Today, while reading Revelation 5, the following scripture was the focus of my study: “They were singing a new song: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals because you were killed, and at the cost of your own blood you have purchased for God persons from every tribe, language, people, and nation. You have appointed them as a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5:9-10 NET) Because I have been researching on our identity in Christ a lot lately, these two verses stood out among all the others. Why? In these two small verses we learn that Jesus’ obedience to His Father cost Him His life, which He willing laid down; His blood has purchased people from every nation, language and tribe; Jesus has appointed those people (His followers) as kings and priests to serve God; and lastly that His people will reign on earth. We have been commissioned to represent Jesus on the earth by making disciples. (Matthew 28:19) What did this look like? When John the Baptist drew the people, he would call out repent and be baptized for the Kingdom of God is at hand. When Jesus began His ministry, that Kingdom, though not what the world has expected had come. (Matthew 12:28 and Luke 11:20 tell us this.) Acts 10 tells us this about Jesus: “…37you yourselves know the thing which took place throughout all Judea, starting from Galilee, after the baptism which John proclaimed. 38“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. 39“We are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross” Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit and went around doing good. Full of the Holy Spirit, He walked in and by the Spirit. This tells us according to Galatians 5 that His life looked like this: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Then goes on to tell us: “Against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also behave in accordance with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, being jealous of one another. (Galatians 5:22-26 NET) Isaiah 53 tells us this about Jesus… “He sprouted up like a twig before God, like a root out of parched soil; He had no stately form or majesty that might catch our attention, no special appearance that we should want to follow Him. (Isaiah 53:2 NET) I mention this to point out that it was not Christ’s looks that drew them to follow Him according to scripture. Based on Galatians; it was His personality as He submitted His life to the Holy Spirit and walked in the fruit of the Spirit. Jesus went about doing good; teaching; making disciples; healing; bringing deliverance; exemplifying the character of God by walking in the Spirit exuding love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control! He showed mercy, grace and compassion when interacting with people. Consider the woman at the well. She was a Samaritan and a woman. She came to the well in the heat of the day to avoid towns people because of their treatment. Jesus shows her kindness and compassion and strikes up a conversation; a Jewish man speaking to a Samaritan! A woman! How could this be? By the time the disciples were returning, He had confirmed her truthfulness of her lack of a husband and had lovingly pointed out her past. Why do I think it was done in love and compassion? She went back to her town, to people who disapproved of her, and she told them about Jesus and her encounter. They all came to see Jesus. Why would she do this unless it was the fruit of the Spirit is His life and in His conversation with her? He responded a little differently with the religious leaders who knew God’s Word and taught it, yet did not observe it themselves He was less gentle and more to the point because they knew the Scriptures. Jesus set the example of what the Kingdom of God looks like and entreated us to walk as He walked. He set an example of being loving and compassionate with people gently teaching them and speaking the truth in love. This is why they followed Him! Based on this, I am positive beyond a doubt His success was because He exemplified the fruit of the Spirit! There is absolutely no indication that Jesus used guilt, fear or shame, those are tactics of the enemy who comes to kill, steal and destroy. (John 10:10) Jesus came to give life to us! Kingdom life. He came to purchase us for God, bring us into the Kingdom, empower us with the Holy Spirit and infuse us with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Can you just imagine what would happen if all His people choose to walk this way? It seems a little to hard to believe that we could but if we had a revelation of our true identity in Christ, who God says we truly are and walked in that, I believe we would live in a noticeably different world than the one we often see around us. Grace and peace to you! Blessings
Author: livinginhisgrace
Everything in my life is an unbelievable gift from the Father above to mold and shape me into the person that He created me to be! Yes, even the difficult and hard things in my life! Having said that, life, as I see it, is all about a loving relationship with God, and loving the people He places in our lives. Perhaps the journey is all about learning to love and offer grace to those around us inspite of our differences. Today’s world fights for it’s rights and has gone beyond just making it’s opinions known to a place where differing opinions are attacked and if possible silenced. Is this the world we want for our children and grandchildren? Oh how I hope not! I would love for my children and 10 grandchildren to experience a world filled with grace, hope, love and a chance to experience joy along their journey.
