I Almost Didn't Go to Church Last Night - Apples of Gold - November 18, 2010 -vi-

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Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 18, 2010

“I Almost Didn’t Go to Church Last Night”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

I almost didn’t go to church last night.

Yesterday I had a dentist appointment and I did not leave there singing “Joy to the World.”

He had to replace an old filling in my very back tooth and I think he had to climb in to get to it. 

He started by sticking a needle in the back of my mouth a few times, poke-poke-poke, “Come on!”

Then I heard this.  I’m not saying it happened.  I’m just saying I heard it.  He ejected the cartridge from the needle.  Like a bullet casing, it clattered on the floor in slow motion, and he reloaded for another round – poke-poke-poke, “Come…on!”

Then he left me alone to get numb, but I never really did.  He said it’s hard to get that part of the mouth numb sometimes, so he reloaded and riddled my mouth with more needle holes.

It never did get very numb, but he fired up the drill anyway and oh…my…goodness. 

“Did that hurt?” 

“Uh-huh.”

“You don’t like me very much right now, do you?”

At one point my legs involuntarily dropped to the side of the chair as if my body was demanding, “It’s time to go!”

Well he finished the job and everything was cool, but my mouth felt like it had taken a beating.  It would hardly open, and I didn’t eat all day. 

Then it was time to go to church.  I really didn’t feel like going, but then a little voice in my head said, “Don’t be pathetic.”

So I walked into the church and the music was already playing.  My son-in-law was leading, and he was singing one of my favorite songs.

I was immediately glad to be there.  The song quickly drew me into worship, and I felt humbled and grateful to God.

Then the pastor announced that a couple of young people would be baptized.  The youth pastor introduced them and asked them to say something to the congregation.

The young lady spoke first and said that God had been speaking to her, saying things like, “There’s a better way.  There’s a better life.  There’s a better way to live.  There’s a happier way to live.”  So she gave her life to Christ, was baptized last night, and her final words were, “I want to publicly declare that I want to have life in Him.”

Then it was the young man’s turn, and he was quite shy about talking in front of so many people.  The youth pastor even asked if he wanted to turn his back to the audience, but no, he was willing to go ahead, and he pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket.  He had actually taken time to write down what he wanted to say.

Early in his life he had toyed with alcohol and drugs.  Then his parents got divorced, and he said, “I just hit an all time low and started drinking every single time I got depressed, to the point where I started thinking, ‘If I wasn’t here, what would people do?  Nobody would care if I just went away.’”

Then he had surgery and started taking Percocet.  And he was smoking marijuana and drinking even more.  But then – now listen to this – he said he would go to church.  And he noticed that when he went to church he would feel better about himself. 

Then some young people at the church started a Bible study at his high school, and through that, and through those young men helping him, he was able to stop smoking, stop drinking, and even stop cursing.  And now he was ready to be baptized and publicly declare his faith in Jesus Christ.

A wave of excitement ran over the audience and people applauded after hearing these powerful testimonies of young lives transformed by Christ.

And I pondered those closing words of the young woman:  “I want to have life in Him.”

It reminds me of something Jesus said to His enemies in John 5:40.  He said, “But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.”

Jesus is offering life to all who will come to Him.  Those young people discovered that, and now they are experiencing that life, and the hope and the peace and the direction. 

And Jesus offers that to everyone.  Everyone can come to Him for life.  You can come to him for life.

As I stood there, hearing those testimonies and watching those young people be baptized, I thought, “This is what it’s all about.  It’s about lives being transformed by the real and living Jesus Christ.”

And to think . . . I almost didn’t go to church last night.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

 

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

The Slippery Subject of the Soul - Apples of Gold - November 17, 2010 -vi-

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Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 17, 2010

“The Slippery Subject of the Soul”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

There are a lot of spine chilling moments in the Bible, and this is one of them.

It’s found in the book of Revelation, chapter six.  The Apostle John was given a glimpse into heaven and here is what he wrote. 

“And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held.”

I can’t imagine what John actually saw, but he said he saw “souls,” the souls of dead people.  Their bodies were dead, anyway, but their souls seemed very much alive.

In Revelation 20:4 John wrote this:  “…and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.”

It’s a futuristic vision that is ghastly to imagine; people standing for Christ and being beheaded.  They are killed, but John sees them alive; and what does he see?  Their souls.  Their bodies were dead but their souls lived on, and they lived and reigned with Christ.

What exactly is a soul?  Well it’s apparently similar to a person, according to John’s limited description.  It’s similar, but not the same.

Listen carefully to what Jesus said in Matthew 10:28.  He said, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.  Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

That’s Jesus talking about the body and the soul as if they are two distinct entities.  And He indicates that people can kill your body, but they cannot kill your soul.

That lines up with John’s vision, because John saw souls alive in heaven, the souls of people whose bodies had been killed.

