GOD LOVES US 2

 

GOD LOVES US 2

Isaiah 43:25 “I—yes, I alone-- am the one who blots out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again.” NLT

Isaiah gives us a glimpse into what God’s love for us is like. God blots out our sins. In other words, God forgives us. Ps. 51:3-6 We, nor can anyone else, forgive us for our sins. When we sin, it is against God that we sin. It is He alone that we offend. We fail Him, and because He is perfect holiness, we must answer to Him for our sins.

God blots out our sins. He makes them go away. Instead of our sins staring Him in His face, He sees the blood of Christ. He sees us as being righteous and holy. As long as we live in Christ, we are protected from God’s wrath on sin.

God forgives us for His own sake. Because God is gracious, merciful, and compassionate, God offers us salvation. He cannot be untrue to himself. God is love and to not offer us salvation would be a very unloving thing to do. It is impossible for God to act contrary to His character.

Notice that God offers us salvation. He does not force it on us, nor does He give it to us automatically. We can only be forgiven for our sins through Christ. We must open up our hearts to Him, confess our sins, ask for forgiveness, accept it, and live like we are forgiven. The proof of our forgiveness is seen in the life we live. A forgiven soul stops his life of sinning to the best of his ability, and he lets Jesus be Lord of his life. When we are forgiven, a peace from God floods our soul and governs our life.

Are your sins forgiven today? Are you winning the battle over sin? Are you living like you are righteous and holy before God? I Cor. 1:30-31 Can you say honestly today that peace like a river floods your soul? Can you say it is well with your soul today? If so, thank and praise Him for your salvation and His living in you. If not, turn to Him right now and let Him into your life. Let Him have His way with you. You will never regret it.

GOD LOVES US

 

GOD LOVES US

Isaiah 43:22-24

As I read today’s text, there are some interesting and profound truths we need to look at and think over. We normally take a positive spin on truth, but it also holds true that there is great news in the negative. Let’s take a look.

God loves those who do not pray. 22 Isaiah was speaking to a people who did not ask the Lord for help. They preferred to act on their own. They had grown tired of needing the Lord. They did their own thing with no regard for God. In spite of man’s rejection of Him, God loves us. He always has and always will. He loves us without regard to our sins, our seeking after other gods, our efforts to ignore Him or our efforts to squelch His presence in our lives. It is hard for us to grasp how God could love the unlovable, those who are wicked to the core, but He does. John 3:16

God loves those who are ungrateful. 23 They take for granted life’s blessings. They feel entitled to them. They don’t acknowledge that God is the source of all that is good.

God loves those who do not honor Him. 24 They do not give a thought to honoring the Lord for His goodness to them. They puff themselves up and take credit for what they accomplish in life. They take but don’t give. And when they don’t get what they think they deserve, they shake their fists at God and complain.

God loves those who do not live what they profess. 24 The Israelites were faithful to offer sacrifices to the Lord but were unfaithful to Him in how they lived. They relied on what they did to find favor with God. They failed to accept the fact that God wanted their heart allegiance to Him, not their ritual sacrifices. He wanted their humble and broken hearts, not their animals. He wanted obedience from the heart, not from duty.

You need to know that God loves you. You may not love Him, but He loves you. You may have never done anything to warrant God loving you, but He loves you still. You may give Him every reason in the books to not love you, but He does. But God loves you too much to force His love on you. He won’t stop loving you, but He will let you go on without Him. He wants you love so much that He died for your sins.

If you do love the Lord, you will show it by how you live and talk.

PSALM 101 4

 

PSALM 101 4

Psalm 101:8 My daily task will be to ferret out criminals and free the city from their grip.

David made a commitment to daily judge and get rid of those who are wicked in the city. He was determined to not tolerate criminal behavior. He wanted to make Jerusalem a safe haven for people to live in. It is an important reminder to us of how God treats those who are bent on evil. There is coming a day in which God will separate the righteous from the evil. In heaven, there will be no trace of evil in the heart of people. No one will be able to sneak in. Only the righteous in heart will dwell there.

We must never forget, Satan’s intent is to kill and destroy. He does everything he can to undermine and weaken our faith in the hopes of destroying it. He does not want anyone to escape this life with a righteous heart. He tries his best to undermine your confidence in God.

Satan wants you to begin your day on the wrong foot and stay out of whack all day. He will do whatever he can to keep your eyes off of your blessings. He wants you to be miserable and make life miserable for those around you. He wants you to maximize all that is going wrong instead of what is going right.

Satan tries to intimidate. He makes a lot of noise, but he is nothing but a windbag. Evil is everywhere, and it sometimes overwhelms us. We don’t feel safe anymore. All we want to do is find our safe haven, lock the doors, and hide. Satan knows that if we pay attention to what he is doing in the world, we won’t do much in the world. He wants us to believe that we can’t make any difference in the world, that it is futile to even try. Yet, the Kingdom of God is building one soul at a time. If we can help just one person be set free from Satan’s clutches, there will be great rejoicing in heaven. If we make a difference in but one life for Christ, we will be honored in heaven.

Don’t lose heart; be a difference maker. Do what you can to rid your world of those who are evil and wreak havoc around you. Support those who daily are out there trying to ferret out those breaking the law. Pray for them and encourage them in their daily tasks. Don’t look the other way when people do wrong. People need to be held accountable for their actions. Ultimately, God will judge them, but in the meantime, take a stand for righteousness and do what you can to make your city a safe place to live in.

PSALM 101 3

 

PSALM 101 3

Psalm 101:6 I will keep a protective eye on the godly, so they may dwell with me in safety. Only those who are above reproach will be allowed to serve me. NLT

The Psalmist raises a very important issue in today’s verse. “Only those who are above reproach will be allowed to serve me.” What David says can be applied to God as well. We must ask ourselves if we are living above reproach as we endeavor to serve the Lord. Does God approve of the lives that we live?

