Bless: July 17, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR FRIDAY JULY 17, 2015.
BLESS

DEFINITION:

To honor in worship; bestowing divine favor on; to bestow some benefit on; confer happiness upon.

SCRIPTURE:

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of His benefits. Psalm 103:2.

He who is generous will be blessed, for he gives some of his food to the poor. Proverbs 22:9.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Blessing in our spiritual life is a two way street and is an essential element in our relationship with God. We bless God when we honor Him and give Him the praise and the glory for His countless blessings to us. God blesses us when we yield our life to Him in humble obedience and make Him Lord of our life.

The greatest blessing He has given us is eternal life. Have you often asked the question, as we have, as to why did God choose to bless sinful man?

God chose to bless us while we were lost in sin because we are His creation. The sole reason God sent His Son Jesus to this earth was to die on the cross to pay our penalty for sin because He loved us.

God saves us so that we would serve as examples to others of His love and mercy in order to bring Him glory. It blesses God when we care for others as Jesus did.

Many people never feel that God blesses them and wonder why. Blessings from God come through humble obedience. Abraham is the greatest example of God’s blessing someone. Abraham is one of the great heroes of faith mentioned in Hebrews chapter 11. He is noted not just for his faith but his obedience. “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went even though he did not know where he was going (Hebrews 11:8).

In Genesis 22:17-18, God spoke to Abraham through an angel to offer his son as a sacrifice to God. Because he was willing to obey God, he was told that He (God) would bless him and would multiply his seed as the stars of the heavens and the sand on the seashore and through Abraham’s descendants all nations on earth would be blessed.

It was by Abraham’s obedience to follow God that God brought about the birth of a nation that God would use as His own and the nation through which He would send His Son. When Jesus came into this world God’s promise that through Abraham the entire world would be blessed was fulfilled.

God wants to bless us today but there is a condition. We must put our total trust in God and be obedient and keep His commandments. God has blessed us with many promises in His Word and most of them have clearly stated conditions for us to follow. God desires to bless us but we limit God’s blessings on our lives because we are not willing to obey Him.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Genesis 1:1.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

PRAYER:

Thank You Lord for all Your blessings. How grateful we are that You loved us so much that we might love others. Make this a special day when each person in our family reaches out to bless someone who is hurting with the same love that You have blessed us.

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Bible: July 16, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR THURSDAY JULY 16, 2015.
BIBLE

DEFINITION:

The inspired Word of God; a collection of sacred writings, all inspired by God comprising of the Old and New Testaments.

SCRIPTURE:

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

The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. Psalm 19:7.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

The Bible is not just a collection of sacred writings, as the dictionary defines it, but it is alive, dynamic and powerful accounting of the Word of God. The Word of God (the Bible) penetrates to the very core of our soul, revealing who we are and what we are not.

This is probably the major reason that people do not read the Bible. It is because reading it makes us aware of the evil that is within us and it opens our eyes to what is truly good for us and non-believers do not want to face that fact.

But for those of us who have accepted Jesus as our Savior and are developing a close relationship with Him, the Bible is our guide book and the only true guidebook available to guide us in our daily walk with Him. Born again Christians believe that the Bible contains God’s Word from beginning to end.

Many professing Christians are spiritually starving and the reason is simple. They do not read or possibly even open a Bible very often. And certainly they do not read it with serious thought, wanting to grow spiritually.

If you are going to understand the Bible and learn how to study it you must understand the following basic truths:

•    First, you need to know what the Bible says about itself. The verse we have put above from Psalms says that the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. It is the Word of God and we can be sure that as we read it, it will change us.

•    Secondly, The Bible wants us to first of all know He is God, the one who created the world and man. He controls all things that He created.

•    Thirdly, you need to know that the Bible deals with facts and is not a hollow philosophy based on human ideas and experiences or on principles of this world. The Bible is based on Christ’s life and His example. (Colossians 2:8)

•    Finally, we are to know the correct methods of Bible study. The apostle Paul taught Timothy to be diligent by presenting himself approved to God, being a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth. The Word of truth is the Bible.

Abraham Lincoln in a letter to a friend wrote: “I am profitably engaged in reading the Bible. Take all of this book upon reason that you can, and the balance upon faith. You will live and die a better man.”

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Genesis 1:1.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

PRAYER:

Thank You that the Bible is not only perfect and true but powerful and life-changing. Give me the leadership and boldness today to teach my family and friends the value of the Bible for their lives. Lead me to the right people today to share with them Your Word to make an impact on their lives.

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Beware: July 15, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR WEDNESDAY JULY 15, 2015.
BEWARE

DEFINITION:

Be wary, cautious or vigilant; watch out; be careful.

SCRIPTURE:

Beware of the scribes, who loved to go around in long robes and gave love greetings in the market place. Mark 12:38.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

When we hear the word, beware, there is usually an association with something dangerous. One might say to a child, beware of the traffic on the street. Or in a rain storm one might say to beware of flash flooding.

In the scripture we put above Jesus said to beware of the scribes. Our immediate reaction might be: Why would these scribes be dangerous? The scribes were experts in the Jewish laws and traditions of the temple. They were well educated but rejected Jesus as the Messiah and were always looking for opportunities to trap Him with their questions. They were lawyers and knew well how to mislead and argue.

After being questioned by the scribes Jesus spoke a warning to the crowd around Him. Jesus saw right through the outer appearances of the scribes into the sinful motive of their hearts. Jesus warned the people to be aware of the scribes because they were an evil influence and hypocrites who made a show of being very religious.

