Mat 8:18 Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.
Mat 8:21 And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
Jesus was ready to leave and those who had spent time listening to Him didn't want Him to go, so much so that they were ready to follow Him. The people knew this was a very special man, He spoke as none other had ever spoke. The hearts of the people were pricked inside their chests. The words weren't spoken offhandedly, the words weren't spoken pompously. Each word that fell from the lips of the Savior held meaning and those hearing these words of the kingdom were touched in ways they'd never been touched before. Have you ever heard a stirring message? Did you ever listen to someone and want to hear more? Perhaps an eloquent Pastor has spoken God's word in such a way you felt the need for more and wished the sermon would go on and on. So often we hear all about people falling asleep during church, children fidgeting, all the people there enduring the hour or so message out of a sense of duty. We have seldom heard of people eager to go to church, people looking forward to the time spent learning more of God, church goers actually wanting the sermon to not end. Yet here Jesus had much to say and many listeners, many who didn't want to leave the presence of the Lord. However- Jesus in His message had preached this…
Mat 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Mat 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
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.
Mat 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
These were the words the people listening to Jesus heard, this was all part of His glorious message.
Do you think this man was contemplating all the messages of Jesus? Or was He dazzled by the many miracles Jesus performed that day after He'd spoken?
Mat 8:16 When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick
Just picture the scene- you're there right there to witness first hand the Savior healing people left and right- people you know, people you don't know. Miracle after miracle coming from this amazing, unique man! This amazing teacher speaking in such a way that you'd never heard before- with true authority. How absolutely life changing! No wonder people were telling Jesus they wanted to follow Him.
Now let's read this again--
Mat 8:21 And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
Suffer me first to go bury my father.
The obvious is that His father has died or is dying, right? Honestly we don't know when He died, or why this man was there with Jesus when His father died. Had his father been ill and someone come to where this man was to tell him his father died? It doesn't seem too logical does it. To have a father on his death bed and not plead with Jesus to revive him- is that logical? It is suspected that the man had a very old father and though he wasn't dead the man knew that sooner than later he would die and it was his duty to remain with his father until then.
What was Jesus' reply to this man?
Mat 8:22 But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.
Let the dead bury their dead.
How can the dead bury the dead? The dead can't bury the dead because they are dead…but the SPIRITUALLY dead can bury the dead, yes?
Jesus would NEVER be disrespectful, or promote disrespect in a son to a father, Jesus was all about children honoring their parents. Jesus would have understood the customs of burying the dead- the old testament spoke of Abraham burying Sarah, Jacob burying Rachel, Joseph burying Jacob…
Gen 50:5 My father made me swear, saying, Lo, I die: in my grave which I have digged for me in the land of Canaan, there shalt thou bury me. Now therefore let me go up, I pray thee, and bury my father, and I will come again.
Gen 50:6 And Pharaoh said, Go up, and bury thy father, according as he made thee swear.
Gen 50:10 And they came to the threshingfloor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a great and very sore lamentation: and he made a mourning for his father seven days.
Yes, Jesus would know all about burying the dead and wouldn't even hint at it being wrong to burying your father, except this man's father must not have been dead- or else he wouldn't have been there listening and watching Jesus as He preached and performed miracle after miracle. The expectation of someone dying isn't the way we are to live. We should NOT live our lives around the fact that our parents will die, or that anyone we love will die. We can't let the fact of death- however old someone is, ancient or young still- impact our lives taking from us living for our Savior.
This man wanted to follow Jesus but also was living his life in the expectation of his father's death. That man had NO way to know who long his father would live. Often some of the most frail old people seem to hold on a lot longer than expected. When the man told Jesus he wanted to bury his father before following Jesus this was telling Jesus that there was something in the man's life that he put before God. I've already said that honoring your mother and father wasn't the issue here, but we aren't to put anything or anyone before following God.
Jesus even said a man was to leave his parents…
Mat 19:5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?
Jesus also had this to say…
Mat 10:33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 10:34 Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.
Mat 10:35 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
Mat 10:36 And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.
Mat 10:37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
Mat 10:38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
Mat 10:39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
We are to love NONE above God. God first and foremost then our fellow man.
Jesus said this…
Mat 8:22 But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.
If we choose to let LIFE get in the way of a life with Christ we are spiritually dead! If we are spiritually dead we might as well bury the dead and not concern ourselves with following Christ as a second thought.
It's true! We have to understand this!!! We have to!
If we choose to let ANYTHING in our life get in the way of a life lived for CHRIST we are spiritually dead!
So many things will call us away from God. So many things will beckon to us with their logic, with their compassionate heart strings, with their family ties, with their allure so great it's all but impossible to resist. The devil will stop at nothing to keep us from God and he'll use anything to get us to put Jesus second in our lives, or third, or fourth…and so on just as long as we don't put Him first and foremost. Life with all its intricate little and big ways will interfere at every turn. Just when we are choosing God first life will throw another curveball at us and when we are hit by that curveball it will be with the intention of knocking us out of the game, out of a life with Christ truly being first.
Let the dead bury their dead. Choose to be among the living, for we are only really alive in Christ! As long as Christ is first in all that we do in life we are living! Whenever we choose to do anything without Christ first we are dead- spiritually dead.
Let the dead bury their dead.
By the grace and mercy of our Savior may we not be among the dead burying their dead!
In His love, in His righteousness, in His kingdom!
Amen!
Friday, June 10, 2011
Thursday, June 9, 2011
No where to lay His head
Mat 8:18 Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.
Mat 8:19 And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
Mat 8:20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
Jesus gave the commandment to depart from where He'd spent so much time expounding on life and the lessons people everywhere from there on in until the end of time would need to learn. He'd been there for a long time and the crowds of people there were huge. It was time to leave now, time to depart and when people heard this some had to speak out.
A scribe- one who teaches. A scribe- one of a type of people that Jesus said this about--
Mat 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
Woe unto you scribes!
Woe unto you scribes who shut up the kingdom of heaven against men.
Woe unto you scribes who will NOT go in to heaven themselves.
Woe unto you scribes who will not suffer others who would go in-- to go in!
