05 Aug 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adopt the righteousness of God right now, air quality advisory, all the horns of the wicked will I cut off, all the wicked of the earth, all these things shall be added unto you, before it's too late, blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, but the dregs thereof, caribana festivities, christianity, come to know and love him like we do, cut off all wicked doers from the city of the Lord, duty bound, early destroy all the wicked of the land, exalt the righteous, faith, give thanks for God's deliverance, God is the judge, God's justice will prevail, God's righteous judgement, God's role as the ultimate judge, God's Sovereignty, God's wrath, he poureth out of the same, he shall serve me, he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight, he that walketh in a perfect way, he that worketh deceit, holy spirit, humble the wicked, hurry, I am the beloved of god, I will declare for ever, in god's eyes, in the hnad of the Lord is a cup, it is full of mixture, it is fully mixed, Jesus Christ, leggo-beast kind of partying, LOVE, mercy, mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, no one can take that from me, not be aligned with the wicked of the earth, not what I do, not what I have, on the late bus, salvation, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, shall not dwell within my house, shall wring them out and drink them, share His love with my neighbours, share the amazing love and friendship of Christ, sing praises to the God of jacob, the BIBLE, the breath of life, the horns of the righteous shall be exalted, the righteous judge, the ultimate faith of the wicked is in God's hands, the wicked may seem to prosper, the wine is red, they shall be filled, to go to bed late is to rise up late, trust in god's righteousness, trust my friend Jesus, truth, Tuesday Mantra, Walk with a Perfect Heart, wisdom, workers of iniquity, worry
Psalm 75:9. But I will declare for ever; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
Oh friends, forgive me, but we’re on the late bus this Tuesday morning. And it’s not because I was partying, I’m too old to get into that leggo-beast kind of partying, but I was up late doing some other stuff, and thus went to bed late, and consequently the old adage applies; to go to bed late is to rise up late. (smile) Anyway, the long weekend holiday celebrations are now over; as they say; deh done like dinner! Now we’ll have to wait another year to get back into the Caribana festivities and what ever activities take place at this time of year.
But since the Lord has granted us the breath of life to see another day, although we have another bad air quality advisory, (smile) let’s keep our promise of yesterday to continue looking at the marvellous words of Asaph in Psalm 75, titled ‘The Righteous Judge.’ Yesterday we saw where he offers up thanks for God’s presence and amazing works (vs.1), then tells of the promise of God’s righteous judgement in His own time (vs. 2-5), then he explains, gives us some idea of what that judgment will be like, (vs. 6-8).
However, yesterday we only progressed to verse 7, meaning we did not get all that Asaph said about the judgement. And after Asaph tells us in verse 7 that ‘God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up (exalts) another,’ he paints a tough picture of that judgement in verse 8. So let’s begin there today, as Asaph writes: ‘For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup, and the wine is red; it is full of mixture (fully mixed, foaming); and he poureth out of the same: but the dregs thereof, all the wicked of the earth shall wring them (drain it) out, and drink them.’ (Ps. 75:8)
Now that’s surely an interesting way for the wicked to be destroyed. And I like the overview this commentary offers. ‘Psalm 75 is a psalm of thanksgiving that focuses on God’s righteous judgment and sovereignty. It highlights God’s role as the ultimate judge, who will exalt the righteous and humble the wicked. The psalm uses imagery of a “cup” to represent God’s wrath, which the wicked will be forced to drink. It also emphasizes God’s power to both exalt and humble individuals, regardless of their earthly status.’
Hopefully friends, we will acknowledge that coming judgement and do our best not to have to drink of the dregs of that deadly cup of wine. Meaning, we will not be aligned with the wicked of the earth, but with the righteous, to whom the kingdom of God is promised. As Jesus says in the Beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount; ‘Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.’ (Matt. 5:6) And later on He admonishes us thus: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33)
Yes my brethren, the Lord urges us to seek righteousness above all else, for when we do, everything else will fall into place. That’s the Lord’s promise, and He never makes idle promises, or reneges on them. And having said all of that, (smile) let’s turn back to Psalm 75, the last two verses, where Asaph shows his confidence in God’s judgement, as he writes: ‘But I will declare for ever; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob. All the horns (strength) of the wicked also will I cut off (destroy); but the horns (strength) of the righteous shall be exalted.’ (Ps. 75:9-10)
Oh my fellow believers, that’s what’s in store for us all; if we’re wicked, we’ll be destroyed forever, but if we’re righteous, we’ll be exalted, lifted up, by Almighty God! So which scenario looks the best eh? Obviously the one that promotes righteousness! And there are numerous promises in the Bible that the wicked will eventually destroyed, so it couldn’t be a joke. Promises like this one written by Bruh David in Psalm 101, titled ‘Walk with a Perfect Heart.’
Speaking on God’s behalf, he ends the psalm thus: ‘Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect (blameless) way, he shall serve me. He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry (continue) in my sight. I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers (workers of iniquity) from the city of the Lord.’ (Ps. 101: 6-8)
There we have it my brethren, more ammunition that the Lord will eventually destroy the wicked from the face of the earth and give it to the righteous. So what are we waiting for to turn to righteousness and grab hold of it with all of our souls, bodies, hearts and minds eh? For that’s where the answer to everything lies!
And I believe it’s fitting for us to end today’s chat the same way the above commentary does. It concludes: ‘The psalm can be interpreted as a reminder that God’s justice will prevail, and that while the wicked may seem to prosper for a time, their ultimate fate is in God’s hands. It also encourages believers to trust in God’s righteousness and to give thanks for His deliverance.’
Oh my fellow saints, I could not have said it any better! But I can certainly encourage us to do what the commentary says: ‘trust in God’s righteousness and give thanks for His deliverance,’ for that’s where our salvation and eternal life comes from. And for those of us who are trying to live righteously, let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with my immediate neighbours, as well as with the whole wide world! Glory be!’
And with that declaration (awright!!!), we’re now duty bound to go out and share the amazing LOVE and friendship of Christ with others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him the way we do! Much LOVE!
…let’s adopt the righteousness of God…RIGHT NOW…for soon it might be too late…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
09 Jan 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: as the heavens are higher than the earth, covered me in my mother's womb, crapaud smoke we pipe, ease the pain, faith, for God so loved the world, full work week, God's Sovereignty, hope, how great is the sum of them, how precious thy thoughts unto me, I am fearfully and wonderfully made, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, LOVE, made in God's image, marvellous are thy works, my thoughts are higher than your thoughts, my thoughts are not your thoughts, my ways are higher than yours, negative situations, pay a high price for not believing, sincere repentance, surrender, the breath of life, the God who heals, trust, wisdom
Psalm 139:17. How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them!
