Verse of the Day 5/31

Verse of the Day 5/31

1 Peter 3:10-11For

"Whoever desires to love life
    and see good days,
let him keep his tongue from evil
    and his lips from speaking deceit;
¹¹ let him turn away from evil and do good;
    let him seek peace and pursue it.  English Standard Version (ESV)

In yesterday's post we were challenged to "watch the way you talk" which involves being aware of what we're saying and being intentional not to bring harm to others in what we say.

I would think that it would be safe to say that we all have a desire to "love life and see good days" as stated in today's verses.  If we are to do so, part of the prescription will be to watch how we talk, have an effective filter on what flows out of our mouth.  In today's verses it involves keeping our tongues from evil and speaking deceit, not just at church, or the home but in all who we deal with in our lives.  A tall challenge indeed, especially if we are provoked.  The Message states "that goes for all of you" (or y'all to all y'all,) no exceptions".

God gives us the grace and the ability to enjoy life (John 10:10) in spite of it's challenges.  We have the opportunity to turn away from evil and to do good.  We can make the choice to seek peace and pursue it.  Read the passage below.   Be encouraged that the eyes of the Lord are looking down on us and that He listens to our prayers and will respond  well if our hearts are in the right place, seeking Him.

May this be our goal today:

    Say nothing evil or hurtful;
Snub evil and cultivate good;
    run after peace for all you're worth.  (v.11) The Message

--   In Christ,  Mike    Folllow the Verse of the Day blog at http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com  Ephesians 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 Peter 3:10-18The Message (MSG)

Suffering for Doing Good

^8-12 Summing up: Be agreeable, be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that's your job, to bless. You'll be a blessing and also get a blessing.

Whoever wants to embrace life
    and see the day fill up with good,
Here's what you do:
    Say nothing evil or hurtful;
Snub evil and cultivate good;
    run after peace for all you're worth.
God looks on all this with approval,
    listening and responding well to what he's asked;
But he turns his back
    on those who do evil things.

^13-18 If with heart and soul you're doing good, do you think you can be stopped? Even if you suffer for it, you're still better off. Don't give the opposition a second thought. Through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master. Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you're living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy. Keep a clear conscience before God so that when people throw mud at you, none of it will stick. They'll end up realizing that they're the ones who need a bath. It's better to suffer for doing good, if that's what God wants, than to be punished for doing bad. That's what Christ did definitively: suffered because of others' sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones. He went through it all—was put to death and then made alive—to bring us to God.

Verse of the Day 5/30

Verse of the Day 5/30

Ephesians 4:29  Do not let unwholesome [foul, profane, worthless, vulgar] words ever come out of your mouth, but only such speech as is good for building up others, according to the need and the occasion, so that it will be a blessing to those who hear [you speak].   Amplified Bible (AMP)

Today's verse is one of those that we need to read, that I need to read, remember and follow on a daily basis.  The Amplified Bible referenced here expands upon what characterizes "unwholesome" words.  The Message begins the passage with "watch the way you talk".  It means to pay attention to what we say, we are to have some sort of filter that prevents this sort of talk from coming out of our mouths.

Memorial Day is a day when we look back on those who have served our country and gave their lives for the freedoms that we have.  I read a story from A. W. Tozer about a former general and president of the United States that gives an example of what it would look like to honor today's verse.

"There was once a gathering of officers, and George Washington was present in the room. One of the young officers began to think about a dirty story that he wanted to tell, and he got a smirk on his face. He looked around and said, "I'm thinking of a story. I guess there are no ladies present." Washington straightened up and said, "No, young man, but there are gentlemen." The young officer shut his mouth and kept the dirty story inside his dirty head and heart.  .....Anything you could not tell with Jesus present, do not tell. Anything you could not laugh at were Jesus present, do not laugh at."  Rut, Rot or Revival: The Condition of the Church, 67.

When you see the character of George Washington, you wonder where that has gone today.  I don't think we see it in many (or any?) of the political leaders or candidates of the day.  But if we have expectations of better things from our leaders we should expect nothing less from ourselves.  I know that I fall short of the mark. 

Read the passage below from The Message and consider the challenge "Don't grieve God. Don't break his heart" and  Don't talk dirty or silly. That kind of talk doesn't fit our style.  May we be able to say  "Thanksgiving is our dialect", may that be the language that comes from our lips.  If all of the Christians in the world, in this country, followed  these principals perhaps the rest of the world would be inspired to follow the lead.

--   In Christ,  Mike    Folllow the Verse of the Day blog at http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com  Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins,  in accordance with the riches of God's grace.  NIV    

Ephesians 4:29-5:4The Message (MSG)

²⁹ Watch the way you talk. Let nothing foul or dirty come out of your mouth. Say only what helps, each word a gift.

³⁰ Don't grieve God. Don't break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don't take such a gift for granted.

