Psalm 74 Enemy In The Camp

Daily Bible Study for Monday October 10, 2016

By: Hanny Lynn Stearns 

Fish N Loaves Ministries, Inc.

“Multiplying God’s Word Around The Globe”

Chapter Reading for Today: Please read in your Bible before proceeding. Note that most translations are considered paraphrases. The Young’s Literal Translation provides a more accurate translation since he is the one who authored a concordance. Others are helpful for seeing a different perspective, but we cannot always depend on their wording. I hope this is helpful to you. If you are studying in another version, that is fine. I am studying from the KJV, but for the purpose of this study, I will keep it with the New King James Version.

One final note: I will put the scripture in italics to differentiate from my own writing. I am adding red to the letters when it is Jesus talking – just like the Bible. Thank you.

Bible Gateway Verse of the Day

Proverbs 19:20-21

Listen to counsel and receive instruction, that you may be wise in your latter days. There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless the Lord’s counsel—that will stand.

Psalm 74

Enemy in The Camp

Last week in Branson, we had a rich dose of God’s word all week as we looked at how we should honor the Lord! He is worthy of our best indeed! Our church is a wonderful place for pastors and teachers to attend conferences and other services as time permits so they can be fed the unadulterated word of God and go back to their own congregations rested, refreshed and well-nourished so they can be used of the Lord to feed His lambs. I trust your week was good as you studied the Psalms’ chapters while I was away. I had great revelations and so much sweet fellowship with my Lord and the brethren. Truly it was a week of miracles, divine appointments and healing for me. I will never forget it as long as I live! Our God is so good and He is faithful to His children – praise His name forever!

Today in the Psalm, we see the people of God crying out for help. The enemy has enetered into their midst and they were calling on the Lord to remember them. We have ended the writings of David and have entered a new section in the Psalms. It will be exciting as we finish out the year in the book of Psalms, building up to a crescendo of praise as we get to the final chapter early next year (Jan. 25). What a glorious God and Savior we serve – hallelujah! Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father:

Thank You, thank You, thank You for all You have done for Your children! In the midst of what looks to be terrible times on the earth as the end draws near, You give Your people peace, joy and everlasting hope in the midst of it. Lord, we know that many false prophets have arisen in the church and we must be so careful to be on guard, watching and praying at all times. Father, I ask You to give me the utterance and the anointing to speak Your word boldly as I ought. As Your prophet, You have said that You have put Your words into my mouth to speak to Your people, omitting not a word. Cause this message to go out unhindered and unchecked by any outside force or my flesh. Bring the people from all over this world to see and hear Your word that we all may be changed from glory to glory. Open the eyes of our hearts to see in the spirit what we need to learn. Thank You for the answers to our requests Father. As we read Your word, we will purpose to be doers of it and not forgetful hearers. May You show Yourself strong in our lives so the world around us truly sees who the One True God is as they see us living out our calling with holiness and purity before them. Thank You in advance for helping us to hear, to see and receive the blessing that this word will bring. Father, You always watch over Your word to perform it in our lives and we thank You for it in Jesus name. Amen.

The overriding theme in this chapter is showing how the people of God watched as the enemy got into the Lord’s temple and brought desolation. We see much about the desolation that sin brings to the house of God as we go way back into the Old Testament to study this. God’s temple, the place of His dwelling was always to be a holy place, free from anything unclean. God is so holy and pure that nothing that defiles can come near Him. Holiness and purity cannot be blended with impurity. Like oil and water – the two will not mix!

The people in this Psalm were asking “When Lord?” They remembered that God had established the seasons, and that He divided the waters of the sea and broke the head of the enemy – noted in this chapter as the leviathan and sea serpents. Anything that says serpent in the Bible means the devil – satan, and/or anything that is attached to him. But God is bigger than the devil! One need never wonder about that! He is able to crush satan under our feet. In fact, when Jesus died on the cross and went to hell for us, He did exactly that! The enemy is now a defeated foe, and his time is short.

