Shoulder To Shoulder #1295 -- 6/13//22 ---- "Seeking The Ancient Paths (Pt 3 -- First Step, First Fork)"
Posted by: lifeunlimited1010 <lifeunlimited1010@...>
We Fight the Good Fight of Faith"
SHOULDER TO SHOULDER is a weekly letter of
encouragement Bob has written since 1997, covering many topics
selected to
motivate people to be strong students of the Word and
courageous witnesses of Jesus Christ. It is a personal letter
of
encouragement to you, written solely to help "lift up
hands that hang down".
"The
world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but
by those who watch them without doing anything."
-- Albert Einstein
“There is a common, worldly
kind of Christianity in this day, which many have, and
think they have -- a cheap Christianity which offends
nobody,
and requires no sacrifice, which costs nothing, --
and is worth nothing.”
Shoulder To Shoulder #1295 -- 6/13//22
Title: "Seeking The Ancient Paths (Pt 3 -- First Step,
First Fork)"
My Dear Friend and Pilgrim Partner:
Greetings on a sunny and breezy day from the little mountain
village of Greer, AZ. Jo Ann and I are into our second week
of ministry with the wonderful folks of Greer Chapel, now with
two Sundays behind us. We've already experienced chilly
nights down in the 40's, a wind storm, a good rain, and a
major territorial collapse of internet and cell phone service
that affected multiple places around the continental U.S. But
the daytime temps have been perfect -- mid 70's to low 80's.
The most severely affected internet outage region was the Los Angeles area, with our
towns of Greer, Show Low, Eager, and Springerville listed as the
second most impacted in the country. Service went out on
Saturday morning and was not restored until Monday afternoon.
Rumors abound as to what caused it, but locals seem to think
that a line was intentionally cut -- perhaps even shot. Many
of my friends warn me that this is "a harbinger of things to
come". I don't know all they mean by that, but it certainly
as another opportunity for us to be alert to many things the
Bible predicts regarding the breakdown of societal structures
and values.
UKRAINE:
Our ministry (Life Unlimited Ministries) continues raising
funds for ministries and families in Ukraine. It has been
over 111 days since President Putin directed his army to again
invade a sovereign democratic nation. According to Ukrainian
President Zelensky, between 200 and 300 Ukrainian soldiers are
being killed each day defending their country against an
attack many military authorities liken to Hitler's invasion of
Europe.
It is our privilege as former missionaries in Ukraine to do
everything we can -- through ongoing prayer and giving -- to
help lighten the load and reduce the suffering. We stay in
constant contact with numerous friends, colleagues, and
organizations every week. I spend two or three hours every
day communicating back and forth, seeking to find where our
help is needed the most. Currently we are helping . . .
> Two churches in L'viv who are ministering to
refugees and driving into dangerous zones with humanitarian
aid.
> A seminary in L'viv that is housing about 200
refugees in their facilities.
> A young woman in Kyiv who is providing medicine to
children of poor families waiting for kidney transplants.
> A friend in Kyiv whose husband works unpaid on the
railroad shuttling supplies and people back and forth in
dangerous areas.
> A former student who is managing housing for widows
who have lost their homes from the war, and is also delivering
aid to dangerous areas of fighting in eastern Ukraine.
> Two pastor friends and their colleagues who are
providing vast amounts of aid to people in surrounding
villages where over 5,000 homes were either damaged or
destroyed.
> A friend in Germany who, at his own expense, is
making excursions in his own vehicle into eastern Ukraine with
aid, and then bringing out people who need to escape the
danger zones.
Recently I got the following message from "M", one of our friends in
Ukraine who works with children who are waiting for organ transplants.
She and two other of our young women who are no longer in Ukraine have
worked with this hospital for many years. During our exchange of
messages she wrote, . . .
"Please pray for one child called Ilia , from our hospital, he is in reanimation doing very bad"
After I replied that we would pray, she responded, . . .
"Thank you so much ... But He died. He took drugs on purpose. Just did not want to live He
has no family ... his parenths were drogadicts ... and he was alone. We
tried to give him as much love as we could, but there are 12 children
and it is difficult to pay all attention to one child. please
pray for those now in hospital, they really need hope ... and for us to
be able to tell them all we can about the hope that Jesus gives"
"M" is one of numerous people we trying to help with funds during this horrible war. Please pray for her.
And, please remember to pray for us as we try to continue this
project for as long as we can. Many organizations run to the
rescue quickly, but soon weary of the "dailiness" and
longevity of the struggle. We don't want to do that, and we
will continue as long as God provides the resources.