So men can kill the body, but they cannot kill the soul.

What does the dictionary say about the word “soul”?  Well first of all, let me say that the definition of soul is somewhat slippery.  It means different things to different people, making it hard to get a grasp on.  But listen closely to this first definition listed in the dictionary.  The soul is “an entity which is regarded as being the immortal or spiritual part of the person and, though having no physical or material reality, is credited with the functions of thinking and willing, and hence determining all behavior.”

According to that, your soul is your “decision maker.”  You might call it your “mind;” not your brain, not the physical organ, but your mind.

Now let’s look at something Paul wrote in First Thessalonians 5:23.  It says, “May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

He added a third dimension – a spirit.  According to that, the soul is something different from the body and the spirit.  Well the body is easy enough to figure out, but what are the soul and the spirit?

Who knows?  It could be that the spirit is the God-breathed part of us that animates us to begin with, then the soul is the unique, immortal part of us that makes decisions, responds to God, feels emotions, things like that.

Think about that difference between soul and spirit as you read Hebrews 4:12 which says, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

Now what on earth does it mean that the word of God divides soul and spirit?  I don’t know, but it could be that the word of God reveals the difference between the two, between the God part inside of us that contains our highest attributes, and the “us” part inside of us that contains our sin-tarnished souls.

As you have probably gathered by now, I am no expert on the soul.  I tried to find an expert on the soul, and I came across a lot of verbiage, but nothing that sounded air tight.

But here are some things we can glean about the soul from the Bible.

Jesus put a very high price tag on our soul when He said this in Matthew 16:26, “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?

It’s a rhetorical question, and the point is that if you gain the whole world but lose your soul, there would be no profit.  Your soul is worth more than the whole world.

Well how can you lose your soul if your soul is you?  I will go back to our soul being our decision maker.  If that’s the case, then losing our soul could mean losing our power to make our own decisions, such as becoming a slave to sin, for example. 

Micah 6:7 includes this phrase:  “the sin of my soul.”

First Peter 2:11 says “to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.”

Sin has a way of polluting our soul.  The Scriptures mention other maladies that effect the soul, including grief (Psalm 31:9), bitterness (Job 7:11), thirst (Psalm 42:1), and weariness (Proverbs 25:25).

But there is a lot of good news for the soul!  In Matthew 11:29 Jesus said that when we come to Him we will find rest for our souls.  First Peter 2:25 refers to Jesus as the “Shepherd and Overseer” of our souls.

In Christ we have hope, which Hebrews 6:19 calls “an anchor for the soul.”

Many verses talk about souls being “saved,” including First Peter 1:9 which says, “…for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

Psalm 19:7 says that the law of the Lord converts the soul.

The Old Testament contains a laundry list of things we are to do with all of our soul, including seeking the Lord, turning to the Lord, loving the Lord, serving the Lord, walking with Him, obeying Him and observing His decrees.

The Bible says that souls rejoice (Psalm 35:9), and they praise the Lord (Psalm 103:1).

And Third John 1:2 talks about souls prospering.

As I said, the soul is a slippery subject, hard to get a grip on. 

I sure don’t have all the answers, and I don’t know anyone who does.

Except the Lord Himself – the Shepherd of our souls.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

 
A little note on how I researched the Scriptures for this article.  I stuck with verses that included the word soul in several translations of the verse.  For example, I did not include Ezekiel 18:20 which says in the KJV “The soul that sinneth it shall die,” but which says the word “person” instead of “soul” in other translations.  I figured it was challenging enough to track down specific information about the soul without wading into the translational differences! 

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

The Owner Is Returning - Apples of Gold - November 15, 2010 -vi-

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Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 15, 2010

“The Owner Is Returning”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

The old joke goes like this.

A man is talking to God and says, “Lord, the Bible says that, to You a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like a day.  Is that true?”

“Yes.”

“Okay so, to You, how much is a million dollars?”

God says, “About one cent.”

“Really?  So can I have . . . a penny?”

“Sure, just a minute.”

That’s just a joke, but it’s based on scripture.  Second Peter 3:8 says, “…beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”

Why did Peter write that?  It was his response to those who would scoff and say, “Where is the promise of His coming?” 

He said the Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness, but He is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. (v. 9)

So the promise of His coming has not been fulfilled, and now it’s been a couple thousand years...which is really only a couple of days, according to Peter.

Now read what Jesus said in Mark 13.  “At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.  And He will send His angels and gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.”

And what was the timetable for that?

Jesus said in Mark 13:32, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

Remember the book “88 Reasons Why the Rapture will be in 1988”?  I guess that guy didn’t know either.

So the day is coming, but no one knows when except the Father. 

And what are we to do until then?

“Be on guard!  Be alert!”  “Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.”  That’s what Jesus said.

Then He told this little story to illustrate His point.  He said, “It’s like a man going away:  he leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.  Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back.”

