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01-26-2009, 10:53 PM
The Truth Shall Make You Free
31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?”
34 Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. 35 And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. 36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. John 8
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He also said, 'This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain--first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.' Again he said, 'What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade.' Mark 4:26-32
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Walk with God
Brethren, If walking with the Lord, following in his footsteps, seems to have become too hard for us and we are considering falling away;
let us first consider what the alternative is.
Instead of having a life filled to overflowing with God's love;
we could have a life filled with bitterness, resentment and hate.
Instead of having the abounding joy born of the hope of Glory with a vision of a life everlasting living in the eternal Kingdom of Heaven;
we could have a life filled with depression and sadness with our only hope being the grave and at the end of time the fires of hell.
Instead of having the peace that God only can give;
we could have a life filled with worry and distress in addition to anguish and anxiety.
Brethren, just look at all of the spiritual conditions we would have if we weren't walking hand in hand with the Lord.
Brethren, I don't know about you, but I for one have choosen to walk in the pathway of God's light thereby avoiding all those earthly pathways of spiritual darkness.
Let us then continue to walk with God!
©01/27/2001 Jim Welch
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What Is Not Seen With Human Eyes
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord (Job 1:21).
My wife and I joined a local church after searching for about six months for the church where God wanted us. We looked at a number of churches, each one had some outstanding characteristics that separated it from the rest. One we visited was renovating and looked more contemporary than the rest. Another seemed to be very traditional, including the cathedral ceiling and choir robes. One seemed to fall right in the middle. One was large, another small. One sang upbeat songs while another the old hymns.
I was at a point where I had had my fill of "traditional churches" feeling that they were stuck. It seemed they had fell into a routine of "doing church" the way they had always been doing it. There seemed to be a stagnate heart about such churches, which to me seemed unwilling to change even if God Himself were to speak audibly to them and tell them to do so. I believe Jesus addressed such an attitude when He said (speaking of the Pharisees) that they teach "for doctrines the commandments of men" (Mt.15:9). Such churches seemed more directed by budget and bylaw than by Christ. They seem to do business according to the dollar sign and Robert's Rules than by the guidance of the Head of the Church which is Christ.
One of the churches we visited seemed to be rooted in tradition. It held the traditional sanctuary decor, along with choir robes and mostly old hymns. Yet, to my amazement this was the church for us. We were at our first Sunday service at the church and it was not long before we discovered something wonderful. This church had a vision. It had direction. And it had purpose. It was one that seemed motivated by a deeply seated desire to see God's work done, and was driven to act on the same. Not to glorify the church but what God was evidently doing in it, through it, and with it.
Sometime during the process, God showed me an example of a great truth. Just as in all things, you cannot judge the heart by the exterior. And you cannot let the exterior guide your actions. What appears to be right, good and best is not always right, good and best. We know this truth well. Yet, for some odd reason so many of us continue making more of our decisions based on outward appearance than on inward reality.
By the grace of a loving, guiding God who opened my eyes, I have found a church home for me and my family. Had I allowed my human eyes to guide me I would have certainly gone elsewhere. Yet God allowed me to see beneath the traditional coverings of this old church--to see a young, vibrant heart beating for Him.
Imagine how much we miss out on because we allow our choices to be influenced by appearance. We may miss out on a relationship with a wonderful, godly person because maybe they seem a little odd. Or maybe we miss out on working a job where God knows we would be happiest, because it doesn't seem to pay what we think it should. Perhaps we miss out on leading a soul to Christ because of the apparent lack of time, money, etc.
It is time we stop looking with the eyes of flesh and start looking through the eyes of God. Only then will we experience His will perfected in us, and have the abundant and full life that He wants for us. Only then will we be able to beyond what seems to be to what is.
How can we do this? We must question our first impression. Before we even give way to wrong thoughts we must back up and see if what we are thinking is Christ-like. We must take our thoughts before God in prayer and ask Him to help us to see His truth in the matter. And we must base our decisions upon what He shows us to be, and not what we think that we see. Until our nature learns to respond more like Christ, our greatest enemy is our first response.
Day by Day Devotionals
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Read Exodus 29 -- 31 http://www.studylight.org/desk/?l=en&query=ex+29-ex+31§ion=0&translation=kjv&oq=
Highlights In Today's Reading:
Notice how precisely each detail is given of the Tabernacle and the clothes of the High Priest to fulfill the will of God. He is also concerned with each detail of our lives.
Verily My Sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you (31:13). The Command to keep the Sabbath was already included in the Ten Commandments as a reminder to His people that the Lord owns every day; therefore, some very special reason and meaning is given to the repetition of this command.
Since it appears at the conclusion of the instructions regarding the Tabernacle, it appears that the intention was to teach the connection which existed between the Sabbath and the Tabernacle and our daily lives.
The true Church is not a building, but is made up of born-again believers in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord of their lives. Christ is the Head of the Church: and He is the Saviour of the Body (Eph 5:23). The believers who make up the Body of Christ are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones (5:30). We come near to God by reading His Word that we may worship the Lord according to His will.
