Beyond The Blessings

As believers it can be a really great experience for some amazing thing to happen at the most amazing time. Someone was sick and after prayer they are better. A family opens the door to a front porch full of groceries after praying because thy had none. We can all remember both small and great blessings that have either happened to us or someone we know. These are great things. For me it makes me want to sing and pray and call out to God because although humans are involved we can see Him moving in it. We can see His power. This morning as the sun pours in through the forest and window, I read a psalm that reminded me of something more about these events.

Psalms 20:1 The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee;
2 Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion;
3 Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice; Selah.
4 Grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfil all thy counsel.
5 We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the Lord fulfil all thy petitions.
6 Now know I that the Lord saveth his anointed; he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.
7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.
8 They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen, and stand upright.
9 Save, Lord: let the king hear us when we call.

As I read this psalm I not only thought of the song I have heard that use the last few verses, but of something in verses 1 and 7. It says God’s name defends us, and then it says we will remember the name of our God. I looked the word up in the Hebrew for the word “name” and found some interesting points. I am not a Hebrew scholar, but there seems to be a lot in this word. It also means position. Here the psalmist is also referring to the position of God, I believe, as Creator and King, the all powerful One. So when we say in the name of Jesus (Yeshua), we are invoking His Kingship! To me, it helped me to understand who we are in Him.

The One True King is on our side!

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. You are our King. Please forgive us when we mess things up here. We ask that You would deliver us and heal us and send us Your provision today. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Comfort In God Coming

Today during the day on the Hebrew calendar is Nissan 13. In the time of Moses, Today was the day the children of Israel in bondage in Egypt were waiting for the perhaps the greatest of the miracles. Tonight at twilight it becomes Passover, and for those of us that believe it was at twilight on Nissan 14 that it happened, tonight would be the time when God went through Egypt killing the firstborn of all that did not have the blood of the lamb on their doorway, and judging the false gods.

Exodus 12:3 Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house:
4 And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb.
5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats:
6 And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.
7 And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.
8 And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.
9 Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof.
10 And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire.
11 And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the Lord’s passover.
12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord.

God was executing judgement. He was setting things right. He was doing something that would cause the Pharaoh to let the people go. And they were to have blood on the two side posts and the upper door post, the doorway, the opening to their house. When they passed through this blood and wen inside and stayed inside all night, they would be safe. They were eat it in haste, with their loins girded and their sandals on their feet. This meant they were preparing to travel.

Exodus 12:13 And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.
14 And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.

They were to keep this as a memorial, a sign for ever, that the Lord passed over them when they were marked with the blood of the lamb. It is easy for us as believers when we keep the Passover to see the connection to the sacrifice of our Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus). But they did not have this. What they did have is the nine plagues that came before this. They had to trust God that He would do what He said He would do. They had to trust that God would kill the firstborn in Egypt, and also judge the false gods, and not kill them. That is a great deal of trust. We will continue with this story tomorrow.

As you keep the Passover, the same promises are delivered to us by God. When we keep it we declare God to be the Most High God. We declare His deliverance in our homes and lands, and for our families. Remember this tonight, and be prepared for the journey!

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You as the Most High God. You alone are King. You deliver us from our enemies. You destroyed our enemy when they took credit for killing Your Son, Jesus. Send again that great judgement and deliverance to our homes and our nation. Let what we do extend to our families not with us. Send Your healing and provision as well. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Without Fear

There are many fears that people have that either move them or cause them to not move. Fear has been used to control people for as long as there have been people, I believe. Science has even developed a word for those fears we have that are extreme, calling them phobias. Today as I was reading Paul’s letter to the Hebrews, I came across a verse that I saw differently than I had seen it in the past.

Hebrews 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;
15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

When we give place to fear, we offer ourselves up to being in bondage. It is like handing ourselves over to someone to put us in chains willingly. Paul was talking here about Jesus and how in death He destroyed the one that was holding on to it, the devil. It made me wonder how that worked. It reminded me of another letter that Paul wrote to the Romans.

Romans 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

There was a time when I read what Paul wrote and thought that the references he made using the word “law” were all references to the Law, the Hebrew Torah. The problem with that thought is that then there would be contradictions in the bible, and we know that is not possible. However, if there are various laws that Paul was speaking about, including at times the Law, then it does make sense. When I realized this, many things unfolded in the scriptures. Let’s look at the law of sin and death.

It is likely the law of sin and death has always been. The earliest example that I can think of is in the garden at the fall, God killed an animal to cover Adam and Eve with skins instead of the leaf coverings they made for themselves. This happened because of the sin of Adam and Eve. This was physical death that happened as a result of sin. However, I believe Adam and Eve covered themselves because they knew they were separate from God – spiritual death. If the devil had the power over death until the death of Jesus, then he got it from God at some point. Perhaps man had it first, which is likely, but once deceived and giving place to deception, sin resulted in the surrender of the power of death to the one they trusted. They chose to trust the serpent rather than God. In essence, at that point they elevated the serpent higher than God, separating themselves from God. They chose their covering, the thing in a higher place than them, to be the devil and therefore were uncovered or naked to God. Once they realized their mistake (God threw the serpent to the ground and they saw that God truly was the highest being) they wanted to be with God. They tried to make their own covering, but apparently there was a law in place that says sin brings death. God always seems to use the physical to show us the spiritual. He killed an animal to cover them physically, but they still were thrown out of the garden. Something was still missing. That something was the power of the sin now inherent in them and over them. This was the law of sin and death at work.

