Revelation 12:11 – “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. NKJV

1 Samuel 17:45-47 – “Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. 47 Then all this assembly shall know that the LORD does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD’s, and He will give you into our hands.” NKJV

When we reflect on this story our hearts should be reminded of what the Bible informs us in Luke 10:19, that the devil has no power over us and in Colossians 2:15, that Jesus has disarmed the powers of hell. We should remind ourselves that and through Him (Jesus) we are able to take the very weapons of the devil and defeat him with them.  The weapon of Fear now causes the Philistines to turn and run.  Sadly, too often the church is sitting in the hills cowering in fear over the taunts of the devil or his henchmen.  Our minds tell us that God says we do not have to put up with that, but our hearts are just not sure.  He looks so Imposing but remember – he is Defeatable, no he is Defeated!  It is in the Name of the Lord not in the system of man that victory comes!

Revelation 12:11 should give us incredible confidence and hope.  It should also solidify in our hearts and minds that there is Power in our testimony.  Remember in the very beginning how God illustrated the Power of the spoken word…. And God said….  In Hebrews 11 we find that by Faith worlds were framed.  We are created in the image and likeness of God and we are expected to operate in the same demonstration of faith as our Lord when He walked this earth.

Thus, Mark 11:23-24 is not a fictional possibility but a real promise if we walk in faith.  The devil knows there is power in our words directed by the Spirit of God and that is one of the reasons he works so hard to keep us silent.  Remember you are the primary audience that listens to what you say.  When the devil comes talking about your past you should begin speaking of your future.  Don’t wait on him to attack run at him armed with the promises of God and declare them!  We are told in Deuteronomy 30:15 that God has set before us life and death and we can choose life.  The spies in Numbers 13, offer an illustration of this as ten said, ‘we can’t’ two said, ‘they are just bread for us.’

Our enemy is not flesh and blood, so we need to learn to fight with the weapons of warfare that are mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds.  We have the Name of Jesus, the Blood of Jesus, and the Word of Jesus.  MIGHTY WEAPONS!  No weapon formed against us shall prosper and every tongue that rises against us in judgment will be condemned.

 I encourage you to remember that your testimony is far more powerful than any weapon of the devil and let it ring forth loud and strong!  

God bless you as you go through your day!

Revelation 12:11 – “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. NKJV

1 Samuel 17:45-47 – “Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. 47 Then all this assembly shall know that the LORD does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD’s, and He will give you into our hands.” NKJV

Back to the story of David and Goliath and we find that King Saul heard of the lad’s questions and apparent willingness to fight.  David picked up the gauntlet Goliath had thrown down while the trained men of Israel cowered in fear.  They were willing to send a boy to do a man’s job.  Saul even cautioned David saying, “You are not even a man yet.”   Fear had so gripped them that they looked for every reason not to do something rather than Faith to do something.  David quickly rehearsed his life before the king regarding the bear and the lion he had killed protecting his flock.  Fear, as demonstrated in Saul and Israel, will always let someone else take the risk.  Saul finally consented to let David fight the fight and tried to burden David with his method (armor).

Faith does not fight with man-made weapons.  David’s trust was not in what man could do but what God could do and had done in his life.  Saul [The System] said: “Take our credentials, go to our seminaries, follow our prescribed methods, utilize our programs, and you will succeed.”  David [The Spirit] said: “No thanks!  I’ll go in the Name of the Lord.”  It was not that David totally rejected man’s weapons or devaluing man’s knowledge, but he knew that first and foremost he had to trust God and follow God’s way.

Some have said the five smooth stones represented Goliath and his brothers and others contend it represents the five-fold ministry gifts, offices, and functions.  I believe that smooth indicated the rough edges had been polished off by the stream of what God is doing or the flow of the Spirit of God.  Those are great and God’s Spirit will polish our lives but David had to have Faith, demonstrate that Faith by walking in Obedience to what his heart directed him.

IMAGINE HOW GOLIATH FELT….

When this shepherd boy, with a slingshot, in his shepherd’s clothing, without armor came out to fight, how did that make Goliath feel?  It infuriated and insulted him, and he said so!  Israel had so disrespected him they send out a boy to fight a man’s battle.  He roared against David with fury.  This is the make-or-break point for David.  He could turn and run and no one person in either army would have thought much about it.  He was a boy and not supposed to be brave.  But, because of David’s heart and faith he cannot turn back.  There is something inside that propels him forward and it is his unshakable confidence in God.  He has the spirit of a warrior!

David proclaimed God’s Promise (v.45) and declared his commitment (v.46).  David had learned what Isaiah wrote about in 40:31, He had learned to wait now he can walk and run mounting up with wings like an eagle.  David ran toward the Philistine!  He didn’t wait for the enemy to come to him he charged ahead in the power and confidence of God.  “The battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hands…”  And the end result was that with Goliath’s own sword David took off his head.

Faith gives Confidence and Obedience brings victory!   I will pause there and pick up again tomorrow but as you go through this day go in the Confidence of God’s Promises and diligently Obey the voice of the Spirit of God no matter what you are facing! 

Blessings as you go through your day!

Revelation 12:11 – “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. NKJV

1 Samuel 17:45-47 – “Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. 47 Then all this assembly shall know that the LORD does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD’s, and He will give you into our hands.” NKJV

I have learned through studying the Bible and Life that Words have Power.  If the tongue is like the rudder of a ship able to turn it and steer it in a particular direction it would immediately lend itself to the view that words are important in our lives and we should evaluate how we talk.  I do not find it surprising that the writer of Proverbs would declare “Death and life are in the power of the tongue…” (18:21). I believe that this account of David and Goliath demonstrates this truth most powerfully and prolifically.

CONSIDER THE STORY:

On one mountain we have the Philistine Army on the other the Army of Israel.  Between the two armies, there is a great valley.  Every morning for forty days the Philistine Champion Goliath would come out and taunt Israel saying, “Send out a man so we can fight.  If he wins, we will be your servants.  If I win you will be our servants.”  In [v.11] – we find that when Saul and his soldiers heard those words they trembled in fear.  That is not a good place if you are in the Army of Israel.

Fear was on the throne in the Camp of Israel.  Faith had been dethroned completely.  Their focus had shifted from God’s Promises and Power to the imposing figure taunting them.  Gloom filled the air instead of Joy and Hope. The Great Army of Israel believed it was defeated and they were paralyzed.  Surrender could not be far away!  They were in a mindset of ‘surrender’ even without a fight.  Their Faith was now in what they could see in the natural rather than what God promised.  That is a place of defeat!

Picture the scene – Some reports place Goliath at 9’ 6”, dressed for battle with an incredibly large brass helmet, coat of arms that weighed as much as 150 pounds, brass leggings, a spear that is estimated as weighing about 20 pounds.  Frightening in the natural no doubt!  Sadly, that is how the church often views the devil.  Sometimes God’s people become the ten spies not the two in the story of Joshua.  Their Focus determined their Faith or the absence of it. 

Every day the same challenge came and each time Israel cowered more in fear.  Then, Jesse’s youngest son, a shepherd not a trained soldier, arrives and hears the taunts.  It infuriates him that this man would so blaspheme God and so humiliate Israel.  Saul had placed a bounty on Goliath but David’s question infuriates his brothers and others.  He was asking, “Why aren’t you guys doing something?”  That is not a welcome question from an upstart but David didn’t drop the issue.  He said to his brother, “What have I done now?  Is there not a cause.”   God had stirred a heart and that stirred heart would be a tool in the hands of the Living God!  

I will stop there and pick this up tomorrow but know that if God is stirring your heart He will also equip you to achieve that which He desires and it may not be through conventional means.

As you go through your day reflect on what ‘stirs your heart’ and ask what God would have you do!   Blessings as you go through your day!

Acts 17:28 – “…in Him we live and move and have our being…”  NKJV

When the apostle Paul came to the philosophers in Athens, Greece he challenged their belief in a myriad of gods by proclaiming to them the “Unknown God”, who is the One True God!  As he gave his discourse and presented line upon line identifying this “Unknown God” he came to the words I highlighted for a text.

It is in this God that we LIVE!  He is Life, for Jesus, Himself declared, “I am the way, the truth, and the life…”  He is the source of life, and apart from Him there can be no true life only existence and even that is realized through Him.  As the old gospel hymn, “Because He lives, I can live also…”  Paul passionately proclaims that LIFE is through the work of this God they identify as the “Unknown God”.  Paul identifies this God as being the creator of all things and the sustainer of life.

