"Beat the Beast"

"I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the LORD." (Psalms 101:8)
Well, to say that was interesting would be putting in mildly. If you are looking for any help from Matthew Henry on this one, you're not going to get much, because it's all about David's promise to the way he is going to be king and his administration thereof. But, the rebel that I am, I like to think it is God's way of teaching us how to get a grip. All Scripture is intended to be used for learning, even the parts that don't even seem to involve anything to do with application, they too can apply; layers upon layers of spiritual application, personal application, and even righteous application. Interesting enough, I heard a message from Pastor Jon yesterday, which was probably twenty years or more old, but it was just in time for me. In this message Jon spoke about adding onto God's commands, much as I was sharing yesterday morning. I kept waiting to hear him say that we should not take away or add to anything that God says, but he was on a totally different topic altogether; his topic was about how we seem to gravitate towards putting additional burdens on each other. Using how the Jewish leaders took the Sabbath and added tons of different rules and requirements to what was intended to be a day of rest, he mentioned how they always had a way to get around their own requirements. I thought it was interesting, because there seems to be a connection between that and what I believe God was speaking into my heart yesterday. For example: What if Adam had touched the fruit, and had given Eve that additional requirement to keep her at bay? You know, that "Do as I say, not as I do" way of keeping someone in line. Just a thought; nothing there that I want to dive into. However, there is something here that needs to be looked at, which is the word "early" that is expressed here, is a word that means either before light, or a the breaking forth of light. To put it in the simplest terms, it is speaking about destroying all the wicked right away, as soon as they are discovered or revealed. Which is exactly what we must do, as soon as God reveals something in our lives that needs to be destroyed or gotten rid of, we must cut it off. If we do not do so right away, then we will add to or take away from God's command that we received, and we will figure out a way to hold onto it...
"So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls. But don't just listen to God's word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don't obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don't forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it." (James 1:21-25) NLT

"Rooting Out Deceit" -2

"He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight." (Psalms 101:7)
I know, that's not your fight, so you will not get involved. Besides, if the Lord is coming back any day, then why does it really matter what the world does? The church is not immune from this; you would think by now that we would have figured that out. Okay, so we are moving on. In the case of Adam and Eve, God had instructed Adam not to eat the fruit of a certain tree; however, Eve told the serpent, "But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die." One of two things had taken place; either Eve added to what God had originally said to Adam, or Adam added to it when he had instructed Eve. Either way, there was something that had taken place in the rule that God had originally given, His word was added on to! There is the thing which we must carefully watch out for, the taking away or adding to God's word! That is exactly what the devil did to Eve, he simply added a single word to what God had said, without even giving any proof or explaining why they would not die, saying, "Ye shall not surely die," he merely affirmed it. That is how a lie takes hold; without any proof or substance, a lie is accepted merely by affirmation. In other words, it is accepted by how it makes us feel. The very last verse in the Book of Judges, says, "every man did that which was right in his own eyes." If it feels good, do it; that was pretty much the case; and it was the same point in the fall that took place in the Garden. And it only took one word to make it so, the word "not." If Adam or Eve could add to God's word and make it right, then why couldn't the devil do it also? We each are responsible for our own salvation; no one will have the excuse of saying, "I did not know," because God has made His word perfectly clear. Just because His word has been taken from or added onto by someone else, does not give us liberty to accept it as truth, no matter how good it makes us feel. It is all between you and God, no matter who else says what, it all comes down to what God has said, and whether we believe it...
""And now, Israel, listen carefully to these decrees and regulations that I am about to teach you. Obey them so that you may live, so that you may enter and occupy the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. Do not add to or subtract from these commands I am giving you. Just obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you."" (Deuteronomy 4:1-2) NLT   

"Rooting Out Deceit"

"He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight." (Psalms 101:7)
People can be so nasty, if it's okay to use that term. Not that we don't already know this to be so, but the rate of divorce even being close to the outside within the church, that alone should tell us that there is something terrible going on within the Body. Within this promise, David is dealing with the number one issue among the church, the family, and even the more than we might actually know; that issue is deceit. Deceit is where it all began in the beginning; and it more than likely did not start with Eve. When the devil actually revolted against God is not really known, except that many believe it was at the creation of mankind; when God said, "Let us make man in our image," that was the moment in time when the devil began to his envious plan to undo God's creation. But, be that as it may, there is still the question of Adam, as in, Where was Adam while Eve was being deceived by the devil? As to Eve's addition to the one rule in the garden, adding, "Not to touch it," who's to say that Adam is not the one to have told here not to do so? And if he did, who's to say that it was before or actually after she had already touched it? We really don't know how long it was from the time of Eve's creation to the time of the fall; but I have heard it said that their years did not start to be counted as alive until after they were kicked out of the Garden. What I am getting at, is that Adam may have had a part in Eve's being deceived. Although it was the devil who is called the father of lies, deceit is what lies are used to cover up. I have seen a lot of deceit being put to work within the church; most people do not even realize that they are taking part in it, especially if it is made to look constructive. But it happens also within the family, and it happens also within a nation. Right now, within this nation, and primarily within this State, there is a movement under foot to not only normalize something that is wrong, but it is trying to make it not only right, but protected and special. I saw it happening several years ago with homosexuality; where young children were being shown how it was normal to experience those kind of affections towards one another. Now it has stepped up to something new; now it's all about choosing what you are, whether a boy or a girl. Right from the very beginning of School, five year old children are being taught how they can change what they were created to be, based upon how they feel. Talk about going from "Don't eat" to "Don't touch," once you take away the choice, it's pretty much a done deal...
"But you, my dear friends, must remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ said. They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires. These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have the God's Spirit in them. But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God's love. And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still other, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives." (Jude 17-23) NLT 

"Blessing Upon Blessing"

"Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me." (Psalms 101:6)
If you like golf, maybe you watched that game yesterday and witnessed the showdown between Jordan and Dustin; it way very interesting, to say the least. Anywho, to the point I was trying to make though all the that mumbo-jumbo yesterday, God hates those that sow discord and cause division in the church! Do not be that man or woman, and do not hang around with anyone who is that man or woman. That is the must do thing about that, and that is why that verse is highlighted green. It is not just about taking a stand, because we all know what is right and what is wrong; but even if the person is someone you are close to, you have got to make right choice and stand with God. So, why is it that this verse is not highlighted also? This verse deals with things that are easy to do. If you see those that are faithful, whether that be to their work or to their friends, then you would naturally want that kind of person to be around; and if you found someone that walked perfectly, meaning that they tried to conduct themselves in a manner of serving others, then you would want that kind of a person to serve you. Those are easy choices to make, because you find someone that blesses you, you bless them, and they bless you back; it's all about blessing each other. That is what Jesus tried to show His disciples, to be a servant to one another; not to get something out of the relationship, but to give it away, that you might store up treasure in heaven. If ever there was something to strive to be, it would be someone faithful and that walks in a perfect way. Now, as to a marriage relationship, this is the mark of a great relationship between a husband and wife. There is no hidden agenda or ways to manipulate each other in the relationship; everything is done to the betterment of each other, not to try and feed off of each other, but to make each other a better person. I know that there are some that do not want to hear this, but the bulk of that role belongs to the husband. Husband are instructed to love their wives as Christ loved the church. We tend to think it stops at giving yourself, but it also includes nurturing and washing. In other words, you don't just pour yourself out, but you pour out onto your wife with a purpose, to make her perfect...
"I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus is calling us. Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you. But we must hold on to the progress we have already made." (Philippians 3:12-16) NLT

"Linked Together as One"

