28 Sep 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a double minded man is unstable in all his ways, all is vanity, an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, avenues of growth, cannot serve God and mammon, carnal nature, covenant, draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, driven with the wind and tossed, enamoured with the things of Satan, enquired early after God, eternal separation from Almighty God, for all this they still sinned, futile, go and pray unto me, he that wavereth is like a tossed wave in the sea, honoureth me with their lips, Hurricane Helene, I may know you all the more, I will hearken unto you, in heaven we'll find everything, increase my awareness of you today, indisputable truth, inheritance, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, lied unto him with their tongues, LOVE, lustfully wallow in, made available by our heavenly Father, maturity, mercy, neither were they steadfast, no man can serve two masters, our Christian journey, our sinful nature, quiet my soul, reserved in heaven, salvation, sinful pleasures, slew the fattest of them, slow my thoughts, smote down the chosen, terrible consequences, thank you for this tenderness, the high god their redeemer, the ungodly things of the world, the wrath of God, their days did he consume in vanity, their heart is far from me, their heart was not right with him, their years in trouble, they flattered him with their mouth, they remembered that God was their rock, they returned, this people, this people draweth nigh, truth, uncorruptible, undefiled, vanity of vanities, we came with nothing, we will leave with nothing, when he slew them then they sought him, when ye shall search for me with all your heart, wisdom, ye shall call upon me, ye shall seek me and find me
Matthew 15:8. This people draweth nigh (near) unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
Well, it seems like this lazy-day Saturday won’t be sunshiny like the last few days of this past week, for it has opened dark and cloudy after some precipitation precipitated during the early morning hours. (smile) And according to the weather people, we might get some of the remnants of hurricane Helene sometime today. Please don’t forget to pray for those unfortunate souls whom Helene ravished over the last few days, while giving thanks for our own well-being.
And don’t think the hurricane business is over nuh, for there seems to be two more hurricanes brewing; one in the Atlantic ocean and one in the Caribbean. I’ve forgotten their names, though more likely than not, we’ll eventually hear from them. But to turn our eyes from the negativity of all that the hurricanes stand for, let’s get positive and raise our faith by sending up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer to heaven.
As one sincere voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And is that ever so reassuring, since the Lord likes nothing better than His people seeking His presence in their lives. Remember His words through the prophet Jeremiah? ‘Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto (listen to) you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.’ (Jer. 29:12-13)
Yes friends, our God desires that we devotedly and sincerely seek Him with all of our heart, meaning in total truth, not like what Jesus says of the people of His day. ‘This people draweth nigh (near) unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.’ (Matt. 15:8)
It’s like the psalmist Asaph declares in Psalm 78, in the section titled ‘A Plea for God’s Mercy.’ He writes: ‘The wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest (stoutest) of them, and smote down the chosen (choice) men of Israel. For all this they sinned still, and believed not for his wondrous works. Therefore their days did he consume in vanity (futility), and their years in trouble (sudden terror).
When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned and enquired early (sought diligently) after God. And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God their redeemer. Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues. For their heart was not right (steadfast) with him, neither were they steadfast (faithful) in his covenant.’ (Ps. 78:31-37)
Unfortunately friends, many of us supposed believers are still engaging in those same rebellious, and unfaithful acts today! We say we LOVE God and use all the right words and terminology, but our hearts are far from Him, as we lustfully wallow in the ungodly things of the world. And that’s sad, because if seek after God and His righteousness first, as Jesus says, in Matt. 6:33, then most of the very same things we’re running down on our own, will be made available to us by our heavenly Father.
The problem though is that because of our sinful and carnal nature, we are more enamoured with the things of Satan rather than those of God, and if we sincerely follow God, we won’t get those ungodly and lustful things that we truly desire. But please remember my brethren there are consequences to every action, and if we disobey God and follow after the enemy, then we will receive the same terrible consequences like he will receive; that’s eternal separation from Almighty God.
And I keep repeating that’s the worst thing that can ever happen to a human soul! Please believe me, and do your best to renounce the things of the enemy, and accept those of God. For, all of us know that the things of the enemy, the sinful pleasures that he encourages only last for short while then they vanish into thin air. As Cousin Sol would say of them: ‘Vanity of vanities (futility of futilities), all is vanity (futile).’ (Eccl. 1:2)
And that’s the indisputable truth! For nothing of the enemy is really worth anything, because we leave it all here when we die. But when we live for God, we amass rewards in heaven. As Peter puts it: ‘An inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you.’ (1 Pet. 1:4)
Oh friends, let’s also remember Jesus’ warning that the earthly treasures we accumulate down here are susceptible to ruin and loss through moth and rust and thieves, but the heavenly treasures we accumulate don’t have any of those shortcomings, but are securely stored, waiting for you to come and receive them. (Matt. 6:19-20)
Thus as Jesus so rightly says: ‘No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and LOVE the other; or else he will hold to (be loyal to) the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (earthly riches).’ (Matt. 6:20) And that’s the gospel truth my people! We cannot serve God and the earthly wealth advertised by Satan.
