LEARNING DAILY

 

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

 

Not one of us has chosen the circumstances we face. Would you agree that is a fair statement? What each of us can do is choose how we face them; our attitude is important. We can blame someone or something for what is happening or we can choose to rise above those circumstances.  “We can realize the capacity within each of us, with God’s hand on our backs, to rise above the circumstances. Our choice reveals the depth of our inner character directing our lives and will shine brightly in the most dire circumstances, whether the outcome is life or death” – Tony Dungy.

 

There are terrible things going on all around us. Many are sounding alarms of events that may be happening now or are close to happening that might sound very troubling. There are those things that are even frightening as I have pointed out. Lies and fears are all around us. Paul writes to you and me “to rejoice and pray without ceasing”. He is not saying we are to be in constant formal prayer but to be having a “constant conversation with God in our heart” (LSSB). The LSSB notes continue, “This implies prayer of all kinds and on all occasions throughout the day, conversations and longings such as happen naturally with those whose minds are focused on Him”. Too often we pray for only those emergency sort of things. Being in constant communication with God helps us stay focused on Him and to stay focused on walking the narrow way to His kingdom; it helps us to rise above the circumstances.

 

That leads us to “give thanks in everything”. No, I don’t believe we give thanks for the bad things. Instead, we realize that God is at work in them in order to produce good. Romans 8:28 tells us “All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” That should encourage all who are going through unwanted circumstances because He is working through the circumstances to conform us to His image and ultimately be ready for eternal life in His kingdom. Now, this is only going to happen for those who love God and have submitted to Him through Jesus Christ.

 

To be honest, I have not enjoyed going through any of those tough times. But to look back on them I understand the changes they brought into my life. What about you? I look back over the trial and tribulations my family members and friends have gone through and I see the Lord’s hand in every situation. Can you see the Lord at work in the circumstances we face in this country? Is He separating the wheat from the chaff, at least the line between true Believers and those acting like one might be beginning to be made? Perhaps the events we are seeing in our country and the world are drawing the “last days” to a close and the rapture of true Christians is near!  Oh my! What do we do? We “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you”.

 

Have you given thanks to Him who provides daily for you? Each of us has so much to give thanks for. We are blessed beyond what we could ever ask for. Why don’t you take time right now to give God the time to talk with Him about what you are thankful for. Have you accepted His offer of salvation through Jesus Christ? Have you been healed of disease or sickness? Has He given you protection from anything? How about your food supply, your housing, your ability to put gas into your car? God has been so good to each of us.  He is worthy to be praised and given our thanksgiving – would you not agree?

 

From now on DJSB will be used to note information or quotes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible and LSSB will refer to information and quotes from the Life in the Spirit Study Bible

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

2 Samuel 6:6-7, Now when they came to Nachon’s threshing floor, Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. Then the anger of the Lord was aroused against Uzzah, and God struck him there for his error; and he died there by the ark of God.

 

The verses above seem to be out of place when thinking about how the devil lies to us (thinking back over the last few pages of the blog). Let me explain the situation for the verses and relate them to what we have been writing about.

 

David is transporting the ark of God to Jerusalem; it had been in the possession of Philistines for fifty years. They had loaded the ark onto a cart pulled by oxen. The oxen stumble, Uzzah tried to steady the ark so it would not fall off the cart. I imagine this was a man’s natural reaction when the ark was in danger of falling off the cart. Two problems are in this story. First, God had been very clear about transporting the ark (see Exodus 25:10-16). David, in his joy of returning the ark of the Lord, placed it on a new cart. “David was doing the right thing in the wrong way” (DJSB). Secondly, God had given instructions in Numbers 4:15 that no one was to touch the ark because it was a symbol of His presence and His holiness. Maybe Uzzah’s action was an involuntary reflex; perhaps it was due to ignorance of God’s Word or because he had an insufficient fear of the Lord. The fact is, he touched the ark of the Lord which caused the lord to be angry and God struck him and Uzzah died.

 

All of this would have been avoided if David had not been in such a hurry and had followed God’s commands. Can you hear the devil say, “Did God really say…?” “God really didn’t mean…!” There are several ideas we need to consider. First, you and I need to do the right thing for the right reason (a Dr. Ed Newton phrase). David’s failure to follow God’s specific direction caused an “innocent” man to be killed. God’s Word contains directions for walking on a narrow way; you and I must follow them. For example, what we do and say should bring honor to the Lord and not to ourselves. When we try to get the honor for the gifts and abilities God has given us, the attention is placed on the wrong person. When we do not do things God’s way or for His honor I wonder if He passes the blessings He intended for us on to others who will do His work in His way?