It is in this God that we MOVE!  That is an interesting word to use.  It is the Greek [kinoumetha] and Doddridge translates it, “And are moved”.  Many Bible scholars believe that it is in the middle voice and the rendering of “and move” is correct.  Regardless of which you accept it is clear that it is from this God that we derive our strength and are in a constant state of dependence upon Him.  It is from Him that we are able to move forward in life.  We can perform no motion physically or spiritually without Him.  He is the giver and sustainer of life.

It is in this God we have our BEING!  Our continued existence is totally dependent upon Him.  Life is a gift from God and as James warned in 4:14, “…For what is your life?  It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.”  There is not being without this God the Greeks identified as the “Unknown God” who to those who believe the “Only True and Living God”. 

Sadly, many do not know or recognize this God, the Living God, Creator of Heaven and Earth.  In our day of excessive tolerance and acceptance of anything and everything, we miss the imperative the Holy Spirit through Paul issued.  Paul addressed the ignorance and even unbelief that created the altar to the Unknown God and said, “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a don on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained.  He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.” [Vv.30-31]

The source of life naturally, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually is God!  Without Him, we could do and would be nothing.  Through Him, we are “more than conquerors”.  We can do all things through His strength.  I pray that each of us realizes more and more each passing moment of our total dependence upon Him.

May God bless you richly as you go through your day!

THE MODERN SPIRITUAL MINDSET…

1 John 2:1-2 – “My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.”  NKJV

I have encountered two troubling trains of thought or mindsets in the modern world and church.  I want to walk very carefully here because I do not want to be misunderstood and not to appear self-righteous or judgmental.  What I am talking about is S-I-N!  That’s right, I said it, SIN, missing the mark or coming short, rebellion against God, and disobedience to the Word of God.

There are those, in the world and church, that seem to think that because God is a God of Love that He cannot allow anyone to spend eternity in Hell as a result of sin or rejection of His grace.  That is more than troubling it is an eternal death sentence.  There are those who seek to justify their failures morally, spiritually, and ethically by saying “Well I’m only human” or something of that ilk. 

Yes, we are human, but when those of the 1^st Century Church addressed the subject of spiritual life, they did not automatically allow that man would continue to SIN or fail.  They readily acknowledged IF not WHEN we sin or fall short. There is a difference!  Please do not understand me to suggest that I think I am perfect that would be so outlandish that immediate dismissal of all I have to say should follow.  It is saying that our objective and goal should not be WHEN we fail, but that we should not fail because we have the infilling of God’s Spirit and Love. Because we walk in God’s Love, Spirit, and Grace.

In the Salvation experience, the Bible declares that we are New Creations!  Consider 2 Corinthians 5:17 – “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”   Also, 1 Peter 2:9-10 – “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.”

Therefore, IF I have been born-again, washed in the Blood of the Lamb, forgiven of my sin, and a New Creation I am not what I was!  I am no longer bound by the clutches of my human nature.  I am no longer a slave to my passions, pride, lust, human frailty for I have a direct link to His holiness, His grace, His mercy, His power to not only overcome enemies but myself. 

I understand that we do sin, but let’s stop identifying ourselves in such a way as to anticipate failure or to indicate we are living a life of sin.  It is one thing to fail and sin but another to practice that as a lifestyle. Let’s begin to identify ourselves as Children of God, Born Again, Transformed, Redeemed, and New Creatures in Christ who have the Living Lord manifesting His life through us. 

We need to resist the modern mentality and return to the mindset of the Early Church who saw themselves as the Redeemed of the Lord not the Fallen of the Race.  They did not plan for failure they embraced the idea that IF they failed, they could go to their Advocate and find pardon in the time of need.  They did not wake up daily expecting to sin and become self-fulfilling prophecies. 

You are a New Creation, if you are in Christ Jesus, so allow Him to manifest Himself through you, and IF you fall short run to the Cross for, He will receive you there!   

May God be with you as you go through your day!

