19 Jun 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a roof over our heads, a sense of urgency, adrenaline, arrows, aura of love, be strong in the Lord, Beelzebub, bread and butter, cease-fire, cessation, Christians, confidence, enthusiasm, eternal life, evil, following Jesus, friends, glorious kingdom, gospel truth, he that keeps Israel, holy spirit, humble servants, invincible, Jesus Christ, jobs, labouring, lies, LOVE, Lucifer, meet the enemy in battle, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, no work no pay, peace, protective covering, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, salvation, serve a useful purpose, slings, slumber nor sleep, soldiers of Christ, spiritual armour, spiritual battle, steadfast faith, taunts, the antidote, the power of his might, trust, truth, ungodly world, wisdom
Ephesians 6:10. Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
Well fathers, our special day is over now, hope we all had an enjoyable day. Mine was fairly quiet, but very interesting. However, it’s now time for us to concentrate on, and get back to labouring so that we can keep a roof over our family’s head and bread on our table. It’s nice to be pampered and spoiled, but we certainly can’t forget about our bread and butter, our jobs. (smile)
And I know that for plenty of us fathers, after all the celebrations yesterday, it’s going to be difficult to get up this morning to go and labour, but just think about it this way nuh: no work, no pay. (smile) But as always, we have the antidote for whatever ails you this Monday morning. It’s called our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, and when we sing it sincerely and joyfully, it just refreshes and renews us, gets the adrenaline flowing in our bodies.
So let’s belt it out now nuh, with plenty gusto and expectant faith. As one big earthly choir 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!’
Oh friends, that was a bit harsh and raucous, but the enthusiasm was great, and Jesus, our choirmaster understood our shortcomings. But now, with that same enthusiasm we just showed, aided by the adrenaline that’s coursing through our veins, let’s go out and face the enemy and battle them mano a mano in Jesus’ name. That’s what He’s expecting of us.
And as Bruh Paul advises in in our Bit: ‘Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.’
Yes my fellow believers, above everything else, if we want to go and fight the enemy, then we have to be strong in the Lord, because that’s where our strength and our help come from. As the psalmist declares: ‘My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved (slip): he that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.’ (Ps.121:2-4) And that’s gospel truth my people! Our God will look after us at all times, under whatever circumstances and situations!
Before we go further though, let’s check out some info from the scholars, re our Bit. ‘6:10. Finally may be rendered “from now on” or “henceforth.” The spiritual battle Christians are engaged in exists “from now on” until the Lord’s return: there is no quarter given, no cease fire, no temporary truce, no cessation of hostilities. “From now on” till the end there is all out war. The remainder of the verse may be paraphrased, “Let yourselves constantly be strengthened by the Lord, more precisely by His mighty power.”
Ah mih people, how mighty is our God! The mightiest of them all!!! As we’ve said a couple times above, He made the heavens and the earth and all therein, so He must be truly powerful, and He does strengthen us to do His bidding. However, regardless of what strength we have, as warriors, we also need protective covering from the enemy’s slings and arrows, that’s why the verse after our Bit is so important. ‘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)
Yes friends, we need to put on our protective spiritual armour, this morning, and every morning, before we go out to fight against the enemy, so that we don’t get hurt. It’s one thing to be strong in the Lord, but it’s another to fight without protective covering.
And the scholars offer us these explanations. ‘6:11. Put on (Greek ingressive aorist imperative) (smile) denotes a sense of urgency, demanding immediate action. To stand has military overtones. This verb was used in classical Greek meaning to resist the enemy and hold a critical positon in battle. The wiles of the devil (or, “the Devil’s strategy”). Satan carefully devises schemes and tactics against believers.’
So friends, it’s no joke war in which we’re involved, it’s serious business, serious stuff on which our salvation and eternal life depends. So please, let’s take it very seriously nuh, because our enemy, Lucifer, is taking it very seriously. He’s definitely out to trip us up and make us turn away from following Jesus. And that’s definitely not a wise thing to do. Therefore, let’s put on our spiritual armour, and with the strength of our great God flowing through our minds, bodies and spirits, let’s go out and battle Beelzebub – battle him to the finish! Much LOVE!
…soldiers of Christ arise…arise fully armoured and strengthened by Almighty God…
12 Jun 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: ath the right hand, aura of love, better than sacrifice, Christians, concrete jungles, confidence, despising the shame, endured the cross, enthusiasm, equal with God, eternal life, every knee should bow, every tongue confess, evil, for the joy, forgiveness, form of a servant, friends, glorious kingdom, glory hallelujah, holy spirit, humble servants, humbled himself, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, King od Kings, lies, looking unto Jesus, Lord of Lords, LOVE, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, no reputation, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, salvation, scandal. sacrificial lamb, shame, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, the author and finisher of our faith, the Lamb of God, the Messiah's glory, the road to Emmaus, the Son of God, the throne of God, to obey, trust, ungodly world, wisdom
Hebrews 12:2. 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.
Awright friends, the trumpet has sounded Monday’s battle cry! That means it’s time for us to be up and at ‘em, for Jesus is waiting at the front lines to lead us into battle. We can’t keep our leader waiting because with each passing moment the enemy is advancing closer and closer and gaining the advantage. So without further ado, let’s put on our spiritual armour and hasten to the battle lines.
And to help raise our awareness and courage, let’s belt out our Monday Morning Battle Hymn like there was no tomorrow. And for many of us there might just be no earthly tomorrow.
So in full voice, 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!’
That was good friends! It put a smile on Jesus’ face. Now let’s follow Him into battle, as we hit the highways and byways en route to the concrete jungles and brave the frantic attacks of the evil enemy, who doesn’t know that He’s already lost the battle, because Jesus died, was buried and rose from the grave, signifying the death knell of hell, death and the grave.
