May 16, 2013
Stand strong and wait for the Lord. And until that happens—be productive and make a difference.
We are living in a sinful world. Evil will happen. And it is going to get worse... much worse. Prophecy tells us that during the end times the Holy Spirit will be removed and Satan and his forces will have full reign for a period of time. As evil as the world is now with the Holy Spirit and Christians still present, it is unimaginable to even fathom what it will be like during that period of time. Thank you, Lord for salvation from sin and from the evil one. II Thessalonians 3:3–5 - "But the Lord is faithful and will give you strength and will protect you from the Evil One... may the Lord lead your hearts into God's love and Christ's patience."
Paul asked the people of Thessalonica to pray for him. II Thessalonians 3:2 - "Pray that we will be protected from stubborn and evil people, because not all people believe." When you stand for something you will be a target from those who stand for nothing. And if you don't stand for something, you are at risk of falling for anything. But when you are the target, God is faithful and He does protect you. II Timothy 4:17 - "But the Lord stayed with me and gave me strength so I could fully tell the Good News to all those who are not Jews. So I was saved from the mouth of the lion."
That is our testimony as well.
Addendum: 10/6/16 ~ Another reference to being saved "from the mouth of the lion." The story of Daniel gives us a visual picture of what it means to be saved "from the mouth of the lion." God literally prevented the harm intended for him. I've written before how God totally protected us and prevented the harm intended for us when we put our heads "in the mouth of the lion." But today, as I was writing about Paul describing it as "the mouth of the lion," I started to think about the lion, and what God truly protected him (and us) from.
We've all heard it said that the lion is the King of the Jungle. From a safe distance a lion appears beautiful and magnificent with its large stature and thick flowing mane. But looks can be deceiving. A lion is NOT a gentle giant. A lion uses its size and even its beautiful mane to intimidate those around it. A lion uses its roar (which can be heard up to five miles away) to assert power, intimidate, and control. A lion's claws are hidden until it is ready to attack... and attack it does. A lion sneaks up on his prey; it crouches down; it hides; and it patiently waits until his unsuspecting target gets closer, and then it attacks. A lion is a flesh eating and destroying carnivore. It uses its four long and sharp canine teeth to rip through the skin. The smaller front teeth are used to grip and hold onto its prey while the sharp teeth in the back of the mouth are used to cut through the flesh like a serrated knife. The attack is vicious, relentless, and deadly. Wow! And THAT is what God saved Paul (and Daniel and many others) from, and is an accurate description for what God has us from.
Job 4:10–11 - "Lions may roar and growl, but when the teeth of a strong lion are broken, that lion dies of hunger. The cubs of the mother lion are scattered."
Next Entry: I Timothy 1:1 – 2:15
Stand strong and wait for the Lord. And until that happens—be productive and make a difference.
We are living in a sinful world. Evil will happen. And it is going to get worse... much worse. Prophecy tells us that during the end times the Holy Spirit will be removed and Satan and his forces will have full reign for a period of time. As evil as the world is now with the Holy Spirit and Christians still present, it is unimaginable to even fathom what it will be like during that period of time. Thank you, Lord for salvation from sin and from the evil one. II Thessalonians 3:3–5 - "But the Lord is faithful and will give you strength and will protect you from the Evil One... may the Lord lead your hearts into God's love and Christ's patience."
Paul asked the people of Thessalonica to pray for him. II Thessalonians 3:2 - "Pray that we will be protected from stubborn and evil people, because not all people believe." When you stand for something you will be a target from those who stand for nothing. And if you don't stand for something, you are at risk of falling for anything. But when you are the target, God is faithful and He does protect you. II Timothy 4:17 - "But the Lord stayed with me and gave me strength so I could fully tell the Good News to all those who are not Jews. So I was saved from the mouth of the lion."
That is our testimony as well.
- The Lord stayed with me
- He gave me strength
- I need to tell others
- I am saved from the mouth of the lion
God is faithful. Our hope is in HIM.
Addendum: 10/6/16 ~ Another reference to being saved "from the mouth of the lion." The story of Daniel gives us a visual picture of what it means to be saved "from the mouth of the lion." God literally prevented the harm intended for him. I've written before how God totally protected us and prevented the harm intended for us when we put our heads "in the mouth of the lion." But today, as I was writing about Paul describing it as "the mouth of the lion," I started to think about the lion, and what God truly protected him (and us) from.
We've all heard it said that the lion is the King of the Jungle. From a safe distance a lion appears beautiful and magnificent with its large stature and thick flowing mane. But looks can be deceiving. A lion is NOT a gentle giant. A lion uses its size and even its beautiful mane to intimidate those around it. A lion uses its roar (which can be heard up to five miles away) to assert power, intimidate, and control. A lion's claws are hidden until it is ready to attack... and attack it does. A lion sneaks up on his prey; it crouches down; it hides; and it patiently waits until his unsuspecting target gets closer, and then it attacks. A lion is a flesh eating and destroying carnivore. It uses its four long and sharp canine teeth to rip through the skin. The smaller front teeth are used to grip and hold onto its prey while the sharp teeth in the back of the mouth are used to cut through the flesh like a serrated knife. The attack is vicious, relentless, and deadly. Wow! And THAT is what God saved Paul (and Daniel and many others) from, and is an accurate description for what God has us from.
Job 4:10–11 - "Lions may roar and growl, but when the teeth of a strong lion are broken, that lion dies of hunger. The cubs of the mother lion are scattered."
Next Entry: I Timothy 1:1 – 2:15
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