“When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe man’s labor on earth – his eyes not seeing sleep day or night – 17. Then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot discern its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it. 9:1: So I reflected on all this and concluded that the righteous and the wise and what they do are in God’s hands, but no man knows whether love or hate awaits him…”
We have a general idea of what a riddle is, but I want to give the definition to give clear direction to what I think our text means. It means a puzzling fact, thing or person. A riddle is something that we have to figure out the meaning of, and quite often we cannot decipher its meaning. I think that the Book of Job shows us what a riddle can be like. The fact is that Job was puzzled as to why all of the bad things that happened to him happened at all, because he lived a good life. Do you realize that Job’s riddle was never solved? He never knew what had occurred between God and Satan that caused all of his problems. In our text, Solomon was dealing with the riddles of life that keep us awake at night: “his eyes not seeing sleep day or night.” We can’t solve all of the riddles of life because we are not smart enough to figure them out. There is too much that we would have to know, for example, why bad things happen to good people. God gave us brains so that we can think, but He did not give us infallible minds. Whenever things occur like the devastating tornadoes and hurricanes that continually destroy life and property. To things like this there is no “why” answer. All of this being true, what can do with the riddles of life? We can accept that they happen, and when they happen we can pray for those whose lives have been devastated, and many people volunteer to help the people rebuild. In other words, we can pray and minister to people when the unthinkable happens in their lives. The worst thing that we can do is to shake our fists at God for allowing such things. We forget that we live in a fallen world. When Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden, our perfectly safe world was no more. I have found in my prayers over the riddles of life, there is no need for me to ask God “Why?” He doesn’t have to explain things to me. We can trust that God knows what has happened and is active in dealing with the lives of those who have been devastated. Many times people come out of devastating things that happen in their lives with a stronger belief in God, because they sought His presence in the crisis. It is understandable that people would be upset over devastating things that happen to them, but they need to understand that bitterness will not make the situation better. We just need to trust that God will take us through the hard times, as He does through the easy times. Trusting God is the answer. It does not answer the riddle, but it allows us to sleep at night and know that things will get better. In 9:1 Solomon wrote: “So I reflected on all this and concluded that the righteous and wise and what they do are in God’s hands, but no man knows whether love or hate awaits him…” I interpret this to mean that those who are righteous and wise turn things over to God and accept the outcome – whatever it is. It is very comforting to know that all things – good and bad – that happen in our lives are not riddles to God, and that we can put ourselves in His hands and He will see us through. I do not mean that God causes all of the puzzling things, merely that He is aware of them and is ministering to us in the process – calling us to Himself. What we need to do is listen for the voice of God in all of the situations of life, and trust all of those situations to Him. With God in charge, it will work out in the end. You might be going through something right now that seems like it will never end. Trust it to God and ride through in His great hands. Bro. Joe
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“He also that received seed among the thorns is he that hears the word, and the care of this world, and deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.”
