Jude 1 (GOD’S WORD Translation)
Greeting
1]From Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James. To those who have been called, who are loved by God the Father, and who are kept safe for Jesus Christ. 2]May mercy, peace, and love fill your lives! Warnings About False Teachers. 3]Dear friends, I had intended to write to you about the salvation we share. But something has come up. It demands that I write to you and encourage you to continue your fight for the Christian faith that was entrusted to God’s holy people once for all time. 4]Some people have slipped in among you unnoticed. Not long ago they were condemned in writing for the following reason: They are people to whom God means nothing. They use God’s kindness[mercy] as an excuse for sexual freedom and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. 5] I want to remind you about what you already know: The Lord once saved his people from Egypt. But on another occasion he destroyed those who didn’t believe. 6] He held angels for judgment on the great day. They were held in darkness, bound by eternal chains. These are the angels who didn’t keep their position of authority but abandoned their assigned place. 7] What happened to Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities near them is an example for us of the punishment of eternal fire. The people of these cities suffered the same fate that God’s people and the angels did, because they committed sexual sins and engaged in homosexual activities. 8]Yet, in a similar way, the people who slipped in among you are dreamers. They contaminate their bodies with sin, reject the Lord’s authority, and insult his glory. 9] When the archangel Michael argued with the devil, they were arguing over the body of Moses. But Michael didn’t dare to hand down a judgment against the devil. Instead, Michael said, “May the Lord reprimand you!” 10]Whatever these people don’t understand, they insult. Like animals, which are creatures of instinct, they use whatever they know to destroy themselves. 11] How horrible it will be for them! They have followed the path of Cain. They have rushed into Balaam’s error to make a profit. They have rebelled like Korah and destroyed themselves. 12]These people are a disgrace at the special meals you share with other believers. They eat with you and don’t feel ashamed. They are shepherds who care only for themselves. They are dry clouds blown around by the winds. They are withered, uprooted trees without any fruit. As a result, they have died twice. 13] Their shame is like the foam on the wild waves of the sea. They are wandering stars for whom gloomy darkness is kept forever. 14] Furthermore, Enoch, from the seventh generation after Adam, prophesied about them. He said, “The Lord has come with countless thousands of his holy angels. 15] He has come to judge all these people. He has come to convict all these ungodly sinners for all the ungodly things they have done and all the harsh things they have said about him.” 16] These people complain, find fault, follow their own desires, say arrogant things, and flatter people in order to take advantage of them. 17] Dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ told you to expect: 18] “In the last times people who ridicule God will appear. They will follow their own ungodly desires.” 19] These are the people who cause divisions. They are concerned about physical things, not spiritual things.
Final Advice
20] Dear friends, use your most holy faith to grow. Pray with the Holy Spirit’s help. 21] Remain in God’s love as you look for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to give you eternal life. 22] Show mercy to those who have doubts. 23Save others by snatching them from the fire of hell. Show mercy to others, even though you are afraid that you might be stained by their sinful lives. 24] God can guard you so that you don’t fall and so that you can be full of joy as you stand in his glorious presence without fault. 25Before time began, now, and for eternity glory, majesty, power, and authority belong to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Malachi (GOD’S WORD Translation)
Malachi 1
I Loved Jacob, but Esau I Hated
1This is a divine revelation. The Lord spoke his word to Israel through Malachi.
2“I loved you,” says the Lord. “But you ask, ‘How did you love us?’ “Wasn’t Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “I loved Jacob,
3but Esau I hated. I turned his mountains into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the jackals in the desert.
4“The descendants of Esau may say, ‘We have been beaten down, but we will rebuild the ruins.’ “Yet, this is what the Lord of Armies says: They may rebuild, but I will tear it down. They will be called ‘the Wicked Land’ and ‘the people with whom the Lord is always angry.’
5You will see these things with your own eyes and say, ‘Even outside the borders of Israel the Lord is great.’
The Priests Offer Unacceptable Sacrifices to the Lord
6“This is what the Lord of Armies says: A son honors his father, and a servant honors his master. So if I am a father, where is my honor? If I am a master, where is my respect? You priests despise my name.
“But you ask, ‘How have we despised your name?’
7“You offer contaminated food on my altar. “But you ask, ‘Then how have we contaminated you?’
“When you say that the Lord’s table may be despised.
8When you bring a blind animal to sacrifice, isn’t that wrong? When you bring a lame or a sick animal, isn’t that wrong? Try offering it to your governor. Would he accept it from you? Would he welcome you?” asks the Lord of Armies.
9“Now try asking God to be kind to you. This is what you are doing! Will he welcome you?” asks the Lord of Armies.
10“I wish one of you would shut the doors to my house so that you could not light fires on my altar for no reason. I’m not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Armies, “and I won’t accept your offerings.
11“From the nations where the sun rises to the nations where the sun sets, my name will be great. Incense and pure offerings will be offered everywhere in my name, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the Lord of Armies.
12“But you dishonor it when you say that the Lord’s table may be contaminated and that its food may be despised.
13“You say, ‘Oh what a nuisance it is,’ and you sniff at it in disgust,” says the Lord of Armies. “You bring stolen, lame, and sick animals. When you bring such offerings, should I accept them from you?” asks the Lord.
14“Cheaters are under a curse. They have male animals in their flocks that they vow to give as a sacrifice. But they sacrifice second-rate ones to the Lord instead. I am a great king,” says the Lord of Armies. “Among the nations my name is respected.
Malachi 2 (GOD’S WORD Translation)
Malachi 2
The Priests Do Not Teach the Lord’s Word Correctly
1“And now, you priests, this warning is for you. 2If you won’t listen and if you won’t consider giving honor to my name,” says the Lord of Armies, “then I’ll send a curse on you, and I’ll curse the blessings you give. Yes, I’ve already cursed them because you don’t carefully consider this.
3“I’m going to punish your descendants. I’m going to spread excrement on your faces, the excrement from your festival sacrifices. You will be discarded with it.
4Then you will know that I sent you this warning so that my promise[a] to Levi will continue,” says the Lord of Armies.
5“I promised Levi life and peace. I gave them to him so that he would respect me. He respected me and stood in awe of my name.
6The teaching that came from his mouth was true. Nothing unjust was found on his lips. He lived with me in peace and honesty and turned many people away from sin.
7“A priest’s lips should preserve knowledge. Then, because he is the messenger for the Lord of Armies, people will seek instruction from his mouth.
8“But you have turned from the correct path and caused many to stumble over my teachings. You have corrupted the promise made to Levi,” says the Lord of Armies.
9“So I have made you disgusting, and I have humiliated you in front of all the people, because you have not followed my ways. You have been unfair when applying my teachings.”
The People Break Their Marriage Vows
10Don’t all of us have the same father? Hasn’t the same God created us? Why are we unfaithful to each other? And why do we dishonor the promise given to our ancestors? 11Judah has been unfaithful! A disgusting thing has been done in Israel and Jerusalem. Judah has dishonored the holy place that the Lord loves and has married a woman who worships a foreign god. 12May the Lord exclude anyone who does this, whoever he may be. May he exclude them from Jacob’s tents and from bringing offerings to the Lord of Armies.
13Here is another thing you do: You cover the Lord’s altar with tears. You moan and groan because he no longer pays attention to your offerings or accepts them from you.
14But you ask, “Why aren’t our offerings accepted?” It is because the Lord is a witness between you and the wife of your youth, to whom you have been unfaithful. Yet, she is your companion, the wife of your marriage vows. 15Didn’t God make you one? Your flesh and spirit belong to him. And what does the same God look for but godly descendants? So be careful not to be unfaithful to the wife of your youth.[b]
16“I hate divorce,” says the Lord God of Israel. “I hate the person who covers himself with violence,” says the Lord of Armies. “Be careful not to be unfaithful.” 17You have tried the patience of the Lord with your words. But you ask, “How have we tried his patience?” When you say, “Everyone who does evil is considered good by the Lord. He is pleased with them,” or “Where is the God of justice?”
Malachi 3
The Coming of the Messenger of the Promise
1“I’m going to send my messenger, and he will clear the way ahead of me. Then the Lord you are looking for will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the promise[a] will come. He is the one you want,” says the Lord of Armies. 2But who will be able to endure the day he comes? Who will be able to survive on the day he appears? He is like a purifying fire and like a cleansing soap. 3He will act like a refiner and a purifier of silver. He will purify Levi’s sons and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will bring acceptable offerings to the Lord. 4The offerings from Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the past, as in years long ago. 5“I will come to judge you. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers, lying witnesses, and those who cheat workers out of their wages and oppress widows and orphans. I will also testify against those who deprive foreigners of their rights. None of them fear me,” says the Lord of Armies.
The People Are Cheating God
6“I, the Lord, never change. That is why you descendants of Jacob haven’t been destroyed yet. 7Since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my laws and have not followed them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Armies. “But you ask, ‘How can we return?’ 8“Can a person cheat God? Yet, you are cheating me! “But you ask, ‘How are we cheating you?’ “When you don’t bring a tenth of your income and other contributions. 9So a curse is on you because the whole nation is cheating me!
10“Bring one-tenth of your income into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the Lord of Armies. “See if I won’t open the windows of heaven for you and flood you with blessings. 11Then, for your sake, I will stop insects from eating your crops. They will not destroy the produce of your land. The vines in your fields will not lose their unripened grapes,” says the Lord of Armies. 12“All nations will call you blessed because you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of Armies.
13“You have used harsh words against me,” says the Lord. “You ask, ‘How have we spoken against you?’
14“You have said, ‘It’s pointless to serve God. What do we gain if we meet his standards or if we walk around feeling sorry for what we’ve done? 15So now we call arrogant people blessed. Not only are evildoers encouraged, they even test God and get away with it.’ ” 16Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord paid attention and listened. A book was written in his presence to be a reminder to those who feared the Lord and respected his name. 17“They will be mine,” says the Lord of Armies. “On that day I will make them my special possession. I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him. 18Then you will again see the difference between righteous people and wicked people, between the one who serves God and the one who doesn’t serve him.
I Loved Jacob, but Esau I Hated
1This is a divine revelation. The Lord spoke his word to Israel through Malachi.
2“I loved you,” says the Lord. “But you ask, ‘How did you love us?’ “Wasn’t Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “I loved Jacob,
3but Esau I hated. I turned his mountains into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the jackals in the desert.
4“The descendants of Esau may say, ‘We have been beaten down, but we will rebuild the ruins.’ “Yet, this is what the Lord of Armies says: They may rebuild, but I will tear it down. They will be called ‘the Wicked Land’ and ‘the people with whom the Lord is always angry.’
5You will see these things with your own eyes and say, ‘Even outside the borders of Israel the Lord is great.’
The Priests Offer Unacceptable Sacrifices to the Lord
6“This is what the Lord of Armies says: A son honors his father, and a servant honors his master. So if I am a father, where is my honor? If I am a master, where is my respect? You priests despise my name.
“But you ask, ‘How have we despised your name?’
7“You offer contaminated food on my altar. “But you ask, ‘Then how have we contaminated you?’
“When you say that the Lord’s table may be despised.
8When you bring a blind animal to sacrifice, isn’t that wrong? When you bring a lame or a sick animal, isn’t that wrong? Try offering it to your governor. Would he accept it from you? Would he welcome you?” asks the Lord of Armies.
9“Now try asking God to be kind to you. This is what you are doing! Will he welcome you?” asks the Lord of Armies.
10“I wish one of you would shut the doors to my house so that you could not light fires on my altar for no reason. I’m not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Armies, “and I won’t accept your offerings.
11“From the nations where the sun rises to the nations where the sun sets, my name will be great. Incense and pure offerings will be offered everywhere in my name, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the Lord of Armies.
12“But you dishonor it when you say that the Lord’s table may be contaminated and that its food may be despised.
13“You say, ‘Oh what a nuisance it is,’ and you sniff at it in disgust,” says the Lord of Armies. “You bring stolen, lame, and sick animals. When you bring such offerings, should I accept them from you?” asks the Lord.
14“Cheaters are under a curse. They have male animals in their flocks that they vow to give as a sacrifice. But they sacrifice second-rate ones to the Lord instead. I am a great king,” says the Lord of Armies. “Among the nations my name is respected.
Malachi 2 (GOD’S WORD Translation)
Malachi 2
The Priests Do Not Teach the Lord’s Word Correctly
1“And now, you priests, this warning is for you. 2If you won’t listen and if you won’t consider giving honor to my name,” says the Lord of Armies, “then I’ll send a curse on you, and I’ll curse the blessings you give. Yes, I’ve already cursed them because you don’t carefully consider this.
3“I’m going to punish your descendants. I’m going to spread excrement on your faces, the excrement from your festival sacrifices. You will be discarded with it.
4Then you will know that I sent you this warning so that my promise[a] to Levi will continue,” says the Lord of Armies.
5“I promised Levi life and peace. I gave them to him so that he would respect me. He respected me and stood in awe of my name.
6The teaching that came from his mouth was true. Nothing unjust was found on his lips. He lived with me in peace and honesty and turned many people away from sin.
7“A priest’s lips should preserve knowledge. Then, because he is the messenger for the Lord of Armies, people will seek instruction from his mouth.
8“But you have turned from the correct path and caused many to stumble over my teachings. You have corrupted the promise made to Levi,” says the Lord of Armies.
9“So I have made you disgusting, and I have humiliated you in front of all the people, because you have not followed my ways. You have been unfair when applying my teachings.”
The People Break Their Marriage Vows
10Don’t all of us have the same father? Hasn’t the same God created us? Why are we unfaithful to each other? And why do we dishonor the promise given to our ancestors? 11Judah has been unfaithful! A disgusting thing has been done in Israel and Jerusalem. Judah has dishonored the holy place that the Lord loves and has married a woman who worships a foreign god. 12May the Lord exclude anyone who does this, whoever he may be. May he exclude them from Jacob’s tents and from bringing offerings to the Lord of Armies.
13Here is another thing you do: You cover the Lord’s altar with tears. You moan and groan because he no longer pays attention to your offerings or accepts them from you.
14But you ask, “Why aren’t our offerings accepted?” It is because the Lord is a witness between you and the wife of your youth, to whom you have been unfaithful. Yet, she is your companion, the wife of your marriage vows. 15Didn’t God make you one? Your flesh and spirit belong to him. And what does the same God look for but godly descendants? So be careful not to be unfaithful to the wife of your youth.[b]
16“I hate divorce,” says the Lord God of Israel. “I hate the person who covers himself with violence,” says the Lord of Armies. “Be careful not to be unfaithful.” 17You have tried the patience of the Lord with your words. But you ask, “How have we tried his patience?” When you say, “Everyone who does evil is considered good by the Lord. He is pleased with them,” or “Where is the God of justice?”
