Devotions - Prayer
Bitterness causes even the most intelligent and rational person to lose control and drown in negativity.
Until we uproot our bitterness, we will never overcome any of our other flaws.
“See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” Hebrews 12:15
When a root of bitterness is allowed to be planted and grown, it not only affects that person, but it also affects all others who are involved. It is like a cancer.
Breaking satan’s foothold requires at least one person to press into God’s grace.
It cannot happen when either party “feels” like it, for none of us will ever feel like forgiving.
None of us feel like talking when we have been hurt.
Our natural response is to withdraw or lash out at the offending party.
It is only obedience that allows God’s grace to cover the wrongs incurred.
This grace prevents the parties from becoming victims who will seek compensation for their pain.
The next time you are hurt by someone, realize the gravity of the crossroads where you find yourself.
Choose GRACE instead of bitterness. Then you will be free to move past the hurt, and a root of bitterness will not be given opportunity to grow.
Controlling Anger
1. Recognize the root of your anger (Heb. 12:15)
2. Confess it to God (Prov. 16:7)
3. Make an effort to make things right with the offended (Matt. 5:23-24)
4. Choose to forgive others (Mark 11:25-26)
He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty (Proverbs 16:32)
*Forgiveness doesn’t make THEM right, but it makes YOU free!
*Harboring unforgiveness blocks out the goodness of God in our lives. We poisoned ourselves and finally choked on that poison.
5 reasons bitterness is called a root:
1) Bitterness is hidden. unseen.
2) Bitterness prefers darkness to SONlight.
3) Bitterness loves dirt.
4) Bitterness gets deeper and stronger the longer its allowed to live.
5) Bitterness produces its fruit and poisons many others as it continues to spread.
How do I forgive those who hurt me?
1) Pray for those who hurt you. Matthew 5:44.
2) Forgive as you have been forgiven. Colossians 3:13
Father, reveal to me where I may be harboring anything against anyone. Convict my heart and give me the strength to forgive. All things are possible through you. Amen
(Read Ephesians 4:21- 5:2( verse 32–Replace the Old with New–31″get rid of ALL Bitterness…be kind to each other tenderhearted, forgiving on another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you”
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Psalms 23:1 The LORD is my shepherd;I have all that I need.
If you need a prescription for peace, I encourage you to let your thoughts dwell on God’s promises and rest in His presence as you pray.
Ask Him to help you release your worry. Praise Him for the good things He’s done, and talk to Him about the problems you’re struggling with.
Seek God’s will for every area of your life and commit to trust Him enough to make changes as He nudges you.
True peace comes when we trust God and seek rest in Him, not when life is conflict-free.
****A daily dose of God’s presence and promises is the best prescription for peace.
Philippians 4:6-7.
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
As the words of these verses wash through my soul, I realize I’ve been depending on people to diagnose my problems instead of seeking a remedy from God.
I had overlooked the only One who had a prescription that could heal — Jesus Christ.
Galatians 6: 9 So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.
ENEMIES OF GODLINESS
Enemy #1 Selfishness:-Don’t only look to satisfy your own sinful nature, this harvests death. Live to please the spirit, this harvests life in the spirit.(See 1 Peter 3:18)
Enemy #2 Pride: Be Humble.
(SeeProverbs 16:18)
Enemy #3 Insecurity:-It prevents intimacy and promotes fear. -We are afraid that or weaknesses will be revealed. We are also afraid of rejection of being ourselves so we try to be something and someone we are not.
-The antidote of rejection is the acceptance of Almighty God.
Enemy #4 Resentment: -Hurt people hurt people.
(Philippians 2:4)
Dear Lord, I am stressed. I know I need a change in my life, and I am ready for the prescription for peace that only You can offer. Fill me today with a dose of serenity that I cannot find anywhere else but in You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Read MorePsalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Notice that first word: “Delight yourself.”
I heard someone once ask this question of a group of people: “Do you enjoy your religion, or do you endure it?”
