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Buddy
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October 20, 2024 A KINGDOM THAT CANNOT BE SHAKEN
Hebrews 12:28 “Therefore since we have received a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.” In this world, it seems that everything is being shaken! Things are being shaken because the world system, the kingdom of this world, is built on a faulty foundation. We should not be surprised that things in the world are like they are. What we must be alert to is that we can find ourselves trying to blend together the kingdom of the world and the kingdom of heaven. For example; we may find ourselves pursuing wealth more that we are pursuing the things of God; or we may buy into the culture where there are few or no moral absolutes-and we can do this while saying we believe the gospel. That’s not meant to condemn us at all; it’s just meant to serve as a warning. The fact is that we really cannot blend the two kingdoms-its one or the other. As believers, we can choose to think and act as the world does; it’s called walking according to the flesh. Enough of that ‘negative stuff.’ The good news is that Jesus ushered in a new kingdom-the kingdom of God on this earth; and this kingdom cannot be shaken and it will stand forever. It is amazing, but flesh and bones, you and I, can live in and be active in His Kingdom. It should humble us to think that the Creator God, the all powerful and all wise God, chose to bring His kingdom, His rule to us on this earth. Living in His kingdom and under His lordship does not mean that life will be free of trials; in fact, Jesus said we would have trials in this life. But here is the big deal: we will experience trials and troubles, BUT through Him and because we are operating in His kingdom, we overcome the trials; we are not defeated by them. It is a part of God’s plans and purposes that we learn how to overcome trials just as Jesus did! There is nothing that can defeat us when we are active citizens of His kingdom. Hear it again-nothing can defeat us. Of course we overcome only because He is in us; if we depend on our own effort and determination, defeat is just around the corner. Because we have been given His kingdom that cannot be shaken, it should be natural for us to serve Him with a sense of reverence and awe. Let us know that it is a serious matter for us not to live as members of His kingdom; He paid a great price for us to be able to be given His kingdom. One day we will give an account for the life we lived; let us live in such a way that we are looking for His return, Luke 12:32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” Matthew 16:19 “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Blessings, Buddy October 18, 2024 THE GOOD SHEPHERD
John 10:14-15, 27-28 “I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me, even as My Father knows Me and I know the Father, and I lay My life down for the sheep.” “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand.” It’s quite simple. Jesus is our shepherd and we are His sheep! We could stop right there and that would be fine. Not only is He our shepherd, He is our good shepherd. Shepherds take care of their flock-they see that they get good pasture land to feed on, he protects them from wild animals, if they wander off and get lost, they find the lost sheep, and if they become ill, he nourishes them back to health. Also, the sheep recognize the voice of their shepherd and they ignore other voices. There are a lot of good analogies of the shepherds and sheep. Jesus knows us! And, we know Him! That is amazing. Those who know the Good Shepherd recognize His voice-they hear Him. Just as sheep follow their shepherd, we follow Jesus, our Shepherd. As the sheep of the Good Shepherd, we are secure and no one can take us out of His possession. One can be a sheep that tends to wander out on his own, suppressing the voice of the Good Shepherd; but when he does, the Shepherd does what is necessary to bring them back to the flock. I have heard it said that when a sheep continues to wander from the fold, the shepherd may actually break the sheep’s leg as a way of keeping it in the fold. I’m not saying that God will break our leg if you wander from Him (lol) but He will allow things to happen that would draw us back to Himself. Anyway-you get the point; we are the sheep of an awesome Good Shepherd! He laid His life down for the sheep-you and I. Let us live under His Shepherding, enjoying green pastures and being cared for by our Good Shepherd. We are secure and we are loved. Hebrews 13:20-21 “Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” Blessings, Buddy October 16, 2024 BEING PURSUED
Psalm 23:6 “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” This is a familiar verse to many and we have likely heard it the form of a song. This verse is a reminder of just how wonderful is the love of God for us. There is one word in this verse that makes this verse all the more wonderful. I am not a Hebrew scholar, but I did look up the original meaning of the word ‘follow.’ Our idea of following is not the same as this Hebrew word. The original meaning of the word follow is ‘to pursue, to chase.’ Wow! Some one referred to mercy and goodness as the ‘hounds of heaven.’ I love that. God is not about showing us His mercy and goodness occasionally; His goodness and mercy are chasing us and pursuing us-all the time. Even when we fall short, His goodness and mercy are pursuing us. When we do fall, He is calling us back to Him; He does not make us ‘sit us in the corner’ as punishment but invites us to confess our wrong and immediately receive His forgiveness and again enjoy fellowship with Him. When we know the love of God for us personally, we naturally want to walk in His ways. God has set His heart on us and He will accomplish what He wants; He wants a people for His own possession. While in this earthly body, we can work with Him as He works in us as He transforms us into His own image. Today, let us realize afresh that God desires to bless His people. Our part is to have our hearts turned to Him and to seek to know Him; and the primary way to get to know Him is in reading and studying His word. If we listen close, we can hear the barking of the hounds of heaven-they are on our trail! Lamentations 2:22-23 “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Luke 1:50 “And His mercy is for those who fear Him from generation to generation.” Hebrews 4:16 “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Blessings, Budd October 14, 2024 BLUEPRINT FOR LIVING
