6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: "May they prosper who love you.7 Peace be within your walls, Prosperity within your palaces."
Here we find one of many promises found in the Word of God. God has a special place in His heart for nation of Israel. Here David writes that those who pray for peace in Jerusalem will receive special blessings from God. Look at what David writes.
May those who pray for Israel's peace prosper. As Jerusalem prospers, so will those who pray for her prosper. As there is peace with in her walls, so shall there be peace in the lives of those who pray for her peace. God wants us to share in the benefits of His goodness. God wants to bless us all. He wants to give us His abundant blessings. He is able to bless us as we choose to walk where He would have us walk. He wants to bless us as we seek to be part of those things that He is partial to. As God blesses Israel, He will bless those who pray for her blessing.
One thing is clear in the Bible. When we pray for peace in Israel, we will be blessed. As a nation stands with Israel, that nation will be blessed.Pray for Israel. Lift up this special nation and pray that the peace of God will reign and rule in that region of the world.
There is a very close parallel in the Bible with Israel and the New Testament church. Just as God called Israel to be a special people, so has Jesus called the church out from the world to be a peculiar people. As we pray for the church and look to the Holy Spirit to lead the church and bless it, so will the Holy Spirit bless us. As the church is blessed, so will we be blessed. As the church grows, so will we grow. As the church prospers, so will we prosper.
Remember to pray for your pastor today. Pray for your church's services on Sunday. Remember the church as a whole and the services that will be conducted all over the world. Pray that the Holy Spirit will find liberty in the hearts and lives of individuals in all walks of life and in every country on the face of the earth. Pray that the God of creation will be glorified and His strong and mighty hand will be felt and all the world will know that the God of Israel, the God of the Bible, He is indeed God!
A Pastor's thoughts about the Scripture and it's influence in our lives.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Good Homes Proverbs 3:33
God blesses the habitation of the just.
On occasions I hear mothers and fathers talk with great pride about their children. Sometimes, they follow their comments with an apology because they feel as if they have bored their listener. A proud parent is a blessing from the Lord. God promises us that He will bless the habitation of the just.
When we place God first in our lives, He gives us the proper balance that we need to be the best that we can be in every aspect of our lives. Sometimes, I hear people say, "I want to give God first place in my life but right now I have so much that I need to do there is no room for anything else." This may seem like a sincere, heart felt response of honesty but the truth is if you are too busy for God then you are too busy and you need to do something about it. The best thing you can do is put God first and let Him help you put everything else in its proper perspective!
We have to understand that our first response is not going to be to look to God. The world does not want us to do so and the devil certainly does not want us to do that. Our sinful selfish nature is to do things our way instead of doing them God's way. However, God's Word assures us that God will bless us when we let Him bless us as we surrender control of our lives to Him. God's desire is that we have life and have it more abundantly. This is true for our lives and the lives of our families as well.
Parents, walk and talk with the Lord and let Him bless your homes. Children, love the Lord and bless Him with your decisions so that He can bless your home as well, both in the present and in the future. God can use you as a child to touch your parents and lead them to a closer walk with Him!
On occasions I hear mothers and fathers talk with great pride about their children. Sometimes, they follow their comments with an apology because they feel as if they have bored their listener. A proud parent is a blessing from the Lord. God promises us that He will bless the habitation of the just.
When we place God first in our lives, He gives us the proper balance that we need to be the best that we can be in every aspect of our lives. Sometimes, I hear people say, "I want to give God first place in my life but right now I have so much that I need to do there is no room for anything else." This may seem like a sincere, heart felt response of honesty but the truth is if you are too busy for God then you are too busy and you need to do something about it. The best thing you can do is put God first and let Him help you put everything else in its proper perspective!
We have to understand that our first response is not going to be to look to God. The world does not want us to do so and the devil certainly does not want us to do that. Our sinful selfish nature is to do things our way instead of doing them God's way. However, God's Word assures us that God will bless us when we let Him bless us as we surrender control of our lives to Him. God's desire is that we have life and have it more abundantly. This is true for our lives and the lives of our families as well.
Parents, walk and talk with the Lord and let Him bless your homes. Children, love the Lord and bless Him with your decisions so that He can bless your home as well, both in the present and in the future. God can use you as a child to touch your parents and lead them to a closer walk with Him!
