by David Scott Robertson
"In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD: "Take a scroll and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah and all the other nations from the time I began speaking to you in the reign of Josiah till now" (Jeremiah 36:1-2).
* * *
How would you like to have been in the prophet Jeremiah's sandals when God laid this homework assignment on him?
God basically was saying to Jeremiah: "I want you to write - word perfectly -no matter how long it takes - every single thing I ever said to you about Israel and Judah up to the present moment. Do not leave one detail out because thousands of years from now people will be reading this."
In the natural, of course, this assignment that God had given to Jeremiah would have been totally impossible! The prophet, left to his own intellect and memory, would have failed miserably in the task.
However, as Christ-followers who trust the reliability of Scripture know, Jeremiah completed his assignment flawlessly. How could Jeremiah have dictated to his assistant, Baruch, son of Meriah, every single word the Lord had spoken concerning Israel and Judah without leaving a single statement out?
I believe Jeremiah could successfully complete his homework assignment the same way that…
- Moses completed his assignment of writing the first five books of the Bible (the Pentateuch).
- Daniel completed his assignment of recording (in advance) the rise and fall of major world governments from his present day to the end of the age.
- Micah completed his assignment of predicting the Messiah's birth.
- Isaiah completed his assignment in describing Jesus' earthly ministry and subsequent suffering on the cross.
- King David completed his assignment and wrote (in the first person) about how Jesus felt while offering His body as the perfect sacrifice on the cross.
- Paul and the other apostles recorded New Testament scripture.
"Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter 1:20-21).
This being "carried along" - mere men inspired by the Holy Spirit - is the reason each homework assignment given to men by God was able to be completed in completely reliable fashion.
This is why we can read our Bibles and be fully persuaded that "every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him" (Proverbs 30:5).
The good news for us who find ourselves on the timeline of history in the 21st century is that this same Holy Spirit who helped Jeremiah is available to help us.
If you have been handed what you feel is a "tough assignment" from God to fulfill then simply do what all these men of God I've mentioned did - call out to God for the Holy Spirit's help. Whether they or we can theologically understand it is irrelevant. It is God the Holy Spirit who will become for you the "Divine Enabler" to cause your assignment to get completed, turned in on time, and make the grade God intends.
When God gives you a homework assignment, don't stress over it--call out for help from the Teacher.
"But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me [Jesus] by taking from what is mine and making it known to you" (John 16:13-14).
I encourage you to purposely demote (humble) yourself to the position of God's little helper, His assistant, servant, scribe just like Jeremiah had Baruch and Paul had Tertius (Romans 16:22) to help write the copy.
The next time you get a homework assignment, a marching order, a prescription to fill (choose your own metaphor)--in other words, when God tells you to do something call out to the Holy Spirit for divine recall, supernatural support, heavenly help, and ingenious inspiration.
"So he said to me, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty" (Zechariah 4:6).
DSR
2/28/05
Monday, February 28, 2005
Monday, February 21, 2005
Grand Opening
by David Scott Robertson
"Then He [Jesus] said to them, 'These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.' AND HE OPENED THEIR UNDERSTANDING, THAT THEY MIGHT COMPREHEND THE SCRIPTURES." (Luke 24:44-45, emphasis mine).
* * *
In my Spirit-Filled Life Bible I have a bookmark on the page in which this text appears and I have boxed the verse in with a pen. Nearly every day before I read the Word, I go to this verse and pray that the Lord open my understanding that I might comprehend the Scriptures.
God is very apparently in the business of opening things…
- Jesus opened the eyes of the physically blind (John 9:17; Isaiah 35:5).
- God opened up the eyes of people who could see fine in the natural but failed to see supernatural provision (Genesis 21:19).
- Jesus opened the ears of the physically deaf (Mark 7:35).
- Jesus opened the mouth of the mute (Luke 1:63-64).
- Jesus opened the grave to give up its dead (John 11:34).
- The Lord opened the wombs of barren women (Genesis 29:31; 30:22).
- God opened the eyes of a skeptical servant to see angelic forces (2 Kings 6:17).
