At my own local church, and everywhere else I go, faithful men and women record my sermons in audio and sometimes video. The ungodly show the futility of their rebellion, the awful penalty of sin, and the just wrath of God. The sad story of Judas stands as a warning to religious people not to trust in their religion. If we lack wisdom, we should ask God for it (James 1:5). 6:10). One swing of his sword whacked off the ear of Malchus, servant to the High Priest. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband; for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy.read more.Yet if the unbelieving one leaves, let him leave; the brother or the sister is not under bondage in such cases, but God has called us to peace. And the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they granted them what they requested. The Pharisees came out and began to argue with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, to test Him. It is not our responsibility to determine how God will use us, but it is our responsibility to be faithful to obey the Word of God. 2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. At times, God enlisted non-believers to help His people through the ages. Recent events may not have gone how you hoped and the signs may seem bleak. The new Pharaoh saw the Israelites as a plague in the land. For he sees that even wise men die;The stupid and the senseless alike perishAnd leave their wealth to others. So through his death, he can have everlasting life on earth. How beautiful! Even those who dont believe and even speak against. Matthew 26:3-5 informs us that the leaders of the Jews were looking for an opportunity to arrest Jesus and put him to death. Understanding God in Troubled Times In heaven, each mans praise will come to him from God, and God will be glorified for sovereignly using sinners for His good purposes (I Cor. The very first verse my daughter ever memorized was Isaiah 40:8, The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. It seemed like an odd one to begin with, but now in retrospect it might have been the best one. When Judas kissed Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, Peter impulsively grabbed his sword and started swinging. Be encouraged Christian, God intends to use you in all your multifaceted weakness and obscurity for his glory. Romans 8:28 says, For those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. All things includes both good and bad things. I believe that t he Lord is here suggesting that the eternal torment that unbelievers will experience will be on a scale from more tolerable to less tolerable. How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? Zechariah 11:1230 pieces of silver (see Matthew 26:15). What does it mean that God came from Teman (Habakkuk 3:3). Paul, in writing to Corinth, corrected the Churchs misuse of speaking in foreign tongues. God uses all those who humble themselves before the cross, boasting only in him his strength, his wisdom, his righteousness, his accomplishment. Moses was sent by the Lord multiple times to Pharaoh asking for the release of the Hebrews. At times, God enlisted non-believers to help His people through the ages. How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who are grumbling against Me? God answered him. We see this all the way through the Bible. I find it remarkable how consistently the New Testament writers see the hand of God in the events surrounding the death of Christ. Jump to Previous Verse Concepts. Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. We see the same thing after the Israelites cross the Red Sea and are attacked by the Amalekites (Ex. and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. He had great trust in the truth of God. Although Judas appears to be acting solely on his own initiative, it is clear that his betrayal fits into a larger pattern of eventsone that is orchestrated by the unseen hand of the Living God. Having all the wisdom in the world didnt guarantee fidelity. I am a preacher and Bible teacher. Nothing that happened to Jesus that night or later on Good Friday made sense when it happened. God knew that Pharaoh would change his mind about letting the people of Israel go and that he would pursue them to bring them back to Egypt. You have entered an incorrect email address! 10 people that God used to accomplish his purposes I. Paul: The one with a shameful past and challenging present (4:18) Colossians 4:18 - I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Romans 8:28 says, For those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. All things includes both good and bad things. WebJohn 3:16. When God desires to save someone, He raises up Christians to preach the gospel. His words imply that all the torment will be tolerable. For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband? For God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son for those who believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.. The people of Jacob were trapped. Do you merely profess Christ and trust in your religious habits to save you, or do you possess Christ in your heart by faith? According to the number of days which you spied out the land, forty days, for every day you shall bear your guilt a year, even forty years, and you will know My opposition. Gods plan included the time of Jesus deathPassover, the placeJerusalem, the opposition by the Jewish leaders, and the betrayal by Judas. They make a joke out of those who dare to not submit to them. Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save your wife? The story of Judas teaches us that nothing happens by accident. From the earliest days of Jesus life we find the Jewish leaders conspiring against him. But as for you, your corpses will fall in this wilderness. WebThe Scripture teaches that God achieves His purpose in unbelievers. If not, we have reason to question whether our faith is real. 1:21). The way of the wicked is like darkness;They do not know over what they stumble. Jump to Previous Though absolutely sovereign, all knowing, all wise, and everywhere present, God uses sinners to accomplish His will. They scoff at kings, And princes are scorned by them. God calls the autistic man to give the most profound articulation of his simple faith. A second reason, related to the first reason, is that God knew that by doing His miracles through Moses, Moses would then in turn give glory to God. He uses believers and unbelievers. Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice. And how will they hear without a preacher? 4:5). For God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son for those who believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.. Those who turn in humble trust to the Lord, who rest in His work of redemption, who seek to walk in his ways, and who turn in humble repentance when they fail, will receive His righteousness, and blessing forever. God didnt want to lead the people around the Red Sea by the way of the Philistines knowing they might get scared and run back to Egypt (Ex. God uses all those who humble themselves before the cross, boasting only in him his strength, his wisdom, his righteousness, his accomplishment. He has but one endto make us like Jesus. During our conversationwhich lasted two hours and was both cordial and very frankI told him that his religion could not save him. So through his death, he can have everlasting life on earth. God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will. In fact, in one place in scripture, God said that what He was doing could not be understood even if He explained it. Many believed they were going to die and complained to Moses (Ex. Moses give the Israelites specific instruction and visible representation from the invisible God. God uses all those who humble themselves before the cross, boasting only in him his strength, his wisdom, his righteousness, his accomplishment. It forces us to live by faith, which is how He wants us to live all the time because it gives Him glory. Are we becoming more like Jesus by the power of the Spirit? Everyday Apostolic 2019 | All Rights Reserved, Gods Ability To Use Unlikely People Even Unbelievers, Canceling Church On Christmas Removes Christ From Christmas, Great Resources On Baptism In The Name Of Jesus, A Diluted Christianity: Oneness, Trinitarian, Or Is It All Just Irrelevant, Youre Not David Pastor Raymond Woodward, The Walking Bible Pastor Raymond Woodward, Wait On The Lord by James Wilson NAYC 2019, If I Shout/Lets Testify Medley FAC Sanctuary Choir. God is unimpressed. 16:30), when he uses you or others, delivering you from your trials, be sure to praise, thank, and give Him all the glory for sovereignly using sinners. But the fact of the matter is it wasnt me! Dont get me wrong, wisdom is important. Israel as a nation had rejected the promises of Moses and the Prophets culminating in the demand for the death of Jesus, Gods Messiah. Moses had great faith! Our accolades cannot merit us any greatness. God will deal with them according to his plan, but first, He will use them for His own covenant judgment. You do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent. Summary He betrayed the Lord but ended up vindicating him. But He is unique and who can turn Him?And what His soul desires, that He does. The Pharisees believed they were serving God but in reality, they didnt even know Him. Do not lament your insufficiency. The Neo-Babylonians were dominated by Chaldean kings. The unbelievers, become confused, not remembering ever having the opportunity to serve Jesus. Peter told the early Christians that the Scripture had to be fulfilled. He meant that the betrayal had to happen the way it did. Jesus responded to the false testimony by saying nothing at all. His plan in doing so was to bless all people. God had not yet told Moses what He was going to do, but Moses knew the Lord did not redeem the Israelites from Egypt to have them slaughtered. Will we show forth Gods glory in our obedience and in our receiving of His covenant blessing? I think we can learn some great lessons by answering these questions. WebWhat if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 1 Peter 2:8 And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. It will be a most terrible judgment. The Bible says, God was well pleased through the message preached to save those who believe (I Cor. But he chose instead to allow himself to be arrested, knowing that this would fulfill Gods plan. The fact that God ordains both the means and the ends should surely encourage us as we face our own trials. God is still using unlikely people to accomplish His will on earth today. Eternity will reveal how your faithful service was used by the Lord in amazing ways. And it is just like God to ask us to do hard things, things that seem impossible, that we know in our hearts we cant do. This warning was made clear in the ancient covenant revealed long before through Moses in Deuteronomy 28. God is not the author of sin, but He can use sinful men to attain an objective. An unlikely person to be used by God. He who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day.
Swedish Curling Team Members, European Lacrosse Championships 2022, Giuseppe's Italian Bistro Kibblesworth Menu, Articles G