Seeking God and Seeking Good

Seeking God and Seeking Good

 

 

 

This photo is thanks to Sandi Patty's Facebook page.

 

Lamentations 3 (Bible Gateway.com, NIV)

²² Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
    for his compassions never fail.
²³ They are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.
²⁴ I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
    therefore I will wait for him.”

²⁵ The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
    to the one who seeks him;
²⁶ it is good to wait quietly
    for the salvation of the Lord.

 

These are the words of an afflicted believer. He is in turmoil. He knows, as most of us do, that we are not, nor will we ever be perfect in this world. So God reminds Himself of this and grants us grace if we seek Him with all of our hearts. He does not OWE this to us. It is a gift of His great love for us, that is granted to us because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. Otherwise, our sins would disqualify us from mercy. It is good for us to call out to Him and honor Him for all that he does for us.

 

Amos 5:14

Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is.

 

So it depends on us, to not just say that we are believers, but to behave like believers. Seeking good is a daily choice that we all must face. Temptations will never stop on this earth. They will only increase as Jesus' return draws nearer. As in the days of Noah, this earth is full of corruption and evil. We need to choose our friends carefully, and make good use of our time, so that we are not putting ourselves into positions that make sin too easy for us. Seek good. Seek God. His mercies and strength will be enough for you.

The Work of My Hands

The Work of My Hands

 

So many of us need to work just to pay bills, buy necessary items, care for our families, eat, etc. It is important to remember why we work and what our work means, both to us and to God.

 

 

Col 3: (Bible Gateway, NIV version)

 

²² Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. ²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, ²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. ²⁵ Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs, and there is no favoritism.

 

I know we don't want to see ourselves as slaves, but as workers. Really there's not a lot of difference. When we are employed by someone or a company, our time at work belongs to them. They are paying us for that right. We need to give as close to 100% to that work as we can, so that we honor Jesus. Our hard work is a testimony to Him, and will earn us a reward in heaven.

 

 

I Thes. 4:

 

⁹ Now about your love for one another we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. ¹⁰ And in fact, you do love all of God’s family throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more, ¹¹ and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, ¹² so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.

 

We need to focus on our work and give it our attention. That way we will not get caught up in the idle gossip that happens so much in the workplace. This can spoil our testimony and weaken our faith. We want to set the example and others in the workplace will want to join us in serving Christ when they see that we are trustworthy and honorable.

 

I Thes. 5:

 

 

¹¹ Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

Final Instructions

¹² Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you. ¹³ Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. ¹⁴ And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. ¹⁵ Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.
¹⁶ Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray continually, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

So we need to remember our spiritual leaders, to pray for them and show them proper respect. They have given themselves to God, for His service, and deserve to be respected. We should follow their example, and work hard, and pray for those around us, even for those that we work with. God just may have put us there to lead them to Him and to offer them support and encouragement. We need to be that sort of worker and friend.

Ask God to help you and remind you through His Spirit of these things. It is easy to forget what we should do when we go out into the worldly atmosphere. It seems good when we are home thinking and praying, or in our place in church. But the battlefield is out there, and God has a purpose for us in it. So pray and go serve Him as you serve others. You will be well blessed if you follow His instructions in this. 

What is Love?

What is Love?

 

What is love? That's a great question, because we can find so many examples of what isn't love. Revenge, murder, hatred, anger, bitterness, stubbornness, selfishness, etc., are all examples of what is not love. A truly loving person may be tempted to fall into some of these sins, but if they truly love, peace and joy will win over their hearts and love will be victorious. Remember that I John tells us:

God’s Love and Ours

⁷ Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. ⁸ Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. ⁹ This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

If we truly live "through" Him, we will do as He did and the desire to sacrifice ourselves for those we love will live in us. We will be able to forgive those that we love and give them gifts out of the goodness that is within us. That may be just gifts of kindness, and our time. We may not be able to "spend" a lot of money on things that we can't afford to make them happy, but those things are not nearly as important as the gifts of the heart. I Corinthians 13 is commonly known as the LOVE chapter of the Bible. Let's see what it tells us about LOVE.

 

1 Corinthians 13

New International Version (NIV)

13 If I speak in the tongues^[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. ² If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ³ If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,^[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.

⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
⁸ Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. ⁹ For we know in part and we prophesy in part, ¹⁰ but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. ¹¹ When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. ¹² For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
¹³ And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

There is no greater accomplishment in life than to live in true love. No great contribution to the poor or to the world (such as a Library, museum, statue, etc.) will ever last as long or be as valuable as true love. That is why Satan will do whatever he can to stop it and destroy it. It is the greatest weapon that a Believer has in his spiritual armory. The greatest spiritual triumphs in history have been borne of love and compassion.

