The Devotional - 085 - Chrisma and Dorea

A Thought for the Day – 085 – Charisma and Dorea

Proverbs 10:19 – The cause may seem justified, but it is the effect that defeats a proper change. Something as large as a health care package, backed by a declining government is equal to much words and much sin. However, we might do well to say less and pray more.

 

Comments and challenges

Faith, Hope and Love are identified by the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:13 along with his exhortation to the Corinthian church regarding “Spiritual gifts” which began in his earlier chapter, chapter 12 and ends with the last verse of chapter 14. Yesterday I made an error in commenting of 1 Corinthians 13:13 in that it is “love” that the apostle identifies as being the greatest of the three “spiritual gifts” and not faith.

Also, I would like to take the time to express some deeper thoughts about this 1 Corinthians passage of chapters 12 through 14 which for the most part is abused by people and churches throughout Christendom. It is easy for you and me to take the Word of God and make it a personal project and what I mean by that is that we read something from the Holy Bible and we make it a personal and unholy practice.

If we were half the student we ought to be of the Living Word of God we would see (in this instruction from the apostle) that he does not use the word “gifts” as a qualification for individual saints, his words are directed to the church. Yet we are all used of God the Holy Spirit to be personally involved and spiritually endowed. When referring to his subject he uses the Greek word “Charisma” so I believe that the use of the word “gifts” as translated into English misses the intended instruction. The word “Charisma” carries enough divine weight to say that we as children of God are endowed by God the Holy Spirit to be equipped spiritually with certain divine qualifications.

These endowments are to be utilized by the local church in those men and women who are spiritually mature (equipped) with the greater or permanent endowments of faith, hope and love as identified in chapter 13 verse thirteen and I believe that if we do not know the love of God or how to use the love of God all the rest of the spiritual endowments fall flat including faith and hope.

Now if we look at the Ephesian passage in chapter 4:9-13 when the apostle is giving instruction about pastors, teachers and evangelists, even prophets he uses a different Greek word for gifts, the word “dorea” which is a Greek word for “gift” a gratuity. These are the permanent gifts used of God the Father to bring the local church family through sanctification (maturity).

Of course my looking into this is not exhaustive, but I do know this; One: this word comes from another Greek word “doron” which is a “present” or “offering” offered to one who is called of God to sacrifice his life back to God as a gift offering. Also “dorea” is used in every mention of what God the Father does for each saint from the point of justification all the way through to glorification and the Greek word “charisma” is what the Holy Spirit of God does to move the saints of God through sanctification. For me these are big avenues of confusion in the modern day church of Jesus Christ. More on Faith, Hope and Love tomorrow.

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The Devotional - 084 - Hope

A Thought for the Day – 084 – Hope

Psalm 119:10 – With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!

 

Comments and challenges

Well most of the morning I have been playing around with a Bible Study Tools program on the computer. This tool is new to me so I was not able to find exactly what I was looking for and that would be the second section of eight verses of Psalm 119 which is the Hebrew “Beth” character in which all of the eight stanzas begin with that second character of the Hebrew alphabet. Or at least this is the way I remember the Psalm when I first studied it many years ago. The character “Beth” is shaped like a square with the left side of the square missing.

Now there is significance in meaning of the shape of the “Beth” character of which I have forgotten and of which I have spent too much time looking for this morning, but I will say that the character reminds me of a shield and when the Psalmist says; “How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed to Your Word. With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your Commandments!” He is not saying that he is afraid of losing his grip on keeping up with God”.

In fact; it is just the opposite, he understands that “Hope deferred makes the heart sick” Proverbs 13:12-13 and that the one who does not study the Word is unprotected and lacks the confidence of moving forward. A soldier with a shield can move forward, because he is protected. Also, looking at Psalm 119:11 confirms for me that it is vital to hide the word of God in the heart for the sole purpose of keeping from sin. So last week we looked at “Faith”, not the word; but the outworking of faith in the heart of those who believe God in the sole area of “justification”.

