God bless you in the magnificent name of Jesus Christ

How confused and angry David could have been when he considered his treatment by Saul.  David had never done anything but his best for the king.  He fought Goliath.  He played music to soothe Saul’s troubled soul.  He had done nothing to deserve the treatment he received.  Surely if anyone was wrongly condemned and mistreated, David was.  However, David didn’t let this treatment deter him.  The temptation facing David was to not keep his trust in God.  He sang about it in Psalms 11.

Psalms 11:1:
In the LORD put I my trust: [hasah, meaning “to flee for refuge or to take shelter in”] how say ye to my soul, Flee as a bird to your mountain?

He asserts his trust in God and distains the advice to succumb to the temptation and flee.  It is not that the advice is so bad or distasteful in itself, for later after he and Jonathan discuss the situation, he does decide to flee.  David was not offended by the counsel, but rather by the manner in which it was given.  It cut him to his very heart and soul.  Their comment “to flee as a bird to the mountain” was spoken insincerely or ironically or whimsically or maybe even a bit sarcastically.  It was in a gibing, jeering way, as if his flight would make any difference.  “Flee as a bird to your mountain.”  The intent of the comment that cut David to the soul was that the flight would serve no purpose.  David, like a bird, would be unlikely to find any safety there.  Indeed, I Samuel 26:20 says that Saul sought him as one would hunt a partridge in the mountains.  Verse 2 paints the picture of the hunt even more clearly.

Psalms 11:2
For, lo, the wicked [Hebrew rasha, the lawless ones] bend their bow, they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they may privily shoot at the upright in heart.

The wicked are armed and ready.  They have the righteous in their sights and their finger on the trigger, so to speak.  They have the ambush set, and are secretly seeking an occasion.

Psalm 11:3:
If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?

“Foundations” refers to those things which have been fixed, settled, and established.”  It refers to the things upon which we base our lives.  If it were true that the foundations were destroyed what could the righteous do?  Praise God it doesn’t say that the foundations were destroyed.  It says “if!”  All this was designed to get David fearful; to get him to quit trusting in God; after all David, what can you do?  The adversary wanted to shake the very foundations of his life.  How can God be just?  How can God be righteous?  How can God let these things happen to me?

I went through a period in my life where it seemed like my foundations were destroyed.  It was as if the proverbial rug was pulled out from under my feet while I was standing on it.  My whole world seemed to go topsy-turvy.  I could hardly believe what was going on.  I began to see however, the devilish ambush that was set for me.  It was the devil that wanted to shake me at my very foundations.  It was the devil who wanted to destroy my trust in God.  It was the devil who wanted me to abandon the greatness of the Word that God had taught me.  I had to come to grips with the fact that men were not what they had seemed.  Yes, those I thought to be friends and loved ones deserted and abandoned me, but God didn’t.

God hasn’t changed and He never will.  He has declared His Word, and He will never let it fall to the ground.  Psalms 119:89 says, “For ever, O Lord, Thy Word is settled in heaven.”  That Word will never change, and if it is the foundation then our foundation is sure and steadfast.  Remember how the serpent tried to pull the rug out from under Eve in the garden.  He asked, “Yea, hath God said?” He is pursuing the same tactics today.  The Bible is still the central object of his assaults.  Did God really say that?  Is what I was taught true?  What’s true?  What’s not true?  What is the Word of God, and what is the word of men?

Paul said in I Thessalonians 2:13, “For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.”  Paul was thankful that when he spoke God’s Word to the folks in Thessalonica, they received it as the words of God and not the words of men.  Well, Paul spoke the truth.  They received it as the truth and were blessed.  How did they know it was God’s Word and not the words of men?  “It worked effectually in them as they believed.”  When the truth is spoken and believed, it works.  There’s joy and peace in believing when it is the Word of God we believe.  Sure, there are difficulties in life.  We wouldn’t be more than conquerors if there was nothing to overcome.  Problems can still arise when the doctrine is true, but problems should never arise because of the doctrine.

The truth of God’s Word brings deliverance, not bondage.  It brings peace not turmoil.  It provides power; it does not breed powerlessness.  The word said it worked effectually.  Do you know the difference between effectively and effectually?  Effective means capable of bringing about an effect or result.  Effectual means capable of producing an intended effect.  God’s Word brings about what it says it will.  When we believe the promise, we get the result.  The believers in Thessalonica knew that what Paul taught them was true because it worked effectually in them.  They applied the Word and got results.