Note that God keeps a protective eye on the godly. We used to sing, “His Eye is on the Sparrow.”. The Scriptures make it very clear that God did not create the universe and go on an extended vacation from it. No, He is ever watching over all that He has made, keeps it functioning as it should, and will make all things new. Not only that, but He watches over the godly. He never leaves us to fend for ourselves, nor does He forsake us. He instead is with us each step we take and protects us from the evil that tries to engulf our souls as we lean on Him and trust Him with our lives.

Note also that the Lord will help the godly as they serve Him. The Lord’s desire is that we dwell with Him. He longs for us to constantly abide in Him. He longs for us to embrace Hiim even as He embraces us. He cherishes our friendship and wants us to remain faithful to Him so that we can spend eternity with Him.

The Lord blesses those who live above reproach and serve Him. We serve Him in a wide variety of ways, the main things we must always strive to do is to let Him be seen in all that we do. He is to be noticed, not us or our ministries. All that we do ought to be a witness of His love and grace. We ought always direct praise to Him for He is the one who changes us, equips, and enables us to do what we do. Rom. 12:1 We ought to be willing to tell whoever will listen what the Lord has and is doing in our lives. I Cor. 2:4-16: I John 1:1-7 People need to see the workings of God we do, and they need to hear from our own lips what God is doing in our lives.

One of the things we dare not miss is that God says that only those who live above reproach may serve Him. He does not honor the good that we do when we do them with a sinful heart. There is much good that is done every day by people who think that they will earn God’s favor by doing it. However, there is only one way that God will honor the good we do and that is through Christ. Only Jesus can purify our hearts so that what we do is blessed by God. Only Jesus can make us clean vessels fit for service to God.

 

PSALM 101 2

Psalm 101: 4,5 I will reject perverse ideas and stay away from every evil. I will not tolerate people who slander their neighbors. I will not endure conceit and pride. NLT

Notice the severity of these verses. King David is taking a stand for righteousness. Just like things are today, evil was everywhere, but David would have none of it. David knew that there are things that God does not tolerate.

God hates hearts that are filled with hate. There are many reasons why this is so. Perverse hearts are far from the Lord. They have wandered so far away from the Lord that Satan has filled their hearts and minds with evil. There is no limit to how perverse one can become when God is forsaken. The righteous and the perverse mix like water and oil. It’s best to not hang around evil. If you don’t, it can suck you into it if you let down your guard.

David took at stand against those who slander others. We are to build others up, not tear them down. It somehow makes us feel superior to others when we tear them down. We believe the lie that we are more important than others, that we are superior to them. However, we are told clearly in the Scriptures that we ought not to think more highly of ourselves than we ought. We are taught that everyone is equal in God’s sight, that all the labels we use to make ourselves different than others are lies we tell ourselves.

David goes on to say that he will not put up with those who are conceited and prideful. There is no room in the righteous for conceit. There are many who are stuck on themselves. They puff themselves up. They focus on personal achievements. They want others to put them on pedestal and honor them. Such attitudes are clearly spoken against by God’s Word. Paul tells us if we must boast, boast in what Christ as done, not what we have done. Pride is soul destructive. It always brings us down. A humble spirit is what God honors.

Not only did David take a stand against the perverse heart, God does too. “I will have nothing to do with it.” God will simply wipe His hands from the perverse in heart. They are left to wallow in the cesspool of sin to fend for themselves.

David says in verse seven that deceivers and liars won’t be allowed to serve Him or even be in his presence. The same thing holds true for God. Such people will never be allowed to be near to God. Such people can never serve the Lord. No matter what they may do that seems to be good, it all is for nothing in God’s eyes.

God is concerned about how you think and live. He knows the price that one must pay for rejecting Him. He knows the impact evil has on one’s life, both now and forever. He does not want anyone to die in their sins and will do all He can to convince them that they need Him, but He will not do it for them. He gives us the freedom to accept or reject Him, and He will honor the choice we make.

Psalm 101

 

PSALM 101

Ps. 101: 2-3 I will be careful to live a blameless life—when will you come to my aid? I will live a life of integrity in my own home. I will refuse to look at anything vile or vulgar. I hate crooked dealings; I will have nothing to do with them. NLT

In verse one we are given a great formula for worship. The Psalmist says he will sing of God’s love and justice. He says he will praise the Lord with songs. It is always good for the soul to sing praises to the Lord and sing of His great love for us.

Worship must be at the center of all that we do. Worship affects how we live. Living a blameless life enhances our ability to worship the Lord. Worship is much more than a mental exercise, it’s a heart reaching out to God in adoration, praise, and thanksgiving. A blameless life frees up the soul to touch God’s heart.

Walking with God blamelessly must be the intent of our hearts. We must strive to live in such a way that others cannot blame us for wrongdoing. How careful are you in how you live? Do you strive to always do what is right before God? When we live rightly before God, we will live rightly before man. We should always strive to show the fruit of the Spirit through our living so others will see Christ in us. Gal. 5:22-23

We must strive to live blameless lives at home. It’s much easier to put on a godly face in public than it is in private. At home, we relax and let our guard down. We are far more apt to say and do things at home that we would not in public. We are apt to react to stress differently in private than we do in public. We are apt to let ourselves be entertained at home in ways we would never want to be seen doing in public. We need to understand that God sees what we do in private as well as what we do in public. He sees how we treat our family. He sees it all and holds us accountable for it.

We must protect the purity of our eyes. The eyes are the gateway to the soul. What we see lingers in our minds and find its way into our soul. We cannot unsee what we see. If we gaze upon vile and vulgar things, they will soon captivate our thoughts and affect our souls. We must stand guard over what we let our eyes gaze on. I Thess. 4:8

Are you striving to live a blameless life? It is only possible by letting Jesus be your Savior and Lord.

FORGIVENESS

 

FORGIVENESS

Matt. 6:14-23

The Lord recently led me to share a devotional with a rodeo crowd on the subject of forgiveness. I feel like it is important that I share the jest of it with you today.

Forgiveness is the pathway to God. I John 1:8-10; Matt. 6:14-15 In order to have a personal relationship with God, forgiveness comes into play. Without the forgiveness of Christ, no one can know God. We are compelled to confess our sins to Him, ask for His forgiveness, claim it, and then live like it.