So whatever you do in your life, if it is founded in and on the foundation of love, it will stand long and strong. If it is not, it will eventually fail and fade away. We are truly made complete in and by love. 

Nothing to Lose

When You Have Nothing to Lose

 

Let's look at a tale of two men. One had it all and couldn't let go and the other was given it all and wasted it. The story of the first man is found in Matthew 19.

The Rich and the Kingdom of God

¹⁶ Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”
¹⁷ “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”
¹⁸ “Which ones?” he inquired.
Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, ¹⁹ honor your father and mother,’^[c] and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’^[d]”
²⁰ “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”
²¹ Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
²² When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.
²³ Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. ²⁴ Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
²⁵ When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?”

I think Jesus knew the man's heart and saw that he desired to be "perfect" or "good". He thought it was about what you do with your hands or your abilities. Jesus is simply informing him that it is not within our reach or our ability to be saved. This was obviously a "good" man. Someone who was determined to do the right things. But what he "lacked" was to be generous. To love others more than himself. So Jesus told him to sell his possessions and give to the poor or needy, which is what He had been doing. He was asking the man to join Him in helping others. But the man was pleased enough with himself that he went away sad. It was not an option for him at that time. We don't know what he did later. Maybe years later he did help the poor and join the faith. I hope so.


The other man we learn about in Luke 15.

The Parable of the Lost Son

¹¹ Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. ¹² The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
¹³ “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. ¹⁴ After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵ So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. ¹⁶ He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
¹⁷ “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! ¹⁸ I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. ¹⁹ I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ ²⁰ So he got up and went to his father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
²¹ “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
²² “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. ²³ Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. ²⁴ For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
²⁵ “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. ²⁶ So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. ²⁷ ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’
²⁸ “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. ²⁹ But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. ³⁰ But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
³¹ “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. ³² But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”
This man wanted it all and he wanted it now. So his father gave it to him. He abused it and lost it. But he came to his senses and returned to seek mercy and it was granted to him even before he presented his request. His father forgave him while he was still a ways away. It doesn't say that he restored his fortune. That was already given to him and to his brother. So everything that was left was his brother's. But they celebrated his return and gave him other gifts and he was forgiven.

So it is the man who had nothing to lose that found forgiveness and was honored. Many times people come to God simply because they have nowhere else to turn. They have no other options. You may think that God is not pleased to be their "last" option. But He is. He is there waiting for them to come their senses and ask for His forgiveness and salvation. When you see someone that is in need, just remember that they may be closer to finding God than you might think. Don't push them away by treating them badly as others do. You will know if they are genuinely seeking help. They may be right where God wants them to be; where He can reach their heart. Pray for them and pray for yourself that you will see what God is really doing.

All scriptures are the NIV version from the http://www.biblegateway.com/ .

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Praise The Lord

Praise The Lord

 

I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I have set my heart on your laws. Psalm 119:30 NIV

 

This is the daily verse today from http://www.biblegateway.com/ . It is important that we make wise choices. Life is one long string of choices. In the end, we have chosen where we will spend eternity, one choice at a time. Today let's choose to Praise the Lord.

 

 

Psalm 150

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 150

¹ Praise the Lord.^[a]

Praise God in his sanctuary;
    praise him in his mighty heavens.
² Praise him for his acts of power;
    praise him for his surpassing greatness.
³ Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
    praise him with the harp and lyre,
⁴ praise him with timbrel and dancing,
    praise him with the strings and pipe,
⁵ praise him with the clash of cymbals,
    praise him with resounding cymbals.

⁶ Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord.

 

The more we say it, the more we focus on it. That's a healthy reminder. I believe the Psalmist had that in mind. So should we. Today we have breath, so we have no excuse. Join me in praising Him for all that He has done. He is glorious and wants the very best for us. Praise Him!

God's Blessing: Do We Appreciate it?

God's Blessing

 

Too often when God blesses us, we are happy for a short time and then we forget. When the children of Israel came out of Egypt, He led them out with a mighty hand and many miracles and yet they grumbled against their leaders and ultimately against their God. They had been enslaved for many years, and yet when they were granted their freedom, it seemed like that was just not enough for them. Do we look at God's blessing the same way? When he provides work or food or help for us, do we think to ourselves that that was great, but why didn't he give us a million dollars instead of just helping us with the rent? We should be cautious and careful how we treat His blessings.

