Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time--1 Peter 1:3-5
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna, and Mikayla,
Wow! Look at all God has done for us. Look at the hope that is ours. As I was reading this chapter early this morning I could not get past these verses. Look at what He has done for us, His children. He sent His Son to die for our sins. He sent His Spirit by which we may be born again. He has given us an inheritance which is incorruptible, undefiled and reserved for us in heaven. Finally, He is keeping us by His power. The verse that is coming to mind here is this one and I think it is perfect.
Psalm 57:2 I will cry out to God Most High, To God who performs all things for me
What is left for us to do but say..."Hi Dad, I am home." That is our job...we have to accept His gift, and make no mistake, it is a gift, and walk through the door. He does the rest. We just need to come.
Think also on the phrase "who are kept by the power of God." Kept...is a military term meaning guarded or shielded and the tense of the verb reveals that we are constantly being guarded by God, assuring us that we shall safely arrive in heaven. Girls...each one of you knows how special you are to me. My heart wants to see each of you walk in truth without compromise. I can't hold your hand anymore and walk you through the difficult times but HE DOES AND HE NEVER LETS GO! I can't keep you from making the wrong moves, but I do know that you are kept by the power of God. You are kept by His faithfulness. You are constantly guarded and my heart is filled with gratitude to Him because I KNOW you will arrive safely in heaven. Why? Because He is committed to seeing you through til the end of your journey here. All you need do is believe.
The last point I will make about this passage is that as I contemplated our living Hope that is Christ and His resurrection from the dead, I realized that when we walk through salvation's door eternal life begins. We do not have to wait til we get to heaven to see it that way. He is reserving and watching our inheritance and He is keeping us by His power. We are as good as there. Be encouraged. The battle was won at the cross. We fight from a position of victory. We truly are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Love
Mom
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Surrounded with His Favor
But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You. For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous: With favor You will surround him as with a shield.--Psalm 5:11-12
Dear Girls,
I read these verses this morning. What comfort we have in our Lord. He may deal with others in judgment but we who hope in Him can ever shout for joy because He defends us. He protects us. He covers us. He is our refuge...strong and sure. We can be joyful in Him , because He blesses us and surrounds us with His favor like a shield. We are bullet proof. God has got our back! He is on our side. He is near...for in Him we live and move and have our beings. There is nothing to fear or be anxious about...what can man do to us? Maybe they can kill the body but when we awake...we awake in His likeness! He knows we are weak and remembers that we are dust. He has no illusions about us and yet He surrounds us with His favor like a shield. We can depend on Him to make our way straight before His face. We can depend on His grace, goodness strength and mercy which is always with us for the journey that lies ahead...and when we look to Him, we are radiant and our faces are not ashamed.
Love
Mom
Read the verses below and extol His holy name!
Let them shout for joy and be glad, Who favor my righteous cause; And let them say continually, "Let the LORD be magnified, Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant." --Psalm 35:27
Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; Let such as love Your salvation say continually, "The LORD be magnified!" But I am poor and needy; Yet the LORD thinks upon me. You are my help and my deliverer; Do not delay, O my God. --Psalm 40:16-17
Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, My servants shall eat, But you shall be hungry; Behold, My servants shall drink, But you shall be thirsty; Behold, My servants shall rejoice, But you shall be ashamed; Behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart, But you shall cry for sorrow of heart, And wail for grief of spirit. You shall leave your name as a curse to My chosen; For the Lord GOD will slay you, And call His servants by another name; So that he who blesses himself in the earth Shall bless himself in the God of truth; And he who swears in the earth Shall swear by the God of truth; Because the former troubles are forgotten, And because they are hidden from My eyes. --Isaiah 65:13-16
But as it is written: "EYE HAS NOT SEEN, NOR EAR HEARD, NOR HAVE ENTERED INTO THE HEART OF MAN THE THINGS WHICH GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM." --1 Corinthians 2:9
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever. --Psalm 23:6
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. --Romans 8:28
After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, "Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God! For true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her." Again they said, "Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!" And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, "Amen! Alleluia!" Then a voice came from the throne, saying, "Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!" And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! --Revelation 19:1-6
Dear Girls,
I read these verses this morning. What comfort we have in our Lord. He may deal with others in judgment but we who hope in Him can ever shout for joy because He defends us. He protects us. He covers us. He is our refuge...strong and sure. We can be joyful in Him , because He blesses us and surrounds us with His favor like a shield. We are bullet proof. God has got our back! He is on our side. He is near...for in Him we live and move and have our beings. There is nothing to fear or be anxious about...what can man do to us? Maybe they can kill the body but when we awake...we awake in His likeness! He knows we are weak and remembers that we are dust. He has no illusions about us and yet He surrounds us with His favor like a shield. We can depend on Him to make our way straight before His face. We can depend on His grace, goodness strength and mercy which is always with us for the journey that lies ahead...and when we look to Him, we are radiant and our faces are not ashamed.
Love
Mom
Read the verses below and extol His holy name!
Let them shout for joy and be glad, Who favor my righteous cause; And let them say continually, "Let the LORD be magnified, Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant." --Psalm 35:27
Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; Let such as love Your salvation say continually, "The LORD be magnified!" But I am poor and needy; Yet the LORD thinks upon me. You are my help and my deliverer; Do not delay, O my God. --Psalm 40:16-17
Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, My servants shall eat, But you shall be hungry; Behold, My servants shall drink, But you shall be thirsty; Behold, My servants shall rejoice, But you shall be ashamed; Behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart, But you shall cry for sorrow of heart, And wail for grief of spirit. You shall leave your name as a curse to My chosen; For the Lord GOD will slay you, And call His servants by another name; So that he who blesses himself in the earth Shall bless himself in the God of truth; And he who swears in the earth Shall swear by the God of truth; Because the former troubles are forgotten, And because they are hidden from My eyes. --Isaiah 65:13-16
But as it is written: "EYE HAS NOT SEEN, NOR EAR HEARD, NOR HAVE ENTERED INTO THE HEART OF MAN THE THINGS WHICH GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM." --1 Corinthians 2:9
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever. --Psalm 23:6
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. --Romans 8:28
After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, "Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God! For true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her." Again they said, "Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!" And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, "Amen! Alleluia!" Then a voice came from the throne, saying, "Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!" And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! --Revelation 19:1-6
Monday, January 3, 2011
A Mind Dedicated to God
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.--Romans 12:1-2
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna, and Mikayla,
We have been looking at the three things Romans 12:1-2 says we are to offer to our God as our reasonable service. The first, our bodies, we discussed in our previous study. The second thing we are to dedicate to our Lord is our minds. It is important to remember here, however, that they all go together. Christ wants all of us...soul, body, mind and will. For the sake of time we are looking at them separately.
Now I can laugh at this because I think why would anyone, especially God, want my mind. Seriously though...God does! He wants our minds set apart to Him and for Him. The world bombards us with different philosophies and stuff that grabs our emotions and bypasses rational thought. It attempts to program our minds in a certain way to conform us into its way of thinking...which really is not about thinking at all...truth is not desired in the world and neither is thinking. The world for the most part does not care if something is right as long as it works and makes them feel good. The word conform here means take on the outer appearance of something. We do not want to look like the world. The Spirit of God lives inside us. We want to be transformed into His image. God wants to give us His wisdom and His mind. He wants to teach us and reason with us. He wants to renew our mind and fill it with His truth, His ways and His will. 2nd Corinthians 3:18 says:
"But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord."
Whether you like it or not, you are a product of your thinking. The Bible says as a man thinks in his heart so is he. How are you programming your mind to think? What are you putting into it? GIGO...garbage in...garbage out. Word of God in....Word of God out. Fill your mind with the world, and the world will be reflected in your life. Fill your mind with the word of God, and the Spirit of God, who came to live inside you when you became a believer, will use it to transform you from the inside out. You will shine for Him...Your inner man will be renewed daily into His truth and His way of thinking. As you abide in Him your mind will become Spirit-controlled and you will speak psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to those around you. Double-mindedness will decrease and spiritual stability will increase. Your foundation will be strong, and as it says in Ephesians, you will stand!
Fallen, unsaved man's mind, the Bible says, is depraved, blind, futile, foolish, and ignorant. I can give you the references if you need them. Here is what John MacArthur says about the mind of fallen man:
"So depraved it does not choose what is good, so blind it does not know what is good, so useless it does not perform what is good, so ignorant it doesn't even know it's doing all of this and you're left with the only alternative...everything is foolish. That's the mind of man, fallen man"
My mind was all these things and more before coming to the Lord...despite my college degree...despite my good job. My life was in shambles...John MacArthur's quote hits home. Upon acceptance of the Lord, however, the one thing that told me something supernatural had occurred was that I felt like my mind had expanded exponentially. I saw things and understood things with different eyes. Many, many of my beliefs changed at the moment Christ entered my heart and The Spirit of God moved into my thinking. My mind which was once depraved, blind, futile, ignorant and foolish was now different. No, I did not have a new brain, but I did have a new way of thinking. My mind now thought not on the fleshly level but on the Spiritual. Romans 8:5 says this: "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit."
1 Corinthians 1:30 says:
"But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption—"
What does Christ become for us....wisdom from God!
Now look at 1 Corinthians 2:10-16. These verses are amazing and would be a blessing to meditate on and memorize!
"But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For “who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ."
Wait...what does it say in that last sentence...we have whose mind? The mind of Christ!!
2nd Corinthians 10:3-5 " For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,"
We can bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ...why...because we have His mind. We can strain all the stuff of the world out and allow the Spirit of God to show us what is true.