Maybe it’s hard to grasp the whole “Son of man coming in the clouds” thing, but it’s easy to picture some servants left in charge of an estate while the owner leaves on a trip.  Human nature being what it is, the servants will keep things up for a while, then relax their standards as the owner delays his return.

But did you notice the one important person in the story?  I’m talking about the guy who was told to keep watch at the door.

So picture it.  The owner leaves and the servants are in charge, carrying out their assignments.  Let’s say one of them was in charge of landscaping.  He’s out there trimming the bushes and it’s hot and, frankly, he’s getting tired of trimming bushes.  He hasn’t seen the owner in forever, so what’s the difference? 

Then he looks up at the house and sees the servant standing at the door.  He’s looking down the road toward the horizon.  He is watching for the owner’s return. 

Sure, the owner didn’t come back yesterday or the day before, but that doesn’t mean he won’t come back today.  And how is he going to want those bushes to look when he finally returns?  He’s going to want them to look great.

So back to the landscaper.  He’s weary in his work, but then he sees the servant watching for the owner’s return.  It reminds him that the day really is coming.  It could be today, so he gets back to work.

“But Doug, Jesus only said that to His disciples.”

Okay, look at the last verse of Mark 13.  Jesus said, “What I say to you, I say to everyone:  ‘Watch!’”

So the question is, are you watching today? 

It’s easy not to, because it seems like He’s never coming back.  But He said He would, and to God a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like a day, so even though it’s been a long time, it’s really only been a couple of days. 

Peter said the day of the Lord will come “as a thief in the night.”  In light of that, he said we should conduct ourselves with holiness and godliness, and be found by the Lord in peace, without spot and blameless.

And finally, Second Peter 3:17 says, “…since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness…but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

So just because His promise is delayed, do not fall from your steadfastness.

We must continue each day to watch and be ready . . . for the Owner is returning.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

 

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Is God Testing You? - Apples of Gold - November 12, 2010 -vi-

Click here to listen to the radio version.   

Click here to search the AOG archives.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 12, 2010

“Is God Testing You?”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Jesus was sitting on the side of a mountain.

Philip was there with Him, along with the other disciples…and about 5,000 other guys.

And Jesus had a plan.  No one else knew it, but He had a plan.  He was going to do a miracle, what we now know as the “feeding of the five thousand.”

But at this point, sitting on the mountain, it was only in His head.  He knew what He was going to do, but no one else did.

So there were all those people, and Jesus turned to Philip and said, “Where shall we buy bread that these may eat?”

Can you see the look on Philip’s face?  He was presented with a problem, a big problem. 

Have you ever planned a large party, such as a wedding reception?  How many people did you try to feed?  It probably wasn’t close to 5,000, but even feeding five hundred is a big deal.  Or as I would call it, a big pain.

So there’s Philip, being forced to answer the impossible question of “where shall we buy bread that these may eat?”

But now listen to this, and this I found exciting.  We are about to get a glimpse into the mind of Jesus Christ. 

So often when Jesus said or did things, the Bible doesn’t tell us why.  But this time it does. 

Look at John 6:6.  After Jesus posed that question to Philip, the Bible says, “But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.”

That almost sounds wily, doesn’t it – Jesus posing a problem that He already plans to solve.  So why did he do it?  “To test him...”

Have you ever thought that certain problems in your own life might be a test?

First Thessalonians 2:4 indicates that God tests our hearts.

Proverbs 7:3 says, “The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests the heart.”

It doesn’t say how He tests us, but the Bible has many stories of God testing people.

One of the most famous is when God told Abraham to sacrifice his son.  He was faced with a terrible problem, but it was simply God testing him.

Joseph knew he would be a ruler someday, but Psalm 105 says that, until that time came, the Lord tested him.

Another famous story is the testing of Job.  God even included Satan in that testing.

God tested the people of Israel many times.  In Exodus 16, when God sent the manna, He told Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you.  And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not.”

In Exodus 20, when God was thundering on the mountain, Moses told the people, “Do not fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.”

Remember how the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness for 40 years?  Deuteronomy 8 says that God did that to humble and test them.

Deuteronomy 13 makes it sound like God allowed false prophets to speak to the people in order to test them.  Verse three says, “…for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”

This makes me think of my own life, and if God is testing me in some way.

In Judges two God said that he would use the pagan nations to test Israel.  Verse 22 says, “…that through them I may test Israel, whether they will keep the ways of the Lord, to walk in them …or not.”

In Isaiah 48:10 God said to Israel, “Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.” 

Wow.  Tested in the furnace of affliction.

First Peter 1:7 says our faith will be “tested by fire.”

And don’t miss the placing of these two words together, “test” and “refine.”  There are found together again in Jeremiah 9:7, “…this is what the Lord Almighty says:  ‘See, I will refine and test them, for what else can I do because of the sin of my people.”