I think that to the majority of people religion is something to endure. It’s a kind of painful duty that they have to go through with, but that’s not the way God wants us to experience Him.
God doesn’t want us to endure Him; He wants us to enjoy Him.
“The supreme duty of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.”
Have you ever thought of enjoying God?
God says, “Delight yourself in Me and I will give you the desires of your heart.”
That doesn’t mean simply that God will do for us everything we might wish or think.
**It means that He’ll put in us new desires – godly desires, beneficial desires, the kind of desires that God has Himself.
*And then He’ll satisfy those desires because He’s put them there in our heart in the first place. And all that comes when we delight ourselves in the Lord.
When we find real joy and pleasure and satisfaction in our personal relationship with the Lord—–*Then out of that comes that blessed peace that He will put into our hearts – those desires which He Himself has and which He wants to share with us, desires that are beneficial in their fulfillment.
Jesus, help me to know You more in a deeper intimate relationship. As you say: “To know You is to have Eternal Life”! Thank you God for giving us Your Son-Jesus that paid my debt of sin. Amen
Read More“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things.” Philippians 4:8
We all struggle with negative thinking at times; it’s a common battle.
And that’s why it’s important to recognize negative thought patterns and learn how to re-route them.
** The good news is we can have control over what we think.
*When we’re down, sad or hopeless, let’s take inventory of our thoughts.
*When we find ourselves jumping to conclusions, doling out guilt trips on others or replaying arguments in our mind, let’s consciously change our thinking.
*When I get in a self-pity party, often it’s because I’ve focused too much on what’s bad.
The apostle Paul advises us in our key verse, Philippians 4:8, to think about things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy.
1 Corinthians 2:14-16, “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For ‘who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.”
The next time you’re fighting negative thoughts, “rattle your cage” by remembering you have the mind of Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:4-5, “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.”
*Take each negative thought captive and replace it with what Paul describes in our key verse.
Scripture promises that when we align our thoughts with God’s, His peace, which passes all understanding, will keep our hearts and mind through Christ Jesus.
Lord, give me Your ability to bring every thought captive. Help me to refute negative thoughts with Your truth from Your word. Thank You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Read MoreLets First Hear “All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name”(Acts 10:43).
Believe Jesus was crucified at a place we call Calvary. It was nine in the morning when soldiers nailed his hands and feet to the cross and then suspended him between heaven and earth.
At noon the sky darkened. It was the darkest moment in human history. God was making Jesus, the one who had no sin, to be sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21).
At three in the afternoon, Jesus said in a loud voice, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” And then….
In victory, he cried out, “It is finished!” With that cry, he gave up his spirit.
This was no ordinary death suffered by no ordinary person. This was Jesus, the Lord and creator of all, offering himself as the perfect Lamb of God.
- His achievement removed the barrier that stood between God and man.
- It shook the foundation of the world and it raised people to life.
- This was God saying to mankind to take note, to stop and consider the implications.
Christ Jesus, as the Lamb of God, took away the sin of the world (John 1:29). He took away your sin.
Live
- Do you believe that Jesus’ death at Calvary was sufficient to take away your sin?
- Are you willing to rest in His finished work and trust that your sins have been forgiven once and for all?
- Are you willing to thank God that according toActs 10:43, you have forgiveness of sins?
John 6:47 I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life!
1 John 5:13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.
1 John 5:11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is IN his Son. Amen
Read MoreBe joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” Romans 12:12-13 (NIV)
Hurt and being alone can be found in most of our lives, but what joy there is when a friend steps in with a gentle smile and a few simple words of encouragement and suddenly you’re not alone.
Things one can say to a friend. Romans 12:12-13, in a section titled “Love.”
1. “You’re wonderful.”
(Romans 12:12, “Be joyful in hope …”)
The world is quick to tell us all the ways we fall short. We are hyperaware of our faults and frailties.
So, what a precious gift to remind a friend of specific ways they are a wonderful friend, a wonderful Jesus person, a wonderful wife/husband, a wonderful co-worker, a wonderful person.
