Confidence in God’s power

Worship Wednesday

A Warning Against Hypocrisy

Then Jesus said to the crowds and his disciples: “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. Instead, they tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they are unwilling to lift a finger to move them.
“Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others.
“But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah. The greatest among you will be your servant. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

Matthew 23:1-12–NIV

Jireh is enough

Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.

John 14:23-24—NIV

Humble thy self before God

For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.

Matthew 18:20–NKJV

But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 19:14–NKJV

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Matthew 19:23-24–NKJV

The Gift of Patience

It seems that patience is one of God’s greatest gifts to man. But we often put it on the back burner.

For example, we often talked about Job’s faith but seldom mentioned his patience, which was instrumental in his struggle. If Job had not had long wick patience, he would not have endured without complaining. 

So what is patience? According to dictionary.com: Patience is the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like.

Therefore, Job not only believed in God’s promises, but he trusted in his faithfulness and relied on God’s character and loyalty to act. But he also had patience and a whole lot of it.

I think Job needed three things to work in tandem, like a three-legged stool during his struggle-faith, patience, and endurance. Faith alone would not work. Because the people who encouraged him to curse God and die had faith. But they could not stand to see him suffer for so long. So their patience had a short wick like many of us.

The Bible says, “And the Lord turned the captivity of Job when he prayed for his friends: also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before,” (Job 42:10).