holiness

  • What kind of racer are you? So run that you may obtain! (I Corinthians 9:24-27)

     

    I Corinthians 9:24-27

    Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

    Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. (KJV)


    From Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary on I Corinthians:

    In these verses the apostle hints at the great encouragement he had to act in this manner. He had a glorious prize, an incorruptible crown, in view. Upon this head he compares himself to the racers and combatants in the Isthmian games, an allusion well known to the Corinthians, because they were celebrated in their neighbourhood: "Know you not that those who run in a race run all, but one obtaineth the prize? 24. All run at your games, but only one gets the race and wins the crown." And here,

          I. He excites them to their duty: "So run that you may obtain. It is quite otherwise in the Christian race than in your races; only one wins the prize in them. You may all run so as to obtain. You have great encouragement, therefore, to persist constantly, and diligently, and vigorously, in your course. There is room for all to get the prize. You cannot fail if you run well. Yet there should be a noble emulation; you should endeavour to outdo one another. And it is a glorious contest who shall get first to heaven, or have the best rewards in that blessed world. I make it my endeavour to run; so do you, as you see me go before you." Note, It is the duty of Christians to follow their ministers closely in the chase of eternal glory, and the honour and duty of ministers to lead them in the way.

          II. He directs them in their course, by setting more fully to view his own example, still carrying on the allusion. 1. Those that ran in their games were kept to a set diet: "Every man that strives for the mastery is temperate in all things, 23. The fighters and wrestlers in your exercises are kept to strict diet and discipline; nay, they keep themselves to it. They do not indulge themselves, but restrain themselves from the food they eat and so from the liberties they use on other occasions. And should not Christians much more abridge themselves of their liberty, for so glorious an end as winning the race, and obtaining the prize set before them? They used a very spare diet, and course food, and denied themselves much, to prepare for their race and combat; so do I; so should you, after my example. It is hard if, for the heavenly crown, you cannot abstain from heathen sacrifices." 2. They were not only temperate, but inured themselves to hardships. Those who fought with one another in these exercises prepared themselves by beating the air, as the apostle calls it, or by throwing out their arms, and thereby inuring themselves, beforehand, to deal about their blows in close combat, or brandish them by way of flourish. There is no room for any such exercise in the Christian warfare. Christians are ever in close combat. There enemies make fierce and hearty opposition, and are ever at hand; and for this reason they must lay about them in earnest, and never drop the contest, nor flag and faint in it. They must fight, not as those that beat the air, but must strive against their enemies with all their might. One enemy the apostle here mentions, namely, the body; this must be kept under, beaten black and blue, as the combatants were in these Grecian games, and thereby brought into subjection. By the body we are to understand fleshly appetites and inclinations. These the apostle set himself to curb and conquer, and in this the Corinthians were bound to imitate him. Note, Those who would aright pursue the interests of their souls must beat down their bodies, and keep them under. They must combat hard with fleshly lusts, and not indulge a wanton appetite, and long for heathenish sacrifices, nor eat them, to please their flesh, at the hazard of their brethren's souls. The body must be made to serve the mind, not suffered to lord over it.

         III. The apostle presses this advice on the Corinthians by proper arguments drawn from the same contenders.

    1. They take pains, and undergo all those hardships, to obtain a corruptible crown (25), but we an incorruptible. Those who conquered in these games were crowned only with the withering leaves or boughs of trees, of olive, bays, or laurel. But Christians have an incorruptible crown in view, a crown of glory that never fadeth away, an inheritance incorruptible, reserved in heaven for them. And would they yet suffer themselves to be outdone by these racers or wrestlers? Can they use abstinence in diet, exert themselves in racing, expose their bodies to so much hardship in a combat, who have no more in view than the trifling huzzas of a giddy multitude, or a crown of leaves? And shall not Christians, who hope for the approbation of the sovereign Judge, and a crown of glory from his hands, stretch forward in the heavenly race, and exert themselves in beating down their fleshly inclinations, and the strong-holds of sin?

    2. The racers in these games run at uncertainty. All run, but one receives the prize, 24. Every racer, therefore, is at a great uncertainty whether he shall win it or no. But the Christian racer is at no such uncertainty. Every one may run here so as to obtain; but then he must run within the lines, he must keep to the path of duty prescribed, which, some think, is the meaning of running not as uncertainly, 26. He who keeps within the limits prescribed, and keeps on in his race, will never miss his crown, though others may get theirs before him. And would the Grecian racers keep within their bounds, and exerting themselves to the very last, when one only could win, and all must be uncertain which that one would be? And shall not Christians be much more exact and vigorous when all are sure of a crown when they come to the end of their race?

    3. He sets before himself and them the danger of yielding to fleshly inclinations, and pampering the body and its lusts and appetites: I keep my body under, lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a cast-away (27), rejected, disapproved, adokimos, one to whom the brabeutes--the judge or umpire of the race, will not decree the crown. The allusion to the games runs through the whole sentence. Note, A preacher of salvation may yet miss it. He may show others the way to heaven, and never get thither himself. To prevent this, Paul took so much pains in subduing and keeping under bodily inclinations, lest by any means he himself, who had preached to others, should yet miss the crown, be disapproved and rejected by his sovereign Judge. A holy fear of himself was necessary to preserve the fidelity of an apostle; and how much more necessary is it to our preservation? Note, Holy fear of ourselves, and not presumptuous confidence, is the best security against apostasy from God, and final rejection by him.

