The Power of God in Believers to set the World Right!

03 Sep 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hebrews 10:23.        Let us hold fast the profession (confession) of our faith (hope) without wavering; for he who promised is faithful;)

And then it was Tuesday, the day after Labour Day Monday, which means all the partying done for another season, and is only serious business on the mind now. What with all the strife and negative emotions that are currently plaguing our world, it’s about time we got serious and began doing something about it. Oh friends, the negativity and Satanic behaviour in our world are too far flung, widespread and deep for us to just leave them be! 

And if we ever hope to turn things around, we must make a sincere and positive effort, starting right now, to combat them with godly traits like peace, LOVE, justice and equality. We need to get rid of the many sick, power-hungry, exploitative rulers and wannabe rulers, who only want to expand their sphere of power and deepen their own pockets with a dictatorial agenda. That’s the only way our world will ever improve! 

You know, when I was young and reading the history of so many dictators and crazy rulers, I often wondered how they ever came to be. But now in my old age, I’m living the reality of it, seeing how it actually comes about. And how is that eh? Because too many of us go around like lost or doh care sheep, not paying sufficient attention to what’s happening in the world around us, especially in these times when we have the news from all around the world right at our fingertips. 

That’s one of the reasons why dictators are able to arise and thrive; the people don’t take them seriously enough, not realizing the imminent death and withdrawal of many of their God-given rights in the society. We’re too busy seeking after our own small-minded interests to consider the bigger picture, figuring that whatever happens won’t affect us. But that’s a total lie; for whatever happens in a country affects all who live in it! 

Consequently we don’t stand up and fight off the predators the way we ought to. Then, when they get in power and begin restricting our rights and privileges, we make a big outcry about it. But then it’s too late. We should have stopped them in their tracks before they got entrenched in power. And unfortunately that reminds me of a line in the scriptures that talks about Jesus and many of his followers being led like lambs to the slaughter. (Is. 53:7, Rom. 8:36) 

But the truth is that many more than just followers of Christ are being led like lambs to the slaughter under the rule of greedy, power-hungry, Satan- inspired rulers, who are willing to do just about anything to gain the power and other ungodly things they desire. And it’s only when the people know their rights, and are not afraid to stand up strong, to these human predators, that the society can ever progress in a true, just and godly manner. 

And the sad fact is that right now in our strife filled and angry world, there are many rulers who have been able to seize the reins of dictatorial power, and many more wannabe rulers who are doing their best to do the same. It seems like dictatorial times are cyclical; you’ll have several of them for a season, and then it’s followed by  a sort of recession as they gradually die off, because most of the power is embodied in only one man. 

We saw the rise of the dictator in the last part of the 19th century and the early part of the 20th, then they all died off. However, we’re now seeing the rise of another season of autocratic, selfish, greedy and ungodly leaders, to whom human rights and lives don’t mean a thing in themselves, and are only important as they can be used to feed their lust for power and personal aggrandizement. 

Now stopping these human predators is not easy, never was, and never will be, but that doesn’t mean they are unstoppable, just that we have to work extra hard to stop them from rising up, or to topple them after they have attained power. And where do we begin? I believe first of all by receiving Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, then using all the rights and powers we access by His work and that belief to stand strong and fight the greedy powers that be. 

We need to use scriptures like: ‘Let us hold fast the profession (confession) of our faith (hope) without wavering; for he who promised is faithful;) (Heb. 10:23) Yes friends, the first step is to hold on strong to our faith in Jesus, for with Him we can defeat anybody and anything, as the scriptures say: ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.’ (Phil. 4:13) But without Him, we cannot do much of anything. As he says: ‘for without me ye can do nothing.” (John 15:5) 

But to help us in our fight, we also need to put on the spiritual armour of God, as Bruh Paul says in Ephesians. ‘Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles (evil schemes) of the devil.’ (Eph. 6:11) Then there’s this scripture that further admonishes us to stand strong and look to Jesus. ‘Wherefore seeing (since) we also are compassed about with (surrounded by) so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset (ensnare) us, and let us run with patience (perseverance) the race that is set before us, 

