"Woe to you who are complacent ... and to you who feel secure ... You lie on beds inlaid with ivory and lounge on your couches. You dine on choice lambs and fattened calves. You strum away on your harps like David and improvise on musical instruments. You drink wine by the bowlful and use the finest lotions ... Therefore you will be among the first to go into exile; your feasting and lounging will end." Amos 6:1-7 (NIV)
The prophet Amos told the people that God was not pleased with those who are complacent, not concerned, and feel secure. Those who are just enjoying life and its worldly pleasures, and not concerned regarding their sins, they would find that their good times would be replaced with suffering.
No matter what our station in life is, we should never stop working for The Lord. We should continually seek to be more Christ-like, to help others, to study His Word, and to walk in His way. If we only focus on enjoying worldly riches, pleasures, and retirement, and lose our focus on Christ, then we are heading towards loss and suffering. Remember, the Bible states that "All unrighteousness is sin." (1 John 5:17 & Romans 6:13) Let us always be thankful for what we have, continue to read and study The Word of God, and never lose focus on our kingdom building efforts. If we are not doing things to give God glory, then we are wasting our time.
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Repent And Seek Good Not Evil
"The prudent man keeps quiet in such times, for the times are evil. Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then The Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say He is." Amos 5:13-14 (NIV)
After he told the people that they had turned away from God, and sited several examples of this, the prophet Amos told them to repent, turn away from evil, and seek God.
Based upon how well or how poorly we follow The Word of God, our actions suggest that we have also turned away from God. If not turned away, we do not take Him seriously. We give Him "lip service" for a limited time on Sundays and ritualistic habitual prayers before we eat and sleep. However, the rest of the time we are not much different from the lost souls as we imitate their worldly behaviors. Our problem is that we are seeking everything but Him. We need to ask God for forgiveness and repent from our sinful worldly ways. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." (Matthew 6:33) We need to pray more, thank Him more, praise Him more, read His Word more, and actively seek to be more Christ-like, and we need to do these things daily.
After he told the people that they had turned away from God, and sited several examples of this, the prophet Amos told them to repent, turn away from evil, and seek God.
Based upon how well or how poorly we follow The Word of God, our actions suggest that we have also turned away from God. If not turned away, we do not take Him seriously. We give Him "lip service" for a limited time on Sundays and ritualistic habitual prayers before we eat and sleep. However, the rest of the time we are not much different from the lost souls as we imitate their worldly behaviors. Our problem is that we are seeking everything but Him. We need to ask God for forgiveness and repent from our sinful worldly ways. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." (Matthew 6:33) We need to pray more, thank Him more, praise Him more, read His Word more, and actively seek to be more Christ-like, and we need to do these things daily.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Don't Talk Too Much
"Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands? For in the multitude of dreams and many words there are also divers vanities: but fear thou God." Ecclesiastes 5:6-7 (NIV)
King Solomon, the son of David and the wisest man that ever lived, said that people should not let the words of their mouths cause them to sin. People promise things to each other and to God, do not follow through with them, and that displeases God. Solomon basically said that people talk too much. He also said that man ought to talk less, listen more, and revere God. (Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 & 7)
It is not a very good idea to make promises and not keep them, especially to God. We do not want to make God angry. It is also not a good idea to talk a lot. Remember, we must give an account for every word we speak, even every idle word. (Matthew 12:36) The more we say beyond "yes" and "no", the likely we are so say something wrong. (James 5:12) The words of our mouths can get us into trouble. "The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell." James 3:6 (NIV) The less we say, the fewer words we speak, the better off we will be. If we are not praising God, reading the scriptures, or praying, we ought to spend more time being quiet and listening.
King Solomon, the son of David and the wisest man that ever lived, said that people should not let the words of their mouths cause them to sin. People promise things to each other and to God, do not follow through with them, and that displeases God. Solomon basically said that people talk too much. He also said that man ought to talk less, listen more, and revere God. (Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 & 7)
It is not a very good idea to make promises and not keep them, especially to God. We do not want to make God angry. It is also not a good idea to talk a lot. Remember, we must give an account for every word we speak, even every idle word. (Matthew 12:36) The more we say beyond "yes" and "no", the likely we are so say something wrong. (James 5:12) The words of our mouths can get us into trouble. "The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell." James 3:6 (NIV) The less we say, the fewer words we speak, the better off we will be. If we are not praising God, reading the scriptures, or praying, we ought to spend more time being quiet and listening.
Monday, November 5, 2012
Who Are You Trying To Please?
"Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ." Galatians 1:10 (NIV)
In his letter to the Galatians, the Apostle Paul asked the rhetorical question, am I trying to please men or please God? Acknowledging that he used to try to please men, but he makes it clear that if he were still trying to please men, then he would not be a servant of Christ.
If we are honest with ourselves, we like getting the approval of our fellow man. We do things for "show" which we feel make us look good in the eyes of men. The problem is we cannot please man and please God at the same time. If we would act and speak in such a way as to please God, then pleasing our mate, our boss, and our friends would be taken care of. People who do not approve of our God pleasing behavior are probable not the kind of people that we should be associating with anyway. The Bible says that we can't serve two masters; we can't serve God and serve man at the same time. (Matthew 6:24) It appears that the same it true for pleasing God and man. We must each choose who will try to please. My suggestion is please choose wisely.
In his letter to the Galatians, the Apostle Paul asked the rhetorical question, am I trying to please men or please God? Acknowledging that he used to try to please men, but he makes it clear that if he were still trying to please men, then he would not be a servant of Christ.
