DIVINE WARNING

“Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, says the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin” (Ezek. 18:30 NKJV).

In our verse, God is giving a message of warning to the Israelites. The message speaks of reckoning, repentance, and ruin.

Reckoning - “I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one of you according to his ways, says the Lord God.” The warning begins by telling Israel that judgment is coming. Three things are said about judgment here. The certainty of it: “I will.” Whenever God says, “I will,” it is absolutely certain to happen. So when God says judgment is coming, it is coming; get ready for it. The crowd for it: “Every one.” No one is exempt. Sooner or later, every person will stand before God to answer for his conduct. Saints will appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ, and sinners will stand before the Great White Throne judgment. The criteria for it: “According to his ways.” Judgment will be according to one’s conduct. And God has all the facts! The Lord Jesus Christ tells us in the Gospels that even our words will be judged (Matt. 12:36 - 37).

Repentance - “Repent, and turn from all your transgressions.” Repentance is necessary to escape condemnation from God at judgment time. Repentance involves confession as turning from evil. It is not just words, but deeds also. There are some folks who are very good at ‘talking’ repentance, but do not do well in ‘walking’ repentance.

Ruin - “So that iniquity will not be your ruin.” Sin makes many promises about gain and glory but only results in ruin instead. Sin is not rewarding but ruinous. “Ruin” is not a successful end of anything. It is not wise to play the fool and continue in sin thinking that you will get away with sin. Sooner or later the result will be a ruined character and ruined for eternity.

(Adapted from Butler's Daily Bible Reading 3)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“Repentance isn’t only sorrow for past sins, it’s also a determination to now do the will of God as He reveals it to us!”

Aiden Wilson (A.W.) Tozer (1897 – 1963)

American Pastor, Theologian and Author

Word Study

Dwelling

In 2 Peter 1:14 we read, “Knowing that the laying aside of my earthly dwelling is imminent, as also our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me” (NASB).

Dwelling is the Greek word skēnōma (σκήνωμα = skay'-no-mah). It means tent, lodging, dwelling place, quarters. In classical Greek skēnōma is generally used in referring to quarters, hut, and tent. In the Septuagint, skēnōma denotes a tent, dwelling, and was used to describe a soldiers’ quarters. In the New Testament skēnōma is used to mean to inhabit or to dwell. The word occurs three times in the New Testament. Stephen used the word in Acts 7:46 for the dwelling place for the Lord that David desired to build. Here Peter used the word figuratively of our earthly body in which the soul is resident. He portrays the physical body as a tent for the true self. At death the earthly dwelling is cast aside.

Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus

Old Testament Prophecy – Messiah would minister to the poor (Zech. 11:7).

New Testament Fulfillment – Matt. 9:35-36

Did You Know…

The Bible states that the Lord Jesus lived a sinless life (Heb. 4:15).

Bible Quiz

What kind of bread was to be eaten at the time of the Passover Celebration?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz: What is the name of the day when the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples? Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4).

Names For God Found in the Bible

“El Roi”

"Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees; for she said, have I also here seen Him who sees me” (Gen.16:13).

1. Meaning – El Roi “The God who sees me” denotes the fact that God is omniscient; He sees and hears us when we hurt and cry.

2. Insights – In context, when Hagar got pregnant, she started despising her mistress and tensions grew. Sarai then begins to mistreat Hagar. The mistreatment was so severe that Hagar fled to the wilderness. While in the wilderness, Hagar found that the eyes of a merciful God had been upon her in all her wanderings and afflictions. She met a God who cares, is concerned, and would look after her. This tells us that we never solve life’s problems by running away. We need to submit to God and trust Him to work things out for our good and His glory

Did You Know...Christian History

William Whiting Borden was born November 1, 1887 in Chicago, IL. He was an American philanthropist and millionaire Christian missionary candidate who died in Egypt before reaching his chosen field, Gansu province in China.

Borden was converted to Christianity in 1894 at the Moody Church under the preaching of R. A. Torrey. From that time prayer and Bible study became hallmarks of his life.

For his high school graduation present, his parents gave 16-year-old Borden a trip around the world. As the young man traveled through Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, he felt a growing burden for the world’s hurting people. He determined to carry the gospel to the most difficult clientele he could imagine, Chinese Muslims. One friend expressed surprise that he was “throwing himself away as a missionary.” In response, Borden wrote two words in the back of his Bible: “No reserves.”

Borden trained at Yale University (accordingly, he is often called Borden of Yale). During his college years, Borden made one entry in his personal journal that defined what his classmates were seeing in him - “Say no to self and yes to Jesus every time.” Further, he did not wait to reach China to begin his missionary work. He started Bible study and prayer groups, while ministering to the oppressed and the disabled. He funded the Yale Hope Mission while still training. Upon graduation from Yale, Borden turned down some high paying job offers. In his Bible, he wrote two more words: “No retreats.”

While at Princeton Borden was ordained, and upon graduating in 1912, he offered himself for the China Inland Mission. Once accepted, he sailed for Cairo, Egypt, proposing to study Arabic in North Africa before going on to his work among China’s Muslims. But in Egypt he contracted cerebrospinal meningitis and died in 1913. This loss of a rich young ruler who had given up all for Christ inspired a multitude of recruits for mission service. Even his wealth effectively advanced his purposes after he was gone, for in his will Borden left almost a million dollars to Christian causes.

Prior to his death, Borden had written two more words in his Bible. Underneath the words “No reserves” and “No retreats,” he had written: “No regrets.” The headstone of Borden reads – “Apart from faith in Christ, there is no explanation of such a life.”

A Little Humor

The Sunday school teacher was asking her students some questions after a series of lessons on God’s omnipotence. She asked, “Is there anything God can’t do?” All was silent. Finally, one boy held up his hand. The teacher, on seeing this, was disappointed that they had missed the point of the lesson. She sighed and asked, “Well, what is it you think God can’t do?” The boy replied, “He can’t please everybody.”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“Don’t wait till the 11th hour to repent - you may die at 10:30!”