Embrace the Race God Gives You

By Jon Bloom 7/28/2017

     You have a race to run. It’s a race you’ve been given, not one you’ve chosen.

     It’s possible you wouldn’t have chosen your race at all, had the choice been yours. Or perhaps you wouldn’t have chosen this particular route. Or perhaps you wouldn’t have chosen your pace. Or perhaps you would have chosen different racing environments, teammates, or coaches. Or perhaps you would have chosen different capacities, strengths, and resources, ones you believe would help you run more effectively. Or perhaps you would have chosen a different distance.

     But here you are: in this race, on this route, at this pace, on this terrain, in this climate, with these people, and your strengths, and your limitations, for this distance. Like it or not, this is your race.

     And the question is this: Will you embrace your race or keep trying to escape it? What mindset will you choose? For though you may not have chosen your race, you do get to choose how you run it.

     You Can’t Escape | Of course, escape is not a real option. However, fantasy provides a seductively compelling illusion of escape. And the world offers you an overwhelming number of fantastic virtual experiences to “relieve” you from the rigorous realities of your race.

     Jon Bloom serves as author, board chair, and co-founder of Desiring God. He and his wife live in the Twin Cities with their five children.

The Deity of Christ and the Church

By Robert Peterson 1/1/2011

     There is no more important biblical truth for the life and health of the church than the deity of Christ. Although this truth exists in seed form in the Old Testament (Pss. 45:6–7; 110:1; Isa. 9:6; Dan. 7:13–14), it comes to full flower in the New Testament. I marshal five arguments for the deity of Christ:

     First, Jesus is identified with God. Recent scholarship has taught us to argue for Christ’s deity based on the way that early Christians identified Jesus unambiguously with the one God of Israel (1 Cor. 8:5–6).

     Second, Jesus receives devotion due to God alone. Amazingly, the New Testament not only continues to affirm Old Testament monotheism, but also affirms another truth: it is proper and necessary to offer religious devotion to Jesus. He is worshiped, honored in baptism and the Lord’s Supper, praised in doxologies, adored in hymns, and is the object of prayers (Matt. 28:19; John 5:22–23; 1 Cor. 11:20; Eph. 5:18–19; Heb. 13:20–21; Rev. 22:20).

     Third, Jesus brings the age to come. David Wells captures this point: “Jesus was the one in whom the ‘age to come’ was realized, through whom it is redemptively present in the church, and by whom it will be made cosmically effective at its consummation” (The Person of Christ: A Biblical and Historical Analysis of the Incarnation (Foundations for faith), p. 172).

     Fourth, Jesus saves us when we are spiritually united to Him. The Father planned salvation before creation, and the Son accomplished it in the first century. But we only experience that salvation when we are spiritually united to Christ by grace through faith. Only union with Him in His death, resurrection, ascension, session, and second coming brings salvation (Col. 3:1–4). This is a role played only by God Himself.

     Fifth, Jesus performs the works of God. Christ performs many works that only God can perform: creation, providence, judgment, and salvation (Col. 1:16–20; Heb. 1).

     It is difficult to overemphasize the significance of Christ’s deity for the church. The church’s lifeblood depends on who Christ is (the Godman) and what He did (died and arose, 1 Cor. 15:3–4).

     Christianity stands if Christ’s deity is true. If Jesus is divine, then His claims are true “and there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). G.C. Berkouwer follows suit, when he argues that Christ’s deity is essential to Christianity:

     The heart of the Christian religion pulsates in the confession that in Jesus Christ, in the incarnation of the Word, God truly came down to us… . The practice of the ancient church, to speak of Christ “as of God,” goes directly back to the New Testament itself where we hear adoring voices addressing Christ as truly God and not as quasi-God (quoted in The Person of Christ, pp. 156–57, 161–62)

     Robert L. Reymond underscores the importance of the deity of Christ when he argues that the affirmation or denial of it affects every other point for Christology and for systematic theology in general (see his Jesus Divine Messiah: The New and Old Testament Witness, p. 323). He also points out that one’s estimation of Jesus has consequences beyond this life, as Jesus Himself says: “Unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins” (John 8:24). In fact, Jesus claims: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (14:6).

(Jn 8:22–24) 23 He said to them, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. 24 I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.”   ESV

     Wells laments the disastrous effects for those who deny the deity of Christ:

     Their christs might be admired, but they cannot be worshiped. They might inspire religious devotion, but they cannot sustain or explain Christian faith. They tell us very much about their authors and very little about Jesus… . These christs are impotent, and their appeal is superficial. Their appeal is not that of the biblical Christ. (The Person of Christ, p. 172)

     The true Christ of Scripture deserves more than our admiration. That is because He is the eternal Word become incarnate in Jesus of Nazareth. He is God and man in one person and deserves worship as the only mediator between God and human beings. Because He is God, “he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him” (Heb. 7:25). As Wells reminds us, the biblical Christ is “the One who was God with us, the means of forgiveness for our sin, and the agent of our reconciliation. Forgiveness and reconciliation are what we need centrally. We need to know there is someone there to forgive us, someone who can forgive and heal us, and that was why the Word was incarnate” (The Person of Christ, p. 172). Indeed, we need to know that God incarnate forgives and reconciles us. Because of His unique identity and because of the unique work He performed, the church stands in fulfillment of Jesus’ own prediction: “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matt. 16:18).

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     Robert A. Peterson (Ph.D., Drew University) is professor of systematic theology at Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. He was formerly professor of New Testament and theology at Biblical Theological Seminary in Hatfield, Pennsylvania. He has written numerous articles, was a contributor to the second edition of the Evangelical Dictionary of Theology (Baker) and edits Covenant Seminary's journal, Presbyterion.

• 1     Why I Am Not an Arminian
• 2     Fallen: A Theology of Sin
• 3     Hell on Trial: The Case for Eternal Punishment
• 4     Salvation Applied by the Spirit: Union with Christ
• 5     The Deity of Christ (Redesign) (Theology in Community)
• 6     The Kingdom of God
• 7     Suffering and the Goodness of God
• 8     Salvation Accomplished by the Son: The Work of Christ
• 9     The Glory of God
• 10     Why We Belong: Evangelical Unity and Denominational Diversity
• 11     Adopted by God: From Wayward Sinners to Cherished Children
• 12     Our Secure Salvation: Preservation and Apostasy (Explorations in Biblical Theology)
• 13     Election and Free Will: God's Gracious Choice and Our Responsibility (Explorations in Biblical Theology)
• 14     Calvin's Doctrine of the Atonement
• 15     Getting to Know John's Gospel: A Fresh Look at Its Main Ideas

Os Guinness: The Extraordinary Times We Are Living In and the Need for Christian Courage

By Jason Daye 7/26/2017

     Os Guinness is an author and social critic. Great-great-great grandson of Arthur Guinness, the Dublin brewer, he was born in China in World War Two where his parents were medical missionaries. A witness to the climax of the Chinese revolution in 1949, he was expelled with many other foreigners in 1951 and returned to Europe where he was educated in England. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of London and his D.Phil in the social sciences from Oriel College, Oxford. Os is the author of several books, including Impossible People. Os lives with his wife in the Washington, D.C. area.

     Key Questions: | What is the struggle for the soul of civilization you speak of in your new book, Impossible People?