When Jesus went to the cross, He was sinless. This sinless man was put to death. However, this disrupts the order which God set up. Death can only be exacted because of sin. That is the law of sin and death, set up from before the beginning.

1 Corinthians 2:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
8 Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

The princes of this world are the devil and his minions. It appears that they took credit for killing Jesus. We know they did not have the power to kill Him because Jesus said so.

John 10:17 Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.

Jesus had to lay His life down because of the law of sin and death. It could not be taken from Him. And because only in the case of sin can death be just, He would have the power to take it back. This commandment was part of the hidden wisdom of God before the world began, which Jesus knew and had as a commandment. And yes, that means there are commandments that existed before the world began. So when the devil claimed responsibility for the death of Jesus, he broke the law that gave him the power of death, he broke the law of sin and death, and apparently breaking that law which was from before the beginning has the penalty of destruction.

I have said all this to say that Jesus died for our sins – all of them. He works in us until His return to perfect us. It is a journey that takes a lifetime. But we can be on that journey without fear because the law of sin and death has no power over believers. Praise God!

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as the Most High. Thank You for sending Your Son to die for us. thank You for wanting to spend time with each one of us. We do not know how You pull that off, but we are really thankful that You do. Please forgive us for not moving more quickly to always doing the right things. Please forgive us for our sins. We ask that You send us Your healing, deliverance, and provision today in a powerful way that all men might know that You alone are God. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Family

Today we went to a family reunion that my wife’s family wash having nearby. There were people there that my wife had never met, and I had not met any of them. In talking with the people there I discovered that they too had never done this before. They had a sense that they wanted all of the family to begin to get together and enjoy each others’ lives. It reminded me of how important our family is. It also reminded me of what Jesus said about family.

Matthew 12:47 Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee.
48 But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?
49 And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren!
50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.

There have been many sermons preached on this. For me, I do not think Jesus was saying that our blood family is not important. Quite the contrary. I think He was saying that just like there is a special bond for those that are our family by blood, there is an equally important tie to those that follow God. We become family. For those of us whose families are distant to us, we can be comforted in knowing that we have an even bigger family in our fellow believers.

In the end, we all need each other. We need to know that God wants us to be close to Him and to each other. We need to reach out to both of these families, and rejoice in what God has done for us.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. You alone our our true Father. We long to be with You and the rest of our family. We long for that time when we can rely on these relationships to help us all be better members of Your nation of believers. Please forgive us for distancing ourselves from You and from them when we do. Please send us Your healing, Your deliverance, and Your provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Not Perfect

As believers we are called to walk in God’s ways. As humans, we will not do this perfectly all the time. We are not perfect. But we can take comfort in knowing that God knows we are not and will not be perfect. The psalmists knew this, and they were comforted by who God is.

Psalms 32:1 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

We have an even greater blessing than they had. We have our Messiah, Jesus (Yeshua) that gave His life so we could have a new life through Him. We have a new life in God. He died for all our sins. I long to be perfect, but like everyone I am human. Paul, someone that we look to as a great man of God, knew this about himself.

Romans 7:15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.

Even Paul struggled with sin, with doing what he should not and not doing what he should. In that way, Paul was just like us. But our hope is not in us and our ability to be perfect in ourselves. Our hope and our comfort is that our Messiah died for us, and our sini are forgiven if we will acknowledge them to God and ask forgiveness.

Today, we can take comfort in knowing that God always forgives when we ask and seek His face. God is our Father, and He is on our side.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You as the Most High God. You are not made with hands as the gods others serve. You are the King and our Righteous Ruler. Please forgive us. Please walk with us and show us Your ways. We long to serve You. We praise You for all You are and all You do for us. We ask today that You do not count our wrongs against us, for they are many, but ask instead that You see us through the covering You gave us, Your Son Jesus. We ask that You send us today Your healing inside and out, Your deliverance, and Your mighty provision. in Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Comfort And Praise

Our God does not have us just do random things without purpose.

1 Corinthians 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

While Paul was speaking specifically about how to be when gathered together, He used this thought as justification. It is true everywhere His believers are. We can say then there is a purpose to all things that God would have us do. One of those things we see repeatedly in scripture is praise. Why might that be? I think there are many reasons given, but one seems to be comfort for us.

Psalms 32:10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall compass him about.
11 Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.

Here we see that the wicked (those that choose not to follow God’s ways) suffer sorrow. But we are to rejoice and praise God because we get His mercy. For us, God intends comfort.

