MAY 1-15 DAILY DEVOTIONALS - EVENING

May 01 – But Stay Awake at All Times 

May 02 – He Leads Me Beside Still Waters

May 03 – Whatsoever a Man Soweth, That Shall He Also Reap

May 04 – Jerusalem Will be a Cup of Trembling 

May 05 – When Bombs Go Off

May 06 – The Unrighteous Will Not Inherit the Kingdom of God

May 07 – Therefore You Also Must Be Ready

May 08 – Having Put on the Breastplate of Righteousness

May 09 – So Do Not Throw Away Your Confidence

May 10 – And the World is Passing Away

May 11 –  Feast of Harvest

May 12 – If You Faint in the Day of Adversity

May 13 – Because of Your Stubbornness and Unrepentant Heart

May 14 – A New Jerusalem  

May 15 – Israel is Center of the Earth 

“But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.” - Luke 21:36

"Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed."  

- Romans 13:11

BLESSED IS THE ONE WHO STAYS AWAKE  

“Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!”  

- Revelation 16:15

THEREFORE STAY AWAKE

"Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming."

- Matthew 24:42

BLESSED IS THE ONE WHO STAYS AWAKE  

“Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!”

- Revelation 16:15

MORNING BY MORNING HE AWAKENS

"The Lord GOD has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary. Morning by morning he awakens; he awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught."

- Isaiah 50:4

SATAN HAS MEN FAST ASLEEP IS SIN

"Many do not recognize the fact as they ought, that Satan has got men fast asleep in sin and that it is his great device to keep them so. But if we awake the sleeping sinner he will gnash on us with his teeth."

- Catherine Booth (1829-1890) Co-Founder Salvation Army

AWAKE O SLEEPER, AND ARISE FROM THE DEAD  

"For anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

- Ephesians 5:14

THE WATCHMAN STAYS AWAKE IN VAIN

"Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain."

- Psalm 127:1

WHEN YOU WAKE IN THE MORNING  

"Keep your eye simply on Him; let His death, His sufferings, His merits, His glories, His intercession, be fresh upon thy mind; when you wake in the morning look to Him; when thou lie down at night look to Him. Oh! let not your hopes or fears come between thee and Jesus; follow hard after Him, and He will never fail you." 

- Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) English Baptist Preacher 

AWAKE, WHY ARE YOU SLEEPING  

"Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever!"

- Psalm 44:23

WHEN SATAN FINDS A GOOD MAN ASLEEP

"When Satan finds the good man asleep, then he finds our good God awake; therefore thou art not consumed, because he changeth not."

- William Gurnall (1616-1679) English Anglican Clergyman 

WHETHER WE ARE AWAKE OR ASLEEP

"Who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him."

- 1 Thessalonians 5:10

WE MUST WAKE OURSELVES UP!  

"We must wake ourselves up! Or somebody else will take our place, and bear our cross, and thereby rob us of our crown."  

- William Booth (1829-1912) Founder, Salvation Army

AWAKE, AWAKE PUT ON YOUR STRENGTH  

"Awake, awake, put on your strength, O Zion; put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city; for there shall no more come into you the uncircumcised and the unclean."

- Isaiah 52:1 

VOICE OF CHRIST WAKENS  

"It is the voice of Christ that wakens the dead soul. Jesus speaks through the Bible, through ministers, through providences. His voice can reach the dead. He quickeneth whom He will. They that hear, live."  

- Robert Murray McCheyne (1813-1843) Church of Scotland Minister

WHEN I AWAKE, I SHALL BE SATISFIED  

"As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness."

- Psalm 17:15

WHEN I AWAKE THEY ARE MY FIRST THOUGHTS  

"I care not where I go, or how I live, or what I endure so that I may save souls. When I sleep I dream of them; when I awake they are first in my thoughts."  

- David Brainard (1718-1747) American Missionary to Native Indians 

IF HE COMES AND AND FINDS THEM AWAKE 

"If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants!"

- Luke 12:38

BLESSED ARE THOSE SERVANTS WHO THE MASTER FINDS AWAKE 

"Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them."

- Luke 12:37

Photo Credit: thetorah.com/article/ezekiels-vision-of-god-and-the-chariot

"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." - Galatians 6:7-9

THE FIELDS ARE WHITE FOR HARVEST

"Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest. Already he who reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this case the saying is true, ‘One sows and another reaps."

- John 4:35-38

SOW FOR YOURSELVES RIGHTEOUSNESS

"Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is the time to seek the LORD, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you."

- Hosea 10:12

LIKE A MAN WHO CASTS SEED UPON THE SOIL

And He was saying, “The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil; and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows—how, he himself does not know. The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head."

