Author: MrSteveSlusser

Love Covers

“Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.”

The second half of this verse is a concept that is often found in scripture. It is found in 1 Corinthians 13, the chapter about love. In verse 5 we read that love, “… thinketh no evil;”, which could be translated, “…doesn’t account evils done…” This fits with the last part of Proverbs 10:12. Imagine a relationship in which partners kept track of offences that were done by each other. How long would that relationship last? The more extreme an offence may be, the harder it may be to be forgiving of them. But, according to the verse above, love covers all sins.

One way to look at 1 Corinthians 13 is to consider that this is how God loves us! Verses 4-8 say, “Charity (love) suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth:”. Think about each of these aspects of love from the perspective that it is how God loves us. To sum up, love covers all sins: all of our sins, great and small.

But, at the same time our sins are an offense to God. He has said that the soul that sins shall die (Ezekiel 18:20). It is impossible for God to lie (Hebrews 6:18), so what He says is the truth. God’s justice must be satisfied, too. It might seem that God has Himself painted into a corner. On one hand the Bible tells us that God is love (1 John 4:8). And on the other hand, we know that He must judge our sin. His justice must be satisfied.

His solution to the problem is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Jesus paid the sentence of death on our behalf so that God’s justice would be satisfied. His sacrifice was enough to cover all sin for all time. Not everyone believes that they need to be reconciled with God this way. They think they can satisfy God with their own good works. They also believe that what they do will make them right with God, and will give them access into God’s presence. But, if that could reconcile us with God, why did Jesus have to die?

Other scriptures reveal God’s love and care for His people, as described in Proverbs 10:12. His love covers a multitude of sins on the basis of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

In 2 Samuel 11 and 12 we read about David’s sins against Bathsheba and her husband. David was guilty of adultery and murder. The Lord sent Nathan the prophet to David to reveal to him that the Lord knew what he had done. In 2 Samuel 12:13 we read, “And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die.” David admitted his sin, and Nathan gave him the astounding news that God had put away David’s sin. Isn’t it wonderful to see how God cares for His people? God’s love covered David’s sin on the basis of the sacrifice of Christ: God’s love covers all sins!

In Jeremiah chapters 1 to 45 we read about Israel rejecting God. Instead, they worshipped the idols of the nations around them. Time and again He appealed to them to leave their idols and follow Him instead, and they refused Him. And, He warned them about judgment for their idolatry. But, in chapters 46-52, God promised to restore them to Himself, describing what His blessing will look like, and judge the nations around them. In Jeremiah 50:20 we read, “In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve.” The first 45 chapters list and reveal their sins. But in this verse, the Lord proposed that a search be made to discover the sins and iniquities of His people. He said that even though search would be made, their sins and iniquities would not be found; that there was nothing to find. Isn’t it wonderful to see God’s care for His people? God’s love covers all sins!

Zechariah 3 talks about a vision that Zechariah had of the high priest Joshua. In the vision, Joshua was standing before God. And, the enemy of our souls was standing at his right hand to accuse him. Since Joshua was in God’s presence, he had passed from this life, and was facing God at the end of his life. Is not it sobering to learn that the enemy of our souls was at that place while Joshua faced God, and was there to accuse him. Wonderfully, none of the words of the enemy are recorded. In Zechariah 3:2-4 we read, “And the LORD said unto Satan, The LORD rebuke thee, O Satan; even the LORD that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.” See what God had done for Joshua? He gave him change of clothing, making him fit to stand in His presence, and He caused his iniquity to pass from him! Isn’t wonderful to see how God cares for His people? God’s love covers all sins!

For those that have Jesus Christ as their savior, the same words apply. He has caused our sins and iniquities to pass from us, His love covers all sins. Until we are in His presence, we will have struggles with sin, as Paul expressed in Romans 7:15-24, but our standing before God is unchanged. In Romans 8:1 Paul said, “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” And scripture is clear that God lives in us, guiding us into all truth and giving us the ability we need to live lives that please Him. Isn’t it wonderful to see how God cares for His people? His love covers all sins.

All who reject the sacrifice of Christ remain under God’s wrath for their sin. Consider the awful price He paid to reconcile mankind with Himself. God died for us. What more would someone want Him to do? As Romans 5:8 says, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” His love covers all sins.

Gone is all my debt of sin,
A great change is wrought within,
And to live I now begin,
Risen from the fall;
Yet the debt I did not pay—
Someone died for me one day,
Sweeping all the debt away—
Jesus paid it all.

Refrain

Jesus died and paid it all, yes,
On the cross of Calvary, Oh
And my stony heart was melted
At His dying, dying call;
Oh, His heart in shame was broken
On the tree for you and me, yes,
And the debt, the debt is canceled,
Jesus paid it, paid it all.

