Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Saturday May 01, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of II Kings, 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 link onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-may-1
Title: Bible Study: God's Love For All
It is amazing the love that God has for His children, if one of His children has fallen away from Him He will stop at nothing to get them to see that He still loves them, but just wants them to turn from their wicked ways and return to Him. God will use any method possible to get His children to see that they need Him in their lives, sadly, they continue to reject Him, suffer from one trial after another, yet fail to realize that God is telling them to return to Me. God does not just stop at His children, after all He created all people, He wants all to know that He is true and that He loves them too. He gives every person ample amount of time before he/she leaves this earth to turn from the world and turn to Him. God will not be mocked, even by the world, especially if they mock one of His children. No matter how much one ignores or tries to hide from God, no matter how many false gods one tries to make up, and no matter how much one tries to improve their ways, they can not escape the fact that God does exist, He knows what is going on, and He is going to get all to see that He is in control and always will be.
The book of II Kings is the twelfth book of the Old Testament/Bible and contains twenty-five chapters. The author of the book is Jeremiah and it was written to the Israelites. The purpose of the book was to record how God dealt with the Israelites before the coming of Christ. What we are to learn from the book is that the Kingdoms of this world are only temporal, they rise and fall and are all under God's control.
After Ahab died, his son Ahaziah reigned, he was just as wicked as his parents and since the land was weak and without the strength of God, Moab, whom with David made peace with them, rebelled against Israel and once again they were at war. “Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease. But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? Now therefore thus saith the LORD, Thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed.” - II Kings 1:1-4. While in his home, Ahaziah fell and landed on some lattice that had broken, leaving him deathly hurt. Fearing the answer from God, he sought to inquire of a false god, Baalzebub, was literally a god of flies. Elijah is telling him through God, you know there is only one God that can help and He is still in Israel, because you seek help from a false god you will surely die. Sin weakens us and if we get too far into it we will fear God in a way that causes us to hide from Him rather than just confess and accept the consequences of our actions. “If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf. For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” - I Peter 4:14-17. We will all face judgment from time to time, but those who reject the God and turn to false gods will surely face far worse judgment than any Christian will suffer. God knows our hearts and knows whether or not we truly have accepted Christ into our lives or seek false gods for help.
Now, the ministry of this great prophet was finished and a new successor was about to take his place. Ten years before Elijah's departure in a chariot of fire, God told him that he would anoint a new prophet named Elisha and now this was taking place. At the time Elijah called Elisha to join him, Elisha was a prosperous young farmer, to accept Elijah's calling to be the one who would take over for him would mean that Elisha would have to forsake his family and friends as well as his financial securities. Elisha knew that obeying God's Word provided the true values of life and would lead him to spiritual trust, commitment to God, and his true desires, so he eagerly followed Elijah. Three times Elijah told Elisha to stay where he was, but he never backed down. “And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground. And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so. And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.” - II Kings 2:8-11. Elijah was testing Elisha's faithfulness to follow God regardless of any obstacles that got in the way. Many will try to stop us from doing what God calls us to do, but we must not let anyone keep us from following God's Will. Elisha pledged his faithfulness with a vow and was determined to continue with Elijah on his journey, before Elijah was pulled up into the whirlwind, Elisha asked for one thing, a double portion of God's spirit upon him. It is only the Spirit of God inside us that allows us to do the work that He calls us to do and without fear of what the world may do to us. We are to daily as God for the power to withstand the day and seek His will upon our lives.
As Christians, we truly are blessed to know the love of God as He sent His only Son to die for us so that we can live. His resurrection proves that God is alive and in control of all things and all who seek to follow His will, just like Jesus will overcome all obstacles we face, even physical death. Jesus Saves! Praise God! Remember, even those whom have accepted Christ and have fallen are still saved, but until they return to God they will face judgment. We will all face judgment, but Praise God for His mercy and grace and love for even a sinner like I. God loves all and will save all who turn to Him, through Jesus Christ. 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
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Friday, April 30, 2010
Bible Study: The Deception of Religion 04.30.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Friday April 30, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 21-22. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this link onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-april-30
Title: Bible Study: The Deception of Religion
Statistics say that one-third of the entire world considers themselves Christians and that over half of the world believe in God, currently there is over 6.8 billion people in the world, that means that 2.27 billion people call themselves Christians. Now, eliminate all the false religions, including Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons, and that number is drastically reduced. If you have been reading the recent messages, earlier in the week we learned that only one-third of Israel followed God when the Kingdom was divided into two nations, while the rest chose false religions. Sadly, false religion literally sends billions of people to hell. Being a Christian, Jew, Muslim, or Evolutionist does not escape the fact that heaven and hell does exist and that no one is exempt from hell, except those whom have with their mouths confessed that they are sinners and believe in and accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior. To be a Christian one needs to have accepted that they are a sinner, that there is a heaven and a hell, that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God, born of a virgin, and that He died, was buried, and resurrected three days later to save all believers from hell. If your religion denies any of those things, you are being deceived and need to seriously take a look at where you are headed. Religion does not get you to heaven, Jesus does!
Ahab was one of the most detestable, vile kings of the Old Testament, “But there was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the LORD, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.” - I Kings 21:25. The sad thing is that he knew who God was and that He was the only true and living God. Yet, he refused to listen to the countless warnings from godly prophets telling him to turn from his wicked ways. At the center of all this was his wife, Jezebel, he may have been the king, but she was the one in control. All Ahab had to do was whine to Jezebel and he got everything he wanted. Proven point when he tried to get a man to sell his vineyard that was next door to his house, the man refused, so, he cried about it to Jezebel. “And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him: for he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread. But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread? And he said unto her, Because I spake unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money; or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it: and he answered, I will not give thee my vineyard. And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth. And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people: And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king. And then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die.” - I Kings 21:4-10. This wicked woman had that man killed so that Ahab could get that property. The one time she uses God's name is to lie to the people get them to stone an innocent man. Wicked people may claim that they do not believe in God, but they will sure use His name to get what they want. All these false religious leaders have a harsh awakening upon them.