Looking unto Jesus, the author (originator) and finisher (perfector) of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction (hostility) of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint (discouraged) in your minds (souls).’ (Heb. 12:1-4) 

Oh my people, that’s the basis for our unending fight; the strength and perseverance of Jesus, who cared not for the hostile opinions and behaviour of others, but concentrated on doing His Father’s work. Likewise, we should be concentrating on doing His work, not letting the opinions or behaviour of the ungodly frighten us into not making a positive, godly difference in the world. 

Remember, ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound (disciplined) mind.’ (2 Tim. 1:7) That means we don’t need to be afraid of the enemy, for we have the power, the Spirit and LOVE of God to resist and rebuke him. Thus we need to do like Bruh Paul told Timothy: ‘Thou therefore endure hardness (hardship), as a good soldier of Christ.’ (2 Tim. 2:3) 

And if we do that, then we’ll be able to say like Bruh Paul did: ‘I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course (race), I have kept the faith.’ (2 Tim. 4:7)  And that’s all the Lord really expects of us; to put up a good fight in His name. Now, for those of us who are trying our best to do just that, let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know whom we belong to, lock, stock and barrel. 

As one 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 having said that, it now behooves us 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 like we do! Much LOVE!

…we can only soldier on successfully…with the power, the armour and Spirit of Christ in us…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit 12 June 2020 Revelation 21:4.

12 Jun 2020 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Revelation 21:4.    And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
 

Welcome to Friday friends; the end of another week filled with much talk about Covid-19 and no seeming relief from its deadly clutches, as well as street protests and demonstrations and confusion and conflict in public places and amongst public servants. And it doesn’t seem as though we’ll get any relief from that soon either. And isn’t it strange and somehow prophetic that both these conditions could rise up worldwide at the same time? 

And I still maintain that the Lord God Almighty, Creator and Ruler of this awesome universe is trying to tell us something significant, but as always we’re refusing to listen, to pay serious attention to His warnings. Remember Jesus’ advice: ‘He who has ears to hear, let him hear.’ And if we refuse to hear, then we’ll feel! There’s no doubt about that. Anyway, be all that as it may, (smile) let’s hear what the ordinary workingman has to say for himself nuh. 

‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! Thank God for the weekend and a couple of days rest from the slave master hard labour and all the confusion in the world! Is it never going to end? Chuh man! They still can’t find no answer for this Coronavirus business and with all the protests and rioting and people gathering in big crowds, ignoring the physical distancing warning, this Covid-19 thing doh look as it going away any time soon nuh. In fact it might just get worse, because we still doh know how to handle it properly, and people still catching it and dying from it all around the world. 

But what is wrong with we eh? And look at how this racism thing just suddenly blow up in we face because of one stupid, well four stupid men eh… Steups! Common sense ought to tell yuh that yuh can’t do them things in front of everybody, especially when everybody have cameras on their cell phones and quick to take pictures of everything. And that just shows the police and them getting too big for them britches, when they could do that sort of thing in broad daylight and blatantly ignore warnings from the people they supposed to be protecting. It so entrenched, and they so accustomed to getting away with it, they doh care no longer. 

But thank the Lord, that every dog have he day, one day one day congotay, and we all going to get we just and rightful comeuppance in time, because time longer than twine. Ah not able nuh. Nobody doh listen to people like me. So ah just going to go home and enjoy mih weekend with mih family and give thanks to God for all I have yes! Can’t do no more than that nuh.’ 

Ah mih people, we all can surely identify with the workingman because most of us don’t have any real say in the crises that are currently surrounding us, and that’s just why the racism thing is rearing its ugly head. The powers that be are so short-sighted that they can’t see that their system of holding down people can’t last forever, and the downtrodden and mistreated will eventually rise up and want what is rightfully theirs. It’s been this way ever since history began; the have’s refusing to share with the have-nots…until they revolt. 

