Trying times are upon us, my dear readers – and, like everyone else, I am seeking the answers. The words that ring in my mind these days, are the words from Numbers 16: “And the plague was stopped”- and even though I know very well the Hebrew word, רַצָע atsar (“stopped”), that is used here, I was still blessed to read in my Bible program the list of all the possible biblical meanings of this word: 1) to restrain, retain, close up, shut, withhold, refrain, stay, detain 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to restrain, halt, stop 1a2) to retain 1b) (Niphal) to be restrained, be stayed, be under restraint”. To restrain, retain, close up, shut, withhold, refrain – that is exactly what we need today isn’t it? But how did it happen then? How was the plague stopped? Let us study this chapter together, and try to understand exactly what God says to us today. C.S. Lewis wrote: suffering is God’s “megaphone to rouse a deaf world”. If so, undoubtedly God is speaking very loudly these days – so let us try to understand what it is that He is saying to us. Before we move to the book of Numbers, I would like to share some thoughts. I do need to issue a very stern warning though: this is not a prophecy! For me personally, it was a powerful revelation and that’s why I would like to share it with you, but there is no way I would pretend to know the “ultimate truth”. Like you, I have more questions than answers, but I just want to bring your attention to two obvious facts. The first one is the “when” of the plague – the timing. Coronavirus is happening right before Passover (this year, Passover starts on April 8th ) – exactly at the time when the plagues in Egypt were happening. Are we witnessing a second Passover? In our previous, before-Corona, life (that feels so remote to us now, although it was only a few weeks ago), we were very aware of – and alarmed by – the growing anti Semitism in the world. Might it be that the God of Israel is standing behind His people? Might it be that He is using this plague in order “to rouse a deaf world” and to shake off from it the hatred of His people? Of course, there is coronavirus here in Israel as well, and our lives here have become as scary and surreal as everywhere else: empty streets, closed stores, crowds of masked people waiting before the entrance to supermarkets etc.; yet the approaching Passover makes me think, again and again, about the Egyptian plagues: did the people of Egypt realize that it was all about the Hebrews—that they were key to that story? Jewish people are always the key to God’s plan and God’s heart – and I can’t help but think that somehow, Israel is one of the keys to unlocking today’s story. But once again, this is not a prophecy, I may well be wrong – I am simply sharing my personal thoughts and my personal feelings with you. Even more significant – and less obvious – is a second factor that I would like to bring to your attention: the “where” of the plague. If we consider which countries were hit the hardest (outside China), we realize that this topography may not be by chance and may well have to do with the attitude of these countries – in the past or in the present – towards His people. Trust me, the suffering of the simple people in these countries seems as unfair and as incomprehensible to me as it seems to you – but these are the sad but true facts, and I am just trying to decipher God’s message through these facts. Once again, I may l be wrong. Once again, my heart goes out to all the suffering, whatever country they are from – and like you (and like Abraham in the Bible), I am asking God how can it be that innocent people are suffering and dying because of the sins of the others. But the numbers are soaring – and these are the facts and not just my personal thoughts. Between the Dead and the Living And now, let’s open Numbers 16. I suppose, most of you know the story of Korah and his rebellion – how “they rose up before Moses with some of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation, representatives of the congregation, men of renown” [1]. You probably remember “that the ground split apart under them, and the earth … swallowed them up” [2]. What I find very interesting in this chapter, though, is the fact that it’s not right after the Korah rebellion that the plague began: as a punishment for this rebellion, just 250 people, along with their households, were swallowed up by the earth – and the story seemed to be finished. But it was on the next day, when “all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You have killed the people of the LORD,” that the “wrath has gone out from the LORD” and “the plague has begun.” . What made God so angry? There is no better commentary on Scripture than Scripture itself, so in search of an explanation, let us consider another well-known story: when Moses saw the people sinning with the golden calf, his “anger became hot” [3] and he broke the tablets that God gave to him. We know that not only did God not rebuke him for doing so, but He Himself was so angry that He wanted to destroy the people! The obvious conclusion: God is angry when something that is not His, is called by His name. And that’s exactly what happens in the story from Numbers: when the Israelites call those people who rebelled against Moses (and by doing so rebelled against the God of Moses), “people of the Lord,” – “wrath has gone out from the LORD. The plague has begun.” [4] 14,700 people died from this plague (almost like the death toll in the world now – at the time of writing this post it’s 13,071). But how was the plague stopped? We read that Aaron put fire and incense in his censer and “ran into the midst of the assembly … and made atonement for the people.” [5]. – and here is the key verse that I’ve kept hearing in my head ever since it all began: “And he stood between the dead and the living; so the plague was stopped.” [6] Friends, I am not making any conclusions here – it is not my place, after all. I do want to know, however, how the plague can be stopped. Let us think together and seek the answers together; I invite you to share here your comments and your thoughts. Maybe, together we will understand how the plague was stopped. [1] Num.16:2 [2] Num.16:31-32 [3] Exodus 32:19 [4] Num.16:46 [5] Num.16:46-47 [6] Num.16:48

When it comes to God’s Will, we can quickly become suspended between over-confidence and confusion. Basic life questions such as: “Do I take this job? Pursue this career change? Move to this city? Marry this person? Get involved in this ministry or that activity? and so on…”, demand an answer—a biblical road map. As Christians, we know that God’s will is provided in the Bible and is ultimately revealed for His glory, but how does one flesh this out in everyday life? How do we find and know we are walking in God’s Will? Finding God’s Will mini-series explores the sometimes fleeting and oscillating path one navigates in order to find and determine God’s will for their life. As we get started, it is important to give credit to John MacArthur and his handling of this topic HERE. This mini-series has adapted some of his content, and has benefited from his work on the topic. Let’s begin by looking back in time in order to glean truth’s from an ancient follower of God. What we find in Ezra 7:10 is that, “…Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel. That’s it… Ezra’s heart was: SET (on God), he STUDIED (God’s Word), he PRACTICED (God’s Word), and he TAUGHT (God’s Word). The fact is we need practical biblical guidance to navigate life, and the four elements expressed in Ezra’s life provide a general template for Finding God’s Will today. Let’s begin… Part 1 – SET Before Ezra began to study, live, or teach God’s Word and live out God’s will his heart was set on God. What does it mean to have a heart set on God? 1. Saved • The reality for every human being is that we’re born with an insatiable desire to define right and wrong, as well as a burning passion to justify our actions, thoughts, and words. It starts with food, moves to toys, and then goes to money and another person’s spouse. In essence, we’re born wanting to be god, and when we fail we justify our mistakes. • The problem is…this is a problem. See also all of human history. Humans cannot get out of this predicament. The sad reality is that this predicament separates us from our holy and perfectly righteous Creator. • Thus, left to us…we’re lost with no hope. We simply cannot rescue ourselves from this position. We’ve tried. We’ve failed. We need someone else to step in and save us from ourselves. We need someone to make us right with the One who created us. We need something or someone outside of us that has lived our life perfectly, and then offers His life in exchange for our life. • Enter Jesus Christ. He is the second person in the Triune God-head who died in our place to assume upon Himself the consequences of our sin. In essence, He is our only hope of being rescued. • The person who believes this for themselves has moved from being lost to being found…from disregarded to saved. • 2 Peter 3:9 – God’s will…man’s salvation…John 6:44 • Matthew 18:11 – Christ came to save the lost…goes after one lost sheep • 1 Timothy 2:4 – Desires men to be saved • Mark 3:34-35 – God’s family…saved • The first aspect of finding God’s will is having a heart set on God. The first step in having a heart that set on God is becoming a child of God and being saved from eternal separation from God. • The incredible thing is…God calls you to this…come home! 2. Sanctified • God did not merely save us to set us aside for future display in heaven. No, no. He saved us to then conform us to His Image (Romans 8:29). • In essence, biblical sanctification is the daily revealing of our great need (which brings humility), and the daily revealing of God’s great solution (which brings gratitude). • The human that is being sanctified walks in humble gratitude. They are not characterized by pretension, fear, grumbling, insecurity, jealously, etc. No, no, they are characterized by confession and understanding, grace and mercy, love and peace, and humility and gratitude. • 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8…they are vessels of honor • Abstain from sex sin – Protect marriage bed (Hebrews 13:4) • Control body – Your body is to honor God (2 Corinthians 7:1) • Don’t act like pagans – Not to be guided by impulses and glands (physical) • Don’t defraud a brother – Not to take advantage of mentally/physically • Thus, the second aspect of finding God’s will by having a heart set on Him is viewing all of life’s circumstances as God’s means of sanctifying us (making us look more life Christ) through humbling us and teaching us a heart of gratitude, as well as God’s gift for us to example Him to a lost and dying world in need of salvation. 