Forgiveness is the pathway to answered prayer. Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-23 that if we are not willing to forgive others, God will not hear, let alone answer, our prayers. If your prayers seem to be going nowhere, perhaps you need to examine your heart and see if you are harboring bad feelings towards someone.

Forgiveness is the pathway to healing broken relationships. We are to forgive those who have wronged us. We all have been hurt by the words or actions of others. Some of us have been hurt deeply and everything within us urges us to not forget the pain caused and forgive them. Peter asked Jesus one day how many times one should forgive someone who wrongs them, seven times? Jesus replied, “No, seventy times seven!” In other words, there is no limit to the times we are to forgive one another. Sometimes we must forgive ourselves. We say and do things that are hurtful to others that we regret doing. Even though we may not be able to rectify what we have done and seek forgiveness, we must forgive ourselves in order to find peace for our souls. What is under the blood of Christ must stay there. How can we justify not forgiving others or ourselves when Christ forgives us?

Forgiveness is the pathway to healing our nation. II Chron. 7:14 Things are only as hopeless as our unwillingness to humble ourselves before God, confess our sins, ask Him for forgiveness, and change our ways. Seeking God will change the course of our history. Notice, it begins with us, God’s people. Are you seeking God on behalf of our nation?

Forgiving is one of the hardest things we will ever do. Yet, it is the most important thing we can ever do. It is the pathway to God’s peace in our lives, our homes, our neighborhoods, and our nation. Phil. 4:13

PASSING THE MANTEL 3

 

PASSING THE MANTEL 3

I Kings 2:11-15

A hymn that we used to sing in the church is, Faith is the Victory. I am sure that it is still sung in many churches, but it has been a while since I heard it. But, the message of the hymn rings so very true in life. When we exercise faith, we experience victory. In this life, we gain victory over our sinful nature. We are able to live in victory over Satan. We able to let go of our pasts and forge ahead by faith. And, of course, our ultimate victory is eternal life in the presence of God.

We observe in our text today that for Elijah, his walk of faith was over. He had lived faithfully to the Lord. He had served Him well. He had not shied away from being a. bold witness for the Lord. He lived a life of obedience, and now his coronation day had arrived. God sent a fiery chariot to come and swoop him away to heaven. It was a glorious testimony of the life he had lived. It was a welcome home unlike any other human has ever known. II Tim. 4;6-8

For Elisha, it was the beginning of his glorious ministry. He had been mentored well by Elijah, and it was now the time for him to step out on his own and continue Elijah’s ministry. 11-15 He had been a witness to how God can use a mighty man of faith. He absorbed how to walk with God by faith. He was ready to follow the Lord. He picked up Elijah’s discarded cloak and set out to follow the Lord. Immediately God answered Elisha’s prayer and opened up a pathway through the Jordan River for him to walk through. It was just the beginning of great things God did through Elisha to show His people that He was God and was able to help them if they would but let Him.

One of the things we dare not miss from our text is that Elisha needed to spend time being mentored by Elijah. When we skip this step and venture out on our own, all kinds of problems arise. We need to be taught how to properly understand and apply God’s Word. We need to understand how to trust God with seemingly impossible circumstances of life. We need to learn how to discern truth from error. We need to learn the importance of prayer in life. We need to learn how to live by faith and not by sight. We need to learn how to serve the Lord selflessly for His honor and glory.

PASSING THE MANTEL 2

 

PASSING THE MANTEL 2

II Kings 2: 8-10

When we really step out in faith, things cannot remain the same. The Lord blesses those who dare to live by faith. Faith is more about doing than believing. All the belief in the world will not matter if there is not works to back it up.

By faith, Elijah was able to face the unexpected with confidence. He knew that the Lord was about to take him out of this world by some extraordinary means. Whether or not God had told him that it would be by chariots of fire or not, we aren’t told. But, we do know that God told him where to go for his departure from the earth. He was going to be taken home to heaven. Even though Elijah must have been uncertain about what was about to happen, he trusted God. He went where God led him to. He believed that God would indeed work things out for the good.

By faith, Elisha was able to face the unexpected with confidence. Elijah had asked Elisha what he wanted him to do before he was taken away. Elisha asked for a double portion of Elijah’s spirit. What was he really asking for? He wanted not only the faith of Elijah, he wanted a greater faith. He knew that whatever the future would hold for him, he needed God more than ever. He was certainly out of his comfort zone and needed a lot of help from God.

Elisha not only wanted to carry on the ministry of Elijah, he wanted to do so much more, not for his glory, but God’s. He wanted to be a difference maker in Israel to help Israel return back to the Lord. He wanted God to be seen as Israel’s hope and salvation.

Elisha wanted not only to know God like Elijah did, he wanted to know Him better. What a lofty goal! Elisha was satisfied with just knowing God, he wanted to know Him in His power and glory. No matter how well we may get to know the Lord, we can get to know Him better. All of us need more of Jesus. All of us fall short of loving our Lord with all of our heart, mind, and soul.

Let our heart’s cry be, “Let thy mantel fall on me.” Let us never be satisfied with where we are at in our understanding and standing with God. Let us always seek to grow and become greater warriors for God. “Lord, let thy mantel fall on me.”

PASSING THE MANTEL

 

PASSING THE MANTEL

II Kings 2:1-7

The church has a mandate, “Go into all the world and make disciples.” The degree to which we obey the Lord determines the health and future of the church. Because so many of us have failed to pass on our faith and help others grow in it, the church has become merely a shell of what she should and needs to be. We have lost our voice in the world because we make a lot of noise without much substance. People need to see faith working, not just speaking.

As we face an uncertain future, faith is required. 1-7 As we look at this passage of Scripture, we notice a couple of interesting things. Elijah was on the run. He had just come down from a mountain top experience and was drained. He was vulnerable. He was scared. He needed the Lord’s help. His very ministry was at a crossroad.

Elijah had just been used of the Lord to bring about a great victory in Israel. He had displayed God’s glory to a people who were indifferent to God. He had been used by God to bring justice to hundreds of Baal worshipers. It was a spectacular display of God’s realness and the power of prayer. Yet, would it be enough to turn people’s heart back to the Lord once they came down from the mountain? Would they survive spiritually without him around? Would Elisha be ready to take over?

