Thomas E Meyer Jr

The Wisdom of the Lord; A Manual for Living, A Manual for Relating, A Manual of Life’s Essential Elements. Proverbs 1:1-7

Proverbs 1:1-7 Complete Jewish Bible

1 The proverbs of Shlomo the son of David,
king of Isra’el,
²are for learning about wisdom and discipline;
for understanding words expressing deep insight;
³for gaining an intelligently disciplined life,
doing what is right, just and fair;
⁴for endowing with caution those who don’t think
and the young person with knowledge and discretion.
⁵Someone who is already wise
will hear and learn still more;
someone who already understands
will gain the ability to counsel well;
⁶he will understand proverbs, obscure expressions,
the sayings and riddles of the wise.

⁷The fear of Adonai is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

Two things my parents always tried to teach me growing up: what we need are ‘wisdom’ and ‘discipline’. ‘Wisdom’ is living from God’s perspective on life and ‘discipline’ is having the character to consistently do what you know is right.

We must have a “starvation level” of hunger for God’s wisdom and pursue it. Reverent Fear of God is the first step in the quest for a meaningful existence.

Acquiring wisdom is not a particularly hard thing to do.

Who we hang around with, who we call our friends, who we call our enemies, who we choose to ignore or to scorn altogether for some arbitrary reason has a huge influence on who you become. God says Choose your relationships wisely.

Good and blessed things tend to flow from wise and disciplined behavior both exhibited in public or in private ways (but not in a magical or guaranteed way).

Lady Wisdom yearns to set people free from their foolish ways and to impart a spirit of wisdom to them so that they will become more disciplined and wise.

Wisdom proactively shouts and cries out to the simple-minded, urging them to change.

How often she has called out to us.

How often we have neglected her advice – to our own detriment.

If we reject the call of wisdom over and over again, we move beyond the reach of her help. We may then search for her but it may will be far too late. We will have eaten too much, stomached too much of the bitter fruit of living our own way.

Our own complacency will have destroyed us.

What’s the point?

Listen to wisdom!

Accept her advice and pay attention to her correction.

If you do, you will live in peace and safety, unafraid of harm.

Do we hear the shriek of urgency of Wisdom’s appeal!

Her appeal is made to all.

To be complacent is as bad as outright rejection.

Lady Wisdom wants the fool, the inexperienced, immature (simple), and the mocker to know and see for themselves the horrible consequences of their not obeying her, so they will turn back to God respond positively to her right away.

Great advice for wise living.

While I do not want to be thought of as an “all wise know-it-all,” I definitely don’t want to be a fool.

The word “fool” is used more than 80 times in the Bible. None of those men-tions me by name, but I don’t want the descriptions there to fit me either. I especially don’t want to be listed as a fool in some record that God might keep.

Thankfully, Proverbs is a book that God gives to help us, to inform us, to see and hear just what a fool is so that we can fight against becoming one. From the beginning it pits wisdom against foolishness. Sometimes the invitation is to embrace what is wise; other times the challenge is to fist fight what is foolish.

Proverbs is a collection of wisdom sayings that tell us the way things are.

In this world there is wisdom, and there is folly. Wisdom comes from reading and studying to learn disciplined living God’s way, and folly comes from going our own way. God gives us Proverbs to help us see that our heart and character must 100% be shaped by him, so we can live wisely in all kinds of situations.

Ultimately, disciplined living, morally, ethically, wisely, is 100% about being more Christlike than flesh like: having the mind of Christ, who is perfectly wise.

The Bible calls Jesus “the wisdom of God.” And a wisdom-shaped heart, and a wisdom crafted wisdom shape soul and spirit is essentially one that has Christ at the exact center of it. In that way, I want to be that “Christ-Like wise guy.”

If any of us, are fool enough to believe we are all wise

Shalom!

²Regard it all as joy, my brothers, when you face various kinds of temptations; ³for you know that the testing of your trust produces perseverance. ⁴But let perseverance do its complete work; so that you may be complete and whole, lacking in nothing. ⁵ Now if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all generously and without reproach; and it will be given to him. ⁶But let him ask in trust, doubting nothing; for the doubter is like a wave in the sea being tossed and driven by the wind. ⁷Indeed that person should not think that he will receive anything from the Lord, ⁸ because he is double-minded, unstable in all his ways. (James 1:2-5 CJB)

It takes a lot of wisdom to run a business.

It takes a lot of wisdom to be a good husband and a good wife

It takes a lot of wisdom to raise children.

It takes a lot of wisdom to be a family to reverently fear, honor, worship God.

It takes a lot of wisdom to be a teacher or a leader in the community.

It takes a lot of wisdom to be a faithful, conscientious worker and to live well, especially as a Christian in these days of foolish rampant divisive immorality.

Think of all the issues we face every day.

Where shall I draw the line between what is right and what is wrong?

How shall I determine what is moral and what is immoral?

How shall I determine what is ethical and what is unethical?

How can I make decisions that are God directed, disciplined, and wise?

The entire book of Proverbs in the Old Testament is written to help believers draw the line in the sand between what is Godly wisdom and human folly.

When Solomon came to the throne to fill the shoes of his father, David, the first thing he asked God for was a wise and discerning heart. (1 Kings 3:4 – 14)

This request pleased God greatly.

Here in the New Covenant book of James, God repeats how pleased he is when his children ask for wisdom.

God is so pleased that he will never turn them down.

What an invitation!

We learn wisdom through disciplined study of God’s Word.

We gain wisdom through the experiences of living.

We develop wisdom by watching and learning from others.

We also receive wisdom when we ask God for it.

According to James, we all ought to be praying for wisdom daily.

James 5:14-20 Disciples’ Literal New Testament

Pray For One Another So That You May Be Healed

¹⁴Is anyone among you sick? Let him summon the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, having anointed^[a] him with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵And the prayer of ^[b] faith will restore^[c] the one being ill, and the Lord will raise him. And if he has committed^[d] sins, it will be forgiven him. ¹⁶Therefore be confessing-out^[e] your sins to one another, and be praying for one another so that you may be healed. A prayer^[f] of a righteous person can-do much while working^[g]. ¹⁷Elijah was a person of-like-nature to us, and he prayed with prayer^[h] that it not rain. And it did not rain upon the land for three years and six months. ¹⁸And he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.

Try To Turn Back Those Who Stray From The Truth

¹⁹My brothers, if anyone among you errs^[i] from the truth and someone turns him back, ²⁰let him know that the one having turned-back a sinner from the error of his way will save his^[j] soul^[k] from death, and will cover a multitude of sins.

And “God, who 100% gives generously to all without finding fault,” will give it.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 14 Complete Jewish Bible

14 ⁽⁰⁾For the leader. By David:

⁽¹⁾Fools say in their hearts,
“There is no God.”
They deal corruptly, their deeds are vile,
not one does what is right.

²From heaven Adonai observes humankind
to see if anyone has understanding,
if anyone seeks God.
³But all turn aside, all alike are corrupt;
no one does what is right,
not a single one.
⁴Don’t they ever learn,
all those evildoers,
who eat up my people as if eating bread
and never call on Adonai?
⁵There they are, utterly terrified;
for God is with those who are righteous.
⁶You may mock the plans of the poor,
but their refuge is Adonai.

⁷How I wish Isra’el’s salvation
would come out of Tziyon!
When Adonai restores his people’s fortunes,
Ya‘akov will rejoice, Isra’el will be glad!

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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The Bible says…“IF we will devote Ourselves to Prayer AND unto the high Ministry of the Word of God.” Proverbs 2:1-5

Proverbs 2:1-5 Complete Jewish Bible

2 My son, if you will receive my words
and store my commands inside you,
²paying attention to wisdom
inclining your mind toward understanding —
³yes, if you will call for insight
and raise your voice for discernment,
⁴if you seek it as you would silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure —
⁵then you will understand the fear of Adonai
and find knowledge of God.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

There is a Whole Lot of “If’s” Going on Here …

If you will call out for insight …

If you will cry aloud for understanding …

If you will look for it as for silver …

and if you will search for it as for hidden treasure …

and if then you will understand the fear of the Lord …

and if then you authentically desire to find the knowledge of God …

“if We will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the Word…”

if We can never discover the depths of Scripture’s insights into life without first accepting it as true and authoritative, why then did God speak it to us?

If we do not, will not, accept the Word of God as true and as authoritative …

And if several hundred years later the Lord God continues to admonish us with these words of Apostle Paul to his protégé’ Timothy …

1 Timothy 4:11-14 The Message

^11-14Get the word out. Teach all these things. And don’t let anyone put you down because you’re young. Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by love, by faith, by integrity. Stay at your post reading Scripture, giving counsel, and teaching. And that special gift of ministry you were given when the leaders of the church laid hands on you and prayed—keep that dusted off and in use.

Ask yourself, pray to the Holy Spirit … Is my soul being strangely ignited? Can my Soul be strangely ignited? Will my soul be ever become strangely ignited?

So, Let the Truth be Told … So, Let God be Revealed

We can never discover the depths of Scripture’s insights into life without first accepting it as true and authoritative.

We must first believe Scripture before we can understand it.

As long as we keep asking, Should this passage be here? Is it genuine? Is it a legend? Is it nothing but a fairy tale? If this is our constant approach, then we can never get around to asking, What does this say to me? What does it mean to me? Where is the wisdom hidden in this that I need so desperately in my life?

Those students and pseudo-scholars who feel they are a final authority on what ought to be here and what ought not to be here, never seem to be able to get around to understanding what is written. They never seem able to say anything or teach anything about the wondrous depths of the Scriptures, for they exclude themselves from minimal understanding by their attitude of judgment over it.

You cannot understand nuclear physics unless you first believe the underlying axioms that have to do with this realm of human knowledge. You cannot hope to understand chemistry unless you are willing to accept certain of the chemical formulas that have been proposed. You cannot believe anything until you accept it as genuine and put it to the test of experience, and this is true of God’s Word.

I remember Reverend Dr. Billy Graham saying that as a young man there came into his life a time and a season of doubt as to the authority of the Scriptures.

There came questions as to whether the text as we have it could be trusted, whether this was the Word of God or merely the ideas of men about Jesus.

He was troubled by the questions that occur all too frequently in these days.

He went away by himself up into the mountains, taking his Bible with him, and there began to read it, and read it, and read it.

He eventually came at last to the place where he said to God, I have seen enough of the transforming ability of this Word to know that you alone are behind it. I know, Lord, there are too many questions, many areas that I do not understand about this book, and I will take it by faith that it is your Word and believe it and preach it as your Word and trust that you will make clear to me what it means.

It was from this time that Billy Graham’s worldwide ministry of evangelism began. You well know that his favorite expression is, The Bible says. He does not debate it with anyone; he does not question it; he simply, diligently, declares it.