The "church" is the place where we meet with other believers to worship Christ, who is Head of the Church. It also becomes a place to study His Word, a place where our spiritual nature is developed: Laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word, that ye may grow thereby (I Pet. 2:1-2).
When the Lord's Day is neglected for physical pleasures or material gain, it is a rejection of the authority of God upon our lives. The sacredness of the Lord's Day is indicated by the fact that the Israelites, having a great sacred work to do in building the Tabernacle where God would dwell, were not to build it even on the Sabbath.
Surely a child of God, saved and cleansed from his sins under the precious blood of Jesus, should love and respect the Lord's Day. The Hebrew dared not desecrate the Sabbath. A person who has Christ indwelling him, will desire to worship with others as did the first Christians in Jerusalem.
And daily in the Temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ (Acts 5:42).
Thought for Today:
The angels teach us that worship is not just an activity for us as individuals, but is also intended to be done as a group (Luke 2:13; also Heb. 10:25).
Christ Revealed:
Through the Laver, Christ is revealed as both the container and the dispenser of Living Water (Ex. 30:18; John 4:10). Jesus . . . cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. . . . ye are clean through the Word which I have spoken unto you (7:37, 15:3; compare I Cor. 10:4).
Word Studies:
29:2 unleavened bread = bread without yeast, a symbol of Christ as the sinless offering; 29:17 unto = on top of; 29:18 sweet savour = pleasant fragrance, acceptance; 29:27 heaved = set aside; 29:28 statute = perpetual obligation; 29:41 meat = grain, meal; 30:3 crown = molding; 30:18 laver = wash basin; 30:21 seed = descendants; 30:25 apothecary = perfume maker; 30:28 his foot = its base; 30:33 cut off = excluded; 31:6 wise hearted = understanding heart.
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Rules, Rules, Rules
Acts 15:11
“ We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”
Salvation is not by works
It’s easy to fall into the trap of making our relationship with God dependent upon keeping certain rules. We have to go to church and youth group. We have to dress a certain way. We have to keep both our room and locker clean. The list can go on and on. And, everyone’s list is different.
That’s basically what was going on in the early church. Paul and his buddies had been preaching the gospel to non-Jews. As the Gentiles believed, they were baptized into the church and accepted as equals with the Jewish Christians. Some of the Jews took exception to this, insisting that the Gentile believers had to become Jews in order to be truly saved. Rules, Rules, Rules!
First off, we could never ever come close to keeping a list of rules perfectly enough to deserve to be in heaven with God. Just about the time we got close to being perfect in not lying, we would slip up in the area of anger. The pressure to be perfect would backfire and we would be raving maniacs or hypocritical judges of everyone else.
Trying to earn God’s acceptance by keeping rules or laws is called legalism. Satan wants to distract us from the truth of God’s grace and mercy by making us believe we have to act and dress and worship in certain ways. We can get ourselves so tied up in the ropes of rules that we don’t have any joy or satisfaction in our relationship with God.
God’s answer to our efforts to be good enough is the same as it was to the Gentile Christians and their Jewish accusers: “We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved.” We don’t have to keep the Ten Commandments or do certain things in order to be accepted by God. We have to place our faith in Jesus to save us. God provided for our salvation by having His Son die for us. How ridiculous to think that we can add anything to what he did in dying on the cross and coming back to life again!
Once we understand how wonderful God is to have freely given us salvation at his own expense, we naturally want to please him. We look at his word and find that meeting with other believers in order to worship and build each other up helps us love him more. We begin to see living for Jesus as a great adventure that can have eternal consequences. We desire to do what Scriptures tells us to do.
Today’s Prayer:
Dear Jesus, help me learn to love you just because of who you are. Help to see how senseless it is to try to measure up to your perfect by my own efforts. Instead, help me be grateful for your death in my place. As an expression of my gratitude and devotion to you, I choose to obey the precepts of Scripture so I can grow and be useful as your Kingdom servant. Amen.
Written by Martha E Menne
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1 Minute Daily Devotions
January 27, 2009
Stockholm Syndrome
"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." - Galatians 5:1
"Stockholm Syndrome" describes the behavior of kidnap victims who become sympathetic to their captors. The name derives from a 1973 hostage incident in Sweden. After six days of captivity in a bank, the hostages actually resisted rescue attempts. Months later, the victims still refused to testify against their captors at trial.
What causes this seemingly odd behavior? Out of a fear of violence, hostages identify with their captors, initially, as a defensive mechanism. Small acts of kindness by the captor become magnified. Rescue attempts are often seen as a threat, since it's likely the captive would be harmed during such attempts. The behavior is considered a common survival strategy for victims of abuse, and has been observed in battered spouses, abused children, prisoners of war - even occupants of concentration camps.
When it comes to dealing with Jesus, many people react with their own version of Stockholm Syndrome. Jesus, the Liberator, wants to free you from the bondage of slavery to sin; He wants to free you from being a prisoner to worldly values, and to spare you from judgment. Many people would actually rather stay in bondage, clinging to their own personal captors, feeling it's the only way they can survive. But the good news of the Gospel is that Jesus Christ came to pay that ransom so you could be set free!