God gave Ahab a miraculous victory over the Syrian king Benhadad at Aphek (I Kings 20:28-30). Although he made no covenant with God, he did make a covenant with Benhadad, his enemy, after defeating him. He then released him with the assurance that he would return Ramothgilead, a strategic fortress near the border, but three years passed and it was still under Syrian control. Ahab invited Jehoshaphat, his daughter's father-in-law who was the king of Judah, to join him in a war to regain Ramothgilead. Looking for assurance, about four hundred of Ahab's paid prophets unanimously assured the two kings of a great victory, but godly Jehoshaphat felt uneasy about trusting these false prophets and asked Ahab if there was a godly prophet among them. Ahab reluctantly sent for Micaiah from prison, “And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd: and the LORD said, These have no master: let them return every man to his house in peace.
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil? And he said, Hear thou therefore the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left. And the LORD said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner....Now therefore, behold, the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the LORD hath spoken evil concerning thee. But Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near, and smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said, Which way went the Spirit of the LORD from me to speak unto thee?” - I Kings 22:17-20,23,24. Micaiah, was sent to prison earlier because of his faithfulness to God, all men and women of God were persecuted as long as Jezebel was queen. Though he was slapped, dragged back to prison, and threatened with cruel treatment, the faithful Micaiah persisted in maintaining the truthfulness of his message and called upon the people to bear witness to it. Micaiah's one vote of opposition was rejected by Ahab who fulfilled the very prophecy proclaimed by Micaiah. Neither fears nor favors tempted Micaiah to betray his calling, he refused to be intimidated into lying even by the presence of two kings and his four hundred false prophets. God proved the obedient prophet correct when Ahab was killed on the first day of battle, his false god, his false prophets, nor his wicked wife could save him from the judgment that had been placed against him.
False religions are nothing, but wicked leaders trying to make a profit off of lost people, people who are looking for comfort and someone to lift them up and encourage them when they are struggling. They rewrite the Bible to suit their needs, say a few words, claiming that it was from God, then drum up this new religion creating God who they want Him to be, while deceiving and taking innocent lives to hell with them. 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....For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” - John 3:5-7,16-18. No matter how good we are, how religious we are, unless you are born again you will not see heaven. Praise God that all it takes is for us to confess with out mouths that we believe in Jesus and that we are saved through Him and it is eternal, no matter if we never do anything for God.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and weekend.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Today is Friday April 30, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 21-22. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this link onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-april-30
Title: Bible Study: The Deception of Religion
Statistics say that one-third of the entire world considers themselves Christians and that over half of the world believe in God, currently there is over 6.8 billion people in the world, that means that 2.27 billion people call themselves Christians. Now, eliminate all the false religions, including Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons, and that number is drastically reduced. If you have been reading the recent messages, earlier in the week we learned that only one-third of Israel followed God when the Kingdom was divided into two nations, while the rest chose false religions. Sadly, false religion literally sends billions of people to hell. Being a Christian, Jew, Muslim, or Evolutionist does not escape the fact that heaven and hell does exist and that no one is exempt from hell, except those whom have with their mouths confessed that they are sinners and believe in and accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior. To be a Christian one needs to have accepted that they are a sinner, that there is a heaven and a hell, that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God, born of a virgin, and that He died, was buried, and resurrected three days later to save all believers from hell. If your religion denies any of those things, you are being deceived and need to seriously take a look at where you are headed. Religion does not get you to heaven, Jesus does!
Ahab was one of the most detestable, vile kings of the Old Testament, “But there was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the LORD, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.” - I Kings 21:25. The sad thing is that he knew who God was and that He was the only true and living God. Yet, he refused to listen to the countless warnings from godly prophets telling him to turn from his wicked ways. At the center of all this was his wife, Jezebel, he may have been the king, but she was the one in control. All Ahab had to do was whine to Jezebel and he got everything he wanted. Proven point when he tried to get a man to sell his vineyard that was next door to his house, the man refused, so, he cried about it to Jezebel. “And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him: for he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread. But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread? And he said unto her, Because I spake unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money; or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it: and he answered, I will not give thee my vineyard. And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth. And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people: And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king. And then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die.” - I Kings 21:4-10. This wicked woman had that man killed so that Ahab could get that property. The one time she uses God's name is to lie to the people get them to stone an innocent man. Wicked people may claim that they do not believe in God, but they will sure use His name to get what they want. All these false religious leaders have a harsh awakening upon them.
God gave Ahab a miraculous victory over the Syrian king Benhadad at Aphek (I Kings 20:28-30). Although he made no covenant with God, he did make a covenant with Benhadad, his enemy, after defeating him. He then released him with the assurance that he would return Ramothgilead, a strategic fortress near the border, but three years passed and it was still under Syrian control. Ahab invited Jehoshaphat, his daughter's father-in-law who was the king of Judah, to join him in a war to regain Ramothgilead. Looking for assurance, about four hundred of Ahab's paid prophets unanimously assured the two kings of a great victory, but godly Jehoshaphat felt uneasy about trusting these false prophets and asked Ahab if there was a godly prophet among them. Ahab reluctantly sent for Micaiah from prison, “And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd: and the LORD said, These have no master: let them return every man to his house in peace.
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil? And he said, Hear thou therefore the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left. And the LORD said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner....Now therefore, behold, the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the LORD hath spoken evil concerning thee. But Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near, and smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said, Which way went the Spirit of the LORD from me to speak unto thee?” - I Kings 22:17-20,23,24. Micaiah, was sent to prison earlier because of his faithfulness to God, all men and women of God were persecuted as long as Jezebel was queen. Though he was slapped, dragged back to prison, and threatened with cruel treatment, the faithful Micaiah persisted in maintaining the truthfulness of his message and called upon the people to bear witness to it. Micaiah's one vote of opposition was rejected by Ahab who fulfilled the very prophecy proclaimed by Micaiah. Neither fears nor favors tempted Micaiah to betray his calling, he refused to be intimidated into lying even by the presence of two kings and his four hundred false prophets. God proved the obedient prophet correct when Ahab was killed on the first day of battle, his false god, his false prophets, nor his wicked wife could save him from the judgment that had been placed against him.
