mrsteve – Page 2 – Brooksville Bible Chapel

On This One God Looks

Thought for the Morning

Isaiah 66:2 For all those things My hand has made, And all those things exist,” Says the LORD. “But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, And who trembles at My word.

What a contrast, The Creator of everything we know of, and don’t know of, is interested in you and I. Isaiah’s words reflect Gods disappointment with Israel and His desire for them to return to fellowship. But if we apply these words to ourselves, His eye is on us also. What does He want to see?

He wants to see a poor and contrite spirit. Poor in respect to us knowing that we come into this world with nothing. The material things we gather along the way will become of no importance with our passing. The relationships we form with family and friends will hopefully be remembered but they too will fade as the many, many years go by.

The illustration of a person who thinks they are of some importance is like water being stirred in a bucket. When the stirring stops the water will become calm again and the stirring will not be remembered any more.

But when God says “But on this one will I look”, He doesn’t take His eye away from us. His relationship with us is to be eternal, “He will never leave or forsake us” (Hebrews 13.7), He is also looking for the “contrite spirit”, a spirit within us that knows the sinfulness of our nature and is totally trusting in His work on the Cross. We come into this world poor but when we become a child of His we become heirs. (Galatians 4. 5). We become a child of the King!

Why are we to tremble at His word? His word reveals to us what our walk should be, and many times we find ourselves off the path. The Spirit of God uses the holy word to teach us, and instruct us. The Lord is merciful and gracious, but He also is a jealous God. (Ex 34.14). He is willing to draw near to us but we must be willing to draw near to Him. “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you…”(James 4:8). We draw near to Him through His word and His word is to make us tremble with worship and adoration!

Isaiah 66.2 “… Says the Lord “But on this one will I look…”

What does He see when He looks upon us? Does He see a poor and contrite heart? Just a thought for the morning.

Carl

Old Timers

Thought for the Morning

Psalm 71:9 Do not cast me off in the time of old age; Do not forsake me when my strength fails.

We all get older. When we are considered an old timer, we may get the feeling that we become useless for the Lord, but this is not the case. We only have to search the Scripture to see how God used older saints to accomplish His plans. We have examples of Joshua and Caleb. They were not young when the promised land was cleared of all the enemy.

Our strength may be seen as failing and we are not as physically strong as we were in our 20s or 30s. But with age should come wisdom, based on our life’s experience through the years. Hopefully our walk has been with the Lord, allowing him to direct our every step. He has taught us through our experiences. There have been many valley situations and many mountaintop experiences that the Lord has allowed us to encounter.

Hopefully, with the Lord’s help, we have gained wisdom through these times. Job went through many hard times but he says, “Wisdom is with aged men, And with length of days, understanding” (Job 12:12)

In our own life, even as we get older. our past experiences should be thought of as learning experiences to be applied as we go on. You only put your hand on a hot stove once.

But acquired wisdom, as you get older, is not only for yourself, but it is something that should be shared with others. Those you know travel the same roads you have traveled and have run into the same problems you have. We older ones are here to help others along the way. Hopefully by our walk we are capable of being of help, not only in counsel, but in prayer.

God does “not cast us off in the time of old age”. He will use us to help others. Just a thought for the morning.

Carl

We Shall Be Like Him

Thought for the Morning

1 John 3:2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.

What words of comfort, expectation and hope, “We shall see Him as He is”. For the one that is lost and without Christ there is no hope. As believers in the Risen Lord we have a hope that is sure! As a child of God, we have no doubt about what the future holds for us.

When in the future will He be revealed to us? We know that the next event to happen to the ‘Church” is recorded in Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians “ For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thess. 4:16-18)

The world today is chaotic with division and hatred prevailing. The Lord could come at any time to take us home to be with Him. This is our hope! As believers in the Lord Jesus we know what the future holds. Can you imagine the joy of going to be with Him forever, we shall see Him as He is, and we shall be like Him. What a promise we have!

We may be going through a time of trial, there may be discouragement, and sadness. But because, as believers in the Lord Jesus, we have a hope, we have One who will never leave us or forsake us (Heb 13.5). Even as we walk this earth, He is with us.

But can you imagine seeing Him in all His glory at His coming. Can you imagine what it will be like to be released from our “natural man” who leads us astray, and can you imagine what our eternal home will be like. Can you imagine what it will be like to join those who have gone on before us.

We have a great promise, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. Just a thought for the morning.

Carl

A More Excellent Way

Thought for the Morning

1 Corinthians 12:31 But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way.

There are four places in scripture where spiritual gifts are revealed (1Co 12, Rom12, Eph 4 and 1Pet 4). The reason for the gifts is given in Eph. 4.16, “…according to the effective working by which every part (each one of us) does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.”

All believers have a Spiritual gift or gifts from the Lord. Sometimes if you ask a fellow believer, do they know what their gift is, they hesitate in answering. But we know because we see it exercised.