Was Elisha ready to take over for Elijah? Elisha was not looking to fill Elijah’s shoes. He was doing what he always had done, helping to plow a field to provide food for his family. God had told Elijah to seek Elisha out and put his mantel on him. God had chosen Elisha to be Elijah’s successor. Elisha had a decision to make.

Faith demands that we leave our comfort zone. Elisha did not know what was in store for him. He did not know what would become of the family he would leave behind. He did not know if he was up to the challenge or not. He would never know what the Lord could do through him without leaving his comfort zone.

. Elisha had to stand on God’s promises. We have to stand on God’s promises when there simply is nowhere else to stand. Life was very difficult for the Israelites at this time. The Midianites were harassing them and seizing whatever they could of their possessions. The only hope for Elisha to escape from his current life was to stand on God’s promises. He had to trust that God knew what He was doing and follow Him.

Faith determines whether or not we will become what God wants us to be. It requires us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, wherever it may lead us. It demands we let go of whatever may hinder us. It demands that we fix our eyes on Jesus and let Him be the Lord of our lives.

FORGET NOT 9

 

FORGET NOT 9

Psalm 103:19-22

One of the things that we observe from the latter part of Psalm 103 is that God rules from heaven over us. We like to think that are in charge, but if Jesus is our Savior, He must be in charge of our lives. He cannot be just our Savior, He must be our Lord as well. And when you stop to think about it, it makes no sense to have it any other way.

Jesus is in heaven today seated at the right hand of God. 19 You can’t beat His perspective. He sees it all. He sees our past, present, and future. He knows better than we do what our lives are all about. He can work all things out for our good (Rom. 8:28) because He sees what we don’t. He knows how to use our moments to fit into greater plan of making us better version of ourselves. When we let Him be in charge, He makes something beautiful out of us and our lives.

Jesus reigns over us through God’s Word. 20 God’s Word is our blueprint for living. In Psalm 119 we find a treasure chest of full of reasons why the Word is important to us. Everything God needs for us to know in order to live a victorious life in Christ is found in God’s Word. God makes it very clear who we are, what we are up against, and why we need Jesus every moment of every day.

Jesus reigns over us as we find and do His will. 21 In it’s simplest form, God’s will is that we would live holy lives before Him. Everything else flows from that. What we do in service to the Lord doesn’t matter if we aren’t holy in heart. Holiness of heart is made possible only as we live under the lordship of Christ.

Jesus reigns over us so let us praise our God and King. 21 There is no greater life to live than to live with praise and thanksgiving on our hearts to our God. If your heart is not full of praise and thanksgiving, you are not living the life God created you to live in Christ Jesus. “Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.

FORGET NOT 8

 

FORGET NOT 8

Psalm 103:15-18

God loves us eternally. His love for us never changes. He loves us and will love us forever. His love for us compelled Him to die for our sins. His love for us compelled Him invite us into a relationship with Him. His love is what keeps His children safe and brings them into heaven.

There is not a moment in time that God does not know who, what, and where we are. He knows about our struggles. He knows about our fears and doubts. He knows about our everything that we experience in life. And, He is always ready, willing, and able to help us through our struggles.

His love for us does not depend on us. There is nothing we can do to earn His love. There is nothing that we can do to stop Him from loving us. Now, we can spurn His love and keep Him at a distance from us. The Lord will not stay close to anyone who does not want Him close. Yet, no matter how we may distance ourselves from Him, the Lord loves us and will continue to try and instill a desire in us for Him.

Our love for God is evidenced in our obedience to Him. If we love Him, we will have no problem with listening to what He has to say and then obeying Him. When we obey Him, we are blessed by God. God wants to bless us. He wants good things for us. He wants us to have hearts full of peace, joy, and love. He wants what is best for us. He wants us to experience abundant living in Christ.

The only thing that keeps us from enjoying the blessings of God is ourselves. We are often too proud and stubborn to let go of what keeps us from being blessed by God. We aren’t as carefully about staying pure before God as we should be. We make excuses for our sins. We fail to confess our sins to the Lord and seek forgiveness as we should. We pursue earthly gain instead of heavenly gain.

Have you had a love bath lately? Are you living in the love of Jesus? Are you loving Him back? Never forget; love takes two to make it work. Jesus loves you, but you must love Him back in order for you to have a relationship with Him. Love the Lord with all your heart, mind, and soul, and you will be blessed. Love Him, and you will naturally love others and yourself.

FORGET NOT 7

 

FORGET NOT 7

Psalm 103:13-14 The LORD is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him. For he understands who weak we are; he knows we are but dust. NLT

One of the things we must aways keep in mind is that when the Scriptures refer to God as our father, it’s always good. God is always good and is the ideal example of who a father should be like. God is our perfect father; He is perfect in love; He is our protector, and He supplies all that we need for eternal life. Now, not everyone can know God as their father. He is father to His children, not to those who reject Him as their God.

We, His children, are engraved deeply on the palm of His hand (Is. 49:13-16), on His heart (Ps. 139:13-17), and on His mind (Ps. 139:1-12). God is passionate about His children and they are never out of His sight.

The Lord knows how we were formed. He is the one who made us who we are. He knows the way we think (Phil. 2:6,7; John 1:14; Heb. 4:15). He knows why we think and feel the way we do. He became just like the way we are when He took on human flesh. He experienced all the emotions we do. He was tempted to sin just like we are. He experienced physical limitations just like we do. He was tired, hungry, and was the recipient of abuse and rejection just like we are. In fact, the Lord knows everything there is to know about us. He knows more about us than anyone else could ever know.

The Lord knows our weaknesses. He knows we are only human. He knows where we are most likely to yield to Satan’s assault on our minds and souls. He knows as well to best help us when we are weak. All we have to do is call on Him for help. He is always ready and able to help us stay faithful and strong. Remember, don’t think too highly of yourself or your ability to handle things yourself; we are nothing more than dust.

