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True Discipleship carries a High Price of Total Surrender and Obedience!

20 Jul 2025 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a Christian life begins with total commitment, a crying shame, a permanent dedication, a transfer from a secular to sacred state, all to Him I freely give, All to Jesus I surrender, all to thee my blessed Saviour, anything of good report, anything praiseworthy, as the world turns, be not conformed to this world, be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, being on the job every single day, by the mercies of God, ceremonies, christianity, confidence in God's Promises, consecration, eternal death, eternal life, faith, feel the sacred flame, fill me with thy love and power, glorify God in your body and spirit, glory to his name, God's grace and mercy, good to rededicate ourselves to Christ, holy acceptable unto god, holy spirit, humbly at his feet I bow, I beseech you therefore brethren, I give myself to thee, I surrender all, I will ever love and trust Him, if any man will come after me, in his presence daily live, irrevocable presentation, Jesus Christ, Judson Van De Venter, justifying the believer, let him deny himself, let me feel the Holy Spirit, let thy blessing fall on me, LOVE, love the bright lights, make me Saviour wholly thine, manifested in our outward behaviour, mercy, no doubt about our intentions, prayers, present your bodies a living sacrifice, refuse to walk the walk daily, reignites our faith, renewing our faith in christ, rituals, sacrifices of praise, salvation, saved from our sins, surrender yourself to God, take me Jesus take me now, take up his cross daily and follow me, talk a good talk, Thank you Jesus, the Battlefield of the mind, the BIBLE, the comfortable life, the corruptible material possessions, the cost of discipleship, the day of rest, the joy of full salvation, the Lord desires obedience, think on these things, to shirk our duty to Christ, total commitment, truly know that thou art mine, truth, uplifts our souls, voices of praise and thanksgiving, we owe Christ a debt we can never repay, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are true, wisdom, worldly pleasures all forsaken, ye are bought with a price, ye are not your own, ye may prove the good and perfect will of God, your body is the temple of the holy Ghost, your reasonable service

Romans 12:2a. And be not conformed to this world: but he ye transformed by the renewing of your mind,

And as the world turns, we’ve come to Sunday, the day the Lord rested after creating the universe and all therein. And He also expects us to rest, as well as gather in worship on that day, remembering all that He’s done for us, with voices of praise and thanksgiving, while renewing our faith, our strength and confidence in Him and His awesome promises.

So, here we are, gathered as required, and we’ll open today’s celebrations with a most appropriate hymn, titled, ‘All to Jesus I Surrender.’ Yes my fellow believers, that’s something we need to do, before we can truly appreciate and experience God’s goodness, grace and mercy. For above all else the Lord desires obedience in His followers, and you can’t be truly obedient until you let all of yourself go to Him.

The author of the hymn is an American Hymnwriter, one Judson W. Van DeVenter, (1855-1939) and it’s believed he wrote it around 1896. This commentary tells us that ‘The song is about consecration, which literally means ‘association,’ but for religious purposes, it signifies a transfer from a secular or profane state to a sacred one, for a special purpose or service. It involves a dedication that is intended to be permanent and can’t be easily revoked or repeated. It often involves rituals, prayers, and ceremonies specific to the religion or tradition.’

And today we’re going to reconsecrate ourselves to Christ as we sing and praise and worship and give thanks. So, let’s raise our sacrifices of praise in a soulful, heartfelt, sincere, mid-tempo version, leaving no doubt whatsoever about our intentions. Singing: ‘All to Jesus I surrender. All to Him I freely give; I will ever LOVE and trust Him, In His presence daily live. (Refrain: I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all.)

All to Jesus I surrender, Humbly at His feet I bow, Worldly pleasures all forsaken. Take me, Jesus, take me now. (Refrain:) All to Jesus I surrender, Make me, Saviour, wholly Thine; Let me feel the Holy Spirit, Truly know that Thou art mine. (Refrain:) All to Jesus I surrender, Lord, I give myself to Thee; Fill me with Thy LOVE and power, Let Thy blessing fall on me. (Refrain:)

All to Jesus I surrender, Now I feel the sacred flame; Oh, the joy of full salvation! Glory, glory, to His name! (Refrain: I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all…I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all… All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all…’

That was wonderful friends! And as always, heaven was singing along with us, for they just LOVE any opportunity to sing of and celebrate Jesus. And it’s ever so good to rededicate ourselves to Christ every week that we gather in His sanctuary, as it renews our spirits, reignites our faith, and uplifts our souls, for He’s all that we ever need in this world. And all God’s children said a loud and grateful, ‘Thank You Jesus!’

