The Hamilton Minute

"Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.”  Luke 19:5 (ESV)

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is The Hamilton Minute.

When their mom passed the Landau brothers of NJ had a garage sale to clear out their mom’s house, but they decided to keep a few things including mom’s old creepy painting of a woman passed out in a chair and two men trying to revive her.

Fast forward to their estate auction and the brothers found themselves fielding bids from France and Germany for the painting.

Turns out it was a long lost Rembrandt that ultimately sold for $1.1 million.

A trained eye spots value where others don’t.

"From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth…”  Ephesians 4:16 (KJV)

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is the Hamilton Minute.

It's not by chance that Jesus refers to his Church as “The Body.”  Just as it is with our physical bodies every member has a distinct role and function to fulfill.

Unfortunately, in the era of celebrity Christianity we’ve reduced the concept of ministry solely to what occurs in what is often little more than Sunday productions and performances.

The key to thriving in God’s Kingdom is understanding that every member in The Body of Christ is vital called to ministry.

They said to each other, "Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked with us on the road, while He opened to us the Scriptures?"

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is the Hamilton Minute.

These words were shared between Cleopas and his companion on the seven mile walk from Jerusalem to Emmaus as Jesus, in resurrected form, used the Hebrew scriptures to reveal himself to them as the Messiah.

There are at least 109 distinct biblical prophecies the Messiah has to fulfill. The mathematical probability of such a feat occurring is astoundingly absurd.  Yet that absurdity is satisfied in Jesus the Messiah.

Come let us adore Him.

"Then Saul clothed David with his armor. He put a helmet of bronze on his head and clothed him with a coat of mail.”  1 Samuel 17:38 (ESV)

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is the Hamilton Minute.

40 days of twice daily taunting from Goliath sent Saul and the Israelite army reeling in fear.  But David’s passion for YHWH, conviction, and full persuasion stirred King Saul.

When people are on fire for God it often provokes others to glob on to that fire.

But we must be careful to resist the well-meaning overtures of the flame-less by-standers.

Saul meant well, but his armor couldn’t help.  It would only slow David down.

"Salt [is] good: but if the salt has lost its savour, how will it be seasoned?” Luke 14:34 (NKJV).

Matt Walsh wrote a piece for the Daily Wire where he said,

The contemporary American Christian is the most open-minded person to have ever existed.  He’s so open minded you can hardly tell he’s Christian, or has a mind at all…

He has for a long time been open to the idea that marriage isn’t permanent and sex isn’t meant exclusively for marriage.  He’s basically open to whatever notions are popular…

He is open, and where he is not open, he is silent.

"And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.”  Mark 11:13 (ESV).

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is The Hamilton Corner.

From a distance, the fig leaves gave Jesus the impression that there was fruit on the tree.  Upon closer inspection, the tree was fruitless.

Perfect church attendance and ministry activity cannot replace actual Christ-like fruit produced in our lives.

From a distance, it can appear as though we’re bearing fruit but what would we find with a closer look?

Are we content with fruitful appearance or do we yearn for the real thing?

“Then Elisha prayed and said, 'O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see…'”  Excerpt from 2 Kings 6:17 (ESV)

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is The Hamilton Corner.

One morning, Elisha’s young servant went out first thing and saw the Syrian army surrounding Elisha’s home town. The servant was racked with fear and cried out to Elisha, “What will we do?” Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid.  There are more with us than are with them.”  Then Elisha prayed, "LORD, open this young man’s eyes.” The servant then saw mountain full of horses and chariots of fire!

As opposition mounts in our lives, fear not, the LORD - who is in us and with us - is greater than the hostility present in the world.

"Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”  John 15:2

No one likes to suffer difficult circumstances.  In this era of easy believe-ism it's often conveyed, “If life isn’t always smooth we’re doing something wrong.”

The Scripture teaches us, however, that our LORD often meets fruitful branches with additional pruning.  The pruning is not punishment.  Its actually to make us even more fruitful.

If you’re in a rough spot right now, take heart.  What may feel like the squeeze to end all squeezes could very well be the LORD’s pruning for additional fruitfulness.

When the LORD prunes us He does so for our good.

"By mercy and truth iniquity is purged; and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.” Proverbs 16:6 (KJV).

My name is Abraham Hamilton III and this is the Hamilton Minute.

We live in a day when churches are filled with people ready to hear and receive God’s mercy. Unfortunately, however, it is often accompanied by a de-emphasis or concealment of the truth of God’s Word.

Paul, the salvation-by-grace-through-faith Apostle, was asked if salvation is solely a product of grace what benefit then does the law provide. Paul responded, “Without the law, I wouldn’t have known God’s righteous standard and how far away from it I was.”

Any presentation of God’s mercy absent of God’s truth is no Gospel at all.

Iniquity is purged by mercy and truth.

Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens. Psalm 119:89 (ESV)

My name is Abraham Hamilton III, and this is the Hamilton Minute.

The American republic was founded on the principle that rights are given to us by God, not man.  As a result, men nor government can take them away. That’s why our Declaration of Independence refers to our rights as inalienable rights.

Government’s role then is to protect the rights that God has given to us.

The first freedom listed in the bill of rights, which government is entrusted to protect, is religious liberty.  The founders did this because they know that free exercise of religion is the fulcrum for all liberty.

Wherever the flame of religious liberty is extinguished, all liberty is imperiled.

Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.  This is a desert place."

My name is Abraham Hamilton III, and this is the Hamilton Minute.

