Blog Archives - WELCOME TO THE JOY OF TROY

October 11, 2018

10/11/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        BRING THE TITHE TO THE STOREHOUSE

        Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. Mal. 3:10.

    One time there was a man who decided that the way he would pay tithe would be to tithe his talents instead of his money. He was very stingy with his money. He probably still had the first nickel he had ever made. But he could play the violin. So the way he paid his tithe was to play his violin for Sabbath school!

    There have been others who have set aside their tithe in actual money, but have decided to use it as they see fit, instead of turning it in to the church. Some have decided that the church school fund needs the money more than the church--or that some mission project has the greater need. But God has given clear instructions as to what the tithe consists of, and as to what our responsibility is in giving it.

    Our text for today says, "Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house." What is the storehouse? Let's allow the Bible to interpret itself, and turn to Nehemiah 13:12. "Then brought all Judah the tithe of the corn and the new wine and the oil unto the treasuries." If you have a margin in your Bible, you will see a marginal reading by the word "treasuries," which refers you back to Malachi 3. The storehouse and the treasuries are the same. Nehemiah 10:38 says, "And the priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites, when the Levites take tithes: and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure house." Notice that the tithe is to be brought to the storehouse, to the treasury, to the house of our God. It is not our responsibility, unless we have been placed in charge of the funds of the Lord's house, to try to decide whether the funds are being used appropriately.

    God's blessing, His promise to open the windows of heaven and give more than there is room to receive, is given to those who bring their tithes into the storehouse. When we bring our tithes to Him, He is enabled to pour out His blessings upon us as He has promised.

October 10, 2018

10/10/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        HOW MUCH DO YOU HAVE LEFT?

        For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living. Mark 12:44.

    Some people consider tithing an Old Testament teaching. They think that when Jesus told the Pharisees that they tithed mint, and small things like that, and neglected the bigger things, He was downgrading the idea of tithing. But Jesus made it clear that while we ought to do the one thing, we should not leave the other undone either.

    One day a widow woman came to the Temple and put into the offering container only two mites. From that experience Jesus drew some important lessons concerning giving. One of them was this--that heaven places value upon the gift in an entirely different way than we do. Jesus said that this woman put in more than all the rest. How can that be? Because God measures our giving not by how much we give, but rather by how much we have left after we have given. So if someone puts in $10,000, and has $10,000 left, he has given far less than one who put in 2 cents and has nothing left.

    Of course, it is possible to give all the cash you have and still own a house in the city and a house in the country, and a boat in the harbor, and three new cars! Our possessions are to be considered also when we figure out how much we have left. 1 Corinthians 4:7 says, "What hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?" Whatever our wealth, be it money or possessions, it is God that gave the power to get it (Deut. 8:18), and thus He has a claim upon all that we have been given.

    The first portion of our money that is the Lord's in a special sense is the tithe. But we have not finished when we have returned our tithes to the Lord. He has invited us to bring our freewill offerings as well. Malachi 3:8 says that God has been robbed in tithes and offerings. And even beyond that, God has a claim on all that we possess. "Some think that only a portion of their means is the Lord's. When they have set apart a portion for religious and charitable purposes, they regard the remainder as their own, to be used as they see fit. But in this they mistake. All we possess is the Lord's, and we are accountable to Him for the use we make of it."--Christ's Object Lessons, p. 351.

October 9, 2018

10/9/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        THEY SHALL BE MINE

        And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Mal. 3:17.

    One of the charges that Satan has hurled against God down through the ages is that God is selfish. Satan wanted what God had, and when it was not given to him, he accused God of being self-centered and stingy. At first glance, it might appear that Satan has a point. Look at Haggai 2:8. God says that the silver and the gold are His. Look at Psalm 50:10-12. God says, "For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof." Sounds rather possessive, doesn't I? But the charge of Satan was answered at the cross. Calvary proved that God is not selfish but willing to spend and be spent. There is self-sacrifice with God.