Without the Lord, we will never amount to anything before God. We will never be able to withstand the storms of life. We will be blown away never to be found. We must have Jesus with us all the time. We must always depend on Him to see us through life. He is the way, the truth, and the life; no one will see God except through Him. John 14:6

FORGET NOT 6

 

FORGET NOT 6

Psalm 103:12 He has removed our rebellious acts as far away from us as the east is from the west. NLT

Our rebellious acts are our sins. Anytime to resist doing what God commands us to do, we are guilty of sin. He gives us a multitude of things to do to govern our lives, and they may seem to be overwhelming at times. However, Jesus gives us the desire to not sin, and He enables us to not sin. He gives us His righteousness and holiness to keep us from disobeying God, and as long we live submissively to Him, we are able to obey God.

Jesus has removed our sins from us as far as the east is from the west. In other words, forever. We at times are reminded of past sins, but as far as God is concerned, they exist no more. Satan is our accuser, and he will often cause us to remember our past sins. He will stir up our minds and strive to get us to feel a false guilt over them. He will do his best to get us to believe it didn’t happen or that our past is too bad to be forgiven. However, what we must never doubt or forget is that there is no condemnation of those living in Christ. Rom. 8:1 God does not hold our past sins against us, Satan does. God doesn’t confuse us about forgiveness, Satan does.

When Christ sets us free, we are free indeed. John 8:32,36 We are set free from the natural desire to sin. We are no longer held captive to sin. We are free to live out the righteousness and holiness of Christ in the world. Does this mean that we will no longer ever sin? Of course not. I John 1:8-10 But when we do sin, the Spirit of Christ convicts us so that we will repent and strive to not do it again. As long as we live in the flesh, we will fight a spiritual battle against Satan. Eph. 6:10-12

Claim this verse as your shield the next time Satan would accuse you of past sins that are under the blood of Jesus. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, they are gone, gone, yes, gone forever! To God be the glory!

FORGET NOT 5

 

FORGET NOT 5

Psalm 103:10-11 He has not punished us for all our sins, nor does he deal with us as we deserve. For his unfailing love who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.

Wait. Did you catch what the Psalmist just said? God does not punish us for all our sins, nor does He deal with us as we deserve. What would happen if God were to treat us the way we deserve to be treated? No one would be in heaven with Him. No one would probably make it to adulthood since the wages of sin is death and no one makes it to adulthood who has never sinned. It comes naturally to us, and we sin without even trying. In fact, it takes a lot of effort to not sin. We will never know what it would be like if no one were to sin until we get to heaven where there is no sin.

For those who fear the Lord, we are constantly bathed in His unfailing love. What does it mean to fear the Lord? It means we respect Him for who He is and what He does. It means we honor Him before the world. It means we strive to obey Him in all we do. It means we serve Him and not ourselves. It means we take seriously what He says and not try to change it to suit our wants and whims.

His unfailing love is great, so great that in never fails. God loves us and will never act in an unloving way towards us. This means that all that God does or allows in our lives are for our good. We may not always like what comes our way or think that it is good, but God is in control and it is good. He knows what we don’t always know. He knows what we need better than we do. All He asks us to do is to trust Him always regardless of the circumstances of life.

Where God is, there is holy love. If God dwells in us, we are filled with holy love. . This means for us that we will live holy lives filled with love for others. If you lack in holiness of heart or love for others, you need to let Jesus have His way with you.

FORGET NOT 4

 

FORGET NOT 4

Psalm 103:8, 9 The LORD is merciful and gracious; he is slow to get angry and full of unfailing love. He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. NLT

There is a lot to unpack in these verses today. The more we are able to grasp these truths, the more we are able to love our Lord and serve Him without hesitation. We are constantly moved to adore and worship Him.

The Lord is merciful and gracious. He does not treat us as we deserve to be treated, but instead, He extends to us His love and forgiveness if we want it. He is so patient with us and gives us plenty of opportunities to accept His offer of saving grace. No one would be saved if He was quick tempered. All of us have sinned and deserve His wrath.

The Lord is full of unfailing love. God is love, and everything He does is guided by His love for us. It is His love for us that moved God to establish the plan of salvation before He created the universe and us. It was His love that moved Him to create us with the ability to choose to love Him back. It was His love that moved Him to make it possible for us to become fit for heaven. His love never fails, and it is eternal.

The Lord does not accuse His children of sin. When Christ forgives us, our souls are wiped clean. We are made righteous and holy before God. He no longer looks at us with wrathful eyes; instead, we are seen through His heart of love. God will never look beyond Christ in us to see our ugly past. He will never hold us accountable for forgiven sins. He will never haunt us with forgiven sins.

When we recall our past sins and are made to feel guilty for them, it’s of Satan, not God. Satan is our accuser. He wants us to be held in bondage by our past. He wants us to feel shame and guilt. He wants us to believe his lie that God has not forgiven us. He wants us to believe that we are not children of God. Satan is a master liar. Don’t fall for his lies.

God never fails to love His children. He is merciful and gracious towards us. He patiently leads us into the fold of His holy love. He never holds us captive to our forgiven sins. There no longer is any condemnation in Christ Jesus.

FORGET NOT 3

FORGET NOT 3

Psalm 103:6-7 The LORD gives righteousness and justice to all who who are treated unfairly. He revealed his character to Moses and his deeds to the people of Israel. NLT

The Lord gives righteousness and justice for the oppressed. Because He is merciful and gracious, He is always at work to keep us under His protective care. Satan is like a roaring lion who constantly is stalking us to devour us if he gets the chance. He is always trying to oppose everything we do in order to undermine our service to the Lord and destroy our faith. If it were not for Christ’s righteousness to protect us, we could not survive his assault. Satan uses all the dark forces of evil he has to exploit our faith. Sometimes he is so subtle that we don’t even realize what he is up to, and sometimes he is bold and brash in his activities. Either way, we are not left alone to fight him. In Christ, we have the power and authority to resist him and he must flee from us to fight another day. Greater is He who is with us, in us, and for us, than Satan and all the forces of evil combined.