    * * *

    What kind of racer are you?
    How are you running your course?
    Will you suffer yourself to be outdone by earthly racers?
    Are you running that you might obtain the glorious prize?

    Are you running your course constantly, diligently, and vigorously?

    Are you chasing earthly glory or eternal glory?

    Are you running to obtain a corruptible crown or an incorruptible crown?

    Are you running to receive a perishable wreath or an imperishable wreath?

    Do you have a glorious prize in view?

    What kind of racer are you?
    How are you running your course?
    Will you suffer yourself to be outdone by earthly racers?
    Are you running that you might obtain the glorious prize?
    Are you running your course constantly, diligently, and vigorously?

    Are you temperate in all things?

    Are you exercising self-control in all things?

    Are you disciplining your body?

    Are you inuring yourself to hardship?

    Do you understand the danger of yielding to fleshly inclinations, and pampering the body and its lusts and appetites?

    Are you exerting yourself in beating down your fleshly appetites and inclinations?

    Have you lost sight of the glorious prize?

    What kind of racer are you?
    How are you running your course?
    Will you suffer yourself to be outdone by earthly racers?
    Are you running that you might obtain the glorious prize?
    Christian, are you taking pains and undergoing all hardships  – or have you become sluggish and slothful?

    Hebrews 6:11-12

    And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

    And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end:  That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. (KJV)

    Each of you. Every one of you. Writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the author knew the heart of man and how each one of us would be tempted to sluggishness and slothfulness in the Christian race. These words are included in the Bible as a warning and encouragement to us today, for it's far too easy for each and every one of us to become sluggish and slothful in running the race set before us. We see that happening time and again with God's people, both throughout the Bible and all throughout Church history.

    Perhaps you may have begun well as the starting gun sounded. As you entered the Christian life, you got a good jump off the starting blocks, so to speak – however, now you're finding yourself hobbled and hamstrung in your heavenly race by sluggishness and slothfulness, your zeal has declined, and you've lost your first Love. Jesus Christ is no longer at the center of your vision, as you may have sung about Him at one time in the past:


    Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart,
    naught be all else to me, save that thou art;
    Thou my best thought by day or by night,
    Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.
    (Eleanor Hull)


    Have you found yourself more earnest and diligent in regard to the earthly and fleshly, in comparison to matters of your soul and God's Kingdom and eternity?

    What is at the root of your sinful sluggishness and slothfulness?

    Who or what is arresting your attention away from the heavenly Bridegroom?

    What rival is wooing you away from the Beloved?

    It's far too easy for any one of us to start the race well, but then along the way we can become distracted by, enamored by, entangled with, and weighed down by earthly concerns, earthly glory, earthly crowns, and earthly wreaths. What tonic exists to awaken us and to shake us out of such treacherous slumber? The hymn writer Helen H. Lemmel reminds us that as we ...

    Turn [our] eyes upon Jesus,
    Look full in His wonderful face,
    ... the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
    In the light of His glory and grace.

    Like Moses, in order to endure, we need to keep looking to the God who is invisible! (See Hebrews 11:24-27; that last portion of v. 27 has been one of the most soul-fortifying passages for me in all of Scripture). Ah! To truly LOOK to and to CONSIDER Jesus, the glorious prize – lest we grow weary or fainthearted!

    Hebrews 12:1  Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2  looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

    3  Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

    In verse 2, the Greek word for "looking" is aphorao, and it means "to consider attentively," from the Greek words apo and horao. From Strong's Concordance horao means:

    properly, to stare at (compare 3700), i.e. (by implication) to discern clearly (physically or mentally); by extension, to attend to; by Hebraism, to experience; passively, to appear:--behold, perceive, see, take heed."

    And the word for "consider" in verse 3 is to analogizomai, meaning "estimate, i.e. (figuratively) contemplate:--consider."

    In other words, this looking to Jesus and this considering Jesus goes far, far beyond a once-in-a-while glance; far, far beyond breezing through a 5-minute devotional while your eyes are on the clock, anticipating checking your facebook; far, far beyond having a daily quiet time so as to check off an item on your "to-do list"; and far, far beyond intellectual scholarship without the Spirit's breath.

    Have you really considered why Jesus came?

    I Peter 3:18a  For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God...

    This is one of the most glorious verses of Scripture, and I regret to say that I missed it... for years! Consider it! The spotless Lamb of God gave His precious blood, so we might be brought to God! So often Christianity is made out for a way to get to heaven, and yes, it is that, but, my friends, heaven begins in the here and now, as the veil has been torn, and a new and living way has been made for all of us who believe – straight into the Holy of Holies, through the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ! Yes, it will be unceasing glory one Day, but even in this fallen world, we get foretastes of glory divine and joy unspeakable!