Why Do I Love the Word?
What an interesting question that was posed today in the current Bible study I am doing! Why do you love God’s Word? It was followed with this proposal…consider a friend or acquaintance asked you this question because they did not understand your love for the Bible and you were too taken off guard to respond at the time. Now, you sit down to write a note or letter to explain… How would you explain? So here goes lets give it a try…
Dear Friend,
I was taken aback a bit by your question today and needed a little time to process
your inquiry because many emotions rose up within me at that moment. Too many to
put into words immediately. God’s Word is life and health to me! Without it, I would
not be the person I am… I probably would not be alive and certainly would not even
resemble the person you know. His Word has been the source of strength to carry on in
the darkest of days, when sorrow, grief and loss were so very overwhelming that easily I
could have crawled into a dark hole, given up and disappeared. It has brought comfort
and peace in the most frightening of times; it has been my source of encouragement
when all seemed lost and I felt totally alone; it has been a well of hope springing up in
the driest of deserts; a balm to heal my heart when it has been wounded or too heartsick
to even move. His Word has been freedom to a soul held captive by her circumstances
and it has flooded joy into a heart teaching me that joy is available even in the times
where happiness is elusive and circumstances are challenging. When I have been wise, it
has offered me the keys to navigate through every passage on this journey of life. When I
have been foolish, He has drawn me back to it to lovingly shine light on the areas that
could have been better navigated and teach me better ways for the future. Yes, it is life;
strength; comfort; peace; encouragement; healing; freedom; joy; direction; and
instruction. God’s Word also displays my Father’s character, shows the greatness of His
love, and tells me who I am In Christ. In Him, we are called friend; son or daughter;
beloved; accepted; redeemed; justified; set apart; precious; blameless; chosen; and
kings and priests…just to name a few. It contains everything needed to live a victorious
life and to avoid the pitfalls life tends to throw our way. It is a precious gift and a much
needed tool for my life. Dear friend, I hope this at least in part answers your question
and thank you! for challenging me with this question. It is good to be challenged; to be
able put words to such deeply felt emotions and beliefs and to bring to remembrance
why we hold something or someone so dear and precious. It keeps it fresh to us and
prevents us from taking it for granted!
Grace and peace to you my friend!
To Catch a Thief
“The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy…” It is with a grateful heart I tell you it does not end there! Jesus goes on to inform us that He “has come to give us abundant life”‘, “life to the full”, “rich and satisfying life.” John 10:10
One of Pastor’s points in his message yesterday has captivated me. It has rolled over and over in my mind ever since he spoke it. My first thought was I know this, how could I loose sight of this? Maybe I should explain. The statement that has captured me was “Whatever the enemy uses most against you is what scares him most About you!”
Just let that one roll around in your mind a bit…
“Whatever the enemy uses most against you is what scares him most About you!”
Whether we are talking about an enemy in the natural world or the enemy of our soul, they are an enemy because something about us is a threat to them. By definition, this is true…
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/enemy
Ok, supposing this is an accurate statement, and I believe it is, just what are the tactics the enemy uses most in my life when he aims his fiery darts my way? Let’s start with a few areas that can be points of attack and we can answer silently whether or not they apply to our individual lives:
- Fears
- Relationships
- Insecurity
- Worth
- Health
- Worry
- Self doubt
- Not enough
- Too much
- Comparison
- Finances
- Lack
- Loneliness
- Love
- Purpose
- Job/profession
The list is endless… Do any of them hit just a little too close to home? For me, some do. Not only do some of them hit close to home, one or two have been with me since I was a very young girl! The good news is knowing these places in which we are vulnerable is half the battle, maybe more than half. Let’s use worth as an example because in our culture it is an easy target. Our world celebrates beauty, wealth, youth and sexuality and places a high premium on each so much so, that even the most beautiful of models and celebrities’ flaws are photoshopped away. This being the case, many get caught in comparing ourselves to others.
