The Prophetic Word - Days 77 thru 82: Examine Yourself

The Prophetic Word – Days 77 thru 82: Examine Yourself

The Prophetic Word

Day 77: Examine yourself.

In preparation for our discussion over the next five days, please carefully read and meditate on the following scriptures:

“So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died. But if we would examine ourselves, we would not be judged by God in this way. Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world.”

1 Corinthians 11:27-32 NLT

“Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith. As you test yourselves, I hope you will recognize that we have not failed the test of apostolic authority.”

2 Corinthians 13:5-6 NLT

“The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins. So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

2 Peter 1:8-11 NLT

“Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. Do not scoff at prophecies, but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. Stay away from every kind of evil. Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. God will make this happen, for he who calls you is faithful.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-24 NLT

“That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)”

Romans 8:8-9 NLT

“Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else. For we are each responsible for our own conduct.”

Galatians 6:4-5 NLT

Christians who never examine themselves will never mature into the likeness of our Lord.

As well, Christians who do become aware of where their ways of being and doing differ from the Lord’s instruction, yet do nothing to adjust their ways, are in for big trouble.

Tomorrow we will begin our investigation into the most important self-exam.

Peace to you.

Jesus is coming. Get ready for Him!

The Prophetic Word

Day 78: Ignorance is neither bliss nor innocence.

1 Corinthians 11:27-31 NLT

My father used to tell (with great glee) a true story about a man with whom he was trying to share the gospel. As he had begun to speak, the man objected, saying, “Stop preacher, don’t say anything more. The Bible says that to whom much is given, much is required.” To which my father responded, “Friend, you already know too much!” At this point in the telling of the story my father would always laugh and remark about the fact that we make ourselves foolish in the ways we try to get out of doing what is right.

Now, the scripture that man was referencing is this:

““And a servant who knows what the master wants, but isn’t prepared and doesn’t carry out those instructions, will be severely punished. But someone who does not know, and then does something wrong, will be punished only lightly. When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required.”

Luke 12:47-48 NLT

Indeed, in the telling of this parable, Jesus is confirming that our punishment for doing the wrong thing will be based according to what we knew.

But notice, even the one who didn’t know what was required, was punished; just not as severely. So clearly, ignorance is not freedom from responsibility OR penalty.

In this experience my father was sharing, we see a person who is already aware that they are responsible to know what the Lord requires. Therefore, his willful ignorance, had already put him in a bad spot.

Certainly, some question why people would be punished if they hadn’t known about God or His ways. But—as we see in the word of God—no one can use ignorance to excuse their disobedience, as God has put who He is in the creation for all to see.

“They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused.”

Romans 1:19-21 NLT

The fact is, EVERYONE will give an account for what has been done in this life. Therefore, it would behoove us to take stock of ourselves to see if we are lining up with what God requires.

We see time and again throughout the Old Testament God’s people being judged because they refused to adhere to what He required. As well, their ignorance of what their sin was doing to them, put them in an even worse position.

In one place, the Lord references the fact that the mixing of His people with the ungodly has sapped their strength; yet they were ignorant of their pitiful state!

“The people of Israel mingle with godless foreigners, making themselves as worthless as a half-baked cake! Worshiping foreign gods has sapped their strength, but they don’t even know it. Their hair is gray, but they don’t realize they’re old and weak. Their arrogance testifies against them, yet they don’t return to the Lord their God or even try to find him.”

Hosea 7:8-10 NLT

In the book of Revelation the Lord scolds Laodicea (the lukewarm church) for being totally oblivious of their compromised condition.

“You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.”

Revelation 3:17 NLT

In both of these examples (the Jews and the Laodicean church) we find warnings that failure to change will result in punishment.

In our opening scripture we see Paul instructing the church at Corinth concerning their conduct when they come together for the Lord’s supper.

The context of this instruction is that there were many who were disrespecting the holy meal by putting themselves before others, treating each other badly, and partaking of the Lord’s supper as if it were just another opportunity to eat.

Paul gives them some very valuable advice by instructing that they should examine themselves before partaking in this holy meal.

Now, as noted, this was in the context of the need to remember what the Lord’s Table represented: the death of Jesus Christ. But make no mistake, the imperative to be conscious of where we stand by examining ourselves, must be heeded in terms of the whole spectrum of our lives and our living. We will discuss this more tomorrow.