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WILDERNESS TRUTHS FOR MODERN TIMES-40 TEXT: "Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit." (Proverbs 26:4-5)

 

I. KEEP IT SIMPLE

A. We must simply believe the Bible and take it for what it says. Man seeks a nicely laid out arrangement of answers, exactly defined. That arrangement is illusive in the Bible as the Bible itself tries to communicate.

B. There is not much in the Bible that is neatly packaged to fit into man's logical arrangement. Man cannot find a set of rules which will satisfy his intellectual mechanism. Each application God makes will move under its own set of circumstances, as Proverbs 26:4-5 implies.

C. Just because someone is afflicted does not in itself reveal to anyone the conditions relating to it. In fact when a person refers to the word "afflict" in the Bible they do not really grasp the idea -- no fault of theirs. There are no less than 12 different Hebrew words in the OT which are translated "afflict" and its derivatives. The word "afflict" could mean "discomfort" or "humbled" or a number of other meanings.

D. Affliction can be many things brought about by many causes and for different reasons. The only way you will know what's really going on, is for the Lord to tell you.

E. Sickness in one case may be related to biblical affliction as a result of what God must accomplish in the person. The very same sickness in another person can be directly from the enemy with no relationship to its being God's arrangement, but contrary to the will of God. The complexity of God and life transcends the simple mind of man.

F. God shared with Adam the knowledge of good and evil. Adam was told what he should do (good) , and what he should not do (evil). But when the knowledge of good and evil came through another source, it was sin.

G. Moses numbered the people. That was obedience. King David did the same thing, and that was sin. (See Numbers 1:19 and II Samuel 24:10-17)

H. Many believers seek to know the complexities of the Kingdom of God through rules and definitions. Since man has had little success in living a natural life through attempting to know its complexities, there is little hope for the believer's success in the spiritual life when using this same method. If it's life eternal you seek, lay aside a quest to know its complexities, and seek to know the Giver. Jesus said, "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3)

I. "Let Reuben live, and not die." This is God's concern for life as expressed in Deuteronomy 33:6 in the wilderness. It was God's concern even for Ishmael when he was in the wilderness, threatened with death (Genesis 21:14-20).

J. God is the Giver of life. He is not out to kill anyone. Sometimes we image that He is out to kill us when he is killing our flesh. But if God doesn't kill our flesh, our flesh will kill us. Our flesh is our worst and most dangerous enemy. "And this is the blessing of Judah: and he said, Hear, LORD, the voice of Judah, and bring him unto his people: let his hands be sufficient for him; and be thou an help to him from his enemies." (Deuteronomy 33:7) The theme of help is carried further in verse 11, smite through the loins of them that rise against him [Israel]; strike his foes till they rise no more" (NIV) and of them that hate him, that they rise not again. (KJV)

K. Given a chance, God will kill the enemies within us, and insure our life. If we do not fight against God in His destruction of our flesh, we will be able to live in victory.

II. PARTING THOUGHTS

 

A. There is no defeat in God, only victory. If there is defeat in the life of a believer, it must come through unbelief, disobedience, or some such condition. God ordains victory in the lives of His children. He does not ordain defeat; that is not part of His arrangement for us.

B. You bring about your own defeat. Once defeat comes to your life, God will work with the situation the best He can, and try to use that defeat to teach and strengthen us. Failure is not sin. Defeat is not sin. Sin is sin. Failure and defeat become sin when we get stuck in it.

C. Remember, failure is a better teacher than success, and so defeat can be a teacher, if we allow God to work in our lives. Hopefully, He will be able to bring you us of defeat into victory.

D. This theme continues in Deuteronomy 33; "The beloved of the LORD shall dwell in safety by him; and the LORD shall cover him all the day long, and he shall dwell between his shoulders." (Deuteronomy 33:12) His divine care and dedication toward us insure us a life of victory. E. Blessing upon blessings are directed by God toward Israel at the end of their wilderness experience. Through the rest of Chapter 33 of Deuteronomy they continue to be stated. And they continue today for His children.

