Growing in Grace

“Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the scriptures?” (Luke 24:32)

Maybe you have heard someone use the expression, “He’s really on fire for the Lord.” What do they mean by this? Perhaps they have seen a young person attending a Bible meeting and sitting almost “on the edge of his chair” as he listens and absorbs what is being taught and explained. Maybe a boy or girl carries their Bible to school so they can always have their “sword” ready if someone asks them about their faith.

Today’s verse refers to the two people who were walking away from Jerusalem, discouraged after the Lord had been crucified. They had thought that Jesus was the Messiah who would set up His kingdom, and now He had been crucified and put in a tomb. The Lord Jesus came alongside them as they walked, and understood how they felt. He asked them why they were sad. Of course, He already knew, but He drew out their thoughts and hearts. He listened before He talked.

Then, “beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself” (verse 27). That would have been a marvelous walk! I imagine the time flew by, even though it was late and the walk was a long one. The distance from Jerusalem to Emmaus was about 12 km (or 7.5 miles). When they reached their home, the Lord Jesus started to say goodbye and prepared to go on, but they “constrained Him” to come in and stay with them. They were not going to let this One who had been such an encouragement to them just slip away into the night. In their home they realized who it was that was at their table with them.

It can be like this in our lives as well. If we get into the presence of the Lord and enjoy His company, even though it may be brief, we will have a burning desire for more. He had lit a fire in those two, and they started the long walk all the way back to Jerusalem that same night. They wanted more. The Lord Jesus loves to come alongside us and produce that spark in our hearts.

We can do a similar thing in the lives of others. Have you been encouraged by being with other young people, perhaps a little older than yourself? They may have influenced your life in blessing, and encouraged you to live for the Lord Jesus. Now perhaps it is your turn to do that for someone else. Come along beside them where they are. Enter into their feelings as best you can, and turn their eyes and hearts to the One who can make their hearts “burn” to know and enjoy more.

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“And the men of the city said unto Elisha, Behold, I pray thee, the situation of this city [Jericho] is pleasant … but the water is naught [bad], and the ground barren [does not grow things very well]. And he said, Bring me a new cruse [container], and put salt therein … And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast the salt in there, and said, Thus saith the Lord, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or barren land. So the waters were healed” (2 Kings 2:19-22).

As we know from reading his history, Elijah performed a number of miracles by the Lord’s power. Here we find the first miracle that Elisha performed, again by the Lord’s power. It is the type of miracle that was characteristic of Elisha, and it shows how his approach to the work of the Lord was different from that of Elijah. Elijah’s miracles were often characterized by judgment; Elisha’s miracles were characterized by grace.

After Elijah was taken up into heaven by a whirlwind, Elisha went back to Jericho. Perhaps you will remember that Jericho was destroyed (when its walls fell down in Joshua’s day), away back when the Israelites first conquered the land of Canaan. At that time the Lord had said, through Joshua, “Cursed be the man before the Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho: he shall lay the foundation thereof in his firstborn, and in his youngest son shall he set up the gates thereof” (Joshua 6:26). Yet hundreds of years later, when Ahab was king, it is recorded that “in his [Ahab’s] days did Hiel the Bethelite build Jericho: he laid the foundation thereof in Abiram his firstborn, and set up the gates thereof in his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the Lord, which He spake by Joshua the son of Nun” (1 Kings 16:34). This really means that both his eldest son and his youngest son died because Hiel disobeyed the Word of the Lord.

When Elisha came back to Jericho, the men of the city told him that the water was bad, and the land did not grow crops properly. Elisha could easily have said, “It serves you right! That city should never have been rebuilt! The Lord pronounced a curse on the man who rebuilt the city, and the bad water and the barren land is the Lord’s judgment on you.” However, Elisha did not say anything like that. He acted in grace, and asked for some salt, which he threw into the spring of the waters. As a result, the waters were healed.

Salt in the Bible speaks of holy grace. God did not excuse the man who had rebuilt Jericho, but He graciously healed the water and the land. This is the way the Lord Jesus has treated us. Instead of punishing us for our sins, He has made a way for our sins to be forgiven. God does not pass over our sins; rather the Lord Jesus suffered for us. Now God can come out and heal us, and we do not have to suffer for them.

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“And the Lord said unto him (Elijah), Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus … and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room” (1 Kings 19:15-16).

