NEW LIFE: A MONTH OF VERSES: JANUARY 22, 2017

VERSE: "Now the Lord said to Abram, 'Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you....(Genesis 12:1)...' Abram took.....Lot his nephew, and all their possessions which they had accumulated, and the persons which they had acquired in Haran, and they [set out for the land of Canaan; thus they came to the land of Canaan. (Genesis 12:5).

EQUATION: Doing exactly what God says = Less hassle + headaches.

ACTION: God specifically told Abram to leave his relatives behind and go. He was only supposed to take his wife. Abram (not yet Abraham) took Sarai (Sarah) and much more, including his nephew Lot. The result of this error of slight disobedience is all kinds of trouble with Lot to the point of parting ways with him, and Lot eventually becoming steeped in the culture of Sodom, even though God rescued him from its destruction. Lot's young daughters' immorality with him, eventually led to the birth of the pagan nations of Moab and Ammon (Jordan etc). For us, this means one thing - do exactly what God says, as far as Abram and secondly, do not be as greedy and eager to partake in the fleshly lusts and temptations of this world, even if you're a real Christian. In other words, do not be like Lot!

PRAYER: Most High God, blessed be Your Name in ALL the earth. You call many out of the pit of despair from pagan and lost lands, families and backgrounds and You give life, hope and purpose to them. You make promises which are always true and never to be broken. But we, in our broken, sinful and rebellious condition always violate Your commands and either ignore Your specific instructions or do not follow them, as You intend. Lord, today, in this new year, give us clean hearts to obey You, clean minds to listen to You and clear thoughts to execute the plans You have specifically put before us, that it will go well with us and Your Perfect Will be done. Forgive us for all the times we have disobeyed Your extremely clear commands and instructions and paid the price. You continued to rescue us, like You did with Abraham, because You love us so much. Make us more like Christ, Who always did what You wanted and help us to see with Your eyes, the things we are called to do, to the Praise and Glory of Your Name, amen.

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PRAYERS OF THE BIBLE SERIES: THE BOOK OF GENESIS #7

RESOLVED: CONFIDENT PRAYER BRINGS RESULTS

12 Then he said, “O Lord God of my master Abraham, please give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham. 13 Behold, here I stand by the well of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 14 Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say, ‘Please let down your pitcher that I may drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink’—let her be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac. And by this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.” (Genesis 24:12-14)

As in the days when Jesus spoke of the unbelievers who looked “for signs and wonders”, many are looking for the same today. They seek  physical manifestation, through signs, instead of trust by Faith. It is the old “Doubting Thomas Syndrome”, which permeates a lot of modern Christianity.  However, this unique prayer, early on in human history, is different in so many ways.

The name of Abraham’s apparent most trusted servant/right hand man is not made known, because the Spirit of the Living God is leading the faithful to focus more on HOW the faithful servant went about his mission. There is some thought that Eliezer was this faithful servant, seeing that he is the closest advisor and friend to the great Abraham. The faithful servant was entrusted by Abraham to go back to his own family in Haran to find a wife  who was not a pagan like the vile Canaanites, for the latter’s son, Isaac. Isaac was the vehicle through whom the God of Heaven would start His new paradigm, via the Hebrews.  Before looking closer at this prayer, please read Genesis 24:6-8 to get the serious instructions to walk away, if the leading of the Lord is not there.

This is an important truth for us Christians, in these last days. We need to remember that whatever we are going through, we ARE going through and it will be a lot easier to let God lead the way. He knows the way, holds sway, rules the day and if He is so inclined to say, we need to just walk away. This is the gist of the teaching from Abraham’s instruction to Eliezer if he discerns the woman not to be what God ordained.

That being said, let us dive, portion by portion, into not just the prayer, but the submissive heart and humility of this servant of Abraham.

-          “Oh LORD God of my master Abraham, please give me success this day” (verse 12a)…being a sent man on a mission, from the Lord’s major prophet of the day, the servant seeks to please the master (Abraham) and not returned empty-handed from this, to which he had sworn to Abraham. The success he seeks is not for his personal gain. There is absolutely nothing wrong with praying for our mission to assist someone else to be a fruitful venture. Unlike the majority of mankind, we do have access to the Throne of Grace, and our Heavenly Father loves it when we just give even the smallest matter to Him.  This way, we exhibit our complete Faith in God.

-          “Behold, here I stand by the well of water….”(verse 13a)….when you and I place a matter before the LORD,  it is absolutely incumbent on us to leave it there and not run hither, tither and yon trying to then try to address the matter ourselves.  When we give something to the Lord, in faith, and pray for His Mighty Hand to bless, address or redress the matter – stay put, don’t try to replace God and allow Him to be Who we say and know He is. Psalm 46:10 is explicit in its instruction “be still and know that I am God”!                              

