Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Saturday March 06, 2010, and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 14-16. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-6
Title: Bible Study: Are You Really in God's Will?
Faithful Christians take a vow to love the Lord their God with all their heart, soul, and mind, they confess their sins, accept Jesus into their hearts, and are eager to live their lives for Christ. Now, we grow a little each day in our Christianity, so, not everyone is going to grow at the same time as others, but over time learn to trust in Him more and more, and are eager to follow His will. When we get to the point that we want to know what His will is for our lives, this is where many people hit a wall and do not grow. Following His will means that we are to slowly let go of the things of the world and replace it with things God wants us to do, even things like music, clothes, movies, and tv shows are to be replaced. Moses reminds the new generation of Israelites of how important it is to let go of these things. “For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth.” - Deuteronomy 14:2. We are holy, peculiar people of God and have been chosen by Him personally and are above all who are upon the earth. That alone should get us excited, we should be honored to know that we are chosen by God Himself. Sadly, many people do not want to give up the things of the world, it is amazing how many churches bring the world into the church, loud music, rewritten Bibles, and every religion imagined are coming together to compromise with the worldly Christians. However, this is not following God's will, while God loves every one of us and accepts all who come to Christ, that does not mean He condones things He despises. Things like intoxication, adultery, fornication, and homosexuality are still things He will not tolerate. If we truly want to be blessed by God we need to remove all of the world from our lives, of course, it takes time, but as long as we are truly trying, God will show us how to get out of it. I know people that have by the power of God overcome alcohol and drug addiction, and even homosexuality. So, it is not an option to say this is how God made me, it is how you made you, not God. You can get yourself out of any situation that you are in, but you must be willing to do it for yourself, no one, not even God can make you change, this is something that only you can make happen, but once you do, God is willing to help you and send people to help you along the way.
Perhaps another act that keeps people out of the will of God is tithing, this has always been a very controversial subject. I agree that many people have been deceived by churches and so called men of God that do nothing, but take peoples money, but giving tithe is very important to be in the will of God. Moses explains, “Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. And thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always. And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath blessed thee: Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose: And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household, And the Levite that is within thy gates; thou shalt not forsake him; for he hath no part nor inheritance with thee. At the end of three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase the same year, and shalt lay it up within thy gates: And the Levite, (because he hath no part nor inheritance with thee,) and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied; that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand which thou doest.” - Deuteronomy 14:22-29. While the common tithe during the Old Testament was animals and food from the harvest, those who did not have these things were to bring money. They were required to remember the Levites because they were God's servants, those who served Him in the church. As long as they gave tithe God blessed them with more. The prosperity of Israel in the promised land did not depend on advanced agricultural techniques, but on its obedience to the Word of God. Tithing reminded the them that they, as well as the land, belonged to the Lord. Since all they possessed was the result of His loving provision, before all other considerations, their tithes to the Lord were to be given first. Furthermore, no Israelite could come before the Lord without an offering commensurate with his income. To merely bring what was left over would be an expression of disobedience and ingratitude. Today, the Lord's ministries, missionaries, churches, Bible schools, translators, and other agencies are God's servants and being sustained through the tithes and offerings of His people. Most people fear giving tithe because they have so many bills and expenses already that to give would anything would be impossible. However, this is where trusting in God comes to play. Jesus addresses this issue, “And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much. And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury: For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.” - Mark 12:41-44. God knows what we are going through and as long as we think of Him and do what we can He will bless anything we give. God loves a cheerful giver, “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.” - II Corinthians 9:7.
Knowing and following God's will comes down to this, are we willing to trust Him and do the things that He calls us to do. I know people that have come to our church and no longer do because of one reason, they do not like the music, they say it is too boring. Are we willing to give up blessings that God has waiting for us because we do not want to listen to music we think is boring? When we follow God's will we develop a longing for the so called boring music. When I first came to my church I thought the music was a little on the country side, old time stuff, but the more I learned the words, the more I came to love the music that keeps me going every day. Today, I have thrown out all my rock and heavy metal music and replaced it with music God wants me to listen to. Without God's music I would not know how to get through the day. We all have a choice, if we want God's blessings upon our lives we must be willing to give up the world, keep it out of the church, and commit to doing everything God asks us to do. Then He will send us so many blessings we would be encouraging others to seek God as well. “Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” - II Peter 2:1-3. God's Word is the only thing that can help us know His will, the more we learn it, the more we grow, the more we lose the world and learn to desire the things God wants for us.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and weekend.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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Saturday, March 6, 2010
Friday, March 5, 2010
Bible Study: Life For The Heart & Soul 03.05.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Friday March 05, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 11-13. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-5
Title: Bible Study: Life For The Heart & Soul
Did you ever wonder, maybe even right now you are, how did I end up in this situation? You spent/spend sleepless nights worrying and stressed out because things did not go as planned, yet the more you did/do to fix the situation the further you got/get into a bigger mess of things? We all have gotten into messes like these and the main culprit to these situations is two things that Satan uses to reel us in all the time. Those things are the heart and the soul. Time and time again in the Bible we will read, love or serve the Lord with all your heart and soul. Moses explains this to the new generation of Israelites, “And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul,.......Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then the LORD's wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the LORD giveth you. Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” - Deuteronomy 11:13,16-19. Think about it, the heart is the center of our feelings, the thoughts we get in our head come from the heart. The soul is the center of our physical bodies, the feelings we get in our heart come from the soul. We get into these situations because the soul desires something the heart just can not give and that is life.
