What God Has Been Teaching Me Lately LXXIII (73)…
Greetings My Friends~
As a simple pilgrim
following the Lord Jesus
through the rainforests and deserts of this earthly life,
I would like to humbly share
some of what God has been bubbling up in my mind/heart lately
through the Bible.
I pray that these thoughts are
cushions in your shoes,
balm to your burns,
umbrellas for the rain,
and shade to the scorching heat
as you too follow the Lord Jesus each day.
(please click on the Bible books/chapters/verses below
to read the actual Scripture passages)
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Christians Suffer…With A Purpose!
A. John 16:33: Jesus:“…so that in me you may have peace.”
Our peace is in Christ not in comfort;
Our peace is in the Savior not in safety;
Our peace is in the Lord not in the La-Z-Boy.
B. Heaven is the wedding feast/banquet of the Lamb! (Revelation 19:4-9)
Earth is the oven in which the LORD prepares His people for the feast.
Run from false guarantees of earthly “health & wealth”…
C. Trust the LORD, remain in His furnace of maturing…
know that He is in the oven with you &
has gone through the hottest oven of all—the Cross!!!
D. The activeness of the LORD!
When His suffering people cried out to Him,
He heard,
He remembered,
He looked on,
He was concerned &
then He rescued—all in His timing!
E. Fuel for enduring life’s fire:
Focus on Who God is,
what He’s done &
what He promises to do for those in Christ by repentance & faith.
Rinse & repeat!
F. What the LORD does,
how He does it,
when He does it,
why He does it—
ALL His ways are perfect/just/faithful—Deuteronomy 32:4.
Help us trust You LORD!
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Importance of Absolute Truth
A. Without absolute Truth we have nothing to push off from to go anywhere,
nothing on us to grip &
nothing under us to give traction.
Without absolute Truth, we can’t move except to spin.
We think we’re free,
but only as a person in socks on a frozen pond.
That isn’t freedom—it’s a prison without walls.
We die very slowly & distract ourselves
by working on our spin moves (goals) &
admiring the scenes around the pond (positive thoughts)…
B. Genesis 3:6–Trusting what we see instead of what the LORD has said;
this continues to be one of humanity’s fundamental sins to this very day.
C. Eliphaz’s main problem: “As I have observed…” (Job 4:8).
Trust what the LORD has said,
not what we’ve seen;
trust His directive
not our perspective.
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In The World Not Of The World
A. As we spend time with non-Christians to show & tell the Gospel,
if we arent delighting daily in the Bible,
they might be converting us & not vice versa—Psalm 1.
B. Amos 2:11-12: perfect indictment of many today in & out of the Church:
Dont be holy/set apart;
dont tell us what the LORD has said—
go with the flow!
C. As we daily enter the house of culture
let’s not appease others
by taking off our Gospel-sandals
(keeping private/watering-down our faith in Christ)
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Mob Mentality
I wonder if the nature of a mob is the same today as it was 2k years ago:
passion without compassion;
feeling without understanding;
enmity without empathy—
.
Belief…or Faith?
Difference between belief (James 2:19) &
saving faith in Christ:
serve the LORD with fear,
celebrate His rule with trembling,
kiss the Son &
take refuge in Him—Psalm 2:11-12
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What Do You Want From Christ?
Ahh but do we want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus,
or just a comfortable existence hanging around jesus…?
2 Timothy 3:12: “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus
will be persecuted…”
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There Are No “Ordinary” Days/Moments
When done in & for the Lord Jesus,
the monotonous can be a miracle,
the obligation to work
can be an opportunity to worship!
From laundry to meetings to errands to sales calls,
from homework to housework,
from the classroom to the cubicle to the commute,
do it all with Him & for Him today!!! J
1 Thessalonians 1:3; Colossians 3:23-24
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Born To…?
T-shirt seen: “Born To Lead.”
Rather, all Christians are re-born to follow:
Luke 5:11—“So they pulled their boats up on shore,
left everything
and followed him [Jesus].”
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Self-Confidence Or Christ-Confidence
Remember & reflect more on the LORD & less on ourselves—
this leads to an increase in worship &
a decrease in worry…
“fix our eyes on Jesus”—Hebrews 12:1-3
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Prepare For Eternity!
The LORD doesnt reveal to Christians
His final audit of our time on earth
to petrify us
but to prepare us.
Build with stones not straw—1 Corinthians 3:10-15
