The Carpenter's Chapel (7)

"Thy words were found, and I did eat them: and thy word was unto me the
joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God
of hosts" (Jeremiah 15:16).
People today seem always to be looking for fun and entertainment, but it
is significant that "fun" is never mentioned in the Bible, so it is
evidently not considered to be a very significant part of the Christian
life. The word "entertain" is used to speak of hospitality, and such
activities as "play" and "reveling" only receive condemnation.
("Playing" is appropriate for children and animals, of course.)
Chriatians, however, have something far better than worldly fun-they
have heavenly joy! This is the unique privilage of the redeemed, and
there are many channels through which this joy can be experienced.
First of all, Christian joy comes through the Word. As even Jeremiah
(the weeping prophet") could say: "Thy word was unto me the joy and
rejoicing of my heart," as in our text.
Then we rejoice in God's great salvation: "I will greatly rejoice in the
Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He hath clothed me in the
garments of salvation" (Isaiah 61:10).
There is great joy in the privilege of prayer and having our prayers
answered: "Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall
receive that your joy may be full" (John 16:24). Christian service and
witnessing is a source of tremendous joy when its fruits are finally
seen. "They that sow in tears shall reao in joy. He that goeth forth and
weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with
rejoicing, bring his sheaves with him" (Psalm 126:5-6).
And there is much more! "Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say,
Rejoice" (Philippians 4;4). After, all, we know personally the very
creator of all that was good. "In whom, though ye see Him not, yet
believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory" (1Peter
1:8).

 

Friday, 13th January. 2006

Thou art the man

“And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man …” - 2 Samuel 1v7

Things went along nice and smoothly for King David. He had covered over his sin and things were back to normal in the palace with yet another wife.

One day the prophet Nathan came to see the king. He told him a story about a rich man who had taken advantage of a poor man by taking his sheep. The king’s response was justifiable anger – “The man must be killed for his action!”

The Nathan said for little words that must have hit David like a ton of bricks – “You are the man!” One can almost sense David’s feelings when he heard these words. He knew immediately what Nathan was talking about. The sin he thought he had so carefully hidden was now out in the open. He could not hide them from God and now his sin was to be judged.

I recently saw a television programme about a man who had killed another twenty years previous to the story. At the time of the murder he was on drugs, but had sorted his life out. Eventually however, due to a thorough investigation of the crime scene the facts time to light and the murderer went to jail. This was a very clear picture of a Bible truth David had forgotten, “Be sure your sins will find you out!”

 

Monday January 16, 2006

"Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach it to the children
of Israel: put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for
me against the children of Israel" (Deuteronomy 31:19).
The book of Psalms was essentially a songbook for Old Testament and New
Testament Jews, while other songs are scattered throughout Scripture
written by a variety of prophets and leaders. Our text tells us that the
Lord commanded Moses and Joshua to write aspects of the Law and details
of God's dealigs with the nation, as well as His promise of judgement,
should they disobey-in a song.
The song would serve several functions. First, it would be a memory
device. "It shall not be forgotten out of the mouths of their seed"
(v.21). Those who have been around good church music probably know many
portions of Scripture set to music, including the grand old hymns of the
faith which are frequently conglomerates of many verses around a
doctrinal theme. Many of us probably have memorized without trying, and
maybe without realizing it, many, many Scripture verses. In fact, this
may be the very best way to build Biblical principles into the lives of
our children.
The second function of Moses' song would be to convict those in
disobedience (32:7,47, etc.) As with the people of Israel, our hearts
should be receptive to the teachings contained within the songs we know.
Unfortunately, Israel seldom listened, even to those songs they had
memorized. Thus, the third and evidently primary function of this song
was to "testify against them as a witness" (31:21). Much of this song
carefully explains their coming apostasy and inevitable judgement. No
doubt many remembered this song and its message with tears as they
marched into captivity, unable to charge God with unfairness.

 

Tuesday, 17th January, 2006

My cry entered into His ears

“In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears.” – 2 Samuel 22v7

As David looked back over His life he recalled many times when his life had been in danger. He had times when it seemed like there was no way out. He had learned that in those times he had one thing he could always do, he could always call upon the Lord.

