Category: Deliverance

Bread of Affliction

8/10/2025

Sweat trickled in small streams down his face, making narrow rivulets through the dust and grime. He lifted his hand over his head and brought is down again in a swift, sudden movement, beating the miniscule wheat out of the chaff. The process was especially difficult—there was no breeze to chase away the chaff or the heat that beat down upon him, the waves dancing up and down upon the chiseled-out rock winepress.
      “Egypt,” the man of God had said. “Deliverance.” “...Gave us this land.” The words repeated continuously in his mind, in cadence with every blow. The “God of Israel.” The One who “led” us.
      The young man paused, lifting his back up into a standing position, arching against the pain. His painfully thin arm reached up and scrubbed away at the sweat trickling into his eyes, the salt stinging, the moisture blurring his vision. He looked out over the fields below. Stripped. Bare. Ugly. Brown.
      They had come again and left nothing. Seven long years they had come. He looked down again to his small pile. All he had beaten out was barely enough to sow for next year, let alone live off of through the winter.
      He felt tears spring to his eyes, smarting painfully before joining the sweat pooling on his chin. The man of God had given no hope. Just condemnation. Only a reminder of what God had done for others. Just the statement: “You haven’t obeyed.”
      He knew it was true. He’d watched his village meet at the Asherah pole and sacrifice what they had to Baal. They’d hoped that serving the gods of their enemies would prevent their enemies from coming, would ensure an abundant harvest and bigger families. But the child sacrifice had only made their numbers smaller, only brought more pain and grief as the laughter in the streets had turned to silence and the sound of the little feet running had ceased.
      Even more shameful was that it was his own dad who had set it up. As he recalled that night, his head hung lower and his shoulders, their blades sticking gauntly from his back, began to slump. His dad had thought maybe they could be like the other nations; that wealth and abundance could come to them just like it seemed to for their enemies.
They used to have some things, but now there was nothing left—except his dad’s bulls. Those he had kept. They were a symbol of Ba’al, the storm god who controlled the rains that made their crops grow. They were sacred. They had to be fed and fattened with the grain that was withheld from the starving people.
      A picture of the idol sprang to his mind, the golden head of the bull with his horns of strength and might raised up into the sky. His arms were outstretched, waiting for the children he would be given in exchange for his favor. The sacred tree-pole of the Asherah goddess was erected next to him, her promise of supernatural fertility mocking the now emaciated worshippers.
      Gideon shuddered as he shook away the horror of what he’d seen, wishing to erase it from his memory. How could people be so cruel?
He looked up again, eager to look elsewhere, to redirect his mind. He sighed. Yes, they did deserve this. They had given their children and disobeyed God’s commands. He had told them never to give their children or to serve those idols.
He felt anger grip his heart, tightening, painful in its intensity. In a sudden, weary exhaustion, the anger collapsed back to fear and despair.
God would never forgive them. They were here because of their own sin.
There was no hope.

The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of Yehovah, and Yehovah gave them into the hand of Midian (מִדְיָן S#4080 midyan: descended from Abraham’s son Midian by his wife Keturah; from מִדְיָן S#4079 madown: brawling, contention) seven years. 2And the hand of Midian overpowered Israel, and because of Midian the people of Israel made for themselves the dens that are in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds. 3For whenever the Israelites scattered seed, the Midianites and the Amalekites (עֲמָלֵק S#6002 Amalek: a descendant of Esau; from עָמַל S#5998 strenuous human effort that carries a sense of weariness, frustration, and even sorrow) and the people of the East would come up against them. 4They would encamp against them and devour the produce of the land, as far as Gaza, and leave no ability to stay alive in Israel and no sheep or ox or donkey. 5For they would come up with their livestock and their tents; they would come like locusts in number—both they and their camels could not be counted—so that they laid waste the land as they came in. 6And Israel was brought very low because of Midian. And the people of Israel cried out for help to Yehovah. Judges 6:1-5

God's hand is mighty. The Bible often tells us that God saved His people by His mighty hand. Yet, when we sin, it is not His hand but the hand of others who also sin to whom God gives us over. He does this to remind us of what our sin does. As others hurt us through their sin, we begin to realize the sad reality of what sin does, now turned against us. Often our response is to blame God for our consequences: “A person’s own folly leads to their ruin, yet their heart rages against the LORD” (Prov. 19:3 NIV), But this is a mistake and will never bring us back into relationship.
It is our Midianites and Amalekites that bring us back to God by showing us the result of our choices. Midianites are the contentions that arise, those fights and arguments that steal our peace and cause our relationships to be broken. Amalekites are all the human efforts we put into trying to save what we have in a way that only brings weariness, frustration and sorrow.
These two painful enemies come into our lives like locusts, swarming in such numbers and landing on everything green and growing that we have in our lives. By the time they are done ravaging our land, there is nothing left; everything is stripped bare and lifeless. There is no more bread.
When we have finally had enough of our own selfishness and sin, when we finally can see the devastation it causes in our lives and the lives around us, we may find ourselves willing to cry out to God.

7When the people of Israel cried out to Yehovah on account of the Midianites, 8 Yehovah sent a prophet to the people of Israel. And he said to them, “Thus says Yehovah, the God of Israel: I led you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of slavery. 9And I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. 10And I said to you, ‘I am Yehovah your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.’ But you have not obeyed my voice.” Judges 6:7-10

"Why didn't you listen to the ones I sent?"
Have you ever had a friend, pastor, fellow Christian, family member—or even a complete stranger, confront you about your sin? It is easy for our response to be offended denial and defensiveness. "Who are you to judge!" We might angrily retort. We may resist the very words of God if we are not sufficiently humbled enough to receive even the hard words that might bring life back to our souls. How that grieves Jesus!

“Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.” Luke 10:16

And they went back and reported [Jesus' resurrection\ to the rest, but they did not believe them either. 14Later, as they were eating, Jesus appeared to the Eleven and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen. Mark 16:13-14

Instead of becoming angry when we are confronted, let's remember how much courage and love they must have to face the potential of our anger and perhaps punitive response. Fortunately, and notably quickly for the stories in the book of Judges, the people were ready to respond to God’s gracious remonstrance. And as God always does, He had a plan already for their salvation.

11Now the Ambassador of Elohim came and sat under the oak (אִלָה S#424 or terebinth; from אַיִל S#352 strength, mighty, a pillar, a mighty man, to be twisted together to form a stronger element, as in a cord) at Ophrah (from עָפַר S#6080-6083 dust), which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon ( גִּדְעוֹן S#1439: one who cuts down, a warrior, a feller of trees; from גָּדַע S#1438 gada and גָּדַל S#1438 gadol: to twist, to be great, to grow, to be mighty) was beating out wheat in the winepress to allow it to escape from the Midianites. Judges 6:11

Gideon was hiding at the place of dust, Ophrah, from which he had been created. Dust reminds us that just as we were made from the dust of the cursed ground, as a result of our sin we also will return to dust at the end of our toilsome days (Gen. 3:19). It is our inevitable end to work with difficulty to cultivate the ground, to scatter seed and to have thorns and thistles make the task of yielding a harvest of seed and bread for food a wearisome task (Gen 3). Dust reminds us of our frailness, the temporal nature of our fleeting lives and our extreme vulnerability.
Contrastingly, the oak (or terebinth) tree was a symbol of strength and might in the Bible, and it was under these trees that judgments and judicial decisions would be made by judges, as well as covenants entered into by the people. And yet it is here that Gideon is found, not threshing the grain on the hilltop so that the wind might chase away the chaff, but hiding down in a winepress in order that the Midianites might not see that he was trying to store away what he had been able to retain.

12And the Ambassador of Elohim (מֲלְאָךְ S#4397 / מֶלֶךְ S#4428 malek: ambassador, king, envoy of the king; אֱלהִים S#430 elohim: plural of God, the triune godhead) appeared to him and said to him, “Yehovah is with you, O mighty man of valor!” (חַיִל S#2428 chayil: mighty, valor, abundance, wealth) 13And Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if Yehovah is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not Yehovah bring us up from Egypt?’ But now Yehovah has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.”

"Why, God?"
Oh, dear ones! Isn’t that so often the question aching in our hearts? If God is with us, if God is for us, if God loves us, if God is all powerful and all knowing, then “Why???” Why did my mom die from painful disease? Why did I lose my baby? Why did my spouse betray me? Why did my child reject me? Why did we lose everything we had worked hard for? Why are we impoverished? Why is everything I try to accomplish destroyed by the enemy of my soul?
We’ve heard the stories of what God has done for others. Incredible miracles. Happily-ever-after soundbytes. It’s even painful to hear them at times. And yet God has allowed devastation to come on us and seems to be uncaring. In fact, when the prophet came to condemn the people for not obeying God, it wasn’t necessarily Gideon who had been disobedient. Often, though, we find God’s people suffering along with others as God has to give loving discipling and correction to whole nations and communities.
But God’s representative has not come to berate Gideon for the sins of his family members or his nation. Rather, He has come to commission Gideon and to remind him that though he is dust, his very name carries the greatness, abundance and might that God can instill in a person committed to operating by faith.
Though Gideon had learned through trauma and hardship to have a scarcity mindset, God was ready to teach him about the abundance we have in Christ.

14And Yehovah turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” 15And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh (מְנַשֶּׁה S#4519; from נָשָׁה S#5382 to cause to forget), and I am the least in my father’s house.” 16And Yehovah said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” 17And he [Gideon] said to Him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is You who speak with me. 18Please do not depart from here until I come to You and bring out my present and set it before You.” And he said, “I will stay till you return.”

It is worth noting that, although Gideon was hiding, he had, in fact, shown a tremendous amount of faith in his act of continuing to scatter seed and gather it even through seven long years of raids by their enemies. Though he was hiding in a winepress, he was still using the strength he had and the resources he could find. Perhaps it was as a result of this act of faith that the Ambassador of Elohim, the very image-bearer of God Himself, would come to him. Under this great and mighty oak, God manifested in the flesh as Jesus had come to Gideon. He had declared that Gideon also was a mighty man of valor. Just as the word for Oak means also to be twisted together for strength, we know that it is a “three cord strand” that is “not easily broken (Eccl. 4:12). When we are twisted together with Jesus, God the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are indeed mighty.
Gideon was a descendant of the tribe of Manasseh, which means “to forget.” Joseph had named his son Manasseh because God had so blessed him with abundance and greatness that he no longer remembered the painful years of slavery his brothers had inflicted upon him in Egypt.

[God\ allowed no one to oppress them;
he rebuked kings on their account,
15saying, “Touch not my anointed ones,
do my prophets no harm!”
When [God\ summoned a famine on the land
and broke all supply of bread,
17He had sent a man ahead of them,
Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
18His feet were hurt with fetters;
his neck was put in a collar of iron;
19until what He had said came to pass,
the word of the Lord tested him.
20The king sent and released him;
the ruler of the peoples set him free;
21he made him lord of his house
and ruler of all his possessions, Psalm 105:14-21 ESV

Psalm 105 tells us that first God would not allow His chosen ones to be harmed, then shares that Joseph was allowed to be harmed. In Joseph’s story, it was also a famine of grain, just as in Gideon’s. Additionally, God had promised Joseph that one day he would be great and powerful. It was God’s word to him that tested and tried his faith while falsely accused and imprisoned for many years.
But in due course, God word was fulfilled and Joseph’s faith was found to be genuine. So also with Gideon, God would bring him through this testing of his faith and into a place of abundance.

19So Gideon went into his house and prepared a young goat and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and brought them to him under the terebinth [oak\ and presented them. 20And the Ambassador of Elohim said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened cakes, and put them on this Rock, and pour the broth over them.” And he did so. 21Then the Ambassador of Elohim reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened cakes. And fire sprang up from the Rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes. And the Ambassador of Elohim vanished from his sight. 22Then Gideon perceived that he was the Ambassador of Elohim. And Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! For now I have seen the Ambassador of Elohim face to face.” 23But Yehovah said to him, “Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die.” 24Then Gideon built an altar there to Yehovah and called it, Yehovah Is Peace. To this day it still stands at Ophrah (dust), which belongs to the Abiezrites (אֲבִי הָעֶזְרִי S#33 abi (father of) ezer (help).

Gideon was now offering a sacrifice to Yeshua, to Jesus, who is the Ambassador and direct representation of the Father (Heb. 1:3).
This offering is reminiscent of the Pesach, or Passover Supper that Jesus celebrated with His disciples on the night before His death as their Passover Lamb. This Last Supper, Jesus declared, was symbolic of His own body and blood given for the sin of mankind. According to the commandments relating to the observance of this Feast, this animal offering could be either a firstborn, unblemished, young goat or lamb (Exodus 12:4-5). This offering would be eaten in haste and entire, and the blood put over the door of their households in order to spare their firstborn from death. It would be served with unleavened bread, in sign of the haste with which they would need to leave Egypt out of their slavery. Instead of the children of Israel being killed as the pharaoh had predicted, it was instead his own son whose life had been required.
Just as Jesus vanished from Gideon’s sight after receiving the offering, so also Jesus vanished from the sight of His disciples after death and His resurrection.