False religions are nothing, but wicked leaders trying to make a profit off of lost people, people who are looking for comfort and someone to lift them up and encourage them when they are struggling. They rewrite the Bible to suit their needs, say a few words, claiming that it was from God, then drum up this new religion creating God who they want Him to be, while deceiving and taking innocent lives to hell with them. 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....For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” - John 3:5-7,16-18. No matter how good we are, how religious we are, unless you are born again you will not see heaven. Praise God that all it takes is for us to confess with out mouths that we believe in Jesus and that we are saved through Him and it is eternal, no matter if we never do anything for God.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and weekend.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Bible Study: I Am Here 04.29.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Thursday April 29, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 19-20. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this link onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-april-29
Title: Bible Study: I Am Here
It can be discouraging to be a Christian sometimes, it seems the more you try to do for God, the harder things get. Well, the truth is, they do at times. Satan is so mad at you for living and accomplishing things for God that he wants to try and get you to fall. If he can get a strong Christian to fall he has done his job, he wants to destroy every Christian and make them doubt not only their faith in God, but God Himself. During times like this we need more than ever to seek the comfort that can only come from God. Many Christian's make the mistake of thinking that God no longer communicates or produces the miracles we read about in the Bible. That is just another ploy of Satan to try to get you to doubt God. Let me tell you something, God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and He can do for us what He did for them. In fact, we have an advantage that the Israelites did not, we have the Holy Spirit within us 24/7, that is, all who have accepted Christ enjoy the presence of God with them at all times. All we have to do to reach God is to call on Him and just when we think we can not take it anymore, His still small voice whispers, “I Am Here.”
When God sent fire from heaven to burn up the wet sacrifice on the altar that Elijah had built on Mount Carmel, and when Elijah had the four-hundred and fifty false prophets executed, he expected the miracle to turn the nation from Baal worship and bring about a national repentance to return to the one and only True God. However, Elijah got the opposite of what he expected, when Jezebel found out what happened she vowed to have him killed. “And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time. And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.” - I Kings 19:1-4. Fearing for his life Elijah, disappointed and discouraged, fled south beyond the border of his country into the desert. Elijah thought that he failed to accomplish what God had called him to do, therefore he felt himself so unworthy that he wanted God to end his life. We can all get so discouraged in life that we just feel we would be no good to anyone, but the truth is God has a purpose for every person, He made each one of us for a reason and nothing we do for Him goes unnoticed.
God did not answer his prayer to end his life, He did not rebuke, punish, or condemn him for his disappointment, but instead gave him strength, rest, and food to continue forward in his mission. “And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat.... And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God. And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? ” - I Kings 19:5,8-13. Elijah traveled for forty days and forty nights across the dry desert of Sinai with an angel bringing him food and water. Then suddenly, the most demonstrative symbols of Gods mighty power, storm, earthquake, and fire, pass before him, but it was not in any of these great wonders that God appeared to him, but it was in a still small voice, where he told him to keep going and finish the job. It was Elijah's desire to see Israel be transformed back into one Kingdom for God, although that did not happen he did see seven thousand faithfully return to God.
God will use anyone to get his point across, even wicked people, He used a man named Benhadad to prove that God does not just exist in certain cities or countries, He exists and is in control of every thing. “And the servants of the king of Syria said unto him, Their gods are gods of the hills; therefore they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they....And there came a man of God, and spake unto the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the LORD, Because the Syrians have said, The LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the LORD. And they pitched one over against the other seven days. And so it was, that in the seventh day the battle was joined: and the children of Israel slew of the Syrians an hundred thousand footmen in one day. But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and there a wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men that were left. And Benhadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.” - I Kings 20:23,28-30. These foolish men thought that their gods, which were many and had their own particular charge and jurisdiction, were no different than the Syrian (Israel) gods. They failed to realize that there is only One God and He is everywhere. God was trying to show Ahab and the Northern Kingdom that He was in control by allowing them to defeat Benhadad. Sadly, he did not hearken to God and continued in his wicked ways.
All Christians have lonely hours, days of disappointment, and moments of hopelessness, times when their highest feelings have been misunderstood and purest motives met with doubt and ridicule. During times like these, we are to look beyond the circumstances we are facing and look to God. He will work every trial and every circumstance to strengthen us and do the work that He calls us to do, even if we have turned our backs on Him. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose....Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” - Romans 8:28, 37-39. God permits days when heavy burdens press hard upon our hearts and it seems that we are failures, but it is during these times that we can declare that nothing will separate us from the love of God and His love is shown in our trust and Salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. 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. 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
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to: devotion@readytofollow.com
Today is Thursday April 29, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 19-20. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this link onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-april-29
Title: Bible Study: I Am Here
It can be discouraging to be a Christian sometimes, it seems the more you try to do for God, the harder things get. Well, the truth is, they do at times. Satan is so mad at you for living and accomplishing things for God that he wants to try and get you to fall. If he can get a strong Christian to fall he has done his job, he wants to destroy every Christian and make them doubt not only their faith in God, but God Himself. During times like this we need more than ever to seek the comfort that can only come from God. Many Christian's make the mistake of thinking that God no longer communicates or produces the miracles we read about in the Bible. That is just another ploy of Satan to try to get you to doubt God. Let me tell you something, God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and He can do for us what He did for them. In fact, we have an advantage that the Israelites did not, we have the Holy Spirit within us 24/7, that is, all who have accepted Christ enjoy the presence of God with them at all times. All we have to do to reach God is to call on Him and just when we think we can not take it anymore, His still small voice whispers, “I Am Here.”
When God sent fire from heaven to burn up the wet sacrifice on the altar that Elijah had built on Mount Carmel, and when Elijah had the four-hundred and fifty false prophets executed, he expected the miracle to turn the nation from Baal worship and bring about a national repentance to return to the one and only True God. However, Elijah got the opposite of what he expected, when Jezebel found out what happened she vowed to have him killed. “And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time. And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.” - I Kings 19:1-4. Fearing for his life Elijah, disappointed and discouraged, fled south beyond the border of his country into the desert. Elijah thought that he failed to accomplish what God had called him to do, therefore he felt himself so unworthy that he wanted God to end his life. We can all get so discouraged in life that we just feel we would be no good to anyone, but the truth is God has a purpose for every person, He made each one of us for a reason and nothing we do for Him goes unnoticed.
God did not answer his prayer to end his life, He did not rebuke, punish, or condemn him for his disappointment, but instead gave him strength, rest, and food to continue forward in his mission. “And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat.... And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God. And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? ” - I Kings 19:5,8-13. Elijah traveled for forty days and forty nights across the dry desert of Sinai with an angel bringing him food and water. Then suddenly, the most demonstrative symbols of Gods mighty power, storm, earthquake, and fire, pass before him, but it was not in any of these great wonders that God appeared to him, but it was in a still small voice, where he told him to keep going and finish the job. It was Elijah's desire to see Israel be transformed back into one Kingdom for God, although that did not happen he did see seven thousand faithfully return to God.