NOW BACK TO THE ISSUE AT HAND:
It seems we are drawing increasingly nearer to the fulfillment
of numerous biblical predictions leading up to Christ's
return. We particularly see at least the foreshadowing of
those predictions in the areas of wars, economic turbulence,
racial strife, apostasy, and religious persecution. In the
"THIS 'N' THAT" section below are several links worth your
consideration. I hope you'll take time to check them out.
There are more than usual.
Today I want to continue our look at God's call to "seek the
ancient paths". It is perhaps even more important to us today
than it was even in Jeremiah's day some 2,700 years ago. In
this letter I want to examine what actually led to the
creation of those "ancient paths" in the first place. And,
we'll do that right after you take a look at . . .
THIS 'N' THAT:
+ Seeking the Ancient Paths: -- On June 5th I
began a sermon series on returning to the ancient paths to
which Jeremiah refers twice in his book. Here's a link to
Sunday's second sermon on the series, which follows today's
letter to you. Feel free to check it out if you wish. It's
an "unpolished" cut put up on the Chapel's YouTube channel by
our "go to media guy", Steve Williams. I appreciate so much
what Steve does. https://youtu.be/EngcrzB76GM .
Justin Beber: -- Perhaps you've heard the news
that Justin Beber is suffering from a severe paralysis
on the right side of his face that is now affecting
his ability to swallow. Please pray for him.
https://www.charismanews.com/culture/89421-pray-for-me-justin-bieber-reveals-rare-disorder-behind-canceled-tour.
+ WalMart Promoting Gay PRIDE: -- Knowing I
will anger some, but also knowing I cannot compromise
biblical truth, here's another example of how a
once-revered business built on strong family values so
easily goes astray after its founders are gone. It
soon abandons its strong family values and succumbs to
the craving for popularity and acceptance, and falls
to the "money is everything" passion. Here's one of
their latest ads at
https://www.walmart.com/cp/pride/9552002?q=pride.
+ Attacks on Churches Increasing -- 41 times in 40
days: This new e-letter from Family Research Council (Tony
Perkins) is worth subscribing to for current news from a
Christian world view. Today's issue contains this report of
attacks against Christian, conservative, and pro-life groups
and churches. Alarming, but certainly not surprising (Lk
21:12; Jn 15:20). Go to
https://washingtonstand.com/news/churches-and-prolife-orgs-have-been-attacked-41-times-in-the-last-40-days.
+ Religious Intolerance Continues Increasing: --
In conjunction with the above report, it's not as if we didn't
at least suspect this, but it's good to know that it is
obvious. Sam Brownback is the former United States Ambassador
at Large for International Religious Freedom from 2018 to
2021, and before that the Secretary of Agriculture of Kansas
(1986-93), as the U.S. representative for Kansas's 2nd
congressional district. Check the report at
https://washingtonstand.com/commentary/brownback-perkins-religious-intolerance-is-on-the-rise-in-the-west-and-we-must-act.
+ Prepare To Be Persecuted: -- Everyone probably
recognizes that religious persecution is on the rise -- for
many religions. Most people acknowledge that it has
particularly increased toward Buddhists, Jews, and Christians
while continuing toward others. Christians, particularly
evangelicals, believe the increase is the fulfilling of Bible
prophecy, just as Jesus explained. Family Research Council
has just posted a series of talks by former missionary, Andrew
Brunson, who was held hostage and persecuted for his faith in
Turkey, dealing with eight different topics regarding what we
Christians in the west need to understand and for which we
need to prepare. Entitled, "Prepare to Stand", Brunson shares
out his own experiences and principles of God's Word how we
can be better prepared to endure the inevitable. To watch --
and hopefully download -- the eight-part series, go to
https://frc.org/preparetostand.
+ If It's Good For Ukraine, . . . : I found this
interesting article Monday morning in the Family Research
Council's "Washington Stand" website. I'm neither condemning
it or endorsing it, but share it for you to consider. It's
good when we are forced to think.
https://washingtonstand.com/commentary/if-its-bad-in-america-why-is-it-good-in-the-ukraine-on-hypocritical-evangelical-leadership.
QUOTES FOR THE WEEK:
> "We are called to reveal the glory of God through living with excellence in the mundane places of life.” -- David Robinson (Ancient Paths: Discover Christian Formation the Benedictine Way)
> "Beware of those 'Christians' who encourage us
to reject those Ancient Paths." -- Unknown
> "Ancient paths are paths because they are
followed; they are ancient because they are tried, proven,
and they work. Any path that proves to be unreliable will
never become ancient because people will stop following
them." -- T. Allen Robburts
> "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie
down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my
soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even
though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no
evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. . .
