The Soul’s Final Feast

 

One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple. (Psalm 27:4)

God is not unresponsive to the contrite longing of the soul. He comes and lifts the load of sin and fills our heart with gladness and gratitude. “You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever!” (Psalm 30:11–12).

But our joy does not just rise from the backward glance in gratitude. It also rises from the forward glance in hope: “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God” (Psalm 42:5–6).

“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope” (Psalm 130:5).

In the end, the heart longs not for any of God’s good gifts, but for God himself. To see him and know him and be in his presence is the soul’s final feast. Beyond this there is no quest. Words fail. We call it pleasure, joy, delight. But these are weak pointers to the unspeakable experience:

“One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple” (Psalm 27:4).

“In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11).

“Delight yourself in the Lord” (Psalm 37:4).

YOUR HEART RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD MATTERS MOST!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 16, 2022.

SUBJECT : YOUR HEART RELATIONSHIP WITH  GOD MATTERS MOST!

Memory verse: "As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God." (Psalm 42 vs  1.)

READ: Exodus 33 vs 8 - 11:

33:8: So it was, whenever Moses went out to the tabernacle, that all the people rose, and each man stood at his tent door and watched Moses until he had gone into the tabernacle. 

33:9: And it came to pass, when Moses entered the tabernacle, that the pillar of cloud descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses.

33:10: All the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the tabernacle door, and all the people rose and worshiped, each one in his tent door.

33:11: So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend...

INTIMATION:

How is your heart relationship with God? In the passage we read today, Moses had such heart relationship with God, that he enjoyed the presence of God most times. God spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Throughout our lives, we look for those rare individuals with whom we feel relaxed and comfortable and can share our heart and our secrets and know they will not betray us, who will always be there for us, and in whom we can have confidence—individuals we can respect and who in turn admire us and want us to be successful.

God wants to be in that type of role with us, but He is even better than any earthly companion. For God is a perfect companion: the One who knows the road we are traveling on and all of the problems that lay ahead; the One who can give us dependable advice; the One who wants to share our life with us and will not put us down when we stumble; the One who will never desert us if we fail or do not live up to His standards. He accepts us just as we are, wants to be with us forever, is able to help us be all that we can be, and can enable us either to avoid or overcome every obstacle or problem in our life.

A wise person once said, "When God measures you, He puts the tape around your heart, not your head." So how is your heart doing? Our memory verse indicates the heart relationship of David, the man God testified thus, "a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfill all my will." ( Acts 13 vs 22.)  

Loving heart relationship can best be explained through a human illustration. Some children grow up in families where their father is a strong disciplinarian. They obey because they do not want to suffer the wrath of their father. Although they may even respect the father and his accomplishments, they want nothing to do with him on a personal basis. It is not unusual for such children to dread the return of their father in the evening. As adults they spend as little time with him as possible. There is a physical relationship with obedience, but not the close heart relationship. Fear and mistrust are barriers to their ever being close.

On the other hand, some have fathers who have definite standards and rules to obey, but the relationship is one of love and respect. They are excited when Dad walks through the door at night. They love the weekends because Dad can be with them and they do fun things together. Such children obey because they love and trust their father, not because they fear him or the consequences of disobedience. 

In our relationship with God we can respond and obey either out of love or out of fear.

When we realize God's desire to be our Faithful Companion in our relationship, we find Him less an authority figure and more a desirable companion Who is no less in charge in our lives. We now realize He is on our side, how much He wants the best for us and how absolutely dependable He is. The inborn unhealthy fear of God that stems from our sin nature and is often stirred up by the enemy of our souls is weakening as we are getting a clearer picture of who He really is.

Unfortunately many people never really seek Him with all their hearts. They are content to learn as a child would. That is, learning and following rules in order to avoid big problems, but not as willing to spend any great period of time with the Lord in the free time they have. There is little delight in the relationship, only obedience out of necessity. They have salvation from penalty of sin, but they will enter heaven "through the flames" (First Corinthians 3 vs 15). They have yet to cross that line of spiritual familial relationship into spiritual heart relationship.

