Jealous and Generous

Follow Along with the Message

The strange and holy mix of love and fear for the same person.

Jealous--quanna.  Like a husband who will not share his wife with her old boyfriend.

Not because he is flawed or selfish, rather because he knows what love is.

Angry God

     "The church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and the comfort of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 9:31).

Commandment 1 forbids the gods of the NATIONS.

Commandment 2 forbids the gods of our IMAGINATION.

--NO SMALL GOD

We are not to take the infinite, invisible , Holy God and reduce Him to a statue or likeness.

God is Spirit.  We must worship Him in Spirit.

Our tendency to move from higher things to lower.  Harder to easier.  We fall "short" of the glory of God.  We fall "lower" in our concept of God.

     "The church that can't worship must be entertained.  And leaders who can't lead a church to worship must provide the entertainment" (A. W. Tozer).

--NO SUBSTITUTE GOD

Luke 18--The Rich, Young Ruler.  The substitute god of SELF.

False worship doesn't please God, it makes Him furious!

     "Visiting (pakad, to notice, to pay attention) the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me" (Exodus 20:5).

     "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household" (Acts 16:31).

1620--Mayflower.  Their goal was to WORSHIP.  From this remnant God blessed a nation.

How shall we hear this teaching?

The Commandments are a mirror.  

     "By the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin" (Romans 3:20)

     "For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction" (1Thessalonians 1:5).

We have been wrong.  All of us.  He calls us higher.

________________________________

Old Gospel Song

"Lord Jesus, I long to be perfectly whole; I want Thee forever to live in my soul; break down every idol, cast out every foe; now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow."

Gideon.  "Pull down the altar of Baal which belongs to your father. . .and build an altar to the Lord" (Judges 6: 25-26).

He is JEALOUS to those who ignore Him, GENEROUS to those who love Him and keep His commandments.  See Exodus 20:6.