Coming to the House of the Lord
Book of Psalms 122 Verses 1-9
Up until October 7, 2023, when Israel’s war began, millions of people traveled to Israel, most of them were Christians.
Some few go now but not many.
Most Christians are headed to Jerusalem because everyone knows Jerusalem is special.
Some people say “It just feels like home” even though they had never been there before.
We know that our Messiah walked all over Israel, but He was crucified at Jerusalem.
As Christians, we know that our spiritual roots extend to Jerusalem!
We will spend a thousand years in Jerusalem serving the Lord, but we will spend eternity in New Jerusalem.
The redeemed of all the ages who will walk through those pearly gates of New Jerusalem to bask in the glorious presence of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
Rev 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
One day that trumpet will sound, and we will hear and heed the call to worship in God’s true House.
Let us listen to these clear instructions to all believers.
Psa 122:1 A Song of degrees of David. I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD.
We know that David rejoiced to go to the house of the Lord!
There was no Temple yet in Jerusalem, but David had built a Tabernacle in which the Ark of the Covenant was placed.
2Sa_6:17 And they brought in the ark of the LORD, and set it in his place, in the midst of the tabernacle that David had pitched for it: and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.
David was a man after God’s own heart.
David loved to be in the presence of God.
We know the Lord had chosen to put His name in Jerusalem many years before this.
Deu 12:11 Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the LORD:
Every Christian should have a great desire to go to the House of God and even go more often because of the things we see today going on in Israel.
Israel is God’s timepiece!
So, let us see if this phrase could have another meaning.
It could be describing to us the restoration of Israel when the Lord returns to restore this Earth as it was in the day of Adam.
Amo 9:11 In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:
Amo 9:12 That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the LORD that doeth this.
The phrase “that day” points toward the future.
In fact, it is probably referring to the time when the Lord Jesus will restore Israel as it was in the days of King David.
This means all the land God gave to Abraham.
So let us see which way the Scriptures go.
The Israelite men had to go to the Temple three times a year according to the Law of Moses.
For believers today, we should be in God’s House every time the doors are open to Praise our Savior!
We should know how to act in God’s House!
1Ti 3:15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
1Ti 3:16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
We should go to God’s House often and know that it is a command of God.
Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
Those who do not go to God’s House often are sinning against the Word of God!
We ought to rejoice when the appointed time comes to go to God’s House.
The Jewish feasts were special times, the highlights of the year and they celebrated the opportunity to go to God’s House.
I live in the Bible Belt and when I meet people on the street and ask them about Church most of them will claim to be saved, but they do not attend church regularly.
Many others go to church, but it seems to be a dreadful duty to them. They just as well stay home!
It should be a joyous occasion every time we go and hear what God has to say!
We must make being at church to be joyful, but it cannot be that way unless we love the Lord.
He is always at church to worship with us and even the Holy Spirit is always there because He lives within us.
Heb_13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
God has a purpose for everything He does.
What was God’s purpose for the founding of Jerusalem?
Psa 122:2 Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem.
Psa 122:3 Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together:
Psa 122:4 Whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD, unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks unto the name of the LORD.
Psa 122:5 For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David.
***The most important reason for going to Jerusalem was the fact that God had chosen Jerusalem as the place where He would establish His name!
Deu 12:5 But unto the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come:
Deu 12:6 And thither ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks:
Deu 12:7 And there ye shall eat before the LORD your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the LORD thy God hath blessed thee.
Psa 87:2 The LORD loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
Psa 87:3 Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah.
Heb 12:22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
Heb 12:23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
Heb 12:24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.
There should be no doubt that God loves Jerusalem!
We can also understand that Jerusalem is a picture of the New Jerusalem, but we will not know the full picture of this until the Lord Jesus sits on the throne of David in Jerusalem.
We could also say until the Lord Jesus sits upon the throne of David to rule this world.
God will dwell among His people in the New Jerusalem!
Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
Rev 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
***There is a second reason:
Jerusalem had strong, closely guarded walls.
Jerusalem was a secure city.
2Sa 5:9 So David dwelt in the fort, and called it the city of David. And David built round about from Millo and inward.
Most people felt safe when they were inside the walls of Jerusalem.
***There is yet a third reason.
The walls of Jerusalem were solid walls.
Jerusalem was without a doubt the City of God!
Psa 48:8 As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of hosts, in the city of our God: God will establish it for ever. Selah.
This same God Jehovah is the same God today, still full of power and majesty.
Psa 48:14 For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death.
When the gates of the city came into view of God’s children, they knew they were almost home!
