Bible Doctrine Series-Jehovah-Shalom

Jehovah-Shalom—“the Lord our peace” (Judges 6:24). The specific name Jehovah-shalom is used only once in Scripture. Gideon experienced the peace of God when his circumstances told him there was no peace available. The sons of Israel had not obeyed God. As a result, He allowed Midian to oppress them for seven years. During this time, the Midianites fought against Israel, destroying their crops and their animals. The Midianites brought their own livestock with them, allowing them to overgraze the land to help devastate it. The Midianite oppression was so severe that the sons of Israel had to live in dens and caves in the surrounding mountains. This fierce oppression caused the sons of Israel to cry out to the Lord. He heard their cry and sent them a prophet to remind them that it was He who had brought them out of bondage from Egypt, and that they were not to fear their oppressors. One day Gideon was working to save a portion of the wheat crop from the marauding Midianites. Little did he realize that not far away was the angel of the Lord, observing. The angel spoke to Gideon assuring him the Lord was with him; the he called Gideon a valiant warrior. Gideon’s response was classic. He asked a question that we may have asked when things are not going as we would like. His words are recorded in Judges 6:13 “Oh my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.” The angel did not answer Gideon’s question. God’s prophet had already delivered the answer: they had not obeyed the Lord their God. Then the angel told Gideon he would be the one to deliver Israel from the Midianites. Gideon was concerned about the insignificance of his ancestry and that he was the youngest in the family. This did not seem to concern his heavenly visitor; He would accompany the valiant warrior who would defeat Midian. Gideon was not as confident as was his caller, and asked for a sign and prepared an offering. Once prepared, Gideon presented it to the angel of God who had him lay the meat and the bread on a rock and pour out the broth. The angel touched it with his staff; fire sprang us from the rock consuming the sacrifice. The angel then silently vanished from Gideon’s sight. By this time, Gideon—convinced he had been speaking to the angel of the Lord—became very fearful that he would die. The Lord must have known what he was thinking because He said, “Peace to you, do not fear; you shall not die” (v, 23). That was good enough for Gideon. He proceeded to build an altar to the Lord and named it “The Lord is Peace.” He called the alter “Jehovah-shalom” (Judges 6:24). That night the Lord told Gideon to tear down the altar of Baal and to cut down the Asherah; the wood was to be used to offer a burnt offering. Because of his great fear, Gideon took ten of his servants with him to do what the Lord had instructed. The men of the city were furious when they discovered what had happened and tried to get his father, Joash, to release Gideon to them. His father wisely responded; “If Baal is god, let him contend for himself.” Meanwhile the Midianites and the Amalekites were preparing to return to the land to remove everything of value and destroy the rest. Before that came about, the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon, for the purpose of rallying the people. Gideon must have been unsure of himself; he twice asked for a sign in order to ascertain that he was doing the right thing. The Lord, however, honored his requests. As Gideon and his followers rallied, the Lord told him he had too many men; they could have boasted in their own ability and strength. Therefore, the Lord cut his army from 32, -- down to a mere 300! At that point, their newly appointed leader probably felt he had a legitimate reason to be afraid! That night God gave him even further confirmation that he was doing the right thing. Therefore, Gideon took his small army to confront the enemy. Gideon’s army was not heavily armed as normally they would be. Instead, they were equipped with the armament of God: trumpets, and pitchers with flaming torches inside! At Gideon’s signal they blew the trumpets, broke their pitchers, and said, “For the Lord and for Gideon.” Now don’t you just know that would bring tremendous fear to the enemy! Can you imagine the Midianites and the Amalekites being overly alarmed by hearing the sound of trumpets, breaking pitchers, and the sight of 300 torches burning in the night? Normally, that would not send any great enemy reeling. This time was different, however. As Gideon and his men were obedient to God, “the Lord set the sword of one against another even throughout the whole army; and the army fled” (Judges 7:22). Remember the situation. In his own eyes, Gideon was nobody. God heard the sons of Israel crying out because of their oppressors. He approached Gideon and told him to go fight an innumerable enemy. Once Gideon received his commission to confront the enemy, he built an altar to the Lord and called it Jehovah-shalom meaning, “The Lord is Peace.” The angel of the Lord had not come to Gideon during a long reign of peace; he came during a time of national crisis. This angel had required something of Gideon that no military leader in his right mind would ever consider as a plan of military action: He used the unlikely tools that God had given him—trumpets, pitchers, and torches—yet he won the war. The heavenly messenger had helped Gideon work through his doubts and fears, using him in a way that Gideon himself had never thought possible. Jehovah-shalom: the Lord my peace, Philippians 4:5-7 says, “…The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” We need that message in our day as well. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

What is Freedom

What then is the freedom we seek? It's the ability to live our lives in obedience to the Holy Spirit. The enemy's plan is to lie to us to get us to live in our power and desires-to live in the flesh. Living life this way leads only to more sin. This actually renders the believer entirely incapable of advancing the kingdom of God. Satan loves that. In contrast, Jesus offers us truth and grace, the two spiritual realities that lead to freedom. Truth is the direction God desires to take us, and grace is the means He uses to get us there. I say this in the case of Shelton. He came to my office moderately depressed, and surely mentally tormented. He had met his wife nine years before, after they had corresponded for a year by mail. Shelton knew from this that there had been one sexual relationship in Susan's background. It was not an issue for him; it took place before they were married and it did not bother him that she did not come to the marriage bed a virgin. Both of them had been saved about the same time. So for eight years their marriage had been blissful. The Lord gave them three children. However, Susan came under conviction that she needed to clear the air concerning some past issues. She finally told him that there was not simple one relationship but several dozen intimate relationships before she had met Shelton. Upon this admission, the enemy stole in and played upon Shelton's hurt and fear that followed the revelation. "You did not marry a wife; you married a prostitute," Shelton told himself. Although he knew all those relationships had been forgiven by Jesus Christ, Shelton still lived in a state of sheer mental torment. He said, "I can't even stand to look at her. If it were not for the children, I would divorce her." I knew that I was dealing with a problem where quoting Scripture would not be meaningful because the emotional baggage and trauma that he carried was overwhelming his thinking. So I said, "Let's pray." I began to cry out to God and said, "Concerning your dear wife, I am going to ask God the truth about her. Is she a prostitute or a forgiven woman?" In a matter of seconds, the Holy Spirit spoke to Shelton's heart and said, "She is pure by My [Christ's] blood." Then Shelton sensed the Lord saying, "But you have become defiled by not accepting what God has declared as clean. You have allowed the enemy to defile your own heart. "Shelton's extremely harsh judgment of his wife's actions before salvation had inflicted such bitterness on his soul that he was actually destroying himself. As I prayed and then Shelton prayed, God uniquely brought His grace and truth into Shelton's heart. He cried out to God to help him forgive his wife and release her and to allow the peace and joy of God to replace the bitterness and torment in his heart. God did exactly that. Through his tears, Shelton said, "I think God has released me and my wife from our sin!" Shelton went home that day and embraced Susan, asked her forgiveness, and they both had a quiet night of restoration, redemption, and love. I believe God salvaged their marriage that day in my office. God used truth to take Shelton where He wanted him to go, and He used grace as a means to get him there. That day the enemy lost a key battle. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Blessed by God

Numbers 6:24-26 "The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious unto you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace." His promise, "The Lord bless you." God commanded the Old Testament Priest to pronounce this blessing upon His people. This implies God's promise to keep it. Every divine promise is built on the following strong foundations. God's justice and holiness which do not permit Him to deceive. God's grace and goodness which do not permit Him to forget. God's truth which does not permit Him to change and God's power which enables Him to accomplish it. (see Romans 4:21). He promises us His protection. "And keep you." Our protection lies not in the strength of our hold on God, but in the strength of God's hold on us. "Let me no more my comfort draw from my frail grasp on thee; In this alone rejoice