Rewards For The Righteous

On 2023-06-10 By Ed AlgreenIn A Lamp unto My Path, Adoration, Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Awesome God, Beyond Description, Blessing, Celebrate God, Needs, Praise, Praise-worthy, Recognize God, Righteous, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED: Saturday, June 10, 2023, and I was blessed to be at O’Brien, FL when God inspired me to prepare this devotional. My Footnote will tell you how to find, read or listen to any and all episodes that I have shared over the years.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE FROM THE Amplified Bible (AMP) IS FOUND IN Proverbs 10:30-32

THE BIBLE TEXT IS: The [consistently] righteous will never be shaken, But the wicked will not inhabit the earth. The mouth of the righteous flows with [skillful and godly] wisdom, But the perverted tongue will be cut out. The lips of the righteous know (speak) what is acceptable, But the mouth of the wicked knows (speaks) what is perverted (twisted).

MY INITIAL THOUGHTS: God caught my attention today as I studied in the NLT where ‘The righteous’ was referred to as ‘The godly’. As I prepare my notes for publishing my thoughts, I often think about what a non-believer must think who happens across my Nuggets from the Word of God. So I spent some time studying and thinking about what the Bible means when it refers to ‘The godly’, or as the Amplified and several other versions refer to this cross-section of people as – ‘The righteous’. I believe that God might challenge you today as you meditate on the remainder of this devotional with me.

APPLICATION OF THE WORD: The NLT (New Living Translation) refers to ‘the godly’, and I was amazed to discover a meaning of: ‘someone or something as having a religious character, being devout, and conforming to the laws and wishes of God. It can also refer to something that comes from God or is divine. Godliness is more than just external behaviors; it is an inward devotion to God that is outwardly displayed‘. The AMP version that I used above refers to ‘The righteous person’, and I believe that the above description also describes the person who has placed their life under the complete lordship of Jesus Christ, and who strives daily to live a life that is ‘right with God’, and living in obedience to the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, as detailed in His Word. Because of the struggles that Christians sometime feel like they are going through, I believe there exists a certain amount of doubt about the true value of being a Christian, or a godly person, or ‘righteous’ in God’s view. However, if you would take a few minutes to read this short chapter in Proverbs, I believe your eyes might be opened to the 11 times that Solomon explained how he felt the godly, or righteous person is benefited, or blessed by Almighty God. From our finances, to our nutritional needs, to the value of the words we speak, to our earnings, etc. This wise man of God also compared in each example how the children of Satan would struggle in each area that God’s children are blessed. I believe that today we should be consciously looking closer at the many ways that Christians are blessed in so many areas, compared to their worldly, unsaved, evil counterparts. Friends, we are children of the Creator of this universe; the One who offered salvation for even sinners who are so undeserving of such wondrous blessings; the King who rules above all kings and lords. We are a blessed people, and the best is yet to come, for when we leave this world behind, we are welcomed into the glories of heaven. What about you dear Christian friend, are you living today as one who has this kind of assurance and a future that is out of this world? What about you, dear one who has chosen death over life; Hell over Heaven; Satan over Father, Son and Holy Spirit? As long as you have life, you can still choose ‘life’ over death and Jesus over Satan. It’s up to you precious friend. Live today with the security of your future being in Jesus Christ! There are helpful tips in my Footnote to guide you in changing the trajectory of your life! Please do the smart thing today!

BLESSINGS WORTH NOTING: Having a mouth filled with wisdom, tells me that the world is watching and listening to the child of God. Let’s be so attuned to the Word of God that we will never disappoint the world in hearing true wisdom, as if directly from God.