Israel was a nation of tribes, and they were all essentially one family. Their leaders were each the sons of Jacob who became Israel. They may have forgotten that for a while, but they are bound to remember when it becomes time to choose the world or time to choose God’s family.
***There is a fourth reason.
As a nation of tribes who had a common ancestor, then they needed a place to gather in the name of God.
Each tribe may operate independently but they could come together in unity because they all had the same God!
When they gathered together for the feast to give thanks to the Lord they obeyed the testimony of Israel, the laws that God had given to them.
Exo 23:14 Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.
Exo 23:15 Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)
Exo 23:16 And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.
Exo 23:17 Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD.
There is a great feeling of relief that comes from knowing that you have been obedient to the Almighty Living God.
Jerusalem was the appointed worship center where they came in unity.
God ordained this physical location on our planet for Israel to gather to worship Him.
The world may refuse to acknowledge this, but it does not make it any less true.
Anyone, anyone who tries to alter this ordination of God deserves the punishment that God will place on them!
***A fifth reason also comes to us.
Jerusalem was also Israel’s political center, much like Washington DC is the political center of the United States of America.
We could say the United Tribes of Israel, and this is who they are when they are obedient to God!
In Jerusalem was the location of the Throne of Judgment.
One of the King’s most important duties was to render judgment and execute justice.
The thrones of the house of David would extend until it will be the Lord Jesus Christ, King Jesus, who will sit upon that throne in Jerusalem.
2Sa 7:13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
2Sa 7:16 And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.
2Sa 7:17 According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
The Jerusalem of old is a picture of New Jerusalem to come in many ways.
When the Apostle John was on the Isle of Patmos, the Lord Jesus showed him the New Jerusalem.
John reported what he saw.
Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
God’s people will rejoice in New Jerusalem, and all the painful things of this life will have passed away.
Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
This new city will be full of God’s Glory.
Rev 21:10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
Rev 21:11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
We will all be secure within the walls of New Jerusalem.
Rev 21:12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
Rev 21:13 On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
Rev 21:14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
All God’s people from every nation and every tribe will come together in New Jerusalem.
Rev 21:23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
Rev 21:24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
We see that God has a plan and those who are against Him cannot stop it!
The greatest privilege after salvation is the privilege to stand in God’s House in New Jerusalem!
There will be a gathering of family members who have gone on before us and those who will come after us.
The Word of God will be exalted because we will understand the things that God has done.
We will praise God like never before because we will truly have the mind of Christ.
We will understand that we are safe and secure throughout all eternity.
Today, especially because of what we see and what we know, we need to pray earnestly for the peace of Jerusalem.
*****Psa 122:6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.
Psa 122:7 Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces.
Psa 122:8 For my brethren and companions’ sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee.
Psa 122:9 Because of the house of the LORD our God I will seek thy good.
If you are a Christian, you will love Jerusalem.
If you are a Christian, you will be on the side of Israel.
If you are a Christian, you will pray for the peace of Jerusalem and all of Israel.
To the Eastern part of the world, Jerusalem is called the Holy City and it is.
The Apostle Matthew used this phrase in Scripture and so did the Apostle John.
Mat_4:5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
Rev_21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Nehemiah, Isaiah, and Daniel used this phrase in the Old Testament all speaking of the same Jerusalem.
Shalom is living happy, untroubled, with a sense of fulfillment.
Shalom and its related words are among the most important theological words in the Old Testament.
Jerusalem has not seen peace throughout the Bible.
The closest this city of God came to peace was in the time of King David, but Jerusalem will finally see peace in the time of King Jesus.
David prayed for peace in Jerusalem asking for peace inside the walls of his city.
David was praying that God would bless the leaders of Israel and would protect them from the wickedness of this world.
How many of us pray such prayers?
David prayed for the peace of Jerusalem for the sake of his family friends and those of all of Israel.
We should remember that King David was responsible for the peace of Jerusalem in his day.
It is one thing to look out for your own self and that of your family, but it takes a lot more to look out for each individual in an entire city.
David next prayed for peace in God’s House.
If we consider all denominations to be the Church today, we can certainly see that there is no peace in God’s House.
We may brag about the church that we attend, but the truth is many denominations are throwing the Bible away and listening to what the world has to say rather than what God has to say.
The Pope the leader of the Catholic Church is one way today and another way tomorrow.
The Wesleyans have thrown out the truth of the Gospel.
The Methodists have forgotten the methods of truth.
The Protestant church has forgotten about those who protested for the truth.
The Southern Baptists have left the truth for lies.
We could go on and on, but the truth is God’s House is not at peace and the church is no longer holding back the evilness and the wickedness in this world.