- The Lord opened the mouth of a donkey to rebuke a backslidden prophet (Numbers 22:28) then opened the eyes of the prophet to see the Angel of the Lord (22:31).
- God opened a path through the Red Sea (Psalm 106:9), opened up a rock that a river might gush out and refresh His people Israel (Psalm 105:41), and opened the doors of the heavens to rain down manna to sustain millions of people in a barren desert (Psalm 78-23-24).
- He's opened up the earth to swallow His enemies (Psalm 106:17), and promised to open up the windows of heaven to bless His faithful stewards (Malachi 3:10).
Revelation 4:1 talks about a door in heaven being opened and John being invited to "come up here…" That eye-opening experience is one that all true believers will also get to enjoy!
There were many more verses and examples I looked up in my research, but the point, I think, has been made: God is very apparently in the business of opening things!
What do you need opened that seems to be shut? Do you want, like me, for the Holy Spirit to "open your eyes" to understand the Scriptures more clearly? Do you want open ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the church? Do you want a heart that is open and tender to the gentle wooing of the Spirit of Jesus? Do you want the Lord to open your mouth and fill it with good things to say? Do you want a broken relationship opened up that's shut down? Do you want something to open up in your job or new career?
I don't know what you need but I know that Jesus is the key that can open the thing that is locked.
Could the "grand opening" that you've been waiting for be just a short prayer away?
Why not pray it right now?
DSR
2/21/05
"Then He [Jesus] said to them, 'These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.' AND HE OPENED THEIR UNDERSTANDING, THAT THEY MIGHT COMPREHEND THE SCRIPTURES." (Luke 24:44-45, emphasis mine).
* * *
In my Spirit-Filled Life Bible I have a bookmark on the page in which this text appears and I have boxed the verse in with a pen. Nearly every day before I read the Word, I go to this verse and pray that the Lord open my understanding that I might comprehend the Scriptures.
God is very apparently in the business of opening things…
- Jesus opened the eyes of the physically blind (John 9:17; Isaiah 35:5).
- God opened up the eyes of people who could see fine in the natural but failed to see supernatural provision (Genesis 21:19).
- Jesus opened the ears of the physically deaf (Mark 7:35).
- Jesus opened the mouth of the mute (Luke 1:63-64).
- Jesus opened the grave to give up its dead (John 11:34).
- The Lord opened the wombs of barren women (Genesis 29:31; 30:22).
- God opened the eyes of a skeptical servant to see angelic forces (2 Kings 6:17).
- The Lord opened the mouth of a donkey to rebuke a backslidden prophet (Numbers 22:28) then opened the eyes of the prophet to see the Angel of the Lord (22:31).
- God opened a path through the Red Sea (Psalm 106:9), opened up a rock that a river might gush out and refresh His people Israel (Psalm 105:41), and opened the doors of the heavens to rain down manna to sustain millions of people in a barren desert (Psalm 78-23-24).
- He's opened up the earth to swallow His enemies (Psalm 106:17), and promised to open up the windows of heaven to bless His faithful stewards (Malachi 3:10).
Revelation 4:1 talks about a door in heaven being opened and John being invited to "come up here…" That eye-opening experience is one that all true believers will also get to enjoy!
There were many more verses and examples I looked up in my research, but the point, I think, has been made: God is very apparently in the business of opening things!
What do you need opened that seems to be shut? Do you want, like me, for the Holy Spirit to "open your eyes" to understand the Scriptures more clearly? Do you want open ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the church? Do you want a heart that is open and tender to the gentle wooing of the Spirit of Jesus? Do you want the Lord to open your mouth and fill it with good things to say? Do you want a broken relationship opened up that's shut down? Do you want something to open up in your job or new career?
I don't know what you need but I know that Jesus is the key that can open the thing that is locked.
Could the "grand opening" that you've been waiting for be just a short prayer away?
Why not pray it right now?
DSR
2/21/05
Saturday, February 12, 2005
By Invitation Only
by David Scott Robertson
"Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. But they constrained Him, saying, 'Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.' And He went in to stay with them" (Luke 24:28-29 NKJV).
