The Balm of Gilead

"Behold the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people because of them that dwell in a far country: Is not the LORD in Zion? Is not her king in her? Why have they provoked me to anger with their graven images, and with strange vanities? The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved. For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I hurt; I am black; astonishment hath taken hold on me. Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there? Why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered? Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!" –Jeremiah 8:19-23 KJV

These words were penned just before the fall of Israel into Babylonian Captivity. From the heart of the “weeping prophet”, Jeremiah, we hear these words that are spoken in absolute grief and pain because Jeremiah knew that judgment was coming and could not be stopped.

Israel, God’s chosen people, were under attack from enemies on all sides. They were surrounded and had no way of escape. The enemy had come from a far country to steal, kill, and destroy Israel once and for all.

Friends, Israel’s spiritual condition back then, mirrors the spiritual condition of so many in the church today. God created us to worship and serve only Him. He desires to bring everyone into a right relationship with Him. God never stops trying to reach those who lean away from His presence and draw them back into His love. Jesus wants to extend mercy and grace to each of us. And yet, so many continue to live their lives as if Jesus is not there at all. Just as Israel had done, they let anything take the place of worshiping Jesus. Even though they know that one of the commandments that God has given to us says, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”

Please take heed to these words today friends. Anything that we place above serving Jesus becomes our god. Whether it is our job, our hobbies, our friends, or even our family; God must have first place in our lives, or He will have no place at all!

We live in a world where we are surrounded by temptation. We are surrounded by the enemy on every side, and evil people who would lead us away from God. Satan is the prince of this world and his job is to steal, kill and destroy every man, woman and child who walks the face of the earth. This world is not our final destiny, not for anyone.

Those who live for God will soon be leaving to take possession of their heavenly home. Those who do not live for Jesus will leave this world to go into the world of the condemned: a world where there is no joy, peace or happiness forever. Where darkness, pain, hatred, and despair will
reign forever and where they will never die.

Jeremiah knew that God still loved Israel. His question, “Is not the Lord in Zion? Is not her King in her? It was a question to which there could only be one answer, YES! GOD IS EVERYWHERE, AT ALL TIMES!

God sees all, knows all, hears all, and is all in all. There is no place, whether in the depths of the seas or the farthest star of the universe that we can escape His presence. Surely, God is here this day to hear our cry, to see our pain, to read our heart and to know what we are even thinking.

Israel, knowing that God was there to see everything they did, had “provoked” God’s anger with their idolatry and self-centered ways. It was as though they not only ignored that fact that God was there, but they stood with their fists balled up and thrust into the face of God saying, “I dare you to stop me from living life on my terms instead of Yours!”

Time and again, with loving-kindness, the Holy Ghost tries to reach out to those who lean away from holiness. Jesus has given us His Word to learn of Him as much as we can, He wrapped himself in flesh, died on the cross, shed His own blood to purify us from our sin because we could not wash it from ourselves. And even now the relentless love of Jesus is calling out to the wayward to come home, the Holy Ghost is just waiting for an invitation to be a part of your life, to cleanse you, to fill you, and to lead you into truth!

Jeremiah had hoped that Israel would repent of her ways and turn to God, but they did not. Nebuchadnezzar’s army had laid siege to Jerusalem for nearly two years now and surely Israel would see the danger and turn from their sinful ways, but Israel was too caught up its own fun and cares of this world to see the danger that loomed ahead.

My friends, that’s a picture of our world today. I believe with all my heart, as I see what’s taking place in our world today and weigh it against God’s Word, we are living in the last days. We live at the very door of some of the most terrifying prophetic messages of the entire Bible. Just over
the horizon, even at our very doorstep, the events of the prophecies concerning the end times are about to begin.

Friends, we can choose to do what Israel did. We can walk on in denial that God’s judgments are coming. We can walk on, and just keep doing those things that we want instead of what He wants. God will let us make our own choice, but He will also judge us according to our choice.

Jesus is in the process of reaping a harvest of souls for His kingdom. He died and rose again so that the harvest could happen. Jesus doesn’t want anyone to perish. He wants everyone to experience the joys of Heaven. He doesn’t want to send anyone to eternal punishment.

