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Post Date: |
Thursday, 2017-01-19 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Matthew 7:21–23 (MSG) |
|
Text: |
“Knowing the correct password—saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance—isn’t going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, ‘Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.’ And do you know what I am going to say? ‘You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don’t impress me one bit. You’re out of here.’
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| OBSERVATION: | |
| This 7th chapter of Matthew records Jesus teaching a crowd that followed him even to the mountains. Addressing this crowd was probably much like one of our pastors who address our congregations each week. However, Jesus knew the hearts and intentions of each one gathered, so He was able to speak directly into their lives. In this particular instance Jesus addressed folk who may have used church, or used their act of following Him as an act to brag about. They knew what it took to be recognized as a follower, and they thought they knew what to say, although Jesus exposed that thought in His teaching here. Jesus pulled no punches! While I believe He was honored that so many wanted to be near Him and hear His teaching, He also knew that He had to correct their misunderstanding of what it takes to meet His Father face to face on that Day. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| Much like the crowd that Jesus taught at the edge of the mountain, I believe that many churches are packed with folk each week that may still be under the misguided understanding that church attendance; giving to their local church; wearing a big cross as jewelry every day; or using church-like words interspersed in conversation throughout their day, would convince the world that they know Jesus in a very intimate way. The problem with that, is that the world sees through your pretense almost as much as God does. Friends, it’s not the world that we must impress, and this may come as a shock to you, but it’s not Jesus that you must impress! Jesus knows your heart, friend. Therefore He knows very well when our words are misaligned with our heart and our inner person. Jesus wants us to change from the inside out, and not vice versa. There is only one way to the throne of the Father, and that’s through accepting Jesus, the One whose blood was spilled at Calvary – the sacrifice that He made for the salvation of folk like you and me. You see, this is really simple. As we seek God’s face and His forgiveness, our lives will change from the inside out. His work in our lives, and our aim at living obedient lives to the teachings and example of Jesus Christ, prepares us with honest words and actions where the world will know and believe on the only Son of God, Jesus the Christ. Living that type of life means that it’s not something we calculate, or conjure up, but rather, the love of the Savior that resides inside of us spills out in our words and actions so that the world will know who Jesus is. Are you on the right track friends? If not, I encourage you to go back to the foot of the cross and talk with Jesus about your salvation. Reaffirm your faith in Jesus, so that you can stop trying so hard. Let Him have His way in your life. | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Lord Jesus, we are nothing without You, so of course our efforts without You and Your power will have no impact on unbelievers. Time is precious to all of us, and Lord we would never want to merely pretend to be Your followers to impress those around us, for we are very much like them when witnessing or evangelizing in our own strength. Furthermore, people are smart enough to see through our pretense, for only You can speak to the hearts of Your children. Lord, I commend myself to You again, asking that I do nothing in my own strength, but that I seek Your face daily and allow Your precious Holy Spirit to guide my lips, my actions and my whole self, so that others will see Jesus, not this humble, helpless man. Please tender the hearts of my readers so that they too may realign themselves with Your will for their lives. The world needs You, precious Lord, not us. Use us if needed, but please work in the lives of those that we will come into contact with today, for I ask this in the wonderful, matchless name of Jesus, AMEN. | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
Month: January 2017
Persistent in Asking, Seeking and Knocking
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Post Date: |
Wednesday, 2017-01-18 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Matthew 7:7–8 (NLT) |
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Text: |
7 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
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| OBSERVATION: | |
