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aaron & hur

1/26/2015

 
Exodus 17 presents an interesting picture.  It’s the picture of Moses standing on the mountain with his hands raised high in the air while Joshua and the army of Israel are engaged in battle against the Amalekites in the valley below.

As long as Moses’ hands were raised, Israel prevailed.  But when he lowered his hands, the Amalekites prevailed.  

As the battle continued and the day wore on, Moses became “weary in well doing” (Gal. 6:9).  I mean, you can only hold your hands up for so long.  With his tired hands hanging down, the momentum of the fight turned against Israel.

Seeing their leader’s predicament and the ensuing defeat on the battlefield, Aaron and Hur came rushing to Moses’ side and held up his hands.  Consequently, the momentum turned once again in Israel’s favor and the battle was finally won. 

Several lessons may be gleaned from this passage of scripture.  One of the most cited is the lesson on prayer for the posture of Moses was one of prayer.  This story reminds us that prayer will do what otherwise is impossible.  For all the fighting done by Joshua and the army of Israel against the Amalekites, the battle was won on the mountain of prayer!

But the particular application I am thinking of at this moment concerns Aaron and Hur.  Moses could not have done what he did without them.  No man is an island unto himself.  A go-it-alone attitude in the Christian life is the kiss of death.  A spirit of self-sufficiency admired by some will quickly fail you in the crucible of life.  As Solomon observed, “Woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up” (Ecc. 4:10).

God calls us to live out our faith within the company of believers called the church.  We need other believers, and we are needed by other believers.  So, who is your Aaron?  What about Hur?  Don’t have an Aaron and Hur?  Better go find them!

As I said at the beginning of this article, Exodus 17 presents an interesting picture.  Three men in prayer on the mountain top; two staying up the third.  And the battle was won.

Pastor Todd Weston

BAD PLACES

1/19/2015

 
It happened two weeks ago in Costa Rica.  I was traveling from the capital city of San Jose to the resort area of Los Suenos with a group of ministers and missionaries when our bus stopped at a local tourist attraction.  Other than a roadside market selling fresh fruit, the only unique feature I could see was a long bridge spanning a muddy river.  I wondered, “What’s the big attraction?” 

Walking out onto the narrow bridge and peering over the side, I quickly discovered that the attraction wasn’t the river itself but what was in the river and along its banks.  Crocodiles!  Big crocodiles!  Lots and lots of really big crocodiles!

At first, I actually thought the crocodiles were fakes.  I mean, they were so big!  I’ve seen a lot of alligators in Florida, but these crocodiles were enormous.  Add to that, they weren’t moving at all.  Not a muscle.  

That’s when the show began.  As we stood looking down into the crocodile-infested river, someone from the market came out with a cage full of live chickens.  Suddenly, scores of live chickens were tossed from the bridge to their miserable fate below.  As the river churned with crocodiles feasting on chickens I thought of the Chick-Fil-A slogan “Eat More Chickin’”.  Can’t you just see a Chick-Fil-A cow standing on the bridge holding that sign?

Standing on that two-lane bridge with missionary Jeff Dove, gazing over the rickety railing at dozens upon dozens of crocodiles gorging themselves on live chickens, and with tour buses flying by within a few feet of where we were standing, the thought suddenly occurred to us – this is a very unsafe place to be!  It was.  So we left.

Face it.  There are some bad places in life – physically and spiritually.  I’m talking about dangerous places where but for the grace of God something bad is very likely to happen.  Places where temptation is sure to hit and opportunities to go astray abound.  I’m talking about places in life where you must not go, and if you happen to find yourself there you must get out fast.

What do you do?  I think of the comical story of the guy who told his doctor, “I broke my arm in two places.”  The doctor replied, “Well then, stay out of those places!”  

When it comes to bad places, remember the words of Proverbs 4:14-15, “Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of evil.  Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn away from it and pass on.”