-          “Now let it be….”(verse  14a)….”let her be the one (verse 14b)…..and by this I will know (verse 14b)….these are the words (prayers) of a man who is confident, firm and completely sure of his relationship with God! The application for us is to do likewise and be clear in our intercession. Such clarity is always answered, at least in my experience, and definitely Abraham’s servant. He had to know the closeness the relationship between his master and the Great God of Heaven Who spoke directly and with no confusion in His Words, to Abraham. So he obviously expected the same kinds of answers and signs from Above, knowing that he was on a mission from one of God’s favored prophets of all time!

Does God answer such confident, bold, direct, clear and expectant prayer? You bet He does. Look at Genesis 24:15 “And it happened…!” It happened! God answered as clearly and directly as Abraham’s servant prayed.

Finally, we must never allow God’s love, grace, mercy and compassion and His answers to our prayers be showered upon us, without being overwhelmed by gratitude. When the Lord answered Abraham’s servant’s intercessory plea on behalf of his master’s request for a wife for Isaac, look at how a true believer in God should respond here in Genesis 24:27 “And he said, “Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken His mercy and His truth toward my master. As for me, being on the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master’s brethren.” 

~Amen~

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PRAYERS OF THE BIBLE SERIES: THE BOOK OF GENESIS #3

PRAYER OF THE FIRST HEBREW

2 Abram said, “O Lord God, what will You give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Since You have given no offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir.”  (Genesis 15:2-3)

This is the first recorded prayer from Abraham. Abram, as he was called at the time, had already obeyed the Call of God and crossed over from his pagan homeland in Ur of the Chaldeans (modern day Iraq) into the desert. There, he was looking for a city whose builder and creator of God. Abraham became the first Hebrew. The word Hebrew does NOT mean Jew, but has several meanings. The word Hebrew simply means "one who has crossed over, passed over or a sojourner, and one who has gone to the other side". We, who have obeyed God and accepted the Lordship of Jesus Christ, have likewise crossed over, like Abraham did.

In his case, as in ours, we are now part of the family of the Hebrews - sojourners who have crossed over from darkness (paganism/idolatry/lost) to LIGHT (salvation/eternal life/Christianity). Abraham did not understand this plan when he was called to leave his idol-worshipping father's, Terah's,  house in dirty old heathen Ur. But God knew the plans He had for him.

In order to get to the context of this first prayer, we have to read the chapters leading up to Genesis 15:2 and on. Abram had just come through an amazing mountaintop experience with an example or type of Christ - the high priest of Salem Melchizedek, only to have a valley experience and a run-in with the corrupt king of Sodom. Then in Chapter 15:1, the LORD appeared to Abram and a vision, calmed his fear after the encounter with that king and proceeded to promised him a reward which stunned! God promised Abram, who had to be way into his 80's by now, a reward.

Abram was a very wealthy man at the time, even before he "crossed over" into Faith in the One True God of Heaven. He could not fathom what this reward could be. So he asked the Father what else could he possibly give a man, who was richer than all the billionaires in the world today! Ah, but there was one thing left....and it bothered Abram. He had no natural son with Sarah, his wife and the only heir, in his natural thinking, was Eliezar his main servant.

Here is when Abram prayed "O Lord God, what will You give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?....Since You have given no offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir.” (Verses 2 and 3). We all know what happened next, even with his massive world-changing error with Hagar. Jesus appeared to him in Chapter 18 and promised Sarah would have a baby in her 90's.

What does this prayer say to us? We are a people pressed down on every side. We are buffeted, beat up in despair. Our people are persecuted here and mostly abroad. Churches and villages are destroyed and Bibles burned. But as God told Abram when the king of Sodom tried to make a worldly deal with him "Fear not" (Genesis 15:1). In this way, we too should fear now. God says He is our shield and buckler.

That means not only that He has our back but from His view from heaven, He sees all the arrows coming at us from all sides. God as our shield means He will protect us from ALL, and I mean, ALL frontal assaults of the enemy. The slings and arrows will not touch us, the fiery darts will never pierce this Divine Defense. But the original word which the Holy Spirit used in Scripture here was "meginnah" or "armed"! This Shield of God is not just a productive barrier in front of us but is like the Iron Dome over Israel today - it protects against ALL incoming and can repel anything!

Secondly, what this first prayer of Abraham says to us is this - if you and I allow Almighty God, the Great God of Heaven to be our defense, we shall not be only protected but our Faith will be rewarded! Are you and I ready to allow Him to be our "shield and buckler" and cross over into a full measure of Faith, or are we still thinking "we got this, God"...and are trying to fight life's battles in our own strength? The choice is as plain as day!