HEAR THESE WORDS TODAY! IT IS OUR OWN CHOICES THAT WILL
DETERMINE WHERE WE WILL SPEND ETERNITY! IF YOU DON’T THINK HOLINESS MATTERS – YOU’RE MAKING A TERRIBLE MISTAKE!

The time of harvest is still here now, but it will soon be over. Don’t wait lest you have to say with Jeremiah, the summer is over, the harvest is past, and I am not saved. Jeremiah cries out, because Israel is dying before his very eyes. He was amazed at their callousness in refusing to see the truth that was so plain.

Friends, this morning I am grieved and hurting for those who were once filled with the Holy Ghost but have chosen the lusts of the flesh over God’s presence. As Jeremiah wept for Israel, I weep for our community, and our world who refuse to see the truth. I can see their end. I can see the judgment that awaits them, and I cry for them.

Jeremiah asked another question that can only have one answer, “Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there?”

There is a Balm in Gilead this day for you. Jesus wants to fill you with the Holy Ghost. There is healing for your brokenness today. There is joy for your pain. There is a way for you to be free from the chains of sin. There is a way for your life to be changed forever. You can be born again today! There is a Great Physician who has come with healing in His hands, and His Name is Jesus. Jesus already knows your name, call on the Name of Jesus right now and let the healer begin to restore you today!

This Is How I Fight My Battles

The writer of the book of Ecclesiastes reminds us that every season of life has a purpose:

 “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)

We will all face many different seasons in our lives. There will be times of great difficulty and times of great joy. We will experience seasons of hard work and seasons of plenty. The Lord can use each of these seasons, the ups and downs of life, to teach us something about who He is and how much He loves us. And I have come to understand recently, that even though I may never fully understand God’s plan, my attitude toward life changes when I learn to see each season as an opportunity to grow spiritually.

As I have journeyed through the seasons of life, I have experienced many ups and downs. Friends, maybe you too have experienced the highs and the lows, maybe right now you are going through something that feels like a ride on a roller coaster.

Have you ever been on a roller coaster ride? Did you enjoy it? Roller coasters go up, down, twist, turn, loop and plummet. A ride on a roller coaster is probably over in a couple of minutes; and maybe for those few minutes you hold on so tight your knuckles turn white. You laugh, you scream, you cry, maybe you struggle to get your breath. You may even find yourself begging to get off. Then it’s over and you’re safe again. You quickly get off the roller coaster car and are happy to be standing on solid ground. Then one of two things usually happen, either you head back to the end of the line so that you can do it again, or you vow never to be so stupid again and move on.

There is not a single person who will get through this life without experiencing the ups and downs that life in this fallen world delivers. But as servants of Jesus we do not face them on our own, He is with us. His promise to us is that He will never leave us or forsake us.

What spiritual season are you experiencing now? Do you feel like you are on roller coaster right now? Are you trusting Jesus to help you in the season you are in? If we put our trust in Him, then whatever we are going through, whatever circumstance or situation we are in, whether we feel like we are deep in a valley of despair or on top of a mountain, in good times or bad times, Jesus is with us through every twist and turn.

This morning the Holy Ghost drew me to the book Habakkuk. I want to look at two passages from that book. Habakkuk was the last of the minor prophets to preach in the land of Judah. He prophesied during the fall of the Assyrian Empire in 610 BC and the final Babylonian invasion of Judah in 588 BC. Judah was the southern kingdom of Israel, during the reign of king Josiah it had experienced a time of peace, prosperity, reform and restoration. During the 31 years that Josiah was King, there was prosperity, stability and spiritual revival. Then Josiah died and his sons took over the throne, and everything changed in Judah.

After Josiah died Judah became a nation in chaos, instead of peace there was violence, people turned against each other and perversion and wickedness spread throughout Judah. Sound familiar?

“O Lord, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save! Why dost thou shew me iniquity and cause me to behold grievance? for spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention. Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth.” – Habakkuk 1:2-4 KJV

These words were written nearly 3000 years but they sound like they could have been written yesterday. Since Habakkuk wrote these words centuries have gone by. Seasons have come and gone and come again, yet his words seem to accurately describe our world as it is today.

The book of Habakkuk is a unique book. It is a record of a one to one conversation between the prophet and God. It is a real conversation with God from the heart of the prophet. Friends, honestly, how often do we take the time for a real conversation with God? Not just a quick prayer asking God to do something for you, or praying for someone else, a real heart to heart conversation between you and Jesus.