And when we wonder why we need to surrender all to Jesus, we must remember that it’s the cost of discipleship, you cannot be a disciple of Jesus unless you are willing to give it all up for His sake. And Jesus laid it out very clearly to the disciples, and to us. ‘If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’ (Luke 9:23) And my brethren, the most important word in that sentence is ‘daily.’

Yes, because being a sincere disciple of Jesus means being on the job every day, not just when the feeling takes us. And that’s why a lot of us don’t do such a good job at discipleship, we talk a good talk, but refuse to walk the walk DAILY. Furthermore, too many of us dislike the very idea of denying ourselves, but please remember what Jesus did for us. He selflessly denied His heavenly life to come to earth as a man and give His life so that we could be saved from our sins and receive eternal life instead of eternal death!

Now that most definitely means we owe Christ a debt we can never repay! And what could be more important than doing the little in our power eh? Nothing! But we so LOVE the bright lights, the corruptible material possessions and the good, comfortable life, that we cringe, both physically and mentally, at giving up any of it, even to save our own souls.

And I believe this verse from Bruh Paul to the Romans gives us good enlightenment as to what our behaviour should be. He writes: ‘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.’ (Rom. 12:1)

And what does all of that mean? The scholars tell us: ‘By the mercies of God summarizes all that God has accomplished for the believer in Romans chapters 1-11. In justifying the believer (chs. 1-5), enabling him to live a righteous life (chs. 6-8), and being faithful to Israel (chs. 9-11). That ye present refers to a definite act of presentation. The verb is used of offering a sacrifice that became “holy” under the Levitical system (cf. Ex. 29:37).

This shows that the Christian life begins with total commitment and irrevocable presentation. And as per Your bodies: The body has been an instrument of sin (chs. 6). Now it is to be presented to God as a channel through which the righteousness of God is manifested.’

So you see my fellow believers, our body is a temple of the Lord, as Bruh Paul writes to the Corinthians: ‘What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.’ (1 Cor. 6:19-20) It could not be said any plainer or more straightforward than that my people! We do not belong to ourselves, but to God, therefore we must behave as such, in body, mind and spirit.

And how do we do that? Hear this practical advice from Bruh Paul to the Romans. ‘And be not conformed to this world: but he 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) Yes friends, all changes begin in the mind. That’s why we talk about the battlefield of the mind, for there the battle between good and evil, God and Satan continually rages, and the winner is shown through our outward behaviour.

Therefore we need to keep very good and close control of our thoughts, and keep recycling, refreshing and renewing godly ones to keep the enemy out. It’s as Bruh Paul advices the Philippians: ‘Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest (noble), whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise (anything praiseworthy), think (meditate) on these things.’ (Phil. 4:8)

So my fellow saints, let’s do our best to renew our minds by thinking on the right things, and keeping ourselves busy with the right activities, that we can do our duty to our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Much LOVE!

…it’s a crying shame…that so many supposed believers…knowingly shirk their duty to Christ…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

The Christian Transformation from the Old Man of the World to the New Man in Christ!

03 May 2025 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a Christian life begins with total commitment, a great day to be alive, a living sacrifice, a new way of thinking, a time of renewal, a time to renew our passion for Christ, acceptable unto God, and grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, As God for christ's sake forgave you, be kind to one another, be not conformed to this world, be ye angry and sin not, be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, blindness of heart, changing your thought patterns, christianity, Christians, closer intimacy with God, conduct of the world, created in righteousness and true holiness, deepen my breath, Easter Season, embracing biblical principles, engaging in creative activities, eternal life, evil speaking, faith, flowers sprouting, forgiving one another, good to the use of edifying, greed, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I want to be with you now, if any man love the world, ignorance, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, justifying, laciviousness, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, let him labour, let him that stole steal no more, Let no corrupt communication proceed out of thy mouth, let not the sun go down upon your wrath, living lives that honour Christ, LOVE, love not the world, making us righteous, members one of another, mercy, minister grace unto the hearers, Mother Nature, neither give place to the devil, neither the things that are in the world, perseverance, practical advice, practicing new habits, prayer, prsent thinking, put away all bitterness anger wrath and clamour, put off the former conversation, put on the new man, putting away lying, quiet my soul, reading scripture, rebirth, reflection, relax my muscles, renewed in the spirit of your mind, resist being poured into the mold of the world, resurrection, salvation, sanctifying, sealed until the day of redemption, sincere effort, sincerity and truth, slow my thoughts, speak truth with your neighbour, spring, tenderhearted, thank you for this tenderness, the BIBLE, the help of the Holy Spirit, the Lord's calming presence, the love of the Father is not in him, the old man, the passion of our souls, the sacrificial death of Jesus, the season of rebirth, the thing which is good, the truth is in Jesus, to align with the truth of God's word, total commitment, transform our minds, trees budding with green leaves, truth, value systems, vanity, wisdom, with all malice, working with his hands, your love both surrounds and fills me, your reasonable service