"Whoso privily slandereth his neighbor, him will I cut off: him that hath a high look and a proud heart will not I suffer." (Psalms 101:5)
One thing you will not see much of in my Bible is highlighted Scriptures; there are some, but they do not show up as you might think. This Scripture is highlighted green, which was from a certain period of time when I was using a green and a pink highlighter; green was for doing what mattered most, while pink was for the things to avoid at all cost. Believe it or not, but that phase maybe lasted about a couple of days. When I came to James chapter one and 1 Peter chapter two, things got a little bit messy in my Bible and I decided to stop. I think I heard this same message at least three times last week, as some of the teachings are the same message throughout the week, depending on which pastor is teaching. It was a little blurb about slander and how we can even slander a person by telling the truth. I was always under the understanding that slander was making false statements about someone, so I was a little confused by the statement. But, if your intention is to accuse someone of something, then even though you might be telling the truth, your judgment is still considered to be slander. Who are we to judge? Jesus tells us that we should not judge, or else we will be judged, and the judgment by which we judge, we shall be judged by. (Matthew 7:1-2) Right below this highlighted verse in my Bible I have written 1 Corinthians 1. When this took place, might have been right around the time when Pastor Burt stepped down and Pastor Bryan became the Senior Pastor at our church. It was a very testing time, especially for Pastor Bryan; going from the High School Pastor to the Senior Pastor was not accepted by everyone, and there were some that just could not accept it at all. But I remember seeing the change take place in him, almost instantly. Pastor Burt would sometimes have a last minute cancelation of him showing up for church, so Pastor Bryan was the one who seemed to step in from time to time. Seeing that he had already prepared a message, although it was intended for teens, nonetheless, he had a message. But after the mantel was passed, the messages became anointed and more full of knowledge and wisdom. There was no doubt in my heart that he was right where God wanted him to be. Here is the thing that I believe God is speaking into my heart, in that we are blessed to blessed by God, so we need to bless others. We bless people in many ways, but talking behind their back, not only does not bless them, but we are not blessed by doing it...
"I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church, rather be of one mind, united in thought and purpose." (1 Corinthians 1:10) NLT

"Pinpoint the Issue"

"A forward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person." (Psalms 101:4)
As it is with most issues of the heart, they pretty much all are connected to pride and envy. Pride is what makes us think that we have a right to do whatever we want, and envy is what causes us to want what others might have. These are common issues with almost every temptation that we come to face with in just about every area of our lives, whether it be physical, financial, and sometimes, even spiritual. I might not totally understand where it is that the Lord is taking me; most days, I do even know what it is that I am going to say; but if there is one thing that I have learned, it is that I need to be prepared to be amazed. The reason I have tried to tie this to wedding vows, is that wedding vows are involved the issues that seem to cause us the most problems. Better or for worst; richer or poorer; in sickness and in health. Those are pretty much the issues of the heart that make or break our promises; and we either allow it to happen, or we don't! When it comes to making a promise with God, we always have something hiding within our hearts that will help us to break that promise; whether that be some kind of sin that we are holding on to, or even the doubt that He is even real; but there is something about the human heart that always plans for the alternative. Take the point of Adam being with Eve while she was tempted. I know it's not proven that he was, except for the minor mentioning of it in God's word; but entertaining the thought, you can see the point that I am trying to make. When Jesus spoke about counting the cost, I don't think that He was speaking lightly. As a matter of fact, I am pretty sure that He was making a point about being fully committed, no matter what the cost! If Adam was there, he might have used Eve to see what might happen; but more than that, he sinned against God by doing so; after all, they had become one flesh! That was the point in a Christian movie called, "Marriage Retreat," where the bottom line to the issue was about being one flesh: "If you fail, I fail!" That is also the common issue within the church, and was what Paul was talking about as he explained how we are all a part of the Body of Christ. You cannot cut off a toe without hurting the body; neither can you allow sin to dwell in you without it ruining your commitment to the Lord. Pinpoint the issue and get it out...
"Don't team up with those who are unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ and the devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever? And what union can there be between God's temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: "I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the LORD. Don't touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you. And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the LORD Almighty."" (2 Corinthians 6:14-18) NLT

"Setting the Groundwork" -2

"I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me." (Psalms 101:3)
Think of this as "Making Promises 101." If that works for you, then go ahead and use it; you don't even need to mention my name. The word "wicked" that is use here is one that pretty much means that whatever it is, it is worthless; and compared to God, on a scale of one to ten, it does not even hit the chart. It is so worthless, that being enticed by it only causes one to move away from God; even the thought being entertained in our mind, is sufficient to cause one to stumble. You see, this is not just something that gets flashed before you, or something that gets stumbled upon; no, this is a thing that you "set" before you with intent, as if you purpose in your heart to see where it will take you, or move you, or satisfy a secret desire. As for those children of Israel, they "set" those giants in the land before their eyes, making them appear more fearful than God; and to moved their hearts out of the promise land, and kept them out in the wilderness. God only gave them what they asked for, it be left out in the wilderness to die! This is not just for that kind of situation, it will work for almost any kind of area of our lives. Once you have "set" that thing before you, and once you have entertained the possibilities, you have already crossed the line in your own heart; now you will require intervention in order to stay away from it, or to stop from going any further. Take it a step further, and you have the "work" of them that turn aside; meaning those that have latched onto whatever is wicked, and now they need company in order to make themselves feel better. In the case of the children of Israel, it would be the eight spies that convinced the people how big those giants really were, saying, "We would be like grasshoppers before them." The people no doubt pictured the feet of the giants stepping upon them and squishing them like bugs. The word "work" means exactly what it is meant to mean, to work at something, or work upon anything. Not only is it something that takes or moves away from God, but now it is something that you are going to continue to make something out of, or get more out of it. Now it goes beyond seeing where it takes you, you are seeing how you can take it along in your journey with God. These are the kind of things that cause churches to split, that break up families, and crumble kingdoms; we are talking about making a wicked thing become something more than it should ever be; it's not only worthless, it's destructive. And if it is going to be worked into a family, a church, or even a nation, then it is going to destroy everything and everyone that it is worked into; especially a child of God. The word "cleave" is another word that means what it says, to take it unto yourself; much like the "cleave" first spoken of in Genesis 2:24, "and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh." No, anything that is that kind of worthless needs to be moved away from, right away; don't let it cleave to you, in the very least...
"These people are as useless as dried-up springs or as mist blown away by the wind. They are doomed to blackest darkness. They brag about themselves with empty, foolish boasting. With an appeal to twisted sexual desires, they lure back into sin those who have barely escaped from a lifestyle of deception. They promise freedom, but they themselves are slaves of sin and corruption. For you are a slave to whatever controls you. And when people escape from the wickedness of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up and enslaved by sin again, they are worse off than before. It would be better if they had never known the way of righteousness than to know it and then reject the command they were given to live a holy life. They prove the truth of the proverb: "A dog returns to its vomit." And another says, "A washed pig returns to the mud."" (2 Peter 2:17-22) NLT

"Setting the Groundwork"

"I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me." (Psalms 101:3)
Don't get me wrong, no one was trying to claim to be perfect; none of us are the way that we should be, so how can anybody truthfully say that they are, because they can not. But, if you were looking for some way to strive to be perfect, then this is a very good place to start. I heard a message from Pastor Matt yesterday afternoon; he was speaking about the children of Israel and the first time that they were going to cross over the Jordan River. To try and make his point, Matt said, "You Know, the thing that you fear most, is the thing that you put your faith in." At first I was a little blindsided and did not quite know what to think of that statement; but after thinking about more, it became totally clear to me that he was right. Here we had the children of Israel, God's children, being offered to be given a land flowing with milk and honey, and yet they rejected it all based upon some giants that were reported to be living in the land. I mean, what would you rather do, die while suffering or die while being blessed? I saw a bumper sticker that was a quote, I believe, and it said, "If I die while speeding, don't mourn for me, because I died with a smile on my face." If you could die being blessed or die suffering, which one would make more sense? Unfortunately, the world would look upon it totally different, saying things like, "He had so much going for him, how tragic," if you were to die while everything was going great in your life. Or if things weren't, they might say, "At least not he is better off, he won't be suffering any longer." The children of Israel would rather had died than cross that river; what kind of crazy nonsense is that, to be afraid of some giants when you are under the loving care of a great and awesome God? They feared those giants more than they feared God; thus, they had more faith that the giants would destroy them, than they did that God would keep them safe. It's a pretty simple thing to figure out; which is why Moses said, "Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God, and serve him, and swear by his name." (Deuteronomy 6:13) I mean, let's get serious; if we are going to put our trust in God, then it needs to be trust that has substance; if we are going to make a promise to God, then we should also believe that God can deliver. I remember lighting that middle candle at our wedding, and how we were instructed my Pastor Mike that it was like a rope, the three twines being bound together as one rope. That's pretty much the same way we need to make a promise to God, it is based upon us being bound together with Him, and the promise will be fulfilled on that principle...
"God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, "God is tempting me." God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death." (James 1:12-15) NLT