God will use anyone to get his point across, even wicked people, He used a man named Benhadad to prove that God does not just exist in certain cities or countries, He exists and is in control of every thing. “And the servants of the king of Syria said unto him, Their gods are gods of the hills; therefore they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they....And there came a man of God, and spake unto the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the LORD, Because the Syrians have said, The LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the LORD. And they pitched one over against the other seven days. And so it was, that in the seventh day the battle was joined: and the children of Israel slew of the Syrians an hundred thousand footmen in one day. But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and there a wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men that were left. And Benhadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.” - I Kings 20:23,28-30. These foolish men thought that their gods, which were many and had their own particular charge and jurisdiction, were no different than the Syrian (Israel) gods. They failed to realize that there is only One God and He is everywhere. God was trying to show Ahab and the Northern Kingdom that He was in control by allowing them to defeat Benhadad. Sadly, he did not hearken to God and continued in his wicked ways.
All Christians have lonely hours, days of disappointment, and moments of hopelessness, times when their highest feelings have been misunderstood and purest motives met with doubt and ridicule. During times like these, we are to look beyond the circumstances we are facing and look to God. He will work every trial and every circumstance to strengthen us and do the work that He calls us to do, even if we have turned our backs on Him. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose....Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” - Romans 8:28, 37-39. God permits days when heavy burdens press hard upon our hearts and it seems that we are failures, but it is during these times that we can declare that nothing will separate us from the love of God and His love is shown in our trust and Salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. 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. 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
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to: devotion@readytofollow.com
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Bible Study: Strong Christian or Weak Christian 04.28.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Wednesday April 28, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 16-18. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this link onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-april-28
Title: Bible Study: Strong Christian or Weak Christian
As Christians we are God's representatives, that means we have a big responsibility to show those who live in the world just how important it is to know Jesus Christ. On top of that we are to be examples for them to follow so that can see that putting their faith in Him is more profitable than anything one can ever receive here on earth. Sadly, many Christians have mocked Christ and put God to shame by living ungodly lives and ignoring His Word. If we as Christians believe in Christ and have made a commitment to live our lives for Him, yet do not follow through, how is the world to know that their lives can be better upon knowing Him? As Christians, our attitude, words, and actions must declare to all that God alone is our true and infallible Source of all our needs. God will not be mocked, He proves not only in the Bible, but even today that He will not stand for His people to turn their backs on Him. Strong Christians stand by God think and thin, meaning no matter what is going on in their lives, they account it all in the will of God and keep their faith in Him, even when things look bleak. However, weak Christians are quick to run from God when the slightest problem arises.
When David was king, all of Israel was of one accord, they followed God and did so because David set the example for them to follow, he represented God as the One True God and for the most part all the kingdom feared God and it prospered because of it. Then, all it took was for Solomon to give in just a little bit by becoming friends with the Egyptians and because of that he and the people slowly stopped fearing God and started following the false gods introduced to them by forming relations with heathen nations. It took three years after Solomon's death for the kingdom to be split into two kingdoms. Two-thirds of Israel formed the Northern Kingdom, while the remaining formed the Southern Kingdom, where God resided. Not one king from the Northern Kingdom followed God, in fact, each king became more ruthless and evil then the last. After reading about one wicked king after another conspiring for power and control of the ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom we learn about Ahab. Ahab, was one of the most powerful kings ever to rule the Northern Kingdom. However, as a result of his marriage to Jezebel, a ruthless, wicked woman, who promoted the worship of Baal, the false god of her home land, he allowed her influence to rule the kingdom. “And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD above all that were before him. And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him. And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.” - I Kings 16:30-33. Much of the world today is in total chaos because nations continue to ignore God's warning and commands and continue to follow their false gods.
During Ahab's reign, it was unlawful to worship the one and only True God, so anyone caught worshiping God was executed, ordered by Jezebel. Regardless, there were a few that stood by their faith and continued to worship Him. Obadiah, was one of those men, “And Ahab called Obadiah, which was the governor of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly: For it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah took an hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.). And Ahab said unto Obadiah, Go into the land, unto all fountains of water, and unto all brooks: peradventure we may find grass to save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts. So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself. And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, Art thou that my lord Elijah?.... And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of the LORD shall carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall slay me: but I thy servant fear the LORD from my youth. Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the LORD, how I hid an hundred men of the LORD's prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water? And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here: and he shall slay me. And Elijah said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely shew myself unto him to day. So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him: and Ahab went to meet Elijah.” - I Kings 18:3-7,12-16. Although worship of God was forced underground, the Lord always has His faithful few and among them was Elijah and Obadiah, who dared to be bold for God regardless of the evil circumstances or consequences they faced.
Elijah gathered up all the people and challenged the four-hundred and fifty false prophets to call on their false gods to try to prove that there god existed. “Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men. Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.” - I Kings 18:22-24. For an entire day these false prophets frantically called upon the name of Baal with no success, they cried out to him, even cut themselves, until there was blood gushing out, to no prevail. Then Elijah called the people over to him, he repaired the altar, set up the sacrifice, and even told the people to pour twelve barrels of water onto the altar. Then he said a prayer to God and suddenly fire consumed the sacrifice and all the people knew that there was only One True God. Elijah illustrates how the power of God is released when we are obedient to His Word and pray. We all have the ability to see God's power released just as Elijah did, but we can not be lukewarm to God and expect answered prayer. By lukewarm, I mean things as only following the commands we want to follow, continued living in sin with the thought that Sunday morning church will be enough to seek forgiveness, and only seeking God when we want something from Him. God knows our hearts and while we might be saved from hell, our Salvation will not save us from His chastisement in order to get us to see what we are doing is wrong.
