NO
EXCUSES
God
Accepts No Excuses
Introduction
1.
God
expects no excuses from Man
2.
God
expects reports of fulfilled tasks
3.
Tell
Him what you have done for Him – not your excuses
4.
God
has entrusted you with:
God Entrusted You with Certain Things
1.
Blessings
2.
Authority
3.
Rules
4.
Responsibility
1.
Blessings
Genesis 1: 27 – 30
27 So God
created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and
female created he them.
28 And God
blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish
the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over
the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
{moveth: Heb. creepeth}
29 And God said,
Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all
the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed;
to you it shall be for meat. {bearing...: Heb. seeding seed} {yielding...: Heb.
seeding seed}
30 And to every
beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that
creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb
for meat: and it was so. {life: Heb. a living soul}
Genesis 2: 8 – 14
8 And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in
Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.
9 And out of the ground made the LORD God to
grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of
life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and
evil.
10 And a river went out of Eden to water the
garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.
11 The name of the first is Pison: that is it
which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;
12 And the gold of that land is good: there is
bdellium and the onyx stone.
13 And the name of the second river is Gihon: the
same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. {Ethiopia: Heb. Cush}
14 And the name of the third river is Hiddekel:
that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is
Euphrates. {toward...: or, eastward to Assyria}
2.
Authority
Genesis 2:15 - And the LORD God took the man, and
put him into the garden of Eden to dress <`abad>
it and to keep <shamar> it. {the man: or,
Adam}
<`abad> (aw-bad) - a primitive root; to work (in any
sense); by implication, to serve, till, (causatively) enslave, etc.:--X be, keep in bondage,
be bondmen, bond-service, compel, do, dress, ear, execute, + husbandman, keep, labour(-ing
man, bring to pass, (cause to, make to) serve(-ing, self), (be, become)
servant(-s), do (use) service, till(-er), transgress (from margin), (set a)
work, be wrought, worshipper,
<shamar> a primitive
root; properly, to
hedge about (as with thorns), i.e. guard; generally, to protect,
attend to, etc.:--beward, be circumspect, take heed (to self), keep(-er, self),
mark, look narrowly, observe, preserve, regard, reserve, save (self), sure,
(that lay) wait (for), watch(-man).
3.
Rules
Genesis 2: 16, 17
16 And the LORD
God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely
eat: {thou...: Heb. eating thou shalt eat}
17 But of the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the
day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. {thou shalt surely...: Heb.
dying thou shalt die}
Exodus 15 : 22 – 27
22 So Moses
brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur;
and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water.
23 And when they came to Marah, they could not
drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it
was called Marah. {Marah: that is Bitterness}
24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying,
What shall we drink?
25 And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed
him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet:
there he made for them a statute and an
ordinance, and there he proved them,
26 And said, If thou wilt
diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is
right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his
statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought
upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.
27 And they came to Elim, where were twelve wells
of water, and threescore and ten palm trees: and they encamped there by the
waters.
Special Note:
Exodus 15 : 25 - And he cried unto the LORD; and
the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters
were made sweet: there he made for them a
statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them,
(And he cried to the LORD. And the LORD
showed him a tree. And when he had cast it into the waters, the waters were
made sweet. There He made a decree and a law for them, and there He tested them. (Modern King James Version)
4.
Responsibility
Deuteronomy 4:38 - To drive out nations from
before thee greater and mightier than thou art, to bring thee in, to give thee
their land for an inheritance, as it is this day.
Deuteronomy 9:5 - Not for thy righteousness, or
for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land: but for
the wickedness of these nations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from
before thee, and that he may perform the word which the LORD sware unto thy
fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
I. You are Accountable to God for All These
Genesis 3:8 - And
they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the
day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God
amongst the trees of the garden. {cool: Heb. wind}
1.
God
came to visit them and get a report of what have been going on during the day.
2.
God
asked two questions:
i.
Where
art thou?
ii.
Who
told you that you are naked (sinner)?
iii.
Have
you eaten the fruit of the tree which God commanded no to eat?
Genesis 3: 9 - 11
9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said
unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden,
and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast
naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou
shouldest not eat?
3.
Adam
and Eve replied with excuses.
II.
God Accepts No Excuses
1.
The
first man to say excuse was Adam
Genesis 3: 12 - 11
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to
be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
13 And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is
this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I
did eat.
2.
But
God did not accept any excuses
3.
