Today’s Scrip-Bit 18 October 2012 Proverbs 4:7

Proverbs 4:7.    Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.
 
Hi there you beautiful people, fellow believers in Christ! How goes it this glorious Thursday morning eh? I hope we are all standing strong and faithful in Jesus, and thus enjoying the abundant blessings He has prepared for us each and every day. Ah mih people, when I consider how wonderful our God is to us, undeserving though we are, I just have to shake my head in amazement and shout out a heartfelt, ‘Thank You Lord! We LOVE and worship You, today and forever!’ Oh Friends, there simply are no words in any language to really describe, to truly do justice to the awesome kindness and caring that the Lord God Jehovah has for His sinful, rebellious, disobedient children. And since those attributes lead to very foolish and brain-dead acts on our part, I decided to repeat our Bit from yesterday which deals with WISDOM, hoping that it will ignite a spark, then a flame, then a brightly burning passionate fire in our souls to turn from our foolish, rebellious, disobedient ways, and seek WISDOM, without which, we’ll never truly understand or even come close to our awesome God. I think our Bit says it very simply and truthfully: ‘WISDOM is the principal thing; therefore get WISDOM: and with all thy getting get understanding.’ Yes my brethren, without WISDOM in this evil, ungodly world, we’re totally lost and oh so liable to follow the wiles and lies of Lucifer down the broad highway that leads to death and destruction. Yesterday we ended with the powerful scripture of James on how and where to get WISDOM; from Almighty God, with a sincere longing and a heart of true faith, not wavering in the slightest. And that’s the way it always was, and always will be! Let’s see how important WISDOM is in our existence, both here on earth and also in heavenly places by listening closely, with both our ears and our hearts, as Cousin Sol solemnly proclaims in Proverbs 3: ‘The Lord by WISDOM hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths (deeps) are broken up, and the clouds drop down dew.’ (Prov.3:19-20) Ah my people, WISDOM is such an important element in our world, that God used it to create the universe! Now if God needed WISDOM to do that, why wouldn’t we mere mortals need it too, since we’re His creation? And if you’re still not convinced about the prudence and common sense of acquiring WISDOM and understanding from Almighty God, then listen again to Cousin Sol as he describes a whole heap of things that WISDOM encourages and procures. Remember too, that Cousin Sol is still reputed to be the wisest man who ever lived, so if any mortal should know about knowledge and WISDOM, it should be him. ‘Happy is the man that findeth WISDOM, and the man that getteth understanding: For the merchandise (gain) of it is better than the merchandise (profit) of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her. Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is everyone that retaineth her (holds her fast).’ (Prov.3:14-18) Oh Friends, that’s nothing but gospel truth! WISDOM is indeed more profitable than either silver or gold, as well as other precious jewels, like rubies! Nothing we can desire in this fallen world can be compared to her, because her ways are pleasant and peaceful, and acts like a tree of life to those who embrace her, and even more importantly, she brings happiness and joy to all who hold on to her tightly! Wow! What a miraculous entity is that thing we call WISDOM! The billion dollar question then Friends, is if WISDOM is so great and wonderful, why aren’t many more of us actively and consciously seeking that which comes from God, than the fallible, evil and foolish supposed wisdom of man eh? I suppose that in spite of all our godly spiel, we’re still yoked more tightly to the things of the world rather than the things of God. Oh my people, how often must I remind us that whatever Lucifer promises us, the Most High God can offer us much more, and we won’t be led down the garden path, as we would be following the evil leader of death and darkness. But I guess Lucifer’s baubles have more glitz and glamour attached to them, than God’s. But please remember my people, that all that glitters is not gold, and most of Lucifer’s shining trinkets are merely gold-plated brass, whereas, our great God only deals in the real stuff, in the truth. If He’s really all-powerful, and can make or break anything, why then would He resort to falsehood to bring His children home to Him eh? No reason whatsoever my brethren! Lucifer however lacks that power, so he has to rely on lies, innuendo and all the other negative stuff that prevails in his dark, dismal and evil world. And we’ll end with this most wise and appropriate scripture: ‘The wise shall inherit glory: but shame shall be the promotion (legacy) of fools.’ (Prov.3:35) Oh Friends, I couldn’t say it any better than Cousin Sol, the wisest mortal to ever draw breath. So please, let’s wake up and pay serious attention to our attitudes today nuh! If we don’t, we’re liable to lose all the riches, both of heaven and earth. Much LOVE!…to those who listen…many rewards are thrust upon them…while to the deaf…death and destruction prey upon them…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 9 June 2012 1 John 4:10