Jesus pointed out that they used their position of leadership to exploit the poor and take advantage of the people in general. They had no love for God or for the people they were responsible too. They wore their long robes to show they were noted scholars and as they walked through the market place they were only attempting to gain recognition and esteem.

Jesus condemned the scribes for always sitting in the best seats in the Synagogue and high places of honor at the feasts just so they could be seen by all who attended. The scribes were trained to be teachers and spiritual leaders in the Synagogues and the Temple. Instead they used their positions of authority to take financial advantage of widows and cheat the poor. Jesus pointed out that true religion in God’s sight is to be humble and servants of their Lord.

We, as believers, need to learn from what Jesus said and beware of showy religiosity. We are not to glory in our titles or successes bringing honor to ourselves. True religion is a relationship with Jesus in which we are dedicated to serving HIM AND BRINGING HONOR AND GLORY TO Him, and to Him only.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Genesis 1:1.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

PRAYER:

Help me to beware of those people around me that are self-righteous and make a show of being religious but are not true followers of You. May my family put Christ first in all we do and may we serve You in a way that honors You. Keep us humble and glorifying Your name in all we do.

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Wisdom: July 14, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR TUESDAY JULY 14, 2015.

WISDOM

DEFINITION:

The ability to make good use of knowledge; the power of forming a sound judgment in any matter; the ability to recognize right from wrong.

SCRIPTURE:

Get wisdom! Understand!  Proverbs 4:5.

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. James 1:5

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

How many times in your life have you done something and then reacted by asking yourself, why did I do that? Was it just a mistake or was it a lack of wisdom? No matter what we conclude we really did not use wisdom in our decision making.

The verse above from Proverbs is a command to us. We need to learn how to have wisdom in dealing with our everyday situations. We do this, as James tells us in the above verse, by asking God to give us wisdom. We need a daily relationship with God and then as we talk to Him (Prayer) He will respond and guide us with His wisdom. As we read His Word He will speak to our hearts and open our minds to the truth found in His Word.

Many are the trials and troubles we will face in our life. We need wisdom to be able to discern the source of our trials. Is our trial sent by God to teach us a lesson or from Satan to tempt us to move away from God. No matter what the source we need to understand that the Lord is always sensitive to our pain.

Wisdom is needed for us to understand the purpose of the trouble we might be fighting. The Lord does use suffering to accomplish His will in our lives. When we understand what God is trying to accomplish in our lives we are able not only to rejoice but we are able to bless other people around us by sharing with others how we have seen the Lord work in our own lives.

We can rejoice when we know that God is in control of our lives. We need to understand that God always has a specific purpose in everything He does. He uses life’s ups and downs to build a Christ-like character in us and mold us into what He wants us to be.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Genesis 1:1.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

PRAYER:

I praise Your name today that through faith I can know You and that You will give me the wisdom to live my life today honoring You in all that I do.

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Barometer: July 13, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR MONDAY JULY 13, 2015.

BAROMETER

DEFINITION:

An instrument that indicates or measures changes in atmospheric pressure; It can be used to predict weather.

SCRIPTURE:

When I was a child, I used to speak as a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with the childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. I Corinthians 13:11-12.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

A barometer is a fascinating instrument to many people. A good barometer enables meteorologists to forecast short term changes in the weather in advance. When the barometer pressure drops it is an indication of rain. Rises in barometer pressure indicate improving weather conditions.

From time to time we need to measure our physical maturity. It is easy to measure. We can check our weight with a scale and our height with a tape measure.

We also need a barometer to measure our spiritual maturity. When someone becomes a child of God, making their decision to accept Jesus as their Savior, he or she becomes a new born babe and like a child must grow to maturity. As a child we think and reason like a child. The same thinking and reasoning comes to one who is a new believer in Jesus, a new Child of God -- born again.

As we grow in our Christian life we should be maturing in our understanding of God and His Word, the Bible. The apostle Paul tells us in his second book to the Corinthians that we are to aim for perfection in the spiritual maturing of our faith.

There is no barometer to measure our spiritual maturity. There are, however, three things we can look at in order to take a measurement of our spiritual growth in our new found faith. First, what are our desires? Do we look at the pleasures of this world as we did before we accepted Jesus as our Savior? What about our hunger to read and study God’s Word?

Secondly, what is our understanding concerning the spiritual things in our life? Do we see life from God’s perspective as it is written in the Bible? Do trials and temptations that come our way become opportunities for spiritual growth and service for our Lord or stumbling blocks that trip us up and cause us to backslide into our old way of life?

Finally, what is the status of our selflessness? Are we submissive to the Lord when He speaks to us and do we listen to our conscience when it warns us of what is right and what is wrong? Do we pray and ask for God to show us what He wants us to do? Are we more concerned about others rather than ourselves?

Christian maturity requires us too thoughtfully and prayerfully to measure the disciplines of our daily Godly habits. These disciplines should include a time for devotions where we read the Bible and communicate to God through prayer.

We need mature faith to endure the trials and temptations that come our way. Remember, ENDURANCE REQUIRES PATIENCE!

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Genesis 1:1.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

PRAYER:

Help me to continually grow in my spiritual maturity daily. Make it evident to me the things I must change in my life that hinder my spiritual growth. May Your Holy Spirit and Your Word work in me so that I may grow daily working toward perfection in my love for You.

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