This is the mind we dedicate to Him...We dedicate by giving it to Him and allowing Him to renew it by His Word. The world, as I stated before, throws so much stuff at us, girls, that our minds become cluttered and dirty. Our minds need regular renewal with the truth of God...His word. Spend time daily reading it, studying it, memorizing it and meditating on it. Allow God to transform your thinking...2nd Timothy 3:16-17 says:
"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work."
Hebrews 4:12 says:
"For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."
Dedicate your mind to Him by setting it upon the things above and not on the things of the earth. Dedicate your mind to Him by putting on the new man that is renewed in knowledge and let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly." That's how you dedicate and transform your mind. The renewed mind is saturated and controlled by the Word of God.
Love
Mom
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna, and Mikayla,
We have been looking at the three things Romans 12:1-2 says we are to offer to our God as our reasonable service. The first, our bodies, we discussed in our previous study. The second thing we are to dedicate to our Lord is our minds. It is important to remember here, however, that they all go together. Christ wants all of us...soul, body, mind and will. For the sake of time we are looking at them separately.
Now I can laugh at this because I think why would anyone, especially God, want my mind. Seriously though...God does! He wants our minds set apart to Him and for Him. The world bombards us with different philosophies and stuff that grabs our emotions and bypasses rational thought. It attempts to program our minds in a certain way to conform us into its way of thinking...which really is not about thinking at all...truth is not desired in the world and neither is thinking. The world for the most part does not care if something is right as long as it works and makes them feel good. The word conform here means take on the outer appearance of something. We do not want to look like the world. The Spirit of God lives inside us. We want to be transformed into His image. God wants to give us His wisdom and His mind. He wants to teach us and reason with us. He wants to renew our mind and fill it with His truth, His ways and His will. 2nd Corinthians 3:18 says:
"But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord."
Whether you like it or not, you are a product of your thinking. The Bible says as a man thinks in his heart so is he. How are you programming your mind to think? What are you putting into it? GIGO...garbage in...garbage out. Word of God in....Word of God out. Fill your mind with the world, and the world will be reflected in your life. Fill your mind with the word of God, and the Spirit of God, who came to live inside you when you became a believer, will use it to transform you from the inside out. You will shine for Him...Your inner man will be renewed daily into His truth and His way of thinking. As you abide in Him your mind will become Spirit-controlled and you will speak psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to those around you. Double-mindedness will decrease and spiritual stability will increase. Your foundation will be strong, and as it says in Ephesians, you will stand!
Fallen, unsaved man's mind, the Bible says, is depraved, blind, futile, foolish, and ignorant. I can give you the references if you need them. Here is what John MacArthur says about the mind of fallen man:
"So depraved it does not choose what is good, so blind it does not know what is good, so useless it does not perform what is good, so ignorant it doesn't even know it's doing all of this and you're left with the only alternative...everything is foolish. That's the mind of man, fallen man"
My mind was all these things and more before coming to the Lord...despite my college degree...despite my good job. My life was in shambles...John MacArthur's quote hits home. Upon acceptance of the Lord, however, the one thing that told me something supernatural had occurred was that I felt like my mind had expanded exponentially. I saw things and understood things with different eyes. Many, many of my beliefs changed at the moment Christ entered my heart and The Spirit of God moved into my thinking. My mind which was once depraved, blind, futile, ignorant and foolish was now different. No, I did not have a new brain, but I did have a new way of thinking. My mind now thought not on the fleshly level but on the Spiritual. Romans 8:5 says this: "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit."
1 Corinthians 1:30 says:
"But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption—"
What does Christ become for us....wisdom from God!
Now look at 1 Corinthians 2:10-16. These verses are amazing and would be a blessing to meditate on and memorize!
"But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For “who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ."
Wait...what does it say in that last sentence...we have whose mind? The mind of Christ!!
2nd Corinthians 10:3-5 " For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,"
We can bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ...why...because we have His mind. We can strain all the stuff of the world out and allow the Spirit of God to show us what is true.
This is the mind we dedicate to Him...We dedicate by giving it to Him and allowing Him to renew it by His Word. The world, as I stated before, throws so much stuff at us, girls, that our minds become cluttered and dirty. Our minds need regular renewal with the truth of God...His word. Spend time daily reading it, studying it, memorizing it and meditating on it. Allow God to transform your thinking...2nd Timothy 3:16-17 says:
"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work."
Hebrews 4:12 says:
"For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."
Dedicate your mind to Him by setting it upon the things above and not on the things of the earth. Dedicate your mind to Him by putting on the new man that is renewed in knowledge and let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly." That's how you dedicate and transform your mind. The renewed mind is saturated and controlled by the Word of God.
Love
Mom
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Living Sacrifices....
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.--Romans 12:1-2
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
I memorized Romans 12 many years ago. It has to be one of my most favorite chapters in Scripture because it is so very practical. As a new Christian, I can remember thinking it was gold and truly it is.
Looking at the first two verses we see that we are to offer or present to the Lord three things. The first is our bodies, the second is our minds and the last one is our wills. Let's take them one at a time. For this study we will look at presenting our bodies as living sacrifices.
Paul, starts off this chapter with a therefore. This is the fourth therefore we find in the Book of Romans. The first one is found in Romans 3:20 and is the therefore of condemnation which says that by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight. We are all guilty before God because none of us can keep the law. We all need a Savior. The second is the therefore of justification found in Romans 5:1 which says that we can be justified by faith and have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. The third therefore is found in Romans 8:1 and is the therefore of assurance or of "no condemnation" because we are in Christ Jesus. If we are in Christ, we are free from the law of sin and death. The fourth and final one is found here in Romans 12. It is the therefore of commitment or dedication based on the mercies of God...So because of His mercies to us...because of who we are in Him...because of all that we enjoy....because of what the previous 11 chapters in Romans tell us...because of all that....Paul beseeches or pleads with us to commit ourselves to Him in total devotion.
The first thing he says we are to dedicate to Him is our bodies as living sacrifices which is our reasonable service. Offhand, I remember two living sacrifices in the Bible. The first was Isaac, Abraham's son, and the other was the Lord Jesus. Abraham offered Isaac, his son, in obedience to God's command. Isaac willingly placed himself on the altar in obedience to his earthly father's command as unto the Lord. God stopped Abraham before he killed Isaac and provided for Himself a ram for the sacrifice. Jesus some two thousand years later, probably on the same mountain, willingly obeyed His Heavenly Father's command to die for the sins of humanity. Jesus became the Lamb of God that would take away the sins of the world. Are you beginning to fathom what is required in service to the Lord. Do you see why being a living sacrifice is our reasonable service. The Son of God willingly died for us to give us eternal life and an inheritance none of us can even fathom. A serious and thoughtful consideration of the mercies of God can only lead us to the same conclusion that Paul reached....that our reasonable service is to die to our own selfish desires and live our lives for Him alone presenting our bodies to Him as instruments of righteousness to be used in accordance with His will.
I understand what is expected, but I surrender so little. The Lord is good. His plan for me comes from His heart of love and yet I rail and fight at times against Him and complain. I hold on to my flesh and my desires with all I have forgetting that I am His bond servant; forgetting that my "reasonable service" is to give myself to Him completely, utterly and sacrificially. I am to live for Him not only when it is convenient but always.
I am thankful that the Lord performs all things for me. I am also thankful the Lord will be faithful to complete that good work that He began in me until the day of Jesus Christ. Paul says this in Romans 7:
"For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members."
My inner man so wants to surrender completely to my God, but my flesh rebels. For whatever it is worth, here is what I have found helpful. I begin each day by surrendering my body to Him before I even get out of bed. This helps me refocus on Him because the first person I think of when I awake in the morning is me and how I am feeling. It helps me to remember once again what I am always in need of reminding...that it is not about me but it is about Him.
Love
Mom
Romans 6:11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 6:13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
Romans 6:19 I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.
1Co 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?
1Corinthians 6:20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.
2Corinthians 4:10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
2Corinthians 6:9 As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;
Philippians 1:20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
Philippians 1:21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Colossians 3:3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
I memorized Romans 12 many years ago. It has to be one of my most favorite chapters in Scripture because it is so very practical. As a new Christian, I can remember thinking it was gold and truly it is.
Looking at the first two verses we see that we are to offer or present to the Lord three things. The first is our bodies, the second is our minds and the last one is our wills. Let's take them one at a time. For this study we will look at presenting our bodies as living sacrifices.
Paul, starts off this chapter with a therefore. This is the fourth therefore we find in the Book of Romans. The first one is found in Romans 3:20 and is the therefore of condemnation which says that by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight. We are all guilty before God because none of us can keep the law. We all need a Savior. The second is the therefore of justification found in Romans 5:1 which says that we can be justified by faith and have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. The third therefore is found in Romans 8:1 and is the therefore of assurance or of "no condemnation" because we are in Christ Jesus. If we are in Christ, we are free from the law of sin and death. The fourth and final one is found here in Romans 12. It is the therefore of commitment or dedication based on the mercies of God...So because of His mercies to us...because of who we are in Him...because of all that we enjoy....because of what the previous 11 chapters in Romans tell us...because of all that....Paul beseeches or pleads with us to commit ourselves to Him in total devotion.