Malachi 3
The Coming of the Messenger of the Promise
1“I’m going to send my messenger, and he will clear the way ahead of me. Then the Lord you are looking for will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the promise[a] will come. He is the one you want,” says the Lord of Armies. 2But who will be able to endure the day he comes? Who will be able to survive on the day he appears? He is like a purifying fire and like a cleansing soap. 3He will act like a refiner and a purifier of silver. He will purify Levi’s sons and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will bring acceptable offerings to the Lord. 4The offerings from Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the past, as in years long ago. 5“I will come to judge you. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers, lying witnesses, and those who cheat workers out of their wages and oppress widows and orphans. I will also testify against those who deprive foreigners of their rights. None of them fear me,” says the Lord of Armies.
The People Are Cheating God
6“I, the Lord, never change. That is why you descendants of Jacob haven’t been destroyed yet. 7Since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my laws and have not followed them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Armies. “But you ask, ‘How can we return?’ 8“Can a person cheat God? Yet, you are cheating me! “But you ask, ‘How are we cheating you?’ “When you don’t bring a tenth of your income and other contributions. 9So a curse is on you because the whole nation is cheating me!
10“Bring one-tenth of your income into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the Lord of Armies. “See if I won’t open the windows of heaven for you and flood you with blessings. 11Then, for your sake, I will stop insects from eating your crops. They will not destroy the produce of your land. The vines in your fields will not lose their unripened grapes,” says the Lord of Armies. 12“All nations will call you blessed because you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of Armies.
13“You have used harsh words against me,” says the Lord. “You ask, ‘How have we spoken against you?’
14“You have said, ‘It’s pointless to serve God. What do we gain if we meet his standards or if we walk around feeling sorry for what we’ve done? 15So now we call arrogant people blessed. Not only are evildoers encouraged, they even test God and get away with it.’ ” 16Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord paid attention and listened. A book was written in his presence to be a reminder to those who feared the Lord and respected his name. 17“They will be mine,” says the Lord of Armies. “On that day I will make them my special possession. I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him. 18Then you will again see the difference between righteous people and wicked people, between the one who serves God and the one who doesn’t serve him.
Malachi 3 (GOD’S WORD Translation)
Malachi 3 (GOD’S WORD Translation
The Coming of the Messenger of the Promise
1“I’m going to send my messenger, and he will clear the way ahead of me. Then the Lord you are looking for will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the promise [covenant] will come. He is the one you want,” says the Lord of Armies.2But who will be able to endure the day he comes? Who will be able to survive on the day he appears? He is like a purifying fire and like a cleansing soap. 3He will act like a refiner and a purifier of silver. He will purify Levi’s sons and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will bring acceptable offerings to the Lord. 4The offerings from Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the past, as in years long ago.
5“I will come to judge you. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers, lying witnesses, and those who cheat workers out of their wages and oppress widows and orphans. I will also testify against those who deprive foreigners of their rights. None of them fear me,” says the Lord of Armies.
The People Are Cheating God
6“I, the Lord, never change. That is why you descendants of Jacob haven’t been destroyed yet. 7Since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my laws and have not followed them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Armies.“But you ask, ‘How can we return?’
8“Can a person cheat God? Yet, you are cheating me!
“But you ask, ‘How are we cheating you?’
“When you don’t bring a tenth of your income and other contributions. 9So a curse is on you because the whole nation is cheating me!
10“Bring one-tenth of your income into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the Lord of Armies. “See if I won’t open the windows of heaven for you and flood you with blessings. 11Then, for your sake, I will stop insects from eating your crops. They will not destroy the produce of your land. The vines in your fields will not lose their unripened grapes,” says the Lord of Armies. 12“All nations will call you blessed because you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of Armies.
13“You have used harsh words against me,” says the Lord.
“You ask, ‘How have we spoken against you?’
14“You have said, ‘It’s pointless to serve God. What do we gain if we meet his standards or if we walk around feeling sorry for what we’ve done? 15So now we call arrogant people blessed. Not only are evildoers encouraged, they even test God and get away with it.’ ”
16Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord paid attention and listened. A book was written in his presence to be a reminder to those who feared the Lord and respected his name.
17“They will be mine,” says the Lord of Armies. “On that day I will make them my special possession. I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him. 18Then you will again see the difference between righteous people and wicked people, between the one who serves God and the one who doesn’t serve him.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Getting to know Jesus more
1 Corinthians 2
The plain manner in which the apostle preached Christ crucified.
1Brothers and sisters, when I came to you, I didn’t speak about God’s mystery[“testimony.”] as if it were some kind of brilliant message or wisdom. 2While I was with you, I decided to deal with only one subject—Jesus Christ, who was crucified. 3When I came to you, I was weak. I was afraid and very nervous. 4I didn’t speak my message with persuasive intellectual arguments. I spoke my message with a show of spiritual power 5so that your faith would not be based on human wisdom but on God’s power. 6However, we do use wisdom to speak to those who are mature. It is a wisdom that doesn’t belong to this world or to the rulers of this world who are in power today and gone tomorrow. 7We speak about the mystery of God’s wisdom. It is a wisdom that has been hidden, which God had planned for our glory before the world began. 8Not one of the rulers of this world has known it. If they had, they wouldn’t have crucified the Lord of glory. 9But as Scripture says:
“No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
and no mind has imagined
the things that God has prepared
for those who love him.”
10God has revealed those things to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches everything, especially the deep things of God. 11After all, who knows everything about a person except that person’s own spirit? In the same way, no one has known everything about God except God’s Spirit. 12Now, we didn’t receive the spirit that belongs to the world. Instead, we received the Spirit who comes from God so that we could know the things which God has freely given us. 13We don’t speak about these things using teachings that are based on intellectual arguments like people do. Instead, we use the Spirit’s teachings. We explain spiritual things to those who have the Spirit.[Or “We explain spiritual things in spiritual words.”]
14A person who isn’t spiritual doesn’t accept the teachings of God’s Spirit. He thinks they’re nonsense. He can’t understand them because a person must be spiritual to evaluate them. 15Spiritual people evaluate everything but are subject to no one’s evaluation.
16“Who has known the mind of the Lord so that he can teach him?” However, we have the mind of Christ.
John 6:1-15
Jesus Feeds More Than Five Thousand
1Jesus later crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or the Sea of Tiberias). 2A large crowd followed him because they saw the miracles that he performed for the sick. 3Jesus went up a mountain and sat with his disciples. 4The time for the Jewish Passover festival was near. 5As Jesus saw a large crowd coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6Jesus asked this question to test him but already knew what to do. 7Philip answered, “We would need about a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each of them to have a piece.” 8One of Jesus’ disciples, Andrew, who was Simon Peter’s brother, told him, 9“A boy who has five loaves of barley bread and two small fish is here. But they won’t go very far for so many people.” 10Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” The people had plenty of grass to sit on. (There were about 5,000 men in the crowd.) 11Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to the people who were sitting there. He did the same thing with the fish. All the people ate as much as they wanted. 12When the people were full, Jesus told his disciples, “Gather the leftover pieces so that nothing will be wasted.” 13The disciples gathered the leftover pieces of bread and filled twelve baskets. 14When the people saw the miracle Jesus performed, they said, “This man is certainly the prophet who is to come into the world.” 15Jesus realized that the people intended to take him by force and make him king. So he returned to the mountain by himself.
John 6:16-21
Jesus Walks on the Sea
16When evening came, his disciples went to the sea. 17They got into a boat and started to cross the sea to the city of Capernaum. By this time it was dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18A strong wind started to blow and stir up the sea. 19After they had rowed three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea. He was coming near the boat, and they became terrified. 20Jesus told them, “It’s me. Don’t be afraid!” 21So they were willing to help Jesus into the boat. Immediately, the boat reached the shore where they were going.
Matthew 14:22–33
Jesus walks on the Sea
22Jesus quickly made his disciples get into a boat and cross to the other side ahead of him while he sent the people away. 23After sending the people away, he went up a mountain to pray by himself. When evening came, he was there alone. 24The boat, now hundreds of yards from shore, was being thrown around by the waves because it was going against the wind. 25Between three and six o’clock in the morning, he came to them. He was walking on the sea. 26When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified. They said, “It’s a ghost!” and began to scream because they were afraid. 27Immediately, Jesus said, “Calm down! It’s me. Don’t be afraid!” 28Peter answered, “Lord, if it is you, order me to come to you on the water.” 29Jesus said, “Come!” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. 30But when he noticed how strong the wind was, he became afraid and started to sink. He shouted, “Lord, save me!” 31Immediately, Jesus reached out, caught hold of him, and said, “You have so little faith! Why did you doubt?” 32When they got into the boat, the wind stopped blowing. 33The men in the boat bowed down in front of Jesus and said, “You are truly the Son of God.”
Mark 6:45-52
Jesus Walks on the Sea45Jesus quickly made his disciples get into a boat and cross to Bethsaida ahead of him while he sent the people away. 46After saying goodbye to them, he went up a mountain to pray. 47When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was alone on the land. 48Jesus saw that they were in a lot of trouble as they rowed, because they were going against the wind. Between three and six o’clock in the morning, he came to them. He was walking on the sea. He wanted to pass by them. 49When they saw him walking on the sea, they thought, “It’s a ghost!” and they began to scream. 50All of them saw him and were terrified. Immediately, he said, “Calm down! It’s me. Don’t be afraid!” 51He got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped blowing. The disciples were astounded. 52(They didn’t understand what had happened with the loaves of bread. Instead, their minds were closed.)
John 6:22-58
Jesus Is the Bread of Life
22On the next day the people were still on the other side of the sea. They noticed that only one boat was there and that Jesus had not stepped into that boat with his disciples. The disciples had gone away without him. 23Other boats from Tiberias arrived near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord gave thanks. 24When the people saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into these boats and went to the city of Capernaum to look for Jesus. 25When they found him on the other side of the sea, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” 26Jesus replied to them, “I can guarantee this truth: You’re not looking for me because you saw miracles. You are looking for me because you ate as much of those loaves as you wanted. 27Don’t work for food that spoils. Instead, work for the food that lasts into eternal life. This is the food the Son of Man will give you. After all, the Father has placed his seal of approval on him.” 28The people asked Jesus, “What does God want us to do?” 29Jesus replied to them, “God wants to do something for you so that you believe in the one whom he has sent.” 30The people asked him, “What miracle are you going to perform so that we can see it and believe in you? What are you going to do? 31Our ancestors ate the manna in the desert. Scripture says, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”
32Jesus said to them, “I can guarantee this truth: Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33God’s bread is the man who comes from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread all the time.” 35Jesus told them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never become hungry, and whoever believes in me will never become thirsty. 36I’ve told you that you have seen me. However, you don’t believe in me. 37Everyone whom the Father gives me will come to me. I will never turn away anyone who comes to me. 38I haven’t come from heaven to do what I want to do. I’ve come to do what the one who sent me wants me to do. 39The one who sent me doesn’t want me to lose any of those he gave me. He wants me to bring them back to life on the last day. 40My Father wants all those who see the Son and believe in him to have eternal life. He wants me to bring them back to life on the last day.” 41The Jews began to criticize Jesus for saying, “I am the bread that came from heaven.” 42They asked, “Isn’t this man Jesus, Joseph’s son? Don’t we know his father and mother? How can he say now, ‘I came from heaven’?” 43Jesus responded, “Stop criticizing me! 44People cannot come to me unless the Father who sent me brings them to me. I will bring these people back to life on the last day. 45The prophets wrote, ‘God will teach everyone.’ Those who do what they have learned from the Father come to me. 46I’m saying that no one has seen the Father. Only the one who is from God has seen the Father. 47I can guarantee this truth: Every believer has eternal life. 48“I am the bread of life. 49Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert and died. 50This is the bread that comes from heaven so that whoever eats it won’t die. 51I am the living bread that came from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. The bread I will give to bring life to the world is my flesh.” 52The Jews began to quarrel with each other. They said, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” 53Jesus told them, “I can guarantee this truth: If you don’t eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you don’t have the source of life in you. 54Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will bring them back to life on the last day. 55My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood live in me, and I live in them. 57The Father who has life sent me, and I live because of the Father. So those who feed on me will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came from heaven. It is not like the bread your ancestors ate. They eventually died. Those who eat this bread will live forever.”
John 6:59-70
Jesus' discourse with the multitude.
59Jesus said this while he was teaching in a synagogue in Capernaum. 60When many of Jesus’ disciples heard him, they said, “What he says is hard to accept. Who wants to listen to him anymore?” 61Jesus was aware that his disciples were criticizing his message. So Jesus asked them, “Did what I say make you lose faith? 62What if you see the Son of Man go where he was before? 63Life is spiritual. Your physical existence doesn’t contribute to that life. The words that I have spoken to you are spiritual. They are life. 64But some of you don’t believe.” Jesus knew from the beginning those who wouldn’t believe and the one who would betray him. 65So he added, “That is why I told you that people cannot come to me unless the Father provides the way.” 66Jesus’ speech made many of his disciples go back to the lives they had led before they followed Jesus. 67So Jesus asked the twelve apostles, “Do you want to leave me too?”
68Simon Peter answered Jesus, “Lord, to what person could we go? Your words give eternal life. 69Besides, we believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” 70Jesus replied, “I chose all twelve of you. Yet, one of you is a devil.” 71Jesus meant Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. Judas, who was one of the twelve apostles, would later betray Jesus.
Matthew 14:13-21
Jesus Feeds 5000 plus
13When Jesus heard about John, he left in a boat and went to a place where he could be alone. The crowds heard about this and followed him on foot from the cities. 14When Jesus got out of the boat, he saw a large crowd. He felt sorry for them and cured their sick people. 15In the evening the disciples came to him. They said, “No one lives around here, and it’s already late. Send the crowds to the villages to buy food for themselves.” 16Jesus said to them, “They don’t need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17They told him, “All we have here are five loaves of bread and two fish.” 18Jesus said, “Bring them to me.” 19Then he ordered the people to sit down on the grass. After he took the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and blessed the food. He broke the loaves apart, gave them to the disciples, and they gave them to the people. 20All of them ate as much as they wanted. When they picked up the leftover pieces, they filled twelve baskets. 21About five thousand men had eaten. (This number does not include the women and children who had eaten.)