The Lord makes known His ways to His people. He does not leave us in the dark about who we are, how we got here, why we are here, or where we are going. He makes known to us everything we need to know in order to know Him, love Him, and serve Him.

He shows us the way to the cross. Even before God created anything, He put in place the plan of salvation. He knew that given the freedom of choice He gave us, that we would fall into the cesspool of sin. He knew that once we knew what evil was and got a taste for it, that we would naturally indulge in it. So rather than have us spend an eternity without any chance of being with Him, He put into place Calvary. He lovingly provided the way we could be forgiven for our sins by lovingly sacrificing himself on the cross in our place for us.

The Lord shows us the way to abundant living. John 10:10 Not only do we find in Christ forgiveness for our sins, we find the joys of being saved. We find the very essence of godly living. Gal. 5:22-23 We find the way to overcome our sinful desires. We find the way to experience the very best God has to offer us both now and forever.

The Lord shows us the way to glory. We have a much more to experience and enjoy in Christ than we are able to do now. We have a glorious life ahead of us that is free from any trace of sin and its consequences. We have a life of absolute purity and perfection in the very presence of God. We can’t even comprehend or imagine all that awaits us in glory.

The Lord has not changed. He is the same character as He revealed himself to be Moses. He does for us what He did for the Israelites. He does not withhold himself from His children. O dear friend, look upon Jesus, the author and finisher of our salvation. Behold Him in His righteousness, holiness, and glory. Behold Him and bow down before Him in worshipful joy and praise.

FORGET NOT 2

 

FORGET NOT 2

Psalm 103:4,5 He ransoms me from death and surrounds me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! NLT

Most of us don’t remember as well as we would like to. Things and people that we vow to never forget fade into the muddied waters vof our past, rarely thought of again. We must never let that happen to us spiritually. One of the reasons why a continuous reading and rereading of God’s Word is so important. The Psalmist reminds us in our text for today of two very important things we should never forget.

The Lord ransoms our lives from death. A heart full of sin is not very pretty. Depending on how it manifests itself, the sin within can be very ugly indeed. Not only does it affect the person in which it resides, it often has a very negative affect on others as well. Sin always has victims. People’s lives are destroyed by it. It’s fruit is often seen through attitudes and actions. Gal. 5:19-21 Some people just are not pleasant to be around when their sin manifests itself. The certain end of a sinful heart is spiritual death. Rom. 3:23 Until Jesus is allowed to get involved, an eternity in hell awaits the soul. Remember often what the Lord has done for you in rescuing you from the jaws of death. He paid the price for our sins and set us free from wages of death.

The Lord surrounds us with love and tender mercies. Only in Jesus do we find a satisfying love. Only in Jesus do we find mercy for our souls. Tenderly, lovingly, God withholds from us what we deserve because of our sins. He wondrously pours into our souls His grace and washes away all that kept us away from Him.

The Lord renews our youth like the eagle’s. Oh, dear friend, immerse yourself in Jesus. Soar to heights you never dreamed of. Eph. 3:20-21 Soar freely and graciously in this new life He has endowed you with. John 10:10 Soar, my dear friend, soar high above all that would entangle your soul. Is. 40:28-312 Soar in the riches of His grace. Soar and you will become like Him. Gal. 5:22-23 Soar like an eagle in the arms of Jesus and do let this old life hold you back.

FORGET NOT

 

FORGET NOT

Psalm 103:3 He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. NLT

What a treasure chest full of blessings is Psalm 103! The Psalmist recounts a multitude of ways God blesses His children. Let us bow down and worship our Lord for His bountiful blessings and goodness to us.

If the Lord did nothing else for us but to forgive us, it would be enough to move our hearts to love, praise, thank, and honor Him in all we do. Notice that the Psalmist says that the Lord forgives ALL of our sins. Isn’t that a marvelous truth! Think about it for a moment. There is nothing that you have ever done, no matter how awful it was, that is not forgiven when we ask the Lord to forgive us. There is no sin beyond the reach of His ability to forgive. No one deserves His forgiveness, but all are forgiven who come to Him. I John 1:9; John 6:35-40; Rom. 10:9,10,13 He forgives all of our sins, not just part of them.

Not only does the Lord forgive all of our sins, He heals all of our diseases. Notice that God does not promise healing just because we ask Him for it. He may chose to heal us, but it is not guaranteed. He is sovereign and heals according to His will. He always knows what is best for us.

He heals our diseased souls. He makes us new creations, the old passes away and all things become new. II Cor. 5:17 No matter how much of a mess we have made of ourselves, in Christ we are made whole. It takes a while, but the Lord is always at work in us to make us a new and better version of ourselves. He changes our attitudes so that we are not poison to those around us. He instills within us the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23) so that we are pleasant and not repulsive to those around us. He removes the anger and bitterness of our hearts so we can stand to be around ourselves.

He heals our diseased minds. While living in our sins, we are not able to understand spiritual truths, let alone embrace them. When Christ forgives us, we are given the Holy Spirit to help us understand so we can live in Christ. I Cor. 2 tells us how the Spirit opens up our eyes to spiritual truths that we need for a life pleasing to God.

He heals our diseased bodies. He sometimes miraculously intervenes and heals our broken bodies. Sometimes He allows our diseased bodies to continue and lead us to certain death. He knows what is best for us, and how it fits into His redemptive plan for others. We must never doubt God’s workings and simply trust in His plan.

Never forget, when we get to heaven, we will be completely whole—physically, mentally, and most importantly of all, spiritually.

IN GOD WE TRUST? 3

 

IN GOD WE TRUST? 3

I Kings 17:13-16

Many do not put their trust in God because they of self-centeredness. They expect things of God that are never promised. They act as if they were deserving of God’s blessings. They want a “good life”. And when they don’t get what they want or things don’t go as they expect them to do, they see no point in living in a trust relationship with God. Some don’t trust God because they lack a sense of the bigger picture. They can’t see beyond their noses and don’t realize that God does and works things out for our good, not our liking. Some lack a belief in God’s inherent goodness. They refuse to believe that God knows what He is doing and what is happening will work out well for us.