What is life? Life is the blood that is within us, without it we are dead, but blood is more than just fluid that runs through our veins. We can not just have any kind of blood put in us, it must be a special type or serious complications or even death can occur. The one true thing to give life to the soul is God and Moses explains this further, “When the LORD thy God shall enlarge thy border, as he hath promised thee, and thou shalt say, I will eat flesh, because thy soul longeth to eat flesh; thou mayest eat flesh, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after. If the place which the LORD thy God hath chosen to put his name there be too far from thee, then thou shalt kill of thy herd and of thy flock, which the LORD hath given thee, as I have commanded thee, and thou shalt eat in thy gates whatsoever thy soul lusteth after. Even as the roebuck and the hart is eaten, so thou shalt eat them: the unclean and the clean shall eat of them alike. Only be sure that thou eat not the blood: for the blood is the life; and thou mayest not eat the life with the flesh. Thou shalt not eat it; thou shalt pour it upon the earth as water. Thou shalt not eat it; that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the LORD. Only thy holy things which thou hast, and thy vows, thou shalt take, and go unto the place which the LORD shall choose:” - Deuteronomy 12:20-26. Think about it, the soul longs to eat flesh, meaning it desires physical things that the heart longs for, but the blood, the true source of life, was not to be eaten, meaning God is the only true source for life. We learned from the book of Leviticus that for those that ate blood, contrary to this command of God, it is threatened that He would set His face against them, and they should be cut off. Just as the blood of sacrifices were poured upon the altar, the blood of common flesh was to be poured upon the earth, signifying it was not to be used, and no account to be made of it and in doing so their posterity might be spared, and continue long, and enjoy much prosperity. In other words, our soul is telling us we need something to make us feel alive. Then the heart gets involved searching for anything to make it feel alive, instead of the one true thing that can give life to the soul, and that is God. The truth is without God the heart and soul are always searching for something material to make it feel alive.
Now, Moses also warns the Israelites that they could not just trust anyone claiming to know the true source of life, “If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him. And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the LORD thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee.” - Deuteronomy 13:1-5. This is warning to all those false prophets and religions claiming that they know God, but lead them so far away from Him. We can not trust every person that claims they know God, the only way to know God is by reading His Word personally.
So, who is the true source to God who gives us life? Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.” - John 14:5,6. Jesus is the only true source to life and all who accept Him have life. The soul literally comes alive and then informs the heart to keep it on Him to keep us feeling alive. It is important that we always keep our heart and soul on Jesus, doing that keeps us out of trouble and from getting into unnecessary messes. However, one thing we can be sure on that no matter how many messes we have gotten/get ourselves into that He will show us how to get our of them as long as we turn to Him and get our eyes, ears, mind, and heart on Him.“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” - I John 1:8,9. Praise God! You do not have to worry or stress out about things, God is with you, if you have Jesus with you, and He will help you out of every situation that you are in. He knows what is deep inside your heart and will bring the light to any person who calls on Him. Praise God.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and have a great weekend!
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
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Today is Friday March 05, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 11-13. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-5
Title: Bible Study: Life For The Heart & Soul
Did you ever wonder, maybe even right now you are, how did I end up in this situation? You spent/spend sleepless nights worrying and stressed out because things did not go as planned, yet the more you did/do to fix the situation the further you got/get into a bigger mess of things? We all have gotten into messes like these and the main culprit to these situations is two things that Satan uses to reel us in all the time. Those things are the heart and the soul. Time and time again in the Bible we will read, love or serve the Lord with all your heart and soul. Moses explains this to the new generation of Israelites, “And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul,.......Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then the LORD's wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the LORD giveth you. Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” - Deuteronomy 11:13,16-19. Think about it, the heart is the center of our feelings, the thoughts we get in our head come from the heart. The soul is the center of our physical bodies, the feelings we get in our heart come from the soul. We get into these situations because the soul desires something the heart just can not give and that is life.
What is life? Life is the blood that is within us, without it we are dead, but blood is more than just fluid that runs through our veins. We can not just have any kind of blood put in us, it must be a special type or serious complications or even death can occur. The one true thing to give life to the soul is God and Moses explains this further, “When the LORD thy God shall enlarge thy border, as he hath promised thee, and thou shalt say, I will eat flesh, because thy soul longeth to eat flesh; thou mayest eat flesh, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after. If the place which the LORD thy God hath chosen to put his name there be too far from thee, then thou shalt kill of thy herd and of thy flock, which the LORD hath given thee, as I have commanded thee, and thou shalt eat in thy gates whatsoever thy soul lusteth after. Even as the roebuck and the hart is eaten, so thou shalt eat them: the unclean and the clean shall eat of them alike. Only be sure that thou eat not the blood: for the blood is the life; and thou mayest not eat the life with the flesh. Thou shalt not eat it; thou shalt pour it upon the earth as water. Thou shalt not eat it; that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the LORD. Only thy holy things which thou hast, and thy vows, thou shalt take, and go unto the place which the LORD shall choose:” - Deuteronomy 12:20-26. Think about it, the soul longs to eat flesh, meaning it desires physical things that the heart longs for, but the blood, the true source of life, was not to be eaten, meaning God is the only true source for life. We learned from the book of Leviticus that for those that ate blood, contrary to this command of God, it is threatened that He would set His face against them, and they should be cut off. Just as the blood of sacrifices were poured upon the altar, the blood of common flesh was to be poured upon the earth, signifying it was not to be used, and no account to be made of it and in doing so their posterity might be spared, and continue long, and enjoy much prosperity. In other words, our soul is telling us we need something to make us feel alive. Then the heart gets involved searching for anything to make it feel alive, instead of the one true thing that can give life to the soul, and that is God. The truth is without God the heart and soul are always searching for something material to make it feel alive.
Now, Moses also warns the Israelites that they could not just trust anyone claiming to know the true source of life, “If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him. And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the LORD thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee.” - Deuteronomy 13:1-5. This is warning to all those false prophets and religions claiming that they know God, but lead them so far away from Him. We can not trust every person that claims they know God, the only way to know God is by reading His Word personally.
So, who is the true source to God who gives us life? Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.” - John 14:5,6. Jesus is the only true source to life and all who accept Him have life. The soul literally comes alive and then informs the heart to keep it on Him to keep us feeling alive. It is important that we always keep our heart and soul on Jesus, doing that keeps us out of trouble and from getting into unnecessary messes. However, one thing we can be sure on that no matter how many messes we have gotten/get ourselves into that He will show us how to get our of them as long as we turn to Him and get our eyes, ears, mind, and heart on Him.“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” - I John 1:8,9. Praise God! You do not have to worry or stress out about things, God is with you, if you have Jesus with you, and He will help you out of every situation that you are in. He knows what is deep inside your heart and will bring the light to any person who calls on Him. Praise God.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and have a great weekend!
