Shalom Aleichem...
Reflections is a weekly Christian Teaching Ministry. Each week we will talk about the Bible and lessons we can put to use in our daily life. We will try to, on a weekly basis, provide to you stories, thoughts, and just easy ways to live your life on a straight path.
THIS WEEK'S TEACHING....January 17, 2022
We continue this week with our look at our purpose in life as directed by our Father in Heaven.
God not only walks with us throughout the battle, but He equips us to fight the battle, & do His great Will.
- God equips you to carry out His purpose.
- As a Child of God it is the greatest encouragement to know that our daddy, Father
God, is always with us.
- Well, the next great move in our purpose filled life is, God is going to equip you to
carry out His purpose.
- Think about Jeremiah, he was perfect to deliver God’s messages, & live the life God
had put ahead of him.
- The thing of it is, God knew the plans for Jeremiah, but Jeremiah still felt ill
prepared.
- Let’s read Jeremiah 1:4-10 one last time, but this time pay close attention to
verses 9 & 10.
Jeremiah 1:4-10
4 Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
6 Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.
7 But the Lord said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.
8 Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.
9 Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
10 See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.
- God was equipping Jeremiah with the means to do His will!
- We’re looking at what our purpose is in life.
- The greatest tragedy that we can have in looking for our purpose is, we don’t listen to
God’s leading.
> Bugs:
“Mom, are bugs good to eat?” asked the boy. “Let’s not talk about such things at the dinner table, son,” his mother replied. After dinner the mother inquired, “Now, baby, what did you want to ask me?” “Oh, nothing,” the boy said. “There was a bug in your soup, but now it’s gone.”
- When you make a bad decision there’s always going to be consequences.
- That’s one of the forces that sidelines us when we’re thinking about our purpose.
- I can imagine Jeremiah thinking, what if I say the wrong thing.
- I think that all the time, but notice what God did for Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 1:9-10
9 Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
10 See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.
- What we just read was the moment Jeremiah’s mouth was consecrated to do God’s
work.
- Jeremiah’s mouth was set apart to do whatever work God had intended.
- In our Wednesday night class I said I could just see when Isaiah was standing in
the Throne Room of God, & The angel touched the unclean lips of Isaiah with a
burning coal from off the altar.
- Isaiah was prepared to deliver the message.
- Jeremiah was prepared to deliver the message.
- Now God has prepared us to deliver a message too.
Ephesians 1:4-9
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
8 Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;
9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
- Before Jesus, The Word, was forming us. He knew exactly what He would do to
redeem His creation, that would fail.
- The adoption papers were filled out, & ready before He even created us.
What was the purpose of this great creation?
Why has all of this good & bad taken place?
- It all took place to reveal the mystery.
What’s the mystery?
- It’s Jesus!
- He is God’s plan.
Galatians 4:4
4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
- God has given to us the front page story for any newspaper in history, Jesus Christ is
the Savior of the world. If any would come to Him, & Believe on Him, He will save
them.
Colossians 1:27
27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
That sounds pretty important doesn’t it?
- It is, & That’s What our purpose boils down to.
- Not only is there the importance of sharing the good news, the gospel.
- You know the thing we were saved by!
- We also are purposed to show the hope that we have in God’s work, His Glory.
What is your purpose?
- To be a Child of God. You have been consecrated, set apart from the world for
God’s Service.
- In the moment that Isaiah’s lips were touched, Listen to what was asked.
Isaiah 6:8
8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
- We are made different, because God asks the same question today.
Whom shall I send?
- When Jeremiah & Isaiah answered the call, neither one of them knew exactly what
they were going to do, or how they were going to do it.
- Other than, they knew what they were called to do.
- To deliver God’s message.
- That same job is given to us, deliver My message. Tell people, show people,
invite people to come see the mystery, Jesus.
- That’s our purpose. That’s why we are God’s Children.
- We’ve been made for this!
- That brings me to how I want to close this message.
- Starting today we’re highlighting the work of the North American missions, & I
thought wouldn’t it be great to hear a Testimony from a missionary.
- I came across a husband & wife that I want you to hear about.
> Dave & Mary Eliff
When Dave and Mary Elliff left Arkansas, they left family and familiar culture to plant a new church in the Pacific Northwest.
“In the South, we have the Bible Belt. In Seattle, people call Roosevelt, the neighborhood where we’re planting, the Metaphysical Belt. 96% of the people here don’t attend an evangelical church,” says Dave. “It’s really well-known for New Age and Eastern religion.”
The Elliffs launched Roots Community Church with just one other couple. They soon formed a core group through community outreach and by recruiting others who felt called to serve in Seattle.
“We started Roots Church in 2016. Since then, we’ve had to move three times because we keep outgrowing our space. That’s a good problem to have. Now, we have almost a hundred people who are a part of our church,” says Mary.
- Their Church continually is growing!
- Remember The fear that was in the beginning, 96% don’t attend an evangelical
church.
- Look What God did Because they went anyways.
- He did His plan, His Purpose.
