November 30 - God's Love
One of the greatest mysteries to me is that the God of the Universe, the God of all Creation, loves me. The kind of love that He brings to the relationship with mankind as a whole and each of us individually is beyond anything that I can comprehend. From the moment He created man, He loved us.
Jeremiah says "The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: 'I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving kindness.'" (Jeremiah 31:3)
Throughout all of history, we find God working to bring His people into a close relationship with Him. We fought against it, we continue to fight against it - through deliberate means, through apathy ... over and over, we miss out on the one loving relationship that will never fail us.
When God saw that it was time, He sent Jesus - God's Word - to earth so that every single person would have the chance to spend eternity with Him. He doesn't want to miss out on that relationship with any of us!
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16)
"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)
This continues to be the single, greatest gift we could be given.
"But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved." (Ephesians 2:4-5)
God's grace, mercy and great love for us enables us to be saved from ourselves - from the mistakes we make (whether in error or deliberately).
I love this last verse - what a great use of the word "lavish." God loves us more than we can ever absorb.
"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" (1 John 3:1)
Nov. 29 Angels
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Labels:
Mysteries and Revelations
November 29 - Angels
I don't like to spend a lot of time talking about angels because I fear that it is too easy to focus on them, not on God, who sends them to care for us. But, angels are quite mysterious to us and reveal another aspect of God. We easily accept the fact that there are angels, many people have seen them, we see the work they do while on earth, we read and hear stories about people's interactions with angels.
"For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways." (Psalm 91:11)
"In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them." (Isaiah 63:9)
These angels were sent to minister to our needs. We find an angel protecting Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace. (Daniel 3:13-27)
An angel shut the mouth of the lions to rescue Daniel. (Daniel 6:16-23)
In Mark 1:13, we read that angels attended Jesus when he was tempted by Satan and was in the desert for forty days.
In Luke 16:22, Jesus tells us that angels carried the beggar Lazarus to Abraham's side in heaven while the rich man went to hell and in Acts 5:19, we find an angel releasing the apostles from prison to preach the message in the temple courts.
The response to the church's prayers for Peter were answered when the night before Herod brought Him to trial, an angel appeared, woke Peter and escorted him from prison. (Acts 12:1-25)
Hebrews 1:14 says, "Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?"
God's tender love for us is revealed through these servants who surround us and serve us in ways we can never comprehend. Sometimes we are fortunate enough to recognize their presence around us, but most of the time we are oblivious to the fact that God has placed us in the care of His servants. It all just seems so amazing to me when I consider the reality of His presence on earth. I would be completely overwhelmed if I only saw a bit of it. I am, however, thankful that He interacts with me, even when I don't see Him.
I don't like to spend a lot of time talking about angels because I fear that it is too easy to focus on them, not on God, who sends them to care for us. But, angels are quite mysterious to us and reveal another aspect of God. We easily accept the fact that there are angels, many people have seen them, we see the work they do while on earth, we read and hear stories about people's interactions with angels.
"For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways." (Psalm 91:11)
"In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them." (Isaiah 63:9)
These angels were sent to minister to our needs. We find an angel protecting Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace. (Daniel 3:13-27)
An angel shut the mouth of the lions to rescue Daniel. (Daniel 6:16-23)
In Mark 1:13, we read that angels attended Jesus when he was tempted by Satan and was in the desert for forty days.
In Luke 16:22, Jesus tells us that angels carried the beggar Lazarus to Abraham's side in heaven while the rich man went to hell and in Acts 5:19, we find an angel releasing the apostles from prison to preach the message in the temple courts.
The response to the church's prayers for Peter were answered when the night before Herod brought Him to trial, an angel appeared, woke Peter and escorted him from prison. (Acts 12:1-25)
Hebrews 1:14 says, "Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?"
God's tender love for us is revealed through these servants who surround us and serve us in ways we can never comprehend. Sometimes we are fortunate enough to recognize their presence around us, but most of the time we are oblivious to the fact that God has placed us in the care of His servants. It all just seems so amazing to me when I consider the reality of His presence on earth. I would be completely overwhelmed if I only saw a bit of it. I am, however, thankful that He interacts with me, even when I don't see Him.
