So Suddenly

Then Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced that God had prepared the people, since the events took place so suddenly. (II Chronicles 29:36 NKJV)

I came across this verse this morning and have pondered it thorough the day. In light of a new year upon us, it seemed good to me to reflect on this verse, particularly the phrase “so suddenly.” As I look forward to with anticipation of what God has in store for myself, my family, and His church, I pray that it will be “so suddenly.” I consider all that has transpired over the past year and cannot help but see the preparatory hand of the Lord in all things. There is a certain anticipation that considers why it is that God has placed us where we are. Let us not forget that there is divine purpose in God’s provision for us. He is preparing us for His purpose and His plan. Has God not placed us here for just such a time as this?

Hezekiah and all the people marveled and rejoiced at the Lords preparation. Do you suppose they knew they were being prepared or for what they were being prepared for? I suspect not, but at the moment God foreordained His plan came upon them so suddenly. Revival rolled through that land. Certainly the years leading up to Hezekiah’s reign offered no glimmer of revival. Apostasy seemed to prevail, however the hand of God was not asleep. He was raising up a people, preparing them for that day. Hezekiah admonished them “My sons, do not be negligent now, for the LORD has chosen you to stand before Him, to serve Him, and that you should minister to Him and burn incense” (II Chronicles 29:11 NKJV).

Revival broke forth in the land such as it could hardly be contained. It says that the offerings were so abundant that the priests could not keep up (II Chron. 29:31-34). Because of this, the Levites helped the priests. It says of these that they were “more diligent in sanctifying themselves than the priests” (II Chronicles 29:34). It continues to say “So the service of the house of the LORD was set in order” (II Chronicles 39:35). How wonderful a time it must have been for worship to have been restored to the land. It was because certain men were not negligent, but diligent to sanctify themselves before the Lord.

Let us press on in the things of the Lord in diligence and anticipation of what God has for us and for our land coming upon us so suddenly.

A Bug of “Tiny” Significance

 

It would seem that some things in life carry significance far greater than outward appearance might suggest. We have all had various things that we liked, but most things are just that; things. They might seem nice, but time and circumstance eventually leaves them behind and they are replaced with new things. My first new bike was the greatest new thing I had ever had. I took meticulous care of it for a season, but eventually it was just a bike. However, there are times when circumstances, often unrelated to the things themselves, place significance onto the object that would probably never have had any special significance in and of itself. This is a story of one such thing.

Just about one month prior to my twenty-first birthday, my first two children were born; twin boys, Caleb and Benjamin. They arrived, as almost by surprise, about four weeks before they were due. Thus, because of the combination of their premature birth and their being twins, they were very small. Caleb weighed just barely over 4 pounds while his slightly younger brother, Benjamin, weighed barely over four pounds. Now as one might imagine they were incredibly tiny. To put it into perspective, combined they weighed only slightly more than a gallon of milk.

Also, as one would assume, their very low weight transferred into very small size. I will never quite forget holding then in my forearm just as I would have held a football. Nor will I forget the times I would lie on the couch having the two of them lying on my chest. I used to joke with my wife about how there was easily room enough for a third. For many men this may not seem like much until they consider that I myself am only five foot six and barely weigh 130 pounds.

Soon after their birth, I got an opportunity to gain perspective on how truly tiny the boys really were. I will never forget the afternoon, I think a day or two after the boys were born, when I walked into the nursery and saw another newborn baby. This baby weighed a whopping thirteen pounds. I could have added the weight of Caleb again into the boys combined weight and they still would have weighed less. Our two boys could comfortably share the small bassinet the hospital had for the newborns. This baby barely fit in his. I was shocked at the disparity in size between our boys and this baby. I don’t think I realized before, how very tiny they really were because I didn’t have any perspective to compare them with.

Regarding perspective, I didn’t realize how difficult it is to notice one’s smallness or largeness without a direct comparison until my daughter was born four years later. My mother brought Caleb and Benjamin to the hospital to see their new baby sister the morning after she was born. Once again, I was overcome by the disparity in size. I had not realized how big the boys had gotten until I had this new baby as a point of reference. My wife and I had spent the past evening and night admiring our beloved new daughter. We admired all her tiny little features a my wife, as most women I have found, was especially captivated by her tiny little feet and toes. However, when my two four year old boys entered the room I was struck by the comparable immensity of their hands. Only yesterday did their hands seem so small and slender. Now they appeared enormous and engorged. My two little boys were growing up indeed.

A few days after the boys were born they appeared to be healthy and able to go home. Though they were premature and thus very small, they were meeting all the doctors’ requirements to be released. However, suddenly, for reasons that are still somewhat of a mystery, Benjamin had an unexplained choking incident. Although they never explained all the details, appeared as though he had spit up some formula and then began choking on it. From what I was told, it sounded like he had stopped breathing and had to be resuscitated. Although it did not appear to be anything other than a choking event, they decided to send him to another hospital better equipped to deal with major issues related to premature birth. So it was that we now had two babies in two different hospitals about 100 miles apart. It was a most difficult decision as what to do. Do we both go to see the sick child, do we both stay with Caleb, or do we split up?

As it was, we decided to commute back and forth in order to see both. We took with us a little stuffed bug toy that someone had given the boys as a gift. We put it in Benjamin’s hospital bed right next to his head. Sometime later, after developing pictures, I noticed that that bug was just as big as his head. For whatever reason, I have never forgotten that picture. Later, when our daughter was born, and then again when our youngest son was born, we used it to compare the size.

