“The World vs. God”
Scripture:
Psalm 119:15-16
I will study Your Commandments and reflect on Your Ways.
I will delight in Your Principles and not forget Your Word. (NLT)
Observation:
In order for people to intelligently follow any kind of precepts, whether they are worldly or godly in nature, one must first take the time to study and contemplate them fully before they can successfully be applied to ones life. And secondly, these studied precepts must also be something that one enjoys.
Application:
With that said; if we truly want to learn God’s way of living in this most difficult world we must first turn to the Author of Life Himself; reading and studying His Word daily, rejoicing in what it says, and then humbly ask God what it means and how we should apply it to our lives (James 1:5). There are many worldly precepts that we can choose from, but it is only through the precepts of God’s powerful Word that we can truly know what it means to live (Hebrews 4:12). When we ask the Lord our God, Jesus Christ, into our lives and accept His sacrificial atonement for our sinful existence, our lives are no longer our own. God paid the heftiest price possible to free us from our sin and death, and we owe Him dearly—we owe Him our lives completely—not just certain parts, but all parts. Putting your life into the care and control of God does not take the fun out of living (which is what the secular world would have you believe) rather, it puts fun into its proper prospective. Surrendering to God actually brings far more enjoyment into our lives than anything this world has to offer. For our new godly nature will no longer crave the temporary, instant gratifying things that our sinful nature craves, instead, our desire to please God will patiently bring us an everlasting gratification that continues to bring joy into our lives (Romans 8:6-8). We will be able to discern the lasting joy type of fun that God designed for us from the temporal joy type of fun that this fallen world embraces. God’s precepts always lead to abundant, everlasting joy and life while the world’s misguided precepts create chaos, disappointment, and eternal darkness and death. The wise will choose God’s precepts and rejoice; the foolish will not. Instead, they will hang on to the world’s temporal pleasing precepts and rejoice in them while they can.
Prayer:
I would hate to think of what this cruel and evil world would be like without You, Lord God. We would have no righteousness, nor would there be any hope for justice. It is only because of Your mercy and grace that You gave us the key to living a righteous and just life. This dark world rejects righteousness and judges unfairly for many. But You are the True and Final Judge and no unforgiven wrongs shall go unpunished, for Your justice reigns.
Amen
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
“The Joy of Christmas”
Scripture:
Luke 1:78-79
Because of God’s tender mercy,
the Light from heaven is about to break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
and to guide us to the path of peace. (NLT)
Observation:
Our gracious and merciful God has given the world’s people something, that since the beginning of time, we have not been able to find, and that, my dear friends, is a way out of the darkness that surrounds every living soul of this fallen world. The merciful Gift of God’s Light from Heaven was born into this darkened world the Savior (Luke 2:11). Christ Jesus came to us from Heaven, born with an eternal human body so that all peoples would have the same opportunity to escape the evil darkness that this sin-filled world chooses to embrace.
Application:
Through His physical life and ministry, and through His physical death and resurrection, Jesus lit the path of redemption for all to see, especially those who desperately cry out for God’s saving grace. Walking in the Light of God’s path not only cleanses us from all our iniquity and unrighteousness, but it also leads us through the Gateway of Heaven where we will live, both physically and spiritually, forever in the eternal Light of God’s Glory. This Wonderful Gift of redemption and salvation is the greatest gift one could ever ask for or humbly receive (2 Corinthians 9:15) . This gift is not only totally irrational by our human standards, but it is also a gift that is graciously offered to everyone, especially those who deem themselves unworthy or too undeserving. Jesus came to save the world from the curse of sin that plummeted God’s creation into this darkness. Jesus came to save each individual person (from the least to the greatest) from the self-destructive habits of our inherent sinful natures, which if continued to go on unchecked and unforgiven, would have lead us even deeper into the darkness that is inescapable . Jesus came to bring Light into the darkness. Jesus came to bring Hope to the hopeless. Jesus came to bring Joy to the world —the true and lasting Joy which the world had lost. The life and death of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ gives us more than a reason to rejoice and be glad—it gives us victory over death. Jesus is the Light of God’s most Radiant Son; the Light that completely eradicates all darkness and that which separates us from our Holy God.
