★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…SPIRIT ★

In the last post ★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…FAITHFUL ★, we discussed that God’s faithfulness can be counted on, and that He will never leave us or forsake us.  All our days are God’s, He is like a fire defending us…Faithfully!  Today we are going to see that GOD IS…SPIRIT…

A lot can be said of this fact that God is THREE persons in ONE.  God the FATHER, God the SON, and God the Holy Spirit.  In fact we started off a 3-part series called ★ Back to the Basics – The Unsung Hero of the Trinity – Part 1 ★, in which I shared this quote that seems appropriate to start off with…

“The Christian who neglects the Holy Spirit is like a lamp that’s not plugged in.”

So today’s attribute that GOD IS…SPIRIT is near and dear to my heart and my prayer is that by the end, you will see how important He is to be a part of your life as well!  Today in America, the church is celebrating Pentecost, which for Christians is best known in Acts 2:1-41 when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the 120 believers in Jerusalem.  This was in fulfillment of what Jesus promised to the disciples in Luke 24:49 (NLT), which happens to be the last recorded Words of Jesus:

“And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised.  But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.”

But for Jewish people, Pentecost which is the 50 day after Easter, is known for another reason…

“Did you know that Pentecost is a Jewish feast that celebrates Moses receiving the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai?”  Robert Morris

It is also known as the Feast of Weeks or Festival of Harvest (See Leviticus 23:15-21).  The Ten Commandments which is outlined in Exodus 20:1-17, was given to the people of Israel to be guide them as they were going to go to the Promise Land.  The Law as it was known, outlined how His people could approach God and what He desired but the Old Testament is filled with stories of how they failed epically to please Him so that is why Jesus was sent to do what we could not.  In John 14:17 (NLT), Jesus said:

“He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.  The world cannot receive Him, because it isn’t looking for Him and doesn’t recognize Him.  But you know Him, because He lives with you now and later will be in you.” 

God through His Holy Spirit lives with us!  I love this truth by Robert Morris

“Because of the Holy Spirit, instead of being held to the impossible standards of the Old Testament law, we can now walk according to the law of love Jesus speaks about in Matthew 22:35–40.  This is good news because we cannot live righteously without the power of the Holy Spirit.”  From the YouVersion reading plan ‘The God I Never Knew’ by Robert Morris.

Many Christians are living a powerless life as a result of not getting to know the “Unsung Hero of the Trinity.”  The Holy Spirit is A Comforter, A Helper, A Friend, An Advocate, A Teacher and A Guide.

John 4:24 instructs us…

“For God is Spirit, so those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

And then in Romans 8:14-16 says:

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.  So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves.  Instead, you received God’s Spirit when He adopted you as his own children.  Now we call him, “Abba, Father.”  For His Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.”

As a result of the God’s Spirit, we have access God the Father and are His children!  Almost 2,000 on this day we received the greatest gift anyone could hope for, the Spirit of God who is the vehicle to help us to live the overcoming life.  I will close with one more quote from Robert Morris about the significance of this day!

“The day of Pentecost was the first time since the Fall of man that the Holy Spirit empowered men to live righteously.  We know Jesus’ death and resurrection have put us in right standing with God, but the Holy Spirit actually empowers us to live according to that righteous position.”

I would highly recommend you check out this YouVersion reading plan called ‘The God I Never Knew’ by Robert Morris.  It truly is life changing!  And more importantly, get to know the Spirit of God!

★★ Dig Deeper ★★

★ Posts that are All About the Holy Spirit ★

★ Thought for the Day – All About the Big Ten ★

“Spirit Comes, Church Goes” by Joakim Lundqvist as Word of Life Church in Sweden.

 

 

 

★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…FAITHFUL ★

In the last post ★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…FORGIVING ★, we discussed that There is a direct connection between confession and forgiveness.  When we will go to God in humility and turn from our wicked ways, He WILL cleanse us.  And the vehicle for us today is through His Son Jesus Christ.  Today we are going to see that…

This attribute of our Heavenly Father is covered quite extensively in the Bible, here are just some passages which I will cover some of but I would recommend you read them nonetheless…

Deuteronomy 31:6, 32:4, Psalm 86:15, 117:2, James 4:8, Hebrews 10:23-24, 13:5-6 Matthew 28:20, Philippians 1:6, John 6:37, 40, 15:7, Romans 8:28-29, Isaiah 49:15-16 

First off, I would like to start with Deuteronomy 7:9 (NLT) which Moses wrote:

“Understand, therefore, that the Lord your God is indeed God.  He is the faithful God who keeps His covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes His unfailing love on those who love Him and obey His commands.”