The little bug has kicked around the Stopyro home for nine years now. It has been played with and lost, then found and played with again. It has been forgotten for periods of time, but it keeps finding its way back. Eventually, I would imagine it will find its way into the cribs of grandchildren and eventually, if the Lord tarries, great-grandchildren.

Now this bug is nothing special in and of itself. Thrown in a pile of other stuffed toys it would disappear in the crowd. There is nothing particular or special that sets it apart from all the rest. In fact, it is really no different than all the other stuffed toys that have come through this house. Yet, this is the only one I remember. What makes this one different then? What sets this particular stuffed toy apart are the events that surround it. Circumstance created a destiny for this little bug that gave it a tiny bit of significance; just enough to be remembered for.

Metamorphosis

The Name of God: El

The Word El appears 245 times in the Old Testament. “This term was the most common general designation of deity in the ancient Near East” (Vine’s, s.v. God). It means to be strong and carries with it the connotation of great power. For example it was El who brought the Israelites up out of Egypt by His demonstration of power over Egypt and the Egyptian gods (Num. 23:22). This word El is primary root of the Elohim, which was discussed last time.

El is often found combined with other nouns and adjectives to form compound words of descriptions of God. Some of these, because of their continued use, became known as names of God. Some examples would include EL-Shaddai, God Almighty, and El-Elyon, God Most High. These names often combine the idea of a powerful God with various attributes to help describe the various character traits or qualities of God. These compound forms served to be both distinctive and descriptive.

Regarding the distinctive aspect of these names, consider the importance of knowing a god’s name in the ancient world. Names expressed or identified character traits or attributes. However, el did not carry, in and of itself, much significance in that degree (Vine’s, s.v. God). It really related only to power. It would be similar to our use of the word god today. We could walk the streets today and ask people to define god and get all kinds of generic answers. It could be as simple as “a deity,” or “a supreme being.” Many would use it as a noun to describe the Judeo/Christian God. Some might apply it to Allah of Islam. Some would say that Buddha is god, or the universe is god. In the ancient Near East el would have been equivalent. Thus, the compound forms such as “EL Elohe Israel” (Gen. 33:20) meaning, God, the God of Israel. This served to draw a distinction between the one true El and all others. This distinction also served to distinguish that which belonged to God as opposed to that which did not. El Elohe Israel literally meant that He was God, the God of Israel but by extension, this also meant that Israel belonged to Him. He would be their God and they would be His people (Exd. 6:7; Lev. 26:12). Israel did not belong to the gods of Egypt or Canaan or the surrounding lands.

In regards to the descriptive nature of these compound names there are many examples. Because names were important in the ancient Near East this practice of adding adjectives to the name of God was common. As we covered with our discussion of Elohim the ancients had many gods each with their specific attributes or powers. In this, adjectives would be added to further describe them. In the name Elohim was contained “all the powers and attributes, so far as they were worthy, which the heathens distributed over their numerous deities” (Lockyer, 6). In this, the compound names of el offered added descriptive detail to the name of God; for example El-Roi, the God that sees (Gen. 16:13).

The distinctive and descriptive natures of the names are also often seen together. For example El-Shaddai, which we will examine more closely later, is translated God Almighty. The implication is that God has all might or power and is thus distinguished from all the other gods. The name also means supplier, and thus would fall under the descriptive heading.

In other examples, el is found in words such as Emmanuel, which means God with us, or Bethel, which is house of God. It is also found in many names. In fact, all Biblical names beginning with el are some form of a compound name derived this word (Lockyer, 8). It is also found at the end of some names such as my own name, Dani-el. My name means God is my judge (Tenney, s.v. “Daniel”).

 

Lockyer, Herbert. All the Divine Names and Titles in the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1975.

Stone, Nathan. Names of God. Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1944.

Tenney, Merrill, C. The Zondervan Encyclopedia of the Bible. 5 Vols. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009.

The Name of God: Elohim

Elohim is the word we see translated into our English Bibles as God. It occurs about 2240 times in the Old Testament. It is the first name used of God in Scripture. Lockyer likens it to the authors name found on the binding of most books. He writes, “Just as my name is found on the cover of this book you are reading [All the Divine Names and Titles of the Bible], indicating that all within it is from my pen, so God’s name stamped at the beginning declares Him to be the author” (Herbert Lockyer, 5).

This name “contains the idea of creative and governing power, of omnipotence and sovereignty” (Nathan Stone, 12). The name is used 35 times in the first chapter of Genesis in the account of the creation of the world. Its use here connotes the creative power of God. The word is also used of the other gods of this world but its usage is in those terms is distinct from its use as the name of the one true God. These uses carry the idea of might and authority. It is interesting to see that the gods of this world contained powers or strength singularly. In other words, each god had his specific supernatural power, thus, a plurality of gods was required to meet all of their religious needs. Those who have studied the Greek and Roman gods will see this. They had many gods each with their own particular power. However, when used of God, Elohim denotes God’s omnipotence (having all power). Govan writes, “He was conceived as combining in Himself all the powers and attributes, so far as they were worthy, which the heathens distributed over their numerous deities” (Lockyer, 6).

Elohim also carries with it the sense of covenant. Throughout the Old Testament and even into the new we see a variety of covenants established by God. In Genesis 9 God established a covenant with Noah and his descendants that He would never again destroy the whole earth by flood. He established His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He established a covenant with the nation of Israel that He would be their God and they would be His people. He established His covenant with David that the throne would never depart from David’s lineage. This sense of the word relies on the omnipotence and sovereignty of God. In order to make a covenant one must have the power and authority to do so. There are a number of times while making a covenant that God swears by Himself (Gen. 22:26; Psa. 89:35; Isa. 45:23, 62:8; Jer. 44:26, 49:13). This indicates that here was nothing higher or greater that God could swear by besides himself (Heb. 6:13). When God makes a covenant, there is nothing greater than He that can make it void.