Devoted Ourselves to Prayer and the Word of God

Acts 6:1-6 The Message

The Word of God Prospered

6 ^1-4During this time, as the disciples were increasing in numbers by leaps and bounds, hard feelings developed among the Greek-speaking believers—“Hellenists”—toward the Hebrew-speaking believers because their widows were being discriminated against in the daily food lines. So the Twelve called a meeting of the disciples. They said, “It wouldn’t be right for us to abandon our responsibilities for preaching and teaching the Word of God to help with the care of the poor. So, friends, choose seven men from among you whom everyone trusts, men full of the Holy Spirit and good sense, and we’ll assign them this task. Meanwhile, we’ll stick to our assigned tasks of prayer and speaking God’s Word.”

^5-6The congregation thought this was a great idea. They went ahead and chose—

Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit,

Philip,

Procorus,

Nicanor,

Timon,

Parmenas,

Nicolas, a convert from Antioch.

Then they presented them to the apostles. Praying, the apostles laid on hands and commissioned them for their task.

While the Spirit-filled events of Pentecost and the resulting ministry were extraordinary, the apostles, their followers did not begin saying afterward, Well, now the Spirit of God teaches me; therefore, I don’t need to listen to anybody else.

Instead, when filled with the Holy Spirit, they were all ears for the authoritative preaching and teaching of God’s word.

This teaches us an important lesson: the Spirit of God always leads the people of God to devote themselves to the word of God.

This is why the book of Acts is full of the centrality of preaching.

The apostles ultimately recognized that God’s supreme instrument for the renewing His people in the image of His Son was and is through His word and their diligent reading and diligent study of it, as His Spirit works through it.

Here in Acts 6 we see an example of the priority and protection the apostles gave to those called and equipped to teach.

The apostles recognized the sobering importance of being entrusted as devoted servants of God as Ezra, bring before the people the very Words of God Himself.

Nehemiah 8:1-12 New King James Version

Ezra Reads and Explains the Law

8 Now all the people gathered together as one man in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded Israel. ²So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could hear with understanding on the first day of the seventh month. ³Then he read from it in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate ^[a]from morning until midday, before the men and women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.

⁴So Ezra the scribe stood on a platform of wood which they had made for the purpose; and beside him, at his right hand, stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Urijah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah; and at his left hand Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam. ⁵And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. ⁶And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God.

Then all the people answered, “Amen, Amen!” while lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

⁷Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law; and the people stood in their place. ⁸So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading.

⁹And Nehemiah, who was the ^[b]governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn nor weep.” For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law.

¹⁰Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

¹¹So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.” ¹²And all the people went their way to eat and drink, to send portions and rejoice greatly, because they understood the words that were declared to them.

The Old Testament books refer to the “oracles” of the prophets; this word can also be translated as “burden” (see, for instance, Isaiah 13:1-3, NKJV).

13 The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz did see.

²Lift ye up a banner upon the high mountain,
exalt the voice unto them, shake the hand,
that they may go into the gates of the nobles.
³I have commanded my sanctified ones,
I have also called my mighty ones for mine anger,
even them that rejoice in my highness.

It describes a millstone weight upon the heart and mind that comes about because of the awesome responsibility of speaking God’s truth to people.

Back in the nineteenth century Reverend Charles H. Spurgeon acknowledged the magnitude of this burden by declaring his pulpit to be more influential than the very throne of the king of England, for Spurgeon brought a message from the throne of God to that pulpit and delivered the truth of Christian doctrine.

We must pray for and protect those called to teach the truths of Scripture, whether to a congregation, or to little children, or in any other context.

It is no small thing to stand up regularly between a holy God and His people, declaring His word. It is a high heavy burden as well as a wonderful privilege.

In addition to praying for our teachers and preachers, we must also be humble and eager to sit and learn under the authoritative teaching of God’s word.

Such an example of devotion was set by the early church in their dedication to the apostles’ teaching (Acts 2:42).

Contemporary devotion ought to look the same; we must each be committed to teaching that is based on the New Testament truths revealed to the apostles and built upon the foundations of Old Testament doctrine.

We must not be spending all our time snacking on the fast food of box sets that soak up our time, TV networks that confirm what we already think, and books or video games, vastness of social media that offer escape from the real world.

John 4:31-38 Disciples’ Literal New Testament

Jesus Explains: I Came To Do God’s Will. The Harvest Is Ripe

³¹In the meantime the disciples were asking Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat”. ³²But the One said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about”. ³³So the disciples were saying to one another, “Someone did not bring Him something to eat, did he?” ³⁴Jesus says to them, “My food is that I may do the will of the One having sent Me, and accomplish His work. ³⁵Do you not say that ‘There are still^[a] four months, and the harvest comes’? Behold, I say to you— lift-up your eyes and look-at the fields, that^[b] they are white for harvest^[c]. Already ³⁶the one reaping is receiving wages, and is gathering fruit for life eternal, so that the one sowing and the one reaping may rejoice together. ³⁷For in this case the saying is true, that ‘One is the one sowing and another^[d] is the one reaping. ³⁸I sent you out to be reaping what you have not^[e] labored-for. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor”.

Instead, we need ask God to set our meal tables to feast on the word of God.

Like Jesus taught his disciples; Let that be your spiritual food and you will find each day that the Spirit of God leads you deeper into the truths, the joys within.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 119:1-16 Complete Jewish Bible

א (Alef)

119 How happy are those whose way of life is blameless,
who live by the Torah of Adonai!
²How happy are those who observe his instruction,
who seek him wholeheartedly!
³They do nothing wrong
but live by his ways.
⁴You laid down your precepts
for us to observe with care.
⁵May my ways be steady
in observing your laws.
⁶Then I will not be put to shame,
since I will have fixed my sight on all your mitzvot.
⁷I thank you with a sincere heart
as I learn your righteous rulings.
⁸I will observe your laws;
don’t completely abandon me!

ב (Bet)

⁹How can a young man keep his way pure?
By guarding it according to your word.
¹⁰I seek you with all my heart;
don’t let me stray from your mitzvot.
¹¹I treasure your word in my heart,
so that I won’t sin against you.
¹²Blessed are you, Adonai!
Teach me your laws.
¹³I proclaim with my mouth
all the rulings you have spoken.
¹⁴I rejoice in the way of your instruction
more than in any kind of wealth.
¹⁵I will meditate on your precepts
and keep my eyes on your ways.
¹⁶I will find my delight in your regulations.
I will not forget your word.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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Has anyone given any serious talk about turning their Mistakes into something called Spiritual Maturity? Proverbs 24:15-16

Proverbs 24:15-16 The Message

27

^15-16Don’t interfere with good people’s lives;
    don’t try to get the best of them.
No matter how many times you trip them up,
    God-loyal people don’t stay down long;
Soon they’re up on their feet,
    while the wicked end up flat on their faces.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

Good men have resilient souls!

Will Lucy of the Peanuts comic strips ever stop enjoying pulling the football away from Charlie Brown when he tries to kick it? Will Charlie Brown ever learn to just stop the insanity and the hurt and the humiliation of falling on his back and instead, just walk away, go somewhere else, far away from Lucy’s antics?

As a young entertainer, Will Rogers’ stage specialty used to be rope tricks. One day, on stage, in the middle of his act, he became tangled in his lariat. But instead of becoming frustrated, Rogers laughed and spoke up in his Oklahoma drawl, “A rope ain’t so bad to get tangled up in if ain’t around your neck!”

The audience just roared at his impromptu response. Encouraged by his warm reception, Rogers began adding commentary and satire to all his performances.

It was his commentary, not his rope tricks, that eventually made him famous.

Had Will Rogers not become tangled in his rope that day, he might never have discovered his ability to wow crowds with his charm, wit and witticisms. That’s because, very often, our mistakes open doors to new possibilities that we never would have ever imagined had things gone the way we had originally intended.

Understanding this can give us a new perspective on our mistakes. When we begin to see our mishaps as opportunities to learn new things and gain new experiences, it completely transforms our outlook on our lives and ourselves.

Don’t let your mistakes discourage you. Instead, look for what God is teaching you through them and swiftly go in new directions. Be willing to turn around, learn blessings from your shortcomings and your mistakes will mature you!

Prayer Challenge

Pray that God would help you to learn blessings instead of curses, positive life lessons from your mistakes that would timely spur you on to spiritual maturity.

Questions for Thought

2 Timothy 3:14-17 The Message

^14-17But don’t let it faze you. Stick with what you learned and believed, sure of the integrity of your teachers—why, you took in the sacred Scriptures with your mother’s milk! There’s nothing like the written Word of God for showing you the way to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God’s way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.

Think of a mistake you’ve made in the past that has actually helped you. What would have happened if things had gone the way you had originally planned?

How can we re-interpret our worldview, seeing our mistakes as true growth opportunities change the way you respond when things don’t go your way?

Did you remember to turn your attention to the Word of God for His Wisdom?

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 15 The Message

15 God, who gets invited
to dinner at your place?
How do we get on your guest list?

²“Walk straight,
act right,
tell the truth.

^3-4“Don’t hurt your friend,
don’t blame your neighbor;
despise the despicable.

⁵“Keep your word even when it costs you,
make an honest living,
never take a bribe.

“You’ll never get
blacklisted
if you live like this.”

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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Yahweh, if you kept a record of sins, who, Adonai, could remain standing, who’ll escape their condemnation? Psalm 130

Psalm 130 Names of God Bible

Psalm 130

A song for going up to worship.

¹O Yahweh, out of the depths I call to you.
²O Adonay, hear my voice.
    Let your ears be open to my pleas for mercy.
³O Yahweh, who would be able to stand
    if you kept a record of sins?
⁴But with you there is forgiveness
    so that you can be feared.
⁵I wait for Yahweh, my soul waits,
    and with hope I wait for his word.
⁶My soul waits for Adonay
    more than those who watch for the morning,
    more than those who watch for the morning.
⁷O Israel, put your hope in Yahweh,
    because with Yahweh there is mercy
        and with him there is unlimited forgiveness.
⁸            He will rescue Israel from all its sins.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

Many of the Psalms in the Psalter are penitential hymns, where the people of God cry out to Him for confession and forgiveness or plead for His mercy and blessing. Like us, ancient writers knew that the Lord God is faithful to hear our needy prayer and by God’s standard, quick to answer our pitiful cries for help.

From the moment that Adam and Eve fell, the individual sins we all commit and the inherited sin nature we received from our forefathers, inevitably renders us all as 100% guilty sinners before the Lord.

Our transgressions condemn us and separate us from a holy God.

Without any exceptions, We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and if God were to mark our iniquities not one of us could remain standing. On that hard truth alone, everyman who has been fathered by man is lost in their trespasses and sins and, without any exceptions, be found guilty before God.

The ancient words of the Psalmist are, still today, indeed a chilling reality of what we justly deserve as a member of a rebellious, sinful race of men, for if the Lord should mark our iniquities as we justly deserve, which of us could stand?

But God in His boundless, ceaseless, unlimited mercy, grace, justice, and love sent His Son to us to pay the penalty of every last sin committed by everyman.