We talk about history repeating itself, but we still don’t pay significant attention to it, otherwise the disturbances in our streets worldwide would not be happening now. But it’s jut a symbol of foolish greed and lust for power, highlighting man’s inhumanity to man. And it doesn’t seem as if it’s ever going to end until Jesus returns with the new heaven and the new earth and sets up His eternal kingdom. ‘And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.’ 

But until then friends, we need to keep up our good work and pray; pray like there’s no tomorrow, for who knows if there’ll be one, or what it will look like!  So let’s cry out to our great and merciful God nuh, let’s chant up a storm; a storm of peace, LOVE and understanding through our Friday Chant. 

All together now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. It’s been pretty rough…some of it from work, as many of us are now back to work in varied ways, but most of our anxiety still comes from all the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus still causing. We not accustomed to that Lord, and it really telling on us. And now, on top of all that, we have riots and protests to put up with. Oh Lord, yuh know we can’t handle it on our own and desperately need Your help. Yes, heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. 

So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks. And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. 

It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’ 

And having said all of that, we must now behave like faithful believers ought to behave in such situations. Christian folks, it’s time for us to rise up and show the world how true believers behave, like Jesus! Much LOVE!

…we can’t just talk the talk…we must also walk that talk…

Today​’s Scrip-Bit 14 March 2019 John 5:24.

14 Mar 2019 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

John 5:24.   ​Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation (judgement); but is passed from death into life.
 
It’s a grey, cloudy looking kind of day in my neighbourhood, with the promise of unwanted precipitation, though thankfully the precipitation will most likely be rain and not snow since the temperature is above freezing. Not much, but enough to bring rain and not the white stuff. 

However, despite all of those physical, negative possibilities, the saints of Jesus are nonetheless declaring (steups! wrong again) that ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’ And moreover, ‘The Lord will provide all our needs through His riches in glory in Christ Jesus!’ 

And they boost their spirits even more with words like ‘I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me! And as for me and my house, we WILL follow the Lord, make no mistake about it!’ That means, ‘If God be for me who can be against me eh? NOBODY!’ Yeh friends, that’s one of the remarkable things of being a follower of Jesus Christ; we can boost our spirits with spoken words, promises that He’s declared over our lives! No other faith can do that! 

And that brings us to these inspirational words attributed to Orison Swett Marden (1848-1924), ‘an American inspirational author who wrote about achieving success in life and founded Success Magazine in 1897.’ Marden claims: ‘The hopeful man sees success where others see failure, sunshine where others see shadows and storm.’ 

He’s talking about us there friends, believers in the positive philosophy and promises of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! All thanks and praise be to our Lord and Saviour for the wonderful and abundant life that He died to give us! We now need to hold on to His promises, and His hand tightly and let Him guide us safely and positively through these trying times in this evil and ungodly world! That’s the only way we will ever be successful my people! 

Jesus warned early on: ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation (judgement); but is passed from death into life.’ Yes friends, Jesus is the ONLY WAY to achieve life after death! When we believe in Him and the Father who sent Him then our bodies will die, but our spirits wont. They shall reign forever with the heavenly Triune! 

And Jesus confirms it all by saying: ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.’ (John 14:6) And we know He does not lie! So it only makes mucho sense to hitch our carts to His superior horse! And if you want even more encouragement, then check out these fabulous, though hard to put into action words of Jesus. ‘These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) 

Aren’t those wonderful words friends…and words of truth too? They certainly are! Jesus did His part, but now we have to do ours, by using our faith in Him to stand strong and steadfast when Satan and his evil cronies are fighting us tooth and nail for world control. We are the only ones who are fighting on the basis of LOVE, justice and equality, the rest are all infused with greed, lust for power and selfishness! 