There are only two roads in this world; the straight and narrow path that leads to Jesus and everlasting life, and the wide and winding one that leads to destruction, hellfire, damnation and eternal separation from Almighty God. And we cannot ride the fence; that’s one moment with God, the other with Satan. For as James so correctly advises; ‘For he that wavereth (doubts) is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he will receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.’ (James 1:6-8)
More indisputable truth friends. Truth that we should seriously ponder on this dark and cloudy lazy-day Saturday, and see how, or if any of it applies to our personal circumstances. And it’s a known fact that all of us have room for improvement, so, today, let’s sincerely consider avenues of growth and maturity in our Christian journey and worship God with both our mouths and our hearts. That can only stand us in good stead! Much LOVE!
…we came with nothing…and will leave with nothing…but in heaven…we’ll find everything…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
17 Jun 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a creature of habit, a merciful forgiving and gracious God, as some of them also murmured, bear your iniquities, Bible, blameless and harmless, breach of promise, Caleb, complaining, death by serpents, destroyed by the destroyer, disobedience, divine help, do all things without murmurings and disputings, don't hurry on Mondays, faith, finding fault with the manna, get up off our fat fannies, giants in the land, go round the mulberry bush, god, how long shall I bear with this evil congregation, humble servants, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Joshua, lack of true faith, like grasshoppers, LOVE, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, Moses, neither murmur ye, shine as lights in the world, sincere repentance, sinned and disobeyed your Word, strong faith in Christ, the children of God, the end of his rope, the God who heals, the wrath of God, traffic jams, turn from our evil ways, uninspiring work, wandered in the wilderness, wisdom, wise guidance, without rebuke, your carcasses shall fall in the wilderness
Philippians 2:14. Do all things without murmurings (grumbling) and disputing.
Here we go round the mulberry bush, the mulberry bush: Hear we go round the mulberry bush on a Monday morning! And does it ever feel like we’re going round and round that deleted expletive bush every first day of the new work week? It certainly does! After a terrific weekend, we’re forced to get up at an early hour and do basically the same things, the same way; travel the same route, with the same annoying traffic jams, to see the same people and do the same uninspiring work!
But that obviously gets a tad much doing it every week, for although mankind is basically a creature of habit, some habits become burdensome and frustrating if carried on too long without a break. So, perhaps to break up the sameness, we can sometimes try doing our Monday mornings a little differently. That all depends though on how much leeway we have in our routines. The first thing I would suggest though is to make whatever preparations are necessary, so you don’t have to hurry to get out the door on Mondays.
I believe that lack of rushing will help relieve some of the usual frustration. And what about possibly taking a different route, to and from work. Oh, I know, the traffic jams are everywhere! And since those are only suggestions, please don’t be offended. (smile) However, here’s one suggestion, or rather requirement that we do need for our Christian walk. In the words of Bruh Paul to the Philippians: ‘Do all things without murmurings (grumbling) and disputing.’ (Phil. 2:14)
Now that exhortation will certainly solve some of our Monday woes, since those are the things we do most on that disliked day! (smile) So it seems like a very wise suggestion to act upon. And why did Bruh Paul write it to the church at Philippi? ‘That ye may be blameless and harmless (innocent), the sons (children) of God, without rebuke (fault), in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation (generation), among whom ye shine as lights in the world.’ (Phil. 2:15)
And that’s a wonderful reason for not complaining and getting into disputes. For then we will be setting a very good example as worthy children of God. And there’s also this verse about complaining from Bruh Paul to the church at Corinth. ‘Neither murmur ye, as some of them (the Israelites in the wilderness) also murmured, and were destroyed by the destroyer.’ (1 Cor. 10:10)
Yes friends, the Israelites were great grumblers and complainers as they made their way from Egypt towards the Promised Land, and for that unnecessary complaining the Lord punished them once with death by serpents for finding fault with the manna He provided (Num. 21) , and another with a plague for demanding meat (Num. 13). In fact they wandered in the wilderness for forty long years because of their disobedience and complaining and lack of true faith in the Lord who had showed them so many miracles and done so much for them.
And when Moses sent the twelve spies into the Promised Land to check it out, only Joshua and Caleb had positive reports, while the other ten were negative, saying there were giants in the land, to whom they were like grasshoppers and the land was unconquerable. That brought the Lord to the end of His rope.
‘And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron saying, How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur (grumble) against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the Lord, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you: Your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole (entire) number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me.
Doubtless you shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware (solemnly promised) to make you dwell therein, save Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua, the son of Nun. But your little ones which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised. But as for you, your carcasses they shall fall (die) in this wilderness. And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness.
After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities (guilt), even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise (rejection). I the Lord have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.’ (Num,. 14:26-35)
Yuh see friends, the older Israelites who came out of Egypt should have known better after witnessing all the miracles the Lord did for them, but instead they chose to grumble and complain, and so, none of those who left Egypt, except Joshua and Caleb ever set foot in the Promised Land, they wandered in the wilderness until they all died. Now let’s hope that teaches us a lesson about complaining, for the Lord has given us ALL that we need to live this life successfully, but we need to get up off our fat and lazy fannies and get to work on His behalf.
So, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking divine help in handling our many problems. Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
Now, my fellow saints, please remember that without sincere repentance and turning from our evil ways, divine aid will not be forthcoming. Much LOVE!
