Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24)
Here lies the unfathomable hope that all Christians share alike: By the blood of Jesus Christ, we pass out of death and despair and into eternal life full of joy.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Blessed [are] they
Blessed [are] they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. (Matthew 5:6)
Your hunger shall be filled. Your thirst shall be quenched. Ever shall the child of righteousness be sated for the Lamb is his food and his drink. Christ is the living manna and the living water. The Christian feasts upon His body, broken for us, and His blood, shed for our sake. So go, O believer, in the power of the cross! Go forth and proclaim His life to all the nations until He comes again, that they too might taste the fullness of righteousness!
Your hunger shall be filled. Your thirst shall be quenched. Ever shall the child of righteousness be sated for the Lamb is his food and his drink. Christ is the living manna and the living water. The Christian feasts upon His body, broken for us, and His blood, shed for our sake. So go, O believer, in the power of the cross! Go forth and proclaim His life to all the nations until He comes again, that they too might taste the fullness of righteousness!
Monday, August 29, 2011
God [is] not a man
God [is] not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do [it]? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? (Numbers 23:19)
God is ever worthy of our trust. He is unchanging and uncompromising. His promises will always be kept and He shall always stand true to His word. Every promise shall find fulfilment in you who are Christ's workmanship. Rejoice therefore in Him and be filled!
God is ever worthy of our trust. He is unchanging and uncompromising. His promises will always be kept and He shall always stand true to His word. Every promise shall find fulfilment in you who are Christ's workmanship. Rejoice therefore in Him and be filled!
EQUIPPED FOR GOOD WORK
EQUIPPED FOR GOOD WORK
2 Timothy 3:10-17
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=2+Timothy+3:10-17
Dear Father,
Help me adhere to right teaching, proper conduct, the right aim in
life and faith. Help me hold on patience, love, and steadfastness,
even when I am opposed and persecuted for doing so. When evil
people and impostors go from bad to worse, keep me from giving up
in the face of their persecution and opposition.
May I continue in what I have learned and firmly believe, knowing
that your Word is able to instruct me for salvation through faith
in Christ Jesus. Thank you for these writings - breathed by your
holy breath - which are good for teaching, reproof, correction, and
training in righteousness, that I may be complete and equipped for
every good work.
Father, complete your work in me, may I be ready to do your work
in the world!
In the name of Jesus. Amen.
2 Timothy 3:10-17
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=2+Timothy+3:10-17
Dear Father,
Help me adhere to right teaching, proper conduct, the right aim in
life and faith. Help me hold on patience, love, and steadfastness,
even when I am opposed and persecuted for doing so. When evil
people and impostors go from bad to worse, keep me from giving up
in the face of their persecution and opposition.
May I continue in what I have learned and firmly believe, knowing
that your Word is able to instruct me for salvation through faith
in Christ Jesus. Thank you for these writings - breathed by your
holy breath - which are good for teaching, reproof, correction, and
training in righteousness, that I may be complete and equipped for
every good work.
Father, complete your work in me, may I be ready to do your work
in the world!
In the name of Jesus. Amen.
Friday, August 26, 2011
And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. (Exodus 20:6)
And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. (Exodus 20:6)
God promises mercy to those who keep His holy commands, yet what man could ever see this promised mercy? Only one. Only One. Only Christ. And by His love for us, we too see God's mercy. Christ's infinitely valuable obedience bought mercy for all those who would seek it. Praise our Lord and Saviour for our bountiful access to His saving mercy!
God promises mercy to those who keep His holy commands, yet what man could ever see this promised mercy? Only one. Only One. Only Christ. And by His love for us, we too see God's mercy. Christ's infinitely valuable obedience bought mercy for all those who would seek it. Praise our Lord and Saviour for our bountiful access to His saving mercy!
Thursday, August 25, 2011
And, behold,
And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward [is] with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
Reflection
The end is near! The time of our final victory in Christ is upon us! He is coming soon and with His coming, the doom of sin, the doom of evil, and the doom of death itself! Praise be! Praise be! Praise be!
Reflection
The end is near! The time of our final victory in Christ is upon us! He is coming soon and with His coming, the doom of sin, the doom of evil, and the doom of death itself! Praise be! Praise be! Praise be!
