Matthew 22:21. They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.
Oh Friends, hear this eternal truth nuh, on this second Monday morning of Easter, from one of my favourite songs which I heard yesterday. It says: ‘The anchor holds, though my ship is battered. The anchor holds, though my sails are torn. I’m down on my knees, although I face the raging sea. And yet the anchor holds, in spite of the storm.’ Oh my people, when Jesus is the anchor of our lives, though we are battered and torn, we can still stand strong, even down on our knees, because Jesus has us securely anchored in His LOVE, mercy, forgiveness, compassion and strength. And all God’s children gave a mighty shout of joy: ‘Glory Hallelujah! All strength and power and majesty belong to our risen Lord and Saviour, Jesus!’ So my brethren, even though you don’t feel like getting up and going to work this Monday morning, please remember that Jesus is still with you in that storm of tiredness, laziness, or just plain uninterested and unmotivated mood. And if we turn to Him in sincere faith, then He will indeed anchor us, keep us steadfast and strong while we go through those storms, and help us safely work our way back to shore. Now let’s use our motivational tool, our Monday Morning Battle Hymn to get our motors running. As one loud, sweet, harmonious voice now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together. We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies. But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle. Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’ Awright mih people! That was great! The Lord even gave Jesus a high-five for it, and the heavenly hosts cried out for an encore! Wow! We certainly look like we’re in a battling mood this Monday morning. So let’s get out there into the evil world and battle for Jesus, but also be careful to do what He advises in our Bit. ‘They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render (pay) therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.’ And today we’ll look at some scriptures dealing with the last part; ‘and give unto God the things that are God’s,’ focussing on the writings of Bruh Paul. We’ll begin with when the Corinthians were arguing amongst themselves as to whom they belonged; Bruh Paul, Apollos or Cephas, because they all had a hand in their teaching. Bruh Paul pulls them up, by telling them that Jesus is the only foundation. ‘For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.’ (1 Cor.3:11) Then he gets more explicit. ‘Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?’ (I Cor.3:16) The temple here does not mean the individual believers, but the local church. ‘Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours; Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come: all are yours. And ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.’ (1 Cor.3:21-23) Hear the scholars: ‘For all things are yours: The one who belongs to Christ is a child of God, and his Father will do anything for him. The absurdity of their division over allegiances to any of these men is that God gave them “all” to the Corinthians.’ That means we belong to no one else but God. Unfortunately though, today there are still many who seem to hold allegiance to men in the church rather than to God, thus another reason for the disunity of the church. Meanwhile, in chapter 6, Bruh Paul berates them. ‘What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.’ (1 Cor.6:19-20) This time he’s telling them that their bodies are also temples of God, bought and paid for by the sacrificial blood of Christ on Calvary’s cross, and that fact should be of supreme importance to all men. Then in chapter 12, he puts it all together. ‘Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular (individually).’ (1 Cor.12:27) The scholars have this interesting explanation. ‘The church in the New Testament is called the “body of Christ,” and reflects the spiritual organism of the whole church on earth. When the local church is called the body of Christ, the spiritual aspect is emphasized. Illustration: As the church is considered to be the body, so individual members are seen as parts of the body. For any church to function properly, every member must do his or her part in a harmonious spirit of cooperation with the other members. Had the church at Corinth learned that lesson, many of their problems could have been solved. Application: When Christians disrupt the harmony of a church, they bring reproach on the body of Christ. (Matt.16:18; 1 Cor.12:27).’ Sadly Friends, all the negativity of the Corinthians back then, still applies to the modern church, thus making it very difficult for the body of Christ to move ahead and prosper. And finally, in pleading for separation from unbelievers, Bruh Paul tells the Corinthians in his second missive. ‘And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.’ (2 Cor.6:16) Yes Friends, though everything technically belongs to God, His biggest concerns are His earthly temples; the body of the church, and the bodies of the individuals who make up that church. So please, let’s not defile either, but offer them up with praise, sacrifice and thanksgiving, as becomes true followers of Christ. That’s wisdom for the ages. Much LOVE!… honouring God…is more important than honouring men…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 April 2013 Matthew 22:21
08 Apr 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: aura of love, body of Christ, church harmony, compassion, confidence, Creator of the universe, disunity of churches, enthusiasm, eternal truth, forgiveness, glorious kingdom, glory hallelujah, God's children, holy spirit, humble servants, Jesus Christ, jobs, LOVE, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, praise, raging sea, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, risen Lord, sacrifice, saviour jesus, steadfast faith, storms, temple of God, thanksgiving, the anchor holds, the things of Caesar, the things of God
Today’s Scrip-Bit 5 April 2013 Matthew
05 Apr 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: abominable sins, blind, Christian faith, cleanse our souls, Cross of Calvary, egotistical, Friday chant, glorious kingdom, Herodians, human-rights, hypocrites, incriminating questions, insincerity, jesus name, LOVE, loving god, miserable, Pharisees, proper perspective, religion, right perspective, spiritual failure, steeped in tradition, tempt, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the things of Caesar, the things of God, theology, undeniable truth, unfulfilled lives, weekend
Matthew 22:21. They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.