Thursday, July 8, 2010
God's Promises Hebrews 10:22
Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering (for He is faithful that promised.)
What does Paul mean when he writes, "Let us draw near with a true heart in 'full assurance of faith'"? What is "a full assurance of faith"? The answer has to do with our hearts being sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies being washed with pure water which is a direct reference to a change of heart brought about by the redeeming work of the Holy Spirit in a lost person's heart and followed by the public profession of faith in the Lord Jesus through the waters of baptism. This process should give us a true heart in full assurance of faith; in other words, you and I can "know" that we belong to God as His children through faith.
Paul goes on to say that we ought to hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering. There is no reason for us to doubt our salvation if we have given the Lord Jesus our hearts. We do need to make sure that we have indeed come to the foot of the cross and in repentance have asked for God's forgiveness and have turned from the provisions of the world and turned to the provisions brought about on Calvary on our behalf. When we come to the cross, we can know that we know that we have been saved and there is no reason not to hold fast to our profession of our faith in what Jesus has done for us.
The reason that we are to hold onto the profession of our faith is in the last part of this verse, "for He is faithful that promised." This phrase is in parenthesis, which is an example of a phrase that is not found in some of the texts used to translate the Bible. This is not a problem and if it is a commentary remark added some time later, it is nonetheless true. The one truth that rings clear from Genesis to Revelation is simply that God is everything that He says He is and He will do everything that He says He will do. God is faithful to do all that He has promised.
You and I are to trust God and His promises and to know that He is more than able to keep that which has been committed unto Him until the end. God is more interested in us going to heaven that you and I are in going ourselves. God knows what He has planned for us; we have no real idea of what heaven is going to be like. We can place our hope and our trust in God that what He has begun in us, He will finish for us because He is faithful to His promises to us no matter what.
We need to make sure that we "draw near" and then stay there!
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Limits to Temptation I Corinthians 10:13
"God is faithful, who will not let you to be tempted above that which you are able."
God knows what is going on in our lives. He knows our thoughts and He knows the temptations that we will be faced with. In Genesis 20, Abraham is going through a foreign nation and he tells Sarah, his wife, to tell the people there that she is his sister and not his wife, fearing that they will kill him to have her. This is an amazing story in and of itself, seeing that she is in her late 90's!
Abimelech, who is king sends for her to take her as his wife and God appears to him in a dream warning him of the consequences of those actions. Abimelech tells God that he was told that she was his sister and that he had no intention of taking a married woman. God acknowledged the situation and Abimelech returned her to Abraham. Listen to what God told Abimelech in verse 6, "I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her."
Two things took place here. First of all, God protected His anointed, Sarah, even though she and Abraham were deceptive and did not trust God as they should have done. This is the second time that Abraham had pulled this stunt and in both cases, God had just promised Abraham that He would deliver Abraham and make him the father of many nations. Sarah was simply doing as her husband had instructed her to do. God protected her.
God also limited Abimelech's reach to sin against God. God protected this pagan king from death. Because God is in complete control of all that takes place and because God is not only creator but in Him all life finds its sustenance, He is uniquely aware of everything that goes on and He is in complete control of everything that takes place in this life. God knows everything that is taking place and in His omnipotence He is able to set limits as to the extent of our decisions by controlling our circumstances without controlling our wills.
God will not allow us to be tempted above that which we are able to withstand. His presence in our hearts and His Word in our minds are there to lead us and guide us to make the right decisions in every matter that we will ever face. However, there may be times when our intention is to set God's Word aside and do things our way in spite of His Way. God will at times limit our circumstances to keep us from sinning against Him to the point that His greater purpose for lives is thwarted.
Our God is a great, loving God Who will do whatever it takes to make our lives what He would like for them to be! What a great God we serve!
God knows what is going on in our lives. He knows our thoughts and He knows the temptations that we will be faced with. In Genesis 20, Abraham is going through a foreign nation and he tells Sarah, his wife, to tell the people there that she is his sister and not his wife, fearing that they will kill him to have her. This is an amazing story in and of itself, seeing that she is in her late 90's!
