Job 3:23

Job 3:23, “Why is light given to a man whose way is hid, and whom God hath hedged in?”

I heard a helpful sermon this morning by Dr. Hyles titled, “What's The Use Of Having It If You Can't Use It?”

I gleaned these life-changing quotes from the sermon...

“I think everybody in the world ought to write.” —Pastor Jack Hyles, “What's The Use Of Having It If You Can't Use It?”

“Though Job did not get to do what he thought he should do with what he knew, he did what he could do with what he knew, and so can you.” —Pastor Jack Hyles, “What's The Use Of Having It If You Can't Use It?”

If God does not give you the opportunity you think you deserve to use what He's given you, then you use whatever opportunity God has given you to use what He's given you, and to tell what He's given you.” —Pastor Jack Hyles, “What's The Use Of Having It If You Can't Use It?”

Not everyone can become a pastor, but anyone can care about others and preach. Not everyone can become a teacher, but anyone can share their knowledge with others.

Job was frustrated that he had the truth, and the ability to help people, but his hands were tied. This is a great truth preached by Pastor Hyles. As Christian believers, we can all do something to serve God.

Genesis 1:26 - Jesus Was Always The Eternal Son Of God

Genesis 1:26, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”

I like Miss Renee Roland on YouTube and she is my friend on Facebook, because I separate my personal feelings from my Bible preaching. Sadly, she is wrong on the topics of both denying an eternal burning Hell for sinners who reject Christ, and also for denying the eternal sonship of Jesus (which John MacArthur also denies).

I tell you Scripturally, Jesus Christ was ALWAYS the eternal Son of God (Hebrews 13:8). That is why we read the plural pronouns “us” and “our” in Genesis 1:26, referring to the Godhead, when God created the universe. Jesus didn't become the Son of God in His incarnate form; but rather, the Son of God became flesh (John 1:1-3, 14). Jesus' name is called 'THE WORD OF GOD' (Revelation 19:13). John 1:1-4 and 14 teach us that 'THE WORD' became flesh, and we beheld His glory as of the only begotten Son of God.

Beware of any false prophets who come along denying the Eternal Sonship of Jesus!

2nd Samuel 22:36 and Psalm 18:37

2nd Samuel 22:36, “Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy gentleness hath made me great.”

Psalms 18:35, “Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great.”

God's gentleness made David great, by providing the humble shepherd boy turned king with wisdom, compassion, strength and encouragement during trying times. The Lord's gentleness is reflected in His humble and patient dealings with David, which ultimately led to his success and greatness as a leader.

When David commit the horrible sins of adultery with Bathsheba and then murdered her husband Uriah, God forgave David several months when he repented. God continued to use David, although in a limited capacity due to his tarnished reputation in the kingdom. When a leader's name is tarnished, it weakness his effectiveness and influence for Christ.

It could be that the most influential moments in David’s experience of God were not when “the earth shook and trembled” or when “the foundations also of the hills moved” (1st Samuel 18:7b). Perhaps it was when David was when he spared Saul’s life, not once but twice (1st Samuel 24 and 26). Or when David took Mephibosheth, the crippled survivor of Saul’s wrecked dynasty, into his own home (2nd Samuel 9). Or when David protected the survivor of one of Saul’s senseless massacres with his own life (1st Samuel 22-23).

David, the mighty warrior king had great gentleness. It was a gentleness that he had learned from his great and gentle God. The adage is very true: Great men are gentlemen. And gentle men are truly great!

Luke 18:1-8

Luke 18:1-8, “And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?”

In Luke 18:1-8 Jesus tells the story of an unjust judge, who refused to avenge a widow. But she persistently kept coming and bothering the judge: “Please avenge me judge, avenge me, avenge me, judge avenge me!” So, finally, simply to get rid of her, the judge avenged her of the injustice someone had committed against her. Jesus gave this illustration to teach everyone about the kind of prayer that pleases God. The word is 'IMPORTUNITY' (i.e., insistent begging). God is pleased by our perpetual asking Him for things, whatever it may be. Luke 18:1, “And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint...” “Faint not” means don't quit! What saith the Scripture? ...

James 1:5-6, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.”

How do you ask in faith without wavering? The answer is simple, you just keep asking until either God answers your prayer, or you no longer feel led to pray over the matter. There are some prayers that I pray that are ongoing; such as, asking with the Lord to work through me as His humble servant to preach the inspired Word of Truth, contend for the Christian faith, love people more, and preach an accurate Gospel so that lost sinners can be saved through faith alone in Christ alone. My desire has always been to simply get MAD (Make An Impact) in people's lives for Jesus Christ my God, Savior and Lord.

My heart tells me the reason why God wants us to pray with IMPORTUNITY is simply because the Lord desires our continual fellowship and communion. Do you understand dear reader the the omnibenevolent, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, omnisapient and immutable God who spoke over 20 TRILLION known galaxies into existence wants to be your close Friend? I love watching intriguing astronomy videos on YouTube, especially when going to sleep at night.

Sometimes I cry as I learn just how unfathomably large and endless the universe is, realizing that the brilliant majestic Creator of such amazing wonders knows, loves and cares about a wretched undeserving sinner like me. THANK YOU LORD JESUS, MY PRECIOUS GOD AND SAVIOR. 1st Peter 2:7a, “Unto you therefore which believe he is precious...”

If we ask (pray) to the Lord, but then quit early on when God doesn't seem to answer, we are showing God our lack of trust in Him. Jesus exhorts all men to “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22b). Jesus is almighty God (John 10:33). Prayer does not work like an ATM machine friend, nor a coin operated vending machine. I have learned more times than not, that God answered my prayers in ways I couldn't see at the time. It wasn't until hindsight years or even decades later that I saw the hand of God at work in my youth or years earlier.