    But the reason that God says He owns it all is because He does! He is the One who created it all, including us. We are only creatures. The earth is His. But there is one thing that is not His. We are not all His. He has given us freedom of choice, and the only way that He can say that we are His is if we choose to be His. There is a promise concerning this found in our text today. "And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels." There comes a day when the ones that God wants more than anything else--who are of more value to Him than animals or gold or the thousand hills--become His. He has all the rest of it. But there is a group of people who are going to be His, as well. Are you one of them today? Have you made that choice?

    When we consider the subject of stewardship, we are not talking merely about dollars and cents. The most precious gift that we can bring to the Lord is not our money, but ourselves. Without the gift of a loving heart, the gift of simply money is worthless. God already has all the silver and the gold--it is His to begin with. And while the heart that loves cannot but bring gifts as well, the first and primary gift that we must bring to Him is the gift of ourselves. True stewardship begins in choosing to belong to the Lord ourselves, in loving and serving Him.

October 8, 2018

10/8/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        CELEBRATING DELIVERANCE

        Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. Heb. 2:14, 15.

    The key word for the communion service is deliverance. Deliverance from Egypt, deliverance from the guilt of sin, from the power of sin, and from a world of sin. The communion service goes clear back to Egypt--not simply to Jesus and the disciples in the upper room. The reason that they were in the upper room in the first place was in order to celebrate the Passover. They were remembering the time when the blood was put on the doorposts and the angel passed over.

    You remember that night; the Israelites were going to leave at midnight. The firstborn was awake, unable to sleep, anxious that the blood be on the doorpost. And the blood on the doorpost pointed forward to the blood of Jesus. There was power in the blood, clear back in the days of Egypt. For those who placed the blood on the doorpost, there was a wonderful deliverance. And for those who refused, there was tragedy. So Jesus and His disciples met in the upper room to celebrate that deliverance.

    The day after the communion service in the upper room, Jesus fulfilled all that had been a symbol from the days of Egypt until the Last Supper. The fulfillment was far greater than the symbol. Calvary was far greater than putting blood on the doorpost in the days of Egypt, as much as the reality is greater than the symbol that prefigures it. But as we look at this deliverance, and at the symbols of the Lord's Supper today, we find that it still speaks to us of deliverance. When we accept what Jesus has done for us, not only are we forgiven but we stand before God as though we had never even sinned. God offers more than forgiveness. And this good news is designed to bring peace to every heart.

    There is power in the blood of Christ and in the deliverance that He brings, not only to forgive us but to change our lives as well. The deliverance that is symbolized by the communion service is available to each of us today as we accept of both His forgiveness and His power.

October 7, 2018

10/7/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        CLEANSED FOR COMMUNION

        Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit. John 13:10.

    "Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me" (John 13:6-8). Peter found it hard to get his feet washed. Why? Who do you suppose Peter found it hard? Did he think that Jesus, as the Son of God, was above this menial sort of task? Was he feeling guilty already for not having volunteered himself? It was the custom that a servant would wash the feet--and if a servant was not available, them someone would volunteer to do the job. But you don't expect volunteers for this from a group of disciples who have been bickering and arguing about who is going to be the greatest.

    Then Jesus said, "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit" (verses 8-10). Peter had already been washed by Jesus' cleansing power. Baptism, where the head and hands, as well as the feet, are washed, is a symbol of the cleansing of the whole person. The Communion is a symbol of the cleansing needed because of our falling and failing as we grow. When we accept Jesus as our personal Saviour, because of His righteousness, we stand before God as though we had never sinned. And His justifying grace is available to us day by day according to our need.

    Because of the example Jesus set in this service, we know that if we are to have a part with Him we will be involved in the communion service in all its aspects. If He does not wash us, we have no part with Him.

    Those in the early church followed this practice for a time, but then many found it to be inconvenient, and the practice was largely abandoned. However, the symbol is incomplete without the foot-washing service being included. It is only as we are washed by His blood, cleansed anew, that we are fitted to partake of the bread and the wine that are the symbols of communion with Him.

October 6, 2018

10/6/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        IT IS HARD TO BE WASHED

        If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. John 13:8.

    "If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you....If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them" (John 13:14-17). Here are given three reasons why we should wash one another's feet. First, because Jesus commanded it. He told us that we should. Second, because He set the example for us. And third, because we will be happy if we do it.