"The Perfect Question"

"I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart." (Psalms 101:2)
As if we could behave as we should, or walk with a perfect heart; Lord knows how many times I have asked for this to happen within my own life. But, if it's going to happen, then it is going to happen by God dwelling within us and guiding us each and every hour of the day. That is pretty much the issue that David is expressing here, as he puts forth a promise to behave himself wisely in a perfect way, he realizes how difficult that task will be unless God be with him. There is something else to this question that might take us a little by surprise, in that David acknowledges God governance over his very life by asking the question. Here is the thing that we seem to forget, especially when we are facing any kind of opposition or difficulty in our lives, that God is the one who governs your life. To see what it is that I am trying to say, we need to consider what it might mean to behave wisely; let alone, to behave wisely in a perfect way. If we are certain that God has control over our lives, and we have come to the understanding that everything that God allows to happen in our lives works towards the good, then we are less likely to jump to conclusions or act in a manor that seems unwise. It is more like we are like the person who knows something that everyone else does not know; we know that God has this, so we act accordingly. That is pretty much the only way that we can behave wisely in a perfect way, is to give it all to God, because only God is perfect. The second part is far more easy to understand, it is just about walking in God's mercy and judgments. Or, if you wanted to give it a modern twist, you could use the example of asking, What Would Jesus Do? That is really the only way that we can walk with a perfect heart. However, this statement takes it a step further, because this talks about walking within my house, meaning that what we do at home we do with a perfect heart. This is something that is hard, much harder than we realize. It seems more and more that we let down our guard at home, within our own house. Things that we might not tolerate in public, we might not give it a second thought at home; this that we will not demonstrate in public, we will let out at home. This might not seem like that big of deal, after all, my house is my domain, right? Well, if that is what you think, then your house will not be a perfect house, let alone your heart...
"This is a trustworthy saying, "If someone aspires to be an elder, he desires an honorable position." So an elder must be a man whose life is above reproach. He must be faithful to his wife. He must exercise self-control, live wisely, and have a good reputation. He must enjoy having guest in his home, and he must be able to teach. He must not be a heavy drinker or be violent. He must be gentle, not quarrelsome, and not love money. He must manage his own family well, having children who respect and obey him. For if a man cannot manage his own household, how can he take care of God's church?" (1 Timothy 3:1-5) NLT

"The Proper Address"

"I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing." (Psalms 101:1)
If ever there was something to celebrate, knowing that God is real and that He personally loves me, is the most wonderful thing I can think of. I am not so sure why sometimes, but just knowing that He does is the most wonderful news I have ever been made aware of. We sometimes forget that judgment is not just for the wicked or for sin; judgment is also on our side, especially for those that have been washed in the blood of God's only Son. I heard a little bit of a message from Pastor Mike, I think it was Sunday, as I was leaving church. He was speaking about how the cults misplace who Jesus really was and is; making Him equal with the angels or the devil, even making Him to be just like you and me. This was the issue that brought me to my senses; having been raised mostly in the J.W. faith, I was very confused about who Jesus really was. One thing that I was not confused about was being judged. The J.W. faith makes sure that you are very much aware that you are going to face judgment for your sins; so you had better hope you are one of them, and that you were faithful doing whatever they asked you to do. I thank God that He has given us His Word, and that His Holy Spirit makes truth known in our hearts as we read it. The day that I accepted Christ into my heart, was the very first day that I was introduced to my Creator, Christ Jesus! I can remember it as if it was just last week, how the pastor spoke those words from the Bible; words that I had probably read a hundred times, but for some strange reason, they had never been revealed to my heart. I can remember that I pictured Jesus on the cross, something that I had seen before in my mind, but this time, He was not my equal or any created being; He was my Creator and my God! I wept instantly, as I became aware of what my loving Savior did for me. That He would take my place upon that cross, was more than I could stand to think about; and when the question was asked, "Who will receive the offer today," I was relieved and excited to be able to raise my hand; so mush so, that I raised both, just in case someone might not have noticed. There is another thing that the J.W.'s teach, that if you try and read the Bible alone, without their Scripture Studies, you will be in darkness. It takes years to be in the Light by faithfully studying those little books; but lay them aside and study the Bible without them, and within months you will end up in darkness. Yah right! I was in the Light within minutes! That very day I first believed, everything that I ever had read before was suddenly made known as a message to me; a special message about how much I am loved and all that God has done to prove His love to me. That is what it means to be in the Light, the Light of Jesus Christ...
"And when he brought his supreme Son into the world, God said, "Let all of God's angels worship him." Regarding the angels, he says, "He sends his angels like the wind, his servants like flames of fire." But to the Son he says, "Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever. You rule with a scepter of justice. You love justice and hate evil. Therefore, O God, your God has anointed you, pouring out the oil of joy on you more than anyone else." He also says to the Son, "In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundation of the earth and made the heavens with your hands. They will perish, but you remain forever. They will wear out like old clothing. You will fold them up like a cloak and discard them like old clothing. But you are always the same; you will live forever."" (Hebrews 1:6-12) NLT

"David's Promise"

PSALMS 101 [A Psalm of David]
As we try to keep our promises, whether they be to each other or to God, there is something we should keep in mind, a promise is a promise. That might seem as though it should be simple enough to understand, but you would be surprised how easily we forget that what we said was really what we meant. Yesterday I was at a church function and ran into an old friend, and we got to talking about the Thursday night Men's Group. For the last several weeks, that particular meeting has been on my heart and I have been meaning to start attending; so I guess this meeting up with my old friend was the push that I needed to get me there. Before that, I had made little promises to myself, if you can get my meaning. I told myself that I needed to go; I even listed the reasons that it would benefit me and get me back into a small group fellowship. It's pretty easy to hide out in the back of a large church and not have to be bothered; but small group fellowships make you get involved, one way or another. If you like reading commentaries on Scripture, Matthew Henry has a pretty good one on this Psalm. He does a pretty good job of bringing out the good intentions of the heart, without getting into the bad things that had actually happened. Pastor Bryan mentioned something yesterday, as he announced that it was recently his wife and his thirty-fifth wedding anniversary; he said, Statistically, one in three of those of you here that are married will end up getting a divorce. That might even be lower than it actually is, because I have heard that the church is not far off from the rate of the world. We should be better than that, because our vows were made to God. When we said are vows, we included God into the promises; therefore, when we let go of the promises we made to our spouse, we also broke the promise that we made to God. There was no intention made to break it, not when the promise was made; when we made the promise, we meant it with all of our heart, and there was not even a hint of breaking it, ever. That is pretty much how Matthew Henry puts this into perspective, in that David was establishing his intent before God and how he promised to rule as king; not just to rule, but to be ruled by God. When we break our vows that we made in marriage, we actually quit letting our life be ruled by God; instead we let our lives be ruled by our emotions and selfishness. Those are totally the opposite things that we based our promises upon; our promises were based upon love, emotions and selfishness do not apply...
"Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God's people. Obsene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes -these are not for you. Instead, let there be thanksgiving to God. You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world." (Ephesians 5:1-5) NLT

