Listening to the Word

  Zechariah 7-9; Luke 13   “Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilot had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, ‘Do you think that those Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way?...I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.’” Luke 13:1, 2, 5 We could ask Jesus the same question today about the suffering of the Syrians, or the Egyptians. Are they getting their punishment for rejecting Christ? Jesus’ response is a reminder to Christians that it is repentance, not what country you live in, that influences your standing before God. He didn’t say that he loved all people the same way, or that there were towers that fell every day on the ‘good’ and the ‘bad’. Jesus calls us to repentance. Our destiny, because of sin is death. Only repentance and faith in Christ can change our eternal destiny. “Lord Jesus, you are my life. I repent for living for myself, and...

  Zechariah 4-6; Luke 12 “…This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty…‘Who despises the day of small things?’…” Zechariah 4:6, 10 What does it mean to build with the Spirit? The contrast is to build our own might or power. To build with the Spirit, we must first yield to the Spirit. The yielding, or surrendering, of our stubborn self-will is the key to living with God’s strength and not our own. The Lord Almighty, the Creator of all things, can handle our questions, our concerns, and our projects. The Lord Almighty invites us to surrender to his Spirit and actively cooperate with his Spirit in accomplishing his work. If the Spirit is the architect, building supervisor, and chief engineer, our job is to daily seek his direction, counsel, strength, and vision, especially when our current outlook seems small and our prospects insignificant. Don’t be discouraged or despise the day of small things. Like the tiny must...

  Zechariah 1-3; Luke 11   “Then he showed me Joshua, the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. The Lord said to Satan, ‘The Lord rebuke you, Satan!...Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?’…The angel said to those who were standing before him. ‘Take off his filthy clothes…See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put rich garments on you.’” Zechariah 3:1, 2, 4 Our filthy clothes represent sin in our lives that invites the accusations of Satan. Satan accuses us before God, but we overcome him by the blood of the Lamb, and through the word of our testimony as we love not our lives unto death (Revelation 12:11). The choice is ours. We either are overcome by sin and accusations, or we overcome sin and accusations through the blood of Christ who paid the penalty for our sin. In Christ we receive robes of righteousness, God’s righteousness, to replace our sin and self-righteousness. Only Christ can ...

  Haggai 1-2; Psalms 129; Luke 10   “…the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the message of the prophet Haggai, because the Lord their God had sent him. And the people feared the Lord. Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, gave this message of the Lord to the people: ‘I am with you,’ declares the Lord.” Haggai 1:12, 13 The reason people received the simple message of the Lord God, “I am with you” through his messenger Haggai, was because they could see and hear that God was with Haggai. If we are to be effective in sharing the Word of the Lord, we must live under God’s authority, carry his presence in our lives, and understand that we are his sent messengers. When we fear the Lord, those we are reaching and serving and leading will also choose to fear the Lord and receive his Word. The messenger is the message! “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us…” in the form of Jesus the Messiah (John 1:14). God is still empowering his serva...

  Ezra 4; Psalms 113, 127; Luke 9   “When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the Lord…they came to Zerubbabel…and said, ‘Let us help you build’…Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building…they lodged an accusation against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.” Ezra 4:1, 2, 4, 6 When we give ourselves to the work of Christ’s mission and live for his glory, we will face opposition. The temple represented the presence of God in Jerusalem. The rebuilding of the temple and the restoration of God’s glory were costly. The enemies of Judah began by offering to help in the rebuilding. Their offer concealed hearts that were filled with malice and jealousy. When this was exposed, the enemies of Judah set out to discourage God’s people and sow fear among them. They accused God’s people of rebellion and appealed to the king of Persia. Today, not all offers of support for God’s kin...

  Ezra 2-3; Luke 8 “…the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop…My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.” Luke 8:15, 21 Spiritual maturity and growth don’t just happen. They develop through disciplines and attitudes that value what God values. Spiritual growth and fruit in our lives are connected with listening to the Word, not merely reading it. To listen to God’s Word with our hearts, we must be attentive to the Holy Spirit. Hearing is then combined with holding onto that Word, or retaining it. We write down and reflect, we memorize, and we meditate on God’s Word to us. ‘Holding on’ must be combined with ‘hanging in there’, or persevering, in the application of God’s Word, even when we don’t see immediate results. Hearing, holding on, and hanging in there are the marks of an attentive, Word-centered, Spirit-led, fruitful life in Christ’s kingdom. “Lord Je...

Ezra 1; Psalms 84-85; Luke 7   “How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord Almighty…Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs;…They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion.” Psalm 84:1, 5, 6, 7 Life is a pilgrimage for those who know the Lord Almighty. We are on a journey that will end in the courts of the Lord - that will end in heaven. This pilgrimage includes dry places like the valley of Baca, where we can become discouraged and depleted. However, those who know the presence of the Lord are filled with his Spirit, the river of life. It is God’s presence that transforms the dry seasons of life into a place of blessing for us as well as for others. Our strength and endurance increase as we walk in God’s presence and surrender our hard places to him. Let us keep walking, this journey is worth it. “Lord Jesus, fill me with your Spirit and pre...