"Preach the Word,

Exodus 9:16 "And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to show in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth."



On June 27, 1876-more than 130 years ago-General George Armstrong Custer led his men . . . straight into defeat. What Custer thought would be an easy victory against a village actually turned out to be total destruction for him and his men at the hands of the Sioux nation and Sitting Bull. Despite the fact that the Sioux won the Battle of Little Bighorn, they lost the war. It was bound to happen. Why? Though I do not care for General Custer, he was defeated, but there were a lot more where he came from.

I do not care what "the score" may be right now; the truth is, God will win the war. He always does. But how He wins is up to you. God can work through you or against you; with you or without you; in this lifetime or in eternity. Whether you see it or you do not, God will win.

With God, there is no such thing as a "win-win" or a "win-lose" situation. One word describes God's record-WIN. God will win. He is the One Who raised up Pharaoh (Exodus 9:16). Do you suppose Pharaoh realized this? Did the Jews know this? God raised up Pharaoh for His (God's) glory and to show His (God's) power. God will win. Pharaoh might not have submitted to it, but some of his servants did. Exodus 9:20 says that Pharaoh's servants who feared God's judgment "made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses." God will win; it was just a matter of how. And these servants were wise enough to realize this.

Throughout Exodus 8-9, God makes known that He will win. Exodus 8:10 declares, "That thou mayest know that there is none like unto the LORD our God." Verse 22 repeats, "To the end thou mayest know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth." Chapter 9, verses 14 and 29 say, "That thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth," and, "That thou mayest know how that the earth is the LORD'S." God won-He made it clear that He will win.

God will win. He will win today, and you can ask Pharaoh about that.

"Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest. Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief." (Heb 4:1-11)
Included in God's promises is rest for His people. This rest not only begins with rest from the guilt and condemnation of sin (salvation), but it also can grow into rest from our struggles against the flesh and the world (sustainment). Verses 9-10 speak of this latter "remaining" rest. "There remains therefore a rest for the people of God." Those who are God's people became such by entering into God's rest from sin and guilt (verses 1-4). And having tasted of this, there still " remains...a rest for the people of God."

The entrance into this additional spiritual life-sustaining rest necessitates a ceasing from one's own works and one's own abilities. "For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works." (vs. 10).  To rest in the Lord for a growing life of godliness, service, and fruitfulness, one must be willing to renounce himself as the source or cause of the working. Previously, we saw that the Apostle Paul walked/lived unto God in this manner. "...but I laboured more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me" (1 Cor. 15:10).  It seems fair to say that Paul worked perhaps harder than any other leader in the early church. Yet, he acknowledged that his strength and power was from the grace of God, not himself or his abilities. This fits perfectly with another verse from Paul that simply stated, "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God" (2 Cor. 3:5). Ultimately, such a life is explained as Christ Himself expressing His life in and through our lives. "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." (Gal. 2:20).
 
This ceasing from our works is to be as complete as God's ceasing from His work at creation. "And God rested on the seventh day from all His works...For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His" (Heb. 4:4, 10). God rested on the seventh day, because his "creation-work" was finished. We are to rest from our works, because we cannot add to the finished work of Christ for us. He completed our redemption upon the cross. "...he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost" (John 19:30). He has also fully prepared the works that He wants us to now enter into by faith. "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." (Eph. 2:10)


Are you tired of the struggle?  Are you weary in well doing?  So do you need rest today?  Simply "rest" in the Lord and stop relying on your own strength and abilties to accomplish anything.  God bless you!

Exodus 4:2 "And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod."


Sometimes instead of man asking God questions, God asks man questions. His asking is not because He does not know; His questions are rhetorical, to make a point. In Exodus 4, God did not ask Moses about what was in his hand so that He (God) would know-He asked Moses so that Moses would know.

Often we picture Moses with a striking, powerful rod, along with his flowing beard and white hair. We associate the rod with his persona from pictures and characterizations. But Moses' rod was just a plain, ordinary rod any shepherd would have had. Can't you almost hear Moses answer God? "Um, a . . . rod?"

God's question to Moses is a good question for us today. What is in your hand? Whatever it may be, it largely depends on the abilities and responsibilities that God has given you. And it is up to God to make sure both the ability and the responsibility are balanced. You will never be a good steward of that which is in your hand until you know what it is. Likewise, if your abilities and your responsibilities are not balanced-that is, what you can do and what you should do-you cannot be a good steward of God's gifts.

What was in Moses' hand? A rod with significance, not because of Moses, but because of the God of Moses. The rod would not later part the Red Sea, nor would Moses. God parted the sea, and He did it through Moses and through a rod.

Notice the progress in the chapter. God first asks Moses about what is in his hand, and Moses calls it "a rod." In verse 17, God tells Moses to take "this rod," and then in verse 20, the Bible says, "and Moses took the rod of God in his hand." Was Moses' rod the rod of God? It was now!

The rod was in some ways a metaphor for Moses himself. God was teaching Moses about Moses by using his rod. You can either use what is in your hand, or you can abuse it. Later on, God used this same rod in Moses' hands to give water from a rock (Exodus 17). What happened later when Moses was the one using the rod, and he struck the rock instead of speaking to it? When he was obedient, God did what only He could do. When Moses rebelled, he abused the rod and only bad things happened.