Abimelech, who is king sends for her to take her as his wife and God appears to him in a dream warning him of the consequences of those actions. Abimelech tells God that he was told that she was his sister and that he had no intention of taking a married woman. God acknowledged the situation and Abimelech returned her to Abraham. Listen to what God told Abimelech in verse 6, "I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her."
Two things took place here. First of all, God protected His anointed, Sarah, even though she and Abraham were deceptive and did not trust God as they should have done. This is the second time that Abraham had pulled this stunt and in both cases, God had just promised Abraham that He would deliver Abraham and make him the father of many nations. Sarah was simply doing as her husband had instructed her to do. God protected her.
God also limited Abimelech's reach to sin against God. God protected this pagan king from death. Because God is in complete control of all that takes place and because God is not only creator but in Him all life finds its sustenance, He is uniquely aware of everything that goes on and He is in complete control of everything that takes place in this life. God knows everything that is taking place and in His omnipotence He is able to set limits as to the extent of our decisions by controlling our circumstances without controlling our wills.
God will not allow us to be tempted above that which we are able to withstand. His presence in our hearts and His Word in our minds are there to lead us and guide us to make the right decisions in every matter that we will ever face. However, there may be times when our intention is to set God's Word aside and do things our way in spite of His Way. God will at times limit our circumstances to keep us from sinning against Him to the point that His greater purpose for lives is thwarted.
Our God is a great, loving God Who will do whatever it takes to make our lives what He would like for them to be! What a great God we serve!
Monday, July 5, 2010
Laborers for the Harvest Luke 10:2
Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly [is] great, but the labourers [are] few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.
In verse 1 we read, "After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come." Jesus then says, "The harvest truly [is] great, but the labourers [are] few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest."
Here we have the sending forth of seventy disciples, two and two, into different parts of the country to preach the gospel and work miracles in those places, which Christ Himself instructed them to go. These disciples were to look at the harvest that was out there that needed to be harvested.
One of the great principles of harvesting is that the harvest needs to be gathered when it is ripe. The harvest has to be taken at the right time. If it is too early, the fruit is not ready to be taken and if it is too late, the fruit can be ruined. The disciples were admonished to look out for the harvest and they were to pray that the Lord of the harvest would send forth laborers into the harvest, because it was ready to be harvested.
As ministers and lay people alike ( the 70 disciples here were ordinary people who had been given an extraordinary task ) we need to see the fields that are white unto harvest. In Tennessee in the fall of the year, cotton fields are white unto harvest. You can see the fields from the road. You can see that the cotton is ready to be picked.
Our communities are the same way. You and I need to look out into the fields that are white unto harvest and we need to be willing to pray and ask the Lord to send harvesters into the fields before it is too late. The real thrust of this verse is simple; Lord Jesus, I pray that You will send forth laborers into the field; here am I send me.
Are you willing to pray that prayer today?
In verse 1 we read, "After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come." Jesus then says, "The harvest truly [is] great, but the labourers [are] few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest."
Here we have the sending forth of seventy disciples, two and two, into different parts of the country to preach the gospel and work miracles in those places, which Christ Himself instructed them to go. These disciples were to look at the harvest that was out there that needed to be harvested.
One of the great principles of harvesting is that the harvest needs to be gathered when it is ripe. The harvest has to be taken at the right time. If it is too early, the fruit is not ready to be taken and if it is too late, the fruit can be ruined. The disciples were admonished to look out for the harvest and they were to pray that the Lord of the harvest would send forth laborers into the harvest, because it was ready to be harvested.
As ministers and lay people alike ( the 70 disciples here were ordinary people who had been given an extraordinary task ) we need to see the fields that are white unto harvest. In Tennessee in the fall of the year, cotton fields are white unto harvest. You can see the fields from the road. You can see that the cotton is ready to be picked.
Our communities are the same way. You and I need to look out into the fields that are white unto harvest and we need to be willing to pray and ask the Lord to send harvesters into the fields before it is too late. The real thrust of this verse is simple; Lord Jesus, I pray that You will send forth laborers into the field; here am I send me.
Are you willing to pray that prayer today?
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Look on my Affliction I Samuel 1:11
She made a vow and said, "O Lord of Hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your handmaid and remember me and give me a man child, I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life and there shall no razor come on his head."