3. Surrendered • A heart set on God is saved, is being sanctified, and is surrendered. To be surrendered means to give up the battle. You can’t win. You throw in the towel…you raise the white flag…you stop trying to accomplish God’s work for Him in your own strength. • In other words, you are no longer dependent upon yourself for God’s work to occur, but on prayer. You recognize that taking up your cross means dying to your desires, and placing the good of others in your sphere of influence above your own. You say no (and walk in confession when you stumble) to the flesh and besetting sins, and instead have a faraway gaze to heaven. • You also recognize that God will one day bring to light all the deeds done in the body (whether good or bad) and will judge our lives and distribute rewards to you based upon how you live this life–there is an echo. • Luke 9:23 – Take up the cross • Matthew 6:19 – Treasures are in Heaven • 2 Corinthians 5:10 – Bema seat judgment for Christians • Thus, a heart set on God is saved, is being sanctified, and is surrendered to God. That is to say, his time, treasures, and talents are placed on the altar and declared to be God's...to be used according to His pleasure. STUDY. There is something about the word–study–that makes us cringe, or at least pause. Often when we think of study, we think of an exam. “There must be a test if I’m to study,” we often assume. What if we changed the notion of study to something different? What if we said, to study simply means to explore? Remember when you were a kid, and you had so many questions? Kids ask a lot of questions, because they’re subconsciously forming their schema for life. As a result, they’re studying exploring–many things by asking questions, gaining knowledge, and ultimately making decisions. Now, when it comes to God’s will, what if our study was more an exploration of God’s Word? This is the treasure map to God’s heart. It’s the roadmap to walking in step and in fellowship with Him. Experience, intuition, education, and insight simply are not sufficient to understand what God desires. We have to explore or study the place where He has already revealed His will–the Bible. But, how many times do we have closed Bibles on our desks, and instead rely upon experience, intuition, education, and insight to guide our lives? There’s certainly a place for each of these, but they’re not primary. As such, many people today have plenty of Bibles in their homes, but there are not the hours each day to show their exploration of God’s Word. How can we ever expect to know God’s will for our lives if were not willing to explore what He has already revealed? God’s Word is not a cryptic and antiquated document–as many so-called educated and enlightened people in our world would have us think. God gave His Word through centuries of history and living and facts. He has documented for us how He has moved in and through humanity and the ages. God’s Word is where Ezra went to find direction for his life, and it’s the same place for us today. The questions are: What is your soul-thirst? Are you walking in step with God? Are you willing to sacrifice your time, treasure, and talents to explore God’s Word to find God’s will for your life? • What is your soul-thirst? • Consider David in the Psalms: • Psalm 42:1-2 – Deer to stream…Soul to God/Soul thirsts for God…living God • Psalm 63:1 – Earnestly seek God…soul thirsts/in a dry and weary land • Psalm 107:9 – God satisfies a longing soul • Psalm 119:81 – Soul longs for His salvation… “I hope in Your Word” • Psalm 143:6 – Stretched out hands…soul longs for God • If God’s Word is not your source of life to understand God’s will, then you are probably looking at God’s Word more as a picture and not a window. Ask Him to change your vision for His Word. • Are you walking in step with God? • Consider the proximity of your life as it relates to your time, treasure, and talents invested in the things of God. Look at your daily calendar. Where do you spend most of your days? Take an inventory of what you are spending your money on. Who or what is getting the majority? Consider your spiritual gift(s). Do you know what they are? Are you investing them in the body of Christ for its edification and equipping? • Consider the following passages: • 1 Corinthians 12:13 – All who turn to Christ in faith are baptized into one Spirit…you are one with the body of Christ through faith. You are therefore loved and sacrificed for by Christ. You are positionally as close as you could ever be. However, if you are grieving and quenching the Spirit, then you’re walking as far away from fellowship as you could ever be. God won’t let His children stay there long. • Ephesians 5:17-18 – When Paul talks about not being drunk, what he is saying is, “don’t let yourself try to induce a more open experience with the deities through a mind-altering substance–which is what the pagans believe in his day would happen through drunkenness.” The real question is, “Is God enough?” If so, then be filled by Him, not mind altering substances. God’s Word is what fills you. Thus, let the pain of life be what it is, and know that God has not left you, but instead is more near to you–because of Christ. • Consider Peter’s life and times of proximity and separation from Christ: • Matthew 14 – Walks on water…Trust/Near…Lack Trust/Fall • Matthew 16 – Says who Christ is…God revealed • John 18:10 – Cuts off guard’s ear…near Christ • John 18:27 – Denies Christ… • Acts 2:14 – Peter brought back into fold and used by God… • Are you willing to sacrifice your time, treasure, and talents to explore God’s Word to find God’s will for your life? • Consider Paul’s charge to present our bodies as living sacrifices… • Romans 12:1 – a sacrifice is used in worship. Is your life a life of sacrifice to study and the exploration of God’s Word? • The response to God’s Word is like Josiah’s of old in 2 Kings 22:8-11… • The king in an instant realized God’s Word was now going to be their guide, and his response was utter humility and subsequent submission. Many of us have become lackadaisical or even indifferent to the study and exploration of God’s Word. How would we ever know God’s Will if so? Study is the rocky path…the path of sacrifice…the path of being confronted with our sin and need…but the good path that leads to life and understanding of God’s will. May we be people of the Book… May we endeavor to explore God’s Word everyday… May we trust that it is sufficient for our understanding of God’s will for our lives… for the one bringing forth in you both the desire and the effort—for the sake of his good pleasure—is God.“ Philippians 2:12 PRACTICE Submission: For the Lord’s sake…not men! For many, submission is not only hard, but near impossible. Why? Because most of us like control. However, such struggles present not only disappointment, but bitterness. So, how can submission help in finding God’s will? 1 Peter 2:13-15 “Be subject to every human institution for the Lord’s sake, whether to a king as supreme or to governors as those he commissions to punish wrongdoers and praise those who do good. For God wants you to silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing good.“ People are watching you…evaluating what you do…whom do you obey? Want to silence those around you? Obey the law of the land unless it contradicts Scripture…Acts 4 & 5 Ephesians 5 – Husbands and wives submit to one another in the realm of marriage. As a result, Women…want to be a godly wife…? Learn to submit…to God…to authorities…to your husband… Men…want to be a godly husband…? Learn to submit…to God…to authorities… Rebellious spirit…? A maverick, lone ranger, captain-of-his-own-ship type person will struggle with finding God’s will for his life, because he won’t let go of the steering wheel…and he doesn’t know the directions (scary combination). Suffering: Godly = Persecuted Raise your hand if you like pain…! The vast majority of us do not. So, when we face pain, we often find ourselves doing everything to get out of it or to alleviate it. That may not be best. Sometimes pain is keeping us in God’s will…sometimes it’s guiding us to God’s will…sometimes it’s teaching us to simply accept and trust. • 1 Peter 3:17 “For it is better to suffer for doing good, if God wills it, than for doing evil.” o God’s will…to suffer for what is right • 1 Peter 4:19 “So then let those who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator as they do good.” o Those who suffer according to the will of God…entrust their souls to faithful Creator • 1 Peter 5:10 “And, after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory in Christ will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” o In suffering, Christ: perfects…confirms…strengthens and establishes You! o Suffering is part of the maturing of believers… • 1 Peter 1:6-7 “This brings you great joy, although you may have to suffer for a short time in various trials. Such trials show the proven character of your faith, which is much more valuable than gold—gold that is tested by fire, even though it is passing away—and will bring praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” o Sucker branches are cut off…put through the refiner’s fire • 2 Timothy 3:12 “Now in fact all who want to live godly lives in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” o Live a godly life = suffer persecution Saying Thanks: Glass 1⁄2 full…rest! Sad to say, but some people go through life with their glass half-empty. Some of that is personality, some upbringing, and some choice. In any case, there is another alternative. We are not victims. God has said that in Him, we are new creations. Not renovated, but new. That means… the old has passed away! Can I get an amen?! WE can choose an attitude of gratitude. That is needed everyday. How and why? • Psalm 46:10 “He says, “Stop your striving and recognize that I am God. I will be exalted over the nations! I will be exalted over the earth!” o Be still and know that God is fighting your battles. God is in control. • 1 Thessalonians 5:18 “…in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” o In all things…give thanks…this is God’s will! • Philippians 4:6-7 “Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” o This means that I’m to be anxious…in nothing…but…in everything…with thanksgiving…pray. We’ve seen that in finding God’s will we need a (1) heart set on Him, (2) a commitment to the study of God’s Word, and now (3) a life committed to practicing what we know to be God’s revealed will in His word…submission, suffering, and saying thanks! God help us!