And finally, we come to the first full work week of this new year. Isn’t that just grand? Many of us won’t think so, because we’ve had a few consecutively short work weeks in the recent past. And before that, it was already tough for us to handle the five-day variety, I just wonder what’s going to happen to us now, that we’re going back to the same old, same old. (smile) But I have faith in us, for our awesome God made us to be resilient to the max!
How did Bruh David describe our exotic creation in Psalm 139? ‘For thou hast possessed my reins (formed my inward parts): thou hast covered (weaved) me in my mother’s womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well (very well). My substance (frame, bones) was not hid from thee when I was made in secret, and curiously (skillfully) wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect (unformed); and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them, (the plans for my life were written before I was even made). How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.’ (Ps. 139:13-18)
Now friends, that’s how important we are to our heavenly Father and Creator! He took His time and perfectly planned out our entire course before He even began to make us! That means we are very precious, special and important to our God. Why would He send His sinless Son Jesus Christ to die for us eh, if we weren’t important to Him eh? Jesus said: ‘For God so LOVED the world…’ (John 3:16) That’s why!
And Bruh David also addressed the matter of our importance to God in Psalm 40, when he writes: ‘Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order (counted) unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.’ (Ps. 40:5) It just goes to show that we were not simply an afterthought of God, but a greatly desired and well-planned creation.
Thus, He’s so good, so merciful and gracious unto us. We’re made in His image, living through the breath of His life, and destined to be with Him till eternity! If that doesn’t shout importance, LOVE, and togetherness, then I don’t know what does! The problem though is that our minds are too puny and finite to understand God’s great LOVE for us. As Bruh Paul declares in his epistle to the church at Rome: ‘O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgements, and his ways are past finding out!’ (Rom. 11:33)
That’s gospel truth my faithful brethren! And the prophet Isaiah said it long before Bruh Paul, when he wrote of our Creator: ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Is. 55:8-9) That’s putting it mildly my people!
And the scholars explain: ‘God’s sovereignty and omniscience are extolled by the statement that His thoughts (i.e. purposes or intentions) and ways (directions) are higher than ours. While God may certainly be known by men, He is still incomprehensible in the totality of His person and purpose.’ Simply stated: we can never fully understand or know our Creator! But that’s why He gave us those things called hope and faith, trust and surrender. So that despite our inability to fully know and understand His purposes and intentions, we can rest assured that His intentions to us are always for good.
Like Jeremiah puts it: ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil (calamity), to give you an expected end (a future and a hope).’ (Jer. 29:11) Now seeing all the good that the Lord has done for us, in spite of our rebellion, disobedience and blasphemy against Him, why is it so difficult to believe that He truly cares for us and wants only our best eh? And why do we fight against this reassuring scripture eh? ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’ (Rom. 8:28)
Our problem is that we are so selfish, greedy and entitled that we don’t want to have any unfortunate circumstances happen to us, we’re just interested in living for today. We don’t care about it all ending up right, we want it right, right now! But that’s not the way the world or our God operates. And if we don’t hurry up and get smart and accept those facts, then crapaud smoke we pipe! We’re going to pay an awfully high price for not believing and trusting Almighty God.
But for those of us who have already woken up from our slumber, let’s go to our Creator through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, offering thanks and praise, then asking for forgiveness and help. As one voice: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. We desperately need Your divine help, for You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems. And Father, we pray that you will ease the pain of the many who are suffering from negative situations.
Please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
Now the ball is in our court; time to keep our promises and turn from our evil ways. Much LOVE!
…humans are the most important of God’s creations…His awesome LOVING-kindness to us…though undeserved…shows that in spades…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
28 Dec 2021
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a state of upheaval, a taste of the good life, an everlasting sign, be led forth with peace, between good and evil, bickering over petty stuff, calamity, call ye upon him while he is near, climate change, disaster, go out with joy, God's Sovereignty, he will have mercy upon him, hurry, I am the beloved of god, in god's eyes, incomprehensible God, it shall accomplish that which I please, it shall not return void, Jesus is the life, let the wicked forsake his way, like hot bread from an oven, LOVE, my thoughts are higher than your thoughts, natural and human induced, New Year's celebrations, our God will abundantly pardon, pandemic, partisan poltics, racial tumult, resnetment, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, self-righteousness, selfishness, share His love with the world, so are my ways higher than yours, strife, the battle for supremacy, the call of the Grim Reaper, the journey of salvation, the way the truth and the light, the wisest choice of help, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, worry
Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.
And then it was Tuesday, and all the partying done for a few days, time to go back to work. But by Friday, the party scene going to start back up in full swing for the New Year’s celebrations. Don’t know how much we have to celebrate this year’s end nuh, with all the disaster and calamity that’s taken place, both natural and human induced. What’s there to celebrate when we can’t get together and solve even a few of our many problems, and some of them are very petty and simple to fix, but ignorance and selfishness and self-righteousness prevent us from doing anything to help our overall cause.
Steups! What can be more foolish eh, than a lack of cooperation when it only makes matters worse in all of our lives. And they call man the smartest of all God’s creations…Hn! I certainly question that after all the unwise and foolish stuff that I’ve seen mankind do in the last couple of years. The resentment, the strife, the enmity between family and friends over unbelievable stuff is unbelievable! Between partisan politics, the pandemic, racial tumult, climate change and a host of other problems, the world is in a state of upheaval that I don’t think it’s ever seen before.
When yuh hear we even want to kick Almighty God out of our society, foolishly thinking that we no longer have any need for Him, then you’ve heard it all! Because He is the ONLY ONE who can bring us together and solve our problems! But like so often before, once we get a taste of the good life, we start believing that it’s our doing, and so we get a tad too big for our britches, and the Lord has to bring us back to reality. Well mih bredrin, this is certainly a time of reality.
But yuh know what? Too many of us are still not waking up to it. Some of us are seeing it in rose-coloured glasses, while others are covered with darkness all round them, but unfortunately the reality is none of those scenarios. The reality is that Jesus is the light, the life, the way, the truth, the Lord and Saviour of this embattled world! And until more of us realize it, and decide to stop the foolish bickering over petty stuff, and sit down and talk seriously about the important things, the battle for supremacy between good and evil, between right and wrong will continue with neither side gaining any useful traction, much less being able to win!
And we go right back to the wise words of the prophet Isaiah, when he declared on the Lord’s behalf: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.’ (Is. 55:6) Oh my people, that would be the wisest decision we could ever make in this quickly deteriorating and sinking world of ours! And sincerely seeking the Lord is not the complete answer to the problem. Hear Isaiah put it all into proper perspective. ‘Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ ( Is. 55:7)
Now isn’t that so very encouraging, mih people? It certainly is, but we’re not paying attention, merely continuing in our stubborn, hard-headed ways, which unfortunately will only lead us further down the path to destruction. And if these next two verses don’t smarten us up, make us wake up and take notice, then I don’t know what will nuh. Listen up to Isaiah again, as he delivers the one two knockout punch. ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Is. 55:8-9)
Doesn’t that just make you put your finger to your lips and go ‘Hnnnn!’ all lost in thought, as you consider the truth of those words? It ought to, because it is the reality of the situation. When are we going to learn that since we have no say in how long we live, or what condition we live in, means we are not rulers of the universe? All the money and power we possess doesn’t stop us from succumbing to the call of the Grim Reaper, whenever he calls.
