Rising Up Early and Speaking a Message of Warning

In my Bible reading, I have been going through the Major Prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel and the Minor Prophets, Daniel through Malachi. As I have been going through the prophets, a thought came to mind concerning the prophets of the 21st century. More specifically, my question is, “Where are the prophets of our time?”

As one goes back through the prophets, we find examples of messages being given to God’s people from Genesis down to the time of the book of Revelation. This would encompass a time span of about 1500 years.

For example, we find Noah at a minimum witnessing to his generation even if it was by his example of building a huge ship in a location without access to a large body of water. Did Noah go out and preach or did he simply warn his generation by building a ship? When asked about what he was up to, did he tell them of the flood that was to come unless people turned from their wicked ways? In all probability, yes, but no one heeded.

To me one of the most vivid reminders of the work of prophets is found in the prophet Jeremiah. There is a phrase that is repeated throughout the book regarding God and His prophets. Let’s consider a few examples of this phrasing:

• Jeremiah 7:13 “And now, because you have done all these works,” says the LORD, “and I spoke to you, rising up early and speaking, but you did not hear, and I called you, but you did not answer.”
• Jeremiah 7:25 “Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have even sent to you all My servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them.”
• Jeremiah 11:7 “‘For I earnestly exhorted your fathers in the day I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, until this day, rising early and exhorting, saying, “Obey My voice.”
• Jeremiah 35:15 “I have also sent to you all My servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, ‘Turn now everyone from his evil way, amend your doings, and do not go after other gods to serve them; then you will dwell in the land which I have given you and your fathers.’ But you have not inclined your ear, nor obeyed Me.”

The common theme in these verses is that God sent His servants, the prophets, with His message, “rising up early and speaking” a message of warning, but God’s people would not listen. Besides the scriptures cited, God also makes this point in Jeremiah 25:3; 25:4; 26:5; 29:19; 32:33; 35:14; 44:4.

In reality, God had sent his message from the time Israel came out of Egypt until Jeremiah’s time. God’s warning to turn from their wicked ways had been delivered over a 700 year span and God’s people had not heeded.

As prophesied the consequences of sin eventuality came to pass as both Israel and Judah were conquered and taken into captivity.

Beyond Jeremiah’s time God’s warning to mankind continued to be delivered over and over again down to the final message given to God’s people by the Apostle John. Man’s response has continued to be the same: to ignore the prophetic word delivered.

As we consider this consistent pattern of the prophets rising up early to deliver God’s message, we might ask, “Where are the prophets of our time? Where are the prophets of the 21st century?”

We may not have many men in the flesh who are powerfully preaching God’s message to the people of our time. But the prophets are still speaking if people are willing to heed.

One might ask, “Where are the prophets?” In reality, the prophets are speaking in the pages of the most widely published book in the world: The Bible. It is available to all in almost every language and dialect on earth. It is also available whether it is early or late. And it is most applicable to our time.

The prophets still speak in the pages of the Bible. The question remains, “Will mankind heed the prophetic word God sends to mankind?” That is the question that remains to be answered.

I hope this Sabbath Thought offers some food for consideration during God’s time of rest.

Gary Smith

That Which Is Right In Our Own Eyes

As part of reading through the Bible, the portion that I read on Thursday morning was Judges 17-21. It is a sad section of scripture which I would like to consider for this week’s Sabbath Thought.

Chapter 17 begins with the theft and return of a significant amount of money. When the money is returned, a portion of the money “was dedicated to the Lord” and was used to pay a craftsman to make a carved image and a molded image. The thief, Micah, then sets up a shrine containing the carved and molded images, household gods, an ephod, possibly a garment placed on one of the images, and the setting apart of one of Micah’s sons as family priest. What is described in the first five verses of the chapter is wrong on many levels.

The next statement says everything that needs to be said about what has happened so far. Judges 17:6 tells us, “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” Why would what happens in the first five verses of the chapter be summarized in this fashion?

During the time of the judges in Israel, there was no physical king in Israel. But Israel did have a king ruling over them whether they knew it or not. The king that was to rule in the nation was God. The judges that God raised up were not kings. Instead they were viceroys ruling over Israel as God determined. As judges, they were always to look to God, the King, for how to proceed.

