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About the episode:
Get ready to be emboldened on your spiritual journey as we unpack the story of Abraham, a figure whose faith was tested and triumphed as he responded to God’s call. Stepping into the unfamiliar, Abraham’s journey offers us valuable lessons about obedience, trust, and navigating the unknown, a testament to the truth that God’s plans are unchanging, despite our human errors. Join me, Jamie Luce, as we delve into Abraham’s life, his moments of doubt, his intercessions, and the profound implications of God’s promise to bless the world through him.
Explore the relatable wrestle with doubt and the desire for confirmation in moments of uncertainty. Inspired by a woman desperate for reassurance of her dying husband’s salvation, we discover the importance of seeking affirmation of God’s Word while resisting the urge to control the outcome. From Abraham to Lot’s wife and the Israelites, we grapple with the consequences of partial obedience and the critical lesson about releasing our past to fully step into God’s promises.
We guarantee that this episode will challenge your faith in profound ways. We’ll discuss the significance of intercession and prayer, not just for ourselves, but for our cities and communities. We’ll be reminded of the intrinsic connection between obedience and blessings, examining how our faithfulness can impact not just our lives, but future generations. With compelling insights and encouraging reminders, this episode promises to equip you with essential spiritual tools to navigate your faith journey in today’s complex world. So, buckle up and get ready to learn, reflect and grow on this thrilling exploration of faith, obedience, and trust.
(0:00:03) – Navigating God’s Calling in Difficult World (11 Minutes)
Today we explore the story of Abraham and how God calls him out of his home and into a journey of faith. We look at the promise of land to his descendants and how intercession plays a role. We also examine the addition of Sarai and Lot to the story and how God does not explicitly tell Abram to take Lot. All of this gives us insight into how God calls us out of one place and into another and how to navigate those moments of faith.
(0:10:50) – Doubting God’s Word and Seeking Confirmation (8 Minutes)
A woman desperate for assurance that her husband on his deathbed had found salvation asked God to show her a sign. He gave her a word from her children’s Bible, but she needed something more concrete. She opened her Bible to find a word from the Lord and went to church for further assurance. The guest speaker called out her name, her address, and told her that she needed to know that the word she received was from God. We look at how Abraham also faced a similar situation and how he was able to resist the temptation to put his own hands on God’s work.
(0:19:09) – Abraham’s Intercession and God’s Judgment (16 Minutes)
We {explore} the complexities of Abraham’s life, from his wrong choices to the promised child he was blessed with. We {examine} how Abraham’s life can be seen as a symbol of Joseph’s story, and consider the incredible implications of God’s promise to bless the world through Abraham. We {reflect} on the importance of prayer for the cities we live in, and remember that God does not change His plan despite our mistakes.
(0:35:22) – Obedience and Trust in God (5 Minutes)
Today we discuss the consequences of partial obedience and the importance of trusting in God and following his commands. We explore the story of Lot’s wife, who died by the same judgement as everyone else, because she refused to let go of her past. We also look at the example of the Israelites, who were delivered out of death and yet longed for the things they left behind. I implore you to trust in the Lord and have faith that he will keep the promises he has made. When God commands you to do something, heed it quickly. Don’t look back. Set your face like flint and stay focused on what God has promised you. He will deliver you, and your obedience will save your family.
About your host: Jaime Luce’ story begins with emotional and financial struggle as a single mother trying to survive. Today, she has been married to the love of her life for almost three decades, owned two companies, and has become an author and podcaster. She is on a mission to help others walk through the valleys of life with hope and knowledge that God always has a way.
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I’m so excited about this book! I didn’t want to write something that simply told about the financial miracles God has done for me. But I wanted to practically help others know how to have the same kind of results. So this book is a playbook. Just like in sports. It will have the story of the need we faced from small to the astronomically huge and how God provided every time. Then we will give you what I call “the play call.” After you understand the Biblical method that was used you are then given a teaching on how to use that knowledge. I can promise it will give you the tools to change your situation and to realize that “You Don’t Need Money. You Just Need God.”
Full Transcript
This transcript is auto-generated and not perfect. We hope it blesses you.