What about you? Are you ready to be set free from captivity?
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Singing into Battle
Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 20:20-23; Ephesians 5:19.
When King Jehoshaphat and his army went out in the power of the Lord against their seemingly invincible foes, he appointed men to lead the army singing the praises of God. What a ridiculous idea! Could you imagine our Marine Corps singing "Praise ye the Lord, Hallelujah!" before battle?
Yet the Lord honored their faith in Him, and they didn't have to lift a spear. Their enemies destroyed each other before Judah even entered the battle!
When your enemy seems too strong for you, begin to sing and praise the Lord, and watch God do your fighting for you!
Moment of Meditation: Praising God shows we are thankful for all of His blessings, and trust Him to take care of us.
A Talk with Jesus: Lord, I praise you for the splendors of your holiness and might. Give me a thankful, trusting spirit. Amen.
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Walk by Faith
Daily Devotional for January 27
2 Corinthians 5:7 "For we walk by faith, not by sight"
Faith (Greek - pistis) means persuasion; credence; conviction of truth; truthfulness of God; reliance upon Christ for salvation; assurance; belief; believe.
Hebrews 11:6 "God is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him"
The problems are many when we walk by sight. We see much too much negativity. This causes us to think wrong, and in turn we end up speaking wrong. When walking by sight our ears tend to pick up gossip, and in turn this causes us to judge others. When we walk by sight we tend to think ourselves better than the next person. This leads us to a prideful attitude. We say, "They aren't as smart as me" or maybe even worse.
When we walk by faith we learn what God has to say about us by reading the Word and sitting under a Spirit filled Pastor/Teacher. We are taught Philippians 4:8 by faith. 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 becomes our standard as we walk in love. The just shall live by faith, we are revealed from faith to faith in Romans 1:17.
Love covers all sin. Salvation is a gift from God. Ask today that Jesus Christ would come in to your heart and redeem you from all your sins by faith in Him.
Bible References (KJV)
Hebrews 11:6 "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
Philippians 4:8 "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, 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, think on these things."
1 Corinthians 13:1-13 "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not love, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing.
Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Love never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
And now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love."
Romans 1:17 "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith."
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Jesus And Peter
January 27th
READ: Mark 14:53-72
He began to call down curses on himself and he swore to them, "I don't know this man you're talking about" (Mark 14:71).
Mark is careful to point out the contrast between Jesus' speaking under oath in the inner courtroom and Peter's oath in the courtyard. Jesus said He was the Messiah, the Son of God, and Peter denied that he knew Jesus at all. That was a solemn and serious oath, and just then, Mark says, "the rooster crowed the second time." Peter's conscience smote him. He knew what he had done, and according to the account here, he broke down and wept. The word for "broke down" is very strong in Greek. He literally went out and threw himself down on the ground in agony and tears of repentance, and remorse began to flow as he thought of what he had done.
I think we can see why Mark has so carefully weaved this story together for us. Nothing intrigues me more in this account in the gospels than to see the careful way the writers of Scripture choose incidents that belong together and put them side by side. Mark has done that here so that we might see the contrast. Here is a band of priests who hate Jesus. Their hearts are filled with venom and anger and jealousy and bitterness against Him. And all of it comes spilling out in the spitting and buffeting that follow the verdict. Contrasted to this is a man who loves Jesus with all his heart and is determined to defend Him to the end. And yet, in the moment of crisis, he fails Jesus. He denies that he even knows Him.
Why does Mark put these two situations side by side? He does it so that we might understand that both of them manifest the same thing; both show the undependability of human nature--the flesh, as the Bible calls it. These priests were men of the flesh, men who lived according to the ways of the world, men who were seeking for status and prestige and position. Jesus was a threat to their position and awakened their hatred and their anger, which they expressed in this terrible accusation and mockery and violence. That is the flesh at work. Everybody recognizes that hatred and anger and vehemence are wrong. But what Mark wants us to see is that the love of Peter was no better. It too was depending on the flesh, on human abilities and human resources, to carry him through. In the hour of crisis, it was no more effective than the hatred of the priests. Love and loyalty and faithfulness mean nothing when they rest on the shaky foundation of the determination of a human will.
The most hopeful note here is the tears of Peter. The priests didn't weep. But Peter, when he denied his Lord, threw himself down and wept. Failure is never the end of the story. Peter's tears speak of another day that is yet to come when the Lord will deliver him and restore him, having learned a sobering and salutary lesson.
Father, there will come times when I will be confronted with failure. I will find myself, like Peter, doing the very thing I didn't want to do, denying the Lord who bought me. Help me to understand that I must not count upon the power of the flesh to accomplish Your work.
This daily devotion was inspired by one of Ray's sermons. Please read "Jesus And The Priests" (or listen to the audio file Listen to Ray) for more on this portion of scripture.
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Only One Unerring Pattern
Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps. 1 Peter 2:21.
