He Has Overcome the World! - Jeremiah 50-51

This is the word the Lord spoke through Jeremiah the prophet concerning Babylon and the land of the Babylonians: "Announce and proclaim among the nations, lift up a banner and proclaim it; keep nothing back, but say, "Babylon will be captured; Bel will be put to shame, Marduk filled with terror. Her images will be put to shame and her idols filled with terror.""(Jeremiah 50:1-2)

Chapters 50 and 51, two of the longest in the book, are devoted to the destruction and overthrow of Babylon. Everywhere in Scripture Babylon is a symbol of the great enemy of God, especially as the devil uses false religious authority to claim earthly standing, prestige, and power.

Do you remember where Babylon began? In the tower of Babel, after the Flood. Why did men erect the tower of Babel? They erected a tower to ascend into the heavens and become like God. Under Nimrod it became the mother of harlots and the abominations of the earth. It became the fountainhead of idolatry and began to export these ideas all throughout the world. It was so that they might make a name for themselves (Genesis 11:4). Babylonianism is the attempt to gain some prestige or status in the eyes of the world by religious authority. Every religion in the world seeks that. Whole systems of religion have been seized and these systems seek to gain great authority, to be known as princes and kings and powers in the world today. It all began with the tower of Babel.

Just as Babylon itself was the great destructive power against Judah, so Babylon's turn must come. Out of the north, the Medes and the Persians would come against Babylon and overthrow this great kingdom. Despite its tremendous walls, its vast palaces, its ornate hanging gardens, its huge size, and its great armies — the greatest power of the world of that day — at the very height of its power God declares that it shall be totally lost.

There are many who say that Babylon must be built again because of the prophecies in the book of Revelation that refer to Babylon. But the reference there is to "Mystery Babylon the great," (Revelation 17:5 KJV). So this is not the actual, literal city, but that for which Babylon stands — the idolatrous practices and the blasphemous assumption of power by religious authority. That is what is going to be destroyed, as the book of Revelation says. Yet here in Chapter 51, we are given a description of the destruction of this actual city, which is picked up and used again in Revelation.

Babylon symbolizes the enemy arrayed against us — the devil — and the two channels through which he attacks us — the world, and the flesh. These are forces with great power, bringing to pass all the terrible things recorded in our daily newspapers. God is adequate for all of them. Jesus speaks of these troubles in the world, assuring us, "But take heart. I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) Faith in a living God can overcome the power of the world, can beat back the deceitfulness of the flesh, and can overcome the roaring, lion-like qualities of the devil in our life, so that we can stand free in the midst of the bondage of this age. Babylon shall sink and never rise again.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for the promise that you will defeat the forces that are arrayed against me, symbolized forever by Babylon. Help me to walk by faith in the victory you have promised, and have given me in Christ. In His name I pray, Amen. 

Life Application: What evil worldly power is symbolized by Babylon? Have we learned to identify this power as we encounter media reports of worldwide terror and suffering? To whom do we turn for personal deliverance and ultimate worldly triumph?

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Praying in the New Year

When I think about prayer, I am reminded that God is faithful to us through all the seasons of our lives. He isn't a fair-weather God. He is an all-season Father. He is with us when life feels alive and full of color. He loves us when our lives feel drab and gray. He loves when life looms dark and foreboding. Our God is an all-season Father!

The Almighty, the Creator, our Abba Father, has known us, loved us, and been with us every moment from our conception through every up and down of life, and is still with us until now (Psalm 139). As his children by grace through faith, our Father has promised that nothing can separate us from his love for us in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:32-39). He will never leave us or forsake us, no matter how we may feel or what we deserve at any given moment, or what others around us do to us (Hebrews 13:5-6). He doesn't care if we are young or old, tired or energetic, male or female, rich or poor, light or dark-skinned, upper class, or homeless (Galatians 3:26-29).

Our God is the all-season and ever-listening Father. He is waiting for us to call out to him as our Abba Father (Romans 8:15-17). Because we are his children and filled with his Spirit, he listens to the groanings of our emotions too deep for words and hears them with love because of the intercession of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26-27).

That means our Father in heaven has given us the incredible gift of being able to pray in all seasons of life! Real... heart-level... in the trenches of despair and on the mountain tops of joy kinds of praying. And I hope just thinking about this kind of all-season prayer reality gives you as much breathtaking joy as experience my first real autumn in sixty-five years of living gave me! There is no place or time or situation that God is not available to hear your words and feel your heart's emotions in prayer.

After a year like 2020, and now dedicating ourselves to prayer for this New Year with New Hope, this is good news! The Father wants us to know he is listening, standing on tiptoe to hear from our hearts as we enter into this New Year in the shattered mess of our previous one. We have been given the gift of all-season prayer because we have a loving Father who is the all-season, grace-giving, always-listening God who loves us.

