Who Greatly Delights!

Psalm 112:1-3 ESV

Praise the Lord!

Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,

    who greatly delights in his commandments!

His offspring will be mighty in the land;

    the generation of the upright will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are in his house,

    and his righteousness endures forever.

We are blessed of God in so many ways when we walk in the fear of the Lord. We are at peace, our hearts are filled with joy, we are satisfied with good things, we have purpose and direction for our lives, and God uses us in other people’s lives to minister his love and his grace to them, etc.

And, to walk in the fear of the Lord is to honor God with our lives. It is to show him respect, and it is to walk in obedience to his commands. It is to leave our sinful lifestyles behind us to walk (in lifestyle) according to (in agreement with) the Spirit of God and no longer to walk in the ways of our sinful flesh (Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9).

And, the riches he pours out on us are the riches of his grace, and the fruit of the Spirit, and the treasures of wisdom and knowledge in Christ Jesus, our Lord. We have a oneness with our Lord, too, when we forsake our former lifestyles of living for sin and the flesh, and when we unite with our Lord in mind and heart and actions with his purposes for our lives.

Psalm 112:4-6 ESV

Light dawns in the darkness for the upright;

    he is gracious, merciful, and righteous.

It is well with the man who deals generously and lends;

    who conducts his affairs with justice.

For the righteous will never be moved;

    he will be remembered forever.

For those of us who have put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ to be Lord (owner-master) and Savior of our lives, a Light has dawned in our hearts and lives, and that Light is Jesus Christ, and it is truth and righteousness. And, this Light changes who we were, and our Lord transforms our hearts and minds away from sin so that we are now becoming like Jesus.

Our old sinful lifestyles are no more. We are not perfect people. We still live in flesh bodies. We are but clay in the Potter’s hands. But, daily by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the flesh and we are walking by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ according to his ways and his truth, in his power and strength at work within us, to the glory and praise of God our Lord. Amen!

And, our lives are beginning to take on the character of God, because God is living within us and we are yielded to him and to his will for our lives. Therefore, the righteousness of God begins to shine through our lives and through our character so that we care about what God cares about, and we hate what he hates, and we cling to what is good.

Thus, we are also loving others with the same love that God has for us, caring about their basic needs and what is the most beneficial for them, and we are meeting those needs as God directs and as he supplies. Thus, we treat others as we want to be treated, and we care not only about their physical needs, but also about their spiritual needs.

Most of us will not do this perfectly, though, yet lack of perfection should never be used as an excuse for not obeying the Lord and for not loving others as God loves us. So, we press on, not having yet obtained all this, but we move forward in our relationships with our Lord and with others, forsaking our sins, yielding to the Lord, and following our Lord in the ways of his love and his grace towards others.

Psalm 112:7-9 ESV

He is not afraid of bad news;

    his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.

His heart is steady; he will not be afraid,

    until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.

He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor;

    his righteousness endures forever;

    his horn is exalted in honor.

When we are truly walking with the Lord in the light of his truth and in his love, we are not to fear bad news. Now, we are still human. We still have hearts and emotions, and we can get injured and be sad and we can grieve loss, so we don’t become emotionless or stop feeling. So, it isn’t that we won’t be impacted by bad news. But, we are not to be afraid of it.

We are to keep reminding ourselves that God is sovereign over all things, and that he is still in control. He is still on the throne, and nothing can thwart his plans for our lives. What comes into our lives he has allowed, and he has allowed it for a purpose, which is to mature us in Christ, to purify our hearts, to make us holy, and to conform us to his likeness. So, when bad news does come, we are not to be afraid of it, but we are to commit our lives to the Lord, inquire of him as to what he wants us to learn through it all, and then step out in faith and follow him. He will carry us through.

For, Satan wants us to be afraid. He wants us to doubt God. He wants us to take matters into our own hands and/or to give up and to quit. One of his biggest weapons against us are his lies which can instill fear within us if we listen to and if we believe his lies he whispers to us in our ears. So, we have to reject those lies and put on the truth, and follow the truth. And, in that way we can look in triumph on our enemy and claim the victory that is ours in Christ, our Lord, to the glory of God. Amen!

Psalm 112:10 ESV

The wicked man sees it and is angry;

    he gnashes his teeth and melts away;

    the desire of the wicked will perish!

Now, this is so true! When we are truly walking with the Lord, in the light of his truth, and when our hearts are given over to him to do what he desires, those who are refusing him, and who are walking in wicked ways, are going to hate us, and they will even be angry with us, for the righteousness of God will be an affront to them. And, they may indeed gnash their teeth at us.

But, we are not to fear their anger or their rebukes. We are not to be afraid of their disdain or their ill treatment of us, either. It doesn’t mean we won’t feel anything or that we won’t be injured physically or emotionally by their anger towards us. For, if we have tender hearts towards God, and towards others, we are going to feel it when our love is returned with hate. But, God will heal our wounded hearts if we will let him.

Yet, we are not to fear what evil man might do to us, or what he might say about us to others. But, we are to continue to walk in the ways of the Lord and keep on loving even our enemies, praying for them and doing good to them. And, we need to pray for them to turn their hearts to God.