Luke 9:10-17
Jesus feeds 5000 and then some more!
10The apostles came back and told Jesus everything they had done. He took them with him to a city called Bethsaida so that they could be alone. 11But the crowds found out about this and followed him. He welcomed them, talked to them about the kingdom of God, and cured those who were sick. 12Toward the end of the day, the twelve apostles came to him. They said to him, “Send the crowd to the closest villages and farms so that they can find some food and a place to stay. No one lives around here.” 13Jesus replied, “You give them something to eat.” They said to him, “We have five loaves of bread and two fish. Unless we go to buy food for all these people, that’s all we have.” 14(There were about five thousand men.)
Then he told his disciples, “Have them sit in groups of about fifty.” 15 So they did this. 16Then he took the five loaves and the two fish, looked up to heaven, and blessed the food. He broke the loaves apart and kept giving them to the disciples to give to the crowd. 17All of them ate as much as they wanted. When they picked up the leftover pieces, they filled twelve baskets.
The plain manner in which the apostle preached Christ crucified.
1Brothers and sisters, when I came to you, I didn’t speak about God’s mystery[“testimony.”] as if it were some kind of brilliant message or wisdom. 2While I was with you, I decided to deal with only one subject—Jesus Christ, who was crucified. 3When I came to you, I was weak. I was afraid and very nervous. 4I didn’t speak my message with persuasive intellectual arguments. I spoke my message with a show of spiritual power 5so that your faith would not be based on human wisdom but on God’s power. 6However, we do use wisdom to speak to those who are mature. It is a wisdom that doesn’t belong to this world or to the rulers of this world who are in power today and gone tomorrow. 7We speak about the mystery of God’s wisdom. It is a wisdom that has been hidden, which God had planned for our glory before the world began. 8Not one of the rulers of this world has known it. If they had, they wouldn’t have crucified the Lord of glory. 9But as Scripture says:
“No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
and no mind has imagined
the things that God has prepared
for those who love him.”
10God has revealed those things to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches everything, especially the deep things of God. 11After all, who knows everything about a person except that person’s own spirit? In the same way, no one has known everything about God except God’s Spirit. 12Now, we didn’t receive the spirit that belongs to the world. Instead, we received the Spirit who comes from God so that we could know the things which God has freely given us. 13We don’t speak about these things using teachings that are based on intellectual arguments like people do. Instead, we use the Spirit’s teachings. We explain spiritual things to those who have the Spirit.[Or “We explain spiritual things in spiritual words.”]
14A person who isn’t spiritual doesn’t accept the teachings of God’s Spirit. He thinks they’re nonsense. He can’t understand them because a person must be spiritual to evaluate them. 15Spiritual people evaluate everything but are subject to no one’s evaluation.
16“Who has known the mind of the Lord so that he can teach him?” However, we have the mind of Christ.
John 6:1-15
Jesus Feeds More Than Five Thousand
1Jesus later crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or the Sea of Tiberias). 2A large crowd followed him because they saw the miracles that he performed for the sick. 3Jesus went up a mountain and sat with his disciples. 4The time for the Jewish Passover festival was near. 5As Jesus saw a large crowd coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6Jesus asked this question to test him but already knew what to do. 7Philip answered, “We would need about a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each of them to have a piece.” 8One of Jesus’ disciples, Andrew, who was Simon Peter’s brother, told him, 9“A boy who has five loaves of barley bread and two small fish is here. But they won’t go very far for so many people.” 10Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” The people had plenty of grass to sit on. (There were about 5,000 men in the crowd.) 11Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to the people who were sitting there. He did the same thing with the fish. All the people ate as much as they wanted. 12When the people were full, Jesus told his disciples, “Gather the leftover pieces so that nothing will be wasted.” 13The disciples gathered the leftover pieces of bread and filled twelve baskets. 14When the people saw the miracle Jesus performed, they said, “This man is certainly the prophet who is to come into the world.” 15Jesus realized that the people intended to take him by force and make him king. So he returned to the mountain by himself.
John 6:16-21
Jesus Walks on the Sea
16When evening came, his disciples went to the sea. 17They got into a boat and started to cross the sea to the city of Capernaum. By this time it was dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18A strong wind started to blow and stir up the sea. 19After they had rowed three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea. He was coming near the boat, and they became terrified. 20Jesus told them, “It’s me. Don’t be afraid!” 21So they were willing to help Jesus into the boat. Immediately, the boat reached the shore where they were going.
Matthew 14:22–33
Jesus walks on the Sea
22Jesus quickly made his disciples get into a boat and cross to the other side ahead of him while he sent the people away. 23After sending the people away, he went up a mountain to pray by himself. When evening came, he was there alone. 24The boat, now hundreds of yards from shore, was being thrown around by the waves because it was going against the wind. 25Between three and six o’clock in the morning, he came to them. He was walking on the sea. 26When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified. They said, “It’s a ghost!” and began to scream because they were afraid. 27Immediately, Jesus said, “Calm down! It’s me. Don’t be afraid!” 28Peter answered, “Lord, if it is you, order me to come to you on the water.” 29Jesus said, “Come!” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. 30But when he noticed how strong the wind was, he became afraid and started to sink. He shouted, “Lord, save me!” 31Immediately, Jesus reached out, caught hold of him, and said, “You have so little faith! Why did you doubt?” 32When they got into the boat, the wind stopped blowing. 33The men in the boat bowed down in front of Jesus and said, “You are truly the Son of God.”
Mark 6:45-52
Jesus Walks on the Sea45Jesus quickly made his disciples get into a boat and cross to Bethsaida ahead of him while he sent the people away. 46After saying goodbye to them, he went up a mountain to pray. 47When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was alone on the land. 48Jesus saw that they were in a lot of trouble as they rowed, because they were going against the wind. Between three and six o’clock in the morning, he came to them. He was walking on the sea. He wanted to pass by them. 49When they saw him walking on the sea, they thought, “It’s a ghost!” and they began to scream. 50All of them saw him and were terrified. Immediately, he said, “Calm down! It’s me. Don’t be afraid!” 51He got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped blowing. The disciples were astounded. 52(They didn’t understand what had happened with the loaves of bread. Instead, their minds were closed.)
John 6:22-58
Jesus Is the Bread of Life
22On the next day the people were still on the other side of the sea. They noticed that only one boat was there and that Jesus had not stepped into that boat with his disciples. The disciples had gone away without him. 23Other boats from Tiberias arrived near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord gave thanks. 24When the people saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into these boats and went to the city of Capernaum to look for Jesus. 25When they found him on the other side of the sea, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” 26Jesus replied to them, “I can guarantee this truth: You’re not looking for me because you saw miracles. You are looking for me because you ate as much of those loaves as you wanted. 27Don’t work for food that spoils. Instead, work for the food that lasts into eternal life. This is the food the Son of Man will give you. After all, the Father has placed his seal of approval on him.” 28The people asked Jesus, “What does God want us to do?” 29Jesus replied to them, “God wants to do something for you so that you believe in the one whom he has sent.” 30The people asked him, “What miracle are you going to perform so that we can see it and believe in you? What are you going to do? 31Our ancestors ate the manna in the desert. Scripture says, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”
32Jesus said to them, “I can guarantee this truth: Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33God’s bread is the man who comes from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread all the time.” 35Jesus told them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never become hungry, and whoever believes in me will never become thirsty. 36I’ve told you that you have seen me. However, you don’t believe in me. 37Everyone whom the Father gives me will come to me. I will never turn away anyone who comes to me. 38I haven’t come from heaven to do what I want to do. I’ve come to do what the one who sent me wants me to do. 39The one who sent me doesn’t want me to lose any of those he gave me. He wants me to bring them back to life on the last day. 40My Father wants all those who see the Son and believe in him to have eternal life. He wants me to bring them back to life on the last day.” 41The Jews began to criticize Jesus for saying, “I am the bread that came from heaven.” 42They asked, “Isn’t this man Jesus, Joseph’s son? Don’t we know his father and mother? How can he say now, ‘I came from heaven’?” 43Jesus responded, “Stop criticizing me! 44People cannot come to me unless the Father who sent me brings them to me. I will bring these people back to life on the last day. 45The prophets wrote, ‘God will teach everyone.’ Those who do what they have learned from the Father come to me. 46I’m saying that no one has seen the Father. Only the one who is from God has seen the Father. 47I can guarantee this truth: Every believer has eternal life. 48“I am the bread of life. 49Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert and died. 50This is the bread that comes from heaven so that whoever eats it won’t die. 51I am the living bread that came from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. The bread I will give to bring life to the world is my flesh.” 52The Jews began to quarrel with each other. They said, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” 53Jesus told them, “I can guarantee this truth: If you don’t eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you don’t have the source of life in you. 54Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will bring them back to life on the last day. 55My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood live in me, and I live in them. 57The Father who has life sent me, and I live because of the Father. So those who feed on me will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came from heaven. It is not like the bread your ancestors ate. They eventually died. Those who eat this bread will live forever.”
John 6:59-70
Jesus' discourse with the multitude.
59Jesus said this while he was teaching in a synagogue in Capernaum. 60When many of Jesus’ disciples heard him, they said, “What he says is hard to accept. Who wants to listen to him anymore?” 61Jesus was aware that his disciples were criticizing his message. So Jesus asked them, “Did what I say make you lose faith? 62What if you see the Son of Man go where he was before? 63Life is spiritual. Your physical existence doesn’t contribute to that life. The words that I have spoken to you are spiritual. They are life. 64But some of you don’t believe.” Jesus knew from the beginning those who wouldn’t believe and the one who would betray him. 65So he added, “That is why I told you that people cannot come to me unless the Father provides the way.” 66Jesus’ speech made many of his disciples go back to the lives they had led before they followed Jesus. 67So Jesus asked the twelve apostles, “Do you want to leave me too?”
68Simon Peter answered Jesus, “Lord, to what person could we go? Your words give eternal life. 69Besides, we believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” 70Jesus replied, “I chose all twelve of you. Yet, one of you is a devil.” 71Jesus meant Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. Judas, who was one of the twelve apostles, would later betray Jesus.
Matthew 14:13-21
Jesus Feeds 5000 plus
13When Jesus heard about John, he left in a boat and went to a place where he could be alone. The crowds heard about this and followed him on foot from the cities. 14When Jesus got out of the boat, he saw a large crowd. He felt sorry for them and cured their sick people. 15In the evening the disciples came to him. They said, “No one lives around here, and it’s already late. Send the crowds to the villages to buy food for themselves.” 16Jesus said to them, “They don’t need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17They told him, “All we have here are five loaves of bread and two fish.” 18Jesus said, “Bring them to me.” 19Then he ordered the people to sit down on the grass. After he took the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and blessed the food. He broke the loaves apart, gave them to the disciples, and they gave them to the people. 20All of them ate as much as they wanted. When they picked up the leftover pieces, they filled twelve baskets. 21About five thousand men had eaten. (This number does not include the women and children who had eaten.)
Luke 9:10-17
Jesus feeds 5000 and then some more!
10The apostles came back and told Jesus everything they had done. He took them with him to a city called Bethsaida so that they could be alone. 11But the crowds found out about this and followed him. He welcomed them, talked to them about the kingdom of God, and cured those who were sick. 12Toward the end of the day, the twelve apostles came to him. They said to him, “Send the crowd to the closest villages and farms so that they can find some food and a place to stay. No one lives around here.” 13Jesus replied, “You give them something to eat.” They said to him, “We have five loaves of bread and two fish. Unless we go to buy food for all these people, that’s all we have.” 14(There were about five thousand men.)
Then he told his disciples, “Have them sit in groups of about fifty.” 15 So they did this. 16Then he took the five loaves and the two fish, looked up to heaven, and blessed the food. He broke the loaves apart and kept giving them to the disciples to give to the crowd. 17All of them ate as much as they wanted. When they picked up the leftover pieces, they filled twelve baskets.
Thank You All so Very Much for Your Loving Thoughts and Prayers
On May 25th my mom went home to be with Jesus. her last few days were filled with visits from her children her grandchildren and her great grandchildren. She had a full life with all the ups and downs of the baby of the family, as a sister, a friend, a girlfriend, a wife, a young mom, a mom of 4teenagers between the ages of 13-17 all in the same year, young grandma, a middle age widow at 43, an employee, a retired worker on a very limited income, a Great grandma of some wonderful kids! We will all miss her humor and her wisdom, wisdom she shared at times I thought I would hear "I told you so." But instead she would give me a shoulder to cry on and comforting words of 'this too will pass' and 'You will be a better person because of living as God planned for you to.' Mom I am so glad I grew up in a family as ours because it made me the person I am today. I so do love the Lord with all my heart and mom n dad I will see you all on the other side. Love Benita
Saturday, May 22, 2010
What it is to be a Christ-like believer
James 4:1-10 Stop Fighting With Each Other
1What causes fights and quarrels among you? Aren’t they caused by the selfish desires that fight to control you? 2You want what you don’t have, so you commit murder. You’re determined to have things, but you can’t get what you want. You quarrel and fight. You don’t have the things you want, because you don’t pray for them. 3When you pray for things, you don’t get them because you want them for the wrong reason—for your own pleasure. 4You unfaithful people! Don’t you know that love for this evil world is hatred toward God? Whoever wants to be a friend of this world is an enemy of God. 5Do you think this passage means nothing? It says, “The Spirit that lives in us wants us to be his own.” 6But God shows us even more kindness.[or grace] Scripture says, “God opposes arrogant people, but he is kind to humble people.”
7So place yourselves under God’s authority. Resist the devil, and he will run away from you. 8Come close to God, and he will come close to you. Clean up your lives, you sinners, and clear your minds, you doubters. 9Be miserable, mourn, and cry. Turn your laughter into mourning and your joy into gloom. 10Humble yourselves in the Lord’s presence. Then he will give you a high position.
James 4:11-12 Stop Slandering Each Other
11Brothers and sisters, stop slandering each other. Those who slander and judge other believers slander and judge God’s teachings. If you judge God’s teachings, you are no longer following them. Instead, you are judging them. 12There is only one teacher and judge. He is able to save or destroy you. So who are you to judge your neighbor?