Today, ask yourself this question. Am I a strong Christian, who stands by God even when I am facing circumstances in my life or am I a weak Christian who runs from God the second things get a bit hard for me? We can all be strong Christians, our strength comes from the Lord Jesus Christ, He alone will help us, but we must first seek Him. You say you have been away from Him for a long time? It's okay, He loves you, just call on Him, repent and He will lead you in the right direction. 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
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Today is Wednesday April 28, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 16-18. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this link onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-april-28
Title: Bible Study: Strong Christian or Weak Christian
As Christians we are God's representatives, that means we have a big responsibility to show those who live in the world just how important it is to know Jesus Christ. On top of that we are to be examples for them to follow so that can see that putting their faith in Him is more profitable than anything one can ever receive here on earth. Sadly, many Christians have mocked Christ and put God to shame by living ungodly lives and ignoring His Word. If we as Christians believe in Christ and have made a commitment to live our lives for Him, yet do not follow through, how is the world to know that their lives can be better upon knowing Him? As Christians, our attitude, words, and actions must declare to all that God alone is our true and infallible Source of all our needs. God will not be mocked, He proves not only in the Bible, but even today that He will not stand for His people to turn their backs on Him. Strong Christians stand by God think and thin, meaning no matter what is going on in their lives, they account it all in the will of God and keep their faith in Him, even when things look bleak. However, weak Christians are quick to run from God when the slightest problem arises.
When David was king, all of Israel was of one accord, they followed God and did so because David set the example for them to follow, he represented God as the One True God and for the most part all the kingdom feared God and it prospered because of it. Then, all it took was for Solomon to give in just a little bit by becoming friends with the Egyptians and because of that he and the people slowly stopped fearing God and started following the false gods introduced to them by forming relations with heathen nations. It took three years after Solomon's death for the kingdom to be split into two kingdoms. Two-thirds of Israel formed the Northern Kingdom, while the remaining formed the Southern Kingdom, where God resided. Not one king from the Northern Kingdom followed God, in fact, each king became more ruthless and evil then the last. After reading about one wicked king after another conspiring for power and control of the ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom we learn about Ahab. Ahab, was one of the most powerful kings ever to rule the Northern Kingdom. However, as a result of his marriage to Jezebel, a ruthless, wicked woman, who promoted the worship of Baal, the false god of her home land, he allowed her influence to rule the kingdom. “And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD above all that were before him. And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him. And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.” - I Kings 16:30-33. Much of the world today is in total chaos because nations continue to ignore God's warning and commands and continue to follow their false gods.
During Ahab's reign, it was unlawful to worship the one and only True God, so anyone caught worshiping God was executed, ordered by Jezebel. Regardless, there were a few that stood by their faith and continued to worship Him. Obadiah, was one of those men, “And Ahab called Obadiah, which was the governor of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly: For it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah took an hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.). And Ahab said unto Obadiah, Go into the land, unto all fountains of water, and unto all brooks: peradventure we may find grass to save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts. So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself. And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, Art thou that my lord Elijah?.... And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of the LORD shall carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall slay me: but I thy servant fear the LORD from my youth. Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the LORD, how I hid an hundred men of the LORD's prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water? And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here: and he shall slay me. And Elijah said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely shew myself unto him to day. So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him: and Ahab went to meet Elijah.” - I Kings 18:3-7,12-16. Although worship of God was forced underground, the Lord always has His faithful few and among them was Elijah and Obadiah, who dared to be bold for God regardless of the evil circumstances or consequences they faced.
Elijah gathered up all the people and challenged the four-hundred and fifty false prophets to call on their false gods to try to prove that there god existed. “Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men. Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.” - I Kings 18:22-24. For an entire day these false prophets frantically called upon the name of Baal with no success, they cried out to him, even cut themselves, until there was blood gushing out, to no prevail. Then Elijah called the people over to him, he repaired the altar, set up the sacrifice, and even told the people to pour twelve barrels of water onto the altar. Then he said a prayer to God and suddenly fire consumed the sacrifice and all the people knew that there was only One True God. Elijah illustrates how the power of God is released when we are obedient to His Word and pray. We all have the ability to see God's power released just as Elijah did, but we can not be lukewarm to God and expect answered prayer. By lukewarm, I mean things as only following the commands we want to follow, continued living in sin with the thought that Sunday morning church will be enough to seek forgiveness, and only seeking God when we want something from Him. God knows our hearts and while we might be saved from hell, our Salvation will not save us from His chastisement in order to get us to see what we are doing is wrong.
Today, ask yourself this question. Am I a strong Christian, who stands by God even when I am facing circumstances in my life or am I a weak Christian who runs from God the second things get a bit hard for me? We can all be strong Christians, our strength comes from the Lord Jesus Christ, He alone will help us, but we must first seek Him. You say you have been away from Him for a long time? It's okay, He loves you, just call on Him, repent and He will lead you in the right direction. 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
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Bible Study: Keep Your Commitment 04.27.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Tuesday April 27, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 14-15. 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-april-27
Title: Bible Study: Keep Your Commitment
America is one of the youngest and smallest, countries around the world, but it one of the most powerful ones as well. Do you know why? Because it was built on the foundation of Christ. Christians came to this country to worship God the way the Bible said, without any criticism or chastisement. They made a commitment to follow Christ and they prospered because of it. Compare this land to the promised land of Canaan, which was given to God's people and they prospered too when they fulfilled their commitment to God. We are not much different, we are Christians, we follow Christ and that makes us God's people and He gave us this land so we can be free to worship Him and fulfill their commitment to God. Sadly, as the years have gone by our nation is changing from one nation under God to one nation under Satan. The land of the free is full of every thing the devil strives on to destroy a nation, it contains everything that God detests, false doctrine, false gods, adultery, homosexuality, and prostitution, to name a few, just as it did in Israel. The more you read the Old Testament the more you will start to see that we are headed in the same direction. In fact, at times you would think we are reading about something that is taking place today, proof that God's Word is of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Today, God is giving all nations a warning, keep your commitment to me or suffer the consequences.
Israel suffered tremendously over the sins that their kings committed, both the Northern and Southern Kingdoms broke their commitment with God and suffered the consequences. In the North, Jeroboam led the Israelites to sin when he set up two idol worship centers with golden calves. After several attempts to get him to turn from his wicked ways God got his attention by his oldest son, when he became seriously ill. All he had to do was admit to God what he had done and keep his commitment to Him, instead he disguised his wife as a peasant and sent her to Ahijah the prophet, in the Southern Kingdom, seeking assurance that their son would live. However, when she got there she would soon learn that the moment she stepped foot back into her city her son would die. “And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings. Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel, And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes; But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back: Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone....Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.” - I Kings 14:6-10,12. Jeroboam's sin did not just cause him to suffer, but his son, and all of the Northern Kingdom. He was the example to follow, the one that was to show the people to live a godly life, instead he did the opposite and even introduced them to false gods, causing them to sin as well. All leaders of false religions and churches need to heed the warning from God, He is angry and will not hesitate to cast them all away. It is very important as Christians that we do not get ourselves caught up in false religions and churches that are not set on the foundation of the Word of God. Anyone in the midst of these will suffer as well.