2. “Me too.”
(Romans 12:12, “… patient in affliction …”)
What a blessing to remind a friend we all have afflictions, hurts, faults and tender places. We all get sick both emotionally and physically.
The patient friend freely gives grace because they so desperately needs it themself. “Me too” acknowledges I’m no better than you, but together we are stronger. It’s such a loving and disarming admission that we’re all in this together.
3. “I’ll pray.”
(Romans 12:12, “… faithful in prayer.”)
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to tell a friend you will absolutely be faithful in praying for them?
4. “I’ll share.”
(Romans 12:13, “Share with the Lord’s people who are in need …”)
When we notice a need in a friend’s life, might we be willing to step in and be part of the solution?
We may not be the full cure, but we may of helped build a foundation of restoration and give this person the assurance God was working on their behalf.
5. “Come over.”
(Romans 12:13, “Practice hospitality.”)
Welcoming a friend inside the sacred space of our home is such a needed gesture. There’s just something about relationships that are less misunderstood when we get eye-to-eye, voice-to-voice and talk. Really talk.
I’ve found as we purposefully ease the loneliness ache in others, we will see it is beautifully eased in us.
Dear Lord, thank You for the gift of friendship. Please show me who I can encourage today. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Read MoreScripture tells us that, as new believers, we have “put on” Christ. Although this begins in our hearts when we’re born again, we must continually choose to “put on” Christ moment by moment throughout our lives. This is the process of sanctification.
“…put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” Ephesians 4:24
He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake (Psalm 23:3b).
The Hebrew word translated “paths” means “a well-defined, well-worn trail.” That indicates again how stupid sheep are, because even when the trail is well laid out, they still need a shepherd. They are still inclined to wander away, no matter how obvious the path may be. The shepherd knows the trails. He has been there before, and the sheep trust him
We have to make countless decisions, day after day, which touch the lives of our children and our wives and husbands. We need wisdom. We need a shepherd. We need someone who knows the trails, someone whom we can trust.
We all need a decisive word from someone who knows the way, and the Lord knows the way. But the question arises–
“How can I discover His will for my life?”
May I suggest these steps?
First, submit wholeheartedly to the leadership of the shepherd. That is the basic attitude we must maintain. Unless we are willing to admit that we don’t know the way through the wilderness and submit to His leadership, we will never find the way.
The second thing we must do is to obey what we know now to be God’s will for us. Most of God’s will is already revealed in His Word. We have to begin by obeying the truth that we have.
But what about other areas of life where the Scriptures do not give specific information?
There we are led by the peace of God. As we spend time praying and waiting upon God, there comes a sense of peace, an inner conviction, about the correctness of a certain direction.
Father, You have promised to lead me in paths of righteousness. Help me to be willing to follow, even when I don’t understand. AMEN
The bow is seen in the clouds. Genesis 9:14
The rainbow, the symbol of the covenant with Noah, foreshadows our Lord Jesus, who is the Lord’s witness to the people.
When may we expect to see the token of the covenant? The rainbow is only to be seen painted upon a cloud. When the sinner’s conscience is dark with clouds, when he remembers his past sin and mourns and laments before God, Jesus Christ is revealed to him as the covenant Rainbow, displaying all the glorious hues of the divine character and declaring peace.
To the believer, when his trials and temptations surround him, it is sweet to behold the person of our Lord Jesus Christ—to see Him bleeding, living, rising, and pleading for us. God’s rainbow is hung over the cloud of our sins, our sorrows, and our woes, to prophesy deliverance. By itself a cloud does not give a rainbow; there must be the crystal drops to reflect the light of the sun.
So, our sorrows must not only threaten, but they must really fall upon us. There would have been no Christ for us if the vengeance of God had been merely a threatening cloud: Punishment must fall in terrible drops upon Him.
Until there is a real anguish in the sinner’s conscience, there is no Christ for him; until the chastisement that he feels becomes grievous, he cannot see Jesus.
