Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Saturday March 13, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Joshua, chapters 1-3. 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-13
Title: Bible Study: Be Strong And Of Good Courage
Today we begin our studies in the Book of Joshua, the Book of Joshua is the sixth book of the Old Testament/Bible and contains twenty-four chapters. This begins the series of books on the history of the Israelites before the birth of Jesus. The author of the book is Joshua and it was written to the Israelites, the purpose of the book was to record details on how the successor of Moses, Joshua, led the people of Israel into the Promised Land of Canaan and explains the military campaigns and the division of the land among the people. What we are to learn from the book is that no moral or spiritual victories are won without a battle.
While we are in the midst of trials we often wonder why we are going through them, but the trials we face prepare us for the future. Whether we will be prepared to be able to handle another trial or be a mentor for someone else, everything we go through strengthens us and gives us the knowledge that we need to get through the next challenge in life. Joshua was born into Egyptian slavery and faced one trial after another, little did he know that he would one day be the successor to Moses that would lead the Israelites into the promised land. Yet through it all he remained faithful to God thus becoming the new leader of Israel. “Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying, Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.” - Joshua 1:1-6. As God handed over the reins to Joshua He assured him that He would always be with him, He told him to be strong and of good courage because a battle was coming, that He would not forsake him, and that they would receive the inheritance that was promised to them. Whether we are Christians or not, we will face battles in our lives, but the difference between us and them is that we have a great God who promises to always be there and never fail us nor forsake us. We can be strong and of good courage, knowing that He is with us. Praise God!
You know, the great thing about God is that He chooses anyone who comes to Him, regardless of their past to be His people and never goes back on His promise to fail nor forsake us, but the biggest step to receiving all of God's promises is putting our faith in Him. Joshua sent two people over into Canaan to spy out the land, word had already got out that the Israelites were about to come in and siege the land so people were searching for them to kill them. While trying to escape a woman named Rahab hid them and helped them escape, but before she showed them the way out she asked them to spare her and her families lives in return for her helping them. “And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country. And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country. And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were: And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them. But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof.........And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath. Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token: And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death. And the men answered her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the LORD hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee. Then she let them down by a cord through the window: for her house was upon the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall.” - Joshua 2:2-6,11-15. Rahab had faith in God and knew by helping His people that her life would never be the same. She had the strength and courage to hide them, even though it could have cost her her life, but in doing so her and her families lives were spared. In doing so, she then turned from her false gods, left her life as a prostitute, and trusted in the mercy of the One True God. And later on became an ancestor of King David and was included in the genealogy of where God would send Jesus to be born of. God will give us all the strength and courage we need to turn away from the world and turn to Him.
It takes a giant leap to put our faith in God, we are to be strong and of good courage, knowing that He will not fail us nor forsake us, but until we take that leap forward nothing will change. The only way that we can change is by having Jesus in our lives. Without Jesus life is just one trial after another full of hate, anger, discouragement, and depression. However, with Jesus we can get through each trial with peace and comfort. Jesus Said, “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.” - John 14:26-28. When we receive Jesus in our hearts, He moves in us in the form of the Holy Spirit and it is only through Him that we can be at peace and rejoice through times of sorrow. My brother just past away yesterday morning, I thank God that Jesus is in my life because He is the only one who can get me through the grief and countless retelling of why a healthy young man suddenly died. Jesus is my peace and comfort and I can rejoice knowing that he is up there with Jesus, doing what he loves best, I am sure it has something to do with lights and music. Praise God that I have Him in my life and that anyone who calls on Him will get the same peace and comfort that I do. Be strong and of courage and know that Jesus is with you and if you do not know that He is with you, it is time to ask Him into your life.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and weekend. God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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Saturday, March 13, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Bible Study: A Covenant With God 03.11.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Thursday March 11, 2010, and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 29-31. 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-11
Title: Bible Study: A Covenant With God
A covenant is an agreement between two people to do or not do something specified. Those whom have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior have made a covenant with God. When God made a covenant with the Israelites, He made an agreement with them to be with them and protect them as long as they honored their part of the agreement. “Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may prosper in all that ye do. Ye stand this day all of you before the LORD your God; your captains of your tribes, your elders, and your officers, with all the men of Israel, Your little ones, your wives, and thy stranger that is in thy camp, from the hewer of thy wood unto the drawer of thy water: That thou shouldest enter into covenant with the LORD thy God, and into his oath, which the LORD thy God maketh with thee this day: That he may establish thee to day for a people unto himself, and that he may be unto thee a God, as he hath said unto thee, and as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath; But with him that standeth here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day:” - Deuteronomy 29:9-15. God promised that as long as they fulfilled their part of the agreement that He would always be there for them and this also included any stranger that chose to live among them as well. The same thing applies to us, when we make a covenant with God, He promises to be with us and protect us as long as we stick to our part of the agreement.