Romans 12: 2a. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind,

Oh, this first lazy-day Saturday in May is a somewhat damp and cloudy one, but it’s oh so good for lazing around! (smile) And besides, that wonderful season of spring is in the air. The season of rebirth, of renewal, of all things being made new, and once again the trees are budding green leaves and flowers are sprouting in the gardens. What can be nicer eh, especially in this Easter Season, one of resurrection, of salvation and of eternal life! That means it’s a great day to be alive, so let’s give thanks to our wonderful God for that li’l fact nuh, by offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer.

As one voice, in all sincerity and truth: ‘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 prayer was sincere, we can soon expect to receive a calming presence from our heavenly Father, for desiring to be with Him in greater intimacy is His favourite desire, and He cannot help but grant our wish.

And just as spring is a time of renewal and rebirth for Mother Nature, I believe it can also be a time of renewal and rebirth for us, a time to strengthen our faith, to renew our belief in Christ Jesus, a time to reignite the passion in our souls, having recently suffered through His sacrificial death on our behalf, and then witnessed His miraculous and amazing resurrection. That’s certainly a time to renew our passion for Christ. so let’s begin with this foundational scripture from Bruh Paul to the Romans.

‘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) Yes friends, in honour of all that God has done for us, justifying, sanctifying, and making us righteous, among other things, then we need to show some appreciation and respect by living lives that honour Him. And according to the scholars: ‘This shows that the Christian life begins with total commitment and irrevocable presentation.’

Now, the first step in this renewal of our minds is to stop being conformed to the ways of the world, which are mostly opposite and opposed to those of Christ. As per the scholars, we are to ‘resist being poured into the mold of the present thinking, value systems, and conduct of this world.’ And John, in his first epistle, tells it perfectly: ‘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.’ (1 John 1:15) It could not be more explicit than that!

Then, we are to transform our minds, transition them to a new way of thinking, that supplied by Christ and His values. And I like how this commentary explains the process of transforming our minds. ‘Renewing your mind, often used in a spiritual context, involves actively changing your thought patterns to align with truth and God’s will. This process can be achieved through reading scripture, embracing biblical principles, and setting aside time for reflection and prayer. Practicing new habits, engaging in creative activities, and even taking a break from routine can also contribute to a renewed perspective.’

Yes, it’s not easy, especially if you were deeply involved in the ways of the world, and it does take time, but with a sincere heart and the help of the Holy Spirit, that transformation can be accomplished. And Bruh Paul, as is his habit, gives us some practical advice per transforming our minds, in his letter to the Ephesians. Having talked about the Gentiles being alienated from Christ, with their vanity, ignorance, blindness of heart, uncleanness, lasciviousness and greed, (Eph. 4:17-19) he then writes:

‘But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation (conduct) the old man, which is corrupt according to deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:

Neither give place (an opportunity) to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to hm that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying (educational), that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day or redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.’ (Eph. 4:20-32)

And that’s the practical manner in which we go about transforming our minds and putting on the new man in Christ! And yes, it’s a lot to learn and do, but that’s why we’ve been given the Holy Spirit as our guide and helper. And please remember that nothing happens overnight, but it takes sincere effort and perseverance on our part. If we do our part, the Lord will surely do His. So on this damp and cloudy first lazy-day Saturday in May, let’s do like Mother Nature does in springtime, and get to renewing our minds and bodies in the new man that resembles Christ Jesus! Much LOVE!

…you cannot be in Christ…or He in you…unless your mind’s been transformed…and you’re a new man…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit 22 February 2018 Romans 12:2.

22 Feb 2018 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a Christian, a journey, a piece of gnarled barked, a positive outlook, a process, abides for ever, abundance, acceptable, aimless, apostle Paul, as a man thinks, awesome light of the Son, be born again, being obedient, blessing, christianity, clear direction, compassionate heart, conformed to the image of Christ, conformed to this world, courage, crashing breakers, cultivate us, curse, drifting back and forth, enemy of God, enmity, favour, fence sitting, follow God's direction, friendship with the world, from glory to glory, get to know Christ, glory to God, going to school, good, grow in Christ, grow spiritually, Grow Up, heresy, hold back, immature Christian, jump from church to church, let go, life journey with Jesus, love not the world, lust, made no effort, more than sufficient, negative word, no set purpose, one goal, One Year Book of Bible promises, only one way, perfect, play second fiddle, praying, put in the effort, root us, Ruth Harms Calkin, share blessings, shining brightly, single minded, soaring, spiritual puttering, spoken over someone, studying God's Word, success, talent, the battle is in our minds, the renewing of your mind, the will of God, things of the world, Thursday's Blessings, to meet our needs, tossed to and fro, total commitment, transformed, trust, undisciplined, unsteady, wading in self-pity, water us, wet weather, will of God, willingness, wisdom, wishy-washy Christians, ye may prove, yearn for change

Romans 12:2. 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.

