Quote from Forum Archives on March 14, 2014, 9:10 am

Posted by: info <info@...>

E-pistle

FreeWay Foundation            March 14, 2014

 

Born to trouble, as sparks fly upward

(Job 5:1-27)

Dr. Curt Scarborough

 

I.  Concentration:  on the contents of this chapter

            1.  Eliphaz continued lecturing Job, implying that he was foolish

     and simple, and that his affliction was a direct result of his sins,

     vv. 1-7.

            2.  Eliphaz told Job what he would do is he were him:  "But as for

     me, I would seek God, and to God I would commit my cause,"

     . . . going on to describe the greatness and the mercy of God,

     vv. 8-16.

            3.  Eliphaz reminded Job that he should be happy under the

     chastening  hand of the Almighty, Who not only injures but also

     heals,vv. 17-18.

            4.  Eliphaz concludes his first speech by describing the deliverance

     and blessings which God would give Job if only he would be

     willing to confess his sin, v. 7.

II.  Meditation:  on some key verses in this chapter

            1.  "Yet man is born to trouble, as the sparks fly upward," v. 7.

            2.  "God . . . does great things and unsearchable, marvelous

     things without number," v. 9.

            3.  "Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects; therefore do

     not despise the chastening of the Almighty.  For He bruises,

     but He binds up; He wounds, but His hands make whole,"

     vv. 17-18.

            4.  "For you shall have a covenant with the stones of the field,

     and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with you," v. 23.

III.  Revelation:  on the spiritual truths seen here

            1.  Although the intent of the words of Eliphaz were to condemn

     Job, and the implications drawn were incorrect . . . yet the

     words themselves contain truth:  man indeed is "born to

     trouble" because of the inevitable consequences of his sinful

     nature inherited from Adam.

            2.  Almighty God does great, unsearchable, marvelous, innumerable

     things: He gives man life, provision, encouragement, comfort,

     protection, salvation, and hope, vv. 10-16.

            3.  God's chastening is a blessing given because of His great love for

     His chosen children.

            4.  God can extend grace to His covenant people by turning curses

     (stones, II Kings 3:19; Isaiah 5:2) into blessings, and enemies (beasts)

      into friends.

IV.  Applications:  as a Christian, I need to . . .

            1.  Understand that problems and difficulties are an inescapable part of

     the human experience on earth, and that they are not necessarily a sign

     of God's punishment, I Peter 4:12-13.

            2.  Thank the Lord for His miraculous provisions, which can exceed all of

     my requests, Ephesians 3:20.

            3.  Welcome God's discipline as an evidence of His love for me,

     Hebrews 12:6.

            4.  Receive God's wonderful promise to bring good results out of bad

                 circumstances, Romans 8:28.

 

 

 

Noah found grace in god's eyes

(Genesis 6:1-18)

Dr. Curt Scarborough

 

I.  Concentration:  on the man Noah, whose name means "Comfort" or "Rest"

            1.  He found grace (God's unmerited gift or favor) in God's eyes, v. 8.

            2.  He was just . . . fair, true, and honest, v. 9.

            3.  He was perfect . . . blameless, having maturity and integrity, v. 9.

            4.  He, like his great-grandfather Enoch, walked with God, v. 9.

II.  Meditation:  on the sinful world in which Noah lived

            1.  Satanism:  "Nephilim" translated "Sons of God" refers to the fallen,

                 dark angels of Satan, who cohabited with humans, v. 2.

            2.  Wickedness:  People has "twisted" (a related root word) good into

                 evil and vice versa . . . were addicted to depravity, not discerning

                 right from wrong, v. 5.

            3.  Total corruption of society:  "Every intent . . . only evil continually

                 . . . all flesh had corrupted their way," vv. 5, 12.

            4.  Full of violence:  Noah's day was notorious for its cruelty and

                 disregard for human life, v. 12.

III.  Revelation:  on God's spoken  words to Noah

            1.  "My Spirit shall not strive (struggle; contend) with man forever

                 . . . yet his days shall be one hundred twenty years," v. 3.

                 At the flood, God reduced the life span of humans from about 900

                 years to a maximum of 120 years.

            2.  "I will destroy them (the Satanic, wicked, corrupt, violent persons)

                 with the earth," v. 13. 

                 This cleansing of the earth by water would destroy the half-human,

                 half-demon giant monsters which intimidated the people of that era, v. 4.

            3.  "Make yourself an ark of gopher wood . . . I am bringing floodwaters

                 . . . everything that is on the earth shall die," vv. 14, 17.

            4.  "I will establish My covenant with you," (and your family), v. 18.

IV.  Applications:  as a Christian, I need to . . .

            1.  Live a just, perfect life of integrity by receiving God's grace and by

                 walking daily with Him.

            2.  Keep my life pure and blameless in the midst of a Satanic, wicked,

                 corrupt, violent . . . crooked and perverse generation, Philippians 2:15-16.

            3.  Hear and faithfully proclaim God's coming judgment, regardless of the

                 small number of persons who heed my warning over a period of up to

                 100 years, Genesis 5:32 and Genesis 7:6 . . . for indeed, these are "the

                 Days of Noah" which Jesus mentioned in Matthew 24:37-39.

            4.  Obey God's instructions in order to receive His deliverance . . . His way

                 of escape; His "ark of safety" Jesus Christ . . . Who saves us from

                 pending doom, Hebrews 11:7.

 

"You can't base your life on other people's expectations."

Copied for "Good Stuff"

 

 

 

 

--
To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: [email protected]