01 Aug 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future, a new creation, a new creature, afraid of light, all things are become new, atoned for, awesome privilege, be born again, be born of water and the spirit, be in christ, brings light to our souls, bron of the Spirit, choose Jesus, cold weather, common sense, compass your soul, deeds are evil, enter into the kingdom of god, eternal life, evil, fleshly nature, God the Good, Hades, holy spirit, if any man, live in obedience to christ, look forward to heaven, LOVE, Lucifer, lusting, Nicodemus, not looking back, old things are passed away, one presence, only one power, paid for all your sins, pain, peace, reconciled to the Father, sacrifice, sins, sorrow, spiritual nature, spiritually minded, stick staunchly, summer, summer memories, talk personally, the breath of life, the cross at Calvary, the gift of God, the prince of darkness, the things of the flesh, the throne room, the wages of sin is death, thumb their noses, true colours, washed white as snow, weather patterns, Wednesday Wail, wisdom
2 Corinthians 5:17. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Can you believe it friends, it’s already the first day of August, which means that the summer is almost over! Steups! Only thirty more days before the cold weather begins ominously creeping in… And oh, sometimes it doesn’t even creep in, it just comes roaring in full blast. So we need to make as many special summer memories as we can this month, because with the strange weather patterns going nowadays, who knows what will happen.
But before we go any further, let me remind us of this momentous and everlasting truth: ‘There is only ONE Power and ONE presence here – God the Good Omnipotent! Wow mih breddren! And is he ever Good and Omnipotent! He had to be; otherwise we’d be ALL now heading for Hades to dwell with Lucifer, instead of having the option to look forward to heaven with Christ! Praise His Holy Name!
And it really surprises me that so many people refuse to even look at the option with Jesus that brings light to our souls, even thumb their noses at it and stick staunchly with the prince of darkness and evil. Why are we so afraid of light eh? I guess because our deeds are evil and we’re afraid to expose them to the light because then others will see our true colours and know that we’re not what or who we claim to be.
But friends, when you wisely choose Jesus, that’s not a problem, because He washes away all of that muck with which you’re covered. His sacrifice on the cross at Calvary has already paid for all your sins for all time, and you become a new creation in Him, washed white as snow, atoned for and reconciled to the Father, with the amazing opportunity to go right to the throne room and talk personally with the Father.
Wow! What an awesome privilege that is my breddren! Yuh think Lucifer has time for you like the Lord does? Yuh think Lucifer is waiting to care for and comfort and relieve your sorrows like the Lord is? Not on yuh life! Lucifer just wants to get you into more evil and compass your soul with more pain and sorrow.
Thus Bruh Paul tells us in our Bit, in his second letter to the church at Corinth: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.’ Glory be mih people! What a blessing it is to throw off our old sinful, fleshly nature and receive the new, refreshed spiritual nature of Christ!
That’s why Jesus told Nicodemus when he asked about eternal things. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ (John 3:3) That means a new beginning, however a spiritual one, must be had to be associated with Christ.
As Jesus further told Nicodemus: ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth (wishes); and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. (John 3:5-8)
Yes friends, once we get in with Jesus, we no longer live an earthly or carnal life, we begin living a spiritual life, one from the inside out, not vice versa. That’s because once you become a believer the Holy Spirit of Jesus comes to dwell within you and lead and guide you in a spiritual manner.
As Bruh Paul reminds us when he wrote to the church at Rome, dealing with life in the Spirit: ‘For they that are after the flesh do mind (set their minds on) the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death: but to be spiritually minded is life, and peace.’ (Rom.8:5-6)
So to keep on lusting after the things of the flesh, the things of the world is death. However when we become spiritually minded, live in obedience to Christ’s Holy Spirit, we achieve a sense of peace and look forward to eternal life. And Bruh Paul puts it all nicely together earlier on in his missive to the Roman church. ‘For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through (in) Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Rom.6:23)
Ah friends, knowing that, how can we not LOVE and revere the Lord eh? If we have the slightest amount of common sense or wisdom, that verse would surely enlighten us to the fact that if we hang out with Jesus, through God’s mercy and LOVING-kindness, His unmerited favour, we won’t get what we deserve; eternal damnation, but rather eternal life. It’s up to each individual though to make a choice. Let’s hope we all make the right one.
And for those of us who have already made the right decision, let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, proudly letting the world know our position in Christ. In strong voice with sincere hearts: ‘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!’
And my fellow believers, as I keep saying, that future will be even more glorious than we can ask or imagine! Much LOVE!
…why foolishly choose death…when we can wisely choose life eh…
25 Jul 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a doer of the work, a forgetful hearer, acclamations, be slow to speak, be ye doers of the word, blessed in his deed, bolster our courage, but to fulfill, concentrate on the word, death, deceiving your own selves, glorious future, God will supply all my needs, God's Word, halfway home, hands on the plough, his riches in glory, I am not come to destroy, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, if God be for us, implanted in our hearts, keep keeping on, law of liberty, legalism, let every man, like a man, mature, Mosaic Law, my beloved brethren, natural disasters, negative happenings, not hearers only, old way of living, ongoing faith, Pharisees, practical treatise, pure religion, put away all evil stuff, religious laws, royal law, seeing himself in a mirror, sin, sincere heart, slow to wrath, spiritual intention of god, spoon feed, strife, swift to hear, the breath of life, the perfect law of liberty, the same page as jesus, this is the day the Lord has made, undefiled, visit the fatherless, we will rejoice and be glad in it, Wednesday Wail, widows
James 1:19. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.
Ah friends, after looking at some of the news headlines and seeing the unnecessary strife and the many natural disasters that are plaguing our once beautiful world, I decided that there was only one way to begin today’s Bit; that’s with some acclamations of our faith to bolster our courage and help us keep keeping on in the face of so much negative happenings.
So let’s affirm with sincere heart and ongoing faith. ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it! If God be for us, who can be against us eh? NOBODY whatsoever! I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me! And isn’t that a fact, a most awesome one! And last but not least: God will supply all my needs through His riches in glory through Jesus Christ!