    Earlier this year, I heard one of the most blessed statements. It was made by one of our Sunday School teachers regarding the result of our reconciliation in Christ: "We get God!" Amen to that. I was thrilled! After all the classes I've sat in for years, that is one of the few statements which has been etched deeply on my soul. Afterwards, I shared that experience with a friend, who agreed with me, and added, "And God gets us!" What a thought! That God loved us while we were yet sinners, and Christ humbled Himself, He did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but took on the form of a man, and became a servant, obedient unto death, even death on the cross in our place –– and who are we? Worms... dust and ashes! And yet, because of His great love for us, Christ became sin for us so we might become the righteousness of God in Him! Our God came to ransom and redeem His elect, so our joy might be full and God's glory might be displayed and exalted and exulted in, as we fellowship with our God, together with all the saints! Consider it! Vile, wretched sinners now justified in the eyes of God. Because we are credited with Christ's righteousness by grace through faith in His atoning sacrifice, and because Christ appeased the wrath of God, we are now free to draw near to God! Once far away, we have been brought near! Once not a people, now a people! Once not having been shown mercy, now shown mercy! As children of God, we are now privileged to look unto Jesus and to consider Jesus in a way that the world cannot do!

    Therefore, if we as Christians aren't beginning to plumb the depths of what it really means that we have been brought to God, then we're really in a miserably poor position as far as understanding the privileges and blessings we have as children of God! That's the state that the church of Laodicea was in: Jesus was reproving them as He stood at the door of the church and knocked. He was calling to all who would hear to open to Him, so they might sup with Him and He with them, to enjoy the fellowship that He suffered and died to bequeath to her! Let us not neglect or make light of the blessed and glorious privilege we have been granted to look unto Jesus and to consider Jesus!

    • Our time with Jesus in the Word of God is not merely something on our "to do" list, but it is something we ought to REJOICE WITH TREMBLING over! It's true that we no longer come to Mt. Sinai, but Mt. Zion, yet our God is a consuming fire! Psalm 130:3  If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? 4  But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared. Let us always approach the throne of grace with reverence, awe, and a holy boldness. (See the last portion of Hebrews 12.)
    • Our time with Jesus in the Word of God is not merely something on our "to do" list, but it is something we ought to HUNGER and THIRST for – because Jesus Christ is the True Bread sent from heaven and the Living Water which is provided to us to specially sustain and satisfy us, unlike and surpassing any and all earthly food or drink! Christ is our life! All our springs are in Him! John 6:35  Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst..."
    • Our time with Jesus in the Word of God is not merely something on our "to do" list, but it is something we ought to SAVOR and ENJOY! Our Bridegroom died for us so we might be His bride, so we might enter into life and life abundantly! We get to sup with God! We can draw near to our exceeding Joy, our all-satisfying Portion, and our great Reward! Even as we walk in this fallen world, we can expect to receive grace upon grace from His treasure store, so we might make the Valley of Baca (weeping, thirsty valley) a place of springs, and go from strength to strength. (See Psalm 84.) Proverbs 4:17 But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day.

    This looking to Jesus and considering Jesus moves us to an intentional and suspended supernatural gazing and contemplation. And no! I'm NOT talking about unhealthy mysticism, but healthy mysticism (see here for more on this): i.e. - always centered on the Bible, always flowing from the Bible, always checked by the Bible. And, it is not something we can work up, but the sovereign Spirit brings it down to us, at those times when we are graced to meet the Lord Jesus Christ in the written Word of God, through the operation of the Holy Spirit...

    I Corinthians 2:9  But, as it is written,

    “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
    nor the heart of man imagined,
    what God has prepared for those who love him”—


    10  these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. 11  For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12  Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.

    John 5:39  You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40  yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

    You can read and study the Scriptures all day long, all your life long, you may have been raised from birth attending church, you may have attended seminary, you may even have many degrees, and be serving in a ministry position, but it is quite possible you may have never truly looked unto or considered the Lord Jesus Christ in this sense. You may know of Him, but have you ever known Him in this direct sense through the operation of the Holy Spirit? That type of looking and considering is what fuels us to keep running the race so we might obtain the glorious prize! Have you ever supped with Christ? Has the Holy Spirit brought His truth to bear in your heart? Has He ever given you a glimpse into the deep things of God? Can you say with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength that Jesus Christ is altogether lovely and the fairest of 10,000? Have you been in the position of the Shulamite woman where you have sought a glimpse of Christ, and you have been lovesick for Him? Can you honestly confess that Jesus Christ is The Beloved above and beyond all other lovers? Have you been brought under His apple tree, where you have tasted and seen He is infinitely holy, and good, and precious? With the apostle Paul, have you come to spiritually see the all-surpassing worth of knowing Christ that you consider all else as rubbish? Having seen the glory of God, does your sin increasingly grieve you and do you despise yourself? Have you come to know God as your portion and great reward? Has God's Holy Spirit written Christ's beauty and glory and sweetness upon your soul, so that you cry out with David...

    Psalm 27:4
    One thing have I asked of the LORD,
    that will I seek after:
    that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
    all the days of my life,
    to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
    and to inquire in his temple.

    Regrettably, we often exhibit such great resolution and determination in regard to worldly matters, but pay little attention to our souls' welfare. We find ourselves almost effortlessly and thoughtlessly feeding the lusts of our flesh. In marked contrast, it is pathetic to see how very little time and attention we pay to the feeding and sustaining our souls with the Bread of Heaven and the Living Water so we might show the same earnestness and the same diligence until the end. May God be pleased to draw us to Himself, to increase our dissatisfaction with earthly fare, and to increase our hunger and thirst for Christ alone, and may He grant us such soul-refreshing and soul-satisfying views of the Lord Jesus Christ, so we might strengthened to run to obtain!

