judges 21:25 says in those days there was no king in Israel everyone did what was right in his own eyes in this time in Israel's history child sacrifices were happening people went to Pagan altars and women were treated as slaves one specific story that happened at this time in judges 20 involved a concubine for those who may not know a concubine is a woman who lives with a man but has lower status than his wife or wives the fact that men had concubines is a red flag in and of itself the concubine was traveling with
a levite man with whom she was in a relationship the levite and concubine took a stop to rest in a city as they travel the man got drunk that night with someone in the city the other men of the city took the concubine for themselves and this led to her death while there was a lot that does not make sense in that story it illustrates the wickedness that was happening in Israel at the time they lived in a culture of lawlessness while the laws of God were in place everyone did what was right in their
own eyes we also live in a time of lawlessness sin is everywhere and easy for the taking you turn on your computer and access pornography from wherever you are sitting you can turn on the TV and find people being hateful to each other on every News Channel you can go to the doctor and get any procedure done no matter the impact it will have on the people around you what used to be wrong is now accepted as right while we may not be stuck in sin as deep as the people who were at the time
of the judges lawlessness is still very present sin is cheap and very accessible in this day and age the biblical definition of lawlessness is those who knowingly deliberately and willfully rebel against the laws of God and man now I wonder do most people even realize that lawlessness is like the air that we breathe in this world the Bible talks about lawlessness quite often the truth is that we need laws without laws the world would be in chaos people would be able to live how they want with no consequences people often think that the laws of
God are oppressive however these laws are put in place to protect Humanity these laws were made for our benefit when God tells us not to commit adultery it is actually in our best interest when we commit adultery we ruin our relationships with our spouse and the people around us it is good for us when God commands us to love our neighbor we build good relationships with those around us the problem becomes that people see these rules as restricting we live in a time when these laws are ignored this is what the Bible calls lawlessness an
early example of lawlessness is seen in the Book of Judges so how can the Christian remain on fire while living in such a lawless Society Matthew 24:12 helps us with that it says and because lawlessness will be increased the love of many will grow cold while this verse seems to only state a problem within the problem is the solution to fight lawlessness we must not allow the love in our hearts to grow cold the love in the heart is not talking about General love Lawless people love all the time they love their spouses kids kids
friends and even their Lawless actions the love that Matthew 24:12 points to is the love for God it is as though the more our love for God is fostered and it grows the more we run away from Darkness let's say you're in a house and it's completely dark there's no Reflection from the moon and stars no light posts putting off light and not even a car driving by as soon as you turn on the light in your house you now have a way to see if you open your door the darkness does not come streaming
in the darkness does not have the power to overcome the light however if you are in the dark and you light a match the light overcomes the dark the more light you have the less Darkness there is out there love for God is the light that overshadows the dark desire for lawlessness so what does it look like to stay on fire for God in such a lawless time we spend time with God and allow his love to transform us this begs the question are you spending time with God if you are listening to this this
is a great starting point hearing the word of God taught and preached is excellent however it must be more than that are you spending time seeking him in prayer are you taking time to read the word are you gathering in Christian Community so that the Holy Spirit can shape you through the lives of others if not you're putting your heart at risk of allowing your love to grow cold if you want to fight the lawlessness that can grow in your heart you must allow the light of God's presence to be active in your life every
day have you ever had one of those those days where it's just a fight where everything is a fight your journey to work seems like it's a struggle you get to work and it's hostile that day you go home and something unexpected happens you get an unexpected letter or an unexpected bill then next thing you know there's an unexpected argument with your husband or wife I mean have you ever had a day where everything is a struggle everything is just a fight you try to read the word but that becomes a fight you try to
pray but that proves to be a fight too you put some worship music on but you find that you're still fighting so in this case what do you do well I believe that when it appears to be impossible when life is at its darkest this is when you should call out to the Lord David experiened days like this quite often he must have because all throughout the Psalms there is this theme of calling out to the Lord I mean think about it how many times do we read something along the lines of in my distress
I called upon the Lord to my God I cried for help or you might read something like here oh Lord when I cry aloud be gracious to me and answer me to today dear listener I want to encourage you to call on the Lord the Bible says in Psalm 5 verses 1-2 listen to my words Lord consider my lament Hear My Cry for Help my king and my God for to you I pray in the morning Lord you hear my voice in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly for you are
not a God who is pleased with wickedness with you evil people are not welcome The Arrogant cannot stand in your presence you hate all who do wrong you destroy those who tell lies the bloodthirsty and deceitful you Lord detest but I by your great love can come into your house in reverence I bow down toward your Holy Temple Lead Me Lord in your righteousness because of my enemies make your way straight before me not a word from their mouth can be trusted their heart is filled with malice their throat is an open grave with their
tongues they tell lies declare them guilty oh God let their intrigues be their downfall banish them for their many sins for they have rebelled against you but let all who take refuge in you be glad let them ever sing for Joy spread your protection over them that those who love your name May rejoice in you surely Lord you bless the righteous you surround them with your favor as with a shield saints of God there is a name that holds power there is a name that chases away demonic spirits there's a name that brings light in