30When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. 31And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. 32They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” 33And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread. Luke 24:30-35

After this realization, the disciples immediately went running back to Jerusalem to tell the rest of the unbelieving disciples that they had just seen the Risen Lord, just as He had foretold. Their hearts had burned, just as the Gideon’s bread had burned, both with the eternal fire of Jesus.

And they [the two disciples of Luke 24:30-36\ went back and reported it to the rest, but they did not believe them either. Mark 16:13

36As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” 37But they were startled and frightened, thinking they had seen a spirit. Luke 24:36-37

14Later, as they were eating, Jesus appeared to the Eleven and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen. Mark 16:14

When the word of God has so touched our hearts, when we realize that we have been with Jesus, our hearts burn within us. The sacrifice that He receives are a broken and contrite (repentant) heart (Ps. 51:17) that we give Him as a result of our gratitude for His sacrifice for us.
Just as Gideon was startled and frightened when he realized he had seen the face of God in the form of Jesus, so also the disciples became afraid. But Jesus is the God of Peace, and it this peace He leaves with us—not a peace like the world gives, but a peace that is everlasting and can never be taken away!
The Rock from which the fire sprang is Jesus (1 Pet. 2:4-8) and He Himself was made from the dust of the ground, just like us, being made like us in every way (Heb. 2:17). He still stands with us, being fully God and fully man.
All of it belongs to Abi-ezer, our "Father of Help." God is our Father, and the Helper, the Holy Spirit, is the other member of the triune godhead:

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. John 14:26

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

“So Send I you!”

25That same night Yehovah said to him, “Take your father’s bull, and the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it 26and build an altar to Yehovah your God on the top of the stronghold here, with stones laid in due order. Then take the second bull and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah that you shall cut down.” 27So Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as Yehovah had told him. But because he was too afraid of his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night. Judges 6:25-27

It is notable that it was the very same night that God gave this instruction to Gideon. Jesus also went out from the Passover Last Supper with His disciples and was taken in custody by the soldier in the Garden of Gethsemane. This was done by night, because the high priests were afraid of the people who believed Jesus to be their Messiah:

At that hour Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. But all this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left him and fled.
Matt. 26:55-56

The ten servants represent the ten commandments of the Law, by which Jesus must be crucified in order to redeem us from the curse of the Law (Matt. 5:17), thus fulfilling all the requirements of the Law, and the stones represent the entirety of the nation of Isael:

There are to be twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes. Exodus 28:21

Additionally, Though Jesus had vanished from Gideon’s sight, He is still there. His presence would not leave, and His voice would be heard. He has promised never to leave us, never to forsake us (Deut. 31:6, Matt. 28:20)
Before we can fight the larger battles, there is often a battle closer to home that we need to address. While sin comes in a multitude of ways, the sins of the ancient people groups really aren’t any different than we encounter today, in our own culture, in our own families.
Abortion, sexual immorality, greed (which is idolatry (Col. 3:5), lust, dishonesty, rebellion, lust and hatred are just some that God has repeatedly warned us will bring nothing but destruction to our lives.
God did not send Gideon first to tackle the nations problem. He sent him first to his own family’s issues.
Sometimes these seemingly smaller battles to win people to a relationship with God are more intimidating than the larger ones. The fear of alienating family members, rejection by our immediate community and friend groups, and even retaliation for our obedience to cutting off anything from our lives that causes us and others to sin that can be very intimidating and have painful reactions by those we love.
Jesus’ final command to His disciples after He rebuked them for not listening to the women and men He had sent to witness to His death and resurrection was to go to world and witness to what we have seen:

15And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. Mark 16:15-16

Gideon’s family had been practicing idolatry—what is more, they had been leading their community in this practice. Gideon’s name also carries the idea of cutting down, of felling. He was being instructed to walk in this: to cut down the idols, to cut down the Asherah pole.
Not only that, but the bull God instructed Gideon to sacrifice was what his family was saving to live off of. No doubt they had been carefully hidden and safeguarded from their enemies. Gideon was to take his father’s bull, and a second bull seven years old. This second bull had been alive ironically and tellingly as long as the oppression the people of Israel had undergone. It had been kept safe through all of the difficulties; honored, worshipped and fattened. Just as the Ba’al idol was fashioned in the image of a sacred bull, the symbol of strength and might, the bulls represented the strength the people were trying to obtain through their efforts and pointless sacrifices.
God had commanded Gideon to remove it, placing his entire dependence upon God alone for their needs. They could no longer count on these physical provisions or their own ingenuity to protect them from starvation. They must rest their hope entirely on God’s help. With the sacrifice of Jesus, the people unknowingly rejected Him while simultaneously securing the means to the salvation of the world.

Jesus was the second bull, taking on the form of sinful flesh, though innocent of all charges. The first man, Barabbas, guilty of sin and charged justly under the Law, was released because his debt was being paid by Jesus:

After [Pilate\ had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in [Jesus\. But you have a custom that I should release one man for you at the Passover. So do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” They cried out again, “Not this man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.
John 18:38-40

The people, crying out to crucify Jesus with the chant, "We have no king but Caesar!" showed their own idolatry to the pagan idolatrous practice of worshipping their Caesar.

28When the men of the town rose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the Asherah beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar that had been built. 29And they said to one another, “Who has done this thing?” And after they had searched and inquired, they said, “Gideon the son of Joash (יְהוֹאָשׁ S#3060 fire of Yehovah) has done this thing.” 30Then the men of the town said to Joash, “Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has broken down the altar of Baal and cut down the Asherah beside it.” 31But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Will you contend for Baal? Or will you save him? Whoever contends for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself, because his altar has been broken down.” 32Therefore on that day Gideon was called Jerubbaal, that is to say, “Let Baal contend against him,” because he broke down his altar.
Judges 6:28-32

We find that what Joash should have done, Gideon did. Joash had been unwilling to take on the responsibility, had been too afraid of the nations, of the idols and of the people. But just as Ba’al, the storm god, was depicted with lightning, the fire from heaven in their reliefs, so Joash’ name reflects this dynamic. It was the fire of God that they needed to fear. It was the fire of God, which had touched Gideon’s offering.
But Joash did state one thing very correctly: If Ba’al was god, he could fight his own battles.

Though Gideon was certainly not a god, Jesus was God Himself. It is ironic, then, that the declaration of Baal's need to contend, or fight for himself, is echoed in the mocking jeers of the rulers at the foot of the cross:

And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” Luke 23:35

We see that to the Jews, power is all-important as a sign of God's authority (1 Cor. 1:22-24), which became a stumbling block to them receiving Jesus. However, it is in the foolishness and weakness of the cross that the gospel was chosen to come to us. Jesus knew that He would receive salvation from the grave in due time and willingly gave up enacting His own contention. Unlike Baal, who would indeed come next to contend against Gideon, Jesus knew that His vindication would come from God alone.
This was an entire sacrifice, including the accursed wood of the asherah tree. Significantly, it was the wood of the tree, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, that had borne the fruit that through mankind’s disobedience would bring death and sin to all of God’s Creation. It was the wood of this tree that was accursed. As it is written:

22“And if a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, 23his body shall not remain all night on the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is cursed by God. You shall not defile your land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance.
Deut. 21:22-23

“Bring out your son that he may die!”
Early in the morning the men of the town surrounded Gideon's father. This happened also with Jesus:

Early in the morning, the chief priests, elders, scribes, and the whole Sanhedrina devised a plan. They bound Jesus, led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate. Mark 15:1

The words of the people of Ophrah, those people of dust, resound in our ears with impact. Unlike Gideon's father, our The Father, God, did bring out His Son. He was given as a sacrifice because of the need to destroy the works of darkness, to destroy that ancient enemy, the Serpent. It is this cursed tree that must be used to redeem us from the curse of sin. Jesus would become sin, become our curse, so that we might be brought back into relationship with our God:

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.”
Gal 3:13

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Cor. 5:21 ESV

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. 15And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Col 2:13-15

Just as Gideon had to contend first with his sin and that of his family, so Jesus was sent first to the lost sheep of Israel (Matt. 15:24) and then His disciples were sent to bring the good news to the world. This would take great courage.
Gideon, the feller of trees, the mighty warrior, stands in the symbolic place of Jesus, who felled the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, became sin on this tree and broke down the altar of Ba’al (בַּעַל S#1168 ba’al: owner, master), the slave master over us. God had indeed rescued Gideon and His people from Egypt once again. With Jesus’ help, we will never again be in slavery to sin or endless work to receive our salvation.
There is, and only ever will be, one Sacrifice that will bring us victory over sin's mastery and back into relationship with God. Have you trusted in Jesus alone for your salvation? Have you confronted your need to repent?
Have you been willing to confront the sin in your family and in your community? When will it be worth it to tell people just how devastating their sin has been and what their remedy is?

Will you let fear stop you from bringing salvation to those you love?

https://www.thearchaeologist.org/blog/the-worship-of-baal-in-the-ancient-levant
https://armstronginstitute.org/325-zeus-baal-and-a-rare-bronze-bull-idol-discovered-in-greece
https://www.ancient-origins.net/history/moloch-0016383
https://www.ancient-origins.net/myths-legends-asia/identity-moloch-0011457

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Love.Listen.Live.

8/9/2024

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The multitude of believers was one in heart and soul. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they owned. With great power the apostles continued to give their testimony about the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And abundant grace was upon them all.
There were no needy ones among them, because those who owned lands or houses would sell their property, bring the proceeds from the sales, and lay them at the apostles’ feet for distribution to anyone as he had need.
Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (meaning Son of Encouragement), sold a field he owned, brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet. Acts 4:32-37

Love.

At the end of Acts 3 we find the church, alive, thriving, growing and reproducing. It is in absolute unity. They are one in heart and soul. They are listening and actively obeying the Apostles’ teachings on the Word of God. They are in koine with one another, sharing generously all that they have because they are in common equality with one another in the gospel. Because of Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice to bring fallen humanity back into a loving relationship with their Creator God, the Church had become a return to the paradise of God, the Garden of Eden—the Garden of Delights. It is what God has made us for—an equality and love with one another that shares and gives out of love. Everything in this Garden is for the common good of all. Their attitude toward one another is “how can we ensure that each of us is thriving and rejoicing in God’s goodness?”
The Church was a new creation. It was a new beginning, where the old, dead, stony heart of people was replaced with a living heart: one that wanted to love and please God; one that was willing even to lay down one’s own life for one another.
While the one command in the Garden to humanity was “do not eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,” God knew that the very reason we chose to disobey that command was a lack of love for God. As a result, God gave a new command, the greatest command of all. It was one that would give us a reason to choose to walk in obedience: love for God.
This command the Israelites were to recite every morning and evening. It was to be their first thought before starting their day and their last upon ending it:

Listen, O Israel: The Lord our God [plural\, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your physicality [nephesh\ and with all your everything [me'od\.
Deuteronomy 6:4-5

Because God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are One, we are to be one in our unity and love. The Church was now obeying God’s command to love Him and love their neighbor with all their heart, all their soul and all their strength, unified in its focus. When we love, we automatically choose to do things that are in line with God’s laws and commands because genuine love comes from God and aligns with His purposes for His people. Like God, we naturally start to choose what would be good and best for others, even at our own cost.
God wants our whole, entire selves—our hearts, everything that we feel and make decisions on; our nephesh (often translated souls, it more accurately is our physical body), every part of our physical humanity, desires and appetites; and our me’od, our ability in every circumstance to be wholly and completely given back to God in complete love and trust for our Creator.
While we find ourselves drawn to stay in this delightful fellowship of the Church, into this perfect Garden we see the plot begin to thicken:

Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. With his wife’s full knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds for himself, but brought a portion and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and withhold some of the proceeds from the land? Did it not belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? How could you conceive such a deed in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God!”
On hearing these words, Ananias fell down and died. And great fear came over all who heard what had happened. Then the young men stepped forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him.
Acts 5:1-5

Listen.

Cue the villain.
Into this Garden, this New Creation, this paradise of love and goodwill and kindness, we find evil creeping in.
The Serpent is back.
The very Hebrew letters used to spell out the serpent’s name, nachash נָּחָ֑שׁ, describe the kind of adversary we face continuously:

נָּ nun: life/son/heir/seed
חָ֑ chet: divide/cut/separate
שׁ shin: teeth/two/devour/consume
"One who devours an heir in order to divide and cut off life"

his name, satan שָּׂטָ֛ן, is similar in meaning:

שָּׂ shin: teeth/two/devour/consume
טָ֛ tet: basket/surround/ensnare
ן nun: life/son/heir/seed
"One who surrounds life in order to ensnare and devour it."

The serpent's plan not a new scheme; it’s a very ancient one. In fact, he must have thought, ‘it worked last time!’

In fact, that ancient serpent has been waiting to devour life from the beginning and continues even now. But he will never win!