Romans 6:23 Names of God Bible

²³The payment for sin is death, but the gift that God freely gives is everlasting life found in Christ Yeshua our Lord.

Romans 6:23 The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, for as we read: “If the Lord should mark our iniquities, who could stand?”

But there is true forgiveness; eternal forgiveness with our Father, through Jesus Christ the Son, that the Lord may be worshipped and glorified for ever and ever.

Coming to Faith: Trust His Love Has Redeemed Us

The eternal redemption afforded to us by the powerful sacrifice of Jesus is a wonderful, life-giving demonstration of God’s unconditional, unchanging love.

I’ve gone through much of my life being bullied, scorned. feeling condemned.

My mindset was to look at my thoughts, actions, reactions, and failures and apply my condemning perspective to my perception of my heavenly Father.

But, in reality, over time, he has so faithfully demonstrated his overwhelming love to me through the securing of my redemption. In reality, he truly loves me just as I am even with all my countless failures, failings, mistakes and faults.

Colossians 1:19-22 Names of God Bible

¹⁹God was pleased to have all of himself live in Christ. ²⁰God was also pleased to bring everything on earth and in heaven back to himself through Christ. He did this by making peace through Christ’s blood sacrificed on the cross.

²¹Once you were separated from God. The evil things you did showed your hostile attitude. ²²But now Christ has brought you back to God by dying in his physical body. He did this so that you could come into God’s presence without sin, fault, or blame.

God sees you and me as “holy and blameless.”

Through his love we have been totally redeemed: set right before the God whose perspectives and beliefs are true above all else. When he says we are redeemed, that truth is now meant to be at the foundation of all we think, believe, and do.

Psalm 130:7 says, “O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption.”

You and I are redeemed apart from anything we do. We are made holy apart from any inherent ability or worthiness we possess. God’s passionate desire for restored relationship with us caused him to secure what you and I could never attain on our own: the eternal redemption of all who believe in Jesus Christ.

So what does it mean for you to be redeemed?

What effect does redemption have on your day today?

1 Peter 1:14-15 “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct.”

Live your life today in greater light of the redemption secured for you by Jesus.

Allow the Holy Spirit to do a mighty work and help you live differently today than you did yesterday. Your past failures and weaknesses do not define you.

Your present misconceptions and sins can be forgiven, healed, and transformed this instant.

Jesus made a clear path for you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received (Ephesians 4:1-6).

Ephesians 4:1-6 Names of God Bible

Christ’s Gifts to the Church

4 I, a prisoner in the Lord, encourage you to live the kind of life which proves that God has called you. ²Be humble and gentle in every way. Be patient with each other and lovingly accept each other. ³Through the peace that ties you together, do your best to maintain the unity that the Spirit gives. ⁴There is one body and one Spirit. In the same way you were called to share one hope. ⁵There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, ⁶one God and Father of all, who is over everything, through everything, and in everything.

All that is required of you, me, we, is to confess with all our heart, believe, trust, open your heart to God, and live today in the constant communion God desires with you. May your day today be filled with all of the life-giving transformation and freedom that comes from living in the light of your present redemption.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on the redemption secured for you by the powerful sacrifice of Jesus.

“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.” Ephesians 1:7

“O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption.” Psalm 130:7

“He entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.” Hebrews 9:12

2. Where have sins, lies, past failures, or wounds been causing you to live apart from your redemption?

Where has your life looked more like the world and less like heaven? Confess those sins and your need of God’s forgiveness, transformation, and presence.

“Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.” Acts 3:19-20

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

3. Receive God’s forgiveness. Spend time opening, surrendering, bit by bit, piece by piece, and chunk by chunk, your heart and receiving his presence.

“If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.” Psalm 130:3-4

“My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Exodus 33:14

Our heavenly Father is wholly patient with us as we learn to live out this incredible gift of redemption.

He is perfectly kind and forgiving when we come to him and confess our sin.

And God has a perfect plan every day for our transformation, healing, and freedom if we will but simply make .0001% more space in our lives to spend time with Him, His Son and the Holy Spirit and will receive all he has to give.

Through the diligent study of His Living Word, May we as the body of Christ truly learn what it is to live in light of the glorious inheritance of redemption, and freedom, and abundant life secured for us by the precious blood of Jesus.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 15 Names of God Bible

Psalm 15

A psalm by David.

¹O Yahweh, who may stay in your tent?
Who may live on your holy mountain?

²The one who walks with integrity,
does what is righteous,
and speaks the truth within his heart.

³The one who does not slander with his tongue,
do evil to a friend,
or bring disgrace on his neighbor.

⁴The one who despises those rejected by Yahweh
but honors those who fear Yahweh.

The one who makes a promise and does not break it,
even though he is hurt by it.

⁵The one who does not collect interest on a loan
or take a bribe against an innocent person.

Whoever does these things will never be shaken.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

https://translate.google.com/

A Tormented Mind, Crushed Bones, Weakened Soul: “O’ My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me.” Psalm 32

Psalm 32:1-6 Complete Jewish Bible

32 ⁽⁰⁾By David. A maskil:

⁽¹⁾How blessed are those whose offense is forgiven,
those whose sin is covered!
²How blessed those to whom Adonai imputes no guilt,
in whose spirit is no deceit!

³When I kept silent, my bones wasted away
because of my groaning all day long;
⁴day and night your hand was heavy on me;
the sap in me dried up as in a summer drought. (Selah)

⁵When I acknowledged my sin to you,
when I stopped concealing my guilt,
and said, “I will confess my offenses to Adonai”;
then you, you forgave the guilt of my sin. (Selah)

⁶This is what everyone faithful should pray
at a time when you can be found.
Then, when the floodwaters are raging,
they will not reach to him.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

Sin, Guilt and Your Health – A Health Devotional.

This morning, during my quiet time with God, I was reading Psalm 32 and was reminded of the connection between sin, guilt and health. In this Psalm, David writes when he tried to hide his adultery, sending Uriah to his death, refused to confess his sin that he felt weak and miserable and that he groaned all day long. He also writes that his strength evaporated like water in the dry summer heat.

After reading two other Psalm 32 devotionals, I knew that I wanted to write on this topic of sin, guilt and our health and the interrelationship between them.

Sin, Guilt and Health – What the Bible Says

Psalm 32:1-6 Amplified Bible

Blessedness of Forgiveness and of Trust in God.

Blessed [fortunate, prosperous, favored by God] is he whose transgression is forgiven,
And whose sin is covered.
²
Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute wickedness,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit.

³
When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away
Through my groaning all the day long.
⁴
For day and night Your hand [of displeasure] was heavy upon me;
My ^[b]energy (vitality, strength) was drained away as with the burning heat of summer. Selah.
⁵
I acknowledged my sin to You,
And I did not hide my wickedness;
I said, “I will confess [all] my transgressions to the Lord”;
And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.
⁶
Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You [for forgiveness] in a time when You [are near and] may be found;
Surely when the great waters [of trial and distressing times] overflow they will not reach [the spirit in] him.

Those who work in the fields of psychology, psychiatry, and social services are often confronted with a strong correlation between what is happening in a person’s heart and mind and what is being displayed in that person’s body.

God’s word speaks into this connection and then goes deeper, for it tells us that there is a connection between the state of our body and the state of our soul.

In Psalm 32, David speaks very personally to God, acknowledging the heaviness he experienced when he hid in the shadows and refused to confess his sin against Bathsheba and the murder of her husband, Uriah (see 2 Samuel 11).

And through David, the Spirit teaches us that there is a link between a tortured conscience and lack of repentance, and our physical wellbeing.

Those who were in David’s immediate company may not have been aware of what was going on inside him spiritually, but they could not have avoided the rather obvious manifestations of what was happening to him physically.

The description he provides adds to the account he gives elsewhere: “My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me. My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off” (Psalm 38:10-11). It’s a quite devastating picture.

David recognized his condition for what it was: a punishment.

The Bible makes it clear that there is a natural outcome to lust, excess, and a disregard for the commands of God (see Romans 1:24-25)—all of which David was guilty of. Mood swings, frailty, weight loss, sleeplessness, a deepening sense of rejection, melancholy, anxiety, and despair often haunt individuals who are seeking to hide their “secret” sin from God and deny it to themselves.

What restored David was not a health kick or getting to bed earlier but rather dealing with the root cause—his sin: “I acknowledged my sin to you … and you forgave the iniquity of my sin” (Psalm 32:5).

God kept His hand heavy upon David until Nathan showed up and told him a story which convicted him.

Then David left his throne, placed his sin into God’s hands and asked Him to help him deal with it. It is a blessing to us when God does not allow us to forget our sin—when we feel physical heaviness because of our spiritual sickness.

It is His means of bringing us to do what we most need: to confess it and ask for forgiveness for it.

Fortunately we have a God who loves us incredibly and because of this, he freely reveals his mercy, he forgives us of our sins when we confess our wrongdoings.

Because of the magnitude of his mercy and his forgiveness of our sins, believers should be able to freely surrender over any guilt or shame that they feel.

God does not want us to experience the heaviness associated with chronic guilt.

His desire is that we live in peace and joy which is available to us when we confess our wrongdoings and believe that God gives us mercy, forgives us.

Peace and joy are health-promoting compared to chronic guilt which can be damaging to our health in more ways than anyone dares to acknowledge.

Are we harboring sin?

Do not cloak it; confess it. David experienced liberating relief from his pain and distress when he sought God’s forgiveness.

You too can know that joy, for the promise of God’s word is that

“if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

A Few Questions to Reflect On:

Are you holding on to guilt and shame because of some past or current sin in your life?

Are you perhaps weak and miserable or plagued with a chronic health related condition – Headaches, High Blood Pressure, tiredness, fatigue, heart ailments that could be caused by the physical strains of coping with long-term guilt?

As soon as possible, to rule out any potentially serious disorder, go see your Primary Care Medical Team for proper assessment, evaluation and treatment

How about issues of anxiety, mood disorders, depression, post traumatic stress disorder, mood swings, irritability, shorter than usual temper control etcetera.

As soon as possible, seek out Licensed Professional Mental Health providers for a proper clinical assessment, evaluation, and therapeutic treatment modalities.

Relieving The Burden of our Guilt and God’s Grace

Psalm 32:6 Amplified Bible

⁶
Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You [for forgiveness] in a time when You [are near and] may be found;
Surely when the great waters [of trial and distressing times] overflow they will not reach [the spirit in] him.

Psalm 32 reminds me that a moral compass is embedded within everyone’s heart. When we do not chart our lives by that compass, we feel genuine guilt.

David spoke to that reality in Psalm 32. He had made a total mess of his life. His moral failures included adultery, conspiracy and murder. David acknowledged that when we mess up, we are eaten up inside if we keep quiet until a someone tells us a story, we convict ourselves. David had an inner urge to confess his sin.

