Christ was raised from the dead by the

glory of the Father. Rom. 6:4 Going Deeper into God’s Word Issue 20 April 2013

Liv

ing W

ord

Magazin

e

Free Bible St udies f rom Reinhard Bonnke, Danie l Ko lenda, Wesley Chick ,

Edwin Har vey, Derek Wi l l iams, Mathew Bart lett & more!

1

NOW IF WE BE DEAD WITH CHRIST, WE BELIEVE WE SHALL ALSO LIVE WITH HIM: (ROM 6:8)

IN THIS ISSUE

©Photos above Marafilm CoverDanilo Ascione photo Back cover Peter Saharov

In this month’s issue: 2. Victorious Living Reinhard Bonnke (CfaN)

3. Pulling Down the Edifice Edwin & Lillian Harvey (USA)

4. Indescribable Worth Ken Legg (Australia)

5. Does God Have a Plan for My Life (3)? Daniel Kolenda (CfaN)

7. Prophet of the Broken Heart (4) Mathew Bartlett (UK)

10. Why do the Righteous Suffer? Wesley Chick (UK)

13. The Book of Esther (8) Derek Williams (UK)

15. Psalm 40 – Praise & Prayer Mathew Bartlett (UK)

19. In Depth Study – 1 Corinthians 3 (1) Mathew Bartlett (UK)

©Photos above © Photoquest. Cover: © Draguta Left © from top: Filip Emmanuel, Macromega, Godfer, Sebastian Grecu, and David Asch. Back Cover: Michael Rhea

Bible Studies Online International

www.biblestudiesonline.org.uk

2

A Parable Let’s call him John. John had

a two-storey house, with five rooms

on the ground floor and five upstairs.

One day he heard someone knocking

gently on the front door. When John

opened it, it was the Lord Jesus.

“Please come in,” John said, thrilled at

the unexpected visit. “I’ll give you the

best room in the house – it’s upstairs.”

Well, Jesus is a gentleman, said “thank

you” and gladly accepted the

invitation.

The next morning someone hammered

hard on the front door. When John

opened it, who was there? The devil.

“No!” shouted John, “I don’t want you

here.” But the devil grinned, “I’m

already in” – and pushed John aside. A

huge fight started. Satan poured filthy

temptations on John, negative, sinful

thoughts; it was horrible. By the

evening had John somehow gained the

upper hand; he threw the devil out

and closed the door. Still trying to

catch his breath, he said to himself,

“Just a minute. I gave Jesus the best

room in the house. Why didn’t he

come and help me?”

John took his question to Jesus, who

said, “Look, you gave me just one of

your ten rooms.” John saw the

problem, fell to his knees and said,

“Lord Jesus, I can see my mistake.

Please forgive me. Let’s make it

50/50.” Jesus politely accepted his

offer.

The next day was a repeat of the day

before. Somehow the devil got in and

the fight was on again. By the evening

John was totally exhausted and again

wondered, “Why didn’t Jesus come

and help me today? I’ll have to go and

ask him.”

The Lord said, “My child, why don’t

you give me your whole house and

then, instead of me staying with you

as your guest, why don’t you stay with

me?” John broke down. He pulled the

key of the front door from his pocket

and handed it to Jesus. Please be Lord

over my entire life,” he said. Now he

had given Jesus everything.

The next morning, while it was still

dark, someone knocked at the front

door so hard that the whole building

shook. John jumped out of bed

shaking with fright. “Oh no, it’s the

devil again”, he whimpered. Then

suddenly he heard footsteps in the

house. It was Jesus, striding in majesty

and power towards the front door. He

was holding the key. Now it was his

duty to answer the door to callers.

John wondered what would happen

and ran to the door. He was standing

right behind Jesus when the Lord

opened the door wide. Who was it?

The devil, of course. Yet when the

devil saw Jesus standing at the door,

he bowed low, very low indeed, and

said, “Sorry, Sir. I must have knocked

on the wrong door!” And ran off as

fast as he could.

Have you made Jesus Lord over every

part of your life?

Or is he only Lord over some of the

rooms in your house? Some people

have given Jesus nine rooms in the

houses of their life but there is a sign

on the door to room number 10 which

says “Private – No entry”. That room

contains hidden sins, lies, deception,

unclean things that they know Jesus

does not like. In that room, they live a

double life. Those are the very things

that give the devil the right to keep

knocking at our front door and forcing

his way in.

Jesus cannot be deceived. He knows

everything about us. He knows what is

happening in every room in our life –

even in those places that we

studiously try keep from him.

Give him the entire house of your life.

Everything. Every part of it. He wants

to remove all the dirt, clean it up,

make it tidy, put it to rights and, in a

way, open all the windows to let light

and fresh air in.

He wants every part of your life to be

somewhere where he can stay and

feel at ease.

Invite him wholeheartedly to be Lord

over every single part of your life. In

your own words, say something like

this:

“Dear Lord Jesus Christ,

I give you every room, every nook and

cranny in the house of my life.

I willingly give you, as my Lord and

Saviour, EVERTHING!

You know all about my sins,

my situation and my addictions.

I place my trust fully in you, the Son of

the living God.

Cleanse me and make my life a place

where you feel at ease and which

honours you.

I open myself up to your Holy Spirit

and want to follow you

all the days of my life.

I trust you and your good guidance.

Please be Lord over my life!”

That is what I recommend if you want

to live a life of victory! But thanks be

to God! He gives us the victory through

our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:57

Victorious Living by Reinhard Bonnke

3

Pulling Down the Edifice An extract from “Royal Insignia” by Edwin & Lillian Harvey

OUT NOW ON KINDLE! Price $4.22 (FREE to Amazon Prime Members!)

Reproduced by kind permission of Harvey Publishers. www.harveycp.com

The weapons of our warfare are

not carnal, but mighty through

God to the pulling down of strong

holds; Casting down . . . every high

thing that exalteth itself against

the knowledge of God (2 Cor.

10:4,5).

It is astonishing how the same truth

can become the property of Christians

living over a century apart. The very

truth which Madam Guyon, a French

Roman Catholic, brought to our

attention in the previous reading, was

revealed to George Bowen, an

American Presbyterian, many years

later. Surely the same Holy Spirit was

their common Teacher. We quote

from Bowen’s book, Love Revealed:

“Alas for those who are rearing up on

high, storey above storey, a towering

monument, intending, when it is done,

to put the living Stone somewhere at

the top, and so get the whole

transported to Heaven! No, it must

all come down, every stone of it; and

it is to be feared that there will not be

time for you to get it down and a new

foundation laid before the great

earthquake flies rumbling through the

earth, for the cement that you are

using hardens rapidly, and the

stones cling together as though they

naturally belong together; and you are

bestowing so much ornament and

there are so many admirers that you

are every day more and more

fascinated with your own work. Day

by day you become more and more

intensely your own ideal; and the

demolition of a structure so

laboriously reared, so expensively,

seems to your conception like the

crash of an expiring world.

“Then the schools of the world, so far

from fitting their pupils for the school

of Christ, make it less and less possible

that those pupils should ever be

brought to Christ. And here we

discover a very important cause of the

misunderstanding between the

scholars of Christ and other scholars.”

In another portion of his book, the

author asks why it is that Christians

should be hated by the world, when

they are loving in disposition and

always desirous of their fellowman’s

redemption. He then proceeds to

answer his own question:

“Consider this: the mission of

Christians is to take from men

something that is unutterably dear to

them, to reduce them to a condition

that seems to them worse than

slavery, to carry them away into

perpetual exile, to foil them in every

enterprise that they have at heart, in

fact—we may as well say it—to kill

them. Do you start back in horror?

Hear me to the end.

“There is not anything so dear to the

man of this world as the idea of his

own unblamableness. Every day of his

life he has been engaged in rearing, in

his inner thought-world, a lofty

edifice—a tower of Babel—to answer

at once the purpose of a monument in

his own praise, and to enable him,

when the time shall come, to step

from its pinnacle into Heaven. Every

day he has been busy carving to some

answerable shape the stones of his

daily experience. He has diligently, all

his life long, done battle with the

insolent voices of a miscreant

conscience, establishing by successive

victories the difficult fact that he is,

take him for all in all, one whom God

must look down upon with benignity,

if not with admiration.

“You come to him in the name of

Christ for the very purpose of

depriving him of this idea of his own

goodness. Your aim is to do what that

tormenting conscience of his, with all

its advantages of time and place, failed

to do. Do you think that he has fought

with the Goliath of his own conscience

so many times, and so successfully, to

be now discomfited by you? Will he

allow you to be victorious over him

and take from him the idea of his own

integrity in the sight of God, after he

has gone through a thousand fights to

obtain that pearl of price?

“You tell him that he is a mere rebel

against the most high God, that he

has never been anything else, that

all his righteousness’s are

contemptible in the sight of Heaven,

that he deserves the wrath of God,

and you ask him to take this same

view of himself. You ask him to

adjudge himself to be worthy of

everlasting punishment. How easy

was it for him in comparison to

surrender all his worldly substance!