Do you know any one who as soon as they say “I’ll call you tomorrow” or “you can count on me to show up to some event,” you know for a fact you’ll never hear from them or see them as they promised?  I have a few people like this in my life who I know do not intentionally mean to let me down but yet they do. I almost plan on not hearing from them or seeing them and then if they follow through, I am pleasantly surprised. Not this may seem like a trite comparison, but I love what Moses testifies about God that “He is the faithful God who keeps His covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes His unfailing love on those who love Him and obey His commands.”  God more faithful then our mother or father or best friend on this earth, He keeps His word for a 1,000 generations!!  Isn’t that awesome?

Hebrews 10:23 (NLT) also speaks of the faithfulness of the Father:

“Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep His promise.”

There are some action words in the passage that I think we really need to take notice off…We must “hold tightly without wavering!”  This of course is easier said than done but true nonetheless.  God did not make us robots, we have a choice to trust the faithfulness of God or to reject Him.  So, if we want the promises, we need keep hold of our own faith. There is a song that came to mind instantly as I started working on this post called “Faithful God” by Zach Neese which has brought me such comfort through many dark days.

If I call, will You come
When I cry, do You hear
I believe every tear
Is caught up by a faithful God
So I will cry until You come
Cast my cares into Your arms
I can’t see past this storm
But I’m counting on a faithful God 

Faithful God
You hold my life secure
All my days are Yours
I believe
My God is like a fire defending me
Faithfully

Isn’t that beautiful?  Every time I sing these lyrics, I feel my faith increase.  I will close with Romans 5:8 which says that:

“God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.” 

This singular act shows His faithfulness to keep the covenant that He made with us that nothing will ever separate us from Him and that He will never leave us or forsake us as Deuteronomy 31:6 and Hebrews 13:5 reminds us.  All our days are God’s, He is like a fire defending us…Faithfully!  We can count on Him.

 

★★ Dig Deeper ★★

★ Thought for the Day – The Lord is Near ★

★ Thought for the Day – How important is Jesus? ★

★ Thought for the Day – Confidence IN WHOSE You Are ★ 

 

★ Thought for the Day – Consistency Compounds Check-In ★

On January 18, 2020 I posted my Word for 2020 in the post ★ Thought for the Day – Consistency Compounds ★.  As a reminder, my prayer for this year was that I would be CONSISTENT in all areas of my life – Spiritually (that my walk with Christ would be strong), Physically (that my health would be the best that it ever has been), and Emotionally (that my relationships with my wife, daughters, friends and co-workers would be better than ever and life-affirming.). Well today is the 4 month anniversary of that post and I thought it would be good to pause for a post from our “GOD IS…” series and give an update on where I am at.

Today is Day 66 of quarantine and my 10th week of working at home as the result of COVID-19.  I must say that the days and weeks are all running together but I have been blessed to be able work out of my dining room and receive a pay check every 2 weeks, something many people are not as fortunate to be able to.  Though it’s been hard watching the news casts of all those suffering, I have been looking for the silver lining and have see that there are definitely benefits that have resulted.  I can honestly say the quarantine has helped me to stay consistent with my goals for 2020, so like in the first post, I will break this up in 3 parts:

SPIRITUAL CHECK-IN:

Through Facebook Messenger and other video chat Apps, I have been able to stay connected with all the guys that I met with previously each morning at my house and now I am hosting Bible Studies virtually and reaching more men then I was before if you can believe that?!  Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to do this and technology we have been making the best out of a bad situation.  Also you may have noticed an increase in posts as I have been exploring the attributes of God in our “GOD IS…” series.  In the past month, we have looked at (22) different aspects of our Heavenly Father which is far greater frequency then ever before!

PHYSICAL CHECK-IN:

Now if you have followed this blog for awhile, you know full well that exercise has always been a struggle for me.  Whether it was a lack of motivation or just trying to fit it in my day, I always had an excuse for why I did not workout.  Over the past 5 months I am happy to say that the excuses have been kicked to the curb, and especially over the past 65 days I have been more consistent then ever!  I hope you will not think me to be bragging, but I wanted to share this with you from my Fitbit app exercise tracker that shows I have consistently exercised for an entire month straight!!  First time ever in my life doing this!!