God is allowing wickedness to exist on this earth for now. He is allowing evil to reign and for wicked people to do wicked deeds. And, he is giving us all a choice to either continue on in evil ways or to forsake our evil ways to follow him in obedience to his commands, and in surrender to his will. But, with those choices comes rewards, which could be good or could be bad.

For, if we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction, but if we sow to please the Spirt, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life. If we walk (in lifestyle) according to our flesh, we are going to die in our sins, but if we walk (in practice) according to the Spirit, then we have eternal life with God. So, make it your choice to leave your sinful lifestyles behind you and to follow our Lord in obedience, for your eternity depends on it (See: Lu. 9:23-25; Rom. 8:1-17; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Gal. 5:19-21; Gal. 6:7-8).

Have Thine Own Way, Lord

Words by Adelaide A. Pollard, 1907

Music by George C. Stebbins, 1907

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!

Thou art the potter, I am the clay.

Mold me and make me after Thy will,

While I am waiting, yielded and still.

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!

Search me and try me, Master, today!

Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just now,

As in Thy presence humbly I bow.

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!

Wounded and weary, help me I pray!

Power, all power, surely is Thine!

Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!

Hold o'er my being absolute sway.

Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see

Christ only, always, living in me!

*copyright status is public domain

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSnBbgsecD4

Leave and Cleave

Matthew 19:3-9 ESV

And Pharisees came up to him and tested him by asking, “Is it lawful to divorce one's wife for any cause?” He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” They said to him, “Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce and to send her away?” He said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.”

Man and Woman

From the very beginning, after God had created man, he then created woman to be a helper fit for him. He, thus, took one of man’s ribs, from his side, and from that he made woman who was to be flesh of his flesh. And, it was God’s intention and will for man that he should leave his father and his mother, and that he should hold fast to his wife, and that they would, thus, become one flesh (Gen. 2:18-25).

So, from the very beginning, it was God’s plan and purpose in his creation of man, and then woman, that, in marriage, they should become one, united in Christ and in God’s love and purpose, and that the man should see the woman as his helpmeet, whom God brought alongside him to assist him.

Although they are still individuals, and the man is the head, they were to become one in Christ, united in purpose, working together alongside each other toward the same ultimate purpose, which is for the glory of God.

Also, the man is to leave his parents, and he is to hold fast to his wife. And, this is not merely physically leaving his parents’ home to go live with his wife, either. This is also departing from wrong behavior patterns learned from his parents, and forsaking wrong attitudes and bad influences, too. And, it has to do with growing up, as well, and no longer being childish, but growing to maturity and manhood and taking responsibility now for his own home and family physically, spiritually and emotionally, too.

And, he is to “cleave to, be glued together with, and to be intimately connected in a soul-knit friendship” with his wife (1).

So, this “oneness” is not just a sexual union. This is a union that covers all areas in a marriage relationship, and that seeks the good of one another. It is a give and take relationship that is not all one-sided. Although the man is the head, he is not to lord it over his wife in an abusive or a demanding way, but he should be thoughtful and considerate of her and her thoughts and feelings, too.

They are to be partners, in other words, two joined together as one, which is dependent largely on the man being glued together with his wife in thought, attitude, heart, mind, emotion, affection, etc., as well as in body.

Although it takes two to do this, and both partners have to work together with each other towards this oneness, the Lord lays a large part of that responsibility on the man who is to lead his household in the ways of God, but to do so by example and with purity of heart and mind, and in love (unselfishly).

For, the man is to love his wife as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, and the wife must respect her husband (Eph. 5:25-33). For, we each have our roles in this marriage relationship, but we are also each to do what leads to us becoming one flesh, too, and both husband and wife have to work on this together, united in Christ, with the husband leading the way lovingly, tenderly, affectionately and in purity, too.

Sin Corrupts

Although this was God’s design for the marriage relationship from creation, and it still is his design, for it is mentioned again several times in the New Testament, sin corrupted this union when man and woman sinned against God. And, sin continues to corrupt the marriage relationship, and our relationships with God, when humans decide to ignore God’s commandments (his protections) and to go their own way and to do their own thing instead.

Thus, men (and women, too), including Christian men and women, will often or sometimes look for loopholes in God’s boundaries he has set for us, i.e. they will look for wiggle room and for ways to excuse away what they know is wrong. For example, a man (or a woman) might lust after someone other than his or her spouse, and then excuse it away as “normal” or as “innocent” or “harmless,” especially if he (or she) thinks no one noticed.

So, in a sense, they are looking to “divorce” their spouses, though not necessarily in a legal or physical sense, but emotionally, spiritually, and with regard to their marriage vows of fidelity and faithfulness. For, a man or a woman can separate from each other, not physically (in the sense of not living together), but through adultery and sexual immorality.

Infidelity, especially done on a consistent basis, such as via viewing pornography, breaks those marriage vows and that oneness. For, the man or the woman no longer is clinging to (being glued together as one to) his or her spouse, but they have decided to chuck God’s boundary lines, i.e. his protections for us, and to disassociate and separate from their spouses, i.e. to divorce them due to the hardening of their hearts towards God.

A Stronger Responsibility

Guys, I know that us women are not unsusceptible to this, and I do know that there are women (wives) who are living in this “divorced” state from their spouses, too, via the breaking of their bonds of holy matrimony, because they have stepped outside of God’s boundary lines (his protections), and because they have decided it is ok for them to “wander” off in their minds or in their actions towards “other lovers.”