- Mark 4:26-29

REMEMBER THIS, WHOEVER SOWS SPARINGLY

"Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously."

- 2 Corinthians 9:6

A BRIEF LIFE FOR SOWING

"My business is, with all my might to serve my own generation; in doing so I shall best serve the next generation, should the Lord Jesus tarry... The longer I live, the more I am enabled to realize that I have but one life to live on earth, and that this one life is but a brief life, for sowing, in comparison with eternity, for reaping."

- George Mueller 1805-1898) English Evangelist and Helper of Orphans

THE PARABLE OF THE WEEKS

"Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn." 

-  Matthew 13:24-30 

THE REAPING, BUT NOT THE SOWING

"Many, I fear, would like glory, who have no wish for grace. They would [want to] have the wages, but not the work; the harvest, but not the labor; the reaping, but not the sowing; the reward, but not the battle. But it may not be."

- J. C. Ryle (1816-1900) English Anglican Bishop  

FOR IN DUE TIME WE SHALL REAP

"Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary."

- Galatians 6:9

A MAN TOOK AND SOWED IN HIS FIELD

"Another parable He put before them, saying, The reign of the heavens is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is less than all the seeds, but when it is grown it is greater than the plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the heaven come and dwell in its branches.” 

- Matthew 24:31-32

PUT IN YOUR SICKLE AND REAP

"And another angel came out of the temple, crying out with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle and reap, for the hour to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is ripe.” Then He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth, and the earth was reaped. And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, and he also had a sharp sickle."

- Revelation 14:15-19

PLEASE LET ME GO THE THE FIELD AND GLEEN

"And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one in whose sight I may find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” So she departed and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers; and she happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech."

- Ruth 2:2-3

 THERE IS A HARVEST APPOINTED TO YOU 

"Also, O Judah, there is a harvest appointed for you, When I restore the fortunes of My people."

- Hosea 6:11 

THE PLOWMAN OUGHT TO PLOW IN HOPE

For it is written in the Law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle the ox while he is threshing.” God is not concerned about oxen, is He? Or is He speaking altogether for our sake? Yes, for our sake it was written, because the plowman ought to plow in hope, and the thresher to thresh in hope of sharing the crops. If we sowed spiritual things in you, is it too much if we reap material things from you?"

- 1 Corinthians 9:9-11

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Charles the Twelfth, King of Sweden, while besieged by constant air raids in Stralsund, was found one day dictating a letter to his secretary. A bombshell from an enemy plane fell upon the building they were in. The bomb exploded close to his office, totally destroying the adjoining floor, blowing it to pieces. Charles' room was left untouched from the explosion. Seeing that the building was in almost total ruin, the pen fell from the hand from the secretary. 

"What's the matter?" said the king with a composed countenance. "Why do you not continue writing?" 

"Most gracious Sire, replied the secretary, "The bombshell!" 

"Well," said the king. "What has the bombshell to do with the letter? Go on writing." 

It is so hard to stay focused when all around us seems to be falling apart. Bombs occasionally go off in the middle of our lives, yet the Lord asks us to maintain our trust in Him, to press on towards the goal regardless of our circumstance. How difficult it often is to do this. Many times we throw our hands up in the air and focus in on surveying the damage. Yet, God asks us turn our eyes towards him in our distress, and stay steady on our path with Him, as the king was able to stay focused on his goal and not be distracted from his duty. 

The Bible instructs us, "And we know that all things work together for the good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." The words, "according to" in this verse from Rom 8:28 come from the Greek word preposition, "Kata." It means that we are called "according to" something. "According to" in this context means that our calling lines up with some kind of standard, or measuring system. 

You are called "according to" some specific or precise standard or measurement that God has designed you alone to complete. He is the master builder, and as with all contractors, there has to be a master plan, a plan with precise measurements and directives, so that all elements will work together to form completeness in its architectural form. God has a plan for your very life; nothing has gone unnoticed in the layout of the scheme. You were created for a specific time, a specific purpose, for an hour such as this, "according to" his plan. 

Each of us has been "called" at the moment of our salvation, yet we did not know what we were called "according to." We are told in Romans 11:29, "For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable." Let us stay steady on the course that we have been called to, regardless of the sound of distant bombs that threatened to detain us from the duty of the King. 

THEY CRIED OUT TO THE LORD IN THEIR TROUBLE

"Yet when they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, the Lord brought them out of their distress. He calmed the storm and its waves quieted down. So they rejoiced that the waves became quiet, and he led them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the Lord for his gracious love and for his awesome deeds on behalf of mankind."