In the South, Rehoboam lead the people just as his father Solomon did, since he allowed false religion in Jerusalem he became tolerant of it as well, in fact allowing even more than Solomon ever did, making him worse than his father. “And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done. For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree. And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel. And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem: And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.” - I Kings 14:21-26. It was bad enough that they broke their commitment to God, what made Him even more angry was that they did these things in Jerusalem, the city God had chosen for His Temple and His worship only. Because of their sin, God withdrew His blessings and protection from Judah and the kingdom was not only emptied of all its wealth, but was now under the control of Egypt.
We are all created in the image of God, so just as we have all these emotions in us, He has them as well, He feels love, He grieves, He gets angry, and He gets jealous, especially if we commit adultery with Him. Yes, we can commit adultery with God. Think about a marriage, it is a commitment to become one with each other and stay faithful to each other for life, if your spouse is hanging out with someone you know is after them, you become angry and jealous and react accordingly. When we make a commitment to God by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior we are becoming one with Christ and saying that we will remain faithful to Him for life. So, if we mix religions or continue to do things that are an abomination to God we are committing adultery with Him and making Him jealous. Families and kingdoms are ruined by sin. If great men do wickedly, they draw many others, both into the guilt and punishment. The condemnation of those will be severest, who must answer, not only for their own sins, but for sins others have been drawn into, and kept in, by them. “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” - Galatians 5:19-25. It is time for all Christians to keep their commitment to God, and remove all the works of the flesh, follow the Word of God, and walk in the Spirit. It is only than that we will truly be blessed.
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
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Today is Tuesday April 27, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 14-15. 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-april-27
Title: Bible Study: Keep Your Commitment
America is one of the youngest and smallest, countries around the world, but it one of the most powerful ones as well. Do you know why? Because it was built on the foundation of Christ. Christians came to this country to worship God the way the Bible said, without any criticism or chastisement. They made a commitment to follow Christ and they prospered because of it. Compare this land to the promised land of Canaan, which was given to God's people and they prospered too when they fulfilled their commitment to God. We are not much different, we are Christians, we follow Christ and that makes us God's people and He gave us this land so we can be free to worship Him and fulfill their commitment to God. Sadly, as the years have gone by our nation is changing from one nation under God to one nation under Satan. The land of the free is full of every thing the devil strives on to destroy a nation, it contains everything that God detests, false doctrine, false gods, adultery, homosexuality, and prostitution, to name a few, just as it did in Israel. The more you read the Old Testament the more you will start to see that we are headed in the same direction. In fact, at times you would think we are reading about something that is taking place today, proof that God's Word is of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Today, God is giving all nations a warning, keep your commitment to me or suffer the consequences.
Israel suffered tremendously over the sins that their kings committed, both the Northern and Southern Kingdoms broke their commitment with God and suffered the consequences. In the North, Jeroboam led the Israelites to sin when he set up two idol worship centers with golden calves. After several attempts to get him to turn from his wicked ways God got his attention by his oldest son, when he became seriously ill. All he had to do was admit to God what he had done and keep his commitment to Him, instead he disguised his wife as a peasant and sent her to Ahijah the prophet, in the Southern Kingdom, seeking assurance that their son would live. However, when she got there she would soon learn that the moment she stepped foot back into her city her son would die. “And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings. Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel, And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes; But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back: Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone....Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.” - I Kings 14:6-10,12. Jeroboam's sin did not just cause him to suffer, but his son, and all of the Northern Kingdom. He was the example to follow, the one that was to show the people to live a godly life, instead he did the opposite and even introduced them to false gods, causing them to sin as well. All leaders of false religions and churches need to heed the warning from God, He is angry and will not hesitate to cast them all away. It is very important as Christians that we do not get ourselves caught up in false religions and churches that are not set on the foundation of the Word of God. Anyone in the midst of these will suffer as well.
In the South, Rehoboam lead the people just as his father Solomon did, since he allowed false religion in Jerusalem he became tolerant of it as well, in fact allowing even more than Solomon ever did, making him worse than his father. “And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done. For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree. And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel. And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem: And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.” - I Kings 14:21-26. It was bad enough that they broke their commitment to God, what made Him even more angry was that they did these things in Jerusalem, the city God had chosen for His Temple and His worship only. Because of their sin, God withdrew His blessings and protection from Judah and the kingdom was not only emptied of all its wealth, but was now under the control of Egypt.
We are all created in the image of God, so just as we have all these emotions in us, He has them as well, He feels love, He grieves, He gets angry, and He gets jealous, especially if we commit adultery with Him. Yes, we can commit adultery with God. Think about a marriage, it is a commitment to become one with each other and stay faithful to each other for life, if your spouse is hanging out with someone you know is after them, you become angry and jealous and react accordingly. When we make a commitment to God by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior we are becoming one with Christ and saying that we will remain faithful to Him for life. So, if we mix religions or continue to do things that are an abomination to God we are committing adultery with Him and making Him jealous. Families and kingdoms are ruined by sin. If great men do wickedly, they draw many others, both into the guilt and punishment. The condemnation of those will be severest, who must answer, not only for their own sins, but for sins others have been drawn into, and kept in, by them. “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” - Galatians 5:19-25. It is time for all Christians to keep their commitment to God, and remove all the works of the flesh, follow the Word of God, and walk in the Spirit. It is only than that we will truly be blessed.
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
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Monday, April 26, 2010
Bible Study: Full Armor of God 04.26.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Monday April 26, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 12-13. 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-april-26
Title: Bible Study: Full Armor of God
As Christians we need to be careful of the advice we get, even from those Christians who may seem older or wiser. While it is a good thing to have Bible studies and church to teach us the Word of God, it is important that we read the Scriptures ourselves. This is the only way that we can discern whether or not what we are hearing from others is truly from the Word of God. Do you know why there are so many different religions and versions of the Bible out there? It is because people want God to be what they want Him to be. They do not want to live by the true Word of God, so, they make things up, create a book with a little bit of the truth in it, and lie to the people, saying this is from God. What they are really doing is hurting people and sadly many people die and end up in hell every day because of their false doctrine. It is important that we all learn the truth so we are guarded with the full Armor of God.