Christ demands all. If He required less, His sacrifice was too dear, too great to make to bring us up to such a level. . . . "Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind." This is a self-denying way. And when you think that the way is too strait, that there is too much self-denial in this narrow path; when you say, How hard to give up all, ask yourselves the question, What did Christ give up for me? This question puts anything that we may call self-denial in the shade.
Behold Him in the garden sweating great drops of blood. A solitary angel is sent from heaven to strengthen the Son of God. Follow Him on His way to the judgment hall, while He is derided, mocked, and insulted by that infuriated mob. Behold Him clothed in that old purple kingly robe. Hear the coarse jest and cruel mocking. See them place upon that noble brow the crown of thorns, and then smite Him with a reed, causing the thorns to penetrate His temples, and the blood to flow from that holy brow. Hear that murderous throng eagerly crying for the blood of the Son of God. He is delivered into their hands, and they lead the noble sufferer away, pale, weak, and fainting, to His crucifixion. He is stretched upon the wooden cross, and the nails are driven through His tender hands and feet.
Behold Him hanging upon the cross those dreadful hours of agony until the angels veil their faces from the horrid scene, and the sun hides its light, refusing to behold. Think of these things, and then ask, Is the way too strait? . . .
It is a blessed privilege to give up all for Christ. Look not at the lives of others and imitate them and rise no higher. You have only one true, unerring Pattern. It is safe to follow Jesus only. . . .
The oftener and more diligently you peruse the Scriptures, the more beautiful will they appear, and the less relish you will have for light reading. The daily study of the Scriptures will have a sanctifying influence upon the mind. You will breathe a heavenly atmosphere. Bind this precious volume to your hearts. It will prove to you a friend and guide in perplexity.
You have had objects in view in your life, and how steadily and perseveringly have you labored to attain those objects! You have calculated and planned until your anticipations were realized. There is an object before you now worthy of a persevering, untiring, lifelong effort. It is the salvation of your soul--everlasting life. And this demands self-denial, sacrifice, and close study. . . .
It is a great thing to be a child of God, and a joint heir with Christ (Testimonies, vol. 1, pp. 240-243).
From Lift Him Up - Page 33
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Jesus’ Family
by Momong January 27th, 2009 [Tuesday]
Mark 3: 31-35
Heb 10: 1-10 / Psa 40
‘Who are My mother and My brothers?’. . . whoever does the will of God, he is My brother and sister and mother.’
(Mark 3:33,35)
If we want to be Christ’s brother,
What do our words and acts reveal?
Do we show love for one another,
As He has taught us to be God’s will?
Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.” “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked. Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3: 31-35)
Reflection
Our Lord was not ignoring His own mother and relatives when they came to see him, but only took this opportunity to convey an important lesson about the kingdom of God. On this occasion He was not taking His relatives for granted, but was simply emphasizing a higher, more lasting spiritual kinship, which is the family of God. And His message then as it is now is: we can only enter into this relationship if we do the will of the Father.
We have learned a valuable truth about the fellowship of believers who belong to a much larger family here on earth (apart from our own natural family), which is more representative of the Father’s divine family in heaven. This spiritual family may be called a renewal community, a charismatic prayer group, or a brotherhood of Christians who are bound together by the Gospel values of Jesus Christ.
I recall the first time we joined our spiritual family, known as the Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professionals. At first it felt strange being addressed as “brother” or “sister” by people whom we had just met. But later, it felt great feeling a sense of belonging, becoming members of a larger family that we had chosen to join. We discovered the essence of God’s family in the fellowship of those who bared not only their souls to one another, but were open to one another generously in Christ. In many instances we witnessed this in our brotherhood — in the financial assistance to a brother or his wife who was hospitalized; in the generous “abuloy” to a brother whose poor uncle suddenly died from a stroke; in the prayer petitions through text messages from members in need of divine intervention, and many other acts of charity. Jesus said, “This is My commandment, that you love one another.” (Jn. 15:17) Doing God’s will simply means loving one another.
In this larger family we came to realize that we all need a support group, without which most of us would be no match against the forces of evil. No soul can stand alone. How fortunate are all those who are now in one of God’s spiritual families: as we draw closer to our brothers and sisters in community, we draw nearer to Christ.
Father, You have blessed us with both our natural and spiritual families. Help us to love them constantly in good times and in bad, as it is Your will for us to follow the example of our Lord Jesus Christ in all our relationships. Amen.
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PRIDE AND PATIENCE
“As we go through the day we pause, when agitated or doubtful, and ask for the right thought or action.”
- Alcoholics Anonymous, page 87
“I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry.” - Psalm 40:1
For what it’s worth: The agony of alcoholism had to grow horrible enough before my pride allowed me to ask for help. And I expected immediate healing. I still have trouble with pride and patience. All too often, without even thinking to pause and ask God’s help, I rush in to take charge. I impatiently push God aside, so to speak, insisting that I can handle the situation. I am still applying Step Six to this matter. I must become willing to pause and seek my Heavenly Father’s help. And, if He wants me to wait for Him, then I’ll just have to be patient. I do not know why that is so difficult. He always hears my cry and comes through for me.