And until we fully realize that we are just a created being with a limited shelf life, we will always fall prey to the deceit and lies of the foolish enemy Satan, who unfortunately thought that he could wrest power from the Creator of the universe, Almighty God, and suffered an ignominious defeat; that a humiliating, embarrassing, mortifying defeat! Disgracefully cast out to the fires of Hades, he is now seeking revenge by taunting and inducing fear into the lives and hearts of those who want to believe. And seeing that Satan had no power to stop himself from being kicked out of heaven, why do we foolishly believe his lies and deceits that he can do anything worthwhile for us eh?
Now let’s hope that these words of scripture make it clear, once and for all time, who is the King of glory, the Creator and Controller of this wonderful universe, so ruined by man and the devil. Isaiah puts it forth: ‘For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater; So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void (empty, without fruit), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir (cypress) tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.’ (Is. 55:10-13)
Oh my people, can the evil one, the prince of darkness make such a faithful promise? Obviously not, because he doesn’t’ have that kind of power. But the Lord God Jehovah has, and He showed His faithfulness when two thousand years ago, he sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to earth to be sacrificed on the cross of Calvary to save our sinful souls. Now has Beelzebub ever done anything even close to that? And an emphatic ‘NO’ is the answer! So why do we still believe Him over the Lord God Almighty eh? I don’t know nuh.
But listen to the scholars’ explanation of those verses. ‘55:8-13. God’s sovereignty and omniscience are extolled by the statement that His thoughts (i.e. purposes or intentions) and ways (directions) are higher than ours. While God may certainly be known by men, He is still incomprehensible in the totality of His person and purposes. Therefore He reveals Himself to men by His word, which shall not return to Him void (in vain). The Word of God, therefore, accomplishes His purpose in announcing salvation to all mankind.’
Yes friends, we can never fully comprehend the Lord’s purposes and ways because of our inferior intelligence. But through His awesome and faithful Word, He lets us know what’s happening, and it’s in this Christmas season, with the birth of Christ that He began the journey of salvation, of bringing us back into His fold, making us know of His exceeding LOVE and tender care. Now if all of that doesn’t touch a tender spot in your heart and soul, and make you seriously consider seeking Him, then I don’t know what else to do. I can only tell it like I know it.
However, for those of us who already believe and are doing our best to stay connected to Jesus, let’s go home now, sincerely and loudly declaring (steupsss!!!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting everybody know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel. Altogether now: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Now let’s take all that LOVE and friendship to market and sell it like hot bread from an oven! (smile) Share it with all we meet, for that’s Jesus’ desire. Much LOVE!
…the wisest choice of help…our Creator and Controller…who else eh…
P.S. I know it’s somewhat long and late, but I think it’s good, (smile) so please take it seriously. Much LOVE!
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8
03 Oct 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a god that cannot save, an everlasting sign, bounden duty, bread to the eater, compassionate heart, curse, divine protection, fellow saints in Christ, fulfill its purpose, give seed to the sower, go out with joy, God's Sovereignty, good friends, good health, graven image, heaven and eath shall pass away, in the thing, incomprehensible, intentions, it shall accomplish, it shall not return void, it shall prosper, Jesus Christ, led forth with peace, LOVE, my neck of the woods, my words, negative word, no god beside me, omniscience, out of my mouth, promise, promotion, prophet isaiah, prosper, purposes, righteousness, self-control, shall not pass away, so shall my word be, succeed, sworn by myself, that goeth forth, that which I please, the rain cometh down, this the day the Lord has made, Thursday Blessings, watereth the earth, we will rejoice and be glad in it, whereto I sent it, wisdom
Isaiah 55:11. So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void (empty, without fruit), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
Well it’s started out wet and cloudy again in my neck of the woods. But who knows what’s going to happen later – only the great God who created it all and still controls it! So let’s give Him some thanks and praise for our joyful awakening to another faithful and fruitful day in our earthly lives, as we commit to seeking His kingdom and His righteousness.
So let’s sincerely acclaim: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it! And consequently: ‘As for me and my house, we WILL follow the Lord!’ Now it’s up to us, as true believers to keep those two promises…just like the Lord keeps His. And the promise of God that I want to look at today is that found in His free mercy to all, as prophesied by Isaiah.
‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater.
So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void (empty, without fruit), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.’(Is.55:8-11)
Oh friends, the Lord has spelt it out in His usual forthright manner. His thoughts and ways are indeed higher than ours, and His Word will not return empty, but fulfill its purpose! Glory Be! And we all know that He keeps ALLof his promises! And having made that unbreakable promise, the Lord further promises through the mouth of His prophet Isaiah:
‘For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir (cypress) tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.’ (Is.55:12-13)
What wonderful promises my fellow saints in Christ! That’s the kind of stuff we have to look forward to, since the Lord has sincerely promised it! And the scholars explain: ‘55:8-13. God’s sovereignty and omniscience are extolled by the statement that His thoughts (i.e., purposes or intentions) and ways (‘derakim’, or directions) are higher than ours.
While God may certainly be known by men, He is still incomprehensible in the totality of His person and purposes. Therefore He reveals Himself to men by His word, which shall not return to Him void (in vain). The Word of God, therefore, accomplishes His purpose in announcing salvation to all mankind.’
And are we ever delighted by that announcement my people! For it’s the greatest thing that’s ever happened to mankind since the great Creation itself! Wow! Without that promise, and the keeping of that promise, through the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ, we’d all be goners! All praise and glory to God the Father, Jesus Christ, the sacrificial Son, and the Holy Spirit, the One who works it all out in us!
And it’s not the first time He’d promise salvation. Listen to Him from an earlier chapter in Isaiah; re salvation will come only by the Lord. ‘For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it not in vain (empty or a waste), he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else. I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth: I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain; I the Lord speak righteousness, I declare things that are right.
Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, ye that are (have) escaped of (from) the nations: they have no knowledge that set up (carry about) the wood of their graven image, and pray unto a god that cannot save. Tell ye, and bring them near; yea, let them take counsel together: who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? have not I the Lord? and there is no God else beside me, a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me.