After the death of king Solomon, his son Rehoboam inherited the kingdom, power, and a treasury full of wealth from his father. Sadly, he took the advice of his friends rather than the older men that followed Solomon and knew how he was first hand. “And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;) That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.... And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people? And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever. But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him:” - I Kings 12:1-4,8-10. Rehoboam foolishly took his friends advice, notice that they said make the yoke (burden) heavy upon the people, but make our yoke lighter. We always have to be careful of advice that gives others a personal advantage. This decision caused ten of the twelve tribes to immediately form the Northern Kingdom of Israel with Jeroboam as king, just as the prophet Ahijah foretold long before Solomon's death (see chapter 11).
Now, Jeroboam had his own problems to deal with, he was now king of the Northern Kingdom, but there was one problem, the Temple was in Jerusalem, the only place in which they were to offer worship sacrifices to God. Fearing that he would lose control of the Northern Kingdom, he foolishly had two altars built within the kingdom. This violated the Word of God that clearly commanded that all worship sacrifices be conducted at the Temple in Jerusalem. Of course this did not fly over too well with God so He sent a young prophet from Judah to confront him. Little did this young prophet know that that trip would cause him to make one wrong decision that would end his life. After this young man rejected all the bribes of the king and went on his way as God commanded he ran into an old prophet, who influenced him to go against what God told him. “He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him. So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water. And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the LORD came unto the prophet that brought him back: And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee, But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the Lord did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers. And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, to wit, for the prophet whom he had brought back. And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the lion also stood by the carcase.” - I Kings 13:18-24. Instead of listening to the Word of God he listened to an old prophet who lied to him and because of that the man lost his life.
The greatest danger to the Church is not the outside world, but in wicked, fundamentally sound believers who, like the old prophet, lie to get people out of the will of God. We need to be on constant guard of those who are quick to offer help or give advice that goes against the will of God. We must be aware of the influence of those who should know the right answers, but whose daily conduct and conversation reveals a life that is rather questionable. It is not difficult to recognize obvious sins such as theft, murder, or adultery and reject them, but we must also be aware of the advice or activities of friends that would get us sidetracked from doing what God has called us to do, even when it seems to be only temporary. Satan loves to make a Christian fall because it weakens the worlds faith in trusting God. To know the truth and to guard ourselves we need to stand firm in the Word of God, it is the only way we can guard ourselves from so called friends and good samaritans who cause us to fall and go against God through Satan. We are to daily, “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.” - Ephesians 6:11-16.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and have an awesome week.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Today is Monday April 26, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 12-13. 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-april-26
Title: Bible Study: Full Armor of God
As Christians we need to be careful of the advice we get, even from those Christians who may seem older or wiser. While it is a good thing to have Bible studies and church to teach us the Word of God, it is important that we read the Scriptures ourselves. This is the only way that we can discern whether or not what we are hearing from others is truly from the Word of God. Do you know why there are so many different religions and versions of the Bible out there? It is because people want God to be what they want Him to be. They do not want to live by the true Word of God, so, they make things up, create a book with a little bit of the truth in it, and lie to the people, saying this is from God. What they are really doing is hurting people and sadly many people die and end up in hell every day because of their false doctrine. It is important that we all learn the truth so we are guarded with the full Armor of God.
After the death of king Solomon, his son Rehoboam inherited the kingdom, power, and a treasury full of wealth from his father. Sadly, he took the advice of his friends rather than the older men that followed Solomon and knew how he was first hand. “And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;) That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.... And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people? And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever. But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him:” - I Kings 12:1-4,8-10. Rehoboam foolishly took his friends advice, notice that they said make the yoke (burden) heavy upon the people, but make our yoke lighter. We always have to be careful of advice that gives others a personal advantage. This decision caused ten of the twelve tribes to immediately form the Northern Kingdom of Israel with Jeroboam as king, just as the prophet Ahijah foretold long before Solomon's death (see chapter 11).
Now, Jeroboam had his own problems to deal with, he was now king of the Northern Kingdom, but there was one problem, the Temple was in Jerusalem, the only place in which they were to offer worship sacrifices to God. Fearing that he would lose control of the Northern Kingdom, he foolishly had two altars built within the kingdom. This violated the Word of God that clearly commanded that all worship sacrifices be conducted at the Temple in Jerusalem. Of course this did not fly over too well with God so He sent a young prophet from Judah to confront him. Little did this young prophet know that that trip would cause him to make one wrong decision that would end his life. After this young man rejected all the bribes of the king and went on his way as God commanded he ran into an old prophet, who influenced him to go against what God told him. “He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him. So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water. And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the LORD came unto the prophet that brought him back: And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee, But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the Lord did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers. And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, to wit, for the prophet whom he had brought back. And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the lion also stood by the carcase.” - I Kings 13:18-24. Instead of listening to the Word of God he listened to an old prophet who lied to him and because of that the man lost his life.
The greatest danger to the Church is not the outside world, but in wicked, fundamentally sound believers who, like the old prophet, lie to get people out of the will of God. We need to be on constant guard of those who are quick to offer help or give advice that goes against the will of God. We must be aware of the influence of those who should know the right answers, but whose daily conduct and conversation reveals a life that is rather questionable. It is not difficult to recognize obvious sins such as theft, murder, or adultery and reject them, but we must also be aware of the advice or activities of friends that would get us sidetracked from doing what God has called us to do, even when it seems to be only temporary. Satan loves to make a Christian fall because it weakens the worlds faith in trusting God. To know the truth and to guard ourselves we need to stand firm in the Word of God, it is the only way we can guard ourselves from so called friends and good samaritans who cause us to fall and go against God through Satan. We are to daily, “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.” - Ephesians 6:11-16.
Enjoy the rest of your day/night and have an awesome week.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Visit: I'm Following Jesus!
http://www.readytofollow.com
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Bible Study: True Measure of Success 04.25.10
Hello My Friend/Guest,
Today is Sunday April 25, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 9-11. 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-april-25
Title: Bible Study: True Measure of Success
God blesses us all with wisdom, skills, and talents to do and become anything we want, regardless of whether or not we choose to follow Him. Now, successful people of the world will tell you that they made themselves a success and have everything they need so they do not need God. Successful Christians on the other hand know that God made them successful and give Him the glory for the things that He has done for them. What separates children of God from the world is their commitment and obedience to God. God wants to bless His children abundantly for their standing by Him through and beyond their success and He does. However, if Christians are not careful they too can become like the world and feel they no longer need God and in the end learn the hard way that our true measure of success comes only from our relationship with God.
