Avoid Evil; Do Good

Reading from Matthew 7:12-20 KJV; with comments... Do good to others as you would have them do to you.

Jesus Is Lord

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

                                                                                        (1 Pet 5:6-11 KJV)

We are not gods. Maybe, lords of our households; but, not the King of the Universe!  But, even as lords of our households we can really mess up and cause problems for ourselves and those who live with us. The devil is aware of that and uses it to his advantage as he seeks to devour everything and everyone around us. It behooves us to trust God to open our eyes to see the evil that the devil purposes to use us for and to fight against it. We fight not with our own power; but, with the power of the Spirit of Christ in us. Jesus is the only one who has been able to resist his power. We must humble ourselves and trust in that power. He is after all the King of all kings and has authority over everything and everyone.

Let not the devil use us to devour those around us. God help us to not empower the devil by falling into the trap of judging others and causing more division. But, by the grace of God who has called us to His eternal glory through Jesus Christ, strengthen us so that we may stand against the wiles of the evil ones. For, he is like a wolf in sheep's clothing creeping up on those who are unaware to steal the peace that only God can bring to us.

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 

                                                                                      (Eph 6:10-12)

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Vengeance is God's

For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Heb 10:30-32 KJV)

Judgment at the hands of the living God is something that we should not take too lightly. I sometimes wonder if all the "wolves in sheep's clothing" actually realize that they are devouring God's sheep; His children. Way too often, we find dissension and division within congregations. Way too often, the division is caused by people who want to have more power because they have no real power and they do not recognize the sovereignty of God. Jesus is a fairy tale to them. They do not take the judgment or the grace of God seriously. The church, to those who would usurp authority that does not belong to them, is nothing more than a place where they can have their own egos fed. Since they do not truly believe the power of God, they have no clue that they are devouring God's sheep. If they do realize it; they seem not to care.

Jesus came to reconcile us to our Father in heaven. Those who encourage division among God's people ought to take seriously that judgment will not come at the hands of humankind; but, at the hand of the living and all powerful God. Vengeance is His! We ought to take that seriously and thank Him for the grace that He has bestowed upon all who believe through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

God's Peace - Pr. J.

The Cross Is Foolisness To Those Who Are Perishing

"For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."  (1 Cor 1:18 NRSV)

For awhile; before I went to bed each night, I would listen to different sermons on YouTube. I gave that up awhile ago. I found that way too many YouTube (as well as television) preachers neglected to preach the message of the cross. Many preachers (not all) are not seen (or heard) for what they are: wolves in sheep's clothing.

They would preach about prosperity while they get rich on your offerings. Some preach a message of fear; of hell if you don't do everything exactly right. Others preach that the Good News is all about love and if you love enough that will be counted toward your good works and you will earn your way into heaven. After all; don't all good people go to heaven? They preach about doing good works so that we can manipulate God into getting what we want out of life; again, that is usually about prosperity, sometimes fame. They neglect to preach that the Good News is the Kingdom of God purchased for you by the blood of Christ shed for you on the cross.

The message of the cross is foolishness to false prophets and to those with itching ears who listen to them. You will not hear about suffering from these wolves in sheep's clothing. You will only hear about how God wants to give us everything we want in this world. He wants to bless us with riches (gold and silver) today! But, the truth is that God has already given us the greatest gift. He has given us forgiveness through the sacrifice of His only begotten Son. He has made us His children through the sacrifice of Jesus the Christ. We have been made us heirs of His Eternal Kingdom! We have been saved by the power of the cross of Christ. That is the Good News. It's not about money. The Good News is not about personal fame or notoriety or personal power. And, the Good News is not about what we can do for God! It is about what God has already done for us!

Thanks be to God! It is finished! It was finished on the cross. There is no good work that we can add to the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross for us that will save us from ourselves! Jesus did it all on the cross. But, this message about the cross of Christ will continue to be foolishness to those who look only to themselves. 

Consider the cross of Christ. Through Christ alone you have been saved. There is nothing more that you can do to earn your place in the Kingdom.

One more thing to consider. If you hear a sermon and never hear the name of Jesus in that sermon then it's probably time to find another preacher to listen to really quick.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

God's Will Prevails

For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.     (Jer 29:11 NRSV)

This morning I have been considering whether a "Christian" with no integrity should be confronted or if he should just be placed in the hands of Almighty God and let God deal with him as He will. Sometimes it can be totally left in God's hands. At other times, God will indeed use his servants to protect the sheep from any wolves in sheep's clothing. 

It is a most horrendous thing for Christians to attempt to tear down the church and the local congregations. It is even more horrendous for one who is in a servant/leadership position within the church to do that. The good news is that in the end they will not succeed in their own agendas. God's will; God's plans for the welfare of His people will prevail. We may not see it today or even tomorrow. But, His will is going to be accomplished. 

May God have mercy on those who choose to stir up strife rather than proclaim the good news by putting their personal egos and wills before the good will of God Almighty.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Keep Alert!

"Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. Discipline yourselves, keep alert. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, steadfast in your faith, for you know that your brothers and sisters in all the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering." 1 Peter 5:7-9 NRSV

There are some in family who are not totally comfortable with my vigilance. They think that I am too cautious because I usually take the time and make the effort to look past what I see at first glance to what is really going on around us. I like to know who the people really are that are involved in their lives. Social media; the internet as a whole, just as it is used by many employers to see who it is that they are really hiring, can be a very useful tool for parents, grandparents and pastors. I use this tool because I am well aware that sometimes the adversary might come like a roaring lion and sometimes the adversary comes dressed in sheep's clothing. Even wolves in sheep's clothing can be recognized if we know what we are looking for; if we know God's word and discipline ourselves to follow it. I like to know and be prepared for any attacks that my come against my loved ones and that includes all of the people I serve.

There are wars all around us. Some of them are plainly seen. The wars being fought in the unseen realms are not so easily discerned. Often, people are not even aware that they are being attacked. They are won over to the enemy's side without even being aware of it. The adversary knows his enemy. He knows us. He knows what desires and temptations will crumble us. It would be beneficial for us to also know the enemy so that we can recognize him when he rears his ugly head whether he comes to us as a roaring lion or dressed in sheep's or shepherd's clothing.

The more that we discipline ourselves to know the word of God, the more alert we will be to recognize the adversary when he attacks. Discipline yourself in the word. Read the Holy Scriptures daily; hear His word proclaimed at Worship; and then discipline yourselves, to follow the Word, who is Jesus the Christ and you will have no need to fear the adversary.

May the Lord keep you from the adversary; even as He keeps you in the Word.

God's Peace - Pr. Judy