Month: December 2019
Be Reconciled
So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.
~ Matthew 5:23-24 [NLT]
We humans, made in the image of God, are built for relationships. When there is discord among friends, family, and neighbors it affects our relationship with God. How can we worship God and refuse to revive healthy loving relationships with others? Is there someone in your life that has something against you? Go and be reconciled.
Turning Point
Recommended Reading: Luke 2:8~20
Glory in the Highest
8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 10 Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
14 “Glory to God in the highest,And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
15 So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. 17 Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child.
Silent night, holy night. All is calm, all is bright, Round yon virgin mother and child! Holy Infant so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace.
Think of the difference between Christmas Eve in 5-6 B.C. and Christmas Eve today. Then, there were no horns honking, no sirens wailing, no neon lights glaring, no videos streaming, no music blaring … it was a silent, holy night. It might have been noisier in Jerusalem, just eight miles from Bethlehem, but in Bethlehem, all was calm—and all became bright as the radiance of God’s incarnation was made known to a young couple. The quietness and peace of that birth reflects the peace that God offers to those who trust in Him: We pray and His peace guards our heart and mind in Christ (Philippians 4:6-7).
Don’t let the “loudness” of the Christmas season overwhelm your quiet times with God. Live and sleep during this season in “heavenly peace.”
Days of Heaven Upon Earth
Abide with us; for it is toward evening
~ Luke 24:29
In His last messages to the disciples in the 14th and 15 th chapters of John, the Lord Jesus clearly teaches us that the very essence of the highest holiness is, Abide in Me, and I in you, for without Me ye can do nothing.
The very purpose of the Holy Ghost whom He promised was to reveal Him, that at that day, ye shall know that I am in the Father, and ye in Me, and I in you, and the closing echo of His intercessory prayer was embraced in these three small but infinite words, I in them.
Is it for me to be cleansed by His power
From the pollution of sin?
Is it for me to be kept every hour
By His abiding within?
Is it for me to be perfectly whole
Thro’ His anointing divine;
Claiming in body, and spirit, and soul,
All of His fulness as mine?
Wonderful promise so full and so free,
Wonderful Saviour, Oh, how can it be,
Cleansing and pardon and mercy for me?
Yes, it’s for me, for me.
Use Them Well
God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.
~ 1 Peter 4:10 [NLT]
Have you experienced a renewed mind after listening to a talented musician who sings songs to glorify God? Life on this earth can be rough, fortunately, God has equipped each of us with talent. Let’s remember to use our gifts to strengthen others. If you are unsure of your talent, take a spiritual gifts inventory. For those of us who know our gifts, let’s seek out and build up others, serving them with our gifts.
