Word of the Day

Take off the grave clothes

2009-07-19T22:11:00.002-04:00

"And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes... Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go. (John 11:44)"

There are some of us who have been given new life, we have been raised by the resurrection power of Jesus Christ, but we are still walking around in our grave clothes! The NIV says it this way, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.” We say, “woe is me, I have this and that problem, this and that complaint... circumstance A is overwhelming me... I can't do this, I can't do that... such and such is too hard or I have never done that...you don't know what so and so said or did to me etc...” Take off the grave clothes! Yes you may have been in the tomb, BUT NOT ANYMORE! Wake up, you have been raised from the dead! Sin is no longer your captor and we have been given new life in Christ! (2 Corinthians 5:17). There may be difficult times, there may be deep valleys, but that is not where we stay. We don't live there anymore, and that is not where we remain! Jesus said, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you...” (John 15:4 NIV). Death could not hold Him in the grave!

“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 NIV)

Oh Righteous Father, oh Righteous Lord, revive our spirit and quicken our hearts, let us awaken to your life in us, and let us not grieve you and supress the flame of life you have put in us. Not by might, not by power, but by your Spirit oh LORD!

A trustworthy saying

2009-05-03T23:53:00.004-04:00

It has been awhile since I posted last, and at this time I will break from the previous series. I have been consumed in busyness and what I have at times considered as mundane. But even in these things I have found that not only is God at work, He is profoundly at work even when you think nothing is happening. Since my last post much has happened in my life, including the growth of my son and arrival of my daughter. Praise God for they are truly a blessing!

Now to link with my last post... even though I am breaking from the series I was doing, today's post is the outworking of putting the last post into action...

I have found that the more you strive at goodness, the more the necessity for grace. The more you attempt to be good, the more you see how far from good you are. There is a fine line between walking in grace/living out the life of Christ in your life and justifying yourself with "goodness" before God. Clearly the latter is impossible because our meager attempts at righteousness - self righteousness that is - before a holy God is revealed to us, shockingly, to be utterly and woefully inadequate. The closer you get to God, the more you see how far you are from being God (or as good as God)! He is Holy, so00 Holy! And I am so woefully unholy. The words of Peter are so fitting, "Depart from me for I am a sinful man O Lord" (Luke 5:8). Yet we are driven to cling to Him and the cross of calvary, "for the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10). Amen!

"Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst." (1 Timothy 1:15 NIV).

God is teaching us reliance on Him, utter and complete reliance, from first to last. For we come to Him by faith and entrust ourselves to His mercy and grace, knowing our deeds are not enough to justify ourselves before Him. And consequently we walk with Him, doing good, by this same faith, entrusting ourselves to the one who is "able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day" (2 Timothy 1:12 NIV). For it seems God is pleased to keep us in tension between entrusting ourselves to Him and to doing good- putting our hope in Him as we do it.

"This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance (and for this we labor and strive), that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe" (1 Timothy 4:9,10 NIV). The words of Paul are preceded by "train yourself to be godly" (v. 7). This theme is repeated again and again by Paul, "This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good" (Titus 3:8) and finally,

"Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; ...if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself" (2 Timothy 2:11,13 NIV).

Amen!

Step 2, GOODNESS

2007-01-21T00:04:00.000-05:00

GOODNESS
{for the detailed view, click on exploring the word in the links}

We have been “saved by grace, …through faith, and created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:8,10; NIV). In addition to our faith we must add moral virtue, as if to say in practicing our faith me must strive to walk in the standing which we already have in God. Christ is our righteousness before God, but we still have to practice moral excellence (Hebrews 5:14) to walk in righteousness. “Be ye Holy; for I am Holy” (1 Peter 1:16). As one called out of darkness, I must live out the righteousness I now have in Christ.

“You are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies [aretas] of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light…” (1 Peter 2:9;
NASB, brackets mine: from the Greek word arete(1) meaning also virtue or moral excellence)

1. Thayer and Smith. "Greek Lexicon entry for Arete". "The New Testament Greek Lexicon". .

Step 1, FAITH

2007-01-09T23:24:00.000-05:00

FAITH
{for the detailed view, click on exploring the word in the links}

“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, butChrist lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20 NKJV)
There is no fruit without faith. What shall we do to do the works of God? Jesus’ answer was,

“...Believe in Him whom He has sent.” (John 6:29; NASB)

There is a mystery by which we are to respond to God’s instruction or command; by faith we come to know Him, and by faith we come to become like him. “The righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.’” (Romans 1:17; NASB)

“Ye believe in God, believe also in me.” (John 14:1)

8 Enduring Steps to an Effective and Fruitful Life in Christ

2007-01-01T15:34:00.000-05:00

Knowing God, by being like Him

“…Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:5,6-9 NIV)

The real stairway to heaven is faith in Jesus Christ, and yet to be fruitful (verse 8 in NASB) and effective you may follow a distinct path. This path is marked by steps of goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. To climb all the steps at once may seem daunting, but a steady ascent over each step, moment by moment, day after day, will certainly lead to useful and productive lives for Christians. We are not alone, we have help after all from Christ Himself. He will help us get to know Him by helping us to be like Him.

“Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” (Philippians 2:12,13 NIV)

Christmas

2006-12-23T17:19:00.000-05:00

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:11)

What is the meaning of Christmas? What is Christmas about? A friend of mine is a grade school teacher in Ottawa, and he asked one of his students this question thinking the response would be about Santa or presents. A little girl put up her hand and answered brightly, “Christ!”

That is absolutely right! Nothing else to say, nothing else can be added. Christ!

The truth about grace;... and truth

2006-11-28T21:20:00.000-05:00

"Full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)

The Son of God was described in this way. He was perfectly in balance. We like to talk about grace. We are champions of grace. The truth of the matter is, grace could not be grace unless there was truth. What I mean is that without truth, you would not have the necessity for grace. We cannot speak of receiving something we do not deserve, unless we first admit the truth that we do not deserve it. Likewise preaching the gospel of grace is useless if we do not preach the necessity for grace.

“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” (Mark 2:17; New King James Version)

The Gospel without repentance is no Gospel.

By the Power of the Holy Spirit

2006-11-16T22:46:00.000-05:00

“…The kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.” (1 Corinthians 4:20 NIV)

“The kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.” It is worth repeating, because the power of God overcomes all obstacles. We musn’t say that it simply is power that enables us. No, it is the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. He not it dwells in us because God has decided to and wants to! He does not reside "in temples built by [human] hands" (Acts 17:24 NIV; brackets mine). No! He will reside in the temple that he has built, that He has fashioned in His likeness, in His image (Genesis 1:26)! What an awesome thought, and fearful thing to have the living God living in us, working in us "according to His good pleasure" (Ephesians 2:13, Philippians 1:9 NIV). If we walk in His will, "all things are possible!" (Mark 10:27)

“Only Believe!” (Mark 5:36)

The Greatest Soldier

2006-11-11T19:39:00.000-05:00

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13)

Remembrance Day marks a time to remember our fallen heros, who stood in the trenches to obtain our freedom. "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). What better way to remember them, than to remember the one who stood in the gap for you and for me, and not only for us, for our families, and for our friends who are on our side...but the one who also died for all! The sins of the whole world was paid for by His blood!
"Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" John 1:29 NASB)
Which one of us would die for the enemy? Which one of us would fight for the enemy? Which one of us would use the weapon of love? Which one of us could use the weapon of love, of sacrifice? How about the weapon of our own flesh and blood... not as a weapon to kill or destroy, but rather to bring life to all? Which one of us would qualify? Would we not bend? Would we not falter?
"For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:6-8 NASB)
Amen!

Praise of God

2006-11-04T19:30:00.000-05:00

"For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God." (John 12:43)

Do you face difficult choices? Often, our nature is to be swayed by what other people think. Not only in our teens but throughout our whole life we are pressured to make choices that please other people. Let us stand firm and follow God's will and seek his praise, rather than any other.

"I delight to do Your will, O my God, Your law is within my heart." (Psalm 40:8 NASB)

Where Your Treasure Is...

2006-11-04T19:15:00.000-05:00

"...Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." (Matthew 6:21)

Where is your treasure? Where are you spending your time? Your money? One thing is sure in this life- our life will come to an end, and we will enter our eternal destiny in heaven or hell. Are we working for treasure that will perish or treasure that will live for eternity? "He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it." (Matthew 10:39)

"Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalm 37:4 NIV)

That I May Know Him

2006-10-14T18:58:00.000-04:00

"I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung...That I may know him..." (Philippians 3:8)

Powerful...

What does it mean- to know Christ? To know Him is to fellowship with Him, which is to say, to go through what He did, that we may understand Him. "That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death..." (Philippians 3:10)

He has already gone before us, and has suffered the loss of all things, His body and flesh, and His blood,... that we might know Him!

"Unless a grain of wheat... dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." (John 12:24 NASB)

We are not merely to understand Him, but to be like Him, "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers" (Romans 8:29 NIV). To know Him, is to be like Him!
"I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead." (Philippians 3:10, 11 NIV)

Kicking against the pricks?

2006-10-11T23:14:00.000-04:00

It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. (Acts 26:14 )

Have you been kicking against the pricks? Have you been kicking against and resisting the prodding of God? Jesus says, "Rise, and stand upon thy feet" (Acts 26:16). He has a purpose and vision for you and wants to rouse you to action. Respond to him as Saul did on the road to Damascus, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" Ask God to help you, "for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure..." (Phil. 2:13; NKJV), so that you may be obedient to the heavenly vision (Acts 26:19).

