CLEARLY

I am blessed to live in an area where God can clearly be seen. The mountains that surround me on three sides speak of His mighty power. The vast open spaces speak of His eternal nature. He shows His love by providing water from beneath the surface of the earth. God is unmistakably here.

Why then do so many refuse to recognize His presence? How can anyone deny His existence? How can so many that claim to be His followers act as though He were not here? Listen to what Paul has to say to the church at Rome…

¹⁸For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, ¹⁹because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. ²⁰For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. Romans 1:18 - 20 (NASB)

We are clearly without excuse and in danger of incurring the wrath of the mighty God who caused a flood to come upon the earth, the same powerful God who destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah with fire and brimstone.

Let us instead declare the greatness of God as the songwriter so aptly put it…

O Lord my God when I in awesome wonder, consider all the worlds
Thy hands have made. I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder; Thy pow'r thru'out the universe displayed.

Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee. How great Thou art.
How great Thou art. Then sings my soul my Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art. How great Thou art

When thru the woods and forest glades I wander, and hear the birds
sing sweetly in the trees. When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur
and hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze.

And when I think that God His Son not sparing, sent Him to die I scarce can take it in. That on the cross my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin.

When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation and take me home
what joy shall fill my heart. Then I shall bow in humble adoration and there proclaim, My God how great Thou art.

© 1941, 1953, 1955 Stuart K. Hine, Renewed 1981 Manna Music, Inc. ARR UBP of Manna Music, Inc. (35255 Brooten Road, Pacific City, OR 97135) CCLI# 2330071

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

BEFORE

Troubles come into everyone’s life at some point or another. So often, we try to fight our own battles rather than trusting in the Lord. Here’s a fantastic passage from God’s Word that shows a better way!

Jehoshaphat stood before the community of Judah and Jerusalem in front of the new courtyard at the Temple of the LORD. ⁶He prayed, “O LORD, God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you! 2 Chronicles 20:5 - 6 (NLT)

Then Jahaziel, a prophet of the Lord spoke,

He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. 2 Chronicles 20:15 (NLT)

The response of the King on hearing God’s word was to

WORSHIP…

Then King Jehoshaphat bowed low with his face to the ground. And all the people of Judah and Jerusalem did the same, worshiping the LORD. 2 Chronicles 20:18 (NLT)

Trusting that God would do what His word had foretold they sang

PRAISES OF THANKSGIVING…

After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the LORD and praising him for his holy splendor. This is what they sang: “Give thanks to the LORD; his faithful love endures forever!” 2 Chronicles 20:21 (NLT)

The faith they had in God’s word was remarkable. God rewarded their faith

PROMISE was FULIFILLED

²²At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the LORD caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. ²⁴So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped. 2 Chronicles 20:22,24 (NLT)

Trust God with your battles. Listen to His word (the Bible). Worship Him and sing praises of thanksgiving BEFORE you see the results and He will reward your trust in Him.

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RESPONSIBILITY

I have seen discipline in the family change greatly during my lifetime (wow, that makes me sound old!). Spanking used to be part of the parenting “repertoire” but civil liberties or child abuse laws (?) have changed all that.

Is discipline in the church being changed from what God intended as well? Let’s see what Paul has to say in his first letter to the church at Corinth.

¹²It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. ¹³God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.” 1 Corinthians 5:12 - 13 (NLT)

The Old Testament reference (“Scriptures”) here is Deuteronomy 17:7. God is talking about someone who violates the covenant He has made with them and in verse 3 of chapter 17 and says, “For instance, they might serve other gods or worship the sun, the moon, or any of the stars—the forces of heaven—which I have strictly forbidden.” He goes on to say, that they should be put to death by stoning! Now that ought to make us extremely grateful for God’s grace!

The last part of verse 7 (Deuteronomy 17) is what Paul has referred to in our main passage for today. It says, “In this way, you will purge the evil from among you.”

