"...Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised!" Romans 9:5
Reading about WW2 has opened my eyes to how much the Jews were hated, how they were blamed for Christ's death, how they were singled out. Jews have a unique heritage, Jesus came through them!! But even with them following all the laws, they still need to come to know Christ. They need to be shown how Jesus fills the prophesies of all the old testament prophets, how the savior they were looking for already came. Their heritage is awesome, and they should preserve that, but they need to know Jesus. Their image of Jesus most often is through "Christians" who throw His name around and use it for asserting their own purposes. But that's not how it's supposed to be. Jesus was one of them.
Lord, I don't personally know any Jewish people, but it amazes me to hear stories of Jews coming to know Jesus. Please help them to come to know You, before the end, through any way possible.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
#45 Nothing can touch us!!
"...If God is for us, who can be against us?" Romans 8:31
Who can be against us? NO ONE, NOTHING!! If God lives in us, if we are co-heirs with Christ, if we are adopted into God's family, then we are "more than conquerors" (37) through Him. "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (38,39). So while we may be touched by all the things listed, they can never separate us. Though we may suffer through and because of some of these things, God still loves us. Wow, you can't get much better than that.
Thank YOU Lord for promising to never be separated from me. Thank You for loving me so much. Help me to remember Your love and Your promise as I go through some of those things. Help me to keep my focus on You.
Who can be against us? NO ONE, NOTHING!! If God lives in us, if we are co-heirs with Christ, if we are adopted into God's family, then we are "more than conquerors" (37) through Him. "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (38,39). So while we may be touched by all the things listed, they can never separate us. Though we may suffer through and because of some of these things, God still loves us. Wow, you can't get much better than that.
Thank YOU Lord for promising to never be separated from me. Thank You for loving me so much. Help me to remember Your love and Your promise as I go through some of those things. Help me to keep my focus on You.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
#44 What is now < what is to come
"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." Romans 8:18
Many of us may suffer now, and may suffer in the future. But once we have a new body, and a new life in Christ Jesus, that's not even going to matter. That will be like a speck of dust in the wide ocean. We won't even remember it, it will be so insignificant. It may be all that we can think and dwell on at the moment, but the glory we will receive is infinitely better.
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him..." Romans 8:28
God can also use bad situations to create good. While our earthly bodies ache, and catastrophes arise, that just might be what it takes in order to come to God. If we suffer some here, but come to know the eternal life in Jesus, it was all worth it.
Lord, help me to not question when things don't go well. If you are using that situation to bring me closer to You, or to maybe even bring someone else to You, help me to see it and realize it, and act according to Your purpose.
Many of us may suffer now, and may suffer in the future. But once we have a new body, and a new life in Christ Jesus, that's not even going to matter. That will be like a speck of dust in the wide ocean. We won't even remember it, it will be so insignificant. It may be all that we can think and dwell on at the moment, but the glory we will receive is infinitely better.
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him..." Romans 8:28
God can also use bad situations to create good. While our earthly bodies ache, and catastrophes arise, that just might be what it takes in order to come to God. If we suffer some here, but come to know the eternal life in Jesus, it was all worth it.
Lord, help me to not question when things don't go well. If you are using that situation to bring me closer to You, or to maybe even bring someone else to You, help me to see it and realize it, and act according to Your purpose.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
#43 We have life after death
"But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness." Romans 8:10
Our bodies are riddled with sin... acne, scars, wrinkles, arthritis, cancer, etc. They are slowly dieing, because of this sin. But even though our bodies may die, we can know that we have eternal life if the Spirit lives in us. We are "co-heirs" with Jesus, how cool is that?
Lord, thank You that we have another option than just staying in these sinful bodies. I can't wait to be changed in the blink of an eye, or resurrected to a new body, if I may fall asleep before You return. I can't wait to see Juliette again in her new body again.
Our bodies are riddled with sin... acne, scars, wrinkles, arthritis, cancer, etc. They are slowly dieing, because of this sin. But even though our bodies may die, we can know that we have eternal life if the Spirit lives in us. We are "co-heirs" with Jesus, how cool is that?