." -- David (Psalm 23:1-3)
> "Transition is easy from an outward physical path to a
moral meaning: roads men walk with their feet suggest the road men's
thoughts habitually walk in, the path in which their feelings are
accustomed to move, the way in which their conduct naturally flows." -- Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887)
> "Ancient paths, found on every continent, were used by
people living centuries ago to travel from place to place and trade
their goods. These ancient pathways were the best route—or sometimes the
only route—to take to arrive safely at the desired destination." -- Roger Meyer
> "“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the
way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are
many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and
those who find it are few." -- Jesus (Mt 7:13-14)
ANCIENT PATHS -- THEIR BEGINNING:
• 'For My people have forgotten Me, They burn incense to
worthless gods And they have stumbled from their ways, From
the ancient paths, To walk in bypaths, Not on a highway, To
make their land a desolation, An object of perpetual
hissing; Everyone who passes by it will be astonished And
shake his head. 'Like an east wind I will scatter them
Before the enemy; I will show them My back and not My face
In the day of their calamity.'" -- Jer 18:15-17
Tuesday I got an email advertisement from WalMart (see above)
that reminded me again of just how easy it is to wander off
those "Ancient Paths" of scripture. If Sam Walton were alive,
he'd have fired the entire management board who made the decision to
not only support but promote the Gay Pride agenda that thoroughly
violates scripture on many points.
"25. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator,
who is blessed forever. Amen. 26. For this reason God gave them over
to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function
for that which is unnatural, 27. and in the same way also the men
abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire
toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving
in their own persons the due penalty of their error. 28. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer,
God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not
proper, 29. being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed,
evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips,
30. slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors
of evil, disobedient to parents, 31. without understanding,
untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; 32. and although they know the
ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of
death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those
who practice them." (Rom 1:25-32).
In examining the idea of returning to God’s "Ancient Paths", three things seem to be abundantly clear. First, there is a definite connection between those ancient
paths and God’s directives to the people. Second, the
mere description -- as we examined in my last letter -- makes it clear
that the "Ancient Paths" are not only older than the human race, but
also are directly from God Himself. Finally, there is a definite
connection between those "Ancient Paths" and dire consequences that
follow when man is disobedient. Today I want to propose the idea of
where they originated and when they were first introduced to mankind --
and what caused mankind to abandon them.
It doesn’t take much imagination to recognize that both
globally, nationally, and often personally, humanity has not
only strayed from those “ancient paths” of God, but in many
cases has outright rejected them for easier, more comfortable,
and more pleasurable paths – not knowing that the end result is
and will continue to be catastrophic.
So, . . . .where did
it all begin???
THE BEGINNING OF IT ALL:
Anytime we consider something that God initiated, we have to consider
the God who initiated it. There is much to be said about Him, but the
three most important things is that He is 1) Eternal, he is 2)
Sovereign, and 3) He is Compassionate. Everything about Him and what
He does must be seen through that prism. This includes His
establishment of those "Ancient Paths" which He addressed to Jeremiah.
So, consider these scriptural examples . . .
> "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had
formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are
God." -- Ps 90:2
> "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Rev 1:8
> “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” -- Rev 22:13
> "Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and
the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will
remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like
a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years
have no end." -- Ps 105:25-27
> "This is the account . . . that the LORD God
made earth and heaven." -- Gen 2:4
> "Thus says God the LORD, Who created the
heavens and stretched them out, Who spread out the earth and
its offspring, Who gives breath to the people on it And spirit
to those who walk in it, . . ." -- Isa 42:5
> "For thus says the LORD, . . . Who formed the
earth and made it, He . . . formed it to be inhabited, "I am
the LORD, and there is none else." -- Isa 45:18
> "Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to
receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things,
and because of Your will they existed, and were created." -- Rev 4:11
> "For by Him all things were created, -- all
things have been created through Him and for Him." -- Col 1:16
> "For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen." -- Rom 11:36
> "All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made." -- Jn 1:3
While I could literally list more than one hundred other such
scriptures, I hope the point is well taken -- God is an eternal,
sovereign God, and everything -- virtually everything both spiritual and
temporal -- originate in Him. Of necessity, then, the "Ancient Paths",
which we will eventually consider, originate in Him -- and originated
long before man ever existed.
Why do I say that? Because these "Ancient Paths" originated from an
eternal God. Man is not eternal in the sense of the temporal, but the
"Ancient Paths" are. The "Ancient Paths", because they are the
expression of the very nature of an eternal God, are eternal -- existing
before man did. But, . . .
