Verse of the Day 5/31

Verse of the Day 5/31

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17  For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel's voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ Then we who are still alive will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and so we will always be with the Lord.  Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

I read today's verse as Bible Gateway's "Verse of the Day". As I read it I was reminded of yesterday's post from Psalm 103 about  God's "faithful love for us" to those who remember Him and follow His ways. For those who do so, who call Jesus Lord and Savior He will remember  us on that future day when Christ returns in glory.

My read through the Bible plan this morning took me to the second half of John chapter 11 where Lazarus was called from the grave.  Jesus cried out "Lazarus come forth" and Lazarus proceeded from the grave alive after being sealed in the tomb for four days.  The call was specific to Lazarus. 

When we read today's verses we may be tempted to think that it is a general call.  In some respects it is, but it is specifically for those who had believed, who looked for and longed for the day of His return., whose names are written in the book of life.  Jesus will come to fulfill His promise from John 14:3

John 14:3  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. English Standard Version (ESV)

Since the time of His ascension, He has been planning and preparing for His return, preparing a place for us where He will always be with us.  Are you ready and waiting for His call?

Revelation 22:20  He who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming soon." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!   English Standard Version (ESV)

--   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 Thessalonians 4:16-18The Message (MSG)

^15-18 And then this: We can tell you with complete confidence—we have the Master's word on it—that when the Master comes again to get us, those of us who are still alive will not get a jump on the dead and leave them behind. In actual fact, they'll be ahead of us. The Master himself will give the command. Archangel thunder! God's trumpet blast! He'll come down from heaven and the dead in Christ will rise—they'll go first. Then the rest of us who are still alive at the time will be caught up with them into the clouds to meet the Master. Oh, we'll be walking on air! And then there will be one huge family reunion with the Master. So reassure one another with these words.

Verse of the Day 5/30

Verse of the Day 5/30

Psalm 103:17-18 But from eternity to eternity

the Lord's faithful love is toward those who fear Him,
and His righteousness toward the grandchildren
¹⁸ of those who keep His covenant,
who remember to observe His precepts. Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

Yesterday we celebrated the Memorial Day  holiday, a day set aside to remember those soldiers who served and fought for our country, gave their lives to give us the freedoms, the life that we have today.  They fought for their country, their communities and their families, but it wasn't solely for those of that time, it was "toward" future generations.

I like the way the Holman Christian Bible translates the beginning of the verse as "the Lord's faithful love is towards", it is focused on us.  As Christians we should remember each day what God has done through us through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.  He has given us life, not just for today but for eternity and He has done it for all the future generations that will call on Him and believe in Him.  It doesn't end there.  Today's verse reminds us that if we are believers we will "remember" to do what He has called us to do.

As we head back to the shortened work week this week, let us remember His steadfast love for us, and show our love for Him and "toward" future generations.

God's love, though, is ever and always,
    eternally present to all who fear him,
Making everything right for them and their children
    as they follow his Covenant ways
    and remember to do whatever he said.  Psalm 103:17-18 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    

Psalm 103:6-18The Message (MSG)

^6-18 God makes everything come out right;
    he puts victims back on their feet.
He showed Moses how he went about his work,
    opened up his plans to all Israel.
God is sheer mercy and grace;
    not easily angered, he's rich in love.
He doesn't endlessly nag and scold,
    nor hold grudges forever.
He doesn't treat us as our sins deserve,
    nor pay us back in full for our wrongs.
As high as heaven is over the earth,
    so strong is his love to those who fear him.
And as far as sunrise is from sunset,
    he has separated us from our sins.
As parents feel for their children,
    God feels for those who fear him.
He knows us inside and out,
    keeps in mind that we're made of mud.
Men and women don't live very long;
    like wildflowers they spring up and blossom,
But a storm snuffs them out just as quickly,
    leaving nothing to show they were here.
God's love, though, is ever and always,
    eternally present to all who fear him,
Making everything right for them and their children
    as they follow his Covenant ways
    and remember to do whatever he said.

