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 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.

BRING GLORY TO GOD BY LOVING OTHER BELIEVERS!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2023.

SUBJECT: BRING GLORY TO GOD BY LOVING OTHER BELIEVERS!

Memory verse: "Therefore, receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God" (Romans 15 vs 7).

READ: First John 3 vs 14 - 18:

3:14: We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death.

3:15: Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

3:16: By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

3:17: But whoever hath this world's good, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?

3:18: My little children, let us not love in word, or in tongue; but in deed and in truth.

INTIMATION:

It is your responsibility to learn how to love as God does, because God is love, and it honors Him. Christianity is a religion of the heart, outward compliance alone is not enough. Real love is in action, not a feeling. It produces selfless, sacrificial giving. The greatest act of love is giving oneself for others. How can we lay down our lives? By serving others with no thought of receiving anything in return. Sometimes it is easier to say we will die for others than we truly live for them—this involves putting others’ desires first. 

Jesus taught this same principle of love in John 15 vs 13, “Greater love has no one than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” The greatest expression of love that can be made is that one lay down his life for his friend. And such was what Jesus did for all who would obey Him. We are to love each other as Jesus loves us, and He loves us enough to give His life for us. We may not have to die for someone, but there are other ways to practice sacrificial love: listening, helping when it is not convenient, by giving when it hurts, by devoting energy to others welfare without complaining or fighting back, encouraging others, and so on. This kind of loving is hard to do. That is why people notice when you do it and know you are empowered by a supernatural source. 

Christianity is relational. Love is more than simple warm feelings; it is an attitude that reveals itself in action. The evidence of a Christian’s salvation is the behavioral relationship he or she maintains with another, and the commandments of God. Hence Jesus gave us a new commandment, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13 vs 34 - 35.) The evidence that one has passed out of the unregenerate life of sin, and into the eternal life in Christ is the loving relationship one maintains with others.

The Bible has another beautiful description of love in First Corinthians 13. Love is more important than all the spiritual gifts exercised in the body of Christ. Great faith, acts of dedication or sacrifice, and miracle-working power have little effect without love. Love makes our actions and gifts useful. Although people have different gifts, love is available to everyone (Romans 5 vs 5). Love is the greatest of all human qualities and an attitude of God Himself (First John 4 vs 8). It involves unselfish service to others. God’s kind of love is directed outward toward others, not inward toward ourselves. This kind of love goes against our natural inclinations. It is impossible to have this love unless God helps us set aside our natural desires so that we can love and not expect anything in return.

When you were born again, you became a part of God's family. Following Christ is not only a matter of believing; it also includes belonging and learning to love the family of God. The apostle John wrote in First John 3 vs 14, "We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren, he who does not love his brother abides in death." Accept each other just as Christ accepted you; then God will be glorified. Think of someone in particular who needs this kind of Love today. Give all the love you can, and then try to give a little more.

Prayer: Abba Father, give me the grace to manifest the love of God that has been poured out in my heart by the Holy Spirit who was given to us, among fellow believers, that I will lay my life down for my fellow believers, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

7 Reasons Not to Worry, Part 3

 “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:31–34)

We have seen in the last two days that Matthew 6:25–34 contains at least seven promises designed by Jesus to help us fight the good fight against unbelief and be free from anxiety. Today we look at the final three promises.

Promise #5: “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” (Matthew 6:31–32)

Do not think that God is ignorant of your needs. He knows all of them. And he is “your heavenly Father.” He does not look on, indifferently, from a distance. He cares. He will act to supply your need when the time is best.

Promise #6: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33)

If you will give yourself to his cause in the world, rather than fretting about your private material needs, he will make sure that you have all you need to do his will and give him glory. This is how I understand “All these things will be added to you.” All the food and drink and clothing — and everything else — that you need to do his will and glorify him. Which might mean his purpose is for you to die for him, but he will supply everything you need to do it for his glory.

This is similar to the promise of Romans 8:32, “Will [God] not also with [Christ] graciously give us all things?” Which is followed by, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, ‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors” (Romans 8:35–37). Famine and nakedness may come. But we will have everything we need to be more than a conqueror. 

Promise #7: “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:34)

God will see to it that you are not tested in any given day more than you can bear (1 Corinthians 10:13). He will work for you, so that “as [your] days, so shall [your] strength be” (Deuteronomy 33:25, KJV).

Every day has its appointed trouble. But never more than you can bear by his grace. Every day will have mercies that are new every morning — mercies sufficient for that day’s trouble (Lamentations 3:22–23). He will not expect any good deed from you for which he does not supply all the grace you need (2 Corinthians 9:8).

BRING GLORY TO GOD BY WORSHIPING HIM!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 13, 2023.

SUBJECT: BRING GLORY TO GOD BY WORSHIPING HIM!

Memory verse: "Give to the LORD the glory due to His name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.” (Psalm 29 vs 2.) 