We know that Israel is at war, so we surely know we need to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and all of Israel as the world turns its back on reality.
The fact remains there will be no peace in Jerusalem until the return of Christ!
There will be no peace in the Church until the Lord Jesus returns to separate the wheat from the tares!
There will be no peace in this world until King Jesus speaks with that sword in His mouth and brings an end to the time of Satan!
Today the Temple of Jerusalem lies in ruins part of it under the Muslim Dome of the Rock.
The Jews have to pray at what is called the Wailing Wall most of them have never been able to even go upon the Temple Mount.
Even so-called Christian sects in Jerusalem haggle over shrines and the Arabs and Jews are at each other’s throats.
The world refuses to recognize that land belongs to the Jews because God gave it to them and God is going to give it back to them.
Those nations that surround God’s people trying to rid this world of them will find that the shoe is on the other foot at the appearance of King Jesus.
The fact is that the Arab nations will almost destroy this world just to annihilate all the Jews, but King Jesus will settle this issue forever before this happens.
We can be with Him, or we can burn in Hell with all other unbelievers.
I choose the Lord!
Amen
Christianity
God Does Only Righteous Things
The Lord Our Help and Our Shield
Book of Psalms 115
We have just witnessed nature’s power, and those folks in Florida have seen much more of nature’s power than we have seen.
No doubt many will blame God, and most others will question God’s love and concern for people.
Some will sneer at the mention of the existence of God.
When many of our brothers and sisters are affected, the unbelievers will mock our faith.
We know our God is righteous so everything He does was the right thing to do.
Did God send these Hurricanes, my answer would be no.
Could God have stopped these mighty storms from causing devastation then certainly my answer is yes.
We know that Satan has some powers even over storms just read the Book of Job where a tornado or something similar causes all of Job’s children to die at the same time. There were ten of them.
When tragedy strikes, our first response should not be “Where is God”!
Today’s lesson will teach us that God is great in His moral excellence.
“Mercy and truth” are the foundation of moral greatness!
This was the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ!
Jhn_1:17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
A man may be capable of making some laws for people to live by, but most of them are seldom based upon righteousness.
Grace and truth came from the Lord Jesus Christ.
The question we should ask when tragedy comes is, how have we treated our Savior?
Have we given Him the glory that He deserves?
*Psa 115:1 Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth’s sake.
Our faith must be based upon the truth or reality.
Without love, we will live in a world of selfishness which we see today.
Selfishness is the essence of sin!
Selfishness is contrary to the law of God!
The reality is that we have no right to question God for any action He might take!
We can ask the Lord any question, but we will not always be pleased with His answers.
We must not show any lack of faith when we are talking to the Lord our God!
If the Lord does not interfere on behalf of His people, we must not think that His attributes of love and faithfulness have vanished.
No matter what is happening in our world, we must give God the glory!
Here in Anderson during the last storm, five deaths were storm related.
We must not condemn God for those deaths, we must give God the glory that there were no more than five deaths here where we live.
When Jerusalem fell to Nebuchadnezzar, we can be sure that many unbelievers were mocking God, but the truth is that God was using the Babylonians to discipline Israel.
Israel had turned to idols but after the conquest by the Babylonians, Israel never turned to idols again.
Sometimes God’s methods may be harsh, but they are effective. Harsh does not ever mean abuse!
As God’s people, we will suffer through trials and tribulations, and unbelievers will mock us, but we must never retreat from our goal of serving the Lord until we get to Heaven.
Why should anyone question our loyalty to God?
We must always do our very best to look like Jesus Christ!
*Psa 115:2 Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God?
Psa 115:3 But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.
When we go about our daily routine looking defeated our enemies will ask us, “Where is your God now, when you need Him so desperately?
if we look back at the Jews, we know that they had endured the taunts of the idolatrous nations.
We do not have to go that far today as our Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ are blasphemed today.
On that day, the heathen had scoffed at the invisible God.
Keep in mind those who scoffed had to go home and wipe the dust off of some idol who could not even talk to them.
When the Jews returned to Jerusalem, they made a strong confession of their faith and even though they were far from perfect they were not called idol worshipers again.
Though they struggled to put their lives back together they knew to go to God and not go to man.
We have seen over and over again that when we pray, we need to tell God what we are going through.
Yes, He already knows, but He wants us to understand that that is nothing too hard for God!
They happily proclaimed the superiority of the Living God to all who had ears!
When we are true to the Lord, He will be true to us!
It angers the Lord for His name to be blasphemed, and He will show His power by His people much of the time.