It is also interesting to note that the name Elohim is plural. One might initially then conclude that it should be translated gods as opposed to God. However though it is in the plural form, it is always accompanied by singular verbs and adjectives. It is also accompanied by singular pronouns. For example Isaiah 45:5 says “I am the LORD, and there is no other; There is no God besides Me (NKJV). Here, the word “other” and “Me” is singular. If Elohim was to be translated gods then other and Me would have to be plural also thus reading, “I am the LORD, and there are no others; There is no gods besides us.” This would be an unnatural translation of the Hebrew. We also see several example of God speaking to Himself in the plural. “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness” (Gen. 1:26). “Come let Us go down and confuse their language” (Gen. 11:7). “Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us” (Isa. 8). The emphasis here is the plurality in the unity. This is the doctrine of the Trinity found in God’s very name.

Sources

Stone, Nathan. Names of God. Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1944.

Lockyer, Herbert. All the Divine Names and Titles in the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1975.

The Name of God: Introduction

I have thought to share some thoughts about the names of God that have spoken to me recently. This was once a topic that, until only recently, I found little interest in . I took a class some time back in which I had to study some of these names but I must admit, they meant very little to me at the time. It was not until I began to grasp the depth of the relevance these names had in my own life that they began to interest me. With that said I plan to write a little about a number of the names of God.

Before we begin, some introductory material would be in order primarily regarding how the various names of God were derived and why there are so many. First, God has revealed Himself in great part by His name. His name, or names, capture the very essence of who God is. While names don’t often mean much to us today in our western culture, they did carry great significance in the Hebrew culture as well as much of the ancient world. A person’s name was to reflect who that person was.

Now God did not just give His name to let the men of old figure out who He was and what He was like. Nor did He come down and tell one man “this is who I am so now go tell the rest of the world.” Instead He has revealed Himself to men by his interaction with them. Just as my wife has come to know me and who I am truly am by the relationship we have fostered over the years, in the same manner God reveals Himself to men. It is true that one can learn a great deal about what God has said about Himself, and what men have said about God from study of the scripture, this will be a purely intellectual exercise. In order to “know” God there must be a relationship. “God reveals Himself, not just by what He says, but by what He does.”

Throughout the scriptures men have given God a variety of different names that describe the various aspect of who God is. Some we are very familiar with such as Jehovah Jireh and Jehovah Shalom, but each of these names has a story. These were names given to God as men’s worshipful response to God’s provision in their life. I know that God has and will reveal Himself to anyone who seeks after Him. I know this because I’ve seen it in scripture, I’ve seen it in others’ lives, but most importantly, because I’ve experienced it in my own life. As we look at some of these names I pray you will ask God to reveal Himself to you in the same way He has to these Old Testament patriarchs. This isn’t about making sure we know His name so we don’t misuse it or misunderstand it or that we have some intellectual understanding, but it is about knowing His name because we know God and He knows us!

And the Greatest of These is Love

If there were one character trait of God that might encapsulate all the others, it would be love. This should not be understood to mean that love supersedes the other characteristics of God but that it precedes them. If we could fully grasp this one trait, the love of God, all the others would be evident by the display of this one. God is just because He loves. He is faithful because He loves. He is gracious because He loves. He is truth because He loves. Thus, it is that if we as believers love with God’s love we too will be all of these other things.

John writes in his epistle, “God is love” (1 John 4:8). In this same passage, John tells us that we know that we abide in God, and God abides in us because He has given us His Spirit vs. 13). He continues to say that love has been perfected in us, that as He is, so we are in this world (vss. 12, 17). Because we have the love of God, we are then enabled to walk even as Christ walked in this world.

This is what God is doing in the believer. He is filling him with His love, perfecting it in him that the believer might display to the world the very character and nature of God. John also wrote that no one has seen God (1 John 4:12), but because they see the love of God in the believer, they have seen God manifested before them. It ought be that when the world sees the actions and character of the believer, that they would see the very nature of God. This because it says that in the day of judgment we should not fear because as God looks upon us He will see himself in us (vs. 17). Should not this love then be seen displayed now also, and is this not the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives? He is perfecting His love in us that we might be just like Him!

In the Midst of the Sea

So the LORD overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. (Exodus 14:27b NKJV)

 

How often we find ourselves in the midst of trial and tribulations in our lives. The is certainly an enemy who pursues us with the intent to bring us back into the bondage that God has delivered us from by the power of His hand. Often it would appear that the enemy has the intent and the ability to destroy us. We will find ourselves in the place the Israelites found themselves; trapped with the enemy behind them and the sea before them. And while it would appear to the natural man that they are the one who is in danger, the man of faith recognizes that it is not him who should fear but the one who pursues.

The situation was a desperate one in which God would now demonstrate His mighty power and bring an end to that old slave master. God did not keep the enemy from pursuing but rather allowed him to drive the Israelites into the sea. Certainly, the Israelites would have wished that God would have destroyed the Egyptian armies long before this desperate situation but God had a different plan. God instead allowed the Egyptians to pursue them right into the depth of the sea and it was then that He delivered the Israelites.

Friends, understand that God has purpose in all that comes against us. Imagine if the Israelites had not been driven forward into this place. They would never have seen such a great deliverance. Nor would they have been prepared to later pass through the waters as they prepared, not to escape the enemy, but rather to attack it. Neither would this enemy have had such a great fear of them knowing that the same nation whose God destroyed the armies of Egypt in the sea was now at their door passing through the Jordan just as they had passed through the Red Sea.