- Psalm 107:28-31

HE ALONE IS MY REFUGE, MY PLACE OF SAFETY

"We live within the shadow of the Almighty, sheltered by the God who is above all gods. This I declare, that he alone is my refuge, my place of safety; He is my God, and I am trusting Him. For He rescues you from every trap and protects you from the fatal plague. He will shield you with his wings! They will shelter you. His faithful promises are your armor. Now you don’t need to be afraid of the dark anymore, nor fear the dangers of the day."

- Psalm 91:1-5

BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

- Joshua 1:9

WE ARE AFFLICTED IN EVERY WAY

"We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies."

- 2 Corinthians 4:8-10

Photo Source: booksforvictory.com/2013/04/london-bookstore-and-library-bombed-in.html

WW2 London Bookstore and Library Bombed in the Blitz

“Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” - Matthew 24:44

THOSE WHO WERE READY WENT IN   

"And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut." 

- Matthew 25:10

COME, FOR EVERYTHING IS READY    

"And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, Come, for everything is now ready."

- Luke 14:17

READY FOR EVERY GOOD WORK   

"Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work."  

- 2 Timothy 2:21

ARE YOU READY TO GO TO HEAVEN?  

"Are you ready to go at once straight into heaven, if the gates were thrown open? What manner of persons ought we to be to say it! Are we walking in a way perfectly consistent with stepping tonight at once into the glory, to be at home in the Father's house?"  

- G. V. Wigram (1805-1879) English Biblical Scholar

GOD IS MORE READY TO FORGIVE  

"I believe that as often as I transgress, God is more ready to forgive me than I am ready to offend."  

- Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) English Baptist Preacher 

MAKE READY FOR THE LORD A PEOPLE PREPARED   

"And he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”  

- Luke 1:17

SEND PORTIONS WHO HAS NOTHING READY

Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” 

- Nehemiah 8:10  12  

OUTSTRETCHED HAND READY TO RECEIVE  

"When trust is perfect and there is no doubt, prayer is simply the outstretched hand ready to receive."  

- E. M. Bounds (1835–1913) American Clergyman, Author

BE GENEROUS AND READY TO SHARE   

"They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share."  

- 1 Timothy 6:18

MADE READY FOR THE DAY OF BATTLE   

"The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but the victory belongs to the LORD."  

- Proverbs 21:31 

GET EVERYTHING READY FOR YOURSELF   

"Prepare your work outside; get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house."  

- Proverbs 24:27

READY TO JUDGE THE LIVING AND THE DEAD    

"But they will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead."  

- 1 Peter 4:5     

IS NOT READY FOR HEAVEN

"I can safely say, on the authority of all that is revealed in the Word of God, that any man or woman on this earth who is bored and turned off by worship is not ready for heaven."

- A. W. Tozer (1897-1963) American Pastor and Teacher

THE LORD IS READY TO HELP US  

"Doubting does not prove that a man has no faith, but only that his faith is small. And even when our faith is small, the Lord is ready to help us."  

- J. C. Ryle (1816-1900) English Anglican Bishop 

BE READY FOR EVERY GOOD WORK   

"Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work."   

 - Titus 3:1

BE READY IN THE MORNING  

"Be ready by the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and present yourself there to me on the top of the mountain."  

- Exodus 34:2 

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"So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." - Hebrews 10:35-36

BEING CONFIDENT IN THIS VERY THING

"Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ."

- Philippians 1:6

CAST NOT AWAY YOUR CONFIDENCE

"Cast not away your confidence because God defers his performances. That which does not come in your time, will be hastened in his time, which is always the more convenient season. God will work when he pleases, how he pleases, and by what means he pleases. He is not bound to keep our time, but he will perform his word, honour our faith, and reward them that diligently seek him."

-  Matthew Henry (1662-1714) Nonconformist Minister, Writer 

WHOSE CONFIDENCE IS IN HIM

“But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him."

- Jeremiah 17:7 

THIS IS THE CONFIDENCE THAT WE HAVE

"This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us."

- 1 John 5:14

CONFIDENCE ON THE DAY JUDGEMENT

"This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus."

- 1 John 4:17

IF ANY MAN IS NOT SURE THAT HE IS IN CHRIST 

"If any man is not sure that he is in Christ, he ought not to be easy one moment until he is sure. Dear friend, without the fullest confidence as to your saved condition, you have no right to be at ease, and I pray you may never be so. This is a matter too important to be left undecided."

- Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) English Baptist Preacher 

WE MAY APPROACH HIM WITH CONFIDENCE

"In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence."

- Ephesians 3:12

TRUE CONFIDENCE WHICH IS FAITH IN CHRIST

"The true confidence which is faith in Christ, and the true diffidence which is utter distrust of myself--are identical."