| I believe that these verses must be looked at in light of all that Jesus covered in the earlier part of His sermon. In 6:33 Jesus taught that we are to seek the Kingdom of God above everything else, and live righteously, then God will give us what we need. So with that in mind, what do you suppose we would ask for, knowing our inadequacies and shortcomings? What will we seek after, knowing the wide expanse that separates us from the perfection of Christ, and why would we be knocking, but to enter into the presence of the Holy Son of God? | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| We have just observed what God might be saying to us in this Scripture today, but how do we apply this to our everyday life? First of all, are we consistent in our asking? Do we even find time to pray, other than when we are in crisis mode? Our method of asking, or petitioning God is through ‘prayer’, yet most churches will tell you that it’s one of the worst attended services offered by churches. I much prefer hearing people ask me to pray with them, than for them. In one case I am assured that they have some ‘skin in the game’ and have merely asked me to join them in prayer. The other means that they don’t have time to pray, however they know they need prayer, and have asked me to pray for them. Jesus is telling us to ‘ask’, not to have someone ask for us. Jesus is also asking us to keep on asking, keep on seeking and keep on knocking. This tells me that we are to be persistent in doing these things. I once met a young person working at a prominent restaurant, and asked how they landed the job. Persistence was the word, for they showed restaurant management that they were so interested in the job that they would keep on visiting the establishment, keep on asking for a job, etc. Guess what? He landed the job and looked extremely happy in his job. Now in the teachings of Jesus I believe that we have no doubt as to what we are to ask for or seek after, for if we are to be a people who seeks after righteousness and have a deep desire to live like children of the King, then we will ask in line with those desires. When you keep on knocking, you are acknowledging to God that you are once again at His feet pleading His perfect will for your life, with a deep desire to serve Him in complete righteousness. Jesus said that when we do these things, that He will not only hear our prayers, but He will meet our needs. Friends, we have so much that we ask God for, let’s aim at making those requests known to Him for the single purpose of making us, or the person we are praying for, more righteous in God’s sight, and that they, or you, may be drawn closer to God and His kingdom. | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Lord, please continue to humble us to always and continuously seek Your face; ask for Your holy and generous hand of mercy and generosity upon our lives, so that we may be worked on and made right with You in every way. Lord, may we be consistent in knocking to ask for an audience with You on a frequent basis. May we be bold enough to join others in prayer so that we may encourage them and help them in their walk with You. Lord, please renew a great work in us today so that we may be more like You in every way, and may this attract the unsaved to desire intimacy with You. We must ask in full alignment with Your will dear Lord, because we acknowledge Your Lordship and Your sovereignty. Thank You precious Lord for accepting me as Your child. May I live like a child of the King! Amen! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
I Got This – Trust Me!
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Post Date: |
Tuesday, 2017-01-17 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Matthew 6:31–33 (NCV) |
|
Text: |
31 Don’t worry and say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32 The people who don’t know God keep trying to get these things, and your Father in heaven knows you need them. 33 Seek first God’s kingdom and what God wants. Then all your other needs will be met as well.
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| OBSERVATION: | |
| The text in this whole chapter of Matthew is in ‘red’, meaning that Jesus was teaching His disciples about what it’s like in their lives when they place their faith and trust in Him as their Savior, Leader, Provider and Protector. It is evident that, much like today, the disciples were worry-warts, and Jesus had to calm their fears and teach them what it’s like to be a follower of Christ. He taught His audience that when there was evidence of worry, they should recognize that their faith in Him might be faltering, otherwise they would quickly remember that when their priority is in seeking God’s kingdom and His righteousness, then all their needs would be met by Him. In fact, Jesus taught that when folk worry about such things as eat, drink and clothing, they are demonstrating evidence of being an unbeliever, as only they tend to worry about such things. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| I believe that if a preacher stood in the pulpit and declared the truths of this scripture to his audience in any given service, they would probably swear up and down that he had spies in their home, because I am convinced that we probably worry more about these same things than just about anyone that ever existed on earth. Friends, please correct me if you think I am wrong, but when we worry, we are really saying that we have no faith in God nor ourselves to correct a given situation or need. Look at verse 33 very carefully again: If we seek after God’s kingdom and what God wants, then He will meet all of our needs. God resides in His kingdom, so when we seek His kingdom, we are making every effort to live in a way pleasing to Him, because our top priority is to be where He is. Furthermore, we know for a fact that there will be no sin there, so we strive to live holy lives free from all sin. But what exactly does God want from us? Friends, may I encourage you to make it a priority to get into God’s Word on a daily basis, so that You might stay attuned to what He wants you to do? Seek His face and ask Him to direct you into the deep truths of His Word and enlighten you as to how the Word should be applied to your life each day. The reward for doing these things, according to the latter part of verse 33, is that He will meet all of our needs! Our God is so good friends, He desires an intimate relationship with His children and has promised to meet our needs, if we do our part. There is no way that we should let Him down. | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Dear Jesus, You have shown us throughout Your Word that there is no need to worry, and no need to fret, for the same God that put this whole earth together, and the same God who demonstrated His love for us at Calvary, is the same God that declared that He will meet our needs, if we seek after the kingdom of God and what He wants. Lord, please forgive us for our selfishness in demanding so much without any effort to do what we are commanded. You have shown us the way, now please give us the desire to seek Your face and do Your will. This old world has impacted us in ways that have stripped away all Godly desires, but in this scripture today we are reminded that this may be the very cause of our earthly struggles. Lord, I pray that my readers and I will recommit to obedience to our Father, so that we can be more like You in a lost world, but also so You could meet our daily needs. Easy concept, but often harder than most of us can handle. We need You Heavenly Father. AMEN! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
Faith That God Accepts
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Post Date: |
Monday, 2017-01-16 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Genesis 15:4–6 (NCV) |
|
Text: |
4 Then the LORD spoke his word to Abram: “He will not be the one to inherit what you have. You will have a son of your own who will inherit what you have.”
5 Then God led Abram outside and said, “Look at the sky. There are so many stars you cannot count them. Your descendants also will be too many to count.” 6 Abram believed the LORD. And the LORD accepted Abram’s faith, and that faith made him right with God. |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| In verses 1-3 it seems like Abram had somewhat of a pity party, feeling sorry for himself. God promised a reward to Abram, but he could see no further than having no one to pass the reward on to. However, God didn’t get impatient with Abram as He went on to promise him a son, even at his advanced age, to pass his blessings on to. Now, let’s be sure that we get the picture here, for Abram was already 85-86 years old at the time, having never had a child with his wife Sarai, yet God promised Abram that he would have a son! What would you have done? Now look at verse 6, for we see where Abram never discounted anything that God told him, not even the obvious questionable promise of him have a son at that age. And because of his faith, Abram was considered by God to be righteous, or right with God! | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| We often hear the saying by men “Oh ye of little faith”, when they see us falter or doubt the works of God. Friends, I believe that this story of Abram was uniquely placed in God’s Word for you and I. When we accept Jesus as Lord, and we take our daily concerns to Him, we should be reassured by this story that the action of surrendering our will to God’s will, and the act of asking for things in faith through Jesus, is a demonstration of our faith in the awesome power of the God of this universe. Yes, I realize that we often lay some pretty heavy stuff at the feet of Jesus and ask for His perfect will to be done, however, we often quickly retort to disappointment or rebellion when our prayers are not answered in exactly the same way that we demanded. Praise God that He answers in ways that are perfect and that fits within His design for our lives, and in ways that will bring glory to Himself. Please let’s try and remember that the reason we ask God is to seek His face and His perfect will. Simply demanding that God answer in the way that we ask will create extreme stress and hardship for us, for we are selfish and will only ask using the limitations we can see or expect or dream of. God is much bigger than that, for just as He made us, and the world around us, He also knows what comes next. Being His chosen people who have accepted the Lordship of His precious Son, makes us the ‘apple of His