The Question of Free Will Why would a perfect God create us with free-will? Surely He would have known we would turn our wills against Him. Wouldn’t it have been easier to make us to be obedient and unquestioning? And in Genesis 1:31, how could God say (about the creation of man) that it was not just “good” like he said on the other five days of creation, but “very good”, knowing how that free-will would manifest itself throughout history? When my wife and I were expecting our daughter, we actually prayed that God would give us a strong-willed child. Man, did He ever answer that prayer! That sounds insane, because strong-willed children challenge everything, from an early age. Early on, we concluded she would grow up to become a hostage negotiator! But we prayed that prayer for a reason. We knew it would be a challenge to raise a strong-willed child. But we also knew that if we, by God’s grace, could get her pointed in the right direction, we would not have to worry about her. If she went in a particular direction, it would be her choice, her commitment, her conviction. She would not have to depend upon ours. The point is, that free-will is absolutely necessary for commitment and conviction, and even more so, for love, grace, and mercy. In fact all of the spiritual fruit listed in Galatians 5, are acts of free-will, a free-will that has willfully submitted itself to God’s will, and is intentionally living out the imago dei. Without the freedom to reject God, you could not truly love Him any more than your lawn mower can love you. Love is an act of free-will! He created us for a relationship with Himself, an intimate, loving relationship in which we freely choose to love Him, because He first loved us. Not out of compulsion, guilt or manipulation, but out of gratitude for the love He sheds into our lives continually. So free-will was an absolute necessity, despite its messiness and risks. It was the only way to achieve what God was after. He knew the risks, nay the inevitability, and He was prepared to deal with it before time began. One might assume that it was maybe through some weakness in God that He was unable to make me obedient, that God is not as all-powerful as He claims to be. But let’s think about it. Yes, it would take a mighty God to create “perfect” humans that never did anything wrong. Even with all of our technology and science we cannot create perfect machines that never fail, much less “autonomous” ones that make decisions for themselves. Surely that would be an impressive feat of power and might! That would surely be worthy of glory – at least from our perspective. But God had something far more glorious in mind. He wants us to choose to love Him, not out of compulsion, but because we feel that is in our own best interest. Does it not take far more strength for God to woo me back to Himself than it would to force me to be obedient in the first place? The way He made me requires that He, at some point, convince me that living for Him is in my best interest. Then, and only then, is it my decision, not His or anyone else’s. Every believing parent looks for the day when they know their child is living in her own faith, not that of her parents. Does it not take an amazingly awesome God to win me back through loving mercy and grace rather than by means of intimidation? Free-will is also a pre-requisite for creativity, another part of the imago dei. Without free-will, our repertoire of possible solutions to challenges would be limited to that which was pre-programmed into us from the beginning. And our response to any challenges would be mechanical and instinctive. But how is free-will consistent with God’s sovereignty? In his book, “Chosen by God”, R.C. Sproule addresses the apparent conflict between mankind’s free-will and God’s sovereignty. He concludes that the two are compatible, because of God’s eternal nature and His ability to arrange the circumstances of our lives in a way that convinces us that a particular course of action would be in our own best interest. While some may look at this as a form of divine manipulation, I prefer to see it differently. God loves me so much, that He will move Heaven and Earth to help me see my need for Him and His love for me! He so wants me to “not perish” that He goes to great lengths to convince me. One word that Sproule uses as he talks about how we make decisions is interesting. He doesn’t say we make decisions based upon what we think to be in our own best interest at the time. He says we make decisions based upon what we feel to be in our own best interest at the time. There is an important difference. If we made decisions based upon what we think, probably not many people would ever smoke, over-eat, speed, etc. We have so much information available to us that none of these choices should really make any sense. Statistically, they all put us in danger and are shown to decrease the quality (and quantity) of life. The data are very clear, so it is not really logical to choose doing any of these things. So why do we do them anyway? Research has clearly demonstrated that no matter how much we know about potential consequences and risks, when it come down to making decisions of all types, it comes down to what is emotionally appealing to us at the moment. Somehow that over-rides any logical conclusions we have come to previously. If we perceive some temporal emotional gratification from a particular choice, we will ultimately find some rationalization to make that choice. Rationalization is one of mankind’s strongest faculties, right up there with denial. And they both are useful because it allows us to set aside the cold, hard facts and make the choice that gives us the most immediate sense of gratification. It takes great discipline and intentionality to overcome that tendency, and a willingness to delay gratification for some future greater good. It takes conviction! And conviction is the result of your values, what you really believe in your deepest being, that determines who you are. True, many of us have personal or corporate value statements that are pretty lofty. But if you really want to know what you or someone else really believes deep down, who we, or they, really are, look at the actions. Jesus says it this way. Matthew 7:15-20 - 15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.” So the issue becomes how do I make my “personal values” match my “public values” so that the choices I make reflect what I really want to become? The Apostle Paul speaks of this struggle. Romans 7:14-25 - 14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18 For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. 21 So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! This ties into the story of Adam and Eve. They both knew what was the “right” thing to do, but a thought was planted in their minds that just maybe they were missing something really good. As they continued to ponder the thought (or meditate on it) it grew bigger in their minds and hearts until they were able to rationalize deviating from the proper course in hope of gaining that so-called “greater good”. And that is why it’s so important to be careful what I let into my head, but become intentionally disciplined about how I think about things. I need to not dwell on things that may look good or feel good for a moment, but have negative consequences. Instead I need to diligently fill my mind with truth, and meditate on that, so that it sinks down into the deepest parts of me and becomes part of my true values. And that is how I build conviction. It’s all about building an accurate world-view! I believe that is why Paul admonishes us to be intentionally and proactively mindful of our thoughts. Philippians 4:8 - Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Free-will is also part of the imago dei. God is the ultimate in free-will. No one does, or ever could control His thoughts and actions. God does what God wills! While we are the imago dei, we only imperfectly reflect that attribute. There is probably no one on earth or in history, except Christ, who perfectly exercises free will. And even Christ said He only did what the Father willed. In most cases, what we call free-will is choosing the lesser of two perceived evils, especially when free-will is only practiced in reaction to our circumstances. We approach perfect free-will more closely when we are intentional and proactive in our lives. But even then, our choices are strongly influenced by perceived immediate threats and opportunities. So when God created us with free will, He determined that He would not force His will upon us in regard to His relationship with us. He knew that would not allow us to love Him as He desires. Instead, He allows us adequate room to express that love in our own way, and in our own time. He lovingly draws us to Himself. Jeremiah 31:3 - The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness. The old adage that “you can draw more flies with honey than with vinegar” also applies in our case. God knew we would more likely respond out of gratitude than out of fear, and that the response would be to enter into deeper relationship. Fear never deepens a relationship; it builds walls that hinder relationship. His loving kindness includes mercy (not getting what we deserve) and grace (getting what we could never deserve). If all He had done was to die on the cross so our sins could be forgiven, that mercy would have been more than enough. But He goes far beyond and pours grace into our lives continually through the power of His Holy Spirit. He fills our lives with good things that we in no way could deserve as a way to show His delight in us and as an invitation into deeper fellowship with Him. He delights to give good gifts to His children, just as any good father would (Matthew 7:11, Luke 11:13). He desires that we, in gratitude, would enter into the delight with which those gifts are given. They are an invitation into deeper relationship. When we, of our own free-will respond in gratitude, we are blessed because our greatest relational need is being fulfilled. As we draw nearer to Him, we see that His motivation is love, and we are changed. We learn how to love others with the same unconditional love that He showers upon us. Then we begin to understand a bit of the blessing He receives as well. And our free-will seeks to follow His will. God’s mercy and grace are not limited to those who are obedient. Matthew 5:45b - … For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. (NASB) 1 Peter 3:18 - For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; (KJV) If it were limited to the obedient, we would all be without hope. Our free-will, more often than not, results in bad decisions, decisions made from wrong motivations. James 1:14-15 - But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. Such decisions almost always have negative consequences, not just for us, but for others as well. In spite of Hs mercy and grace, God generally lets us experience the negative consequences of bad decisions, not because He can’t prevent them, but because He, like any good parent, realizes that we learn more from what we experience than what we are told. Like a loving parent, He sometimes mitigates the severity of those consequences, when the consequence would prove too severe. But rarely does He eliminate them altogether. And when He does mitigate the circumstances, He often does so at a dear cost to Himself, the ultimate example being His death on the cross. But despite our bad decisions, God never withdraws His love. He never rescinds His invitation into deeper relationship. In fact, many times He uses the consequences to hem us in, so we are more likely to see Him waiting for us at the mouth of the box canyon into which we have fallen. We are still free to practice self-sufficiency, trying to climb out on our own, or making the box canyon our new home. He stands at the mouth of the canyon waiting for us to tire of our way and take Him up on His invitation to join Him on the hike to higher ground. God continually places growth opportunities in our paths. He knows that growth only comes when we are stretched beyond that to which we have become accustomed. Many of the “challenges” of life are opportunities to climb out of our box and flex muscles we have used little or not at all. It is when facing such challenges that we must decide whether we indeed climb out of the box, or just pull the lid down and hide. Even when we climb from the box, we still face decisions about how we will respond to the challenge. There are fundamentally two categories of choices we face that start with the decision to either move towards God, or to move away from Him. There are generally a limited number of responses that will result in growth towards godliness, but many more that compromise what ground we have already gained. Fortunately, He does not leave us to ourselves to figure out which is which. His word is rich in wisdom, and for those that yield to Him, he sends His Holy Spirit to live inside of their spirits to teach not just their minds, but also their hearts. God’s unconditional and unwavering love for us frees us from many self-defeating choices. If we accept His unwavering love and acceptance, we escape the self condemnation that so often defeats us on our journey to becoming what He created us to be. If I recognize that nothing I do will make Him love me any less, there will be no reason to beat up on myself when I do fail because I will recognize that He already knew I was going to, but He still chose to love and accept me. He sends conviction my way, but never condemnation. Romans 8:1 - Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus… Before Christ climbed upon the cross, He knew every horrible thing I was going to think, say, or do. But He still chose to die for me. His free-will is so strong that not even I, or anyone else can convince Him to quit loving me. He cannot be disappointed in me, because disappointment implies that He expected me to do something different than I did. But He already knew what I was going to do, and He took that to the cross along with all my other sins – so it’s covered! Self-condemnation keeps me focused on the sin. Accepting His unconditional love keeps me focused on His loving mercy and grace, and deepens my relationship with Him. I am free to chose which path I take! And as my relationship with Him grows, it changes me; I want to draw even closer. And because it is my “want” that ultimately drives my decisions, my decisions will naturally grow to be more in line with His will, what He wants for me.

1 SAMUEL 17:1-47 INTRODUCTION Sometimes just one thing being wrong can mess up everything else. In 1 Samuel 17, Israel had a problem, and his name was Goliath. Today, we have a problem: it is the culture’s spiritual disconnection from a holy God. We are experiencing the aches and pains of this disconnect as we witness unrest related to race, police and community, COVID-19 and other forms of present-day calamity and strife. Reviewing the battle of David and Goliath, we can learn a spiritual principle that can apply to us now. Perhaps instead of us getting one thing wrong, we can get one thing right, and in doing so, identify the cause and the cure of what is really ailing us. Standing nine feet and nine inches tall, Goliath led the powerful Philistine army. When Goliath showed up, he controlled the atmosphere because he was so big and looked undefeatable. Victory seemed impossible. Often, the big problems in our lives look undefeatable. Goliath created fear, and Israel was much afraid because he challenged and taunted them with the threat of defeat. It seemed as if this giant, Goliath, would not go away. In our lives, it is often the same. The giants that taunt us simply won’t leave us, making victory seem impossible. This results in fear and doubt instead of confidence and calm. When a shepherd boy named David enters the scene, he sees that Goliath is intimidating God’s people and sees God’s people running away (v. 24). “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine,” he asked in verse 26. David shows he has the right perspective because he recognized that Goliath had not been circumcised and, therefore, was not under the covenant of God. A covenant is a divinely created relational bond. You must be in a relationship under God’s rule. Right now, we have uncovered people in uncovered families, in uncovered churches, in an uncovered nation. To be “covenantally” covered, you must be in alignment with God. David was dealing with a physical problem but recognized the spiritual issue. Even as a Christian, you may be on your way to heaven, but living uncovered without heaven’s help on Earth because you are not relationally pursuing Him while simultaneously operating underneath His covenant rule. You are spiritually disconnected if you are putting the physical ahead of the spiritual. To be spiritually connected, you have to operate according to God’s prescribed methodology. When Saul, king of Israel, tried to give David his uniform for battle, David said he only knew how to use what God gave him. He was committed to using the right methodology. The Bible gives precepts and principles that allow for different methods to be used. David illustrated the appropriate use of this principle in his approach to Goliath. David approached the Philistine, which is an offensive position. Christians should not be living in defense. Jesus says you have overcome the world. In verse 43, we see Goliath is insulted that David would approach Him, and the Philistine cursed David by his gods, making it a spiritual battle. David let Goliath know that he was coming to him in the name of the Lord, the God of the armies of Israel, whom Goliath taunted. David handed the challenging situation off to God to handle because he was first operating covenantally, bibliocentrically, and spiritually. David proclaimed that he was coming to Goliath in the name of God and under His authority. Unfortunately, there are many people who are illegitimately using God’s name. God has a name for every situation, and there are over 85 in the Old Testament alone. David also came to Goliath in the name of God’s army. God has a spiritual army with a host of angels whom He can summon in a minute and turn things around at the drop of a dime. When you operate spiritually connected, you have the blessing of being covered by God and His army of angels. God’s blessings flow to those who are connected to Him. While Goliaths in our lives will come, we need to address the Goliaths in our lives spiritually, knowing that the Goliaths in our lives can and will fall. GETTING STARTED 1. Discuss with your group the cause of the problems we see today. 2. After hearing this week’s sermon, what stands out to you most? LET’S GET PERSONAL 1. What is your Goliath? What is that person, thing, or situation you thought was undefeatable? Discuss with your group. 2. Do you have the right perspective when encountering difficult people or difficult circumstances? Can you see the spiritual side, instead of just seeing the physical? Discuss this with your group. 3. Is your natural tendency to run from difficult people or circumstances? Or do you readily approach them? TAKE THE NEXT STEP 1. Think about a time in your life when you were not in relationship under God’s rule. Discuss with your group what you did to get into alignment so that you were covenantally covered under God’s authority. 2. To encourage each other in your group, discuss how you have been able to put the spiritual ahead of the physical when facing your Goliaths. What are some of the methods God gave you to use? 3. Want to go deeper? Take a look at the following passages: Romans 3:4; John 16:33; and Ephesians 6:10-18. RENEW YOUR MIND “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

"Christianity and Culture" John 4:1-42 The Samaritan woman from John 4 gives us a basis for what it looks like to navigate racial, ethnic and cultural differences. In protest to a racial norm, Jesus Christ -- while maintaining his own racial history and heritage -- obeyed the will of God by traveling to Samaria to offer help to a woman in spiritual need. Jesus offered spiritual guidance and simultaneously dealt with an illegitimate representation of God that was held by both the Jews and Samaritans. God has not left us uninformed or ill-equipped about what He says regarding race, ethnicity and culture. Historically and culturally, it was unacceptable for Jews to pass through Samaria because of racial differences. Jesus protested this commonly held belief by traveling from Judea to Galilee through Samaria rather than going around it. By doing so, we see Jesus is more committed to God's will than the will of His own racial identity. In addition to the challenge of cultural views, Jesus had another reason to go through Samaria: He was to meet a woman at a well who needed significant monument. In contrast, our spiritual enemy, Satan, wants to cause division and strife by highlighting how we differ. Jesus is calling believers to seek opportunities for unity (common ground) as a starting point for bringing God's viewpoint and purpose forth in society. If you are a serious follower of Jesus Christ, your faith must always win. The Samaritan woman was surprised to meet Jesus and immediately called out the fact that Jesus was willing to talk to her. Not only that, but He was also willing to put His Jewish lips on her Samaritan cup. Jesus did not give up His own racial history or heritage to relate to someone different than Himself. He also did not let