Self- esteem permeates his whole

nature like the fibres of a cancer, and

to bid him part with it is like bidding

him surrender life.”

(c) Olga Naidenova

4

(c) Penywise

Who can calculate the value of a

human being? There is much emphasis

today on self-esteem. Countless

numbers of books have been written

on the subject, and there are a

multitude of courses and seminars

designed to boost a person’s sense of

self-worth.

These courses and sources come up

with a number of ways to help people

feel better about themselves, such as

goal-setting, making positive

affirmations, changing one’s

appearance, blocking negative and

critical influences, etc.

But for Christians the question of our

worth is determined by something far

more powerful than self-talk,

achievements or dressing ourselves up

to look and feel better. God has made

two irrefutable statements about us.

First, He gifted us the highest place in

the universe when He created us in His

own image. As the apex of God’s

creation we were made in such a way

that we could be indwelt by God

Himself and reflect His own moral

image. Then, to top it all, He handed

us dominion over everything on planet

earth.

We know that mankind has responded

to that amazing love in the most

shameful way. Breaking with God in

disobedience, rebellion and defiance,

our sin has brought death, disease and

destruction to us and to our world.

But, incredibly, God’s love towards us

was not diminished by this. It is at this

point, in fact, that He has made His

second loud statement regarding His

esteem for us – redemption.

One of the things which determine the

value of an object is the price that is

paid for it. God paid the highest price

imaginable for us, giving His very best

that we might be redeemed from our

sin and be reconciled to Him. What

amazing love!

Once, when I was preaching in Zambia,

I held up a 50,000 kwacha note. This is

equivalent to around ten Australian

dollars, which is a lot of money for the

average Zambian. I asked, “Who would

like this?” Every hand was immediately

raised. I then wiped it on the floor and

asked, “Who would like it now?”

Without hesitation every hand went

up. I then screwed it up as tightly as I

could in my hand and repeated the

question, “Now who wants it?” Again,

everyone did. Finally, I threw it on the

ground and trampled it under my foot.

I held the sorry looking specimen in

my hand and asked one more time,

“Who wants it now?” Every hand was

up.

I explained that the reason everyone

wanted it is that even though it had

been wiped in the dirt, screwed up

and trampled on, yet none of these

things devalued it whatsoever. I might

have had a brand new, crisp banknote

of the same amount, but I would not

be able to purchase any more

groceries from the supermarket with

that, than I could with my filthy,

battered note.

Dear friend, you may feel dirty,

crumpled and downtrodden, due to

what life has done to you, or even

because of some of the decisions you

have made yourself. But whatever has

happened to you in life is not, in any

way, a true indication of your worth.

The question regarding your real value

was settled on a hill called Calvary,

two thousand years ago. There, your

Creator became your Saviour, and paid

a price that no one else could possibly

have paid for you. Peter said, “…you

were not redeemed with corruptible

things, like silver or gold... but with the

precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb

without blemish and without spot” (1

Pet.1:18-19).

That’s your value. You can show to

the world that you know your true

worth by allowing God’s glory to shine

through you. Paul says, “For you were

bought at a price; therefore glorify

God in your body and in your spirit,

which are God’s” (1 Cor.6:20).

(This article is an excerpt from Ken's

new book Grace Roots)

Order your copy online

PDF AUS $9 Print AUS $19 ($22

outside Australia)

Indescribable Worth by Ken Legg

5

Part 3: Obvious Evidence of

Purpose

In thousands of classrooms all over

the world teachers are

indoctrinating naïve and

impressionable students with the

notion that they are an accident,

the result of millions of years of

random anomalies and lucky

deformities, or that what they do

with their lives is just a matter of

preference and there is no divine

designer who created them. But

the Bible tells us that God designed

us with a purpose in mind. Psalm

139:14 says we have been

“fearfully and wonderfully made.”

It is only in recent years, with

advances in science, that we are

beginning to understand just how

true those words are. Your body is

a mind-blowing feat of engineering

— an unbelievably complex design.

Did you know that your body

employs the aid of more than two

hundred muscles just to take a

single step?

Consider the human eye, the

design of which is so elegant and

complex scientists still don’t fully

understand how it works. It moves

on average one hundred thousand

separate times in a single day;

conducts its own maintenance

work while we sleep; has

automatic aim, focus, and aperture

adjustment; provides color,

stereoscopic 3-D images; and can

function from almost total

darkness to bright light

automatically. It can discern more

than sixteen million color hues,

including seven hundred shades of

grey. In fact, Charles Darwin

himself said, “To suppose that the

eye with all its inimitable

contrivances for adjusting the

focus to different distances, for

admitting different amounts of

light, and for the correction of

spherical and chromatic

aberration, could have been

formed by natural selection,

seems, I freely confess, absurd in

the highest degree.”

Your skin can contain in one square

centimeter: 3,000 sensory cells, 12

heat sensors, 200 pain sensors, 700

sweat glands, 1 yard of blood

vessels, 3 million cells, and 4 yards

of nerves that send messages to

our brains at speeds of up to 200

miles per hour. Your brain weighs

only about 3 pounds yet contains

12 billion cells, each of which is

connected to 10,000 other brain

cells, making 120 trillion

connections. It generates more

electrical impulses in a single day

than all of the world’s telephones

put together yet uses less energy

than a refrigerator light.

The DNA molecules in your body

contain the most densely packed

and elaborately detailed assembly

of information in the known

universe. Their code is so

unbelievably complex that if you

printed out all of your body’s DNA

chemical “letters” in books, it is

estimated that it would create

enough books to fill the Grand

Canyon fifty times!

Of course, I could go on and on and

on citing the wonders of gravity

and magnetism that science still

cannot fully explain, the flawless

rhythm of the solar system, the

perfect balance of nitrogen and

oxygen in earth’s atmosphere that

makes life possible, the amazing

order in nature that forms a self-

supporting system of life,

reproduction, and waste disposal.

Does God Really Have a Plan for My Life?

A Bible Study by Daniel Kolenda (CfaN) Photo: © Sebastian Grecu

6

But is any of this necessary? What

more evidence do we need that

our world has been created with

intelligence and purpose than the

beauty, order, and design we see

around us and within us?

No person who has ever been

created is an accident, a fluke of

nature, the hapless by-product of

the union of a man and a woman,

or the result of millions of years of

unguided mishaps. Every person

who has ever been born is a

unique creation, an intentional

work of art crafted by the hand of

the master artist.

God told Jeremiah, “Before I

formed you in the womb, I knew

you; before you were born I

sanctified you; I ordained you a

prophet to the nations” (Jer. 1:5,

nkjv). God both knew and crafted a

destiny for Jeremiah the prophet

even before his birth. John the

Baptist was filled with the Holy

Spirit and called to be the

forerunner of Jesus even before he

was born (Luke 1:15). Samson was

called to be a great deliverer

before he was conceived in his

mother’s womb (Judg.13:4–5).

Isaiah 46:10 says God declares “the

end from the beginning, and from

ancient times things that are not

yet done” (nkjv). Romans 4:17 says

that God “quickeneth the dead,

and calleth those things which be

not as though they were.” Psalm

139:15–16 says, “You know me

inside and out, you know every

bone in my body; you know exactly

how I was made, bit by bit, how I

was sculpted from nothing into

something. Like an open book, you

watched me grow from conception

to birth; all the stages of my life

were spread out before you, the

days of my life all prepared before

I’d even lived one day” (The

Message).

God called Jeremiah a “prophet”

before he was born. God called

John a “forerunner” before he was

born. God called Samson a

“deliverer” before he was born.

And this is why, even though God

found a trembling, perspiring

coward in the winepress, He called

Gideon “a mighty man of fearless

courage.” God saw inside Gideon

the potential He had created in

him before he was born. While

Gideon was still in his mother’s

womb, God called him a mighty

man of valor, and God never gave

up on that dream for Gideon’s life.

Someone once told me, “I don’t

believe in God.” I said, “That’s

unfortunate, because God believes

in you.” Before you were even

born, before God began to fashion

and form you, before He began to

knit you together in your mother’s

womb, He had a dream for you and

a plan for your life. He had a holy

calling for you to fulfil. Paul told

Timothy that it was God “who hath

saved us, and called us with an

holy calling, not according to our

works, but according to his own

purpose and grace, which was

given us in Christ Jesus before the

world began” (2 Tim. 1:9).

Gideon was full of imperfections,

he was not esteemed highly in the

eyes of other people, and he was a

downright looser in his own eyes.

But God looked at Gideon just as

Michelangelo looked at that

rejected piece of marble. In Gideon

God could see beauty where

everyone else saw only defects. My

friend, you might have been

written off by everyone else. You

might think your life is far too

flawed to ever be something

beautiful. But our God is the

master artist! He sees “an angel” in

the rock of your life, and He wants

to set it free. Throughout your life,

no matter where you go or what

you do, whenever God looks at

you, He sees inside of you the

potential He placed within you,

and He is always calling to that

potential as He called Lazarus out

of the grave, “Come out!” God

wants to take your life from the

junkyard of the devil and turn it

into a masterpiece, a trophy of His

amazing grace and mercy.

