The Old Man & the Mountain

“Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the Lord helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.”

Caleb, Book of Joshua 14:12
Listen to this article

Caleb: the old warrior prince

He was a tough old man. Probably not very tall but wiry and deeply tanned from decades of surviving in the desert. Much of his life had been spent in Egyptian slavery. The rest had been spent wandering in the wilderness. Able to provide for a total of three wives and two concubines, he likely was a man who took his responsibilities seriously. But there’s something remarkable about Caleb that most of us don’t realize: he wasn’t an Israelite at all.

The Bible gives clear record of this old man’s lineage. Caleb son of Jephunneh was a Kenizite (Numbers 32:12, Josh 14:6, 14), which means he was a descendant of Kenaz, a grandson of Esau (Gen. 36:11). As such, he would clearly have no portion in the Promised Land. His name means “a dog” and is quite telling in that dogs often symbolized someone who was not of the chosen people (see Matthew 15:26)

But God changed everything.

Changing religions

At some point in their story, Caleb’s family must have become proselytes to the Jewish faith and migrated into the community, becoming accepted into the tribe of Judah (Numbers 13:6). This Gentile by descent became a prince of Judah insomuch that Moses chose him to represent the entire tribe in a covert operation into Canaan Land (Numbers 13:2). His faith in this God who was not of his ancestry earned him Jehovah’s respect. While the other Israelite spies perished in the wilderness, Caleb was preserved.

Now, at eighty years old, he was ready to do his best work yet.

The best is yet to come

Many of us would be ready to retire at 80. Caleb could have said, “I’ve already done a lot for God.” But, instead of resting on his reputation for past victories, he literally asked Joshua for the toughest job around. If you’ve ever hiked up a mountain, you know it can be tough. Now, imagine fighting up that same mountain. It’s common knowledge that whoever holds the high ground in war has the advantage. The guy moving up hill loses energy while his enemies at the higher elevation can count on their arrows, slingstones, etc. to go further thanks to gravity.

And this was what Caleb, a Gentile proselyte, wanted as a gift.

Why? Why not a nice lush valley or somewhere near the coast?

We don’t know. But we do know that this man had a fighting spirit. And that is what we must acquire if we want to earn God’s respect. I want His respect, don’t you?

3 Lessons

There are three lessons I’d like to pull from this text.

  1. Embrace the hard fights:
    Like Caleb, don’t run from the challenges you’re called to face. God’s idea of a gift is something that will mold your character—not necessarily make you feel good. His gifts challenge you.

    Caleb looked at the mountain, recognized it was going to be a tough job, but asked for the challenge because he knew that the view of victory would be worth it all.

    Frankly, Caleb considered the giants who had entrenched themselves there to be already defeated. As he said, “the Anakites were there” not are there. In reality, the Anakites were still living in the mountains but in Caleb’s mind, this was already a done deal. Apply that mentality to whatever you’re facing today. Believe that, if the Lord helps you, the situation will be defeated in Jesus’ name.
  2. What you do matters to God, not who you are
    Many times in Scripture, God used non-Israelites to accomplish His purpose. In 2023, it’s important to realize that God looks at your attitude and deeds not your past. This is why anyone can be used by God, no matter how old or young, regardless of your education level, race or income level.

    All God is looking for is a humble heart that’s willing to believe him in the face of opposition. Which brings me to my final point.
  3. Don’t let the battles of life wear you down.
    Life is a struggle. The longer you live, the more adversity you’ll face. Caleb accepted that reality. In fact, he welcomed it. I admire this old man because he didn’t get worn down by the adversity of slavery or the harsh nature of living in the desert. He dealt with blistering hot days, freezing cold nights, the stench and noise of living with about 2 million people for forty long years. All while raising a family of course.

    And on top of it all was the constant threat of enemies whose idea of a good day was slitting an Israelite throat.
    But he didn’t grow tired of fighting to survive. At eighty, his outlook was: “the best is yet to come.” That’s a personal choice that we all have to make. We choose whether or not we give up. We choose whether or not we turn back from the faith of Christ. We choose to continue to resist evil or to surrender to it.

Like Caleb, the old man, let us embrace the fight and possess our mountains.

The Final Days

Listen to this article!

As Christians, we believe that Jesus Christ is our example and we are to “follow in His steps.” We also believe that we are in the final days of this world. How should we conduct ourselves? What needs to be done? Christ’s example in the last hours of his life provide us with insights that we should apply today. In this podcast, I will identify three things that Christ focused on that are relevant and needful for us to follow in these final days.

Finish the work

The book of John in chapters 13-17 details the conversations that Jesus had with His disciples before His crucifixion. His words provided instruction, comfort, warnings and encouragement. Everything was done so that they “would not fall away” as He said in John 16:1. Instead of focusing on His forthcoming death, Christ focused on finishing Hi work of preparing the disciples.

What an example to us! So often we’re enticed to focus on our own misery or problems. But God wants us to focus on accomplishing what He’s put us here to do—proclaiming the Gospel and living a spiritually restored Word-life.

If Satan can get you to lose your focus, your service to Christ will be incomplete. Always remember: focus on the mission. Nothing else matters.

In John 17:4, just before His arrest, Jesus clearly stated that His work was done. His work of calling, strengthening, and preparing the members of His spiritual body was now complete. But this work had been accomplished by a physical, earthly body seeking out and ministering to other humans (the disciples) who were members of His spiritual body.

Here again we see what we are called to do in these final days. We must be busy:

  1. Finding the members of Christ’s body who are lost in sin
  2. Strengthening those members once they’ve been reconciled to God.

Realize, my brothers and sisters, that you were not saved to minister to yourself. According to the Book of Ephesians chapter 4, we are all here to strengthen each other in the faith of God. In fact, in one sense, our very spiritual survival depends on each other. We are called a spiritual house (1 Peter 2:5). In your natural home, the beams in the walls are supported by the floor. The walls support the ceiling. The beams in the roof support the roof itself. Everything is supported by the foundation.

Ask yourself: do you actively work to strengthen your brothers and sisters in this Christian faith? Do you participate in church social events which are necessary for strong bonds? How are you inspiring them? Are you bombarding heaven with your prayers? Inquiring about their welfare and working to resolve their problems? Or are you lost in a world of your own?

Relationships are formed by constantly being together–in good and bad times. Bonds are strengthened by constant interaction and broken by isolation. In basic military training, cadets sleep in the same rooms, shower in groups, and even use the toilet without privacy guards between stalls. The lack of individual privacy forges one unit that fights, bleeds, and dies for each other.

For some reason, Christ’s spiritual army struggles with this concept.

We cannot afford to become lost in our own life. This is what our enemy wants. This is his method of “divide and conquer”, the same tool the Roman empire notoriously used to destroy its enemies.

In the final days, Satan purposes to distract believers from strengthening each other by inundating their own life with personal problems and selfish motives. Ultimately the entire church is weakened.