...And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne,...Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. Rev. 12:4-11

Listening, as the Greatest Command says, involves more than just allowing the sound or voice or someone to enter our ears. It encompasses hearing, understanding, and taking action that follows through with the intent of the speaker.
The Bible tells us that we become slaves or servants to the one we listen to and obey:

Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient servants, you are servants of the one you obey—whether you are servants to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?
Rom. 6:16

The serpent roams around seeking to find people to listen to his voice, to become his slaves, so that he can accuse us before God. In Acts 5, Ananias wasn’t listening to God’s command to love. His motivations for participating in the selling of his property, inaccurate donation and lies were all rooted in a desire to gain something for himself rather than serving the crucial needs of those around him. Just as Eve listened to the voice of the serpent and saw that the fruit was “good for success,” he wasn’t just withholding some of the value of the land. He was withholding himself from His Creator. What he was bringing to God was representing the value that he placed upon God and his relationship to Him. His giving was only as a show to everyone else. Barnabas had given out of the gratitude and love of his heart; Ananias was giving in order to get something out of them all. It wasn’t a gift of love.
While neither Ananias nor we have an obligation to sell all our property and give it all away, when we see people in need our Spirit-filled response should be a desire to ask the Lord how we can give out of the great abundance that He has entrusted to us. God wants our whole selves, nothing withheld. He wants us to listen and respond to Him in this love by giving Him our whole selves in every moment, obeying every Word that He speaks to us. This will often “cost” us, sometimes a great amount. But it is never even close to the incredibly abundant grace that He has given us.
In the Garden, the serpent came and deceived the woman, telling her that she would not die. When she decided to eat the fruit, her body, her nephesh, did not die immediately. Her spirit, however, did. When Adam agreed with her to eat, his spirit also passed from life into death. Into their bodies, their nephesh, however, death entered as a slow and inevitable process.
After they sinned, when they heard God’s voice in the Garden, they were no longer in loving fellowship with God. As a result, they were afraid and hid from His faces (panim).
In Hebrew, the word for “hide” is chabah חָבָא.

חָ chet: divide/cut off/wall off
בָ beit: house/household/family
א aleph: ox/strong leader/God the Father/first

In choosing to hide from God and wrapping themselves in fig leaves, trying vainly to cover up their own shame and sin, they were effectively causing themselves to be cut off and divided from the household of their loving, heavenly Father. This was exactly what the serpent had intended: to ensnare and to cut off life and the heirs from the inheritance of the Father.
However, at the voice of God, Adam and Eve together made a decision to come out of hiding. They presented themselves before God the Father and confessed to Him what they had done. The Word in Hebrew, “confess,” (todah יָדָה) means to cast or throw down something, to be lifted up to enter through the door and behold. It is an accurate accounting, a numbering of our sins according to how we have transgressed the loving commands of God. Conversely, the word also means to give thanks or praise. In essence, when we confess our sins to our Father, we are doing it in gratitude that He has provided forgiveness and justification through the Door, His Son, Jesus. We are casting away our sins, the ones that ensnare and enslave us, and throwing our thanks at His feet in humble gratitude as we are brought back into the household as a family member.
In response to Adam and Eve's confession, in His grace God provided a covering for their clothing. A blood sacrifice was made so that humanity could be covered, symbolically representing the sacrifice of Jesus’ blood that would be given to cover over our sins for all eternity.

Sadly, Ananias did not have a heart that would receive this grace.
Ananias. His name means, “Grace of God.” It is what God intended and willed for him, but not something he chose to receive for himself.
The Apostle Paul makes it clear in Romans how we should not take God’s grace lightly, as if it is not costly. It is precious and extremely valuable. It is the blood of our Savior given for the world. When we continue to live a lifestyle of practicing sin without listening and obeying God, we trample the grace of God under our feet:

Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not!
Romans 6:1

Or do you show contempt for the riches of God’s kind grace, forbearance and mercy, not realizing that it is his kind grace that leads to repentance?
Romans 2:4

This kind of contempt for God’s grace is the kind of evil that comes when people want the free blessings of God but are only using the Church as a way to gain for themselves selfishlessly. They think that God will not see, but He certainly does. Just as He saw Adam in the Garden, hiding, He also sees the true heart motivations of all of us. None of us can hide from the eye of His faces.
Ananias’ response to the extreme grace and kindness of God was to despise it, to withhold from God His very self, and to lie instead of to confess and thank God for His grace. As a result, he stayed hidden, separated and cut off from the family of God.

About three hours later his wife also came in, unaware of what had happened. “Tell me,” said Peter, “is this the price you and your husband got for the land?”
“Yes,” she answered, “that is the price.”
“How could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord?” Peter replied. “Look, the feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also.”
At that instant she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband.
Acts 5:7-10

Sapphira. In Hebrew, her name means “scribe,” or “accountant.” A saphar סָפֵר was one who would render an accurate accounting of the saphan סָפַן: the treasures that had been covered and hidden. The scribes were entrusted with the task of ensuring that the hidden, covered treasures in the storeroom or the message of the word of the king would be accurately relayed to the people.
In this part of the passage, the word “price” or “valuation” comes up repeatedly. The word is Tinos, and it means value, weight or honor. Agreeing with her husband, Sapphira purposely and inaccurately rendered an account of the value or the land. God also had given her a part, one who would accurately call to account the treasures He had entrusted to them for the benefit of His people. She, in her own turn, would choose to willfully turn away from listening and obeying God’s voice because she also lacked love for God and others.
In the advent of the Church, the spiritual rebirth and resurrection of God’s people, the deaths of both Ananias and Sapphira would represent physically the spiritual death that was already inherent inside of them. Their outward death only mirrored their inward death.
Ananias and Sapphira’s deaths were merely a physical representation of their spiritual, inward reality. They were already dead in their spirits. They had chosen to listen to the voice of the Serpent. It wasn’t about who messed up first, it wasn’t about whose idea it was. It was that they both agreed to be unified in their disobedience to God.
            In addition, God wanted to be very clear about our individual responsibility to listen and obey His voice. In the Garden, God reprimanded Adam because he “listened to the voice of [his] wife” instead of to God’s voice. To some, the curse and the fall feels like it lands unfairly on humanity because of the woman’s choice. God is setting the record straight: this time it the choice is first the husbands, followed by his wife’s agreement.
            Both of them, however, in each case, are listening to the voice of the Serpent. It goes both ways. The point of this reversal is that at the heart of it all they are listening and obeying the voice of the serpent.

Woman
Man
            Serpent
Man
Woman

They both alike despised the grace of God and refused to render a just account, a correct confession of their wrong before God. In turn, God could no longer listen to them:

Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God [plural\ and your sins have hidden His faces from you, that He will not hear. Isaiah 59:2

Rather than coming out of hiding in truth before God, they remained hidden by their own sins, remaining disconnected and divided from the family of God.
Feet. Another word that keeps coming up in this passage is feet. It the beautiful feet who are bringing the good news of the resurrection of Jesus. It is at the feet of the apostles that the Church is laying down their rights to their physical possessions. Conversely, it is at Peters’ feet that Ananias and Sapphira fall and die, and it is the feet of the young men, no longer bringing good news, that are standing at the door to take her away to her burial.
There is another who stands at the door, the door to our heart, the seat of our affections and love. He pleads to us to listen to His voice and live:

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone listens to my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.’”
Rev. 3:20-22

While this is a sad story, it is also crucial to understand that this time the serpent loses. This time, the life of the Church remains uncorrupted. The true Church remains in completely unity and fellowship with their Creator. This time, the evil cannot destroy and ensnare the life of the Church—yes, perhaps some were choosing to listen to the voice of the serpent, but the Church, the living Church of God, cannot be overcome. Instead, glory is given to God. Instead, we conquer in Jesus’ name. Instead, there is complete oneness and unity as The Son sits on the throne of the Father and we sit with Him on the same throne. It’s about fellowship, oneness, and love.

And great fear came over the whole church and all who heard about these events.
The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people, and with one accord the believers gathered together in Solomon’s Colonnade. Although the people regarded them highly, no one else dared to join them. Yet more and more believers were brought to the Lord—large numbers of both men and women.
Acts 5:11-14

Live.

Fear. The Hebrew letters give us a better understanding “yarah יִרְאָה .”
יִ yod: mighty work/hand stretched out
רְ resh: head/ruler/source/Prince
אָ aleph: strong leader/God the Father
ה hey: behold/worship/revelation

The first letter is “yod,” which is a hand outstretched to do a mighty work or deed; the second is resh, which looks like a head and signifies one who is a prince or ruler, originator; the third is aleph, which refers back to the Father as our strong leader; and the fourth is hey, which looks like the figure of a person with arms and hands upraised to behold and worship, revealing something to be in awe of.
In English, we often think of fear as negative. Its synonyms are to be terrified, scared, or alarmed. However, Hebrew word describes more the feeling that we get when we behold the mighty deeds of the Prince (Jesus) who has come from the Father. When we are in fellowship with God, those feelings are awe, amazement, comfort, peace, excitement and relief, worship. We are full of wonderful feelings that we have a mighty God who comes to rescue us from our enemies.
On the other hand, when we are in disobedience to God, when we are using our words, actions and provisions to hurt and abuse others, the mightiness of God becomes a terror to us. Our feelings can be very negative as we realize that the Judge of all the earth sees and knows everything we do and think and will call us to render an accurate accounting for how we have treated others and how we have treated the grace of His Son.
The Church, instead of being overcome by terror and hiding from His presence, the kind of awe and amazement that the mighty work of God in their midst in the judgment of Ananias and Sapphira brought increased growth and a dire warning to those who would, in pretense, seek to join them for evil reasons. Those who wanted to come out of hiding and take hold of the grace of God for themselves continued to join them and the Church grew mightily.
For those who chose to be in awe and deep reference and gratitude for God’s mighty works, it created even greater unity. In a deeper effect, it created a strong purity among the believers. Though “no one else dared join them,” yet more and more people were truly becoming saved and were being accounted to their numbers.
When Adam and Eve came out of hiding, they truthfully confessed to God what they had done. As a result, they received a promise of an eternal redemption coming in the form of Jesus and a covering for their shame. They were given life for eternity.
Ananias and Sapphira lied to God. There was no more redemption. There was no life for their dead spirits. They had abused the abundant grace of God.
One day we will all give an account, a rendering to God for how we responded to His grace. Do we receive it with confession and thanksgiving? Do we abuse it, as if we can use it to keep sinning in a lifestyle that says God’s grace is cheap? Do we give the count the correct value and honor and weight to God’s grace?
The apostles were preaching the resurrection life in Jesus, both in this hour and in the one to come! There is no value on earth that can ever come close to the price that Jesus paid for us, to the value of eternal life in Him forever in Paradise!

"An hour is coming and is now here when the dead will listen to the voice of the Son of God, and those who listen will live!" John 5:25

This week, let’s dwell on the sh'ma—to listen to his voice out of a deep love that encompasses our entire selves. Let’s embrace the life that comes from living in unhindered unity with God through Jesus!

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Behold, the Lamb of God!

4/28/2024

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Every year Pesach is celebrated, and every year the Jewish nation awaits their Messiah. When we visited Israel two years ago, I was able to speak with a Jew at the Pool of Siloam. He questioned me about Jesus, and told me that the Jewish people are fearfully awaiting the coming of the Messiah, because they are told that he was coming soon, ready or not. To get ready, they are told, they must do enough good works. Sometime between now and the end of the 6000 years of the world, he will come. If they are ready, it will be to set up his kingdom. If they are not, it will be to judge them. He asked me about our Messiah. We talked about how Jesus, a Jew, is the passover lamb, crucified for our sins to bring us back into a relationship with God. We talked about how He is coming again, and all those who place their faith and trust in Him have no fear of His coming, but only joy and anticipation!

It was deeply sad to me that, for many of the Jews, a "veil lies over their hearts," so that they cannot see that their Messiah has come.

Yet hidden in their own Seder meal is the very heart of the gospel. Moses prophesied that a “Prophet like” him would come, One whom God’s people must listen to. The Messiah, a prophet deliverer like Moses has come, was rejected, suffered and died for our sins to reconcile us to the Father and rose again to give us new life! This good news is first for the Jews, then to the Gentiles. Not only that, but the Exodus story is prophesied to repeat itself, when our Messiah returns for His people. On that day, The Suffering Messiah will come as the Triumphant King! God’s people will be delivered and the Enemy we see before us today, we will see no more forever! (Ex. 13:14)

As we meditate on this holy and deeply meaningful feast, I invite you to join us as we discover the meaning behind each element and the incredible hope we have as we await our Messiah, Jesus, who will return again for us!

The week of Pesach, of Passover, begins on Nisan 14th with a Seder meal and concludes with the bringing of the Firstfruits and rituals in readiness for the Harvest.

Yeast Removal

Each household was commanded to examine and remove all leaven from their homes. Ridding all forms of yeast, or leaven, from the whole household was meticulously done for days. All breads with any leaven were abstained from for the entirety of the seven day festival. This represented the close examination of our hearts by the Holy Spirit to remove any sin against God or others. We are to repent of any wrong and remove anything within our homes or families and even throughout our whole church family that causes us to turn away from obedience to God (Exodus 12:8, 15, 13:7, 1 Cor. 5: 11:27-29).

