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."

Thursday, April 21, 2022

Please Don't Ignore God's Counsel

Psalms 92:1-4 ESV

 

“It is good to give thanks to the Lord,

    to sing praises to your name, O Most High;

to declare your steadfast love in the morning,

    and your faithfulness by night,

to the music of the lute and the harp,

    to the melody of the lyre.

For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;

    at the works of your hands I sing for joy.”

 

I love my Lord. I take joy in him every day. I am very thankful for his love and kindness towards me in saving me from my slavery to sin so that I can now walk in holiness and righteousness according to his word in his power and strength. I am so eternally grateful that his love lifted me out of the miry pit and put me on a solid rock where I can stand secure in him.

 

I am very grateful to the Lord that he took a sinner like me and he changed me and he gave me a new lease on life and purpose and meaning for my existence. He did not leave me wandering, not knowing what way to go, but he showed me the way of righteousness, and he empowered me to walk in it, in his truth, according to his word, in his strength and wisdom.

 

I am also very thankful for the written word of God, the Bible (Genesis to Revelation) whereby I have come to know my Lord in a deeper way and to know his truth and his wisdom, and for how he has been teaching me all these years how to understand and how to apply his word to my daily life in very practical ways which bring him honor and glory.

 

And I am eternally grateful that he chose me for his service, and that he called me according to his grace to follow him and to be used of him to share his love and grace with others, and to share the wisdom of the Scriptures and how they apply to our lives. He did not have to do this. But in his love and mercy he did, and now he uses me to share his word each day.

 

Psalms 92:5-9 ESV

 

“How great are your works, O Lord!

    Your thoughts are very deep!

The stupid man cannot know;

    the fool cannot understand this:

that though the wicked sprout like grass

    and all evildoers flourish,

they are doomed to destruction forever;

    but you, O Lord, are on high forever.

For behold, your enemies, O Lord,

    for behold, your enemies shall perish;

    all evildoers shall be scattered.”

 

I know a lot of people do not like this word “stupid,” but that is what the word means. It means senseless and foolish, which also includes being unwise, thoughtless, irresponsible, reckless and imprudent. And sadly so, this is where many people are these days, including many who profess faith in Jesus Christ. They are not following the wisdom of God, but they are following their own flesh and the foolish wisdom of other human beings.

 

They are ignoring the counsel of God written in his word that they don’t like, and that they don’t want to hear, while they are embracing the foolishness of mankind in his fleshly thinking and reasoning. And so many of them are following after lies while rejecting the truth, because the lies feed their flesh, and that is foolishness. It is stupid. It is senseless to ignore God’s commands (New Covenant) and to follow the teachings of humans, instead.

 

It breaks my heart how many people are refusing to believe God’s word who profess faith in Jesus Christ. They let other humans interpret the Scriptures for them because those humans are telling them what their itching ears want to hear. They pick and choose what Bible verses fit with their theology and/or with their lifestyles, which are verses often taught outside their context and are twisted to say what they are not really saying at all.

 

So, whether they profess faith in Jesus Christ or not, they are enemies of God if they refuse the Lord and his counsel and if they go their own way, instead, and if they make up their own gospel to fit their own sinful lifestyles. And if you are one who is following the truth of God’s word, and if you are walking in obedience to the Lord, and if you are sharing the truth of the gospel with others, they may oppose and attack you, too.

 

But we need to keep speaking the truth even if people oppose us, and even if they come against us and attack us for what we are sharing from God’s word. We need to not fear what other people think of us or what they might say to us or about us. For our Lord is with us if we are with him, and if we are following him in obedience, and if we are not walking in sin, in deliberate and habitual sin against our Lord.

 

So we need to remain steadfast in faith and in perseverance in getting out the truth of the gospel whether we are well received or whether we are spurned, instead. For many people are perishing in their sins, and many of them are professing faith in Jesus Christ, but they are not following Jesus with their lives, and they are choosing their sin over surrender of their lives to the Lord. So, they are embracing the lies while rejecting the truth.

 

So, we need to keep telling them that Jesus Christ died on that cross that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness. He died that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us. He shed his blood for us on that cross to buy us back for God (to redeem us) so we would now honor God with our bodies. And he died to deliver us from our slavery to sin so we would be slaves of righteousness.

 

But if we reject that biblical truth coming from the Scriptures, and if we decide we know better, instead, and so we continue living in deliberate and habitual sin, and we do not walk in obedience to our Lord, then we must know that the Scriptures teach that we will not have eternal life with God. We will die in our sins. We will not inherit the kingdom of God just by lip service only, but only by us doing the will of God in his power and strength.

 

[Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Tit 2:11-14; Jas 1:21-25; Rom 12:1-2; Eph 2:8-10; Php 2:12-13; Col 1:21-23; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Heb 10:26-27; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Matt 7:21-23; Rev. 2-3; Rev 18:1-6; Rev 21:8, 27; Rev 22:14-15]

 

When I Am Afraid

 

An Original Work / October 17, 2016

Based off Psalms 56-57

 

When I am afraid, Lord, I will trust in You.

Your Word, Lord, I praise. I yield my life to You.

Enemies pursue me, slandering Your Name.

Lord, have mercy. I trust in You. Hear my cry today.

 

Lord, I love Your Word. It comforts me today,

As I look to you and bow my head and pray.

You are Christ, my Lord. You saved me from my sin,

That I may walk, Lord before You, purified within.

 

Steadfast is my heart, O God, I sing of You.

I will praise You, Lord. To You, I will be true.

Oh, how great Your love. Your faithfulness endue.

Be exalted, God of heaven. Glory be to You.

 

https://vimeo.com/187821104

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