Yet FAITH like HOPE and also LOVE, gifts of God to you and me (1 Corinthians 13:13) go beyond being justified, even though the apostle Paul states that the greatest of these three gifts of God is faith, the larger picture of following God after justification is a growing confidence in HOPE and LOVE. This being my thoughts over the weekend will lead me to look into the next step of God’s plan for you and me after being justified by faith which is being sanctified in the grace and knowledge of walking with God each moment after being justified.

Now all of this makes complete sense to me and I hope it does for you as well the reader, but if not please hang in there, I am sure that this will be a blessing for all of us since there is nothing better than the Study of the Word of the Living God.

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The Devotional - 083 - Faith

A Thought for the Day – 083 – Faith

Psalm 119:9 – How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your Word.

 

Comments and challenges

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, (it is) the evidence of things unseen; Hebrews 11:1-2. It does matter what we talk about in this world and whatever we talk about we should have knowledge of it, for if we do not and we speak, we are like foolish babblers and soon our ignorance is found out. None would argue that the biblical definition of “faith” is the dividing line between the “domain of darkness” and the “kingdom of heaven”.

In Colossians 1:9-14 we are reminded by the apostle Paul that there was a day in the domain of darkness that he heard the message of the kingdom of heaven. He like all of the apostles heard the same message and it is the same one that is shared by them and prayed over by them to present to us who read of their knowledge of God. The writers of the Epistles in the New Testament are strengthened with all might in this subject with spiritual wisdom and understanding, additionally they too are praying that we would be filled and strengthened with the same spiritual blessing.

Also, we must be mindful that even though many hear the message and of the many; even though equipped with the facts, not all will heed the message since it is not mixed with faith. Always when the facts are presented; one remaining ingredient is needed to provide substance and produce evidence; that ingredient is faith. The best Biblical example of biblical faith at work is Martha’s encounter with the LORD Jesus after the death of her brother Lazarus recorded in the Gospel of John; John 11:17-27 and the best encounter of biblical failing faith is found in Matthew 27:3-10.

The first produces everlasting life to those who believe God and the second produces everlasting death to those who fail to believe (trust or faith) God who is the Author of Faith. Hebrews 12:1-2. So with all that said, let me go back to Hebrews 11:1-2 – Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen. The substance is the GOSPEL of the grace of God (Acts 20:17-27), who gives us what we do not deserve; that which we all NEED. For those of us who believe the gospel (the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ the Son of God) that need is fulfilled.

We who believe, receive from God the gift of salvation, the gift is not deserved thus it is grace. Grace is then the substance of things hoped for, but cannot be acquired by any human reasoning or accomplishment. Finally, faith is the evidence of things unseen. As our faith increases in God’s grace we see that we are His workmanship, created in the Author and Finisher of our Faith (Jesus) to produce good works, works that are foreordained by God, that is which were prepared by Him in eternity where time has no past, no present and no future. For me this is not mystical, but is the way (it is).

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Hebrews 9:28 - so Christ was offered to bear the sins of many, and unto them that look for Him shall He appear a second time without sin unto salvation.  Jesse <><

The Devotional - 081 - Birthright!

A Thought for the Day – 081 – Birthright!

Today if you are seen by the world as blameless or undefiled as Psalm 119:1 and 2 challenge us to be, we are thought of as “old fashioned or to the extreme; cultish”. This thinking I believe is the fault of being liberal with the training our young. We as a nation have not guarded the soul of our young and we are reaping the results of Proverbs 22:5-8.

 

Comments and challenges

On Tuesday I began lamenting over our Nation’s failing foundation and on Wednesday I complained about those para-legal and para-church organizations that sincerely seek to bail out the American Way by extracting donations from the few Americans that are left with a dollar or two in their pocket after the federal and local governments get their portion to run their declining efforts to rescue their empires from the sinking sand.