Friend, know that God is going to deliver you as He delivered the Israelites that day. He will bring deliverance at the right time; in the midst of the sea!

The Lord is Preparing a Place for You

In John 14 Jesus said to His disciples, “I go to prepare a place for you.” Even to this day He continues to preparing that place for us. I’ve heard it said that God created the world in six days but it has taken two thousand years to prepare heaven. How wonderful a place it must be. We must also recognize that just as He is preparing that place of which He spoke, for us, He is also preparing us for that place. This is how God has worked from the very beginning of time. He prepares a place for the man but also prepares the man for that place. It is demonstrated even in the creation of the world itself. Of the six days of creation they can be divided into two groups, form and fill. On the first day God created light, on the fourth, He made the luminaries to house the light. On the second day He made water and the sky, on the fifth He filled them with fish and birds. On the third day He made prepared land and on the sixth day he populated it with the beasts and with man.

The Eternal God

Understanding the eternal nature of God is paramount to understanding all other attributes of God and Christian doctrine. Tozer writes, “No tenet of the Christian creed could retain its significance if the idea of eternity were extracted from it.”[1] However, because man is held prisoner by the chronological flow of time, it is difficult to comprehend, let alone master, the implications of the concept of eternity. Even Webster’s dictionary misses the full implication of eternity in its definition. Webster’s defines eternity as: time without end; the state after death; a period of time that seems endless.[2]

Word of Wisdom

“But earnestly desire the best gifts” (1 Cor. 12:31a).[1]

“For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit,” (1 Cor. 12:8).

The King James Version says to “covet earnestly the best gifts.” The New Living Translation calls them the “most helpful gifts.” Paul is exhorting the Corinthians, and those to follow, including us, to desire the gifts of the Spirit. There is great need for them in the church, so there is a sense of urgency implied to the pursuit of these gifts. It was by the outpouring of the Spirit that the church was established, and so also, the continuing work of the Spirit is required for preserving and growing the church. The gifts are not for the individual’s benefit, or for some blessing one can claim for himself; they are instead given through individuals, for the common good of the church.[2] Paul calls it edification or the building up of the church (1 Cor. 14:12). All these gifts serve distinct and necessary purposes in the believer’s life for the wellbeing of the Church as a whole.

He Drew A Circular Horizon

The Circular Horizon

Wednesday, December 09, 2009

12:11 PM

 

Job 26:10 NKJV – He drew a circular horizon on the face of the waters, At the boundary of light and darkness.

Picture this scene, painted by Job, in your mind as you read on.

 
 

Oh how wonderful it is to see at last what the scriptures declared so long ago. So often the believer is ridiculed for being archaic in their views of the history of the earth in the light of modern science. Creationism is written off as simple fairy tale. And yet is not all science modern in its time? Science has continued to change its views in many areas over the years. Why is it that today’s scientist can so confidently declare that they finally have the answers correct. Did not their predecessors also believe with such confidence that they were right in their assertions? Many scholars look to past interpretations of the scriptures that were incorrect, in order to claim that the scriptures themselves are incorrect. And yet in it all science continues to change but the word of God does not. Only man’s interpretations of it change.

It is a fairly common sentiment that the Middle Ages church is the perpetrator of flat earth theory. Many blame the church for interfering with science because the bible declares the earth is flat. However today we know that the earth is round. In fact there is evidence that the Greeks also surmised that the earth was round as early as 600BC. Aristotle provided observational evidence for the spherical Earth around 330BC. Writings from St Augustine (354-430 AD), of the early church, demonstrate a belief in a round earth. The modern atheist will point out that the Greeks and other ancients believed in a round earth. But will deny that the Bible declared it as so hundreds of years before those people ever lived. Who am I going to believe? Shall I believe what the nonbeliever tells me the Bible means or will I believe what the Bible say? A simple internet search will reveal many articles declaring that the Bible says that the world is flat and the center of the universe. Many a scholar will declare that it is so. Thank God that I don’t have to listen to them but I can look to the word for myself.

Picture in your mind the scene that Job is painting in Job 26:10. Job likely lived in the Patriarchal period. This would be around 1600 BC. Consider that in the time Job lived no one could see space. There were no telescopes, or satellites. No one could see the circumference of the earth. Only what could be seen with the naked eye. And yet by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Job so beautifully describes what can only be seen from space. He painted for us a picture that would not be seen for another 3600 years!

Job also painted for us another picture we must hold fast to.

For I know [that] my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; And after my skin is destroyed, this [I know], That in my flesh I shall see God, Whom I shall see for myself, And my eyes shall behold, and not another. [How] my heart yearns within me! (Job 19:25-27 NKJV )

Thanksgiving

 
 

 
 

 
 

Pro 9:10 NKJV – “The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One [is] understanding.

 
 

Pro 19:23 NKJV – The fear of the LORD [leads] to life, And [he who has it] will abide in satisfaction; He will not be visited with evil.

 
 

Pro 29:25 NKJV – The fear of man brings a snare, But whoever trusts in the LORD shall be safe.

