Avoid God’s Anger, Show Your Allegiance!

On 2014-09-12 By Ed AlgreenIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

The Bible – New Living Translation

^{19 The people made a calf at Mount Sinai;}

^{they bowed before an image made of gold.}

^{20 They traded their glorious God}

^{for a statue of a grass-eating bull.}

^{21 They forgot God, their savior,}

^{who had done such great things in Egypt—}

^{22 such wonderful things in the land of Ham,}

^{such awesome deeds at the Red Sea.}

^{23 So he declared he would destroy them.}

^{29 They stirred up the Lord’s anger by their actions,}

^{and a terrible disease broke out among them.}

Thoughts:

In verses 23 and 29 God declared His anger, because He could no longer stand to see His people, for whom He did so much, totally disregard their blessings and instead choose to worship, or show homage to other gods. I believe that God opened my eyes to reflect on how this is applicable to me, and/or to His ‘church’ today. Friends, I often reflect on the critical happenings in our lifetime and question why God would allow such things to happen to His people. Often I receive the answer back that God is gently trying to get the undivided attention of His kids. After all, have you also noticed how similar to the ungrateful Israelites that we have become? After major disasters, our churches fill up, at least for a few Sundays/Saturdays, then when the people realize that they can handle the fallout from the disaster themselves, they stop attending church again and fall back to their old ‘gods’. So what are these other ‘gods’ you might ask? Well, anything that takes the place of the Almighty God in our lives, are our little ‘gods’. There is no need to name them, for I believe they are numerous. Just remember, Jesus, our Lord, sacrificed His life on a cruel cross at Calvary, so that we might have life eternally with Him in glory. How much is that worth to you? I heard a lady say yesterday that throughout the rest of her lifetime, she would never part with a bed mattress that saved her life in a hurricane. How much more important is it to us to never part with our Savior who sacrificed so much to save us from our lives of sin? There is nothing more important than your time with the Lord, whether it is your daily devotions, Bible study, prayer time or corporate worship, may I encourage you to not allow your small ‘gods’ to interfere with that time? Notice in verses 23 and 29 above that this really upsets God Almighty, and before you know it, there could be another show of His anger through some disaster in your life personally or nationally. Don’t go there friend. Show your allegiance to the King of kings and Lord of Lords. He alone deserves our praise!

Prayer:

Father, I want to thank You for Your daily bread, Your daily care of me and my family, Your daily allegiance to the promises made in Your Word. You are an awesome God. I thank You for drawing me to a relationship with You, and I thanks You for Your hand of protection over me each day. I regret that my daily weaknesses and disappointments may anger You at times. Please quickly draw my attention to those times that I get off track and not display the attitude and character that You expect from a child of Yours. Please continue to work on me, mold me into Your very image so that I may exemplify You in every way to the lost world that surrounds me. May I, in turn, be faithful to You in all things and may Your love and character be evident in all that I say or do. Please touch the lives of those friends that will stop by and meditate on this devotional. May they recommit themselves to you afresh today. I firmly believe that the world needs to see Jesus portrayed in all honesty and in its truest form, even if that differs from the ways of the world. I pray that your people may be touched in this special way without the need for You showing Your anger over the appalling ways of this world. Thank You for being my Master and my Lord. Please strengthen me to do Your will each and every day. I am Yours Lord, and I lift my voice in praise and honor to You, just as I lift these prayers before You, in Your wonderful name, Lord Jesus, AMEN!

NOTE: 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 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.

Let The Love and Truth of God be Evident in Us!

