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Post Date: |
Friday, 2017-03-24 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
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From: |
Matthew 25:37-40 (NLT) |
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Text: |
37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| In evaluating the people in front of Him, Jesus divided them into two groups: the unrighteous; and the righteous. The righteous were recognized for the heart they demonstrated like that of Jesus Christ. In fact, so much so that Jesus concluded that all the things they did proved their righteousness. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| While I realize that Jesus knows and sees all things, I wonder if we had to evaluate our actions over the past week, would there be enough evidence to convince Jesus that we are among the righteous? There is a saying: from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. I believe that a heart filled with the presence of God’s Holy Spirit, will respond to needs around us like our Savior responded. For there was no respecter of persons in Jesus’ eyes; He is well known as ‘Love’, because of His amazing love towards all mankind; He is Healer; He is our Shepherd; He is the Restorer of our souls; He leads us in the path of righteousness, especially when we are so prone to stray; He set the example for us in all aspects of life – mixing with sinners, standing firm for what He knew was Truth, loving and ministering to sinners at every opportunity; Used the Word of God as His defense – when tempted. Friends, not only has the example been set for us, but our Savior stands ready to bless us, guide us, empower us and embolden us so that we might be His hands, His feet and His love to this lost and dying world in which we live. To do this, Jesus needs our commitment to serve Him no matter what. He needs us to be trusting and pliable, because His ways are not our ways, and if we are truly going to be used by Him, we must totally surrender our will to Him. I would like to challenge you with the question I started with: is there enough evidence in your actions and your words, that Jesus and/or your friends would be convinced that you are among the righteous, and being truly directed by God each day? | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Lord Jesus, we come humbly before You today, knowing that we are not capable nor worthy to be looked on as ‘righteous’, especially by the righteous Son of God. However, we are reminded through this teaching today that loved ones, friends, or any one still searching for the Lord, must see and experience enough of Jesus in us, for them to truly know that the Word is true and that You are still alive and powerfully working in your children – Your righteous ones who have committed their lives wholeheartedly to You. Lord, please complete Your work in Your way, for Your kingdom, even through us, Your humble servants, 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! | |
Category: Christ’s Representative
May Others See Jesus in You
Friday, 2016-09-30
Scripture
Bible Reference: Philemon 1:6
Bible Text: 6 … I pray that as you share your faith with others it will grip their lives too, as they see the wealth of good things in you that come from Christ Jesus.
Bible Translation: The Living Bible (TLB)
My Take
The apostle Paul wrote this letter while still in jail, because of his preaching the Word of God. The letter was to his Brother in the Lord, Philemon. Paul’s life had been enriched by Philemon, and he wanted Philemon to know that he was praying that the lives of others would also be enriched as he shares the Word with them. Friends, I believe that God got my attention on this because He wanted me to stop and think about how ridiculous we oftentimes are today. If we had a good relationship with the Governor of our state, or a senator, or the head of any country, don’t you know that it would not be hidden from anyone we come into contact with? You talk about name dropping – I bet we would do our share of that!! Can’t you imagine us casually saying in a conversation with one of our school pals, that we had dinner at the White House last weekend with our good pals, Michelle and Barack? Oh, and by the way, don’t forget that you have a free invitation to take a friend with you for dinner over the next weekend! Do you suppose you would have many takers? Of course you would, in fact I bet you would have a hard time deciding who to take, out of the hundreds of interested parties. Can you imagine the excitement they would hear in your voice as you share? Compare that to the way that most would mumble under their breath that they went to church last weekend, or they are now a child of the King of all kings. How do you suppose God must feel when He sees us avoiding the issue of sharing excitedly about Christ in our lives? Sadly, in most cases our reason is merely because we are afraid of being rejected, or perhaps put down for being one of those ‘religious fanatics’. Friends, Paul was praying that the lives of others would be touched, and jolted into the reality of Jesus Christ, when they encountered Philemon. Sure the ‘man’ might be standing in front of them, but oh that they might actually see and encounter Jesus. You know, this is my prayer every day – oh that they might see Jesus! May I encourage you to pray the same? Pray that our hearts will be so intertwined with the life and teachings of Jesus, that our words will sound like something He would say, and that our actions would make our friends think of Jesus, and may our words and actions speak to the heart of our friends, that they too might desire to know our Savior. If we were losing weight, they would want to know what kind of diet we were on. If we were looking younger than the last time they saw us, they would want information on the ‘magic potion’ we must be taking! If we are excited about Jesus, and only concerned about His goodness, His mercy and our total relationship with Him, then perhaps they would want to know more, or even be introduced to Jesus. Let’s all try to do a better job at opening up our lives so that Jesus might shine through, dear ones.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank You for Your servants, Paul and Philemon. Thank You for Your Word, for it is powerfully filled with challenges such as we have studied today. Our lives, even now in the 21st century should be just as reflective of You and Your saving grace, as it was in the life of Philemon. Please help us to be unashamed of the gospel, unashamed of our Savior, and very open to reflecting the love of God in every aspect of our lives. Lord, may the words of our mouth and the meditation of our heart, always be acceptable to You, representative of You, and usable by You to touch the lives of those that we come into contact with each day. Its all about You Lord Jesus. Help us be be usable instruments through which You can proudly minister. AMEN!