Nov. 28 Resurrection Appearances
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Labels:
Mysteries and Revelations
November 28 - Resurrection Appearances
There are a lot of fantastic things that I seem to take for granted until they are set before me as a 'fantastic' thing. I read a lot of science fiction, so am probably more accepting of things and ideas that surpass what I know as reality, but I also have been exposed to the supernatural power of God for my entire life and hence, take the reality of the resurrection for granted.
This is a mystery! That a man could die a hideous death, be in a tomb and then through the power of God, come to life again, fully resurrected is a mystery!
Christ appeared to many people. There is simply no way to deny the truth of what they saw. It wasn't just two or three of his best friends and closest followers, it was to many, many people.
If you read this on the blog, and hover your mouse over the scripture verse, it should pop the verse up on your computer screen for you.
He appeared to Mary Magdalene (Mark 16:9)
He appeared to other women (Matthew 28:9)
He appeared to two disciples (Luke 24:15)
He appeared to eleven disciples (Luke 24:36)
He appeared to Peter (1 Corinthians 15:5)
He appeared to the ten - Thomas was absent (John 20:19)
He appeared to eleven disciples (John 20:26)
He appeared at the Sea of Galilee (John 21:1)
He appeared to five hundred brothers (1 Corinthians 15:6)
He appeared to eleven disciples in Galilee (Matthew 28:17)
He appeared to James (1 Corinthians 15:7)
He appeared at the time of his ascension (Luke 24:50)
He appeared to Paul at his conversion (Acts 9:5, 1 Corinthians 15:8)
Jesus was not shy about showing up and allowing people to recognize him in his resurrected form. This mystery is unexplainable, but it is an amazing gift to us!
There are a lot of fantastic things that I seem to take for granted until they are set before me as a 'fantastic' thing. I read a lot of science fiction, so am probably more accepting of things and ideas that surpass what I know as reality, but I also have been exposed to the supernatural power of God for my entire life and hence, take the reality of the resurrection for granted.
This is a mystery! That a man could die a hideous death, be in a tomb and then through the power of God, come to life again, fully resurrected is a mystery!
Christ appeared to many people. There is simply no way to deny the truth of what they saw. It wasn't just two or three of his best friends and closest followers, it was to many, many people.
If you read this on the blog, and hover your mouse over the scripture verse, it should pop the verse up on your computer screen for you.
He appeared to Mary Magdalene (Mark 16:9)
He appeared to other women (Matthew 28:9)
He appeared to two disciples (Luke 24:15)
He appeared to eleven disciples (Luke 24:36)
He appeared to Peter (1 Corinthians 15:5)
He appeared to the ten - Thomas was absent (John 20:19)
He appeared to eleven disciples (John 20:26)
He appeared at the Sea of Galilee (John 21:1)
He appeared to five hundred brothers (1 Corinthians 15:6)
He appeared to eleven disciples in Galilee (Matthew 28:17)
He appeared to James (1 Corinthians 15:7)
He appeared at the time of his ascension (Luke 24:50)
He appeared to Paul at his conversion (Acts 9:5, 1 Corinthians 15:8)
Jesus was not shy about showing up and allowing people to recognize him in his resurrected form. This mystery is unexplainable, but it is an amazing gift to us!
Nov. 27 Nature's Mysteries
Friday, November 27, 2009
Labels:
Mysteries and Revelations
November 27 - Nature's Mysteries
It's interesting to realize that some of the things the scripture writers believed to be mysteries and secrets unrevealed, have been made known by science. However, there are still so many things that we don't fully understand and that only serves to make me believe more strongly in God as Creator!
Psalm 139:15, "My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place."
We understand the miracle of birth and the creation of the human body so much more than the Psalmist possibly could, but we still consider it an amazing miracle! That simple cells could develop into a human being will always be a mystery.
"As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother's womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things." Ecclesiastes 11:5
Meteorology has to be one of the most frustrating jobs. Predicting the path of a storm, or the coming weather changes, while considered a science, is still a mystery to most - and relatively unsuccessful. I suspect that with time, the mysteries of the climate will be revealed to us and we will be able to fully predict the coming weather ... but, God has left us much to learn.
"Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how." Mark 4:27
I have been traveling through Iowa and have thoroughly enjoyed watching this year's harvest occur. There are massive grain storage facilities on my route and Cargill Seed Company has facilities that I pass regularly. These people know about grain. They know how it works, they understand the science of it. I wonder if they still see the miracle in the growing of a crop.
John 3:8, "The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
The mysteries of nature, the mysteries of man ... we can not know, we can not always predict. That is the way it is with the Spirit. But, we can know that God has all of this in His hands. That is where I rest comfortably.
It's interesting to realize that some of the things the scripture writers believed to be mysteries and secrets unrevealed, have been made known by science. However, there are still so many things that we don't fully understand and that only serves to make me believe more strongly in God as Creator!
Psalm 139:15, "My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place."
We understand the miracle of birth and the creation of the human body so much more than the Psalmist possibly could, but we still consider it an amazing miracle! That simple cells could develop into a human being will always be a mystery.
"As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother's womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things." Ecclesiastes 11:5
Meteorology has to be one of the most frustrating jobs. Predicting the path of a storm, or the coming weather changes, while considered a science, is still a mystery to most - and relatively unsuccessful. I suspect that with time, the mysteries of the climate will be revealed to us and we will be able to fully predict the coming weather ... but, God has left us much to learn.
"Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how." Mark 4:27
I have been traveling through Iowa and have thoroughly enjoyed watching this year's harvest occur. There are massive grain storage facilities on my route and Cargill Seed Company has facilities that I pass regularly. These people know about grain. They know how it works, they understand the science of it. I wonder if they still see the miracle in the growing of a crop.
John 3:8, "The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
The mysteries of nature, the mysteries of man ... we can not know, we can not always predict. That is the way it is with the Spirit. But, we can know that God has all of this in His hands. That is where I rest comfortably.
Nov. 26 Giving Thanks
Thursday, November 26, 2009
I'll interrupt our regularly scheduled programming for something a bit more applicable to the day.
We are commanded to give thanks to God all throughout scripture. It seems like such a simple thing to do, yet it is also so easy to forget.
"When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you." (Deuteronomy 8:10)
"Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done." (1 Chronicles 15:8)
"Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High ..." (Psalm 50:14)
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name." (Psalm 100:4)
"Let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy." (Psalm 107:22)
"Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Ephesians 5:19-20)
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." (Philippians 4:6)
"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." (Colossians 3:17)
"Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
"For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving ..." (1 Timothy 4:4)
From beginning to end, we are told to give thanks, no matter the circumstance, no matter our concerns. God is the author of all things, the giver of everything we have, He is worthy to receive our praise AND our thanksgiving.
I give Him thanks every day for everything He has done for me.
We had a tradition in our household. It began with 5 kernels of seed corn on our plates. Before we had the feast, we gave thanks for five things in our lives. Fortunately over the years, Dad graduated to cooked corn and then candy corn. Those were much more palatable, but the tradition was the same. On this day of giving thanks, we recognized God as our provider. Tomorrow, people around this country will be offering gratitude for all that they have. What a glorious celebration!
We are commanded to give thanks to God all throughout scripture. It seems like such a simple thing to do, yet it is also so easy to forget.
"When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you." (Deuteronomy 8:10)
"Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done." (1 Chronicles 15:8)
"Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High ..." (Psalm 50:14)
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name." (Psalm 100:4)
"Let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy." (Psalm 107:22)
"Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Ephesians 5:19-20)
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." (Philippians 4:6)
"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." (Colossians 3:17)
"Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
"For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving ..." (1 Timothy 4:4)
From beginning to end, we are told to give thanks, no matter the circumstance, no matter our concerns. God is the author of all things, the giver of everything we have, He is worthy to receive our praise AND our thanksgiving.
I give Him thanks every day for everything He has done for me.