0:00:03 – Jaime Luce
Welcome to the Jamie Luce podcast. I’m your host, jamie Luce. Thank you for listening today. All of my blogs, social and YouTube links can be found on my website, jamieloucecom. If you enjoy this podcast, you can support it by liking, subscribing, getting notified and sharing this broadcast. Another way you can help is by rating and reviewing on Apple podcast. My hope and goal in every episode is to give you tools found in Scripture, either by teaching, discussions, testimonies or interviews that encourage and equip you as you navigate living a real Christian walk in a difficult world. I would love to hear from you Whether you have a comment, question or prayer request. You can email me at mail at jamieluce.com. If you’re watching on YouTube, drop me a comment. I’d love to partner with you on your journey of faith. If you’re listening today on any podcast platform, take a screenshot and tag me and I’ll post it to my Instagram story. And now join me for today’s episode. Welcome to the Jamie Luce podcast. Thanks for joining me today.
Have you ever been in a situation where you are, you’re debating, you’re not sure? Lord is that you? Am I supposed to stay? Am I supposed to go? Is this still where you want me In that constant kind of back and forth struggle of I want to hear you, lord, I want to do what you want me to do. I hear something. I’m not sure it’s you, is it you? And then there comes the dilemma of but I’m not sure I want to go yet I’m comfortable here. There are all these kind of elements that are involved when God is calling us out of one place and into another, so I want to discuss that.
Today we’re going to be looking in the book of Genesis. We have been reading a few things in Genesis. I love the book of Genesis. I just think it is just crammed packed with such great stuff that you could spend so much time just in this book alone, and I encourage you to do that. I really encourage you to do that.
If you are somebody who wants to learn about the Lord, you want to learn about his ways, you want to see things he does, things that show us his character, things he says about himself, how he deals with man. There’s just so much, and I was actually just doing some of my own study this morning not for the purposes of recording, just to read for myself and the Lord was speaking to me about something, and often what happens is I come across a passage and I think I’ve described this before, but it says if the words grab my attention and there’s a question that is in there that I can’t answer, and it nags me like what does that mean? Or what exactly? What is he saying? Or why did that person do that? There comes a question and it just kind of it gets its claws in me and it’s something that the Lord uses to help me begin to go on a dive to see. It’s almost like he sets bait and it goes fishing for me and throws in the bait and I come up and I want a little bite of what is that and then he reels me in and I feel a little bit like that today I was.
You know, in Genesis you move from one person’s life kind of in. The next is you’ve got the story of creation and we go through some lineage and we go through Noah and we go through the flood and we come upon Abraham and then Abraham, or Abraham, and he becomes Abraham, and so you’ve got all this mixture of things going on. But where the story picks up today because we’ll be reading from Genesis 19 and God is wanting to do a supernatural rescue. There is a huge plan underway and really it was because of intercession, so maybe I should start there. So the story is that when, when we’re introduced to Abram, he is living in his father’s home, his father has died, and then God speaks to him and tells him I want you to leave the land of your kindred and your father’s house and I want you to go to a land I’m going to show you. So he, he begins and embarks with Abram on a journey of so journey, so journeying meaning none of those places does he stay in, he kind of remains a vagabond. But the purpose of that is he keeps traveling through a land. It’s almost prophetic, and maybe it is prophetic, but he’s going through the land and he’s going through the land of Canaan and he’s he’s God is promising him through all of his the so journeying, he’s doing that. This is the land that God is going to promise to Abraham, to his descendants. They will become so great and nations will come from him, and this is the promise that God is giving him. This is the land he’s giving them. And Abraham is kind of doing the scripture that that we read that wherever the soul of your foot goes, when he talks to Joshua I’m giving you that land. That’s really what God is doing. He’s telling Abram go, and every place you go this land that you’re walking through this territory, you’re actually taking this territory prophetically. You’re actually taking this ground and I’m going to be giving this not just to you, but I’m giving this to your, your offspring, and then to your children’s children and then to all the nations that are going to be birthed from you, abram. I’m going to do this, and we also see in this story some additional elements that get added to the story.