Fast of the Firstborn

Some Jews have the practice that the firstborn in every family fasts on the eve of Passover from sunrise to sunset. This comes from the firstborn son being consecrated to God alone as the Firstfruits of the womb. Instead of sacrifice their firstborn, they would instead redeem him with a sacrifice (Ex. 13:13-16). In addition, it is in memory of their redemption out of Egypt, the house of slavery to dead, unending work. Both Pharaoh and Herod killed all the male Hebrews babies two years old and under, in their attempt to prevent the Messiah/Deliverer from coming (Ex. 1:22; Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, Chapter 9.2; Matt. 2:16). This Deliverer had been prophesied in each instance by wise men who instructed the ruler about the coming Deliverer. In an outstanding reversal, it is God who brings Pharaoh’s second attempt at killing the firstborn back upon him, when the Angel of Death comes to take the Egyptians firstborn, and passes over the firstborn of all under the blood of the sacrificial lamb.

Cessation from Work

During the first two and last two days of Passover observant Jews will abstain from all work, resting in the finished work of God. This symbolizes the finished work of Christ in his life, death and resurrection and how believers are to enter into His work and refrain from any form of trying to earn their own salvation through good works or observance of the Law (Genesis 2:2; John 17:4, 19:28-30; 1 Cor. 5:1-9; Hebrews 4:9-10).

Seder Meal (Last Supper/Communion)

1. Kadesh — Kiddush (“Holy,” or “sanctified”)
The wine is blessed at the start of the meal. This cup of sanctified wine represents the blood of Christ, poured out in death for us. His side was pierced on the cross, blood and water pouring out as He prophesied at the Seder meal (Last Supper)(Luke 22:20-21, John 19:34). There are four cups of wine:

The Cup of Sanctification
The Cup of Deliverance/Judgement (deliverance for those who repent, judgment for those who refuse
The Cup of Redemption
The Cup of Acceptance

2. Urhatz —Wash
Washing is first performed in preparation for eating. A towel is wrapped on the arm of the one serving. This person goes around to each of the participants, pouring water over the hands from a pitcher into a bowl. In Jesus' time, this would have included foot washing because of the many miles of walking through dust with sandaled feet. Jesus represented this washing when He wrapped a towel on himself and washed the feet of His disciples, declaring them fully “clean.” This further signifies how Jesus washes His bride, the Church, with the water of the Word, cleansing her and preparing her for the Wedding Supper of the Lamb when He returns for His Church. (John 13:1-17, Eph. 5:26)

3. Karpas — “wool”
Any vegetable that is not bitter may be eaten. Common vegetables used are celery, parsley, onion, or potato. Dipped in salt water for purification and seasoning, they remind us of the baby boys cast in the Nile and the tears shed by the slaves.
In its meaning of “wool,” it is used in the Hebrew scriptures to demonstrate Christ types, who as a “lamb before His (wool)shearers was silent, so He did not open His mouth” at His trial and crucifixion (Isaiah 53:7:
It is used to describe Esther’s royal robe when she went before the King after three days, risking her life to intercede for her people and gaining their freedom on the day of Passover.
It describes Joseph’s “coat of many colors,” made of wool, torn and dipped in the blood of the goat as his brothers when they sold him into slavery.
It describes Tamar’s torn “coat of many colors” as she was defiled by her brother, her blood being shed.
Finally, they remind us of Jesus’ command to rejoice at our own persecution as believers, stating that we are the salt of the earth in order to bring the purification of Christ to others. Though we are favored by our Father, just as Esther, Joseph, Tamar and Jesus, and wear the royal robes of righteousness, through suffering, we allow others to “taste and see that the Lord is good!” (Matt 5:10-16, Psalm 34:8)

4. Yahatz — “Divide”
Three matzahs (unleavened breads) are used in the ceremony, represented the triune nature of God. The middle matzah is broken and the larger part saved for the conclusion of the meal, signifying Jesus’ body, broken for His people (Luke 22:19). The saved portion signifies the return of the Messiah at the end of time. The matzah is unleavened, representing the innocent and sinlessness of Christ. It is pierced through many times, representing the piercing with the spear by the soldier at Christ’s death as well as the flogging He received in order to save us from our sins: 5But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5

5. Magid — Narration of the Exodus story of redemption from slavery

The plate of affliction. The plate with the symbols of affliction is lifted up.
The shankbone of the Paschal lamb or kid: the zero’a of the paschal sacrifice is included because the word zero’a literally means “arm,” alluding to the verse which states, “I will redeem you with an outstretched arm . . .”;

Boiled egg: In Aramaic (spoken by Jews at the time of Jesus), an egg is called bey’a, which also means “pray” or “please.” Thus, the foods silently plead, “May it please the Merciful God to redeem us with an outstretched arm.”

Bitter herbs: These signify the bitterness of the death. The word bitter in Hebrew is “marah,” and was included in the names of the women, three different Marys, who attended Jesus’ cross, burial and witnessed to His resurrection.

Invitation to the nations. An invitation to the stranger and foreigners is to join the Seder meal, signifying the invitation to the world, including Gentiles, to become part of the Body or Church of Jesus.

The wine cups are refilled.
The youngest person at the seder asks the Four Questions and responses are given.

The Four Children
These signify four kinds of people who respond to the gospel: wise, wicked, simple, and one who does not know how to ask. Jesus’ parable of the farmer who sows his seed represents the gospel being shared with people. There are four kinds of people who receive His Word: 1) Those who hear, but Satan comes and takes it away so they will not believe to salvation; 2) those who receive it with joy, but because they do not press onto maturity through a deeper understanding and relationship with God, only persevere in the faith for a time until they give into temptation; 3) those that are consumed by the cares, riches and pleasures of this world and bring no fruit of the Spirit because they never reach in maturity in God; and 4) those who are honest and good in heart, who having heard the Word, hold tightly to it and bring much fruit with persevering patience (Luke 8:5-15).

The Ten Plagues. The word “plague” is also the word “stricken.” Just as Jesus was stricken, so also the evil of the world will be stricken at the end of time as the Lamb of God avenges and delivers His holy people who have suffered at the hands of those who refuse to repent (Rev. 15).

Cup of Suffering. Since our “cup of salvation” cannot be regarded as full when we recall the suffering of the Egyptians, a drop of wine is removed from the cup with the mention of each plague. This signifies the remainder of the suffering which we as believers will endure as we also drink the Cup of Suffering given us by our Father (Mark 10:38-40, John 18:11, Col. 1:24)

Dayenu (It Would Have Been Enough). Let all present join in the refrain thanking God for all the miracles he bestowed upon the Israelites.

The cup is again lifted in joy, thankful for God’s deliverance, ready to praise Him with the first word of the Psalm of praise (Hallel). Two Psalms of the Hallel, Psalms 113-118
Drink the wine, with the blessing of salvation.

6. Rohtza — WashReady to eat, the hands are washed before the meal, as is required at any meal. It is similar to the previous hand-washing, but now all wash with the usual benediction as the hands are dried.

7. Motzi Matzah — Eating MatzahThe first food at the meal is the matzah, the unleavened bread. It is blessed before being eaten.

8. Maror — Bitter HerbsSmall pieces of horseradish are dipped into haroset (a sweet paste symbolic of mortar) to indicate that overemphasis on material things results in bitterness.

9. Korekh —The Passover lamb or kid (young goat) was sacrificed in memory of the blood of the lamb or goat that was put on the doorframe of the houses of Egypt in order for the angel of death, which was bringing judgment, to pass over them and spare their families. In ancient times, the Talmudic scholar Hillel ate the three symbolic foods (lamb, matzah, and bitter herbs) together so that each mouthful contained all three. Thus, the symbols of slavery and liberation were intermingled.

10. Shulhan Orekh — MealThe joyous feasting gives us the feeling of human fellowship in harmony with God.

11. Tzafun — DessertNow the afikomen. Either someone has “stolen” it, or parents can hide the afikoman when it is first put aside (Step 4) and let the children look for it during the meal to win a prize. The larger piece of matzah, the unleavened bread which was broken and hidden is now found and shared among those present. This represents how the body of Jesus was hidden from the sight of His disciples as he ascended into the clouds, with the promise that He will return one day in the same way He ascended and that every eye will see Him on that day! Those who pierced Him will mourn for Him as for an only, beloved son (Acts 1:9-11, Rev. 1:7). Just as the matzah is hidden, it is found by the children and they are rewarded, so also Jesus is coming soon, and says to us, “My reward is with Me!” (Rev. 22:12)

12. Barekh — “Let us praise!”This is the usual “bentschen,” grace after meals, including, of course, thankfulness for the Passover holiday. Fill the cup before this grace and drink the third cup at its conclusion, with the usual “bore p’ri hagafen” blessing.

Door for Elijah. At this point in the seder, they open the door for Elijah, who by tradition is the forerunner of the Messiah, the harbinger of hope, and sing “Eliyahu Ha-navi.” At Jesus’ transfiguration, there was both Moses and Elijah who came and talked with Him. Moses represents the 5 books of the Law that witness against our sin, while Elijah represents the Prophets who prophesied of the Messiah’s coming. Afterward, the disciples asked Him about this, and Jesus declared that Elijah would come, but also had come in the form of John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Messiah. Malachi 4 prophesies of the Judgment Day of the Lord, the second coming of the Messiah, wherein Moses’ Law would testify to our guilt and the prophets would testify to whether we have received the Messiah. Elijah would come again, and if the hearts were not restored, would “strike” the land with a decree to bring them all under the curse of those devoted to destruction.
This is prophesied for completion at the end of time, when the two witnesses will stand and strike the earth with plagues before being martyred and resurrected (2 Kings 2:11, Jude 1:9, Matt 17:1-12, Malachi 4:1-6, Rev. 11:3-13, Zechariah 4:11, John 6:30-46, Luke 16).

13. Hallel — Psalms of PraiseThe rest of the evening is given over to hymns and songs. The Hallel is sung, including Psalm 118, a messianic prophecy of the rejection of Messiah by the leaders of Israel, the Messiah’s death and resurrection and how He becomes the gateway to God for His people (Matt 26:30, Psalm 118).

14. Nirtzah — “Accepted”Nirtzah means to be accepted. Because of the Lamb’s sacrifice, we are included in the righteousness of Jesus when He offered the payment for our redemption price in the form of His life. God accepted us in His Beloved and we are also to accept one another in Jesus in the same way. At this conclusion, they sing L’Shana HaBa’ah B’Y’rushalayim [Next Year in Jerusalem] (Eph. 1:6, Rom. 15:7).

Bringing the Firstfruits (Bikkurim)

By law, the Israelites were commanded to bring the first of their crops and the firstborn of their children or animals to the temple (Ex. 23:19; 34:26, Num. 15:17–21; 18:12–13; Deut. 26:1–11). If it was a crop, it was given to the Levites. If it was an animal or a child, it was redeemed. All firstfruits, however, belonged to God. Jesus became the firstfruits, the firstborn from among the dead in order to redeem all other firstborns (Col 1:18). Just as the firstborns were redeemed before the Exodus from death by the blood of the sacrificial lamb, so when Christ became our Lamb He redeemed us and became the firstborn among many brothers and sisters (Rom. 8:29).

The Resurrection of Christ would begin the first day of the counting of the Omer--on Nisan 16. This harvest counting would give time for the harvest to be fully brought in and completed.

As we continue our studies into the Book of Acts and the work of the Holy Spirit in beginning the Harvest of all souls, let's prayerfully consider how we can follow Jesus, our forerunner.

Isaiah 53

Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.
3He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
5But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.
6All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
8By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people?
9And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death,
although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.
10Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief;
when his soul makesh an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
11Out of the anguish of his soul he shall seei and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous,
and he shall bear their iniquities.
12Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many,
and makes intercession for the transgressors.

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The Power of Praise

2/28/2024

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Many of you probably remember the week of Labor Day, 2020. A haze of smoke covered our valley. Fires sprang up all around the state. An eerie, yellow-orange light saturated the air, causing the indoor lights to seem blue in contrast. Ash rained continuously and many suffered from the poor air quality.
Like many, we had to be evacuated from our home up in Gates because the wildfires surrounded it, burning down many homes and leaving everything temporarily uninhabitable. While we were safely evacuated with our family, our home suffered damage.
Our kitchen was destroyed and the smoke entering in from left-open windows covered every square inch. The mattresses, clothing and furniture were permeated with the stench. Thankfully, unlike some, we have homeowners’ insurance. Unfortunately, like many, our insurance didn’t want to pay for all that we believe are the damages. They delayed, made excuses and finally just fell far short of the cost of repair, in our opinion. Finally, after much wasted negotiation, we found an attorney who specializes in bringing insurance companies to court and started the next part of the process.
We have finished the arduous process of compiling evidence and are now waiting in queue to bring our evidence to the judge.
We hope he will see things the way we see them. We hope that he will hear us out and be a fair and experienced judge, able to discern and distinguish between arguments and evidence.
We hope that he is impartial, not showing favoritism to anyone, and above reproach and corruption.
It is how our story today starts as well. In 2 Chronicles 19, we find that King Jehoshaphat very righteously has been about the business of setting up judges to sort through every case, civil and criminal, to judge in the fear of the Lord. They were to carefully examine the evidence, only giving out consequences to those who had committed a crime against another, and in civil cases to make sure that property continued to be disbursed to those to whom it belonged.
After remonstrating with the newly appointed judges, King Jehoshaphat exhorts them:

“Behave courageously, and the Lord will be with the good.” v. 11

Little did he know how those words would portend his future and the future of his country!
Immediately after those days, as the enemy is wont to do when they find that order and righteousness are being restored to God’s people, the enemy joined forces to descend upon all of Judah under King Jehoshaphat:

It happened after this that the people of Moab with the people of Ammon, and others with them besides the Ammonites, came to battle against Jehoshaphat. Then some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, “A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, from Syria; and they are in Hazazon Tamar” (which is En Gedi). And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. So Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.
Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court, and said: “O Lord God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand You? Are You not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? And they dwell in it, and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name, saying, ‘If disaster comes upon us—sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine—we will stand before this temple and in Your presence (for Your name is in this temple), and cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save.’ And now, here are the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir—whom You would not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them and did not destroy them— here they are, rewarding us by coming to throw us out of Your possession which You have given us to inherit. O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.”