THIRTY ONE DAYS OF PRAYER AND THE WORD:JANUARY 1-31, 2015 THEME: "ABIDE"

DAY FIVE:
VERSE:

Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving....
(Colossians 2:6-7)
PRAYER:
Oh Most High God and Ruler of the Universe, You are not a God Who created and left us to our own devices but "walked with Adam" daily, in the beginning, until he sinned and walked away from you. You told Abraham to "walk before" You and be blameless (Genesis 17:1) and everyone of Your faithful generals walked before, along and then behind Your leadership. Father, Your requirement is laid out for us in Micah 6:8 "....what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God? 

It is our fervent wish to be resolved, as Your servant Jonathan Edwards once did, to walk with You in that way. Oh that we would have the testimony of Enoch of whom it is written twice that he walked with you and then You "raptured" him Home. All Your faithful servants of old, from the prophets to the warriors like Joshua and David to the Apostles walked the sacrificial walk with You as they would a friend.

But Lord, You oh God, You are more than a friend. You are the God of all salvation, all truth, all majesty and all power, and we worship, adore, magnify, glorify and lift up the Name above all names, we lift up the blood-stained banner of Jesus Christ as warriors of the Cross and we loudly proclaim, from the mountaintop that Jesus Christ IS LORD and there is no other. Hallelujah to the Lamb!

Lord, give us this day the power and perseverance, as adopted sons and daughters and friends of God, to walk with You - not ahead of You, not way behind You, but WITH YOU. We know, oh God, why You told us to "walk humbly WITH" You and not all the other things.  It is because we need to recognize that the humble Savior Whose meekness in tribulation was our example, has called us to His Walk, when He ministered almost 2000 years ago. It is in humility we silence our noisy pride and self-righteousness and is in surrender we become empowered and strong in You, so much so to the point that if it were possible, post-flood, we would be able to walk 300 years with you as Enoch did!

Thank You, dear Abba Father, that we even had the opportunity to RECEIVE Christ as Colossians 2:6 says, which prequalifies us to be able to even be on that path with You! This act of Salvation, through the Spirit's regeneration and not some mindless repetition of a cheap evangelist, reminds us to also "be still and KNOW that You are God" - the ultimate act of obedience through humility. 

Thank You, most Gracious Father for this teaching that our stillness is not weakness about a proactive dwelling in Your Presence knowing that You have all our situations, troubles, cares, tears and fears under control.

Thank You, most Sovereign Lord, for the gift of Faith, with which we are indwelled and constantly maturing in, so that we can recognize the Hands and Handiwork of God weaving the narrow path through which we should walk with You. I do so with abundant and joyful thanksgiving in my heart, through Jesus Christ, our soon-coming King. Amen.

PART 2 - ENOCH'S WALK PLEASED GOD

There is “Walking with the Lord”….and then there is the PLEASING Walk with the Lord, which most westerners in the Body of Christ fall short on. Too many are using the Lord as a crutch, while pleasing themselves in hot pursuit of the American Dream. 

We are called to be humble disciples and followers of Jesus Christ. We are not called to be in an all-out,  full-fledged Pursuit of the now elusive formula of high school, license at age 16; college; big job;  big suburban home, iPad and iPhone and a BMW or Ford Explorer. We are called to something less frustrating and more fulfilling than this pipe dream! The  fruits of this are becoming more and more evident, as more and more families are seeing their kids’ and grandkids’ dreams disappear before our eyes.  Due to  liberals and their politicians/academics and even lax parenting, many expect their children to be worse off in their adult lives, than they were. 

The Church has been no help, in the west. Like all entitlement societies, the Lord’s so-called “under-shepherds” have found the formula to their own cushy lifestyles and it is not by preparing their flocks (or congregations) for trials, tribulations and “he who perseveres to the end, will be saved”. As a result, very few….a very small fraction of the actual 9% of Americans who are born-again Christians, find the secret of that “pleasing walk with the Lord”.

Hebrews 11:5 says “By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death,  “and was not found, because God had taken him” (a direct quote from Genesis 6: ); for  before he was taken, he had this testimony, THAT HE PLEASED GOD (emphasis mine).

Oh that would be said that our testimony “pleased God”!  First we would have to know what a testimony really was and secondly, do we have one of those!  According to Webster’s Dictionary, a testimony is “proof or evidence that something exists or is true”. It is also an “open acknowledgment”  in terms of Faith – of what the Lord has done for and to us in our spiritual lives. The key words here are “proof”, “evidence”, “true and “open acknowledgement”.  Ten times out of ten, a person’s general testimony describes the conversion story of the person giving the Testimony and the road which that same person is now on, in his Faith Journey. I once asked a person to give his testimony at a certain meeting, and he basically got up and said he had none. 