But, I do know that scripturally God has given you guys a stronger role of responsibility here to keep your marriages glued together as one, and to love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. And, I also know that sexual immorality is much more prevalent among males than it is among females, and that much larger percentages of men are addicted to porn than are women.

So, I believe God is talking mostly to you guys right now, though us women are not off the hook by any means, and he is saying to you that you need to stop playing with sin. You need to stop flirting with adultery and letting your minds and your hearts wander off toward “other lovers” whoever or whatever those may be. But, you need “to be intimately connected in a soul-knit friendship” with your wives, and you need to work together with them towards this oneness that God created you to have with each other.

The Big Loophole

But, this is not just an individual problem we are dealing with here. This is universal. And, it is being adhered to by the church, too, largely. For, they have largely been deceived by the great deceiver. And, they have listened to the lies rather than listen to the truth. And so they are convinced that God’s grace permits them the liberty to continue on in their sexual perversions. But, that is cheap grace, not God’s grace.

For, God’s grace, which brings salvation, instructs (demands) us to say “NO!” to ungodliness and worldly passions (fleshly lusts) and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives while we wait for Christ’s return (Tit. 2:11-14; cf. Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 4:17-24).

Many a marriage is in disarray right now largely due to men who are not being glued together with their wives as one, but who are throwing out God’s protections (his boundaries) in order to follow after the lusts of their flesh and after their “other lovers,” and while they turn their backs on their spouses and they abandon them spiritually, emotionally and mentally, and perhaps physically, too, and then make excuses for it all.

Women, you are not being excluded here, though. Largely the same rules apply for us, only we are not the heads of the family, and we are not given the responsibility to lead in this or to “leave and to cleave” in the same way in which God has commanded the men. But, we are to follow the correct leading, and we are to submit to godly leadership, but we are never to submit to sin or to helping another to sin, either.

We just need to all follow God’s commandments regarding purity, morality, faithfulness, love, compassion, kindness, thoughtfulness, and unity, which is to be first in Christ and then with one another who are also united with Christ. And, men, you are to lead the way in this. If you are married, cleave to your wives, become one with them in heart and mind and love. Let them be a part of you and you a part of them, and be honest and be faithful.

Healing is Possible

Wife, if you are living with a man who is unfaithful to you, who is living in adultery and is “divorcing” you by his actions, attitudes, and immorality, be encouraged. God loves you and he is watching out for you. He will lead and guide you in the way he would have you go, and he will strengthen and help you to forgive and to keep loving your husband and to keep praying for him.

Let the Lord heal your broken heart, and do not let bitterness get a foothold in your life and heart. Trust in the Lord in all things, and believe he is working all things together for good for those who love him and who have been called according to his purpose.

And, ditto regarding any males who may be in a similar situation with their wives. Just keep trusting the Lord, and keep following him, and keep forgiving, loving, hoping and praying. God is good! All the time! Believe him. Follow him. And, let him lead the way.

His Tender Mercies

An Original Work / January 26, 2014

Fear not! I’m with you.

Be not dismayed!

God watches o’er you.

Trust Him today.

He’ll lead and guide you;

Give you His aid.

He’ll love and keep you

With Him always.

Walk in His footsteps.

He’ll lead the way.

Trust in His love;

Believe that He cares.

He will not leave you.

Faithful He’ll be.

His tender mercies

Now you will see.

Fellowship with Him

Throughout the day.

Tell Him your heartaches.

He’ll heal always.

Rest in His comfort.

He is your friend.

Your faith He’ll strengthen,

True to the end.

https://vimeo.com/85267672

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

(1)       https://biblehub.com/greek/2853.htm

Who Do You Say?

Matthew 16:13-17 ESV

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

Who Do People Say?

Many people today, even within the gatherings of the church, have different ideas of who Jesus is in character, in thought and in deed. Many people have a distorted view of who Jesus was and still is, too, because they are being taught “another Jesus” other than the one of the scriptures.

So, who do people today, even within the church gatherings, say Jesus is? Many of them say he was a good man or a prophet, or that he was the (or a) Son of God, but that he was and is not God. Many of them see Jesus as a “good deed doer” who just went around “blessing” everyone, and so everyone liked him and thought well of him. They see him, too, as accepting of all people and tolerant of all lifestyle choices, and they call this “love.”

Regarding his death on a cross for our sins, they see him as one who gave his life up for us so that we can be forgiven our sins and have the hope of heaven when we die, but that he requires nothing of us – no repentance, no obedience, and no submission to his Lordship. They think he sees obedience to himself as legalism and as works-based salvation, so they think that is why he no longer requires them to obey him.

They think, too, that they can continue on in their sinful addictions without guilt now that they are “saved” from their sins, and that heaven is guaranteed them. And, they believe Jesus, thus, is a God of love, mercy, grace and forgiveness, because he removes from them the punishment for their sin and then frees them to continue living in sin guilt free.

But, who do you say?

So, who do you say Jesus is? I believe scriptures teach that Jesus is God, our creator, and the only begotten Son of God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He is perfect, without sin, fully righteous and holy, pure, truthful and faithful. He is all powerful, all knowing, and he is ever present everywhere all at the same time. And, he always existed with God and as/is God (See: John 1; 1 John 1; Phil. 2; Heb. 1:8-9; Jn. 8:24; Jn. 10:30-33; Col. 2:9).