On 2014-09-11 By Ed AlgreenIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

The Bible – New Living Translation

Psalm 106:6–8

⁶^{Like our ancestors, we have sinned. We have done wrong! We have acted wickedly!}

⁷^{Our ancestors in Egypt were not impressed by the Lord’s miraculous deeds. They soon forgot his many acts of kindness to them. Instead, they rebelled against him at the Red Sea.}

⁸^{Even so, he saved them — to defend the honor of his name and to demonstrate his mighty power.}

Thoughts:

I believe that way too often we look down our pious noses and try to convince ourselves of our greatness, and our sinless lives. Friends, whenever we feel that boastful and proud again, may I encourage you to look around and count the family, friends, coworkers or neighbors that have seen enough of Jesus in us that they have surrendered their lives to Jesus and to the leadership of His Holy Spirit, because of our actions and/or words. It is so very easy to look at someone and immediately analyze their problem, without first acknowledging our own, and seeking forgiveness for our own sin and littleness. It is unfortunate that we can train pets so well and they can generally be very obedient, however when it comes to training ourselves to be obedient to God, our Master, our designer, our Savior and our Friend, we suddenly take on a superiority complex as if we are in charge. Friends, just as God held back the Red Sea for our ancestors, why don’t we recognize His awesome intervention in our lives every day? You see, for our world to be impacted, our friends, family, coworkers and other contacts must see and hear the evidence of Jesus in our lives. They will not be impacted simply by us telling them about the miracles at the Red Sea or how Moses struck the rock with his rod and God produced water for His people. Our lives and our witness give validity to the Word of God. It’s the living witness of who God says that He is. Our unsaved loved ones must see this, friends!

Prayer:

Lord, I am reminded of a story about a man who had a lot of faith in a friend that he could push a wheelbarrow on a tight rope across the Niagara Falls. With all that faith, his friend invited him to ride in the wheelbarrow as he pushed it over the Falls!! This is the type of faith it took for the Israelites to follow Moses through the bottom of the Red Sea while the waters were rolled back. We are also faced with similar challenges each day and we make decisions that prove where our level of faith is. Dear Jesus, I am convinced that others will not be impacted to follow You if they see doubt in us, and if they see us living a double life, I pray that You will touch the lives of Your children today and convict us of our sin and our shortcoming. May we follow You through the little things and through the major crisis events. Today marks the anniversary of a terrible disaster here in the USA, a day that showed a lot of people their need for Your love and Your power. I pray that it will not take another disaster to draw the people to You, oh Lord, but rather, may they see Your love and our faith in You so prevalent, that they may be drawn to You, our Savior and our King. Please touch Your children who claim You as Lord today, then I ask that You please consider using Your servants to reach others, because of their faith that might become more and more evident every day. I ask this in the precious name of Jesus, my Lord and King, AMEN!

Never Question God’s Plan!

On 2014-09-10 By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, ChristianLeave a comment

The Bible – The Good News Translation

Psalm 105:12–17

^{God’s people were few in number, strangers in the land of Canaan.}

^{They wandered from country to country, from one kingdom to another.}

^{But God let no one oppress them; to protect them, he warned the kings:}

^{“Don’t harm my chosen servants; do not touch my prophets.”}

^{The Lord sent famine to their country and took away all their food.}

^{But he sent a man ahead of them, Joseph, who had been sold as a slave.}

Thoughts:

Can you imagine when Joseph’s father dedicated him to the Lord for His divine plan, how much of a box he probably built around that dedication? I’m sure that he would have felt honored if perhaps Joseph became a leading cattle rancher, or perhaps followed in his footsteps, but do you think in his wildest dreams, or in his most daring prayer he would have asked God that his little shepherd boy would become a leader in the king’s palace? In this particular Psalm, David reflected on the instruction given to the kings by God about not touching His prophets, and here he was praising God for the provision He made in the young boy, Joseph, to facilitate relief for the punishment he was about to render on the king and his dominion. We all know the wonderful story of Joseph, but in these verses I was reminded about the whole purpose for his mission in life. It was all God designed and orchestrated. How often do we stop and reflect on stories like this to energize our worship and praises of thanksgiving for God’s perfect plan? It ignites in us a feeling of praise, excitement and expectancy as we not only thank Him for His mighty works, but also look forward to what He is already doing in our lives and the lives of our loved ones. When disasters occur, like the famine that occurred in this story, are we bold enough in our trust in God to know that God has already made provisions for His people by having a plan ready, and a man ready to lead His plan? We have the record book to show us that this is how He operates, so why doubt? Let’s ask Him to do it again! We know He can!