The Spirit of God richly rewards those who put their trust in God. The widow of Zarephath could not see how she and her son would survive the drought. All her resources were depleted. She was down to her last meal. And when Elijah showed up and asked her to use her last meager resources to fix a meal for him, she must have been in a quite emotional turmoil. Yet, she knew Elijah was a man of God and that what he was asking of her must be from God. Rather than reject what God was requiring of her, she did what Elijah asked. She put her trust in God rather than her resources.

The Lord richly blessed her trust in Him. She discovered that not only did she have enough on hand to take care of Elijah, she had enough for her and her son as well. In fact, God so blessed her meager resources that she had enough to continue to meet her their needs for as long as the drought lasted. God takes care of those who trust Him. No matter how much or little we have, if we trust Him with what we have, He will bless us and others will be blessed through us. God will not ask us to give what He won’t supply.

No matter how much or little we may be asked to give to the Lord, it is enough when we trust Him with it. The Lord asks us to trust Him without reservation. Trust Him with all you have. Trust Him with all your heart. Trust Him with your life.

In God we trust. The extent to which you really trust the Lord determines the health of your soul. Your living is a direct reflection of your willingness to trust the Lord. Do you really trust Him with your all?

IN GOD WE TRUST 2

 

IN GOD WE TRUST? 2

I Kings 17: 7-12

When things don’t go as well as you thought they would, do you panic? When something happens that causes you to have to change the course of your life, do you question God? Do you get all bent out of shape when things seem to be going badly for you? How we respond to events that upend our lives say a lot about our faith in God.

We notice some interesting things in our text for today. We seek first of all in verses 1-6 Elijah at rest. Then in verses 7-12, we see Elijah back at it. In order to be effective at whatever we do, we need to take care of ourselves and get the rest we need. When we allow ourselves some time off, we gain a better perspective on things.

Elijah did not panic when things started to go badly for him. He had just come off an encounter with King Ahab and knew it wasn’t safe for him to hang around. God had sent him to Ahab and now he had to flee. He did not panic, he simply obeyed God and went where God directed him to go for a time of recovery. 7-10a God did not abandon him, He took care of his needs. God was not done with Elijah, but in order for him to handle what was next, he needed to rest and rely on God.

When Elijah had been replenished physically and spiritually, God sent him to his next assignment. 10b-12 We don’t know how long Elijah was in the wilderness, but it was long enough for the brook he was drinking from to dry up. Elijah had Ahab that there would be a drought that would not end until he said it would. God punished Ahab and his people because of their evilness. At just the right time, God led Elijah out of the wilderness to a town called Zarephath where a widow was in desperate need. He was ready to be used of God to help someone in need.

Trust in what God is doing. When he closes one door, He has another already opened for you. Don’t panic. Let the Lord refresh you and then walk through the new door He has for you to walk through. Rom. 8:28; Phil. 4:11 Learn from Elijah’s life, God will take care of you wherever He plants you. Also, you are an important cog in the Kingdom of God. When you let Jesus be your Lord, He will use you to help someone in need.

IN GOD WE TRUST?

 

IN GOD WE TRUST?

I Kings 17:1-16

Let’s face it, we say it but more times than not but we don’t really do it. We tend to rely on the wisdom and guidance of others and ourselves more than we do God. If you don’t believe me, ask yourself how often you defy what makes sense to you and take the Lord’s hand and let Him lead you, provide for your needs, and help you through the difficult times of your life? In verses 1-6 of our text today, we discover that the Spirit of God will never lead us where the grace of God can’t keep us.

We don’t know anything about Elijah’s background except where he came from. He just appears on the scene as a prophet and that God had sent him to King Ahab with a proclamation of a drought. We then find Elijah leaving Ahab and being led by God to go into the wilderness for a season.

God knew what Elijah needed. He needed food, something to drink, and a shelter. True to His nature, God supplied what he needed. It wasn’t quite the way that one might expect, but God supplied. Matt. 6:19-34 God did not abandon Elijah in his hour of need. Matt. 28:20; Ps. 139:7-12 Elijah trusted God, followed His leading, and God blessed him with all he needed. God does that doesn’t He? He is gracious and kind and always is there for us if we trust Him with what we need. Phil. 4:19 In fact, not only does God provide for us, He gives us so much more if we immerse our lives in His and let Him be our Lord. John 10:10

When he learned it, we don’t know, but Elijah learned a lesson in his life that we must also learn well—Jesus is Lord of life. Col. 1:15-20; Eph. 3:20-21 We sometimes get the idea that we are the center of the universe. We like to think we are in control of our destiny. We are delusional. Jesus is Lord. All things were made by Him and for Him. He is the one whom God has exalted above all things. It is before Jesus that every knee will bow and proclaim Him as King and Lord of life. Elijah let the Lord take care of him. He didn’t take matters in his own hands, he let God take care of him as he rested in preparation for his next task.

Let the Spirit of God lead you. He will take care of you there. He will supply all that you need for as long as you need it, and He will prepare you for what He next has for you to do.

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 6

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 6

Nehemiah 1:10-11

It may seem so obvious, but when you pray, pray specifically. Don’t beat around the bush. Tell the Lord all that is on your mind.

Acknowledge what God has already done for you. Nehemiah recalled God’s saving His children. He recalled God’s gracious hand on them and seeing them through the good and bad times of their life as a nation. He recalled God embracing them as His own.

When was the last time you took the time to acknowledge God’s hand on your life? Have you thanked the Lord lately for saving you from your past and giving you a new life? What would your life be like today if the Lord would not have stepped into it and pulled you out of the mess you had made of yourself? Have you thought much about how God has been with you and seen you through the roller coaster of life? Have you given much thought as to what it means to be a child of God?

When was the last time you took an inventory of your heart’s desire? Nehemiah expressed his, “We delight in revering your name.” Can you honestly say that you delight yourself in the Lord? Does the Lord thrill your soul? Do you take pleasure in humbling yourself before the Lord and worshiping Him? Does your soul pant for the Lord? If you want answers to your prayers, you must learn to love Him enough that your heart’s desire is to honor Him, please Him, and serve Him.