Our Bit tells the story in one sentence. ‘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.’
Yes my precious people of God, our Lord and Saviour bravely endured the necessary shame and scandal to pay for our sins, by the shedding of His blood, by being the sacrificial Lamb of God on the cross of Calvary. Wow! What a selfless champion we have as our leader!
And where is He now? Sitting at the right hand of God’s throne interceding for us, His adopted family and faithful followers. Now how can anything be better than that eh? No way Jose!
Just imagine it nuh mih breddren: The Son of God, giving His life for us, for which He was then given the awesome title of King of Kings and Lord of Lords and raised to second in command of the universe, like Joseph was with Pharaoh, and is now sitting beside his Father pleading for us to be granted mercy, grace and forgiveness, not for anything we have done or can do, but because of the work He has already done!
And all God’s children joyfully shouted: ‘Glory to Jesus, the Lamb of God who was slain for us! May He reign forever and ever!’
And He will friends, there’s no doubt about that, because the ole fool Lucifer is no match for our Saviour. Yuh don’t see what Lucifer does, walk to and fro about the earth, while Jesus sits in regal splendour at His Father’s side in the high heavens. So who is better off eh?
Now let’s look at a few scriptures which corroborate our Bit: ‘who for the joy that was set before him…’ Now what reward could He have been promised to make Him do what He did eh?
Hear Jesus rebuke the two followers He met on the road to Emmaus. ‘O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?’ (Luke 24:25-26) Then He proceeded to explain all that the prophets had said concerning Him down through the ages.
And the scholars explain. 24:26. Ought (Gr. dei) bespeaks a divine necessity; what the prophets had foretold (see Is.53; Ps.16:22) must and did come to pass. The disciples had been ready to see in Jesus a glorious deliverer, But Jesus’ rebuke (v.25) relates to their unwillingness to take seriously the many Old Testament texts that speak not only of the Messiah’s glory, but also of His suffering.’
So friends, for the glory promised by the Father and just from the great desire to do the Father’s will, Jesus ‘endured the cross, despising the shame…’
And Bruh Paul tells us in the Good Book, that Jesus: ‘Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’(Phil.2:6-8)
Oh friends, there’s nothing our God cherishes as much as obedience to His will. And look at how He rewarded Jesus for His obedience. ‘Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of (those) things in heaven, and (those) things in earth, and (those) things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’ (Phil.2:9-11)
Yes precious people of God, that is how generous and magnanimous our heavenly Father can be when we obey His will. So let’s seriously ponder today in what way(s) we are not being obedient. Maybe that’s why our cups are not overflowing. Much LOVE!
…to obey is better than to sacrifice…
11 Jun 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a cloud of witnesses, a race, abundant, Alpha, assurance, beset, blazed the trail, bloodshed, comforting arms of Jesus, conquerors, contradiction of sinners, courage, death, discouraged, dominion, encouragement, endurance, ensnare us, exalt, exhortation, faint, fellowship, finished the course, free, give thanks, glory to God, heal your soul, Heavenly Vision, Helen H Lemmel, hostility, I AM, lay aside every weight, life, life everlasting, looking unto Jesus, LOVE, no light in the darkness, Omega, originator, peace, perfector, perseverance, praise, run with patience, Sabbath Day, sacrifice of praise, salvation, sin, sing, striving against sin, take all your troubles away, the author and finisher of our faith, the First and the Last, the things of the earth, the ultimate answer, true believer in Jesus, Turn your eyes to Jesus, wearied, worship
Hebrews 12:2. 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.
Arise my people and greet the bright and bountiful Sabbath Day, when the Lord rested, having created the universe and all therein in the six previous days! And He saw that it was all good! It’s a day of fellowship, of the gathering of Christ’s church in His sanctuary to praise and sing, give thanks and worship and exalt His Holy Name!
And all God’s children declared a loud, proud and grateful: ‘Glory to God in the highest! Praise His Name on high! For He is the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, Only He knows the true workings of the universe!’ Yes friends, He is the great I AM, the ONLY ONE who can heal your soul and take all your troubles away.
That’s why, our song of praise and worship this morning is titled ‘The Heavenly Vision’ or ‘Turn your eyes upon Jesus.’ So let’s do just that nuh, as we offer up the sacrifice of praise with our lips. As one true body now: ‘O soul, are you weary and troubled? No light in the darkness you see? There’s light for a look at the Savior, And life more abundant and free!
(Refrain: Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face, And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace.) Through death into life everlasting He passed, and we follow Him there; O’er us sin no more hath dominion— For more than conqu’rors we are!
(Refrain) His Word shall not fail you—He promised; Believe Him, and all will be well: Then go to a world that is dying, His perfect salvation to tell! (Refrain: Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face, And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace.)
Ah friends, such words of assurance and peace, exhortation and encouragement, penned by Helen H Lemmel (1863-1961). Her biography says that in 1918 she was given a tract by a visiting missionary. The leaflet was entitled “Focused,” and in it was this exhortation: “So then, turn your eyes upon Him [Christ]. Look full into His face and you will find that the things of earth will acquire a strange new dimness.”
Mrs. Lemmel was riveted by those words. She says, “I stood still. And singing in my soul and spirit was the chorus, with not one conscious moment of putting word to word to make rhyme, or note to note to make melody.” The three stanzas of the song were added later the same week.’ My fellow believers, that’s just one of the mysterious ways in which our great and awesome God moves, His works to unfurl!