I Thessalonians 5:21 says, “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.”  Remember Thessalonians were the first epistles that God had written.  He wanted people to prove the Word.  He wants us to prove His good, acceptable and perfect will.  Don’t believe it just because I say it or the right reverend so and so says it.  As if this guy or that guy is always right.  God says no matter who says it, prove it.  If it is God’s Word it will prove itself good acceptable and perfect.

Psalms 12:6 says, “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.  Proverbs 30:5 also echoes this truth saying, “Every word of God is pure.”  Psalms 18:30 says, “As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all those that trust in him.”  God doesn’t want us to defer judgment to other people.  We are to make our own decisions for our own lives and we will stand approved before God as we rightly divide the Word of truth.

The Bereans also were blessed with the teaching of the Word.

Acts 17:11-12a:
These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.^12a Therefore many of them believed…”

David was tempted to quit on God.  He was tempted to lose his trust in God, but he didn’t.  Why not?  He was mistreated and abused, but he did not blame God for it or run away and hide.  How did he get passed it? The rest of the Psalms 11 tells us how.

Psalms 11:4-7:
The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD’S throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.⁵ The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul [He] hateth.⁶ Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup.⁷ For the righteous LORD loveth righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright. [the upright shall gaze upon His face.]

Into every other sphere man pushes his investigations, but the Book of books is neglected, not only by the ignorant, and illiterate, but by the wise of this world as well.  The Bible does not fear investigation.  Instead of fearing it, the Bible courts and challenges consideration and examination.  The more widely it is known, the more closely it is read, the more carefully it is studied, the more unreservedly will it be received as the Word of God.

Believers do not want to be deceived.  Though we may be a company of enthusiastic fanatics, we do not love of myths.  We are not eager to be deluded.  We do not desire our lives to be moulded by empty superstition.  We do not wish to mistake hallucination for inspiration.  If we are wrong, we wish to be set right.  If we are mistaken, we desire to be corrected.

If the Bible is not inspired in the strictest sense of the word then it is worthless, for it claims to be God’s Word, and if its claims are not true, then its statements are unreliable and its contents are untrustworthy.  If, on the other hand, it can be shown to the satisfaction of every impartial inquirer that the Bible is the Word of God, inerrant and infallible, then we have a starting point from which we can advance on the quest for truth.

How’s your foundation?  Have you checked it recently?

God bless you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works (Titus 2:14).

Israel fell into decline when they turned away from God.  The Lord had warned them of the consequence of their sin which was captivity by the hands of foreign invaders.  Ezra 9:1-10:44 occurs between Nehemiah 13:3&4.  This happened chronologically after the end of the book of Esther.  Even after the Jews defended themselves and thwarted the onslaught of evil fomented against them by Haman, the enemy of the Jews.  Many of them were still in captivity.  Although some had returned to their homeland, not everyone had.  Ezra spoke of their situation in Ezra 9 saying:

Ezra 9:7-10:
Since the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass unto this day; and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to a spoil, and to confusion of face, as it is this day. ⁸ And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage. ⁹ For we were bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God, and to repair the desolations thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem.

Here Ezra is asking the Lord for a measure of revival in the bondage of his circumstances.  God’s mercy had already allowed them a space of grace to repair and set up the house of God and the wall around Jerusalem.  He is lamenting the fact that the hearts of God’s people had not yet forsaken the iniquity that caused them to go into captivity originally (Ezra 9:1-7; 10-15).

In chapter 10 Ezra confronted the people, and they confessed their sin and renewed their covenant with the Lord.  They were back in the land, but their hearts were not right with the Lord.  They needed reviving in their bondage, the bondage of their idolatrous practices, the bondage of earthly-minded, sense-knowledge people who have no appreciation or interest in the things of God.

Ezra refused to continue to live in a world of unbelief and unconcern for spiritual matters.  He wanted God to revive His people so they could walk in freedom and love again. It did happen (Ezra 10:3-5). God did bring revival. He can do the same today!

