Month: February 2024

“Eye hath seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him. But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10).

The ninth verse above is often referred to, as if God has prepared wonderful things for our enjoyment in heaven, but that we must wait until we get there in order to have them. This is partly true, for when we are up there, we will no longer have a sinful nature that keeps wanting to make us sin. Also, Satan will not be there to tempt us, nor will we have the bad influence of the world around us. We will enjoy the things of Christ more fully up there than we have ever enjoyed them down here.

However, our verses today show us that we do not have to wait until the Lord comes and takes us home, in order to enjoy those heavenly things. Rather, God has sent His Spirit down to indwell each true believer, and one of the things the Spirit of God does is to show us those wonderful things, so that we can enjoy them now. They cannot be seen with our eyes, nor heard with our ears, for they are not like natural things. They are things that only the Spirit of God can show us, but they bring real enjoyment to our hearts.

We see an illustration of this in the Old Testament, when Joseph sent his brothers back from Egypt, and told them to bring their father down to Egypt. In Genesis 45:23, we read, “To his father he (Joseph) sent after this manner; ten asses (donkeys) laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she asses laden with corn and bread and meat for his father by the way.”

There were ten donkeys loaded up with food for their father on the long trip down to Egypt, and this would have been plenty for him. But Joseph also sent ten donkeys loaded with “the good things of Egypt.” Why did he send those? They were not needed for the trip, but were intended to give his father Jacob a sample of what he would enjoy in Egypt.

The Lord does the same for us. He gives us all we need for the journey home to heaven, but He also gives us a sample of what we will enjoy up there in heaven. The Spirit of God is able to help us to enjoy them now. Isn’t that wonderful! I hope you are enjoying the blessings of being a Christian!

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“The Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit” (2 Timothy 4:22).

Two days ago we saw that as human beings, we are composed of spirit, soul and body. We also saw that our spirit is the “God-conscious” part of us. It gives us the ability to know who God is, and to have a relationship with Him. But sometimes in the Bible the word “spirit” is used simply to mean the attitude we have, and the way that we do something. For example, in Matthew 5:3 we read of those who are “poor in spirit,” and in Luke 2:40 we read of the Lord Jesus, as He grew up, that He “waxed (became) strong in spirit.” It is important to do the right thing, but the way in which we do things is very important as well. We understand this idea in everyday life. We might say about someone, “He does his work with a good spirit.”

When the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy the second time, Paul was in prison in Rome, and he knew that he would not be released. While it does not tell us in the Bible, we know from history that he was executed shortly after writing this book, probably by being beheaded. Paul also knew that things were becoming more difficult in the church, and that some were giving up the precious truth which he had committed to them. Paul had to say, “All they which are in Asia be turned away from me” (2 Timothy 1:15). They were still Christians, but they did not want the truth of God that Paul had given to them. They wanted an easier path — a little more freedom to “drift along.”

In view of all this, Paul told Timothy to be faithful to the Lord, and not to give up what he had told him. But Paul also knew that when things started to get difficult, it would be easy for Timothy to become a little hardened, and perhaps not act with grace and love towards those who were unfaithful. For this reason Paul wanted the Lord Jesus Christ to be with Timothy’s spirit; he wanted Timothy not only to do the right thing, but to do it in the right spirit. In the same way Paul exhorted the Galatians and those in the household of Philemon — “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit” (Galatians 6:18, Philemon v. 25).

We need this reminder too, for although we may do what is right, if we do it in a wrong way or with a wrong attitude, it spoils what we are doing. We need to remember how the Lord Jesus walked while He was in this world, and seek to act as He did. The Lord Jesus sometimes had to speak very plainly to people, but He always spoke as the One who loved them, and cared about them.

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“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8:36).

Yesterday we saw how that our soul is that part of us which controls our desires, and makes us unique as individuals. In our verse for today, we find that it is possible for a man to have everything in this world, and yet to lose his soul. We might ask, What does it mean to lose your soul?

There have been many wealthy people in the history of this world, and today there are some who are billionaires many times over. At the time I am writing this in 2021, the richest man in the world is Jeff Bezos, who founded the Amazon Company. Apparently he is worth $177 billion, and it is hard for some of us to imagine that amount of money. Even if you spent a million dollars every day, you could not spend that amount of money in one lifetime. Yet he cannot take it with him; he can use it only in this life.