Glory be mih people! That should get us going and hold us for today as we hear about and see the ungodly and disastrous things that are happening in our world.
And it’s only fitting that with the great amount of talk and li’l action taking place in our world that we should continue with our Bit from yesterday, where James talks about hearing and doing the word. ‘Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.’
And he told us why? ‘For the wrath of man worketh not (does not produce) the righteousness of God.’ (James 1:20) Therefore we should put away all evil and lustful stuff and concentrate on the Word that’s implanted in our hearts, since it is what keeps us going on the course of faith, thus helping us to mature as time goes by.
And he continues with this warning: ‘But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding (observing) his natural face in a glass (mirror): for he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed (what he does).’ (James 1:22-25)
Ah mih people, that is so reminiscent of so many of us today; we hear the word, then immediately forget it, and don’t put it into practice. And I believe it happens very much on a Sunday, where we go to church and hear God’s word preached, but as soon as we get out, we continue with our old way of living and don’t put what we heard into practice.
That’s obviously not good enough my people, for God’s Word is a practical treatise on daily living, and needs to be actioned if it is to be useful! So what’s the point of hearing it if we don’t intend to put it to good use in our lives eh? None whatsoever!
Anyway, listen to this explanation from the scholars. ‘1:25. The perfect law of liberty probably refers to the teachings of Christ and His apostles. This law is perfect, since Christ brought to completion the teachings and work of the Mosaic Law (cf. Matt.5:17-20; Rom.10:4) It is a law of liberty because it frees from the principles of sin and death (Rom.8:2-3; Gal.5:1,13). James also describes it as the royal law (2:8) for it is the law of the messianic King (cf. Gal.6:2).’
Ah precious people, what a day it was when Jesus defeated hell, death and the grave and set us free from all the terrorizing religious laws of Moses’ time, which no one could keep. And I’d like to say read those scriptures above, but I know very few of you will, but because I LOVE you all so much and care so much about your souls, I will spoon feed you with a couple of them. (smile)
Listen to Jesus on the Law of Moses. ‘Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prohets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.’ (Matt.5:17) Yes friends, Jesus was the fulfillment of the old law!
As the scholars tell us: ‘The New Testament Gospel is not contradictory to the Old Testament Law; rather it is the ultimate fulfillment of the spiritual intention of the law. Where the law had degenerated into legalism among the Pharisees, Jesus now takes the law beyond mere outward observance to the inner spiritual intention of God.’ God had always intended for us to end up with an inner connection, through His Holy Spirit, and that’s what Jesus came to do.
Now hear Bruh Paul as he talks to the Roman church about life in the Spirit. ‘There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.’ (Rom.8:1-2) And we all know that whom the Son sets free is free indeed!
So James concludes: ‘If any man among you seem to be (thinks he is) religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain (useless). Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.’ (James 1:26-27) So friends, true religion is neither mere hearing or mere doing but a timely balance of both aspects of our faith.
Now let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, proud of our position in Christ. 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!’
And as always, merely thinking about how glorious that future will be, just boggles my small mind! Much LOVE!
…to be on the same page as Jesus…we must hear…as well as do…
11 Jul 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate fire, angry, anointed, begged for mercy, blessings, bonafide believer, bounden duty, calamitous days, Christian trait, christianity, compassion, consumed, debtor's prison, delivered him, disastrous, do like christ did, doing good, dwelleth the love of God, eyes fixed straight ahead, finite minds, followers of Christ, for our benefit, forgave him, forgive not, fresh bread, from your hearts, generous to a fault, giving, glad to be alive, God was with him, God's manna, great is thy faithfulness, greed, had compassion, had pity on thee, halfway home, hands on the plough, have need, heart, his compassions fail not, hoarding, Holy Ghost, in deed, in time of need, Jeremiah, jesus of nazareth, Lamentations, lights a fire, looking to a glorious future, loving, loving-kindness, magnanimous god, mercies, new every morning, not love in word, not turning back, oppressed of the devil, owed money, power, sacrificing, sadly lacking, Scrip-Bit, sees his brother, selfishness, sharing, shutteth up his bowels, talk, talk your talk, thankful, the breath of life, the forgiven one, the land of the living, the Lord's mercies, thou wicked servant, to the tormentors, tongue, Top o' the morn, torturers, trespasses, truth, unchristian behaviour, walk your walk, Wednesday Wail, wroth
Lamentations 3:22-23. It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
Well top o’ the morn to all you Scrip-Bit friends and family…and top of the afternoon to those of you faithful readers on the other side of the world! (smile) It’s just another brilliant, sunshiny day in the land of the living, with all of God’s manna, mercies and whatever brand new!
Wow! It’s like waking up to fresh bread every day! And we should be much more thankful than we are for those blessings. But our God is what we call magnanimous, generous to a fault, so He gives us stuff that we don’t truly deserve.
And yes, we’ll continue with the same Bit, because there are so many scriptures on compassion, a most important Christian trait in which we current believers are sadly lacking.
Jeremiah knew exactly what he was talking about when he declared in His Lamentations: ‘It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.’
If you are a bonafide (true, sincere) believer, then you certainly cannot argue with that statement or the sentiments contained therein since it’s only through God’s LOVING-kindness that life is not more disastrous than it is. Now let’s check out some scriptures on compassion.
The first one we’ll look at today is Jesus’ telling of the parable about the two servants who owed money they could not repay. The first owed his master thousands of dollars, and when the master threatened to cast him into debtors’ prison, he begged for mercy, and the master forgave him the entire debt.
However that same forgiven one, found someone who owed him a measly few dollars, but when he couldn’t pay, he had him and his family cast into prison. Obviously that disgusting news got back to the master, who called the first servant and castigated him.
‘O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst (begged) me: Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow servant, even as I had pity on thee? And his lord was wroth (angry), and delivered him to the tormentors (torturers) till he should pay all that due unto him.’ (Matt.18:32-34)
And it’s sad to say friends, that that kind of behaviour is still rampant in this world, amongst Christians too, believe it or not. But listen to the moral of the story as told by Jesus: ‘So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.’ (Matt.18:35) It couldn’t be any clearer than that!
