Daily Devotional, year 2 – June 8 (Women in the Pulpit: The Sin of Presumptuousness)
By admin On May 7th, 2015
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Daily Devotional, Year 2 – JUNE 8
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“Women in the Pulpit”
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“And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight
in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
as in obeying the voice of the LORD?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
and to hearken than the fat of rams.
For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,
and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.”
1st Samuel 15:22, 23
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When King Saul destroyed the Amalekites, by sparing the lives of Agag the wicked king and the best of the sheep and oxen, he disobeyed God’s command to destroy everything.
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Now when Samuel came to question him about this, Saul made the excuse, “And Saul said…’for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.'” 1st Samuel 15:15
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Now in Saul’s mind, to make an offering to God superseded obedience to the commandment of the Lord to utterly destroy all the spoil of the Amalekites.
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But listen to what Samuel answered Saul… “And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.” 1st Samuel 15:22, 23
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Saul Rejected as King (Bible Card) – Wikipedia – US Public Domain
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EVE’S PRESUMPTUOUS SIN
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When Eve listened to the whisperings of Satan, via the serpent, she was convinced that God was keeping her back from her true potential.
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Yes, Eve aspired to rise to a more exalted station in life. No longer was she content to stay in her place. You could perhaps say that Eve was the world’s first women’s-rights advocate.
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Well, as one cigarette company once advertised to women, “You’ve come a long way baby!”
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Yes, the world has come a long way, since that fateful day in paradise when Eve decided that she ought to be promoted to a higher standing.
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SAME PRESUMPTUOUS SIN
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Now, just what does this account of Eve’s disobedience have to do with the disobedience of King Saul?
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Well, we seem to have a similar situation in today’s church-world. You see, the Bible has made it clear that… “Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.” 1st Corinthians 14:34, 35
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This commandment of the Lord is now being ignored, or rejected altogether by many in today’s churches. Women are now beginning to become pastors and elders, in spite of God’s command not to.
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Aimee Semple Mcpherson – Wikimedia Commons – Public Domain
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NO BIBLICAL EXCUSE FOR DISOBEDIENCE
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And the Lord has made this commandment very clear…
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Listen again… “Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.” 1st Timothy 2:11-15
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Here is just one more confirming passage which clearly condemns the idea that women are to rule in any congregation. As a matter of fact, this passage requires women to be silent in the congregation!
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Aimee Semple Mcpherson – Wikimedia Commons – Public Domain
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NOT MERELY A LOCAL SITUATION
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Now this commandment was not merely for Timothy’s church, as some local situation!
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Look again at what Paul uses for reasons for this command… “For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.” verses 13, 14
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Paul mentions that Adam was the head of the woman.
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But he also reminds us that it was not Adam who was deceived by Satan, but the woman.
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Benjamin West – The Expulsion of Adam and Eve from Paradise – wikipedia – public domain
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A FORM OF WITCHCRAFT AND IDOLATRY
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And so, just why would a woman dare presume to think that her services in the pulpit somehow supersedes a plain, “Thus saith the Lord”? This is akin to what King Saul did in his disobedience to the plain, “Thus saith the Lord”.
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And listen again to Samuel’s rebuke to Saul… “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.” 1st Samuel 15:23
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WOW! Our acts of rebellion are as the sin of witchcraft! And our stubbornness is as idolatry! And just think how stubborn those are who defiantly insist that women ought to be teachers over the congregation, or to be elders and even pastors!
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Karla LaVey satanist – cropped – Wikimedia – GNU license
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SAUL’S DISOBEDIENCE COMMON TODAY
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But this account of Saul’s presumptuous disobedience can be extended to men as well!
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Yes, there are many of us on the Internet who commit the same presumptuous sin, when we take copyrighted pictures from other websites, and use them on our websites without proper permission.
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It would be better to not even have a website, than to knowingly operate in such a shameful manner! How can we expect the Lord to bless us?
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How can we dare presume that the Lord will bring even one true sheep into the fold, by our evangelistic efforts, when we defiantly trample on the commandment of the Lord, “Thou shalt not steal”?
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Thou Shalt Not Steal Sign – cropped and altered photo – Wikimedia – Share-alike License
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MORE PRESUMPTUOUS SINS
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Now this concept can be extended even further into the daily life of Christians! Do I obey the ordinances of Man? Do I get all the necessary permits and licenses and inspections? Do I obey all the traffic laws? Do I pay all my taxes?
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And so, before I point the accusing finger at women in the pulpits of today’s churches, I need to first examine my own life!
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Yes, when we get right down to it, this little account of Saul’s disobedience is a very terrifying story, presenting a fearful sin, which commonly occurs in today’s Christian community!