    May God also grant us that holy fear of ourselves of which Matthew Henry wrote, and may God guard us so we do not fall into sinful and deadly presumption. I Corinthians 10:12  Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. (Please read the whole chapter of I Cor. 10, as well as Hebrews 3 & 4, which point us to the example of the Israelites whose corpses fell in the wilderness! ~ And then go and read the account in the Old Testament. These things are written to us as an example! ALL Scripture is God-breathed and is for our profit, each and every word has been given to us by God so we might persevere in the race marked out for us! That's why it's so important for us to read the whole Bible (not just to pick and choose), as well as to read Church history!)

    In Romans 12:11, Paul exhorts us with these words:

    Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.

    And in Ecclesiastes 10:18, the Preacher shows us the sad result of sloth and sluggishness:

    Through sloth the roof sinks in,
    and through indolence the house leaks.

    How much more necessary it is for us to be fervent, energetic, vigorous, and zealous regarding our spiritual house...


    I Corinthians 3:16: Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?
    17  If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.

    II Corinthians 6:16  ... For we are the temple of the living God; as God said,

    “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them,
    and I will be their God,
    and they shall be my people..."

    May we not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom we are sealed for the day of redemption.
    (Ephesians 4:30)

    * * *

    What kind of racer are you?
    How are you running your course?
    Will you suffer yourself to be outdone by earthly racers?
    Are you running that you might obtain the glorious prize?

    Are you exerting yourself to the very last?

    Are you exacting and vigorous?

    Are you fervent in spirit – or slothful in zeal?

    Are you earnest and diligent – or sluggish and slothful?

    Do you have a holy fear of yourself – or a presumptuous confidence?

    Like the apostle Paul, are you disciplining yourself – or are you in grave danger of being disqualified?

    II TImothy 2:1  You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2  and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 3  Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4  No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. 5  An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6  It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7  Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

    Philippians 2:12  Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13  for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

    Be strengthened by God's grace, by God's Holy Spirit who is at work in you...
    So run that you may obtain!

    Related posts:

    Bible Reading: Job 2:1 - "Again" (To press on we must always be mortifying sin | John Owen)
    the visitor we can't ever entertain (mortifying sin)
    Then Abigail made haste (complacency & devotion)
    occupy ~ do you seek your own – or the things of Christ? does His Spirit occupy?
    tangled
    Is your ambition holy? / What are you living for? (Louis Paul Lehman) / The Christian's Aim
    the infinite significance of the eternal Kingdom
    Lent V. - You follow me! (Are we steadfastly setting our faces to His will?)
    Letter 13 on assurance and fighting for joy (strengthened for endurance and patience with joy)
    Are you a radiant Christian or a drunken old woman? (letter 82 on assurance & fighting for joy)
    the door, the sword, the crown ~ through faith & patience (Hebrews 6:11-12)
    My love affair . . . whose trumpet, whose glory & incomplete joy
    "Who wants candles when he has the sun?" ~ Edward Payson | letter 124 on assurance & joy

    Scripture quotations unless otherwise indicated are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Emphasis mine.

    Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible. Emphasis mine.

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  • bitter for sweet ... (What did you expect, when the goblet met your lips?)

    Galatians 6:7  Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8  For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.

    bitter for sweet ...
    (What did you expect, when the goblet met your lips?    )

    bitter for sweet
    darkness for light

    lies for truth
    strange for fresh

    What did you expect,
    when the goblet met your lips?

    What did you expect,
    when you lingered in the night?

    sorrow for gladness
    fleshly for Spirit

    unsavory for pleasant
    fleeting for imperishable


    What did you expect,
    when the goblet met your lips?

    What did you expect,
    when you lingered in the night?

    creation for Creator
    vile for sanctified

    wickedness for purity
    death for eternal life


    What did you expect,
    when the goblet met your lips?

    What did you expect,
    when you lingered in the night?

    harlotries multiplied,
    insatiable, you groan unsatisfied

    can ephemeral dainties
    compare to the Beloved's embrace?


    What do you expect,
    as the goblet meets your lips?

    What do you expect,
    as you linger in the night?

    What do you expect,
    fleshly sup ~ deadly exchange!

    Proverbs 23
    29  Who has woe? Who has sorrow?
    Who has strife? Who has complaining?
    Who has wounds without cause?
    Who has redness of eyes?
    30  Those who tarry long over wine;
    those who go to try mixed wine.
    31  Do not look at wine when it is red,
    when it sparkles in the cup
    and goes down smoothly.
    32  In the end it bites like a serpent
    and stings like an adder.
    33  Your eyes will see strange things,
    and your heart utter perverse things.
    34  You will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea,
    like one who lies on the top of a mast.
    35  “They struck me,” you will say, “but I was not hurt;
    they beat me, but I did not feel it.
    When shall I awake?
    I must have another drink.”