Taken from Pastor Phil Ware of verseoftheday.com

Defeating Worldliness - Jeremiah 46:1-28

This is the word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations: Concerning Egypt: This is the message against the army of Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt, which was defeated at Carchemish on the Euphrates River by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah...

Jeremiah 46:1-2

This takes us back to the year 605 B.C., when Nebuchadnezzar first came up against Judah. He was met by the armies of Egypt at the city of Carchemish on the Euphrates River, and there one of the great strategic battles of all history was fought. Until then, Egypt had been the most powerful nation of the day, but Babylon broke the power of Egypt at that place. In chapter 46, Jeremiah is describing that battle in advance — how long in advance we do not know. He describes in very vivid terms the advance of the Babylonian army, the clash of these conflicting forces, the terrible battle that ensued, and the final defeat of Egypt. We will not take time to cover these verses, but you can read them for yourself. The language is very beautiful.

However, in the midst of this a characterization is made of Egypt. In the Scriptures Egypt is a picture of the world and its influence upon us. Egypt was a place of tyranny and bondage for the people of Israel. They were under the yoke of a wicked and severe king who enslaved them and treated them cruelly. Yet strangely enough, after they escaped, it was the place they always fondly remembered and wanted to return to. They remembered the food, the comfort, and the ease of life in Egypt. So this has always stood as a picture of the lure of the world to the believer — to think as it thinks, to react as it reacts, to seek from the world your own satisfaction and pleasure and enjoyment instead of living for the glory of God.

Now, when I refer to "the world" I am not talking about people, nor about doing any specific so-called "worldly" thing. That is not what worldliness is. Worldliness is an attitude of life that causes you to think of living only for your own pleasures and enjoyment. That is what Egypt symbolizes in Scripture. The character of Egypt is described for us in Verses 7-8: "Who is this, rising like the Nile, like rivers whose waters surge? Egypt rises like the Nile, like rivers whose waters surge" (Jeremiah 46:7-8a RSV). Every spring the Nile River rises and overflows its banks, and this restores Egypt. The prophet uses this as a picture of the way the world comes at us — in surges and waves. We think we have it licked, but pretty soon it will come at us again. Repeatedly, throughout our lifetime as believers on our spiritual pilgrimage, the world rises to afflict us and to lure us, and seeks to betray us and get us back into bondage again.

But there is another message here about Egypt, Verses 13-24, delivered by Jeremiah after he had gone into exile in Egypt. Here he describes the forthcoming invasion of Egypt by Nebuchadnezzar, which took place after Jeremiah's death. In accord with this prophesy, Nebuchadnezzar came down into Egypt and took over the land. In the midst of this prophesy is another characterization of Egypt, "Call the name of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, "Noisy one who lets the hour go by."" (Jeremiah 46:17 RSV)

Isn't that a strange name to give somebody? That is the characterization of Egypt — and the world. It is one of the ways we can recognize the world: it loves noise, because it does not want to stop and think. It loves to kill time. The world comes at us constantly, trying to get us to think only in terms of immediate pleasure and indulgence, and forgetting that it leads to slavery and bondage. So God punishes Egypt — that is the message here.

Prayer: Thank you, Father, for the faithfulness of your word. Teach me to stand against the world and stay faithful to you in this day of moral dissolution. Grant me wisdom and insight, Holy Spirit, into the areas where I am following the world and may I repent, and follow You only. In the name of Jesus, my example and Lord I pray, Amen. 

Life Application: Are we learning to identify and compare worldly attitudes by comparing them with God's Word of Truth? Have we succumbed to the worldly distraction of noise?

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Overthrow the Flesh - Jeremiah 45:1-5

Read the Scripture: Jeremiah 45:1-5

But the Lord has told me to say to you, "This is what the Lord says: I will overthrow what I have built and uproot what I have planted, throughout the earth. Should you then seek great things for yourself? Do not seek them. For I will bring disaster on all people, declares the Lord, but wherever you go I will let you escape with your life."

Jeremiah 45:4-5

What is the root of all our troubles with the flesh? It is seeking great things for ourselves. That is behind the naiveté, the secret vengeance, the treachery and murder, the unjustified fear, the pious deceit, the baseless hopes, the misdirected blame, the insolent rebellion — all of these arise out of a heart which longs to have glory that belongs to God. That is the basic problem, is it not? As we look at this we say to ourselves, "Who is sufficient for these things? How can we lick this terrible enemy within?" The only answer, of course, is the cross and the resurrection of Jesus. This is all that has ever been able to deal with the flesh in man's life: the cross which puts it to death; the resurrection which provides another life in its place. That is the glory of the gospel.

