COMFORTING THOUGHTS

“And they will comfort you, when you see their ways and their doings; and you shall know that I have done nothing without cause that I have done in it, says the LORD GOD” (Ezek. 14:23 NKJV).

While much of the message of Ezekiel has been about judgment, this verse is one of encouragement and great comfort. It speaks of comfort from conduct and comfort from cause.

Comfort from conduct – “They will comfort you, when you see their ways and their doings.” Although great judgment was visited upon Jerusalem, those who survived and came to Babylon in the captivity had a change in their conduct. Their behavior was a welcomed improvement in their conduct. It is always comforting and encouraging to see change in the conduct of people for the better. Sinful behavior does not bring comfort to the godly; it grieves the heart. However, when you see a change to holy conduct, what delight, what joy that brings to the heart of the people of God.

Comfort from cause – “You will know that I have done nothing without cause that I have done in it, says the Lord God.” Here God reminds Ezekiel that He did not bring great judgment upon Jerusalem without important reasons. When we are experiencing problems, it is usually hard to see the reason for it. Most of the time we are inclined to complain and to ask God “Why?” But God is not capricious or acts without good reasons. He is a God of infinite wisdom and does everything with the best of reasons. He brought great judgment upon Jerusalem not to destroy His people but to correct and purify His people. Sometimes God takes even His most loyal servants through some very deep waters in order to build them up and to increase His blessings. God does everything for a very good reason. We may not learn that reason until we get to heaven, but we can be comforted now in the knowledge that He does all for our good (Rom. 8:28).

(Adapted from Butler's Daily Bible Reading 3)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“When God gives you comforts, it is your great evil not to observe His hand in them!”

John Flavel (1627 - 1691)

English Presbyterian Minister and Author

Word Study

Dwells

In Rom. 8:11 we read, “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you” (NKJV).

Dwells is the Greek word oikeō (οἰκέω =oy-keh'-o). It means to live, inhabit or dwell in a certain place as one’s home. In classical Greek oikeō means to inhabit or to dwell as one would occupy a house. In the Septuagint, oikeō also means to inhabit, to live, to dwell. In the New Testament oikeō is used to mean to inhabit or to dwell. Further, the word is in the present tense meaning to continually dwell. This is important because it emphasizes the fact that the Spirit is not an occasional visitor as He was in the OT, but that He takes up permanent residence in the believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. In fact the present tense even underscores that the Spirit continually indwells us not only in this life, but in the one to come! (cf. John 14:16).

Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus

Old Testament Prophecy – Messiah would be The Cornerstone (Zech. 10:4).

New Testament Fulfillment – Eph. 2:20

Did You Know…

The Bible states that the Lord Jesus was a prophet (Matt. 21:46).

Bible Quiz

What were the two bodies of water that God parted for the Israelite children to cross?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz: How old was Noah when the flood waters came on the earth? 600 years old (Gen. 7:6).

Names For God Found in the Bible

“El Shaddai”

"When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless” (Gen. 17:1).

1. Meaning – El Shaddai “Almighty God” speaks of God who is powerful, mighty and sufficient. He is the One who satisfies.

2. Insights – In context, the Lord used this title to let Abram know that He had the power to keep His word, to perform any miracle, and to meet every need Abram had. He is the God who is all-sufficient and all-powerful, and that nothing is too hard for Him. This name assures God’s people that His promises will be kept, and His power is available to those who will trust Him

Did You Know...Christian History

Peter Martyr Vermigli was born September 8, 1499 in Florence, Italy. He was an Italian-born Calvinist theologian.

Vermigli’s father named him after the Dominican saint Pietro Martire (Peter Martyr). He joined the Augustinian monks when he was sixteen. At age 30, Vermigli entered a religious order and was appointed to influential posts as abbot and prior. He came in contact with leaders of the Italian spirituali reform movement, and read Protestant theologians such as Martin Bucer and Ulrich Zwingli. Through reading these works and studying the Bible and the Church Fathers, he came to accept Protestant beliefs about salvation and the Eucharist.

To avoid persecution by the Roman Inquisition, he fled Italy for Protestant northern Europe. He ultimately arrived in Strasbourg where he taught on the Old Testament of the Bible under Bucer. English reformer Thomas Cranmer invited Vermigli to take an influential post at Oxford University where he continued to teach on the Bible.

In England, he influenced the Edwardian Reformation, including the Eucharistic service of the 1552 Book of Common Prayer. He was considered an authority on the Eucharist among the Calvinist churches. His Loci Communes, a compilation of excerpts from his Biblical commentaries organized by the topics of systematic theology, became a standard Calvinist theological textbook.

However, Vermigli was forced to leave England when Catholic Mary became Queen. As a Marian exile (English Protestants who fled Europe), he returned to Strasbourg and his former teaching position. Vermigli’s beliefs regarding the Eucharist and predestination clashed with those of leading Lutherans in Strasbourg, so he transferred to Reformed Zürich where he taught until his death in 1562.

Vermigli’s best-known theological contribution was defending the Calvinist doctrine of the Eucharist against Catholics and Lutherans. Contrary to the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, Vermigli did not believe that the bread and wine are changed into Christ’s body and blood. He also disagreed with the Lutheran view that Christ’s body is physically present at the Eucharist. Instead, Vermigli taught that Christ remains in Heaven even though he is offered to those who partake of the Eucharist and received by believers.

Vermigli was the first of the Reformed scholastic theologians, and he influenced later scholastics Theodore Beza and Girolamo Zanchi. His works were highly regarded by New England Puritan theologians such as John Cotton and Cotton Mather.

A Little Humor

Atheist: “Do you honestly believe that Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish?”

Preacher: “I don’t know, sir, but when I get to heaven, I’ll ask him.”

Atheist: “But suppose he isn't in heaven?”

Preacher: “Then you ask him.”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“The most rewarding end of life is to know the life that never ends!”