The Sword of the LORD

       1  We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou      didst in their days, in the times of old. 2  How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand, and plantedst them; how thou didst afflict the people, and cast them out. 3  For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them. 4  Thou art my King, O God: command deliverances for Jacob. 5  Through thee will we push down our enemies: through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us. 6  For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me. 7  But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us. 8  In God we boast all the day long, and praise thy name for ever. Selah.  (Psalm 44:1-8).   Psalm 44 was written in response to an event that took place in the year 710 B.C.  Sennache

“By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh” (Hebrews 11:4).   The biblical story of Cain and Abel is incredible in its depth and teaching.  We find the gospel message revealed to us in its simplicity through this tale of jealousy and violence.  Writing to the Hebrew believers in the first century, the Apostle Paul states that Abel was still speaking to believers through his witness even though he had been dead for 4000 years.  Even today, Abel’s witness of faith and redemption rings out as clear as a bell to those who will hear it.   The account of Cain and Abel is told in the fourth chapter of Genesis.  There we find the story opening with the birth of two sons to Adam and Eve.  Cain was the firstborn and oldest of the boys, and Abel his brother came along after him.  Abel, we are told, was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of

The thirty-second Psalm provides us with the perfect road map for our Christian walk.   It outlines the principles of godly living that, if followed, will ensure our spiritual health every day.   It is amazing how much powerful "medicine" that the Lord can pack inside such a tiny capsule.   At just eleven verses long, it packs a mighty wallop!   "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.  Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile."  (Psalm 32:1, 2).  Our God delights in mercy.  He doesn't forever hold our sins against us; but, through our Lord Jesus Christ, He has blotted out our transgressions, and erased our sins.  As far as the east is from the west - that's how far God has removed our iniquities.  He demands that we be without guile (deceitfulness), however, in our dealings with Him.  If we pretend not to hear Him, or try to hide what we do from Him, He will know it. 

"Peter answered and said unto Him, Though all men shall be offended because of Thee, yet will I never be offended.  Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny Me thrice.  Peter said unto Him, Though I should die with Thee, yet will I not deny Thee.   Likewise also said all the disciples ." (Matthew 26:33-35).   Each of us is willing to give our best resolution to the Lord at the beginning of our spiritual journey.   We make many promises to Him at the start, when our faith is new, and our experience is limited.   Like Peter, we may even pledge our lives in service for Him.   While such sentiments are well meaning, they come from a place of ignorance.   We just don’t know what discipleship is going to cost us yet.   These words and promises come very easily to "all the disciples" at first.    We simply do not understand as young Christians that this is a process, and that we are growing into spiritual matur

"And it came to pass, that, as I made my journey, and was come nigh unto Damascus about noon, suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me.  And I fell unto the ground, and heard a voice saying unto me, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?  And I answered, Who art Thou, Lord? And He said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, Whom thou persecutest.  And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of Him that spake to me.  And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said unto me, Arise, and go into Damascus; and there it shall be told thee of all things which are appointed for thee to do." (Paul's account of his conversion, Acts 22:6-10).   What an extraordinary conversion Paul had!  To have a light shine on him from above, and to have the Lord speak to him directly from heaven is incredible; but what really intrigues me is how violent this religious man had become toward the followers of Christ.  Before his

Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me? (Jeremiah 32:27).   There are many of you who are sincere Christians, but you struggle with some besetting sin or another, and don't know how to get free once and for all.  You feel hypocritical every time you fall down, and you are battered by your guilt, and hindered in your ministry.  This message is for you.  There is an answer to your dilemma, and it is much simpler than you might imagine.   I recently read a tract by the great Charles G. Finney which was first published in 1839 in the Oberlin Evangelist .  The tract was entitled, How to Overcome Sin , and the portions that I quote were edited by the late Keith Green.  In it he writes:   “There are multitudes of anxious Christians who are inquiring what they shall do to overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil...They ask, "Why am I overcome by sin?  Why can't I get above its power?  Why am I the slave of my appetites and pa

"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: and they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it." (Amos 8:11, 12).       In a day when there are more churches in most cities than there are gas stations and pizza places, and the Word of God has gone out over the air waves of radio and television to every corner of the world, it is difficult to imagine that the prophet Amos could have been describing this present time when he spoke of a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.   The key to understanding this prophecy, however, is in the wording.   God was speaking of a time when there would be, not an absence of the Word itself, but of hearing the Word.   We are told in Romans 10 , " So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word