Enoch did not have that problem. The Great Faith Chapter of Hebrews 11 said he HAD this testimony – “THAT HE PLEASED GOD”! How did a man four thousand years ago, with no church building; no ministry website or 501 C(3); books and DVDs “please God” when we today have everything and know our conduct is nowhere near this kind of Faith. Simple - Enoch was a simple man but he also had the benefit of direct knowledge of the sin of his literal ancestor - Adam!

Enoch saw the filth and degradation all around him as his corrupt world headed for the Great Flood...and obviously stayed away from it. He and his family, which included Methuselah, remained faithful in their pro-active Faith in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. Like Job and Abraham, they believed God and He reckoned it to them as righteousness. These men, especially Enoch and Job, pleased God with their upright lifestyle. Hebrews 11:6 confirms that it was Enoch's strong Faith which led the Lord to rapture him out alive.

The verse said "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." There it is right there - if you wish to please God, if you wish to have a pleasing Journey through Life with our Creator - Faith is all it takes. 

To the unbeliever and those who follow pagan religions, this Truth is difficult to comprehend due to its simplicity.  This kind of pleasing Faith has a component which is not a general characteristic of the modern Christian: "diligently seeking the Lord". This implies active pursuit of the Truth and thus, the Favor of the Lord.

How do we do that? Is there a famous "seven point plan for that"? Is there a self help book by some famous author for that? Yes! A Famous Author told us - the Holy Spirit gave us the Scriptures to know God and therefore, love, trust and obey. With obedience, comes the "drawing near" or coming to God, as Hebrews 11:6 tells us. We come near through prayer, intercession, fasting and walking in His Marvelous Light. We come near through seeing His Hand in every single thing around us and then allowing Him to be Lord of your life, but submitting to His Will. 

My recommendation is to understand that He is the "rewarder" of all things, but to stay away from focusing too heavily on the rewards, and more on the relationship side of the ledger.  You and I cannot out-give God, but we can do our best to live out our lives for Him. 

ARE YOU FRIEND OF GOD?

Who am I that you are mindful of me?
Who am I that you hear me when I call?
Who am I that the King would bleed and die for?
Who am I ...just who am I and...who do I think I am anyway?

One thing I know is the Biblically-based self-esteem is a lot different from that of the world.  Another thing I know, all those "Who am I...” phrases above would make some good Christian songs! The Holy Scriptures tell us that Abraham, the father of the Hebrews and Christianity - was a friend of God. (James 2:23 ...and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS," and he was called the friend of God.")

The great prophet Daniel was well thought of by the God of Heaven and Jesus Christ Who sent him as a messenger. He was just doing what he was called to when God sent an angel to tell the Prophet how important he was to the Kingdom of Heaven....we pick up the account here:

(Daniel10:10-12) Then behold, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. He said to me, "O Daniel, man of high esteem, understand the words that I am about to tell you and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you." And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling. Then he said to me, "Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words..."

These two powerful men of God have similar traits - the Lord Himself thought the world of them...yet in different ways. We see above how much Daniel was respected in Heaven, even more so than Abraham, for God did not say those same things to anyone else in history! Daniel was a humble, lowly, sold out, committed servant of the Great God of Heaven.

Jesus did appear to Abraham right before He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah and the Messiah said in Matthew 8:11 that ""I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven". The pre-Resurrection "heaven" or paradise was known as the "Bosom of Abraham".

So where do we, in the 21st century fall into, in these two categories? Well, there is absolutely no reason why we cannot have the traits of both these Bible heroes!

The Book of James tells us what being a friend of God IS NOT! James is the half-brother of the Lord Jesus and was the head of the Church in Jerusalem before the high priests murdered him. He said in James 4:1-4 “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this that your passions are at war within you?  You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.  You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

So, you want to be a friend of God like Abraham? Well, Mary’s son (and the son of Joseph), James gave you the steps here in James 4:7-10 “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.  Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you”.

Here are these same steps in bullet points:

1. Submit yourself to God. That is – surrender your entire life to Christ and His leading, through the Holy Ghost. Don’t follow any man, philosophy, thing or even yourself. But follow God.

2. Resist the devil. That is – turn against everything James said above in James 4:1-4…adultery, gossip, backstabbing, ungodly passions, longing for things that you can’t have, can’t afford.

When the devil tempts you to look at that bad stuff in movies or the internet, say NO.

When he tempts you to go out and get drunk with the boys and girls, say NO.

When he tempts you to date that married man or woman, say NO….say NO NO NO and tell him to get lost. Rebuke him and tell him to back to the hell he came from and is going permanently.

Then call on Jesus. The devil can’t stand any of this standing on the Rock of Christ!

3. Draw near to God. This is Daniel –like.  Abraham did what he was told…sometimes to a fault as we found out when he agreed to sleep with Hagar and gave us the current Middle East problem. Daniel prayed and prayed and prayed and obeyed. Among all the Bible heroes, in the face of persecution, Daniel is the humblest and most loved by people like us. So be like Daniel – and pray!

