Absolute truth is the only truth from God.
Shades of gray have nothing to do with God.
Jesus put it this way…
“Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything more than this comes from evil.” MATTHEW 5:37 ESV
God First!
Category: Obedience (Page 7 of 8)
I wish Satan were lazy, but unfortunately, he’s not. The Bible says he prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. If only everyone who calls themselves Christian had Satan’s determination, only for good, rather than evil. Seeking ways to show others the love of God through our actions, as the Bible tells us to do by loving God first, and our neighbors as Jesus loved us.
If we truly love God, we want to please God and keep His Commandments. As Christians, we cannot afford to be lazy. A Lazy Christian is like the one talent servant, and that only pleases Satan.
Jesus gave us an assignment:
“And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”
mARK 16:15-16
- 1st Peter 5:8 (Devil prowls)
- Matthew 25:14-30 (parable)
- 1st John 5:3 (Keep Commandments)
- Mark 16:15 (share the gospel)
- Matthew 22:37-39 (greatest command)
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Joy is in our hearts; it is unwavering and unscathed by the winds of happiness or sadness as our trust is NOT, In Ourselves, Our Emotions or Others.
Our Faith Is In The Lord!
May others always see the joy in our hearts through our actions and reactions. Not as fleeting emotions, but as resident parts of our very being. (Joyful souls)
Share the joy!
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“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
1st Peter 1:8-9
The first day of the week comes every week, and it’s called Sunday. On this day, because we love God and are grateful for the love we have received, we set aside time to communion with fellow Christians and Christ. (Matthew 18:20)
We partake of unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine as a remembrance of Jesus’s death, burial, and resurrection, His body, and His blood, which was shed that we might have eternal life in heaven.
We do so because of the example we find in Acts 20:7, here we see his disciples gathered on the first day of the week to remember Jesus’s sacrifice the way Jesus instituted it.
Before His death and resurrection, Jesus taught the concept of eternal life through His body and blood in John 6:22-71. Jesus also set forth this remembrance in the accounts we find in: Matthew 26:26-30 and Luke 22:14-21
After Jesus’s resurrection, Paul addresses the Church at Corinth in 1 Corinthians 11: 17-34 They were guilty of abusing this time of communion.
It’s fair to surmise from Scripture that this should be a solemn time when we seriously examine ourselves, judge ourselves, and reflect on the cross. A time when we reflect on the love and sacrifice Jesus extended to us. Making it possible for us to have eternal life in Heaven. 1 Corinthians 11:26-29
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Why would you want to cheat yourself like that?
As I pondered this question, I realized that not taking advantage of Bible classes and Worship at every opportunity is cheating myself. This question prompted a positive change in my life. It led me to pursue a deeper conviction in my priorities, truly putting God First. Not just through words but through action.
God’s word is so powerful; we have so much to gain by hearing it, studying it, adopting it, and applying it to our lives, and we cheat ourselves when we don’t.
It’s my hope you will also ponder this question because it’s not just you that’s affected. It’s those who know you and see your example. Your family and friends. It’s all who hear the truth you learned, rather than recollections and speculation of things you’ve heard but don’t fully grasp.
When we engage in understanding the whole truth spoken in “God-breathed” scripture, when we actually study and apply what we learn from our Heavenly Father, we stop cheating ourselves and others. We became part of a grand solution.
Don’t cheat yourself!
Take advantage of every opportunity you can to learn more about what God wants for us.
God First
So good that he can not be tempted with evil.
“Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.”
James 1:13
“So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.“
1 JOHN 4:16
“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
PSALMS 107:1
for his steadfast love endures forever!“
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When we carry the weight of sin in our minds, are we not allowing Satan to dwell there? For example, We lie or deceive a loved one over an important matter (maybe a spouse).
We then carry the burden of that lie with us, and it haunts us from time to time. Conversations arise that remind us of our lie or cause us to repeat or expand the lie to avoid revealing the truth. Yet still, rather than confess, we tell ourselves things like ”no real harm done,” “it’s better if they don’t know.” ”Why hurt them with the truth”?
As a result, we may carry the unnecessary weight of that guilt (that God knows) in our hearts and minds for years, maybe even, to our death.
By doing so, are we not offering Satan permanent residence in that part of our mind?
Are we not limiting our relationship with that person from being all it can be?
However, if we fess up to God, that person, ask forgiveness, and repent, are we not simultaneously kicking Satan to the curb? Kicking him out of that permanent home that we’ve furnished him in our mind. Are we not mending our hearts and minds by removing that permanent dwelling of sin?
The above thoughts bring to my mind the following scripture.
1. James 5:16 – confess
2. Matthew 12:43-45 unclean spirits
3. Philippians 4:8-9 rethink
4. Romans 1:28-32
No wonder Jesus was sweating blood; I would imagine, to Jesus, the separation from His Father may have been worse than the betrayal, beatings, and torture He knew was coming His way; after all, He was with God from the beginning of time as we understand it. (John 1)
In preparation, Jesus prayed, “Not mine, but your will, be done!”
At every moment, Christ had the power to say: Enough! Nope, not doing this, but instead, Christ adhered to His Father’s plan.
