Luke 23:42. Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
Come Saturday morning, me and my friends, we will linger and laze in bed, or wherever it suits us…until we can linger and laze no more…and are forced to get up and face the realities of life. And I’m sorry to say that has already happened to me. Chuh! I was lingering and lazing quite nicely in bed, when the reality of having to write the Bit hit me head on. (smile) But them’s the breaks! The important thing though, is that we do spend some time lingering and lazing and not all of it simply facing the realities of life. End of philosophizing.
Now, let’s see how the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week matches up to the realities of life, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And the first one says: ‘Always remember that your present situation is not your final destination. The best is yet to come.’ And I believe that to be very true, for even in my advanced years, I still believe that the best years of my life are still out ahead of me. I haven’t done anything worthwhile, earth shaking or moving, haven’t left my mark on the world as yet, haven’t defined my legacy, so it must mean that better things are yet to come. (smile)
And when you have Jesus working in, with and through you, then you know that better things are always in the offing. The best of them all being with Him in heaven and all the good things He’s prepared there for us. I like to look to the promise Jesus made to the one criminal crucified alongside Him, who sincerely pleaded: ‘Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.’ (Luke 23:42-43) Wow! What an awesome Lord and Saviour we have. Without even one word of reproach to the sinner, Jesus promised that he would be in heaven with Him that very day.
So it’s obvious that His faithful followers can expect the same. Glory be! Praise His holy name! And the next quote kindly informs us that ‘Beauty isn’t about having a pretty face it’s about having a pretty mind, a pretty heart, and a pretty soul.’ And that’s the gospel truth my people! Beauty, like the world considers it, is only a façade, an outer appearance that looks good for a while, but like all earthly things eventually decays and/or disappears. As the saying goes, beauty is only skin deep. True beauty though is something that exists on the inside, and doesn’t decay or disappear, but lasts forever.
It’s when we have Jesus and all that He stands for running through our hearts, minds, bodies and souls that true beauty shines out. That means having things like the fruit of the Spirit emanating from us. And in Bruh Paul’s words to the Galatians, that consists of: ‘LOVE, joy, peace, longsuffering (patience), gentleness (kindness), goodness, faith (faithfulness), Meekness (courtesy and consideration towards others) and temperance (self-control): against such there is no law.’ (Gal. 5:22-23) Now when those things shine forth in our lives, that’s when we have or see true beauty!
Meanwhile, the next quote serves up this powerful food for thought. ‘If you have a family that LOVES you, a few good friends, food on your table and a roof over your head. You are richer than you think.’ And that’s more gospel truth my fellow believers! If you possess those things and have sincere people like that around you, then you are amongst the richest people in the world. Why? Because money may be able to buy food and put a roof over your head, but it cannot buy true friends and a LOVING family, which are really the most important things in this life.
Who do you run to when life gets rough, when, you’re sick, discouraged, hurting and totally devastated? Obviously your friends and family, which certainly includes Jesus, since He’s a friend that sticks closer than a brother! So please, let’s not allow the materialism of the world to blind us to the importance of friends and family in this life. For as Jesus so rightly said: ‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves break through and steal.’ (Matt. 9:19) Thieves cannot break through and steal family nor friends, neither can moth and rust cause them to decay.
That brings us to this quote: ‘Truth is like a surgery; it hurts but it heals. A lie is like a painkiller; it gives instant relief but has side effects forever.’ Oh friends, today’s quotes are ever so chocked full of gospel truths! (smile) For truth does hurt, but the hurt eventually disappears, while the trauma that arises from the invocation of lies never seem to end. It’s always there, haunting us in the least appropriate moments. Truth though, cuts out the bad or diseased parts and leaves the remainder to heal in peace.
Unfortunately though, in this troubled and ungodly world, it’s extremely difficult to discern truth from lies because the words are bandied about so much that they have now become impossible to differentiate one from the other. Lies are constantly being shouted out as truth, and if you hear them often enough, you can sadly believe them as truth. The opposite is also happening; truth is being touted as lies. And furthermore, it’s now the accepted thing that everybody has their own truth.