John 15:13 –“A Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.” NASB

Jesus went on to say in the next verse “You are My friends…”  He laid down His life for us.  As John 3:16 informs us, His act was an expression of LOVE both by the Father and the Son so that you and I could have access to the Eternal Presence of God.  What love!

To lay down one’s life for another is the highest tribute that could be paid to the individual who has been died for.  I know what it is like to have someone step in front of danger to protect you.  I have experienced that kind of love and commitment and it forever changed me in ways that I am still discovering. 

I have heard family members pray that God would allow them to suffer the disease and death that was coming to their loved ones.  Why did they do it? Was it out of some false sense of nobility and self-sacrifice?  NO, it was out of LOVE!  They loved enough that if it were possible, they would step in and take the death that another was facing.  Jesus did that for us.  He went to the Cross and paid the penalty for our sin, a penalty that He did not deserve or merit in any way, but He willingly paid our debt out of LOVE!

When I consider what God has done for me, how could I not LOVE HIM?  How could I not serve Him?  How could I reject Him?  When I came to Christ and received Him as my savior I went through a period of days and weeks in which I was the most condemned and miserable person on the planet.  I knew I was lost and that is the first step to receiving salvation.  You cannot help a man be found that does not know he is lost.  

I knew that I was headed for hell and believed the lie that I had done too much to be forgiven.  I won’t say as I heard a person testify in church, “Lord, I’ve broken all the commandments.”  No, but I had done far more than my youthful years should have produced.  I had survived Vietnam, was struggling with who I was, where I fit, and what I was to do in life.  I found that nothing satisfied me, for very long not money, not a job, not relationships – NOTHING!   I fell under such conviction and my heart so condemned me that I despaired of life itself but can honestly say I did not consider suicide.  Now, admittedly, had that state of mind continued for a long time that would be the likely thoughts that would come, but thank God I did not go that long.

Through the encouragement of a person who loved me despite my meanness, I read Proverbs 3:5-6 after midnight on a Saturday night in Palestine, Texas and as I read that passage the light came on and I knew that I could be forgiven.  I experienced God’s forgiveness and love and the world lifted off my shoulders and I felt like I could float in the air.  That was the most incredible night of my life and I have been thanking God for over fifty years for that love, mercy, forgiveness, grace, and pardon.  It was LOVE that lifted me! LOVE spared my life!  LOVE rewrote my life!  LOVE transformed me from the vile creature that I was to a “born-again” child of the King!  I AM SAVED!  Hallelujah!

If you are struggling, know that God loves you enough that He was willing to allow His Son to die on the Cross for you.  Jesus loves you enough that He was willing to endure the Cross.  So, instead of reaching for the bottom lift up your eyes and allow the Holy Spirit to minister the LOVE OF GOD to you right now!           

May God be with you as you go through your day!

Luke 17:1-4 – “Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come!  2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.  3 Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.  4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”  NKJV

The Lord Jesus stated that offenses will come in life.  You cannot create a social climate where there are no occasions in which someone is offended.  However, the word offend is to cause displeasure, anger, resentment, or wounded feelings.  It is possible for someone to be offensive and for we choose not to take offense.  It is my conviction and belief that to be offended we have to make a choice to allow what was said or done to so influence us that we harbor resentment and hold an amount of unforgiveness in our hearts as a result.

Although we cannot prevent offenses from coming, we do have a biblical directive on how to handle conflicts and offenses.  In the social medium of Facebook, I have had to block a few (very few) people from posting on my page because they became antagonistic and combative descending into personal attacks and using profanity.  

Each time I notified them that this could not and would not be tolerated and when those few decided to continue, I took that action.  I have been blocked, on three known occasions, by others and only one actually notified me of their action but the other two posted things on their pages quoting what I had said and vilifying me over them without calling my name.  One was religious and that person notified me of their action, and it was because they held a different doctrinal point of view than I and the other two were political. 

For Christians, there is only one true course to take with regard to offenses and that is found in Matthew 18.  It should be the minimum that a believer will follow, and we should never shut someone out due to a perceived or real offense without following the directive of this passage outlined by our Lord.  It may be that the individual is unaware of their offense and what they did or said was not premeditated or malicious and something they would gladly rectify if given the chance. 

I have been misunderstood and have misunderstood others in my life. Each time I followed, or they have followed Matthew 18 we quickly realized the offense or perceived offense was a misunderstanding and nothing malicious.  A friendship was preserved, and needless bitterness was prevented.

