The Shepherd's Chapel newsletter #123 Jan 1989 Dr.

Arnold Murray, DRE BLOOM WHERE YOU ARE PLANTED (PM) A seed sown by God should blossom wherever it's planted. He nourishes that seed with tidbits of truth here and there just giving that person what he or she needs and can understand. Our Father does this in may ways, one of which is through analogies. He uses animals, flowers, harvests, etc., to teach us what we should know. God provides for His children so completely and we should be thankful, but are we really? We are usually always concerned about seed planting, but what about that seed that is planted in us? In a personal sense what has happened to it? A little spiritual self-examination is a healthy thing once in a while. Has that seed that was planted in you flourished and grown lately? Christians today have become lax and even rebellious because, unfortunately, in this world there are not many teachers to help explain God's Word. His plan is not taught the way it was written, so His seed, planted in those children, is not nurtured and cannot grow. Do you remember the mustard seed? There are some areas of the world that it will grow to a 16 foot tree. You may not understand what your place in His plan is, but as you grow in Him, a time will come when you will. To grow you must grasp on to the simplicity in which He teaches us and become strong in order to serve Him. Every word He has uttered has been a lesson to us. On the cross as Christ was dying, His final words weren't about being forsaken. God forbid! He was teaching. Let's read from the Psalm that He spoke in His final moments of His flesh life. PSALMS 22:27 All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the Lord: And all the kindred's of the nations shall worship before Thee. (PM) The seed panted in all of us brings this about. But as a seed it can do nothing. Only when we have grown strong though the knowledge God gives us can we accomplishes it through us. Are you worried about being too small? PSALMS 22:28 For the kingdom is the Lord's: And He is the Governor among the nations.

(PM) God still and forever controls all things. PSALMS 22:29 All they that be fat upon the earth shall eat and worship: All they that go down to the dust shall bow before Him: And none can keep alive his own soul. (PM) When Christ returns as the King of kings and the Lord of lords, every knee shall bow and only our Father shall decide who will live eternally. PSALMS 22:30 A seed shall serve Him: It shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation. (PM) That generation is this generation. It is our duty to serve Him. He did not put us here to be "pretty" Christians, we are here to serve Him. This is the same generation of the seed as the parable of the fig tree. You see, we do nothing special in serving Him. It is our job and should be our pleasure. PSALMS 22:31 They shall come, and shall declare His righteousness unto a People that shall be born, That He hath done this. (PM) "That He hath done this" translates the same as "It is finished." Remember those final words on the cross? Those words were for this final generation, set aside for this time and place, because after those verses are accomplished, it is finished. So, don't complicate His Word. We are so blessed to be able to know what our Father is doing. At the same time, we must be in a position to serve Him. Wherever he plants us we can serve Him as long as we grow and blossom in His Word. And what a great satisfaction there is in serving Him, not to accomplish anything for ourselves, but for Him. That is what being a Christian is about. Let's turn to the gospel of Luke where the apostles were asking Christ to strengthen their faith. LUKE 17:5 And the apostles said unto the Lord, "Increase our faith." LUKE 17:6 And the Lord said, "If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamore tree, `Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea;' and it should obey you." (PM) To help give us an idea of what He expects from us He uses the

tiniest seed. This should strengthen our faith. This tiny seed can grow into a great tree. His People can move nations if they are in His plan. LUKE 17:7 "But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, `Go and sit down to meat?' LUKE 17:8 And will not rather say unto him, `Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink?'" (PM) Our Father is the landlord and we the servants. At our best, we only work for Him. The responsibility is not ours for consummating His plan and taking care of all of His souls. It is His! All we have to do is nudge one of His children once in a while. LUKE 17:9 "Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow (think) not. LUKE 17:10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, `We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.'" (PM) His work is what we're here to do, so what do we expect? A reward? It is our obligation, duty and privilege. Be careful not to be a habitual complainer about things that are in God's will. Don't ever take God for granted, instead thank Him for the simplicity of His teaching. Let the seed planted in you blossom. Nourish it with God's Food, Which is His Word; water it with the Living Water, Which is Christ and let your faith be strengthened. By your faith, the seed that He planted in you can flourish into an enormous tree and together His family can become a mighty army. Let's mention current events for a moment. Is it not strange to see a type of Esau visiting Jacob only to be called back home by God's great shaking of the land? If there was ever a time for a watchman to watch, it is now. In His Service Arnold Murray.