I imagine that most of you reading this are familiar with the parable of the sower. It is a parable that Jesus gave to the crowd of people who came to the seaside to hear Him speak. The parable was about a farmer who went out to sow his seed. Some of the seed fell by the wayside, or the hard-packed dirt around the field, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seed fell on rocky ground where the seed could not take root in the shallow soil. Some fell in the thorns, where they were able to take root but were choked by the thorn bushes. Other seed fell of good ground, took root and brought forth a crop. Jesus referred to the seed as the word of God and the soils were like people who received the word. My focus for our purposes is on what happened to the seed in the thorny ground. In this case the word of God takes hold and takes root, but the thorns hinder its growth and keep it from bearing fruit. This happens all too often and we need to be careful that we do not get caught in the thorns. In this case, the person hears the word and becomes overly concerned about “the care of the world.” This is a common problem because we live in the world and the world is fraught with cares that can call our attention away from the Lord. This is illustrated in Luke 10:38-42 where Jesus visited with His good friend Lazarus and Lazarus’ two sisters, Mary and Martha. Martha was busy, no doubt preparing a great meal for Jesus – at least that’s my guess. Meanwhile, Mary was sitting at the feet of Jesus, learning from Him and worshiping Him. Martha told Mary that she should come and help her, but Jesus reprimanded Martha. He told her: “Martha, Martha, you are careful and troubled about many things, but Mary has chosen that good part which cannot be taken away from her.” In a sense, Martha couldn’t enjoy the visit of the Savior, because she was caught up in the cares of that moment. I think that this is what happens in people’s lives sometimes. They get so caught up with the temporal that they do not give adequate attention to the eternal. Don’t let the cares of this world rob of you of the joy that Jesus can bring into your life. Like Mary, sit as His feet, worship Him and learn from Him. Jesus also said that in the case of the people in thorny ground, they were choked by “the deceitfulness of riches.” Understand that you don’t have to try to get rich to be choked by the deceitfulness of riches. All you have to do is to live your life with the drive and determination to get money, to buy things, to dress well, to drive big cars, etc. There is nothing wrong with these things if they are not robbing us of our joy in Jesus and our worship of Him. “Riches” are deceitful because they promise fulfillment that they cannot deliver. I think that we can replace “riches” with “things.” What thing have you ever bought that brought real fulfillment to your life? When we base our lives on the abundance of things that we possess, we are choking out the word of God. I am not saying that possessions and bank accounts are unimportant. What I am saying is that they are not all-important. When we are possessed by our possessions, we are getting choked and robbing ourselves of a better relationship with God. For that matter, we are also robbing ourselves of a better relationship with our Christian friends. If you feel that you are not as close to God as you once were, you need to take stock of your life and see if you have landed among the thorns. There is always tension between living and making it in this world, and maintaining a viable Christian witness, but it is not impossible. Do not let yourself get caught up by the cares of life and the things that you possess. Take a lesson from Mary and sit at the feet of Jesus. Bro. Joe “Let all bitterness, and wrath and anger, and clamour (brawling), and evil speaking (slander) be put away from you, with all malice. 32. And be ye kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake forgave you.” We have all been told at some time in our lives to behave ourselves. This means that there is a right way to behave and a wrong way to behave. This is what Ephesians 4:31-32 is all about. This text gives us examples of what we should not do and what we should do. We do not need to take these words lightly, because the effectiveness of our witness for Christ is at stake in our choices. This is a message to individuals and to people who are members of churches. God is telling us through His word to behave ourselves. There are some things that we need to put away if we are to behave ourselves. (Verse 31) We are to put away bitterness. Bitterness is usually caused by past hurts that have been internalized. Bitterness cannot live in the same heart with love, joy, peace and etc. Bitterness is a bad example to set before the world, but we see it sometimes at work in church and “it ain’t pretty.” As long as bitterness is in your life, your witness will be ineffective. We are to put away wrath/anger (rage). Rage also comes from pent-up anger which has been nurtured for so long that it has multiplied itself. The original cause for anger has probably been forgotten and the rage has taken on a life of its own. This rage makes one act like a non-Christian. Get rid of it. We are to put away clamor (brawling). Brawling is what takes place when bitterness, anger and rage are present. It is usually verbal brawling but fisticuffs at church are not unheard of. In whatever form brawling takes place, verbal or physical, it is a bad witness to the community outside of the church. We are to put away evil speaking, or slander. Slander is what takes