Heb 13:18 Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.
Heb 13:19 But I beseech you the rather to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.
Pray- so Paul might be restored to them sooner.
We know God's word is for us and all things in it are relevant in some way. We can't read into things what we want to be there, but many do. I try not to be guilty of this and I hope and pray that I'm forgiven if I do my study and I get it wrong. I'm far, far from perfect. The reason I'm saying this is because it hit me when I wrote this- (Pray- so Paul might be restored to them sooner) that maybe there is even more of a meaning here than meets the eye- so to speak.
Maybe we need to pray too so that Christ will be restored to us sooner. Is it possible do you think? Can our prayers matter that much? In Heb. 13:18 It is written- Pray for us… then in Heb. 13:19 it continues… I beseech you the rather to do this that I may be restored to you the sooner.
Yes, we are to pray for others there is NO doubt about that whatsoever. Yes, our prayers matter. We've studied about the importance of prayers before so there is no question that praying is a necessity in a Christian life. Whether we are asking people to pray for us, or praying for others we are recognizing the authority of our Savior, of our Creator, of the Father, of the Son, and yes, of the Holy Spirit. To pray is acknowledging a much higher authority than ourselves. Paul asking fellow believers to pray, Paul beseeching fellow believers to pray so that he would be restored to them sooner meant he was asking them to intervene in his life. Paul was asking for the power of prayer on his behalf to affect his life. Paul believed that prayer, that intercession could affect his life. The Apostle would NOT have asked fellow believers to spend time in prayer for him if he didn't think their prayers would work. Paul desired to be with his fellow believers as soon as possible. We desire our Savior to return as soon as possible and we do need to pray for His soon return, don't we? We have to believe that our prayers can be heard, that our prayers are answered, that our prayers are necessary.
Pray for us.
When I think of prayer I often think of this…
Daniel praying.
Dan 9:3 And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes:
Dan 9:4 And I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;
Dan 9:5 We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments:
Dan 9:6 Neither have we hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, which spake in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
Dan 9:7 O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.
Dan 9:8 O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee.
Dan 9:9 To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him;
Dan 9:10 Neither have we obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.
Dan 9:11 Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against him.
Dan 9:12 And he hath confirmed his words, which he spake against us, and against our judges that judged us, by bringing upon us a great evil: for under the whole heaven hath not been done as hath been done upon Jerusalem.
Dan 9:13 As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil is come upon us: yet made we not our prayer before the LORD our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand thy truth.
Dan 9:14 Therefore hath the LORD watched upon the evil, and brought it upon us: for the LORD our God is righteous in all his works which he doeth: for we obeyed not his voice.
Dan 9:15 And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.
Dan 9:16 O Lord, according to all thy righteousness, I beseech thee, let thine anger and thy fury be turned away from thy city Jerusalem, thy holy mountain: because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that are about us.
Dan 9:17 Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord's sake.
Dan 9:18 O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.
Dan 9:19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name.
Dan 9:20 And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God;
Dan 9:21 Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.
Even while Daniel was praying an angel came to him. Daniel's prayer was HEARD while he was praying!!!!
Jesus spoke of Daniel the prophet- to Jesus Daniel the prophet was a reality, a Godly man, a prophet of God. If He were real to Jesus he has to be real to us. If Daniel is real to us then we have to realize that while this man of God was praying His prayer was being heard. Prayer IS real! Prayer is powerful. Paul knew this and asked His followers to pray for him and those with him.
By the grace of God may we know that our prayers are heard and understand our words are being heard by our CREATOR, our REDEEMER. This isn't like writing a letter to a famous person and wondering if they will ever really read it themselves. This isn't like us TRYING to call a famous person, hoping by some miracle we'll get to actually talk to them. This is us REALLY, LITERALLY, talking to OUR GOD, OUR CREATOR, OUR REDEEMER, and HE hears us! Our prayers are heard WHILE we are praying them. Our prayers aren't put on an answering machine to be listened to later on, they are heard as they are prayed.
Prayer is real and prayer is necessary, prayer is a privilege, an honor!
By the grace of our Lord and Savior may we understand the reality of prayer and the blessings that are bestowed upon us in just knowing that our God loves us so much He listens to us.
Amen!
Monday, December 6, 2010
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Pray for us
Heb 13:18 Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.
Pray for us.
Paul wasn't presumptuously living as though he needed no prayers. NO ONE can ever get to the point in their walk with Christ where they can believe they have no need of prayers. The most pious, the most Christ-like, the most humble believer is in need of prayers. The ones that appear to be closest to God- need prayers. There will NEVER be a day that we don't need to pray for one another, never.
Prayer is underrated - at least in my little circle of life. I didn't grow up with personal prayer being the thing to do. I grew up with the prayers before dinner and the prayers at bedtime and I thank God I had that much. Yes, at the time as a child they became a mere formality, but at least there was a teaching of God as the One I owed allegiance towards. I was also taken to church where there continued the formalized prayer but I wasn't ever exposed to prayer as a personal act on a day to day basis. What I mean is my mother never took me aside and said we've got to pray, and then prayed. I didn't witness prayer as a spiritual tool, a weapon in the spiritual warfare.
As I grew up I became more exposed to prayer, and I especially became exposed to it when I was about 19 years old and started an adult walk with Christ. Even so, I've never found it very easy to pray in front of strangers and such. I took to heart the bit about going into a closet to pray- justifying my need to pray privately rather with any others about.