And the scripture it seems to have been based on is our Bit for today. But first let’s look at the verse that precedes it, because that sets the context for our Bit. ‘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.’ (Heb.12:1)
Ah mih people, the author of Hebrews looks at our Christian life like a race; one that is indeed difficult to run, but acknowledges that we have faithful heroes that have gone before us (a cloud of witnesses), who have run it successfully, and so can we. How?
By ‘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.’
Yeh friends, though there were others who successfully ran the race, and gave us worthy examples to emulate, Jesus is our best example, our bright and shining star! He set the tone for it all.
The scholars tell us: ‘12:2. Just as verse 1 establishes some qualities for the entrance into the actual running of life’s race, so verse 2 directs one’s eyes to the finish line. Jesus is the author and finisher in that He has already blazed the trail and finished the course.’
That means fellow believers we don’t have to blaze a new trail, just follow the one Jesus laid down, and that makes it easier for us. Imagine if we had to blaze a new trail for ourselves? We’d find it even more difficult than it is now, what with all the sin that’s lurking around the corner, just waiting to ensnare us, we need to have the utmost in patience and perseverance to last the distance and finally end up at the finish line in the welcoming and comforting arms of Jesus. Praise his Holy Name!
And these two verses following our Bit, just bolster it. ‘For consider him that endured such contradiction (hostility) of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint (be discouraged) in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood (bloodshed), striving against sin.’ (Heb.12:3-4)
Oh friends, Jesus is the ‘supreme example of endurance.’ Just look at all the ‘sufferation’ He bore on our behalf nuh. We could not have had a finer example of perseverance and endurance. So let’s remember that, take courage from it, and steadfastly bear up under our own weight of sin in this earthly race of life. That’s the only way to do it as a true believer in Jesus. Much LOVE!
…for whatever befalls us…the ultimate answer is to turn to Jesus…
09 Jun 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sparkling day, a waste of time, all for nought, believe in Jesus, boundaries, Calvary, Christians, come short of the glory of God, divine provision, dry weather, enormous price, eternal life, extremes, faith, fellowship, fleshly activity, for all have sinned, forbearance of God, free gift, freed from sin, Friday chant, fun, generous help, glorious kingdom, glory to God, God's standard, grace, guiltless, hot like hell, human need, in Jesus' name, just, justified freely, justifier, LOVE, made him to be sin for us, our flesh, pardoned, party time, praise, propitiation, ransom, redemption, relaxation, remisiion of sins, rest, righteous demands, salvation, shedding of blood, slave driver, Spirit of Christ, susceptible to sin, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, Thank you Jesus, thanks, the righteousness of God, the workingman, walk steadfast, waste not want not, week of work, who knew no sin, work never dead
2 Corinthians 5:21. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Oh friends, like another sparkler of a day is in the offing in my area! Wow! Three sparkling days in a row! We need to give the Lord plenty thanks for such wonderful weather!
I know for some of you the good weather is small potatoes, because you receive it most of the time, but we’ve had such chilly and rainy days the last couple weeks that some warm, sparkling, dry weather is greatly appreciated.
And you certainly won’t hear the workingman complain. He is even zestier in his attitude as he unabashedly declares: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday yes! The weekend is upon us… And it going to be hot like hell too! Temps in the thirties! Oh party time…party time…
Steups! Look, forget the chupid slave driver and his work yes. Work never dead yet! Just let me loose here now, so we can get the party going! Much thanks to God for Fridays and the weekends!’
Oh mih breddren, how our flesh would LOVE to participate in such interesting endeavours, (smile) but our minds and spirits are crying out for us to resist such fleshly activity. And as sincere Christians, we ought to have some boundaries to our behaviour, not allow ourselves to go to such extremes.
The Christian way is more like our Friday Chant, so let’s put the lust of the flesh behind us and chant it heartily nuh. ‘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.’
And that’s the way it ought to be my people, especially when we take our Bit into account. ‘For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.’
Yeh friends, after Jesus paid such an enormous price for us to be freed from sin, we just can’t go back and commit sin willy-nilly again. Oh, we are all still susceptible to sin, but with the Spirit of Christ dwelling in us, we ought to have a strong enough conscience to resist it.
And we have these powerful verses of scripture from Bruh Paul to the Roman church to help explain the situation and consequently uplift us. Hear him pontificate (smile): ‘For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely (without any cost) by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation (a mercy seat) through faith in his blood, to declare (demonstrate) his righteousness for the remission (passing over of) sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.’ (Rom.3:23-26)
Oh friends, right within those verses lies the basis of our salvation… Glory to God! Let’s see if, with the help of the scholars we can get a good understanding of what Bruh Paul is saying there.
‘3:23. For all have sinned: The human need and the divine provision are alike applied universally. Come short of the glory of God: Man can exceed his own standards but never, left to himself, can he attain God’s standard of righteousness.’
Ah mih breddren, regardless of how good we are, we will NEVER reach God’s standards. But He is so wonderful, that knowing that sin pervades and invades all our souls, He wisely provided provision for everybody, if we’d only believe in His Son Jesus Christ, who paid for our sins by the sacrifice, the shedding of His sinless blood on Calvary.
‘3:24. Being justified (Gr. dikatoumenot) indicates being declared righteous. It signifies the believer’s judicial standing before God. Freely: There is no just cause in man to warrant justification. By his grace: Unmerited favour is bestowed through the redemption (release on payment of ransom). Christ’s death is the ransom. The sinner is released on the basis of the ransom having being paid.’
So yuh see friends, we don’t have a leg to stand on, it’s all through God’s grace and Jesus paying the ransom for our sins by the shedding of His blood at Calvary.
‘3:25-26. Through faith: Christ’s death satisfies the Father’s righteous demands. Its benefits are appropriated only through faith in His finished work. In his blood: The emphasis is not on the blood as it coursed through Christ’s veins, but as it was shed for our sins. This is how the propitiation was accomplished.