King Solomon was the most successful king of all time, he not only possessed great wisdom, he was wealthy and looked highly upon by the rest of the world. The Lord gave Solomon special privileges far exceeding those of any other kings, but His continued blessings were conditional. Once again, God spoke to Solomon in a dream, “That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon. And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually. And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:” - I Kings 9:2-7. God is speaking to Solomon about the huge prayer that he said and now He is putting him to the test. He tells Solomon if he wants to continue a successful life and one for his children he needed to follow Him with all his heart, just as his father David did. He also gives him a warning, should he disregard His commands, He would destroy the nation of Israel. God promises to answer our prayers, but they come with a condition that we obey and remain committed to Him.
Solomon disregarded God's warning and did everything he was not to do as king, “So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom. And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year. And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem.” - I Kings 10:23-26. God said that Israel's future kings should not multiply wealth, horses, or wives for themselves (Deuteronmy 17:14-20), but Solomon multiplied all three. In disregard for the Word of God, Solomon lived in an atmosphere of unparalleled luxury, including marrying seven hundred women and having three hundred girlfriends, “But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites: Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.” - I Kings 11:1-4. Did Solomon assume that building the most sacred Temple in history, praying the longest prayer, and offering the most sacrifices meant that God would overlook his self-centered life? Solomon deceive himself into thinking that, as king, he could ignore the Word of God in his personal life and still see His blessings? His pleasure driven life eventually became his downfall, the underlying corrupting influences of his wealth, worldly policies, many pagan wives, and ignoring the Word of God not only destroyed his relationship with God, it also destroyed the foundation of David's kingdom.
What happened to Solomon can happen to anyone who allows physical pleasure, riches, lust, or any other thing to crowd out their opportunities to give their best to Christ. We must all realize that our success comes from God and just as He can give it to us, He can take it away if we are not obedient to Him. Before Solomon died he wrote the book of Ecclesiastes, “And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith. I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit. That which is crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered. I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I am come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all they that have been before me in Jerusalem: yea, my heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge. And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.” - Ecclesiastes 1:13-17. The measure of success is not by how many people we know, how wealthy we are, or how many things we possess, it comes from God and any of it obtained out of His will will fail. God gives us great gifts, it is time that we acknowledge all of them as His and use them according to His will. Jesus Said, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” - Matthew 6:19-21. Our true success comes from knowing Christ as our Lord and Savior, He is our treasure and what we receive here on earth is only temporary, but what we receive from Him is eternal life, the most valuable treasure we will ever receive.
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
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Today is Sunday April 25, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of I Kings, chapters 9-11. 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-april-25
Title: Bible Study: True Measure of Success
God blesses us all with wisdom, skills, and talents to do and become anything we want, regardless of whether or not we choose to follow Him. Now, successful people of the world will tell you that they made themselves a success and have everything they need so they do not need God. Successful Christians on the other hand know that God made them successful and give Him the glory for the things that He has done for them. What separates children of God from the world is their commitment and obedience to God. God wants to bless His children abundantly for their standing by Him through and beyond their success and He does. However, if Christians are not careful they too can become like the world and feel they no longer need God and in the end learn the hard way that our true measure of success comes only from our relationship with God.
King Solomon was the most successful king of all time, he not only possessed great wisdom, he was wealthy and looked highly upon by the rest of the world. The Lord gave Solomon special privileges far exceeding those of any other kings, but His continued blessings were conditional. Once again, God spoke to Solomon in a dream, “That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon. And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually. And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:” - I Kings 9:2-7. God is speaking to Solomon about the huge prayer that he said and now He is putting him to the test. He tells Solomon if he wants to continue a successful life and one for his children he needed to follow Him with all his heart, just as his father David did. He also gives him a warning, should he disregard His commands, He would destroy the nation of Israel. God promises to answer our prayers, but they come with a condition that we obey and remain committed to Him.
Solomon disregarded God's warning and did everything he was not to do as king, “So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom. And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year. And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem.” - I Kings 10:23-26. God said that Israel's future kings should not multiply wealth, horses, or wives for themselves (Deuteronmy 17:14-20), but Solomon multiplied all three. In disregard for the Word of God, Solomon lived in an atmosphere of unparalleled luxury, including marrying seven hundred women and having three hundred girlfriends, “But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites: Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.” - I Kings 11:1-4. Did Solomon assume that building the most sacred Temple in history, praying the longest prayer, and offering the most sacrifices meant that God would overlook his self-centered life? Solomon deceive himself into thinking that, as king, he could ignore the Word of God in his personal life and still see His blessings? His pleasure driven life eventually became his downfall, the underlying corrupting influences of his wealth, worldly policies, many pagan wives, and ignoring the Word of God not only destroyed his relationship with God, it also destroyed the foundation of David's kingdom.
What happened to Solomon can happen to anyone who allows physical pleasure, riches, lust, or any other thing to crowd out their opportunities to give their best to Christ. We must all realize that our success comes from God and just as He can give it to us, He can take it away if we are not obedient to Him. Before Solomon died he wrote the book of Ecclesiastes, “And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith. I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit. That which is crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered. I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I am come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all they that have been before me in Jerusalem: yea, my heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge. And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.” - Ecclesiastes 1:13-17. The measure of success is not by how many people we know, how wealthy we are, or how many things we possess, it comes from God and any of it obtained out of His will will fail. God gives us great gifts, it is time that we acknowledge all of them as His and use them according to His will. Jesus Said, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” - Matthew 6:19-21. Our true success comes from knowing Christ as our Lord and Savior, He is our treasure and what we receive here on earth is only temporary, but what we receive from Him is eternal life, the most valuable treasure we will ever receive.
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
Do You Know That You Are Going to Heaven? You Can Know.
Go to: I'm Ready to Get Saved
http://www.readytofollow.com/salvation
Want To Receive These Devotions in Your Email?
Send me a blank email with the word Subscribe in the Title to:
devotion@readytofollow.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)