Today’s Scrip-Bit 7 March 2019 Matthew 4:1.

07 Mar 2019 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Matthew 4:1.   

Then Jesus was led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
 
Yes mih people, it’s a brand new day, and it ‘s cold out there, but the sun’s shining and the ole fella didn’t want to get up this morning, but like the obedient soldier that he is, he forced himself to get up so he could get these precious words of godly wisdom out to you at a reasonable hour. 

Wow! That’s why they say b.s. baffles brains! (smile) But I guess I was just tired from my outing in the big city yesterday, which went quite well, as it ought to, since the Lord carried me there on His broad, strong shoulders and brought me back safe and sound. That’s what He promised, and that’s what He delivered! Yuh know He’s One to always keep His promises. 

And today, on this second day of Lent, we’ll continue to look at the temptations that Satan threw at Jesus in His hungry state in the wilderness during His forty days and nights of fasting. ‘Then Jesus was led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.’ 

We saw yesterday where in the first major temptation Satan tried to get Jesus to make bread from stone to curb His hunger, but He came back with Old Testament scripture stating that man doesn’t live by bread alone but by God’s Word. (Matt.4:4; Deut.8:3) 

 Satan’s next attempt to get Jesus to sin was as the Good Book says: ‘Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple. And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.’ (Matt.4:5-6) 

What a crook and con artist is the devil eh! There he uses scripture incorrectly to tempt Jesus, and does the same thing to us nowadays, in his very deceitful manner. Friends, what we need to realize is that the devil knows scripture much better than us and thus can use it in deceitful ways to trap us. But we have to do like Jesus and stop him in his tracks with powerful statements like Jesus did: ‘Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt (test) the Lord thy God.’ (Matt.4:7) 

There Jesus retorted with scripture from Deut.6:16, where Moses reminded the Israelites: ‘Ye shall not tempt (test) the Lord your God, as ye tempted him in Massah.’  When they were ready to rebel and stone him and Aaron and go back to Egypt and the Lord was ready to destroy them but withheld His wrath on Moses’ plea. 

And the scholars offer an interesting explanation of those verses above. ‘4:5-7. The second temptation took place in the holy city (Jerusalem) on the pinnacle of the temple, which towered above the Kidron Valley. Evidently, Jesus was transported there by Satan’s power, and this time the devil quoted Scripture (out of context) in order to get Him to sin and ultimately shake His faith in the Word. 

Satan used Psalm 91:11-12 urging Jesus to cast thyself down. Again Jesus replied with Scripture (Deut.6:16) that he was not to tempt…God by such a presumptuous action. The very passage of scripture quoted by Satan actually goes on to promise God’s ultimate victory over him!’ 

And because I’m so sweet and LOVING and like to spoon-feed you all, (smile) I’ll quote the scriptures that the ole crook Satan used in his second temptation on Christ. ‘Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation (dwelling place); 

There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear (lift) thee up in their hands, lest thou dash (strike) thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder (cobra): the young lion and the dragon (serpent) shalt thou trample underfoot.’ (Ps.91:9-13) 

Yes friends, that same serpent that the Lord promised us we should tread upon is the devil, Satan himself! So as I said earlier on, we have to be very careful when he comes to tempt us, because he knows his scripture and can use it in very deceitful ways to cause us to fall into all kinds of evil and temptation. 

The only way to cancel that out is for us to know our scripture too, so like Christ, when the con-man brings his deceitful scripture to us, we can blast him back like Jesus did! That means we have to keep on seriously and steadfastly studying and meditating on the word, so we can recall it at a moment’s notice, because oftimes we don’t have much time to make our decisions, and the sooner we can call up scriptures to help us, the better off we will be. 

Now let’s move on to this most wonderful part of Today’s Bit, where we declare (right ho) our Thursday Blessings. As one, in strong voice and sincere, heartfelt sense of purpose: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! 

I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’ 

Oh friends, just having any one of those blessings is sufficient, but our Lord and God is so generous and magnanimous that He lavished oh so much more on us! Wow!  What a wonderful God we serve and worship! But wait a minute here, don’t get too carried away, those blessings aren’t only for us to hoard and keep, but more importantly for us to share, and generously too like Him, with others less fortunate than us. So let’s go out and do just that now nuh and show our true Christian nature to the fullest! Much LOVE!