     How can western Christians move from simply being inspired by our brothers and sisters facing persecution in other parts of the world to living courageously like they do?

     How do we operate in the power of the Holy Spirit on a daily basis?

     Key Quotes: | “Now is not the time for cowards or fence-sitters.”

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Do You Sleep Less Than Jesus?

By David Mathis 11/09/2017

     The Word became flesh and slept among us.

     God himself in full humanity — body, heart, mind, and will — closed his eyes and went to sleep. And not once or twice, but every day.

     Of his thirty-plus years dwelling here bodily, God himself spent roughly one-third of that time asleep. He not only ate, drank, cried, and celebrated, like every other human, but he also became tired, “wearied as he was from his journey” (John 4:6 ), just as we become tired and weary. And it was no sin, fault, or failing in the God-man that he became tired. It was human.

     Yet it’s one thing to sleep, and quite another to sleep through a “great storm.” Matthew, Mark, and Luke all tell the story of Jesus asleep in the boat. “A great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion” (Mark 4:37–38 ). Waves breaking into the boat. Not only is this a testimony to how tired he must have been, but also how trusting. What serenity of soul, what rest in his Father, that he slept in the storm.

     We might even say, “No one ever slept like this man!”

     God made us to spend a third of our lives like this. Unconscious. Inactive. Exposed. Dependent. It’s a nightly reminder of our frailty and limitations. We are creatures, not the Creator. Sleep is telling us something profound. And it does so every night.

     Sleep invites an exercise of faith. When we lie down, close our eyes, and give ourselves over to sleep, we make ourselves vulnerable — like Saul before David, and Samson before Delilah. Jesus not only trusted his disciples, to fall asleep in their presence, but he also entrusted himself to his faithful Father, to care for him and meet every essential need. “In peace I will both lie down and sleep,” said God’s anointed, “for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety” (Psalm 4:8 ).

     What does it say for the sanctity of our own sleep, that the God-man himself slept? Yes, God “will neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalm 121:4 ) — that is, until he becomes human. Then he will sanctify our sleep. And what does it say for the peace in Jesus’s own soul that he could sleep, even in the storm?

     Perhaps the Bible’s signature statement on sleep comes from Solomon in Psalm 127:2:

     It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.

     God gives sleep as an expression of his love. As much as it may seem like a horrible inconvenience and waste of time to those toiling under the sway of a productivity idol — eight hours lost every day! — sleep is a divine gift.

     Life has its ups and downs, no doubt. For everything there is a season — a day to rise early, a day to go to bed late — but God didn’t design us to burn the candle at both ends. He doesn’t mean for us to always be “on,” to always feel productive. But he does mean for us to recognize the glorious constraints of creatureliness, embrace the limits of our humanity, and own the humility of coming to the end of ourselves every day — laying down, closing our eyes, and leaving not just the whole world, but also our own worlds, to him.

     Bedtime is rehearsal that he is sovereign and I am not. Every night is an opportunity to “be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10 ).

     But the sanctity of sleep is not the only lesson we glean from Jesus. Don’t go away yet and miss what makes it Christian. Sleep is not only a divine gift to be received and appreciated, but also a good to be sacrificed, when necessary, in the cause of love. Jesus not only embraced the limits of his humanity and slept, but he was willing to deny himself sleep, at the right time, to gain something greater.

     We have two clear instances of Jesus forgoing sleeping, denying himself this natural desire, when something more pressing was at hand. The first came in choosing his apostles:

     He went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. And when day came, he called his disciples and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles. (Luke 6:12–13 )

     A huge decision lay before him: Which twelve men would receive the lion’s share of the God-man’s investment of his earthly life? Who would “be with him” (Mark 3:14 ) and go out to represent him? Which of these “uneducated, common men” would one day astonish the rulers as “they recognized that they had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13 )? And what men would we still be reading two thousand years later as the inspired spokesmen of Christ himself in his new covenant? This was a significant decision, and faith in his Father led him, in this instance, not to sleep but to all-night prayer.

     Second, then, came as his defining hour approached, late night in the garden of Gethsemane. Doubtless Jesus and his men were wiped. As much as he encouraged them to stay awake and prepare themselves in prayer, and as much as their spirits may have been willing, their flesh was weak (Matthew 26:41 ). But Jesus himself, knowing what lay before him, did not give himself to sleep, but steadied and readied his soul in prayer.

     “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done” (Matthew 26:42 ).

     It echoes today in the lives of those who benefit from his person and work. Jesus not only sanctified our sleep, but also he sacrificed his sleep. When the time came, he was willing to deny himself God’s good gift in pursuit of something greater. Sleep wasn’t his God. He did not bow his knee to sleep but to his Father — which meant not only a normal pattern of sleeping, as an act of faith, but when necessary, denying himself sleep, as an act of faith, in dependence on God and in the service of love.

     So also today, most evenings, he says to us, by his Spirit, “Come away . . . and rest a while” (Mark 6:31 ). But that’s not all he says. At times, and in seasons, he comes by his Spirit and says, in the service of love, “Sleep and take your rest later on” (Matthew 26:45 ). There are times to receive God’s gift and enjoy our sleep, and times to deny ourselves our natural desire in view of something more important, whether it’s a hungry newborn, sick child, or neighbor in need.

     Walking by faith leads Christians to be both sleep-embracers by default and sleep-deniers when needed.

     So our mini-theology of sleep from the life of Christ cuts both ways: sanctify your sleep per normal and sacrifice your sleep when love calls. In Jesus, God means for us to walk in faith that rests in him, relinquishes control, closes our eyes, and goes to bed. And he means for us to walk in faith that rises to meet others’ needs, when loves beckons, and forgoes his good gift of sleep.

     Sleeping to the glory of God is not simply maximizing it or minimizing it. Walking by faith in a fallen world requires us to read the situation and follow the leading of the Spirit. Typically that means “turning in” on time, turning off the TV, putting away the smartphone, and saying, “Father, now I give myself to you in sleep. You are sovereign. I am not. You don’t need me to run the universe. Now I rest in your care and ask for your gift of sleep.” How much better might we sleep if we  consciously rolled our burdens onto Jesus’s broad shoulders before hitting the pillow?

     And walking by faith, at times, will mean trusting God, when we’d much rather be comfortably tucked into bed, to stay up late, or get up inconveniently, for the sake of someone else’s good. This is called love. Such rising by faith can turn an otherwise “ungodly hour” into an opportunity for godly love.

David Mathis (@davidcmathis) is executive editor for desiringGod.org, pastor at Cities Church in Minneapolis/Saint Paul, and adjunct professor for Bethlehem College and Seminary. He is a husband, father of four, and author of Habits of Grace: Enjoying Jesus through the Spiritual Disciplines.

The Importance Of The Resurrection

By Robert Jeffress 2023

     Even Jesus’s enemies understood that the resurrection was at the core of His teaching. That explains why they went to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor, after Jesus’s burial (Matt. 27:62–66).

     The Jewish leaders asked Pilate to secure Jesus’s tomb so His disciples wouldn’t steal His body and claim He had risen from the dead as He predicted. They knew if that word got out, the Christian movement would spread like wildfire. So the religious leaders did everything they could to make sure Jesus’s body remained in the tomb.