Reproduced with kind permission Christ for all Nations.

An extract from Daniel’s

new book- Live before you

die. £9.99 BUY NOW.

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donation to CfaN by

following this link: donate

to CfaN

7

Prophet of the Broken

Heart: The Cry of Hosea

© Littlemacproductions

Extract from our new

book: not yet released!

Chapter 4 God Goes to Court

The illustration drawn from

Hosea’s relationship with Gomer

has now ended. It has served its

purpose and is not mentioned

again. From now on the prophet

reverts to the more usual way of

preaching to the people.

1 The Legal Case Against Israel

4:1-2 Hear the word of the LORD, you

Israelites! For the LORD has a covenant

lawsuit against the people of Israel.

For there is neither faithfulness nor

loyalty in the land, nor do they

acknowledge God. There is only

cursing, lying, murder, stealing, and

adultery. They resort to violence and

bloodshed.

The Lord had a case to bring against

his people, like a legal case being

brought against someone in court.

God is the plaintiff, the judge and the

lawgiver. God accuses His people of

three sins of omission and five of

commission.

Their Sins of Omission

There was no faithfulness to God or

man - you could trust no one. No

loving kindness or mercy shown to

those in need. Worse, there was no

knowledge of God. This was

inexcusable, since God's covenant

people had received the law through

Moses. The Word of God had become

so irrelevant to them that it was

ignored. Many were not even aware of

what the law required. The people

knew little or nothing about God, such

was the extent that false religion had

taken over and become a national way

of life.

Their Sins of Commission

The sins of commission were just as

bad: swearing, lying, killing, stealing

and adultery. There could be no doubt

that God's law had been broken (Ex.

20:13-16). By swearing, the prophet

did not mean the use of bad language,

but rather the taking of false oaths in

the name of God. In modern courts,

this is perjury or lying to a court under

oath. Lying was so commonplace that

one would be shocked to hear a true

word spoken. This was true in every

area of life, in the home, in business,

even in the place of worship.

No one could doubt the clarity of

God's command, "do not kill" (Ex.

20:13), but in the Israel of Hosea's day

murder was common. If a man were

angry at another, he would be ready

to lash out, whether his anger was

reasonable or not. The land was

stained with bloodshed.

Amos had pointed out that the rich

oppressed and took from the poor to

become richer. But the poor were

guilty too; and how could the rulers,

who were dishonest themselves, crack

down on theft? So the increase in

crime was left unchecked. The whole

society was corrupt and selfish.

The religion in which the people were

entangled was one which encouraged

immorality. Sex with prostitutes in the

temples was not so much an

indulgence as an act of worship.

Female prostitutes were on offer for

the men and male prostitutes were

available for the women. In such a

prevailing atmosphere of immorality it

is hardly surprising that adultery was

commonplace. Sin had broken down

the moral fabric of society until an

"anything goes" culture prevailed.

What a vivid picture of our land today!

4:3 Therefore the land will mourn, and

all its inhabitants will perish. The wild

animals, the birds of the sky, and even

the fish in the sea will perish.

Having found Israel guilty, the judge

passes sentence. The law gave clear

penalties for those who broke it.

Among these were droughts, locusts,

loss of livestock. All these were to

come to Israel. The land and the

animals that lived there would be

affected as God meted out judgment

on the people. Even the fish would die,

as God withdrew this food supply from

people's mouths.

4:4-5 Do not let anyone accuse or

contend against anyone else: for my

case is against you priests! You

stumble day and night, and the false

prophets stumble with you; You have

destroyed your own people!

As judgment fell, it was not time to lay

blame on others. All the people were

equally guilty. A similar teaching is

found in the New Testament. Paul says

in Romans 3:23 that ‘all have sinned’

and in Romans 2:1 he says,

‘Therefore you are without excuse,

whoever you are, when you judge

someone else. For on whatever

grounds you judge another, you

condemn yourself, because you who

judge practice the same things.’

8

Believers are warned not to take a

judgmental attitude and apportion

blame to others, whatever the

circumstances (Matt. 7:1-5).

2. The Failure of the Priesthood

The priests were supposed to teach

and instruct the people in the way of

God and lead them by good example

(Malachi 2:7). Instead of this, the

priests had led the people into

idolatry, as had the so-called prophets

who actually spoke in the name of

Baal. Because of this neither priest nor

prophet would be spared. Their entire

families would be wiped out so that

idolatry might be purged from Israel.

4:6 You have destroyed my people by

failing to acknowledge me! Because

you refuse to acknowledge me, I will

reject you as my priests. Because you

reject the law of your God, I will reject

your descendants.

Had the priests instructed the people

in the law and requirements of God,

they would have returned to the Lord

and repented of their sin. As it was,

destruction had come upon them for

lack of this knowledge. Those who

were in possession of the truth and

who could have instructed others

chose rather to reject the truth for a

lie.

This wilful ignorance of what they

knew to be God’s Word made them

even guiltier. God would remove them

from their priestly office. Although the

priesthood was meant to be

hereditary, they had forgotten the law

given them by God. Therefore God

would forget their children, or in other

words, their children would not be

priests either. God would abolish the

priesthood, and it would cease to

function in Israel.

4:7-8 The more the priests increased in

numbers, the more they rebelled

against me. They have turned their

glorious calling into a shameful

disgrace! They feed on the sin offerings

of my people; their appetites long for

their iniquity!

The priests made a lot of money out of

their false religion, and the more they

had, the deeper they sank into sin as a

means of making more money. Their

‘glorious calling’ was to lead many into

righteousness, but instead they had

led many into sin, which would be to

their eternal shame (Dan. 12:2-3).

There is a great responsibility for all

those who, in any capacity, lead others

into sin.

Because idolatrous religion brought

them their income, they had a vested

Interest in the people continuing to

sin. That is why God says, very literally,

that they fed on the sin of his people,

since they ate the sacrifices that were

made to the golden calves.

Tatford says, "There could scarcely be

any greater impropriety than that of

the priest, whose duty was to nurture

the people in the faith, officially

encouraging the transgressions of the

sinner."

Let neither the church nor yet its

ministers be guilty of condoning or of

encouraging others to remain in their

sin.

4:9-10 I will deal with the people and

priests together: I will punish them

both for their ways, and I will repay

them for their deeds. They will eat, but

not be satisfied; they will engage in

prostitution, but not increase in

numbers; because they have

abandoned the LORD by pursuing

other gods.

Both the priests and the people would

be punished together. Although the

priests were guilty of leading the

people into sin, that fact did not

excuse the people of their own

responsibility.

Once again Hosea warns that God's

retribution would involve famine -

they shall eat but not be satisfied. The

worship of Baal supposedly made the

people and the land fertile, but now

the land would be infertile and the

people childless. The blessings, of food

and of children, are bestowed by God.

He would withdraw these blessings

from an unthankful people who no

longer paid any attention to his word.

3. Turning from God to Follow

Demons

4:11-14 Old and new wine take away

the understanding of my people. They

consult their wooden idols, and their

diviner's staff answers with an oracle.

The wind of prostitution blows them

astray; they commit spiritual adultery

against their God. They sacrifice on the

mountaintops, and burn offerings on

the hills; they sacrifice under oak,

poplar, and terebinth, because their

shade is so pleasant. As a result, your

daughters have become cult

prostitutes, and your daughters-in-law

commit adultery! I will not punish your

daughters when they commit

prostitution, nor your daughters-in-law

when they commit adultery. For the

men consort with harlots, they

sacrifice with temple prostitutes. It is

true: "A people that lacks

understanding will come to ruin!"

The people whom God had redeemed

from Egypt, whom he had made his

own, and to whom he had given his

law, saw no form when they received

that law (Deut. 4:1-2). Yet they had

turned their backs on the living and

true God. They no longer sought

guidance from God, but from idols.

They asked their blocks of wood for

help and indeed their blocks of wood

apparently answered them. Kiel tells

9

us how this was done, "Two rods were

held upright and then allowed to fall,

while forms of incantation were being

uttered; and the oracle was inferred

from the way in which they fell."

The Lord accuses the people of

becoming stupid; their continual

indulgence in sexual immorality and

drink had dulled their senses and

robbed them of spiritual discernment

(Eph. 4:18). It also robbed them of

self-respect and respect for the

marriage union. Sin takes its toll on the

mind as well as the body.

Hosea makes plain that it was a spirit

which had led them astray to worship

idols rather than God. The New

Testament confirms this truth. "You

know that you were Gentiles, carried

away to these dumb idols, even as you

were led" (see 1 Cor. 12:2; Eph. 2:2

and 1 John 4:1).

Demon spirits who do the bidding of

their master Satan seek to blind men

and women to the truth and lead

them to an everlasting hell (2 Cor. 4:4).

These spirits also seek to disturb and

distract God's own people and turn

them away from following the truth (1

Tim. 4:1 and 1 John 2:18).

The people of Israel had become

pagans, worshipping the so called gods

of nature and natural forces. Many

such deities were worshipped, known

in plural as Baalim. The reference to

shade illustrates how the people loved

darkness rather than light, because

their deeds were evil.