I can remember when I'd go to Wednesday night prayer meetings at a church and at the end of the meeting we'd be told one person was going to start us in prayer and then we'd just go around the room and people would pray if they felt the spirit move them to do so. Basically one person would begin then when they said amen, another would start up. I always wanted to join in but could never bring myself to do so- my shyness overruling my desire. When a long pause would indicate all were done that were going to pray the leader of the prayer group would close with prayer and that would be that. It was a wonderful way to pray really. I wonderful outreach to God as a group of fellow believers. There was power in that praying, you could sense it. We say stuff like there is power in numbers and in some respects it's true, but we also know the most humble prayer spoken by one person can be more powerful than an entire congregation praying.
I get a prayer request list in my email every now and then, and my sister showed me a site she goes to online where people send in prayer requests. A lot of people realize they need to pray and they need the prayers of others. Prayers aren't magic words. Prayers are an outreach to our Creator, our Redeemer, our Sustainer. Prayers are an acknowledgement of a need for something we cannot provide for ourselves. Jesus prayed, Jesus reached out to His heavenly Father knowing that He had to rely on a power beyond His own to sustain Him. We cannot have a true spiritual walk with God without prayer, without communication with Him, without acknowledging our dependence upon Him.
Heb 13:18 Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.
Pray for us.
For we trust we have a good conscience in all things willing to live honestly.
They believed they had a good conscience.
They believed they willing lived honestly in all things.
We too need to believe we have a good conscience in all things- don't we?
We too need to believe we are willing to live honestly in all things- don't we?
This willingness is the key. People get all caught up in their failures, their falling short, their moments of weakness and Satan pounces on us ready to hold up those failures until it's all we see and we no longer see beyond our own shortcomings. Satan would blind us to everything as long as he can hold up our past sins- as current as a day ago or as long ago as our childhood years- and use those sins to get us to take our eyes off Christ and put them onto ourselves. Satan has a wallow for each of us that he fills with everything and anything he can hoping that we'll jump into that wallow and let the mud of his making climb up over our feet as we sink deeper and deeper until we choke on the filth he puts before us. We are filthy of that there is NO doubt. All our righteousness is filthy and that's not something we often equate with filthiness- righteousness. By its very nature righteousness sounds pure and clean, good and to be desired. And it is! But only the righteousness that is our Savior's! Our righteousness is corrupted by the filthiness of sin and will never be pure. We need to be WILLING to live honestly in all things. We need to cling to that willingness and never lose it because it's that willingness that we call hope and we call faith. We can never stop willing to live honestly, we can never stop trusting we have a good conscience. We need this because our will determines what we are. Does willing ourselves to be God's make us God's? No. But willing ourselves to be God's through the sacrifice of His Son does make us God's. Believing is being willing, choosing to have faith, hoping- allowing ourselves to believe. If we are willing… if we would allow… if we willingly submit our lives to Christ this is all we can really hope for. We can't lose the willingness to live for Christ and through His righteousness we will prevail.
Heb 13:18 Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.
By the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior!!!
Amen.
Pray for us.
Paul wasn't presumptuously living as though he needed no prayers. NO ONE can ever get to the point in their walk with Christ where they can believe they have no need of prayers. The most pious, the most Christ-like, the most humble believer is in need of prayers. The ones that appear to be closest to God- need prayers. There will NEVER be a day that we don't need to pray for one another, never.
Prayer is underrated - at least in my little circle of life. I didn't grow up with personal prayer being the thing to do. I grew up with the prayers before dinner and the prayers at bedtime and I thank God I had that much. Yes, at the time as a child they became a mere formality, but at least there was a teaching of God as the One I owed allegiance towards. I was also taken to church where there continued the formalized prayer but I wasn't ever exposed to prayer as a personal act on a day to day basis. What I mean is my mother never took me aside and said we've got to pray, and then prayed. I didn't witness prayer as a spiritual tool, a weapon in the spiritual warfare.
As I grew up I became more exposed to prayer, and I especially became exposed to it when I was about 19 years old and started an adult walk with Christ. Even so, I've never found it very easy to pray in front of strangers and such. I took to heart the bit about going into a closet to pray- justifying my need to pray privately rather with any others about.
I can remember when I'd go to Wednesday night prayer meetings at a church and at the end of the meeting we'd be told one person was going to start us in prayer and then we'd just go around the room and people would pray if they felt the spirit move them to do so. Basically one person would begin then when they said amen, another would start up. I always wanted to join in but could never bring myself to do so- my shyness overruling my desire. When a long pause would indicate all were done that were going to pray the leader of the prayer group would close with prayer and that would be that. It was a wonderful way to pray really. I wonderful outreach to God as a group of fellow believers. There was power in that praying, you could sense it. We say stuff like there is power in numbers and in some respects it's true, but we also know the most humble prayer spoken by one person can be more powerful than an entire congregation praying.
I get a prayer request list in my email every now and then, and my sister showed me a site she goes to online where people send in prayer requests. A lot of people realize they need to pray and they need the prayers of others. Prayers aren't magic words. Prayers are an outreach to our Creator, our Redeemer, our Sustainer. Prayers are an acknowledgement of a need for something we cannot provide for ourselves. Jesus prayed, Jesus reached out to His heavenly Father knowing that He had to rely on a power beyond His own to sustain Him. We cannot have a true spiritual walk with God without prayer, without communication with Him, without acknowledging our dependence upon Him.
Heb 13:18 Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.
Pray for us.
For we trust we have a good conscience in all things willing to live honestly.
They believed they had a good conscience.
They believed they willing lived honestly in all things.
We too need to believe we have a good conscience in all things- don't we?
We too need to believe we are willing to live honestly in all things- don't we?
