1 John 4:7. Beloved, let us LOVE one another: for LOVE is of God; and every one that LOVETH is born of God, and knoweth God.
Oh Friends, please use that spirit of forgiveness that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ has put in your souls to forgive the ole fella for sending this Bit a tad late. (smile) Yuh see the ole fella went partying last night and didn’t get home till after one this morning. And since He’s no longer a young pup, he had to get some rest before attempting to write the Bit.
And yes, the partying was decent! It was the second annual Boat Cruise held by my church out on the Toronto waterfront. This year though, unlike last year’s day timer, it was a night-time jaunt, from 7.30 p.m to midnight. And I never tire of seeing Toronto’s coastline at night, lit up like a necklace of sparkling jewels, although it’s daily morphing more and more into a true concrete jungle.
But Friends, when that big, beautiful, golden night light of God’s, the full moon, rose over the surrounding hills, it certainly overwhelmed the man-made lights, showing just how powerful and majestic are the things of God.
This year’s attendance on the cruise was better than last year’s, possibly because we held it in conjunction with another organization. However, I think I enjoyed myself better last year, possibly because my left knee was acting up, so I couldn’t party as heartily as I wanted to. Had to show a modicum of circumspection and respect to the ole knee joint. Hn, hn!
In any case, my days for prancing and dancing like a leggo-beast, seem to be over. That must please the duchess and some family members a whole lot, since I won’t embarrass them anymore with my over-exuberant behaviour. (smile) But yuh know, the duchess partied heartier than me last night, so she has nothing to complain about.
My one other complaint is that the D.J, though he played some decent enough music, he stuck with the fast and furious young people stuff too much. Don’t get me wrong, the party, once it got going, never lacked for exuberance, but you can’t play music for four hours and not even play one slow, locks-down, rent-a-tile music.
No way José! That is just not apropos, especially with the number of older folks that were there. Although I was made to understand that in the world of today’s youth, holding on to dance is no longer the norm.
Ah Lord eh! How foolish can our young people get eh? There’s no better feeling than wrapping your arms around another human, or being wrapped in someone’s arms, and just slowly floating and drifting along the dance floor, eyes closed, mind quiet and worry free, while some slow, sweet, soulful music caresses your soul!
Ah Friends, that’s the experience from which LOVE springs eternal. (smile)
And talking about LOVE, it’s time to introduce our Bit: ‘Beloved, let us LOVE one another: for LOVE is of God; and every one that LOVETH is born of God, and knoweth God.’
Now before we get into any scriptures, let’s hear from the scholars on that verse. ‘John returns to the theme of mutual LOVE. Perhaps the false teaching he felt compelled to combat had contributed suspicion and contention in the fellowship.
In context, John is not saying that everyone who LOVES is somehow a Christian, whether they trust in Christ or not. He makes it clear elsewhere that true knowledge of God entails right belief about Christ, as well as right response to God, including LOVE of others.
Mere human LOVE apart from Christ’s redeeming presence and motivation falls short of LOVE in its fullest dimension as a human response to God’s perfect and infinite compassion. (cf. 1 Cor. 13)’
Yes Friends, we’re not talking about the wishy-washy, erroneous emotions of lust, desire and passion that nowadays pass for LOVE. Instead we’re referring to the true, heartfelt feeling of care and consideration for others that fill our souls, as a result of our trust, faith and close, personal interaction with Almighty God.
And earlier on in chapter 3, John explains his reasoning. ‘Whosoever is born of God doth not commit (practice) sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.’ (1 John 3:9)
Now that deserves some explanation, which the scholars provide. ‘John is not teaching sinless perfection (see 1:8,10; 2:2). He speaks here of habitual practice of known sinful acts. The true believer’s actions will conform to the character of his true father, either God or Satan. The person born of God will reflect this in his behaviour.’
Yes my people, we all sin from time to time, but it’s the habitual wrongdoing, especially when we know better, that marks us as children of Lucifer.
But enough for today, time and space have run out. However we’ll continue this message tomorrow, if our great and LOVING God so desires. Till then, please ponder the topic, and may the Lord bless and keep us safe from all harm, give us His awesome peace that passes all human understanding, and help us to LOVE Him and each other with deeper conviction. That is wisdom for all the ages! Much LOVE!
…to truly know God…is to LOVE Him…with all our heart, mind, body and soul…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 27 July 2013 1 John 4:7
27 Jul 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: boat cruise, born of God, children of Lucifer, Christ's redeeming presence, desire, faith, forgiveness, God's awesome peace, God's infinite compassion, God's night light, habitual wrongdoing, heartfelt feeling, human understanding, leggo-beast, locks-down, LOVE, LOVE is of God, LOVE of others, LOVE one another, LOVE springs eternal, lust, modicum of circumspection, party hearty, passion, personal interaction with God, practice sin, religion, rent-a-tile music, right belief about Christ, right response to God, saviour jesus christ, sinful acts, spirituality, the things of God, theology, trust
Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 June 2013 Proverbs 4:26
08 Jun 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: Advocate, avoiding obstacles, be of good cheer, calmness, chastening, Christian witness, consider thy path, cords of sin, courage, definition of courage, easy row to hoe, entrap, eternal life, faithful Father God, faithful promise, fearlessness, feeble knees, firmness, folly, fruit of righteousness, god head, high priest, holy spirit, iniquities, Jesus, joyful people, look to Jesus, LOVE, mortal life, overcome the world, power, punish the wrongdoer, quality of mind and spirit, righteousness., salvation, saviour jesus christ, selfless Saviour, sexual temptation, sound mind, spirit of fear, spiritual strength, spirituality, straight and narrow path, the ways of man, undeniable truth, very essence of wisdom, words of wisdom
Proverbs 4:26: Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.
