Jesus is our example

Why are there some people who think and thereby believe once they have accepted Christ they are above reproach?

They can do no wrong. They can accuse and judge. They can condemn another for their wrongdoing. They can proclaim, You Are Wrong.

And that makes Mr./Mrs./Miss High and Mighty right?

We are all one, assuming the "we" is those who have come to know Christ, have accepted Him as their personal Savior, have a walk of love and obedience with and to the Lord.

Love -- that means everybody, not just those you personally select.

Obedience -- total commitment to the Lord.  ... But do we always know all that entails?

Jesus gives us instructions, but because of our imperfections, our discernment is not always right on the mark.

Yet, perhaps you think it is. You know right from wrong. But it's not all about what or who is right and what or who is wrong.

It's about Him -- His relationship with you, your relationship with Him.

It is not your responsibility to remind a fellow Christian of their faults, their shortcomings, to continually point out to them what they cannot do, where they cannot go. We hinder God's work when we take things upon ourselves.

Jesus shows us how to live and be responsible. He is our example. If we do not follow him, but our own thoughts, we are not being ALL that God has called us to be.

Even as Christians we are not above getting off the path. We still have sin in our lives. The Lord Jesus knows us and wants to show us how to stay on His path and not wander off. But we do stray. ALL OF US.

We seek God's love, His forgiveness.

He gives. He is. Love. He does not condemn. He saves us from condemnation, for unrighteousness. We are reborn, renewed.

To do what?!

To be and do as Christ
To love as Christ
To suffer as Christ

If/when/since God has forgiven me, why do you still hold over my head my guilt? Should not you also, whom God has forgiven, forgive another?

We must show love
compassion
gentleness
patience
forgiveness
to each other, every one.
We must show Jesus.

Remember -- it is to Jesus we belong. It is not to ourselves we are to strive, but to Jesus. We are His children, His disciples.

We must walk in the Word. Our mission must be to Christ toward all, unbeliever AND believer.

"Do all things without murmuring and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain." (Philippians 2:14-16 NKJV)

"Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in your richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." (Colossians 3:12-17)

Without Jesus there is no unity, no peace, no promise, no hope.

"With Him (God), all things are possible." (Matthew 19:26)

Let us live as believers.

God's blessings can be found in any situation

Blessings
come.
Sometimes
a situation
develops
and we don't see
the good
in it
Only the bad
But God's blessings
can be found
in whatever situation.
Good
Bad
Ugly

When our being
is kept eyed on
The Holy One
When our questions
start with
How Lord
rather than
Oh what will "I" do
He helps us,
guides us,
shows us
the way past
the chaos.

Oh what a blessing
indeed
to call upon
The Lord
to bear
under the load
of a given day
with His strength
His power
His love.

Keep us always mindful
Lord
of You
and Your majestic greatness
Remind us
daily
to stay focused
on You
Not
to falter and fall away
Never
to neglect
our loving obedience
to you,
Our Lord and Savior.

Cathy Orrick Luders
6.10.2011

"Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power." (Ephesians 6:10 NKJ)

"Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer." (Romans 12:11-12 NRSV)

To live as the Lord directs

To live, really live, as the Lord directs, not as the world suggests and even it seems commands, means
to give up our lives, our thoughts, our desires and dreams, our positions. To renounce all we have, all we hope to have, all we plan, all we do, and lay it at the feet of Jesus, at the foot of the cross, in His hands.

To live, really live, as the Lord directs, means first we must be obedient. Obedient to His call -- "Come."

"Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine."
(Isaiah 43:1 NRSV, New Revised Standard version)

It is in our obedience to the Lord that our faith grows ... But easy it is not. God tells us, "My grace is sufficient for you." (II Corinthians 12:9) My grace, My love. God's grace is God's love. His love is nothing like that between husband and wife. But more, much more.

He is with us ... Always, forever.

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior." (Isaiah 43:2-3)

We are precious to Him. He created us. We are His children. Precious ... and honored ... and loved. God yearns for His spirit to live within us. He wants more than anything for us to "know" and take hold of
His love.

His instructions, His teachings, His commandments are written in His Word for the benefit of His children.


"Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you." (James 4:8)


"Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you." (James 4:10)

His children. He created all.


"whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made." (Isaiah 43:7)

From all nations, all nationalities, every religion, known and unknown.

"Bring forth the people who are blind, yet have eyes, who are deaf, yet have ears!
Let all the nations gather together, and let the people assemble ... Before me no god was formed, 
nor shall there be any after me. I, I am the Lord."  (Isaiah 43:8-11)

To live, really live, as the Lord directs, we would be content with God's truth, God's love, God's commandments, God's promises. Truth is God and God is love. Truth without love is a falsehood, a lie. All perceptions, all knowledge, all so-called truth is meaningless, worthless, useless, if there is not love.

"If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a  clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing." (I Corinthians 13:1-3)

He tells us His grace is sufficient, for His power is made perfect in weakness. All of His children are weak, the world over, we have no power, unless we are united with The One, The Only One, The True One, The Holy One, The Eternal One. If we would only look upward and grasp hold of Christ's hand extended to us ...