4. Do NOT be double-minded. You and I cannot indulge in watching things like the Satanic performances of Katy Perry or Beyonce at the 2014 Grammy awards and the abomination which took place during that program, give our affirmation to it by even viewing it and then switch back to a mind full of the Spirit of Christ.  This is double-mindedness. When this happens, immediately seek purification, cleansing and repent of that, while staying away from any future things like that. There are so many other worldly things we can be double-minded about, but if we follow the Word of God about the Seven Things He hates as well as ANYTHING which the Holy Spirit checks us on, we can avoid a whole lot of regret.

These are the four basic things to being a complete friend of God – like Abraham and having real significance in Life, like Daniel had.  There is absolutely no reason why you and I cannot be a friend of God and a person whom God favors. This is something which nothing and nobody in this corrupt world can take away from us. This defines both our humanity and our spiritual condition, because such a person walks with the Fragrance of Christ that few possess.

So, now…who am I that You – oh My God in Heaven, would even consider?
Answer – GRACE….GREAT GRACE!

SHOWING JESUS IN THE PASSOVER TONIGHT!

In the course of the past few weeks, I prepared to present a Messianic Passover Seder, at a fairly large church in Decatur, Illinois tonight (Wednesday March 14),what was so powerfully evident to me is the Presence of the Lord Jesus Christ in every fiber of every word of every phrase His Word and the Passover itself.

First of all, it is amazing, that someone like me - a Gentile - would be asked to do what some consider a 100% Jewish Feast - Passover! How is this possible? Well, first, I am a Jew by re-birth. Jesus, the King of the Jews, called, elected, chose to and drew me unto Himself  when He spoke to my Spiritual heart on August 16, 1988 @ 4am. By that simple yet eternally crucial act (for me), He grafted me into the family of Abraham, a former pagan like me, who became a Hebrew when he crossed over from darkness into life.

The word "Hebrew" itself means one who has crossed over.God called this man, Abraham, out of Ur of the Chaldeans (outside modern day Baghdad, Iraq) and made him father of the Jews. Anyone who is in the family of God, is related to this father of many nations and therefore, the other Patriarchs of the Bible - Isaac and Jacob. I became enthralled with Jewish things many moons ago and briefly sat under the teachings of  Messianic Rabbi in the early part of the 2000's. That led to my love of the great Passover Seder dinner. 

The word 'Seder' itself actually means order. If you spent as many weeks studying Jesus in the Passover and what the Seder really means, you will see the beautifully  thread of love God has intricately woven in every step of the Passover! It is a harmonious arrangement of significance which flows like the crimson tide, that covered the Cross on Calvary, when our Passover Lamb, Jesus paid the final penalty for our sins! 

This is what really blew me away, in my immersion into the depths of God's thinking when He instituted it. While the Seder I will be doing tonight (at the First Nazarene Church) is three weeks ahead of the actual Passover (April 6, 2012 or Good Friday to most of the world), it will give me a change to share the following:

- Wonder of our Great God in Heaven 

- His Compassion for Mankind

- His Omnipotent Wisdom

- His Ways, which are not our ways

- His plan for Redemption 

- His Sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross

- His Great offer to us.

This message of the Passover is such a joyful message - timeless, true and can be told at anytime of the year.

Father in the Name of Yeshua, Prince of Peace, I come to You now, bowing humbly before Your Throne of Grace, that LORD - YOU, King of the Universe would look down in the muck and mire of this corrupt world and pull  me out of it....then clean me up by the Blood of the Lamb of God, Jesus...then set my feet upon a rock. 

Father, You put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God, many will hear it and come to know You and Jesus Christ, the One True God, through the Holy Spirit's prompting - Three in Essence but One True God. Many will see the error of their ways and see forgiveness of their sins through Repentance and make You the Lord of their lives. Many will know that You, You alone are God. 

May it be today! May it be now! 

May it be real! Hallelujah! Hosanna to the King, Who saved and saves many into to Kingdom of Light from the Kingdom of Darkness! 

Thank You, oh HaShem, Mighty One! Blessed are You Lord God, King of the Universe! You save all men and speak life into them by the Power of Your Word! I bow down before You and present myself a living sacrifice to be used by You today, to honor You in the 3500 year old Tradition of the Passover and to show hundreds the meaning of this most amazing of Feasts and how and WHY they must accept this because, after all, Father, the Passover is about Jesus, the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world - all our sins. 

I thank You for that honor and privilege and surrender all that I am, all that I do, all that I will do to Your wonderful service, in the Name of Christ Jesus the Lord, amen and amen.

JEHOVAH - ROHI

THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD!