And from where do we get that fighting spirit for the good things? From possibly the most important words in the Good Book; Jesus’ immortal declaration: ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.’ (John 3:16-17) 

There you have it in black and white my fellow believers; Jesus’ purpose for coming to earth…to save us, from ourselves and from the horrors of sin! So the ongoing logic and reasoning are very simple: If you want to be saved and live an everlasting life, then you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. If you don’t want to live and see life eternal, but prefer to be on the outside looking in with the evil one, then you simply continue in your evil ways and don’t accept Jesus. 

Those are the only two options we have my brethren! And believe me, the last option might look good and pleasurable in the here and now, but in the hereafter it will be terrible! The Lord promised it, and we know He doesn’t make idle promises! So please, I implore us to take the first option; wisdom dictates it. It might be somewhat difficult now, but the rewards you’ll reap later will be oh so worth that difficulty! 

Now for those of us who truly believe, let’s go home declaring (wrong again) our Thursday Blessings, which the Lord have poured down on us in His awesome generosity. All together now, in sincere and strong voice: ‘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!’ 

Yuh see what happens when you live for Jesus! But a word of caution here; those blessings are not for us to hoard but to share with the less fortunate in our unjust society. So let’s go out and do just that nuh, and thus warm the cockles of Jesus’ heart! Much LOVE!

…Jesus is the ONLY ONE…who will take you just as you are…and make you what He wants you to be…

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 28 September 2017 Luke 18:1.

28 Sep 2017 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Luke 18:1.   And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint. 

So friends, like fall has finally fallen! (smile) Yes, it’s still dark out at 7 a.m, it’s somewhat chilly, only 13 degrees, and yesterday I finally saw a set of fallen dry leaves merrily dancing in my driveway! That alone indicates to me that the weather has changed, or is changing. 

Anyway, North Carolina is still feeling the wind and water effects of hurricane Maria with plenty shoreline flooding, as she makes her way northward and out to sea. Ah Lord eh friends, it certainly has been a devastating couple of months in so many places from so many forces! 

And so much disaster has befallen us in the south and east, that we have forgotten that out in the west, where the devastation first began, they are still daily battling wild fires. Please, let’s continue to pray for them and help in any way we can, as we try to recover and rebuild on this side of the continent. 

And my biggest prayer is that this set of calamitous circumstances will truly bring us close together, as we help each other. Also, that it will eventually lead to us realizing that God is our ONLY true help in this uncertain world, which will further lead us to wisely embracing His LOVING-kindness once more, as the Sovereign Ruler over our society. 

In other words, we will purge the evil from our midst and go back to trying to live righteous lives, under His merciful and forgiving umbrella. That’s the ONLY thing that makes sense in this topsy-turvy world my brethren!  

Right now we need the biggest LOVE Revolution our planet has ever seen if we’re to make any serious and sensible headway in our society. Just look at the number of wars, rumours of wars and bitter strife that’s taking place in our world, despite the overwhelming disasters in almost every part of the planet. 

One would think getting together to alleviate those disasters would be the prime target of all nations. Hn! But no, feuding, warmongering, greed, religious intolerance and lust for power still seem to be our major preoccupations! 

What a foolish people we are! And yet we boast about mankind being God’s greatest and wisest creation! Steups! What a joke! 

Anyway, let’s turn to our Bit, which tells us the basic thing we need to do in this life, if we’re to succeed and prosper. ‘And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint.’ 

Yeh my fellow believers, that’s the wise advice of our Lord and Saviour, our Redeemer and heavenly Advocate, the ONE who sacrificed His sinless life for us. So if we say that we believe in Him, then we ought to do what He says. 

And John tells us right up front: ‘He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. (1 John 2:4) 

Unfortunately my people, that means we have a whole lot of liars in our society since so many of us don’t keep Christ’s commandments, although we claim to be believers! But that’s another story for another day! (smile) 

Today we’re concerned with prayer and praying. And in Jesus’ most strenuous and difficult moments, in the Garden of Gethsemane, the night before His crucifixion, what was he doing? Praying to His heavenly Father. So Jesus knew the power of prayer and consistently practiced it. 

