Marvelous Musings from Matthew 7

⁹Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? ¹¹If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! Matthew 7:9-11, ESV

Have you ever truly stopped to consider how good and kind and generous the LORD is?

Have you approached Him as if He were stingy and cheap - spoken or implied?

If not see Him as He is, in light of what this scripture tells us.

The Lord is good and His goodness endures forever!

Praise Him!

Marvelous Musings from Matthew 5

For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:20, ESV

What was the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees? They trusted that by keeping the law of Moses they would be made acceptable to God - but could not keep the law perfectly. They probably ended up being (1) frustrated and self-condemned by their failures or (2) hypocrites - as Jesus plainly called those who opposed Him in the record of the Gospels.

I did a search for the righteousness of the law and here is what Biblegateway came up with (ESV translation). I pulled out just a few:

²⁰For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. ²¹But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— ²²the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: ²³for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus
^{Romans 3:20-24, ESV}

¹Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved. ²For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. ³For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. ⁴For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
Romans 10:1-4, ESV

²¹Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law.
Galatians 3:21

So there is a righteousness of the law and a righteousness of God. The righteousness of the law may include good works, or be downright hypocritical showmanship, but in either case, there is not faith in God's Son and the blood of His cross as the only complete atonement for our sin - which is the only access into the righteousness of God which gives life. Only faith in Jesus Christ can bring us into a relationship with God the Father. To know Him is eternal life.

And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
John 17:3, ESV

One more thing: Notice that Jesus said "unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees." I believe this indicates that faith in God does not mean that we live a law-less life, living anyway we want, but that we must exceed a faith that depends solely on its own attempts to be 'good.' When we believe in God's Son, His righteousness is accounted to us and we go forward doing good works that are in keeping with His own ways.

Marvelous Musings from Jeremiah 7

Jeremiah 7:22-23 (New King James Version)

²² For I did not speak to your fathers, or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices.

²³ But this is what I commanded them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.’

In this passage, God is addressing a problem in which backslidden Israel continued to observe the temple ordinances, while also actively participating in idol worship and just about every immoral act there is (see verses 8-11). When confronted, these deceived and self-deceived, hard-hearted people actually had no conviction of their sin because they had long chosen to 'follow the counsel and dictates of their evil hearts' (vs. 24).

It's not a matter of us just upholding some level of Christian observances and/or traditions (e.g. church attendance), but it's a matter of obeying Him wholeheartedly if we do indeed call Him our Lord and claim to be in a relationship with Him. So many times our sacrifices are empty because in our hearts we lack the main things: Obedience, and the Fear of the Lord. Yet, unless we recognize that God's commands all call us to a relationship with Him based on just these principles, we will never get it right.

Marvelous Musings from 2 Timothy 3

I was thinking about what God told us in 2 Timothy 3:1-5 about the end-time social state of the world:

¹ But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: ² For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ³ unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, ⁴ traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, ⁵ having a form of godliness but denying its power.

I found myself pondering this...what is the power of godliness? It seemed to occur to me in an instant that the power of godliness is holiness. Looking at Romans 1: 3, 4 I became more convinced this contained specific truth:

³ concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, ⁴ and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.

To be godly refers to taking on the nature of God. Sons of God have His nature. Jesus Christ THE Son of God coming into the earth as a man was declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness. There are morally good people, striving to be caring, decent, socially contributing and helpful to humanity. But there is no one holy apart from God. This is more than an intention or penchant for doing good things. This is the set apart, separated, consecrated manner of inner and outer life that no one can possibly attain to without relationship with the God who Himself sanctifies people in this way unto Himself. It is an absolute change of heart and a new spirit, filled with new desires and the fear of God. It makes a person obedient from the heart, to God's word.

So in today's world, we do see just what God said through the apostle Paul. Lots of people professing christianity and goodness, and even Jesus' name. Yet, the Spirit of holiness does not inhabit their lives. They are not sons of God. To the discerning, some of these people will be recognized by their fruit in this world. I believe there are others who will slip by unnoticed and be exposed, even to themselves, at the judgment seat of Christ.

Marvelous Musings from 2 Samuel 24

2 Samuel 24: 10-14, NKJV
10 And David’s heart condemned him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done; but now, I pray, O LORD, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly.”
11 Now when David arose in the morning, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying,
12 “Go and tell David, ‘Thus says the LORD: “I offer you three things; choose one of them for yourself, that I may do it to you.”’”
13 So Gad came to David and told him; and he said to him, “Shall seven years of famine come to you in your land? Or shall you flee three months before your enemies, while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ plague in your land? Now consider and see what answer I should take back to Him who sent me.”
14 And David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Please let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for His mercies are great; but do not let me fall into the hand of man.”

This incredible account from the life of David reminds me of two major things:
~ what made him, a fallible man, so highly favored by God
~ how critical it is to our own lives that we make knowing God intimately the preeminent aim of our 'religion'

David had already done wrong, but it was his knowledge of the ways of God that greatly mitigated the consequences of his sin. Also, note that God could actually trust David to give him choices, even regarding his own punishment. That says a lot on its own. In any case, one 'wrong' choice could have brought far greater suffering, but David knew some things about the God he served that had come from his relationship with Him over the years. I wonder how many of us would have weighed our options using the same criteria. Not to mention, having to make the decision in a moment.

