Activate High School Ministry's Blog

The Word: “For God alone my soul waits in silence; from Him comes my salvation.”

The Breakdown: Waiting can sometimes be one of the hardest things to do. Whether it is in a line, for a grade on a test, or even waiting to know what God’s plans are for your life, waiting is never something we want to do. In this verse we see that the psalmist makes a choice to wait solely upon the Lord. The Lord has plans our hearts can’t even imagine (1 Corinthians 2:9), yet, so often we try to control our lives thinking we know what we need rather than waiting on God’s perfect timing (Ecclesiastes 3:11). We must wait on God alone, not on what the world is expecting, but on the One who has given us more than we could ever want, need, or desire.

Activate: Instead of worrying about what the world is anticipating and waiting upon its approval for you, cling to the Lord and His promises. Remember, He knows the plans He has for you (Jeremiah 29:11). When you fully trust in God, you’ll be able to silently wait for Him to move.

A Thought: “Wait for the Lord, be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” (Psalm 27:14). Are you waiting for the Lord? Don’t grow impatient, for His timing is perfect.

The Word: “And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

The Breakdown: The choice Joshua gave the people of Israel seemed obvious but many of the Israelites exercised their will to enslave themselves to foreign gods. Everyday we are given that same choice. Moses states, “I have set before you life and death, blessings or cursing. Now choose life that you and your children may live.” (Deut. 30:19). The discrepancy between these choices is drastic—life or death, blessings or cursing. Sometimes, choosing to serve God can come at a price. You may lose friendships, relationships, jobs, or even your own life, but as you’ll find throughout the Bible and your own personal experiences, the reward is worth it, for it is eternal life with Jesus. There are only two options: you either serve God or you don’t!
Activate: Have you made the choice to serve God? If not, what is keeping you from making that choice? God wants you to choose Him! Choose life and blessings, not death and cursing.
A Thought: There is no middle ground. We are either for God or against God; we are either friends with God or enemies of God. There is no better life than a life sold out and on fire for Him. Life is too short to be unsure about such an important decision. Choose to serve the Lord!

The Word: “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways….For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen” (vv.33, 36).

The Breakdown: These verses record Paul’s doxology, where he has a sudden burst of praise due to everything that he has written about in the book of Romans, especially regarding God’s riches, wisdom, and knowledge in His plan of salvation. In verses 34-35 Paul quotes Isaiah 40:13 and Job 41:11 in order to express how God’s ways are beyond human understanding. He then shows that God is sovereign by saying that all things are from God, through God, and to God for His glory. He is the source and sustainer of everything that exists and He lovingly and justly rules and reigns by His great wisdom.

Activate: Do you realize that all things are from, through, and to God? If you recognize this then your worldview, which is your overall perspective and view as to how you see and interpret the world, will be radically changed. You will recognize God’s sovereignty in your life and see that He works all things together for good (Rom. 8:28) and for His glory.

A Thought: How do you view the world? Do you view it according to these verses? If so, like Paul, you will praise God for His riches, wisdom, knowledge, and righteous decisions.

The Word: “For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

The Breakdown: In this portion of Scripture Paul makes a direct reference to God’s physical command of making light shine out of darkness in creation (Genesis 1:3) to His spiritual act of making “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” shine in our hearts. God said, “Let there be light!” in our hearts! Because of this truth, we do not proclaim ourselves as if we are anything special, but we proclaim Christ as Lord because the light that has been shone in our hearts is the glory of God in Jesus.

Activate: Is this light shining in your heart? Just as evident as the differences of night and day are, your life should be drastically different if you have the light of the gospel in you.

A Thought: As Colossians 1:13 states, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son.” We are delivered from darkness because the light of the knowledge of the glory of God has shone in our hearts!

The Word: “Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, who was faithful to Him who appointed Him.”

The Breakdown: This passage of Scripture challenges believers—the “holy brethren”; those who have been summoned to be “partakers of the heavenly calling”—to consider Christ, meaning, to give complete attention and diligent observation to the superiority of Jesus. We are to consider how He is the Apostle and High Priest of our confession and how He was faithful to the Father. When we confess Him as the Apostle, we’re saying that He represents God to us, and when we confess Him as High Priest, we’re saying that He represents God before us. He was completely faithful and fulfilled everything He was to do (John 17:4); therefore, we should be faithful to “consider” who He is and what He did.