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Missed A Lesson?
Go to: Daily Bible Study
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Thursday, March 4, 2010
Bible Study: God's Purpose For His Word 03.04.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Thursday March 04, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 8-10. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-4
Title: Bible Study: God's Purpose For His Word
Bible studies are great to help us not only to read, understand, and discuss the Word of God, but to also keep us in fellowship with others who have the same beliefs as you do. The answer to every question that we will ever have in our lives can be found in this great book. Of course, there are some things that God will only reveal to us when we see Him in heaven, but the majority of questions concerning His laws, commands, why He made them, and even the trials we go through are right here in the Old and New Testaments. Sometimes it may seem as though all God wants us to do in our waking hours is read the Bible and pray, while that is a good thing from time to time, that's why He gave the command of the Sabbath day, He knows that we have other work to do, so He came up with these laws and commands to allow us to do other work without getting ourselves into trouble. Since there were only three people out of the over 400,000 Israelites that were freed from Egyptian slavery still alive to survive the wilderness journey, it was important for Moses to remind the new generation of Israelites about God's laws, commands, and why they were in the wilderness for forty years. Now Moses gets to the good part, he answers their question as to why they were in the wilderness for so long and what God's purpose for it was. “All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers. And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.” - Deuteronomy 8:1-3. God places circumstances in our lives to humble us, to remove the pride from our hearts, and to show us that material things are not what we are to live for, but the Word of God. The Word of God gives us the power to know and understand and live the best life we can live on this earth, with no worries, but the second we forget God the worries do begin because we are no longer dependent on God, but ourselves, and that is why He will place circumstances in our lives. When being tempted of the devil, Jesus Himself quoted this verse, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” - Matthew 4:4. Jesus was brought here to show us that no matter how close we are to God the devil is able to try to tempt us, but it is only the power of God through His Word that can keep us from falling into that temptation. Jesus had every part of the soul and flesh that we had and was just as capable as sinning as the rest of us. A vital key to overcoming Satan is knowing God's Word through which we are empowered to be over comer any of His tricks to get us away from God. “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” - Hebrews 4:12.
God used forty men, filled with His spirit, to write the Bible, it was written for several reasons, it was written to keep a record of the Israelites journey with God until Jesus came, to show them where they came from and remind them that they were chosen by God Himself to represent Him and show the world who the One true God is. “And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good? Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the LORD's thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is. Only the LORD had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose their seed after them, even you above all people, as it is this day. Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked. For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward: He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment. Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name. He is thy praise, and he is thy God, that hath done for thee these great and terrible things, which thine eyes have seen.” - Deuteronomy 10:12-21. God truly does love us and want the best for us, but if we want to receive His best we need to do what He requires, and this is for any generation of God's people. We are to fear God, love Him, trust Him, and delight in having a relationship with Him. We are to serve Him with all our heart and soul, cheerfully and with good will. God knows our hearts and He knows if we are doing something for Him because we want to or out of obligation. God is not forcing us here, He is giving us a choice to serve Him and if we make that choice we need to do it wholeheartedly. It truly is honorable to God when we delight in His Word, respect Him, work, and live in obedience to Him. It is time to circumcise our hearts, to cast away all the things that corrupt it and hider us from truly fearing and loving God as He loves us.
The main reason for God to create the Bible is written in the New Testament, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” - II Timothy 3:16,17. Every word in the Bible is given to us to teach us His doctrine, to show us His truths, the correct us, and to teach us to live righteously. God is teaching us that we are just ordinary, sinful people, with the same problems as every other generation, but we are His people and no matter what background we came from or what we have done in our lives we can turn things around and have a wonderful life, even through trials, serving Him. The first step however, is to know Jesus. If you do not know Jesus, you will never know the true meaning of the Bible, it will be a fictional book to you. The only way the Israelites or any stranger among them was able to be in the presence of God was while He was above them in the Tabernacle. Today His presence still only exists in the Tabernacle, through the Holy Spirit, but this time His Tabernacle is within each person who accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior. “Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit........What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” - I Corinthians 6:15-17,19,20. We are God's people and it is time to start acting like we are. We truly have no idea how blessed we are just to be able to say that we are a child of the one and only living God. People make false gods all the time, but not one of them can say that their god is alive and living in them as Jesus Christ lives in us. Praise God! I'll take Jesus any day over the likes and sacrifices that some of these so called Christians have to deal with just to be able to say they are a Christian. Do you know what really makes you a Christian? It is by knowing Jesus personally, the one and only begotten Son of God, who died to save us, then rose again three days later to prove that He and only He is God. Praise God!
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
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Missed A Lesson?
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Today is Thursday March 04, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 8-10. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-4
Title: Bible Study: God's Purpose For His Word
Bible studies are great to help us not only to read, understand, and discuss the Word of God, but to also keep us in fellowship with others who have the same beliefs as you do. The answer to every question that we will ever have in our lives can be found in this great book. Of course, there are some things that God will only reveal to us when we see Him in heaven, but the majority of questions concerning His laws, commands, why He made them, and even the trials we go through are right here in the Old and New Testaments. Sometimes it may seem as though all God wants us to do in our waking hours is read the Bible and pray, while that is a good thing from time to time, that's why He gave the command of the Sabbath day, He knows that we have other work to do, so He came up with these laws and commands to allow us to do other work without getting ourselves into trouble. Since there were only three people out of the over 400,000 Israelites that were freed from Egyptian slavery still alive to survive the wilderness journey, it was important for Moses to remind the new generation of Israelites about God's laws, commands, and why they were in the wilderness for forty years. Now Moses gets to the good part, he answers their question as to why they were in the wilderness for so long and what God's purpose for it was. “All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers. And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.” - Deuteronomy 8:1-3. God places circumstances in our lives to humble us, to remove the pride from our hearts, and to show us that material things are not what we are to live for, but the Word of God. The Word of God gives us the power to know and understand and live the best life we can live on this earth, with no worries, but the second we forget God the worries do begin because we are no longer dependent on God, but ourselves, and that is why He will place circumstances in our lives. When being tempted of the devil, Jesus Himself quoted this verse, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” - Matthew 4:4. Jesus was brought here to show us that no matter how close we are to God the devil is able to try to tempt us, but it is only the power of God through His Word that can keep us from falling into that temptation. Jesus had every part of the soul and flesh that we had and was just as capable as sinning as the rest of us. A vital key to overcoming Satan is knowing God's Word through which we are empowered to be over comer any of His tricks to get us away from God. “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” - Hebrews 4:12.