As one considers the terrible events of Judges 17 through 21, we find idolatry established in a household, a man setting up his own priesthood, the tribe of Dan establishing their own idolatrous religion, sexual perversion, murder, and vicious warfare causing the death of thousands and the near extinction of the tribe of Benjamin.

What we are being told is that there are serious consequences that unfold as people live as if there is no “king”. The King who rules heaven and earth is always on His throne and to live as if He does not exist is a path that only ends on disaster.

When an individual or a nation lives as if there is no king, to whom they are accountable, the only path left for them to follow is that of doing “what was right in their own eyes.” Judges 17-21 was written to illustrate for us the outcome of living in that way. Clearly, living by what is right in our own eyes only leads to disaster.

As we assess our world today, we are following the very same path. Spiritually speaking, is the God of Bible the King to whom everyone looks for how to live? Can we expect anything but the same result as that which happened in the time of the Judges?

God does not want His people to live as if He did not exist. He does exist and wants us always to walk humbly before Him (Isaiah 66:1-2).

To help us to stay on the right path, God established the Sabbath day. Note what God tells His people in Exodus 31, "Speak also to the children of Israel, saying: 'Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you. . . .Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.'" (Exodus 31:13, 16-17).

The Sabbath is essential to our living in acknowledgement of God as our King and our avoiding “doing that which is right in our own eyes.”

Have a pleasant Sabbath,

Gary Smith

The Right Approach to God’s Feast Days

Since the Holy Days will be observed shortly, I thought it would be valuable to consider the right approach to God’s Feast Days.

Isaiah states, “Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom; give ear to the law of our God, you people of Gomorrah: "To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?" says the Lord. "I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs or goats” (Isaiah 1:10-11). Isaiah’s statement seems odd in light of the fact that God directed Israel to offer various sacrifices.

The prophet condemns the people of Judah and Jerusalem for their sacrifices. Has God suddenly changed His mind about sacrifices or is there another reason why God inspired Isaiah 1:10-11?

Apparently, the people were quite diligent in making sacrifices and offerings at the temple. They offered and sacrificed large numbers of animals. However, God is not pleased with what they were offering because their approach is wrong. What is wrong with their approach? Before addressing what was wrong with their sacrifices, let’s examine what more God has to say.

"When you come to appear before Me, who has required this from your hand, to trample My courts? Bring no more futile sacrifices; incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies —I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting. Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; they are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood. (Isaiah 1:12-15).

It should be noted that where they were falling short in coming before God is explained by understanding what is meant by “to trample my courts”. Barnes’ Notes states, “To tread his courts was an expression therefore, equivalent to, to worship. To tread the courts of the Lord here, has the idea of profanation. Who has required you to tread those courts with this hollow, heartless service? It is often used in the sense of treading down, or trampling on” (from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database Copyright © 1997, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Why are Judah’s sacrifices futile? Sadly, it has to do with their sinfulness. They offered sacrifices and offerings, burned incense, gathered for the Sabbath and Holy Days, and offered up an abundance of prayers. They were religious while still practicing sin. There was no humility, recognition of sin, or repentance.

The sacrificial system had ceased to serve its purpose of focusing the people on God and the need for righteousness. The people are religious but it is form without substance (2 Timothy 3:5).

The point here is that the character of the people had degenerated to the point that the manner in which they keep the Sabbath and religious festivals had become offensive to God. Their attitudes and approach had so degenerated that the Holy Day observances were hardly recognizable to God as having originated with Him. They were no longer His feasts, but the wayward people's feasts. Indeed, besides observing God's true festivals in a wrong manner and attitude, Israel had even instituted its own substitute holidays and participated in pagan observances.

Because of the people's defiance, we see that God has ceased listening to their prayers.

What is the lesson for the 21st century Christian? The lesson is that God has instructed us to make sacrifices and offerings, to attend the Holy Days, and to offer up prayers, but our attendance or giving an offering is not the most important thing. We can do all of those commanded things while continuing in sin and not walking humbly before God. Unless our heart is right, we are wasting God’s time and our time as well.