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
An "Unpopular" Prophetic Promise of Apostasy
An "Unpopular" Prophetic Promise of Apostasy
Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron. (1 Timothy 4:1-2)
As we continue to alternate between "precious promises" and "unpopular" promises, we come to a prophetic promise of apostasy. Among those who are actually drifting into apostasy, this promise is certainly "unpopular." Additionally, in a church world that wrongly accepts what sounds positive and rejects what sounds negative (instead of rejecting error and accepting truth), this promise is often met with disinterest or, worse, disdain.
"The faith" is the message of the word of God. It is the divine truth in which we are to place our faith, our trust. It especially includes the good news of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our present promise forewarns that there will be those who fall away from "the faith" as the days press closer and closer to the end of the church era. "In latter times some will depart from the faith." Since this is a departure, they seemed to adhere to the word of God for a season. Then they turned away from it. If they remain active in the church world, their message will no longer reflect the true content of the Scriptures. Peter gave a similar warning. "There were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them" (2 Peter 2:1). As sure as Israel had false prophets, the church would have false teachers.
Paul provided some insights into their path of apostasy. They would be "giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons." Paying attention to concepts that were perpetrated by demonic deception would result in errors in their doctrine. The devil and his army of evil spirits are intent on confusing and distorting the teaching of the word of God. Typically, such errors feed man's fleshly desires to glorify self.
These apostates would also be "speaking lies in hypocrisy." Not only would their teaching be erroneous, their lives would be marked by falsehoods related to pretense. They would add untrue testimony to their inaccurate message. Perhaps the reports of their ministerial prowess would be grossly exaggerated.
They would also be "having their own conscience seared with a hot iron." They would teach errors and live lies until their consciences were no longer convicted of sin. We are forewarned. Such apostates undoubtedly abound in these last days.
Lord God of truth, thank You for lovingly warning of the danger of apostasy. Enlarge my appreciation of such "unpopular" promises. Please help me to cherish the truth of Your word. Give me a heart to know Your word. Sharpen my discernment concerning error. Keep my heart and my message anchored in the truth of Scripture, Amen.
Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron. (1 Timothy 4:1-2)
As we continue to alternate between "precious promises" and "unpopular" promises, we come to a prophetic promise of apostasy. Among those who are actually drifting into apostasy, this promise is certainly "unpopular." Additionally, in a church world that wrongly accepts what sounds positive and rejects what sounds negative (instead of rejecting error and accepting truth), this promise is often met with disinterest or, worse, disdain.
"The faith" is the message of the word of God. It is the divine truth in which we are to place our faith, our trust. It especially includes the good news of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our present promise forewarns that there will be those who fall away from "the faith" as the days press closer and closer to the end of the church era. "In latter times some will depart from the faith." Since this is a departure, they seemed to adhere to the word of God for a season. Then they turned away from it. If they remain active in the church world, their message will no longer reflect the true content of the Scriptures. Peter gave a similar warning. "There were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them" (2 Peter 2:1). As sure as Israel had false prophets, the church would have false teachers.
Paul provided some insights into their path of apostasy. They would be "giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons." Paying attention to concepts that were perpetrated by demonic deception would result in errors in their doctrine. The devil and his army of evil spirits are intent on confusing and distorting the teaching of the word of God. Typically, such errors feed man's fleshly desires to glorify self.
These apostates would also be "speaking lies in hypocrisy." Not only would their teaching be erroneous, their lives would be marked by falsehoods related to pretense. They would add untrue testimony to their inaccurate message. Perhaps the reports of their ministerial prowess would be grossly exaggerated.
They would also be "having their own conscience seared with a hot iron." They would teach errors and live lies until their consciences were no longer convicted of sin. We are forewarned. Such apostates undoubtedly abound in these last days.
Lord God of truth, thank You for lovingly warning of the danger of apostasy. Enlarge my appreciation of such "unpopular" promises. Please help me to cherish the truth of Your word. Give me a heart to know Your word. Sharpen my discernment concerning error. Keep my heart and my message anchored in the truth of Scripture, Amen.
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