Oh, I hope to please Him now,
Light of joy is on my brow,
As at His dear feet I bow,
Safe within His love.
Making His the debt I owed,
Freedom true He has bestowed;
So I’m singing on the road
To my home above.

Refrain

Sinner, not for me alone
Did the Son of God atone;
Your debt, too, He made His own,
On the cruel tree.
Come to Him with all your sin;
Be as white as snow within;
Full salvation you may win
And rejoice with me.

Refrain (M.S. Shaffer)

Featured Image Credit: Adobe.com
A Recipe for Prayer

Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, ….. “Isaiah 6:8

As our nation celebrated a Week of Prayer I opened my Bible (actually my tablet) and read this prayer of Isaiah which begins with “I saw the Lord.”

We often focus on this chapter as the vision of Isaiah. However, since my heart was focused on prayer I found a little “treasure hidden in the field” as the old brothers would say.

We often pray privately just like we pray publicly. It is how we are taught. By our example we teach this to our children. We talk to the Lord. We give him a list of things to act upon. Then with the invocation of Jesus Name we conclude our prayer time with “amen” (let it be so). Imagine if all of our interactions were done this way. Rather than converse, we just tell folks what is on our minds, say “let it be so”, and walk away. That sounds silly in the context of human interaction.

Let’s take a look at this “vision” a little differently. Read the opening of Isaiah 6 and think of the author sitting in his home meditating on the Word of God and seeking His face. Suddenly and apparently unexpectedly he sees The Lord! The first part of this “prayer” is not speaking words, but seeing a vision of the Glory of the Lord. In fact, it is a while before Isaiah speaks.

This is the recipe for private prayer that we may glean from Isaiah’s encounter with the Lord.

1) GET A VISION OF THE LORD (6:1)
I may not have had my own “vision”, but sitting there reading the Word of God I could see Isaiah’s vision and pictured in my mind what it must have looked like. God has revealed Himself in His Word and in all that He has created. Perhaps it could be in a flower “behold the Lilly of the field”, or a creature of God “behold the ant” that He will show Himself to me on another morning with Him. This phase of our prayer time is as important as the words that we speak. Get a vision of WHO GOD IS!

2) TAKE A LOOK YOURSELF (6:5)
When we see ourselves in light of the Glory of the Lord we should respond like Isaiah, “woe is me”. We read that all our righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) but until we compare all that we think is good in us to His Glory we fail to see just how unworthy we really are. We need to get to the place of the publican who prayed “Lord be merciful to me, the sinner” (Luke 18:3). When we are humbled in His presence, when words fail us, we are finally ready to listen to Him.

3) LISTEN FOR HIM TO SPEAK (6:8)
I am not proposing that we pause in public prayer to hear the Lord speak. However, in our private time of prayer, we need to insert times of “silent prayer” to allow God to speak to us. We may not be blessed with the audible voice of God that the apostles heard at the Transfiguration (Luke 9:35), but we can hear Him. Isaiah is recording a “vision” here. This is not a physical encounter, yet the voice of the Lord was clear to him. “I heard the voice of the Lord”. God has spoken through His prophets, and now through His Son (Hebrews 1:1ff). When we open His Word we can also hear Him speak if we will just listen.

4) RESPOND TO GOD’S WORDS (6:8)
Isaiah responds spontaneously with “Hear am I, send me!” From my earliest days in the faith I have been touched by missionary slide shows and stories. I wanted to go and wrote to missionaries and went to nursing school, but He did not send me to the jungles of Africa. Isaiah’s words went forth to the world through this prophetic book, but there is no record that he himself “went”. Abraham took Isaac to the mountain and was prepared to sacrifice his own son, but God provided himself a sacrifice. (Genesis 22). When we respond to the Word of God with willingness and eagerness it pleases Him. We are thinking like He thinks and feeling like He feels. We now see the world as He sees it. Our own insufficiency is somewhat forgotten as we gain strength in His presence.

5) NOW YOU ARE READY TO “PRAY”

sbs (2025)
That Day

Thought for the Morning

Isaiah 17:7 In that day a man will look to his Maker, And his eyes will have respect for the Holy One of Israel.

The phrase “in that day” is often used of a time when God will intervene and remove the yoke of oppression from His chosen people (Is 30.26) But there are also times when “In that day” means a time of judgment for his people (Zech 1-14-15) The writings of the Prophets include many times the words “in that Day”. The phrase “in that day” is used over 200 times in all of the Scripture

But there is also “that day” when He will come to come for His Church and following that to set up His Kingdom and rule for a 1000 years as we read of the Revelation (Rev 20.4-5). In the verse before us, I believe Isaiah is referring to the time the Lord will return to reign in the Millennium (the end times).

