Colossians 3:1-4
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, --
When we were baptized we were displaying the picture of "having been buried with Him in Baptism and raised with Him through your faith in the power of God, who raised Him from the dead." (2:12) Baptism is the acted-out picture of our dying to the old, natural life, being buried beneath the water, and rising up out of the water to live a new life.
set your hearts on things above, --
Our hearts are the seat of our emotions; we are to passionately love our Lord and desire to be with Him.
where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. --
Jesus Christ has finished His work and is now seated on His throne, as God's "right-hand Man" to rule the Universe with Him.
Set your minds on things above, --
Our minds are the seat of our intellectual thought processes; God "reasons with us," (see Isaiah 1:18), so that our faith proves not to be "blind," but perfectly reasonable according to God's higher, perfect reasonableness. That's why we are to "study" God's Word so that we can understand it correctly (II Timothy 2:15).
not on earthly things. --
Our priorities: the important, eternal things must take precedence over our earthly, urgent things that we must do today.
For you died, --
As Jesus died on the Cross, He took upon Himself each of our deaths, dying in our place as the substitutionary sacrifice; therefore, as His death applies to us, then we died.
and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. --
The life we have now is that eternal life that we will live forever. We will live that life, starting now and continuing forever with Jesus. So our life now is in Christ, hidden from us here in this world because it is in Christ in Heaven, and He is in God the Father; so we have our life in Heaven, inside the Almighty God, that we are beginning to live right now.
When Christ, who is your life, appears, --
Jesus Christ lives, and we live in Him, so He is our life now, not ourselves.
then you will also appear with Him in Glory.
When Jesus comes back to this Earth, He will "rapture" His church, we will all receive our Resurrection bodies, like His, and we will be His partners in setting up His Kingdom here and ruling it with Him, starting with that 1,000 years. We will shine like the sun then, displaying His Glory.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Thursday, April 14, 2016
Wednesday, April 13, 2016
When God Relents
Jonah 1:17,2:10
But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.
And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
If a fish had a an upset stomach, would it not go deep into its home, the sea, to get sick? But this fish came all the way up to the surface, to the beach, to throw up. So Jonah didn't drown, as he expected. He didn't drown when they threw him into the sea from the ship, and he didn't drown when the fish threw him up. God's plan for Jonah could not be thwarted. Everything Jonah did to try to get out of it, only made him more effective when he did it. Nineveh was filled with cold-hearted, violent men who had done atrocities to the peoples they invaded, and deserved judgement. But when Jonah came, looking stark white from the fish's digestive acids, their hearts softened and God relented. God will always relent when people repent, confess and forsake.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.
And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
If a fish had a an upset stomach, would it not go deep into its home, the sea, to get sick? But this fish came all the way up to the surface, to the beach, to throw up. So Jonah didn't drown, as he expected. He didn't drown when they threw him into the sea from the ship, and he didn't drown when the fish threw him up. God's plan for Jonah could not be thwarted. Everything Jonah did to try to get out of it, only made him more effective when he did it. Nineveh was filled with cold-hearted, violent men who had done atrocities to the peoples they invaded, and deserved judgement. But when Jonah came, looking stark white from the fish's digestive acids, their hearts softened and God relented. God will always relent when people repent, confess and forsake.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
Afraid Of Jesus?
Mark 4:40-41
He said to His disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith [not even trust Me?]?" They were terrified, and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey Him!" --
This was when Jesus had calmed the furious squall that nearly swamped their little boat. He seemed disappointed and dismayed that these men, who had been living with and travelling with Him still didn't understand just who He is. "Having faith" means "trusting in." I have faith to believe a chair will hold my weight, so I sit down on it and it doesn't collapse under my weight. I also trust in Jesus to be true to what He says He will do, so I have faith that He will meet all my needs. Even so, if I saw Him instantly calm a storm, would I be afraid, too?
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
He said to His disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith [not even trust Me?]?" They were terrified, and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey Him!" --
This was when Jesus had calmed the furious squall that nearly swamped their little boat. He seemed disappointed and dismayed that these men, who had been living with and travelling with Him still didn't understand just who He is. "Having faith" means "trusting in." I have faith to believe a chair will hold my weight, so I sit down on it and it doesn't collapse under my weight. I also trust in Jesus to be true to what He says He will do, so I have faith that He will meet all my needs. Even so, if I saw Him instantly calm a storm, would I be afraid, too?
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Monday, April 11, 2016
Gifts From God
Philippians 1:29
For it has been granted to you --
We have been given to us as gifts.
on behalf of Christ --
Because of, as a result of, what Christ has accomplished as our Substitute.
not only to believe in him, --
Our belief, our faith, our trusting in Jesus is a gift of God, not of ourselves.
but also to suffer for Him. --
When we are rejected by others, persecuted by others, it's not to make us victims, but to grant us victory over the works of our enemy.
So the faith we have in Jesus to take our place in death in payment of our debt is a gift from God, as He draws us into trusting Him. And when we are persecuted and martyred, that is also a gift from God. We may see suffering as other people making us victims, but God grants us this as a means of growing us up to be mature adults in His family, and we will reap the benefits as He receives the glory.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
For it has been granted to you --
We have been given to us as gifts.
on behalf of Christ --
Because of, as a result of, what Christ has accomplished as our Substitute.
not only to believe in him, --
Our belief, our faith, our trusting in Jesus is a gift of God, not of ourselves.
but also to suffer for Him. --
When we are rejected by others, persecuted by others, it's not to make us victims, but to grant us victory over the works of our enemy.
