How Christ Conquered Bitterness

 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. (1 Peter 2:23)

No one was more grievously sinned against than Jesus. Every ounce of animosity against him was completely undeserved. 

No one has ever lived who was more worthy of honor than Jesus; and no one has been dishonored more. 

If anyone had a right to get angry and be bitter and vengeful, it was Jesus. How did he control himself when scoundrels, whose very existence he sustained, spit in his face? First Peter 2:23 gives the answer: “When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.”

What this verse means is that Jesus had faith in the future grace of God’s righteous judgment. He did not need to avenge himself for all the indignities he suffered, because he entrusted his cause to God. He left vengeance in God’s hands and prayed for his enemies: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). 

Peter gives us this glimpse into Jesus’s faith so that we would learn how to live this way ourselves. He said, “You have been called [to endure harsh treatment patiently] . . . because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:21).

If Christ conquered bitterness and vengeance by faith in what God, the good Judge, had promised to do, how much more should we, since we have far less right to murmur for being mistreated than he did?

MAKE YOUR CHOICE!

EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY JULY 06, 2023.

SUBJECT: MAKE YOUR CHOICE!

Memory verse: "And if it seem evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the Rivet, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." (Joshua 24 vs 15.)

READ: First King 18 vs 20 - 24:

18:20: So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together on mount Carmel.

18:21: And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow Him: but if Baal, follow him. But the people answered him not a word.

18:22: Then said Elijah to the people, “I alone am left a prophet of the LORD; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.

18:23: Therefore let them give us two bulls; and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it: and I will prepare the other bull, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under it.

18:24: Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God who answers by fire, He is God. And all the people answered and said, “It is well spoken.”

INTIMATION:

God always leaves us with a choice. God doesn’t force His will on anyone. He lets us decide whether to follow Him or reject Him. This decision, however, is a blessing-or-curse; a life-or-death matter. God wants us to realize this, for He would like us to choose blessing rather than curse, life rather than death. We are daily confronted with this decision in circumstances of life we face. And daily, in each new situation, we must affirm and reinforce this commitment.

At a time in the history of the Israelites, Moses placed this choice before them; “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil, in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His status, and His judgements, that you may live and multiply; and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess. I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.” (Deuteronomy 30 vs 15 - 16 & 19.) 

Moses challenged Israel to choose life; to obey God, and therefore to continue to experience His blessings. God has called us to keep His commands, while reminding us that His laws are not hidden from us or beyond our reach (Deuteronomy 30 vs 11 - 14). God has detailed His laws in the Bible for our information and study, therefore, no one would say, “I will obey God if I know what He wants.” 

Obeying God is reasonable, sensible, and beneficial. Some people have complained that obedience to God’s laws is too difficult for a mere human. But God, in His infinite mercy, love, and benevolence, has given us an Helper in the person of the Holy Spirit, to abide with us forever, and help us in our inadequacies, and infirmities. Therefore, if you have ever given such complains above, know that they are unacceptable excuses. The most difficult part of obeying God’s laws is simply deciding to start now. 

In our memory verse, Joshua also reminded the Israelites of their privilege of choice. The people had to decide whether they would obey the Lord, who had proven His trustworthiness in their lives, or obey the local gods in their new lands they inhabited, which were only man-made idols. Joshua took a stand with his household to serve God. In taking a definite stand for the Lord, he displayed his spiritual leadership, and encouraged others to follow him. He made a commitment to God, and was determined to set an example of living by that decision.

It is easy to slip into a quiet rebellion—going about life in your own way. Some of us are controlled by our own limited personality, or the world’s standard of success—power, possessions, status, wealth etc. Power, status, appearance, or material possessions can become our gods if we devote our lives to them. Any substitute to God’s control is completely imperfect and deceitful. 

Once you have chosen to be controlled by God’s Spirit, reaffirm your choice every day. The way we live shows others the strength of our commitment to serving God. It is important to take a stand for the Lord. If we just drift along with whatever is pleasant and easy, we will someday discover that we have been worshiping a false God—ourselves. May you never worship a false god, in the mighty name of Jesus. 