Here is a little phrase you can remember, “Testing produces.”  I get that from James 1:3 which says, “…the testing of your faith produces patience.”

Second Chronicles 32 includes this interesting phrase, talking about King Hezekiah:  “…God withdrew from him, in order to test him, that He might know all that was in his heart.”

I don’t know how that played out in Hezekiah’s life, but what an interesting thing to say.  God withdrew from him in order to test him.

Psalm 11 says, “The Lord is in His holy temple, the Lord’s throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.  The Lord tests the righteous…”

Psalm 7:9 says that God tests the hearts and minds.

In First Chronicles 29 King David said, “I know…my God…that You test the heart…”

I know this may not sound all that pleasant, but I believe that God tests us.  Maybe it comes in the form of difficult questions or challenges.  Maybe it comes in little tests of obedience, or maybe it comes in the furnace of affliction. 

And when He tests us, I believe He is looking for faith, for how much we trust Him, how much we obey Him and fear Him, and how much we love Him.

I can’t say if or how God might be testing you today, but I believe that He does test us, and I believe that, just like He did with Philip, He also has a plan in mind when He does.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

 

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

The Lord Is - Apples of Gold - November 10, 2010 -vi-

Click here to listen to the radio version.   

Click here to search the AOG archives.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 10, 2010

“The Lord Is”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

A lot of people say a lot of things about the Lord. 

We cast all sorts of attributes onto Him, and if we aren’t careful, we will fashion Him into our own image.

So just who is the Lord, really?

I decided to search the scriptures for this one phrase, “The Lord is.”

So…just sit back and listen as I share with you what I found.  According to the Bible, this is what the Lord is.

The Lord is God.  (Joshua 22:34)

He is the true God, the living God. (Jeremiah 10:10)

The Lord is God, and there is no other.  (Deuteronomy 4:35)

The Lord is God in heaven above and on earth below. (Deuteronomy 4:39)

The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. (Isaiah 40:28)

The Lord our God, the Lord is one.  (Deuteronomy 6:4)

The Lord is the Spirit. (Second Corinthians 3:17)

The Lord is exalted. (Psalm 138:6)

The Lord is high above all nations, and His glory above the heavens. (Psalm 113:4)

The Lord is great and greatly to be praised.  (First Chronicles 16:25)

The Lord is great in power.  (Nahum 1:3)

The Lord is good, His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations. (Psalm 34:8)

The Lord is trustworthy. (Psalm 145:13)

The Lord is peace.  (Judges 6:24)

The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed.  (Psalm 9:9)

The Lord is gracious and full of compassion.  (Psalm 103:8, Psalm 111:4)

The Lord is slow to anger and abundant in mercy.  (Numbers 14:18)

The Lord is a God of knowledge.  (First Samuel 2:3)

The Lord is upright.  (Psalm 92:15)

The Lord is against those who do evil. (First Peter 3:12)

He is a warrior, a God of recompense.  (Exodus 15:3, Jeremiah 51:56)

He is a jealous and avenging God. (Nahum 1:2, First Thessalonians 4:6)

The Lord is righteous and just, faithful in all He does and holy in all His works.  (Second Chronicles 12:6, Psalm 11:7, Psalm 145:17)

The Lord is my shepherd. (Psalm 23:1)

He is my helper. (Hebrews 13:6)

He is my banner and my portion. (Exodus 17:15, Lamentations 3:24)

The Lord is my defense. (Psalm 94:22)

The Lord is my strength and my song.  He has become my salvation. (Exodus 15:2)

The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, my strength, my shield and my high tower. (Second Samuel 22:2, Psalm 18:2)

The Lord is my light and my salvation, the strength of life. (Psalm 27:1)

The Lord is our judge, our lawgiver and our king.  (Isaiah 33:22)

The Lord is our righteousness. (Jeremiah 33:16)

The Lord is our God. (Second Chronicles 13:10)

He is King for ever and ever. (Psalm 10:16)

The Lord is His name. (Jeremiah 33:2, Amos 5:8)


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

 

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Vocatus Atque Non Vocatus, Deus Aderit - Apples of Gold - November 9, 2010 -vi-

Click here to listen to the radio version.   

Click here to search the AOG archives.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 9, 2010

“Vocatus Atque Non Vocatus, Deus Aderit”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Vocatus atque non vocatus, Deus aderit.

Jacob went out from Beersheba toward Haran, came to a certain place, and settled down for the night.  He used a stone for a pillow, and went to sleep.

Vocatus atque non vocatus, Deus aderit.

In his sleep, Jacob saw a ladder reaching all the way to heaven, with the angels of God ascending and descending upon it.  Above it stood the Lord, who spoke many wonderful promises to Jacob. 

Then Jacob woke up, and what did he say?  According to Genesis 28:16 he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”

Then he set up the stone as a marker, called the place Bethel, and went on his way.