Ah Lord eh! My mind is truly finite yes, because I can’t fathom how to have several truths on the same subject. The only basis of truth that I know of comes from the Good Book, God’s unchangeable, true and infallible Word! That’s where real truth abounds and where we should go to find it, if we sincerely desire it. And here’s the clincher: ‘Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue (abide) in my word, then ye are my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.’ (John 8:31-32) Now that’s how we discern truth from lies!
And this last quote is also a gem. Our friend Anselm really outdid himself this week. (smile) It wisely advises: ‘Give. But don’t allow yourself to be used. LOVE. But don’t allow your heart to be abused. Trust. But don’t be naive. Listen. But don’t lose your own voice.’ Wiser advice could never be given! It’s essential to do all those things: Give, LOVE, Trust and Listen. However, it’s also essential that we keep a close watch when we do them, for there are negative sides to them all, and if we aren’t careful, the enemy can cause them all to blow up in our faces with disastrous negative results.
So when you give, pay close attention to whom you’re giving and what they are doing with what you give. Likewise, when you LOVE, LOVE deeply and genuinely, but still keep a close watch over your heart so that it’s not eventually broken and abused. The same goes for trust, especially in this current untrustworthy world. It’s imperative that we seriously evaluate in whom and what we place our trust, not just go trusting things and people willy nilly. And listening is also a most important part of the whole equation, for we can’t know what others are thinking and saying without listening.
But please, please, in these vile and evil times, it’s of the utmost importance that we believers in Christ Jesus not lose our voices. In fact, this is the time when our voices should be heard more than ever and louder than ever, because we need to bring our world back to God and away from the negative doings of the enemy! Ah friends, life is not easy, never was and never will be, but when you have the Spirit of Jesus dwelling within you, leading and guiding you, then you are able to live it the right way; that means spreading the gospel by words and sincere deeds. Please, let’s endeavour to do that seriously and sincerely from today nuh, because our world desperately needs the truth and life that emanates from Christ Jesus! Much LOVE!
…our world’s on the brink of the precipice…only the diligent endeavours of Christ’s people…can prevent it from going over…
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Today’s Scrip-Bit 2 September 2022 John 8:32.
02 Sep 2022 Leave a comment
by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a means of restoring faith in you, an inherent need for responsibility, anointed me to preach the gospel, be responsible and stay safe, bring backsliders back to your fold, divine help, embrace Jesus as Lord and Saviour, freedom, freedom is a figmnet of our imagination, Friday chant, heal the brokenhearted, I am the way the truth and the life, if the Son sets you free, if ye continue in my word, in the name of freedom, introduce a whole new flock, Jesus' work on the cross, LOVE, no man cometh unto the Father but by me, offer derogatory comments, right motives in our hearts, show them the error of their ways, stand strong and steadfast, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, that magnificent orb, the elixir of the human spirit, the Messiah, the pearly gates, the truth shall make you free, trusting faith, wake up and smell the coffee, we must all bow to somebody, wise guidance, ye are my disciples indeed, ye shall be free indeed, ye shall know the truth
John 8:32. And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Oh friends, today as the rising of the sun begins, as that magnificent orb makes its daily journey around the world, many different voices in many different languages will loudly and harmoniously chorus: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! Thank God for the weekend and all the freedom it brings!’
Ah Lord eh, do we ever like and fantasize about that thing called freedom. And down through the ages, so many of us have died shouting out its name, but we don’t really know the heavy price that supposed elixir of the human spirit demands. For to be truly free, one needs to be responsible, not lawless like so many of us believe. Freedom carries with it an inherent need for responsibility, loyalty, self-control, self-discipline and level headedness. It calls for mercy, LOVE, grace, forgiveness, goodness and godliness.
It doesn’t give us the right, as so many of us believe to do exactly what we want, when we want, regardless of the consequences to those around us. It doesn’t mean chaos, selfishness and disregard for our fellow man. In fact, it demands just the opposite; a healthy and responsible care and compassion for our fellow human beings.