God used forty men, filled with His spirit, to write the Bible, it was written for several reasons, it was written to keep a record of the Israelites journey with God until Jesus came, to show them where they came from and remind them that they were chosen by God Himself to represent Him and show the world who the One true God is. “And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good? Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the LORD's thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is. Only the LORD had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose their seed after them, even you above all people, as it is this day. Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked. For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward: He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment. Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name. He is thy praise, and he is thy God, that hath done for thee these great and terrible things, which thine eyes have seen.” - Deuteronomy 10:12-21. God truly does love us and want the best for us, but if we want to receive His best we need to do what He requires, and this is for any generation of God's people. We are to fear God, love Him, trust Him, and delight in having a relationship with Him. We are to serve Him with all our heart and soul, cheerfully and with good will. God knows our hearts and He knows if we are doing something for Him because we want to or out of obligation. God is not forcing us here, He is giving us a choice to serve Him and if we make that choice we need to do it wholeheartedly. It truly is honorable to God when we delight in His Word, respect Him, work, and live in obedience to Him. It is time to circumcise our hearts, to cast away all the things that corrupt it and hider us from truly fearing and loving God as He loves us.
The main reason for God to create the Bible is written in the New Testament, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” - II Timothy 3:16,17. Every word in the Bible is given to us to teach us His doctrine, to show us His truths, the correct us, and to teach us to live righteously. God is teaching us that we are just ordinary, sinful people, with the same problems as every other generation, but we are His people and no matter what background we came from or what we have done in our lives we can turn things around and have a wonderful life, even through trials, serving Him. The first step however, is to know Jesus. If you do not know Jesus, you will never know the true meaning of the Bible, it will be a fictional book to you. The only way the Israelites or any stranger among them was able to be in the presence of God was while He was above them in the Tabernacle. Today His presence still only exists in the Tabernacle, through the Holy Spirit, but this time His Tabernacle is within each person who accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior. “Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit........What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” - I Corinthians 6:15-17,19,20. We are God's people and it is time to start acting like we are. We truly have no idea how blessed we are just to be able to say that we are a child of the one and only living God. People make false gods all the time, but not one of them can say that their god is alive and living in them as Jesus Christ lives in us. Praise God! I'll take Jesus any day over the likes and sacrifices that some of these so called Christians have to deal with just to be able to say they are a Christian. Do you know what really makes you a Christian? It is by knowing Jesus personally, the one and only begotten Son of God, who died to save us, then rose again three days later to prove that He and only He is God. Praise God!
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Bible Study: A Mighty & Terrible God 03.03.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Wednesday March 03, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 5-7. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-3
Title: Bible Study: A Mighty & Terrible God
When one thinks of the word terrible it does not sound very good, but in the midst of all the horrible meanings that come out of that word, is the meaning exciting terror, which is defined as something awesome, amazing, and stunning. Often you will come across verses in the Bible that say God is a great or mighty and terrible God, “for the LORD thy God is among you, a mighty God and terrible.” - Deuteronomy 7:21b. So, if we take the word terrible and think of it as awesome, it comes out as this, God is a great or mighty and awesome God. As Christians, we can all agree on that. Praise God! As we read today chapters, Moses continues to remind the new generation of Israelites of God's commands and His choice to choose Israel as His special people. “Thou shalt have none other gods before me. Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain: for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee.........Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. Thou shalt not kill. Neither shalt thou commit adultery. Neither shalt thou steal. Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour. Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour's house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour's.” - Deuteronomy 5:7-12,16-21. God did not give these commands just to keep them from enjoying life, but so they could in fact enjoy life without all the things of the world that could corrupt them and hurt them. The same thing applies to you and I. While many believe that the ten commandments were replaced when Jesus died and arose and gave a new covenant to the people, we are to follow these just the same. Of course, when we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior we are redeemed, saved of all our sins, and become one of God's special people, but that does not mean that we are to forget His commands.
Think about it. God's commands were given for all His people to live honorably and righteously, not immorally and corrupt. It benefits all of us if we truly think about what we are doing, sure we are no longer bound to some of the laws that were given to our fathers, but that does not mean that we are not to respect all of God's Word and keep it in our hearts. Moses continues, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.........And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day. And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us.” - Deuteronomy 6:4,5,24,25. Following God's commands prolongs our life and keeps our heart and soul right with Him.
God assures us that we have nothing to be afraid of, we are His people, special people chosen to receive eternal life with Him.“For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people:..…..Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;” - Deuteronomy 7:6,7,9. If we fear (respect) Him and follow His commands than we will not have to face suffering caused upon ourselves. We do not have to do what others do, even if they are in our families. “Thou shalt not be affrighted at them: for the LORD thy God is among you, a mighty God and terrible.” - Deuteronomy 7:21. God is with all who put their trust and faith in Him. It is time to take a stand and not let the people of the world keep you in corruption. You may be surrounded by it, but God is a mighty and terrible (awesome) God, who is always with those who keep their heart, soul, eyes, ears, and and mind on Him. Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” - Matthew 11:28-30. No matter what problems we are facing, call on Jesus and He will make the burden lighter and you will find rest and peace. Praise God!
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Missed A Lesson?