eye’, and as such, He wants for us far more than we could ever dream or imagine! So how’s your faith friend? Would God consider you ‘righteous’ because of the faith you demonstrate in His Son? Perhaps a matter of prayer and commitment today might be in asking God to open our eyes and our heart to trust Him in total faith. Please do me a favor, and consider doing that along with me today! | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Father, You are so good and Your faithfulness endures forever and forever! We serve such an awesome God! Having created us and made every provision for our wellbeing and happiness, yet to see us falter, fail and seek You selfishly must hurt You beyond anything we could imagine. Lord, we are reminded in this story of Abram that You look for, expect and honor our faith. Abram’s faith resulted in You viewing him as ‘righteous’. Lord, please help us to put self aside and to place our faith and trust in You for ALL things. May our faith become so strong, that we never make decisions without feeling reassured that You are in control and directing us towards decision that will bring You glory and draw us closer to You. I ask these things in faith, and through the precious name of Jesus, AMEN! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
A Higher Calling – Perfection
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Post Date: |
Saturday, 2017-01-14 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Matthew 5:43–48 (Voice) |
|
Text: |
43 You have been taught to love your neighbor and hate your enemy. 44 But I tell you this: love your enemies. Pray for those who torment you and persecute you— 45 in so doing, you become children of your Father in heaven. He, after all, loves each of us—good and evil, kind and cruel. He causes the sun to rise and shine on evil and good alike. He causes the rain to water the fields of the righteous and the fields of the sinner. 46 It is easy to love those who love you—even a tax collector can love those who love him. 47 And it is easy to greet your friends—even outsiders do that! 48 But you are called to something higher: “Be perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
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| OBSERVATION: | |
| Jesus taught us that He was ordained as God’s special gift to mankind that would be born miraculously though a virgin; He lived among men who hated Him and ridiculed Him; and He died a criminal’s death on a cross – in spite of having the power to overcome with just a single Word. Let’s remember, Jesus did this for mankind even while men hated Him and was following the evil desires of this world. So consider that kind of love and then read this passage again. Notice in verse 48 that we, who know this Jesus intimately and have surrendered our lives to His will, are called to a much higher calling – to be perfect even as our Savior is perfect. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| I’m super excited that based on the title you didn’t ignore this devotional, because you knew that you could never attain perfection! Allow me to encourage you today friend, for while you are right in thinking that you could never attain perfection, when we accept the only perfect One, Jesus Christ, and allow Him to control our lives, He places His Holy Spirit within us to mold us into His likeness. When we commit ourselves to the only ‘perfect’ One, and when He fills us with His likeness, and He controls our thoughts and our wants, we become vessels that are used by God. Only then, and by His grace alone, can we ever attain the perfection of God. For it is He who controls us. Jesus wants us to love like Him, including the willful love of those who hate us and despise us. Friends, I truly believe what the Word of God teaches, that the Master of this universe can work through us in all things and cause us to love, even as He loves. Let’s test Him with that today and prove His mighty power. If He told us to do it, then by His grace we have all power and authority to do just that! | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Lord Jesus, thank You for demonstrating Your enormous love for us that even while we were yet sinners, You died for us, so that we might see the likes of heaven and especially see Your father in heaven. The commands in these verses today sound impossible, but knowing that all things are possible by the God we serve, we humbly place ourselves at Your feet and ask that You guide us and direct us into ultimate perfection, even to love those that despitfully use and abuse us. May Your kingdom come oh Lord, and Your will be done in and through each of us today, for I ask these things in the name of Jesus, AMEN! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
Because of God’s Unfailing Love
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Post Date: |
Friday, 2017-01-13 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Psalm 5:7–8 (NLT) |
|
Text: |
7 Because of your unfailing love, I can enter your house; I will worship at your Temple with deepest awe. 8 Lead me in the right path, O LORD, or my enemies will conquer me. Make your way plain for me to follow.