    Are you really happy to wash someone's feet? Are you happy to have someone else wash your feet? There are some who find real meaning in this service and have learned to see Jesus revealed in the communion ordinances. If they take part in the service one week at their home church, and visit another church the following week where there is another communion service scheduled, they are overjoyed. But there are others who partake in one church, and if they find another church having the communion service the following week, they say, "Forget it. We already did our duty for this quarter!" There are some who find the service so distasteful that they stay home on communion Sabbath, and don't even become involved once a quarter.

    A student said to me during one Week of Prayer communion service, "I usually wash my feet myself!" And we began to talk about the significance of that. To let someone else do for you what you usually do for yourself carries a message. It can be humbling to let God do for us what we are accustomed to doing for ourselves or what we want to do for ourselves.

    Do you find it harder to wash someone else's feet or to get your own feet washed? Usually the response is that it is harder to get your own feet washed. It's embarrassing. There is something deep inside that goes along with the idea expressed by the student. We don't want to admit that we need something done for us--that we can't do everything ourselves. Peter found it humiliating to have his feet washed, and objected to the necessity until Jesus showed him that it was only by his humbling himself to accept of Jesus' cleansing that he could have a part with Him. It is as we allow our pride to be humbled today, and accept of Jesus' ministry in our behalf, that we find cleansing.

October 5, 2018

10/5/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        JESUS REVEALED IN HUMILITY

        Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant. Phil. 2:5-7.

    A Seventh-day Adventist evangelist was confronted with the question of why his church was so particular about the Sabbath when others were not. He said, "We believe in observing the Sabbath in honor of Creation, because that's what the Bible says. And we want to follow what the Bible says."

    The person who was confronting him replied, "No one really follows all that the Bible says. It can't be done. If you really believed and follows everything the Bible says, then you would wash one another's feet!"

    And the Adventist evangelist said, "We do!"

    It's true that there are very few in the Christian churches of today who believe in celebrating all the parts of the Lord's Supper. Some take only the wafer or the bread, some take the bread and the cup, but very few follow the foot-washing ordinance as well.

    John 13 is the only place in the four Gospels that describes the ordinance of foot washing. Let's read it, beginning with the first verse: "Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. And supper being ended, the devil having put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him; Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God; he riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poureth water into a basin, and began to wash the disciple's feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded."

    What a picture! The Creator of the universe stooping to wash the tired, dusty feet of the creatures that He had made. It was a sandbox illustration of His incarnation, when He laid aside His kingly robes in heaven and came down to be born as one of us, that He might be able to minister to our needs. Jesus is revealed in the communion service in a special way. He is revealed as the One who was not ashamed to call us brethren, to meet us where we are, and to cleanse us from the defilement of sin.

October 4, 2018

10/4/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        FALLING ON THE ROCK

        For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. 1 Cor. 10:4.

    If you study the symbol of the rock or the stone throughout Scripture, you will discover that it is a symbol of Jesus Christ. In the days of Israel's exodus from Egypt to Canaan, you have Moses striking a rock in the wilderness. The rock was a representation of Christ. Our text today says it in so many words: "and that Rock was Christ."

    Jesus used the analogy of a rock, and spoke of the necessity of building upon a rock instead of upon the sand, in Matthew 7:24, 25. Paul said that other foundation can no man lay, than that which is laid, Jesus Christ. Jesus is the cornerstone in Scripture.

    Isaiah 8:13-15 says that the Lord will be a "stone of stumbling," and a "rock of offence." Psalm 118:22 refers to the Rock. Jesus quoted from the Old Testament in Matthew 21:42-44, saying, "Did you never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in your eyes?...Whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to power."

    Each of us is offered a choice today. Do you choose to fall on the Rock or do you choose to let the Rock fall on you? If I don't know what it means to fall on the Rock, the day will come when I will pray to the rocks and mountains to fall on me, and hide me from God's face. There are only two choices--to fall on the Rock or to have the Rock fall on you. But falling on the Rock is an intangible phrase. What does it mean? Romans 9:33 explains what falling on the Rock signifies. "Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed." So what's the issue? In Romans, the issue of whether I fall on the Rock or the Rock falls on me is the issue of faith and works. It's that simple. If I try to live a good life through my own efforts, and do not know what it means to believe on Him for salvation in all of its aspects, then the Rock will fall on me. It is only by falling on the Rock and being broken, by coming to the end of our own resources and becoming involved in fellowship and communion with Jesus, that we are secure.