Related post: Stay focused on Jesus, 11.21.2009

Obedience?

"But thus you shall deal with them: you shall destroy their altars and break down their sacred pillars, and cut down their wooden images, and burn their carved images with fire.

... For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure ...

... The Lord did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number ...

but because the Lord loves you, ... the Lord has ... redeemed you from the house of bondage...

Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments.

And He repays those who hate Him to their face, to destroy them. He will not be slack (delay) with him who hates Him; He will repay him to his face." (Deuteronomy 7:5-10 NKJ)

Do we obey the Lord?

How do we deal with the enemy, the ones who hate the Lord and His children and what He is about?

Do we still act, behave as though we were never set free? Jesus went to the cross for our freedom. Have we forgotten? What have we done to honor Him?

God will repay all that is evil ... But are we to simply sit by and watch or are we to go and do ... His will, not mine.

What is your true heart prayer?

Restrain from evil

NOTE: This blog may soon no longer be visible through www.gazetteonline.com but that won't stop it from being published nor from me pursuing God's desires and sharing His words with my readers.

Thought for the Day: "You through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; For they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, Because I keep Your precepts. I have restrained my feet from every evil way, That I may keep Your word." (Psalm 119: 98-101)

I may be wiser. I may have gained understanding. But if my obedience in following the Lord Jesus has faltered, I wonder just how much wiser I really am or how much understanding has been gleaned. Have I restrained myself from evil ways? ... in every way?

Prayer: I want, I desire to be able to say, "I have restrained myself from every evil way." Help me Lord to be mindful of things I do or say that could be construed as negative or harmful to another. If it is not good to say, then don't say it. Keep my thoughts pure, more on you and less on me. In your name I pray. Amen.

When God is in control

When God is in control -- not us, nothing can interfere with the plans He has for us.

It is when we individually take charge that plans go awry.

Even in the midst of pain and suffering, when we give up control of the situation to the Lord, all that we undergo will not deter God from following through, making good on His promises. God always comes through. Why don't we?

"For I know the thoughts (plans) that I think (have) toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." (Jeremiah 29: 11)

We don't really listen to what God says until we obey His teachings in the Bible. Wanting to and doing so are not the same. Doing so is a lifelong practice ... talking to, praying, meditation with God every step of the way and being obedient to Him. His thoughts, your thoughts. We must live in God's hope and trust in His purpose for us. Beware of false hope that abounds everywhere.

When we continually abide with Christ, we will be able to know, realize what is false and turn from it.

The 4th Commandment of the Lord

Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy

So, what is the Sabbath? when is the Sabbath? When do we observe the Sabbath? When and how do we keep the Sabbath holy? How does the 4th commandment relate to the other commandments?

These are my my own thoughts based on what I have gleaned from the Scriptures.

God's law is principally about faith. Listening, waiting for God's answer, earnest prayer, then following through. The Ten Commandments are instructions God gives us. We are to learn and pass it on. Learn what God says, teach others what God says. Not learning and teaching what we think, what others think. We will know when we wait on God, seek him earnestly in prayer. Our faith makes us whole.

"Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law? Of course not! In fact, only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law." (Romans 3:31)

Without faith we can not understand all that God's law entails. We can not know the whys and wherefores, we can not fully comprehend, not even partially. Obeying the commandments, the law, without faith is of no use. Works alone gets you nowhere. Works do not make you righteous. If you're not righteous, you are not in right standing with God. You are unrighteous, unholy.

"Observe the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. ... And Jesus said to his disciples - The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. ... Therefore the Son of man is also Lord of the Sabbath." (taken from Exodus 20, 23, 31, Mark 2)

The Sabbath is a sign between God and believers throughout generations, that you - we may know that "I am the Lord who sanctifies you - consecrates, makes holy, cleanses? purifies? sets you apart? We are to keep the Sabbath therefore because it is holy to you. A day of rest and refreshment.

"One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day (such as the Sabbath), observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day to the Lord, he does not observe it." (Romans 14:5-6)

What day is the Sabbath? - the 7th day. But worship is not just one day a week - it's an everyday happening.

What does it mean, 'remember the Sabbath - keep it holy? "And God blessed the 7th day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from his work of creation." (Genesis 2:3) It does not say He doesn't bless days 1 through 6 or that those days are not holy. Remember the Sabbath - a day of rest from work - keep it holy - reflect on the Lord, on all He is, all He has done.

The first day - the evening and the morning, sundown to sunrise - what day was the first day? When God created, days of the week were not established. There was no calendar. Where does it say day 1 is Sunday or day 7 is Saturday?

"And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made." (Genesis 2:2)

Again, as Jesus himself said, the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

A corporate day of worship - be it Saturday or Sunday or some other day - we have no individual right to judge the reasonings thereof. In this day and age, how do we remember, observe? How do we keep it holy?