READ: Psalm 96 vs 1 - 9:

96:1: Oh sing to the LORD a new song! sing to the LORD, all the earth.

96:2: Sing to the LORD, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.

96:3: Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.

96:4: For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised, He is to be feared above all gods.

96:5: For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens.

96:6: Honor and majesty are before Him, strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.

96:7: Give to the LORD, O families of the people, give to the LORD glory and strength.

96:8: Give to the LORD the glory due to His name; bring an offering, and come into His courts.

96:9: Oh worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before Him, all the earth.

INTIMATION:

Worship is the appropriate response to God's self-revelation. Anything you do to give glory to God is an act of worship: praising, dancing, praying, offering, witnessing, meditating, studying the Scriptures, and so on, are all acts of worship to God. Worship is our first responsibility to God. We worship God for who He is. God wants our worship to be motivated by love, thanksgiving, and delight, not duty. Worship is a lifestyle of enjoying God, loving Him, and giving ourselves to be used for His purposes. 

When you use your life for God's glory, everything you do can become an act of worship. And the apostle Paul advised us thus, “Therefore whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (First Corinthians 10 vs 31.) Our actions must be motivated by God’s love so that all we do will be for His glory. Keep this as a guiding principle by asking, “Is this action glorifying God?” Or “How can I honor God through this action?”

The Christian’s life is given in its entirety to God (Galatians 2 vs 20). Therefore, the motivation behind the Christian’s behavior is in thanksgiving for all that God has done through His grace (First Corinthians 15 vs 10). God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. The Bible in Romans 6 vs 13 says, "And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God." Commit yourself entirely to God's way of doing things. Use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for God's glory.

In the passage we read today, the psalm writer sings out his praises to God, overwhelmed by all that God has done. As we reflect on God’s majesty and His goodness to us, we cannot help telling others about Him. Witnessing comes naturally when our hearts are full of appreciation for what He has done. God has chosen to use us to declare His wonders among the people. Praise for our great God overflows from His creation and should overflow from our lips.

Worship is an exclusive right of God. Only Him should be worshiped. Jesus, in emphasizing this fact, said to Satan, “Away with You Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.” (Matthew 4 vs 10.) Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6 vs 13 in order to show that it is sinful to worship Satan and angels (Revelation 19 vs 10), men (Acts 10 vs 26), or anything other than God. Only God, the Creator of all things, is worthy of worship.

The devil offered the whole world to Jesus if Jesus would only kneel down and worship him. Today the devil offers us the world by trying to entice us with materialism and power. We can resist temptations the same way Jesus did. If you find yourself craving something that the world offers, quote Jesus’ words to the devil: “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.”

Prayer: Abba Father, You are the only God, there is no other. Before there is no God, with You there no other God, and there will be no other God after You. You are the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and Omega. Give me the grace to worship You with my whole life and in all I do, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

BRING GLORY TO GOD AND BE GLORIFIED!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 12, 2023.

SUBJECT: BRING GLORY TO GOD AND BE GLORIFIED!

Memory verse: "Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.” (Isaiah 43 vs 7.) 

READ: John 17 vs 4 - 5:

17:4: I have glorified You on the earth: I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.

17:5: And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

INTIMATION:

Glory is honor bestowed; splendor or magnificence; a distinguishing quality, asset, or attribute. To glorify is to bestow honor or praise (as in worship); to magnify. We are created to bring glory to God. And living for God's glory is the greatest achievement anybody can accomplish with his or her our life. 

God made you to be you, and for a purpose. When the purpose for which He created you is met by you, you give glory to Him. When anything in creation fulfills its purpose, it brings glory to God. Birds bring glory to God by flying, chirping, nesting, and doing other bird-like activities that God intended. Even the lowly ant brings glory to God when it fulfills the purpose it was created for. Likewise you and I, if we do the will of God on earth for us, bring glory to Him.

In the passage we read today, our Master Jesus Christ, demonstrated this ultimate goal in His earth walk. Jesus honored God by fulfilling His purpose on earth. He glorified the Father on earth by teaching the will of the Father and doing the work of the Father. We honor God the same way—by doing His will. God, in His nature of Love and Mercy, in return, glorifies those you glorified Him. Before Jesus came to earth, He was one with God. And when He has almost completed His God-given mission on earth, He reminded God to glorify Him by restoring Him to His original place of honor and authority. Jesus' resurrection and ascension attest to His restoration. 

God will glorify you and I if we accomplish our purpose for which we are created by Him. In Romans 8 vs 29 - 30, the Scripture says, "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified."

God is a God of purpose. He created you for His purpose. God's working in our lives is to fulfill His preordained purpose, not necessarily to make us happy. God works in "all thing," not just isolated incidents, for our good. This does not mean that all that happens to us is good by our understanding. For instance when you lose your job, or valuable, it is not good. But God may have allowed that for the ultimate benefit of His purpose in your life. Evil is prevalent in our fallen world, but God is able to turn every circumstance around for our long-range good. 

