Spiritual Feasting
Prov. {30:5} Every word of God [is] pure: he
[is] a shield unto them that put their trust in him.
Luke {4:4} And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written,
That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word
of God.
Eph. {6:17} And take
the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God
*******
The word of God is pure, the word of God is sustenance, the word of God is a sword. The word of God is powerful- protecting, sustaining, defending. To have such protection is something we'd all want, right? To have *magic* words of protection, words we could use to keep us safe, words we could use to ward off harm, words that could keep us alive as food might. Those are special words! We have such words and they aren't from a spell book of sorcery but true and holy- the word of God. Do we keep the word of God as holy? Do we revere the word of God as some might revere words of false gods? Do we protect the word of God as others might keep their special words under lock and key? God's words aren't to be muffled but shared and taken to heart by all. God is love! God doesn't want His words hid. The evil one would have his words hid- would have his evil words seemingly so powerful that only those that are special can invoke them. The words of God are powerful, truly powerful and they aren't hidden away and kept special for only those who are considered special enough to read them. The word of God is available to everyone! Everyone! Just as the love of God is available to everyone! Just as salvation is for everyone that believes in the grace and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ- the word of God personified.
No wonder people would die for the word of God. No wonder people consider the Bible worth more than their own lives because in it is life. The words in the Bible are life giving words. The words are special and we can't even begin to fathom just how special. We are told how special and yet we disregard them.
Every word of God is pure. God is a shield, He gives us protection when we trust in Him. God protects our eternal life. We are to live by the word of God. Do you live by the word of God? What does it mean to live by the word of God? Do we feed on the word of God? Our bodies are fashioned in such a way that we need to put food in them to sustain them properly. We have built in sensors so to speak that tell us when we are hungry, when we are thirsty, and we know that we are to feed ourselves and get something to drink to ease the hungry and thirst. Food and drink won't give us full life. We might not be physically hungry or thirsty but there is a spiritual hunger in us that we need to feed. How often? If we are to live by every word of God we need to live by it at least as often as we live by food and drink, right? It makes sense. God does nothing without reason. God designed us in the way He did so that we couldn't forget to feed our spiritual self right along with our physical. We choose to forget. We choose to leave our spiritual selves starving. We feed our spiritual selves sparingly so that most people are stick thin spiritually without ever having to diet. This is one time that we should feast and feast and become fat in the word of God, become sated by the word of God because it is by the word of God we have our sword to fight off the unseen powers assailing us.
Just as we need to pick up food and put it into our mouths, just as we need to pour our drink and take it to our mouths we need to bring the word of God to our hearts, to our minds. We have to open the word, we have to read the word, we have to take the word of God into us make it real to us, feed ourselves with the word. There is a reason why Jesus blessed bread and wine, breaking the bread and telling His apostles to eat of it, and drinking the wine telling His apostles to drink. There is a reason He equated the bread and wine with Himself and it wasn't so we could become cannibals. He wanted us to realize the importance of what He was giving us. A spiritual recipe, a spiritual command to sustain ourselves on the Word of God, on Him who brought the word of God to life for us. The apostles went from house to house breaking bread and drinking wine, bringing Christ's message of salvation to all they could. Christ wanted His message brought to all, not reserved for a special few ordained by man. He wanted His word to spread far and wide, not remain hidden in the hearts of a select sect.
May God bless and keep us in His Word now and forever by His mercy and grace, by the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior.
Amen.
6/24/10
Jas 1:10 But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.
Jas 1:11 For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways.
No matter our financial situation in the end we all have the same fate and there is no getting out of that. All the money in the world does not buy life. Some would beg to differ stating money gets you better, more quality medical care and there is no disputing that. But money cannot keep illness away. You could live in an entirely sterile environment and become ill. There is NO escaping time. No matter the money you have you have to live, you have to die. Some argue that they'd rather be rich living than poor and that's a given. But being rich is not the answer to life. Being rich comes with a tremendous responsibility a lot of rich people don't want to think about. The responsibility to use the riches in a Godly way, meaning using the money they have in a way God would approve of.
We really do want to believe money will solve most of our problems. I know I think money would transform my life in many ways and I'd be this very giving person using my wealth as God would want me to do, and yet in the end would I? Money can corrupt and does so very easily. I know it's my prayer that God only allow me the wealth that will not corrupt me and turn me from Him in any way. If being poor is my lot then so be it. By the grace of God may all those who are rich keep from corruption knowing that ...'as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.'
Also... please Lord humble me in all my ways. The poor can be proud and sometimes even more proud than the rich wearing their poverty as a badge of godliness.
Pro 16:18 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.
Life is filled with many, many obstacles and we just really need to seek the Lord in all we do. We need to go to His word for direction a lot more than we do.
Rich or poor we need the Lord equally. We all have the same fate - living and dying - with all that comes in between and by the grace of God will we live IN HIM always.