This willingness is the key. People get all caught up in their failures, their falling short, their moments of weakness and Satan pounces on us ready to hold up those failures until it's all we see and we no longer see beyond our own shortcomings. Satan would blind us to everything as long as he can hold up our past sins- as current as a day ago or as long ago as our childhood years- and use those sins to get us to take our eyes off Christ and put them onto ourselves. Satan has a wallow for each of us that he fills with everything and anything he can hoping that we'll jump into that wallow and let the mud of his making climb up over our feet as we sink deeper and deeper until we choke on the filth he puts before us. We are filthy of that there is NO doubt. All our righteousness is filthy and that's not something we often equate with filthiness- righteousness. By its very nature righteousness sounds pure and clean, good and to be desired. And it is! But only the righteousness that is our Savior's! Our righteousness is corrupted by the filthiness of sin and will never be pure. We need to be WILLING to live honestly in all things. We need to cling to that willingness and never lose it because it's that willingness that we call hope and we call faith. We can never stop willing to live honestly, we can never stop trusting we have a good conscience. We need this because our will determines what we are. Does willing ourselves to be God's make us God's? No. But willing ourselves to be God's through the sacrifice of His Son does make us God's. Believing is being willing, choosing to have faith, hoping- allowing ourselves to believe. If we are willing… if we would allow… if we willingly submit our lives to Christ this is all we can really hope for. We can't lose the willingness to live for Christ and through His righteousness we will prevail.
Heb 13:18 Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.
By the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior!!!
Amen.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Teach Me
Jesus' words-
Joh 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
Mat 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
Mat 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
Mat 5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven
Mat 19:17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
Mat 22:36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Mat 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Mat 22:38 This is the first and great commandment.
Mat 22:39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Mat 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
Mar 7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Joh 14:21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
Joh 15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
The Apostles words-
1Co 7:19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.
1Jn 2:3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
1Jn 2:4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
1Jn 3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
1Jn 3:24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
1Jn 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
1Jn 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
2Jn 1:6 And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.
Rev 12:17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Rev 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Excerpts from Psalms 119 - Pleas. My pleas, your pleas, pleas of every Christian everywhere-------
O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes
O forsake me not utterly
O let me not wander from thy commandments
Teach me thy statutes
Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live, and keep thy word
Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law
Hide not thy commandments from me
Remove from me reproach and contempt
Quicken thou me according to thy word
Teach me thy statutes
Make me to understand the way of thy precepts
Strengthen thou me according unto thy word
Remove from me the way of lying: and grant me thy law graciously
O LORD, put me not to shame
Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes
Give me understanding
Make me to go in the path of thy commandment
Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to covetousness
Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity; and quicken thou me in thy way
Stablish thy word unto thy servant
Turn away my reproach
Quicken me in thy righteousness
Let thy mercies come also unto me, O LORD, even thy salvation
Take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth
Remember the word unto thy servant
Be merciful unto me according to thy word
Teach me thy statutes
Teach me good judgment and knowledge
Teach me thy statutes
Give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments
Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant
Let thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live
Let my heart be sound in thy statutes; that I be not ashamed
Help thou me
Quicken me after thy lovingkindness; so shall I keep the testimony of thy mouth
Save me; for I have sought thy precepts
Quicken me, O LORD, according unto thy word
Accept, I beseech thee, the freewill offerings of my mouth, O LORD, and teach me thy judgments
Uphold me according unto thy word, that I may live: and let me not be ashamed of my hope
Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe: and I will have respect unto thy statutes continually
Leave me not to mine oppressors
Be surety for thy servant for good: let not the proud oppress me
Deal with thy servant according unto thy mercy, and teach me thy statutes
Give me understanding, that I may know thy testimonies
Look thou upon me, and be merciful unto me, as thou usest to do unto those that love thy name
Order my steps in thy word: and let not any iniquity have dominion over me
Deliver me from the oppression of man: so will I keep thy precepts
Make thy face to shine upon thy servant; and teach me thy statutes
Give me understanding, and I shall live
Hear me, O LORD: I will keep thy statutes
Save me, and I shall keep thy testimonies
O LORD, quicken me according to thy judgment
Consider mine affliction, and deliver me: for I do not forget thy law
Plead my cause, and deliver me: quicken me according to thy word
O LORD: quicken me according to thy judgments
Quicken me, O LORD, according to thy lovingkindness
Let my cry come near before thee, O LORD: give me understanding according to thy word
Let my supplication come before thee: deliver me according to thy word
Let thine hand help me; for I have chosen thy precepts
Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me
Seek thy servant; for I do not forget thy commandments
~
Exo 34:28 And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten commandments.
Exo 20:1 And God spake all these words, saying,
(Mat 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Mat 22:38 This is the first and great commandment.
Mat 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. )
Commandment ONE
Exo 20:2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
Exo 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Commandment TWO
Exo 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
Exo 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
Exo 20:6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
Commandment THREE
Exo 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
Commandment FOUR
Exo 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exo 20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
Exo 20:10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
Exo 20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
(Mat 22:39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Mat 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. )
Commandment FIVE
Exo 20:12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
Commandment SIX
Exo 20:13 Thou shalt not kill.
Commandment SEVEN
Exo 20:14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Commandment EIGHT
Exo 20:15 Thou shalt not steal.
Commandment NINE
Exo 20:16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
Commandment TEN
Exo 20:17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
Exo 20:18 And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.
Exo 20:19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.
Exo 20:20 And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.
Exo 20:21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.
Exo 20:22 And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.
Deu 10:12 And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul
Deu 4:29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
Lev 19:18 Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.
Jas 2:8 If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well
Rom 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
Rom 13:9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Rom 13:10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
Let us feast on the word of God.
Lord teach us.
Lord help us.
Lord have mercy on us, O LORD, even thy salvation
Lord deliver us.
By Your Grace, by Your Love, in Your Righteousness always!
Amen.
