We Do Not Suffer Alone

1 Peter 5:8-11 KJV; The adversary attacks not just you; but, all of your brothers and sisters in Christ.

Be Sober; Be Vigilant!

1 Peter 5:6-11 KJV; 7th Sunday of Easter;  Be aware of what is going on for the devil is always aware of what you are doing and will catch you up if you are not paying attention.

Be Sober; Be Vigilant

1 Peter 5:6-11 KJV; Be sober; be vigilant for your adversary the devil seeks to devour you. Have faith that the Lord will give you strength and lift you up!

Be Not Consumed By Anger

For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

                                        (Gal 5:13-15 KJV)

The Holy Scriptures remind us over and over again that we are to love one another. Anger does very little good. There are a times when anger can motivate us to do as when we someone being abused. But, we do not turn that anger into hate. (Eph 4:26-27) We use it to try to make the world a better place to live in by serving others.

Anger damages the person our anger is directed at. But; it also damages the one who is angry for end up living without peace. As St. Paul advises us in Galatians: "...if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another." 

Peace is found in being reconciled to God and to one another by the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus. It is a gift from God. Living in anger with others will give us no peace. 

"Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." 

                                                                                         (Matt 5:42-45)

Love your neighbor. Bless them that curse you and do good to those who hate you. Live in peace.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

The Sacrifice

 

Psalm 50:1-6 KJV

The mighty God, even the Lord, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.

Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.

Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him.

He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people.

Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.

And the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is judge himself. Selah.

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There is nothing that we can sacrifice to seal the covenant with God. There are no good works that we can accomplish that will cover our sinful ways. We have all fallen short of keeping the first covenant; the covenant of law. We have found that we are incapable of keeping the letter of the law as was given to Moses.

Our hope is found in faith alone in Christ alone who willingly became the sacrifice for us that the new covenant might be sealed with his precious blood. We are sinners; yet, we have become God's saints because of Jesus' sacrifice and not because of any good thing that we have done or sacrificed. By his blood we have been washed clean. 

John's greeting in the letter to the seven churches reveals his vision affirming that it is by the blood of Christ that has united with God and his Father.

"And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen." (Rev 1:5-6)

May God help us to trust in Christ alone for our salvation.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

By Love Serve One Another

For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

                                                                                  (Gal 5:13-15 KJV)

If our sole purpose in this life is to gratify our own egotistic desires we will most probably find ourselves spiritually and emotionally empty and hungry. We will find ourselves with divisions between ourselves and others so numerous that we cannot count them.

On the other hand, if we would but love others as ourselves, we would be more able to live with the differences between us and them in peaceful reconciliation. As we go about our daily lives let us give consideration to how we would have others treat us and treat others in that way. Consider if when you are lonely or depressed would you want someone to be with you to comfort you. Then be there for those who are also alone and depressed. If you and your family were without food or shelter would you have someone assist you? Then, do likewise to those who are in need. If you would live in peace; then let others live in peace. Do not intentionally cause them anxiety or worries of any kind. And, when you help someone; when you are there for them, let it be done with a joyful heart. Do it in a manner that they know that they are loved and not merely a good work that you know that you should do.

Out of love, be there for the people around you. Our personal times and agendas are not more important than loving our neighbors right next door, in our own households, or on the other side of the world.

Loving and serving others will give us purpose that will bring about peace rather than divisions among us.

May God help us to always remember that Jesus so loved us, that he was willing to serve us by giving his life on the cross for us. Being generous and going a little out of our way for the sake of others can't even begin to compare to that!

God's Peace - Pr. J

Free To Not Devour Others

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.      
                                                                                      (Gal 5:1, 13-15 KJV)

We are free to love; to stand up for one another; to defend and help those who need defending and help. Jesus did not die so that we can attack others to get an edge up over others. He came that we might be reconciled to our Father and to one another. Snarling at others; biting and attempting to devour each other has nothing to do with our Father's good will for humankind. 

I watched about two minutes of the Democratic Presidential debate last night and had to shut it off. Maybe it was the worst two minutes of the debate. But, oh my! How rude they were to each other in those two minutes. That seems to be indicative of all political debates no matter who is involved and that will not reconcile anyone to one another. The same goes for each of us in our daily lives. Reconciliation does not come by spitting at each other. 