October 3, 2018

10/4/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        JESUS REVEALED BY A ROCK

        And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed. Dan. 2:44.

    Nebuchadnezzar was the ruler of the whole world. He must have been capable and brilliant to accomplish such a feat. He could walk on the veranda of his palace, look at his hanging gardens, and compliment himself on the great empire that he had built. He had "I" trouble, just as Lucifer had. He did not give God the glory or the credit or the praise, but said rather, "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built?" He was a self-made man, and self-made men always love to worship their maker.

    Earlier the God of heaven had tried to get through to this heathen king and let him know that there was Someone bigger than he. Nebuchadnezzar had a dream. However, he forgot it, and thus Daniel became involved in the picture. God revealed the dream to Daniel, and Nebuchadnezzar recognized his dream. Daniel also gave him the interpretation of his dream. Nebuchadnezzar was told that he was the head of gold. However, that wasn't the end of the dream. Nebuchadnezzar didn't like the part about the chest and arms of silver, and the other kingdoms to follow. So he decided to build an image like the one in his dream, but all of gold. And you remember the rest of the story. The God of heaven once again revealed Himself to Nebuchadnezzar.

    But I'm more interested in the rock of Daniel 2 than in anything else. We have sometimes spent a lot of time studying the four kingdoms, and the ten kingdoms, and have not spent as much time on the real hero of the story, the rock, cut out without hands.

    Which would you choose if you were offered a choice between gold and a rock? At first glance it would seem that the gold would be the better choice. But God sees things differently than we do. The rock that is cut out of the mountain, without hands, is chosen to represent Jesus. And all the gold and silver and brass and clay are lost sight of. They are broken in pieces and become like the chaff of the summer threshing floors, and the wind carries them away. The kingdoms of this world pass away into nothing, and all that man values in place of God is ultimately seen to be worthless. But "in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed...and it shall stand for ever."

October 2, 2018

10/4/2018

Jesus Revealed in Doctrine                        THE LAW REVEALED IN A LIFE

        Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. Matt. 5:17.

    The law is a transcript of God's character. The same things that are said about God are said about His law. God is truth (John 14:6). His law is truth (Ps. 119:142). God is perfect (Matt. 5:48). His law is perfect (Ps. 19:7). God is holy (Isa. 6:3). His law is holy (Rom. 12:7). God is unchangeable (Mal. 3:6). The law is unchangeable (Matt. 5:18). God is spiritual (John 4:24). His commandments are spiritual (Rom. 4:17). God is forever (Ps. 9:7; 90:2). His law is forever (Ps. 111:7; 119:44).

    This means that it always has been and always will be wrong to kill and steal and lie and covet and take God's name in vain and all the rest of it. There is no time when the commandments will be changed, by situational ethics or anything else. Why? Because the Ten Commandments are what God is, and what Jesus is.

    A woman goes to the dry-goods store for material to make a dress. She rummages through the bolts of cloth until she finds one that appeals to her. She pauses, fingers the cloth, holds if up to the light. The proprietor comes by and says, "Do you like that cloth?" "Well," she says, "I think so. I was just trying to visualize how it would look made up into a dress." The shopkeeper takes her to the front window and points out a dress made from the same cloth. And the woman says, "In the bolt it was beautiful. But made into a dress it is even more beautiful! I'll take it!"

    We look as the Ten Commandments and realize the wisdom there revealed. We admit that not a single improvement could be made--except for one. To see the Ten Commandments made up into a life. Whereas these principles were beautiful on tables of stone, they are much more beautiful made up into a life--the life of Jesus. Jesus reveals the Ten Commandments. He came to this earth, and through depending moment by moment upon His Father's power, kept every one of the Ten Commandments perfectly. He offers to us today the same power that He had. Through dependence upon Him we may reveal to the world the beauty of character that will bring glory to Him. The Ten Commandments may be made up into our lives as well.