On that momentous night, He also uttered another serious warning on the subject. His inner circle of disciples were supposed to be watching and praying with Him: ‘And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.’ (Matt.26:40-41) 

That’s oh so true friends, but not too many, or not enough of us consider those words today, and that’s a major reason why our society is so awash in evil and ungodliness. So please, let’s consider them more than we do right now nuh. It’s all for our benefit, not God’s!

And if we sincerely believe and trust in Jesus, then let’s go home declaring our Thursday Blessings. Remember there is power in the word, and speaking it only enhances that power. 

So in unison, emphatically and enthusiastically: ‘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!’

Glory be mih people! Now let’s go out and share those blessings as Jesus desires of us. Much LOVE!

…to be safe and not sorry…watch and pray…

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 April 2015 Matthew 27:35

03 Apr 2015 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Matthew 27:35. And they crucified him, and parted (divided) his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted (divided) my garments among them, and upon my vesture (clothing) did they cast lots.

Oh Friends, it’s Friday! And one we call Good Friday to boot. How can that be though, when such a dastardly deed, such a great injustice, a crucifixion, was perpetrated on a holy and sinless man two thousand years ago? How can it be that we call such a day good eh, especially when it was no ordinary crucifixion, but a horrific and cruel one, filled with all sorts of unimaginable brutality and inhumanity?
 
That’s the epitome of our saying that man’s inhumanity to man makes countless thousands suffer and mourn!  But I guess we call it good because it was the beginning, the initializing of some thing good. Without that sacrifice on Good Friday, there would have been no resurrection on Easter Sunday, no victory over hell, death and the grave.
 
And it’s also good in the sense that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ gave His life so that we could be free from the bondage of sin once and for all. We have to look at it that way Friends, otherwise it was just a brutal injustice.
 
And believe you me, Jesus paid a heavy, heavy price for our disgusting sins, for as we said above, it was no ordinary crucifixion, but a most cruel and heartless one, fuelled by fear and greed and the lust for power, the same things that are still controlling our world today.
 
Oh my people, please take a moment and consider the inhumanity that Jesus suffered before He even reached Calvary; the scourging, the spitting, the ridicule, the mocking, the slapping, the crown of thorns, the tearing of His flesh by the cruel whips with all sorts of sharp things attached meant exactly for that purpose.
 
In this modern day and age, although we’re still cruel, I don’t think we can truly capture the thoroughly disfigured and tattered picture of Jesus when He came out of Pilate’s place, then was given His cross to carry, though He could barely walk and His wounds were by then terminal. It was only a matter of time.
 
It’s a good thing that somebody had the bright idea to get Simon the Cyrene to help Him bear the cross, otherwise I doubt He would have made it to Golgotha that evil place of the skull, which we Christians now term Calvary, a much nicer name. Then being made to lie outstretched on two planks of wood and nailed to them with huge metal nails, in such a way that death would be painful and prolonged. Steups!
 
Can you imagine that gruesome scene Friends, of Jesus being put to lie down on the cross and nailed to it, then have it raised upright and what little lifeblood He had left, being set to drain slowly and painfully out of Him? And to make matters worse, they crucified Him between two common criminals. Chuh!
 
Ah mih people, can you look through your eyes of faith and see Jesus, all torn and tattered, just languishing up there on that cross in the hot noonday sun? Believe me Friends, it was definitely no little price that Jesus paid for the banishment of our sins nuh! That’s what you call real ‘sufferation.’ The Father really put it to Him.
 
In my humble opinion it did not have to be so cruel, but I guess it just goes to show how disgusting and diabolical sin is and was, and that the only way to truly get rid of it was by a serious sacrificial death of a sinless person. And unfortunately Jesus was the ONLY ONE who fit that description.
 