The union of the men with shrine

prostitutes set an example which was

followed by their wives and daughters.

That is why God says that he will hold

the men, the head of the household,

responsible for the situation.

The tragic conclusion of this statement

is that the people, being devoid of

spiritual understanding, would be

dashed to the ground. There was no

hope for them. Their destruction was

at hand.

4. A Warning Against Compromise

4:15 Although you, O Israel, commit

adultery, do not let Judah become

guilty! Do not journey to Gilgal! Do not

go up to Beth Aven! Do not swear, "As

surely as the LORD lives!"

Here was a warning for Israel's

neighbour Judah, not to follow Israel

in the way of idolatry. The faithful

people of Judah were warned to stay

well away from the places where Israel

kept her pagan shrines. This is a timely

warning for us today. Christians must

keep clear of anything that would lead

us away from Jesus Christ. We must

keep away from places where others

indulge in pagan revelry, for we are

not to associate with those who do

such things (2 Cor. 6:16-17).

A drinking party is no place for a

Christian. The sports team of the local

pub is no place for a Christian.

Certainly the home of those who are

involved in black arts or who are in

touch with demons is no place for a

Christian even to visit. If you do go

there, be warned that the demons will

be able to attack you and you will not

be protected.

Hosea gave this warning because he

knew that the influence on Judah

would lead her astray from God. In

fact, it later did. Christians should

never compromise with sin and

darkness, for eventually, such

compromise will lead them away from

God, back into sin, and ultimately to

hell (2 Peter 2:20-21).

5. Israel Provides an Illustration of

Apostasy

Having known God, the nation of Israel

had turned from him. This was a

national apostasy. Only judgment

could result. The apostate Christian is

one who has known God, but who has

now forsaken him and denies that he

ever knew him. Nothing can await

such a person but judgment (John

15:6).

4:16-19 Israel has rebelled like a

stubborn heifer! Soon the LORD will

put them out to pasture like a lamb in

a broad field! Ephraim has attached

himself to idols; Do not go near him!

They consume their alcohol, then

engage in cult prostitution; they dearly

love their shameful behavior. A

whirlwind has wrapped them in its

wings; they will be brought to shame

because of their idolatrous worship.

The prophet asks, "Should a cow that

is prone to wandering be allowed to

roam freely?" The answer is, of course

not. Freedom and blessing were not

suitable for a nation which, like an

obstinate cow, was stubborn against

God.

Ephraim is another name for Israel.

She was irreparably joined to idols,

and should be left alone to suffer the

consequences of her sin. It is of note

that Judah never fought to defend

Israel. We can only do so much to help

people. After that, we can only leave

them to face the consequences of

their folly.

When the people had finished

drinking, they looked for immorality.

The rulers were among those leading

the way both in drink and immorality.

Because of this, Hosea, in remarkable

picture language, speaks of the

suddenness and violence with which

Israel will be carried away by Assyria,

as being caught up and carried away in

a whirlwind which they are helpless to

resist.

10

Opening remarks: The

book of Job.

Main subject: The

problem of job s affliction. The account begins with a very

prosperous, respected and good

man who was devastated in one

day. He lost everything he had,

including his ten children.

However, he refused to blame God

for his troubles. Later he was

stricken with a terrible disease and

he suffered terrible pain for a long

time. Then, in 3 dialogues, some of

his friends came to comfort him,

but then began to criticise him

along traditional lines of religious

thought. They were certain that all

of these horrible things which

happened to him were due to his

own sin. They simply thought that

all suffering is always the result of

sin. So, if Job would only repent of

his sins all would be well again. Job

knew better. He was sure that he

did not deserve this cruel

punishment, but he could not

understand how God could let this

happen to him. So he thought that

God must be dealing unfairly with

him or there was some other

unknown explanation. He boldly

asked God to allow him to plead

his own case he struggled on with

the confidence that he would

eventually be vindicated. Job never

lost his faith.

Another friend, Elihu, comes to

him and explains that afflictions

sometimes do come from God in

order to purify the righteous and

that this, in no way, indicates that

God is unloving. It is only His way

of calling us back to Him, like a

father chastening his children.

Suffering sometimes instructs us in

righteousness and prevents us

from sinning. He cautioned Job not

to questioned God or accuse him.

He told him to humbly submit

himself to God s will.

Then God spoke. God chose not to

answer any of Job s questions.

Instead, God overwhelmed Job

with a scenic view of His creative

power and divine wisdom. Then

God reprimanded Job s friends for

not understanding the true

meaning of Job’s suffering. Job was

truly humbled and felt foolish.

Finally, God restored to Job twice

what he had before.

There are many lessons to be

learned from this book. The two

main ones being:

Why do the Righteous Suffer? By Wesley Chick Image © Filip Emmanuel

11

1) The power of Satan allowed in

human life.

2) The use of suffering in God s

plans as a means of perfecting

character.

Job.5v17+18: Behold, happy is the

man whom God corrects;

Therefore despise not the

chastening of the Almighty. For he

makes sore and binds up. He

wounds and his hands make

whole.

Job.6v4: For the arrows of the

Almighty are within me, the poison

drinks up my spirit. The terrors of

God set themselves against me.

Job.14v7: For there is hope of a

tree, if it be cut down, that it will

sprout again and that the tender

branch will not cease.

Job.16v12: I was at ease, but he

has broken me asunder. He has

also taken me by my neck and

shaken me to pieces and set me up

for his mark.

Job.23v10: But he knows the way

that I take. When he has tried me, I

shall come forth as gold.

The book of Psalms has been a

great comfort to many Christians

through the centuries. The main

themes are prayer and praise. But

the Psalms cover a great variety of

religious experiences. There are

Messianic Psalms, Psalms about

man, Psalms about the worldly and

the wicked, Psalms about the word

of God, Psalms about His divine

attributes, Psalms about Israel s

experiences and Psalms about

religious experiences. One of these

being concerned with affliction.

These are found in chapters

6;13;22;69;88;102. For example :-

Ps.66v10-11: For you, O God have

proved us: you have tried us, as

silver is tried. You brought us into

the net: you laid affliction on our

loins.

Ps.90v7: For we are consumed by

your anger and by your wroth are

we troubled.

Ps.102v9-10: For I have eaten

ashes like bread and mingled my

drink with weeping. Because of

your indignation and your wroth:

For you have lifted me up and cast

me down.

Ps.119v50: This is my comfort in

my affliction: for your word has

quickened me.

Suffering in the New

Testament Turning to the New Testament we

read in Matt.10v24+25: the disciple

is not above his master, nor the

servant above his lord. It is enough

for the disciple that he be as his

master and the servant as his lord.

If they have called the master of

the house Beelzebub, how much

more shall they call them of his

household?

We see in the gospels, how much

our Lord suffered. So we, as his

followers, should expect it too.

Ro.8v17: And if children, then

heirs; heirs of god and joint heirs

with Christ: If so be that we suffer

with him, that we may be also

glorified together.

Ja.5v10: Take, my brothers, the

prophets, who have spoken in the

name of the Lord, for an example

of suffering, affliction and of

patience.

1 Pe.2v20: For what glory is it, if,

when you be buffeted for your

faults, you shall take it patiently?

But if, when you do well and suffer

for it, you take it patiently, this is

acceptable with God.

We see in this verse, that

afflictions and trials can come

because of some fault of our own.

But if an affliction or trial comes

our way that is not our fault but an

act of the enemy of our souls, if we

endure this patiently it is

acceptable in Gods sight.

Some examples of trials believers

maybe called upon to endure for

our Lords sake.

1) Persecution. Matt.5v11: Blessed

are you, when men shall revile you

and persecute you and shall say all

manner of evil against you falsely,

for my sake.

2) Hatred. Matt.10v22: And you

shall be hated of all men for my

names sake: but he that endures to

the end shall be saved.

3) Loss of life. Matt.10v39: He that

finds his life shall lose it: and he

that loses his life for my sake shall

find it.

4) Suffering. Ac.9v16: For I will

show him what great things he

must suffer for my names sake.

It is a mystery, that suffering and

affliction is sometimes allowed by

12

God as a mark of our heavenly

fathers love.

Dute.8v5: You shall also consider in

your heart, that, as a man chastens

his son, so the Lord your God

chastens you.

Ps.94v12: Blessed is the man

whom you chasten, O Lord and

teaches him out of your law.

Pr.3v11-12: My son despise not

the chastening of the Lord: neither

be weary of his correction. For

whom the Lord loves he corrects:

even as a father the son in whom

he delights.

Afflictions and trials can often be

blessings in disguise.

Ps.119v67: Before I was afflicted I

went astray: but now I have kept

your word.

2 Co.4v17: For our light affliction,

which is but for a moment, works

for us a far more exceeding and

eternal weight of glory.

He.12v11: Now no chastening for

the present seems to be joyful, but

grievous: nevertheless, afterwards

it yields the peaceable fruit of

righteousness to them which are

exercised thereby.

The bible also tells us, that, true

believers will not faint during such

suffering or affliction.