Back in the old west., there were all out wars between cattle ranchers and the humble sheep farmers! Many a gun battle broke out between the two as the cattle guys resented the smell and (in their mind) lowly status of sheep. On the other hand, the sheep herders resented the cattle guys for having their cows graze all the way down to the dirt...then move on, leaving nothing for the sheep to eat. Some of this slowed down around the Civil War when wool was needed for uniforms! All of a sudden, sheep was in demand, not for meat but for its wool!

Throughout bible history, sheep are mentioned over 500 times. This is more than any other animal and while sheep-herding described an occupation or way of life, for the most part, sheep represents God's people! The first known shepherd in the bible was Abel, who had lots of flocks, before his brother Cain killed him in a fit of jealousy.  Sheep made Abraham a very wealthy man, who shepherded a new race of people from Ur to wherever God sent him!

The best known was King David, the little shepherd boy who was rescued from the fields by the Lord your God and made famous. David used his amazing strength which he demonstrated, by way of defending his flocks to kill a lion and a bear with his bare hands. Yet it was this mighty man who wrote in loving humility - the LORD IS MY SHEPHERD (psalm 23:1)!!!

How about that?! What love and surrender to the Holy One Who not only created him, but the One Who defended, guided and protected him through it all! Scripture says "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:6).

So we are sheep. We are sheep in need of a shepherd. 

When the angels of God announced His birth in the fields of Bethlehem, they went not to the religious but to the dirty shepherds who were looking after their flocks of sheep. They were establishing the paradigm of the Shepherd and Christ as the Head Shepherd of His people who are always in need of His guidance and keeping within the fold.

Yes, Jehovah-Rohi, the Lord is my Shepherd, as He was/is David's. In short, sheep are important in the course of human history - as a means of providing clothing (as we see for strong uniforms) or as food and objects of sacrifice at the Temple of God in Jerusalem, a long time ago. God has ordained it that we looked to our great Shepherd for EVERYTHING. We can write long books about the nature of sheep or the attributes of shepherds, but suffice it to say, let's remember one thing - Jesus is the Good Shepherd....and we would be lost in the thicket or in a ditch somewhere, if He does not rescue us and take care of us when we stray off the path the Lord has set for us.

Father in the Name of Jesus, I come to You right now, saying and believing as David did that JEHOVAH-ROHI - the Lord is MY Shepherd. Father, throughout the course of History, sheep have reputations of being just a dumb animal who would go along with the crowd and then get off lost somewhere.

Lord that described me perfectly! I was so dumb and blind I lived in and wallowed in my own sin for so long, until Your Son, the Good Shepherd, came and pulled me out of the ditch or pit I fell into when I strayed away from You.

Father God, Jesus said "I am the Good Shepherd and the Good Shepherd gives His life for the sheep (in John 10:11) and again in verse 14 "I am the Good Shepherd and know My sheep and My sheep know Me".

The Good Shepherd has given so much for me, when He gave at the Cross and still gives now - to provide for me. I thank You Lord for that. 

The Good Shepherd gives me eternal life, because I trust in and obey Him. I thank You Lord for that.

The Good Shepherd gives me spiritual nourishment through His Spirit. I thank You Lord for that.

The Good Shepherd gives me my job and literally the food I eat on the table. I thank You Lord for that.

The Good Shepherd gives me my family and has trusted me with children to shepherd as He shepherds me. I thank You Lord for that.

The Good Shepherd gives me a bath and a cleansing by the Power of His Blood.  I thank You Lord for that. 
The Good Shepherd gives me restoration when I am weak and walk off the path because my head is down and am grazing so much on the world, I get lost in the bushes. I thank You Lord for that.

The Good Shepherd has never lost one of His sheep or children, except the one marked for destruction, who betrayed Him for 30 pieces of silver. He will never lose me. I thank You Lord for that.

The Good Shepherd has and always will keep me from danger and evil, because I am one of His sheep and He is mine. I thank You Lord for that.

Lord I am not ashamed to admit that I am one of YOUR sheep and would have it no other way. I admit I am weak, not too smart and used to follow the crowd. But with You, Jehovah- Rohi, I am strong. With You, I am super-sheep in Spirit and in Truth. With You, I can do all things through the Shepherd Who strengthens me. I thank You for that, Heavenly Father. 

Thank You for adopting me into Your Flock and I long for and anticipate that day, when I see the Lamb Who sits on the Throne and gave it all for me, that I can become just that - one of Your sheep! I gladly follow You into eternity, my Great God, King, Shepherd and Master, in Jesus' Holy and Mighty Name, amen!

(image by google images)

US MILITARY CHAPLAINS CAN NOW PERFORM SAME-SEX RITUALS

WORD OF THE DAY: "OBEDIENCE"

Obedience fit right into this downward cultural shift, which occurred yesterday, when the Civilian leadership of the Pentagon said U.S. Military chaplains can now perform private 'same-sex' rituals, on or off base! In a fit of moral, legal and spiritual contradiction, the current political leadership of the Department of Defense (DOD) then proceeded to offer taxpayer-funded government buildings for these ceremonies.