God bless you!
Joe W.
31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?”
34 Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. 35 And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. 36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. John 8
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He also said, 'This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain--first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.' Again he said, 'What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade.' Mark 4:26-32
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Walk with God
Brethren, If walking with the Lord, following in his footsteps, seems to have become too hard for us and we are considering falling away;
let us first consider what the alternative is.
Instead of having a life filled to overflowing with God's love;
we could have a life filled with bitterness, resentment and hate.
Instead of having the abounding joy born of the hope of Glory with a vision of a life everlasting living in the eternal Kingdom of Heaven;
we could have a life filled with depression and sadness with our only hope being the grave and at the end of time the fires of hell.
Instead of having the peace that God only can give;
we could have a life filled with worry and distress in addition to anguish and anxiety.
Brethren, just look at all of the spiritual conditions we would have if we weren't walking hand in hand with the Lord.
Brethren, I don't know about you, but I for one have choosen to walk in the pathway of God's light thereby avoiding all those earthly pathways of spiritual darkness.
Let us then continue to walk with God!
©01/27/2001 Jim Welch
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What Is Not Seen With Human Eyes
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord (Job 1:21).
My wife and I joined a local church after searching for about six months for the church where God wanted us. We looked at a number of churches, each one had some outstanding characteristics that separated it from the rest. One we visited was renovating and looked more contemporary than the rest. Another seemed to be very traditional, including the cathedral ceiling and choir robes. One seemed to fall right in the middle. One was large, another small. One sang upbeat songs while another the old hymns.
I was at a point where I had had my fill of "traditional churches" feeling that they were stuck. It seemed they had fell into a routine of "doing church" the way they had always been doing it. There seemed to be a stagnate heart about such churches, which to me seemed unwilling to change even if God Himself were to speak audibly to them and tell them to do so. I believe Jesus addressed such an attitude when He said (speaking of the Pharisees) that they teach "for doctrines the commandments of men" (Mt.15:9). Such churches seemed more directed by budget and bylaw than by Christ. They seem to do business according to the dollar sign and Robert's Rules than by the guidance of the Head of the Church which is Christ.
One of the churches we visited seemed to be rooted in tradition. It held the traditional sanctuary decor, along with choir robes and mostly old hymns. Yet, to my amazement this was the church for us. We were at our first Sunday service at the church and it was not long before we discovered something wonderful. This church had a vision. It had direction. And it had purpose. It was one that seemed motivated by a deeply seated desire to see God's work done, and was driven to act on the same. Not to glorify the church but what God was evidently doing in it, through it, and with it.
Sometime during the process, God showed me an example of a great truth. Just as in all things, you cannot judge the heart by the exterior. And you cannot let the exterior guide your actions. What appears to be right, good and best is not always right, good and best. We know this truth well. Yet, for some odd reason so many of us continue making more of our decisions based on outward appearance than on inward reality.
By the grace of a loving, guiding God who opened my eyes, I have found a church home for me and my family. Had I allowed my human eyes to guide me I would have certainly gone elsewhere. Yet God allowed me to see beneath the traditional coverings of this old church--to see a young, vibrant heart beating for Him.
Imagine how much we miss out on because we allow our choices to be influenced by appearance. We may miss out on a relationship with a wonderful, godly person because maybe they seem a little odd. Or maybe we miss out on working a job where God knows we would be happiest, because it doesn't seem to pay what we think it should. Perhaps we miss out on leading a soul to Christ because of the apparent lack of time, money, etc.
It is time we stop looking with the eyes of flesh and start looking through the eyes of God. Only then will we experience His will perfected in us, and have the abundant and full life that He wants for us. Only then will we be able to beyond what seems to be to what is.
How can we do this? We must question our first impression. Before we even give way to wrong thoughts we must back up and see if what we are thinking is Christ-like. We must take our thoughts before God in prayer and ask Him to help us to see His truth in the matter. And we must base our decisions upon what He shows us to be, and not what we think that we see. Until our nature learns to respond more like Christ, our greatest enemy is our first response.
Day by Day Devotionals
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Read Exodus 29 -- 31 http://www.studylight.org/desk/?l=en&query=ex+29-ex+31§ion=0&translation=kjv&oq=
Highlights In Today's Reading:
Notice how precisely each detail is given of the Tabernacle and the clothes of the High Priest to fulfill the will of God. He is also concerned with each detail of our lives.
Verily My Sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you (31:13). The Command to keep the Sabbath was already included in the Ten Commandments as a reminder to His people that the Lord owns every day; therefore, some very special reason and meaning is given to the repetition of this command.
Since it appears at the conclusion of the instructions regarding the Tabernacle, it appears that the intention was to teach the connection which existed between the Sabbath and the Tabernacle and our daily lives.
The true Church is not a building, but is made up of born-again believers in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord of their lives. Christ is the Head of the Church: and He is the Saviour of the Body (Eph 5:23). The believers who make up the Body of Christ are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones (5:30). We come near to God by reading His Word that we may worship the Lord according to His will.