What we know about God - really know - is going to affect every single thing that flows out of our life. How we enjoy His blessings, endure His chastening, bear up under trials and grief, whether we press on in faith...all are determined by how much we know Him as He really is. And this determines how much we will please God.

I want to please God. Therefore, I must know Him.

Marvelous Musings from Romans 8

Romans 8:35-39 (New Living Translation)

³⁵ Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? ³⁶ (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) ³⁷ No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

³⁸ And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. ³⁹ No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We often have such little real understanding of God's love for us that many times when trouble comes we are plunged into despair or rebellion against God. I've certainly been there. 'If You really love me, why did You let this happen?'

There are reasons why bad things happen to God's people at times (even though I am not going to discuss those here). Some of these reasons may be unknown or never satisfactorily resolved on this side of life. However, as I meditate upon this portion of Scripture, and as I examine the often tumultuous lives of the Bible's saints, it becomes more and more clear to me, that the love of God for His adopted sons and daughters must not be defined by our notions of 'happily ever after' while we are in this age.

Marvelous Musings from Romans 11

Lest you be wise in your own sight, I want you to understand this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, "The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob"; "and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins." As regards the gospel, they are enemies of God for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
(Romans 11:25-29, ESV)

Since this is just intended to be a musing and not a whole bible-study outline, I just wanted to share this to get you thinking about Israel a little more. Israel is a great key to the whole drama that is unfolding not only in the Middle-East but the entire world. Israel is the end-time wonder that will usher in Jesus Christ's return to rule and reign from that very nation.

I used to be a Christian who, though not anti-Semitic by any means, was honestly more or less indifferent through ignorance. The Jewish people seemed to be from a nation far away from me, maybe even ancient, dangerous to be involved with, somehow important - but I didn't know how it all fit together so I was just happy with my Jesus (born as a Jew and all). Thank God for the light and love He shed on me because it could not have come any other way. I mean, I've always been cultural and travel-minded but I've never been so excited about praying for another nation. And it's not hard because God has shared His plans with us in His word!

Oh and one more thing:
"For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable" is a cute little verse which we throw around in mainstream Christianity in regard to spiritual gifts and public ministry callings. Please take note of where and in what context it was actually used! I'm not making a point about what else it may apply to, but don't forget the primary application: The ethnic nation of Israel will never be forgotten or forsaken by God. In fact, He has a huge and marvelous plan we would never have come up with on our own!

Marvelous Musings from Ephesians 1

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
(Ephesians 1:3-6, ESV)

This is some HEAVY stuff...Heavy, weighty, good, immovable and TRUE stuff. I probably should not have chosen all three verses since any one of them contains worlds of truth too astounding and vast for anyone to take in, in one sitting. I couldn't help myself. It's all soooo good! I wanted to say 'yummy', but not sure if you would understand, lol.

Ok, true story:

Some years back soon after Jesus got a hold of me, I went through an identity crisis. I had not grown up in church or a truly godly family and I was trying to fit into what I read, heard and saw at that point. Add to that all my learning about things called 'gifts' and 'callings' and the knowledge that God has a plan for my life. Well, I was just a mess. Trying so hard to 'be' and make my place in the church (I had not even found one to attend yet) without really understanding what He had already done for me and what He thought of me.

One night I had a dream of putting on these huge eye-glasses (skipping details)...and later that day as I was talking to some revelatory-gifted women I used to meet via an online ministry chat, one of them said to me: "You are having an identity crisis. I see you wearing huge glasses, and you are asking God, 'Who am I?' ' Who am I to You?' God wants to give you vision...(skip details).

Well, I was inspired by the Holy Spirit to start to read Ephesians. I read this book out loud on my bed every night for about three weeks. On nights when I didn't get to reading the entire book, I read at least Chapters One to Chapter Three.

After the first night or two, I was inspired to do something even more radical (I didn't know this was something people actually did at this time in my unchurched life) - I substituted every 'we', 'us', 'you', 'our' and so on with a personal pronoun to refer to myself. And so I read, night after night, after night.

At the end of those three weeks, something was different about me and I have never been the same from that day till now. My heart grasped something about the love of God as my Father that I'd never received before. I knew who I was, Whose I was, why I was; that I was 'loved', 'accepted' and a whole lot of other verbs like that applied! And I also then realized that God took great pleasure in me. He knew all about me and was not disappointed by His purchase - and He was listening to me. My prayers were exciting for the first time.

A real, living relationship had begun.

Marvelous Musings from Isaiah 55

Isaiah 55:10-11, ESV
(10) "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
(11) so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.


Believing God's word, doing God's word, praying God's word, confessing/declaring God's word, waiting on God's word are all critical. Yet these do not change the fact that sometimes seeing God's word come to pass in a particular situation entails a season of seeing nothing visibly happening. Or seeing what seems to be stops and starts, or really slow growth. I can think of many examples and testimonies of others right now.

