Tag: promises of God

The Building Blocks of Our Faith

2 Corinthians 5:7
For we walk by faith, not by sight.

From time to time, we truly experience the exhilarating feeling of God’s presence in our lives. We cannot see God, but we know that He is with us. These moments are precious. These moments are important building blocks in the foundation of our faith. These moments are glimpses of things not seen, but things that hold everlasting promise. These are the moments that will carry us through our daily duties and trials when we do not feel the presence of God with us. These moments have eternal value.

On the other hand, the special moments that we experience in the flesh are only temporary. How can we put our faith in the things of the flesh that will be here today and gone tomorrow? How can we put our faith in the calamities of life? How can we put our faith in all those things that will be stripped away at our death?

Let us be governed by the things of eternal hope and not by the appearance and lure of present things. Let us walk by faith as we look to Jesus Christ for righteousness, peace, pardon, and eternal life. Let us live in the fullness of life offered by Our Savior. Let us live in confident expectation of the things that are to come. Let us live and act based on our faith which reveals to us that all the promises of God’s Holy Word are true.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the times that You allow us to experience Your presence in our lives. We pray that You will use those moments to build our faith in You. We pray that You will use those moments to strengthen us when our burdens are heavy and we do not feel Your presence. We ask, Lord, that we will be filled with joy even when You have called us to tedious tasks. May the Holy Spirit remind us how pleasing it is to You when we are obedient to Your calling in our lives. We pray that we will be living vessels of those moments in Your presence so that the world around us may experience who You are. May the strength of our faith draw others to Your Son, Jesus. We ask all these things in the name of our eternally faithful king, Jesus Christ.

The Unconditional Love of the Father

1 Corinthians 13:7
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

God is love. His love is unconditional and without end. His love for us is expressed explicitly through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus.

God’s love bears all things. Through His love for us, He provides the blood of His Son to wash away all of our iniquities. He forgives all of our sins.

God’s love believes all things to be good in accordance with His promises in His Holy Word. He views all His children in the best and the kindest manner. Because of the victory of the Cross, He does not accept the lies of the enemy against us.

God’s love provides us with hope in all things. Through His loving promises, we are given hope through all of our circumstances for a future that we cannot see. We are given hope that we will one day live in glory in His presence in His house. We are given hope that all will be right and well with us for all eternity.

God’s love endures all things. With patience and a loving spirit, He endures all of our failures in the flesh for the sake of the Gospel and the sake of His Son, Jesus Christ.

God expresses His love to us in all these ways so that we may love Him in return and share His love with the world around us. As vessels of the love that He has given us, we are capable of extraordinary service to those around us. We are capable of bearing all things that others bring against us. We are capable of enduring all of the attacks of the enemy. We are capable of believing in the eternal good of every man. We are capable of proclaiming hope to the world that is expressed through the perfect love and forgiveness that we have received from the Blessed Hope and Assurance, Jesus Christ.

Let us become vessels of the perfect love given to us by the Father through His Son. Let us show those around us how His love has changed our lives. Let us have the world know us by our expressions of His love.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your perfect love. We thank You that Your love flows to us without end. We exalt the name of Jesus, who is the complete expression of Your love. We pray, Father, for the Holy Spirit to guide us, instruct us and prepare our hearts so that we may be living testimonies of the character of Your love. May the world have hope because they hear us proclaim Your Good News and see the fullness of Your love in us. We ask all these things in the name of the precious Lamb of God, Jesus Christ.

Breaking Away from the Bondage in Our Lives

Jeremiah 31:25
For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.

What a tremendous promise we have from the Lord. The promise was first spoken to draw the Jews out of bondage back to their homelands and back to Himself. Through His prophet, Jeremiah, Almighty God was assuring the Jews that they would find a rest and joy in their new settlement if they set aside their idols and returned to Him.

The promise still holds true for all of us today as the Lord encourages us with His extraordinary promise to give us the strength that we need to break away from all the bondage in our lives. The promise includes drawing us back to Himself when we have separated ourselves from Him by living in the world and taking on personal idols that we have set ahead of the Lord. The promise includes giving us the spiritual inspiration that we need to renew our devotion to Him when it is lagging.

Through His incredible promise, He calls us to live in a higher place, a place where His presence brings us complete comfort, peace and satisfaction. He calls us to a place where the weary find rest and the sorrowful find joy. There is no other place except in Jesus Christ that we can find such a promise.

Let us take our weary souls before Our Father in heaven. Let us languish there and be replenished in body, mind and spirit.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for drawing us to Yourself. We bless the name of Jesus who provides all that we need to be one with You and one with Your Son. We pray that You raise up in us the desire to bring to You the fullness of love and devotion that You seek from us. Lift us up, Lord, to a higher place – a place that we cannot reach without You. We pray that Your Holy Spirit will strengthen us to leave behind the things of the world that we place ahead of our devotion to You. We ask all these things in the name of our Most High Savior, Jesus Christ.

He Will Finish Anything He Calls Us to Do

Matthew 16:21
From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.

Jesus fulfilled everything that He was called to do. Even though He was tested beyond human imagination, He never faltered once in His obedience to the plans of God for His life. Through the process, it was a blessing to us all that Jesus did not listen to the voice of others around Him. Peter specifically rebuked Jesus for proclaiming such a tragic ending to His life. Jesus let Peter know that he spoke Satan’s language when he suggested that Jesus step away from His mission.

It is very easy to say, “I give up. I cannot do it.” This is especially true when we allow others in our lives to suggest that the values of man should be given more weight than the callings of God upon our lives. In essence, if what we are pursuing is of God, then giving up is denying the promises of God Himself.

Jesus overcame all of His trials because He was one with the Father and He trusted in the promises of the Father. And indeed, He did rise on the third day, fulfilling all of God’s promises for mankind. In the same way, we are to be anxious in nothing for God promises to take care of our every need and He promises to finish anything that He has called us to do. Our victories are in fact complete before we are even aware of our calling to their pursuit.

Let us stand firmly on the promises of God Almighty. Just as Jesus did, let us surrender in complete obedience to God’s calling on our lives.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing Your Son to be the guarantor of Your promise of eternal life available to each of us. We exalt the name of Jesus for His complete obedience to His calling as Our Savior. We pray for the strength and guidance of the Holy Spirit so that we may be obedient to the completed purpose and plans that You have set aside for our lives. May we stand firmly on Your promises. We ask these things in the name of the One who secured our victories on the Cross, Jesus Christ.

Casting Our Burdens Upon the Lord

Psalm 55:22
Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

It is obvious from this verse that we are to have burdens in our lives. But God in His mercy promises us that He will not give a burden that is larger that the provision that He will grant to overcome the burden.

God gave His own Son a cup of sorrow and suffering that was so intense that Jesus sweat blood as He faced His upcoming crucifixion. But Jesus did as the verse commands, He cast His burden upon the Father. Thus He was provided with all He needed to face the Cross and rise from His trial in victory.

No affliction or tribulation is joyous. They are all troublesome. Some are much heavier than others. At times they even seem to gather together or to extend much longer that we would care to bear. The total of it all adds up to the burden we face. Our relief is to look to Jesus Christ who bore it all on the Cross and took it away from us.

Let us cast our burdens upon the Lord. Let us claim the promise of Our Heavenly Father that He will not let His righteous children fail. Let us rest upon His providence and promise. Let us rejoice in His faithfulness.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your promises that we can lean on as we deal with the cups of sorrow and suffering that we must swallow. We thank You for using our trials to build our faith in who You are. We thank You for insuring our victory through Your Son, Jesus. We thank You for insuring our righteousness through the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We pray for Your mercies to be granted us each day as You release fresh supplies of strength and comfort just as we need them to overcome our trials. We ask these things in the name of the One who gave His life for the ransom of many, our all sufficient Lord, Jesus Christ.

Biblical Precedent of Rebuilding Walls

Nehemiah 2:20
I answered them by saying, “The God of heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding, but as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem or any claim or historic right to it.”

Nehemiah was inspired by God to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem which were in ruin. Because God was with Him, Nehemiah was given complete authority and financial support to rebuild the walls by King Artaxerxes of Persia. When Nehemiah reached Jerusalem to begin the work, He encountered much resistance from the likes of Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem. Nehemiah quickly put them in their place and moved forward rebuilding the walls.