The "church" is the place where we meet with other believers to worship Christ, who is Head of the Church. It also becomes a place to study His Word, a place where our spiritual nature is developed: Laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word, that ye may grow thereby (I Pet. 2:1-2).
When the Lord's Day is neglected for physical pleasures or material gain, it is a rejection of the authority of God upon our lives. The sacredness of the Lord's Day is indicated by the fact that the Israelites, having a great sacred work to do in building the Tabernacle where God would dwell, were not to build it even on the Sabbath.
Surely a child of God, saved and cleansed from his sins under the precious blood of Jesus, should love and respect the Lord's Day. The Hebrew dared not desecrate the Sabbath. A person who has Christ indwelling him, will desire to worship with others as did the first Christians in Jerusalem.
And daily in the Temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ (Acts 5:42).
Thought for Today:
The angels teach us that worship is not just an activity for us as individuals, but is also intended to be done as a group (Luke 2:13; also Heb. 10:25).
Christ Revealed:
Through the Laver, Christ is revealed as both the container and the dispenser of Living Water (Ex. 30:18; John 4:10). Jesus . . . cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. . . . ye are clean through the Word which I have spoken unto you (7:37, 15:3; compare I Cor. 10:4).
Word Studies:
29:2 unleavened bread = bread without yeast, a symbol of Christ as the sinless offering; 29:17 unto = on top of; 29:18 sweet savour = pleasant fragrance, acceptance; 29:27 heaved = set aside; 29:28 statute = perpetual obligation; 29:41 meat = grain, meal; 30:3 crown = molding; 30:18 laver = wash basin; 30:21 seed = descendants; 30:25 apothecary = perfume maker; 30:28 his foot = its base; 30:33 cut off = excluded; 31:6 wise hearted = understanding heart.
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Rules, Rules, Rules
Acts 15:11
“ We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”
Salvation is not by works
It’s easy to fall into the trap of making our relationship with God dependent upon keeping certain rules. We have to go to church and youth group. We have to dress a certain way. We have to keep both our room and locker clean. The list can go on and on. And, everyone’s list is different.
That’s basically what was going on in the early church. Paul and his buddies had been preaching the gospel to non-Jews. As the Gentiles believed, they were baptized into the church and accepted as equals with the Jewish Christians. Some of the Jews took exception to this, insisting that the Gentile believers had to become Jews in order to be truly saved. Rules, Rules, Rules!
First off, we could never ever come close to keeping a list of rules perfectly enough to deserve to be in heaven with God. Just about the time we got close to being perfect in not lying, we would slip up in the area of anger. The pressure to be perfect would backfire and we would be raving maniacs or hypocritical judges of everyone else.
Trying to earn God’s acceptance by keeping rules or laws is called legalism. Satan wants to distract us from the truth of God’s grace and mercy by making us believe we have to act and dress and worship in certain ways. We can get ourselves so tied up in the ropes of rules that we don’t have any joy or satisfaction in our relationship with God.
God’s answer to our efforts to be good enough is the same as it was to the Gentile Christians and their Jewish accusers: “We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved.” We don’t have to keep the Ten Commandments or do certain things in order to be accepted by God. We have to place our faith in Jesus to save us. God provided for our salvation by having His Son die for us. How ridiculous to think that we can add anything to what he did in dying on the cross and coming back to life again!
Once we understand how wonderful God is to have freely given us salvation at his own expense, we naturally want to please him. We look at his word and find that meeting with other believers in order to worship and build each other up helps us love him more. We begin to see living for Jesus as a great adventure that can have eternal consequences. We desire to do what Scriptures tells us to do.
Today’s Prayer:
Dear Jesus, help me learn to love you just because of who you are. Help to see how senseless it is to try to measure up to your perfect by my own efforts. Instead, help me be grateful for your death in my place. As an expression of my gratitude and devotion to you, I choose to obey the precepts of Scripture so I can grow and be useful as your Kingdom servant. Amen.
Written by Martha E Menne
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1 Minute Daily Devotions
January 27, 2009
Stockholm Syndrome
"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." - Galatians 5:1
"Stockholm Syndrome" describes the behavior of kidnap victims who become sympathetic to their captors. The name derives from a 1973 hostage incident in Sweden. After six days of captivity in a bank, the hostages actually resisted rescue attempts. Months later, the victims still refused to testify against their captors at trial.
What causes this seemingly odd behavior? Out of a fear of violence, hostages identify with their captors, initially, as a defensive mechanism. Small acts of kindness by the captor become magnified. Rescue attempts are often seen as a threat, since it's likely the captive would be harmed during such attempts. The behavior is considered a common survival strategy for victims of abuse, and has been observed in battered spouses, abused children, prisoners of war - even occupants of concentration camps.
When it comes to dealing with Jesus, many people react with their own version of Stockholm Syndrome. Jesus, the Liberator, wants to free you from the bondage of slavery to sin; He wants to free you from being a prisoner to worldly values, and to spare you from judgment. Many people would actually rather stay in bondage, clinging to their own personal captors, feeling it's the only way they can survive. But the good news of the Gospel is that Jesus Christ came to pay that ransom so you could be set free!