Go to: Daily Bible Study
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Today is Wednesday March 03, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 5-7. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-3
Title: Bible Study: A Mighty & Terrible God
When one thinks of the word terrible it does not sound very good, but in the midst of all the horrible meanings that come out of that word, is the meaning exciting terror, which is defined as something awesome, amazing, and stunning. Often you will come across verses in the Bible that say God is a great or mighty and terrible God, “for the LORD thy God is among you, a mighty God and terrible.” - Deuteronomy 7:21b. So, if we take the word terrible and think of it as awesome, it comes out as this, God is a great or mighty and awesome God. As Christians, we can all agree on that. Praise God! As we read today chapters, Moses continues to remind the new generation of Israelites of God's commands and His choice to choose Israel as His special people. “Thou shalt have none other gods before me. Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain: for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee.........Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. Thou shalt not kill. Neither shalt thou commit adultery. Neither shalt thou steal. Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour. Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour's house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour's.” - Deuteronomy 5:7-12,16-21. God did not give these commands just to keep them from enjoying life, but so they could in fact enjoy life without all the things of the world that could corrupt them and hurt them. The same thing applies to you and I. While many believe that the ten commandments were replaced when Jesus died and arose and gave a new covenant to the people, we are to follow these just the same. Of course, when we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior we are redeemed, saved of all our sins, and become one of God's special people, but that does not mean that we are to forget His commands.
Think about it. God's commands were given for all His people to live honorably and righteously, not immorally and corrupt. It benefits all of us if we truly think about what we are doing, sure we are no longer bound to some of the laws that were given to our fathers, but that does not mean that we are not to respect all of God's Word and keep it in our hearts. Moses continues, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.........And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day. And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us.” - Deuteronomy 6:4,5,24,25. Following God's commands prolongs our life and keeps our heart and soul right with Him.
God assures us that we have nothing to be afraid of, we are His people, special people chosen to receive eternal life with Him.“For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people:..…..Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;” - Deuteronomy 7:6,7,9. If we fear (respect) Him and follow His commands than we will not have to face suffering caused upon ourselves. We do not have to do what others do, even if they are in our families. “Thou shalt not be affrighted at them: for the LORD thy God is among you, a mighty God and terrible.” - Deuteronomy 7:21. God is with all who put their trust and faith in Him. It is time to take a stand and not let the people of the world keep you in corruption. You may be surrounded by it, but God is a mighty and terrible (awesome) God, who is always with those who keep their heart, soul, eyes, ears, and and mind on Him. Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” - Matthew 11:28-30. No matter what problems we are facing, call on Jesus and He will make the burden lighter and you will find rest and peace. Praise God!
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Missed A Lesson?
Go to: Daily Bible Study
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Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
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Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Bible Study: Just Keep Reading 03.02.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Tuesday March 02, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 3-4. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-2
Title: Bible Study: Just Keep Reading
The Bible is our only true source for understanding and knowing not only our Creator, but His purpose for bringing us into this world. Every person born is here for a reason and used by God in some way, even those who do not know God at all. There is no greater tool than the power of God's Word. After forty years of wandering around in the wilderness I am sure that the Israelites did not want to hear a repeat of what their parents did to keep them from entering the promised land, but it was important that Moses explain it to them. Moses reminded the new generation of Israelites that living according to God's Word would bring lasting fulfillment. He continued to explain the Law that God had given their parents at Mount Sinai and told them why he was not allowed to enter the promised land himself. “And I besought the LORD at that time, saying, O Lord GOD, thou hast begun to shew thy servant thy greatness, and thy mighty hand: for what God is there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy works, and according to thy might? I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon. But the LORD was wroth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me: and the LORD said unto me, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter.” - Deuteronomy 3:23-26. I will say it again, God is not a respecter of persons, even men of God can mess up and lose blessings because of disbelief or disobedience. While, He does not forsake us and forgives us, that still does not stop Him from taking things away from us if we forget that He is in control.
The one essential requirement for remaining in the promise land was obedience to God's Word. “Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you. Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.........Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for?........And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness. And the LORD spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice. And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone. And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it.” - Deuteronomy 4:1,2,5-7,11-14. The Israelites did not have the entire Bible to read as we do today, they got it a little bit at a time as it was written, so, it was important that Moses remind them of how important it is to be reminded of God's Word often. Whether we can read the entire Bible in a decade, a year, or a month, it is important that we keep reading it. Why? No matter how many times you read something you never sink it all in, you may remember bits and pieces, but if you tried to remember everything all at once your mind would be in overload and forget everything. Ever study for a test and try to get a years worth of knowledge in you in one day? It does not work out very well. And this is why God designed the Bible for us to be able to grasp a little bit of it at a time. You can not read the same passage twice and get the same meaning out of it, I am not talking about self explanatory ones. Do not buy into these people that say they have read the Bible and know everything, no one knows everything. And to tell you the truth, if you do not know Jesus you will never understand any of it, because it is the Holy Spirit that helps you understand it, not your own thoughts. If we left it up to our own thoughts we would think of God as a cruel man that only wants us to sit in a room and pray and read the Bible 24/7, which is probably a good thing sometimes, and destroys us if we don't. Did you notice in the passage, “Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you?” - Deuteronomy 4:2. God despises those who change His Word or take Words out of His mouth. Jesus Said, “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” - Revelation 22:18-20. It took about forty men to write the Bible, these men were guided by the Holy Spirit to say exactly everything that God told them to say. While we may not understand every thing we learn a little more each time we read. The more we read, the more we know, the closer we get to Him and know His will and purpose for our lives. God has wonderful plans for all of us, but unless we read His Word for ourselves we will never know what that is. Know the saying, knowledge is power? God's knowledge is pure power and nothing is more powerful than His Word. “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” - Hebrews 4:12. Praise God, that we as Christians are armed with the Word of God, we may not know all of it, but we can say that we know Jesus and have eternal life because of Him. Just keep reading and let the Holy Spirit work a great work in you.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Missed A Lesson?