We have to be like Nehemiah when we rebuild the walls of our lives which are in ruin due to the sin in our lives. We can be assured that Satan will come to discourage us. We need to let Satan know that he has no claim nor historic right to interfere with the rebuilding of our lives as temples of Jesus Christ.

Further we need to stand firm not only for ourselves, but also for those around us. Knowing that we are in the favor of God who promises to complete the good work in us, we must seek to intercede not only for ourselves but also for our loved ones. The God of heaven will prosper all of us, protect all of us and insure that we all succeed in what He has called us to do.

Let us move forward depending on the God of our promises. Let us have no concern over what the enemy can bring against us. Let us press on confidently, knowing that no man can defeat us as we rebuild our lives and our families. The victory is ours through Jesus Christ.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your promise to complete Your good work in us. We bless the name of Jesus whose death on the Cross gives us victory over all evil. We rejoice in knowing that You will give us success in all that we do in Your name. We pray, Father, that Your Holy Spirit will strengthen us to stand firm against the enemy who comes to destroy us and our families. May our hearts be prepared to live in dependence upon You as we rebuild our lives as temples of the Living God. We ask all these things in the name of the One that dwells within us, Jesus Christ.

Our Daily Concerns Are God’s Concerns

Philippians 4:6
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

It is easy to read Philippians 4:6 and come away with the simple thought that God encourages us and desires for us to bring Him our prayer requests. This interpretation is absolutely true. But when we break it down, we find that God is saying much, much more to us.

First, and foremost, we are being taught to be anxious in nothing. Does that make any sense? Surely we all have daily concerns and cares that we need to attend to as good stewards of our provisions, our relationships and our own spiritual condition. God is aware of these due concerns, but He is giving us the command to trust in Him. He knows our needs better than we know our needs. He is actually calling on us to have peace and comfort when the world would suggest otherwise.

After first resting in the comfort of His promise, then we are urged to go to Him in prayer with our requests. But there is a stipulation attached as He commands that we bring our thanksgiving in advance of our requests. Why does He ask us to come with thanksgiving? Again, it is for our peace and comfort. When we bring our thanksgiving, we are reconciling with Him all the favor and blessing that He has provided in the past. This positions us to approach His Throne with the confidence that everything we ask for will be addressed and answered perfectly according to our needs, our real needs.

If we are in line with the passage to this point, then our thankful, angst free mindset will help us to meet the last command in this passage which is to let our requests be known to God – not to men. This is a not so subtle reminder that it is not our job to manipulate our circumstances through our own capability. Instead we are to depend on Our Heavenly Father for everything in our lives. In exchange for following His supplication process, peace will be our companion.

Let us go to Him in thanksgiving, adoration and trust. Let us rest in His peace as we wait for His provision.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your unconditional love and Your forgiveness through Your Son, Jesus. We ask forgiveness for coming to You so often with our needs alone, accompanied by a stark absence of our professed love for You and our expression of our sincere thanks for all that You provide. Teach us, Lord, how to seek Your presence in our lives. Teach us how to fully trust in You throughout each and every day. Teach us how to use our prayer lives to build our relationships with You. We ask all these things in the name of the One whose mercies and miracles never come to an end, Jesus Christ.

Enclosed in the Arms of Everlasting Love

1 Corinthians 10:12
Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.

We must stay on guard against the calling of our flesh and the attacks of the enemy. The weakness that we have in the flesh becomes more dangerous to us when we are indulgent in the things of the world. Therefore, we must be certain to check ourselves against our indulgences lest they will rise beyond our control.

A Christian’s security against sin rests in Jesus Christ alone. He provides ample supply of the oil that we need for our lamps to light our way. He gives freely of the strength that we will need to overcome the callings of our flesh. In Christ, we are enclosed in the arms of everlasting love. In Christ we stand on a foundation that will never fail. In Christ, we are kept by an almighty power that cannot be overcome.

Our biggest snare is our confidence that we can stand against our flesh and the enemy alone. We must be sure to maintain the flow of Christ’s strength in our weakness. The “Prince of Preachers”, Charles Spurgeon, offers the following guidance for maintaining our strength in the Lord. “Be much more in prayer. Spend longer time in holy adoration. Read the Scriptures more earnestly and constantly. Watch your lives more carefully. Live nearer to God.”