THEN CAME MAN:
For the sake of validating what you and I both already know, consider these scriptures:
> "I made the earth and created man on it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host." -- Isa 45:12
> "“Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image." -- Gen 9:6
> "Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.” -- Isa 43:7
> "Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture." -- Ps 100:3
> "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." -- Jer 29:11
When we search scriptures a little more closely, we not only see that
God created everything, but that He also created one specific part of
His creation to be inhabited -- the earth. Much is once again being
debated as to whether or not there is evidence of life on other planets
or in other galaxies. This in itself also raises the issue as to "life"
in general and "human life" in particular. Whatever the opinions might
be and whatever may be the outcome of future explorations, one thing is
certain -- God created the earth to be inhabited, it was created
specifically for man, and it was to be inhabited and managed by man.
For starters, . . .
> "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was [became]
formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and
the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters." -- Gen 1:1-2
> "For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place, but formed it to be inhabited), "I am the LORD, and there is none else." -- Isa 45:18
> “It is I who made the earth, and created mankind upon it. I
stretched out the heavens with My hands, And I ordained all their
lights." -- Isa 45:12
Notice that God created "the heavens" and also "the earth" (Gen 1:1),
the "earth" (not the heavens) became formless and chaotic (how did that
happen?), and God's Spirit "hovered" or "brooded" over it and it
regained its inhabitable shape and environment -- the divine purpose for
its existence. And this brings us to the first of several key passages
of scripture. First, . . .
+ Man's Purpose -- Crystalized:
Man was neither an afterthought, an accident, or some evolving process
out of the mire and goo of a "tohu bohu" (topsy-turvey) chaotic state.
Rather, he stands apart from and above all other of God's creation. The
text, when studied closely, indicates that, and science itself is faced
with gaps and obstacles it cannot overcome in its effort to make the
case that man simply "spontaneously evolved" (try to figure that
companionship out!) into a human being from some lower life form.
> "Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our
image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule . . . .'
God created man in His own image, in the image of God He
created him; male and female He created them." -- Gen 1:26-27.
Since I have written extensively in the past about this verse, I'll summarize by stating that . . .
1) Man created, “in our image”, Expressed God's Presence in the Garden. He was to "be" someone special -- God's representation.
2) Created, “after our likeness”, he Extended God’s
Purpose. He was to "have" a reason for being -- God's responsibility.
3) Finally, commissioned to, “let them rule . . . ”, he Exhibited God’s Power. He was to "do" something extraordinary -- demonstrate God's resources.
So, from the very first moment of man's creation, it is clear that there
had to be some kind of reason for man to even exist. There had to be
some kind of divine purpose for man. There, subsequently, had to be
some kind of higher "blueprint" or "user's guide" by which he was to
function -- maybe something like "ancient paths" to follow?
The second text to consider deals with . . .
+ Man's Profile -- Visualized:
Once again, when you take time to study the Hebrew words used in this
passage, you begin to realize just what a marvel mankind really was when
God created Adam and Eve.
"Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the
ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and
man became a living being." -- Gen 2:7
> "Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." -- I Thes 5:18
> "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." -- Heb 4:12
The Bible is replete with references to one or more of man's three-fold
construction -- body, soul, and spirit. To summarize, . . .
We have a body made up of "senses" and "systems" The systems
(skeletal, circulatory, digestive, etc.) keep us alive in a world with
which our five senses connect us. In other words, it is with our bodies
that we are world oriented. Our bodies are the houses we live
in, but they are not our real selves. They are the vehicles in which we
move around in the world where we live.
We also have a soul, or a personality. In the New
Testament the word for "soul" is "pseuche", from which we get the words
psychology, etc. It relates to who we are as people. It's our
personality, if you please. While there are numerous functions of the
soul, three primary ones are the mind, emotion, and will. It is how we
think, how we feel, and what we decide. While our body is the
"chassis", our "soul" is the motor. We relate primarily to society --
the culture. Our soul is people oriented.
Finally, we also have a spirit. The human spirit is the
incorporeal part of man. In fact, the Bible tells us that the human
spirit itself is actually the very breath of God and was breathed into
man at his creation. Nothing is more mysterious about you and me than
this fact -- we are first and foremost spiritual beings, just as surely
as "God is Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit
and in truth." (Jn 4:23-24). Again, man's spirit has numerous
functions, but the most significant seem to be the intuition (ability to
instinctively know or sense something), the conscience (ability to
arbitrarily know right from wrong), and communion or worship (the
capacity and necessity to worship). All of this -- the real us -- is
designed specifically to be God oriented.