The book of revelation should give every child of God a great sense of peace knowing that his wicked ways are but for a short time. One day he will be gone form the camp of the Lord’s people forever. In the meantime, Jesus gave us the authority to trample on Him while we are on the planet so that nothing will harm us. If only more people in the body of Christ understood their place in Christ and the authority that they already have. We wouldn’t have so many defeated Christians running around today.

The blasphemy going on against the holy name of God is rampant in the world today - even among Christians. It was satan himself who started the phrase that is now said millions of times each day on the earth as a term of slang expression, “Oh my God!” This is blasphemy and it should never be coming out of the mouth of a child of God! We must always use the Lord’s name in the highest honor – because, after all, He is the King of all kings and the Lord of lords. His name is holy. Let’s look briefly at what the Ten Commandments has to say about using His name like this…

Exodus 20:7

⁷ “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.

Friends, if you or anyone you know has been using this expression like the rest of the world who does not yet know the Lord, won’t you take a minute to remind them that this is not acceptable? We can speak the truth in love to our fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord. No one should ever hear us say such a thing! Moving on, let’s look at a chapter that really sums up what this chapter is saying today…

Matthew 24

Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. ² And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

³ Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

⁴ And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. ⁵ For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. ⁶ And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. ⁷ For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are the beginning of sorrows.

⁹ “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. ¹⁰ And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. ¹¹ Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. ¹² And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. ¹³ But he who endures to the end shall be saved.¹⁴ And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

¹⁵ “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place”(whoever reads, let him understand), ¹⁶ “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁷ Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. ¹⁸ And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. ¹⁹ But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! ²⁰ And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. ²¹ For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. ²² And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.

²³ “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. ²⁴ For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. ²⁵ See, I have told you beforehand.

²⁶ “Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it.²⁷ For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. ²⁸ For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.

²⁹ “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ³⁰ Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. ³¹ And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

³² “Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. ³³ So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near—at the doors! ³⁴ Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. ³⁵ Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

³⁶ “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. ³⁷ But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. ³⁸ For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, ³⁹ and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. ⁴⁰ Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. ⁴¹ Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. ⁴² Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. ⁴³ But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. ⁴⁴ Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

⁴⁵ “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?⁴⁶ Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. ⁴⁷ Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods. ⁴⁸ But if that evil servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ ⁴⁹ and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, ⁵⁰ the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, ⁵¹ and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

The beginning of this chapter shows us a picture of what we saw happen to the Lord’s beautiful temple that was built for His glory. It was a place where the people could come to meet with God. It had been built at great expense because the Lord is worthy of the finest that the earth had to offer in precious stones, gems, materials, and above all, the effort of His people as they built it with love and fervency. Then, because of rebellion, disobedience and the idolatry of God’s people, it was burned to the ground. Can we even begin to imagine how that broke the Lord’s heart? A study of Jeremiah will give you all the details that led up to that terrible day.

Later, Jesus predicted the things we are now seeing come to pass over two thousand years after He spoke these words. Anyone who is paying attention can see what is happening. The signs of the end of the age are here. Many do not like to talk about it out of fear – but it does not change the facts. Saints, we have come to the final “curtain call” so to speak. There is no time to waste in the earth. You remember back in the book of Jeremiah how the Lord sent him to warn King Hezekiah that God’s people needed to stop with all their idolatry or judgment would come upon them? Well, they wouldn’t listen. The king had the fear of the Lord in his heart, but there was another fear that gripped him more – the fear of man. He was afraid of what the people would do should he make a decree that the idols must be destroyed and they worship only the one True God.

Jeremiah, the “weeping prophet” would go through much torment, abuse and pain to get the word of God out to the people. He did not mince words. Today we have many churches who are watering down the word of God as to make it as men’s teaching and of no effect…

Mark 7:1-13

Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Him, having come from Jerusalem. ² Now when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault. ³ For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders. ⁴ When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches.