Jesus showed us that we must combat this by deliberately minimizing our own situations and actively engaging with each other in as many physical and spiritual ways as possible

Self-Prepare

But Jesus didn’t just prepare His disciples; He also prepared Himself for what lay ahead. John relates that Jesus spent much time in prayer, wrestling through until His earthly body was able to endure the trial that lay ahead.

It’s no easy thing to know when you’re going to die. Most of us don’t like to think about our death. In fact, we change the words to songs like “I’ll fly away” so that we sing “I’ll not die, I’ll be raptured by and by.” But Jesus faced His death in the same way He faced life—head-on.

Yes, He struggled with it as any human would. But He focused on getting Himself ready for what lay ahead.

Now, I will say that we live in the closing hours of the world and many of us may indeed be alive for the coming of the Lord. But whether you’re awake or asleep when He comes, my question is this: how are you preparing yourself?

I find it helpful to think about where you are right now. Do you feel perfectly ready to meet Him? Is the Spirit of God, which is Eternal life, burning in your soul? Ireneus, who we consider to be a messenger of God, once wrote:

“The business of the Christian is nothing else but to be ever preparing for death.”

How often Satan gets us focused on so many other things that we don’t realize that our death—and the death of this world—is inching steadily closer heartbeat by heartbeat.

Are there:

  1. Things you’ve left unsaid or undone
  2. Wrongs for which you need to apologize
  3. Things you want to accomplish before you leave this world
  4. Debts, wills, other important legal considerations you need to resolve
  5. Family issues that need to be settled

We may not see this as being self-preparation but, again, the goal is to have nothing unresolved when you are called from this world. We live in a time where nuclear bombs can ignite our drought-ridden planet at any moment. Where death stalks each neighborhood on a regular basis.

Like Jesus, in the final days, work to be prepared for the coming of the Lord. That way, whether He comes for you or comes for us all, you’ll be ready.

Give full testimony

Finally, Jesus gave clear testimony of who He was in the final hours of His life. In Gethsemane, His captors asked for Jesus of Nazareth and He responded by saying “I am He” twice. Before Caiaphas, He identified Himself as the Son of Man. Before Pilate, He identified Himself as the King.

He gave clear witness, or a full testimony, of what He believed. It didn’t matter whether or not they believed. What mattered was that the witness was given. And notice that the testimony He gave with His words was backed up by His life when He rose from the dead on Easter morning.

We’ve been given an opportunity in these last days. In a world of unbelief, we’re called to give full testimony of our faith. Christ commands us to be His witnesses unto the end of the world, unto the end of the age. This is to be spoken by our mouths and backed up by our life. Words alone are not enough. Dedicate your life to fulfilling this calling.

If you do this, God will vindicate you as He did Jesus and raise you up with Him.

Live it!

Today I identified three aspects of Christ’s ministry in the last days and showed how we are to do the same in the last days of this world. We must:

  1. Finish the work He’s given us to reach out to those outside the faith while actively strenghtening those within it.
  2. Prepare ourselves to meet Him
  3. Give full testimony of what we believe

Tearing Down our Towers of Babel

Maximize Your Life Walk Through the Word

 Jesus calls us to an abundant life. Here are five steps to achieving this.
  1. Maximize Your Life
  2. Tear down the Tower of Babel and Build the Kingdom of God
  3. Of Faith & Doubt
  4. Genesis 4-10: Worship, Murder, & the Human Experience
  5. From Spirit to Flesh: Study on Genesis 2 & 3

The Bible tells us how humanity was scattered across the whole world in the Tower of Babel story found in Genesis 11:1-9. Called “the world’s first skyscraper,” history places the Tower of Babel at about 330 feet tall and at the center of the ancient sprawling “city of Cities.”

Today, all that’s left of this symbol of ancient pride is a watering hole. So, what lessons can we learn from this as Christians today? Over the next few moments let’s identify three lessons from Genesis 11.

God’s instructions

God had instructed Noah and his descendants to spread across the whole world and that he wouldn’t destroy the world by water anymore.

Nowadays, it’s hard to imagine a global flood but the evidence was all around them in that time. But the invisible God that their fathers once talked about wasn’t so easy to see. Instead of obeying, in just a few generations humanity forgot both God’s command and his promise. They settled in the Shinar Valley and began construction on a Tower that was both an icon of pagan worship as well as a backup plan “just in case” the floodwaters that destroyed humanity came once again.

Spiritual Towers of Babel are easy to build. In fact, we might be erecting them in our lives right now.

Consequences of our decisions

First: The Tower was the result of human decision. I’d like to say the consequences of our attitudes and life decisions. Instead of choosing to follow the path that God has outlined, we often are tempted to make our own way, relying on our abilities or those of people around us just like the people in Genesis 11 chose to unite themselves to accomplish a particular goal. Their question was reasonable. What if a flood comes again? But God had already said that it wouldn’t come. Their attitude was one of doubt.

Remember: if your attitude toward someone or something isn’t lined up with the Word, it will lead you from one bad decision to another.

The question then becomes, how do you know if your attitude is Christ-pleasing as I mentioned in my live sermon this morning? The answer is by staying connected to the Holy Spirit. Humanity at this point had strayed so far from being in an active relationship with God that they were willing to trust stone and slime more than the infallible Word of God that brought the flood in the first place. Which brings me to my next point.

Second: Where there is no passion for Christ it is very difficult to know whether your actions or attitudes are correct.

Being passionate about Jesus will drive you to seek Him humbly in prayer, to pore over the pages of His word, to listen for His voice in every puff of wind and in the quiet places of your heart. Knowing Him, and what pleases Him, becomes the very center of your life. But those who are building towers instead of God’s kingdom fall out of love with their Creator and make their own life pursuits their god.

When choosing your career, for example, ask yourself if you can freely serve the Lord in this path. Or will you be helping evil to spread or be placed in compromising situations? For Noah’s descendants, this became a life pursuit but it was one that led them away from the very purpose that God had placed them here to accomplish. So be in love with Jesus in order to discern whether your decisions and attitudes towards God and other people is pleasing to the Holy Spirit. Remember, we’re here to please Him not the other way around.

Finally: the Tower was a note of security whereas God was challenging humanity to step out into the dangerous wilderness and survive by trusting in Him alone. Now, to get a better picture of what I mean, remember the world had been tilted about 23 degrees from being perfectly upright. This sudden shift resulted in massive changes—seasons, land slides, volcanic eruptions to name a few. Talk about climate change!

But in the midst of all this, God clearly directed Noah’s descendants to step out and fill the whole earth. He still asks His children to step out into unknown situations, into difficult and dangerous environments, to fill the earth with His glory. Because it’s in the difficult situations that we see Him act in our life. We can choose to stay where things are comfortable in our spiritual or natural life, right up close to the Tower of Babel that we or others are building, or we can move out in faith and watch God work His wonders.