Titus 2:12-14 “ instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in this present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus; who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.” Blueprints are essential if one is going to build a good building; following the blueprint that the designer gives insures the end goal. For certain, we live in a day where confusion, conflicting ideas and opinions, mistrust and the such are the norm, and it seems that most are doing what is right in their own eyes. That’s the current status of our worldly culture. However, we are blessed to be in a different culture-the kingdom of God culture-even though we live in the world. God is our creator; He knows our design and He knows what brings fulfillment in life. Not only does He know, He has given us His written ‘instruction book’ on life in order that we might know how to live in a world that has lost it’s way. The instructions in the above scriptures are quite simple and are within our reach-we can do what we are told. As a starter, and as a good general sop (standard operating procedure) it is wise and beneficial to simply deny or avoid doing, saying or thinking what is ungodly-whatever is ungodly, have nothing to do with it. The same is true for worldly desires; worldly desires are those desires that are self-centered and contrary to the ways of God. This in no way is saying that it’s wrong to do some things we enjoy-but we do them as unto the Lord. He gives us all things to enjoy-He gives good things. It’s good to live sensibly, righteous and godly. How blessed and less stressed we are by simply doing what is right; doing the sensible thing. As the children of God, we have been given the power and the choice to be righteous in our conduct; we can be righteous as He is righteous. Again, being righteous does not mean that we have to live in a monastery or be in ‘full-time’ ministry (we are all in full time ministry). Being righteous, doing the things that are pleasing to God, is living according to our design and it brings a fulfillment that cannot be found anywhere else. The motivation behind all we do should be that we are looking for and anticipating His return when He will gather all of His people to Himself. The obvious thing is that we want to the be found ready when He suddenly returns. We are being redeemed from every lawless deed and are being purified for His own possession who are zealous for good deeds. We have been given the blueprint of life; may we follow it day by day. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 “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.” Blessings, Buddy October 12, 2024 ATTAINING TO ALL THE WEALTH
Colossians 2:2-4 “that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes form the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I say this in order that no one may delude you with persuasive argument.” As a beginning thought, most of the scriptures are written to the body of believers, not individuals. It becomes obvious as you read the word of God that we are not to be ‘loners,’ separating ourselves from other believers; we are a part of the body of Christ. As a part, we encourage one another, we share our giftings, we bear one another’s burdens, we meet needs, and together we discern what God is saying and what God is doing. It is also true that God deals with us personally. For today, lets consider the fact that there is something for us to be attaining to. We can become mature in the faith, but we never arrive or get to a place where we have mastered the word of God or have a full knowledge of all that God is doing. There is a great mystery that God has revealed; that mystery is Christ Himself. When we are growing in our knowledge of God, and understanding of what it means to be in Christ and we begin to see the unfathomable riches in Christ, we are then attaining to great wealth. When we begin to grasp what it means to be in Christ, we find ‘full assurance of understanding’ that leads to a true knowledge of God’s mystery. We discover that true wisdom and knowledge are found only in Christ. Coming to a point where we understand this mystery of Christ in us has a profound affect on us; it takes us out of the place where we are simply trying to work Christ into our lives and trying to live according to the scriptures and puts us in a place where we know and we experience Christ living in us and us in Him. It’s a new ball game. God is not about making us better or refurbishing us; He is about making us totally new creations who have the ever-abiding, indwelling presence of Christ Himself. We must be aware of the fact that there are many voices (even from those professing to be believers) that would delude and deceive us by promoting a false gospel. Religion is alive and well; religion is about us doing certain things and not doing certain other things; and it is about trying to get the approval of God. So, lets us keep our hearts set on attaining to the wealth of knowing that Christ, the mystery of God, is our life, and that in Him is all wisdom and knowledge. 2 Peter 3:17-18 “You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard lest, being carried away by the error of unprincipled men, you fall from your own steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Blessings, Buddy October 9, 2024 LET