Look (turn) unto me, and be ye saved, and all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear (take an oath).’ (Is.45:18-23)
Ah friends, just like the Lord there was calling His people Israel to assemble from out of the nations of the Gentiles and come to Him for salvation, the same way He is calling us today, we Gentiles, to come to Him through the sacrificial death of His Son Jesus Christ for salvation, because it’s ONLY through Him, that salvation is possible and available! Shall we not answer that call my people? It would be wisdom extraordinaire to do so, for the only other option we have, eternal death and hellfire, is not even thinkable!
And our Lord is so great and generous that He even gave us a multitude of blessings, which we call our Thursday Blessings, to go out and use them to bring others to Him, so they too can receive those awesome things called salvation and eternal life. Let’s declare them now in strong voice and true sincerity:
‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection!
I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
Now, with a true sense of purpose, let’s go out and put them to use nuh, for that’s our bounden duty! Much LOVE!
…listen to Jesus…heaven and earth…shall pass away…but my words…shall not pass away… (Matt.24:35)
23 Dec 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a aman's relationship with God, Anselm's Quote, blasphemous, blessings, Bruh David, Buddha, by thy words thou shalt be justified, Christians, Christmas, condemned, contentment, contentment is the greatest wealth, cutthroat world, dominion, faithfulness, faithfulness is the best relationship, foolish, God's Sovereignty, gospel truth, he shall exalt thee to inherit the land, health, health is the greatest gift, his tongue talks of justice, holy spirit, idle word, Jesus Christ, keep his way, LOVE, material things, mercy, moral law, peace, physical law of God, power, righteousness., salvation, sin, social media, spiritual law, stress, the day of judgement, the good treasure of his heart, the law of God is in his heart, the mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom, understanding of god's Word, ungodly world, wait on the Lord, wisdom, words have power, write it indelibly in our hearts
Psalm 37:30. The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgement (justice).
Well Friends, another beautiful day is in the offing! It’s Tuesday, and thankfully there are just two more days to the big day of Christmas. Hope you have all your preparations completed, and are not running around like a chicken with its head cut off to try and complete them before the day arrives. (smile)
Thank the Lord I’ve given up all that sort of stuff! I no longer run around to buy gifts etc. If I give anything, it’s usually money for others to run around and buy what they want. That works perfectly for me. (smile)
Anyway, today I’m going to share a quote from a friend, who sends me one every day. It’s called ‘Anselm’s Quote For the Day. Inspiring You For a Better Tomorrow.’ And the quote itself is attributed to Buddha, the religious deity of Buddhism. It says that: ‘Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.’
And Anselm himself offers this advice. ‘This is a nice quote to remind us that without health we really have nothing, and without being content all the riches in the world matter not. There are a lot of people out there that are sick and ailing that would trade anything for good health.
And there are plenty of rich people in the world that are absolutely miserable and resort to drugs and alcohol to make up for an empty life. It’s easy to think that riches bring true wealth and that there’s a gift better than health, but when you stop to consider it further you realize that this quote is right.’
And isn’t that the gospel truth my people! Regardless of what material things or power we possess, if we don’t have decent health, then we’re helpless to really enjoy life. The things of the world don’t always ensure a good and/or healthy environment for us. So please remember that and stop running down the things of the world.
In fact, running them down will only make you sick, note the pandemic of stress that’s currently has our world in grip, because we are all working like crazy to make ends meet or get ahead in this cutthroat world. And the sad part too, is that when we finally get the material things or power we’re running after, we either get fed up with them quite quickly, or we just don’t have the time to enjoy them. And this Christmas season is a great example of that. A lot of the stuff we receive is returned to the stores for one reason or another.
Anyway, let’s turn to our Bit, taken from Psalm 37 – The true state of the wicked, by Bruh David. ‘The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgement (justice).’
Now that’s indisputable truth my people! You cannot be righteous and foolish and blasphemous. And Jesus added His contention to the matter by saying: ‘A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgement. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.’ (Matt.12:35-37)
Oh Friends, please write that indelibly in our hearts, minds and souls, especially in this day and age where unjustified talking is on the upswing with the many means of quick communication now available to us. And we are already seeing Jesus’ warning coming to pass down here on earth, where people are saying and posting a lot of nonsense on the social media and getting in trouble for it. Remember that words have power, both for good and for evil.
But as Bruh David continues after our Bit: ‘The law of his God is in his heart (that of the righteous); none of his steps shall slide (slip). The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him. The Lord will not leave him in his hand, nor condemn him when he is judged.’ (Ps.37:31-33)
Yes my people, our God will not allow the wicked to have dominion over His righteous children. He will enable them to get out of the grip of the evil one and his cohorts. Please believe that and act on it.
Now here is some interesting and educational info from the scholars re the Law of God. ’37:31. The law of God is the extension of God’s nature and expression of God’s will in His creation. God’s law is expressed in different forms, relating to different areas of His creation. The physical law of God includes the laws of nature which govern the continuous physical existence of this world. (Gen.8:22; Col.1:17).The moral law, also called “the perfect law of liberty” (James 1:25), governs the immaterial issues of life (2 Tim.3:17). The social law of God affects interpersonal relationships and can be summarized by “the royal law” (James 2:8). The spiritual law deals with a man’s relationship with God. It is summarized in “the first and great commandment” (Matt.22:37).
Illustration: The purpose of the law is to reveal the sovereignty of God (ex.20:2), to place a restraint on the sinner (68:7-8), to show the greatness and reality of sin (Rom.3:19-20), and to lead the sinner to Christ (Gal.3:24). The purpose of the law did not change with the gospel. When the Judaizers in Galatia sought to teach their erroneous view of the law, they failed to realize that the law has never been able to save anyone. Application: As Christians, we should be concerned to live decently and orderly. First Ref. Gen.2:17; Primary Ref. Rom.1:7-14; cf, Ex.3:13.)’
Oh my fellow believers in Christ, I do hope that that info gives us greater understanding of God’s Word. And we’ll end with this wise advice from Bruh David. ‘Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.’ (Ps.37:34)
Words to live by my people! So let’s live by them nuh, so we can be considered righteous and have the blessings of our wonderful God! Much LOVE
…in righteousness…there is always wisdom and justice…
16 Mar 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new day, absolute truth, adoration, almighty god, Barak, be humble before God, blessedness, Bruh David, catastrophe, catastrophic situation, celebration of the Sabbath, cock of the walk, common denominator, comprehend, control our destiny, Deborah, devoid of God's presence, different, elucidation, encouraging words, exalt the Lord's name, extolled, faithfulness, fear of God, fellowship, forgiveness, God's intentions, God's miraculous help, God's purposes, God's Sovereignty, God's thoughts are not ours, God's ways are higher than ours, God's Word, habits, heavenly guidance, human failings, indisputable truth, insecurities, Israel, Jesus Christ, judge of Israel, length of days, loving kindness, mercy, Moses, new song in my mouth, omniscience, parable of the rich fool, petty things, Pharaoh, pleasureable life, praise, praise unto God, preserve me from trouble, pride, prophetess, psalm 40, rituals, rulers of all we survey, salvation, sameness, self-confidence, self-importance, Sermon on the Mount, sing praise to the Lord God of Israel, song, songs of deliverance, Spirit Being, successful life, Supreme Being, thanksgiving, The Lord is my strength, the Red Sea, the Sabbath Day, trust in the Lord, worship
Psalm 40:3. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.