Scribes. And here was a scribe who was listening to Jesus, who was listening at the Master's feet, learning from His lips the lessons we so desperately need to learn. This scribe said to Jesus-
'Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest'
He wanted to follow Jesus no matter where he went! This is dedication, this is devotion, this is someone who was completely won over by the words of Christ and there were many that felt the same.
Did Jesus say to him - follow me? No. Jesus laid it all out for this eager disciple, this scribe…
'The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.'
Foxes have holes. This is true, Jesus would never speak an untruth. Foxes have hole to go to, foxes have homes, foxes go out and do their hunting and such but have a hole to return to at the end of their day's work. No fox is homeless, no fox wanders aimlessly about going from place to place. Foxes according to an online source may have many dens where they'll stay in winter months constantly, and in warmer months they spend a lot of time hunting returning to their den to rest. Foxes have holes. Foxes have a place to live.
Jesus also said 'birds have nests'. This is a fact, yes? Yes. Birds have nests. Birds have a home as well. Birds aren't wandering aimlessly without a place to return to, they have a nest.
Capping it off Jesus said 'the Son of man hath NOT where to lay his head'. Jesus HAD NO WHERE TO GO TO. Jesus had NO HOME. Jesus had less than a fox, or a bird in terms of a place to dwell. Jesus had NO place to call His own. The Son of man had no home. The Son of man was a wanderer, homeless.
Our Savior was homeless.
You might want to say that He could always have returned to His parents and carpentry, but that's not true. There was no going back and many people know what this is like. Many people start out on their own after being raised and have that sense of 'there's no going back' and it's a real thing. Whether that belief is something in them or a fact of their parents- either way it's real and as they begin their journey they don't always make it, do they.
Do you know anyone who is homeless?
Have you ever been homeless?
With our awful economy many people who never, ever imagined themselves homeless have become just that - homeless.
The foxes still have holes, the birds still have nests but these people don't have homes.
A lot of people who don't know what it's like to be homeless can't understand how people become homeless but there are many stories about how it comes to be. Tragedies, sickness, misfortune, love-less, so many things lead us to finding yourself homeless.
Jesus was telling the scribe who wanted to follow Him wherever He was going to go that they didn't have a destination at the end of the day, the week, the month of journeying. There wasn't a home base, there wasn't a place to belong and that scribe would have to take part in this sort of life- calling no place home. The scribe would be homeless.
Is it possible that the scribe had never known homelessness? Very, very possible. This thought, this truth Jesus was revealing to the scribe was for a reason. The very real possibility of being homeless had to be confronted. Following Jesus wasn't going to give this man a place to live, it wasn't going to give him a life of security. This man had to understand that he would be homeless if he were to choose to follow Jesus.
Imagine this happening to you for a moment. Seriously, step outside your comfort zone, step outside of your reality and into this man's. We know that most homeless do not CHOOSE that life, it happens to them. Now imagine CHOOSING to be homeless. No, the same circumstances are not available to us as they were to that scribe but use your imagination to put yourself there. You want to say you'd follow Jesus without hesitation, and that's logical, I want to say it too.
This man was being asked to embrace a life of homelessness by trusting in Jesus for ALL things. Follow this man (because to so many the fact He was God's son, a God-man, was not fully realized) follow this man and count on Him to give you everything- every bit of foot, every bit of shelter, every bit of clothing would need to be provided for by Jesus- the Master. Yes, come follow Him, but do not expect it to be a life of ease as you are used to experiencing.
Today we are called to trust just as much, aren't we?
Our faith has to be fully in our Savior!
We have to follow our Savior and He says to us as well that the life we are being called to is not going to be an easy one. We are NOT going to have a real home here anymore. We are not going to fit into the mold of the world, we CANNOT fit in and if we do we should worry. This isn't our world, this isn't our home.
That scribe wanted to follow Jesus and wanted Jesus to know that he wanted to follow Him wherever He went. Jesus wanted the scribe to understand that the life he was expressing interest in wasn't going to be a life filled with worldliness, there would be NO glamour in this life, none, no physical comforts. Follow but understand Who you are following.
By the grace of God may we understand and in understanding still choose to follow our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
In His love!
Amen.
Mat 8:19 And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
Mat 8:20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
Jesus gave the commandment to depart from where He'd spent so much time expounding on life and the lessons people everywhere from there on in until the end of time would need to learn. He'd been there for a long time and the crowds of people there were huge. It was time to leave now, time to depart and when people heard this some had to speak out.
A scribe- one who teaches. A scribe- one of a type of people that Jesus said this about--
Mat 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
Woe unto you scribes!
Woe unto you scribes who shut up the kingdom of heaven against men.
Woe unto you scribes who will NOT go in to heaven themselves.
Woe unto you scribes who will not suffer others who would go in-- to go in!
Scribes. And here was a scribe who was listening to Jesus, who was listening at the Master's feet, learning from His lips the lessons we so desperately need to learn. This scribe said to Jesus-
'Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest'
He wanted to follow Jesus no matter where he went! This is dedication, this is devotion, this is someone who was completely won over by the words of Christ and there were many that felt the same.
Did Jesus say to him - follow me? No. Jesus laid it all out for this eager disciple, this scribe…
'The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.'
Foxes have holes. This is true, Jesus would never speak an untruth. Foxes have hole to go to, foxes have homes, foxes go out and do their hunting and such but have a hole to return to at the end of their day's work. No fox is homeless, no fox wanders aimlessly about going from place to place. Foxes according to an online source may have many dens where they'll stay in winter months constantly, and in warmer months they spend a lot of time hunting returning to their den to rest. Foxes have holes. Foxes have a place to live.
Jesus also said 'birds have nests'. This is a fact, yes? Yes. Birds have nests. Birds have a home as well. Birds aren't wandering aimlessly without a place to return to, they have a nest.
Capping it off Jesus said 'the Son of man hath NOT where to lay his head'. Jesus HAD NO WHERE TO GO TO. Jesus had NO HOME. Jesus had less than a fox, or a bird in terms of a place to dwell. Jesus had NO place to call His own. The Son of man had no home. The Son of man was a wanderer, homeless.
Our Savior was homeless.