But there must also be a sun; for clouds and drops of rain do not make rainbows unless the sun shines. Beloved, our God, who is as the sun to us, always shines, but we do not always see Him—clouds hide His face; but no matter what drops may be falling or what clouds may be threatening, if He shines there will be a rainbow at once.
It is said that when we see the rainbow, the shower is over.
It is certain that when Christ comes, our troubles withdraw; when we look on Jesus, our sins vanish, and our doubts and fears subside. When Jesus walks upon the waters of the sea, how profound the calm! Amen
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Are you a disciple? Just because you are a Christian doesn’t necessarily mean that you are a disciple.
Every disciple is a believer, but not every believer is a disciple.
Jesus gave us the definition of a disciple in Luke 14. Three times in this passage, He said that if we do not do these things, we cannot be His disciples.
1. First, Jesus said, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple” (verse 26).
A statement like that is shocking, but let’s understand what Jesus was saying. He obviously was not telling us to hate in the traditional sense. Rather, Jesus was saying that your love for God should be so strong, so intense, that all other loves would be like hatred in comparison.
2. Second, Jesus said, “And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple” (verse 27).
If you want to live life to its fullest, then you must deny yourself and put Christ first.
You take your goals, desires, dreams, and aspirations, and you present them to God. And ultimately you will discover that God’s plans for you are always the best.
3. Last, Jesus said, “For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it? . . . So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple” (verses 28, 33).
You must count the cost to follow Jesus. Yes, it costs to follow Jesus. But it costs more not to follow Him.
Jesus called us to go and make disciples (see Matthew 28:19). But it takes one to make one.
Matthew 28: 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Amen
Read MoreThis is a word about affliction and the purpose of affliction.
• Why affliction comes in our lives.
• How we should respond to affliction.
After all, there’s nobody who won’t encounter affliction(suffering, burden, problem, pain, hardship, trouble, misery) at some time or another in his life. Listen to what the psalmist says about affliction and what he learned from it:
Psalm 119:67, 71, 75—Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word. It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees. I know, O Lord, that your laws are righteous and in faithfulness you have afflicted me.
You see, the psalmist didn’t view affliction as a disaster. He saw it as a kind of corrective medicine. It was something that he needed to adjust his life. He says, “Before I was afflicted I went astray and I paid for it, but now,” he said, “I obey Your word. I’ve learned my lesson. It pays to obey.”
And then he says at the end, “O Lord . . . in faithfulness you have afflicted me.” You didn’t do it because You were cruel or because You were angry with me. You did it to straighten me out, to bring me back from my own evil way into Your way, to find the way of peace.
Are you in the midst of affliction? Don’t fight. Don’t argue with God. Ask Him the reason. God is afflicting you in His faithfulness. He has a reason. He’s trying to turn you back from something, to bring you out of the wrong and bring you into the right – a life of obedience to His statutes.
If you have any affliction or know someone in it: Take time to read the verses below on what the Bible says about affliction. You will be blessed.
Bible Verses: John 9:1-3, John 11:3-4, John 21:18-19, Psalm 34:19, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Deuteronomy 4:30-31, Hosea 5:14-15, Job 36:8-9, Psalm 32:5, Proverbs 17:3, Deuteronomy 8:2, 1 Peter 1:7, Revelation 2:10, (2 Corinthians 12:7-Acts 12:23), James 1:3, (1 Peter 2:20-Hebrews 10:26), John 15:2, Hebrews 12:10-11, Philippians 1:12, 2 Timothy 2:9-10, 2 Timothy 4:16-17
HEBREWS 5:8 AND HOSEA 4:6
Lord, thank you for the Bible, your truth to freedom of affliction. Amen
Read MoreMan has revolted against God. We are all “sinners.”
Psalms 51:12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. 13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you.
**Let’s Ask God through the day to cleanse us of sin.
*If you are recovering from a serous sin’ it’s hard to imagine teaching others or being spiritually helpful to others, yet that is what God desires and plans for us.
