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Psalms 85:1-13 A Psalm Of
the Sons of Korah. LORD, You
have been favorable to Your land; You have brought back the captivity of Jacob.
You have forgiven the iniquity of Your people; You have covered all their sin. You
have taken away all Your wrath; You have turned from the fierceness of Your
anger. Restore us, O God of our salvation, And cause Your anger toward us to
cease. Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all
generations? Will You not revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You?
Show us Your mercy, LORD, And grant us Your salvation. I will hear what God the
LORD will speak, For He will speak peace To His people and to His saints; But
let them not turn back to folly. Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, That glory may dwell in our land.
Mercy and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed. Truth
shall spring out of the earth, And righteousness shall look down from heaven.
Yes, the LORD will give what is
good; And our land will yield its increase. Righteousness will go before Him,
And shall make His footsteps our
pathway. Father God, we
thank you for sending your only begotten Son to us. I pray that many hearts be
turned toward your Son this Christmas season. We give you all the glory and
praise. Amen!
Romans 15:8-21 NKJV
We
leave the last few lessons pertaining to what the Holy Spirit inspired through
Paul to tell us about how a strong believer is to act and help the weak or new
believer to become fully rooted in Jesus Christ. This is to enable the weak to
become strong in faith and not works, and live a Holy life in the eyes of God.
This
lesson has two subjects, the first being a believer and being one in Christ
(Verses 8-12). The second is about Paul’s ministry, what he was called to do
and how he was lead by the Holy Spirit to minister to the Gentile world (Verses
13-21).
8 Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a
servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers,
Now I say that Jesus
Christ has become a servant to the circumcision; Paul is affirming that Jesus came as a
servant to the Jews first in this verse. The next verse the Gentile nation is
noted. Jesus was born a Jew, was circumcised, came to His people, and died in
their midst without having the recognition of His people and who He was, the
Messiah.
For
the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers;
Jesus came as the truth of God to confirm the Prophecies of the Old Testament.
To fulfill the promises made to the Jewish peoples forefathers. Some of these
Prophecies are stated in the next several verses.
9 and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written:
"FOR THIS REASON I WILL CONFESS TO YOU AMONG THE GENTILES, AND SING TO
YOUR NAME."
And
that the Gentiles might glorify God for His
mercy, as it is written;
The second purpose Jesus came to earth as man was so that all who would
believe, could become God’s children. After all we are His creation, and God
wants to see all humans that He has created in Heaven with Him for eternity. John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten
Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting
life. It is
because of God’s mercy toward us Gentiles, we have a chance for salvation if we
so desire.
FOR
THIS REASON I WILL CONFESS TO YOU AMONG THE GENTILES, AND SING TO YOUR NAME; This phrase and the next 3 verses
Paul is quoting from the OT. This phrase is taken from Psalm 18:49. Who
is speaking in this Psalm? It is David, but in a sense it is Jesus and what is
being stated here is that Jesus will sing praises to God our Father whenever
Gentile believers sing praises to God. He is our one and only advocate to God
our Father. 1
Timothy 2:5 For there
is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus.
10 And again
he says: "REJOICE, O GENTILES, WITH HIS PEOPLE!"
11 And
again: "PRAISE THE LORD, ALL YOU GENTILES! LAUD HIM, ALL YOU
PEOPLES!"
12 And
again, Isaiah says: "THERE SHALL BE A ROOT OF JESSE; AND HE WHO SHALL RISE
TO REIGN OVER THE GENTILES, IN HIM THE GENTILES SHALL HOPE."
Verse 10 is from Deuteronomy 32:43 and plainly states Gentile
believers have the same saviour and rights as Gods chosen people the
Israelites. Jew and Gentile are to rejoice in unison.
Verse 11 is from Psalm 117:1 and here again it is stating the
same as verse 10. Laud meaning praise, speak well of, extol, etc.
Verse 12 is from Isaiah 11:1 claiming Jesus the Messiah would
rise from the root of Jesse the father of David. Isaiah is making claim here
that a descendant would come forth from Jesse to be the Saviour not only to the
Israelites but also to the Gentile nations on earth. Jesus would and is the
hope for all that desire. One day Jesus will rule and reign beginning with His
second coming.
Isaiah 11:10 "And
in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a banner to the
people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place shall be
glorious."
13 Now may
the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may
abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Now may the God of hope
fill you; God is our hope and inspiration for life, eternal life. Without God we
are dead and if we don’t have Jesus within our heart we are physically alive,
but spiritually dead. Without the proper relationship with Jesus we have no
eternal life.
With all joy and peace;
If one is a true believer they have the joy and peace of knowing that
when they die they will be united with Jesus Christ in Heaven. By placing faith
in Jesus and the finished works of the Cross one is filled with joy and peace. Romans 14:17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and
drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
In believing; The effect
of believing is to produce this joy and peace.
That you may abound in
hope; Through believing and faith ones hope grows and becomes steadfast and
strong.
By the power of the
Holy Spirit; By means of the powerful operation of the Holy
Spirit that a person receives when they give their heart to Jesus that the
Christian has the hope of eternal life. It is by the working of the Holy Spirit
that this hope flourishes. Ephesians
1:13-14 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of
truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were
sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the
redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. Romans 8:24 For we were saved in this hope, but hope
that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees?
14 Now I myself
am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness,
filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another.
This verse Paul is giving
a compliment and encouragement to his Brethren, fellow believers, that they
have the knowledge and wisdom to correct one another. They are filled with the
goodness of the Holy Spirit and very capable of helping and keeping each other
on the path of righteousness.