The Ammonites and Moabites, those nations descended from Lot, Abraham’s nephew, came against them en masse. Now God had strictly forbidden the Israelites from messing with their relatives’ land as they came to the Promised Land: God had apportioned the Moabites their country, and the Ammonites their country. It was their allotment from God just as the Promised Land was the Israelites’ allotment. So, on their way from Egypt, the Israelites were not allowed to fight with their neighbors because they were their fellow relatives descended from Lot.
At this juncture, however, it is the Ammonites and Moabites who are coming to try to remove the Israelites from their land, repaying evil for good.
The only time someone could legitimately be removed from their land and property was 1) if they had illegally taken possession of it or 2) it could be temporarily given away as consequence to pay off a debt or sin of the people for a specified period of time.
So, in effect, the Moabites and Ammonites were making a claim that the people of the land of Judah had violated God’s law so much that they would have to be removed as consequence of their sin just as the Canaanites had been removed. This would, in fact, happen eventually. God often used other nations to bring judgment upon one another for their national sin. Eventually, Judah’s sin would increase so much that they would be exiled for a time.
So, just as the people were to gather in the previous chapter to seek the judgment of the judges for any disputes, now Jehoshaphat and all of Judah, small and great, were called to come to the judgment of God in order to plead their case and defense against this accusation and hostile trespass. (v. 9)

We must act in justice as a community: loving God and people.

Sometimes the enemy threatens what God has given us to steward.
Satan’s first tactic is to try to get us to worship idols, to worship what people have; to be obedient to what we have created with our own hands.
But Jehoshaphat, in chapter 17, had removed the idols from the land and caused the people to worship God alone. They were loving the Lord their God with all their heart, soul, mind and strength.
In chapter 19, we found King Jehoshaphat establishing justice and morality throughout the land, making sure that people were held accountable for treating one another right. They were loving their neighbors as themselves.
They were walking in obedience to the two greatest commands of God!
The Bible tells us that we are not unaware of the enemy’s schemes (1 Cor. 2:11). While he has several, he reuses them. They are identifiable and repetitive.
When the enemy cannot get us to worship our own desires and works, his next scheme is to accuse us falsely as if we have.
He comes against us, our constant legal adversary to the Father, as the Accuser which accuses us night and day before our God (Rev. 12:10). However, if we have been walking in righteousness, he has no legal right or authority because we have done nothing wrong.
Now, if we have been unfaithful to God, if we have allowed other things to be first in our heart and life, if we have wronged our brother or sister, then the enemy has a legal standing to take issue with us before our Judge. In such a case, if we find that we have sin in our hearts, 1 John 2:1 tells us, we have an advocate, an attorney who pleads our case for us: Jesus Christ, The Righteous who always lives to make intercession for us. If we repent from sins and cry out to Jesus for forgiveness, we have peace with God and the blood of Christ cleanses us from all sin so that we can once again come boldly to the throne of grace and find help in time of need.
If, when examining our hearts with the help of the Holy Spirit, we find that we have kept faithfully to walk in obedience to the Spirit, then, in our legal system, the case becomes what is called a “frivolous lawsuit,” one intended to distract and use up our resources and attention in order to deplete us in an attempt to wear us out and keep us from being successful.
These kinds of earthly lawsuits can be demoralizing, because even if we know that, given a good Judge, we should ultimately win, the case will be so costly that it could bankrupt us.
In Jehoshaphat’s case, this was a class action lawsuit. It involved the entire nation being dispossessed.
We saw from Jonathan’s story that if we act in righteousness and boldly walk in the Lord’s victory, there will be a victory accomplished for us. But if we want not only victory for ourselves, for our families—if we want victory for our communities and our nation and our world, then there must be a turning back to God corporately by God’s people.
1 Peter 4:17 tells us that “the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God.” If the enemy were to come against our nation, could we as believers, declare boldly to the Lord that His Church here in America has been faithful? Could we say with confidence that we have turned away from sin, that we have worshiped him above everything and that we have treated all alike with the love of Jesus Christ?

We must send the call out.

Here in America our land is under siege. Our children, our neighbors, our communities are being threatened. There is so much coming against our nation from the enemy that it is countless. A couple of weeks ago we talked about what we should be personally doing, in our own lives about spiritual battles.
I want to bring us to this corporate battle. It is the whole church of God around the world, in our nation, against the enemy who wants to dispossess us from being God’s people.
King Jehoshaphat called everyone: rich, poor, slave, free, men, women and children. There was no one who was not necessary to come seek the Lord together. Every, single person from every walk and class of life was essential and valuable in the commission.
God declares in 2 Chron 7:14 that: “If my people will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked way, then I will hear from heaven and heal their land.”
We, the people of God, must call all to humble repentance. We, the people of God, must call all to come to seek the Lord with us: small and great, men, women, children and families.
We do this by setting an example in front of them of holy, loving lifestyles and by repeatedly inviting and calling out to them to follow us as we follow Christ. At school, at work, in our neighborhoods, in our families: it’s not a private thing. It’s not enough to just go into our closets and work out our private, personal salvation. Yes, that is first. Yes, that it right. But if we want to see revival, if we care enough and love our neighbors enough, we will reach out to them to call them back to seek God.

We must humble ourselves in unity.

King Jehoshaphat calls all of Judah out to fast. This is a humbling thing. To fast and to present themselves in worship to the Lord makes a clear statement: God is over them as Judge and they are pleading for His mercy. They are not assuming that they are good enough to be heard for what they have done. They are throwing themselves at His feet in humble petition, and the King is the one leading this!
In a court, what happens if you do not show up to the case? You automatically lose your case. Whoever shows up and stays there for the duration can be heard out.
Fasting puts us in a vulnerable, weak state. It declares our subsistence, not on physical bread, but on every word that proceeds from the mouth of our God, the Judge of all. When we fast, we deny our own appetites, our own desires, and fully focus every part of ourselves, spirit, soul and body, for a season so that nothing distracts us from waiting on God for His answer.
We don’t allow anything to prevent us from coming boldly to the throne room to petition our God. We don't allow our case to be thrown out by our failure to appear before the Judge.
Corporately, fasting together creates a unity of purpose that focuses our prayer powerfully and effectively.

Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the Lord.
Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly. And he said, “Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the Lord to you: ‘Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow go down against them. They will surely come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the brook before the Wilderness of Jeruel. You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem!’ Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you.”

God answered with a musical prophet. These musicians, both men and women, the Bible tells us, would “prophesy” with their instruments and voices in corporate, temple worship (1 Chron 25:1). It is one of these musical prophets that God comes upon to give them their word from the Lord.
The wilderness of Yeruel is where God would fight this battle with them. Yeruel comes from the Hebrew word, “yara,” and means to be unified together and established based upon many, many small substances being brought together in unification. It has the idea of raindrops converging together to form one substance of a mighty body of water all focused in one direction together.

Yara-El: Founded by God in Unity.

Their corporate fasting and worship had created a unity among them that was powerful and effective before the throne and would soon lead them to a powerful victory through praise!

We must praise the beauty of God’s holiness--Rejoice!

And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem bowed before the Lord, worshiping the Lord. Then the Levites of the children of the Kohathites and of the children of the Korahites stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with voices loud and high.
So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying:
“Praise the Lord,
For His mercy endures forever.”
Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated. For the people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another.
So when Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude; and there were their dead bodies, fallen on the earth. No one had escaped.

A lot of times we think of worship as music and praise. While it really incorporates the entirety of ourselves as a living sacrifice walking in obedience to the Spirit, there is a huge element of worship including fasting, prayer, psalms, hymns, spiritual songs, singing and making melody in our hearts to the Lord, both personally and corporately.
King Jehoshaphat did a noteworthy thing: He consulted with all the people. They helped to choose who would bravely go before them: those who were unafraid and courageously walking in faith by God's command. They put the musicians before the soldiers. These worshipping musicians must have walked in a mighty act of faith, voluntarily weaponless except for the Almighty God who went before them!
The word, “Rejoice” is built on the word for grace, for the favor that God gives a humble petitioner, already thanking and rejoicing that they know that they will be given what they need before they even ask. It is a huge act of faith and such an honor to God that His people would rejoice in His goodness to them in front of the world!
They rejoiced before they won as an act of faith because they fully believed that God’s promise was true. They rejoiced as if it had already happened.
Jehoshaphat knew that he could appeal to God in this way, because he understood God’s nature as a just and holy Judge. You see, Jehoshaphat’s name means: the Lord is Judge. He meditated in this concept of righteous judgment and trusted fully in His vindication of judgment from God alone.
Jehoshaphat knew personally the importance of a judge being just and holy in his judgments. If a judge was corrupt, then corruption would spread through the land.
Meeting together in the Valley of Tekoa, or the Valley of the Trumpet, they praised God for His holiness, high and loud, lifting up their voice and sounding out the proclamation —God is Holy! God is not a corruptible Judge. He cannot be bribed. He will not err in judgment. God will be faithful to His promise unwaveringly. He is both absolutely, stunningly holy and as well as abounding in love and mercy.
It is this kind of wholehearted, unified abandonment to praise that touches the heart of God.
In Ephesians we are told that the weapons of our warfare are mighty in God. We are told that after we have armed ourselves, having done all, to “Stand”, positioning ourselves, praising God for the mighty work He has already completed on our behalf.
We often get discouraged when we see the enemy mount up against us. We think it will only bring pain and at the most- at best- we will just survive it.
The reality is, that God is intending to use these things for our good. In Romans 8:28, Paul explains to us as believers that “God uses all things for the good of those who love him, who are called according to His purpose.” A good judge throws out any frivolous lawsuits and penalizes the offending party for wasting the court’s time and for trying to harm another person vindictively.
Even more, a good, just judge will also award compensation to those in the right—or as King Jehoshaphat told his judges, “the Lord will be with the good!”
Once again, we see God positioning Himself to fight for His people. It is His battle. He will cause our enemies to destroy themselves. You see, a house divided against itself cannot stand. Satan’s house never has unity, because he is the author of confusion, selfish ambition, jealousy, covetousness and dissension. His own house cannot stay united because true unity comes from God alone. All the enemy can do is create a semblance of fake unity—one focused on a common enemy, while they themselves are also one another’s enemies. In the end they will be routed by the unity of the Church.

We must gather and bless the Lord.

When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away their spoil, they found among them an abundance of valuables on the dead bodies, and precious jewelry, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away; and they were three days gathering the spoil because there was so much. And on the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berachah, for there they blessed the Lord; therefore the name of that place was called The Valley of Berachah until this day. Then they returned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat in front of them, to go back to Jerusalem with joy, for the Lord had made them rejoice over their enemies. So they came to Jerusalem, with stringed instruments and harps and trumpets, to the house of the Lord. And the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries when they heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel. Then the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest all around.

When we are victorious over our enemy, there are the spoils of war. In a large army camp, they would have had huge flocks of animals to feed the soldiers. They would carry with them other foods, oils, dried fruits, spices. These all carried a significant value. They would carry with them all kinds of jewels and gold and treasures that they had raided or brought from home. They would have massive amounts of weapons and armor and horses and chariots.
Sometimes we think that when the enemy mounts up his forces against us, it is really a lose-lose. Either way, even if we survive, there will be no benefit. We approach these battles with dread, wishing we were never required to go through them. But God intends these things to bring us greater blessing than we could ever imagine!
Jesus echoes this concept in Matthew 5:12: "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
Instead of just surviving, the provision and blessing of God is multiplied for God’s people as a result of these battles.
The people of Judah gathered together in the Valley of Blessing to gather home all that God had just provided for them and to bless His Name together, gratefully acknowledging what God had overabundantly supplied for them.
When we are victorious in spiritual battle, there is provision for our communities. There is provision for our weapons and protection.
Most importantly, the slaves they would have brought as captives to serve them are set free.
If we want to see our communities set free, the Church must walk in love first to God, then in love and justice toward one another. We must send out the call and invite all to seek God in humility with us.
Finally, let’s rejoice together in the beauty of God’s holiness, because He will only render a good verdict for His people as the Judge of all the earth. Let’s praise the Lord as if God’s word is really true! Let’s walk in front, boldly marching ahead, confident in His holiness.

Bless His holy name!

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40 Days with Goliath - Final

7/1/2021

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For forty days the Philistine came forward
every morning and evening and
took his stand.