    Ezekiel 16:28-30 (NKJV)
    "You also played the harlot with the Assyrians,
    because you were insatiable;
    indeed you played the harlot with them
    and still were not satisfied.
    Moreover you multiplied you acts of harlotry as far as the land of the trader, Chaldea;
    and even then you were not satisfied."
    "How degenerate is your heart!"
    says the LORD GOD,
    "seeing you do all these things, the deeds of a brazen harlot."

    Jeremiah 4:18
    Your ways and your deeds
    have brought this upon you.
    This is your doom, and it is bitter;
    it has reached your very heart.

    Romans 1:18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19  For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20  For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21  For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22  Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23  and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

    24  Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25  because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

    26  For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27  and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

    28  And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29  They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30  slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31  foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32  Though they know God's decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.

    John 4:7  There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8  (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) 9  The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10  Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” 11  The woman said to him, “Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12  Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock.” 13  Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14  but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty forever. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15  The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.”

    John 10:10
    "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly."

    What are you sowing?
    What are you drinking?
    What are you eating?
    Where are you lingering?

    Proverbs 23:1-3
    When you sit down to eat with a ruler,
    observe carefully what is before you,
    and put a knife to your throat
    if you are given to appetite.
    Do not desire his delicacies,
    for they are deceptive food.

    Psalm 141:1-3 (KJV)
    LORD, I cry unto thee: make haste unto me; give ear unto my voice, when I cry unto thee.
    Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
    Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.
    Incline not my heart to any evil thing, to practise wicked works with men that work iniquity:
    and let me not eat of their dainties.

    Related:

    Advent #1 WHY HAS JESUS COME? that we might have life & life more abundantly
    Advent # 5 WHY HAS JESUS COME? So we might draw near to God | Even a Vapor
    Advent # 7 WHY HAS JESUS COME? So we might be satisfied with Him
    Dearest idol, how can I find rest?
    Are you sitting in the midst of the ephah? ~ Zechariah 5
    Two Fountains ~ Where are you drinking? What is flowing? Don't waste your drinking! 
    Are you a radiant Christian or a drunken old woman? (letter 82 on assurance & fighting for joy)
    "Garbage In" (Are you truly His disciple?)
    Linger, linger, linger – so you might know God's love
    Where are you lifting up your eyes? Psalm 121:1-2
    why you need a new heart
    Letter 25 on assurance and fighting for joy (a strong craving ≠ His joy)
    John 3:36a Whoever believes in the Son HAS eternal life (letter 64 on assurance & joy)
    "give me also springs of water" - Will you be an Achsah? (letter 66 on assurance & fighting for joy)
    Embittered, pricked in heart? Go into the sanctuary of God (Psalm 73)
    tangled

    Scripture quotations unless otherwise indicated are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

    Scripture quotations marked NKJV taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

    Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible.

    Work found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gerard_ter_Borch_(II)_-_Woman_Drinking_Wine_-_WGA22137.jpg  / CC BY-SA 3.0/ {{PD-Art|PD-old-100}}

    Work found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jesus_and_the_Samaritan_woman_%28Jruchi_Gospels_II_MSS,_Georgia,_12th_cent.%29.jpg  / CC BY-SA 3.0/ {{PD-Art|PD-old-100}}

  • Are you sitting in the midst of the ephah? ~ Zechariah 5

    Zechariah 5:1  Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll. 2  And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits. 3  Then said he unto me, This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it. 4  I will bring it forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.

    5 Then the angel that talked with me went forth, and said unto me, Lift up now thine eyes, and see what is this that goeth forth. 6  And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth. 7  And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah. 8  And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof. 9  Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven. 10  Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah? 11  And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base. (KJV)

    The following is an excerpt from Lecture VI. of Ralph Wardlaw's "Lectures on the Prophecies of Zechariah" (Second Edition 1869, ed. by The Rev. J. S. Wardlaw; (Stoke-on-Trent: Tentmaker Publications, reprinted 2002 & 2007), 114-188, 121-122 (italics original, boldface mine).

     "An ephah."

    This was a common Jewish measure, the same as a "bath;" containing ten "homers," or about an English bushel. . . .

    1. Who, or what, is represented by the woman? — . . . There is nothing else that can well be supposed to be represented by the symbol, but the Jewish people — the nation of Israel, — the ancient Church of God — " the daughter of Zion." I acquiesce, then, in this interpretation; which is the one most commonly received. . .

    2. But why is this woman represented as seated in an ephah? — As to what the ephah is, there exists of course no difficulty. But to the question just put. Why in an ephah? . . . I am disposed, then, to understand the ephah as the apt emblem of traffic, or merchandise. It was one of the most common measures in use among the Jews. In proof of this it may be noticed, that it is selected as the representative of measures in general. . . The ephah, then, is a sufficiently appropriate symbol of the merchandise, or business, of this world; and the woman seated in the ephah, of the Jewish people immersed in worldliness.

    This worldliness — this eager thirst after earthly things —  mingled with a large amount of dishonesty and deceit in their acquisition, was a ground of divine complaint and expostulation by the prophets, previously to the captivity. Their idolatries might then be the chief theme of censure and remonstrance; but it was far from being the only one. . . [Wardlaw references Amos viii. 4 — 6.] . . .