Comparison is one of the snares of the enemy. God created each of us to be unique, each having different strengths, different talents, different giftings and abilities, different looks and even different weaknesses. He celebrates our differences and our differences make us more effective when we work together in the body of Christ. Our differences also set us up to be tempted to compare ourselves to others. When we do, we can see those differences as flaws and begin to become dissatisfied with ourselves, feeling worthless. Conversely, we could also fall into the trap of pride or conceit and view ourselves as better than another. Both of these can play right into the hand of the enemy and keep us from being the best person we can be. Lack of worth can limit us or hold us back from fulfilling our purpose and being our best. On the flip side pride and thinking too highly of ourself can put others off and limit our influence with people. Either extreme renders us less effective at best in fulfilling God’s purpose or plan for our life. In the worst case, it stops us in our tracks. It also can cause us to fall short of the abundant life that Jesus has planned for us to live.
Knowledge is power! Knowing those weak spots helps us to identify and prepare for the future attacks. It is also helpful to be armed with the knowledge of what our God says about who we are In Christ! Child of God, In Christ you are: loved, accepted, redeemed, beloved, precious, chosen, forgiven, complete, a new creation, set apart, and so much more! In the Word we are told in Christ we are…
The enemy will do what he can to stop us and to keep us from understanding that Our God deemed us worthy of His Son giving His life for us. Zephaniah 3:17 tells us: “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.” (Zephaniah 3:17 ESV) Jesus laid it all down for us, not one of us could ever earn or deserve such a generous gift and yet You gave it freely to us-Grace!
Grace-pure and simple-unearned-unmerited-Grace
You love us for who we are, not despite who we are. You love us for who You know we can be yet You meet us right where we are!
Pure Love
Unconditional
Unstoppable
Unlimited
Unashamed
Uncontainable
Incomprehensible
Scandalous Grace
Today we celebrate that there was No victory in the death of Jesus Christ though the religious leaders and Satan thought there was. Death’s sting was extinguished forever! Why? Because He was victorious over death once and for all! He is risen and alive forever!
In an incomprehensible act of love, mercy and grace, God’s beloved Son left all that was His to become like us. He not only experienced all the trials and sorrows we do, but He walked through them…never bogged down in them! His was the victory as He faced each one, stood firm, strong and sinless; always trusting His Father and His God! He faced the most painful death counting it joy because He understood what it was purchasing for all,of us if we only have the faith to believe!
Jesus forever changed the way we are able to interact with our Father God, Creator of the Universe!
So I will stand! Arms high and heart abandoned…in Awe of Jesus and gratitude to God!
I don’t know about you but I owe it all to Him! So grateful for God’s inexhaustible mercy, love and grace! He is risen indeed!
Happy Easter! May His love, grace and peace be abundantly yours this day and every day!
Grace; Peace; Divine Power; Great and Precious Promises
Unbelievable? Too good to be true? More than we can ever completely comprehend? Can we ever really wrap our mind around the idea that peace beyond understanding is available to us. Joy unspeakable, love beyond anything we have experienced, acceptance, total forgiveness, freedom and deliverance can be ours.
Recently, we journeyed through 40 days of grace and traced all the major grace scriptures throughout the Bible. The one below was the only major one that remained and it is a powerful one! It covers a number of the different precepts we have talked about and wraps them all together. What a powerhouse it is, especially if we ever truly capture it in it’s fullness. Take a peek:
May grace and peace be multiplied to you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. By these He has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may share in the divine nature, escaping the corruption that is in the world because of evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with goodness, goodness with knowledge, knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with godliness, godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they will keep you from being useless or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. The person who lacks these things is blind and shortsighted and has forgotten the cleansing from his past sins. Therefore, brothers, make every effort to confirm your calling and election, because if you do these things you will never stumble. For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly supplied to you. (2 Peter 1:2-11 HCSB)
In Christ, not only is grace and peace added to our lives, according to Peter it can be multiplied! Imagine exponential peace and grace can be ours along with everything we could need for our life and living it in a godly way! All through the Word of God there are great promises and Peter tells us they are ours. They are given to us to help us grow, to keep us away from trouble and corruption, and become more Christ-like in our actions.