- Alexander MacLaren (1826-1919) President Baptist World Congress

WE MAY HAVE CONFIDENCE AND NOT BE ASHAMED

"And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming."

- 1 John 2:28

APPROACH GOD'S THRONE WITH CONFIDENCE

"Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."

- Hebrews 4:16

THE OLD CROSS DESTROYS CONFIDENCE

"If I see aright, the cross of popular evangelicalism is not the cross of the New Testament. It is, rather, a new bright ornament upon the bosom of a self-assured and carnal Christianity. The old cross slew men, the new cross entertains them. The old cross condemned; the new cross amuses. The old cross destroyed confidence in the flesh; the new cross encourages it."

- A. W. Tozer (1897-1963) American Pastor and Teacher

AND THE PEOPLE GAINED CONFIDENCE

"With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said."

- 2 Chronicles 32:8

THE SPIRIT GOD GAVE US DOES NOT MAKE US TIMID

"For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline."

- 2 Timothy 1:7

OUR PEACE AND OUR CONFIDENCE

"Our peace and confidence are to be found not in our empirical holiness, not in our progress toward perfection, but in the alien righteousness of Jesus Christ that covers our sinfulness and alone makes us acceptable before a holy God."

- Donald Bloesch (1928-2010) Christian Evangelical Theologian

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"And the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels." - Matthew 13:39

LET THEM GROW TOGETHER UNTIL THE HARVEST   

"Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn." 

- Matthew 13:30 

THE HARVEST IS PLENTIFUL, BUT THE LABORERS ARE FEW  

"Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”   

- Matthew 9:27-28

THE FIRST FRUITS OF HIS HARVEST  

"Israel was holy to the LORD, the first fruits of his harvest. All who ate of it incurred guilt; disaster came upon them, declares the LORD.”  

- Jeremiah 2:3

FOR THE HARVEST OF THE EARTH IS FULLY RIPE  

"And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.”  

- Revelation 14:15

PRAY EARNESTLY TO THE LORD OF HARVEST   

"And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest."  

- Luke 10:2

PRAYER TO THE LORD OF THE HARVEST  

"It's true that (many) are praying for a worldwide revival. But it would be more timely, and more scriptural, for prayer to be made to the Lord of the harvest, that He would raise up and thrust forth laborers who would fearlessly and faithfully preach those truths which are calculated to bring about a revival."  

- A. W. Pink (1886-1952) English Bible Teacher 

HE WHO SUPPLIES THE SEED TO THE SOWER  

"He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness."  

- 2 Corinthians 9:10  

WE SHALL REAP AN ETERNAL HARVEST  

"Let us, therefore, not be weary of well-doing; for we shall reap an eternal harvest of comfort, if we faint not."  

- George Whitefield (1714-1770) Church of England Evangelist

AS FOR WHAT WAS SOWN ON GOOD SOIL   

"As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”  

- Matthew 13:23  

THE FIELDS ARE RIPE FOR HARVEST   

"Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest."  

- John 4:35

SO THE ANGEL SWUNG HIS SICKLE ACROSS THE EARTH  

"So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God."  

- Revelation 14:19

REAPING THE KIND OF HARVEST THEY SOW  

"The Lord made it very plain in the New Testament that believers cannot escape reaping the kind of harvest they sow. We cannot hide our sin; we will not get away with it. The secrets of the night are not hidden from God." 

- Theodore Epp (1907-1985) American Clergyman and Radio Evangelist

THE CRIES OF THE HARVESTERS    

"Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts."  

- James 5:4

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"But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God." - Romans 2:5

STIFFENED THEIR NECK LIKE THEIR FATHERS

"However, they did not listen, but stiffened their neck like their fathers, who did not believe in the Lord their God."

- 2 Kings 17:14

STIFFEN YOUR NECK NO LONGER

"So circumcise your heart, and stiffen your neck no longer."

- Deuteronomy 10:16

THEY BECAME STUBBORN AND WOULD NOT LISTEN

“But they, our fathers, acted arrogantly; they became stubborn and would not listen to Your commandments."

- Nehemiah 9:16

DO NOT BE AS THE HORSE OR AS THE MULE

"Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding, whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check, otherwise they will not come near to you."

- Psalm 32:9

HE CALLED AND THEY WOULD NOT LISTEN 

"And just as He called and they would not listen, so they called and I would not listen, says the Lord of hosts."

- Zechariah 7:13 

BECAUSE YOU HAVE REJECTED THE WORD OF THE LORD

“For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king.”

