SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 10/7/2021 10:33 AM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-2 “The
Analogy”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Matthew
10:16a
Message of the verse: “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves.”
We have been talking about sheep in our last SD, and we
can see clearly that Jesus identifies the sheep as you, that is, His disciples—the
Twelve and, by extension, all of His disciples to come. Remember that we have stated that this whole
section will be telescoped all the way to the tribulation period.
It is the normal danger for sheep to have the wolves come
in among them, but we see here that Jesus says “Behold, I send you out as sheep
in the midst of wolves.” Jesus is
sending the sheep right into where the wolves are, to walk into the very jaws
of their enemies. MacArthur writes “Jesus
is the perfect Good Shepherd, who loves His sheep with a divine love, who
intimately knows them and is known by them, and who lays down His life for them
(John 1:11-15). But in the figure of the
sheep and wolves, Jesus gave a graphic illustration of the rejection and
persecution by a God-hating world they would face because of Him. So before the Twelve went out into their
first brief and relatively undemanding service for the Lord, He set before them
the cost of discipleship. Just as He did
not escape opposition and persecution, neither would they (cf. John 15:18-21;
16:33).”
Paul spoke of what was would happen to the church at Ephesus
after he left in Acts 20:29 “"I know that after
my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock;”
The wolves always come and attack the church, and I suppose it is fair to say
that some churches today are only made up of wolves. Let us look at what Paul told the Romans in
8:36 “Just as it is written, "FOR YOUR SAKE WE
ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.’” Notice the highlighted portion of the
verse. We have already learned from
Matthew 7:15 that Jesus warned His followers of “the false prophets who come to
you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”
As we look at these titles that
Jesus gave to the apostles, sheep, and what He gave to the wolves, men, we can
see that as you look at the nature of the sheep and wolves you see that the
sheep would not go into where the wolves are, but that the wolves would go into
where the sheep are, even into where they sleep at night. Jesus said that He was the door to the
sheepfold, and not like the hired shepherds who run when trouble comes. Jesus is sending not only His apostles into
where the wolves but all believers go into where the wolves live in order to save
some. Missionaries go into very dangerous
places in order to tell others about Jesus Christ and how He paid the price for
their sins, and many of them have died in doing this work of the Lord, but that
is the only way that the wolves will hear the true Word of the Lord if people
go into their territory and tell them.
One more quotation from John
MacArthur and then we will end this SD.
We do not hear much preaching today of sinners needing to count the cost
of salvation and repenting of sin in confessing the lordship of Christ, or the
coming to Him humbly, devoid of pride and self-trust, hungering and thirsting
for righteousness. Rarely are Christians
called to take up their crosses and follow Christ in moving out into the world
as sheep ld to slaughter. The popular
appeal is to ease, comfort, riches, advancement, and ambition—and the church
often uses that kind of enticement to motivate believers to follow Him. But Jesus makes no such offer. To the disciple He promises hardship,
suffering, and death.”
I suppose that what MacArthur is
saying is that it is the sign of the times that we live in, and it seems to me
that the times we are living in will soon be over as every day we are coming
closer for the trumpet to sound and the
dead in Christ raise, and then we who are alive to go to meet the Lord in the
air. I look so very much to hearing the
sound of the trumpet.
10/7/2021 11:08 AM
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