God’s people were able to put the sins of their past behind them and move ahead. Zophar painted a beautiful mind picture for Job of putting the past behind him as he said:

Job 11:16-18:
Because thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it as waters that pass away: ¹⁷ And thine age shall be clearer than the noonday; thou shalt shine forth, thou shalt be as the morning ¹⁸ And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope; yea, thou shalt dig about thee, and thou shalt take thy rest in safety.

There is often misery in the remembrance of sin and failure. However, this precious promise in Job affords us the opportunity to dislodge every unpleasant memory we retain.  There is a river that washes away all our transgressions carrying them into the Sea of God’s Forgetfulness (Jeremiah 31:34; Hebrews 8:12; 19:17).  Use these images to visualize the current of cleansing water which washes away all our past sins, mistakes, traumas, and defeats.  As surely as the tide goes out, they are carried and buried at the bottom of the ocean.

Micah 7:19 tells us that God cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. Let’s erect a no fishing sign and leave them where He left them. Let’s not dredge them up. They can be put out of sight and out of mind.  The painful residue from our past can be eliminated; good thoughts can replace those that cause misery.

God grant us revival and a peaceful mind to replace a troubled one. Enjoy your day with your sins washed away.

God bless you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, whose commitment to do the will of God has ever been surpassed (John 8:29).

Nehemiah 9:38 records how God’s people made a sure covenant.  They made a binding agreement, put it in writing, and signed their names to it.  Nehemiah chapter 10 also records the details.  This was a wonderful display of the resolve of those people to change their lives.  The list might be termed the company of the committed, because the people saw a need for preserving and perpetuating the changes in their lifestyles.  They so wanted to keep in step with God that they signed the agreement and bound themselves to that end.  This agreement represents a kind of universal urge found among humans to publicly and seriously pledge themselves to be loyal to a cause they feel is right.  There are many instances of this recorded in history.

When the Pilgrims were about to land at Plymouth, MA they formed what they called the Mayflower Compact.  They drew up rules for living in the new land and they all signed it as an agreement to live by these principles and laws.  Similarly, the most famous document in American history, the Declaration of Independence, set forth the reasons why the men who signed it felt God was leading them to establish a new nation.

The closing words of that document read:  “For the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.”  History records that most of those signers of the Declaration actually did have to give up their lives.  Those who did not lost their fortunes.  But all of them retained their sacred honor.

Perhaps of the people who participated in our Messengers For Christ adventures shared with me that they felt the same way about the requirements of the adventure.  They wanted to make some changes in their lifestyle and wanted a community to engage with for support and comradery.  You read the MFC commitment and felt that those actions would help them walk with God and grow in grace and favor before Him.  So, they pledged themselves.  None of us ever did it perfectly, but we did our best and God honored it with great growth and insight.

In 1862, at the very height of the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln said to his cabinet:  “When the rebel army was at Frederick I determined, as soon as it should be driven out of Maryland, to issue a Proclamation of Emancipation such as I thought most likely to be useful.  I said nothing to anyone; but I made the promise to myself, and [hesitating a little,] and to my Maker.  The rebel army is now driven out, and I am going to fulfill that promise.”  That was the background of the great Emancipation Proclamation which freed the slaves for the first time in this country.

The resolve that Abraham Lincoln mustered is the same that we have to muster day by day as we resolve to keep our commitments before God.  Yes, that will take discipline.  We will not be able do this casually.  Once we decide and make a decision, we stick with that decision.  That is what a disciple is — one who disciplines himself or herself.

Ultimately, these people listed in Nehemiah failed to follow through with their commitment.  Subsequent history reveals that all the old habits returned.  We discover why in verse 29.  It says, “They clave to their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a curse, and into an oath, to walk in God’s law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the LORD our Lord, and his judgments and his statutes” (Nehemiah 10:29).  They were depending on their own efforts to obey.  They bound themselves with a curse and an oath.  They were saying, “We will do this or else.”  They were relying upon their own self-determination, their own will power.  They were gritting their teeth and swearing to perform properly.  There is no expression of any need of help from God or of any provision for failure and return.

It is still right to vow.  It is still right to write it down for our own benefit and remind ourselves frequently of our goals.  However, we must always add the words that Paul uses of himself, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).  We will always need assistance to accomplish God’s will.  Personal failure is not final.  We can have a new beginning whenever we ask.  The instruction in righteousness that allows us to walk with God includes doctrine, reproof and correction.