The Apostle Peter reminds us in 1 Peter 5:7 that we can bring all of our cares, all of our worries, all of our hopes and fears and dreams to God because He cares about us: “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” – 1 Peter 5:7 KJV

Whatever season you find yourself in right now, whatever circumstance or situation you are in right now, have you taken the time to really pray about it? I’m not talking about a lay me down to sleep, woe is me prayer. I’m not talking about a pity party! I’m talking about an honest heart to heart conversation with Jesus. The kind of conversation where you cry out to God in your dilemma, and then you take the time to listen to the Holy Ghost and receive His guidance! Or are you stuck on transmit?

That’s the kind of conversation the prophet was having with God. He cried out to God for answers, and God answers Habakkuk. God tells Habakkuk what He is going to do, “Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvelously: for I will work a work in your days which ye will not believe, though it be told you.” – Habakkuk 1:5 KJV

God tells Habakkuk that He is going to do something so unbelievable, that he wouldn’t believe it if someone told him what was going to happen. God says He is going to do something so amazing that it would be beyond belief. Can you imagine the smile on Habakkuk’s face as those words sink in?

But God has not finished His response to Habakkuk, God continues in verses 6 and 7. Habakkuk asked for help and God says He is going to solve the problem in Judah by sending the Babylonians to wipe out everyone and everything. That is not the answer Habakkuk was expecting, Habakkuk does not understand God’s answer and he questions God again: Why are you going send a group of people who are more wicked, more violent, more perverted than we are to destroy us? Why are you sending the wicked to destroy the righteous?

Habakkuk does not understand God’s answer. Maybe there have been times in your own life when you have prayed and you have found it difficult to understand God’s answer to your own prayer.

There are times when we pray, when we have an idea fixed in our mind about how God will answer our prayer. We think it through, we reason it out, we convince ourselves of the answer we think God will give us. We expect a specific answer, we expect a specific outcome, yet God’s answer is far from what we expected to happen. Have you been where Habakkuk has been? I know I have!

Habakkuk prays a second time and again waits for the Lord to answer. “And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.” – Habakkuk 2:2-4 KJV

Verse 4 says that the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God. Three times in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul quotes this verse: Romans 1:17, This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”

Galatians 3:11, So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”

Hebrews 10:38, “And my righteous ones will live by faith. But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.”

Faithfulness to God, what does that mean, it means trusting God in whatever season we are in. Trusting who God is, trusting in His perfect plan, trusting in His provision, trusting in His presence, and trusting in His power.

There are going to be seasons when we will question what God is doing. There are going to be seasons when we will not understand what God is doing. But in every season, we must have faith in God, we must trust Him, in every circumstance, in every situation, in every difficulty and in every blessing – the response that brings us peace is to trust God.

Faith, such a small word for something so important, and so essential. My faith in God is not dependent on your faith in God. Your faith in God is not dependent on my faith in God. Friends, each of us needs to have our own personal faith in God for every season of life.

The book of Habakkuk is only three chapters long, and in the final chapter Habakkuk concludes his conversation with God with praise:

“Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds' feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places.” – Habakkuk 3:17-19

In this final chapter there is a shift of emotion in Habakkuk. The questions are gone, Habakkuk rejoices in God’s goodness. He has moved from a place of anger and confusion to a place of faith and trust. Perplexity has been replaced with praise. Confusion has been replaced with confidence in God. Worry has been replaced with worship. Fear has been replaced with faith. Habakkuk’s strength is renewed, there is a joy in his heart and his faith is increased.

Friends, my final thought is this: In Habakkuk we have a great example of how we can trust God in every season of life. Despite how you feel, despite your circumstances, your faith in God will sustain you. God is sovereign, God is in control and He is a God who listens and responds to His people. 

Life can be a roller coaster of twists and turns, sit back and enjoy the ride, God is in control, in the presence of our struggles he has prepared a table, a table of provision and blessing. A table surrounded by His presence and power! So, I will trust, I will follow, I will walk in the steps He has ordained for me, and I will praise the name of Jesus – the Glory and the lifter of my soul! That is how I choose to fight my battles!