15
Nevertheless, brethren, I have written more boldly to you on some points, as reminding you, because
of the grace given to me by God,
In the previous verse Paul
gives his brethren a compliment, and it is because of their knowledge of the
Word of God he states other points in a bolder way. He wants to make a few
things very clear and by the grace of God and the workings of the Holy Spirit
within him, he has the assurance that his points will be taken and acted upon
correctly without any grief.
16 that I
might be a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of
God, that the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, sanctified by the
Holy Spirit.
That
I might be a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel
of God; Paul is
making claim here that his mission in life is to preach the Gospel of Jesus
Christ to all nations. That is exactly what he did because Jesus called him to
do that. Paul was a traveler and traveled many miles to many nations to preach
the Gospel. He was and evangelist! He somewhat acted as a Levitical Priest did
in offering up all the animal sacrifices. These priests worked many long and
continuous days and it was a sacrifice on their part. Paul was the same by
himself being persecuted, ridiculed, ran out of town, etc. He endured many
living sacrifices in preaching the Gospel to the Gentile nations.
That
the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit; It was through Paul’s teaching that
Gentiles came to know Jesus and what he did for all mankind. They accepted
Jesus as their Saviour and asked Him into their hearts. It was because of
Paul’s preaching, the Gentiles were made acceptable in God’s eyes through their
faith in Jesus and what He did on the Cross for them. They were sanctified by
the Holy Spirit when they accepted Jesus because immediately upon this
acceptance the Holy Spirit takes up residence within their heart. It is through
this simple act of belief and faith that one is made holy and acceptable to
God.
We become a living
sacrifice when we accept Jesus. The focus from that moment forward is to please
God in all that we do. Romans
12:1 I beseech you therefore,
brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living
sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which
is your reasonable service.
17 Therefore
I have reason to glory in Christ Jesus in the things which pertain to God.
Paul is simply stating
that through the workings of the Holy Spirit many things have been reveled to
him, and because of this, he gives Jesus Christ all the glory pertaining to
Gods kingdom and his prescribed order. Paul rejoices in all Jesus has done for
him by being the ultimate sacrifice.
18 For I
will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ has not accomplished
through me, in word and deed, to make the Gentiles obedient—
Another way of stating
this verse for clarification is; I dare not boast about anything except what
Christ has done through me, bringing the Gentiles to obeying God by my teaching
and actions. In effect Paul is telling us that what he is preaching is all
true. His words and actions are all guided by the Holy Spirit. He wouldn’t
think of doing or speak of anything that would go against God’s Word. He is
trustworthy and you can take his words and actions to be true and believe in
what he is saying.
19 in mighty
signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem
and round about to Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.
Through the power of the
Holy Spirit Paul has performed mighty signs and wonders in his travels. Through
these signs and wonders Paul has brought many Gentiles to Jesus. Acts 19:11-12 Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of
Paul, 12
so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick,
and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. Paul is claiming that he has preached
the Gospel in all areas that he has traveled.
20 And so I
have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I
should build on another man's foundation,
Paul’s earnest desire was
to boldly preach the Gospel where no man had gone before. He wanted to bring
the glorious name of Jesus to the far corners of the earth. He didn’t want to
build on the teachings of other men that were proclaiming the Gospel. He
desired to start churches himself where there were no churches. He regarded the
forming of new churches as his calling. Others might be called to edify the
church, but he regarded it as his function to make known the name of the
Saviour where it was not before known. This work was particularly adapted to
the passion, eagerness, energy, and bravery of such a man as Paul. Every man
has his proper gift and there are some suited to form and establish churches,
while others to edify and comfort churches that are started. The apostle chose
the higher honor, involving most danger and responsibility, but still any
office in building up the church is honorable. 2 Corinthians 10:13-16
We, however, will not boast beyond measure, but within the limits of the sphere
which God appointed us—a sphere which especially includes you. 14 For we are
not overextending ourselves (as though our
authority did not extend to you), for it was to you that we came with
the gospel of Christ; 15 not boasting of things beyond measure, that is, in other men's labors, but
having hope, that as your faith
is increased, we shall be greatly enlarged by you in our sphere, 16 to preach
the gospel in the regions
beyond you, and not to boast in
another man's sphere of accomplishment.
21 but as it
is written: "TO WHOM HE WAS NOT ANNOUNCED, THEY SHALL SEE; AND THOSE WHO
HAVE NOT HEARD SHALL UNDERSTAND."
This verse is from Isaiah
and it’s not word for word, but the meaning is the same. Isaiah 52:15 So shall He sprinkle many nations. Kings shall
shut their mouths at Him; For what had not been told them they shall see, And
what they had not heard they shall consider. In this verse Paul is stating that he was following the
plan spoken of in the Scriptures where it says, "Those who have never been
told about Him will see, and those who have never heard of Him will
understand." In other words through Paul’s preaching, Gentiles will come
to a full understanding of who Jesus is and what and why He died for mankind. Have
you given your heart to Jesus yet? If not, do it this Christmas Season!
Romans
1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,
for it is
the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes…...
Psalms
51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit
within me.
John
3:3
Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I
say to you,
unless
one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
Bill Wiesbrock
Last Week’s Trivia: Who was Adonijah?
Answer: Adonijah was one of three different
persons in the Bible with this name. This Adonijah was David’s fourth son, and
was in line to succeed David as king. Bathsheba, however, prevailed upon the
aged dying David to Name Solomon as his successor. Adonijah went ahead with
schemes to have himself crowned. His conspiracy was blocked by the prophet
Nathan, who hurried to have David and Bathsheba approve a speedy coronation of
Solomon. Although Adonijah pledged loyalty to Solomon, Solomon quickly became
alarmed at Adonijah’s bold and somewhat treasonous request to marry Abishag,
David’s nurse, and had him executed. II Samuel
Chapters 3 & 4; I Kings Chapters
1 & 2.
This week’s Trivia: Who was the other two Adonijah’s?