Once confronted by Nathan, thus came his release. David confessed his sin to the Lord. Yes, there were people in his life with whom David needed to come clean. But only God could grant the full pardon his soul craved. When we mess up, our guilt is first of all toward our Creator, whose law we have violated.

How do you find real forgiveness?

If you have not confessed sins which you feel guilty of, I urge you to prayerfully make that confession to God so you and those around you or those you will soon meet, can return to feeling peaceful and joyful, which is God’s will for your life.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 42 Complete Jewish Bible

Book II: Psalms 42–72

42 ⁽⁰⁾For the leader. A maskil of the descendants of Korach:

^2 (1)Just as a deer longs for running streams,
God, I long for you.
^3 (2)I am thirsty for God, for the living God!
When can I come and appear before God?

^4 (3)My tears are my food, day and night,
while all day people ask me, “Where is your God?”
^5 (4)I recall, as my feelings well up within me,
how I’d go with the crowd to the house of God,
with sounds of joy and praise from the throngs
observing the festival.

^6 (5)My soul, why are you so downcast?
Why are you groaning inside me?
Hope in God, since I will praise him again
for the salvation that comes from his presence.
^7 (6)My God, when I feel so downcast,
I remind myself of you
from the land of Yarden, from the peaks of Hermon,
from the hill Mizar.
^8 (7)Deep is calling to deep
at the thunder of your waterfalls;
all your surging rapids and waves
are sweeping over me.
^9 (8)By day Adonai commands his grace,
and at night his song is with me
as a prayer to the God of my life.
^10 (9)I say to God my Rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go about mourning,
under pressure by the enemy?
^11 (10)My adversaries’ taunts make me feel
as if my bones were crushed,
as they ask me all day long,
‘Where is your God?’ ”

^12 (11)My soul, why are you so downcast?
Why are you groaning inside me?
Hope in God, since I will praise him again
for being my Savior and God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

https://translate.google.com/

From Generation to Generation, One Great Cloud of Witnesses to Another; Praise God to the Heights of Heaven! Psalm 145

Psalm 145 Names of God Bible

Psalm 145^[a]

A song of praise by David.

¹I will highly praise you, my Elohim, the Melek.
I will bless your name forever and ever.
²I will bless you every day.
I will praise your name forever and ever.

³Yahweh is great, and he should be highly praised.
    His greatness is unsearchable.
⁴One generation will praise your deeds to the next.
    Each generation will talk about your mighty acts.
⁵I will think about the glorious honor of your majesty
    and the miraculous things you have done.
⁶People will talk about the power of your terrifying deeds,
    and I will tell about your greatness.
⁷They will announce what they remember of your great goodness,
    and they will joyfully sing about your righteousness.
⁸Yahweh is merciful, compassionate, patient,
    and always ready to forgive.
⁹Yahweh is good to everyone
    and has compassion for everything that he has made.
¹⁰Everything that you have made will give thanks to you, O Yahweh,
    and your faithful ones will praise you.
¹¹Everyone will talk about the glory of your kingdom
    and will tell the descendants of Adam about your might
¹²in order to make known your mighty deeds
    and the glorious honor of your kingdom.
¹³Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.
    Your empire endures throughout every generation.

¹⁴Yahweh supports everyone who falls.
    He straightens the backs of those who are bent over.
¹⁵The eyes of all creatures look to you,
    and you give them their food at the proper time.
¹⁶You open your hand,
    and you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
¹⁷Yahweh is fair in all his ways
    and faithful in everything he does.
¹⁸Yahweh is near to everyone who prays to him,
    to every faithful person who prays to him.
¹⁹He fills the needs of those who fear him.
    He hears their cries for help and saves them.
²⁰Yahweh protects everyone who loves him,
    but he will destroy all wicked people.

²¹My mouth will speak the praise of Yahweh,
and all living creatures will praise his holy name
forever and ever.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

David’s Generational Psalm of Praise

A. The Psalmist David, speaking on our behalf, on behalf of all generations to come, makes a vow to bless the name of the LORD “forever and ever” (Psalm 145:1); “Every day” to bless Him; to praise His name “for ever and ever” (Psalm 145:2). This is the only Psalm in the book with the words “of praise” in its title.

A lone voice opens the Psalm:

“I” will extol thee; “I” will bless (Psalm 145:1); “I” will bless; “I” will praise (Psalm 145:2).

“I” will speak and declare (Psalm 145:5-6).

The singer refers to the LORD as “my God, O king” (Psalm 145:1), and speaks “of the glorious honour of thy majesty” (Psalm 145:5).

This song of repeated praise is addressed to no earthly king, but to One King whose kingdom ‘is an everlasting kingdom’ (Psalm 145:13).

It is wonderful when, in our alone times with God, in our study and our prayer times, in our worship times, in our fellowship times, meal times, husband and wife times, family times, camping under the stars, we become thus enamored with singing His praises: but what we’ll discover about God, what we discover God to be, is not only for our alone times, but is also to be shared with others.

This is the role of ours and heavens testimony. “Generations” shall praise and declare, one to another (Psalm 145:4). We must not only pray for our children, and children’s children, etc.; but must teach them the great works of God, and obediently pass on to them the mantle of praise down through the generations.

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 Names of God Bible

⁴Listen, Israel: Yahweh is our Elohim. Yahweh is the only God. ⁵Love Yahweh your Elohim with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. ⁶Take to heart these words that I give you today. ⁷Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you’re at home or away, when you lie down or get up. ⁸Write them down, and tie them around your wrist, and wear them as headbands as a reminder. ⁹Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

The word ‘men’ is not in the Hebrew of Psalm 145:6a, but by the next verse there is a reference to a plurality of persons – “they” – who shall utter and sing (Psalm 145:7).

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/psa/145/6/t_conc_623006

Let the congregation of the Lord’s people, join in the praises of our great God!

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/psa/145/7/t_conc_623007

The reasons for praise are based in the Person, the virtues, and the works of the LORD. He is my God and King (Psalm 145:1; cf. Revelation 19:16).

When we “bless” the LORD (Psalm 145:2) we add nothing to Him, but He shelters us with His Presence (Psalm 145:18; Revelation 7:15).

The “great” LORD, whose “greatness is unsearchable” is still “greatly to be praised” (Psalm 145:3; cf. Job 5:9; Romans 11:33).

We must adopt the attitude: I will praise Him, no matter what (Philippians 4:4)!

His “works” of Creation and Providence are matched by His “mighty acts” (Psalm 145:4; cf. Exodus 12:26-27 and the miracles of Jesus).

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/psa/145/4/t_conc_623004

The “glorious honor” of His majesty is shown forth in His “wondrous works” (Psalm 145:5; cf. Creation story (Genesis 1,2) the Incarnation, the Cross, the Resurrection of Jesus, His Ascension, His intercession at the right hand of God, His Coming in Glory; also, the day of Pentecost the shedding abroad of the Holy Spirit).

“The LORD is gracious, full of compassion, slow to anger, and of great mercy” (Psalm 145:8).

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/psa/145/9/t_conc_623008

This is similar to the self-revelation of the LORD unto Moses (cf. Exodus 34:6).

It is an integral part of Israel’s understanding of their God (cf. Numbers 14:18; Nehemiah 9:17; Jonah 4:2).

The last Hebrew word in Psalm 145:8, ‘hesed,’ speaks of covenant love, God not dealing with us as we deserve, but dealing with us as we are in Christ Jesus.

The long-suffering of God is the last thread of hope for a perishing generation (cf. 2 Peter 3:9).

We encounter a word which is translated “all” or “every” seventeen times throughout this Psalm.

There is a sense of inclusiveness here, but also the particularity of “each” (Psalm 145:9).

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/psa/145/9/t_conc_623009

To say that the LORD is good to “all” could be quite general: to say that His tender mercies, or compassion, are over “all” His works, or “all” that He has made, is more specific, much, much deeper in its “heart-soul” implications.

We read in the New Testament about the whole Creation groaning (cf. Romans 8:22), eagerly awaiting the revelation of the children of God (cf. Romans 8:19).

Not only so, but those who have the firstfruits of the Spirit (Christians) are also groaning within ourselves as we await the redemption of the body (cf. Romans 8:23). Even the sufferings of the present time become more endurable when we consider the glory of our Savior God yet to be revealed in us (cf. Romans 8:18).

This psalm shows us the other side of that coin.

All of Creation shall praise the LORD, all His faithful shall bless Him (Psalm 145:10). This “all” is comprehensive, it is extensive, but it also comes down to the level of the ‘each’ as well as the ‘every’ on the uniquely individual level.

As David says in Psalm 103:1, ‘Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me bless His holy Name!’

Psalm 103:1-5 Names of God Bible

Psalm 103

By David.

¹Praise Yahweh, my soul!
    Praise his holy name, all that is within me.
²Praise Yahweh, my soul,
    and never forget all the good he has done:
³        He is the one who forgives all your sins,
            the one who heals all your diseases,
⁴            the one who rescues your life from the pit,
            the one who crowns you with mercy and compassion,
⁵            the one who fills your life with blessings
                so that you become young again like an eagle.

As well as praise, there is conversation (Psalm 145:11).

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/psa/145/11/t_conc_623011

The Creation speaks forth God’s glory (Psalm 19:1).

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/psa/19/1/t_conc_497001

It is also the case that those who are His saints, His faithful, do speak to one another the Word of God (cf. Malachi 3:16; Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16).

Sharing our testimony is part and parcel of the Christian life.

Sharing heaven’s testimony is part and parcel of the Christian witness.

Psalm 29 Names of God Bible

Psalm 29

A psalm by David.

¹Give to Yahweh, you heavenly beings.
Give to Yahweh glory and power.
²Give to Yahweh the glory his name deserves.
Worship Yahweh in his holy splendor.

³The voice of Yahweh rolls over the water.
    The El of glory thunders.
        Yahweh shouts over raging water.
⁴The voice of Yahweh is powerful.
    The voice of Yahweh is majestic.
⁵The voice of Yahweh breaks the cedars.
    Yahweh splinters the cedars of Lebanon.
⁶        He makes Lebanon skip along like a calf
            and Mount Sirion like a wild ox.
⁷The voice of Yahweh strikes with flashes of lightning.
⁸The voice of Yahweh makes the wilderness tremble.
    Yahweh makes the wilderness of Kadesh tremble.
⁹The voice of Yahweh splits the oaks^[a]
    and strips the trees of the forests bare.
        Everyone in his temple is saying, “Glory!”

¹⁰Yahweh sat enthroned over the flood.
Yahweh sits enthroned as Melek forever.
¹¹Yahweh will give power to his people.
Yahweh will bless his people with peace.

This conversation is not only for the mutual encouragement, edification of those within the church (1 Thessalonians 5:11), but also for those who are outside the church.

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/1th/5/11/t_conc_1116011

“The sons of men” (Psalm 145:12) is also a comprehensive expression, meaning (as some translations have it) “all people”!