 

There is also danger in having enthusiasm for God without knowledge of God’s Word. Both David and Uzzah showed great enthusiasm for bringing the ark of God back to Jerusalem. However, it led to a careless attitude about the standards God had set in His Word. Ignorance can not be used as an excuse in following Him. I look back over some of the things I have said and taught, some of my teaching methods I used and I wonder if more damage was done than advancement of God’s kingdom. That is not a poor me attitude or pity party! In my enthusiasm perhaps I taught in some different ways that could have better served the needs of the students. My point is this: you and I need to know God’s revealed Word (His Bible) because it expresses His will regarding how we are to live our lives as we walk the narrow way to His kingdom. I’m really thankful for His grace and He does not do to us like He did Uzzah!

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

Psalm 37:27-28, Turn from evil, and do good; and you will live in the land forever. For the Lord loves justice, and He will never abandon the godly. He will keep them safe for ever, but the children of the wicked will perish.

 

God is a loving God. Everyone who has been in church for any length of time knows that. Students of the Bible know He also is a just God. Understanding that answers the questions that people over time have asked about why the unjust prosper and seem to be getting away with every evil in which they seem to prosper. The psalmist tells us to “turn from evil”, that “God does not abandon the godly”, and “the wicked will perish”. There are two choices in these verses: turn from evil or perish!

 

God desires that civilization be ordered and law-abiding – just. The only way that can happen is to walk on the narrow way with Him. Those of us on the narrow way know that this way has plenty of difficulties and temptations. Those walking on the broad way have a “smoother” walk because it is the way of the unjust. But it leads to destruction.  I do not enjoy knowing that judgment is coming to the unjust.

 

Because God is just, He cannot allow sin to go unjudged. The prophet Hosea dealt with a people who were living for themselves, they did not know the Lord, they were full of pride, they did not know the Scriptures to know what He had done for them, and they were hostile to any prophet that preached against their sins. The people rebelled against God, seeking fulfillment in possessions, sinful activities and pleasures and things not in the will of God. The people abandoned God. God withdrew from the people and let them do just what they wanted. That describes our society today as well.

 

I fear for those who have decided their thoughts and way of life is higher than that of God’s. I fear for those who have allowed the lies and deception of the devil to cloud their thinking and there are no consequences for them and they can do as they want. I am back reading and studying the writings of the Minor Prophets because that is the sermon series at the church we attend. As I read, I am amazed at the warnings being given about what will come if people do not stop their sinful ways and return to living as God desires. He desires for all people to have a personal (beyond a head knowledge) acknowledgement of Him in our lives. So, I read that because people are doing their own thing, judgment is coming. Continually the prophet is telling the people to repent; they do not listen to him.

 

In the Bible, judgment came to God’s people. He uprooted and scattered them. He sent evil nations to invade His people and fulfill His promise of judgment. As we consider what is happening in the world and specifically our country, we have to believe judgment is coming here. The Good News is also contained in the verses above: “He will never abandon the godly”! We enter the narrow way through the Good Shepherd and He alone will keep us on the narrow way that leads to eternal life in His kingdom. Share the Good News!

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

Micah 6:8, He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

 

Hosea 6:6, For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.

 

The judgment that the people went through because of disobedience to God, for following after idols and worshipping idols is a warning for us today. I do not apologize for the emphasis on the wrongdoings of God’s people because the warnings are clear for us today. We must be devoted to following Him by walking on the narrow way to His Kingdom. The Lord requires each of us “to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” and He wants each of us to know Him on a personal level. Knowledge is not to be just an intellectual knowledge but a knowledge that He is the Lord of our lives, knowledge that travels the fourteen inches or so from our brain to our heart. That knowledge keeps us on the narrow way to eternal life in His kingdom.

 

The Hebrew word for mercy describes loyalty or devotion. The Great Commandment in Matthew 22:34-40 can be summarized by loving God and loving others. When we do this our love to God and others flows out of obedience which is more important to Him than rituals. Yes, in the Old Testament rituals for sacrifice were put into place but the purpose was for them to delight in walking with Him. It was a focus on the inward joy of following Him not the outward ceremony. Today, for example, we can take communion because we remember what Jesus has done for us and rejoice in our fellowship with Him. It is not just a ceremonial process we practice because it is offered at church. At least that should be the reason. Please understand that when our offerings and participation in Bible studies, prayer groups, and going to church become routine, they become unacceptable to God; He desires these activities because of our devotion, obedience, and love for Him. It goes back to getting head knowledge to our hearts!