* * *
In the 24th chapter of Luke's gospel, we find a key to experiencing God.
Two followers of Jesus (Luke identifies one of the two as Cleopas, v. 18) were walking and talking down the road about the things that had just occurred concerning the Christ. They were confused and grieving. The Bible says, "while they conversed and reasoned" (v. 15), Jesus Himself showed up and joined their conversation. God was walking and talking with them but they didn't realize they were walking and talking with God.
Jesus asked them what they were talking about "and beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself" (v. 27).
As they were about to complete the seven-mile walk from Jerusalem to a village called Emmaus, Jesus "indicated that He would have gone farther" (v. 28). Now here's the key to experiencing God that I want to share with you in this thought: The two disciples, in agreement, petitioned the Lord to do something for them.
"…they constrained Him, saying, 'Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent'" (v. 29).
Evidently, Jesus would have walked out of the conversation and their experience with Him could have terminated on the spot. However (and this is the key), they invited Jesus to stay and eat with them. And kindly, providentially, and I believe gladly, "…He went in to stay with them" (v. 29).
A key, then, to experiencing God is to invite Him to come to you, to stay with you, to eat with you, to fellowship with you, to walk with you and talk with you along life's narrow way.
Note seven things that happened to Cleopas and his friend because they "constrained" Jesus to sit with them for a while:
1. GOD WAS IN THEIR PHYSICAL PRESENCE - "Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them…" (v. 30)
2. GOD FED THEM - "…that He took bread…" (v. 30)
3. GOD SPOKE BLESSING - "…He took bread, blessed and broke it…" (v. 30). (Later they remarked how He was known to them in the breaking of bread - v. 35.)
4. GOD SERVED THEM - "…He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them" (v. 30).
5. GOD OPENED THEIR EYES - "Then their eyes were opened…" (v. 31).
6. THEY EXPERIENCED GOD - "…and they knew Him…" (v. 31).
7. THEY WITNESSED A MIRACLE - "…and He vanished from their sight" (v. 31).
Mind you, these seven things never would have happened had they not "constrained" Jesus to stay and fellowship with them. Their previous conversation and reasoning on the road did not bring about a "burning in their hearts" like spending time with Jesus did (v. 32).
Jesus expounded on the key to experiencing God in John 15:7:
"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you."
When the two disciples on the road to Emmaus said to the Lord, "Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent" (v. 29), they were, in essence, putting Jesus' admonition in John 15:7 into practice by inviting Him to abide with them and making room in their schedule for His words to abide in them.
As long as the two asked each other for answers concerning the Christ, they would continue to be frustrated and confused. But when they began to substitute human reasoning with Godly wisdom through abiding in Christ late one afternoon, they experienced God and were later able to joyfully testify to their brethren about their encounter with their resurrected Lord:
"So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, 'The Lord is risen indeed and has appeared to Simon!'" (Luke 24: 33-34).
I've already said this once, but it bears repeating: These seven things never would have happened had they not "constrained" Jesus to stay and fellowship with them!
What does this mean to us today in 2005? It means that unless you and I open our mouths and our hearts and invite the Lord to come to us, to abide in us, we are doubtless going to miss out on revelations, illuminations, and miracles that God has reserved for those who constrain Him to abide with them--not merely for a brief visit, but forever.
DSR
2/12/05
"Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. But they constrained Him, saying, 'Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.' And He went in to stay with them" (Luke 24:28-29 NKJV).
* * *
In the 24th chapter of Luke's gospel, we find a key to experiencing God.
Two followers of Jesus (Luke identifies one of the two as Cleopas, v. 18) were walking and talking down the road about the things that had just occurred concerning the Christ. They were confused and grieving. The Bible says, "while they conversed and reasoned" (v. 15), Jesus Himself showed up and joined their conversation. God was walking and talking with them but they didn't realize they were walking and talking with God.
Jesus asked them what they were talking about "and beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself" (v. 27).