place when the other sins mentioned have the upper hand. Slander, or gossip, among church members has been used by the devil to hurt and destroy more churches than we would care to count. When you feel the urge to “bad mouth” someone in your church, remember that you are hurting your church when you do - just don’t do it. We are to put away malice. Malice is entrenched evil in one’s heart, and when it is released from the heart it is nasty, mean-spirited and destructive. It is all of the evils mentioned thus far rolled into one. Really know that Satan wants to use these things in your life, and the word of God reminds us not to let him get by with it. There are some things that we are to add if we are to behave ourselves. (Verse 32) We are to add kindness. Kindness actually required less energy than bitterness or malice. The church of Jesus Christ should be place, above all others, where kindness rules and reigns. This is not always the case, but each of us should determine as far our lives, our behavior, is concerned it will be standard of our church. We are to add tenderheartedness or compassion. Compassion is what separated Jesus from the Pharisees in the New Testament. The Pharisees were legalistic and brutal in their dealings with people. The spirit of the Pharisees still lives. We need to be more compassionate towards each other and towards unchurched people. When a person’s heart is filled with malice it is difficult to be compassionate. We are to add forgiveness. We should be forgiving because we have been forgiven by Jesus. No one comes to Christ without having been forgiven by Him. After all, we serve One who said from his cruel cross: “Father forgive them for they know not what they do. It takes kindness and compassion to be a forgiving person. For your own sake, for your family’s sake and for your church’s sake be a forgiving person. You will have a fuller and more bountiful life if you will put away the things listed in verse 31 of the text and add the things listed in verse 32. Bro. Joe “Be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”
It is not a matter of whether or not you are setting an example. You are setting an example. If you are indifferent about your faith people will know. If you are intent on doing what you want to do, regardless of the consequences, it will show. If you are setting a Christian example that will show. Max Lucado had it right when he wrote: “In our faith we follow in someone’s steps. In our faith we leave footprints to guide others. It’s the principle of discipleship.” We need to take to heart the words of an anonymous author: “Are you the kind of person whose life serves as a powerful example of righteousness? Are you a person whose behavior serves as a positive role model for young people? Are you the kind of Christian whose actions day and day out, are based upon integrity, fidelity, and a love for the Lord? If so, you are not only blessed by God, you are also a powerful force for good in a world that desperately needs positive influences such as yours.” It would be good if all of us set this kind of example. 1 Timothy 4:12 tells us how we can be such examples: It tells us to be good examples in "word". We need to be careful about what we say, but not only that, we need to be careful how we say it. When we use sarcastic and demeaning words, we are not setting the example that Jesus set. Words, like arrows, once said cannot be recalled. (There have been many times in my life when I have wished they could be.) It tells us to be good examples in "conduct." (In the KJV the word is “conversation,” which in 1611 meant “conduct.”) It does matter what we do. We like to think that what we do is our own business, and to a certain extent this is true, but if what we do sets a bad example God will hold us responsible. The Bible mentions that we should not be “stumblingblocks” in what we do, even if we do not necessarily see wrong in what we are doing. As Christians, we cannot think only of ourselves, and this is certainly true in our conduct. It tells us to be good examples in "love." This is where we really set bad examples for the world. How can people take us seriously when we do not show love for each other in Christ’s church? We need to stop and think about our example to the world when we want to fight each other. People need to see Christ’s love in us. It tells us to be good examples in "spirit." I think that the word here means attitude. We need to work on having a positive attitude toward life. When we have sour attitudes, people are turned off by our witness. I know that it is difficult to maintain a positive attitude at times, but it is important if we want to be good examples. It tells us to be good examples in "faith." When we have faith in Christ, we can face even the difficult times of life in a positive manner. We need to trust God in all areas of our lives, regardless of the circumstances. People observe how we react to our own difficulties. If we become bitter that will certainly set a bad example. It tells us to be good examples in "purity." We need to live before others so that they can see Christ at work in us. We need to be careful that we do the right thing and say the right thing in private and in public. I think that if you look over the list given in the text, you will see that all of these were portrayed in the life of Jesus. If we want to set a Christ like example, we will be careful about all of these things. Bro. Joe “In (Jesus) was life, and the life was the light of men. 5. And the light shines the in darkness; and the darkness comprehends it not." (Parenthesis added.)
