Why Do You Not Submit?

Good Morning!! To our Western, self-centered society, the idea of submission, in any form or under any circumstances, has become repulsive. We have no desire to submit to our employers, and we certainly don't consider it our duty. Respect of any authority is rejected and resisted. We go against the government,...and children are no longer taught to submit to their parents. However, no where is submission so despised as in the bonds of matrimony. The Christian foundation on which America was built,...that all are created equal,...has been misinterpreted, consciously or unconsciously, to imply that no one should have to submit to another. Yet, just as in every other area of biblical submission,...opposition to God’s way for wives stems from a misunderstanding (or lack of faith) in God’s supreme plan.

Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.—Ephesians 5:22 (NIV)

Jesus, being equal with God,...still submitted to His Heavenly Father. Great men like the apostle Paul submitted to wicked and undeserving rulers like Nero (and commands us to do the same). In fact, a civilized (and certainly a Christian) society can only really exist if submission to appropriate offices is recognized and maintained. God, being the designer and author of marriage, tells us that it only works if the distinctive (not essentially unequal) roles of the husband and wife are maintained. Any other model for the home will fail,...it is like ignoring the owner’s manual to marriage.

Obedience to God is the only way to glorify God. Husbands, wives, children, citizens, employees, employers, rulers,...all are to submit to the perfect wisdom and good purposes of our great God.

Holy Spirit, teach us to surrender all, as it is God's Will. Amen.

" Christians are ordinary people,...who are committed to the extraordinary person of Jesus Christ."

    

But What Does God Say?

Good Morning!! The standard by which we are to accept or reject every idea, emotion, or opportunity is whether it is “good” or “evil.” No middle ground is mentioned. How do we know what is good and what is bad, what is right and what is wrong? The only infallible benchmark we have is God’s Word, the Bible. We can not make decisions based upon our feelings at the moment, the advice or rationale of others, or society’s changing ideas of what is acceptable.

Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.—1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 (KJV)

Experience is not the best teacher,...instruction is. And in the Bible we find the instruction we need regarding how we are to live, what priorities we are to hold, and how we are to view the world around us. Test your decisions by the touchstone of God’s Word, and then cling to that good and right path,...abstaining from even the very appearance or possibility of evil.

We are not told to "experiment with everything"...but to prove (test) all things.

The Word says; If a thing is good, we are to “hold fast” to it, not substituting or selling it for anything. If it is evil, we are to “abstain” from it, not sampling or teasing with it in small doses. Holy Spirit, teach us to apply God's Word to every issue in our lives, then help us to whole-heartedly pursue, and hold that indicated course of action. In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

"I pray, that your rejoicing be made more abundant in Jesus Christ."   

All Thanks, And Glory To God

Good Morning!...On This, Another Thankful, Thursday!! Cultivating a thankful heart is the key to overcoming discouragement, grief, pain,...and even discontentment. If we develop the habit of counting our blessings then we, can learn to be content, and joyful,...even in the darkest of times, or the hardest of circumstances. But, as the psalmist here reminds us, the greatest benefit of a grateful heart, and therefore the greatest motivation to a thankful spirit, is not the blessing that it brings to us,...but the witness it is to others.

Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done.—Psalm 105:1 (KJV)

When we as Christians can be found searching through the wreckage of our shattered dreams, lost loved ones, or debilitating pain, and coming up with yet another reason to praise our God it is an unparalleled proof, of the power of the Lord to transform and to satisfy His people. When we publicly call upon His name,...making His deeds known among the masses,...the gratefulness of God’s children redounds to the glory of His Holy name and grace.

Anyone can be happy and thankful when everything is going well,
...but what a greater testimony it is, when God’s people are rejoicing among the ruins of their temporal pleasures!

Father God, let us shine our light in the darkness of our own heartache and loss,...where it to exalts You and does the most good, because we want to make known Your Goodness, Amen.

"I pray, that your rejoicing be made more abundant in Jesus Christ." 

  

 

Forgiveness

Good Morning!! Everywhere in the Bible, God is affirmed as omniscient,...which means all-knowing. There is nothing that goes on in the universe of which He is not aware,...there is nothing that has happened or that will happen that He does not know. We live our lives "coram Deo",...this phrase literally refers to something that takes place in the presence of, or before the face of, God.