And then it was Friday! That recognition was greeted with joyous shouts in work places all over the world: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ Yes Friends, the weekend’s upon us once again, granting us a short respite from our labours. And I know how we all look forward to it, but as everything else, there’s a right and wrong way to spend it. So let’s chant our Friday Chant that helps us to put the weekend into proper perspective. All together now: ‘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 that should hold and guide us for the next couple days. (smile) So let’s turn to our Bit, another interesting one – sorry, all of them are interesting since they come from the Good Book – (smile). This one features a serious principle espoused by our Lord, Saviour and Leader, Jesus Christ. ‘They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render (pay) therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.’ Oh Friends, I chose, or rather the Lord guided me to this Bit today, because it’s related to the tithing situation we’ve been discussing over the last few days. It was even our footnote, thought for the day, yesterday. Now here’s some background on the scene as it was played out. As usual, the Pharisees were trying to entrap Jesus, so that they could have solid grounds to persecute Him. ‘And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men. Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful (permitted) to give tribute (pay taxes) unto Caesar, or not? But Jesus perceived (knew) their wickedness, and said, Why tempt (test) ye me, ye hypocrites? Show me the tribute (tax) money. And they brought unto him a penny (Gr. denarius). And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription (inscription)?’ (Matt.22:16-20) Then Jesus delivered the coup de grace, which is our Bit. And the Good Book continues: ‘When they had heard these words, they marvelled (were amazed), and left him, and went their way.’ (Matt.22:22) Oh Friends, as the saying goes; there’s none so blind, as they who refuse to see. That applies to many of us in these current times, as well as the Pharisees and other groups who tried to get Jesus to incriminate Himself during the three years of His earthly ministry. They were too dimwitted, egotistical and steeped in the traditions of men to see that every time they posed an incriminating question, His answer was always astute and impeccable. Unfortunately, many of us today behave the same way; we allow the traditions of men, rather than the true principles of God to run our lives. That’s why so many of us lead such miserable and unfulfilled lives, and sadly don’t understand why. Anyway, here’s some historical background and further explanations from the scholars’. ‘The Herodians were a party that favoured the dynasty of Herod and stood for the Roman connection. They cared little or nothing for religion and normally were bitterly opposed to the Pharisees. The statements recorded in verse 16 are insincere and intended as hypocritical flattery. Their question was intended to place the Lord in a dilemma. If he says yes, He can be held up to the people as a traitor. If He says no, He can be denounced to the Roman authorities. Caesar was the Roman Emperor and head of the Roman state. Caesar was the family name of Julius Caesar, the first man who aspired to autocracy (absolute government, controlling influence). The name was taken over from him by his adopted son Octavian, afterward titled the Emperor Augustus. Render therefore unto Caesar: The Lord means that we are to give the civil magistrates all that is due to them, as long as it does not interfere with the honour due to God. Jesus had broken the Herodians dilemma by making light of the ultimate significance of Caesar’s claim. The idea is: “If the penny is his, let him have it.” Jesus’ response, render unto God the things that are God’s, exposed the spiritual failure of the Herodians. In essence, Jesus made light of Caesar’s temporal claim in favour of God’s greater claim over men’s lives.’ And that’s the undeniable truth my Friends! Therefore all of us should also embrace that same distinction, for it’s God who created us, in His own image to boot, not sinful, fallible, short-lived man. And we’ll stop there for today. It’s enough for us to contemplate, what with our short attention spans and busy schedules. (smile) Tomorrow though, God willing, we’ll continue with giving to man what belongs to him, and to God what’s His. It’s a major principle in our Christian faith, and there are lots more scriptures concerning it, to be looked at. Till then, please, let’s all try and walk worthy of our most awesome and LOVING God. And may He bless and keep us safely as we do our earthly pilgrimage, allowing His shining countenance to light on us, and give us His wonderful peace that passes all human understanding. We pray this in Jesus’ Holy Name, and His sacrificial blood that was spilled on the cross at Calvary to pay for our abominable sins and cleanse our unworthy souls. Amen. Much LOVE my fellow followers of Christ!…though everything belongs to God…He’s ordained that some things will be looked on as belonging to earthly rulers… and true believers should acknowledge them as such…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 4 April 2013 Malachi 3:10
04 Apr 2013 Leave a comment
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)
Today’s Scrip-Bit 1 April 2013 John 21:21
01 Apr 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: April Fool's day, celebration, confidence, confusion, Creator, criticism, dissensions, divisons, drunk or sober, Easter Monday, enthusiasm, faith, glorious kingdom, humble servants, Jesus Christ, jobs, LOVE, LOVE Revolution, mind your business, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, obedience, our Saviour, rejuvenation of spirit, religion, renewed vitality, spiritual armour, spirituality, TGIM, Thank God is Monday., thanks and praise, times of celebration, walking God's path, weary souls
John 21:21. Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do?