- That’s our rallying cry as we go into our invitation, I am listening to Your will God
, Here am I, send me.
Family, will you be listening for the call??
DID YOU EVER WONDER???
As we begin 2022, here are 7 Bible verses to start the New Year out right.
“Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead” (Phil 3:13).
The Apostle Paul had endured such hardships and yet he could still look forward to the coming King of the Kingdom. The one thing that the Apostle knows or focuses on is not what was behind him but only what lay ahead of him. This is what he was straining forward toward. The image is that of a runner in a race and they’re nearly at the finish line, and as the runner comes near the finish line, they forget everything behind them and focus only on finish. It’s as if Paul strains or leans forward as a runner would lean forward at the finish line. We too must focus on what’s ahead and not behind, lest we forget where we’re going.
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:18-19).
What happened last year was last year. It has no effect on this new, coming year. What is ahead of us is new, so we should embrace it. We can’t dwell on “the former things” or “the things of old” for that does us no good. Remember the Lord God was faithful in bringing you through the past year; and that He will never forsake you in the new year (Deut 31:6; Heb 13:5).
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Cor 5:17).
After a person who was previously dead in their sins is raised to new life in Christ by the Spirit of God (Eph 2:1-5), there is suddenly a new creation in the world; a new you so to speak. The old man or woman still shows up at times, but overall, we are new creations created by the Spirit of God, therefore, the “old has passed away,” so what then? “The new has come”: the new “you” through the Spirit of God.
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jer 29:11).
Whatever the Lord has planned for us is always for our best, even if it comes through bad experiences (Rom 8:28). Those who trust in God can also trust in His plans for them this year, even though we may not know what they are. The Apostle Paul asks the rhetorical question: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword” (Rom 8:35)? The obvious answer is no one can separate us from God. It doesn’t matter what happens in this life; even death. The Lord has plans for you to have a future and have hope; not in this world, but in the world to come. Since He is for us, who could ever be against us (Rom 8:37-39)?
“This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm118:24).
Every day is a gift. Maybe that’s why they call it the “present.” We must rejoice in the Lord and be glad that He has given us another day of life. Why not rejoice that God is not finished with us yet? As long as you are drawing breath, God had plans for you, even if you don’t know what they are. So why not rejoice and be glad about it? We can live today in two ways; endure and grumble or “rejoice and be glad in it.” The choice is up to you, but you surely know which way is more pleasing to God.
“You crown the year with your bounty; your wagon tracks overflow with abundance” (Psalm 65:11).
The Psalm is so encouraging. It gives us hope for a future blessing but also hope that God is with us today. May God bless your new year “with bounty” and “your wagon” (even if it’s a station wagon!) with abundance, to the point that “your wagon tracks overflow.” That’s what God wants to do for you this year; bless you.
This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. ~ Psalms 118:24
“Act wisely toward outsiders, redeeming the time” (Col 4:5).
I have had so many days that I’ve totally wasted on myself. I don’t always redeem the time I’ve been given by God as I should. To redeem something means to trade it in for something of value, and our time is very valuable for we are but a vaopr. By using the time God He’s given us in this life, we can make a difference and “act wisely toward outsides,” or the lost. This means we ought to be using our time for His pleasure and His purposes, not our own. It’s good to get some down time, but we must redeem the time we have because life is short and eternity is a long, long time. It’s here today but gone forever.
Conclusion
Every second is one we can’t get back, so we must make the most of our New Year as we focus on Christ, on His Word, and in yielding to the Holy Spirit. We who have believed and have trusted in Christ now have His very own righteousness (2 Cor 5:21), so we ought to live like believers. We are called to be holy as God is holy. We are to be lights in a darkened, dying, decaying world full of sin. When the world sees us enduring trials and yet remain strong in our faith, they might be drawn to Christ by our witness and by our love for one another (John 13:34-35). We might be the only Bible someone will ever read in their life, so we must live it to the fullest and for the glory of God. That’s really all that matters (Psalm 115:1).
BOOKS OF THE BIBLE...A TEACHING
Our tour of the brief description of the Books of the Bible now moves on to....
Leviticus
Author:
Not stated but traditionally attributed to Moses
Date:
Mid 1400’s BCE
Synopsis:
God teaches how to Worship Him
Leviticus, meaning about the Levites, shows how that family should lead the Israelites in worship. God also gives them His ceremonial laws and special holy days the Jews still observe.
Verses from Leviticus:
Leviticus 11:44 New Living Translation (NLT)
44 For I am the Lord your God. You must consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. So do not defile yourselves with any of these small animals that scurry along the ground.
Leviticus 17:11 New Living Translation (NLT)
11 for the life of the body is in its blood. I have given you the blood on the altar to purify you, making you right with the Lord. It is the blood, given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible.
Leviticus blood sacrifices are contrasted with Jesus’s death on the cross. Though we do not live under the rules of Leviticus, we still serve a holy God and should treat Him as such.
HAVE A SAFE AND BLESSED WEEK:)
Ho'omaikaʻi ka Pua iā kākou