The blessing of obedience

It was only when humanity moved away from its comfort zone that God was finally able to get a man under his control. A man who would change the course of history and get the first stage of God’s redemption plan going. His name was Abraham and we’ll pick up with his story next time.

Until then, tear down the towers in your life and build the kingdom of God.

lightning strike on forest during night time

Gen. 4-10: Worship, Murder, and the Human Experience

Maximize Your Life Walk Through the Word

 Jesus calls us to an abundant life. Here are five steps to achieving this.
  1. Maximize Your Life
  2. Tear down the Tower of Babel and Build the Kingdom of God
  3. Of Faith & Doubt
  4. Genesis 4-10: Worship, Murder, & the Human Experience
  5. From Spirit to Flesh: Study on Genesis 2 & 3

Thank you for listening to this episode of Walk Through the Word. This is Brother Joseph. As we dig into our study of Genesis 4-10, we want to focus on the theme of meeting God’s requirements. What does He require from us in worship? In the way we interact with others?

The Book of Genesis is the story of our human beginnings. It’s also a prophesy of the global conditions that will exist at the end of time according to Matthew 24:37-39 and Luke 17:26-30. So let’s examine our hearts as we approach this great text.

From worship to murder

Eve was pregnant. Normally, we get happy when we hear that a wife is expecting. But, in this case, the child she carried would be the bane of humanity. For his father wasn’t Adam. It was the serpent with whom she’d had a sexual relationship in Genesis 3. Our focus today isn’t the lineage of Cain (which is proven throughout the scripture). Today, let’s look at the approach to worship.

Both Cain and Abel (who was Adam’s son) grew to adulthood. Now there were physical differences between Adam, Eve and their children. For starters, these boys had a belly button whereas Adam and Eve did not. We know this because Adam and Eve came from the hand of God whereas the children came from Eve’s body. Now, this might seem funny but that physical mark reflected a terrible reality—that the boys would one day die. For God’s promise was that “the day you eat thereof, in that day (1,000 year period) you shall die” (Gen.2:17).

As they grew to adulthood, the boys knew that they had to get right with God because time was running out. So today is time running out for you, sinner who’s listening in. None of us know when God will call us from this world. So, let us learn from their example and come to the throne of God for mercy.

Note that both Cain and Abel had religious desires, even though Cain was of an evil seed (see 1 John 3:12). It goes to show that Satan hides himself in religion. And when Satan’s goals are thwarted, religion paves the way for murder. Let’s look at this more closely.

Abel approached God with a revelation that blood (his father’s semen) had made his mortal body. The Bible clearly calls a man’s semen, his blood (see John 1:13) and the link between adultery and murder runs throughout the Old Testament. Both could only be atoned for by the shedding of blood according to the law. But Adam and Eve would not have told their children the truth of their parentage. What parent would? Can you imagine a mother saying to her son that the man he thinks is his father really isn’t and, because of her wrong doing, he and all the rest of humanity will die?

Not at all.

Therefore, Abel’s approach to worship is based upon one thing alone—divine revelation of the will of God. Somehow, Abel heard from God and, according to Hebrews 11:4, he offered a sacrifice which pleased God by faith which is revelation. So, to answer our first question: how do we worship God?

It must be by a personal revelation of Jesus Christ—everything else will be rejected.

The Christian religion has lavished countless dollars upon gorgeous churches and invested heavily in all sorts of religious rites that fail to offer revelation and true consolation to the soul. Now, with a virus, our church buildings are just like our religious works—empty.

Jesus taught us that we must worship the Father in Spirit and in Truth (John 4:12). What does the Spirit bring but divine revelation of who God is? For the Spirit is the Teacher as well as the Comforter (John 14:26). So, if your worship is not revealing God to you, if it is not making Him know to you as well as through you, then your worship is in vain (Matthew 15:9).

Notice that Abel’s worship brought him in contact with God but it also revealed God through his literal body. As he offered up his lamb, Abel was foreshadowing that one day God would offer His Lamb upon an alter. Worship, my friends, reveals God through your body and through your life. So we cannot truly worship the Lord if we look, act, think, or feed upon the sins of this age. Our worship is to last, like Abel’s until our death. Our entire lives are to be a “living sacrifice unto God” according to Romans 12:12.

Before we move on, ask yourself: is my life one of worship? If not, lay it on the altar of God today.

Cain shows the hypocrisy of religious orders. Once he failed to achieve his goal he went from being a worshipper of Jehovah to a murderer. Here we see clearly the pattern followed throughout history—if they disagree, kill them! If they have a trace of the Spirit about them—they are a threat! From the Jews throughout the ages to the Roman Catholic Church and the Protestant churches, empty religion has always set the stage for murder. And the Bible predicts the emptiness of intellectual Christianity that does not have the Spirit, will soon unleash the greatest murder persecution the world has ever seen (see Rev. 12:17).

Cain crossed a line. For the first time, the earth drank the blood of a human. And nothing would be the same again.

The beginning of the end

Cain married his sister (perhaps a daughter of the serpent) who was in the land of wandering or Nod. God had condemned him to be a wanderer (see Gen. 4:14) but, instead of accepting his punishment, Cain decided to fight against the Lord’s judgment and build his own civilization. He could not live among Adam’s children, for he was now an outcast, so he decided to start his own race. Just like Lucifer, he rebelled against the divine plan and decided to create a city.

But the sins of the father come down to the children.

Lamech is a descendent of Cain and Lamech introduces the idea of polygamy. Prior to this time it was one man for one woman among the human race. But Cain’s tribe unleash a new idea that will soon spread across the world. Towards the end of Genesis 4, we see a remarkable statement that many overlook.

One day Lamech said to his wives,

“Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; listen to me, you wives of Lamech. I have killed a man who attacked me, a young man who wounded me. If someone who kills Cain is punished seven times, then the one who kills me will be punished seventy-seven times!”

Genesis 4:23-24

Right after polygamy is introduced we see the second human killing–a death caused in self-defense. .Lamech is more justified than Cain because Lamech killed to protect himself. And so we see the seeds of human war are sown. And now there’s no stopping what will lead up to the greatest destruction humanity has ever seen.

The power of genes

In a natural sense, the human story revolves around one basic principle—genetics. God gave Adam and Eve perfect genes that allowed them to live eternally with sickness unable to touch them–although it was present. Remember the Tree of Knowledge and Satan were in Eden all along. Genes are what allow the Son of God to enter the human race as redeemer. And in Genesis 5, God takes the time to list the genealogy of the righteous line from Adam to Noah’s sons.

Before I go further, let me say that I know believing that Eve was impregnated by the Serpent of Genesis 3 is difficult for many to swallow. But once you get over that hurdle, the Bible literally becomes a new Book. Genesis 5 again proves this to be the case. Note verse 3:

And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:

Genesis 5:3

Note that Adam was 130 when he fathered Seth. But the Bible says nothing about how old he was when he fathered Abel. Do you get it? Adam was an eternal being when Abel was fathered. Time wasn’t reckoned unto him. But by the time Eve conceives with Seth, Adam is now mortal. He is aging. Time is applicable to him. But the hand of time is also moving toward the promise of redemption.

