skip to Main Content
DONATE to Small Church Ministries     |     SUBSCRIBE to Daily Devotional

Mark 13

Disciples want to know the future                                                    verse 1- 4

 And as HE went out of the temple

one of HIS disciples said to HIM

Master – see what manner of stones

and what buildings are here

And Jesus answering said to him

See you these great buildings?

there shall not be left one stone on another

that shall not be thrown down

And as HE sat on the mount of Olives over against the temple

Peter and James and John and Andrew asked HIM privately

Tell us – when shall these things be?

What shall be the sign when all these things

shall be fulfilled?

 Warning signs of Tribulation                                                           verse 5- 8

 And Jesus answering them began to say

            Take heed lest any man deceive you

for many shall come in MY name

saying

            I am Christ – and shall deceive many

            AND when you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars

be ye not troubled FOR such things must needs be

BUT the end shall not be yet

            FOR nation shall rise against nation

and kingdom against kingdom

            AND there shall be earthquakes in divers places

                        AND there shall be famines and troubles

                                    these are the beginnings of sorrows

 Treatment of believers in the Tribulation                                       verse 9- 13

 BUT take heed to yourselves

FOR they shall deliver you up to councils

and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten

                        and you shall be brought before rulers

and kings for MY sake

                                                for a testimony against them

And the gospel must first be published among all nations

            BUT when they shall lead you – and deliver you up

                        take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak

                                    neither do ye premeditate

            BUT whatsoever shall be given you in the hour

                        that speak you – for it is not you that speak

BUT the Holy Ghost

Now the brother shall betray the brother to death

and the father the son and children shall rise up

against their parents

                                    and shall cause them to be put to death

And you shall be hated of all men for MY name’s sake

            BUT he that shall endure unto the end

the same shall be saved

 Events of Tribulation have never been seen before                       verse 14- 20

 BUT when you shall see the abomination of desolation

spoken of by Daniel the prophet

standing where it ought not

(let him that reads understand)

THEN let them that be in Judea flee to the mountains

and let him that is on the housetop

not go down into the house

neither enter therein

to take any thing out of his house

            and let him that is in the field not turn back

again for to take up his garment

BUT woe to them that are with child

and to them that give suck in those days

and pray ye that your flight be not in the winter

FOR in those days shall be affliction such as was not from the

beginning of the creation which God created unto this time

neither shall be

AND except that the Lord had shortened those days

no flesh should be saved

BUT for the elect’s sake – whom HE hath chosen

HE has shortened the days

 Watch out for false predictions                                                      verse 21- 23

 AND THEN if any man shall say to you

Lo – here is Christ – or lo – he is there – believe him not

FOR false Christs and false prophets shall rise

and shall show signs and wonders

to seduce

if it were possible even the elect

BUT take ye heed – BEHOLD – I have foretold you all things

 Second coming of Christ                                                                verse 24- 27

 But in those days – after that tribulation – the sun shall be darkened

            and the moon shall not give her light

                        and the stars of heaven shall fall

                                    and the powers that are in heaven

shall be shaken

And then shall they see the Son of man coming

in the clouds with great power and glory

And then shall HE send HIS angels

and shall gather together HIS elect

from the four winds

FROM the uttermost part of the earth

to the uttermost part of heaven

 Parable of fig tree                                                                           verse 28- 31

 NOW learn a parable of the fig tree

            When her branch is yet tender – and putting forth leaves

                        you know that summer is near – so you in like manner

                                    when you shall see these things come to pass

                                                know that it is nigh – even at the doors

Verily I say to you – that this generation shall not pass

            till all these things be done

Heaven and earth shall pass away

BUT MY words shall not pass away

 Be watchful                                                                                     verse 32- 37

 BUT of that day and that hour knows no man – no

not the angels which are in heaven

                        neither the Son – BUT the Father

Take you heed – watch and pray

for you know not when the time is

FOR the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey

who left HIS house

And gave authority to HIS servants – and to every man his work

and commanded the porter to watch

Watch you therefore

FOR you know not when the master of the house comes

                        at even – or at midnight – or at the cockcrowing

or in the morning

                        lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping

AND what I say to you I say unto all – WATCH

 

COMMENTARY:

   

DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers 

: 11      But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost. (3191 “premeditate” [meletao] means to care for, attend to carefully, practice, contrive, plot, think about, cultivate, study, revolve in your mind, or take pains with.)