Here is the prayer of a woman who had not been able to have any children. Her husband had two wives and his other wife had given her husband several children but Hannah had not been able to have any. This was very difficult for Hannah and she did the only thing that she knew to do; she went to the Lord in prayer and she made God a promise that if God saw fit to give her a male child, she would dedicate him to the Lord and set him apart for God's service.
The priest at the temple blessed Hannah and she went home rejoicing, trusting God in spite of all that she had been through. The Bible tells us that she did go home and God did hear her cry and He gave her a child and even though this was the only child Hannah had, she remembered her promise to God and she took the young child back to the temple where she had made the promise to God and she left her child with the priest who blessed her so that he would be raised up in the Temple and God would be able to use him as He saw fit. God blessed Hannah's faithfulness to keep her promise with other children and He also took young Samuel and used him in a mighty way as well.
We do not like affliction in our lives. Hannah could not understand why she had been through all that she had been through. She did not understand why she could not have children. In her day, a woman who could not have children was cursed. It was as if she did not have any value at all. Hannah had lived a good life and she loved God and had been faithful to His Word. Why did Hannah have to face the difficulty that she faced? Unfortunately, only God knows that answer. However, when we are able to look at the "rest of the story", Hannah's difficulty actually laid the foundation for her to be able to do what God wanted her to do all along.
If Hannah had been able to have children as her husband's other wife did, she might not have been willing to dedicate this child to the Lord. Had she been able to have children, this child's birth might not have been so special and the world would not have been able to see the hand of God at work so vividly. Had young Samuel been born in more ordinary circumstances, he might not have been so accessible to the voice of God in his life. On and on we could go with the applications in this story. The facts are clear. God chose to bless Hannah in an unusual way and the circumstances that she had to endure before she was to give birth to her son were worth it all in the end.
There may well be circumstances that are going on in your life that you do not understand. You may be facing ridicule and embarrassment and personal difficulty and there may seem to be no relief in sight. The only thing that you and I can do in good times or in bad, is to hold onto the Lord and determine in our hearts to walk with God no matter what and trust Him to give us the desires of His heart. If we will do that, the day will come when we like Hannah can look back and say, "It is well with my soul and I am glad that I stood with the Lord and let Him have my life."
God knows the afflictions that you may be facing today. He knows why you are facing what you are facing and He knows the solution and He will do for you what only He can do if you will just allow Him that opportunity. Prayer indeed works miracles! Remember, to God there is no such thing as a miracle!
Here is the prayer of a woman who had not been able to have any children. Her husband had two wives and his other wife had given her husband several children but Hannah had not been able to have any. This was very difficult for Hannah and she did the only thing that she knew to do; she went to the Lord in prayer and she made God a promise that if God saw fit to give her a male child, she would dedicate him to the Lord and set him apart for God's service.
The priest at the temple blessed Hannah and she went home rejoicing, trusting God in spite of all that she had been through. The Bible tells us that she did go home and God did hear her cry and He gave her a child and even though this was the only child Hannah had, she remembered her promise to God and she took the young child back to the temple where she had made the promise to God and she left her child with the priest who blessed her so that he would be raised up in the Temple and God would be able to use him as He saw fit. God blessed Hannah's faithfulness to keep her promise with other children and He also took young Samuel and used him in a mighty way as well.
We do not like affliction in our lives. Hannah could not understand why she had been through all that she had been through. She did not understand why she could not have children. In her day, a woman who could not have children was cursed. It was as if she did not have any value at all. Hannah had lived a good life and she loved God and had been faithful to His Word. Why did Hannah have to face the difficulty that she faced? Unfortunately, only God knows that answer. However, when we are able to look at the "rest of the story", Hannah's difficulty actually laid the foundation for her to be able to do what God wanted her to do all along.
If Hannah had been able to have children as her husband's other wife did, she might not have been willing to dedicate this child to the Lord. Had she been able to have children, this child's birth might not have been so special and the world would not have been able to see the hand of God at work so vividly. Had young Samuel been born in more ordinary circumstances, he might not have been so accessible to the voice of God in his life. On and on we could go with the applications in this story. The facts are clear. God chose to bless Hannah in an unusual way and the circumstances that she had to endure before she was to give birth to her son were worth it all in the end.