+ Man's Perfection -- Epitomized!
Just think about this! It is mind-blowing! We have a Perfect God, Who
created a Perfect World in which He planted a Perfect Garden, into which
He placed a Perfect Human, -- and gave him a Perfect Job! When I think
of this, it's not too hard for me to accept a Perfect God creating a
Perfect World and creating a Perfect Garden.
But, -- a Perfect Man???? That's a very different challenge. It speaks
loudly of the tragedy of the fall of man, which I will briefly -- very
briefly -- address shortly. In the meantime, consider what mankind must
have been like right after Adam and Eve were created. Genesis one and
two give us some hints into just how perfect they must have been. Even
chapter three sheds some light indirectly on that perfection. Take some
time to read all three chapters in one sitting -- like reading a novel.
> Physical Perfection: According to scripture, we know
that mankind was the epitome of physical prowess. They were healthy
eating all kinds of healthy food found in the garden, they were
reproductively proficient (some scholars believe Adam and Eve may have
had a many as 40 to 50 sons and daughters), they lived long lives, and
they worked hard in tilling soil and raising crops. Their strength was
great, their longevity was stunning, and their endurance was nearly
limitless -- some say actually limitless before sin messed things up.
> Mental Perfection: Imagine what mankind's mind and
intellectual capabilities must have been like before the fall. Did they
have such a thing as a subconscious mind that would hold painful
memories in hiding? Or, were they people of full and total mental
knowledge? Science in the field of mental and emotional schools have
said for centuries that man probably uses no more than 3% to 5% of his
total capabilities. What happened to the other 95% to 97%? What kind
of a mind would it take to create and then apply all the names of the
multitude of animal, plant, and mineral types? Only a perfect genius
could do that. Many scientists who have researched the subject believe
that there is enough energy stored up in man's mind that only 5% of the
available energy could meet the power grid needs of New York City for
over a year. I don't know if that's true, but I believe mankind was
mentally perfect. His mentality was limitless -- that is, until that
tree!
> Moral Perfection: Prior to the fall I believe
scripture reveals that man was morally pure. Genesis tells us, for
example, that Adam and Eve were naked, but not embarrassed or ashamed.
Nor were they sexually aroused. Their moral state was one of complete
innocence. They had no thought of stealing, . . . or lying, . . or
accusing, . . . or shaming each other. They had a perfect love that
most likely mirrored Paul's description in I Cor 13. There was no
thievery, jealousy, covetousness, or any such thing. It was moral
perfection in every way -- something that neither you nor I can get our
minds around.
> Emotional Perfection: Similarly, Adam and Eve knew
emotional perfection because there is no evidence of irritations,
jealousy, mistrust, bickering, or any such emotional reaction toward
God, each other, or the responsibilities they had to tend God's
creation. It seems that the primary emotions they expressed toward Him
and toward each other was perfect trust and uninhibited love.
> Volitional Perfection: In the same way, the
implication is that the decisions they made and the actions they carried
out were motivated by pure love and worship. God had given them
complete freedom to live their lives fully and perfectly with only one
responsibility -- take care of His creation -- and one restriction --
don't eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
> Spiritual Perfection: From the latter part of Genesis
three there is an indication as to what their spiritual walk with God
must have been like. It's a bit of a "back door" approach because it
happened after Adam and Eve had sinned, but the indication is that prior
to the fall, they walked daily with God along the pathways in the
Garden, and did so without shame, a sense of inferiority, or any degree
of fear of any kind. Somehow they knew exactly what it was like to walk
with the Lord in spiritual perfection.
The great old Hymn, "In The Garden" beautifully describes what it must
have been like for Adam and Eve as they fellowshiped together with God.
During my college days as a vocal music major, one of my assigned
"classics" was the song, "My God and I" which also painted a similar
picture.
My God and I go in the field together
We walk and talk as good friends should and do
We clasp our hands, our voices ring with laughter
My God and I walk through the meadow’s hue
He tells me of the years that went before me
When heavenly plans were made for me to be
When all was but a dream of dim reflection
To come to life, earth's verdant glory see
My God and I will go for aye together
We'll walk and talk just as good friends do
This earth will pass, and with it common trifles
But God and I will go unendingly
So we find one of the most idyllic utopic scenes for a perfect God to
place His perfect human in a perfect place with perfect parameters for
living. You could never have asked for anything better. And in that
setting He revealed His "way of life" -- "way of living" -- for
mankind. It is here we find . . .