⁵ Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?”

⁶ He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:

‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.
⁷ And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

⁸ For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men —the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.”

⁹ He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. ¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ ¹¹ But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban”—’ (that is, a gift to God), ¹² then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, ¹³ making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

A true prophet of God never minces words to try to please the ears of men. Jeremiah warned the people that judgment was coming and it broke his heart. That’s why we have the book of Lamentations. Crying out to God for His people. The holy temple of God was eventually burned to the ground by the enemy - just like we read in today’s chapter. As we continue through Matthew 24, Jesus clearly explained all the things that were going to happen. People’s hearts would grow cold toward the Lord and we are certainly seeing that today.

Many are being killed for the name of Jesus. This is happening most prevalently in the middle east. When someone goes from being a Muslim to a Christian, they have just invited a death sentence upon their life. But there is good news in that. No matter what, when they do pass from this life, they will not have to taste death and feel the fires of an eternity in hell. Jesus tasted death for us – it has lost its sting – hallelujah! Lawlessness has abounded, or in other words, it has greatly increased in the earth. Let’s look at another verse that describes this mass turning away in detail…

Romans 1:18-32

¹⁸ For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, ¹⁹ because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. ²⁰ For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, ²¹ because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. ²² Professing to be wise, they became fools, ²³ and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

²⁴ Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves,²⁵ who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

²⁶ For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature.²⁷ Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

²⁸ And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; ²⁹ being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, ³⁰ backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, ³¹ undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; ³² who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

2 Timothy 3:1-9

But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: ² For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ³ unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, ⁴ traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, ⁵ having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! ⁶ For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, ⁷ always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. ⁸ Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith; ⁹ but they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all, as theirs also was.

One need not look far to see this happening all around us. We have a godless generation on our hands because the Bible has been taken out of the government and the schools. Now they are printing all kinds of false information about how this world was even created and the kids – not knowing any better, are believing it. Friends, there is no time like the present to rise up and take our place in the body of Christ so He can use us to help others see the truth. Here’s a portion of scripture that talks a bit more about the false prophets. Paul was dealing with such events in the Corinthian church…

2 Corinthians 11:13-15

¹³ For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. ¹⁴ And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. ¹⁵ Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.

In addition to false prophets – and there are many among us, we see an important message in the Matthew chapter for all Christians to understand. We have a responsibility to work out our own salvation…

Philippians 2:12

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;

Once we get born again, the only thing that will keep us this way is our choice! Yes, that’s right. A person cannot be snatched out of the hands of the Lord, but a person can choose to walk away from Him after tasting His goodness and getting filled with His Spirit. It has happened and is still happening today. We must be careful. We could do an entire study on just this subject with plenty of scripture and some testimonies to back it up. For now, we have to remember that it is he who endures to the end that will be saved.

Right now, we as Christians have been given a very clear command from the Master – go and preach the gospel to every nation as a witness and then the end will come. We see the ability now to do this through television, internet, radio, media and transportation. It is reaching people like never before. Just this Bible study alone, started only a year ago is now reaching people all over the world – hallelujah! And more are reading it all the time – glory to God! Look at this…

Luke 9:1-6

Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. ² He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. ³ And He said to them, “Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money; and do not have two tunics apiece.

⁴ “Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. ⁵ And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them.”

⁶ So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.

We have His word. We know what He wants us to do. Now we just need to do it. Jesus’ own Mother said it…

John 2:5

 His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”

The times of the great tribulation will bring terrible times for the people of the earth. But it should not frighten a child of God. In fact, we are not to fear evil – the Bible makes it abundantly clear. That gives place to the devil. The book of Daniel gives us great detail about what was prophesied to happen in the end of days – like we are in right now. In verses 15 – 27 of Matthew 24, Jesus is clearly giving us the signs and the directions about how to handle them. 

