Why Am I Here? 3 comments
Earlier this year, I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The news was hard to take. I knew next to nothing about MS other than I knew I didn’t want to sign up for it! After reading more about MS, I realized that it wasn’t as bad as I thought, but I still wasn’t interested in signing up for it! It is a chronic illness with no cure and uncertain causes. The central nervous system is apparently attacked by the immune system. The result is potential damage to your brain, spinal cord, and optic nerve. The disease is not fatal, but it is often disabling. MS is different for just about everyone (depending on what nerves are damaged). Some do fairly well for a long time, and some have a rapid progression of symptoms.
Facing the future with MS was discouraging. I am happily married with three young children. God has called me to pastor the First Baptist Church of Miami, Arizona. Our assembly is growing numerically and spiritually. I was anticipating a lot of good things for the future. Now MS seemed posed to derail my dreams for the future. It was during this time God comforted me as I asked: “why am I here?”
Resurrection! no comments
It has been a long time since I did anything here. However, I just upgraded to the latest wordpress and updated the design. All of the old entries and comments have been imported and hopefully of the links are stil the same. If you notice any problems, please let me know.
Over the next few weeks, I will be posting some thoughts on evangelism, deacons, and anything else I find interesting.
There are several good articles on evangelism over at Jackhmmr.
Nehemiah 1-3 1 comment
Nehemiah enjoyed security and prestige as the king’s cupbearer, so there was no reason for him to ask about the needs of people hundreds of miles away. But he loved Jerusalem and was concerned about the welfare of his people (Jer. 15:5). How do you respond when you learn that others are hurting?
Nehemiah was a man of prayer; you will find ten of his prayers in this book. He believed in a great God who kept His promises, forgave sin, and helped His people when they called on Him. Like Ezra before him, Nehemiah identified himself with the sins and sorrows of the nation ( Ezra 9:5).
Ezra 10 no comments
When things look dark, there is always a ray of hope. Shechaniah encouraged the people to confess their sins and obey the Word. He may have been thinking of God’s promises in Exodus 34:6–7 , Isaiah 55:6–7 , and Jeremiah 3:11–13 . Believers today turn to 1 John 1:9 .
But confession must not be a routine thing that comes only from the lips. We must tremble at God’s Word (Ezra 9:4; 10:3; Isa. 66:2) and truly bring Him a broken heart (Ps. 51:16–17). That explains why Ezra fasted and prayed, for he identified himself with the people in their sins. Note the pronouns in Ezra 9:6–15 .
Not everybody agreed to obey (v. 15), but those who did submit to Ezra confessed their sins publicly, offered a sacrifice, and put away their pagan wives and children. The experience was painful for them, but it was the only way to keep the nation pure (Matt. 18:7–9). There is no easy way to deal with sin.
God’s people have hope because of salvation (Rom. 5:1–2), suffering (Rom. 5:3), the Word of God (Rom. 15:4), and the Spirit of God (Rom. 15:13). Of course, there could be no hope were it not for the resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Pet. 1:3). He is our Hope (1 Tim. 1:1).
Ezra 9 no comments
Astonished (1–4). For at least three reasons, the Jewish remnant should have obeyed God’s Word about marriage. To begin with, God had been good to bring them back to the land. He had also chastened them in Babylon, and they knew from their own past the consequences of compromise. No wonder Ezra was astonished.
Ashamed (5–9). Ezra used several images to show their plight. They were like drowning men because of their sins (v. 6 ), and yet they sinned more. They were a little peg on which so much future was hanging (v. 8), a remnant that had to serve as a wall against the awful encroachments of sin (v. 9). If the nation was polluted, how could Messiah be born (v. 2)?
Alarmed (10–15). God had revealed His Word, and they did not obey it. God had shown them grace (v. 8), and they did not appreciate it. God had held back punishment (v. 13; Ps. 103:10), and they took advantage of it. All God could do now was punish them even more.
As he prayed, Ezra trembled (v. 4), knelt (v. 5), and bowed down (v. 6) because nobody could stand before God (v. 15; Ps. 130:3).
