Verse of the Day 10/9

Through the Bible - Isaiah 43-44, 1 Thessalonians 1

 

Good morning,

This morning's Old Testament reading in Isaiah bring us to one of the great verses of the O.T. it speaks of comfort, encouragement, and hope.   He is letting us know, through the prophet, that know matter what trials and tribulations that we go through, He is , and always will be there.

 

Isa 43:1 But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you.
O Israel, the one who formed you says,
"Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.
I have called you by name; you are mine.
2 When you go through deep waters,
I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression,
you will not be burned up;
the flames will not consume you.  NLT

Yesterday we considered what it meant to have a Christian worldview and to think and act biblically.  As we read in Isaiah 43 God is always with us.  We may not feel His presence directly and He often brings us comfort and encouragement through others that He brings into our lives at just the right time, when we need it most.  Paul is commending this way of life as has been seen in the people of the church at Thessalonica.

 

1 Thess 1:2 We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. 3 As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ.   NLT

In Barnes, in his commentary on the verse notes that this " is, your showing or evincing faith. The reference is probably to acts of duty, holiness, and benevolence, which proved that they exercised faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Works of faith are those to which faith prompts, and which show that there is faith in the heart. This does not mean, therefore, a work of their own producing faith, but a work which showed that they had faith."

 

Are you trying to live biblically in order to produce and strengthen your faith or showing the faith that you have by the way you live your life.  There is a difference.

 

Rom 1:17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last,  just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."    NIV

Living this way will help you realize that God is here and will be here when you need Him.  This should give us the "enduring hope" mentioned in verse 3 above.  A couple of songs came to mind, one of them is by Steven Curtis Chapman.

 

I Will be Here - 

Tomorrow morning if you wake
up and the sun does not appear
I will be here
If in the dark, we lose sight of love
Hold my hand, and have no fear
'Cause I will be here

I will be here
When you feel like being quiet
When you need to speak your mind
I will listen
And I will be here
When the laughter turns to cryin'
Through the winning, losing and trying
We'll be together
I will be here

Tomorrow morning, if you wake up
And the future is unclear
I will be here
Just as sure as seasons were made for change
Our lifetimes were made for these years
So I will be here

I will be here
And you can cry on my shoulder
When the mirror tells us we're older
I will hold you
And I will be here
To watch you grow in beauty
And tell you all the things you are to me
I will be here

I will be true to the promise I have made
To you and to the One who gave you to me

Tomorrow morning, if you wake up
And the sun does not appear
I will be here
Oh, I will be here

The "I" can refer to Christ and also others, including ourselves, that are willing to "come alongside" and be a comfort for those in need.   We have been given the power to do so (verse 5 below).

 

In Christ,
Mike
mikevw@bellsouth.net
http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com
Eph 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace  NIV

1 Thess 1:2-2:1

 

The Faith of the Thessalonian Believers

 

2 We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. 3 As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

4 We know, dear brothers and sisters, that God loves you and has chosen you to be his own people. 5 For when we brought you the Good News, it was not only with words but also with power, for the Holy Spirit gave you full assurance that what we said was true. And you know of our concern for you from the way we lived when we were with you. 6 So you received the message with joy from the Holy Spirit in spite of the severe suffering it brought you. In this way, you imitated both us and the Lord. 7 As a result, you have become an example to all the believers in Greece—throughout both Macedonia and Achaia.

 

8 And now the word of the Lord is ringing out from you to people everywhere, even beyond Macedonia and Achaia, for wherever we go we find people telling us about your faith in God. We don't need to tell them about it, 9 for they keep talking about the wonderful welcome you gave us and how you turned away from idols to serve the living and true God. 10 And they speak of how you are looking forward to the coming of God's Son from heaven—Jesus, whom God raised from the dead. He is the one who has rescued us from the terrors of the coming judgment.  NLT