Amen.
[is] a shield unto them that put their trust in him.
Luke {4:4} And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written,
That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word
of God.
Eph. {6:17} And take
the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God
*******
The word of God is pure, the word of God is sustenance, the word of God is a sword. The word of God is powerful- protecting, sustaining, defending. To have such protection is something we'd all want, right? To have *magic* words of protection, words we could use to keep us safe, words we could use to ward off harm, words that could keep us alive as food might. Those are special words! We have such words and they aren't from a spell book of sorcery but true and holy- the word of God. Do we keep the word of God as holy? Do we revere the word of God as some might revere words of false gods? Do we protect the word of God as others might keep their special words under lock and key? God's words aren't to be muffled but shared and taken to heart by all. God is love! God doesn't want His words hid. The evil one would have his words hid- would have his evil words seemingly so powerful that only those that are special can invoke them. The words of God are powerful, truly powerful and they aren't hidden away and kept special for only those who are considered special enough to read them. The word of God is available to everyone! Everyone! Just as the love of God is available to everyone! Just as salvation is for everyone that believes in the grace and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ- the word of God personified.
No wonder people would die for the word of God. No wonder people consider the Bible worth more than their own lives because in it is life. The words in the Bible are life giving words. The words are special and we can't even begin to fathom just how special. We are told how special and yet we disregard them.
Every word of God is pure. God is a shield, He gives us protection when we trust in Him. God protects our eternal life. We are to live by the word of God. Do you live by the word of God? What does it mean to live by the word of God? Do we feed on the word of God? Our bodies are fashioned in such a way that we need to put food in them to sustain them properly. We have built in sensors so to speak that tell us when we are hungry, when we are thirsty, and we know that we are to feed ourselves and get something to drink to ease the hungry and thirst. Food and drink won't give us full life. We might not be physically hungry or thirsty but there is a spiritual hunger in us that we need to feed. How often? If we are to live by every word of God we need to live by it at least as often as we live by food and drink, right? It makes sense. God does nothing without reason. God designed us in the way He did so that we couldn't forget to feed our spiritual self right along with our physical. We choose to forget. We choose to leave our spiritual selves starving. We feed our spiritual selves sparingly so that most people are stick thin spiritually without ever having to diet. This is one time that we should feast and feast and become fat in the word of God, become sated by the word of God because it is by the word of God we have our sword to fight off the unseen powers assailing us.
Just as we need to pick up food and put it into our mouths, just as we need to pour our drink and take it to our mouths we need to bring the word of God to our hearts, to our minds. We have to open the word, we have to read the word, we have to take the word of God into us make it real to us, feed ourselves with the word. There is a reason why Jesus blessed bread and wine, breaking the bread and telling His apostles to eat of it, and drinking the wine telling His apostles to drink. There is a reason He equated the bread and wine with Himself and it wasn't so we could become cannibals. He wanted us to realize the importance of what He was giving us. A spiritual recipe, a spiritual command to sustain ourselves on the Word of God, on Him who brought the word of God to life for us. The apostles went from house to house breaking bread and drinking wine, bringing Christ's message of salvation to all they could. Christ wanted His message brought to all, not reserved for a special few ordained by man. He wanted His word to spread far and wide, not remain hidden in the hearts of a select sect.
May God bless and keep us in His Word now and forever by His mercy and grace, by the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior.
Amen.
6/24/10
Jas 1:10 But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.
Jas 1:11 For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways.
No matter our financial situation in the end we all have the same fate and there is no getting out of that. All the money in the world does not buy life. Some would beg to differ stating money gets you better, more quality medical care and there is no disputing that. But money cannot keep illness away. You could live in an entirely sterile environment and become ill. There is NO escaping time. No matter the money you have you have to live, you have to die. Some argue that they'd rather be rich living than poor and that's a given. But being rich is not the answer to life. Being rich comes with a tremendous responsibility a lot of rich people don't want to think about. The responsibility to use the riches in a Godly way, meaning using the money they have in a way God would approve of.
We really do want to believe money will solve most of our problems. I know I think money would transform my life in many ways and I'd be this very giving person using my wealth as God would want me to do, and yet in the end would I? Money can corrupt and does so very easily. I know it's my prayer that God only allow me the wealth that will not corrupt me and turn me from Him in any way. If being poor is my lot then so be it. By the grace of God may all those who are rich keep from corruption knowing that ...'as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.'
Also... please Lord humble me in all my ways. The poor can be proud and sometimes even more proud than the rich wearing their poverty as a badge of godliness.
Pro 16:18 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.
Life is filled with many, many obstacles and we just really need to seek the Lord in all we do. We need to go to His word for direction a lot more than we do.
Rich or poor we need the Lord equally. We all have the same fate - living and dying - with all that comes in between and by the grace of God will we live IN HIM always.
Amen.