If God does not help His children, then Satan and his children will triumph!
Where is God? He is in the Heavens in a place where He can see all His people.
The truth is God does as He pleases all the time.
There is never a time that Jehovah God is wondering what He is going to do next!
Our dearly loved Savior always, ALWAYS wants to help us through this life and He has already prepared for our future non-ending life in Glory.
God not only has the will to help those who love Him, He also has the power to make sure what He does is done right!
Mic 7:10 Then she that is mine enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her which said unto me, Where is the LORD thy God? mine eyes shall behold her: now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets.
Another thing we must understand is that, if we are suffering then it is the will of God and He has a good reason for that suffering.
In most cases it is to bring us closer to Him!
God never lacks the power to end our suffering.
Isa 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
There are no gods who can hinder the work of God!
False gods are either a figment of their imagination or they are pieces of wood, gold, silver, or some other handmade object that can do nothing.
*Psa 115:4 Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.
Psa 115:5 They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not:
Psa 115:6 They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not:
Psa 115:7 They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.
Psa 115:8 They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.
Anyone who comes to us questioning our God, we should ask them about their god!
People may scoff, which is mockery and ridicule, at Jehovah who we worship but the fact remains that He is alive, but He is invisible.
He is invisible for the reason that if He had shown Himself without His glory people would have made an idol of Him and they would have worshipped that idol instead of the invisible God just as people did the pole with a serpent of brass.
Num 21:6 And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.
Num 21:7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
Num 21:8 And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
Num 21:9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.
What happened?
This brazen serpent known as Nehushtan, became on object of idolatry and King Hezakiah destroyed it.
2Ki 18:4 He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.
This brazen serpent upon a pole had a reality as a type of the Lord Jesus upon the cross, when He died for our salvation.
Joh 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
Joh 3:15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Idols cannot speak, see. hear, smell, feel, or walk.
Yet even today some people still worship idols.
Psa 135:18 They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that trusteth in them.
An idol is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, and anything that you seek to give you what only God can give.
Many today have made themselves to be idols such as so-called movie stars, or some sports figures, and yes, some political figures think they should be worshipped, and we certainly cannot leave out those who worship Satan.
Then there is the idol of money/material things:
We already know what God says about this.
1Ti 6:7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
1Ti 6:8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
1Ti 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
1Ti 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
Money is the root of all the evil of today. Most all our politicians are bought out in one way or another.
Other modern idols include, status, physical appearance, entertainment, influence, and yes sex has become an idol which is why abortion is fought so hard along with the LBGTQ is prevalent in our nation and now sex change.
These are all idols that are worshipped by the “now” generation and God is tossed aside as irrelevant in today’s world.
All these people are in for a terrible surprise very soon.
Such gods drag down their worshippers to a level of senseless stupidity!
Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
Rom 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
Rom 1:23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
Rom 1:24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
God does not play around with idol worshippers!
We must trust in the Lord!
*Psa 115:9 O Israel, trust thou in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
Psa 115:10 O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
Psa 115:11 Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
Trust means we are reliant upon God for all things including life, justice, and our love for one another.
We do not worship a god we have made, but we worship the God who has made us, our Creator, our Maker!
There is only one true God.
There are many today that say all religions worship the same God, but nothing could be further from the truth! They just do not know Jehovah.
God has revealed Himself to us through the Lord Jesus Christ and the Bible if you have a true Bible.
It is true that once we come to know Christ as our Savior, we need to constantly examine our hearts for spiritual idolatry.
Jehovah is also a jealous God! The lost do what lost people do, but anyone that claims Christ as their Savior and falls into the trap of idolatry could come under the truth of God’s jealousy.
Three times these verses say the word trust.
1) God is our help and our shield.
God is safe to depend upon for defense and for offense for all those who love the Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah.
God is also our shield to cover us from danger and to protect us from assault and injury.
2) For all those who preach the truth of the Scriptures, God is also their help and their shield.
3) The Lord has had His mind on us since our creation. The remnant of this world who love the salvation gift of God.
Mat_7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
This one verse should tell all those who think we all worship the same God that it is simply not true. By the way, this was the lord Jesus Himself that was speaking. He knows everything.
We could look at this passage as God’s invitation for Israel to join the Church because it is the Church that God is protecting in this world.
The battles of Israel will show that only the Church is on their side along with Jehovah, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Even this week our administration has sent a unit to Israel that can intercept missiles from Iran to try to keep Israel from going after the oil and nuclear sites of Iran.
This is only bribery when Israel should destroy Iran, and this world would be a little bit better because of it.
We cannot trust man, but we can trust God to do the right things.