…as a sincere believer…to murmur and to complain…is to raise the wrath of God…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
27 Apr 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abhor that which is evil, avoid the judgement of God, be not overcome of evil, calleth for the waters of the sea, christianity, cleave to that which is good, deepen my breath, establish justice in the gate, faith, fools despise wisdom and instruction, god, hate the evil, he who has ears to hear let him hear, holding on to, I know your manifold transgressions, increase my awareness of you, it is an evil time, Jesus Christ, know you all the more, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, lest he break out like fire, let love be without dissimulation, LOVE, love the good, maketh the day dark as night, overcome evil with good, poureth them out on the face of the earth, proverbial fools, rainy days, relax my muscles, seek him that maketh the seven stars, seek the Lord in true repentance, seek the Lord with all of our hearts, seek ye me and ye shall live, slow my thoughts, thank you for this tenderness, the beginning of knowledge, the end times, the fear of the Lord, the Lord God of Hosts, the Lord is his name, the only hope, the sinful tailcoat of Beelzebub, the wrath of God, there be none to quench it, thus saith the Lord, truth, turneth the shadow of death into morning, unconditional LOVE, wisdom, ye that love the Lord hate evil, your mighty sins, your unceasing nearness
Amos 5:4. For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live.
Rainy days and lazy-day Saturdays always make me glad… especially if I don’t have to go out in them. (smile) And though the early morning rain has stopped now, it’s still wet and cloudy out there, so don’t go out unless you really have to, stay inside and enjoy the relaxing laziness of the day. And to help us do that, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer.
In sincere and heartfelt voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And as always, if our words were truly sincere, then we know that the Lord is currently answering our prayer for calmness and peace, and filling our souls and spirits with His undying, unconditional LOVE, for He never allows those kinds of prayers that truly seek Him, to go unanswered.
Now, the Good Library just opened at an interesting passage from the Book of Amos, regarding ‘A Lamentation for Israel.’ Israel has gone astray once again and the Lord in His wrath is not coming with salvation for Israel, but with complete judgement. Here, the prophet Amos is informing them of the Lord’s words. ‘For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live. But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought (nothing).
Seek the Lord, and ye shall live, lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel. Ye who turn judgement (justice) to wormwood, and leave off (abandon) righteousness in the earth. Seek him that maketh the seven stars (the Pleiades) and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with (as) night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The Lord is his name:’ (Amos 5:4-8)
Oh friends, what an interesting passage of scripture, one that ought to remind us of our current plight, for we have also turned away from the God of our forefathers and taken up with the evildoers of Satan, and from day one, it has been said and shown that the evildoers will not survive the wrath of God’s judgement, but will be summarily destroyed in God’s time. But though we have seen it happen in the history books and the Bible, we still refuse to bow to the Lord God Almighty, our Creator and Controller in favour of the passing pleasures of sin.
But please note the words of Amos from the Lord. I believe He is telling us the very same thing today; turn from our evil ways, ‘Seek ye me, and ye shall live.’ As the scholars explain: ‘Three times the invitation, ‘Seek ye me, and ye shall live, is given (vs. 4, 6,14). Though God’s judgement is imminent, it can be avoided, or at least postponed, by seeking the Lord. The only hope is to seek the Lord in true repentance and thus avoid the judgement of God.’
And yuh know what my people, many of us are claiming that we’re living in the end times, and if that is true, then doesn’t it make all the more sense, is it not divine wisdom for us to turn away from our evil and ungodly ways and seek the Lord with all of our hearts, souls, bodies and minds so that we can escape His awesome wrath come the judgement day? It surely is! For as the scholars just reminded us the ONLY HOPE of avoiding severe retribution is to seek the Lord as quickly and sincerely as possible. But unfortunately many of us still insist on clinging to the evil, sinful tailcoat of Beelzebub and refuse to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.
The evil and ungodly pleasures of this world hold more delights for us than acknowledging the Lord God Jehovah. However, please note these further words of the Lord through Amos’ lamentation to Israel. ‘For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty (many) sins: they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside the poor in the gate from their right (from their right of justice) Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in that time; for it is an evil time. Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the Lord, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken. Hate the evil, and LOVE the good, and establish judgement (justice) in the gate: it may be that the Lord God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.’ (Amos 5:12-15)
Oh my fellow believers, it seems as though Amos is living amongst us today, for what he’s saying is exactly what’s happening in our world today. The injustice, the crooked deals, the evil deeds that are currently taking place as though they are natural and right outcomes is all disgusting and against the Lord’s Word. And He’s seeing it all, and because of His great LOVE for us is still warning us to turn away from evil, to seek Him, that we may live. How many times in the bible are we told to seek good and not evil eh?
Amos says it here, and the psalmist says it thus in Psalm 97: ‘Ye that LOVE the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.’ (Ps. 97:10) Meanwhile, Bruh Paul in his letter to the church at Rome tells them in no uncertain terms. ‘Let LOVE be without dissimulation (hypocrisy). Abhor that which is evil; cleave (cling) to that which is good….Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.’ (Rom. 12:9, 21)
How many more warnings do we need before we wake up from our foolish, sinful slumber and heed them eh mih bredrin? I guess Cousin Sol could not have said it any better in his opening statements in Proverbs. ‘The fear (reverential awe) of the Lord is the (principal) beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.’ (Prov. 1:7) And right now friends, we are behaving like those proverbial fools. Let’s hope that we wake up soon and thus avoid the justice that will befall those who don’t listen. Much LOVE!
