"Demonic Challenge"

              "But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit,

                "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come

                          out of her and he came out that very hour

                                               ACTS 16 : 18b

         Paul's work in Macedonia off to a successful start with the conversion of Lydia and her household. But trouble comes unexpectedly, One day as the missionaries are going to the place of prayer, they encounter a slave girl "possessed with a spirit of divination." Dr. Simon Kistemaker explains that the Greek rendered "divination" derives from a word referring to Python, the mythical snake that guarded the Delphic Orade. "In later years, the term denoted a spirit of divination that dwelled in a medium," he writes. "As the priestess of Apollo at Delphi was able to predict the future, so this slave girl serves her masters in Philippi as a fortuneteller. She was an instrument of devils who used her as a mouthpiece." Her demonic bondage enables her to make much money for her masters. However, when she encounters the missionaries, she immediately cries out a truthful, yet enigmatic statement:""These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation."

        This raises several questions. Is she truly able to predict future event? We cannot be sure; the answer depend on whether God makes His plan known to satan to any extent. Also why would Satan allow this girl to make a truthful confession about Paul and his companions? The incident is similar to Jesus' encounters with demon possessed people who cried out involuntarily in His presence (Matt.8:28-29; Mark1:23-24); thus her cries may not be intentional. However, satan may be using a truthful testimony delivered in a disruptive way to frustrate Paul's ministry efforts. It is also possible the Gentiles hearing the girl being led to believe that "Most High God" is a reference to Zeus. Finally does Paul tolerate her cries for "many days"? We must remember that he lacks Jesus divine ability to detect evil spirits. Therefore, it seems likely that he refrain from acting until the Spirit reveals to him that he is facing a case of demonic possession.

        Paul finally uses his divine given authority uses his divinely give authority as an apostls, ordering the demon ""in the name of Jesus Christ" to come out. It does so right away. The girl is delivered, but Oaul's troubles are just beginning, for the girls now useless to her masters as aptofut source. In anger, these powerful Philippians has Paul and Silas seized and dragged before the city authority meeting in the marketplace.

" BRING THE NOISE"

"Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs 

Psalm 100:1(KJV) 

   When you are invited to someone's home for a dinner party, do you customarily bring a gift?  It's nice to say "thank you" in advance, and to express gratitude for the celebration you will enjoy. When choosing your gift, you will give thought to the planning, purchasing and work your host has gone to in order to entertain you. You want your offering to show your appreciation for these things.

   What gift do you hold in your hands when enter the doors of your church on friday? Do you come with a thanful heart prepared to praise God for all He has done? This week, before you worship, take time to consider all God has done for you in Christ He died for you. He forgave you. He gave you the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the Word, and He has blessed with christian friends to encourage you. Wow! That's something to celebrate! Bring the Noise! "Shout for joy to the Lord all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.

   Worship is the response of a heart that is excited about  the God we serve. Come to your church worship service ready to celebrate the blessing you have in christ. Lift your heart in praise to God for every detail of your life, and let your praises overflow to Him. Here you must do it! God's people get loud and extreme for rock stars. Movie stars, and famous athletes, but they think it's disrespectful to cheer for Me. Do you think the only way to worship Me is with your face in a hymnal bowing your head, or kneeling has decieved you. I want you to get loud for me. My word says it's okay. i made you part of your generation. True, I made times for kneeling, but I also made times for celebrating.

   So if I've done something good for you, if there's anything about Me that you like then Shout thank to Me. If you play music, then write songs for Me, and turn up the volume when you play them. You have My permission to get loud. Crank up! The one who Made thunder your God.

"IN SEASON AND OUT"

                 "Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; 

               reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine"

                                                2 Timothy 4 : 2

The Old Testament narratives are to the Law what the book of Acts is to the epistles of Paul. That is, in the law of moses we find brief commandments telling us how to live, but in the narratives of the Old Testament we see that Law applied to myriad real-life situations. Likewise, in the epistles we find short, sometimes pithy statements from the apostle Paul, but in the book of acts we see how he lived out those principles.

          Paul challenged his young disciple, Timothy, to preach the word "in season and out of season throughout Acts, and particularly in chapter 17, we see what this looks like in the context of daily ministry.

          Take a second look at Acts 17 and list all of the people who came into contact with Paul. Then note the wide variety of reactions to his message.

          Sometimes the Wird was hated. The Jews in Thessalonica opposed Paul in the stiffest of terms. Their opposition resulted in mob violence in the marketplace and the ransacking of the home where Paul was thought to be staying. This group even pursued Paul to the next town, Berea, when they heard he was ppreaching there. While wpaul's ministry in Thessalonica bore some fruit, I think Paul would have classified his time there as being largely "out season,"

         In Berea, the next town iver, the Word was received. What made the difference?