Now, once you make an agreement with God, He is going to hold you to it, God promised to bless the Israelites if they promised to obey His commands, but if they did not, they would suffer. “See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it. But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it. I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.” - Deuteronomy 30:15-20. God knows each and every persons heart, if they deliberately break the agreement they will suffer. The same thing applies to us, we have a choice, follow God or follow the world, but if you choose to follow God it must be with all your heart, He will know and you will suffer if you deliberately break your agreement with Him.
God turns His back on all who deliberately break their agreement with Him, God knew that once Moses was no longer around that the Israelites would break their agreement, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them. Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us, because our God is not among us? And I will surely hide my face in that day for all the evils which they shall have wrought, in that they are turned unto other gods.” - Deuteronomy 31:16-18. Do you think that God wants to see the ridiculous things we do and get ourselves into? Of course not. We are children of God, not heathens and need to start acting like we are. That is why it is important that we never lose sight of God, He is the only way that we can avoid getting into things we need to stay out of and also avoid needless suffering. Life is hard enough as it is without adding to the complication.
Today, God has made a covenant with not just the Israelites, but all of the human race, believe in my Son, receive eternal life. “That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” - John 3:15. God is saying, “I promise to give you eternal life if you believe with all your heart in my Son, Jesus.” “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” - Romans 10:9,10. What is eternal life? Eternal means forever, so eternal life means we live forever. So, how do we live forever if we die? We have three parts to our body, the physical body, the soul, and the spirit. However, when we are born as babies we possess only two of those parts, the physical body and the soul. This means that the spiritual part of the body is not with us. The only way to possess the spiritual part of the body is by receiving it, we receive it by believing in and accepting Jesus Christ into our hearts. Now, this is what is known as being born again. Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” - John 3:5-8. The spirit in us is what gives us life, it is literally God in us. If you do not know Jesus you do not have the spiritual part of your body. That is why those who do not know Jesus are always searching for churches or religions or careers or people to make them feel alive.
Now, when the physical body dies, the soul has one of two places to go, up into heaven with God or down into hell with Satan. If you have the spiritual part of your body, this means you have eternal life and your soul will go up into heaven until Jesus returns and then you are reunited with it. If you have not received Jesus into your heart the soul dies, which is known as the second death and you end up burning in a lake of fire. “And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” - Revelation 20:14,15. Would you rather spend eternity with God or burn? The choice is yours. God is not the one that makes us suffer needlessly, we do that all by ourselves, but praise God that He can even take away the needless suffering. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” - I John 1:9. Have you made a covenant with God? If not, it is not too late, He wants to bless you and see you prosper, but you must first be willing to take that step. Remember, He knows your heart and will save all who truly believe in His Son, “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” - Romans 10:10. Praise God!
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and week, we are almost there.
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 11, 2010, and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 29-31. 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-11
Title: Bible Study: A Covenant With God
A covenant is an agreement between two people to do or not do something specified. Those whom have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior have made a covenant with God. When God made a covenant with the Israelites, He made an agreement with them to be with them and protect them as long as they honored their part of the agreement. “Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may prosper in all that ye do. Ye stand this day all of you before the LORD your God; your captains of your tribes, your elders, and your officers, with all the men of Israel, Your little ones, your wives, and thy stranger that is in thy camp, from the hewer of thy wood unto the drawer of thy water: That thou shouldest enter into covenant with the LORD thy God, and into his oath, which the LORD thy God maketh with thee this day: That he may establish thee to day for a people unto himself, and that he may be unto thee a God, as he hath said unto thee, and as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath; But with him that standeth here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day:” - Deuteronomy 29:9-15. God promised that as long as they fulfilled their part of the agreement that He would always be there for them and this also included any stranger that chose to live among them as well. The same thing applies to us, when we make a covenant with God, He promises to be with us and protect us as long as we stick to our part of the agreement.