2.Cor.4v1: Therefore, seeing we

have this ministry, as we have

received mercy, we faint not: and

in verse 16 it says: for which cause

we faint not, but though our

outward man perish, yet the

inward man is renewed day by day.

Ep.3v15: Wherefore, I desire that

you faint not at my tribulations for

you, which is for your glory.

He.12v5+6: And you have

forgotten the exhortation which

speaks to you as to children. My

son, despise not the chastening of

the Lord, nor faint when you are

rebuked of him. For whom the

Lord loves, he chastens and

scourges every son whom he

receives.

We also learn from the scriptures

that suffering and affliction can

have a refining effect on the

believer.

Is.48v10: Behold, I have refined

you, but not with silver: I have

chosen you in the furnace of

affliction.

Mal.3v3: And he shall sit as a

refiner and purifier of silver: and

he shall purify the sons of Levi and

purge them as gold and silver, that

they may offer to the Lord an

offering in righteousness.

1.Pet.1v7: That the trial of your

faith, being much more precious

than of gold that perishes, though

it be tried with fire, might be found

unto praise and honour and glory

at the appearing of Jesus Christ.

1.Pe.4v12-13: Beloved, think it not

strange concerning the fiery trial

which is to try you, as though some

strange thing happened to you. But

rejoice, inasmuch as you are part

takers of Christ s sufferings. That

when his glory is revealed, you may

be glad also with exceeding joy.

We see from these scriptures that

the sufferings and afflictions of the

believer are not necessarily the

result of sin. It can be the result of

an attack of the Devil, which, for

reasons we don’t understand and

might even question, God, in his

divine wisdom, allows to come our

way.

Like Job, we must trust God and he

will explain it all in heaven. We

used to sing old chorus years ago.

It will be worth it all when we see

Jesus.

(c) Macromega

13

Mordecai Exalted 8:1-2

8.1. On that same day King Ahasuerus

gave the estate1 of Haman, that

adversary of the Jews, to Queen

Esther. Now Mordecai had come

before the king, for Esther had

revealed how he was related to her.

On the same day that Haman was

hanged King Ahasuerus gave all the

property that belongs to Haman, the

enemy of the Jews, to Queen Esther.

The king summoned Mordecai to

come before him for Esther had told

the king that Mordecai was related to

her and how he had brought her up.

8.2. The king then removed his signet

ring (the very one he had taken back

from Haman) and gave it to Mordecai.

And Esther designated Mordecai to be

in charge of Haman's estate.

The king removed his signet ring which

he had taken back off Haman, and

gave it to Mordecai thus appointing

him in place of Haman as his “Lord

Chancellor” the highest office in his

kingdom. Esther appointed Mordecai

to be in charge of Haman’s estate.

Esther Pleads for her People 8:3-6

8.3. Then Esther again spoke with the

king, falling at his feet. She wept and

begged him for mercy, that he might

nullify the evil of Haman the Agagite

which he had intended against the

Jews.

This however, did not solve the

problem of the decree that had been

sent throughout the king’s dominions

to exterminate the Jews. So Esther

spoke again to the king. Throwing

herself at his feet she pleading with

him to have mercy and repeal the

order that Haman had devised against

the Jews.

8.4. When the king extended to Esther

the gold sceptre, she arose and stood

before the king.

The king again extended the gold

sceptre towards Esther and she arose

and stood before him.

8.5. She said, "If the king is so inclined

and if I have met with his approval and

if the matter is agreeable to the king

and if I am attractive to him, let an

edict be written rescinding those

recorded intentions of Haman the son

of Hammedatha, the Agagite which he

wrote in order to destroy the Jews who

are throughout all the king's provinces.

Esther uses various phrases in her

appeal to the king “If it seems good to

the king”. “If I have found favour in the

sight of the king”. “If it seems the right

thing for the king to do” By so doing

she shows that she is fully submissive

to his authority and beneficence (his

goodness, generosity). She also wisely

vindicates the king of any hand in the

schemes of Haman by asking him to

rescind the decree that Haman had

send throughout all the king’s

provinces to destroy the Jews.

8.6. For how can I watch the calamity

that will befall my people, and how

can I watch the destruction of my

relatives?"

She tells the king that she cannot bear

to stand by and see the catastrophe

that will come upon her people and

her own family slaughtered.

In the King’s Name 8:7-14

8.7. King Ahasuerus replied to Queen

Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, "Look,

I have already given Haman's estate to

Esther, and he has been hanged on the

gallows because he took hostile action

against the Jews.

In verse six Esther had told king

Ahasuerus that she couldn’t bear to

stand by and see her people and

relatives massacred under the degree

that Haman had given in the king’s

name. In response the king reminds

Esther and Mordecai that he has

already given Haman’s estate to Esther

and hanged Haman and therefore will

withhold nothing back from them to

foil the degree as it could not be

altered according the law of the

Medes and Persians.

8.8. Now you write in the king's name

whatever in your opinion is

appropriate concerning the Jews and

seal it with the king's signet ring. Any

decree that is written in the king's

name and sealed with the king's signet

ring cannot be rescinded.

The king gives them authority in his

name to do whatever they think is

The Book of Esther

Chapter Eight: A brief Bible study by Derek Williams.

Photo: © Dreamstime Agency

14

good for the benefit of the Jews and to

set his seal upon it. Whatever is

written in the king’s name and sealed

with his signet ring cannot be altered.

All power and authority have been

given to the Lord Jesus Christ by the

Father (Matthew 28:18). Every

Christian has been given authority in

the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ to

ask anything of God the Father (John

14:13 - 14). It is in His Name that we

are saved (Acts 2:21). It is in His name

that the sick are healed and demons

cast out (Mark 16:17 - 18).

8.9. The king's scribes were quickly

summoned — in the third month (that

is, the month of Sivan), on the twenty-

third day. They wrote out everything

that Mordecai instructed to the Jews

and to the satraps and the governors

and the officials of the provinces all the

way from India to Ethiopia — a

hundred and twenty-seven provinces in

all — to each province in its own script

and to each people in their own

language, and to the Jews according to

their own script and their own

language.

On the 25 June (NLB) the king’s

secretaries were called and a decree

was written exactly as Mordecai

dictated to them. This was sent to all

the Jews, the king’s officers and

governors and nobles throughout the

hundred and twenty-seven provinces

in their own language.

8.10. Mordecai wrote in the name of

King Ahasuerus and sealed it with the

king's signet ring. He then sent letters

by couriers on horses, who rode royal

horses that were very swift.

All these were written in the king’s

name and sealed with his signet ring

thus given the authority to the king’s

official to comply with the order.

These were quickly dispatched by

messengers on swift horses.

8.11 - 12. The king thereby allowed the

Jews who were in every city to

assemble and to stand up for

themselves — to destroy, to kill, and to

annihilate any army of whatever

people or province that should become

their adversaries, including their

women and children, and to confiscate

their property. This was to take place

on a certain day throughout all the

provinces of King Ahasuerus —

namely, on the thirteenth day of the

twelfth month (that is, the month of

Adar).

The order given in the king’s name

allowed the Jews throughout his

dominions to make a stand together

and defend their lives on the day that

Haman had appointed for them to be

annihilated, 7 March the following

year. They were given permission to

kill and wipe out any who attacked

them whatever their nationality.

8.13. A copy of the edict was to be

presented as law throughout each and

every province and made known to all

peoples, so that the Jews might be

prepared on that day to avenge

themselves from their enemies.

A copy of the order was to be issued as

law throughout every province and

made known to all the people so that

the Jews would be ready to take

revenge upon their enemies.

Note: This was not retaliation for the

wrong that had been done to them

but self-defence; it was kill or be killed.

Vengeance is the prerogative, the right

of God (Deuteronomy 32:35, Romans

12:19).

8.14. The couriers who were riding the

royal horses went forth with the king's

edict without delay. And the law was

presented in Susa the citadel as well.

The messengers were given horses

from the royal stables and were sent

out without delay with the king’s

decree. It was also proclaimed

throughout the palace and city of

Shushan.

Great Joy 8:15-17

8.15. Now Mordecai went out from the

king's presence in purple and white

royal attire, with a large golden crown

and a purple linen mantle. The city of

Susa shouted with joy.

Mordecai went from the king’s

presence wearing a royal robe of

purple and white and a great crown of

gold and a garment of fine purple

linen. The city of Shushan celebrated

with great joy over the new decree.

8.16. For the Jews there was radiant

happiness and joyous honor.

The Jews in the city had a new hope

and joy in their hearts and were

honoured throughout the city.

8.17. Throughout every province and

throughout every city where the king's

edict and his law arrived, the Jews

experienced happiness and joy,

banquets and holidays. Many of the

resident peoples pretended to be Jews,

because the fear of the Jews had

overcome them.

As soon as the king’s decree reached

the provinces the Jews in city, town

and village were greatly relieved and

rejoiced. They celebrated by declaring

public holidays and festivals. Many of

the nationals that they dwelt among

became Jews because a fear had come

upon them of what the Jews might do

to them.