And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.—Hebrews 10:17 (KJV)

Yet here is a purposeful statement from the one and only Omniscient, declaring that He will remember the sins of His people no more — a promise of such total forgiveness that there is no trace left of the sins committed. How can this be? The truth of the cross is that God the Father remembered every single (even seemingly small) sin that every believer has, or ever will, commit and punished Jesus Christ for each and every one of them, in our stead. Not only that, but Jesus’ righteousness is imparted to us so that we stand before God truly spotless.

Holy Spirit, guide us to the cross, because there every sin is forgiven,...every transgression is forgotten. And only the blood of Jesus Christ is sufficient to wash away the stain of our sins from the memory of the One True Omniscient God. Amen.

"I pray, that your rejoicing be made more abundant in Jesus Christ."  

Jehovahjireh Our Provider

Good Morning!! Jehovahjireh means "the Lord will provide" or, literally, "the Lord will see to it." By the time Abraham used this name for God, he had learned from personal experience, the truth of its claims. When asked by God to sacrifice his son Isaac, Abraham trusted that somehow God would still keep His promise to make of Isaac a great nation. He obeyed God by taking Isaac to the altar, but trusted,...against reason and sight and feeling,...that somehow God would provide Himself a lamb (22:8). His faith was rewarded and validated, when God replaced Isaac with a ram, for the sacrifice.

And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.—Genesis 22:14 (KJV)

The fact is, God not only sees all, He sees to it all,...He will provide for all of our needs, according to His riches,...by Christ Jesus. Will you trust God to make good on His Word,...even when trusting means going against reason, sight, and feeling? Numbers 23:19 reminds us that "God is not a man, that he should lie…hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? "

We can stand and hope on the promises of God,...now and forever.

O' Lord we will trust You today, no matter what issues we may be grappling with, or what we may be confronted by. We trust You to provide for us as You have for others. We're trusting You to see it through. Amen.

"I pray, that your rejoicing be made more abundant in Jesus Christ." 

Don't Know What To Do, Pray!

Good Morning!! I like James,...he doesn't have a flowery style or a theoretical bent; he is interested only in getting clear, candid counsel into the hands and hearts of believers. His entire letter is full of practical instruction, and direct admonition. And when he comes to the matter of suffering,...gut-wrenching, spirit-pounding, heart-crushing suffering,...this practical pastor gives his guidance in only three words: "Let him pray."

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. ...—James 5:13 (KJV)

That's it. Not formulating an exit strategy, not checking all our options for circumventing the pain. Not running and gathering a support group to cheer us up and cheer us on. He instructs; the greatest therapy, the surest solution, the sweetest healing that we will ever find,...is in fervent and honest and faithful conversation with God.

Don't stop with the blessing of our meals, as the answer to affliction. The verb James uses is in the present tense: let him,...in other words, continually be praying.

It is my prayer whether your affliction is earth-shattering or hardly-worth-mentioning, that you remember to always take your trial to God in prayer,...and out of the fountain of close communion with our Father, will flow the calming, refreshing, restoring waters of spiritual renewal,...that we all are so in need of. Amen.

"I pray, that your rejoicing be made more abundant in Jesus Christ." 

Power Of God's Word

Good Morning!! The first thing you notice about today's scripture, in any version, is that the Word of God is quick, or alive,...it always is (present tense) alive. God's Word will always be true; it is alive forever. And therefore God's Word is always relevant, never just a dead carcass,...a used up and empty vessel from the past. It is the Living, Breathing Truth of God. And, as Psalm 100:5 extols, "His truth endures to all generations."

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.—Hebrews 4:12 (KJV)

The Word of God is also powerful. It is, in other words, energetic. You can feet the moving, slicing, energetic operation of God’s Word on your heart as you read, or listen to, or meditate on its truth. And it's compared to a sword, here and elsewhere, because we are in a war. We daily battle, whether courageously or pathetically, the ever-present foes of sin, self, and Satan. Finally, God’s Word is called a discerner. The truth of God’s Word sifts through and analyzes the myriad of ideas, aspirations, and desires with which we are enticed and, as a qualified and a skilled judge, discerns truth from error, good from bad.

The question is asked in Jeremiah 17:9, of the deceptive human heart, "who can know it?" The answer from Hebrews is: "the Word of God can."

Sweet and Holy Spirit of God, remind us always, that whatever we're in need of can be found in God's Word. Amen.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."