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/psa/145/12/t_conc_623012

Those who study Creation may well conclude that there is, after all, a God (and praise His Name, many have); but those who are exposed to genuine Christian conversation have an even better opportunity of discovering just Who He is!

There is also a comprehensiveness of God’s kingdom (Psalm 145:13).

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/psa/145/13/t_conc_623013

It is both eternal and extensive (cf. Psalm 72:17).

Psalm 72:17-19 Names of God Bible

¹⁷May his name endure forever.
May his name continue as long as the sun shines.
May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed.

¹⁸Thank Yahweh Elohim, the Elohim of Israel,
    who alone does miracles.
¹⁹Thanks be to his glorious name forever.
    May the whole earth be filled with his glory.
    Amen and amen!

This is the same ‘kingdom of God’, or ‘kingdom of heaven’ about which Jesus speaks; and it belongs to Him, and all who are found in Him (cf. 2 Peter 1:11).

The LORD cares for the weak and vulnerable (Psalm 145:14).

He heard the cry of the children of Israel in their captivity and set His mind to deliver them (cf. Exodus 3:7-8).

Thereafter He taught His people to care for strangers, widows, and orphans – and the poor (cf. Exodus 22:21-23; Exodus 22:25).

This care is continued in the church (cf. Hebrews 13:2; James 1:27; Galatians 2:9-10).

The LORD cares for those of His own who may otherwise fall (cf. Psalm 73:1-2).

He works ‘all’ things together for good (cf. Romans 8:28), for the good of His ‘peculiar’ people (cf. 1 Peter 2:9).

Whether they know it or not, all flesh is dependent upon the LORD for their daily provision (Psalm 145:15).

Whether they will acknowledge it or not, no man can find sufficient sustenance without the LORD.

It is better therefore to seek Him first, knowing that He will add to us ‘all these things’ (Matthew 6:33).

If God provides for the birds of the air, how much more for you (Matthew 6:25-27). It is good, therefore, to acknowledge God’s hand in all these things, and to gratefully receive His bountiful provision (Psalm 145:16).

Our trust in the LORD is not based in our individual ability to believe, but in His perfections. He is righteous in all His ways: He is just. He is kind in all He does:

He is holy (Psalm 145:17).

It is good that we can view the LORD as a God who is not only transcendent, but also immanent.

He is present within His Creation.

He is “near” to all who call upon Him (Psalm 145:18).

We should, therefore, ‘Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near’ (Isaiah 55:6).

The one true God, God of all integrity (Deuteronomy 32:4; John 14:6; 1 John 5:20; Revelation 19:11) draws “nigh” unto all who call upon Him “in truth” with a matching integrity of heart (Psalm 145:18).

It is of the LORD’s mercy that He also hears our petitions (Psalm 145:19).

This is particularly addressed to “those who fear Him” – those who revere His Name.

We may not all presumptuously or blasphemously call out His Name at every approach of trouble: but when we nurture a relationship with him, He is there for us, always.

He grants our desires because our desires are consistent with His. He hears our cry because we are His people. He ‘saves to the uttermost’ all that come to God via Jesus Christ, who forever lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25).

The LORD preserves all who love Him (Psalm 145:20). This is the other side of our own perseverance: ‘he who endures to the end shall be saved’ (Matthew 24:13). Yet we may not presume upon His grace: the God who is slow to anger (Psalm 145:8), is also the God who will punish the unrepentant (2 Peter 2:9).

The “each” and “every” of God’s 100x% comprehensive care find their final expression as the Psalmist speaks the praise of the LORD, and “all flesh” replies by “blessing” (speaking well of) His holy Name (Psalm 145:21). The groaning Creation (Romans 8:22) at last finds relief in the “for ever and ever.” Amen.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 19 Names of God Bible

Psalm 19

For the choir director; a psalm by David.

¹The heavens declare the glory of El,
    and the sky displays what his hands have made.
²One day tells a story to the next.
    One night shares knowledge with the next
³without talking,
    without words,
    without their voices being heard.
⁴Yet, their sound has gone out into the entire world,
    their message to the ends of the earth.
    He has set up a tent in the heavens for the sun,
⁵which comes out of its chamber like a bridegroom.
    Like a champion, it is eager to run its course.
⁶        It rises from one end of the heavens.
            It circles around to the other.
                Nothing is hidden from its heat.

⁷The teachings of Yahweh are perfect.
    They renew the soul.
    The testimony of Yahweh is dependable.
    It makes gullible people wise.
⁸The instructions of Yahweh are correct.
    They make the heart rejoice.
    The command of Yahweh is radiant.
    It makes the eyes shine.
⁹The fear of Yahweh is pure.
    It endures forever.
    The decisions of Yahweh are true.
    They are completely fair.
¹⁰They are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold.
    They are sweeter than honey, even the drippings from a honeycomb.
¹¹As your servant I am warned by them.
    There is a great reward in following them.

¹²Who can notice every mistake?
    Forgive my hidden faults.
¹³Keep me from sinning.
    Do not let anyone gain control over me.
        Then I will be blameless,
            and I will be free from any great offense.

¹⁴May the words from my mouth and the thoughts from my heart
be acceptable to you, O Yahweh, my rock and my Go’el.

What is a go el in Hebrew?

: redeemer, reclaimant. especially : a next of kin upon whom according to ancient Hebrew custom devolved certain family rights and duties including the avenging of a murdered kin’s blood and the redemption of the person or the property of a relative in debt or helpless circumstances.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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God’s Heart to Meet with David’s, A man after God’s own Heart: “See, I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” Psalm 16

Psalm 16 English Standard Version

You Will Not Abandon My Soul

A Miktam^[a] of David.

16 Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
²I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from you.”

³As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones,
in whom is all my delight.^[b]

⁴The sorrows of those who run after^[c] another god shall multiply;
their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
or take their names on my lips.

⁵The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
⁶The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

⁷I bless the Lord who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.^[d]
⁸I have set the Lord always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.

⁹Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being^[e] rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
¹⁰For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.^[f]

¹¹You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

“How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.” Psalm 84:1-2

Throughout Scripture we see countless examples of God meeting with man and countless lives being transformed as the result. These examples are in Scripture to stir our faith and fill us with a desire to meet with our Creator. When we read about the life of David, we should each be filled with a longing to live as he did, a heart and soul which is centered around, #1, meeting with our heavenly Father.

The meetings between God and David shaped human history forever.

David knew what it was to be in the presence of God. In fact, being in God’s presence was his fuel, greatest joy, and source of courage.

In Psalm 16:11 David writes, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

In verse 5 writes, “The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot.”

David was a very flawed man who still consistently chose to meet with God over obsessing, filling his days with the fleeting, unsatisfying things of the world.

He centered his life around meeting with God, it consistently, continually had changed his heart, and his soul, learning – sometimes the in the very hardest of ways, God is always and forever sovereign over man, God utterly detests all sin and calls his children to repentance to restored their right relationship with God and it forever changed the history of not only his generations, but countless too more generations to come. David’s heart like ours strays but God’s stays True.

In 1 Samuel 17:34-37, we see a glimpse into the impact of David meeting with God early in his life. Scripture says,

But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.” And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”

Out on the fields, David learned of God’s power and desire for deliverance.

He learned quickly what it was to meet with God in the daily work of life. He learned even in the night time, guarding his fathers flocks, God counseled him, God upheld him, God taught him his shepherding craft, counseled about life.

And he carried that knowledge with him into every battle, trial, and failure.

We see it in Psalm 16:1-2 where David prays, “Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.’”

King David, the greatest king that ever sat on the throne of Israel, claimed, “I have no good apart from you.”

David, about whom 1 Chronicles 29:28 says, “Then he died at a good age, full of days, riches, and honor,” claimed he had no good apart from the Lord.

David knew that God’s counsel, God’s presence was the best part of life.

He knew that meeting with his heavenly Father was far greater than any victory, possession, status, or honor. And it was for that reason that he lived a life full of the very thing he sought: his heart in the presence of the living God.

Your heavenly Father longs to meet with you as he did David.

He loves you the same as he loved David.

And through the powerful sacrifice of Jesus, you have even greater access to the heart of God.

You have God, the Holy Spirit dwelling within you.

Choose today to seek meeting with God above all else.

Center your life around the presence of your heavenly Father the way David did.

1 Kings 3:3-15 New American Standard Bible 1995

³Now Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father David, except he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. ⁴The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place; Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. ⁵In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream at night; and God said, “Ask what you wish Me to give you.”

Solomon’s Prayer

⁶Then Solomon said, “You have shown great lovingkindness to Your servant David my father, according as he walked before You in ^[a]truth and righteousness and uprightness of heart toward You; and You have ^[b]reserved for him this great lovingkindness, that You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. ⁷Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. ⁸Your servant is in the midst of Your people which You have chosen, a great people who are too many to be numbered or counted. ⁹So give Your servant ^[c]an understanding heart to judge Your people to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this ^[d]great people of Yours?”

God’s Answer

^10 [e]It was pleasing in the sight of the Lord that Solomon had asked this thing. ¹¹God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself ^[f]long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself ^[g]discernment to understand justice, ¹²behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you. ¹³I have also given you what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there will not be any among the kings like you all your days. ¹⁴If you walk in My ways, keeping My statutes and commandments, as your father David walked, then I will prolong your days.”

¹⁵Then Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream. And he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and made peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants.

Both day and night, awake or on the job or even asleep, strive to 100% live for transformational encounters with God and watch as the things of this world fall into proper place, acknowledging your propensity to sin, then repent from that sin, turning back to God as God is showing to you the pathway to life providing you with transcendent peace, joy, purpose, in the midst of any circumstance.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on David’s longing for the presence of God. Allow Scripture to fill you with a desire to meet with your heavenly Father as David did.

“The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot.” Psalm 16:5

“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11

“Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.’” Psalm 16:1-2

2. Allow these other Scriptures to fill you with faith to encounter the presence of God. The Holy Spirit of God is dwelling within you, ready to lead you into a transformational encounter with your heavenly Father.

“You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13

“Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?” Psalm 139:7

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

3. Take time to meet with God. Ask him to reveal his nearness to you. Ask him to give you a passion for his presence like David had. Choose to center your life around the goodness of his nearness today.

“For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.” Psalm 84:10

How much better would our lives be if we simply chose to center them around meeting with the eternal, living, and active God of love?

What would it be like to seek his counsel throughout our days?

What would it be like to live wholly loved, liked, set free, and filled with his presence? Through Jesus, more has been made available to us than we know.