 
 

 
 

    Today as we celebrate thanksgiving, I think back upon some of the history lessons from grammar school. The stories of the puritans, the mayflower, the pilgrims, and that first thanksgiving. How blessed we are to live in a country that had a thankful heart to God right from its roots. I consider the founding of our country and the freedom that we have here. I think of our religious roots that cannot be denied. Yet it seems as though so many today are denying them. Many people today refuse to recognize the source of our great freedom and prosperity over the last 200 years. A few days ago, I came across this quote from an atheist. “”Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth” Albert Einstein. Fear of the lord is unworthy of free men”. How sad it is that the freedom this man enjoys every day can be directly attributed to men and women who feared God more than man. Men and women who risked their lives to cross the Atlantic ocean and form a nation in which they would be free to worship God in a way they saw fit. The men who put theirs and their families lives on the line when they signed the Declaration of Independence stating in the first sentence their submission to Gods law. Men who gave their lives to fight tyranny in our revolutionary war for independence. They went on to create a nation built on the laws and precepts found in God’s word. A nation whose blessings by God cannot be denied. In less than two hundred years, this new nation became the greatest nation on earth. Let us today remember our roots. Not everything was done perfectly, but our founders attempt to form a nation based on the laws of our Lord cannot and should not be denied. As we celebrate today, remember to be thankful for our history. This Thanksgiving holiday that we have in itself gives testimony to our spiritual heritage as a nation. Today remember that heritage, be thankful for the Lords blessing upon it, and going forth from today let us proclaim the truth that it is in the fear of the Lord that we have freedom. God gives us not just freedom here on earth, but freedom from the curse of death! Freedom to deny our flesh nature, which once ruled over us, and to live spiritual lives according law of God, which has been written on our heart.

The Scarlet Cord

 
 

At the beginning of the book of Joshua, we find Israel preparing to enter the Promised Land at last. Moses has died and Joshua is now the chosen leader of the nation of Israel. Joshua’s first major act would be to lead Israel across the Jordon River. The water would be parted and Israel would cross over on dry ground just as they had crossed the Red Sea under Moses’ leadership. Thereby declaring that the anointing of the Lord that had been upon Moses now rested upon Joshua. Now Israel was standing at the banks of the river Jordon preparing to cross over and establish their physical, earthly kingdom. It was here that the Lord chose to give us a picture of his ultimate intentions beyond the physical nation of Israel. He was revealing that which Abraham waited for. “He waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Hebrews 11:10 NKJV). And He was doing it in the most unlikely of places, through the most unlikely of people.

It was a Harlot named Rahab that the Lord would chose to use. Rahab was a Canaanite inhabitant of the city of Jericho. Jericho was to be the first city that would be destroyed as Israel crossed the Jordon and began the conquest of the Promised Land. The inheritance to Abraham promised by the Lord. Prior to crossing over Joshua sent out two spies to scope out the land, especially Jericho. In Jericho, they were hidden and then helped to escape by Rahab the prostitute. Rahab lowered them from her house in the wall of Jericho by a rope. However, before letting them go she made them swear that they would spare her and her families lives when Israel attacks Jericho. This whole story is laden with metaphors.

The first thing we should recognize is the establishment of Israel as a nation. This was the promise to Abraham. God declared in Genesis 12 that Abraham would become a great nation. The Lord also promised that he would give him the land of the Canaanites as an inheritance. In Genesis 15, the promise is reiterated and it was told that his descendants would spend 400 years under bondage but would come out with great possessions. In addition, the boundaries of the Promised Land were declared. Here in the beginning chapters of Joshua we see the promises to Abraham being fulfilled. They are now free from 400 years of slavery in Egypt, a great nation with great wealth. Moreover, they are preparing to take possession of their promised land.

The Lord however was doing a work much greater than this. Not only was he establishing his physical kingdom he was also laying the foundation for the city Abraham waited for. Not the physical kingdom Israel, but a spiritual kingdom. Consider the two cords described in Joshua 2. The first was for the salvation of the Israelite spies. The Hebrew word for cord here is chebel. This word is interpreted, a cord or rope, a measuring line or measured portion, pain, sorrow, travail, pang, union, and destruction. I could preach a whole synopsis of all history off this one word. It is all laid out for us right here! First, we see the cord used to save the two spies. The nation of Israel would then come into the Promised Land and take possession of the measured portion of land promised to them in Genesis 15. The nation of Israel we know would go through times of great pain and sorrow. And, through great travail would produce Christ our savior. The Bible prophesied of the birth pangs that produced the church who is the bride of Christ. The bride will be united with her husband before that final great destruction of wickedness. And that was just one word. This word declares the physical aspect of this story. Notice that it was used in conjunction with Israel. The physical nation of God’s chosen people.

Now Rahab represents all those outside this physical nation of Israel. All those who have no physical portion in the promise to Abraham. Neither blood, nor property. Rahab was doomed just as all the others living in Jericho were. However, she had her portion in something far greater than a portion of land. Hebrews 11 declares that she was saved by her faith. Rehab begged the spies for a “true token” by which she could know she would be spared. The spies gave her a “line of scarlet cord”. She was to bind it in the window from which she lowered the spies. And all those within that house would be spared. A different Hebrew word is used here for cord than the one we saw before. The word here is tiqvah. It is interpreted cord, hope and expectation. This is the only place in the scriptures it is interpreted as line or cord. It is her ground for hope. No, she does not have a physical inheritance in the promise of Abraham but she has one greater. Genesis 12 declares that in Abraham all the families of Abraham would be blesses. Rehabs hope was in the promise of the redeemer to come. Rehab was in fact part of our scarlet cord in that she would become an ancestor to Christ. Rehab became the great great grandmother of King David. And it was out of the lineage of David, that Nathan the prophet prophesied would come the King whose kingdom would be established forever. His throne will be in that city whose foundations are made by God. That New Jerusalem. Yes even while Israel was establishing their physical kingdom, God was preparing the foundations for His eternal kingdom. The question is have you believed and tied that scarlet cord on your window?