1 Samuel 17:40-54

This week we took our fluffy, white puppy to a geology camp with our kids. They got to learn about dinosaurs, handle real fossils and petrified dinosaur eggs, be awed by a plethora of fluorescent rocks, and dig in the dirt to find their own fossils.
The owners of the camp had three large Great Pyranees, who nightly scouted their 180+ acre farm in the desert of Washington for grizzlies, wolves and cougars who regularly frequented the ranch. Last fall, their pyranees had attacked and treed a cougar on the property.
During the day, as we watched from a distance, our small bundle of fluff, about the size of an Australian Terrier, would crawl on her belly toward these giant dogs. Her nose running along the ground, she would inch and pause, inch and pause, positioning herself as close as she dared to them. As soon as she reached them, she would flip her belly into the air, pleading for their mercy, and then snuggle up close for their protection.
Bedtime, however, was another story! As we would settle in for the night, spanning the length of a log bunkhouse with our kids, we would give our dog her food next to her crate on the porch. Next to us, she had all kinds of courage. In her mind, though not in mine, we were much more powerful than these pyranees! As the other dogs would advance, tails wagging, to check out the smell from her dog bowl, she would bristle, bark, and growl at them. It was hilarious to watch her challenge them from the vantage of the porch, with her family behind her!
As I watched her take courage based on her faith in our abilities, it reminded me of little David's courage as he fought Goliath. A courageous faith, that, unlike our dog's, was not misplaced.
In Part 1, we studied the place and stance of our fight, and who our Goliaths are. In Part 2, we looked at some of the first problems David encountered before he even had to stand up to his Goliath, and how he rooted himself firmly in his identity and future. In Part 3, we focused on how David negotiated closed doors, discrimination, and how to maintain an effective defense in a new battle situation. Today, I want to dig in to the Covenant relationship we have with God, how to gather our resources, estimate the cost, and how to turn the enemy's weapons against himself!

COVENANT
Let's declare our loyalty and love for God above all!

Goliath appeared “morning and evening,” when the Shema was to be declared. The Shema was Israel's affirmation of faith in God as their Covenant King--the Covenant authority Goliath was trying to replace by usurpation:

Hear, O Israel: The Lord [YHWH\ our God [Elohim, plural for God\, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.
You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
Deut. 6:4-7 NKJV

God's people were commanded to declare vocally that the Lord was their God, in all of His triune, plural Godhead. They were to declare the command to love God with everything that was in them. Morning and evening, they were to rise and make these declarations over their lives and that of their families and nation. It was and is the quintessential statement of their faith in God.
It was their enemy's goal to make Israel, God's people, omit this affirmation of faith and to transfer their faith and obedience to his mastery over them.
Our enemy wants to take God's place in our lives in order to imprison and destroy us. It has been his goal from the very beginning, when he challenged the Godhead! (Isa. 14:12-21)
But God has not left us without resources.

COMPILE
Let's gather what we need!

Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself
five smooth stones from the brook,
and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had,
and his sling was in his hand. And he drew near to the Philistine.
1 Sam. 17:40

As a shepherd, these are the typical things David would have already been using regularly. David gathered his staff, his bag, and his sling. The staff he brought to the fight would have been a smaller, blunt, club-like stick. This stick was different than the rod, or shepherd's crook, that he would have used to guide, discipline and rescue the sheep. This particular staff would have been what David used to beat away predators, wild dogs, lions, and bears. The sling would be slung with a stone at a predator from more distance: efficient and deadly.
God wants us to be resourceful. While He is the God who creates everything out of nothing, He still chooses to participate with us so that we can join Him in the pleasure and reward of victory!
What do we have in our hand today? It is enough.
It is enough because we have a God who multiplies. He multiplies our time, energies and resources. He just wants a willing and giving heart. “For if there is first a willing mind, [the gift] is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have.” (2 Cor. 8:12)
It is enough because He is the One who is our strength. He is the God of angel armies. “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him (2 Chron. 16:9a).
David gathered five stones.
At first glance, the five stones seem like backup plans. If the first stone failed, he would have more to try again. But that wasn't the purpose. Just as Jesus died once for all, (1 Pet. 3:18) so David would defeat the giant with one blow.

No, these extra stones were a preparation for David's future. You see, Goliath had four more brothers, all giants. They ruled with the Philistines, their allies, in the five cities of Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and Gath, which was situated within the southeastern shore of Israel's border along the the Mediterranean Sea.1
These giants were descended from Anak, of the giant ethnic group of the Nephilim, which began pre-flood, but whose lineage continued post-flood. The descendants of Anak had settled in the best, most fertile land of Canaan, in the mountainous and well-watered region of what would be called the land of Hebron. (Gen. 6:4; Deut. 9:2; Josh 15:3)
God knew that His people would be tempted to fear the giants. God never denied that His people are unequal to the giants. Rather, He wants to change our perspective to see the giants in juxtaposition to His own might!

Just as God's people were to cross over to occupy the Promised Land, God gave them this promise:

Hear, O Israel: You are to cross over the Jordan today, and go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourself, cities great and fortified up to heaven, a people great and tall, the descendants of the Anakim, whom you know, and of whom you heard it said, ‘Who can stand before the descendants of Anak?’ Therefore understand today that the Lord your God is He who goes over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and bring them down before you; so you shall drive them out and destroy them quickly, as the Lord has said to you.
Deut. 9:1-3

When the twelve spies were sent by the Israelites before they were to go into conquer the land, only two men, Joshua and Caleb(from the tribe of Judah), came back with a good report of the land.
After 40 days of spying out the land—40 days of seeing the goodness of what God had promised to give them and 40 days of witnessing the intimidating power of the giants—Caleb and Joshua alone saw the power of the giants in relation to God. They saw the immense benefit of the land. The rest of the spies could only focus on the giants in relation to themselves: We were as grasshoppers in their sight!” (Num. 13:33)
As an old man, it was Caleb of the tribe of Judah who would ask to inherit the specific region of the giants, Hebron, that he might drive them out. Many years later, it would be in Hebron that David would first occupy as reigning king (2 Sam. 5:3).
David knew that once he took on this fight with Goliath, it would necessitate an all-out war against the rest of the giants in the land of Philistia (2 Sam 21:18-22). David was making a commitment with the Lord to participate fully in walking in victory over everything that God had promised him. The gathering of stones was an act of faith--not only for this day of battle, but for a lifetime with God.
Like his aged ancestor, Caleb, the youth David wanted to have complete victory with God. At either spectrum of weakness, they two showed us the power of God to empower us in our weakness!
What are those battle areas in our lives that we know will follow on the heels of victory? Where are the strongholds that you can identify today, that you know you will need to deal with in the Lord-- Those places of defeat, of family history, or intimidation?
While God doesn't ask us to fight every battle all at once, we can still make some preparation now. What steps can you take in faith now, to prepare for when those battles will come to you?

COMPARE
Let's assess the situation from a right perspective!

So the Philistine came, and began drawing near to David, and the man who bore the shield went before him. And when the Philistine looked about and saw David, he disdained him; for he was only a youth, ruddy and good-looking. So the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!” Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s, and He will give you into our hands.
1 Sam. 17:41-47 NKJV

David took stock. He inventoried what his enemy had, and of what he himself had. His enemy had formidable, real, and powerful weapons and stature. He himself had the Name of the God of angel armies. David compared the two, and declared his side to be the more powerful. He knew that the One within us is greater than the enemy (1 John 4:4).
Jesus showed us in Luke 14:28-32 that as His disciples, He expects us to first sit down and weigh the cost of discipleship. Is our God big enough? Is the reward worth it? Are we willing to invest all that we have?
Since the investment of ourselves in this battle is very costly, God wants us to know that this battle is important enough to Him to commit all that He has to the battle with us.
There are two reasons why God is committed to work with you to defeat your giants:
God wants to be glorified in the entire earth as the only true and all-powerful God, with nothing and no one comparable to Him.
God wants all the people who know you personally to have a deeper understanding of how God works for His people. He wants them to respond to Him in faith in their own lives.
Once we have weighed the balances, once we have made up our minds whose side we are on, there must be no hesitation. It is the time to run into the battle!

CHARGE!
Let's wield the weapon the enemy uses with confidence!

So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of David. Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. Now the men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted, and pursued the Philistines as far as the entrance of the valley and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell along the road to Shaaraim, even as far as Gath and Ekron. Then the children of Israel returned from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their tents. And David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.
1 Sam. 17:48-54

David didn't start into the fight with a sword to kill Goliath--it was the sword Goliath carried that David used to kill him! It would be the sword that David used again and again throughout his fighting battles against the Philistines and any who would encroach upon the territory he was commissioned to guard (1 Sam. 21:9).
Goliath's sword stands for the Word of God (Eph 6:17). It is the Sword that the enemy uses to accuse us to God night and day, morning and evening (Zech 3:1; Rev. 12:10). God's Word contains the law of commandments, the handwriting of ordinances, under which we, as lawbreakers, stand condemned before God as the Righteous Judge.
The devil uses God's own words to declare us guilty—to declare that we have no help from God because of our sin. It is that same Word of God that we must use to shut down the voice of the enemy. We can acknowledge the accusation---”Yes, by God's standards I was guilty of that sin. Yes, by God's Word I had no standing on my own with God because of that guilt. But that is why the blood of Christ was so important. He paid the penalty for me, and I have been brought near into covenant relationship with God through the blood of Christ (Eph 2:13)!
This Sword, the Word of God, also contains the Promises of God for us as the People of God. The devil tries to use the Promises of God to derail us from our purposes in the Will of God.
In Jesus' temptation in the wilderness after His baptism and anointing by the Spirit--Jesus' own battle with Goliath--we see three Promises of God that Satan wielded to try to derail Jesus from His purpose in Luke 4:1-13:

“God promised to provide for you.”
“God promised to give you the kingdom.”
“God promised to protect you.”

In each of these temptations, there was a legitimate and real promise of God found in Scripture for God's people that Satan tried to persuade Jesus to obtain outside of the Will of God. In each temptation, Jesus wielded the Word of God back to the devil to declare the larger and more complete purpose of God. Because Jesus had a complete understanding of God's greater plan of redemption, Jesus left these promises unfulfilled in His earthly life. Even though Jesus had the actual power to make these promises happen physically at that time, He chose to give them up to God's better will for His life in order to bring us into His joy along with Him.
Jesus gave up His provision (Matt 8:20), his kingdom (John 18:36), and His protection (Matt. 26:53) in a temporal setting in exchange for a lasting and eternal Promise (Phil 2:6-11).
Ultimately, as Jesus died on the cross, he fulfilled the promise of redemption for us from the enemy found in Genesis 3:15 AMP “And I will put enmity (open hostility) between you[the devil] and the woman, and between your seed (offspring) and her Seed [Jesus]. He shall [fatally] bruise your[the devil's] head, and you shall [only] bruise His heel.”
Just as David used the sword of Goliath to render the enemy in his life powerless, so Jesus used the very weapon Satan tried to use against Himself to destroy the devil and to render him powerless. Jesus' own death resulted in Satan's destruction: “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. O Death, I will be your plagues! O Grave, I will be your destruction!” (Hos 13:14)
It was this laying down of Jesus' rights under the Word of God for our sake that reconciled us to God:

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities[all evil spirits\, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
Col. 2:13-15 NIV

When you take courage and find these battles in your life, people around you will see that God is able to deliver them. Many of them will take courage and come to the battle as well. Not only did the Israelites join with David in the battle, but they were also able to plunder the Philistines, securing their border and taking home a reward.
David, however, knew that there was something else he must do. He must place physical reminders--memorials--of the victories he had with God, in prominent locations. The head of the giant went to Jerusalem, and the armor David placed in his own home.
These memorials would be not only be for the present, placed in his current dwelling place, but also in Jerusalem: the future of where he would ultimately reside as King of Israel, and the location where Satan's head would, one day, be crushed by Jesus Himself as Jesus gave His own life on the cross.
What can you do to establish memorials pointing to the victory of Christ for yourself and for successive generations?
How will you point to your reminders and tell your story?

Reference:
Palestine-David-Solomon.jpg (912×1600) (britannica.com)1

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40 Days with Goliath - Part 3

6/3/2021

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For forty days the Philistine came forward
every morning and evening and
took his stand.

This week we went to family camp at a Ranch up in a rural Washington Native American Reservation. It was beautifully situated, with the desert bluffs rising steeply above the river.
They had many activities for the kids to be entertained, including kayaking, archery and pony riding, but, by far, the most fun were the new puppies. Fluffy. White. Adorable. By the end of the weekend, our children were bribing us with promises of chores, training, and sleepless puppy nights.
In the end, the child with the most commitments to the worst parts of puppy training got the privilege of having the puppy and naming her--"Confetti." I wondered how he would handle this much responsibility. Of all my kids, he can be most distracted. Having the constant care of a complex live animal may have its challenge for him.
It has been amusing to watch him navigate puppy bathroom breaks during the night, barking, and general training. He has been a diligent owner, though, and the puppy is quickly learning to obey and get along with everyone in the house.
In my mind it is perfect training for fatherhood. I love watching how God takes the little things of our lives, the hard things, the joy-filled experiences, and uses them to shape who He wants us to be for His purposes and our ultimate pleasure!
We see this in King David's life as well. The little battles became bigger battles, and with them, bigger victories.
In Part 1, we studied the place and stance of our fight, and who our Goliaths are. In Part 2, we looked at some of the first problems David encountered before he even had to stand up to his Goliath, and how he rooted himself firmly in his identity and future. Today, we will focus on how David negotiated closed doors, discrimination, and how to maintain an effective defense in a new battle situation.