Many scientists and archaeologists wonder what happened to many old civilizations, but they are not around, and many have no history because God knew no one needed to know how wicked they were.
We should not forget that Iran is that part of old Persia and the other part Iraq is trying its best to get away from the USA and then they will join Iran and Persia will be again and war mongering nation.
God will only bless those who trust Him!
You cannot trust idols because they cannot do anything at all!
The Holy Spirit wants us to grasp the importance of trusting God!
We will face persecution, but we must not falter in our trust for the Almighty God!
If we are worried about what is going on in our nation and in this world, then we do not trust the God of all creation and His plan which He has given us a copy of.
We must have confidence in our Holy God and His Word salvaged by the Holy Spirit and is the truth.
Pro 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Pro 3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Pro 3:7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
We were once a part of the world but now if you love the Lord Jesus, we are part of Heaven. Ambassadors to this world.
We are always on the mind of our God!
*Psa 115:12 The LORD hath been mindful of us: he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron.
Psa 115:13 He will bless them that fear the LORD, both small and great.
Psa 115:14 The LORD shall increase you more and more, you and your children.
Psa 115:15 Ye are blessed of the LORD which made heaven and earth.
Who does the Lord bless?
He blesses those who trust Him!
Even though Israel does not trust the Son of God, most of them do trust Jehovah (Yahweh).
They reject that they are the same God!
They are wrong to not accept the Messiah, but they will eventually, at least a remnant of them will.
We should keep in mind that this Psalm was probably written for the dedication of the Second Temple after the return from Babylon.
They had been released by the King of Persia who had defeated Babylon.
We could say that God would bless those who had returned with many children for only about fifty thousand had returned of those who were captured.
Israel began to see just how great their God is.
God is always, ALWAYS, working to do good to His people!
God is always, ALWAYS, mindful of the covenants He has made with all His children!
God is always, ALWAYS, mindful of the promises He has made, and He will never break a promise He has made to anyone.
Why is God able to bless so much?
It is pretty simple, God is our Creator, the Creator of Heaven and Earth, and God can do anything He wants to His creation, but He cannot go against His Word!
Notice that Israel is back in a part of the land God had given to them and God will get the remainder of that land that was promised back to Israel.
We may be seeing this today, the Lord giving Israel their entire homeland and the world cannot stop it!
No, there will never be a Palestinian nation within the boundaries of the land God gave to Abraham, the same land God gave to Israel!
When those who hate God scoff at us, we need to stand firm in our confidence in the Lord.
We may go through trials.
We may go through persecution.
We may go through attacks.
We may be oppressed.
God’s purpose for us cannot be defeated!
Nothing can separate us from the love of God!
Rom 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Rom 8:36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
Rom 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Rom 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
*Psa 115:16 The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD’S: but the earth hath he given to the children of men.
Verse fifteen says it is our LORD who is the Creator of the heavens, and we know of three heavens.
The first heaven is the space where we get our air to breathe and the place where the birds fly.
The second heaven is what we call outer space, a place where all planets, all stars, and anything we find in outer space, and it is immense.
The third Heaven is the place where God dwells with His angels and all those souls who are in that Heaven today.
Notice the Earth is mentioned as the only place God has given mankind to live.
We know the earth is also the Lord’s:
Psa 24:1 The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
This Psalmist has said that God has given the earth to mankind to live upon.
Gen 1:28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
Gen 1:29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Gen 1:30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
God has not given mankind any other planet, moon, or star to live.
This earth is where we belong, where we live and work and where our future lies unless we believe all these things and our Creator who made all these things, then our future lies in the third Heaven with our God.
We know that mankind has not cooperated with God on the development of all the resources of this Earth, but they are all gifts from God for our use.
God has given the occupants of Earth the responsibility of overseeing the resources of Earth.
This Earth is the only planet that God gave to be inhabited!
Isa 45:18 For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.
We need to be sure to know that God only declares things that are right and not wrong!
Isa 45:19 I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth: I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain: I the LORD speak righteousness, I declare things that are right.
The trouble today is that a few greedy people have tried their best to gain control of the earth’s resources and for the most part they have, and the governments control the rest.
But you see God has reconciled the world back to Himself by the Lord Jesus Christ.
2Co 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
2Co 5:19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
Now I cannot explain the meaning of all these things, but I know that these words are true.
Jesus Christ (Messiah) came to this earth to establish the only means of salvation which is available to all people.
The desire to let the whole redeemed world know of its redemption should move in the heart of every man but the world is tied up with greed for the resources of our planet, corrupt governments, and immorality.