Anyone can call upon the Lord. Most people would do so in times of trouble. Calling upon the Lord is not enough though. Getting His attention is a different matter. David knew that he could not only call out to the Lord, he also knew that God would hear his prayer.

David put it this way, “My cry did enter into His ears.” As I read this I am amazed that God would allow my cries to enter into His ears. After all, this is the God Who created the universe. This is the God Who is holy, holy, holy. This is the God Who dwells in the High and Holy place. Yet, he allows the cries of a sinful man to enter into His ears.

Why would he holy, holy, holy God allow my cries to enter into His ears? There is one reason? He loves me. I am a part of His creation and He loves me so much that He hears my cries in my time of need. What an amazing, loving God we have who would give us an audience and let our cries enter into His ears.

 

Wednesday January 18, 2006

"And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him" (James 5:15)
Without examining the various interpretations of this somewhat controversial passage, we merely note that one of the main ingredients of effective praying is faith. There are others, of course (praying in God's will, no unconfessed sin, unselfish motives, etc.) but all these must be "mixed with faith" to be effective (Hebrews 4:2).
There are many such exhortations to pray in faith, Jesus said: "All things, whatsoever e shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive" (Matthew 21:22). Another example is James 1:5-6: "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering." And another: "Therefore I say unto you, Whatsoever things ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them" Mark 11:24).
Every Scripture passage must be viewed in context, of course, including the context of the entire Bible. The “faith” we must exercise is not only a spiritual confidence that God will answer (and this, clearly, is necessary), but also faith in God as Creator (and, therefore able to answer!), Christ as Savior (therefore, justly willing to hear), and in the Holy Scriptures as the written word of God. James warns any man without genuine faith: “Let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways” (James 1:7-8).
True Biblical faith is faith in God the omnipotent Creator (Hebrews 11:3), faith in Christ as redeeming Savior (John 3:16-18), and obedient faith in the revealed word of God (1John 3:22). Then we can believe in confidence that God will indeed answer our prayer of faith.

 

Amen.

Thank you Charles.

God Bless

Sheila

 

Thursday, 19th January, 2006

David’s heart condemned him

“And David's heart smote him after that he had numbered the people. And David said unto the LORD, I have sinned greatly in that I have done: and now, I beseech thee, O LORD, take away the iniquity of thy servant; for I have done very foolishly.” - 2 Samuel 24v10

David never did grow into perfection. Even now, at the very end of his life, he had a few problems with trusting God completely. God told David to trust him and not worry about his numbers, but David went ahead and called for a census anyway.

Immediately his heart was smitten. He knew he had acted foolishly and sinned against god by not trusting Him. He made no excuses; he just admitted his sin and foolishness. One thing we can admire about David is that when he was wrong he admitted it, he never tried to make any kind of excuse. That sets an example for us when we are guilty of sin.

There is even a better blessing. David did not know the full forgiveness offered by Christ. He had to deal with his guilt, for there was no Holy Spirit to removed the sin and the guilt. In Christ we have the blessing of sweet forgiveness and there is no need for our heart to condemn us as David’s did. We must repent and forsake our sin, but also know that the blood of Jesus Christ covers our sins, and our hearts can no longer condemn us. John 3v20-21 gives us this blessed knowledge, “For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.”

 

Friday January 20, 2006

"And God saw every thing that He had made, and, behold, it was very
good" (Genesis 1:31).
Six times during the creation week, God saw His handiwork and pronounced
it "good" (Genesis 1:4,10,12,18,21,25). Finally, when it was all
finished, He surveyed all He had just completed, and judged it to be
very good!
This is the way with God. And if He can make a flawless universe, we can
be confident He knows what He is doing with us. "For we are His
workamanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath
before ordained that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10). What God
does must be, by definition, good! We can affirm, therefore, with
confidence (even though it must often be by faith rather than sight)
that "all things work together for good to them that love God, to them
that are called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28).
There is, of course, an important principle also established by this
verse: Whenever we see anything in the world which is not good (e.g.,
sin, suffering,death), we can know that such things constitute an
intrusion into God's perfect creation. They were not "created" as a part
of the primeval creation, nor will God allow them to continue their
intrusion forever. They all, eventually, must be eliminated when God
makes His "new earth."
In the meantime, this principle tells us that the great sedimentary
rocks of the eart's crust, containing as they do the fossilized remains
of billions of dead animals, plants and people, mus have all been formed
sometime after the end of creation week. At least most of them must
therefore have been formed at the time of the great flood (Genesis 6-9)
when "the earth that then was, being overflowed with water, perished"
(IIPeter 3:6).
Because of sin, the present world is groaning in pain (Romans 8:22), but
the first world was all "very good."