He is a God of love, grace and mercy, but he is also a God of righteousness and justice. Thus, when he died on that cross for our sins, it was not merely to forgive us our sins, to give us an escape from hell, and to promise us heaven when we die.

For, when he died he became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God. He died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. He died that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us. When he died, thus, it was to deliver us out of our slavery to sin and to free us to become slaves of his righteousness (2 Co. 5:15, 21; 1 Pet. 2:24; Rom. 6:1-23; Eph. 4:17-24; Tit. 2:11-14).

Jesus is also a God of his word, the judge of all humankind. As a God of justice, he will certainly do what he said he would do. And, he said that if we would come after him, we must deny self, take up our cross daily and follow (obey) him. For he said, if we hold on to our old lives, that we will lose them for eternity. But, if we lose our lives (die with him to sin and self) for his sake, then we will have eternal life with him (Lu. 9:23-25; cf. Rom. 8:1-17).

Matthew 16:21-23 ESV

From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

So, if Jesus was such a “nice guy” who just went around doing good deeds and blessing everyone, then why did they kill him? Makes no sense, right? Right! Because he is a God of love, mercy, and grace, he does not leave us still in bondage to our sins. He doesn’t leave us still in sinful addiction “struggling” every day with sinful practices, regularly giving in, feeling like we just can’t help ourselves and that there is no hope for us.

So, when he walked this earth, he confronted sin in sinful human beings, and he called for them to turn away from their sinful practices and to follow him in obedience to his will and to his ways. And, he is still saying the same thing today. And, that is why they hated him, i.e. it was the main reason, and because he claimed to be God, which is who he is, and because he didn’t follow all the religious practices of the Pharisees (the hypocrites). And, this is why they persecuted him and hung him on a cross to die.

And, many people today, even within the gatherings of the church, are still persecuting Jesus and his messengers, and they are still putting him to death in their hearts and lives. For, they are following after “another Jesus” that permits them to continue in their sinful practices and who says nothing to them about it, but who just loves on them and even smiles at them and delights in them even when they are vegging out on porn in defiance of Him.

So, they have actually adjusted their beliefs to incorporate this false Jesus with his cheap grace gospel so that they can commit adultery against their Lord and be “in bed” with other lovers without guilt, and even with the blessings of many church leaders and supposedly “God.” They have moved righteousness out of the way to make room for this cheap grace substitute to be the driver, the motivation, and the inspiration of their lives.

So, they have moved from having the possibility of life eternal with God to a position of still dead in their sins and bound for hell. And, they have embraced this cheap grace, which is “easy believism” that makes no demands on its adherents regarding morality, honesty, righteousness, integrity, honor, and faithfulness, etc. But, instead, it coddles them in their sin, and that is why so many are making room for this in their hearts, and it is why they are shutting out of their lives the Jesus of the Bible.

Matthew 16:24-27 ESV

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.”

This is a reprise of what was said earlier. We have to get this, for our future and our eternity depends on us believing this, which will be evident in how we live our lives. Jesus didn’t die on that cross merely to forgive us our sins and to promise us heaven when we die. He died that we might die with him to sin and live with him to righteousness, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

If we buy into this cheap grace gospel, and we think that heaven is guaranteed us based on some confession of faith in Jesus Christ, then we must know that is not the truth. True faith in Jesus Christ will result in transformed lives of the Spirit of God away from lifestyles of sin to walking in obedience to our Lord one day at a time. Daily, by the Spirit, we are putting to death the deeds of our flesh, and we are putting on Christ and his righteousness in how we live our lives day in and day out.

When Jesus returns for his bride and to judge the people of this earth, he is going to judge us on the basis of what we have done. If we walked (in practice) according to the flesh, we will die in our sins. If we sowed to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction (decay, death), not eternal life. If we make it our practice to commit adultery, lie, cheat and the like, we will die in our sins, not have eternal life with God (Rom. 8:1-17; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Gal. 5:19-21; Gal. 6:7-8).

But, if we walk in the Light as he is in the Light, we have fellowship with him and with one another, and his blood cleanses us from all sin. If we walk according to the Spirit of God, and we are putting to death, by the Spirit, the deeds of the flesh, then we have eternal life with God. And, if we sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life with God.

Praise Be Told! 

An Original Work / December 28, 2013

Based off Various Scriptures

He was pierced for our transgressions.

He was crushed for all our sin.

Our chastisement was upon Him.

By His stripes, we now are healed.

He has witnessed all our trials,

And the sins we choose to wear.

Yet, while we were dead in our sin,

Jesus died, our sins to bear.

He himself bore all of our sins

In His body on a cross,

So that we might die to our sin,

And live for His righteousness.

By faith in the pow’r of Jesus

And His blood shed for our sins,

We can be forgiven our sin,

And have life with God in heav’n.

He will lead us and He’ll guide us

In the way that we should go.

He will comfort and protect us,

Because Jesus, we do know.

Though He disciplines for our good,

He will heal us – Praise be told!

Do not fear, your Lord is with you.

Just have faith in Christ your Lord.

https://vimeo.com/112335646

Monday, July 22, 2019

Not Our Home

Psalm 119:17-24 ESV

Deal bountifully with your servant,

    that I may live and keep your word.

