But the Lord stood by my side and gave me strength so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth. 2 Timothy 4:17-18 Paul was in prison. The church is in turmoil. Timothy probably didn’t have the courage to deal with the church. Paul is encouraging Timothy to speak to the church as God has called him to do. God always gives us the strength to do what he has asked us to do. When we step out in faith and are obedient that is when the evidence of God’s strength will be revealed.…
-
-
Be Strong And Courageous
This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then, you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:8-11 What does it mean to be prosperous? In the world’s view, it is possessions, money, and status (title or rank in society). In God’s view, it is meditating on His…
-
I Will Never Leave You
No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, I will be with you; I will never leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Joshua 1:5-7 How comforting that God will be with you! God won’t leave you or forsake you. This is a promise to all of his followers. He was there for Moses and Joshua; He…
-
God Who Strengthens Me
I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13 The phrase “God only gives me what I can handle” is not correct. I believe that God will call us to do hard things. It can be physically, spiritually, or emotionally something hard for us to do or go through. I can give you two scripture references that show this. In Daniel 3, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are put into a fiery furnace. They served God wholeheartedly. They obeyed God. Depending on the version you use, the soldiers died before they even got the men into the furnace. These three men kept walking into the furnace. Honestly,…
-
Conducting Ourselves for Jesus
Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ; so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together, for the faith of the gospel, Philippians 1:27 When we accept Christ as our savior, we become citizens of the Kingdom of God. We need to be good patriotic citizens of the Kingdom of God. As Paul stated that they, the Philippians, were accountable to him, we, too, need to be accountable to one another. This means that when we see each other living in sin, we need…
-
Humbling
But emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:7-8 We can learn a lot from Jesus. He is a servant and humble. He humbled himself and came to earth as a man. He was humble by becoming obedient to God. Jesus was so obedient that he died on the cross for us. He laid aside the privilege of his limitless existence as God. When he emptied himself, he took on…
-
Saving Grace
For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift. Not from works, so that no one can boast. For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:8-10 Faith believes in Jesus. It is the only need for receiving God’s gift of salvation. There are two steps in Salvation in faith. What does a person believe about Christ? Active response from the heart of the person who desires to follow Christ as their savior. Faith firmly believes in Christ, his death for our…
-
Living Water
But whoever drinks from the water that I will give will never get thirsty again – ever! In fact, the water I will give him will become a well of water springing up with him for eternal life. John 4:14 When one accepts Jesus as savior, we get to drink from him, and we are satisfied. This water is spiritual life. The word drink is in the imperative tense, a continual action. This is an ongoing lifestyle. This means when we ask Christ into our lives, we don’t go back to our past way of living. It means spending time with Him. It’s our…
-
God’s Love
John 3:16 ‘For God loved the world in this way: so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.’ God loves you. He loves me. He loves everyone. God is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, faithful, and abounding in love for us. God wants you to have a relationship with him. He is waiting for you to choose him. I have 7 children. I have 5 boys and 2 girls. I value each of them. I love each of them. I often try to comprehend how God could give his one and only son to us – humans. I can’t. I can’t imagine asking anyone…
-
The Way, The Truth, The Life
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. John 14:6 Jesus is the way. The only way to God the Father. Jesus is the only perfect sacrifice that paid for all sin. Jesus paid the full price of our offenses toward God. He opened the WAY for a renewed relationship with God. Jesus provides the only way of spiritual darkness, lostness, and slavery to sin. Jesus is the truth. His truth is absolute. Jesus’ life is truth. His message is truth. This truth is total, definite, unconditional, unchanging, and conclusive. Its truth…