The first thing he says we are to dedicate to Him is our bodies as living sacrifices which is our reasonable service. Offhand, I remember two living sacrifices in the Bible. The first was Isaac, Abraham's son, and the other was the Lord Jesus. Abraham offered Isaac, his son, in obedience to God's command. Isaac willingly placed himself on the altar in obedience to his earthly father's command as unto the Lord. God stopped Abraham before he killed Isaac and provided for Himself a ram for the sacrifice. Jesus some two thousand years later, probably on the same mountain, willingly obeyed His Heavenly Father's command to die for the sins of humanity. Jesus became the Lamb of God that would take away the sins of the world. Are you beginning to fathom what is required in service to the Lord. Do you see why being a living sacrifice is our reasonable service. The Son of God willingly died for us to give us eternal life and an inheritance none of us can even fathom. A serious and thoughtful consideration of the mercies of God can only lead us to the same conclusion that Paul reached....that our reasonable service is to die to our own selfish desires and live our lives for Him alone presenting our bodies to Him as instruments of righteousness to be used in accordance with His will.
I understand what is expected, but I surrender so little. The Lord is good. His plan for me comes from His heart of love and yet I rail and fight at times against Him and complain. I hold on to my flesh and my desires with all I have forgetting that I am His bond servant; forgetting that my "reasonable service" is to give myself to Him completely, utterly and sacrificially. I am to live for Him not only when it is convenient but always.
I am thankful that the Lord performs all things for me. I am also thankful the Lord will be faithful to complete that good work that He began in me until the day of Jesus Christ. Paul says this in Romans 7:
"For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members."
My inner man so wants to surrender completely to my God, but my flesh rebels. For whatever it is worth, here is what I have found helpful. I begin each day by surrendering my body to Him before I even get out of bed. This helps me refocus on Him because the first person I think of when I awake in the morning is me and how I am feeling. It helps me to remember once again what I am always in need of reminding...that it is not about me but it is about Him.
Love
Mom
Romans 6:11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 6:13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
Romans 6:19 I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.
1Co 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?
1Corinthians 6:20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.
2Corinthians 4:10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
2Corinthians 6:9 As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;
Philippians 1:20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
Philippians 1:21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Colossians 3:3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Christophobia: Delusions of Righteousness
Christophobia: Delusions of Righteousness: "“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. “Many will s..."
Friday, December 31, 2010
Tentmakers...By Rebecca
“And he [Paul] found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla (because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome); and he came to them. So, because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and worked; for by occupation they were tentmakers.” ~ Acts 18:2-3
A tentmaker. According to the world, the apostle Paul was a wanderer – constantly being falsely accused, beaten, imprisoned, and driven out of town, at that – who supported himself by the unpretentious profession of tentmaking. Bear in mi...nd that Paul was once Saul of Tarsus, the Hebrew of Hebrews, circumcised on the eighth day, a Pharisee, humanly blameless concerning the Mosaic Law, and so zealous for “God” that he literally breathed threats and murder against believers. (Philippians 3:3-7, Acts 9:1-2) Paul’s credentials are extensive. If anyone could have confidence in the flesh, he wrote in Philippians 3, it would be him. Paul was born a Roman citizen (Acts 22:28), so he was probably from a well-off and possibly wealthy family. He was orthodox to the extreme, “brought up in this city [Jerusalem] at the feet of Gamaliel” (Acts 22:3-5) – a prominent rabbi of the time. Studying Paul’s letters reveals him to be a brilliant logician, writer, and debater. What we know of his life as an unbeliever implies that Paul was politically connected and a rising star in Jerusalem. Before the Damascus Road, this man was well on his way to reaching the absolute height of worldly achievement possible for him to obtain.
But he gave it up for tentmaking?
The world would, at best, view Paul with pity. “What a waste! Think of all he could have had and become!” Some might consider him certifiably insane. Others would hold him in contempt, mocking, scorning, and deriding his choices.
I can guarantee you this: Paul could not have cared less what anyone thought. In his own words, found in Philippians 3:7-9, “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him…”
The answer is right there in Paul’s profession: tentmaking. This life is temporary, a passing, fleeting thing; a tent. My flesh is just a tent. This world is a tent that one day the Lord will roll up like a scroll (Isaiah 34:4), and all the things the world values, whether possessions, looks, prestige, power, self, comfort, etc., will perish. They won’t matter. They won’t be beneficial. Paul lived for what mattered: the light of eternity, Jesus Christ.
Does that mean we all need to be low-income, despised wanderers to be living for eternity? No, not necessarily. The Lord has a destiny for each one of His beloved children, specially tailored, and ordained before we were even born. What you are in world is irrelevant; what matters is whether you are following Jesus. Everything that is not done in Him is indeed loss.
This world is not my home. My body is dust – via rib – and to dust it will return. Every breath brings me closer to eternity. What manner of person ought I to be? What mind should I have? Where should my eyes be fixed?
Romans 14:23, “…for whatever is not from faith is sin.”
Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
2 Corinthians 12:9, “And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
But he gave it up for tentmaking?
The world would, at best, view Paul with pity. “What a waste! Think of all he could have had and become!” Some might consider him certifiably insane. Others would hold him in contempt, mocking, scorning, and deriding his choices.
I can guarantee you this: Paul could not have cared less what anyone thought. In his own words, found in Philippians 3:7-9, “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him…”
The answer is right there in Paul’s profession: tentmaking. This life is temporary, a passing, fleeting thing; a tent. My flesh is just a tent. This world is a tent that one day the Lord will roll up like a scroll (Isaiah 34:4), and all the things the world values, whether possessions, looks, prestige, power, self, comfort, etc., will perish. They won’t matter. They won’t be beneficial. Paul lived for what mattered: the light of eternity, Jesus Christ.
Does that mean we all need to be low-income, despised wanderers to be living for eternity? No, not necessarily. The Lord has a destiny for each one of His beloved children, specially tailored, and ordained before we were even born. What you are in world is irrelevant; what matters is whether you are following Jesus. Everything that is not done in Him is indeed loss.
This world is not my home. My body is dust – via rib – and to dust it will return. Every breath brings me closer to eternity. What manner of person ought I to be? What mind should I have? Where should my eyes be fixed?
Romans 14:23, “…for whatever is not from faith is sin.”
Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
2 Corinthians 12:9, “And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
The Father's Heart - Jeremiah 36
Now it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, that this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 “Take a scroll of a book and write on it all the words that I have spoken to you against Israel, against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spoke to you, from the days of Josiah even to this day. 3 It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the adversities which I purpose to bring upon them, that everyone may turn from his evil way, that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.”--Jeremiah 36:1-3
Now the king was sitting in the winter house in the ninth month, with a fire burning on the hearth before him. And it happened, when Jehudi had read three or four columns, that the king cut it with the scribe’s knife and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth. Yet they were not afraid, nor did they tear their garments, the king nor any of his servants who heard all these words. Nevertheless Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah implored the king not to burn the scroll; but he would not listen to them. And the king commanded Jerahmeel the king’s son, Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel, to seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet, but the LORD hid them.--Jeremiah 22-26
Do you hear the Father's heart for His children in the first three verses of Jeremiah 36. His heart so wants them to turn from their sin and come to Him. This brings tears to my eyes. The Lord is so ever ready to forgive. He just wants to hear you say, "I am sorry," and turn so your sin does not destroy you and put you into an eternity without Him. God had Jeremiah write all that He had spoken to His people over the last 22 years in the hopes that Judah would hear and repent. God truly gives us every opportunity to turn and come to Him. . He does everything and anything He can short of violating our free will to bring us into a relationship with Him. He gives us warning after warning and even put stumbling blocks in our paths to prevent us from sinning more egregiously.
Hebrews 10 warns us:
"For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The LORD will judge His people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
Reading on in Jeremiah 36, we see an example of someone who thinks he knows better than God. Who truly as it says in Hebrews trampled the Son of God underfoot, the Spirit of God underfoot and burned the Word of God. Fighting against God is so stupid. The king reviled God's word as evidenced by his cutting it with a knife and then burning it in the hearth by his feet. Some people just decide based on no reading nor any evidence to despise the word of God and spend their life doing just that. Maybe the king thought by destroying the word he could keep it from coming to pass. There is no escape from His word. God's word will come to pass. Check out all the prophecies that already have. Check out especially the prophecies about Jesus...the Bible was written by someone outside of time...it is a supernatural book. What He has said He is going to do. You may not believe it...you may ignore it or even trample it underfoot but you will not win...The king tried...but God's word still came to pass. It is now too late for the King to turn...but it is not too late for you.
Jesus spoke about hell more than He spoke of heaven. Most of us know the truth...we know the Gospel. We, however, continue despite that knowledge in our own stubborn, sin filled ways...fighting against God all the way. I know I did it for years until God in His graciousness and kindness to me in Christ Jesus brought me to a point where I could literally not go on without Him. Pride once picked up is a very hard thing to put down. Our Lord brought mine crashing down on my head. It got my attention like nothing else did...and you know...I will be eternally grateful to Him. Don't be eternally sorry...put down your pride...go to Him NOW...no matter what condition you are in...God doesn't care...confess your sin and need...He is looking for an excuse to be gracious to you.
Be blessed both temporally and eternally this new year....
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” -- John 3:14-21
Now the king was sitting in the winter house in the ninth month, with a fire burning on the hearth before him. And it happened, when Jehudi had read three or four columns, that the king cut it with the scribe’s knife and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth. Yet they were not afraid, nor did they tear their garments, the king nor any of his servants who heard all these words. Nevertheless Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah implored the king not to burn the scroll; but he would not listen to them. And the king commanded Jerahmeel the king’s son, Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel, to seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet, but the LORD hid them.--Jeremiah 22-26
Do you hear the Father's heart for His children in the first three verses of Jeremiah 36. His heart so wants them to turn from their sin and come to Him. This brings tears to my eyes. The Lord is so ever ready to forgive. He just wants to hear you say, "I am sorry," and turn so your sin does not destroy you and put you into an eternity without Him. God had Jeremiah write all that He had spoken to His people over the last 22 years in the hopes that Judah would hear and repent. God truly gives us every opportunity to turn and come to Him. . He does everything and anything He can short of violating our free will to bring us into a relationship with Him. He gives us warning after warning and even put stumbling blocks in our paths to prevent us from sinning more egregiously.