Good news friends; after about three days of wet weather, it’s cloudy but dry in my neighbourhood! Wow! Let’s hope the sun comes out later to make it an even more pleasant day. But even if it doesn’t, we still have the awesome light of the SON shining brightly in our lives, and He is more than sufficient to meet ALL of our needs! Glory to God!

And without further ado, let me share something from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. I don’t know if I’ve ever shared it before, but is it ever so appropriate for our currently trying and troublesome times. It’s simply titled ‘Grow Up.’

Please read with me. ‘Picture it with me: a piece of gnarled bark tossed to and fro over the crashing breakers. First one direction, then another, back and forth, over and under. Aimless. No set purpose. Drifting…always drifting. What an accurate picture of an immature Christian. Nothing but spiritual puttering. Up and down, in and out.

One study group for a few weeks, then another. One church for a while, then another. Undisciplined, unsteady, one day soaring, the next day wading in self-pity. No consistency. The apostle Paul tells us to grow up! Not grow older, but grow up into Christ.

What we are today is more important to God than what we were yesterday. Our life journey with Jesus is now – this very day, this very hour. Why yearn for change if we’ve made no effort to follow the direction God has already given us?

To grow spiritually we must be single-minded. Our one goal? To be conformed to the image of Christ. He longs for our willingness to let Him root us, cultivate us, water us. Above all else, God wants our total commitment. He will take anything we give Him except second place.’

And isn’t all that the gospel truth friends? It surely is! God wants our total commitment, but we’re not prepared to give it. We want to hold back stuff from Him. But that won’t work. As I said yesterday, God doesn’t play second fiddle to anyone! Only one fiddler in His band; that’s Him!

And what we don’t seem to realize is that being a Christian is a process, a journey, like going to school; you begin in ABC (kindergarten) and work your way up through elementary, secondary and tertiary levels. But you must put in the effort required at each level if you wish to be successful and proceed to the next.

Christianity is exactly the same; you get to know Christ and become more like Him by first putting your entire trust in Him, then studying His word, being obedient, sincerely and constantly praying (communicating) and thus gradually growing in His image; slowly – from glory to glory.

But unfortunately today we have a whole lot of wishy-washy Christians, who talk a great talk, but don’t know the real Christ. We jump from church to church, apparently seeking what we want to hear, and not what the word really says. And the sad part is that plenty churches seem to preach that heresy.

But friends, there is ONLY ONE WAY to truly grow in Christ, and that’s the one advised by Bruh Paul to the church at Rome, our Bit for today. ‘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.’

Yes my brethren, it all begins and ends in our minds. The battle between a true relationship with Christ and one with the world is fought primarily in our minds. That’s why they say, as a man thinks so is he. Therefore, if we want to be born again and grow in Christ, we have to let go of the things of the world, we have to stop conforming to what the world wants us to be.

As James so blatantly puts it: ‘Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of (with) the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be (wants to make himself) a friend of the world is the enemy (makes himself the enemy) of God.’ (James 4:4)

John though puts it a little nicer: ‘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. 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 2:15-17)

That’s it in a nutshell friends; we can’t be friendly with world and be friendly with God at the same time! So let’s stop trying to do it nuh. Now let’s go home declaring our Thursday Blessings, that the Lord has so graciously bestowed on us who truly believe and are obedient to His will.

In sincerity and truth now: ‘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!’

Remember, a blessing is not a blessing until it’s spoken over someone. So let’s go out and generously speak those blessings over others nuh, for that’s why God gave them to us. Much LOVE!