DEVOTION:  Whenever you are going to give a speech in a class in school you think about it for a long time. You want to do well when you speak because you are going to get a grade on it.
In Seminary there are classes in homiletics and hermeneutics to help you prepare a good message to preach on any given Sunday. You have to give a sermon in class and the rest of the students give you a grade and make comments on how you can improve your sermon. Some of the comments are not very nice.

Once you leave Seminary you go to a church and there the congregation gives you their thoughts regarding your sermons. Even there the comments might not be very nice.

A sermon should have good Biblical content. It should be organized with points that come to a conclusion. There can be illustrations. It is said that for every minute preached there should be an hour of preparation. It is not as easy as it looks to preach a sermon. I have given people who thought it would be easy to preach an opportunity to preach and they found out the truth.

Here we find that when people are gathered during the Tribulation to speak before those who want to condemn them to death that they are not to think about what they are going to say beforehand because the Holy Spirit will give them just the right words to say.

The Holy Spirit should be involved in every sermon that is preached in every Biblical church in our world. That doesn’t happen some of the time. In the future it will not be just the preachers who are going to stand before the judges.

CHALLENGE: Be watchful and available for the Holy Spirit to speak through you all the time.

 

DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers 

: 32      But of that day and that hour knows no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. (1492 “knows” [oida] means to have knowledge about someone or something, understand, remember, perceive, be very sure of this, to acknowledge, or discern.)

DEVOTION:  In recent days we have had people predict the day that the LORD would return. One radio speaker predicted a day in 2012 when the LORD would return. People listened to him and sold everything they had and quit their jobs and waited for it to happen. The man received millions of dollars to spend on signs and newspaper ads to warn people of the Day of Judgment coming.

The problem was that it didn’t happen and those who don’t know Christ were laughing at those who believed this man. It was a poor testimony to the LORD. This verse informs us that NO ONE knows the day of the LORD’S return. This is Jesus speaking to HIS disciples. HE wanted them to know that there would be people who would say what this man said and HE called them false prophets.

Even in churches that believe the Bible there are people who don’t believe the plain teachings of Scripture.

Don’t fall into the trap of those who are in the cults who predict the day of the LORD’S return or those in Biblical churches who predict a day of the LORD’S return. Both are false prophets. Even though the man apologized it hurt the testimony of the church. Don’t predict a day but be prepared for the day when you will meet the LORD.

I believe this day is going to happen after the church is taken out of the world. It will happen at the end of the Tribulation. So the next event I am waiting for is the Rapture of the Church. Then the next event is the seven year Tribulation. At the end of the Tribulation this will happen.

CHALLENGE:  Our responsibility is to invite all those we know to become believers in Christ. Our message is necessary. Many will not listen but you might at least reach one.

__________________________________________

: 34      For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. (1849 “authority” [exousia] means power, right, liberty, jurisdiction, power of choice, liberty of doing as one pleases, capability, permission, control over, or ruling power.)

DEVOTION:  God the Father has given HIS Son authority to give authority to those who are HIS followers on earth. HE left the earth over two thousand years ago. HE gave HIS disciples a command to “Occupy” until HE comes for the church.

We are part of the church at present if we have made a commitment to HIM. HE has given us authority to come to HIM with a request to help us be the witness HE wants us to be to our world.

Our present occupation is Witness. Even if we have a so-called secular job that is our avocation. It is not something that should occupy our thoughts twenty-four hours a day. It is not your avocation that provides your money but the LORD. HE has promised to provide all we need according to all HIS riches in heaven. If we fall into the trap that our avocation is what gives us status we are wrong. It is our vocation as a witness for the LORD that gives us status in Heaven.

Don’t fall for the lie of the devil that it is your avocation that makes you important. It is not the money you make that is important. It is what we do for the LORD that makes the difference.

So many people are struggling to make ends meet through their employer when it is really the LORD who is our employer and HE gives us the blessings that last for eternity.

