Category: Christian Living

Holy Week, Monday, Is Your Heart a House of Prayer?

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Bible Commentaries give two specific events that Jesus was involved in on Monday before His crucifixion, in what is now known as Holy Week.  Jesus entered the city humbly and triumphantly on Sunday and then cleansed the temple area of money changers and withered a fig tree.  Both actions seem harsh, but they give a picture of the worldly opposition to God’s kingdom.  From both we get a glimpse of divine justice.  You can read the accounts in Matthew 21 and Mark 11.

Jerusalem at Passover was a bustling city with many thousands of pilgrims arriving to make offerings at the temple.  They needed to purchase animals for sacrifice and change money so they could pay the yearly temple tax.  The exchanges were all being conducted in the outer court of the Gentiles.  Here is Matthew’s account from 21:12-14.

12-14 Jesus went straight to the Temple and threw out everyone who had set up shop, buying and selling. He kicked over the tables of loan sharks and the stalls of dove merchants. He quoted this text:

My house was designated a house of prayer;
You have made it a hangout for thieves.

Now there was room for the blind and crippled to get in. They came to Jesus and he healed them.  (Message)

Jesus was then, is now, and will be in eternity the Righteous Judge.  He saw the true motives of the people desiring to make money exorbitantly and uprooted and cast them out literally.  He placed a priority on prayer and worship when coming to God’s house.  He got right to the work of His ministry, healing and allowing access to God for everyone.

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As we near the cross, take heart from this short snippet in Jesus’ last week. Know that He came to save and set right relationships and motives towards God.  What attitudes do you need adjusted by Jesus today?  Do you attend church to make ‘connections’ with people for business or do you come to pray and reflect on your walk with Jesus?  Looking at the heart is what Jesus did then, and does now in our lives through the Holy Spirit.  Let Him cleanse your heart today and put you on the right pathway with right motives.  May our hearts be right with God today as suggested in this quote by Charles Wesley “Make My Heart a House of Prayer”.  

Because Christ died on the cross and rose from the dead, God is accessible to me through prayer and I can trust in His righteousness. I can claim the truths of Philippians 4:6-7 “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Thank you Jesus for making yourself accessible through prayer, your unsurpassed peace for my heart, and for your redemptive sacrifice.

Linda

Palm Sunday, Let Holy Week Begin!

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All 4 of the gospel accounts of Jesus’ life and work record his entry into Jerusalem on the Sunday before their Jewish Passover.  Matthew, Mark and Luke tell the story of how Jesus obtained the donkey upon which He entered as it was prophesied that Messiah, king, would come riding a donkey.  Zechariah 9:9 was written hundreds of years before the event “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion!  Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!  Your king comes to you gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the fold of a donkey.”   John was the only writer to mention the palm branches that were waved by the crowds as Jesus humbly rode into the city. “So the took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’” John 12:13  The waving of the palm branches signifies a celebration of victory, and was a reminder of Jesus’ royalty.  The only other place that palm branches are waved is in Revelation 7 where John records the following scene in heaven. 9″ After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

As you worship Jesus today, cry out in praise to Him for who He is- our mighty King and Savior.  He is and always will be the victor now and forever!  Raise your palm fronds high in praise to your savior and proclaim Him the one who came to save you and me.  He was indeed the Lamb of God who took away the sins of the world!

Linda

Growing in Him, Planning & Following

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Our last ‘put upon’ scripture for this Lenten season is meaningful as it teaches an attitude and practice that God desires of all committed believers. Paul is instructing the Corinthian Christians about the collection of offerings for the suffering Christians in Jerusalem. The Jerusalem Christians were under extreme persecution at this time and believers throughout Asia minor were concerned and seeking to aid them in their time of need and distress. Paul was planning to go and take the offerings if he could, if not then he assured them that some other brothers would take their offerings to these suffering Christians.

1 Corinthians 16:1-5 “Now concerning the collection for the saints: as I directed the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do. 2 On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come. 3 And when I arrive, I will send those whom you accredit by letter to carry your gift to Jerusalem. 4 If it seems advisable that I should go also, they will accompany me.

What lesson was Paul teaching in his request for them to set aside a portion each week for these needy people? I am calling it planned generosity. Many of us can be generous on the spur of the moment, carried by emotion or emotional pleas but this was to be planned. They needed to learn to set aside a portion for God’s use each week. Since many of the people of Macedonia were poor, they needed to plan and set aside a little bit at a time and then amazingly they would have a lot to give. This relies on God’s faithfulness to provide and our faithfulness to be obedient and set monies aside.

I had not thought of planning for generosity, but I’ve done it. When you decide to set aside money to pay for a camp scholarship to be used in the future, when you know there will be a Pastor Appreciation month coming in October or the love gift at Christmas. In the case of the Corinthians, it was giving that was over and above their regular giving and needed to be planned for. Give this some thought. Next time you have a bonus or some unexpected monies, ask God what you should do with it and set it aside. You don’t have to give it right then as perhaps God has something else in mind for those funds. Set it aside as Paul instructs and wait for the project or time God wants you to give it. You will be blessed by the planning and blessed by the listening and following God’s direction.