the midst of darkness and that name is Jesus Christ acts 2:1 17 says and it shall come to pass in the last days says God that I will pour out of my spirit on All Flesh your sons and your daughters shall prophesy your young men shall see Visions your old men shall dream dreams God has promised to pour out his Spirit on All Flesh in the last days now my prayer to the Lord is that I would not be left out of this outpouring promised in the Bible our hearts cry is that the Lord would
pour out his Spirit upon us I encourage you to make sure your heart is not hardened to the call of Jesus Christ how do you focus on God instead of the obstacles of life it's a valid question right we all have obstacles in this life we will all come face to face with things that will threaten our faith in the Lord we'll come up against opposition that may paralyze even the most courageous hearts with fear but you see over and over again in the Bible we're told not to worry we're told not to fear not
to be dismayed not to be discouraged but instead to look to the Lord as your deliverer look to to the Lord as your rescuer look to the Lord as your help and source of strength the eyes of the Lord are seeking those who are fully committed in him those who are fully trusting in Him and so dear friend when You Face obstacles in life don't put your trust in people Trust in God don't rely on people or things trust in God Almighty because he is seeking for the eyes of the Lord move to and fro
throughout the Earth just looking for the person who is fully committed and confident in him fear is a liar because fear leads you to forget all that God has done one description of fear that I like says fear is false evidence appearing real fear creates a cloud that makes you think you are alone it creates a cloud that makes you blind to God's promises and his word and one way fear manifests itself in today's society is in the prevalence of anxiety disorders stress related diseases and health conditions anxiety and stress are both the children of
fear we fear the future we fear the past we fear things we cannot control and we don't want to admit that most of life is out of our control we are not in control of when we're born or when we die we are reminded of our lack of control when faced with an unwanted to diagnosis or a natural disaster this is why Jesus invites us and commands us not to worry Matthew 6:25 tells us therefore I say to you do not worry about your life what you will eat or what you will drink nor about
your body what you will put on is not life more than food and the body more than clo clothing Jesus goes on to say in verse 33 but seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added to you Jesus is telling us to let go of the illusion that we are the ones in control because while we are not in control God is Sovereign he's always in control while we don't know the future future God is already in the future while we can't let go of the past God
is already in the past working out your present and your future the devil is the father of fear but God is the master of the future the devil is the Warlock of worry but Jesus is the Prince of Peace the devil is the architect of anxiety but the holy spirit is the conduit of comfort the Lord tells us in Isaiah 41: 10 so do not fear for I am with you do not be dismayed for I am your God I will strengthen you and help you I will uphold you with my righteous right hand as
Believers Our Lives should not be dictated by fear but rather our faith Our Lives should not be crippled by worry but rather empowered by encouragement you may be feeling tired and weary from the battles you fought and you may possibly be worried that those same battles will be awaiting you in the morning but allow me to encourage you when you feel outnumbered when your problems look like they are an army marching in your direction do what blind bardus did in Luke 18: 37-38 the Bible says they told him Jesus of Nazareth is passing by he
called out Jesus Son of David have mercy on me and so should you find yourself in need of divine intervention do what this man did and call out to Jesus Christ when you feel cornered and your back is against the wall when the enemy looks to have you surrounded then open your Bible to 2 Kings 6: 17 through 18 and draw strength from the fact that when Elisha's servant became fearful because they were surrounded by their enemies here's what the Bible says about Elisha's response then Elisha prayed and said oh Lord please open his eyes
that he may see so the Lord opened the eyes of the young man and he saw and behold the mountain was full of horses and Chariots of Fire all around Elisha and when the syrians came down against him Elisha prayed to the Lord and said please strike this people with blindness so he struck them with blindness in accordance to the prayer of Elisha so I encourage you to pray that God would open your eyes so that you would firstly not be afraid and secondly when God opens your eyes and you begin to see the hedge
of protection around you and you begin to see the angels that encamp around you you can begin to draw strength from that from the fact that Jesus Christ is on your side when you feel tired and frustrated cry out in prayer cry out in Praise there is only but one God who who can give you rest only Jesus can lead you beside Still Waters only Jesus Christ can renew your strength so don't be discouraged with what you're facing don't be disheartened at the events of today nor should you be preoccupied and worry about what could
come tomorrow instead call unto Jesus Christ today in this very moment whatever situation you face this day God wants you to call on him because his word in Isaiah 65: 24 it says before they call I will answer while they are still speaking I will hear Psalm 50:1 15 in the Bible says call upon me in the day of trouble I will deliver you and you shall glorify me and so I want to encourage you when you look at God's word when you look at his promises he says trust me in your times of trouble
and I'll rescue you he says abide in me and I will restore you he says come to me all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest so let your hope be found in God he has as the perfect solution each and every time so call on him whether it's day or night whether you're in a season of Darkness or light Acts 2 verse 17 says and it shall come to pass in the last days says God that I will pour out of my spirit on All Flesh your sons and your
your daughters shall prophesy your young men shall see Visions your old men shall dream dreams God has promised to pour out his Spirit on All Flesh in the last days now my prayer to the Lord is that I would not be left out of this outpouring promised in the Bible our hearts cry is that the Lord would pour out his Spirit upon us I encourage you to make sure your heart is not hardened to the call of Jesus Christ make sure your schedule is not so busy that you will miss your Divine appointment with God
in your prayer closet blind bamus refused to let Jesus just pass him by in Mark 10:47 the Bible says when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth he began to shout Jesus Son of David have mercy on me we too must have that same attitude we need to be crying out to the Lord don't pass by without pouring out your spirit over my life over my home over my family do not pass me by oh gentle savior we should be yearning for Jesus Christ of Nazareth to have mercy on us