Footnote
If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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 www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org 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!
Be A Representative of The Lord
Tuesday, 2016-09-27
Scripture
Bible Reference: Colossians 3:15–17
Bible Text: 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. 16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 17 And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.
Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)
My Take
I believe that if there is ever a time that we need to live as children of God; as representatives of the Lord Jesus; as children of the Light – that stamps out the darkness of sin; as examples of the Lord Jesus Christ; it is now. In my old testament reading (Jeremiah 7:21-29) God shared His displeasure with the Israelites that He brought out of Egypt, for in spite of all that He did for them, yet they never truly followed Him with all their heart, mind and soul. Because of this, they continually fought to follow their former way of living. Does this compare to the church at large today? No, I’m not referring to the way members act inside the four walls of our church at weekend meetings, but rather when they are on the battle lines of everyday life. Is it evident to those who cross our paths that we are children of the Most High King? Verse 17 encourages us to speak and act like a representative of the Lord Jesus, continually giving thanks through Him to God the Father. Will it be obvious to others who we are representing today? There’s a beautiful old hymn that has the words “In Christ alone, I take my stand, all other ground is (like) sinking sand”, In other words, no matter what other direction you follow, or whatever other source you may seek for strength or power today, nothing can compare to the awesome power of our Mighty God. Friends, we’ve tried long and hard, through various trials and hardships, to see our families overcome the challenges and circumstance of this old world; we’ve seen churches split and some even closed, because of Satan’s interference and distractions; and we have seen countries go to war over selfish gains and worldly desires, I believe it is time for us to humbly seek the face of God and ask Him to help us return to the Book – His Holy Word, His instructions for life that helps us to be His representatives here on earth. I believe that as we do that, nothing else will really matter or be of any worthwhile significance. Can we give that a try today friends? Let’s endeavor to put God first in everything and then celebrate at the end of the day how everything else approved and designed by Him fell into its proper place. It’s all about Him friend! We’re just the earthly instrument that He may choose to use so that others might recognize and subsequently accept and obey Him.
Prayer
Lord God, You created us, provided enormous beauty here on this earth for us to enjoy and even sacrificed Your very own Son for us so that our sin could be forgiven – leaving us at peace with, and pleasing to You. A perfect scenario, yet we have allowed Satan to intrude and tempt us with so much that we are hardly recognized as Your child at times. Please speak to Your children once again today, and help us to recommit ourselves to You. Please help us to seek Your face and Your power to keep our lives pure before You and before our fellow man. Use us as Your instruments oh Lord, to reach the hardened hearts of the lost. May You be glorified today because of our actions, from a clean heart and godly thoughts and words. I ask these things in and through the wonderful name of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, AMEN!
Footnote
If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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 www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org 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!
Your Characteristics Prove Whose You Are
Friday, 2016-09-16
Scripture
Bible Reference: Galatians 5:16–17
Bible Text: 16 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. 17 The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.
Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)
My Take
Paul himself struggled with doing the right thing, for he said that there is always a struggle going on, where he desires to do the right thing, but he naturally does the wrong thing. So when we read these verses today, let’s remember that this is not merely spiritual lingo that Paul thought would sound good to his readers, but he is speaking from experience. What I really love, is the way that Paul shows us how we will know when we are following our natural, sinful desire, or if we are following the will, and leadership of the Holy Spirit. Friends, we have to look at our actions:
If we are following our own sinful desires, then the following characteristics will be prevalent: *sexual immorality, *impurity, *lustful pleasures, *idolatry, *sorcery, *hostility, *quarreling, *jealousy, *outbursts of anger, *selfish ambition, *dissension, *division, *envy, *drunkenness, *wild parties, and *other sins like these. When you see these characteristics, the Bible says in verse 21: ‘…anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.’
If we follow the commands and will of God and allow the Holy Spirit to direct our lives, then we will see these characteristics shine through: *love, *joy, *peace, *patience, *kindness, *goodness, *faithfulness, *gentleness, and *self-control. When you see these characteristics, the Bible says in verse 23: ‘There is no law against these things!’, meaning that you don’t have to look over your shoulders for anyone to get you, because you are doing what is right. These are fruits of the Spirit friend. This shows that you belong to God, and His Holy Spirit lives and operates in your life.
So the challenge today for each of us is to look at our actions and see where exactly we stand with the Lord. If something ain’t right friend, may I encourage you to communicate (pray) to your heavenly Father and ask for His help and direction? May each of us see the characteristics of the Jesus Christ shine bright in our lives today!
Prayer
Dear God, thank You for using Your servant Paul to share these words with his friends at the Galatian church and with us today. May we be honest in our evaluation of our actions today, and may we quickly recognize acts that reflect our old sinful self that indicate that we have strayed and allowed too much of this old world in. Lord, we sincerely need You today. We want to be obedient servants, but we know that we can only do this with You ‘at the wheel of our lives’. Please keep us humble and obedient so that we may reflect the love of Christ in everything we do or say, so that others may be encouraged to surrender their lives to You. I ask these things in and through the precious name of Jesus, AMEN!
