Date:
Thursday,
July 30, 2015
Chapters: Isaiah 21-25
Message Title: Live Life For Today
Hello My Friend,
With all the crazy things going on around the world, it can be pretty scary to even go out into the world. Even in our very own country it's no longer safe to go to the movies or church without the fear that it may be our last day. When you think about it, we really have no guarantee of tomorrow, all we have is today, and while the world falls apart, we who are saved need to live our lives in a way that brings others closer to Christ. “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.” - James 4:14,15.
Do you ever wonder why God gives us so many warnings, and some centuries ahead of time, even when nothing is going on? It's to get as many people to repent as possible before Christ does return. Through Isaiah, God foretells the destruction of Babylon during a time when they were very prosperous. Known as, “the desert of the sea,” it will be completely destroyed by the Medes and Persians, after the seventy years of the Jews captivity. “A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease. Therefore are my loins filled with pain: pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at the seeing of it. My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the night of my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me. Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink: arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield. For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.” - Isaiah 21:2-6.
Isaiah is overwhelmed by all that God was showing him, one nation after another being completely destroyed. It is very frightening to see glimpses of these things happening and what is to come of everything we worked so hard to achieve. We must remember that everything here on earth is temporary, everything of Christ is eternal. Of course, we must live and be the watchman, meaning tell others about Christ before He returns, but what we have waiting for us beyond this world is far more vaulable than anything we possess. “According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” - Philippians 1:20,21.
Now, while God does want us to live, He does not want us to live as the world, so many people go crazy at the thought of death that they do every immoral thing possible to say they live. This is where a lot of Christians fall into the world also. This is why we need a Saviour, our flesh is too weak to handle the pressures of life if we are not constantly at Jesus feet. Through Isaiah, God shows us that we need a Saviour all throughout His Word.
“And in that day did the Lord GOD of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth: And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die. And it was revealed in mine ears by the LORD of hosts, Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die, saith the Lord GOD of hosts. And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house. And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons. In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the LORD hath spoken it.” - Isaiah 22:12-14,22-25.
Our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ is as a nail in a sure place. The soul that is bought by the blood shed upon the cross He bore cannot die. He will set before the believer an open door, one in which no man can shut, and bring both body and soul to eternal glory. Those who reject Him will find that when He shuts the door none can open it and it will be shut forever. “Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are: Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.” - Luke 13:24-27.
While the destruction of the world is inevitable, we must not let it consume us, God has us here for one reason and one reason only, to further His Kingdom, as long as we are here, we are being used for that purpose. One day, all of this will be over and we will not have to fear anything, and we will thank God for all that He has done, including the chastening that we got once in a while.
“O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth. For thou hast made of a city an heap; of a defenced city a ruin: a palace of strangers to be no city; it shall never be built. Therefore shall the strong people glorify thee, the city of the terrible nations shall fear thee. For thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall. He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it. And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.” - Isaiah 25:1-4,8,9.
We are to live the way God wants us to live while we are here, not out of obligation, out of respect for Christ, who took our place on the cross. In the process of living right, we may even bring a few lost souls to know Him as well, after all, that's what it's all about in the first place. When all of this is over, we will have the victory. “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” - 1 Corinthians 15:57,58.
Today's Prayer: Jesus, Thank You for giving me the victory over death when I believed in and accepted You as my Saviour. I know that the only way I am escaping hell and the destruction of the world is because of my faith in You. I don't want to be a vapor that just vanishes and has nothing to leave behind, I want to leave behind a legacy, one that proves that You change lives and can change any life that comes to You, no matter what they have done. Lord, lead me and guide me, let Your Light shine through me so that others can come to know You and not fear what's going to happen in this crazy, corrupt world. In Your name, Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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Chapters: Isaiah 21-25
Message Title: Live Life For Today
Hello My Friend,
With all the crazy things going on around the world, it can be pretty scary to even go out into the world. Even in our very own country it's no longer safe to go to the movies or church without the fear that it may be our last day. When you think about it, we really have no guarantee of tomorrow, all we have is today, and while the world falls apart, we who are saved need to live our lives in a way that brings others closer to Christ. “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.” - James 4:14,15.
Do you ever wonder why God gives us so many warnings, and some centuries ahead of time, even when nothing is going on? It's to get as many people to repent as possible before Christ does return. Through Isaiah, God foretells the destruction of Babylon during a time when they were very prosperous. Known as, “the desert of the sea,” it will be completely destroyed by the Medes and Persians, after the seventy years of the Jews captivity. “A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease. Therefore are my loins filled with pain: pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at the seeing of it. My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the night of my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me. Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink: arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield. For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.” - Isaiah 21:2-6.
Isaiah is overwhelmed by all that God was showing him, one nation after another being completely destroyed. It is very frightening to see glimpses of these things happening and what is to come of everything we worked so hard to achieve. We must remember that everything here on earth is temporary, everything of Christ is eternal. Of course, we must live and be the watchman, meaning tell others about Christ before He returns, but what we have waiting for us beyond this world is far more vaulable than anything we possess. “According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” - Philippians 1:20,21.
Now, while God does want us to live, He does not want us to live as the world, so many people go crazy at the thought of death that they do every immoral thing possible to say they live. This is where a lot of Christians fall into the world also. This is why we need a Saviour, our flesh is too weak to handle the pressures of life if we are not constantly at Jesus feet. Through Isaiah, God shows us that we need a Saviour all throughout His Word.
“And in that day did the Lord GOD of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth: And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die. And it was revealed in mine ears by the LORD of hosts, Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die, saith the Lord GOD of hosts. And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house. And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons. In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the LORD hath spoken it.” - Isaiah 22:12-14,22-25.
Our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ is as a nail in a sure place. The soul that is bought by the blood shed upon the cross He bore cannot die. He will set before the believer an open door, one in which no man can shut, and bring both body and soul to eternal glory. Those who reject Him will find that when He shuts the door none can open it and it will be shut forever. “Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are: Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.” - Luke 13:24-27.
While the destruction of the world is inevitable, we must not let it consume us, God has us here for one reason and one reason only, to further His Kingdom, as long as we are here, we are being used for that purpose. One day, all of this will be over and we will not have to fear anything, and we will thank God for all that He has done, including the chastening that we got once in a while.
“O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth. For thou hast made of a city an heap; of a defenced city a ruin: a palace of strangers to be no city; it shall never be built. Therefore shall the strong people glorify thee, the city of the terrible nations shall fear thee. For thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall. He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it. And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.” - Isaiah 25:1-4,8,9.
We are to live the way God wants us to live while we are here, not out of obligation, out of respect for Christ, who took our place on the cross. In the process of living right, we may even bring a few lost souls to know Him as well, after all, that's what it's all about in the first place. When all of this is over, we will have the victory. “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” - 1 Corinthians 15:57,58.
Today's Prayer: Jesus, Thank You for giving me the victory over death when I believed in and accepted You as my Saviour. I know that the only way I am escaping hell and the destruction of the world is because of my faith in You. I don't want to be a vapor that just vanishes and has nothing to leave behind, I want to leave behind a legacy, one that proves that You change lives and can change any life that comes to You, no matter what they have done. Lord, lead me and guide me, let Your Light shine through me so that others can come to know You and not fear what's going to happen in this crazy, corrupt world. In Your name, Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Subscribe: Daily Devotion
Ready To Follow Jesus?: God's Price
Visit Our Website: I'm Following Jesus
Like Us On Facebook: I'm Following Jesus
Copyright © 2015 I'm Following Jesus, All rights reserved.
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