Fight as a Representative

31Now when the words which David spoke were heard, they reported them to Saul;
and he sent for him. 32Then David said to Saul,
“Let no man’s heart fail because of him;
your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”
1 Sam. 17:31-32

Since David was Saul's armor bearer, he would not have been expected to go into war unless King Saul himself was going into battle. Furthermore, David would not have had the authority to fight Goliath without permission from King Saul. At the point of David's assertions to the soldiers, the door was currently closed to the possibility of his serving the people in this way.

When we speak declarative words of victory through Christ, God will make sure that those who have the ability to open doors you need are moved to action.

If David had offered to fight as his own representative, for his own glory and achievement, Saul likely would not have allowed him, and God would not have aided Him. David knew that the only way to fight with authority and dominion would be as a spiritual representative for the glory and kingdom of God by serving as Saul's earthly representative.
One question we should ask ourselves as we are preparing to fight our spiritual enemies, is “whose kingdom and glory are we pursuing?” Is it our own, or the Lord's? Are we fighting for our own selfish ambitions, or to bless others? (James 4:3) Sometimes there can be subtle differences in our motivations that may seem Godly or unselfish, but in reality are primarily to build something for our own kingdoms and desires that fail to put God's kingdom first over all.
If we are representing the mission and desires of the will of God, we will not fail to have His support, resources and aid.

Tell Our Testimonies

And Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.”
1 Sam. 17:33

"You don't have experience. He has been fighting this fight from the beginning. You are too young, too naive, too weak, too alone to be successful in this fight." We have all heard advice that seems wise, but in reality weakens our confidence in a living God who is really the one who will be fighting our battle on our behalf.
For me, this sinks home as I navigate creating a space for my in-laws to live, and what that would look like in our home, with relationships, and with our time and energy resources. It is a new and rather daunting transition for us, but David's attitude really spoke to my heart to encourage me.
Let's take a look at David's response to Saul's assertions of his inadequacy:

34But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, 35I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it. 36Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” 37Moreover David said, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”
1 Sam. 17:34-37

David told about his experience. It may not have been giants or war, but he had been faithful to depend on God in the areas that he had been placed. He equated this new battle with the previous battles, and the God who had delivered him before from the lion and bear would be the same God who would deliver him again this time.
When we are preparing for a new battle that we have not faced, with an enemy that seems to have the upper hand in strength, experience, and bravado, we should retell our testimonies for others to hear of how God has proved faithful in our lives in the past. We should retell and meditate on our stories for the good and encouragement of our own hearts. It is not about our strength, talents, or experience, but rather about the same God of armies who lives presently and will fight for us in this next new battle.
In this next season for our family, I may not know everything that may come up or how to deal with each new transition, but I know that God has given us grace and help in each past experience, with new wisdom and energy for every new day.

Spend Our Normal Days in Watchful Courage

Previously, David had watched over the sheep of his father to deliver them from predators. He had spent his normal days protecting his father's sheep. Protecting Israel, the flock of God, his heavenly Father, would be no different. His close, personal combat against the lions and bears would have taken great courage.
We often have a deceptive idealic picture of a peaceful, pastoral setting of a shepherd with his sheep. The reality, though, is a constant watching. A guarded alertness, regardless of the immediate appearance of peace. Since a predator would most likely sneak in and attack at an unsuspecting time upon the weakest of the sheep, the shepherd would need to keep his eyes and ears alert, scanning the hills, crevices and hidden places for any sign of attack.
Once an attack ensued, it would call for immediate action, a sprint at full speed toward the lion or bear who would have been running away with the bleeting lamb in its jaws. Overtaking it, David would have struck the predator, causing it to drop its prey in shock and pain.
Sometimes that would be enough to send it running away. If the predator was more than usually bold or hungry, it would attack David. David's response was not to back down, but to catch the animal by its beard, initiating face to face combat, and striking it until it was dead. It would be an intimate, intense, and adrenaline permeated fight to the death.
Often, though, shepherds were not so careful. The consequences were sadly destructive. If they let down their guards or became distracted, it would be too late for the lamb that would then be carried off. Even if the shepherd managed to fight the predator, the lamb would likely already be torn apart: "...The shepherd snatches from the mouth of the lion two legs or a piece of an ear....”(Amos 3:12)
If we, as we shepherd God's people, our families, and neighbors, are not watching carefully, not on guard, if we are sleeping or wandering, then we may not be fast or close enough to run at the enemy in time. Even a shepherd brave enough to fight would lose the lambs if he were negligent, careless, or distracted.
Like David's lambs, people are also helpless, in need of under-shepherds to watch and keep guard over them: Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a helpless people. Proverbs 28:15 (NIV) Because of this, the Apostle Paul warns Timothy, a youthful pastor/apostle, to be on his guard in caring for the needs of his flock, his church: “But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” 2 Tim. 4:5 The Apostle Peter mirrors this instruction: “But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers;” (1 Peter 4:7) and “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).
This week I was greatly exhorted and inspired to an increase in watchful prayer by Spurgeon's devotional in Streams in the Desert, June 1 Morning:

“Perhaps there is no more subtle hindrance to prayer than that of our moods. Nearly everybody has to meet that difficulty at times....What shall we do when moods like this come to us? Wait until we do feel like praying?....If you were in a room that had been tightly closed for some time you would, sooner or later, begin to feel very miserable—so miserable, perhaps, that you would not want to make the effort to open the window, especially if they were difficult to open. But your weakness and listlessness would be proof that you were beginning to need fresh air very desperately—that you would soon be ill without it....When we are listless in prayer, it is the very time when we need most to pray. The only way we can overcome listlessness in anything is to put more of ourselves, not less, into the task...If I feel myself disinclined to pray, then is the time when I need to pray more than ever.” CHARLES H. SPURGEON

We become sleepy when we close our windows and doors through prayerlessness and prevent the rich, energizing oxygen of the grace and power of God to enrich our lives. We see this listlessness, this drowsy sleepiness and lack of discernment of the times, come heavily upon the disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane as Jesus went to pray to His Father to prepare for the greatest trial they would yet encounter—His own crucifixion.
Our drowsy lack of discernment of an impending spiritual attack should not determine our watchful alertness in prayer.
Jesus came to His disciples three times during the course of His prayer time, urging them to stop sleeping and to pray, “so that they would not enter (join in unity into) temptation” Matt 26:41). They must, indeed, suffer the temptation, but watchful prayer would be their means of securing from their heavenly Father all the grace they needed to endure it in the Spirit, with grace and holiness and faithfulness. We do not always know what the next temptation, giant or betrayal may be, so we must be watchful in all things.

Fight with Spiritual Defenses

And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!” 38So Saul clothed David with his armor, and he put a bronze helmet on his head; he also clothed him with a coat of mail. 39David fastened his sword to his armor and tried to walk, for he had not tested them. And David said to Saul, “I cannot walk with these, for I have not tested them.”
So David took them off.
1 Sam. 17:37-49

Saul had fought with this armor, but had not even experienced consistent victory using it. The victories that Saul had experienced in the Spirit had taken place before Saul had obtained armor and weaponry. Additionally, Saul was a very tall man, a full head and shoulder taller than his fellow Israelites. As David was both a youth and probably average height, he would not have fit this armor.
Not only this, but it was a system of defense that he had not used before. Rather than enable David, it would only slow him down and create confusion between his muscles and mental coordination where he did have prior experience. The offer of armor was simply another method of distraction brought by the devil in order to entice David to place his trust and defense in the king's armor, rather than in God who would help the weak.
Sometimes leadership or friends may offer well-meaning advice and support, but it is unintentionally unhelpful. It may or may not have worked for them, or perhaps, as in Saul's case, they only thought it was helpful, while it never did change their outcomes. Regardless, whether it's new technology, equipment, systems or mind manipulations, these can have no true value or benefit when they are not a tool given to us by the Holy Spirit.
Some may try to claim that if you would only teach your children through a certain type of school, then they would love Jesus. If you would only get rid of all media, tv, digital devices, then you would not be subject to temptation. If you would restrict your diet to this or that discipline or food or exercise, then you would remain free of disease and physical ailments.
While these life changes may actually be what God is calling you to personally, more often they may be what God has used as tools in their lives, but have no value intrinsically, in and of themselves, in controlling wrong appetites or in giving delivery and victory,
Only when both given and used through the Holy Spirit in His power and His abundant grace can physical tools be a means to help with victory in any given area.
Instead of focusing on methods and tools, we should focus on the power of the Name of Jesus and the individual way and means that the Lord has used in our past regardless of our physical resources. These methods that the Holy Spirit has used in our lives previously to bring about victory are primarily the ways that He will give us victory over larger and intimidating enemies. In the book of Galatians, the Apostle Paul writes to the Galatians because they are being led astray by the false hope that as Gentiles turning to the obedience and Covenant of the Mosaic Law they would find salvation, rather than through the blood and Covenant of Christ and obedience to the Law of Love:

2This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 3Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? 4Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? 5Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?— Galatians 3:2-5

When we are to face off against a giant that is larger than we have encountered, for which we have but small experience, though indeed, it is experience, however belittled by some, we must continue to fight against these giants with the very same Spirit, authority and grace through which we have had our victories in the past. Do not be fooled by false rules, regulations, technologies, systems, media, popularity, political correct speech or any other tactic that seems in worldly wisdom to be effective, but has no real value in conquering evil in our lives:

These practices indeed have the appearance [that popularly passes as that] of wisdom in self-made religion and mock humility and severe treatment of the body (asceticism), but are of no value against sinful indulgence [because they do not honor God]. Col 2:23 AMP

Rather, as the Apostle Paul stated,

“3For though we live in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh.4The weapons of our warfare are not the weapons of the world. Instead, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.5We tear down arguments and every presumption set up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Cor. 10:3-5

What about you? What giants are you currently facing?
  How might you navigate the giants in your life? In your unique situation, how might you represent your heavenly Father? Do you believe that He will provide the means and resources you need as you fight for Him?
Do you know anyone who is afraid of their giant, who needs to hear your words of encouragement, who needs to hear how God has been faithful to handle your problems in the past? Who can you share your story with?
Perhaps this season has become one where life seems to drag, and prayer and intimate relationship with God seem far away. How might you pursue a deeper prayer life?
Have you encountered any areas where a physical means to fight or fix your problem seems to present itself, but your spirit doesn't have a real peace about pursuing that way of dealing with it? What other ways have you experienced God helping you might you pursue instead?

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40 Days with Goliath -Part 1

5/12/2021

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For forty days the Philistine came forward
every morning and evening and
took his stand.

Have you ever found yourself in a place where frustrations are mounting, tensions are building, and the desire to fix your situation in a less than God-honoring way seems more and more appealing? Many times we come to spiritual battles where victory and relief seem distant.
          We have prayed, sacrificed and suffered. We have done all that we know to do, but the pressure keeps on us day after day. The unique elements of our situation come up as reminders morning and evening, flaunting their continued presence in our lives, and mocking the faith and trust we have in a God who can deliver us.
They tell us that since He hasn’t gotten rid of that problem, that debt, that desire for drugs, that vindictive urge, that propensity to criticize, that it is just our personality, our genetics, our particular weakness. We may see victory in other areas, but this one defeat is ours to keep.
          While many of us see David’s fight with Goliath as a one day event, it was not. The victory he would ultimately have against this particular enemy of his soul was preceded by a series of choices that ultimately led, not only to his own victory, but victory for his family and nation as well. His choices during his 40 days with Goliath would set a foundation for a life of victory—not only against one giant, but against them all.
          It may seem like our story starts with David, a man who trusted God, but it does not: it starts with a place. A position:

Now the Philistines gathered their armies together to battle, and were gathered at Sochoh, which belongs to Judah; they encamped between Sochoh and Azekah, in Ephes Dammim. 2And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and they encamped in the Valley of Elah, and drew up in battle array against the Philistines. 3The Philistines stood on a mountain on one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side, with a valley between them. 1 Sam. 17:1-3

Before we can even look at decisions and choices that may affect the outcome of our battles with our giants, the first thing for us to be aware of is our position. Our place.
   The first location named was a place village called Sochoh, which referred to a hedge, as one might plant around a vineyard so as to protect it from destructive animals or people. These hedges were often thorny, and enclosed the vineyard completely.
The next location, Azekah, referred to digging about, or tilling, as a preparation for planting, perhaps a vineyard or another crop.
The Israelites were encamped in the Valley of Elah, which means "low," or, literally "valley." But its root word means to make low, humble, humiliated, dejected. They lived temporarily in a place of depression. Every morning they would have to climb out of their camp and go take their stand on the hill opposite Ephes Dammim in their battle array.
   The fourth location, on which the Philistines were encamped, was called Ephes Dammin:

  Boundary of the Bloods.