Matthew 18:15-20 – “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.  16 “But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that BY THE MOUTH OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY FACT MAY BE CONFIRMED.  17 “If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.  18 “Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.

19 “Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.  20 “For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.”  NASB

I always encourage people, if they take exception to anything I say or do, let me know. Allow me to opportunity to explain, hoping to clear the air and dispel any thought of malice on my part.  Offenses will come, we cannot prevent them, but we can prevent them from becoming havens of unforgiveness and bitterness.

God bless you as you go through your day!

The old hymn ‘Kneel At The Cross’ has been echoing in my heart for days. I sense the LORD speaking to my heart some things that I need to embrace. Hopefully, by sharing you will find some things that speak to your hearts as well.

Kneel at the cross, Christ will meet you there
Come while He waits for you
Listen to His voice, leave with Him your cares
And begin life anew

Kneel at the cross, kneel at the cross
Leave every care, leave every care
Kneel at the cross, kneel at the cross
Jesus will meet you there

Kneel at the cross, there’s room for all
Who will his glory share
Bliss there awaits, harm can nary fall
Those who are anchored there

Kneel at the cross, give your idols up
Look unto realms above
Turn not away, to life’s sparkling cup
Trust only in His love

I ask that you consider some things in this old hymn that are revelatory for us in today’s world.

• The directive or invitation – – Kneel at the Cross – Submission.

• The pathway to the promise – Threefold: 

            Listen to His Voice – Leave Every Care – Begin Life Anew.

• The expansion – There is Room for Whosoever Will Come.  There we enter into His presence and experience His glory.  We are protected and have an anchor to keep us from drifting away into selfishness and soulishness.

• The warning – – Give Up Your Idols.  Anything that is placed before Christ.

• The invitation – Look upward and see His Kingdom.

• The completion – Drink at the fount of His love and trust only in Him and that love.

When I went to bed the other night, this song was on my heart.  I awakened in the night and it was on my mind.  I arose the next morning and it pursued me.  I went through the day and into the night and the next day with it echoing in my heart, mind, soul, and spirit.  It has been with me for days! I felt that the LORD was giving me an understanding of what I needed and where I was.  I also felt that He was revealing to me a condition that is prevalent in the Body of Christ today.  It is in seeing the need or the problem that we can find a solution and receive the answer.

What was I sensing?  Most believers have no problem, kneeling at the Cross.  We know that if we are to have Jesus in our lives we must come to the altar of submission and the Cross represents the Ultimate provision and sacrifice our Lord provided for our Salvation.  Yet, we find ourselves lacking and incomplete.  Why?

It is in the third part of the verse that we fall short and revert or never fully gain the victory of trusting in the arm of flesh or relying on our own understanding.  It is in the three parts of the pathway into the promise of which the song speaks.  We come to the Cross, kneel in submission, and meet Jesus and our sins are washed away.  There is joy in heaven, and we are born again.  That is marvelous, but it is not all that God desires for us.  Sadly, it is the extent of too many believer’s experience.

We are to Listen to His Voice.  The Bible makes it clear that obedience is the desire of God not sacrifice or great exploits done in our strength or power.  It is in listening to His voice we are enabled to LEAVE every care.  The Bible tells us that Faith comes by Hearing and Hearing by the Word of God.  When we know the Truth, embrace the Truth, and act upon the Truth we enjoy true freedom and deliverance from our prison of bondage. 

Do we LEAVE every care?  NO!  Few are able to achieve that place of trust and obedience.  We take it to the Lord, place it on the altar, and then when we leave His presence or the foot of the Cross, we take it with us.  You argue that you do not?  I argue that we do.  If you continue to have it occupy much of your thinking, after you have placed it in His hands and at the foot of the Cross, you have not left it.  If you play the tape over and over in your head after you have placed it at the foot of the Cross, you have not left it there.  If it occupies your consciousness and causes you anxiety, you have not left it there. 

