July 29, 2012
Scripture:
A thought comes to me from Isaiah 22, where we have a subtle type of the Lord Jesus. Read v. 22a. These words refer to Eliakim, but it is a type of the Lord. Read v. 22b - 23a. When we hang a picture frame on the wall, we like to get the nail in the stud, in a secure place. Read v.23b - 24. This nail has a lot hanging on it. The Lord of glory is that nail. What happens? Read v. 25. The Lord is “cut off out of the land of the living”; He was put to death. But the nail is still hanging in a sure place today. All our blessings hang on Him. What does it mean to hang? It means to depend on. Everything depends on that blessed One. How precious it is to depend on Him!
Hymn 323 - There’s a friend for little children
Prayer
Last time, we read of the Queen of Sheba’s trip to see King Solomon. She had come to see Solomon’s glory for herself and to ask him some questions. God had blessed Solomon greatly: he had a beautiful kingdom and Israel was at the height of it glory; but, unfortunately, it didn’t remain that way.
1 Kings 11:1, 6, 11 - 13
Sadly, Solomon did evil in the sight of God. He married women from other countries, which God prohibited. Because of this, God said that part of the kingdom would be taken away from his seed. However, it wouldn’t be taken away in his reign, because of David his father.
1 Kings 12:20
Israel was divided into two parts: Rehoboam ruled Judah, and Jeroboam ruled Israel. Sadly, Jereboam lead Israel into idol worship, and the kings after him followed in this way. Here are the kings that followed him:
Read 1 Kings 17:1
Finally, God sent the prophet Elijah to awaken the people of Israel. Lord willing, we will learn some lessons from his life.
Solomon turned away from God and we can see how it affected the history of Israel. May we each purpose to follow the Lord throughout our whole life!
Luke 14
This chapter starts out with a story similar to one we had in our last chapter. The Lord found a man who had the dropsy, and the issue of healing on the Sabbath came up again.
Our Lord had gone to supper at a Pharisee’s house. One of the Pharisees’ favorite pass-times was to watch the Lord and try to catch Him doing or saying something wrong. These Pharisees had built “the traditions of the elders” onto the law, and required the people to obey them. We see this a lot in Christendom: some places elevate traditions to the importance of Scripture.
The Lord was going to dispense grace, and so he asked the legalists of the day, “Is this lawful?” He questioned their conscience and they couldn’t answer, because nothing in the law forbid it. God can’t rest when sin is present and the creation is ailing. Jesus told us, “The Father worketh hitherto, and I work” (John 5:17). However, Hebrews tells us that a rest remains for the saints.
The Sabbath is a day, but it is also a principle. There remains a rest, or a “keeping of the Sabbath” for the people of God. What remains is the best, and God has saved it for us. We will enter this rest in the eternal state, where there will be no more sin. It is there that God can rest.
The Pharisees didn’t have an answer for the Lord. So while they held their peace, Jesus healed the man and let him go. In contrasting the law with grace we could ask, “Is it gracious to heal on the Sabbath day?” The answer, we see, is “Yes!“.
Before, Jesus had asked them if they would not lead their animals to watering on the Sabbath day, and no one had disagreed. Now Jesus asks them if one of their animals fell into a pit on the Sabbath, would they put it on tomorrow’s to-do list? No! They would rescue it right away. If they would do that for a domestic animal, then they should be willing to help a fellow man. Once again there is no answer. The Lord could silence those who tried to bring the law to where He was bringing grace.
Starting at verse 7 we get another lesson: humility verses self-exultation. This was written to the proud Pharisee. Will we put the Lord first, or ourselves first? The Lord humbled Himself much more than we have. At a wedding, would these people choose a prominent room, or one that was less prominent? The Pharisees and lawyers liked the high rooms. It seems that you could choose your seat, but then there was a reckoning. If you took a high seat, your host might come and say, “Please sit lower, I need this seat for an important man” - and you would be humiliated. It would be better if you took a low place - in humility - and then were exalted. The principle is in verse 11: “Every one that exalts himself shall be abased, and he that abases himself shall be exalted.” Our Lord is the perfect example of this. Peter tells us,“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.” (1 Peter 5:6). Philippians 2 shows us how the Lord went lower and lower until He got to the cross.
In tradition, there is no humility, no heart; just self-exultation. We shouldn’t follow a tradition, or do something just because our parents do it; we need to do things from our hearts. In attacking tradition Jesus was addressing religious pride, which is the worst of all.
Hymn 215 - Happy they who trust in Jesus
Prayer