Sermon Tips from the text of 1 Peter 5:1-4

  Sermon Tips for Expository Preachers, Listeners, and Students

Bible Reading Reflection from Amos 1-4

 [Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (JAC) as a daily reading update (reflection) from each chapter of the Bible]

𝔸𝕄𝕆𝕊 𝟙:𝟙

"The words of Amos, who was among the 𝕤𝕙𝕖𝕡𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕕𝕤 of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake”

𝙰𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕 𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚛𝚜:

There are literary giants like Isaiah the prophet; the Psalmist the poet; Solomon, the philosopher; Daniel, the prime minister; etc.

There is also a room for ordinary people like Amos the shepherd. This guy is a farmer (Amos 7:14).

Shepherds are the lowest job in biblical times. They are considered sinners because of their lack of 'church attendance' (Temple), tending their sheep. [However, I am sure Amos was a committed and faithful 'church member'.]

The point is God chose a man from such a profession to be His mouthpiece! Indeed, God has the habit of choosing the lowest things of this world to show the greatness of His mercy and grace, and to shame the vainglory of the world. He even chose a prostitute Rahab to be the ancestress of Jesus. No matter where we are, God can work wonders in our life.

BTW, it does not mean that all professions are pleasing to God: clearly, prostitution is not; skipping the temple is not; it just means God's grace is vast. It reaches even the lowest hell. It reaches even the greatest sinner (Saul the persecutor). It reaches even the greatest sin!

As we read the book of Amos, may Amos the farmer, Amos the animal-man gives us hope even in his proclamation of judgment!

 

𝔸𝕄𝕆𝕊 𝟚:𝟜

"Thus says the LORD: ‘For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they have rejected the law of the LORD, and have not kept his statutes, but their lies have led them astray, those after which their fathers walked.’"

In chapter 1, we see God's judgment about to come to the neighboring nations of Judah and Israel. In chapter 2, Judah and Israel were not spared either.

In fact, the indictment against Judah was not about wickedness as described against other nations. The problem with Judah was that they had forsaken the law of God and had walked away.

Sin is not only doing "bad things,” but it's also not cherishing God. In fact, all sins can trace back to not cherishing God. We love our sins more than God. For example, we love to sleep more in the morning than to study God's word. 😬

 

𝔸𝕄𝕆𝕊 𝟛:𝟚

"You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities."

Wow! What a contrast!

If God loves only the Israelites, it will be very appropriate to say, "I will forgive all your sins and punish others." However, because of love, God will punish His love. True love corrects people, disciplines people, and exhorts people. It's because of this love, God punishes! And of course, His punishment is not to damn us, but to save us.

 

𝔸𝕄𝕆𝕊 𝟜:𝟙

"Hear this word, you 𝕔𝕠𝕨𝕤 of Bashan who are on the mountain of Samaria, Who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, Who say to your husbands, ‘Bring now, that we may drink!’"

I have a friend who had a grudge against his pastor because one day the pastor visited his hostel and rebuked them for unhygienic and disorderly living. Hmm! Boys' Hostel!! He compared their hostel to a pigsty and their living to pigs. My friend thought the pastor should not use such words or make such comparisons.

This world is interesting. Even Christians are interesting. They know exactly what the pastors should do and shouldn't do, but they don't know even how to make their beds properly.

Two-thirds of my life I've lived so far has been as a church member. I have heard and seen all kinds of criticisms, accusations, and slander against pastors. Evidently, they haven't read their Bible.

Amos is calling these women, cows. Hmm! Feminists won't be happy! Paul called those Christian who insisted on circumcision, dogs. John the Baptist called those who seek to know his theology, Vipers. Jesus went further and called those religious leaders, snakes, brood of Vipers, children of Satan, Blind, etc. Maybe, I should also start enriching my vocabulary! Just kidding. 😂

Another anecdote:

A few years ago, while I happened to be in my village going to church for the Sunday Evening service, we heard the news that 2 ZUF cadres (underground) had molested 2 girls from a distant village. My village pastor was furious and said that such people should be apprehended and chopped into pieces.

Wow! Such a violent word. I thought it was very unbecoming of a pastor. I was offended. I don't even remember what he preached that evening. Then a few years later, I read from 1 Samuel 15, that the prophet Samuel chopped Agag into pieces. Hmm! My pastor was definitely biblical in his thought. Definitely, he wasn't saying they should be butchered into pieces.  I am sure he was connecting the banality of sin and evil to that of Agag. Was he wrong to say that? I thought so. I was very offended. But now, I think he wasn't wrong. Actually, he was being biblical.