If we are honest with ourselves, we like getting the approval of our fellow man. We do things for "show" which we feel make us look good in the eyes of men. The problem is we cannot please man and please God at the same time. If we would act and speak in such a way as to please God, then pleasing our mate, our boss, and our friends would be taken care of. People who do not approve of our God pleasing behavior are probable not the kind of people that we should be associating with anyway. The Bible says that we can't serve two masters; we can't serve God and serve man at the same time. (Matthew 6:24) It appears that the same it true for pleasing God and man. We must each choose who will try to please. My suggestion is please choose wisely.
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Repentance Will Bring Blessings
"Return, O Israel, to The Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall ... Say to Him: 'Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously ... for in you the fatherless find compassion.' 'I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them ... he will blossom like a lily ... I will answer him and care for him ... your fruitfulness comes from me' ... The ways of The Lord are right; the righteous walk in them ..." Hosea 14:1-9 (NIV)
After telling the prophet Hosea that He was going to punish Israel because they had turned away from Him, God recounts all that they did that was wrong and sinful. Then He tells Hosea that if they repent, He will forgive them and bless them, and He describes how He will bless them.
Just like the children of Israel we have sinned and done wrong in the sight of The Lord. If we confess our sins and repent, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) Then He will bless us more abundantly and we will be more fruitful.
After telling the prophet Hosea that He was going to punish Israel because they had turned away from Him, God recounts all that they did that was wrong and sinful. Then He tells Hosea that if they repent, He will forgive them and bless them, and He describes how He will bless them.
Just like the children of Israel we have sinned and done wrong in the sight of The Lord. If we confess our sins and repent, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) Then He will bless us more abundantly and we will be more fruitful.
Friday, November 2, 2012
Do We Really Want To Be Blessed?
"When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, He asked him, 'Do you want to get well?' " John 5:6 (NIV)
The Apostle John reports the account of Jesus healing the lame man by the pool. For thirty-eight years this lame man had been suffering, lying by the pool at Bethesda hoping to get into the water first after the angel stirred the waters. Jesus saw him and asked him if he wanted to get well. Instead of answering the question that Jesus had asked him, the man began giving Jesus excuses for why he had not gotten into the pool first and therefore was not healed. Jesus healed him by telling him to get up, take up his bed and walk.
We are so much like this man. The Bible gives us many examples of what we need to do in order to be blessed, but instead of doing them we offer excuses for not doing what The Bible says. I guess "No" is the honest answer to the question, "Do we want to be blessed more than we already are?" The Word of God tell us what we should do to be blessed, all we have to do is change our behavior and follow God's Word. There are thirteen Bible verses that include the phrase "Blessed is the man ..." and fourteen more that say "Blessed is he ..." All we have to do is follow God's Word and we would be blessed even more than we already are. We need to stop giving God excuses for not doing what He says in His Word that we should do. We are blessed, but we are missing out on additional conditional blessings by not following His Word.
The Apostle John reports the account of Jesus healing the lame man by the pool. For thirty-eight years this lame man had been suffering, lying by the pool at Bethesda hoping to get into the water first after the angel stirred the waters. Jesus saw him and asked him if he wanted to get well. Instead of answering the question that Jesus had asked him, the man began giving Jesus excuses for why he had not gotten into the pool first and therefore was not healed. Jesus healed him by telling him to get up, take up his bed and walk.
We are so much like this man. The Bible gives us many examples of what we need to do in order to be blessed, but instead of doing them we offer excuses for not doing what The Bible says. I guess "No" is the honest answer to the question, "Do we want to be blessed more than we already are?" The Word of God tell us what we should do to be blessed, all we have to do is change our behavior and follow God's Word. There are thirteen Bible verses that include the phrase "Blessed is the man ..." and fourteen more that say "Blessed is he ..." All we have to do is follow God's Word and we would be blessed even more than we already are. We need to stop giving God excuses for not doing what He says in His Word that we should do. We are blessed, but we are missing out on additional conditional blessings by not following His Word.
Thursday, November 1, 2012
God's Love Is Perfected Within Us
"If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is The Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like Him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." 1 John 4:15-18 (NIV)
The Apostle John told the believers that they should love one another. He said that God dwells in them and they demonstrate this by showing their love for one another. They were to be God's examples to the world of Christian love, loving everyone and afraid of nothing.
When Christians say "I love you" what they mean is "I love you the way that God intended for us to love each other." The "old folks" used to say, "I love you in The Lord" to make sure that it was understood that nothing inappropriate was intended. As we endeavor to love one another as Christ loves us, our love is made perfect or complete. We cannot attain perfection while we yet live but we can become more Christ-like. We should not be afraid to show our love for Christ or our love for our fellow man. In fact, we should not be afraid of anything. The Bible says "fear not" sixty-three times, twelve of which are recorded in the gospels as the words of Jesus. With The Spirit of God within us and the love of of God being perfected within us, we should not fear any person, thing, or situation. God is omnipotent and He is in control. As long as we walk with Him, everything will turn out for our good. (Romans 8:28)
The Apostle John told the believers that they should love one another. He said that God dwells in them and they demonstrate this by showing their love for one another. They were to be God's examples to the world of Christian love, loving everyone and afraid of nothing.
When Christians say "I love you" what they mean is "I love you the way that God intended for us to love each other." The "old folks" used to say, "I love you in The Lord" to make sure that it was understood that nothing inappropriate was intended. As we endeavor to love one another as Christ loves us, our love is made perfect or complete. We cannot attain perfection while we yet live but we can become more Christ-like. We should not be afraid to show our love for Christ or our love for our fellow man. In fact, we should not be afraid of anything. The Bible says "fear not" sixty-three times, twelve of which are recorded in the gospels as the words of Jesus. With The Spirit of God within us and the love of of God being perfected within us, we should not fear any person, thing, or situation. God is omnipotent and He is in control. As long as we walk with Him, everything will turn out for our good. (Romans 8:28)
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