More are the Children of the Desolate

“Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.” — Isaiah 54:1

Ruth and Obed ­— Michelangelo, Public Domain Image

The arc of Israel’s narrative in redemptive history in many ways presents an allegory of our own individual conversion. Of our own selves we are barren and destitute of any merit. Throughout the scriptures children are described as a blessing and a reward from the Lord, which comes with it the presumption that infertility must also correlate with sin and failure. Many a woman in the Old Testament poured out their complaint before the Lord to be relieved of the reproach of barrenness. The Lord was pleased to deliver each of them in due time, even those that were well past childbearing age (for with God nothing shall be impossible) [1].

But how can the desolate have more children than the married wife? By the gospel of our faith which is not of the flesh but of the spirit. Paul calls Timothy his "own son in the faith" and Onesimus as someone, “whom I have begotten in my bonds. [2]” The Bible is not saying that men get pregnant. It is saying that through the foolishness of preaching[3] Paul has become a spiritual parent to a burgeoning believer. Galatians 5:27 says,

But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.

Selah.

Scripture References: [1] Luke 1:37 [2] 1st Tim 1:2, Phil 1:10 [3] 1st Cor 1:21

Men of Understanding

“And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their commandment.”

- 1st Chronicles 12:32

Photo by Henry Be via Unsplash

God can use two hundred as well as two thousand or twenty times two thousand. What distinguished the tribe of Issachar was not their numbers but their understanding.

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.”

– Proverbs 9:10

Only by faith are true wisdom and understanding acquired. The smallest tribe excelled in this regard and lead their brethren. For the first shall be last, and the last shall be first. When we are weak and lowly of spirit, then is the greatness of our God exalted.

Selah.

Believe Not Every Spirit

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” -1st John 4:1

Image credit: Sergiu Nista via Unsplash

The Bible warns us that there will always be tares among the wheat, that the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent will exist side by side, sometimes even in the same tribes and households, and they will lead many to ruin before they are ultimately uprooted.

Liars go to the same lake of fire as do murderers. Lies lead to death. Jesus called Satan the father of lies as well as a murderer (John 8:44).

“But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.” -2nd Peter 2:1

“But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” – Galatians 1:8

Fortunately for us the New Testament provides the clearest tests to identify these false teachers.

“Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” -1st John 4:2-3

“We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God hareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.” - 1st John 4:6

So the apostle John is telling us that we can know a false teacher immediately by how they perceive Christ. If they say Christ was just a man, not truly God in the flesh, or that he was only a Spirit that appeared to be human as was common among Gnostics of John’s day…they are false prophets. We can also know a false teacher by their refusal to adhere to clear scriptural teaching transmitted by the prophets and apostles.

With that said in a future message I want to go into a more specific example of the nefariousness of false prophets and why we become susceptible to them.

Selah.