The legality is unquestioned as the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is still the law of the land. This is wrong. More importantly, this is a slap in the Face of Holy God by politicians who serve man more than God. Romans 1 comes into play as more and more, we see American leaders turning from God, forcing Him to remove His protection from this once-blessed country.


This is another layer of stress put on American Christian Chaplains, who were told a few years ago that they could not pray in the Name of Jesus! Therefore the question arises: to whom does a Chaplain owe his loyalty and obedience? Sure the DOD said Chaplains can "exercise" the conscience clause and "refuse to participate". How many expect this opt-out to last? Nobody!


Our Evangelical chaplains took an oath to defend and protect the Constitution of the United States when they signed up and especially if they are soldiers as well. There is nothing in that US Constitution restricting them from the free exercise of speech or religion. But their position is different from the enlisted man or the officer. He is a spiritual authority and while he is under the same orders and the Uniform Code of Military Justice, a Chaplain's REAL Commander in Chief is God, not the US President and his DOD flunkies.


Any order from high up in man's economy, which violates both God's and man's law can be rejected. Therefore, should a chaplain refuse to perform what's coming next under man's regime....and that is, same-sex marriage? Yes! A thousand times, yes!


A man of God, a licensed minister and chaplain is 100% accountable first to Almighty God, Who will not buy the answer that "the devil made me do it"! US Chaplains are meant to stay in there and defend the Faith as much as they minister to those who fight to defend the United States of America.


Our Hebrews 11 verses today - Saturday - as we go into Week 5 of this amazing Chapter and teaching are Verses 17-19. In context here they are:
By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense. 


Like these US Chaplains, our hero Abraham was tested...and even more so! Remember two things - God made Abraham a promise to cause many nations to literally be birth from an old man. Secondly, God asked Abraham to then sacrifice his own beloved son, Isaac!


After the miracle of the birth of Isaac when he was 100, Abraham did not doubt one second God will keep His Promises. The Bible says numerous times that "Abraham believed God and He counted it to him (Abe) as righteousness"! So while Abraham had to be scratching his head when God told him that Isaac was the sacrifice - ABRAHAM OBEYED!

Every saint mentioned in the Heroes Hall of Faith here in Hebrews 11, OBEYED GOD (rather than men) and stood on Faith - absolute, complete and obedient Faith to Almighty God. The result - a people whom Christ will call unto Him as His own one day soon! Should we expect our chaplains to be like-minded? Yes! But they will only be so if we individuals and ordinary folks, support them with prayer, encouragement, cards and more! Surely, we can do this!


In the Name of Jesus, amen.

(Image by Google Images)

THINK ON THESE THINGS - MONDAY

WAITING FOR THE PROMISE

(WE RETURN TO HEBREWS 11, VERSE BY VERSE

TODAY'S WORD - BELIEVE) 

Has someone ever made you a promise which not only sounded to good to be true, but could even be termed totally way out there?  I know how human nature would react - we would say "now way"...but inside, our "willer" would say " YES, WAY....er...please"!!!


For instance, take this one man who lived over 75 years surrounded by generations of not just pagan idol worship, but some of the vilest and sex-oriented debauchery which literally had its roots with Noah's great grandson - King (Ima) Nimrod! This man's dad was one of the richest  in UR, (which is not a Twitter abbreviation for "you are"). Terah reigned in Southern Iraq as one of the richest men there.

But one day, God said to Terah's son- take up you beautiful childless 74 year old wife Sarai and go west, old man, to this new land....BUT I am not going to tell it just....just GO! Over twenty years go by in the hot and harsh deserts of the Cradle of Creation. Then one day, God tells this man "your 99 year old wife is going to have a baby, and you da man - at age 100"!


Faith enabled Abraham to become a father, even though he was old and Sarah had never been able to have children. Abraham trusted that God would keep his promise....Hebrews 11:11 (GWT)


Jesus Himself confirmed it to Abraham - Face to face - when the LORD visited Abraham and Sarah, with two angels, on the way to destroying Sodom and Gomorrah. Sarah laughed in private - an action with did not escape Jesus, who rebuked her. This story is told in Genesis 18: 10-15.


What we should ask ourselves is this - do we laugh at the Promises of God in His Word, or do we believe them... even a little bit?  Little Faith, just like a little knowledge, can be a dangerous thing. Look what happened when Sarah got impatient waiting for the Lord to send a natural heir for Abraham. She gave her young Egyptian servant girl, Haggar, to Abraham to impregnate, and we now have the Middle East crisis led by the sons of Ishmael!


