Accept two be in agreement they can not walk as one. When we as individuals finally hear our call GOD ward we are often puzzled, because we do not usually know how to respond or because we are taken back. For years while in church we were told, maybe not out rightly but by way of implication or suggestion that this was for another time and place, meaning not for today or for you and me. That I am here to tell you is poppycock. I am looking to what the Lord Jesus stated about our need of spiritual necessity, which the church pushes off or lacks all together, as no longer needed. Implying that all there is we now have while we remain connected to that church or religious denomination or faction, I am here to tell you that is all baloney. Now for Pastor Hoekstra and his teaching on Grace, I have seen what todays sharing is and he is still using Nebuchadnezzar as the person of interest. After he is finished I will draw from our need of Spiritual Necessities with the use of the ESV translation. All being done under the watchful eye of the LORD.
"Nebuchadnezzar Exemplifying God's Grace for Humility"
"And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him Who lives forever . . . He does according to His will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth . . . At the same time . . . I was restored to my kingdom . . . Now I . . . praise and extol and honor the King of heaven . . . and those who walk in pride He is able to abase." (Daniel 4:34-37)
"When Nebuchadnezzar exalted himself, he exemplified GOD's opposition to pride. "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty? . . . a voice fell from heaven . . . 'the kingdom has departed from you' " (Daniel 4:30-31). When he humbled himself, he exemplified GOD's Grace for humility. "GOD resists the proud, but gives Grace to the humble" (1Peter 5:5).
Nebuchadnezzar had been driven into the fields to live as an animal. "That very hour the word was fulfilled . . . he was driven from men and ate grass like oxen . . . till his hair had grown like eagles' feathers and his nails like birds' claws" (Daniel 4:33). This season of GOD's opposition for Nebuchadnezzar's pride would end when he looked to the LORD above. "And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me." Now, with his mind enabled to think clearly, he began to give blessing and praise and honor to the LORD God Most High. "And I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him Who lives forever."
This represented a completely transformed perspective for the king. Previously, he was glorifying himself. Now, he glorified the LORD. Previously, he thought he had established himself upon his throne. Now, he saw the Will of GOD behind his ascendancy to power. "He does according to His Will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth." The LORD then granted Grace to this humbled king, who had formerly walked in rebellious pride. "At the same time . . . I was restored to my kingdom." Seated again in authority, he gave honor to the King of heaven (instead of to the king of Babylon). "Now I . . . praise and extol and honor the King of heaven." Then, he added a remark that reveals the new conviction he received during his humbling. "And those who walk in pride He is able to abase."
Spiritual Necessities:
Inward Righteousness,
Matthew 5:20 (Jesus is speaking) "I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."
A Childlike Spirit,
Matthew 18:1-6 "At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" Calling to Him a child, He put him in the midst of them and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. "Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea."
Repentance,
Luke 13:1-5 "There were some present at that very time who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. To this He answered them, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; unless you repent, you will all likewise perish."
The New Birth,
John 3:4-8 "Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of GOD. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
Spiritual Worship,
John 4:15-26 "A woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water." Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here." The woman answered Him, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You are right in saying, 'I have no husband'; for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true." The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship." Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming (He Who is called Christ). When He comes, He will tell us all things." Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am HE."
Spiritual Food,
John 6:52-59 "The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no Life in you. Whoever feeds on My flesh and drinks My blood has Eternal Life, and I will raise him up on the last day. (Amos 3:3, two in agreement have sight and understanding) For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on Me, he also will live because of Me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever." Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as He taught at Capernaum."
Personal Faith,
John 8:21-30 and Acts 4:5-12, Hebrews 9:15-22, 11:3-7, 12:14-17 "Jesus said to them again, "I am going away, and you will seek Me, and you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot (yet) come." So the Jews said, "Will he kill himself, since he says, 'Where I am going, you cannot come'?" He said to them, "You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am HE you will die in your sins." So they said to Him, "Who are you?" Jesus said to them, "Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. I have much to say about you and much to judge, but HE Who sent Me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from Him." (Jesus here reflects upon His being by way of mans flesh Humble before GOD, for HE is GOD) They did not understand that He had been speaking to them about the Father. So Jesus said to them, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am HE, and that I do nothing on My own authority, but speak just as the Father taught Me. And HE Who sent Me is with Me. He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him." As He was saying these things, many believed in Him."
Acts 4:5-12 "The next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. When they had set them (John and Peter) in the midst, they inquired, "By what power or by what name did you do this?" Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, Whom you crucified, Whom GOD raised from the dead—by Him this man is standing before you well. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
Hebrews 9:11-14, 15-22 "When Christ appeared as a High Priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) HE entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of His own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. (the setting of "All" to freedom from satan's sin in slavery and bondage of it) For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, Who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to GOD, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the Living GOD.
"Therefore HE is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. For where a will [covenant or testament] is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive. Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood. For when every commandment of the Law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, saying, "This is the blood of the covenant that God commanded for you." In the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship. Indeed, under the Law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins."
Hebrews 11:3-7 "By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word [Will] of GOD, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. By faith Abel offered to GOD a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, GOD commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because GOD had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased GOD. Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to GOD must believe that HE exists and that HE rewards those who seek Him. By faith Noah, being warned by GOD concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith."
Hebrews 12:14-17 "Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the LORD. See to it that no one fails to obtain the Grace of GOD; that no "root of bitterness" springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears."
No comments:
Post a Comment