Because Christ died on the cross and rose from the dead, I can depend upon God to direct my giving and allow Him to grow my obedience and faithfulness.

As we have seen throughout this Lenten season, God wants to grow and mold us into who He sees we can be in Him.

Linda

Wholeness Through Jesus

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Our scripture today speaks of the death on the cross that put our sins to death and made us alive in Christ. Before Peter concludes with Christ’s suffering in verse 18, he reminds us that in Christ we will suffer for good. 1 Peter 3:15-18

15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 17 For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit.

We are to expect suffering but Peter tells us to cherish Christ in our hearts and always be prepared to tell others about Him. As we speak gently to others about Christ, we need to persevere even if other speak ill of us. His admonition is that it is better to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. We can console ourselves that Christ suffered, and He was without sin. He died for our sins so that we could be make righteous before God. In His death, he put to death sin and made us alive with the Holy Spirit within us. I love Romans 5:8 “ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Christ knew I was a sinner and died for me anyway, so I could be reconciled to God. What an amazing Savior we have in Christ Jesus.

Because Christ died on the cross and rose from the dead, I am purified and made righteous so that I can speak freely of His love and salvation! Thank you Jesus for loving me when I do not deserve it. Thank you Jesus for making me whole and purifying me so I can stand before God the Father covered in your righteousness. Thank you Jesus for you great love for me.

Linda

Holy Spirit’s Work, Cause for Rejoicing

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Chapter 10 of Hebrews gives us a discussion of the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice for our sins, once for all, like I wrote about yesterday from Hebrews 9:24-26. In Chapter 10:15-18, the author tells us about the Holy Spirit’s actions in accordance with Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. We are now under grace and once we accept Jesus as Savior and receive His forgiveness, the Holy Spirit enters into our lives and hearts. Here is His work within us:

“ And the Holy Spirit also testifies that this is so. For he says,

16 “This is the new covenant I will make
    with my people on that day, says the Lord:
I will put my laws in their hearts,
    and I will write them on their minds.”

17 Then he says, “I will never again remember  their sins and lawless deeds.” 18 And when sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices.”

These verses are cause for great rejoicing for every believer. The Holy Spirit has begun an new agreement with each believer to claim us as belonging to the Lord and to write on our hearts and in our minds the right way to live for Him. He promises to remember our sins no more! Amazing! He reminds us that faith in Jesus assures forgiveness of sin and there will be no need to offer any sacrifices like they did in Old Testament times. It is a new day with Jesus! I am reminded of Romans 12:1-2 where Paul calls us to live sacrificially for Jesus. It means giving our all to Him. “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” We now have a higher calling to live and reflect the Holy Spirt that lives within us.

Because Christ died on the cross and rose from the dead, I can live forgiven and with God’s laws on my heart and in my mind as I seek to love and serve Him. Let God claim your heart and mind so that each day you can live filled by His Holy Spirit reflecting His love and goodness towards others.

Linda

Healed and Forgiven in Jesus!

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Our ‘put away’ scripture today comes from Hebrews 9:24-26. The author of Hebrews is writing to Jews explaining how Christ’s coming and His sacrifice was different from the continual sacrifices the priests made at the temple and the sacrifice made once a year for the sins of the people taken into the holy of holies. Christ’s was better and only had to happen once for all time as He was/is the perfect complete and all sufficient sacrifice to atone for our sins and appease God’s wrath. The author also mentions that Christ took his complete sacrifice to heaven itself not into the temple made by man. He took his sacrifice to God himself to make complete atonement for our sins.

For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. 25 Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, 26 for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 

If Christ’s sacrifice had not been complete, once for all time, he would have had to have come and died over and over again. He did not! He came and died once and put to death all sin and took all sin upon himself. 1 Peter 2:24 “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” Praise God! Because Christ died on the cross and rose from the dead, I can live covered by His righteousness and healed by His love. Thank you Jesus!

Linda

Heart Attitude For Giving

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Jesus was at the temple teaching his disciples. He observed the following and made a lesson for all of us out of what He knew and what He saw.

Luke 21:1-4 As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. 2 He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 3 “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. 4 All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”

Jesus knows our hearts and our motives when we give. He pointed out the rich who look good and give a lot into the temple coffers. Then Jesus pointed to a poor widow who put in a very small amount. On the surface it would seem the rich were doing a better job of giving generously to God’s work, but Jesus knows the circumstances of this widow’s heart and resources. She gave out of her poverty putting all she had towards God’s work. The lesson for us is: we need to give out of our hearts sacrificially not what is convenient or what makes us look good. Those that give out of their wealth give gifts that are used by God, but what concerns God most is our heart attitude and willingness to give sacrificially to see His Word go forth.