And John says it thus in his epistle: ‘But whoso hath this world’s good (goods), and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels (heart) of compassion from him, how dwelleth the LOVE of God in him?’ (1 John 3:17) Good question friends? And the answer is that the LOVE of God does not dwell in such a person.
And to provide a solution to that unchristian behaviour, John therefore recommends: ‘My little children, let us not LOVE in word, neither in tongue (talk); but in deed and in truth.’ (1 John 3:18)
Oh my people, that is oh so necessary in the calamitous days our world is currently experiencing! We just need to have more LOVING action than just mere talk, as we all are so good at doing. I don’t know if there’s ever been a time that the saying; walk your walk and talk your talk, has been more important.
And this verse from Acts shows that is exactly what our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ did. ‘How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.’(Acts 10:38)
Oh my fellow believers, we have also been anointed with the same Holy Ghost and power that Jesus had, so it’s also our bounden duty to go around doing good and helping the less fortunate as much as we can, not keeping, hoarding and/or storing our power and anointing merely for our benefit. That’s what being a Christian means.
If we are followers of Christ, then we’re supposed to do like Christ did! And unfortunately we’re not doing it as much as we ought. Our compassion level is woefully low, while our greed and selfishness meter is way too high. So let’s hope today’s writing lights a fire, a compassionate fire under us. (smile)
But it’s time to go home now. And we’ll do so by declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting the entire world know our situation in Christ Jesus. As one voice 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!’
And yuh know what friends? Our finite minds can’t even truly imagine how glorious that future will be! Much LOVE!
…true Christianity is sharing…and giving…and LOVING…and sacrificing…and being there in time of need…
P.S. It’s a tad late because I got held up talking to a friend about the World Cup Soccer Tournament. Some things just can’t wait. (smile) Much LOVE!
27 Jun 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a little child, a new creation, abides for ever, area of obedience, be not conformed to this world, be transformed, can't serve two masters, clear direction, come to our senses, compromise, confidence, conformity with God, devotion to God, disquieted, disturbed, Divided Heart, does the will of God, earthly wealth, evil desire, food crops, glad to be alive, glory hallelujah, go up in smoke, half-motivated, half-satisfied, halfway home, human existence, inhospitable desert, Jesus advocating, jump rope, living for Jesus, LOVE, love not the world, lust, Mammon, miserable, mix weeds with seeds, nature to admire, not looking back, obey, One Year Book of Bible promises, perfect will of God, pledge loyalty, pointed question, pride of life, prodigal son, rain, receive good and no bad, righteousness, rock her doll, Ruth Harms Calkin, saint, seek first the kingdom of God, side trips, sin, sinner, solid ground, stoic, surrender our all, take it to the Father in prayer, thank God, the breath of life, the far country, the love of the Father, the renewing of your mind, the things in the world, the world passes away, tormented, walk a straight path, Wednesday Wail, welcomes us back, wisest decision
1 John 2:15. LOVE not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man LOVE the world, the LOVE of the Father is not in him.
Oh friends, like Job so famously said, we can’t expect to receive good all the time and no bad. That means we can’t expect glorious sunshine every day, there must be some rain too. And really, the rain’s not bad nuh, it’s just the opposite of sunshine, and it is in fact very good itself, for if we had no rain there’d be no food crops or beautiful nature to admire, just a dry, brown inhospitable desert.
Hn! And all of that just to say it’s a rainy day in my neighbourhood today. (smile) Now here’s a poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. Don’t know if I’ve shared it before, but when I read it yesterday, it reminded me so much of our behaviour, that I just had to share it. It’s titled ‘Divided Heart,’ like ours are so much of the time.
Please pray with me. ‘Lord I am so often tormented By my lack of clear direction – So often disturbed By my divided heart. I am like a little child Who wants to rock her doll And jump rope at the same time. I want to obey You in part If I can choose the area of obedience. I want to be real except at those moments When compromise is more appealing. I want to be half-motivated And half-satisfied with things as they are.
I want to walk a straight path If now and then I can enjoy A few side trips into the far country. I don’t want to be a miserable sinner but neither do I feel excited About being a stoic saint. I want to be partly Yours And partly my own. But in the secret chamber Of my divided heart I am so often disquieted By the pointed question: “Why do you so foolishly Mix weeds with seeds?”
Now isn’t that a very good question my brethren? We all do it at some time or the other, because we find it difficult to surrender our ALL to Christ. And oh, do we ever want to choose our areas of obedience to God! But God wants it ALL! And isn’t it a good thing, that when we foolishly take a side trip into the far country, like the prodigal son did, He welcomes us back with open arms when we come to our senses!
And yuh know what friends, there’s no reason to be a miserable sinner or a stoic saint, because we’ve become a new creation in Christ, which puts us on firm and solid ground, makes us able to go to the Father with confidence and ask for whatever we need, with Jesus right there advocating on our behalf. So there’s no need to compromise; just take it ALL to the Father in prayer!
And the Bible Promise for that prayer is also our Bit for today; those famous words of John in his first epistle. ‘LOVE not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man LOVE the world, the LOVE of the Father is not in him.’ Yes my people, it’s that simple. As Jesus said, you can’t serve two masters at the same time; you can’t serve God and mammon (earthly wealth) too. (Matt.6:24)
And John continues: ‘For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.’ (1 John 2:16-17)
That puts it so plainly and simply my people; all the evil things of the world will one day disappear, go up in smoke, but those obedient to God’s will, will live forever Now it’s your decision to make; whether you’ll go up in smoke, or live forever.
And the scholars tell us: ‘2:16. World for John signifies the evil desire and sin so much a part of human existence.’ Therefore we are to sincerely pledge our loyalty and devotion to God first and foremost. Like Jesus said: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things (worldly needs) shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:33)
And we’re going to add Bruh Paul’s voice to it all, as he wrote to the church at Rome. ‘And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.’ (Rom.12:2)
Yeh friends, again we’re reminded that it all takes place FIRST in our minds; that’s where the change needs to be made before it can me manifested anywhere else. Unless we bring our minds into true acceptance and conformity with God, His will and His word, we’ll continue to follow the unhealthy and ungodly value systems and evil conduct of the world. Nuff said!