We had a tradition in our household. It began with 5 kernels of seed corn on our plates. Before we had the feast, we gave thanks for five things in our lives. Fortunately over the years, Dad graduated to cooked corn and then candy corn. Those were much more palatable, but the tradition was the same. On this day of giving thanks, we recognized God as our provider. Tomorrow, people around this country will be offering gratitude for all that they have. What a glorious celebration!
Nov. 25 The Incarnation
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Labels:
Mysteries and Revelations
November 25 - The Incarnation
Christ reveals God to us, but His birth was a revelation. God revealed His connection to humanity with the birth of Christ. He not only is our Creator, but He wants us to know and understand Him so that we can have the relationship with Him that He wants.
"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14)
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6)
It would have been one thing for God to send an angel, a heavenly being to earth to interact with us, but He did so much more than that. He sent His Son to be human. Jesus was so far above humanity because of His divinity, but this was a chance for God to make Himself known to the people of earth in a way that they could fully understand. He became just like us.
"You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus." (Luke 1:31)
"The Word became flesh and lived for a while among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)
"For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man." (Romans 8:3)
"...but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness." (Philippians 2:7)
"Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory." (1 Timothy 3:16)
God revealed Himself to us in a form we would be comfortable with - a man. A man who walked on this earth among friends and enemies, who taught us what it was like to have a friendship with God.
"This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God." (1 John 4:2)
Christ reveals God to us, but His birth was a revelation. God revealed His connection to humanity with the birth of Christ. He not only is our Creator, but He wants us to know and understand Him so that we can have the relationship with Him that He wants.
"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14)
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6)
It would have been one thing for God to send an angel, a heavenly being to earth to interact with us, but He did so much more than that. He sent His Son to be human. Jesus was so far above humanity because of His divinity, but this was a chance for God to make Himself known to the people of earth in a way that they could fully understand. He became just like us.
"You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus." (Luke 1:31)
"The Word became flesh and lived for a while among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)
"For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man." (Romans 8:3)
"...but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness." (Philippians 2:7)
"Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory." (1 Timothy 3:16)
God revealed Himself to us in a form we would be comfortable with - a man. A man who walked on this earth among friends and enemies, who taught us what it was like to have a friendship with God.
"This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God." (1 John 4:2)
December posts
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Advent is a time of preparation.
Most of us understand that we are preparing for the coming of Jesus, but what many of us don't know is that Advent is actually a time of preparing for the Second Coming of Christ. While we celebrate His birth on Christmas, we prepare our hearts for His return during Advent.
This Advent (well, the month of December), I'm going to take us through the Bible's prophetic texts regarding Jesus' return. We'll look at the Old Testament, the Gospels, Paul's letters and the other New Testament writer's writings about His return and then spend time in the Revelation.
Since I haven't yet mapped out the outline, there is every possibility that this might take us into January as well.
If you know someone that would get something out of this study, please invite them to read the blog, or ask them to email me at -- nammynools (@) cox (.) net -- and I will get them on the daily email list. Otherwise, they can follow me at the blog or subscribe to the RSS feed.
What does the Bible actually say about the return of Christ? The first thing we need to know is that He is coming back. The second thing we need to know is that He calls us to be prepared. As we prepare our homes and families for the celebration of Christ's birth, let us prepare our hearts for His return.
Most of us understand that we are preparing for the coming of Jesus, but what many of us don't know is that Advent is actually a time of preparing for the Second Coming of Christ. While we celebrate His birth on Christmas, we prepare our hearts for His return during Advent.
This Advent (well, the month of December), I'm going to take us through the Bible's prophetic texts regarding Jesus' return. We'll look at the Old Testament, the Gospels, Paul's letters and the other New Testament writer's writings about His return and then spend time in the Revelation.
Since I haven't yet mapped out the outline, there is every possibility that this might take us into January as well.
If you know someone that would get something out of this study, please invite them to read the blog, or ask them to email me at -- nammynools (@) cox (.) net -- and I will get them on the daily email list. Otherwise, they can follow me at the blog or subscribe to the RSS feed.
What does the Bible actually say about the return of Christ? The first thing we need to know is that He is coming back. The second thing we need to know is that He calls us to be prepared. As we prepare our homes and families for the celebration of Christ's birth, let us prepare our hearts for His return.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
