This morning I am contemplating the things of faith to which we are tempted to become blinded. I recall the words of Jesus regarding Jerusalem and ask myself if this could happen to the Church, and to me specifically. Could my religion become my hindrance and remove God’s pleasure from my life?
What is the focus of our life? Is there something or someone that fascinates us beyond anyone, or anything we have ever known? Is it something of this world, or God and Jesus? Are we spiritually directed in our journey through life, or do worldly things fascinate us in our walk? Sometimes we are fascinated by the world but change our direction upon hearing the gospel, yet then again there are times when we are bullheaded and so misguided that we look towards the world without turning. Sometimes we are allowed to go our own stubborn way while at other times God or Jesus will physically take our faces in Their hands and turn us towards Them as They speak powerfully to us like Jesus did to Saul (Paul),
We live in a time of reconciliation, a time when we are being called almost hourly to make intercession through prayer for those who are different from us. Whether it be a difference in righteousness, finances, race, color, nationality, or faith... interceding is of God and through it we are taught to love one another.
Is Jesus pleased with us as intercessors? We might pray for many who suffer, but do we find it within ourselves to pray for sinners? Do we judge when we should be praying for them? Do we only want to intercede for the righteous at the expense of the sinner? Some of us find it hard to show mercy or pray that God show His grace to a sinner, but is that what we are told to do?
Are we making intercession for others? Do we even know how to pray in such a manner? I worry about this often as I watch us attempt to pray for one another. Are our hearts in worship as we lift up prayers for those in need? Is there anyone even attempting such prayer? There have been times throughout biblical history when there has been no true intercession. One of them is recorded in Isaiah, and we can read it in these words...
On the 24th of this month I wrote of my having encountered Jesus in front of a jewelry store. It was an unexpected encounter that taught me a great deal about myself and my faith. Today I would like to explore those sudden and unexpected appearances of Jesus further.
Today we are exploring our obedience to God and Jesus without questioning their instructions. We are looking at obeying them without the need for us to weigh their guidance against our own worldly beliefs and desires. We are looking at obedience based upon absolute trust.
This morning I am taking a look at how God calls us ever forward in our faith. We aren't meant to be stagnant creatures in our faith, nor in our life in general, but to remain constant travelers along a way that is taking us ever forward as it perfects, and increases us as we go.
My thoughts this morning are on purity. What does it mean to be pure of heart, and how is it possible to reach this state of righteousness? By becoming pure we know that we will see God, so let's explore this subject.
Yesterday we spoke of being the friend of Jesus in the context of placing him before us in all things, but today we look at what kind of friend the groom has chosen for His best man. What kind of friend should we truly be?
This morning I am mulling over the fact that we should always put Jesus ahead of our own wants and interests. My mind wanders to those times when I became first and didn't allow Him to take the lead in my life... or worse. Jesus has been declared by God Himself to be above all, and yet we take it upon ourselves to subvert His rule and pursue our own interests as if we held a higher office. We don't do this so much in coup as we do in our own weakness and selfishness.
Do you move along in your life of faith and feel like you are making great strides in sanctity only to have some trivial thing reawaken the old sinful person you used to be? Well, we all do, and our lives of faith are a constant struggle against our natural selves... so what can we do to overcome this?
I really love the story of Jesus appearing to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. This morning I am concentrating on what those disciples said after they finally realized that the man they had been traveling with was actually Jesus; "did not our heart burn within us."
This morning I am dwelling on a single phrase in the King James translation of the Bible... it is written by Paul to the Galatians, and in Galatians 2:20 it reads like this..."by the faith of the son of God." This is opposed to some modern translations which interpret it as "by the faith in the Son of God." So the question boils down to one word and two very different translations... "In" or "Of", and the implications are great.
Does God lead us in the way we should go, and if so, what awaits us at the end of our journey? This is what I ponder this morning. Do we know the Person of the one who leads us and if so, do we need to fully understand where He is leading us before we follow Him?