Just, and the justifier: God can remain just (true to His nature) and still declare sinners to be righteous only because Christ has paid for sin and satisfied (propitiated) His holy law. The sinner is not rendered guiltless but pardoned. Christ has taken the sin on Himself and has imputed His righteousness to the sinner.’
And all believers shouted a loud and most grateful ‘Thank You Jesus! Thank You ever so much for redeeming us from our abominable sins! We LOVE You, and give You plenty thanks and praise! Please help us to walk steadfast in Your everlasting LOVE! Amen!’
Yes friends, I hope we all understand now that it was all the doing of the Father and Jesus, no thanks to us whatsoever.
So please lets be wise and accept the free gift of salvation and eternal life that’s been offered nuh. Otherwise Jesus’ sacrifice would have been all for nought, a complete waste of time. And I’m sure we don’t want that to be the case. Much LOVE!
…remember the old adage…waste not…want not…
P.S. It’s long and late, but full of redemptive grace (smile) Much LOVE!
08 Jun 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a beautiful day, a beautiful morning, a compassionate heart, a personal relationship with jesus, abundant joy, awesome majesty, can't do it justice, can't lose feeling, Christian virtue, conquering, courage, creativity, curse, divine promotion, dreary, droopy shoulders, eternal life, every knee must bow, every tongue confess, exalt His holy name, excited about Christ, false premise, forgiveness, god moves in mysterious ways, goodies, grace, have the good with the bad, heads hung low, high on life, imputes not iniquity, in the name of Jesus, iniquity, jehovah god, Jesus Christ, joy, joyful, joyful people, justification, King of Kings, knew no sin, lamb of god, Lord and Saviour, Lord of Lords, lost our best friend, loving kindness, made him to be sin for us, made the righteousness of God, magnanimous, mercy, merits of Jesus, my neck of the woods, negative word, our benefit, partner with christ, peace, positive, promises, raised from the dead, reconciled to God, righteousness of Christ, rough times, sad, salvation, sanctification, self-control, self-discipline, share the excitement, sins forgiven, something good, strength, success, talent, the Christian's life, the cross at Calvary, the joy of the Lord is our strength, the Sun and Son, through me, Thursday Blessings, to me, wisdom
2 Corinthians 5:21. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
‘Oh what a beautiful morning! Oh what a beautiful day! Oh what a beautiful morning! Everything’s going my way!’
Wow friends! What more can I say eh? Oh, possibly: ‘Something good is going to happen to me today! Something good is going to happen through me today!’
Yeh mih breddren, that’s the feeling, the positive, conquering, can’t lose feeling you experience in your spirit when Jesus Christ is your Lord and Saviour! Give glory and exaltation to His Holy Name!
Abundant joy ought to mark the Christian’s life. What does the Good Book say? ‘The joy of the Lord is our strength!’ That means if we truly have the Lord in our lives, we ought to have joy and strength.
And to make it an even better day, both the Sun and Son are shining as brightly as ever in my neck of the woods. It couldn’t get any better than that nuh mih people. And I guess you all are wandering what I’m so high on this beautiful Thursday morning in June of 2017? (smile)
Well, as far as far as I know, I’m high on nothing but life! Life, my friends, as experienced and guided by the Spirit of Christ! Like the Holy Spirit got a zeppo from heaven directing it to infuse me with a shot of whatever, to get me excited about Christ and about this day.
Now isn’t that refreshing and stimulating? It surely is! And why you ask, would the Holy Spirit do that eh? My best guess is because heaven wants me to share that excitement with you all, and to also get you high on life.
Oh doesn’t our great and wonderful God move in mysterious ways? He surely does my fellow believers! That’s one of the many things I LOVE about Him; the way He can come up with wonderful goodies, at a time when you least expect them.
But then too, He can also allow rough times when we least expect them. But as Job so rightly says, we can’t expect to have the good without the bad. But too many of us supposed Christians are always so sad and dreary, without real joy in our lives.
We walk around with droopy shoulders, with heads hung low as though we’ve recently lost our best friend or our mother, wrongly believing that to be joyful is not a true Christian virtue. Chuh! That’s a totally false premise my people!
Listen here, if we have Jesus dying for us on the cross at Calvary, so that our sins can be forgiven, then being raised from the dead, so that we too can be raised, consequently being reconciled to God, with assured promises of salvation and eternal life, plus unending grace and mercy here on earth, why wouldn’t you be joyful eh?
Oh friends, as I keep trying to instill in us, we Christians should be the most joyful people on the face of this earth, and we ought to show it too, so that others can see it and want that pure, unadulterated joy and peace that ONLY comes through being in a personal relationship with the ONE and ONLY Jesus Christ, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, to whom all knees must eventually bow, and all lips declare his awesome majesty to the glory of Jehovah God!
And all that I’ve said so far my brethren, comes as a direct result of the actions involved in our Bit. ‘For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.’
Oh how magnanimous and full of LOVING-kindness is our wonderful God! But we don’t truly appreciate it, otherwise we’d be beating down His doors to get to Him, instead of doing our best to remove Him from our society.
But listen to this explanation from the scholars, hopefully, it will change your mind, bring you to your senses. ‘5:21. Three aspects of Paul’s concept of imputation (forgiveness) are seen in this passage. In verse 19 God imputes not iniquity (cf. Ps.32:2). Then He imputes sin to Christ, the spotless Lamb of God (cf. John 1:29; 1 Pet.1:19).