For example, I recently watched an online interview with Germaine Copeland, the author of the popular Prayers That Avail Much series of books. These books are amazing aids to effectual prayer because they are paraphrased from scriptures and built upon God's will as revealed in His word. The host asked Germaine Copeland how she started to write these prayers and her amazing testimony is that she had a son who started the downward slide into drugs and trouble at age 15. She started to write these prayers out as a mother searching for God's deliverance for him and, GET THIS, prayed for him for 28 years! It took 28 years for him to truly get off drugs and he has now been sober and growing in Christ for about 10 years.

Verse 10 above shows a process that God's word takes. The process over an extended period of time means that

• something is being watered
• something is being brought forth
• something is budding
• something is being brought to such fullness of purpose that it goes on to provide bread for the NOW
• something is growing to the point of maturity to enable it to produce seed for the FUTURE

Thank God for the instant and quick manifestations of promises and help and deliverance - but not all will come that way. We can be encouraged though. Don't give up. Don't stop. Don't let what has already been accomplished in the earth, under the cover of soil and moonlight be aborted now. Keep on watering it with the word of God and joy and praise. Mix the seed with faith. And to faith add, patient endurance. Faith and patient endurance will inherit what God has promised. God says to us that His word will never return to Him without accomplishing His purpose. That settles it.

Marvelous Musings from Isaiah 38

Isaiah 38:1-5, ESV

In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him, and said to him, "Thus says the LORD: Set your house in order, for you shall die, you shall not recover."

Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, and said, "Please, O LORD, remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight." And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

Then the word of the LORD came to Isaiah: "Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus says the LORD, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add fifteen years to your life.

God DOES answer prayer - even about matters that already seem '(pre-)determined' somehow...Wow. Try to wrap your mind around this!

Marvelous Musings from Isaiah 8

Isaiah 8:13-14a, NKJV
The Lord of hosts, Him you shall hallow;
Let Him be your fear,
And let Him be your dread.
He will be as a sanctuary...

In context, the verse above follows a command to the people of God not to be afraid of the things that others fear and not to be troubled by the threats of others. Rather, we are to focus on God. If we would make Him the only One we honor as holy, fully recognizing and respecting the authority and power that He wields, we will have no cause to fear. He will Himself be a sanctuary for us.

Taking our eyes off an enemy or a very difficult situation does not come naturally to us. It takes an act of will and requires continual effort to keep tight reins on our thoughts. It means we will need to spend extra time reading, believing and reciting in faith the promises of God to deliver those who wait for Him. The fruit of this however, is an active peace that no one will be able to make sense of. This confident expectation in God's promise to 'show up' terrifies the enemy because he knows - from thousands of years' experience - that yes, God will indeed save the day yet again!

Marvelous Musings from Psalm 119

Psalm 119:105, NKJV
Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.


This is a well-known and much quoted verse, but this is how the Holy Spirit opened it up to me one day:
God's word gives me light - instruction and counsel - about what's next, about what my next step should be. The word of God is also a light for the lesser known or upcoming events, the rest of the master plan, the entire course I have to run - the path.

Clearly, it's in my best interest to be intimately acquainted with this Word!

Marvelous Musings from Luke 24

Luke:24-32, NKJV
And they said to one another, "Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?"


Have you ever had this experience while you spent time reading and communing with God over His written word?

I have - thanks be to God for the Holy Spirit - and it stirs up this almost insatiable thirst for the things of God, for time spent with Him, for MORE OF HIM.

MORE.
HIM.
This is what being a Christian is really about.
Living relationship with an awesome God.

Marvelous Musings from Psalm 94

Psalm 94:20-23, NKJV
(20) Shall the throne of iniquity, which devises evil by law, have fellowship with You?
(21) They gather together against the life of the righteous, and condemn innocent blood.
(22) But the Lord has been my defense, and my God the rock of my refuge.
(23) He has brought on them their own iniquity, and shall cut them off in their own wickedness; the Lord our God shall cut them off.


I wonder how many law-makers, congressmen, parlimentarians, judges know that God is watching while they 'devise evil by law.'

Heaven is making records of its own as those given power in governments of the nations lobby and vote and pass bills to legalize abortion, homosexual marriage, and to ban the full-preaching of the truths of God's word while protecting the rights of those who engage in any other idolatry or immorality. Preachers of truth can be arrested and fined, praying to God is considered an 'offense' but citing texts and wearing symbols of witchcraft and any other religion are not. Gambling, pornography and 'adult entertainment' have long been legally acceptable options in various states and countries because some people have used their power to make them laws in the land.

Any government of any nation so represented is a throne of iniquity.

The country and people who espouse and defend evil by passing such bills in houses of government, their own iniquity will surely come up on them and bite them in the rear-end. Pardon the expression. But watch and see, it's happening already. As they struggle to contain crime, to counsel and control teens and youngsters, as they suffer from messed up family-lives within the walls of palatial homes, and do their best to fight or hide their shameful addictions. It's coming upon them and without repentance it's nothing but downhill from here.

God will protect His people who will be persecuted by means of these wicked laws, although some suffering for the sake of Jesus' and the word of God is assured.