Go to: Daily Bible Study
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Learn About Salvation Only Made Through Jesus Christ
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
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Today is Tuesday March 02, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 3-4. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-2
Title: Bible Study: Just Keep Reading
The Bible is our only true source for understanding and knowing not only our Creator, but His purpose for bringing us into this world. Every person born is here for a reason and used by God in some way, even those who do not know God at all. There is no greater tool than the power of God's Word. After forty years of wandering around in the wilderness I am sure that the Israelites did not want to hear a repeat of what their parents did to keep them from entering the promised land, but it was important that Moses explain it to them. Moses reminded the new generation of Israelites that living according to God's Word would bring lasting fulfillment. He continued to explain the Law that God had given their parents at Mount Sinai and told them why he was not allowed to enter the promised land himself. “And I besought the LORD at that time, saying, O Lord GOD, thou hast begun to shew thy servant thy greatness, and thy mighty hand: for what God is there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy works, and according to thy might? I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon. But the LORD was wroth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me: and the LORD said unto me, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter.” - Deuteronomy 3:23-26. I will say it again, God is not a respecter of persons, even men of God can mess up and lose blessings because of disbelief or disobedience. While, He does not forsake us and forgives us, that still does not stop Him from taking things away from us if we forget that He is in control.
The one essential requirement for remaining in the promise land was obedience to God's Word. “Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you. Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.........Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for?........And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness. And the LORD spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice. And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone. And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it.” - Deuteronomy 4:1,2,5-7,11-14. The Israelites did not have the entire Bible to read as we do today, they got it a little bit at a time as it was written, so, it was important that Moses remind them of how important it is to be reminded of God's Word often. Whether we can read the entire Bible in a decade, a year, or a month, it is important that we keep reading it. Why? No matter how many times you read something you never sink it all in, you may remember bits and pieces, but if you tried to remember everything all at once your mind would be in overload and forget everything. Ever study for a test and try to get a years worth of knowledge in you in one day? It does not work out very well. And this is why God designed the Bible for us to be able to grasp a little bit of it at a time. You can not read the same passage twice and get the same meaning out of it, I am not talking about self explanatory ones. Do not buy into these people that say they have read the Bible and know everything, no one knows everything. And to tell you the truth, if you do not know Jesus you will never understand any of it, because it is the Holy Spirit that helps you understand it, not your own thoughts. If we left it up to our own thoughts we would think of God as a cruel man that only wants us to sit in a room and pray and read the Bible 24/7, which is probably a good thing sometimes, and destroys us if we don't. Did you notice in the passage, “Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you?” - Deuteronomy 4:2. God despises those who change His Word or take Words out of His mouth. Jesus Said, “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” - Revelation 22:18-20. It took about forty men to write the Bible, these men were guided by the Holy Spirit to say exactly everything that God told them to say. While we may not understand every thing we learn a little more each time we read. The more we read, the more we know, the closer we get to Him and know His will and purpose for our lives. God has wonderful plans for all of us, but unless we read His Word for ourselves we will never know what that is. Know the saying, knowledge is power? God's knowledge is pure power and nothing is more powerful than His Word. “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” - Hebrews 4:12. Praise God, that we as Christians are armed with the Word of God, we may not know all of it, but we can say that we know Jesus and have eternal life because of Him. Just keep reading and let the Holy Spirit work a great work in you.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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Monday, March 1, 2010
Bible Study: Trust God, Keep Blessings 03.01.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Monday March 1, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 1-2. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-1
Title: Bible Study: Trust God, Keep Blessings
The Book of Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Old Testament/Bible and contains thirty-four chapters. The author of the book is Moses and it was first written for the Israelites. The purpose of the book was to restate the law to the new generation of Israelites that was given forty years ago on Mt. Sinai. What we learn from the book is that obedience to God always brings His blessings, but disobedience always brings judgment.
Whether you know God or not, every one should know that good things come out of being obedient, while bad things always come out of being disobedient. I do not care how long we think we can get away with something, sooner or later it will catch up to us and hit us like a ton of bricks. Then we become angry and bitter, wondering why we are going through the things we are going through. The difference between those who live in the world and those who know Christ is that Christians will know that this was caused all on our own for disobeying God, while the people of the world search for any reason, but God to figure it out and end up making things worse. For forty years the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, this was because of their disobedience to God and it was that disobedience that led them to forfeit their right to enter the promised land, when they first saw it. Now, Moses is preparing the new generation to enter the land promised to them by God and reminded them of their disobedience. “And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spake unto the children of Israel, according unto all that the LORD had given him in commandment unto them;........Turn you, and take your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the south, and by the sea side, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates. Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them. And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:” - Deuteronomy 1:3, 7-9. Moses is telling them if they want to go into the promised land that they are going to have to help. For the entire journey all the burden rested on me and I can not get you in there myself. I need you help. We all make the mistake of trying to do everything ourselves, I know that I am one of the biggest culprits of this, but there comes a time where we need to say, I just can not do all this on my own and I need some help. So much stress and frustration in the world can be eliminated if we just ask for help. There is a saying that comes to mind, many hands make light work. If we seek the help of others while we still have everything under control than we will save ourselves a lot of grief when things go haywire.
Oh, how different would the history of Israel and even our lives today could have been if the prior generation would have just trusted the Word of God instead of believing the report of the ten spies. Moses reminded them of what the last generation had forfeited by not listening to Him. “And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying, Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers. Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed the LORD. Also the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, saying, Thou also shalt not go in thither. But Joshua the son of Nun, which standeth before thee, he shall go in thither: encourage him: for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.” - Deuteronomy 1:34-38. Caleb and Joshua were the only two people from the past generation that was able to enter the promise land, even Moses forfeited his right for disobeying God. God is not a respecter of persons and treats all of us the same way. Many of us forfeit our rights to God's blessings because of our disobedience. However, praise God, He is a forgiving God and no matter how many mistakes we make He does bless us, all He wants is for us to trust Him. To trust God when we are faced with giants does not come naturally for anyone. It takes a lot of strength and will to be able to withstand the evil forces that keep us from being obedient to God. However, our determination combine with the Power of God can and will help us defeat those giants. “Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.” - Ephesians 5:17-21. It is important that we stay in the Word of God daily. Having a bad day? Look to the Psalms and pray one of the prayers. On edge? Sing a song to Jesus. Need some guidance? Read a Proverb (there is one for each day of the month). As long as we keep our eyes, ears, mouth, and heart on Jesus than we can face and defeat any giant that the devil tries to send to defeat us. Praise God!
