The Merriam/Webster's dictionary definition of Jesus: the Jewish religious teacher whose life, death, and resurrection as reported by the Evangelists are the basis of the Christian message of salvation — called also Jesus Christ. Well, what about Him being God's Son? Or being born of a virgin? Or Him being obedient to God His Father unto death, on the cross because of our sin? They did not tell that we all would be headed to hell if not for His sacrifice.Well, at least they did mention His resurrection!
Matt.1:19-23 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (which means, God with us).
Matt. 26:38-42 Then he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me." And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will." And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, "So, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, "My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done."
John 10:24-30 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly." Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not part of my flock. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one."
Matt.28:1-10 Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you." So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. And behold, Jesus met them and said, "Greetings!" And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me."
Matt.28:18-20 And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
Rev.22:12-13 "Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay everyone for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."
Lord God Almighty, Your word is so convicting. Thank You for my faith. Thank You for Your mercy. How can people miss the glory of You? Open eyes to the majesty of You. Use me to shout Your praises! Amen
Friday, July 30, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Me or You Good? Better Re-Think It
Mark 10:17-18 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.
We have the greatest temptation set before us for as long as we live. It is the fact that we call each other
good! We always are thinking we are better than so and so because we don't do the bad things they do. I know the devil will tell us that we are indeed good but it is a total lie! We are far from good, truth be told we are all rotten to the core. The only good thing about us is, we are all equal at the foot of the cross. We all need a Savior who can atone for our sins. There is absolutely no way we can ever be good enough to please God. It is only by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ, who paid our debt on the cross. So if you think that you can do enough to please God, forget it! Christ is the only way to please God and the only means by which we will ever see God! We must guard our relationship with Christ for He is our shepherd who will lead us home.
Acts 4:12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
1 Tim.2: 5-6 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.
Lord God, we must have You! Speak to us through Your word and guide us to repentance. Keep our eyes on You and teach us Your way. Forgive us when we fail and be merciful to us as we take You to the nations. Amen
We have the greatest temptation set before us for as long as we live. It is the fact that we call each other
good! We always are thinking we are better than so and so because we don't do the bad things they do. I know the devil will tell us that we are indeed good but it is a total lie! We are far from good, truth be told we are all rotten to the core. The only good thing about us is, we are all equal at the foot of the cross. We all need a Savior who can atone for our sins. There is absolutely no way we can ever be good enough to please God. It is only by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ, who paid our debt on the cross. So if you think that you can do enough to please God, forget it! Christ is the only way to please God and the only means by which we will ever see God! We must guard our relationship with Christ for He is our shepherd who will lead us home.
Acts 4:12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
1 Tim.2: 5-6 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.
Lord God, we must have You! Speak to us through Your word and guide us to repentance. Keep our eyes on You and teach us Your way. Forgive us when we fail and be merciful to us as we take You to the nations. Amen
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
If Only
Ps.19:14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.
If only I would not sin! Oh Lord, how it grieves my heart when I do. How long will You show us mercy? Are we not a stiff necked people who turn from You to follow our own selfish way? Lord, how can it be? You are worthy of all our praise. Lord, I pray for our nation who is playing the harlot with other gods. We have shut You out and let them in. Lord, heal our land and forgive us before You unleash disaster on us. Help us O Lord, for we are lost without You. Amen
Ps.19:7-11 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple; the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
This is what I fear for our nation if we do not repent!
Ez.7:5-9 "Thus says the Lord GOD: Disaster after disaster! Behold, it comes. An end has come; the end has come; it has awakened against you. Behold, it comes.Your doom has come to you, O inhabitant of the land The time has come; the day is near, a day of tumult, and not of joyful shouting on the mountains. Now I will soon pour out my wrath upon you, and spend my anger against you, and judge you according to your ways, and I will punish you for all your abominations. And my eye will not spare, nor will I have pity. I will punish you according to your ways, while your abominations are in your midst. Then you will know that I am the LORD, who strikes.
It is not too late! Repent and God will forgive! If the angels are joyous over one sinner who repents, what would the joy in heaven be if a whole nation repented?
Luke 15:10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
Lord, give us strength, humility, and faith.
1 Peter 5:6-10 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
If only I would not sin! Oh Lord, how it grieves my heart when I do. How long will You show us mercy? Are we not a stiff necked people who turn from You to follow our own selfish way? Lord, how can it be? You are worthy of all our praise. Lord, I pray for our nation who is playing the harlot with other gods. We have shut You out and let them in. Lord, heal our land and forgive us before You unleash disaster on us. Help us O Lord, for we are lost without You. Amen
Ps.19:7-11 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple; the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
This is what I fear for our nation if we do not repent!
Ez.7:5-9 "Thus says the Lord GOD: Disaster after disaster! Behold, it comes. An end has come; the end has come; it has awakened against you. Behold, it comes.Your doom has come to you, O inhabitant of the land The time has come; the day is near, a day of tumult, and not of joyful shouting on the mountains. Now I will soon pour out my wrath upon you, and spend my anger against you, and judge you according to your ways, and I will punish you for all your abominations. And my eye will not spare, nor will I have pity. I will punish you according to your ways, while your abominations are in your midst. Then you will know that I am the LORD, who strikes.
It is not too late! Repent and God will forgive! If the angels are joyous over one sinner who repents, what would the joy in heaven be if a whole nation repented?