Not too soon—mind you, and not without the oversight of mature believers, but eventually God’s intention is for us to get back in the game.
*Everything-even our sin-can be used by God to help others and heal ourselves. (Romans 8:28 is a great read)
Psalms 51:17 My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.
*It is amazing how God looks beyond our mistakes and failures and find something worthwhile in us.
Yes God punished David for his mistakes but still, He looked beyond all that and found a right spirit, a repentant spirit and a man who was sincerely after His heart.
Perfection may be a tall order for us, but a heart after the heart of God is what moves God. A broken, contrite and honest heart is what he asks for. I’m convinced a lot of us take pride in our doctrine when what the Lord desires from us is just our affection. “To Know Him is to have Eternal life”(JN 17:3).
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
*Steps To Personal Deliverance–Lifestyle evangelism.
1. Admit that you have a problem.
2. Confess with a repentant heart.
3. Ask God for forgiveness.
4. Turn away from your past life.
5. Obey the Holy Spirit by hearing and reading Scriptures.
1 John 1:10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
*We might deceive ourselves about our own sin by rationalizing or minimizing the wrong.
*We might blame other people or circumstances instead of accepting responsibility.
*No matter how we deceive ourselves, it is important to understand the dangers of deceit.
The most important danger of delusion is what it does to our relationship with God.
If we deny our sin, we are calling God a liar. We are blocking our own path to walking with him
Is there sins in our life that we’ve been denying? Ask God to help you admit the wrong, take responsibility for it, and turn to him for forgiveness. He will help you and me overcome.
Lord help me be a doer of your word–not a bench warmer. Teach me more and more of what Your love(agape) means and looks like for my neighbor as well as my marriage, my kids, my grandkids, my friends and myself. God, You are love and You are the only solid foundation upon which human love can be built. Help Love be a LIFESTYLE!. Amen
Read More1 Timothy 1:15 Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.
Romans 6:11 Consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus
Even though you are dead to sin, sin’s strong appeal may still cause you to struggle with feeling that you are more alive to sin than you are to Christ. But Romans 6:1-11 teaches us that what is true of the Lord Jesus Christ is true of us in terms of our relationship to sin and death.
God the Father allowed His Son to “be sin” in order that all the sins of the world–past, present and future–would fall on Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). When He died on the cross, our sins were on Him. But when He rose from the grave, there was no sin on Him. When He ascended to the Father, there was no sin on Him. And today, as He sits at the Father’s right hand, there is no sin on Him. Since we are seated in the heavenlies in Christ, we too have died to sin.
Christ already died to sin, and because you are in Him, you have died to sin too. Sin is still strong and appealing, but your relationship with sin has ended. I’ve met many Christians who are still trying to die to sin, and their lives are miserable and fruitless as a result because they are struggling to do something that has already been done. “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death”(Romans 8:2). see too 1 John 4:4
Romans 6:11 summarizes what we are to believe about our relationship to sin because of our position in Christ. It doesn’t matter whether you feel dead to sin or not; you are to consider it so because it is so. People wrongly wonder, “What experience must I have in order for this to be true?”
The only necessary experience is that of Christ on the cross, which has already happened.
When we choose to believe what is true about ourselves and sin, and walk on the basis of what we believe, our right relationship with sin will work out in our experience. But as long as we put our experience before our belief, we will never fully know the freedom that Christ purchased for us on the cross.
Prayer: Lord, teach me not always to believe what I feel about my relationship to sin, but to believe the truth that I am dead to it. “Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.” Acts 13:38 Amen
Read More We need to be willing to walk God’s Way of Agape, even if our circumstances never change.
* “Though the fig tree should not blossom, and there be no fruit on the vines…Yet I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.”
Habakkuk 3:17-18
It is important that we understand the motive out of which our obedience
springs, because if the spring is not pure, everything that flows out of it
will be polluted.
The sad truth is that many Christians in these last days obey God only because they are afraid of going to hell.