Ah mih people, a new day has dawned over half the world, with different kinds of weather in different places; places that are populated with different kinds of flora and fauna, different kinds of people espousing different habits and rituals; but amazingly, all falling under one common denominator, the Creator of it all, Almighty God!
Wow! What a giant of a Being our God has to be to create all those differences, as well as all the sameness that we possess and enjoy!
No wonder He can rightfully proclaim through His spokesperson Isaiah: ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.’ (Is.55:8)
And there is certainly no disputing those words of absolute truth my brethren because we simply cannot comprehend all there is to comprehend about our Creator.
As the scholars note on those verses above: ‘ 55:8-13. God’s sovereignty and omniscience are extolled by the statement that His thoughts (i.e. purposes or intentions) and ways (derakim, or “directions”) are higher than ours.
While God may certainly be known by men, He is still incomprehensible in the totality of His person and purposes. Therefore He reveals Himself to men by His word, which shall not return to Him void (in vain). The Word of God, therefore, accomplishes His purpose in announcing salvation to all mankind.’
And that’s why, with our small brains, we tend to gravitate to small, petty things; things that we can see and which can fit into our relatively small comprehension space. (smile) But however we cut it Friends, undoubtedly there is a Spirit Being afloat in the universe out there that is immensely and immeasurably greater than us!
And until mankind comes to truly recognize and believe the fact that we are not the real rulers of our lives, nor are we controllers of the happenings in the universe, and stop thinking so highly, god-like, of ourselves, but instead be humble before the great Spirit of God, we will forever be plagued with all kinds of insecurities and human failings, ranging from total insecurity and lack of self-confidence to overblown pride and self-importance.
Now if that isn’t a Bruh Paulian sentence, I don’t know what is! (smile)
Yes Friends, until we come to truly realize that we’re not ‘cock of the walk,’ rulers of all we survey, then we’ll never be truly happy or contented. And how can we be rulers of all we survey, when we don’t control our destiny and our lives; meaning the things we try to accomplish, the length of our earthly days and our general well-being.
And Jesus pointed out that lack of control so admirably when talking about oaths in the Sermon on the Mount. ‘Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.’ (Matt.5:36)
We also see our inability to control our length of days, when Jesus spoke the parable of the rich fool, who had so much he decided to pull down the old barns and build new, bigger ones to store his goods and lead a leisurely, pleasurable life.
‘But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?’ (Luke 12:20) More words of indisputable truth my brethren!
And I guess it must be in one of those moments of elucidation, of really understanding his total inability to live a successful life devoid of God’s presence, heavenly guidance and LOVING -kindness that Bruh David must have penned Psalm 40 and the encouraging words of our Bit. ‘And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.’
Oh Friends, likewise, it’s only when we realize our inability to successfully exist down here on this wicked earth without God that we also can attain to a greater understanding of ourselves, our universe and our Most High Creator!
Now that awakening would most certainly cause us to sing songs, both old and new, to the Supreme Being, for that’s how truly understanding His Supremacy works.
Earlier on in Psalm 32, the blessedness of forgiveness, Bruh David also wrote: ‘Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about (surround me) with songs of deliverance. Selah. (Ps.32:7)
For sure my people, when we’re facing some catastrophic situation, songs of deliverance from earlier times ought to flow steadily from our lips. And when the Lord delivers us from the catastrophe, new songs of deliverance are always born from the grace, the mercy, forgiveness and LOVING-kindness showered down upon us!
And today we’re going to look at two of those songs of deliverance born of God’s bountiful mercy and faithfulness to Israel. The first one is the Song of Moses, which celebrates Israel’s deliverance from slavery in Egypt and their successful escape across the Red Sea from Pharaoh’s army.
‘Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and song (possibly defence), and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him a habitation (praise Him); my father’s God, and I will exalt his name.’ (Ex.15:1-2)
Powerful words of praise, thanks and acknowledgement my people! And you can read the rest of it for yourselves from Exodus 15:3-21.
And the second song of deliverance comes from Deborah and Barak. Deborah was a prophetess, the judge Israel at the time, and Barak, the army general when they defeated the much larger and better equipped Canaanite invaders – with God’s miraculous help of course.
‘Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam on that day, saying, Praise ye the Lord for the avenging of Israel (when leaders lead in Israel), when the people willingly offered themselves (volunteered). Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes; I, even I, will sing unto the Lord; I will sing praise to the Lord God of Israel.’ (Judg.5:1-3)
Yes Friends, it’s that kind of song that ought to come out of our mouths when the Lord God Jehovah blesses us!
And you can read the remainder of Deborah and Barak’s song in Judges 5: 4-31. It’s much longer than Moses, but just as beautiful!
Well mih people, that’s it for today. The Bit’s longer than I intended and somewhat late – but what else is new eh? (smile) I surely hope though that we all learned something, if not from my ramblings, (smile) then surely from the scriptures we’ve highlighted.
And since today’s the celebration of the Sabbath for many of us, what better way is there to proclaim it than in fellowship with other believers, in full-throated song eh? NONE! Much LOVE!
…in the greater scheme of things…it doesn’t really matter whether we sing old or new songs nuh…just as long as we sing songs of…praise, worship, adoration, LOVE and thanksgiving to our wonderful God and Creator…and plenty songs too…
22 Jun 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a tad happier, confidence, difficulties, encouragement, faith, fervour, further the Word, furthering of the gospel, glob of grease, God's Sovereignty, God's wisdom, good example, good news, gospel truth, grin and bear it, happy camper, hardships, kitchen sink, make a long story short, many believed, negative circumstances, passion for Christ, plenty poorer, preached the gospel, speak the word, steadfast faith, strength, Thank You Lord, the Lord's mysterious ways, the moral of the story, trials and tribulations, true faith, undesirable circumstances, wisdom, without fear, witnessed to others, zeal for Christ
Philippians 1:12. But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel.
Oh Friends, oh Friends, as the old people would say; when is not one thing, is something else yes! And unfortunately, the current something else in my life goes like this. A few days ago, we discovered that our kitchen sink was backing up; not too badly, but bad enough to cause problems. I tried plunging it several times without any luck.
Then I called a semi-retired handyman from my church to come and have a look at it. He came on Thursday morning, tried snaking it with his small snake, but to no avail either. So he suggested I call this professional outfit that had all the tools and experience.