Proverbs 3:5-6 directs us to Trust God, not our own understanding.  Too many attempt to explain and understand God with their minds rather than their spirits.  We do not enjoy the Abundant Life Jesus promised or the Kingdom that the Father desires us to experience because we fail to Listen and Trust Him enough to leave our cares in His hands.  We don’t trust Him with conditions, needs, or people enough to leave it with Him and allow Him to work it out in His way and time.  We try to help God and in helping God we make ourselves and our ability an idol transcending Him and His authority in our lives.

That’s why the song continues with the directive to Give our Idols up.  As long as anything holds our thoughts more than God, above God, or on the same level as God, we cannot look upward into His Realm of Victory.  We are not able to drink at the fount of His Love, Mercy, and Grace.  We cannot begin life anew because we are held in chains by our needs, desires, and abilities.

It is only as we truly TRUST Him and His Love can we kneel at the Cross, meet Jesus, and leave all our cares in His hands.  Has He ever failed?  Will He ever fail?  Can He fail?  If you answered NO, then why not try trusting Him for a change, and move out of a life that is under the control of the soul (mind, will, and emotions) and move into the Life of the spirit and become empowered by Him to walk (live) in total victory? 

Lord, I want your Presence.  I want your purposes to be fulfilled in my life.  I want to trust not what I see, but what you say.  I want to live and move and have being in You.  I want to give you a vessel you can use.  I desire to walk in total obedience to God in all things and at all times.

God bless you as you enjoy this wonderful day in Jesus!

Luke 4:8 – “And Jesus answered and said to him, “It is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.'”   NASB

Exodus 34:14 – “…for you shall not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God…”  NASB

Revelation 14:6-7 – “And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; 7 and he said with a loud voice, “Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters.”  NASB

It is the desire and command of God for us to Worship Him!  Jesus declared in John 4:24, “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”  If you listen to Jesus’ response to the woman at the will you hear, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem, shall you worship the Father. 22 “You worship that which you do not know; we worship that which we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.” 

The devil sought to trick Jesus into worshipping him and Jesus responded in Matthew 4:10 – “Begone, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.'”  The apostle Paul called worship our spiritual service to God in Romans 12:1. Worship has been a part of God’s plan and a part of man’s relationship with Him since creation and will be throughout eternity.

David, one of the most prolific worshippers in the Bible, declared in Psalms 95:6 – “Come, let us worship and bow down; Let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.”  He said in Psalms 90:5 – “Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at His footstool; Holy is He.”  In Psalms 96:9 we read, “Worship the LORD in holy attire; Tremble before Him, all the earth.” 

David was a man of praise and instituted 24/7/365 worship in the Tabernacle of David, assigning people to sing, praise, and worship God.  He said in Psalms 132:7 – “Let us go into His dwelling place; Let us worship at His footstool.”  Job was a worshipper as we read in Job 1:20-22. 

Webster’s Dictionary defines worship as:  The reverent love and devotion accorded a deity, an idol, or a sacred object.  The ceremonies, prayers, or other religious forms by which love is expressed.  I often ask what is the Hebrew word behind an English word and in this case worship?  The Hebrew translated into English as worship is shachah (shaw-khaw) and means to bow before and pay homage to God.  It means to prostrate oneself before the LORD in total surrender.  That word appears 172 times but is translated worship, 99 times in the King James Version.

In Christianity, worship is the act of attributing reverent honor and homage to God.  It is to recognize His Lordship and Sovereignty over our lives.  It is to recognize Him as the God of Creation and the Savior of our souls.  In the New Testament, various words are used to identify this act called worship.  The Greek word proskeuneo means ‘to worship’ or ‘bow before God.’

In considering the etymology of the word worship we find that it is derived from the Old English word (weorbscipe) which means to worship and honor.  It means to recognize and ascribe worthiness or worth-ship!  In the simplest of terms, it means to recognize something as having worth.  God most assuredly has worth, does He not?

Worship involves intimacy and submission.  It is the act of yielding to God fully.  It begins in the heart and spirit and is reflected in an outward demonstration in the flesh, such as raising the hands in adoration and bowing before God in surrender.  It is allowing God to have full control of our hearts. 

We should resist becoming overly technical in our definition of worship and declare that it involves the total surrender of the heart in abandoned adoration of Him.  If I were to ask 100 people what worship is or how to worship, I would probably get 100 different answers or variations.  In John 4:24 we are told to “Worship in spirit and truth.”  In Exodus 34:14 we are instructed to “worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a Jealous God.”  In the Book of Revelation John declared that when he heard the words concerning the last days his response was to fall on his face and worship.  (Revelation 22:8).