What about a person like me who got offended and didn't remember the rest of his sermon? Well, that's not his fault. Even Jesus had offended a lot of people. In fact, sometimes, Jesus refused to simplify His teachings. In John 6, He was telling them to eat His flesh and drink His blood. Many (not some) went away from Jesus. Jesus didn't back down. He even offered to His 12 chosen people to go away if they wanted.

But the 12 did the right thing. They asked what Jesus meant. I should have gone to my village pastor and asked him what he meant instead of getting offended and walking away like those many disciples of John 6.

In this world, we can't live to please everyone. We won't be pleased with everyone either.

Bible Reading Reflection from Joel 1-3

[Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (JAC) as a daily reading update (reflection) from each chapter of the Bible] 

𝕁𝕆𝔼𝕃 𝟙:𝟙𝟡

“𝕋𝕠 𝕐𝕠𝕦, 𝕆 𝕐𝔸ℍ𝕎𝔼ℍ, 𝕀 𝕔𝕣𝕪; For fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness And the flame has burned up all the trees of the field.”

Joel starts his book with a prophecy of judgment, and a call to repentance. And he ends this chapter with a cry for salvation.

𝕋𝕙𝕣𝕖𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝕀 𝕠𝕓𝕤𝕖𝕣𝕧𝕖:

1. He practices what he preaches.

2. He is by far one of the holiest men of his generation. He should be one of the last people to repent, however, he is the first one who cries out for God. What a demonstration!

3. Many people curse God for adversity. In the book of Revelation, John saw people in tribulation don’t repent rather they curse God. However, Joel, like any true believer cries out to God for deliverance. So must we!

This line in Hebrew reads like this, and I love to memorize it in the original language: "𝓔𝓵𝓪𝓲𝓴𝓱𝓪 𝓨𝓪𝓱𝔀𝓮𝓱 𝓮𝓴𝓻𝓪𝓱*

 

𝕁𝕆𝔼𝕃 𝟚:𝟙𝟙, 𝟚𝟙, 𝟚𝟚

v11. "The day of the Lord is indeed great and very awesome, And who can endure it?"

v21. "Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad, For the Lord has done great things."

v22. “Do not fear, beasts of the field, For the pastures of the wilderness have turned green . . .”

Joel described the terrible day of the Lord which no one can endure, and yet after a call to repentance, he described the salvation of the Lord in a most comforting way, "Do not fear." And interestingly, it's repeated 2 times, and they are to the lands and animals!

There's grace, mercy, and deliverance for those who seek God. So sure, is His judgment that we may wonder whether God will ever be nice again, but so sure is His deliverance too.

A few years ago, my dad was upset with all of us for not becoming officers by now. He went away from our family gathering. The next morning, he was still upset too. And I was wondering whether this would go on forever? "Will he ever be happy again?

Also, in the last 7 years (2012-2019), I was heavily molded by God, and I wondered for 7 years what a shattered dream could turn about, and what the joy of life on this side of heaven looked like? Well, it took 7 years of drought, but in the 8th year, there was a refreshing rain of joy in a realization that "God is God, and that I am not a god."

 

𝕁𝕆𝔼𝕃 𝟛:𝟛

"They have cast lots for My people, Have given a boy as payment for a harlot, And sold a girl for wine, that they may drink."

Have you ever seen such a wicked thing in your community or village? My village looks like heaven on earth when I see the sins recorded in the Bible. As of now, I feel like we, all are like angels compared to Abraham the polygamous; David the polygamous, adulterer, and murderer.

Well! BTW, before we congratulate ourselves, let's remember that no matter what the smallest sin and the biggest sin are, they all are the same in the eyes of God. And if we are so furious against "big" sins such as this, may we be furious at our own tiny sin too!

And if we wonder how could God let the homosexual revolution gain momentum in this world, let's remember God is not surprised, He has dealt with it far worse than this before. Nothing is indeed new, especially sin!

Bible Reading Reflection from Hosea 8-14

[Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (JAC) as a daily reading update (reflection) from each chapter of the Bible] 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟠:𝟟

For they sow the wind

And they reap the whirlwind.

The standing grain has no heads;

It yields no grain.

Should it yield, strangers would swallow it up.

I love the way how it is described. Rich in pictures. Biblical authors are excellent writers.

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟡:𝟛

"They will not remain in the LORD'S land, But Ephraim will return to Egypt, And in Assyria they will eat unclean food."

The punishment proclaimed over Israel is harsh and terrible. Yet they deserved such punishment. And if God has chosen Israel from among all people, has given them the laws, has shown them the wonders, has protected them by His Spirit, and still, they have failed to live a life pleasing to God, and God has unleashed upon them a worthy punishment, what hope do the Gentiles have?