1 John 4:10.    Herein is LOVE, not that we LOVED God, but that he LOVED us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Oh Friends, here it comes; one more morning, one more day, one more ray of brilliant sunshine, to chase the darkness of night away! It’s so refreshing and revitalizing to see a new day dawn. Something about a new day just naturally causes a conscious stream of hope and great expectations to rise in our souls, bringing the thought and belief that something good is going to happen to us that very day. Wow! Looking at the sun come up over the horizon seems to reawaken the Spirit of Jesus in our hearts and minds, giving us the strength, faith and energy to face the new day. For we know that with Jesus on our side, we can face anything that comes our way; we can do all things through Him, who strengthens us. (Phil.4:13) And furthermore, God’s goodness to us, unworthy as we are, is surely a good reason to be excited and appreciative of a new day, for He clearly went out of His way to make sure we had a chance to bypass the ‘sufferation’ for our just desserts: death for our disobedience. ‘For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through (in) Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Rom.6:23) And the scholars explain: ‘Wages: Emphasizes what we deserve. Gift of God: Emphasizes God’s unmerited favour.’  And why did He provide eternal life for us, even though we didn’t deserve it? Because He LOVED us! As the song says, it was LOVE  that caused our first heartbeat. And as our Bit so succinctly explains: ‘Herein is LOVE, not that we LOVED God, but that he LOVED us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.’ Yes Friends, the Lord did it all because of LOVE; the greatest emotion there is and the most significant trait of His amazing and wonderful personality! I only wish there was so much more of it present in our troubled, strife filled world. And God’s LOVE is so great, that the scholars declare; ‘No human LOVE is the standard for understanding God’s great compassion, but God’s own action on man’s behalf.’ God’s LOVE, like all His other attributes, are so much greater than ours, that we can’t even begin to comprehend it. It was such an intense LOVE that He made Jesus pay for our sins. Listen to John earlier on: ‘My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate (intercessor) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.’ (1 John 2:1-2) And that’s the gospel truth Friends! The sins of whoever believes in Jesus have been paid for! And all God’s people shouted: ‘Thank You Lord for Jesus! We praise and worship Your Holy Name!’ Now hear the scholars, re the process of propitiation. ‘Propitiation is here an atoning sacrifice. Jesus bore in His body the punishment due us for our sin; in so doing He propitiated God, satisfied God’s just demand that sin be punished. Thus Jesus is both the advocate for sinners (v.1) and the sacrifice for their sins.’ Surprisingly though, there are too many fools and unwise men on this earth, who though they know of and about Jesus, still refuse to take Him seriously, still refuse to believe, to put their hope, faith and trust in Him. How sad mih people. They don’t know what they’re missing. Unfortunately they don’t realize the seriousness of the situation; that it’s their eternal destiny they’re playing with. They obviously don’t believe that there’s nothing they can do to gain heaven’s shores, unless it’s through Christ. Listen to Bruh Paul postulate on the subject to the Ephesians: ‘For by grace are ye (you have been) saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship (creation), created in Christ Jesus unto (for) good works, which God hath before ordained (prepared) that we should walk in them.’ (Eph.2:8-10) And here’s the scholars explanation: ‘The grace of God is the expression of His goodness toward the undeserving. Grace means unmerited favour, and can be expressed by the acrostic “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.” This grace is the basis of our salvation (1.7; 2:8) Illustration: In salvation, men who deserve hell obtain heaven. This cannot be explained apart from God’s grace. Every conversion in Scripture is an example of God’s grace. When Paul (Saul) met the Lord on the Damascus Road, Paul was a persecutor of the church. Yet God made him one of the church’s chief preachers. Application: We need to remember that we are saved, given the Holy Spirit, and allowed to serve God – by His grace. (Gen.6:8; Eph.2:8) Yes Friends, only through the saving grace that flows from a belief in Jesus can we ever attain heaven’s bliss, for He is indeed as He declares: ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’ (John 14:6) Oh my people, it is therefore expedient, rather imperative, that mankind believes in Christ if they want to dwell in heaven, and escape the death and damnation that characterizes Hades. And it’s our responsibility, our duty to spread that fact around the globe, because Jesus doesn’t even want to lose one human to Lucifer’s evil claws. So please, let’s get out there and tell them with a burning passion, let’s convince them to see the bright light shining in the darkness that’s Jesus, their only hope for deliverance. Much LOVE!…a world full of darkness and evil…can only be  saved by believing in Jesus…the eternal day star of heaven…