If you read about what happened after Elijah’s victory on Mt. Carmel, you will find that he became very discouraged. Ahab’s wife Jezebel threatened to kill him, and instead of trusting the Lord, he fled for his life. Then he did something that we are all likely to do sometimes; he started to feel sorry for himself. Perhaps he expected even Jezebel to repent, but this did not happen. Then Elijah actually told the Lord how bad the people of Israel were, and how he felt that he was the only faithful one left. The Lord had to tell Elijah that this was not true; there were thousands of others who had not worshiped idols in Israel.

When he took this attitude, the Lord could not use him anymore, and he told Elijah to go and anoint Elisha to be prophet instead. I am sure that this was a real blow to Elijah and made him feel sad, but he did it. However, it is interesting that the Lord did not take Elijah away to heaven for about ten years. It seems that Elijah learned a lesson by what happened, and repented. During those ten years, Elisha was the one who served Elijah and learned from him. We will see tomorrow what Elisha did differently.

When we do something for the Lord, it is important not to get thinking about ourselves, and how important we are. Elijah had won a great victory for the Lord on Mt. Carmel, and the prophets of Baal had been destroyed. But later, when everything did not go as Elijah had expected, he became very discouraged.

Let us remember that the Lord can use us only when He gets all the glory, and when we do not think of our own reputation. He will look after us if we trust Him.

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“Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that Thou art the Lord God … Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench” (1 Kings 18:37-38).

If you read the whole story in this chapter, you will find that the Lord sent Elijah to meet Ahab, who was the king. Ahab was to call all the prophets of the false god Baal to Mt. Carmel, and then Elijah made a proposal to them. The prophets of Baal were to take one bullock (a young bull), kill it, and lay it on the altar. Elijah would take another bullock, kill it, and lay it on the altar of the Lord. Then the prophets of Baal would cry to him, and Elijah would cry to the Lord. The one who answered by fire, to burn the sacrifice, would be the true God.

The prophets of Baal cried all day, but nothing happened. Imagine, 450 men crying out all day, as loudly as they could! No fire came down to burn their sacrifice. Finally, in the evening, Elijah laid out his bullock and dumped barrels of water on the altar, just so that no one could accuse him of hiding fire under the wood. When Elijah cried to the Lord, the Lord sent fire that burned up everything — the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the water. You and I have never seen fire that burned stones and water!

Yes, the Lord made it clear who was God, and the people were convinced. That day they killed all the prophets of Baal. But did that stop Ahab from acting wickedly before God? No, sadly it did not. Did it stop the people of Israel from worshiping idols? Sadly it did not. The people were convinced when they saw the power of God, but their hearts were not changed. It required more than a miracle to change their hearts.

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“And he [Elijah] called unto her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink … and … he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. And she said … I have … but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the earth” (1 Kings 17:10-14).

Please read this whole story in 1 Kings 17, to see how the Lord looked after Elijah. As we see at the beginning of the chapter, a man named Elijah suddenly appears in Israel’s history. He came from Tishbe, which was probably east of the Jordan River, in the land of Gilead. Elijah actually prays that there would not be any rain in the land of Israel. Why did he do this? It was because of Israel’s sin in worshiping idols, and not following the Lord.

As you may imagine, soon there was no food to eat, and when Elijah was told to go and stay with this widow woman, she was just about to use the last bit of flour and oil she had to make a cake for herself and her son. Then they would die from starvation. What Elijah did then seems rather strange and bold to us, for not only did he ask for some water, but he asked her to make him a cake first, and bring it to him. Then she could make one for herself and her son. Why would Elijah say this to a woman who was a perfect stranger to him?

We learn from the New Testament that this woman had faith, and evidently had cried to the Lord for His help. When Elijah appeared, she recognized him as the one whom the Lord had sent to help her. However, her faith was about to be tested. If she made a cake for Elijah, she would use up all her flour and oil. But Elijah had said that the flour and oil would last until the rain came. Could she trust his word? If she made a cake for Elijah, would the Lord provide more for her and her son? She had faith, and when she did as Elijah asked her, the Lord provided more flour and oil, not only that first day, but every day. It was not the nice mix of foods that most of us eat every day, but it was food that kept them alive.