"All The Time, God Is Good" -2

"For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; his truth endureth to all generations." (Psalms 100:5)
Be that as it may, there are more and more churches that are getting away from teaching God's word, but instead are using God's word to teach worldly doctrine, instead of sound doctrine. This is by far the most telling part to the times that we are living in; besides the fact that evil is being called good, and good is being made to look evil, we are no doubt living in the last days. Which brings me to a point about this little Psalm, that we need to never let go of holding onto Jesus; no matter how bad it gets, and no matter how much we get let down by anyone, we need to keep holding onto the Lord. I know it's easy to say that we will, especially when we are feeling like there is nothing that can make us let go; but we need to prepare our hearts for what might come against us, and the only way to do that is to resolve to make it happen, regardless of what we might feel. Much like wedding vows, there are determined objectives that must be prepared for and determined to be overlooked. The good and the bad, the joy and the hurt; no matter what might happen, God is still good! This might sound like old worn out words, but there was a reason for Jesus being tormented and humiliated before He was hung on the cross, because this life is full of torment and humiliation! He not only took on our sins, but He suffered for everything that we suffer with; all the pain and all the hurt, all the ugliness that the world can deliver, He took it on and took it to the cross. We really do not have anything to complain about; nor do we have any reason to doubt that God loves us. What He demonstrated with the way He allowed His Son to be treated, on our behalf, is proof enough. Do you feel that God is not merciful in your situation? I know that we sometimes confuse mercy and grace; but in the midst of a trial or suffering, it is usually mercy we cry out for the most. I know I have said that grace takes over where mercy leaves off, but His mercy never stops; God's mercy is what paves the way...
"Shout with joy to the LORD, all the earth! Worship the LORD with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. Acknowledge that the LORD is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation." (Psalms 100) NLT

"All The Time, God Is Good"

"For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations." (Psalms 100:5)
Although this Psalm is rather short, it comes in the midst of two Psalms that are something to make us think about why we must be thankful and rejoice in every situation or trial. The last Psalm was one that spoke about God's faithfulness, if not just to us, His children, God's is faithful in His word. God's word is the most important thing that we have in this world; and yet, it is also the thing most put down by those who do not cherish it as the Word of God. The next Psalm is one that is based upon man's word, as in our promises to God. You know what I mean; those little promises we make in times of feeling either threatened or overwhelmed. They could also be promises that are made when we feel strong and think we can keep promises to God. Regardless, this little Psalm is planted right between the word of God and man; just a little reminder of how important it is that God's mercy is everlasting. God had mercy upon me when I first came into this world; He had mercy upon me when I was first put in jail; He had mercy upon me when I broke my first promise to Him; and He has had mercy upon me as I have broken almost every promise since the day that I gave Him my heart. If you stop and think about it, there are two generations within every believer's life; there is the old and the new, before you were born again and after. In each of those lives there were promises that were made to God; the ones where we really did not know Him, and the ones where we did. Maybe that was not the case for you; or maybe you just don't remember. Personally, I remember promising God that I would never do anything wrong again, as I sat in a jail at the age of twelve. I had no idea who God was, except that I needed Him and wanted to be out of that jail. The greatest thing we have on this earth is the Word of God. He has given it to us so that we might learn of Him, believe in Him, and teach others to do the same. His Word will never pass away, and yet there are some who say it will no longer be important in heaven; to which I say, Wrong! The Word of God is eternal...
"For example, there was God's promise to Abraham. Since there was no one greater to swear by, God took an oath in his own name, saying, "I will certainly bless you, and I will multiply your descendants beyond number." Then Abraham waited patiently, and he received what God had promised. Now when people take an oath, they call on someone greater than themselves to hold them to it. And without any question that oath is binding. God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind. So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God's inner sanctuary. Jesus has already gone in there for us. He has become our eternal High Priest in the order of Melchizedek." (Hebrews 6:13-20) NLT

"Because God is Good"

"Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name." (Psalms 100:4)
I am sorry if there are some that don't want to admit it, but without God's unconditional love, we really do not stand a chance making it into heaven. That is really what I believe this verse might speak about the most; not that He blesses us in this life, even though He most surely does; but it's really what can be expected after this life is over, there is where it really counts the most. We can get cured from all sorts of different sicknesses and illnesses, but those are only temporary issues; there is still that issue with death, that one thing we must find the cure for. Well, guess what, we have found it! Death is no longer an issue that needs to be feared, because Jesus has defeated death once and for all! A friend of mine told me yesterday that his mother just passed away, and he was very happy as he expressed her last moments she spent here on this earth. What a difference it makes to know you are going to be with the Lord, there is absolutely no comparison to having no hope, not even a chance. I think we sometimes forget what that means, because we might just take it for granted. But to know that there is a God, that God loves you, that He has given you eternal life, and that there is life after death waiting for you; there is just no way to compare that to the alternative. Never mind hell; sure it might be a scary thought, but so is the thought of worms eating your body after your gone. We are talking about passing from life into eternal life with Jesus! What greater thing could there be waiting for us on the other side! I guess you might think I am a little excited, but I get excited when I see people who live out what they believe, especially at moments when others usually don't. If you have ever been to the funeral of someone who was not a believer, especially one where most of their close friends and relatives were not either, it is not very pleasant, to say the least. In fact, it is down right depressing. When you read the "Hall of Faith," recorded in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, there is a statement made at the end, "All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised." (Hebrews 11:39 NLT) We might not get why certain things never really go our way, at least not the way we think that they should; but there is one important thing we need to remember, that this is not our home. This is temporary, but our home in heaven is eternal. Live for what matters the most...
"Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father." (Colossians 3:12-17) NLT

"Because I am His" -2

"Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture." (Psalms 100:3)
There really is good reason that we can celebrate; after all, all that we need to really do, is to know that He loves us and cares for us. Once we have completely accepted that fact, then we can actually start living in the power that comes from knowing that we are children of God. I am not talking about the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit guides and give us comfort, and when He needs to, He can do mighty works through us. No, I am taking about the actual power we have in knowing our position in Christ; how that we are secure and that our position has been planted firmly in heaven. I heard some pretty good teaching yesterday, much of which had to do with our security in Christ. That said, I heard something that I don't know that I totally agreed with; it had to do with the Prodigal Son, and how that if the son had not returned to the father, and he had died with the pigs, then he would have died separated from the father. Maybe in this life, that might be the case; then again, the son never stopped being the son of his father. He might not have been living as though he was the son; even going home, he was not thinking as the son, but was hoping just to be treated like a servant; that is, if his father would welcome him back. So there are two sides to this issue, one that is the way we look at our position in Christ, and one that is how God looks at it. Ours is usually based upon merit, as in our constant concern with our ability to measure up to the love that we have been given. That is a total waste of time, because there is no way we can ever measure up to what God has done for us; what He has done is good enough to supply for all that we could ever try to do to pay Him back. Our part in the process is to become His child at heart; to live as though we are His child, because we are His child; not because we could be, or will be, but because that is what we are. There is a very big difference between the flesh and the spirit, especially when it comes to the eternal security that we have in Christ. So, the issue I take with that statement, is not based upon where our flesh might take us, because this flesh has no place in the kingdom of God. The issue that I am counting on, hoping in, and praying for on a daily basis, is the my spirit is securely one with God in heaven, for all eternity. Not based upon my performance, not based upon my wrong judgment, not even based upon my fleshly body dying in a place that it should not be; but based upon Jesus Christ dying on the cross for me! He took my place! And when He was risen from that grave, He made it so that I will rise also; no matter where this broken down piece of flesh might end up, my soul is going to be with the Lord...
"But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God's grace that you have been saved!) For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus. God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." (Ephesians 2:4-10) NLT

"Because I am His"

"Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture." (Psalms 100:3)
Believe it or not, but I woke up this morning with this title going off in my head. For the last couple of nights I have been watching the "God's Not Dead" movies; the first one the other night and the second one last night. If you have not seen them, they are really worth your time to watch. There are about a half dozen characters that are in both, two that stood out to me last night were the young man from China and Amy the blogger. In this movie, the father of the guy from China shows up to his room, they get into it about Jesus, and the father ends up disowning his son because he refuses to stop following Jesus. At first the young man was devastated, ends up in a church to weep, but ends up bringing one of the main characters to the Lord. It is then that he discovers that he has a new Father, one who will not disown him, and one who loves him more than he could ever know. The other character, Amy, she was led to the Lord in the first movie in a search for hope; dying from cancer, she reaches out to the members of The Newsboys and ends up being led into the sinners prayer. In the second movie, she is cured of her cancer, but then she expresses a challenge to her faith in the Lord. She decides to challenge her faith based upon the reason she came to the Lord being the state of her health; she now wants to believe on Him on His terms, not just because she needs to be cured. Two very different characters, with messages that are somehow very similar, in that they both involve the personal relationship that we need with God. It really does make a difference when we are His; when we know and believe that we are His, no matter what! I am no more saved today than I was the first day that I believed; and there is nothing that I can do, or cannot do, that will bring closer to God based upon my righteousness; because I did not get saved based upon my righteousness, I was saved by putting my faith in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, it was His righteousness that saved me! If I start basing my relationship with God upon my performance, I am missing out on something very important, His unconditional love...
"But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. And because we are his children, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, "Abba, Father." Now you are no longer a slave but God's own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir. Before you Gentiles knew God, you were slaves to so-called gods that do not even exist. So now that you know God (or should I say, now that God knows you), why do you want to go back again and become slaves once more to the weak and useless spiritual principles of this world?" (Galatians 4:4-9) NLT

"Because He is Love"

"Serve the LORD with gladness; come before his presence with singing." (Psalms 100:2)
There really is nothing that compares with this relationship with the Creator of heaven and earth, that we are able to fellowship with as we do. I am so looking forward to that day when I am standing in His presence and can completely be surrounded by His glorious light. There are some serious things taking place all over the world, and we really do need to start getting prepared for Jesus to come back for His church. Whether you are one who believes it or not, you had better be ready; as far as I am concerned, being ready means that we are looking for His return, with open arms! Yesterday, as I listened to bits and pieces of messages throughout the day, I heard a lot of different teachings that dealt with the human heart, as in the way that we can put down one another. It was really rather odd, but it was as if the whole entire day was geared towards looking in a mirror to see what little regard we really can have for one another. Over the last thirty years, I have seen several families that have been devastated by the church; probably more than I should have seen, and surely more than I care to remember. But the thing that gets me, is how easy it is to become offended. It really does not need to happen the way that it does, not if we are keeping our eyes on the Lord and not on ourselves. That really seems to be our biggest problem, in that we continue to put our needs first, instead of the needs of one another. Jesus came to show us how to love one another. If you are looking for an example of how to love, then there is your Captain, follow Him! It's not that we don't know how, it's that we get derailed by the selfishness of our hearts; we can never love one another in our own strength, not the way that we should, not the way that God would have us love. If Jesus demonstrated anything more than love, it was His ability to be weak; even though He had the power to overcome anything and everything, He remained in character and stayed humble, all the way to the very end. That had to take a whole lot of strength, to remain as humble as He did, to remain weak and still be unafraid, unashamed, and uncompromised. Talk about love, there really is no greater example of what it takes...
"You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross." (Philippians 2:5-8) NLT

"Because He is God"

"Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands." (Psalms 100:1)
As I was praying about this message, I could not help but think about all those who do not know God, and I became thankful in the relationship that He has called me into with Him. We are so mightily blessed, those of us who are called and have been anointed by the power of His Spirit. We are blessed because we have been given the knowledge of knowing Him and His love. Think about all of those that you know who are missing out on the blessing that you have been given; and as you do, realize the opportunity that you have been given to be a witness to the love of God. It might not seem like much, but every person in your circle must know that you are a Christian; and if they don't, then it is important that they do. I know, you are probably thinking that this has nothing to do with the verse above, so you are starting to loose interest in what I am saying. But it does, because this is what making a joyful noise is all about; besides that we are making that noise unto the LORD, we are to be praising God with our lives, in order that we can touch the lives of those around us. The reason for the title is more than just to acknowledge who God is, it is also to acknowledge who we are as His children; He is God, and we know Him! That is why we can make a joyful noise unto Him, because we actually know who He is and how much He loves us! That is a pretty big deal, in case you had not realized that by now; it is reason enough to sing, it is reason enough to rejoice, and it is reason enough to share what you have been given. In reference to "all ye lands," there is something we must remember when it comes to being salt and light, in that we are messengers of the Gospel. Whether you know it or not, it is what we are called into; that we can declare what the Lord has done, in whatever way that God has called us to do it. Some of us might not feel that we have such a calling, but if there is breath in our lungs, we have life enough to make a difference in the kingdom of God. It might just be a simple random act of kindness, or even a way of encouraging someone by the way that you care about them. It might not seem like much, but when you start praying for God's guidance and direction, little encounters turn into big noise for the kingdom of God...
"Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! For the LORD will remove his hand of judgment and will disperse the armies of your enemy. And the LORD himself, the King of Israel, will live among you! At last your troubles will be over, and you will never again fear disaster. On that day the announcement to Jerusalem will be, "Cheer up, Zion! Don't be afraid! For the LORD your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs."" (Zephaniah 3:14-17) NLT

"A Hymn of Praise"

PSALMS 100 [A Psalm of Praise.]
If you really want to give thanks to God, try praising Him when you don't feel like you have anything to be thankful about. It really does put a damper on your pity party, if you are willing to make it real and just praise Him for being your God. We can feel like giving up over the most unworthy issues; things that cannot be reversed, like someone you love suddenly dying, or anything else that seems as though it has taken you beyond where you wanted to go. I say that they are unworthy, only because they are issues that do not change your position in Christ. They might cause you some pain, they might even cause you to be angry with God, or even doubt that He loves you as much as you thought that He did; but God is big enough to take you being angry, He is even big enough to take your doubt; and if you are willing to let go of it, He can also take away your pain. We might not be able to explain or accept why God allows to happen what He allows, but it is really not reason enough to throw in the towel and stop serving Him. Maybe stuff just happens! Maybe stuff happens because this world is a mess, and maybe stuff happens because this world is evil. I know we hear it all the time, that everything happens for a reason; but what if it does not have a reason, except that it was tragic. Beyond all of that, God is more than willing and able to turn every situation into a opportunity to be glorified, even if it was a tragic accident or something that just happened. As complicated as that might sound, it is really quite simple to accept the fact that we need God more; the more that life feels out of control, the more we need God to run to for shelter and strength. Having been through some of the issues that can cause pain, I can tell you with experience that God can and will take the pain away. He not only takes the pain away, but He replaces it with a joy that is beyond belief. But it requires that you give Him the pain, you cannot hold onto it and expect Him to take it away...
"Because God's children are human beings -made of flesh and blood -the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. We also know that the Son did not come to help angels; he came to help the descendants of Abraham. Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then he could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested." (Hebrews 2:14-18) NLT

"Why We Always Rejoice"

"Exalt the LORD our God, and worship a his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy." (Psalms 99:9)
The devil is a liar, always! Jesus called him, "the father of lies," because he loves to deceive people and turn their hearts away from God. I think it's interesting how this verse has the numbers 999, because God's faithfulness is totally the opposite of the devil; God's faithfulness involves Him keeping His word and the simple fact that He cannot lie, while the devil lies all the time and his words can never be trusted. The journey we are currently on right now at church is called, "ABBA Knows Best," which is through the book of 1 Samuel; maybe 2 Samuel too, we shall see. But the greatest lesson we need to know from everything that God has written, is that God loves us and only wants the very best for us; if we would just learn to listen and obey to what He says. I heard a very small portion of a study yesterday, I think it was Pastor Jeff, and he was speaking about Daniel and his three fellow Israelites from the tribe of Judah. The portion that I heard was how God rewards us for being faithful to honor Him, and how they refused to eat the king's meat; and yet, their refusal separated them out, which instead of causing them harm, it caused them to be elevated to positions of importance in the king's kingdom. We sometimes shy away from such bold moves because we think bringing attention to ourselves and our beliefs might upset our standing among nonbelievers; but in reality, most of the time the world is looking for believers that truly believe what they believe means enough to make a difference. Now, whether it's the case or not, and I truly believe that it is, one of the factors in the appearance of these four young men, was the joy of the Lord being evident in their demeanor; besides the fact that God had gifted them with wisdom, everyone found them pleasant to be around, even king Nebuchadnezzar. That might not be the reason we always rejoice, but it sure beats walking abound as if someone had just stolen your little red wagon. The real reason that we always rejoice, is because we know how much God loves us and how much He is for us! He does not love us any more or any less based upon our performance, because His love for us never changes. What does change by our performance, is how much we get blessed by doing what He says to do. It is really that simple: you do what God says, you get blessed; you don't do what He says, not so much; not only do you miss out on some wonderful blessings, but you really don't feel so good about yourself either. So, why such the long face? Stop listening to the flesh; stop listening to the devil; start listening to God and get back into the race, and run like the wind...
"So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God's obedient children. Don't slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn't know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, "You must be holy because I am holy." And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of Him during your time as "foreigners in the land." For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold and silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but he has now revealed him to you in these last days." (1 Peter 1:13-20) NLT