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and week. God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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Today is Monday March 1, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 1-2. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-march-1
Title: Bible Study: Trust God, Keep Blessings
The Book of Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Old Testament/Bible and contains thirty-four chapters. The author of the book is Moses and it was first written for the Israelites. The purpose of the book was to restate the law to the new generation of Israelites that was given forty years ago on Mt. Sinai. What we learn from the book is that obedience to God always brings His blessings, but disobedience always brings judgment.
Whether you know God or not, every one should know that good things come out of being obedient, while bad things always come out of being disobedient. I do not care how long we think we can get away with something, sooner or later it will catch up to us and hit us like a ton of bricks. Then we become angry and bitter, wondering why we are going through the things we are going through. The difference between those who live in the world and those who know Christ is that Christians will know that this was caused all on our own for disobeying God, while the people of the world search for any reason, but God to figure it out and end up making things worse. For forty years the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, this was because of their disobedience to God and it was that disobedience that led them to forfeit their right to enter the promised land, when they first saw it. Now, Moses is preparing the new generation to enter the land promised to them by God and reminded them of their disobedience. “And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spake unto the children of Israel, according unto all that the LORD had given him in commandment unto them;........Turn you, and take your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the south, and by the sea side, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates. Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them. And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:” - Deuteronomy 1:3, 7-9. Moses is telling them if they want to go into the promised land that they are going to have to help. For the entire journey all the burden rested on me and I can not get you in there myself. I need you help. We all make the mistake of trying to do everything ourselves, I know that I am one of the biggest culprits of this, but there comes a time where we need to say, I just can not do all this on my own and I need some help. So much stress and frustration in the world can be eliminated if we just ask for help. There is a saying that comes to mind, many hands make light work. If we seek the help of others while we still have everything under control than we will save ourselves a lot of grief when things go haywire.
Oh, how different would the history of Israel and even our lives today could have been if the prior generation would have just trusted the Word of God instead of believing the report of the ten spies. Moses reminded them of what the last generation had forfeited by not listening to Him. “And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying, Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers. Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed the LORD. Also the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, saying, Thou also shalt not go in thither. But Joshua the son of Nun, which standeth before thee, he shall go in thither: encourage him: for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.” - Deuteronomy 1:34-38. Caleb and Joshua were the only two people from the past generation that was able to enter the promise land, even Moses forfeited his right for disobeying God. God is not a respecter of persons and treats all of us the same way. Many of us forfeit our rights to God's blessings because of our disobedience. However, praise God, He is a forgiving God and no matter how many mistakes we make He does bless us, all He wants is for us to trust Him. To trust God when we are faced with giants does not come naturally for anyone. It takes a lot of strength and will to be able to withstand the evil forces that keep us from being obedient to God. However, our determination combine with the Power of God can and will help us defeat those giants. “Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.” - Ephesians 5:17-21. It is important that we stay in the Word of God daily. Having a bad day? Look to the Psalms and pray one of the prayers. On edge? Sing a song to Jesus. Need some guidance? Read a Proverb (there is one for each day of the month). As long as we keep our eyes, ears, mouth, and heart on Jesus than we can face and defeat any giant that the devil tries to send to defeat us. Praise God!
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and week. God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Missed A Lesson?
Go to: Daily Bible Study
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Sunday, February 28, 2010
Bible Study: City of Refuge 02.28.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Sunday February 28, 2010, and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Numbers, chapters 34-36. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-february-28
Title: Bible Study: City of Refuge
The world has over 6.7 billion people in it and only a small percentage of those people are true Christian's. The amazing thing is that we can be spotted for miles, even a person who lives in the world can spot a Christian, yet, we are scattered all over the place, even places that are forbidden to speak the name Christ hold Him near and dear to their hearts. Yes, those places still exist today. We have no idea just how blessed we are in the little bit of land that God has given us to dwell on. The Israelites were preparing themselves to enter the promised land, it was the land of Canaan, a nation well known to being a God nation since God led Abraham there ages ago. The land was very small, only about a hundred and sixty miles long and fifty miles wide. It must have seemed very small to the over four hundred thousand people, but it was their land and it was given to them by God Himself. “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land of Canaan; (this is the land that shall fall unto you for an inheritance, even the land of Canaan with the coasts thereof:)” - Numbers 34:1,2. Eight and a half of the twelve tribes were given an inheritance into the land of Canaan. Although all if the earth is the Lord's, few know him, and serve him, but those few that do are happy because they know the love of their God and know that what they have here on earth is only temporal and their treasures in heaven are much more bountiful than the small portion of earth that God has given them to dwell in. The little bit that a righteous man has, having it from the love of God, and with his blessing, is far better and more comfortable than any of the riches gotten through evil. Praise God!
The Levites were not given a portion of the land, but they were given a portion of each inheritance to dwell in, “And the LORD spake unto Moses in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying, Command the children of Israel, that they give unto the Levites of the inheritance of their possession cities to dwell in; and ye shall give also unto the Levites suburbs for the cities round about them. And the cities shall they have to dwell in; and the suburbs of them shall be for their cattle, and for their goods, and for all their beasts.” - Numbers 35:1-3. The cities of the priests and Levites were given not only to accommodate them, but to place them, as religious teachers, in several parts of the land. Since there would only be one Tabernacle in the land, it was important for the people to be able to hear God's Word being taught and to have someone near by that would minister to, pray, and comfort them in their time of need. Just like the Levites, as Christians, we too dwell among every part of the world to teach God's Word, to minister to them, and to pray and comfort them in their time of need. Nothing has changed over the centuries, except technology. While we can all read the Bible it is very important that we get around other godly people, with the same beliefs, who can help us understand certain things and also give us comfort when we need it.