Finally, God imputes the righteousness of Christ to the sinner’s account. This truth may be viewed from the side of justification, whereby the sinner is declared righteous based on the merits of Jesus Christ (cf. Rom.3:24-25), or it may be viewed from the side of sanctification, whereby the righteousness of Christ is daily applied. This latter sense is probably in view here. Compare 3:18’, see also 1 Cor.1:2).’
Ah mih people, yuh see the greatness of our God? You can look at your forgiveness in two different ways. Now hopefully that explanation will have some effect on us, especially if we look up the scriptures mentioned there. Please take a minute and do that nuh mih brethren, they are all interesting and worthwhile, and it is all for our benefit, not God’s.
And if you still don’t believe all that’s been said above, then just look at the enormous amount of blessings we receive when we partner with Christ nuh. So let’s declare our Thursday Blessings with the excitement, the enthusiasm and sincere belief they deserve.
As one now: ‘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!’
And since blessings need to be spoken over someone for them to take effect, let’s go out and bless a whole lot of others today, my faithful followers of Christ! That’s what He desires of us. Much LOVE!
…oh the joy of being in Christ…and Him being in us…it’s so wonderful…that mere words can’t do it justice…
05 Jun 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adrenaline, aura of love, belief in Jesus, brimstone, by the sweat of thy brow, call his name Jesus, complaining, confess, confidence, conquerors, dilly-dallying, enthusiasm, evil, fire, friends, God sent not His Son, grief, holy spirit, humble servants, invincible, Jerusalem, Jesus Christ, Jesus is the Son of God, jobs, joy, labour, lies, LOVE, loving kindness, magnanimous god, manner of spirit, material possessions, meet the enemy, mission, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, on the outside looking in, pain, paying homage, prince of this world, reap the sweat of labour, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, salvation, Samaria, save our sinful souls, sick, soft spot, sorrow, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, taunts, the world through him might be saved, thou shalt eat bread, time to toil, tired, to condemn the world, trust, ungodly world, wealth, weary souls, wiles, wisdom, worth it
John 3:17. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
Arise oh friends and greet the new day! It’s Monday, which means it’s time to toil, to go out and labour, so that we can eventually reap the sweat of that labour. What does the Good Book say? Something like by the sweat of thy brow thou shall eat bread.
Well then, if we want to eat bread, let’s get a move on. Enough of the dilly-dallying and complaining about we sick and/ or tired. We weren’t too sick or tired to join in the partying though. So come on, let’s be up and at ‘em! And to help us do that, let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with great gusto and heartfelt belief.
In harmony 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!’
Good singing friends, good singing! Our harmony wasn’t perfect, but our choirmaster, Jesus, knew that our heart was in it and He was pleased. Now let’s keep that adrenaline flowing as we get out into the evil, disaster filled world to help the needy and less fortunate, and try to right whatever wrongs we can in Jesus’ name.
That’s our mission. Jesus states it quite plainly in our Bit. ‘ For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.’
Yes friends, if it was Jesus’ mission, then it’s also ours, seeing that we are His followers, His disciples, and ought to do what He does, or commands us to do. And you know my brethren that we never deserved that LOVING-kindness, but our God has such a soft spot in His heart for us that He just couldn’t help Himself, He just had to save us, regardless of how much pain and sorrow it caused Him. And it did cause Him much grief, but He knew that the result would be absolutely worth it.
Give Him much thanks and praise my fellow believers for providing us with an option to save our sinful souls. And if you don’t believe me, or Jesus, then listen to some corroborative scripture. Hear what the angel said to Joseph, re his betrothed Mary. ‘And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his Names JESUS (Saviour): for he shall save his people from their sins. (Matt.1:21)
And the scholars explain. ‘1:21. Call his name JESUS: The name of the child Jesus (Heb. Yehoshua) means “Jehovah Saves.” This points to the very purpose of Christ’s coming into the world – to save sinners. Placed early in the New Testament, this statement becomes the foundational concept of the gospel. Jesus, by His very name and nature is the Saviour.’
And if you still doubt, then listen to Jesus after a village in Samaria refused to accept Him, because they knew he was going to Jerusalem, and James and John wanted to call down fire and brimstone on the village. ‘But he turned and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.’ (Luke 9:55-56)
Ah friends, I keep reminding us about the wonderful, the magnificent and magnanimous God we serve, but a lot of us don’t pay attention, we’re too busy paying homage to the evil prince of this world, seeking his frivolous and fraudulent material possessions and earthly wealth. But please, please believe me, there will come a time when the material wealth and possessions will be of absolutely no use to you, and the only saving option for you will be Jesus.
And if you don’t sincerely have Him in your heart, then you’ll be left forlornly, on the outside looking in. And I can guarantee that that will not be a very nice place to be. So let’s close with these warning words from John.
‘And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.’ (1 John 4:14-15)
Yes friends, trust in Jesus Christ is the only wise and sensible option in this life. Wisdom dictates that you accept Him before it’s too late. Much LOVE!
…what separates hell from heaven…belief in Jesus…
02 Jun 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Beelzebub, Christians, circumspect, clean as a whistle, crapaud smoke we pipe, disciplined, dust in yuh eye, emotionally attached, enemy, eternal life, excellence, extreme, faith is strong, fellowship, for the sheep, freedom, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's kingdom, generous help, Gentiles, gives his life, good morning, hireling, in Jesus' name, Jesus Christ, lay down my life, leeway, lighten our burdens, nature, one flock, procreated, propriety, pulling teeth, refreshed in soul, relaxation, rest, run away, salvation, scatters, sense of purpose, sin slate, sincerity, sinless life, slave driver, taking it to the max, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, thanks and praise, the birds and the bees, the good shepherd, toothless devil, week of work, white as snow, wisdom, wise God
John 10:11. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
Oh my people, when I got up and looked outside a li’l while ago, the day seemed so beautiful that I simply had to go outside and say a sparkling ‘Good Morning’ to the Lord and give Him some thanks and praise for causing me to see such another wonderful day!