One of the greatest treasures about a relationship with Jesus is that He meets us right where we are and He loves us exactly as He found us. Romans tells us that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. He gave His life in a great exchange. His perfect, sinless and spotless life in exchange for our less than perfect ones. Paying the price for every possible thing we would ever do causing us to fall short of God’s standard; Jesus willingly gave His life. Though the religious leaders plotted against Jesus, they were not actually responsible for His death. In John, Jesus tells us “This is why the Father loves Me, because I am laying down My life so I may take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down on My own. I have the right to lay it down, and I have the right to take it up again. I have received this command from My Father.” John 10: 17-18 How great is His love for us! Because of His immense love, He also empowers us to live victoriously through the gift of His Spirit.
Did you notice the progression in the scripture passage? Peter is talking to believers so it is a given that they have a measure of faith. From faith in Jesus and gratitude for His sacrifice and provision comes a greater desire for goodness in our lives. Peter’s formula is something like this:
Faith + Goodness + Knowledge + Self-Control + Endurance + godliness + Brotherly affection + Love =
Usefulness
Fruitfulness
Effectiveness
Absence of them can make us short sighted and blind us.
Again, Jesus meets us exactly where we are. The thing is He loves us too much to want us to stay there so we are encouraged to grow into maturity in Christ. We may progress baby step by baby step or in giant leaps of faith. Most likely it will be a combination; sometimes walking, other times running or leaping. Even others times it may be stumbling. The important thing is to be moving forward in our relationship with Him and with others and if by chance we stumble backwards; regroup and begin advancing again.
My Mom’s favorite saying was “When God closes one door, He opens another.” Sometimes said, ” when God closes a door, He opens a window.” Recently, I have seen it written, “When God closes a door. praise Him in the Hall.” I guess where I am leading with this is that there will always be times we go through less than pleasant circumstances. There will be wilderness times when we feel like we are circling the same mountain over and over. The solution? Keep our eyes off our circumstances and on Him; working that equation every chance we get. Then we will experience usefulness and fruitfulness, overcome our circumstances, and eventually we are led us to a place of victory!
Beauty in the Sky
This is indeed an unusual year as we entered the Holy Week with Palm Sunday being just behind us. Passover began yesterday evening at sundown. We also had the first of four blood moons that will occur over the next eighteen months. (Lunar Tetrads) Interestingly, these four blood moons will coincide with the Jewish feasts of Passover and Sukkot this year and again next year. There have only been a hand full of times through history that these have occurred on Jewish Festivals since the time of Christ. Each time it seems, significant events were witnessed in the lives of the Jewish people.
Last nights blood moon began around 2:30 in our time zone. It was supposed to be able to be best seen in the Western Hemisphere and especially well seen in the United States. I was looking forward to setting my alarm and watching from 2:30 a.m. until 4:30 when it was going to be at the height of the eclipse. There was only one problem…it had rained all day and no sign of clearing. I checked the radar a final time. Rain covered the whole area of north central Georgia and extended almost to Mississippi. Not a break in the action to be seen. Oh well, Lord you know the desire of my heart. I am going to turn off my alarm. If things clear up, You are more than able to awaken me to see it, after all You have done this many times to have me pray about situations and for people…
About 2:25 a.m., I found myself awake. Could it be? I. Quietly walked to the picture window in our bathroom and looked out. The sky was much brighter than when I went to sleep but still too dark for a full moon. Then I moved to a smaller window and looked up. I caught a glimpse through a break in the clouds of the pre-eclipse moon so I decided to get comfortable in the sun room and watch a while. Cloud cover returned; steady rain followed as I sat quietly waiting. The thought came to me, you should check online. Think me nuts if you will, but I believe it was God’s prompting that awakened and the wisdom of the Holy Spirit whispering check online. Some think it is crazy, I call it Faith. Not once had I considered someone would have it live online. I certainly expected to see pictures in the days to come but not live. So I got my iPad and googled 2014 blood moon and there it was…a live broadcast from an observatory in Arizona! It was a beautiful thing to watch. The silvery white brightness began to be covered with a pinkish glow. It then turned into a peachy color gradually darkening to a darker burgundy color. It was beautiful!