 
 

A Testimony From Ghana

    As I look back over the last few years, I am amazed at all that the Lord has done in me. Several years ago, my wife and I decided that we were going to accept the call the Lord had on our lives. This meant that we were going to have to begin doing things differently. Our lives were now His and no longer our own. I know personally I was so excited about all the things the Lord was going to do through me, that I had overlooked the things He desired to do in me. As time passed, I became discouraged because I did not see the things I expected happening. I wanted to preach but was stuck working every day. I wanted to go to school but finances and circumstances simply would not allow it. It seemed as though time was wasting away and I was not getting any closer to the work I thought God had for me. However, though I could not see it God was at work in my life and in my family. He has been molding Laura and I to make us into those perfect vessels that He would have us to be. Building His character in us and putting His love in us.

 
 

    About eight months ago I was stuck. I felt like a wounded fish floundering around lost and disoriented. My finances were a mess. Home life was a mess. I felt abandoned by God. I was not hearing His voice, nor could I feel His presence. My spiritual life had fallen into disobedience and disarray. I was still trying to do things my way and I was paying the price for it. Nevertheless, the Lord saw fit to reach down and save me from myself anyway. He showed His love to me through a friend, and from that moment on it has been onward and upward. Knowing I had been filling my oil tank five gallons at a time, Mike Stainsby called the oil company and had my tank filled. I was lost for words. I did not even know how to thank him. That evening as I sat in his dining room chatting with him, he suggested that I go to Ghana Africa with him in September. It changed my life! I could not tell of all the things that happened between then and now. There are too many to list. So many testimonies of the Lords grace, and provision. All because one man demonstrated the unmerited grace and love of God in a physical and tangible way. Even then, I could not see it but as I look back now what a powerful testimony it is of what God can do through a person.

 
 

    Needless to say, I did go to Ghana. It was an amazing trip. I am so blessed to have had the opportunity to go and see what the Lord is doing on the other side of the big pond. Once again, I could never tell of all the things the Lord did. I saw God move in ways I had only heard of before. But now I was to be a part of it. As I went to Ghana, I knew that many of my fears and inhibitions were going to be confronted. I knew I was going to be asked to pray for many people. I was going to be asked to preach many times. I was going to be asked to evangelize door to door. I was going to be asked to dance! To do all these things would mean I would have to come out of myself, trust in the Lord, and say yes to Him. It is not that I did not want to do this, because I did. I wanted to do all these things, except maybe the dancing. However, fear of what others might think, whether I would speak rightly, or whether I would do it right or not would prevent me. However, I found that when I trusted God and moved forward all these things fell to the side. I even found myself enjoying doing that which I was once afraid to do! He put His words on my lips and gave me the ability and the desire to speak them with His authority. The Lord surrounded me with others who had this same desire, giving me strength in number.

    

    I recall one worship service where God showed me something I will never forget. We were worshiping the Lord with the locals in and evening service. The sermon had been given and we were in a time of worship when the Lord gave me a vision of sorts. Earlier that day as I had been evangelizing in a small remote village, I notice a young girl about the same age as my daughter. What struck me was that 5000 miles from home in a small poor mud hut village in east Africa was a young girl wearing the favorite dress of my daughter at home in America! That evening as I closed my eyes in worship I no longer saw myself as a white man but as black. It was a strange sensation as every time I closed my eyes I saw myself as being black with black features. The Lord was showing me that we are all one. There is a direct relationship between them and us. That is that the same spirit of the same savior that is Jesus Christ adopts us all into the same family. Their culture might be different, their food different, their language different, their skin different, but we are all the same in Christ. In this, I knew that the same work God was doing there in Africa He could and would do here at home. The wonderful experience I was having in Africa ministering to all these people needed to be continued when I got home. The same confidence to preach the Gospel that was growing in me could and should be walked in at home.

 

    However, one thing touched me more than anything else I saw. This was the work that the Lord was doing in me. I began to see the past two years of my life in a different light. That work God has been doing in me that I could not see before was suddenly being realized. What which was once hidden was now being revealed. That yes that was in my heart suddenly made its way to my feet, hands and lips! Oh, to see what God can do through a short, small, quiet, fearful young man from New Hampshire when he says yes to God. And knowing what He can do through me I can only imagine what he can do through you when you say yes. I am here to testify that God can make the quiet man a great preacher. He can make the shy man, a great evangelist. He can make the timid man a great healer. He can make the fearful man a great teacher. He can make the dirty sinner a saint! And He will do it when you say yes to Him. I know because He has and even yet is doing it in me! Praise be to the Lord!

 

 

 

Daniel Stopyro

In His Palm, A thought on dark matter, dark energy, and laminin

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. – (Colossians 1:17 NIV)

Consider the vast measure of our universe. Many scientists believe that the universe is as many as 156 billion light years wide or even larger. It is said that the edge observable universe is 45.6 billion light years in any direction. Yet in all, that scientists can see based on all they know their observations lead them to believe that as much as 90% of the mass required to hold the universe from flying apart is missing. Based on the velocities of the galaxies and the physics involved they believe there must be some sort of matter that they cannot see that is responsible for generating the gravity required to keep the galaxies intact. They say that thought they cannot see it they know it is there because they see the evidence that it is there. They see the effects it has on things they can see. Is this not a statement of faith? “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1 NKJV). As I became aware of this debate over dark matter and all that it entails, it brought to remembrance Colossians 1:17, which says, “in Him all things consist” (NKJV). The NIV puts it this way. “In Him all things hold together”. Romans 11:36 says also “For of Him and through Him and to Him [are] all things” (NKJV). It goes on to state that the glory belongs to Him. All things point to Christ if you “believe” the evidence for what it is.

