From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
daily devotional
Evening ...
2 Timothy 2:12
If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him.
We must not imagine that we are suffering for Christ, and with Christ, if we
are not in Christ. Beloved friend, are you trusting to Jesus only? If not,
whatever you may have to mourn over on earth, you are not "suffering with
Christ," land have no hope of reigning with Him in heaven. Neither are we to
conclude that all a Christian's sufferings are sufferings with Christ, for it
is essential that he be called by God to suffer. If we are rash and imprudent,
and run into positions for which neither providence nor grace has fitted us, we
ought to question whether we are not rather sinning than communing with Jesus.
If we let passion take the place of judgment, and self-will reign instead of
Scriptural authority, we shall fight the Lord's battles with the devil's
weapons, and if we cut our own fingers we must not be surprised. Again, in
troubles which come upon us as the result of sin, we must not dream that we are
suffering with Christ. When Miriam spoke evil of Moses, and the leprosy
polluted her, she was not suffering for God. Moreover, suffering which God
accepts must have God's glory as its end. If I suffer that I may earn a name,
or win applause, I shall get no other reward than that of the Pharisee. It is
requisite also that love to Jesus, and love to His elect, be ever the
mainspring of all our patience. We must manifest the Spirit of Christ in
meekness, gentleness, and forgiveness. Let us search and see if we truly suffer
with Jesus. And if we do thus suffer, what is our "light affliction" compared
with reigning with Him? Oh it is so blessed to be in the furnace with Christ,
and such an honour to stand in the pillory with Him, that if there were no
future reward, we might count ourselves happy in present honour; but when the
recompense is so eternal, so infinitely more than we had any right to expect,
shall we not take up the cross with alacrity, and go on our way rejoicing?
Numbers 22:24-25
(24) But the angel of the LORD stood in a path of the vineyards, a wall
being on this side, and a wall on that side. (25) And when the ass saw the
angel of the LORD, she thrust herself unto the wall, and crushed Balaam's foot
against the wall: and he smote her again.
What does God do? His first attempt to get Balaam's attention fails-not
with the donkey, but with Balaam. The man is totally oblivious to what is going
on. So God narrows him in or hedges him in. The path that Balaam was taking led
between two hedges or walls. There was enough room,however, for the donkey to
turn aside, which is what she did. She turned away, but in doing so, Balaam's
foot became crushed against the wall, causing him pain. Perhaps God thought
that a little pain would help him come to his senses.
However, Balaam does not think about God at all. He thinks, "You stupid
donkey! Why did you do that to me?" He does not say anything at this point but
beats the poor donkey. His injury does not cause him to consider at all that
God may be trying to get his attention. It never comes to mind that God may be
telling him something. He takes all his pain and rage out on this innocent
donkey, which was only trying to obey God.
Think of the donkey in terms of this passage:
But my eyes are upon You, O GOD the Lord; in You I take refuge; do not
leave my soul destitute. Keep me from the snares they have laid for me, and
from the traps of the workers of iniquity. Let the wicked fall into their own
nets, while I escape safely. ( Psalm 141:8-10)
The donkey who saw God would have avoided the trap and escaped, if it
were not for Balaam controlling her. He made her go back into the trap-and on
to his own ruin.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
From Balaam and the End-Time Church (Part 2)
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From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
daily devotional
Evening ...
Job 13:23
How many are mine iniquities and sins?
Have you ever really weighed and considered how great the sin of God's people
is? Think how heinous is your own transgression, and you will find that not
only does a sin here and there tower up like an alp, but that your iniquities
are heaped upon each other, as in the old fable of the giants who piled Pelian
upon Ossa, mountain upon mountain. What an aggregate of sin there is in the
life of one of the most sanctified of God's children! Attempt to multiply this,
the sin of one only, by the multitude of the redeemed, "a number which no man
can number," and you will have some conception of the great mass of the guilt
of the people for whom Jesus shed His blood. But we arrive at a more adequate
idea of the magnitude of sin by the greatness of the remedy provided. It is the
blood of Jesus Christ, God's only and well-beloved Son. God's Son! Angels cast
their crowns before Him! All the choral symphonies of heaven surround His
glorious throne. "God over a! ll, blessed for ever. Amen." And yet He takes
upon Himself the form of a servant, and is scourged and pierced, bruised and
torn, and at last slain; since nothing but the blood of the incarnate Son of
God could make atonement for our offences. No human mind can adequately
estimate the infinite value of the divine sacrifice, for great as is the sin of
God's people, the atonement which takes it away is immeasurably greater.