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| OBSERVATION: | |
| The Psalmist was very open in declaring that it was only because of God’s unfailing love that he could even enter the house of the Lord – His temple, to worship Him. In spite of his victories in battle, David could easily have kept his head lifted high in pride, but instead he continued to plead with God for His direction – the right path that he (David) should follow. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| Friends, I am so afraid that we have assumed way too much pride when it comes to church attendance. At my church, we were reminded last Sunday that our singing, our praise and our worship is intended for an audience of ONE. We don’t need to impress the Brother in front of us, or the Sister beside us, but in all humbleness of heart we walk into the presence of the Almighty God, and in spite of our sin and shameful deeds of that week, we come asking God to accept us – mere sinful humans, as we are, presenting all we have to offer Him – our act of worship. Friends, the mere picture of that, presents us with the fact that although we might seem like peons, yet we are the creation of the God that we have now come to return thanks, and offer our sacrifices of praise. We have nothing to boast of, outside of the awesome work that God has chosen to do through us. The thankfulness of heart from just the fact that He accepted us after forgiving us of our sins, is worth hours of worship and thanksgiving each time we think of it. The willingness to use vessels that were torn by sin and separation from God, is enough to blow our minds, but fill us with thankfulness because of His great love and forgiveness. Friends, we must realize that each and every day that we’re alive deserves our humble, yet ultimate act of worship as we come before a God who loved us enough to accept us as we were when we approached His throne of grace. It was because of God’s amazing grace that He listened to our plea for forgiveness, and accepted us as pure and holy, even as He is holy. To the one who has not sought that forgiveness of sin yet, you might ask ‘What shall wash away my sin’? To which Jesus and His holy saints would respond ‘Nothing but the blood of Jesus’. May I encourage the unbeliever to seek the face of Jesus today and His righteousness, please? May I encourage the saints to take another look at the way that you approach Jesus and His holiness. Re-read how David looked at this, and consider approaching Him in deepest respect and awe, just for who He is! | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Lord God, You created us in Your own image, and I’m sure You were so proud of what You had created! I believe that You are still proud of us, and loves us unconditionally, in spite of our straying away from You and our tendency to lean towards those things that the adversary offers in this sinful world. Thank You for loving us in spite of our evil desires and straying hearts. Lord, You have made it clear in Your Word that Your desire is to see the sinner return to You, seek Your face and Your forgiveness. Some might read this devotional today who have not placed their faith and trust in You. May I ask that You humble their hearts as they read Your word, so that they may surrender their heart to You, please Heavenly Father? I would also love for You to touch the hearts of believers today that may have allowed the freshness of their conversion to fade into the background and now take Your presence for granted. Please dear God, always keep us humble to remember the Love that You showed for us when You hung on the cross of Calvary. As we enter your courts, Your temple, Your church, may our hearts be so fill up with praise and thanksgiving, that our time together with You will be overwhelming worship of the King of all kings! I love You Lord! AMEN! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
How to Obtain Success for Yourself and Your Children!
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Post Date: |
Thursday, 2017-01-12 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Deuteronomy 5:29 (CEV) |
|
Text: |
29 I wish they would always worship me with fear and trembling and be this willing to obey me! Then they and their children would always enjoy a successful life. |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| The Israelites went to their leader, Moses, after hearing the voice of God coming from the mountain, and asked him to go and speak to God again on their behalf. This time with a message – that they would be obedient to whatever commands God conveys to Moses for the people to do. Our merciful God didn’t respond with a whole list of commands that would enslave the people until their death, but instead simply responded that He would desire that they respectfully honor, or fear Him from a heart of respect – to the degree that they would come before Him trembling, and that they would always seek to be obedient to Him. Knowing how much humans like to be rewarded, God promised that if the Israelites honored these things and strived to live in this way, He would see to it that they, and their children would live and enjoy a successful life! Wow, what an awesome God we serve! | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| There are probably more books written, and more seminars offered, on the subject of ‘How to be more successful in life’, than perhaps any other subject that one could think of. Yet, in the Bible, God gave the answer to Moses for the Israelites, and He had this unique formula included in the best-selling book of all times, ‘The Bible’, because He wanted us to know about this also. Friends, it is very simple to understand, for we can research reasons why God created us in the first place, and we will learn that it was to worship and honor Him as Lord and creator of all mankind. Like the Israelites who found more attraction to making their own gods, and then chose to worship those idols, rather than the God of this universe, we too have chosen to travel down every other path for success, rather than looking to the original plan that God designed. Notice that God didn’t tell Moses that the people would be more successful in His temple, or in His temple work, although I’m sure this was all included in His promise, but He simply said that they and their