Colossians 3:14-16a “And above all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. And let the peace of Christ rule in your heart, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you,” In scripture, the word ‘let’ is a powerful word. To ‘let’ something take place implies that there is the power and the ability to cause it to happen. As a background for the verses above, I encourage you to read all of Colossians 3. Colossians 3 gives a clear and practical view of the life God has planned for us. This chapter is about ‘seeking the things above,’ ‘setting our minds,’ knowing ‘we have died and our life is hidden,’ ‘laying aside,’ and ‘putting on the new self.’ The life God has for us is supreme to any other life; and this life is not just in theory, but is real and is readily available. “For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen.” 2 Corinthians 1:20. Today’s point is about LETTING. The things of God, His promises and His ways are knocking at our door, ready to come in and be our life. We do not have to convince God to make His promises real; He is more than ready for us to experience His life in us. God has done all that is necessary for us to live life as He designed it to be lived, even in a fallen world where sins abounds for those who do not know Him. We do not have to understand in order to ‘let;’ all we must do is to believe, embrace and receive from God what He offers. I know that sounds oversimplified, but it is just that simple-it’s not cheap-God paid a great price for us to live the life He has for us. In fact, not letting the things of God become real in us must grieve the heart of God. Also, the instructions from God to ‘let’ these things be ours is not a suggestion but rather a command; God instructs us to ‘let’ because He loves us and desires the best for us. One of the things we are to ‘let’ happen is that we are to let the peace of God rule in our hearts. One might question whether or not that is really possible considering the world in which we live. A key factor in letting His peace rule in our hearts is to believe in the deepest part of our being that God is in total control, that He alone in sovereign, that He is all-wise and all-powerful, AND to know how it all ends-He will make all things right, evil will be done away with, and we will spend eternity with Him. Sure, there will be bumps in the road and probably some pot holes, but He comforts us on the journey and He uses all things for good to those who love Him. So, take heart-it’s gonna be fine! And, let the things of God be ours. Colossians 3:1 “If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” Blessings, Buddy October 7, 2024 OPPOSED TO ONE ANOTHER
Galatians5:16-17 “But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another.” Romans 8:2 “For the law of the the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. We cannot escape and we must ignore ignore the fact that there are two opposing forces at work in us. There are a lot of scriptures that deal with the flesh and the Spirit. Before we were saved, we had one nature-the sin nature; at salvation, we received the Spirit of God-a new nature. It is abundantly clear in the word of God that the power of sin over us has been broken and that we are no longer slaves to sin. It is also clear that we can die to our old nature, the flesh. (Many read Romans 7 as Paul’s testimony-but that is incorrect; Paul was describing a life lived according to the flesh. This may sound a little contradictory, but it’s not; even though we can die to the flesh and the power of sin has been broken, the flesh has not yet been annihilated. God could have done away with the flesh at salvation, but He didn’t do so. It is God’s plan that we learn to overcome the enemy and his desires against us; God does not want us to be robots, but to be His children who share in His victory over sin. God has and is transforming us into His image, and a part of that image is one of being over comers. We die to the flesh by walking according to the Spirit; we have the choice to yield to the Spirit and we have the choice to yield to the flesh. The battle of the flesh and the Spirit is an on-going battle. However, we can purpose in our hearts in advance that we are choosing walk by the Spirit; when the flesh try’s to exert itself, we simple say no to the flesh and continue walking in the Spirit. This battle of the flesh and the Spirit has huge implications; one leads to life and one leads to death-spiritual or even physical death. Much could be said about the flesh and the Spirit; yet it’s not that complicated. Yes, we have an old nature, the flesh that wants to distract us from the Spirit of God. The good news is that Jesus has overcome sin and He has given us His Holy Spirit who enables us to be victorious in this battle of the flesh and the Spirit. We now have the power to say no to sin and yes to God. We can lay aside the works of the flesh; and we can put on the things of God. God has set us free from sin and has made it possible to live in fellowship with Him and with others. So, even though there are opposing forces at work in us, we do not have to live with battle fatigue; in Christ we are more than conquers. Let us live in ‘the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.’ Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and delivered Himself up for me.” Romans 8:2 “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.” Blessings, Buddy October 5, 2024 THE MOTIVATION