There may well be circumstances that are going on in your life that you do not understand. You may be facing ridicule and embarrassment and personal difficulty and there may seem to be no relief in sight. The only thing that you and I can do in good times or in bad, is to hold onto the Lord and determine in our hearts to walk with God no matter what and trust Him to give us the desires of His heart. If we will do that, the day will come when we like Hannah can look back and say, "It is well with my soul and I am glad that I stood with the Lord and let Him have my life."
God knows the afflictions that you may be facing today. He knows why you are facing what you are facing and He knows the solution and He will do for you what only He can do if you will just allow Him that opportunity. Prayer indeed works miracles! Remember, to God there is no such thing as a miracle!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
God Cares For Me Psalm 8:4
What is man that You are mindful of Him and the son of man that You have visited or care for Him?
David begins this Psalm with an exclamation, "How excellent is You name in all the earth!" He is rejoicing because God has delivered him. In some of the Psalms just before this one, David pleas for deliverance and protection from various difficulties and trials that he has faced. Sometimes, we have to learn to take our eyes off of our problems and focus them on God. When we do, something wonderful happens. We realize that the God who made the heavens and earth is the same God that loves us and cares for us and He knows what we need and He has the ability to meet our need!
"What is man that You are mindful of him and that You care for him?" David asks. You have made him to have dominion over all the works of You hands and You have put all things under His feet. David knows that God has made him king. He has gone from being a shepherd boy to a king. He has moved from running for his life to a palace. His popularity is enormous in the land and even among neighboring lands.
Why God would You do so much for me? Why do You care so much for me? The universe is the creation of Your fingers! Just look out at the stars and the magnificence of the night time sky! God made it all. He made the tiniest flowers and the aroma they give off is amazing. God gave us dominion over all the earth. Imagine for a moment the God of creation doing all this for us! It truly is amazing to think that God has gone to all this for me but He did!
Not only has God created this earth for me to enjoy, He gave His Son to pay the penalty for my sin so that I could enjoy eternity with Him as well. Jesus died for me! He died in my place. He died for me so that I could live for Him today and with Him forever. Who am I that You, God would give You Son to die in my place? What an awesome act of love from a God who indeed loves me with an everlasting love!
David knew that God loved him because he looked around him and everything that he saw reminded him of God's goodness and His grace. You and I have the same thing all around us plus the cross to know that God indeed does love us and because He has loved us and He cares for us, we ought to be that much more determined to walk with Him every moment of every day!
Will you today pray and ask God for the strength to be all that He would have you be?
David begins this Psalm with an exclamation, "How excellent is You name in all the earth!" He is rejoicing because God has delivered him. In some of the Psalms just before this one, David pleas for deliverance and protection from various difficulties and trials that he has faced. Sometimes, we have to learn to take our eyes off of our problems and focus them on God. When we do, something wonderful happens. We realize that the God who made the heavens and earth is the same God that loves us and cares for us and He knows what we need and He has the ability to meet our need!
"What is man that You are mindful of him and that You care for him?" David asks. You have made him to have dominion over all the works of You hands and You have put all things under His feet. David knows that God has made him king. He has gone from being a shepherd boy to a king. He has moved from running for his life to a palace. His popularity is enormous in the land and even among neighboring lands.
Why God would You do so much for me? Why do You care so much for me? The universe is the creation of Your fingers! Just look out at the stars and the magnificence of the night time sky! God made it all. He made the tiniest flowers and the aroma they give off is amazing. God gave us dominion over all the earth. Imagine for a moment the God of creation doing all this for us! It truly is amazing to think that God has gone to all this for me but He did!
Not only has God created this earth for me to enjoy, He gave His Son to pay the penalty for my sin so that I could enjoy eternity with Him as well. Jesus died for me! He died in my place. He died for me so that I could live for Him today and with Him forever. Who am I that You, God would give You Son to die in my place? What an awesome act of love from a God who indeed loves me with an everlasting love!
David knew that God loved him because he looked around him and everything that he saw reminded him of God's goodness and His grace. You and I have the same thing all around us plus the cross to know that God indeed does love us and because He has loved us and He cares for us, we ought to be that much more determined to walk with Him every moment of every day!
Will you today pray and ask God for the strength to be all that He would have you be?
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