…to give.. is so much better than…to receive…it brings more joy to the heart and soul…

 

 

 

Todays Scrip-Bit 15 November 2018 Proverbs 3:25.

15 Nov 2018 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Proverbs 3:25.   ​Be not afraid of sudden fear (terror), neither of the desolation of (trouble from) the wicked, when it cometh.
 
Ah friends, I was just wondering what we should write about this morning, because I had nothing whatsoever in mind. But as always, I asked the Lord for some guidance, then opened the Good Book and shortly thereafter found something that He pointed me to. All Glory be to our great and wonderful God! 

Friends, you all wouldn’t know the pressure there could be in having to write the Bit everyday, but thankfully I don’t feel any because of the Lord’s great mercy and faithfulness. All I have to do is remember to get up and write it, and I’ve been doing it for so long now it’s come like a second nature. 

And if there is one thing I can testify to is the Lord’s ever-faithful faithfulness! (smile) He’s never let me down one day yet in the eleven years I’ve been writing the Bit. Granted, some days it might take a little longer than others to discover what He wants me to write about, but He always comes through – in His time! Bless His Holy name. 

That’s why I can testify to the fact that He never gives us a task and then not help us to accomplish it! So whatever He’s asked you to do today, instead of hemming and hawing, simply go to Him in all sincerity and ask for His help, He will only be too glad to give it. 

Now let’s see what He desires to share with us today from His word. More wise words from Cousin Sol: ‘Be not afraid of sudden fear (terror), neither of the desolation of (trouble from) the wicked, when it cometh.’ What words of strength and reassurance my brethren! 

And for those of you who are wondering why Cousin Sol gave that assurance. Here’s why: ‘For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken (caught).’ (Prov.3:26) Oh give our great and wonderful God some thanks and praise my believing brethren for his mercy and LOVING-kindness to we undeserving children of men! 

So many times in His word He assures us that we should not be afraid of what the wicked can do to us…Let’s hear some of them nuh to revitalize our faith. And I guess we can begin with this one from Bruh Paul to Timothy, which so many of us quote, but don’t seem to live by. 

‘For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound mind.’ (2 Tim.1:7) Yes friends, that power to resist fear has been planted in every believer, it‘s then left up to each of us to water and nourish and nurture it so that it can grow into a strong and mature faith. 

Now hear the psalmist as he exalts the fearsome power of our God to all who sincerely trust and take refuge in Him: ‘He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust (take refuge): his truth shall be thy shield and buckler (a small shield). Thou shalt not be afraid for (of) the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; 

Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth (lays waste) at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come near thee…Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation (dwelling place).’ (Ps.91:4-7,9) 

Yes my people, what security we have when we place our sincere trust in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! And Peter puts it this way: ‘And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good? But and if ye suffer for righteousness sake, happy (blessed) are ye: and be not afraid of their terror (threats) neither be troubled; 

But sanctify (set apart) the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer (a defense) to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear (reverential awe):

Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation (conduct) in Christ. For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing than for evil doing.’ (1 Pet.3:13-17). 

Ah friends, I know that’s a mouthful, (smile) but all it’s basically saying is that if we are accosted about our faith, we should have a sincere and reverential answer for the hope we have in Christ, and to give it without offense. No need to get into any heated arguments. 

And if we do suffer at the hands of the wicked, better it be for doing good than doing bad, and sometimes we are asked to suffer under those circumstances as a testimony to others.

However, the Lord will eventually reward us for any ‘sufferation’ we undergo in His name. So let’s not be afraid to stand strong and steadfast in the faith and assurance of our Lord God, the Creator and Controller of this great universe, for whatsoever He has promised, He will deliver! Amen! 

And now it’s time to declare our Thursday Blessings; blessings that our most magnanimous God has so generously bestowed on us. And please remember that a blessing is not a blessing until it’s declared over someone or something.

So altogether now, in strong voice and sincerity of heart: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! 

I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection!

I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’ 

And those blessings were not meant for us to selfishly hoard, but to also generously dole out to others like the Lord has generously doled them out to us. Much LOVE!

…we all need strong faith…but unfortunately…a strong faith can only be acquired through some ‘sufferation’…