…he who has ears to hear…let him hear… (Matt. 11:15)
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
03 Apr 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: became obedient unto death, divine help, Easter Sunday, even unto death, forgive us and heal our land, found in fashion as a man, Good Friday, hear our prayer, Holy Week, humble servants, inhumane suffering, Jehovah Rapha, let this cup pass from me, LOVE, made himself of no reputation, man's sin-bearer, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, my soul is exceedingly sorrowful, not my will but thine, Palm Sunday, pay for our abominable sins, prayed for a reprieve, separation from the Father, shed his sinless blood, sinned and disobeyed your Word, substitutionary death for mankind, sufferation, take his lumps, take the good with the bad, tarry ye here and watch with me, thank you for life and strong faith in Christ, the burden of the world's sins, the death of the cross, the Garden of Gethsemane, the God who heals, the wrath of God, turn from our evil ways, victory over hell death and the grave, won a magnificent victory
Matthew 26:38. My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry (wait) ye here, and watch with me.
Chuh! Man! Another Monday…another week of work! Why me eh? (smile) And this one will be a rough one because following the joyful festivities of Palm Sunday, it’s Holy Week, and all sorts of unsavoury things are happening in the Christian’s calendar, ending up with the crucifixion of Christ on Friday. We call it Good Friday, but it wasn’t good when it happened. It only turned out good when Christ rose from the dead on Easter Sunday, having won a magnificent victory over hell, death and the grave!
So, after the fear, the sadness and sorrow of Friday and Saturday, by Sunday evening everyone had gotten their jollies back with the awesome news of Christ’s resurrection making the rounds, just like His birth and death had done! (smile) Now, that resurrection was a most marvellous occasion which we all welcomed, but I guess like Job said, you have to take the bad with good. (Job 2:10) You can’t always expect good and no bad, even though you’re a believer in Christ, because the rain falls and the sun shines both on the good and bad. (Matt. 5:45)
And as we said yesterday, this Holy Week we’ve got stir up our faith, stand strong and steadfast and follow Jesus to the cross on Good Friday, where He endured ‘sufferation,’ that’s inhumane suffering over and above, with nary a word of complaint. Yes my fellow brethren, our Lord and Saviour, bled, shed His sinless blood and died on that rugged cross to pay for our abominable sins, because our heavenly Father desired it, and that was the only way it could be done justly and righteously.
Remember, the night before His crucifixion, in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed for a reprieve, but first said to Peter, James and John, who were with Him. ‘My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry (wait) ye here, and watch with me. And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father. If it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.’ (Matt. 26:38-39) Oh friends, Jesus’ heart was indeed heavy, as He prayed the same thing three times, with no reprieve from the Father.
Deep down, He knew that He had to take His lumps, and He wasn’t so much afraid of the horrifying death, but more so about His first ever separation from the Father. He knew that once the burden of the world’s sins was placed on His sinless shoulders, the Father would shut Him out since He could not look on the totality of sin.
As the scholars offer: ‘The prayer for the cup to pass is not due to Jesus’ fear of death. Jesus questions the will of the Father as to the necessity of drinking the cup. While this may refer to death (he tasted death) it is more likely that the cup represents the wrath of God against sin, the divine wrath Christ would incur on the cross as man’s sin-bearer. In the awful anguish of that moment, the sin of the world was poured on Christ, and He became “sin for us” (2 Cor. 5:21). Thus, the Righteous One dies a substitutionary death for guilty mankind.’
And that was indeed a mighty step, calling for much selflessness and obedience on Jesus’ part. No wonder Bruh Paul wrote these telling words to the church at Philippi. ‘Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men (emptied himself of all his privileges): And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’ (Eph. 2:5-8)
O, what a marvellous example of a son, our Jesus was! Denying Himself His rightful godly privileges and becoming a mortal man, so that He could do the Father’s bidding. Now none of us can ever reach the level that He reached, but we can all strive to be much better than we presently are. If not for our sake, then at least for Jesus’ sake. Just look at all He suffered on our behalf. Can we not put out the effort to be better disciples, better followers, better ambassadors and agents, with our salt salty as ever, and our lights shining all over the world, as He desires?
Is that too much to ask friends? I don’t think so. Not after what Jesus went through on our behalf. Doing what He asks is a piece of cake compared to what He went through for us. So please, this Holy Week, let’s step up to the plate and hit some home runs for our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ nuh. He rightly deserves our improved play. Now, let’s go to God, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, asking for the wherewithal to improve our level of play. (smile)
Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. We desperately need Your divine help, for You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face.
That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems. And Father, we pray that you will ease the pain of the many who are suffering from negative situations. Please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
And we’ll close with this li’l gem of scripture from Bruh Paul’s missive to those same Philippians, which ought to encourage us to get moving for Christ. Bruh Paul writes: ‘Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform (complete) it until the day of Jesus Christ.’ (Phil. 1:6) Yes my fellow saints, once the Lord begins working to remake us into the image of His wonderful Son, He’ll never stop until Jesus returns. So, let’s believe that and keep moving onwards and upwards in Christ, and thus fulfill our godly destiny. Much LOVE!
