Monday, May 27, 2013,
4:30 a.m. – After I woke this morning, the Lord Jesus put the song “In Faithfulness He Leads Me” in my
heart and mind. Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read John 7 (NIV): http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%207&version=NIV
As I read and prayed through this passage of scripture,
trusting the Lord Jesus to give me his understanding, the Lord led me to look
at some of the examples he set before us concerning “his ways,” by which we
should learn and seek to follow in his footsteps. The following describes some
of those ways modeled for us by the life of Jesus.
God’s ways, not man’s
ways
After
this, Jesus went around in Galilee. He did not want to go about in Judea
because the Jewish leaders there were looking for a way to kill him. But when
the Jewish Festival of Tabernacles was near, Jesus’ brothers said to him,
“Leave Galilee and go to Judea, so that your disciples there may see the works
you do. No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you
are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” For even his own brothers
did not believe in him.
Therefore
Jesus told them, “My time is not yet here; for you any time will do. The world
cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that its works are evil. You
go to the festival. I am not going up to this festival, because my time has not
yet fully come.” After he had said this, he stayed in Galilee.
Humans will always have their ideas of who we should be, what
we should believe and practice, how we should behave, the kind of work we
should do, how we should spend our time, and what we should say or not say,
etc. And, they may even try to impose their value systems, their theologies, and/or
their humanistic teachings, logic and reasoning upon us. To a certain degree we
are all subject to other humans in that we must obey those in authority over
us, we must work and live with others, and we should try to live peacefully
with all people, as much as it is within our power to do so. Yet, we must not
live our lives to be pleasing to humans in that we compromise who God created
us to be, what he has called us to do, or the beliefs and standards taught us
in scripture. We must answer to a higher authority, namely God. And, we must
live to please him above all else, even if it means being hated by worldly
people (even other Christians) because of our stand for Christ.
Give credit where
credit is due
Not
until halfway through the festival did Jesus go up to the temple courts and
begin to teach. The Jews there were amazed and asked, “How did this man get
such learning without having been taught?”
Jesus
answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. Anyone
who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from
God or whether I speak on my own. Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain
personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of
truth; there is nothing false about him. Has not Moses given you the law? Yet
not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?”
When we read or study the scriptures it should not be for
the purpose of gaining intellectual knowledge, to impress people with our
learnedness, and/or to win Biblical arguments. When we read and study the
scriptures, we should always pray for the Holy Spirit of God to open our minds
and hearts to hear from him, and for him to give us the understanding and
practical application he would have us receive from the scriptures that day.
The word of God is not just a manual (rule book) for Christian living or a
history book. The word of God is God-breathed and it is alive and active! It
encourages, strengthens, convicts, comforts, teaches, exhorts and trains us in
righteousness. Because it is alive and active, and because Jesus is alive and
his Spirit lives within us, God still speaks to his people today, applying his
truths to our circumstances, guiding us in the way we should go, giving
direction, the calling of God on our lives, wisdom, discernment, and speaking
his truths to our hearts.
So, when we share the scriptures, we should share the
understanding given to us by the Holy Spirit of God, to the best of what we
comprehend. We should not teach our own humanistic philosophies, but we should
share as we have been taught by the Lord. If we speak in our own human wisdom
and reasoning, then the glory goes to us, but if we speak what we have heard
from the Lord, then we speak for the glory of God, and we should always give
him all the glory, honor and praise. Most importantly, we should live what we
say we believe, because actions speak louder than words. We should not study
just for knowledge, and we should not study, as well, just to teach others, but
when we learn from the Lord at his feet each day, we should apply his truths to
our lives – to our attitudes, thoughts and behaviors, which should be daily guided
by the Spirit, not by our own flesh.
In Faithfulness He
Leads Me / An Original Work / March 20, 2013
Based off Various
Scriptures
(Ps. 26:3; 86:11; 91:4-5; 111:7-8; 119:73-76;
Is. 25:1,4&9; 42:6-7; Hos. 2:16-20)
Teach me Your ways,
Lord, and I’ll walk in them.
Give me a pure heart.
I’ll fear Your name.
Your love is always,
ever before me.
Continually I’ll walk
in Your truth.
You will cover me with
feathers.
Under Your wings I’ll
find refuge.
My Lord’s faithfulness
will be my
Comfort and my shield.
The works of His hands
are faithful and just.
Trustworthy are all of
His precepts.
Your hands have made
me, and they have formed me.
Give understanding of
Your commands.
I have put my hope, O
Lord, in Your word.
Your teachings, O Lord,
are righteousness.
Lord, in faithfulness
You have
Afflicted me so I may
learn of
Your unfailing love
and comfort
And Your truthfulness.
You are my husband;
You have betrothed me
In love, compassion
and faithfulness.
O Lord, You are my
God, I’ll exalt You.
In faithfulness You’ve
done wondrous things.
You’ve been a refuge
for those who’re needy;
A shelter in storms;
shade from the heat.
This is the Lord, we
trusted in Him,
Let us be glad and
rejoice
In His salvation which
He
Provided through the
Lamb.
Open the blind eyes;
free all the captives.
Tell them of Jesus:
“Be born again!”
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