CHALLENGE:  Don’t settle for less than serving the LORD while here on this earth. It will put a smile on your face because you are serving the King of kings and Lord of lords.

DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers

: 37      And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch (1127 “watch” [gregoreuo] means stay awake, be alert, give strict attention to, be cautious, active, to take heed lest through remission and indolence some destructive calamity suddenly overtake one, or be vigilant.)

DEVOTION:  Jesus is informing his disciples that there are future happenings that they have to be aware of, so that, they can warn others. It all starts with a disciple looking at the Temple and admiring the stones on the buildings. Jesus tells him that the Temple is going to be destroyed.

Four of the disciples ask HIM when these things are going to happen. HE begins to explain the future plans for our world. God had a plan from before HE created the world and HE is working HIS plan. It is not a plan made up as time moves on. It was made before time began on earth.

In the future, God is going to allow false christs to come and deceive people. There are going to be false prophets as well. It will be a time when there will be wars and rumors of wars. It will be a time when the disciples of Christ will be persecuted. It will be a time when family members will turn in other family members.

When the devil knows his time is short, he will do signs and wonders by false prophets. He will try to deceive even the elect of God. We find that there are at least three groups of “elect” talked about in Scripture. There is the elect of the Old Testament. There is the elect of the Church age. There is finally the elect of the Tribulation period. The Tribulation period is still future. This is the time period Jesus is telling the disciples about now.

Why is Jesus warning his disciples now? HE wants them to teach others that they have a responsibility to stay alert and pray until his second coming. That warning is for us to share with those around us. We are the future generations of saints who are to warn the next generation to stay alert and pray.

Are we warning the next generation that false christs and false prophets are coming that can do signs and wonders in the power of the Devil. To deceive all they can with their false teachings.

We have to learn what sound doctrine or teaching is today. We need to believe the Bible is true. Today there are many churches that are teaching false doctrine. There are many people who call themselves Christians who don’t care about finding out what the Bible teaches. They want to live their lives their way and if God fits in – they will do it. Those who are true followers of God will want to learn more about true doctrine. Are we staying awake and warning people about the times we live in today?

This word is used four times in this chapter to inform those who are alive during the Tribulation to be prepared.

Back up our beliefs regarding the future with the Word of God. There are many interpretations regarding when and who will go through the Tribulation.

CHALLENGE: We need to learn and share our belief with those individuals who are instructed by us. Doctrine was important to Christ and it should be important to us!!!

___________________________________________________________

DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:

BODY

Chastity (Purity in living)

Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)

Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)

Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)

Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)

SOUL

Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)

Frugality (wise use of resources)

Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)

Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)

Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)

SPIRIT

Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)

Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)

Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level) 

Pray                                                                                    verse 18, 33 

Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)

Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group) 

Temple                                                                               verse 1, 3

Synagogues                                                                       verse 9

 _____________________________________________________________

DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:

Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)

                      Gospel                                                                            verse 10

                         Daniel – prophet                                                            verse 14

              God the Father (First person of the Godhead)

                      Father only one to know date of return of Christ        verse 32

                God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man,                                                   

                         Messiah)

                         Master                                                                            verse 1, 35

   Jesus                                                                               verse 2, 5

Christ – warning of false christs                                       verse 6, 21, 22

MY name’s sake                                                                verse 13

Son of man                                                                       verse 26, 34

Parable of the fig tree                                                      verse 28

Son doesn’t know date of return                                    verse 32 

God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)

                        Holy Ghost tells what to say                                         verse 11 

Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)    

                       God created                                                                    verse 19

Lord                                                                                  verse 20       

                Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)

                        Angels shall gather elect                                               verse 27

                      Angels don’t know return date of Christ                       verse 32 

Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)

                  Nation against nation                                                      verse 8

Kingdom against kingdom                                             verse 8

Rulers                                                                              verse 9

Kings                                                                               verse 9 

Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels) 

Deception                                                                       verse 5, 6

False Christ                                                                     verse 6, 21, 22

Betray                                                                              verse 12

Hatred                                                                             verse 13

Abomination of desolation                                            verse 14

False prophets                                                                verse 22

False signs and wonders                                                verse 22

Seduce                                                                            verse 22