    We have further to notice, that the same worldly disposition had manifested itself after the return from the captivity, as well as before. [Wardlaw references Neh. xiii. 10, 15 — 18.] . . . Here is the very same evil. There was now no idolatry: but there was still "the love of this present world," setting aside the commands of God and the obligations of godliness. And the same spirit is complained of by Jehovah, through the prophet Haggai (see Hag. i. 3-11; and chap. ii. 10-14). And, although by the remonstrances of Nehemiah and Ezra, and Haggai and Zechariah, this worldly propensity had been so far corrected, that they had set to in greater earnest to the building of the temple, yet still there was a large amount of it. . . Though there was no direct defection to idolatry, — the world had full possession of them; they abode in the "ephah." . . .

    3. The ephah was covered: the heavy lid of lead was carefully put down upon the mouth of it. This appears a sufficiently significant emblem of the impossibility of escape from the execution of God's merited judgments. The woman is shut up securely in the ephah, when it is about to be borne away. So the Jewish people, considered conditionally as retaining their character, should be carried away in their worldliness. There would be no escape, and no power to rescue. As the very "ephah," the instrument of their merchandise and wealth, is represented as becoming the means of confinement; so does the earthliness, the worldly-mindedness, the ambition and covetousness, of the Jewish people, shut them up to retributive vengeance. It was a species of idolatry — spiritual idolatry; alienating their hearts from God ; making them devotees of mammon. With equal truth might it be said of this as of idolatry — "This is wickedness." It is, I conceive, too readily and confidently taken for granted, that this can mean nothing else than idolatry. Worldliness is ungodliness; and ungodliness is "wickedness." You will have seen that I agree with those who interpret the carrying away of the ephah from the land of Judah of the then future and more lasting banishment of Israel from that land, if, through the power of worldliness they persisted in their unbelief and rebellion against Jehovah and his Anointed. . .

    Worldliness is the ruin of thousands and tens of thousands. It is not at all necessary to insure a man's perdition, that he either "steal" or "swear falsely." A man may be a thorough worldling, without the practice of these or any gross iniquities. Whatever shuts God out from His place in the heart as the object of fear and love, and from His place in the conscience as the authoritative regulator of the life, — that, be it what it may, is the ruin of the man. In the parable of the marriage feast, the men who declined the invitation, and "went away to their farms and to their merchandise," are not charged with any selfish and fraudulent dealing in the management of their farms or the prosecution of their merchandise. What was their sin? WORLDLINESS. They preferred the world to God. They declined the blessings of the Gospel for something more to their taste. Instead of "seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness," they "neglected the great salvation." They chose the world and the things of the world — no matter in how innocent a form — even the sweets of domestic life itself — to God and the things of God. And in the enjoyment of these, as their chosen portion, they "had their reward." Thus it was of old; thus it is still. Let no man deceive himself by fancying it necessary to his forfeiture of the blessings of God's salvation, that he give himself up to the practice of dishonesty and of open vice. If his heart is in the world, with the world he must have his portion. If he is "in the Ephah," he must be carried away with it.

    And let Christians be on their guard against "the love of this present world." It is an insinuating and perilous principle. In proportion as it gains upon the heart, it tends to enfeeble the energies, and deaden the sensibilities, of the divine life in the soul. God will not have a divided heart. "YE CANNOT SERVE GOD AND MAMMON."

    Are you currently sitting in the midst of the ephah?
    Are you declining the blessing of the Gospel for something more to your taste?
    Are you preferring the world and the things of the world to God?
    Are you choosing the world and the things of the world to God and the things of God?

    The Hebrew word translated "sitteth" in verse 7 is  yashab, which means to sit down (specifically as judge. in ambush, in quiet); by implication, to dwell, to remain; causatively, to settle, to marry:--(make to) abide(-ing), continue, (cause to, make to) dwell(-ing), ease self, endure, establish, X fail, habitation, haunt, (make to) inhabit(-ant), make to keep (house), lurking, X marry(-ing), (bring again to) place, remain, return, seat, set(- tle), (down-)sit(-down, still, -ting down, -ting (place) -uate), take, tarry. ~ From Strong's Concordance

    Implied there, this is more than just a quick stop, so Wardlaw's use of the word "abode" is definitely appropriate. And it ought to give us great pause, since these things are written to us as an example: – each and every one of us is prone to sitting in, abiding in, dwelling in, settling in, tarrying in the ephah.

    And, as Wardlaw alluded, this sitting in the midst of the ephah can be a subtle thing. Remember: the devil himself specializes in subtlety – he is crafty and scheming, he is a liar and the father of lies – he manifests himself as an angel of light. Good and innocent desires can be twisted and corrupted, our hearts can be divided, and our affections can lapse – and before we know it, we find ourselves in the sad and sorry position of the Ephesian Church, to whom Jesus gave this rebuke:

    But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.

    Remember this: you may possibly be fooling others by putting on a good show, and you may even be fooling yourself, but Jesus Himself knows each of our hearts:

    Hebrews 4:12  For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13  And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

    Let's consider those gifts of work, marriage, and family, to which Wardlaw alluded as he spoke of the parable of the great supper.