There is a greater joy in heaven than

this when a soul is saved (Matthew

15:7) and there is a greater joy to

those who draw from the wells of

salvation (Isaiah 12:3) and rejoice in

the Lord (Habakkuk 3:18).

15

Praise for our past

salvation I waited patiently on the Lord. The

word waited is used twice, and

means to cling on to, to hold on

and come near. It is that seeking of

God which will not let him go

without getting as close to him as

possible, and in this instance it was

that he might meet a need. In

waiting I wait; by clinging I clung to

the Lord, in trust and faith.

He inclined to me means a bending

down and stretching out of the

hand. So God does more than

incline his ear to us; he stretches

out his whole power and

personality to employ himself to

meet our needs.

He heard my hallooing. When I cry

aloud with my voice God will hear

me and draw near to answer me.

2 God stretches down to pull me

up out of the pit of destruction

(horrible), a pit is a low place in the

ground and this pit is the lowest

place of all. God has lifted us up

out of the sticky mud, that which

attaches itself and will not let go.

What a picture of sin which

attaches itself and will not let us

go! Sin does not release those who

practice it (Eccl. 8:8). God has

powerfully acted in Christ to

deliver and cleanse us from our

sins, setting s us free (Rev. 1:7)

Having cleansed us, he set our feet

upon a high and lofty rock an

exalted place. Think of this picture,

out of the lowest pit, to the highest

palace, exalted in Christ Jesus to sit

in heavenly places; no longer a

slave of sin but a son of God. No

longer in darkness, but in

marvellous light; no longer

separated from God by sin but

brought near by Christ’s precious

blood. No longer dead in sin but

alive to God in Christ Jesus our

Lord.

He established my goings means

he has established the way we

take. The steps of a good man are

ordered by the Lord. God has

prepared good works for his

children which he has foreordained

that we should walk in them. He

has anointed us with his Holy Spirit

and sent us forth to preach the

gospel in this name to every

creature, and to be his witnesses

to the ends of the earth. Our steps

are established and so is our

direction: “Go into all the world

and preach the gospel.” He has

given us purpose and direction in

life, and that is it – go in his name!

3 The reason it is a new song is that

we could never sing it before we

were saved. Until a man is

delivered from the pit of

destruction he has no reason to

sing this song. But the most

beautiful birdsong in the world

cannot compare with the song of

the redeemed - it is the song of a

soul set free. It is a song which

even angels can never ever sing.

We sing like happy birds beneath

the mother bird’s wings; fully

secure and satisfied in Christ. I will

satisfy him - my river of delights.

Our song is the hymn of praise to

our God. Ephesians says that we

should be to the praise of his glory.

Christians are exhorted in

Psalm 40

Praise and Prayer

for Salvation Past,

Present and Future

by Mathew Bartlett

Photos: © Kmitu & Godfer

16

numerous ways to sing and praise

the Lord together.

Music and song are tools. It is we

who are to worship and to praise,

and whilst beautiful music is a

help, but it cannot replace the

need for heartfelt worship.

As a result of this praise, many will

observe, be filled with a reverential

awe of God, and trust in the Lord.

Such praise characterised the early

church: (Act 2:47 KJV) ‘Praising

God, and having favour with all the

people. And the Lord added to the

church daily such as should be

saved.’

4 Blessed is the man who makes

the Lord his security or refuge. He

has no regard for the insolent or

those who turn aside; he

repudiates such behaviour. The

word lies can mean idols, or the

love of worldly things which

according to Paul is the equivalent

of idolatry. If I can't abide those

who are disobedient, wilful, or lack

faith, then it shows that I am on

the side of God.

5. God has done abundant

wonderful things, not only in his

creation, but also in securing our

redemption. We could spend many

weeks discovering from the

Scripture what God has done for us

in Christ, and we would still have

the individual testimonies of

millions of Christians to consider.

No wonder they cannot be listed or

counted. They are more than can

be numbered, as it says of the

miracles of Jesus, not even the

whole world could contain the

books which would be written.

Like David we give God thanks for

the salvation we have already

come to know in our experience.

Prophecy of our future

salvation 6 What does God want in return

for his great acts of mercy toward

us? It is not sacrifice, but the

offering of our whole lives.

The Psalm now turns at once into

prophecy, depicting the fulfilment

(and hence abolition) of the

sacrificial law by that act which

abolishes of sin. For all the

sacrifices offered by the law

pointed to the greater and more

perfect sacrifice to come. And

since Christ has offered himself

once, there is no more need for

the offerings according to the law.

The very fact that the offerings

were offered continually under the

Old Testament spoke of their

inability to take away sin, as the

writer to the Hebrews says "If so,

would they not have ceased to be

offered? For the worshippers once

cleansed would have had no more

conscience of sins."

By the offering of the body of Jesus

Christ he has put away sin once

and for all by the sacrifice of

himself. God's will was the taking

away of the one covenant and the

introduction of a new, more

perfect covenant. The New

Covenant is ratified by a person,

Jesus Christ. My ears you have

opened or a body you have

prepared me, both possible

renderings speak of our Saviour.

The Holy Spirit prepared the body

of Jesus to be a holy temple in

which God the Son might become

manifest in human form. This holy

sacred body would remain without

sin and blemish until ultimately it

was offered upon the cross,

Christ's life being the one sufficient

offering for sin for all time.

My ears you have opened indicates

the sense of his not being

rebellious. If someone has ears to

hear it means they are ready at

once to listen and obey. But it also

has another meaning in the Old

Testament. If a servant loved his

master and did not wish to go out

free in the year of Jubilee, then he

could volunteer to become his

master's bond slave for life, bound

by love to his master. If this were

his wish, then he was taken to the

door post of his masters house and

his ear was pierced through with

an awl to the post, one might

consider it to be a picture of Christ

who always loved his father and

did what his father commanded

him, being obedient to death, even

the death of the cross; where not

his ear but his whole body was

nailed to that piece of wood.

7 All that Christ came to do was

foretold in the Old Testament and

fulfilled in the New. From David’s

point of view this salvation was

future. Behold I come, in fulfilment

of all these promises. Jesus is

amen, the faithful and true

witness, the fulfilment of all the

promises of God.

8 Christ passion was his love for

God, his was delight to do the will

of God and keep the law of God.

God's nature, expressed in his law,

was written and impressed upon

17

Christ's heart for he is the image of

the invisible God. Father and Son

share all the same attributes; yet

as a man Christ he kept all the

commands of God perfectly, was

without sin and offered his perfect

life to God on our behalf.

9 Clearly this was God's will, that

the way of righteousness through

faith in Jesus Christ should be

made known to the great

congregation. Notice the method.

It is by the gospel that God's way

of righteousness is proclaimed. We

are called to go into all the world

and announce God's righteousness

or justification by faith.

God’s method is preaching, for it

pleased God through the

foolishness of preaching to save

those who believe. It was to the

great congregation. There is little

point in confining the preaching of

the gospel to a pulpit, although

there are a great deal of advantage

in preaching in a church service,

mainly to do with the amount of

time we have, and the ability to

challenge and counsel souls.

But although God each week brings

the unsaved along to church, there

are thousands more who need to

hear. And so we must go to them

in the highways and byways, in

open air and by tract distribution,

to old people’s homes and by

children’s outreach, personal

testimony and invitation.

10 This good news is not

something we can keep tor

ourselves, it is something to be

shouted from the housetops. Peter

said we cannot BUT speak the

things which we have seen and

heard.

To speak of God's salvation and his

faithfulness to us is a habit of

personal witness that we must

rediscover. It is not mean intruding

where we're not wanted, but so

living with Christ as the centre of

our lives that speaking of him

becomes the natural thing to do,

not forced or stained. Those who

have a gift for personal soul

winning also have winning ways.

I do not excel in it, but feel I must

practise more.

Yet Christ here speaks of the great

congregation, it is through

preaching that we reach the vast

crowds. I admire the ministry of

Open Air Mission, whose motto is

‘the master among the masses’, as

they preach in town centres across

the UK.

At what point does prophecy end

and prayer begin again? Prophecy

and prayer are so linked in the

psalms that it is hard to tell, and

sometimes it is not so important to

know this as to grasp hold of the

truth contained in both the prayer

and the prophecy. Some parts of

the Psalm speak of Christ only, yet

other parts speak firstly of David

and in a greater way of Christ.

Other parts clearly speak of David

himself, but not Christ, such as

here where he confesses his sin to

God.

If the salvation we have

experienced in the past was yet

future for David, we too can see a

future fulfilment of our salvation.

Christ will return again to collect

his purchased possession,

returning to this earth to take us

home to be forever with him. What

a glorious salvation future is yet to

be fulfilled for us, even as this

prophecy was also fulfilled!

Prayer for Present

Salvation Just because we are saved, and are

going to be saved with everlasting

salvation from the very presence of

all evil does not debar us from

crying to God for his help and

mercy in the present. We are in as

much need as other men, and

perhaps more so when it comes to

the troubles of this life. So with

David we pray for present

deliverance.

11 Do not restrict your tender

mercies O Lord, like the flowing of

a mighty river I need all the

compassion and mercy you can

give me, and you can give much.