Oh Friends, another beautiful day is being heralded all around the world! And we Christians are the luckiest of the lucky!
Why? Because we have a just and faithful Father God to watch over and provide for us; a selfless Saviour who died to cleanse us of our sins, and is now our Advocate and High Priest; and last but certainly not least, we have the Holy Spirit which dwells in us and guides us in all righteousness. Wow!
And that’s not all, for when this mortal life on earth is done, we have the faithful promise of salvation and eternal life with the Trinity of our God-head. So what more can we ask eh my brethren? Nothing really.
But that also means that we’re supposed to be the most joyful people on the planet, which unfortunately we’re not. Too many of us are still fearful of the world and the evil things in it. But remember that our Saviour Jesus Christ says that He has overcome the world, so we should not fear, but be of good cheer. (John 16:33) And likewise Bruh Paul cautioned Timothy: ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound mind.’ (2 Tim.1:7)
Oh Friends, it therefore behoves us to stand steadfast, strong and courageous in the faith, to do what we have been called to do, obviously with the able assistance of our triumvirate God-head. And to help us do that, here’s a definition of Courage, from Uncle Charles, Charles Stanley. Some of you might have heard it in a broadcast a few weeks back. He defines courage as: ‘The quality of mind and spirit enabling us to meet danger, opposition or the challenges of life with fearlessness, calmness and firmness.’
And that’s indeed courage in a nutshell my people! The ability to face anything, despite abnormal or unfavourable circumstances should be the motto and work of our Christian witness. And remember too that courage doesn’t necessarily mean the absence of fear, but doing it even though we’re afraid, because we have that awesome promise of our faithful God that He will work everything out for the good of those He’s called and who LOVE Him. (Rom.8:28)
But my fellow believers, having all that help is of no good unless we use it, unless we do our part. And a portion of our part is to do as our Bit advises. ‘Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.’ Yes Friends, we need to seriously consider the paths we choose in life, before walking them, because we can be cruelly led astray if we choose the wrong ones.
And Cousin Sol warns us of one such wrong path in the next chapter when he talks about adultery. ‘And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished (enraptured) with a strange (an immoral) woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger (seductress)?
For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and he pondereth (observes, weighs) all his goings. His own iniquities shall take (entrap) the wicked himself, and he shall be holden (caught) with the cords of his sins. He shall die without (for lack of) instruction: and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.’ (Prov.5:20-23)
Oh my brethren, more awesome words of wisdom and undeniable truth! The Lord sees all our comings and goings, and all the thoughts of our hearts and minds are constantly exposed to His righteous stare, therefore we cannot afford to err foolishly and succumb to wicked devices, for those same evil devices will cause our inevitable and unfortunate downfall.
And here’s some info from the scholars. ‘Another reason for rejecting sexual temptation is that the Lord sees all and will punish the wrongdoer. He shall die does not necessarily mean a physical death, but it refers to an absence of life. The adulterer will miss out on the full and joyous life that God intended.’
And all of that is corroborated by the author of Hebrews, when talking about God’s discipline and the running of our earthly race. ‘Now no chastening (discipline) for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised (trained) thereby.
Wherefore lift up (strengthen) the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way (be dislocated); but let it rather be healed.’ (Heb.12:11-13)
Yeh mih people, none of us likes to be disciplined, but it’s often necessary to teach us righteousness. Therefore we have to be strong and courageous and walk the straight and narrow path, else we’ll most certainly go astray.
And we’ll end with some more useful info from the scholars. ‘Some of the runners in verse 1 have grown so weary that they have become stooped and need spiritual strength to be straightened up again. They must be given help, yet they themselves also must straighten their paths by avoiding obstacles that would spiritually trip them up.’
Oh Friends, it’s definitely not an easy row we have to hoe as believers, but as Bruh Paul so wisely informed the Philippians: ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.’ (Phil.4:13) And so too can all of us my brethren.
So let’s put Christ first and foremost in our lives nuh, thus enabling us to stay on that straight and narrow path, without veering either to the right or to the left. For that’s the very essence of wisdom! Much LOVE!
