DEFILEMENT
“The earth is also defiled under its inhabitants, because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant!" (Isa. 24:5 NKJV).
Here in our text, we have a concise assessment of the earth. Yet, is not the assessment you will read about in the news media. This assessment speaks of the condition of defilement and the cause of defilement.
Condition of defilement – “Defiled.” The word “defiled” here speaks of moral pollution and also of being profane; this grossly dishonors God. The word was used to describe the defilement that comes to the land through the shedding of innocent blood (Num. 35:33); in our day this would include abortion. The word is also used to describe the pollution that comes to the land through divorce (Jer. 3:1). Basically, it is saying that man is greatly “defiled” in terms of his character. If folks in our society were as concerned about moral pollution as they are about air and water pollution, our society would be the better for it.
Cause of defilement – “Because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.” Two basic causes of defilement are given here. First, transgressing the law – “Transgressed the laws . . . broken the everlasting covenant.” The normal conduct of folks today is the breaking God’s law. God’s laws are despised and rejected, and people live in utter contempt of the Divine law. Second, tampering with the law – “Changed the ordinance.” In our society today, laws have been changed to sanction evil and condemn good. We have laws that protect evil and there are laws that prohibit the Bible from being read in schools and the expression of religious convictions in many public places. Legislatures are even entertaining laws that would prohibit evangelism.
(Adapted from Butler Daily Bible Reading)
Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)
Quotation of the Week
“Sin cannot flourish where godliness is cultivated!”
Anonymous Word Study
Disciples
In Matt. 5:1 we read, “And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him” (NKJV).
Disciples is the Greek word mathētēs (μαθητής = math-ay-tes'). It is from the root ‘math,’ which speaks of mental effort that thinks something through. We get our English word ‘mathematics’ from this word. Mathētēs describes a person who learns from another by instruction, whether formal or informal. It describes a follower who learns the doctrines and the lifestyle of the one they follow. Discipleship includes the idea of one who intentionally learns by inquiry and observation and thus mathētēs is more than a mere pupil. A mathētēs describes an adherent of a teacher. The word has no spiritual connotation, and it is used of superficial followers of the Lord Jesus as well as of genuine believers. The Lord calls everyone to grow as a disciple - one who lives in faith, who lives in and by His Word in the power of the Holy Spirit.
In classical Greek mathētēs means learner or pupil. In the Septuagint mathētēs refers to someone who devoted himself entirely to his rabbi not only as one who learned but also as one who served. In the New Testament mathētēs refers to someone who was willing to imitate his teacher, not simply in knowledge but in behavior, life-style, and suffering.
Unlike other rabbis, the Lord’s mathētēs (disciples) did not choose Him; He chose them. The task then of the disciples, was to do the things Jesus did and to be like Him. And unlike the pupil-teacher relationship of Hellenism which strove to make the disciple a teacher, in Christianity there is only one teacher who is also Lord. Consequently, the work of the disciple is not to propagate knowledge but to serve (cf. Mark 10:45). The Lord Jesus exemplified this, especially at the Last Supper when He washed the feet of His disciples as an example of humility for them to follow.
Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus
Old Testament Prophecy – Messiah would send the Holy Spirit (Isa. 44:3)
New Testament Fulfillment – John 16:7, 13
Did You Know…
In the Bible, it states that Jesus said, “I AM the First and the Last” (Rev. 1:17; 2:8; 22:13).
Bible Quiz
According to the Lord Jesus, what is it that causes a man to de defiled?
**Answer to last week’s trivia: According to Matthew 21, out of what did Jesus say God “perfected praise?” “The mouth of babes and nursing infants” (Matt. 21:16)
Everyday Expressions Alluded to in the Bible
“Put someone’s light out”
“The light of the righteous rejoices, but the lamp of the wicked will be put out” (Prov. 13:9 NKJV).
“Put someone’s light out” - The expression “put someone’s light out” carries carries the idea of stopping someone completely. In Scripture, “light” and “lamp” are metaphors for life, including quality of life. If a lamp in a Near Eastern tent went out at night, the surroundings were pitch dark, mindful of the darkness of death. The idea here then is that the righteous will have a long life, but the wicked will die early.
Did You Know – Christian History
Joseph Henry Gilmore was born April 29, 1834, in Boston, Massachusetts. He was an American Baptist Preacher, University Professor and Songwriter.
Gilmore was the son of the Governor of New Hampshire. He graduated with an Arts Degree from Brown University, and a Theology Degree from Newton Theological Institution.
In 1862, while preaching for a short time in Philadelphia, Gilmore on-the-spur-of-the-moment wrote the hymn, “He Leadeth Me.” During 1864-65, he was the private secretary to his father and at the same time editor of the Concord Daily Monitor. From 1865 to 1867, he preached in Rochester, from 1867 to 1868, he taught Hebrew at the Rochester Theological Seminary, and from 1868 to 1908, when he was retired, he was professor of rhetoric, logic, and English in the University of Rochester. From 1870 to 1878, he was an editorial writer for the Examiner, New York.
Gilmore published many pamphlets setting forth in skeleton form the content of courses given by him in the university or elsewhere. As acting-executive of the university, and as head of one of the more important departments, Gilmore exerted his influence in establishing extension courses, and opening larger educational opportunities to women.
When Joseph Henry Gilmore died on July 23, 1918, he had taught for many years at the University of Rochester in New York and authored several books on literature. He is remembered in educational circles for these contributions and others. But in Christian circles he is remembered for a single hymn written over half a century before his death.
A Little Humor
The irate customer calling the newspaper offices, loudly demanded to know where her Sunday edition was. “Ma’am,” said the employee, “today is Saturday. The Sunday paper is not delivered until Sunday.” There was quite a pause on the other end of the phone, followed by a ray of recognition. “So that’s why no one was in church today.”
Thought Provoking Church Sign
“Jesus came to save the lost, the last, and the least!”