This is a screen shot of the live broadcast. It was actually brighter and more vivid on the live stream but this is a good representation of how it looked in full eclipse as the earth blocked the sun and the rays of light bending around the earth reflected back to us after reaching the moon.
Though I am not wishing my life away, I am looking forward to watching again on October 8 and again next year in April and October. Hopefully we can see it in person if it is still visible here and weather is permitting. My understanding is the last moon of the tetrad will be visible over Jerusalem next October. Either way, it is great to know observatories around the world will likely be broadcasting these occurrences in the heavens.
Each time at tetrad has occurred, significant events have occurred among the Jewish people. The most recent was in 1967 and 1968 coinciding with the Six Day War. One result was Jerusalem becoming the undivided Capitol of Israel. Prior to that was 1949-1950 which followed on the footsteps of Israel becoming a nation. Jewish people from around the world began to be gathered to their homeland and that in-gathering continues even today. Another example was the event prior to and following the blood moons of 1493-1494. We all know that Columbus sailed and discovered America in 1492. During this group of blood moons, an Edict of Expulsion was instituted against the Jews of Spain and the Spanish Inquisition. The Jewish population had a choice between converting to Catholicism, torture, or leaving. Because of Columbus’ discovery, many found safe haven here in America. Will the blood moons have great significance as all the previous ones? Only time will tell but in the past they have all been significant times on the Hebrew calendar.
For more information there are a number of good books and online resources available both from faith perspectives and scientific perspectives.
Joel 2:28-32 “After this I will pour out My Spirit on all humanity; then your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will have dreams, and your young men will see visions. I will even pour out My Spirit on the male and female slaves in those days. I will display wonders in the heavens and on the earth: blood, fire, and columns of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the great and awe-inspiring Day of the Lord comes. Then everyone who calls on the name of Yahweh will be saved, for there will be an escape for those on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, as the Lord promised, among the survivors the Lord calls.” (HSCB)
Days of Grace-Day 40
Today is Palm Sunday, the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a colt that had never been ridden. In obedience to the Father’s plan, despite knowing full well He was riding toward great suffering and pain; He entered Jerusalem to the crowds joyously crying out hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of The Lord. How quickly would the tables turn and the enemy seemingly take control. However, he was never the one in control. The enemy can only do what is allowed by God. God had a purpose that was much higher, the salvation of mankind through the restoration of a right relationship between God and man. Even today with the Word of God to explain it, it is difficult to understand and take it fully into our hearts and lives. What Adam and Eve lost in the Garden of Eden, God was about to restore.
Jesus was the means to this restoration but it meant great suffering, being misunderstood, plotted against by religious leaders who feared Him, betrayal, false accusation, being beaten almost lifeless and being crucified on a cross between two real criminals until His body hung there lifeless. Thankfully, that is not the end of the story! Three days in a borrowed tomb. Very early on the third day, the ladies went to the tomb…what is this? The massive stone covering the tomb had been rolled away. Placed there to prevent Jesus’ followers from removing the body and claiming He had risen, it was too heavy for someone to move and had been guarded by Roman soldiers to prevent tampering. Yet it was rolled back, the body was gone and the burial clothes neatly folded where His head should have been. Jesus was not there!
Jesus then appeared to Mary in the garden. She was overtaken with grief but when He said her name she recognized His voice. His sheep know His voice…. She was delighted to see Him. He told her to go and tell His disciples that He is alive!
Grace has made provision for each person, the question is will we receive and believe it has been provided for us and choose to follow Him? Our grace verses today come from 1 Peter 5.