Today I briefly want to help us see that power in human government and power in human wisdom will always fail to produce the necessary freedoms that this Nation once enjoyed. Again, many of us know that the hand writing of major change is written on the wall. I would say however that the majority of people in the United States of America do not CARE and simply laugh. But for the moment if you are one of these people… STOP! LOOK and LISTEN for the wall is falling.

Malachi 1:1-5 – As a nation we have replaced our God with idolatry in the worship of other gods. God has had enough of our ill worship. As a nation we are like Esau who sold his “BIRTHRIGHT” for a little welfare soup and a socialistic piece of bread. I am not going to spend much time on this, but you can search out these matters on your own and if you are serious with God about this, He will be serious and answer you. In Romans 9:6-13 the apostle Paul explains Israel’s rejection of God’s Purpose of overseeing the nation. I like his statement… “They are not all Israel, who are Israel” and like him I say; “we are not all citizens of the United States of America who are claiming to be citizens”

Malachi 1:6-14 – Our offerings to mend the nation are polluted, many of our secular donations fall into the hands of men and women who say all the right things but actually do all the wrong things. In other words their efforts even if connected to a biblical priority fail to achieve renewal and are wasted in compromise. God is wearied with our desire to throw our resources on the fires of evil and watch as these are burnt up in offerings to mend our failing secular humanism.

Malachi 2:1-9 – There have always been many “religious” and “idolatrous” factions that have a common goal to destroy the “One God” who is the Author and Finisher of FAITH. The priests of these corrupt beliefs have taken this United States of America and made it full of injustice as the Law of Truth cannot be found in their messages. Their messages are corrupting our cities and towns with terror; like that of Dearborn, MI.

Malachi 2:10-17 – We are not becoming a nation of treachery and infidelity; we ARE a nation of treachery and infidelity. It is time to face up to our failure and call out to God. God is the Author of OUR INDEPENDENCE. Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your heart as in the days of Malachi or as in the days of the wilderness journey of Israel. In God’s anger we will not find peace only His wrath. We as a nation need to repent; this very moment in time we need to seek His Rest from all of this. Hebrews 3:1-19.

Now I know that I have rapidly traveled through the first two chapters of Malachi and missed much of the challenge that is presented to Israel over their idolatry and sin, and ours as a nation too. But we as a nation have wronged ourselves by not seeking God in these matters of freedom and liberty. Simply put… the most educated man or woman cannot successfully govern this nation, or any other nation without the Help that God provides, all we need to do is seek HIM with the whole HEART (SOUL).

We need to stop robbing God, now I am not talking about “money” God does not need money or any of our natural resources… HE OWNS IT ALL and the bottom line to this; just look around! We have tossed our sons and daughters in the fires of abortion and sacrificed them to demons. We have tossed our educated young into the hands of immorality, making them immorally minded. We have tossed our income into the surveys of meaningless venues that have little to do with restoration and lastly; we have polluted our sanctuaries with marriages that are an abomination to God. These meaningless and evil efforts ROB GOD of His ability to BLESS THE NATION, God in His Mercy says this: REPENT – Malachi 3:8-12, yet some will answer from a hardened heart and say NO! As those in Malachi 3:13-15.

I hope your day is a prayerful one from a heart that seeks true INDEPENDENCE! Good Day!

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The Devotional - 080 - Sinking Sand

A Thought for the Day – 080 – Sinking Sand

Psalm 119: 2 – Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, Who seek Him with the WHOLE heart!

 

Comments and challenges

There is but one thing to do about the critical trials and tribulations that the United States IS facing. We are no longer living in times where we can forecast the future that will undo the American Way. Today, we Americans are experiencing moral decay and change by the minute. Changes are needed, but not the changes that are presently be offered by secular humanism.

We need to stop making laws that legalize SIN and re-establish our nation as ONE NATION UNDER GOD WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. At a time in the past we replaced the biblical standard of RIGHTEOUSNESS for the secular standard of UNRIGHTEOUSNESS. Again I have little desire to run my fingers over the keyboard explaining the various SINS our nation is GUILTY with. If you have half the wit to understand this… you know in your heart what those sins are.