His racial history or heritage get in the way of His Father's will. As a result, Jesus was able to disarm the woman by showing humanity in a way that a typical Jewish man would not. Believers cannot attempt to talk to the sous of people while skipping their humanity. At the same time, we cannot hold humanity above our commitment to God and His purposes. To do so is to make humanity (race, ethnicity or culture) an idol, which is a sin against God. Jesus masterfully took the social and turned it into the spiritual. His willingness to drink from the Samaritan woman's physical cup provided a transition for His desire to offer her living water (vv. 10-14) from His spiritual cup. During their conversation, she revealed her understanding of God based on her background and historical context. Jesus corrected her illegitimate view of God because He understood the importance of having a correct view of God. To worship God, we must worship Him in truth and in a biblically accurate way. The current cultural climate might suggest that some people who love God can waiver in their commitment to Him when racial challenges reveal differences in philosophy. Jesus shows us the opposite. Jesus' encounter with the woman at the well gives us the model for dealing with tough issues - love people and remain obedient to God. Getting Started How do worldly conversations about race and culture compare and contrast to the same conversion inside of the church? Are Christians prepared to have the difficult conversations needed in current times? Based on this week's message, what is one takeaway you think the church needs to understand in order to have productive conversations across cultural dividing lines? Let's Get Personal Reflect on this point from the notes, "our spiritual enemy, Satan, wants to cause division and strife by highlighting how we differ. Jesus is calling believers to seek opportunities for unity . . . ." Are you personally more focused on differences or common ground? Share an example from your life that illustrates your answer. What does obedience to God look like for you based on this week's message? People who love God cannot talk to people's souls without caring about their humanity. As you engage with people, are you balanced in your approach? Are you so heavenly-minded, but not much earthly good? Do you address issues with people, but often not deal with the most important thing -- the salvation and sanctification of souls? Or instead, do you address humanity seeking to meet needs? Take the Next Step Have you wavered in your commitment to God during the global troubles of the last few months? What has been the most shaking for you? What questions have arisen in your head or heart as a result? Did this week's sermon help strengthen your faith? Why or why not? Have you been able to unwaveringly stand in your faith despite the tumultuous times we are living in? What has enables you to do so? What encouragement can you share with another person in your group that might help strengthen them? Take a moment to pray for each other in your group. Ask God to strengthen your faith in Him and to guide you as you seek to honor Him with your obedience. Want to go deeper? Take a look at the following passages: Romas 3:4; Exodus 21:16; Revelation 5:9; 7:9; Galatians 2:11, 20. Renew Your Mind "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." John 4:24 The Samaritan woman from John 4 gives us a basis for what it looks like to navigate racial, ethnic and cultural differences. www.ocbf.org

"The Anointing" 1 John 2:20-27 Introduction The Anointing is the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer. It enables the believer to understand, apply, and administer spiritual truth. Simply put, the presence of The Anointing enables believers to have a spiritual connection. The Holy Spirit indwells us and allows us to connect to the spiritual realm so that we can receive and understand spiritual data as it is transferred from heaven to earth. The spiritual receptivity that comes as a result of The Anointing allows us to maintain fellowship with God because of the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Anointing allows us to discern truth from error. It is a detector that allows us to know right from wrong. The book of 1 Joh was addressed to Christians in danger of being susceptible to wrong information from false teachers. John wanted believers to know that they had The Anointing because of the presence of the Holy Spirit. While The Anointing provided by the Spirit of God. The presence of the Holy Spirit cancels the need for adopting a secular, non-Christian worldview that leaves God out as the beginning of all wisdom. The Anointing gibes us everything we need to progress through life and gives access to God's divine wisdom. Wisdom starts with the fear of God. The presence of the Holy Spirit is the always-on-and-available connection to God that we need for living. The Anointing also equips us for Christian service because it enables us to minster to others. Just like prophets, priests and kings were anointed in the Old Testament to serve God's purposes in history, the anointing provided by the Holy Spirit gives believers the ability to do what we were created to do for His glory. The Anointing requires intimate fellowship with God through the practice of abiding. In order to pick up the signals available in the spiritual realm, you've got to be close in contact with God. Walking in the fullness of what The Anointing provides also requires conformity to the truth. What you hear, you must obey. If the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, He will not operate in an environment where there is no truth at work. If you are operating in a lie - worldly wisdom that does not agree with God's truth -- then The Anointing won't kick in for you. Enjoying the fullness of the Spirit's anointing also requires living in love. In other words, you cannot be against your brother illegitimately and be hurting the body of Christ, and expect to fully experience God. Getting Started Prior to this week's sermon, how would you have defined the anointing? How did your definition of the anointing differ, if at all, from the explanation provided in this week's message? What new truth about the Holy Spirit did this sermon teach you? Let's Get Personal In what area(s) of your life are you needing the Spirit's anointing manifested? Can you think of a time when you relied more on the wisdom of the world instead of the spiritual insight available to you from the anointing of the Holy Spirit? Would you describe yourself as "spiritually connected?" Why or why not? Take the Next Step Operating in the anointing of the Holy Spirit involves abiding, living in light of God's truth, and loving others. What do you need to do differently to activate the work of the Holy Spirit in your life? Abiding in our relationship with God is paramount to our full experience of the Holy Spirit. Take some time to share how you abide in the Word and with the Lord. In doing so, the members of your group can help each other discover the variety of ways you each go about staying connected to God and experiencing the anointing of the Spirit. Want to go deeper? Take a look at the following passages: 1Corinthians 2:9-16; Isaiah 61:1; Luke 4:18-19; 24:27-35; John 14:17; 15:7; 2 Kings 6:14-17; Psalm 119:18; Acts 10:38. Renew Your Mind "Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him." 1 Corinthians 2:9 The anointing of the Holy Spirit enables the believer to minster with God's power. It allows us to discern the truth from error. www.ocbf.org

Introduction God wants to see people look like Jesus. With this end in mind, He allows us to go through circumstances within His providential will so that we might be conformed into the likeness of Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. Often, the difficult experiences and tough seasons that God’s children go through cause them to groan with discomfort. However, these experiences often help transform them into the image of Jesus. Not only do God’s children groan when life is tough, so does God’s creation. Natural disasters are examples of creation groaning. But groaning does not always have negative result, for instance, the discomfort in childbirth results in something good – a new life. Much like the groans of a woman in labor, the Christian’s groans are the sounds of bad pain in a good situation. The lament has a purpose. If you look at the world and only see suffering, you are missing the beauty of birth, the spiritual and theological viewpoint of tough seasons and the purpose in the pain. In Romans 8:18, Paul speaks about the oppressive suffering and trials of life and, in verse 22, he lets us know that these times are a part of the natural order of things. In verse 23, Paul says even we ourselves groan within ourselves. In the midst of this groaning however, the Holy Spirit is present as a helper and a comforter. When life causes us to groan, The Holy Spirit has a responsibility to help when you are collapsing in your soul. In our seasons of difficulty, we are never alone; The Holy Spirit loves you enough to intervene in your circumstances. His purpose of intervention is to prompt you and refocus you to an eternal spiritual perspective. If you will allow the challenges in your life to turn you to God, you can experience a spiritual shift. God often allows reminders in our lives in the form of suffering to bring us to a new spiritual perspective. If we don’t allow the groanings to recalibrate our outlook, then we will not experience the benefit of the Intercessor, which is the work of the Holy Spirit joining us in our pain, problem and groans. Having the mindset of the Spirit when life is burdensome means that you now have divine spiritual help (Rom 8:6). Even the most spiritual of people can get weak, cry out and feel as if they are on the verge of quitting (2 Cor 1:8). The good news is that you have Someone – The Holy Spirit – praying with you and for you when you can’t even pray for yourself. God hears these prayers and acts according to His will (1 John 5:14) as the Holy Spirit knows God’s will and is able to interpret your prayers based on your audible and inaudible groans. Providence is the way in which God intercedes within His laws to stitch things together to get to His sovereign goal. When we groan, we should groan knowing that the Spirit is helping to conform us to the will of God because God providentially arranges things (Rom 8:28). The truth of Romans 8:28 is for “those who love God.” This means you should still have a genuine love for God when life hurts and you can be confident that God is working things out for your good and His glory. God’s ultimate purpose is to conform us to the likeness of His Son (Rom 8:29). As He uses circumstances outside of you to conform you, transformation will happen from the inside out. Getting Started 1. What does it mean for creation to groan for God? What are examples of the earth’s yearning? Based on your understanding of the sermon, what is the earth yearning for? 2. In what specific way(s) have you seen creation and people in the world groaning during 2020? Let’s Get Personal 1. What oppressions and trials have specifically challenged you this year? Have you allowed those challenges to conform you? If so, share the changes you have noticed in your spiritual life this year. If not, share why you think transformative work hasn’t occurred. 