 

Proverbs 2:6 tells us where knowledge comes from. “For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.” Read the verses before and you will see that God gives knowledge of Himself to those who diligently seek and search His Word for understanding. Searching the Scripture causes the seeker to fear God and to have knowledge of Him. I have written this before – seeking to know more about God is like developing human relationships. The more we grow in our knowledge of God, we learn more about who He is, His workings, His will and what He desires from each of us. That should help us be motivated to do all we can to change our lives and walk with Him on the narrow way to His kingdom; we become conformed to Jesus’ image.

 

There is such a lack today of the knowledge of God. I encourage you to be a student of God’s Word, read and study it daily. Seek out help when you come across difficult passages. Know that when you seek to draw closer to God, He is more than willing to be found by you!

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

Micah 3:11, You rulers govern for the bribes you can get; you priests teach God’s laws only for a price; you prophets won’t prophesy unless you get paid. Yet all of you claim you are depending on the Lord. “No harm can come to us,” you say, “for the Lord is here among us.” (New Living Translation)

 

The sermons this summer at Community Bible Church have been covering the books of the minor prophets. They have been well prepared and provided great insight about the days the prophets lived in as well as thoughts about the times we live in right now. The days we live in are very similar to the days of the prophets; because of that you and I can better understand how God reacted then and reacts today.

 

The notes in the David Jeremiah Study Bible tell us, “The injustice and covenant unfaithfulness of Israel’s leaders would produce unimaginable devastation (see Jeremiah 26:18), including the ruin of the temple, which by this time was a hollow house of worship. The leaders mentioned here include the civil leaders and priests responsible for promoting justice, as well as the prophets responsible for communicating God’s will and plans to the people.” What was the problem with the leader of Micah’s day? The leaders believed there was no consequences for sin. That is another lie the devil has gotten people to believe today! Pastor Marquize Cox told us, “If people begin to lose their reverence and fear for God, they begin to believe there is no consequence for sin.” Is that not where we are in our country right now?

 

The corruption and greed in leadership is not new, World leaders have shown their corruption and greed for a long time. Politicians in the United States have used their position to become wealthier than when they entered office. We have seen recently the Speaker of the House of Representatives accused of passing information to her husband regarding stock trading days before the offering went public. We have seen the President accused of using his position as Vice President to gain position and wealth for his son and for his own gain. We have seen pastors of churches flaunt the wealth they have gained by leading megachurches and the downfall of those due to immorality.  It would be easy to cite more examples.

 

The real concern I have is that this thought process has crept into the thought process for individuals. I fear people have “faith in God” but not the conditions to walk in faith. The thinking is faulty when one can think they are able to live any way they want because they have “faith in God”. The belief that they are protected and blessed by God without living the way He desires is wrong. It is the thinking Micah was talking about. One cannot claim to know God and live however he wants to! Can I continue this by saying this does not apply just to one’s public life; it applies to one’s private life as well! You and I must guard against this idea that because we are “saved” and say God is with us that enables us to do as we want. We cannot live on the broad way to destruction believing there are no consequences! No, we enter the gate that leads to salvation (Jesus Christ) and walk on a narrow way that is difficult but leads to eternal life in the kingdom of God! Let us learn from the prophet Micah that as Christians, we live God’s way and not one how we want.

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

John 14:6, Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

 

I have been reading the autobiography of Charles Finney. It is quite remarkable to read about this man’s evangelistic work for the Lord. He lived in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. I have been impressed with a major lie of the devil that was being taught in universities to preachers who would then fill pulpits and preach the lie they learned in their classrooms. Things do not change, do they! As Finney was invited to preach in areas where this lie was being taught, he continually had to counter this lie. It is a lie being perpetuated in churches around our country today. It is the lie of Universalism.

 

Universalism is the belief that eventually all people will be saved; in other words, there is no need to believe in Jesus Christ as one’s Savior. The argument is that a good and holy God would not send people to hell. There are several arguments that Universalist use to justify their beliefs. One is that there will be a period of time where those in hell will be cleansed and God will reunite them to Himself. Another belief is that after death, people will have the opportunity to ask Jesus to be their Savior. This belief is that there are many different ways to heaven.

