“14. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. 15. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16. And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. 17. And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18. I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, 19. And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. 20. And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.”
This chapter of scripture is known as the parable of the prodigal son. The son wanted all of his inheritance before his father had even passed on, as he makes separation from his father’s house he adventures to the world for his happiness. There are many born again believers that have been at this place in their life. Some are there right now, and some that may even be stepping in that direction. Where are you today? There was a pastor that once said people get out of church long before they ever get out of church. You say; what does that mean? Many people treat the house of God nothing more than a ritual practice for Sunday morning and walk out no different than they walked in. If you step out of church on Sunday morning without a desire to live a more holy life, there are one of two problems; you are in a dead church where the truth is not being preached or its you! The story of the prodigal son is a place where many Christian sportsman and women are today; searching for happiness in the world. I John 2:15 “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” As the fall hunting season gets closer, many Christians are already beginning to draw away from the Lord and focus on what they think will make them happy. There is nothing sinful about hunting, unless it has priority over everything else in your life. Very soon, Sunday will be a day in the woods, not a day in the Word. Some say they have church in the stand, but that’s the most unbiblical thing anyone could say. Church involves music that glorifies God, its a gathering together of believers to hear a message preached from a man of God. Its easy to point a finger and say that drugs, alcohol, and unfaithfulness is the cause of broken homes, though they have an effect, its important to realize that many wives and kids are neglected because dad spends too much time in the backwoods chasing a wild animal. As the hunting sales climb there will be many homes struggle financially because dad is buying a bunch of things he don’t need and cant afford. What is the cause of a prodigal son? Its a child of God who looks to the world for success and happiness. Don’t let hunting be the priority in your life. It doesn’t fill the void and surely never will! Sunday is a day to worship the Savior! Looking back to the prodigal son we can see that he tried to fill his life with the world and ended up at the hog pen. Some Christians are at the hog pen now, and some are on their way! An important verse to note is vs 17; the Bible says: “And when he came to himself.” If you ever want to be right with God again you must come to yourself and realize that life is not about you, its about Jesus Christ! The prodigal began to remember how much better things were when he was right with his father. Even as a servant, he knew he would be much better off than the place he was in. If your in that place today Christian, your much better off being in fellowship with the One who loves you more than anyone ever has. Vs 18 shows us what has to be done in order to get right: “I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,” Repentance is the first step to a restored fellowship with God. I John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The hog pen is not fun, and its no place anyone would ever want to be. Maybe your not there yet, maybe you are, God loves you and He’s always waiting for His children to return home! Look at vs 20 “But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.” Hunting may not be your struggle, but you know what it is! Don’t let sin control your life!
Memory Verse Week 7/30/18
I John 1:9
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Do you ever feel like you try and try at something, but no matter how hard you try, success never comes your way. In this context of scripture we can see that Peter had spent all night and not caught one fish. We’ve all been there, maybe a week long hunt and not one deer crosses our path; months of job applications, but no returned phone calls; searching for a spouse, but nothing more than loneliness. In I Kings 19 there was a great prophet by the name of Elijah. He sits down under a juniper tree and asks God to take his own life because of this wicked woman by the name of Jezebel wanting to kill him. She had already killed all the other prophets and Elijah is now at this place in his life where he wants to give up. The Lord gives him food at the juniper tree and he finds strength for a forty day journey. At the end of his journey he finds himself at a cave in Mount Horeb. Here, God makes himself known, but speaks to him in a very simple way: I Kings 19:11-12 “And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.” Elijah found his success in the Word of the Lord, just as Peter did. It was that “still small voice.” We are good about figuring things out on our own, but we cant figure out why it never works. Put yourself in Peter’s shoes for a minute; he has been fishing all night and caught nothing. Jesus is now speaking to him and says “Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.” Draught means that which is taken by sweeping with a net. Peter says ok, I’ll let down the net. Big mistake! He didn’t listen fully! Jesus said nets! His blessing was so big that the net(singular) broke, he should have let down the nets(plural). Sometimes it seems like nothing is ever going to change, we want to give up, we lose faith, we say there is no hope! Only you can answer this question; are you reading the Word of God everyday? Its that still small voice that gives us guidance, it the precious Words of the Lord Jesus Christ that will guide us. There are many Christians that may read the Bible, but many of them allow it to be a ritual in their week. Allow God’s Word to direct you in your daily decisions. When He speaks to you, do what He says! Do exactly what He says! You don’t want to end up like Peter! Luke 5:6 “…and their net brake.”