2. If you only look at the hardship of life and don’t see the blessings, you don’t have a spiritual perspective. What pain have you experienced in your past for which you now have a heavenly view? What blessing in hindsight and time has given you the ability to see? 3. What current circumstances in your life are causing you to groan. Has this week’s message given you a different perspective or challenged you to look for the purpose in your pain? Share takeaways from the message with your group. Take the Next Step 1. To navigate the hard parts of life with the right perspective, we have to have Christ’s mindset. What can you do this week to develop this mindset? 2. Take a moment to be intentional about choosing your perspective. Think about how the Holy Spirit has already been at work in your life helping you. What are you grateful for as it relates to His love and care in your life? 3. The Bible says, “In the world you have tribulation” (John 16:33). This means all of us will have moments where we experience things in life we don’t enjoy. But you don’t have to navigate these seasons alone! Jesus is interceding on your behalf, but others can, too. What can you do to stay connected and be authentic so that you can experience community, belonging and receive covering by others in prayer? 4. Want to dig deeper? Take a look at the following passages: Romans 7; 8:6; 1 Corinthians 2:10-16; 2 Corinthians 1:8; Hebrews 7:25; Isaiah 29:13; 1 John 5:14; Job 23; and James 4:5. Renew Your Mind “When He has put me to the test, I will come out as gold.” Job 23:10

The term Beatitudes means 'The Blessings' or 'be- attitudes', as in the attitudes we should live by or be. These character traits, when observed by others within an individual's life, can clearly indicate a person who has been saved and is a disciple of Jesus. These are all traits that we should desire and work towards in our process of sanctification, in our becoming like Christ towards holiness. Now we could just skip on ahead to the very first beatitude in Matthew 5: 3, but I don't want us to miss out on the meat of scripture that we so often overlook in our personal time with The Lord. I want us to start off on the right foot of finding meaning in every word breathed out by God in His Word! Let's read how this scene is set up for us: "Seeing the crowds, He went up on the mountain, and when He sat down, His disciples came to Him. And He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:" -Matthew 5:1-2 Don't we just love a good cliff hanger? I can't wait for us to dive into what Jesus teaches us in depth and in intimacy together! But for now, let's set up this scene. If we were to read the verse just before this new chapter, multitudes of people were documented to be following Jesus from all over the place (Matt. 4:25). They had heard Him preach and speak, they had witnessed Him heal the sick, they observed Him cast out demons; no wonder they followed Him! Jesus saw just how great the crowd was in its masses, and so He seized the opportunity to teach them one day. I think this is something we can take away from right from the start, that Jesus seized the moments where He had attention, authority, and opportunity to point people back to the way, truth, and life. If we want to get a bit more exegetical here, Jesus made His way up the mountain they were on, sat down, and His disciples came to Him. What all does this mean? Jesus made His way up the mountain that is commonly referred to as the Mount of Beatitudes, or the mountain where the Sermon on the Mount was given. If you were to take the time to dive into all of Matthew 5-7, you could get into the entire sermon He preached, but for now, we will focus on just the first portion. Customary to the culture of that time, teachers would normally sit as their disciples or audience listened to them. Here we see Jesus sit down before the masses in a position where they could all generally hear Him and see Him, and then He opens His mouth to teach them. With the platform He was given, both in location and in authority, He preached the ways of Heaven to this large crowd earnestly and with passion. Again, if you were to dive into the entirety of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, we see that it is more than just good preaching, but it is Jesus giving us a clear and beautiful outline of how we are to live. Now don't get it twisted; this is not a message about salvation, because as the book of Ephesians gets into, we are saved by grace through faith and not our works (EPH. 2:8-9). However, living under these guidelines Jesus provides to us sets us up for a life of freedom, a life of joy, a life of assurance, and a life of morality. Faith is the root, and works are the fruit, and the mark of a true believer can be observed in the way they choose to live in obedience and accordance to the way, truth, and life set out by Jesus. So what is it that we can observe from today's quick read? Firstly, we need to seize the opportunities of influence we have to open our mouths and teach people about Jesus. Maybe you have a large platform on social media, a position of leadership among your peers, or a younger sibling or child you look after. Whatever size it is, whatever level of authority you have, you do have opportunity, so seize it like Jesus and use it to influence and teach the way, truth, and life to those who need to know, which is everyone. Don't let those moments appear idle or pass you by because of fear. Instead, be confident in the Spirit that lives within you, and trust that as you step out in obedience to open your mouth, He is faithful to guide your tongue and teaching (Matt. 10:20). Let us do our part in pressing into Him intimately and knowing this truth for ourselves so that we may be better witnesses and teachers of the Word and Way. Secondly, the Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes we will be studying these next few days is meant to guide our lives. Don't just let these next few days of studying God's word pass by and only be used to fuel you with Biblical knowledge. Let these lessons draw you closer into God's presence so that He may reveal why He desires you to live in such a way He maps out. Yes, we are to be doers of the word we are going to be taught, but we must also be receptive hearers who have hearts aligned to the objective of obedience. Let's Linger in this moment! - Ask the Holy Spirit what it is that He wants to speak to you today. Maybe He wants to challenge you in areas, or highlight places where you can speak up and step out, teaching a lifestyle and living a lifestyle that is mapped out in Scripture. - Journal what He is telling you. Write down the things that pop out to you, and put them into practice. He is faithful to speak, but we must be willing to incline our ears to what it is He wants to reveal to us. Document His faithfulness! - Spend some time praying and in worship, opening up your heart to the Lord, and ask Him to speak and ready you for the coming days of teaching, application, and intimacy with Him. Dig Deeper! Listen to: "Oh Blessed" by Stu Garrard Read: Deuteronomy 28:1, Matthew 10:16-20

What are you afraid of? Bugs give me the willies. Always have, always will. If I had my way, I’d strap a ten-pound can of Raid to my back and wear a pair of size thirteen stomping shoes for spider-smushing. Today I want you to face your fears and give you godly guidance about how to exterminate them.   You may deny bug aversion, but everyone is scared of something. Just Google a list of phobias.  Ablutophobia  means fear of bathing. Men were born with that one.  Arithmophobia  is a fear of numbers. I’ve had that one since algebra.  Alektraphobia  is the fear of chickens. Colonel Sanders had that one, God rest his soul. Fears abound under every letter of the alphabet. You can have  xyrophobia , fear of razors (my husband has that one, too), or  zemmiphobia , fear of the great mole rat. Bats (the flying kind — not the wooden kind) give me the willies. Mice, snakes and aggressive geese cause me to shake and shiver. Losing my car in the mall parking lot is a perpetual fear, probably because I do it at least once a week. However, every other fear of mine pales in comparison to my bug loathing.   There are no creepy crawlers in heaven. How do I know? Insects are of the Devil. Remember the Egyptian plagues and the locusts of Revelation? Baal means “lord of the flies.” I rest my case. “Thus saith the Lord, ‘Neither buggeth, nor wormeth, nor roacheth nor spidereth shall inhabit my holy home.’” 1 Julie 1:24.   My abhorrence of all things “insectual” began at an early age. A wolf spider (not werewolf), a cricket (not Jiminy), a praying mantis (really an agnostic), a katydid (oh, no she didn’t), and a beetle (not the band) filled my mind with little girl terror. Invisible pest predators were the worst. During my preschool summer days, chiggers infested the lush bermuda grass in my backyard and took up residence between my toes. The more I scratched, the more they itched and scooted around underneath the skin on my lumpy feet. Daddy said nail polish would suffocate the little boogers, but Mom disagreed and washed me in a chigger soap that smelled like rotten eggs and black tar. The chiggers died, but nobody would sit next to me at Vacation Bible School.   Ladybugs and doodle bugs were safe “little girl” insects. Their bright red and black spotted shells made them fashion icons of the bug world. Fluorescent butterfly wings flapping in the breeze paled in comparison, fireflies glistening in the night sky were a “flash in the pan,” but ladybugs were practically perfect in every way. Lulu, our favorite ladybug, minded her manners when she scuttled up Kathy’s forearm, tickling only a little bit. She didn’t even holler when my little sister pulled off a leg or two.   So how do we eradicate the trepidation that torments us? Let’s take a look at three of Satan’s fearing attacks and see what God has to say about them.   