It is a real understatement to say that John’s prologue, from which our text is taken, is a theological masterpiece. It gives us a picture of Jesus that is unmistakable, and on which, in large part, we take our view of Jesus as the Son of God. The two verses that comprise our text shows us that Jesus is life and light. What does that mean? Jesus is revealed as life throughout the Bible. In verse 10, John records that “the world was made by Him.” This means that with the Father and the Spirit, Jesus was in on the creation of the world. When the Bible says that God “breathed life into the nostrils of Adam,” it means that Jesus was part of that. Jesus is the giver of life – period. But He is revealed as the giver of a different quality of life. In John 10:10b, Jesus said: “I am come that they might have life and have it more abundantly.” Jesus is the giver of abundant life. This primarily means that Jesus gives us abundant spiritual life. Jesus promised His disciples that He would send the Holy Spirit to them, and it is the indwelling Spirit that gives us the abundant life. The Holy Spirit brings joy and peace into our lives – among other things. (See Galatians 5:22-23) Jesus is also the giver of everlasting life. John 3:16 reminds us of this: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” The biblical, New Testament, teaching is that Jesus is the way to Heaven. In John 14:6, Jesus said: “I am the way, the truth and the life: no (person) comes to the Father but by me.” (Parenthesis added.) It is there to believe or not believe, but if you believe the New Testament, you agree that Jesus is the way to everlasting life. Jesus is revealed as light: “…and the life was the light of men.” In John 8:12, Jesus said, “I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” Jesus shares His light with those who believe in, and follow, Him. The point is that Jesus sheds light on what life is all about for believers. As believers in the “light of the world,” we are to live in His light and show it to the world. John added in verse 5: “And the light shines in darkness; and darkness comprehends it not.” I interpret this in two ways. One way is that the darkness, or those who live in darkness, are puzzled by the light and cannot comprehend it. The other way is that the darkness cannot apprehend it. (This is how it is translated in my Greek interlinear New Testament.) This means that the darkness cannot overcome the light. After all, light is the absence of darkness, and when a light is turned on, the darkness dissipates. There are a lot of arguments today about who and what Jesus is. A lot of those arguments are not based on what the New Testament tells about Jesus, but what people imagine about Jesus. I will repeat something that I have written several times in couch potato articles: The only information that we have about Jesus is in the New Testament. The New Testament was written by people who either knew Jesus personally, or knew someone who did know Him personally. Those writers have given us what we know about Jesus, and what we can know about Jesus. We can believe that Jesus is life and light because it is written in the New Testament by one who knew Jesus, and was inspired by the Holy Spirit. Jesus wants to be life and light in your life. If He already is, join me in rejoicing in that life and light. If He is not, trust Him today by inviting Him into your life. Do it! Bro. Joe “May He grant you according to your heart’s desire, and fulfill all your purpose.” (NKJV)
The desires of our hearts tell us a lot about ourselves. Our heart’s desires are what we dream about, think about, and that control the purpose of our lives. That’s what the text printed above reveals to us. If God grants us the desires of our hearts, our purpose will be fulfilled. The important thing is that our heart’s desires be worthy of great purpose. By “great purpose” I do not mean a purpose that will shake the world, but purposes that will help us realize God’s will for our lives. Those things that we think about and plan on should have something to do with what God wants for us. If you realized your heart’s desire today, what would it have to do with the kingdom of God? I do not mean that you can’t have heart’s desires that have to do with secular things, but if you are a Christian, your main desire and purpose should have to do with Christ. When I was a little boy, my heart’s desire was to be a cowboy just like Roy Rogers. I could just see myself riding on a horse, chasing the crook down, pulling him off of his horse and beating the living daylights out of him. But as I began to mature a little, a new desire formed in my heart. I felt that God was calling me to be a preacher. After a roller-coaster ride from age 12 to age 21, that desire was realized. It was a life-changing experience. (Then I met Mary, my wife, and my heart’s desire became to charm her [lol] into accepting me. It worked, for she eventually did. I kept chasing her until she caught me. [lol]) I can’t tell you that I have always fulfilled God’s purpose in my life, for, like you, I still have “Adam’s blood” in me. I can’t say that I have never wanted to quit the purpose to which He called me, for from time to time I did. Obviously, I did not quit, since I have been In the ministry for over 55 years. It has been an interesting, fulfilling, humbling