     Pilate shared their concern. He didn’t want followers of some new religion causing a revolt in Rome. So he appointed a unit of sixteen highly trained soldiers to guard the tomb. That Sunday morning, they discovered just how fruitless their efforts had been.

     Because Jesus did indeed rise from the dead, eternal life is available to everyone who trusts in Him.

     In Matthew 16:21, “Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things . . . and be killed, and be raised up on the third day” because that was God’s will for Him. Jesus’s death was not accidental. It wasn’t the result of bad people prematurely extinguishing His life. Jesus’s death was part of God’s plan to bring salvation to the world, and Jesus knew this. Furthermore, Jesus said His resurrection from the dead would be proof to everyone that He truly was the Son of God.

     Finally, alone among all major religious leaders, Jesus claimed He would return to judge the world (Matt. 25:31–46). Only Jesus Christ said our eternal destiny is dependent on our acceptance or rejection of Him.

     Second, Jesus’s teaching includes exclusivity. The teaching of Jesus includes the exclusivity of the Christian faith. If you accept that Jesus is Lord, then it stands to reason you must trust everything He said. If Jesus Christ is really God, then everything He said is true.

     Jesus taught there are only two eternal destinations for people. In verse 46, Jesus said the unrighteous “will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” He did not say everyone is going to the same place when they die.

     Third, Jesus offers the only way to heaven. That means even the sincerest followers of other religions must trust in Christ for salvation. It’s no coincidence that Jesus gave His most detailed explanation of how to get to heaven not to a hardened atheist but to a devout Jew. In John 3, Jesus talked with a Jewish leader named Nicodemus, who had spent his life trying to keep the Mosaic law. If anyone should have gone to heaven on the basis of good works, it was Nicodemus. But Jesus told this respected Jewish leader that his devotion to the law was not enough. Nicodemus had to be born again. In John 3:14–16, Jesus explained how to be born again. Whoever believes in Jesus will have eternal life. The Greek word translated as “believes” means “to trust in, to believe in, to cling to, to put your full hope and faith in.”

     Fourth, Jesus offers the only genuine solution to humanity’s greatest dilemma. Almost every religion contains a kernel of truth. And one common denominator in almost all the world’s religions is that humanity’s basic problem is internal.

     However, other religions claim that the solution for our dilemma begins with us. For example, Eastern religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism say the way we overcome our basic selfishness is through meditation, by which we empty ourselves of our desire for pleasure and status. Other religions such as Islam and Judaism say the way to solve our dilemma is by trying to earn God’s favor through keeping a set of laws and regulations.

     Christianity’s diagnosis of the human condition is much more severe. Christianity says we’re not only flawed but also spiritually “dead in [our] trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1). Paul said in Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

     Furthermore, unlike other religions, Christianity doesn’t allow selective obedience to God’s law. Every other religion says do the best you can — but not Christianity. James 2:10 says, “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.” According to Romans 6:23, the penalty for falling short of God’s standard is eternal death. Christianity is unique because it raises the performance requirements. Christianity doesn’t say it’s good enough to be good enough. Christianity says God’s standard is absolute perfection. The problem is, no one can meet God’s standard.

     Since none of us is capable of meeting that standard, God instituted a rescue plan for us. He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, who lived a perfect life and willingly died on a cross. As Jesus hung on that cross, God poured out all the punishment we deserve for our sins on His Son. Jesus experienced hell so that we can experience heaven. God tells us, If you will quit trying to earn My forgiveness and simply put your faith and trust in Jesus, I’ll place all your sins on Him and let Him pay for them. And I’ll wrap Jesus’s absolute righteousness around you so that when I look at you from now on, I’ll no longer see your sin; instead, I’ll see the perfection of My Son. Paul explained it this way in 2 Corinthians 5:21: “[God] made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

     God offers to forgive our every failure — not on the basis of what we do for Him but on the basis of what Christ has done for us. God doesn’t require that we earn His forgiveness. In fact, He doesn’t even allow us to try. In Ephesians 2:8–9, Paul said, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Respond to Objections

     Where does that leave believers? We have an urgent message to proclaim — a matter of eternal life and death. Yet the truth we have to share is so out of step with our culture that we risk offending others with it. How do we respond to these objections to salvation? How do we help people understand that the gospel — Jesus is the only way to God and the only means of salvation — is the greatest news the world has ever received? As I’ve responded to these objections to the exclusivity of Jesus Christ over the years, I’ve found four responses that tend to help defuse tension and open the door to heartfelt conversation.

     First, “Your argument is with the Bible, not with me.” Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” In Acts 4:12, Peter said, “There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” Paul said in Romans 10:9, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

     Jesus, Paul, and Peter were all Jews. Yet they all made it clear that no one can be saved by following Jewish rules and regulations. Only through Jesus Christ can someone be saved. As we share the gospel, it’s important to point out that we’re not concocting our own way to be saved. We’re simply repeating what God has already said — and we do so not to hurt people but to help people.

     Second, “God wants to save as many, not as few, people as possible.” Consider the words of the three most prominent Jews in the New Testament. In 1 Timothy 2:4, Paul said, “[God] desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” In 2 Peter 3:9, Peter said, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” In Luke 19:10, Jesus said, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

     Third, “The fact that God has provided one way of salvation demonstrates His love, not His hatred.” Suppose you’re on a plane that crash-lands. The cabin fills with smoke and the interior lights flicker out. A flight attendant stands at the front of the plane, waving her emergency flashlight, yelling, “This way out!” Would you accuse her of being intolerant because she insisted there’s only one way out of the plane? If someone grabbed your hand in the darkness and said, “Follow me, I’ll help you out,” would you say that person was being hateful or narrow-minded? We can’t force people to utilize the way of escape God has provided. But that shouldn’t keep us from courageously waving the light of God’s truth in this sinful, dark world.

     Fourth, “Consider the cost.” One truth that must not get lost in this discussion is that there was a person in Scripture who took this matter of exclusivity directly to God. One person, in a moment of unimaginable duress, had the nerve to question God about whether the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was truly the only means of salvation.

     That person was Jesus Christ.

     On the night of His arrest, as the enormity of what He was about to do settled on Him, Jesus issued an anguished plea: “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me” (Matt. 26:39). In other words, He was saying, “Father, if there is any other way for this sinful human race to be saved and reconciled to You — one that doesn’t involve My physical torture, emotional humiliation, and spiritual desolation — please let it happen.”

     But Jesus ended His plea with these words: “Yet not as I will, but as You will” (v. 39). Jesus came to earth for one purpose: to do His Father’s will (John 5:19). So just before He became the only way to God, He needed to know He was indeed the only way to God.

     Three times Jesus prayed. And then He received His Father’s answer. Reassured that He was indeed the only way, Jesus gathered His friends and waited for His enemies with a calm confidence and a reenergized sense of purpose.

     Jesus asked if there was another way, and God said no. The salvation of the human race would require unimaginable suffering and sacrifice for both of them. That was the cost of sin.

     Therein lies the heart of exclusivity. Jesus came to earth, lived a sinless life, allowed Himself to be crucified, and rose from the dead because no one else could. He sacrificed everything for us because there was no plan B. If all roads lead to God — indeed, if any other road leads to God — that means the sacrifice Jesus believed was necessary really wasn’t. If there is another way to God, then God lied to His Son — and this supreme act of love becomes a monstrous deception and needless bloodletting.

