Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Hearing from the Lord...

Three questions we should ask Jesus, each and every morning, as we seek His face in prayer, spend time in His word and present ourselves to Him as a living sacrifice. (Romans 12:1-2)

1. Jesus, what am I to trust You for today?
2. Jesus, what promises should I cling to today?
3. Jesus, what mission am I to accomplish for You today?

This is a great way to start each day.

We need to know, and we should want to know, the answer to all three before we interact with this world we live in. The following passages will help us see the need to seek, believe and obey His will for our lives daily. (Rom. 10:17 ; Heb. 11:6-7 ; Psalm 143:6-8 ; Heb. 12:1-5 ; Proverbs 3:5-6)

I should know...
1. What I'm trusting Jesus for today.
2. What promises I'm clinging to today.
3. What missions I'm to accomplish today.

How will I pleases Him today, if I don't have a living word from Him to walk in today?

There is no such thing as "accidental obedience," because there is no way to "accidentally please" the Lord. The only way to please Him is by faith... and faith only comes by hearing, and that hearing by the word of God. And yesterday, even earlier this morning, is gone, later toady has not come yet...so the only time we have to bless, please and obey the Lord is right NOW!

David understood that unless he heard from God in the MORNING he would be as useless as a dead man and of no value to anyone that he came in contact with through out the day. Listen to what he said in Psalm 143:6-8...

"I stretch forth my hands to The:my soul thirsts after Thee, as a dry and parched land. Selah. Answer me quickly, O Lord: my spirit is failing: hide not Thy face from me, for fear I be as useless as them that have died and are buried in the earth. Cause me to hear Thy lovingkindness in the MORNING; for in Thee do I trust: cause me to know the way that I'm supposed walk; for I lift up my soul to Thee."

Help us Lord live with a thirsty heart for You, and understand how useless we are apart from hearing Your voice and Your ways from day to day?

Have fun seeking, believing and obeying Jesus today!!!

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Be A Grace Teacher

GOOD teachers will EDUCATE their pupils to INFORM them about FACTS!

GRACE teachers will EQUIP their pupils to INVOLVE them in the FAITH!

Titus 2:11-15
(Speaks of the AGENDA of grace)

Ephesians 4:11-16
(Speaks of the AGENTS of grace)

Ephesians 4:12-16
(Speaks of the Aim of grace)

Grace teachers are God's agents of grace who live to affirm the agenda of grace because they understand the aim of grace...

Faith...

Behold, you TRUST in lying words that cannot profit... Jeremiah 7:8

Something to always keep in mind...our faith (what we're trusting) is only worth the object that we put it in.
Three ways to determine the value of our faith...
1. It's Origin...Where is it rooted? Is it from God's word?
2. It's Object...What is it in? Is it in God, His promises & principles?
3. It's Obedience...Who is it for? Is it for God's glory?

Make sure what you're TRUSTING is worth it... Rom. 10:17 ; Proverbs 3:5-10 ; James 2:14-26

Faith is only worth the object that it's trusting. These people in Jeremiah's day, had been all their lives, up to this point, trusting and surrendered to a way of thinking and a system of belief passed down to them that was a lie.

Our conscience demands that we fight for what we believe, but we need to make sure what we believe and fighting for is truth and not empty lies... or our fighting will be useless and we'll only lead others down a path of empty futility.

The following verse explains it all:

For we are compelled by the love of Christ, because we judge it this way, if One died for all, all died, and He died for all that those which live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died and rose again... (2 Corinthians 5:14-21)

He's worth fighting for...yes, He's worth living for...and most definitely, He's worth dying for...and therefore this way of living is a path worth leading our families down.

"Behold" & "See" (as in the passage above, 7:8) are what I call "FAITH WORDS." They are words that invite us to "see" what we can't see apart from faith. God uses these words to invite us to "see" things the way He sees it.

So then, when God opens up this verse in 7:8...He opens it with a gracious and merciful invitation to trust His evaluation of their faith and lifestyle. And He pointedly and tenderly invites them to take Him at His word and confess their lies and their true need of Him.

Thank You Lord...

Have fun seeking Jesus and evaluating your faith...