Job went through some painful experiences until he learned this lesson.  This is what he said:  “Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.  For he wounds, but he also binds up; he injures, but his hands also heal” (Job 5:17-18 NIV).  Let’s include God in our plans and seek His assistance in performing our vows.  Remember it’s Christ in us the hope of glory.

Following is something I found that I shared with the MFC.  I think it was written by Dr. Robert Moorehead, and I found it very encouraging and inspiring:

Fellowship of the Unashamed

I’m part of the fellowship of the unashamed.  The die has been cast.  I have stepped over the line.  The decision has been made. I’m a disciple of His. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure.  I’m finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotion, plaudits, or popularity. I don’t have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded.  I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear.  I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded, or delayed.  I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won’t give up, shut up, or let up until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and preached up for the cause of Christ.  I am a disciple of Jesus.  I must go till he comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till he stops me. And when he comes for his own, he will have no problem recognizing me. . . my banner will be clear!

God bless you in the name of Jesus Christ

At one time the believer was without God and without hope in the world.  He was dead in trespasses and sins, and a dead man cannot do much for himself.  However, God, in His great mercy and grace “butted” into the believers’ lives.  He interceded to help when the believer was helpless.  He intervened and brought hope to the hopeless.

Not many wise, mighty, or noble men are called, but God chose the foolish.

The natural man could not understand the things regarding the mystery, but God revealed them unto the believer by spirit.

Labourers planted and watered, but God gave the increase.

Meats are for the belly and the belly is for meat but God shall destroy both it and them.

Marriage relationships may not be perfect but God hath called us to peace.

Believers continue to be tempted, but God is faithful to make a way to escape.

There are many members in the body of Christ but God hath tempered the body together.

Believers may die and see corruption but God will give them a new body as it pleases Him.

God made a difference and continues to make a difference in the lives of believers.  He has accomplished the believer’s perfect and complete salvation.  He has taken the believer from the depths of depravity and helplessness and placed him in the exalted position of being seated together with Christ at his own right hand.  Thereby making it available for us to live in this world, as he is.

The overall purpose of First Corinthians is to show the believers where they are believing wrongly.  It corrects the practical error that resulted from failure to adhere to the revelation of Romans.  Certain areas of wrong believing are pointed out so that they might return to right believing.

The uses of “but God” in First Corinthians bring the believers back to the acknowledgement of what God has wrought in and for them.  The logical connective “but” draws the mind back to what God has accomplished.  The believer:

was not worthy but God chose him
did not know but God revealed to him
was unable to augment the church but God gave the increase
was ruled by the mundane things of the world but God shall destroy them
was in bondage due to failure to renew his mind but God called him to peace
was tempted but God was faithful to make a way to escape
was one of many members of the body but God tempered the body together
was doomed to corruption but God will give him a incorruptible body.

Irrespective of what may be our circumstances and our needs, we ought to remember “but God.”  God has intervened into the life of every believer to do that which the believer could not do for himself.  God continues to take an active part in the lives of His people.  He energizes the manifestations, and brings to pass His Word in their lives.

The precise use of “but God” in I Corinthians displays the precision with which God wrote His Word.  He had a purpose for everything He said; where, how, to whom, when, and why He said it.  The believer needs to acknowledge Him in all his ways and allow God to direct his steps.

The believer needs to become Word conditioned not world conditioned.  As the believer practices the presence of God in his life the knowledge of the truths of “but God” can help put steel in his backbone.  There is nothing that God has promised in His Word that He can not and will not do for the believer.

God challenges us to believe His Word.  These statements of what God has done should continue to resound within the heart and mind of every believer until they become an integral part of life.  Belief in God and His ability to perform His promises is simple and logical.

The contrast between God and the world is apparent.  The spiritual battle that has raged since the fall of man still confronts the believer.  However, God has freely given the believer spirit so that he can know the things that God would freely give to him, God persists to will and to do in the life of the believer that which he can not do for himself.  Paul was confident in this very thing:

Philippians 1:6:
Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

Whenever you are faced with situations and circumstances that are contrary, remember God can “but” in and change things.

God bless you in the name of Jesus Christ

The number eight denotes a new beginning.  The eighth use of “but God” deals with the new beginning of the believer in the next administration.