Now for those of us who have made the right decision and are truly trying to be righteous, (smile) let’s go home sincerely acclaiming to the world, our position in Christ, by declaring our Wednesday Wail. Altogether in strong voice 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!’
And what a glorious future that will be! Our puny minds can’t even imagine it. But we know that it will be great, because Jesus promised it! Much LOVE!
…truly living for Jesus…is the wisest decision a human being can ever make…
15 Jun 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abominations, Ahaz, altars for Baal, Amon, Asherah, carousing, children of Israel, created, Creator, did evil in the Lord's sight, disparity in behaviour, disturbed sleep, dryness, every day that we're alive, fellowship, follow God's laws, forsook the Lord God, Friday chant, fun, furthering your glorious kingdom, generous help, give thanks to god, gods of the Assyrians, half step backward, having a good time, heathen, Hezekiah, in Jesus name, in the sight of the Lord, Josiah, largesse, level-headed, limits, loving-kindness, Manasseh, melodrama, mental chains, negative circumstance, new slavery, of David his father, one step forward, pagan altars, refreshed, renewed, responsibilities, rest, served the idols, shaking it rough, song of freedom, spiritual evil, summertime, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, that which was right, the breath of life, the Good Book, the kings of Judah, the living is easy, the workingman's song, to the left, to the right hand, topsy-turvy, turned not aside, walked in all the way, week of work, wickedness, wooden image
2 Kings 22:2. And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left.
Ah friends, the ole fella’s shaking it a tad on the rough side this morning. My ole nostrils were blocked up again last night, so I had to breathe through my mouth, with the attendant dryness, disturbed sleep, etc. etc. Ah Lord eh! This one step forward, half backward is becoming a bit much yes!
But what to do eh? Nothing but grin and bear it, knowing that the Lord is in control on the throne, doing what He does best, rule with our best interests at heart. And sadly, the workingman isn’t interested in my negative circumstance, (smile) he’s just come out to sing his song of freedom:
‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday and we soon get a break from the new slavery with mental chains instead of the real ones! The weekend is here…and it’s summertime…and the living is easy…and we certainly going to enjoy every moment of it, as long as we can. Pure carousing and having a good time, with no thought about work until Monday morning! Oh, the weekend, the weekend! Give God thanks for Fridays and the weekends yes!’
For sure my people, we ought to give thanks to Almighty God not only for Fridays and weekends, but for each and every day that we’re alive! For it’s through His largesse, His LOVING-kindness that we keep on drawing the breath of life that He first instilled in us at birth.
But if we are believers, we need to have limits and responsibilities to the way we live our lives. Excessive and limitless carousing does not go over well in Jesus’ society. That’s why our Friday Chant is so much different to the workingman’s song. And as we chant it now, let’s seriously think about it and make plans to sincerely follow it.
Altogether now, let’s chant: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yeh friends, it contains most of the elements in the workingman’s song, but just on a more level-headed and responsible note. And speaking about level heads and responsibility, I opened the Good Book and immediately saw a most appropriate passage, for today’s Bit. ‘And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left.’
Ah mih breddren, we couldn’t find greater disparity in behaviour than in the kings of Judah back in olden times. The above passage is talking of Josiah, who began ruling Judah when he was 8 years old and ruled for 31 fruitful years. His mother’s name was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Boscath, a city in Judah.
Now hear how the Good Book describes the reign of Amon, Josiah’s father. ‘Amon was twenty and two years old when he began to reign (became king). And his mother’s name was Meshullemeth, the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, as his father Manasseh did. And he walked in all the way that his father walked in, and served the idols that his father served, and worshipped them: And he forsook the Lord God of his fathers, and walked not in the way of the Lord.’ (2 Kin.21:19-22)
Oh precious people, there is no certainty that we will take after our fathers, or do what they did, as we can see by the difference in those three kings of Judah’s behaviour. Now Josiah did not take after his father Amon, who took after his father Manasseh, who did not take after his father Hezekiah. So obviously Judah was a mess, moving from godly to ungodly and back again, according to the whims and fancies of their kings.
Hear how the Good Book describes Manasseh: ‘Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Hephzibah. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, after the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out before the children of Israel.
For he built up again the high places (places for pagan worship) which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; and he reared up altars for Baal, and made a grove (wooden image) as did Ahab king of Israel; and worshipped all the host of heaven (gods of the Assyrians), and served them.’ (2 Kin.21:1-3)
And I wonder, since the Good Book names their mothers, if, or how much they had to do with the godly or ungodly behaviour of their sons. It’s a note for thought. (smile)
And the scholars give us some further explanations. ‘21:1-2. Manasseh’s 55 year reign was the longest of any of the Old Testament kings. Unlike his godly father, Hezekiah, he reproduced the wickedness of his grandfather Ahaz. He emulated Ahaz’s spiritual evil by bringing pagan altars into various places of the temple complex and placing the Asherah (Canaanite fertility goddess) symbol within the temple itself (vs.3-7).’
Now what could be worse than placing a pagan symbol inside of the Lord’s sanctuary eh friends? Nothing really! And then they wondered why life was so rough with them. Unfortunately we are doing the same pagan stuff today and also wondering why life isn’t better.
Ah mih people, life as a society never gets better until we begin to truly and sincerely follow the laws and edicts of Almighty God, who created us, gave us His breath of life, and takes it back when ever he desires. And until we understand that and live by it, our lives will always be some sort of fluctuating, topsy-turvy melodrama. Much LOVE!
