April 22, 2012
Scripture:
Hymn 312 - Jesus loves me, this I know
Prayer
1 Kings 4: 20 -
Solomon had been anointed king of Israel. As king, he was in charge of everything that went on in Israel. You’ll remember from last time that the Lord promised to bless Solomon; we are going to look at some of Solomon’s blessings. There are many parallels between Solomon’s blessings and what the Lord Jesus is to us.
V. 20: The population of Israel was quite large; it was compared to the sand of the sea. This was just what God had promised Abraham. Notice that it says that they were merry. They had joy. We can have joy in our hearts when we trust the Lord Jesus to be our Saviour.
V. 21: There was much war when David was king; but because of that war, there was peace during Solomon’s reign. Solomon was king over many countries. These countries served him, and brought him gifts. We should make Jesus the Lord of our lives, and serve Him, by being kind to one another and doing what would please Him.
V. 22 & 23: Solomon had many servants and people working for him. This meant he needed to feed them all each day. Solomon had enough to supply each with an abundance of food. Similarly, the Lord supplies all our needs. The Lord Jesus knows all our needs and will provide for each one.
V. 24: As we mentioned earlier, because of all the war that David went through, there was peace in the land of Israel during Solomon’s reign. We can have peace on the inside and on the outside, since the Lord Jesus died on the cross for us. We can also know that the Lord will protect and take care of us, giving us safety. We can thank the Lord that we live in a country where there is peace. There are other countries that are hostile towards Christians and where there is no peace.
V. 26: Solomon had an amazing amount of horses: 40,000 horses and 12,000 horsemen. When I think of horses. I think of strength. The Lord is our strength. When you are young, you might not think that you need more strength, but as you get older you find yourself praying for strength, and very grateful for the strength the Lord provides, both physically and spiritually.
V. 29: The last gift that Solomon had was wisdom. Many people came to Solomon for wisdom and advice. We can go to the Lord for wisdom, so that we can know what His will is in every area.
These are some of the things the Lord is to us: He brings us joy, should be the Lord of our lives, supplies all our needs, and gives us peace, safety, strength, and wisdom. May we each meditate on these things.
Luke 11: 27-54
We were reminded last week that Satan is the strong man; but that Jesus is the stronger man (and He didn’t use demonic power to cast out devils). The cross dealt with Satan’s power over death, but he’s still here and at work. Hebrews 2:14-15. God will fully deal with Satan in the future. Right now, and in our chapter, Jesus has taken the armour of the strong man and is dividing his spoil. We were once under Satan’s rule, but now are made children of God. We have the power to live a victorious life, because “greater is he that is in *[us], than he that is in the world.”* Satan has nothing that can tempt our new nature; but he can tempt our old nature, so we must try to starve it.
The lady in our passage this week is not an antagonist, but says - in effect - to the Lord, “You must have had a great mother.” It was the divine side of Jesus, however, that made Him great; not His human side. He was God in the flesh (which enabled people to see Him); and He got that flesh from His mother. Jesus didn’t disagree with this woman though. God had asked Mary if He could borrow her body for a while, because He had a baby that He wanted to bring into the world. This could have been embarrassing, because Mary wasn’t married; but she accepted the task saying, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord.” We don’t worship her, but she was special. This woman missed the point, though, because Jesus told her, “Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.” (v28.) The lady was blessing a natural relationship. The Lord, however, put natural relationships below spiritual ones. How do we gain spiritual relationships? By hearing and keeping the Word of God. Relationships formed this way are divine and eternal.
“The Word of God,” says Kelly, “is the link between man on earth and God above.” (Just ‘man’, not ‘regenerate man’ especially. Regenerate man has the Holy Spirit as well.) Also, it’s through the Word that we’re born again, for John 3 tells us that: “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” We believe that the water is the water of the Word. God’s Word is also His authoritative instructions to man, and it tells us how to live. We need those instructions, even though we have a conscience and soul. We should be occupied with this Word. It’s superior to all other “holy books” because they aren’t God-breathed.
The prophet Jonas was a voice of warning to the Ninevites, but he was also a sign to them. What sign? Matthew 12:40 says, “For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” It might be that Jonah had gone through an incredibly dangerous experience, and yet had come out alive. The Lord had just cast out a devil, and yet these people say that they need a sign from heaven. The Ninevites had seen Jonah, who had out of the whale’s belly, and these people had seen Jesus cast out a demon. The Ninevites repented; while these people, unfortunately, did not.
Hymn 381 - I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold
Prayer