I Corinthians 15:35-44:
But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? ³⁶ Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: ³⁷ And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain: ³⁸ But God giveth it a body as it bath pleased him,. and to every seed his own body. ³⁹ All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds. ⁴⁰ There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial:  but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. ⁴¹ There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory. ⁴² So also is the resurrection of the dead.  It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: ⁴³ It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory:  it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: ⁴⁴ It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is spiritual body.

Again, God uses an analogy from the natural world to teach a spiritual principle.  People wonder how are the dead raised up and with what body they would come.  However God has shown in the regeneration of plants that very principle.

The question of life after death is not a new one.  Job asked, “If a man die, shall he live again?”  There were entire sects developed within Judaism along the question of the resurrection.  The Sadducees, the sect not believing in the resurrection, presented Jesus with a hypothetical situation:

Mark 12:19-27:
Master, Moses wrote unto us, If a man’ brother die, and leave his wife behind him, and leave no children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. ²⁰ Now there were seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and dying left no seed. ²¹ And the second took her, and died, neither left he any seed: and the third likewise. ²² And the seven had her, and left no seed: last of all the woman died also. ²³ In the resurrection therefore, when they shall rise, whose wife shall she be of them? for the seven had her to wife. ²⁴ And Jesus answering said unto them. Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God? ²⁵ For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven. ²⁶ And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? ²⁷ He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living: ye therefore do greatly err.

The answer of Jesus is as accurate today as it was then.  People err today for two reasons:  they do not know the scriptures and they do not know the power of nod.

God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.  When?  In the resurrection.  Therefore he is going to have to quicken the dead.  I Corinthians 15:44 states that in so doing he will also give it a body.  However, the new body will not be a natural (i.e. corrupt or mortal) one, but rather a spiritual (i.e. incorruptible or immortal) one.

The new spiritual body the believer will receive will be incredible.  when Jesus Christ was here on earth in his new body he did some amazing feats.  He appeared and disappeared.  He ate.  He had flesh that could be felt. He was recognized at times and yet not recognized at other times.

The question of the resurrection is so vitally important to the believer.  Because if the dead are not raised then was Christ not raised and we are yet in our sins.  Grain must die in order to be quickened, but God giveth it a body as it hath pleased Him.  If He can do that with grain, certainly He can do that with his sons and daughters who are born-again of His spirit.

God bless you in the name of Jesus Christ

The seventh usage of “but God” is found in I Corinthians 12:24.  Seven denotes spiritual perfection.  This occurrence speaks of the spiritually perfect body of Christ that God has tempered together.  This is the third usage of alla and very emphatically shows contrast.

I Corinthians 12:12-27:
For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. ¹³ For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. ¹⁴ For the body is not one member, but many. ¹⁵ If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? ¹⁶ And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? ¹⁷ If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? ¹⁸ But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. ¹⁹ And if they were all one member, where were the body? ²⁰ But now are they many members, yet but one body. ²¹ And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. ²² Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary: ²³ And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. ²⁴ For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked: ²⁵ That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. ²⁶ And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. ²⁷ Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

In this section of scripture God uses the human body as an illustration to present the same truth that applies to the spiritual body.  Verses twelve thru twenty deal with the many members of the body.  These members were ordained of God in the body as it pleased Him.  Verses twenty-one to twenty-seven elaborate, showing the interdependence of these members.  The eye needs the hand and the head needs the feet.  Those members of the body that are naturally more feeble, are necessary.  There are comely parts and uncomely parts, but God tempered the body together.  He did this in order that there be no schism, and that the members should have the same care one for another.

The word tempered, sunkerannumi, in verse twenty-four means to mix together, blend, unite, or compound.  It is only used twice in the Bible.  Here in I Corinthians 12:24 where God composes the body by uniting its members, and in Hebrews 4:2 where the God breathed word that is profitable (II Timothy 3:16) did not profit the unbelievers because it was not mixed, sunkerannumi, with believing in them that heard it.  These two uses show God’s ability and willingness to unite together the body of Christ and man’s unwillingness and therefore inability to believe the gospel, the rood news of what God had done.