You might want to say that He could always have returned to His parents and carpentry, but that's not true. There was no going back and many people know what this is like. Many people start out on their own after being raised and have that sense of 'there's no going back' and it's a real thing. Whether that belief is something in them or a fact of their parents- either way it's real and as they begin their journey they don't always make it, do they.
Do you know anyone who is homeless?
Have you ever been homeless?
With our awful economy many people who never, ever imagined themselves homeless have become just that - homeless.
The foxes still have holes, the birds still have nests but these people don't have homes.
A lot of people who don't know what it's like to be homeless can't understand how people become homeless but there are many stories about how it comes to be. Tragedies, sickness, misfortune, love-less, so many things lead us to finding yourself homeless.
Jesus was telling the scribe who wanted to follow Him wherever He was going to go that they didn't have a destination at the end of the day, the week, the month of journeying. There wasn't a home base, there wasn't a place to belong and that scribe would have to take part in this sort of life- calling no place home. The scribe would be homeless.
Is it possible that the scribe had never known homelessness? Very, very possible. This thought, this truth Jesus was revealing to the scribe was for a reason. The very real possibility of being homeless had to be confronted. Following Jesus wasn't going to give this man a place to live, it wasn't going to give him a life of security. This man had to understand that he would be homeless if he were to choose to follow Jesus.
Imagine this happening to you for a moment. Seriously, step outside your comfort zone, step outside of your reality and into this man's. We know that most homeless do not CHOOSE that life, it happens to them. Now imagine CHOOSING to be homeless. No, the same circumstances are not available to us as they were to that scribe but use your imagination to put yourself there. You want to say you'd follow Jesus without hesitation, and that's logical, I want to say it too.
This man was being asked to embrace a life of homelessness by trusting in Jesus for ALL things. Follow this man (because to so many the fact He was God's son, a God-man, was not fully realized) follow this man and count on Him to give you everything- every bit of foot, every bit of shelter, every bit of clothing would need to be provided for by Jesus- the Master. Yes, come follow Him, but do not expect it to be a life of ease as you are used to experiencing.
Today we are called to trust just as much, aren't we?
Our faith has to be fully in our Savior!
We have to follow our Savior and He says to us as well that the life we are being called to is not going to be an easy one. We are NOT going to have a real home here anymore. We are not going to fit into the mold of the world, we CANNOT fit in and if we do we should worry. This isn't our world, this isn't our home.
That scribe wanted to follow Jesus and wanted Jesus to know that he wanted to follow Him wherever He went. Jesus wanted the scribe to understand that the life he was expressing interest in wasn't going to be a life filled with worldliness, there would be NO glamour in this life, none, no physical comforts. Follow but understand Who you are following.
By the grace of God may we understand and in understanding still choose to follow our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
In His love!
Amen.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Root of all evil...
1Ti 6:7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
That old saying you can't take it with you is very true. Even people who are buried with their treasures aren't really taking them with them. Seriously. They can do absolutely nothing about someone coming along and looting their grave sites right after their buried all the way to thousands of years later. The pyramids are an example. The pharaohs were buried with many, many things but they took NOTHING with them. When a person dies and sleeps death's sleep they know nothing, they are not aware of their surroundings, they can interact with absolutely nothing. They haven't a clue that their things are there with them, not a single inkling. We die with exactly what we are born with- nothing.
1Ti 6:7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
1Ti 6:8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
Can we?
Can we be content with having food and clothing? Seriously, is this possible? We are SO incredibly materialistic that I have to ask with all honesty if this is possible.
Many people have little choice but to live in poverty- where food is a scarcity and clothing minimal. But even those people might not be content with what they have.
The verse is…
'And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.'
Be therewith content.
Content.
At peace with- is contentment isn't it? Not being at odds with something is being content with it. Not being angry, upset, dismayed, and not being overly happy, or even happy really but rather being at a place where your situation is accepted for what it is and there is no angst at all. There is an understanding, an acceptance, a certain peace knowing God's will is being done in the harshest of situations-- in all things-- in the simplest of food and clothing.
1Ti 6:7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
1Ti 6:8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
1Ti 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
We are told to be content with simple food and raiment because the RICH fall into temptation and snares, into lots of foolish and hurtful lusts, and those all DROWN men in destruction, in perdition!
Yet so many of us WANT to be rich. So many of us want to have the good life, so many of us long to have riches beyond measure. Riches… an abundance of wealth, food in excess, food in high quality, clothing to spare, the best and latest fashions- we desire these things. We desire the abundance of things. We want the good things, the good cars, the good clothes, the good food, the good houses, the good furniture, the good everything! This materialistic desire is alive and well and living among us. We are raised on this materialistic belief and thrive on it, it's in our blood, it's in the air we breathe and when we try to extract ourselves from it, it seems all but impossible. We make excuses for our *wants*. We just want our house to look good, not fancy but good. We just want to appear neat and nice, not diva-ish. We just want a car that won't break down, doesn't have to be this year's model. We just want quality food not that stuff that is unhealthy and substandard. We just want a little extra spending money. We just want the occasional night out. We just want to go out to a restaurant once in a while. We just want to go into a store and be able to buy a few things. We just want… we just want… we just want. And our just wanting is more often than not for things other than the simplest of food and clothing.
We just don't realize how dangerous riches are, we don't realize that we are toying with our eternal life when we desire wealth. Materialism is DANGEROUS. The dangers we face are tremendous and Satan has it all set up so we don't see it, and won't see it until it's too late.
1Ti 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
The love of money is the root of all evil.
This isn't one of those things people say that has no real substance. This has a lot of substance, more than we realize.
The discontent we heap upon ourselves is more than just an inconvenience, it's a deadly eternal loss. This discontent we feel when our life is hard and we don't have this, that, and the other thing , is horrific- and it will pierce us with MANY sorrows.
We need to pray for contentment in what we have, and NOT allow discontentment in what we don't have pierce us with the most deadly of sorrows- eternal death.
As we feel the wanting we've grown used to experiencing well up inside us even now, even as this is read, we have to pray for God's mercy, pray for God's help to overcome the evil of riches trying to ensnare us. It is by His grace and love, in His righteousness we live and we claim salvation through Him so that we will be in the kingdom of heaven with Him.
