Tag: God

Why Do I, Might I, Should I, Would I, EVER Desire to Doubt My Salvation? Psalm 37:34-40

Psalm 37:34-40 New American Standard Bible 1995

34 Wait for the Lord and keep His way,
And He will exalt you to inherit the land;
When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

35 I have seen a wicked, violent man
Spreading himself like a luxuriant [a]tree in its native soil.
36 Then [b]he passed away, and lo, he was no more;
I sought for him, but he could not be found.
37 Mark the [c]blameless man, and behold the upright;
For the man of peace will have a [d]posterity.
38 But transgressors will be altogether destroyed;
The [e]posterity of the wicked will be cut off.
39 But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
He is their strength in time of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and delivers them;
He delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they take refuge in 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.

What have I to dread, what have I to fear,
leaning on the everlasting arms?
I have blessed peace with my Lord so near,
leaning on the everlasting arms. Text: Elisha A. Hoffman

Most of us have had frightening times during our Christian walk where we doubt our salvation and the salvation of our family members and friends.

Knowing what they believe, knowing what they think, knowing their mindset, in comparison and contrast to what I know I believe, what I think, my mindset.

In light of events from the recent General Conference of the United Methodist Church, the seismic shift of beliefs, of orthodoxy, leaves many to wonder if a whole portion of the Body of Christ has just turned their backs on Salvation.

Isaiah 53:1-6 New American Standard Bible 1995

The Suffering Servant

53 Who has believed our message?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 For He grew up before Him like a tender [a]shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has no stately form or majesty
That we should look upon Him,
Nor appearance that we should [b]be attracted to Him.
3 He was despised and forsaken of men,
A man of [c]sorrows and acquainted with [d]grief;
And like one from whom men hide their face
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

4 Surely our [e]griefs He Himself bore,
And our [f]sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
[g]Smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But He was [h]pierced through for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our [i]well-being fell upon Him,
And by His scourging we are healed.
6 All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all
To [j]fall on Him.

“All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way”

Rather than feeling secure in our salvation, going astray to our own way, do we now feel somehow that we are not really saved. Maybe we feel we didn’t believe “enough” or we feel we wouldn’t doubt our salvation if we were truly saved.

If we are going through this or have gone through this, or know somebody is, or wonder if someone or a whole group of someone’s, or suddenly become aware there are others whom God sees, has compassion for where we ourselves are lacking or ignoring because of our deeply seeded biases and prejudices or self imposed legalistic “do not touch” avoidance measures, know you are not alone.

With words and phrases such as “who has believed our message, And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” and Romans 10:14 “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him  whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?“ in the Word of God,

It’s probably very common for believers to doubt their salvation at least once during our lives, non believers to wonder about another Christians salvation. 

Micah 6:6-8 New American Standard Bible 1995

What God Requires of Man

6 With what shall I come to the Lord
And bow myself before the God on high?
Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings,
With yearling calves?
7 Does the Lord take delight in thousands of rams,
In ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts,
The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justice, to love [a]kindness,
And to walk [b]humbly with your God?

Knowing what God Requires of me, am I Really Saved?

Personally, I have faced the question of “Am I actually saved?” countless times.

Just last week I had the same question come into my mind after finishing the Gospel of Matthew.

Rather than focusing on the salvation that Jesus has given us,

I was focused on all of Jesus’ statements on hell, of weeping and gnashing of teeth, on “begone I knew you not,” the very foreboding words of Matthew 25.

All the admonishments of “always being ready, the Parables of the Talents, and the soils and always investing myself into the work of laboring, planting toiling harvesting” of the Kingdom of God but find myself too biased, too hesitant, too fearful of too many unproven self imposed prejudices and untouchable beliefs.

I started connecting salvation with works, which is never very good to do.

While Jesus does talk more about hell than any other topic during His earthly ministry, he never tells us that if we place faith in Him, we will go to hell. 

There is so much irrational over rationalization coming from too many places.

What have I to dread, what have I to fear,
leaning on the everlasting arms?
I have blessed peace with my Lord so near,
leaning on the everlasting arms. Text: Elisha A. Hoffman

Salvation is based solely on placing faith in Jesus (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Placing faith in Jesus means believing that Jesus died for your sins, was buried, and rose again (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).

The Lord tells us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17).

As Jesus tells us, the Father loves us so much that He sent His Son to die for us. 

Moreover, Jesus tells us that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.

Now, if you’re like me and have been told John 3:16-17 too many times for you to count, most likely the effect of the verse has been watered down, washed out.

Since you’ve heard it so many times, John 3:16-17 has become mindless words.

If it has become mindless words to you, the all encompassing truth of the verses have become muddied, have become an ocean of quicksand, I then challenge all of us to carefully read and pray John 3:16-17 just as I did, see how it highlights the deeper truths of God’s love, how we have eternal life by believing in Jesus.

Our heartfelt believing in Jesus is sufficient for salvation. (Romans 10:9-13)

We don’t have to follow the law in its completeness, nor are we required to be the “perfect” Christian people.

By the words of truth contained in Acts 4:8-12, rather, believing in Jesus and accepting Him as your Savior and Lord is all that is required for salvation.

8 Then Peter, [a]filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “[b]Rulers and elders of the people, 9 if we are [c]on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, [d]as to how this man has been made well, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that [e]by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—[f]by [g]this name this man stands here before you in good health. 11 [h]He is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief corner stone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

We cannot earn salvation in any other way. Salvation is by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-10).

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and [a]that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

There is nothing we can do to earn salvation, and there is nothing we can do to lose it. There are many people who spread the lie that one can lose salvation, but this isn’t true. Once you have placed faith in Jesus, you are eternally saved.

Doubting Salvation 

Truth is we don’t have to know the exact moment when we were saved in order to be saved. As long as we have placed our heartfelt faith in Him, we are saved.

Yet, even with this being established, we can still often doubt our salvation.

Even many strong Christians I know also have doubted their salvation at some point. I have been around Christian pastors, professors and read from Christian authors how they, have doubted their salvation at least once in their lifetime.

What of the Samaritan woman at the well who has been divorced five times?

What of the woman with the chronic years long issue of blood for whom no cure could be found no matter how much money was spent, which doctor treated her in that chronic never ending state of “hopelessly unclean and untouchable?”

If mankind wants nothing to do with me, wont talk to me, wont even touch me, ignores me, ignores my family and friends, my people, go so far and treats me like the Leper’s walling me off from society trying to separate me from my God?

Those thoughts, beliefs and actions have not disappeared in thousands of years!

No one would stand innocent of these grievous sins before the judgment of God!

Doubts are ever before me, crashing into my thoughts

Truth also is (Genesis 3) The one who plants these seeds of doubt is Satan.

The devil wants to make us unproductive for the Lord and cause us to stumble.

By planting uncountable numbers of the seeds of doubt in our minds, it is the perfect way to make us unfruitful for the Lord. Instead of going out and making disciples or growing in our own walk with Jesus, we are being plagued by the lies of Satan—that we aren’t ever saved or that we didn’t believe “enough.”

These doubts are enough to paralyze or make you question your entire beliefs.

As someone who has been there, know you are not alone.

Know also that these lies are but lies, and they are not true.

If you have placed your heartfelt faith in Jesus, you are saved.

You believe, and you believe enough.

My Pastor in my Lay Speaking and Licensing classes talked deeply about this subject as it was something he freely confessed also had struggled with during his early years of walking with the Lord and in his call into ordained ministry.

He shared his epiphany that there is no point in someone believing more than someone else.

As long as you heartfelt believe in Jesus, you are saved.

There are no differing degrees of belief, nor are there people who believed more than you or knew more than you, were older wiser that would nullify your faith. 

When you believe, you believe.

You did not have “not enough” faith when you placed faith in Christ.

The devil wants to cause these doubts to rise in our minds, but we can talk back to them. Whenever you doubt your salvation, pray to God, talk back to the lies.

Tell them that Jesus saved you and that you are saved.

Nothing and nobody can take away your salvation.

Remind yourself that you are eternally saved by God, and this will never change.

Acts 4:12 tells us, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

Jesus is the ONLY Name we are saved by.

We are not saved based on our works.

Rather, we are saved by the Name of Jesus.

When doubts circle your mind too much, and you find yourself paralyzed, call out to God and ask Him for His help. It’s God alone who reads all of our hearts.

1 Samuel 16:7 New American Standard Bible 1995

7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for [a]God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

As Psalm 51 so rightfully teaches; Tell Him you are struggling with assurance of your salvation and that you need exactly Him to fill your heart with the blessed assurance of knowing you are completely and unconditionally saved in Him.

While these thoughts may return, you can talk back to them and ask God for His help again and then by Psalm 32, communicate the truth about His forgiveness.

Psalm 32 New American Standard Bible 1995

Blessedness of Forgiveness and of Trust in God.

A Psalm of David. A [a]Maskil.

32 How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered!
2 How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit!

3 When I kept silent about my sin, my [b]body wasted away
Through my [c]groaning all day long.
4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
My [d]vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. [e]Selah.
5 I acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I did not hide;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”;
And You forgave the [f]guilt of my sin. Selah.
6 Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You [g]in a time when You may be found;
Surely in a flood of great waters they will not reach him.
7 You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble;
You surround me with [h]songs of deliverance. Selah.

8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go;
I will counsel you with My eye upon you.
9 Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding,
Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check,
Otherwise they will not come near to you.
10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
But he who trusts in the Lord, lovingkindness shall surround him.
11 Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous ones;
And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.

Causing you to doubt your salvation is a common tactic of Satan because he knows it is efficient.

Don’t allow Satan the pleasure of doubting your salvation or feeding into it. If you have placed heartfelt faith in Jesus and accepted Him as your Savior and Lord, you are eternally saved. You are given forgiveness of sins, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and eternal life. None of these things will ever be taken from you. 

Confide in God

Matthew 11:28-30 New American Standard Bible 1995

28 “Come to Me, all [a]who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is [b]easy and My burden is light.”

Whenever you begin doubting your salvation, turn to God.

Tell Him your doubts and ask Him to help you overcome your unbelief.

He is faithful, and He will help you in your time of need.

As you continue to grow in your walk with Christ, you might have these doubts rise again, but talk back to them and return to the Bible.

Remind yourself of John 3:16-17 and how salvation is only found in the Lord.

Placing faith exclusively in Christ is the only requirement for salvation.

There is no way for someone to be saved apart from Christ.

A person cannot earn their own salvation nor do other faith systems save a person.

The Source of Salvation

Psalm 37:34-40 The Message

34 Wait passionately for God,
    don’t leave the path.
He’ll give you your place in the sun
    while you watch the wicked lose it.

35-36 I saw Wicked bloated like a toad,
    croaking pretentious nonsense.
The next time I looked there was nothing—
    a punctured bladder, vapid and limp.

37-38 Keep your eye on the healthy soul,
    scrutinize the straight life;
There’s a future
    in strenuous wholeness.
But the willful will soon be discarded;
    insolent souls are on a dead-end street.

39-40 The spacious, free life is from God,
    it’s also protected and safe.
God-strengthened, we’re delivered from evil—
    when we run to him, he saves us.

Every person wants a life that is rich, full, abundant, and free.

These good things satisfy the deepest longings of our heart.

We receive these gifts by focusing on our creator God.

St. Augustine of Hippo, an early church leader, wrote these words to God:

“Our hearts are restless until they find rest in you.”