Ah, the sun is shining brightly, playing off the green leaves as the flowers in the Duchess’ garden bloom and give off a beautiful sexy aroma, which causes the birds and the bees to helplessly gather around them, so that nature can further be procreated. (smile)
What a wise and wonderful God we serve my brethren! Please give Him some rightfully deserved thanks for allowing us to enjoy His nature walk today; so many others did not awake to that blessing.
And since it’s Friday, you know the workingman is declaring at every spare moment: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday yes! Mama Yo! Freedom time soon come! Time to dance and sing…and do every li’l thing that I can’t do without the slave driver constantly watching over mih shoulder! Dust in yuh eye massa! Dust in yuh eye! Thank God for Fridays and the weekends oui!’
Ah friends, the sentiments are indeed touching and true, but the reaction is somewhat extreme. As Christians, we need to be more disciplined and controlled than that. Our Leader, Jesus Christ expects us to show the way in propriety and excellence, and taking it to the max will certainly not be considered such.
Our Friday Chant better displays and reflects the behaviour needed. So let’s chant it nuh with sincerity and a strong sense of purpose. In unison 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!’
Yeh friends, that’s a much more appropriate way to approach and handle the weekend! We need to be always somewhat circumspect, so that we don’t give the enemy any leeway in our lives. For once he gets in, it’s like hell, like pulling teeth to get him out. But if our faith is strong, we need not be too concerned about the enemy, for he has already been defeated.
Listen to out Bit: ‘I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’
And that is exactly what the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ did: He gave His sinless life for us, so that we don’t have to be afraid of the toothless devil Beelzebub. Glory to God my people! Jesus took all of our sins on His powerful shoulders and wiped our sin slate clean as a whistle, white as snow! How can we not be everlastingly thankful eh?
Christianity is the only faith that offers such a simple but powerful release from sin: ONLY BELIEVE, it says! Yes friends, if we sincerely believe in the Good Shepherd, He will lighten our burdens and cause us to have salvation and eternal life with the Father.
Hear him, as He extols His purpose after our Bit. ‘But he that is a hireling (hired man), and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is a hireling, and careth not for the sheep.’ (John 10:12-13)
And that’s ever so true my people, as all of us have had cause and occasion to run away from situations and from stuff because we simply were hired personnel and didn’t feel that emotionally attached to whatever was happening.
But our Lord and Saviour is certainly not like that. He sincerely and genuinely declares further: ‘I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and are known of mine.’ (John 10:14)
Friends, do we know our shepherd? He knows us, but the most important question is do we truly know Him? If we don’t, then crapaud smoke we pipe!
And the Good Shepherd further states: ‘As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold (flock), and one shepherd.’ (John 10:15-16)
Oh friends, do you realize that the Good Shepherd was there referring to us, the Gentiles, the heathens, the non-Jews? Yes, He’s such a wonderful shepherd that He wants to include everybody in His kind and LOVING fold!
No wonder he could continue: ‘Therefore doth my Father LOVE me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself; I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I receive of my Father.’ (John 10:16-17)
Please notice friends, how important the Father was in the life of Jesus, His Son, and likewise He should also be very prominent, in fact first and foremost in our lives too, because EVERYTHING begins and ends with Him!
Please notice too that Jesus shows His deity by having the awesome power to give up His earthly life and take it up again! Wow! Nobody took it from Him; He gave it up for us because the Father in His great LOVE, asked Him to, so that we poor sinful wretches could be saved.
Please remember that my brethren and be suitably grateful and thankful and unified in the ONE flock of the Good Shepherd. That’s wisdom of everlasting proportions! Much LOVE!
…there are shepherds…and there are shepherds…and then there’s JESUS…
24 May 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a true believer, assurance, belief, calm, Christ, confidence, courage, Creator of the universe, daily work, delivered my soul, dr robert h schuller, emotion, eternal life, faith, faithful brethren, favour, fear, fears, foolish to reject, forgiveness, give thanks and praise, glad to be alive, going going gone, guiding light, hell, Hour of Power Devotional, indisputable truth, invigorating, jehovah god, LOVE, marvellous blessing, mercy, miracle of courage, newfound power, of whom shall I be afraid, overpowering, overwhelming, passion, peace, quiet, reverential awe, salvation, sincerity, singleness of heart, special favour, spirit of courage, spiritual battle, the breath of life, the core of my soul, the Good Book, the heat of battle, the Lord God of Abraham Isaac and jacob, the Lord is my light and salvation, the Lord is the strength of my life, the presence of God, the shield of courage, there is only one God, treading this earth, true relationship, trust, uplifting words, vistory, wake up alive, what a relief, whom shall I fear, working peace, works
Psalm 27:1. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Oh people, oh people, we’re alive on this blessed Wednesday morning! Wow! Give thanks and praise to our wonderful God for that marvellous blessing!
And if you’re wondering why, just think about the many people who went to bed alive last night but did not wake up alive this morning!
Oh glory to God my faithful brethren! The Lord looked down on us with special favour because He has great plans for our lives today and everyday He keeps us treading this bountiful earth, therefore much praise and thanks ought to be going up to high heaven from us, His blessed people!
And in keeping with our theme of courage from yesterday, we’ll continue with the second part of Gramps Schuller’s (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) ‘Courage Is a Decision,’ talk from his Hour of Power Devotional.
And he emphatically declares in the second half: ‘I have it! My fears are going, going, gone! I feel a mysterious calm, quiet, tranquil assurance rising deep within my being. This remarkable spirit of courage is overpowering me.