     When we consider the cost of salvation, we understand why there is no other way.

A Final Prayer

     All of us have sinned against God. The gospel is clear that we cannot save ourselves. No matter how hard we try, we cannot be good enough to earn heaven. Instead, we have to admit our sin and trust in Jesus alone to save us. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, He willingly took the punishment you and I deserve for our sins.

     The biggest decision you will ever make is whether you want to pay for your own sins or whether you will accept God’s payment for your sins through Jesus Christ. If you decide you want to pay for your own sins by being a good person, you will never be able to pay your sin debt. If you attempt to get into heaven based only on your good works, you will end up being condemned to an eternity in hell.

     The only other option is to accept Christ’s payment for your sin. You must believe that when Jesus said on the cross, “It is finished!” (John 19:30) — literally, paid in full — He paid your debt for you, and you must accept that payment for your sins.

     If you would like to become a Christian and know for sure that one day you will be welcomed into heaven, I invite you to pray this prayer, knowing that God is listening:

     Dear God,

     Thank You for loving me. I realize I have failed You in so many ways. And I am truly sorry for the sin in my life. I believe that You love me so much that You sent Your Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for me and take the punishment that I deserve for my sins. And right now, I am trusting in what Jesus did for me — not in my good works — to save me from my sins. Thank You for forgiving me. Help me to spend the rest of my life serving You. In Jesus’s name, amen.

Judges 12; Acts 16; Jeremiah 25; Mark 11

By Don Carson 7/29/2018

     Three Observations on these steps in the ministry of Paul and Silas (Acts 16):

     (1) To understand Paul’s “Macedonian call” (Acts 16:6-10), one must follow his movements on a map. After traveling through the central part of what is now Turkey, the Spirit forbids Paul and Silas from going into Asia (Acts 16:6), i.e., Asia Minor, the Western part of modern Turkey. So they travel north. Now they try to enter Bithynia (Acts 16:7). Had they been enabled to do so, they would have been on the major east/west road that joined the Roman Empire with India — and heading east. But the “Spirit of Jesus” forbids them from taking that step (Acts 16:7), and so they go in the only direction still open to them along the roads of the day: they head toward the port city of Troas. From there, there is only one obvious place to go: across the water to Europe.

     During the night Paul has a vision of a man in Macedonia, the nearest landfall of Europe, begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us” (Acts 16:9). This confirms Paul and Silas in their movements; it does not redirect them. The result is ministry on the continent of Europe, and ultimately a path to Rome.

     (2) Paul’s first convert in Europe was a woman, an intercontinental business traveler from Thyatira. Note the description of her conversion, and then the description of the Philippian jailer’s: “The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message” (Acts 16:14); “The jailer….had come to believe in God — he and his whole family” (Acts 16:34). Let’s use both locutions today.

     (3) Worth pondering are the occasions when Paul stands on his Roman citizenship, and when he does not. Sometimes he is beaten without a word of protest. In Philippi, Paul and Silas are “severely flogged” (Acts 16:23-24), apparently without protesting. Roman citizens were exempt from flogging until they had been found guilty of the crime for which they were charged. Yet when the jailer is told to release the prisoners, Paul protests that he and Silas, both citizens, have been flogged without a trial, and insists that the city’s leaders come and escort them out of jail as a kind of public apology (Acts 16:37-39). Why not simply suffer in silence, not least since that is what they sometimes do?

     It is difficult to prove, but many have argued, believably, that Paul stands on his rights when by doing so he thinks he can establish legal precedents that may help other Christians. Every case on the books where Christians have been shown not to be guilty of public disorder or a threat to the Roman Empire can only be a useful legal precedent. If this is right, it is a mark of strategic thinking — for the sake of others.

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Don Carson is research professor of New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois, and co-founder (with Tim Keller) of The Gospel Coalition. He has authored numerous books, and recently edited The Enduring Authority of the Christian Scriptures (Eerdmans, 2016).

Read The Psalms In "1" Year

Psalm 79

1 O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple;
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
2 They have given the bodies of your servants
to the birds of the heavens for food,
the flesh of your faithful to the beasts of the earth.
3 They have poured out their blood like water
all around Jerusalem,
and there was no one to bury them.
4 We have become a taunt to our neighbors,
mocked and derided by those around us.

5 How long, O LORD? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy burn like fire?
6 Pour out your anger on the nations
that do not know you,
and on the kingdoms
that do not call upon your name!
7 For they have devoured Jacob
and laid waste his habitation.

By John Walvoord

Idolatry Revealed in the Temple

     Ezekiel 8:1–18. The Spirit took Ezekiel to the north gate of the temple (vv.  1–4 ). Ezekiel was then brought to the entrance of the court and told to look through a hole in the wall. He “saw portrayed all over the walls all kinds of crawling things and detestable animals and all the idols of the house of Israel. In front of them stood seventy elders of the house of Israel, and Jaazaniah son of Shaphan was standing among them. Each had a censer in his hand, and a fragrant cloud of incense was rising” (vv.  10–11 ).

     Ezekiel was then at the entrance of the north gate of the temple where he saw women mourning for Tammuz, a Sumerian god related to vegetation. Worshippers of this idol believed that when drought came in the summer, Tammuz would die but in the spring would come out and bring rain (vv.  14–15 ).

     When Ezekiel was brought into the inner court of the temple, he witnessed twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple, bowing toward the sun (v.  16 ). As a result of their desecration of the temple and turning to heathen gods, God would bring judgment on them and He would not show pity (vv.  17–18 ). This was fulfilled in the Babylonian captivity ( 2 Chron. 36:11–15 ).

God Commands Idolaters to Be Killed

     Ezekiel 9:1–11. God instructed six guards to go about the city and mark all “who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it” (vv.  1–4 ).

     God then told others to kill everyone who did not have the mark, whether old or young, but not to touch those who had the mark, indicating that they detested idol worship (vv.  5–7 ).     As my bride says, God always has a remnant.  Revelation 7:3, Revelation 14:1, Satan always tries to copy the Lord. His followers also have a mark, the mark of the Beast.

     When Ezekiel questioned whether the Lord was going to pour out His wrath on Jerusalem, God replied that the time of judgment had come because of her wickedness and that He “will not look on them with pity or spare them, but I will bring down on their own heads what they have done” (vv.  8–11 ). This was fulfilled in the Babylonian captivity ( 2 Chron. 36:11–15 ).

The Glory Departs from the Defiled Temple

     Ezekiel 10:1–22. In a vision that is similar but not identical to what Ezekiel saw earlier ( 1:1–28 ), Ezekiel saw another vision of the glory of God. God was in a chariot throne that had wheels and contained burning coals ( 10:1–3 ). As God entered the temple, the temple was filled with His glory (vv.  4–5 ).

     God then instructed a man clothed in linen, probably an angel, to take fire from the coals in the chariot and scatter them over the city of Jerusalem (vv.  2, 6–7 ).

     The four wheels were described as sparkling like chrysolite (v.  9 ). The cherubim described had four faces similar to the four faces mentioned in  1:4–10, but somewhat different because one of the faces was that of a cherub instead of an ox ( 10:14 ).