PRAYER BECAUSE OF THE IMPACT OF TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: Thank You Lord Jesus for blessing us way more than we could ever imagine, or deserve. Please work in us and keep us near the cross where your mercies and grace will always fill our hearts and impact our lives. May the meditation of my heart, and the words from my mouth be used by those who hear them, better know and accept You as Lord and Savior. Please continue to bless us, and always use us for Your glory. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There’s another page on my website, entitled ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading or listening to this devotional, please go to this 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. If you would like to read more of my devotionals, or subscribe for a daily email containing each new devotional, please go online to NuggetsFromGodsWord.org. For my podcast, go online to Apple Podcasts or, using the Apple Podcast app, simply search for Nuggets From God’s Word to hear more episodes, or click ‘Follow’ to be notified of Podcast updates. Friends, please allow me to encourage you to find a church home near by your home and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Guilty Of Following Christ’s Example

On 2022-03-212022-03-21 By Ed AlgreenIn Character, Characteristics, Christ-Like, Example of Christ, Genuine example of Jesus, Godly example, Like JesusLeave a comment

DATE WRITTEN: Monday, 2022-03-21
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

Bible Reference: Romans 2:21-24
Translation: Living Bible (TLB)

Bible Text: ²¹… you teach others—then why don’t you teach yourselves? You tell others not to steal—do you steal? ²²You say it is wrong to commit adultery—do you do it? You say “Don’t pray to idols” and then make money your god instead. ²³You are so proud of knowing God’s laws, but you dishonor him by breaking them. ²⁴No wonder the Scriptures say that the world speaks evil of God because of you.

APPLICATION: I cringe when I hear folks say things like “your actions speak so loudly that I can’t hear what you are saying”. Because, unfortunately these folk are often right in saying these things. It hurts me deeply when I hear of church leaders caught in certain acts of sin, because they often have such a large following who is looking to them as a role model. No matter how often we tell folk that they should model their lives after Christ, not man, yet we see more fall out from church members when a pastor leaves, or a church leader is caught in an act of sin. The bottom line is that we all should be guilty of following Christ’s example so closely that people around us would see no difference between our actions and those they expect from Christ. When we surrender Lordship of our lives to Jesus, we ask Him to guide our footsteps every day so that we may walk like Him; guide our tongues each day so that we may talk like Him, and care so much for us each day that we may, in turn, love others like He would. Without Jesus Christ, it is virtually impossible to follow His ways each day in this world we live in, however, rest assured that in Christ, ALL things are possible. If friends of yours never read the first thing about the Bible, but they trust you enough to follow in your footsteps and obey your verbal instructions to them, who would they look like, Jesus Christ or the world? Remember, we are to be little ‘Christ’s’, so our friends following us could ultimately look the same! How are you doing? Do you have portions of your life still left to surrender to God, or are you comfortable that your life is in line with Jesus Christ? Please don’t let Jesus say to you on Judgment Day what Paul said to his fellow Jews, that people are cursing Christ because of you. As a parent we gloat at the times when others praise our children, because we feel a sense of pride in the job that we did in parenting. Let’s live our Christian lives following the same formula, so that Jesus may one day say “Well done good and faithful servant, when these children of Mine followed you, it was the same as them following Me, receive now the crowns I have prepared for you”! Let’s live with the end in mind friend!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, I respectfully ask that I not be a stumbling block to anyone here on this earth. I pray that others may see enough of You in me that they will not be disappointed over their expectations of You. Lord, may I always represent You in ways that might lead others towards You. Please gently speak to my friends that may meditate on this devotional today, and lead them into a time of soul-searching and revival in their personal lives. Lord, it’s You that we live for. May that be evident in our words and actions today, is my humble prayer that I ask in Your very precious and holy name, AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog at https://NuggetsFromGodsWord.org 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 or listening to this devotional, please go to 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. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and see all of my posts, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Christmas Gift Ideas

On 2020-12-082020-12-07 By Ed AlgreenIn Christian love, Christmas, Forgiveness, gifts, Humble, Kindness, Love, PatienceLeave a comment

Friday, 2020-12-08

Bible Reference: Colossians 3:12-14
Translation: Easy-To-Read Version (ERV)

Bible Text: ¹²God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So your new life should be like this: Show mercy to others. Be kind, humble, gentle, and patient. ¹³Don’t be angry with each other, but forgive each other. If you feel someone has wronged you, forgive them. Forgive others because the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴Together with these things, the most important part of your new life is to love each other. Love is what holds everything together in perfect unity.