Prayer:

Praise God that Your divine plan for Your children is so much more than we, or our ancestors could ever have dreamed of. Reflecting on Moses, he whined about the speech impediment that bothered him as a spokesman, yet You used his ounce of faith to lead millions of people for years to the Promised Land through many extenuating circumstances. Many of these challenges seemed impossible to man, yet folk today are saved because of the power they saw in the mighty power of God through Moses. Again in the story of Joseph, we saw where men (his own brothers) meant evil for this young man, but praise God You had a much bigger plan for this young man! Our small, insignificant minds are so limited, but praise God we serve the One with all knowledge, all wisdom and all power, and in light of another verse You led me to this morning (James 3:17) You are a God who shows no favoritism and You are sincere in all that You do. Wow, again I am reminded that I serve such an awesome God! Please use me more every day for Your glory! My friends reading this will be very much like me, so I ask You dear Lord to also place Your miracle working hand on their lives so that they can be all that You planned for them. Only You have the awesome power to accomplish all this that I’ve asked dear Jesus, so I ask it in Your precious and holy name, AMEN!

May My Thoughts Please Christ!

On 2014-09-092014-09-09 By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Pleasing to God, Praise, WorshipLeave a comment

The Bible – New Century Version

Psalm 104:33–34

³³^{I will sing to the Lord all my life;}

^{I will sing praises to my God as long as I live.}

³⁴^{May my thoughts please Him;}

^{I am happy in the Lord.}

Thoughts:

Ever read a book, flip the pages and all as if you had finished reading that page, but in reality you don’t have a clue what was on that page, because your mind was miles away? Does this happen to us in our families where we are not really tuned in to a conversation taking place? Now-a-days we have all the distractions of electronics and television to distract us from quality time, or a time where our family has our undivided attention. What about church? Surely our minds don’t wonder off when we are in God’s house!! In verse 33, David is boasting about his awesome worship times – singing to the Lord – in fact he went as far as saying that he is committed to singing these praises as long as he lived. Then comes verse 34, where David asks God to direct his thoughts so that they may please Him. I get the impression that he is singing the praises, but yet seeing his mind wonder off onto other things. That caught my attention, because I believe that I am not alone when my mind wonders off during a worship song, or during the preaching or even the praying. Friends, I believe that our minds are in such overload with what remains undone at work, and/or family business that must be attended to, and/or just overtired because we didn’t get enough rest. I also believe that if we fail to worship God daily in our personal lives, it is highly unlikely that we could be very sincere in our corporate worship. Imagine our pastors coming to the pulpit, without sermon preparation or personal worship time, but because that’s the place they are paid to be at that certain hour each week. How do you suppose the sermon would come off? So why do you suppose we, the congregants are any different? Without any worship time during the week and/or any preparation time with God about the 1-2 hours that we are about to spend in corporate worship, do you suppose that our minds are magically changed and redirected from the busyness of the week, to now totally concentrate on our worship time? Friends, I believe that we have an obligation to our God, who knows everything about every thought, word or deed, to confess our weaknesses and ask for His divine intervention, so that we can avoid the pretense of worship, and instead surrender our lives, our minds and our whole beings over to Him. These words from a song I love seem appropriate for us to sing each time we enter into corporate worship, “… so forget about yourself, and concentrate on Him, and worship Him….” How is it with you friend? Is there something you need to speak with God about as far as Him receiving your undivided attention during worship times?

Prayer:

Loving Lord Jesus, please forgive me for the times that I am bodily present in worship services, but my mind is everywhere else but there. I am very much like David where I need Your touch on my life so that I can truly concentrate on You and worship You for the awesome God that You are. You have made us, and provided everything possible for our enjoyment, yet we find it challenging to give You our undivided attention, worship and praise. Lord, please touch Your people once again. I believe that revival will break out if we all came to worship, prepared in our hearts and minds, and dedicate our corporate worship time entirely to You. Please patiently examine our hearts and our minds and renew within us a right spirit, open to exemplifying You in every way, every day, and offering up our undiluted praise at every opportunity. We need this, and you deserve this dear Lord, so I ask this in your precious and holy name, AMEN!