 

This lie of the devil wants people to focus on the love and mercy of God. It does not want people to focus on the holiness and justice of God. God does not change. Again, when one reads and studies His Word, it is not difficult to know that God is certainly a loving God. But there is a demand to live holy and righteous lives after one confesses Jesus Christ to be their Savior. The focus of the Universalist is on being able to live the way one wants to because God wants everyone to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4). They fail to understand that does not mean God will save everyone. “People must accept the Gospel of Christ to enter the kingdom of God or they will reject it and spend eternity in eternal torment separated from God. Only One who was both man and God could represent God to humanity and reconcile humanity to God” (DJSB). That One is Jesus Christ and the choice is offered every individual during their lifetime.

 

Universalism offers a broad way to get into heaven and many are on it. Jesus said it leads to heaven. It offers people a way to get to heaven where they do not need to deny themselves anything they desire. They can do anything, say anything, see anything they want because they believe they will be able to get into heaven. Christians who desire to walk on the narrow way need to understand  this important thought. You and I do not have a license to live anyway we want because we think we can just ask for forgiveness when we sin. You and I, as Christians, must strive to live the life that Jesus desires us to live. We do not have the freedom to live any way that we want after Christ becomes our Savior. He must become our Lord as well! Sin has consequences! So we live our lives as best we can to please the Father as we walk on the narrow way to His Kingdom. When we mess up, we confess to Him, ask for His forgiveness and continue to walk in the light of Christ (1 John 1:9). This is the only way for Christians to be strong in their relationship with Him. “No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

 

From now on DJSB will be used to note information or quotes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible and LSSB will refer to information and quotes from the Life in the Spirit Study Bible.  I have added Jimmy Swaggart’s Expositor’s Study Bible to be referred to from now on as JSESB.

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

2 Thessalonians 2:9-11, The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan with all power, signs and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

 

“From the very beginning when the devil deceived Adam and Eve the central issue between God and humanity has been about loving the Word and Truth of God or rejecting it” (LSSB). Why do so many people walk on the broad way that leads to destruction? Why are so many deceived by the lies that devil is spreading through people? Why does the Bible tell us people will fall away during the end times from their “walk with Christ? It is because they are not and have not been reading and studying God’s Word. Okay some of you might be thinking I am too simple here. You need to trust me when I write about the necessity to have and maintain a fervent and sincere love for God’s Word, the Word of Truth! All anyone needs to know about the integrity of what God has said in His Word (that’s conviction) is right there for us to study and know and to combat the lies of the devil! Knowing the Word of God strengthens each of us to reject “new revelation or teaching”. It teaches us all the deceitfulness of the enemy and of his Antichrist to come.

 

You must know and understand that the devil is powerful and comes with “signs and lying wonders”. Think back to the time Moses confronted Pharoah with the plagues to get his attention. At first, he was not impressed because his magicians performed similar miracles – through the power of the devil. The Antichrist will come to power through deception and false miracles. Paul also mentioned that there were many false prophets preparing the way for the Antichrist in his day; they are still doing so today. Their intention is to mislead people, even the elect, to believe the lies of the devil. Do not be fooled. There is no one who can do the works of God but those sent by God.

 

If the devil can convince you to reject the Truth or to not read and study it, he has a greater chance to deceive you. He does not have to worry about nonbelievers because they already ignore the truth and want nothing to do with it. But he is concerned about those who “hunger and thirst after God’s righteousness”. They present a threat to him. So, he tries to get you and me to believe truth is what we want it to be. Nonbelievers already believe that. He has convinced too many that they can decide for themselves what truth is; its relative they say. That is why the thoughts on marriage are what they are. That’s why people are adamant that a “man” can get pregnant. I just read this morning about a new term for men that believe they are women – “non-men”. That’s why a baby’s gender is not put on a birth certificate; they can decide later which gender they are. Of course, that is determined only if the child is allowed to be born. There is still that decision about if that baby in the womb is really a baby. I can go on, but you have the idea.

 

I know, I’m writing to the choir. But we better stand on the truth of God’s Word or risk falling to the deception coming. It is not going away. It is not getting better. It is growing worse. This is not to cause fear. It is to motivate you to know and stand on God’s Word!

 

From now on DJSB will be used to note information or quotes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible and LSSB will refer to information and quotes from the Life in the Spirit Study Bible.  I have added Jimmy Swaggart’s Expositor’s Study Bible to be referred to from now on as JSESB.