Now, once you make an agreement with God, He is going to hold you to it, God promised to bless the Israelites if they promised to obey His commands, but if they did not, they would suffer. “See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it. But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it. I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.” - Deuteronomy 30:15-20. God knows each and every persons heart, if they deliberately break the agreement they will suffer. The same thing applies to us, we have a choice, follow God or follow the world, but if you choose to follow God it must be with all your heart, He will know and you will suffer if you deliberately break your agreement with Him.
God turns His back on all who deliberately break their agreement with Him, God knew that once Moses was no longer around that the Israelites would break their agreement, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them. Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us, because our God is not among us? And I will surely hide my face in that day for all the evils which they shall have wrought, in that they are turned unto other gods.” - Deuteronomy 31:16-18. Do you think that God wants to see the ridiculous things we do and get ourselves into? Of course not. We are children of God, not heathens and need to start acting like we are. That is why it is important that we never lose sight of God, He is the only way that we can avoid getting into things we need to stay out of and also avoid needless suffering. Life is hard enough as it is without adding to the complication.
Today, God has made a covenant with not just the Israelites, but all of the human race, believe in my Son, receive eternal life. “That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” - John 3:15. God is saying, “I promise to give you eternal life if you believe with all your heart in my Son, Jesus.” “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” - Romans 10:9,10. What is eternal life? Eternal means forever, so eternal life means we live forever. So, how do we live forever if we die? We have three parts to our body, the physical body, the soul, and the spirit. However, when we are born as babies we possess only two of those parts, the physical body and the soul. This means that the spiritual part of the body is not with us. The only way to possess the spiritual part of the body is by receiving it, we receive it by believing in and accepting Jesus Christ into our hearts. Now, this is what is known as being born again. Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” - John 3:5-8. The spirit in us is what gives us life, it is literally God in us. If you do not know Jesus you do not have the spiritual part of your body. That is why those who do not know Jesus are always searching for churches or religions or careers or people to make them feel alive.
Now, when the physical body dies, the soul has one of two places to go, up into heaven with God or down into hell with Satan. If you have the spiritual part of your body, this means you have eternal life and your soul will go up into heaven until Jesus returns and then you are reunited with it. If you have not received Jesus into your heart the soul dies, which is known as the second death and you end up burning in a lake of fire. “And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” - Revelation 20:14,15. Would you rather spend eternity with God or burn? The choice is yours. God is not the one that makes us suffer needlessly, we do that all by ourselves, but praise God that He can even take away the needless suffering. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” - I John 1:9. Have you made a covenant with God? If not, it is not too late, He wants to bless you and see you prosper, but you must first be willing to take that step. Remember, He knows your heart and will save all who truly believe in His Son, “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” - Romans 10:10. Praise God!
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and week, we are almost there.
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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Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Bible Study: Harken to The Lord, Thy God 03.10.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Wednesday March 10, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapter 28. 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-10
Title: Bible Study: Harken to The Lord, Thy God
As Christians we can rejoice in the fact that it is by God's mercy and grace that He sent Jesus to save us all from a fiery hell and all who call on Him are saved. Praise God! While it is the greatest blessing to receive the gift of eternal life and know that no matter how many times we mess up we are still saved, that does not change the fact that we will not suffer if we do not harken to The Lord, thy God. The Israelites had the best thing going for them, they were God's chosen people and that was the best gift they could have ever received. God assured the Israelites that as long as they listened to Him and obeyed His laws that they would be blessed and avoid needless suffering. “And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God. Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store. Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out............But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: ” - Deuteronomy 28:1-6,15. The Israelites had a choice, if they listened to God and followed His commands then they would be blessed, and blessed abundantly, but if they did not listen to God and follow His commands, they would be cursed. This is a choice that we all need to make, when we listen and obey we are rewarded, when we do not listen and obey we are chastised until we either listen or God says, that's it, I'm done trying to get you to listen to me.