Tarantula Fear Job 3:25  “What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me.” NIV The thud of defibrillator paddles rocked me to the core. “I can’t stand up,” my husband weakly whispered early one Sunday morning. Somehow I helped him limp to the car and I drove like a bat out of hell to the emergency room. He was in VTAC, a deadly heart rhythm that could claim his life. I stared my greatest fear in the face-losing my precious husband. He survived, but I died a little inside. Tarantula fears like death, disease and divorce can “sucker punch” you.   So how do you respond to tarantula fears? Psalm 27:1  encourages us with God’s great power.  “The LORD is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” NIV  The only reason Peter didn’t drown on the choppy Galilean sea was he kept his eyes on the face of his Master. How do you really do that? Spend time praising God, reading His Word and meditating on His faithful character. Ask Him to give you a heavenly perspective. Gaze on God and glance at your problem. I am not suggesting that your peace will come overnight, but in time I have found it to bring supernatural peace to my soul. I also have a close-knit group of prayer partners. Their faith encircles me and holds me up.   Black Widow Fear John 3:25  “Everyone who does evil hates the  light , and will not come into the  light  for fear that their deeds will be exposed.”NIV  Deadly black widows lurk in corners, in dark places. Black widows are pretty. They don’t look dangerous, but their venomous bites are devastating.   Evan, my best friend’s son, was happily bobbing in the shallow end of the pool with my daughter Bronwyn at his side. Teresa, his mother, and I sat chatting in the poolside chairs beside our little charges. One second our kids were splashing away, and suddenly Evan was drowning before our very eyes. He was still standing in the water, but his blue eyes had a glassy stare and he was motionless. Evan wasn’t breathing. Teresa leapt in the pool, fished her baby out and began mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. If we had looked away for a moment longer, Evan would have died.   Our inattentiveness almost cost Evan’s life in a nanosecond. Don’t let black widows sneak up on you. Stay out of dark corners. Clean out the cobwebs of your life. Overspend once, twice, and third time and suddenly you are drowning in debt. Now you are facing foreclosure on your home. You’re terrified. But you inched into the dark shadow of greed and it almost poisoned you.   Walk in God’s light and be hypervigilent.  Expect Satan to booby-trap you. Wear God’s armor, and keep yourself accountable to a godly brother or sister. The poet in  Psalm 91: 9-14  says ,  “If you make the LORD your refuge, if you make the Most High your shelter, no evil will conquer you; no plague will come near your dwelling. For He orders his angels to protect you wherever you go. They will hold you with their hands to keep you from striking your foot on a stone. You will trample down lions and poisonous snakes; you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet! The LORD says, ‘I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name.’” NIV Ladybug Fear Proverbs 19:23 :“Fear of God is life itself, a full life, and serene—no nasty surprises.” The Message. Ladybug fear is the fear of the LORD, the beginning of wisdom. Reverence God. Worship Him and get to know His character. Spend time in solitude and silence to calm your soul. Even if your teeny weak ladybug legs are pulled out from under you, you’re still in God’s huge hands. You can rest there, safe and sound. Tragedy has hit my family this year more than anytime in my life. But I’ve walked with God a long time now. I know He is faithful and never leaves my side. My husband is a lot like God. I hold the firm belief that most women marry for the sole purpose of having someone large and brave around to do all of the cricket chasing and spider smashing. When I see something hairy or squiggly, I simply call my husband’s name and my hairy “shoe fairy” rescues me from peril. He is my strong, brave Terminator. I shall fear no weevil. Portions taken from  “Bored in Big Church: Recollections of a Church Brat and Tattletale.”  by Julie Barrier.  Order in paperback or Kindle on Amazon.

The Torah Portion Mishpatim (Ex. 21:1 –Ex. 24:18) seems to be all about laws and rulings (its very title, mishpatim, actually means “laws”). However, at the end of all these laws and rulings, we find an intriguing sentence: “Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.”[1] God tells Moses that He would send an Angel before the people – and this seems to be a very special Angel, for God says: “My name is in Him!” [2] Who was this Angel who went with Israel? Later, in Exodus 33, we find a different promise. After Moses pleads with God, asking Him to go with the people of Israel, God says, “My face will go with you” [3]. Face? What about the Angel whom God sends in our portion? Thus, we arrive at Malach Panav – this very special Angel of His Face, or of His Presence (as it’s sometimes rendered). In full, this name occurs in only one place, in the book of Isaiah: In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence (Malach Panav) saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old [4]. However, there are several instances in the Hebrew Bible where we see this special Angel of God’s presence, who speaks in the name of God and delivers His message. This Angel speaks from the first person, as if he was God; he stands before the people in the form of a man, and after meeting him, people realize that they have seen God, yet their lives have been spared. We see him in Genesis 18 talking to Abraham, in Genesis 22 stopping Abraham on Mount Moriah, and in Genesis 32 wrestling with Jacob at Peniel; in the book of Joshua, he is the commander of the Lord’s army who commissions Joshua to fight the battles for the Land [5].; we see him talking to Gideon, and appearing before Samson’s parents, and also elsewhere. And we find him here in Exodus as well: The Angel of God’s face, or Presence, is going with Israel! Historically, Rabbinic Judaism has given this Angel a Judeo-Greek name, “Metatron” טרוֹןְ טַמֵ) metatron), meaning “the one next to the throne” (compiled from two Greek words μετὰ (meta) and θρóνος (thronos). The Jewish sages explained: “This is Metatron, whose name is like the name of his Master: The numerical value of טרוֹןְ טַ מֵ] 314 [ equals that of דּיַשַׁ] 314]” [6]] Christian tradition, however, has mainly understood this Angel to be the pre-incarnate Jesus. We will discuss this more when we get to Torah Portion Ki Tissa – but here is a takehome message from this Portion: this amazing promise of His Presence was given to Israel, in the first place! The special Angel was sent with His people – and ever since, His Presence has been going with Israel! Do you realize what that actually means? All these centuries, in all the pain and suffering we went through – the pogroms, ghettos, concentration camps – all these horrible periods of complete loneliness and misery, when toeveryone, including ourselves, we seemed to be utterly abandoned – in reality, we were not alone, the Lord has been walking with us! In all their affliction, He was afflicted, and the Angel of His presence (Malach Panav) saved them. You Have Reached Your Destination! Today, in the age of GPS and all the navigation apps, I’m sure we have all heard these words: YOU HAVE REACHED YOUR DESTINATION. We all know how it works: first, we set our destination into the navigation device or app, then it will offer us different roads, and then, after we choose the road, it will take us there by this road. It will bring us to our destination. This is exactly the impression we get from this portion, Mishpatim, when we read the verse I just quoted. First, God sets our destination: “the place which I have prepared”; then He chooses the way He wants us to go: “Behold, I send an Angel before you”; and then, if we trust Him, we know that His navigation device will not fail to “bring us into the place which He has prepared”. We will reach our destination. But what is this destination, then? Let us open one of the most famous pieces in the New Testament: the Sermon on the Mount. Here, in Matthew 5, we hear Jesus quoting the well-known verse from our portion: “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’” [7] If we follow the Christian interpretation I just presented, it’s like seeing this Angel, who was sent before Israel in Exodus 23, arriving and going up the Mountain in Matthew 5 (exactly like Moses went up the Mountain in Mishpatim) and interpreting to the people those instructions that were given in the beginning: YOU HAVE REACHED YOUR DESTINATION! I want to be very clear: of course, I don’t think that Jesus replaces the Torah with his own teaching. We all know his words from the same chapter “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill”. We have to keep these words in mind when we read the next verse: the famous “Christian” verse about turning the other cheek: “whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also”. Could it really be the destination that God meant from the very beginning? Could it really be the interpretation and the fulfillment of “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” ruling that we find in Mishpatim? In order to answer this question, let us ask another question: is “turning the other cheek” originally a Jewish value? In the eyes of many people, the words of Jesus about “the other cheek” remain the best example of how much the New Testament teaching is different from that in the Old Testament. At first glance, it seems that this is indeed the case; Jesus seems to contradict the Torah by completely abolishing the principle of “measure for measure” from our Torah Portion. However, it is only at first glance. You might be surprised to learn that the very idea of “turning the other cheek” comes from the Hebrew Bible: in the book of Lamentations, we read, “Let him offer his cheek to the one who strikes him”<8>. Based on Jesus’ own words – I did not come to destroy but to fulfill! – we can only suppose that this “turning the other cheek” commandment was indeed the fulfillment of what we find in Mishpatim – the understanding we had to get to. The Angel sent by God arrived to the place He prepared: YOU HAVE REACHED YOUR DESTINATION! [1] Ex.23:20 [2] Ex.23:21 [3] Ex.33:14 [4] Isaiah 63:9 [5] Josh. 5:1-15 [6] Sanh. 38b [7] Mat.5:38, Ex.21:24 [8] Lam. 3:30 The insights you read on these pages are typical of what we share with our students during DHB (Discovering the Hebrew Bible) or WTP (Weekly Torah Portion) classes. If these articles whet your appetite for discovering the hidden treasures of the Hebrew Bible, or studying in-depth Parashat Shavua, along with New Testament insights, I would be happy to provide more information (and also a teacher’s discount for new students) regarding eTeacher courses (juliab@eteachergroup.com).