Without getting too much into the science of it all, I would like to explore some of the thoughts I have along these lines. The first thought I have already mentioned and that is the faith aspect. Anyone who denies that they have faith is a fool. We all have faith. The question is what are we putting that faith in? The scientist who believes in the Big Bang Theory and in Evolution must have faith in order to believe it. This simply because it has not, and cannot be proven. They are simply relying on the evidence that they have seen and bring it to their own conclusion. I would even go so far as to say that they need more faith to believe in these things than the faith I need to believe God. This matter of dark matter demonstrates this concept of faith perfectly. The scientist who does not believe in God see’s the evidence of some sort of missing matter and draws their conclusion according to their faith. As a believer, I see the evidence and relate it to the power of God. It reminds me once again of His control.

Also, understand that I do not necessarily believe that this dark matter does not, or cannot exist. I simply see it on a much grander scale. As we look across all of creation, we see such complexity that we could never truly grasp it all. Every detail of creation is so important that without one the whole thing would collapse. The deeper man probes into things the more questions he raises. The more complexities he finds. I believe that this missing matter could simply be the power of God holding all things together just as His word states. Or, is it just a picture of the validity of the word of God. God has created many pictures within creation that point to Him. Even if science does verify some physical matter that is this missing matter, I will still believe. The picture here is of the faith that thought we cannot see with our eyes what is holding creation together we know that something is there and it is holding this all together. The believer knows that it is God and it is by His power and word. I recently came across another picture that demonstrates this relationship between Christ, His word and our physical makeup. It is Laminin. The following video shows us this.

What an awesome picture of Christ being so intimately involved in His creation. Yet so many people deny it. Daniel at the scene of the writing on the wall in Daniel chapter 5, tells Belshazzar of the work of God in Belshazzar’s father Nebuchadnezzar. He tells of how Belshazzar saw and knew all this yet raised himself against God. “Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways” (Daniel 5:23 NIV). It is so sad that even though there are so many pictures of God’s hand in creation all around us people still refuse to recognize it as such. Even though it is God who gives them breath and life, still they do not recognize Him. Simply because they do not believe the evidence. Instead, they conform it to their own godless notions.

There is one more picture that I would like to share with you. It is closely related to dark matter. Another dilemma science is facing is the ever increasing rate if expansion in the universe. Popular science believes that dark matter is holding the galaxies from flying apart into total chaos. It also cannot identify the energy that seems to be pulling the universe apart. The given is that the universe is expanding and has been since the beginning of time. However, what science does not understand is why it seems to be expanding exponentially faster and faster as time goes on. This force pulling the universe apart they have dubbed dark energy. I immediately related this to sin in our world. The Bible is clear that sin is destroying the creation. It tells us of the wickedness that will be so prevalent in the last days. One need only look around to see this happening around us even now. Sin and godlessness seems to be picking up momentum each and every passing day. Evil is taking over. But remember just as the iniquity of the Amorites had to come to completion (Genesis 15:16, Numbers 21:26) before Israel could receive the promised land so must this age of the Gentiles be fulfilled before Christ returns and calls us home. Know that the more it seems that sin prevails the nearer Christ return is! Are we going to recognize the signs and prepare for His return or will we continue to deny the very one in whom our very existence consists?

1

Universe Measured: We’re 156 Billion Light-years Wide!

By Robert Roy Britt

http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/mystery_monday_040524.html

2

Observable universe

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe#Size_of_the_observable_universe

3

Dark matter

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_matter

4

Dark energy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_energy

A Review, A thought on my trip to Ghana

Well today I woke up back in America. It is good to be home again. To see the family after being away for two weeks. It was bittersweet however as I had to leave my new family in Ghana. What a wonderful people they are. So loving and caring. A people who have nothing, yet they are truly joyful. What a contrast to here in America.

It will take me some time to process all I have seen but I had just a few thoughts about our trip. I became apparent very quickly what the Lord intended for us. We went to evangelize but the Lord showed us that He wanted us to also raise them up and equip them to continue on the evangelizing after we left. This truly is the heart of the Lord. As we traveled and ministered, signs and wonders truly did follow us. Emphasis on follow! The Lord was giving authority to His word and declaring that He is God. The call was to go forth and declare what the Lord has done. To proclaim the testimony of the goodness, and the power, and the love of God. I believe that the Lord is going to continue the work He started while we were there and that the testimonies will continue to come forth. However, it is not supposed to remain in Ghana. The Lord desires to work here just as mightily. He has changed each one of the team members that went on the trip. He has given each of us a testimony. We have all seen great works of the Lord. We have seen prayers answered. People healed and delivered from oppression. And just as we charged the Ghanaian people to proclaim what the Lord has done for them, so must we here at home!

I am excited to see what the Lord will do here if we are willing. I have believed for a long time that the Lord performs miracles, signs and wonders for the purpose of inspiring faith, building testimonies, and ultimately glorifying God. Now I have seen it with my own eyes in a way that I had never seen before. In addition, I am excited to see it also here at home. I know it will be a much more difficult battle here however. As Americans hearts are hard. Their minds are set in their ways and they have little faith. This seems true even among the “churched”. However, we know that nothing is impossible for God! We just need to obey Him and allow the Holy Spirit to go before us preparing the way. And the Lord will do the rest. Just say Yes!