…no matter how hard he tries…the created can NEVER be greater than the Creator…
06 Jun 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a prowler, a robber, a storm of nonsense, admonished, an armed man, be wise, cease to exist, Colorado, consider her ways, creating new worth, crumble, diligence, dire poverty, enriching feeling, feeding on themselves, fell to ruin, fire and brimstone, folding of the hands, foundation of joy, gathers food, get on board, get over the hump, glad to be alive, go to the ant, good fruit, grace, Guatemala, habitually lazy person, halfway home, hands on the plough, hard work, Hawaii, heavenly Father, homelessness, in the hands of a few, in the harvest, joy, joyfully declare, knock us for six, leader, learn from the ant, looking forward to, LOVE, LOVE Revolution, make ends meet, mercy, negative things, New Mexico, no guide, not looking back, overseer, part-time work, poverty, prayers, predictable circumstances, prosperity, relative comfort, right the wrongs, self-starter, sit on our laurels, sleep, sluggard, smell the java, summer time, taskmaster, the breath of life, the fallen lot, the middle of the week, the weekend, this is the day the Lord has made, threat, trash pile, uplifting, volcanic problems, wake up, we will rejoice and be glad in it, wealth, wealthy societies, Wednesday Wail, wildfires, winter season
Proverbs 6:6. Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise.
So friends, it’s Wednesday, the middle of the work week. Are you already looking forward to the weekend? I know a lot of us are. Wednesday just seems to be the day we get over the hump. (smile) But there is no need to relegate the other days to the trash pile because every day comes bearing good fruit and plenty of grace, mercy and LOVE from our heavenly Father.
We ought to enjoy each and everyday regardless of what it’s called and what we have to do in it. That’s why I want to begin today by joyfully declaring like the psalmist of old: ‘This is the day the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it!’
Mamacita! What a good, uplifting and enriching feeling that produces! With that foundation of joy, we can now move on and handle whatever negative things that may come against us.
And in our relative comfort, let’s remember in our prayers those unfortunate people in Hawaii and Guatemala who are dealing with volcanic problems, and those in New Mexico and Colorado where wildfires are burning out of hand. Yuh know fire and brimstone are mankind’s biggest threat. (smile)
And I was just led to an interesting and very appropriate Bit for out times. Hear these words of wisdom from Cousin Sol. ‘Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise; Which having no guide (leader), overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat (bread, grain) in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.’ (Prov.6:6-8)
Ah my people, in these unfortunate times of excessive laziness, sloth and entitlement, there is no better example for us to follow than the ordinary ant, who though they have no leader or leaders like us, go about their business with such wisdom, gathering their food for the winter season in the summer time and storing it away for the rough times to come.
And Cousin Sol continues on the subject: ‘How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: so shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth (a prowler), and thy want (need) as an armed man.’ (Prov.6:9-11)
And the scholars offer this explanation. ‘6:6-11. The sluggard is the habitually lazy person. He is admonished to learn two important lessons from the ant: (1) the ant has no guide, overseer, or ruler (v.7), meaning that the ant does not have a taskmaster standing over it to make it work; it is a self-starter. (2) The ant is wise enough to prepare for predictable circumstances (v.8).
Two questions about sleep are posed to the sluggard (v.9). His answer is given in verse 10: “Just a little bit more sleep!” The result of such laziness is dire poverty, which will come as suddenly and decisively as a robber (v.11).’
Oh friends, I don’t know if there has ever been a time when our interest in working, in being productive has been lower than now. But I guess to a certain extent it comes with the territory, meaning that the more a society becomes prosperous, the more we tend to sit on our laurels and forget what and who brought us to that position of prosperity.
It’s only hard work and diligence that enriches a society, and when we forget that, the society will inevitably crumble. That’s why our history is loaded with wealthy societies that soon fell to ruin, because they began feeding on themselves, rather than creating new worth.
And if we look closely and realistically we will see the same thing happening with our current society. In this supposedly wealthy and prosperous society, our young people are more into partying and chatting up a storm of nonsense than doing productive work and so many of us have to work at more than one job just to make ends meet.
Notwithstanding that jobs are becoming fewer and fewer, and when you find one it’s mostly part time. The level of poverty and homelessness is ridiculous for the amount of wealth we have, but so much of that wealth is in the hands of a very few fortunate and greedy ones.
And because of that wealth, they sit in their high towers and comfortable palatial homes and don’t recognize that our society is going to the dogs, is dying a slow and painful death, and unless that wealth is shared, some time, sooner than we expect, the full effects of a very lopsided economy and society will knock us for six!
Consequently friends, I implore us to wake up and smell the java, which incidentally is a huge aspect of our economy, and start trying to right the wrongs that we are able to. Yes, unless and until, each and every one of us begin to start making changes within our spectrum, our society will just keep going downhill, until we’ll be eventually numbered amongst the fallen lot.
It’s not too late friends, so let’s get to it nuh. The LOVE Revolution of Jesus is waiting, praying and hoping that you will get on board. And for those of us who are already on board, let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know our position in and with Jesus.
In strong voice and sincere heart, let’s wail: ‘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!’
And we know that that future with Jesus will indeed be most glorious! Much LOVE!
…anything that feeds on itself…will soon cease to exist…so let’s be wise…and learn from the ant nuh…
30 May 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future, adventurous sailing, believe, best of the best, calm seas, cast all your care on god, come home, concern, contrite, dare to believe, delight, disobedience, draw me to yourself, emotional blockades, eventful seas of life, everlasting love, exalt you, faithfulness, fear, God cares for you, grasping, groping, halfway home, honour, humble spirit, humble yourselves, humbly, humility, I am your father, I cry to you, I dare to believe, illusive courage, in due time, inexhaustible, it is true, Jesus at the helm, life, looking towards, LOVE, loving-kindness, mercy, not looking back, obeisance, One Year Book of Bible promises, our everything, out of the depths, presence, presumption, rebuild broken dreams, reforming, remorse, reverence, revive the heart, riches, Ruth Harms Calkin, show appreciation, sighs, silence my cry, simply believe, sinfulness, sobs, storms, thanks and praise, the breath of life, the image of Christ, the mighty hand of God, the psalmist's cry, the throes of anguish, trusting, turmoil, unquenchable, walking with Jesus, Wednesday Wail, weeping child, what is good, you are home, you can't see
1 Peter 5:6-7. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care (anxiety) upon him; for he careth for you.
Another day of adventurous sailing friends on the ever-eventful seas of Life, with the Pilot of All Pilots, Jesus Christ at the helm! Mama Mia! That means there is no need to fear or worry, for Jesus is simply the BEST of the BEST!