The next seven generations span a timeframe of about 2,000 years. Humanity is reproducing but we can see that life stages, such as puberty, are happening a lot later than they do today. Most of the marriages occur when the adults are between 60-90 years old, which makes sense if the entire lifespan is almost a thousand years old as was the case with Methuselah. But as you look at the line of Adam, we see that in general the age before fathering the first child decreases which shows us that humanity is getting slowly weaker.

For example, Adam fathers Seth at 130. Seth’s first child, Enos, is born at 105 years old. But Enos fathers hi son at 90 and the process goes on. With a few exceptions, the genetic pool of Adam’s race is changing. What does this tell us about the ancient world?

Adam’s race is getting weaker. As the world was rushing toward its first destruction, something was happening that led to earlier puberty. We see the same in our world today. In 1860, the average age for puberty in girls was documented at—get ready— 16.6 years old. In 2010 that number had dropped to 10.5 years, globally according to a study reported by The Guardian. This varies across races but the general trend is clear. Humans are becoming physically capable of sexual acts at a younger age while marriage is being postponed or forgotten altogether. What does this produce?

A world primed for immoral living. Sexual promiscuity always leads to overpopulation which, in turn brings about competition for natural resources such as food and raw materials as societies become burdened by demand. In a limited sense, this same problem of limited resources and unlimited needs was behind the rise of the Nazi Germany and the United States’ genocide of the Native Americans. Looking at the conflicts in our planet now, we see that little has changed. Competition leads to war which ultimately brings about destruction.

The human experience: then & now

As we zoom into Genesis 6 & 7, we see two distinct groups of humans emerging: Seth’s line and Cain’s line. Each represent a spiritual reality: the righteous and the damned. Again, remember that before Christ came, your spiritual status depended a lot on genes. Hence the reason that Christ came “to His own (the Jews)”. Even the calling out of the remnant of Israel, the 144,000 will be linked back to the family groups or genes (see Zechariah 12:10-14, Rev. 7:1-8). Their inheritance in the land, even the physical locations where they will live in the Millennium are all dictated by their genes as shown in the book of Ezekiel.

Notice that when Israel came back from Babylon in the times of Ezra and Nehemiah, they went straight back to the inheritance that was allotted to them by their genealogy. It was attached to them from the time that Joshua divided up the land and was never taken back. So, it’s not like the U.S. where anyone can buy another person’s property. Even if I liked to live by the sea, I couldn’t just pick up and buy land in Zebulun’s tribe if I was a Judahite for example. Each inheritance belonged to the individual family groups forever! And God still will remember the rights and privileges of that ownership even after the return of Jesus Christ.

Blessed be His Name!

What a great grace is shown then to us Gentiles in re-geneing us so that we too can have a part in God’s inheritance. It goes to show that we who are not of Israel but are Gentiles have so much to thank God for! We had no genetic promise to tie us back to God like Israel, through Abraham, did. But Jesus Christ brought us into the family of God by a new birth that changed our spiritual genes and gave us an inheritance.

giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.

Colossians 1:12 NKJV

Now I hope you can see the need for the New Birth. It is a spiritual transformation that literally changes our genes from the coding of our earthly parents to the spiritual faith of our heavenly Father. That is why you’re now able to rise above the emotional obstacles that your natural birth laid down on you. You will have to struggle against them all your life but you will have the power to overcome, thanks to this re-geneing of the Holy Spirit.

Truly, genes are important. I’m so thankful to have the genes of the Holy Spirit, aren’t you? We could take that a lot farther but you just meditate on that awhile on your own. Let’s turn our attention back to Great Flood.

The rise of race

But back in the antediluvian world, humanity was divided into two groups of people.

The Bible tells us that things changed as humanity multiplied. Instead of bearing predominantly sons (see the genealogies of the previous chapters), humanity began to bear daughters. Obviously girls had always been born or the human race would have ceased to exist. But now, there was an abundance of women born upon the earth. And, with the pattern established by Lamech of taking more than one wife, there was no longer a need for monogamy. Being faithful to one woman was no longer a requirement.

Sound familiar?

The truth is that Cain’s side had launched a sexual revolution.

But remember there was a race war going on at the time. Satan was the author of it then and he is the author of all racial tension now. His goal was to annihilate the sons of God (see Isaiah 14:13-14). But how could he? They were freshly descended from God through Adam. Adam, Seth—the patriarchs were living for almost a thousand years teaching the Word of God. How could he break through this hedge of preachers?

Through the woman.

Satan learned in the Garden of Eden that men have one major weakness. It doesn’t matter how holy they are, how much they pray, every man’s weakness is a woman. And still today every man must face the temptation. Even the Son of God Himself had to face it. Christ struggled but He overcame. And so will you brothers if you keep your eyes on where we’re going and not the temporary pleasures of this world.

So sisters, remember to be careful what you say to men and how you conduct yourselves around them. Dress in ways that will lead to holiness as the Bible tells us in 1 Timothy 2:9 remembering that you have the power to either keep his mind on things of God or to inflame his lust.

And, if you’re married, Sisters, remember to be patient and listen to him if he talks to you about his struggles. The Bible commands that you meet his needs (1 Cor. 7:5).Don’t drive him away or make him feel like he’s an abnormal creature. That’s his nature. He was made to propagate life.

And men, keep your conduct under the Word, striving to keep your thoughts and bodies sanctified to God. And if you’re married, keep yourself only for your wife. Meet her physical and emotional needs as the Scripture commands you to do. Listen to her struggles and pray with her.

The race war then wasn’t so much black versus white or any of the nonsense we see today. It was a spiritual war focusing on bringing down good and elevating evil.

Don’t we see the same today?

Behind the fog of racism and antisemitism, liberalism and conservatism, the real agenda is faith versus doubt.

Satan won that war.

The fall of the righteous and the end of the world

Adam’s line quicky forgot their religious principles when faced with the temptation of the gorgeous Canaanite women. Like today, the clergy failed to hold the people accountable to God. By the time of the Flood, only Noah and his family—out of a population of billions—had enough spirituality to hear from God.

As the female population exploded, there simply weren’t enough men to pair with one woman. Society then became a world of women’s rights, with women leading homes, being worshipped, and leading nations. We see this by the lack of spiritual knowledge shown by Adam’s sons, and the prophecy of Jesus Christ that our world will be a reflection of what was in Noah’s time.

But on the heels of hedonism comes violence. Then as now, physical wars broke out across the planet. Wars fueled by the discovery of nuclear technology. We’ve often been taught that early civilizations were primitive but that simply isn’t born out by the Bible or archeological evidence.