Harkening to the Lord means that we are to listen to every Word that God has written and every command that God has given us. This is where people of the world and even Christians want to ignore the fact that God was then and is now always in control. Something caught my attention this morning when reading this chapter, “If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayest fear this glorious and fearful name, THE LORD THY GOD; Then the LORD will make thy plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses, and of long continuance. Moreover he will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt, which thou wast afraid of; and they shall cleave unto thee. Also every sickness, and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, them will the LORD bring upon thee, until thou be destroyed. And ye shall be left few in number, whereas ye were as the stars of heaven for multitude; because thou wouldest not obey the voice of the LORD thy God.” - Deuteronomy 28:58-62. God is warning the Israelites that if they do not follow His commands they would face all sorts of diseases and destruction not even mentioned in the Bible. Now, this is a great prophecy of what happens to future generations who ignored God as we read through the Old Testament and also of what we are facing today. Think about it. Look at all the diseases and natural disasters that are going on around the world, especially over the past decade. This is not going on because of global warming or any other claims scientists are trying to come up with, this is God sending a warning to us all, you better harken to my voice, now. God does truly want to bless us while we are here on earth, He just wants us to listen to Him, He knows what is best for us.
We may not be bound to the laws that were given to the Israelites, but that does not mean that we are not to obey His commands, His commandments are for all, Old and New Testament times. A testament is a written document that proves as tangible proof of the covenant that God gave His people, the Old Testament was to record the covenant that God made with His people before Jesus came, the New Testament is to record the covenant that God made with His people when Jesus arrived. Regardless of Old or New Testament, there was one important thing that unifies both testaments and that was the blood that was shed to reconcile the people with God and get God to harken to them. The Old Testament is just as important because it foreshadowed Christ, proving that the entire Bible was focused on one person who would tale the place of countless of animal sacrifices and that was Jesus. “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth. Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood. For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people, Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.” - Hebrews 9:12-20. Today, God's first command is to know Jesus, Jesus is the intercessor between God and us, if we do not know Jesus, we do not know God. No matter how many times we pray, or go to church, or volunteer to help the needy, God will not harken to those who do not harken to Him and come to know His Son. “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.” - Galatians 2:16. We are not saved because of the things we do for God, we are saved because Jesus Christ died for us and it is only when we believe in Him that we will receive eternal life. “For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” - John 3:34-36.
We heard God say earlier, “ye shall be left few in number” God is weeding out all the devil worshiper's, and false god worshipers, and so called Christians, and false prophets, and false men of God, and only those who have truly know we see life beyond this earth. Jesus said, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” - Matthew 7:13,14. Many will try to enter the gate, but only a few will make it through because they have not harkened to the Lord and followed His commands. Praise God, that all who come to Jesus will enter that gate, but if we truly want to see God's blessings here on earth we need to hearken to the Lord, our God. As long as we harken to God He will in turn harken to us and bless us.
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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Today is Wednesday March 10, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapter 28. 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-10
Title: Bible Study: Harken to The Lord, Thy God
As Christians we can rejoice in the fact that it is by God's mercy and grace that He sent Jesus to save us all from a fiery hell and all who call on Him are saved. Praise God! While it is the greatest blessing to receive the gift of eternal life and know that no matter how many times we mess up we are still saved, that does not change the fact that we will not suffer if we do not harken to The Lord, thy God. The Israelites had the best thing going for them, they were God's chosen people and that was the best gift they could have ever received. God assured the Israelites that as long as they listened to Him and obeyed His laws that they would be blessed and avoid needless suffering. “And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God. Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store. Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out............But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: ” - Deuteronomy 28:1-6,15. The Israelites had a choice, if they listened to God and followed His commands then they would be blessed, and blessed abundantly, but if they did not listen to God and follow His commands, they would be cursed. This is a choice that we all need to make, when we listen and obey we are rewarded, when we do not listen and obey we are chastised until we either listen or God says, that's it, I'm done trying to get you to listen to me.
Harkening to the Lord means that we are to listen to every Word that God has written and every command that God has given us. This is where people of the world and even Christians want to ignore the fact that God was then and is now always in control. Something caught my attention this morning when reading this chapter, “If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayest fear this glorious and fearful name, THE LORD THY GOD; Then the LORD will make thy plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses, and of long continuance. Moreover he will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt, which thou wast afraid of; and they shall cleave unto thee. Also every sickness, and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, them will the LORD bring upon thee, until thou be destroyed. And ye shall be left few in number, whereas ye were as the stars of heaven for multitude; because thou wouldest not obey the voice of the LORD thy God.” - Deuteronomy 28:58-62. God is warning the Israelites that if they do not follow His commands they would face all sorts of diseases and destruction not even mentioned in the Bible. Now, this is a great prophecy of what happens to future generations who ignored God as we read through the Old Testament and also of what we are facing today. Think about it. Look at all the diseases and natural disasters that are going on around the world, especially over the past decade. This is not going on because of global warming or any other claims scientists are trying to come up with, this is God sending a warning to us all, you better harken to my voice, now. God does truly want to bless us while we are here on earth, He just wants us to listen to Him, He knows what is best for us.