Joh 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
Mat 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
Mat 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
Mat 5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven
Mat 19:17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
Mat 22:36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Mat 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Mat 22:38 This is the first and great commandment.
Mat 22:39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Mat 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
Mar 7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Joh 14:21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
Joh 15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
The Apostles words-
1Co 7:19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.
1Jn 2:3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
1Jn 2:4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
1Jn 3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
1Jn 3:24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
1Jn 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
1Jn 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
2Jn 1:6 And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.
Rev 12:17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Rev 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Excerpts from Psalms 119 - Pleas. My pleas, your pleas, pleas of every Christian everywhere-------
O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes
O forsake me not utterly
O let me not wander from thy commandments
Teach me thy statutes
Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live, and keep thy word
Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law
Hide not thy commandments from me
Remove from me reproach and contempt
Quicken thou me according to thy word
Teach me thy statutes
Make me to understand the way of thy precepts
Strengthen thou me according unto thy word
Remove from me the way of lying: and grant me thy law graciously
O LORD, put me not to shame
Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes
Give me understanding
Make me to go in the path of thy commandment
Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to covetousness
Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity; and quicken thou me in thy way
Stablish thy word unto thy servant
Turn away my reproach
Quicken me in thy righteousness
Let thy mercies come also unto me, O LORD, even thy salvation
Take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth
Remember the word unto thy servant
Be merciful unto me according to thy word
Teach me thy statutes
Teach me good judgment and knowledge
Teach me thy statutes
Give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments
Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant
Let thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live
Let my heart be sound in thy statutes; that I be not ashamed
Help thou me
Quicken me after thy lovingkindness; so shall I keep the testimony of thy mouth
Save me; for I have sought thy precepts
Quicken me, O LORD, according unto thy word
Accept, I beseech thee, the freewill offerings of my mouth, O LORD, and teach me thy judgments
Uphold me according unto thy word, that I may live: and let me not be ashamed of my hope
Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe: and I will have respect unto thy statutes continually
Leave me not to mine oppressors
Be surety for thy servant for good: let not the proud oppress me
Deal with thy servant according unto thy mercy, and teach me thy statutes
Give me understanding, that I may know thy testimonies
Look thou upon me, and be merciful unto me, as thou usest to do unto those that love thy name
Order my steps in thy word: and let not any iniquity have dominion over me
Deliver me from the oppression of man: so will I keep thy precepts
Make thy face to shine upon thy servant; and teach me thy statutes
Give me understanding, and I shall live
Hear me, O LORD: I will keep thy statutes
Save me, and I shall keep thy testimonies
O LORD, quicken me according to thy judgment
Consider mine affliction, and deliver me: for I do not forget thy law
Plead my cause, and deliver me: quicken me according to thy word
O LORD: quicken me according to thy judgments
Quicken me, O LORD, according to thy lovingkindness
Let my cry come near before thee, O LORD: give me understanding according to thy word
Let my supplication come before thee: deliver me according to thy word
Let thine hand help me; for I have chosen thy precepts
Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me
Seek thy servant; for I do not forget thy commandments
~
Exo 34:28 And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten commandments.
Exo 20:1 And God spake all these words, saying,
(Mat 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Mat 22:38 This is the first and great commandment.
Mat 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. )
Commandment ONE
Exo 20:2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
Exo 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Commandment TWO
Exo 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
Exo 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
Exo 20:6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
Commandment THREE
Exo 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
Commandment FOUR
Exo 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exo 20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
Exo 20:10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
Exo 20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
(Mat 22:39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Mat 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. )
Commandment FIVE
Exo 20:12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
Commandment SIX
Exo 20:13 Thou shalt not kill.
Commandment SEVEN
Exo 20:14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Commandment EIGHT
Exo 20:15 Thou shalt not steal.
Commandment NINE
Exo 20:16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
Commandment TEN
Exo 20:17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
Exo 20:18 And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.
Exo 20:19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.
Exo 20:20 And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.
Exo 20:21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.
Exo 20:22 And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.
Deu 10:12 And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul
Deu 4:29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
Lev 19:18 Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.
Jas 2:8 If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well
Rom 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
Rom 13:9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Rom 13:10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
Let us feast on the word of God.
Lord teach us.
Lord help us.
Lord have mercy on us, O LORD, even thy salvation
Lord deliver us.
By Your Grace, by Your Love, in Your Righteousness always!
Amen.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Obey and Submit
Heb 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
Obey and submit.
Who do you obey? Who do you submit to?
Those who know me in my offline life, who have lived with me and around me for many years would tell you that I'm a very submissive person as a rule, whereas my sisters (all 3 of them) are more dominant. The reason I'm mentioning this is because even though I'm viewed as being on the submissive side I STILL get that slight feeling of rebellion when I read words like submit to others, obey others- them that have rule over you. I've grown up in a society that tells me that NO ONE rules over me. I've been blessed by growing up in a democracy and not a dictatorship. I've grown up with NO ruler, ruling over me. I've grown up with the idea of being independent- dependent upon no one as the standard. I wasn't taught that I would have to be submissive to my husband, and not many women have been taught that for many years and we call that progress, we call that freedom, we call that having rights. We call it a good thing and in many respects it is a good thing- at least good because the abusive aspect of that way of life is no longer considered acceptable. Abuse in any situation is a bad thing- a wrong thing.
When we are instructed to obey them that have rule over us, when we are told to submit ourselves to those who are watching for our souls, when we are told as women to obey our husbands, as children to obey our parents, as men to obey God- we are NOT being told to obey dictators, we are NOT being told to obey abusive tyrants. IF those who we are to obey ARE abusive tyrants and we submit to them we can rest assured that they will be held accountable for their abuse towards us. But when we are instructed to obey it's not something we should automatically equate with an oppressive situation because we've been taught by society that rulership is a bad thing. As children we feel the oppressive side of having to obey our parents when our willful selves would rather do as we please than listen to an authority figure. We can't wait for that day we believe we are old enough and no longer have to obey but can do as we please. Again, as children we are often taught that obeying is an oppressive thing, something to be shunned, something to be rid of upon adulthood.