* They fear their Father’s wrath and their obedience to Him is “legal” only.
*They have no genuine desire to please Him.
Hebrews 5: 8 Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered.
* If we persevere in this pain, daily and even hourly submitting ourselves to God obedience is born. Obedience is needed to live a clean and righteous life before God. No one will be perfect. But we must each run the race that is set before us without stopping.
Jesus did everything out of love and a desire to bring pleasure to His heavenly Father:
“Then Jesus said to them, When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him” (John 8:28-29).
*This was the rock, the foundation upon which Jesus built His life of obedience.
*It was the spring, the motive, out of which the flow of His obedience came. It is to be our rock, as well.
“For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38).
Jesus shut Himself up in prayer on the mountaintops, in quiet places, often all
night long in fellowship with His Father. Jesus one great prayer was, “Father, what do You want? What will bring You pleasure? What can I do to fulfill the desire of Your heart?”
That is the attitude of a person who has the Spirit of Christ and that should be our attitude—that we might be one who builds on the rock.
* The foundational motive of all our obedience must be: “I do all things because I want to please my Lord; I want to bring Him great pleasure!”
“In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the LORD, but only from the physicians. Then in the forty-first year of his reign Asa died and rested with his fathers” (2 Chron 16:12-14).
What we learn from Asa is that whenever we place our trust and obedience in the Lord, God becomes our source for security and prosperity. However, when we move away from trusting God, that security is removed and we fail to receive those things God intended us to have.
We can’t give away what we don’t possess. We need to personally know the love of Christ in an experiential way before we try to share it with others. Let Him love you, and let His love flow through you to others. The world is hungry for love, real love.
Lord, Fill my cup of love to over-filling with Your Love– so I have some love to give to others. Amen
Read More If we are not loving with God’s Love, we are spiritually dead.
“He that loveth not…abideth in death.”1 John 3:14
The Bible without the Spirit leads to a dead, institutional Christianity. The Spirit without the Bible leads to groundless devotion. We need both the Spirit and the Word to effectively Adventure through the Bible.
God has made available to us the riches of this Bible — His Word — which reveals to us the riches of His kingdom and of our eternal life in Christ.
God longs for us to know Him, and has revealed Himself in His Son. He has redeemed us through the blood His resurrected Son shed on the Cross, and has called us into a Spiritual relationship with Him.
Into our soul and our life He pours all the riches of heaven — “good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over,” as Luke 6:38 tells us. But we must get to know Him as He reaches out to us through the pages of Scripture, led by His Holy Spirit. We cannot imagine a greater adventure!
A Few Results of the Resurrection!!!
* A savior who can never die again.
“For we know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again.” Romans 6:9.
*Repentance.
“The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel.” Acts 5:31.
*New birth.
“By his great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” 1 Peter 1:3.
*Forgiveness of sin.
“If Christ has not been raised, your hope is futile and you are still in your sins.” 1 Corinthians 15:17.
*The Holy Spirit.
“This Jesus God raised up, and of that we are all witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this which you see and hear.” Acts 2:32–33.
* No condemnation for the believers.
” So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1.
“Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus who died, yes, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God.” Romans 8:34.
*The Lord’s personal fellowship and protection.
“Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age.” Matthew 28:20.
*Proof of coming judgment.
“God has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all men by raising him from the dead.” Acts 17:31.
*Salvation from the future wrath of God.
“We wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” 1 Thessalonians 1:10; Romans 5:10.
*Our own resurrection from the dead.
“We know that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence.” 2 Corinthians 4:14; Romans 6:4; 8:11; 1 Corinthians 6:14; 15:20
Re-establish your spiritual focus. I am alive, says the Lord, and My kingdom is already established. It is finished. It is real, and the way has been provided
for you to be one with Me in the invisible realm of the Spirit. Come and commune with Me in the secret place. Rise above your worldly concerns and let us have sweet fellowship together. Don’t delay. Come now that your joy may be full.