Hebrews 10 warns us:
"For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The LORD will judge His people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
Reading on in Jeremiah 36, we see an example of someone who thinks he knows better than God. Who truly as it says in Hebrews trampled the Son of God underfoot, the Spirit of God underfoot and burned the Word of God. Fighting against God is so stupid. The king reviled God's word as evidenced by his cutting it with a knife and then burning it in the hearth by his feet. Some people just decide based on no reading nor any evidence to despise the word of God and spend their life doing just that. Maybe the king thought by destroying the word he could keep it from coming to pass. There is no escape from His word. God's word will come to pass. Check out all the prophecies that already have. Check out especially the prophecies about Jesus...the Bible was written by someone outside of time...it is a supernatural book. What He has said He is going to do. You may not believe it...you may ignore it or even trample it underfoot but you will not win...The king tried...but God's word still came to pass. It is now too late for the King to turn...but it is not too late for you.
Jesus spoke about hell more than He spoke of heaven. Most of us know the truth...we know the Gospel. We, however, continue despite that knowledge in our own stubborn, sin filled ways...fighting against God all the way. I know I did it for years until God in His graciousness and kindness to me in Christ Jesus brought me to a point where I could literally not go on without Him. Pride once picked up is a very hard thing to put down. Our Lord brought mine crashing down on my head. It got my attention like nothing else did...and you know...I will be eternally grateful to Him. Don't be eternally sorry...put down your pride...go to Him NOW...no matter what condition you are in...God doesn't care...confess your sin and need...He is looking for an excuse to be gracious to you.
Be blessed both temporally and eternally this new year....
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” -- John 3:14-21
Thursday, December 30, 2010
The Simple Gospel....
But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down from above) 7 or, “‘Who will descend into the abyss?’”] (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”(that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”--Romans 10:6-13
These are some of the most beautiful verses in Scripture. The gospel message is so simple. You don't have to climb up into heaven or descend into the land of the dead to get it. The word is near you...it is within your reach...it is yours for the taking. There is nothing about it that is difficult to understand. God's salvation is right in front of us. He comes to us...there is no where we can go from His Spirit. All we need do is respond by a simple confession with our mouth acknowledging that Jesus is Lord and believing in our heart that God raised Him from the dead and we are saved.
Now why does it say believe in your heart? The heart is the seat of the will. If you truly believe something with your heart your words and deeds will follow. Your heart needs to line up with what you say as you make Jesus the Lord of your life. Read what Jon Courson says about heart belief.
"Why believe in your heart? Why didn't Paul say believe in your mind? I suggest it is because the Lord is after our heart first. "You shall love the Lord with all your heart and mind and strength and soul" (see Mar_12:30). You see, my mind can be swayed very easily. I'm convinced about something—until I get a new set of facts and change my mind. Or I have an opinion one day and then I flip-flop the next.
But if something is in my heart, I don't change my mind about it daily. For example, at one time in your life, a boyfriend or girlfriend may have turned his or her back on you. Yet your heart was still drawn toward him or her because it's difficult to change your heart. Your mind changes easily, constantly, with every new bit of data. But the heart? It doesn't change so easily. It breaks, but it doesn't change. And so the Lord says, "I want you to believe in Me with your heart—not simply rationally, but emotionally and intimately."
That's it. That is the gospel message. Confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Don't miss the last verses...we are all saved the same way...by grace through faith. There is no difference or distinction between Jew and Greek. the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him...For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. "
Whosoever will come...
Rev 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
Rev 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.
These are some of the most beautiful verses in Scripture. The gospel message is so simple. You don't have to climb up into heaven or descend into the land of the dead to get it. The word is near you...it is within your reach...it is yours for the taking. There is nothing about it that is difficult to understand. God's salvation is right in front of us. He comes to us...there is no where we can go from His Spirit. All we need do is respond by a simple confession with our mouth acknowledging that Jesus is Lord and believing in our heart that God raised Him from the dead and we are saved.
Now why does it say believe in your heart? The heart is the seat of the will. If you truly believe something with your heart your words and deeds will follow. Your heart needs to line up with what you say as you make Jesus the Lord of your life. Read what Jon Courson says about heart belief.
"Why believe in your heart? Why didn't Paul say believe in your mind? I suggest it is because the Lord is after our heart first. "You shall love the Lord with all your heart and mind and strength and soul" (see Mar_12:30). You see, my mind can be swayed very easily. I'm convinced about something—until I get a new set of facts and change my mind. Or I have an opinion one day and then I flip-flop the next.
But if something is in my heart, I don't change my mind about it daily. For example, at one time in your life, a boyfriend or girlfriend may have turned his or her back on you. Yet your heart was still drawn toward him or her because it's difficult to change your heart. Your mind changes easily, constantly, with every new bit of data. But the heart? It doesn't change so easily. It breaks, but it doesn't change. And so the Lord says, "I want you to believe in Me with your heart—not simply rationally, but emotionally and intimately."
That's it. That is the gospel message. Confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Don't miss the last verses...we are all saved the same way...by grace through faith. There is no difference or distinction between Jew and Greek. the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him...For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. "
Whosoever will come...
Rev 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
Rev 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Sacrifice of Praise
Hebrews 13:15 Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.
The voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who will say: “ Praise the LORD of hosts, For the LORD is good, For His mercy endures forever”— and of those who will bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause the captives of the land to return as at the first,’ says the LORD.--Jeremiah 33:11
The sacrifice of praise....the sacrifice of our lips. Luke 6:45 says that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. God is good all the time...His plans for us come from His heart of love for us. God works all things together for good to those who love Him and our praise for Him should be continually on our lips as we go through our day. He makes His goodness follow us and covers our missteps with mercy. Praise Him despite your own fleshly inclinations to complain. Purpose in your heart to praise Him especially during those times when it is the last thing that you want to do. Feelings are fickle. Walk with Him according to the promises in His word, not according to the state of your emotions. Praise Him despite the heartache and tragedy you are facing. Praise Him despite the fact that you are mopping the floor or doing the dishes for the umpteenth time. Do it as an act of faith. His grace will be there and the light of His countenance will be upon you.
How can we praise God and thank Him when we are in the midst of pain and suffering? The answer is all over His word...Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! Truly, you could navigate your way page by page through His word singing His praise, but my focus last night was in 1 John Chapter 1. As I read the chapter I realized that I (ME!) have fellowship with the One in whom there is no darkness at all...only light forever. Me and you, finite humanity, can commune with an infinite God! In fact, I can go boldly to His throne of grace in my time of need to find help. Our God is omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent and He DESIRES fellowship with me! (you) Moreover, as we read through His word we find out that this fellowship is the very purpose for our existence and it is what makes our joy full!
Sometimes my life is sad and full of grief and I feel isolated, but that all fades when I remember that my God wants an intimate relationship with me. Through this relationship with Him and fellowship in Him with like-minded believers, I know that I am never alone. Such knowledge brings great joy to my heart! Our God, girls, promises never to leave us nor forsake us. Paul was able to be content no matter what situation or grief he encountered. Why? Because he understood with heart knowledge that the Lord was His Shepherd...He had everything He needed.
Raise your hands and praise the One who has been so faithful in the past, whom you know is working in the present and who will not turn aside but will complete the good work He started in you.
Love
Mom
The voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who will say: “ Praise the LORD of hosts, For the LORD is good, For His mercy endures forever”— and of those who will bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause the captives of the land to return as at the first,’ says the LORD.--Jeremiah 33:11
The sacrifice of praise....the sacrifice of our lips. Luke 6:45 says that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. God is good all the time...His plans for us come from His heart of love for us. God works all things together for good to those who love Him and our praise for Him should be continually on our lips as we go through our day. He makes His goodness follow us and covers our missteps with mercy. Praise Him despite your own fleshly inclinations to complain. Purpose in your heart to praise Him especially during those times when it is the last thing that you want to do. Feelings are fickle. Walk with Him according to the promises in His word, not according to the state of your emotions. Praise Him despite the heartache and tragedy you are facing. Praise Him despite the fact that you are mopping the floor or doing the dishes for the umpteenth time. Do it as an act of faith. His grace will be there and the light of His countenance will be upon you.
How can we praise God and thank Him when we are in the midst of pain and suffering? The answer is all over His word...Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! Truly, you could navigate your way page by page through His word singing His praise, but my focus last night was in 1 John Chapter 1. As I read the chapter I realized that I (ME!) have fellowship with the One in whom there is no darkness at all...only light forever. Me and you, finite humanity, can commune with an infinite God! In fact, I can go boldly to His throne of grace in my time of need to find help. Our God is omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent and He DESIRES fellowship with me! (you) Moreover, as we read through His word we find out that this fellowship is the very purpose for our existence and it is what makes our joy full!
Sometimes my life is sad and full of grief and I feel isolated, but that all fades when I remember that my God wants an intimate relationship with me. Through this relationship with Him and fellowship in Him with like-minded believers, I know that I am never alone. Such knowledge brings great joy to my heart! Our God, girls, promises never to leave us nor forsake us. Paul was able to be content no matter what situation or grief he encountered. Why? Because he understood with heart knowledge that the Lord was His Shepherd...He had everything He needed.