By His LOVE!
Amen.
That old saying you can't take it with you is very true. Even people who are buried with their treasures aren't really taking them with them. Seriously. They can do absolutely nothing about someone coming along and looting their grave sites right after their buried all the way to thousands of years later. The pyramids are an example. The pharaohs were buried with many, many things but they took NOTHING with them. When a person dies and sleeps death's sleep they know nothing, they are not aware of their surroundings, they can interact with absolutely nothing. They haven't a clue that their things are there with them, not a single inkling. We die with exactly what we are born with- nothing.
1Ti 6:7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
1Ti 6:8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
Can we?
Can we be content with having food and clothing? Seriously, is this possible? We are SO incredibly materialistic that I have to ask with all honesty if this is possible.
Many people have little choice but to live in poverty- where food is a scarcity and clothing minimal. But even those people might not be content with what they have.
The verse is…
'And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.'
Be therewith content.
Content.
At peace with- is contentment isn't it? Not being at odds with something is being content with it. Not being angry, upset, dismayed, and not being overly happy, or even happy really but rather being at a place where your situation is accepted for what it is and there is no angst at all. There is an understanding, an acceptance, a certain peace knowing God's will is being done in the harshest of situations-- in all things-- in the simplest of food and clothing.
1Ti 6:7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
1Ti 6:8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
1Ti 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
We are told to be content with simple food and raiment because the RICH fall into temptation and snares, into lots of foolish and hurtful lusts, and those all DROWN men in destruction, in perdition!
Yet so many of us WANT to be rich. So many of us want to have the good life, so many of us long to have riches beyond measure. Riches… an abundance of wealth, food in excess, food in high quality, clothing to spare, the best and latest fashions- we desire these things. We desire the abundance of things. We want the good things, the good cars, the good clothes, the good food, the good houses, the good furniture, the good everything! This materialistic desire is alive and well and living among us. We are raised on this materialistic belief and thrive on it, it's in our blood, it's in the air we breathe and when we try to extract ourselves from it, it seems all but impossible. We make excuses for our *wants*. We just want our house to look good, not fancy but good. We just want to appear neat and nice, not diva-ish. We just want a car that won't break down, doesn't have to be this year's model. We just want quality food not that stuff that is unhealthy and substandard. We just want a little extra spending money. We just want the occasional night out. We just want to go out to a restaurant once in a while. We just want to go into a store and be able to buy a few things. We just want… we just want… we just want. And our just wanting is more often than not for things other than the simplest of food and clothing.
We just don't realize how dangerous riches are, we don't realize that we are toying with our eternal life when we desire wealth. Materialism is DANGEROUS. The dangers we face are tremendous and Satan has it all set up so we don't see it, and won't see it until it's too late.
1Ti 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
The love of money is the root of all evil.
This isn't one of those things people say that has no real substance. This has a lot of substance, more than we realize.
The discontent we heap upon ourselves is more than just an inconvenience, it's a deadly eternal loss. This discontent we feel when our life is hard and we don't have this, that, and the other thing , is horrific- and it will pierce us with MANY sorrows.
We need to pray for contentment in what we have, and NOT allow discontentment in what we don't have pierce us with the most deadly of sorrows- eternal death.
As we feel the wanting we've grown used to experiencing well up inside us even now, even as this is read, we have to pray for God's mercy, pray for God's help to overcome the evil of riches trying to ensnare us. It is by His grace and love, in His righteousness we live and we claim salvation through Him so that we will be in the kingdom of heaven with Him.
By His LOVE!
Amen.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
My Hope!
Psa 71:5 For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD: thou art my trust from my youth.
What do you hope for? You do have a hope even if it's a small one, right? Think about it for a few moments, or longer if you need to. We live with hope. Very few live without hope in their lives, very few. While some people might live with a lot of hope for many things, others can live life with just a few hopes. We hope for good things for our children, we hope for good things for ourselves, we hope for good health, we hope for nice weather, we hope for gifts, we hope for love, we hope for long life, we hope for many things over the course of our lives.
In reality the hope we need to have should be in one place because all the hope we place in temporal things can fade away. Hope we place in the eternal Lord Jesus Christ our Savior will never fade away- not now, and not ever.
While we hope for our children to be successful in life- not necessarily rich monetary wise- but in many ways- is that hope always something that will be realized? Unfortunately, no. While we hope for ourselves many times our hopes are dashed aren't they, over and over some would say. We sometimes get what we hope for but more often than not we don't.
Placing hope in *things* of this world is foolish IF we don't keep that hope checked by realizing that nothing is promised to us in this life- not good health, not happiness in worldly things, not human love, not wealth, not friendship, not loving family, not peace in worldly ways, not children, not intellect, not employment, and on and on. We are NOT promised this world or anything in this world. So many want others to believe they are promised good in this world.
We are promised hope in our Lord.
We are promised happiness in our Lord.
We are promised eternal life in our Lord.
Our riches are heavenly riches.
Our hopes are heavenly hopes.
Our happiness is a heavenly happiness.
Psa 71:5 For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD
The Lord our God must be OUR hope first and foremost. Let's read a few more verses on hope--
Psa 39:7 And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee.
Jer 17:7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.
Lam 3:26 It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.
1Th 5:8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation
Tit 1:2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began
Tit 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ
Tit 3:7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Heb 6:18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us
1Pe 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead
1Pe 1:13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ
1Pe 1:21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.
1Jn 3:3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
Hope in God.
The blessed hope.
Lively hope.
We really need this HOPE more than any other hope we could possibly desire.
Is your hope in Christ? Or are you placing your hope in things not eternal?
Christ our Hope!
Christ our Kingdom!
Christ our Love!
Christ our everything!
In His love, His grace!
Always.
Amen.
What do you hope for? You do have a hope even if it's a small one, right? Think about it for a few moments, or longer if you need to. We live with hope. Very few live without hope in their lives, very few. While some people might live with a lot of hope for many things, others can live life with just a few hopes. We hope for good things for our children, we hope for good things for ourselves, we hope for good health, we hope for nice weather, we hope for gifts, we hope for love, we hope for long life, we hope for many things over the course of our lives.