Of course we are taught that to live in a free society there are rules that must be followed if we don't want our freedom taken away- but as it's a small price to pay to be able to live as we please. Of course many don't see it that way and they do break the rules and they do have to pay for breaking them.
Heb 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
We are to obey them that have rule over us.
We are to submit to those who are watching for our souls.
Those who take on this position of leadership have a grave responsibility - they are accountable to perform that leadership role as God would have them do so and not in their own way.
They are accountable for ruling over us with JOY- NOT with grief.
We all know there are various kinds of leaders, let's just group them into two categories for now- good and bad.
The good have what sort of traits? Easy going, fair, pleasant.
The bad have what sort of traits? Tyrannical, unfair, mean.
Those are just a few examples of each of course but enough for us to know that those who are considered good leaders, good rulers, good bosses, good husbands, good parents are those who do their job of ruling with JOY. You won't find true joy in rulership coming from a bad ruler. Yes, a sadistic ruler can find sadistic joy in being a bad ruler, but a just, fair, kind, Godly ruler cannot be sadistic and will not find joy in evil things.
Joy- From G5463; cheerfulness, that is, calm delight: - gladness, X greatly, (X be exceeding) joy (-ful, -fully, -fulness, -ous).
When we are ruled by spiritual leaders, secular leaders, bosses, husbands, parents, etc; they that rule without joy bring us grief, their joylessness is revealed in their rulership and it reflects on to those they have rule over. Being ruled by such rulers is unprofitable for us- we can't profit by those who rule us wrongly, joylessly.
Maybe we aren't in a position of having a spiritual leader, someone we trust is sent from God to guide us into His truth. But we do have leaders, rulers, bosses, husbands, parents and we do need to submit to them and obey them as God would have us do so.
We can't forget this--
1Pe 2:18 Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward.
1Pe 2:19 For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.
1Pe 2:20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.
Or this--
Luk 6:27 But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you,
Luk 6:28 Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.
Luk 6:29 And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloke forbid not to take thy coat also.
~~
Heb 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
Serve God, serve our fellow man. Submit, obey.
By the grace of our Lord and Savior may we find joy in being submissive to God and to our fellow man, putting their needs, their desires above our own. May their joy truly be our joy.
May God's will be done now and always, in all things!
Amen.
Obey and submit.
Who do you obey? Who do you submit to?
Those who know me in my offline life, who have lived with me and around me for many years would tell you that I'm a very submissive person as a rule, whereas my sisters (all 3 of them) are more dominant. The reason I'm mentioning this is because even though I'm viewed as being on the submissive side I STILL get that slight feeling of rebellion when I read words like submit to others, obey others- them that have rule over you. I've grown up in a society that tells me that NO ONE rules over me. I've been blessed by growing up in a democracy and not a dictatorship. I've grown up with NO ruler, ruling over me. I've grown up with the idea of being independent- dependent upon no one as the standard. I wasn't taught that I would have to be submissive to my husband, and not many women have been taught that for many years and we call that progress, we call that freedom, we call that having rights. We call it a good thing and in many respects it is a good thing- at least good because the abusive aspect of that way of life is no longer considered acceptable. Abuse in any situation is a bad thing- a wrong thing.
When we are instructed to obey them that have rule over us, when we are told to submit ourselves to those who are watching for our souls, when we are told as women to obey our husbands, as children to obey our parents, as men to obey God- we are NOT being told to obey dictators, we are NOT being told to obey abusive tyrants. IF those who we are to obey ARE abusive tyrants and we submit to them we can rest assured that they will be held accountable for their abuse towards us. But when we are instructed to obey it's not something we should automatically equate with an oppressive situation because we've been taught by society that rulership is a bad thing. As children we feel the oppressive side of having to obey our parents when our willful selves would rather do as we please than listen to an authority figure. We can't wait for that day we believe we are old enough and no longer have to obey but can do as we please. Again, as children we are often taught that obeying is an oppressive thing, something to be shunned, something to be rid of upon adulthood.
Of course we are taught that to live in a free society there are rules that must be followed if we don't want our freedom taken away- but as it's a small price to pay to be able to live as we please. Of course many don't see it that way and they do break the rules and they do have to pay for breaking them.
Heb 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
We are to obey them that have rule over us.
We are to submit to those who are watching for our souls.
Those who take on this position of leadership have a grave responsibility - they are accountable to perform that leadership role as God would have them do so and not in their own way.
They are accountable for ruling over us with JOY- NOT with grief.
We all know there are various kinds of leaders, let's just group them into two categories for now- good and bad.
The good have what sort of traits? Easy going, fair, pleasant.
The bad have what sort of traits? Tyrannical, unfair, mean.
Those are just a few examples of each of course but enough for us to know that those who are considered good leaders, good rulers, good bosses, good husbands, good parents are those who do their job of ruling with JOY. You won't find true joy in rulership coming from a bad ruler. Yes, a sadistic ruler can find sadistic joy in being a bad ruler, but a just, fair, kind, Godly ruler cannot be sadistic and will not find joy in evil things.
Joy- From G5463; cheerfulness, that is, calm delight: - gladness, X greatly, (X be exceeding) joy (-ful, -fully, -fulness, -ous).
