Bless the Lord

On June 6, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

2 Samuel 7: 1 – 2             NLT

When King David was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all the surrounding enemies, the king summoned Nathan the prophet. “Look,” David said, “I am living in a beautiful cedar palace, but the Ark of God is out there in a tent!”

One of the most outstanding things about David is that God calls him a man after His own heart (Acts 13: 22). When I read passages like this, I understand why. David had God on his mind.

Picture, if you will, David sitting in his palace. He has the finest home in the entire land, not just in Jerusalem, not only in Israel, but as far as the eye can see there is no finer home. He is surrounded by every luxury, the finest clothes drape his body, priceless jewels are plentiful, goblets of gold and a servant for every need. What more could a person want? None the less, David had another want, another desire. While sitting on his throne, he was thinking of Yahweh, his friend and God. Clearly, though, Yahweh had become much more to David than a remote deity. David loved God and love makes you want to do things for the one you love.

God took a young shepherd boy and turned him into a king. God vanquished all his foes and gave him riches beyond measure. So, which came first, the chicken or the egg? Did David love and honor God because of all God did for him or did God prosper David because of the love and trust David walked in. I believe it was the latter.

David showed remarkable faith in God’s willingness to deliver him and indeed, all Israel from a young age. Remember how incensed David was that Goliath insulted the God of Israel? There is also a great story from 1 Chronicles. David was to build an altar and make an offering to the Lord. He offered the man that owned the land full price, but the man offered to give David the land and a bull and wheat for the offering. David refused, though, saying that he would not offer to the Lord that which cost him nothing (1 Chronicles 21: 24). Wow! David showed honor and respect for the Lord. And God was faithful to David. They had (and have) a wonderful relationship and when I say God prospered him beyond measure, it is a literal truth. David passed on so much wealth to Solomon that Solomon didn’t even count the silver. There was too much too count so he only concerned himself with the Gold.

So, let me ask you this? Do you ever have the feeling that you too would like to do something for God? What would you do? He doesn’t need a new temple to house the Ark of the Covenant. What is within your power to bless God? I think you might have fun thinking through this. I hope you find something to do for God because I know it will be fun and bring joy to your heart. Have a great day!

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New You

On June 5, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Ephesians 4: 24

. . . and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

You have been created a new creature. You have been created in righteousness and truth. Jesus said in John 14: 6 “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” You have been created in the truth because Jesus is the truth and you are the righteousness of God because Jesus gave you right standing with God through his blood. That is what righteousness means, “right standing with God.”

In this passage Paul is trying to lead the church at Ephesus to put away their old man and old ways and to realize that they have been made new by the shed blood of Jesus Christ. He is showing them that their new selves have been forged in truth and righteousness not because of anything they did but by what Jesus did. He wants them to receive the gift of holiness and walk therein.

Jesus paid an enormous price so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. We have our part to play though. We must receive this gift and walk in it. It is not by works that we are saved or righteous, it is only by the price paid by Jesus. Now in humble gratitude we proclaim that we are new and glorious creatures because our Lord has made us so. It is not by our works but only by our faith in His sacrifice. Don’t make his sacrifice of nil effect though. As Paul says, “put on the new self.”

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Bury the Dead

On June 4, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Ephesians 4: 22 – 23

. . . that in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

The devil has deceived us with the lusts of the flesh, whether that be material possessions, food, drink, or any of the other things that bring pleasure to our carnal selves. He has convinced us that those things will bring us happiness and he has convinced many people that the way of Godliness is a burden. These are lies. Deceit is the devil’s only real weapon, but it is a big one. Deceit is defined in Webster’s New World Dictionary (2nd Ed. 1982) as 1. the act of representing as true what is known to be false; deceiving or lying; 2. a dishonest action or trick; fraud or lie 3. the quality of being deceitful.