Raise your hands and praise the One who has been so faithful in the past, whom you know is working in the present and who will not turn aside but will complete the good work He started in you.
Love
Mom
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
How Great is Our God...
Rom 11:29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna, and Mikayla,
The first verse of Romans 11 is emphatic when it states that God is not through with His Chosen People. That is so clear, especially today when we look at what is happening with Israel. It is a cup of trembling to the nations all around. Paul's miraculous conversion on the road to Damascus is a foreshadowing of what will happen to the Jewish nation when the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. Romans 11:15 says that God has cast off His people but this does not mean that He has rejected all of them forever. Paul himself is proof that the casting away is not complete. After all, his credentials as a Jew were impeccable. Verses 2-10 talk about Israel's past history and verse 7 says that God has always kept a believing remnant according to the election of grace and the rest (the majority) were blinded.
Verse 11 goes on to ask, "Have they stumbled that they should fall?" Look at this girls...God's purposes, despite Israel's disobedience, are restorative...not only for the Jew but for the Gentile as well. His purpose is, that as a result of their fall, salvation should come to the Gentiles, thus provoking Israel to jealousy. This jealousy is designed to bring Israel back to God eventually. Look at the next verse...Rom 11:12 Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness! Wow! Wow! Wow! God promised the Gentiles would be saved and He will keep His promise to Israel also. When Israel finally turns to the Lord she will become a channel of blessing for all the nations. Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, tells his audience in the next verse that he is not only speaking to them to explain God's grace to them but to provoke his countrymen to jealousy. Ideally, the Jew would look at the spiritual riches of the Gentile believer and want what he had....Christ...the hope of glory!
Paul goes on later to say that concerning the gospel the Jews are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. God's original plan, had the Jews as the instrument of God's blessing to the Gentiles. When the Jews disobeyed or stumbled, God blessed the Gentiles anyway through the Jewish Messiah. His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob would still be sure. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. God does not change. Even if we are faithless, He remains faithful. Someday all faithful Jews will share in God's mercy. God's plans will not be thwarted: He will "have mercy on everyone."
Do you see why after reading this chapter several times I was in worship mode. What an encouragement for me and for you. God's gifts and His calling are irrevocable...Malachi 3:6 says, "I am the Lord, I change not” God chose Israel in His grace, not because of any merit that she might have had. Israel is His beloved. We who believe, are His beloved. God will be true to Himself and consistent with His word no matter what we do. What a relief to know it does not depend on me or anything that I do or don't do. Romans 3:3 says shall their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? Philippians 1:6 reminds us that He who has begun a good work in us will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.
I read the last several verses of Romans 11 and rejoiced along with Paul. Read and.pay special attention to the reason for Paul's hymn of praise at the end.
Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, 31 even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. 32 For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all. 33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!
34 “ For who has known the mind of the LORD?
Or who has become His counselor?”
35 “ Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?”
36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
I am amazed at the greatness of our God. His grace and His sovereignty abound. May I never lose sight of the depths of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of our God. His judgments truly are unsearchable and His ways past finding out. I pray that I can meditate on His amazing love in the valleys and the difficult places that I know are coming. Reading this chapter put such joy in my heart and strengthened my faith. Truly God knows what He is doing even when we cannot imagine what that might be. He is the One who works all things together for good in our lives. He is the one who through Israel's fall brought salvation to the Gentiles.
Closing with a quote from Spurgeon that really spoke to my heart...
"Fate says the thing is and must be, so it is decreed. But the true doctrine is--God has appointed this and that, not because it must be, but because it is best that it should be. Fate is blind, but the destiny of Scripture is full of eyes. Fate is stern and adamantine, and has no tears for human sorrow. But the arrangements of providence are kind and good." --Charles Spurgeon
Love
Mom
Here is Romans 11 in its entirety:
7 What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded. 8 Just as it is written:
“ God has given them a spirit of stupor,
Eyes that they should not see
And ears that they should not hear,
To this very day.”[d]
9 And David says:
“ Let their table become a snare and a trap,
A stumbling block and a recompense to them.
10 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see,
And bow down their back always.”[e]
11 I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles. 12 Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!
13 For I speak to you Gentiles; inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 14 if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them. 15 For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?
16 For if the firstfruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. 17 And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, 18 do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.
19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off that I might be grafted in.” 20 Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. 22 Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness,[f] if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off. 23 And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, who are natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?
25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will be saved,[g] as it is written:
“ The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
27 For this is My covenant with them,
When I take away their sins.”[h]
28 Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, 31 even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. 32 For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all.
33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!
34 “ For who has known the mind of the LORD?
Or who has become His counselor?”[i]
35 “ Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?”[j]
36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna, and Mikayla,
The first verse of Romans 11 is emphatic when it states that God is not through with His Chosen People. That is so clear, especially today when we look at what is happening with Israel. It is a cup of trembling to the nations all around. Paul's miraculous conversion on the road to Damascus is a foreshadowing of what will happen to the Jewish nation when the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. Romans 11:15 says that God has cast off His people but this does not mean that He has rejected all of them forever. Paul himself is proof that the casting away is not complete. After all, his credentials as a Jew were impeccable. Verses 2-10 talk about Israel's past history and verse 7 says that God has always kept a believing remnant according to the election of grace and the rest (the majority) were blinded.
Verse 11 goes on to ask, "Have they stumbled that they should fall?" Look at this girls...God's purposes, despite Israel's disobedience, are restorative...not only for the Jew but for the Gentile as well. His purpose is, that as a result of their fall, salvation should come to the Gentiles, thus provoking Israel to jealousy. This jealousy is designed to bring Israel back to God eventually. Look at the next verse...Rom 11:12 Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness! Wow! Wow! Wow! God promised the Gentiles would be saved and He will keep His promise to Israel also. When Israel finally turns to the Lord she will become a channel of blessing for all the nations. Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, tells his audience in the next verse that he is not only speaking to them to explain God's grace to them but to provoke his countrymen to jealousy. Ideally, the Jew would look at the spiritual riches of the Gentile believer and want what he had....Christ...the hope of glory!
Paul goes on later to say that concerning the gospel the Jews are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. God's original plan, had the Jews as the instrument of God's blessing to the Gentiles. When the Jews disobeyed or stumbled, God blessed the Gentiles anyway through the Jewish Messiah. His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob would still be sure. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. God does not change. Even if we are faithless, He remains faithful. Someday all faithful Jews will share in God's mercy. God's plans will not be thwarted: He will "have mercy on everyone."
Do you see why after reading this chapter several times I was in worship mode. What an encouragement for me and for you. God's gifts and His calling are irrevocable...Malachi 3:6 says, "I am the Lord, I change not” God chose Israel in His grace, not because of any merit that she might have had. Israel is His beloved. We who believe, are His beloved. God will be true to Himself and consistent with His word no matter what we do. What a relief to know it does not depend on me or anything that I do or don't do. Romans 3:3 says shall their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? Philippians 1:6 reminds us that He who has begun a good work in us will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.
I read the last several verses of Romans 11 and rejoiced along with Paul. Read and.pay special attention to the reason for Paul's hymn of praise at the end.
Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, 31 even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. 32 For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all. 33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!
34 “ For who has known the mind of the LORD?
Or who has become His counselor?”
35 “ Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?”
36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
I am amazed at the greatness of our God. His grace and His sovereignty abound. May I never lose sight of the depths of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of our God. His judgments truly are unsearchable and His ways past finding out. I pray that I can meditate on His amazing love in the valleys and the difficult places that I know are coming. Reading this chapter put such joy in my heart and strengthened my faith. Truly God knows what He is doing even when we cannot imagine what that might be. He is the One who works all things together for good in our lives. He is the one who through Israel's fall brought salvation to the Gentiles.
Closing with a quote from Spurgeon that really spoke to my heart...
"Fate says the thing is and must be, so it is decreed. But the true doctrine is--God has appointed this and that, not because it must be, but because it is best that it should be. Fate is blind, but the destiny of Scripture is full of eyes. Fate is stern and adamantine, and has no tears for human sorrow. But the arrangements of providence are kind and good." --Charles Spurgeon
Love
Mom
Here is Romans 11 in its entirety:
Romans 11
Israel’s Rejection Not Total
1 I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying, 3 “LORD, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life”?[a] 4 But what does the divine response say to him? “I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”[b] 5 Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace. 6 And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace.[c] But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.7 What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded. 8 Just as it is written:
“ God has given them a spirit of stupor,
Eyes that they should not see
And ears that they should not hear,
To this very day.”[d]
9 And David says:
“ Let their table become a snare and a trap,
A stumbling block and a recompense to them.
10 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see,
And bow down their back always.”[e]
Israel’s Rejection Not Final
11 I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles. 12 Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!
13 For I speak to you Gentiles; inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 14 if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them. 15 For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?
16 For if the firstfruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. 17 And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, 18 do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.
19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off that I might be grafted in.” 20 Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. 22 Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness,[f] if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off. 23 And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, who are natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?
25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will be saved,[g] as it is written:
“ The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
27 For this is My covenant with them,
When I take away their sins.”[h]
28 Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, 31 even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. 32 For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all.
33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!
34 “ For who has known the mind of the LORD?
Or who has become His counselor?”[i]
35 “ Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?”[j]
36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
Monday, December 27, 2010
Is There Anything too Hard for the Lord....