We are daily bombarded with surveys from political parties and religious groups of which I am sure that these all have the same author, since the surveys all ask the same questions. These, not for profit; para-legal and para-church organizations ask you me to fill out a survey or sign a petition (or both) and then give them a donation. This sort of effort to cleanse the nation has been going on for a number of years and if I had kept those mailings or printed the subject matter from the computer I would have enough paper trash to fill a medium size dumpster.

Now guess what? I have given to some of these, it is easy to get caught up in giving especially when the platform they stand on is biblical, but I have also given to the secular parties as well, so here is the RUB! To what avail, just look around… not one correction has been made to cause the American people to get up off their “duff” and stand and fight for freedom.

You say what about our soldiers and sailors? This is not a good question; simply because these are good men and women who we have sent to live and die for causes that are NOW standing at the READY our homeland to take over our beloved UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. As soon as the light turns green and the caution light is already on, on the opposing intersection. These same terrorist groups will jerk the Independence Day rug, right out from under our feet. TOMORROW, pray that there will be a tomorrow to PRAY for national recovery. This is the ONE GOOD DONATION for you and me to offer up.

Our resources will not stop the spiraling decay of the American Way. PRAYER, ONLY PRAYER, ONLY PRAYER to GOD, not some idolatrous god of ANY man-made religion; but to GOD the Creator of the heavens and the earth and also of FREEDOM AND LIBERTY. A prayer of REPENTENCE; the confession of the SINS that this nation and you and I have committed.

The book of Malachi speaks to Israel; God is the beloved God of Israel, He says; “Israel I have loved you”. He has said the same thing too, to the United States of America. We have built our nation on His foundation and approval, but now individually and as a nation we have thrown down His pillars of Justice and Righteousness. God willing I will continue on Independence Day to finish my lament; take a look at Malachi the book and consider what God says about Israel.

Today He is SAYING VERY MUCH THE SAME OUR NATION. We need to turn back to God, or we will suffer a great fall. The LORD God has built us a house (NATION) to live in, but we have ignored Him. In thinking about this I am reminded of Luke 6:46-49. Yes, we did build our nation on God’s Foundation, but over time we have not done the necessary repairs and the foundation has fallen. Those seeking to rebuild are not building on the SOLID ROCK, because we are not doing the things He says to do; thus the ruin of our refurbished house will sink in sinking sand; quicksand!

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The Devotional - 079 - Is it Mud, or Quicksand?

A Thought for the Day – 079 – Is it Mud, or quicksand?

Psalm 119:1 – Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD!

 

Comments and challenges

At times, if you think about things too much it can be like walking through ankle deep mud. The suction of one thought can hang on to your brain until it hurts while seeking to pull yourself along to consider another thought. Knowing this causes me to try and simplify what I am pondering and then I lose the main topic somewhere along the way. When this is going on in my mind it takes forever to put one of these devotionals together, so I am reminded of a friend and pastor who is now with the LORD as he would say to me; “Jesse, just put that on the back burner and let it simmer for a while”.

So simmer it has, also it is encouraging; that there is another friend and close companion who observes these things going on in me and she will toss out a motivational point just at the right moment. Sort of like; “you better take that off the burner before it turns into a “burnt biscuit””. My wife picks up on things a lot for me and without her intuition, many of these devotionals would not form. I listen to my wife, although there are times that she might disagree, but I shall not take this any further since I can go from ankle deep mud into quicksand with the next movement of my thought!

Herein is another devotional that may take a day or two to develop; it is a challenge more or less to come to grips with our Nations failing foundation. Frist let me act a bit like Gideon; Oh! I am not afraid to speak; I simply do not feel qualified. I do not know the details of our Constitution, or the laws that govern our local governments for law abiding citizens. Nor of the federal government and its laws to control itself and to protect the citizens within these states. Thus I feel it would be easy for me to tread where I should not and thus be an abomination to God, to my country and to you.