Yes my people, He will never let anything untoward happen to us while He is guiding our ship, be it amongst storms and rocky coasts, or calm seas, with beautiful sandy beaches in the offing. So give Him some thanks and praise for His concern and faithfulness towards us nuh.
And the first thing Jesus wants us to consider as we set sail this morning is, ‘Dare to believe!’ Yes my brethren, He is daring us to believe in Him and His awesome powers and everlasting LOVE! And from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin, comes this most appropriate prayer. ‘I Dare to Believe!’
So let’s make our declaration: “Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord.” On this day of remorse and turmoil The Psalmist’s cry is my cry. Trembling, crumbling, out of the depths I cry. And yet, in the throes of my anguish, O God I dare to believe. You see my groping and grasping. You hear my sighs and sobs. I dare to believe.
You can break through the emotional blockades You can rebuild my broken dreams. Though my words seem drenched with presumption To those who march with illusive courage I dare to believe. Your LOVE is unquenchable Your faithfulness is inexhaustible. I dare to believe.
You delight to draw me to Yourself You long to silence my desperate cry. I dare to believe. I will yet hear Your gentle words “I am your Father. Come home.” Weeping child It is true That I am your Father. Now dare to believe You are home.’
Oh friends, do we have the parts, the hope, the faith, the wherewithal to dare to believe, that the Lord God is our Father and we are at home with him, in His awesome presence and His undying LOVE? For all of our sakes, I sincerely hope so, else we’re certainly in bad shape.
And isn’t it strange that the most important thing that Jesus asks of us – to simply BELIEVE – is the thing we find the hardest to do. I guess that’s because believing entails trusting things and people you don’t know or can’t see. But that’s the whole beauty of walking with Jesus; you don’t need to see it to believe it, for He is our EVERYTHING! We live in Him and through Him and for Him. What can be better than that eh? Nothing really!
And the Bible Promise for that poem above is also our Bit for today. ‘Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care (anxiety) upon him; for he careth for you.’
Oh my people, please believe – there we have that word ‘believe’ again – that despite all our disobedience and sinfulness and trying to root Him out of our lives and our societies, that Almighty God who created us, still LOVES us like the first day He made us! His LOVE is unconditional and undying…but you have to BELIEVE…
Ah friends, but once we believe, then we need to be humble, to come humbly and with reverence before our heavenly Father, for though He is our Father, He is also our God and deserves obeisance on that front. And as Micah tells us: ‘He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly and to LOVE mercy (LOVING-kindness), and to walk humbly with thy God.’ (Mic.6:9)
Yes friends, we need to remember that the Lord is the potter, the Creator, and we are the clay, the ones whom He formed, and is constantly reforming in the image of Christ, so we need to have and show some appreciation of His awesome might and power…if we are wise.
And Isaiah declares of the Lord: ‘For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the heart of the contrite ones.’ (Is.57:15) And Cousin Sol adds: ‘By humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, and honour, and life.’ (Prov.22:4)
You simply can’t go wrong my brethren by believing, being humble and reverent towards the Lord God Jehovah, our Maker and Controller. It’s indeed wisdom of the highest order! Now for those of us who truly believe and are sincerely trying to put it into practice, let’s go home declaring our position in the Lord, through our Wednesday Wail.
Altogether 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!’
And if we keep on keeping on and believing, the future will indeed be glorious…more glorious than we can ever imagine. Much LOVE!
…believe…only believe…it is the first…and also…the mightiest and most important step…
16 May 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a daydreamer, a pleasant person, according to his own labour, all the tools, become evident, build on Jesus, combustible, consuming power, desires, dreams, enlightening power, every man's work, eyes fixed straight ahead, gold, good works, halfway home, Hawaiian volcano, hay, he that plants, he that waters, incombustible, Jesus Christ, John Maxwell, judgement day, laid the foundation, loss of salvation, LOVE, made manifest, masterbuilder, no progress, not looking back, others build upon, poor relations, positive attitudes, potential, preciousstones, receive a reward, revealed by fire, righteous judgement of God, silver, stand the test of time, storm in Northeast U.S, straw, suffer loss, the breath of life, the day shall declare it, the fire shall test, the grace of God, the living truth, time tested, to a glorious future, tried by fire, unlimited possibility, wages, Wednesday Wail, wood, worthy work
1 Corinthians 3:13. Every man’s work shall be made manifest (become evident): for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try (test) every man’s work of what sort it is.
Ah friends, more glorious weather is in the offing in my area, but in a couple of other parts of the world, that doesn’t seem to be a likelihood. Apparently the ash from the Hawaiian volcano is still causing problems and the North East coast of the U.S. has been battered by a wicked wind and hale storm, leaving thousands without power.
Brother! That area of the U.S has certainly taken a pounding this year. Let’s keep hoping and praying and doing whatever we can to help, because we never know when we’ll find ourselves in such a disastrous situation.
And today I want to share some words attributed to John Maxwell, pastor, author and famous leadership expert. I think I might have shared them before, but if so, they are indeed worthy of being repeated again. (smile) And here John talks about dreams and positive attitudes.
‘A dream without a positive attitude produces a daydreamer. A positive attitude without a dream, produces a pleasant person who never makes any progress. A dream, together with a positive attitude produces a person with unlimited possibility and potential.’
And isn’t that the living truth friends! You can’t have one without the other and be successful. So from today, let’s start putting our dreams together with our positive attitudes nuh, so that we can become people of unlimited possibility and potential.
The Lord has put many dreams and desires in our hearts, and He has also given us all the tools to bring them to pass. It is now our duty to blend and meld whatever is necessary to produce the good works that God has planned for us to do in this life.
That brings us to our Bit. ‘Every man’s work shall be made manifest (become evident): for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try (test) every man’s work of what sort it is.’
Yes my brethren, come the judgement day our works will be tried by fire to see what they were made of. Hence before our Bit, Bruh Paul writes: ‘According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon.