Back in 2011 another wealthy man, Steve Jobs, the co-founder of the Apple computer company, died of pancreatic cancer when he was only fifty-six years old. He was apparently worth $7 billion at the time, and while he was on his deathbed, one of his friends commented to him that he had done pretty well for himself. Steve Jobs’ answer to him shows that what the Bible says is true, for he said, “Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me.”

When He was here on earth, the Lord Jesus said, “Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28). To destroy something means to make it unusable for the purpose for which it was made. We were created for God’s pleasure (see Revelation 4:11), but if we refuse God’s offer of mercy through the Lord Jesus, we cannot give Him pleasure in our sins. Then God has no choice but to put us in hell for all eternity, and this is what it means to lose your soul. In hell neither your soul or body can give God pleasure; you are alive, but you have lost your soul.

This is an awful end for those who were created for God’s pleasure, and it does not have to be that way. If you are not saved, you can accept the Lord Jesus as your Savior today, and know that you will spend your eternity in heaven with the Lord.

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“I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23).

You and I are complicated persons, for the Bible tells us that we are not composed only of a body. Rather, we have three parts to our being — spirit, soul and body. We all know what our bodies are, for we live and move in this world using our bodies. However, the Word of God tells us that our body is really only a house for our spirit and soul. The Apostle Paul tells us that “if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens” (2 Corinthians 5:1). This verse is speaking of our bodies. If we die, and our bodies go back to dust, we know that God will raise those bodies when the Lord Jesus comes, and change them into new bodies.

Perhaps some of you have been to a funeral home and seen the body of someone you loved laid out there in a coffin. We can recognize the person, but there is no life in that body; it does not move or respond to us in any way. That is because the soul and spirit are gone, and we read in James 2:26, “The body without the spirit is dead.” The “house” (the body) is still there, but the soul and spirit that once lived inside it are gone.

But what is the difference between the soul and the spirit? The soul is that part of us that makes us unique as individuals. It is the part of us that determines our appetites for certain things, and our desires. Some of you may like nothing better than a game of soccer, while others would rather read a good book. Some young people love music; others may be far more interested in sports. Again, this is part of their soul, and makes them distinct from other people.

The spirit, however, is something that only man has; no animal has a spirit, for the spirit is the God-conscious part of us. It tells us in Genesis 1:26 that “God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness,” and then He gave man a spirit that could recognize who God is. Because of the spirit in him, mankind knows there is a God, and can have a relationship with God. This is a wonderful thing, and yet a serious thing too. If we know that there is a God, it is important to pay attention to His Word, and to know the true God. Sad to say, many people in this world are worshiping false gods, or idols. Their spirit tells them that they should believe in a god, but Satan has deceived them into believing in false gods, instead of the true God.

For us as Christians, the Apostle Paul expressed a wish that all three parts of us would be preserved blameless until the coming of the Lord (1 Thessalonians 5:23). The Lord will help us to do this, if we ask Him.

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“It is nothing to thee to help, whether with many, or with them that have no power: help us, O Lord our God; for we rest on Thee, and in Thy name we go” (2 Chronicles 14:11).

Yesterday we spoke about the failure in the latter part of Asa’s life, but it is nice to remember a time when he did rely on the Lord, and won a great victory. The Lord had given Asa and the land of Judah rest for ten years at the beginning of his reign, and Asa had used the time profitably. Instead of relaxing, he had built strong cities with walls, towers, gates, and bars, to fortify the land against those who might attack. Also, he had increased the strength of his army, and trained them in methods of fighting. All this was good, and as Christians, we too need to use a time of peace in our lives to read the Word of God, and to edify (or build up) ourselves in the things of the Lord. Asa knew that enemies might well attack, and he wanted to be ready for them.

He did not have to wait very long, and when Zerah the Ethiopian came against him, it was with an army of a million men — almost twice as many as Asa had in his army. There was no reason for the Ethiopians to attack; they were coming simply to take silver and gold and other wealth away from Judah. But Asa did not rely on his army or on his fortified cities; rather he relied on the Lord. Asa knew that no matter how large or how small his army was, it was the Lord alone who could give him the victory.