What good is a candle that is not lit? A flashlight with no batteries? A lantern with no fuel? Its useless! That is a good picture of man’s life. Man meaning mankind! Sin has caused darkness to fall upon the face of this sin cursed earth and everyone’s life is like a light with no charge. There has to be a point in time when you have had your candle lit, batteries put in your flashlight, or even fuel put into your lantern. Jesus Christ is the only One and the only way to have light in your life. The day you get saved is the day you begin to see real truth, but as we look at our world today their is a great problem with the light going out in the lives of Christians. Just think for a moment as that big doe steps out, you send that arrow or bullet to its mark and as the deer runs off, your confident that she wont go far. As the sun sets and the night arises it would be very difficult to find your success without a very important tool; a light. There is nothing more frustrating taking up the blood trail to only discover your light is dim and will soon be out. Today, there are many born again believers that take up the trail for success, but they never make it to their reward because their light becomes dim and shortly after it totally goes out. Its a good idea to always carry spare batteries or maybe even a full tank of propane for the lantern. The light of many Christians are going out today because their not staying charged. It doesn’t change their destination concerning eternity, but it does hinder them from the reward at the end of the trail. What does it take to stay charged? Psalm 1:2 “But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” His, in this verse of scripture is referring to the blessed man or even the happy man. The law is referring to the Word of God. The Bible is what allows the Christian to keep the propane tank full and the batteries at full charge, but unfortunately their lights are becoming dim because their relationship with God is not what it should be. As you take up the blood trail, can you imagine getting half way there and then it becomes totally dark due to a lack of fuel or battery power? So what happens at that point? It becomes totally dark, it becomes easier to stumble, and it causes you to lose your sense of direction! If your saved today, don’t give up on God, let your light keep burning, don’t be ashamed to tell others about him, don’t put your Bible down, but keep moving forward. Jesus Christ gave us the light so we can let it shine, don’t let it go out, and don’t allow it to be dim. The best light is a bright light! Have faith and trust God!
ays natural to try and figure things out on our own. We live in a society today where its, “I want it today, and I want it now”. Its amazing that the Bible always teaches us differently than how our mind works. The word wait is such an important part of Vs 31. Most Christians are not willing to exercise this term in their daily decisions because the natural state says do it now. Webster 1828 defines wait as: to stay or rest in expectation; to stop or remain stationary, till the arrival of some person or event. What it doesn’t mean is make a decision today. God always wants us to trust Him and not to make an effort to figure things out on our own, but since pride drives the believer to irrational decisions, their is great suffering that may be experienced because they refused to wait on God. Its kind of like a marriage, there are many broken and unhappy homes today, because people get married without waiting on the one God wants for them. Many bankruptcies because people buy things they cant afford and things God don’t want them to have, a good example could be a new bow(you probably don’t need it), a hunting lease you cant afford(marriages fall apart over hunting), Camo that you don’t need, equipment you already have. There is nothing wrong with having things, but did you acquire it your own way or did you wait on God? Think about being in the woods for a minute: a lot of hunters want to hang a nice buck on their wall, but many of them don’t want to wait a few years to let the buck grow into maturity. Our hats are off to those who shoot younger deer and enjoy doing it, keep it up if that excites you, that is what hunting is all about, giving God the glory for His creation and allowing you the experience. If you want to shoot a big one though, you cant shoot little ones. A 3 year old buck can grow into a good looking deer worth hanging on the wall, a 4 year old deer is where things start getting better, but here is the thing, it takes 3 to 4 years before the buck can be that old. There are too many hunters that talk like they are big buck hunters, but half way through the season they shoot a young buck because they have to fill their buck tag. Try to have the mind set to end your season without a tag filled, it takes a lot of waiting, but that is what will help you shoot a bigger one! Patience! Don’t squeeze the trigger to early, don’t sign those lease papers yet, don’t get married if something seems out of place, don’t buy that new truck until God gives you a peace and a clear answer about the matter as you seek Him through prayer. Sometimes life can seem weary, but don’t forget about God’s Word: “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.” Who is it that can fly high like an eagle, run without weariness, walk without fainting? Don’t make your decisions so quickly! Wait on the LORD!
Sometimes life can seem like a mountain. Mountains are beautiful and peaceful. A lot of Christians like the looks of a mountain, but the idea of climbing it don’t really interest them. Only by the help of God can a Christian find strength in climbing the mountain of life. Some days you feel wore out, some days you feel like you want to quit and return down to the bottom. There is a big problem with that, God didn’t design us to go down hill, He designed us to go up. If you talked to a mountain climber or elk hunter they would probably tell you that going down hill is the hardest on your joints. Though strengthening your muscles can be painful at times, it will only make you better and stronger. God doesn’t put you on mountains to fail, He puts you on mountains to be better and stronger for Him. Don’t let weariness wear you out! You may seem like your at a place in your life where things are very difficult, but don’t start down hill, that would be the worse thing for you. Too many Christians start down hill, but its only because they put their Bible down. The Word of God is alive today, but you’ll never continue your strengthening if you put it down and stop reading it. Galatians 6:9 “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap if we faint not.” Psalms tells us that God will perfect that which concerneth us, but you must keep going! God is here to help you! Don’t trust in yourself, trust in Him! Sometimes your job seems to tough, or maybe your marriage, even your ministry, but you must keep the greatest commandment: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” God is not leading you to failure! Do you feel like your failing? Could it be that God is not the one leading you today? Let God be God in your life today! You will never know how God is leading you if you don’t allow His Word to guide you! Trust Him!