…sitting on the fence is not an option…you’re either FOR God…or AGAINST Him…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 December 2013 Ecclesiastes 12:14

20 Dec 2013 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: actions, admonish, advice to the young, alive and kicking, awesome truth, bad, balancing act, Bruh Paul, care, cheer, childhood, choices, church at Corinth, consequences, controlling factor, dangerous day, dark days, deceitful conception, decisions, enjoyment, every work, evil, excuses, expectantly, eyes, fear of repercussions, fellowship, firmly grounded, flesh, followers, forearmed, forewarned, freezing rain, Friday chant, fun, futility, generous help, gladness, glorious kingdom, God is judge, God's judgement, good, heart, hedonistic sense, hidden things of darkness, impulses, in faith, jesus name, jobs, joy, judgement, judgement day, justified, life, lifetimes, live it out, LOVE, magnanimous god, magnificent, mighty, motives, perspective, praise of God, prayer, precipitation, prime of life, propagated by evildooers, prosper, real judgement, refreshed in soul, rejoice, relaxation, renewed, rest, reveal, righteousness., secret thing, Selah, self-indulgence, sight, snow, sorrow, sow diligently, straight and narrow, struggle, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, thanks, the Preacher, the world's our oyster, total commitment, trial, umbrella, vanity, vexation, warning, ways, week of work, weekend, words, wrong, youth

Ecclesiastes 12:14. For God shall bring every work into judgement with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

And then it was Friday – a wintry Friday! There’s already some precipitation on the ground in my area – not much, but precipitation nonetheless. And who knows what’s going to follow eh; snow or freezing rain, or a combination of both? Anyhow we cut it, if the weather people are right, today’s going to be a dangerous day.

So please people, let’s all take very good care as we go about our business outside, for the weather conditions will not be ideal… Hn! And we don’t want any accidents or misfortunes just before Christmas. So if you don’t HAVE to go out, then DON’T GO OUT! Words of true wisdom Friends. (smile)

I also noticed that the weather warning somewhat dampened our usually glorious shout of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ But with prayer and care, we ought to make it safely through another winter’s day.

And to top it all off, let’s chant out Friday chant, with joy and gladness, simply because we’re alive and kicking, have jobs to go to, and live under the umbrella of a mighty, magnificent and magnanimous God!

So my brethren, 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.’

Now let’s get that perspective firmly grounded in our beings, so that we can live it out over the weekend. And do we ever need stuff like that to keep us on the straight and narrow, especially when we have a Bit like today’s: ‘For God shall bring every work into judgement with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.’

Yeh mih people, all our words and actions WILL indeed be judged on the big day! But as the saying goes; to be forewarned is to be forearmed. So now that we know what’s going to eventually happen, we have no excuses for making bad, or wrong, or evil decisions and choices.

Yesterday we saw the Preacher telling us to sow diligently in the mornings, then in the evenings, hold out our hands expectantly, in faith, because we don’t know which seed that we planted will prosper. But then again, in our rejoicing, we also have to pay attention to the many dark days of trial and struggle that will surely come during our lifetimes. It’s a fine balancing act my brethren! That’s what life is.

Now hear this wise advice from the preacher to the young. Oh if many of us had heard it when we were young!

‘Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways (impulses) of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes (as you see to be best): but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgement. Therefore remove sorrow (vexation) from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth (prime of life) are vanity.’ (Eccl.11:9-10)

And isn’t that the awesome truth my people! When we are young, we feel the world’s our oyster, and we can do whatever we want to, without fear of repercussions or consequences. But that’s a deceitful conception, propagated by evildoers, for as we are seeing, God will one day judge all that we ever did here on planet earth.

And please note the scholars’ take on the situation. ‘Once again the exhortation to enjoyment is put in the imperative mood. Here the appeal is particularly addressed to the youth to admonish him to enjoy life before the onset of the feeble years described in 12:1-7.

Verse 9 can hardly be taken in a hedonistic sense, because the controlling factor in the youth’s enjoyment is said to be God’s judgement. Rather, it is a warning against a life misspent in self-indulgence.’

Oh Friends, the sooner we learn these lessons, the better off we’ll all be! For yesterday we saw Jesus declare the truth of the judgement day. (Matt.12:35-37) Now listen to Bruh Paul in his first missive to the church at Corinth, talking about real judgement.

‘For I know nothing by (against) myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord. Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest (reveal) the counsels (motives) of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.’ (1 Cor.4:4-5)

Ah mih people, more words of divine truth, which will do us a lot of good to hear and inwardly digest!

And here’s an interesting note from the scholars’. ‘4:4. I know nothing by myself (lit. “I know nothing against myself”). This sort of total commitment gave Paul the authority to make such a statement as “be ye followers of me” (cf. 1 Cor.4:16; 11:1).’

Yes Friends, let’s be followers of Bruh Paul nuh, as he was a follower of Jesus! We certainly can’t go wrong if we follow his example. Much LOVE!

…and the heavens shall declare his righteousness…for God is JUDGE himself… Selah (Ps.50:6)

SCRIP-BITS

True Discipleship carries a High Price of Total Surrender and Obedience!

The Christian Transformation from the Old Man of the World to the New Man in Christ!

Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 December 2013 Ecclesiastes 12:14

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