Most people assume the Lord’s actions are motivated almost solely because of His love for man. Yet, God works for His own glory and for His own name’s sake.
Rebellion is identified in a variety of ways, but the Lord often associates it to someone with a stiff neck. Society should find this concept easily grasped. A stiff neck impedes the head from bowing. Moses directly associated the stiff neck with rebellion when he said, “For I know thy rebellion, and thy stiff neck” (Deuteronomy 31:27). Like Moses, the Lord identified the rebellion of the children of Israel when He stated that they were “a stiffnecked people” (Exodus 32:9). Isaiah likewise attested to this truth by stating that rebellious people had a neck of iron sinew and a brow of brass (Isaiah 48:4). These descriptive terms demonstrate that rebellion is exemplified by an individual who refuses to bow and allow the mind to be changed. He has an unyielding spirit.
We tend to think of laughter in a positive light, generally envisioning emotions like happiness or joyfulness. Yet, far too much laughter results from things opposed to God and His will. The Bible provides this same assessment. A careful study of the word laughter in the Bible demonstrates that the connotation is overwhelmingly bad. Today’s passage shows Sarah laughing in disbelief of the promises of God. Genesis 17:17 shows that Abraham did the same when he heard the news. These were two godly people; yet, much of the laughter found in the Bible occurred when the ungodly mocked God’s people and God’s promises (Nehemiah 2:19). Our Saviour too was “laughed . . . to scorn” when He declared that the daughter of Jairus was not dead (Mark 5:40). Laughter, in and of itself, is not wicked, but the cause of one’s laughter reveals its true makeup.
There are few sights and sounds like that of a majestically flowing river. For this reason, the Lord promised His people that they would have “been as a river” through simple obedience. This analogy using the river not only speaks of quality but also of quantity. Israel's obedience would bring a peace similar to the calming effect of a flowing river. This peace would also be quantitatively associated to the vast amounts of water which flow down a river. The Lord reaffirmed this truth when He said of Jerusalem, “Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river” (Isaiah 66:12). This peace too was dependent upon the obedience of the people of God. Unfortunately, for most people, life is more like the raging waves of the sea rather than the pristine flowing waters of a river. God in His grace desires to reward the obedient with peace like a river, but disobedience has its own set of unmanageable outcomes.
The Lord healed many people during His earthly ministry. Today's passage speaks of a particular man who had been delivered from devil possession. What a relief he must have experienced! However, the people in his community did not rejoice that the Lord had performed such a wonderful miracle. In fact, they turned against the Saviour and wanted Him to depart from their coasts. The Lord complied with their demands; however, the man delivered of the devils wanted to travel with the Lord. He loved the Lord so much that he wanted to stay close to Him. However, as the healed man sought to enter the ship, Christ told him to return to his home and tell his friends what had happened to him. The Lord knew that this man was in the best position to reach out to his friends with the truth. He knew this man's testimony concerning the truth was what they needed to hear and believe. Christians should always be prepared and ready for times when opportunities arise to tell their friends about the truth. Acts chapter 10 records another example when Cornelius called his friends together expecting to hear Simon Peter preach the truth of the gospel. Real friends insure that their friends are put into a position to hear the truth and never squander spiritual opportunities.