life, filled with challenges. (I forgot to mention failures!!!) Now, let’s think about your heart’s desires. What is your heart’s desire at this moment in your life? If that desire should be fulfilled, what would be the result for you, your family and the world around you? Would your desire’s fulfillment make a difference in the world? Is your heart’s desire something that you talk to God about regularly? If you aren’t praying about it, you are evidently not interested in what God wants for you. If this desire was fulfilled and you realized your purpose, would it make you a better person? Would you be easier to get along with? Would you be a more loving person? Would you be a better husband or wife? Would you be a better father or mother to your children? Would you be a better grandparent? Would you do better on your job? Would you be a better member of your church? Would people see a difference in your life? These are a lot of questions for you to answer, but they are very important questions. We are supposed to grow as Christians. It is our heart’s desires and our purposes that help us grow in Christ. Some people are satisfied being nominal Christians. Their real heart’s desires have more to do with secular matters than with God’s will for their lives. If that is the way your life is now, you need to ask God to examine your heart and give you the desire to be a better servant of His. Jesus is waiting for you to align your heart, and consequently, your purpose with what He wants with your life. Perhaps, you need to do some serious praying when you finish reading this. Take my word for it; you will be a more joyful person for it, and you will be a better witness. What is your heart’s desire? What is your purpose? Give it some thought. Bro. Joe “Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 25. Thrice I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; 26. In journeying often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in terrors of my own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; 27. In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. 28. Beside those things, that are without, that which comes upon me daily, the care of all the churches.”
We think that we have stress. I don’t deny that we have stress, but I don’t know if we could equal Paul’s stress. On top of all of the problems mentioned above, there were people who wanted to kill Paul. Paul was under a death threat almost every day of his life. I want to share some texts that can explain how Paul handled his daily stress. Maybe we can learn from these texts about how to deal with our own stress. 2 Timothy 1:12: “For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day.” Paul had a deep faith in Jesus Christ. He believed that Jesus could help Him through anything. He didn’t ask Jesus to deliver him from everything; rather, he asked that Jesus be with him in what he went through. Paul did not have faith in faith that gave him great confidence. He had faith in Jesus. Paul’s faith was not a faith that he took out and exercised only when he was in one of his many crises. His faith was of the everyday variety. I think that Paul’s faith grew in times of crisis and his faith stayed strong because of the crises he faced. We need to think about this when we are stressing out about negative things that are going on in our lives. Believe me, I’m not pointing a finger at you, for I have to remind myself of this in times of stress. Paul learned from Jesus that His grace would help him prevail. He really believed Jesus when he took his “thorn in the flesh” to Him when he was told: “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Paul’s response was: “Most gladly therefore will I glory in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) Philippians 4:6-7: “Be careful for nothing: but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known unto God. 7. And the peace of God which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Paul depended on prayer to keep him going. In 1 Thessalonians 5:17 he wrote:”Pray without ceasing.” He wrote this because He practiced it. Nothing can relieve stress like a good prayer session. With all that the great apostle faced, he “let his requests be made known unto God.” Because of this, he faced life in faith and poise, for he claimed the “peace of God which passes all understanding.” But Paul did not pray and walk off and go about his own business. Paul put feet to his prayers. Throughout the Book of Acts, we read about his many missionary trips. He faced crises in all of those trips, but he kept on going. This does not happen if a person does not spend time in prayer. As we meet the stresses of our lives, we need to take all of them to Jesus in prayer and let Him give us peace in whatever we have to face. This is not a psychological treatise about overcoming stress. It is a reminder that we have a God who is with us in all of our stresses, and we need to put our faith and trust in Him, pray daily and put feet to those prayers. There is no stress that we face that Christ is not aware of!!!! Bro. Joe (According to my records, I shared this article in September of 2015. I feel strongly led to share it again. There must be many people out there in couchpotatoland (lol) who need this lesson. It also didn’t hurt me to reread it. Share it with your friends.)