A LIFE OF PRAYER

One of the things the LORD is impressing on me for 2017 is to increase my time of prayer. Prayer should be a natural function of our everyday life and at the very heart of our relationship with our LORD. The heart of our prayers should always be the expression of our love for the LORD, and of our desire to personally know Him. The LORD said in Proverbs, “I love them that love Me, and those that seek Me early shall find Me.” (Proverbs 8:17) I can think of nothing more important in our walk with the LORD for 2017 than to spend more time in prayer. Our need is not to be better informed about the methods and principles of prayer, but rather to be stirred to spend quality time in prayer. Our prayers should always include the expression of our total dependence upon the LORD. We were created to live in a dependent relationship to Jesus - to look to Him in an attitude of worship and prayer for all things. “I am the vine, you are the branches: He that abides in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) Prayer is the means whereby this dependent relationship finds its outworking and completion. It is through this union with Jesus in prayer that the LORD meets our needs. Thus prayer is at the very heart of our Christian experience and growth. If we are searching for some new revelation, personality, or fad to follow we will find it and then be easily led into some form of deception. The foundation of our spiritual life must be established on an active, personal prayer relationship with Jesus as being the LORD of our lives and all that pertains to us. Our calling is to work WITH the LORD rather than for the LORD. Therefore, there must be a time of preparation before we can be effective in serving the LORD. Doing the things (ministry, etc.) God needs for us to do will follow as the normal outworking of a life of prayer and communion with Him. If this were practiced as the LORD taught most of the problems that we have in our Christian experience would vanish. At this critical hour in which we live the LORD is calling His people apart, to serious times of prayer. Throughout the Body of Christ the glitter and charisma of personalities and special ministries must fade away. At the same time the door into the prayer closet is opening wider for those who desire something more from the Lord and are willing to enter and pray. It is here that the battle must be won. We begin by acknowledging our relationship to our Heavenly Father and worshipping Him. Only then can we pray for His will to be done and share our needs. Prayer is more than telling the LORD what we think He should do, and all the wonderful things that would happen if only He would do as we ask. Real prayer begins when we enter into such communion with Jesus that the Holy Spirit can pray the will of the Father through us. There are three different and distinct patterns or forms of our prayer life. The first is duty prayer where we pray over our food, prayer before we close our eyes at night, opening and/or closing a church service, meeting all of the traditions and responsibilities that man defines we must do in prayer and yes these are fine, but the LORD is looking for more. The next is a prayer life where we stop our living to pray. Where we "get alone" with the LORD, where we go into our prayer closet and spend time with Him. Fanny Crosby wrote a song, "Sweet Hour of Prayer" today it would be titled "Sweet Five Minutes of Prayer." Most Christians spend on average (from resent surveys) less than 10 minutes a week in prayer. Jesus received direction and power from the Father when He prayed. Time and time again Jesus would separate Himself from the disciples and His living to receive from the Father. So I ask are the servants greater than the Master? As important as having a prayer life is the LORD is still looking for something more in our lives and that is a life of prayer where we do not stop our living, but 24 hours a day prayer comes out of our lives. This is how we can "pray without ceasing" as Paul instructed the Christians at the Church in at Thessalonica, "Rejoice evermore. 17 Pray without ceasing.18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18) If we can get to this place in God He then will be able to bring us into righteous living one of His grand goals in our lives. Ah righteous living where we just live righteous like breathing. No one has to think about breathing we just breathe it is automatic, well in righteous living we do not think about doing right or not sinning we just live and our living is righteous. Our living (words, and deeds) automatically become righteous and there is no condemnation in our lives, but if we get off track then the precious Holy Spirit will help (sometimes this can be very painful) get us back on track. This was the attraction (and not the miracles) of Jesus that drew the people to Him as He walked this earth. Righteous living will lead us to a greater love for God (always the beginning of all things in God) and a greater understanding of who we are and how we fit into the LORD's big picture for our lives. We need not wonder about the LORD's big picture for the world until we can learn of what God has for us. We then can learn about ALL God has for us and in ALL matters taking hold of the willingness of the LORD not overcoming His reluctance. An area many Christians have trouble with. Be careful our wants (even in God) will get us in trouble sometimes faster than sin. He may reluctantly give us something that we continually press Him for to our own hurt. Note the children of Israel who pressed Him for meat, rather than being satisfied with the Manna that He had provided. The Palmist said, "They soon forgat his works; they waited not for his counsel: 14 But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert. 15 And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul." (Palms 106:15) God gave them quail, but they needed something for the soul. Their trade was something physical (meat) instead of something spiritual. And why? They "soon forgat his works; they waited not for his counsel." In other words no time spent inquiring of God. The result then was they "lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert." So God answered their request for the physical (the meat), but "sent leanness into their soul" to give them a hunger that the quail would not satisfy. God has His ways of getting our attention and usually He will use physical means to touch our spiritual lack. What a cry we hear in the church for physical healing and financial blessings when in reality the problem is the lack of spiritual understanding and discipline. There are no shortcuts or push-button methods of entering into His presence. Prayer means spending quality time with the LORD. When the LORD's people come to an understanding of the value of having a set apart place of prayer for communion with Him and often enter into this place they will be on their way to a life of fruitfulness in His purpose. That way is the same way Jesus walked a life of prayer and relationship with His Father.