Prayer:
Thank You dear Lord, for the Light that saved our world from the self-destruction of sin. Thank You for coming into this dark world and for giving us Hope. You are an awesome God who deserves all of our praise and glory.
Amen
Scripture:
Luke 1:78-79
Because of God’s tender mercy,
the Light from heaven is about to break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
and to guide us to the path of peace. (NLT)
Observation:
Our gracious and merciful God has given the world’s people something, that since the beginning of time, we have not been able to find, and that, my dear friends, is a way out of the darkness that surrounds every living soul of this fallen world. The merciful Gift of God’s Light from Heaven was born into this darkened world the Savior (Luke 2:11). Christ Jesus came to us from Heaven, born with an eternal human body so that all peoples would have the same opportunity to escape the evil darkness that this sin-filled world chooses to embrace.
Application:
Through His physical life and ministry, and through His physical death and resurrection, Jesus lit the path of redemption for all to see, especially those who desperately cry out for God’s saving grace. Walking in the Light of God’s path not only cleanses us from all our iniquity and unrighteousness, but it also leads us through the Gateway of Heaven where we will live, both physically and spiritually, forever in the eternal Light of God’s Glory. This Wonderful Gift of redemption and salvation is the greatest gift one could ever ask for or humbly receive (2 Corinthians 9:15) . This gift is not only totally irrational by our human standards, but it is also a gift that is graciously offered to everyone, especially those who deem themselves unworthy or too undeserving. Jesus came to save the world from the curse of sin that plummeted God’s creation into this darkness. Jesus came to save each individual person (from the least to the greatest) from the self-destructive habits of our inherent sinful natures, which if continued to go on unchecked and unforgiven, would have lead us even deeper into the darkness that is inescapable . Jesus came to bring Light into the darkness. Jesus came to bring Hope to the hopeless. Jesus came to bring Joy to the world —the true and lasting Joy which the world had lost. The life and death of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ gives us more than a reason to rejoice and be glad—it gives us victory over death. Jesus is the Light of God’s most Radiant Son; the Light that completely eradicates all darkness and that which separates us from our Holy God.
Prayer:
Thank You dear Lord, for the Light that saved our world from the self-destruction of sin. Thank You for coming into this dark world and for giving us Hope. You are an awesome God who deserves all of our praise and glory.
Amen
“A Heart of Truth”
Scripture:
1 John 3:19-20
It is by our actions that we know we are living in the truth,
so we will be confident when we stand before the Lord,
even if our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our
hearts, and He knows everything. (NLT)
Observation:
In order for us to grasp the real meaning of life we must first seek the real truth. The most brilliant minds of the secular world would have us believe there is no absolute truth, especially when it comes to the way we live out our lives, for they try to convince us that truth is really all about finding what feels good or what seems right for the individual person, no matter what that may be. Fortunately for us, this worldly truth that sounds pleasing and good to our deceitful hearts is also not an absolute, but the lie of all lies from Satan, the father of false truth.
Application:
If it is absolute truth you seek, my friend, it does exist and there is no better place to begin your search than in the written words of God, spoken by the Author of Life Himself, the LORD Almighty. I believe one of the first truths that we must grasp from the mouth of God is the fact that there are many absolutes in this life; that is, absolute consequences for all our actions—both the seemingly insignificant as well as the larger significant ones—actions that God will hold all peoples accountable for—some readily in this life, but all in the next life to come. Like it or not, this is how God created this life to be lived. If no one was ever held accountable for their actions in this world, all of our lives lived would not be user friendly on this earth. There would be no order; only chaos. It would be survival of the fittest, with no limits of restraint. It would be winner takes all and no ones life would be safe. Most of our actions would be dictated by the law of kill or be killed. It is only because of our loving and gracious God that we have any just laws and order in this world (Deuteronomy 32:4). It is only because of God’s goodness passed on to us that there is anything good or righteous in this world (James 1:17). All the love and compassion and mercy found in this world only comes from God and the people of His Church, and when people live and love like Jesus, who is the Christ our Lord, their eternal destiny is sealed with the Promise that any life lived in Christ is secured in Heaven (Psalm 84:11). Actions of God’s goodness in faith = Salvation for many!