The Creation of My Awesome God!

On 2014-09-08 By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Christian, Disciple, God our Provider, PraiseLeave a comment

The Bible – The Good News Translation

Psalm 104:13–15

¹³^{From the sky you send rain on the hills, and the earth is filled with your blessings.}

¹⁴^{You make grass grow for the cattle and plants for human beings to use, so that they can grow their crops}

¹⁵^{and produce wine to make them happy, olive oil to make them cheerful, and bread to give them strength.}

Thoughts:

I am blessed to enjoy a short vacation this week, so as I meditate on this scripture I can hear the ocean waves beating against the shoreline, I can overlook the vastness of the ocean, the beauty of the land as it tapers off into the ocean waters (the beach), and the shrubbery that is specific to this area and tolerant of the salt sprays from the ocean. In addition to its beauty and the amazement of my wonderful God, I am overwhelmed by the stubbornness of man who is forced to obey government rules and regulations concerning our beaches and adjacent properties, and they are forced to cooperate with the rules of nature/God by planting the right kind of shrubs for the brutal salt sprays, yet we are challenged to convince these same men that there is a God who loves them even more than the waters and the earth. Isn’t it interesting that God is patient with these smart men in their ignorance and rejection, and He will forgive them at their request when coming to Him for salvation? David also recognized the awesomeness of all that surrounded him, so he expressed the inner joy and appreciation in the value of the rain, and the lush growth of plants around him. These plants were not just another pesky bush that he had to complain about trimming, but David recognized that had it not been for God providing these specific plants, he and others, like you and I, would be cheated from valuable things like wine, olive oil and bread. Friends it is not our responsibility to prove to non-believers that God exist, it is our duty to God to boast about the power of God that saved us from our sin, and that all the many things around them us were created and strategically placed because of the wonder, majesty, power and awesome love of our Provider, our maker, our Savior and our Lord. Please be reminded that we can save no one. We merely express what’s in our heart. God will use that little, to accomplish much for His ultimate glory. I am reminded in another scripture verse where Jesus said that if His disciples kept quiet the very stones will cry out/sing praise (Luke 19:40). We are not challenged to find words to praise our kids and grand-kids, why are we so challenged to sing the praises of our Creator? Could it be that our relationship with God is not where it needs to be? Draw close to God dear friend, so that He can draw near to you. He loves You and wants to be involved in your life.

Prayer:

Lord, I praise You for who You are, and for the beauty of all that You have provided for us to enjoy and benefit from. You not only made us in Your wonderful image, but You followed through by providing everything we need to survive, and even things to enhance our worship of You. You are awesome Mighty God! Thank You for being my Master and yet my friend. I honor You today and I thank You for providing everything around me to enjoy, both for peace of mind and rejuvenation but also for survival through the foods that I eat and the air that I breathe. As David reminds me, this earth is filled with Your blessings and Your awesome touch. Thank you for being my God, my Lord and my Savior. I adore You heavenly Father. May You be praised by every living soul this day, especially those that may meditate on this devotional. I praise You, and ask all this, in Your most holy and awesome name, Jesus my Lord, AMEN!

Looking For A Way Out?