 

Monday, 23rd January, 2006

His father had never rebuked him

“And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why hast thou done so? and he also was a very goodly man; and his mother bore him after Absalom.” - 1 Kings 1v6

As David approached death the question of his successor came to the fore. Adonijah, who was probably the eldest son alive, assumed that he would be the next king. The Bible says that he “exalted himself” when he claimed the kingship for himself. Adonijah drew Joab and Abiathar to himself and raised any army to back up his claim.

There is a key problem here in that he exalted himself instead of being exalted by God. We see a hint of the root problem here in verse 6. “His father never displeased him at any time.” The New King James translates it this way; “His father had never rebuked him at any time.”

One area where David lacked was in fathering his sons. Here is part of the reason and a lesson for us all. David never did anything to displease his son Adonijah. As parents we often are afraid of rebuking or displeasing our children. We may be afraid that we are going to drive them away. Or, we may say that we love them too much to rebuke them. Or we use excuses like, “They’re only kids.”

David suffered the result of never displeasing his son. Adonijah was proud and haughty and he exalted himself to a place where God did not put him. As hard as it, we have an important role to play, and part of that is to cause of children displeasure at times. May we be sure that we do not neglect that task.

 

Excellent Roger. It just so happens that we are discussing David and his sons right now on Sunday evenings at church.
A clear example of one who cannot be satisfied with his place in life (and where God has him). This guy could have had the lap of luxury as a prince-brother of king Solomon, but, no, he had to have it all.
What comes to mind is Romans 12:3:
"For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith."

 

Tuesday January 24, 2006

“And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the laborer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house. (Luke 10:7)
These words of the Lord Jesus are of special significance in a number of ways. They were part of His commissioning instructions, as it were, as He was sending out His disciples on what could be considered the first Christian missionary journey, in preparation perhaps for the worldwide mission on which He would be sending them soon. As such, there are a number of principles that could be applicable to all who “labor” for the Lord.
They were not to go begging for support “from house to house,” but they were free to accept such help as was offered. It was not their responsibility to win converts, but simply to witness, with the responsibility to believe resting entirely on the hearers. For those who would not receive them, the disciples’ remaining responsibility was simply to warn them of the judgement to come (Luke 10:10-16)
Another important general principle is that those who are called to full-time service for the Lord are worthy of support by those they serve, rather than having to be holding down a secular job to make a living. That support should be adequate, but need not be lavish.
One other unique aspect of this verse is that it is the only verse in the New Testament which is quoted as Scripture in the New Testament. “For the Scripture…The laborer is worthy of his reward.” (1Timothy 5:18).
Even those Christians in so-called secular labor can rightfully regard such work as “to the Lord” (Colossians 3:23), but it is especially appropriate to honor those who, “like the beloved Persis” have “labored much in the Lord.”
(Romans 16:12)

 

Give me an understanding heart

“Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?” - 1 Kings 3v9

How do you think you would respond if God said, “I will give you anything you want?” I wonder how I would respond if I did not already know about Solomon.

Solomon was not perfect. We know from the rest of his life that he liked money, gold, fast chariots, and women. All of these things would cause him problems though out his life. Yet, when he had the chance, he did not ask for any of these things. He decided to ask God for wisdom.

Solomon was well aware of his weaknesses. For all of his problems, at this point he does the right thing.

God has already made all of His wisdom available to us in His word. Is wisdom as important to us as it was to Solomon?