^31-32 Make a clean break with all cutting, backbiting, profane talk. Be gentle with one another, sensitive. Forgive one another as quickly and thoroughly as God in Christ forgave you.

Wake Up from Your Sleep

5 ^1-2 Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn't love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that.

^3-4 Don't allow love to turn into lust, setting off a downhill slide into sexual promiscuity, filthy practices, or bullying greed. Though some tongues just love the taste of gossip, those who follow Jesus have better uses for language than that. Don't talk dirty or silly. That kind of talk doesn't fit our style. Thanksgiving is our dialect.

Verse of the Day 5/29

Verse of  the Day 5/29

Psalm 51:7-8   Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
    wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
    let the bones that you have broken rejoice.  English Standard Version (ESV)

The other day I had the opportunity to tie dye a shirt, something that was quite common back in the 60's and  70's.  It was fun and we had many colors to choose from.  The shirt would be tied and then you'd dip it into different colored dyes.   The next day day I removed it from the back and it looked good.  I had chosen red and blue ink, thinking  that along  with the white, I'd have a good shirt for  the 4th of July.  When I first removed it, it looked great!  But I had to go and rinse  out the excess dye.  Well, I was not careful enough to use very cold  water so that the colors wouldn't run.   I didn't let it cool down from the tap before rinsing.  After rinsing most  of  the white areas were now pink and it could not be removed (that I know of).

The next day I read today's verses from Psalm 51.  I'd like to make the white on that shirt whiter than snow again, but try as I may, I don't have the power to restore it, to make it pure again.  So it is with sin in our lives.  We all have different sins that we may struggle with and once we've been stained, dyed, we don't have the power in ourselves to restore ourselves, to make  us clean before God. It is only His forgiveness and His grace which can accomplish that.

The reference to the hyssop plant is of significance.  It was a leafy plant that would hold moisture.  It was  used in the Old Testament to sprinkle blood on a person to make them ceremonially clean.  It was also used in the Passover to spread the blood over the door frames, so that God would "pass over" it and not bring judgment on the first born of the house.  It  was also used in the New Testament to offer a drink of sour wine to Jesus on the cross where Jesus paid it all, made it possible to wash us clean forever.

I love The Message translation from a little later in the passage:

"God, make a fresh start in me,
    shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
Don't throw me out with the trash,
    or fail to breathe holiness in me."

When we sin, only God can cleanse and restore us and from the chaos restore order, re-create us, do a "Genesis"work in our lives and enable us to  live again.

I hear the Savior say,
"Thy strength indeed is small;
Child of weakness, watch and pray,
Find in Me thine all in all."

Refrain

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

--   In Christ,  Mike    Folllow the Verse of the Day blog at http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com  Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins,  in accordance with the riches of God's grace.  NIV    

Psalm 51:7-17The Message (MSG)

^7-15 Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean,
    scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life.
Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,
    set these once-broken bones to dancing.
Don't look too close for blemishes,
    give me a clean bill of health.
God, make a fresh start in me,
    shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
Don't throw me out with the trash,
    or fail to breathe holiness in me.
Bring me back from gray exile,
    put a fresh wind in my sails!
Give me a job teaching rebels your ways
    so the lost can find their way home.
Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God,
    and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
Unbutton my lips, dear God;
    I'll let loose with your praise.

^16-17 Going through the motions doesn't please you,
    a flawless performance is nothing to you.
I learned God-worship
    when my pride was shattered.
Heart-shattered lives ready for love
    don't for a moment escape God's notice.

Verse of the Day 5/27

Verse of the Day 5/27

 

1 Corinthians 14:26 What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.  New International Version (NIV)

 

I've been away this week at a company sales meeting/retreat.  The theme for the meeting was "come together".  The purpose of the gathering was collaboration, inspiration, motivation and celebration within the company.  We see the same thing going on in today's verse from 1 Corinthians 14.  Paul was encouraging the believers, the church in Philippi to "come together" for mutual purpose, to bring their own individual talents and gifts to celebrate, to worship, to praise, and to serve each other as the church body, the body of Christ.

 

I believe that the attitude should be the same today.  However, I don't think that it is the case in many instances.  Many may come to be entertained.  Sure there may be some inspiration, some singing but not everyone is "in the game", bringing their talents and putting them forth in the church.   1 Corinthians 12:7 tells us that "a spiritual gift is given to each of us".  We each have a role "no exceptions"  (The Message v.33), everyone is someone and no one is excluded from this.

 

It doesn't stop there.  What about our families?  When we get together do we bring our "gifts" with us, are we willing to share them and share a testimony of what God is doing in our lives and how others have impacted our lives?  May we share and pass on to our families a vision of and the importance of service for God's kingdom.

 

Before we head off to church to worship this weekend perhaps we may consider what we're bringing to the service as well as what we will take from it.