Sleeping                                                                         verse 36 

Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)

                     Take heed to yourself                                                 verse 9, 23, 33

                        Testimony                                                                    verse 9

                        Publish the gospel to all nations                               verse 10

                        Holy Spirit gives words                                              verse 11

                        Endure to the end                                                      verse 13

Saved                                                                            verse 13, 20

Pray                                                                               verse 18, 33

Affliction                                                                       verse 19

                      Elect of tribulation period                                           verse 20, 22, 27

                        Chosen                                                                       verse 20

                        Watch                                                                         verse 33- 35, 37

                        Authority                                                                   verse 34

                        Servants                                                                     verse 34

                        Every man his work                                                   verse 34 

Israel (Old Testament people of God) 

Mount of Olives                                                          verse 3

Judaea                                                                         verse 14 

Church (New Testament people of God) 

Disciples                                                                      verse 1

Peter                                                                            verse 3

James                                                                          verse 3

John                                                                            verse 3

Andrew                                                                       verse 3

Counsels                                                                     verse 9 

Last Things (Future Events) 

Sign                                                                            verse 4

Here of wars and rumors of wars                             verse 7

End shall not be yet                                                   verse 7

Tribulation                                                                 verse 24

Nature affected                                                         verse 24, 25

Son of man coming in the clouds                            verse 26

 

__________________________________________________________________

DONATIONS:

Remember that all donations to Small Church Ministries are greatly appreciated. The treasurer will send a receipt, at the end of the year unless otherwise requested. Please be sure to make check out to “Small Church Ministries.” The address for the treasurer is P.O. Box 604, East Amherst, New York 14051. A second way to give to the ministry is through PayPal on the website: www.smallchurchministries.org.  Also, if you can support this ministry through your local church please use that method.  Thank you.

____________________________________________________________________________

QUOTES regarding passage

11 The disciples will be hauled into court and cross-examined by the authorities. Jesus promises them, in that situation, strength and resources beyond their own through the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will reveal to them on the spot the appropriate words to speak (cf. Jer 1:9; Acts 6:10; 7:55). To use this verse to justify lack of careful preparation for preaching is irresponsible exegesis. (Wessel, W. W. (1984). Mark. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (Vol. 8, p. 746). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)

__________________________________________________

13:11. Whenever the disciples are arrested (from paradidōmi; cf. v. 9) and brought to trial for preaching the gospel, they are not to be anxious beforehand about what to say in giving a defense. They are to speak whatever God (implied) gives them to say at that moment (cf. Ex. 4:12; Jer. 1:9). The Holy Spirit would do the speaking; He would enable them to say the right things at the right times with boldness despite their natural fears. This assistance, however, did not guarantee acquittal. (Grassmick, J. D. (1985). Mark. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 168). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)

___________________________________________________

13:11 what you are to say. Although the persecution will be terrifying, Christians are not to be anxious in anticipation of those events. for it is not you who speak. Rather than being fearful, believers can remain calm and depend on the Holy Spirit, who will give them the appropriate and effective words to say in defense of their faith in Christ. See note on Lk 12:11. (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Mk 13:11). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)

______________________________________________________________

The suffering saints referred to here are clearly those of Israel who will be God’s final witnesses after the Church, as we know it, has been caught away to heaven, and the last week of Daniel 9 has begun. Then God will raise up a host of wise ones (the Maskilim of Daniel 12) to bear testimony and proclaim the gospel of the kingdom among all nations. These will be the special objects of Satan’s enmity and will be exposed to fearful suffering and relentless persecution; nevertheless the gospel must be proclaimed to all nations ere the end shall come.

We of this present age may appropriate these words to ourselves when found in similar circumstances, but it is important to see their exact application.

While portraying this time of persecution, verses 11 to 13 also give comfort and encouragement to those who will suffer arrest and imprisonment in those dark days. The Holy Spirit of God will enable them to answer those who accuse them falsely, in such manner that their adversaries will not be able to gainsay or resist. This passage might seem to suggest that these words could apply only to this present dispensation of grace when the Holy Spirit indwells all believers, but we need to remember that even when His present work in the Church comes to an end, and He will be no longer personally dwelling in the saints as now, yet He is ever omnipresent and so will be with all who turn to Christ in those dark days, even as He was with Old Testament saints before Pentecost.