[This spoke to me a few years ago, and is again now. Please pray for me that I would be obedient to the heavenly vision]

Repentance and Forgiveness

2006-10-09T10:08:00.000-04:00

"This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations…” (Luke 24:46,47 NIV)

Here are some of the last words of Jesus recorded in Luke’s gospel. Repentance and forgiveness of sins go hand in hand. God does not leave us in our sorry state, but forgives our trespasses, hallelujah! Let it be known to all that repentance comes first, and we must not forget the need to preach it! The Good News is, that Christ died and rose again on the third day, the shedding of His precious blood for the remission of our sins! Good news for you and I. So we need to repent, and we will be forgiven! If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). I will leave you now with the first words of Jesus’ ministry, as recorded by Matthew,

“From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17)

photo by: Colin Gregory Palmer. Some rights reserved.

Understanding the Scriptures

2006-10-07T23:20:00.000-04:00

Then Jesus opened “their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures…” (Luke 24:45)

Lest any man think that He must learn from men concerning the understanding of the Scriptures, let him be reminded of this great assurance! That the Holy Spirit Himself is all that is required to give you understanding concerning God’s Word.

“…The things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:11,12)

“I will send Him unto you… when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth…” (John 16:7, 13)

Christ, the living letter

2006-10-05T22:26:00.000-04:00

"God...Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son." (Hebrews 1:1,2)

"God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8). What a wonderful God we have! He loves us so much that He gave us his Son to die for our sins. Not only that, God has written us a love letter about it! God's love letter is the Bible, and he speaks to us through it by His Son Jesus, the Word of God (Revelation 19:13). Read about his love for you today!

Photo from atlguitfiddle; http://www.flickr.com/photos/atlguitfiddle/159331659/ (Some rights reserved.)

Make Disciples of All Nations...

2006-10-03T23:22:00.000-04:00

The following is a Devotional Thought by a good friend Gary, which I have found to be thought provoking regarding our call as Christians. Gary writes,

"In view of our plans to develop a mentoring ministry, I have been reflecting on our call to make disciples as Christians and what that means exactly. In order to answer that question adequately, we of course must look to Christ Himself, the one who calls us to this charge. Jesus mentored people; He called 12 men specifically, invited them into His life, and proceeded to live the Gospel before them both in word and deed. The reality of ministry is this; it is much easier to make "converts" than disciples because the former requires a one time profession and the latter, a life-long journey with the individual. Christ spent 3 years with 12 men, full-time and in the end, they still failed to fully grasp the essence of the Gospel even after His post-resurrection appearances. As believers we must understand this reality as we serve our Saviour in the power of the Spirit."

Amen!

Yom Kippur

2006-09-30T23:05:00.000-04:00

“…The high priest entered the inner room…only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed…”1 (Hebrews 9:7 NIV)
Yom Kippur is fast approaching in a few days on October 2, 2006. As one of the most holy days on the Jewish Calendar, it marks the Day of Atonement as described in the Book of the Law, the Torah. The high priest was to enter the Most Holy Place or Holy of Holies, only once a year or die because of the presence of God (NIV: God appears; Leviticus 16:2). He came and offered a blood sacrifice for himself, and for the sins of all the people. But these sacrifices were not for the cleansing of their conscience to internally take away sins, but rather only for an outward covering of their sins. It made them ceremonially clean outwardly. 2 Referring to those yearly or repeated sacrifices, the writer of Hebrews says, “…those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.”3
"When Christ came as high priest…He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. 4 [Therefore], we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all."5 [brackets mine]
Hallelujah, Amen!

(1) Hebrews 9:7; (2) 9:10,13; 10:2,11,12; (3) 10:3-4, (4) 9:11,12; (5) 10:10 NIV

Daily Bread

2006-09-25T20:52:00.000-04:00

"Our Father...Give us this day our daily bread..." (Matt: 9,11)

Jesus taught us to ask for our daily bread. No one needs to be told that they need to eat, because food is essential to life. We are so diligent to feed our bodies, are we as diligent in feeding our Spirit? Jesus said,

"It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." (John 6:63).

Let us eat from the word of God daily. "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." (Psalm 119:105).

Word of the Day

2006-09-25T17:57:00.000-04:00

Word of the Day was created as a forum for devotional writing, an outworking of what God has been working in-to my life. I pray that it will inspire your walk with God and bring you closer to Jesus Christ. I originally named it Daily Bread, but have opted not to use that name to avoid confusion with the already existing Daily Bread by RBC Ministries. May the Lord bless them and their faithful teaching of His Word!

I hope this work encourages you in the Lord, may God richly bless you!