with awe-Thy mighty grasp of me." His presence, "The Lord make his face shine upon you." We do not worship an impersonal ideal, a bloodless "Supreme Being," for in Christ we discover that God has a face and on that face is a smile. We must desire the Lord's presence more than the Lord's presents. The Giver is more important than any of His gifts. His personality, "And be gracious unto you." God will never let you down, He'll never let you off, and He'll never let you go. "His love has no limit, His grace has no measure, His power has no boundary known unto man, for out of His infinite riches in Jesus, He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again." His pleasure, "The Lord lift up his countenance upon you." We are privileged to proclaim the Gospel of the glory of God. We learn in the Scriptures "It is the Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32). God is no less God in the hard seasons of life. We used to sing "His eye is on the sparrow and I know He watches me." His peace, "And give you peace." Peace is God's gift. Man made peace, manufactured outside of God's plan, is as phony as a plastic carnation. Samson thought he found peace sleeping in the lap of Delilah, but he awoke to reality (Judges 16:19). What is peace? It is calmness when the trails press, it's a confidence that God knows best, it's a gentleness that's unperturbed, it's a quiet trust as on we plod, it's a sweet reliance on our God. Are you receiving God's blessings today? Receiving His blessings begins with receiving Him. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Do We Really Have to Worry

Please read Philippians 4:1-9. Worry is assuming responsibility that does not belong to you. If anybody had an excuse for worrying Paul did. His Christian friends at Philippi were disagreeing with one another. There was division among the believers at Rome. Added to these burdens was the possibility of his own death. Paul did not worry, instead, he took time to explain to us the secret of victory over worry. What is worry? It means to be pulled in different directions. The Old English root means to strangle. Spiritually, worry is wrong thinking and wrong feeling. If we are to conquer worry and experience the secure mind, we must meet the conditions that God has laid down. First, right praying. Paul does not write, pray about it. He is too wise to do that. He uses three words to describe right praying. Prayer, supplication, and thanksgiving. When we find ourselves worrying, we must get alone with God and worship Him. Adoration is what is needed. We must see the greatness and majesty of God. The bigger our God the smaller our problems. We must realize that He is big enough to solve our problems. We need to remember that "His ways are not our ways." There is supplication, an earnest sharing of our needs and problems. This leaves no place for half hearted, insincere prayer. It is not a matter of carnal energy but of spiritual intensity. There is appreciation, that is giving thanks to God. The Father enjoys hearing His children say thank you. Ten lepers were healed and one came back to say thanks. The percentage is no higher today. We must talk with God about everything that concerns us and Him. This is a major step toward victory over worry. Remember Daniel, he spent the night with the lions in peace when the King could not sleep. The first condition for victory over worry is right praying. Second, we must think right. Peace involves the heart and the mind. "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is fixed on You, because he trusts in You" (Isa. 26:3). Paul spells out in detail the things we ought to think about. We must think about whatever is true. Less than 10% of things people worry about are legitimate. Satan is a liar. He wants to corrupt our mind. The Holy Spirit controls our minds through truth. Whatever is honest and just. This means worthy of respect. We are not to let dishonorable things control our thoughts. Whatever is pure, lovely and of good report. Pure refers to moral purity. Lovely, is that which is beautiful and attractive. This is speaking of the Lord Jesus. Of good report means worth talking about. Whatever possesses virtue and praise, that which motivates us to do better. It will be worth commending to others. Right thinking is the result of daily meditation on the Word of God. Third, right living. We cannot separate outward action and inward attitude. Sin always results in unrest, and purity ought to result in peace. Paul balances four activities "Learned and received" and Heard and seen." It is one thing to learn truth. It is quite another to receive it inwardly and make it a part of your inner man. Facts are never enough, we must also have truth in the heart. Paul not only taught the Word but he lived it. We must learn the Word, receive it, hear it and do it. The peace of God is one test of whether or not we are in the will of God (Col. 3:15). If we walk with the Lord, then the peace of God exercises its influence over our hearts. When we disobey, we lose that peace. There is no need to worry, for worry is sin. With the peace of God to guard you and the God of peace to guide you, why worry? Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thess 5:18). Can we be thankful in the tough times? The Apostle Paul exhorts giving of thanks no matter what the circumstances. Paul did not say, “For everything give thanks.” Rather he said, “In everything give thanks.” While trials are inevitable, we are not asked to be thankful for evil and unforeseen happenings in our lives, as some morbid fascination with adversity. Instead, through inevitable difficulties, we may learn to see God’s greater purpose through suffering in our lives as believers. Then we are able to give thanks for that which God is working out in our lives. Remember the old TV show "Father knows best," in our case, as believers, our Heavenly Father does know best. James expressed this same challenge to believers when he said, “Count it all joy when you fall into divers temptations.” We cannot prevent every bad thing from happening to us, so we must learn to see it as an opportunity to look beyond the trial. We must learn to take the long look when a trial comes. The phrase "It came to pass" is repeated many times in the Bible. Every difficulty in life "Comes to pass." We are to be thankful in every condition. things are never so bad with us that they could not be worse. We can be thankful in trials, although at times not for trials. The purifying process may be more painful than we can imagine. Years ago a friend of mine was put in a cast after having surgery. For some reason the cast was too tight and he was subjected to excruciating pain that lasted through the night. He said the Lord did not remove the pain but gave him grace to endure it. Paul also reminds us that unforeseen things which happen in believers’ lives are a part of God’s perfect will. He is the Director of our steps. Nothing happens to us that has not been sifted through God's Sovereign hands. Since God could prevent any evil from touching us, then all that He allows must be for our greater good. Our faithful God has chosen to allow difficulties, suffering, and evil, while at the same time making a way to escape (1 Cor 10:13). You can go to the bank with the fact that God works all things for good (Rom 8:28). While we may not always comprehend God’s will for us, He certainly knows and directs in our lives on a daily basis. Because we are saved, we can rejoice in the fact that God is our Protector and Guide. God is sort of like the statement on most vehicles side view mirrors "He is closer than you think He is." Gratitude should be our attitude as believers no matter what happens. “Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift.” The gift of the clay (us) having a Personal Potter Who loves us beyond our wildest imagination. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Anxiety and Prayer

We are living in a time of economic instability that I have not experienced in my lifetime. I visit with people daily who are genuinely anxious and fearful about the future. The Lord has some great encouragement for those who fear the future. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 4:6-7). When Paul set forth the marks of a spiritual Christian he used words like joy, prayer, thanksgiving, peace. Such lives are further marked by gentle forbearance and no anxiety. We live in a post-Christian, postmodern world, which has generally lost its bearings because it has almost totally abandoned its God. Its in this culture that we have the key to effective evangelism. Our world is characterized by fear rather than joy and peace. We as believers should be characterized by joy. And as we are living out true peace and joy by the power of the Holy Spirit, we have the privilege to point others to the source of this peace and joy. How can we live free of anxiety? We do so because the Lord is near. He indwells us by the Holy Spirit who turns our present circumstances into joy and peace. Have you noticed the Disciples experienced times of anxiety. They weathered more than one storm. However whenever Jesus showed up, their life circumstances came under the power of the Lord. He has the authority to say "Peace be still." The Spirit who indwells us also prompts our prayers and Thanksgiving. He teaches us to trust, pray and give thanks. Prayer and thanksgiving set up a guard (garrison) around our hearts and minds. This enables us to gaze on our Savior and only glance at our troubles. Why worry when you can pray is not a trite saying, its a biblical truth. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Do You Lack Courage