OBSERVATION: At Christmas time we seem to easily find room in our hearts to be kind to others. In our verses today Paul reminds us of what all God did for us, and how that should lead us to do the same for others. So as we meditate on this today, may it stir up within us many ideas on how we might bless others at Christmas!

APPLICATION: Most children are probably looking forward to Christmas because of the gifts they have asked for, and expect to receive. As adults, Paul has reminded us of the gracious gifts that are ours, in being a child of the most high God! Here are some of the gifts mentioned by Paul: 1). God has made us His holy people – imagine that – steeped in sin and very much a part of Satan’s army, yet when we felt the call on our life by Jesus, and surrendered our life to Him, we were adopted into the sonship of the Most Holy God! That is beyond comprehension, and could only be imagined through faith in the truth of God’s Holy Word; 2). God loves us – ‘Love’ is an awesome word that we use, and even abuse in our lifetime, but it takes on such a special meaning when the holy Son of God loves a child that has been so blatant in sin, and asked for His forgiveness. Oh that we may find it in our hearts to love like that this Christmas! But because of all that God blessed us with, here are some gifts that we may give to others, knowing that He will continue pouring out His gracious love to us: Show mercy towards others; Be kind to others; Be humble towards others; Be gentle to others; Be patient with others; Don’t be angry with others; Forgive others; and LOVE others. Friends, the best news of all about these godly gifts, compared to our usual gift giving, is that there will be no increase in credit card bills whatsoever! So why not read over this devotional again as Christmas draws closer, and concentrate on all the gody gifts that you can extend to family and friends. Be instrumental in teaching them God’s ways and His teachings through your example this Christmas! Others just may see that you have a heart like that of Jesus, because you showed that you cared for them!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You for Christmas, and the precious gift of Your Son! Thank You for teaching us about the many precious gifts that You bless us with, and then through your servant Paul, teaching us how we might extend to others the many gifts that You have showered on us. Please help us to make someone’s Christmas special this year, simply by showering them with the character of Your Son, and the godly gifts mentioned in our Scripture today. AMEN!

Character Reflective of God

On 2020-03-20 By Ed AlgreenIn Character, Characteristics, Christ-Like, Like JesusLeave a comment

DATE WRITTEN: Friday, 2020-03-20
WRITTEN AT: Paul B Johnson State Park, Hattiesburg, MS

Bible Reference: Romans 2:23-24
Translation: The Voice (VOICE)

Bible Text: ²³If you pride yourself in having God’s law, then stop dishonoring God by failing to keep its teaching. ²⁴Here’s what it says: “Because of you, God’s reputation is slandered by those outside the covenant.”^[b]

OBSERVATION: Like me, I bet you also heard your parents use the phrase ‘Practice What You Preach’ at every applicable opportunity! In this passage of scripture Paul is also using this principle in his teaching to the Jews, and because it is God’s inspired Word, I believe it serves as a reminder to us as well. I believe that this is still a very real problem for us even today. Please meditate further with me as we contemplate this scripture from the book of Romans today.