Prayer
Father, We exalt You as the Most High. Today we praise You for Your mercy toward us. Please deliver us from our own iniquity. Please help us to see Your ways and walk in them. Please send us Your provision, Your healing, and Your deliverance today Father. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Think On These Things

There is an inner longing in us, I think placed there by God, to be comforted. It is what drives the newborn to the mother, young children to their mother and father, and the husbands and wives to hold one another in a storm. It is that same drive that we can use to help us find ourpath to God, and to learn to walk in His ways. I read this morning a scripture that for the first time seemed to be saying these very things to me.

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.
5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Here Paul is encouraging the Philippians to seek God as moderate people. He encourages them, and us, to ask God for anything we need. When we do these things, the peace that passes all understanding, the comfort we are meant to seek, will be in our hearts and minds. What I find interesting is what he said next, after he points to the comfort we all seek.

8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.

Here Paul is telling us to seek only the good things, to think on them, and then do them. This is the path to the ways of God. Paul then closes again with the reference to the comfort we will find, the peace of God.

It can be challenging, but if we will do all we can to call out to God with praise, and try to focus our thoughts and resulting actions on only the good, we can receive comfort. God wants it for us, and we need it from our Dad.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You as the Most High. Thank You for all You are to and for us. Help us to think and do the good things that You would have us think and do. Help us find Your ways, and walk in them. We love You. Please give us today our healing, deliverance, and provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Expectations

Growing up I remember my parents telling me not to take anything for granted. We were poor so they were usually talking about food and clothes. Today, I see that say statement as a good reminder for me about God. It is easy for me to miss things when times are good. There are times when I start this daily writing and then forget about it until – well for a while. This morning that has reminded me of a scripture.

Galatians 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Until this morning I always thought of this scripture as being something that referred to giving up when times are tough. This morning I see that it can also apply to taking things for granted. That is not who I want to be.

Let’s pray for one another that whether good or bad that we all will faint not.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You as the Most High. We ask that You strengthen us that we will not faint, whether from good times or bad. Please send us Your healing today Father. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

God’s Presence Is Real

When we think of the the “real” things in life, what do we include? The car, the house, our family and friends – these are all real to us because we can touch and see them. But the things we cannot see are also powerful and have an effect on our world. The rays of the sun that cause the plants to grow and sunburn at the beach is real but unseen. Even Jesus spoke about the wind in this same way.

John 3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

Paul also spoke about the unseen and the seen, and the relationship between them.

Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Paul actually pulls this all together for us. He says God’s word (here the Greek word rhema), His speaking, created everything we see. When we speak, we do not see the sounds, but people can hear the sounds because they have an effect on the ears of those listening. Here Paul is actually saying this invisible force of God’s speech created the entire world. If we believe that this is true, then everything around us that we see came directly, originally, from the voice of God. The world itself is a manifestation of the reality of God. That is worth thinking about for a while.

Today, if you have questions or worries about life or the future, stop and look around. Imagine watching as God spoke to create everything that is around you. That same God is looking out for you, and waiting to respond when you call out to Him.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You as the Most High God. We love You and need You to help us through our lives. We ask that You not look at us and think of what we have done wrong. We ask that instead You forgive us and raise us up. Please send us today the provision, the healing, and the deliverance we need. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Comfort In Knowing

As believers we are called to walk as our Messiah, Jesus, walked. That seems obvious. The challenge is we are not yet perfect. We fail from time to time. We can think our life is too challenging. We can let the routine of the day overwhelm us. And it doesn’t matter where we are. We can be here in the US where life in general is better than other parts of the world. Or we could be where resources are more scarce. Each person is challenged with the darkness trying to sway them. After all, we are all humans. Perhaps this is just one of the reasons why God tells us to band together to help each other. But we each have choices to make. I have been searching for God’s patterns, for the practical ways He has given us to combat the darkness, and find comfort in the light. This morning as I was reading in Ephesians I found something that brought me comfort.

Ephesians 5:1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;
2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.
3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;
4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.

Here Paul is telling us what to abandon. He is naming some things that seem like obvious sin, and tells us not to let those be in us. What I saw for the first time is a key to getting rid of these things, and I suggest any temptation, when they come our way. Looking carefully at verse four at the end, he says, “but rather giving of thanks.” What Paul seems to be saying is that when these things come to us, we can reject them by giving thanks! For me, I knew there was power in being thankful, but until this morning I had no idea just how much power. Here we see that the giving thanks is the alternative, the weapon we can use. This also explains to me the power of living a thankful life. I also makes sense why giving thanks is mentioned so many times in places like the Psalms. This is comforting because we can now face these trials and temptations with a weapon that we know will disperse the enemy and the darkness! Praise God!

Today, if you face a trial or temptation, begin to thank God out loud. Imagine yourself fighting off the enemy when you do it, and watch what our Father will do for you today!

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You as our King. Thank You for dispelling the darkness that comes against us. Thank You for the healing You bring, the deliverance You bring, and the provision You bring! You alone are worthy of our praise. Let us be a sign for good, that all men might know that You alone are God, You alone are King. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.