David's prayer is that God's loving-

kindness would safeguard him

continually. If we only knew the

dangers we face we would be

terrified, but unlike the ostrich

which hides its head in the sand,

Christ hides our souls in the cleft of

the rock. At this very time, and not

only in the future heaven, our lives

are hid with Christ in God.

Not only God’s loving-kindness but

also His truth will safeguard us.

God cannot go back on his word

and this gives us great comfort and

hope, for what he has promised is

great and deeply assuring. He has

promised us eternal life and no one

shall ever snatch us out of his

hand. He has promised I will never

18

leave you nor forsake you, and he

never will.

12 David needs this assurance as

evils too many to be counted had

overtaken and surrounded him.

Once again we can identify with

the sweet singer of Israel on this

point. Our troubles, like his, are as

diverse as they are numerous.

When David prays for his own sins

and failures, we feel a kinship with

him. Temptation seems to strong,

O lord shelter me, from the evil of

my own sin, O Lord rescue me.

David felt too ashamed to look up,

either to look men or god in the

eye because of his own sin, but he

can still pray. Rescue me Lord,

show me I am accepted in the

beloved, forgiven and able to

approach the throne of grace with

freedom and confidence because

of the blood of the Lord Jesus.

My heart fails. My courage is gone.

But strengthen me O Lord. You said

be of good courage, be strong and

very courageous, help me once

again Lord to act in faith and fear

not. Be of good courage, and he

will strengthen your heart.

13 The word pleased means to

satisfy a debt. God didn't owe

David anything and he owes no

man anything, but here David calls

upon God to honour his promise. If

the promise were like a cheque,

David here presents it to God

begging for speedy payment. Make

haste to help and deliver me,

according to your word of promise.

14-15 Here is another evil that

compassed David, those who

sought to destroy his life, not only

his body but his soul as well. They

are malevolent, for they wish him

evil. Let them be driven backward

and put to shame, let them be

confounded, unable to achieve

their aims against me, let them be

desolate. What David is saying is

let them get what they deserve.

They were looking to catch David

in things he said and did just as

they sought to trap our Lord in

Matthew 23, to take away his life.

16-17 The psalmist wishes blessing

to be the portion of all who trust in

the Lord. May all who seek you be

glad and rejoice in you. Rejoice in

the Lord always and again I say

rejoice. Those who have

experienced salvation say

continually, the Lord be magnified

or praised. I am poor and needy,

but the Lord thinks on me, do not

delay your help O Lord!

Just as we have praised God for

past deliverance, and trusted his

promise of future deliverance, so

as we cry out to God we can expect

his present deliverance, God will

not delay a moment longer than

necessary. AMEN

Praise the Lord!

Psalm 40:3

He gave me reason to sing a new song, praising our God.

19

Chapter 3 Growing in Christ (Part 1)

Stunted Growth

3:1-2 So, brothers and sisters, I

could not speak to you as spiritual

people, but instead as people of the

flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you

milk, not solid food, for you were

not yet ready. In fact, you are still

not ready.

Although in 2:15 Paul had described

the Corinthians as spiritual,

meaning that they were born of the

Spirit, he realized that they were far

being mature in their spiritual

behaviour. So in this chapter he

further highlights the problem of

spiritual immaturity in the

Corinthian church.

Young converts to Christ are like

new born babies (1 Pet. 2:2). None

of us would expect a baby to eat

meat, or behave like an adult. The

child must grow and develop into

adulthood, and growth is a slow but

sure process. When the church in

Corinth began, Paul gave the new

converts simple instruction in the

Christian faith, teaching them what

was suitable for their stage of

spiritual growth. He had ‘breast-fed

them with milk’.

By the time of writing, Paul had

expected them to have reached

maturity, but he found to be them

still behaving like infants. Their

spiritual growth had been stunted;

their lives revealed that they had

made very little progress

in the Christian faith. The same

problem was observed by the writer

to the Hebrew Christians:

For though by this time you ought

to be teachers, you need someone

to teach you again the first

principles of the oracles of God; and

you have come to need milk and

not solid food (Heb. 5:12 NKJVTM

).

The reason many Christians remain

spiritual babies when they should

be maturing in God is that they lack

certain essentials to growth, namely

desire and commitment. If any man

or woman will determine today to

commit themselves fully to God and

to seek Him with all their hearts

then their progress in their

relationship with God will soon be

evident to all (1 Tim. 4:15).

3:3 For you are still carnal. For

where there are envy, strife, and

divisions among you, are you not

carnal and behaving like mere men?

(NKJVTM

)

The Corinthians’ predisposition to

envy and bickering was more

characteristic of unconverted men

than of the servants of Jesus Christ.

These characteristics had become

prominent because they had not

allowed Christ to take full control of

their lives. Paul was compelled to

describe them as carnal, for they

had allowed the old nature have its

way and not Christ. The word

translated carnal (sarkikos) is a

different word to the one used

earlier in 1 Corinthians 2:14 for

natural man (psuchikos); for

whereas the former means a person

characterized by the deeds of the

flesh, the latter it indicates a person

without the spiritual nature of

Christ. Paul did not doubt that the

Corinthian believers had been

genuinely converted, and that

Christ lived in them, but he was

intensely disappointed to find the

deeds of the old nature still

dominant in their lives. Paul asks a

searching question: ‘how is it that

you are still behaving like men of

the world?’

Our behaviour is a very important

element of our Christian witness

and testimony. As believers we

must always allow the Lord to take

command of every area of our lives.

For the jealousy and quarrelling

which characterised the Corinthians

we might easily substitute any of

the other works of the flesh listed in

Galatians 5:19-21. If as a Christian

you want to know how you are

growing in the Lord, ask yourself

some probing questions:

What am I still doing which I did

before I knew the Lord?

Do I react in the same way to

upsets, offenses and disagreements

now as I did then, or has there been

a change in my attitude?

Our In Depth Study. 1 Corinthians 3:1-15 By Mathew Bartlett Photo © Godfer

Scripture taken from the NET Bible®.

20

Are there any areas of my life which

I still have not surrendered to

Christ’s absolute control?

We need to allow the Holy Spirit to

regularly examine our behaviour

and attitudes in the light of His

Word, and learn to submit to his

teaching so that we might

practically become renewed in the

spirit of our minds (Rom. 12:2).

3:4 For whenever someone says, "I

am with Paul," or "I am with

Apollos," are you not merely

human?

The believers at Corinth had

permitted discord to grow in

Corinth which had resulted in the

church being divided into at least

two main groups - those who

followed Paul and those who

followed Apollos, although there

were other smaller parties as well

(see 1 Cor. 1:11-12). By implication

from verse three, it was jealousy

which had led to this division. Paul

argues that this type of conduct

belongs to the spirit of the times, or

the wisdom of this world; and that

it makes evident the worldliness of

the Corinthians. This behaviour was

inappropriate for those who were in

Christ, and conflicted with the real

meaning of the Gospel.

God's Fellow Workers

3:5 What is Apollos, really? Or what

is Paul? Servants through whom you

came to believe, and each of us in

the ministry the Lord gave us.

In order to make clear why such

factions are wrong, Paul reminds

the believers that God Himself had

saved them all alike through the

Gospel of His only Son; and that just

as this Gospel was not the product

of man’s wisdom, so also it is not

augmented by the talents of men.

Paul and Apollos were messengers

who proclaimed the good news of

salvation in Christ. The prominence

which the Corinthians gave to these

messengers disclosed their low

opinion of God. It was God, not the

messengers whom they had to

thank for the salvation of their

souls.

Paul emphasizes the lowly position

and relative unimportance of God’s

messengers, referring to himself

and Apollos as servants, a word

which denotes a lowly servant, or

an attendant. The same word is

often translated deacons and was

used to denote those who served

the church in practical ways. It is

true that God has ordained that

men should hear the good news

from other men, who since they are

saved themselves are qualified to

share the news. But the substance

of the glorious message, and its

power to change lives, came from

neither Paul nor Apollos, but from

God.

3:6 I planted, Apollos watered, but

God caused it to grow.

As Paul commenced his work in

Corinth, he became the first ever to

proclaim the Gospel in that city. As

a result of his preaching, a number

of people were saved and the

church began to grow. When Paul

left them to carry on his traveling

ministry, Apollos arrived and by his

teaching helped the new converts

to develop in their Christian faith. In

this way the church was built up.

Paul compares his and Apollos'

work in the Gospel with the work of

farm labourers. Paul had initially

sowed the seed of the Gospel

among the Corinthians, and Apollos

had subsequently watered the new

converts by spiritual instruction so

that they might mature and grow.

Two men working in the same field

will be aware that whilst one of

them may sow the seed and

another may water the crops, only

God can produce the harvest.

Christian workers today should be

aware of their limitations, as Paul

was. Whether we proclaim Christ to

those who have never heard, or

build on the hard work of former

generations of missionaries, we can

neither save nor grow a soul. That is

God's work, and whilst we are

fellow-workers with Him, we must

take care of our side of the work,

for we can never take over his side!