Today’s Scrip-Bit 30 March 2013 John 1:29
30 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: 20/20 vision, atonement, blood sacrifice, celebration, easter morning, Easter Sunday, foolish, Garden of Eden, glory, glory hallelujah, good cheer, Good Friday, grace, grateful, gratefulness, gullible, happiness, Holy Saturday, holy spirit, Jesus Christ, joy, joyful, lamb of god, LOVE, moderation, most significant event, Oh Happy Day, outward circumstances, rebellious, rejoice, Revelation, taking away sins, thankful, the Lamb of God, tribulation, true believer
John 1:29. The next day John (the Baptist) seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
Oh Friends, it’s Holy Saturday, and Jesus is resting quietly in the tomb of the rich man, after being crucified between the two thieves to fulfill the scripture: ‘And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death…’ (Is.53:9a) He’s storing up His energy, so that bright and early tomorrow morning, Easter Sunday, He can rise up in full force and defeat those wicked and cruel, but oh so inferior enemies; Lucifer, death and the grave. And all of God’s people gave a mighty shout of ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ Now Friends, I believe some of you might have taken umbrage (smile) at my wishing us all yesterday a happy Good Friday, wondering what could be so happy about a day of such cruelty and injustice. Granted it was a real sad day for those early Christians who didn’t understand what was happening. But for us, who luckily have the understanding from two thousand years of church history, it is somewhat different. For though we don’t, or didn’t want Jesus to die, please understand that without His death on Good Friday, there would have been no Easter morning for you to celebrate and be happy. When only happy circumstances make us emotionally happy, then we’re thinking like the world. But my brethren, for a true believer it’s not only our worldly circumstances that can make us happy. And the happiness – possibly happiness is the wrong word, since it denotes more of a reaction to outward circumstances. A more appropriate word might be joy, that constant levity in our souls, regardless of our outward circumstances. Even gratefulness or thankfulness might be more appropriate to the situation, for we’re not talking about a jumping up and down type of moment, but a deeper, more controlled emotion, whereby Jesus died to set us free from our ghastly sins. And if that isn’t something to be enormously grateful, thankful and joyful for, then I certainly don’t know what is! Why? Because it’s the most significant event in man’s history after God created us, but then was forced to kick our foolish, gullible and rebellious fore parents out of paradise in the Garden of Eden. And unfortunately, since then, that bequeathed foolish, gullible and rebellious streak in us has been uppermost in our history. And until Jesus came, there was very little opportunity to turn it around, even if we felt so inclined. And our Bit perfectly describes the whole enchilada. ‘The next day John (the Baptist) seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.’ The reference to the lamb there, brings into play the sacrificial lambs slaughtered for Passover and other Jewish feasts. The scholars add that ‘Some suggest that this may allude to the scapegoat (Lev.16), or to the suffering servant (Is.53:7) We dealt with that yesterday. I guess it could actually refer to all of them, for remember the Lord required blood sacrifices of His chosen people, Israel, as some form of payment, atonement for their sins. But here now, comes Jesus, the Son of God, the sinless one, to pay the rather steep price of sin for the entire world. Now isn’t that a genuine reason to be much more than saddened at His death? Why do you think it’s called Good Friday? Because it’s the day on which the best thing since creation ever happened to man! All his evil deeds have been paid for; from the beginning of time, right through to eternity. It was certainly done in a most cruel manner, but the reason behind it was the greatest token of true LOVE ever expressed! And in our 3 hour service yesterday afternoon, what do you think the youth group sang? ‘Oh Happy Day! When Jesus washed…When Jesus washed… He washed all my sins away.’ Remember also what Jesus told His disciples in the last days: ‘In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33b) So where is that good cheer eh Friends? It’s supposed to be our constant companion, like the Holy Spirit. And remember too that Bruh Paul instructs us to ‘Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.’ (Phil.4:4-5) Not only is Jesus’ return imminent, but also His Spirit is always close by, thus we shouldn’t be afraid and anxious abut anything. Anyway Friends, I’m getting away from my original intention, to get into some scriptures that highlight Jesus’ basic purpose here on earth; to atone for the sins of the world. It begins with Isaiah’s prophecy of the suffering servant in chapter 53:11, that we quoted yesterday, which ends: ‘for he shall bear their iniquities.’ Then it advances to our Bit, and the actual act of sin payment, when Jesus declares on the cross: ‘It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.’ (John 19:30) Bruh Paul then takes up the baton and runs with it full speed, first telling the Corinthians: ‘For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures.’ (1 Cor.15:3) Then he informs the Galatians: ‘Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ. Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world (age), according to the will of God and our Father. To whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.’ (Gal.1:3-5) Next up is Peter, who declares: ‘Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we being dead to sins should live unto righteousness: By whose stripes ye were healed.’ (1 Pet.2:24) John then announces in his first epistle: ‘My little children, these things I write unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate 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 finally, John ends the race on a winning note in Revelation, when he greets the seven churches in Asia. ‘And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten (born) of the dead; and the prince of (ruler over) the kings of the earth. Unto him that LOVED us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood.’ (Rev.1:5) And all God’s people gave out a mighty and joyful shout up to heaven: ‘Oh Thank You sweet Jesus! We LOVE and adore You!’ Oh Friends, with all that scripture shoring up the strong foundation of the purpose of Christ’s death, how could we ever argue with it eh? No way Jose! And again I want to remind us in Bruh David’s famous and fateful words, that though ‘weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.’ (Ps.30:5b) And believe me my brethren, tomorrow morning will indeed be a most joyous morning! Just wait and see. Much LOVE!…though reality may cloud our sight with sadness…looking through the eyes of faith…gives us a 20/20 vision of joy…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 March 2013 Isaiah 51:12
24 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: asap, bitterness, blessed day, disastrous pit, drought, earthly hell, faith, faithful prayer, famine, fleshly lust, forces of destruction, glorification, great deeds, great LOVE, heavenly Father, joblessness, LOVE, loving kindness, negative forces, no time to lose, noble emotion, poverty, praise, resentment, rule the roost, rumours of wars, Saint of the Little Flower, sickness, sincere repentance, son jesus christ, spiritual rebirth, spirituality, St. Therese, strife, The Lord who comforts, trust, wars, workers of iniquity, worship
Isaiah 51:12. I, even I, am he that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as grass.
Oh Friends, isn’t it most excellent to see another blessed day on God’s wonderful earth? It certainly is! So let’s all take a deep breath, hold it for a moment, then slowly let it out, while simultaneously contemplating the miracle of life that exists in us, and the goodness of God that enables us to keep on breathing minute after minute, day by day. And having done that, and realizing what rich and exquisite gifts the Lord has bestowed on us, both through ordinary physical life and spiritual rebirth, reconciliation through His Son Jesus Christ, all His earth bound children declared a heartfelt: ‘Thank You Lord! We LOVE You and praise Your Holy Name! We know that it’s nothing we’ve done, but Your monumental, unconditional LOVE for us that causes You to continue looking upon us with such awesome and amazing LOVING-kindness. We faithfully pray that our wonderful LOVE relationship will continue forever, throughout eternity. In Jesus Name. Amen.’ Yes Friends, what a great LOVE our heavenly Father bears towards us, and consequently desires us to bear to each other. No wonder St. Therese of Liseux, the Saint of the Little Flower, emphasized in her short, rough but productive earthly sojourn, that ‘What matters in life, is not great deeds, but great LOVE.’ And if that isn’t an undeniable truth, then I don’t know what is! Sadly though, of all the emotions, that noble emotion of LOVE, which we need the most, is what we have the least of. Granted, the word is constantly bandied about, but there’s no true substance to it. It’s used mostly in a worldly, carnal manner, oftimes as a synonym for fleshly lust. But when coming to true LOVE for God, and true LOVE for our fellow man, our world is sadly lacking. True LOVE for God doesn’t mean continually disparaging Him and removing Him from our society. And true LOVE for our neighbours certainly doesn’t mean the worldwide strife, resentment, bitterness and other stressful emotions that currently dominate our days and nights. And unfortunately my people, without real LOVE, we’re just spinning our wobbly wheels in self-destruct mode. That’s because