnings in the Word of God against something that is in our life, we receive that Word and we proclaim our intended change with our mouths, and perhaps we even allow the change into our heart and life for awhile, but then we return, just like that dog, to our former sins. This is foolish! The mouse may be rescued from the utility tub time and time again, but remember, the one mouse died! It's not OK to return to sin again and again. God is merciful, but let's not mock him by returning to folly again and again, each time hoping in the back of our minds that God will pull us out one more time before it's too late and all hope is lost.

Do you know about a sin in your heart? Have you turned away from it for a time, only to let it back in? Do you have an ongoing struggle with something that isn't pure and holy because you won't surrender completely to God? Do you have that frustrated feeling of failure when an issue or temptation that you thought you had dealt with suddenly pops up again in your life? The fool returns to his folly. But don't give up hope. If you come to Him and give Him your (whole) life, He will save you! He is able to KEEP you from falling...from going back to the vomit...if you trust Him!

Jude 24-25

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

Psalm 80:17-19

17 Let thy hand be upon the man of thy right hand, upon the son of man whom thou madest strong for thyself. 18 So will not we go back from thee: quicken us, and we will call upon thy name. 19 Turn us again, O LORD God of hosts, cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.

Religious Murder (Jul 6)

Instead of sharing a lesson today, I would like to have a guest speaker. Neil Rhodes shared a message entitled “Religious Murder” on September 4, 2007, at Times Square Church. Please take the time to listen to the message, as I'm sure that God has some things for us to hear today.

http://media.tscnyc.org/mp3/2070904T1.mp3

Times Square Church:

http://www.tscnyc.org