Obviously, God’s plan was the only way all people could be saved. Only through Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection could we be graced with the opportunity to follow Jesus, keep His commands, and receive the promise of eternal life with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Jesus’s sacrifice revealed His immeasurable love for God, for God’s will, and His love for us.
I can’t phantom the emptiness, loneliness, and pain Christ must’ve felt when He cried out, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani,” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
A Hymn says: “I gave, I gave My life for thee, what hast thou giv’n for Me?”
Rhetorically, What do we give of ourselves to God?
Do we set aside time daily for prayer, thanking God for all the continuous blessings seen and unseen? How about the hardships that help us learn to be better disciples of Christ?
Do we respect God’s love enough to do as Christ commanded and remember Him on the first day of every week by reflecting on the Cross, partaking in the bread and fruit of the vine, which represents the body and blood of Christ that was shed for us?
Do we look forward to gathering and worshiping with fellow believers as often as possible, to being with our brothers and sisters in Christ, and being lifted up by their presence as we study and grow together in our understanding of God’s will and plan for us?
Scripture tells us that baptized believers are those who are “In Christ,” and when we are “In Christ,” God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit work in and through us.
Christ told us if we love Him, we will keep His commandments, and He gives us a New Commandment. ‘That we love others as He loved us.’
I love the love that surrounds us all in the Lord.
God First!
Related Scriptures:
Galatians 3:23-29, Philippians 2:13, John 13:34–35, John 17:23, 2nd Corinthians 13:5, Romans 8:10-11, Galatians 5:22-26, Acts 2:38, John 1:1, Matthew 27:46, Acts 20:7, Luke 22:17-20
The main goal of a disciple of Christ is to advocate for Christ, not to go to Heaven.
Why?
The true disciple is someone who, out of love and gratitude, acts to accept the grace of God by following the commandments of Jesus, one who puts on and lives for Christ, as defined in scripture.
For them, Heaven is a promise, so their focus is not only on their eternal salvation; it’s on helping others share in that promise and the confidence found therein: Eternal salvation.
“And being made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,”
Hebrews 5:9
- Hebrews 10:35-36
- 1 John 4:17
- Mark 16:15-16
- Galatians 3:26-27
- 2 Corinthians 5:17–19
- Acts 2:37-42
- Romans 6:4, 8:31-33
- 2 Corinthians 1:3-5
- Isaiah 41:10
- Philippians 4:6-7
- 1 John 2:22-25
- Ephesians 3:12
God First!
The languages of the Bible are unique to their time!
This is excellent and here is why
Language scholars can go back to the original writings and clarify the meaning. They can discover how the original text was used and written. Often, the words in the original language have several possible meanings. Yet, only one of those meanings fits best within the context of how the word was used and also stays consistent with the whole of other scripture.
None of the manuscripts or letters are in the original writer’s hand. They were all copied by scribes over and over again from whatever types of paper or stone they were on prior.
With the “King James Version,” all the manuscripts available at the time were combined into the books of the Bible. The translations were done by a large group of about 50 very profound scholars. These scholars checked, double-checked, and triple-checked the letters and manuscripts they had. Bumping every piece against a set of rules they had created to ensure they had correctly translated them. The scholars also defined the chapters, verses, and punctuation that help us read, as these were not part of the original languages.
Since the “King James” translation
More transcripts have been found. Some were older writings than those used to create the KJV. Many of today’s newer translations used the KJV as their base to translate into words that are easier for us to read today. Some versions compared the manuscripts used to translate the KJV to older manuscripts found and then made changes in the new versions, prioritizing the older manuscripts.
Note: Even though, in a few cases, an entire verse was removed using the older writings they found. The changes were all minor and did not change Scripture.
Many translations of God’s Word have been created in multiple languages; not all versions were translated with the same care. In fact, some translations are no more than one person’s interpretation, while some are created by groups with an agenda other than a strict translation; this is why it’s essential to understand how a translation came about. So we can decide how much credibility we should apply.
Personally, I like the ESV, KJV, NKJ, NASB1995, and the ASV the most. I also use other versions occasionally to help understand some verses. The most meticulous interpretation of scripture was done under the threat of life by the scholars of the 1600s with the KJV.
As a follower of Christ, not a scholar of biblical languages, I rely heavily on the versions I believe were created with the most care.
All this said; I trust God
I believe God’s Holy Word is just that: God’s Holy Word. I trust each word and believe it is possible to understand everything God wants us to understand clearly.
We just need to remove our desires and expectations to open our hearts and minds and pay attention to God’s desires and will.
The Bible is not a book of confusion.
What makes it seem confusing is us. When we try to twist what it says into what we think it should say. We also need to remember that the Bible is several books that make one book. So, when we look at one verse using the word faith, it does not discount all the verses that included baptism and vice versa..
What’s the whole picture?
What do the books combined tell us is necessary for Salvation? If we’re willing to admit to ourselves that we may have more to learn. The complete answer is available to us in Scripture
The Bible continues to be the #1 bestseller
I cannot Phantom God giving us His complete Word in forms we can’t possibly understand. Can you?
, I just can’t perceive that God went through all this effort, including the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross so that we might have eternal life, that He spent thousands of years bringing all of this to fruition only to give us a Bible, we can’t trust to be accurate or understand with a little effort, reasoning, and discernment; this would be ridiculous.
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”
2 Timothy 3:16-17 ESV
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