Open my eyes, that I may behold

    wondrous things out of your law.

I am a sojourner on the earth;

    hide not your commandments from me!

My soul is consumed with longing

    for your rules at all times.

You rebuke the insolent, accursed ones,

    who wander from your commandments.

Take away from me scorn and contempt,

    for I have kept your testimonies.

Even though princes sit plotting against me,

    your servant will meditate on your statutes.

Your testimonies are my delight;

    they are my counselors.

Computer Technology

We are all going to have enemies in this world. As followers of Jesus, Satan is our enemy, and he has many who are working for him and against us, too. And, their goal is to trick, to deceive, to defraud, to manipulate, to confuse, and to attempt to instill fear within the hearts of those who have put their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus.

One of the ways they may do this is via technology. For, many of us are not computer geeks, and thus we must often depend on others who have more knowledge of how things work to assist us with setting things up or with fixing errors. And, Windows 10, for example, puts all kinds of things on our computers which we don’t ask for and we don’t know how they work.

In my opinion, this operating system seems much more intrusive than others before it. But, if we are going to use computers for what we do, then we are somewhat dependent on them to do our work, and so we are also subject to whatever they put on our systems, and to whatever things are oftentimes running in the background, too, of which we are totally unaware.

So, we just have to trust God and pray for wisdom, and believe him for our security. For, there is just so much over which we have no control.

For example, I sent an email to someone this morning and it attached a downloadable document to what I sent that I did not send. Someone cloned one of our telephones the other day and made phone calls from it, causing our account to be suspended. I had no control over any of this. But, God is still on the throne. He is still in control, so I put my hope in him.

Sojourners on the earth

A sojourner is a stranger, a visitor, a guest, an alien, a foreigner, i.e. someone who is just visiting a place, but for him or her, this place is not his or her permanent home.

That is how I feel when I am using my own computer. I am a stranger on here, not knowing the ins and outs of how things work, and not in control of most of it. I am just being allowed to use it, for a time, to do the work the Lord has given me to do.

And so it is for us who believe in Jesus to be Lord and Savior of our lives. We are just guests on the earth, put here by God for a season to fulfill his purposes, but this world is not our home. Heaven is our home. We are just here temporarily. And, this is one of the reasons the Bible often talks with us about not becoming attached to the things of this world which are just passing away, but how we need to cling to God and to His Word.

Also, scripture teaches us that we are not to love this world. We are to love the people in this world, but not the things of this world. They are not to be what we live for. They are not to be our obsession. We are not to put our dependency in the things of this life, for they are all going to pass away. And, we are definitely not to prefer or be partakers in the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes, and the pride of life, which are all part of this world.

Thus, we should not feel at home on this earth, and those who are of this world should not love us as their own, too, but they should hate us, reject us, persecute and despise us for our walks of faith with Jesus Christ.

We will meditate

So, what are we to do when things go crazy and when our enemies defraud us? We are to call on God in our suffering, and we are to draw near to him, and we are to trust him with our lives and with our circumstances, for he is still God, and he is still in control, absolutely sovereign over all things.

We must also get into God’s Word and let his Word speak to our hearts, for here we learn how to respond to difficult and confusing circumstances. And, here in God’s Word we gain understanding, and we learn to put our trust in the Lord in all things. Here we learn of God’s faithfulness to us, that he will not leave or forsake us, but that he will see us through every difficulty.

Here in God’s Word we receive his counsel, too. And, his counsel to us is often to not be afraid, but to trust him. And, it is to lean on him for our support, and to believe that he is watching over us, and that he has allowed difficult circumstances in our lives to fulfill his purposes in our lives.

And, in God’s Word we are given direction regarding what way we are to go, and regarding what God would have us do, and how we should respond to our difficult circumstances. And, we are told much to put our lives in God’s hands, and to trust him even when we can’t trust other humans or technology or other circumstances over which we have no control.

Psalm 119:25-32 ESV

My soul clings to the dust;

    give me life according to your word!

When I told of my ways, you answered me;

    teach me your statutes!

Make me understand the way of your precepts,

    and I will meditate on your wondrous works.

My soul melts away for sorrow;

    strengthen me according to your word!

Put false ways far from me

    and graciously teach me your law!

I have chosen the way of faithfulness;

    I set your rules before me.

I cling to your testimonies, O Lord;

    let me not be put to shame!

I will run in the way of your commandments

    when you enlarge my heart!

When we go through difficult circumstances, and our enemies are advancing hard against us, and things happen to us over which we have no control, it can be troubling to our minds and hearts. And, so we need to pray for guidance, for wisdom, and for the peace of God to rule our hearts.

We definitely need understanding from God in these times, although we are not going to understand everything, i.e. we won’t know why this happened or that happened or even how it happened. Some things are just going to remain a mystery, and we just have to accept that. We can’t solve every puzzle, although I would like to. I hate loose ends.

But, this is where trust comes into play. This is where we have to trust God even when we don’t understand it all, and even when we can’t tie up those loose ends and make sense of it all. And, we just have to pour our hearts out to God, cry it out to him, and let him heal us in our minds and hearts.