In the same way, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. And God will exalt you in due time, if you humble yourselves under His mighty hand by casting all your cares on Him because He cares for you. Be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour. Resist him, strong in your faith, because you know that your brothers and sisters throughout the world are enduring the same kinds of suffering. And, after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace who called you to His eternal glory in Christ will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To Him belongs the power forever. Amen. Through Silvanus, whom I know to be a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, in order to encourage you and testify that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. (1 Peter 5:5-12 NET)
This is an amazingly powerful passage as we tie up forty days studying God’s grace running through the scriptures and look ahead to the Passion Week and the days leading to the celebration of Christ’s resurrection. This wonderful thing call grace winds itself from Genesis all the way through Revelation and even when the specific word is not used there is example after example. We have looked at many examples of God’s grace and mercy to His people. It is all around us. The above passage piggybacks on yesterday’s saying many of the same things. God gives grace to the humble; He care for us greatly and when we humble ourselves before Him, He will exalt us in due time; His time.
Because of how He cares for us, He tells us to cast our cares on Him. Cease striving and worrying and lay them at His feet believing that He is able to see us through any situation that we face. Suffering is part of the world we live in and everyone has times in their lives that they experience it. God sees our troubles and assures us in this passage that He Himself will restore us; strengthen us; confirm us; and establish us. He cares for us beyond what we can comprehend. He is for us and desires the best for us always. We have a real enemy who is fierce and is looking for every opportunity to steal the abundant life God has for us. The enemy seeks to bring fear and worry into our life, to tear down our faith and turn us away from God. Our job is to resist him and to keep the faith, building ourself up in our faith by learning who we are in Christ and what His great and precious promises to us are. This passage tells us to resist him, stand firm in our faith never forgetting our brothers and sisters also face the same kinds of struggles we do. Peter is encouraging his brothers and sisters to stand fast in God’s grace. Just as Peter encourages those to whom he was writing and encourages us also; we too should encourage those around us. How do we do this? We share our lives, testimonies of how God has been there for us; freed us; delivered us; gotten us through difficult times. Sometimes it is just as simple as sitting and listening. Other times it may be a shoulder to cry on or a comforting hug. We all have been the recipients of grace in our lives at one time or another. Costly grace. God’s grace, freely given to us yet it cost His Son everything! We are a blessed people…blessed to be blessings to those around us!
Thank you for joining me on this journey. May His grace, peace and blessings be abundant all your days!
The Lord bless you, and keep you; The Lord make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace.’ (Numbers 6:24-26 NASB)
Days of Grace-Day 39
Today’s grace verse is the only verse in James where the Greek word Charis (grace) is found and at first glance it seems to be very cut and dry…”But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6 NASB)
If we include the surrounding verses, it becomes even more powerful and very convicting! I chose to look at it in the The Message after reading several different translations. Let’s take a look…
Where do you think all these appalling wars and quarrels come from? Do you think they just happen? Think again. They come about because you want your own way, and fight for it deep inside yourselves. You lust for what you don’t have and are willing to kill to get it. You want what isn’t yours and will risk violence to get your hands on it. You wouldn’t think of just asking God for it, would you? And why not? Because you know you’d be asking for what you have no right to. You’re spoiled children, each wanting your own way. You’re cheating on God. If all you want is your own way, flirting with the world every chance you get, you end up enemies of God and His way. And do you suppose God doesn’t care? The proverb has it that “He’s a fiercely jealous lover.” And what He gives in love is far better than anything else you’ll find. It’s common knowledge that “God goes against the willful proud; God gives grace to the willing humble.” So let God work His will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and He’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet. (James 4:1-10 MSG)
Wow! It gets right to the point and strongly states it’s message. You might prefer another translation, some are gentler than this paraphrase. My take away is it is very easy to get caught up in the world and become selfish and self-centered rather than God centered. When we do this, our world view becomes more and more wrapped up in ourselves and less concerned with others and with God. When we are humble and seek God first, trust that He is for us and wants what is best for us; then our hearts will be right before Him and when we ask it will be more likely to be from a good place and with right motives. God wants first place in our lives. He tells us when we seek Him and His Kingdom first, all other things will be added to us. (Matthew 6:33) God also tells us He will provide our needs according to His riches and glory. (Philippians 4:18-20) Our Father wants us to have full and abundant lives (John 10:10) but He also knows that some of the things we desire will not be good for us or will cause us to stumble. Have you ever prayed for something and got no for an answer only to realize down the road if that prayer had been answered it would not have turned out well for you? I have! I can think of a few such situations. God gives grace to the humble and when we submit ourselves humbly before Him, resisting the enemy and his antics in our lives; the enemy will flee. As we draw near to God, He draws near to us. (James 4:8) When we humble ourselves before Him, then He is able to exalt us. (verse 10) Maybe it is over simplistic, but I look at my relationship with my children and grandchildren as a great example of our relationship with God.
