The Enemy Is Cut Off

We as believers are the most fortunate among men. We have someone that looks out for us that has the ability and desire to so do. That is our God. Since He is Creator of all things, He is greater than all things. And He watches over us. There are so many times in life that we are faced with challenges that seem to big for us. The truth is, if we were alone to fight this darkness, we would be to small for that task. But we are not alone, and we do not have to fight our enemies, because God will fight for us. Nahum spoke of this in the Old Testament, speaking to and of our enemy that tries to defeat us and telling us to rejoice in the good news.

Nahum 1:11 There is one come out of thee, that imagineth evil against the Lord, a wicked counsellor.
12 Thus saith the Lord; Though they be quiet, and likewise many, yet thus shall they be cut down, when he shall pass through. Though I have afflicted thee, I will afflict thee no more.
13 For now will I break his yoke from off thee, and will burst thy bonds in sunder.
14 And the Lord hath given a commandment concerning thee, that no more of thy name be sown: out of the house of thy gods will I cut off the graven image and the molten image: I will make thy grave; for thou art vile.
15 Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off.

God is on our side and sees what the enemy tries to do to us. He will not let this happen. He rises us when we walk in His ways and destroys our enemy. He will utterly cut off our adversary from our midst. Truly we are a blessed people!

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as our King. You alone stand between us and the enemy. You alone will defend us, and we praise You for it. Please forgive us when we stray. Please help us today. Send Your healing, deliverance, and provision today. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) 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.

Taken Under His Wing

Growing up I often heard the phrase about someone with more knowledge and ability taking someone under their wing to train them. Most often I heard it in a work setting or a sports team setting. It was like someone being someone’s coach to help them reach their full potential. It always was seen as a positive event, but I wondered often where the phrase originated. It seems it may come from scriptures.

Matthew 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

Jesus spoke of this when He was calling out to Israel to be under His guidance and protection. He was not the first to use this concept. David did the same several times in the psalms he wrote.

Psalms 63:3 Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
4 Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.
7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.
8 My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.

Here David is praising God for His provision and protection. On the sabbath, it is good to reflect on how our God watches over us. When we spend time with Him, He spends time with us. That is really what relationship is about. Our God set apart the sabbath for a time for us all to spend time together with Him. When we do, we can experience what David experienced. We too can lift our hands to God in praise, knowing that He is our provider and protector.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You, the Most High. Thank You for being our provider and protector. Restore us unto You. Keep us in Your ways. Light for us Your path that we may not walk contrary to Your ways. Let us rejoice in knowing that those that oppose us You protect us from and destroy our enemies. Send us today Your healing, deliverance, and provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name.

A friend of mine wrote me an email and asked if there was anything he could pray for me. What cam to mind was revival for people in our area, and for the blinders of deception to be removed from the eyes of us as believers that we might know the truth. You see, I am not a formally trained preacher. Although I hold several degrees including advanced degrees, none of them are in the area of religion. All I have to rely on is what I can read and try to understand from the bible and spending time with God. What I have discovered is, God is enough, at least He is for me.

John 9:39 And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
40 And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
41 Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

It makes me sad to think that we can miss the mark and miss God. He has done so much for us, yet if we are not diligent to seek the truth, we will be blind.

Romans 11:7 What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded
8 (According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day.

What concerns me most is that if people are and have been blind to the point that it has been in their families and generations for years, how would they know, for blindness would be accepted as the norm?

I pray that we might not be blind, any of us.

Prayer
Father, We praise and exalt You as the Most High God. Thank You for Your willingness to be with us and for us. Thank You for giving us Your ways and Your wisdom. We ask that You not let us remain blind. Help us to be willing to see the truth, and then see it. Teach us each one individually the way to go. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

God Gives Us Strength

This morning as the sun rises slowly outside my window an a rainy forest, I was thinking about all we as believers have to be thankful for in this life. It can be true that we have struggles and trials that seem difficult to us. But it is also true that there are good times, and even more true that God watches over us to provide for our needs. I know for me at times I wish the better things would happen faster. But then, we have an eternity with God, and He will bring to pass what He has promised.

Psalms 28:1 Unto thee will I cry, O Lord my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit.
2 Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.
3 Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts.

Our God hears us when we cry out to Him, as the psalmist here is proclaiming. We just need to see that He is not only on our side but He is the one that cares for us every day. He keeps us from evil if we call upon Him. He provides for our every need, always. In this psalm the writer addresses this at the end.

Psalms 28:6 Blessed be the Lord, because he hath heard the voice of my supplications.
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.
8 The Lord is their strength, and he is the saving strength of his anointed.
9 Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance: feed them also, and lift them up for ever.

We are God’s inheritance. He will provide for us, and lift us up, forever. For that we can be truly thankful.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You today. You are our provider. You watch over us and care for us. Please keep us from evil, and forgive us when we transgress Your ways. Deliver us from evil, and from evil men. Keep us on Your path and in Your way. Send us today Your healing, deliverance, and provision. Show us a sign for good, that all men might know that You alone are God. We thank You for all these things. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

We Never Fight Alone

It is difficult for me to imagine what it is like for those that think they are on their own in this world, that they alone have to make their own way, that they alone face each day’s challenges by themselves. For me, that would be overwhelming. I do remember when I was younger and not a believer, life was very difficult. It seemed as though there were forces at work to keep me down. The truth is, there was, and these forces are still out to get us and to keep us down. But we have a Greater One who defends us.