In reality the hope we need to have should be in one place because all the hope we place in temporal things can fade away. Hope we place in the eternal Lord Jesus Christ our Savior will never fade away- not now, and not ever.
While we hope for our children to be successful in life- not necessarily rich monetary wise- but in many ways- is that hope always something that will be realized? Unfortunately, no. While we hope for ourselves many times our hopes are dashed aren't they, over and over some would say. We sometimes get what we hope for but more often than not we don't.
Placing hope in *things* of this world is foolish IF we don't keep that hope checked by realizing that nothing is promised to us in this life- not good health, not happiness in worldly things, not human love, not wealth, not friendship, not loving family, not peace in worldly ways, not children, not intellect, not employment, and on and on. We are NOT promised this world or anything in this world. So many want others to believe they are promised good in this world.
We are promised hope in our Lord.
We are promised happiness in our Lord.
We are promised eternal life in our Lord.
Our riches are heavenly riches.
Our hopes are heavenly hopes.
Our happiness is a heavenly happiness.
Psa 71:5 For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD
The Lord our God must be OUR hope first and foremost. Let's read a few more verses on hope--
Psa 39:7 And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee.
Jer 17:7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.
Lam 3:26 It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.
1Th 5:8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation
Tit 1:2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began
Tit 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ
Tit 3:7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Heb 6:18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us
1Pe 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead
1Pe 1:13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ
1Pe 1:21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.
1Jn 3:3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
Hope in God.
The blessed hope.
Lively hope.
We really need this HOPE more than any other hope we could possibly desire.
Is your hope in Christ? Or are you placing your hope in things not eternal?
Christ our Hope!
Christ our Kingdom!
Christ our Love!
Christ our everything!
In His love, His grace!
Always.
Amen.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Deliver us from the wicked, the unrighteous, the cruel
Psa 71:4 Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.
Do we need to pray this? Most of us aren't in the hands of the wicked, are we? Do the unrighteous and cruel men hold us captive? Perhaps we are held captive more than we realize. Seriously. Just how much do other people influence our lives? Mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, friends, neighbors, peers, schoolmates, teachers, doctors, everyone we come in contact with has a touch of influence upon our lives. The stranger that smiles, the stranger that frowns, the stranger that seems oblivious to our existence. Those we work for, those who work for us, those who help us, those we help. It's an endless ongoing influence surrounding each of us. We have even more influence from others nowadays from those who are online. Whole groups of people that would otherwise be total strangers to us are now influences that affect us.
When Christ prayed to His Father to NOT take us out of this world but to KEEP us from evil, it was a prayer that was more necessary than we really understand. Evil's influence comes in so very many forms. To pray to be delivered from the wicked, the unrighteous, and the cruel person is asking to be protected from the evil people in the world, isn't it?
The wicked-
Pro 5:22 His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.
Pro 11:18 The wicked worketh a deceitful work: but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward.
Pro 12:5 The thoughts of the righteous are right: but the counsels of the wicked are deceit.
Pro 15:28 The heart of the righteous studieth to answer: but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things.
Pro 21:10 The soul of the wicked desireth evil…
Pro 24:19 Fret not thyself because of evil men, neither be thou envious at the wicked
2Pe 3:17 Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.
Eph 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
The wicked- those who are bound up in sin, deceitful, evil.
Mat 15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies
Mar 7:22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
Mar 7:23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.
Rom 1:29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
Rom 1:30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
Rom 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful
The wicked surround us and when we dare to acknowledge the wicked ways we are witness to we are the ones who are often unjustly condemned. We need protection from the wicked, we need to pray as David prayed- Deliver me oh my God out of the hand of the wicked. The wicked are not simply the gangsters on the street. The wicked are not just the murderers caught and jailed. The wicked are not just the sexual predators our world is filled with. The wicked are ANY that would keep us from God. The wicked are ANY that would do anything to prevent us from worshipping our Savior as we are told to worship. The wicked are all who are unrepentant. We need to be delivered from any that would keep us from God. We need the protection of the Holy Spirit to keep us from succumbing to the grand delusions that surround us that try and convince us that God's way is wrong, that evil is good and good is evil.
We do need to pray-
Psa 71:4 Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.
We are surrounded by people who wear false cloaks of righteousness and are eager and ready to hand us a cloak just like theirs. While we must live IN this world, we need to pray that we are kept from evil. Our Savior prayed that way for us and if He prayed that way we too need to pray that way. Deliver us from evil- from the wicked, from the unrighteous, from the cruel men that surround us. We can never cease to pray to be delivered, never. We can never become comfortable in believing all those around us only care for our well-being. We can never allow ourselves to believe there are no wicked, no unrighteous, no cruel people. While we MUST NEVER condemn another's eternal life because that is not ours to know, but we must understand that evil lurks all around us- it's not paranoia if it's true, right? Far be it from me to call another wicked, evil, unrighteous, or cruel- I have my own problems, that old beam in my own eye to removed so I can pluck a tiny mote out of another's eye. But I can't allow myself to be deceived into believing that evil, that wickedness, that unrighteousness, or that cruelty doesn't exist. I must understand my need for deliverance in all things.
God please deliver us from ALL the wicked, ALL the unrighteous, ALL that are cruel-- in YOUR righteousness alone this is possible. Keep us from evil Lord, keep us from evil by Your mercy!
Save us oh Lord, SAVE US.
In Your amazing love!
Amen.
Do we need to pray this? Most of us aren't in the hands of the wicked, are we? Do the unrighteous and cruel men hold us captive? Perhaps we are held captive more than we realize. Seriously. Just how much do other people influence our lives? Mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, friends, neighbors, peers, schoolmates, teachers, doctors, everyone we come in contact with has a touch of influence upon our lives. The stranger that smiles, the stranger that frowns, the stranger that seems oblivious to our existence. Those we work for, those who work for us, those who help us, those we help. It's an endless ongoing influence surrounding each of us. We have even more influence from others nowadays from those who are online. Whole groups of people that would otherwise be total strangers to us are now influences that affect us.