So did Jacob leave the Lord behind at Bethel? 

Let’s rewind to one of the promises God spoke to Jacob.  In verse 15 He said, “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go…”

I wonder if that really soaked into Jacob, because afterward he declared, “How awesome is this place!  This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”

I wonder if Jacob took 10 paces toward Haran, turned around and said, “God is there, back there at that stone.”

So was God back at the stone? 

Yes. 

Was God with Jacob as he walked?

Yes.

What was the difference?

Jacob’s awareness. 

The Lord was present before Jacob went to sleep, then afterward he declared, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”

I think that is true for most of us most of the time.  Wherever we are, the Lord is there; we just aren’t aware of it.

Vocatus atque non vocatus, Deus aderit.

For many years I set aside 30 minutes for prayer in the morning.  I stood on the promise of James 4:8, that if I drew near to God, He would draw near to me. 

My experience went like this.  I found that it took about 10 minutes for me to have a sense that God was in the place. 

So what was going on?  Did it take 10 minutes for God to arrive? 

No.  God was there to begin with.  He was there before I got there, because He is everywhere.  And He came with me, because His Holy Spirit dwells inside of me.

So what was the 10 minutes all about?  I’m not sure, but here is what I think.  I think it took about that long for me to become aware of His presence.  I don’t know why, and I realize it’s all getting a bit strange at this point, but I’m simply sharing with you my experience.

Vocatus atque non vocatus, Deus aderit.

The Apostle Paul delivered a speech to the intellectuals in Athens, as recorded in Acts 17.  He said, “God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.”  He said that people should “seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him…”

And then He delivered this powerful line:  “…He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being…”

Jeremiah 23 says, “‘Am I a God near at hand,’ says the Lord, ‘And not a God afar off?  Can anyone hide himself in secret places, so I shall not see him?’ says the Lord.  ‘Do I not fill heaven and earth?’ says the Lord.”

God fills heaven and earth.  In Him we live and move and have our being.  We may not be aware of His presence, but He is present, anywhere we go.

David wrote in Psalm 139, “Where can I go from Your Spirit?  Or where can I flee from Your presence?  If I ascend into heaven, You are there.  If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.  If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me…”

God is here. 

We may not be aware of it.  He may seem far away.  There may be an opaque membrane that clouds our awareness somehow, but the Lord is present.

So our job is to remove the membrane, to become aware of His presence.

How?

By seeking Him.

First Chronicles 28:9 uses this phrase, “…if thou seek Him, He will be found of thee…”

Hebrews 11:6 says that God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Deuteronomy 4:29 indicates that if we seek the Lord, we shall find Him, if we seek Him with all of our heart and soul.

Not that He is lost, or out there far away somewhere.  He fills heaven and earth.  In Him we live and move and have our being.

Wherever you are, God is there.

Bidden or unbidden, God is present.

Vocatus atque non vocatus, Deus aderit.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

 
“Vocatus atque non vocatus, Deus aderit” is simply the Latin for “Bidden or unbidden, God is present.”

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Pornography Numbs Your Conscience - Apples of Gold - November 8, 2010 -vi-

Click here to listen to the radio version.   

Click here to search the AOG archives.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 8, 2010

“Pornography Numbs Your Conscience”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

“That my daughters would marry young men who will walk with God, who will love them very much, and who are not poisoned by pornography.”

That was my prayer request after reading Mark 11:24 where Jesus said, “Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

Jesus said several things like that in the Bible, and when I come across them I usually stop and ask, “If I could have any prayer answered right now, what would it be?” 

And when I read that today, this was my prayer:  “that my daughters would marry young men who will walk with God, who will love them very much, and who are not poisoned by pornography.”

That last bit may strike you as odd, as if I should have more important things to ask for in future son-in-laws, such as a great education or a wealthy family. 

But my eyes were really opened to the pervasiveness and the poisonousness of pornography as I reviewed two new books last week.  As I read both the stories and the scientific studies I thought, “Wait a minute.  What happens if one of my daughters marries a guy who has a problem with pornography?”

Yes, they are likely to marry Christian young men who are active in church, but according to these books, that is no guarantee that they aren’t using pornography. 

Craig Gross, in his new book “Eyes of Integrity,” said pornography is a 57 billion dollar a year industry, which is more than professional football, baseball and basketball combined.  Fifty-seven billion dollars – and that doesn’t include all the free pornography being passed around through websites, e-mails, cell phones and flash drives.  The influence of pornography is so pervasive that Gross said we now live in a “pornified world.”

Then he went on to describe what he calls the “pornified church.”  He cited several studies that show that even though Christians, especially pastors, tend to condemn pornography, they often end up using it themselves, even to the point of addiction and the destruction of their ministries.

He talked about the case of pastor Ted Haggard, and how it appeared that before his public downfall, he was using pornography.  Gross said, “Ted Haggard is human and makes mistakes just like the rest of us.  But I would guess that, long before his public fall, his conscience had been numbed through porn and this provided the perfect breeding ground for the chaos that ensued.”

