Third Day

“But while he (Joseph) thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream…” (Matthew 1:20).

The phrase “in a dream” is found six times in Matthew’s Gospel, five times in the narrative of the birth of Jesus (1:20; 2:12,13,19, 22). The dreams revealed God’s loving care and protection for His Son and His servants to aid them from their enemies.

The Lord spoke in dreams to Joseph and to the wise men because they had to act quickly at a time of great danger and there wasn’t time to send a prophet to warn them, even if one had been available. (Israel had not heard from a prophet in four hundred years).

Today, in our decision making process, we have Christian history behind us, the Word of God before us, the Holy Spirit within us, and loving Christians around us. For believers today, we have what we need to make correct and wise decisions. We do not depend upon dreams but upon the resources He has given to us.

Does God still move in dreams? We are told by missionaries that He does. There are difficult people groups who are hard to reach with the gospel. So they dream of Jesus or “a black book” (the Bible) and then seek out Christians to help them understand their dreams. And many of these place their faith in Christ.

Whenever there are sincere people who seek truth, God can reveal His truth to them as He did to Abram in Ur, to Cornelius the Gentile soldier in the Book of Acts, or even to someone in Iraq, Turkey, or Iran. If they would only “touch the edge of his cloak” (Luke 8:43-48), He will graciously respond to the weakest faith.

“And he went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold in it, and them that bought, saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but you have made it a den of thieves” (Luke 19:45-46).

The place was filled to overcapacity. The service at Central Baptist Church in Moscow, Russia was anticipatory. The invitation was given, many stood to come forward, but because of tightness of quarters, they rose together and there from their seat or in the aisle received Christ, repenting of the sin of unbelief.

Billy Graham had preached the Gospel in Moscow in 1984. Now Franklin, Billy’s son, shared the Gospel some thirty years later, a few weeks ago, 2015. The Russian churches who once under communist rule were closed and bulldozed to the ground but now are being rebuilt and reopened. The hearts of many in Russia are being prepared by God for God. Suppressed for nearly a century because of Satan’s doings someone is praying and God is opening doors. This is His work.

We must pray for the nations of the world. God has set our churches in America and other places to pray. But we have become imploded with our own self importance and needs. God has commanded that Christians salt the earth (Matthew 5:13), and it has not been repealed. The local church was created by God, not man, to achieve His purpose in the world. God has entrusted His reputation to ordinary people.

As we read the headlines may we pray for the nations. May we pray for God’s missionaries as they are ambassadors for Christ in foreign lands. And may we never forget that God has called us to meet at His throne of grace together beseeching Him in His purpose for His glory. He is waiting for us to come to Him and ask.

> “But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be
> made manifest, that they are wrought in God.”–John 3:31
>
> Cockroaches run for cover when the light is turned on, while bugs are
> found underneath a log when turned over, and criminals hide under a
> disguise when committing devilish deeds of destruction. They all hide
> under the cover of darkness.
>
> God’s people run to the light. Why? Because God’s people have a desire
> to be clean before God, to flee from the darkness of sin, and to find
> maturity, hope, and encouragement.
>
> A child of God who has been born of God does not live to do good deeds
> to earn their way to heaven, but because they are going to heaven they
> do good deeds. They love as the Lord Jesus, they live as the Lord
> Jesus, and, unlike the Lord Jesus, they repent of known sin, but they
> want to be clean as their Lord.
>
> Anything less is suspect, anything more is sustainably built upon
> because of God’s Word. A lost man sees the light and he can’t take it,
> for he closes his eyes; but a saved man opens his heart for he wants
> God’s heart to open wide in them.

“There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet are not washed from their filthiness”–Proverbs 30:12

We are that generation! That which is wrong is now declared right. The time when right is wrong is now upon us. The avalanche of impurities have reached an all-time low. And it is reaching high into the nostrils of a holy God.

The Apostle Paul said that in the latter days there will be a form of godliness but the power of a changed life will not be evident. Many will come before the Lord saying, “And why call me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will show you to whom it is like” (Luke 6:47).

Rebellion will be the agenda of the day. And truly the rebellion is not against the church but against the God of creation. Man continues to sin without consciousness of a reckoning day, but that day is coming.

What shall we do in the shadow of His coming to receive us unto Himself? We are to live soberly, righteously, feverishly praying, weeping for the lost, and yearning for others to enter into the Kingdom of God. Live in high gear in public and low gear in private with Almighty God.

“God–His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is pure. He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him” (Psalm 18:30).

Are we as Good as the Book?

God’s Word shields a believer with truth. To find refuge from a world of lies is of utmost importance to the believer. His Book has been proven and it is found perfect and true. When we know God’s Book we know the way home.

Who proved it? Jesus did. The Lord Jesus walked in the midst of hostility, confusion, and lethargy. But He found the written Word pure and a refuge from the sweltering heat of a world gone mad. He used it against Satan. He walked with the Book. All Jesus did brought the Book of God out in the open. He stood strong against Pilate. He went to the cross triumphantly and rose out of the dead triumphantly, proving the Book of God is Good!

When we follow the Lord Jesus we follow Him by this Book given by and from God. The Father above us, the Son beside us, and the Spirit impressing with the Book in us will guide us home. God’s Word is our arsenal against the lies of Satan. We are shielded from the attacks of untruth and led through the maze of confusion with confidence by using the time-tested Word of God.