On 2014-09-06 By Ed AlgreenIn Christian, Divorce, God’s Word, Obedience, SeparationLeave a comment

The Bible – The Message

1 Corinthians 7:17

^{And don’t be wishing you were someplace else or with someone else. Where you are right now is God’s place for you. Live and obey and love and believe right there. God, not your marital status, defines your life. Don’t think I’m being harder on you than on the others. I give this same counsel in all the churches.}

Thoughts:

Several truths invigorated my devotional time as I read this passage this morning, as I was reminded of how Paul addressed the Corinthian church concerning marriages, specifically marriages with one partner being a Christian and the other not. I found it interesting to note how little our culture has changed over the thousands of years! However, I bolded a couple of places in these verses that, I believe, God wanted me to tune into. I once had the honor of spending some time with an elderly couple, and the gentleman once remarked how interesting it is to note how a person can find so much fault, and problems with a car, once they have made up their minds that they want to buy a new one!! Doesn’t this sound a lot like what Paul was addressing in this verse? For he reminded the Corinthians that God has placed you in a specific place to serve a certain purpose for Him, so stay put and allow Him to do His mighty work. Quit looking for all the faults with the other spouse, and be God to them. Portray the characteristics of God. You know them, because as you read the Word of God you learn His character and also the mind of Christ. The other part of Paul’s instructions that challenged me, is that we are to be careful not to allow our circumstances, or our company, or our workers, or our relationships, or even our church define us. God is our focus, He is our guide, He is our example, and it is He who should define our character. In other words, we should act, speak and love so much like Christ that folk should stand in awe at the image of Christ in us. In fact, because of Christ’s qualities being expressed through us, folk should want to run towards God, and not away from Him. So how is it with you friend? Are you looking for a way out of your present circumstances, or are you looking for ways to enhance them so that they will look more like the image of Christ because you are there? I trust that it is the latter!

Prayer:

Father, there are so many circumstances in our lives that we can apply this teaching to. For some it may be a relationship, or a marriage, or a church, or a job, or a home, or a multitude of other things. Too often we convince ourselves that if only we could escape the circumstances, then things would be better. But Lord You have shown us over and over again that our lives are to be all about You, and not driven by our circumstances or the people around us. The institution of marriage is in trouble today, probably worse than in Paul’s days of ministry. Please allow Your Word to be deeply embedded into the lives of couples who are struggling. Please especially speak to spouses today who have drifted away from You and allowing other worldly circumstances to drive their decisions. In many cases there are children watching dads and/or moms make disastrous decisions that will have strong, negative impacts on their survival as a child of Yours. Please bring this verse fresh in the hearts and lives of those that need this word today, so that they may refocus their lives and their marriages on You. Thank You Father for Your Word that is so powerful and relevant to every circumstance, even today. Thank You for guiding me to Your Word every day. Please challenge the hearts of Your children with a renewed desire to follow You, so that we can all be refresh and reminded of the Rule Book by which we should live. You are holy, and we are not, please allow a little of Your holiness to soak into our lives and our character, so that we may be more apt to obey You in all things. I ask all this in the precious name of Your precious Son, Jesus my Lord, AMEN!

One Choice Determines Your Destiny!

On 2014-09-05 By Ed AlgreenIn All have sinned, Bible Believing, Born Again, Christian, Eternal Life, Faith, Holy Spirit, Knowing Christ, Reaching the LostLeave a comment

The Bible – New Living Translation

Psalm 102:27–28

²⁷But you are always the same;

you will live forever.

²⁸The children of your people

will live in security.

Their children’s children

will thrive in your presence.”

Thoughts:

As our kids are growing up we try to make sure they do well in school, and we prepare financially, and mentally, for them going on to college, to help prepare them for the best jobs, and therefore the best chance of making it in this challenging world. Similarly, in life, we are born a sinner, and because of a precious gift given by God, we have a choice of remaining a sinner (without Christ), or to accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior. We may then live the rest of our lives savoring in that love, and subsequently look forward to a glorious day when we might be with Jesus in glory. You might ask, “but how do I get from point ‘A’ to point ‘B’ in these life decisions”. David reminds us in this Psalm that in spite of all that changes in this world, in fact all that changes in our generation compared to that of our forefathers, it is important to remember that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. For a moment, let us look at the death of our parents. The world looks on and they either raise their hands in celebration that the children of the deceased were taught the love of God, accepted that precious gift, and therefore have the security referenced in verse 28 above, or disappointedly they may nod their heads knowing that the children have opted to live their lives without regards for the Christ that their parent knew, and therefore has no hope of tomorrow. Friends, my God is an everlasting God that I can recommend to my child(ren) and give them the assurance of life eternally with Him. How can I do this? Because, in scripture I am assured by Jesus, when He said: “Because I live ye shall live also”. You see, Jesus has prepared a home for His children! Praise God, I have the assurance like David did, that this ‘home’ Jesus referred to is not just for Christians today, but for their children also, if they make the choice to personally accept Jesus and develop a life-long relationship with Him. No choice at all will leave you on the road to eternal destruction (Hell). Making a choice to accept Jesus as Lord, can give you the same comfort and assurance that your Christian forefathers may have had, if they knew Him. Super simple folk, but super important. I hope that you will use the contact information in the footnote and allow myself or someone else who loves you, to lead you to the cross of Jesus Christ TODAY! I would love to celebrate with you!

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, just as my friends make choices that help mark the destiny of their children’s future, I pray that they will seriously consider making a super important choice, as presented above that would mark the eternal destiny for their lives. Not knowing what might happen the next hour or minute, I selfishly ask that You impact their lives immediately after being reminded of this in this devotional, so that they may have opportunity to make this all important choice. Thank You for impressing this upon my life some 38 years. You know how this would hurt me to now that anyone would be left behind, especially anyone that I love, care for, work with, or have opportunity to minister to. This includes anyone meditating on this devotional today. Thank You Lord for the provision You made for us at Calvary. I look forward to the day You decide to call me home to be with You! I am thankful, but yet plead my requests of You, and I ask all this in Your wonderful and all-powerful name, 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 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.

What Are You Doing To Christ?

On 2014-09-04 By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Christian, Holy, Holy Spirit, Pleasing to God, Purity, RighteousnessLeave a comment

The Bible – The Good News Translation

1 Corinthians 6:15–17

¹⁵^{You know that your bodies are parts of the body of Christ. Shall I take a part of Christ’s body and make it part of the body of a prostitute? Impossible!}¹⁶ ^{Or perhaps you don’t know that the man who joins his body to a prostitute becomes physically one with her? The scripture says quite plainly, “The two will become one body.”}¹⁷^{But he who joins himself to the Lord becomes spiritually one with him.}

Thoughts:

Many Christians cringe when they sit down and watch a movie about the crucifixion of our Lord. Many more abhor any type of disrespect of God, either in abusing His name, or dishonoring Him in either way. These things are honorable for the children of God, but how often do we stop and consider the abuse we are subjecting our Father to when we find ourselves in places where sin abound, or in a movie where there is no respect for man or God? Paul was addressing the subject of male prostitution that had become very prominent in the Corinthian church, and he reminded them that they should consider that they are not just abusing and disrespecting their physical bodies, but that God’s Holy Spirit has taken up residence in their holy temple, when they first accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior. I believe that this obvious sin is very clear to see friends, but what God challenged me in through this scripture, is to be extra careful about what I subject my eyes to, and what I subject my ears to, and what I allow my mind to envelope and ponder, and the things that I abuse and subject my body to, for the Spirit of the most High is resident in this body. Just for a moment, think about the idea of going out one morning and spray-painting the inside of your garage, with you brand new car sitting in the garage! Can you image what the paint job of your car will look like when you have finished beautifying the walls of your garage? OK, in the same way, our bodies are much like the garage, whatever we subject it to, we are subjecting/disrespecting God’s Holy Spirit to, that resides within this body. Shame on us? Ashamedly, I would say yes, very much so. I remember the words of an old saint who once found herself in a location that she regretted. She openly prayed, Lord Jesus, please don’t come now!! Funny? Yes, but like the car in the garage, the damage is already done. An old nursery rhyme or song is very appropriate here: “Oh be careful little eyes what you see ……”