We may not be bound to the laws that were given to the Israelites, but that does not mean that we are not to obey His commands, His commandments are for all, Old and New Testament times. A testament is a written document that proves as tangible proof of the covenant that God gave His people, the Old Testament was to record the covenant that God made with His people before Jesus came, the New Testament is to record the covenant that God made with His people when Jesus arrived. Regardless of Old or New Testament, there was one important thing that unifies both testaments and that was the blood that was shed to reconcile the people with God and get God to harken to them. The Old Testament is just as important because it foreshadowed Christ, proving that the entire Bible was focused on one person who would tale the place of countless of animal sacrifices and that was Jesus. “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth. Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood. For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people, Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.” - Hebrews 9:12-20. Today, God's first command is to know Jesus, Jesus is the intercessor between God and us, if we do not know Jesus, we do not know God. No matter how many times we pray, or go to church, or volunteer to help the needy, God will not harken to those who do not harken to Him and come to know His Son. “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.” - Galatians 2:16. We are not saved because of the things we do for God, we are saved because Jesus Christ died for us and it is only when we believe in Him that we will receive eternal life. “For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” - John 3:34-36.
We heard God say earlier, “ye shall be left few in number” God is weeding out all the devil worshiper's, and false god worshipers, and so called Christians, and false prophets, and false men of God, and only those who have truly know we see life beyond this earth. Jesus said, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” - Matthew 7:13,14. Many will try to enter the gate, but only a few will make it through because they have not harkened to the Lord and followed His commands. Praise God, that all who come to Jesus will enter that gate, but if we truly want to see God's blessings here on earth we need to hearken to the Lord, our God. As long as we harken to God He will in turn harken to us and bless us.
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
http://www.readytofollow.com/daily-bible-study
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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Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Bible Study: God Will Fulfill His Purpose 03.09.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Tuesday March 09, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 24-27. 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-9
Title: Bible Study: God Will Fulfill His Purpose
Many people, even Christians, do not realize that the Bible has been around since God created the earth. God chose forty men to write His Word, these were just ordinary, sinful people, like you and I who chose to follow the will of God rather than their own. Even they messed up with God at times and fell out of His will, but God still used them to complete the work He had begun in them. Moses was called when he was forty years old to fulfill God's purpose, but he killed a man then fled for forty years. At the age of eighty he began serving God as the one He chose to lead the Israelites out of slavery and into the promised land. Moses began writing down what God told Him along the way, including the Book of Genesis, which was given for God to give an account for the creation of all of earth and what His purpose for creating it was. The Bible was more than just commands from God, it was to give a record and account for the Israelites until Jesus came as well as show testimonies as to who God chose to represent Him and what happened to them in their times of obedience and disobedience to Him. While blessings result from obedience and faithfulness, severe punishments and judgment are the inevitable result of disobeying God's Word! We are all accountable for our own actions, “The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin. Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, nor of the fatherless; nor take a widow's raiment to pledge: But thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt, and the LORD thy God redeemed thee thence: therefore I command thee to do this thing.” - Deuteronomy 24:16-18. A pledge is a solemn promise to fulfill a purpose or refrain from something. When we chose to follow the will of God, He holds us to our promise and we are accountable for fulfilling that promise. “This day the LORD thy God hath commanded thee to do these statutes and judgments: thou shalt therefore keep and do them with all thine heart, and with all thy soul. Thou hast avouched the LORD this day to be thy God, and to walk in his ways, and to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and to hearken unto his voice: And the LORD hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people, as he hath promised thee, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments; And to make thee high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honour; and that thou mayest be an holy people unto the LORD thy God, as he hath spoken.” - Deuteronomy 26:16-19. We think we have made the decision on our own to follow God, but God chose us Himself and we are to respect that and honor Him for choosing us by keeping ourselves holy. That is why He places these commands and judgments upon us. We are all here for a purpose and God uses us regardless of whether or not we choose to obey His commands, He chose to use specific men, women, and events to feature in His Word to prove to all, Israelites, as well as strangers, and even heathens, that He is the only God and creator of even them and in control of all things, regardless of how many gods they created. Praise God!