All we can do is just keep following our Lord, walking in his ways and in his truth, leaving those things which are out of our control to God. We must rely on his strength and follow his counsel, and do what he says. And, we have to believe that God loves us, that he has allowed these difficulties in our lives, and that he is going to work all things for good for those who love him and who have been called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28).

Then, we can be at peace and at rest, and our troubled hearts and minds will be renewed with the strength of the Lord and with his joy and peace. Amen!

His Tender Mercies

An Original Work / January 26, 2014

Fear not! I’m with you.

Be not dismayed!

God watches o’er you.

Trust Him today.

He’ll lead and guide you;

Give you His aid.

He’ll love and keep you

With Him always.

Walk in His footsteps.

He’ll lead the way.

Trust in His love;

Believe that He cares.

He will not leave you.

Faithful He’ll be.

His tender mercies

Now you will see.

Fellowship with Him

Throughout the day.

Tell Him your heartaches.

He’ll heal always.

Rest in His comfort.

He is your friend.

Your faith He’ll strengthen,

True to the end.

https://vimeo.com/85267672

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Day In, Day Out

An Original Work / July 20, 2019

Day in, day out,

What’s it all about?

What’s your purpose –

Gives you cause to shout?

What you feeding

Body, soul and mind?

What you seeking –

Trying now to find?

Give direction

Of your whereabouts.

Are you somewhere

That’s worth finding out?

Marching forward,

Now in tune with God?

Or you’re faking,

So you’re just a fraud?

Who’s your idol?

Who gets all your heart?

What you holding?

Not from it depart?

What’s your thinking

Mainly focused on?

Where’s your heart from

Night to break of dawn?

Is it God you

Seek with all your heart?

Do you truly

Not from Him depart?

Could it be that,

Covered in the dark,

There’s another god –

gives you a spark?

Think about it,

Will you tell the truth?

Face the facts of

What’s behind the booth?

Are you willing

To reveal it all?

Be transparent?

On your Lord do call?

He is willing

To deliver you,

If you’ll turn from

Sin to follow truth.

Jesus Christ – He

Is the way to God.

He provided

Freedom from defraud.

In His wisdom,

He died for our sins,

So we’d leave our

Sins to follow Him.

In Relationship with God

I John 1:1-4 ESV

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.

Most all the New Testament apostles were eye witnesses of Jesus Christ in the flesh. We don’t really know whether or not the Apostle Paul actually ever met Jesus Christ prior to his conversion. So all of them but him, it would seem, knew Jesus when he lived on this earth. They were all personally acquainted with him, for most of them had walked with him those three to three and a half years of his earthly ministry.

John is the speaker here, and the testimony he is giving here is similar to what he gave in the book of John, chapter one. Jesus Christ, God the Son, was God, and he was with God in the beginning. All things that were made (created) were made by him. He is our creator God. Jesus was the Word (Logos) of God, i.e. his words were the very words of God, coming from the Father. Jesus was also the Life, the giver of human life, and the giver of spiritual life in God, which is eternal life, which is in Him and is Him.

Jesus Christ, although he was God, left his throne in heaven, came to earth, humbled himself, took on human form, and suffered like we suffer, and was tempted in like manner as we are also tempted, yet without sin. While on the earth he healed the sick and afflicted, raised the dead, delivered people from demons, fed the hungry and comforted the sorrowful. He also preached repentance and obedience to God for the forgiveness of sins and eternal life with God (Lu. 9:23-25; Jn. 14:23-24; Jn. 6:35-66; Jn. 10:27-30).

Those of us who have trusted in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives also know him, not in the flesh, but in the Spirit. For, belief in Jesus is not just a religion or a theology or the study of history. When we believe in Jesus with God-given faith, we get to know him as a person, a person who is living within us in the person of his Spirit. So, we are in a relationship with Jesus Christ, and we talk with him, and he talks with us, too.

We, as followers of Jesus Christ, thus, are in fellowship (communion) with him. We are in the process of getting to know him. And, we should be in the process of being conformed to his likeness, too, by the Spirit of God. It is a lot like forming a relationship with someone whom we have not seen in person, but with whom we have conversations, and so we get to know him (or her) and his likes and dislikes, and what is important to him, and what we can do to please him, too.

The way in which we do this is through the study of His Word, the Bible (Genesis to Revelation), through prayer, and through obedience. And, this should be top priority in our lives, and it should be our daily practice, too. But, this is not something we do each day like a chore of some kind for a predetermined period of time, and then we check it off our list for that day. For, our Lord is with us 24/7, so this is an ongoing and ever present relationship and fellowship that we have with our Lord.

And, so we proclaim him to others so that they can get to know him, too. And, the reason we want them to know him, and to have fellowship with him and with the Father, is because Jesus Christ died on a cross for our sins. In his death, he became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God. He died that we might die with him to sin and that we might live with him to righteousness (1 Pet. 2:24; 2 Co. 5:15, 21; Rom. 6:1-23).

So, we want people to know Christ so that they can be delivered out of their slavery to sin and so that they can walk (in lifestyle) according to the Spirit of God, and so they can have eternal life with God. We want them to also have fellowship with God, and then with us, too, who are also in fellowship with our Lord. But, this fellowship is on a spiritual level, for it is of the Spirit of God, and thus it gives glory and honor to God, too.

