Tag: The will of God

Faith Today: The Promise of Eternal Life Through Jesus

On By Ed AlgreenIn Accept Jesus NOW, Allegiance to the Lamb, Ask and Receive, Believe, Believers, Biblical Decisions, Blood of Jesus, Born Again, Christ's Representative, Christian, Christianity, Cleanse me Oh God, Commitment, Convinced of the gospel, Decisions, Know and Believe, Know Jesus, Surrender, The love of God, The Plan, The WordLeave a comment

DATE POSTED
Friday, November 22, 2024, and I was blessed to be at Mariposa at Hunter Road, San Marcos, TX when God inspired me to prepare this devotional. My Footnote will tell you how to find and read any and all devotionals that I have shared over the years.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
Quoted from the Living Bible (TLB) and found in John 1:1-4; 11-13

THE SCRIPTURE READS
 1-2 Before anything else existed, there was Christ, with God. He has always been alive and is himself God. 3 He created everything there is—nothing exists that he didn’t make. 4 Eternal life is in him, and this life gives light to all mankind. 
11-12 Even in his own land and among his own people, the Jews, he was not accepted. Only a few would welcome and receive him. But to all who received him, he gave the right to become children of God. All they needed to do was to trust him to save them. 13 All those who believe this are reborn! – not a physical rebirth resulting from human passion or plan – but from the will of God.

APPLICATION – as inspired by the Holy Spirit
Just as John saw fit to declare the name, power and authority of the Christ in whom he believed, and who inspired him to write the Gospel of John, I believe it is important for us to understand this when we look at the instruction from this book, the Bible. Interpreters have labored over translating the Bible as accurately as they possibly could, but some words – like ‘Logos’ in the original language, actually translates to God; Christ; or the Word. Therefore, many Bibles show ‘the Word’ in their translation of John chapter one. The version I quoted here is not incorrect, the writers just used a word that we relate to more, to help us understand the intent.
BUT, after establishing the person of Christ and His relationship to God, John impressed even more upon me as I got down to verse 11, and I hope that God will also impress upon you, the importance of these words. John wanted God’s chosen people, the Jews, to know that he was aware of the ones who rejected Jesus as the Christ – the Son of God, but more importantly, John wanted them to know that for those who heard the voice of God and accepted Jesus as Lord, they were awarded the right to become children of God. And we all long for a sense of belonging to someone. For the casual reader, no doubt you are excited that the Jews read John’s words, listened to, and obeyed his invitation, and they could now rest easy knowing their eternity is secure in the fact that they will be with God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit forever. However, to my readers today I must share that God also wanted this chapter included in His Word to us today, so that we could know that His Word is still the same powerful force today; His love is even more expansive that we may have first thought, because this Good News also applies to us today. The promises of God are just as true today for us as it was for the Jews: ‘to all who receive him, he gives the right to become children of God‘. To those who really read into this, you owe it to yourself to ask ‘but what about those who don’t receive Jesus?’ It is a good reminder for us that there are only two places available to us after life here on this earth: Eternity in Heaven for those who have invited and received Jesus into their life and given Him authority to be Lord of their life, OR Eternity in Hell where Satan will torment you way worse than anything you have experienced while here on earth. Friends, God created us in His own image, and He wants us to stay especially close to Him as our Creator and Father, why would we allow Satan to tempt us into thinking anything else? Please allow the Lord to open your heart, mind and soul today and impress upon you any adjustments necessary for your impending eternity.

PRAYER
Dearest Lord Jesus, You are indeed my Creator; my King; my Savior; My Lord and my eternal Father. I thank You Lord for that assurance and I am renewed in my resolve after reading the words You impressed upon John the apostle. I earnestly pray that You will impress upon the hearts of my readers the importance of not only hearing about You, but in accepting You as Lord of their lives. This life, as we know it today, will conclude here on earth, but it is clear that our souls will go on to a place made possible by the choices we make here on earth. I long to be with You in Heaven one day soon, and I would love to convince my audience to prepare for that day also. Please impress upon them the importance of making that decision, and doing something about it TODAY. In just my small circle of family and friends, several have been called out unexpectedly recently, and possibly without knowing You personally. To all those reading this devotional, please be reminded that you can make the decision today to right your final destination, for tomorrow may be too late. Have Your will and way in our lives today, Lord, and may You be glorified by the decisions we make and the stances we take to be honest and true representatives of Yours everywhere we find ourselves today. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE
If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please take advantage of information provided on my page ‘To Know Jesus’. I would also suggest that you speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com and share your good news! Perhaps one of God’s servants will 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. Friends, please allow me to encourage you to find a church home nearby 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 being a part of that, while also growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Learn To Know God’s Will

On By Ed AlgreenIn Listen to the Word of God, Living with purpose, Testimony, WitnessLeave a comment

Wednesday, 2016-11-02

Scripture

Bible Reference: Romans 12:1–2

Bible Text:  1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

My Take

I believe there are certain places that Christians find themselves and later question “how did I get myself into this?” then we pray “Please God don’t come just now, for I will be ashamed to face You”. Ever been there and done that? Let’s imagine for a moment how far that moment is from what Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit,  is teaching here. Let’s think about some things that the Word of God is telling us might help us learn the will of God, which should be our goal in this life:

  • In verse (1) we are told that ‘we are to give our bodies to God because of all He has done for us‘. Back in 6:13-19, we were taught that we become slave to whomever we obey. I believe that ‘giving our bodies to God’ means surrendering our will to the will of God. I believe it’s the same as saying ‘I’m Yours Lord, everything I am, everything I’ve got, try me now and see if I’m completely Yours‘. The bottom line is that God has done, and continues to do, so much for us on a daily basis. How can we claim Him as Lord, but refuse to give Him control of our lives? That would be the same as being married, but continuing to live as a single person;
  • Let our bodies/lives be living proof of the One that we love, serve, and obey – the kind that are acceptable to God. We must walk the talk friends. Let’s not tell the pastor, or try to convince our praying mom or our hurting spouse, that we love Jesus, if nothing has changed in our lives. A verse I shared with a group just last night from Psalm 139 reminded me that God knows more than what others can see in our walk, for He knows our very thoughts;
  • Often our behavior will mimic those who we hang around with for a while. Because children of God are to seek the will of God for their lives, this means that we are to hang around with God more than anyone else. Yes, I believe that this means we need more time with God than just an hour at a weekend service. In verse two, we are told that we need to be so devoted to God and desire the will of God with such intensity that He has the liberty to transform us into usable instruments for His service. If we expect God to be there for us 24/7/365, then we need to show our commitment in return to Him in precisely the same way. If there’s any part of our day that we resume personal leadership, then let’s not be surprised by the outcome, for we have just shown evidence that we don’t need God for that part of our day.

In each of the above bullets I underscored in bold font, a few things that I believe our key verses are telling us today. Paul said that when these things become a reality in our lives, then we will learn to know the will of God for our lives. Are you there yet, friends?

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank You for showing us through Your Word how ridiculous it is for us to say we are Your followers, yet we control our course of life. If I am truly Yours, then I must surrender my will, and allow Your will to be prevalent in all aspects  of my life. Lord, I’m afraid that many who call You Lord, are living their lives the way they feel best, and only call on You when necessary or desperate. Lord, may the meditation of our hearts; the very depths of our thoughts; and the expressions from our lips be pleasing in Your sight, so they may be used for Your glory. If there be any wicked way in us, or if there’s anything that makes You sad with us, please touch our hearts and renew a right spirit within us. May we be usable vessels for Your work oh Lord, my Rock and my Salvation, 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!