Prayer:
Please continue to expose the Truth of Your Word that all peoples of this world so desperately need. Help me, Lord, keep my focus on You and where Your Light is leading me, for without Your Light this life would be lived in vain and darkness.
Amen
Scripture:
1 John 3:19-20
It is by our actions that we know we are living in the truth,
so we will be confident when we stand before the Lord,
even if our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our
hearts, and He knows everything. (NLT)
Observation:
In order for us to grasp the real meaning of life we must first seek the real truth. The most brilliant minds of the secular world would have us believe there is no absolute truth, especially when it comes to the way we live out our lives, for they try to convince us that truth is really all about finding what feels good or what seems right for the individual person, no matter what that may be. Fortunately for us, this worldly truth that sounds pleasing and good to our deceitful hearts is also not an absolute, but the lie of all lies from Satan, the father of false truth.
Application:
If it is absolute truth you seek, my friend, it does exist and there is no better place to begin your search than in the written words of God, spoken by the Author of Life Himself, the LORD Almighty. I believe one of the first truths that we must grasp from the mouth of God is the fact that there are many absolutes in this life; that is, absolute consequences for all our actions—both the seemingly insignificant as well as the larger significant ones—actions that God will hold all peoples accountable for—some readily in this life, but all in the next life to come. Like it or not, this is how God created this life to be lived. If no one was ever held accountable for their actions in this world, all of our lives lived would not be user friendly on this earth. There would be no order; only chaos. It would be survival of the fittest, with no limits of restraint. It would be winner takes all and no ones life would be safe. Most of our actions would be dictated by the law of kill or be killed. It is only because of our loving and gracious God that we have any just laws and order in this world (Deuteronomy 32:4). It is only because of God’s goodness passed on to us that there is anything good or righteous in this world (James 1:17). All the love and compassion and mercy found in this world only comes from God and the people of His Church, and when people live and love like Jesus, who is the Christ our Lord, their eternal destiny is sealed with the Promise that any life lived in Christ is secured in Heaven (Psalm 84:11). Actions of God’s goodness in faith = Salvation for many!
Prayer:
Please continue to expose the Truth of Your Word that all peoples of this world so desperately need. Help me, Lord, keep my focus on You and where Your Light is leading me, for without Your Light this life would be lived in vain and darkness.
Amen
Saturday, December 10, 2011
“Cleansed in Truth”
Scripture:
1 John 1:8-9
If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves
and refusing to accept the truth. But if we confess our sins to Him,
He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. (NLT)
Observation:
There is absolutely no one that has ever breathed the air of this life, who has not disobeyed the living God, Jehovah, other than the Lord Jesus Himself. It is simply our fallen human nature that causes us to go against the ways of God and His will for our lives. We have the tendency to go above the One who created us in order to carve out an existence of our own making, disregarding the holiness and sovereignty of the LORD our God. So many of us get so consumed with self pride that we cannot admit our inherent weaknesses to follow our own misguided and rebellious nature to disobey the Law of God (1 John 3:4), which in time, further separates us from the goodness of God and we become discouraged, confused, hopeless, guilt ridden, and filled with shame—unable to enjoy or appreciate or even be aware of the many gifts of God. And the only way we can overcome our rebellious addiction to sin is by first admitting our need for a Savior—Someone who will forgive us of all our wrongs, no matter how small or how large they may be—Someone who can give us a brand new start (Colossians 3:9, 10).
Application:
I cannot begin to explain the freedom and peace it brings me to have finally unloaded all the misguide and sinful things I did and felt that not only saddened the One who gave me life, but brought a lot of pain and wrong into the lives of my family and others. The only way that anyone can begin a new life in God is by putting to death the old life of sin and nailing it to the Cross of Christ. You must, with uninhabited honesty, bring all your sins (especially those deep and dark secrets that you want to remain hidden) to the throne of God’s grace (Hebrews 4:16), where He will forgive you completely and remember your sin no more. Then for the rest of your mortal life you will have the Advocate, Christ Jesus our Lord, pleading your case before the LORD God where you will one day stand forgiven and holy before Him, thus escaping the just and final judgment that all unrepentant sinners will have to face.