We’ve been granted access to the fullness of life, love, and freedom. All that is required of us is to make space in our days and seek meeting with God above all else. May we as the bride of Christ choose to love our bridegroom above all else.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 23 King James Version

23 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

²He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

³He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

⁴Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

⁵Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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God has Chosen to Insert Himself Into the Affairs of Man: Face to Face, God’s Heart is Meeting with Moses. Exodus 33:7-16

Exodus 33:7-16 Complete Jewish Bible

⁷Moshe would take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, far away from the camp. He called it the tent of meeting. Everyone who wanted to consult Adonai would go out to the tent of meeting, outside the camp. ⁸Whenever Moshe went out to the tent, all the people would get up and stand, each man at his tent door, and look at Moshe until he had gone into the tent. ⁹Whenever Moshe entered the tent, the column of cloud would descend and station itself at the entrance to the tent; and Adonai would speak with Moshe. ¹⁰When all the people saw the column of cloud stationed at the entrance to the tent, they would get up and prostrate themselves, each man at his tent door. ¹¹Adonai would speak to Moshe face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Then he would return to the camp; but the young man who was his assistant, Y’hoshua the son of Nun, never left the inside of the tent.

(iii) ¹²Moshe said to Adonai, “Look, you say to me, ‘Make these people move on!’ But you haven’t let me know whom you will be sending with me. Nevertheless you have said, ‘I know you by name,’ and also, ‘You have found favor in my sight.’ ¹³Now, please, if it is really the case that I have found favor in your sight, show me your ways; so that I will understand you and continue finding favor in your sight. Moreover, keep on seeing this nation as your people.” ¹⁴He answered, “Set your mind at rest — my presence will go with you, after all.” ¹⁵Moshe replied, “If your presence doesn’t go with us, don’t make us go on from here. ¹⁶For how else is it to be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people, other than by your going with us? That is what distinguishes us, me and your people, from all the other peoples on earth.”

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

The biblical story of Moses is one marked by powerful encounters with the high authority of man used to being successful, used to being in charge, used to being obeyed, used to standing in the presence of leaders of nations and the presence of God. Though he did not know it, from thee very beginning of his life Moses was a man of controversy, a fugitive, and anointed by God to fulfill God’s heart for his children to be set free from captivity and safe under his lordship.

From birth, Moses was divinely set apart to lead God’s people back into right relationship with God. And this calling was fulfilled because of God’s desire to consistently meet with Moses and show up through his life in miraculous ways.

In looking at the life of Moses, two types of encounters with God stand out as especially transformative and illustrative of God’s heart to meet with his people. As we look at these two examples of God meeting Moses, may Scripture fill your heart with a desire to meet with your heavenly Father as Moses did.

First, Exodus 3:1-6 gives us insight into the first real encounter Moses had with the Great I Am. Scripture says,

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

In the miraculous story of the burning bush, we see God’s grace and divine favor on the life of an undeserving under a sentence of death man. Moses had fled the scene after murdering an Egyptian for assaulting a Hebrew man. For years he had been hiding in the desert, living outside of any real earthly impact.

But God called Moses out of the wilderness into a life of deep, eternal impact.

Second, we see God’s merciful and forgiving heart to consistently meet with Moses in the Tent of Meeting found in Exodus 33:7-11. Scripture says,

Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, far off from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought the Lord would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp. Whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people would rise up, and each would stand at his tent door, and watch Moses until he had gone into the tent. When Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent, and the Lord would speak with Moses. And when all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, all the people would rise up and worship, each at his tent door. Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.

How incredible is the magnitude of the heart of our God that he would choose to meet alone with Moses “face to face, as a man speaks to his friend.”

If God would deliberately meet with Moses, a man who has not been redeemed by the sacrifice of Jesus, how much more would he meet with you and me?

If God, who created the universe in six days would show grace to Moses, how much more available is grace to us who have God himself dwelling within us!

You and I have access to relationship far greater than a face-to-face encounter like Moses had. We have God’s Spirit within us fellowshipping with our Spirit.

How Can We Feel God’s Presence?

John 14:7-15 Amplified Bible

Jesus’ Oneness with the Father

⁷If you had [really] known Me, you would also have known My Father. From now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”

⁸Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father and then we will be satisfied.” ⁹Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time, and you do not know Me yet, Philip, nor recognize clearly who I am? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’ ¹⁰Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words I say to you I do not say on My own initiative or authority, but the Father, abiding continually in Me, does His works [His attesting miracles and acts of power]. ¹¹Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe [Me] because of the [very] works themselves [which you have witnessed]. ¹²I assure you and most solemnly say to you, anyone who believes in Me [as Savior] will also do the things that I do; and he will do even greater things than these [in extent and outreach], because I am going to the Father. ¹³And I will do whatever you ask in My name [^[a]as My representative], this I will do, so that the Father may be glorified and celebrated in the Son. ¹⁴If you ask Me anything in My name [as My representative], I will do it.

¹⁵“If you [really] love Me, you will keep and obey My commandments.

John 14:18-24 Amplified Bible

¹⁸“I will not leave you as orphans [comfortless, bereaved, and helpless]; I will come [back] to you. ¹⁹After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also. ²⁰On that day [when that time comes] you will know for yourselves that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you. ²¹The person who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who [really] loves Me; and whoever [really] loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and reveal Myself to him [I will make Myself real to him].” ²²Judas (not Iscariot) asked Him, “Lord, what has happened that You are going to reveal Yourself to us and not to the world?” ²³Jesus answered, “If anyone [really] loves Me, he will keep My word (teaching); and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our dwelling place with him. ²⁴ One who does not [really] love Me does not keep My words. And the word (teaching) which you hear is not Mine, but is the Father’s who sent Me.

Jesus’ disciples were upset. For three years they had been with Jesus.

They had walked with him and talked with him face to face. And now he was about to leave. How could they possibly go on without seeing him face to face?

How could they face the challenges of life without his daily presence?

In his farewell address the Lord Jesus put the disciples’ minds at ease.

He told them that his returning to the Father was for their good (John 16:7).

He promised to send the Holy Spirit, who would live in them and teach them about living for God.

And through the Spirit they’d be able to enjoy God’s presence always.

Through the Holy Spirit you and I can experience God’s face to face, heart to heart presence every moment of the day. All we have to do is ask in prayers.

Jesus says Luke 11:13, “If you … know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

The most important prayer we can pray each day is to ask for the all-powerful presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit.

When we have the Holy Spirit guiding us each day, we will not only experience God’s presence in our own lives, but we’ll also be able to show God’s presence to others as we live God’s way, displaying the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).

True restored relationship finds its source in continual, unending encounters with God’s presence, His Holy Spirit dwelling with us, within us and upon us.

Approaching God with Confidence

Hebrews 4:14-16 Amplified Bible

¹⁴Inasmuch then as we [believers] have a great High Priest who has [already ascended and] passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession [of faith and cling tenaciously to our absolute trust in Him as Savior]. ¹⁵For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize and understand our weaknesses and temptations, but One who has been tempted [knowing exactly how it feels to be human] in every respect as we are, yet without [committing any] sin. ¹⁶Therefore let us [with privilege] approach the throne of grace [that is, the throne of God’s gracious favor] with confidence and without fear, so that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find [His amazing] grace to help in time of need [an appropriate blessing, coming just at the right moment].

Priests were God’s chosen servants; they served as mediators between God and his people.

They worked in the temple, praying for the people and bringing their sacrifices to God.

They offered sacrifices on behalf of the people to make atonement for their sins.

And only the high priest was allowed to enter the most holy place to stand before God.

Earlier in Hebrews, Jesus is referred to as the “faithful high priest.” Here, in chapter 4, he is called the “great high priest.”

This means he is actually the greatest of all high priests.

He is the One, the Only, true High Priest.

Jesus is the greatest because, unlike all the others, he “has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.” Because he is sinless and perfect, he is now able to stand before God as the one who can make atonement for our sins.

Because of his perfect life, Jesus’ atonement for our sins is real and lasting.

For this reason, we do not need to be afraid to enter God’s presence; in fact, we can have “assurance and confidence” when we approach God.

We can be assured and we can be confident that with our entrance we will surely “receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

Please, please, please, don’t be afraid to approach God.

God went to Moses ….

God went to all men and women and children – John 3:16-21

¹⁶“For God so loved the world that he gave his only and unique Son, so that everyone who trusts in him may have eternal life, instead of being utterly destroyed. ¹⁷For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but rather so that through him, the world might be saved. ¹⁸Those who trust in him are not judged; those who do not trust have been judged already, in that they have not trusted in the one who is God’s only and unique Son.

¹⁹“Now this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, but people loved the darkness rather than the light. Why? Because their actions were wicked. ²⁰For everyone who does evil things hates the light and avoids it, so that his actions won’t be exposed. ²¹But everyone who does what is true comes to the light, so that all may see that his actions are accomplished through God.”

Instead, approach him with confidence, knowing that even though we cannot do this in our own strength, we can do it through Jesus, the great High Priest.

May we bravely pursue the greater portion of our face to face, heart to heart relationship with our heavenly Father today. May our Spirit come alive as we grow in our awareness of God’s Spirit. May we have powerful, transformative encounters with God’s presence likened to that which Moses experienced.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on God’s desire to meet with Moses. Allow Scripture to fill you with a longing to meet with God as Moses did.

“When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ Then he said, ‘Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.’ And he said, ‘I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.” Exodus 3:4-6

“When Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent, and the Lord would speak with Moses. And when all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, all the people would rise up and worship, each at his tent door. Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.” Exodus 33:9-11

2. Where can you make your tent of meeting? Where and when, can, will you consistently encounter the presence of God and meet with your heavenly Father face-to-face?

3. Take time to meet with God as Moses did. Open your heart and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal his nearness.

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” John 14:15-17

Having a consistent time and place to meet with God allows us to develop a rhythm by which we grow in experiencing God’s presence.

To have our own Tent of Meeting is vital to Christian spirituality.

Choose a place and time that won’t get disrupted and will help you center your life around meeting with your heavenly Father.

These is absolutely nothing more critical, more important or pressing than seeing the face of God, being transformed by his love and nearness every day.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 84 Complete Jewish Bible

84 ⁽⁰⁾For the leader. On the gittit. A psalm of the sons of Korach:

^2 (1)How deeply loved are your dwelling-places,
Adonai-Tzva’ot!
^3 (2)My soul yearns, yes, faints with longing
for the courtyards of Adonai;
my heart and body cry for joy
to the living God.

^4 (3)As the sparrow finds herself a home
and the swallow her nest, where she lays her young,
[so my resting-place is] by your altars,
Adonai-Tzva’ot, my king and my God.

^5 (4)How happy are those who live in your house;
they never cease to praise you! (Selah)
^6 (5)How happy the man whose strength is in you,
in whose heart are [pilgrim] highways.

^7 (6)Passing through the [dry] Baka Valley,
they make it a place of springs,
and the early rain clothes it with blessings.
^8 (7)They go from strength to strength
and appear before God in Tziyon.

^9 (8)Adonai, God of armies, hear my prayer;
listen, God of Ya‘akov. (Selah)
^10 (9)God, see our shield [the king];
look at the face of your anointed.
^11 (10)Better a day in your courtyards
than a thousand [days elsewhere].
Better just standing at the door of my God’s house
than living in the tents of the wicked.