All the words that Moses has spoken to the Israelites regarding God's laws and commandments were to be written on plaster and placed upon the altar for all to easily read them. “And Moses with the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, Keep all the commandments which I command you this day. And it shall be on the day when ye shall pass over Jordan unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, that thou shalt set thee up great stones, and plaister them with plaister: And thou shalt write upon them all the words of this law, when thou art passed over, that thou mayest go in unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, a land that floweth with milk and honey; as the LORD God of thy fathers hath promised thee. Therefore it shall be when ye be gone over Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in mount Ebal, and thou shalt plaister them with plaister. And there shalt thou build an altar unto the LORD thy God, an altar of stones: thou shalt not lift up any iron tool upon them. Thou shalt build the altar of the LORD thy God of whole stones: and thou shalt offer burnt offerings thereon unto the LORD thy God: And thou shalt offer peace offerings, and shalt eat there, and rejoice before the LORD thy God. And thou shalt write upon the stones all the words of this law very plainly.” - Deuteronomy 27:1-8. It was important that the Israelites had these laws and commands written down to remind them of all that God gave them and what they were required to do in order to be able to live peacefully in the land that He had given them. Had they not had them, then further generations would not have been able to know how to be reconciled with God. That is why we are to read both Old and New Testaments, of course we are not bound to many of these laws, but the morals of the laws still apply. If you read chapter 27 you would have seen the things listed that caused a curse on the people and these things are still an abomination to God and cause a curse upon us. We are children of God and are to behave like we are to set an example for those who are just starting out as Christians as well as the rest of the world. “If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained........ These things command and teach. Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine........Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.” - I Timothy 4:6,11-13, 16.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and enjoy the rest of your 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
http://www.readytofollow.com/daily-bible-study
Learn About Salvation Only Made Through Jesus Christ
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
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Today is Tuesday March 09, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 24-27. 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-9
Title: Bible Study: God Will Fulfill His Purpose
Many people, even Christians, do not realize that the Bible has been around since God created the earth. God chose forty men to write His Word, these were just ordinary, sinful people, like you and I who chose to follow the will of God rather than their own. Even they messed up with God at times and fell out of His will, but God still used them to complete the work He had begun in them. Moses was called when he was forty years old to fulfill God's purpose, but he killed a man then fled for forty years. At the age of eighty he began serving God as the one He chose to lead the Israelites out of slavery and into the promised land. Moses began writing down what God told Him along the way, including the Book of Genesis, which was given for God to give an account for the creation of all of earth and what His purpose for creating it was. The Bible was more than just commands from God, it was to give a record and account for the Israelites until Jesus came as well as show testimonies as to who God chose to represent Him and what happened to them in their times of obedience and disobedience to Him. While blessings result from obedience and faithfulness, severe punishments and judgment are the inevitable result of disobeying God's Word! We are all accountable for our own actions, “The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin. Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, nor of the fatherless; nor take a widow's raiment to pledge: But thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt, and the LORD thy God redeemed thee thence: therefore I command thee to do this thing.” - Deuteronomy 24:16-18. A pledge is a solemn promise to fulfill a purpose or refrain from something. When we chose to follow the will of God, He holds us to our promise and we are accountable for fulfilling that promise. “This day the LORD thy God hath commanded thee to do these statutes and judgments: thou shalt therefore keep and do them with all thine heart, and with all thy soul. Thou hast avouched the LORD this day to be thy God, and to walk in his ways, and to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and to hearken unto his voice: And the LORD hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people, as he hath promised thee, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments; And to make thee high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honour; and that thou mayest be an holy people unto the LORD thy God, as he hath spoken.” - Deuteronomy 26:16-19. We think we have made the decision on our own to follow God, but God chose us Himself and we are to respect that and honor Him for choosing us by keeping ourselves holy. That is why He places these commands and judgments upon us. We are all here for a purpose and God uses us regardless of whether or not we choose to obey His commands, He chose to use specific men, women, and events to feature in His Word to prove to all, Israelites, as well as strangers, and even heathens, that He is the only God and creator of even them and in control of all things, regardless of how many gods they created. Praise God!