Near Watsonville, California there is a creek that has a strange name: Salsi Puedes Creek. Salsi Puedes is Spanish for "Get out of it if you can." The creek is lined with quicksand, and the story is that many years ago, in the early days of California, a Mexican laborer fell into the quicksand. A Spaniard, riding by on a horse, saw him and yelled out to him, "Salsi puedes! (Get out if you can!)" which was not very helpful. The creek has been so named ever since.

That is what the flesh is like. We struggle to correct these tendencies ourselves, but we cannot do it. Only God has the wisdom to do it. That is why Jeremiah's word in the tenth chapter comes to mind again. He said, "I know, O Lord, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps." And we are driven again to the wisdom of the Proverbs:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

and lean not unto your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge him,

and he shall direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Nothing else will do it. Your own heart will deceive you. If you follow your own desires, your own likings, you will end up trapped. Only the wisdom of the Word, only an honest acknowledgment of what is going on in your life will suffice. Bring it to God and tell him the whole thing, and trust him to have put your flesh to death on his cross. And rely upon his resurrection to live by from there on, upon his power and his grace to lead you through. It is his knowledge of this tendency of the flesh which has led our Lord to include in the Lord's Prayer the little phrase which I pray every day, and I hope you will too: "Lead us not into temptation."

Prayer: Father, I pray that you will indeed lead me away from temptation. Lead me from this evil thing within me from which I cannot by myself escape. Deliver me from evil by the power of the redeeming work of Jesus Christ. In His name I pray, Amen. 

Life Application: What are identifying characteristics of the flesh? Have we learned to recognize the root problem? Are we choosing God's glory over our own, His power over our weakness?

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Living the Christian Life

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. -Galatians 2:20

LIFE PRINCIPLE 24
To live the Christian life is to allow Jesus to live His life in and through us.
Gal. 2:20

Many Christians today seem content to live what they think is an adequate Christian life. They believe that if they go to church, read their Bible occasionally, and say their prayers once in a while, they will be all right with God. Occasionally, they may be inspired to go above and beyond their normal routine and volunteer to serve others as an usher, a member of a church committee, or even go on a short-term mission trip. Though they go through the motions of being a “good Christian,” they do not enjoy the power, peace, and joy that should come with the abundant life Jesus promised (John 10:10).

Eventually, the counterfeit Christian life they are living becomes a burden and does not comfort them when the storms of adversity assail.
This was not what you were created for. God does not call you or any believer to a marginal Christian life characterized by chores and rituals. He desires to have a daily relationship with you where you experience His presence and trust Him for wisdom, courage, and strength in all situations. With every step you take, decision you make, conversation you have, and thought you entertain, the Lord wants to glorify Himself through you. He desires to shine in your life—with His love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control illuminating your unique talents, traits, and personality as you walk in obedience to Him.

In other words, to live the Christian life is to allow Jesus to live in and through you. That is why Paul wrote, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me” (Gal. 2:20).

How do you allow Jesus to do so? In what way does He live in and through you? If these two questions seem difficult or confusing to you, you aren’t alone. Many people never realize how powerfully Christ could demonstrate His life through them. This is because many believe that the key to living the Christian life starts with pious acts, when it really begins with a deep, intimate relationship with Him.
Therefore, to answer the first question: How do you allow Jesus to do this?—you must realize the answer comes by working on your relationship with Christ. You do this through Bible study, prayer, worship, and fellowship with other believers. You not only learn about Him, but you must also listen to Him, because He will teach you how to love Him, live for Him, and walk in His ways.

The answer to the second question: In what way does He live in and through you?—is as unique as each believer who follows Him. This is because He has a special purpose for your life, and the most important thing you can ever do is simply obey Him—no matter what He tells you to do. God will allow situations and troubles in your life that only He can solve. This is so He can demonstrate His glory, power, love, and wisdom through you.

Is there anything distracting you from having an intimate relationship with the Lord? Have you failed to trust God’s sovereignty? Are you worried that you’re not doing enough to deserve a relationship with Him or that you could lose the eternal life He has given you? Then you need to return to the basic truth that your salvation is through faith in Christ and not by works. There is absolutely nothing you can do to earn it or be worthy of it. Therefore, there is nothing you can do or fail to do that would cause you to forfeit it either.

The issue is not your salvation but the impact of your life for Christ and the joy and fulfillment you receive from Him. God does not call you to an adequate life—He wants it to be extraordinary. However, for you to experience the life He planned for you, you must stop being distracted by peripheral issues and focus your attention completely on Him. Can you do it? Can you trust Jesus to live His life through you and take care of all that troubles you?

Of course you can! The God who redeems you can teach you how to live for Him. The Savior you trusted for your eternity is more than capable of taking care of all the matters that burden you daily and shining through you brightly so that others can know Him and be saved. Therefore, die to your notions of what the Christian life should be so you can experience true life in Him.