Our inner peace comes when we turn our life over to God, who made us.

By the revealed Word of God, by the revealed truth inside, We yearn for a special relationship with God, but it can be hard for us to rest in him. We don’t see God; we don’t hear, smell him or talk with him the way we do with people around us.

Our relationship with God is different from every other relationship in life.

God is absolutely unique.

How do I find and focus on God?

Where do I get faith in God?

What makes me feel that God and I belong together?

Thankfully, knowing God is a gift from him.

He reveals himself freely.

David discovered that and wrote about it in Psalm 37.

You want the great life with God?

Just ask for it. Jesus said, “Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete” (John 16:24).

John 16:21-24 The Message

21-23 “When a woman gives birth, she has a hard time, there’s no getting around it. But when the baby is born, there is joy in the birth. This new life in the world wipes out memory of the pain. The sadness you have right now is similar to that pain, but the coming joy is also similar. When I see you again, you’ll be full of joy, and it will be a joy no one can rob from you. You’ll no longer be so full of questions.

23-24 “This is what I want you to do: Ask the Father for whatever is in keeping with the things I’ve revealed to you. Ask in my name, according to my will, and he’ll most certainly give it to you. Your joy will be a river overflowing its banks!

God wants us to ask for all kinds of things like this that are within his will for us (see 1 John 5:14).

1 John 5:14-15The Message

The Reality, Not the Illusion

13-15 My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God’s Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion. And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he’s listening. And if we’re confident that he’s listening, we know that what we’ve asked for is as good as ours.

Ask God to make himself known to you.

He did that already when his Son, Jesus, died for you.

This is the time for a right relationship with God!

Only Jesus died for our sins and was resurrected three days later.

Only Jesus is God in the flesh (John 1:14; Philippians 2:6-8).

The Lord has the victory, defeated death, and all who will place faith in Him, too, will overcome death and spend eternity with Him. (1 Corinthians 15:50-57)

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

Let us Pray,

How desperately I want a rich and right relationship with you, dear God. Thank you for giving it as a gift through the death and resurrection of your son, Jesus. Amen.

Psalm 24 The Message

24 1-2 God claims Earth and everything in it,
    God claims World and all who live on it.
He built it on Ocean foundations,
    laid it out on River girders.

3-4 Who can climb Mount God?
    Who can scale the holy north-face?
Only the clean-handed,
    only the pure-hearted;
Men who won’t cheat,
    women who won’t seduce.

5-6 God is at their side;
    with God’s help they make it.
This, Jacob, is what happens
    to God-seekers, God-questers.

7 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
    King-Glory is ready to enter.

8 Who is this King-Glory?
    God, armed
    and battle-ready.

9 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
    King-Glory is ready to enter.

10 Who is this King-Glory?
    God-of-the-Angel-Armies:
    he is King-Glory.

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/

Continually Being Reminded by God exactly who we are: the Worlds Worst and Greatest Sinners! 1 Timothy 1:15

1 Timothy 1:15-17New American Standard Bible 1995

15 It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. 16 Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those [a]who would believe in Him for eternal life. 17 Now to the King [b]eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory [c]forever and ever. Amen.

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.

Am I the World’s Worst, World’s Greatest Sinner?

When we think of the Apostle Paul, we think of a Saint.

Yet, here in the opening words of his letter to his protégé Timothy, in his own words, written by his own thoughts, he counted himself the very worst sinner.

But how is that even possible, because Paul wrote much of the New Testament? 

Paul, more than most of us, had a deep understanding of what it means to be a sinner. He didn’t look at others around him and feel any better about himself.

He recognized the depth of sin that was born within him, and each one of us is so deep, that, without a Savior, sin taints our blood to the point of eternal death.

He understood very well that there is no difference between a little sinner and a big sinner. Without Jesus, all sin leads into the same destructive destination.

A Little Self-Examination Goes a Long Way

It’s easy to look at others and feel like we’re doing better overall. But with this type of attitude can come pride and haughtiness. 

Proverbs 16:18 explains how “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”

2 Corinthians 13:5 urges us to “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?”

2 Corinthians 13:5-9 The Message

5-9 Test yourselves to make sure you are solid in the faith. Don’t drift along taking everything for granted. Give yourselves regular checkups. You need firsthand evidence, not mere hearsay, that Jesus Christ is in you. Test it out. If you fail the test, do something about it. I hope the test won’t show that we have failed. But if it comes to that, we’d rather the test showed our failure than yours. We’re rooting for the truth to win out in you. We couldn’t possibly do otherwise.

We don’t just put up with our limitations; we celebrate them, and then go on to celebrate every strength, every triumph of the truth in you. We pray hard that it will all come together in your lives.

Sometimes, we decide how we’re doing compared to another person, rather than looking at God’s word to see how we’re doing in life. Often, if we do, we’ll discover more areas of our lives where we are off-track in following God’s ways.

Worldly Effects

So many people today, some Christians included, are living their lives based on how well or poorly others seem to be doing.

With nearly continual moment by moment social media’s daily updates, many individuals, across the globe, are comparing their lives to the lives of others to see if they are succeeding or see what they need to do next to get ahead in life.

But as believers in Jesus Christ, we don’t want to follow the world’s leading but look to God for our future. 

1 John 2:15 warns, “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.”

1 John 2:15-17 The Message

15-17 Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.

As well, Paul in Romans 12:2 urges, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Romans 12:1-2 The Message

Place Your Life Before God

12 1-2 So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

Being conformed to current cultural trends, the world can be so gradual in our lives, that we don’t recognize what direction we may be taking in life. Before long, we can be miles off course without really knowing what’s taking place. 

Feeding Our Faith

When it comes to matters of living into a steadfast and immovable faith, we don’t just stay in one place; we are either growing steadily in it or we’re slowly, steadily slipping back into worldly patterns and thinking without realizing it.

James 1:13-15The Message

13-15 Don’t let anyone under pressure to give in to evil say, “God is trying to trip me up.” God is impervious to evil, and puts evil in no one’s way. The temptation to give in to evil comes from us and only us. We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust. Lust gets pregnant, and has a baby: sin! Sin grows up to adulthood, and becomes a real killer.

So how do we keep the world at bay?

Paul states, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14).

Philippians 3:12-14 The Message

Focused on the Goal

12-14 I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back.

As James 1:27 explains, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

James 1:26-27 The Message

26-27 Anyone who sets himself up as “religious” by talking a good game is self-deceived. This kind of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world.

Jesus Sets Us Free from the Power of Sin

Like Paul, we want to remember that sin can so fool us, easily lead us astray.

Genesis 3:1-7 The Message

3 The serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal God had made. He spoke to the Woman: “Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?”

2-3 The Woman said to the serpent, “Not at all. We can eat from the trees in the garden. It’s only about the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘Don’t eat from it; don’t even touch it or you’ll die.’”

4-5 The serpent told the Woman, “You won’t die. God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you’ll see what’s really going on. You’ll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil.”

6 When the Woman saw that the tree looked like good eating and realized what she would get out of it—she’d know everything!—she took and ate the fruit and then gave some to her husband, and he ate.

7 Immediately the two of them did “see what’s really going on”—saw themselves naked! They sewed fig leaves together as makeshift clothes for themselves.

Because sin can be so insidious, so maliciously subtle. we do not want to lose sight of where our Salvation lies and where our power to resist sin comes from.

Romans 5:21 explains, “So that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Romans 5:20-21 The Message

20-21 All that passing laws against sin did was produce more lawbreakers. But sin didn’t, and doesn’t, have a chance in competition with the aggressive forgiveness we call grace. When it’s sin versus grace, grace wins hands down. All sin can do is threaten us with death, and that’s the end of it. Grace, because God is putting everything together again through the Messiah, invites us into life—a life that goes on and on and on, world without end.

We are set free from its power, as Romans 6:14 describes, “For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.”

Romans 6:14The Message

12-14 That means you must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives. Don’t give it the time of day. Don’t even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life. Throw yourselves wholeheartedly and full-time—remember, you’ve been raised from the dead!—into God’s way of doing things. Sin can’t tell you how to live. After all, you’re not living under that old tyranny any longer. You’re living in the freedom of God.

Intersecting Faith & Life:

Psalm 139:23-24 The Message

23-24 Investigate my life, O God,
    find out everything about me;
Cross-examine and test me,
    get a clear picture of what I’m about;
See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—
    then guide me on the road to eternal life.

Am I, are you, are we, the Body of Christ, the church, comparing ourselves to how most people in the world are living their lives for direction in your own?

If so, look to God’s Word, plumb its depths to see where we are in our faith.

119 1-8 You’re blessed when you stay on course,
    walking steadily on the road revealed by God.
You’re blessed when you follow his directions,
    doing your best to find him.
That’s right—you don’t go off on your own;
    you walk straight along the road he set.
You, God, prescribed the right way to live;
    now you expect us to live it.
Oh, that my steps might be steady,
    keeping to the course you set;
Then I’d never have any regrets
    in comparing my life with your counsel.
I thank you for speaking straight from your heart;
    I learn the pattern of your righteous ways.
I’m going to do what you tell me to do;
    don’t ever walk off and leave me.

Ask Him to examine each one of our collectives heart and collective souls and reveal the remotest areas where we have unknowingly wandered far off track. 

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

Let us Pray,

Psalm 119:9-16 The Message

9-16 How can a young person live a clean life?
    By carefully reading the map of your Word.
I’m single-minded in pursuit of you;
    don’t let me miss the road signs you’ve posted.
I’ve banked your promises in the vault of my heart
    so I won’t sin myself bankrupt.
Be blessed, God;
    train me in your ways of wise living.
I’ll transfer to my lips
    all the counsel that comes from your mouth;
I delight far more in what you tell me about living
    than in gathering a pile of riches.
I ponder every morsel of wisdom from you,
    I attentively watch how you’ve done it.
I relish everything you’ve told me of life,
    I won’t forget a word of it.

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/

Maybe now is the right time for us all to be reminding ourselves of just who God says we are? 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 New American Standard Bible 1995

16 Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our  inner man is being renewed day by day. 17 For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, 18 while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

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.

 In a world filled with endless mixed messages, it’s easy to get lost in the fog and be deceived by half-truths or flat-out fabrications of God’s Word.

Just take a gander at some commonly used phrases below.

This, too, shall pass.

God helps those who help themselves.

God works in mysterious ways.

God will never give you more than you can handle.

The eyes are the window into the soul.

Treat others the way you want to be treated.

Spare the rod and spoil the child. And on and on.

While many of these well-known statements contain good wisdom and little nuggets of truth, some even referred to or “noted” in the Scriptures, they are often badly taken out of context to spin, weave some sort of personal narrative.

While generally shared in a purposeful and meaningful way to express a softer sentiment or extend comfort, these platitudes can undermine the words of our Savior, causing us take our eyes of the Bible and to lose sight of the real truth.

That said, now, more than ever, we need to have handheld copies of the Bible, maybe even in multiple translations, so when something doesn’t seem to add up or make sense, we can go straight to His Word and seek to find the real and absolute truth God is trying to reveal to us.

In addition, there are even more mixed messages in today’s culture about how we identify, that baffle many, including believers, about who God says we are.

For example, do we know how many total genders are there?