All the words that Moses has spoken to the Israelites regarding God's laws and commandments were to be written on plaster and placed upon the altar for all to easily read them. “And Moses with the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, Keep all the commandments which I command you this day. And it shall be on the day when ye shall pass over Jordan unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, that thou shalt set thee up great stones, and plaister them with plaister: And thou shalt write upon them all the words of this law, when thou art passed over, that thou mayest go in unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, a land that floweth with milk and honey; as the LORD God of thy fathers hath promised thee. Therefore it shall be when ye be gone over Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in mount Ebal, and thou shalt plaister them with plaister. And there shalt thou build an altar unto the LORD thy God, an altar of stones: thou shalt not lift up any iron tool upon them. Thou shalt build the altar of the LORD thy God of whole stones: and thou shalt offer burnt offerings thereon unto the LORD thy God: And thou shalt offer peace offerings, and shalt eat there, and rejoice before the LORD thy God. And thou shalt write upon the stones all the words of this law very plainly.” - Deuteronomy 27:1-8. It was important that the Israelites had these laws and commands written down to remind them of all that God gave them and what they were required to do in order to be able to live peacefully in the land that He had given them. Had they not had them, then further generations would not have been able to know how to be reconciled with God. That is why we are to read both Old and New Testaments, of course we are not bound to many of these laws, but the morals of the laws still apply. If you read chapter 27 you would have seen the things listed that caused a curse on the people and these things are still an abomination to God and cause a curse upon us. We are children of God and are to behave like we are to set an example for those who are just starting out as Christians as well as the rest of the world. “If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained........ These things command and teach. Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine........Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.” - I Timothy 4:6,11-13, 16.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and enjoy the rest of your 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
http://www.readytofollow.com/daily-bible-study
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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Monday, March 8, 2010
Bible Study: Following The Will of God 03.08.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Monday March 08, 2010, and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 21-23. 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-8
Title: Bible Study: Following The Will of God
As a child of God we are to be an example for the world to follow, we are to show them that we can live a morally, uncorrupted life and still enjoy prosperity given by the Lord our God. The sad thing is that the majority of God's children do not take the world out of their lives and it is because of this that the world does not believe their lives can be changed with God in it. Following the will of God means that we are to eliminate anything that corrupts the mind, body, or soul. God addresses these issues to the Israelites, issues from disobeying parents, to fornication, to a man who rapes a woman, to adultery, and to prostitution are written in these three chapters. God stresses the importance of why He placed such harsh punishments upon the people, “And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear.” - Deuteronomy 21:21. God placed these punishments upon the people to keep the rest of them from falling into corruption. If they feared what was going to happen to them they stay away from it. Think about it. If you are warned to stay away from something that is dangerous, for example, an electrical outlet. You know it is full of electricity and if you place anything other than a plug in it that you would get a shock, so you avoid it. Of course, if you did not know that and stuck something is the plug you would get a big jolt and possibly lose your life. It is things like this that teach the rest of us to avoid things that are dangerous to us. The same thing applies to our lives with God, we are to stay away from the immoral things that are dangerous to us,
that includes reading explicit material, fornication, adultery, homosexuality, witchcraft, reading horoscopes, wearing provocative clothes, and even making yourself to look like your opposite gender. The underlying principle of the laws of these chapters was given by our loving Creator to protect His people from the immoral conduct of surrounding nations which would destroy their ability to fulfill His purposes.
In order to fulfill His purposes, we are to keep ourselves in the will of God. In order to be in the will of God we need to fulfill the promise we made to God. ““For the LORD thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy: that he see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee......When thou shalt vow a vow unto the LORD thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the LORD thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee. But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee. That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform; even a freewill offering, according as thou hast vowed unto the LORD thy God, which thou hast promised with thy mouth.” - Deuteronomy 23:14,21-23. We are to live our lives holy and uncorrupted. It is one thing to ask Jesus to save you, it is another to take a vow and say you want to live you life for Him, yet do nothing to live your life for Him. God will hold you to your promise, just like He fulfills His promises to give us the things we ask for we are to fulfill our promises to Him.
