June 30, 2016

Good morning ladies, this past week in our study of "Lord I Want to Know You" we continued to learn to know as God as Jehovah-rapha; the Lord Who Heals and began to know Him as Jehovah-nissi: the Lord My Banner.

Day 25 Counseling Others

Memory Verse: Heal me, O LORD, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, Thou are my praise. Jeremiah 17:14

Kay asks, "Where do people turn when they need healing?" When others come to us for advice we as Christians may pray with them and offer our own personal wisdom; but are we as diligent and prepared to open the Word of God with others and seek Jehovah-rapha's wisdom to heal the mind, body and soul directly from the healing source? Prayer and support of a loving friend, family member, caring individual are powerful and not to be underscored! If we give someone a glass of water their thirst is quenched for the moment; if we lead them to the well of living water they may access the source to quench their thirst when alone and in need of healing. They become strong themselves in the Word and as they mature in their relationship with Our Lord are able to show others the Way. Kay reminds us" "It is God who heals lands, pestilences, wars, bodies, emotions, souls, spirits." "Whenever you need healing, first consult Jehovah-rapha, second, explore whether sin is the cause of the problem. Psalm 139:23-24, 1Chorinthians 4:4. It is wise to pray and ask Our Lord to search our hearts and reveal.

Days 26-28 Days of pause and reflection on our study and Kay gives an introduction to the Inductive Method of Bible Study. Joyce Anderson and I have completed several of Kay's Bible studies together using the Inductive Method. They are intense and time consuming; but I (and I believe Joyce would agree) have found them to be an awesome way to immerse in the Word and come away with a true and personal understanding.

Day 29 The Lord My Banner: Jehovah-nissi

We learn that God was first worshiped as Jehovah-nissi in Exodus 17:15 when He called the Israelites to battle against Amalek. This example of an ancient battle is given as instruction of us today as written in Romans 15:4 " For whatever is written in earlier times was written for instructions, that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."

We are given the definition of a banner as: an ensign or standard carried at the head of a military band or body; to indicate the line of march, or the rallying point." We also learn that in ancient times a banner was not necessarily a flag; it was often a bare pole with a bright ornament that would glitter in the sun: Moses staff.

Amalek was a descendant of Esau, Jacob's (Israel's) brother who traded his inheritance for a bowl of stew to satisfy his immediate hunger of the flesh. Genesis 25:27-34. Like Esau who despised his birthright; Amalek dispised God and did not have reverence of God. Amalek was an enemy of the children of Israel, God's people from the beginning. In Deuteronomy 25:17-19 we reminded not to forget our inheritance nor the battle and consequences for the enemies of God and His children.
 The Word guides us in Galatians to discern between the fruits of the flesh and the spirit.

Flesh: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousy, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murder, drunkenness, revelries.

Spirit:  love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.


Day 30

At times we face different challenges and obstacles; but not unlike Esau we battle the flesh daily. Kay suggests that the flesh is our first enemy as Christians after we receive our Salvation through Christ Jesus. "For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please." Galatians 5:16.

Scripture gives us another example of Jehovah-nissi in the story of King Saul in 1 Samuel 15. The LORD kept His promise to Saul and was with him in the battle against the Amalekites. After the defeat of the Amalekites, Saul gave into the flesh and disobeyed the LORD, sparing King Agag and taking spoils from the victory. Samuel confronts Saul on his disobedience and reminds us that above all the LORD wants our obedience. God tells us to obey His commands; all of them. Not just the one's we like, understand or make us comfortable. Incomplete obedience is disobedience.

Questions for Response/Comments:

1. From the scriptures that you have studied, what can you conclude about the type of healing that Jehovah-rapha performs?

2. Think about the last time you needed to be healed. To whom did you go? What happened?

3. In Exodus 17, what two different situations do we see the children of Israel in? What was their attitude in the "no water" situation" Why do you think they had this attitude?

4. What strategy do you see in Exodus 17 for dealing with the flesh?

5. What was the role of Jehovah-nissi in the battle?

6. How have you dealt with the flesh? Under your own power? Under the banner of Jehovah-nissi? What was the result?

Until next week. God Bless, Debbie <><