In the passage we read today, Elijah challenged the people to take a stand—make a choice to follow whoever is the true God. Although the prophets of Baal raved all afternoon, no one answered them. Their god was silent because it was not real. In times of need when they desperately call out to these gods, there will only be silence. These false gods can offer no true answers, no guidance, no real protection, and no wisdom.

People waver between the two choices of who to follow, or deliberately be looking the other way because of the sinful pleasures and other temporary benefits that come with turning a blind eye to obeying God’s laws. It’s easy to be deceived by the temporary benefits of wealth, popularity, status, pleasures, and achievement, and to be blind to the long-range benefits of God’s kingdom. It only takes faith to look beyond the world’s value system to see the eternal values of God’s kingdom.  Therefore, start today if you have not; make your choice.

Prayer: Abba Father, You are my all in all. Whatever You cannot do for me, let it remain undone. Whatever You cannot give me, may I never have it. I rather die than put my trust in anything but You. Endue me with the spirit of raw obedience to You at all times and in all things, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

GOD’S PASSION FOR US!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY JULY 05, 2023.

SUBJECT: GOD’S PASSION 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 filled with compassion, 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 passion for us as is stated and demonstrated in our memory verse. 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 passion, God paid dearly with the life of His Son, the highest price He could pay, and unheard of in history. Jesus accepted wholeheartedly His propitiation for our sins, accepted our punishment, paid the price for our sins on the cross (Ezekiel 18 vs 4 & Romans 6 vs 23). He, in exchange, offered us the new life that He had bought for us: Exchange of something completely worthless (our sins) with something of inestimable value (the life of Jesus Christ—the Son of God).

The apostle Paul, in the passage we read, expounded the passion 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. When the boat started sinking, the 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 found in First Peter 5 vs 7, "Casting all your care upon Him; for He cares for you." Does God care about your health? Yes! Does He care about your finances? Yes! What about that relationship that has never become what you hoped it would? Yes, He does care! He cares about the minutest details of your life that even the very hairs of your head are counted. (Matthew 10 vs 30). Though you may not know He cares, rest assured He does.

Be assured that, having begun a life with Christ, you have a reserve power and love to call on each day to 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. Jesus had a very special term He used to describe the personal and passionate nature of God. He called Him, "Abba." The word Abba is an Aramaic word used to describe the most intimate, personal nature of a father. He is never too busy for you. He is never more concerned about a crisis in one individual than another. 

Prayer: Abba Father, thank you for Your passion for me. You have daily loaded me with Your benefits, always forgiving me my iniquities, healing me all my diseases, redeeming my life from de struction, 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. May I not miss my inheritance in You, in Jesus' Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

Give God Your Revenge

 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” (Romans 12:19)

Why is this such a crucial promise in overcoming our bent toward bitterness and revenge? The reason is that this promise answers one of the most powerful impulses behind anger — an impulse that is not entirely wrong. 

In many cases, real wrongs have been done to us. Therefore, it is not entirely wrong to feel that justice should be done. What’s wrong is to feel that we must make it happen and that we may feel bitter until it does. This would be a deadly mistake.

During my seminary days, Noël and I were in a small group for couples that began to relate at a fairly deep personal level. One evening we were discussing forgiveness and anger. One of the young wives said that she could not and would not forgive her mother for something she had done to her as a young girl. 

We talked about some of the biblical commands and warnings concerning an unforgiving spirit. 

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32)

If you do not forgive others . . . neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. (Matthew 6:15) 

But she would not budge. So I warned her that her very soul was in danger if she kept on with such an attitude of unforgiving bitterness. But she was adamant that she would not forgive her mother.

The grace of God’s judgment is promised to us here in Romans 12 as a means of helping us overcome such a deadly spirit of revenge and bitterness. 

Paul’s argument is that we can be sure that all wrongs will be dealt with by God and that we can leave the matter in his hands because vengeance belongs to the Lord. To motivate us to lay down our vengeful desires he gives us a promise: “I will repay, says the Lord.” 

The promise that frees us from an unforgiving, bitter, vengeful spirit is the promise that God will settle our accounts. He will do it more justly and mercifully and more thoroughly than we ever could. He punishes all sin. Nobody gets away with anything. He punishes it either in Christ on the cross for those who repent and trust him, or in hell for those who don’t. Therefore, we can back off and leave room for God to do his perfect work.

