Is the Heat on?

Is the Heat on?

So far, it has been a relatively mild summer (in my opinion). East Texas has not had the scorching weather of Central and West Texas. My mother reported to me temperatures as high as 108 this summer where she lives, but as I am writing this in the middle of August, there is still time for it to get hotter. September can be brutal in Northeast Texas.heat is on

Heat, however, can be a valuable thing when used properly. I like to eat a hot meal occasionally. Without heat, all my meals would be cold, and my coffee. Heat is especially useful in the wintertime so that we can maintain a comfortable body temperature when it is cold outside. And just about all metal devices we use are the product of directed heat.

As a metaphor, heat occurs when we either place ourselves or find ourselves in difficult circumstances. Gavin and I have been getting ready for football season by walking and jogging in the afternoon sun. It is hot, but we want to be acclimatized to the weather in which we will be working/playing. This exposure (in a controlled way) is good for us physically and morally. It teaches us patience, hard work, discipline, and self-control.

The Bible speaks about the heat Christians undergo so that they may be improved. Peter wrote, “that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:7). God wants our faith to be genuine, and passing through fiery trials proves it to be so. We have had quite our share of trials this past summer. Has our faith held up?

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Fulfilled in Their Own Time

Fulfilled in Their Own Time

Zacharias did not believe the words of Gabriel about the fact that he and Elizabeth were to be the parents of the forerunner of the Messiah. Instead of accepting the message from heaven, he thought what God had said just could not happen. How could two old people become parents? The answer from Gabriel gives us insight into the nature of prophecy. The angel said, “Behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time” (Luke 1:20). Look at those closing words—my words will be fulfilled in their own time! This is the nature of prophecy.

Many prophecies specify a time for their fulfillment. Jesus was to be raised on the third day and the words of this prophecy had to come about on that day. Otherwise, Jesus was not God. If what He said did not happen, it was proof that He was a fraud (Deut. 18:21-22).

The Old Testament prophesied about the coming of the Messiah and the fact He would come and be a king. The book of Daniel has prophecies about the time this would happen. However, most of Christendom read these prophecies from Daniel and Ezekiel and using human wisdom declare that the kingdom will come at Jesus’ second coming. The coming of the Old Testament specified the time it would come. Remember that the words of prophecy “…will be fulfilled in their own time.” What is that time? Listen to Jesus. “The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). Those who teach that the kingdom is future believe they can decide the time of the fulfilment of the words of God. The Messiah looked at those prophecies and said the time for their fulfilment was in the first century.

The time of the Exodus was prophesied over two hundred years before the Jews went into Egypt. This was over 600 years before the Exodus. At age forty, Moses had used human wisdom and decided that the time was fulfilled, and he was to be the one to bring about the exodus. At his birth, “the time of the promise drew near” (Acts 7:17, 20). “Now when he was forty years old…he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand” (Acts 7:23, 25). He understood much of the prophecy and his place in the exodus. What he failed to understand was that the determination of the time of fulfillment is not found in human wisdom. He missed it by 40 years.

There is far more to be said about this concept, but when you read His promises, never forget that the fulfilment of prophecy will happen “…in their own time.” God does not need our help in deciding when that time is!

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Affirmation of Truthfulness

Affirmation of Truthfulness

The ancient Hebrews had a word which affirmed the truthfulness of what was said. That same word was literally brought over into the Greek language with the same affirmation about truth. It may seem strange, but that same Hebrew/Greek word became an English word. That word is amen. It appears 30 times in the Old Testament and 132 times in the New Testament. Amen simply means “let it be true” or “it is true.” Jesus himself used this word 103 times.True True

It is not always translated amen. It often is translated “verily” in the KJV. This is seen in the 25 times He emphasized the truth He was about to say and said, “Verily, verily.” The NKJV translated this compound usage as “most assuredly.” Your life will be enriched when Jesus said, “Amen, amen” or “Verily, verily.”

His words are always truth. However, Jesus so often highlighted truth and some fifty times said, “Verily I say to you…” The other fifty times he used the compound phrase. His words are truth. They are very true. They are very truth, very true. Consider the following discussion of truth which Jesus began by saying, “Verily, verily, I say to you.”

So many know that Jesus spoke of being born again. However, most have failed to realize how Jesus defines that new birth. Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Nicodemus thought he was speaking of a literal birth, so Jesus expanded what He said. “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).

Being born again is not a fleshly birth, but the creation of a new person, and it truly involved both water and the Spirit. Read the book of Acts as it shows those who were taught the words given by the Spirit entered into water. They were all baptized in water!