    Luke 14:15  When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” 16  But he said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. 17  And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ 18  But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ 19  And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ 20  And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ 21  So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ 22  And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ 23  And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. 24  For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’”

    Now, don't get me wrong –– there's nothing wrong with work, and there's nothing wrong with marriage and family –– except when our affections for those things keep us away from the great supper and prevent us from tasting and savoring and enjoying and being satisfied at the banquet of the Lord Jesus Christ! In that case, that's a pathetic, frightful, and downright deadly exchange –– similar to Esau's selling the birthright for a bowl of stew! For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.

    God Himself gave Adam and Eve work to do before the fall. And certainly the gifts of marriage and parenthood are high and holy callings. But how many Christians become sinfully obsessed with career and finances? How many become sinfully obsessed with getting married and having children? How many get into that ephah and then sit there –– and languish there –– mesmerized, consumed, and controlled by worldliness – unholy thoughts and selfish ambitions revolving around career, marriage, and family –– to the exclusion of Christ? Remember this: the LORD our God is a consuming fire and He is jealous; His name is jealous (Deut. 4:24, Ex. 34:14).

    Days slip away into weeks, and weeks slip away into months, and months slip away into years . . . and what have you done all that time? Have you supped with Christ? Have you savored your Bridegroom? There you are: abiding in the midst of the ephah –– instead of abiding in Christ. Sitting in the midst of the ephah and oblivious to the free gift of God:  the heavenly banquet set before you. Your heart has been hardening, your ears are closing to Christ's knocking at the door –– all because you are too consumed, captivated, and enamored by the worldly to smell the aroma of the celestial feast and to hear His call. All the while, the Father was proclaiming: "All that I have is yours!" – and the only begotten Son was pleading: "Would that you knew the things that made for your peace. O, come and take up My yoke! Come and eat! Come and drink!" –– but you would not! And there you sit in the midst of the ephah year after year, after year, perhaps even gaining the world, but your heart hardening, and your soul growing ever more worldly, sicker, and increasingly unsatisfied.

    In I Samuel 8, the Israelites showed their desires were worldly as they rejected God as their King, and as they lusted after and demanded from God a king LIKE ALL THE NATIONS. Let us take heed, lest we fall, for the very same thing can all too quickly happen to any of us...

    Now give me a career LIKE ALL THE NATIONS.
    Now give me possessions LIKE ALL THE NATIONS.
    Now give me property LIKE ALL THE NATIONS.
    Now give me a portfolio LIKE ALL THE NATIONS.
    Now give me a husband (wife) LIKE ALL THE NATIONS.
    Now give me a child (children) LIKE ALL THE NATIONS.

    Know this:  much as God did give the Israelites a king in answer to their request at that time, and much as God did give the Israelites meat in answer to their request –– and quail came out their nostrils and it became loathesome to them (Numbers 11) –– you may indeed get what you are asking for . . .  but at what cost? At the loss of enjoyment of Jesus Christ in this life – and perhaps even at the loss of your very own soul for eternity.

    As you continue to sit in the ephah, as you continue to eat and drink of the world, you are robbing yourself! You are depriving yourself of the True Bread and the Living Water – and in the process you will continue to become hungrier and thirstier and emptier; you will wither as you become more and more discontent, more and more restless, and less and less satisfied.

    Proverbs 27:20  (KJV) Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.

    Ezekiel 16:28  You played the whore also with the Assyrians, because you were not satisfied; yes, you played the whore with them, and still you were not satisfied. 29  You multiplied your whoring also with the trading land of Chaldea, and even with this you were not satisfied.

    The only true contentment, genuine happiness, pure joy, and full satisfaction is found outside the ephah – in the courts of the LORD:

    Psalm 36
    7  How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
    The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
    8  They feast on the abundance of your house,
    and you give them drink from the river of your delights.

    Psalm 65
    4  Blessed is the one you choose and bring near,
    to dwell in your courts!
    We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
    the holiness of your temple!

    Can any of us continue to sit in the midst of the ephah – to be immersed in worldliness – and rightly claim to have fellowship with God?

    I John 1:5  This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6  If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.

    I John 2:5  Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16  For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world.

    James 4:4  You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

    Psalm 5
    4  For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
    evil may not dwell with you.
    5  The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
    you hate all evildoers.

    Malachi 1:13a (KJV)  Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity:

    II Corinthians 6:14  Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? 15  What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? 16  What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God;  as God said,

    “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them,
    and I will be their God,
    and they shall be my people.
    17  Therefore go out from their midst,
    and be separate from them, says the Lord,
    and touch no unclean thing;
    then I will welcome you,
    18  and I will be a father to you,
    and you shall be sons and daughters to me,
    says the Lord Almighty.”


    7:1  Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

    One reason the apostle John wrote the book of First John was to exhort God's people to examine themselves, to call them to repentance, to call them to confess their sins, to call them out of darkness, out of lies, out of wickedness, out of unrighteousness, out of worldliness – out of the ephah – so they might once again enter into and experience the all-surpassing joy of fellowship with God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ and all the saints:

    I John 1:1  That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2  the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— 3  that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4  And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.

    5  This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6  If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8  If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10  If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

    2:1  My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2  He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. 3  And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. 4  Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 5  but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him: 6  whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

    Are you abiding in the midst of the ephah?
    Does the world or does Christ currently have full possession of you?
    Are you preferring the world to God, are you continuing to decline Christ's request to sup with you?
    Have you ever tasted and seen that He is good?