WALK IN THE WILL OF GOD!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY JULY 04, 2023.

SUBJECT: WALK IN THE WILL OF GOD!

Memory verse: "Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but He who does the will of My Father in heaven.” (Matthew 7 vs 21.)

READ: Ephesians 5 vs 15 - 17:

5:15: See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,

5:16: redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

5:17: Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

INTIMATION:

One theme that all parts of Scripture take up in one way or another is the Will of God. God's Will is as vast as his entire plan for creation, and from the standpoint of objective content, it seems to be settled and unchanging. God’s Will is expressed in His Word (His laws, and His ways). Walking in the Will of God is being obedient to His Word, and strictly doing them.

God has a specific plan for your life and His greatest desire is that you operate in it daily. In the passage we read today, the apostle Paul tells us to "walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil." and "do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord." Why? So that we can enjoy the blessings of God and avoid the pitfalls that come from disobedience. 

Too many Christians today presume to know the Will of God for their lives. I've heard people say that they are called to ministry, and then struggle with finances, marriage, and the people they serve until they become weary in well doing. We are to walk circumspectly, or "cautiously, carefully, and prudently." In other words, we should be cautious of the things we do and the choices we make.

Now, to understand means to "comprehend, grasp, or be familiar with." To understand the Lord's Will is to piece it together, or make sense of it. The only way to do that is by developing a relationship with the Father. And it is not something you learn all at once, from beginning to the end. It is actually a steady unfolding of revelation; little by little.

The key to receiving this revelation is found in simple acts of obedience. It's like a jigsaw puzzle; once completed, the pieces create an entire picture that could not be discerned when they were separated. As we operate in obedience, we begin to see more clearly God's perfect will for our lives.

God has His perfect Will for each and everyone of us; it’s His plan and purpose for our lives, not our own plans. Elevating your self-will above God's Will leads to God's permissive will. Permissive will is when God allows you to make all the choices. Oftentimes we end up making mistakes, hurting ourselves, and living with regret. But it's never too late to change. If you repent and yield yourself to God, He will forgive you and lead you back into His perfect Will. 

God never force you to do anything. If He did, everyone would be saved right now. And although it is God's Will for them to be saved (First Timothy 2 vs 4), He will not force anyone to accept salvation. The same is true of the Will of God. He will reveal it to you if you're willing to listen. The truth of the matter is, without obedience, God's Will for your life will never come to pass.

God has a plan and purpose for everyone, but we must be careful not to get weighed down by selfish desires. It's not about what we want, but all about what God wants for you. The Scripture, in Proverbs 3 vs 5 - 6, says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” And in verse 7 we are warned; “Do not be wise in your own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.” 

When you obey God, you can count on His protection, and His provision for you inherent in His promise is on the other side of your obedience. Anything you desire is available to you if you walk in the Will of God. Therefore, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6 vs 33). “All these things” not some of the things. And when God says ‘all,’ He means ‘all.’

Prayer: Abba Father, my utmost heart desire is to do Your Will. Endue me with the spirit of complete obedience to You, that I may walk in Your Will all the days of my life, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

When Will I Be Satisfied?

 

“I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” (John 17:26)

Imagine being able to enjoy what is most enjoyable with unbounded and increasing energy and passion forever.

This is not now our experience. Three things stand in the way of our complete satisfaction in this world.

Nothing in this world has a personal worth great enough to meet the deepest longings of our hearts.

We lack the strength to savor the best treasures to their maximum worth.

Our enjoyment of things here comes to an end. Nothing lasts.

But if the aim of Jesus in John 17:26 comes true, all this will change. He prays to his Father about us, “I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” God does not love the Son the way he loves sinners. He loves the Son because the Son is infinitely worthy of love. That is, he loves the Son because the Son is infinitely lovely. Which means that this love is totally pleasure. Jesus prays that this pleasure that God has in his Son will be the same pleasure we have in the Son.

If God’s pleasure in the Son becomes our pleasure, then the object of our pleasure, Jesus, will be inexhaustible in personal worth. He will never become boring or disappointing or frustrating. No greater treasure can be conceived than the Son of God.