When the battle was fought, the Bible records that “the Lord smote the Ethiopians before Asa, and before Judah; and the Ethiopians fled” (2 Chronicles 14:12). The victory was so complete that “none of them was left alive” (2 Chronicles 14:13 JND). It overwhelms us to think of one million men being killed like that, but it was God’s judgment on those who came to fight against His people. Asa trusted the Lord, and the Lord gave him the victory.

It is not right for Christians today to go out and kill their enemies, but we have spiritual battles instead. The Apostle Paul tells us that “we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but … against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12). Satan is out there, seeking to overcome us and to take away the things we have enjoyed as Christians. We too need to fortify ourselves against him, and as we have already seen in an earlier meditation, we need to put on the whole armor of God. However, we cannot trust in our own strength; rather we must trust the Lord to win the battle for us.

Afterwards the prophet Azariah encouraged Asa, telling him to “be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak: for your work shall be rewarded” (2 Chronicles 15:7). We live in difficult times, but the Lord encourages us too, and if we live for His glory in this world, our work too will be rewarded in a coming day.

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“There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 16:25).

I once read a book, evidently written by a true Christian, that was telling believers how to make right choices in their lives. His main advice was that since God has given us brains, we are to use them, and figure out what to do. Then we should check with the Word of God, and if we cannot not find anything wrong with our plan, we should go ahead with it. But we read in Jeremiah 10:23 that “the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.” Yes, God has given us brains, and does intend us to use them in natural things. Also, it is a good thing to read the Word of God, for God often guides us by His Word. But when it comes to directing our steps in a spiritual way, we need to ask the Lord what to do. We should not make up our own minds, and then look into the Word of God to see if there is anything wrong with what we wish to do. This is doing things backwards; rather, we should read the Word of God first, and pray about the matter, asking the Lord to make His mind clear to us.

Sometimes a plan may seem quite right for us, and appears to fit the circumstances in which we find ourselves. This was the case with a king of Judah named Asa. He was a godly king who wanted to please the Lord, but later in his life, when a king named Baasha came against him, he took silver and gold out of the house of the Lord, and paid the Syrian king Benhadad to go and fight with Baasha. It looked like a good plan, and it seemed to work, for when Benhadad fought with Baasha, Baasha stopped building a blockade against Asa. Then Asa was able to take all Baasha’s building materials and make some fortifications for himself. You can read the story of Asa in 2 Chronicles, chapters 14-16.

But the prophet Hanani came to Asa and told him, “Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars” (2 Chronicles 16:9). Instead of trusting the Lord, Asa had followed his own plan, and while it seemed to work, yet later it caused him more trouble. The king of Syria was not really his friend, and later ended up fighting with Judah.

Sad to say, Asa did not want to listen to the prophet, and instead put him in prison for daring to criticize his plan. Because of this, the Lord allowed Asa to get some kind of serious disease in his feet, and he died two years later. This was very sad, for Asa was a good king, but when he trusted his own plans instead of asking the Lord what to do, he ended up in trouble. Let us always go to the Lord when we need to make choices in our lives. He will always lead us in the right way!

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“We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

This verse is sometimes hard for us to appreciate, yet it is clearly found in the Word of God. It is not easy to believe that even the difficult things in our lives are working together for good, and that we will profit by them eventually. Sometimes we are called to go through very trying times in our lives, and perhaps we wonder why the Lord has allowed them.

I remember that when I was a boy, an elderly Christian couple was driving along a road in the United States. I did not know them, but my parents did. A big truck carrying new cars was coming the other way on the road. The new cars must not have been secured properly, for suddenly one of them came loose and fell off the truck, right on top of the car in which the older couple were driving. The impact killed both of them instantly. We might wonder why the Lord allowed this, and what good could come out of it. But the Lord tells us that “all things work together for good” in our lives as Christians. Do we really believe this?