God has told us to put off the old self; the deceit and the lusts of our flesh and put on our new selves through the renewing of our minds. You are a new creature in Christ Jesus, and you do not have to live under the regime of the devil any longer. Put aside the lies of the past and put on the new person by using your mind in new ways, by thinking new thoughts. Throw away the thoughts and behaviors of the past. You are no longer that old person. Why do you want to keep acting like him? You have been created anew. You have been created for life, truth and freedom in Christ Jesus. Be renewed in your mind and no longer let the lies of the enemy perplex and mislead you.

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Call My Name

On June 3, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 54: 1 – 2        TPT

God, deliver me by your mighty name! Come with your glorious power and save me! Listen to my prayer; turn your ears to my cry!

David was on the run from Saul, hiding in the desert and among the towns. The people of Ziph betrayed him to Saul so David turned to God to save him. We know God responded because David died an old man in his palace. That is the first good news we take from this psalm. When we call out to the Father, He hears and rescues us.

David’s prayer is interesting though, and perhaps insightful. He did not pray for God to rescue him with His mighty hand, nor by the might of His arm, for that matter. He essentially says, “Send your mighty name to deliver me.” That is a thought provoking request. This is not an isolated request though. There are many times in the Bible where one called on “the name” of God to do something for them.

The name of God has power in itself. “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe,” (Proverbs 18:10). Isaiah wrote, “Let him trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God,” (Isaiah 50: 10). Everything about God is imbued with power. If a hair fell from His head, it would be like a power infused sword. And speaking of swords, His name, like His Word can be in our mouths and we have already learned that His Word is a powerful sword (Ephesians 6: 17). In the same way, with the same faith that you speak His Word, you can speak His name. It can soothe your worries or defeat your foes. It has peace and fire in it.

There are situations which challenge us to the very core. Sometimes it is even difficult to find the words to pray. If you saw the original Mary Poppins movie, you know she has a word for when you don’t know what to say. Hers was supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. Yours is Jesus or Yahweh. Maybe you like Jesus’ Hebrew name, Yeshua. Whichever name resonates in your heart most vibrantly, speak it out in your time of need. I think you will find it gives you strength.

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Keep Your Rock

On May 31, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 8: 3 – 11

And the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the midst, they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?” And they were saying this, testing Him, in order that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote on the ground. But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” And again He stooped down, and wrote on the ground. And when they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the midst. And straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no on condemn you?” And she said, “No one, Lord” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go your way. From now on sin no more.”

The moral of this story may be “Take care at whom you throw rocks.” This woman (and presumably her partner) was caught in sin. They violated one of the Ten Commandments. Borrowing a bit from David Letterman, I like to call the Commandments God’s Top Ten List. So, there was no gray area here. They had broken the letter and the spirit of the law. But Jesus’ coming ushered in a new way of thinking about sin and grace.

Take care when you begin to throw rocks at others. Be careful about judging them for you may find all too quickly that Jesus is taking you to task over your judgment. He gave us one commandment and that is to love. I doubt you can stand in judgment and love at the same time. Besides which, none of us has been called to sit on the throne of judgment. That is God’s job alone. So even if someone is in such an obvious sin as adultery, mind your attitude. Pray for them (not about them). Ask God to save them and rescue them. Ask for his grace and mercy to cover them at the same time. Before you cast the first stone remember the times that God’s mercy has covered you because you weren’t perfect either. Pray people into grace rather than condemning them to hell or you may find yourself in the same shoes as these Pharisees; standing in opposition to Jesus.

And finally, if you are the one in sin, there is great grace and mercy for you but take note. Jesus’ last comment to the woman was to “sin no more.” He didn’t just turn a blind eye towards her behavior. Don’t use God’s grace and mercy as an excuse to keep on in sin. Don’t kid yourself. Get yourself right and thank God for his everlasting mercy.

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Stay and Rest

On May 30, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   1 Comment

Matthew 11: 28

Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.