And now to reflect personally, I agree with Spurgeon that God should send me to hell for all my failings. And I agree with Paul Washer that it will still be the mercy of God even if God strikes me dead today. And yet I agree with Apostle Paul too, that if we are in Christ, who is there to condemn us anymore?

And as I think of this world, surely God will judge this wicked world, if he had judged His own people by destroying their lives, their children, their fields, their homes, and their freedom by taking them to Assyria as captives!

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟙𝟘:𝟙𝟚

"Sow with a view to righteousness, Reap in accordance with kindness; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the LORD Until He comes to rain righteousness on you."

In the midst of this announcement of judgment, Hosea also proclaimed what Ephraim (the Israelites) must do.

God does not just punish us. There's mercy in His judgment. There's a way of escape in times of His judgment. Those who obey God will be delivered even in the midst of judgment.

That's why even here we see the righteous commands of God. So, no matter what God will do with the wicked world (India or America), we will be delivered if we seek Him, and of course, His deliverance could be something different than we imagine!

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟙𝟙:𝟠

 "How can I give you up, O Ephraim?

 How can I surrender you, O Israel?

 How can I make you like Admah?

 How can I treat you like Zeboiim?

 My heart is turned over within Me,

 All My compassions are kindled."

God's compassion for His people is expressed in human emotion (anthropomorphism)! God loves His people more than we can ever imagine. And well, it's not because His people are lovely. He loves because He is love. No matter who and what I was, am, or will become, God loves me more than anybody could ever love me.

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟙𝟚:𝟞

"Therefore, return to your God, Observe kindness and justice, And wait for your God continually."

A repentant person will be a righteous person. He will turn away from his sins, wickedness, wrongdoings, and will start doing the right things, and his life will be a demonstration of love for others. And this is possible because his trust, his joy, his strength comes from God. He relies on God every day!

We are called not only to go to heaven after we die. We are called to be abundant in righteous deeds, especially because unrighteousness and oppression are all around us. May I be more kind to the Auto-drivers, Vendor-walas! May I be gentler when I talk to customer care!

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟙𝟛:𝟟-𝟠

"So I will be like a lion to them; Like a leopard I will lie in wait by the wayside. I will encounter them like a bear robbed of her cubs, And I will tear open their chests; There I will also devour them like a lioness, As a wild beast would tear them."

Wow! In NT, Peter compared the evil to a lion looking to devour. Here, God is more than a lion, but also a leopard, bear, lioness, and wild beast! 5 metaphors of fearsome animals. To destroy His own people.

God is love, but He is also Wrathful. Since He loves good and holiness, He has to hate wickedness and sin. I have to hate what God hates and love what He loves!

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟙𝟜:𝟜-𝟝

"I will heal their apostasy, I will love them freely, For My anger has turned away from them. I will be like the dew to Israel; He will blossom like the lily, And he will take root like the cedars of Lebanon."

It's so satisfying to see the end of Hosea in this way. It's better than a fairy tale "and they lived happily ever after," because God will heal their apostasy.

That's the similar promise/assurance, Jesus gave to Peter on the shore of Galilee. Peter denied Christ 3 times. And Christ entrusted His flock under him three times. Could Peter fulfill that? He denied before, would he deny again, especially since Jesus would no longer be physically around? Jesus predicted the nature of his death, revealing, that Peter, from now will not deny Him anymore, will not apostatize, but will remain faithful to the point of death.

God, healing the apostasy of Israel! This God of Israel, God of Peter is my God. "He will hold me fast!"

Listen to this song: https://youtu.be/BP0dtwXWQ_M

Bible Reading Reflection from Hosea 1-7

[Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (JAC) as a daily reading update (reflection) from each chapter of the Bible] 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟙

The life of a prophet is not easy. He was told to marry a woman, most probably not of his preference, for he must be expecting to marry a godly girl.

Then he was told to call his children awful names:

1. Jezreel — judgment on Israel (v4)

2. Lo-ruhamah — no more compassion (v6) 

3. Lo-Ammi — not my people anymore (v9)

   # When we read the prophets, we will see God's righteous judgment against sin, whether it be committed by His people or the Gentiles.

   # Also, we will see God's mercy even amid His serious judgment that whoever turns back to Him will be delivered.

   # Also, we will see God's faithfulness that He has preserved remnants (the faithful) because He remains committed to preserving and fulfilling His promises.

Judgment. Mercy. Faithfulness. Even the names of the children of Hosea reveal these three characters of God vividly!

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟚

I see the beauty of the book of Hosea. He first proclaimed judgment upon Israel, and then when we, readers began to ponder what has happened to God's promise of preserving His people, Hosea proclaimed Salvation of God.

In Chapter 1, verse 1-9 is the rejection of Israel. Then v10-2:1 is the restoration.

Then chapter 2, v1-13 is the judgment again, v14-23 is the salvation.

