April 18, 2023
  Daily Reading – Judges 10-11 / Luke 12:36-59

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Judges 11:21 And the LORD God of Israel delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them: so Israel possessed all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

       Let me begin today by asking a few simple questions. For example, if you go to a friend’s home and ask to stay a few days, and your friend says ok, does the bed you sleep on suddenly become yours? What if you ask someone if you can borrow a tool to do a job around your house and they loan it to you. When you get the tool home, does it somehow become your tool? I have heard the statement, “possession is nine-tenths the law.” The problem is the last tenth is the real law. The nine-tenths are a practical reality, as it may be hard to regain what you own if someone else has possession of it. However, in most places it is really not a law. The owner is the owner.

 

       God had given to Israel the land of the Amorites when they first came into the land. Israel did not drive out all the inhabitants off the land, and those who were still there felt that it belonged to them. It just seemed logical. Most of them had lived there all their lives. They grew up there. They planted crops there. It has always been considered their land. Therein was their problem. It is the same problem most people face today. We somehow think because we possess something it is ours. When in reality, everything we possess belongs to God. Our homes, our cars, our jobs, and our very life are all a gift from God. God is always the one who decides what we may keep and what we must release. It is wise to hold on to God’s stuff loosely. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

      We are all stewards of this planet, and the things on it. When we leave this earth, all those things will go to someone else to be a steward of. We should be good caretakers of these things remembering always, they all belong to God.

 

What might you be holding onto too tightly?

 

 

  April 17, 2023
  Daily Reading – Judges 8-9 / Luke 12:1-35

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Judges 8:22-23 Then the men of Israel said unto Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son also: for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian. And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the LORD shall rule over you.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

       Whenever there was an activity in school where there were team competitions, you always had some kids jumping up and down, hands waiving in the air, yelling to the top of their lungs, “PICK ME, PICK ME!” Some children, who were not as enthusiastic, would stand in the back of the pack of jumping beans and just wait to see if they were going to be the last to be chosen… again. Then there were the captains. The shining stars who, it seemed, were good at everything. The ones who were always elected to do the choosing. Why were they chosen to be the pickers and grinners? It was normally because they were good at the activity we were preparing to do. Now let me ask you a question. Does the ability to do something well automatically make you a good leader, or just a good player?

 

       In today’s passages, Gideon was asked to be the ruler of Israel. Possibly their King. Sure, God had chosen him to lead the battle against the Midianites. However, we need to remember, Gideon did not win that battle. Gideon simply followed God’s directions to the letter and God won the battle. Gideon even reminded them of that fact in Judges 8:3 when He said “God hath delivered into your hands…” Nonetheless, the children of Israel could not see God, but they could see Gideon. They wanted a flesh and blood leader that they could see. Gideon wisely said, NO, “the LORD shall rule over you.” 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

       Respect for others is one thing. God’s Word even says we are to respect those He has placed in authority over us. The trick for us, however, is to never lose sight of who is really doing the leading. God must be leading our life.

 

Who is leading your life?
You, God, or someone else?

 

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Judges 7:2 And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

 

       What gets all the attention? The tiny little church in the middle of what may be considered obscurity, or the Mega Church with thousands of members and high-profile preacher? We all know the answer is the Mega Church. I am in no way slamming large churches, their pastors, nor the congregations. I do want to shine a light on the fact that God can and does use less recognized groups of believers with their faithful God-fearing pastor as well. While larger congregations may have more resources devoted to ministries they take part in, it still comes down to this. Each soul is saved individually. A soul saved in a small-town church that gets little or no attention globally, is just as important to God as someone saved at a well-attended crusade.

 

        In today’s verse, God calls Gideon to lead Israel over through the land of the Midianites. Gideon was not the bravest man, not a warrior, not a preacher. God found him hiding from the Midianites in Judges 6:11 threshing wheat. Yet God calls Gideon a “mighty man of valour” in vs 12. It was not what Gideon was, but what God would use him to be. Gideon repeatedly tests God to be sure it was God. Then in chapter seven, when Gideon is ready to follow God and has gathered an army of 32,000 men, God whittles that number down to 300 to defeat the Midianites with no swords in Israels hands. God does not need a multitude to do His work. All He needs is a few faithful obedient souls. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

 

       If you feel as if no one’s paying attention to all you do with a pure heart for the Lord, let me reassure you, God is watching. Matt. 6:4 says, “…thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.” God is doing great things.
 