James 4:13-17 Don’t Brag About Your Plans for the Future
13Pay attention to this! You’re saying, “Today or tomorrow we will go into some city, stay there a year, conduct business, and make money.” 14You don’t know what will happen tomorrow. What is life? You are a mist that is seen for a moment and then disappears. 15Instead, you should say, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and carry out our plans.” 16However, you brag because you’re arrogant. All such bragging is evil. 17Whoever knows what is right but doesn’t do it is sinning.
James 5:1-6 Advice to Rich People
1Pay attention to this if you’re rich. Cry and moan about the misery that is coming to you. 2Your riches have decayed, and your clothes have been eaten by moths. 3Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be used as evidence against you. Like fire, it will destroy your body. You have stored up riches in these last days. 4The wages you refused to pay the people who harvested your fields shout to God against you. The Lord of Armies has heard the cries of those who gather the crops. 5You have lived in luxury and pleasure here on earth. You have fattened yourselves for the day of slaughter. 6You have condemned and murdered people who have God’s approval, even though they didn’t resist you.
James 5:7-11 Be Patient
7Brothers and sisters, be patient until the Lord comes again. See how farmers wait for their precious crops to grow. They wait patiently for fall and spring rains. 8You, too, must be patient. Don’t give up hope. The Lord will soon be here. 9Brothers and sisters, stop complaining about each other, or you will be condemned. Realize that the judge is standing at the door. 10Brothers and sisters, follow the example of the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. They were patient when they suffered unjustly. 11We consider those who endure to be blessed. You have heard about Job’s endurance. You saw that the Lord ended Job’s suffering because the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
James 5:12-18 Don’t Take Oaths
12Above all things, my brothers and sisters, do not take an oath on anything in heaven or on earth. Do not take any oath. If you mean yes, say yes. If you mean no, say no. Do this so that you won’t be condemned.
Prayer Is Powerful
13If any of you are having trouble, pray. If you are happy, sing psalms. 14If you are sick, call for the church leaders. Have them pray for you and anoint you with olive oil[People in ancient times used olive oil for healing.] in the name of the Lord. 15(Prayers offered in faith will save those who are sick, and the Lord will cure them.) If you have sinned, you will be forgiven. 16So admit your sins to each other, and pray for each other so that you will be healed. Prayers offered by those who have God’s approval are effective. 17Elijah was human like us. Yet, when he prayed that it wouldn’t rain, no rain fell on the ground for three-and-a-half years. 18Then he prayed again. It rained, and the ground produced crops. Help Those Who Have Wandered Away From the Truth 19My brothers and sisters, if one of you wanders from the truth, someone can bring that person back. 20Realize that whoever brings a sinner back from the error of his ways will save him from death, and many sins will be forgiven.
Romans 4 We Have God’s Approval Because of Faith
1What can we say that we have discovered about our ancestor Abraham? 2If Abraham had God’s approval because of something he did, he would have had a reason to brag. But he could not brag to God about it. 3What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and that faith was regarded by God to be his approval of Abraham.” 4When people work, their pay is not regarded as a gift but something they have earned. 5However, when people don’t work but believe God, the one who approves ungodly people, their faith is regarded as God’s approval. 6David says the same thing when he speaks this blessing: God approves of a person without that person’s earning it. David said, 7“Blessed are those whose disobedience is forgiven
and whose sins are pardoned. 8Blessed is the person whom the Lord never considers sinful.” 9Are only the circumcised people blessed, or are uncircumcised people blessed as well? We say, “Abraham’s faith was regarded as God’s approval of him.” 10How was his faith regarded as God’s approval? Was he circumcised or was he uncircumcised at that time? He had not been circumcised. 11Abraham’s faith was regarded as God’s approval while he was still uncircumcised. The mark of circumcision is the seal of that approval. Therefore, he is the father of every believer who is not circumcised, and their faith, too, is regarded as God’s approval of them. 12He is also the father of those who not only are circumcised but also are following in the footsteps of his faith. Our father Abraham had that faith before he was circumcised. 13So it was not by obeying Moses’ Teachings that Abraham or his descendants received the promise that he would inherit the world. Rather, it was through God’s approval of his faith. 14If those who obey Moses’ Teachings are the heirs, then faith is useless and the promise is worthless. 15The laws in Moses’ Teachings bring about anger. But where laws don’t exist, they can’t be broken. 16Therefore, the promise is based on faith so that it can be a gift.[or grace] Consequently, the promise is guaranteed for every descendant, not only for those who are descendants by obeying Moses’ Teachings but also for those who are descendants by believing as Abraham did. He is the father of all of us, 17as Scripture says: “I have made you a father of many nations.”
Abraham believed when he stood in the presence of the God who gives life to dead people and calls into existence nations that don’t even exist. 18When there was nothing left to hope for, Abraham still hoped and believed. As a result, he became a father of many nations, as he had been told: “That is how many descendants you will have.” 19Abraham didn’t weaken. Through faith he regarded the facts: His body was already as good as dead now that he was about a hundred years old, and Sarah was unable to have children. 20He didn’t doubt God’s promise out of a lack of faith. Instead, giving honor to God for the promise, he became strong because of faith 21and was absolutely confident that God would do what he promised. 22That is why his faith was regarded as God’s approval of him. 23But the words “his faith was regarded as God’s approval of him” were written not only for him 24but also for us. Our faith will be regarded as God’s approval of us who believe in the one who brought Jesus, our Lord, back to life. 25Jesus, our Lord, was handed over to death because of our failures and was brought back to life so that we could receive God's approval.
1What causes fights and quarrels among you? Aren’t they caused by the selfish desires that fight to control you? 2You want what you don’t have, so you commit murder. You’re determined to have things, but you can’t get what you want. You quarrel and fight. You don’t have the things you want, because you don’t pray for them. 3When you pray for things, you don’t get them because you want them for the wrong reason—for your own pleasure. 4You unfaithful people! Don’t you know that love for this evil world is hatred toward God? Whoever wants to be a friend of this world is an enemy of God. 5Do you think this passage means nothing? It says, “The Spirit that lives in us wants us to be his own.” 6But God shows us even more kindness.[or grace] Scripture says, “God opposes arrogant people, but he is kind to humble people.”
7So place yourselves under God’s authority. Resist the devil, and he will run away from you. 8Come close to God, and he will come close to you. Clean up your lives, you sinners, and clear your minds, you doubters. 9Be miserable, mourn, and cry. Turn your laughter into mourning and your joy into gloom. 10Humble yourselves in the Lord’s presence. Then he will give you a high position.
James 4:11-12 Stop Slandering Each Other
11Brothers and sisters, stop slandering each other. Those who slander and judge other believers slander and judge God’s teachings. If you judge God’s teachings, you are no longer following them. Instead, you are judging them. 12There is only one teacher and judge. He is able to save or destroy you. So who are you to judge your neighbor?
James 4:13-17 Don’t Brag About Your Plans for the Future
13Pay attention to this! You’re saying, “Today or tomorrow we will go into some city, stay there a year, conduct business, and make money.” 14You don’t know what will happen tomorrow. What is life? You are a mist that is seen for a moment and then disappears. 15Instead, you should say, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and carry out our plans.” 16However, you brag because you’re arrogant. All such bragging is evil. 17Whoever knows what is right but doesn’t do it is sinning.
James 5:1-6 Advice to Rich People
1Pay attention to this if you’re rich. Cry and moan about the misery that is coming to you. 2Your riches have decayed, and your clothes have been eaten by moths. 3Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be used as evidence against you. Like fire, it will destroy your body. You have stored up riches in these last days. 4The wages you refused to pay the people who harvested your fields shout to God against you. The Lord of Armies has heard the cries of those who gather the crops. 5You have lived in luxury and pleasure here on earth. You have fattened yourselves for the day of slaughter. 6You have condemned and murdered people who have God’s approval, even though they didn’t resist you.
James 5:7-11 Be Patient
7Brothers and sisters, be patient until the Lord comes again. See how farmers wait for their precious crops to grow. They wait patiently for fall and spring rains. 8You, too, must be patient. Don’t give up hope. The Lord will soon be here. 9Brothers and sisters, stop complaining about each other, or you will be condemned. Realize that the judge is standing at the door. 10Brothers and sisters, follow the example of the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. They were patient when they suffered unjustly. 11We consider those who endure to be blessed. You have heard about Job’s endurance. You saw that the Lord ended Job’s suffering because the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
James 5:12-18 Don’t Take Oaths
12Above all things, my brothers and sisters, do not take an oath on anything in heaven or on earth. Do not take any oath. If you mean yes, say yes. If you mean no, say no. Do this so that you won’t be condemned.
Prayer Is Powerful
13If any of you are having trouble, pray. If you are happy, sing psalms. 14If you are sick, call for the church leaders. Have them pray for you and anoint you with olive oil[People in ancient times used olive oil for healing.] in the name of the Lord. 15(Prayers offered in faith will save those who are sick, and the Lord will cure them.) If you have sinned, you will be forgiven. 16So admit your sins to each other, and pray for each other so that you will be healed. Prayers offered by those who have God’s approval are effective. 17Elijah was human like us. Yet, when he prayed that it wouldn’t rain, no rain fell on the ground for three-and-a-half years. 18Then he prayed again. It rained, and the ground produced crops. Help Those Who Have Wandered Away From the Truth 19My brothers and sisters, if one of you wanders from the truth, someone can bring that person back. 20Realize that whoever brings a sinner back from the error of his ways will save him from death, and many sins will be forgiven.
Romans 4 We Have God’s Approval Because of Faith
1What can we say that we have discovered about our ancestor Abraham? 2If Abraham had God’s approval because of something he did, he would have had a reason to brag. But he could not brag to God about it. 3What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and that faith was regarded by God to be his approval of Abraham.” 4When people work, their pay is not regarded as a gift but something they have earned. 5However, when people don’t work but believe God, the one who approves ungodly people, their faith is regarded as God’s approval. 6David says the same thing when he speaks this blessing: God approves of a person without that person’s earning it. David said, 7“Blessed are those whose disobedience is forgiven
and whose sins are pardoned. 8Blessed is the person whom the Lord never considers sinful.” 9Are only the circumcised people blessed, or are uncircumcised people blessed as well? We say, “Abraham’s faith was regarded as God’s approval of him.” 10How was his faith regarded as God’s approval? Was he circumcised or was he uncircumcised at that time? He had not been circumcised. 11Abraham’s faith was regarded as God’s approval while he was still uncircumcised. The mark of circumcision is the seal of that approval. Therefore, he is the father of every believer who is not circumcised, and their faith, too, is regarded as God’s approval of them. 12He is also the father of those who not only are circumcised but also are following in the footsteps of his faith. Our father Abraham had that faith before he was circumcised. 13So it was not by obeying Moses’ Teachings that Abraham or his descendants received the promise that he would inherit the world. Rather, it was through God’s approval of his faith. 14If those who obey Moses’ Teachings are the heirs, then faith is useless and the promise is worthless. 15The laws in Moses’ Teachings bring about anger. But where laws don’t exist, they can’t be broken. 16Therefore, the promise is based on faith so that it can be a gift.[or grace] Consequently, the promise is guaranteed for every descendant, not only for those who are descendants by obeying Moses’ Teachings but also for those who are descendants by believing as Abraham did. He is the father of all of us, 17as Scripture says: “I have made you a father of many nations.”
Abraham believed when he stood in the presence of the God who gives life to dead people and calls into existence nations that don’t even exist. 18When there was nothing left to hope for, Abraham still hoped and believed. As a result, he became a father of many nations, as he had been told: “That is how many descendants you will have.” 19Abraham didn’t weaken. Through faith he regarded the facts: His body was already as good as dead now that he was about a hundred years old, and Sarah was unable to have children. 20He didn’t doubt God’s promise out of a lack of faith. Instead, giving honor to God for the promise, he became strong because of faith 21and was absolutely confident that God would do what he promised. 22That is why his faith was regarded as God’s approval of him. 23But the words “his faith was regarded as God’s approval of him” were written not only for him 24but also for us. Our faith will be regarded as God’s approval of us who believe in the one who brought Jesus, our Lord, back to life. 25Jesus, our Lord, was handed over to death because of our failures and was brought back to life so that we could receive God's approval.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Christain Living Paul's advice
Philippians 3:1-16 [Gods Word Translation]
The Goal of life.
1Now then, brothers and sisters, be joyful in the Lord. It’s no trouble for me to write the same things to you, and it’s for your safety. 2Beware of dogs! Beware of those who do evil things. Beware of those who insist on circumcision. 3We are the true circumcised people of God because we serve God’s Spirit and take pride in Christ Jesus. We don’t place any confidence in physical things, 4although I could have confidence in my physical qualifications. If anyone else thinks that he can trust in something physical, I can claim even more. 5I was circumcised on the eighth day. I’m a descendant of Israel. I’m from the tribe of Benjamin. I’m a pure-blooded Hebrew. When it comes to living up to standards, I was a Pharisee. 6When it comes to being enthusiastic, I was a persecutor of the church. When it comes to winning God’s approval by keeping Jewish laws, I was perfect. 7These things that I once considered valuable, I now consider worthless for Christ. 8It’s far more than that! I consider everything else worthless because I’m much better off knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. It’s because of him that I think of everything as worthless. I threw it all away in order to gain Christ 9and to have a relationship with him. This means that I didn’t receive God’s approval by obeying his laws. The opposite is true! I have God’s approval through faith in Christ. This is the approval that comes from God and is based on faith 10that knows Christ. Faith knows the power that his coming back to life gives and what it means to share his suffering. In this way I’m becoming like him in his death, 11with the confidence that I’ll come back to life from the dead. 12It’s not that I’ve already reached the goal or have already completed the course. But I run to win that which Jesus Christ has already won for me. 13Brothers and sisters, I can’t consider myself a winner yet. This is what I do: I don’t look back, I lengthen my stride, and 14I run straight toward the goal to win the prize that God’s heavenly call offers in Christ Jesus. 15Whoever has a mature faith should think this way. And if you think differently, God will show you how to think. 16However, we should be guided by what we have learned so fa
Philippians 3:17-21
Imitate Me
17Brothers and sisters, imitate me, and pay attention to those who live by the example we have given you. 18I have often told you, and now tell you with tears in my eyes, that many live as the enemies of the cross of Christ. 19In the end they will be destroyed. Their own emotions are their god, and they take pride in the shameful things they do. Their minds are set on worldly things. 20We, however, are citizens of heaven. We look forward to the Lord Jesus Christ coming from heaven as our Savior. 21Through his power to bring everything under his authority, he will change our humble bodies and make them like his glorified body
Philippians 4: 1-9
Think of Excellence
Paul’s Advice
1So, brothers and sisters, I love you and miss you. You are my joy and my crown. Therefore, dear friends, keep your relationship with the Lord firm! 2 I encourage both Euodia and Syntyche to have the attitude the Lord wants them to have. 3Yes, I also ask you, Syzugus, my true partner, to help these women. They fought beside me to spread the Good News along with Clement and the rest of my coworkers, whose names are in the Book of Life.