But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stone, wood, hay, stubble (straw);’ (1 Cor.3:10-12)
Yuh see friends, the ONLY sensible foundation for us to build on is Jesus. But even then it’s very important what materials we use to build on Jesus. There are a lot of different things we can use, but we have to be sure that whatever we use can withstand the fire come that fateful day.
And the scholars offer these explanations: ‘ 3:13. The day is the day of the judgement seat of Christ (cf.4:5; 2 Cor.5:10). Fire is figurative for judgement, more specifically, the absolutely righteous judgement of God. Fire is used here to denote, not enlightening power, but consuming power. Of the six types of material mentioned (vs.12), three are combustible and three are incombustible. See also Deuteronomy 4:24; Malachi 3:2; 2 Thessalonians 1:8; Hebrews 12:29).’
And friends, I’d strongly suggest you look up those last four scriptures, I just did, and they surely convinced me of the awesome firepower of our God. So for our works to last we not only have to build upon the foundation that’s Jesus, but also build with incombustible material, meaning, strong serious, worthy work.
For as Bruh Paul continues: ‘If any man’s work abide (endures) which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by (through) fire.’ (1 Cor.3:14-15)
And the scholars explain: ‘3:14. Reward (lit. “wages,” cf. 3:8): Of course even the “wages: mentioned here are entirely a gift of grace (cf. 1 Cor.9:17; 2 John 8; Rev.11:18).’ ‘3:15. Saved: Such a one does not suffer the loss of his salvation, but the loss of reward. The stress in this entire passage is not on a person’s relationship to Christ, but on service to Christ.’
That’s good news in a sense friends! If our works don’t hold up, we’ll still be in heaven, just somewhat the poorer! (smile) But I know that ALL of us will like our works to stand the test of time and fire, we don’t want to be the poor relations in heaven, therefore we will ALL endeavour to build on Jesus with time tested, incombustible materials.
And to help us do that, let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting the world clearly know our position in Jesus. In loud voice and sincere heart 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!’ And will that future ever be glorious my believing brethren! Much LOVE!
…now he that planteth…and he that watereth…are one…and every man shall receive his own reward…according to his own labour… (1 Cor.3:8)
02 May 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future, Adam, advanced civilization, adversity, all voices cry Lord, asap, be ye holy, blessed, boost his ego, by one man's disobedience, by the obedience of one, celebration for mMay, conforming to former lusts, dance the maypole, devoured with the sword, disobedience, drowning in, eat the good of the land, eternal life, example of obedience, found in appearance, Garden of Gethsemane, God is awesome, gospel truth, grace, greed, halfway home, hodgepodge, hope to the end, humbled himself, I am holy, Israelites, keep his word, looking straight ahead, many shall be made righteous, many were made sinners, Matt Chandler, midway point, mire, my hands are on the plough, not my will, obedience, obedient, obedient children, obedient unto death, pestilence, poor relationships, poverty, prepare your mind for action, quicksand, rebel, refuse, salvation, sickness, sin flooded the world, sky high, smarten up, sober, suffering, the bondage of sin, the breath of life, the cross at Calvary, the death of Jesus, the fat of rams, the Garden of Eden, the highest position, the mouth of the Lord, the revelation of Jesus, to hearken, to obey is better than sacrifice, to whom all knees will bow, too macho, total obedience, trials, Village chruch, Wednesday Wail, willing
Isaiah 1:19. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land.
And then it was Wednesday; the midway point of the work week… And we’re getting a li’l bit earlier everyday with the Bit. (smile) Hope within the next few days we’ll be back to an early morning Bit. And when are we going to dance the Maypole eh people? Wonder if some of the young people even know what that is.
It’s a celebration for the month of May. You have a tall decorated flagpole with long ribbon streamers attached at the top, and then everybody takes a ribbon and dances around it to form an intricate pattern all the way down the pole. I remember going to May fairs as a boy in High School, but usually thinking myself too macho to dance the maypole. That was something for girls.
Now here is a li’l something from Matt Chandler, lead Pastor of the Village Church, a Southern Baptist Church in Texas. He tells us that ‘God is awesome. He doesn’t need us to be awesome. He needs us to be obedient.’ And isn’t that the gospel truth friends?
All our magnanimous and magnificent God really wants from us is obedience to His law. If we’d only practice greater obedience, we’d be surprised at how blessed we’d truly be. But we insist on choosing our own areas of obedience. However my brethren, our God wants total obedience from His people. Not some obedience here, and some obedience there, like a hodgepodge of obedience and disobedience.
And friends, the Lord made His intentions clear a long time ago to the Israelites through the prophet Isaiah in our Bit. ‘If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land.’ That’s fairly simple and straightforward eh my fellow believers.
And the corollary to that is the next verse: ‘But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.’ (Is.1:20) And it’s not like the Israelites, who were found to be disobedient several times did not suffer by the sword and all kinds of pestilence.
I don’t know why we think that the Lord isn’t going to keep His word. He kept it with the Israelites and He’s going to keep it with us too, as our disobedience level is riding sky high. Can’t we see all the unusual things that are happening in our society? And even though we’re the most advanced civilization ever, we’re still flailing along in a mire of poverty, sickness, greed and poor relationships.
A lot of our trouble stems from our disobedience. The Lord is not going to allow us to continue the way we’re currently going forever, so we need to smarten up as soon as possible, if we want to get out of the quicksand that we’re slowly drowning in.
Now let’s look at some important scriptures that tell us about obedience. And we’ll begin at the beginning, with the words of Bruh Paul to the Roman church. ‘For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.’ (Rom.5:19).
Yeh friends, by Adam’s disobedience in the Garden of Eden, sin flooded the world, likewise by the sacrificial death of Jesus, on the cross at Calvary, grace, salvation, and eternal life were provided by our Lord to overcome the bondage of sin.
And more words from Bruh Paul, this time to the Philippian church, pertaining to Jesus. ‘And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’ (Phil.2:9)
Oh my people, there’s no better example of obedience than our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Though He was God Himself, once He took the form of man, He didn’t try to boost His ego or importance here on earth, but gave total obedience to His heavenly father. Even when He tried to get out of going to the cross in the Garden of Gethsemane, He finally gave in and said, ‘not my will, but thine,’ acknowledging the Father’s supremacy.