the negative emotions opposed to LOVE aren’t conducive to building or creating, but are all forces of destruction. And if we keep letting those negative forces rule the roost, then we’ll just keep going the way we are now…falling, falling, falling into the disastrous pit of an earthly hell. It doesn’t take a genius to see that my brethren. But it does take a wise, considerate and LOVING human being to want to do something to stop the carnage, the ever-quickening downward trend. And as I keep reminding us, it’s only the true believers who are capable of catching the reins of this runaway horse and carriage we call modern-day life and bringing it to a halt and then reversing its sordid direction to that which leads to sincere repentance, praise worship, glorification and LOVE for our Creator, Jehovah God. Ah mih people, unless this reversal of directions happens, and happens soon too, we’ll all end up in dire circumstances. The terrible plight of our world is there for all to see; what with the tough and getting tougher economic situations creating worldwide joblessness, the immense poverty, sickness, homelessness, famine, drought, climate change and all the other negatives now consuming us. None of that speaks of real LOVE, especially when there’s more than enough of everything to go around. And we haven’t even mentioned the numerous social uprisings, the wars and rumours of wars that are concurrently taking place alongside all the other disastrous situations. Oh Friends, what a mess we’ve made of God’s wonderful creation! And it all stems from a sad lack of LOVE. The unfortunate thing about LOVE though, is that it takes time to build, because it needs trust and faith, things that cannot be had instantly. Meanwhile, hate, anger and strife can be raised up immediately and produce immense destruction at the proverbial drop of a hat. Anyway my fellow believers, the moral of the story, the purpose of this epistle (smile) is to have us wake up and realize that it’s imperative we get the ball of LOVE rolling as quickly as possible. There’s absolutely no time to lose, since Lucifer and his wicked cronies already have a substantial head start on us. That means we have lots of ground to make up, before we can even think of forging ahead of the evildoers. So please, if we seriously and sincerely LOVE Jesus and want to please Him, want to help build His glorious kingdom, then let’s get it together nuh. Let’s cut out all the pussyfooting and blah blah blah, and get some real action going. We can’t allow the immense sacrifice of Christ’s sinless life on Calvary’s cross to be wasted, to go for naught under the evil onslaught, because we’re too comfortable, lazy and/or afraid. Remember Bruh Paul’s strong assurance to Timothy: ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound mind.’ (2 Tim.1:7) Therefore, as true believers, we ought to come out swinging, giving no quarter to the workers of iniquity in this LOVE Revolution, if we want to see a return to God and all the things that make for a safe, satisfied, wonderful, godly and righteous life. Now let’s allow our Bit, and the three verses after it, to take us home, so that we can ponder on the truth contained in them, and how our lives reflect that truth. ‘I, even I, am he that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a (mortal) man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as grass; And forgettest the Lord thy maker, that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and hast feared continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready (preparing) to destroy? and where is the fury of the oppressor? The captive exile hasteneth that he may be loosed, and that he should not die in the pit, nor that his bread should fail. But I am the Lord thy God, that divided the sea, whose waves roared: The Lord of hosts is his name.’ (Is.51:12-15) Oh my people, please let’s contemplate today on those harsh words of our mightily displeased God. Yes, He is mightily displeased because we’re doing just like, and even worse than the Israelites of old, to whom Isaiah directed those words. And having pondered them, let’s then rise up and do better. If not for our sakes, then for Jesus and our children’s. It’s the wisdom of the ages. Much LOVE!…he who has ears to hear…let him hear…otherwise he’ll surely feel the wrath of God…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 22 March 2013 1 John 4:2
22 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: anathema, christianity, confess Jesus Christ, confession, dumb idols, faith in Christ, fellowship, Friday chant, frolic, fun, God's glorious kingdom, God's Word, grace of God, human emotion, in the flesh, Jesus Christ, joy, LOVE, pagan worship, perfect harmony, real flesh and blood, relaxation, rest, righteousness., salvation, speaking in tongues, Spirit of God, spiritual gifts, spring, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, traffic jams, week of work, weekend, weekend gig