When Christ prayed to His Father to NOT take us out of this world but to KEEP us from evil, it was a prayer that was more necessary than we really understand. Evil's influence comes in so very many forms. To pray to be delivered from the wicked, the unrighteous, and the cruel person is asking to be protected from the evil people in the world, isn't it?
The wicked-
Pro 5:22 His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.
Pro 11:18 The wicked worketh a deceitful work: but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward.
Pro 12:5 The thoughts of the righteous are right: but the counsels of the wicked are deceit.
Pro 15:28 The heart of the righteous studieth to answer: but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things.
Pro 21:10 The soul of the wicked desireth evil…
Pro 24:19 Fret not thyself because of evil men, neither be thou envious at the wicked
2Pe 3:17 Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.
Eph 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
The wicked- those who are bound up in sin, deceitful, evil.
Mat 15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies
Mar 7:22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
Mar 7:23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.
Rom 1:29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
Rom 1:30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
Rom 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful
The wicked surround us and when we dare to acknowledge the wicked ways we are witness to we are the ones who are often unjustly condemned. We need protection from the wicked, we need to pray as David prayed- Deliver me oh my God out of the hand of the wicked. The wicked are not simply the gangsters on the street. The wicked are not just the murderers caught and jailed. The wicked are not just the sexual predators our world is filled with. The wicked are ANY that would keep us from God. The wicked are ANY that would do anything to prevent us from worshipping our Savior as we are told to worship. The wicked are all who are unrepentant. We need to be delivered from any that would keep us from God. We need the protection of the Holy Spirit to keep us from succumbing to the grand delusions that surround us that try and convince us that God's way is wrong, that evil is good and good is evil.
We do need to pray-
Psa 71:4 Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.
We are surrounded by people who wear false cloaks of righteousness and are eager and ready to hand us a cloak just like theirs. While we must live IN this world, we need to pray that we are kept from evil. Our Savior prayed that way for us and if He prayed that way we too need to pray that way. Deliver us from evil- from the wicked, from the unrighteous, from the cruel men that surround us. We can never cease to pray to be delivered, never. We can never become comfortable in believing all those around us only care for our well-being. We can never allow ourselves to believe there are no wicked, no unrighteous, no cruel people. While we MUST NEVER condemn another's eternal life because that is not ours to know, but we must understand that evil lurks all around us- it's not paranoia if it's true, right? Far be it from me to call another wicked, evil, unrighteous, or cruel- I have my own problems, that old beam in my own eye to removed so I can pluck a tiny mote out of another's eye. But I can't allow myself to be deceived into believing that evil, that wickedness, that unrighteousness, or that cruelty doesn't exist. I must understand my need for deliverance in all things.
God please deliver us from ALL the wicked, ALL the unrighteous, ALL that are cruel-- in YOUR righteousness alone this is possible. Keep us from evil Lord, keep us from evil by Your mercy!
Save us oh Lord, SAVE US.
In Your amazing love!
Amen.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
My Rock and my Fortress
Psa 71:3 Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort…
… thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.
God has given the commandment to save us. Think about it-- He didn't have to save us. People think that there is that *have to* aspect to this but there isn't. God didn't have to save humanity, He almost didn't.
Gen 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
Gen 6:7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
Gen 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
God gives the commandment to save us.
God accepts our repentance and our plea for forgiveness. Does He have to accept? No. There is a choice there is a knowing of us.
Jn 3:19 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.
1Jn 3:20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
God knows all things. God knows if we have love for Him. God knows if we seek forgiveness. God knows if we repent of our wrongs. God doesn't have to save us, but God can and will save us. If we make God our strong habitation where we continually resort, if we put all our trust in God, we have to know that God will give the commandment to save us because HE is our rock and our fortress. God is our ONLY solace. God is our only hope! God is our strong habitation. God is our place of safety. We can go to God for all our eternal needs and yes, our immediate needs as well but we must understand that when we go to God for our immediate needs that He sees the BIG picture and how every detail of our life blends together to lead us to eternal life in Him and while we don't understand our sufferings, our pains, our distress and why we are called to go through things we do not want to go through, He does.
Above all no matter what we MUST remember that God is our rock and fortress, He never forsakes us, never!
2Sa 22:2 And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer
Psa 18:2 The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
Jer 16:19 O LORD, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction
My rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my strength, my buckler, my salvation, my high tower, my refuge-- this is our GOD.
No person can be all this for us and so many of us look for these qualities in another human being and are disappointed when they don't live up to the expectations. Only God can be all this perfectly for us, only God.
Do we need a fortress to go to in life? Yes.
Do we need a deliverer? Yes.
Do we need strength? Yes.
Do we need a buckler? Yes.
Do we need salvation? Yes.
Do we need a high tower? Yes.
Do we need refuge? Yes.
WE NEED GOD!
We need to know that He has given the commandment to save us.
Jer 17:14 Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise.
Salvation is of the Lord! Praise God! All glory and honor to Him!
Psa 71:3 Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.
AMEN!
… thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.
God has given the commandment to save us. Think about it-- He didn't have to save us. People think that there is that *have to* aspect to this but there isn't. God didn't have to save humanity, He almost didn't.
Gen 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
Gen 6:7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
Gen 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
God gives the commandment to save us.
God accepts our repentance and our plea for forgiveness. Does He have to accept? No. There is a choice there is a knowing of us.
Jn 3:19 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.
1Jn 3:20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
God knows all things. God knows if we have love for Him. God knows if we seek forgiveness. God knows if we repent of our wrongs. God doesn't have to save us, but God can and will save us. If we make God our strong habitation where we continually resort, if we put all our trust in God, we have to know that God will give the commandment to save us because HE is our rock and our fortress. God is our ONLY solace. God is our only hope! God is our strong habitation. God is our place of safety. We can go to God for all our eternal needs and yes, our immediate needs as well but we must understand that when we go to God for our immediate needs that He sees the BIG picture and how every detail of our life blends together to lead us to eternal life in Him and while we don't understand our sufferings, our pains, our distress and why we are called to go through things we do not want to go through, He does.
Above all no matter what we MUST remember that God is our rock and fortress, He never forsakes us, never!
2Sa 22:2 And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer
Psa 18:2 The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
Jer 16:19 O LORD, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction
My rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my strength, my buckler, my salvation, my high tower, my refuge-- this is our GOD.