…when our eyes, hearts and minds look to Jesus…then our feet automatically tread the straight and true way…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 29 May 2013 Matthew 22:36
29 May 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: Amen, burnt offerings, Calvary's cross, christianity, common sense, destruction, disobedience, dissensions, divisions, do what is right, first and great commandment, foolish existence, hate, havoc, hypocrites, idolatry, iniquity, Jesus Christ, let's get together, live in peace and LOVE, Love God, LOVE Revolution, LOVE your neighbour, Mammon, mayhem, murder, Praise the Lord, prosperity, sacrifices, saviour jesus christ, showers of blessing, sinless life, sorrowful waste, stop all the foolish wars, stubbornness, the blood of Jesus, the great commandment, things of Mammon, time for Christians to rise up, troubled times, true believer, truth, understanding, unnecessary suffering, violence, wake up and smell the roses, water from heaven, wisdom, witchcraft, wonderful Lord and Saviour
Today’s Scrip-Bit 4 May 2013 Isaiah 40:11
04 May 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: christianity, closer walk with Jesus, destroy the fat and strong, due dilgence, feed his flock, fly by night, good time, green pastures, intimate relationship with Christ, isaiah 40, mountains of Israel, never be too busy for God, persistent excellence, responsibilities of a shepherd, review New Year's resolution, rich pasture, saviour jesus christ, seek out my sheep, shepherd, spirituality, ungodly world, wonderful god
Isaiah 40:11. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those with young.
Oh Friends, it’s already the 4th day of May, and I want to see if we’ve done our due diligence for this month as yet. I’m talking about reviewing our New Year’s resolution monthly, to see if we’ve made any improvement, or have lost ground. The reason here is that when we check it out monthly, instead of at year’s end, we have a much better chance of keeping it. And many of you are asking, what was our New Year’s resolution again? Well for those who have forgotten, meaning that you obviously haven’t checked it in the last few months, our most important and only resolution was to develop a closer walk, a more intimate relationship with our LOVING Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Please remember my brethren that this is not a fly-by-night operation we’re trying to build, where it arises in full bloom one day, and then disappears the next. It’s a constant and consistent relationship built up over time, by spending time with Jesus, talking most intimately with Him, listening to His comments, and then trying to emulate Him in all aspects of our lives. Obviously we won’t ever get to His standard, but persistent excellence is what he requires from His followers. That means if we don’t spend serious and sufficient time with Him, our relationship is likely to falter. As they say, for each day we don’t read or hear the Word, our faithfulness slips a little. And with all the unnecessary things and relationships being foisted upon us these days by an evil and ungodly world, we need the constant truth of the Word even more than before. So please my Friends, let’s sit down today and review the state of our relationship with Christ. And don’t say you’re too busy. You should never be too busy for God! Just imagine if you called on Him in a dire emergency and you got a recording that He was too busy to deal with your problem at that time. What would your reaction be eh? Most likely you’ll want to write God off as being of no use. Well just think that that works both ways my people, cause it takes two to tango. And God is not there to be our servants, always there at our childish, petty beck and call. We were made to be His servants. And now that we’ve gotten the right direction in which authority flows, let’s look at our Bit; ‘He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those with young.’ Oh my fellow believers, throughout the Good Book, a shepherd’s role has often been mentioned. Why is that eh? I guess in the first place the Jewish society of old was an agrarian community, with farming and animal husbandry being their basic livelihood. So it was something they all could relate to and understand. And secondly, I guess, a shepherd played so many roles in the lives of his flock that it became a good analogy for a kind, caring, efficient and disciplined person. The shepherd is responsible for leading the sheep to green pastures and drinkable water, for protecting them from ferocious prey, for ensuring that they don’t get lost and for looking after them when they are sick. In other words, he is their be all and end all, responsible for their every need. The shepherd is the most important person in the sheep’s life. The only thing he doesn’t do, is create them. No wonder the prophets spoke about God as a shepherd, because He IS the most important person in our lives, whether we realize it or not, and He created us. Jeremiah puts it thus: ‘Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles (coastlands) afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.’ (Jer.31:10) And Ezekiel had this to say: ‘Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock (sheep); neither shall the shepherds feed themselves anymore; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat (food) for them. For thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers (streams), and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat (rich) pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God. I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgement (justice).’ (Ezek.34:10-16) Oh Friends, oh Friends, what an awesome promise from our Creator! After detailing the sins of Israel’s shepherds (leaders) and pronouncing judgement on them, (Ezek.34:1-9) God promises to Himself be the true Shepherd of Israel. I wasn’t planning to use all of that scripture, but after reading it, how could I not share it, because I’m sure many of us are not acquainted with it. I wasn’t until I read it just now. And doesn’t it sound very familiar? Of course, because those are the same things that Jesus said when He came to save us centuries later. But that’s enough for today, we have a lot to ponder. So please let’s get ourselves together and spend some good time with our wonderful God, reviewing our relationship with Him, and finding out what His plans are for each of our lives. That’s wisdom at the highest level. Much LOVE!…the sheep is of no use…without the shepherd…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 30 April 2013 Psalm 25:1