     Ezekiel identified the living creatures as those he saw by the Kebar River (v.  15, 20; 1:1 ). The main point of this revelation was that “the glory of the LORD departed from over the threshold of the temple and stopped above the cherubim” ( 10:18 ). Another picture of the cherubim was given in verses  20–22. This was fulfilled in the Babylonian captivity ( 2 Chron. 36:11–15 ).

Coming Judgment on the Wicked Leaders of Israel

     Ezekiel 11:1–15. Ezekiel was given another vision of twenty-five leaders of Israel who were plotting evil and were wicked (vv.  1–4 ). Those who had been already killed in the city were only the beginning as God was going to drive them out and inflict punishment on them in keeping with their sins (vv.  5–12 ). The death of Pelatiah, one of the leaders, was a foreshadowing of death that would destroy the others (v.  13 ). In contrast to the destruction of the leaders of Israel was the remnant of Israel, the fellow captives of Ezekiel (vv.  13–15 ). God reassured Ezekiel that ultimately the land would be given for the possession of Israel (v.  15 ). This was fulfilled in the Babylonian captivity, and the restoration of the land will be fulfilled in the millennial kingdom.

Israel to Be Restored to Their Land

     Ezekiel 11:16–25. Just as God had scattered them among the heathens, so God would ultimately bring the Israelites back to their land (vv.  16–17 ). This promise, repeated so often, must be taken in the same literal sense as the destruction that followed, which fell on her because of her sins. Such restoration was partially fulfilled in the return from the Babylonian and Assyrian captivities but ultimately will be fulfilled by the complete regathering of Israel at the time of the second coming of Christ.

     When Israel returns, there will be a new spirit among her that will cause her to remove the idols. God promised to “put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh” (v.  19 ). At that time God declared, “Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God” (v.  20 ). Those who have been wicked and departed from God will bring judgment on their own heads. In closing this episode of Ezekiel’s image, he saw the glory going from within the city and stopping in the mountain to the east of Jerusalem (v.  23 ). This will be fulfilled in the millennium ( Jer. 23:3–8 ).

The Captivity Symbolized

     Ezekiel 12:1–28. God gave Ezekiel instructions to act out going into exile (vv.  1–6 ). In obedience to what God commanded, Ezekiel packed his things, as if going into exile, dug a hole through the wall, and at dusk carried out his things on his shoulders while the people watched (v.  7 ).

     God instructed him that if they asked what he was doing, he should tell them that it symbolized the whole house of Israel going into exile (vv.  8–11 ). God described “the prince among them” (v.  12 ) doing the same thing as Ezekiel.

     Zedekiah’s departure from Jerusalem, however, would only result in his being caught and brought to Babylon (vv.  12–13 ). The prediction that while he was going to Babylon he would not see it was fulfilled during the conquest of Nebuchadnezzar ( Jer. 52:10–11 ). Because Zedekiah was blinded, he was unable to see Babylon even though he was taken to it.

     The dispersion of Israel among the nations of the world was predicted ( Ezek. 12:15–16 ). This prediction was not completed by the Babylonian or Assyrian captivities but was fulfilled in the dispersion of Israel after the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.

     Ezekiel was instructed to eat and drink and to “shudder in fear” (v.  18 ). By this means, symbolically, he was to represent what would happen in Jerusalem, as in their despair they saw the land stripped of everything and their cities destroyed (vv.  17–20 ). God promised to fulfill without delay the visions and revelations of their destruction (vv.  25–28 ). This was fulfilled in the Babylonian captivity ( 2 Chron. 36:11–15 ).

Condemnation of False Prophets

     Ezekiel 13:1–23. Having delivered two messages that judgment was near ( 12:21–25; 26–28 ), God gave Ezekiel the third message of judgment to come, which concerned the false prophets who had encouraged Israel to believe that she would not go into captivity ( 13:1–3 ). God declared, “Their visions are false and their divinations a lie” (v.  6 ). She would be destroyed and would not be able to return to the land of Israel (v.  9 ).

     God compared Israel’s false prophets to “a flimsy wall” covered “with whitewash” (v.  10 ). God predicted that rain, violent winds, and hailstones would destroy the wall (vv.  10–13 ). God declared, “I will tear down the wall you have covered with whitewash and will level it to the ground so that its foundations will be laid bare. When it falls, you will be destroyed in it; and you will know that I am the LORD” (v.  14 ). God also declared judgment on “the women who sew magic charms on all their wrists and make veils of various lengths for their heads in order to ensnare people” (v.  18 ). God declared that He would judge them for their wicked behavior (vv.  19–22 ). These false prophets and the women “will no longer see false visions or practice divination” (v.  23 ). This was fulfilled in the Babylonian captivity ( 2 Chron. 36:11–15 ).

          __________________________________________________________________

Every Prophecy of the Bible: Clear Explanations for Uncertain Times

The Continual Burnt Offering (Luke 19:10)

By H.A. Ironside - 1941

July 29

Not what these hands have done
Can save my guilty soul;
Not what this toiling flesh has borne
Can make my spirit whole.

No other work save Thine—
Nought save Thy blood will do:
No strength, save that which is divine,
Can bear me safely through.
--- Herbert G. Tovey

The Institutes of the Christian Religion

Translated by Henry Beveridge

     30. Herein is the goodness, power, and providence of God wondrously displayed. At one time he raises up manifest avengers from among his own servants, and gives them his command to punish accursed tyranny, and deliver his people from calamity when they are unjustly oppressed; at another time he employs, for this purpose, the fury of men who have other thoughts and other aims. Thus he rescued his people Israel from the tyranny of Pharaoh by Moses; from the violence of Chusa, king of Syria, by Othniel; and from other bondage by other kings or judges. Thus he tamed the pride of Tyre by the Egyptians; the insolence of the Egyptians by the Assyrians; the ferocity of the Assyrians by the Chaldeans; the confidence of Babylon by the Medes and Persians,--Cyrus having previously subdued the Medes, while the ingratitude of the kings of Judah and Israel, and their impious contumacy after all his kindness, he subdued and punished,--at one time by the Assyrians, at another by the Babylonians. All these things, however, were not done in the same way. The former class of deliverers being brought forward by the lawful call of God to perform such deeds, when they took up arms against kings, did not at all violate that majesty with which kings are invested by divine appointment, but armed from heaven, they, by a greater power, curbed a less, just as kings may lawfully punish their own satraps. The latter class, though they were directed by the hand of God, as seemed to him good, and did his work without knowing it, had nought but evil in their thoughts.

31. But whatever may be thought of the acts of the men themselves, [692] the Lord by their means equally executed his own work, when he broke the bloody sceptres of insolent kings, and overthrew their intolerable dominations. Let princes hear and be afraid; but let us at the same time guard most carefully against spurning or violating the venerable and majestic authority of rulers, an authority which God has sanctioned by the surest edicts, although those invested with it should be most unworthy of it, and, as far as in them lies, pollute it by their iniquity. Although the Lord takes vengeance on unbridled domination, let us not therefore suppose that that vengeance is committed to us, to whom no command has been given but to obey and suffer. I speak only of private men. For when popular magistrates have been appointed to curb the tyranny of kings (as the Ephori, who were opposed to kings among the Spartans, or Tribunes of the people to consuls among the Romans, or Demarchs to the senate among the Athenians; and perhaps there is something similar to this in the power exercised in each kingdom by the three orders, when they hold their primary diets). So far am I from forbidding these officially to check the undue license of kings, that if they connive at kings when they tyrannise and insult over the humbler of the people, I affirm that their dissimulation is not free from nefarious perfidy, because they fradulently betray the liberty of the people, while knowing that, by the ordinance of God, they are its appointed guardians.