The Corinthians were in error regarding spiritual matters.  This illustration of the body in I Corinthians 12:12-27 reproved (Romans 12:4,5) and reestablished the truth that God ordained the members as it hath pleased him.  Not only did God ordain the individual members but He tempered them together in order that there would be no schism in the body and that the members would have the same care one for another.

Ephesians further displays the unique and eminent position of this wonderful body of Christ.  Christ was set at God’s own right hand in the heavenlies:

Ephesians 1:21-23:
Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: ²² And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, ²³ Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

All things are therefore under the church’s feet for it is his body.  Ephesians 4:16 also elaborates on the magnificent way in which God tempered the body together.

Ephesians 4:16:
From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

This body of Christ is God’s doing.  He worketh all things after the council of his own will.  There are many members, but God tempered them together.

God bless you in the name of Jesus Christ

I Corinthians 10:13 is the sixth use of “but God.”  Biblically six is the human number.  It is one short of seven, which denotes spiritual perfection, and is typically used to signify shortcomings and man’s sinful natural nature.

I Corinthians 10:13:
There has no temptation taken you but such as is com­mon to man: BUT GOD is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Temptation is not from God, for God is not tempted neither does he tempt any man.  Rather, man is tempted when he is drawn away by his own lust and enticed (James 1:14).  Temptation when it is conceived can bring forth sin if one allows it to.  The devil uses both pleasures and pressures to separate us from the truth.  He will use pleasures to lure us away and pressures to force us from staying put on the truth.

This verse in Corinthians teaches one that regard­less of the temptation the believer is able to stand and remain steadfast on the Word.  There is no reason to break fellowship with God because He always provides a way to escape that we can bear up under it.  God knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation (II Peter 2:9).

God is faithful.  He will always provide a way to escape.  No matter what the believer is tempted with, he is always able to bear it.  The believer will walk as more than a conqueror when he is cognizant of the reality that God in Christ is always in him and that there is nothing that could possibly come up in his walk that he cannot handle because God is faithful.  That’s one of the ways God works all things together for our good; He provides a way to escape (Romans 8:28).  Regardless of whatever comes up, we can be more then conquerors through him that loved us.  Nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our lord (Romans 8:37-39).

Sarah received the promise that she would bear a son because she judged him faithful who had promised.  A challenge is simply looking at what is available face to face.  God presents one with challenge upon challenge as one goes to the Word and finds out what is available.  Then one can apply the other keys of how to receive anything from God.  The believer must stand faithful and not succumb to Satan’s endless suggestions.

I Corinthians 10:13 is living and real in light of the walk of Jesus Christ, for he was in all points tempted like as any man, yet he was without sin (Hebrews 4:15).  No one is exempt from temptation, but God is faithful.  He will not allow one to be tempted beyond one’s capacity to overcome.  Conditions in the world may become seemingly unbearable, and one’s bewilderment almost too much to handle, but God is faithful.  The believer is able to bear it.  In so doing, he develops the strength to succor them that are tempted (Hebrews 2:18) and lays up for himself rewards for standing faithful.

God bless you in the name of Jesus Christ

The number five denotes divine grace in the Bible.  In the fifth use of “but God” one can see God’s unmerited favor in the lives of men.

I Corinthians 7:15:
But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to peace.

One will rarely manifest peace until he knows that he lives by grace.  The first words to the church directly after the salutation in each of the church epistles are “grace” and “peace.”  The pastoral epistles to Timothy and Titus similarly begin with “grace, mercy, and peace.”

Grace and mercy seem to be two sides of the same coin.  Grace is unmerited favour. Mercy is withholding of merited judgment. Because of God’s great grace and mercy, the believer has peace.

Ephesians chapter five talks about the unique relationship of marriage. This unique relationship by proper arrangement and deliberate decision is only available to the faithful in Christ Jesus. When the attitude of husband or wife ever ceases to be faithful in Christ Jesus the unique relationship in marriage is no longer available. The faithful in Christ Jesus are those believers who walk faithful to the revelation of Romans.

I Corinthians 7:1-15 deals with authority over the spouse’s body, deprivation of sexual relationships and breaking up of marriages. These are all interpersonal problems and result from not renewing one’s mind the Word and walking in love. None of these aspects are covered in Ephesians. Paul had to deal with these things in I Corinthians seven because I Corinthians is a reproof epistle. They were not walking according to the revelation of Romans.  Ephesians is written to the faithful in Christ Jesus and assumes obedience to the revelation of Romans.