The truth that being born again involves both the Spirit and water could have been established by Jesus simply saying that for one to be born again water was involved in it. Jesus chose to emphasize water baptism by beginning His teachings saying “Verily, I say unto you…” Yet, He did more! He said, “Verily, verily I say unto you…” His words are so remarkable.  Jesus said, “It is true, it is true…” What is true? That the new birth involves more than the Spirit—it involves water. Jesus taught it involves water. Jesus truly (verily) taught it involves water. Jesus truly, truly taught it involves water!

The next time you read the book of John, pay special attention to the 25 times Jesus said, “Verily, verily.”  Your life will be changed by doing this kind of study!

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Amen and Amen

Amen and Amen

The word “amen” is found so often in the Bible, but we can so easily overlook just how often it appears. It is of Hebrew origin and became part of the Greek vocabulary. The Hebrew word is found 30 times in the Old Testament and 132 times in the New Testament and is so often simply brought over into the English Bible and translated as, “Amen.” So, if you know this and ever use this word, you are literally speaking three languages. However, we sometimes use words without understanding what they mean.

The word simply means “let it be true” or “it is true.” We often end our public prayers using this word and then the congregation will be part of repeating this word. The Bible shows that in the early church they said this word indicating that they had listened to the prayer, they understood the meaning of the petitions made to God and it was not just the prayer of the one leading the prayer, but it was their prayer also (1 Cor. 14:16). I try to do this in every prayer I hear others pray, but most often it is silent. If the fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much (James 5:16), think of the power of a righteous church!

One point that can so easily be overlooked is the responsibility of the one who leads the prayer. Sometimes those who lead the prayer at Palm Beach Lakes speak so softly that it is impossible for those who are in the audience to hear what is said. Prayers are not more “holy” because we speak softly and those who lead should remember this. I am thankful for the sound system we have, but it simply cannot amplify softer voices. A failure to realize this negates what God had in mind for public prayers. Imagine a sermon being preached, in such soft tones that few were able to hear it. In our Leadership Training Camp for our young people, we strongly urge them to speak so that the person on the back row could hear.

I remember in those early years in the establishment of the church in Fiji, I did not speak Fijian, but I quickly learned the Fijian word for “amen.” The Fijians obviously knew and used this Hebrew/Greek/English word, but sometimes they used the Fijian word which I had never heard. As I was preaching, Fijians were so moved by God’s truth that they would say, ”sa dina.” It literally means “it is true.” When I learned the meaning, it was so encouraging to hear the affirmation of the truth of the gospel spoken by these Christians.

Jesus used this Greek word 103 times in the gospel accounts. We may not be aware of this, but it is Jesus’ way of teaching the truth and then affirming that what I have said is truth, and I want to affirm that “it is truth.”  What we may not realize is that in the gospel accounts it is translated as “verily.”

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Who is the Leader?

Who is the Leader?

Sometimes problems come about because there is conflict about who becomes the leader in a particular situation. You see this in the lives of children, but it continues even into our adult lives. There is a religious application of this in the deeper study of one particular Greek word and how it is used. first leader

Sometimes there are situations where it makes no difference who goes first—the order is of no consequence. The Greek word proago is often used this way. It is a compound word combining the first part of the word (pro), which means “before,” with the second part of the word which means “to go.” It is used in the account of the triumphant entry of Jesus into the city. As you read the text, you visualize the multitude who surrounded the One who was riding on the donkey as He entered the holy city. The text describes how some preceded Him and how others followed. To look closely at this event shows that here it made no difference who went first.

The same word is used in the account of what transpired before Jesus came walking on the water to the disciples, who were about to lose their lives in a boat filling up with water. After He had fed the 5,000, He told the disciples to get into their boat and go across the Sea of Galilee while He dismissed the multitude. The use of this word indicates that it was His will for them to go first. Because He was their Master, they went ahead not knowing what was about to happen.

The word is used following His resurrection. The angels at the tomb told the women to deliver the message that they were to leave Jerusalem and meet Him in Galilee because He was going first to meet them there. The order made a difference. He was to go first, and He would be awaiting them there.

However, there is a time when it makes an eternal difference as to who goes first. The ESV reflects the better Greek manuscripts’ use of the word proago in its translation of John’s words. “Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ does not have God” (2 John 9). We are absolutely forbidden to leave our place as a follower of the teaching of Jesus. When we “go on ahead” of His teaching, we rob Him who has all authority in heaven and on earth. In substance we say to Him, “You may have all authority in every place, but you do not have it in this place in my life!” There is an eternal consequence for our sinful attitude.

So, as you make choices in your life, humbly deny yourself and take up your cross and let Him go first. He is the leader in all spiritual choices. We leave Him behind when we fail to do what He says. Never forget He said, “I go first.”

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