No person can be all this for us and so many of us look for these qualities in another human being and are disappointed when they don't live up to the expectations. Only God can be all this perfectly for us, only God.
Do we need a fortress to go to in life? Yes.
Do we need a deliverer? Yes.
Do we need strength? Yes.
Do we need a buckler? Yes.
Do we need salvation? Yes.
Do we need a high tower? Yes.
Do we need refuge? Yes.
WE NEED GOD!
We need to know that He has given the commandment to save us.
Jer 17:14 Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise.
Salvation is of the Lord! Praise God! All glory and honor to Him!
Psa 71:3 Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.
AMEN!
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Be thou my strong habitation...
Psa 71:3 'Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort…'
A strong habitation. A fortified city. A protected home. Most of us have seen a strong habitation- if not in person then on television or in books. What is the most heavily guarded place you've ever seen? What comes to mind when you think of a strong habitation? Fort Knox perhaps, which is the Bullion Depository where the majority of U.S. gold is kept. That place is one of the most protected, the most fortified, the strongest habitation in the U.S. However most of us do not have access to that sort of protected place.
Where would you go if you were seeking to be protected? A friend's house? A police station? When you're in immediate danger you most likely would run to the nearest home seeking shelter and help from the danger you're in. A person usually isn't very discriminatory when they are in desperate need- though they'd choose a strong house over a little falling down shack if given a choice.
Let me ask another question, where do you go for constant protection, what place to you is a place of continuous refuge? Is it your own home? Most people feel safe in their own homes don't they? Maybe you're coming home late at night and you're in your driveway and feel a sense of foreboding so you rush into your house to safety, that sense of relief as you lock the door keeping out any danger real or imagined makes you feel better almost instantly doesn't it? You've come to a place of refuge.
Throughout life we encounter many frightening situations, we face numerous moments of vulnerability where NO strong habitation can make us feel safe. These are moments of internal terror and panic, of distress and fear, the times when we are filled with anxiety and overcome with worry. You can be in the safest place on earth and still have fear within and no lock or key, no thick walls or strong steel doors can take care of that internal distress.
When David prayed these words- 'Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort…' He was not talking about a physical habitation. He was talking about finding safety and protection in God's love, in God's strength.
Do you have a friend or loved one you might call your 'rock', someone you turn to when you need a strong shoulder to lean on, someone you know will be there to comfort you and help you in any way they possibly can? Maybe you have a whole family of strong shoulders to lean on, or maybe you don't have a single person you can rely upon. Even when we do have family and friends to lean upon all too often in life those strong shoulders seem to disappear, and disappoint. God is one who will NEVER disappear or disappoint. God is forever a strong habitation for us to continually resort to. God is REAL. Too many believe in God in a very abstract way as someone who is there but not really there. When we get to that 'not really there' bit we are not truly believing in God as being as real as you and I are real. God is more real than any of us, God is more sure than a single person, God is a more strong refuge than any earthly habitation will ever be. We have to believe this! David believed this. God was very, very real to David- and God needs to be very, very real to us!
David understood that God was a strong habitation where he could continually resort. He could continually go to God for protection, for safety. God is one who would NEVER betray, NEVER disappoint, NEVER disappear.
Satan has us so confused that we almost instantly BLAME God when things go wrong in life rather than RESORT TO God for comfort. We forget that God is good, that God is love, that God is righteous. We forget everything positive and choose to blame God for NOT letting things go the way we want them too. Not preventing death of a loved one, not stopping a storm from tearing every possession from us, not curing the chronically ill, the chronically pain-filled person's life, keeping new life from us. We BLAME God because we believe He is in control and choosing to allow bad stuff to happen to us without discretion. We believe that God DOESN'T know what is best in the eternal scheme of life. Surely if He knew better He wouldn't hurt us who love Him that way. How can we believe God truly loves us if we equally believe He will hurt us unjustly, that He allows our lives to become chaotic messes on a whim? The two beliefs are opposing, not complimenting. We CAN'T believe one thing and believe the opposite or one of those beliefs is our true belief and the other a false one. We can't believe dark is light and dark is dark. It's one or the other. We can't believe God is evil and love. When we take our OWN sinfilled natures and tack them onto our God we pervert who He truly is. We can say we love someone and then hurt them without concern for them. We can tell someone we love them and will honor them and then turn on them and hate them and dishonor them- WE DO that all the time because we are SINNERS! When we make God like us with the ability to evilly HATE us and LOVE us imperfectly we take away His Godhood and make Him human- we make Him a sinning human. Is it any wonder people question God's love when they take away His status as God? Is it any wonder people question God when they start to believe He isn't love? Satan wants us to believe badly of God or not believe at all in God, either way Satan is pleased.
David prayed-
Psa 71:3 'Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort…'
God is a strong habitation, a place of safety - He holds the safety of our eternal lives within His grasp and it is to God we must continually resort. Not just go to God once as if we are getting a God vaccine good for protection the rest of our lives if we accept Him once. How often do you think of your vaccines- the ones you've received as a child? Or even as an adult? Rarely. Occasionally. Seldom. Often. Never. We need to think of God all the time, part of that is in praying always. We need to always have God with us not the occasional thought - not the brief morning thought, not the mealtime blessing thought, not the nighttime prayer- but always. God needs to be in our lives continually. We need to resort to God continually as the source of hope and strength, of safety, of love. If we fill our lives with all that is depressing and hopeless we are NOT trusting in God, we are not continually resorting to Him but retreating from Him. The further we retreat from God the more hopeless everything becomes. Some might argue that and say that when they deny God and stopped depending upon Him their lives were instantly better. They took over their own lives, taking responsibility for all that goes on with themselves finding strength, hope, and empowerment within themselves making them better people. Do you know what that is? That's Satan gifting them with that belief so they won't find salvation in Jesus Christ. Satan is cunning and will use everything and anything at his disposal to get us to abandon God- he'll use good as well as bad things to trap us to him.