When He comes, we are warned not to look back – like Lot’s wife. She went against the instructions and she was immediately turned to a pillar of salt. It’s important for us to pay attention to the Master’s instructions. There is nothing this earth can do for us when the end comes. We all need Jesus. When the Darling of heaven appears in the skies as He returns to pick up His bride, the only response should be to look up because…

 Luke 21:28

Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.”

Jesus would not leave us clueless about such matters. He wants us to be fully prepared for His wonderful return for us. Being gathered into the arms of Jesus in that day will be the most wonderful experience ever for those who have not gone to sleep (passed from this life already). As Jesus continued to talk to His disciples in the Matthew chapter, we see that He didn’t leave them wondering about exactly when this was all going to take place. He went on to tell His hearers, both then and now that in the same way we can tell when a season is going to change, so we should be able to discern the season when His return will take place. 

A lot of people have tried to predict the day and time of His return, but they cannot.

The blooming of the fig tree was a way to measure that the summer season was near. Much like we all see in the spring when the leaves begin to return to the trees. Those in the frozen north breathe a sigh of relief after a long cold winter. The same is true spiritually. When we see the season of Jesus’ return, as noted in the fig tree which represents the nation of Israel – all of God’s saved people, we can know His return is imminent. Israel became a nation in May 1948. When they became a nation once again in only one day – it was a sign that the fig tree had budded. When Nathanael went to see Jesus after Philip invited him, the Lord said something powerful to him that I never saw until the Lord revealed it to me today. Look at this…

John 1:45-49

⁴⁵ Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

⁴⁶ And Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”

Philip said to him, “Come and see.”

⁴⁷ Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!”

⁴⁸ Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?”

Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”

⁴⁹ Nathanael answered and said to Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”

What Jesus was saying about Nathanael is this. Even though he may have been sitting under a natural fig tree – the meaning was deeply spiritual. What Jesus was saying was that this man Nathanael was a true man of God – covered under God’s protection. He was part of the remnant of Israel – the fig tree. Because of this, Jesus already knew Him and we see how quickly Nathanael responded to the Lord, recognizing Him as the long awaited Savior. One who knows the Lord recognizes Him when they see Him. Jesus and Nathanael were not strangers to each other. Can that be said of you and the Lord?

Jesus went on to say that this generation would not pass away until they see the Son of Man coming in the clouds. Folks, this means us! If we are alive in this generation, we will see His return. Many are confused about this, but we need not be. We are living in the season of His return. But, we cannot know which day or hour He will appear – only the Father knows. Not even Jesus knows this. I know, this is far too complicated for us to understand because Jesus and God are one, yet they have distinctly different roles in the Godhead. That’s why we have to live by faith.

Like I mentioned earlier, the people in our chapter today were crying out, “When Lord, when?” Now we see where Jesus told them the answer to their questions. God gave us a lot of answers about the Lord’s return. He told us about the enemy in the church and how he would be dealt with. He gave us all the information we need in order to get fully prepared for the day of His return. Many will pass from this life before He comes back. Those who are saved will be absent from the physical body but present with the Lord…

2 Corinthians 5:1-8

For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. ² For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, ³ if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. ⁴ For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. ⁵ Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

⁶ So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. ⁷ For we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸ We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.

One day as I was sitting in my dining room studying the Bible, I heard the voice of Holy Spirit on the inside say to me very strongly and clearly these important words, “The end of all things is near. Pull them from the fire.” I was so stunned by what I heard, I just sat back in my chair. I knew the Lord had just spoken and it was so powerful that it was as if He was standing there in the room talking to me. But it was on the inside. Any born again believer should understand this. Well, when the Lord gives us such a message, we must pay attention.

An important message that Jesus included in the Matthew chapter is this. We have to be watchful at all times. And we must stay in prayer – without ceasing. This is constant communion with God through praise, thanks, worship, prayer to Him, listening to Him and meditating on His word. In these times, Christians cannot afford to flood their minds with the junk of this world. We have to think on things above – not on earthly things. Someone once said that if we were too heavenly minded that we would be no earthy good. This is false. The more heavenly minded we are, the more earthly good we can be to the world around us. That is unless we are acting foolishly by being carnal.