 

Thursday January 26, 2006

"Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee: the remainder of wrath shalt
thou restrain" (Psalm 76:10).
One of the most amazing anomalies in human life is the oft-repeated
testimony to God's grace and power unwittingly rendered by men who would
dethrone Him if they could.
Biblical examples are numerous.
Joseph's brothers hated him and sold him into slavery, but "God meant it
for good...to save much people alive" (Genesis 50:20). Haman tried to
destroy the Jews in the days of Queen Esther; but instead their leader,
Mordecai, was elevated to prime minister, and Haman was hanged upon his
own gallows. Daniel's enemies maneuvered him into the lions den, but
these enemies themselves were later devoured by the animals, and King
Darius decreed "That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and
fear before the God of Daniel: for He is the living God, and steadfast
forever" (Daniel 6:26).
In the awful hour of Satan and the powers of darkness, Jesus died on the
cross, but "having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a shew of
them openly, triumphing over them in it" (Collossians 2:15). We did the
heathen rage?...The rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and
against His Christ." Their plans turned to frustration and rage because
all they could do was "whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined
before to be done" (Acts 4:25-26, 28).
Let men be ever so bitter against God and hateful to His people. The
blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church, and the more His enemies
rage, the more will God be glorified. The wrath of man can never prevail
against the Lord. It will either be restrained in due season or it will
be turned into praise, for "we know that all things work together for
good to them that love God, to them that are called according to His
purpose" (Romans 8:28).

 

Friday, 27th January, 2006

Blessed be the Lord that has given rest

“Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.” - 1 Kings 8v56

Solomon concluded his dedicatory address with a prayer to God and a request for blessing for His people. He sets a wonderful pattern for us by beginning his prayer with thanksgiving. He blessed and thanked God for giving the people rest. After all of their wonderings, struggles, and trials God had granted rest to Israel in the land of Canaan and had allowed them to build a place for Him to dwell there. He this promised land they had a place where they could rest.

We know that the people were not content with that rest. In their desire to have more they sinned and rebelled against God losing the benefit of the perfect rest that God had provided for them.

How sad it is that we do not learn from Isreal. Jesus offers us His prefect rest when he says, “Come unto me all ye that are heavy laden and I will give you rest.” He offers us perfect rest in Him. That rest is there for us no matter what storms of life we face. It is sad when we are so upset by the storm that we step right out into it instead of resting in Christ. When the storms of life are raging let us rest in Him, and not be content with the quasi-rest the world offers.

 

Monday January 30,2006

"Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God forever and ever: for wisdom and might are His" (Daniel 2:20)
Men have sought wisdom all through the ages "ever learning, and never
able to come to the knowledge of the truth" (IITimothy 3:7). Others have sought great power. But then we read of Alexander weeping because there were no more worlds to conquer, and see one rich man after another who cannot bring himself to say, "It is enough."
The problem is, of course, that they are searching for wisdom and might
in the wrong places, and thus they can never be satisfied. Wisdom and might belong only to God. In the Lord Jesus Christ "are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:3), and to Him has been given "All power...in heaven and in earth" (Matthew 28:18). God, revealed in Christ, is both omniscient and omnipotent, and true wisdom and true riches must come only from Him.
Therefore, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God...and it shall
be forgiven him" (James 1:5). If we are in need of strength, we must become weak, for "when I am weak, then am I strong" (IICorinthians 12:10). If we need riches, we must know poverty, for before Christ can commit to us "the true riches," we must be found "faithful in that
which is least" (Luke 16:11,10).
Daniel's testimony, as recorded in this passage, was given to the most
powerful monarch on earth, with access to all the wisdom of the most highly educated men of the age. But neither human might nor human wisdom could solve his problem. Only Daniel, drawing on the wisdom and power of the God of creation, could meet his need. God's servants, even today, have the same privilege and responsibility, because our God is "for ever and ever."

 

Tuesday, 31st January, 2006


Incline our hearts

“That he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.” - 1 Kings 8v58


Our hearts are not naturally inclined toward God. They always seem to be inclined away from God and toward the world. We tend to like “us” and the world and it is only by the help of the Holy Spirit that our hearts are ever inclined in His direction.

Only when our hearts are truly inclined toward Him can we hope to so what follows; walk in His way, and keep His commandments. Whereas at the beginning of the section there is a prayer, and at the end an instruction to what the people should do, “Let your heart be loyal to the Lord our God.”