"He Always Answers" -To

"Thou answerest them, O LORD our God: thou wast a God that forgavest them, though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions." (Psalms 99:8)
So what is it that pleases God? Is it keeping the ten commandments? Or is it giving sacrifices and offerings? And what is it makes us know that He always answers us when we call out to Him? These are questions that are all tied together into a beautiful testimony of what it means to be a child of God. First of which, is the fact that God loves us and gave the sacrifice for us! This He did because there is no way that we were able to keep His commands, and He knew that was the only way that we could have fellowship with Him. And, because we have fellowship with Him, we speak to Him and He answers! So then, what pleases God is that we know how much He loves us, and then we rest in that love! Oh, if we only knew what God's intensions are and how much He wants to bless our lives. There are a few different ways that you can view this verse; but in the sake of time and space, let me just get right to the point. I know that you have heard the term, "Love the sinner, but hate the sin," well, it's a little bit like that. God hates sin, there is absolutely no doubt about that. God hates sin so much, that He went as far as He could to take "vengeance" upon it and all that it does, including causing death! That is what sin does, sin causes death; it always has, even in the very beginning, God said, "For in the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die." Did God lie, because they seemed to continue on for almost a thousand years? Yes, but with God, a thousand years is a day, and a day is a thousand years; so if you get right down to it, God did not lie about the physical death. But the death they suffered the most was the spiritual death of separation from God. It is that spiritual death which God cares about the most; this physical body is only temporary and is a tent, which is just something we move around in. But our spiritual body is that which lives for ever, because it has a life in God, who has no beginning nor end. Not quite sure how that all works, but it is part of who God is, and He is pretty fond of every single one of us, because we all came from Him. The bottom line, if you want to get right down to it, is that it pleases God when we are reconciled with Him. And how do we get reconciled back to God? Simple enough, we believe in His Son, Jesus Christ! You believe in the Son, you please God; you please God, He answers you when you call...
"I am writing to you who are God's children because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus. I am writing to you who are mature in the faith because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning. I am writing to you who are young in the faith because you have won your battle with the evil one. I have written to you who are God's children because you know the Father. I have written to you who are mature in the faith because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning. I have written to you who are young in the faith because you are strong. God's word lives in your hearts, and you have won your battle with the evil one." (1 John 2:12-14) NLT

"He Always Answers"

"Thou answeredst them, O LORD our God: thou wast a God that forgavest them, though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions." (Psalms 99:8)
Yes, sometimes we might not like God's answer, we might not even agree with what God has to say about a particular matter or even how things might appear to turn out; but there is so much more that we do not know, more than we could ever imagine. I guess the easiest way to think of this is to first become humble enough to listen carefully to what God has to say. I don't know about you, but my biggest problem is thinking that I know more than I actually know. If God says do this or do that, I will always challenge what He says by modifying it to fit my own desires and wants. Simply put, God wants us to stop trying to do it our way! I know that it's hard, because His ways don't always make sense; but they always will work! There is a picture I have always been looking to find; a friend of mine has one, and I enjoy looking at the illustration that it puts forth. There are several different versions, but this one is the one that says it best. It's the painting of the lighthouse with the big wave surrounding it, and when you look closely there is a man standing outside the door. But looking closer, he has a cup of coffee in his had; and looking closer still, he is smiling. That is what it's like when we realize that God is on our side; though the world might seem to be crashing in all around us, we are at peace, knowing that everything is going to be fine. I can honestly say that I know how that feels; but I was also admit, I know the opposite feeling as well. It's all a matter of the heart. If my heart is in touch with God, then there is nothing to fear here on this earth, absolutely nothing. But if my heart is taken over by the cares of this world, I am surrounded by fear, and feel as though there is no hope. I just want to sit at His feet and feel His amazing love. As hard as it is to find the time, it is something I feel needs to happen. God will always answer when we call out to Him, He is always waiting for us to ask for His help. I know it might be hard sometimes to believe that; based upon our performance and our obedience to what He says to do, why would think He would listen. But I know that He loves me; I know that I belong to Him! He loves me anyway that I am; He always has...
"Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from the world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever." (1 John 2:15-17) NLT

"Deliberation"

"He spake unto them in the cloudy pillar: they kept his testimonies, and the ordinance that he gave them." (Psalms 99:7)
I think it's pretty obvious by now that God loves to laugh; whether He is laughing with us or at us, that is still up for some debate. I hope you got part of that message yesterday, at least the end of it; because the deliberate part of that statement was that we need to rejoice, deliberately, whether we feel like it or not. Okay, so who might we attribute this verse to, because last I checked, everyone falls short in the area of righteousness; unless we are talking about general performance, as in most of the time, or on a scale of one to ten. There is a movie that I have, which I am sure it is very controversial, because although it is a faith based movie, it does not have the Dove approval rating. The movie is called "Brennan" and it is subtitled, "The sequel to Ragamuffin." On the cover it has a quote from the movie, which says, "God loves you as you are, not as you should be, because none of us are as we should be." You know that God always answers, He is faithful in that area, whether we might realize it or not; the problem is, that His answers are not always the ones that we are looking for! We think it will be this or that, but God's always thinking of something different, something a little more challenging or a little more drawn out. It's really crazy how we want everything to just happen right away; our patience can usually be measured in seconds, literally! Our mind goes from waiting to planning just within a few seconds; as if there is some kind of power we have over anything, or least that's what we think. If I could point to something easy to show you what this verse might be talking about, it would be that we need to be needy. If God is faithful, then we need to need Him to be faithful in every single area of our life; whether it's our finances or our marriage, He is the glue that holds everything together. As soon as we might feel that we have it all together and that we somehow can control any portion of our lives, we sit ourselves up to fail, miserably fail! We find out quick enough that we don't have any power at all, and we learn quickly how dependent we are on God's hand of protection. In that regard, we stand in the gap for many that may not realize how much they need God. If we are going to keep His testimonies, then it's our testimony that will matter by our actions. Do you rejoice in the midst of the storm? Or do you panic and think you are going to die? Another way we can view this is by the word "ordinance," because it speaks about a portion, as in an appointed portion of labor or a task. You might not realize what you are, but in Christ you are more than you could ever be otherwise; you are a saint, and you have saintly duties to perform...
"And do not bring sorrow to God's Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Get rid of bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you." (Ephesians 4:30-32) NLT