…we know all what we need to do to live for Jesus…so let’s cut out the foolishness and do it nuh…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
19 Sep 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a crown of righteousness, a good confession, a good future, a hope, assurance, before many witnesses, believes on the Son, breath of life, Christians, confessed, defend our faith, diagnostic testing, don't give up, encouragement, engaged in warfare, eternal life, exertion, faith, faithful intentions, fasting, fight one more round, fight the good fight, finished my course, fought a good fight, Gentleman Jim, glorious future with Jesus, godliness, good advice, grin and bear it, halfway home, hands on the plough, heavyweight fighter, James J Corbett, Jesus Christ, Jesus' vocabulary, joyful day, lay hold on, LOVE, Love his appearing, LOVE of Money, lusts, man of God, material wealth, medical appointment, meekness, Messiah, New Covenant, not looking back, one more time, patience, personal experience, personal problems, relief, resources, rewards in heaven, right around the corner, righteousness., salvation, shuffle back, spiritual life, stand strong, struggle with sin, suck it up, the centre of the ring, the darkest hour, the mind, the most powerful tool, the one before the dawn, the righteous judge, the wrath of God, thou art called, Timothy, true believers, unto the breach, washed white as snow, Wednesday Wail
1 Timothy 6:12. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed (confessed) a good profession (confession) before many witnesses.
One more time unto the breach, dear friends, one more time! Yeh, I’ve got another medical appointment this morning, that’s why the Bit is so early again. The good thing though is that I don’t have to go into Toronto, it’s just some diagnostic testing not too far down the street from me.
But I do have to fast for it, and fasting, or rather forced fasting and I are not the best of friends. The ole stomach is here growling away on me, calling for food, but I still have a few hours to go until I can grant it its request. (smile) But as they say, it’s all for my benefit. So just suck it up, grin and bear it!
That brings us to this bit of good advice attributed to James J Corbett (1866-1933), the American Heavyweight fighter, better known as ‘Gentleman Jim.’ He advises: ‘Fight one more round. When your feet are so tired you have to shuffle back to the centre of the ring, fight one more round.’ And that from someone who knows what He’s talking about through personal experience!
Yes my brethren, that’s what we Christians are called to do; fight one more round, even though we feel at the point of exertion, be it physical, mental or emotional. Oh, I know many of us are tired, what with all our personal problems, including health, wealth and friendship matters, but as believers, we’re not supposed to give up. Giving up doesn’t exist in Jesus’ vocabulary.
And further still, they say that the darkest hour is the one just before the dawn, so if you’re seeing what you consider a very dark hour, please believe that relief is right around the corner. Remember the mind is the most powerful tool in the world, and what we believe we can achieve. We have to use what resources we possess to our best advantage and keep on keeping on.
As Bruh Paul cautioned Timothy in his first missive: ‘But thou, O man of God, flee these things (LOVE of money, hurtful lusts, material wealth.); and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, LOVE, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed (confessed) a good profession (confession) before many witnesses.’
And as the scholars say of our Bit: ‘6:12. The good fight concerns the daily struggle with sin in the Christian life, and the hardships and adversities in the ministry. A genuine believer demonstrates the reality of his faith by being engaged in this warfare. Lay hold on eternal life does not negate the fact that a believer now possess spiritual life (John 3:36); rather, it speaks of fully realizing or appropriating salvation as the believer matures.’
Ah mih breddren being a true believer in Jesus Christ is not easy, but since we have declared ourselves to be true believers, we have to just keep on keeping on. And it’s not like we don’t have ample resources and encouragement, assurance and help to fight our earthly battle. We do! Namely all the resources granted to us as believers in Jesus Christ; the biggest and most important ones being salvation and eternal life.
As the Good Book declares: ‘He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth (remains) on him.’ (John 3:36) Oh friends, that provision alone ought to be enough to encourage us to stand strong and live and defend our faith. Which other faith has that sure promise eh…with the sacrifice, and resurrection of Christ to back it up eh? NONE!
And then we have so many other promises of God, who has a good plan for every life, with a hope and good future. He’s also promised never to leave nor forsake us; to hear our prayers and pleas when we diligently and sincerely seek Him; to bring us out of the fire unscorched; to take us safely through the flood, and most of all grant us a Deliverer, a Messiah, one to sacrifice and atone for our sins, which He did through His only Son Jesus Christ becoming flesh and offering His sinless life upon the cross at Calvary so that our sins could be washed white as snow.
Glory to God my people! For He has done all that He’s promised, and if we do what we’re supposed to do, then He will do the rest. The Lord will not do it all for us. He requires us to put in an effort on His behalf, since we’re partners in this New Covenant. So though life might be dark, dreary and difficult, we do have all the tools necessary to fight the good fight.
And hopefully, at the end of our days, we’ll all be able to proudly say like Bruh Paul did to Timothy: ‘I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course (race), I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that LOVE his appearing.’ (2 Tim.4:7-8)
Yes mih breddren, what a joyful day that will be! But until then, let’s keep fighting the good fight nuh, and as a promise of our faithful intentions, go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting the world know our current position in Christ. All together now, 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 the future will be even more glorious than our puny minds can imagine. So think on that nuh! Much LOVE!