EMOTIONAL CHECK-IN:

As a part of the workouts, I have been going on walks with my wife and oldest daughter which has helped also strengthen the emotional connections simultaneously.  My youngest daughter and I have been working on and off together building a bed to look like a Chevy pickup truck (which is her favorite vehicle!)  Many people have been asking me if I am looking forward to going back to the office but honestly, I have been enjoying getting (2) additional hours back in my day since I don’t have to drive to and from work (and also eliminating the stress of the commute).  I do miss my friends at work, but MS TEAMS has helped to keep that community connection.  And one final benefit has been having breakfast and lunch with the family every day which in the past was only possible on the weekend.  Oh, and probably the highlight of the past 65 days was this past Saturday when my oldest daughter cleared out her bedroom so we could have a “Family Dance Night Surprise!”  Yesterday I felt so sore from all the dancing…hahaha!

I share all of this to say, regardless of circumstances we can always improve things if we will consistently look to make the environment better.  I shared this in the post ★ Thought for the Day – What’s On The Inside? ★, but it bears repeating as I am a firm believe of what Marvin J. Ashton once said:

“Be the one who nurtures and builds.  Be the one who has an understanding and a forgiving heart one who looks for the best in people.  Leave people better than you found them.”

A bad attitude can spread like a wild-fire within the home or at work and when you compound that with 65 days of captivity, I man self-quarantine you have all the conditions for a “five alarm fire!”  So regardless of how we feel, we must push through and not allow the media to tear down our spirits or boredom to stop us from getting into the Word everyday or laziness to stop us from going on a walk or riding a bike.  I heard this great sermon called…“New Found Life” by Mondoe Davis who preached on the importance of physical training and how it ties into the spiritual.  He read 1 Thessalonians 5:23 (NLT) which says…

“Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again.”

And drew this powerful parallel:

“You are a spirit, you have a soul, and you live in a physical body.  What you feed each one of these aspects of who you are, determines how you will grow.” 

That is what I desire to be “holy in every way” and that my “whole SPIRIT and SOUL and BODY [will] be kept blameless!”  But that is up to you and me, “what we feed each one of these aspects” of who we are, “WILL DETERMINE HOW WE WILL GROW!”  Unlike what the 1977 rock song “Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad” by Meat Loaf said…2 OUT OF 3 IS BAD!  We need to be 3 for 3 in our CONSISTENCY!  MIND (SOUL), BODY and SPIRIT running on all cylinders.

Over the past five months, I have been compiling a list of men and women from the Bible who I believe are great examples of what that looks like to be CONSISTENT!  It is far from complete but as I read and study, I will be adding to it.

I am thinking about doing a series on what we can learn which would be the opposite of the Temptation Series which is all about learning what not to.  But this opposing list will help us to see that you it is possible.  When you are consistently chasing after God, and working for the building of His kingdom, the gracious hand of the Lord will be upon you!  That happens when like these men and women, you are determined to make a difference to see lives changed, healed, restored and transformed here on earth!  But the choice is up to you.

 

★ ★ ★ DIG DEEPER ★ ★ ★

★ Thought for the Day – Be Strong and Courageous ★

★ Thought for the Day – Leaving It All On The Field ★

★ Thought for the Day – What’s On The Inside? ★

★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS… FORGIVING ★

In the last post ★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…LOVING ★, we discussed that NOTHING can separate us from the loving arms of God who spare nothing to show us that love.  He has sacrificed His Son for us and given the Holy Spirit to live with us!  Today we are going to see that…

I must start off by asking for your forgiveness since it has been 6 days since the last post…hahaha!  Today’s attribute dovetails beautifully with our last post because God’s love is eternally intertwined with His forgiveness.  As is customary, let’s start in the Old Testament with Psalm 86:5 (NLT) that spotlights this reality:

“O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive, so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help.”

God is not out to get us, rather He is “ready to forgive” and is “full of unfailing love” if we will just repent and turn away from our sin.  Look at the end of the verse again, who is God’s forgiveness for?  “For ALL who ask for His help.”  Another passage from Isaiah 55:6-7 (NLT) says:

“Seek the Lord while you can find Him.  Call on Him now while He is near.  Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong.  Let them turn to the Lord that He may have mercy on them. YES, TURN TO OUR GOD, FOR HE WILL FORGIVE GENEROUSLY.”