APPLICATION: I cringe when I hear folks say things like “your actions speak so loudly that I can’t hear what you are saying”. Because, unfortunately these folk are often right in saying these things. It hurts me deeply when I hear of church leaders caught in certain acts of sin, because they often have such a large following who is looking to them as a role model. No matter how often we tell folk that they should model their lives after Christ, not man, yet we see more fall out from church members when a pastor leaves, or a church leader is caught in an act of sin. The bottom line is that we all should be guilty of following Christ’s example so closely that people around us would see no difference between our actions and those they expect from Christ. When we surrender Lordship of our lives to Jesus, we ask Him to guide our footsteps every day so that we may walk like Him; guide our tongues each day so that we may talk like Him, and care so much for us each day that we may, in turn, love others like He would. Without Jesus Christ, it is virtually impossible to follow His ways each day in the world we live in, however, rest assured that in Christ, ALL things are possible. If friends of yours never read the first thing about the Bible, but they trust you enough to follow in your footsteps and obey your verbal instructions to them, who would they look like, Jesus Christ or the world? Remember, we are to be little ‘Christ’s’, so our friends following us could ultimately look the same! How are you doing? Do you have portions of your life still left to surrender to God, or are you comfortable that your life is in line with Jesus Christ? Please don’t let Jesus say to you on Judgment Day what Paul said to his fellow Jews, that people are cursing Christ because of you. As a parent we gloat at the times when others praise our children, because we feel a sense of pride in the job that we did in parenting. Let’s live our Christian lives following the same formula, so that Jesus may one day say “Well done good and faithful servant, when these children of Mine followed you, it was the same as them following Me, receive now the crowns I have prepared for you”! Let’s live with the end in mind friend!

Live Daily Declaring ‘To Whom You Belong’

On 2019-10-09 By Ed AlgreenIn Evidence of Faith, Example, Example of Christ, Holy, Surrender2 Comments

Wednesday, 2019-10-09

Bible Reference: Ephesians 4:22-24
Translation: The Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Bible Text: ²² You were told that your foolish desires will destroy you and that you must give up your old way of life with all its bad habits.²³ Let the Spirit change your way of thinking ²⁴ and make you into a new person. You were created to be like God, and so you must please him and be truly holy.

OBSERVATION: We are known to others by our actions, our character, our level of commitment and our love. Think about it, these are many of the same characteristics that they remember Jesus by! Unfortunately, these are also some of the same characteristics that others will identify us as being no different to anyone else, and therefore children of the world, and led by Satan. Jesus is righteous and holy, so if we are to be identified with Him, we must live in that manner. Meditate with me as we consider how all this is possible.

APPLICATION: Evil people think evil, wicked things, so they live like evil, wicked people. Does your life show enough evidence of whose you are, that others will be convinced? When we surrender ourselves to someone, we generally release ourselves from the one to whom we were committed before. We become very miserable and confused when we detect any bleeding over of one allegiance into another. Think about it – when you marry someone and commit your life to that person, you are generally happy and living a blissful life together, until one of you start to reflect on an old flame, or perhaps another prospect that Satan has placed in your path. It just doesn’t work friend. The marriage is doomed to fail when this happens. Don’t you know then that the same thing happens in our walk with the Lord? Paul calls our mental escape from reality ‘foolish’, for we know that the minute we entertain a bad habit, it will pull us back into bad habits. The very moment that we give in to sin, we have taken our eyes off God, and it becomes easy for Satan to pull us back into his world. This is not abnormal for humans, that’s just the way we are designed. However, just as Paul teaches us in this scripture, we have an Advocate who is standing ready to help us overcome this weakness. It is the Spirit of the Living God that enters the believer, who helps us overcome our weaknesses and makes us into a new person. However, the Spirit does not take control of our will. We must willingly surrender ourselves to the Almighty God, and this is not just a one-time thing where you may have done so in a church service at a much earlier stage in your life. This is a daily surrender of your will to His will and His control. This is the only way that we can possibly expect to be like our creator. What a reminder in verse 24 – we were created to be like God – WOW! However the ending of that verse is also important, as it is the only way that we stand a chance of getting close to achieving this – we must strive to please God and to be truly holy, even as He is holy. When we live under the power and authority of the Holy Spirit, it will be evident to others when they come into contact with us.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for Your faithfulness to us, in spite of our weaknesses. Thank You for Your Word that teaches us the importance of living our lives to reflect our Master and our Lord, and for teaching us and warning us of the pitfalls that will distract us in our walk for You. Please continue to open our eyes and encourage our spirits so that we might be more determined than ever to live Godly lives, so that the lost might know that our Savior lives, and that Your love for them is unconditional, unlimited and available to them. I ask all this in the precious and all powerful name of Jesus, my Lord, AMEN!

Nuggets From God's Word

Tag: Follower of Christ