Prayer:
Thank You, dear Lord, for Your gracious forgiveness. Thank You for showing me the Truth about You and Your Law and what I needed to do in order to find Your peace in this unfair and unjust life. Thank You for showing me how I should live this life. Thank You for Your advocacy.
Scripture:
1 John 1:8-9
If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves
and refusing to accept the truth. But if we confess our sins to Him,
He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. (NLT)
Observation:
There is absolutely no one that has ever breathed the air of this life, who has not disobeyed the living God, Jehovah, other than the Lord Jesus Himself. It is simply our fallen human nature that causes us to go against the ways of God and His will for our lives. We have the tendency to go above the One who created us in order to carve out an existence of our own making, disregarding the holiness and sovereignty of the LORD our God. So many of us get so consumed with self pride that we cannot admit our inherent weaknesses to follow our own misguided and rebellious nature to disobey the Law of God (1 John 3:4), which in time, further separates us from the goodness of God and we become discouraged, confused, hopeless, guilt ridden, and filled with shame—unable to enjoy or appreciate or even be aware of the many gifts of God. And the only way we can overcome our rebellious addiction to sin is by first admitting our need for a Savior—Someone who will forgive us of all our wrongs, no matter how small or how large they may be—Someone who can give us a brand new start (Colossians 3:9, 10).
Application:
I cannot begin to explain the freedom and peace it brings me to have finally unloaded all the misguide and sinful things I did and felt that not only saddened the One who gave me life, but brought a lot of pain and wrong into the lives of my family and others. The only way that anyone can begin a new life in God is by putting to death the old life of sin and nailing it to the Cross of Christ. You must, with uninhabited honesty, bring all your sins (especially those deep and dark secrets that you want to remain hidden) to the throne of God’s grace (Hebrews 4:16), where He will forgive you completely and remember your sin no more. Then for the rest of your mortal life you will have the Advocate, Christ Jesus our Lord, pleading your case before the LORD God where you will one day stand forgiven and holy before Him, thus escaping the just and final judgment that all unrepentant sinners will have to face.
Prayer:
Thank You, dear Lord, for Your gracious forgiveness. Thank You for showing me the Truth about You and Your Law and what I needed to do in order to find Your peace in this unfair and unjust life. Thank You for showing me how I should live this life. Thank You for Your advocacy.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
“Nail & Cross”
Scripture:
Galatians 5:24
Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires
of their sinful nature to His cross and crucified them there. (NLT)
Observation:
The decision to surrender your sin-filled, rebellious nature into God’s transforming hands can be a slow and painful process for many. For some this decision is made out of pure desperation; a last stand to make sense of this seemingly futile life that beats us up and ends in death. For others, it can be a near death experience that strikes the fear into their hearts that maybe—just maybe, there are consequences for the way we live this life. But whatever the cause may be for this decision, it is a life changer, for sure.
Application:
Giving up the things of this world which feed our compulsive nature is something that we cannot achieve on our own. We need Someone greater than ourselves; One that we can fully trust to help us overcome the powerful grip of Satan and the life-journey to hell that is imminent for all those who remain trapped in and enslaved by their sinful nature. The power of sin not only controls us with its appetites, but it is a part of who we are—it is simply our inherent fallen human nature (Romans 5:12). Nailing my sinful nature to the cross of Christ was the one of the first steps I needed to take on my new life-journey of recovery and restoration; an all important step that gave me the confidence and trust I needed to plow forward in the heart wrenching battle to overcome the sin that came so naturally easy and was so hard to fight. It takes courage and discipline to stand against the dark powers of this world (2 Chronicles 32:7, 8). It takes both commitment and sacrifice to learn the Truth and to gain our strength (Psalm 37:5). It takes knowing the only Living God—knowing who He is and all He does—knowing who He promises to be and what He promise to do. For without God and His sovereign power living and working in our lives, we are all destined to fail the battles for our hearts and souls. Without God’s wisdom you will live both foolishly and dangerously. Without God’s Light you will walk and live in a darkness that will eventually consume you. But when you nail your sinful life to the cross of Christ, you will immediately begin to experience the peace of God that comes from being set free from your bondage to sin and death. God did not create us to die, my friends, He created us to live! And live you will, when you humbly surrender to the Lord and nail your sinful self to the Cross of Life.
