SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 10/4/2016 8:38 AM
My Worship Time Focus: The Anticipation of Victory
Bible Reading &
Meditation Reference: John 12:31-33
Message of the verses: “31 “Now judgment is upon this world; now the
ruler of this world will be cast out. 32 “And I, if I am lifted up from the
earth, will draw all men to Myself." 33 But He was saying this to indicate
the kind of death by which He was to die.”
As I begin
this SD I can’t help but think about things that I think about that I hope will
happen in my life, things on a daily basis like getting up and doing my
devotions, figuring out the night before what I have or want to accomplish, and
yet in all of these I should be thinking that they will get done if the Lord
wills it. Sunday evening was supposed to
be a good evening as our church gathered to partake of the Lord’s Supper and
then we were to learn about a new Stewardship program that has been bathed in
prayer for the past three plus years. A
program that will have an impact in our city, county, state and even around the
world, but what we learned at the beginning of the service was that a man who
was 26 years old suddenly dropped dead.
A man with a wife and four children who probably planned to attend the
evening service suddenly went to be with the Lord. This is the third person who has gone to
their eternal home in the last week, but by far the one no one saw coming. Now when we read this section in today’s SD
we see that there is no ifs ands or buts in the life of our Lord for He knew
exactly what was going to happen just ahead in His life as He has known that throughout
His life would happen every day and why should He not know for He is the
eternal God who created all things and sustains all things and for that we
should all be thankful and praise His name.
I have to say that it was a shock to hear about the death of this young
man who has not been a believer for a long time but I also have to say that it
was not a shock to our Lord when this happened.
I will continue to pray for his family over the coming days, months and
years as they all adjust to not having a husband and a father around to be with
them.
We look at
three different victories that will happen at the death of Christ in the rest
of our SD this morning. First His death
would bring judgment upon this world, and the word world which happens in John’s
writings usually means the satanic system and all who are in it, who are in
rebellion against God, so it is not the physical world that we all live in that
John is describing here. When one first
thinks about the death of Christ they may believe that the world is the one
that will receive victory but that is not the case for His death was in the
plan of God from eternity past and the time of His death was also in the plan
of God in eternity past and it happened just like He planned it would just like
all things happen as He plans that they will happen. We know from reading the Scriptures that
Jesus came to save and not to judge, but those who reject His offer of
salvation will be judged as they are a part of this world’s system.
Next we see
that Christ death brought death on the evil ruler of this world, Satan. Compare John 14:30; 16:11; Luke 4:5-6; 2 Cor.
4:4; Eph. 2:2; 1 John 5:19. MacArthur
writes “Scripture reveals several times when Satan will be cast out. Here he is cast out in the sense that he
loses his authority and influence. If
his domain (the world) is judged and destroyed, he will have nothing left to rule. During the tribulation Satan will be
permanently cast out of heaven, to which he has had access to accuse believers
(Rev. 12:10). At the end of the
tribulation, Satan will be cast into the bottomless pit for the duration of the
millennial kingdom (Rev. 20:10). As was
the case with the world, Satan’s apparent victory at the cross in reality
marked his utter defeat. In the words of
the writer of Hebrews, ‘through [His] death [Jesus would ] render powerless him
who had the power of death, that is the devil’ (Heb. 2:14; cf. 1 Cor. 15:25-26;
Rev. 12:11).”
The next
victory is not a negative one but a positive one and that is “when He is lifted
up” which John explains in verse 33 to show the kind of death He would die,
that He will draw all men to Himself.
Let’s talk about the word “all” in a way we have spoken about it
before.
“Spurgeon’s clarification on the meaning of “all:”
“Now, beloved, when you hear anyone
laughing or jeering at a limited atonement, you may tell him this. General
atonement is like a great wide bridge with only half an arch; it does not go
across the stream: it only professes to go half way; it does not secure the
salvation of anyone. Now, I had rather put my foot upon a bridge as narrow as
Hungerford, which went all the way across, than on a bridge that was as wide as
the world, if it did not go all the way across the stream. I am told it is my
duty to say that all men have been redeemed, and I am told that there is a
Scriptural warrant for it—“Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified
in due time.” Now, that looks like a very, very great argument indeed on the
other side of the question. For instance, look here. “The whole world is gone
after him.” Did all the world go after Christ? “Then all Judea went and were
baptized by him in Jordan.” Was all Judea, or all Jerusalem baptized in Jordan?
“You are of God, little children,” and “the whole world lies in the wicked
one.” Does “the whole world” there mean everyone? If so, how was it, then, that
there were some who were “of God?” The words “world” and “all” are used in some
seven or eight senses in Scripture; and it is very rarely that “all” means all
people, taken individually. The words are generally used to signify that Christ
has redeemed some of all sorts—some Jews, some Gentiles, some rich, some poor,
and has not restricted his redemption to either Jew or Gentile.”
Spiritual
meaning for my life today: In our
Sunday school class we are studying the book of Habakkuk and it seems that
there are things in my life that to me are similar to what Habakkuk was facing,
not to the extremes he was facing in my personal life but the same kind of
problems. However in our country we all seem to facing what is taught in the
book of Habakkuk. In the end of his book
Habakkuk learned the following which is what I too desire to learn “17 Though
the fig tree should not blossom And there be no fruit on the vines, Though the
yield of the olive should fail And the fields produce no food, Though the flock
should be cut off from the fold And there be no cattle in the stalls, 18 Yet I will exult in the LORD, I
will rejoice in the God of my salvation. 19 The Lord GOD is my strength; And He has
made my feet like hinds’ feet, And makes me walk on my high places (Hab. 3:17-19).”
My Steps of Faith for
Today: As the world grows darker by
the minute, that should make the light of Christ brighter, a light I want to
shine.
Memory verse for the week: (Romans 6:13) “13 and do not go
on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of
unrighteousness; but present yourself to God as those alive from the dead, and
your members as instruments of righteousness to God.”
Answer to yesterday’s Bible question: “You shall have no other God’s before you”
(Exodus 20:3).
Today’s Bible question:
“In what did Paul counsel Timothy to be strong?”
Answer in our next SD.
10/4/2016 9:47 AM
No comments:
Post a Comment