It is the very presence of God working peace at the core of my invisible soul. Thank You Lord. All my fears are gone. What a relief! Amen.’
Glory Hallelujah my people! For that’s exactly how we feel when Almighty God works His miracle of courage and peace in our souls! It’s invigorating, overwhelming, surprising, but oh so real! And we rise up with a newfound power, anxious to do His daily work.
And remember, ONLY belief, trust, surrender and faith in the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob can bring that kind of feeling and emotion to our beings! So we’d be rather foolish to reject His awesome LOVE and thus deny ourselves the wonderful opportunity to enjoy His heavenly favour.
And ONLY if you are a true believer, can you proclaim with genuine passion and sincerity, the uplifting words of our Bit, like Bruh David so long ago. ‘The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?’
Yes friends, ONLY when Jehovah God is our guiding light, can we utter such confident words. And we see this overwhelming confidence in God throughout the Good Book. Hear Bruh David expound from Psalm 86 – Teach me thy way, O Lord.
‘Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works. All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name. For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.’ (Ps.86:8-10)
Oh friends, what a marvellous declaration; one of indisputable truth, as the last four words remind us! ‘Thou art God alone!’ That is the basic foundation of our faith! There’s ONLY ONE God; the One we serve and worship!
And until we get that straight and clear in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, we’ll never be able to truly enjoy the peace, LOVE, forgiveness, mercy, salvation and eternal life that proceeds from His magnificent and magnanimous Being.
Bruh David was so assured of this, that he continues in Psalm 86: ‘Teach me thy way, O Lord; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart (give me singleness of heart) to fear (have reverential awe for) thy name.
I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore. For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest (depths of) hell.’ (Ps.86:11-13)
Mama Mia! Oh friends, that’s the kind of confidence we develop when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour! We know His awesome power and relinquish our all to it. Fear and all its negative associates cannot pierce the shield of courage and faith that we derive from a true relationship with the Creator of the universe and all therein.
Now listen to Moses as he counselled the Israelites on the law concerning war. ‘And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people, And shall say unto them,
Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; for the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.’ (Deut.30:2-4)
Yuh see friends, even in the heat of battle, our God is working on our behalf. Yes, He certainly is in the spiritual warfare that we’re currently fighting, so please don’t lose heart, don’t fear or be terrified, because the victory is ours, it has been guaranteed by our great God.
Consequently, we can afford to go home in peace, with courage, declaring these truths from our Wednesday Wail. All together now: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday!
I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
Have a most blessed day my fellow believers in Christ! Much LOVE!
…ONLY when we know Christ…can we be strong and courageous in this evil world…
23 May 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a child of God, a decision, a dream, a gift, be strong and of a good courage, be thou dismayed, Canadian, choose courage, Christian brethren, courage, do what we have to do, dr robert h schuller, end of life, end times, eternal life, fear, fear not, followers of Christ, freedom, friend of Jesus, glory, glory to God, God is a refuge for us, greater than he that's in the world, He that is in us, Hour of Power Devotional, Jesus Christ, kill the body, LOVE, mortal bodies, of whom shall I be afraid, our Lord and Saviour, pour out your heart, power to cast into hell, presence of a calling, pulls you beyond yourself, put it into action, salvation, Selah, share His love, the absence of fear, the beloeved of god, the Lord is my light and salvation, the Lord is the strength of my life, traffic, trust Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, walking in fear, wherewithal, whom shall I fear
Psalm 27:1. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Well my Canadian friends, I hope the getting up and going back to work this Tuesday morning wasn’t too onerous, after a long weekend of celebrating Queen Victoria’s long reign over the British Empire! (smile)
Oh I know it was hard for me to get up, and many of you had to get up long before I did and make your way through the mean traffic. But that’s why we’re so proudly Canadian; we have the courage, the wherewithal to do what we have to do! Glory to God!
Now, rather appropriately, here is a li’l something on ‘Courage,’ from Gramps Schuller’s (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) Hour of Power Devotional, where he emphatically states:
‘The truth is that courage isn’t a gift. Courage is a decision! Courage is not the absence of fear. It is the presence of a calling – a dream that pulls you beyond yourself. Hence it is something you can never lose. It is always something that you can choose. So choose it today!’
Yes my brethren, I’m pleading with us to CHOOSE courage over fear today, because it’s ever so necessary in our faith walk with Christ, especially in these fearful end times.
Walking in fear is not acceptable in a child of God, for Christ died that we might have freedom, freedom from fear and all its associates. And to have freedom, one must have the courage to trust Jesus, as well as to handle whatever you need to handle.
That’s why Bruh David was able to so boldly proclaim in our Bit: ‘The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?’
And the resounding answer from a follower of Christ, is simply: ‘ABSOLUTELY NOBODY!’ Yes friends, we ought not to be afraid of anybody or anything in this world.
Listen to Jesus on whom to fear. ‘And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.’ (Luke 12:4-5)
Oh my Christian brethren, those are words straight from the mouth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and as His followers, we ought to listen attentively to what he says and put it into action!
And here are two simple explanations from the scholars on those verses. ’12:4. The body’s death is not the end of a person’s life’ ’12:5. God is the One with this power (James 4:12).’
Yeh precious people, the death of our mortal bodies doesn’t mean the end of life, rather, it is the beginning of eternal life with Jesus! Glory to God!
And ONLY God has the power to cast any of us into hell with the evil one. So once you’re living under His mighty umbrella, there’s nothing to fear.
And hear how Moses put it to the Israelites many, many moons ago. ‘Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.’ (Deut.31:6) Words of absolute truth my brethren!