Prayer:
Thank You for the Cross, dear Lord, thank You for Your life. For You accomplished what we cannot. What a gift You brought to this lost and hopeless world that was doomed to fail. Thank You for the life we can now live in You—protected and saved—triumphant and joy-filled.
Amen
Scripture:
Galatians 5:24
Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires
of their sinful nature to His cross and crucified them there. (NLT)
Observation:
The decision to surrender your sin-filled, rebellious nature into God’s transforming hands can be a slow and painful process for many. For some this decision is made out of pure desperation; a last stand to make sense of this seemingly futile life that beats us up and ends in death. For others, it can be a near death experience that strikes the fear into their hearts that maybe—just maybe, there are consequences for the way we live this life. But whatever the cause may be for this decision, it is a life changer, for sure.
Application:
Giving up the things of this world which feed our compulsive nature is something that we cannot achieve on our own. We need Someone greater than ourselves; One that we can fully trust to help us overcome the powerful grip of Satan and the life-journey to hell that is imminent for all those who remain trapped in and enslaved by their sinful nature. The power of sin not only controls us with its appetites, but it is a part of who we are—it is simply our inherent fallen human nature (Romans 5:12). Nailing my sinful nature to the cross of Christ was the one of the first steps I needed to take on my new life-journey of recovery and restoration; an all important step that gave me the confidence and trust I needed to plow forward in the heart wrenching battle to overcome the sin that came so naturally easy and was so hard to fight. It takes courage and discipline to stand against the dark powers of this world (2 Chronicles 32:7, 8). It takes both commitment and sacrifice to learn the Truth and to gain our strength (Psalm 37:5). It takes knowing the only Living God—knowing who He is and all He does—knowing who He promises to be and what He promise to do. For without God and His sovereign power living and working in our lives, we are all destined to fail the battles for our hearts and souls. Without God’s wisdom you will live both foolishly and dangerously. Without God’s Light you will walk and live in a darkness that will eventually consume you. But when you nail your sinful life to the cross of Christ, you will immediately begin to experience the peace of God that comes from being set free from your bondage to sin and death. God did not create us to die, my friends, He created us to live! And live you will, when you humbly surrender to the Lord and nail your sinful self to the Cross of Life.
Prayer:
Thank You for the Cross, dear Lord, thank You for Your life. For You accomplished what we cannot. What a gift You brought to this lost and hopeless world that was doomed to fail. Thank You for the life we can now live in You—protected and saved—triumphant and joy-filled.
Amen
“In His Grace”
Scripture:
Galatians 2:21
I am not one of those who treats the grace of God as meaningless.
For if we could be saved by keeping the law, then there was no need for Christ to die. (NLT)
Observation:
It is only because of God’s abundant mercy and gracious favor that anyone of this fallen world has
both the means and the opportunity to stand forgiven and righteous before the Holy God of all creation (2 Chronicles 30:9), because it is humanly impossible for sinful man to co-exist, either spiritually or physically, with the holiness of God (Psalm 24:3, 4). The Lord gave us His written Law two-fold; so that we might know how to live a long and healthy life that would be both pleasing to Him and rewarding for us, and to show us how desperately we all need God’s mercy and grace—to show us how sinful we are and how impossible it is for any human being to live without sinning against our Holy God.
Application:
The standards of our Holy God are far too high for anyone to achieve on their own accord. And it is because of His high standard and the sin condition that we all have inherited from the first man, Adam, that the Almighty God sent His Son into the world. It is through our Lord, Jesus Christ, that mankind was able to meet God face to face and the Lord our God was able to experience, first hand, this hard and difficult life for Himself. Although Jesus was born without a sinful nature, He still lived with the same temptations as all of us do, and because He was able to live a sinless life, Jesus became the perfect, once and for all time, sacrificial Lamb of God, taking away the sins of the world and paying the full price that set us free from the power of sin and the fear of death that this life holds us in bondage to. Christ paid for our sins and our souls with His blood and His life. He now covers the forgiven sins of all believers with His perfect righteousness. By hanging on a cross Jesus saved us with His life. By rising from the grave into Heaven, Jesus defeated death and is now sitting at the right hand of the Father pleading our case and forgiving our sins. And even though we continue to fall short of God’s Glorious Standard we have the power of God to help us overcome our sin addiction, and His forgiveness when we fail. Treasure this gift of God’s grace and hold tightly to the hope it brings. And let no day pass you by, my friends, without verbally expressing your sincere thanksgiving and praise to the God who accomplished what you could not and saved your life.