1 John 4:2. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God.
Oh brothers and sisters in Christ, it’s Friday… And all around the world, joyous shouts rise up to heaven: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday and labouring finish for another week yes!’ Well not quite mih breddren, because we still have to labour today Friday, but just the idea, the expectation of not having to face the evil, ungodly people we work with, the traffic jams and snowy, icy roads for a couple days raises the human emotion of joy to a higher level. And on that point, I looked outside just now and saw my driveway covered in snow. Hn! I thought this was supposed to be spring. But spring obviously hasn’t sprung as yet, because the banks of the roads are still snow covered, and instead of rain we’re getting flurries of the white stuff. In my area though we still need to be very thankful because we haven’t gotten as much snow as many other places. But back to our weekend gig. Just a reminder that it’s not all for fun and frolic. So let’s chant our Friday Chant that brings the whole situation into its proper perspective. All together now: ‘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.’ Yes my people, it’s all about resting up and fellowshipping so we can go back out next week and continue the battle in Jesus’ Name. Now let’s turn to our Bit: ‘Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God.’ A most interesting Bit that my people! And we’ll continue from yesterday, where we saw that there are many false prophets and spirits trying to gain control of our lives, but there’s ONLY ONE, that’s truly worthwhile, that of Jesus Christ. And John told us that the easiest and best way to know whether there’s truth in a spirit or doctrine is if Christ is spoken of as being real flesh and blood, during His earthly sojourn. We also saw where Jesus declares that a lot of those claiming to be His followers will be turned away at the end time because they only had outward facades of Christianity, while their hearts were truly tuned into the frequency of Beelzebub. So Friends, a reminder that we have to be very particular of whom and what we let into our lives and our souls. Bruh Paul, in talking to the Corinthians about spiritual gifts, had this to say on the subject. ‘Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb (silent) idols, even as ye were led. Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed (anathema): and that no man can say that Jesus is Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.’ (1 Cor.12:2-3) Yes my brethren, if the Spirit of God is truly in us, we can’t speak badly of Jesus, and the only way we can acknowledge Him as Lord and Saviour is through the Holy Spirit. Now here’s some info from the scholars re the ‘Dumb idols: The pagan worship at Corinth involved a pagan exercise of “tongues.” The practice of “ecstatic utterances” was common in the cults and in the worship of various Greek gods and goddesses.’ I guess this could have an impact or caused some confusion between the idol worship and the Christian speaking in tongues, with the possibility of the idolaters using it to influence early Christians. Anyway, turning to Bruh Paul and the Romans. In speaking of righteousness being obtained by faith in Christ, he declares: ‘But what saith it? The word is nigh (near) thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart; that is the word of faith, which we preach; That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed (put to shame).’ (Rom.10:8-11) And here’s an important note from the scholars on the last two verses. ‘Confession is made unto salvation: One is not saved by his mouth’s confession, but rather, the mouth testifies readily of the grace of God in Christ, which has been received by faith.’ That means salvation is much more than just confessing Jesus with our mouths. Our hearts, faith and the grace of God, all joined in perfect harmony, are necessary to be saved. Now that’s enough info for us to process today Friends, so we’ll end on that note. Tomorrow we’ll pick up the topic again, the Lord in favour, for there’s more scripture to be highlighted on this most important subject of divining the true Spirit of Christ. Till tomorrow then, please walk safely in fellowship with Almighty God and man. And may the Lord bless us and give us His awesome peace which passes all human understanding. Much LOVE!…it’s time for all believers to step up and sincerely…LOVE Our God…LIVE Our Faith…and SPREAD His Word…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 19 March 2013 2 Peter 2:8
19 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: afflictions, belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, broken heart, christianity, condemned, crushed spirit, ever-LOVING God, God's will, good over evil, gospel truth, helmet of salvation, Jesus, judgement day, LOVE, neck of the woods, new mercies, punishment, rainy morning, sandals of peace, shield of faith, shout of joy, showers of blessings, snowy night, solid protection, spiritual armour, strength of God, sword of the Spirit, temptation, The Lord our Redeemer, the Tribulation
2 Peter 2:8. The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptation, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgement to be punished.
Today’s Scrip-Bit 16 March 2013 Jeremiah 4:1
16 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living Tags: abominations, beginning of sorrows, betrayals, christianity, crime, disregard for law, earthquakes, fallow ground, false prophets, fire, glorious opportunity, hardhearted people, heart, impending disaster, justice, lack of trust, lawlessness, LOVE, naive souls, outward conformity, pestilence, religious ceremony, repentance, return to God, righteousness., rumours of war, spiritual fruitfulness, spiritual vitality, tribulation, violence, war
Jeremiah 4:1. If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the Lord, return unto me; and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not remove (be shaken or removed).