Did you know you need rest for your body, your soul and your spirit? In the very next verse Jesus said, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls,” (v. 29). Jesus understood that we get tired down in our souls. It is a weariness that is even more pervasive that physical fatigue. Mentally you are drained and emotionally spent. This kind of weariness, indeed, comes from being heavily laden. Worry, anxiety, stress, these are the contributors to being wrung out in your soul. Jesus’ remedy was for us to give all those things to him. He instructed us to take his yoke onto our shoulders. That does not sound restful, does it, but Jesus said that his yoke is light. His teachings will unburden you rather than adding to the seemingly endless worries of life.

Paul revealed that we can even get tired in our spirits. “I had no rest for my spirit, not finding Titus my brother; but taking my leave of them, I went on to Macedonia,” (2 Corinthians 2: 13). Who would have thought that your spirit could get overtaxed? Well, actually, I would. I remember when my dad was dying of cancer. There was a great and continuing need for prayer and for spiritual support. One day I just ran out of juice. Physically I was fine. Emotionally I was okay, but down in my spirit I felt like I did not have one prayer left. I felt like I had no more to give to anyone. A friend recognized that I was drained spiritually and advised me to get alone and pray so that I could reinvigorate my spirit. She was right and I have never forgotten that lesson. When you are giving out a lot from your spirit, you have to feed it with the Word and with personal prayer. After spending time with Yahweh, I felt renewed and could go back to supporting others.

Then, of course, we need rest for our bodies too. Paul wrote, “For even when we came into Macedonia our flesh had no rest, but we were afflicted on every side: conflicts without, fears within,” (2 Corinthians 7: 5). He revealed that his flesh needed rest but there was none. We are familiar with this sort of fatigue, but we don’t always pause to give our bodies the rest they need.

Jesus used to slip away to the wilderness or to a mountain to rest and restore. The Sabbath was given to us by God explicitly for rest. We love to live life full throttle, but the scriptures teach us that our minds, spirits and bodies need rest, a time of rejuvenation. This Sabbath rest, which can happen any day, at any moment is designed as a time of communion with the Lord. He is our rest. He is the source of rejuvenation for all three parts of us. The most effective rest isn’t lying in the bed all day. The best rest is getting your full 8 hours of sleep and then arising gently and spending the day hearing the Father. The Word is manna for your spirit, but you may be surprised how effective it is for your soul.

You can have a bit of Sabbath every day and that is great and advisable. Sometimes you need several days’ worth of restoration. That is good too. Enjoy it. The deepest rest, though, comes from abiding in Jesus. As we abide in him, he fills us. That is the restorative piece that is most effective and nothing else will do. So, don’t just have that week vacation of rest. Don’t even limit yourself to daily Sabbath time. Have that time, absolutely, but also let us learn to abide in Jesus all day. He becomes our Sabbath every minute of the day. Stay in his presence and rest.

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Abiding Freedom

On May 29, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 8: 31 – 32

Jesus therefore was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

I wish to draw your attention to the two statements Jesus makes in this one sentence. Although there are two thoughts, he tied them together in one sentence. That is because He wanted us to understand that the two ideas are tied together.

First, if you want truly to be a disciple of Christ, then you must abide in his word. Now abiding is not a casual once in a while visit to his word. To abide in his word means to take residence in, to remain. Another definition is to submit to. If you want to be his disciple, then you are going to have to take up his word and live in it.

Secondly, if you are his disciple, then you will know the truth. Now, how do you suppose you are going to come to know the truth? Through his word, of course. The Lord will lead you to the truth and wisdom you need through his word. Then you will be set free because you will have the truth as it relates to your particular situation.

So, since these are causal statements let us look at this backwards going from the effect backwards to the cause. The end effect is that you will be free. Do you want to be free? Free from the burdens that have tormented you? Freedom comes from knowing the truth. Truth comes by being his disciple. You are his disciple if you abide in his word. Therefore, the beginning of your freedom is HIS WORD. It all begins and ends there because he is the living word.

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