THE BEGINNING OF THE ANCIENT PATHS: --
Everything about God and His creation could be summed up in one word --
Perfection. The "heavens and earth" were perfect. His "Ancient Paths"
were perfect. His plan for man was perfect. His greatest pinnacle of
all His creation -- mankind -- was perfect. Everything was as utopic as
it could have ever been. Perfection was the characteristic of all that
God was, all that He is, and all that He created.
God gave man only two primary responsibilities -- 1) to watch over, rule
over, and care for His creation, and 2) to love, walk in fellowship
with, and obey Him. It was that simple.
> "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might." -- Deut 6:5
> "He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the
Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk
humbly with your God?" -- Mic 6:8
> "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." -- Eph 2:10
Every stream has a headwater. Every highway has a “0” mile marker. Every trail has a trailhead – the point of
beginning. So it is with the “Ancient Paths” to which God referred
twice to Jeremiah for His chosen people, Israel, and its
capital, Jerusalem (Jer 6:16; 18:15-16).
The trailhead of God’s "Ancient Paths" was located in the
Garden of Eden – a perfect place with two trees -- The Tree of Life,
living in God’s presence, glory,
fellowship, and provision available exclusively to an
extraordinary human being who was full & perfect health, perfect
knowledge, and perfect innocence; -- and the Tree of the Knowledge of
Good and Evil, from which man was forbidden to partake. After all, why
would a
perfect human in a perfect environment in union with a perfect
God need THAT???
In God’s utopic glory and blessing, man didn’t know
“good” and “evil”. He didn’t need to know – everything was
perfect. Even Adam and Eve were perfect. So, for Adam and Eve it was
entirely unnecessary for them to know. "Good" an "evil" were not a part
of man's world. Everything was perfection and innocence -- and perfect
innocence. Where innocence prevails, good and evil -- and the
difference between the two -- do not exist.
God was the only one Who needed to know "good" and "evil" -- and He did. The Genesis account show us. It reads, . . .
"Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"— " (Gen 3:23).
What profound truths are found in that verse! God is eternal and
sovereign -- eternally sovereign, and sovereignly eternal! God is
perfect and holy and righteous -- perfectly holy and perfectly
righteous. As perfectly holy and perfectly righteous, He knows with
perfect knowledge both "good" and "evil", and knows the ramifications
and implications of both the the infinitesimal degree. He knows that,
since man now knows both, it would be absolutely catastrophic for them
to know "the way" (the "pathway" -- the "Ancient Pathway" to the Tree of
Life by which they were to live and thrive.
On the other hand, once one ate of The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and
Evil, man would also know the difference – and would be accountable.
"So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of
Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every
direction to guard the way to the tree of life." (Gen 3:24).
How interesting that God would do that! Hindsight shows us that God did
have a "way" in which, on which, and by which Adam and Eve were to
live. It was nothing less than His "Ancient Pathway" established long
ago -- aeons ago -- long before the earth had even been shaped into its
sphere, and of which Jeremiah would centuries later declare God's
judgment against Rebellious Israel. So, that "crossroad" described in
Jeremiah emanated centuries earlier from . . .
THAT FIRST FORK IN THE ANCIENT PATHS: -- Gen 3:1-4 (Read.)
If man had just stayed away from that Tree, things would have
been different -- so very different! For all of humanity thence forth.
The Bible doesn't tell us whether or not there was a path to that tree
or not, but I doubt that there was, because it takes "traffic" to create
a path or a way to something. So there was nothing on God's part that
would have tempted Adam and Eve to even consider the tree -- other than
to remember they were to never, under any circumstance, eat from it.
Often in our minds we assume that the First Couple knew where the tree
was, and that the devil (in the shape of a snake or giant lizard adorned
in great and colorful beauty) was curled around the lower limbs and
trunk of the tree. After all, that's how all the artists have portrayed
him.
However, there is no biblical indication that Adam and Eve were anywhere
near The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil -- nor that the serpent
was, for that matter. All we know is that Eve was approached by the
serpent -- perhaps at the tree, or perhaps miles away -- and it was he
who brought up the subject in the first place. He was a sinister being.
"Now the serpent was more crafty
than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made." (Gen 3:1)
And, from his own experience perhaps aeons ago, the serpent knew what it
meant to keep some of God's glory for himself, what it meant to
initiate his own commands over his constituents, and what it meant to
revel in his own prideful beauty (see Isa 14:12-14 and Ezek 28:11-19).
His hatred for man was surpassed only by his hatred for God. After all,
God had gravely offended him with that final humiliation of giving to
mere man what at one time only he had enjoyed -- ruling over the world
as "ruler of this world" (Jn 12:31; 16:11) and "prince of the powers of the air" (Eph 2:2; I Jn 5:19; etc.).