Oh Friends, the ole fella’s shaking it a tad rough this Saturday morning, suffering from insufficient sleep; too many extra curricular activities. (smile) But like the mail, the Bit must go out. And with God’s help, it will. And all believers declared a loud and thankful, ‘Praise the Lord!’ But Friends, do you realize that it’s already the middle of March? The month will be soon be over, though it feels like it’s just begun. Whether the days are truly flying faster, or it’s just our imagination, our perception, we certainly don’t have time to waste on frivolous, unimportant activities, for the signs of impending disaster are all around us. As Jesus calls them; ‘the beginning of sorrows.’ (Matt.24:8) It’s not the end yet, but more like the beginning of the end, with the fulfillment of all the signs He warned us about: false prophets, wars and rumours of wars, nation against nation, pestilence, and earthquakes in various places. (Matt.24:5-7) That means we believers have to get ourselves truly together, as soon as possible, and come out fighting the evil that has contaminated and taken over our world. Consequently, there’s no time to lose in responding positively to our Bit. ‘If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the Lord, return unto me; and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not remove (be shaken or removed).’ Oh my people, the Lord offered that glorious opportunity to Israel to repent and come back to Him long ago, and He’s offering us that same opportunity today. Instead of removing Him from our schools, public places and homes, we need to be putting Him back there and thus getting more acquainted with Him. And it seems likely, from the sign of the times, that we may not have another opportunity to accept that most wonderful and generous offer. Now how do we show acceptance of that offer? Jeremiah enlightens us: ‘And thou shalt swear, The Lord liveth, in truth, in judgement (justice), and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory. For thus saith the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow (untilled) ground, and sow not among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.’ (Jer.4:2-4) Now let’s hear the scholars’ opinion on all that. ‘These verses conclude the message begun at 3:6 (Israel and Judah entreated to repent) by using literary figures drawn from Israel’s daily experiences. From agriculture comes the admonition to weed out totally their present practices and break up their fallow ground, and then sow the new seeds of spiritual fruitfulness for God. Repentance and a broken heart must precede renewed spiritual vitality. The second figure comes from religious ceremony. Mere outward conformity to the standards of the covenant were insufficient. (cf. Gen.17:10-14; Deut. 10:16, 30:6; Josh.5:2-7; Rom. 2:28-29; 4:9-25)’ Please check out those scriptures my people, so we can get a better understanding of the matter. But yuh know Friends, unfortunately, all the foregoing definitely applies to our current society! We have to be truly serious about God and do the things necessary to return to Him, not pay mere lip service and conform outwardly. And believe me, our doings these days are truly, truly evil, though we try to gloss it over and give the impression that everything’s hunky dory. But Friends, judging from what Jesus said about the signs of the end, it is not! Not by a long stretch of the imagination! ‘Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted (tribulation), and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity (lawlessness) shall abound, the LOVE of many shall wax (grow) cold.’ (Matt.24:9-12) Oh my brethren, all those things are happening today in ever greater numbers. Trials and tribulations of Christians are rampant all over the world. Betrayals, lack of trust and hatred have taken on new dimensions. False prophets are out there too in ever increasing numbers, deceiving many, unwary, naive souls. And don’t even talk about lawlessness, because it’s increasing by leaps and bounds everyday in our supposed lawful society! The growing crime, violence, disregard for the law and resultant fear is shaking our society to its very roots. And LOVE… what is that eh? The true emotion no longer exists, just like Jesus said. We’re now such a cold, and hardhearted people that we see can see our neighbours suffering dire want, but we can calmly turn our heads and walk away, pass by on the other side without a qualm, just like the religious hypocrites in the Good Samaritan story. But that’s not right Friends. It’s also not the way of Jesus, not the Christian way. However, fortunately, and thankfully, there is a way to counter most of this negativity. For while there is life, there’s always hope, hope in Almighty God. But we have to do as Jeremiah says in our Bit, and also as Joel advises. ‘Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning. And rend (tear) your heart, and not your garments, and turn (return) unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great (LOVING-) kindness, and repenteth him of the evil (relents from doing harm).’ (Joel 2:12-13) Yes my brethren, it is possible to do some worthwhile reclamation, if we repent of our wicked, sinful ways and sincerely return to serving and worshipping the ONE TRUE GOD, He of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But it has to be soon, and also on a fairly worldwide basis, or else, further disaster will continue striking us. And that’s certainly not a nice scenario to envision. So Friends, let’s wake up and see the fire, smell the smoke and rotting carcases and get a serious push on Jesus’ agenda, the LOVE Revolution, ASAP. Much LOVE!…as they say…a word to the wise…is sufficient…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 14 March 2013 Matthew 12:33
14 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a tree is known by its fruit, abundance of the heart, astute observation, bad fruit, basic logic, bitter water, church unity, condemned, controversies, divided church, divisions, evil treasure, fresh water, good fruit, good treasure, idle words, justified, laws of nature, LOVE, new blessings, new mercies, new Pope, peace, religion, roman catholic church, salt water, spirituality, strife, sweet water, tension, theology, true brotherhood, unsavoury goings on, what defiles, wisdom
Matthew 12:33. Either make the tree good, and his fruit good, or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is know by his fruit.