¹^2 (11)For Adonai, God, is a sun and a shield;
Adonai bestows favor and honor;
he will not withhold anything good
from those whose lives are pure.

^13 (12)Adonai-Tzva’ot,
how happy is anyone who trusts in you!

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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Elohim Shama: The God Who Hears. Exodus 2:23-25

Exodus 2:23-25 Amplified Bible

²³Now it happened after a long time [about forty years] that the king of Egypt died. And the children of Israel (Jacob) groaned and sighed because of the bondage, and they cried out. And their cry for help because of their bondage ^[a]ascended to God. ²⁴ So God heard their groaning and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Israel). ²⁵God saw the sons of Israel, and God took notice [of them] and was concerned about them [knowing all, understanding all, remembering all].

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

The beginning of the beloved Christmas movie “It’s a Wonderful Life” depicts many people praying simultaneously, and the juxtaposition of voices — to our ears — becomes a cacophony of noise.

How exactly, we wonder, does God separate each voice to hear individual prayers? Does He answer them all? Then we wonder, “Does God hear me?”

The question posed is a perplexing one when viewed through our human lens.

How does God keep everyone’s praises and prayers straight?

How does He hear them all?

And, in a far more personal nature, how exactly do I know He hears me?

The answer, of course, is to regard who God is and how we are to “see” Him according to what Scripture teaches us.

We’ll investigate what the Bible says, and because of what His Word says, we are assured He does hear Christians’ prayers (which encompasses all of our communication with God).

We will understand God gives “ear” to our needs according to His will and according to His own timing.

Where Does the Bible Say God Hears Us?

The Bible is God-breathed, meaning He inspired the writers to impart His exact words into the canon of Scripture (2 Timothy 3:16).

When we read the Bible, we are reading God’s very words to us.

Therefore, any implication about God hearing the writers tells us He hears us.

In fact, one of His covenant names is Elohim Shama – The God who hears (Exodus 2:24; Psalm 139:1; Philippians 4:19; Hebrews 4:14-16).

Yes, He hears us.

What is Elohim Shama in Hebrew?

“Elohim Shama” is not an official name of God, it refers to the fact that God hears… He listens, He Hears.

Elohim Shama: The God who Listens, The God Who Hears

But He doesn’t merely hear our words; He is also moved by the unvoiced groanings of our hearts (Romans 8:26).

What does Shama means in the Bible?

to hear, to listen

Obedience in Hebrew is: shama (שָׁמַע). It means to hear, to listen, to give attention, to understand, to submit to, and to obey.

There is only one word in Hebrew for obedience, and it is this word – shama.

This Hebrew word is also generally translated as “hear”.

What does Jehovah Shammah mean?

“The Lord is There”

Jehovah-Shammah is found Ezekiel 48:35,

“The distance around the entire city will be 6 miles. And from that day the name of the city will be ‘The Lord is There.”

Jehovah-Shammah is the name of God that means I am the Lord who is there and is symbolic of Jerusalem. This name promises His presence.

The following short list cements the truth God hears us:

King David cried to the Lord in many psalms, and he knew God heard him.

Psalm 6:8-9 English Standard Version

⁸Depart from me, all you workers of evil,
for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping.
⁹The Lord has heard my plea;
the Lord accepts my prayer.

Psalm 18:6-19 English Standard Version

⁶In my distress I called upon the Lord;
to my God I cried for help.
From his temple he heard my voice,
and my cry to him reached his ears.

⁷Then the earth reeled and rocked;
    the foundations also of the mountains trembled
    and quaked, because he was angry.
⁸Smoke went up from his nostrils,^[a]
    and devouring fire from his mouth;
    glowing coals flamed forth from him.
⁹He bowed the heavens and came down;
    thick darkness was under his feet.
¹⁰He rode on a cherub and flew;
    he came swiftly on the wings of the wind.
¹¹He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him,
    thick clouds dark with water.
¹²Out of the brightness before him
    hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.

¹³The Lord also thundered in the heavens,
    and the Most High uttered his voice,
    hailstones and coals of fire.
¹⁴And he sent out his arrows and scattered them;
    he flashed forth lightnings and routed them.
¹⁵Then the channels of the sea were seen,
    and the foundations of the world were laid bare
at your rebuke, O Lord,
    at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.

¹⁶He sent from on high, he took me;
    he drew me out of many waters.
¹⁷He rescued me from my strong enemy
    and from those who hated me,
    for they were too mighty for me.
¹⁸They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
    but the Lord was my support.
¹⁹He brought me out into a broad place;
    he rescued me, because he delighted in me.

Psalm 19 English Standard Version

The Law of the Lord Is Perfect

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

19 The heavens declare the glory of God,
    and the sky above^[a] proclaims his handiwork.
²Day to day pours out speech,
    and night to night reveals knowledge.
³There is no speech, nor are there words,
    whose voice is not heard.
⁴Their voice^[b] goes out through all the earth,
    and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
⁵    which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
    and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
⁶Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
    and its circuit to the end of them,
    and there is nothing hidden from its heat.

⁷The law of the Lord is perfect,^[c]
    reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure,
    making wise the simple;
⁸the precepts of the Lord are right,
    rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure,
    enlightening the eyes;
⁹the fear of the Lord is clean,
    enduring forever;
the rules^[d] of the Lord are true,
    and righteous altogether.
¹⁰More to be desired are they than gold,
    even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey
    and drippings of the honeycomb.
¹¹Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
    in keeping them there is great reward.

¹²Who can discern his errors?
    Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
¹³Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
    let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
    and innocent of great transgression.

¹⁴Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

The psalmist, Asaph, wrote a definitive and uncontestable verse which tells us God hears us, “I cry aloud to God, aloud to God, and He will hear me” (Psalm 77:1).

The Lord Jesus tells us He (God) hears us, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7).

How Does God Hear Us?

We must remember God is wholly unlike any of His creation.

He does not “listen” as do we, for we cannot fathom all He is.

When we listen to someone, our minds are, more often than not, racing around in distraction, thinking about what’s for lunch, or how many minutes are left on my parking meter, silly things such as what some other person was thinking when they decided on a particular hair style.

We’d love it if our thoughts could be completely focused on our subject and what they are saying, but we often “aren’t there,” we miss important details.

For our mighty God, however, His listening skills are perfect.

We never need worry He is otherwise distracted, because in His infinite being, He “hears” perfectly, beyond our scope of comprehension.

God is Spirit (John 4:24); He has no physical nature that would include eyes, ears, etc.

Lest we get caught in theological details about God as Spirit, however, we need to understand how God “hears.”

Due to God’s sovereign condescension, He has graciously chosen to reveal Himself to us by speaking in ways that we can understand.

The Bible, therefore, uses anthropomorphic language to give us God’s revelation of Himself to humankind.

The immutable truth is God is incomprehensible, yet in His kindness has chosen to make Himself known in a way to which we can relate. God, in His omniscience, already knows everything, including what we will soon pray.

Because God has incommunicable attributes such as omniscience, omnipresence, omnipotence, etc., we are only able to comprehend Him via His communicable (moral) attributes and we were, created in His Image to reflect God in them, albeit not equally (only He is perfect in His moral attributes).

God “hears” us because of who He is and how He created us in His image.

Pastor and theologian R.C. Sproul adds,

“We are a composite being made up of body and spirit. We are spiritual yet finite humans; God is infinite Spirit who is not bound by a body.”

As far as God’s holy essence is completely different from His creation,

“God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change his mind. Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not fulfill it?” (Numbers 23:19).

Yet God deigns to intervene in the works of man, to vividly reveal His love of us by the Scripture that speaks truthfully of how He hears our cries (Psalm 61:1).

What if I Don’t Feel Like God Hears Me?

We cannot expect God to answer us with an audible voice from heaven or with a “sign.” What we have is the Holy Scriptures, and from the Holy Spirit working in us through them, we “receive understanding, insight, and wisdom.”

2 Peter 1:3 gives us great hope, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence.”

It is through the Bible we learn about the Lord Jesus and grow in His grace and knowledge. As we read and study God’s Word, we learn how He wants us to live, and our prayers and petitions will be guided by His Spirit based on His Word.

No matter our emotional state or physical circumstances, God listens, hears our cries to Him.

It’s true God always answers our prayers.

The answer is either, “yes,” “no,” or “wait.” We are, however, a people who desire and sometimes demand immediate answers, so waiting is very hard.

But as we wait for His answers, we are to occupy ourselves with kingdom work and with careful study of the Bible.

As we take the time to learn more of God’s Word, many answers to our prayers will become apparent, will be revealed to us by Holy Spirit, and we can act in a righteous manner because of how God has revealed His will through his Word.

So then, when God graciously and mercifully answers our prayers, the solutions will come through the study of His Word and/or godly counsel, wisdom, from a more mature believer who knows Scripture and daily strives to live a holy life.

“When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles” (Psalm 34:17).

Here we need to remember deliverance may come here, or not until heaven.

We can pray with confidence because God does hear us and He will respond.

We may think He is silent, but when we remember He speaks to us every day through His Word (Psalm 19, Hebrews 4:12), we know He isn’t being silent; we’re just looking for our answers to “materialize: in all those wrong places.

We aren’t to go to the Lord with demands, for when He hears us, He’s listening to see if we are coming before Him with hearts that are being sanctified as we attempt to live holy lives.

The Bible speaks of God’s omniscience, “Who has measured the Spirit of the LORD, or what man shows Him his counsel? Whom did He consult, and who made him understand? Who taught him the path of justice, and taught Him knowledge, and showed Him the way of understanding?” (Isaiah 40:13-14).

God knows what we will ask before it is even on our hearts (Psalm 139:4), and, more importantly, He knows what we need.

“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him” (Matthew 6:7-8).

This passage tells us what to pray for, and it precedes the Disciples’ Prayer, which teaches us how to pray (Matthew 6:9-13).

How Should I Pray?

We saw above the Lord Jesus taught His disciples (we too as Christians are His disciples) how to pray.

The Apostle John later wrote, “And this is the confidence that we have toward Him, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of Him” (1 John 5:14-15, emphasis added).

At first glance, it appears He will give us we want, but that’s not the case.

The key phrase is, according to His will.

How do we know His will? By fearing God and keeping His commandments, which King Solomon said is the “whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).

We know Him by His creation (general revelation) and by His Word (special revelation).

Nicodemus, learned from Jesus the only way to know His will is to become a Christian, grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus by immersing yourself in His Word, and surrounding yourself with godly people (the church).

John 3:1-8 English Standard Version

You Must Be Born Again

3 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. ²This man came to Jesus^[a] by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” ³Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again^[b] he cannot see the kingdom of God.” ⁴Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” ⁵Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. ⁶That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.^[c] ⁷Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You^[d] must be born again.’ ⁸The wind^[e] blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Once we do all of that, we will come before the Lord with right motives and petitions, with patience as He hears, answers our prayers in His perfect time.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 4 Complete Jewish Bible

4 ⁽⁰⁾For the leader. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David:

^2 (1)O God, my vindicator!
Answer me when I call!
When I was distressed, you set me free;
now have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.