Always Be Joyful
4 Always be joyful in the Lord! I’ll say it again: Be joyful! 5Let everyone know how considerate you are. The Lord is near. 6Never worry about anything. But in every situation let God know what you need in prayers and requests while giving thanks. 7Then God’s peace, which goes beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus. 8Finally, brothers and sisters, keep your thoughts on whatever is right or deserves praise: things that are true, honorable, fair, pure, acceptable, or commendable. 9Practice what you’ve learned and received from me, what you heard and saw me do. Then the God who gives this peace will be with you.
Phil. 4:10-23
Thanks for Your Gifts
10The Lord has filled me with joy because you again showed interest in me. You were interested but did not have an opportunity to show it. 11I’m not saying this because I’m in any need. I’ve learned to be content in whatever situation I’m in. 12I know how to live in poverty or prosperity. No matter what the situation, I’ve learned the secret of how to live when I’m full or when I’m hungry, when I have too much or when I have too little. 13I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me. 14Nevertheless, it was kind of you to share my troubles. 15You Philippians also know that in the early days, when I left the province of Macedonia to spread the Good News, you were the only church to share your money with me. You gave me what I needed, and you received what I gave you. 16Even while I was in Thessalonica, you provided for my needs twice. 17It’s not that I’m looking for a gift. The opposite is true. I’m looking for your resources to increase. 18You have paid me in full, and I have more than enough. Now that Epaphroditus has brought me your gifts, you have filled my needs. Your gifts are a soothing aroma, a sacrifice that God accepts and with which he is pleased. 19My God will richly fill your every need in a glorious way through Christ Jesus. 20Glory belongs to our God and Father forever! Amen.
21Greet everyone who believes in Christ Jesus. The brothers and sisters who are with me send greetings to you. 22All God’s people here, especially those in the emperor’s palace, greet you. 23May the good will of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
1Timothy 4:1-5
A Prophecy About the Last Times
1The Spirit says clearly that in later times some believers will desert the Christian faith. They will follow spirits that deceive, and they will believe the teachings of demons. 2These people will speak lies disguised as truth. Their consciences have been scarred as if branded by a red-hot iron. 3They will try to stop others from getting married and from eating certain foods. God created food to be received with prayers of thanks by those who believe and know the truth. 4Everything God created is good. Nothing should be rejected if it is received with prayers of thanks. 5The word of God and prayer set it apart as holy.
1Timothy 4:6-16
Guidelines for Serving Christ
6You are a good servant of Christ Jesus when you point these things out to our brothers and sisters. Then you will be nourished by the words of the Christian faith and the excellent teachings which you have followed closely. 7Don’t have anything to do with godless myths that old women like to tell. Rather, train yourself to live a godly life. 8Training the body helps a little, but godly living helps in every way. Godly living has the promise of life now and in the world to come. 9This is a statement that can be trusted and deserves complete acceptance. 10Certainly, we work hard and struggle to live a godly life, because we place our confidence in the living God. He is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe. 11Insist on these things and teach them. 12Don’t let anyone look down on you for being young. Instead, make your speech, behavior, love, faith, and purity an example for other believers. 13Until I get there, concentrate on reading Scripture in worship, giving encouraging messages, and teaching people. 14Don’t neglect the gift which you received through prophecy when the spiritual leaders[a] placed their hands on you to ordain you. 15Practice these things. Devote your life to them so that everyone can see your progress. 16Focus on your life and your teaching. Continue to do what I’ve told you. If you do this, you will save yourself and those who hear you.
1Timothy 6:3-21
Guidelines for Living a Godly Life
3Whoever teaches false doctrine and doesn’t agree with the accurate words of our Lord Jesus Christ and godly teachings 4is a conceited person. He shows that he doesn’t understand anything. Rather, he has an unhealthy desire to argue and quarrel about words. This produces jealousy, rivalry, cursing, suspicion, 5and conflict between people whose corrupt minds have been robbed of the truth. They think that a godly life is a way to make a profit. 6A godly life brings huge profits to people who are content with what they have. 7We didn’t bring anything into the world, and we can’t take anything out of it. 8As long as we have food and clothes, we should be satisfied. 9But people who want to get rich keep falling into temptation. They are trapped by many stupid and harmful desires which drown them in destruction and ruin. 10Certainly, the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Some people who have set their hearts on getting rich have wandered away from the Christian faith and have caused themselves a lot of grief. 11But you, man of God, must avoid these things. Pursue what God approves of: a godly life, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. 12Fight the good fight for the Christian faith. Take hold of everlasting life to which you were called and about which you made a good testimony in front of many witnesses. 13In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, and in the sight of Christ Jesus, who gave a good testimony in front of Pontius Pilate, 14I insist that, until our Lord Jesus Christ appears, you obey this command completely. Then you cannot be blamed for doing anything wrong. 15At the right time God will make this known. God is the blessed and only ruler. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. 16He is the only one who cannot die. He lives in light that no one can come near. No one has seen him, nor can they see him. Honor and power belong to him forever! Amen.
17Tell those who have the riches of this world not to be arrogant and not to place their confidence in anything as uncertain as riches. Instead, they should place their confidence in God who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18Tell them to do good, to do a lot of good things, to be generous, and to share. 19By doing this they store up a treasure for themselves which is a good foundation for the future. In this way they take hold of what life really is. 20Timothy, guard the Good News which has been entrusted to you. Turn away from pointless discussions and the claims of false knowledge that people use to oppose the Christian faith. 21Although some claim to have knowledge, they have abandoned the faith.
God’s good will be with all of you.
The Goal of life.
1Now then, brothers and sisters, be joyful in the Lord. It’s no trouble for me to write the same things to you, and it’s for your safety. 2Beware of dogs! Beware of those who do evil things. Beware of those who insist on circumcision. 3We are the true circumcised people of God because we serve God’s Spirit and take pride in Christ Jesus. We don’t place any confidence in physical things, 4although I could have confidence in my physical qualifications. If anyone else thinks that he can trust in something physical, I can claim even more. 5I was circumcised on the eighth day. I’m a descendant of Israel. I’m from the tribe of Benjamin. I’m a pure-blooded Hebrew. When it comes to living up to standards, I was a Pharisee. 6When it comes to being enthusiastic, I was a persecutor of the church. When it comes to winning God’s approval by keeping Jewish laws, I was perfect. 7These things that I once considered valuable, I now consider worthless for Christ. 8It’s far more than that! I consider everything else worthless because I’m much better off knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. It’s because of him that I think of everything as worthless. I threw it all away in order to gain Christ 9and to have a relationship with him. This means that I didn’t receive God’s approval by obeying his laws. The opposite is true! I have God’s approval through faith in Christ. This is the approval that comes from God and is based on faith 10that knows Christ. Faith knows the power that his coming back to life gives and what it means to share his suffering. In this way I’m becoming like him in his death, 11with the confidence that I’ll come back to life from the dead. 12It’s not that I’ve already reached the goal or have already completed the course. But I run to win that which Jesus Christ has already won for me. 13Brothers and sisters, I can’t consider myself a winner yet. This is what I do: I don’t look back, I lengthen my stride, and 14I run straight toward the goal to win the prize that God’s heavenly call offers in Christ Jesus. 15Whoever has a mature faith should think this way. And if you think differently, God will show you how to think. 16However, we should be guided by what we have learned so fa
Philippians 3:17-21
Imitate Me
17Brothers and sisters, imitate me, and pay attention to those who live by the example we have given you. 18I have often told you, and now tell you with tears in my eyes, that many live as the enemies of the cross of Christ. 19In the end they will be destroyed. Their own emotions are their god, and they take pride in the shameful things they do. Their minds are set on worldly things. 20We, however, are citizens of heaven. We look forward to the Lord Jesus Christ coming from heaven as our Savior. 21Through his power to bring everything under his authority, he will change our humble bodies and make them like his glorified body
Philippians 4: 1-9
Think of Excellence
Paul’s Advice
1So, brothers and sisters, I love you and miss you. You are my joy and my crown. Therefore, dear friends, keep your relationship with the Lord firm! 2 I encourage both Euodia and Syntyche to have the attitude the Lord wants them to have. 3Yes, I also ask you, Syzugus, my true partner, to help these women. They fought beside me to spread the Good News along with Clement and the rest of my coworkers, whose names are in the Book of Life.
Always Be Joyful
4 Always be joyful in the Lord! I’ll say it again: Be joyful! 5Let everyone know how considerate you are. The Lord is near. 6Never worry about anything. But in every situation let God know what you need in prayers and requests while giving thanks. 7Then God’s peace, which goes beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus. 8Finally, brothers and sisters, keep your thoughts on whatever is right or deserves praise: things that are true, honorable, fair, pure, acceptable, or commendable. 9Practice what you’ve learned and received from me, what you heard and saw me do. Then the God who gives this peace will be with you.
Phil. 4:10-23
Thanks for Your Gifts
10The Lord has filled me with joy because you again showed interest in me. You were interested but did not have an opportunity to show it. 11I’m not saying this because I’m in any need. I’ve learned to be content in whatever situation I’m in. 12I know how to live in poverty or prosperity. No matter what the situation, I’ve learned the secret of how to live when I’m full or when I’m hungry, when I have too much or when I have too little. 13I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me. 14Nevertheless, it was kind of you to share my troubles. 15You Philippians also know that in the early days, when I left the province of Macedonia to spread the Good News, you were the only church to share your money with me. You gave me what I needed, and you received what I gave you. 16Even while I was in Thessalonica, you provided for my needs twice. 17It’s not that I’m looking for a gift. The opposite is true. I’m looking for your resources to increase. 18You have paid me in full, and I have more than enough. Now that Epaphroditus has brought me your gifts, you have filled my needs. Your gifts are a soothing aroma, a sacrifice that God accepts and with which he is pleased. 19My God will richly fill your every need in a glorious way through Christ Jesus. 20Glory belongs to our God and Father forever! Amen.
21Greet everyone who believes in Christ Jesus. The brothers and sisters who are with me send greetings to you. 22All God’s people here, especially those in the emperor’s palace, greet you. 23May the good will of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
1Timothy 4:1-5
A Prophecy About the Last Times
1The Spirit says clearly that in later times some believers will desert the Christian faith. They will follow spirits that deceive, and they will believe the teachings of demons. 2These people will speak lies disguised as truth. Their consciences have been scarred as if branded by a red-hot iron. 3They will try to stop others from getting married and from eating certain foods. God created food to be received with prayers of thanks by those who believe and know the truth. 4Everything God created is good. Nothing should be rejected if it is received with prayers of thanks. 5The word of God and prayer set it apart as holy.
1Timothy 4:6-16
Guidelines for Serving Christ
6You are a good servant of Christ Jesus when you point these things out to our brothers and sisters. Then you will be nourished by the words of the Christian faith and the excellent teachings which you have followed closely. 7Don’t have anything to do with godless myths that old women like to tell. Rather, train yourself to live a godly life. 8Training the body helps a little, but godly living helps in every way. Godly living has the promise of life now and in the world to come. 9This is a statement that can be trusted and deserves complete acceptance. 10Certainly, we work hard and struggle to live a godly life, because we place our confidence in the living God. He is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe. 11Insist on these things and teach them. 12Don’t let anyone look down on you for being young. Instead, make your speech, behavior, love, faith, and purity an example for other believers. 13Until I get there, concentrate on reading Scripture in worship, giving encouraging messages, and teaching people. 14Don’t neglect the gift which you received through prophecy when the spiritual leaders[a] placed their hands on you to ordain you. 15Practice these things. Devote your life to them so that everyone can see your progress. 16Focus on your life and your teaching. Continue to do what I’ve told you. If you do this, you will save yourself and those who hear you.
1Timothy 6:3-21
Guidelines for Living a Godly Life
3Whoever teaches false doctrine and doesn’t agree with the accurate words of our Lord Jesus Christ and godly teachings 4is a conceited person. He shows that he doesn’t understand anything. Rather, he has an unhealthy desire to argue and quarrel about words. This produces jealousy, rivalry, cursing, suspicion, 5and conflict between people whose corrupt minds have been robbed of the truth. They think that a godly life is a way to make a profit. 6A godly life brings huge profits to people who are content with what they have. 7We didn’t bring anything into the world, and we can’t take anything out of it. 8As long as we have food and clothes, we should be satisfied. 9But people who want to get rich keep falling into temptation. They are trapped by many stupid and harmful desires which drown them in destruction and ruin. 10Certainly, the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Some people who have set their hearts on getting rich have wandered away from the Christian faith and have caused themselves a lot of grief. 11But you, man of God, must avoid these things. Pursue what God approves of: a godly life, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. 12Fight the good fight for the Christian faith. Take hold of everlasting life to which you were called and about which you made a good testimony in front of many witnesses. 13In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, and in the sight of Christ Jesus, who gave a good testimony in front of Pontius Pilate, 14I insist that, until our Lord Jesus Christ appears, you obey this command completely. Then you cannot be blamed for doing anything wrong. 15At the right time God will make this known. God is the blessed and only ruler. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. 16He is the only one who cannot die. He lives in light that no one can come near. No one has seen him, nor can they see him. Honor and power belong to him forever! Amen.
17Tell those who have the riches of this world not to be arrogant and not to place their confidence in anything as uncertain as riches. Instead, they should place their confidence in God who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18Tell them to do good, to do a lot of good things, to be generous, and to share. 19By doing this they store up a treasure for themselves which is a good foundation for the future. In this way they take hold of what life really is. 20Timothy, guard the Good News which has been entrusted to you. Turn away from pointless discussions and the claims of false knowledge that people use to oppose the Christian faith. 21Although some claim to have knowledge, they have abandoned the faith.
God’s good will be with all of you.
Friday, May 7, 2010
God in / God out
Phil. 4:4-9
Always Be Joyful
4)Always be joyful in the Lord! I’ll say it again: Be joyful! 5)Let everyone know how considerate you are. The Lord is near. 6)Never worry about anything. But in every situation let God know what you need in prayers and requests while giving thanks. 7)Then God’s peace, which goes beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus.