…when life gets difficult…consider our rewards in heaven…and the glorious future promised us there…
16 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a loving heart, a peaceful joy, a thank-you note, behaviour of the world, children of disobedience, children of light, chutzpah, conformed to this world, constant companionship with God, creation, daily bread, darkness, discern, distractions, Do's, don't ever give up, Don't's, easy row to hoe, enthusiasm, evil, finish the race, glorious morning, glory hallelujah, glory to God, God controls everything, God's Word, heavenly mercies, immoral works, light, like Jesus, looking ahead, LOVE, made to serve and worship God, minions, my hands are on the plough, our benefit, patience, pay compliments, permeate your home with love, persever in the faith, perseverance, persist in prayer, practice forgiving, preach, pretend, proving, puncture self-esteem, push, renwing of your mind, right from wrong, run our race, Ruth Harms Calkin, solicitation to evil, spiritually une, spread the good news of Christ, temptation, thanks to God, the breath of life, the crown of glory, the One Year Book of Bible Promises, the righteousness of God, the way of the believer, the wrath of God, to a glorious future with Jesus, to the very end, transformed, vain words, walk, walk faithfully, walking in LOVE, Wednesday Wail, what is acceptable to God, will of God
Ephesians 5:10. Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.
Oh friends, another bright and glorious morning has dawned in my neighbourhood! All thanks to our wonderful God, who gives us our daily bread and heavenly mercies brand new, each and every day!
What would we do without Him in our lives eh? I don’t know, and I don’t want to find out either. (smile) That’s why we should try at all times to walk faithfully in His word and have constant companionship with Him.
And please remember, it’s not for His benefit, but for ours. He is God, and controls EVERYTHING! We are His creation, His minions, made to serve and worship Him and spread the good news gospel of His Son, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ around the entire world. All the while walking in LOVE!
Now here is some solid advice from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that will help us to do just that. It was given to a young lady having a hard time living with a non-believing husband, but it also applies to all of us across the board. It’s four DON’TS and four DO’S.
First the DON’TS (1) Don’t push. (2) Don’t preach. (3) Don’t pretend. (4) Don’t puncture his (or anyone else’s) self-esteem.
And the DO’s tell us: (1) Do permeate your home with LOVE. (2) Do practice forgiving. (3) Do pay compliments to him (and also others) often. (4) Do persist in prayer.
What a simple but very wonderful and workable way to live my brethren! Oh…there’s one more DON’T. ‘Don’t ever, ever, ever give up!’
And yuh know friends, that last DON’T is possibly the most important of them all, for with Jesus, and those who walk steadfastly with Him, there is absolutely NO giving up!
We need to persevere in the faith and pursue His plan for our lives right to the very end. We need to run our race of life with enthusiasm and chutzpah, patience and perseverance, so that at the end we’ll receive the crown of glory that the Lord has prepared for all those who successfully finish the race.
And on a point of interest, the lady who gave the advice above, a year later, received a thank-you note from the other lady, informing her that that strategy was working.
Glory to God my people! Yuh see it works! (smile) We just have to be serious about it and keep working at it… with a LOVING heart, like Jesus does.
And the scripture promise for that reading today is also our Bit. ‘Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.’
And what does that mean? The scholars explain: ‘5:10. Because of constant temptation and solicitations to evil, believers must always be proving or discerning what is and what is not acceptable unto the Lord.’
Yes friends, as Christians, we ought always to be considering what is right and wrong in God’s sight, and do the right thing. It’s not an easy row to hoe because of the numerous distractions and temptations floating around our society, but with God’s help, we can certainly discern the right from the wrong.
Before our Bit, explaining the way of the believer, Bruh Paul said it thus: ‘Let no man deceive you with vain (empty) words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children (sons) of disobedience. Be not therefore partakers with them. For ye were sometimes (once) darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.’ (Eph.5:6-8)
And the scholars offer this explanation of that last verse. ‘5:8. Darkness indicates that the readers used to be spiritually unenlightened, and accompanying this ignorance was immorality with its resultant guilt and misery. Light denotes that the recipients are now to be religiously informed. Their knowledge of the truth is attended by moral purity and happiness.’
Oh friends, life is so much better and more fruitful when we walk as children of light! That’s why Bruh Paul admonished the church at Rome thus: ‘I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable (rational) service.
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.12:1-2)
Ah mih people, God has done so much for us, washing and cleansing and redeeming us from sin and offering us salvation, through Christ, that we now need to be clean before Him. And since our bodies were the original instruments of sin, we now need to present them ‘to God as a channel through which the righteousness of God is manifested.’
And we do that by not conforming to the sinful, evil and immoral works, attitudes and behaviour of the world. And since we are indeed the righteousness in Christ (smile) we can now go home declaring our Wednesday Wail which supports that contention.
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!’
Oh friends, what more can we ask eh? Absolutely NOTHING! Much LOVE!