"Is anything too hard for the Lord?" The background for this text is the promise of God to Abraham and Sarah that they would have a child. At the time, Abraham was one-hundred years old and Sarah was ninety years old. After the angel told them they would have a child after all of those years of Sarah’s barrenness, Sarah laughed, and Abraham was incredulous. That was when God said to Abraham, “Is anything too hard for the Lord.” As you probably know, Abraham and Sarah had a child in their old age – as incredible as it seems. They named the child “Isaac,” which in Hebrew means “laughter.” (Who says that God doesn’t have a sense of humor?) Given the results for Abraham and Sarah, the obvious answer to the question is no, there is nothing too hard for the Lord. It’s one thing to read this and agree with it, and it is another thing to apply it to our own lives. For just a moment, put yourself in Abraham and Sarah’s place. They had lived a long time with the frustration that Sarah was barren, but they had probably resigned themselves to that, and their lives were settled. What do you think you would have thought and said in their circumstance? I think you know that the answer is that you would laugh and think it impossible. On one occasion, Jesus said that “with God all things are possible.” We can read this and believe it, but do we apply that wonderful truth to our own lives? When you are faced with health problems, do you believe that nothing is too hard for God? You might say, “But I prayed and I became ill anyway.” That did not mean that it was too hard for God to heal you. What it means is that God chose not to heal you. You will probably never know the answer to the question of why God did not heal you, but He had His purpose(s) for your illness for your life. If nothing else, He might have known that you needed to a few days of rest and reflection, and He allowed you to be sick to accomplish it. I know that I have discovered this in my own illnesses. I might not have realized what God was doing at the time, but looking back I can see what God was doing. In these cases I am grateful that He loves me enough to do for me what I cannot, or will not, do for myself. When you are faced with problems in your life that seem unsolvable, do you think that God can’t remedy that situation? For example, there is someone at your workplace who is difficult for you to get along with. That person rubs you the wrong way every day. You talk to God about it, and it seems that He does nothing about it. Is this person too hard for God to change? If you will just have faith in the God for whom nothing is impossible, you might find that it is not only that person who needs changing, but you also need to change. That person is not too impossible for God to deal with, but God also wants to deal with you. I know that when I have had to deal with recalcitrant people in my own ministry, I have prayed for them and have seen God do a work in my heart that changed me as much as it changed them. When you think that there is no solution to the world problems that we all have to live with daily, does it seem that these events are too hard for God to handle? We might think that God can take care of the little things that bug us, but that the world situation is too much for Him. What you need to do is to go back to the Bible and see that God allowed things to go on for hundreds of years that negatively affected His people, but in the final analysis it worked out according to His purpose. For example, the first church had Saul of Tarsus to deal with. This mean Pharisee was doing everything that he could to destroy the Lord’s work. I imagine that most Christians thought that the situation was impossible, but God changed the man on the Damascus Road. Don’t you think that people like Simon Peter prayed for Saul, or at least prayed for him to cease his activities? Well, their prayers were answered, and once again, we see that nothing is too hard for God. This is true in your life as well. Think about it! Bro. Joe (As I reread this article, I realized that it does not even scratch the surface of our need to trust God's sovereignty, but perhaps it can help you get started in dealing with problems in your life.) “But exhort (encourage) one another daily, while it is called Today: lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. 14. For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end. 15. While it is said, Today if you will hear His voice, harden not your hearts as in the provocation.”