John 14:23-24 “Jesus answered and said to him, ‘If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and we will come to him, and make Our abode with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear are not Mine, but the Father who sent Me.” 1 John 2:3, 5:3 “And by this we know that we have come know Him, if we keep His commandments.” “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.” Some get it backwards; they see the commandments of God, the word of God, as a list of things they must do in order for God to love them and for them to be acceptable to Him. That sounds logical. The worlds system is about reciprocation; you do this for me and and I will do this for for you. The above verses reveal truths that run contrary to unregenerate human nature. Another great contrast is the difference in the love of God and the love of man; the love of man is self-centered whereas the Love of God is a love that blesses others. It’s simple; we keep the commandments of God because we love Him; and if we do not keep His word, we do not love Him. This is not implying that we must be perfect and never fail in keeping His word. It is a matter of the heart; is it our deepest desire to keep His word. Also, if we fail to keep His word, it hurts us to know that we have done so. When we confess our sin and turn from it, that is one way of keeping His word. His ‘word’ refers to the gospel, the word of God; His word reveals the heart of God for His people and it give instructions on how we are to live; keeping and walking in His ways lead to life and His commandments are not burdensome. The greatest and most beneficial thing we can do is to walk in His ways. God desires for us to love Him with all of our hearts; God is love and when He finds love in our hearts for Him, He and the Father take up residence in us! So, the word of God is not a rule book that we have to follow; it is the door to life to the fullest. One might be honest and say that they do no know if they love God or not. I cannot explain how one comes to love God; but I know one important aspect of that; when we come to see how much God loves us, when we receive His love, it is only natural to love Him in return. I encourage all of us to examine our hearts to determine if we do love Jesus; and to simply tell God that we want to love Him and ask Him work in us in such a way that we do love Him with all of our hearts. Also, we can nurture and we can grow in our love for Him. We need to read and meditate on His word and we need to embrace and act on what we read. Let us know that God is drawing us to Himself; may we respond to His drawing. 1 John 2:15 “We love because He first loved us.” Luke 10:27 “And He answered, ‘You shall love the Lord God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Blessings, Buddy October 3, 2024 C0NTEND EARNESTLY
Jude 3 “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.” I am sure we know that if we picture the Christian life to be one of ease and free of trials and difficulties, we will be disappointed. Jesus told us that we would have trials in this life-and He was right-just as always. We may want to coast in life and just enjoy smooth sailing on our spiritual and physical journey, but that’s not reality. Do not misunderstand; God gives us peace and He gives us rest, and He comforts us as we navigate life as a believer. However, we are in a battle; in scripture we see that our enemies are the world, the flesh, and the devil; there are forces at work that come against our faith and our spiritual growth. God has not left us alone to fight the battles, and He assures our victory. Our main weapon is the faith that was ‘once for all delivered to the saints.’ Faith is a mighty weapon; faith is connecting us to God and is bringing the kingdom of God to where we live. Faith in God takes us out of the limitations of human effort and puts us into a new dimension where God rules. The main weapon of our enemy is that of deception. “And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” 2 Corinthians 11:14. We are not likely tempted to murder or commit some other hideous sin; however, we may allow and excuse what we may think of as ‘small’ sins. For example; we may neglect reading and studying God’s word, or excuse being impatient, or be anxious, or whatever, and be ok with it. That’s the deception of the enemy. This ‘contending earnestly for the faith’ is a real deal; faith implies action on our part. We are to live out our faith moment by moment in every aspect of our lives. In Galatians 2:20b Paul said that “the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Biblical faith is believing what God has said in His word. His word is contrary to the wisdom of this world-and that defines where the battle is. We have to choose; do we live according to the philosophy and ways of the world, or do we live according to the ways of the kingdom of God. Again, this is the contending. It is so real; either we live according to the ways of God as found in His word, or we do not. Just for one example; the word clearly tells us that we are a new creation with new mind, new spirit and a new heart; and it tells us that we have been set free from the power of sin. Is that how we view ourselves? The enemy tells us we are humans who continue in sin even though we are believers. The point is that we must be engaged and we do indeed need to contend for the faith; we are to be growing in the faith and in the knowledge of God and we are to be expressions of Him in all we do. May we about contending for the faith that has been delivered to us. Ephesians 6:12 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.’ Colossians 2:6-7 “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.” Blessings, Buddy |
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