Betrayal by one’s own relatives, even unfilial children giving evidence against godly parents, or vice versa, will call for great patience and longsuffering on the part of those who shall be witnesses to the coming King in that time of stress. Hated by all who are subject to the power of Satan working through the atheistic governments of the last days, those who confess Christ as earth’s rightful King will be tried to the utmost, but “he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” This is not to say that salvation in that hour of crisis will depend on individual faithfulness, but rather that endurance to the end is ever the evidence of reality. Mere profession will break down then, as now, but where one has actually been regenerated, power is given to continue in the path of devotedness to the Lord, no matter what he may be called upon to endure.

It is clear from the ninth chapter of Daniel that the last week will be divided into two parts. The entire period is called a “time of trouble” (Daniel 12:1), and “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jeremiah 30:7); but it is the last three-and-half years, beginning with the full manifestation of the Man of Sin, which is designated “the great tribulation.” This will be ushered in by the setting up of the abomination of desolation predicted in Daniel 12:11. (Ironside, H. A. (1948). Expository notes on the Gospel of Mark. (pp. 197–198). Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers)

_______________________________________________________________

Ver. 11. But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, &c.] Lead to councils and courts of judicature, and deliver up to kings and rulers, to the civil magistrate, to be punished by the secular arm: take no thought before-hand; be not previously anxious, and carefully solicitous, in a distressing way: what ye shall speak; to kings and rulers, by way of apology for yourselves, and your own innocence, and in defence of the Gospel: neither do ye premeditate; or meditate, as the generality of copies read; Beza says in one copy it is read, premeditate; and so in one of Stephens’s, as we render it: this clause is omitted in the Vulgate Latin, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour; whatever shall be immediately suggested to your thoughts, be put into your minds, and laid upon your hearts: that speak ye; freely and boldly, without the fear of men: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost: not but that they did speak, but they were not the principal authors, either of the matter they spoke, or of the words and language in which they spoke; they were only the instruments of the Holy Ghost; they spoke as they were moved by him: hence their wisdom and eloquence in their self-defence, were amazing, and their arguments strong and unanswerable; see the notes on Matt. 10:19, 20. (Gill, J. (1809). An Exposition of the New Testament (Vol. 1, pp. 475–476). London: Mathews and Leigh.)

______________________________________________________________________

FROM MY READING:

 Ephesians 6

We are to put on the full armor of God to fight and win the spiritual war.
INSIGHT Satan is a deceiver and a destroyer; he deceives in order to destroy. A part of his deception is to have us believe he is not at work opposing our pursuit of righteousness. To combat his efforts, we must do several things. First, recognize that we must “be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might”(v. 10), not in our own strength. Second, we must “put on the whole armor of God” (v. 11). Each piece described in verses 14-17 must be in place daily. Third, we must pray at all times Òin the SpiritÓ (v. 18). And finally, having done all that, we must stand firm without fear, knowing we are secure (v. 13). (Quiet Walk)

_________________________________________________________

OUR ADVERSARY

He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
1 John 3:8

We begin by considering this “adversary,” as he is described (1 Peter 5:8), the devil. The Son of God came because there was a certain state and condition in this world that had been produced by the devil. Now whether we like it or not, the fact is that the whole drama of redemption, as it is outlined in the Bible, simply cannot be understood at all unless you accept the biblical doctrine with regard to the devil. It is an essential part of this message; it is there from the very beginning and right through to the end.
And this is the biblical teaching. The explanation of the problem of mankind and the whole state of our world is to be traced back to this fact about the devil. According to the Bible, God made the world perfect; so what has gone wrong with it? And here is the answer. Someone who is described in various terms and to whom various names are given in the Bible came and spoke to the man and the woman whom God had placed in that perfect world. He is called “Lucifer,” “the son of the morning,” and “the god of this world.” He is called “the serpent,” “the prince of the power of the air,” and “the strong man armed.”
There are various names given in the Scriptures, but they all describe the same person. And according to this teaching, this is the explanation of evil and of sin and of all our miseries in this world. The devil came and spoke to man, and he enticed him to sin. So man went against God; and the result of all this is the state of the world as it has been from the moment that man fell.
A Thought to Ponder: The whole state of our world is to be traced back to this fact about the devil. (From 
Children of God, pp. 61-62, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)

