American Idolatry – Isaiah 2

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materialism“Their land has also been filled with idols; they worship the work of their hands, that which their fingers have made… The proud look of man will be abased and the loftiness of man will be humbled, and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day” (Isaiah 2:8,11, NASB).

We tend to think that idolatry is an Old Testament phenomenon. Long ago, unenlightened people made little figurines from wood or stone or they built altars in the woods or on mountaintops. To us, that’s idolatry.

We think we’re more sophisticated today, so idolatry isn’t a big problem like it was in the Old Testament. But, it’s not that idolatry isn’t as prevalent today as in the Old Testament. It’s just that our idolatry manifests itself differently. It’s more subtle…and deceptive!

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Be Strong and Courageous – Joshua 1:1-9

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strong_and_courageous“Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go!” (Joshua 1:9, NASB).

After Moses died, God commissioned Joshua to take leadership and military command over Israel and lead Israel into the promised land. But there were many evil and unfriendly people inhabiting the land that God promised to Israel. So, God assured Joshua of success in conquering the land for Israel because He would be with Joshua wherever he went.

It’s almost like God was giving Joshua a pep talk before the battle started because three times in this passage God tells Joshua to “be strong and courageous” (vs. 6, 7, 9). And then God’s admonition to Joshua is repeated by the officers of Israel’s army to reinforce God’s command (vs. 18).

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The End is Near – Luke 17:20-37

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End_is_near“And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building; but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed” (Luke 17:26-30, NASB).

Jesus was once asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come. Jesus replied that the Kingdom of God was imminent–it was so near to them that it was within their grasp because the coming of Jesus was the coming of the Kingdom of God.

Jesus then explained to His disciples that a day will come when this present, invisible Kingdom which He was inaugurating on Earth culminates with a future, visible Kingdom at His Second Coming at the end of the age. The Kingdom’s future coming will render judgment on Earth and will receive redeemed people into eternal life.

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The Spirit-Filled Life – Joel 2:28-29

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holy-spirit-filled“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.” (Joel 2:28-29, ESV).

On the day of Pentecost when the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, Peter stood up and declared to all the Jews in Jerusalem who witnessed the event that this Spirit-filling was the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy (see Acts 2:16-21). So, the day of Pentecost was the beginning of the era that Joel was talking about–the last days–in which God pours out His Spirit on all His people.

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The Jesus Institute of Discipleship – Luke 14:25-33

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Discipleship_school“So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions” (Luke 14:33, NASB).

Sometimes we think that being a member of a local church is the same thing as being a disciple of Jesus. It’s certainly intended to be that way. But there seems to be some variations in the admission requirements between church membership and discipleship.

Now, it’s fairly easy to meet the requirements for church membership. Shake the preacher’s hand and say a little prayer; tell God you’re sorry and promise to believe in Him. And maybe even get baptized! But Jesus had something more comprehensive in mind when he specified the requirements for being His disciple.

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More Knowledge, Greater Accountability – Deuteronomy 29:29, Luke 12:48

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“The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.” (Deuteronomy 29:29, NLT)

“When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required.“ (Luke 12:48, NLT )

These two verses, one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament, present the same biblical principle–personal responsibility.

We live in a time when people are reluctant to assume personal responsibility for their own negligence or bad behavior. And, when Christians are reluctant to share the good news of Jesus.

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Dark Corners – Luke 11:33-36

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darkcorner“Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness. If you are filled with light, with no dark corners, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light” (Luke 11:35-36, NLT).

These verses from Luke are an extension of Jesus’ well-known teaching from the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6:22ff. Light and darkness are metaphors for good and evil.

But, Dr. Luke develops the metaphor more richly in his account by elaborating on the properties of light, specifically, the magnitude and direction of the light. Light travels in a straight line and if it is not bright enough or is deflected by a surface, its radiance diminishes and it can leave dark corners in a particular space.

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Eraser – Deuteronomy 12:2-5

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erasing_sin“When you drive out the nations that live there, you must destroy all the places where they worship their gods… Break down their altars and smash their sacred pillars… Completely erase the names of their gods…. you must seek the Lord your God at the place of worship he himself will choose from among all the tribes—the place where his name will be honored.”(Deuteronomy 12:2-5, NLT).

When the Israelites were about to enter the land of Canaan, Moses instructed them on an important aspect of possessing the promised land. He said they must dispossess the evil that was in the land! They must completely eradicate it!

Because, God cannot cohabit with sin and evil. God’s glory and presence won’t abide where evil dwells!

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The One Thing That Really Matters – Luke 10:38-42

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busyness“But the Lord answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her'” (Luke 10:41-42, NASB).

I have a busy life. Busy, busy, busy. I have all these important things I need to do. I suppose I’m an important guy because everything I do or need to do is so important!

But, I’ve got so many important things to do that there’s not enough time to do them all. And, it seems that I’m adding things to my “To Do” list faster than I’m checking things off of it. The list of incompletes is growing faster than the list of accomplishments.

In this busy, busy, busy life of mine, doing all these important things I am doing can distract me from the main reason I am doing them. All my busyness can distract me from the one thing that really matters. All my busyness can cause me to lose focus on Jesus!

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Whatever You Are, Be a Good One – Ecclesiastes 9:10

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passion“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might…” (Ecclesiastes 9:10, NASB).

Whatever you do in life, do it with gusto, do it with enthusiasm, do it with passion! Do the best job you can do, no matter what you are doing! Abraham Lincoln said it like this: “Whatever you are, be a good one!”

And then, do whatever you are doing as if you are doing it for God.

When you become passionate for doing God’s will, for achieving success for God’s kingdom and God’s glory and not just your own, then what you do in life takes on eternal significance and it becomes your God-appointed assignment, God’s will for you. “For I have taken all this to my heart and explain it that righteous men, wise men, and their deeds are in the hand of God” (vs. 1).

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