One particular part of that quote stood out to me:  “his conscience had been numbed through porn.”  That’s the way pornography can work.  The more you use it, the more it numbs your conscience. 

A numb conscience is not a good thing to have, not for any Christian, and especially not for Christian leaders.  And yet I believe what Gross said, that pornography can numb your conscience.

Do I want my daughters to marry young men with a numb conscience?  Do I want a man with a numb conscience to raise my grandchildren?  I certainly do not.  And that’s why I’m making it a matter of prayer.

Now I’m thinking of the children’s song, “Oh be careful little eyes what you see.”  That’s never been more relevant than today with such easy access to even the most despicable pornography.

One good thing is that our nation still considers child pornography a crime.  It all used to be a crime, if you can imagine that.  But now only what we call the worst, the porn involving children, will get you arrested. 

Now that is the lowest of the low, right?  We should arrest people who get their jollies from the exploitation and molestation of children. 

They are arrested and publicly humiliated, but guess what?  They do it anyway.  It shows up in the paper all the time.  Here in Tallahassee a local college baseball pitcher was just arrested on child porn charges.  So even though it’s despicable, illegal and brings public shame, people do it anyway.

Why?  I go back to what Craig Gross said, that pornography numbs the conscience.  When your conscience is numb, it makes you capable of doing things you never thought you would do.

Today’s Boston Globe tells the story of a Catholic priest who is accused of stealing over 80 thousand dollars from his church.  Why did he do it?  He needed it to pay for his porn addiction.

Now I can’t precisely connect cause and effect because who knows why people do the things they do, but I can easily see a connection between using pornography, numbing your conscience, and stealing from your own church.

So if you are a Christian and you use pornography and you don’t think it’s that bad, consider this.  Maybe you can’t feel what you should be feeling because your conscience has been anesthetized. 

The Bible uses this phrase in First Timothy 4:2.  It says your conscience can be “seared,” as with a hot iron.

The good news is that there is hope.  God can forgive you and deliver you, and there are steps you can take to eliminate this poison from your life.  You’ll find detailed information in these two books, “Eyes of Integrity” by Craig Gross, and “Closing the Window:  Steps to Living Porn Free” by Tim Chester.

One trend Gross highlighted in his book is the growing use of pornography by women, and he said that a stumbling block for many people at the beginning is their own curiosity.  It begins with curiosity, he said, but then there is a progression.  It will take you further than you want to go, and it does so by numbing your conscience each step of the way.

If we live in a pornified world with a pornified church, then I’m very concerned about the young men my daughters will marry someday. 

And that’s why this was my prayer for them today – that they will marry young men who will walk with God, who will love them very much, and who are not poisoned by pornography.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 
***Here is one helpful website you should check out if you or someone you know may be tempted by pornography:  http://www.covenanteyes.com/ “

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Does Your Service Show Up on the Radar? - Apples of Gold - November 4, 2010 -vi-

Click here to listen to the radio version.   

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Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 4, 2010

“Does Your Service Show Up on the Radar?”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

I know your service.

That’s what Jesus said to the church in Thyatira, in Revelation 2:19.  He said, “I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.”

That’s a long list of things Jesus said He was aware of, so let’s focus on just one, their service.  When you compact that sentence you end up with Jesus saying this, “I know…your service…”

Jesus was aware of their service, and that’s a good thing.  And then I ask myself this question.  Is Jesus aware of my service?

Do I have any service for Jesus to be aware of?  Do I have enough service that He might bring it up?  In Jesus’ eyes, would I be known for my service?

First of all, what is service?  The dictionary has a mile-long definition, so I’ll boil it down to this one word:  assistance.  When we serve, we provide assistance.  We help.

Serving, in a sense, puts us below whoever we are serving.  Their desires come before our desires. 

If you go to a restaurant, the waiter serves you by catering to your desires, not his own.  I’m sure it’s not his personal desire to bring you another clean fork because you dropped yours on the floor, but since he is there to serve you, your desires come before his.

To take a look at our service we need to check and see how we are doing at assisting and helping, at putting others’ desires before our own.

Of course at the top of the list is serving God. 

In Matthew 4 Jesus was tempted by Satan.  In verse 10 Jesus finally told him, “Away from me, Satan!  For it is written:  ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’”

Other scriptures tell us to serve the Lord.  Romans 12:11 says, “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.”

Hebrews 9:14 says that Jesus’ blood cleanses our consciences so that we can serve the living God.

So what does it mean to serve God?  Does it mean He needs help?

Not exactly.  Paul said in Acts 17:25 that God is not served by human hands, “as if He needed anything.  Rather, He Himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.”

But we are His assistants on the earth, and in that way, we serve Him. 