I have always wanted the best for my children and still do; the same is true for my precious little grandchildren. I would love for them to have every desire of their heart but a small child playing near a busy road or darting out across a street is very dangerous therefore must be denied no matter how much fun they think it will be. Just as in this day and time it is inadvisable for a thirteen year old to be granted permission to skateboard around town at 2 a.m.. Some things are just not smart and we would be considered negligent if we allow those things to go on. Still, we want what we want and in the long run sometimes we act just like the teenager that sneaks out their window in the middle of the night leaving the safety of their parents home.
God wants us to come to Him and trust Him even when His answer is not the one we would like to hear or when the answer is wait. He sees our hearts and like a good parent, He knows the hidden dangers that we may not see or consider. His Word asks:
Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him! (Matthew 7:9-11 NASB)
also, it tells us:
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? (Romans 8:31, 32 NASB)
God gave us His Son, His most precious possession is ours if we will believe. If He has already given His best, why would He withhold anything else from us? The only logical reason would be that it might be detrimental to us in some way; either spiritually, physically, emotionally or eternally harmful. His desire is for our good, for our well-being, to strengthen us and grow us into mature sons and daughters of the Most High God.
May His grace, peace and blessing reign in your life and mine!
Days of Grace-Day 38
Therefore, we may boldly say: The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Don’t be led astray by various kinds of strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be established by grace and not by foods, since those involved in them have not benefited. Now may the God of peace, who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus — the great Shepherd of the sheep — with the blood of the everlasting covenant, equip you with all that is good to do His will, working in us what is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ. Glory belongs to Him forever and ever. Amen. (Hebrews 13:6-9, 20, 21 HCSB)
Whatever situation we find ourselves in, we can call on the The Lord, he is our Helper. I have always had confidence that nothing is too big for God, but there was a time when I never considered praying for the small things. The truth is God loves His sons and daughters and He cares about all things concerning us. I remember a time in my life, probably about twenty years ago now, when several of my joints became suddenly very inflamed and quite painful. Walking was painful and everyday responsibilities of caring for my young families became a challenge for a time. Responsibilities had to be met, laundry, shopping for meals and preparing them. I vividly remember one shopping trip. We had to have groceries and I was struggling that day. Walking was difficult. As I drove through the huge parking lot several times, no close parking could be found. Finally, I felt the nudge to pray. My thought was that is silly, not about something so small and selfish. Again, the word pray came to mind. Ok. I prayed, feeling quite silly but knowing that getting two small children and myself from the far end of the lot to the grocery store would tax my painful joints and shorten my ability to pick up the needed groceries. I then choose to drive around the next aisle and right as I reached the front, a car began to back out in the very first spot! After several similar incidents during that time, I learned God really does care about all things concerning us! He has since brought complete healing and now I gladly park out and walk but the lesson learned has stuck with me…He is my helper and is concerned about all my needs. His grace is sufficient for me in my health and in my challenges!