Romans chapter four talks about Abraham’s example.  Verse sixteen says that the promise is of faith that it might be by grace.  Chapter five continues:

Romans 5:1:
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

The believers already have peace. They have been justified. Therefore they have peace. They simply need to live and act peaceably.

Romans 5:2:
By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

By Jesus Christ the believers have access into the grace wherein they stand, and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  Because the believer is able to stand and look toward the hope of the return of Christ he can glory also in tribulation.

Romans 5:3-5:
And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulations worketh patience; ⁴ And patience, experience; and experience, hope: ⁵ And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

God has called one to peace.  However, one will rarely manifest peace and walk peaceably until he knows that he stands in grace.  God by his great mercy and grace has made salvation available.  As a son of God the believer has peace with him.  If the believers individually have peace with God then they will have peace with each other.  The manifestation of this peace will end the strife between husband and wife.

The only way a marriage relationship has a chance to work is for both husband and wife to become faithful to the-revelation of Romans.  They need to walk in love and be likeminded on the Word.  Then they can, by proper arrangement and deliberate decision enjoy the unique relationship of marriage.  However, should the unbeliever depart and by deliberate decision chose not to remain faithful to the Word and his marriage commitment, the believer is not in bondage.  For God has called him to peace.

God bless you in the name of Jesus Christ

I Corinthians 6:13 Contains the fourth usage of “but God.”  Four refers to the material creation and pertains to the earth and things terrestrial.  This occurrence deals with meats and the belly which are mundane.

I Corinthians 6:12-13a:
All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: (profitable) all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. ¹³ Meats (are) for the belly, and the belly (is) for meats: BUT GOD shall destroy (bring to nought) both it and them….

Not all things are profitable to the believer.  It is never profitable for the believer to be brought under the power of anything other than the Word.  The believer must not let anything else rule him.  The doctrine of Romans instructs one to yield oneself to God and not to sin (Romans 6:13).  The believer should never serve anything but God for the wages of doing so is death, and death is ultimately unprofitable.

The body was designed for food to be ingested and digested.  This natural and necessary function is profitable. Though it is profitable, it must be kept within the framework for which it was designed.  It was never designed to be given preeminence over the Word.

Job had his priorities in order.  He esteemed the Word more than his necessary food.  In a positive declaration of his walk before God he said:

Job 23:11-12:
My food hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined. ¹² Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.

Jesus Christ walked with great sharpness in this area of life.  As Jesus traveled from Judea into Galilee he came to the city of Sychar.  There he met and conversed with a Samaritan woman at the well.  At the beginning of the account of this in John chapter four, there is a parenthesis that sets the stage for the whole incident.

John 4:8:
(For his disciples were none away unto the city to buy meat.)

The disciples were in error.  They left the Master alone, and they went into the city to get meat.  Therefore they missed one of the great moments in their Master’s ministry.  Jesus had such a profound effect on her life that she left her water pot and went into the city and immediately witnessed, saying:

John 4:29-30:
Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ? ³⁰ Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.

In verse thirty-one the account continues with the return of the disciples.

John 4:31-33:
In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat. ³²  But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. ³³ Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him ought to eat?

The disciples had missed the principle they chose the physical food and not the spiritual food (Isaiah 55:2).  They had not sought the will of God.

John 4:34-35:
Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. ³⁵ Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then  cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields;. for they are white already to harvest.

Now was the time to harvest, not to eat.  Jesus chose to do the will of God.  He stayed there two more days and many Samaritans believed (verses 39-41).

Jesus also instructed Mary and Martha regarding the same subject.

Luke 10:38-42:
Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. ³⁹ And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus’ feet, and heard his word. ⁴⁰ But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. ⁴¹ And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: ⁴² But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

Romans chapter fourteen gives the right teaching.  The believer must serve Christ in every facet of his life.  Meat and drink must be subjugated to the Word and will of God.

Romans 14:17-19:
For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God, and approved of men. ¹⁸ Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another. ¹⁹ For meat destroy not the work of God. All things indeed are pure; but it is evil for that man who eateth with offence.