Be careful of false prophets and false teachers. In this context of scripture God is speaking with Jeremiah about all the false prophets that are giving bad advice to the children of Israel. Destruction is on its way, God is making it clear to Israel through Jeremiah that if they don’t turn from their ways they will be held captive for 70 years along with the destruction of their land. The religious prophets are disagreeing with Jeremiah and saying that judgement is a long way off, but that wasn’t the case. Vs 12 shows that once judgement begins it will be to late at that point and 70 years of captivity will follow. Be careful who you follow today. Many people today follow these so called spiritual leaders, but in reality they lead you to nothing more than emptiness and judgement. The Word of God should be the final authority in your life in all matters. Make sure the spiritual leader you follow has a life that parallels the Bible. There are many false prophets today that say they know when Jesus is coming back, but the Bible says no man knoweth the day or the hour. Do you believe the Bible or do you believe your false prophet? Many say today, follow your heart, but the Bible says the heart is deceitful and wicked. One reason most people are led down a wrong path is because they don’t know what the Bible says, they trust in everything that they are taught rather than studying the Word. Psalm 118:8 “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.” What do you believe today? Do you hold more to the Bible, or do you hold more to a so called spiritual leader? Be careful of false prophets!
They say there are only two paths in the Christian walk; either growing, or dying. What category could you put yourself in? Are you growing in the Lord or are you dying in your walk? In this chapter of scripture Jeremiah is trying to warn the house of God about their evil hearts and their worship toward other gods. God always knows the outcome to every situation. He already knows what will happen tomorrow, next week, and next year. In future chapters He will make known to Israel that there will be seventy years of captivity if they don’t turn from their evil ways. From the beginning, God already knew that they would not turn and He would have to chasten Israel for their sin, but He still loves His people so much that He gives them warning after warning to turn from their ways. This is a great reason why God is called long suffering. Going backward in your Christian walk is a dangerous place to be. What sin are you allowing in your life? Its easy to say “I don’t smoke, I don’t drink, I go to church on Sunday, I tithe my money, I don’t skip church to hunt,” though these are good behaviors it important to realize that sin is anything we shouldn’t do or even things we should do. You may ask “things we should do?” James 4:17 “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” One of the most valuable things in our walk with the Lord is having faith, when we don’t have faith we have sin because we are trusting in our own way and not “the way I have commanded you.” There is nothing more important in this world than soul winning. People still die and go to hell without Jesus Christ and there are not enough believers spreading the Word. Its because Christians are dying and trusting in their own evil heart. Its never about us, its always about Jesus. God will be there for you, He will sustain you, but you cant go backward. There is a song that goes ” I’m less than I’ll be tomorrow, but more than yesterday.” Are you growing today? If your not, that must mean your dying! Put your life in God’s hands. He will lead you down His path and not yours! Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
When your outside of the church house, what do people see in you? Do they see humility? Kindness? Gentleness? Jesus? The way we live our lives outside of church has a lot to do with who we allow to influence our lives? Everyone has a role model, everyone is influenced by someone! The television has a big influence in the world. Some may say they enjoy watching a certain ball team, or maybe some hollywood actor, or even a big shot in the hunting industry. When people look at your life as a Christian, do they truly see Jesus in you? Many answer no to that question because their care and concern is more about a multi-million dollar baseball player that don’t care anything about them. Would you consider a good role model someone who plays rap or heavy metal music to a crowd of thousands as he steps to the plate? Or even a big shot hunter that says the only way you could possibly be successful is to buy his product? What you will come to find about the popular crowd real quick is that their proud, boastful, and very wicked. How does the tv crowd help you walk closer to Jesus? Give attention back to verse 4 and take note of the word “blessed”, according to Webster 1828 this word means to make happy or prosperous. Don’t be that Christian that has respect to the so called stars. They cant help you find happiness, only God can! Is hunting wrong? No! Is football wrong? No, but how do your hunting role models or sports role models help you through your difficulties in life? The truth is they don’t, and they never will, because they don’t care about you! God cares for you and loves you like no one ever has. He died to pay for your sins! John 15:13 “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” Don’t allow the world to influence you, allow the Word of God to be the light of your life. “Blessed(happy) is that man that maketh the LORD his trust…”