What is most important is the condition of our heart. King David came to understand this point and reflect that understanding in his prayer of repentance in Psalms 51:16-17, “For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart — these, O God, You will not despise.”

As we come before God in prayer, on a Sabbath or Holy Day, God looks at our heart. Are we coming before Him in humility, in repentance, in joy and in gratefulness?

If we prepare our heart to seek our God, then He will accept our sacrifices and offering. He will hear our prayers. And He will be most glad that we are honoring Him through the Sabbath and Holy Days
.
As the Holy Days of the seventh month begin, we must take time to look at our spiritual condition and acknowledge our need for God in our lives. With that right approach, we can be assured God will be glad we honor Him at the Feast.

Gary Smith

If God’s Word Is Not True, We Have No Hope

This year I decided to go back through a class on Ancient Israel. The class was a wonderful reminder of why I enjoyed the class in my college days.

The final portion of the class went through the arrest and trial of Jesus Christ which is an excellent study prior to the Passover. As this portion of the class began, several books on the subject of the arrest and trial were recommended by the professor. In light of the recommendations made, I ordered three books on the subject. I am currently in the process of reading one of the recommended books.

You would hope that the scholars would be able to give us deep insight into a subject that every Christian would like to know more about. However, the scholars writing the three books come at the subject from the same vantage point. Not one of the learned scholars believes that the Bible is the truth and every word of it is “God breathed” or as we might also say “inspired”.

The three writers view the Gospels as books based on a variety traditions and basically the “fantasies” of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. In the scholars view, the four Gospels are not an accurate recounting of the life and death of Jesus Christ.

Here are a few quotes that emphasize the author’s vantage point.

“Thus the Gospels contain no less than seven different descriptions of a scene of a judicial or quasi-judicial character, together with five descriptions of a scene of the maltreatment and mockery of Jesus….Each evangelist retained what he himself had found, and enlarged it by his specific contribution. In this way a discrepancy came about between the various evangelical accounts….The sequence of events now recorded in the four Gospels could not possibly have taken place within the space of six or seven hours, actual time-lag between Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion” (Paul Winter, “On The Trial of Jesus”, pp. 7-8).

“It is now no longer seriously disputed that there was not available to the authors of the Gospels any testimony of eyewitnesses who were present at any of the stages of the arrest, trial, or crucifixion of Jesus and gave a direct account of it” (Haim Cohn, The Trial and Death of Jesus, p. xiii).

“In short, the Gospel traditions are “messages of faith and not historiography”; any historical material in their hands the authors used “to add detail and graphic quality,” but on the whole, they freely exercised their fantasy “in presenting, and in meaning to present, not history but theology” (Cohn, p. xv).

These quotes do not promote faith in God and in His word. If God’s word is unreliable, how can we have confidence in God or His plan of salvation? If God’s word is not true, we have no hope beyond the physical world, so we better be about the business of enjoying the physical life to the hilt.

However, we are reassured by God’s word.

First of all we learn in John 10:35 that, “…the Scripture cannot be broken)….” The point Christ is making concerning the scriptures, as accurately translated, is they are not in error. If we find error or contradiction in the word of God, then how can we believe in the scriptures at all? Thankfully, the scriptures are reliable and without error. If we find a seeming contradiction, we can be assured that if we dig into the scriptures we can find a reliable explanation.

The writers of the gospels sought to truthfully recount for God’s people the truths they witnessed. Their writings were not flights of fantasy made up in order to sell the public on Jesus Christ. Note what the Apostle John relates about his personal experience, “And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe” (John 19:35).

John made a similar point in 1 John 1:1-4, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life — the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us — that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.”

The writers of the Gospels and the rest of the New Testament sought to record the truth to serve as a reliable record for the generations to come. The New Testament harmonizes perfectly with Old Testament to give us a complete record in order to follow a path pleasing to God.

In summary, the Gospel accounts are true and accurate and serve to give us insight into our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Sadly, so-called experts cannot see the picture clearly and they present a picture that only causes doubt and uncertainty.

Thankfully, God gives us the opportunity every Sabbath to come together as a congregation to delve into God’s word for “doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Have a pleasant Sabbath,

Gary Smith

What Kind of Leader Does Our Nation Need?