Satan tempts us to sin and stops us in our tracks by accusations, but his most insidious weapon is deception, because we don’t know when we are being deceived. Through deception, the father of lies has led the whole world astray (see Revelation 12:9). That is why truth sets us free and why the belt of truth is the first piece of our protective armor. Jesus prayed that we would be kept from the evil one by being sanctified in the truth of God’s Word (see John 17:15-17). James admonished us not to be deceived (see James 1:16). There are three primary avenues through which we can be deceived: (1) self-deception, (2) false prophets/teachers and (3) deceiving spirits. Scripture identifies at least eight ways that we can deceive ourselves. First, we can deceive ourselves if we listen to the word of God but don’t do it (see James 1:22-25). “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). We will be self-deceived if we think the Bible is just a textbook that provides us with knowledge. We will hardly be aware of how self-centered and self-righteous we are, but others will likely see the hypocrisy. When the Bible is a mirror it knocks us down a notch, picks us back up, and trains us in righteousness. Second, we can deceive ourselves if we say we have no sin (see 1 John1:8). Having sin and being sin are two different issues. We are not sinless saints; we are saints who sin. If we keep saying that we have done nothing wrong, we may start believing it. Third, we can deceive ourselves if we think we are something when we are not ( see Romans 12:3; Galatians 6:3). We are children of God, by the grace of God, who are living our lives before God. Those who think they are special don’t know they really are! Fourth, we can deceive ourselves when we think we are wise in this age ( see 1 Corinthians 3:18-19). In professing ourselves to be wise we become fools (see Romans 1:22). “The foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom” (1 Corinthians 1:25). Wisdom is seeing life from God’s perspective, not ours. Someday we shall see fully, but right now we have one eye starting to slightly open. We don’t have a clue what is going right around us in the spiritual realm. Fifth, we can deceive ourselves when we think we are religious but do not keep a tight rein on our tongue (see James 1:26). Spirit-filled Christians exhibit self-control and only use their words to build up others (see Ephesians 4:29-30). Those who can’t control their tongues are denying the anger within them. Sixth, we can deceive ourselves when we think we will not reap what we sow (see Galatians 6:7). Everything we think and do has consequences, and we will one day give an account for our words and our actions. Seventh, we can deceive ourselves when we think the unrighteous will inherit the kingdom of God (see 1 Corinthians 6:9-10). We cannot defend a sinful lifestyle and claim to be Christians by calling sin something other than what it is. Eighth, we can deceive ourselves when we associate with bad company and think it will not corrupt us (see 1 Corinthians 15:33). Sin is contagious. “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12, NASB ). Dr. Neil            www.discipleshipcounsel.com    For Spanish see www.ficmm.org/blog

Mark's gospel is a phenomenal short story about Israel’s God, Israel’s King and Israel’s glorious kingdom. The very first sentence of the Gospel of Mark, whether functioning as a title of the work or introducing the gospel to the hearer is clear. The first noun is archei  from which we get our English “arch-”. This word is used as in arch-enemy or archbishop and simply means first, head, or beginning; but there is another interesting way to translate this word, and that is as ruler or as someone in charge. The last meaning fits very well into the overall kingship and power motif of the Gospel of Mark. However, it is very difficult to see how it could be translated this way, so translate it as “beginning” just as others do. The second word is euvangelion  is a compound word that combines two Greek words “good” and “message”, rightfully forming our English word Gospel or Good News. This word, even though written in Koine Greek, invokes an ancient Israelite (Biblical) idea that the prophet Isaiah expressed. As we will see, the Gospel of Mark is steeped in the Israelite prophetic tradition. In Isaiah 52:7-10 we read: 7 How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” 8 Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices, They shout joyfully together; For they will see with their own eyes When the Lord restores Zion. 9 Break forth, shout joyfully together, You waste places of Jerusalem; For the Lord has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem. 10 The Lord has bared His holy arm In the sight of all the nations, That all the ends of the earth may see The salvation of our God. The picture here is as follows – messengers from the field of battle run to Israel’s capital city to announce that Israel’s God and Israel’s army have defeated their enemies. The Lord God fought on behalf of Israel and showed the nations of the world that He is King, committed to the ultimate well-being of His people – Israel. The watchmen, standing on the walls of Jerusalem, are charged with providing an early warning about anything they see from afar. They first see jubilant faces of the messengers and are charged to begin announcing this joy inside the city of God. Now let us talk about the name Jesus. The proper English name “Jesus” in the New Testament comes to us from Greek, via Latin and German. Greek is a Judeo Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name Joshua, coming into the New Testament directly from the Judeo-Greek document called the Septuagint (LXX). The Septuagint uses the Greek name Jeshua to translate the Old Testament name “Joshua” and its later shorter version Yeshua (Neh.8:17: 1Chron.24:11). (Any suggestion that the name Jesus has pagan roots and is somehow connected with Zeus has no basis what so ever). As we turn our attention to the next word, we come to the word Christ. It was the above-mentioned Judeo-Greek Septuagint that translated the word Messiah with the word Christ. In Greek it means the anointed one. Remember that this translation was done before Jesus lived by Jews and not by Greeks. This means that there is nothing particularly non-Jewish about referring to Jesus as Messiah, Moshiach or as Christ. Additionally, the Anointed one (Moshiah in Hebrew and Christos in Greek) was a concept that combines three crucial functions – that of prophet, priest and king. The Gospel of Mark announces Jesus as someone who is successfully fulfilling all three of these offices. So far, every concept that is considered in this verse was steeped in the idea of Israelite kingship. The Gospel continues with one more crucially important statement about who Jesus is. From the outset, it calls him the Son of God. Demons and a Roman centurion will both call Jesus the Son of God as we will later see. The concept of the Son of God in the minds of the ancients (Jewish or otherwise) was essentially a significant royal figure. When ancient kings were crowned, they were considered to have become the sons of gods or of a god. Israel’s idea about its own kings was no different. Israel’s lawful king at the time of coronation would also become a Son of God as we can see from Psalm 2. There we read King David speaking: “I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.” It is curious that another term, the Son of Man, seems to play an even more central role in this Gospel (it is used 10 times); while the term Son of God is used only three times in the entire Gospel. There is a possibility that this phrase (the Son of God) was in the original gospel manuscript, but we also have a number of manuscripts that do not contain this last phrase. In these manuscripts, everything stops at the declaration of Jesus as the Messiah. Whether or not the original had or did not have this phrase, nothing is changed. Jesus is set forth as the Anointed one. Prayer Oh, God, help us to understand what all it means to have Jesus as The King of over us and align our lives with this fact. Amen. The post The Gospel of Mark in a nutshell (Mark 1:1) appeared first on Jewish Studies for Christians, Dr. Eli's Study Group.