When we are ruled by spiritual leaders, secular leaders, bosses, husbands, parents, etc; they that rule without joy bring us grief, their joylessness is revealed in their rulership and it reflects on to those they have rule over. Being ruled by such rulers is unprofitable for us- we can't profit by those who rule us wrongly, joylessly.
Maybe we aren't in a position of having a spiritual leader, someone we trust is sent from God to guide us into His truth. But we do have leaders, rulers, bosses, husbands, parents and we do need to submit to them and obey them as God would have us do so.
We can't forget this--
1Pe 2:18 Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward.
1Pe 2:19 For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.
1Pe 2:20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.
Or this--
Luk 6:27 But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you,
Luk 6:28 Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.
Luk 6:29 And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloke forbid not to take thy coat also.
~~
Heb 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
Serve God, serve our fellow man. Submit, obey.
By the grace of our Lord and Savior may we find joy in being submissive to God and to our fellow man, putting their needs, their desires above our own. May their joy truly be our joy.
May God's will be done now and always, in all things!
Amen.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Sacrifice of Praise
Heb 13:15 By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.
Heb 13:16 But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased
Sacrifice of praise.
Jer 33:11 The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD.
In praising we are honoring God, in praising we are worshipping God, in praising we are thanking God. Is it no wonder we are told to offer the sacrifice of praise to God CONTINUALLY? If we are sustained by our God, if we believe we are alive by His grace, that we are blessed to receive the sacrifice of His Son - bringing us forgiveness for the unforgiveable, then why wouldn't we continually praise God?
If we are LIVING for a better county, a better city; if we are living for our rewards found in Heaven upon the day of our Savior's return- we MUST continually praise our God who makes this all possible.
Taking life for granted we go about our daily routines. We occasionally give thanks- and here in America we take the day of Thanksgiving to give thanks when we might otherwise not even think about what we are thankful for. We live day to day, waking every morning, going to sleep every night, eating, drinking, thinking, working, playing and how often are we praising our God during all that? Some people have a routine of giving thanks for the food they eat, some say bedtime prayers where they are quick to offer thanks to the Lord for all He has done. All that is wonderful, it's better than going days and weeks without even thinking about thanking God. Do you imagine some people go months without thanking God? Years? What about those who choose not to believe in God- they surely don't offer any thanks, any praise to God- if anything they are quick to denounce Him- which if they didn't believe in His existence they wouldn't have to do -right?
The sacrifice of praise.
Why was it termed that way?
When we think of sacrifice what does it bring to mind? Something or someone giving up something for another, yes? We can sacrifice our time for someone, we can sacrifice our entertainment, we can sacrifice our resting, we can sacrifice our money; there are many ways to sacrifice.
Offering God the sacrifice of praise, we are giving to Him what?
When a sacrifice for a sin offering was brought to the temple to be slaughtered that sin offering was being sacrificed- we OWNED what was being sacrificed, we were giving that part of us to God.
When we give part of ourselves to God it is a wondrous thing. We are making the conscious choice to believe, to have faith, to honor God when we don't have to- NO ONE forces us to honor God. Even if you are forced to go to church as a child or by a spouse they aren't forcing you to honor God. You could mouth all the words they want you to, but true honor and praise, true worship can only come from your conscious choice to do so willingly, not by being coerced.
Choosing to GIVE to God praise, choosing to Give God thanks are all ways we acknowledge Him as our Creator, our Redeemer, our King, our Lord, our Ruler.
In a world where self-sufficiency and self adoration are paramount, choosing to truly acknowledge you are a dependent being belonging to the Father, belonging to the Son, belonging to the Holy Spirit, is a real sacrifice- a real giving up of part of ourselves to glorify our God.
If we are continually offering the sacrifice of praise to God we are continually acknowledge His Lordship over us, over all. We can't neglect to offer the sacrifice of praise, of thanksgiving, speaking often of our wonderful Lord. We must be ever ready to good and to talk of our God, living our lives visibly as His, never ashamed offering our whole selves as a living sacrifice to God.
Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
By the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior, may we live as He would have us live. By His righteousness, by His power, by His amazing love through His forgiveness now and forever!
Amen!
Heb 13:16 But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased
Sacrifice of praise.
Jer 33:11 The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD.
In praising we are honoring God, in praising we are worshipping God, in praising we are thanking God. Is it no wonder we are told to offer the sacrifice of praise to God CONTINUALLY? If we are sustained by our God, if we believe we are alive by His grace, that we are blessed to receive the sacrifice of His Son - bringing us forgiveness for the unforgiveable, then why wouldn't we continually praise God?
If we are LIVING for a better county, a better city; if we are living for our rewards found in Heaven upon the day of our Savior's return- we MUST continually praise our God who makes this all possible.
Taking life for granted we go about our daily routines. We occasionally give thanks- and here in America we take the day of Thanksgiving to give thanks when we might otherwise not even think about what we are thankful for. We live day to day, waking every morning, going to sleep every night, eating, drinking, thinking, working, playing and how often are we praising our God during all that? Some people have a routine of giving thanks for the food they eat, some say bedtime prayers where they are quick to offer thanks to the Lord for all He has done. All that is wonderful, it's better than going days and weeks without even thinking about thanking God. Do you imagine some people go months without thanking God? Years? What about those who choose not to believe in God- they surely don't offer any thanks, any praise to God- if anything they are quick to denounce Him- which if they didn't believe in His existence they wouldn't have to do -right?
The sacrifice of praise.
Why was it termed that way?
When we think of sacrifice what does it bring to mind? Something or someone giving up something for another, yes? We can sacrifice our time for someone, we can sacrifice our entertainment, we can sacrifice our resting, we can sacrifice our money; there are many ways to sacrifice.
Offering God the sacrifice of praise, we are giving to Him what?