What do we learn from this? When the Lord says something in His Word, we can trust Him. He may test our faith, and He tested this woman’s faith, but He will never disappoint our faith. Sometimes we may find ourselves in the middle of a problem, and perhaps the Lord shows us what He wants us to do. Do we have faith to obey the Lord, and trust Him? If we do, He will never let us down.

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“For our commonwealth [citizenship] has its existence in the heavens, from which also we await the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior” (Philippians 3:20 JND).

“Now then we are ambassadors for Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:20).

As I write this meditation in February, 2022, there is a large protest going on in the city of Ottawa, the capital of Canada. A group of truckers, supported by many other people, are protesting the government’s rule that all truck drivers who cross the Canadian/U.S. border must be vaccinated against the Covid-19 virus. A lot of big trucks have been driven to the city, and the protesters are vowing to stay there until they get what they want. Many other protests have taken place at different times in various countries, and sometimes the protests have concerned things about which Christians could agree. What should we do in such situations?

It is sometimes hard to know what to do, for when we have a new life in Christ, that new life wants righteousness in this world. We want to see wrong things straightened out, and we want to see good moral principles upheld. However, I believe that our verses today give us clear instruction as to how to act.

First of all, we must remember that this is not our home. As our first verse says, our commonwealth (or citizenship) is in heaven. Yes, we are all naturally citizens of the country to which we belong, but our real citizenship is heavenly.

Secondly, we are sent back into this world as ambassadors. An ambassador is one who is sent from one country to another, in order to represent the interests of the country to which he belongs. For example, there is an American ambassador here in Canada. He is a U.S. citizen, but he is sent here to Canada to represent the interests of the United States.

Would you expect to see the American ambassador out on the streets of Ottawa right now, waving a placard, and shouting out that he or she supports the truckers in their demands? No, you would not see that happen. If it did happen, the American government would quickly recall him or her, and make it clear that this was not the proper way for an ambassador to act.

What then does an ambassador do? He makes sure that his government’s point of view on any matter is clearly stated. This is the right way for us to act as Christians. We are not here to straighten out this world; it is under judgment. In the same way the American ambassador is not here to straighten out affairs in Canada. But if he is asked, he will give his government’s position on any matter that affects Canada/U.S. relations.

We are far more effective as ambassadors in this world, than if we join forces with this world and try to set the everything right. Rather than straightening things out, our job is to give out the gospel, so that people can be saved.

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“Then I [Solomon] looked on all the works that my hands had wrought … and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 2:11).

As we saw yesterday, Solomon asked the Lord first of all for wisdom, and the Lord gave it to him. However, the Lord also gave him riches and honor. Sadly, we saw that Solomon did not manage his riches and honor well, and disobeyed the Lord in getting a lot of horses, silver and gold, and wives. He had to find out that none of this made him happy. He did not need all those horses and chariots to defend himself; the Lord could have protected him without all that. He did not need to gather as much silver and gold as he could; he could not take it with him, and what good did it do him? Finally, he should not have had so many wives; they too did not make him truly happy.

Toward the end of his life, after he had tried all these things, Solomon wrote the book of Ecclesiastes. The word ecclesiastes means “the preacher.” Solomon had tried everything in this world and had found out that it could not make him happy. However, Solomon had learned something from all this, and that is why he wrote the book. Now you and I do not have to try everything Solomon tried, to see if it will make us happy. We can read the book of Ecclesiastes and learn from Solomon’s experience.

The book of Ecclesiastes is sometimes rather sad, for Solomon explains very clearly all the frustration and disappointment that he experienced when he tried so many things. He had to learn that all of man’s efforts to find happiness outside of God will end up in vanity, which means emptiness. There will also be “vexation of spirit,” which means that we will have a lot of irritation in this world, because nothing is perfect. Sin has spoiled everything.

For you and me who know the Lord Jesus, we can find happiness and rest in Him. Only He is able to fill our hearts.

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“Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the Lord thy God shall choose … He shall not multiply horses to himself … neither shall he multiply wives to himself … neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold” (Deuteronomy 17:15-17).

“And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen … and the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones” (1 Kings 10:26-27).

“And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines” (1 Kings 11:3).

The law made it very clear that there were three things a king of Israel was not to do. He was not to multiply horses for himself, nor was he to multiply wives for himself. Finally, he was not greatly to multiple silver and gold. Yet Solomon did all three of these things.

