Psalm 41:3 – 3 The Lord will sustain him on his sickbed
and restore him from his bed of illness.
I wasn’t feeling good yesterday afternoon. Much better today. It reminds me of how our Lord is our Healer and Restorer. He who makes the body is certainly powerful enough to heal it. The comfort we have is He is in charge. If it is our time, we can take comfort in it. If it is not, we can take comfort in knowing that is mighty and knows what He is doing and trust in Him.
John 14:27 – 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
We as Christians should know that the world and our Lord are two separate entities. If we don’t it’s because we haven’t been in the Word enough and too much into the world. Since the two are different, the Lord does not give as the world gives.
The sad thing about most humans is they are chasing after and wanting what the world has to offer. Jesus on the other hand is asking us to trust in Him and choose the Father’s way. It’s not of this world.
Surrounded by the comment of “I do not give to you as the world gives” are two important reminders.
The first is peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. Why is that important? Because He knows that if we are really on board with Him, the world is not going to be a fan of ours.
John 15:18 – 18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.
It may indeed hate us and that can leave a lonely feeling as a fallen human. But he wants us to know that He can still give us peace if we remain in Him and focus on Him. That takes us right into the second part which is do not be troubled and do not be afraid.
Matthew 10:28 – 28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
The fact is; we might not always understand in our lives where we are at. But, I can promise you, that if you are trying to be in the will of God and you care, the Lord has you in His loving arms and has you where you need to be.
If being blessed by God meant receiving riches on this earth, then all of Hollywood and rock stars must be the most spiritual of all huh? No, the devil gives the short sighted temporary gifts of this world and if you watch closely, those who really get all of them they ask for are unfulfilled by them.
The Lord knows we have needs. He knows we are full of wants too. He meets the needs. He loves to give us our needs. We don’t always know what’s best for us, but He does.
Trust the Lord on what He gives and look to it as a blessing. At the same time don’t get trapped into wanting in what the world wants to give.
Isaiah 5:20-21 – 20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.
21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.
The news anymore is slanted to tell the story the way you are to perceive it. It isn’t to report what happened, but why it happened and how you should feel about that. In short it’s propaganda. The problem with the latest propaganda is that it’s geared ultimately push everyone towards a one world order.
The philosophy of the One World Order or reconstruction of the Tower of Babel is not God based. On the contrary it’s a philosophy of how the world can be run without God. Who do you think is ultimately behind that? Yes, Satan.
However Satan’s goal is to be like the most high. He wants to rule and be worshipped. His whole plan is to mimic God.
Back to the title. Man has ideas and thinks they are great. However they are completely contrary to the Word of God. Also the same men hate what is good and call God’s Word evil. They are in darkness and so darkness to them is their light. However, they are blinded and can’t see.
Woe! Woe is not taken seriously enough. Woe is bad. In society we have come to think bad is good or intriguing. Reality is that bad will be dealt with and it won’t be good. It won’t even be a matter of taste or opinion. Bad when dealt with will be Bad. Woe!
Choose God’s Word. Don’t be one of those who are wise in their own eyes or follow them to destruction.
1 Peter 2:16 – 16 Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.
It’s a topic that I hit on quite a bit, because I think it’s a problem with the church in America. America has turned to the popular grace message, with no knowledge of what the rest of the Word or even the New Testament has to say on other issues.
If we’re teaching on grace and nothing more is being heard, it becomes a license to do whatever you want. The message that is supposed to immediately follow grace is repentance. This message isn’t as popular with the church as a whole in America. Repentance is about turning away from sin. For many that becomes a legalistic argument, but is it? No.
As human’s we have a defense mechanism that comes into play when we feel like we are being scrutinized. There is a book that lovingly scrutinizes our lives. I believe that is why most people don’t want to read it or hear about it. However, they are the Word’s of life.
If you care about your Lord, know His Word. Once you know His Word, you will know that much is expected in our walk. There has been a church age raised where nothing has been taught accept for forgiveness. That’s the first step of what should be a lifelong walk.
When you teach on grace and nothing more, you are teaching on a free license to sin. The scripture above along with many others remind us that grace is the gift of life, but it’s not there to just abuse. There is one that exists that loves it when Christians and Pagans can’t be told apart by their actions. His name is Satan.
1 Corinthians 9:24- 24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
1 Corinthians 9:27 – 27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
Philippians 3:14 – 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Colossians 2:18 – 18 Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions.
I think we forget about the prize. We’re taught that salvation is the only prize and it’s free and there is nothing you can do to earn it. That’s true, salvation is a free gift and there is nothing you can do to earn it. However, that’s not the prize Paul’s referring to. The Lord wants to reward each and every one of us based on how much love we show him.
We need to run the race as hold onto our reward. The last verse below refers to being saved but losing the reward.
1 Corinthians 3:10-15 – 10 By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. 14 If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15 If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
If we deny our own selfish wants and serve God based on His Word and Truth, we are running the race correctly. Then we can work in the area that He has called us.
Psalm 37:23-26 – 23 If the LORD delights in a man’s way,
he makes his steps firm;
24 though he stumble, he will not fall,
for the LORD upholds him with his hand.
25 I was young and now I am old,
yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
or their children begging bread.
26 They are always generous and lend freely;
their children will be blessed.
The whole 37th Psalm reminds us that the wicked will only prosper for a season, but in the end it’s bad news. We are also reminded that even though it may seem the evil are in control, God loves and looks after those who love Him and look to Him and His ways. Stay the course.
Galatians 4:1-7 – 1 What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. 2 He is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. 3 So also, when we were children, we were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. 4 But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, 5 to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. 6 Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.
If we as believers would only take it seriously. We have a God who has opened up to allow us to be heirs and how are we handling it? As a whole, not serious at all. Literally we need to thank God that there are those who are listening to the commission or no one would be getting the Truth or a chance to be saved. Today is a day where we get the chance to serve our God and the Lord Jesus. It’s not the Pastor’s job to do your part in the Kingdom. Please your true Father and try to reach others for Him.
I am an historian, I am not a believer, but I must confess as a historian that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is irrevocably the very center of history. Jesus Christ is easily the most dominant figure in all history.
H.G. Wells
We tell our whole timeline by Before Christ (BC) and After Death (AD). The Bible is the most printed book in history. God and Jesus are not only the center of history, but the center of the universe as they are the Creator’s of it.