All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable.  It is profitable to follow after things which make for peace and things wherewith one may edify another.  Meat can not destroy the work of God, but God shall destroy it.  Therefore, meat and drink, must be subordinate to the Word.  Thereby we will be serving Christ being acceptable to God and approved of men.

God bless you in the name of Jesus Christ

The number three signifies completeness and perfection.  This third use is uniquely significant.  Though it appears twice in the text, once in verse six and once in verse seven; it is considered as one use for it regards one specific truth and is doubled or repeated to establish it.

“But” in both verse six and seven is alla in the Greek.  It is the conjunction that shows the greatest possible contrast

I Corinthians 3:3-10:
For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? ⁴ For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal? ⁵ Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? ⁶ I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. ⁷ So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. ⁸ Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. ⁹ For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building. ¹⁰ According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.

I Corinthians 3:6-8 is a short allegory in which the building of the temple of God, the body of Christ, is likened unto a farmer sowing seed.  Much like the parable of the sower, (Luke 8:11, Mark 4:14) Paul and Apollos plant and water the Word, but God gives the increase.  The believer can plant and water as much as he wants, but only God can give the increase.  However, if there’s not much planting and watering going on then there will not be much increase.  Therefore it is the believer’s responsibility to plant and to water.  God will absolutely give the increase.  The increase of the Word will not only be in the new soil, but also in the life of the labourer.

The Corinthian believers were giving heed to genealogies which are vain and unprofitable (Titus 3:9).  Man was getting the glory and not God.  Paul reproved them for their error telling them not to glory in or strive about man, but to follow after God in Christ in their leaders.  As workers together with God and with Jesus Christ as the foundation, they should build the temple of God spiritually and not be divisive or build on another foundation.

Paul declared that he and Apollos were only ministers and that they only ministered what the Lord gave them to give.  They ministered the Word and God gave the increase.

Isaiah 55:10-11:
For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: ¹¹ So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall ‘not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

“Increase” is the Greek word auxanō.  It is first used in Matthew 6:28 where it is translated “grow.”

Matthew 6:28-29:
And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: ²⁹ And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

In this first use of auxanō the lilies are shown to grow or increase.  God cares for these lilies and they grow.  There is no one to plant or water yet they increase, God takes care of them.

Auxanō is also used frequently in the book of Acts to describe the rise and expansion of the first century church.  As it is used in Acts it denotes increase in both quality and quantity.  There is increase in the word within the individual believer’s life and there is increase in the number of believers as the Lord adds to the church such as should be saved.

Colossians 2:19 has another interesting usage of auxanō with its noun form auxesis.

Colossians 2:19:
And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.

The body of Christ increases with the increase of God, (i.e. God’s liberal supply).

In this present administration the believer has the distinct privilege to be allowed to labour together with God.  God has given the believer the ministry of reconciliation and committed the Word of reconciliation to him so that he can do the job.  The believer works the ministry of reconciliation by ministering the Word of reconciliation.  The believer sows the Word; God gives the increase.

Romans 10 shows this beautiful relationship.

Romans 10:13:
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Notice the passive voice, as in verse 9, “they shall be saved.”  They call on the Lord, and the Lord does the saving.  The passive voice shows that they receive the salvation.

Romans 10:14:
How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

That’s where the believer comes in.  The believer is the preacher, the herald.  He proclaims the Word of God.  Yet he does not do so on his own authority; he is sent or commissioned of God.

Romans 10:15:
And how shall they preach, except they be sent?  as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

As labourers together with God the individual believers in this administration have the opportunity to help build the temple of God.  He that plants and he that waters are one.  The believers with unity of purpose hold forth the Word and God gives the increase.  Believers should acknowledge God’s working so that He gets the glory.  The believers responsibility is to plant and water. God will give the increase.

The ministry that has the one true God at the center will continue to increase as the believers continue to plant and water the Word of God.  Without God our ministries are incomplete and ineffectual, but with God working with us our ministry is both effectual and complete.

Philippians 2:13:
For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

God has enabled the believer and stands with him in the outreach of His Word.  The believer is of himself unable and unworthy, but God has made him both worthy and able.  He must simply trust God who is at work in him and with him.

II Corinthians 3:4-6a:
And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: ⁵ Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; ⁶ Who also bath made us able ministers of the new testament…

God is the believer’s sufficiency.  He is an able minister because God is at work, giving the increase.