Isn’t that encouraging?  These passages are in the Old Testament shows that God’s desire to forgive you and I has existed for thousands and thousands of years!  He is just waiting for us to turn away from the temptations of the world SO He can GENEROUSLY FORGIVE US.  But we must CHOOSE NOT to take the bait that the devil sets before us!  And if we do, we must humble ourselves and ask for forgiveness!!  Let’s flip over into the New Testament and look at what the Apostle John instructs in 1 John 1:9 (NLT)…

“BUT IF we CONFESS our sins to Him, He is FAITHFUL and JUST to FORGIVE us our sins and to CLEANSE us from ALL wickedness.”

There is a direct connection between confession and forgiveness.  When we will go to God in humility and turn from our wicked ways, He WILL cleanse us.  And the vehicle for us today is through His Son Jesus Christ.  2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV) tells us about the Great Exchange that is available:

“For our sake He [ GOD ] made Him [ JESUS ] to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” 

When we accept Jesus as our Savior and believe that He died in our place, OUR UNRIGHTEOUSNESS is placed on Jesus and HIS RIGHTEOUS is transferred to us!  WOW!  However, the enemy of souls will do anything and everything to thwart that transaction from happening because Satan hates God and hates us because we are the apple of God’s eye (see Genesis 3:15, Psalm 17:8, Proverbs 7:2, Zechariah 2:8).  Ephesians 4:32 (NLT) shows us that we ought to extend forgiveness to others:

“Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”

Thank you, Jesus, for being the conduit for us to become right with you!!  I have had this beautiful song on repeat of late that so captures the incredible the significance of God’s forgiveness called “Holy Water” by We the Kingdom:

Your forgiveness
Is like sweet, sweet honey
On my lips
Like the sound of a symphony
To my ears
Like holy water on my skin

I will close with the MOST UNBELIEVABLE STATEMENT in the entire Bible from Luke 23:34 (NLT)…

“Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” And the soldiers gambled for his clothes by throwing dice.”

Every time I read this verse, I am always astonished with the Jesus’ selflessness that while “soldiers gambled for His clothes,” and He hung on the cross dying, Jesus prayed for God to forgive His executioners!!  Just amazing!  So much can be said on all that God has forgiven in my life, I could spend the rest of my life trying to express my gratitude and it will never be enough!  It truly is “sweet, sweet honey on my lips!”  Thank you, Thank you, Thank you God for your forgiveness!  You are a good, good Father!

 

★★ Dig Deeper ★★

★ Thought for the Day – 5 Truths That Will Change Your Life! ★

★ Thought for the Day – How Many Licks to Forgiveness ★

★ Re|Engage – Forgiveness ★

 

 

★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…LOVING ★

Let me start off by wishing all the mothers out there a very Happy Mother’s Day!!  And for those of you like me who don’t have a mother any longer here on Earth, I pray God’s comfort on you on this difficult reminder of that fact.  For the women trying to be a mother, I pray that the Lord would open your womb right now In Jesus name we pray!!  Amen!

In the last post ★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS… SIGNIFICANT ★, we discussed that when we magnify or place a greater significance on anything or anyone other than God, we set ourselves up for failure and invite the enemy in to wreak havoc in our life.  Only God is significant and so we must fix our thoughts on Him!  If your thoughts are NOT true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, or admirable than we MUST kick those thoughts to the curb and only “think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”  Today we are going to see that… 

It seems only appropriate that we cover this attribute on a day in which we celebrate the first woman in each of our lives that gave us unconditional and the closest example we have to what God’s unconditional love looks like.  After all, Genesis 1:27 tells us that

“So God created human beings in His own image.  In the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.”

So the love that Mother’s have for their child(ren) is a displaying the attribute that we will unpack today.  Like in the post about God being an INTELLIGENT DESIGNER, there are a ton of passages on this attribute!  The Bible is a God’s love letter to His people.  All throughout the Old and New Testaments we can see the heart of God for His people.  Here is just a fraction of passages that I was looking at initially…

Joshua 1:9, Psalm 23, 86:15, 117:2 Jeremiah 29:11, Lamentations 3:22, John 3:16-17, Romans 2:11, 5:8, Romans 8:39, Ephesians 1:3-5, 1 Peter 5:7, 2:9, 1 John 3:16, 1 John 4:16-17

Psalm 86:15 (NLT) seems like a great place to start to unpack this today’s focus:

“But you, O Lord, are a God of compassion and mercy, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.”