Besides being male and female, there are 72 other genders, which include the following: Agender: A person who does not identify themselves with or experience any gender. Agender people are also called null-gender, genderless, or gender -void or neutral gender. Abimegender: which is Associated with being profound, deep, and infinite.

https://www.medicinenet.com/what_are_the_72_other_genders/article.htm

About trying to sort out these identifications, still being a “good neighbor,” in the divisiveness which currently exists in the church, communicate the gospel?

Communicate, evangelize those who have been “marginalized” by these highly volatile, highly charged, highly politicized and politically motivated divisions?

Are we really precious in His sight? Priceless? Cherished? A one-of-a-kind, unique creation made on purpose? Are we really fully known and fully loved? 

Who are we, exactly?

More importantly, nonjudgmentally communicating who does God say we are?

Well, my dear friend, I invite you to grab your Bible and open it up so we can discover some sweet verses that declare who God says you are.

While the list below only scratches the surface, let it prayerfully become a new, refreshed springboard to relish in His love as He proclaims who He says we are!

Then let His Words, beautiful truths, settle into your heart, reminding you that you were so intricately made with love and called to a greater purpose, setting your sights beyond this world and embracing eternity. (2 Corinthians 4:18).

1. God says we are each His beloved child.

1 John 3:1-2 New American Standard Bible 1995

Children of God Love One Another

3 See [a]how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.

The very nature of our God is love, which envelops His holiness, purity, righteousness, compassion, justice, and mercy.

While God loves all His creation, when we make our heartfelt profession of faith, we each immediately become His “beloved” children (Romans 10:9-13)

Being a beloved child of God is a powerful statement that holds so much significance as no other relationship will even come close or compare (1 Corinthians 13:11-13).

11 When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I [a]became a man, I did away with childish things. 12 For now we see in a mirror [b]dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. 13 But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the [c]greatest of these is love.

When we understand the gravity of that, we learn to revere and respect God as Father.

You are the beloved child of the Creator of the universe, and He wants to have an intimate and personal relationship with you. Tuck that in your heart today!

2. God says we are each chosen.

1 Peter 2:9-10 New American Standard Bible 1995

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have  received mercy.

God has always had a special place in His heart for the people of Israel.

We see this weaved throughout the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 7:6).

6 For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for His [a]own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the [b]earth.

As believers, we have the honor and privilege of gaining a spiritual connection to God through the Lord Jesus Christ.

In His sovereignty, God chose you (Titus 1:1-3, Ephesians 1:10-14).

I know it is naïve of me to ask; Can we each just say “Praise be to God for that?”

3. God says we are each His holy temple.

1 Corinthians 3:16-20 New American Standard Bible 1995

16 Do you not know that you are a [a]temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If any man destroys the [b]temple of God, God will destroy him, for the [c] temple of God is holy, and [d]that is what you are.

18 Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, “He is the one who catches the wise in their craftiness”; 20 and again, “The Lord knows the reasonings of the wise, that they are useless.”

Paul is addressing the church in Corinth, stating that as a church body, God dwells inside of us, allowing each one of us to go forth and live on a mission.

As a church, we are to honor this sacred and holy dwelling and use it to connect and reflect on the nature of God, deepening our faith while also striving to reach out to the lost and unbelievers. God says we are to live with a mission mindset.

We are the light to a lost and dark world (Matthew 5:14-16)!

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a [a]hill cannot be hidden; 15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a [b]basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

4. God says we are each made in His image.

Genesis 1:26-27 New American Standard Bible 1995

26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the [a]sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

God never takes His creation lightly.

In fact, when He speaks things into existence, there is value and a grander plan far beyond what we will fully know or begin to understand.

That being said, the very specific human blueprint not only claims we differ from anything else He created but that God’s unique and distinct love for us is quite beautiful and wholly and entirely “one of a kind” unique. Psalm 139:13-18

We matter so deeply to Him that He made us with attributes that resemble His own so that we can connect with Him in a meaningful and purposeful way. Just take time to ponder the thought next time you see your reflection in the mirror.

5. God says we are each valuable. 

Matthew 6:25-26 New American Standard Bible 1995

The Cure for Anxiety

25 “For this reason I say to you, [a]do not be worried about your [b]life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the [c] air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?

In this teaching exchange, Jesus reminds His followers (and us) that our value is far more than that of any other creation, and therefore, if He cares for their basic needs, how much more will He care for us, His most beloved creation?

Obviously enough to ensure our salvation so that we can spend eternity with Him (1 Peter 1:17-19)!

17 If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth; 18 knowing that you were not [a]redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, 19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.

Yes, we are each, without exception, in the eyes of God, seen as a far beyond priceless treasure, which is why Jesus paid it all so we could each freely live. 

There are more and more examples of Holy Scripture which I will continue to bring to you in future posts of this blog. So, please be anticipating, expectant.

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!
2 From the mouth of infants and nursing babes You have established [b]strength
Because of Your adversaries,
To make the enemy and the revengeful cease.

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

9 O 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.

https://translate.google.com/

A Contemporary Response to Hannah and for Those Mothers who Identify: “God Sees You, God Will Touch You!” 1 Samuel 1:19-23

1 Samuel 1:19-23 New American Standard Bible 1995

Samuel Is Born to Hannah

19 Then they arose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord, and returned again to their house in Ramah. And Elkanah [a]had relations with Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her. 20 It came about [b]in due time, after Hannah had conceived, that she gave birth to a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked him of the Lord.”

21 Then the man Elkanah went up with all his household to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and pay his vow. 22 But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, “I will not go up until the child is weaned; then I will bring him, that he may appear before the Lord and stay there forever.” 23 Elkanah her husband said to her, “Do what seems best [c]to you. Remain until you have weaned him; only may the Lord confirm His word.” So the woman remained and nursed her son until she weaned 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.

A Message to Hannah … I See You This Mother’s Day!

In the days of Elkanah, Peninnah, and Hannah, polygamy was acceptable.

Also in those days a woman’s worth was measured mainly by how many sons she had.

As the years crawled by and Hannah remained infertile, her sorrow grew.

But her pain made fertile soil for spiritual growth.

She prayed fervently.

Many people find that their deepest trials draw them closer to God.

Hannah learned that God is the one to whom all people and all things belong.

One day Hannah was praying so intensely that when a man of God, Eli, saw her, he thought she was drunk.

He ordered her to get rid of her wine.

But she had not been drinking.

She said to him, “I was pouring out my soul to the Lord… I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.”

Then Eli encouraged her and said, “Go in peace.”

“In the course of time” little Samuel was born to Hannah and Elkanah.

Because Samuel was a gift of God, Hannah dedicated him to the service of the Lord.

He became one of the most faithful leaders of God’s people.

Infertility still cuts deep into the lives of many couples.

This story does not promise that all infertile couples will have children.

It does reassure us that those who stay close to the heart of God in the their pain and pray for the face of God will see God work things out for his good purpose.

God’s 2024 Message To Our Hannah Moms: “Surely, As I saw Hannah, I See You This Mother’s Day too!”

1 Samuel 1:19-23 Complete Jewish Bible

19 They got up early in the morning and worshipped before Adonai, then returned and came to their house in Ramah.

Elkanah had sexual relations with Hannah his wife, and Adonai remembered her. 20 She conceived; and in due time she gave birth to a son, whom she named Sh’mu’el, “because I asked Adonai for him.”

21 The husband, Elkanah, went up with all his household to offer the yearly sacrifice to Adonai and fulfill his vow. 22 But Hannah did not go up, explaining to her husband, “Not till the child has been weaned. Then I will bring him, so that he can appear before Adonai and live there forever.” 23 Her husband Elkanah answered her, “Do what seems good to you; stay here until you have weaned him. Only may Adonai bring about what he said.” So the woman stayed behind and nursed the child, until she weaned him.

Mother’s Day is today, and in the name of our Savior, I want to say “I see you, and more importantly, God sees you. He honors the important work you are doing.”

I see you, Momma-To-Be…

As you are waiting, expecting, and anticipating this whole new world to come. 

May the joy of the Lord be your strength. May you know that God is with you and God will touch you as you help to usher miraculous new life into this world. Your strength is impressive and miraculous. Your ability to co-create with God is beyond stunning.

I see you, Expectant Momma…

Who feels unsure, unwell, unready, scared of how to bring life into the world.

Would our strong God equip you with all you need to mother his Creation. Would God’s supernatural provision be for you a significant part of your story. Would you know that every child is made in the image of God. He will guide you on this journey and help you even in the moments that feel so heavy you surely think you may break.

I see you, Birth Momma…

As you wonder, miss, pray, and grieve this Mother’s Day. 

God sees your heart. God upholds, strengthens, your heart. He is there to care for all your children, even as they are growing up with another mother that also loves them. Giving the gift of life is an amazing gift. Your willingness to love a child by carrying, nurturing them in your body and giving birth is so noble. Your motherhood matters.

I see you, Grieving-Yet-Hopeful Mother…

Wishing, watching, waiting, worshiping, pondering, praying, persevering for the day, that by God’s grace, you get to join the ranks of Mothers that came before you. 

God knows the deepest desires of your heart and is close to you as you walk through those disappointments, medical appointments, loss, and waiting.

May God give you strength and purpose as you walk this tough road. May God remind you that you are so valuable just as you are. No matter what the future holds for you and your family you are strong, beautiful, and God loves you.

I see you, Mom-Who-Has-Lost…

Miscarriage… the loss of a child before their time… stillborn, seeing a child slip away to tumultuous waves, storms or lifestyle choices… other losses that burden your soul. 

The God of all comfort is with you always. God is there to hold your hand, God is there to uphold. May God whisper his sustaining love into your ears, may you know you are never alone even when life feels heavier than your soul can bear.

I see you, Foster Mother…

As you stand in the gap for children and families who are in need of support. 

As God heard, remembered Hannah, captured all of her tears in a bottle, God sees your love, your prayers, and your sacrifice. He knows you are so attached and loves your willingness to pour out your life for the sake of the least of these around you. May He give you the strength and wisdom you need to walk this stretching road.

I see you, Single, Separated, Divorced Momma…

As you try to meet so many needs all on your own. 

May God bring a supportive community around you that steps in to offer you all their prayers, friendship and material support you need on your mothering journey. Would you’ll know that you are doing good and meaningful work. You are strong, beautiful, capable, and by all your prayers, may God give you wisdom for each and every day.

I see you, Empty-Nesting-Momma…

As you do the work of letting go of the little birds you sacrificed everything for, poured every resource of your life into, with hopes they would one day soar. 

May you one day delight in seeing how your sacrificial investment into your children is now producing beautiful fruit in their lives. In due time and in the seasons to come, Would you know too that there is true purpose and truest joy to be found in this new season. That evolving, changing, letting go, gives way to God’s guidance to new life.

I see you, New-Oh-So-Tired-Momma…

As you wonder how much more you can give before you actually give out. 

May God bring you His supernatural rest this Mother’s Day. Remember, this too shall pass. Allow, permit yourself, the grace to find rest, without carrying that sneaky Mom guilt. Mom, this is a marathon, not a sprint. Breaks are required to do this job well.

I see you, Adoptive Mom…

As you went through the long and expensive process of adoption, as you love so fiercely, as you look upon a child you did not give birth, and wonder if your love is going to be enough, if you are going to be strong enough, courageous enough and bold enough, able enough, to raising them, doing this adoption thing well. 

