The Sword of the LORD

The first section of Psalm 116 (verses 1-9) describes perfectly the conversion of a soul to faith in God the Savior.   I can’t read these beautiful lines without thinking of my own conversion to Christianity.   The section begins with these words: “ I love the LORD, because He hath heard my voice and my supplications.  Because He hath inclined His ear unto me, therefore will I call upon Him as long as I live.” (Psalm 116:1, 2).   God is a God Who sees, and He is a God Who hears.   I love the Lord because one day I called out to Him, and He heard my voice.   When I humbled myself before Him, the God of the universe saw me and heard my prayer.   He not only heard me, but He also responded to me and revealed Himself to me.   As a result of that day, I will call on Him for as long as I live because He continues to hear me and speaks words of life to me.   Scripture tells us that His eyes are always on the righteous, and His ears are open to th...

“And as they spake unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them, being grieved that they taught the people , and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead .” (Acts 4:1, 2).   “And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word… ” (Acts 4:29).   Sometime after Pentecost, two of the Apostles of Jesus, Peter and John, had gone together to Herod’s Temple for the hour of prayer at 3 p.m.  As they were about to enter the Beautiful Gate of the Temple, there was a lame man lying just outside who asked them for a handout.  This man had been lame from birth and was now about 40 years old.  Someone carried him day by day to lay him at the temple gate to beg for whatever kindness he could get from people passing through.  The people who frequented the Temple knew him because they had seen him there daily and been accosted by him for...

“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God .” (Isaiah 40:3).   “Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people .” (Isaiah 62:10).    John the Baptist was that voice crying in the wilderness which the Prophet Isaiah was speaking of.  When John came of age, he literally went into the wilderness to preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.  John’s message was so compelling that multitudes came to hear him from Jerusalem and all of Judea.  This was because it was not his own words that he spoke, but the words of God, for the scripture says, “The Word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.” (Luke 3:2).    John challenged those who came to hear him with the words of God.  He confronted the hypocritica...

We have a friend, a dear sister in the Lord, who is going through a very difficult spiritual battle.   She has endured false accusations, lies, cursing, and isolation from a family member whom she loves.   This is one who has professed love for her in times past.   We have encouraged her the best we can with words of comfort and hope.   I know that in her mind she knows God is doing a work; but the heart, of course, would like to see a much quicker victory.   Her family member calls her from time to time only to swear at her and tear her down.   She has been tempted to reason with her loved one to try to vindicate herself in the face of the unjust accusations raised against her, but each time the Lord only gives her one thing to say: “I love you.”   After a recent episode, our friend was tempted to get on a plane, fly across the country to where her family member lives, and wrap her arms around them when they came to the door.   The Lord let her k...

“As He [Jesus] spake these words, many believed on Him.  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on Him, If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free .” (John 8:30-32).   A large crowd of people had assembled to see and hear Jesus, and He sat down and began to teach them.   At one point, scripture tells us that there were many Jews who believed in Him as He spoke.   These were the ones that Jesus’ ministry was especially focused on.   These were His target audience.   He, Himself, had said, “I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24).   What the Lord said to these new converts was critical for them to hear, but is also relevant and critical for all believers to hear, regardless of nationality or creed.   He said, “ If ye CONTINUE in My Word, then are ye My disciples indeed…”   The emphasis of Jesus’ teaching in these ...