He
punished them for their irresponsibility
Genesis 3: 16 - 19
16 Unto the
woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow
thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he
shall rule over thee. {to thy...: or, subject to thy husband}
17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast
hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I
commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy
sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth
to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; {bring...: Heb. cause to
bud}
19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread,
till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou
art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
III.
The Story of Jonah
Jonah 1: 2 - 4
2 Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and
cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.
3 But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from
the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to
Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them
unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
4 But the LORD sent out a great wind into the
sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be
broken.
Jonah 4: 2 - And he prayed
unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I
was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that
thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness,
and repentest thee of the evil.
Jonah 1: 11 - 12
11 Then said
they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us?
for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous. {may...: Heb. may be silent from us}
{wrought...: or, grew more and more tempestuous: Heb. went}
12 And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me
forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my
sake this great tempest is upon you.
Jonah 2: 9 - 10
9 But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice
of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD.
10 And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it
vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.
IV.
God Rewards For What You Have Done For Him
The Story of Nehemiah
1.
Book
of Nehemiah is the last historical book that was written, as Malachi, the last
prophetical book of the Old Testament.
2.
He
raised up various excellent men for the preservation of his people after their
return from Babylon.
3.
They
were Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah
4.
Zerubbabel
was their captain to bring them home, and provided that the temple was built
5.
Ezra
reformed their manners and planted religion
6.
Nehemiah
built up the walls, delivered the people from oppression and provided that the
law of God was carried out among them.
7.
Nehemiah
was a godly man, and in great authority with the king, so that the king
favoured him greatly and gave him letters to accomplish all the things he
desired.
8.
This
book is also called the second of Ezra by the Latins because he was the author
of it.
9.
The
book continues the history of the children of the captivity, the Jews lately
returned out of Babylon and relates:
i.
His
concern for Jerusalem and commission to go thither, chap. 1, 2.
ii.
His
building the wall of Jerusalem, notwithstanding much opposition, chap. 3, 4.
iii.
His
redressing the grievances of the people, chap. 5.
iv.
His
finishing the wall, chap. 6.
v.
The
account he took of the people, chap. 7.
vi.
His
calling the people to read the law, fast and pray, and renew their covenant,
chap. 8-10.
vii.
He
peoples Jerusalem and settles the tribe of Levi, chap. 11, 12.
viii.
He
reforms divers abuses, chap. 13.
10.
After
completing his task, he prayed to God for blessing
11.
He
was not saying certain excuses
12.
But
he had a report of successfully completed activities
13.
He
prayed God to remember those things he had done for Him and bless him
accordingly.
Nehemiah 5:19 - Think upon
me, my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.
Nehemiah 13: 10 - 14
10 And I
perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them: for the
Levites and the singers, that did the work, were fled everyone to his field.
11 Then
contended I with the rulers, and said, Why is the house of God forsaken? And I
gathered them together, and set them in their place. {place: Heb. standing}
12 Then brought all Judah the tithe of the corn and the new wine and the oil
unto the treasuries. {treasuries: or, storehouses}
13 And I made
treasurers over the treasuries, Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and
of the Levites, Pedaiah: and next to them was Hanan the son of Zaccur, the son
of Mattaniah: for they were counted faithful, and their office was to
distribute unto their brethren. {treasuries: or, storehouses} {next...: Heb. at
their hand} {their office...: Heb. it was upon them}
14 Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and wipe not
out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God, and for the offices
thereof.
Nehemiah 13:22 And I commanded the Levites that
they should cleanse themselves, and that they should come and keep the gates,
to sanctify the sabbath day. Remember me, O my God,
concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of thy mercy.
{greatness: or, multitude}
Nehemiah 13: 29 - 31
29 Remember them
(marrying strange wives), O my God, because they have defiled the priesthood,
and the covenant of the priesthood, and of the Levites.
30 Thus cleansed
I them from all strangers, and appointed the wards of the priests and the
Levites, every one in his business;
31 And for the
wood offering, at times appointed, and for the firstfruits. Remember me, O my God, for good.
The Story of Hezekiah
2 Kings 20: 1 - 6
1 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death.
And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus
saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live.
{Set...: Heb. Give charge concerning thine house}
2 Then he turned his face to the wall, and
prayed unto the LORD, saying,
3 I beseech thee, O
LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect
heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept
sore. {sore: Heb. with a great weeping}
4 And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone
out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying,
{court: or, city}
5 Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of
my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy
prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou
shalt go up unto the house of the LORD.
6 And I will add unto thy days fifteen years;
and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria;
and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.
Click for positive thoughts for better living
No comments:
Post a Comment