Humanity is like a pendulum. It swung once toward a technological peak, was destroyed and swung backward, then now is swinging back toward another technological peak. Keep in mind the following:

  • Cain’s side was actively tapping into knowledge (shown by Tubal Cain’s inventions)
  • Each scientist lived for hundreds of years, passing down knowledge
  • There were no language barriers because everyone spoke the same language so knowledge could be easily shared
  • There were no geographic barriers because there was one landmass.

It is utterly illogical to think that the science and technology would not have continued to grow, especially when we look at our world. In just 250 years, we’ve gone from a primitive steam engine, which launched the Industrial Revolution, to space travel. And that’s with scientists living about 80-90 years!

What would happen if scientists were living for an average of 800 years and we had 2,000 years to experiment as was the case between Adam and Noah? Stone axes and animal skin clothes?

Not at all. We have Noah being able to build a boat that is over 500 feet long. God inspired him but he still had to build the physical structure. And a boat the size of the ark (the British SS Great Eastern which was 692 feet long) wasn’t built until 1858, according to the Visual Capitalist.

One of the reasons people question the Bible is because we present to them a very unscriptural view of what it says. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that Noah and his family didn’t have access to the technology of their time, even though they weren’t scientists themselves. Think about it: I trust you all are Christians listening to my voice this morning or reading this online. Yet you’re using the technology developed by critics of God’s Word to listen to this podcast!

I was very pleased to recently read an article by Quartz Hill School of Theology in which they also recognize that the world of Noah was one with highly developed technology and nuclear technology.

Noah and his family survived the equivalent of a nuclear holocaust — in fact, for all we know there might have been one just before the flood. Radiation poisoning and the resultant genetic damage would go a long way in explaining why human life spans, which before the flood averaged over 900 years, declined rapidly to their current levels after the flood.

Quartz Hill School of Theology, Was there modern technology before the Flood?

Without reading this article, I’ve often stated that the lifespan of humans after the Flood is shorter because they were trying to grow crops in a world that had been contaminated by radiation. When we look at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we see that humans were literally vaporized when atomic energy was used on a small-scale level. What would happen if the entire planet went to war? There would be little or no evidence left. And the survivors would be starting over, from scratch.

Just think about it: if you and your family were the only survivors of a nuclear holocaust, how much of our technology could you reproduce? Could you build a car? How about a spaceship? Or maybe you could reinvent the internet?

When the nuclear technology of that world was misused, it altered the entire balance of creation. Floodwaters covered the planet, unleashing the wrath of God. And so today the same will happen again. But this time it will be fire. The bombs of our world will trigger volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunamis like we’ve never seen. The Pacific Ring of Fire, the Phlegraean Fields near Naples, Italy, the Supervolcanoes right here in the United States, will belch forth and God’s wrath will again be unleashed.

Our only prayer is to be right with God. Then, it doesn’t matter what happens to this body, as long as our soul is ready to meet Him. For hell is right beneath us all. It is a physical place in the earth (where these volcanoes are active) as well as a spiritual dimension. The Bible clearly tells us that Jesus descended into hell after He died to preach to the lost, does it not?

Oh, that might be a hard one for you. Let’s read it together.

By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; (20) Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”

1 Peter 3:19-20

Again Peter says,

For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to human standards in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit.

1 Peter 4:6

Paul also brings this out clearly.

In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.)

Ephesians 4:9-10

Hell therefore is in the earth but, just as we cannot see the Holy Spirit and the angels of God until we leave this body of flesh, so can we not see the demon powers that inhabit the dark world. Let’s hear what Brother Branham had to say about this.

And then man,sitting a pot of hell, hits hisself in the chest and defies God’s Word, and says, “There’s no such a place as hell.” (I got that down here in a little bit, and we’re going to get to that, see.) You’re sitting on a big pot of it every day. And while you’re here you’re sitting right on it, and hell’s just beneath you.

53-0729 – Questions And Answers On Genesis

Coping with the stress

The Bible doesn’t just tell us the good that God’s servants do. It also reveals their weaknesses. This encourages us as well as provides instruction, telling us what we should not do when faced with similar situations. After the flood, Noah is traumatized. I’m sure you can understand that. Imagine, all your friends, your family, they’re all wiped out.

You are the only survivor. And all the comforts that you’ve known are now non-existent.

Even though God has blessed Noah and his family, it still doesn’t take away the heartache. What a good lesson here for us to remember. God may bless and use you but He expects you to be willing to sacrifice everything to serve Him.

Sometimes this is our stand for Christ. You might be facing ridicule or pressure from a coworker. Maybe you feel like you’re missing out while others are living in pleasure and sin. Or maybe you’re fighting to break free of a habit. You see, every action that we do for God brings a blessing but it also comes at a price. And, at times, that load can be heavy to bear. Don’t be alarmed if your cross gets heavy at times. It doesn’t mean that you’re not a Christian. It simply means that you’re human.

The Bible encourages us to keep on doing the work of God for we will be rewarded (see Gal. 6:9). Simply lean back on the arms of Jehovah and seek His strength.

Noah didn’t do this. His escape was the one thing he still understood in this world—making wine. Now, is that the kind of example that a prophet of God should be showing? It brought reproach upon his testimony and a curse upon his grandson that we’ve seen carried out through the ages.

Here’s the lesson that I’d like to point out.

Be sure that your ways of coping with stress and pressure glorify God and don’t hinder your Christian testimony.

I think every Christian should have a hobby. Especially in this age of pressure, we need natural things to relax our natural bodies. God didn’t command us to pray all the time. After all, a huge part of Adam’s day was spent in physical work, not just prayer. Be it a sport, outdoor activity, or some kind of art, it’s good to get our bodies and minds out of the routine. But don’t let your stress outlet lead you to acting out of a Christlike character (isolating yourself, or using foul language or violence for example).

The consequences of our decisions

I want to close out this podcast with a stern reminder that everyone of our decisions will always bring a consequence—sometimes well after we’re gone. Noah’s decision to live as a drunk would impact the entire world more than four thousand years after his death. Ham disrespected his father when he saw him lying naked in the tent. As a result, in anger Noah cursed Canaan, Ham’s son.

Keep in mind that Ham himself could not be cursed for God had already blessed him (Gen. 9:1). But Canaan was a different story. Although Canaan himself had done no wrong, the judgment fell on him. The prophecy of his angered grandfather condemned him to slavery and subordination to his brothers.

Now I want to clarify something here. This scripture has often been used to justify the enslavement and racial inferiority of the black race. I recently read a text that was popular in America during the 1860s which claimed that God instantly changed Canaan’s skin color from a white to black and his features from European to “thick lips” and other “negroid” characteristics!

The ability of humans to twist God’s word to their own evil intentions is nothing short of amazing. That being said, I want to clarify this subject as it is so important in our modern world, especially in America, and many criticize the Bible without understanding that there is God’s will and then human choice.

God’s intention was never to have slavery, however slavery did come. And Noah, the angered prophet, unknowingly set this chain of events in motion. Much like Elisha who cursed the children (2 Kings 2:24) the word of a prophet must be honored. This was not God’s intention. But He had to honor the prophet’s position because Noah was His mouthpiece.