32. But in that obedience which we hold to be due to the commands of rulers, we must always make the exception, nay, must be particularly careful that it is not incompatible with obedience to Him to whose will the wishes of all kings should be subject, to whose decrees their commands must yield, to whose majesty their sceptres must bow. And, indeed, how preposterous were it, in pleasing men, to incur the offence of Him for whose sake you obey men! The Lord, therefore, is King of kings. When he opens his sacred mouth, he alone is to be heard, instead of all and above all. We are subject to the men who rule over us, but subject only in the Lord. If they command anything against Him let us not pay the least regard to it, nor be moved by all the dignity which they possess as magistrates--a dignity to which no injury is done when it is subordinated to the special and truly supreme power of God. On this ground Daniel denies that he had sinned in any respect against the king when he refused to obey his impious decree (Dan. 6:22), because the king had exceeded his limits, and not only been injurious to men, but, by raising his horn against God, had virtually abrogated his own power. On the other hand, the Israelites are condemned for having too readily obeyed the impious edict of the king. For, when Jeroboam made the golden calf, they forsook the temple of God, and, in submissiveness to him, revolted to new superstitions (1 Kings 12:28). With the same facility posterity had bowed before the decrees of their kings. For this they are severely upbraided by the Prophet (Hosea 5:11). So far is the praise of modesty from being due to that pretence by which flattering courtiers cloak themselves, and deceive the simple, when they deny the lawfulness of declining anything imposed by their kings, as if the Lord had resigned his own rights to mortals by appointing them to rule over their fellows, or as if earthly power were diminished when it is subjected to its author, before whom even the principalities of heaven tremble as suppliants. I know the imminent peril to which subjects expose themselves by this firmness, kings being most indignant when they are contemned. As Solomon says, "The wrath of a king is as messengers of death" (Prov. 16:14). But since Peter, one of heaven's heralds, has published the edict, "We ought to obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29), let us console ourselves with the thought, that we are rendering the obedience which the Lord requires, when we endure anything rather than turn aside from piety. And that our courage may not fail, Paul stimulates us by the additional consideration (1 Cor. 7:23), that we were redeemed by Christ at the great price which our redemption cost him, in order that we might not yield a slavish obedience to the depraved wishes of men, far less do homage to their impiety.

     END OF THE INSTITUTES.

     Christian Classics Ethereal Library / Public Domain

     Institutes of the Christian Religion

My God Remembers – Zechariah

By Charles L. Feinberg - January 1965

     Compare the many passages in the Psalms. The Stone relates Him to the Spirit of God, for the seven eyes are symbolic of manifold intelligence and omniscience (Isa. 11:2; Rev. 5:6).

Isaiah 11:2 (NASB95) 2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him,
The spirit of wisdom and understanding,
The spirit of counsel and strength,
The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.

Revelation 5:6 (NASB95) 6 And I saw between the throne
(with the four living creatures) and the elders a Lamb standing,
as if slain,
having seven horns and seven eyes,
which are the seven Spirits of God,
sent out into all the earth.

The truth that is uppermost in the mind of the prophet (given to him of God) is the removal of the iniquity of the land in one day. Note that we have umashti and not umash, as though a third person were meant. No, it is the Angel of Jehovah speaking of His own future work of sin-purging and sin-cleansing. In this one word the entire vision is comprehended and its full import seen. Ha'arets hahi' is restricted by the context to Judah, but not limited in its ultimate out flow to all the world. The words beyom 'ehadh are more significant than they appear to be at first glance. They make the tremendous declaration that the removal of iniquity will be once for all. There will be no need of repetition as with the typical priesthood. Chambers has put it concisely: "It presents a contrast between the continually repeated sacrifices of the Levitical priesthood and the one final and effectual sacrifice of the Messiah." This expression is always emphatic in Scripture usage. (See Gen. 27:45; 1 Sam. 2:34; 1 Kings 20:29; 2 Chron. 28:6.)

Genesis 27:45 (NASB95) 45 until your brother’s anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him.
Then I will send and get you from there.
Why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?”

1 Samuel 2:34 (NASB95) 34 ‘This will be the sign to you which will come concerning your two sons,
Hophni and Phinehas:
on the same day both of them will die.

1 Kings 20:29 (NASB95) 29 So they camped one over against the other seven days.
And on the seventh day the battle was joined,
and the sons of Israel killed of the Arameans 100,000 foot soldiers in one day.

2 Chronicles 28:6 (NASB95) 6 For Pekah the son of Remaliah slew in Judah 120,000 in one day,
all valiant men, because they had forsaken the LORD God of their fathers.

It is analogous to 'ephapax in Hebrews 7:27; 9:12; 10:10.

Hebrews 7:27 (NASB95) 27 who does not need daily, like those high priests,
to offer up sacrifices,
first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people,
because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.

Hebrews 9:12 (NASB95) 12 and not through the blood of goats and calves,
but through His own blood,
He entered the holy place once for all,
having obtained eternal redemption.

Hebrews 10:10 (NASB95) 10 By this will we have been sanctified
through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

What day is meant here? Rashi, one of the greatest of all Jewish commentators (12th century A.O.), confessed the mystery: "One day, I know not what that day is." Most Christian expositors claim it is the day of Calvary, but it must look beyond that to a day when Israel in a time of national atonement and repentance will have ratified for her in her national life actually, that which was wrought out potentially and provisionally at Calvary.

     Immediately that Israel is seen cleansed and restored, the Scriptures always reveal the consequent quiet, peace, and prosperity which result from the work accomplished in and through them by the Messiah. Zechariah concludes the vision thus:

Zechariah 3:10 (NASB95) 10 ‘In that day,’ declares the LORD of hosts, ‘every one of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and under his fig tree.’ ”

Bayyom hahu' relates the time of these conditions to the period of the cleansing of the land from iniquity. It is a phrase much used by Zechariah and has much prophetic significance. Every one calling his neighbor 'el tahath is a pregnant construction for "to come and sit under." Such conditions of tranquility and fruitfulness of the land existed in the golden days of Solomon (1 Kings 4:25)

1 Kings 4:25 (NASB95) 25 So Judah and Israel lived in safety,
every man under his vine and his fig tree,
from Dan even to Beersheba,
all the days of Solomon.

and were in themselves foreshadowings of the similar circumstances in the reign of the One greater than Solomon (Mic. 4:4).

Micah 4:4 (NASB95) 4 Each of them will sit under his vine
And under his fig tree,
With no one to make them afraid,
For the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken.