8) Finally, brothers and sisters, keep your thoughts on whatever is right or deserves praise: things that are true, honorable, fair, pure, acceptable, or commendable. 9)Practice what you’ve learned and received from me, what you heard and saw me do. Then the God who gives this peace will be with you.
Sunday May 9th 2010
Phil. 4:10-15
Thanks for your Gifts
10)The Lord has filled me with joy because you again showed interest in me. You were interested but did not have an opportunity to show it. 11)I’m not saying this because I’m in any need. I’ve learned to be content in whatever situation I’m in. 12)I know how to live in poverty or prosperity. No matter what the situation, I’ve learned the secret of how to live when I’m full or when I’m hungry, when I have too much or when I have too little. 13)I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me. 14)Nevertheless, it was kind of you to share my troubles. 15)You Philippians also know that in the early days, when I left the province of Macedonia to spread the Good News, you were the only church to share your money with me. You gave me what I needed, and you received what I gave you. 16)Even while I was in Thessalonica, you provided for my needs twice. 17)It’s not that I’m looking for a gift. The opposite is true. I’m looking for your resources to increase. 18)You have paid me in full, and I have more than enough. Now that Epaphroditus has brought me your gifts, you have filled my needs. Your gifts are a soothing aroma, a sacrifice that God accepts and with which he is pleased. 19)My God will richly fill your every need in a glorious way through Christ Jesus.
Mark 7:1-7
Jesus Challenges the Pharisees’ [a] 1)The Pharisees and some scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus. 2)They saw that some of his disciples were unclean because they ate without washing their hands. 3)(The Pharisees, like all other Jewish people, don’t eat unless they have properly washed their hands. They follow the traditions of their ancestors. 4)When they come from the marketplace, they don’t eat unless they have washed first. They have been taught to follow many other rules. For example, they must also wash their cups, jars, brass pots, and dinner tables. 5)The Pharisees and the scribes asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples follow the traditions taught by our ancestors? They are unclean because they don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
6)Jesus told them, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites in Scripture:
‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
7)Their worship of me is pointless, because their teachings are rules made by humans.’
Mark 7:8-15
Jesus Challenges the Pharisees’ [b] 8)“You abandon the commandments of God to follow human traditions.” 9)He added, “You have no trouble rejecting the commandments of God in order to keep your own traditions! 10)For example, Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ and ‘Whoever curses father or mother must be put to death.’ 11)But you say, ‘If a person tells his father or mother that whatever he might have used to help them is corban (that is, an offering to God), 12)he no longer has to do anything for his father or mother.’ 13)Because of your traditions you have destroyed the authority of God’s word. And you do many other things like that.”
14)Then he called the crowd again and said to them, “Listen to me, all of you, and try to understand! 15)Nothing that goes into a person from the outside can make him unclean. It’s what comes out of a person that makes him unclean. 16)Let the person who has ears listen!”
Mark 7:17-22
Jesus Challenges the Pharisees’ [c]
17)When he had left the people and gone home, his disciples asked him about this illustration.
18)Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand? Don’t you know that whatever goes into a person from the outside can’t make him unclean? 19)It doesn’t go into his thoughts but into his stomach and then into a toilet.” (By saying this, Jesus declared all foods acceptable.) 20)He continued, “It’s what comes out of a person that makes him unclean. 21)Evil thoughts, sexual sins, stealing, murder, adultery, 22)greed, wickedness, cheating, shameless lust, envy, cursing, arrogance, and foolishness come from within a person. 23)All these evils come from within and make a person unclean.”
Colossians 1: 1-12
Paul’s Prayer for the Colossians
1)From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will, and from our brother Timothy.
2)To God’s holy and faithful people, our brothers and sisters who are united with Christ in the city of Colossae. Good will and peace from God our Father are yours!
3)We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, in our prayers for you. 4)We thank God because we have heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God’s people. 5)You have these because of the hope which is kept safe for you in heaven. Some time ago you heard about this hope in the Good News which is the message of truth. 6)This Good News is present with you now. It is producing results and spreading all over the world as it did among you from the first day you heard it. At that time you came to know what God’s kindness truly means. 7)You learned about this Good News from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant. He is taking your place here as a trustworthy deacon for Christ 8)and has told us about the love that the Spirit has given you. 9)For this reason we have not stopped praying for you since the day we heard about you. We ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through every kind of spiritual wisdom and insight. 10)We ask this so that you will live the kind of lives that prove you belong to the Lord. Then you will want to please him in every way as you grow in producing every kind of good work by this knowledge about God. 11)We ask him to strengthen you by his glorious might with all the power you need to patiently endure everything with joy. 12)You will also thank the Father, who has made you able to share the light, which is what God’s people inherit.
Colossians 1: 13-23
What Has God Done Through Christ
13)God has rescued us from the power of darkness and has brought us into the kingdom of his Son, whom he loves. 14)His Son paid the price to free us, which means that our sins are forgiven. 15)He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16)He created all things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible. Whether they are kings or lords, rulers or powers— everything has been created through him and for him. 17)He existed before everything and holds everything together. 18)He is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, the first to come back to life so that he would have first place in everything. 19)God was pleased to have all of himself live in Christ. 20)God was also pleased to bring everything on earth and in heaven back to himself through Christ. He did this by making peace through Christ’s blood sacrificed on the cross. 21)Once you were separated from God. The evil things you did showed your hostile attitude. 22)But now Christ has brought you back to God by dying in his physical body. He did this so that you could come into God’s presence without sin, fault, or blame. 23)This is on the condition that you continue in faith without being moved from the solid foundation of the hope that the Good News contains. You’ve heard this Good News of which I, Paul, became a servant. It has been spread throughout all creation under heaven.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
We Serve a Just God
Micah 1:1-7
The Capital Cities of Israel and Judah Destroyed
1 The word of the LORD that came to Micah of Moresheth
during the reigns of Jotham,
Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah—
the vision he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
2 Hear, O peoples, all of you,
listen, O earth and all who are in it,
that the Sovereign LORD may witness against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.
Judgment Against Samaria and Jerusalem
3 Look! The LORD is coming from his dwelling place;
he comes down and treads the high places of the earth.
4 The mountains melt beneath him
and the valleys split apart,
like wax before the fire,
like water rushing down a slope.
5 All this is because of Jacob's transgression,
because of the sins of the house of Israel.
What is Jacob's transgression?
Is it not Samaria?
What is Judah's high place?
Is it not Jerusalem?
6 "Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of rubble,
a place for planting vineyards.
I will pour her stones into the valley
and lay bare her foundations.
7 All her idols will be broken to pieces;
all her temple gifts will be burned with fire;
I will destroy all her images.
Since she gathered her gifts from the wages of prostitutes,
as the wages of prostitutes they will again be used."
Micah 1:8-16
Weeping and Mourning
8 Because of this I will weep and wail;
I will go about barefoot and naked.
I will howl like a jackal
and moan like an owl.
9 For her wound is incurable;
it has come to Judah.
It has reached the very gate of my people,
even to Jerusalem itself.
10 Tell it not in Gath;
weep not at all.
In Beth Ophrah
roll in the dust.
11 Pass on in nakedness and shame,
you who live in Shaphir.
Those who live in Zaanan
will not come out.
Beth Ezel is in mourning;
its protection is taken from you.
12 Those who live in Maroth [g] writhe in pain,
waiting for relief,
because disaster has come from the LORD,
even to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 You who live in Lachish,
harness the team to the chariot.
You were the beginning of sin
to the Daughter of Zion,
for the transgressions of Israel
were found in you.
14 Therefore you will give parting gifts
to Moresheth Gath.
The town of Aczib will prove deceptive
to the kings of Israel.
15 I will bring a conqueror against you
who live in Mareshah.
He who is the glory of Israel
will come to Adullam.
16 Shave your heads in mourning
for the children in whom you delight;
make yourselves as bald as the vulture,
for they will go from you into exile.
Micah 2:1-5
Man's Plans and God's
1 Woe to those who plan iniquity,
to those who plot evil on their beds!
At morning's light they carry it out
because it is in their power to do it.
2 They covet fields and seize them,
and houses, and take them.
They defraud a man of his home,
a fellowman of his inheritance.
3 Therefore, the LORD says:
"I am planning disaster against this people,
from which you cannot save yourselves.
You will no longer walk proudly,
for it will be a time of calamity.
4 In that day men will ridicule you;
they will taunt you with this mournful song:
'We are utterly ruined;
my people's possession is divided up.
He takes it from me!
He assigns our fields to traitors.' "
5 Therefore you will have no one in the assembly of the LORD
to divide the land by lot.
Micah 2:6-11
False Prophets
6 "Do not prophesy," their prophets say.
"Do not prophesy about these things;
disgrace will not overtake us."
7 Should it be said, O house of Jacob:
"Is the Spirit of the LORD angry?
Does he do such things?"
"Do not my words do good
to him whose ways are upright?
8 Lately my people have risen up
like an enemy.
You strip off the rich robe
from those who pass by without a care,
like men returning from battle.
9 You drive the women of my people
from their pleasant homes.
You take away my blessing
from their children forever.
10 Get up, go away!
For this is not your resting place,
because it is defiled,
it is ruined, beyond all remedy.
11 If a liar and deceiver comes and says,
'I will prophesy for you plenty of wine and beer,'
he would be just the prophet for this people.
Micah 2:12-13
Deliverance Promised
12 "I will surely gather all of you, O Jacob;
I will surely bring together the remnant of Israel.
I will bring them together like sheep in a pen,
like a flock in its pasture;
the place will throng with people.
13 One who breaks open the way will go up before them;
they will break through the gate and go out.
Their king will pass through before them,
the LORD at their head."
Micah 3:1-12
Leaders and Prophets Rebuked
1 Then I said,
"Listen, you leaders of Jacob,
you rulers of the house of Israel.
Should you not know justice,
2 you who hate good and love evil;
who tear the skin from my people
and the flesh from their bones;
3 who eat my people's flesh,
strip off their skin
and break their bones in pieces;
who chop them up like meat for the pan,
like flesh for the pot?"
4 Then they will cry out to the LORD,
but he will not answer them.
At that time he will hide his face from them
because of the evil they have done.
5 This is what the LORD says:
"As for the prophets
who lead my people astray,
if one feeds them,
they proclaim 'peace';
if he does not,
they prepare to wage war against him.
6 Therefore night will come over you, without visions,
and darkness, without divination.
The sun will set for the prophets,
and the day will go dark for them.
7 The seers will be ashamed
and the diviners disgraced.
They will all cover their faces
because there is no answer from God."
8 But as for me, I am filled with power,
with the Spirit of the LORD,
and with justice and might,
to declare to Jacob his transgression,
to Israel his sin.
9 Hear this, you leaders of the house of Jacob,
you rulers of the house of Israel,
who despise justice
and distort all that is right;
10 who build Zion with bloodshed,
and Jerusalem with wickedness.
11 Her leaders judge for a bribe,
her priests teach for a price,
and her prophets tell fortunes for money.
Yet they lean upon the LORD and say,
"Is not the LORD among us?
No disaster will come upon us."
12 Therefore because of you,
Zion will be plowed like a field,
Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble,
the temple hill a mound overgrown with thickets.
Micah 4:1-5
The Mountain of the LORD
1 In the last days
the mountain of the LORD's temple will be established
as chief among the mountains;
it will be raised above the hills,
and peoples will stream to it.
2 Many nations will come and say,
"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths."
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
3 He will judge between many peoples
and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide.
They will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war anymore.
4 Every man will sit under his own vine
and under his own fig tree,
and no one will make them afraid,
for the LORD Almighty has spoken.
5 All the nations may walk
in the name of their gods;
we will walk in the name of the LORD
our God for ever and ever.
The Capital Cities of Israel and Judah Destroyed
1 The word of the LORD that came to Micah of Moresheth
during the reigns of Jotham,
Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah—
the vision he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
2 Hear, O peoples, all of you,
listen, O earth and all who are in it,
that the Sovereign LORD may witness against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.
Judgment Against Samaria and Jerusalem
3 Look! The LORD is coming from his dwelling place;
he comes down and treads the high places of the earth.
4 The mountains melt beneath him
and the valleys split apart,
like wax before the fire,
like water rushing down a slope.
5 All this is because of Jacob's transgression,
because of the sins of the house of Israel.
What is Jacob's transgression?
Is it not Samaria?
What is Judah's high place?
Is it not Jerusalem?
6 "Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of rubble,
a place for planting vineyards.
I will pour her stones into the valley
and lay bare her foundations.
7 All her idols will be broken to pieces;
all her temple gifts will be burned with fire;
I will destroy all her images.
Since she gathered her gifts from the wages of prostitutes,
as the wages of prostitutes they will again be used."
Micah 1:8-16
Weeping and Mourning
8 Because of this I will weep and wail;
I will go about barefoot and naked.
I will howl like a jackal
and moan like an owl.
9 For her wound is incurable;
it has come to Judah.
It has reached the very gate of my people,
even to Jerusalem itself.
10 Tell it not in Gath;
weep not at all.
In Beth Ophrah
roll in the dust.
11 Pass on in nakedness and shame,
you who live in Shaphir.
Those who live in Zaanan
will not come out.
Beth Ezel is in mourning;
its protection is taken from you.
12 Those who live in Maroth [g] writhe in pain,
waiting for relief,
because disaster has come from the LORD,
even to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 You who live in Lachish,
harness the team to the chariot.
You were the beginning of sin
to the Daughter of Zion,
for the transgressions of Israel
were found in you.
14 Therefore you will give parting gifts
to Moresheth Gath.
The town of Aczib will prove deceptive
to the kings of Israel.
15 I will bring a conqueror against you
who live in Mareshah.
He who is the glory of Israel
will come to Adullam.
16 Shave your heads in mourning
for the children in whom you delight;
make yourselves as bald as the vulture,
for they will go from you into exile.
Micah 2:1-5
Man's Plans and God's
1 Woe to those who plan iniquity,
to those who plot evil on their beds!
At morning's light they carry it out
because it is in their power to do it.
2 They covet fields and seize them,
and houses, and take them.
They defraud a man of his home,
a fellowman of his inheritance.
3 Therefore, the LORD says:
"I am planning disaster against this people,
from which you cannot save yourselves.
You will no longer walk proudly,
for it will be a time of calamity.
4 In that day men will ridicule you;
they will taunt you with this mournful song:
'We are utterly ruined;
my people's possession is divided up.
He takes it from me!