…if you’re walking with Jesus…and don’t have a peaceful joy in your soul…then something is seriously wrong…ask Him to help you fix it…
17 Jan 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a gem from Anselm, about trees in winter, angel food, asaph, at letting things go, baggage, church bells ringing, complaining, craving, disasters, disbelief, dwellings, experts, fallible, feathered fowls, food, forgat his works, forgetfulness, futility, go naked in the world, going our own way, going to hell in a hand-basket, habitations, hard-headed, he who doesn't hear will feel, his wonders that he had showed them, human, invitation, keep God first place, like the sand of the sea, lustful, lusts of our flesh, manna, murmuring, politically correct, progress, quails, race of life, reminisce, satiation, selfish, skylarking, smote, stay alive, staying alive, stubborn, Sunday, survival, the better days of old, the corn of heaven, The Israelites, the wrath of God, there's something incredibly honest, they sinned still, time for church, to fight another day, to gather at the Lord's house, unfaithfulness, ungrateful, vanity, water in the wilderness
Psalm 78:11. And forgat his works, and his wonders that he had showed them.
Oh friends, as I listen to the church bells peal in my mind this frosty Sunday morning, I am reminded of my youth, when the church bells actually did peal on a Sunday morning with a glorious invitation to gather at the Lord’s house to praise and worship Him, to give thanks for the past week, and pray for a safe and secure journey in the upcoming one.
How sad that church bells no longer ring out on a Sunday morning eh? But I guess in our foolish, politically correct society that would disturb and encroach upon the rights of others. Ah Lord eh! And we wonder why our society is going to hell in a hand basket?
But I’ll dwell, reminisce on the better days of old, when the church bells were a staple in our society and people were glad to hear them ring because it woke them up and reminded them that it was time for church. (smile)
Now at one stage I lived fairly close to the church, so like most young people, I never hustled until I heard the last bell ringing, because it only took me a couple minutes to get there. And I’d get there just in time for the proceedings to begin. No waiting around, sitting on the hard pew benches, fidgeting and talking with your friends, only to be told to shut up by your elders.
Hn! You couldn’t try that with the young people nowadays, instead they’d tell you to shut up. Steups! But I guess that’s what we call progress nuh.
Anyway, on a brighter note, here is a gem from our friend Anselm, who always aspires to inspire us. ‘I realize there’s something incredibly honest about trees in winter, how they’re experts at letting things go.’
And isn’t that a fact my people! The trees know that winter is coming and they don’t stand a chance of staying alive in the cold, mucky season if they want to keep all their greenery. So it’s all a matter of simple survival. Shed your leaves and go naked in the world for a few months if you want to stay alive, to fight another day.
The same thing goes for us my brethren. If we want to run our race of life as smoothly as possible, then we have to give up, get rid of the baggage that’s dragging us down; be it friends, family, business associates or some activity, and keep God first place in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls.
We definitely cannot afford to do like the Israelites in our Bit did. ‘And forgat his works, and his wonders that he had showed them.’
But before we get into our Bit, I wonder how many of you noticed the mighty and wonderful work I did yesterday eh? In the middle of the Bit, I took the Israelites out of Israel instead of out of Egypt. Hn, Hn! What a mighty work! And I read the Bit at least three times before publishing it yes. Just goes to show that the ole fella is human after all and thus fallible.
Anyway, let’s get to the story of the Israelites, their forgetfulness and unfaithfulness. Now yesterday we ended with them wondering if God, who had provided water for them in the wilderness could also provide food. (Ps.78:20)
What a bunch of selfish, lustful, ungrateful people! ‘Therefore the Lord heard this, and was wroth (furious): so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel; Because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation:
Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven, And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn (bread) of heaven. Man did eat angels’ food: he sent them meat to the full (food to satiation). He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven: and by his power he brought in the south wind.
He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea: And he let it fall in the midst of the camp, round about their habitations (dwellings). So they did eat, and were well filled: for he gave them their own desire.’ (Ps.78:21-29)
Oh my people, our God is truly something else yes! Remember how the Israelites were murmuring and complaining in the wilderness about food, and the Lord sent them manna. But that didn’t satisfy them, they wanted meat, flesh. So the Lord rained down a torrent of quails upon them, so they ate until they were satiated. (Ex.16)
I guess it’s like we do with our children sometimes: when they want some kind of food so badly, we give it to them until they are stuffed and uncomfortable and possibly get sick. That usually cures them of the greed and lust for that particular food. But the manna and quails did not satisfy the Israelites.
For as Asaph continues: ‘They were not estranged from (deprived of) their lust (craving): but while their meat was yet in their mouths, The wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest (stoutest) of them, and smote down the chosen (choice) men of Israel.’ (Ps.78: 30-31)
Yeh friends, our God is not a skylarking God, but a serious deity. Yuh see before they could even finish eating the flesh of the quail, He struck down some of the mightiest men, because of their disbelief and unfaithfulness. (Num.11:33)
But in spite of all that, Asaph declares: ‘For all this they sinned still, and believed not for his wondrous works. Therefore their days did he consume in vanity (futility), and their years in trouble.’ (Ps.78:32-33)
Oh what a foolish, stubborn and hard-headed people! But please don’t laugh and try to put them down, because we are doing the very same thing now. God is trying to talk to us, but we’re not listening. We’re just interested in going our own way. He’s showing us signs and wonders, natural and man-made disasters, warning us of things to come if we deviate from His path. But we’re not paying any attention, because we’re too wrapped up in the lusts of our flesh.
Oh friends, if God’s chosen people paid a most serious price for their disobedience, why do you think we won’t for ours eh? And I’ll leave us to ponder on that most vital question today. Much LOVE!