When a sacrifice for a sin offering was brought to the temple to be slaughtered that sin offering was being sacrificed- we OWNED what was being sacrificed, we were giving that part of us to God.
When we give part of ourselves to God it is a wondrous thing. We are making the conscious choice to believe, to have faith, to honor God when we don't have to- NO ONE forces us to honor God. Even if you are forced to go to church as a child or by a spouse they aren't forcing you to honor God. You could mouth all the words they want you to, but true honor and praise, true worship can only come from your conscious choice to do so willingly, not by being coerced.
Choosing to GIVE to God praise, choosing to Give God thanks are all ways we acknowledge Him as our Creator, our Redeemer, our King, our Lord, our Ruler.
In a world where self-sufficiency and self adoration are paramount, choosing to truly acknowledge you are a dependent being belonging to the Father, belonging to the Son, belonging to the Holy Spirit, is a real sacrifice- a real giving up of part of ourselves to glorify our God.
If we are continually offering the sacrifice of praise to God we are continually acknowledge His Lordship over us, over all. We can't neglect to offer the sacrifice of praise, of thanksgiving, speaking often of our wonderful Lord. We must be ever ready to good and to talk of our God, living our lives visibly as His, never ashamed offering our whole selves as a living sacrifice to God.
Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
By the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior, may we live as He would have us live. By His righteousness, by His power, by His amazing love through His forgiveness now and forever!
Amen!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Here have we no continuing city
Heb 13:14 For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come.
What city are we seeking to come?
Heb 11:10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
Heb 11:16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.
Heb 12:22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels
Rev 3:12 Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.
Rev 21:10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
Rev 21:11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
Rev 21:12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
Rev 21:13 On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
Rev 21:14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Rev 21:15 And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
Rev 21:16 And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
Rev 21:17 And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.
Rev 21:18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
Rev 21:19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
Rev 21:20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
Rev 21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
Rev 21:22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
Rev 21:23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
Rev 21:24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
Rev 21:25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.
Rev 21:26 And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.
Rev 21:27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.
12,000 furlongs = 7,920,000 feet 1,500 miles !
This city of God's is HUGE!
This city of God's REAL!
Heb 13:14 For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come.
We might live on earth in city, but this earthly city will NOT continue! None of the cities on earth right now will continue. The only city we as God's children, as followers of our Lord and Savior, can look for and live for is the heavenly city that will one day come down out of heaven from God.
Truly we are NOT to live for this world, we are to live for heaven and the heavenly city there which we will dwell in and one day that heavenly city will come down to earth and we will live in an earth made new where sin no longer dwells. The devil will be destroyed forever and ever, never more to torment, never more to bring pain and anguish, heartache, and misery.
Right now we live in a world dominated by Satan and all the heartache he can bring and there will be NO changing this- we are strangers in a strange land, we are pilgrims on earth, we have NO continuing city, but we seek one to come! This is how we must live- in search of the heavenly city. When you are in search of something you are actively seeking it. When you are journeying you are ever moving forwards towards the end of that journey. We might not be moving from place to place constantly on the road, but we are on a spiritual journey and we MUST move onwards always. Our spiritual journey will take us to a real heavenly city, the city of God, and God who is Spirit dwells in that City.
We have NO continuing city here.
We DO seek a city to come.
Mat 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
Mat 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Mat 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
This ties in with our spiritual journey- having spiritual treasures. If we have spiritual treasures here and now that we lay up in heaven this proves we are looking for the reality of our spiritual home . We have to live spiritual lives, and our spiritual lives have to be dominant in our lives now. We have to feed our spiritual natures with spiritual food, we have to exercise our spiritual lives. We MUST live as if our spiritual nature is a REAL part of us and by the grace and mercy of our Savior we will live.
Amen!
What city are we seeking to come?
Heb 11:10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
Heb 11:16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.
Heb 12:22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels
Rev 3:12 Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.
Rev 21:10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
Rev 21:11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
Rev 21:12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
Rev 21:13 On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
Rev 21:14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Rev 21:15 And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
Rev 21:16 And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
Rev 21:17 And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.
Rev 21:18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
Rev 21:19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
Rev 21:20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
Rev 21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
Rev 21:22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
Rev 21:23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
Rev 21:24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
Rev 21:25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.
Rev 21:26 And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.
Rev 21:27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.
12,000 furlongs = 7,920,000 feet 1,500 miles !
This city of God's is HUGE!
This city of God's REAL!
Heb 13:14 For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come.
We might live on earth in city, but this earthly city will NOT continue! None of the cities on earth right now will continue. The only city we as God's children, as followers of our Lord and Savior, can look for and live for is the heavenly city that will one day come down out of heaven from God.
Truly we are NOT to live for this world, we are to live for heaven and the heavenly city there which we will dwell in and one day that heavenly city will come down to earth and we will live in an earth made new where sin no longer dwells. The devil will be destroyed forever and ever, never more to torment, never more to bring pain and anguish, heartache, and misery.
Right now we live in a world dominated by Satan and all the heartache he can bring and there will be NO changing this- we are strangers in a strange land, we are pilgrims on earth, we have NO continuing city, but we seek one to come! This is how we must live- in search of the heavenly city. When you are in search of something you are actively seeking it. When you are journeying you are ever moving forwards towards the end of that journey. We might not be moving from place to place constantly on the road, but we are on a spiritual journey and we MUST move onwards always. Our spiritual journey will take us to a real heavenly city, the city of God, and God who is Spirit dwells in that City.
We have NO continuing city here.
We DO seek a city to come.
