This truth about Judas illustrates Gods control of every event in the universe. Everyday Apostolic 2019 | All Rights Reserved, Gods Ability To Use Unlikely People Even Unbelievers, Canceling Church On Christmas Removes Christ From Christmas, Great Resources On Baptism In The Name Of Jesus, A Diluted Christianity: Oneness, Trinitarian, Or Is It All Just Irrelevant, Youre Not David Pastor Raymond Woodward, The Walking Bible Pastor Raymond Woodward, Wait On The Lord by James Wilson NAYC 2019, If I Shout/Lets Testify Medley FAC Sanctuary Choir. Dont get me wrong, wisdom is important. Summary Sighing deeply in His spirit, He *said, Why does this generation seek for a sign? This New-Babylon marched through Canaan and took hostages (one of them was Daniel). Why? I believe that t he Lord is here suggesting that the eternal torment that unbelievers will experience will be on a scale from more tolerable to less tolerable. The people of Israel, were backed up against the Red Sea with Pharaohs army charging at them. Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice. Jesus waved him off by declaring, All this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled (Matthew 26:56). In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives. But our God is mightier than any office or country. It forces us to live by faith, which is how He wants us to live all the time because it gives Him glory. ", Writing & Teaching Inductive Bible Studies. In heaven, each mans praise will come to him from God, and God will be glorified for sovereignly using sinners for His good purposes (I Cor. Israel as a nation had rejected the promises of Moses and the Prophets culminating in the demand for the death of Jesus, Gods Messiah. He recognized what was evil because he believed Gods law. When God determines where we will end up, he also determines how we will get there. Wisdom alone, though, is insufficient. 1 John 5:14. Amen. It doesnt mean everything will also go perfectly or the way we hope. In the providence of God, the betrayal by Judas actually advanced Gods purpose in the world. Were they to march into the sea holding their little ones, driving their cattle, and pushing their elderly? Romans 8:28 says, For those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. All things includes both good and bad things. Now if You slay this people as one man, then the nations who have heard of Your fame will say. But we need to grow in faith and obedience. If your rsum is sparse, your intellect feeble, your skills unimpressive, and your wisdom just average, fret not. What an honor to serve the King of kings. However, he had Aaron and Hur hold up Moses arms and had Joshua lead the armies of Israel. And Jesus said, For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind., Those of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, We are not blind too, are we?. Often in the confusion of life, we cant see the ends, much less the means God intends for us. He who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day. Your sons shall be shepherds for forty years in the wilderness, and they will suffer for your unfaithfulness, until your corpses lie in the wilderness. Moses was sent by the Lord multiple times to Pharaoh asking for the release of the Hebrews. Steven Lee is the Pastor of Preaching & Vision at. But he chose instead to allow himself to be arrested, knowing that this would fulfill Gods plan. How does this truth apply to Judas? But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. In Acts 2 God poured out His Holy Spirit on the disciples who spoke on the streets of Jerusalem in the languages of the Gentiles who were present. Because God is utterly unimpressed by my rsum. We are called to be among his faithful people. Remember my imprisonment. Judas professed Christ but he did not possess him, which is why he is in hell today. From the earliest days of Jesus life we find the Jewish leaders conspiring against him. 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. Jesus said the unbelievers failed to give him food, drink, nurse him in His sickness, or visit Him in prison. His words imply that all the torment will be tolerable. Gods plan even extended to having Jesus buried in a borrowed tomb (see Isaiah 53:9). WebGod will never set man's will aside and use him for a good purpose without his being willing to be used. 2 Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. This brings us face to face with the doctrine of Gods providence, which means, A) God has a plan that includes everything that happens in the universe, and, B) Gods plan extends to the tiniest details of life, and. When Judas kissed Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, Peter impulsively grabbed his sword and started swinging. But Moses said to the Lord, Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for by Your strength You brought up this people from their midst, and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. Suggestions? This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask God uses the overwhelmed and disheveled mother to nurture her children into spiritual giants. Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites live in the valleys; turn tomorrow and set out to the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.. Going to church wont make you a Christian any more than sleeping in a garage makes you a caror going to a donut shop makes you a cop. WebJohn 3:16. In fact, in one place in scripture, God said that what He was doing could not be understood even if He explained it. But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. Through one mans treachery, Jesus proves himself a man of peacenot a man of war. But God gave the command, Moses obeyed the command, and in a sense Moses divided the Sea, as the Lord commanded, and in a more ultimate sense God did the miracle and divided the Red Sea. But if anyone says to you, This is meat sacrificed to idols, do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for conscience sake; I mean not your own conscience, but the other mans; for why is my freedom judged by anothers conscience? God has the amazing ability to do things that simply do not make sense to mankind. When Judas actually betrayed Jesus in the Garden, Peter immediately sprang to his defense. Visit Justins personal website Here. He used sinners to accomplish His sovereign will. Christianity is not about religion, its about a life-changing relationship with the Son of God. His plan in doing so was to bless all people. Herod the Great tried to kill him in Bethlehem. Thanks for your interest! He may for a time use the ungodly to bring deserved chastising upon the hypocrites among His own people, and to show his uncompromising wrath upon those left to what we all deserve aside from the work of his grace. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. The terms Neo-Babylons and Chaldeans are used interchangeably for the people of that Empire. That leads me to ask a simple question: Are you a professor or a possessor? And how long will they not believe in Me, despite all the signs which I have performed in their midst? When we reach a dead end in our own resources, God can part the sea of the impossible and get us through, but I digress. It only made sense on Sunday morning when Jesus rose from the dead. (Video #2), Lesson 2: Gods Use of the Ungodly Habakkuk 1:5-11. God wants to use those who look away from their self-sufficiency to his all-sufficiency. But through the lens of the New Testament, he is seen as a wicked man. When they offered him 30 pieces of silver, he readily accepted even though that was the going price for a slave. Summary so that they might escape from the devil's snare, even though they've been held captive by him to do his will. They sweep through like the strong winds from the East gathering up captives that number like the grains of sand. An unlikely person to be used by God. Those who look to themselves, will eventually and always reap their just punishment. Also, be sure to stop by our prayer wall. Providence means that God is in charge of the entire universe at all times and nothing happens outside his control. God ordains the means and the ends of life. 1:21). God scoffs at any attempt by me or you to prove our worthiness. God promised to precede Cyrus and destroy all opposition that Cyrus would face: 'I will go before you and make the 3. Our accolades cannot merit us any greatness. Their horses also are swifter than leopards, And more fierce than evening wolves. Eventually, Pharaoh decided to use the Jews for slave labor. Gods plan even extended to having Jesus buried in a borrowed tomb (see Isaiah 53:9). God promised to precede Cyrus and destroy all opposition that Cyrus would face: 'I will go before you and make the 3. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; Immediately the boys father cried out and said, I do believe; help my unbelief.. All of our resources exist to guide you toward everlasting joy in Jesus Christ. God used this unlikely group of people to accomplish His greatest work and they had no idea. Every evil in the world must somehow serve Gods purpose. God reigns over the nations; God sits on His holy throne ( Psalm 47:8 ). First, the people of Israel were for the most part leaderless. When Isaiah 53:1 speaks of the future coming of the Messiah, literally it says, who would have believed the thing reported? His birth as a baby who would grow up, suffer and die was most unexpected. Another unlikely person used by God was King Cyrus of Persia. Be encouraged Christian, God intends to use you in all your multifaceted weakness and obscurity for his glory. His purpose in creation will stand. Yet both declare His awesome glory. 2) If Jesus did descend into hell, why? But the fact of the matter is it wasnt me! Not one of these men, this evil generation, shall see the good land which I swore to give your fathers. The Prophet was told to look around him and see what was going on among the nations, observe! One of the most remarkable things about the Scriptures is how they preserve for us what we regard as our highest dignity, which is the right to exercise our own will. Egypt made his brother, Jehoiakim, the new king over the Jews. It appears that between 11 PM Thursday night and 7:30 AM Friday morning, Jesus underwent six different hearingsone before Annas, two before Caiaphas, one before the Sanhedrin, and two before Pontius Pilate. Understanding God in Troubled Times Which is why they completely missed the Messiah when they stood right beside Him. One swing of his sword whacked off the ear of Malchus, servant to the High Priest. Stand by and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. God picks the scrawniest little girl to lead off on his kickball team. The Pharisees came out and began to argue with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, to test Him. Acts 2:23 tells us that Jesus was delivered up, by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death. We might be a life-hacking, productivity guru. A man who lived in a time in which only Jews served the one true God. God chooses the custodian with a heavy accent to share the gospel and save lives. Gods Ability To Use Unlikely People Even Unbelievers. Wisdom didnt ensure obedience. But as for you, your corpses will fall in this wilderness. He uses believers and unbelievers. Habakkuk learned that the material success of the ungodly is not a reliable measure of their true success. The sheep representing believers who did Gods will and the goats representing unbelievers who do not do Gods will. 6:10). Really, its just fine. Moses had great faith! 10 people that God used to accomplish his purposes I. Paul: The one with a shameful past and challenging present (4:18) Colossians 4:18 - I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. He didnt accept evil apathetically, he was appalled by it. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. God could have had the earth swallow up the Amalekites. He was ready to die for his Master and intended to take a few of the bad guys with him. Do not lament your insufficiency. International Standard Version. I cant charge an exorbitant hourly fee for my time. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband; for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy.read more.Yet if the unbelieving one leaves, let him leave; the brother or the sister is not under bondage in such cases, but God has called us to peace. God is still using unlikely people to accomplish His will on earth today. Just as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things! (Rom. Though used of God to complete his plan, those who crucified our Lord were still personally wicked and godless in what they did. They gather captives like sand. Holman Old Testament Commentary: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah by Trent Butler. So through his death, he can have everlasting life on earth. Paul also made this clear in Romans 9-11. But God did just that and used a sinning Gentile to begin the process of restoring Israel. Solomon was DaVinci, Einstein, Bach, Jordan, Augustus, and Shakespeare rolled into one superior man. Because God created all He can use anything in creation. Judas didnt know it, and neither did the disciples, but Gods fingerprints were all over his act of betrayal. Impatience and failing to trust God is never helpful. The new Pharaoh saw the Israelites as a plague in the land. Is that a contradiction? And it is just like God to ask us to do hard things, things that seem impossible, that we know in our hearts we cant do. We should never presume to say to an unbeliever, God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. We cant know that. It is a mighty nation, It is an ancient nation, A nation whose language you do not know, Nor can you understand what they say. . To say it another way, there is a man in hell today who has been there for 2000 years even though what he did advanced Gods plan to save the world. Even those who have a very low view of Gods sovereignty, if they pray, pray because God is perfectly sovereign, otherwise prayer would be an exercise in futility. Email Jack. Our prayers do not alter Gods eternal decree. Everything was planned by God down to the tiniest detail. We need to be reminded again and again that we are like grass disposable, temporary, fleeting, momentary. The Lord can never be blamed for evil, but evil does not take p. God never does evil Himself. Though absolutely sovereign, all knowing, all wise, and everywhere present, God uses sinners to accomplish His will. The Bible says, God was well pleased through the message preached to save those who believe (I Cor. We might make Jim Collins proud, but God yawns at our leadership abilities. But now, the grief of the Egyptians had subsided and was replaced with anger and regret. They probably said things like, See, God isnt doing anything no body ever gets punished, it cant be very serious. They had forgotten the longsuffering of the True God who made all things, and who rules as King over all kings. In this period of Judahs last kings, the Prophets warned of the fulfillment of this covenant promise. God then raised up Moses and his brother Aaron as instruments to deliver the people of Israel from cruel bondage. Summary We need to remember that God uses the foolish. Comments? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? We pray because God is sovereign and all powerful. The gospel writers record many Old Testament prophecies that were fulfilled in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. WebThe one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. Causing him to not let the people go. Your children, however, whom you said would become a preyI will bring them in, and they will know the land which you have rejected. In their very act of oppression, they unknowingly serve the glory of the Creator. Then his mind changes, and he transgresses; He commits offense, Ascribing this power to his god.. Romans 8:28 says, For those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. All things includes both good and bad things. We see this all the way through the Bible. They had fast horses and were more fierce (more alert, fierce, and sharp) than the hungry wolves that come out to hunt in the evening. Habakkuk 1:5, Look among the nations and watch Be utterly astounded! God doesnt need men, but God chooses to use men at times to accomplish His sovereign will. So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires. WebAnd then they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the Devil, who had caught them and made them obey his will. But we need to grow in faith and obedience. God will bring ultimate and final judgment upon all ungodliness. They were afraid. God himself had foreordained every detail surrounding the death of his Son. Consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an ungifted man enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all;read more.the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so he will fall on his face and worship God, declaring that God is certainly among you. Covenant judgment was about to be poured out upon Israel. New American Standard Bible Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. Psalm 109:8Replaced by another manMatthias (see Acts 1:20). Gods Ability To Use Unlikely People Even Unbelievers. And the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they granted them what they requested. As Christians, we have nothing to fear or worry about because we know that God is in control. For I will work a work in your days Which you would not believe, though it were told you.. They have heard that You, O. The people of Jacob were trapped. I am a preacher and Bible teacher. or will we in our rebellion demonstrate the just curse of His covenant warnings? 10:17 Paul writes, So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the Word of Christ. When we preach the gospel to someone and they come to saving faith, we dont boast that we have saved them but that God has saved them, though we were the instruments of Gods saving work. Fourth, Gods command seemed impossible to obey. The unbeliever has made an exchangethe truth for a lieand the devil is happy to facilitate the swap by presenting the sinner with a wide array of lies from which to choose. God can use even you even me. WebWhat if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 1 Peter 2:8 And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. They do whatever they want. Unbelievers Are blinded by the God of this world 2 Corinthians 4:4 Verse Concepts Guiding our world whether we are able to see it or not. Stating that the plans of men are many but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand. The trials that were meant to establish his guilt ended up establishing his innocence for all the world to see.
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