Contrary to what Satan would have you believe, the God of the Old Testament IS NOT distant, judgmental or waiting for us to make a mistake so He can punish us.  Instead Lamentations 3:22 (NLT) says:

“The faithful LOVE of the Lord never ends!  HIS MERCIES NEVER CEASE.”

And no discussion of God’s love would be complete with mentioning the MOST POPULAR New Testament passage in John 3:16-17 (NLT)…

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.  God sent His Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.

Satan though tries to tell us the opposite that God is out to get you and that if you become a Christian that you will have no more joy or fun BUT I can attest that prior to being saved, I was hopeless and very lost indulging in every dark and sinful pleasure that was put before me.  I am now 22 years along the path of following Jesus since I trusted Him as Lord and Savior, and it is still the BEST DECISION I ever made!  I am living proof of the abundant life that Jesus promised in John 10:10:

What I find amazing is that Jesus came to provide this and also show how much God loved us!  Romans 5:8 (NLT)

“But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”

He willingly died for me and for you so that we could fully experience His love and receive eternal life!  What a Loving Father we have!!  1 John 4:16b-17 (NLT) gives further testimony:

 “GOD IS LOVE, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.  And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect.  So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world.”

As I close, I will say it again, from the opening verse of the Old Testament to the final one of the New Testament, EVERY PAGE displays this attribute of Him…“GOD IS LOVE!”  And that love is so

“No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Nothing can separate us from the loving arms of God who spare nothing to show us that love.  He has sacrificed His Son for us and given the Holy Spirit to live with us!  So today will you turn to Him and believe that GOD IS…LOVING?!

 

★★ Dig Deeper ★★

“How Do I Know God Loves Me?“ by Robert Morris.  He shares how we can confidently know God loves us, even in the midst of pain and suffering.

★ Thought for the Day – Tribute to My Mom ★ 

★ Thought for the Day – What Does The Love of God Mean? ★

★ Thought for the Day – 5 Truths That Will Change Your Life! ★

 

★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…SIGNIFICANT★

In the last post ★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…AN INTELLIGENT DESIGNER ★ we discussed that The Big Bang is true!  God spoke and “BANG” everything was created!  And that every person has a “God-shaped hole” in their heart and at some point, they look for the answer to the question “How Can I Know that there is a God?”  That answer is found in creation which illustrates that there is an intelligent designer.  Today we are going to see that…

I bet that 8 weeks ago if you were asked: “what is significant,” you probably never would have said finding toilet paper or antibacterial wipes on the supermarket shelves.  Or that a date night dining in a restaurant and hitting a movie would incredible to be able . Oh, how life has changed for thousands and thousands of people around the world as a result of COVID-19.  As our resiliency is being stretched to its limits the new significant event is re-opening of the country here in the United States. Texas for instance has started phase 1 of trying to “return to normalcy,” but my chief concern and prayer has been that as we transition from the shelter-in-place quarantine state we have been in, that this nurse’s sign is not prophetic since many areas including where I live have not reached the peak.  Today marks DAY 55 since my family and I have self-quarantined, so like everyone else I too would love to go out on a date with my wife and get back to living but we are being cautious as this is a critical decision which should give us pause especially since the news is reporting that many states that have started re-opening are seeing a spike in cases.  Even though the state is starting to “re-open,” our family is keeping the shelter-in-place status quo.  I consider this virus and the decision of when, and how to reopen the country to be quite important, but I would like us to refocus and consider what truly is significant.  Many things are believed to be significant, BUT only God truly is.  EVERYTHING else pales in comparison to our Father! If God did nothing more for us other than sacrificing His Son to rescue is from the punishment our sins deserve, He would still be worthy of our devotion and worship!  The key is to have the right perspective.  I love what Psalms 86:10-13 (NLT)

“For you are great and perform wonderful deeds.  You alone are God.  Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth!  Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor you.  With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God.  I will give glory to your name forever, for your love for me is very great.  You have rescued me from the depths of death.”

And Psalms 150:1-2 (NLT) says:

“Praise the Lord!  Praise God in His sanctuary; praise him in His mighty heaven!  Praise Him for His mighty works; praise His unequaled greatness!”