Looking at the genealogies in Gen. 10-11, we see that Shem fathered the groups that we know as the Semites (including but not limited to the people of Israel), Japheth began many of the groups in eastern Europe and Asia (such as the Greeks, the Celts and Russians) whereas Ham settled in Africa (see Psalm 78:51 and others).

And, as we know from history, his descendants did end up in servitude to the other races of the world. For centuries, slave traders and other evil minded people used this text to justify their actions. To make things worse, Ham’s name in Hebrew, Arabic and Egyptian, according to the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, is associated with heat, blackness, and servitude while Japheth (meaning enlarged) has been linked back to the Hebrew yaphah (which is to be beautiful or white). I want to really emphasize that the will of God (who came to set the captives free) was never slavery or racial discrimination.

But, sadly, it did happen as Noah said. Many races have been enslaved throughout human history, including Europeans and Anglo-Saxons. But the African slave trade was especially noteworthy both in terms of its brutality and its global impact.

Again, there is God’s will and then there is the consequences of human decisions. I don’t say this all happened because of Ham. But there’s no denying that unfortunately humans used this story to do what was in their heart all along as a quick read of pro-slavery literature shows.

So here is the lesson:

Don’t leave a mixed record of your life as Noah did. Remember that your actions, for good or for bad, will have consequences that outlive you. So, live in such a way that others can only be inspired by your life. Believe with a faith that will leave a testimony for others to follow. Because, in the end, all that matters is the record we leave for Christ.

Well, this has been a long and in-depth study of Genesis Chapters 4-10 on Walk through the Word. I truly hope it’s been as much of a blessing to you as it has been to me.

Here’s a quick summary of what we covered:

  • Our worship of Jesus Christ must be based on revelation
  • When we are born again we are spiritually regened by God and are brought into fellowship with Him
  • Be on guard! Satan infiltrated God’s line through unlawful sex and tries to sabotage us still today by the same trap.
  • Live in a way that you are right with God at all times
  • Be sure that your means of coping with stress please the Lord
  • Don’t be dismayed if your burdens get heavy at times. Lean on Christ for strength.
  • Your actions/decisions will have long lasting consequences.
  • Live in a way that inspires others to serve the Lord.

If you’re part of the global audience and have questions, just write them as a comments on our website: thelwbc.com.

Until we meet again, walk in the Spirit.

sunlight beaming on green trees

Walk through the Word #1

Maximize Your Life Walk Through the Word

 Jesus calls us to an abundant life. Here are five steps to achieving this.
  1. Maximize Your Life
  2. Tear down the Tower of Babel and Build the Kingdom of God
  3. Of Faith & Doubt
  4. Genesis 4-10: Worship, Murder, & the Human Experience
  5. From Spirit to Flesh: Study on Genesis 2 & 3

Thank you for joining me for our first episode in Walk through the Word for 2022. I’m brother Joseph and I’m looking forward to digging into the scriptures with you. As always, I’d like to start by encouraging you to take your time as you go through this podcast. Read the chapters involved and pray to get the most out of it. You can comment on this post with any questions by visiting our website: thelwbc.com.

Today we’re beginning a study of the book of Genesis, the book of beginnings. It begins with a clear affirmative statement that God made the heaven and the earth when time began. Now, I’d like to compare this with John 1:1.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:1

Creation was perfect, and came as a result of the Logos (God in Word form) creating all things. This is referenced in the book of Proverbs which compares the Logos to Wisdom (see Proverbs 8:22-31). The scripture also reads,

The LORD by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens.

Proverbs 3:19

When you read these scriptures closely, you realize that God, the fountain of wisdom, created a perfect structure.

But it was not to remain so.

Millions, perhaps billions of years passed between the time that God created the world and the time that He placed human life upon it. Science is not necessarily wrong when it says the world is 4.5 billion years old. The scripture simply says that God created the world. Period. With that said, let’s go deeper.

When God began working on the earth in verse 2 of Genesis 1, we see that it is in a state of judgment. The prophet Jeremiah brings this out clearly as he compares the world’s beginning to the wrath of God that was to be unleashed against Jerusalem.

I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly. I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the Lord, and by his fierce anger.

Jeremiah 4:23-26

But God is the author of new beginnings. In verse 1, the world was perfect (for everything that God does is perfect) but one verse later we see it is in chaos. But God had plans for the earth, just like He has a plan for your life. And His purpose will not be stopped. So the Spirit of the Lord began to brood upon the earth, changing it from a state of chaos to perfection.

I’m sure we who are born of the Spirit can relate to that! How wonderful it is to know that, like this world, you were in the mind of the great Creator. That even though your world (life) was chaotic God’s plan wasn’t altered. Perhaps you grew up in a bad home. Perhaps you had negative influences that pushed you in the wrong direction. Perhaps you grew up in church but never had a touch from the living God. Whatever the situation, Christ alone is the one who can transform chaos into perfection.

And He will do it, if you’ll let Him.

But God can’t do it alone. He needs YOU to put forth the effort needed to transform your life. I’d like to point out that the world had to embrace the touching of God’s spirit in order to be transformed by it.

And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants[e] yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:11-12

Notice that the earth is responding to God’s command. It is pushing forth vegetation. The EARTH is pushing forth the right kind of seed. So must we put forth the spiritual strength and energy to produce the character of Jesus Christ. So many times in our life, we are tempted to stay in our “helpless” estate. So many times, we give in to the urge to simply pity ourselves and not reach out for God’s transformative power.

But God is our master not our slave. His power is there to use if you are willing to change yourself to His image (see Romans 12:2). As a Christian, you might still be tempted to gossip, to hold onto grudges, or make immoral decisions. But God is calling us to be changed from the chaos of this miserable world but the power of the Spirit that lives within us. Let’s look at some other scriptures to better understand.

“Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry … Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering.; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.”

Colossians 3:5,12-14

Note that it is YOU putting to death the actions of this body–not God. It is YOU who puts on the character of the Spirit. Not God.

At the end of this glorious chapter, we see that God finally brought out the highest of all creation. A son in His own image (Gen 1:26). Now, as I said before, this first chapter is all about restoration. And, in itself, it’s a glorious promise that God will end the chaos of the world around us and bring forth Jesus Christ and His Bride in the glorious power of the resurrection.

Just as Adam and Eve existed together in one complete unit, so will Jesus Christ walk among His people when all things are made new (see Revelations 21 and 22).

