The Sword of the LORD

"Where there is no vision, the people perish..." (Proverbs 29:18).   "And the word of the Lord was precious [valuable, prized, and rare] in those days: there was no open vision ." (1 Samuel 3:1).    It is important that we, the people of God, maintain a clear vision of God’s will and of His plan for us.  Without it we are like the blind, groping along the wall, and trying to feel our way through the issues of life.  Without a clear vision, we find it difficult to discern the will of God in our personal lives, and we often find ourselves stumbling in our efforts to please Him.    The type of vision that Solomon is referring to in Proverbs is not just the seeing of the eyes.  It is a revelation of the prophetic word, a divine communication, and clearness of sight when we walk through dark places.   In the first book of Samuel, we read of a time when the people of God had lost their vision.  From the beginning, God had g...

“Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God…” (Ephesians 6:13).   To Christians who have walked with the Lord for very long at all, it should be quite evident that there are a number of opposing forces working to discourage, discredit, and destroy them.   You may have experienced some or all of the following: opposition or resistance from your family, friends, or coworkers; temptations in your flesh; afflictions in your body of various sorts; sickness; sleeplessness; evil thoughts; unforgiveness; or pride.   These are but a handful of the ways in which the enemy of our souls can attack us once we become children of light.   Often, we may not recognize them as assaults on our faith but, make no mistake, it is Satan himself and his evil spirits who have declared war against us, and they will not stop until they destroy our faith or we make a stand and send them packing.   In his letter to the church at Ephesus, the Apostle Paul writes, “For we wrestle no...

“Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready .” (Revelation 19:7).    “And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son, and sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come .” (Matthew 22:1-3).   Scripture has much to say about the Bride of Christ and the Marriage of the Lamb.  It also gives us a clear indication of just who this Bride is, and what qualifies her for this highly favored calling.    The king in the parable quoted above is God almighty, and His Son, the groom, is the Lord Jesus Christ.  The wedding guests are those who are called to be heirs of salvation - the Church.  The bride is not mentioned directly in this parable, but her presence is assumed because it is a wedding feast.  She is...