Jesus had a lot to say about service.  For example, there was a time when His disciples were, believe it or not, arguing over which of them was the greatest.  It prompted Jesus to deliver this powerful short sermon on service.  Here it is. 

He said, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called ‘benefactors.’  But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves.  For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves?  Is it not he who sits at the table?  Yet I am among you as One who serves.”

Jesus set the example for service.  Mark 10:45 says that “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”

“Well Doug, if we are to serve God and Him only, where does serving people come in?”

Here’s how that works.  Part of serving God is serving people.  Now listen to this twist on it.  Both Ephesians and Colossians talk about serving people, and doing it as if we were serving the Lord, not the people. 

I take that to mean that we don’t look at the people or their reactions or whether they look like the type we feel like serving, or whatever.  We serve people, yes, but we are serving them as a service to the Lord. 

Did you follow that?  Ephesians 6:7 says, “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people.”

Colossians 3:23 says, “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.”

So we serve God, and we serve people.  Galatians 5:13 gives us the proper attitude for this service.  It says to “serve one another humbly in love.”

There are many different ways to serve, almost as many different ways as there are people, so look around.  How can you assist someone?  Who can you give a leg up to and give them a boost?  Who can you help?

We need to be people of service, and do it to a degree that we show up on the radar like the church in Thyatira.

Someday I’d like to hear these same fulfilling words that Jesus said to them.

I know your service.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Beware the Way of Jeroboam - Apples of Gold - November 3, 2010 -vi-

Click here to listen to the radio version.   

Click here to search the AOG archives.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 3, 2010

“Beware the Way of Jeroboam”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

What did King Jeroboam do that was so bad?

His name comes up often in the Old Testament, and with about as much love as the name Hitler.

So what did he do that so thoroughly destroyed his legacy?

This is a guy that First Kings 11:28 calls “a mighty man of valor.”  There are only a half dozen men in all the Bible who get that title, and Jeroboam is one of them.

He worked for King Solomon, and Solomon saw that Jeroboam was “industrious,” so he put him in charge of his labor force.

Then a most amazing thing happened.  Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem one day and was met by a prophet who told him that God was going to split Solomon’s kingdom and give most of it to Jeroboam. 

Why?  Because Solomon and the people had disobeyed God and worshiped idols.

Through the prophet, the Lord said to Jeroboam, “You shall reign over all your heart desires, and you shall be king over Israel.” 

God made even greater promises to Jeroboam, with a condition – if he walked in the Lord’s ways just like King David.

So Jeroboam, the mighty man of valor, and vice-president of labor under King Solomon, now had a powerful prophecy of kingship from God Himself.

Had the future ever looked brighter?  Had a pathway ever been so beautifully paved for someone as it was for Jeroboam?  All he had to do was walk in God’s ways and the world was his oyster.

Well Solomon found out something and decided to kill Jeroboam, so he fled to Egypt, and stayed there until Solomon died.

Then Solomon’s son Rehoboam became king, decided to crack the whip on the people, and they rebelled.  And who did they turn to?  Jeroboam.

Next thing you know, Jeroboam was king, just as the prophet foretold.  Now all he had to do was walk in the ways of the Lord and God had promised him a dynasty.

But then he started getting paranoid.  “How am I going to hold on to this power?  How am I going to keep these people on my side?”

He started worrying that when the people returned to Jerusalem to worship at Solomon’s temple, they would change their mind about him and return to Rehoboam.

Now stop and think for a second.  It was prophesied that Jeroboam would be king at a time when there was no way he would ever be king.  God told him it would happen, and it did happen.  That should have been a big faith builder.

But Jeroboam got jittery and concocted a scheme.  To keep the people from returning to worship in Jerusalem, he created his own places of worship.  And for some dumb reason, he didn’t even have them worship God.  He created two golden calves instead and proclaimed, “Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt!”

He put one calf in Bethel and one in Dan and told the people to go worship.  He created his own feast, his own priests and his own sacrifices.  He was making stuff up, and the people did it!

That led to a big showdown with another prophet.  Jeroboam was at Bethel, offering incense to his made-up god, when the prophet showed up with a word from the real God.  Jeroboam said, “Arrest him!” but while his hand was stretched out toward the prophet, it withered; and the idol altar split in half just as the prophet said. 

How many more signs do you need?

But Jeroboam never got the point.  He never returned to the Lord.  Other judgments came upon him, but he never returned.  He left the idols set up at Bethel and Dan, and the people continued to worship them.

And now look at this phrase in First Kings 14:16.  Judgment fell on the nation “because of the sins of Jeroboam, who sinned and who made Israel sin.”

Jeroboam died and his son Nadab took over and the Bible says, “He did evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the way of his father, and in his sin by which he had made Israel sin.”