I have known even dear believers who became bitter and angry because of difficult things that happened in their lives, and sometimes they never got over it for the rest of their time in this world. I knew a young man who encountered some hard circumstances in his life, and he was a true Christian. Yet in commenting on what had happened, he said, “The Lord let me down.” I shuddered when I heard that remark, for the Lord loves us too much to allow something in our lives that is not for our good. If He was willing to suffer all that agony on the cross for us, in order to redeem us, will He allow things in our lives that make us suffer for no reason? It is not a good sign when we begin to distrust the Lord, and to think that He is not treating us well. We must justify God in all things, and then remember that no matter what He allows in our lives, “All things work together for good.”

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Growing in Grace Blog by Bible Truth Publishers

“Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another” (Mark 9:50).

As we have already seen, it is very important to have balance in our Christian life. If we go to extremes in any direction, we are usually wrong. Today’s verse teaches us once again to be balanced in spiritual things.

We have seen that salt in the Bible speaks of holy grace, and that just the right amount of it in our conversation can bring God’s claims before other people. Here in this verse we are told to have salt in ourselves. That means that we are always to keep before our hearts and minds the importance of God’s claims over us, and over others too. We should want to involve the Lord in all our dealings in this world, whether with believers or unbelievers.

Before the days of antibiotics, salt was often used to prevent infection, and was put on wounds for this reason. It worked well, for it tends to stop germs from multiplying and causing serious infection. But when salt is placed on a wound it really stings for a few minutes. This is how the Word of God affects people too; it sometimes stings them, for it speaks to their consciences. Many people do not like that, for it reminds them that they are responsible to God for their behavior. However, sometimes this use of salt is necessary, just as it was in natural things, to prevent infection.

But then, at the end of our verse, it tells us to have peace one with another. We should never forget to use salt, but we should do our best to live in peace with each other. This is the balance we need — never to use too much salt, or too little. In Jeremiah 6:14, the Lord had to say to some, “They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.” This means that they had overlooked serious sin in order to have peace, and we should never do this. God never makes peace with sin; rather, He wants us to confess it to Him, so that He can forgive us in the right way.

However, as much as possible, we are to “have peace one with another.” We can overlook things that may offend us personally, and things that do not involve the Lord’s honor and glory. Our Lord Jesus did the same when He was on earth. When the Jews said to Him, “Thou are a Samaritan, and hast a devil” (John 8:48), the Lord Jesus ignored the personal insult of calling Him a Samaritan. But He answered the accusation of His having a devil, for that was really saying that His miracles were being done by Satan’s power instead of by the power of God. How important it is to use spiritual salt wisely!

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Growing in Grace Blog by Bible Truth Publishers

“Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man” (Colossians 4:6).

A good cook knows how to use just the right amount of salt when cooking, in order make the food taste just right. Too little salt, and the food will taste bland and flavorless; too much salt, and the salt will overwhelm the food itself, so that it tastes terrible. Sometimes a good cook will put in a little salt, then taste the food, and perhaps add a little more. The best cooks have very sensitive taste buds, so that they can detect subtle differences in flavor.

Probably we have all had people play tricks on us from time to time, perhaps by putting too much salt in a drink that was served to us. Or perhaps in preparing a drink, someone has mistaken salt for sugar, and produced a very salty drink. When sick people retain too much water in their bodies, they often have to go on low salt diets, with little or no salt used in the preparation of their food. They are not allowed to add salt from a saltshaker at the table either. Those people usually hate that kind of food, for it is very flat and tasteless. They know it is for their good, but they dislike it just the same.

In the Bible, salt is a picture of holy grace. It is that which brings what is due to God into our conversation, but in a gracious way. It flavors what we say. In our interaction with people in this world, it is important to know just how much salt to use. I have heard some believers talk about the Lord’s things in a harsh and objectionable way with unbelievers. It offended those to whom they were speaking, and turned them against the things of the Lord. I have seen other believers who never said anything about the Lord, and were no testimony at all to the unsaved persons with whom they came in contact. Both of these attitudes are wrong.

But someone may ask, How do we know how much salt with which to season our conversation? We must be walking with the Lord, so that the Holy Spirit is free to lead and guide us in our talk. We must remember that “grace and truth came by Jesus Christ” (John 1:17), and then seek to balance these in our talk. With some people, they may need more truth; the Lord Jesus did this with Nicodemus. But with others, they may need more grace; the Lord did this with the woman in John 4, at the well of Sychar. He will help us balance our talk, if we look to Him!

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