Footnote
If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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 www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org 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 Known By How We Live
May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! May I encourage you to read the whole devotional, and look for a blessing, friend!………
Today’s Bible Reference: 1 John 3:7-10
Today’s Bible Text: Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God. So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God.
The Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)
My Take Away: Friends, I don’t know that I can add a whole lot to what the Word of God is saying to us in this passage. For just as John declared to his followers, God insisted that this become a part of His precious Word to men and women to come, for He knew that we would be challenged with the same struggles in our day. You may ask why I would possibly assume that this is an ongoing challenge. Friends, it is very obvious that many are being lured into a false sense that being a Christian equals: church going; or doing good; or walking the isle of a church after intense pressure by peers/family; or baptism; or hanging with the right crowd. Hopefully if nothing else is gathered from this devotional today, I pray that you will read carefully the above verses, and other related scripture, so that you might discern the following key points:
**To walk in fellowship with our Lord and Savior, requires an invitation from Him, and a decision/commitment by you;
**You can only be righteous (right in God’s sight) when you accept that invitation from Jesus with all your heart and in deepest sincerity;
**When Jesus is convinced that you are sincere, He will then allow His Holy Spirit to come and live inside your righteous being;
**The Holy Spirit will provide help, inspiration, determination and the power to live a life of righteousness. One that will example His righteousness, and portray His love for mankind so that the lost might see Jesus and have a desire to know Him. By your fruit, or by your right living, others will know whose you are!
So I believe that the challenge for us to look at today is that others will be observing us, just like they’ve done every day. What do you suppose they are seeing? Do they see a man/woman of righteousness, or are they seeing a pretender, or perhaps one that keeps on sinning, as described in the above verses? You will either be a help to someone else searching for righteousness or a Savior, OR you will possibly be a stumbling block to them in their search. Which will it be today, friend?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, You only have the power to call others unto Yourself. You only have the power to save mankind from sin. You only have the power to fill us with Your love and Your righteousness so that others might see and believe. Lord, I realize that The way I live could either impact the lost for You or turn them off from wanting to know You. Please speak to Your children once again today Lord. May we be righteous, as You are righteous. May we reflect love, even as You are the true representation of love in its purest form. Lord, may others see Jesus very evident in all that we say or do today, so that they may see and believe. I ask these things in the precious, righteous and most loving name of Jesus, AMEN!
Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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 http://www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org 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!
Why Christians Are Left In Satan’s Domain
THE HOLY BIBLE (The Message – 1 John 2:15-17): Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.
THOUGHTS: We know that the evil one is not a friend of God’s children, and that he will do everything possible to trip us up and cause us to fall flat on our faces, and fail miserably on our walk with Christ, that we committed to when we accepted Him as Lord and Savior. Would it not make sense then, that if we dislike and despise the evil one, that we should also do the same in regards to his domain – the place where he hangs out? As I read the surrounding verses, I believe the Holy Spirit caused me to question: Why then are we left here in Satan’s domain after we commit our lives to Jesus Christ? I believe that the biggest reason is that since Jesus had to come and speak to us here in this domain, why should we be exempted from the same trials and temptations that He faced? I cannot imagine what this earth would look like if all Christians were pulled out of it, for we are to give balance to the evil that is led by Satan. We are to show ‘right’ (the ways of God), when it seems like only wrong prevails. We are to show hope (the hope of our living, loving and saving Lord), when it seems like everything around is doomed for death and failure. We are to show peace and love (the uncompromising, unconditional love of Jesus Christ) for everyone, not just for those that the world can easily find in their hearts to love. We are to demonstrate our satisfaction with what we have, solely in the precious gift of Jesus Christ, and that having more ‘stuff’, or money, or larger homes and/or cars is in no way a necessity, nor a requirement for our happiness, for our joy comes in the morning – the first day for all eternity in heaven with our Master, our Lord and our Savior! So we have responsibilities on earth to be representatives of the King, not to feel like we need any part of what it has to offer. Remember, it is Satan’s domain, and everything in it is influenced by him, for his glory. We are to look to our King, and no one else friend! We are to be His representatives under every circumstance in life friend! We are to appear as light, when it seems like there is only darkness friend!
PRAYER: Father, I realize as I have written my thoughts that all of this sounds good, and is very Godly in form and intention, but I also realize that this often means ‘swimming upstream’, living, acting and speaking in ways that oppose what the world may think is ‘normal’. However, I am convinced from Your Word, that we are left on this earth to imitate You, and nothing of this world will blend or match that. Please forgive us for allowing the things of this world (Satan’s domain) to slip in on our actions, words and daily living. It has impeded our witness for You and often feels like Satan is winning. Please forgive us Lord for our weaknesses and failures. Please fill us again with Your grace, Your power and Your love so that we can be more than conquerors, and represent You well with every intent of our heart. May it be obvious through our words and actions whom we serve! I ask all this in the matchless name of Jesus, my Savior and soon coming King, AMEN!
FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will 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 nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely 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, Sebring, FL! 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 