But add to this what Jesus prays for; namely, that our ability — our energy, our passion — to savor this inexhaustible treasure will not be limited by human weaknesses. We will enjoy the Son of God with the very enjoyment of his omnipotent Father.

God’s delight in his Son will be in us and it will be ours. And this will never end, because neither the Father nor the Son ever ends. Their love for each other will be our love for them, and therefore our loving them will never die.

CARNAL MIND VERSUS SPIRIT MIND!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

MONDAY JULY 03, 2023.

SUBJECT: CARNAL MIND VERSUS SPIRIT MIND!

Memory verse: “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Romans 8 vs 6.)

READ: Romans 8 vs 5:

8:5: For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, things of the Spirit.

8:6: For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

8:7: Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.

8:8: So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

INTIMATION:

I prefer looking at our memory verse from the Amplified Version of the Bible. It says, "Now the mind of the flesh [which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit] is death [death that comprises all the miseries arising from sin! both here and hereafter]. But the mind of the [Holy] Spirit is life and [soul] peace [both now and forever]. (Romans 8 vs 6.)

According to this verse, this is not one mind, but two minds. There is the mind of the flesh, and there is the mind of the Spirit. That does not mean you and I have two brains, it simply means that we receive information from our natural mind (which operates without the Holy Spirit), and we get information from our spirit mind (through which the Holy Spirit communicates directly to us). According to the Scripture, we are not to be led by our carnal mind, but by the Holy Spirit Who indwells us. (Romans 8 vs 14; Galatians 5 vs 18.) The Holy Spirit is the only One who knows the mind of God, and is the revealer of the truth (John 16 vs 13). 

Before Christ came, we all were students of the carnal mind—the mind of the flesh, and were dominated by our sinful nature. But Jesus came and offered us a way out, and once you say yes to Him, He enters, and lives in you through His indwelling Holy Spirit, and makes His mind available for your inquest. The Holy Spirit begins His work by directing you according to the ways of God. But it takes your willingness and sensitivity to receive from Him.

In First Corinthians 2 vs 16, the Bible says, "For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ." This Scripture tells us that because the Holy Spirit lives in the believers, they have the mind of Christ. The problem is that although the believers have the mind of Christ and know the Word of God, they don't listen to their spirit which is being enlightened by the Holy Spirit. Instead, they listen to their natural mind which relies strictly on sense and reason without the Holy Spirit.

In every situation of life, our head will be trying to give us information. It will be yelling at us so loudly that if we don't turn our attention to our spirit we will never hear what the Lord is saying to us in that situation. That is why we must learn to live out of our spirit and not of our head.

We all have two huge vats of information within us. One is carnal information that comes off the top of our head—sensual knowledge which is always at the fore. The other is spiritual information which wells up out of our heart—rooted in our inner being. The carnal information is likened to a muddy, and polluted water, while the spiritual information is likened to clean drinking water. It is up to you to decide which source you are going to drink from.

Some people try to drink from both sources. That's what the Bible calls being ‘double-minded’ (James 1 vs 8.) Do you know what it means to be double-minded? It means that your mind is trying to tell you one thing, and your spirit is trying to tell you just the opposite. Instead of saying, "I'm not going to believe that coming from my head because it's a lie," you get in a cross-fire, going back and forth between the two thoughts.

You see, evil spirits constantly bombard us with negative thoughts. If we receive them and dwell on them, they become ours because the Bible says, “For as he think in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23 vs 7). If we accept the lies of the devil as reality, then they will become reality to us because of our "faith," our “belief” in them. That is why in moments of worry, stress and turmoil we have to simply take the time to turn to our inner man, the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, and say, "Lord, what do You have to say about this?" If we listen in faith, He will speak to us and reveal to us the truth of that situation.

If we are ever going to live the happy, victorious and successful Christian life the Lord wills for us, we are going to have to decide which fountain of information we are going to drink from. We are going to have to learn to live out of our spirit, and not out of our head.

Prayer: Abba Father, You are so good that You never left us helpless, but gave us the Holy Spirit that abides with us forever. Give me the grace to always be attentive and sensitive to receive and follow His leading at all times, that I may live as You willed for me; a victorious and triumphant life, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!