So the faith we have in Jesus to take our place in death in payment of our debt is a gift from God, as He draws us into trusting Him. And when we are persecuted and martyred, that is also a gift from God. We may see suffering as other people making us victims, but God grants us this as a means of growing us up to be mature adults in His family, and we will reap the benefits as He receives the glory.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Sunday, April 10, 2016
That Downward Spiral
The Book of Judges
This whole book is a series of cycles where: Israel obeys God, becomes prosperous, gets careless, falls into sin and idol worship, gets conquered by another people who mistreat them, cry out to the Lord, He sends a Judge to save them and turn them back to the Lord's ways, and they obey God again. This cycle repeats itself over and over and over in this book. There was no king there yet because God wanted to be their King. But they couldn't "see" God sitting on His throne ruling; they could see the judge, though, so they obeyed God while each judge was alive. But as soon as they were gone, each man went back to his own thinking, doing what was right in his own eyes, instead of looking to God's rules for guidance (17:6, 21:25). They could also see the idols, which so strongly enticed them. So this downward spiral finally culminated in the ultimate degradation of the sin of Sodom, which resulted in a disastrous civil war.
This cycle has played out in many lives since the days of the Judges. That "downward spiral" has afflicted people in every area, in every country, in every family. God often uses the crisis of the bottommost coil of the spiral to draw that individual to Himself, as He did me and many others. But we need to take care that we don't become complacent in our faith, for that will only draw us downward, away from where we need to be in our fellowship with our Father and in our witness of what God has done for us through Jesus.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Saturday, April 9, 2016
Choose Life
Deuteronomy 30:11-20
Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach . . . No, the Word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it. --
Not too difficult--not far away. It must be in our mouth and heart, be part of us, not something outside of us. Our own thinking processes.
See, I set before you this day life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. --
Life and prosperity, or death and destruction. White and black, there are no grays here. Be drawn to God and His ways, the ways He made this world to operate, to work. Commands, decrees and laws explain how we can cooperate with the way the world works, and get the benefits.
But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
Or rebel against God's "natural order" to be enticed away, and it will result in destruction, problems, troubles, death.
This day I call forth Heaven and Earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses.
Heaven and Earth were made to order to be the best environments for us to exist in, with everything we need to all be healthy and prosperous; if only we will listen and take to heart what God is teaching us in His written Word.
Now choose life, so that you and your children may live, and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life, and He will give you many years in the land He swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
It is our choice, each one of us. If we would seek to know who God really is, and honestly want to follow Him, then we will fall in love with Him and want to do what pleases Him. And as our Father, what pleases Him is for us to do well. What father doesn't want his children to do well in life, to succeed in their endeavors and to get along well together? So He has laid out for us in His written Word all the rules, regulations and stipulations we need to adhere to in order to cooperate with the ways this world was made to run and work. God is life, He is where all life and Truth originates. To align our thoughts with His gives us access to the root and nourishment that sustains life.
There is no life in any other. Anything else we prioritize before God and His ways only draws us away from life into a slow or sudden death. Even what we would consider to be "good" can blind us to what is really "best" for us. We really need to be careful to make sure we have a right understanding of all that God tells us; then we will be able to participate in the "best" that God has planned all along for us to have.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach . . . No, the Word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it. --
Not too difficult--not far away. It must be in our mouth and heart, be part of us, not something outside of us. Our own thinking processes.
See, I set before you this day life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. --
Life and prosperity, or death and destruction. White and black, there are no grays here. Be drawn to God and His ways, the ways He made this world to operate, to work. Commands, decrees and laws explain how we can cooperate with the way the world works, and get the benefits.
But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
Or rebel against God's "natural order" to be enticed away, and it will result in destruction, problems, troubles, death.
This day I call forth Heaven and Earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses.
Heaven and Earth were made to order to be the best environments for us to exist in, with everything we need to all be healthy and prosperous; if only we will listen and take to heart what God is teaching us in His written Word.
Now choose life, so that you and your children may live, and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life, and He will give you many years in the land He swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
It is our choice, each one of us. If we would seek to know who God really is, and honestly want to follow Him, then we will fall in love with Him and want to do what pleases Him. And as our Father, what pleases Him is for us to do well. What father doesn't want his children to do well in life, to succeed in their endeavors and to get along well together? So He has laid out for us in His written Word all the rules, regulations and stipulations we need to adhere to in order to cooperate with the ways this world was made to run and work. God is life, He is where all life and Truth originates. To align our thoughts with His gives us access to the root and nourishment that sustains life.
There is no life in any other. Anything else we prioritize before God and His ways only draws us away from life into a slow or sudden death. Even what we would consider to be "good" can blind us to what is really "best" for us. We really need to be careful to make sure we have a right understanding of all that God tells us; then we will be able to participate in the "best" that God has planned all along for us to have.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Friday, April 8, 2016
Our Author And Perfector
Hebrews 12:2
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfector of our faith, --
Beginner and ender, starter and finisher.
Who, for the joy set before Him --
Jesus saw the result of what He was suffering, and knowing all the good it would do, all the lives that would be changed, all the people that would be rescued; and it brought Him joy, and encouraged Him to persevere and finish that work.
endured the Cross, scorning its shame --
When He was hanging on the Cross, His nakedness was publicly, shamefully displayed for all to see.
and sat down --
Because His work was finished, complete forever.
at the right hand of the Throne of God.
As God's "Right-Hand Man," ruling with Him.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfector of our faith, --
Beginner and ender, starter and finisher.
Who, for the joy set before Him --
Jesus saw the result of what He was suffering, and knowing all the good it would do, all the lives that would be changed, all the people that would be rescued; and it brought Him joy, and encouraged Him to persevere and finish that work.
endured the Cross, scorning its shame --
When He was hanging on the Cross, His nakedness was publicly, shamefully displayed for all to see.
and sat down --
Because His work was finished, complete forever.
at the right hand of the Throne of God.
As God's "Right-Hand Man," ruling with Him.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
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