Are you one of God’s Faithful Few?

 

 THE WEEK IN REVIEW:

 

       In all that we do, God Never forgets. He remembers to bless our obedience, and to correct our disobedience. This week we saw this in:

● Putting Others First
● Promised Our Fathers
● Portrait Of Fear
● Playing With Fire
● Pacified By Freedom
● Picking A Few

      When God must correct us, it is to point us toward His blessings. It is always a good thing that God Never Forgets.

 

      Enjoy today with your church and hear what God has prepared in the heart of His man for you this week.

   See you tomorrow.  

 

 SUNDAYS:

 

    Today we suggest you read and study whatever the Lord has laid on your Pastors heart. Whatever scripture he uses for today’s messages were given to him by God for your specific needs.

 

April 17, 2023	Judges 8-9	Luke 12:1-35
April 18, 2023	Judges 10-11	Luke 12:36-59
April 19, 2023	Judges 12-15	Luke 13:1-17
April 20, 2023	Judges 16-18	Luke 13:18-35
April 21, 2023	Judges 19-20	Luke 14
April 22, 2023	Judges 21-Ruth 2	Luke 15
April 23, 2023	No Passages Assigned

God Never Forgets

  April 14, 2023
  Daily Reading – Judges 3-5 / Luke 11:1-28

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Judges 3:30 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest fourscore years.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

       Binky, Nuggie, Woo-Woo, Silencer, are a few of the many names used for a pacifier. That wonderful invention that causes the baby to stop crying for a while when it is placed in their mouth. It will not work long if a baby is really hungry, or needs their diaper changed. However, there are many times a baby does not know what it wants, it just wants something. The pacifier seems to fit that need. Many times, giving the baby a pacifier will even allow them to be lulled into sleep. 

 

       The Children of Israel, who really acted more like the babies of Israel, were pacified with rest. God had handed Israel’s freedom over to several opposing nations. He did this, it says in Judges 3:4, to see if Israel would listen and obey the commands He had given their nations years before. In Judges 3:9 it says the children of Israel cried out to the Lord because of this oppression. This happens several times throughout the book of Judges. Each time God raises up a Judge to deliver them from their plight. Whenever they would regain their freedom it says something like; “and the land had rest,” and it tells the number of years. During this time of rest, Israel had the freedom to make a choice. Follow and obey God and be blessed or repeat this ridiculous trial yet another time. Over, and over again we see the years of peace and quiet lull Israel into going back and repeating their evil ways against the Lord. How soon we forget, freedom is never free, and sin is always sin. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

       As Christians, we are free to live however we WANT TO. That freedom was purchased by Christ at Calvary. However, if we are really saved, our “WANT TO” should have changed. The bible says we are New Creatures and old things have passed away.

 

Has freedom lulled you into old sins?

 

 

  April 13, 2023
  Daily Reading – Judges 1-2 / Luke 10:25-42

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Judges 2:2 And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall throw down their altars: but ye have not obeyed my voice: why have ye done this?

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

       Every major forest fire begins with a spark. On occasion they have been started by what are called natural causes such as lightning. Very few ignite by spontaneous combustion. Man causes the majority of fires. Most of which are not set ablaze on purpose. What is considered to be the number one cause is carelessness. A cigarette tossed near dry vegetation. Campfires that are not extinguished completely. Someone burns debris and it gets out of control. Once a blaze has begun, it is often near impossible to stop. Many times firefighters will create an area around the fire where there are no trees or grass to burn called a firebreak to allow the fire burn itself out.

 

       In Deut. 7:1-6 the children of Israel were told to go through the land, destroy all the idols, and drive all the inhabitants off the land. They were also warned by God what would happen if they did not. Yet, when faced with the task of obeying God, they chose what seemed easy over what was right. In Judges 1 we read over and again how they allowed many of the nations to stay. It says they made them tributaries. In other words they collected taxes from them. They thought if they took some of that money and gave it to God, it would be ok. However, it was not ok with God. By the time of New Testament, Israel finds themselves in the same situation only reversed with Rome. Not obeying God is like playing with fire. Someone is going to get burned. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

       Nothing has changed with obeying God. Many today play in the world feeling there is no problem. Yet in 2 Cor. 6:17 God says; “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate..” What we feel we get by with may one day enslave our children.

 

Is playing with sin worth it?