3:7 So neither the one who plants

counts for anything, nor the one

who waters, but God who causes

the growth.

Evidently the most important

person in the cultivating process is

God, and it is the same in the

matter of the Gospel. Next to His

work, Paul and Apollos’ work

appears somewhat insignificant, for

it is neither the evangelist nor the

pastor but Christ alone who can

claim the honor for saving the souls

of men (Rev. 7:10) and of building

His own Church (Matt. 16:18).

3:8 The one who plants and the one

who waters work as one, but each

will receive his reward according to

his work.

Paul and Apollos did not see each

other not as competitors but as

team mates. They worked together

to accomplish the same purpose

and would respectively receive their

due reward from their heavenly

master. Christian workers will not

be rewarded on the basis of

apparent success, but for faithfully

doing whatever job God has given

them. In agriculture, the harvesters

may bring in the wheat, but unless

the soil had first been ploughed, the

21

seed sown, the field weeded, and

the crops watered, there would be

no wheat for them to harvest.

Everyone has their own work to do,

and the work of each one depends

on the work of all the others. For

this reason the harvester should not

expect to receive more wages than

the sower. Everyone will be

rewarded for doing their own work,

and this adds a sense of equality

and fairness in the master’s

treatment of all His faithful workers.

3:9 We are co-workers belonging to

God. You are God's field, God's

building.

The church never did belong to

Paul, Apollos or any other minister.

Paul contends with those engaged

in the power struggle at Corinth,

stating that ‘we are working with

God for your benefit - nevertheless

you are God's’. Whether we think of

the Church as a field being

cultivated or as a building under

construction, ultimately God is the

One cultivating and building it. The

Church is God's and He will not

share it with another. He has

delegated many tasks to His

labourers for His Church’s benefit,

but He remains the owner; just as

many labourers worked in Boaz's

field in Bethlehem and he paid

them wages, but both the field and

the harvest remained wholly Boaz’s

property.

The Foundation and the Building

3:10 According to the grace of God

given to me, like a skilled master-

builder I laid a foundation, but

someone else builds on it. And each

one must be careful how he builds.

Paul always recognised that God

had enabled him by His grace to do

all the work He had called him to

do. We can be assured that

whenever God calls us to a task, He

likewise equips us to do it. It should

be observed that this equipment is

entirely supernatural and finds its

source in the grace of God. Like a

capable master builder, Paul had

laid the foundation of the church in

Corinth. Others were now building

on this foundation by working in the

church. Paul did not consider

himself superior to those currently

labouring in Corinth; yet, by the

grace of God, he was in a position

to exhort them to be careful how

they built

3:11 For no one can lay any

foundation other than what is being

laid, which is Jesus Christ.

The basis of our salvation has been

laid by God – it is Jesus Christ

Himself. This foundation has been

laid once and forever (Isa. 28:16) by

Christ’s atoning death and

resurrection; which whilst it only

occurred once remains effectual for

all believers throughout all time and

eternity.

When Paul said in 3:10 I laid a

foundation he meant that he was

the first to preach the Gospel in

Corinth; and so a local church began

as a result of his ministry. Yet the

church, both in its local and

universal context, began and

continues to exist solely because of

Christ. Jesus said I will build my

church and the gates of hell shall

not prevail against it (Matt. 16:18).

Christ is the only foundation and let

no one think they can lay another.

We cannot enter into a right

relationship with God through any

other means than by faith in Jesus

Christ. Any so called Christian work

or preaching which does not have

Jesus Christ at its centre is an

attempt to lay another foundation

and such building will not stand the

test of time.

3:12 If anyone builds on the

foundation with gold, silver,

precious stones, wood, hay, or

straw.

Despite the fact that there is only

one foundation, men may build on

it in various ways. The emphasis in

this verse is placed on the quality

and cost of the materials used in

building. If any servant of Christ

wants to build on this foundation

something that will last for eternity,

then they must use the sort of

materials that will cost the effort of

the servant’s whole heart and life,

for only those who build in this way

will receive an eternal reward.

Another servant may decide to use

materials that cost him or her less,

half-heartedly serving the Lord and

not committing the whole of their

time, effort and resources to the

work of God. But a structure built in

this way will not last for eternity

and so will not yield an eternal

reward.

A ministry built on cash might

impress the world, but only the

ministry built on commitment and

conspicuous by its sacrifice will

obtain Christ’s approval. In the day

of reckoning, Christ will not ask His

servants how well they preached, or

how large were the crowds they

drew by their fame or personalities.

He will ask only if we gave our lives

completely to Him in utter

surrender and devotion. It was not

the miracle-working apostles who

were commended by Christ, but a

woman who poured on His feet the

perfume which had cost her life’s

savings (John 12:3). It was not the

wealthy donors who poured their

great riches into the temple

treasury, but a poor widow who

gave to God all she had who won

our Lord’s attention (Luke 21:3-4).

22

At the end of John's Gospel, the

reader is given privileged admission

to a private discussion which Christ

had with Peter after His

resurrection. Walking along the

shores of Galilee, the Master did

not ask him ‘how big a church can

you plant on the day of Pentecost?’

but instead do you love me? (John

21:17)

Are we prepared to take up our

cross and follow the Lord Jesus

Christ with our whole hearts? Is our

service for the Lord identified by

entire surrender to His will, and the

sacrifice of all we hold dear? Or do

we make our service for Christ fit

into our own schedule? We can only

truly build for God if we give the

Lord what costs us everything - our

time, our talents, and our money.

Shall we deny ourselves for the sake

of Christ's work, or shall we offer to

Him who gave His all for us

something which costs us little?

3:13 Each builder's work will be

plainly seen, for the Day will make it

clear, because it will be revealed by

fire. And the fire will test what kind

of work each has done.

On a future day, the work of each

servant of God will come under the

personal inspection of Jesus Christ,

who knows the hearts of all men

(John 2:25). When He comes again,

to receive His own in the clouds (1

Thess. 4:17), every believer shall

stand before Him as He delivers His

own appraisal of our lives and of

the service we have given Him. This

event is called in 1 Corinthians 5:10

the judgment [bema] seat of Christ.

For all of us must appear before the

judgment seat of Christ, so that

each may receive recompense for

what has been done in the body,

whether good or evil (2 Cor. 5:10).

This judgment seat, or ‘bema’, was

not the place where Supreme Court

judges passed verdict on prisoners,

but the place where the

adjudicators of the Olympic Games

gave honours to the victorious.

When Christians appear before the

bema seat of Christ it will be a time

of great celebration! This is not a

place where we shall be judged for

our sin, for that judgment has

already fallen on our blessed

Saviour at Calvary. Instead, at the

‘bema seat’, we will receive the

reward of living victoriously for

Jesus Christ in this world.

Many who are honoured in the

public eye now will not be as

honoured by Christ in that day; for

He means to scrutinize men’s hearts

and motives, not examine their CV

or reputation. It is possible for

someone to lead a successful

ministry without suffering or

sacrificing for Jesus' sake, but such

people will not find themselves

among the most highly honoured in

that day. Many others, of whom we

have never heard, will be honoured

by God, who knows their hearts,

and sees that they were willing to

part with all and suffer loss for

Christ’s sake. To be revealed [tried]

by fire is to have the true quality of

one's work tested and approved.

Only two kinds of building material

are described: the enduring type,

i.e. gold, silver and precious stones;

and the perishable type: wood, hay

and stubble. Only the former will

endure the fire, that is to say, be

satisfactory to the Master when

placed under His scrutiny. Christians

should be aware that only work

done for God in God's way will meet

with Christ's approval on the day

when He tests every person's

motive. A life wholly committed to

the Lord will gain us praise and

honor, the sign of His pleasure,

when Christ comes again.

3:14-15 If what someone has built

survives, he will receive a reward. If

someone's work is burned up, he

will suffer loss. He himself will be

saved, but only as through fire.

Only believers will stand before the

bema seat of Christ, and whilst

those who have done well shall be

honoured, those who have not

done well shall not be disowned.

True, they shall miss an opportunity

to win His approval on that day,

which is of great worth, and even

though this is a very serious matter;

at no time is their souls’ salvation at

stake, for that question has been

settled at the cross. Believers do

not go to heaven because of their

good works, but through faith in

Christ; but only those believers who

have done well shall receive the

praise they deserve in front of the

whole Church.

Some have inferred from these

verses that their position in heaven

itself will be determined by what

happens at the Bema seat, that the

rewards and losses represent

degrees of rack in heaven. But as

Blomberg so pertinently observes,

‘doubtless all will have varying

degrees of praise and blame from

Christ on Judgment Day, but

nothing in this passage even

remotely suggests that such

differing responses are somehow

perpetuated throughout all

eternity.’ A note for my fellow

pastors: if Christ deals with His

church in this way, then so should

we. Praise your people loudly,

brother, but blame them only

softly. The Pentecostal Bible

Commentary: 1 Corinthians by

Mathew Bartlett (paperback £6.99)

Buy now for Kindle!

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Contact Us Editor: Mathew Bartlett

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