I refuse to wickedly place God on trial like the heathen world does, challenging His existence if the Lord doesn't answer their prayers to meet their demands. I trust in the Lord, period. So, if God never seems to answer any of my prayers, that is okay, because the inspired Word of God tells me that everything is still okay in my Father's House, where there is joy, joy, joy! I choose to have faith in the good and loving heart of God at all times, regardless of the circumstances. As a born-again, fundamentalist, Baptist, Bible preacher, I didn't get into the ministry for the INCOME, I became a Bible preacher for the OUTCOME! I've never received a single penny for serving God. My rewards are waiting for me in Heaven (Matthew 6:19-21).

In the 10 chapters of the Old Testament book of “Esther,” not once is “God” mentioned. Yet, we (the reader) beautifully see God's hand at work throughout the amazing true story. The characters involved in Esther couldn't see God's hand at work at the time, but we have the blessed privilege of seeing the whole picture in hindsight. The lesson is simply this—when you cannot see the HAND of God, trust the HEART of God!

Keep on praying and never stop, because God is pleased by our importunity. Don't ever forget this truth, which is exactly what Luke 18:1-8 is teaching. I am not saying that God might not answer your prayer right away. He may or may not. Or the Lord may answer you in a subtle way that you won't discern until a future time. The important thing is to simply TRUST GOD.

Esther 5:14

Esther 5:14, “Then said Zeresh his wife and all his friends unto him, Let a gallows be made of fifty cubits high, and tomorrow speak thou unto the king that Mordecai may be hanged thereon: then go thou in merrily with the king unto the banquet. And the thing pleased Haman; and he caused the gallows to be made.”

Haman's wicked wife was the one who suggested that her husband build a gallows 50 cubits (75 feet) high to hang the Jew Mordecai upon. Their ungodly rotten friends loved the idea. But when the evil conspiracy was exposed and backfired on wicked Haman, it was his wife's ten sons and Haman instead who were hung on that same gallows.

There is a powerful lesson to be learned in this Scripture passage, which is that we had better be very careful about what advice we give to others, because our words could come back to haunt us. By running her foolish mouth to give Haman the sinister idea to build a gallows 75 feet high to hang Mordecai, caused her ten sons and husband to be hung on the execution device instead of Mordecai. It was poetic justice! Guard your tongue dear reader!

Romans 15:4

Romans 15:4, "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope."

Romans 15:4 says that God gave us the Old Testament to teach us. God has given to humanity hundreds of true biographies of people throughout the Old Testament, documenting the lives of both saved and lost people from birth to death.

These helpful BIOGRAPHIES teach us, which give us patience and hope as God's children. We get to see the lives of hundreds of Old and New Testament saints, what worked and what didn't, so that we can LEARN from their stories and hopefully not make the same stupid mistakes.

For example: Satan caused Eve to question God's Word in Genesis 3:1-5, changing the truth into a lie, which led to disaster. Eve never should have continued listening to the serpent the moment he bad mouthed God.

Another example: Samson's life was also ruined by being careless with the special gift God had given to him (his strength from long hair). Samson never should have entrusted Delilah with the secret to his strength.

Another example: Haman's wicked wife was the one who suggested that her husband build a gallows 50 cubits (75 feet) high to hang the Jew Mordecai upon. But when the evil conspiracy backfired on wicked Haman, it was his wife's ten sons and Haman instead who were hung on that same gallows. There is a powerful lesson to be learned here, which is that we had better be very careful about what advice we give to others, because our words could come back to haunt us. By running her foolish mouth and giving Haman the sinister idea to build a gallows 75 feet high, caused her ten sons and husband to be hung on them instead of Mordecai. It was poetic justice!

I encourage you to study and abide in the Old Testament much, to learn about the Christian patriarchs and their struggles. Pastor Lester Roloff (1914-1982) used to wisely say that “the Old Testament will put iron in your blood.” Amen and amen! The inspired Holy Bible is packed full of gems of truth, nuggets worth more than gold.

Begin in the book of Genesis and listen to Alexander Scourby (1913-1985) read it to you, while paying attention to the lives of the saints. Listen for their mistakes, their right decisions, their faith in God or lack thereof, and the blessings or consequences that followed.

Romans 15:4 teaches that “all things” written in God's inspired Word were written “FOR OUR LEARNING.” God is so good, loving and faithful to mankind.

Jeremiah 4:14, Right Thinking Promotes Right Living

Jeremiah 4:14, “O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved.  How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?”

The phrase that “thou mayest be saved” does not refer to the salvation of one's soul; but rather, Israel being saved from destruction.

The phrase, “How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee,” refers to a sinful thought life that corrupts one's behavior. The inspired Holy Bible exhorts God's children to have a clean mind. Get the rot out! Martin Luther wisely said, “You cannot keep birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair.” It's bad to do wicked things, but we wouldn't do the wicked thighs if we'd not allow wicked thoughts to lodge in our soul. ...

Psalms 119:9-11, “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way?  by taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”

Psalms 19:12, “Who can understand his errors?  cleanse thou me from secret faults.”

I love this quote from Brother Hyles...

“If you want to never do anything that is terribly wicked, then you never do anything that is slightly wicked.” —Pastor Jack Hyles, “Unjust In The Least”

Pastor Jack Hyles used this interesting Scripture from Jeremiah 4:14 as his text for the sermon, “Bad Renters; Or, Necessary Evictions.” We need a revival in right thinking! I made this excerpt from the preceding needful sermon by Dr. Hyles, in which he preaches against the sin of women wearing slacks. I fully agree! Nothing is ruining men's minds today any more than immodestly clothed women. God pity the ungodly pastor's wife who wears her wicked pants in public and defends it! God pity the ungodly pastor who wickedly sanctions