It also shows how serious the Father is and was about His dislike for sin, if He could allow such terrible atrocities to be performed on His only Son. If you think it hurts us, just imagine the heartache He must have felt nuh, seeing His Son go through so much agony, and knowing that He could stop it with a simple word, but also knowing that if He did, sin would then forever run rampant throughout His universe, with no end in sight, and the evil Lucifer would have won the war.
 
Being a holy and just God, He just could not allow that, so like we say, He just had to grin and bear it. And yet we still doubt His wonderful and unconditional LOVE for us!
 
What hurts too Friends, is that after that most expensive price Jesus paid for our forgiveness, for our reconciliation and atonement, for our salvation and eternal life, so many of us simply ignore Him, or don’t take him as seriously as we should.
 
That’s not only unfortunate my brethren, but rather foolish, for if we don’t embrace Jesus and all that He stands for then we’ll still end up in the pool of fire come the judgement day with the wicked Beelzebub and all his other minions, and His sacrifice would have been worthless.
 
Oh Friends, the Father sent His son to pay the price for our abominable sins because He did not want to lose even one of His most wonderful creations, mankind, to Lucifer. So why aren’t we being wise and truly accepting Jesus as our Lord and Saviour eh? That’s the multi-million dollar question?
 
Instead, we’re sadly moving away from Him in droves, embracing the worthless and sinful stuff of the world, foisted on us by the prince of darkness and his evil lackeys. That’s only going to bring us more sin and suffering, and it’s oh so foolish, when Jesus has already paid the price for us to be free from the bondage and torment of sin.
 
But yuh know what my brethren, Jesus was such a mighty and majestic man, that throughout it all He didn’t complain. He knew that that was the reason for which He was made man, and though He pleaded some with the Father to change the plans, deep down He knew that it was not going to happen, so again, like we all have to do at times, He just grinned and bore it.
 
He withstood the mockery and jeers and otherwise that were hurled at him while He hung there limp and helpless on the cross. The only sad words that reached His lips on the cross were as the Good Book says: ‘And about the ninth hour (noon) Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? That is to say, My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?’ (Matt.27:46)
 
Yes Friends, in that moment, as the scholars explain; ‘Here we have the high cost to Christ of His atonement for our sins, who was accursed of God as our sin-bearer, (cf.2 Cor.5:21; Gal.3:13) and suffered the agony of spiritual death for us.’ 
 
Ah mih breddren, as our Bit so sadly says too: ‘And they crucified him, and parted (divided) his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted (divided) my garments among them, and upon my vesture (clothing) did they cast lots.’ That prophecy comes from Psalm 22:18, words of Bruh David.
 
But you know what Friends, Jesus is so beautiful, that even on the cross He still reached out to us. He pleaded with the Lord; ‘Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.’ (Luke 23:34) Then to one of the criminals who were crucified with Him and who embraced His sanctity as they hung there together, He sincerely promised: ‘Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise.’ (Luke 23:43)
 
And to show how much He cared for His mother, the Good Book tells us: ‘When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by whom he LOVED (John), he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.’ (John 19:26-27)
 
What’s left to be said eh, my people? Only this: ‘And when Jesus had cried with aloud voice, he said, ‘Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost (breathed his last).’ (Luke 23:46)
 
Oh Friends, on this solemn Friday which we call good, and on which we didn’t even shout for joy, ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ since most people are already off work, for it’s a public holiday in most places, let’s Chant our Friday Chant nonetheless as we spend the day in worship and ponder what the day means to us as a congregation, as well as individuals.
 
Let’s chant: ‘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.’
 
Oh my people, it’s long and somewhat involved. (smile) But that’s what I was guided to write. I just hope it brings home to us the real hefty price that Jesus paid for our sins to be forgiven, and brings us ever closer to Him. Much LOVE!
 
…to all serious believers…today…let’s take up our crosses and follow Jesus…for that’s what he desires of us…

 

 

 

 
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 7 July 2014 1 Peter 2:2

07 Jul 2014 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

1 Peter 2:2,     As newborn babes, desire the sincere (pure) milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.

Oh Friends, it’s a brand new day – Monday – the first day of the new work week. And for whatever reason, I’ve been guided to take a brief inventory of the state of our world.