Of the forty-eight cities give to the Levites to dwell in, six were assigned as cities of refuge, which were easily accessible throughout the eight tribes. These cities were vitally important as places of safety for those who had unintentionally killed someone until a trial could determine their guilt or innocence. “But if he thrust him suddenly without enmity, or have cast upon him any thing without laying of wait, Or with any stone, wherewith a man may die, seeing him not, and cast it upon him, that he die, and was not his enemy, neither sought his harm: Then the congregation shall judge between the slayer and the revenger of blood according to these judgments: And the congregation shall deliver the slayer out of the hand of the revenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to the city of his refuge, whither he was fled: and he shall abide in it unto the death of the high priest, which was anointed with the holy oil.” - Numbers 35:22-25. Not all killing is murder and murder should not be confused with killing in times of war. The Lord had sanctioned war in order for Israel to possess the promised land as well as many other wars over the centuries. Even if the act was proven to be accidental, the manslayer was to remain in the city of refuge until the death of the high priest. As long as he was there, he was protected from the avenger, but if he left the city before the high priest died, he could legally be put to death. The death of the high priest was the atonement for the manslayer and pictured Christ's death to atone for our sins. When the priest died, the manslayer was able to leave as a free person with no fear of being put to death. However, if the incident was proven to be deliberate murder, the guilty person was turned over to the avenger to be put to death. God said to spare the life of a guilty murderer would defile the nation, for the murderer not only had destroyed one who was created in the image of God, but he also had intentionally taken from God His authority over that life.
Today, God expects more from His followers, as they have been saved by the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ, than merely refraining from murder. He expects us to love others even as He loves us and demands the highest respect for human life, for man was created in His image. “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” - John 13:34,35. We have refuge in the blood of Christ and that means not one person on this earth, not even the devil, can take us away from Him. We may suffer a bit from time to time, but He is with us through it all and will avenge us. Praise God.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and the Lord's day, God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
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Missed A Lesson?
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Today is Sunday February 28, 2010, and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Numbers, chapters 34-36. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-february-28
Title: Bible Study: City of Refuge
The world has over 6.7 billion people in it and only a small percentage of those people are true Christian's. The amazing thing is that we can be spotted for miles, even a person who lives in the world can spot a Christian, yet, we are scattered all over the place, even places that are forbidden to speak the name Christ hold Him near and dear to their hearts. Yes, those places still exist today. We have no idea just how blessed we are in the little bit of land that God has given us to dwell on. The Israelites were preparing themselves to enter the promised land, it was the land of Canaan, a nation well known to being a God nation since God led Abraham there ages ago. The land was very small, only about a hundred and sixty miles long and fifty miles wide. It must have seemed very small to the over four hundred thousand people, but it was their land and it was given to them by God Himself. “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land of Canaan; (this is the land that shall fall unto you for an inheritance, even the land of Canaan with the coasts thereof:)” - Numbers 34:1,2. Eight and a half of the twelve tribes were given an inheritance into the land of Canaan. Although all if the earth is the Lord's, few know him, and serve him, but those few that do are happy because they know the love of their God and know that what they have here on earth is only temporal and their treasures in heaven are much more bountiful than the small portion of earth that God has given them to dwell in. The little bit that a righteous man has, having it from the love of God, and with his blessing, is far better and more comfortable than any of the riches gotten through evil. Praise God!
The Levites were not given a portion of the land, but they were given a portion of each inheritance to dwell in, “And the LORD spake unto Moses in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying, Command the children of Israel, that they give unto the Levites of the inheritance of their possession cities to dwell in; and ye shall give also unto the Levites suburbs for the cities round about them. And the cities shall they have to dwell in; and the suburbs of them shall be for their cattle, and for their goods, and for all their beasts.” - Numbers 35:1-3. The cities of the priests and Levites were given not only to accommodate them, but to place them, as religious teachers, in several parts of the land. Since there would only be one Tabernacle in the land, it was important for the people to be able to hear God's Word being taught and to have someone near by that would minister to, pray, and comfort them in their time of need. Just like the Levites, as Christians, we too dwell among every part of the world to teach God's Word, to minister to them, and to pray and comfort them in their time of need. Nothing has changed over the centuries, except technology. While we can all read the Bible it is very important that we get around other godly people, with the same beliefs, who can help us understand certain things and also give us comfort when we need it.
Of the forty-eight cities give to the Levites to dwell in, six were assigned as cities of refuge, which were easily accessible throughout the eight tribes. These cities were vitally important as places of safety for those who had unintentionally killed someone until a trial could determine their guilt or innocence. “But if he thrust him suddenly without enmity, or have cast upon him any thing without laying of wait, Or with any stone, wherewith a man may die, seeing him not, and cast it upon him, that he die, and was not his enemy, neither sought his harm: Then the congregation shall judge between the slayer and the revenger of blood according to these judgments: And the congregation shall deliver the slayer out of the hand of the revenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to the city of his refuge, whither he was fled: and he shall abide in it unto the death of the high priest, which was anointed with the holy oil.” - Numbers 35:22-25. Not all killing is murder and murder should not be confused with killing in times of war. The Lord had sanctioned war in order for Israel to possess the promised land as well as many other wars over the centuries. Even if the act was proven to be accidental, the manslayer was to remain in the city of refuge until the death of the high priest. As long as he was there, he was protected from the avenger, but if he left the city before the high priest died, he could legally be put to death. The death of the high priest was the atonement for the manslayer and pictured Christ's death to atone for our sins. When the priest died, the manslayer was able to leave as a free person with no fear of being put to death. However, if the incident was proven to be deliberate murder, the guilty person was turned over to the avenger to be put to death. God said to spare the life of a guilty murderer would defile the nation, for the murderer not only had destroyed one who was created in the image of God, but he also had intentionally taken from God His authority over that life.
Today, God expects more from His followers, as they have been saved by the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ, than merely refraining from murder. He expects us to love others even as He loves us and demands the highest respect for human life, for man was created in His image. “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” - John 13:34,35. We have refuge in the blood of Christ and that means not one person on this earth, not even the devil, can take us away from Him. We may suffer a bit from time to time, but He is with us through it all and will avenge us. Praise God.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and the Lord's day, God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Missed A Lesson?
Go to: Daily Bible Study
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Learn About Salvation Only Made Through Jesus Christ
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
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