Nov. 6 Without Love We Are Nothing

Sunday Nov. 6

Without Love We Are Nothing

1 Corinthians 13:2

And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

Stop all activities for serving God and take a pause to reflect on today’s verse.  What are you doing for the Lord?  Are you praying?  If you are praying just for the sake of praying because you know it’s your daily duty to pray, stop and think.  Are you doing it for love?  Are you reading God’s Word?  If you are reading the Word of God just to finish a goal for the year, stop and think about the verse above.  Are you reading God’s Word because you want to learn more about His love towards you and you want to know His love so you can love?  Are you going to church because it’s Sunday and it’s the thing to do.  Stop and think why it’s so important for you to go to church.  Is church a reflection of Christ’s love toward you and your desire to love Him?  Is there an opportunity for you to love someone today at church and provide a kind act of love, simply because you see them as Christ sees them?

Are we serving in the church because it’s the church business or are we in the people business?  Without love we are nothing.  Again, let me say it again, without love we are nothing.  Paul made this statement, and he sure did a lot of things back in his day to run circles around our meager attempt in serving.  But Paul says, it’s nothing.  It is absolutely meaningless if the reason is not done with love.

The true question is if you do not have the love to serve, then why?  Have you forgotten what Christ has done?  More importantly, have you forgotten what Christ has done for you?  The Word is God is a love letter for you.  Reread God’s letter and make it personal to you again and see what Christ has done for you.

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Today’s Prayer: 

Lord, I am nothing without love.  Remind me to take notice in the things that I do today, that it is in reflection of my love towards you.

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March 06, 2016 Numbers 24 Follow the Lord amongst Pressure

Following the Lord amongst Pressure

 

 

If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the Lord, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the Lord saith, that will I speak?

 

Numbers 24:13

This is the political season where we continue to see elected officials changing stances all the time.  We do not know what a candidate really stands for.  In one state they say one thing to appease the people while in another state they say something different to appease them.  You have to wonder is there any righteous candidates out there?

 

But Balaam stood up to Balak and didn’t withstand the pressure to cave into Balak.  The reason that Balaam stood up to Balak was because of God.  Balaam had a good relationship with the Lord and knew what the Lord wanted.  Balaam told Balak, even if you gave me a ton of money, I cannot go against the commandment of the Lord.  I have to do what the Lord says to do.

 

What if we had politicians today that stood up and said no matter what I am going to follow the Lord.  Unfortunately our nation has turned from God where the people would not vote for a Godly candidate.  Sure there are some candidates who claim to know God, but it’s only to get the vote from the Christians.  If you look at their lifestyles, it portrays something differently.

 

The question is where do you stand in your relationship with God?  Could you stand firmly upon the principals of God or would money or influence sway you?  People say that if they would win a million dollars that they would give a lot of it to charity.  But if you are not currently giving to charity now with a hundred dollars, you are not going to give with a million dollars.  It all boils down to your relationship with God now.  How much time are you spending with the Lord today?  Do you spend 10 min, 1 hr, 2 hr each week with God?  How is that in relation to what you spend on other things?

 

We cannot stand for the Lord amongst pressure if we are not standing with Him daily.  God loves us and enjoys the time that we spend with Him.  Think of a small child who we see smiling when we spend time with them.  That is how God is with us.  He loves us.  Kneel for the Lord today and stand with Him for eternity.

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Today’s Prayer: 

Lord, I pray that I could be in a great relationship with you this week.  Bring me back into your realm, so I can enjoy my life in You.  Teach me to stand amongst the pressure of this world.

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January 04, 2016 Matthew 4 The Light has Dawned

Monday, January 04, 2016

The Light has Dawned

Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at the first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations. The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.

Isaiah 9:1-2

 

And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, The land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Matthew 4:13-17

The light has dawned.  A new day has begun.  This is how the ministry of Jesus started.  First He fulfills prophecy by going to Capernaum, and then He begins to preach.  The Messiah has begun His ministry and begins by preaching “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”.