As Hebrews tells us: ‘Though he (Jesus) were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the author of salvation unto all them that obey him.’ (Heb.5:8-10) Yeh people, Jesus learned obedience just like all of us do, through suffering, through adversity and trials. That’s the only way to learn it. And that’s why the Father elevated him to the highest position there is; the one to whom all knees will bow, and all voices will cry Lord to the glory of the Father.
Now listen to this last scripture from Peter in his call to Christian dedication. ‘Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind (prepare your mind for action), be sober, and hope to the end for the grace (rest your hope fully upon the grace) that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
As obedient children, not fashioning (conforming) yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance. But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation (conduct). Because it is written, Be ye holy, for I am holy.’’ (1 Pet.2:13-16)
I can’t say anything more friends, except to lead us in our declaration of our Wednesday Wail, which tells the world our strong and obedient position in Christ.
As one 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!’
And we can’t even imagine how glorious that future will be, because our minds are too small and finite! Much LOVE!
…to obey is better than sacrifice…and to hearken than the fat of rams… (1 Sam.15:22b)
25 Apr 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: as eagles, believe in thine heart, believing, bless the Lord, colour in spring, communicate with heaven, confess with thy mouth, confessing, confession is made unto salvation, divine edict, enabling Spirit, eternal destination, ever-faithful promises of God, faint and be weary, faints not, forget not ll his benefits, forgives all thine iniquities, glorious future with Jesus, God raised him from the dead, God's thoughts, gospel truth, greatest privilege, halfway home, heals thy diseases, hell fire, highest responsibility, human edict, importance of prayer, Isaiah, live for Christ, looking straight ahead, LOVE, loving-kindness, Lucifer, man believes unto righteousness, meat of the message, mount up with wings, neither grows weary, outburst of nature, power to the faint, prayer, put to shame, redeems thy soul, renew their strength, renowned Chinese preacher, rich unto all, run and not be wery, salvation, sampling of soul food, searching of his understanding, season of winter, soothes the soul, the breath of life, the Creator, the ends of the earth, the farmer's seed, the grace of God, the greatest mystery, the Lord Jesus, the most wonderful act, the mouth testifies, the spiritual realm, the spring rains, the youts, they that wait upon the Lord, thou shalt be saved, too good to be true, true receptacle of our faith, walk and not faint, Watchman Nee, Wednesday Wail, whet our appetites, who call upon Him, with the heart, with the mouth
Romans 10:9. That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
And thankfully the spring rains are falling gently on the land, caressing it, making it ready for the farmer’s seed and the riotous outburst of nature that comes after a cold and dark season of winter. Glory to our great God my people, for arranging the seasons the way He has, bringing us out of winter’s darkness with a sudden burst of light and colour in spring!
And before we get into the meat of the message here are some hors d’oeuvres to whet our appetites. (smile) The first one tells us that ‘Prayer is our greatest privilege and our highest responsibility.’ And that’s gospel truth! I just wish more of us would realize the incredible importance of prayer in our own lives, as well as that of Christ’s body, the church, for that is the way we communicate with the Spirits of heaven.
And the next sampling of soul food (smile) comes from Watchman Nee (1903-1972) a renowned Chinese preacher, who was locked up for his faith in 1952 and died in prison in 1972. He says: ‘Prayer is the most wonderful act in the spiritual realm, as well as the greatest mystery in the spiritual realm.’
More gospel truth my people! There is nothing like prayer in either realm; it both soothes the soul and allows us to communicate with our heavenly Father. Glory to God!
Now let’s continue with the series of messages on the great and wonderful, ever-faithful promises of our unbelievable God, beginning with this heart-warming and reassuring scripture in our Bit. ‘That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.’
Oh friends, what a glorious promise, the most important and extravagant of them all. Salvation is so easy; believing and confessing, that I can’t understand why everybody isn’t clamouring for it. I guess many of us are following the human edict, that if it’s too easy, it’s too good to be true.
But friends this is not a human, but a divine edict from high heaven, so it doesn’t necessarily follow the laws and rules of man. Remember our God’s thoughts and ways are much higher than ours. So please, please believe and accept it nuh, because our eternal destination – inside with Christ, or outside in hell fire with Lucifer – depends solely on our acceptance of Christ as Lord and Saviour or not.
And Bruh Paul continues: ‘For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed (put to shame). For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek (Gentile): for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.’ (Rom.10:10-12)
Oh my brethren, it’s the same God that rules over ALL, and is generous to ALL who call upon Him! And the scholars explain: ‘10:10-11. Confession is made unto salvation: One is not saved by his mouth’s confession, but rather, the mouth testifies readily of the grace of God in Christ which has been received by faith.’ So the mouth is basically just a reflection of what’s in the heart! The heart is the true receptacle of our faith.
Now let’s turn to this monster promise of God, that we all know and like to quote, but oftimes ignore it. Listen to Isaiah as he declares of the Lord: ‘Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.
He giveth power to the faint (weak); and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.’ (Is.40:28-31)
Oh brother, oh brother; what a promise! And we’ve seen it kept right throughout the scriptures, from Abraham to Bruh Paul! All the men of faith were able to withstand much pressure and continue God’s work because of His enabling Spirit.
And Bruh David weighs in with his two cents worth (smile): ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with LOVING-kindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’ (Ps.103:2-5)
Mamacita! What else can we ask for eh? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! For the Lord provides everything we need…and in abundance too, for He’s a most generous and magnanimous God! So there are the facts friends. I can only tell you about them, I can’t make you accept them, but the wise will.
And for those of us who have shown our wisdom by accepting Christ as our Lord and Saviour, let’s declare to the unbelieving world, our present situation in Christ through our Wednesday Wail. In loud voice and strong sense of purpose 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!’
And that future with Christ is truly mind boggling! Much LOVE!
…to live with…and for Christ…is the most awesome and amazing life possible…
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