Please read Zechariah 4:1-10. During this time period (the above verses) God called two prophets on the scene, Haggai and Zechariah. They came in a time of extreme national discouragement. God has instructed the people to rebuild the Temple. But after 14 years it still lay in ruins. The nations was in a spiritually demoralized state of being. They had lost their heart for God and His work. In this context God said "It's not by might nor by power but by my Spirit saith the Lord of hosts." Note three truths that apply just a well to the times we live in. First, a view of fruitless times. It was a time of drought, spiritually and in the land. During dry times we need to get thirsty for the power of God. I remember hearing an old evangelist say "I would rather be a back alley bookie than a preacher without the power of God." It was a time of discouragement. In the spiritual realm discouragement will bring the drought. It was a time of division. The nation was divided and it was a time of defeat. There had been 14 years of no blessing from the Lord. Second, the writer point out the vanity of fleshly efforts. Might, refers to human resources, strength, ability and wealth. Power, refers to personality, flesh, mental strength. We will never win spiritual battles in the flesh. Third, the victory of the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Our problem is not with the lack of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will do His office work if we would just give Him office space. "If our churches have not the Spirit of God it is better to nail shut the doors and windows and put a black cross over them saying "God have mercy on us." A church in the land without the power of the Spirit of God is more of a curse than a blessing. Charles Spurgeon said "Failure follows on the heals of self confidence." Beware of worshiping the "god of common sense." That is relying on what others say rather than on what God says. A young preacher did a good job on the Sunday morning sermon. As an older believer walked out he complemented the young preacher on the message. The young preacher said "It was Jesus." The older saint said "No, it wasn't, it wasn't that good." The power of the Holy Spirit gives us staying power. Discouragement comes and fellows want to quit. When the things go wrong as they sometimes will, The road your trudging seems all up hill. When the funds are low and the debts are high, You want to smile but you have to sigh. When cares seem to press you down a bit, Rest if you must but don't you quit. Life is clear with its twists and turns, As everyone of us sometimes learns. And many a failure turns about, He might have won had he stuck it out. Don't give up though the pace is slow, You might succeed with another blow. Often the goal is nearer than it seems to a faint and faltering heart. Often the struggler has given up when he might have gained the victors cup, and learned too late when the night slipped down how close he was to the golden crown. Success is failure turned inside out, The silver tint in the clouds of doubt. And you can never tell how close you are, It may be near when it seems so far. So stick to the fight when your hardest hit, When things seem worse you must not quit. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Sweet Vengeance

"Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves: but give place unto wrath, for it is written, vengeance belongs to me, I will repay, says the Lord." (Romans 12:20). The desire to get even has no place in the life of the believer. Christ gave the example; His followers are to forgive even as He forgave them (Colossians 3:13). There are those who will treat a Christian unkindly and often with purpose, and to retaliate is a natural response. But to turn the other cheek, to go the second mile, is Christlike. This kind of living can only be done through the filling and power of the Holy Spirit. The believer is to do his best to live at peace with all men and avoid giving offense to any. Rather than avenge himself of unjust attacks, he is to return good for evil. Any thought of taking revenge must be banished from the mind. Opposition, persecution, and hatred are to be repaid positively with good. Scripture makes it clear that revenge belongs to God, and to Him alone. God's way a avenging is infinitely better for all concerned and brings glory to Himself. As Christians we need to realize we live in a moral universe that is under the authority of God. We must not play God by seeking revenge for personal affronts. God has His way of dealing with offenders either through governmental authority (13:4) or in the final judgment. When we avoid avenging ourselves and return good for evil, we give God an opportunity to work. When we take revenge into our own hands we are apt to find that at the last it produces bitter fruit. When God avenges wrong it is not done with a retaliation which is so representative of human scheming. God avenges wrong with perfect equity and justice. For the Christian this is called Kingdom living. When it come to vengeance, remember He is God and you are not. Dr. Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.