What about you? Are you ready to be set free from captivity?
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Singing into Battle
Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 20:20-23; Ephesians 5:19.
When King Jehoshaphat and his army went out in the power of the Lord against their seemingly invincible foes, he appointed men to lead the army singing the praises of God. What a ridiculous idea! Could you imagine our Marine Corps singing "Praise ye the Lord, Hallelujah!" before battle?
Yet the Lord honored their faith in Him, and they didn't have to lift a spear. Their enemies destroyed each other before Judah even entered the battle!
When your enemy seems too strong for you, begin to sing and praise the Lord, and watch God do your fighting for you!
Moment of Meditation: Praising God shows we are thankful for all of His blessings, and trust Him to take care of us.
A Talk with Jesus: Lord, I praise you for the splendors of your holiness and might. Give me a thankful, trusting spirit. Amen.
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Walk by Faith
Daily Devotional for January 27
2 Corinthians 5:7 "For we walk by faith, not by sight"
Faith (Greek - pistis) means persuasion; credence; conviction of truth; truthfulness of God; reliance upon Christ for salvation; assurance; belief; believe.
Hebrews 11:6 "God is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him"
The problems are many when we walk by sight. We see much too much negativity. This causes us to think wrong, and in turn we end up speaking wrong. When walking by sight our ears tend to pick up gossip, and in turn this causes us to judge others. When we walk by sight we tend to think ourselves better than the next person. This leads us to a prideful attitude. We say, "They aren't as smart as me" or maybe even worse.
When we walk by faith we learn what God has to say about us by reading the Word and sitting under a Spirit filled Pastor/Teacher. We are taught Philippians 4:8 by faith. 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 becomes our standard as we walk in love. The just shall live by faith, we are revealed from faith to faith in Romans 1:17.
Love covers all sin. Salvation is a gift from God. Ask today that Jesus Christ would come in to your heart and redeem you from all your sins by faith in Him.
Bible References (KJV)
Hebrews 11:6 "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
Philippians 4:8 "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, 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, think on these things."
1 Corinthians 13:1-13 "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not love, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing.
Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Love never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
And now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love."
Romans 1:17 "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith."
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Jesus And Peter
January 27th
READ: Mark 14:53-72
He began to call down curses on himself and he swore to them, "I don't know this man you're talking about" (Mark 14:71).
Mark is careful to point out the contrast between Jesus' speaking under oath in the inner courtroom and Peter's oath in the courtyard. Jesus said He was the Messiah, the Son of God, and Peter denied that he knew Jesus at all. That was a solemn and serious oath, and just then, Mark says, "the rooster crowed the second time." Peter's conscience smote him. He knew what he had done, and according to the account here, he broke down and wept. The word for "broke down" is very strong in Greek. He literally went out and threw himself down on the ground in agony and tears of repentance, and remorse began to flow as he thought of what he had done.
I think we can see why Mark has so carefully weaved this story together for us. Nothing intrigues me more in this account in the gospels than to see the careful way the writers of Scripture choose incidents that belong together and put them side by side. Mark has done that here so that we might see the contrast. Here is a band of priests who hate Jesus. Their hearts are filled with venom and anger and jealousy and bitterness against Him. And all of it comes spilling out in the spitting and buffeting that follow the verdict. Contrasted to this is a man who loves Jesus with all his heart and is determined to defend Him to the end. And yet, in the moment of crisis, he fails Jesus. He denies that he even knows Him.
Why does Mark put these two situations side by side? He does it so that we might understand that both of them manifest the same thing; both show the undependability of human nature--the flesh, as the Bible calls it. These priests were men of the flesh, men who lived according to the ways of the world, men who were seeking for status and prestige and position. Jesus was a threat to their position and awakened their hatred and their anger, which they expressed in this terrible accusation and mockery and violence. That is the flesh at work. Everybody recognizes that hatred and anger and vehemence are wrong. But what Mark wants us to see is that the love of Peter was no better. It too was depending on the flesh, on human abilities and human resources, to carry him through. In the hour of crisis, it was no more effective than the hatred of the priests. Love and loyalty and faithfulness mean nothing when they rest on the shaky foundation of the determination of a human will.
The most hopeful note here is the tears of Peter. The priests didn't weep. But Peter, when he denied his Lord, threw himself down and wept. Failure is never the end of the story. Peter's tears speak of another day that is yet to come when the Lord will deliver him and restore him, having learned a sobering and salutary lesson.
Father, there will come times when I will be confronted with failure. I will find myself, like Peter, doing the very thing I didn't want to do, denying the Lord who bought me. Help me to understand that I must not count upon the power of the flesh to accomplish Your work.
This daily devotion was inspired by one of Ray's sermons. Please read "Jesus And The Priests" (or listen to the audio file Listen to Ray) for more on this portion of scripture.
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Only One Unerring Pattern
Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps. 1 Peter 2:21.