What Jesus did on the Cross, in the Resurrection, and Ascension is TOTAL!  Nothing has to be added for the victory over the devil was complete and man once again had an open door to God.  Jesus said that He is the door.  He said that if we invite Him to come in, He will.  He said that if confessed our sin and believed in our hearts we would be saved.  If that reality and the thought of eternity with Him in heaven is not enough to cause us to WORSHIP, then I don’t know what would be. 

Praise is entering the gates and Worship is entering the courts of God! It is entering into His presence where the transformation of our hearts takes place.  It is in our time of Worship that we are changed from glory to glory and become like Him.  It is in that Holy Place the Holy Spirit turns up the heat of the spiritual furnace and purges the dross from our lives and purifies our hearts.  It is there that we discover attitudes and things we have overlooked that need to be dealt with.  Worship is essential for us to become who Jesus said we are.

God bless you as you begin a new journey in Worshipping the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  He is Worthy of our Praise and deserving of our Worship!

Have a great day in Him!

Leviticus 25:35-38 – “Now in case a countryman of yours becomes poor and his means  with regard to you falter, then you are to sustain him, like a stranger or a sojourner, that he may live with you. 36’Do not take usurious interest from him, but revere your God, that your countryman may live with you. 37’You shall not give him your silver at interest, nor your food for gain. 38’I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.”  NASB

I have had conversations with people of all political ideological positions and with Christians regarding welfare and/or benevolence.  Some insist that it is the responsibility of the government federal and state to care for the poor and needy.  I find that from a strict interpretation of the original language of the Constitution that is not what the founding fathers of America believed. 

But I am less interested in anyone’s interpretation of the Constitution, in this devotional, than I am in God’s view as revealed in Scripture.  When I want to know how a matter such as this is handled, I follow the model of “first mention” in the Bible and move throughout the entirety of Scripture.  My objective is to find out God’s view and my responsibility in any matter.

I believe that the Christian Church abdicated its responsibility regarding benevolence and allowed the government to become the benefactor of the needy.  If someone else is taking care of the need then I feel absolved of my responsibility.  Sadly, we have done that in too many things regarding the political and even the home.  It is time that we consider God’s view and seek to apply His principles to our lives.

Here, there is a clear directive regarding those in need.  It covers all people in need and who are truly needy.  It does not cover laziness and unwillingness to work but for those truly needy there is a responsibility for the believer.  The directive in this passage is that it is our responsibility to take care of the needy person enabling them to get back on their feet.

The Bible does not teach that we are to make people permanent wards of the state, the church, or our families.  Paul said in 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “…if any would not work, neither should he eat.”  I believe that if a person is allowed to feel the pain of their laziness they will gravitate toward productivity.  I did not say, “could not work, but would not work.”  The key is ‘would not’ rather than ‘could not.’  If a person is incapable of working then we, the family of God should be willing to share our sustenance to sustain them. 

One of our Founding Fathers, Benjamin Franklin succulently said, “I am for doing good to the poor, but…I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty but leading or driving them out of it. I observed…that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course, became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer.” 

We have many passages to draw from on caring for the poor and needy in the Bible.  Let me list a few and you research them:  Deuteronomy 15:7-15; Judges 19:16-21; Job 31:16-23; Psalm 41:1; Psalm 112:9; Proverbs 3:27-28; Proverbs 11:25; Proverbs 28:27; Matthew 5:42; Matthew 25:35-45; Galatians 6:10; and James 1:27 are a few.  There are more, but Proverbs 19:17 is possibly one of the most powerful and arresting. It says, “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD, and He will repay him for his deed.” 

Imagine that!  Giving to the poor and needy is lending to God!  That is incredible, and in the light of Psalms 24:1 where we find that the earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live on the earth are God’s.  Yet, He tells us that if we are generous and caring of the poor, He considers it a loan.  That puts an entirely different twist to stewardship, but it is an unavoidable truth of the Bible – We are to care for the truly needy.

God bless you as you make this day a day of blessing and enjoy the fruit of God’s Promises in your life.