Activate: In context, the author of Hebrews is describing how Christ is superior to Moses, for Moses was a servant, but Christ is the Savior; Moses was a part of God’s household of faith, but Jesus is the creator of it (vv.2-6). The point is that Christ is far more superior than anything that anyone has ever done and therefore deserves to be seen as supreme.

A Thought: Ask yourself this question: What would it look like to “consider Christ Jesus” in your everyday life? Your life will be radically changed if you give complete attention and observation to the superiority and supremacy of Christ in every decision and situation.

The Word: “These six things the Lord hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him: a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren” (Proverbs 6:16-19).

The Breakdown: The Bible gives several descriptions of the beauty of unity. For example, Psalm 133:1 states, “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” Acts records the unity of the early church: “all who believed were together and had all things in common” (2:44) and “were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common” (4:32). It is clear that God desires that His people dwell in unity. Therefore, He hates when discord (strife, disagreement, division, etc.) is sown and disrupts the peace and fellowship among the body of Christ and families. It causes believers to experience pain and it causes the church to misrepresent Christ. God hates the one who purposefully plans to spread division among those who dwell in unity.

Activate: Paul says to avoid those who sow discord among the brethren and states that they do not serve Christ (Rom. 16:17-18), and he provides practical instruction on how to deal with such people: “As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned” (Titus 3:10-11). Take heed to Paul’s instruction, watch for and warn those who cause division and don’t hang out with them because it is sinful and it is something God hates. Rather, surround yourself with people who love Jesus and experience the blessings of unity.

A Thought: Instead of causing division, believers are to “have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind” (1 Peter 3:8). Do you have these?

The Word: “These six things the Lord hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him: a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren” (Proverbs 6:16-19).

The Breakdown: In comparison to the sin of “a lying tongue” in verse 17b which refers to lying in a matter of everyday conversation, this sin refers to providing a false testimony in a public setting, in front of others, or in a court of law. It is being a false witness by speaking lies when asked to tell the truth about a specific situation. These people decisively choose to lie about important matters about themselves and others. They pervert justice, which is why God hates it.

Activate: When confronted in certain situations where you are put on the spot and have to bear witness, do you hesitate to tell the truth or do you tell the truth no matter what may happen? Are you a false witness who speaks lies or an accurate witness who speaks truth?

A Thought: The devil is “a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44), but Christ is truth (John 14:6). When you lie you are acting like the devil but when you tell the truth you are acting like Christ. Who do you reflect? As R.C. Sproul writes, “If you are of the truth, if you have learned the truth, if you see the sanctity of the truth, then speak truth. We are not called to be deceivers or liars. God is a God of truth, and His people are called to have an enormously high standard of truth.”

The Word: “These six things the Lord hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him: a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren” (Proverbs 6:16-19).

The Breakdown: Not only does God hate the heart that devises wicked plans (the internal decision to sin), He hates the feet that are swift to run to evil (the external action). The heart is what makes the decision to sin, but the “feet” carry out the sinful decision and cause the action to happen. God hates both the sinful decision and action, especially when it is swift (quick).

Activate: Do you have feet that are swift in running to evil? Think about it: when you’re tempted to do something sinful, do you stop and decide not to do it or do you automatically decide to take advantage of the opportunity? Are you quick in running to righteousness or to evil?

A Thought: Proverbs 1 instructs us not to give in to the enticement of non-believers. Solomon writes, “My son, do not walk in the way with them; hold back your foot from their paths, for their feet run to evil and they make haste to shed blood” (vv.15-16). Don’t surround yourself or have intimate relationships with non-believers because their feet run to evil, which is the exact sin that God hates! Are you hanging out with people who do things that God hates or with people who do what God delights in? You’re to hold your feet back from their paths and go a different way.

The Word: “These six things the Lord hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him: a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren” (Proverbs 6:16-19).

The Breakdown: God hates when people devise wicked plans, knowing that such evil desires arise from the heart. Those who devise wicked plans consciously create and develop a plan to do something that is sinful and against God’s law. Jesus describes the wicked plans that are devised from the heart in Mark 7:21-22: “For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.” God hates this because it is contrary to His good plans.

Activate: Take some time and think about your heart. Do you have a heart that devises wicked or righteous plans? God is not talking about struggling with sin; He is talking about people who willfully desire to do wrong even though they know it is not right. What plans do you devise?

A Thought: Wicked plans are not limited to “big sins” such as murder, but they even refer to cheating on a test or gossiping about someone if you consciously choose and plan to do this when knowing it is wrong. God’s plans are not evil, but good (Jer. 29:11), so ours should be too!