By paying attention, we can avoid having the thief come in to steal, kill and destroy what God has chosen for His own. Jesus’ illustration in verses 42 – 43 show us that no thief can get in if we are watching carefully. We must not give place to the devil in our lives. After all, who wants to let the enemy in their camp, right? It’s obvious this is no mistake that today is October 10, or in numbers it is 10-10-16. Here is what John 10:10 says…

John 10:10

 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

All of what Jesus was telling the disciples, and us, could be summed up in this one powerful sentence, amen?! Hallelujah! Oh He is so amazing! Simply amazing! The Matthew chapter wraps up with some heavenly advice for God’s people on the earth. We must be wise stewards. The Lord is coming to the humble, the poor and needy. Just like our chapter today mentions, they need the Lord’s help and He is right there to help those who want it. What is one of the ways He is doing this? The most powerful thing that we can do is be used by Him to reach out to those in need. We can be the physical hands and feet of Jesus right here – right now. We are called to be stewards in the kingdom of God. That means we have been given great responsibility.

The Lord has given us commandments and wants us to be busy about His business. If we are wise, that is exactly what we will be spending our time doing until He comes back for us or we go home – whichever comes first. A wise steward does the will of God with all the resources the Lord has given them, without wasting any of them. Our time, talents, gifts and callings – our money; all of it should be directed toward serving the Lord in the capacity He has called each one to do. As we go about His business, He takes care of ours and gives us richly all things to enjoy in the meantime. We can see what the Lord said about the unfaithful steward and it is not a good ending for such a one.

None of these things should trouble us, though we should take them very seriously….

John 14:1

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.

We need not waver at God’s promises….

Romans 4:20-21

²⁰ He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, ²¹ and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.

Our God is faithful. We need never think He is not aware of what is going on in the world around us. He knows right where the enemy is and what he is up to. As far as the Lord is concerned, the devil has already been booted out of the camp. We need not be concerned about how the end will be. He will take care of that. What we do need to be concerned about is our walk with Him until that time. We should be fasting from the things of the world while focusing on the things of God and His kingdom. If we will do this, we have not a care one in this life – hallelujah!

                        Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father:

Thank You for giving us all the information we need to live for You successfully on this earth while we await Your return. We have no need to concern ourselves with the enemy. Because of what Your Son has been used by You to do for us, we can trample him down at every turn and eagerly await being with You in glory. Father, I ask You to show me anything I need to see from today’s study. Show me what changes I need to make in my life so that my priorities are right. Help me to see and live out my calling so that You can use me greatly to make a difference before I leave this earth. Thank You for hearing this prayer and answering it. I give You all the glory, honor and praise in Jesus name. Amen.

There are three main points to consider from today’s study…

The Lord will never forget His people - He knows what they are going through

We must understand what season we are in

We must understand what our role is in these last days

Questions:

What stood out the most to you in this lesson today?

How can you relate to what the people were saying to the Lord is our Psalm?

What preparations have you been making for the Lord’s return?

In what ways have you allowed the enemy to enter your “camp”?

What will you do differently as a result of this study?

Who can you share this study with?

What are you doing while you wait for Jesus’ return?

And God Said… You fill in the blanks.

Luke 5:33-39

³³ Then they said to Him, “Why do the disciples of John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the Pharisees, but Yours eat and drink?”

³⁴ And He said to them, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them? ³⁵ But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them; then they will fast in those days.”

³⁶ Then He spoke a parable to them: “No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old one; otherwise the new makes a tear, and also the piece that was taken out of the new does not match the old. ³⁷ And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined. ³⁸ But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved. ³⁹ And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, ‘The old is better.’”