Battle of the Gods
By Greg
Laurie
And Elisha prayed, and said, "Lord, I pray, open his eyes
that he may see." Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he
saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all
around Elisha. —2 Kings 6:17
I think
we would all agree there is a battle going on in the United States today. It's
a battle for our very souls, a battle for right and wrong, a battle over the
Bible, a battle over the family. Really, it is a battle over worldviews. And if
you want to simplify it even further, it is a battle of the gods.
In the
Bible there is only one God; it isn't multiple choice. God says, "I am the
Lord, and there is no other" (Isaiah 45:5). There is the true and living
God who is the God of Scripture and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He is
the God who loved us so much that He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the
cross.
Then
there are all the other gods. So the battle rages today—the battle of the gods
and the battle of the worldviews.
Sometimes
as followers of Jesus Christ and believers in the Bible, it feels like we are
losing ground everywhere we turn. In some ways, you might feel as though there
is no hope.
I'm
reminded of the story of Elisha and his servant when they were surrounded by
enemy forces. Elisha was so confident in the Lord that he took a nap. But his
servant woke him, alarmed as the enemy forces were closing in. So Elisha
prayed, "Lord, open his eyes." The Bible tells us, "Then the
Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was
full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha" (2 Kings 6:17).
In the
same way, there are more on our side than there are on the enemy's side. And we
need to remember that as the battle rages on every day.
Rod and Joni Parsley - Modern family vintage values
We have
lost many values in our families because of the world we live in. This
heart-to-heart message is filled with wisdom from Pastor Rod and Joni's life,
and it will help you as a parent to build a home that is built on the Word of
God, and train your children the way they should go.
The God Who Suffers
By Greg Laurie
He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows
and acquainted with grief . . . Surely He has borne our grief and carried our
sorrows.
—Isaiah 53:3–4
When we think of God, we usually consider that fact that He is
righteous, holy, loving, and good. But here is something else to consider about
God: He is the God who has suffered. We don't tend to think that a perfect
Creator would experience such a human trait as human pain and suffering. After
all, why would you suffer if you did not have to?
But God has suffered, and more deeply than any of us could ever
imagine. In his book The
Cross of Christ, John Stott said, "Our God is a
suffering God." And I think he is right.
Listen to Isaiah's description of what Jesus (who was God) went
through at Calvary:
"He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of
sorrows and acquainted with grief . . . Surely He has borne our grief and
carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and
afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was crushed for our
iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we
are healed." (Isaiah 53:3-5)
"A man of suffering." That was Jesus. But why did God
suffer? Because He loved and loves. That means He also enters into our
suffering as well.
Hebrews 2:17-18 tells us:
"Therefore, it was necessary for him to be
made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be
our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then he could offer a
sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. Since he himself has
gone through suffering and temptation, he is able to help us when we are being
tempted" (NLT).
You are not alone in your suffering today. Jesus has been there and
walked in your shoes and He is here for you right now. Call out to Him.
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