Where do you need to examine your own giving methods and reasons? Is God at the heart of your giving? Do you give cheerfully or begrudgingly? Are you giving God the ‘first fruits’ or the left overs? We need to look carefully at our hearts as we give as it does not matter whether we are giving a large amount or a small. God knows our hearts so we need to be honest and open to His leading. Because Christ died on the cross and rose from the dead, I can give with an open heart motivated by His love and seeking to honor Him with my gifts. Let Jesus be the keeper of your heart and let His Holy Spirit shape and define your motives for giving to Him. Let your ‘put in’ with your monies be a true reflection of your love for Him.

Linda

A Hidden Gem Brings Hope and Assurance

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Today’s ‘put on’ scripture is a bit of a surprise. When I read it I could not remember seeing this promise from God about the Holy Spirit here in 2 Corinthians. It is a gem, a hidden treasure to encourage and enlighten you and me!

2 Corinthians 1:20-25 is an infusion of hope and courage from the Apostle Paul. “ For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God. 21 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

His first affirmation is that every promise is fulfilled, completed, and made right in Christ. What a blessing to know that everything God has planned will be completed by Christ in His time and in His way. We do not have to doubt. 1 Kings 8:56 puts it this way, “Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses.” God keeps His promises. Amen means ‘so be it’. That is another affirmation that God’s will is to be completed just as He said.

Paul continues to reassure us that God makes us able to stand firm in our faith in Christ. David stood firmly rooted in the Lord and said, “May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.” in Psalm 19:14. May David’s words and conviction be ours as we stand firmly for Christ. Paul also reminds us that we are anointed by Christ and sealed by the Holy Spirit. The seal He puts upon us shows He owns our hearts, we belong to Him and His Spirit living within is just a heavenly deposit to remind and empower us to live for the Lord. His Holy Spirt is our guarantee that all is Yes in Christ and we have an eternity settled with Him.

May these verse help you to ‘put on’ His love, claim His promises and step out in Spirit led faith today!

Linda

Fifth Sunday of Lent, 2022

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For our final Sunday of Lent, #5, before Palm Sunday and the Easter, I want to look at the last verses of Psalm 139: 23-24. These verses speak to my heart because they tell me to who God is and why I need Him.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart!
    Try me and know my thoughts!
24 And see if there be any grievous way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting!

God is omniscient, all-knowing so He knows what is in my heart and what my heart desires. If it is not good- then God knows it. If it is good or partially good, God knows it. He can and does use my thoughts to guide and challenge my thinking. I am His and all of me belongs to Him. He can seek out and reveal to me things I have done wrong, attitudes that need refining or redirecting and through His searching He can cleanse me from the inside out! Praise our magnificent, merciful and loving God.

May you have a blessed Sunday to worship Him!

Linda

God Has us Covered! Protected Offensively and Defensively with His Armor

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In yesterday’s blog, Paul gave us the reasons for putting on God’s armor. (See the blog entitled “Armored Up.” Today we see the purpose for each piece and the benefits of suiting up!

Ephesians 6:13-17 “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.“

Each piece of God’s armor is specifically designed to help us withstand the temptations and trial of this world. Satan wants to see us defeated. He knows he cannot take our salvation away as it is held secure in the love of God and sealed by the Holy Spirt. However, he can destroy our witness, cause us to be discouraged or feel defeated and worthless. Paul presents the specifics of God’s armor to encourage and strengthen us, as we seek to walk with Christ day by day. First, Paul reminds us that putting on God’s armor will allow us to stand in the face of evil and hold on to Him no matter what comes our way. Then Paul begins listing each piece that will fortify us. The truth of the gospel, the truth of who God is and His being binds us and gives us strength like no other. Covering our heart is the breastplate, so our inner feelings and soul are protected from harm by His righteousness. When David cries out to God in Psalm 51:10 ” Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”, he is requesting renewal of heart, purification by Christ and resilience. All of these come from the righteousness of God and are ours in his breastplate of righteousness.

The next piece of armor is for our feet, the gospel of peace. The salvation of Christ to the world brings peace wherever it goes, as being in Christ brings unity of purpose. Putting on the shoes of the gospel means being willing to walk with Him and tell others about His love, forgiveness and salvation. Now that Paul has us up and dressed, we need to pick up our outer shield which is faith. The shield goes before us and protects us from the doubts and methods of Satan who seeks to destroy us and our witness.

Lastly, Paul mentions our two offensive weapons that can be used in our battles against Satan. They are the sword of the Spirit and prayer. The sword of the Spirit is the word of God. Jesus rebuked Satan when he was tempted in the wilderness with God’s Word. His Word has power and can be our defense against any attack that Satan launches against us. It is a sword that is discerning and powerful according to Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” The sword is amazing as it works to help us defend ourselves. Prayer is also an offensive weapon we can use it both for and against our enemies. Prayer changes things and gives us emotional, physical and spiritual support. We are admonished to ‘pray continually’ and that prayer is effective. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. James 5:16 “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” 1 Peter 3:12 “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” Prayer is a tool we can use continually- night and day, for and with each other and for our help, hope and defense!

Because Christ died on the cross and rose from the dead, I can suit up with God’s weapons of defense and offense to stand against the powers of this world and Satan. Thank you Jesus for your all covering armor that we can use to protect and defend ourselves and our witness in this world.

Linda