John 15:9-11 “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.
If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.”
Jesus tells us that when we are living in Him and following His commands we will have great joy.
* Christians should be the happiest people on earth, we have Christ and all His promises and on our very worst day we get to meet Him face to face.
God thank you for Your resurrection, Our own resurrection from the dead and Your promises and love— give me strength to find joy in all things, in Jesus name, Amen
Read More All our flowery words about Jesus are not enough. Our actions must match our words in order for it to become Truth.
* “Even so you too outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”
Matthew 23:28
2 Corinthians 1:4 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. 5 For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ.
* Whether we are suffering by the hands of another or simply as a consequence to our own bad choices – if we turn to the Lord for comfort and view our sufferings as loving discipline from the master potter who is simply using the circumstances of our life to soften our heart so that HE can mold our character- then we will learn how to praise him even in the storms of life and attain the peace of God that surpasses all worldly understanding.
Thus with this peace and joy in our hearts we will then be used by God to come alongside of others who are experiencing hardship and share with them our testimony and point them home to Jesus so that they too can experience the comfort we have received from God.
*Anxieties keep us from hearing God …like a wall between his voice and our ears.
The word of God is all you need for every circumstance in your life, you need to listen to it and take Action.
Man (Mankind, Man or woman) shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
In the passage Mark 4:1-20 you will find what happens when a Christian hears the word of God.
* You will see who bears fruit (who applies the word of God in every situation and wins), and who does not bear fruit (who just reads and forgets about whose word he/she is reading and forgets that it is powerful to guide that person through anything).
*Don’t be like the person who just looks at the mirror and forgets what the mirror has shown him/her. Be a person who studies the word of God (2 Timothy2:15).
*If you seek God diligently He will help you produce thirty, sixty, or one hundred fold. Let us have a form of relationship with God that actually produces testimony so that others can see that our God is actually involved with our daily lives and praise God.
*Let us Not deny the power and authority of the word of God. God’s word is the lamp unto our feet and a light to our paths.
Seeking God diligently everyday, staying silent in His presence, singing to Him, studying His word and praying the word back to God is a great way to build a relationship with God and actually get results.
Many Christians don’t get results or don’t understand God because they don’t spend enough TIME with Him and His word (Mark 4:1-20). God welcomes you. Test and see that the Lord is Good!
Today. Millions of church people are trying to live holy lives, but they do not have a true faith in Jesus as their Savior.
If they were to stand before God and He was to ask them – “what they had done to deserve salvation”, they would immediately start recounting all their acts of holiness such as church attendance, giving receipts, etc.
Regardless of how good our actions are compared to others, they always come short of the perfect standard of God.
The only response to this kind of question that would grant us entrance to heaven is to say, “my only claim to salvation is faith in Jesus as my Savior.”
Let JESUS be the object of your faith today. He is all you need
All too often, as Christians endure the trials of life, this is the message
they believe. They see no hope beyond their difficult situation. All they can see is a stone permanently rolled into place separating them from hope.
* Yet they are seeing things from this side of the stone. If only they knew what God is doing for them on the other side of the stone.
Maybe life has presented you with a hard, impassable situation. As you read this do you wonder, “Is God at work in my circumstance? Is Jesus really triumphant — in me? Can He really save me from this situation? I just don’t see a way forward.”
I tell you, God is on the move in your life at this very moment. The stone isbeing rolled away. Light is breaking forth and your Hope stands there in thedoorway: Jesus! He has triumphed over all the powers of darkness and Hisvictory is yours by faith.
Hebrews 11:1 Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.
*Refuse to give up. Your walk in the Spirit will prepare and cause
you to overcome the flesh, the world, and the devil.
* Let us keep sharing our burdens and keep encouraging and lifting others up–giving all praise and Glory to our Heavenly Father!
Lord, show me today if I have had convictions for things that are meaningless and not important. And help me to make convictions for things that matter most and give You the Glory! Help me share your perfect Love with others. In Jesus Name, Amen.
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