First Corinthians 3 vs 15 states "If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire." This means that good work will be rewarded; unfaithful or inferior work will be discounted. Though unfaithful workers will be saved, but like people escaping from a burning building, all their possessions (accomplishments) will be  lost. Those are the people Jesus Christ described as the least in the kingdom of God. 

Prayer: Abba Father, my deepest hunger is for an intimate and loving heart relationship with You. I desire You as my companion. Build in my heart Your steadfast Spirit, so as to follow and obey You in every aspect of my life. I empty myself before You the best way I know how that You may build me up in strength accomplish this, in Jesus' Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

GOD'S DEMONSTRATION OF HIS LOVE FOR US!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 15, 2022.

SUBJECT : GOD'S DEMONSTRATION OF HIS LOVE FOR US!

Memory verse: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3 vs 16.)

READ: Romans 5 vs 6 - 11:

5:6: For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

5:7: For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die.

5:8: But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

5:9: Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.

5:10: For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

5:11: And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

INTIMATION:

God is love and wants us to realize we are loved and cared for. This is one of God's most outstanding and obvious characteristics. The message of the Gospel comes to a focus in His love for us as is stated, and demonstrated in His choice of His Son being a propitiation for our sins—taking our place in death for our sins. The Scripture says, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5 vs 8). 

God sent Jesus Christ to die for us, not because we were good enough, but just because He loved us. “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (First John 4 vs 10). Here God sets the pattern of true love or passion for others, setting the pattern for all true love relationships. 

When you love someone dearly, you are ready and willing to give freely to the point of self-sacrifice. For His love, God paid dearly with the life of His Son, the highest price He could pay, and such is unheard of in history. Jesus accepted wholeheartedly to take our place, paid the wages we owed for our sins (Ezekiel 18 vs 4 & Romans 6 vs 23). He exchanged something of inestimable value with something completely worthless—our sins. And He offered us the new life that He had bought for us. 

The apostle Paul, in the passage we read today, expounded the love of God for us. He explained that when we were weak and helpless because we could do nothing on our own to save ourselves, Christ had to come to rescue us. He came at exactly the right time in history in accordance with God's plan and schedule. It is God that controls all history, and He controlled the timing, method, and events surrounding Jesus' death. God sent Jesus to die for us, not because we were good enough, but just because He loved us and is passionate about our well being.

The apostle Paul explained that the love that caused God to create the world for an extension of His kingdom, and caused Christ to die in our place, is the same love that sends the Holy Spirit to live in us and guide us daily. The power that raised Jesus from the dead is the same power that saved us and is available to us in our daily lives. 

God is a Passionate Father. In Psalms 103 vs 13 the psalmist reminds us: "As a father pities his children, So the Lord pities those who fear Him." Jesus demonstrated this the day the disciples found themselves on the Sea of Galilee, and a storm was brewing, which is typical of the Sea of Galilee even today. The boat containing these disciples started to take in water because of the turbulence. With the boat beginning to sink, these terrified disciples asked the ultimate question, "Lord, don't You care?" Of course He cares!

Many of us have at one time or the other felt like that, "Lord where are You when I really need You?" "God, I'm going under, don't You care?" But a believer and a child of God will remember the promise stated in First Peter 5 vs 7, "Casting all your care upon Him; for He cares for you."

Be assured that, having begun a life with Christ, you have a reservoir of power and love to call on each day for help to meet every challenge or trial. Too often, in our spiritual life, although we may need to love God more, there is a much higher need to recognize just how much He loves us. When our relationship is such that we feel God's love and His passion for us—His children, we naturally begin to love Him more. You can pray for His power and love as you need it.

In Psalms 145 vs 18 the psalmist tells us, "The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth." What this means is that He is never too busy for you. When you pray, you will never get busy signal. He hears you and ready to meet your real need. 

Prayer: Abba Father, thank you for Your love for me. You have daily loaded me with Your benefits, always forgiving me my iniquities, healing me all my diseases, redeeming my life from distractions, satisfying my mouth with good things, so that my youth is renewed like the eagle's, and crowning me with loving kindness and tender mercies. Give me the grace to toe my path of life  in You, in Jesus' Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

The Only Enduring Happiness

 

You have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” (John 16:22)

“No one will take your joy from you” because your joy comes from being with Jesus, and the resurrection of Jesus means that you will never die; you will never be cut off from him.