God is sufficiently great, worthy of honor and praise and far surpassing any other thing or person who is considered noteworthy.  Once we understand the significance of God, we can then shift our viewpoint.  I will close this post with one of the best verses on perspective is Philippians 4:8 (NLT):

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing.  Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”

David Guzik had this commentary on Philippians 4:8:

“Much of the Christian life comes down to the mind. Romans 12:2 speaks of the essential place of being transformed by the renewing of your mind and 2 Corinthians 10:5 speaks of the importance of casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. What we choose to meditate on matters.  What Paul describes here is a practical way to bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.”

When we magnify or place a greater significance on anything or anyone other than God, we set ourselves up for failure and invite the enemy in to wreak havoc in our life as the mind is the battlefield.  If your thoughts are NOT true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, or admirable than we MUST kick those thoughts to the curb and only “think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”

 

★★ Dig Deeper ★★

★ Thought for the Day – True Shalom ★ 

★ Thought for the Day – Annihilating Anxiety ★

 

 

★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…AN INTELLIGENT DESIGNER ★

In the last post ★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…SUFFICIENT ★ we discussed that there is value in weakness, because when we are weak, God is strong.  Today we are going to see that…

Sooooooo much can be said about this attribute!  In my initial “Bible thumping” I found these passages that you can read on your own:

Genesis 1:1-31, Psalm 19:1, 24:1-2, 90:2, 102:24-27, 104:24, 139:14, Nehemiah 9:6, 1 Chronicles 29:11, Isaiah 40:28, Isaiah 44:24, John 1:3, Acts of the Apostles 17:24-27, Romans 1:20, Colossians 1:16, Hebrews 11:3, Revelation 4:11, 21:5

I may cover some of these but this post would be way too long to cover in detail.  This post could a controversial one depending on where you fall on the theory of evolution versus intelligent design.  It may be come to you as a surprise but I believe that The Big Bang is true!  God spoke and “BANG” everything was created!

It’s true, just look at Genesis chapter 1 verses 3, 6, 9, 14, 20, 24…”God said…and then there was…”  The whole creation account can be found in Genesis chapter one and then 4 verses into chapter 2.  If you haven’t read it or haven’t read it lately, I would encourage you to brush up on this well known but critical story.  Now if you looked at those 6 verses you may wait what about Adam and Eve?  Well interestingly enough though in verse 27 we are told that:

“God created human beings in His own image.”

It is not until Genesis 2:7 (NLT) that we learn “how” humans were created, not from God speaking BUT… 

“…the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground.  He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person.”

In the message “Tear the Roof Off”, John Gray made the point that in all of creation, God spoke and then it was, but in the case of man, God “formed” him and then “breathed” life into Adam!  We are not some cosmic accident, but a deliberate, intentional creation from an intelligent designer!  But how do I know this?  Well I am glad you asked.  Psalms 19:1 (NLT) says:

“The heavens proclaim the glory of God.  The skies display his craftsmanship.”

I find it to hard to look up in the sky and see the brilliant colors of a sunset or the gentle swaying of a field flowers or the rhythmic cadence of the ocean tide as laps against the shoreline and not give pause and acknowledge the handiwork of God!  And in Isaiah 40:28 (NLT) says:

“Have you never heard?  Have you never understood?  The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth.  He never grows weak or weary.  No one can measure the depths of his understanding.”

Growing up I remember thinking about what would happen if I never woke up, would I just cease to exist or is there an afterlife?  Is there really a God who created all that I see?  Even if you don’t believe in God, I guarantee that at some point in your life you have asked that question for yourself.  One of my favorite scriptures that states this clearly is Romans 1:20:

“For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky.  Through everything God made, they can clearly see His invisible qualities — His eternal power and divine nature.  So they have no excuse for not knowing God.”

Every person has a “God-shaped hole” in their heart and look for the answer to the question “How Can I Know that there is a God?”  You know it is kind of interesting that evolution is not a fact but a theory, one which has been around for over 160 years and yet it has still not proven but creation illustrates that there is an intelligent designer and according to the Apostle Paul in Romans, we have “no excuse for not knowing God.”

Speaking of the Apostle Paul, I was just reading Acts17:22-23 (NLT) when he was reasoning with the men of Athens in the Areopagus:

“So Paul, standing before the council, addressed them as follows: “Men of Athens, I notice that you are very religious in every way, for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines.  And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’  This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about.”