Luke 15:10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
Lord, give us strength, humility, and faith.
1 Peter 5:6-10 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
Monday, July 26, 2010
For God to Open the Eyes of Our Fellow Americans
This is week 4 of Charles Stanley's intercession for America. Please pray for our nation!
Ps.73 Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled, my steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For they have no pangs until death; their bodies are fat and sleek. They are not in trouble as others are; they are not stricken like the rest of mankind. Therefore pride is their necklace;
violence covers them as a garment.Their eyes swell out through fatness; their hearts overflow with follies.
They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threaten oppression. They set their mouths against the heavens,
and their tongue struts through the earth.Therefore his people turn back to them, and find no fault in them.
And they say, "How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?"
Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches. All in vain have I kept my heart clean
and washed my hands in innocence. For all the day long I have been stricken and rebuked every morning.
If I had said, "I will speak thus,"I would have betrayed the generation of your children.
But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end. Truly you set them in slippery places; you make them fall to ruin. How they are destroyed in a moment, swept away utterly by terrors! Like a dream when one awakes,
O Lord, when you rouse yourself, you despise them as phantoms. When my soul was embittered,
when I was pricked in heart, I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you.
Nevertheless, I am continually with you; you hold my right hand.You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For behold, those who are far from you shall perish; you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you. But for me it is good to be near God;
I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may tell of all your works.
Ps.73 Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled, my steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For they have no pangs until death; their bodies are fat and sleek. They are not in trouble as others are; they are not stricken like the rest of mankind. Therefore pride is their necklace;
violence covers them as a garment.Their eyes swell out through fatness; their hearts overflow with follies.
They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threaten oppression. They set their mouths against the heavens,
and their tongue struts through the earth.Therefore his people turn back to them, and find no fault in them.
And they say, "How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?"
Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches. All in vain have I kept my heart clean
and washed my hands in innocence. For all the day long I have been stricken and rebuked every morning.
If I had said, "I will speak thus,"I would have betrayed the generation of your children.
But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end. Truly you set them in slippery places; you make them fall to ruin. How they are destroyed in a moment, swept away utterly by terrors! Like a dream when one awakes,
O Lord, when you rouse yourself, you despise them as phantoms. When my soul was embittered,
when I was pricked in heart, I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you.
Nevertheless, I am continually with you; you hold my right hand.You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For behold, those who are far from you shall perish; you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you. But for me it is good to be near God;
I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may tell of all your works.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Great Is Your Faithfulness O Lord
Lam.3:22-25 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.
they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him."
Lam.3:31-33 For the Lord will not cast off forever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men.
In my MacArthur bible commentary, John states this simple truth,"The bedrock of faith is the reality that God keeps all His promises according to His truthful, faithful character."
Lord, you are awesome beyond words. You judge us in truth but Your love is ever faithful. Amen
they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him."
Lam.3:31-33 For the Lord will not cast off forever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men.
In my MacArthur bible commentary, John states this simple truth,"The bedrock of faith is the reality that God keeps all His promises according to His truthful, faithful character."
Lord, you are awesome beyond words. You judge us in truth but Your love is ever faithful. Amen
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Our Redeemer is Strong
Jer.50:34 Their Redeemer is strong; the LORD of hosts is his name.
The definition of redeemer is a person who redeems and believe it or not Webster's has Jesus with the definition. The definition of redeem is to buy back, to free from harm, to extricate by ransom, to release from a debt, to free from a consequence of sin, restore, to make good, to atone for, or to make worthwhile. Well, praise God that they got it right!! Jesus does all these things and more. But, in order for you to know this, you have to know you need a savior! Lord, I pray for wisdom for the lost. To know that they are guilty and condemned but have a way to escape an eternity without a savior. Prepare hearts and minds for the glory of Your plan of salvation, Jesus. Send us out in Your holy name. Amen
The definition of redeemer is a person who redeems and believe it or not Webster's has Jesus with the definition. The definition of redeem is to buy back, to free from harm, to extricate by ransom, to release from a debt, to free from a consequence of sin, restore, to make good, to atone for, or to make worthwhile. Well, praise God that they got it right!! Jesus does all these things and more. But, in order for you to know this, you have to know you need a savior! Lord, I pray for wisdom for the lost. To know that they are guilty and condemned but have a way to escape an eternity without a savior. Prepare hearts and minds for the glory of Your plan of salvation, Jesus. Send us out in Your holy name. Amen
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Arise, O God
Ps.82:1-8 God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:
"How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked." They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness;
all the foundations of the earth are shaken. I said, "You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince." Arise, O God, judge the earth; for you shall inherit all the nations!
Ps. 83:1 O God, do not keep silence; do not hold your peace or be still, O God!
Ps.83:16-18 Fill their faces with shame, that they may seek your name, O LORD.
Let them be put to shame and dismayed forever; let them perish in disgrace, that they may know that you alone, whose name is the LORD, are the Most High over all the earth.
"How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked." They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness;
all the foundations of the earth are shaken. I said, "You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince." Arise, O God, judge the earth; for you shall inherit all the nations!
Ps. 83:1 O God, do not keep silence; do not hold your peace or be still, O God!
Ps.83:16-18 Fill their faces with shame, that they may seek your name, O LORD.
Let them be put to shame and dismayed forever; let them perish in disgrace, that they may know that you alone, whose name is the LORD, are the Most High over all the earth.
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