30 Apr 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: Alpha and Omega, be prepared, be ready, christianity, conquered death, Easter Sunday, end of April, eternal life, free gift of salvation, Glory Halleujah, God cares, guidance and protection, I lift up my soul, Jesus Christ triumphant, LOVE, loving kindness, O Lord, preaching of christ is foolishness, preserve my soul, psalm 25, rebellious children, reconciled to God, sacrificed Jesus, saviour jesus christ, spiritual selves, stubborn, the power of God, worldly lives, worthy to be praised
Psalm 25:1. Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
And then it was Tuesday! Oh Friends, can you believe that this is already the last day of April? Didn’t it just begin a couple of weeks ago, when we celebrated that miraculous and most wonderful day of Easter Sunday, when our Saviour, Jesus Christ rose triumphantly from the dead, thus conquering, once and for all time, death, the grave and the evil fool Lucifer? Ah mih people, it surely seems like that was only two weeks ago, though in actual fact it was four. That just goes to show how fast time is moving in these last days, but we’re so busy with our worldly lives and concerns that we don’t even notice it. Well I’m here today to tell us to please sit up and take notice, to pay attention, to get our spiritual selves in order, for Jesus can come again at any time, and once that happens, all options shall disappear. So as we were taught from childhood, let’s be ready, let’s be prepared, so that even if Jesus comes today, our place in eternity with Him will be secured. Therefore, in concert with that wise mindset, let’s then turn to Almighty God and declare, like Bruh David does in our Bit: ‘Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.’ Yeh Friends, that’s a most appropriate action and declaration! We couldn’t do any better than offering our souls, in fact every part of us, body and soul, to the great and wonderful God who created us, provides for us, and LOVES us a whole bunch, in spite of the stubborn and rebellious children that we are. What more can we ask eh? Nothing really. But our God and Father cares so deeply for us, and couldn’t abide losing us for all time, so, in spite of our very sinful condition, of His own free will, He sacrificed the life of His only Son, Jesus, that we could be reconciled to Him, once again become a part of His wonderful fold, with the free gift of salvation and eternal life. Wow! What a magnanimous Deity! And all God’s people gave a mighty shout of ‘Glory Hallelujah! Our God is most wonderful and worthy to be praised! Give Him thanks and praise His Holy Name for ever and ever!’ Ah mih people, that’s the kind of excited and animated reaction that should take place in our souls when we consider the greatness of our God, and all that He’s so selflessly done for a set of ungrateful children. Bruh David, despite all his faults and problems, realized from early on, the amazing qualities of the God of his fathers, and wisely dedicated his life to Him. Hear how he continues in this psalm – A prayer for guidance and protection. ‘O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed: let not mine enemies triumph over me. Yea, let none that wait (in faith) on thee be ashamed: let them be ashamed which transgress (deal treacherously) without cause. Show me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.’ (Ps.25:2-5) Oh my brethren, that’s the sort of declaration each and every believer ought to make to his most awesome God, in both sincerity and truth! It’s the wisest action available to us poor sinners down here on planet earth. Why aren’t more of us doing it eh? Possibly because we like the things of the world too much, and that runs counter to God’s dictates. Also because we don’t trust what we don’t or can’t see, and believe like the Greeks, that the preaching of Christ is foolishness. (1 Cor.1:23) However Friends, the preaching of Christ and the cross to us believers is indeed the power of God! (1 Cor.1:18) I don’t know how to truly get into the heads and hearts of unbelievers, but it’s imperative that we do, my people. Bruh David surely knew on which side his bread was buttered though, as he consistently cried out to God. Listen to him in Psalm 143 – Teach me to do thy will. ‘Hear (answer) me speedily, O Lord; my spirit faileth: hide not thy face from me, lest I be (become) like unto them that go down into the pit (grave). Cause me to hear thy LOVING-kindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.’ (Ps.143:7-8) What words of heartfelt trust and surrender! And hear him again in Psalm 86 – Teach me thy way, O Lord. ‘Bow down thine ear, O Lord, and hear me: for I am poor and needy. Preserve my soul (life); for I am holy: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee. Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily (all day long). Rejoice (make glad) the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.’ (Ps.86:1-5) And that’s the infallible, unadulterated, undeniable, gospel truth! Oh Friends, there’s no better person to turn to than the alive and kicking God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the ONE TRUE God in existence, the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the One who created the universe and all therein, and controls it under His mighty hand! Please, I’m imploring us today to lose ourselves in the great God of creation, to offer our souls as living sacrifices, to surrender our very lives to His awesome guidance, so that we can enjoy His mercy, forgiveness and LOVING-kindness! That is indeed the zenith of wisdom! Much LOVE!…the only sensible alternative for mankind…is to bow to the One who created them…then selflessly saved them… P.S. The ole body rebelled on me this morning, refused to get up, crying out for lack of sleep. (smile) Remember the ole fella is only human. (smile) That’s why your Word of Inspiration is a tad late this morning. Much LOVE!
Today’s Scrip-Bit 31 March 2013 Mark 16:6
31 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: Christian faith, christianity, conqueror of death and the grave, crucifixion, cruel cross, don't fear, earthly lusts, Easter Sunday, empty tomb, eternal life, fateful day, first fruits, glory, gratefulness, Hades, Hallelujah, honour, Jesus' resurrection, joy, judgement, kingdom of god, LOVE Revolution, LOVING Creator, praise, sacrifice, salvation, saviour jesus christ, spiritual things, swallow up death, thanks, theology, true fellowship, wipe away tears, wonderful god
Mark 16:6. And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.
