I am so glad that the God we know is the One True God. I’m so thankful that the One Who is God – IS the One Who is God. He is (Isaiah 43:11) God the Lord, the only God and apart from Him there is no Saviour. To even think of any other being God is utterly shattering.
Why did God tell us (1 Corinthians 10:31) to do everything for the glory of God? Because God is a God of (Exodus 25:9) precision, detail, exactness. Nothing is almost, slipshod or haphazard. The Lord cannot tolerate sloppiness or carelessness. No tiny detail is insignificant, everything matters to God and therefore should matter to us. What about the details in our lives? Do we consider small details to be unimportant?
Are we concerned about being on time, about keeping our word even if something comes up that is more to our liking? If I am not a person of consistent godly integrity on all counts - - I am a poor excuse for a Christian.
I am (Galatians 2:20) crucified with Christ. (Oswald Chambers) “No one is ever united with Jesus Christ until he is willing to relinquish not only sin but also his whole way of looking at things. To be born from above by the Spirit of God means that we must let go before we can lay hold; relinquish all pretence and all our rights, and common sense ideas that we are not worthy of God’s consideration”. I must be willing to give up, relinquish everything and to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ. Only the relinquished life is (Philippians 3:16) the crucified life. Suffering and trials purify us, remove the impurities from us and consume the dross and refine the gold. But it is not for us to just endure the suffering (Revelation 2:10) but to continue to love Jesus with steadfast loyalty while we endure the suffering, even unto death. In the midst of crushing pressure, we are rich in our enriching life in Christ Jesus and Jesus Himself will give us the Crown of Life. James (James 1:12) also repeats the promise for those who faithfully love Jesus under trial. God knows and understands (Hebrews 4:15) every detail of our lives. If we don’t listen to God’s instruction and submit to His authority, we are building toward disaster in our lives. Nothing can separate us from (Romans 8:39) the love of God which is in Christ Jesus – SO – Why should we allow anything to separate us from our abiding love for Jesus?? (Oswald Chambers) “We abandon ourselves to God, not for what we will get from Him, but because of our personal sovereign preference and love for our Lord Jesus Christ”.
The Garden of Eden continues to this day and every generation since (Genesis 6:5) grows more wicked. Lamech was a self-made man (Genesis 4:23-24) bragging about murdering men for a comparatively trifling annoyance. He didn’t need God and he died as he lived - - without God. Enoch walked with God (Genesis 5:24) and God took him to heaven before the Flood. He was a type of the Rapture of the church before the Tribulation. Noah is a type of the nation of Israel which goes through the Great Tribulation. But in the end (Romans 11:26) all Israel will be saved and will rule over the world under the Authority of King Jesus in the Messianic Kingdom.
God is our Creator and therefore, of course, always knows what is best for us. It is so comforting and reassuring to know that the Lord knows us better than we know ourselves. All God’s Laws are rooted in the love and protection for us. Common sense is God’s gift to humanity but common sense never has priority over and can never be a substitute for God’s will, or His unchanging Word. The Lord speaks to us through the principles of Scripture to reveal His will to us for every aspect and detail (Psalms 119:11, 2 Peter 1:3-4) of our lives.
Our response to our Bible, the living Word of God, must be according to the pattern which (Joshua 1:8, Joshua 8:34, Joshua 23:6) God laid out for Joshua. Communicate its Truth, talk about it at every opportunity, meditate on it constantly, observe it in order to obey it – observe and do, read it regularly, never turn away from it and follow it fully.
God’s power – plus – my obedience to Him and my dependence on Him – equals – God’s purpose accomplished on earth.
In these last days (Hebrews 1:2-4) God has spoken to us through His Son, Whose authority, power, rank, position is higher than any other. Jesus is the Creator, Redeemer and arranger of all worlds, ages, time and the sole expression of the Image of God in the radiance of God’s glory. This One (DR. Stanley) “is the very same Jesus Who hung on a tree, The Cross of Calvary, and now lives inside true Christians”.
God’s spoken Word, God’s Living Word, God’s unchanging Word, has residence within us.
The FLESH is self-reliance, living independently of God. Our strength is (Isaiah 40:28-31) in total dependence on God. The continual outflow of the eternal Life of God within us, reveals this same precious Jesus to the world around us.
The command given most often in the Bible, more often than any other command, is the command FEAR NOT. This is not really a difficult command to obey because the Sovereign Lord controls every detail and aspect of my life. He has already written (Psalms 139:16) the expiry date on my earth visa and the beginning date (Ephesians 2:19), (Philippians 3:20) on my heavenly citizenship. The date on both documents is identical (2 Corinthians 5:8) because there is no time between them. If a sudden fear hits me, there is no room in me for that fear to continue.
How could fear control where the Almighty Creator, Owner, Controlling Ruler lives? He engineers and controls every detail of my life and He loves me with everlasting love. His perfect love (1 John 4:18) casts out attacking fear. Fear is always a dangerous deceitful enemy. God is always the glorious, victorious Overcomer.
I want to (Romans 6:16) obey my Lord until and with my last breath. There is no circumstance in my life too big for God to handle in His perfect wisdom, and there is no detail too small for God’s loving care. The precious sweetness of the fatherliness of my heavenly Father is so close and so personal. Remember in everything – whatever comes – that (Habakkuk 3:17-19) worship transcends circumstances.