It all comes down to this, we are children of God, we did not just become a child of God by chance, He chooses us personally. We should be honored to be a child of God and in respect of that, do what He asks us to do. It is not easy to be a child of God, it takes a big responsibility and the power of God to make that happen. If know anything about Spider-man, you know the phrase, “With great power, comes great responsibility.” The same thing applies to a Christian, we are given the great power of God, through the Holy Spirit that dwells in us and that means we are greatly responsible for that power. Think about it. Would you do some of the things that you do knowing that Jesus was right there doing it with you? He is, in fact, right there with all who call on Him to save them. Jesus Said, “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” - Matthew 5:11-17. We are going to face persecution and all types of struggles, but the hardest struggle can not take us away from the one great thing that we have going for us and that is heaven. We are children of God and those who truly are Christians do shine and actually change people in the world. I have a brother that is a mechanic, when he first got his job at the place he is now he wondered why God sent him there, but ever since he started, they began closing on Sunday's, getting more business, and people are coming to him about Salvation. We may never understand sometimes why God places us where we are, but where ever it is it is for His purpose and those who seek to follow His will first always prosper. My brother got a raise and also works six days a week. God is always with us and will take care of all who follow His will.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and enjoy the rest of your week.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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Today is Monday March 08, 2010, and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapters 21-23. 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-8
Title: Bible Study: Following The Will of God
As a child of God we are to be an example for the world to follow, we are to show them that we can live a morally, uncorrupted life and still enjoy prosperity given by the Lord our God. The sad thing is that the majority of God's children do not take the world out of their lives and it is because of this that the world does not believe their lives can be changed with God in it. Following the will of God means that we are to eliminate anything that corrupts the mind, body, or soul. God addresses these issues to the Israelites, issues from disobeying parents, to fornication, to a man who rapes a woman, to adultery, and to prostitution are written in these three chapters. God stresses the importance of why He placed such harsh punishments upon the people, “And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear.” - Deuteronomy 21:21. God placed these punishments upon the people to keep the rest of them from falling into corruption. If they feared what was going to happen to them they stay away from it. Think about it. If you are warned to stay away from something that is dangerous, for example, an electrical outlet. You know it is full of electricity and if you place anything other than a plug in it that you would get a shock, so you avoid it. Of course, if you did not know that and stuck something is the plug you would get a big jolt and possibly lose your life. It is things like this that teach the rest of us to avoid things that are dangerous to us. The same thing applies to our lives with God, we are to stay away from the immoral things that are dangerous to us,
that includes reading explicit material, fornication, adultery, homosexuality, witchcraft, reading horoscopes, wearing provocative clothes, and even making yourself to look like your opposite gender. The underlying principle of the laws of these chapters was given by our loving Creator to protect His people from the immoral conduct of surrounding nations which would destroy their ability to fulfill His purposes.
In order to fulfill His purposes, we are to keep ourselves in the will of God. In order to be in the will of God we need to fulfill the promise we made to God. ““For the LORD thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy: that he see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee......When thou shalt vow a vow unto the LORD thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the LORD thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee. But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee. That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform; even a freewill offering, according as thou hast vowed unto the LORD thy God, which thou hast promised with thy mouth.” - Deuteronomy 23:14,21-23. We are to live our lives holy and uncorrupted. It is one thing to ask Jesus to save you, it is another to take a vow and say you want to live you life for Him, yet do nothing to live your life for Him. God will hold you to your promise, just like He fulfills His promises to give us the things we ask for we are to fulfill our promises to Him.
It all comes down to this, we are children of God, we did not just become a child of God by chance, He chooses us personally. We should be honored to be a child of God and in respect of that, do what He asks us to do. It is not easy to be a child of God, it takes a big responsibility and the power of God to make that happen. If know anything about Spider-man, you know the phrase, “With great power, comes great responsibility.” The same thing applies to a Christian, we are given the great power of God, through the Holy Spirit that dwells in us and that means we are greatly responsible for that power. Think about it. Would you do some of the things that you do knowing that Jesus was right there doing it with you? He is, in fact, right there with all who call on Him to save them. Jesus Said, “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” - Matthew 5:11-17. We are going to face persecution and all types of struggles, but the hardest struggle can not take us away from the one great thing that we have going for us and that is heaven. We are children of God and those who truly are Christians do shine and actually change people in the world. I have a brother that is a mechanic, when he first got his job at the place he is now he wondered why God sent him there, but ever since he started, they began closing on Sunday's, getting more business, and people are coming to him about Salvation. We may never understand sometimes why God places us where we are, but where ever it is it is for His purpose and those who seek to follow His will first always prosper. My brother got a raise and also works six days a week. God is always with us and will take care of all who follow His will.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and enjoy the rest of your 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
http://www.readytofollow.com/daily-bible-study
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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Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
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