"Deliberate" -2

"Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name; they called upon the LORD, and he answered them." (Psalms 99:6)
If you don't step out in faith, then you can never know what it is to trust in God for delivery and victory in your problem. It's really not about the money, because God has no need for it, nor does He want us to make it the focus of our blessings; it's about trusting God and believing that He means what He says. He says that He will, and we already know that He can, so what makes us doubt it will happen? I can not speak for you, but I can speak for myself; my issue might be the same as that of the children of Israel, who realized that they had sinned asking for a king, but did not realize that God was willing to forgive them. I don't know about you, but if the accuser is not trying to make me stumble over my sins, I do a pretty good job of it on my own. Besides all of that, is not God in the problem? If you are in the storm of your life, don't you know that God is in the storm with you? That should tell you something about what is going on around you, that it's all under control! Just because you can't control it, don't think that God isn't; there are way too many things in life that we have absolutely no control over, so it's best to just let go and let God. Let God do what? What ever it is that He wants to do! First and foremost, we need to realize how much that God loves us; and then, we must trust that He cares! Not just in the future or through the past, but in this very moment, God cares what we are going through and how it will effect our lives and the life of those around us. There is nothing we can do that God cannot fix; there is no sin that we can sin that God is not willing to forgive. We might have a problem with forgiveness, but God does not; He is more than willing to forgive those who truly ask Him for forgiveness. But, in order to truly ask to forgive you for your sin, you first need to own it, knowing full well that it was God that you sinned against, deliberately...
"Rejoice in the Lord always; and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:4-7) KJV

"Deliberate"

"Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name; they called upon the LORD, and he answered them." (Psalms 99:6)
So, as if holding onto that root is going to save you, you really need to be part of the solution to your problem! You're probably saying, 'What the heck?' It's alright, I will catch you up in due time. You see, for the last several months I have been holding back on giving the Lord everything; so it really isn't any surprise that the 'devourer' has not been taking all of my money; like sand running through my fingers, it just comes and goes that easily. If I was out of town, I still wrote a tithe check; and when I am out of town, I still will go to church on Sunday wherever I might be. I do not give them my tithe check, but I will give them an offering. So, when I did come back to my home church, instead of giving two checks, or even three, depending how long I was gone, I just gave one and held back the others. In the point about the root, it is that guy who fell over the cliff and grabed a root on the way down. He cried out for help, but the voice that answered him, although it said that he could and would help him, it also said he needed to let go of the root. What was that man's problem? Well besides the fact that he was hanging off the side of a cliff, his immediate problem was listening to the voice of the Lord; because the Lord said to let go of the root, but his heart said, That's suicide! I guess it depends on the power of the voice; because if the voice is who I think He is, and if He can make water into really good wine, then He can surely handle any of my problems! That was the message that Pastor Bryan delivered yesterday, believe it or not; not the part about the root, that is my take on the message. His message was about us being a part of the solution to our problem; which is just about the opposite of what we usually do. We always "be still and wait on God," but God has a way of waiting on us to make the first move. There is a time to be still and a time to move; we can never really know what trust feels like if we don't trust God to catch us; then it will be time to stand still and quit trying to grab hold of roots! You made your move, now stand still and watch what God can do...
"So Samuel called to the LORD, and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day. And all the people were terrified of the LORD and of Samuel. "Pray to the LORD your God for us, or we will die!" they all said to Samuel. "For now we have added to our sins by asking for a king." "Don't be afraid," Samuel reassured them. "You have certainly done wrong, but make sure now that you worship the LORD with all your heart, and don't turn your back on him. Don't go back to worshiping worthless idols that cannot help or rescue you -they are totally useless! The LORD will not abandon his people, because that would dishonor his great name. For it has pleased the LORD to make you his very own people. "As for me, I will certainly not sin against the LORD by ending my prayers for you. And I will continue to teach you what is good and right. But be sure to fear the LORD and faithfully serve him. Think of all the wonderful things he has done for you. But if you continue to sin, you and your king will be swept away."" (1 Samuel 12:18-25) NLT

"Detrimental"

"Exalt ye the LORD our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy." (Psalms 99:5)
If you are anything like me, you look for God to be doing certain things in and through your life. What you put your heart into, you expect to see something good to come from it; or at least for there to be something worth all your time and effort. Well, as of yesterday, my plan for paying my tithes came into question. Up to this point I have been paying my tithes based upon my sales; if I billed out $5,000 worth of work, then I wrote a $500 tithe check. It is what I have done for decades, but over the last few weeks the money that was billed out has failed to show up on time; thus causing my checkbook to be ridiculously upside-down. I do not blame God, because I know that God is good to His word, especially when it comes to tithes; no, this is totally my fault, because when things began to get tight, I questioned God's ability to provide for all of my needs. It's a simple little thing, but it will cost so much more than you might otherwise know. I tend to think of it like a funnel, where the big end of the funnel is pointed to God, and the little end is pointed at me. Maybe you don't look at it the same way that I do, but God has no limits to what He can do; me, not so much! I am very limited to what I can do or how I can do it; but the source of my power is amazingly large and powerful! Do you see what I am getting at? That little funnel end is like a bullhorn towards God; the more I trust in Him, the more power is experienced in the things that I put my hands to. It's surely a pretty amazing thing; but it has it's drawbacks also, because trust will always be tested. It has to be tested, otherwise you don't get to demonstrate your trust. It's just like what James has said, "Faith without works is dead;" because trust without opposition is never realized, trust without a trial is never put to test. I heard Pastor Mike give someone an answer to tithing the other day, and I had never heard it explained quite as good as he did. The tithe is established by the laws of ten; there are ten in so many things that have to do with what we do; ten commandments, ten fingers, ten toes, etc. Basically what Mike was saying was that ten is the number of testing. What makes matters even stranger, is that our tithes are very similar to our ability to keep the law; it's almost laughable if we even try! I guess that is what it means by, "God loves a hilarious giver." Really, think about it; because questioning God's ability to provide is very detrimental to your wealth...
"This is what the LORD says, "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Could you build me a temple as good as that? Could you build me such a resting place? My hands have made both heaven and earth; they and everything in them are mine. I, the LORD, have spoken! "I will bless those who have humble and contrite hearts, who tremble at my word."" (Isaiah 66:1-2) NLT  

"Determination"

"The king's strength also loveth judgment; thou dost establish equity, thou executest judgment and righteousness in Jacob." (Psalms 99:4)
There are couple of different ways that we can look at this; one is the act of determining a matter, the other is the determination to get things done. I feel more inclined to go with the second one over the first. Not that the first does not matter, because it does; it's just the simple fact that the matter has already been determined, and it was God's determination that got to done! You see, when it comes to God's faithfulness, not only is He faithful enough to complete what He started, but He has the power and the strength to make sure that it get's done. Call me crazy, but that is some of the best news that I have heard in a long time! How can anyone compete with that? We can't; we can not even try, because God will always have the final word, you can bet on it being so. Now about that first way of looking at this; there is another direction that this can be looked at, which is our direction towards God. Depending on which side of the fence you might be on, this could take on several different ways of determination; all of which are under the same basic rule, that God is ultimately in control. If, say you example that this Psalm was written by David, then it might have been written as he was getting settled into having actually been seated on the throne; after all the craziness that went on between the time he was anointed to be king and the time he was seated, there were several times that he doubted it would happen. Or, say for example that it was written by someone else, say like maybe someone in his cabinet, or even someone from among the people; then it would shine some light upon the fact that David really was a man of God; and as such, he would determine the way he governed the people based upon God's judgment and not upon his own. Either way, God has the wheel; whether looking ahead or looking back, God has already determined what the outcome is going to be; and there is no changing that... 
"Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory. The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. You will enlarge the nation of Israel, and its people will rejoice. They will rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest and like warriors dividing the plunder. For you will break the yoke of slavery and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders. You will break the oppressor's rod, just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian. The boots of the warrior and uniforms bloodstained by war will all be burned. They will be fuel for the fire. For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the LORD of Heaven's Armies will make this happen!" (Isaiah 9:1-7) NLT

"Relentless"

"Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy." (Psalms 99:3)
If you have been following this blog for any amount of time, you should have realized by now that I sometimes don't finish what I started. It's really not all that important, because this is a one day at a time ordeal; but I do try the best that I know how to stick to the text, in one way or another. There is something else we should know about this amazing God that we serve, He does not give up on us! We might give up on Him; we might even pretend that He isn't even there anymore, watching over us or concerned with what we do or are going through. But God does not stop! He always finishes every thing that He starts, including getting us through to the other side. When we commit our lives into the Lord's hands, all bets are off! No matter what you are going through and no matter what direction you might think that you are headed in, God's hand is always going to be held firmly upon your life. He might let you go so far that it takes your life, but that's not the end for those that have been purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ. I heard Pastor Mike try and explain the impossible yesterday, as a caller wanted to know about predestination. Basically, it all comes down to whether or not we choose Jesus Christ as our Savior; it's just between us and the Lord! If we choose to accept that He is our Savior, then we are destined for heaven, if we don't, then we are destined for hell; God already knows who ends up where, but we don't; for us, it's all about choice. Pastor Matt, who comes on right after Mike, gave an illustration of how far God will go to complete what He has started, even to the point of snatching us from the fires of hell, as he said something like this: "We might be smoldering, even still smoking from the fire, but we will make it to heaven." It was funny to imagine that in my mind, almost like the coyote who always tried to catch the roadrunner, is what I imagined. Please don't let the enemy of your soul try and convince you that God has given up on you; God is not like us, He never gives up! So don't try and associate God's character with that of your own, there is nothing even close to holiness in our character; even this born again creature is frail and corrupted...
"Then Hannah prayed: "My heart rejoices in the LORD! The LORD has made me strong. Now I have an answer for my enemies; I rejoice because you rescued me. No one is like the LORD! There is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. "Stop acting so proud and haughty! Don't speak with such arrogance! For the LORD is a God who knows what you have done; he will judge your actions. The bow of the mighty is now broken, and those who stumbled are now strong. Those who were fed are now starving, and those who were starving are now full. The childless woman now has seven children, and the woman with many children wastes away. The LORD gives both death and life; he brings some down to the grave but raises others up. The LORD makes some poor and others rich; he brings some down and lifts others up. He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the garbage dump. He sets them among princes, places them in seats of honor. For all the earth is the LORD's, and he has set the world in order. "He will protect his faithful ones, but the wicked will disappear in darkness. No one will succeed by strength alone. Those who fight against the LORD will be shattered. He thunders against them from heaven; the LORD judges throughout the earth. He gives power to the king; he increases the strength of his anointed one."" (1 Samuel 2:1-10) NLT

"Regardless"

"The LORD is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people." (Psalms 99:2)
If you know the way that the parable turned out, it was not all that good for the unfaithful servant who buried his coin in the ground; that in itself should cause some concern in our hearts when it comes to spreading the Gospel. I heard Pastor Matt sharing on this yesterday, saying, "If God is giving out something, I want to get some of it," speaking of crowns, Matt was trying to make the point of our rewards for being good servants. However, he changed his direction almost within his next breath, by saying, "It's not about what God is going to give us, it's about just being faithful and doing what we do because we love the Lord." If you remember the parable, the unfaithful servant really did not have much respect for his master; he might have feared him, but he also thought he took whatever he wanted from whoever he wanted. It's true, God does give and take away; He has that right to do so, since everything belongs to Him in the first place. You know, there are servants whom you can let alone to do what they do, and there are servants that cannot be trusted to do much of anything. The average employee working for his employer maybe gives his employer 20%-40% of his work capabilities. What that represents to the overall respect that he has for his employer really does not say much; and if the employer could somehow monitor that employees every action, as well as every thought and intention of his heart; well, let's just say that his employment would be terminated. Don't you just love that you are adopted? There are so many things that we can get away with when we are the adopted child; being brought into the family, the rules sometimes get bent on our behalf. If you need something to be glad about, there you go! I love how much God loves us! He continues to show me all the different ways that He smothers me with His love; there is no escaping His love, no matter what direction you might go, His love will still reach you...
"In that day you will sing: "I will praise you, O LORD! You were angry with me, but not any more. Now you comfort me. See, God has come to save me. I will trust in him and not be afraid. The LORD GOD is my strength and my song; he has given me victory." With joy you will drink deeply from the fountain of salvation! In that wonderful day you will sing: "Thank the LORD! Praise his name! Tell the nations what he has done. Let them know how mighty he is! Sing to the LORD, for he has done wonderful things. Make known his praise around the world. Let all the people of Jerusalem shout his praise with joy! For great is the Holy One of Israel who lives among you."" (Isaiah 12) NLT

"God Is Faithful" -2

"The LORD reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved." (Psalms 99:1)
You know that little saying, 'You are a saint, or you ain't,' well it is really something like that. Not to get too specific or anything, but we either believe that God is all that He says that He is, or we don't! That is pretty much what I feel that it comes down to. In that parable of the talents, Jesus spoke about the king, whom they did not want to be king, yet he was crowned the king anyways. Whether it's the way things are meant to be, or it's the way things turn out, God is in control! I don't know about you, but that seriously blows my mind! Now, as far as the talents go, we all know it was never about money; it's not even about time or ability; it's about the greatest treasure of all, the Good News. We have all been given something to share, whether you think it's so or you don't, that is not up to you to determine; you have come to an understanding when you received the gift, now what are you going to do with that treasure you have been given? Whether it's a little or a lot, that's really not the issue; the issue is, what are you doing with what you have been given? God does not compare what I have with someone else, He looks at what I have been given and judges based upon the results from that. In that regard, the last word from the previous Psalm comes into play, "equity." In other words, we are all equal in His sight! No matter what you might have or don't have, you are no different in the eyes of God; the one and only thing that really matters is that you are washed in the blood of Jesus Christ. There are those who are, and there are those that ain't! If you are one of those who are, then you have been made part of the Kingdom, and as such, you have been given treasure from heaven that needs to be shared. It's not about money or coins, it's about souls and us being faithful with what we have been given. After all, isn't that part of what we are looking for from God? It's not about works, so don't even go there; what we are talking about here is something that does not involve work, it's more about just showing off the treasure that you have been given. If you bury it in the ground, what good is it to anyone else? What good is it to you? It surely is no good to the Lord...
"Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings and disputings: that ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain." (Philippians 2:12-16) KJV

"God Is Faithful"

PSALMS 99 "The LORD reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubins; let the earth be moved." (Verse One)
If you thought that closing Scripture moved you, it should have; we really do not need to hold onto all the baggage that we do, God is more than willing to take it away, we just need to be willing to give it to Him. I know that I don't need to tell you this, but this is the title above this Psalm in my Bible. It actually fits rather nicely with the conclusion of Psalms 98; actually, there really does seem to be a pattern here, if you are looking for there to be one. Believe it or not, there are many people that don't. I think it's sad, but there are even pastors that I know who don't even try to tie the pieces together, because they just don't think it matters, nor do they actually believe that the Gospel is written into almost every page of the Bible. One thing is sure, God forever is faithful, and He does not change! We on the other hand, we change so easily and without much of a reason. I was sharing with a friend the other day, how easy I can be stressed out over stupid little things; but give me something big to be stressed over, and it hardly even bothers me. Is that weird? No, I don't think so. I think it is the little things that we feel God really does not bother with, so they are the things that bother us the most; but the big things, we automatically turn to Him over, and that's why they don't bother us as much. Not that it matters, but have you ever noticed how money seems to control the mood of many people? Too much and too little, almost seem to have the same affect; if you have too much, then you don't know what to do with it, and if you have to little you can't do anything. With that, let's get into this verse we have before us today, because I believe there might be something to be said about the faithfulness of God. If we put our trust in anything else but God, then we are sitting ourselves up for some great disappointments, to say the least. The easiest way to test yourself in this regard, is to imagine yourself without whatever it is that you are counting on for your protection. It's really not that hard to do, you just think about it being removed and then imagine what you would be like without it. You know, not everything needs to be about money...
"He said, "A nobleman was called away to a distant empire to be crowned king and then return. Before he left, he called together ten of his servants and divided among them ten pounds of silver, saying, 'Invest this for me while I am gone.' But his people hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, 'We do not want him to be our king.' "After he was crowned king, he returned and called in the servants to whom he had given the money. He wanted to find out what their profits were."" (Luke 19:12-15) NLT