He assigns our fields to traitors.' "
5 Therefore you will have no one in the assembly of the LORD
to divide the land by lot.
Micah 2:6-11
False Prophets
6 "Do not prophesy," their prophets say.
"Do not prophesy about these things;
disgrace will not overtake us."
7 Should it be said, O house of Jacob:
"Is the Spirit of the LORD angry?
Does he do such things?"
"Do not my words do good
to him whose ways are upright?
8 Lately my people have risen up
like an enemy.
You strip off the rich robe
from those who pass by without a care,
like men returning from battle.
9 You drive the women of my people
from their pleasant homes.
You take away my blessing
from their children forever.
10 Get up, go away!
For this is not your resting place,
because it is defiled,
it is ruined, beyond all remedy.
11 If a liar and deceiver comes and says,
'I will prophesy for you plenty of wine and beer,'
he would be just the prophet for this people.
Micah 2:12-13
Deliverance Promised
12 "I will surely gather all of you, O Jacob;
I will surely bring together the remnant of Israel.
I will bring them together like sheep in a pen,
like a flock in its pasture;
the place will throng with people.
13 One who breaks open the way will go up before them;
they will break through the gate and go out.
Their king will pass through before them,
the LORD at their head."
Micah 3:1-12
Leaders and Prophets Rebuked
1 Then I said,
"Listen, you leaders of Jacob,
you rulers of the house of Israel.
Should you not know justice,
2 you who hate good and love evil;
who tear the skin from my people
and the flesh from their bones;
3 who eat my people's flesh,
strip off their skin
and break their bones in pieces;
who chop them up like meat for the pan,
like flesh for the pot?"
4 Then they will cry out to the LORD,
but he will not answer them.
At that time he will hide his face from them
because of the evil they have done.
5 This is what the LORD says:
"As for the prophets
who lead my people astray,
if one feeds them,
they proclaim 'peace';
if he does not,
they prepare to wage war against him.
6 Therefore night will come over you, without visions,
and darkness, without divination.
The sun will set for the prophets,
and the day will go dark for them.
7 The seers will be ashamed
and the diviners disgraced.
They will all cover their faces
because there is no answer from God."
8 But as for me, I am filled with power,
with the Spirit of the LORD,
and with justice and might,
to declare to Jacob his transgression,
to Israel his sin.
9 Hear this, you leaders of the house of Jacob,
you rulers of the house of Israel,
who despise justice
and distort all that is right;
10 who build Zion with bloodshed,
and Jerusalem with wickedness.
11 Her leaders judge for a bribe,
her priests teach for a price,
and her prophets tell fortunes for money.
Yet they lean upon the LORD and say,
"Is not the LORD among us?
No disaster will come upon us."
12 Therefore because of you,
Zion will be plowed like a field,
Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble,
the temple hill a mound overgrown with thickets.
Micah 4:1-5
The Mountain of the LORD
1 In the last days
the mountain of the LORD's temple will be established
as chief among the mountains;
it will be raised above the hills,
and peoples will stream to it.
2 Many nations will come and say,
"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths."
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
3 He will judge between many peoples
and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide.
They will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war anymore.
4 Every man will sit under his own vine
and under his own fig tree,
and no one will make them afraid,
for the LORD Almighty has spoken.
5 All the nations may walk
in the name of their gods;
we will walk in the name of the LORD
our God for ever and ever.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Saturday April 24th - Friday April 30th The Beatitudes
Saturday April 24th
{Matthew chapter 5}
Blessed are those who…
New Week so!!!
This week let us read about, put into practice, and share who-what-how we believe...
I have three questions to ask you this week- please feel free to hold up your hands,
if the following applies to you. Know one but Jesus is watching!
1. Do you follow Jesus?
2. Do you believe in Jesus?
3. Do you obey Jesus?
Please consider the questions thoughtfully.
& Thank you for your honesty!
Matthew 5:1-6
1Now when he saw the crowds,
he went up on a mountainside
and sat down. His disciples came to him,
2and he began to teach them saying:
3"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6Blessed are those who hunger and
thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Ponder this…If you believe a person has your best interest at heart you are greatly open to their influence… Pastor Darin Mabe
If you believe a person has your best interest at heart- you are then greatly influenced by them, meaning you follow after their ways, you believe in them, and you obey whatever they tell you to do. Your actions, your idea’s, your movement, and your beliefs are all are affected effected even infected with that persons influence.
Sunday April 25th
What about me?
Matthew 5:7-9
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
Ponder this too...Now is the time for all good men and women of God to look deep in their hearts and see what others see. Will it be a godly life of mercy, a life of grace and a life surrounded in peace?
Monday Aptil 26th
What's going to happen to me if...
Matthew 5: 10-12
10Blessed are those who are persecuted
because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Ponder this...You know your walk with God is moving in the right dirrection when you sence all hell coming against you from every dirrection. Even worse distractions from those you consider close frends or family members! Thats ok though God is in control of YOUR life. Satan is just attempting to cause you to stumble and trying to keep you out of heaven away from your eternal rewards?
Tuesday April 27th
Disciples and the World
Matthew 5: 13-20
13"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.
14"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;
15nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
16"Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
17"Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.
18"For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
19"Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20"For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Ponder this for a bit...It's all about the condition of your heart. Fruitiness is a good thing! You can water down the Word of God to fit "your" goodness but that will only cause you to be tossed out with that bath water! Do not attend a church that itches your ears, attend a church that challenges you to grow in the way of God[liness].
Wednesday April 28th 2010
Personal Relationships
Matthew 5: 21- 26
21"You have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.'
22"But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.
23"Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
24leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.
25" Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way, so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.
26"Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last cent.
Something to ponder...Owe no one nothing...Owe no one anything...Owe no man...not even an "I am sorry please forgive me". Let not the sun go down with anger in your heart, und unforgiveness sowing seeds of bitterness so you reap only pain.
Thursday April 29th 2010
Adultery/Divorce/Oaths
Matthew 5: 27-37
27"You have heard that it was said, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY';
28but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
29"If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
30"If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.
31"It was said, 'WHOEVER SENDS HIS WIFE AWAY, LET HIM GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE';
32but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
33"Again, you have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT MAKE FALSE VOWS, BUT SHALL FULFILL YOUR VOWS TO THE LORD.'
34"But I say to you, make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God,
35or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, or by Jerusalem, for it is THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING.
36"Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.
37"But let your statement be, 'Yes, yes' or 'No, no'; anything beyond these is of evil.
Something to ponder...No one is worth your soul! No 'thing' is worth your personal relationship with Jesus Christ. So, think about the cost of your choices... your soul will be paying the price for those choices in one place or the other for all eternity.That my friend is a high cost.
Friday April 30th 2010
How good do you treat you...r Enemy?
Matthew 5: 38-48
38"You have heard that it was said, 'AN EYE FOR AN EYE, AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH.'
39"But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.
Pondering on this myself; Jesus said to turn the other to him also but he did not say let him hit you, so could it be we are to walk away? God did say the battle was His. Hmmmm? I am going to study this some more any oppinions to share or support on subject? the comment line is open!
40"If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also.
41"Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two.
42"Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.
43"You have heard that it was said, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.'
44"But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
45so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
46"For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
47"If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Just something I am wondering about.:I have noticed in travelling between Scotia & North Loup 3out of 4 drivers wave as they pass yet between North Loup & Ord if even2 drivers wave you are blessed? So what is up with that? Is there a no wave sign I missed? I am going to wave to all anyway because It's a smile thing!
48"Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
One more 'Ponder this...' Do you hear the flutter of angel wings? Can you almost see the Father standing by the open door? Can you sence the presence of the Lord? What more can you give or can you do before the trumpet calls you home?
{Matthew chapter 5}
Blessed are those who…
New Week so!!!
This week let us read about, put into practice, and share who-what-how we believe...
I have three questions to ask you this week- please feel free to hold up your hands,
if the following applies to you. Know one but Jesus is watching!
1. Do you follow Jesus?
2. Do you believe in Jesus?
3. Do you obey Jesus?
Please consider the questions thoughtfully.
& Thank you for your honesty!
Matthew 5:1-6
1Now when he saw the crowds,
he went up on a mountainside
and sat down. His disciples came to him,
2and he began to teach them saying:
3"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6Blessed are those who hunger and
thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Ponder this…If you believe a person has your best interest at heart you are greatly open to their influence… Pastor Darin Mabe
If you believe a person has your best interest at heart- you are then greatly influenced by them, meaning you follow after their ways, you believe in them, and you obey whatever they tell you to do. Your actions, your idea’s, your movement, and your beliefs are all are affected effected even infected with that persons influence.
Sunday April 25th
What about me?
Matthew 5:7-9
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
Ponder this too...Now is the time for all good men and women of God to look deep in their hearts and see what others see. Will it be a godly life of mercy, a life of grace and a life surrounded in peace?
Monday Aptil 26th
What's going to happen to me if...
Matthew 5: 10-12
10Blessed are those who are persecuted
because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Ponder this...You know your walk with God is moving in the right dirrection when you sence all hell coming against you from every dirrection. Even worse distractions from those you consider close frends or family members! Thats ok though God is in control of YOUR life. Satan is just attempting to cause you to stumble and trying to keep you out of heaven away from your eternal rewards?
Tuesday April 27th
Disciples and the World
Matthew 5: 13-20
13"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.
14"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;
15nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
16"Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
17"Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.
18"For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
19"Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20"For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Ponder this for a bit...It's all about the condition of your heart. Fruitiness is a good thing! You can water down the Word of God to fit "your" goodness but that will only cause you to be tossed out with that bath water! Do not attend a church that itches your ears, attend a church that challenges you to grow in the way of God[liness].
Wednesday April 28th 2010
Personal Relationships
Matthew 5: 21- 26
21"You have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.'
22"But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.
23"Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
24leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.
25" Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way, so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.
26"Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last cent.
Something to ponder...Owe no one nothing...Owe no one anything...Owe no man...not even an "I am sorry please forgive me". Let not the sun go down with anger in your heart, und unforgiveness sowing seeds of bitterness so you reap only pain.
Thursday April 29th 2010
Adultery/Divorce/Oaths
Matthew 5: 27-37
27"You have heard that it was said, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY';
28but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
29"If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
30"If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.
31"It was said, 'WHOEVER SENDS HIS WIFE AWAY, LET HIM GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE';
32but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
33"Again, you have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT MAKE FALSE VOWS, BUT SHALL FULFILL YOUR VOWS TO THE LORD.'
34"But I say to you, make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God,
35or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, or by Jerusalem, for it is THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING.
36"Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.
37"But let your statement be, 'Yes, yes' or 'No, no'; anything beyond these is of evil.
Something to ponder...No one is worth your soul! No 'thing' is worth your personal relationship with Jesus Christ. So, think about the cost of your choices... your soul will be paying the price for those choices in one place or the other for all eternity.That my friend is a high cost.
Friday April 30th 2010
How good do you treat you...r Enemy?
Matthew 5: 38-48
38"You have heard that it was said, 'AN EYE FOR AN EYE, AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH.'
39"But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.
Pondering on this myself; Jesus said to turn the other to him also but he did not say let him hit you, so could it be we are to walk away? God did say the battle was His. Hmmmm? I am going to study this some more any oppinions to share or support on subject? the comment line is open!
40"If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also.
41"Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two.
42"Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.
43"You have heard that it was said, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.'
44"But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
45so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
46"For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
47"If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Just something I am wondering about.:I have noticed in travelling between Scotia & North Loup 3out of 4 drivers wave as they pass yet between North Loup & Ord if even2 drivers wave you are blessed? So what is up with that? Is there a no wave sign I missed? I am going to wave to all anyway because It's a smile thing!
48"Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
One more 'Ponder this...' Do you hear the flutter of angel wings? Can you almost see the Father standing by the open door? Can you sence the presence of the Lord? What more can you give or can you do before the trumpet calls you home?
Saturday, April 17, 2010
How will you be remembered? April 17th-23rd
Welcome to a new week and a new topic! May God bless you as you read each day the devotion and may you learn something that will add to your life and to your walk with Jesus! Ms Benita Williams
Saturday April 17th 2010
Where will you stand?
"Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong." 1 Corinthians 16:13 (NIV)
Let's think about the importance of position. Where we stand in our life could determine whether or not we keep the in the faith. Where we stand will determine if we end with a jeweled crown to lay at the feet of Jesus. We may not be able to control what goes on in our world, but we can always control where we stand, what we believe in.
Shall we take a moment and think on that statement. You see, even though we can't control what happens in the world, we can always control where we stand on issues of righteousness and integrity. Where we choose to stand will be evidence of the role that we are allowing God to play in our lives.
For example, we have no power over the sex, drugs, language and violence on TV, but we can choose whether we watch it or not. We have no power over the content of the movies coming out in the theatres, or how lenient the ratings are, but we can choose what we allow ourselves or our children to see. We can stand for purity.
We have no power to control the beliefs and actions of other people. We cannot control the downfall of morals in our society. We cannot control the decisions that Congress makes, which new laws are put into place, escalating gas prices, politics in the workplace, questionable practices in corporations, liberal tolerance, foreign affairs, war, or the state of the economy.
In fact, sometimes it may seem that we have no control over certain situations in our own lives, much less the things happening in the world. But there is good news - we always have the choice to choose where we will stand in the game of life.
Proverbs 20:5 says, "Knowing what is right is like deep water in the heart; a wise person draws from the well within" [The Message]That is really where court position begins - in the heart. If our faith is strong and grounded, then we will be able to pull from that wisdom when faced with opportunities to choose where to stand, knowing that the power of God within us will empower us to stand.
Our only hope in fighting this battle of good versus evil, in our hearts and in this broken world, is to be prepared to stand tall and firm for Christ, despite what the opposition may bring.
You know, life is a lot like a tennis court. We each have our side. We try to stay on the right side, but sometimes the balls that get thrown at us pull us in the wrong direction. Other times they are difficult to defend, cause us to stumble, or throw us off track. But if we choose the right court position to begin with, that is, to stay on God's side and choose Him as our partner, we are much more likely to exercise the power we have within us. Drawing deep from the well of God's wisdom in our hearts, we can do the right thing.
There are times when standing up for our faith may cause us to lose the popularity contest, but it will allow others to see God in us. And, there may even be times when our court position speaks louder than words ever could.
Where will you stand today?
Dear Lord, help me have the strength and faith to stand up for what is right when I am faced with opposition, and not be swayed by the pressures in a fallen world. Help me live a life that glorifies You, instead of just taking the easy road and going along with the crowd. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
[exert from Proverbs 31 Ministry's devotion]
Sunday April 18Th 2010
Prosperity of the One Who Fears the LORD.