Mat 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
Mat 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Mat 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
This ties in with our spiritual journey- having spiritual treasures. If we have spiritual treasures here and now that we lay up in heaven this proves we are looking for the reality of our spiritual home . We have to live spiritual lives, and our spiritual lives have to be dominant in our lives now. We have to feed our spiritual natures with spiritual food, we have to exercise our spiritual lives. We MUST live as if our spiritual nature is a REAL part of us and by the grace and mercy of our Savior we will live.
Amen!
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Let us go forth...without the camp
Heb 13:10 We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.
Heb 13:11 For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.
Heb 13:12 Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.
Heb 13:13 Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.
The sacrificial system was set up by God to point the way to the Messiah, the Innocent Lamb to be slain once - for all. The way to become one with God was guaranteed in our Savior and the sacrifice He made. No lamb, no bullock, no turtledove, no ram, no animal whatsoever- however pure without blemish or spot - once sacrificed could repair the breech created by man's disobeying God. All those thousands upon thousands, maybe millions of animals sacrificed pointed towards the ONE sacrifice that could repair the breech.
Isa 53:1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
Isa 53:2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
Isa 53:3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Isa 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
Isa 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
Isa 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Isa 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
Isa 53:8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
Isa 53:9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
Isa 53:10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt 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.
Isa 53:11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Isa 53:12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
The LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Once the Lord sacrificed Himself for us NO animal sacrifice was needed because we could LOOK to the Lord as our Sacrifice.
Heb 13:10 We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.
Heb 13:11 For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.
Heb 13:12 Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.
Heb 13:13 Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.
Jesus sacrificed Himself, and where He sacrificed Himself automatically became the altar- the cross was the altar upon which Jesus was sacrificed. We do have an altar and those who refuse to believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, sacrificed Himself on that altar for them have NO right to the salvation offered through Him, no right at all. Everyone that believes that they still need to offer animal sacrifices, that they still need to symbolize what has already happened in the great sacrifice of Christ, can't believe that they are saved through Christ- they reject the one and only way to salvation.
Jesus is the complete sacrifice for sin! Jesus was sacrificed as the typified sacrifices were. He was the ULTIMATE sacrifice. There is NOTHING Satan can use to say that Jesus got it wrong that His sacrifice was insufficient, nothing!
We too must go without the camp to Jesus! We have to go where Jesus went. We have to go the altar. We have to be willing to be with Jesus no matter where that leads us, no matter what reproach that brings to us.
These are the 'deep things' of Christ we are to delve into!
1Co 2:10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
This is the MEAT we are to be eating as Christians who are no longer babes needing milk.
Heb 5:12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
We need to eat this STRONG MEAT!
We need to understand this--
Heb 13:13 Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.
We aren't to stay WITHIN the camp.
We have to GO FORTH therefore UNTO HIM.
How many are staying within the camp?
How many are still sacrificing at the altar that is within the camp?
How many are NOT trusting in Jesus to be their all in all?
How many are still looking to rituals to save them?
We look to a man, not to things. We look to our Savior not within the camp but without!
May God help us to do so, may He help us to feed on all the strong meat He presents to us, growing stronger in knowledge of Him through the Holy Spirit, by His grace!
Amen.
Heb 13:11 For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.
Heb 13:12 Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.
Heb 13:13 Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.
The sacrificial system was set up by God to point the way to the Messiah, the Innocent Lamb to be slain once - for all. The way to become one with God was guaranteed in our Savior and the sacrifice He made. No lamb, no bullock, no turtledove, no ram, no animal whatsoever- however pure without blemish or spot - once sacrificed could repair the breech created by man's disobeying God. All those thousands upon thousands, maybe millions of animals sacrificed pointed towards the ONE sacrifice that could repair the breech.
Isa 53:1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
Isa 53:2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
Isa 53:3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Isa 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
Isa 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
Isa 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Isa 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
Isa 53:8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
Isa 53:9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
Isa 53:10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt 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.
Isa 53:11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Isa 53:12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
The LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Once the Lord sacrificed Himself for us NO animal sacrifice was needed because we could LOOK to the Lord as our Sacrifice.
Heb 13:10 We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.
Heb 13:11 For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.
Heb 13:12 Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.
Heb 13:13 Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.
Jesus sacrificed Himself, and where He sacrificed Himself automatically became the altar- the cross was the altar upon which Jesus was sacrificed. We do have an altar and those who refuse to believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, sacrificed Himself on that altar for them have NO right to the salvation offered through Him, no right at all. Everyone that believes that they still need to offer animal sacrifices, that they still need to symbolize what has already happened in the great sacrifice of Christ, can't believe that they are saved through Christ- they reject the one and only way to salvation.
Jesus is the complete sacrifice for sin! Jesus was sacrificed as the typified sacrifices were. He was the ULTIMATE sacrifice. There is NOTHING Satan can use to say that Jesus got it wrong that His sacrifice was insufficient, nothing!
We too must go without the camp to Jesus! We have to go where Jesus went. We have to go the altar. We have to be willing to be with Jesus no matter where that leads us, no matter what reproach that brings to us.
These are the 'deep things' of Christ we are to delve into!
1Co 2:10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
This is the MEAT we are to be eating as Christians who are no longer babes needing milk.
Heb 5:12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
We need to eat this STRONG MEAT!
We need to understand this--
Heb 13:13 Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.
We aren't to stay WITHIN the camp.
We have to GO FORTH therefore UNTO HIM.
How many are staying within the camp?
How many are still sacrificing at the altar that is within the camp?
How many are NOT trusting in Jesus to be their all in all?
How many are still looking to rituals to save them?
We look to a man, not to things. We look to our Savior not within the camp but without!
May God help us to do so, may He help us to feed on all the strong meat He presents to us, growing stronger in knowledge of Him through the Holy Spirit, by His grace!
Amen.
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