     As we look back over this important chapter, we note that its first part deals with the past sins of Israel as forgiven of God through the then ministering high priest; its second division looks forward to that coming day when the High Priest, unexcelled and unparalleled, will take away all the sins of Israel forever. The temple than being built was to have a cleansed and reinstated priesthood of Israel yet to be made possible through the work of God's Servant, Zemach. We call attention to the fulness of the testimony of the Angel of Jehovah to Joshua (6:10:

(1) He confirms the priestly position of Joshua (v7)
(2) He predicts the coming of the Messiah (v8)
(3) He foretells the work of the Messiah with its spiritual results for Israel (v9)
(4) He pictures the attendant blessings of peace and prosperity for the nation (10)
The revelation in verses 8 to 10 is remarkably complete. It gives us:
(1) The Portents of the Coming One. Joshua and the priests.
(2) The person of the coming One. My servant Zemach.
(3) The Preparation of the Coming One. I engrave its graving
(4) The Performance of the Coming One. I will remove the iniquity of that land.
(5) The Perfection of the Work of the Coming One. In one day - no 'renewal'.
(6) The Peace from the Work of the Corning One. Under the vine and under the fig tree.
(7) The Prosperity from the Work of the Coming One. The same phrases.

     We do well to turn from the men of wonder to the Man Christ Jesus who is the Wonderful, the Prince of Peace. We cannot resist the temptation to bring out the analogy to the gospel story itself that we find here. We do so with hesitation lest the impression be given that this is the primary meaning. Delitzsch, writing in another connection, noted that “Interpretation is one; application is manifold.” With this in mind, we submit the following. As with Joshua, the basis of God’s dealings with any sinner is in His soverign choice in grace. Of every individual in the world who has been brought to God, it can be truthfully said, “God hath chosen thee.” That choice was before the foundation of the world (Eph 1). But look at the sinner as he actually appears before God; it is with vile, filthy garments such as Joshua wore. Every righteousness of the sinner is only filthiness. And he is helpless to alter his condition. If left to himself and his own efforts, he would have to abide thus for all eternity. But thank God, Christ makes it possible for him to be clothed with new garments, even the robe of his own righteousness (Isaiah 61:10; 2 Corinthians 5:21). When so forgiven and cleansed of God, the sinner becomes immediately a priest before God with a priestly service and ministry, a part of the body of Christ who is Himself the great High Priest. Redeemed ones are truly men of wonder, for even the angels desire to look into these things. (Ephesians 3:10) A Godly walk on the basis of redemption is the issue of the work of God; a godly and consistant testimony is an integral part of it as well. Behold what God has wrought.

E. The Vision of the Candlestick and the Two Olive Trees. 4:1-14

     The fifth vision of the book carries us forward from the concluding point of the fourth in this manner: after Israel as the priestly nation of God has been cleansed from all defilement and has entered into the restoration of her priestly calling, then she is prepared to fulfill God's original purpose in her as the bearer of light and truth to all the surrounding nations in their idolatry and paganism. In Deuteronomy 32:8 Moses sang: "When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, When he separated the children of men, He set the bounds of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel." God's intention was that Israel might diffuse spiritual light throughout the whole world by disseminating the truth concerning the living and the true Creator of all men (cf. Ezek. 5:5-6).

Deuteronomy 32:8 (NASB95) 8 “When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance,
When He separated the sons of man,
He set the boundaries of the peoples
According to the number of the sons of Israel.

Ezekiel 5:5–6 (NASB95) 5 “Thus says the Lord GOD, ‘This is Jerusalem;
I have set her at the center of the nations, with lands around her.
6 ‘But she has rebelled against My ordinances
more wickedly than the nations
and against My statutes more than the lands which surround her;
for they have rejected My ordinances and have not walked in My statutes.’

     While Israel is surely in view in the chapter, the foreground occupies itself with an individual, Zerubbabel, a scion of the Davidic dynasty. Just as chapter three brings Joshua and his work to the fore in order to encourage him, so this chapter presents Zerubbabel as prominent that he might be heartened for his arduous tasks. It must be remembered that the Davidic descendant has been much hindered in his attempt to build the temple of the Lord. Zechariah brings him the message of hope and uplift so sorely needed. Zerubbabel is made to understand that the work in the last analysis is dependent upon God rather than upon any human agent or instrumentality. Dods has well stated it in holding that "The preceding vision was meant to reinstate the religious head of the nation; this is meant to give Zerubbabel, the civil head, the assurance that he also is God's anointed, endowed with power from God to do God's work, as truly as ever any of his royal forefathers had been."

     This chapter allows of a simple, twofold division: (1) the vision proper, verses 1-5; (2) the interpretation of the symbolism, 6-14. It is interesting to note the emphasis on the number seven in this version: seven lamps, seven pipes, and the seven eyes. The chapter itself consists of fourteen verses, a multiple of seven. But of the full significance of this number we shall speak more particularly and detailedly later.

     The interpreting angel had evidently left the prophet at the conclusion of the preceding vision, so his return is stated thus:

Zechariah 4:1 (NASB95) 1 Then the angel who was speaking with me returned and roused me, as a man who is awakened from his sleep.

     We are not to understand the waking as ordinary, because the prophet was not asleep in the common sense of the word. The prophet had relapsed into his normal state of consciousness which was like the state of sleep compared to that in which visions and divine revelations are received. Keil bas pointedly expressed it in this manner: "He has not only fallen back into the state of ordinary human consciousness, but bis ordinary spiritual consciousness was so depressed that he resembled a man asleep, and had to be waked out of this sleep-like state by the mediating angel, in order to be qualified for further seeing" (cf. Dan. 8:18; 10:9 Luke 9:32).

Daniel 8:18 (NASB95) 18 Now while he was talking with me,
I sank into a deep sleep with my face to the ground;
but he touched me and made me stand upright.

Daniel 10:9 (NASB95) 9 But I heard the sound of his words;
and as soon as I heard the sound of his words,
I fell into a deep sleep on my face,
with my face to the ground.

Luke 9:32 (NASB95) 32 Now Peter and his companions had been overcome with sleep;
but when they were fully awake,
they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him.

     The fact of the condition of the seer is important but of greater significance is the vision which he saw in the ecstatic state, which be records:

Zechariah 4:2–3 (NASB95) 2 He said to me, “What do you see?”
And I said, “I see, and behold,
a lampstand all of gold with its bowl on the top of it,
and its seven lamps on it with seven spouts belonging to each of the lamps
which are on the top of it;
3 also two olive trees by it,
one on the right side of the bowl and the other on its left side.”

The second occurrence in verse 2 of the word wayyo' omar is clearly a copyist's error for wa'omar, the Qeri. The Qeri is found in many manuscripts and all the versions. The lampstand of the vision is the seven-branched lampstand of the tabernacle with three notable differences:

(1) the bowl on top of it;
(2) the seven pipes to each lamp;
(3) the olive trees at the right hand and left of the lampstand (cf. Exod. 25:31-40).

     As to the number of pipes to the lamps there has been considerable difference of opinion. Von Orelli, Kimchi, and others hold that there were seven pipes in all. Keil, Chambers, Baron, and many others understand forty-nine in all. With this latter view we concur. There is no ambiguity in the original, as Wright would have it, for the expression shibh'ah weshibh'ah is to be taken distributively, seven pipes for each lamp. The usage is not without parallel as can be seen from 2 Samuel 21:20 and 1 Chronicles 20:6.

2 Samuel 21:20 (NASB95) 20 There was war at Gath again,
where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand
and six toes on each foot,
twenty-four in number;
and he also had been born to the giant.