Christ demands all. If He required less, His sacrifice was too dear, too great to make to bring us up to such a level. . . . "Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind." This is a self-denying way. And when you think that the way is too strait, that there is too much self-denial in this narrow path; when you say, How hard to give up all, ask yourselves the question, What did Christ give up for me? This question puts anything that we may call self-denial in the shade.
Behold Him in the garden sweating great drops of blood. A solitary angel is sent from heaven to strengthen the Son of God. Follow Him on His way to the judgment hall, while He is derided, mocked, and insulted by that infuriated mob. Behold Him clothed in that old purple kingly robe. Hear the coarse jest and cruel mocking. See them place upon that noble brow the crown of thorns, and then smite Him with a reed, causing the thorns to penetrate His temples, and the blood to flow from that holy brow. Hear that murderous throng eagerly crying for the blood of the Son of God. He is delivered into their hands, and they lead the noble sufferer away, pale, weak, and fainting, to His crucifixion. He is stretched upon the wooden cross, and the nails are driven through His tender hands and feet.
Behold Him hanging upon the cross those dreadful hours of agony until the angels veil their faces from the horrid scene, and the sun hides its light, refusing to behold. Think of these things, and then ask, Is the way too strait? . . .
It is a blessed privilege to give up all for Christ. Look not at the lives of others and imitate them and rise no higher. You have only one true, unerring Pattern. It is safe to follow Jesus only. . . .
The oftener and more diligently you peruse the Scriptures, the more beautiful will they appear, and the less relish you will have for light reading. The daily study of the Scriptures will have a sanctifying influence upon the mind. You will breathe a heavenly atmosphere. Bind this precious volume to your hearts. It will prove to you a friend and guide in perplexity.
You have had objects in view in your life, and how steadily and perseveringly have you labored to attain those objects! You have calculated and planned until your anticipations were realized. There is an object before you now worthy of a persevering, untiring, lifelong effort. It is the salvation of your soul--everlasting life. And this demands self-denial, sacrifice, and close study. . . .
It is a great thing to be a child of God, and a joint heir with Christ (Testimonies, vol. 1, pp. 240-243).
From Lift Him Up - Page 33
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Jesus’ Family
by Momong January 27th, 2009 [Tuesday]
Mark 3: 31-35
Heb 10: 1-10 / Psa 40
‘Who are My mother and My brothers?’. . . whoever does the will of God, he is My brother and sister and mother.’
(Mark 3:33,35)
If we want to be Christ’s brother,
What do our words and acts reveal?
Do we show love for one another,
As He has taught us to be God’s will?
Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.” “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked. Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3: 31-35)
Reflection
Our Lord was not ignoring His own mother and relatives when they came to see him, but only took this opportunity to convey an important lesson about the kingdom of God. On this occasion He was not taking His relatives for granted, but was simply emphasizing a higher, more lasting spiritual kinship, which is the family of God. And His message then as it is now is: we can only enter into this relationship if we do the will of the Father.
We have learned a valuable truth about the fellowship of believers who belong to a much larger family here on earth (apart from our own natural family), which is more representative of the Father’s divine family in heaven. This spiritual family may be called a renewal community, a charismatic prayer group, or a brotherhood of Christians who are bound together by the Gospel values of Jesus Christ.
I recall the first time we joined our spiritual family, known as the Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professionals. At first it felt strange being addressed as “brother” or “sister” by people whom we had just met. But later, it felt great feeling a sense of belonging, becoming members of a larger family that we had chosen to join. We discovered the essence of God’s family in the fellowship of those who bared not only their souls to one another, but were open to one another generously in Christ. In many instances we witnessed this in our brotherhood — in the financial assistance to a brother or his wife who was hospitalized; in the generous “abuloy” to a brother whose poor uncle suddenly died from a stroke; in the prayer petitions through text messages from members in need of divine intervention, and many other acts of charity. Jesus said, “This is My commandment, that you love one another.” (Jn. 15:17) Doing God’s will simply means loving one another.
In this larger family we came to realize that we all need a support group, without which most of us would be no match against the forces of evil. No soul can stand alone. How fortunate are all those who are now in one of God’s spiritual families: as we draw closer to our brothers and sisters in community, we draw nearer to Christ.
Father, You have blessed us with both our natural and spiritual families. Help us to love them constantly in good times and in bad, as it is Your will for us to follow the example of our Lord Jesus Christ in all our relationships. Amen.
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PRIDE AND PATIENCE
“As we go through the day we pause, when agitated or doubtful, and ask for the right thought or action.”
- Alcoholics Anonymous, page 87
“I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry.” - Psalm 40:1
For what it’s worth: The agony of alcoholism had to grow horrible enough before my pride allowed me to ask for help. And I expected immediate healing. I still have trouble with pride and patience. All too often, without even thinking to pause and ask God’s help, I rush in to take charge. I impatiently push God aside, so to speak, insisting that I can handle the situation. I am still applying Step Six to this matter. I must become willing to pause and seek my Heavenly Father’s help. And, if He wants me to wait for Him, then I’ll just have to be patient. I do not know why that is so difficult. He always hears my cry and comes through for me.
God bless you!
Joe W.