*Psa 115:17 The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence.
Psa 115:18 But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. Praise the LORD.
It should be obvious that those who are dead cannot praise anyone.
When we die our voices are silenced.
In fact, those who are dead lose all communication with the Lord who died for them.
Isa 38:18 For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.
I must never forget my job is to praise my Lord.
No matter what I’m going through, I need to praise the Lord, and I know I do not praise Him enough.
Even when the Lost World scoffs at me, I will praise the Lord!
My opportunities to praise the Lord will cease when I take my last breath, but my blessings will continue because I am a child of God!
Psa 118:17 I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD.
Psa 118:18 The LORD hath chastened me sore: but he hath not given me over unto death.
Psa 118:19 Open to me the gates of righteousness: I will go into them, and I will praise the LORD:
Psa 118:20 This gate of the LORD, into which the righteous shall enter.
Psa 118:21 I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation.
Rev 5:13 And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.
Amen
Almost Persuaded
Paul Before Agrippa
Book of Acts Chapter 26
Chapter 26 begins with the Apostle Paul in the hearing room of King Herod’s palace in Caesarea, standing before the Governor Festus, King Agrippa, and his sister Bernice.
We will see that Paul will give a complete description of his calling.
When we repeat the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we are giving to the world the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ.
This is what the Lord Jesus asked us all to do.
We cannot be ashamed of the Gospel!
Paul will also give his own testimony and things that concerned his own calling.
Christianity always appears in person.
The Lord Jesus uses human beings as His voice upon this earth and as His legs to take the Gospel to the world.
Christianity must be heard.
Paul gives his own testimony! We cannot give the testimony of someone else.
If we have nothing to say out of our own conscience, then we cannot be a witness for the Lord.
Our salvation may be between us and the Lord, but our experience in the Gospel is to be in full view of others.
Paul said, “I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.”
Before Paul was known, he was first called Saul and Saul had been on his way to Damascus to do terrible things just as before we were saved, we were on the wrong road with the wrong purpose in life.
It is the Lord Jesus who brought about a change in Paul, just as He has brought about a change in each and every Christian, no matter where they are located.
Paul said, “I have seen the Light of the Lord Jesus”.
It is the Light of Jesus that allows us to see the filth that was in our lives, and that is in this world.
To be a Christian is to have mental illumination and liberation.
Paul said it was on this day on the road to sin that he met the Lord Jesus Christ, who is Jehovah God.
*Act 26:19 Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision:
Act 26:20 But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.
Remember, a Godly vision is much different than a dream. Dreams may seem real sometimes, but in a Godly vision all the characters have names, and the characters are real people, and it is as if you were dropped into the middle of something happening that was real because it is real.
God allowed those in these visions to see a future happening that was real. Dreams are just dreams good or bad and some bad ones are called nightmares.
Paul knew he had a Godly vision when he was on the Damascus Road.
This was Paul’s call into the ministry of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Paul was obedient to God’s call!
The Lord’s call was not up for discussion to Paul, and neither should it be to us.
Paul’s call was from Heaven, and this is the way we should all see it.
That call from Heaven should override any calling we may think we have in this world!
Paul’s vision of the Lord Jesus Christ was so real, that he knew he had seen the Lord Jesus in person just as the other Apostles!
There is no need to seek another’s opinion, when we are called of God, we know and understand it is reality!
All the charges against Paul were unjustified because Paul was obedient to the call of God.
We must never break any law when we are obedient to the Lord!
When we are faithful to the Lord we are on the right path, and we will be doing what the Lord wants us to do!
Our job is to let Christianity speak for itself!
We must allow the Word of God to do its job!
It is the Word of God that has the answers to all our questions and all of life’s questions!
We may think that our Godly experience is something between ourselves and God, but this is not true.
Paul never thought this because our relationship with God is to be shared with others!
Many times our testimony is the beginning of our conversation with those in the world.
If we are ashamed of our conversion, then we are ashamed of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Those who have met Jesus Christ and have turned away, are running from their call into the ministry!
We cannot eat the Word of God one time, and this be enough.
We must sit down daily at the table of the Lord Jesus Christ.
2Co_4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
When we dine with the Lord, we are refreshed with His never-ending strength!
When Paul was allowed to speak his defense was that the truth of this world is in the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Lord is serious when He calls anyone for reasonable service to the Gospel!
*Act 26:21 For these causes the Jews caught me in the temple, and went about to kill me.
Act 26:22 Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come:
Act 26:23 That Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people, and to the Gentiles.
Do you know why the queer movement, the trans crowd, the abortion industry, and many others do not believe they have to change their ways to be saved?