Jeremiah 32:16-27
“Now when I had delivered the purchase deed to Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed to the LORD, saying: 17 ‘Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You. 18 You show lovingkindness to thousands, and repay the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them—the Great, the Mighty God, whose name is the LORD of hosts. 19 You are great in counsel and mighty in work, for Your eyes are open to all the ways of the sons of men, to give everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings. 20 You have set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, to this day, and in Israel and among other men; and You have made Yourself a name, as it is this day. 21 You have brought Your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and with great terror; 22 You have given them this land, of which You swore to their fathers to give them—“a land flowing with milk and honey.”[b] 23 And they came in and took possession of it, but they have not obeyed Your voice or walked in Your law. They have done nothing of all that You commanded them to do; therefore You have caused all this calamity to come upon them.
24 ‘Look, the siege mounds! They have come to the city to take it; and the city has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans who fight against it, because of the sword and famine and pestilence. What You have spoken has happened; there You see it! 25 And You have said to me, O Lord GOD, “Buy the field for money, and take witnesses”!—yet the city has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’”
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
Here in Chapter 32 of the Book of Jeremiah God tells the prophet to buy a piece of land located outside of Jerusalem that had been captured by the enemy as an assurance to the people that God would bring them back from Babylon. . Not only is the land under siege and occupied by enemy soldiers, but Jeremiah is also a prisoner in King Zedekiah palace. In fact, he is in prison because of this very prophecy. Now this was obviously not looking like the best investment for Jeremiah to be making. Jeremiah, however, obeyed God and by faith believed the word of the Lord that his countrymen would be brought back into the land from the Babylonian captivity.
It is clear this was not an easy thing for Jeremiah to do. Trusting God at times is not easy. Sometimes after we do something that we know the Lord has asked us to do, especially when it might be viewed as foolish in the eyes of others, we begin to question our judgment and wisdom. This is what is happening here to Jeremiah regarding the land purchase.
So what does Jeremiah do when he is faced with his own fear and doubt. He, by faith, begins to extol and adore His Lord acknowledging Him as the Creator of heaven and earth and the One who can solve any problem. Nothing is too hard for Him. The Lord is righteous and extends grace and judgment perfectly. He is great and works great things. He is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. The Lord is glorious and terrifying and humbling. And yet God's people did not obey Him and therefore God has caused this calamity to come upon them. Look at verses 24 and 25. Here is where Jeremiah finally comes to the real reason for his prayer....to question God's judgment in regard to the land deal. It is not a bad thing to pour your heart out before the Lord and question what he is doing as long as you do not presume you know better. Look at how the Lord answers. Ha! He takes a page out of Jeremiah's book and says, [I'm] the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me? Remember how Jeremiah started his prayer? Jeremiah says, "Lord, You are God. There's nothing too hard for You." And God is reminding him of his own words here and says, "Is there anything too hard for Me?" I love the Lord's sense of humor. So often I need to be reminded of the very same thing.
That is the application for me and for you. You know, I say a lot of things that I think come from a heart of faith. In reality, however, most of the time I need God's constant reminder to me of His faithfulness and power. Really, is there anything too hard for the Lord? Jeremiah did the right thing because he sought relief in prayer from his nagging doubts. It helps us when we begin to doubt to focus and meditate on what we know about our Lord. Let's cry out to the Lord like the Dad in the Gospel of Mark 9. "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!"
John 13:7 Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this."
Romans 11:33-34 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! "FOR WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD? OR WHO HAS BECOME HIS COUNSELOR?"
When you think your situation is impossible and need to be reminded of who the Lord is, meditate on one or two of these verses.
Genesis 18:14 Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son."
Job 42:2 "I know that You can do everything, And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
Luke 1:37 For with God nothing will be impossible."
Luke 18:27 But He said, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God."
Isaiah 46:9 Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me,
Isaiah 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, 'My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,'
Daniel 2:22 He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him.
Acts 15:18 "Known to God from eternity are all His works.
“Now when I had delivered the purchase deed to Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed to the LORD, saying: 17 ‘Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You. 18 You show lovingkindness to thousands, and repay the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them—the Great, the Mighty God, whose name is the LORD of hosts. 19 You are great in counsel and mighty in work, for Your eyes are open to all the ways of the sons of men, to give everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings. 20 You have set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, to this day, and in Israel and among other men; and You have made Yourself a name, as it is this day. 21 You have brought Your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and with great terror; 22 You have given them this land, of which You swore to their fathers to give them—“a land flowing with milk and honey.”[b] 23 And they came in and took possession of it, but they have not obeyed Your voice or walked in Your law. They have done nothing of all that You commanded them to do; therefore You have caused all this calamity to come upon them.
24 ‘Look, the siege mounds! They have come to the city to take it; and the city has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans who fight against it, because of the sword and famine and pestilence. What You have spoken has happened; there You see it! 25 And You have said to me, O Lord GOD, “Buy the field for money, and take witnesses”!—yet the city has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’”
God’s Assurance of the People’s Return
26 Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, 27 “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
Here in Chapter 32 of the Book of Jeremiah God tells the prophet to buy a piece of land located outside of Jerusalem that had been captured by the enemy as an assurance to the people that God would bring them back from Babylon. . Not only is the land under siege and occupied by enemy soldiers, but Jeremiah is also a prisoner in King Zedekiah palace. In fact, he is in prison because of this very prophecy. Now this was obviously not looking like the best investment for Jeremiah to be making. Jeremiah, however, obeyed God and by faith believed the word of the Lord that his countrymen would be brought back into the land from the Babylonian captivity.
It is clear this was not an easy thing for Jeremiah to do. Trusting God at times is not easy. Sometimes after we do something that we know the Lord has asked us to do, especially when it might be viewed as foolish in the eyes of others, we begin to question our judgment and wisdom. This is what is happening here to Jeremiah regarding the land purchase.
So what does Jeremiah do when he is faced with his own fear and doubt. He, by faith, begins to extol and adore His Lord acknowledging Him as the Creator of heaven and earth and the One who can solve any problem. Nothing is too hard for Him. The Lord is righteous and extends grace and judgment perfectly. He is great and works great things. He is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. The Lord is glorious and terrifying and humbling. And yet God's people did not obey Him and therefore God has caused this calamity to come upon them. Look at verses 24 and 25. Here is where Jeremiah finally comes to the real reason for his prayer....to question God's judgment in regard to the land deal. It is not a bad thing to pour your heart out before the Lord and question what he is doing as long as you do not presume you know better. Look at how the Lord answers. Ha! He takes a page out of Jeremiah's book and says, [I'm] the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me? Remember how Jeremiah started his prayer? Jeremiah says, "Lord, You are God. There's nothing too hard for You." And God is reminding him of his own words here and says, "Is there anything too hard for Me?" I love the Lord's sense of humor. So often I need to be reminded of the very same thing.
That is the application for me and for you. You know, I say a lot of things that I think come from a heart of faith. In reality, however, most of the time I need God's constant reminder to me of His faithfulness and power. Really, is there anything too hard for the Lord? Jeremiah did the right thing because he sought relief in prayer from his nagging doubts. It helps us when we begin to doubt to focus and meditate on what we know about our Lord. Let's cry out to the Lord like the Dad in the Gospel of Mark 9. "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!"
John 13:7 Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this."
Romans 11:33-34 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! "FOR WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD? OR WHO HAS BECOME HIS COUNSELOR?"
When you think your situation is impossible and need to be reminded of who the Lord is, meditate on one or two of these verses.
Genesis 18:14 Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son."
Job 42:2 "I know that You can do everything, And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
Luke 1:37 For with God nothing will be impossible."
Luke 18:27 But He said, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God."
Isaiah 46:9 Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me,
Isaiah 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, 'My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,'
Daniel 2:22 He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him.
Acts 15:18 "Known to God from eternity are all His works.
26 Lift up your eyes on high,
And see who has created these things,
Who brings out their host by number;
He calls them all by name,
By the greatness of His might
And the strength of His power;
Not one is missing.
27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
And speak, O Israel:
“ My way is hidden from the LORD,
And my just claim is passed over by my God”?
28 Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the LORD,
The Creator of the ends of the earth,
Neither faints nor is weary.
His understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall,
31 But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40:26-31
And see who has created these things,
Who brings out their host by number;
He calls them all by name,
By the greatness of His might
And the strength of His power;
Not one is missing.
27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
And speak, O Israel:
“ My way is hidden from the LORD,
And my just claim is passed over by my God”?
28 Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the LORD,
The Creator of the ends of the earth,
Neither faints nor is weary.
His understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall,
31 But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40:26-31
Love
Mom
Sunday, December 26, 2010
The Night Seasons
Psalm 16:7-8 I will bless the LORD who has given me counsel; My heart also instructs me in the night seasons.I have set the LORD always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
Girls, I look back at the many trials I have endured over the past 15 or 16 years and my thoughts always go to these two verses. The Lord truly has been my comfort during those times as well as my counselor. He has instructed me and guided me through each one. Even the night was light about me when I woke up worried and anxious over one thing or another. Why...because I had set Him always before me and He was at my right hand. When I think of the possibility of going through any trial without Him, I literally shudder. Knowing that the Lord is my instructor and guide I can move ahead in His confidence knowing that He is working out His special purpose for my life and is guiding me along the path of life and fullness of joy.
What does it mean to set the Lord always before you? It means exactly what it says it means. He goes before me...He shows me the way in which to walk My job is to follow His lead and obey. "Therefore, He is at my right hand and I shall not be moved." I don't stumble through life. I walk with the God of the Universe pointing me in the direction I need to go. I walk with the God of the Universe's will and purpose in my life unfolding continually. His will is what I want...His desire is what I want. My hope is in Him...it really doesn't matter what happens here...I am His and will be His forever. Where He leads, I will follow. He has my life in His hands and can do with me as seems good to Him.