So two things have to be true if your joy is never to be taken from you. One is that the source of your joy lasts forever and the other is that you last forever. If either you or the source of your joy is mortal, your joy will be taken from you.

And oh, how many people have settled for just that! Eat, drink, and be merry they say, for tomorrow we die, and that’s that (Luke 12:19). Food doesn’t last forever, and I don’t last forever. So let’s make the most of it while we can. What a tragedy!

If you are tempted to think that way, please consider as seriously as you possibly can that if your joy comes from being with Jesus, “No one will take your joy from you” — not in this life, nor in the life to come.

Not life or death, or angels or principalities, or things present or things to come, or powers or height or depth, or anything else in all creation will be able to take our joy from us in Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 8:38–39).

Joy in being with Jesus is an unbroken line from now to eternity. It will not be cut off — not by his death or ours.

GOD’S LOVE IS CONSISTENT!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2022.

SUBJECT : GOD’S LOVE IS CONSISTENT!

Memory verse: "For I am the Let rd, I do not change; therefore you are not consumed, O sins of Jacob." (Malachi 3 vs 6.)

READ: Luke 15 vs 11 - 20:

15:11: Then He said, “A certain man had two sons:

15:12: And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided unto them his livelihood.

15:13: And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living.

15:14: But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land; and he began to be in want.

15:15: Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.

15:16: And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything. 

15:17: And when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!

15:18: I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before you,

15:19: and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”

15:20: And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.

INTIMATION:

God’s love for you and I is consistent in accordance with His nature. God’s character will never change. He persistently shows His love for us. He does not change in reference to His promises. God’s promises cannot be changed because they came from the One who cannot lie. God cannot lie, neither has He ever broken His oath. He is always fair, just, and merciful to us who are undeserving. 

In the passage we read today, the prodigal son left out of selfishness (Luke 15 bs 12). He went to a foreign country wasted his life and resources, and sunk to the depths. The young man, like many who are rebellious and immature, wanted to be free to live as he pleased, and he had to hit bottom before he came to himself. The father watched and waited with his love for the son consistent and intact. He was dealing with a human being with a will of his own, but he was ready to receive his son back if he returned. 

In the same way, God’s love is constant, patient and welcoming. He will search for us and give us opportunities to respond, but He will not force us to come to Him. Like the father in the story above, God waits patiently for us to come to our senses. God’s great love reaches out and finds sinners no matter why or how they got lost. Be thankful that God is changeless, He will always help you when you need it and offer forgiveness when you fall. 

Once the prodigal son had made the decision to return, and was in the process of returning to his father, the father embraced him and accepted him back into the family. However, when the prodigal son was in the pig pen, the father did not search him out and drag him back home. The son had to make the decision for himself in order that his repentance bring forth fruit in his life. This is exactly how God relates with God. He loves us consistently and will always be available to receive us in love whenever we come to Him. 

God loved man in his state of being unlovable. The agape (love) of God, therefore, was given without conditions. It was not that man was righteous, and thus, deserved the righteous act of God through the sacrifice of the cross. It was unearned love. Therefore, our state at anytime will not hinder His consistent love for us because He never loved us because of our lovable state or conditions. 

Now, look at the conclusion of the whole matter as the apostle Paul says, “....We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor power, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8 vs 37 - 39.)

These verses contain one of the most comforting promises in all Scripture. Believers have always had to face hardships in many forms: persecution, illness, imprisonment, and even death. These sometimes cause them to fear that they have been abandoned by Christ. But the apostle Paul exclaims that it is impossible to be separated from Christ. His death for us is proof of His unconquerable love. Nothing can separate us from Christ’s presence. God tells us how great His love is so that we will feel totally secure in Him. 

Prayer: Abba Father, I thank You for all Your consistent love for me. My utmost heart desire is to consistently trust and obey You in all things, at all times, and in any circumstances in my journey of life. Endue me with the spirit of consistent love for You, in Jesus' Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

God Will Supply All Your Needs

 

My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)

In Philippians 4:6, Paul says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” And then in Philippians 4:19 (just 13 verses later), he gives the liberating promise of future grace: “My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

If we live by faith in this promise of future grace, it will be very hard for anxiety to survive. God’s “riches in glory” are inexhaustible. He really means for us not to worry about our future.