Israel was God’s chosen people. Jesus likened them to a vineyard, which the master had tilled, planted, and hedged about, and from whom He expected to receive fruit. (Matt 21:33) The vineyard owner would plant a tall, thorny hedge around the vineyard property, in order to keep out animals who would ruin the vines or steal the fruit. The spike-laden bushes would prevent chewing through, and the density would mitigate crawling between.
For the Israelites, encamped in the Valley of Elah, the depression, degradation and humiliation in which they were living day after day was only serving to make them feel like there was nothing left for them but defeat. They would get up every day, take their stand for a few moments, and then run away back to their camp---in the depressed lowlands.
As Christians, “grafted in” as God’s chosen people, we are also His vineyard. Jesus has a loving, watchcare over us as His people, and a hedge of protection against the enemy, both in a spiritual sense, as well as in a physical sense. In Job’s case, Satan could do nothing to hurt Job without getting express permission from God:

Have not you made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he has on every side? you have blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. Job 1:10

Most importantly, there is a “boundary of bloods,” poured out for us by Jesus’ death on the cross. When Jesus gave Himself as a sacrifice for our sins, he laid an impenetrable boundary across which no thief, enemy or captor had any right or ability to cross. Only our choice to walk over and hand ourselves into the captivity of the enemy yelling across the boundary could ever enable him to gain mastery over us.

It never stops him from trying, of course.

4And a champion went out from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. 6And he had bronze armor on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders. 7Now the staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and his iron spearhead weighed six hundred shekels; and a shield-bearer went before him. 1 Sam. 17:4-7

In modern terms, Goliath was approximately 9 feet, 9 inches tall, with a coat of mail that weighed between 126-200 pounds, bronze armor that weighed around 30 pounds, and even an iron spearhead that alone weighed between 15-25 pounds. In all, Goliath would have been carrying from 170 to 255 pounds of armor or more!

          To all watching, Goliath looked impervious, indomitable, and invincible.

Don’t our giants look that way? Giants of lust, pride, lies, addictions, disrespect, depression, rebellion, bitterness….the list goes on and on. They rear up, and our necks crane back painfully as realize just how large they are.
We are reminded of our failures by our children, spouses, friends, and co-workers.  Our own thoughts race, in a circular pattern, down through the long night hours. They spiral down when there is nothing left to distract us, no one to contradict them. We haven’t beaten that giant in the past; by all experience and evidence it is unbeatable.
In a sense our goliaths gain a type of victory over us when we simply stay in the depression. When we live, day after day, with that sense of defeat and impending failure. Sometimes it is all we can do to put on our armor and walk up the hill for a few minutes--long enough to hear him shouting out his taunts---before we run back to our place of humiliation.
          Satan would always rather we give up without a fight. He knows that if we are in Jesus he no longer possesses the ability to control, enslave or defeat us by force. Instead, his chief weapons against us are fear, intimidation, deceit and manipulation.
          Nearing the cross, Jesus acknowledged three things to His disciples: 1) Satan temporarily had a princely rule and domination over the world; 2) Because of Christ’s sinless perfection, Satan had absolutely no claim or authority over Christ; and 3) through Jesus’ sinless sacrifice on the cross, Satan, the reigning prince over the world, would be cast out, disarmed, and triumphed over:

I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming, and he has no claim on Me. John 14:30

Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. John 12:31

And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Col. 2:15

Because of Jesus’ blood, we are planted, nurtured and protected from the Evil One. As long as we remain in Jesus, in His vineyard, the enemy cannot force us to submit to him any longer.

          However, the enemy does not fight fair. Not only does he try to impress us with his great strength, but he also has another tactic.

          Shame.

Goliath’s name means to uncover, strip naked, make exiled, and make captive.  It is a picture of the captivity and exile of slaves who were conquered, stripped naked, tied, and led away as slaves from their homeland into a foreign land.  It denotes abject shame, mockery, helplessness, hopelessness, despair and lifetime enslavement.

          Hear the mockery in his voice as he shout to them across the valley:

“Why have you come out to line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. 9If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us.” 10And the Philistine said, “I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.” 11When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid. 1 Sam. 17:8-11

Now what is really interesting is that the Hebrew word for “Defy” means to reproach, blaspheme, shame, mock, make naked, expose. It is the same word used for winter, denoting the time after crops and leaves stripped bare.   In this context, it has the idea of a reproach, a mocking, because of a vulnerability, helplessness and weakness due to nakedness.  It implies shame and mockery heaped upon an already defeated captive. Does this sound familiar? It is the very purpose of Goliath's name. It is who he is and what he does.
Goliath was mocking the armies of Israel. He was declaring their shame, vulnerability, helpless and inevitable enslavement, and he was mocking them for it as if it was already true. He was declaring that their God, the living God, could have no power to save them from his strength and ability.
The enemy does this to us. Our giants say that we are too weak, too vulnerable, to stand a chance. They declare that we are naked, ashamed and entirely too guilty to win. They seek our absolute and utter enslavement along with our obedience to whatever evil desire comes up as a temptation.

The goliaths in our lives come to us as impressive, terrifying addictions, problems, and sin-issues that seem impossible to defeat.  They make us feel ashamed, even in the temptation, as if we have already become their slave.

          They tell us that we can never defeat them, that we are destined for a life of defeat, and that there is absolutely nothing that we can do about it.  To fight would only be worse.  They say we might as well give up and accept the inevitable, because it will be less terrible than the destruction they would inflict if we fight.
          Their goal is our enslaved obedience.  That whatever lust or pride or selfishness that we are tempted with, we would follow, helpless to control our thoughts, appetites, emotions and actions.
However, the truth is that through repentance and faith in Jesus, we are clothed in His own, perfect righteousness. There is a beautiful word picture of this transaction in Zechariah that I love:

“And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord and Satan was standing at Joshua’s right side to accuse him. The LORD said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?” Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.” (Zechariah 3:1-4 KJV)

It may seem like there is only a negative when our goliaths come against us. Without the giants, it seems "normal." That getting rid of the giants brings us back to "normal." This is not how Jesus views each victory that we have, though! With each goliath that we gain victory over, there is an increase in power, in abundant life, in joy, that we never had before.
Rather than view this opposition with terror and dread, if we are living in obedience to Christ as our king we can know that not only does He have a plan, but that He is positioning us for a victory through His blood that will result in an increase of freedom for our families, churches, communities and nations.
As we walk through the story of David's victory of the Goliath of their time, we will see exactly how David conquered him and brought freedom and joy back to his people.

But for now, realize your position:

You are a child of God, loved, protected, watched over. There is a hedge, a boundary of Jesus' blood that no enemy can cross over. Position yourself on your hilltop with an expectation that He has a plan for your victory.

Because of the Boundary of Blood.

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Bread of Affliction

There are to be twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes. Exodus 28:21

15And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. Mark 16:15-16

And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” Luke 23:35

Early in the morning, the chief priests, elders, scribes, and the whole Sanhedrina devised a plan. They bound Jesus, led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate. Mark 15:1

Love.Listen.Live.

Love.

Listen, O Israel: The Lord our God [plural\, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your physicality [nephesh\ and with all your everything [me'od\.
Deuteronomy 6:4-5

Listen.

Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient servants, you are servants of the one you obey—whether you are servants to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?
Rom. 6:16

Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not!
Romans 6:1

Or do you show contempt for the riches of God’s kind grace, forbearance and mercy, not realizing that it is his kind grace that leads to repentance?
Romans 2:4

Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God [plural\ and your sins have hidden His faces from you, that He will not hear. Isaiah 59:2

Live.

"An hour is coming and is now here when the dead will listen to the voice of the Son of God, and those who listen will live!" John 5:25

Behold, the Lamb of God!

Yeast Removal

Fast of the Firstborn

Cessation from Work

Seder Meal (Last Supper/Communion)

Bringing the Firstfruits (Bikkurim)

The Power of Praise

40 Days with Goliath - Final

For forty days the Philistine came forward
every morning and evening and
took his stand.

1 Samuel 17:40-54

COVENANT
Let's declare our loyalty and love for God above all!

COMPILE
Let's gather what we need!

Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself
five smooth stones from the brook,
and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had,
and his sling was in his hand. And he drew near to the Philistine.
1 Sam. 17:40

COMPARE
Let's assess the situation from a right perspective!

CHARGE!
Let's wield the weapon the enemy uses with confidence!

40 Days with Goliath - Part 3

For forty days the Philistine came forward
every morning and evening and
took his stand.

31Now when the words which David spoke were heard, they reported them to Saul;
and he sent for him. 32Then David said to Saul,
“Let no man’s heart fail because of him;
your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”
1 Sam. 17:31-32

And Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.”
1 Sam. 17:33

These practices indeed have the appearance [that popularly passes as that] of wisdom in self-made religion and mock humility and severe treatment of the body (asceticism), but are of no value against sinful indulgence [because they do not honor God]. Col 2:23 AMP

40 Days with Goliath -Part 1

For forty days the Philistine came forward
every morning and evening and
took his stand.

Have not you made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he has on every side? you have blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. Job 1:10

Author

Archives

Categories

Bread of Affliction

​

There are to be twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes. Exodus 28:21

15And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. Mark 16:15-16​

And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” Luke 23:35

Early in the morning, the chief priests, elders, scribes, and the whole Sanhedrina devised a plan. They bound Jesus, led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate. Mark 15:1​

Love.Listen.Live.

Love.

Listen, O Israel: The Lord our God [plural\, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your physicality [nephesh\ and with all your everything [me'od\. ​Deuteronomy 6:4-5

Listen.

​Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient servants, you are servants of the one you obey—whether you are servants to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? ​Rom. 6:16

Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not!Romans 6:1 ​ Or do you show contempt for the riches of God’s kind grace, forbearance and mercy, not realizing that it is his kind grace that leads to repentance? Romans 2:4

Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God [plural\ and your sins have hidden His faces from you, that He will not hear. Isaiah 59:2

Live.

"An hour is coming and is now here when the dead will listen to the voice of the Son of God, and those who listen will live!" John 5:25

Behold, the Lamb of God!

Yeast Removal

Fast of the Firstborn

Cessation from Work

Seder Meal (Last Supper/Communion)

Bringing the Firstfruits (Bikkurim)

The Power of Praise

40 Days with Goliath - Final

For forty days the Philistine came forwardevery morning and evening and​​took his stand.1 Samuel 17:40-54

COVENANTLet's declare our loyalty and love for God above all!​

COMPILELet's gather what we need!​

Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook,​and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had,and his sling was in his hand. And he drew near to the Philistine.1 Sam. 17:40

COMPARELet's assess the situation from a right perspective!​

CHARGE!Let's wield the weapon the enemy uses with confidence!​

40 Days with Goliath - Part 3

For forty days the Philistine came forwardevery morning and evening and ​took his stand.

31Now when the words which David spoke were heard, they reported them to Saul;and he sent for him. 32Then David said to Saul,“Let no man’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” ​1 Sam. 17:31-32

And Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.” 1 Sam. 17:33​

These practices indeed have the appearance [that popularly passes as that] of wisdom in self-made religion and mock humility and severe treatment of the body (asceticism), but are of no value against sinful indulgence [because they do not honor God]. Col 2:23 AMP ​

40 Days with Goliath -Part 1

For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and ​took his stand.

Have not you made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he has on every side? you have blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. Job 1:10​

Author

Archives

Categories

15And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. Mark 16:15-16

Early in the morning, the chief priests, elders, scribes, and the whole Sanhedrina devised a plan. They bound Jesus, led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate. Mark 15:1

Listen, O Israel: The Lord our God [plural\, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your physicality [nephesh\ and with all your everything [me'od\.
Deuteronomy 6:4-5

Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient servants, you are servants of the one you obey—whether you are servants to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?
Rom. 6:16

Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not!
Romans 6:1

Or do you show contempt for the riches of God’s kind grace, forbearance and mercy, not realizing that it is his kind grace that leads to repentance?
Romans 2:4

For forty days the Philistine came forward
every morning and evening and
took his stand.

1 Samuel 17:40-54

COVENANT
Let's declare our loyalty and love for God above all!

COMPILE
Let's gather what we need!

Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself
five smooth stones from the brook,
and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had,
and his sling was in his hand. And he drew near to the Philistine.
1 Sam. 17:40

COMPARE
Let's assess the situation from a right perspective!

CHARGE!
Let's wield the weapon the enemy uses with confidence!

For forty days the Philistine came forward
every morning and evening and
took his stand.

31Now when the words which David spoke were heard, they reported them to Saul;
and he sent for him. 32Then David said to Saul,
“Let no man’s heart fail because of him;
your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”
1 Sam. 17:31-32

And Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.”
1 Sam. 17:33

These practices indeed have the appearance [that popularly passes as that] of wisdom in self-made religion and mock humility and severe treatment of the body (asceticism), but are of no value against sinful indulgence [because they do not honor God]. Col 2:23 AMP

For forty days the Philistine came forward
every morning and evening and
took his stand.

Have not you made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he has on every side? you have blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. Job 1:10