children would enjoy a successful life, period. Friends, this is one of the basics of life – meaning that this simple command from God is a prerequisite to all other things in life that we might attempt to do. So check this simple command out: ‘Worship God’ – recognize Him for who He is and give praises to Him for all that He has done, is doing and has promised to do for us. This is not just a church-type worship thing, but a mindset for the individual; Do this ‘With fear and trembling’ – know that your God is a holy and righteous God and above all other powers of this world, therefore come into His presence to worship Him with respect and honor, recognizing Him for who He is. When we do this, we will learn very quickly that He controls our destiny, so we learn to chat with Him about those things that are on our mind – both concerns, and our ideas/desires for the future, and we will therefore ask Him to direct our path so that we might always honor and praise Him. God’s promise to the Israelites, and to His children at large, is that He will bless us with success personally, and even bless our offspring. What is it that you would not do in order to see success for your children? God has made it easy for us to do just that. Trust Him friend, and be obedient to worship Him in fear and trembling, for He will give you and your children success! | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Father, You are more precious than silver or gold, and we worship You Almighty God, for there is none like You! Thank You for making life so simple for us, and please forgive us for making it so complex and stressed. There is much to praise You for, because You have been so good to us. We respect You heavenly Father, for You are our righteousness and our Protector and our Deliverer from all evil. Lord, may we wrap our minds around this and be obedient to You in every way. Yes, we want success for ourselves, and especially for our kids, but more than anything else, may we be ever mindful of Your love and Your sacrifice that You were kind enough to make for our eternal salvation. Lord, You are so deserving of our worship, our respect and our hearts that should always be humbled to trembling. We love You Lord and we long to be with You in glory, but while here on this earth, may our minds be so directed towards You that Your joy will overflow through every act of love that we express towards others, so that they may be drawn to You. AMEN! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
Is Your ‘Light’ Evident?
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Post Date: |
Wednesday, 2017-01-11 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
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From: |
Matthew 5:14–16 (CEV) |
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Text: |
14 You are like light for the whole world. A city built on top of a hill cannot be hidden, 15 and no one would light a lamp and put it under a clay pot. A lamp is placed on a lampstand, where it can give light to everyone in the house. 16 Make your light shine, so that others will see the good that you do and will praise your Father in heaven.
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| OBSERVATION: | |
| I believe that it was evident to Jesus that the witness of the people He was addressing was so dim, or invisible, that He gave them first an example of Salt. He knew that everyone would know if salt was present on food, because it added such flavor to food. Likewise, He wanted the world to know without a doubt that the love of Christ in a believer was so important that others would have no doubt about whether a believer was who he claimed to be. Just in case His hearers missed that point, Jesus gave yet another example – light. He wanted his hearers to know that if the ‘Light’ of the world played a role in their life, then they themselves would be seen as a ‘light’ to a world filled with the darkness of sin. Verse 16 stands out in my mind, because Jesus wanted His hearers to know that this was not a thing of performance or self-gratification, but rather that the example of Christ and the application of His commands might be so evident in their lives, that Jesus would be glorified, not the believers themselves. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| Friends, we are taught by Jesus, that He said nothing, nor did anything without a word from His Father. Likewise, when we surrender our lives to Jesus, we surrender our will and our very being to His will and His control. When this happens, we start speaking like Him, and acting like Him. Then it becomes very natural for others to see Jesus in us, and therefore create a sense of praise, honor and glory by unbelievers to the holy Son of God. Remember, for us to pretend being Jesus, will create such a false impression on others that they will want nothing to do with us, or the one we are pretending to be. However, when we allow God to work His will and His way out in our lives, and we simply trust and obey, then the world begins to see the image and person of Jesus Christ. Whenever the people praise us, they have missed the point. Unless they praise the One to whom all glory and honor belongs, then we had best draw closer to God and become even more transparent in our actions and our words. Let’s aim at letting Jesus be glorified today because of what people may see in our lives. We are mere messengers, so let’s deliver the One whom we represent so that Jesus may be glorified, honored and accepted today. | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Lord Jesus, thank You for being the Light of this world and the Light of my life. As each reader and I approach the throne today, we come as candles wanting to be lit with Your everlasting flame. As we enter our dark world today, we want others to see the ‘Light’ without even wondering what the candle or the holder of the candle looks like. Lord, it’s You that we honor, praise and seek to glorify and represent today. Please help us to hide behind the Light so that others might see Jesus and believe on the only Light that can save them from the darkness that surrounds them in this evil world. Jesus, Light of the world, be glorified in and through each of Your representatives today! AMEN! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
We Are Blessed When….
