NEEDED INSTRUCTIONS

“Your own wickedness will correct you, and your backslidings will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing that you have forsaken the LORD your God, and the fear of Me is not in you, says the Lord GOD of hosts!” (Jer. 2:19 NKJV).

Through the prophet Jeremiah, God gives some needed instructions to the children of Israel. These are instructions we all need. The instructions of our text will apply to all people. These instructions speak of the reproving of God and of the rejecting of God.

Reproving of God – “Your own wickedness will correct you, and your backslidings will rebuke you.” God has many effective ways of reproving and rebuking man for sin. One very effective way is to have the results of the sin committed do the reproving and the rebuking. In spite of this, some folk are so blinded and bent on sinning that they miss the reproof. They can be practically ruined and destroyed by their sin but still miss the message of rebuke in their losses caused by their sin.

Rejecting of God – “It is an evil and bitter thing that you have forsaken the LORD your God, and the fear of Me is not in you.” This statement says three things about rejecting God. First, the sinfulness of it: “It is an evil thing” to reject God. It is sin to reject God. Removing God out of our personal lives is sin! Second, the sorrow in it: “Bitter.” Rejecting God does not open the door to happiness. Rather it brings sorrow and heartache. And that sorrow will be eternal if there is no repentance about rejecting God. Third, the shaming by it: “the fear of Me is not in you.” Rejecting God does not honor God, it exposes our disrespect of God. Those who reject God lack fear for God. They are irreverent. This describes our society today; it is definitely not a God-honoring society

(Adapted from Butler Daily Bible Reading)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“The signals of Scripture are meant for our protection, correction, and direction!”

Anonymous

Word Study

Dissensions

In Gal 5:19-20 we read, “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies!” (NKJV).

Dissensions is the Greek word dichostasia (διχοστασία = dee-khos-tas-ee'-ah). It is made up of two words: “dicha” which means apart or asunder, and “stasis” which mean standing. The word literally means a standing apart which is a picture of discord, disunity, contention, division into opposing groups. It is disagreement which leads to discord. Dissension is strife that arises from a difference of opinion and stresses a division into factions (especially factions in the early church).

In classical Greek, dichostasia mean a standing apart, thus it is a dissension or an act of sedition, a political revolt. Dichostasia does not appear in the Septuagint. In the New Testament, dichostasia means dissension or disagreement. In adding dichostasia to the list of vices, Paul was referring to the internal dissension (disagreement) in the church, which he regarded as totally contrary to godly behavior.

Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus

Old Testament Prophecy – Men would flee from being associated with the Messiah (Isa. 53:3)

New Testament Fulfillment – Mark 14:50-52

Did You Know…

In the Bible, the Father tells us to listen to the Lord Jesus (Matt. 17:5; Luke 9:35).

Bible Quiz

Where did Job live?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz: What is not to be cast before swine? Pearls (Matt. 7:6).

Names of the Lord Jesus Found in the Bible

“Door”

“I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture!” (John 10:9 NKJV).

1. Meaning – The Lord Jesus is our gateway.

2. Insights – The Lord Jesus is our opening to God. He is the only way to heaven.

3. Related Titles – Door/Gate of the Sheep (John 10:7).

Did You Know – Christian History

Joseph Henry Gilmore was born April 29, 1834 in Boston, Massachusetts. He was a Baptist minister, hymn- writer, and professor of rhetoric, logic, and English at the University of Rochester.

Gilmore graduated from Phillips Andover Academy in 1854, from Brown University in 1858, and from the Newton Theological Institution in 1861. In 1862, while preaching for a short time in Philadelphia, Gilmore wrote almost impromptu, somewhat as a relief from his depression over the Civil War, the hymn, “He Leadeth Me.” He then handed his wife the piece of paper with the words of the hymn.

Thinking that the words of the hymn would bless the hearts of people in those troublesome times, she sent the poem to The Watchman and Reflector who printed it. Three years later in 1865, while preaching at the Second Baptist Church in Rochester, he picked up a church hymnal to see what songs they sang and was surprised to find the very song he had written three years earlier.

Gilmore was editor of the Concord Daily Monitor, and from 1865 to 1867, he preached in Rochester. He then taught Hebrew in the Rochester Theological Seminary, and from 1868 to 1908 he was professor of rhetoric, logic, and English in the University of Rochester.

Gilmore published many text-books, many as pamphlets setting forth in skeleton form the content of courses given by him in the university and elsewhere. He was at times an acting-executive of the university, and his influence in that position, as well as in his position as head of one of the more important departments, was exerted effectively toward establishing extension courses, and opening larger educational opportunities to women. Gilmore died July 23, 1918 in Rochester, New York.

A Little Humor

A priest and a pastor are standing by the side of a road holding up a sign that reads “The end is near! Turn around now before it’s too late!” A passing driver yells, “You guys are nuts!” and speeds past them. From around the curve, they hear screeching tires - then a big splash. The priest turns to the pastor and says, “Do you think we should just put up a sign that says ‘Bridge Out’ instead?”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“Sin blinds our eyes; grace opens them!”