^3 (2)Men of rank, how long will you shame my honor,
love what is vain, chase after lies? (Selah)
^4 (3)Understand that Adonai sets apart
the godly person for himself;
Adonai will hear when I call to him.
^5 (4)You can be angry, but do not sin!
Think about this as you lie in bed,
and calm down. (Selah)
^6 (5)Offer sacrifices rightly,
and put your trust in Adonai.

^7 (6)Many ask, “Who can show us some good?”
Adonai, lift the light of your face over us!
^8 (7)You have filled my heart with more joy
than all their grain and new wine.
^9 (8)I will lie down and sleep in peace;
for, Adonai, you alone make me live securely.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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We Are Created in the Image of God: It’s The Beginning of the Good News. Anyone Ready For it? Genesis 1:26-31

Genesis 1:26-31 Complete Jewish Bible

²⁶Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, in the likeness of ourselves; and let them rule over the fish in the sea, the birds in the air, the animals, and over all the earth, and over every crawling creature that crawls on the earth.”

²⁷So God created humankind in his own image;
in the image of God he created him:
male and female he created them.

²⁸God blessed them: God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea, the birds in the air and every living creature that crawls on the earth.” ²⁹Then God said, “Here! Throughout the whole earth I am giving you as food every seed-bearing plant and every tree with seed-bearing fruit. ³⁰And to every wild animal, bird in the air and creature crawling on the earth, in which there is a living soul, I am giving as food every kind of green plant.” And that is how it was. ³¹God saw everything that he had made, and indeed it was very good. So there was evening, and there was morning, a sixth day.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

Good news begins right at the beginning. The good news found at the beginning of things in Genesis 1 is there is a God who makes and upholds all that there is, and that we humans, male, female, are made in the image of this amazing God.

We don’t look like God, of course, for God is Spirit—but this means, among other things, that we are God’s representatives. We are called to take care of all that God has made—and not just the creatures mentioned in these verses, but also the unfolding of all human history that follows, in all its deep complexity.

Amazing! Mere mortals are endowed by their Creator with the dignity and the honor of representing the infinite God, acting on God’s behalf to care for his creation with all its diverse infinite potential. We are God’s agents with a most prestigious, singularly unique job description – Stewards of Creation. And this leads us, with high joy, gratitude, to a profound sense of identity and calling.

This is good news for everyone, of course—but perhaps especially for people whose sense of identity and purpose are diminished, are uncertain, whose own ability to live creatively, joyfully and fully, completely and purposefully are held back because of poverty or anything else that hinders their participation in life.

Good news for the poor begins with a reminder that they all bear God’s image.

God has been reaching out since the beginning of time—desiring to live in a close relationship with all of humankind But because of our sin…because we have turned our backs on God and (in essence) told Him to butt out of our lives…we are separated from Him.

From the start, God has created a way for us to reconnect to Him by offering us salvation: an incredible gift of grace that comes through the life, death, and resurrection of His son, Jesus. And we receive this gift of grace the moment we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior—turning our lives over to Him completely.

Each and everyone of us comes to this decision differently because each and every one of us has a uniquely different experience…or path, journey to Jesus.

Even though each of our journeys is singularly unique, the Bible shows us that there are some key (and consistent) components every true follower of Jesus experiences.

Let’s look at those five key components…

STEP 1 – Hear the Gospel

As you may already know, the “gospel” literally means “good news.” The good news of the gospel begins with God, the Creator of everything. And He is holy…which means He is set apart from anything that is un-holy. And God is perfect (or whole), without any defect. And He is righteous…which means God always does what is right. And He is just. His justice is always fair.

So, because God is the Creator; Holy, Righteous, Perfect and Just, we have a problem. We who are human are none of those things. We are created by God (in his image), but — here’s the bad news — we are everyone of us, without any exceptions, fallen and broken and un-very holy…imperfect, unrighteous and unjust, learned PhD’s in sinning. Just as the Apostle Paul writes in Romans…

“What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. And just in case you thought you could try to be good enough to earn good standing with God.” – Romans chapter 3, verses 9-12

Exactly how many broken links (or sins) does it take to break the chain of our connection to God)? The answer: One. All it takes is one broken link or one sin to break our connection God. And all of us have sinned—at least once.

All of us, without exception have broken our connection to God. Another thing we might tell ourselves is, “If I really clean up my act…it will automatically be enough to connect me back to God.”

Once again, as Paul writes…

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” – Romans 3:23

So there it is. The Bad News.

But here’s the Good News. Here’s the gospel…

“But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished — he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.” – Romans 3:21-26

Sin separates us from God. And what is sin? The biblical definition of sin is actually an archery term meaning: missing the mark. We have all sinned or missed the mark of God’s perfection. And the punishment for this is death. Someone has to pay for these mistakes. We all know, deep in our hearts, what justice is. When a wrong has been committed, someone has to pay for it.

The Good News is that Jesus — the Incarnation or God in the Flesh — the one who never sinned or missed the mark, took our place and paid for our mistakes.

Jesus took on ALL our sin when he died on the cross.

The Apostle Paul put it this way…

“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” – Romans 5:1-11

So, while we were still sinners…still living in our sinful way of life, God showed his love for us in Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross.

That’s GRACE.

Grace is unmerited favor or getting something wonderful that you didn’t earn or deserve. And you can’t pay for it or earn it.

All you can do is accept this wonderful, eternal gift.

One of the best ways to remember the meaning of grace is this acronym:

Grace = God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.

STEP 2 – Believe

At some point, after hearing the Gospel, you believe in your heart that all this stuff is true.

That God is holy.

That you, me, we are separated from Him and that you can only be reconciled or reconnected back to God through Jesus.

And that belief is so strong that you are “cut to the heart”.

You have that utter realization that the only way back to God is through Jesus.

This is the way some of the first people to hear the Good News felt…

“When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’” – Acts 2:37

This “cutting to the heart” can only come from God.

Just as Jesus says here…

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.” – John 6:44

Looking back over this, we Hear the Gospel, then Believe what we’ve heard and then we repent.

STEP 3 – Repent

“To “repent” literally means to “turn away”.

We must turn away from sin or turn our backs to sin…putting our backs to our old way of life. And when we turn from sin, we naturally turn towards God—doing a complete about face. As Jesus was spreading the Good News He said…

“The time has come,” (Jesus said). “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” – Mark 1:15

The next logical step to repenting from our old way of life, from our old life of sinning is to share this change in our hearts or to confess to some other people what’s happened.

STEP 4 – Confess

Confession or to confess simply means to say it out loud—to say what is true out loud and publicly recognize that: God is holy and perfect and you are not.

Confessing to other people means our speaking to our true belief that God has reconnected you back to Him through Jesus…because Jesus has taken your sin to the cross, and that you want to repent and so turn away from our sins and from our sinful past.

Paul says it best here…

“That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” – Romans 10:9-10

But from the beginning it needs to be clearly understood the journey isn’t over.

It continues and will continue on and on and on because this is all about becoming more like Jesus.

As we begin this new life as a follower of Jesus, we have this gift of the Holy Spirit…which is God’s Spirit literally living inside us…guiding us and prompting us to grow and become more and more like Him. More and more like Jesus. And we do this by following Jesus’ words found in the Bible—through Bible study.

And we do this by reminding ourselves we are living and acting as Jesus did.

Doing the things Jesus did, like loving others, caring for the “least of these.”

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 8 New American Standard Bible 1995

The Lord’s Glory and Man’s Dignity.

For the choir director; on the Gittith. A Psalm of David.

8 O Lord, our Lord,
How majestic is Your name in all the earth,
Who have ^[a]displayed Your splendor above the heavens!
²From the mouth of infants and nursing babes You have established ^[b]strength
Because of Your adversaries,
To make the enemy and the revengeful cease.

³When I ^[c]consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ^[d]ordained;
⁴What is man that You ^[e]take thought of him,
And the son of man that You care for him?
⁵Yet You have made him a little lower than ^[f]God,
And You crown him with glory and majesty!
⁶You make him to rule over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,
⁷All sheep and oxen,
And also the ^[g]beasts of the field,
⁸The birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea,
Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

⁹O Lord, our Lord,
How majestic is Your name in all the earth!

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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Proverbs 1:1-7 Complete Jewish Bible

While I do not want to be thought of as an “all wise know-it-all,” I definitely don’t want to be a fool.

If any of us, are fool enough to believe we are all wise

Pray For One Another So That You May Be Healed

Try To Turn Back Those Who Stray From The Truth

Psalm 14 Complete Jewish Bible

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Proverbs 2:1-5 Complete Jewish Bible

There is a Whole Lot of “If’s” Going on Here …

So, Let the Truth be Told … So, Let God be Revealed

Devoted Ourselves to Prayer and the Word of God

The Word of God Prospered

Ezra Reads and Explains the Law

Jesus Explains: I Came To Do God’s Will. The Harvest Is Ripe

א (Alef)

ב (Bet)

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Proverbs 24:15-16 The Message

27

Good men have resilient souls!

Psalm 15 The Message

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Psalm 130 Names of God Bible

Psalm 130

A song for going up to worship.

Coming to Faith: Trust His Love Has Redeemed Us

Christ’s Gifts to the Church

Psalm 15 Names of God Bible

Psalm 15

A psalm by David.

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Psalm 32:1-6 Complete Jewish Bible

Sin, Guilt and Your Health – A Health Devotional.

Sin, Guilt and Health – What the Bible Says

Relieving The Burden of our Guilt and God’s Grace

Psalm 42 Complete Jewish Bible

Book II: Psalms 42–72

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Psalm 145 Names of God Bible

Psalm 145[a]

A song of praise by David.

David’s Generational Psalm of Praise

Psalm 103

By David.

Psalm 29

A psalm by David.

Psalm 19 Names of God Bible

Psalm 19

For the choir director; a psalm by David.

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Psalm 16 English Standard Version

You Will Not Abandon My Soul

A Miktam[a] of David.

Solomon’s Prayer

God’s Answer

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Exodus 33:7-16 Complete Jewish Bible

How Can We Feel God’s Presence?

Jesus’ Oneness with the Father

Approaching God with Confidence

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Exodus 2:23-25 Amplified Bible

Where Does the Bible Say God Hears Us?

The Law of the Lord Is Perfect

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

How Does God Hear Us?

What if I Don’t Feel Like God Hears Me?

How Should I Pray?

You Must Be Born Again

Psalm 4 Complete Jewish Bible

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Genesis 1:26-31 Complete Jewish Bible

Psalm 8 New American Standard Bible 1995

The Lord’s Glory and Man’s Dignity.

For the choir director; on the Gittith. A Psalm of David.

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Psalm 145^[a]

A Miktam^[a] of David.