A thought we might consider this week comes in light of the Republican presidential debate held this week.

I was watching a discussion among voters who had volunteered to be a part of a group gathered by pollster, Frank Luntz. I was struck by what some voters had to say about the candidates and religion.

It was noted that one of those running for the highest office in the land appears to be quite religious. He allows his Christian religion to enter into his speech and to be reflected in the policies he would promote. The majority of the audience felt that it was unacceptable to mix politics and religion.

It was mentioned that one’s religion was to remain private and there was no need for a president to reflect his religion at all. In fact, it was said that religion was not really needed because of the inherent goodness of the American people.

My point in mentioning this is that if a president’s religion is to remain in private would it be a positive outcome for the nation?

Consider the fact that George Washington was notably religious. You cannot read his writings and not make note of that. He may not have had complete understanding of God and His great plan, but George Washington knew the importance of biblical morality, honesty, and integrity. He lived by many true principles and the nation was enhanced by it.

A second example is found in Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln was not the perfect Christian, but he reflected upon God, and sought to point the nation toward God as President during one
of the most trying times in history. What could be more religious than to call for a national day of prayer requesting that the God of the Bible would save the nation torn apart by war?

One only has to examine the great leaders of the Bible to note that the greatest leaders of the nation of Israel were those who were closest to God. They were not perfect leaders, but their example helped the nation of Israel stay on track during their time of rule. It’s interesting to note what happened to Israel upon the death of a faithful man leading the nation. The outcome was rarely good.

Does our nation need a leader who is a Christian? Does it need a leader who is faithful to God and the people he serves? Does not our nation need a leader who is a true servant? Do we need a leader who is truthful? We need a leader who is all of these things and more. If we had such a leader it would make a huge difference in our nation, but it seems doubtful that such a leader will be raised up at this time.

Thankfully, we know that the leader our nation and the world needs will assume His position as King of Kings and Lord of Lords with the sounding of the seventh trump. His rule will be based upon truth and righteousness. No one will question whether we should have a ruler who is religious. The fruits will be available for the whole world to see.

Happy Sabbath!

Gary Smith

The Days of Unleavened Bread Are Over But Our Battle with Sin is Not

As the weekly Sabbath begins, the annual Sabbath, the Seventh Day of Unleavened Bread, has come to a close.

In hearkening back to two significant historical events that occurred on the Last Day of Unleavened Bread, we are reminded of a most important realization.

The first event that occurred on the Last Day of Unleavened Bread is Israel passing through the Red Sea. God opened the way for Israel to pass through an impassible physical barrier. They were under great pressure as the army of Pharaoh chomped at the bit to recapture the slave nation and return them to slavery. They had no time to come up with their own solution. They had to trust God to make a way for them to escape.

God did make a way for Israel to pass through the Red Sea, but was their journey complete? No, Israel had to continue to follow God on to the Promised Land.

We have renewed our covenant with God and have completed the Days of Unleavened Bread. But we like Israel have not reached the Promised Land. We must continue to follow Jesus Christ.

A second historical event occurring at the close of Unleavened Bread was the fall of Jericho. Israel had entered the land as God miraculously parted the waters of the Jordan. Israel encamped at Gilgal and it was there that all the males were circumcised as part of the covenant with God. They kept the Passover and then began the conquest of Jericho throughout the Days of Unleavened Bread. It was on the Seventh Day of Unleavened Bread that the walls collapsed and Israel conquered the city.

One city in the land of Canaan had fallen, but the conquest was far from complete. There were many more cities to conquer. We must realize that the conquest of sin is not complete in our lives either. As human beings, we are going to continually be battling sin. As Israel submitted to and followed God’s instructions in marching around Jericho, so we must continue to follow Christ until the conquest of sin is complete.

Our need to continue to follow Christ to the land of promise and to conquer sin is summarized beautifully by Paul in Philippians 3:12-14, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

As the Sabbath begins, it is good for us to reflect on the fact that we have not yet attained and our need to continue to reach “forward to those things which are ahead.” We press on toward the conquest of sin and maturity of Jesus Christ. As God completes His work in us through Jesus Christ, we will receive the eternal inheritance.

Enjoy the Sabbath,

Gary Smith