Abram’s got a wife. Who’s Baron? Her name is Sarai, who is later changed to Sarah, and we have lot of all people. Lot was his nephew, lot is Abram’s nephew and his father had died and he was being raised by his grandfather and by his uncle, and now grandfather’s died. So now uncle kind of picks up and takes the responsibility of lot, but nowhere do we see that God told him to take a lot. So this is an interesting thing, because lot is not a child anymore, and so it’s interesting to see that when Abram obeys God, he takes lot with him. We don’t know at least I can’t see it in the scripture that God wanted him to take a lot with him, but he did.
And at some point they gross and are so blessed God so blesses and multiplies and makes them fruitful that the land they’re on is not large enough to handle both of their flocks. And so the herdsmen begin to fight and argue with one another and a problem arises, and and. And Abram says now wait a minute, we don’t want a problem, we’re family. I don’t want us fighting over this. And Abram says take a look around Whatever land you see that you like, you go that way and I’ll go the other way. I’ll let you pick, pick whatever you want and I’ll go the opposite direction. Lot ends up taking a piece of land or going toward the land anyway is settling right next to Sodom and Gomorrah, because the land looked so Beautiful, so lush, and it looked exactly like what he’d want for his flocks. And it just looked. It looked prosperous, it looked really good. And so he takes his family and he goes that direction and Abram’s facing the other direction.
And in this Whole episode it’s interesting to me. Now, again, it does not clearly state this. This is an Observation on my part that maybe I’m reading too much into it, maybe I’m not. But as soon as Lot leaves and is separated from Abram, then we see God show up on the scene to start talking to Abram again, and, and up until then he just kind of was moving from place to place. And I wonder if the Lord was waiting, because this promise was not to lot and it wasn’t even because because he was kin to him, it was his family, it was to Abram. Abram was chosen. In fact, chapter 18, verse 19, says for I have chosen him that he may command his children and his household After him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring Abraham what he promised him. So God had this plan to bless Abraham. It wasn’t to bless Everybody attached to Abraham, it was to bless Abraham and it was to bless the world through Abraham, so through his lineage, not those connected to him, not his cousins, cousins, cousin, but through him. The problem was he didn’t have a son and we go through this whole additional story in his life and that is that of Sarah thinking okay, well, maybe God’s not gonna use me because it’s just taking way too long, and we can think that maybe I didn’t hear God right About what he’s promised me, because it would have happened by now or the circumstances wouldn’t look like this If I had really heard from God.
I was listening to a podcast this morning called remnant radio and they had on RT Kendall, who I really enjoy. I had read a book of his Many, many years ago and it literally was a life-changing book. It’s one of the most memorable books I’ve ever read and it was called the sensitivity of the Holy Spirit and I would encourage anybody who wants to know about the Spirit of God to read that book. It’s a fantastic book. Anyway, of course, read your Bible, but it’s a great ad, it’s a great add to your word.
Anyway, on this particular podcast, rt Kendall told the story of a woman who her husband had not been saved and he’s on his deathbed and One of the men of the church, one of the deacons of the church, came when he was at the very end and, while he was in there with him, led him to the Lord and he came out and told this man’s wife the man’s name was Samuel, put the man dying and he came out and told the wife Samuel has asked the Lord into his heart, he has made his life right with Christ and he is ready to go into eternity with and and he will be in heaven. And the man died and For a little while that word comforted his wife, but after a few weeks she began to think I don’t really have a promise that like, how do I really know that that really happened? I mean, how do God, how do I even I don’t really she began to doubt that that was actually true and this really troubled her. Well, then she gets to. She asked the Lord Can you show me something today in my the word when I go to read the word? I need something today, god. I need to know that this really did take place. I need to know that Sam is in heaven and she opens her Bible and the word, literally, that she looked at was Samuel. Something was Called of God or answered God, or something to that effect, and and, however it was worded, it was exactly what she needed to see and she took that and she rejoiced and she had that for a couple weeks.