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Post Date: |
Tuesday, 2017-01-10 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
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From: |
Matthew 5:10–12 (MSG) |
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Text: |
10 “You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom. 11–12 “Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.
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| OBSERVATION: | |
| Jesus had the attention of thousands when He shared, what we know today as, the ‘beatitudes’. These teachings showed the people that when they stand up for what is right, or to what is taught and demonstrated by Jesus, then they will often be living in way that might be totally opposite to what the world has ‘hung its hat on’. For the world looks to win, whether it’s financially, or being at the top of its class, or just in name through immense marketing efforts. Unfortunately, the world will do this at every expense, even if its walking over the downtrodden or seeing the poor and needy do without. Contrary to the normal trend of the world, God teaches that there is eternal hope and joy for those who follow Him and obey His commands. In fact in the preceding 9 verses of Matthew 5, Jesus teaches that in cases of obedience and faith in Him, His followers are more than conquerors, for they are blessed because of their faithfulness to Him. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| When Jesus taught, it was not just for those in His physical audience group, but it was for all His followers who might follow, even till the end of time. Friends, that includes me, and I sincerely pray that includes each of you that may meditate on this devotional also. If not, I urge you to read my ‘Footnote’ and sure up your position, while you are still able to. For many that may read this, you may be like me and know nothing about persecution, other than what we have heard from others who have done missions in a foreign country. I believe that this quoted Scripture today exists because God wants us to realize that if we were to boldly proclaim His Word and live according to His teachings – in other words, live like He did, then we should expect to not fit in with the world at large. This results in us being looked down on when applying for some jobs, when trying to befriend someone who lives very differently, and be rejected by all those that will absolutely refuse to follow such narrow views and practices. Friends, we make a choice everyday, will we accept Jesus and follow His example and His way, or will we simply go with the flow and be tolerant of everything the world teaches. Today that means pretty much anything, and of course that is attractive to most people. God had a plan from the very beginning of time, and He backed that up through the intense love of His very own Son, Jesus, for all who place their faith and trust in Him. Blessed are those who accept that love and who agree to be directed by the Son of the living and true God. For theirs is the kingdom of God, for ever and for ever, Amen! | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Lord, thank You for providing for us, even though You knew right from the beginning that we would be a hard ‘nut to crack’, because of our stubbornness and desire to please everyone but You. Please forgive us for our weaknesses, and please continue to draw us closer to the source of our hope, our joy and our salvation. Lord, we want to be just like You. Please help us ignore the evil desires of this world and instead concentrate on the immense joy that’s in store for all who love, trust and obey You. We can only do this with You by our side to strengthen us and help us overcome the many sinful distractions that come our way every day. I ask these things in faith, and in confidence of who You are, AMEN! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
Learn to Follow Jesus ‘At Once’
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Post Date: |
Monday, 2017-01-09 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Matthew 4:18-22 (TLB) |
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Text: |
18 One day as he was walking along the beach beside the Lake of Galilee, he saw two brothers—Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew—out in a boat fishing with a net, for they were commercial fishermen.