As you know, with effort one can work their way out of the mud; but with quicksand the harder you work, the worse things become and soon you perish as the sand will overcome and death is certain. As far as I know most of us would believe that death in quicksand comes when your head slips beneath the surface and one can no longer breathe, but there are reported cases of death because of the pressure applied to the body from the suction of the quagmire, or simply being exhausted to death. Let me just say that this is how I view our nation; we have exhausted all of our human ability to fix our problems.

I would be the first to explain that I do not like our present administration. Those who govern this nation and those who lead our cities and townships have LOST their way. These are all men and women who have the education and the wherewithal to do a decent work, but in their best efforts cannot make it happen the way it should and they KNOW IT. This has led some to become lifelong supporters of issues that destroy rather than build, it has led others to just keep the chair they sit in warm, since they will not stand up for anything worthwhile.

Pretty much this is all I wish to say about our present administration, there is far too much being said these days by others that is more like a water main break or a flash flood that is eroding our national freedom of speech.

I am going to run a bit in a direction that will seem out of context here but just bear with me for a while, I just have to go and get this next subject off the other back burner, it seems that I have too much cooking, oh well; maybe we will have leftovers! I like leftovers, don’t you? I challenge you in the meantime to consider Proverbs 1:1-33. Remember I am asking you to “consider” Proverbs 1:1-33 not just read it. I am painstakingly serious about the things I am writing about even though I like making us laugh at these same things from time to time. Proverbs 15:13.

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The Devotional - 078 - For better or for worse!

A Thought for the Day – 078 – For better or for worse!

Psalm 119:153  Consider my affliction and deliver me, for I do not forget Thy law

 

Comments and challenges

Have you taken a walk lately through the neighborhood? You can tell a lot just by observing the properties you pass by. One has a beautiful yard. Plants and trees all seem to be in the right place and the landscape serves to make the whole yard pleasant. Like a neighborly place to be or enjoy.

But a step or two further the block reveals a stark difference. The stone wall of this yard is broken down. Overgrowth of the yard reveals thorns from unkempt bushes. Nettles from the trees are all over the place and the grass needed cutting three weeks ago.

These two homes and landscapes seem like different worlds, yet it is of the same family, only a generation or two has slipped by. Your watchful eye of this change has also become blurred in observation and you find yourself saying; “What is going on here”? Perhaps I’ve been asleep or slumbering over my own personal goals. No it is much deeper than that!

A little sleep and a little slumbering in our way of life and we begin to reap the results of poverty from a silent but powerful prowler. If this were just one of our neighbors, we might be able to isolate the evil from the good, but it is not a neighbor; it is me and you. The point is this, once we had a landscape of the home of the brave and the land of the free.

Today this same neighborhood portrays a vineyard of men and women devoid of understanding and even today the LORD God gives us revelation after revelation of adult men and women crying over the loss of their homes by storms and tornados. We see children holding on to parents legs with tears of hopelessness caused by fires that have blown through the neighborhood and taken away our comforts.

I see these as small warnings from God that as a nation we have turned our back on Him and we have purposed in our hearts remove the beautiful landscape of children and family, for the landscape of Sodom and Gomorrah. Yes it is time for you, Mr. Humanist to say… balderdash!  Not I, but Proverbs 24:30-34 answers you loud and clearly.

Also let me not forget to add Matthew 10:5-15, in that day the LORD Jesus sent His disciple into the neighborhood, He encouraged them to preach to the neighborhood that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Then after much encouragement He said that there are those who will not hear and that those who do not receive the message.

He told them to depart from those places since in the Day of Judgment that Sodom and Gomorrah will be able to tolerate their pending judgment more that future generations. Why? Simply because we (the future generations) know the truth and we have suppressed it and kept it from being heard by our children, thus our judgment will be more severe. Romans 1:18-32 is a portion of scripture being worn out in churches worth their SALT all across this land.

There is time to repent America, but even so… if repentance comes to this land, do not expect the landscape to resemble the way it was, who knows it could be better or it could be worse; but know this… for the better or for the worse; this land is still OUR LAND.

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