Well, then, a couple weeks go by and she begins to doubt that word because she said well, that was a children’s Bible and I need to know that God is really saying this from my Bible Bible, not not the children’s Bible that I happened to pick up that day. And so she has. She opens up her word and she sees a word that’s from the Lord and the. She goes to church and she’s still, you know, she. She just continues that, no matter what God says to her. This troubles her and she and she just does not have the confidence that this was truly God speaking to her. And and she gets to church and I mean there’s a guest speaker that morning and that man happened to move in the prophetic and In the middle of his sermon he stops the sermon and looks at the woman, calls her name out, says her address where she lives and says to her you keep doubting that the word that you got was Got a word of the Lord to you, and you just need to know that was God. Well, she finally got it, the. You know she rejoiced, she broke down in tears and enjoy, and she was so thrilled that was exactly what she needed to hear.
I think we do this a lot. We get a word from the Lord and then a little bit of time goes by and, for whatever reason, whether it is circumstance, whether it’s time, whether it’s new Information or new things that are added to the equation and we begin to doubt that we actually Heard the Lord. It’s not that we doubt God. We were willing to do whatever God tells us to do. You’re, you’re sold out. You’re a Christian, you love the Lord, you’re not. You’re not somebody who says God, prove it to me, you believe him, you’re ready to act, but somehow you with, because of time and circumstance, you just, I don’t know. There’s something causes us to to doubt the word. It something in us begins to to question the word.
And so, before I get ahead of myself, so we see that Abram is Hearing a word from the Lord, he falls into this trap and he believes Sarah, because Sarah falls into this trap and says maybe we’re just missing this and I’m gonna give you my made Hagar, and you can have a child with her and that will be accounted to me and that will be your offspring. And then there, god’s word came to pass and and what happens is, we can put man’s hands on God’s work. You put man’s hands on God’s work. You have now taken it out of God’s hands and you are creating your own work. Okay, there is a huge difference between obeying, and especially a word that God says I’m going to do. If God says I’m going to do that doesn’t mean he needs your help. He’s letting you know what he’s planning to do. Now, the minute we put our hands on it, we think, well, I’m going to do it.
Well, abraham knew this. This is what’s so crazy to me is because we can get it right one time and totally miss it another time. He, when he went and rescued Lot because he already rescued Lot once right, some kings were all going to battle in these territories all around and they go and they capture Lot and his family and take him. They take all the possessions. The minute that Abraham gets word of it, he’s like no, sorry. He takes his whole household of over 300 people that are with him. They go to battle, they go rescue Lot and his family and get everything back. So Lot has gone through this okay and he’s been rescued before he’s gotten into trouble and Abraham had to come to his rescue and help him. Well, not only did that already happen, but now we’ve got Abraham making the decision to do things right, follow God, do it right, see the rewards right and as soon as he comes back from rescuing Lot. He goes to Melchizedek, who’s both king and priest, who, in the New Testament, jesus is after the order of Melchizedek, who is king and priest unto the Lord, and he is going to bless Abraham for going to this battle and saving all these people and all of their possessions and all of that. And Abraham makes the right decision and says, no, I’m not gonna let you give to me, because then it can be said that you blessed me.
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That you bless me?
But no, it’s the Lord who blesses me.
So Abraham knows God, he understands God, he gets it right, okay, and yet when it comes to having a child so much time has gone by he gets this one wrong. And so now he has a child by Hagar and his name is Ishmael on the scene and later on in the story he has to cast both Hagar and Ishmael out. You know, I really the knowledge of that caused me to stop and really pray today for the Muslim people, because the Muslim people are born from a boy who was cast out of his father’s house. That is incredibly deep. He also has incredible envy for the brother who received the father’s favor that he didn’t. This could have been Joseph’s fate, because the brothers not Joseph’s fate.
But you see the similarity and the symbolism in the story of Joseph. You have brothers who are of the right lineage of their father, abraham, yet they are now envious of Joseph, the younger brother, and this was the problem with Ishmael and Isaac. Yeah, he’s a younger son, but he was not what God had said. He was not the promise that God had made. And so we’re in this mix of his life and in the right choices and in the wrong choices, and in the extra people and the extra things going on in Abraham’s life. So if you’ve got a lot going on and you feel like things are a bit chaotic, just know it was the same for Abraham. You are not disqualified. God sees you. If he has made you promises, I want you to be able to hear the word of God and act on it and do it with confidence, knowing that God is on your side. So, but God doesn’t change his plan just because we mess it up. Anyway, I’m getting ahead of myself.
Abraham then gets met by God in person. It says that the three men approach him, one of which is the Lord with two angels, and God has this conversation with Abraham and he’s telling him I’m reiterating to you, I have made you a promise and Sarah’s going to have a baby this time next year. I don’t care that she’s 99 years old, she’s going to have a baby this time next year or that you’re 99 years old, she’s going to have a baby and it’s going to be through Sarah, that you are blessed. That is the child of promise. So God reiterates this.
But then he also says, as he’s leaving, can I not tell Abraham, my friend, what I’m going to do? I mean, wouldn’t I tell him what I am leaving here and planning to do as I leave? I’m not just leaving here, I am leaving here on assignment and I’m Would I not tell him if I am planning to bless the whole world through him? And what does he mean by that? He’s literally speaking not just about Abraham and the people of Israel. He is talking about our Messiah, jesus Christ, who came to save us, to To die in our place and remove our condemnation and sin and free us and cleanse us. He’s talking about Jesus. And so he’s saying would I not Tell the person who I’m planning to bless the entire world for all time through what I not tell him what I’m planning to do Right now? Because this is gonna affect him. Now why is it gonna affect him what he’s getting ready to do? Because it involves his family. It involves his family.
So God then proceeds to tell Abraham Abraham your Abraham, sorry, not Abraham he begins to tell him what he’s gonna do to Sodom and Gomorrah. He says it is so bad. You know you rescued lot last time, basically from all these kings and all this trouble. But I gotta let you know I’m the one going to war this time and this sin is so grievous to me and the cries that have come up against it are so bad that I am literally come down to see it myself and I’m gonna know, and I’m gonna know how bad it is and I’m getting ready to pronounce judgment on this city. I’m gonna wipe it out. It’s, I’m done. I’m not putting up with this sin anymore. I mean he has, he is ready to do war On a cosmic level and it is going to be huge. And we have proof. I’ve talked about this before. We have geological proof, we know that this actually did take place.
But Abraham says wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, lord. And he goes into this whole negotiating dialogue excuse me, of what if there are righteous people in that city? Because he’s thinking of his nephew. It’s like Lord, wait, what if there are 50 righteous? And he begins to play on God’s character. He knows that God is righteous. He knows that God does not judge the sinner along with the saint. He does not treat them both the same, in fact, let me see if I can find that exact verse. Let’s go to verse 25.
Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fair as the wicked. So he’s saying far be it from you, shall not the judge of all the earth do what is just. I mean, he’s calling on the justice of God, on the righteousness of God, on what is what would be considered fair, even in a government sense, even in a judicial sense. And he’s Pleading with the Lord and he takes him down. But what if there’s only 45? What if there’s only 40? What if there’s only 30? What if there’s only 20? What if there’s only 10? And his Lord, what would you do? And the Lord says If there’s 10 righteous, I will not destroy it. Only 10 Folks.
When I read that portion, that emphasized so strongly to me. This is why it is so important that we need to be praying for the city we live in. Don’t just pray about your needs, don’t just pray about your family’s needs, don’t just pray about your finances, don’t just pray about the city you live in. Abraham, abraham I keep saying Abraham because I’m talking about his whole life. Abraham was literally pleading and telling me he was literally pleading and interceding on the half behalf of a city for the sake of 10 righteous people. And he’s saying God said that he would spare it if there were 10 righteous. So if God brings judgment, that means there were not enough righteous in the city or Nobody was interceding for them. That’s a heavy on us. We bear that burden. We are to to care about the city we live in, those who are righteous in the city. We should be covering one another by faith and praying for the righteous in our city. That they flourished, they are blessed, that they are multiplied, that they have an impact and influence in the city, that you live in Order, that your city is saved or converted from all. That would be even so much better.
Right, so that you can see this whole dynamic happening when the angels show up in Sodom there are not 10 righteous, in fact lots son-in-laws who were to marry his daughters. They were chosen, they had not obviously married yet, but they were planning to marry his two daughters. They didn’t even believe him. There wasn’t enough righteous talk somehow going on in the family conversations that these men literally thought when lot said the angels say we have to get out of here because God’s going to destroy the city, they think he’s joking. They think he’s joking.
And this is where I came, when I came to this particular scripture is I just felt like I needed to share it with all of you. Because if God has spoken a word to you, especially a word that is a warning word, that that kind of word or a movement word where God says get up and move Time, to change Time, to leave Time, to not be in this place anymore, that could be a literal place, that could be a mental place, that could be a heart place. If God is saying get out of here, because if you don’t, it brings destruction. Folks, I want you to see how Lot responded. He listened to what the angel said and he went and told the sons-in-law, but he did it in such a manner that they thought he was joking. So let’s read these verses. Okay, let’s start in verse 13. For we are about to destroy this place because the outcry against its people has become great before the Lord, and the Lord has sent us to destroy it.
So Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters up get out of this place, for the Lord is about to destroy the city. But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting. As morning dawned, the angels urged Lot. So morning is dawning, this is happening in the night. He is now waited. The sun is now coming up.
On the next day, as morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying up with this is an exclamation point up, take your wife and your two daughters, who are here, lest you be swept away in the punishment of this city. Now look at verse 16. But he lingered. He lingered when I read that I almost I mean, I’ve read this a million times and, like I said, just sometimes something just grabs my attention and, for whatever reason, this was the first time this really grabbed my attention but I almost dropped my Bible. He lingered. What I mean? You just have been out trying to convince the son-in-laws and not doing a very good job that they need to get out. The God’s gonna destroy this. And you linger. For what? What are you lingering for?
So the men literally the angels seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord being merciful to him and they brought him out and set him outside the city. He would have been destroyed, intercession had already taken place. God had already promised he would deliver the righteous from the wicked, and there weren’t 10, so the city’s not getting delivered, but he will deliver the righteous. So he is telling him okay, I’m bringing judgment on that city and there aren’t enough to deliver this city, but I will deliver the righteous out of the city. So we need to be so careful, folks, that if God has given us a word that it’s time to go, it’s time to get out, it’s time to make a change, it’s time to do.
You’re getting the warning signs or you’re seeing your, you’re hearing the oh, what would I call that? You’re getting the little, the little checks in your spirit and you know that the urgency is starting to come, that God’s wanting you do something, but you’re hesitating. You’re not, you’re not really laying hold of and believing the word of God. Because if you really believe, this city is going up in flames, you don’t want to die, you’re not gonna linger, you’re gonna get out. It’s like if a city’s on fire and the they come knocking on the door and they’re saying you got to evacuate, you don’t have time, you can’t grab stuff, you know if you are not already out and have not already prepared. You are leaving with the clothes on your back. That’s it. Everything is go as a loss. This is amazing to me, and we do this all the time. We ignore this all the time. It’s amazing to me because I’m even looking at myself.
I’m not just saying this to you. We have to be so careful that when God speaks, we believe him and we don’t allow circumstances around us or people around us or the things we’re afraid we’re going to lose, or the things we don’t want to let go of in order to open our hand to receive what God is trying to give us. Now I can actually sabotage my deliverance by hanging on to stuff that God says it’s time to let that go. If you don’t let that go, you’re gonna be destroyed. You gotta go when God says go. We’ve gotta obey the Lord. We’ve got to know the urgency of the spirit. We have to know that when God speaks, he is doing it for our benefit and he has a timing and a plan and a purpose for what he’s telling you to do.
I do not want to be one that, literally, because of the mercy of God, he has to snatch me out because I’m lollygagging and lingering where he told me to get up and get out. I don’t want to put my daughters in danger, my son’s in danger. I don’t want my spouse in danger. I don’t want if God says now is the time. Now is the time. Now is the time, folks. We don’t want to wait until hailstones are falling from heaven before we try to get out. Don’t wait until catastrophe happens, don’t wait until disaster strikes to obey the voice of the Lord. The Lord is wanting to be merciful to you, he’s wanting to deliver you, he’s wanting to help you out, but we have to be those who are listening and who are ready to follow the commands of the Lord. Now, lot was rescued, but his wife was still lingering in her heart, so much so that she disobeyed the command that said do not turn back, do not look back, don’t and see.
This is the temptation that, even though we believe God, even though we follow him, and even if it’s by the skin of our teeth, and he is pulling us out just in time, the temptation is when he says I am doing a new thing. Behold, I am doing a new thing, don’t you see it? I’m taking you out of here. I don’t want you in destruction, I want you in blessing. I want you to live and not die when God is saying it’s time to come out, and he takes you out and says now don’t be tempted to turn back and decide I wanted that, though, but that one thing over there, that wasn’t bad, was it? And start picking apart the stuff that you think, but I wanted to hold on to that. Can I still have this? But have that.
Folks, when we do that, we are saying Lord, I’m not all in, I’ve got one foot in my will and one foot in your will. Well, guess what? If you have only one foot in God’s will, both feet are out. That’s that partial obedience thing. Partial obedience is disobedience, and it is proved by what happens to Lot’s wife. She has turned to a pillar of salt. She dies by the same judgment that everybody else died from, because she refused to let it go.
I am imploring you today. If God is telling you to let it go, let it go. Do not turn back. Don’t go back to what he’s delivered you from. Don’t look longing for the things that used to be. Don’t turn and wish that you could go back there. Don’t let your heart remain there.
Isn’t that what the problem was with the children of Israel? They’re in the desert, delivered. God delivers them by a mighty arm. He takes them and delivers them through the Red Sea, with their deliverer giving them instructions from the mouth of God. And these same people, who are rescued out of death into life, long for the leaks and the garlics and the meat. And, boy, at least we had it like this then, boy, wasn’t it good then? Folks, we can’t do that. We cannot do that.
It is a beautiful thing to remember the good things that God has done and to cherish those things in your heart. That is a good thing to remember what God has done. But it is never a good thing to desire to go back and to desire to go back into the places that you know you needed deliverance from. You know that God brought you out and did a new thing for you. Don’t mix the two. Don’t muddy the waters Wasn’t the word that came to the Prophet that they’d come in and they’d muddy the waters that they were supposed to drink from. Don’t muddy the waters If God has delivered you, if he’s promising you something new, if he’s taking you in a new direction. Trust in the Lord. Have faith in God, that he is faithful. Who promised he will do what he said he will do. He will bring deliverance. He will take you in. He will bring you the promise that he has made to you. God is not a liar. God does not change his mind. God is not unable. He had just.
We just saw in chapter 18, in verse 13,. The Lord had just said to Sarah why did you laugh? And she said I didn’t laugh. She says why did Sarah laugh? And say shall I indeed bear a child now that I am old? And this is God. Speaking is anything too hard for the Lord, child of God? There’s nothing too hard for him, and if he has spoken it, it will come to pass.
I just wanna close this today and I know this is shorter than usual. Today I feel like it is a simple, straightforward word. I just know that God wanted me to deliver this to you. Somebody needed to hear this today. If God is saving you out of something, don’t hesitate. Don’t hesitate. If the word of warning has come, heed it quickly.
Don’t desire to go back. Make sure that your heart is set. You know how Jesus said that he had turned in. He was set like Flint. He had to go to Jerusalem, and what was Paul? Paul had to go to Rome. There are things that God calls you. Set your face, like Flint, face the direction that God tells you and do not turn back. Do not look back, do not get distracted.
What does the word tell us? Don’t turn to the right or to the left. We need to stay with our eyes on the prize. What does God call this to? We need to be busy about doing that, and that obedience will save our families. It is the answer and the key to our promise. It is the way made in the wilderness. It is the answer to the thing that God has said he would do for you.
But you’ve got to be obedient and listen to what he has said. Now, if you’re not sure you’ve heard from him, if you’re not sure it’s his word, then you do ask for a confirmation. But when you get it, don’t hesitate. Don’t hesitate. Let the grace and the mercy of God be before you. Let him open the path before you. Let him show you by his mighty arm that he is with you, he is for you and he will do what he’s promised. Thank you so much for joining me today. I do pray this was a blessing to you. I encourage you to visit me at my website. You can send me an email at mail at jamieluce.com. My website is jamieluce.com both of those J-A-I-M-E-L-U-C-E. I look forward to hearing from you and you could help me today. Give us a little like there on the thumbs up Two thumbs up. Well, you can’t give two thumbs up, that’s the old way of doing it.
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But Thank you for listening to the Jamie Loose Podcast. See you next week.