How To Stand Your Ground. Part [12] 12/06/2023 (Evening thought)

Exodus 32:1 And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what is become of him.

Therefore, the time is now and the place is here in which we must never be ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation, and if we are really convicted of this truth in our hearts, we are to stand up and be counted as such, on the job, at the grocery, at the gym, or wherever we may be, so that satan wouldn’t observe what he once did in Peter and Aaron.

Aaron was a man of pleasant and gentle mien, both characteristics that are essential to a high priest. In this instance, the multitude clamored for something that both Aaron and themselves knew were wrong, and being vested with authority as high priest, the onus was on him, to take the lead in tamping down, that which was clearly out of line with God’s will. But, like as it was with Peter, the devil observed that Aaron was pliable, for he loved, and often preferred the easier way of doing things.

And rather than come out of his tents, with his guns blazing with a definite no, he begins to reason and negotiate with them. As Christians, we are to maintain decorum, and the truth need not spoken in fits of anger. Yet, when it comes time to stand up for right there must be no negotiation whatsoever, for if, and when persons do enter into negotiations with satan, he will absolutely win the day every time.

Matthew 10:16 Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

May God add His blessing to the study of His word. “Good night” and God bless!

How To Stand Your Ground. Part [11] 12/05/2023 (Morning thought)

Matthew 26:71 And when he was gone out into the porch, another maid saw him, and said unto them that were there, This fellow was also with Jesus of Nazareth. 72 And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man.

Just as Jesus was tempted three times in the desert, just so Peter is being tempted three times, but this third time, the devil is going for the jugular, not by merely asking Peter a question, but by confirming in public, what Peter really prefers to keep quiet. The devil then goes to the sound room, and tells the sound engineer to turn up the volume to its loudest so that everyone could hear.

Multiple rounds were fired by satan, because he is a relentless foe, and therefore, if we intend to live and conquer as Jesus did, we must be reconciled to the fact that we might be the target of multiple assaults from the enemy of souls, some by flattery and some by heckling, among other devices.

Jesus suffered his first three bouts in the wilderness, back-to-back, as did Job, and many other heroes of faith who have gone before, but in all and through it all Jesus stood His ground albeit courteously, quietly and very firmly. The love of praise, and the love of popularity will in many cases prove the ruin of some, who have never become accustomed to swimming upstream with Christ. One day soon it will be very unpopular to be a Christian, let alone a Seventh Day Adventist, in the true meaning of the name.

Matthew 26:73 And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said to Peter, certainly, you are one of them; for thy speech betrays thee. 74 Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew. 75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.

May The Lord add His blessing to the study of His word. God bless!