HAPPY EASTER!
Oh Friends, it’s Easter morn! Arise and shout for joy because HE IS RISEN! Yes my people, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ has been resurrected through the mighty power of His heavenly Father! He has forever conquered that evil Lucifer and his evil empire of darkness, destruction, death and the grave, thus guaranteeing salvation and perpetuating eternal life for all those who believe on His Holy Name! For as Bruh Paul boldly and truthfully declared to the Corinthians: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? Oh grave (Hades), where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.’ (1 Cor.15:54b-57) Oh my brethren, Beelzebub’s army has gone down to certain defeat, therefore let the heavens ring out with our joy, as we joyously sing: ‘Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelu… Hallelu… Hallelujah!’ Oh my fellow believers, since that first day of creation, there’s never been a better or more important day in man’s turbulent, rebellious history than this one, Easter Sunday! So let’s all give enormous and sincere thanks and praise to a most wonderful God, a most LOVING Creator, who LOVED His sinful, fallen creation so much, that He made His ONLY Son sacrifice Himself on that cruel cross to save us from the worse fate possible, eternal separation from Him. And all God’s people declared a loud and grateful: ‘All praise, thanks, honour and glory be unto thee Almighty God, who wanted to reconcile us to Yourself so badly, that You broke Your own heart, burdening Your Son Jesus Christ with our disgusting sins, to make us clean and whole again.’ And what’s so amazing about the whole thing Friends, is how seamlessly and truthfully Jesus’ life came together from the prophecy of Isaiah in chapter 53, to His resurrection hundreds of years later as recorded in our Bit, where the women of Jesus’ company came to anoint Him that first Easter morning and found an angel sitting inside an empty tomb, dressed in a long white robe, which obviously scared them half to death: ‘And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted (afraid): Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.’ We all know the Resurrection Story, so I won’t get into it, please read it on your own and refresh your hearts and minds with it. Now listen to Isaiah’s prophecy earlier on in chapter 25, in his song of praise by the redeemed. ‘He will swallow up death in victory (forever); and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of His people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it. And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.’ (Is.25:8-9) Oh Friends, though that relates particularly to after the Great Tribulation, Christ’s resurrection was the first step on the road to salvation. Thus now is indeed the right time to rejoice in the salvation of our God, because He has done marvellous things for us, things we certainly don’t deserve, and couldn’t earn, even if we felt so inclined. As Bruh Paul assured the believers at Corinth. ‘But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept (have died). For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.’ (1 Cor.15:20-22) Wow! What a blessed day this Easter Sunday really is my people! It’s the strong, sure and certain foundation of our whole Christian faith, for without Jesus’ triumphant resurrection, come that fateful day of judgement, we would all have perished in Hades with the prince of darkness. But Jesus in His most LOVING-kindness and selflessness, through His sacrificial blood and victory over death, gave us the opportunity to move from darkness to light, from death to eternal life. Unfortunately though my brethren, today we’re joyous, celebrating this most important event, and full of Christian gung ho, but come tomorrow, or a few days hence, many of us will revert to walking in the lust of the flesh, craving, seeking and running down earthly things. As someone once said: ‘Oh, how soon we do forget!’ But please remember Friends, that the things of the world are fallible, deceitful and easily destroyed. However, the kingdom of God is infallible and indestructible, and will stand the test of time, long after this earth is no more. That’s why Jesus kept pounding the kingdom of God into our heads, hoping it would eventually percolate into our hearts and souls. ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:33) Oh Friends, it’s so plain and simple: when we seek the spiritual things of God, all the material things of earth that we need, will be given to us by the Father. It seems though that we have to be continually reminded of that fact, since the pull of worldly things keep drawing us back to them like a magnet, like the earth and gravity. However, my beautiful fellow believers and followers of Jesus Christ, please let’s make this Easter Sunday of the year 2013 a most remarkable and memorable one, by faithfully pledging to our God, each other and ourselves to rise up higher, like Jesus, and also to remain faithful and true, showing the proper gratefulness and thanks for His awesome sacrifice and LOVE, by focussing steadfastly on His kingdom and doing the things necessary to further it. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Oh Friends, let’s celebrate our wonderful faith and glorious Saviour, Jesus Christ today in song, dance and true fellowship, and show the world by our deeds of LOVING-kindness in action, that we are indeed the salt of the earth and the light of the world, worthwhile leaders of the ongoing LOVE Revolution. That’s definitely wisdom at its zenith! Much LOVE!…to know, know, know Him…is certainly…to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Him…and after all He’s done for us…just to do His bidding…makes it all worthwhile…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 9 March 2013 Philippians 1:11
09 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: afflicted, bad habits, Christ's Church, conquered death and the grave, Daylight Savings Time, dissensions, divisions, done my assigned work, earthly pilgrimage, fruits of righteousness, glorification of God, glorify the Lord, good habits, good works, humbled, Jesus Christ, let your light shine, LOVE, northern climes, nothing's impossible with Jesus, obedience, praise and glory of God, run the race, saviour jesus christ, servant, somerset maugham, spring-like morning, sure conquerors
Philippians 1:11. Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.