At the height of a Holy Spirit outpouring in Samaria, when the gospel was being preached with great power, and droves of people were converting to follow Christ, the Lord instructed Philip to leave Samaria and head south to Gaza.  Philip didn't know what divine appointment awaited him.  Through his ministry to the Ethiopian eunuch, the gospel would spread to Africa.

He left the crowd to serve one.

I call this "step-down faith."

It's easy to step up for the attention and applause of the masses, but do we have step-down faith?

There were added that day about 3000 souls."

My name is Abraham Hamilton III and this is the Hamilton Minute.

The day of Pentecost concluded with 3000 converts being added to the initial body of 120 believers.  Then that 3120 spent time together daily going to the temple and interacting in each other’s homes. They devoted themselves continually to the apostle’s teaching, fellowship, sharing meals together and praying together.

The 3120 that made up the early church came from Turkey, the middle east and Africa, and included Arabs and Romans.  In addition to the geographic and ethnic diversity, they also spoke different languages.  Yet they were made one family in Christ Jesus.

Scripture has the answer to the issues we face today.

"And Moses said, ‘I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned’” Exodus 3:3.

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is The Hamilton Minute.

In the burning bush encounter Scripture records that it began as Moses kept Jethro’s flock Exodus 3:1.

“When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, 'Moses, Moses!' And he said, 'Here I am'" Exodus 3:4.

Notice, God didn’t speak to Moses until He gave full attention to what God was trying to show him.

Diligent attention to daily duty is necessary.  We must be careful, however, not to allow duty to become an idol.  Are our hearts still sensitive to God? Can God still get our attention?

"For just as the body is one and has many members and all the members of the body, though they be many are one body, so it is with Christ.  For the body does not consist of one member, but of many."

My name is Abraham Hamilton III, and this is The Hamilton Minute.

Look briefly at one of your fingers.

You've just witness one of the greatest displays of God's creative intent there is.  No other person in all the world, even an identical twin, shares your fingerprint.

God specifically designed each of us to be unique.  That means we shouldn't try to carbon-copy anyone else in the Christian faith.

If God made you an arm in His body, or a kneecap, praise be to our glorious God for drawing us to become a part of His body.

How freeing it is to realize that we were never meant to copy anyone but Jesus.

“Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward” Hebrews 10:35 (ESV).

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is The Hamilton Minute.

Sometimes there’s a delay between crying out to God in prayer and seeing those prayers answered.

It is imperative for us in those times that we don’t waver in our confidence in our God.

The next verse goes on to say, “For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.” Hebrews 10:36 (ESV).

You see, the delay between supplication and delivered answer is one of the ways God develops endurance in us.

He desires that the roots of our faith grow down deep, that we become trees planted by rivers of living water … steadfast, immovable, always abounding in His work. In this we grow beyond superficial Christianity.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?”

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is The Hamilton Minute.

At the climax of the account when Jesus restored Peter’s personal relationship with him, and Peter’s call to ministry, He saw John following them.

Jesus had just predicted that Peter would give his life for the Gospel, when Peter said, “What about John, LORD?”

Jesus responded, “What does he have to do with your calling? You follow me.”

With those words, Jesus hit a consistent flaw of the human condition.  We derive value and self-worth by comparing ourselves to other people.

Your ups, your downs, your failures, your victories were never meant to be compared to other people.

We have been called to serve an audience of One. The only approval you need is His.

"So Aaron took it as Moses said and ran into the midst of the assembly. And behold, the plague had already begun among the people. And he put on the incense and made atonement for the people. And he stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped" Numbers 16:47-48 (ESV).

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is The Hamilton Minute.

Often, when the concept of intercession is raised, we normally think about prayer and we should. Prayer is one form of intercession.

Here, we see another – living intercession.

At the climax of a plague, Aaron runs into the fray, armed with incense, and where he stands, the plague stops. Aaron literally stands between the living and the dead.

May God move us to be living intercessors for our day, and where we take our stand in Christ, the plague stops!

You shall have no other gods before me.

My name is Abraham Hamilton III, and this is the Hamilton Minute.

In 1954 Americans lived under constant threat of nuclear attack from the USSR.

When American children practiced duck and cover in classrooms across the country, President Eisenhower realized that our pledge had no distinction from any other republic.

After hearing a sermon on February 7^th of that year, President Eisenhower signed a law adding the words “under God” to our pledge.

The president recognized the true source of unity, of indivisibility is unwavering submission to the God of the bible.

As we go about our day, let us all remember the only true source of national unity is submission to almighty God.

"Immediately He made the disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He dismissed the crowds” Matthew 14:22.

My name is Abraham Hamilton, III and this is The Hamilton Minute.

Here Jesus instructed His disciples to cross a lake and meet Him on the other side of it. As they went, they were met by a violent wind storm that halted their progress.

Often in our Christian lives we receive clear instruction from the LORD, only to be met by an obstacle that halts our progress. We must, however, recognize that the onset of a storm does not cancel out God’s instructions.

Halted progress does not equal denied destination.

When Jesus directed the disciples to go to the other side, He absolutely meant for them to get there.

Delay does not equal denial.

"Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord."

My name is Abraham Hamilton III and this is the Hamilton Minute.

Statistics show that children who grow up without a father are 5 times more likely to live in poverty and commit crime. They’re 9 times more likely to drop out of school and 20 times more likely to end up in prison. Yet the percentage of children born to fatherless homes has skyrocketed in America. As of 2015, 25 percent of white, 53 percent of Hispanic and 73 percent of black babies are born into fatherless homes.

While Scripture teaches that the weight of raising children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord falls upon fathers, seems like we need a movement that says fatherhood matters.