Girls, this is the best way to live. When the Lord is your Shepherd goodness and mercy will follow. Goodness will surround your footsteps and mercy will cover your missteps. He will work all in your life for good. He will make all the decisions. All you need do is follow. He will be at your right hand....you shall not be moved. Here are just some of the verses from the Psalms that speak of His right hand. They speak of safety, pleasure, power, honor, favor and support. Read them and be encouraged.
Psalm 121:5 The LORD is your keeper; The LORD is your shade at your right hand.
Psalm 63:8 My soul follows close behind You; Your right hand upholds me.
Psalm 73:23 Nevertheless I am continually with You; You hold me by my right hand.
Psalm 138:7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch out Your hand Against the wrath of my enemies, And Your right hand will save me.
Psalm 139:10 Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me.
Psalm 44:3 For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, Nor did their own arm save them; But it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, Because You favored them.
I end with some words to one of the first worship songs I ever heard...it is one I sing daily in my heart.
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
Girls, I look back at the many trials I have endured over the past 15 or 16 years and my thoughts always go to these two verses. The Lord truly has been my comfort during those times as well as my counselor. He has instructed me and guided me through each one. Even the night was light about me when I woke up worried and anxious over one thing or another. Why...because I had set Him always before me and He was at my right hand. When I think of the possibility of going through any trial without Him, I literally shudder. Knowing that the Lord is my instructor and guide I can move ahead in His confidence knowing that He is working out His special purpose for my life and is guiding me along the path of life and fullness of joy.
What does it mean to set the Lord always before you? It means exactly what it says it means. He goes before me...He shows me the way in which to walk My job is to follow His lead and obey. "Therefore, He is at my right hand and I shall not be moved." I don't stumble through life. I walk with the God of the Universe pointing me in the direction I need to go. I walk with the God of the Universe's will and purpose in my life unfolding continually. His will is what I want...His desire is what I want. My hope is in Him...it really doesn't matter what happens here...I am His and will be His forever. Where He leads, I will follow. He has my life in His hands and can do with me as seems good to Him.
Girls, this is the best way to live. When the Lord is your Shepherd goodness and mercy will follow. Goodness will surround your footsteps and mercy will cover your missteps. He will work all in your life for good. He will make all the decisions. All you need do is follow. He will be at your right hand....you shall not be moved. Here are just some of the verses from the Psalms that speak of His right hand. They speak of safety, pleasure, power, honor, favor and support. Read them and be encouraged.
Psalm 121:5 The LORD is your keeper; The LORD is your shade at your right hand.
Psalm 63:8 My soul follows close behind You; Your right hand upholds me.
Psalm 73:23 Nevertheless I am continually with You; You hold me by my right hand.
Psalm 138:7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch out Your hand Against the wrath of my enemies, And Your right hand will save me.
Psalm 139:10 Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me.
Psalm 44:3 For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, Nor did their own arm save them; But it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, Because You favored them.
I end with some words to one of the first worship songs I ever heard...it is one I sing daily in my heart.
O God, You are my God,
And I will ever praise You
O God, You are my God,
And I will ever praise You
I will seek You in the morning
And I will learn to walk in Your ways
And step by step You’ll lead me
And I will follow You all of my days.
And step by step You’ll lead me
And I will follow You all of my days.
And I will ever praise You
O God, You are my God,
And I will ever praise You
I will seek You in the morning
And I will learn to walk in Your ways
And step by step You’ll lead me
And I will follow You all of my days.
And step by step You’ll lead me
And I will follow You all of my days.
Love
Mom
The Author and Finisher....by my daughter, Rebecca...
It never ceases to amaze me how masterfully and inexhaustibly intricate the Lord is. Look around you! Look at His word! Look at His plan of salvation! The very paths of the stars, from the moment they were flung into existence, declared... His plan for the redemption of His creatures.
By Acts 15, the early church had accepted Gentile believers. Some, however, stipulated that circumcision and the keeping of the Mosaic Law was necessary for their salvation. But the voices of Peter, James, Paul, and Barnabas answered in emphatic unison: No! To believe that salvation was contingent upon the imperfect efforts of man to keep a perfect Law demonstrated a complete misunderstanding of the Lord, His salvation, and His Scriptures. The Law was a temporary means by which man could approach God. It was intended to be a tutor to bring us to Christ, revealing our utter depravity and the inestimable price required to redeem us. A true understanding of that Law would inevitably point to its fulfillment – Jesus Messiah – and its subsequent fading in favor of the glorious New Covenant. There is no inconsistency between Judaism and Christianity. In fact, they are beautifully consistent, even to the point of being musically harmonized. And it is all to the glory of God Most High.
Known to God from eternity are all His works. He is the Author and finisher of our faith, and even more than that, the Author of all that we are and know. The finest, most artfully crafted story cannot compare to the story the Lord wrote in history. From the foundation of the world His plan was in motion. He knew, before Adam and Eve were even created, that they were going to rebel. He knew He was going to curse them so He could save them. He wove each of our life stories and the story of this world together into one marvelous, complex tapestry of His story. From Adam to Noah to Abraham to Moses to David to Daniel to Jesus, and beyond, He knew it all. He planned it all. He is Master over all. His love and His grace, shining through all of human history, so surpass the measure of words that it is overwhelming.
And His story is not even done yet. We’re celebrating Jesus’ birth today – the birth of the One who was born to die, to rise again, and to live in each one of His children. There is greater celebration to come. Jesus is coming back. This world will end. But His story won’t, and we are part of it! This Christmas, I beg you, look to the Lord. Don’t miss your chance to have Him be your shield and your exceedingly great reward.
Acts 1:9-11, “Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.’”
Maranatha.
By Acts 15, the early church had accepted Gentile believers. Some, however, stipulated that circumcision and the keeping of the Mosaic Law was necessary for their salvation. But the voices of Peter, James, Paul, and Barnabas answered in emphatic unison: No! To believe that salvation was contingent upon the imperfect efforts of man to keep a perfect Law demonstrated a complete misunderstanding of the Lord, His salvation, and His Scriptures. The Law was a temporary means by which man could approach God. It was intended to be a tutor to bring us to Christ, revealing our utter depravity and the inestimable price required to redeem us. A true understanding of that Law would inevitably point to its fulfillment – Jesus Messiah – and its subsequent fading in favor of the glorious New Covenant. There is no inconsistency between Judaism and Christianity. In fact, they are beautifully consistent, even to the point of being musically harmonized. And it is all to the glory of God Most High.
Known to God from eternity are all His works. He is the Author and finisher of our faith, and even more than that, the Author of all that we are and know. The finest, most artfully crafted story cannot compare to the story the Lord wrote in history. From the foundation of the world His plan was in motion. He knew, before Adam and Eve were even created, that they were going to rebel. He knew He was going to curse them so He could save them. He wove each of our life stories and the story of this world together into one marvelous, complex tapestry of His story. From Adam to Noah to Abraham to Moses to David to Daniel to Jesus, and beyond, He knew it all. He planned it all. He is Master over all. His love and His grace, shining through all of human history, so surpass the measure of words that it is overwhelming.
And His story is not even done yet. We’re celebrating Jesus’ birth today – the birth of the One who was born to die, to rise again, and to live in each one of His children. There is greater celebration to come. Jesus is coming back. This world will end. But His story won’t, and we are part of it! This Christmas, I beg you, look to the Lord. Don’t miss your chance to have Him be your shield and your exceedingly great reward.
Acts 1:9-11, “Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.’”
Maranatha.
Friday, December 24, 2010
For Parents of Prodigals...An Encouragement at Christmas
There is no one who understands the pain and suffering of a mom or a dad whose child has turned to his own way like our Lord. He is our Father. He hurts and grieves when His children walk away from Him and put themselves in places where He cannot minister to them, bless them, and comfort them with His love. The bible from the beginning to the end is about the Father's love, care and wooing of Israel, His firstborn. It starts in Genesis and the final restoration occurs in Revelation. Please if you are a mom whose son or daughter has walked away let the words of our Lord speak to your heart today and fill you with His love and His comfort. Read these next verses and see just how much the Lord loves you.
Isaiah 53:4-12
3 He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
4 Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way;
And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He opened not His mouth;
He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,
And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment,
And who will declare His generation?
For He was cut off from the land of the living;
For the transgressions of My people He was stricken.
9 And they[a] made His grave with the wicked—
But with the rich at His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was any deceit in His mouth.
10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul an offering for sin,
He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days,
And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.
11 He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied.
By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many,
For He shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,
And He shall divide the spoil with the strong,
Because He poured out His soul unto death,
And He was numbered with the transgressors,
And He bore the sin of many,
And made intercession for the transgressors.
He died in order that we, His sons and His daughters might have the opportunity to be in a close relationship with Him here in our earthly existence and then live with Him forever in the home that He has lovingly prepared for us. Here is what He reminds us of in John 14.“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.
Read John 17 Let His love envelope you and surround you....He prays for us...just as you and I pray for our children...that they might know Him the only true God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent.
Here are some verses of Scripture from the Father's heart of love for you and your children....read them as a mom thinking on her child and mourning the loss but hoping for the future.
Hosea 11:1-4
1 “When Israel was a child, I loved him,
And out of Egypt I called My son.
2 As they called them,
So they went from them;
They sacrificed to the Baals,
And burned incense to carved images.