19 Jesus called out, “Come along with me and I will show you how to fish for the souls of men!” 20 And they left their nets at once and went with him. 21 A little farther up the beach he saw two other brothers, James and John, sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, mending their nets; and he called to them to come too. 22 At once they stopped their work and, leaving their father behind, went with him. |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| In religious circles, we hear a lot of caution used to warn students of the Word not to take things out of context. I had been taught this story over and over from even an early age, but until this morning never really caught the context of Jesus calling His first disciples. Beginning up in verse 12 we are told that Jesus went to Galilee, a place known for its unbelievers. Yet as He walked along the lake and saw these fishermen, He simply gave the call to them, and without hesitation they dropped what they were doing and followed Jesus. This story is nothing short of miraculous, friends! | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| I wonder what has happened to cause so many who sit under the teachings of the Lord Jesus to be in such doubt about the same Lord who they’ve heard for years to be a miracle-working, loving, sacrificial, all-powerful God. I would imagine that in many of our local churches Jesus may walk in today, He could call on the pastor, or the elders, or the deacons, or the Christians who have boasted of Him over the years, and they may ‘prayerfully consider’ the request to follow Jesus into the unknown – although on second thought, to leave everything they have and follow Him wherever He may guide them, well that may create somewhat of a challenge for many! One old faithful retired missionary told us that when he was called to missions, he sold everything he had and gave the money to his local home churches, because he felt like if Jesus called him, then he would provide for him. Furthermore, it increased his faith in the one that he knew he would lean heavily on for the unknowns of a foreign land. That really takes ‘faith’ to a whole new level for me! So in my above analogy, we believe that Jesus may stand a chance getting a few to follow Him among our church leadership, but what if He went down just about any old street in your neighborhood, where people hang out for everything but church-related activities? Would Jesus be accepted there, and will the residents follow Him ‘at once’? Friends, I believe that as we study the Word of God, we are often reminded that our Lord is not just ‘anyone’ walking our streets, or the isles of our churches looking for a handout. He knows us by name, and Scripture says that He knows us so well that He even knows the number of hairs on our head. So when He calls us, it will not be a ‘hey you over there in that red shirt’ type of thing, but He could very well call you by name and give you plenty enough evidence that He is calling you personally, in spite of all the guilt you may feel about your inadequate, feeble walk with Him. If you designed and made a particular tool that you wanted to use every time that you worked on a particular engine, or that you might want to cook a particular dish with, you will remember every peculiarity about that tool. Please don’t forget that God made you also friend, and He knows every little dent or nick that you’ve received over the years. He is simply looking for your availability through which He might mightily move in His earthly ministry. Are you willing to respond unconditionally and immediately? If not, why not? Accept Him today and know that peace that passes all understanding, for He cares for you, and loves you beyond anything you can imagine! Read my Footnote if you would like more information about a personal relationship with my Lord! | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Father, You are so amazing! You created us and gave us the freedom to either follow You in faith and savor that enormous love that You have for us, or to encounter the evil of this world where Satan strives daily to destroy us. Unfortunately, it seems like our faith never matures to the state that we are quick to obey and follow You, like these disciples demonstrated to us. Please forgive us for our lack of faith, and our desire to do our own thing, in spite of the normal bad results that we read about, hear about or have witnessed personally. Lord, we need a fresh dose of Jesus every day of our lives, for we are weak and sinful beyond anything we ever thought possible. Only You can save us, and only You can direct us in the paths that You have set out before us. Please fill us with Your everlasting love, power and commitment to be obedient children of the King of all kings and Lord of all lords. For I ask these things in the precious name of Jesus, my Lord and my Savior, AMEN! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
Nuggets From God's Word 