I did that, and they eventually came on Friday morning, after promising to come on Thursday evening. But I guess that was the Lord moving in one of His mysterious ways, since what we went through in the daytime would have been even more agonizing in the evening hours.
To make a long story short, they snaked the pipe about three times, with a bigger and longer snake, but still to no avail. The water still came back up after running for a couple of minutes. We then moved to the basement where the pipe from the kitchen sink met the main drain. To get to that, we had to cut out a portion of my finished studio, which obviously I would have preferred not to do, only to find that the blockage was in the main drain itself.
Mama Mia! We couldn’t even open the trap because when we tried water began backing up. I must say that neither the plumber nor I was happy. He, because he was looking at a rather big and difficult job, and I because I was looking at possible water and other damage to my basement, as well as a huge repair bill.
It seems that a big glob of grease and other stuff is blocking the pipe. An accumulation of many years, which entails getting a water flushing machine or some such thing at a cost of $650.00, and labour on top of that for two plumbers at $180.00 per hour, and all of that has a tax of 13% on it.
So you can imagine that I’m not a happy camper this morning. Hopefully, I will be a tad happier, though plenty poorer by the time they finish the job, this afternoon.
Anyway Friends, the moral of the story is NOT TO, NEVER flush oil or grease down your sinks, because it doesn’t always go right down into the main sewer system but stays in your pipe system and clogs it up after a while, causing problems like mine. Get a bottle, a bucket or some other kind of container and pour your grease and oil in that, and then dispose of that in some other fashion, but definitely not down your drains.
I guess I have to be thankful though that the blockage didn’t get into the heart of the main system, where it would have caused all the pipes in the house to back up, but apparently stayed in the drain leading to it. And for that I say, Thank You Lord!’
So that’s what I have to look forward to today. But enough of my griping (smile). A lot of people would gladly have that problem rather than the ones they do have.
Now let’s turn to our Bit, which seems rather appropriate under he circumstances. ‘But I would ye should understand (I want you to know), brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen (turned) out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel.’
And that’s the gospel truth Friends! Why? Because all Bruh Paul’s hardships, imprisonments, floggings, shipwrecks etc, eventually turned out for good, helped to further the Word because others recognized his zeal and passion for Christ.
As the scholars explain: ‘Things … have fallen out means “have occurred.” Paul tells his readers that his imprisonment has occurred for the purpose of furthering or spreading the gospel. The word rather suggests that the Philippians were anticipating the reception of bad news as a result of Paul’s captivity. He informs them rather to the contrary.
In His wisdom and sovereignty God has deliberately designed His servant’s present circumstances, as undesirable as they may be, for the gospel’s benefit. Two positive results of Paul’s imprisonment are given in verse 13, 14. (1) Caesar’s palace learned the gospel from him (v13); and (2) many Roman Christians were stirred to preach the gospel during his bondage.’
Ah Friends, our God does certainly move in mysterious ways! We’d think that all Bruh Paul’s trials and tribulations would cause people to turn away from Christ, but it had the exact opposite effect.
As he so eloquently says: ‘So that my bonds (chains) in Christ are manifest (well known) in all the palace (by the praetorian palace guards), and in all other places. And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing (becoming) confident by my bonds (chains), are much more bold to speak the word without fear.’ (Phil.1:13-14)
Yes Friends, our God oftimes uses our hardships and difficulties to draw others closer to Him. When they see our faith and strength in Him, they begin to believe. A good current example is what’s happening to me. I don’t like it, not by a long shot, but I have to grin and bear it. Now someone with a lesser problem might look at that and say, well if he could bear up under that, then I can bear up under my lesser problem.
And the Lord does that in all our lives; using our trials as encouragement for others. So though Bruh Paul was in jail in chains, he witnessed to all the guards that came by, and when they realized that he was no criminal, just zealous in the preaching of Christ and the gospel, many believed and witnessed to others.
Likewise the Roman believers were inspired by Bruh Paul’s stance for Christ and they too began spreading the gospel with much fervour. The scholars put it very nicely. ‘The whole church, thus stirred, did more in spreading the Good News than Paul could have done by himself had he not been in jail.’
So my fellow believers, let us not shirk or run and hide from whatever befalls us, even though they be negative circumstances, because you never know what the Lord’s reasons are for causing them.
Let’s just hold on tightly to His promise of working out everything for the good of those He’s called and who sincerely try to follow Him. (Rom.8:28) That’s true faith and wisdom in a nutshell my brethren! Much LOVE!
…when we endure trials and tribulations with steadfast faith and strength…God uses us to further the gospel by our example…
17 May 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: apostasy, British Commonwealth, confusion, damnation, death, deliverance, dominion over us, drunk or sober, fellowship, Friday chant, frogiveness, glorious kingdom, God never changes, God's Sovereignty, great god almighty, humbled themselves, humility, hymn of praise, let our hair down, long weekend, longevity, mercy, negativity, obedience, Old Testament, one true God, other gods, prosperity, Queen Victoria, relaxation, repentance, rest, reverence, sonny boy, starting prescription, sufficent fun, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, times of celebration, transgression, turmoil, wrath, yoke of burden
Isaiah 26:13. O Lord our God, other lords besides thee have had dominion over us; but by thee only will we make mention of thy name.
Oh Friends, it’s Friday, the day that heralds the coming of the weekend! And a mighty shout rises from the people: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! Thank Him that work will soon be done for another week! Thank You great God Almighty!’
And in the British Commonwealth of Nations, this shout is going to be even louder today, because it’s a long weekend in celebration of Queen Victoria’s (1819-1901) birthday on Monday. She reigned for some 63 years, from 1837 to her death, longer than any other British monarch. The current Queen Elizabeth I believe has just hit her sixtieth year on the throne.
Anyway, that means many people won’t be going back to work until Tuesday, which brings us the need for Granny’s warning: ‘Sonny boy, remember, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business.’ (smile) Yes Friends, we have to be very careful when we we’re celebrating this weekend, because it’s usually in times of celebration, when we let our hair down, that the ole scoundrel Lucifer manages to finagle his way into our souls and cause us to disobey God.
But luckily we have a starting prescription for that problem, our Friday Chant. So let’s chant it now and set the right tone for the upcoming weekend. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Now remember Friends, that’s only the opening prescription. You also have to take other stuff like praying, reading the Good Book and fellowshipping with other believers, if you want to keep away the wiles and lies of the enemy this long weekend.
And we seem to have a rather appropriate Bit to help us do that, taken from Isaiah’s hymn of praise for Israel. ‘O Lord our God, other lords besides thee have had dominion over us; but by thee only will we make mention of thy name.’
Yes my brethren, it’s high time to cast aside all the other gods, worldly idols and images which have kept us away from the ONE TRUE GOD, He of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! For without a doubt, that disobedience is what’s ruining our lives in this modern age.