See the Life Principles Index for further study.

Many people never realize how powerfully Christ could demonstrate His life through them.
He has a special purpose for your life, and the most important thing you can ever do is simply obey Him—no matter what He tells you to do.
-NASB Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible Notes

Heal Our Land - Jeremiah 39:1-18

Read the Scripture: Jeremiah 39:1-18

In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army and laid siege to it. And on the ninth day of the fourth month of Zedekiah's eleventh year, the city wall was broken through. Then all the officials of the king of Babylon came and took seats in the Middle Gate... When Zedekiah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled; they left the city at night by way of the king's garden, through the gate between the two walls, and headed toward the Arabah.

Jeremiah 39:1-4

In the further historic detail given in the last chapter of Jeremiah, we are told that they burned the temple of God as well. The long-delayed hour of judgment came at last. The city was taken. The temple was burned. As you read this account you can see a certain poetic justice which is always characteristic of the judgments of God. The city that refused God, God refused. He granted them their own desires, in other words. The temple that burned incense to idols was itself burned. The king who would not see had his eyes put out. The people who held their slaves captives were themselves led captive by the Babylonians. This is always the way God works. His judgment is to give you exactly what you are asking for, to let you finally have your way — but to the fullest extent, beyond anything you would desire.

A nation must never forget that, ultimately, the judgment of God will come. "The mills of God grind slow, but they grind exceeding small." Sooner or later judgment will fall. No nation has the right to continue to exist as a nation when it continually violates these requirements of God's justice. Therefore the hand of doom rests upon any nation that deliberately refuses to hear and heed the will of God. Ultimately, judgment will come. No political manipulation will avert it. No partial compromise will delay, no defiance will evade what God has said. It will come at last — some eleventh year, ninth month, and fourth day, when a breach is made in the walls of the city, and judgment and destruction can no longer be averted.

There are several ways by which individuals and nations seek to turn aside the will of God. First, a people can ignore and refuse to listen to God, and give themselves over to things that help them forget — to a life of debauchery and revelry, refusing to hear and heed the Word of God. Second, a people can persecute the prophets of God, and hinder the message of God. There will be the developing of a callous attitude against the preaching of the Word of God. Third, a people can seek to circumvent the catastrophe which is coming by political maneuvering and manipulations. Finally, a people can compromise in outward ways, but fall short of real submission to God. That is when a people become outwardly religious, learning the "God-words" and practice civil religion, but their hearts remain unchanged

There is only one attitude that will avert the coming judgment of God: repentance, deep humiliation before God, an understanding and acknowledgment of guilt, a willingness to recognize that we have lost our right to exist as a nation, and a cry to God that he will heal us and change us and forgive us and heal this land. When that occurs, God himself assumes responsibility to recover the nation. Despite all the damage which has been done, he will restore the years that the locusts have eaten. But if a nation ignores God, it goes down into the dust of history, as hundreds of kingdoms and nations before us have perished.

Prayer: Lord, I ask you to heal us as a nation. Heal our land, and turn us from evil. May we repent before you, in humility, understanding and acknowledgment of our guilt, recognizing that we have lost the right to exist as a nation. We cry out to You to heal us, change us, forgive us. In the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior, we ask this O Lord, Amen. 

Life Application: What are four ways individuals and nations seek to avert the will of God? Since each of these is unmistakably present in contemporary culture, what is the urgently needed response for us individually and as members of Christ's body, the Church?

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Christmas Devotion - He is Coming Again!

 

Jesus said: "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going."

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:1-6

Today, around the world, Christians celebrate Jesus’ first coming to earth as a time of hope and joy and peace. Our world today does not contain much hope, joy or peace. Hope is gone, joy is fleeting, and peace cannot be sustained. 

But Christmas did not end in a manger, it did not end on the cross, and it did not end at the door of the empty tomb. Christmas will be completed the day Jesus returns to this earth to fulfill all the rest of the prophecies of the Bible. 

God’s plan was never to just send the Messiah (Savior) as a baby. His plan was not even to just have the Savior die and rise again. His plan included all those things – but the final victory is to provide a complete eternal life for each one who responds to God’s love-gift, believing and accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior. 

The day is coming when the just and righteous judgment of all sin will be completed, and then all effects and consequences of all believers’ sin will be finally and forever buried in the “blood of the Lamb of God.”

Jesus said He came to display Truth to us (John 18:37). He tells us that Truth sets us free (John 8:31-38). He says Truth purifies us (1 Peter 1:22). He gives us Truth as part of our armor against evil (Ephesians 6:14). He says Truth should be the way we live our lives here on this earth (2 Corinthians 4:2).

May we anticipate with hope and joy the return of our Lord Jesus Christ for He is coming again!