 

Exodus 3:17 New International Version (NIV) http://www.biblegateway.com/

¹⁷ And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’

 

^{Exodus 14:8} The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly. ⁹ The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen^[a] and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon. ¹⁰ As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. ¹¹ They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? ¹² Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” 13  Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.

¹⁴ The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

 

²⁵ He jammed^[b] the wheels of their chariots so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, “Let’s get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt.”

²⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” ²⁷ Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward^[c] it, and the Lord swept them into the sea. ²⁸ The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.
²⁹ But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. ³⁰ That day the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. ³¹ And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.

God destroyed the enemies who went after His people. He only asked them to be still and trust in Him. This is a good lesson for us.

Exodus 17:3

But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. They said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?”

 

 

Repeatedly, God would provide and then the people would grumble and complain at the very next challenge. Because of this there were not many of them that ever saw the fulfillment of the original promise to take over the Promised Land. Only the ones that were faithful and did not grumble got to see it and enter it. We all have challenges and needs and hurts. It is up to us whether we will trust Him or continually complain about our circumstances and eventually be cut off from His blessing.

 

Lesson: We probably would not appreciate Heaven, if we had not experienced some degree of hell on Earth. He builds our faith, shows us His power when we need Him and trust in Him. Find some reason to give Him thanks everyday!



Being Good or Being Blameless

Should We Be Good?

 

The real question is should we be good, or should we be blameless? What do each of these mean? What's the difference, and why does it matter? Let's investigate. I'll give you the scripture that got me thinking.

Psalm 101

Of David. A psalm.

¹ I will sing of your love and justice;
    to you, Lord, I will sing praise.
² I will be careful to lead a blameless life—
    when will you come to me?

I will conduct the affairs of my house
    with a blameless heart.
³ I will not look with approval
    on anything that is vile.

I hate what faithless people do;
    I will have no part in it.
⁴ The perverse of heart shall be far from me;
    I will have nothing to do with what is evil.

⁵ Whoever slanders their neighbor in secret,
    I will put to silence;
whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart,
    I will not tolerate.

⁶ My eyes will be on the faithful in the land,
    that they may dwell with me;
the one whose walk is blameless
    will minister to me.

⁷ No one who practices deceit
    will dwell in my house;
no one who speaks falsely
    will stand in my presence.

⁸ Every morning I will put to silence
    all the wicked in the land;
I will cut off every evildoer
    from the city of the Lord.

 

This Psalm states that it is from King David, a man who was rescued by God many times, disciplined by God, reinstated by God, and blessed by God as the King over His people. In this chapter we see that he made a conscious choice to separate himself from evil men (people) and that as king he would see to it that the evil were not blessed or allowed into his presence to seek help. He states that "I will be careful to lead a blameless life". We know that, for the most part he did that, but several times he failed and committed sins that affected not only himself, but his family and his kingdom. God is very mindful of such promises that we make to Him. We know that the only people that are blameless are Jesus and those that He personally can call His own; those that confess that He is Lord and confess their sins to Him, and are purified by His blood.

 

We should have no pride in doing "good".

 

Deuteronomy 6

New International Version (NIV) http://www.biblegateway.com/

Love the Lord Your God

6 These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, ² so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life. ³ Hear, Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you.

⁴ Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.^{[a] 5} Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ⁶ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

¹⁰ When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, ¹¹ houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant—then when you eat and are satisfied, ¹² be careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

¹³ Fear the Lord your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. ¹⁴ Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; ¹⁵ for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land. ¹⁶ Do not put the Lord your God to the test as you did at Massah. ¹⁷ Be sure to keep the commands of the Lord your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. ¹⁸ Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that it may go well with you and you may go in and take over the good land the Lord promised on oath to your ancestors, ¹⁹ thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the Lord said.

 

Doing good here is clearly defined as obeying the laws that God gave to Moses for the people of Israel to follow. The laws were designed to be good and to keep the people from sinning, but they did not have the power to accomplish that. Why? Because our will is ours alone. If we choose to sin and disobey, we face the consequences of our decisions and our actions.

 

So, in reality, we should make every effort to be "good" and to do what is right. But we also need to know that in our own weaknesses, we cannot. So we need Jesus to help and strengthen us and wash and cleanse us, so we can be blameless. It is impossible on our own.

 

Galatians 6

⁷ Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. ⁸ Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. ⁹ Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. ¹⁰ Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

 

So our focus needs to be on walking in the Spirit and watching for opportunities to do good and be kind to others so that we honor and bring glory to Jesus and to God. We should also be united with other believers so that we encourage and strengthen each other. In that we have hope.