This is the same message that we can continue to carry with us and speak to others.  The light of Christ is still there, but now it’s in us.  A new year has begun.  What will our ministry be this year?  Are we praying to understand our part in the harvest field?  

Where do we start in 2016 to be a light for Christ?  First, are our batteries charged?  Where are we at in our prayer life and Bible reading?  Do we have a church to serve in and grow?  2015 has come and gone.  Life is but a vapor.  As we look back on 2015, we need to think how did we serve God.  Would God be pleased with our service to Him?  The fields of harvest are still white, ready to be picked.  There are people in this world ready to come to the knowledge of Christ.  We should pray and ask God for our part to go into the field.

Christ is still the light for others and we can take that light and let it shine.

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Today’s Prayer: 

Help me to recharge Lord.  You can do things exceedingly abundantly.  I pray that I

can open my heart to your Word this week Lord.  Thank you for blessing me.

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June 19 Nehemiah 12-13 Acts 4:23-37 Barnabas the Giver

Barnabas the Giver

Nehemiah 12-13 Acts 4:23-37 

36 And Joses, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, (which is, being interpreted, The son of consolation,) a Levite, and of the country of Cyprus,

37 Having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles' feet.

The Bible goes into detail about Barnabas in verse 36.  His original name was Joses, but was renamed as Barnabas.  His new name means, the son of consolation.  I can only imagine that Barnabas was a listener and helped to console people.  He was a Levite and from the country of Cyprus.  So this was Barnabas, a friend to a person in need.

But not only did Barnabas give of his time, but he gave of his possessions.  The next verse said that he had land which he sold and brought the money to the apostles as a gift to the new church.  Imagine, this could have been the very first property of the first church.  And Barnabas humbly gave to the Lord because it says he laid the money at the apostles feet.  A sign of a gift, not of a loan.

Wow, what a giver.  I pray that I can give as God would want me to give whether it's time or money.  Either way it all belongs to God anyway.

Its Claims For Itself - Why believe the Bible

It’s important to know what the Bible says about itself. If the authors of Scripture had not claimed to speak for God, it would be presumptuous for us to make that claim for them. We would also have a different kind of problem. We would have a collection of unsolved mysteries, embodied in historical and ethical literature. But we would not have a book that has inspired the building of countless churches and synagogues all over the world. A Bible that did not claim to speak on behalf of God would not have become foundational to the faith of hundreds of millions of Christians and Jews (2 Peter 1:16-21). But with much supporting evidence and argument, the Bible’s authors did claim to be inspired by God. Because millions have staked their present and eternal well-being on those claims, the Bible cannot be a good book if its authors consistently lied about their source of information.

Its Preservation - Why believe the Bible

Just as the modern state of Israel was emerging from thousands of years of dispersion, a bedouin shepherd discovered one of the most important archeological treasures of our time. In a cave of the northwest rim of the Dead Sea, a broken jar yielded documents that had been hidden for two millennia. Additional finds produced manuscripts that predated previous oldest copies by 1,000 years. One of the most important was a copy of Isaiah. It revealed a document that is essentially the same as the book of Isaiah that appears in our own Bibles. The Dead Sea scrolls emerged from the dust like a symbolic handshake to a nation coming home. They discredited the claims of those who believed that the original Bible had been lost to time and tampering.

Its honesty - Why believe the Bible

The Bible is painfully honest. It shows Jacob, the father of its “chosen people,” to be a deceiver. It describes Moses, the lawgiver, as an insecure, reluctant leader, who, in his first attempt to come to the aid of his own people, killed a man, and then ran for life to the desert. It portrays David not only as Israel’s most loved king, general, and spiritual leader, but as one who took another man’s wife and then, to cover his own sin, conspired to have her husband killed. At one point, the Scriptures accuse the people of God, the nation of Israel, as being so bad they made Sodom and Gomorrah look good by comparison (Ezekiel 16:46-52). The Bible represents human nature as hostile to God. It predicts a future full of trouble. It teaches that the road to heaven is narrow and the way to hell is wide. Scripture was clearly not written for those who want simple answers or an easy, optimistic view of religion and human nature.