Let us press to be molded into the image of Christ so we can live in that perfect world that only He can create.

aerial view of clouds

The End of the Matter

Maximize Your Life Walk Through the Word

 Jesus calls us to an abundant life. Here are five steps to achieving this.
  1. Maximize Your Life
  2. Tear down the Tower of Babel and Build the Kingdom of God
  3. Of Faith & Doubt
  4. Genesis 4-10: Worship, Murder, & the Human Experience
  5. From Spirit to Flesh: Study on Genesis 2 & 3

This year I’ve truly enjoyed combing through the book of Ecclesiastes with you. As we wrap up 2021, I’d like to close our study on Ecclesiastes while focusing on the Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Solomon begins this chapter by giving us one of the most poetic descriptions of old age and death that has ever been written. He shows us that as we age the things that once produced delight and pleasure no longer do so. Every moment can become a burden. I’d like to compare that to the state of this world which is old and ready to die.

The things that once were innocent and produced joy are now corrupt. Relationships, once the thing that held society together, are now dysfunctional and tear society apart. An upright man or woman is a rare thing to find. But it is in the midst of this gloom that Solomon brings out the main point of this entire book. It teaches us how to conduct ourselves throughout life and, I believe, it is a strong message for us as part of the Body of Jesus Christ.

13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

God will bring everything into judgment

I’d like to actually focus first on the verse 14. We all know the day of judgment is when Christ returns to take up His throne (see Psalm 98:8-9). As we heard this morning in service, His coming is the ultimate showdown bringing judgment to the antichrist and the false church while establishing the reign of the saints and the redeemed of Israel.

As He comes from glory, seven thunders utter their voices according to Revelation 10:4. Part of what they contain is the revealed Name of Jesus Christ (the New Name that He will receive according to Rev. 3: 12 and Rev. 19:12). Remember a name signifies a ministry or the holding of a particular office.

Joseph’s name was changed to Zaphnath-Paaneah which means “the man to whom mysteries (secret things) are revealed” when he entered into a new phase in his life/ministy. This is so important because you must understand that some names can only be uttered at specific times in world history.

Let me make this a little clearer. Brother Branham makes a great statement here when he says,

258 That expression. If you only—only knew the numerology of the Bible, and know what Elvis or—or Ricky means, to the Scripture! Uh-huh. Just like, why did Jesus…You say, “There is nothing to that, your name.” There isn’t? That name could only come in this last days, for this last-days people.

  260 That name could not be spoken till this day. That’s the reason we got this hellish thing we got in the earth today, because of such things. The whole human race is corrupted. It’s—it’s gone, see, and that’s why it is.

   Rev. William Marrion Branham,   63-0728 – Christ Is The Mystery Of God Revealed

My point in sharing this is that there are patterns and rules to the spiritual world just like there are in the natural world. The new name of Jesus Christ (whatever it will be) will be so glorious that it will be only given by the divine utterance of God at His return. Now names aren’t just “Harry” or “Suzy”. When Moses asked the Lord to show His glory, God went before him announcing HIs name. Let’s take a look at what happened.

 5And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. 6And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 7Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.

Exodus 34:5-7

Can’t you just imagine that Voice proclaiming or thundering out in blast after blast? The Lord! BOOM! Merciful and gracious! BOOM! And it goes on.

You see, as I tried to explain this morning, the name of God reflects the character of God. Which is why, when He came as a savior, His Name was Jesus which means “Jehovah-Savior”. But what about when He comes as a King to judge the world?

Oh, it’s so important to realize that God continues to reveal Himself to His people both now and in the world that is to come. None dare try to guess what He will be called for they will be wrong. This is a sovereign secret that God will reveal when He comes again.

Now, I want to go a little deeper if it’s all right. And just pause this whenever you’d like and go study and pray because we love to talk about the Lord and sometimes we need to rest our minds a little between thoughts. These thunders utter at the coming of the Lord Jesus, therefore we see that they do bring in themselves faith for the rapture. The Bride of Jesus Christ is now waiting for His coming–not for a specific doctrine or move but for the revealing of the Lord from glory (see Acts 3:21).

His coming from glory is to return to earth and become the judge according to Revelations 10:4, Isaiah 40:5 and others). On His way descending, He meets His Bride in the middle of the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17), and reveals Himself to Her as the two witnesses (Moses and Elijah) declare His Name as Jesus to the Jewish remnant (see Rev. 7, Rev. 14, Zechariah 4).

Why do the two witnesses declare Him to be Jesus?

Because He is come to bring salvation unto Israel, so He is still the Saviour! The perfection of the Word cannot be broken. To the Gentiles who have rejected Him, he is the judge. But to Israel who has been longing for the Messiah, Christ is revealed as Jesus.

Zechariah writes,

“On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.

Zechariah 13:1

While this revealing is going on, the Bride of Christ is waiting in the heavenly atmospheres just above the earth. Remember that Joseph revealed himself to his brothers without his wife being present? So Christ reveals Himself to the elected of Israel while the Bride waits in the heavens just above the world. Zechariah shows us that the saints will accompany him but He is revealed privately to the elect out of Israel.

The two prophets turn the hearts of the elect of Israel from the “faith of the fathers to the children” under the anointing of Elijah (see Malachi 4:5-6). If you notice, the ministry of the 7th Angel (which we believe to be Brother Branham or a man anointed with the spirit of Elijah) actually occurs during the calling out of the 144,000 in Israel in Revelations 11.

What is it?

The same Elijah spirit that calls out a Gentile Bride for Christ from creeds and empty religion, calls out an elected group in Israel. For the Gentiles, there were hidden truths (such as the Name of Jesus Christ) that were hidden in the Bible, lost to the church throughout the ages, and revealed in Brother Branham’s ministry. Now, as that ministry comes to call out Israel, Christ who is Lord of both Jew and Gentile, cries like a lion and the seven thunders which are the Voice of God roar out their great secret.

Isaiah prophesied what would happen just before the Millennium. He asked,

Who has ever heard of such a thing? Who has ever seen such things? Can a country be born in a day or a nation be brought forth in a moment? Yet no sooner is Zion in labor than she gives birth to her children.”

Isaiah 66:8

Christ Himself appears so they can see the scars in His hand (Zechariah 13:6) but His Bride is not with Him. This 3 1/2 year period passes very quickly. THEN after He is revealed and fights for Israel, King and Queen come from glory to take over the world.

There is definitely more to the Thunders than what I have shared. Let us simply say that all the world will see the effects of their sounding.

“And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.”

Zechariah 14:9

The conclusion

Now that was quite a lot to pack into that one verse in Ecclesiastes. But I’d like to turn now to the first part of our reading.

13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

When all is said and done, it’s not so important whether you understand the Thunders, the Seals or any of the deep mysteries of the Bible. My brothers and sisters, what matters is that we live the kind of Christian life that glorifies Jesus Christ.

Ecclesiastes begins with a search for meaning, for understanding to the deep things of life. Why do we die? What is life’s purpose? And it ends with an answer, the perfect answer. Our whole purpose in this world is to fear the Lord and to show we love Him by keeping His Word.

When He comes to judge the world, my prayer is that he will find you and I faithful to His call.

Thank you for joining me for this study in the Word. Lord willing, we will begin a new book in 2022.