As they were about to complete the seven-mile walk from Jerusalem to a village called Emmaus, Jesus "indicated that He would have gone farther" (v. 28). Now here's the key to experiencing God that I want to share with you in this thought: The two disciples, in agreement, petitioned the Lord to do something for them.
"…they constrained Him, saying, 'Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent'" (v. 29).
Evidently, Jesus would have walked out of the conversation and their experience with Him could have terminated on the spot. However (and this is the key), they invited Jesus to stay and eat with them. And kindly, providentially, and I believe gladly, "…He went in to stay with them" (v. 29).
A key, then, to experiencing God is to invite Him to come to you, to stay with you, to eat with you, to fellowship with you, to walk with you and talk with you along life's narrow way.
Note seven things that happened to Cleopas and his friend because they "constrained" Jesus to sit with them for a while:
1. GOD WAS IN THEIR PHYSICAL PRESENCE - "Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them…" (v. 30)
2. GOD FED THEM - "…that He took bread…" (v. 30)
3. GOD SPOKE BLESSING - "…He took bread, blessed and broke it…" (v. 30). (Later they remarked how He was known to them in the breaking of bread - v. 35.)
4. GOD SERVED THEM - "…He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them" (v. 30).
5. GOD OPENED THEIR EYES - "Then their eyes were opened…" (v. 31).
6. THEY EXPERIENCED GOD - "…and they knew Him…" (v. 31).
7. THEY WITNESSED A MIRACLE - "…and He vanished from their sight" (v. 31).
Mind you, these seven things never would have happened had they not "constrained" Jesus to stay and fellowship with them. Their previous conversation and reasoning on the road did not bring about a "burning in their hearts" like spending time with Jesus did (v. 32).
Jesus expounded on the key to experiencing God in John 15:7:
"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you."
When the two disciples on the road to Emmaus said to the Lord, "Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent" (v. 29), they were, in essence, putting Jesus' admonition in John 15:7 into practice by inviting Him to abide with them and making room in their schedule for His words to abide in them.
As long as the two asked each other for answers concerning the Christ, they would continue to be frustrated and confused. But when they began to substitute human reasoning with Godly wisdom through abiding in Christ late one afternoon, they experienced God and were later able to joyfully testify to their brethren about their encounter with their resurrected Lord:
"So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, 'The Lord is risen indeed and has appeared to Simon!'" (Luke 24: 33-34).
I've already said this once, but it bears repeating: These seven things never would have happened had they not "constrained" Jesus to stay and fellowship with them!
What does this mean to us today in 2005? It means that unless you and I open our mouths and our hearts and invite the Lord to come to us, to abide in us, we are doubtless going to miss out on revelations, illuminations, and miracles that God has reserved for those who constrain Him to abide with them--not merely for a brief visit, but forever.
DSR
2/12/05
Monday, February 7, 2005
A Formletter of Encouragement
by David Scott Robertson
* * *
INSTRUCTIONS: Below is a "form letter" or "template" that you might consider customizing and then emailing or sending to a Christian friend you know is going through a tough time right now. Edit as necessary for an unsaved friend.
* * *
Date
Dear __________,
I thought the Lord would have me write you a quick note. Can you dare to believe that the BEST is yet to come? I can and I am for you!
I know you're going through a tough time but I want you to consider that "if God is for you who can be against you?" (Romans 8:31). I'm for you too! I've taken your name and your need to the throne room of grace to obtain mercy and grace in your time of need (Hebrews 4:16).
God's Word to you in your present situation is: "…'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness'" (2 Corinthians 12:9). And speaking of perfect, God is offering you His perfect peace to help you through: "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you" (Isaiah 26:3).
As you trust in the Lord with all your heart, trying to make sense of things but always keeping in mind that God is in control (Proverbs 3:5-6), God will grant you what He described as "the peace of God, which transcends all understanding" to guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7).
My sincere hope in writing you this note is that somehow the Holy Spirit will take it and remind you that because you are a Christian…
- God loves you (John 3:16).
- God has forgiven your sins and will not hold them against you (1 John 1:9).