Because they look into the Church, and they see the so-called Christians and they do not see changed lives.
Now it is true that we cannot make everlasting changes to our lives because it is the job of the Holy Spirit who comes to live in us at salvation.
He has regenerative power, but we must be willing!
It is that changed life that shows the power of God!
We cannot neglect proclaiming the works of repentance!
Isa 55:6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
Isa 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
Isa 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
Isa 55:9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
You, without the Lord God of the Bible cannot accomplish anything worth speaking of!
There is no salvation apart from a life of righteousness, that righteousness according to the Word of God!
Religion, ritual, ceremony, church membership, baptism, worship attendance, heritage, good parents, morality, and many other things are meaningless, without a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
It is faith and repentance that shows our love for Jesus Christ!
Who would want to be in a Church where you do not have to change your wicked ways? Not me!
This is saying that the Word of God has no meaning!
Who wants to go to a Heaven that is just like this world? Not me!
This is saying that Christianity is just like all the false religions of this world.
Why was Paul being persecuted? Because he was obedient to the Lord’s call to preach the truth.
The world does not want to hear the truth!
What was the message of the Apostle Paul?
That men and women, queers, abortionist, drunks, immoral people, transgenders and all the lost should repent, turn to God, and do good works as described in the Word of God.
Paul was the Lord’s witness in teaching these things.
Paul had this same message to the lowest of humans upon this earth and those who sat on thrones!
Paul added that they need look no further than himself to see that God takes care of His children.
God cares for us even when no one upon this earth does!
As true believers, we can always count on our Lord God!
God does sometimes allow trials to come into our lives to make us tougher in facing the reality of this cruel world.
The Lord Jesus Christ also suffered on this earth at the hands of cruel men, as our example of the suffering we may have to go through.
Paul did not select his audience, he witnessed to those who stood in front of him at any given time.
He showed respect to the king for his position, but the message of Jesus Christ did not change because he was a king, or a Caesar, or the title of any ruler, or for any religious man.
No one is exempt from the message of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Gospel.
What was the truth for these Jews?
Paul bore witness to the Scriptures of the Messiah, the same Scriptures that the prophets and Moses used to say the Messiah would come.
1Th 2:13 For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.
Paul bore witness of the death of our Savior.
Rom 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Rom 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
Rom 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
The death of Jesus Christ was ordained before God created this world!
There was no other way for God to save us, but by His death and He will explain that to us one day soon!
Paul bore witness to the resurrection of our Lord and Savior.
Jesus Christ had to be the first one to rise from His death.
He was the first fruit, the first in importance to the truth of God!
He never again had to die because another death would have no meaning!
Rom 6:9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.
Lazarus rose from the dead, but Lazarus had to die again and there were others mentioned in the Bible and all these in this court room knew these things.
King Agrippa had never heard the Word of God preached in this manner and Festus could not accept these truths.
*Act 26:24 And as he thus spake for himself, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad.
Act 26:25 But he said, I am not mad, most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness.
Act 26:26 For the king knoweth of these things, before whom also I speak freely: for I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him; for this thing was not done in a corner.
We see that Festus could not accept the truth of the Scriptures. Festus was a Roman and knew truly little of the Hebrew people.
The idea of fulfilled prophecy, the resurrection of the dead, and this crucified Jew, giving light to the Roman world were foolishness to Festus.
Festus had no spiritual discernment because he had no knowledge of the one true God!
The gods of Festus were all statues and imaginary, with no such power as this Christian God.
All the gods of this world’s religions, besides Christianity are all also false gods.
Festus was saying to Paul that old book of writings had no meaning in the Roman dominated world.
The same thing is said today about the Word of God, but the Word of God is alive, and its meaning is truly clear in this world, for we are in the last days and the Word of God will become more meaningful as we get closer to the return of Jesus Christ.
Paul says. No, I am not mad Festus because the truth of God stands clearly opposed to falsehood.
The Word of God is real, the Word of God is fact, spoken in a world where lies dominate our existence, and riches rule our ways.
King Agrippa did have knowledge of the things Paul spoke of and Festus had no knowledge of those things.
None of these things were hidden from the ruler of Israel.
The Scriptures had predicted the coming of the Messiah and at least a few had gotten it right.
The news that what the Lord Jesus Christ had claimed, and His death and His resurrection, had swept through the whole country and Agrippa knew these things.
So Paul gets bolder.
*Act 26:27 King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest.
Act 26:28 Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.
There is a Christian song that is titled “Almost Persuaded” and it was written about these words of King Agrippa.