Prayer:
What peace it brings knowing that we have a loving God who is filled with compassion for His people; a faithful God who is both living in and with His people. Without You, dear Lord, where would we find any hope? Where could we go for comfort? Who could ease our pain and give us peace? Only You, Lord God…only You.
Amen
“Thanksgiving”
Scripture:
Psalm 98:1
Sing a new song to the LORD,
for He has done wonderful deeds,
He has won a mighty victory
by His power and holiness. (NLT)
Observation:
Our LORD has given His creation the greatest gift possible, His One and Only Son; our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus. Not only did our Lord take the punishment that was due all of mankind, but He paid the full ransom once and for all—the price; His life.
Application:
We can all find reason to be thankful no matter what our circumstances may be, if we truly stop focusing on all that we don’t have; or worse, what we, ourselves, have done for us. Without the Lord our Creator, nothing would exist. Without the Lord our Sustainer, all that He created would cease to exist. Without the Lord our Organizer, there would be no order. Without the Lord our Provider, we would have nothing to sustain our life. Without the Lord our Comforter, we would live in continual fear. Without the Lord our Savior, we would be slaves to our evil nature; forever chained in bondage to sin. Without the Lord our Redeemer, we would die a sinners death and be sentenced to life in hell. Without the Lord, my friends, we would have no life, no reason, no joy, no hope, no justice, and no future. Without Jesus living in our world thanksgiving would be hard to give and difficult to find, if not impossible. So take the time, my friends, and give thanks to the LORD for the good things that you have, because without the Lord our God there would be no good things and this life would be a nightmare at best for everyone who was unfortunate enough to live, because there would be absolutely nothing worth living for—and most certainly, nothing worth dying for!
Prayer:
Thank You, dear Lord, for showing us who You are and who we were created to be. Thank You for all Your amazing mercy and grace and patience for us. With You, we have Hope—alone, we have nothing. In You, we find life, for the sting of death You defeated for us. How blessed we are to have a God as awesome as You.
Amen
Scripture:
Psalm 98:1
Sing a new song to the LORD,
for He has done wonderful deeds,
He has won a mighty victory
by His power and holiness. (NLT)
Observation:
Our LORD has given His creation the greatest gift possible, His One and Only Son; our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus. Not only did our Lord take the punishment that was due all of mankind, but He paid the full ransom once and for all—the price; His life.
Application:
We can all find reason to be thankful no matter what our circumstances may be, if we truly stop focusing on all that we don’t have; or worse, what we, ourselves, have done for us. Without the Lord our Creator, nothing would exist. Without the Lord our Sustainer, all that He created would cease to exist. Without the Lord our Organizer, there would be no order. Without the Lord our Provider, we would have nothing to sustain our life. Without the Lord our Comforter, we would live in continual fear. Without the Lord our Savior, we would be slaves to our evil nature; forever chained in bondage to sin. Without the Lord our Redeemer, we would die a sinners death and be sentenced to life in hell. Without the Lord, my friends, we would have no life, no reason, no joy, no hope, no justice, and no future. Without Jesus living in our world thanksgiving would be hard to give and difficult to find, if not impossible. So take the time, my friends, and give thanks to the LORD for the good things that you have, because without the Lord our God there would be no good things and this life would be a nightmare at best for everyone who was unfortunate enough to live, because there would be absolutely nothing worth living for—and most certainly, nothing worth dying for!
Prayer:
Thank You, dear Lord, for showing us who You are and who we were created to be. Thank You for all Your amazing mercy and grace and patience for us. With You, we have Hope—alone, we have nothing. In You, we find life, for the sting of death You defeated for us. How blessed we are to have a God as awesome as You.
Amen
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