I John 1:5-10 ESV

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

If we are going to be in relationship with Jesus Christ, with God, thus, we need to understand how that comes about. The Bible teaches us that it is by God’s grace through our God-given faith in him, that we have this fellowship with the Lord Jesus and we have eternal life with God. So, then we need to understand what this “faith” means. For, it is a gift from God, and thus it submits to God and to his will for our lives (Eph. 2:8-10; Eph. 4:17-24).

Thus, to have faith in Jesus Christ it means that we leave our former lives of living for sin and self behind us in order to follow our Lord Jesus in obedience to his commands and in surrender to his will for our lives. We are, thus, crucified with him in death to sin, and we are raised with him to newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; Lu. 9:23-25; Tit. 2:11-14).

Thus, we no longer walk (in practice, in lifestyle) in the darkness (sin, wickedness), but now we walk (conduct our lives) according to (in agreement with) the Holy Spirit of God. For, it is not just the outward profession of faith with our lips that ensures we are genuinely saved from our sins, and that we have eternal life with God, but it is our faith in practice, i.e. it is how we live our lives day in and day out.

For, the faith to believe in Jesus Christ and to have forgiveness of sins and eternal life with God is not a one-time experience and then we are good to go no matter how we live our lives from that moment forward. The faith that is necessary to guarantee us eternal life with God and fellowship with Jesus Christ is ongoing, continuous, in practice, in how we live our lives in obedience to our Lord. Then, we have fellowship with God and with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from every sin.

Daily we must die to sin and self and follow our Lord in obedience. By the Spirit of God, we are to be putting to death (an ongoing process) the deeds of the flesh, if we want to have eternal life with God. So, confession of sins is not a one-time event, either. It is ongoing. We are daily being cleansed and renewed and made holy as we repent of our sins, put them to death, and as we follow our Lord in obedience to his commands (Lu. 9:23-25; Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; Gal. 5:19-21; Gal. 6:7-8; Tit. 2:11-14).

For, as long as we live in these flesh bodies of ours, our flesh is going to wage war with the Spirit of God and the Spirit with the flesh. So, daily we must say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions (fleshly lusts) and say “Yes” to living self-controlled, godly, upright and holy lives, set apart from the world, and set apart to God and to his will for our lives. But, we don’t do this in our own power and strength, but in the power and strength of the Lord living within us (Tit. 2:11-14; Eph. 6:10-20).

I Pray for Them

An Original Work / June 4, 2013

Based off John 17

“Glorify Your Son, that Your Son

May glorify our God in heav’n.

Father, You granted Him all power

And all authority over men,

That He might give eternal life

To all those whom now

You have given Him.”

“This now then is eternal life:

That they may know You,

Father, and Your Son;

That they may know the only true God,

And Jesus Christ whom the Father sent.

I have brought You the glory by

Finishing the work that You’ve given Me.”

“I have shown You to those whom

You gave to Me out of the world;

They were Yours. You gave them to Me

And they have obeyed Your words

And they accepted them. They knew

That I came from You, and they believed

With certainty, I was sent.”

“Holy Father, I pray for them by the

Power of Your name: Protect them,

So that they may be one as we are,

For they are still living in this world.

I have given them Your word;

Because of Your word, the world

Has hated them.”

“I pray they may have the full measure of

My joy now living within them.

Father, I pray You sanctify them

By Your word; truly Your word is truth.

As You sent Me into the world,

I send them to tell the world to repent.”

https://vimeo.com/116141024

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Listen in The Silence

Isaiah 41:1 ESV

Listen to me in silence, O coastlands;

    let the peoples renew their strength;

let them approach, then let them speak;

    let us together draw near for judgment.

Yesterday evening we discovered that we could not make or receive phone calls or text messages on our cell phones. Apparently there is a massive Verizon Wireless outage across the USA, primarily on the East Coast, but also affecting other states such as our state, Tennessee (1).

When I woke up this morning, the song “The Hills Are Alive with the Sound of Music” was playing in my mind. The song is about the sounds of nature that have been there for a thousand years, and it is about going to the hills and listening to those sounds, to hear what the hills might say.

So, I inquired of the Lord, asking him what message I was to receive from this, and a couple of things came to mind. One is that God speaks to us through his creation, i.e. “his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made, so they are without excuse” (Rom. 1:20).

And, I was also reminded of Psalm 121:1-2:

I lift up my eyes to the hills.

    From where does my help come?

My help comes from the Lord,

    who made heaven and earth.

This is a reference, not to literal hills, but to Zion, which is another name for God and for his eternal kingdom. So, to lift up our eyes to the hills is actually to lift up our eyes to God in worship of him. So, to listen to what the hills might say to us is also a reference to listening to God, but it is listening to him in the silence, when the sounds of this world are silenced, much like our cell phones are now being silenced so that we can hear God speaking.

For, electronic technology, although it certainly has its benefits, can often drown out God’s voice because of all the noise that is everywhere all around us with all the constant chatter of phone calls, text messaging, emails, chats, social media, and the like, which can distract us from time with God.

Isaiah 41:2-4 ESV

Who stirred up one from the east

    whom victory meets at every step?

He gives up nations before him,

    so that he tramples kings underfoot;

he makes them like dust with his sword,

    like driven stubble with his bow.

He pursues them and passes on safely,

    by paths his feet have not trod.