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

John 8:44, “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”  Jesus

 

I need to take one more writing to expose the devil; he is a murderer and a liar. There is no truth in him.  John 10:10 tells us the devil has come ‘to steal and to kill and to destroy” people’s lives, health, hope, family, purpose in life and everything that is good. He wants to deceive every person and plant lies into people’s mind that will lead people to what Jesus called the way that is broad and leads to destruction. His goal is to separate as many people as possible from the truth of Jesus Christ and ultimately lead them to an eternity separated from God.

 

He is doing his best to kill people. Murder is on the rise and it is not just in the major cities. All of us know the tragedies of school shootings, people killed in parades and while shopping. All of us know of the millions of aborted babies that have been committed and the number of suicides continue to rise to all time highs. If he cannot kill you, he will tempt you to live in the “sins that so easily ensnare us” (Hebrews 12:1). He knows if he can get you to stay addicted to drugs, alcohol, immorality, greed, and believe false beliefs, he will destroy you.

 

The lies of the devil are becoming more and more extreme. One lie is “the explosion of what can only be described as openly predatory targeting of America’s children by legions of ‘gender activists’ obsessed with seducing, grooming and recruiting kids into the phantasmagoric transgender world of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, surgical amputation of healthy body parts and astronomical suicide rates” (from the Whistleblower magazine, June 2022). I am ashamed that the profession I loved for so many years is involved in perpetuating the total evil in this lie. This type of behavior is being promoted by America’s big institutions such as big media, big tech, sports, and by the leaders of our government. All who would sound the alarm against this is demonized and, in our culture today, cancelled.

 

Jesus came to destroy the lies of the devil. “Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life” (John 14:6). Because Christians are sounding the alarm, they have become the target. The number 1 enemy of these big institutions. No, this is not new; it is just becoming more wide spread. In the Whistleblower magazine, on article speaks of this. Quote after quote has people in high position saying “Christian nationalism” is the greatest threat to American democracy. Do you see the lies of the enemy in all this?

 

Abortion is not okay. Children are unable to make decisions about who God made them. There is life after death – eternal punishment or eternity with God. When the truth is being prevented from being told in the schools (at all levels), when the media constantly fills us with their side of events, and government leaders fill us with lies continually, is there any doubt that Satan, the devil, is at work continually to deceive, to kill, and destroy.

 

Jesus came to destroy the lies of the devil. The only way to not be deceived and believe the lies is to read and study the Word of God. It is time to take a stand for God’s truth and righteousness. It might come at a cost because it will not be popular and might make you the enemy. Jesus told us in His Word that the world would hate us – His followers – because the world hated Him. Things in this world are changing quickly! You and I need to be waiting and watching, knowing our only hope is in the Lord Jesus Christ. I believe His return is close!

 

LEARNINGDAILY

 

1 John 3:8, He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.

 

I grew up watching cartoons that were funny. In many cartoons the devil was made to appear as a “cute” adversary. He was portrayed as red and had a pitchfork in his hand; he was always whispering in the ear of a character to do the bad stuff while an angel was trying to get the character to do what was right. However, the devil is not “cute”. His followers are continually trying to get you, me, and all of God’s followers to believe it is okay to do what we know to be wrong. The same old line from the Garden of Eden, or some form of it, is still being used today. “Did God really say…? The devil is real! Those who say he isn’t are lying to us!

 

Today, I am not attempting to glamorize the devil. Nor am I trying make light of him. For the Christian, you need to know and believe that the devil exists and he hates you. He is the enemy! After Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus was led into the wilderness where He was tempted by the devil. The devil knew who Jesus was and he was going to do everything he could to tempt Jesus to bow down to him. He tempted Him with power, position, and comfort. He still tempts God’s followers with the doubts, worldly position and power, and the fulfillment of earthly pleasures and lusts. He plays on the fears, doubts, and insecurities we have to get us to do stupid and sinful things.

 

There is something important to see in the temptations of Jesus (Matthew 4). The devil knows Scripture. Three times he tempted Jesus with Scripture to try to get Him to bow down and worship him. The devil has always wanted to be worshipped; he was thrown out of heaven because of his desire to be worshipped above the Father. You and I must be aware that the devil twists God’s Word in order to fit his desires; he tries to counterfeit miracles and all that Jesus did while on earth in order to draw people to him. God’s followers must know God’s Word, be able to know the proper context of verses in order to stand strong against the schemes of the devil. That is why I am so adamant about not just reading God’s Word but studying it in order to know what they mean.