We should follow this pattern that Paul lays out for us. We should battle the unbelief of anxiety with the promises of future grace.

When I am anxious about some risky new venture or meeting, I regularly battle unbelief with one of my most often-used promises, Isaiah 41:10.

The day I left America for three years in Germany my father called me long distance and gave me this promise on the telephone. For three years I must have quoted it to myself five hundred times to get me through periods of tremendous stress. “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

I have fought anxiety with this promise so many times that when the motor of my mind is in neutral, the hum of the gears is the sound of Isaiah 41:10.

WHOM HE LOVES HE DISCIPLINES!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 13, 2022.

SUBJECT: WHOM HE LOVES HE DISCIPLINES!

Memory verse: "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent." (Revelation 3 vs 19.) 

READ: Hebrews 12 vs 5 - 11:

12:5: And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him:

12:6: For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.

12:7: If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom the father does not chasten?

12:8: But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.

12:9: Furthermore we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits, and live?

12:10: For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness.

12:11: Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

INTIMATION:

Discipline means “to teach and to train.” Correction is a vital part of discipline, and discipline sounds negative to many people because some disciplinarians are not loving. God, however, is the source of all love. He doesn’t punish us because He enjoys inflicting pain but because He is deeply concerned about our development. He knows that in order for us to become morally strong and good, we must learn the difference between right and wrong. His loving discipline enables us to do this. 

God’s purpose in discipline is not to punish but to bring people back to Him. Are you lukewarm in your devotion to God? God may discipline you to help you out of your uncaring attitude, but He uses only loving discipline. You can avoid God’s discipline by drawing near to Him again through confession, service, worship, and studying His Word. Just as the spark of love can be rekindled in marriage, so the Holy Spirit can re-ignite our zeal for God when we allow Him work in our heart.

When we face hardship and discouragement, it is easy to lose sight of the big picture. But we’re not alone; there is help. Many have already made it through life, enduring far more difficult circumstances than we have experienced. Suffering is the training ground for Christian maturity. It develops our patience and makes our final victory sweet.

At times, God must discipline us to help us. This is similar to a loving parent disciplining his child. The discipline is not very enjoyable to the child, but it is essential to teach him or her right from wrong. The Bible says, “Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12 vs 11.) When you feel God’s hand of correction, accept it as proof of His love. Realize that God is urging you to follow His paths instead of stubbornly going your way. 

Now, who loves his child more; the father who allows the child to do what will harm him, or the one who corrects, trains, and even punishes the child to help him learn what is right? It’s never pleasant to be corrected and disciplined by God, but His discipline is a sign of His deep love for us. When God corrects you, see it as proof of His love, and ask Him what He is trying to teach you.

It’s difficult to know when God has been disciplining us until we look back on the situation later. It is obvious that not every calamity that happens to us comes directly from God. But if we rebel against God and refuse to repent when He has identified some sin in our lives, God may use guilt, curses, or bad experiences to bring us back to Him. Sometimes, however, difficult times come when we have no flagrant sin. Our response then should be patience, integrity, and trust that God will show us what to do.

We may respond to discipline in several ways: (1) We can accept it with resignation; (2) we can accept it with self-pity, thinking we really don’t deserve it; (3) we can be angry and resentful toward God; or (4) we can accept it gratefully, as the appropriate response we owe a Loving Father.

Believers should persevere in their Christian faith and conduct when facing persecution and pressure. We don’t usually think of suffering as good for us, but it can build our character and our patience. During times of great stress, we may feel God’s presence more clearly and find help from Christians we never thought would care. Knowing that Jesus is with us in our suffering and that He will return one day to put an end to all pain helps us grow in our faith and our relationship with Him. (See Romans 5 vs 3 - 5)

Prayer: Abba Father, Your love for me is unparalleled. And You chasten those You love for correctness in character and maturity. O Lord, let me fall into Your hand, for Your mercies are great, and all things work together for good to them that love You. I know Your thoughts for me is of good, and I am persuaded You bring the best out of me in Your chastening, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!