The Message (MSG)

Verse of the Day 5/28

Verse of the Day 5/28

Esther 4:14  For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?"   English Standard Version (ESV)

Today, my daily reading in the Old Testament brought me to the book of Esther.  It holds one of the most fascinating stories in the Old Testament.  Throughout this whole story in the book, God is not mentioned directly, but His fingerprints and His presence are written all over it, clearly seen between the lines.  Today's verse is most likely the most well known verse in the entire book.

In the introduction to the book in Max Lucado's "Life Lessons Study Bible",  Lucado shares the story of John Egglen.  You may have never heard of him but he was a deacon of his church.  One snowy day he made it to his church for the service when most of the others of the congregation couldn't make it and stayed home, including the pastor.  A total of 13 people showed up and Egglen was the only board member.  He was not prepared to give a sermon but felt that he could not send the people who had braved the elements home without hearing from the Word of God.  His sermon lasted only ten minutes and wandered without having a clear point.  But at the end of the sermon he looked out at a visitor, a 13 year old who was a visitor and had somehow made his way to the church, he looked directly at the boy and stated, "Young man, look to Jesus.  Look! Look! Look!" 

Did it make  a difference?  The boy, grew to be a man and shared the story of how "he did look, and the cloud on my heart lifted, the darkness rolled away, and at that moment I saw the sun."  That boy was Charles Haddon Spurgeon who went on to England's prince of preachers, whose sermons and devotionals are still being read and shared every day.

Egglen had no idea of what would come of that sermon, but he felt God's call for that time, that day, and through that faithfulness and God's power the church and the world were changed.

What burden has God placed upon your heart?  Don't shrink back, who know's whether you've been brought here for such a time as this.

--   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    

Esther 4:14The Message (MSG)

^12-14 When Hathach told Mordecai what Esther had said, Mordecai sent her this message: "Don't think that just because you live in the king's house you're the one Jew who will get out of this alive. If you persist in staying silent at a time like this, help and deliverance will arrive for the Jews from someplace else; but you and your family will be wiped out. Who knows? Maybe you were made queen for just such a time as this."

Verse of the Day 5/26

Verse of the Day 5/26

Proverbs 18:24 A man of many companions may come to ruin,

    but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.   English Standard Version (ESV)

It may be said the the mark of a true friend is one that sticks with you through "thick and thin".  They've been with you through the good times and the bad.  Circumstances don't change who they are.  In this day and age we may have hundreds or  perhaps even thousands of "friends" on facebook or other social media but it is doubtful that any of them would prevent you from "coming to ruin".  True friends remain over time.  Though miles may separate us when troubles come along or perhaps you just need a listening ear, they are there.  Sometimes, years may have gone by, but when you speak to or meet them again it is as if time had stood still.

Charles Spurgeon in a sermon devoted to this one verse writes, "It is the strong stiff oak of ages' growth which shall abide the tempest; which shall alike put out its wings to shield thee from the sun, and shall afterward find thee a hovel in its heart, if necessary, in its gray old age when its branches tremble in the blast. Friendship is true when it begins; but we must have a man's friendship long before we can say of him that he will stick closer than a brother. And how long has Christ loved you? That you can not tell. When the ages were not born he loved you; when this world was an infant wrapped in the swaddling clothes of mist he loved you; when the old pyramids had not begun to be builded his heart was set upon you; and ever since you have been born he has had a strong affection for you. He looked on you in your cradle and he loved you then; he was affianced to you when you were an infant of a span long, and he has loved you ever since. "  

We may be fortunate enough to have one  of those friends that sticks closer than a brother here on earth, but one thing we can be certain of, we do have a friend in God, in Jesus Christ, who is there for us, standing by us and who won't change, who won't hold a grudge and will welcome us back even if we've been away from Him for some time.

