June 21
2 Kings 1:1-2:25 | PS 139:1-24 | Prov 17:19-21 | Acts 13:42-14:7
It is often our titles, or how we define ourselves which render us blind and deaf to God. As long as you adhere to your experts or leaders, then you can't hear the only voice that counts. By religion, people define themselves as Jewish, Protestant, Catholic, Hindu, etc. and learn from a young age the traditions passed down to them from the leaders of these religions. This often comes to define them. In so doing, often they hold onto these more strongly than to the Word of God. By politics, people define themselves as Republican or Democrat, Conservative or Liberal, or Socialist, etc. Each of these groups have foundational thoughts and have leaders who push these thoughts forward. If these titles define you, and if the leaders in these groups define you, you are blinding yourselves from the only voice that counts which is the Word of God. The same applies to the country you reside in, the country which you originated from, etc. Your starting point needs to be that we come to His table with nothing. Adhering to nothing from the past, we render ourselves open to what it is that He is saying to us. He then gets to define who and what we are. We get to be His child, and Christ's bride.
We read in Acts 13:44-48, "On the next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God. But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy; and contradicting and blaspheming, they opposed the things spoken by Paul. Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles. For so the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, That you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ” Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed." At this time the Jewish people largely made a decision to hold onto their past, and in so doing they could not see Jesus for who He truly is. But it wasn't because they were either ethnically or religiously Jewish, it was because they allowed this adherence to be an obstacle rendering them blind and deaf.
We need to search ourselves. We read in Psalm 139:23-24, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting." We want to be at a place that we render ourselves completely open to Him in His Word. Everything else must take a backseat. Any commentaries or leaders who contradict the Word of God must be ignored. When loved ones among your family and friends seek to dissuade you, they must be ignored. When we enter into a relationship with the King of the Universe, Jesus Christ, all other relationships become of lesser importance. Seek Him with clear eyes and open eyes and you will find Him. Hear what Jesus says in Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me." Please let nothing stand in the way of opening that door.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: