Being Transformed by the Word of God

By Benjamin H. Liles

          "I will sing of mercy and justice; to You, O Lord, I will sing praises. I will behave wisely in a perfect way. Oh, when will You come to me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me. A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will not know wickedness" (Psalm 101:1-4, New King James), writes David. To David his hope was fully and firmly set in God. No matter what was going on in David's life, his eyes were on God -- nothing else.

Made in God's Image

By Benjamin H. Liles

           "Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.' So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth'" (Genesis 1:26-28, New King James).

The Return of the Lord

By Benjamin H. Liles

          "Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book! That they were engraved on a rock with an iron pen and lead, forever! For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth. After my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me! If you should say, ‘How shall we persecute him?’— Since the root of the matter is found in me, be afraid of the sword for yourselves; for wrath brings the punishment of the sword, that you may know there is a judgment" (Job 19:23-29, New King James, in bold for emphasis). 

Standing in the Gap (Ezekiel 22)

By Benjamin H. Liles

          "And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 'Son of man, say to her: "You are a land that is not cleansed or rained on in the day of indignation." The conspiracy of her prophets in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing the prey; they have devoured people; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in her midst. Her priests have violated My law and profaned My holy things; they have not distinguished between the holy and unholy, nor have they made known the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they have hidden their eyes from My Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them.'" 

No One Knows the Day or Hour

By Benjamin H. Liles

          "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect" (Matthew 24:36-44, New King James).

God's Grace

By Benjamin H. Liles

          A lot of Biblical scholars would agree there's a great deal of foreshadowing being done in the Old Testament of scripture of God's activity in our lives. Yet, the biggest recorded activity comes in the form of God's grace. David tells us in one of his psalms, "The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and rich in faithful love" (Psalm 103:8, Holman Christian Standard). Even Moses records the same sentiments: "Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth" (Exodus 34:6, New American Standard).

Walking on Water

By Benjamin H. Liles

          I never thought about what going through life looks like until I started thinking on these sets of verses. We have a firsthand account from Matthew. He probably wrote his gospel not just from interviewing Peter, but in all probability was present when this happened. We read, "Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there. But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary" (Matthew 14:22-24, New King James).

Israel and the Messiah

By Benjamin H. Liles

           "Now the Lord had said to Abram: 'Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed'" (Genesis 12:1-3, New King James).

Gracious and Merciful God (Jonah 4)

By Benjamin H. Liles

          As I sit here tonight I was looking at the text of Jonah 4 and it dawned on me, God's compassion knows no bounds. We make this big to do thing about how hateful God is, and yet there are fifty-one instances of God being "gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abundant in loving kindness" (Jonah 4:2). One of the first times we see that God is called this is by Himself, to Moses: "I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the LORD before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion" (Exodus 33:19). I believe it is this that makes Jonah angry. He already knew of God's unfailing love.

Faith and Works (Jonah 3)

By Benjamin H. Liles

           "What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can his faith save him? In the same way faith, if it doesn't have works, is dead by itself. But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I will show you faith from my works" (James 2:14, 17-18, Holman Christian Standard).

The Patience of God (Jonah 1 & 2)

By Benjamin H. Liles

          I want to start this quick little study of Jonah to show how even we in this age are similarly like Jonah, who lived shortly after Elisha did. When God came to Jonah, He said to him, "Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me" (Jonah 1:2, New King James). Where scholars have their information on Jonah and how he acted in relation to this news from God I have to wonder on. But the thing that gives me an indication of who Jonah is found in his actions: "But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the  presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD" (Jonah 1:3).

Unimaginable (Book Review)

By Benjamin H. Liles

         The first thing I want to say is I didn't get this book until recently. Yet, upon reading it I was simply hooked. What would our world look like without Christianity? Up until the age of enlightenment, which started in the early 1800s to late 1800s, Christianity flourished quite well. I already knew this, but to see that Jeremiah Johnson put that within the pages of this book made me realize I wasn't alone in thinking Christianity started taking a backseat approach to our lives.

We Who are Dead to Sin

By Benjamin H. Liles

          "For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His footsteps: 'He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth. When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly. He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By His stripes you are healed.' For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls" (1 Peter 2:21-25, Berean Study).

God's Judgment (Ezekiel 21)

By Benjamin H. Liles

          "You therefore, son of man, prophesy, and strike your hands together. The third time let the sword do double damage. It is the sword that slays, the sword that slays the great men, that enters their private chambers...I also will beat My fists together, and I will cause My fury to rest; I, the Lord, have spoken" (Ezekiel 21-14-17, New King James). The Lord, God of Israel is saying all of this to Israel due to her sins, and He plans to execute it and soon, both to the wicked and to the righteous. To Him, all sin will be punished, regardless how small or large the people see their sins.

Christ Sat Down

By Benjamin H. Liles

          The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact expression of His nature, sustaining all things by His powerful word. After making purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high ~ Hebrews 1:3, Holman Christian Standard
           But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. ~ Hebrews 10:12

Publishing

By Benjamin H. Liles

          While I do a great share of writing for mine and my wife's business, Liles Publishing, she does a lot of the graphic design work. She also maintains her own blog as well, from time to time. So, in addition to now offering advertising space on my site, as well as on Liles Publishing, I'm sure you will find you can trust us both for quality, Biblical help. Thanks.

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God's Call to a Deeper Life (Book Review)

By Benjamin H. Liles

          I've read a couple of devotionals in my life. I have to say that Nancy Taylor's devotional is a beautiful work of art--and no pun intended here--in my book. The first thing i will mention is the book cover here: I think it's amazing and I don't normally like pink as a color. It just works. Also, the way the pages are: I numbered what appears to be six sections in which different versions of pink alternate between the two colors.

A Case for Faith and Healing

By Benjamin H. Liles

          I was reading this morning, this from Lee Strobel: "Duane Miller's greatest enjoyment came from preaching at his small church and singing songs of worship...he awoke with the flu one Sunday morning, his throat like sandpaper and his voice would 'catch' on words...For all practical purposes, Miller's voice was gone." Imagine loving what you do for a living. Being able to use your voice to do what you feel is God's will. And then one day, this flu comes and suddenly...BAM! You lose your voice. It is simply rendered useless.

God's Desire for Israel (Ezekiel 20)

By Benjamin H. Liles

            As far as I know God loves Israel. His love for what scripture calls “The apple of His eye” (see Zechariah 2:8), God declares his steadfast love for a rebellious and hardhearted house. This is what Ezekiel says concerning God’s love for Israel: “I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you are scattered, with a mighty hand, with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out.  And I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will plead My case with you face to face.  Just as I pleaded My case with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will plead My case with you” (Ezekiel 20:34-36, New King James).

Allowing God to Make Us Holy

By Benjamin H. Liles

            When I consider what it means to be holy, and living a holy life with God, I have to wonder—am I doing this, which God is calling me to do: being holy? Peter writes, “So prepare your minds for service and have self-control. * All your hope should be for when Jesus Christ is shown to you [^L at the revelation of Jesus Christ]. Now that you are obedient children of God do not live as you did in the past. You did not understand, so you did the evil things you wanted. But be holy in all you do, just as God, the One who called you, is holy. It is written in the scriptures: ‘You must be holy, because I am holy [Lev. 11:45; 19:2; 20:7]” (1 Peter 1:13-16, Expanded).

A Move of the Holy Spirit

By Benjamin H. Liles

          The Holman Christian Standard puts this verse this way, "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh" (Ezekiel 36:26). Jesus, when talking to Nicodemus about receiving the right to be born again, said, "Truly, truly, I tell you no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again...I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit" (John 3:3, 5). Not too long ago I posted up how I dislike ministers who falsify the gospel record. Paul says this, "I am astonished how quickly you are deserting the One who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— which is not even a gospel."

Allowing God to Rule (Ezekiel 19)

By Benjamin H. Liles

          So, I was reading Ezekiel 19 tonight and a huge portion of it stands out to me like a glaring sore thumb. But before I fully address Ezekiel 19's lamentation here, I want to point out what God told Israel through His prophet Samuel: "And the LORD said to Samuel, 'Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them. According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them out of Egypt, even to this day--with which they have forsaken Me and served other gods--so they are doing to you also. Now therefore, heed their voice. However, you shall solemnly forewarn them, and show them the behavior of the king who will reign over them.

Faith and Miracles

By Benjamin H. Liles

          "Just then, a woman who had suffered from bleeding for twelve years approached from behind and touched the tassel on His robe, for she said to herself, 'If I can just touch His robe, I'll be made well!'" (Matthew 9:20-21, Holman Christian Standard). I have to say I am confounded by ministers who claim healing and miracles have no place in society today. I won't even begin to mention the names of those who say this. But I can tell you this much, people never get healed the way in which they expect the Lord Jesus Christ would actually do it. Stick with me on this and you'll see my point.

The Golden Vial (Book Review)

By Benjamin H. Liles

          The Golden Vial is the latest in the Thomas Locke series Legends of the Realm. Where book one, The Emissary, introduces us to Hyam and his company of friends including his wife, and weaves a continuing story of friendship, loyalty, and sacrifice in book two--Merchant of Alyss--we see that book three, Golden Vial focuses solely on a new character.