The idea that God would give to mere man what had once belonged to Satan
was more than he could take. I'm sure he shuddered, cringed, and raged
when David referred to man as being "created lower than the angels" (Psalm 8:5). It was so profound that even centuries later the writer of Hebrews quoted David (Heb 2:7). David penned, . . .
"2. O LORD, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth,
Who have displayed Your splendor above the heavens! 2. From the mouth
of infants and nursing babes You have established strength Because of
Your adversaries, To make the enemy and the revengeful cease.
"3 When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained; 4. What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him?
"5 Yet You have made him a little lower than the angels, And You
crown him with glory and majesty! 6. You make him to rule over the
works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, 7. All
sheep and oxen, And also the beasts of the field, 8. The birds of the
heavens and the fish of the sea, Whatever passes through the paths of
the seas.
"9 O LORD, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth!"
Look at verses five through eight above! Isn't that almost exactly what God instructed Adam and Eve to do???
"26. '. . . . let them rule over the fish of the sea and over
the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and
over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.' 27. God
created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male
and female He created them. 28. God blessed them; and God said to them,
'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth'." (Gen 1:26-28).
"15. Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. 16. The LORD God commanded the man, saying, 'From any tree of the garden you may eat freely;
17. but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not
eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die'." (Gen 2:15-17).
TAKING THE WRONG PATH AT THE CROSSROADS:
"1. Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field
which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, 'Indeed, has God
said, "You shall not eat from any tree of the garden"?'
"2 The woman said to the serpent, 'From the fruit of the trees of
the garden we may eat; 3. but from the fruit of the tree which is in
the middle of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat from it or
touch it, or you will die.'
"4 The serpent said to the woman, 'You surely will not die! 5. For
God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and
you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
"6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it
was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one
wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband
with her, and he ate." (Gen 3:1-6)
The Pathway to Disobedience seldom -- if ever -- begins with
outright rebellion and disobedience . . . but it almost always ends
there. Look at the tactics the Devil used on Adam and Eve. Both the
Devil and the flesh are too subtle to come outright and say, "Hey!
Let's go disobey God!" It is far more subtle and deceptive. Look at
how the serpent approached Eve.
First, he "came in the back door" and baited her to Question God – “. . . did God REALLY Say…?”
Mark it down, my friend -- you will never misunderstand what God says
to you unless you first begin to question it. You question either
whether or not He meant it, or you question whether or not you
understood it correctly.
But, regardless of why, once you question God, you are vulnerale to Become confused – “. . . neither eat nor touch.” Read
the text closely, and you find that this IS what God said, but it is
also NOT what He said. Eve added the "touch" element to God's command.
You can almost hear a bit of resentment or irritation in her response,
as if she was a little upset with God that He didn't want them eating
from the Tree -- so she added her own little barb at God by saying, ". .
. and He won't even let us TOUCH it!"
The bottom line, though, is that when we question God and our understanding becomes confused, that will inevitably Cause doubt because the Devil will take advantage of your confusion by disagreeing with God right in front of you: -- “. . . you surely won’t die! . . .” God
is deceiving you! The amazing thing is that he can sometimes use the
facts as he lies. It was true that they actually would become like God
in the sense of "knowing good and evil", but that was exactly what God
did Not want to happen to them. He intended them to live in perfection
and innocence. Satan will leave no measure unspent to get you to doubt
God.
And, when Eve doubted what God said -- or doubted His motive for saying it -- Eve Was Deceived. “. . . when she saw . . .” Read what she saw:
". . . good for food. . ." (to eat) -- "Do",
". . . a delight to the eyes . . ." (to possess) -- "Have"
". . . desirable to make one wise. . ." -- "Be"!
In case you think you'll never be deceived, just remember that the same
tactic Satan used on Adam and Eve is the same one he used on Jesus in
the wilderness temptation (see Luke 4), what John warned us of about the
world system (I Jn 2:15-17) and the same as Paul warned us could be
satisfied only through Jesus Christ (Acts 17:28). "So don't get cocky!!!"
The final step in man's fall was when Eve Made fatal choices – “. . . she took . . . ate . . . and gave . . . and he ate.”
It was at this point in history -- at the very first crossroad
on God's "ancient paths" -- that mankind abandoned them for other ways,
other "byways" that get you nowhere and Never -- NEVER -- lead you into
God's presence to enjoy God's purposes for you. Instead, they were
dramatically deceived -- so utterly deceived that they found themselves
naked, ashamed, guilty, isolated, and separated from God.
"7. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew
that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made
themselves loin coverings. 8. They heard the sound of the LORD
God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his
wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of
the garden." (Gen 37-8).