Would God give you the knowledge and wisdom you need to navigate the triad of your adoptee, their first family, and your home. Would you have peace to know that even when your love isn’t enough, God is! He is the healer of our wounds and the keeper of our children. He promises them a hope and a future. God’s got you!

I see you, Kinship Care Momma…

As you love and care for children you never expected to care for as your own.

Your courage and willingness to step up for the children in your family or community is miraculously beautiful. May God be with you in this utmost challenging, sacrificial role. Would God, through His presence. strengthen you when the work feels heavy.

I see you, Stepmom…

As you work to create a home that blends different stories into one unit. 

In His time, Would God make something beautiful in your home. May he do abundantly more than you could ask or ever imagine, on your family’s behalf.

To all the mothers out there; no matter your story, loss, place on this journey, if you feel like you are rocking it at this job or if you feel like you are failing or are a failure … The eternally beautiful truth is God sees you upholds and loves you!

Galatians 6:9 says, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

Galatians 6:9-10The Message

9-10 So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit. Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the people closest to us in the community of faith.

The work of motherhood is good work.

Don’t give up.

The reward is one that is counted in sweet tender embraces, in milestones met, through forgiveness, grace, lessons learned, and memories made.

Motherhood is a lifetime of prayers, sacrifice, service, unconditional love, apologies, growth, tears, laughter, joy, worship of God and so much more.

Please remember this Mother’s Day, that Isaiah 40:11 says,

“He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.”

Isaiah 40:11 Amplified Bible

11 
He will protect His flock like a shepherd,
He will gather the lambs in His arm,
He will carry them in His bosom;
He will gently and carefully lead those nursing their young.

The God who comforts and guides is faithful to lead you on this wild journey.

Momma, always Celebrate God as God always Celebrates You!

Everyone else, always Celebrate Momma as God always Celebrates Her!

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

Let us Pray,

“Dear Lord, on this day dedicated to celebrating and honoring You, honoring and celebrating mothers, we thank You for the blessings of motherhood. We are grateful for our mothers’ love, strength, and guidance in the shaping our lives. Guide them and Bless them all with joy, peace, and love on this special day and always. Amen.”

Psalm 139:13-18 Complete Jewish Bible

13 For you fashioned my inmost being,
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I thank you because I am awesomely made,
wonderfully; your works are wonders —
I know this very well.
15 My bones were not hidden from you
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes could see me as an embryo,
but in your book all my days were already written;
my days had been shaped
before any of them existed.
17 God, how I prize your thoughts!
How many of them there are!
18 If I count them, there are more than grains of sand;
if I finish the count, I am still with 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.

https://translate.google.com/

While we are all too busy going our own ways, following the tunes of our own heart beats and ignoring others’, Are we Hearing the Heartbeat Of God? 1 Samuel 13:13-14

1 Samuel 13:13-14 The Message

13-14 “That was a fool thing to do,” Samuel said to Saul. “If you had kept the appointment that your God commanded, by now God would have set a firm and lasting foundation under your kingly rule over Israel. As it is, your kingly rule is already falling to pieces. God is out looking for your replacement right now. This time he’ll do the choosing. When he finds him, he’ll appoint him leader of his people. And all because you didn’t keep your appointment with 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.

Have you ever laid your head down on top of someone’s chest and heard their heartbeat.

If you were to do that you had to be pretty close to the individual whose heart you heard.

Unless you were a Doctor or a Nurse or a related healthcare professional, You don’t just go up to someone on the street and say “May I listen to your heart?”

I can only begin to imagine the wild array and diversity of words and phrases that would come spewing out of peoples mouths in that moment of intrusion.

Many quote 1 Samuel 16:7 and say that David is a man after God’s heart but never tell us clearly what the heartbeat sounds like.

1 Samuel 16:7 The Message

7 But God told Samuel, “Looks aren’t everything. Don’t be impressed with his looks and stature. I’ve already eliminated him. God judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; God looks into the heart.”

I want to do the best I can to try and help you the reader along with laying our heads on God the Fathers Chest, trying to hear His heartbeat over our very own.

What is God’s desire, what does He really want?

What do we learn as we hear the heartbeat of God?

The heartbeat of God is the heart of man.

Mark 7:14-23 The Message

14-15 Jesus called the crowd together again and said, “Listen now, all of you—take this to heart. It’s not what you swallow that pollutes your life; it’s what you vomit—that’s the real pollution.”

17 When he was back home after being with the crowd, his disciples said, “We don’t get it. Put it in plain language.”

18-19 Jesus said, “Are you being willfully stupid? Don’t you see that what you swallow can’t contaminate you? It doesn’t enter your heart but your stomach, works its way through the intestines, and is finally flushed.” (That took care of dietary quibbling; Jesus was saying that all foods are fit to eat.)

20-23 He went on: “It’s what comes out of a person that pollutes: obscenities, lusts, thefts, murders, adulteries, greed, depravity, deceptive dealings, carousing, mean looks, slander, arrogance, foolishness—all these are vomit from the heart. There is the source of your pollution.”

I. God desires men and women’s hearts

Why is Go so concerned with our hearts.

Is it just that God is a completely selfish tyrant that believes it belongs only to Him?

The answer is Yes and no.

As our creator our hearts belong to Him first and foremost.

It is not merely for Him that he desires our hearts.

Listen Closely to the words of Jesus.

Mark 7: 21-23 “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit sensuality, envy slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceeds from within and defile the man.”

Jesus just gave the reason for evil in the World of man it is the hear t of man.

It is evil.

Jesus clearly told us why our upward, outward relationships are out of whack.

A) The Upward and Outward

Mark 12:28-34

Mark 12:28-34 The Message

The Most Important Commandment

28 One of the religion scholars came up. Hearing the lively exchanges of question and answer and seeing how sharp Jesus was in his answers, he put in his question: “Which is most important of all the commandments?”

29-31 Jesus said, “The first in importance is, ‘Listen, Israel: The Lord your God is one; so love the Lord God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence and energy.’ And here is the second: ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’ There is no other commandment that ranks with these.”

32-33 The religion scholar said, “A wonderful answer, Teacher! So clear-cut and accurate—that God is one and there is no other. And loving him with all passion and intelligence and energy, and loving others as well as you love yourself. Why, that’s better than all offerings and sacrifices put together!”

34 When Jesus realized how insightful he was, he said, “You’re almost there, right on the border of God’s kingdom.”

After that, no one else dared ask a question.

If you remember the story a group of Pharisees, Sadducees, and scribes were trying to trap Jesus.

Now think about this with me.

If he were a man wouldn’t it have been terribly easy for them to trip Jesus up.

I mean this was a carpenter’s son.

Don’t Forget He is the Son of God.

One man asked him what some believe to be a sincere question.

What is the foremost commandment of all?

Jesus’ answer reflected Moses’ plus Leviticus: Hear O Israel, the Lord is one God Love Him with your all. All you heart, soul, mind, and strength. The second Is this, you shall love you neighbor as yourself, there is no other commandment greater.

It is clear and has been said that Jesus summarized the ten commandments.

He clearly showed us that our upward relationship to God must be right for our outward relationships to be right.

A relationship with God does not create murder, evil thought, theft, adultery, envy, deceit, pride or foolishness.

Are you at the end of your rope in your relationship with your husband, with you wife, with you children, friends, co-workers.

Realize if they are not a Christian then you have the very great opportunity of showing them what a real God can do for relationships.

B) The Kingdom of God

The Upward is where Matthew talks of the Kingdom of God.

The phrase Kingdom of God or Kingdom of Heaven is used more than 100 times in the New Testament.

The word Kingdom comes from a Greek word that means not territory but means dominion.

So we see that the domain of God is the heart.

The throne of the King of Kings is the heart of those who believe.

Why is this so important.

He is also the wonderful counselor, professional sessions every minute of every day. He is the prince of peace. For the peace of heart and mind He must sit on the throne. He is the Mighty God. The Great Physician. On and on we could Go.

If Jesus were authentically in complete dominion of all the hearts of churches there would be no division or rancor, no chaotic competition with our culture because there is One Lord, One Baptism, one Mission, The Kingdom of God.

That is what Home for you Heart for the world is about.

John 14:15-17 The Message

The Spirit of Truth

15-17 “If you love me, show it by doing what I’ve told you. I will talk to the Father, and he’ll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can’t take him in because it doesn’t have eyes to see him, doesn’t know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you!

Letting God be at home within us so that our hearts will be shaped, reshaped and slowly, but inevitably transformed to care for others being our neighbors.

Romans 12:1-2 The Message

Place Your Life Before God

12 1-2 So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

Transformation: Hearts of Stone into Hearts of Flesh

Ezekiel 36:26-28 The Message

24-28 “‘For here’s what I’m going to do: I’m going to take you out of these countries, gather you from all over, and bring you back to your own land. I’ll pour pure water over you and scrub you clean. I’ll give you a new heart, put a new spirit in you. I’ll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that’s God-willed, not self-willed. I’ll put my Spirit in you and make it possible for you to do what I tell you and live by my commands. You’ll once again live in the land I gave your ancestors. You’ll be my people! I’ll be your God!

A Heart of Truth:

1 Timothy 2:4-7 The Message

4-7 He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we’ve learned: that there’s one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us—Jesus, who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free. Eventually the news is going to get out. This and this only has been my appointed work: getting this news to those who have never heard of God, and explaining how it works by simple faith and plain truth.

This is an anonymous quote,

“The relationship between truth and holiness is similar to that between light and Vision. Light cannot create an eye or give a blind eye vision, but It is essential to seeing. Wherever light penetrates, it dissipates darkness and brings everything into view. In a similar manner, truth cannot regenerate or impart spiritual life, but it is essential to the practice of holiness. Wherever truth penetrates, it dissipates error and reveals everything for what it really is.”

When we have hearts of truth we see things as God sees them.

We no longer laugh at sin we hate sin. I don’t know about you but the longer I live the more uncomfortable I become in this world.

It seems that there is enormous untruth many places we turn.

The news media, social media, politicians, religious people, and ministers too.

God desires to create in us a heart of truth so that through our lives he can use us to reveal untruth to others.

A heart that is filled with truth will know mercy and will know forgiveness.

B) A Heart of forgiveness

I would say mercy and forgiveness is the long forgotten fruit of Christians.

Jesus on the Cross “father forgive them for they do not know what they do.”

I have the secret to all the problems in the church as well as our Christian lives;

Colossians 3:12-14 The Message

12-14 So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.

A man named John Oglethorpe, while talking to John Wesley, once made the comment, ‘I never forgive.”

Mr. Wesley wisely replied, “Then Sir, I hope you never sin either.”

A heart of un-forgiveness cannot know the great God of mercy and grace.

Un-forgiveness starts out as a fortress yet ultimately becomes a prison with bars of bitterness and chains of hatred.

A heart filled with forgiveness will be a heart that yearns to serve.

C) A Heart of service

Acts 13:16-22 The Message

16-20 Paul stood up, paused and took a deep breath, then said, “Fellow Israelites and friends of God, listen. God took a special interest in our ancestors, pulled our people who were beaten down in Egyptian exile to their feet, and led them out of there in grand style. He took good care of them for nearly forty years in that godforsaken wilderness and then, having wiped out seven enemies who stood in the way, gave them the land of Canaan for their very own—a span in all of about 450 years.