1 Chronicles 20:6 (NASB95) 6 Again there was war at Gath,
where there was a man of great stature who had twenty-four fingers and toes,
six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot;
and he also was descended from the giants.

     The multiplied channels are purposely introduced to bring out the enlarged and abundant supply of the oil. The meaning of the olive trees is found in verses 12-14 of the chapter.

Zechariah 4:12–14 (NASB95) 12 And I answered the second time and said to him,
“What are the two olive branches which are beside the two golden pipes,
which empty the golden oil from themselves?”
13 So he answered me, saying,
“Do you not know what these are?”
And I said, “No, my lord.”
14 Then he said,
“These are the two anointed ones who are standing by the Lord of the whole earth.”

May 19, 2024 Churches Praying For Israel

By Cornerstone Chapel

Isaiah 49:24-25 “Can the prey be taken from the mighty, or the captives of a tyrant be rescued? For thus says the LORD: ‘Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken and the prey of the tyrant be rescued for I will contend with those who contend with you, and I will save your children.’”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we believe You can reveal the hostages’ location. We humbly ask You, Lord Jesus, to guide the IDF or anyone You choose to find the hostages and safely return them to their families. Please comfort the families of those who have been killed. Lord, please rescue the lost. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Psalm 91:4 “He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.”

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we pray for the safety and protection of innocent civilians in Israel and Gaza. May they find refuge from danger. We ask for Your divine protection over this region. Keep women, children, and innocent people from being shields and tools for terrorists. Give them a way of escape. Shield the little children from harm’s way we pray, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Psalm 121:7-8 “The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.”

Prayer: Lord, we pray for Israel’s protection from harm. Please be with the IDF and the brave men and women who are in harm’s way. Lord, we ask that You shield them from their enemies and surround them with Your divine protection, to allow them to act effectively to bring peace to the region. We ask that You confuse and thwart the assaults of Israel’s adversaries. Lord, please defeat Israel’s enemies, but also convict them and redeem them. Lord, we also ask for your mercy to fall on Israel, Gaza, and the entire region. May all innocent ones be protected from harm. May all evildoers be stopped in their tracks by you, Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

2 Corinthians 3:17 “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”

Prayer: Lord, we ask that You safeguard the religious freedom of all faith communities in Israel. Lord, we ask that You protect and open doors of conversation so that the gospel can be freely shared with Jews, Muslims, and atheists. While our desire is that all worship You as Lord and Savior, we do pray that religious persecution and animosity would cease, and that You would use religious freedom as a tool for peace. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Isaiah 41:10 “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, strengthen the people of Israel in times of adversity. Strengthen all those – whether in Israel, Gaza, or the surrounding region – who are seeking you and trying to do right as best they know how to do. Lord, I ask they find courage and strength in You. Lord, may they come to know You as their refuge and strength. May they rely on You amid their battles. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

Prayer: God, we ask that you grant strength and courage to those working for peace. May your Holy Spirit empower them to pursue Your will. May they protect the innocent and put an end to evildoers. I pray that any action they take would not be from hatred or sin, but that they would rely on Your guidance to do what is right. Please show them what You want them to do and how You want them to do it. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Deuteronomy 7:9 “Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, help the people of Israel to honor You in everything they do. May they see You more clearly through this adversity and draw close to You in their time of need. We ask that Israel would be a blessing to their neighbors, not a hinderance. We ask that You protect them from wicked nations. May they ultimately find their help and comfort in you, Lord Jesus. We ask that they would then be Your instrument of salvation, pointing others to Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Proverbs 11:14 “Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.”

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we ask You to grant wisdom and discernment to Israel’s leaders, so they govern with integrity and seek Your guidance in every decision. Surround them with wise counsel and shut out the talk of evil or foolish men. Lord, we ask for leaders in Gaza who will truly look out for the interests of their people, and seek their welfare. We ask you to cause a change of heart in the leaders of Gaza so they will bless their people and not oppress them. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Proverbs 21:15 “When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers.”

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we come before you, asking that justice and fairness prevail in resolving this conflict. Lord, only You can give true justice. Each of our hearts is corrupt and biased. You see every wrong, You alone can correct and make every mistake right. May decisions in this war be honoring to You. Be with the leaders in this conflict and convict their hearts to pursue Your justice. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Jeremiah 30:17 “For I will restore health to you, and your wounds I will heal, declares the LORD, because they have called you an outcast: ‘It is Zion, for whom no one cares!’”

Prayer: Lord, we pray for emotional and psychological healing for those traumatized by this conflict. Restore hope and wholeness to them, and bring comfort to those who have experienced loss. Lord, bind up those who have been physically harmed, help them to recover both physically and emotionally. May You use what man intended for evil for good and for Your glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we ask that You break free the people of Israel and Gaza free from burdensome yolks, and that they would surrender their lives to Jesus Christ. Lord, please send your helpers to fight the spiritual darkness in this region. Please bring healing to the injured and brokenhearted. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Ephesians 2:14 “For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility.”

Prayer: Lord, we pray for healing and restoration in Israel and Gaza, and between Israel and Gaza. Lord, I ask that You heal past wounds and reconcile communities so that they may experience Your peace and wholeness. We ask for a new day to dawn in the Middle East, that is marked by Your presence. Lord, even in this conflict and confusion we trust that You are fulfilling Your plans and purposes. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Psalm 46:9 “He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire.”

Prayer: Father, we pray for an end to the violence and hostilities between Israel and Hamas. Lord, we ask You to open doors for dialogue and reconciliation. We ask that You bring this conflict to a swift and decisive conclusion and beat back the forces of darkness. We ask for Your justice and mercy to reign. We trust that all things work together for good, for those who are called according to Your purpose. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Psalm 122:6 “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! “May they be secure who love you!”

Prayer: Father, grant peace within Israel’s borders. Let tranquility reign in Jerusalem and throughout the nation, and may Your peace surpass all understanding. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Psalm 133:1 “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!”

Prayer: Lord, bring unity among the diverse people of Israel and throughout the Middle East. May they stand together in peace, choosing life over death, despite their differences. But most importantly Lord, may they surrender their hearts to You Jesus, and so be empowered by Your love that they may love one another. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Romans 15:13 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”

Prayer: Lord, please grant hope to those affected by conflict. We cannot imagine the horror this war has caused in so many lives. May the civilians and leaders hold fast to You alone as their source of hope. We ask that You display Your mighty hand in an unmistakable way and use this conflict to draw the lost to You and that there would be peace and reconciliation. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Matthew 25:35 “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.”

Prayer: Dear God, we are grateful for your ultimate provision. You are the source of all things; You are our great provider. We humbly ask for Your mercy and guidance to secure humanitarian assistance to those affected by the conflict. We pray that as their basic needs are met, they may also come to know You as their Lord and Savior. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Acts 5:31 “God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we praise You for the Jewish believers in Israel and worldwide. Please burden the hearts of Jewish Christians to share with all Jews that You are the Messiah and Savior. Please grant favor to Messianic Jews and stir them up to encourage their neighbors to surrender their lives to You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Joel 2:28 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.”

Prayer: Lord, please pour out Your Holy Spirit upon Israel and Gaza and ignite a spiritual revival, transforming lives with Your power and awakening hearts to Your truth. May countless come to faith in Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name, Amen.