 

The devil is real. He hates God and he hates you because you have chosen to follow God. He did everything he could to destroy Jesus when He walked on this earth. Jesus told His disciples that the world (Satan) would hate them because the world (Satan) hated Him. Our first need is to believe the devil exists. The people of the world are telling us a lie when they say the devil does not exist! When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, He was more powerful than the devil. Today, He has authority over the devil! You and I can know that God is in control over every situation, every circumstance we face because of the Lord’s authority over the devil. The devil’s time is short; his destiny is close at hand because the return of Christ, the King, is near.

 

1 Corinthians 1:9 gives us hope as our faith and our thanksgiving is to be centered, “in God who is faithful, by who you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” The future of our hope is because you and I have a faithful Father in heaven.

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

John 1:1, In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

 

The LSSB says this about this verse, “The Word’s relation to the Father: (a) Christ was preexistent “with God” before the creation of the world (see Colossians 1:15). He was a person existing from eternity, distinct from but in eternal fellowship with God the Father. (b) Christ was divine (“the Word was God”), having the same nature and essence as the Father (Colossians 2:9).” The Father sent the Word, His Son into the world to die on a cross, taking the rightful place of whosoever would place their faith in Him. The Son would die and be raised to life again three days later. That’s the gospel of hope all Believers have.

 

At the end of the nineteenth century/ beginning of the twentieth century, a German philosopher by the name of Fredrich Nietzsche decided that God had died; that idea did not catch on until the 1960s. He was writing after the Enlightenment and said because of the Enlightenment the importance of Judeo-Christian morals and values were no longer necessary and man could do whatever they wanted. Given the revolution of the 1960s it is not difficult to understand why the people wanted to be this.

 

As a young person, I went to Sunday school, church, and to the youth group at church. I have to admit, I went to be with friends and to torment the Sunday School teacher; I remember the felt board lessons, but for the most part I did not get much out of going. I tried once or twice to read the Bible but the King James Version was beyond my comprehension. I was a “Christian” because I went to church. Even after we got married, I continued to go to church because it is what we did. My life was not changed by going in the least. I was a good person walking down what Jesus said was, “a broad way leading to destruction”, a road that had many people walking to the same end.

 

However, I found that Nietzsche’s belief that God was dead was a lie. I had not bought into this concept. I just had not given it much thought. In July of 1976, I asked Jesus to come into my heart and change me. I read a book, saw how things end, wanted to be on the winning side and gave my life to Jesus. No bells. No whistles, I did not rundown any aisles. I just asked Him to take control of my life. And He did. If you ask me how I know God is alive, I would tell you I know because of how He changed me. I was changed in many ways right away; many years later He continues to cleanse me to make me more like Him. I have never been successful in cleansing myself.

 

I am able to see God in the changes He has made in others who have given their lives to Him. I am constantly amazed at the complexity of the human body, how the stars stay in the sky, the exact placement and rotation of the earth, the way science is proving the creation story when trying to disprove God’s part in its creation and how mathematics has shown that it is beyond improbable that such a universe could just randomly come into existence with just the right properties to allow human existence. I am amazed that people believe a tiny one-celled animal came out of the ocean, grow legs so it could venture into the woods because it was curious and eventually became you and me.  And yet, intellectuals continue to invent fancy, intellectual theories about all the complexities around us; they refuse to include God.

 

There is a greater mystery. God created man to fellowship with; they failed Him and sin entered the world. Yet, in His mercy and grace, He sent His Son to die in their place. To those who accept His plan of salvation, God is giving to them His holy and righteous character, preparing them as they walk the narrow way to enter His eternal kingdom. Psalm 14:1 states, Only a fool has said in his heart, “There is no God” (that God is dead)!

 

Nietzsche said that God is dead. He lied!

 

From now on DJSB will be used to note information or quotes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible and LSSB will refer to information and quotes from the Life in the Spirit Study Bible.  I have added Jimmy Swaggart’s Expositor’s Study Bible to be referred to from now on as JSESB.

 

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

2 Corinthians 5:7, For we walk by faith not by sight

 

This is a really short verse that teaches us to live by faith. Hebrews 11:1 tells us that faith is, “the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see” (New Living Translation).  The LSSB says this about Hebrews 11:1, “Faith is trust in God in all circumstances, which enables the believer to persevere and remain steadfastly loyal to God and His Word.” The world we live in challenges, and even scoffs at, the idea that God exists and cares about you and me (That’s a lead into the next page of the blog). Unbelievers laugh at the idea that Believers live their lives to please Him by being obedient to His Word and look forward to eternity in His kingdom. Unbelievers live their lives by believing what they want to believe, seeking to please themselves, and by indulging in whatever pleases their flesh. Their walk is by sight, as well as other senses.

 

Let me tell you another Cherokee legend; it is a legend of the Cherokee Indian youth’s right of passage. The father takes his son into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone. He is required to sit on a stump the whole night and not remove the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it. He cannot cry out for help to anyone. Once he survives the night, he is a MAN. He cannot tell the other boys of this experience, because each boy must come into manhood on his own. The boy is naturally terrified. He can hear all kinds of noises. Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some humans might do him harm. The wind blew the grass and earth, and shook his stump, but he sat there stoically, never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he could become a man! Finally, after a horrific night the sun appeared and he removed the blindfold. It was then that he discovered his father sitting on the stump next to him. He had been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm. We, too, are never alone. Even when we don’t know it, God is watching over us, sitting on the stump next to us.

 

God is always with us – in good times and in bad! All we need to do is reach out to Him. His promise to us is to walk with us through every circumstance and situation we face. The Cherokee legend teaches us an important lesson. Just because you don’t see God, that does not mean He is not there. In Psalm 139:7, The Psalmist asks, “Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?” As a child of God, you and I can never move out of sight of God’s care, guidance and His love. He is with us through every situation we face today and tomorrow. It is important to understand that means “we have immediate access to Him wherever we go” (DJSB).

 

I find this to be so important because I can live my life with the assurance that my Father in heaven sees and knows what I am going through. He gives my strength and endurance to walk by faith; I do not need to see nor understand; I walk with the assurance God is in control!

 

From now on DJSB will be used to note information or quotes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible and LSSB will refer to information and quotes from the Life in the Spirit Study Bible. 

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

Ephesians 4:21-24, Since you have heard all about Him and have learned the truth that is in Jesus, throw off your old evil nature and your former way of life, which is rotten through and through, full of lust and deception. Instead, there must be a spiritual renewal of your thoughts and attitudes. You must display a new nature because you are a new person, created in God’s likeness – righteous, holy, and true. (New Living Translation)

 

There are a lot of challenges to walking on the narrow way to eternal life in God’s kingdom. The Lord Jesus told us that walking on it would not be easy. The broad way, He said was an easy road; it is smooth and offers the world to those who are walking on it. By contrast, the narrow way is bumpy and full of temptations.  The problem is our old evil nature does not give up and tempts us with the old ways, our old lifestyle we gave up when we chose to follow Jesus. If we do not put the old self down right away the walk on the narrow way becomes more difficult; some have even walked away to get back on that broad way.

 

You and I are to deny that old self! When we chose to follow the Lord Jesus Christ, we became a new person to become like Him, to think His thoughts, to live a righteous life, to display the new nature He has given us. The temptations are real; they must not be allowed to influence us. The struggle is real because of the ungodliness, deception, and evil all around us. The Good News is that you and I do not have to deal with this on our own. The Holy Spirit has been given to us to warn us of danger, strengthen us to overcome temptation, and be with us through all adversity. When we fail, we ask for God’s grace and forgiveness, knowing He is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

 

This is kept in the back of my Bible. One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My son the battle is between two wolves inside us all. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, pride, superiority, and ego. The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.” The grandson thought about this for a moment and then asked his grandfather, “Which wolf wins?” The old Cherokee simply replied, “Which ever one you feed!”

 

Paul wrote in the verses above, “there must be a spiritual renewal of your thoughts and attitudes”. Our responsibility is to feed the wolf named Good. You and I know what that means! We do our best to live according to God’s Word, living in the way that pleases Him, walking the narrow way with Him each day. We do our best to be obedient to His teachings in His Word, not turning to the left or to the right. When we mess up, we confess it and ask for forgiveness. We trust that His Word is true, that God loves us and wants the best for us each day and we do our best to never, ever give in to the wolf named Evil. None of us can do that on our own; we must walk in the power of the Holy Spirit every day.

 

 The days we live in are evil and ungodly. Decide today and every day to walk in the power, in the new creation that you are because of your choice to believe in and follow the Lord Jesus.

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” Jesus

 

There was hardly a football game on television where a sign with John 3:16 was not held up; not so much anymore. I guess it is not politically correct. The statistics today indicate that the church might be in real trouble. Barely 57% of pastors of churches of leading nondenominational and independent churches held a biblical worldview and just 48% of pastors of Baptist churches held a biblical worldview. These are statistics sent to me from My friend D.C. Adkisson, based on a survey taken by the American Worldview Inventory. In a different article by Glen Beck a startling statistic stated that only 37% of American pastors brought a biblical worldview to the pulpit. Those are staggering statistics! What are they preaching? Truth cannot be being preached; the answer must be found in deception and false teaching.