Did Paul make the Word more palatable to his. Hearers? Luke clearly tells us that the difference was to be found in the people themselves; they were more "fair-minded" (Acts17:11) and searched the Scriptures, so that "many of them believed" ( verse 12 ). This ministry was "in season."

        In athens, the word came to the indifferent. Paul reasoned in the synagogue, as usual, but also in the marketplace with "those who happened to be there" (Acts 17:17). Next he was invited to the Areopagus to introduce pagans to an unknown God. Quite apart from his methodical reasoning in the synagogues, one grts the feeling that Paul was free lancing at this point, that is, he had no idea what to expect from the Athenians. Did Paul preach because he was impressed with si many Athenians "seekers." No, he preached because that is what he was commissioned to do.

         In all circumstances good, bad or indifferent Paul preached the Word. In this pragmatic age when ministry is judgedcrassly by how many people flock to hear the Word, we would do well to listen to the apostle's admonition to Timothy. Yes there are many ways to communicate the Gospel. But instead of pulling out our calculators to see who is receiving our message and who is notp, we should be truly tenacious about only one thing being true to our commission to proclaim the Word in Season and out.

        

"SHADOW OF THE FUTURE"

"How shall we escape if we neglect so great a Salvation?"

HEBREWS 2:3

  Perhaps one of the greatest qualities of successful people is a sense of urgency. You know, the kind of people who just seem to be able to get things done at just the right time and it's usually sooner rather than later.

  Urgency is important in our understanding of prophecy as well. Jesus could return at any time, and every Christian must be ready for His arrival. And it's comforting to know that the Lord's return will not begin suddenly without warning signs beforehand. Just as future events cast their shadows before them, so we will have adequate signs to alert us of the Lord's arrival.

  How are we to respond to these events? We must be sure that our own heart is prepared to meet the the Lord. But beyond that, we should be utterly motivated and inspired to share our faith in Christ with others. When we understand that today could be the last oppurtunity we will have to lead another to Christ, it creates a sense of urgency in us is you knew that the Lord were returning tomorrow, whom would you tell today? Take advantage of today while it is still today. You may not have another chance.

THE DAY THE SUN STOOD STILL

         "So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven,and did 

                Nothastento go down for about a whole day"

                                     JOSHUA 10:13b

         The sun is God's Creation.  That's important to remember. God made the sun, the moon, and the stars. out of absolute nothing He created them. He ordered exactly how close the earth would come to the rays of the sun's heat and light. Thus our world doen't freeze with the intense cold experienced by the planet pluto, and it doesn't burn with the intense heat experience by Mercury. Inaddition, God the Creator set the course of this world's orbit around the sun so that it takes 365.25 days. And He determined the speed the earth spins on its axis, so that every 24 hours the sun "rises" on the eastern horizon once again. Elementary, of course. All these facts are well-known to every budding sixth-grade physicist.

         But be careful that your assumption does not become presumption! For it has not always been so and it will not always be the same. Only because of God's covenant in creation and redemption is this order maintained with such regularity; and when irrgullarity better suit the larger purpose of God, the pattern of the past will not prevail. Consider then "the day the sun stood still."

         The difficulty of believing of this is somewhat understandable. The earth spins on its axis at approximately 1,10 mile per hour. Most people know what happens when a car traveling at 60 miles per hour has a head-on collision the car stops, but everything inside keeps speeding ahead at 60 miles per hour. if the earth, spinning on its axis at 1,000 miles per hour suddenly stops, then cars, people, elephants, and everything else will continue to travel at 1,000 miles per hour with the prosoect of going into orbit!

         This may be why so many people seek ways to "get around" the language of the book of Joshua: perhaps it is using a poetic form of speech, they say or perhaps ther was a mere refraction of the sun's light that created the illusion that is was standing still. But getting back to the basic of the Bible, it must be noted that both within and without the framework of the poetic mode expression in the narrative, this phrase is repeated: "the sun stood still." The hard, cold fact of the matter is underscored bu the next phrase: "There has been no day like that, before it or after it" (Joshua 10:14a). Many days have been describe poetically and nany have included peculiar refraction of the sun's light. But never has there been a day like thus one, in which the sun stood still.

        But why? What was the occasion? What brought about such a spectacular display of God's intervention in the regulated process of time and history? It was the simple but fervent prayer of a man gilled with zeal for the coming of God's kingdom that triggered the whole situation. As the narrative reports, "There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to the voice of a man!" ( Josh. 10:14, NAB).

        All through the night Joshua had led his army in a force march from Jericho to the region west of Jerusalem. They had trudged 12 to 1$ miles in the dark, ascending more than 3,000 feet in a matter of hours. They fought a well- prepared coalition of forces from the dawn of the next day until dust.They then pursued their stricken foes uphill, downhill and uphill again.

        And then Joshua had the audacity to ask for more time! Without a sign of complaint from his dog- tired troops, this singular warrior for the Lord requested a longer day do he could claim a complete victory over the Lord's enemies.