Nehemiah asked the Lord for success on his journey. He put His confidence and trust in the Lord and asked God to honor His trust by giving Him a successful trip. It’s not wrong to ask the Lord for success if being successful will honor and glorify God. It is not wrong to ask the Lord for success if you pray submissively to His will for you.

Successful praying is living in close fellowship with God and living in submission to Him. The closer we live in fellowship to the Lord, the more we will pray within the will of God for us, and the more answers to our prayers we will see.

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 5

 

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 5

Nehemiah 1:8-9

One of the things most people find it hard to do when they pray is being bold. Yet, I believe it is something that we need to be in order to pray successfully.

Be bold when you recall God’s promises and remind Him of them. God promises us many things, and we often fail to take Him at His word. We know God’s keeps His word, but we assume it will happen and don’t actually bring them up to Him and hold Him accountable for them. Speak God’s promises back to Him and ask Him to do what He has promised.

We need to be bold when expressing our needs. We need to be honest with ourselves and then tell God what we perceive our needs to be.

We need to be bold with our emotions. There are times in which we need to let our raw emotions show. Don’t be afraid to express yourself before God, He can handle it. We have no problem with expressing joy and gratitude before God, but struggle expressing our anger, bitterness, loneliness, etc. to Him.

We need to be bold in our requests. Jesus instructed us to ask for anything in His name and it will be granted to us. We often limit what God will do for us by our lack of faith in what He can and will do. Now, we must always ask in accordance to God’s will for us. We must always accept that God’s knowledge of what we need takes precedence over what we think we need. God’s supply is always right and good for us.

We need to be bold in our actions. When we pray, we must act on faith that our prayers are heard and answered. We sometimes have to step out boldly trusting the Lord is at work to work everything out for us. Sometimes we need to make changes. Sometimes we have to keep doing what we do and wait for God to answer our prayers. Whether our prayers are answered right away or even years later, we must boldly trust God to answer our prayers.

Every prayer we pray is heard in heaven and moves God to act on our behalf.

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 4

 

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 4

Nehemiah 1:6 “………..I confess that we have sinned against you. Yes, even my own family and I have sinned!” NLT

One of the most essential parts of successful praying is to be repentant. II Chron. 7:14; I John 1:8-10 Notice how Nehemiah prayed.

He prayed for the sins of his nation. He understood the need to pray for his nation. He was well aware of what was going on around him and why things were the way they were. If there ever was a time in we must be in prayer for our country, it is now. No matter who you may think is to blame for the way things are now, the root cause is sin. We as a nation have wandered far away from God and are now living with the consequences of it. Nothing short of repentant hearts is going to change anything. We will continue to self-destruct. Our nation needs a people who are willing to stand in the gap before God on her behalf. Scriptures tells us to pray for our government leaders. We have no right to complain about how badly they may govern if we aren’t supporting their efforts in prayer. Pray for their souls. Pray that they may govern with wisdom and compassion. Pray that they may govern with integrity. Pray.

But, Nehemiah understood that it was not just the fault of others. He included himself and his family in his prayer. He took personal responsibility for the condition of the land. Romans 3:23 reminds us that all of us have sinned. We all are guilty of contributing to the accumulated sins of our nation. No sin is done in isolation. It affects us and those around us. When we ignore sin and compromise it, it causes great spiritual harm to us, the church, and to our nation.

We need to be praying for our families. We need to beseech God on their behalf. We need to pray for lost loved ones. We need to pray for struggling believers. We need to pray for mature believers to remain strong in faith. No one is beyond the reach of Satan’s attack on their soul. Pray.

We need to pray for our own sins. And yes, we are all guilty. No one can honestly claim spiritual perfection. We all are guilty before God and need to seek His forgiveness. As long as we are in the flesh, we will be in a spiritual war over our souls. We will always face temptations to sin and sometimes yield to them. We need Jesus. We need His forgiveness, righteousness, holiness, and grace. Pray.

“It’s me, it’s me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.”

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 3

 

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 3

Nehemiah 1:6 …..listen to my prayer! Look down and see me praying night and day for your people Israel.”

When you pray, be expectant. James 1:5-8 reminds us of this truth. Expect God to hear you when you pray. Expect Him to listen with a willing and loving heart. Expect Him to patient with you, especially if you are emotionally upset and spill your guts out to Him. Expect God to understand you when you pray.

In Romans 8:26-27, we find some very comforting words to help us as we pray. The Apostle Paul tells us the role of the Holy Spirit in our praying. He takes what we pray for and puts it into a heavenly language that God hears. If you don’t know how to put into words what is troubling you, don’t worry, the Spirit does and prays on your behalf. If you sense that you need to pray but don’t know what to pray for, the Spirit knows and will help you as you pray. Expect the Spirit of Christ to help you as you pray and He will.

In Matthew 6:5-18, Jesus gave us some guidance on how to pray. While the Lord’s Prayer offers us some basic guidance, it is not an ironclad model for prayer. Prayer is carrying on a conversation with God, our Father. It is a two-way communication. God listens to us and we listen to Him. Jesus emphasized our need to acknowledge God’s greatness, gracious provision for our needs, and goodness to us. We are to ask for what we need. We are to have humble and forgiving hearts as we pray. We are to ask for forgiveness for our sins. We are to pray to God, not to impress others. We pray for what is on our hearts. Our prayers can be long or they can be short. We can pray anywhere and anytime we sense the prompting of God to pray.

We are to pray for ourselves, and we are to pray for others. There is never a shortage of things to pray for. Pray is essential for a healthy soul and nation. We must be willing and able to pray all the time. People need us to pray for them. The church and her leaders need us to pray for them. Our nation needs us to pray for it. Those who are actively serving the Lord in ministries outside the church need our prayers. People who we know need prayer. People who surround us need our prayers. People who are suffering or destitute need someone to pray for them.

Pray day and night. God always listens to the prayers of His children. Tell it all to Jesus. Pray often, the more you do, the more comfortable you become with it, and the more you will want to pray.