Let us guard against building up our confidence in our own abilities. Let us anchor our lives in the presence and promises of Jesus Christ. Let us stand on the Rock as our sure foundation.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for promising to perfect Your strength in our weakness. We exalt the name of Jesus who stands beside us and promises never to leave us. We rejoice in the presence of the Holy Spirit who provides us with the strength that we need to overcome every trial and temptation in our lives. We pray, Lord, that You will show us how to draw near to You through our prayers, our worship and our study of Your Holy Word. Help us to be constantly vigilant so that we become bond slaves to Jesus and not to our flesh. May we live in the fullness of Your grace. We ask all these things in the name of the founder and perfecter of our faith, Jesus Christ.

Wisdom and Understanding Concerning All Matters

Jeremiah 33:3
Call to me and I’ll answer you, and will tell you about great and hidden things that you don’t know.

The Word of God is very specific. He spoke the words in today’s passage directly to Jeremiah, but His promises are relevant for all men. Wisdom and understanding concerning all matters of life are available to us. All we have to do is ask Our Heavenly Father who loves us more than we can imagine.

Did you notice the little detail in the passage that He will give us answers to things that we do not know? Did you consider this works for things big and small? Need to know how to make a certain household repair that you find challenging, ask Him. Need to know what direction to take your business or your career, ask Him. Need some help in unravelling a complicated family issue, ask Him. He promises to provide answers that have been hidden from us. He will deliver answers for all these things at the time that He knows is perfect for us.

Did you notice that He requires us to call on Him to receive the promised blessing. Our responsibility in receiving this awesome blessing is being persistent in asking for wisdom. If we wait to call on Him when everything comes crashing down on us, we may not be able to handle all that God has ready for us. It is a building process. The Lord knows that we are not able to digest too much information at one time. He will feed us slowly as a baby is fed liquids until it is ready to move on to more solid foods. He will feed us in accordance to His will and plan for our lives. His “new knowledge” for us will be dispensed at the perfect time.

Let us be bold and persistent in asking for “great and hidden things.” Relying on what has been promised to us by Almighty God, in faith, let us give thanks for what is set aside for us before we receive it.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank you for providing the Holy Spirit to teach us all things, including secret things and inaccessible things. We humbly ask You to provide us the wisdom that we need to get through each day. We ask that each day You will build our understanding of who You are and what Your plan is for our lives. We rejoice in knowing that all things are possible through Your Son, Jesus. We ask all these things in the name of the One who determines our steps, Jesus Christ.

The Certainty of All the Promises of God

John 16:31
Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe?

The apostles spent three years with Jesus. Yet when He was ready to leave them, He had to take a lengthy amount of time explaining to them who He was. When He completed His explanation, He posed a question to them, “Do you now believe?”

Are we not just like the apostles? Even though we have spent years in prayer, years in the reading of the Word, years in worship and years in serving God, we manage to lose our sense of who Almighty God really is and the certainty of all the promises that He has given us through His Son, Jesus Christ. Sadly, as if Jesus Christ left the earth and left us to our own wiles, we turn toward the world for answers. We somehow find ourselves overlooking that our all-sufficient Lord provided us with a Wonderful Counselor who stands ready to supply our every need.

Let us be reminded that Jesus promised that His Holy Spirit would be with us and would comfort and guide us. To believe otherwise is to have a complete lack of faith. To believe otherwise is to deny what Jesus said He came to earth to do. “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

Let us take courage as Jesus commands us. Let us believe fully in the promises of Jesus Christ.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the comfort and guidance that You provide through Your Holy Spirit. We bless the name of Jesus who came to earth so that we may have peace and we may overcome the tribulations of the world. We pray, Father, that Your Holy Spirit will help us to dig deep into our relationship with You. May we dig so deep that we never again turn to the world for counsel without having gone to You first. Help us, Lord, to believe for more than we can imagine is possible through our own efforts. Teach us how to wait on You for Your good and perfect timing in all things. We ask these things in the name of the One that is with us until the end of the age, Jesus Christ.