Psalms 92:1 It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High:
2 To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night,
3 Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound.
4 For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands.

Here we see the psalmist praising God in the morning and at night. He seems to be praising Him because of the work of His hands. It says that it is the hands of God that are doing this work. So, what is the work that is being done?

Psalms 92:8 But thou, Lord, art most high for evermore.
9 For, lo, thine enemies, O Lord, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.
10 But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil.
11 Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies, and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against me.

The work of God’s hands on our behalf is to defeat our enemies. He brings them to nothing while raising us up. Our God is always there for us.

Psalms 92:12 The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;
15 To shew that the Lord is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

God plants us in His family, His house. When we battle the enemy, we are never alone.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. You are our strong defense. You overcome our enemies by the work of Your hands. Forgive us our iniquities and our weaknesses. Help us to walk in Your ways. Send us today Your deliverance, healing, and provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Trust

If we had to pick one word to summarize God’s message to us, perhaps at or near the top of the list would be the word trust. This one word contains so much about relationship. We can be people that do not trust others that we know or meet easily. We can be people that trust too much or too little. It can be hard to trust others if our lives have been scarred by those that have taken advantage of the trust extended to them. However, when it comes to God, He is worthy of our trust. Solomon spoke of this.

Proverbs 3:1 My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:
2 For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.
3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
4 So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.
5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Here the writer tells us to have our hearts keep God’s commandments because they add long life and peace. As we read on, we see that writing mercy and truth (a part of God’s law) in our heart and keeping them around our neck gives us favor with God and man. The good news for us as believers is the new covenant is God’s law written in our hearts. It was as if God knew we needed help, so He took the one thing that would give us long life and peace and locked it into position. We can access this by giving our lives to God. It’s like knowing the winning lottery numbers before you buy a ticket, only better – this is the secret to life everlasting. Finally, the writer tells us to trust God with our whole heart and acknowledge Him. For that, God will direct our paths. Our God has done all these things for us. If we will but trust Him that He is the true loving Father and not a harsh task master, we can live life knowing He is on our side. God has our back.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You as the Most High King. Thank You for giving us new life and a new covenant through our Messiah, Your Son Jesus (Yeshua). Please do not keep a record of our wrongs nor count them against us. Please forgive us in Your mercy that we may praise You among the nations. Send today the healing that so many need. Send today Your deliverance, and Your provision, that all men might know that You alone have done this, that You alone are God. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Day To Day

Each day we have an opportunity to experience the glory and grandeur of the creation which our God has made. As I look into the forest out my window the sun is shining on trees barren from the winter. These trees are longing for the spring, longing to put forth new buds that will become the leafy green wonder that shades the forest floor below in the months to come. God has set these markers, these signs of His presence, for us to watch and understand that His will and His ways will always come to pass in the earth. Just as these trees long for their renewal, we as believers long for our daily renewal with God. The psalmists wrote of this and of our role in it.

Psalms 96:1O sing unto the Lord a new song: sing unto the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing unto the Lord, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.
3 Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.
4 For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the Lord made the heavens.
6 Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

Here the psalmist says all the earth sings to God. The renewal in the spring of these trees must be a part of that praise. We too are to daily sing to our God His praises each day. When we do, we declare in the earth His glory and wonder. God is above all gods, for all gods but Him are just idols. Only our God made the earth and heavens. Only our God has honor and majesty. Only our God has strength and beauty to surround Him. It can be challenging in both good times and bad to remember that we are not alone. We have the God of the universe on our side. He alone can change the world and change us His people. If we can only remember to praise Him every day, we can walk with Him in His strength, His honor, and His majesty. Truly He alone is worthy of our praise.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You in Your majesty. You are truly the King. We are Your servants and long to serve You, even when we make mistakes. Please help us to praise You every day. We want only to serve You well. Please send today Your healing, Your deliverance, and Your provision. 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.

Set Apart

Our God has established His ways in His creation. What God has ordained to happen will happen. This includes the blessing He has for us His people. God has established praise and worship to be instruments for our freedom. The psalmist talks about how certain days are set apart.

Psalms 81:1 Sing aloud unto God our strength: make a joyful noise unto the God of Jacob.
2 Take a psalm, and bring hither the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the psaltery.
3 Blow up the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our solemn feast day.
4 For this was a statute for Israel, and a law of the God of Jacob.
5 This he ordained in Joseph for a testimony, when he went out through the land of Egypt: where I heard a language that I understood not.
6 I removed his shoulder from the burden: his hands were delivered from the pots.

Here we see that there is a time to blow the trumpet, and that there is an appointed feast day. He also talks about how God delivered them from slave labor in Egypt. Mixed in the midst of it all is praise.

Psalms 126:2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The Lord hath done great things for them.
3 The Lord hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.

God always returns His people to Himself. We are all headed toward God’s rest one day. In the mean timme, we have the sabbath and more in God’s ways to keep us to the end.

Prayer
Father, we exalt and praise You. Thank You for Your sabbath. Thank You for Your appointed feast days. We seek Your face and want to walk in Your ways. Please teach us to do this. Please send Your healing, Your deliverance, and Your provision today. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.