May God bless you.

sunlight beaming on green trees

Ecclesiastes: The Quest for Contentment

Maximize Your Life Walk Through the Word

 Jesus calls us to an abundant life. Here are five steps to achieving this.
  1. Maximize Your Life
  2. Tear down the Tower of Babel and Build the Kingdom of God
  3. Of Faith & Doubt
  4. Genesis 4-10: Worship, Murder, & the Human Experience
  5. From Spirit to Flesh: Study on Genesis 2 & 3

All the labour of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled. For what hath the wise more than the fool? what hath the poor, that knoweth to walk before the living? 

Ecclesiastes 6:7-8

There is so much to say about contentment that it is almost impossible to find the perfect place to begin. But let me tell you a story that I hope will help pave the way for the few thoughts I’d like to share as we wrap up this year’s Bible study. The Roman philosopher, Cicero, told the story of an unhappy king who, although he had wealth and power, could trust no one. Only his daughters were allowed to shave him because he constantly feared assassination.

One day, a fisherman came to his court and began flattering him, telling him how perfect his life must be. The king became so annoyed at the useless prattle that he offered to trade places with the fisherman, letting him rule in his place for a few days. Of course the fisherman agreed and quickly the exchange was made.

The fisherman had everything he could want—money in abundance, good food, the most beautiful women. It was everything that could possibly bring contentment. Until he happened to look up, as he sat on the throne, and realized that there was a sword hanging suspended above his head—point down. The sword was held in place by a single strand of hair.

Of course, seeing this the nervous fisherman quickly jumped off the throne and ran out of there, realizing that he had been better off before hand.

Brothers and sisters, we must remember that there will always be those who have things that we don’t have. Perhaps people that we don’t have. Perhaps the quality of relationships that we don’t.

Like the fisherman we can easily take what we see on the surface as being the whole story. But it’s only when we’re in the situation that we see the true reality. Only when he was seated on the throne could the fisherman see the sword hanging over his head.

So, what is contentment?

Contentment is the root of happiness. And being content is a choice, not a gift. Let me emphasize that. Contentment itself is a choice. It is a settled peace that automatically happens when you finally accept what God has decreed for your life (be it for the moment or permanently).

Paul said,

Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:11-13

I want you to notice how Paul stated that contentment was something he learned. And the learning came through the experience of facing different extremes in life. There will be times you have strength and beauty as a young man or woman.

That cannot last forever. You must learn to be content with what you have as you age and not look back at what you were or fantasize about what you can never be. You must face reality successfully by using Paul’s secret.

Are you ready to find out what that secret was?

Recognizing that he had Jesus, and having Jesus meant Paul had everything. In 2 Corinthians 6, Paul says, “As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.” As long as you have Jesus, you truly have every reason to be content.

But what does this mean in everyday life?

Let’s first look at what discontentment produces and we’ll be better able to understand how to be content and why it’s so important. Discontentment is the basis for every war, every act of adultery, every murder and the evil that inundates society.

Because one ruler isn’t content with the size of his kingdom, he or she begins arming against another nation. That nation retaliates and we have a conflict. A woman thinks another man will treat her better than the man she’s married to—or perhaps a man is attracted to another woman’s physical features—and the discontentment pushes them into sinful lifestyles. We can go on and on but the point is that not being content drives us to actions that will lead to our ruin.

And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

Ecclesiastes 4:4 NIV

Discontentment produces misery in life because w focus on what we don’t have instead of the good that God has given us. This affects our health, promotes jealousy, and drives the Spirit of God away from us.

Discontentment vs. Self-improvement

I want to pause and point out that there’s a difference between being discontent and wanting to improve your situation. Working to get a better job, become stronger or lose weight etc., those things are all of course fine. But you have to keep it in balance. If God doesn’t give you the job you want but gives you another position–be content with that.

If God lets you lose twenty pounds but doesn’t let you get to that size 0, be content with that! Never stop trying to improve yourself but be content with being the best that you can be. That difference might seem to be small but it’s important. Sometimes, good desires can become unhealthy obsessions if they’re not balanced. If this is not clear, please write me a question.

Contentment allows us to live fruitful lives

Christians who are content in their natural lives are better able to focus on fulfilling the purpose that God put them here for. They are better able to bear more spiritual fruit because their energy isn’t going into pining over what they don’t have.

Our first reading, Ecclesiastes 6:7 shows us that nothing satisfies. All our work goes to producing food for our table (directly or indirectly) yet each day we get hungry again. Our money goes to buying a home but then there are repairs that need to be made. Or you kids might get a game you’ve wanted, only to realize after a while that you don’t enjoy playing it anymore.

Our society feeds upon constantly inundating ourselves with “new” things—getting things or even going to as many places as possible before death. And in so doing we breed a climate of discontentment. We subconsciously make the natural things of this world our God by drawing satisfaction from them instead of the Lord Jesus. But the Bible points out that this isn’t the way things should be. And as Christians, unless we learn to be content in whatever situation comes our way, we cannot hope to fully please God.

Let’s take Job for just a moment. We all want health. We desire health because we know how bad sickness can be. But Job came to the point that he said,

Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

Job 2:10

There are times we parents want our children to be like other children. Or we push our family members to pursue the paths that “important people” take. But it would be better to push others to seek the will of the Lord instead. I think of Paul of Tarsus whose family had prestige, business and influence. This might be hard for you to imagine 2,000 years later but it was no small thing to be educated by Gamaliel the grandson of one of the most renowned Hebrew scholars. I’m sure Paul’s father had high expectations for his son. He could, potentially become high priest one day.

But God had bigger plans. He didn’t want Paul to occupy the chair of the high priest. He wanted him to sit in a Roman prison. To be beaten by mobs and live his life hounded from city to city by men who swore to kill him for being a heretic.

Sounds good, doesn’t it?

Maybe not. But in this and more Paul learned contentment. Despite not living up to his family’s expectations, despite the shame and terror of constantly running for his life without the comforts of a wife and family, despite knowing that he would have no child of his own to carry on his family name—Paul said he was content.

I think this should truly cause us to re-evaluate what we consider to be important.

How do we become content?

Let’s wrap this up by addressing this important question. All you have to do to live a contented life as a Christian is to make up your mind to be satisfied with what God gives you. Do not deride the value of your own life because it isn’t like someone else’s.

Do not compare yourself to others. Compare yourself only to Christ. Work to make yourself the best that you can be, but remember your best is between you and God. It doesn’t involve anyone else.

Draw satisfaction from intangible things such as relationships instead of materialistic things. If your relationships aren’t what they ought to be, pray and work on them. You can find contentment in winning small victories. Even if things aren’t what they should be, see the good in the moment and focus on what is right instead of what is wrong about the situation.

The conclusion of the whole matter

In Ecclesiastes 12, the Bible tells us that the point of life is to fear God and to keep His Word. Christ is to be the center of everything that we do. Of everything that we are. And, if that is the case, like Paul of old we must learn in everything to be content.