        So the Lord, the Creator of the universe the One who controls the orbit of the earth about the sun did this spectacular thing. He  made the sun stand still until Joshua had completed his task. There's little point in quibbing about the fact that it actually was the earth that stood still instead of the sun. Just as the most knowledgeable physicist of today may refer to the beautiful "sunrise each morning, So Scriptures speak quite naturally according to the convention of common human observation.

       The Lord responded in this spectacular to the prayer if His zealous servant. The Almighty did not hesitate to make use of His divine power to work salvation for Hus people.

       So today believer in Christ have even more reason to show zeal for thei Lord. Yet it often appears that the Lord's servant of today have far less zeal than Joshua of old. They want to do the least amount of work in the shortest time possible. Little zeal may be found among suburban Christians to respond to the needs of people in the inner city. Christians of the West show a great reluctance to deny themselves the comforts of home so they can minister to the millions of orphans and street children who have arisen in the Third World as a consequence of the Aid's epidemic.

       Yet the rises Lord has given His Great commission. All the world must hear His Gospel before the final sign of the Son of Man appears. Only after this Gospel has been preached to all the nation will the end come ( Matt. 24:14,30).

       May God the Creator, the Lord of redemption, move His people with a zeal that will consume them---all for the glory of God. May Christians live today as though they still believe in the God who made the sun stand still.

         

"GET INTO THE FIGHT"

                                                Figth on for God.

                                              1 timonthy 6:12TLB

In the Christ life, there is no such thing as a maintenace mode! You may never have thought of it this way, but once you decided to answer

God's call on your life and surrender to Him and His will, you began an adventure! And there's no turning back from the exciting path you've chosen!

Likewise, you can't stand still. No, the only direction christians can move in their wonderful journey with Jesus christ is forward! That's why the scripture are so full of encouragement, admonition, direction and prodding because the Lord knows our tendency toward spiritual inertia and stagnancy. The Scripture push and prod us to eagerly hunt down our Christian growth with the persistence and patience of a hunter on a quest: pursue what is good" ( 1 thessalonians 5:1 ) "seek righteousness seek humility" ( zephaniah 2:3). "Run with endurance the race that is set before us," (Hebrew 12;1), and pursue...faith, love, peace...." ( 2 timonthy 2: 22). 

Are you pursuing holiness and godliness earnestly seeking after the Lord and all that He wants to do in your life? Run toward the Lord with the passionste desire to grow in Him!

Sometimes people give up on life, not because it's too hard, but because it's easy... Not because it's too difficult, but because there's no real challenge worth the risk of fighting.

I want you to be filled with desire to fight for a higher and greater purpose than yourself. I want you to spend your energy and use your gifts for the greatest good. I want you to know what it's like to stand and fight with Me on the battlefield of faith--to taste the triumph of victory in your life. I don't want you to come to the end of your life winder, "now, what was that all about? Life is much too valuable. You are too valuable.

Hook up with Me, and we'll face our enemies together!

"STRENGTH TO GET THE JOB DONE"

                                 He gives strenght to the weary and

                                    Increases the power of the weak.

                                               I S A I A H 40 : 29

Have you ever been worn out? Ever felt like you have forty-eight hours of homework to do. And only four in which to do it? When you're physically and mentallly exhausted, call on Me. I can cut your workload in half!

If you'll stop and listen to Me, I'll show you shortcuts and more efficient ways to get the job done. Some of the things you're doing might not even need to be done. Most of all, after spending time with Me, you'll be strenghtened in your mind and body. My love is like a spiritual vitamin that refreshes and wakes you up. Five minutes with Me could save you hours of work.

 

A time you may feel so worn out and stressed that you are not sure you can take another step. You may seem to spend all your time running from crises to crises and to be constantly giving your time and energy to others. Your Lord wants to renew your strenght and enable you to enjoy the abundant life He intends for you, the key is to wait upon Him to do so.

Our generation does not enjoy waiting. We are harried by all the commitment we have made and the many responsibilities we hold. We rush throught our lives without stopping to evaluate our activities. Sometimes in our haste to get on with our work, we race ahead of God. Part of God's restorative process is to slow us down and seek His will reveal His plans.

Biblically, waiting on the Lord is never passive; it is always active. Waiting requires us to cease our own pursuits and give God our complete attention. We may have to give up some of the activities we have allowed to in undate our lives. We may need to take an entire day to sit quietly before the Lord. If we ask Him, God will show us the  resources He has provide to help with the work we have been attempting on our own. God may address feelings of guilt that have motivated us to things that He has not asked us to do.

Jesus carried more responsibility than you do. More people needed Him than will ever need you. Yet He was never overwhelmed or inadequate for the task. Now Christ offers to guide you so that you will fulfill your heavenly Father's will and gain the strength necessary for each day ( Matthew 11:28 ).

So when you feel likes you just can't go on. . . Don't take a break and let Me renew your strength.