“There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end
is the way of death.” (Prov 14:12)
They blew it -- and they knew it.
THE FINAL TRAGEDY -- BYWAYS TO DESTRUCTION:
Whenever one violates one of God's laws -- whether intentional,
unintentional, or uninformed -- there are automatic consequences. It is
true with natural laws -- which are actually God's laws as well, only
applied to the natural world -- cultural laws, and spiritual laws. So,
when Adam and Eve faced the crossroads contradicting God's "ancient
path", the end result was to be expected.
22. “Then the LORD God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he
might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of
life, and eat, and live forever’— 23. therefore the LORD
God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to cultivate the
ground from which he was taken. 24. So He drove the man
out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed
the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every
direction to guard the way to the tree of life." (See Gen 3:14-24)
Even before God banished Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden, He had already pronounced consequences upon the human family:
> A lifelong battle with the "goods" and the "evils" of life for which they are now accountable
> Intensified labor pains in childbirth
> Combative relationships between husband and wife struggling for control
> Deteriorating soil quality
> A lifetime of hard work
> A losing battle with weeds
> Constant struggle in taking care of the family
> Inevitable death
> Ultimate total decomposition of the body
All of this is spelled out in Genesis 3:15-19. But, the worst thing of
all that happened to Adam and Eve -- they were evicted from their
perfect world, put into a world in rebellion -- and forever separated
from God. The flaming sword blocked their way back -- and they had no
weapon, skill, or plan that could take them back.
But God did -- and it would be revealed in time . . . one day . . . out there . . . in the future.
Now don't just treat this with a typical, "Yes, I already know all of that" mindset.
Take some time to do a little research of each of those curses of
death. Each one of them have universal ramifications throughout
humanity. Think of how these consequences have impacted mankind --
socially, economically, morally, religiously, politically.
And they all are being played out this very day in our own country and
around the world. I contend that every lie, every murder, every sexual
aberration, every war, every dishonest political maneuver, -- every form
of evil -- can be directly linked to what Adam and Eve did in the
Garden when they chose to rebel and live independently from God and, in
doing so, God's "Ancient Paths" alongside of which grew the Tree of
Life.
FINALLY: From that day forward mankind has suffered the
consequences of abandoning he “Ancient Paths” and following “byways”
that all ultimately end in failure and loss. The loss was great, as I
noted in my last letter -- the loss of a relationship with God, the lost
of rest, the lost of peace, . . .
And, in spite of God's plea for man's return and in spite of His warnings, mankind in general has repeated Israel's retort -- "We will not walk in it. . . . We will not listen!" (Jer 6:16-17)
So, still today then, we should not be shocked to hear God again say, "Hear,
O earth: behold, I am bringing disaster on this people, The fruit of
their plans, because they have not listened to My words, and as for My
law, they have rejected it also." (Jer 6:19) And again, "Like an
east wind I will scatter them Before the enemy; I will show them My
back and not My face In the day of their calamity." (Jer 18:17).
When a nation -- or a person -- "sows to the wind", the reaping
will be like a mighty divine whirlwind, often destroying everything in
its path as it separates out the wheat from the chaff. (Hos 8:7). It
should not surprise us in the least. And, we should not fear it when it
does. Even in the middle of conflict and storms, we -- if we choose
the "Ancient Paths" -- we will still know God's rest -- God's peace --
God's safety -- and God's presence.
In His Bond, By His Grace, and for His Kingdom,
Bob Tolliver -- Romans 1:11
"Now these were more
noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they
received the word with great eagerness,
examining the Scriptures daily to see
whether these things were so." -- Dr.
Luke (Acts 17:11)
"A fire kept burning on the
hearthstone of my heart, and I took up the burden of the
day with fresh courage and hope." --
Charles F. McKoy
Life Unlimited Ministries
LUMglobal
Copyright June, 2022
"If Jesus had preached the
same message that many ministers preach today, He would
never have been crucified." -- Leonard
Ravenhill
"The time will come when
instead of shepherds feeding the sheep, the Church will
have clowns entertaining the goats." --
Charles H. Spurgeon
If this letter has blessed you, feel free to forward it or
copy from it, with proper credits, to any and all you wish.
Please do NOT hit reply to this letter. This is an automated
unmanned system.
If you want to write Bob, send directly to lifeunlimited@pobox.com.
Replying to "Shoulder To Shoulder" mailer gets you nowhere.
--
To subscribe, send ANY message to: shoulders-subscribe@welovegod.org>
To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: shoulders-unsubscribe@welovegod.org