There is a great hope that the Lord is coming to establish His kingdom. The hope of His coming is very dear to all believers -He is coming again! But first He is coming to take His “called out ones” home to be with Him.

Paul writes of that day to the Thessalonians Some false teachers had said the day of the Lord had already come (2Thes 2.2) and the Thessalonians were concerned about the saints who had died (1 Thes 4.13) ) – What about them?

God reveals to Paul “when He comes,in that day” (1Thes 1.10). And then he writes “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven…” (Thes 4.16-17) Those who have died and those who live will be caught up to be with Him. Paul then writes,”(1 Thess 4. 8) Therefore comfort one another with these words. The Lord did not come to these persecuted saints in Thessonilica during their lifetime and He has not “caught up, or raptured His Church yet.

Where there is turmoil, where there is distress, where there is persecution there is also hope: looking for His coming. We, in this country have not experienced what the early church was going through and what saints are experiencing in other parts of the world today. Do we think much about His coming again but “in that Day” He will come. We don’t seem to have much teaching about “that day” in the church today.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. ¹⁸ Therefore comfort one another with these words.”

Looking for His coming. Just a thought for the morning

Carl
Vows

VOWS, OATHS, AND PROMISES

If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.
Numbers 30:2 (KJV)

This is an outline and link to the audio file from a message preached at North 56th Street Gospel Chapel (Tampa, Florida) on 1-4-2015

http://mrsteve.me/2015Vows [28 minute mp3 / 5MB]

Introduction: The Law concerning vows.

A. Biblical

Numbers 30:1-2
Deuteronomy 23:21-23
Matthew 5:33-37

B. Rabbinical Law (extra-Biblical)

Three Times
Vows (things/others)
Oaths (personal)

I. Examples of Vows
A. Wedding

Intent (I will), Vow (I do), Ring (I wed)

B. Peter’s oath.

Found in all four gospels
Matthew 26:34
Mark 14:30
John 13:38
Luke 22:34 (see 31-34, 54-62)

II. Foolish Vows
A. Jacob  Genesis 31:30-32

    Rachel steals dad’s idols 31:19
Rachel dies on the journey 35:19

B. Jephthah Judges 11:1, 30-40

Daughter is “sacrificed” to God

C. Saul  1 Samuel 14:24-32

    37: God does not answer
39: To curse added death
43ff: Saul fails
1 Samuel 31:2 Jonathan dies

III. Permanent Vows
Vows, Oaths, and Promises cannot be “unsaid”

A. Jacobs irreversible blessing (Genesis 27)

B. Even God is bound by promise

  Numbers 23:19-20

C. Promise to Jacob (Genesis 28:15)

  Promise to Israel (Deuteronomy 31:6,8)
Promise to Joshua (Joshua 1:5)
Promise to Solomon (1 Chronicles 2:20)

D. The promise is passed forward to believers.

  John 6:37-40, 47
John 10:28-29
Hebrews 13:5

αὐτος γαρ εἴρηκεν· For He Himself said (perfect,active,indicative)
οὐ μή σε ἀνῶ Double Negative + To loose “I will never let you go”
οὐδ᾿ οὐ μή Triple Negative +
σε ἐγκαταλίπω· “I will never leave you behind” (in a bad sense)

Conclusion:
May your only vow be that of the man who brought his son to the Lord to be healed in Mark 9:24

“Lord I believe, help thou my unbelief”
The Test Of Our Faith

2 Chronicles 32:31 “… God withdrew from him (Hezekiah), in order to test him that He might know all that was in his heart.”

Will the Lord withdraw from us as a believer in Christ? The Lord told us “I will never leave you or forsake you” (Heb 13.5). As Christians, we have the indwelling Spirit so He is always with us. However, does the Lord test us, to know what is in our heart, as he did Hezekiah?

Was the Lord testing Peter when He asked him three times “Do you love Me” (John 21.15-17)? Was Peter tested when the Lord urged him come and walk on “on the water” and he faltered on cried out “Lord save me” (Matt 13.28-31) Peters faith was being tested! “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” were the Lords words to Peter. Our faith is tested every day!

Psalm 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties;

Psalm 73:28 But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, That I may declare all Your works.

James 4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you….

Our faith is strengthened when we draw near to Him, when we trust in His word, when in our heart we know that the Blood shed at Calvary was shed for us. Thomas when he saw the wounds said “my Lord and my God “ (20.24-29) Our faith can be tested but our hope is secure! Just a thought for the morning.

Carl

This is a guest blog by my dear friend Carl.

Author: MrSteveSlusser

Love Covers

A Recipe for Prayer

That Day

Vows

The Test Of Our Faith