20-22 “Up to the time of Samuel the prophet, God provided judges to lead them. But then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul, son of Kish, out of the tribe of Benjamin. After Saul had ruled forty years, God removed him from office and put King David in his place, with this commendation: ‘I’ve searched the land and found this David, son of Jesse. He’s a man whose heart beats to my heart, a man who will do what I tell him.’

What does it mean to serve God.

What does it mean to have a heart of service.

It means no matter the cost no matter the distance we do God’s will.

The late 19th century Evangelist Reverend DL Moody once said, “The measure of a man is not how many servants he has, but how many men he serves.”

III. God desires to deploy people after His own heart

Romans 10:8-10 New American Standard Bible 1995

8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” —that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 9 [a]that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, [b] resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, [c] resulting in salvation.

Romans 10:10 “For with the heart a person believes resulting in righteousness. and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.”

A heart for the world begins with hearing the heart of God.

So God desires our hearts to always be ready, willing and able to serve so he can create in us a new heart of truth, true mercy forgiveness, and authentic service.

He is telling us in His word we should redeem the time for the days are evil.

Matthew 24:42-51 New American Standard Bible 1995

Be Ready for His Coming

42 “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. 43 But [a]be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be [b]broken into. 44 For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.

45 “Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his [c]master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46 Blessed is that slave whom his [d]master finds so doing when he comes. 47 Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48 But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My [e]master [f]is not coming for a long time,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards; 50 the [g]master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, 51 and will  [h]cut him in pieces and [i]assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

He is saying to all of our Churches: “I have appointed you for such a time as this.”

Just as an Army Ranger is told Go before they repel or parachute out of some air craft. Just as Air Force pilots are given the go ahead , just as marines are told go as they take to the field of battle, Navies sets sails. God has clearly told us to Go!

The real heart of God is the kingdom of God. The rule of God in the hearts, minds, and lives of people. Lord’s prayer, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Conclusion:

The heartbeat of God is the heart of man.

It was in Jesus Christ that this good news really was communicated clearly.

Mark 1:14-17 New American Standard Bible 1995

Jesus Preaches in Galilee

14 Now after John had been [a]taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, [b] preaching the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God [c]is at hand; repent and [d]believe in the gospel.”

16 As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”

Acknowledgement in our hearts to the summons from God; the Good news will come easily from your lips, when Jesus Christ reigns completely in your heart.

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

Let us Pray,

Psalm 61 New American Standard Bible 1995

Confidence in God’s Protection.

For the choir director; on a stringed instrument. A Psalm of David.

61 Hear my cry, O God;
Give heed to my prayer.
2 From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint;
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
3 For You have been a refuge for me,
A tower of strength [a]against the enemy.
4 Let me [b]dwell in Your tent forever;
Let me take refuge in the shelter of Your wings. [c]Selah.

5 For You have heard my vows, O God;
You have given me the inheritance of those who fear Your name.
6 You will [d]prolong the king’s [e]life;
His years will be as many generations.
7 He will [f]abide before God forever;
Appoint lovingkindness and truth that they may preserve him.
8 So I will sing praise to Your name forever,
That I may pay my vows day by day.

How is your heart today?

Why is your heart feeling like it is today?

Where is your heart today?

Why is your located where it is today?

We can never have a heart for the world if God is not home in ours!!

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/

We Will All Worship Something: The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and Valuable Pearl. Matthew 13:44-50

Matthew 13:44-50 The Message

44 “God’s kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field for years and then accidentally found by a trespasser. The finder is ecstatic—what a find!—and proceeds to sell everything he owns to raise money and buy that field.

45-46 “Or, God’s kingdom is like a jewel merchant on the hunt for exquisite pearls. Finding one that is flawless, he immediately sells everything and buys it.

47-50 “Or, God’s kingdom is like a fishnet cast into the sea, catching all kinds of fish. When it is full, it is hauled onto the beach. The good fish are picked out and put in a tub; those unfit to eat are thrown away. That’s how it will be when the curtain comes down on history. The angels will come and cull the bad fish and throw them in the garbage. There will be a lot of desperate complaining, but it won’t do any good.”

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.

We Will All One Day Somehow End Up Worship Someone, Something, Somewhere, Anywhere

Isaiah 42:14-17 New American Standard Bible 1995

The Blindness of the People

14 “I have kept silent for a long time,
I have kept still and restrained Myself.
Now like a woman in labor I will groan,
I will both gasp and pant.
15 “I will lay waste the mountains and hills
And wither all their vegetation;
I will make the rivers into coastlands
And dry up the ponds.
16 “I will lead the blind by a way they do not know,
In paths they do not know I will guide them.
I will make darkness into light before them
And rugged places into plains.
These are the things I will do,
And I will not leave them undone.”
17 They will be turned back and be utterly put to shame,
Who trust in [a]idols,
Who say to molten images,
“You are our gods.”

In the words of singer songwriter Bob Dylan, you gotta serve somebody.[1] 

1 Bob Dylan, “Gotta Serve Somebody” (1979).

It’s true—we will all somehow end up worshiping something, somewhere.

The only question is what and where and when.

Too often in our human futility, we end up leaning on and ultimately serving crafty little creations of our own invention.

Throughout history, mankind’s fundamental problem has been that we keep creating false gods to whom we go seeking false salvation.

These idols are simply heart-level and soul deep substitutes for the real God.

Rather than single-mindedly looking to the Lord as the object of our devotion and the source of our satisfaction, we single-handedly take the good things that He created for our enjoyment and we turn them into vain replacements for Him.

C.S. Lewis puts it this way:

“We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”[2]

2 “The Weight of Glory,” in The Weight of Glory and Other Addresses (Harper Collins, 2001), p 26.

Whichever heart-level substitutes we may rely on, these idols are powerless.

Whichever soul deep substitutes we may look upon in our mirrors, they will be an empty soulless reflection bearing absolutely no resemblance to God’s reality.

They cannot help us.

As Isaiah makes clear, they’ve never been able to tell us the future or even help us reflect on the past; neither can they give counsel. They meet our questions with mere silence and 100% unfulfilled expectations (Isaiah 41:22-23, 28-29).

Only the true and living God knows everything from beginning to end.

At creation He broke through the chaos, silence, foretelling what was to come.

He overwhelms darkness with His light. He replaces the “rough places” of wickedness with the “level ground” of righteousness. Although we once turned our backs on Him, He still sent His only Son, Jesus, our Wonderful Counselor.

You and I are constantly confronted by idols that call out for our attention and entice us to find fulfillment in them rather than God.

What are the ones that call out the loudest to you?

Dare to confront them, dare to challenge their faces, name them one by one.

Know that they are lying (though of course they don’t tell you that).

God’s word repeatedly warns us of the shame that lies in worshiping them and leads us on a better way: to find fulfillment in serving and being served by Him.

“You gotta serve somebody today.”

Psalm 103:13-16 New American Standard Bible 1995

13 Just as a father has compassion on his children,
So the Lord has compassion on those who [a]fear Him.
14 For He Himself knows [b]our frame;
He is mindful that we are but dust.

15 As for man, his days are like grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
16 When the wind has passed over it, it is no more,
And its place acknowledges it no longer.

God only knows; We always gotta worship someone, something, somewhere, at some time in this, the brief temporal existence our God affords us on this earth.

Isaiah 40:7-9 New American Standard Bible 1995

7 The grass withers, the flower fades,
[a]When the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.

9 Get yourself up on a high mountain,
O Zion, bearer of good news,
Lift up your voice mightily,
O Jerusalem, bearer of good news;
Lift it up, do not fear.
Say to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!”

Here it is because here HE IS! Be sure to make it the living, loving God.

Worshipping the Ground We, Someone Else Walks or Crawls on or Works Their Fingers To The Bone On

Matthew 13:44-50 The Message

44 “God’s kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field for years and then accidentally found by a trespasser. The finder is ecstatic—what a find!—and proceeds to sell everything he owns to raise money and buy that field.

45-46 “Or, God’s kingdom is like a jewel merchant on the hunt for exquisite pearls. Finding one that is flawless, he immediately sells everything and buys it.

47-50 “Or, God’s kingdom is like a fishnet cast into the sea, catching all kinds of fish. When it is full, it is hauled onto the beach. The good fish are picked out and put in a tub; those unfit to eat are thrown away. That’s how it will be when the curtain comes down on history. The angels will come, and cull the bad fish and throw them in the garbage. There will be a lot of desperate complaining, but it won’t do any good.”

If you could only have one thing in life, what would it be?

Take an honest and serious look at your heart for a minute, even an hour today.

What do you love most?

Who or What would you quite literally give up everything else for?

Would you believe your heavenly Father’s answer to those questions is you?

That the Creator of the universe loves you most?

Would you believe he would give up everything to have relationship with you?

Because He really and actually did!

By looking at Genesis 2, God’s single greatest desire is relationship with us.

After God creates Adam in his own image, God says, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him” (Genesis 2:18).

God brings every created animal before Adam to see if he deems any of them suitable as a helper, and Genesis 2:20 says, “But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him.” 

Then without consulting Adam, God puts him into a deep sleep and forms a woman out of his rib.

Seeing the woman upon waking, Adam says, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man”  (Genesis 2:23).

How did God know Adam would want a woman as his helper?

How did God know she would be the desire of his heart?

God knew Adam most longed for a bride because Adam was made in God’s image, and God’s single greatest desire is for relationship with us, whom the Bible calls his Bride.

Let the truth of God’s heart sink in for a minute.

Out of everything else God has created or could have created, he most desires relationship with you.

And he so longed for you to know him fully that he sent Jesus to die to make restored relationship possible.

God calls us to himself daily with his love. He stands at the door of our heart and knocks, beckoning us with his loving-kindness to simply come and know him.

Once we truly grasp the depth of God’s desire for us, the only true response is to give up everything for him.

He laid the foundation for our commitment to him with the greatest single act of love, and he simply waits, beckoning us to respond, living our lives with him as our highest priority. And he doesn’t do so selfishly, but because the absolute best way for us to live in the fullness of our lives is in total commitment to him.

In Matthew 13:44-46, Jesus tells a parable explaining this response to God’s unending love.

He says, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” 

The kingdom of God is the greatest treasure, the pearl of greatest value.

Relationship with him is worth our entire lives.

Pursuing him with all our heart is the absolute greatest ambition we could have.

Paul described this pursuit in Philippians 3:8 when he said, 

“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.”

Philippians 3:7-11 The Message

7-9 The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness.

10-11 I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself. If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it.

So again, reflect on your own heart.

What do you value above all else? WHY?

Who do you value above all else? WHY?

God’s not angry with you if it truly isn’t him.

John 14:1-7 The Message

The Road

14 1-4 “Don’t let this rattle you. You trust God, don’t you? Trust me. There is plenty of room for you in my Father’s home. If that weren’t so, would I have told you that I’m on my way to get a room ready for you? And if I’m on my way to get your room ready, I’ll come back and get you so you can live where I live. And you already know the road I’m taking.”

5 Thomas said, “Master, we have no idea where you’re going. How do you expect us to know the road?”

6-7 Jesus said, “I am the Road, also the Truth, also the Life. No one gets to the Father apart from me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him. You’ve even seen him!”

You see, the way, the truth and also the life is that our single-minded pursuit of God will only ever match our over zealous longing, revelation of his goodness.

God knows that if he isn’t truly the greatest desire of your heart, it’s because you don’t fully know how good he is.

