"The Lord has Numbered our Days" - by Pastor Doug Riggs

This was originally recorded on March 29, 2017.

My notes:

This message was delivered in the midst of serious physical health challenges in the assembly, Doug cites Psalm 31:15 "My times are in Your hand." On my motorcycle jacket I have a large conspicuous patch that reads: "Immortal... 'til Jesus takes me home". No one nor any thing can take our life unless the Lord gives the ‘OK’. Job 14:5 reads, "Since his days are determined, the number of his months is with You; and his limits You have set so that he cannot pass." Psalm 139:16: "... in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me." And when did God ordain the days we would live? The verse concludes, "When as yet there was not one of them." Before we were ever born, our days were determined by God.

"Whatever the disease that's afflicting different people in this assembly, that does not determine the number of our days... It does not have authority over that which the word of God defines our stay here on earth."

As Doug was reading the details of the awful disease and discomfort Job experienced, I could not imagine going through something so horrible. It puts all of my afflictions in the 'not-all-that-bad' category.

No one could kill Jesus before His time. Since it is His life in us, no one can kill us anymore that they could kill Him until the time determined by Him. 'Our lives are hid with Christ in God.' "Until His (and our) mission is complete, they (whoever wanted/wants to kill Him - or us) can do nothing."

"From new birth to the time of our departure, our life, our times are in His hands (Psa. 31:15), and they're in the person of Jesus Christ. His time in each one of us is His time." Doug exhaustively demonstrates how all of time is in God's hands, and He is sovereign; not Satan, not circumstances, not fate, not disease, not happenstance. That should remind us of Romans 8:38-39: "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

"All of hell could not lengthen or shorten anything with reference to the purpose of God in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. And when He comes into us at new birth, that same Christ who had His hour then, has His hour in your life and mine. And so, we stand on that - we stand on that fact. Is sickness real? Yes! Is it Lord? Absolutely not!!... God's purpose and His faithfulness to the Lord Jesus in your life and mine is what we stand on." Something Doug used to say which I so appreciate: “Is it real? Yes! But what is the truth?”

Link to Audio: https://dougriggs.s3.amazonaws.com/Assemblies/3-29-17%2Bwednesday.mp3

Link to Transcript: https://dougriggs.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/2017_03_29+The_Lord_has_Numbered_our_Days.pdf

Maranatha!

John Mark

...hereby committing this unto the providential care of the enthroned Head of the Church; whose Name is blessed forevermore, Yeshua Mashiach - Jesus Christ!