We need to pray as David prayed-
Psa 71:3 'Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort…'
Let us continually resort to You God in all things, in all ways, everyday, all day, without ceasing- knowing YOU are our strong habitation, knowing we can go to You in all situations. Instead of blaming you Lord help us to resort to You and know that all evil stems from Satan and while it is allowed- it is only allowed temporarily when compared to eternity. That the Kingdom of God will one day exist without any evil at all whatsoever and that we can possess the Kingdom of God through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior!
In Your amazing love! Keep us from evil!
Amen.
A strong habitation. A fortified city. A protected home. Most of us have seen a strong habitation- if not in person then on television or in books. What is the most heavily guarded place you've ever seen? What comes to mind when you think of a strong habitation? Fort Knox perhaps, which is the Bullion Depository where the majority of U.S. gold is kept. That place is one of the most protected, the most fortified, the strongest habitation in the U.S. However most of us do not have access to that sort of protected place.
Where would you go if you were seeking to be protected? A friend's house? A police station? When you're in immediate danger you most likely would run to the nearest home seeking shelter and help from the danger you're in. A person usually isn't very discriminatory when they are in desperate need- though they'd choose a strong house over a little falling down shack if given a choice.
Let me ask another question, where do you go for constant protection, what place to you is a place of continuous refuge? Is it your own home? Most people feel safe in their own homes don't they? Maybe you're coming home late at night and you're in your driveway and feel a sense of foreboding so you rush into your house to safety, that sense of relief as you lock the door keeping out any danger real or imagined makes you feel better almost instantly doesn't it? You've come to a place of refuge.
Throughout life we encounter many frightening situations, we face numerous moments of vulnerability where NO strong habitation can make us feel safe. These are moments of internal terror and panic, of distress and fear, the times when we are filled with anxiety and overcome with worry. You can be in the safest place on earth and still have fear within and no lock or key, no thick walls or strong steel doors can take care of that internal distress.
When David prayed these words- 'Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort…' He was not talking about a physical habitation. He was talking about finding safety and protection in God's love, in God's strength.
Do you have a friend or loved one you might call your 'rock', someone you turn to when you need a strong shoulder to lean on, someone you know will be there to comfort you and help you in any way they possibly can? Maybe you have a whole family of strong shoulders to lean on, or maybe you don't have a single person you can rely upon. Even when we do have family and friends to lean upon all too often in life those strong shoulders seem to disappear, and disappoint. God is one who will NEVER disappear or disappoint. God is forever a strong habitation for us to continually resort to. God is REAL. Too many believe in God in a very abstract way as someone who is there but not really there. When we get to that 'not really there' bit we are not truly believing in God as being as real as you and I are real. God is more real than any of us, God is more sure than a single person, God is a more strong refuge than any earthly habitation will ever be. We have to believe this! David believed this. God was very, very real to David- and God needs to be very, very real to us!
David understood that God was a strong habitation where he could continually resort. He could continually go to God for protection, for safety. God is one who would NEVER betray, NEVER disappoint, NEVER disappear.
Satan has us so confused that we almost instantly BLAME God when things go wrong in life rather than RESORT TO God for comfort. We forget that God is good, that God is love, that God is righteous. We forget everything positive and choose to blame God for NOT letting things go the way we want them too. Not preventing death of a loved one, not stopping a storm from tearing every possession from us, not curing the chronically ill, the chronically pain-filled person's life, keeping new life from us. We BLAME God because we believe He is in control and choosing to allow bad stuff to happen to us without discretion. We believe that God DOESN'T know what is best in the eternal scheme of life. Surely if He knew better He wouldn't hurt us who love Him that way. How can we believe God truly loves us if we equally believe He will hurt us unjustly, that He allows our lives to become chaotic messes on a whim? The two beliefs are opposing, not complimenting. We CAN'T believe one thing and believe the opposite or one of those beliefs is our true belief and the other a false one. We can't believe dark is light and dark is dark. It's one or the other. We can't believe God is evil and love. When we take our OWN sinfilled natures and tack them onto our God we pervert who He truly is. We can say we love someone and then hurt them without concern for them. We can tell someone we love them and will honor them and then turn on them and hate them and dishonor them- WE DO that all the time because we are SINNERS! When we make God like us with the ability to evilly HATE us and LOVE us imperfectly we take away His Godhood and make Him human- we make Him a sinning human. Is it any wonder people question God's love when they take away His status as God? Is it any wonder people question God when they start to believe He isn't love? Satan wants us to believe badly of God or not believe at all in God, either way Satan is pleased.
David prayed-
Psa 71:3 'Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort…'
God is a strong habitation, a place of safety - He holds the safety of our eternal lives within His grasp and it is to God we must continually resort. Not just go to God once as if we are getting a God vaccine good for protection the rest of our lives if we accept Him once. How often do you think of your vaccines- the ones you've received as a child? Or even as an adult? Rarely. Occasionally. Seldom. Often. Never. We need to think of God all the time, part of that is in praying always. We need to always have God with us not the occasional thought - not the brief morning thought, not the mealtime blessing thought, not the nighttime prayer- but always. God needs to be in our lives continually. We need to resort to God continually as the source of hope and strength, of safety, of love. If we fill our lives with all that is depressing and hopeless we are NOT trusting in God, we are not continually resorting to Him but retreating from Him. The further we retreat from God the more hopeless everything becomes. Some might argue that and say that when they deny God and stopped depending upon Him their lives were instantly better. They took over their own lives, taking responsibility for all that goes on with themselves finding strength, hope, and empowerment within themselves making them better people. Do you know what that is? That's Satan gifting them with that belief so they won't find salvation in Jesus Christ. Satan is cunning and will use everything and anything at his disposal to get us to abandon God- he'll use good as well as bad things to trap us to him.
We need to pray as David prayed-
Psa 71:3 'Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort…'
Let us continually resort to You God in all things, in all ways, everyday, all day, without ceasing- knowing YOU are our strong habitation, knowing we can go to You in all situations. Instead of blaming you Lord help us to resort to You and know that all evil stems from Satan and while it is allowed- it is only allowed temporarily when compared to eternity. That the Kingdom of God will one day exist without any evil at all whatsoever and that we can possess the Kingdom of God through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior!
In Your amazing love! Keep us from evil!
Amen.
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