We know that Solomon really wanted to please the Lord when he first became king. When the Lord asked him what he wanted, Solomon asked for wisdom so that he could govern the people correctly. God said that because he asked for wisdom, He would also give him riches and honor. It seems that when all this came to Solomon, he rather quickly forgot what was written in the law and disobeyed all three commandments.

He was not to multiply horses to himself, for in those days, horses were the strength of the army. Solomon ended up with a big army, but the Lord wanted him to trust in Him, not in the size of his army.

He was not to multiply silver and gold, for there was no need for this. Yes, there was plenty of gold available to build the temple, and that was all right. But later, Solomon got as much gold as he could, just to have it around. His heart was on the silver and gold, not on the Lord.

Finally, he was not to multiply wives for himself. Yet Solomon actually had seven hundred wives, and three hundred other women beside. Can you imagine a man with seven hundred wives? As we would say today, that is mind-boggling! It tells us that when Solomon was old, his wives “turned away his heart after other gods” (1 Kings 11:4). He had married a lot of women who came from heathen backgrounds, and they worshiped idols. His affections were divided, and he did not follow the Lord like David his father. He thought he could find happiness with many wives, but it did not work.

Solomon thought he knew better than the Lord and decided to disobey the Lord’s commands. He found out that the Lord was right, and this should be a lesson to us. Obedience and happiness go together.

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“I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils [demons]” (1 Corinthians 10:20).

At least here in North America, tonight is what is called “Hallowe’en night.” Many children go from house to house in the evening, with the customary call, “Trick or treat,” and expect to be given candy or some other gift that they can eat. They are usually dressed up in all sorts of strange costumes, and people often put out carved up pumpkins, ghost-like figures, silhouettes of witches, etc. in front of their homes. It is not done so much today, but in years gone by, young men often used to go out and play tricks on people. They would take a bar of soap and smear it on the windows of houses, or on car windows. Sometimes they would take things such as farm implements from farmers’ property and hide them. Then everyone would have to go out and straighten everything up the next day.

The word “hallowe’en” is a shortened version of the phrase “all hallows even (evening),” and has very bad associations. Among the ancient Celts in Scotland and England, it was a time of year when it was believed that the entrance of the spirit world was opened for spirits to pass through and haunt the living. People marked the occasion by lighting bonfires for protection, and dressing up like the spirits and creatures they believed could cross over that night. All this was supposed to keep the spirits from harming them. It was definitely connected with Satan and his demons.

It is not a good thing for Christians to be involved in all this, for it is not just something funny and harmless. Satan is real, and wicked spirits are real. The unbelievers who are involved with them never make fun of them; they are afraid of them. We do not need to be afraid of them, for we read in the Bible that “greater is He [the Holy Spirit] that is in you than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4). However, we should not become part of anything that has to do with them. It is an effort of the devil to get us to think that he is not all that bad, and then we are not on guard for his attacks. As our verse says, let us not have fellowship with demons.

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“Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you” (Titus 2:8).

Out in the world today — at school, at work, in stores, etc. you will often hear what can be called rough language. People seem to think that in order to emphasize something, they have to use vulgar and sometimes blasphemous words. For example, you will often hear the word hell used very casually in conversation. Satan is behind this, as he wants people to think that hell is not that serious, and is not something to be concerned about.

At other times you will hear rather foul and immoral language, for some people cannot seem to talk without using these words. As Christians we are certainly saddened as we listen to this, and worse still, these words are now being used in books, newspapers and in news broadcasts, as if it is all right to talk that way,

Then we hear words that refer to God and to the Lord Jesus. I am sure you have heard people use the name of the Lord Jesus when they become upset about something. When something happens that is surprising and upsetting, you have certainly heard people say, “Oh, my God!” But I have never heard anyone use the name of Mohammed, Krishna, Buddha, or Confucius in this way. No, it is always the name of God or the Lord Jesus.

The danger for us as Christians is that we can become used to hearing this kind of talk, and then perhaps it does not affect us as it should. Rather, we should ask the Lord for the courage to speak up when people talk this way, and point out that when they use the name of the Lord Jesus like this, they are insulting our Savior. Also, let us be very careful not to use this kind of language ourselves. Rough, crude language in any form is not right for a Christian.

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