Who has performed and done this,

    calling the generations from the beginning?

I, the Lord, the first,

    and with the last; I am he.

Many people today, at least here in America, have forsaken the Lord to follow after the gods of this world, and many of them claim to be followers of Jesus Christ, too. They are enslaved or they have become enslaved all over again to the lusts of their sinful flesh and to man-made idols. They are worldly. And, their free time is largely spent indulging in the pleasures this sinful world has to offer.

But, it isn’t just those who are living for the flesh who are sometimes yielding to the flesh and who are being taken captive by the idols of this world. With the invention of the internet, then tablets (like I Pads) and then Smart Phones, even many godly people are finding themselves drawn to these devices to where these electronic devices, and all that they offer, are in danger of consuming their lives, their time, and their ability to hear God.

So, the picture that I am getting here is that one of the ways God is judging or he will judge the people of this earth is to silence these devices so that the people will be able to hear God speaking in the silence. For, all the noise we have in this world via all of these airwaves is drowning out God’s voice. And I believe that is intentional, and it is of Satan, to so crowd our lives and minds with all this media noise that we can’t hear God speaking to us.

Isaiah 41:5-7 ESV

The coastlands have seen and are afraid;

    the ends of the earth tremble;

    they have drawn near and come.

Everyone helps his neighbor

    and says to his brother, “Be strong!”

The craftsman strengthens the goldsmith,

    and he who smooths with the hammer him who strikes the anvil,

saying of the soldering, “It is good”;

    and they strengthen it with nails so that it cannot be moved.

As long as I have lived, for at least most of my 69 years on this earth, we have had a telephone, even if it was just one telephone in the house, and even if it was a party line (in the old days). We nearly always had a way to communicate with the outside world and with family and friends.

So, to all of a sudden not have the ability to make phone calls or to write text messages to where they could be received by others has caused panic and anger in many people. For me it was an inconvenience, but the Lord immediately put a song or scripture in my mind about not being afraid, and so I sensed that he had allowed this for his purposes.

Still, I had to try to find alternate ways of communicating with people which were still available just in case we needed to reach someone for something, which was mainly to try to find a way to report the outage. And, yet I had a peace about this, that God was using this for his purposes to get people’s (our) attention and to get them (us) to listen to him in the silence. For, he has something he wants to say to us.

Isaiah 41:8-10 ESV

But you, Israel, my servant,

    Jacob, whom I have chosen,

    the offspring of Abraham, my friend;

you whom I took from the ends of the earth,

    and called from its farthest corners,

saying to you, “You are my servant,

    I have chosen you and not cast you off”;

fear not, for I am with you;

    be not dismayed, for I am your God;

I will strengthen you, I will help you,

    I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

The Lord was encouraging me through all of this that he was in control, that he was completely sovereign over all things, and that this outage was to serve his purposes, which was to get us to look to him and not to idols to satisfy the deep longings and desires of our souls.

Also, all these devices not only can serve as a distraction and as a deterrent to hearing God’s voice speaking to our hearts, but they are also what are leading many people down a path of degradation into multiple avenues of sexual idolatry and witchcraft and into all manner of evil practices. And, this is greatly impacting the church because so much of the church has gotten trapped by these devices into a whole world of evil at their fingertips.

So, since we serve a loving God who cares about his people, God will often discipline us in order to get us to look to him for our support rather than us looking to these man-made idols to meet the longings of our hearts. And, one of the ways in which he is disciplining us, I believe, is by allowing these electronic devices to fail so that we do look to God and not to these potential idols to fulfill us or fill up our time.

So, the Lord is encouraging us, although the things of this world can be good and useful and not always bad, that when they fail us, we should not be afraid, and we definitely should not get angry. But, we should look to God, and we should ask him and ourselves what lesson the Lord might have for us to learn through this (or these) experience(s). For, our God is still sovereign. And, he allows things to happen in our lives for his purposes.

And, one of those main purposes is that we will look to God for our help and support, and that we will be reminded of why he saved us from our sins and why he redeemed us back for God with his blood. For, Jesus died that we might die with him to sin and live with him to righteousness. He bought us back for God with his blood so that our lives might no longer be our own, but that we would now be God’s possession to do what pleases him.

So, in the silence, let us listen to his voice speaking to our hearts. And, if you are not in the silence, turn those devices off and spend time with the Lord and listen to his voice speaking, and then follow him in obedience, and truly make him the Lord of your lives and not these devices which are leading many people to forsake God and to follow after their fleshly appetites. Don’t fall into that trap! Make Jesus your Lord today!

His Tender Mercies

An Original Work / January 26, 2014

Fear not! I’m with you.

Be not dismayed!

God watches o’er you.

Trust Him today.

He’ll lead and guide you;

Give you His aid.

He’ll love and keep you

With Him always.

Walk in His footsteps.

He’ll lead the way.

Trust in His love;

Believe that He cares.

He will not leave you.

Faithful He’ll be.

His tender mercies

Now you will see.

Fellowship with Him

Throughout the day.

Tell Him your heartaches.

He’ll heal always.

Rest in His comfort.

He is your friend.

Your faith He’ll strengthen,

True to the end.

https://vimeo.com/85267672

Friday, July 19, 2019

(1)       https://downdetector.com/status/verizon/map/