Spurgeon continues, " Some of you I see with gray hairs, some with heads all bald with age; he has loved you up till now, and will he now forsake you? O! no, his friendship is so old that it must last; it has been matured by so many tempests, it has been rooted by so many winds of trouble that it can not but endure; it must stand".  Many, if  not most of us have those gray hairs or perhaps lack of hair that Spurgeon mentions, hopefully, you can attest to the fact that you have a friend in God and through the rest of this age and the age to come "it must stand."

--   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    

Proverbs 18:22-24The Message (MSG)

²² Find a good spouse, you find a good life—
    and even more: the favor of God!

²³ The poor speak in soft supplications;
    the rich bark out answers.

²⁴ Friends come and friends go,
    but a true friend sticks by you like family.

Verse of the Day 5/25

Verse of the Day 5/25

John 8:12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."     English Standard Version (ESV)

As I read today's verse yesterday in the read through the Bible plan that I'm following, I was reminded our our trip to Israel and walking through Hezekiah's tunnel.  It is a tunnel that was dug  under the city of Jerusalem under the direction of King Hezekiah.  I was built to bring fresh water to the city from underground and would be a way for them to have a constant supply of fresh water even if the city were under siege.  It is a narrow tunnel and in most spots only one person can fit through at a time. 

By the way it was excavated, people must have been shorter than today.  If it was built today, it would have to be more  rounded as well.  The hole  cut in the rock was tapered, narrower at the feet and broader at shoulder height and then tapered to the top of the head.  If you are of average height today you have to stoop to get through it.  But the important thing is that it is pitch black in the tunnel.  Even though the path has been cut, the same path for thousands of years, without the light you'd constantly be bumping your head, scraping it against the ceiling of the tunnel (as I did a few things even with a light), or quite easily trip and fall into the  water.  The light makes all the difference.

So it is in life.  Even in the Christian life, the path has been laid for us, but it we are trying to live it on our own, by our own way, our own means, it is as if we are walking down this narrow path in the dark.  Without His light, His  Word we'd constantly be bumping our heads,  tripping and falling along  the path, through life's tunnel.  How foolish would we be to walk through that tunnel in the dark while we had a flashlight in our pocket, or  even in our hand but didn't turn it on, didn't use the  light.  How foolish are we in this life if we don't use the light of the world, His Word, and the Holy Spirit to guide us?

Jesus once again addressed them: "I am the world's Light. No one who follows me stumbles around in the darkness."  John 8:12 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    

John 8:12-18The Message (MSG)

You're Missing God in All This

¹² Jesus once again addressed them: "I am the world's Light. No one who follows me stumbles around in the darkness. I provide plenty of light to live in."

¹³ The Pharisees objected, "All we have is your word on this. We need more than this to go on."

^14-18 Jesus replied, "You're right that you only have my word. But you can depend on it being true. I know where I've come from and where I go next. You don't know where I'm from or where I'm headed. You decide according to what you can see and touch. I don't make judgments like that. But even if I did, my judgment would be true because I wouldn't make it out of the narrowness of my experience but in the largeness of the One who sent me, the Father. That fulfills the conditions set down in God's Law: that you can count on the testimony of two witnesses. And that is what you have: You have my word and you have the word of the Father who sent me."

Verse of the Day 5/24

Verse of the Day 5/24

Isaiah 41:10  fear not, for I am with you;

    be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
    I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.    English Standard Version (ESV)

In yesterday's post we considered what it means to us to have the Creator of the universe "standing by" to deliver us.   I quoted the refrain from the Rich Mullins song "My Deliverer" - " My Deliverer is coming, my Deliverer is standing by , He will never break His promise, He has written it upon the sky."  As I read today's verse and reflected again on His promise I was brought back to another line from the song.

My Deliverer is coming, my Deliverer is standing by 
He will never break His promise though the stars should break faith with the sky 

Anyone who is able to look up to the skies and see the stars can easily identify the big dipper, the little dipper and other constellations.  They've been in place through the ages since time began, or should I say that God created them and hung them in place.  God is more dependable than the stars that He created.  That same God has a hold of you and promises to strengthen you and continue to uphold you.

