Habakkuk 2

Then the Lord replied: "Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay."

Monday, November 19, 2018

Who Are We Following?


Psalm 1:1-2 ESV

Blessed is the man
    who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
    nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and on his law he meditates day and night.

We have the richness of God’s blessings, his benefits, his provisions in our lives when we, who are his by faith, do not participate in the ways of the ungodly, but we, instead, walk in the ways of the Lord. We have peace beyond measure, and joy even through tears. And, we have healing for our sorrows, and steadfastness of spirit, and guidance of the Holy Spirit, etc.

We, thus, who believe in Jesus, are not to conduct our lives, and make our decisions, and formulate our thinking based off the counsel (the advice) of the wicked, the immoral, and the depraved of this world. But, we are instead to receive and to follow the counsel of God, from his word, with regard to how we are to live, to love, to behave and to think.

We are also not to adopt the attitudes of those who make sin their practice. We are not to let their opinions influence what we think or believe. Our viewpoints about life and God and how we are to live our lives should also not be influenced by those whose ways reflect the ways of the flesh. Nor should we persist in, and be determined in, and be steadfast in the ways of those whose lifestyles reflect the darkness rather than the light.

We, as well, should not be unified or be in close fellowship with those who mock the ways of God, and who make light of His Word, or who take sin lightly and who think it is no big deal. We should not be in close fellowship, too, with others who profess Christ as Savior but who think they can still conduct their lives in the ways of the flesh, for bad company can corrupt good character.

But, we should be unified with those who are walking in the ways of the Lord, and who show they love God by obeying his teachings.

Psalm 1:3-4 ESV

He is like a tree
    planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
    and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
The wicked are not so,
    but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

We are blessed of God, because we do not follow in the ways of those who are living in opposition to God and to his Word. We are also blessed of God because we are firmly rooted (grounded) in him and in his truths. Our delight is in the teachings of God, of Christ, and on them we do meditate day and night.

We have the Living Water, the Spirit of God, dwelling within us giving us life in Christ, and eternal life in him. And, because we abide in him and him in us, we bear much fruit (spiritual results and outgrowth) in keeping with repentance.

Some of this fruit should be evident through how we live our lives, day in and day out, and through our conduct, our attitudes and our actions, which we make our practice. But, some of this fruit is born in other people’s lives, and we may not see all of that until we get to heaven one day.

When we remain in Christ and him in us, and we bear much fruit, we are successful, not in the eyes of humans, necessarily, but in the eyes of God, for we have done the will of God, which is for his glory and praise. Yet, humans do not measure such success in the same ways in which God does, so they may not have much regard at all for what brings glory to His name.

The wicked, nonetheless, may be very successful in the eyes of humans, and by the standards of this world, but they would not be prosperous spiritually in the eyes of God, for they not only did not do what God says, but they did the opposite, and they opposed him and his word and his messages and his messengers, too, and they treated God and his servants with contempt.

Psalm 1:5-6 ESV

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
    nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
    but the way of the wicked will perish.

One day we are all going to have to stand before God. And, he is going to judge us on the basis of what we did with His Son.

He will not be looking to see if we prayed the sinner’s prayer or if we made a public confession of Jesus Christ as Savior of our lives. He will not be looking, too, to see if we attended church services at some building called “church” every week. He won’t be looking at how much money we put in the offering plate or what committees we served on or what ministries we were involved in, either.

What he will be looking for, which he obviously already knows, is did we trust Jesus Christ truly to be Lord (owner-master) and Savior of our lives? Did we turn away from our lives of sin and did we follow (obey) Jesus Christ with our lives? Did we walk according to the Spirit, or according to the flesh? Did we follow God’s counsel, or did we, instead heed the counsel of the wicked? And, did we remain in him, or did we desert at the first sign of trouble? And, did we take his word seriously, or did we mock it?

For, Jesus died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. This is the essence of the gospel message. If we want to have eternal life with God and forgiveness of sins, we must die daily to sin and follow our Lord in obedience. We don’t have to be perfect, otherwise Jesus would not have had to die. But, we should no longer be under the control of sin so that we are still walking in the ways of our sinful flesh instead of in the ways of God.

Know that we will all reap what we sow. If we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction (decay, death). But, if we sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life with God (Gal. 6:7-8).

For Our Nation  

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: we’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.


Monday, November 19, 2018

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