Therefore, the believer, even when sin rolls like a black flood, and the
remembrance of the past is bitter, can yet stand before the blazing throne of
the great and holy God, and cry, "Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that
died; yea rather, that hath risen again." While the recollection of his sin
fills him with shame and sorrow, he at the same time makes it a foil to show
the brightness of mercy-guilt is the dark night in which the fair star of
divine love shines with serene splendour.
John 5:25-29
(25) Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when
the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.
(26) For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to
have life in himself; (27) And hath given him authority to execute judgment
also, because he is the Son of man. (28) Marvel not at this: for the hour is
coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, (29) And
shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and
they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
Jesus explains in John 5:25-29 that there is more than one resurrection.
To understand the resurrections, it is important to discern the meaning of the
word krisis, variously translated "judgment" or "condemnation" (verses 22, 27,
29-30). According to The Complete Word Study Dictionary by Spiros Zodhiates,
krisis generally means "separation," "decision," "division," "turn of affairs,"
and "judgment." The Companion Bible defines it as "a separating, a judgment,
especially of judicial proceedings." Notice that it does not necessarily
indicate the end of an affair.
A very clear similarity exists between the Greek krisis and the English
"crisis." Crisis means "a turning point for better or worse" in the progress of
an affair or a series of events. It is not necessarily the end, but a critical
juncture, and the affair continues on. In this sense, krisis indicates a turn
of affairs, a turning point, in a person's life. It may be the end, but, then
again, it may be a time when his life takes a considerable turn for the better!
Maybe God has, for the first time, revealed Himself and His purpose to him so
he may be judged.
In the biblical sense, judgment can imply a period during which a process
is ongoing. The decision, or sentence, comes at the end of the judgment. I
Peter 4:17 shows this pattern in relation to the church. "For the time has come
for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what
will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?"
Here the word translated "judgment" is from the Greek krima. According to
Zodhiates, this word derives from the same root as krisis, but in this case, it
indicates the act of judging, that is, a process including the final decision
or sentence. The Bible uses this word only in reference to future reward and
punishment.
Again we have indications of an active process, not merely a final
decision. The active process includes both what the Judge is doing (observing,
evaluating; Psalm 11:4) as well what the judged are doing. A judgment cannot be
made without both aspects. In I Peter 4:17, God is judging "the house of God"
and "those who do not obey the gospel" within the framework of how they live
their lives.
Peter says, "The time has come for judgment to begin," implying that
judgment did not officially start until Christ founded the church. Now that it
has begun, all mankind will eventually be included within God's judgment. The
pattern for judgment is therefore being established in the church.
When we see the overall picture of God's purpose, we can better
understand what occurs in a Christian's life. God calls and grants repentance.
We are baptized, receive the Holy Spirit, and are put into the church, where we
begin to grow in the grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ until we come to
the measure of the stature of His fullness. During this period of
sanctification, God puts us through trials, and we overcome, producing the
fruits of His Spirit. Sanctification prepares us for God's Kingdom and
determines our reward.
Paul helps us understand this in Romans 5:1-5:
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into
this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not
only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation pro!
duces perseverance; and perseverance, character;and character, hope. Now hope
does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts
by the Holy Spirit which was given to us.
All of this requires time. It is not God's purpose merely to save us, but
to bring us to His image so that we will be prepared for His Kingdom. Our God
is a Creator. He is reproducing Himself in us. Like a wise parent, He is
judging, evaluating what is best for our development, then putting us through
the next step in that ongoing process until we are born into His Kingdom. This
is a true understanding of a major portion of the doctrine of eternal judgment
( Hebrews 6:2).
John W. Ritenbaugh
From The Final Harvest