- God does hear and answer prayer - in His time (Philippians 4:6).
- God supplies all your needs (Philippians 4:19) and doesn't even have a problem giving you the desires of your heart as you delight in Him (Psalm 37:4).
- God has given you power and authority over the devil (Luke 10:19).
- God has given you the power of His Word (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and His Spirit (Acts 1:8) to work on your behalf.
- God has dressed you in the full armor of God to protect you from the fiery darts of the enemy (Ephesians 6:11) plus he has decreed that the devil's weapons formed against you will not function properly (Isaiah 54:17).
- One day in the not too distant future, you will join God in the place for you in the new heavens and the new earth (Isaiah 65:17) with a new body (1 Corinthians 15:54) living in a new mansion (John 14:2) custom-built just for you!
Forever with God is not a bad deal! Since your name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life (Luke 10:20) you can rest assured that one day you can stand before God with confidence that your relationships with Jesus during your lifetime will make all the difference for you in eternity.
I am including lots of scripture verses in this note because God's Word is "living and active" (Hebrews 4:12) and as you read it and believe it, the Lord promises "It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and succeed in the matter for which I send it" (Isaiah 55:11).
I want to end this note to you the way the Apostle Paul ended his second letter to the Christians in the city of Corinth because I want for the same thing for you that he wanted for his friends there: "May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all" (2 Corinthians 13:14).
In the peace that only Jesus gives,
Your friend, ______________
DSR
2/7/05
* * *
INSTRUCTIONS: Below is a "form letter" or "template" that you might consider customizing and then emailing or sending to a Christian friend you know is going through a tough time right now. Edit as necessary for an unsaved friend.
* * *
Date
Dear __________,
I thought the Lord would have me write you a quick note. Can you dare to believe that the BEST is yet to come? I can and I am for you!
I know you're going through a tough time but I want you to consider that "if God is for you who can be against you?" (Romans 8:31). I'm for you too! I've taken your name and your need to the throne room of grace to obtain mercy and grace in your time of need (Hebrews 4:16).
God's Word to you in your present situation is: "…'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness'" (2 Corinthians 12:9). And speaking of perfect, God is offering you His perfect peace to help you through: "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you" (Isaiah 26:3).
As you trust in the Lord with all your heart, trying to make sense of things but always keeping in mind that God is in control (Proverbs 3:5-6), God will grant you what He described as "the peace of God, which transcends all understanding" to guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7).
My sincere hope in writing you this note is that somehow the Holy Spirit will take it and remind you that because you are a Christian…
- God loves you (John 3:16).
- God has forgiven your sins and will not hold them against you (1 John 1:9).
- God does hear and answer prayer - in His time (Philippians 4:6).
- God supplies all your needs (Philippians 4:19) and doesn't even have a problem giving you the desires of your heart as you delight in Him (Psalm 37:4).
- God has given you power and authority over the devil (Luke 10:19).
- God has given you the power of His Word (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and His Spirit (Acts 1:8) to work on your behalf.
- God has dressed you in the full armor of God to protect you from the fiery darts of the enemy (Ephesians 6:11) plus he has decreed that the devil's weapons formed against you will not function properly (Isaiah 54:17).
- One day in the not too distant future, you will join God in the place for you in the new heavens and the new earth (Isaiah 65:17) with a new body (1 Corinthians 15:54) living in a new mansion (John 14:2) custom-built just for you!
Forever with God is not a bad deal! Since your name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life (Luke 10:20) you can rest assured that one day you can stand before God with confidence that your relationships with Jesus during your lifetime will make all the difference for you in eternity.
I am including lots of scripture verses in this note because God's Word is "living and active" (Hebrews 4:12) and as you read it and believe it, the Lord promises "It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and succeed in the matter for which I send it" (Isaiah 55:11).
I want to end this note to you the way the Apostle Paul ended his second letter to the Christians in the city of Corinth because I want for the same thing for you that he wanted for his friends there: "May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all" (2 Corinthians 13:14).
In the peace that only Jesus gives,
Your friend, ______________
DSR
2/7/05
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