3 “ I taught Ephraim to walk,
Taking them by their arms;
But they did not know that I healed them.
4 I drew them with gentle cords,
With bands of love,
And I was to them as those who take the yoke from their neck.
I stooped and fed them.
~~~~~~~~
Jeremiah 31:15-22
And out of Egypt I called My son.
2 As they called them,
So they went from them;
They sacrificed to the Baals,
And burned incense to carved images.
3 “ I taught Ephraim to walk,
Taking them by their arms;
But they did not know that I healed them.
4 I drew them with gentle cords,
With bands of love,
And I was to them as those who take the yoke from their neck.
I stooped and fed them.
~~~~~~~~
Jeremiah 31:15-22
15 Thus says the LORD:
“ A voice was heard in Ramah,
Lamentation and bitter weeping,
Rachel weeping for her children,
Refusing to be comforted for her children,
Because they are no more.”
16 Thus says the LORD:
“ Refrain your voice from weeping,
And your eyes from tears;
For your work shall be rewarded, says the LORD,
And they shall come back from the land of the enemy.
17 There is hope in your future, says the LORD,
That your children shall come back to their own border.
18 “ I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself:
‘ You have chastised me, and I was chastised,
Like an untrained bull;
Restore me, and I will return,
For You are the LORD my God.
19 Surely, after my turning, I repented;
And after I was instructed, I struck myself on the thigh;
I was ashamed, yes, even humiliated,
Because I bore the reproach of my youth.’
20 Is Ephraim My dear son?
Is he a pleasant child?
For though I spoke against him,
I earnestly remember him still;
Therefore My heart yearns for him;
I will surely have mercy on him, says the LORD.
21 “ Set up signposts,
Make landmarks;
Set your heart toward the highway,
The way in which you went.
Turn back, O virgin of Israel,
Turn back to these your cities.
22 How long will you gad about,
O you backsliding daughter?
~~~~~~~
Are you feeling the Lord's Fatherly love and mercy for His child, Israel? Do you see how that whatever difficulty and grief you are experiencing He has been there before and is even there now. He pleads with all of us to be restored through His prophets and finally and most expressively through His Son. Read the Books of Jeremiah, Lamentations and Hosea....they are for you. Scripture is filled with His comfort. A comfort that cannot be obtained anywhere else or from anyone else.
He knows your heart for your child...He will remember mercy. He, like you, has no greater desire and joy than to see His children walk in truth and come home at the end of their journey.
Jeremiah 29:11-14 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive."
Numbers 6:24-27
24 “The LORD bless you and keep you;
25 The LORD make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
And be gracious to you;
26 The LORD lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”’
27 “So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.”
And give you peace.”’
27 “So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.”
Thursday, December 23, 2010
A Right Relationship - John 21
Then Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any food?” They answered Him, “No.” And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea. But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits), dragging the net with fish.--John 21:5-8
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
I love these verses because they show where Peter's heart truly is! Make no mistake, Peter had trouble maintaining a stable relationship with His Lord but he so wanted it, didn't he? His desire was for the Lord. even though many times it did not penetrate his will. Peter was overconfident about his spirituality but Jesus looked at his heart and loved him, because he saw where that desire would lead him as he matured. Jesus' kindness to Peter and to us reminds me of Isaiah 42:3:
"A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth."
As soon as John told Peter that it was the Lord, Peter jumps up and puts on his outer garment and plunges into the sea. No hesitation...just took time enough to get properly dressed to meet Jesus and threw himself in the water. The other disciples reacted a bit more sedately and waited til the boat arrived on the shore, but not Peter. Yes, Peter was impulsive. Yes, he was arrogant even to telling Jesus that if everyone else forsook Him, he would not, but you could not fault his fervor...His desire was for His Lord. Peter's love for Jesus is always an encouragement to my faith.
When the time of testing came, Peter's will had not quite caught up with his fervent desire to follow His Lord and as John MacArthur says, he collapsed in a heap of denials. The restoration of Peter's relationship with the Lord occurs here in Chapter 21. As He goes about righting the relationship, we really get a window into what Jesus wants from us in our relationship with Him.
The first thing He wants is that we love Him supremely. He wants us to love Him more than anything else. I love that. He demands all of our love. I remember asking my dad when I was young and even when I got much older how much he loved me. His answer was always the same. With all my heart and then he would ask me the same question and I would reply, "I love you will all my heart, Daddy." This is what Jesus wants from us...hearts that are completely surrendered to Him. The extent of our surrender and love will be revealed in our obedience to Him.
The next thing he discusses with Peter is sacrifice. Here is what he says to Peter in chapter 21.
"Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God."
He wants us to be willing give our all even our lives in His service. To be...as it says in Romans 12... living sacrifices wholly acceptable to Him which is our reasonable service. Loving Jesus supremely means taking up your cross and following Him. It means obeying Him at any cost...even death. If there's anything in your life that you sacrifice for Christ, that's evidence of your love. If there's anything in your life that you will not sacrifice for Christ, that's the evidence of the shallowness of your love.
The final thing Jesus wants in our relationship with Him is that we follow Him.
He said to him, “Follow Me.”Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”--John 21:19-22
If we are going to be in right relationship with Jesus,we cannot be concerned about other people. Our job is to be obedient and follow Him. We belong to Him. Our eyes are to be on Him. We are set apart to do His work. Our lives are to reflect His wants and desires...what others are doing or getting or not getting is irrelevant and not important. If we focus on them, then they become distractions and get in the way of our service. Peter turned his eyes away from following Jesus to look at John almost immediately after Jesus told him to follow. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Follow Him no matter the cost It is never about you...it is always about Him and doing His work. Love Him supremely, live for Him sacrificially, and follow Him completely
But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life--John 6:68
Love
Mom
Hillsong...Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
I love these verses because they show where Peter's heart truly is! Make no mistake, Peter had trouble maintaining a stable relationship with His Lord but he so wanted it, didn't he? His desire was for the Lord. even though many times it did not penetrate his will. Peter was overconfident about his spirituality but Jesus looked at his heart and loved him, because he saw where that desire would lead him as he matured. Jesus' kindness to Peter and to us reminds me of Isaiah 42:3:
"A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth."
As soon as John told Peter that it was the Lord, Peter jumps up and puts on his outer garment and plunges into the sea. No hesitation...just took time enough to get properly dressed to meet Jesus and threw himself in the water. The other disciples reacted a bit more sedately and waited til the boat arrived on the shore, but not Peter. Yes, Peter was impulsive. Yes, he was arrogant even to telling Jesus that if everyone else forsook Him, he would not, but you could not fault his fervor...His desire was for His Lord. Peter's love for Jesus is always an encouragement to my faith.
When the time of testing came, Peter's will had not quite caught up with his fervent desire to follow His Lord and as John MacArthur says, he collapsed in a heap of denials. The restoration of Peter's relationship with the Lord occurs here in Chapter 21. As He goes about righting the relationship, we really get a window into what Jesus wants from us in our relationship with Him.
The first thing He wants is that we love Him supremely. He wants us to love Him more than anything else. I love that. He demands all of our love. I remember asking my dad when I was young and even when I got much older how much he loved me. His answer was always the same. With all my heart and then he would ask me the same question and I would reply, "I love you will all my heart, Daddy." This is what Jesus wants from us...hearts that are completely surrendered to Him. The extent of our surrender and love will be revealed in our obedience to Him.
The next thing he discusses with Peter is sacrifice. Here is what he says to Peter in chapter 21.
"Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God."
He wants us to be willing give our all even our lives in His service. To be...as it says in Romans 12... living sacrifices wholly acceptable to Him which is our reasonable service. Loving Jesus supremely means taking up your cross and following Him. It means obeying Him at any cost...even death. If there's anything in your life that you sacrifice for Christ, that's evidence of your love. If there's anything in your life that you will not sacrifice for Christ, that's the evidence of the shallowness of your love.
The final thing Jesus wants in our relationship with Him is that we follow Him.
He said to him, “Follow Me.”Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”--John 21:19-22
If we are going to be in right relationship with Jesus,we cannot be concerned about other people. Our job is to be obedient and follow Him. We belong to Him. Our eyes are to be on Him. We are set apart to do His work. Our lives are to reflect His wants and desires...what others are doing or getting or not getting is irrelevant and not important. If we focus on them, then they become distractions and get in the way of our service. Peter turned his eyes away from following Jesus to look at John almost immediately after Jesus told him to follow. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Follow Him no matter the cost It is never about you...it is always about Him and doing His work. Love Him supremely, live for Him sacrificially, and follow Him completely
But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life--John 6:68
Love
Mom
Lead Me to the Cross
Savior I come
Quiet my soul remember
Redemptions hill
Where Your blood was spilled
For my ransom
Everything I once held dear
I count it all as lost
Lead me to the cross
Where Your love poured out
Bring me to my knees
Lord I lay me down
Rid me of myself
I belong to You
Lead me, lead me to the cross
You were as I
Tempted and trialed
You are
Te word became flesh
Bore my sin and death
Now you're risen
To your heart
To your heart
Lead me to your heart
Lead me to your heart
Quiet my soul remember
Redemptions hill
Where Your blood was spilled
For my ransom
Everything I once held dear
I count it all as lost
Lead me to the cross
Where Your love poured out
Bring me to my knees
Lord I lay me down
Rid me of myself
I belong to You
Lead me, lead me to the cross
You were as I
Tempted and trialed
You are
Te word became flesh
Bore my sin and death
Now you're risen
To your heart
To your heart
Lead me to your heart
Lead me to your heart
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