    Christian, show yourself to be born of incorruptible seed, show yourself to be Christ's bride, show yourself to be sons and daughters of the Holy One of Israel! Linger no more in the ephah! Leap forth from the ephah! Tarry no more in the ephah! If you are Christ's, He has made you a new creation with new desires –– a mind, heart, and soul that are no longer pleased or satisfied with earthly offerings or worldly fare. Show yourself to be His new creation with transformed desires and high affections, spring up with quickened footsteps, arise from out from the midst of the ephah. Don't presume upon God's grace, don't think you can rest or recline in the ephah a single moment longer. The Son of Man is coming as a thief in the night, the time at which all worldliness and all worldly joys will be consumed:

    Isaiah 24
    7  The wine mourns,
    the vine languishes,
    all the merry-hearted sigh.
    8  The mirth of the tambourines is stilled,
    the noise of the jubilant has ceased,
    the mirth of the lyre is stilled.
    9  No more do they drink wine with singing;
    strong drink is bitter to those who drink it.
    10  The wasted city is broken down;
    every house is shut up so that none can enter.
    11  There is an outcry in the streets for lack of wine;
    all joy has grown dark;
    the gladness of the earth is banished.
    12  Desolation is left in the city;
    the gates are battered into ruins.
    13  For thus it shall be in the midst of the earth
    among the nations,
    as when an olive tree is beaten,
    as at the gleaning when the grape harvest is done.

    All who sit in the midst of the ephah, all who abide in wickedness at the end of the age will be taken away to outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, where the worm will not die and the fire is not quenched.

    "If his heart is in the world, with the world he must have his portion.
    If he is "in the Ephah," he must be carried away with it."

    Text of Wardlaw's Commentary is available here: http://archive.org/stream/lecturesonprophe00ward/lecturesonprophe00ward_djvu.txt

    Related:

    Advent # 7 WHY HAS JESUS COME? So we might be satisfied with Him
    occupy ~ do you seek your own – or the things of Christ? does His Spirit occupy?
    Finding pleasure in Him
    Letter 18 on assurance and fighting for joy (my testimony of joy)
    Letter 25 on assurance and fighting for joy (a strong craving ≠ His joy)
    Half a heart, half a heart (How long? If the LORD is God, follow Him)
    If you knew the gift of God... (John 4:1-15)
    don't waste your new year ~ teach us, satisfy us, make us glad (Psalm 90:12-15)
    Happy Birthday, John Piper ~ reflections on year-ends, aging, fruit bearing & Christian hedonism
    Naphtali News: Songs about "What *I* Want," part 5: If the Curly Fry Doesn't "Satisfy," What Does?
    Advent # 5 WHY HAS JESUS COME? So we might draw near to God | Even a Vapor
    Is your ambition holy? / What are you living for? (Louis Paul Lehman) | The Christian's Aim
    Be not an Esau (Genesis 25:29-34, Hebrews 12:15-17)
    Are you wasting your life living like all the other nations? Ezekiel 25:8
    Profitable Preaching ~ Kenneth Stewart: "And your soul will be a damp squib..."
    As a deer pants ... Is your soul panting for God? (Psalms 42 & 43)
    Sin is determined. Are you? (Judges 1:27-36)
    Don't Waste Your Singleness | Single one ... be single-eyed
    to My seeking unmarried child (letter 40 on assurance & fighting for joy)
    my dear single sister in Christ: Christ & Christ alone for your joy (Letter 62 on joy)
    wives, your husband is not your Husband | letter 77 on assurance & joy
    the lover's inquiry | letter 114 on fighting for joy
    200 years ago ... Adoniram & Ann Judson ~ Don't waste YOUR marriage
    Don't Waste Your Singleness | Single one ... be single-eyed
    Flame of Jehovah! Jealousy's Love
    Why read Christian biography? To help us examine our love for God.
    Have you forgotten? Will you REMEMBER and REPENT?
    God, Love & Cookies ~ Have you abandoned your first Love? (Revelation 2:4)
    my notes on Tim Keller's talk on idols @ The Gospel Coalition Conference
    tangled
    Dearest idol, how can I find rest?
    Fourth Sunday of Advent: Are you preparing Him room?
    Written for our example

    Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible.

    Scripture quotations unless otherwise indicated are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

    Photo credits:

    Work found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hunt,_William_Homan_-_The_Light_of_the_World_-_1853-54.jpg / CC BY-SA 3.0 /
    {{PD-Art|PD-old-100}}

    Work found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Family-House-1969.jpg / by David Ball

     

naphtali_deer

About me...

Christian hedonist in training. Pressing on to know more and more of the joy of the LORD. Pleading with God to rend the heavens and revive and refresh my own soul, as well as His Church, to His praise, honor and glory.

Thank God. He can make men and women in middle life sing again with a joy that has been chastened by a memory of their past failures. ~ Alan Redpath

My other websites

tent of meeting: Prayer for reformation & revival

(See also Zechariah821. Zechariah821 is a mirror site of tent of meeting, found on WordPress)

deerlifetrumpet: Encouragement for those seeking reformation & revival in the Church

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