_______________________________________________________________

The Power of Forgiveness
“To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins.” (Acts 26:18)
There is a historical point in our earthly lives at which the forgiveness of Christ was granted—even though He was “slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8) and in the eternal sense we were “predestined” to be “conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29).
Christ has subdued, cleansed, and forgotten our sins. Our human minds will never comprehend what it cost the triune Godhead to “subdue our iniquities” and metaphorically throw our sins “into the depths of the sea” (Micah 7:19). How is it possible for an omniscient God to blot out and forget our sins? Yet the Scriptures clearly tell us that He does so (Isaiah 43:25; 44:22; Acts 3:19). God’s forgiveness is an eternal act of forgetfulness as well as judicial payment and propitiation.
Christ has replaced our sins with His holiness. Of course, this must be! A holy God cannot fellowship with an unholy being. “Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” We must be “made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:17, 21) so that He “might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus” (Romans 3:26).
Christ has given us victory over sin. Since all of the above (and more) is true and active in the life of every believer, there should be an obvious exhilaration that enables us to confidently stand against whatever “fiery darts” the Enemy throws at us. “Sin shall not have dominion over you,” we are clearly told in Romans 6:14. Since the “offense” of sin was dealt with on the cross, we should “reign in life” by Jesus Christ (Romans 5:17).

Do you rejoice in your forgiveness and therefore reign over sin in your life? God has made this possible. (HMM III, The Institute for Creation Research)

__________________________________________________________

The theological liberal quite naturally opposes dispensationalism, for he finds completely unpalatable it plain interpretation, which is based on a verbal, plenary view of the inspiration of Scripture. (p. 14)

______________________________________________

Dispensationalism, then, claims to be a help in supplying the answer to the need for biblical distinctions, in offering a satisfying philosophy of history, and in employing a consistently normal principle of interpretation. (p. 24)

            (Dispensationalism by Charles C. Ryrie)

___________________________________________________________________

DAILY HOPE

Today’s Scripture

Numbers 33-34 

“Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”  George Santayana is known for saying many catchy phrases to express his skepticism and view of life and society. History does have similarities and cycles that appear to repeat themselves but always with a slight twist! 

Israel is on the cusp of entering the land of promise which the Lord had stated they would inhabit. They had been to the entrance of the land once before and because of unbelief and rebellion they were turned away and made to wander in the wilderness! Moses recounts the history of the journey and key points that occurred while travelling to the land God had promised Israel.  A trip that should have taken two weeks continued for 40 years! 

History does not repeat itself in this instance.  Instead, the Lord gave Moses’ instructions for conquering the land (33:50-56).  They would occupy the land but a stern warning was given to Israel if they failed to drive out the inhabitants. If Israel allowed the former occupants to remain in the land, these people would become pricks in Israel’s eyes and thorns in her side (33:55). 

Further instruction was given in regard to boundaries and how they were to be established in the land once it was conquered.  While the locations of the boundaries are not always easily identified, a general outline can be established from the Mediterranean Sea eastward to the Sea of Galilee and down the Jordan River to the Dead Sea. Reuben, Gad and half the tribe of Manasseh had acquired the land east of the Jordan River. Joshua and Eleazar were to be the leaders that divided the land between the tribes and designated what each tribe received. Each tribe was to appoint a leader to represent them in this process of appropriation. 

Mark Twain stated, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it does rhyme.” Like the nation of Israel, we can often sin, repent, and follow afresh the Lord’s teaching.  The problem arises when we learn enough to not commit the same infraction but do one that is similar.  May we learn to flee the appearance of sin and not walk close to the line of temptation (1 Timothy 6:11).

 In Expectant Hope,        Pastor Miller  

______________________________________________________________________

We now have a Facebook page for Small Church Ministries – please invite others to join us on Facebook. Thank you. Look for the logo from the devotionals.

Back To Top