And I guess that’s why all the revolutions and wars and other negative circumstances that have occurred in the name of freedom have never succeeded, because in the end, those at the forefront of those uprisings, end up doing exactly what their oppressors and suppressors were doing; oppressing and suppressing somebody in the supposed name of freedom! But yet, we still constantly hear the battle cry for freedom: freedom from this, freedom from that, freedom from responsibility, freedom from paying taxes, freedom from God and His law.
Hn! Yet we still desire all those things that a responsible freedom bring. But in reality, freedom is only, and will always be a figment of our imagination, for as the song so truly says: we all must bow to somebody; to either God or Satan. And once you’re bowing to someone, you’re never free. Bowing to Satan will never make you free, because he is only interested in keeping his selfish claws in you, restraining you from rising to the level for which you were created, and thus making hellfire and damnation your eternal home.
The closest we can ever get to that thing called freedom is by reverently bowing to our Maker, Our Creator and Provider, our Way-maker and Forgiver, the enabler of Eternal Life. And that can only happen when we sincerely embrace His majestic Son, Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour. Yes, friends, only through the intervention of the Son, can one get to all the magnificent benefits and freedoms that the Father provides. Listen up as Christ enlightens us on the subject.
First off, He sets us straight by imparting this startling, but ever so true information: ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.’ (John 14:6) Oh my people, unless we believe that, and act seriously upon it, we will never see the bright lights of heaven and enjoy the promise of eternal life! That’s the truth, and nothing but the God-awesome truth! Only sincere belief in Christ Jesus will enable us to enter through those pearly gates we all talk and dream about so much!
And likewise, the only source of true freedom is Christ Jesus. And why do we know this? Listen as He taught in the synagogue of His hometown of Nazareth. On that momentous Sabbath day in the temple, Jesus read thus from the Book of Isaiah. ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised (oppressed). To preach the acceptable year of the Lord….This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears (hearing)’ (Luke 4:18-19, 21)
Oh my people, Jesus was letting His hometown know that He was the chosen One, the Messiah, the One sent to set the captives free, to heal their broken hearts, souls and spirits. But, as it so often happens, when someone close to us, just like us, rises up to another level, we tend to offer derogatory comments rather than gladly accept their new status. And that’s exactly what happened to Jesus in His hometown of Nazareth.
They didn’t believe that the lowly carpenter’s son of Joseph and Mary, who grew up amongst them could ever be the Messiah. His words so annoyed them that they eventually forced him out of the city and tried to throw Him down a hill. Thankfully though, as the Good Book says: ‘But he passing through the midst of them went his way.’ (Luke 4:30) And the scholars offer this explanation on the verse. ‘It is not clear whether this is a miraculous deliverance, or whether Jesus, by dint of His imposing presence, was able to stare His opponents down and then walk away untouched.’ I like to think it was the latter, just to show the unbelieving fools that He was not scared of them. (smile)
Now, this final word from Jesus re freedom. He said to a crowd of Jews that supposedly believed in Him. ‘If ye continue (abide) in my word, then ye are my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.’ (John 8:31-32) And when they claimed they were never in bondage, so how could they be made free, Jesus explained to them that they were in bondage to sin. However, ‘If the Son therefore shall make you free; ye shall be free indeed.’ (John 8:36)
And is that ever the glorious truth my brethren! Only through the work of Jesus on the cross of Calvary, His shed blood, His death and resurrection, can we be truly made free. Free from sin, free from our most noted enemy, Satan and the sinful life that he espouses and tries to get us to also espouse, so that we can eventually end up like him, in the lake of fire. But thankfully, we’re wiser than that! We’re following Jesus! Glory Hallelujah! So, let’s go to Him in prayer, through our Friday Chant, asking for His divine help in our troubled world.
As one confident voice: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… what with all the anxiety, the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 and monkey-pox viruses, as well as our many other problems are causing. We can’t seem to fix it on our own Lord, that means we desperately need your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the viruses and the unrest in our streets.
So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, and avoid any more serious setbacks. And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways.
And please introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Now friends, if we truly expect positive divine help, then it’s up to us keep the promises we’ve just made, and show right motives in our hearts. Much LOVE!
…ONLY through belief in Christ Jesus…can we gain whatever freedom is possible in this earthly life…
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