If you had the full revelation of his love for you, living totally for him wouldn’t even be a choice. So undeniably great is the worth of knowing Jesus that as you see the real Gospel him, you’ll naturally give up everything to know him more.

So, today as you enter into prayer, know the first baby steps in growing in your pursuit of God is acknowledging the posture of your own heart and your soul.

How strongly do you desire deeper relationship with him?

How much would you 100% give up to know him?

What do you seek fulfillment in during your free time?

The second step is receiving a fresh revelation of his incredible love for you.

Spend time daily simply encountering his heart.

Meditate on the truth that he desires relationship with you above all else.

He so greatly enjoys you that he pursues you with all of his focus and energy.

Last, respond to a revelation of his love with your own love.

Worship him, adore him, and live for him with your life.

John 4:21-24 The Message

21-23 “Believe me, woman, the time is coming when you Samaritans will worship the Father neither here at this mountain nor there in Jerusalem. You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day. God’s way of salvation is made available through the Jews. But the time is coming—it has, in fact, come—when what you’re called will not matter and where you go to worship will not matter.

23-24 “It’s who you are and the way you live that count before God. Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth. That’s the kind of people the Father is out looking for: those who are simply and honestly themselves before him in their worship. God is sheer being itself—Spirit. Those who worship him must do it out of their very being, their spirits, their true selves, in adoration.”

You will encounter him in anything you truthfully do as worship.

He will pour out his presence, favor, and blessing in any area you live out of love for him. 

Colossians 1:13-14 says, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” 

And Luke 12:31 promises us, “Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.”

Pursue a deeper relationship with your heavenly Father today through prayer.

Pursue a truthful relationship with your heavenly Father today through study.

As you single-mindedly live for him, seek his kingdom first, you’ll inevitably discover all the fullness and all the abundance he has longed to add to your life.

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

Psalm 46 The Message

46 1-3 God is a safe place to hide,
    ready to help when we need him.
We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom,
    courageous in seastorm and earthquake,
Before the rush and roar of oceans,
    the tremors that shift mountains.

    Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
    God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.

4-6 River fountains splash joy, cooling God’s city,
    this sacred haunt of the Most High.
God lives here, the streets are safe,
    God at your service from crack of dawn.
Godless nations rant and rave, kings and kingdoms threaten,
    but Earth does anything he says.

7     Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
    God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.

8-10 Attention, all! See the marvels of God!
    He plants flowers and trees all over the earth,
Bans war from pole to pole,
    breaks all the weapons across his knee.
“Step out of the traffic! Take a long,
    loving look at me, your High God,
    above politics, above everything.”

11     Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
    God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.

Guided Prayer:

1. Reflect on your own life. 

How strongly do you desire deeper relationship with him? How much would you give up to know him? What do you seek fulfillment in during your free time?

“The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.” Psalm 14:2

2. Meditate on the depth of God’s love for you. 

Receive a fresh revelation of how greatly he enjoys you. Think about the story in Genesis of how God’s greatest desire was relationship with his Bride.

“Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.”  Hebrews 12:2-3

“O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the crannies of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.” Song of Solomon 2:14

3. Respond to God’s love with your own. 

Spend time simply adoring him.

Spend time in solitude sitting with him, encountering his heart, and giving him your own because He single-mindedly paid the highest price for you just to be able have a relationship with him. So take time, be the reward of his sacrifice.

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

May we answer the call to live for love with our lives today.

May we live in response to this benediction found in Hebrews 12:28:

“Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe.”

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/

The Mystery of Seeds: Some Deeper Thoughts About a Seeds Thoughts. Mark 4:26-29

Mark 4:26-29 New American Standard Bible 1995

Parable of the Seed

26 And He was saying, “The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil; 27 and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows—how, he himself does not know. 28 The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head. 29 But when the crop permits, he immediately [a]puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

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.

Way back when in my youth, My Mom and I would plant a variety of seeds—tomato’s, peppers, beans and radishes in rows, zucchini and squash in mounds.

Every conceivable kind of seed we picked up at the store went into the ground.

Row after row would be planted and then watered and then left to the elements.

There was really nothing else we could do but wait and water and watch them.

Night and day after night and day would pass, we would sleep, wake, go outside before breakfast and leaving for school and we would watch and we would wait.

All we could do was wait a couple of weeks or so as the seed packet had said and watch and water and hope for some kind of sprout to shoot through the ground.

If all went well, a little green sprout would barely show up into the sunshine.

These methods make the sprouting and growing of seeds no less of a mystery.

Surely there is a long and quite complex scientific explanation today for the sprouting of seeds, the growth of tender shoots, that will only increase my awe.

I cannot speak for today’s generations but in younger days, we children enjoyed hearing, reading the stories of Frog and Toad Together by Arnold Lobel.

One favorite was the tale of Toad planting a garden.

After a day or two he began to think and fret about whether his seeds would ever sprout and grow. So he sang to them, he stayed up with them all night (in case they were afraid of the dark), and even screamed at them and wept over them.

Exhausted, Toad finally fell asleep.

When he awoke, he saw to his great relief that the seeds had sprouted.

Too often, I am like Toad when working in Jesus’ church and God’s kingdom.

I act and feel as if it all depends on me.

As Jesus tells us in his parable, however, God’s garden grows from seed to harvest “all by itself.”

So much of this is a mystery.

We need to do our part—sow the seed, water, tend the garden, and reap the harvest—but we do not make the seed grow. That happens by God’s gracious work. We can simply delight in doing our small part in growing the kingdom.

Some thoughts about A Seeds Thoughts …

Mark 4:26-29 The Message

Never Without a Story

26-29 Then Jesus said, “God’s kingdom is like seed thrown on a field by a man who then goes to bed and forgets about it. The seed sprouts and grows—he has no idea how it happens. The earth does it all without his help: first a green stem of grass, then a bud, then the ripened grain. When the grain is fully formed, he reaps—it is harvest time!

Jesus is speaking of how his kingdom increases.

He explains it as a coming to harvest by a patient expectation God will work.

The key of this whole passage is, …the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.

All by itself the soil produces grain. 

There are unseen forces at work which will be faithful to perform their work — whether a man stews and frets about it or not. He does what he can do. But then God must work. And God will work. In that confidence, this man rests secure.

As Jesus draws for us the picture this farmer goes out to sow the seeds he threw.

It is hard work as he sows the field, but this is what he knows, believes he can do to move the process along to its conclusions.

But then he goes home after a long day of sweaty labor and he goes to bed.

He does not sit up all night biting his fingernails, wondering if the seed fell in the right places.

Nor does he rise the next morning and go out and dig it up to see whether or not it is sprouting.

He rests secure in the fact that God is at work, that he has a part in this process, and he must do it; no one can do it for him, and he will faithfully perform it.

The farmer rests and waits as the seed goes through observable stages: …first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. Now, it is only when the grain is ripe that he is called into action again – to reap and then to harvest.

This is the way we ought to expect God to work. He sows our witness first, perhaps a word of teaching or exhortation to someone — or to ourselves. And then a process begins, which takes time and patience, and allows God to work.

One of the most destructive forces at work in the church today is our demand for instant “best possible political results.” We want immediate baptisms, and conversions, immediate responses, immediate dedications every time we speak.

We want what we steadfastly believe our worldly agenda entitles us to We tend not to allow time for God, the Word, to take root and grow and come to harvest.

As Jesus explains these ideas, He vividly demonstrates that a person’s spiritual knowledge is based on their willingness to pursue truth – meaning God’s truth. 

Kingdom of God and Not being wise in our own eyes

Proverbs 3:5-8 Amplified Bible

5 
Trust in and rely confidently on the Lord with all your heart
And do not rely on your own insight or understanding.
6 
[a]In all your ways know and acknowledge and recognize Him,
And He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way].
7 
Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the Lord [with reverent awe and obedience] and turn [entirely] away from evil.
8 
It will be health to your body [your marrow, your nerves, your sinews, your muscles—all your inner parts]
And refreshment (physical well-being) to your bones.

The passage for today is Mark 4:26-27. It says,

“The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows. He knows not how.”

This passage is a parable about growing the kingdom of God not the world of man and its too often bizarre, wild and assorted politically motivated agendas.

Jesus is clearly communicating that the kingdom of God is like a seed that is planted in the ground – we are the church, we are those seeds being planted.

The seed grows and sprouts, even though the farmer does not know how it happens nor does he know the outcome when the seeds finally bear their fruit.

This parable teaches us that the kingdom of God is a mystery. We do not always understand how it works, too, we are not to know how God works, but if we will allow it, keep our agendas, understandings we can trust that God is at work in it.

We can also trust that the kingdom of God will grow and spread, even when we do not see it happening, even when we are thoroughly blinded by our agendas.

We can apply this parable to our own lives. We may not always see the results of our work, but we can absolutely trust that God is at work in us and through us.

1 Corinthians 3:5-9 Amplified Bible

5 What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Just servants through whom you believed [in Christ], even as the Lord appointed to each his task. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God [all the while] was causing the growth. 7 So neither is the one who plants nor the one who waters anything, but [only] God who causes the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one [in importance and esteem, working toward the same purpose]; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor.  9 For we are God’s fellow workers [His servants working together]; you are God’s cultivated field [His garden, His vineyard], God’s building.

We can also trust the kingdom of God will grow, the kingdom of God will both mature and spread, even when we don’t know what’s going on see it happening.

Let us not be too discouraged if we do not see immediate results from our work.

Do I really trust that God is at work, and all outcomes do not all depend on me? Having done what God has given me to do, do I then rest, since God is working?

Philippians 2:1-4 Amplified Bible

Be Like Christ

2 Therefore if there is any encouragement and comfort in Christ [as there certainly is in abundance], if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship [that we share] in the Spirit, if [there is] any [great depth of] affection and compassion, 2  make my joy complete by being of the same mind, having the same [a]love [toward one another], knit together in spirit, intent on one purpose [and living a life that reflects your faith and spreads the gospel—the good news regarding salvation through faith in Christ]. 3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit [through factional motives, or strife], but with [an attitude of] humility [being neither arrogant nor self-righteous], regard others as more important than yourselves. 4 Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

Setting aside nonsensical worldly agendas, let us continue to sow the seeds of the kingdom of God, and trust only God will bring about a harvest in his time.

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

Let us Pray,

Dear God, thanks for the gift and mystery of seeds. Help me to humbly do my part in work and prayer and to rely on you for growth in and around me. In Jesus I pray.

Psalm 23 Amplified Bible

The Lord, the Psalmist’s Shepherd.

A Psalm of David.

23 The Lord is my Shepherd [to feed, to guide and to shield me],
I shall not want.
2 
He lets me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still and quiet waters.
3 
He refreshes and restores my soul (life);
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
for His name’s sake.

4 
Even though I walk through the [sunless] [a]valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort and console me.
5 
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You have anointed and refreshed my head with [b]oil;
My cup overflows.
6 
Surely goodness and mercy and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life,
And I shall dwell forever [throughout all my days] in the house and in the presence of the Lord.

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

Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication and Division from our God’s Garden. John 12:20-26

John 12:20-26 New American Standard Bible 1995

Greeks Seek Jesus

20 Now there were some Greeks among those who were going up to worship at the feast; 21 these then came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and began to ask him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip *came and *told Andrew; Andrew and Philip *came and *told Jesus. 23 And Jesus *answered them, saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 He who loves his [a]life loses it, and he who hates his [b]life in this world will keep it to life eternal. 26 If anyone [c]serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone [d]serves Me, the Father will honor 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.