Pastor Todd Weston



make up your mind

1/12/2015

 
Two men who lived in a small village got into a terrible dispute that they could not resolve.  They decided to talk to the town sage.  The first man went to the sage's home and told his version of what happened. When he finished, the sage said, "You're absolutely right." The next night, the second man called on the sage and told his side of the story. The sage responded, "You're absolutely right." Afterward, the sage's wife scolded her husband. "Those men told you two different stories and you told them they were absolutely right. That's impossible.  They can't both be absolutely right."  The sage turned to his wife and said, "You're absolutely right."

Have you ever struggled with indecision?  Can’t decide?  It’s standing in a closet full of clothes unable to decide what to wear.  It’s standing in front of an open refrigerator undecided on what to eat.  Or from my personal experience, it’s standing at the ice cream counter at Royal Scoop holding up the line because you are full of indecision on what flavor to order.  

On the one side of the indecision aisle are the people of the northern kingdom of Israel to whom Elijah said, “’How long will you waver between two opinions?  If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal is God, follow him.’  But the people said nothing” (1 Kings 18:21).  Faced with the obvious choice, the people still could not decide between God and Baal.

On the other side of the indecision aisle is Joshua who stated his position in no uncertain terms, “As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD” (Joshua 24:15).

Like Joshua, Daniel was a man who made up his mind to serve the Lord.  Taken from his home as a young man and forced to live in a godless society, Daniel resolved not to defile himself (Daniel 1:8).  He purposed in his heart that he would serve God regardless of his surroundings or circumstances.

Making the right decision is half the battle.  As we rely upon Him, God will then give us the grace to follow through.  Don’t waver in the “no man’s land” of indecision.  Don’t stand paralyzed at the crossroads of indecision.  Be resolute in your Christian commitments and convictions.  Drive a stake in the ground and declare once and for all, “Decision made!  Conviction held!  Position taken!  Issue resolved!  Argument settled!”

It’s amazing what God can do with a made up mind!  

Pastor Todd Weston

the law of sin

1/5/2015

 
Have you ever heard of the law of sin?  Yes, there is such a law.  Paul talked about it in Romans c8.  The law of sin is like the law of gravity.  It’s very strong and will always pull you down.  We have all experienced the devastating effects of this law.  Adam and Eve experienced the tragic effects of the law of sin in what is called the Fall of Man (Genesis 3).

It’s significant that the Bible employs the language of falling when talking about a person being overcome by the law of sin.  For example, Acts 1:25 speaks of Judas who “by transgression fell.”  In 1 Cor. 10:12 Paul issues the warning, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.”  Like gravity, sin will cause a person to fall.  Falling is a very real experience.  Furthermore, it can happen so fast.  It only takes a few seconds to be defeated.

Thankfully, the Bible introduces another law.  It’s called the law of the Spirit.  The law of the Spirit operates along the same lines as the principle of aerodynamics.  A jet is able to take off and fly because the principle of aerodynamics is greater than the law of gravity.  It doesn’t annihilate the law of gravity; it overcomes it!

Likewise, the law of the Spirit does not annihilate the law of sin.  Sin still exists.  Temptation still occurs.  The danger of falling is very real.  But like an eagle spreading its wings and soaring, the law of the Spirit lifts us above the law of sin.  When I try to fight sin in my own power I lose.  But when I rely on the power of Holy Spirit I win.

So how do we rely on the power of the Holy Spirit?  First of all, by hiding God’s Word in your heart.  “Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You” (Psalm 119:11).  Secondly, by turning to God in prayer.  “But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles.  They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31).  And thirdly, by continually pursuing the things of God that produce spiritual growth.  “For if you do these things you will never stumble” (2 Peter 1:10b).

When temptation strikes and the threat of falling draws near, stretch out your spiritual wings and soar above it!  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus lifts us up above the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2).

Pastor Todd Weston

    Pastor Todd

    Lead Pastor
    River of Life
    Assembly of God

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