Oh Friends, on this spring-like morning in the northern climes, I sure hope that these words meet you all in good health and steadfast faith in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! I also hope that you’re enjoying the numerous new mercies and blessings He’s rained down from heaven this morning. Oh what a wonderful God we serve and worship! And all God’s people shouted a joyous: ‘Praise His Holy Name, for He is indeed worthy to be praised!’ And that’s an indisputable fact Friends! Just a reminder here to those who live under the Daylight Savings time obstacle or debacle. And I consider it both, because it disrupts lives. One minute you’re going to work or school in the dark and coming home in the dark. Then next, you’re doing both in the daylight. I really don’t know if it serves any useful purpose to the ordinary citizen, but the powers that be have declared we must have it, and so we do. Anyway, please remember that the clocks go forward one hour at 2 a.m, tonight or tomorrow morning, your choice. (smile) Now let me share an interesting quote from the famous British writer, Somerset Maugham (1874 -1965), who says: ‘The unfortunate thing about this world is that good habits are so much easier to give up than bad ones.’ And all of us can certainly attest to the truth of that statement, since all our lives we’ve been fighting to give up bad habits, but too often find it extremely difficult, if not impossible. However my brethren, when you’re indwelt by the Holy Spirit of Jesus, then nothing is impossible! That’s because you and Jesus are the perfect pair, together you can do anything, successfully fight any battle that comes along! Together you’re sure conquerors! Just look at how he conquered death and the grave! So the smartest move you can make, if you have a problem habit, or any problem at all, is to get truly connected to Jesus. What an eye opening experience that can be my people! And I’m saying this from personal experience, not simple hearsay. This brings us to our Bit: ‘Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.’ And as yesterday, we’ll use the scholars’ simpler translation. ‘Filled with the fruit that is righteousness, which comes through Jesus Christ for the purpose of glorifying and praising God.’ Now the last two days we’ve talked about the fruits of righteousness in our Bit, today we’ll talk about the last half, ‘unto the glory and praise of God.’ And we’ll begin with some choice words of Bruh David from Psalm 22; a cry of anguish and song of praise, where he astutely warns us: ‘Ye that fear the Lord, praise him; all ye the seed (descendants) of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him (hold Him in awesome reverence), all ye the seed of Israel. For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard.’ (Ps.22:23-24) Oh my fellow believers, that’s as good a reason as any to praise and glorify our most awesome God! Now let’s turn to some words of Jesus on the subject. And yuh better believe mih breddren, that doing the Father’s will and glorifying Him was paramount in Jesus’ earthly sojourn. It was His raison d’être, He was totally consumed by it. That’s because He knew where all His strength and power to do His earthly job came from. Right from the start, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus preached that glorifying the Father was important. ‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’ (Matt.5:16) Oh Friends, are we doing that? Obviously not to the extent that we should. Next we can turn to just after Jesus told His disciples about His betrayal, and Judas left. (John 13:21-30) ‘Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway (immediately) glorify him.’ (John 13:31-32) To Jesus, the end result was always about the glorification of His heavenly Father! Remember too, as Bruh Paul reminded the Philippians: ‘Who (Jesus Christ), 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) Yes my people, if only we could be half as obedient to Christ, as He was to the Father, Christ’s church here on earth would be sparkling and growing by leaps and bounds, instead of being more or less stagnant, possibly even shrinking, full of resentment, anger and strife, through too many petty divisions and dissensions. Jesus also drove home the point of obedience and glorification when telling the disciples the parable of the vine and the branches. ‘If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto (for) you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. As the Father hath LOVED me, so have I LOVED you: continue ye (abide) in my LOVE. If ye keep my commandments; ye shall abide in my LOVE; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in His LOVE.’ (John 15:7-10) Ah Friends, it’s all about obedience and LOVE! How are we shaping up in those departments eh? However we’re doing, I’m sure we can all do better. So let’s get a move on with it nuh, so that at the end of our earthly pilgrimage, we’ll be able to say, like Jesus: ‘Father, the hour is come, glorify thy Son, that thy Son may glorify thee…. I have glorified thee on the earth; I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.’ (John 17:1,4) Oh Friends, all I can say is that we go out into this evil, ungodly world and do the Father’s work as passionately and obediently as Jesus did, consequently glorifying Him. For us believers, that’s wisdom at its highest. Much LOVE!…the human being was sculpted by God…with unconditional LOVE…so that he could return that LOVE to God…unconditionally…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 27 February 2013 Psalm 21:6
27 Feb 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: absolute hope, actions, Bible Study, blessed, Christian beliefs, christianity, confidence, darkest hour, deceitful, earthly pilgrimage, evildoers, exceedingly glad, faith, footstools, God's Word, hearts, heavy load, joy, maturity, mercy, minds, pain, powers of darkness, praise, psalm 21, religion, roadblocks, saviour jesus christ, sliding, slipping, souls, spirituality, surrender, thankfulness, treacherous, true believers, true wisdom, trust, unfortunate experience, uptempo dance, victory, virgin snow, weather forecasters
Psalm 21:6. For thou hast made him most blessed for ever: thou hast made him exceeding glad with thy countenance.
Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 February 2013 Psalm 5:9
24 Feb 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: bitterness, choke hold, christianity, cursing, destruction, faithfulness, fallen creation, forgiveness, generosity, God's faithfulness, heartaches, heavenly hosts, human condition, justice, loving, mercy, misery, mornng by morning, Most High God, new mercies, pain, praise and thanksgiving, religion, sadness, saviour jesus christ, sincerity, spirituality, tears, testimony, trust, truth, worship
Psalm 5:9. For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue.
And yet another glorious day in the life begins my Friends, so let’s start it with some thanks and praise nuh. Let’s sing a verse of the old hymn that could probably be called ‘Old Faithful’ because it’s been around for a long time and whenever we sing it, it also regenerates our faith in the faithfulness and trustworthiness of our Wonderful God. Sing with me: ‘Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me. Morning by morning new mercies I see. All that I needed, thy hand hath provided. Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me.’ And isn’t that the awesome truth my fellow believers! We can all attest to the faithfulness of God in our lives; in the past, the present, and if we continue clinging to Him, also in the future. He’s just that kind of LOVING, trusting, generous and merciful God to all those who serve and worship Him in truth and sincerity. And all God’s people loudly and joyously declared: ‘All praise and thanksgiving be unto the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who made the earth, heavens, and all therein, and who controls it with LOVE, mercy, justice and forgiveness! Oh Lord, we your humble servants truly LOVE You, and this Sunday morning we bless and praise Your Most Holy Name! Amen.’ Oh Friends, did you see the big smiles on the faces of our heavenly Father and our Saviour, Jesus Christ as those heartfelt prayers reached up to heaven? Even the heavenly hosts were smiling and adding their own ‘Praise the Lord! For He is good and merciful and forgiving!’ Ah mih bredden, if there could only be such smiles and happiness down here on earth, instead of the many frowns, heartaches, sadness, tears and pain that currently envelop our world, that have us in an ever tightening choke hold. But I guess that’s the price we have to pay for being a fallen creation. And sadly, we’re not helping the situation by consciously steering our lives to the sinful side of our nature, instead of the righteous and godly side. We all have that pocket in our souls permanently reserved for our Maker, which nothing or no one else can fill, but unless we consciously venture to fill it with Him, our lives will end up a total mess. And if you don’t believe me, just take a look around at our society with so many people hurting and searching for relief from their many sorrows. Unfortunately though, they are searching in the wrong places, heading in the wrong direction. They’re turning to manmade aids; drugs, booze, shrinks etc, which are not helping, but making them worse, increasing their pain and sorrows. Ah Friends, there’s only one antidote for the human state, one prescription to ease his pain and suffering: that’s Almighty God, his Maker and Controller! And until we realize that and turn back to Him in droves, just like we’ve turned away in droves, the human state will remain one of exceedingly vile, evil, ungodly conditions. Tragic loss, pain and ‘sufferation’ will continue to be his unenviable lot. That brings us to our very appropriate Bit: ‘For there is no faithfulness (uprightness) in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness (destruction); their throat is an open sepulchre (tomb); they flatter with their tongue.’ And isn’t that the undeniable truth about the state of our society my fellow believers? It sure is! Now let me share a testimony of our Lord’s delightful faithfulness. When I began writing today, I had no clue what I was going to write about. I had not even opened the Good Book to look for a Bit. I just had the verse of the ‘Old Faithful’ Hymn written on a piece of paper, and contrary to my usual method of writing, where I do a rough copy on paper first, I just began writing on the computer and the words and ideas just flowed, so I continued, until I got to the unenviable lot of humans. Then I began chuckling, asked the Lord to guide me to an appropriate Bit, and opened my Bible. And, lo and behold, according to His great faithfulness, I found one in less than five minutes. Just goes to show Friends, that if we genuinely seek our God, we’ll find Him, and He will answer our prayers, especially where it pertains to His Word. Now let’s turn to some thought provoking scripture to corroborate our contentions. This comes from Bruh Paul’s writing to the Romans. ‘There is none righteous, No, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre (grave); with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: Their feet are swift to shed blood: Destruction and misery are in their ways: And the way of peace have they not known: There is no fear of God before their eyes.’ (Rom.3″10-18) Oh Friends, doesn’t that describe our world to a T? It certainly does. Bruh Paul uses his vast knowledge of the scriptures, using various bits and pieces to highlight our insufficiency and sad, degenerate state. Listen to the scholars comment on that passage. ‘Paul quotes scripture to prove universal guilt. Scripture, not Paul, is the judge. See Psalm 5:9; 10:7; 14:1-3; 140:3; Isaiah 59:7-8’ Those are some of the scriptures Bruh Paul uses in that very revealing section of Romans. And rather appropriately, just as we began, we’ll end with a glowing testimony from Isaiah on the Lord’s faithfulness. ‘O Lord, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.’ (Is.25:1) And that’s the gospel truth my brethren! So let’s go out now and do as that great prophet just said; praise and exalt the name of the Most High God Jehovah, for it is right and meet so to do. Much LOVE!…only in the faithfulness of our heavenly Father…can man put absolute trust…
Today’s Scrip-Bit 19 February 2013 Proverbs 26:11
19 Feb 2013 Leave a comment
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: affairs of the world, beautiful day, christianity, cleansed of our sin, day of salvation, deceitfulness, dog's vomit, dr robert h schuller, fall from grace, false teachers, fool's folly, glory hallelujah, Jesus Christ, learn from mistakes, omnipotent god, Pharaoh, pig from the mud, plagues, power of LOVE, Praise the Lord, repeating mistakes, saviour jesus christ, Thank you Father, the way of righteousness, uplifting prayers, warm sunshine, wisdom
Proverbs 26:11. As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly.