And remember too that our God, His Word and dictates never change. So if He said long ago, ‘Thou shalt have no other gods before me,’ (Ex.20:3) then that admonition still prevails today. And we’ll consider a pertinent example from the Old Testament of how our God works when we don’t obey.
It’s in the time of Rehoboam, Cousin Sol’s son, who reigned after him. Foolishly, Rehoboam increased the yoke of burden on the people, and eventually those of the kingdom of Israel rebelled against the house of Bruh David. But Rehoboam continued reigning in the kingdom of Judah.
Now this is the telling passage. ‘And it came to pass, when Rehoboam had established the kingdom, and had strengthened himself, he forsook the law of the Lord, and all Israel with him.’ (2 Chr.12:1) So you can imagine the apostasy and the sinful living and whatever that went on then.
But Friends, as the old people were wisely wont to say; ‘time longer than twine.’ And as usual, they were right, for as the Good Book declares: ‘And it came to pass that in the fifth year of king Rehoboam Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, because they had transgressed against the Lord.’ (2 Chr.12:2)
Yes my brethren, the Lord did not allow Judah to go a whoring forever, just for five years. ‘And he (Shishak) took the fenced (fortified) cities which pertained to Judah, and came to Jerusalem. Then came Shemaiah the prophet to Rehoboam, and to the princes of Judah, that were gathered to Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said unto them,
Thus saith the Lord, Ye have forsaken me, and therefore have I also left you in the hand of Shishak. Whereupon the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, the Lord is righteous. And when the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, saying,
They have humbled themselves; therefore I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance; and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. Nevertheless they shall be his servants; that they may know (distinguish) my service and (from) the service of the kingdoms of the countries.’ (2 Chr.12:4-8)
Oh Friends, our God doesn’t make jokes over His sovereignty! Please remember that. He might put up with our shenanigans for a while, but sooner or later He’ll take us to task. As in Rehoboam’s case, Shishak took away all his treasure, even the gold shields that Cousin Sol had made, leaving Rehoboam to make shields of brass, and not very many either, as the Good Book describes. (2 Chr.12:9-11)
So my fellow believers, unless you’re thoroughly blind, you can see that a lot of the negativity, the turmoil and confusion that’s currently engulfing our world is a direct result of our constant and wilful disobedience to God’s Word. We have to band together and bring the world back to its Creator. For He’s very willing, able and exceedingly glad to grant mercy and forgiveness to those who turn to Him in sincere repentance.
A fact that’s proven by this scripture. ‘And when he (Rehoboam) humbled himself, the wrath of the Lord turned from him, that he would not destroy him altogether: and also in Judah things went well.’ (2 Chr.12:12)
So if we want things to start going right with our world again, we have to cause and/or encourage, repentance, humility and reverence to be brought before Almighty God. Now that’s certainly wisdom at its zenith! Much LOVE!
…the equations are simple…obedience to God’s law equals prosperity and longevity…disobedience to it equals wrath, death and damnation…
04 Apr 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: absolute power, abundance, Advocate, blessed is the Lamb that was slain, Brotherhood, deliverer, eternal life, faithful words and actions, glory hallelujah, God's Sovereignty, good conscience, gospel truth, heaps, heathen, jump-started, king Hezekiah, living truth, local church, lord of hosts, LOVE, loving kindness, magnitude of blessings, mercy, Most Wonderful Being, obedience, pour out a blessing, praise, prince of peace, salvation, saviour jesus, spunkiness, storehouse, storehouse tithing, strength and guidance, thanks, tithes, true believers, windows of heaven
Malachi 3:10. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
Oh Friends, oh Friends, the ole fella’s up and about with surprising spunkiness this Resurrection Thursday morning! Yes my people, please remember that it’s only been a few days since our Lord and Saviour Jesus defeated that ole cowardly crook Lucifer, and triumphantly rose from the grave, which had no power to hold Him captive for long. And all God’s people declared a loud and grateful, ‘Glory Hallelujah! Blessed is the Lamb that was slain but rose again with absolute power and might, to whom all knees shall bow and every tongue confess that He is God!’ (Rom.14:11) Yes mih Friends, our Advocate, Deliverer, Leader, Prince of Peace, etc. etc. is riding high in the world this week. Please let’s keep Him riding high all year long, because that’s what He expects, desires and most assuredly deserves. The heathen will try to put Him down, try to make Him of no account, but we, His true believers and followers know that He is indeed the Most Wonderful Being in ALL the universe! Let’s make sure that others know it, and by our faithful words and actions, draw them into His ever increasing and most worthy fold, so that they too will experience the LOVE, the Brotherhood, the Salvation and Eternal Life that we’ve been guaranteed. And all God’s children said a loud and hearty. ‘Amen!’ Yeh mih breddren, the ole fella’s chuckling here because he certainly seems to be on a roll this morning. The Good Lord didn’t even give me a chance to ask for strength and guidance, but just got me going, jump-started me right away. No wondering what to write at all. And all I can say is a hearty, ‘Thank You Lord! You are so wonderful to me, that I don’t know what I’d do without You in my life! And thankfully I’ll never have to find that out, since You’ve faithfully promised never to leave or forsake me, but be with me all the days of my life, even into eternity. Thank You again Lord!’ Awright Friends, enough of that now, or else I’ll just get carried away and continue with much deserved thanks and praise to our wonderful God. (smile) And today we’ll continue with our Bit that deals with tithes. ‘Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat (food) in mine house, and prove (test) me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.’ And that’s the living truth, my brethren! If we do as God declares, we’ll be so blessed that we won’t have room to store the great magnitude of blessings He’ll pour down on us. And remember, that’s not because of what or how much we give, but because of our obedience, which signifies that we hold the Lord in true sovereignty and reverence. Now let’s look at a true example of tithing bringing great blessing. It deals with King Hezekiah’s provision for priests and Levites in olden Israel. Having set the work assignments for both groups, he then made provision for them to concentrate on their numerous duties without having to worry about food and shelter too. ‘Moreover he commanded the people that dwelt in Jerusalem to give the portion of (due to) the priests and the Levites, that they might be encouraged in (devote themselves to) the law of the Lord. And as soon as the commandment came abroad, the children of Israel brought in abundance the first fruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the increase of the field; and the tithe of all things brought they in abundantly. And concerning the children of Israel and Judah, that dwelt in the cities of Judah, they also brought in the tithe of oxen and sheep, and the tithe of holy things which were consecrated unto the Lord their God, and laid them by heaps. In the third month they began to lay the foundation of the heaps (lay them in heaps), and finished them in the seventh month. And when Hezekiah and the princes came and saw the heaps, they blessed the Lord, and his people Israel. Then Hezekiah questioned with the priests and the Levites concerning the heaps. And Azariah the chief priest of the house of Zadok answered him, and said, Since the people began to bring the offerings into the house of the Lord, we have had enough to eat, and have left plenty: for the Lord hath blessed his people; and that which is left is this great store (abundance).’ (1 Chr.31:4-10) Yes my people, the Lord is indeed faithful to all His promises! Now here’s some info from the scholars that I think is very important to us all. ‘Tithing is the practice of giving 10 percent of one’s income to the Lord. It is called “storehouse tithing” by some who require that the tithe be given to the Lord through the local church. Illustration: while some Christians disagree, the principle of “God’s place” for worship is the basis for storehouse tithing. (Deut.12) The temple in the Old Testament (1) was the central place characterized by God’s presence; (2) possessed the symbols of redemption; and (3) was where the man of God served. In the New Testament, these three attributes characterize the local church. Hence the principle of storehouse tithing continues into the church age. Application: Some people withhold their tithe from their local church because they disagree with its expenditure of funds. These Christians should join another church where they can wholeheartedly make their contributions in good conscience. Because our actual tithe belongs to the local church, giving to parachurch organizations should be in addition to the tithe. (First Ref, Gen.14:20; Primary Ref, Mal.3:10; cf. Matt.22:21) Ah Friends, I know that that will complicate some of our lives, including mine, but we’ll just have to step up to the plate as best we can. And please, let’s not beat ourselves to death if we’re guilty of not fully tithing. The Lord knows our circumstances and the state of our hearts, and once we do our best to repair the situation, He will still look down favourably on us. Remember His mercy and LOVING-kindness know no bounds. Now let’s allow Cousin Sol to take us home with some of his wise words on the topic. ‘Honour the Lord with thy substance (possessions), and with the first fruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses (vats) shall burst out with new wine.’ (Prov.3:9-10) And that my Friends is the gospel, gospel truth! So let’s try and catch up as best we can nuh, starting NOW! Much LOVE!…give to Caesar…the things that belong to him…and to God…the things that belong to Him… (Matt.22:21)
24 Oct 2012
by randyobrien50
in Inspirational Living
Tags: abundant life, blessed Christians, confidence, encouragement, enjoy life, enthusiasm, everlasting life, faith, false doctrine, false liberty, false teachers, fight for our faith, flaunt God's will, God's faithfulness, God's Sovereignty, immorality, passion, run the race of glory, salvation, sinister purposes
Jude 3. Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered to the saints.
A most passionate and joyful ‘top o’ the morn’ to all you faithful Friends and believers out there in Scrip-Bit Land! Yuh know that we Christians are the luckiest people in the entire world? Of course! That’s because we have an all-powerful God, who LOVES and cares for us and enriches us with new blessings everyday! And all God’s people sent a rousing ‘Praise the Lord!’ up to heaven. However my people, all the mercy, LOVE, blessings, forgiveness, compassion etc. are of no use unless we enjoy the earthly life that’s set before us, the race we were put here to run. Remember Jesus said that He came that we might have an abundant life. (John 10:10) So what’s the purpose of having abundance if you’re not enjoying it eh? None whatsoever my brethren! And I want to share an appropriate quote from the renowned German Reformed Theologian, Jurgen Moltman (1926-) which declares: ‘The more passionately we LOVE life, the more intensely we experience the joy of life.’ And that’s an undeniable truth Friends! When we choose to live life on its own terms, rather than our short-sighted, selfish ones, we experience and enthusiasm and passion that’s incomparable. Then we can enjoy the highs and lows of life without too much worry or anxiety, knowing that both are essential parts of life, and that the lows are only temporary setbacks. And if you’re a practicing Christian, then you can appreciate that fact even more, because we have the promise of our omnipotent, faithful God that He will work everything out for our good, and never leave nor forsake us, if we stick close to Him. We certainly can’t ask for more encouragement and confidence than that! However Friends, too many of us believers are still going around sad, despondent and worried, like ‘poor me ones’ without home or a future. Oh my people, Christians ought to be enthusiastic and passionate about life! In fact the MOST enthusiastic and passionate people on the face of God’s great earth should be Christians, since we have Jesus, our Lord and Saviour providing salvation, the Holy Spirit dwelling within us as a help-meet here on earth, and the Father to whom we’ve been reconciled through Jesus’ precious blood, thus forgiven and looking forward to everlasting life with the Holy Triumvirate. Now if that doesn’t make us ecstatic, causing us to just jump and shout it out loud, I don’t know what will. Oh fellow believers, I am trying to encourage us to be more enthusiastic and passionate about life in general and our faith in particular. But unfortunately, I suspect that my words are falling on deaf ears, because deep down we still don’t truly believe what we should. We hear it, and think we believe it, but putting it into serious action is another story, because we’re still running scared of the big, bad world and all its evil. And when we turn to our Bit, we find Jude also encouraging us to stand up passionately and earnestly for our wonderful, exceptional FAITH in Christ Jesus. ‘Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once (for all time) delivered to the saints.’ Now yesterday we promised to find out why Jude wrote that missive to his friends and fellow believers. And he clearly spells it out in the verse after our Bit: ‘For there are certain men crept in unawares (unnoticed), who were before of old ordained to (long ago marked out for) this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness (licentiousness), and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.’ (Jude 4) Ah mih people, that was a sad fact back then, and it’s an even bigger and sadder one today! But let’s hear the scholar’s opinion on that verse before we go any further. ‘Before of old ordained is probably not speaking of predestination in the sense of God deciding in advance that he would condemn these men and so seeing to it that they sinned. Rather Jude recognizes that Scripture often predicts the demise and judgement of any who flaunt God’s will. The men in question are wrongly assuming that grace means “no moral laws.” They thus effectively deny the sovereignty and eternal moral lordship of both the Father and the Son.’ And unfortunately Friends, today’s world is sadly beset with those false teachers and preachers, who unnoticed, are deceptively infiltrating Christ’s church and teaching stuff that’s not gospel truth. In this instance, they’re taking the liberty afforded us by the grace of God to cause His people to sin, to ignore His dictates, claiming or insinuating that it’s okay to go further than is really true. Yes my people, in this supposed modern and enlightened age, there are numerous people, groups, cults etc. who are going around spreading either completely false doctrine, or doctrine with a convenient spin on it to make it profitable for their own evil, sinister purposes. That’s why it’s so important for us to constantly talk, to communicate with each other about the TRUTH OF OUR FAITH. Without that constant communication, we’ll be left wide open for all sorts of false people and false info to invade our souls. And that’s definitely an unwelcome position. More on this tomorrow, if the Good Lord sees fit. Till then, please, let’s diligently LOVE our God, LIVE our Faith, and SPREAD His Word. Much LOVE!…believers beware…for evil doesn’t only lurk in dark corners…but also in wide open, bright places…and comes in all sorts of guises…like wolves in sheep’s clothing…
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