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Building Inspection – Wikimedia – Public Domain
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“COME OUT OF HER MY PEOPLE!”
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And so, it is no wonder why God is calling His people to come out of Babylon! That presumptuous sin of King Saul is a very common sin among God’s people today!
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Even those who pirate copyrighted music and pictures, and somehow think that God will bless us in spite of our presumptuousness, will be very surprised on Judgment Day, when we find ourselves standing among the goats!
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Listen… “Submit yourselves to EVERY ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well.” 1st Peter 2:13, 14
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Here is a very clear command to obey the laws of the land!
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DOOR OF MERCY STILL AJAR!
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Well, there is some very Good News in all this terror. The Good News is that we are still living in the day of Salvation! Yes, the door of mercy is still ajar! And we can still come to God on our spiritual knees, begging for forgiveness and mercy and strength to make amends.
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And those of us who finally turn away from our presumptuous sins will ultimately find a joyful stability in our relationship with God that we never had when living in disobedience.
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“Who can understand his errors? cleanse Thou me from secret faults. Keep back Thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the Great Transgression.” Psalm 19:12, 13
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Here, the psalmist is pleading for God to reveal any secret faults and any presumptuous sins. This should become our daily prayer!
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David’s sorrow – Wikigallery – Public Domain
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TODAY’S PRAYER…
“Dear Lord, Help me to understand my secret faults. Show me where I have become presumptuous. Patiently bring me to faith regarding these matters, so that I can rectify any presumptuous situation…
Woman Praying – cropped image – Wikimedia – Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license
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READ MORE…
To explore deeper into this subject, please read…“May 29th (The Unforgiveable Sin!)”, or you can also read… “June 2nd (Just Enough Rope!)”
Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license
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THE END
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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN
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NARROW GATE
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This most amazing phenomenon is seen throughout the winter. Although it can be observed most of the winter, it is seen best when it is the western part of the sky, at winter’s end (The end of winter being the final scene of this heavenly Gospel story). Orion , the Dragon, and the Glorious White Horse are beginning to descend into the western horizon (sketch to right is Winter Constellations descending into western horizon. This can actually be seen as early as December, in the pre-dawn hours).
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And at this point it is apparent that the Fleeing Woman of Revelation 12 Constellation is veering toward the two bright stars, known as Castor and Pollux (sketch to below left). But the Wide Gate Stars are composed of the two brightest stars of the Auriga Constellation, known as the star, Capella, and the star, Menkalinan. The two stars, Castor and Pollux, make up the concept of the Orion’s Narrow Gate Stars.
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This can even be observed into June in the western sky (for a short time just after dark). While a dark night is best for seeing the Woman Constellation, the 4 stars which comprise the Narrow Gate/Wide Gate Stars can be seen even under mediocre conditions. It begins with the Fleeing Woman of Revelation 12 Constellation (AKA Ursa Major) going towards these two doors.
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The sketch to left shows, the two doors are each composed of two bright stars. The two bright stars that comprise the Narrow Gate are the two brightest stars of the Orion the Reaper’s sickle. The two stars that comprise the ‘Wide Gate’ Stars are the two brightest stars of the wave of water that comes out of the Dragon Constellation’s mouth (for explanation of “Wave of Water”, just click here). The stars that make up the ‘Narrow Gate’ are about half the width of the Wide Gate (see sketch to right).
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(For more information on Orion’s sickle, just click here,“Orion The Reaper”.)
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Editor’s note: These sketches on this page are merely sketches. The stars are not in their exact place. However, they are close enough to find them in the night sky. But as with most stars, it takes persistence to finally locate them.
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READ MORE…
To explore deeper into this subject, please read… “Revelation 12 Woman & The Narrow Gate Stars (Orion’s Gate to Heaven)”
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TOMORROW…
JUNE 9 (The Heart: A World of Evil!)
ABOVE PICTURE: Mark of the beast – pub. dom. – Wikipedia
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20+ MINUTE AUDIO STUDY IN JEREMIAH
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ALL ‘NOBLE BEREANS’ (open-minded seekers of Bible truth) ARE ENCOURAGED TO BEGIN FOLLOWING THIS 650+ AUDIO BIBLE STUDY THROUGH THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH EACH DAY ON THIS DAILY DEVOTIONAL.
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THIS STUDY #524 IS PRESENTED BY THE LATE HAROLD CAMPING…
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above picture: Prophet Jeremiah – www.christianimagesource.org – Public Domain
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Those who are interested in using photos on this page may click on provided link below each photo, to get to Wikimedia Commons for various licensing details & tags, and all other necessary information on any particular photo. Most tall, narrow photos have been cropped or reduced by this website to make them a better fit on phone screens.
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