 

1 We gather together to ask the Lord's blessing;
he chastens and hastens his will to make known;
the wicked oppressing now cease from distressing.
Sing praises to his name; he forgets not his own.

2 Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining,
ordaining, maintaining his kingdom divine;
so from the beginning the fight we were winning;
thou, Lord, wast at our side; all glory be thine!

 

 

Blessings,

 

Mike

 

1 Corinthians 14:26-33The Message (MSG)

^26-33 So here's what I want you to do. When you gather for worship, each one of you be prepared with something that will be useful for all: Sing a hymn, teach a lesson, tell a story, lead a prayer, provide an insight. If prayers are offered in tongues, two or three's the limit, and then only if someone is present who can interpret what you're saying. Otherwise, keep it between God and yourself. And no more than two or three speakers at a meeting, with the rest of you listening and taking it to heart. Take your turn, no one person taking over. Then each speaker gets a chance to say something special from God, and you all learn from each other. If you choose to speak, you're also responsible for how and when you speak. When we worship the right way, God doesn't stir us up into confusion; he brings us into harmony. This goes for all the churches—no exceptions.

 

 

 

 

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Verse of the Day 5/26

Verse of the Day 5/26/16

 

1 Peter 5:10   And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.  English Standard Version (ESV)

 

For today's verse we return to the same passage from 1 Peter 5 where, the other day, we considered the dire warning from Peter not to take the devil lightly.  Within a few words of the warning comes a consolation for us, that if we suffer for our faith Christ Himself will restore, confirm, strengthen and establish you. 

 

All of us at some time or another have or will fall prey to some kind of temptation or stumble due to our own pride and stubbornness not to trust in God's plan, His chosen path found in His Word.  We should take it to heart that this passage with it's warning and consolation was written by Peter.  The same Peter that denied Jesus 3 times and was asked by the resurrected Jesus, "do you love me Peter"?  I've heard it said and sung before that "God's grace reaches lower than our worst mistakes".

 

"God is not the God of some grace — like bygone grace. He is the God of "all grace" — including the infinite, inexhaustible stores of future grace….Faith in that grace is the key to enduring on the narrow and hard way that leads to life."  John Piper

 

When we think about that future grace that John Piper references, it is that grace to restore confirm, strengthen and establish that Peter is referring to.

 

Regarding this book of 1 Peter, A.W. Tozer writes:

"Now, I suppose more people would like me if I were to declare that I preach the Bible and nothing but the Bible. I attempt to do that, but honesty compels me to say that the best I can do is to preach the Bible as I understand it. I trust that through your prayers and the Spirit of Christ my understanding may be right. If you pray and if I yield and trust, perhaps what we get from First Peter will indeed be approximately what Peter would say if he were here in person. We will stay as close as we can to the Word of the Living God. I Call It Heresy!, 17-18."

Whether we are preaching and teaching, leading a Bible study or small group or posting something about God's word, may our hearts may or prayer be that of Tozer's:

"Lord, I'm aware that I am an imperfect interpreter. But I'm preaching the Word of God and it is crucial that I get it right and deliver it accurately. Guide me constantly by Your Spirit so that I may be a faithful mouthpiece. Amen."

Our God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home.

Under the shadow of Thy throne
Thy saints have dwelt secure;
Sufficient is Thine arm alone,
And our defense is sure.

 

Blessings,

 

Mike

 

1 Peter 5:6-11The Message (MSG)

^6-7 So be content with who you are, and don't put on airs. God's strong hand is on you; he'll promote you at the right time. Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you.

He Gets the Last Word

^8-11 Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You're not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It's the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Verse of the Day 5/24

 

 

1 Peter 5:8-9    Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. ⁹ Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.   English Standard Version (ESV)

 

We've been considering watching and waiting on the Lord in prayer.  Today's encouragement to us from Peter has the same basic thing in mind.  It also comes with a warning.  "The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up."  (The Message).  That is the reason we need to be sober-minded and watchful.

 

In this day and age most people question or even ridicule talk of and moreso belief in "the devil".  The Bible warns us that he is very real.  Many times he may be subtle and tempt as he did to Eve, "did God really say"?  How often do we hear that said of God's Word when it goes contrary to secular thought? 

 

Being sober-minded is to think clearly, rely on the wisdom and understanding, the grace that God gives us and not be "under the influence" of the world around us, the political correctness and secular thinking.  We are to be "watchful" of the sublties and sometimes blatant lies that are spread as the new norm or a new truth. Accepting them will only cause us harm and to suffer in our faith.

 

We are to be firm in our faith, hold onto it, "keep a grip on it".  If we are careless and let go, the devil, the adversary, is real and he and his cohorts are ready to pounce on the opportunity.  Hold on and be confident that "Jesus has the last word, yes He does." (The Message)

 

In Christ,

Mike

 

 

 

1 Peter 5:8-11The Message (MSG)

He Gets the Last Word

^8-11 Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You're not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It's the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.