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, I am especially thankful for Your Holy Spirit! I am thankful that You created me, and saved me so that my body might be the temple of the Holy Spirit. Please forgive me for the times that I’ve abused the residence and Lordship of Your Holy Spirit, for I am ashamed. Thank You for directing me to this passage of scripture, and sharpening my awareness of the abuse of this temple where Your Holy Spirit resides. I pray that I might concede to full obedience to Your Word, and that I might protect and preserve this temple, and never subject it to anything contrary to what is taught in Your Word. I believe that in such a condition, You will be free to accomplish Your work through me that You have in store for me to do while here below. I’m afraid that I’m not alone in this dear Jesus, so I ask that You speak words of wisdom and encouragement to all your children reading this blog today, so that Your holiness and mighty work might be preserved and accomplished here in this sinful world. Please have Your will and way in our lives today, is my humble prayer that I ask in Your precious and holy name, Jesus my Lord, AMEN!

How To Know You Are A Child of the King

On 2014-09-03 By Ed AlgreenIn All have sinned, Ask and Receive, Born Again, Christian, God Cares For Us, Grace, Heaven, Holy Spirit, Hope, Knowing Christ, Listen to the Word of God, Repentance, Righteousness, Victorious LifeLeave a comment

The Bible – The Good news Translation

1 Corinthians 6:9–11

⁹^{Surely you know that the wicked will not possess God’s Kingdom. Do not fool yourselves; people who are immoral or who worship idols or are adulterers or homosexual perverts}¹⁰^{or who steal or are greedy or are drunkards or who slander others or are thieves—none of these will possess God’s Kingdom.}¹¹^{Some of you were like that. But you have been purified from sin; you have been dedicated to God; you have been put right with God by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.}

Thoughts:

Do you ever stop and ponder if you are truly saved and destined for heaven’s portals one day to be with Jesus? Perhaps your parents reminds you of a time that you made a public profession, or was baptized, but questions have arisen in your mind about your salvation because you, personally, don’t recall making a decision to accept Jesus as Lord of your life? Friends, I want to help you clarify that in your mind today in light of these highlighted verses. First of all, do you recall the day you graduated from high school? What about the day you got married? I bet by now you are wondering if I am being ridiculous with you, because these are important dates that everyone remembers. But that’s my point, these important dates are remembered because there was a specific time that your life changed. Friends, neither of these dates are anywhere near as important as the day that you may have said no to this world and its evil ways, and yes to Jesus and all the glories of heaven. This is a decision where your life changes forever, because through the power of the Holy Spirit that takes up residence in your life at the time of salvation, you leave behind the sins of this world, such as those mentioned in these verses by Paul to the Corinthian church, and you march to a different Master, a righteous Leader and Lord, who changes you from the inside out and leads you in the path of righteousness – right living according to God’s terms in His Word. Secondly, I want to draw the attention of those who may have accepted Jesus as Lord of your life, yet in reading these verses this morning you are guilty of some of these sins. Friends, this is not an all-inclusive list of sins, these are just the ones Paul saw happening among the Corinthian church members. But think of it this way, all unrighteousness is sin; every actual sin, committed with design, and not repented of, shuts out the kingdom of heaven, for no sin is allowed there. We cannot hope to sow to the flesh, and reap everlasting life. Only the blood of Christ, and our desire to cleanse ourselves of sin, can take away all guilt. All who are made righteous in the sight of God, are made holy by the grace of God. If you are still struggling with the idea of whether you are secure in the kingdom of God, please use the information in the footnote to seek help. This is important enough that One Man gave His life to help you secure your eternal destiny, so please don’t delay!

Prayer:

Lord, I acknowledge that Your Word is very timely, appropriate and pointed – because only You know what we need, when we need it and why we need it. I believe that this is needed to help us recognize our sin, cleanse us of our sin, and redirect our more righteous lives to serving You as clean, strong, non-hypocritical servants before our lost family and friends. We just can’t be effective if we live just like them, accept the same sinful actions as they do and share in the same gossip rings that they participate in. We must represent You in spite of what appears to be acceptable to them, for we are a ‘New’ and a ‘Holy’ creation serving an awesome and sinless God. As You have opened our eyes in Scripture today, please tender our hearts to right decisions to seek Your forgiveness of our sin and to lives our lives acceptable to You and usable by You. Thank You for speaking to my heart today Lord, may Your perfect will also be accomplished in the lives of my readers today, is my humble and sincere prayer that I ask in Your name alone, dear Jesus, AMEN!

Reasons To Worship

On 2014-09-02 By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Born Again, Celebrate God, Christian, Faith, God Cares For Us, Heaven, Pleasing to God, Praise, WorshipLeave a comment

The Bible – New Living Translation

Psalm 95:6–7

⁶Come, let us worship and bow down.

Let us kneel before the Lord our maker,

⁷for he is our God.

We are the people he watches over,

the flock under his care.

If only you would listen to his voice today!

Thoughts:

As a child, we normally question ‘Why?’ as we learn new things or when people ask us something, or tell us to do something. Is it any different as adults? We tend to question a lot also, and we tend to object when we don’t understand why we are being asked to do something. In these focused verses from Psalm 95, David encouraged us to come, and let us worship God, let us bow down, and let us kneel before the Lord. Now, let’s look at our lives today and consider why we would want to follow this idea, or command, of David’s. After all, there is no way that we would do something like this without understanding why we are doing it! Here are some reasons I discerned from David’s command:

God is our maker – think about this, parents play an important role in ‘making’ their children. While they don’t demand their children to worship them, they do demand respect, honor and obedience. So when we consider God as our ‘maker’ should we not worship Him as part of our respect, honor, obedience and praise? In fact, these attributes are forms of worship!
He is our God – Sometimes I believe that we would sooner listen to the weatherman about Mother-Nature giving us a beautiful day, and offer up thanks to ‘Mother-Nature’ for blessing us with a great day! Friends, there is no ‘Mother-Nature’, there is God! He is the one that put this world together and created you and me to populate this earth. He is the One that created rain, the sun and all other things needed for us, and plant life, to live. He is the One who deserves our praise for the awesome days; good health; food on our tables; loving families, etc!
He watches over us – oh how thankful we are when sitters take such good care of our children for us. I know, we don’t worship them, but I do know that we are very thankful to them and honor them for their faithfulness to our kids. These are forms of ‘worship’ friends! If you came to church with these attributes towards God, you will be offering up praise to Him and could very easily be led into worship of Him.
He cares for us – I’ve been physically down a bit recently while recovering from surgery, and had to depend more on my wife, child, sister and church leaders than probably any other time in my life. Am I thankful to these individuals, and appreciate their unselfish acts in helping me when I can’t help myself? You bet I am! Do you see how this is the same way that God cares for us every day? Do you see how our hearts should be filled to overflowing with praise and thanksgiving to God when we come together to corporately worship Him?

Friends, based on the above, do you see any reason why we would need help in worshiping our God? Do you see any reason why our churches are not filled with the praises of God’s children when there are planned worship services? It begins with each of us friends, for we are the church. We are the ones that must draw close to God, so that He might draw close to us. We are the ones that must ready ourselves for corporate worship each week so that we can offer honest and heartfelt worship to our God. When the world sees this, they will be drawn to God. They must see something different than what they see in their everyday life on the streets or in secular jobs.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, thank You for being my God. Thank You for loving me enough that You gave, so that I might have an entryway into Heaven. Thank you for watching over me and caring for me. Lord, please help me, and those that I worship with each week, to stop our busy minds, leave behind the concerns of this world, concentrate on You and worship You. Lord, this is very personal, so I believe each of us must purpose in our own hearts to give all of us to all of You, so that You may be lifted up, worshiped and praised in a manner pleasing to You. May You hear a sweet, sweet sound of personal worship from us daily, and especially when we come together for corporate worship. Thank You for hearing my prayer, oh Lord, for I am asking all this in Your precious and holy name, AMEN!