Category: Inspirational

Scripture for Thursday, September 8 (9/8)

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The scripture for today, September 8, is Daniel 9:8 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-BOOK 2-DREAM MAKER-COVER“O Lord, we and our kings, our princes, and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you.”

Have you prayed for your government lately? I Timothy 2:1 & 2 says “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone ~ for kings and all those in authority.” At the time of this writing, Nero Caesar, who led the persecution of tens of thousands of Christians, torturing many to death, was the king of the Roman Empire which covered much of the then-known world.

Why don’t you stop and pray for your government right now?

#government, #prayer, #nations

Once for All

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Don Merritt's avatarLife Project Blog

The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

Hebrews 10:1-4

The author of Hebrews is now wrapping up this central core section of the letter, and he is doing so by once again focusing on the superior sacrifice that Jesus brought to establish a superior covenant with superior promises. Again, he states that the Law is merely a shadow of a reality to come, stating again that its…

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Scripture for Wednesday, September 7 (9/7)

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The scripture for today, September 7, is 2nd Corinthians 9:7 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

CHANGES IN WORSHIP-COVER-KINDLE“Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

There are many religious leaders who insist that Christians tithe. But that was part of the Law of Moses, and Jesus nailed that written law to the cross (Colossians 2:14).

Actually, the Jews were required to give more than a tenth. (1) Deuteronomy 26:12 said the Jews had to give an extra tithe every three years for their welfare program. So, if someone tithed $900 a year, s/he would have to tithe an average of $300 more per year for the welfare program, equaling $1,200 year. If the yearly income was $9000, this would take it up to 13.3% a year.

(2) Also, according to Leviticus 27, they had to pay for their vows, which in many cases were really special prayer requests. (3) They also had to buy animals for sacrifices for intentional sins, unintentional sins and sins requiring restitution. (4) If they wanted to thank God for anything, they had to buy grain for a sacrifice (Leviticus 1-5). If they didn’t have to buy the animals or grain, they had to take them out of their own supply, thus depleting their own “pa check.” (5) And every time one of their flocks or herds had a first-born, they had to sacrifice it ~ another depleting of the “paycheck.”

So the good Jew under the Law of Moses did not just tithe. He ended up giving about one-third of his income. Galatians 5:3 says that, if we keep one part of the Law, we have to keep all of it. There were over 600 burdensome commandments in the Law of Moses!

In today’s scripture, Christians are being released from this burden. Instead, they are being told to decide in their own heart. Christians are released from serving and giving through obligation and set free to serve and give through love.

#tithing

Scripture for Tuesday, September 6 (9/6)

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The scripture for today, September 6, is Isaiah 9:6 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible.

000-BOOK 1-STAR SONG-PRINT COVER-Small“For to us a child is born! To us a son is given! And the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace!”

Notice the Godhead is represented in this one child.

*Wonderful Counselor: John 14:16f says, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever ~ the Spirit of Truth” ~ God the Spirit.

*Everlasting Father: This is God the Father. Many scriptures substantiate this.

*Prince of Peace: Matthew 2:6 says, “But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers [KJV says princes] of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler….”

In summary, Colossians 2:9 says, “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity [KJV says Godhead] lives in bodily form.”

They are like a coin. The top looks one way, the bottom looks different, and the edge looks still different. The coin has three looks but is one. If you try to take away one of the three, you take away the entire coin. Why? Because it is three in one.

This is so amazing. And we have been so blest.

#God the Son, #Jesus, #Prince of Peace

Scripture for Monday, September 5 (9/5)

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The scripture for today, September 5, is Nehemiah 9:5a as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

Campbell-Cover-KIMBLE“And the Levites ~ Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherabiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah and Pethahiah ~ said ‘Stand up and praise the Lord your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting.’ “

Here are eight men who probably none of us has ever heard of. We know nothing about them before this event, and nothing about them after this event. But they are forever memorialized in the Bible because, on this one day, within this one hour, in this one moment in time they “stood on the steps of the temple…and called with a loud voice” (Nehemiah 9:4) for the people to “stand up and praise the Lord”.

Can we do that? Can we stand and shout to people around us, “Stand up and praise the Lord your God”? Yes, we can. We can write letters to the editor, we can encourage other students of the Bible, we can start Bible studies in our home or even the internet for adults or children, we can take scripture tray favors to a hospital or nursing home.

In what way can you tell people around you “Stand up and praise the Lord your God”? Write down some ideas. Then act on one of them.

#PraiseGod, #Christianity

Scripture for Sunday, September 4 (9/4)

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The scripture for today, September 4, is Daniel 9:4 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-Cover-KINDLE“I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed: ‘O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands….’ “

A lot of people in the world think that God should feel obligated to take them to heaven. After all, they are fairly good, and better than some. God couldn’t possibly in all good conscience turn them away.

Yet, their entire life they resent God. Mostly they don’t like his commands; they don’t want anyone telling them what to do or not do. Or they claim to love God but create their own commands that just aren’t in the Bible, making themselves God.