And furthermore, listen to how often God warned Joshua about not being fearful when He anointed him leader of the Israelites after Moses’ death. ‘There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
Be strong and of a good courage… Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do all the law which Moses my servant commanded thee… Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.’ (Josh.1:5, 6,7,9)
Yeh friends, within four verses, God warned Joshua three times to be strong and courageous and not be afraid. The same advice goes out to us today my people, so let’s take it to heart nuh, since it’s only the courage and strength we get from God that will see us successfully through this earthly life.
Now hear Bruh David wrap it up, from Psalm 62: ‘In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.’ (Ps.62:7-8)
Yes, let’s ponder that for a moment nuh, before we move on to declare our Tuesday Mantra, boldly proclaiming to the world, whom and whose we are.
In strong voice now: ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And if we sincerely believe all of that deep down in our hearts, then let’s go out and put it all into action nuh, as our Leader, Jesus desires of us. Much LOVE!
…the fear of man…can never outweigh the courage of God…for Him that is in us…is greater than he that is in the world…
21 May 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a toehold, all creatures great and small, All things bright and beautiful, all things wise and wonderful, British Empire, clothed with majesty, come before him, death, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, each bird that sings, eternally grateful, girded himself, glory to God, good things, good tidings, Granny's wise words, I AM, imprtance, Israel, it cannot be moved, joy, joyous time, let our hair down, LOVE, loving-kindness, magnify the Lord, meadows, outpouring of love, peace, praise his holy name, reipe fruits, resurrection, rushes by the water, sacrifice, salvation, smell the roses, strength, summer sun, tall trees, thanksgiving, the beauty of nature, the evil one, the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob, the Lord God made them all, the Lord reigns, the New testament, the wonder of Jesus, the world is established, Victoria Day, wisdom, worthy to be praised
Psalm 93:1. The Lord reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the Lord is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath girded himself: the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved (shaken).
Oh friends, what a joy it is to wake up one more day and smell the roses! Wow! Our God certainly knows how to thrill us; what with the beauty of nature and the wonder of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!
And would you believe that I completely forgot that this was a long weekend in the greatest big country in the world – Canada. It’s the Victoria Day holiday on Monday to celebrate the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901) over the British Empire, at a time when the sun truly never set on it.
So you can imagine the celebrations have begun in earnest since possibly Thursday, and I’m probably a tad late in reminding us to heed Granny’s wise words – Sonny boy, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business! (smile)
But putting all jokes aside, we definitely don’t want to give the evil one even a toehold in our souls as we continue celebrating over the next two days. So let’s be very careful how we let our hair down in this joyous time nuh.
Consequently, as we gather this Sunday morning to praise, worship and fellowship in God’s sanctuary, let’s open the proceedings with this glorious hymn of praise, regarding the beauty of nature that we’ve spoken of above. Now, with a burning joy in our souls, let’s lift up our heads, hearts, eyes and hands as we open our mouths and offer a sacrifice of praise to our great and wonderful God.
‘(Refrain: All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful: The Lord God made them all.) Each little flow’r that opens, Each little bird that sings, He made their glowing colors, He made their tiny wings. (Refrain) The purple-headed mountains, The river running by, The sunset and the morning That brightens up the sky. (Refrain)
The cold wind in the winter, The pleasant summer sun, The ripe fruits in the garden, He made them every one. (Refrain) The tall trees in the greenwood, The meadows where we play, The rushes by the water, To gather every day. (Refrain)
He gave us eyes to see them, And lips that we might tell How great is God Almighty, Who has made all things well. All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful: The Lord God made them all.’
And isn’t that all gospel truth my people? It is indeed! Our great God made it ALL, and He made it WELL! Now we must sing forth His praise, magnify His Holy Name and let the world know about all His wonderful deeds, plus His LOVING-kindness, mercy, grace, forgiveness and salvation that He has so LOVINGLY prepared for all those who belief on the name of Jesus Christ His sinless Son!
Wow! What an awesome God we serve and worship my brethren! Please let us never forget that! And thus we are able to truthfully declare the words of the psalmist in our Bit: ‘The Lord reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the Lord is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath girded himself: the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved (shaken).’
Oh glory to our great God my people! He is indeed the great I AM! There’s NONE like Him in all the world! How could there be eh, when He made it ALL? That’s just not logical!
And Psalm 95 – A psalm of praise to the great God admonishes us: ‘Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise (shout joyfully) unto him with psalms (songs). For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand (His possession) are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also.
The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. O come let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand (under his care.’ (Ps.95:2-7)
Ah mih breddren, if we would just take our God as seriously as we should eh, our world and our lives would be so much better off than they are right now! And if you don’t believe me, then listen to the prophet Isaiah as he declares to his people Israel the promise that the Lord, the God of their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob will deliver them from captivity.
‘How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings (news), that publisheth (proclaims) peace; that bringeth good tidings (news) of good (things), that publisheth (proclaims) salvation). That saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth.’ (Is.52:7)
Now what more can we ask for or want eh friends? We have the bringing of good tidings, good news and good things through the gospel of the New Testament, where Christ indeed offered us peace and salvation through His sacrifice of death, His awesome resurrection and His atonement for our sins!
One would think that we’d be all overjoyed by such a monumental outpouring of LOVE and joy, but unfortunately it has left many of us unmoved, even annoyed and angry. Hn! But friends, the wise few of us indeed know who butters our bread – Almighty God – and we are eternally grateful!
Now let’s see if we can’t spread the good tidings of good things as Jesus desires of us, so that others can recognize its immortal importance and joyfully give their lives to Him too. For that is the wisdom of the ages! Much LOVE!
…oh magnify the Lord with me…praise His holy name…for He is indeed worthy to be praised…
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