God's Divine Plans
God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did (Romans 4:17)
1. 1. He who calls things that do not exist as though they
did
II Kings 7:
1. Then Elisha said, “Listen to the word of the Lord. The Lord says, ‘Tomorrow about this time, a basket of fine flour will be sold for one piece of silver in the gate of Samaria. And two baskets of barley will be sold for a piece of silver.’”
The
four lepers and their arrival at the enemy camp:
3 Now there were four men at the city gate with a bad skin disease. They said to one another, “Why do we sit here until we die?
4 If we go into the city, there is no food there and we will die. And if we sit here, we will die also. So now come, let us go over to the tents of the Syrians. If they do not kill us, we will live. And if they kill us, we will die there.”
5 So they got up in the evening to go to the Syrians. When
they came to the tents of the Syrians, there was no one there.
Fleeing Syrians:
6 For the Lord had made the Syrian army hear a sound of
war-wagons and horses and an army of many soldiers. So they said to one
another, “The king of Israel has paid the kings of the Hittites and the kings
of the Egyptians to fight against us.”
7 And they ran away in the evening. They left their tents
and their horses and donkeys. They left everything just as it was, and ran for
their lives.
8 Then the men with a bad skin disease came to the tents.
They went into one tent and ate and drank. They carried away silver and gold
and clothing, and hid them. Then they returned and went into another tent and
carried things away from it, and hid them.
9 They said to one another, “We are not doing right. This
is a day of good news, but we are keeping quiet. We will be punished if we wait
until morning. So now let us go and tell those of the king’s house.”
10 And they came and called the men who watched the city
gate. They said to them, “We went to the tents of the Syrians. But there was no
one to be seen or heard there. Only the horses and donkeys were tied there. The
tents were left just as they were.”
11 So the men at the gate called out, and the news was
heard in the king’s house.
Without the sword and without blood, Israel plunders the enemy camp:
12 The king got up in the night and said to his servants, “I will tell you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry. So they have left the tents to hide themselves in the field. They are saying, ‘When they come out of the city, we will take them alive and get into the city.’”
13 One of his servants said, “Let
some men take five of the horses that are left. Those who are left in the city
are not doing better than all those who have died. So let us send men out to
see.”
14 So they took two war-wagons with
horses. And the king sent them after the Syrian army, saying, “Go and see.”
15 They went after them to the
Jordan. All the way was covered with clothes and objects which the Syrians had
thrown away in their hurry. Then the men returned and told the king.
16 So the people went out and took
what the Syrians had left. Then a basket of fine flour was sold for a piece of
silver. And two baskets of barley sold for a piece of silver, just as the word
of the Lord had said.
17 Now the king chose the captain on
whose arm he rested to watch the gate. But the people stepped on him at the
gate. He died just as the man of God had said when the king came down to him.
1.
2. Spiritual vision:
II Kings 3:
16
He said, “This is what the Lord says, ‘Make this valley full of ditches.’
17
For the Lord says, ‘You will not see wind or rain. But that valley will be
filled with water so that you and your cattle and your animals will drink.’
18
This is only a small thing in the eyes of the Lord. He will give you the
Moabites also.
16 He answered, “Do not be afraid. For those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, I pray, open his eyes, that he may
see.” And the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he saw. He saw that the
mountain was full of horses and war-wagons of fire all around Elisha.
I Kings 19:
18 But I will leave 7,000 in Israel whose knees have not bowed down in front of Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”
1.
3. He who gives life to the dead:
Ephesians 2:
1. And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins,
4 But
God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
6 and raised us up together, and made us sit
together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
7 that in
the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His
kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
8 For by
grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the
gift of God,
4. The Kingdom of Christ
Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done in
earth, as it is in heaven. (Matthew
6: 10)
There must be oneness to build the kingdom of
God, not to build the Tower of Babel
Isaiah 11: 6-9
6 The
wolf will live with the lamb. The leopard will lie down with the baby goat. The
calf and the young lion and the young fat animal will lie down together. And a
little boy will lead them.
7 The
cow and the bear will eat side by side. And their young will lie down together.
The lion will eat straw like the ox.
8 The
nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra. And another child will put
his hand in the hole of a snake whose bite is poison.
9 They
will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain. For the earth will be as full
of much learning from the Lord as the seas are full of water.
Revelation 21:
1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new
earth. The first heaven and the first earth had passed away. There was no more
sea.
2 I saw the Holy City, the new
Jerusalem. It was coming down out of heaven from God. It was made ready like a
bride is made ready for her husband.
3 I heard a loud voice coming
from heaven. It said, “See! God’s home is with men. He will live with them.
They will be His people. God Himself will be with them. He will be their God.
4 God will take away all their
tears. There will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All the old
things have passed away.”
Prayer: Dear Heavenly father, give us the knowledge to understand your Divine Plans. Let Christ's heavenly kingdom and His will on earth be done, but not to build the towers of Babel. Open the eyes of our hearts to see what is happening around us with a spiritual eye. Wash and cleanse us by Your holy Blood so that we who are resurrected in Christ Jesus do not die again to sins. Heavenly God, who calls things that are not to be, take us and use us to build your kingdom. Only your name be glorified. We give all praise, honor and glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Hallelujah!