Next our verse tells us to fear not! Remember what your leaders have taught you about the Word of God, watch how it looks and works in their lives and mimic their faith because Jesus is the same today as He was in Biblical days. He doesn’t change, His character is reliable. Watch out for strange teaching, let grace establish you. You can see by the fruit in others lives whether or not their teachings have benefited them. Do not hesitate to test the words of those who teach you or advise you. I often listen to wonderful Christian communicators and speakers and I have learned much from their teaching and stories about their lives but I always return to the Word of God, verifying that their teaching is in line with what the Word says because we are warned many times about false teachers. The Lord equips us with all we need to do His will and to do whatever He has called us to do in each season of our lives. He gives us the Holy Spirit as our comforter and teacher and His Spirit is able to guide us and teach us all truth concerning God’s Word. What was once a great mystery to me and hard to understand, has become a delight and joy in my life. Today we are very blessed to have different translations that use everyday English and are easier to understand and we also have wonderful sights online like Youversion.com, Biblegateway.com, and Biblestudytools.com where we can access different versions of the Bible online and don’t have to purchase different versions. Again, check out the versions just like you check the words of your teaches to make sure they are in line with God’s Word. I have seen one or two that seemed very odd. You many have noticed that I have used several different versions in my blog but I always check them against what other versions say for continuity. Grace and blessings to you this day!
Now may the God of peace, who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus — the great Shepherd of the sheep — with the blood of the everlasting covenant, equip you with all that is good to do His will, working in us what is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ. Glory belongs to Him forever and ever. Amen. (Hebrews 13:20, 21 HCSB)
Days of Grace-Day 37
Hebrews 12 is our passage for today. Here we find a call to endure in this race called life. The writer calls us not only to endure but to lay aside all that which might weigh us down or entangle us, keeping our eyes on Jesus because He is not only the author of our faith but the one who will cause that faith to be fully developed in us! He also reminds us that a good father who loves his children disciplines his children. How much more will our Heavenly Father discipline us, His sons and daughters. Discipline is for our benefit and it stretches us, matures us so that we can share His holiness leading to peace and right standing with God.
Now we are caught up with the context as we land on our first scripture about grace: Therefore strengthen your tired hands and weakened knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated but healed instead. Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness — without it no one will see the Lord. Make sure that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness springs up, causing trouble and by it, defiling many. (Hebrews 12:12-15 HCSB).
Here we are encouraged to strengthen ourself not only physically but also mentally and emotionally. Running a race not only requires us to be strong in our physical health but we also must have our minds and emotions in check to be strong and keep going. Whether it is a race, a project at work, working on a hobby, studying, or sharing our faith or testimony; we are much more effective if we are strong physically and mentally clear. Being at peace with those around is a huge asset because when we are not we tend to be unfocused on what we are doing and if resolution isn’t accomplished, bitterness can invade and make things much worse. It is very good idea to keep short accounts and live at peace with those around us showing them the same grace that we have been shown. I say this knowing full well that it is not always an easy task and preaching mostly to myself.
Lastly, we are reminded not to reject the grace of God and then given a promise that we are receiving a kingdom that can not be shaken. His voice shook the earth at that time, but now He has promised, Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also heaven. This expression, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of what can be shaken — that is, created things — so that what is not shaken might remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us hold on to grace. By it, we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:26-29 HCSB).
Why is this important? Should it strike fear in us? Personally, I believe we are told this because God wants us aware when things get difficult and threaten our ‘normal’ lives shaking us up and making us question life around us; we will quickly turn to Him and lean on His grace. I believe His purpose is so we will not fear when difficult times come but we will seek Him, His wisdom and understanding. When we do this He gives us grace to walk through the circumstance and come out victorious on the other side. I can’t help but think of the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. They were thrown into a fiery furnace in the book of Daniel for not bowing to a golden image of the Babylonian king. The guards who had thrown them into the fire were consumed by the heat from the fire, yet the three Hebrew men were seen walking in the fire with a fourth who was like the Son of God. The three Hebrew men were delivered through the fire and when they came out they was no sign of harm nor did they even carry the smell of smoke. (Daniel 3) Will the outcome always be that dramatic? Maybe, maybe not, but He is able to do exceeding above and beyond anything we can ask or imagine. His grace is sufficient!
May grace and peace be multiplied to you!
Living in His Grace 