Mathematics in God’s Garden

John 12:23-25 Amplified Bible

23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified and exalted. 24 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone [just one grain, never more]. But if it dies, it produces much grain and yields a harvest. 25 The one who loves his life [eventually] loses it [through death], but the one who hates his life in this world [and is concerned with pleasing God] will keep it for life eternal.

Plants and bushes multiply in a variety of amazing ways.

Raspberry bushes send out runners from their roots and start new shoots.

Grape vines, strawberry plans, potatoes, pumpkins and cucumbers and carrots all seem to need no help in producing a bounty of produce when one is planted.

So raspberry and blackberry patches are constantly ever expanding, and we are able to cut away plants easily for friends and family to start their own patches.

Planting eight cloves of garlic before winter produces eight new garlic plants, and each plant produces seven or eight cloves of garlic the next summer—a promise of good increase.

Jesus, an astute observer of life in God’s garden, chooses wheat as an example of amazing multiplication.

As he said, one kernel “produces many seeds.”

Today we know that one seed of wheat planted in the ground yields 20-25 kernels of new wheat.

Further, Jesus was making a more profound point.

Jesus is speaking of himself in this parable.

He is the grain of wheat.

He is the Son of God, compelling, compassionate, living the life of God in the midst of men, and yet wholly as a man.

Crowds everywhere left their work and followed him.

They sensed that here was a man who possessed the secret of life.

He had nothing that men thought was necessary to living.

He had no material possessions.

He did not even have a place to lay his head.

He had no influence with the authorities. Yet, everywhere he went, people sensed that he understood the secrets of life. So he was like a single grain of wheat, alone amidst other grains of wheat, sharing nothing with the others.

He could have remained that way.

He did not need to die.

He was no martyr to a failing cause.

He was not forced to the cross.

He had no need to lay down his life, for he could have returned to the Father.

There would have been no blame attached to him if he had.

He could have chosen to return to the Father, having demonstrated before all men exactly what God wanted man to be, and left us with that demonstration and gone back to heaven.

But, as he says, if he had done that he would have remained alone.

For the rest of eternity, though he would have been thronged with angels and all the other created beings of God’s universe, he would have been alone.

There would have been no one else like him in all the universe.

John 10:11-18 New American Standard Bible 1995

11 “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, 15 even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. 18 No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.”

This is very important, because it gives us our first clue as to what our Lord is really unveiling here, the problem that affects so many of us — loneliness.

There is a difference between being alone and being lonely.

One can be alone and not be at all lonely.

Or you can be in the midst of a crowd, and be utterly lonely.

This is what Jesus is referring to.

He is not talking about being alone; he is talking about being eternally lonely.

Dr. F. B. Meyer once said, Many people complain of lonely and solitary lives.

They suppose their condition is due to the failure of other people.

It is, however, attributable to the fact that they have never fallen into the ground to die, but have always consulted their own ease and well-being.

They have never learned that the cure for loneliness comes from sowing oneself in a grave of daily sacrifice. 

There he puts his finger upon the cause of this distressing loneliness that still bothers so many today.

It is an attempt to hold on to life, to grasp it for oneself, and this results in an undeveloped life.

Our Lord knew the deepest craving of the Father’s heart; that he might bring many sons to glory.

1 Timothy 2:1-6 New American Standard Bible 1995

A Call to Prayer

2 First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, 2 for kings and all who are in [a] authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and [b] dignity. 3 This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the [c]knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony [d]given at [e]the proper time.

But to do that it was necessary that he die.

There was no other way by which what he was could be given to us.

John 1:11-13 New American Standard Bible 1995

11 He came to His [a]own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, 13 who were [b]born, not of [c]blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

John 1:11-12 says, he came to his own and those who were his own did not receive him. As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God. As many as received him, to them he gives the power to share in the abundance of his own life.

But how is that life made available?

John 12:23-26 New American Standard Bible 1995

23 And Jesus *answered them, saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 He who loves his [a]life loses it, and he who hates his [b]life in this world will keep it to life eternal. 26 If anyone [c] serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone [d]serves Me, the Father will honor him.

It is only available by dying to ourselves.

But we fear such dying, do we not?

What the Lord Jesus is saying to us in John 12:23-26 is that there will be, can be, no authentic deliverance from the loneliness and emptiness of this world’s life until we Psalm 51 learn to renounce that kind of living then live into Psalm 32.

Psalm 32 New American Standard Bible 1995

Blessedness of Forgiveness and of Trust in God.

A Psalm of David. A [a]Maskil.

32 How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered!
2 How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit!

3 When I kept silent about my sin, my [b]body wasted away
Through my [c]groaning all day long.
4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
My [d]vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. [e]Selah.
5 I acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I did not hide;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”;
And You forgave the [f]guilt of my sin. Selah.
6 Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You [g]in a time when You may be found;
Surely in a flood of great waters they will not reach him.
7 You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble;
You surround me with [h]songs of deliverance. Selah.

8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go;
I will counsel you with My eye upon you.
9 Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding,
Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check,
Otherwise they will not come near to you.
10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
But he who trusts in the Lord, lovingkindness shall surround him.
11 Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous ones;
And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.

Just as a single wheat seed “falls to the ground and dies” then “produces many seeds,” his own death and his resurrection produces an over abundance of new life, acres and uncountable acres of harvested souls in a multitude of followers.

1 Corinthians 3:5-9 New American Standard Bible 1995

5 What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. 7 So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own [a]reward according to his own labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s [b]field, God’s building.

From the first words of Genesis to the last verse of Revelation, we can trust in his sure promise of multiplication and eternal life as we follow him in dying to ourselves and serving others out of the over abundance of our new life in him.

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

Let us Pray,

Father of all life, let us thank you for sending your one and only Son to die, rise, and multiply his life in all who follow him. Inspire and ­strengthen me to lay down my life and serve others. Lord, thank you for showing me that the way to life is through my dying to myself. I confess I fear such dying, so I ask that you help me to live this out.

Psalm 16 New American Standard Bible 1995

The Lord the Psalmist’s Portion in Life and Deliverer in Death.

A [a]Mikhtam of David.

16 Preserve me, O God, for I take refuge in You.
2 [b]I said to the Lord, “You are [c]my Lord;
I have no good besides You.”
3 As for the [d]saints who are in the earth,
[e]They are the majestic ones in whom is all my delight.
4 The [f]sorrows of those who have [g]bartered for another god will be multiplied;
I shall not pour out their drink offerings of blood,
Nor will I take their names upon my lips.

5 The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You support my lot.
6 The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.

7 I will bless the Lord who has counseled me;
Indeed, my [h]mind instructs me in the night.
8 I have set the Lord continually before me;
Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will dwell securely.
10 For You will not abandon my soul to [i]Sheol;
Nor will You [j]allow Your [k]Holy One to [l]undergo decay.
11 You will make known to me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.

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

Glorifying, Honoring and Praising and Worshiping at God’s Footstool. Psalm 99

Psalm 99 New American Standard Bible 1995

Praise to the Lord for His Fidelity to Israel.

99 The Lord reigns, let the peoples tremble;
He [a]is enthroned above the cherubim, let the earth shake!
2 The Lord [b]is great in Zion,
And He is exalted above all the peoples.
3 Let them praise Your great and awesome name;
Holy is [c]He.
4 The [d]strength of the King loves [e]justice;
You have established [f]equity;
You have executed [g]justice and righteousness in Jacob.
5 [h]Exalt the Lord our God
And worship at His footstool;
Holy is He.

6 Moses and Aaron were among His priests,
And Samuel was among those who called on His name;
They called upon the Lord and He answered them.
7 He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud;
They kept His testimonies
And the statute that He gave them.
8 O Lord our God, You answered them;
You were a forgiving God to them,
And yet an avenger of their evil deeds.
9 Exalt the Lord our God
And worship at His holy hill,
For holy is the Lord our 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.

BOW BEFORE GOD 

In times of disappointments, distress and heartaches sometimes the only thing to do is to simply place ourselves in humble submission before our great God.

When doubt floods into our minds, there is a comfort to be found.

Looking away from our situation to the vastness and holiness of our Lord, we find comfort in Him.

But what do the words mean, here, “to worship at his footstool?” 

Here is what we find in the Barnes Notes on the Bible commentary:

“the reference here is to the footstool on which the feet of a king rested when he sat on his throne or chair of state.” 

Even as those kings of old would make decisions for justice from their thrones, we can trust that our High King is listening to our stories and tears, and hearing our pleas, and making decisions for holiness and justice from His own throne.

When we bow our hearts before Him, we recognize His king-ship over our lives.

WORSHIP AT HIS FOOTSTOOL

It is not just our approaching our King, there is one more necessary action that this verse speaks of, and that is not to just bow, but to also bring worship there.

Many servants bowed before those kings of old and they brought their petitions.

Yet not many humbled themselves to worship that king.

We have been given the privilege to come into the courts of our most High King.

This is made possible because of the way that His son, Jesus, opened for us. 

Will we come, and bow and worship before the holiness and might of our Lord?

Can we permit ourselves a time of sacred pause today and bring unto Him our highest measure of utter surrender, highest praise before our Holiest of Holies?

Are We Authentic About Worship at God’s Footstool?

Psalm 99 The Message

99 1-3 God rules. On your toes, everybody!
He rules from his angel throne—take notice!
God looms majestic in Zion,
He towers in splendor over all the big names.
Great and terrible your beauty: let everyone praise you!
    Holy. Yes, holy.

4-5 Strong King, lover of justice,
You laid things out fair and square;
You set down the foundations in Jacob,
Foundation stones of just and right ways.
Honor God, our God; worship his rule!
    Holy. Yes, holy.

6-9 Moses and Aaron were his priests,
Samuel among those who prayed to him.
They prayed to God and he answered them;
He spoke from the pillar of cloud.
And they did what he said; they kept the law he gave them.
And then God, our God, answered them
(But you were never soft on their sins).
Lift high God, our God; worship at his holy mountain.
    Holy. Yes, holy is God our God.

When this psalm was written, each nation claimed top honors for its gods.

But Israel knew who the God above all gods truly is—the Lord God Almighty.

But do I, You, we the Church truly know who the God above all gods truly is?

2 Corinthians 4:1-5 New American Standard Bible 1995

Paul’s Apostolic Ministry

4 Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart, 2 but we have renounced the things hidden because of shame, not walking in craftiness or adulterating the word of God, but by the manifestation of truth  commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled [a]to those who are perishing, 4 in whose case the god of this [b]world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving [c]so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants  [d]for Jesus’ sake.

Paul had a glorious ministry that flung wide-open the door of salvation to men.

He opened up the Word of God and taught the glorious gospel of grace to Jew and Gentile alike.

This apostle of God revealed so many of the biblical truths and treasures which we have received as a free gift of grace, by our trusting in Christ Jesus as Savior.

Paul had been a strict Jew – a Pharisee of the Pharisees.

Paul had followed the traditions of men.

But since his being commissioned by God as His apostle unto the Gentiles and renouncing his former ways, he insightfully recognized that the very deceitful handling of God’s Word by the legalistic Pharisees, that combined with Satan’s crafty deceit, caused the shining light of the gospel of God to be hidden to those that were lost, and veiled to those that are perishing.