…he who doesn’t hear…will certainly feel…rest assured of that…
18 Sep 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a believer in Christ, a no-brainer, another week of work, appear with Christ in glory, Christ comes first, Colossians, covetousness, death, disobedience, do it all over again, el numero uno, eternal damnation, eternal life, evil concupiscence, evil desire, eye candy, fellowship, fornication, Friday chant, furthering God's glorious kingdom, gazing heavenward, get with the programme, glory hallelujah, heavenly realm, heretical philosophies, I made it through, idolatry, if ye then be risen with Christ, in soul body and mind, inordinate affection, intimate relation with God, knowledge, legalistic practices, Lucifer, more important than Christ, mortify, mortify your members, number one, priorities, put to death, relaxation, renewed and refeshed, residing in your bodily members, rest, right perspective, salvation, seek those things which are above, Set your affections on things above, sins, sipping a bottle of ale, spiritual realm, susceptible to the wickedness of the world, Thank God it's Friday, the children of disobedience, the Christian life, the higher things of God, the lake of fire, the last days are in the offing, the lower things of Lucifer, the ungodly things of this world, the weekend's here, the wisdom of God, the wrath of God, uncleanness, ungodly world, vices, watch the chicks, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God, wisdom, wisdom and knowledge reside in Christ, with your generous help, your life is hid with Christ in god
Colossians 3:1. If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.
Oh Friends, oh Friends, as I opened my door this morning, I heard a group of workers singing: ‘Friday, oh Friday! Thank God it’s Friday! I’m starting my weekend early. Taking the afternoon off work, going down to the outdoor café and watch the chicks and chicklets come and go, while sipping a bottle of ale or two…or even three. Thank God it’s Friday yes, and the weekend’s here! Glory Hallelujah!’
Oh my people, that’s often the preferable way for mankind to spend their weekend, but it’s obviously influenced by Lucifer and the ungodly things of this world. And it’s definitely not the right one for a believer in Christ. So let’s chant our Friday Chant that gives us a better and brighter perspective on how to use our weekends.
All together now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Now that’s a much better way to spend our weekends my brethren, and it makes a whole lot more sense than spending it idly in a pub watching chicks go by, feasting on eye candy. (smile)
And that all segues quite nicely into our Bit. ‘If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.’ Yes Friends, believers in Jesus Christ ought to be seeking the higher things of God, rather than the lower things of Lucifer and this ungodly world.
And Bruh Paul continues his admonition to the Colossians. ‘Set your affections (mind) on things above, not on the things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall we also appear with him in glory.
Mortify (put to death) therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection (passion), evil concupiscence (evil desire), and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience.’ (Col.3:2-6)
Now let’s get some explanations on those verses from the scholars. ‘3:2. Set your affections on things above: The Greek word literally says, “Set your mind on things above.”
The readers are not to be preoccupied with things on the earth, such as current heretical philosophies (2:8), legalistic practices (2:16, 21-23), and vices (v.5ff); nor are they to dwell on things that are not wrong in themselves (houses, jobs, careers, ambitions, etc), but can be wrong should they become priorities above Christ.’
Unfortunately though my people, a lot of us mistakenly spend way too much time concentrating on just such things, making them of more importance than Christ, and thus having them become idols we worship. That is obviously not right, for Christ should always be NUMBER ONE, EL NUMERO UNO, in our thoughts and actions!
That means we have to clean up our acts and get with the programme, for you see what the last verse we quoted above declares: ‘the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience.’ And that’s no lie my people!
‘3:3. Your life is hid with Christ in God (or, “Your life is deposited with Christ, who is in intimate relation with God”). As all wisdom and knowledge reside in Christ (2:3), so the believer’s new life is stored up in Him. This means that the Christian life belongs to the spiritual or heavenly realm.
Jesus is in intimate relation with God; so are His followers. Since the Colossians now belong to the heavenly realm and are intimate with God, they should seek those matters and interests pertaining to heaven and not to earth.’
Oh my brethren the same warning and message applies to us today! Our eyes are expected to be gazing heavenward, rather than towards the evil earth.
‘3:5. Mortify means to “put to death.” By a figure of speech members is put in place of the various sins that exist in, and seek to express themselves through different “members” of the human body. Paul urges his readers to “put to death all sins residing in your bodily members.”
Therefore looks back to verse 3: inasmuch as they “are dead” to sin, they are to make this death to the old life a reality in daily living.’
Oh Friends, those words are ever so applicable to our situation today! Believers need to die to self possibly more than at any other time in history, for the amount of evil and sinful things that abound today are way more than at any other time.
And to make matters worse, mankind has been, and is still being skillfully weaned off of God, so we are therefore more susceptible to the wickedness that the world puts forth as being okay.
So please realize that now is a very important time in our lives, the last days are in the offing, and we need to make serious choices, whether we are going to follow Lucifer and the things of the world, or Christ and the things of heaven.
To me it’s a no-brainer; Christ obviously comes FIRST! But everybody has to make his or her own decision. And please remember that where we spend eternity, depends upon that decision. Therefore, please let the wisdom of God guide us. Much LOVE!
…obedience to God’s Word brings salvation and eternal life with Him in heaven…disobedience brings death and eternal damnation with Lucifer in the lake of fire…
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