Therefore, the word today is Believe. When the Lord, through His Spirit or the prophetic declaration of others, makes a promise to you, believe it! Then once you believe it, do not try to force His Hand. Just "Be still and know that He is God" (Psalm 46:10). Because if you try to help God out, they could be consequences you never bargained for!


Wait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD.... Psalm 27:14

THINK ON THESE THINGS - WEDNESDAY

HEBREWS 11:10 - THE NEW JERUSALEM

PART 2

Yesterday we saw in our verse (10) that Abraham was looking CONFIDENTLY forward to the Eternal City of God, whose very Foundations were designed, constructed and appointed by the Lord.  In the verse, the Bible uses the word CONFIDENTLY for a reason. Confidence is derived from two words: con (with) and fide (faith). Therefore, it is WITH FAITH that Abraham anticipated.


When Old Testament (or pre-Calvary) saints died, they went directly to Paradise. Christ called it "Abraham's bosom" which is a place of Comfort and Rest for those who died in Faith. They obviously did not have a chance to believe in and accept Jesus as Lord of their lives, because He was not crucified on the Cross yet. Jesus' death on the Cross made atonement for every believer from Adam until the end of time.


Several passages in the Bible describe what Heaven is like. The goal of this message is not to look into every passage on heaven but to give the flavor of the Eternal City. But I must tease with this verse from Isaiah 35:5 NASB "A highway will be there, a roadway, and it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean will not travel on it, but it will be for him who walks that way, and fools will not wander on it". 


Wow! This is an important verse because it prophesied over 700 years before Christ, just who is going to be a resident of the eternal city of God. From here on out, the Bible describes the City, which both Abraham and John the Apostle were allowed to see, according to the Word of God. I present it without comment for your meditation, illumination and instruction. May it comfort and bless you this day, as we see ourselves surrounded by such a troubled world, which is perishing in sin and evil. 
Glory to His Name:

Revelation 21 (PHILLIPS)

All things made new

 ^1-4 Then I saw a new Heaven and a new earth, for the first Heaven and the first earth had disappeared and the sea was no more. I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, descending from God out of Heaven, prepared as a bride dressed in beauty for her husband. Then I heard a great voice from the throne crying, “See! The home of God is with men, and he will live among them. They shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death shall be no more, and never again shall there be sorrow or crying or pain. For all those former things are past and gone.” ⁵ Then he who is seated upon the throne said, “See, I am making all thing new!” And he added, “Write this down for my words are true and to be trusted!”
 ^6-8 Then he said to me, “It is done! I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the thirsty water without price from the fountain of life. The victorious shall inherit these things, and I will be God to him and he will be son to me. But as for the cowards, the faithless and the corrupt, the murderers, the traffickers in sex and sorcery, the worshippers of idols and all liars—their inheritance is in the lake which burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.”

The vision of the new Jerusalem

 ⁹ Then one of the seven angels who hold the seven bowls which were filled with the seven last plagues, came to me and said, “Come, and I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” ^10-14 Then he carried me away in spirit to the top of a vast mountain, and pointed out to me the city, the holy Jerusalem, descending from God out of Heaven, radiant with the glory of God. Her brilliance sparkled like a very precious jewel with the clear light of crystal. Around her she had a vast and lofty wall in which were twelve gateways with twelve angels at the gates. There were twelve names inscribed over the twelve gateways, and they are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. On the east there were three gateways, on the north three gateways, on the south three gateways and on the west three gateways. The wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on these were engraved the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

The measurement of the city

 ^15-17 The one who was talking to me had a golden rod in his hand with which to measure the city, its gateways and its wall. The city lies foursquare, its length equal to its breadth. He measured the city with his rod and it was twelve thousand furlongs in each direction, for its length, breadth and height are all equal. Then he measured its wall, and found that to be one hundred and forty-four half-yards high by human measurement, (which the angel was using).

The splendor of the city’s building

 ¹⁸ The wall itself was built of translucent stone, while the city was of purest gold, with the brilliance of glass. ^19-20 The foundation stones of the wall of the city were fashioned out of every kind of precious stone. The first foundation-stone was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth cornelian, the seventh goldstone, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth green goldstone, the eleventh zircon, and the twelfth amethyst.
 ²¹ The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The street of the city was purest gold gleaming like glass.

The splendor within the city

 ^22-26 I could see no Temple in the city, for the Lord, the Almighty God, and the Lamb are themselves its Temple. The city has no need for the light of sun or moon, for the splendour of God fills it with light and its radiance is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. The city’s gates shall stand open day after day—and there will be no night there. Into the city they will bring the splendours and honours of the nations. ²⁷ But nothing unclean, no one who deals in filthiness and lies, shall ever at any time enter it—only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.


(CREDITS: IMAGES by Bing
Bible passages by www.biblegateway.com
J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)J. B. Phillips, "The New Testament in Modern English", 1962 edition by HarperCollins)