 

We were walking through Hobby Lobby the other day and a book caught my eye. It was titled, The Theft of America’s Soul written by Phil Robertson. It fit into some things I have been thinking about and I plan to use some of the chapter titles for pages of the blog in the days ahead. I want to turn our attention to John 3:16 as a prelude to the coming days. This verse speaks more about God and His plan than any other verse in the Bible; it reveals the heart and purpose of God.

 

God’s love is big enough to embrace all people, worldwide. He “gave” His Son as an offering for sin on the cross. It was not anything He was forced to do; He did this from a loving heart. To believe this one must have a sure conviction from the heart that Jesus Christ is God’s Son and the only Savior for lost humanity. This salvation comes from the surrender of one’s self to fellowship with and obedience to Jesus Christ. This includes complete trust that He is able and willing to walk with you on the narrow way to eternal life in God’s kingdom. Everlasting life is the gift of God that He gives to each person who is saved through His Son. It refers not only to eternity but also the quality of life those who believe can live as they walk on the narrow way. It is a life that frees us from the power of sin and Satan; it allows us to know God for who He is and not what the world wants us to believe.

 

I do not know who, but someone reading this needs to know the power of God’s salvation. God loves you and wants you to be a part of His family through the salvation offered through His Son. You cannot keep running from Him because He just keeps chasing you. Perhaps there is someone reading this who knows someone who needs to read this. Send it on! Jesus has paid the debt you owe for the things you have said and done. The pastor of our church uses a very simple prayer for those needing the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ. If you need Jesus as your Savior, why don’t you say this prayer from your heart? “Jesus, I’m not perfect, but I believe in You. Save me. Change me. I give You my life.”  If you said that from your heart, heaven is rejoicing over your salvation and you are on your way to a life in eternity in God’s kingdom.

 

LEARNING DAILY

 

Philippians 3:13, No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead. (From the New Living Bible)

 

Too many of us spend too much time focusing on what has been done in the past. There is the “want to have done different”, “wish we had done different”, and guilt or loss due to what was done or said; thoughts that haunt us. I have plenty of them! Has any of you been able to change the past or change what has occurred?

 

Paul sees himself as a runner in a race who is exerting all his strength and energy pressing on so he does not fall short of becoming one with Christ. Read the verses before verse 13 and you will see that Paul’s total focus was to be one with Christ and to be resurrected with Him when He died. He was not interested on resting on all the achievements in his life. No this was his entire focus in life. The DJSB states Paul’s single goal was “to continue to strive until its completion, undeterred by obstacles or taunts of the crowd; to be disciplined to forget – refusing to be paralyzed or rendered complacent by the past; and be disciplined to intensely pursuing the calling of the Christian life until victory has been won.” Paul had received a vision of heaven and he had determined that his entire life would be centered around his determination to move forward on the narrow way, to someday walk into heaven and see Jesus Christ face to face.

 

Think for a moment about the difficulties faced by Paul in his life. He was rejected by men, stoned and left for dead, spent a lot of time in jails that were far different from what we have today, and had to have been haunted by Christians he had hunted and persecuted for their beliefs. If anyone could have been troubled by their past, it was Paul; instead, he lived an uncompromising testimony for the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

That is the determination you and I must have as we live our lives among all sorts of distractions, temptations, the worries, the riches and evil desires of this life that threaten to get each of us off of the narrow way that leads to eternal life in God’s kingdom. Paul’s writing needs to be an encouragement to each of us to forget the things of our past and the old life we lived before entering the gate of the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ. You and I are not going to be perfect as we live in this world. When we mess up, and we will, “we confess our sin to the One who is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9) and move forward, striving to live the way the Lord wants us to live.

 

You and I must move forward as we walk on the narrow way. We must not walk in the past, stuck holding on to regrets, feelings of guilt for things done or said, remembering things that should have been done, and holding grudges. Those things do no one any good.  They need to be forgotten and given to the Lord in order for us to move forward, as we reach for the heavenly prize of eternal life in His presence forever.

 

From now on DJSB will be used to note information or quotes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible and LSSB will refer to information and quotes from the Life in the Spirit Study Bible.  I have added Jimmy Swaggart’s Expositor’s Study Bible to be referred to from now on as JSESB.