Ultimately, heaven is God’s home, not ours. He is not obligated to invite anyone into His home. Besides, only perfection can live with God who is perfect. It only takes one sin to make us an imperfect sinner.

So how do we become perfect? That’s where God’s awesomeness is demonstrated. By following Jesus who was perfect and never sinned, and obeying Jesus’ commands, God considers us perfect by proxy. One of his commands is to be baptized in the name of God the Father, God the Son/Word, and God the Holy Spirit.

God treats us the way we treat him. If we don’t want God in our life, God doesn’t want us in his life. God never forces anyone to agree with him or spend time with him here on earth so they can live with him in his heaven.

DISCUSSION QUESTION: DESCRIBE WHAT IT IS LIKE TO ENDURE THE DEATH OF A LOVED ONE WHO NEVER WAS INTERESTED IN GOD.

#Bible, #GodsCommands, #baptism, #heaven

Scripture for Saturday, September 3 (9/3)

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The scripture for today, September 3, is 1st Kings 9:3 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

“The Lord said to him, ‘I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.’ “

The New Testament builds spiritual concepts on the basic material patterns of the Old Testament. For example, “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?” (1st Corinthians 3:16). This is the temple God wants now, not the old material temple of the Old Testament.

Just as there was just one material temple of God in the Old Testament, God looks upon each Christian as though we are the only temple; for he is with us constantly and hears our every word, our every song, our every prayer.

Is your heart troubled today? Is your heart joyful today? Are you at peace with everything around you? Do you see conflicts that you do not know how to solve?

As God’s temple, God’s eyes and heart are with you. God sees and watches out for you in everything you do. He knows your cares, your heart’s desires, your joys, your worries. God’s eyes and heart are always with you, for you are God’s temple!

DISCUSSION QUESTION: ARE THERE ANY THINGS IN YOUR LIFE YOU WANT TO STOP DOING IN ORDER TO HONOR GOD’S TEMPLE, YOUR BODY?

#HolySpirit, #temple, #problems

Scripture for Friday, September 2 (9/2)

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The scripture for today, September 2, is Job 9:2 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

HS-COVER-KINDLE-GOLD“Though one wishes to dispute with Him [God], he could not answer Him one time out of a thousand.”

There are so-called sophisticated intellectuals in the world who want to come up with all the answers about God. Many even make God in their image instead of we being made in God’s image. They try to reduce God to complete human understanding.

That cannot be! If we could understand everything about God, He would not be God! Let us rejoice that there are things about God we do not understand. Let us rejoice that there are events in our life that we do not understand ~ the good, the bad, the ugly. Let us rejoice that such a God loves us in our finiteness.

DISCUSSION QUESTION: HOW CAN YOU GET TO KNOW GOD?

#God

So far, no one has participated in the discussion questions. If no one does this time, I am going to stop asking them.  Katheryn

 

Scripture for Thursday, September 1 (9/1)

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The scripture for today, September 1, is Psalm 9:1 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-Mefiboset-KINDLE Medium“I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders.”

I knew a lady many years ago who talked to God all day as though he were sitting or standing beside her, whether she was cleaning floors, washing dishes, going shopping, or just received a telephone call. She talked to God about everything she was doing. God was her constant companion.

What opportunities we miss to talk to God during the day. Every time we do, we are praising Him. How? By acknowledging His concern with everything we do, and in the process acknowledging His omnipresence. And what a wonder His omnipresence is!

Does this include times when everything in our life is going wrong? You bet! On some days, the wonders of God are about the only positive things we can find in our life.

Praising God for his wonders amidst your frustrations, tears, fears and helplessness can lift you out of the mire. It can remind you that you are not alone; for God sees what is happening to you, and in his own way he will perform a wonder for you too.

DISCUSSION QUESTION: WHEN EVERYTHING IN SOMEONE’S LIFE IS GOING WRONG AND WITH NO HOPE OF RELIEF, WHAT KIND OF THINGS CAN THEY THANK GOD FOR?

#prayer #praise

Scripture for Wednesday, August 31 (8/31)

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The scripture for August 31 is John 8:31f as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-Joseph-Cover-Kindle-Medium“To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teachings, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, then the truth will set you free.’ “

Myriads of people call themselves believers in or disciples of Christ or Christians. What is Jesus’ definition of a believer or disciple? He explained, IF we hold to his TEACHINGS, then we are his disciples.

It’s not automatic? So being born into a Christian family doesn’t automatically make us a Christian? Being born in a Christian nation doesn’t automatically make us a Christian? Owning a Bible doesn’t automatically make us a Christian? Believing Jesus is the Son of God doesn’t automatically make us a Christian? (Demons believe that and aren’t Christians.)

“But, Jesus,” we might say, “I really feel like I’m a Christian.” And Jesus replies, “Hold to my teachings, then you are really my disciple.”

So if we learn Jesus’ teachings and hold to them, THEN the truth will set us FREE.

DISCUSSION QUESTION: HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU READ THE NEW TESTAMENT OF THE BIBLE?

#Disciple, #Christian, #Bible