Today is a gloomy day in NC with gray overcast skies and predictions of coming  storms.  That's how it is in life  sometimes, but in those days and even through the storms of life today's verse is one that we can turn back to.  John Piper writes, "When the motor of  my mind is in neutral, the turn of the gear is Isaiah 41:10". Today if you have some idle  moments may your thoughts be directed back to this verse and God's promise.

Because I, your God,
    have a firm grip on you and I'm not letting go.
I'm telling you, 'Don't panic.
    I'm right here to help you.'  (Isaiah 41:13 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    

Isaiah 41:10-13The Message (MSG)

^8-10 "But you, Israel, are my servant.
    You're Jacob, my first choice,
    descendants of my good friend Abraham.
I pulled you in from all over the world,
    called you in from every dark corner of the earth,
Telling you, 'You're my servant, serving on my side.
    I've picked you. I haven't dropped you.'
Don't panic. I'm with you.
    There's no need to fear for I'm your God.
I'll give you strength. I'll help you.
    I'll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.

^11-13 "Count on it: Everyone who had it in for you
    will end up out in the cold—
    real losers.
Those who worked against you
    will end up empty-handed—
    nothing to show for their lives.
When you go out looking for your old adversaries
    you won't find them—
Not a trace of your old enemies,
    not even a memory.
That's right. Because I, your God,
    have a firm grip on you and I'm not letting go.
I'm telling you, 'Don't panic.
    I'm right here to help you.'

Verse of the Day 5/23

Verse of the Day 5/23

2 Corinthians 1:10-11 He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. ¹¹ You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.  English Standard Version (ESV)

The context for today's verses from 2 Corinthians, is Paul, looking back over the recent trials that they had faced and stating "we didn't think we were going to make it. We felt like we'd been sent to death row, that it was all over for us."  (The Message).  The Greek word for trials in the New Testament can mean "an attack with intent to destroy."   Notice Paul says "he delivered" and then "he will deliver" and confirms it by stating it again "he will deliver".

Have you been, have you felt at times in your life, like you've been under attack and that someone was out to destroy you - emotionally, physically or spiritually?  We need to see beyond the trial but sometimes in order to do so we have to look  back, look back to how God has "delivered" us, how He has delivered His people throughout the Bible and history.

In Jesus model prayer he prayed "deliver us from the evil one".  Jacob had prayed "deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother" (Gen. 32:11), the Israelites prayed "do to us whatever seems best to You, only deliver us this day."  (Judges 10:15).  David prayed,"deliver me from all my transgressions". (Psalm 39:8).

David also stated in Psalm 32.

Psalm 32:7You are a hiding place for me;  you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah

English Standard Version (ESV)

Whether it is facing trials, when we feel like we're under attack, even from our own sins  or emotions, we have a deliverer who is standing by, ready to step in if we'll call out to Him.   He will never break His promise.

My Deliverer is coming, my Deliverer is standing by 
My Deliverer is coming, my Deliverer is standing by 
He will never break His promise, He has written it upon the sky     (Rich Mullins)


"Instead of trusting in our own strength or wits to get out of it, we were forced to trust God totally—not a bad idea since he's the God who raises the dead! And he did it, rescued us from certain doom. And he'll do it again, rescuing us as many times as we need rescuing"  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    

2 Corinthians 1:10-11The Message (MSG)

^8-11 We don't want you in the dark, friends, about how hard it was when all this came down on us in Asia province. It was so bad we didn't think we were going to make it. We felt like we'd been sent to death row, that it was all over for us. As it turned out, it was the best thing that could have happened. Instead of trusting in our own strength or wits to get out of it, we were forced to trust God totally—not a bad idea since he's the God who raises the dead! And he did it, rescued us from certain doom. And he'll do it again, rescuing us as many times as we need rescuing. You and your prayers are part of the rescue operation—I don't want you in the dark about that either. I can see your faces even now, lifted in praise for God's deliverance of us, a rescue in which your prayers played such a crucial part.