Paul in his teaching on the “gifts of the Spirit” reveals a “more excellent way” What is that way?

If a gift is not exercised in love it is nothing! Paul goes on to expand on this in 1Cor 13. (the love chapter). “ Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails.” (1 Cor 13:4-8)

The KJV uses the word “charity” (Agape). Agape love is the giving of one’s self to another. It doesn’t yield any personal reward to the giver. It is putting others before yourself.

John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love (Agape) one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. “A more excellent way” Just a thought for the morning.

Carl

Wisdom

Thought for the morning

Romans 11:33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

In the Scripture, there are 64 references that mentioned both wisdom and knowledge together. The two seem closely linked. The word wisdom is found 49 times in the book of Proverbs.

To me knowledge may open up many options. Wisdom is acting on the best option based on your knowledge. Worldly knowledge comes from many areas, personal experience, teaching by others, the experience of others, many places. Someone once told me, “when you speak to others you are relating what you already know, but if you listen to others you may learn something new”. There is wisdom in listening to others!

The best source of knowledge for each one of us is from the Scripture. We gain knowledge through reading and studying the word of God. We gain knowledge as we listen to brothers opening the Scripture to us.

Wisdom has to do with acting on our knowledge. We are wise when we act on what the word of God says.

In this portion of Scripture we are told that God has put aside Israel, and opened the door of salvation to Gentiles, you and I! The knowledge imparted here is that disobedient Israel has been temporarily “ungrafted” but one day they will again bend the knee to the Lord. God by His grace has opened the way of salvation to the Gentile.

God has given us the “knowledge” of this, and by “wisdom”, and faith on our part, we accept His mercy and grace. Why He has done this is one of the “unsearchable” things difficult to understand (His ways past finding out)

Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

May each of us be wise in the knowledge that the Lord has given us through His word.Just a thought for the morning.

Carl

The Lion of Judah

Thought for the Morning

Revelation 5:5 “But one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.”

Why the references to the Lord Jesus as the lion?

In my den I have a picture of a lion taken by my daughter on one of her trips to Africa. In this picture the lion is starring out as if the survey his domain. It has been said that the lion is the “king of the jungle”.

In the Revelation our Lord is presented both as the Lamb and the Lion. As the Lamb of God, He is the sacrificed One, bearing away the sins of the world. As the Lion, He is the Judge, punishing His enemies. At His First Coming, He was the Lamb. At His Second Coming, He will be the Lion.

Christ came as the Lamb of God opening the way of salvation by Grace. We live in the “dispensation of Grace”. For over two thousand years now the way of salvation has been available to all. John 3:16-17 “ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

But the day is coming when He will come as the Lion, and the world as we know it will be condemned! Seven horrible years of tribulation – devastation and disaster! We know as Believers in the risen Lord that He will come in the air to take His Church (all believers) home (1Thes 4.16) before He opens the 7 seals,

What about our friends and relatives that do not know the Lord as their Savior? Unfortunately, the time of tribulation awaits them. What must we do? We must live Christ before them, we must show to them the God of Love who loves them. We must demonstrate the Grace of God. both in word and deed before them.

2 Corinthians 2:14-15 Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.15 For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.

The Lamb has come, the Lion is coming Just a thought for the morning.

Carl

Image Credit: TheSwordBearer.org (Wallpapers)

Discipline

Thought for the morning

Job 5:17-18 “Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects; Therefore do not despise the chastening of the Almighty. 18 For He bruises, but He binds up; He wounds, but His hands make whole.

Jobs friends do not appear to bring words of comfort to Job who is struggling at the hands of Satan (Job 1.11-12). Their bed side manner leaves something to be desired.

In Eliphaz’s discourse there are some thoughts to be considered. I believe the above verse is one of them. “Happy is the man whom God corrects”! Correction is always difficult to take, how can you be happy in it? When God corrects it is always to our benefit. Before correction must come conviction. The Holy Spirit works within us pointing out the error of our ways. He uses the “word”; He uses brothers and sisters in Christ.

We are not to “despise the chastening”, because that would be grieving the Spirit (Eph. 4.30), and we are not to quench the leading of the Spirit (1Thes. 5.19). Walking in the will of God is a “happy walk”! It is “happy” because you have the realization of that “Someone” who is always at your side!

Bruising and wounding are the painful aspects of correction. Acknowledging wrongdoing can be painful, but it will lead to the Lord binding your bruises up, and making whole the wounds that have occurred. God does not want to bruise or wound but sometimes it is the only way we acknowledge His correction.

1 Thessalonians 5:19-22 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies. 21 Test all things; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil.

Galatians 5:25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Revelation 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.

God loves us and as our Father He will chasten us when needed. May our walk each day be pleasing to the Lord. Just a thought for the morning.

Carl