What kind of heart do you have toward? What is its inclination? Will you be inclined to follow the Lord today or the desires of your own flesh and the world? Let God incline your heart and then be loyal to Him.

 

Wednesday February 1, 2006

For God is King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding"
(Psalm 47:7)
This stirring Psalm of praise which celebrates the reign of Christ over
all the earth, finds its primary fulfillment in Christ's Second Coming
and full reign over His kingdom.
The reader is exhorted to "sing praises unto our King" (v.6).
The reign of Christ certainly gives cause for celebration.
His arrival forces the Psalmist to proclaim, "O clap your hands all ye
people" (v.1).
What has happened to make this Kingship such cause for celebration?
After all, "by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that
are in earth, visible or invisible, whether they be thrones, or
dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him,
and for Him" (Colossians 1:16). He belongs on the throne. We should
expect to find Him there. However, even though there is a sense in which
He reigns today, the sad fact remains that another has usurped rule.
This usurper can be none other than Satan, who not only claims rule of
the creation for himself, but who spoiled the original perfection of the
creation which now "groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now"
(Romans 8:22). He has encouraged men to accept the mindless concept of
evolution, and even denies Christ recognition as Redeemer as the
humanist's creed, "We will save ourselves!" boasts.
But all is not lost! Our text assures us that Christ will reclaim His
Kingdom: "He shall subdue the people under us, and the nations under our
feet...God reigneth over the heathen" (vv.3,8). Christ the Creator, the
redeemer, the Heir, has conquered the enemy and soon will assume His
rightful throne-"the throne of His holiness" (v.8), "greatly exalted"
(v.9). Then we shall join the redeemed of the ages, and "shout unto God
with the voice of triumph" (v.1).

 

Thursday, 2nd February, 2006

Solomon’s heart was not perfect with the Lord

“For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.” - 1 Kings 11v4

Solomon seemingly had it made. God had made him wiser than any man alive. He had wealth beyond measure, receiving tons of gold every year. He was the king of a powerful nation. He has “everything.”

We would think that if we had everything we would be happy serving God and that we would have no problems. Deep down Solomon had a problem. I Kings 11v1 says that he “loved many foreign women.” The result was that his heart was not “perfect.” He left this sin undealt with. The result is that these foreign wives worshipped their own gods and drew Solomon to worship the false gods as well.

Solomon’s problem was that he did not deal with all of the sins in his life, He never dealt with his problem with women.

It does not matter what the sin is. When we do not deal with sins we open ourselves to all kinds of problems. All sins in our lives have the potential of turning our hearts from God.

 

Friday February 3, 2006

"And if it seem evil unto you to serve the lord, choose you this day
whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were
on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose
land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord"
(Joshua 24:15).
As Joshua's death approached, he gathered the people around him for a
final address and challenge. "Fear the Lord, and serve Him in sincerity
and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served" (v.14),
he exhorted as he reviewed history of God's provision for Israel.
Indeed, God was worthy of their service in light of all He had done for
them. Speaking on behalf of the Lord, Joshua used the divine pronoun "I"
no less than 17 times in the previous 11 verses, in a majestic listing
of His work on their behalf.
There seems to be a twist of irony in Joshua's words. Even though the
people adamantly maintained "therefore will we serve the Lord; for He is
our God" (v.18). Joshua evidently knew that they had decided not to
follow God. He did not offer them a choice between the true God and
false gods, he offered them a choice between sets of false gods-those
"on the other side of the flood" (i.e., the Euphrates River) or those
"in Egypt" (v.14), or "The gods of the Amorites." None can compare,
obviously, to the Lord.
Joshua's point is still applicable today. Man must worship; he must have
a god. One may recognize his god as an actual "god"-an idol to be openly
worshipped. Many times today, however, the god is that of human reason,
science, evolution, or humanism, and worship is performed unwittingly.
Our duty in witnessing includes helping the unsaved to make a
knowledgeable choice, pointing out the consequences of their choice of
gods. Such a comparison should drive one to the same decision as
Joshua's: "as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

 

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