Can you imagine worshiping in a shrine “To an Unknown God?”  I love what he said next in 17:24-27 (NLT)…

“He is the God who made the world and everything in it.  Since He is Lord of heaven and earth, He doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve His needs — for He has no needs.  He himself gives life and breath to everything, and He satisfies every need.  From one man He created all the nations throughout the whole earth.  He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and He determined their boundaries.  His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find Him—though He is not far from any one of us.”

God’s greatest desire is to draw people to Him and as a result of His creation, we see a sign of His existence with every sunrise and sunset!

★★ Dig Deeper ★★

Check out the message called: “How Do I Know There Is a God?” by Robert Morris in which he explains why it’s important to have a correct worldview and how we can confidently know there’s a God.

★ Thought for the Day – Accidental Existence? ★

★ “Back to the Basics” – God’s Mysterious Plan Revealed ★

 

 

★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…SUFFICIENT★

In the last post ★ Back to the Basics – GOD IS…  A SURGEON ★ we discussed that God wants to do heart surgery on His people so that we become more and more like Jesus through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.  Today we are going to see that…

So once the heart surgery is done, now we must walk out the Christian life which is not devoid of hardship, whether it as we all have been going through with the plague that has shut down the world!   In the post ★ Thought for the Day – Value in Weakness? ★, I shared that my life verse if from 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 (NLT) which says:

“Each time he said, “My grace is all you need [other translations say “sufficient”].  My power works best in weakness.”  So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.  That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ.  For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

This passage is powerful but unless you understand the back story, it is difficult to understand how powerful it is.  In the preceding verses, Paul talked about being blessed by being “caught up to the third heaven” where God is and “heard so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human is allowed to tell,” (see 2 Corinthians 12:1-3).  Then the Apostle Paul gives the explanation of the significance of my life verse…

“That experience is worth boasting about, but I’m not going to do it.  I will boast only about my weaknesses.  If I wanted to boast, I would be no fool in doing so, because I would be telling the truth.  But I won’t do it, because I don’t want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message, even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God.  So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.  Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away.”  2 Corinthians 12:5-8 (NLT)

As a result of being granted this vision, Paul was given a “thorn in the flesh” to prevent pride from welling up inside.  It is unclear exactly what that may be, but Galatians 4:12-16 gives some insight to what that “thorn” might have been as he mentioned during his initial visit to the Galatia Paul had a “bodily ailment” in which he told them at the end of verse 15 that:

“I am sure you would have taken out your own eyes and given them to me if it had been possible.”   

Three times Paul asked for the “thorn in the flesh” to be removed and yet it was not. God’s answer was…“My grace is all you need.”  As believers in Christ I am sure I know what you answer will be to this question, but really think about your answer to this question…

The kneejerk reaction is “yes of course,” but it’s not easy to be afflicted with a physical ailment, financial hardship or ______ (fill in the blank) praying over and over waiting for a change but what happens condition Even though David Guzik had this commentary on 2 Corinthians 12:9…

“God would show His strength through Paul’s apparent weakness.  To do this, Paul had to believe that God’s grace is sufficient.  We really don’t believe God’s grace is sufficient until we believe we are insufficient.  For many of us, especially in American culture, this is a huge obstacle.  We are the people who idolize the “self-made man” and want to rely on ourselves.  But we can’t receive God’s strength until we know our weakness.  We can’t receive the sufficiency of God’s grace until we know our own insufficiency.”

I love that last statement that “We can’t receive the sufficiency of God’s grace until we know our own insufficiency.”  Do you receive that?  I know that difficult but that is why Paul gave this instruction in Philippians 4:6 (NASB)…

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”

God wants to hear from you.  He loves us and though we may not like any other answer but “yes,” BUT we must trust that HE KNOWS what is best for us.  In the case of Paul, who arguably is one of the greatest voices for the Christian faith (other than Jesus of course), was told no in order to prevent him from becoming proud.

So in closing the loop, I wanted to swing back to my theme verse, and close with this final thought that if we want to experience this attribute of “Sufficiency,” we must accept God’s Grace and understanding that when we are weak, if we go to the power source, we will receive all that we need because He is strong!

Will you trust in His sufficiency? 

 

 

★★ Dig Deeper ★★

 

★ Thought for the Day – The Storms of Life ★

 

★ Thought for the Day – Overwhelmed or Overcoming? ★

 

★ Thought for the Day – Fair-Weather Faith ★