Psalms 112: 1-10 [The Message]
1-10 Hallelujah! Blessed man, blessed woman, who fear God,
Who cherish and relish his commandments,
Their children robust on the earth,
And the homes of the upright—how blessed!
Their houses brim with wealth
And a generosity that never runs dry.
Sunrise breaks through the darkness for good people—
God's grace and mercy and justice!
The good person is generous and lends lavishly;
No shuffling or stumbling around for this one,
But a sterling and solid and lasting reputation.
Unfazed by rumor and gossip,
Heart ready, trusting in God,
Spirit firm, unperturbed,
Ever blessed, relaxed among enemies,
They lavish gifts on the poor—
A generosity that goes on, and on, and on.
An honored life! A beautiful life!
Someone wicked takes one look and rages,
Blusters away but ends up speechless.
There's nothing to the dreams of the wicked. Nothing.
Psalm 112: 1-3 [New King James Version (NKJV)
The Blessed State of the Righteous
1 Praise the LORD!
Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
Who delights greatly in His commandments.
2 His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches will be in his house,
And his righteousness endures forever.
Psalm 112: 1-10 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
1Praise the LORD!
How blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
Who greatly delights in His commandments.
2His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed.
3Wealth and riches are in his house,
And his righteousness endures forever.
4Light arises in the darkness for the upright, gracious, compassionate,
and just [who are in right standing with God].
5It is well with the man who deals generously
and lends, who conducts his affairs with justice.
6He will not be moved forever; the [uncompromisingly]
righteous (the upright, in right standing with God)
shall be in everlasting remembrance.
7He shall not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart
is firmly fixed, trusting (leaning on and
being confident) in the Lord.
8His heart is established and steady, he will not be
afraid while he waits to see his desire
established upon his adversaries.
9He has distributed freely [he has given to the poor
and needy]; his righteousness (uprightness and right
standing with God) endures forever;
his horn shall be exalted in honor.
10The wicked man will see it and be grieved and
angered, he will gnash his teeth and disappear
[in despair]; the desire of the wicked shall
perish and come to nothing.
Psalms 112:1-10 Amplified Bible (AMP)
1PRAISE THE Lord! (Hallelujah!) Blessed (happy, fortunate,
to be envied) is the man who fears
(reveres and worships) the Lord, who delights greatly
in His commandments.
2His [spiritual] offspring shall be mighty upon earth;
the generation of the upright shall be blessed.
3Prosperity and welfare are in his house,
and his righteousness endures forever.
4Light arises in the darkness for the upright, gracious, compassionate,
and just [who are in right standing with God].
5It is well with the man who deals generously and lends,
who conducts his affairs with justice.
6He will not be moved forever; the [uncompromisingly]
righteous (the upright, in right standing with God)
shall be in everlasting remembrance.
7He shall not be afraid of evil tidings;
his heart is firmly fixed, trusting
(leaning on and being confident) in the Lord.
8His heart is established and steady,
he will not be afraid while he waits to see
his desire established upon his adversaries.
9He has distributed freely [he has given to the poor and needy];
his righteousness (uprightness and right standing with God)
endures forever; his horn shall be exalted in honor.
10The wicked man will see it and be grieved and angered,
he will gnash his teeth and disappear [in despair];
the desire of the wicked shall perish and come to nothing.
Psalm 112:1-10 Today's New International Version (TNIV)
1 Praise the LORD.
Blessed are those who fear the LORD,
who find great delight in his commands.
2 Their children will be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches are in their houses,
and their righteousness endures forever.
4 Even in darkness light dawns for the upright,
for those who are gracious and compassionate and righteous.
5 Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely,
who conduct their affairs with justice.
6 Surely the righteous will never be shaken;
they will be remembered forever.
7 They will have no fear of bad news;
their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the LORD.
8 Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear;
in the end they will look in triumph on their foes.
9 They have scattered abroad their gifts to the poor,
their righteousness endures forever;
their horn will be lifted high in honor.
10 The wicked will see and be vexed,
they will gnash their teeth and waste away;
the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.
Psalm 112:1-10 New International Version (NIV)
1. Praise the LORD.
Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
who finds great delight in his commands.
2 His children will be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches are in his house,
and his righteousness endures forever!
4 Even in darkness light dawns for the upright,
for the gracious and compassionate and righteous man.
5 Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely,
who conducts his affairs with justice.
6 Surely he will never be shaken;
a righteous man will be remembered forever.
He will have no fear of bad news;
his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.
8 His heart is secure, he will have no fear;
in the end he will look in triumph on his foes.
9 He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor,
his righteousness endures forever;
his horn will be lifted high in honor.
10 The wicked man will see and be vexed,
he will gnash his teeth and waste away;
the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.
Something to Ponder
I know we have several different choices of Bible versions to read from so today I decided to list several here so each of you reading could see and ponder how different but the same each verse can be.
Monday April 19Th 2010
To be or not to be what to choose?
Romans 7:4-23 (New International Version)
4So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God. 5For when we were controlled by the sinful nature, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death. 6But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.
7What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, "Do not covet." 8But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead. 9Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. 10I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death.
11For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death. 12So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good. 13Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! But in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it produced death in me through what was good, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.
14We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
21So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22For in my inner being I delight in God's law; 23but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
Tuesday April 20Th 2010
Submit Yourselves to God
Hebrews 11:1-12
1What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? 2You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. 3When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. 4You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. 5] Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely? 6But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 7Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. 11Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. 12There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?
Wednesday April 21st 2010
Boasting About Tomorrow
Hebrew 11:13-17
13Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." 14Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." 16As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. 17Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.
Thursday April 22nd 2010
By Faith
Hebrews 11:11
1Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. 4 By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead. 5 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 6And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. 7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. 8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11 By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise. 12And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
Friday April 23rd 2010
Warning to Pay Attention
Hebrews 2: 1-4
1We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. 2For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, 3how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. 4God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
Prepare for the Sabbath now tomorrow will be to late!!!
Saturday April 17th 2010
Where will you stand?
"Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong." 1 Corinthians 16:13 (NIV)
Let's think about the importance of position. Where we stand in our life could determine whether or not we keep the in the faith. Where we stand will determine if we end with a jeweled crown to lay at the feet of Jesus. We may not be able to control what goes on in our world, but we can always control where we stand, what we believe in.
Shall we take a moment and think on that statement. You see, even though we can't control what happens in the world, we can always control where we stand on issues of righteousness and integrity. Where we choose to stand will be evidence of the role that we are allowing God to play in our lives.
For example, we have no power over the sex, drugs, language and violence on TV, but we can choose whether we watch it or not. We have no power over the content of the movies coming out in the theatres, or how lenient the ratings are, but we can choose what we allow ourselves or our children to see. We can stand for purity.
We have no power to control the beliefs and actions of other people. We cannot control the downfall of morals in our society. We cannot control the decisions that Congress makes, which new laws are put into place, escalating gas prices, politics in the workplace, questionable practices in corporations, liberal tolerance, foreign affairs, war, or the state of the economy.
In fact, sometimes it may seem that we have no control over certain situations in our own lives, much less the things happening in the world. But there is good news - we always have the choice to choose where we will stand in the game of life.
Proverbs 20:5 says, "Knowing what is right is like deep water in the heart; a wise person draws from the well within" [The Message]That is really where court position begins - in the heart. If our faith is strong and grounded, then we will be able to pull from that wisdom when faced with opportunities to choose where to stand, knowing that the power of God within us will empower us to stand.
Our only hope in fighting this battle of good versus evil, in our hearts and in this broken world, is to be prepared to stand tall and firm for Christ, despite what the opposition may bring.
You know, life is a lot like a tennis court. We each have our side. We try to stay on the right side, but sometimes the balls that get thrown at us pull us in the wrong direction. Other times they are difficult to defend, cause us to stumble, or throw us off track. But if we choose the right court position to begin with, that is, to stay on God's side and choose Him as our partner, we are much more likely to exercise the power we have within us. Drawing deep from the well of God's wisdom in our hearts, we can do the right thing.
There are times when standing up for our faith may cause us to lose the popularity contest, but it will allow others to see God in us. And, there may even be times when our court position speaks louder than words ever could.
Where will you stand today?
Dear Lord, help me have the strength and faith to stand up for what is right when I am faced with opposition, and not be swayed by the pressures in a fallen world. Help me live a life that glorifies You, instead of just taking the easy road and going along with the crowd. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
[exert from Proverbs 31 Ministry's devotion]
Sunday April 18Th 2010
Prosperity of the One Who Fears the LORD.
Psalms 112: 1-10 [The Message]
1-10 Hallelujah! Blessed man, blessed woman, who fear God,
Who cherish and relish his commandments,
Their children robust on the earth,
And the homes of the upright—how blessed!
Their houses brim with wealth
And a generosity that never runs dry.
Sunrise breaks through the darkness for good people—
God's grace and mercy and justice!
The good person is generous and lends lavishly;
No shuffling or stumbling around for this one,
But a sterling and solid and lasting reputation.
Unfazed by rumor and gossip,
Heart ready, trusting in God,
Spirit firm, unperturbed,
Ever blessed, relaxed among enemies,
They lavish gifts on the poor—
A generosity that goes on, and on, and on.
An honored life! A beautiful life!
Someone wicked takes one look and rages,
Blusters away but ends up speechless.
There's nothing to the dreams of the wicked. Nothing.
Psalm 112: 1-3 [New King James Version (NKJV)
The Blessed State of the Righteous
1 Praise the LORD!
Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
Who delights greatly in His commandments.
2 His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches will be in his house,
And his righteousness endures forever.
Psalm 112: 1-10 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
1Praise the LORD!
How blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
Who greatly delights in His commandments.
2His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed.
3Wealth and riches are in his house,
And his righteousness endures forever.
4Light arises in the darkness for the upright, gracious, compassionate,
and just [who are in right standing with God].
5It is well with the man who deals generously
and lends, who conducts his affairs with justice.
6He will not be moved forever; the [uncompromisingly]
righteous (the upright, in right standing with God)
shall be in everlasting remembrance.
7He shall not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart
is firmly fixed, trusting (leaning on and
being confident) in the Lord.
8His heart is established and steady, he will not be
afraid while he waits to see his desire
established upon his adversaries.
9He has distributed freely [he has given to the poor
and needy]; his righteousness (uprightness and right
standing with God) endures forever;
his horn shall be exalted in honor.
10The wicked man will see it and be grieved and
angered, he will gnash his teeth and disappear
[in despair]; the desire of the wicked shall
perish and come to nothing.
Psalms 112:1-10 Amplified Bible (AMP)
1PRAISE THE Lord! (Hallelujah!) Blessed (happy, fortunate,
to be envied) is the man who fears
(reveres and worships) the Lord, who delights greatly
in His commandments.
2His [spiritual] offspring shall be mighty upon earth;
the generation of the upright shall be blessed.
3Prosperity and welfare are in his house,
and his righteousness endures forever.
4Light arises in the darkness for the upright, gracious, compassionate,
and just [who are in right standing with God].
5It is well with the man who deals generously and lends,
who conducts his affairs with justice.
6He will not be moved forever; the [uncompromisingly]
righteous (the upright, in right standing with God)
shall be in everlasting remembrance.
7He shall not be afraid of evil tidings;
his heart is firmly fixed, trusting
(leaning on and being confident) in the Lord.
8His heart is established and steady,
he will not be afraid while he waits to see
his desire established upon his adversaries.
9He has distributed freely [he has given to the poor and needy];
his righteousness (uprightness and right standing with God)
endures forever; his horn shall be exalted in honor.
10The wicked man will see it and be grieved and angered,
he will gnash his teeth and disappear [in despair];
the desire of the wicked shall perish and come to nothing.
Psalm 112:1-10 Today's New International Version (TNIV)
1 Praise the LORD.
Blessed are those who fear the LORD,
who find great delight in his commands.
2 Their children will be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches are in their houses,
and their righteousness endures forever.
4 Even in darkness light dawns for the upright,
for those who are gracious and compassionate and righteous.
5 Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely,
who conduct their affairs with justice.
6 Surely the righteous will never be shaken;
they will be remembered forever.
7 They will have no fear of bad news;
their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the LORD.
8 Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear;
in the end they will look in triumph on their foes.
9 They have scattered abroad their gifts to the poor,
their righteousness endures forever;
their horn will be lifted high in honor.
10 The wicked will see and be vexed,
they will gnash their teeth and waste away;
the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.
Psalm 112:1-10 New International Version (NIV)
1. Praise the LORD.
Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
who finds great delight in his commands.
2 His children will be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches are in his house,
and his righteousness endures forever!
4 Even in darkness light dawns for the upright,
for the gracious and compassionate and righteous man.
5 Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely,
who conducts his affairs with justice.
6 Surely he will never be shaken;
a righteous man will be remembered forever.
He will have no fear of bad news;
his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.
8 His heart is secure, he will have no fear;
in the end he will look in triumph on his foes.
9 He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor,
his righteousness endures forever;
his horn will be lifted high in honor.
10 The wicked man will see and be vexed,
he will gnash his teeth and waste away;
the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.
Something to Ponder
I know we have several different choices of Bible versions to read from so today I decided to list several here so each of you reading could see and ponder how different but the same each verse can be.
Monday April 19Th 2010
To be or not to be what to choose?
Romans 7:4-23 (New International Version)
4So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God. 5For when we were controlled by the sinful nature, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death. 6But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.
7What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, "Do not covet." 8But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead. 9Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. 10I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death.
11For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death. 12So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good. 13Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! But in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it produced death in me through what was good, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.
14We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
21So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22For in my inner being I delight in God's law; 23but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
Tuesday April 20Th 2010
Submit Yourselves to God
Hebrews 11:1-12
1What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? 2You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. 3When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. 4You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. 5] Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely? 6But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 7Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. 11Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. 12There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?
Wednesday April 21st 2010
Boasting About Tomorrow
Hebrew 11:13-17
13Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." 14Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." 16As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. 17Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.
Thursday April 22nd 2010
By Faith
Hebrews 11:11
1Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. 4 By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead. 5 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 6And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. 7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. 8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11 By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise. 12And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
Friday April 23rd 2010
Warning to Pay Attention
Hebrews 2: 1-4
1We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. 2For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, 3how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. 4God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
Prepare for the Sabbath now tomorrow will be to late!!!
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