Lord, thank You that we have another option than just staying in these sinful bodies. I can't wait to be changed in the blink of an eye, or resurrected to a new body, if I may fall asleep before You return. I can't wait to see Juliette again in her new body again.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
#42 God will rescue me from my sinful nature
"What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!" Romans 7:24,25
"I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out." Romans 7:18. Many of us may have the desire to be a good person, to do good things, but without Jesus living in us, we are unable to. We may do outwardly good things, donate to the poor, be nice to people.. but inwardly we may still hate, covet, and be an awful person. And God sees the inside. And it's usually the inside that tears people up. For example, depression can become a problem, when people try to do good, but keep feeling awful on the inside. On the outside they may look like everything is fine, but on the inside they have a huge hole where God should be. And it can only be filled with God.
But the good news, is even with how wretched of a person we may be, God can and WILL deliver us through Jesus Christ!! He gives us an out to that awful way to live.
Lord, thank You that You can fill that void in my life, that through You I can no longer just desire to do good, but can LIVE through You.
"I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out." Romans 7:18. Many of us may have the desire to be a good person, to do good things, but without Jesus living in us, we are unable to. We may do outwardly good things, donate to the poor, be nice to people.. but inwardly we may still hate, covet, and be an awful person. And God sees the inside. And it's usually the inside that tears people up. For example, depression can become a problem, when people try to do good, but keep feeling awful on the inside. On the outside they may look like everything is fine, but on the inside they have a huge hole where God should be. And it can only be filled with God.
But the good news, is even with how wretched of a person we may be, God can and WILL deliver us through Jesus Christ!! He gives us an out to that awful way to live.
Lord, thank You that You can fill that void in my life, that through You I can no longer just desire to do good, but can LIVE through You.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
#41 Bound to God, not the law
"But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code." Romans 7:6
When we were bound to the law, we served because we had to, because that is what the law said. For example, say you had to become partners in a school project with someone. You didn't really like them, but you had to, in order to complete the project. You were required to get along, so you could work together. But then, after the project was completed, you were no longer required to get along, but suddenly you became good friends. You were no longer required to get along, so then you got along because you liked each other.
This might seem like kind of a silly analogy, but it just goes to show that when you are required to do something, our sinful human nature fights it. When you have to do something, you don't really want to. But if it is no longer a law, then you are under the new code, you serve according to love, not requirement. So when we die to the law that binds us, we are released from the hardships of that law too, and can serve God through the Spirit. Serving God and following his laws is no longer a burden, but it can become a delight.
Lord, this passage might have been somewhat confusing, but You have showed me that serving You can become a delight when it is no longer a burden.
When we were bound to the law, we served because we had to, because that is what the law said. For example, say you had to become partners in a school project with someone. You didn't really like them, but you had to, in order to complete the project. You were required to get along, so you could work together. But then, after the project was completed, you were no longer required to get along, but suddenly you became good friends. You were no longer required to get along, so then you got along because you liked each other.
This might seem like kind of a silly analogy, but it just goes to show that when you are required to do something, our sinful human nature fights it. When you have to do something, you don't really want to. But if it is no longer a law, then you are under the new code, you serve according to love, not requirement. So when we die to the law that binds us, we are released from the hardships of that law too, and can serve God through the Spirit. Serving God and following his laws is no longer a burden, but it can become a delight.
Lord, this passage might have been somewhat confusing, but You have showed me that serving You can become a delight when it is no longer a burden.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
#40 Eternal life is a gift
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23
When we are slaves to sin, we earn death. All our impurities and unrighteous acts are like working at a job of sin, where, when we retire, instead of a pension, we earn death. However, eternal life is a gift. It is not something that can be earned. Even if we changed our acts to those of a righteous and pure nature, we still would retire with a pension of death. But that is what Jesus did--He stepped in and took our pension, what we have earned throughout our lifetime, and given us the gift of eternal life. Praise God!!
Lord, thank You for giving me the gift of eternal life. I don't deserve it, and I definitely haven't earned it, but You've given it to me anyway. Thank You for that.
When we are slaves to sin, we earn death. All our impurities and unrighteous acts are like working at a job of sin, where, when we retire, instead of a pension, we earn death. However, eternal life is a gift. It is not something that can be earned. Even if we changed our acts to those of a righteous and pure nature, we still would retire with a pension of death. But that is what Jesus did--He stepped in and took our pension, what we have earned throughout our lifetime, and given us the gift of eternal life. Praise God!!
Lord, thank You for giving me the gift of eternal life. I don't deserve it, and I definitely haven't earned it, but You've given it to me anyway. Thank You for that.
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