Today, what is in your hand? It is not "a rod," nor is it "this rod," but it is God's rod!

The story is told of a master violinist who was to play a great concert with a very expensive European violin. The concert hall was packed as the crowd stirred with anticipation and excitement. The master violinist finally emerged from backstage and began playing his first arrangement. It was beautiful, stirring, moving, and exciting. When he was finished, the crowd erupted into applause-an ovation like none other.

After several minutes, when the crowd finally settled down, the master violinist promptly took the violin, stepped to the front of the stage, and smashed the violin against the stage! The crowd gasped and sat stunned-until the master violinist went to another violin case on the stage, pulled out the $5000 violin, and finished the concert. The violin he smashed was purchased at a pawn shop for $20! You see, no one came to the concert hall that night to hear a $5000 violin; they came to hear the master violinist.

With God, the ordinary things are made extraordinary; the natural are made supernatural. May God help us to realize what is in our hand today and let the Master use it.

"...Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Matthew 25:40
The Bible is very clear that Christians should help those in need. However, many verses in the New Testament admonishing Believers to feed and clothe widows and orphans can be interpreted numerous ways in our modern society.

I came across an article written by Marvin Olasky who examines how Matthew 25:40 is used to justify both massive welfare programs and Church-focused ministries that meet the spiritual and physical needs of those in need. He explains:

Helping widows, orphans, the sick, and others who temporarily cannot help themselves, is fine, but anything more than that is an anti-biblical trap into which some evangelicals are falling.

Since the 1960s, Christians have debated the lure of the secular socialists to support Big Government welfare programs to help the poor, widows, and orphans. Unless we are careful, support of these programs can lead to a worship of government over God.

When looking at verses on this subject, Olasky notes that the Bible must viewed in its entirety. Arguments for expensive welfare programs are easily justified by picking one or two select scriptures. However, when all scripture is considered, particularly verses in Proverbs, Christians should be wary of secular socialist welfare programs.
Read the entire article of Marvin Olasky's view of The Bible's Most Misused Verse.

Exodus 3:14"And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you."

What would you ask God if you could ask Him three questions today and receive straight, clear, immediate answers? The truth is, you would probably ask the wrong questions. You are better of to let God answer the questions you should have today-and He already has.

Moses asks a good question in Exodus 3:11. "Who am I, that I should. . . ." Stated in a declaration, Moses says, "I cannot do this, God." And that was true; Moses had no power, no influence, and no way to execute God's plan. Previously to this, Moses had seen two Jewish men fighting, and he could not even get those two men from his own country to follow him, much less a whole nation.

But God never answers Moses' question; He does answer the question that Moses should have asked. In verse 12, God says, "Certainly I will. . . .", and in verse 14, He says, "I AM." Whatever may be your question of "am I", God's answer is "I AM." You may wonder today, "How am I _____?" God's answer is, "I AM." What am I to do about _____? "I AM." When am I _____? "I AM."

It is not about us; it is about God working through people like us. "Who am I?" or "Look at me" will both lead you astray. It is not as though you will impress God with what you have-He gave you everything you have.

For everything you are not, and for everything you need, God says, "I AM." That means He is the Eternally Existent and All-Sufficient One, the Creator of the universe. And you can trust His answer to your questions today!

The following is excerpted from the sermon “Real Answers for Fundamentalists” by Jim Van Gelderen, March 2005:

“[It is said that young fundamentalists ‘value disposition as much as position.’] I have heard folks say of previous generations of fundamentalists that they had the right position but the wrong disposition. An unpleasant disposition could be Word-based and Spirit-led or it could be carnal and fleshly. Let me look at some unpleasant countenances that are Spirit-led. I want to ask you a question: what is the wrong disposition? A frown? Anger? Proverbs 25:23 says, ‘The north wind driveth away rain: so doth an angry countenance a backbiting tongue.’ When somebody comes to you, talking about your pastor, what God wants you to do is really look mean. Just put a huge frown on your face. You will be biblical! Do you see that, folks? Look at Mark 3:5, ‘And when he had looked round about on them with anger...’ Who are we talking about there? Jesus. Look at Revelation 6, ‘And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.’ What kind of a disposition do you think His face will have that day? ‘And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away...’ Can you imagine Jesus cleansing the temple and afterwards his disciples said, ‘Man alive, that was a wonderful disposition’? Do you think He was smiling? Now folks, all I’m pointing out is that the dispositions are not the real issue. The issue is, did God lead you? Have you ever frowned at your kids? This may shock some of you, but I remember times where my father disciplined me and he wasn’t smiling. He was one of those old fundamentalists that had the right position but he had the wrong disposition. Isn’t that ridiculous thinking? When I stand in the pulpit I’m not thinking about disposition; I’m thinking, ‘Am I being led of the Spirit?’ Granted, God’s not going to give you an angry disposition for the rest of your life; it will probably be a very small percentage of your life; but there are times that an angry disposition is led of the Lord. A pleasant disposition can be compromise or it can be Word-based and Spirit-filled. The focus should be on God’s will and not on what disposition we have.”