Satan, the scheming god of this world, has cunningly placed a veil of deception and dark shadows of deceit over the hearts, souls and minds of those unsaved.

Although Paul faithfully taught the truth of God’s Word, the minds of sinners have been blinded to the truth and deceived by Satan, the cruel god of this age.

Paul discovered that God’s grace is sufficient, that His strength is freely supplied and His mercies are new every morning.

Despite his careful teaching, his systematic delivery of the gospel, and his earnest desire to clarify the truth of God’s Word through precept and practice, Paul recognized the gospel remained hidden to those that were perishing – for the god of this world has cast a veil over the Word of God, which has shrouded the truth from those that are lost, misguided, misdirected and dead in their sin.

Yet the magnificent God, who has no human limitations, chose to do something even more revealing and even more magnificent than we could all comprehend.

God took on our humanity to become one of us.

Jesus Christ, who with God the Father and the Holy Spirit is the God above all gods, chose to humble himself so that instead of kneeling at God’s footstool in awe and wonder, we could sit at his feet.

All Men, women, and children were invited to gather around Jesus as he told stories about the kingdom of God, taught people how to live as true worshipers of God, had compassion, healed diseases, bruised hearts, and withered spirits.

What’s more, Jesus’ final act of worship was died and rose again and ascended to heaven, where he again sits on the eternal throne.

Everything is under his feet, even the last and bitterest enemy of all: death (1 Corinthians 15:21-26).

21 For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead.  22 For as in Adam all die, so also in [a]Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming,  24 then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power. 25 For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. 26 The last enemy that will be abolished is death.

May we each be ready and willing and able to share the good news of salvation with those whose ears are deaf and eyes are blinded to the truth – so they may hear the good news of the gospel of grace – come to the footstool and be saved.

Hallelujah! Let our 24/7 worship declare that Our God reigns forever and ever!

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

Let us Pray,

Heavenly Father, thank You for the many witnesses to the Word of truth. Thank You that salvation is freely available to all who will open their eyes to the truth of Your Word and unblock their ears to the satanic lies and deceptions that come from the evil one. Look down in pity on those that are in the valley of indecisions and bring many into saving faith this day, through the convicting work of the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 100 New American Standard Bible 1995

All Men Exhorted to Praise God.

A Psalm for [a]Thanksgiving.

100 Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before Him with joyful singing.
3 Know that the Lord [b]Himself is God;
It is He who has made us, and [c]not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

4 Enter His gates with [d]thanksgiving
And His courts with praise.
Give thanks to Him, bless His name.
5 For the Lord is good;
His lovingkindness is everlasting
And His faithfulness to all generations.

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

Come, Let Us Worship – What Would it Look Like to Glorify, Worship God 24/7? Revelation 4:8-11

Revelation 4:8-11 New American Standard Bible 1995

8 And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night [a]they do not cease to say,

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who [b]is to come.”

9 And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

11 “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they [c]existed, and were created.”

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.

Heaven’s throne room is filled with sounds of praise and worship.

The four living creatures give round-the-clock adoration to the One on the throne.

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,” they proclaim.

This is a picture of all creation eternally honoring God as the Creator and Lord over all things—the only one worthy of all praise.

Creation’s eternal song of praise—led by the four living creatures— serves as a call to worship for the twenty-four elders.

God’s people cannot help responding in worship when surrounded by the authentic, enthusiastic praises of all the rest of creation.

All God’s people in his worldwide church—young and elder­ly, seekers and established followers—help each other cele­brate and confess with praise.

Together, we join with the rest of creation, eternally saying, eternally singing;

“You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you [alone] created all things, and by your will they . . . have their being.”

This picture serves to remind us that just as creation constantly, and eternally proclaims the glory of God (Psalm 19), so can all God’s people—in our work, our play, our relationships each day as well as when we gather for a worship service.

Psalm 19 New American Standard Bible 1995

The Works and the Word of God.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

19 The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.
2 Day to day pours forth speech,
And night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words;
Their voice is not heard.
4 Their [a]line has gone out through all the earth,
And their utterances to the end of the world.
In them He has placed a tent for the sun,
5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber;
It rejoices as a strong man to run his course.
6 Its rising is from [b]one end of the heavens,
And its circuit to the [c]other end of them;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

7 The law of the Lord is [d]perfect, restoring the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether.
10 They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
11 Moreover, by them Your servant is warned;
In keeping them there is great reward.
12 Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults.
13 Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins;
Let them not rule over me;
Then I will be [e]blameless,
And I shall be acquitted of great transgression.
14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.

All things identified in Psalm 19 give their glory and honor and praise unto God for bringing them all into being, and he keeps all creation in his constant care.

With all that revelation of what God has implanted onto our souls, realize that Our all creating, all life-sustaining God is worthy to receive our praise always.

In this moment of writing, I couldn’t help but enter into a sacred time of prayer;

Psalm 19:12-14 Amplified Bible

12 
Who can understand his errors or omissions? Acquit me of hidden (unconscious, unintended) faults.
13 
Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous (deliberate, willful) sins;
Let them not rule and have control over me.
Then I will be blameless (complete),
And I shall be acquitted of great transgression.
14 
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable and pleasing in Your sight,
O Lord, my [firm, immovable] rock and my Redeemer.

And in the midst of that praying, this thought was placed deep into my soul;

There is something about those words “eternal” and “worship” used together!

It puts one’s soul into a deeply sacred place of indescribable amazement and too wonderment, one should wonder how amazing would it be to worship God 24/7!

What Would it Look Like to Worship God 24/7?

Revelation 4:8-11 Amplified Bible

8 And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes all over and within [underneath their wings]; and day and night they never stop saying,

“Holy, holy, holy [is the] Lord God, the Almighty [the Omnipotent, the Ruler of all], who was and who is and who is to come [the unchanging, eternal God].”

9 Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanksgiving to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and they worship Him who lives forever and ever; and they throw down their crowns before the throne, saying,

11 
“Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive the glory and the honor and the power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they exist, and were created and brought into being.”

I rose to my feet in the dim light of the Orthodox sanctuary as the opening strains of music and chanting called the congregation to a time of worship.

This was my very first time experiencing worship of God in an Orthodox church.

I had no idea what to expect when the two priests began to chant and pray.

My heart lifted to God as I joined in singing about the glories of heaven.

I closed my eyes, and the lyrics formed a picture in my mind.

Leaning into the presence of God and Jesus, Holy Spirit, I basked in His love.

However, in the second stanza of the song, like nails on a chalkboard, a wrong word or an unintelligible word wrenched me out from my attitude of worship. 

I realize you’re probably wondering who notices such things. I admit, I’m one of those grammar freaks who’s bothered by a subjective pronoun used as the object of a preposition. If your eyes glazed over at this explanation, please don’t stop reading. I promise I will bring this around to a point quite relevant to you.

I must profusely, sincerely apologize for how easily a small grammatical error derailed my soul away from my worship of the God who created the universe.

I wonder if you, too, have been distracted from giving God all the attention He is worthy of receiving.

I assume most people will not be bothered by a deviance from English language standards.

But I suspect we all have felt the tug-of-war between the world and worship.

The writer of Revelation painted a scene depicting the throne room of heaven.

Almighty God sits at the center in the place of honor surrounded by four unusual beings and twenty-four elders.

The main purpose of the four beings is worship. Day and night, they repeat words of praise to the King seated on the throne.

The elders respond by saying,

“You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased” (Revelation 4:11 NLT). 

Please notice though that absolutely nothing ever distracts these worshipers.

The presence of God is so utterly riveting that all else fades into insignificance.

Then this thunders into my soul: God created us to be 24/7 worshipers too!

Worship is more than the musical or sermon or ending part of a church service.

The Apostle Paul said every aspect of our lives can glorify God, even our daily consumption of nutrition.

“So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31 NLT).

Try contemplating 24/7 that all of the following can be filled with worship:

• Attention to excellence in our jobs to please God

• Sacrifice of ourselves to raise the next generation to love Jesus

• Wholesome thoughts that elevate God to His rightful place of honor

• Time spent in meditation on the Word and communication with God

• Confession of sins to cleanse our hearts

• Study of the Bible to increase our knowledge and magnify the Lord 

How often, though, do distractions yank us from our worship of God in these activities?

For most, grammar won’t divert our attention from our Lord.

But if you’re like me, your own agenda and plans can eclipse the view of our Creator.

Economics, Entertainment, politics, and social media also rank high on my list of distractions.

Even more insidious are the thoughts inside my head that control me—worry about the future and memories of the past. Finally, incorrect ideas about God’s character too interfere with our desire to live a life that glorifies, worships Him.

God is worthy of our dedicated worship that offers much more than perfunctory singing on Sunday mornings. He deserves all the praise we can muster because He created us. He designed us to please Himself. Even more, with unconditional love, and provision He provides all we need. Our worship brings Him pleasure.

As our Creator, God knows wholehearted 24/7 worship of Him is best for us.

When we eliminate distractions and make Him the center of our attention, we enjoy the rich and satisfying life Jesus promised (John 10:10).

John 10:9-16 Amplified Bible

9 I am the Door; anyone who enters through Me will be saved [and will live forever], and will go in and out [freely], and find pasture (spiritual security). 10 The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows].

11 [a]I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd [b]lays down His [own] life for the sheep. 12 But the hired man [who merely serves for wages], who is neither the shepherd nor the owner of the sheep, when he sees the wolf coming, deserts the flock and runs away; and the wolf snatches the sheep and scatters them. 13  The man runs  because he is a hired hand [who serves only for wages] and is not concerned about the [safety of the] sheep. 14 I am the Good Shepherd, and I know [without any doubt those who are] My own and My own know Me [and have a deep, personal relationship with Me]— 15 even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father—and I lay down My [very own] life [sacrificing it] for the benefit of the sheep. 16 I have [c] other sheep [beside these] that are not of this fold. I must bring those also, and they will listen to My voice and pay attention to My call, and they will become [d]one flock with one Shepherd.

Friends, let’s examine every facet of our lives to root out any distractions from 24/7 worship of God.

We don’t want anything, even a small grammatical error, to pull us away from our God-given purpose.

Intersecting Faith & Life:

Consider this article I found on my news feed … thoughts and comments?

https://www.yahoo.com/news/step-back-time-americas-catholic-040718410.html

Ask God to help you evaluate the various parts of your life for distractions that might be diluting your wholehearted worship. Meditate upon psalms of praise and Lament until they dominate all your thoughts and influence your actions.

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

Let us Pray,

Psalm 96 New American Standard Bible 1995

A Call to Worship the Lord the Righteous Judge.

96 Sing to the Lord a new song;
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord, bless His name;
Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.
3 Tell of His glory among the nations,
His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.
4 For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised;
He is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the peoples are [a]idols,
But the Lord made the heavens.
6 Splendor and majesty are before Him,
Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.

7 [b]Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
[c]Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
8 [d]Ascribe to the Lord the glory of His name;
Bring an [e]offering and come into His courts.
9 Worship the Lord in [f]holy attire;
Tremble before Him, all the earth.
10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns;
Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved;
He will judge the peoples with [g]equity.”

11 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
Let the sea [h]roar, and [i]all it contains;
12 Let the field exult, and all that is in it.
Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy
13 Before the Lord, for He is coming,
For He is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
And the peoples in His faithfulness.

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