LIFT UP JESUS THE CHRIST AND HE WILL DRAW THE PEOPLE TO HIMSELF

Proclamation:

“And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”  John 12:32 (NIV)  “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.”  John 12:32 (KJV)

Explanation:

These words were spoken by Jesus, The Christ, and recorded by the Apostle John under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  In this chapter, John begins the recording of the last seven days in the earthly life of Jesus.  After He had raised Lazarus from the dead, the chief priests and the Pharisees came together plotted to kill Jesus and Lazarus. (John 12:9-11)  After He entered Jerusalem riding on a young donkey with the people shouting “Hosanna,” Jesus predicted His own death. (John 12:12-19 and 23-26)  Then He told the crowd how He was going to die. (John 12:32-33) 

Application:

The Roman solders nailed Jesus to a cross and then lifted Him up physically.  Today, we can praise His name publicly and lift Him up figuratively, and He will draw the people unto Himself.  His death on the cross and His subsequent resurrection has been spread throughout the world through the preaching of the gospel and large numbers of people have come to believe in Him.  Those who believe will be saved, and those who reject Him will be lost. (John 12:44-48)  

GOD WILL NEVER LEAVE US OR FORSAKE US

Proclamation:

“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’"  Hebrews 13:5 (NIV)

Explanation:

Under the influence and inspiration of The Holy Spirit of God the unknown author of the Book of Hebrews wrote to the scattered believers during their time of persecution.  He told them to be content and happy with that which they have been blessed with.  He also told them not to get caught up in the love of money and worldly possessions.  He said that along with whatever else that they have, they have The Lord God with them, and He will never leave them or forsake them.

Application:

We know that it is not money, but the love of money which is the root of all evil. (1 Timothy 6:10)  The love of money will cause many people to sin and turn away from God.  Therefore we are advised and encouraged to be content with that which we already have.  The Apostle Paul said "I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content." (Philippians 4:11)  It is better to have a little and have The Lord with us, than to have plenty of riches and not have The Lord in our life.  God is omni-present, He is every where all at the same time, (Psalms 139:7-10) so He is always with us.  Regardless of how we may feel, or how bad our situation appears, we are never really alone.  The Lord God is always with us and He will never leave us.  This was His promise to the believers of old (Genesis 28:15 and Deuteronomy 31:6) and it is His promise to us today. (Hebrews 13:5)

GOD BLESSES US DAILY

Proclamation:

"Praise be to The Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens."  Psalms 68:19  (NIV) 
"Blessed be The Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even The God of our salvation."  (KJV)  

"Blessed be The Lord, who daily bears our burden, The God of our salvation."  ((NAS)
"Blessed be The Lord, Who bears our burdens and carries us day by day, even The God Who is our salvation."  (Amplified Bible)

Explanation:

The human writer King David clearly praises God, our Savior, in this psalm.  It is also clear that he is praising God for blessing us.  All agree that The Lord God bless each of us daily.  However, the Bible experts do not agree on the exact nature of those blessings.  The benefits which God provides we are overloaded with and are too numerous to count. (Matthew Henry)  God bears us up and protects us from our enemies. (C John Collins)   God daily provides, supports, and upholds us. (Finnis Dake)  The benefit that God provides is protection for His people.  (Thomas Nelson)  Different explanations by different Bible experts but all of them are good for us.

Application:
 Regardless of which version of The Bible we read, or which Bible expert we believe, it is clear that God blesses us and helps us, even if we do not understand all of the blessings that we receive.  I believe that we are blessed daily in more ways than we know, and more often than we realize.  Each heart beat and each breath is a blessing.  We take so many of our bodily function blessings for granted.  We are blessed with things and people in our lives, some to help us and some to teach us.  Each gift and act of kindness we receive is a blessing.  Blessings can also take the form of protection from dangers, seen and unseen.  We are also blessed with joy and peace of mind by the blessing which He bestows upon our children, family members, and loved ones.  Just know that as a believer God has blessed us in the past, God is blessing us right now, and God will bless us in the future. 

We Hope And Wait For That Which We Do Not Yet Have

"For in this hope we were saved.  But hope that is seen is no hope at all.  Who hopes for what he already has?  But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently."  Romans 8:24-25 (NIV)

The Apostle Paul gives the believers in The Church in Rome a brief discourse on hope.  He states that hope is essentially faith in Christ and the things that will come to pass.  He told them that this hope is the bases of their salvation.  Hope is based upon that which they do not have, but they have no doubt that that they will receive.

One of the great principals of Christian belief is hope.  Paul's use of the word "hope" here makes it appear to be interchangeable with the word "faith".  Bible scholar Matthew Henry says that faith is the promise and hope is the thing that is promised.  He says faith is the evidence and hope is the expectation.  Either way, faith and hope are inexplicably linked.  Paul's statement about hope not being based upon that which is seen, is similar to the definition of faith which is presented by the unknown author in Hebrews.  "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1)  We know that without a believing faith it is impossible to please God. (Hebrews 11:6)  Our hope and faith exist and are strong because we know that after we have done the will of God, we will receive our reward from Him. ( Hebrews 10:35-36)  Our hope is in The Lord (Psalms 39:7, Psalms 146:5, Jeremiah 17:7, and Lamentations 3:24), and in His mercy (Psalms 33:18), and in that which is to come. (1 Thessalonians 2:19)  Christ is coming back for His Church. (John 14:3, John 14:28, and 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18)  We are just doing our part in kingdom building now while we wait patiently for His return.

God Blesses Us Daily

"Praise be to The Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens."  Psalms 68:19  (NIV) 
"Blessed be The Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even The God of our salvation."  (KJV)  "Blessed be The Lord, who daily bears our burden, The God of our salvation."  ((NAS)
"Blessed be The Lord, Who bears our burdens and carries us day by day, even The God Who is our salvation."  (Amplified Bible)

King David clearly praises God, our Savior, in this psalm.  It is also clear that he is praising God for blessing us.  However, the experts do not agree on the exact nature of the blessing. The benefits which God provides are daily blessings, which we are overloaded with and are too numerous to count.  (Matthew Henry)  God bears us up and protects us from our enemies. (C John Collins)   God daily provides, supports, and upholds us. (Finnis Dake)  The benefit that God provides is protection for His people.  (Thomas Nelson)

 Regardless of which version of The Bible we read, or which Bible expert we believe, it is clear that God blesses us and helps us, even if we do not understand all of the blessings that we receive.  I believe that we are blessed daily in more ways than we know, and more often than we realize.  Each heart beat and each breath is a blessing.  We take so many bodily function blessing for granted.  We are blessed with things and people in our lives, some to help us and some to teach us.  Blessings can also take the form of protection from dangers, seen and unseen.  Just know that as a believer God has blessed us in the past, God is blessing us right now, and God will bless us in the future.