“Almost persuaded” now to believe.
“Almost persuaded” Christ to receive.
Seems now some soul to say,
“Go, Spirit, go Thy way,
Some more convenient day
On Thee I’ll call.”
“Almost persuaded,” come, come today;
“Almost persuaded,” turn not away;
Jesus invites you here,
Angels are ling’ring near,
Prayers rise from hearts so dear;
O wand’rer, come!
“Almost persuaded,” harvest is past!
“Almost persuaded,” doom comes at last!
“Almost” cannot avail;
“Almost” is but to fail!
Sad, sad, that bitter wail—
“Almost,” but lost!
So, what is a Christian or who is a Christian?
To be religious is one thing, but to be a Christian is much much different.
This is where the false Church has its problems.
There are many who belong to the Church, but they are not Christians.
In fact, my opinion or your opinion is irrelevant!
We have to go to the New Testament, the Word of God to get this answer!
A Christian is that person who has accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as the basis if his faith and the rule of his life!
The Lord Jesus Christ is our foundation onto which we shall build upon!
The Lord Jesus Christ is the Law according to which we think, and we feel.
When we adopt Jesus Christ as the law of our thoughts and our feelings, then we must be Christians.
To be a Christian is to be a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ in His ways, not the ways of the world!
The Jews deny that Jesus was the Messiah so, they will always deny Christians are anything of value to God.
To the Jews those who followed Jesus were “the Way”, or “that Way”.
Should we be known as Christians?
When we study the Lord Jesus Christ and all that He is, and all that is said about Him, and His relation to God and to man, and see that these are the traits we need in our own lives, then we will see that we ought to be Christians. To be more like the Lord Jesus Christ.
These are the same things that were ordained by God from the beginning of creation!
When God said, “let us make man”, I believe God meant, “let us make Christians”.
Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:
The image of God is the image we see in the Lord Jesus Christ!
We are not made to be gods!
We can be made in the image, our character, like our God.
In respect to intelligence.
In respect of His moral nature.
In respect to righteousness.
In respect to true holiness.
In respect to life eternal.
We are to do our absolute best, to be like the Lord Jesus Christ in all His ways!
To King Agrippa, to become a Christian would seem to be a demotion from his current status as king.
This was the most critical moment in Agrippa’s life, and he answered with “almost”, as he was beginning to close his ears to the words of the Apostle Paul.
You see, when we are offered an opportunity to meet the Lord Jesus at Mount Calvary, we will have to make a discission about our destiny.
We cannot say that King Agrippa was almost a Christian because that person does not exist!
We cannot be almost Christians!
We must in every deed become a Christian!
If we believe the Bible is indeed the Word of God, then how can we deny the fact that we need to be like Jesus Christ.
If we reject becoming a Christian, then we are saying the Bible is a book of lies!
How did Paul respond?
*Act 26:29 And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds.
An almost Christian, is someone who wavers between Jesus Christ and the world.
Paul said; you have to move from being almost persuaded to altogether persuaded, before you can become a Christian.
There are many false notions of Christianity.
Many believe to be a Christian is having a free ticket to sin and then be forgiven but this is not true.
Rom_6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
God forbids Christians to intentionally sin and then beg for forgiveness!
We live in a pleasure mad society, and it is this pleasure of sinning that the lost refuse to give up, even though God says that pleasure will not last very long.
Yes, to be a Christian there will be suffering in this life!
Heb_11:25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
To be become a Christian is by “Grace”, a free gift, because it is God’s Will that we all become Christians.
That is being like the Lord Jesus Christ in all our ways!
There is a great danger than some with a vast knowledge of the Scriptures may never seek a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
This sounds like King Agrippa.
If we have been on a long journey and finding that we are near to the end brings great comfort, but to almost be a Christian should bring no comfort at all because, it is still rejection of the truth of God!
We should remember the story of the Ten Virgins.
Mat 25:1 Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
Mat 25:2 And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
Mat 25:3 They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
Mat 25:4 But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
Mat 25:5 While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
Mat 25:6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
Mat 25:7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
Mat 25:8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
Mat 25:9 But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
Mat 25:10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
Mat 25:11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
Mat 25:12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
All ten of these were virgins, but five of them did not the Holy Spirit (oil) living within them which means they had rejected the truth of God and God had never signed their names in His Book of Life so, He did not know them.
We cannot just live a pure life; we must accept the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ to be a child of God!
King Agrippa died and went to Hell, because even knowing the truth of the Scriptures, he could not give up the pleasures of this world even though they can last no more than a lifetime and usually not near that long.
Amen