I think this is true in our life too. God chastises us in sin and blesses us in righteousness. He will lead us into trouble for our sins, but He, because of His faithfulness, will rescue us again.

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟛:𝟝

"Afterward the sons of Israel will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king; and they will come trembling to the Lord and to His goodness in the last days."

Hosea, a prophet of God would have divorced his wife just as Joseph tried to divorce Mary, the mother of Jesus. And once divorced, he cannot marry her again. She shouldn't be accepted by her former husband again according to Mosaic Law.

However, God has the habit of doing illegal things. He can because it is His rule! 😂 I remember God telling Abraham to sacrifice his son on fire! 😱 What an evil demand! Huh!!?? But we realize that's how He is going to kill His Son Jesus for us.

Hey, btw, He doesn't break His rules. Otherwise, He can't be trusted. It looks like He is changing His rules here and there from our not-that-smart perspective, but it's not.

So, coming back to divorce, God divorced Israel, and then, He took her back. That's illegal of God according to Mosaic Law. But again, Law is for man, God is above the Law!

And even here, God is telling Hosea to bring his wife back!

Now, I am not a prophet. I have no special revelation. I am not a special man. I am just an ordinary Christian; therefore, I cannot do as Hosea did. Hosea's life is a special episode because God wants to communicate His love for us through his life.

I thought of sharing from verse 5, but if I do, it will be too long.😬

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟜:𝟞

"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children."

Why is our heart troubled? Why is our life full of trouble? Why are we unable to navigate issues in our life? Why are we not prospering? Why aren't we joyful? Why aren't we living like a tree planted by the streams of water?

Answer: Lack of Knowledge, the Knowledge of God, the Scriptures, the Bible.

Albert Mohler said that our generation is the most illiterate generation in church history when it comes to Bible knowledge!

Psalm 1 tells us that a blessed person is the one who seeks to know God for he will be like a tree firmly planted by the streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers. (Ps.1:3)

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟝

v6. "They will go with their flocks and herds To seek the LORD, but they will not find Him; He has withdrawn from them."

Wow! God had withdrawn from them!

Did not the Scriptures say that whoever seeks God will find Him? But here they didn't find Him. In fact, God ran away!

Well, we see the answer in v15

"I will go away and return to My place Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My face; In their affliction they will earnestly seek Me."

They were seeking, but not earnestly. God seeks earnest seekers. God wanted them to acknowledge their sins. In other words, "confession" of sins (1John 1:9).

Did not the Scriptures say that God saved us while we were His enemies? How comes He is rejecting His people now?

Well, we see the answer in v2, it's chastisement. [Chastisement in the Christian understanding is not a punishment that will be suffered in hell, but a punishment in our present life. And of course, no matter how one may suffer in this present life, it cannot be compared to the suffering of hell.]

Is this the Old Testament God? Is Jesus of the New Testament different?

Well, Jesus withdrew Himself many times from the crowd. They sought Him. He wasn't found. When they finally found Him, Jesus rebuked them for their superficial seeking. They wanted physical foods, not Him. We may read that in John 6 especially v15, 24-27.

It’s interesting to see the teachings of the Bible are unchanging: both in OT and NT.

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟞:𝟙

"Come, let us return to the LORD. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bandage us."

Hosea was urging the Israelites to come back to God in the first-person plural pronoun "us". He identified himself with the sinning Israelites just as Jesus identified Himself with sinful humanity.

How we ought to urge one another, to encourage one another, to revive one another, to stir up one another in godly things, in repentance, and in all good works!

 

ℍ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝔸 𝟟:𝟙𝟚, 𝟚

𝕧𝟙𝟚. "When they go, I will spread My net over them; I will bring them down like the birds of the sky. I will chastise them in accordance with the proclamation to their assembly."

𝕧𝟚. "And they do not consider in their hearts That I remember all their wickedness. Now their deeds are all around them; They are before My face."

God is unchanging. He is faithful. What He says He fulfills. That's true too: to save and to damn; to reward and to punish!

In this chapter, I see how God remembers each and every sin wicked people have committed. And like fishing, He will spread a net to catch them. They will not escape God’s net. As a man sow so shall he reaps.

I thank God for the gift of Jesus Christ. God doesn't remember (to find fault) my sins anymore. Christ has absorbed each and every sin of mine. That's as far as eternal judgment (Last Day Judgment) is concerned.

However, God disciplines His children just as a loving father disciplines his child. So, every now and then, when I wilfully sin, He chastises me. His chastisement is bitter at the moment, but it's for my own good. And there's the peace and joy of God when I submit to His chastisement.

Chastisement against the believers and punishment against the unbelievers is different! BTW, God chastises unbelievers too.