That was a big deal…making Israel sin.  And king after king did it, walking in the ways of Jeroboam in which he had made Israel sin.  There was Baasha, and Zimri, and Omri, and Ahab and Ahaziah and Jehoram and even Jehu, who destroyed other idols, but inexplicably left the golden calves.

Kings came and kings went, but they continued to walk in the ways of Jeroboam until the people were finally taken captive to the land of Assyria.

When you read about the northern kingdom of Israel, you’ll find that Jeroboam’s sin was brought up throughout the nation’s history.  So what was the great evil that Jeroboam was guilty of?

It wasn’t just that he sinned, though that was bad.  It was something else, mentioned repeatedly in the Bible. 

And it’s something we better not be doing ourselves.

It’s something we need to watch out for in our own lives and the lives of those around us.

It’s something I see people doing, and I am grieved.

And it’s something that is sure to bring harsher judgment and condemnation, just as it brought to Jeroboam, and here it is. 

He caused others to sin.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

I Wouldn't Call Him the Man Upstairs - Apples of Gold - November 2, 2010 -vi-

Click here to listen to the radio version.   

Click here to search the AOG archives.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for November 2, 2010

“I Wouldn’t Call Him the Man Upstairs”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Have you ever heard someone refer to God as “The Man Upstairs”?

It is usually said with deference, I’ll give them that, but I wouldn’t say it. 

First of all, I don’t want to diminish heaven by merely calling it “upstairs.”  In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus indicated that we shouldn’t take heaven lightly when He said, “Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne…”

Then He put it into context.  Heaven is God’s throne, and earth, by comparison, is God’s footstool.  That puts heaven exceeding earth as much as a throne exceeds a footstool.

So “upstairs” doesn’t cut it. 

Second of all, I don’t want to diminish God by putting Him on the same plane as Stan “The Man” Musial.  Stan may be The Man, but God is God the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and all mankind.  To refer to Him as a mere man is to diminish Him. 

Listen to this from Psalm 93.  The Lord reigns. He is robed in majesty.  The Lord is robed in majesty and armed with strength.  His throne was established long ago.  He is from all eternity.

Psalm 45:6 says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever…”

Psalm 47 says that God is the King of all the earth.  He reigns over the nations.  God sits on His holy throne.

Psalm 103:19 says, “The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all.”

That is not “the man upstairs.”  That is the King over all, from all eternity, robed in majesty, armed with strength and ruling from His throne in heaven.

In First Kings 22:19 a prophet said, “I saw the Lord sitting on His throne with all the multitudes of heaven standing around Him on His right and on His left.”

The prophet Daniel shared this heavenly view.  “As I looked, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took His seat.  His throne was flaming with fire.  A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before Him.  Thousands upon thousands attended Him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him.”

And guess what?  I’ll bet none of those tens of thousands were calling Him “the man upstairs.”

The prophet Isaiah had an encounter with God.  In Isaiah 6, he saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.  Above it stood seraphim with six wings, crying out to one another, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts.  The whole earth is full of His glory!”  And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.

And what was Isaiah’s response?  Did he say, “Yo, Man Upstairs, wassup!”

I don’t think so.  Actually, he cried out.  Seeing the Lord on His throne caused Isaiah to cry out and say, “Woe to me, I am undone!”

The Apostle John had incredible God-encounters in the book of Revelation, and chapter four takes us right into the throne room of heaven. 

There was a rainbow around the throne, John said, looking like an emerald.  In front of the throne was a sea of glass, like crystal. 

Around the throne were 24 other thrones with 24 elders in white robes and crowns of gold. 

And get this:  blasting out from the throne was lightning, thunder and voices.  And burning before the throne were seven lamps of fire, “which are the seven Spirits of God,” John said.

There were also four astounding creatures around the throne, looking like a lion, a calf, a man, and a flying eagle; and they were constantly saying…what?  “Check it out!  It’s the man upstairs!”

I don’t think so.

Revelation 4:8 records them saying, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!”

And the 24 elders cast their crowns before the throne and said, “You are worthy, O Lord, to receiver glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created.”

Yes, God is the Almighty, and here we are, little specks on earth which He called His footstool.  We are specks of dust on God’s footstool.

And yet!  Through the work of Jesus Christ His Son, we have access to His throne!

Hebrews 4:16 says, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Jesus became our high priest, according to Hebrews 8:1, and He “sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven…”  Ephesians 3:12 says “we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him.”

The temple veil was torn in two from top to bottom, and we have received His Spirit by which we now call out “Abba, Father!” 

Yes, we have familiarity with Almighty God, for He is our Heavenly Father.  We can come boldly before His throne of grace with His own Spirit now dwelling inside us.

We can walk with God and be with God and hear from God, but that in no way leaves room for saying anything that diminishes God or His rightful place in our lives or in the whole universe.

And for that reason, I submit to you that we must be careful when referring to God.

And for that reason, I would not call Him “the man upstairs.”


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 

© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip 
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Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
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