The sacrifice made by Christ for all humankind has made us free to love and serve one another. Fighting and attempting to degrade those one might actually agree with for personal power or recognition is not freedom; but, bondage to worldly desires. Christ has set us free to love not to destroy our neighbor.

St. Paul wrote to the Galatians: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another. (Gal 5:22-26)

It would be nice if when we disagree with others we could all learn not to belittle and degrade them.

God's Peace - Pr. J

The Lack Of Love Will Destroy You

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. (Gal 5:13-15 NIV)

I have been around for awhile and I have seen it all too often. I have witnessed those who know that they have been set free, by the blood of Christ, to love and to serve God as well as one another; bite one another to fulfill their personal desires. I have seen people climb the ladder of success on the backs of others. I have heard lies to make oneself look good (even like a victim) in order to get ahead of others; even as they destroy the lives of others under false pretenses. And, sadly, this getting ahead isn't usually even getting ahead very far in this world. It is merely to satisfy some selfish motivation to make oneself feel better about oneself (feed one's own ego) or to look better in the eyes of someone they hope to impress for whatever reason. 

Take heed and listen to the words of St. Paul to the Galatians: "'Love your neighbor as yourself.' If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each others."

God help us to learn to serve one another humbly in love.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Beware Of Those Who Devour Others

"Then He said to them in His teaching, “Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, love greetings in the marketplaces,  the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts,  who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.” Mark 12:38-40

Beware of the scribes; beware of anyone who would place themselves before and above others. They are not there to help others; but, to help themselves under the pretense of helping others.

Beware of the pretentious. Those long prayers and speeches of the pretentious are there to sway you to their way of thinking and not necessarily God's way or will. Beware, that their smooth words are not swaying you to follow in a way that you should not be going in.

We are inundated with political speeches. We are inundated with biased media. What a circus it has become! Listen carefully and beware of those who place themselves before others; who think more highly of themselves than they ought. With their smooth tongues they can make what is good look like sin and what is sin look like it is a good thing. Beware of those who claim to want to help the poor and needy and; yet, get richer while the poor get poorer.

Beware of the false prophets. We have a God who will guide us in all things. Listen to Him!

God's Peace - Pr. J

False Shepherds Destroyed

In the 50th chapter of Jeremiah we read the word the Lord had spoken through Jeremiah the prophet concerning Babylon. Babylon is about finished. God is about to destroy her and His people will turn their faces, once again, to the LORD and to the land that He has given them; to the covenant that He has made with them. They were once lost, living in exile; because of their hard-heartedness and eagerness to follow false gods, false shepherds. But, now God will destroy those false shepherds who led them out of the land He had given them.

“My people have been lost sheep;
    their shepherds have led them astray
    and caused them to roam on the mountains.
They wandered over mountain and hill
    and forgot their own resting place.
Whoever found them devoured them;
    their enemies said, ‘We are not guilty,
for they sinned against the Lord, their verdant pasture, 

   the Lord, the hope of their ancestors.’" (Jer 50:6-7 NIV)

No more! Those who say that they are not guilty, that they have no sin; those who have divided and scattered the flock will fall. Babylon will fall! The wolves in sheep clothing will fall! The Good Shepherd, Himself, will lead the remnant home.

“Israel is a scattered flock
    that lions have chased away.
The first to devour them
    was the king of Assyria;
the last to crush their bones
    was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.”

Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says:

"I will punish the king of Babylon and his land
    as I punished the king of Assyria.
But I will bring Israel back to their own pasture,
    and they will graze on Carmel and Bashan;
their appetite will be satisfied
    on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead.
In those days, at that time,”
    declares the Lord,
“search will be made for Israel’s guilt,
    but there will be none,
and for the sins of Judah,
    but none will be found,    
for I will forgive the remnant I spare." (Jer 50:17-20)

There are many false shepherds out there. Beware! If any prophet would put his own will and desires before the will of God, do not follow him. If any shepherd would put the ways of the world before The Way of Jesus, do not follow him. His own path will lead him to destruction and you do not want to be with him when he falls. Follow only in The Way that the LORD has prepared for you. "The LORD is our Shepherd, we shall not want. He makes us to lie down in green pastures. He leads us beside still water. He restores our soul..." (Psalm 23)

May God help us to keep our faces turned toward Him and to the Kingdom that has been promised to us through Jesus Christ our Lord.

God's Peace - Pr. J