And it’s in a real sorry state at the present time –  what with a variety of strife, wars, terrorism and other violent acts dominating the landscape of Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East, spawned mainly by greed, lust for power, racial, religious and ethnic and economic  tension. And in many of those same places where the violence is taking place, there is famine, drought, flooding, sickness and extreme poverty.

Meanwhile, on this side of the pond, in North America, the confrontations are not as violent, though racial, religious and ethnic tensions are also on increase. There is plenty dissension and the continuing economic fallout is causing poverty, homelessness and sickness to be more rampant than ever, especially in such an affluent society. But that’s because the greed and non-social conscience of the rich are causing them to get richer, while the rest are certainly getting poorer.

And besides that we’re simply having floods in the Western Canadian Provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, while several violent tornados have recently ripped through the U.S Midwest and Southern Ontario, and this past weekend Hurricane Arthur deluged the U.S North East Coast and the Canadian Maritime Provinces with tons of rain. But then states like Texas and California are enduring extended periods of drought.

But down in South America, where poverty and strife are always present in large amounts, the supposedly ‘beautiful game,’ soccer is having its World Cup expose in Brazil amidst large demonstrations and unhappiness at the amount of money spent to build new, white elephant stadiums to host the games. But the games are being doted on and bet on by billions around the globe.

What’s going to happen after the finals this week eh? The already wealthy clique that controls the game will walk away even wealthier, leaving the poor and downtrodden in Brazil possibly even worse off than before. And before long we’ll certainly hear about some unnecessary violence committed in the name of the football gods.

Ah Lord eh! And that Friends is only a brief overview. So what sort of picture does it paint of our world eh? Certainly not a pretty one! And though there’s serious unrest and tension all over, there’s not much any of us individuals can do, except to try and keep our immediate families and friends as safe and secure as possible, and free of those negative influences.

However as a group, a group of true believers in Jesus Christ, we can do something to lessen those negative influences. And we can begin by being thankful and responsible this Monday morning; by getting up and going to work without whining and complaining, especially after the 4th of July long weekend, for we are living better than three quarters of our world.

So in appreciation of that, and homage to our wonderful God, let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with great gusto. As one powerful army cum choir of God, let’s sing. ‘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!’

Now that might suffice for today my people, but what happens tomorrow eh? We have to turn to the wisdom of our Bit: ‘As newborn babes, desire the sincere (pure) milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.’

We need to grow in the Word of God if we hope to make a positive difference in this world. And you can see from our overview that our world is in bad shape, which means we have to get a move on sooner, rather than later if we want to stop its slide into total destruction. And this section of Scripture from Hebrews, where the author wants to talk about Jesus the High Priest after the order of Melchizedek, brings home that point.

‘Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered (explain), seeing ye are dull of hearing. For when for the time (though by this time) ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles (sayings) of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat (solid food)

For every one that useth (partakes of) milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat (solid food) belongeth to them that are of full age (mature), even those who by reason of use (practice) have their senses exercised (trained) to discern both good and evil.’ (Heb.5:11-14)

Yes Friends spiritual immaturity is holding back the body of Christ. Many of us, who should be teachers by now, are still immature in the faith. We can’t cause a LOVE Revolution through immaturity. We need to be versed in the Word and then put it into practice.

Now listen to how Peter describes us: ‘But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people (God’s special people); that ye should show forth (proclaim) the praise of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.’ (1 Pet.2:9) 

Yes my brethren, that’s what we’re supposed to be, chosen of God, special! That also means we have to be behave like royalty! So please let’s get with the programme nuh, let’s seriously study the Word and thus not be fooled by the wiles of the enemy. It’s only through maturity we can do that, and also be able to teach others. That’s what Jesus desires of us.

Much LOVE!…it’s high time believers stop allowing the carnal lusts of the world to rule their lives…and turn to the things of the Spirit and of God instead…