- 1 Samuel 15:23

THE GREATEST MISTAKE ANY CHRISTIAN CAN MAKE

"The greatest mistake any Christian can make is to substitute his own will for the will of God."

- Harry Ironside (1876-1951) American Bible Teacher, Theologian 

EVERYONE WHO STUBBORNLY FOLLOWS HIS OWN HEART

"They say continually to those who despise the word of the LORD, ‘It shall be well with you; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.”

- Jeremiah 23:17

AN EVIL DEED IS NOT EXECUTED QUICKLY

"Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed quickly, therefore the hearts of the sons of men among them are given fully to do evil."

- Ecclesiastes 8:11

BECAUSE I KNOW YOU ARE AN OBSTINATE PEOPLE

“Because I know that you are obstinate, and your neck is an iron sinew and your forehead bronze, and not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not prepare its heart and whose spirit was not faithful to God."

- Isaiah 48:4

WE ARE NOT GOING TO LISTEN TO YOU

“As for the message that you have spoken to us in the name of the Lord, we are not going to listen to you!"

- Jeremiah 44:16

I KNOW YOUR REBELLION AND STUBBORNESS

"For I know your rebellion and your stubbornness; behold, while I am still alive with you today, you have been rebellious against the Lord; how much more, then, after my death?"

- Deuteronomy 31:27

DARING, SELF-WILLED, THEY DO NOT TREMBLE

"And especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority. Daring, self-willed, they do not tremble when they revile angelic majesties."

- 2 Peter 2:10

STUBBORN AND REBELLIOUS GENERATION  

"And that they should not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not steadfast, whose spirit was not faithful to God."

- Psalm 78:8 

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This is what the Lord GOD says: "This is Jerusalem; I have placed her at the center of the nations, with lands around her." - Ezekiel 5:5

THIS IS WHAT THE LORD SAYS TO ISRAEL

This is what the Lord says to Israel: “Seek me and live.”

Amos 5:4

THEREFORE SAY, THUS SAYS THE LORD GOD

Therefore say, thus says the Lord God: I will gather you from the peoples and assemble you out of the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel."

- Ezekiel 11:17

FOR HIS PEOPLE ARE NEAR TO HIM

"He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his saints, for the people of Israel who are near to him. Praise the LORD!"

- Psalm 148:14

THEIR CHILDREN WILL LOVE AND COMEBACK

“When I scatter them among the peoples, they will remember Me in far countries, and they with their children will live and come back."

- Zechariah 10:9

WHEN I GATHER THEM BACK FROM THE PEOPLE OF THE WORLD

"When I bring them back from the peoples and gather them from the lands of their enemies, then I shall be sanctified through them in the sight of the many nations."

- Ezekiel 39:27

THEN THEY WILL KNOW THAT I AM THEIR GOD

"Then they will know that I am the Lord their God because I made them go into exile among the nations, and then gathered them again to their own land; and I will leave none of them there any longer."

- Ezekiel 39:28

ISRAEL HAD A PILLAR OF FIRE

"God intermixeth mercy with affliction: He steeps his sword of justice in the oil of mercy; there was no night so dark, but Israel had a pillar of fire in it; there is no condition so dismal, but we may see a pillar of fire to give light. If the body be in pain, conscience is in peace, --there is mercy: affliction is for the prevention of sin, --there is mercy. In the ark there was a rod and a pot of manna, the emblem of a Christian's condition, mercy interlined with judgment."

- Thomas Watson (1620-1686) Puritan Preacher

OH ISRAEL, FEAR NOT, FOR I HAVE REDEEMED YOU

But now thus says the LORD, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine."

- Isaiah 43:1

THE LORD WILL BE GLORIFIED IN ISRAEL 

"Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done it; shout, O depths of the earth; break forth into singing, O mountains, O forest, and every tree in it! For the LORD has redeemed Jacob, and will be glorified in Israel."

- Isaiah 44:23

THE DIVINE PATH OF THE ISRAELITES THROUGH THE SEA

"O what a blessing is Sunday, interposed between the waves of worldly business like the divine path of the Israelites through the sea! There is nothing in which I would advise you to be more strictly conscientious than in keeping the Sabbath day holy. I can truly declare that to me the Sabbath has been invaluable."

-  William Wilberforce (1759-1833) British Politician and Philanthropist 

SHALL COME FORTH ONE WHO IS TO BE RULER OF ISRAEL

"But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days."

- Micah 5:2

THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL IS YOUR REDEEMER

"For your Maker is your husband, the LORD of hosts is his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called."

- Isaiah 54:5

Photo Credit: post.com/israel-news/discover-50-paintings-celebrating-jerusalem-493769