July 13

JOSHUA 18-19
Go, walk through the land, survey it, and come back to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the LORD in Shiloh. The Lord allotted to them a possession. It was their privilege to walk through it and obtain it for themselves. In so doing, they would be fulfilling the glory of the Lord. We find that even Joshua received a possession. He claimed it and built Timnath Serah. Does the Lord have a possession for us? Is it to be surveyed and claimed? Is it to be done for His glory? Obviously the answer to the last question is, “Yes.” The answer to all the questions is, “Yes.” We have a spiritual possession which the Lord has set aside for us. He expects us to claim it and use it for His glory. It consists of many things and people. It includes our families, our talents, our spiritual gifts, our natural gifts, our finances, our desires, our needs, our neighborhoods. Have we every surveyed them? Do we even know what is available? When we know what is available do we know what it means to claim them for His glory? When we claim them for His glory do we know what it means to build them for His glory?
Joshua built a city for the glory of God. It was called Timnath Serah. It was in the mountains of Ephraim southwest of Shechem. This is the same place as Timnath Heres. The Nelson Electronic Dictionary says,

“Some scholars suggest that the consonants for Heres (hrs) were deliberately written backwards as Serah (srh) as a reminder of these pagan worship practices.”

How about that? Joshua took a place that was filled with pagan worship, surveyed it, claimed it for the glory of God, rebuilt it and reversed its name, all for the glory of God! Is that not a picture of what we should be about? Should not all that God has given us be surveyed, claimed and rebuilt for the glory of our King? Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

PSALM 12
A friend of mine was just in my office. He is constantly flattering me. I presume he does it because he thinks that I will help him more if he flatters me all the time. I hope he is incorrect. I hope that what I do is done because it is what Jesus would have me do. Sometimes I just want to tell him to shut up, but that would be rude. Maybe I should tell him that the Psalmist asks the Lord to cut off all flattering lips. Now that evokes a gross mental picture. Flattering lips mix truth with exaggeration in order to manipulate the one being flattered into action that the flatterer desires.
The words of the Lord are pure words. What does that mean? I was looking at some of the cross references for this. Consider these verses:

2 Samuel 22:31 As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the LORD is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him.

Psalm 18:31 As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the LORD is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him.
Psalm 19:8b The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes;
Proverbs 30:5 Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.

Pure and proven refer to the refiner’s fire. The refiner brings the metal to its melting point where the different metals or impurities separate. He is then able separate them and gain only the metal desired. Pure words are not mixed with any false meaning. The Lord does not exaggerate His words in order to manipulate us into doing what He desires. Yes, He occasionally uses the figure of speech called hyperbole, but He does not do it to manipulate us into obeying Him. He commands us.
It is interesting to me that the pure words of our Lord become a shield to us if we trust Him. Shield from what? They protect me from walking in a path of wickedness. His words tell me that He has loved me with an everlasting love. That tells me that I am valuable in His sight and motivates me to seek Him. His words also tell me that He is a jealous God and won’t forever strive with my sin and foolishness. That tells me that I do have sin and foolishness, and I had better not mess with it. His words tell me what that sin is. If I trust and listen, His words protect me from a path of foolishness and sin then end of which is waste and death. Thank You, Lord, that your words are pure. Enable me to listen to Your words and trust in You. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

JEREMIAH 38
In Matthew 10:39 Jesus says, “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.” Zedekiah is an interesting case study in this principle in life. Zedekiah desperately wanted to remain king. He wanted that more than obedience to the Lord. He had a choice, hang on to what he wanted, or let go and submit to the king of Babylon. If he were to let go, the Lord promised him life. If not, well we will soon see what happened to Zedekiah. Ultimately, he hung on to his life and lost it.
As I write, I have a friend who is struggling with this same issue. We worked with him to get him to a point where he was almost on his own feet again. Then, in a desperate attempt to provide his own companionship, he lost most of the headway that he had made. You see, he wasn’t willing to lose his life. Now he is struggling with the depression over another failure and again waffling with losing his own life. Do we not do the same thing? Our choices are just more culturally acceptable than his were. It is the glory of the Lord that He should enable us to lose our lives in HIM! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

ACTS 18
Why did the Lord appear to Paul in the night by a vision to encourage him to not be afraid? He must have been very afraid. Remember, he had been stoned and left for dead in Lystra on his first journey. He had been jailed in Philippi. He had been run out of town in a number of various other towns. He had been laughed out of town in Athens. His opposition has followed him to Corinth. I think I'd be afraid and intimidated also. Apparently it was so bad for Paul that he needed the personal encouragement from the Lord. Our Lord knows just what we need and when we need it. He always gives it just at the appropriate time.
We also find this story concerning Apollos, an eloquent man mighty in Scriptures. The Lord adds him to the company of those who are planting and encouraging churches. What was his giftedness? He vigorously refuted those who denied Jesus as the Messiah. He also showed from Scripture that Jesus is the Christ. Now there is Paul, Silas and Timothy; Barnabas and John Mark, Aquilla, Priscilla and Apollos. Our Lord continued to safeguard and raise up people to make disciples of all ethnic groups. He continues to do so today, for His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John