Ghana Update

Well, there are only 48 days left until my trip to Ghana. It is very exciting times for my family and I. We are seeing the Lord work in both my wife and I as He prepares us for the work He has for us. Two weeks ago I prayed at the alter during our worship service the God would show His love to me in a way I have never known before. Frustrated with my own foolishness and the consequences of not surrendering fully to Him I broke down before Him. I am sick and tired of trying to do this on my own and I want to surrender and give it all to Him. In this, I wanted Him to put His love in me. I have learned over the past few weeks that it is love that will change me. His love in me is what I need as my motivation for change. I cannot defeat pride in my life. I cannot be humble and contrite before God on my own. Otherwise, it would be my own achievement therefore negating the supposed humility. For me to say, “I have defeated my pride” would in itself be a prideful statement. Instead, it must be His love that brings me to my knees in broken humility. The Lord was about to show me what His love looks like. At Monday night prayer my wife prayed a simple prayer of thanksgiving. She thanked the Lord for all the blessing that we often overlook when finances are tight. When we arrived home that evening on our porch was a small box filled with various food items. The Lord showed me several things that night. The first was how foolish I had been. All the fretting over how to feed my family. All the hours spent that week fishing hoping that I might stretch what food we had left with some fish. In other words, I was doing things my way, as best as “I” could figure. The Lord does not often do things our way but instead does things His way. His way is always better! Secondly, God showed me that He will provide. I had heard of this happening before, but now it had happened to me. In addition, He showed me love. I could go on and on as to how and why according to the scriptures but never do it justice. That box of food represented the love of God to me. I did nothing to deserve it. In fact had I been obedient to the Lord with my finances I would not have even needed the food. Yet there it was. Confronting my pride, my ego, and my vanity. On Tuesday, the Lord showed me even more. When I returned home from work, another surprise awaited me. A woman from church took my wife grocery shopping during the day. She filled our cabinets and refrigerator. You see the Lord does not just intend to give us a taste of His love. He wants to fill the stores of our heart to running over. He has not just given us life but He gave us abundant life! He fills us with His love and Spirit so that they pour out of us. This is where true ministry lies. Oh how I desire to minister for the Lord. Yet I cannot. It’s His love pouring out of me that does the work. In this, I know that I must be filled with His love. This is the prayer of my heart. Fill me Lord with your love I pray.

 

 

The coming of the [lawless one] is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved” (2 Thessalonians 2:9, 10 NKJV).

On the last day, that great [day] of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet [given], because Jesus was not yet glorified. (John 7:37-39 NKJV)

Ghana Trip

Dear Friend,

 

God is doing a good work in me. He is confronting who and what I am. Breaking me down and refining me. He is building me up into the faithful minister of the Gospel that He desires me to be. Transforming me into His image and building His character within me. He is demonstrating His love and grace to me in a way I have never known before. Much like a father who truly loves his son, He is chastening me. Never has this work within me been more evident that right now.

In this God has impressed on my heart to travel to Ghana West Africa on a short-term mission’s trip. He has called me to go minister to a people that I do not know nor do I understand. He is taking me out of my comfort zone and putting me into His. As a group, we will be taking the Gospel message into the bush. Some places where it has never been heard before. There will be evangelism, medical clinics, and prayer for the sick, prison ministry, counseling, witnessing, and much more. In a nutshell, we will be demonstrating the love of God to a lost and dying people. Our team has been in prayer regarding the trip for some time now. The Lord has put on each of our hearts the expectation to see great and powerful things. In this, we have dubbed ourselves “The Miracle Team”.

All this comes at a very difficult financial time for me. Without going into detail as to the circumstances, I simply do not have the resources to pay for this trip. Both the cost of the trip and the cost of not working for a couple weeks. Only through the provision of the Lord will I be able to attend. I have struggled with the thought of writing this letter, as I do not like asking for money. Yet the Bible says “… you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures” (James 4:2b, 3 NKJV). I believe that the Lord has provided for the trip and I ask that if the Lord puts it on your heart to give that you would do so. In addition, I would ask that you pray for me during this time. Pray that the Lord would continue His work in me and through me. Also, pray for protection for me and the rest of the team.

 

God Bless

Daniel Stopyro

 

Please send any contributions to Vision International Missions, at 400 Bedford Street, Manchester, NH 03103. (This is a tax-deductible contribution).  Be sure to mark in the memo line for Daniel Stopyro. I need to raise $1200 by August 7 and the remaining $1000 soon after that. We will be leaving September 10 and returning September 24.

 

 

In The Shadow Of His Wings

Here In The Shadow – Shannon Wexelberg

Consider the song “Here in the Shadow” by Shannon Wexelberg. Here in the shadow of the wings of the Almighty God.  Here there is shelter. Here there is rest. Here there is peace. Where else can we run to hide?  Four times David in the Psalms referred to his refuge being in the shadow of His wings. I thought of the Disney movie, Bambi. As young Bambi explores his new forest home, he experienced his first rainstorm. In that scene, you will see a mother bird open her wings for her chicks as she runs for shelter. All her chicks are able to find shelter from the storm under her wings. However, there was one requirement. They had to go where she went.  They had to go with her to where she was taking them.

How many times we find ourselves in the storm by ourselves. Seemingly alone, and unprotected. Crying out to God asking why He has abandoned us. And He replies asking why we abandoned Him. His wings are open wide. Yet, we have wandered away from where he was taking us. So many times, I have found myself wandering lost. Floundering in my walk with the Lord. All because I had gotten off track. I had lost my way as I sought out my own way often ignoring the instruction that had been given to me from the Lord. We need to find our shelter under His wings. Let God take us His way to His places. Truly under His wings is peace and rest!