Obviously God took evil (sin) among His people seriously and that is the message Paul is trying to convey to the church at Corinth and the Church today. The problem is we tend to overlook things like that because we don’t “want” to offend a particular person. In the end though, we offend God.

¹¹ My child, don’t reject the LORD’s discipline,

and don’t be upset when he corrects you.

¹² For the LORD corrects those he loves,

just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.

Proverbs 3:11 - 12 (NLT)

“Wait,” you say, “that is speaking of the LORD’s discipline, not our church.” WHOSE CHURCH? The Church is the body of Christ and Jesus is the head of that body.

We have a responsibility to God to make sure that His body, what we call church, is “clean and pure.”

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EYES

American Idol is a huge smash on television. Now there are other shows coming out where different people (bands, etc.) compete for things like recording contracts and more.

Contests or talent shows like that are nothing new. Ed Sullivan used to showcase different talents. The Miss America Pageant and others like it have been around for years.

If we place ourselves in the spotlight, there are always eyes trained upon us to compare us to others.

There is one set of eyes that I want to please. It has nothing to do with outward appearance or how well I sing, but with my inner most thoughts and desires…

The eyes of the LORD search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. 2 Chronicles 16:9a (NLT)

My prayer for you today is that the Lord would strengthen you as He gazes upon a heart that is “sold out” to Him.

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HARMONY

I’ve been a music lover and musician for as long as I can remember. You and I may not have the same taste in music, but we can usually agree on what good harmony is.

When I was going to college, I had to listen to a lot of 20^th Century music that was often devoid of traditional harmony. While I can say it took skill to write, put it all together and perform it, I can say with much more delight that I like sounds that “get along with each other” much better.

I think God feels that way about His children. He prefers us to act together in harmony. Hear these words of Paul:

¹⁰I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose. 1 Corinthians 1:10 (NLT)

It reminds me of a tug-of-war contest. If all the people on one side are pulling together and the people on the other side pull when they feel like it, at different times from their other teammates, guess which team is going to win!

We are in a spiritual battle and the forces of darkness in this world seem to be pulling together as they vie for the lives of our young people and those who don’t know the Lord Jesus as their Savior.

Come on Church, unite, live and act in harmony for your ONLY purpose; living a life that is Christ-like, showing others the love of God and leading them to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord.

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

FULFILL

There was some discussion a few days ago on “following the law.” I didn’t mean to imply that the law was bad, only that we were no longer “slaves” to it. The law in it’s entirety pointed out that we are sinful creatures and none of us can keep the law in it’s entirety. Apart from Jesus, we can’t do anything!

Jesus said,

“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. John 14:15 (NASB)

When Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment in the law was, He replied,

“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ³⁸“This is the great and foremost commandment. ³⁹“The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ⁴⁰“On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:37 - 40 (NASB)

For us to follow the myriads of laws, commandments and/or the tradition of the Rabbis we would have to be “brainiacs” to simply remember what they are. Jesus, when He came “fulfilled” the law and we, through Him, may accomplish the same.

Jesus did not set us to thinking about all those little “pieces” of what is considered law, but gave us a one-word prescription…love. Paul summarizes that thought in Romans 13:8-10 (NASB),

Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. ⁹For this, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁰Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

So, when we are tempted to do something out of selfishness or to prove we are right or for any other motive than love…we are not merely breaking the law but the heart of Jesus, the One who died a horrible death on the cross for our sin. Love Him and love each other with God’s kind of love. That will fix the problem!

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EVERYTHING

This is the day which the LORD has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalms 118:24 (NASB)

³³ Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!

³⁴ For who can know the LORD’s thoughts?

Who knows enough to give him advice?

³⁵ And who has given him so much

that he needs to pay it back?

³⁶ For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen.

Romans 11:33 - 36 (NLT)

Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words: Be joyful. Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in harmony and peace. Then the God of love and peace will be with you. 2 Corinthians 13:11 (NLT)

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