Oh Friends, oh Friends, it’s another beautiful day in the life! Wow! Praise the Lord! Yes, praise our wonderful God for it, because regardless of the suffering, the hardship, the heartache, the pain and illness we may be experiencing, we still know for sure that our God is good and fair and just, and He will not allow us to handle more than we can bear. And furthermore, whatever He brings us to, He’s faithfully promised to bring us through. And all God’s people declared a loud and joyful: ‘Glory Hallelujah! For the Lord He is indeed good to the undeserving children of men!’ Oh my brethren, that’s the basic beauty of the omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient Deity we serve and worship! And now, here’s one of those inspiring, positive, uplifting prayers from Dr. Robert H. Schuller’s Hour of Power Devotional, to get us started on the right foot for the day. It’s a prayer of joy, optimism and great expectations that today we’ll do well in the service of our Leader and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Pray with me: ‘Thank you, Father, for the beautiful surprises you are planning for me today. So often in my life, when it looked like the day would be dismal, depressing, and dark, an unexpected burst of golden sunshine exploded through a black cloud sending inspiring shafts of warm, beautiful sunshine into my life. Father, it is happening now! I can already feel the power of your LOVE, through Christ my Lord. Amen.’ Yuh know Friends, it truly amazes me, that I’ve been reading that Devotional for a few years now, but every time I come to one of those uplifting prayers that I share with you, it just seems like I’ve never see them before. It’s the same thing with the Good Book; every time you read it, you discover something new. That happened to me recently while reading Job. I discovered that his friends had actually come and sat down seven days and nights with him in the dust and ashes of his grief, without saying a word. It’s only after that, they began to rag on him about his supposed sins. (Job 2:13) That brings us to our Bit: ‘As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to (repeats) his folly.’ Ah Friends, that’s so true of so many of us today, it’s not funny! Just like a dog goes back and plays in its vomit, it seems very difficult for too many of us to learn from our mistakes, and thus we keep repeating the same ones over and over. As Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) likes to say, you can’t keep on doing the same thing and expect different results. Now listen to Peter, as he talks about false teachers and those who once knew God, but fell from grace and again became entangled in the shoddy, disgusting affairs of the world. ‘For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned (returns) to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.’ (2 Pet.2:21-22) Oh mih breddren, is that ever so true! I guess it’s where the saying, ‘you can take the mud from the pig, but you can’t take the pig from the mud,’ comes from. And we do it all the time. Jesus washes and cleanses us of our sins, but we then let the wily Lucifer tantalize us with his glitzy but empty and useless worldly things, and we fall right back into the mire of sin again. And a good example of that from way back when is Pharaoh, when Moses comes and asks him to let the Jewish people go, but Pharaoh refuses. It took something like (10) ten disasters upon his land and people, before Pharaoh agreed to set God’s people free. And my people, the worse thing that can happen to us when we’re undergoing tribulation or making serious mistakes is a break in the action, where we get a little relief from our misery. That unfortunately often gives us the wrong message, and causes us to continue our folly. That happened to Pharaoh after the plague of frogs, when Moses cried out to the Lord about it. (Ex.8:12-13) The Good Book declares: ‘But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite (relief), he hardened his heart, and hearkened not (did not listen) unto them; as the Lord had said.’ (Ex.8:15) Likewise do we my fellow believers, usually to our subsequent hurt. Pharaoh foolishly suffered through another five plagues after that, before he finally saw the light. And we’ll end with an interesting scripture from the hymn of praise in the day of salvation per Isaiah, re the foolishness of the wicked. ‘Let favour (grace) be showed to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness: in the land of uprightness will he deal unjustly, and will not behold the majesty of the Lord.’ (Is.26:10) Yes Friends, such is the deceitfulness and stupidity of the wicked, that even though Almighty God shows them favour, pours out His grace on them, they will not learn righteousness but continue their wicked ways. Please my people, let us not be numbered amongst that sorry, unfortunate lot. It’s a fool’s folly! And followers of Jesus are anything but fools; wisdom is our middle name. Much LOVE!…a wise man learns from his mistakes…but a fool continues in his foolish ways…
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