The first scripture that I think about when I think of the subject of “today” is the one printed above from Hebrews 3:13-15. This text shares with us the importance of today. We need to see that today is all that we have. We have all of our yesterdays, but we can’t do anything about them. We can think of all of the mistakes that we made, and all of the sins that we committed yesterday, but all of these are “water under the bridge.” If we have learned from these mistakes and sins, we can use them today to rededicate our lives to do better. We can plan for the future, but we can’t live in days that have not yet come. We can’t let the wrongs of the past and the fears about the future rob us of the possibilities of today. Hebrews 3:13a tells us to “exhort (encourage) one another daily, while it is called today.” One thing that you can do today is to find someone who needs encouraging and go encourage them. You might ask, but what can I do to encourage someone? Well, you can pay them a visit and tell them that you were thinking about them. There is no telling how many people there are who really need to know that someone is thinking about them. You could take them a book that has meant a lot to you, or you could bake cake, or pick one up at the grocery store, and take it to them as a token of love. I don’t know about you, but I need encouragement from people, and I think that if you are honest, you will confess the same. That’s why we should think of encouraging others – today! Hebrews 3:13b tells us to watch out for sin in our lives today, lest we be hardened. Perhaps you have a pet sin that you just can’t seem to get rid of. You might have a grudge against someone that you can’t get over. You might have a habit that is bad for you, but you are so hardened to it, you can’t seem to give it up. Hey, God has given you today. The cereal commercial reminded us: “Today is the first day of the rest of your life.” God has given you today, so take advantage of it. Another scripture that comes to mind when I think of "today" is 2 Corinthians 4:16-18:: “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (NIV) Wow, that passage is loaded. As we face today, we do not face it alone, for through the Holy Spirit, God is blessing and renewing us day by day. Claim His blessings and His renewal today. God wants you to make today a special day, so that all of your tomorrows will be lived by faith in Him. Remember that “our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” Do not let whatever you have to grapple with today rob you of the joy that only faith in the Living Christ can bring. Remember that “we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” Hear the voice of Jesus in your life today. Dedicate today to Him. As you live today, remember that He is calling you to a place where it will always be “today.” Bro. Joe “O you who love the Lord, hate evil! He preserves the life of the saints; and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. 11. Light is sown for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart. 12. Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous, and give thanks to His name!”
The psalmist gave a promise of preservation for the life of the saints, and a promise of deliverance from the wicked. These are promises for those who are righteous – the saints. Who are those righteous people and who are the saints? From the perspective of the New Testament, they are the people who have given their hearts and lives to Jesus Christ by faith and are in a faith relationship with Him. In verse 11, a further promise is given: “Light is sown for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart.” There is the promise of light. The Bible deals a lot with light and darkness. Those who have put their trust in Christ are living in the light, those who have not are living in darkness. The gospel of John deals a lot with light and darkness. An example of this theme is found in John 1:4-5: “In (Christ) was life; and the life was the light of men. 5. And the light shines in darkness, but the darkness does not comprehend it.” (This is also translated, “the darkness cannot put it out.”) However it is translated, the meaning is clear: In Christ there is light and out of Christ there is darkness. The promise to believers is that they live in the light of Christ. This means that believers have “seen the light,” as the saying goes. Which means that they saw that they were sinners and turned from that to Christ. This does not make them perfect, nor does it make them self-righteous, but it does make them right with God. We are made right with God through our faith in Jesus Christ. This promise is found in Romans 5:1: “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Suffice it to say that it is better to live in the light than in the darkness. “Living in the light” means that we are in a relationship with God through the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible always calls people to the light of God’s love and grace. There is the promise of “joy for the upright in heart.” Again, the Bible, particularly the New Testament, constantly reminds us that in God there is joy. This is one of the great promises of Jesus in John 15:11: “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” The Old Testament promise of joy, given in Psalm 97:11, is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus – as seen in John 15:11. Jesus calls us to His joy that our joy “might be full.” It is outside of my intellectual ability to describe what the joy of the Lord is. We have to experience it to have any idea of what it is. Fullness of joy is lived out in this life, but I suspect that the real fullness will be realized in eternity. The joy that Christ gives us is joy that is maintained, even in the difficult times in life. In fact, I found joy in difficult times because I knew that Jesus was there with me through the difficult time. You might not understand what I meant by that last sentence, but in Christ you can know it. Receive the promise of “joy for the upright in heart,” i.e. those who have put their faith in Christ and have given their lives to Him. Because of the light and joy that we have in the Lord the call comes to rejoice and to be thankful: “Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous, and give thanks to His holy name.” We rejoice because we realize that light and joy come from our relationship with Jesus. Out of the thankfulness of our hearts, we are to rejoice in the light and joy that we have in Christ. Are you rejoicing? Bro. Joe |
AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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