Note that this promise is not for everybody. It can be claimed only by those who love God and are called according to His purpose. Those who are "called" are those the Holy Spirit convinces and enables to receive Christ Jesus. Such people have a new mind-set, a new perspective on life. They trust in God, not life's treasures; they look for their security in heaven, not on earth; they learn to accept, not resent, pain and persecution because God is with them, and they know that this world is not their home, they are just passing through.

God's ultimate goal is to glorify such people; to make them like Christ. The Bible in First John 3 vs 2 says, "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is." As we become more and more like Christ, we discover our true selves, the persons we were created to be. 

Prayer: Abba Father, endue me with the spirit of obedience and commitment to You, that I may bring glory to You by the things I do here on earth, and thereafter be glorified by You, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

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HOW TEMPTATION WORKS!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

MONDAY SEPTEMBER 11, 2023.

SUBJECT : HOW TEMPTATION WORKS!

Memory verse: "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make a way of escape, that you may be able to bear it." (First Corinthians 10 vs 13.)

READ: Mark 7 vs 21 - 23; James 1 vs 14 - 15.

Mark 7:21: For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 

7:22: thefts, covetousness, weaknesses, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. 

7:23: All these evil things come from within and defile a man.

James 1:14: But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 

1:15: Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings death. 

INTIMATION:

The accuser of brethren, Satan, is the tempter, and has continued in his known tricks since creation. And because his tricks are known to us, Satan is entirely predictable. His ways and strategies since inception have not changed. All temptation follow the same four-steps process, which Satan used both on Adam, Eve, and on Jesus. The apostle Paul says in Second Corinthians 2 vs 11, "...For we are not ignorant of his devices." The four-step process is; (1) Identifying a desire inside of you, (2) identifying your doubt, (3) employing his deception on you, and (4) luring you into disobedience.

STEP ONE.

Satan starts by identifying a desire inside of you. It may be a legitimate or normal desire, like the desire to be loved and valued, or to feel pleasure, or have a better living. Or an illegitimate or sinful desire, like the desire to get revenge, or to control others, or to cheat on others. Temptation starts when Satan suggests (with a thought) that you give in to an evil desire, or that you fulfill a legitimate desire in a wrong way or at the wrong time. 

Satan's known tactic on legitimate desires is to suggest shortcuts. These shortcuts are often temptations! For instance, you have a financial need, and there is some money entrusted in your care, he will suggest to you to use it since nobody will know or see you. You may have a sexual urge, he will suggest to you how you can satisfy the urge by having sex with anybody around you, after-all nobody will see you or know except you and your partner. 

STEP TWO.

Step two is doubt. Satan tries to get you to doubt what God has said about the sin: Is it really wrong? Did God really say not to do it? Didn't God mean this prohibition for someone else or some other time? Doesn't God want me to be happy? The Bible warns, "Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God." (Hebrews 3 vs 12.) Our heart turn away from the living God when we stubbornly refuse to believe Him. If we persist in our unbelief, God will eventually leave us alone in our sin. Beware of the deceitfulness of sin; it attracts but also destroys.

STEP THREE.

Step three is deception. Satan is incapable of telling the truth and is called "the father of lies." (John 8 vs 44.) Anything he tells you will be untrue or just half-true. Satan offers his lie to replace what God has already said in the Word. Satan say, "You will not die. You'll be wiser like God. You can get away with it. No one will ever know. It will solve your problem. Besides, everyone else is doing it. It is only a little sin." But a little sin is like being pregnant: it will eventually show itself.

STEP FOUR.

Step four is disobedience. You final act on the thought you've been toying with in your mind. What began as an idea gets birthed into behavior. You give in to whatever got your attention. You believe Satan's lies and fall into the trap of which the apostle James warns us about in one of passages we read today—James 1 vs 14 - 15.

Temptation comes from evil desires inside us, which the devil exploits. It begins with an evil thought and becomes sin when we dwell on the thought and allow it to become an action. The best time to stop a temptation is before it is too strong or moving too fast to be controlled. Never make excuses for evil thoughts and wrong actions. Excuses include (1) it's the other person's fault; (2) I couldn't help it; (3) everybody's doing it; (4) it was just a mistake; (5) nobody is perfect; (6) the devil made me do it; (7) I was pressured into it; (8) I didn't know it was wrong; (9) God is tempting me. 

A person who makes excuses is trying to shift the blame from himself or herself to something or someone else. That is wrong. As a Christian, accept responsibility for your wrongs, confess them, and asks God for forgiveness. The Scripture says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (First John 1 vs 9.)

Prayer: Abba Father, You are merciful and gracious. I know, most faithful God, that You will not allow me to be tempted beyond what I am able to bear, and will always make a way of escape, and always strengthening me to run with vigor the race set before me, in Jesus’ mighty Name I have prayed, Amen. 

PRAISE THE LORD!