Oh Friends, it’s another new today! Please, let’s use it wisely and fruitfully. And all God’s children joyfully declared: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’ Yes my brethren, that’s why the Lord insists on giving us new mercies, manna and blessings every day, so that we can start each one afresh on a new foot, in praise, thanksgiving and rejoicing in His Holy Name. And I guess the most noteworthy news today is the announcement of a new Pope, a new leader of the Roman Catholic Church, who took the papal name of Francis. It also brings up a couple of firsts; the first South American Pope, as well as the first Papal Leader of Argentinean descent. He seems to be an honourable and humble man, but please remember, that though we might be good regional or small town leaders, when we hit the big stage, step up to the world level of leadership, all our problems and constraints are multiplied a thousand fold. So it’s not going to be easy for him to bring unity to a mightily divided church. But let’s all pray nonetheless, that the Lord will enable him to bring some lessening of the strife, tension and divisions that’s currently engulfing His church, due to all the unsavoury goings on and controversies recently exposed, eventually bringing some peace, LOVE and true brotherhood to the legion of followers. That brings us to our Bit; a most interesting statement of Jesus: ‘Either make the tree good, and his fruit good, or else make the tree corrupt (bad), and his fruit corrupt (bad): for the tree is know by his fruit.’ Now that’s an astute observation, if there ever was one! (smile) Jesus was here commenting on the good and the evil that exists within men. And it’s just basic logic that a tree cannot produce both good and bad fruit at the same time. By the laws of nature, it simply has to be one or the other. But just like James asks: ‘Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter? Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.’ (James 3:11-12) That’s why believers should not be blessing and cursing from the same receptacle, our souls. And as Jesus told the multitude, re things that defile: ‘Hear, and understand: Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.’ (Matt.15:10-11) Yes Friends, what we put into ourselves doesn’t defile us, but what comes out certainly does. For as Jesus further enlightens us, and the scribes and Pharisees surrounding Him: ‘O generation (brood or offspring) of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the 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.12:34-37) Oh my people, so much truth is contained in those words, it isn’t funny! In the first place, we usually speak what’s plentiful in our hearts, unless we’re being consciously hypocritical. So as Jesus says, if our hearts are filled with good stuff, then good stuff is what will emanate from our mouths. However, if evil reigns in our hearts, then only evil can come forth from our inner man. And above all Friends, please note that second to last verse, where Jesus warns that we’ll have to answer for every idle word we’ve ever spoken, come the judgement day. That should wake some of us up, who just curse and gossip and spread false stories, because, as He says, we will either be justified or condemned by our own words. Yes my fellow believers, we’ll either stand strong and live by the good words that we utter, or we’ll end up weak and fall by the evil words that proceed from our lips. The choice is ours, my Friends. Each individual has to make that most important choice as to whether he’ll be a propagator of good or evil. No one can do it for us. So please, I encourage and plead with us, today let’s take inventory of what’s truly in our hearts and try and replace any evil we might find there with good, by seriously asking the Lord’s help, so that come judgement time, we won’t have to answer for too many idle and evil words. More on this topic tomorrow, if the Lord so desires. Till then Friends, please, let’s pay close attention to what reigns in our hearts, and thus what titillates our tongues and eventually comes out of our mouths. That’s wisdom at its zenith! Much LOVE!…a single receptacle can only hold one kind of matter at a time…so it’s only wise to fill man’s heart…a single receptacle…with good stuff…
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