THE GLORY OF GOD!

PSALM 19:1-4

"The heavens proclaim THE GLORY OF GOD.  The skies display His craftsmanship.  Day after day they continue to speak.  Night after night they make Him known.  They speak without a sound or a word; their voice is never heard.  Their message has gone throughout the earth and their words to all the world."

Have you ever encountered someone who denies the existence of God?  This is a common occurrence in  today's secular world.  Often they want a sign or a tangible, physical proof that there is a God.  When I meet someone that denies the existence of God, I ask them to go our at night to a dark secluded location.  I ask them to lay on their back and look up at the heavens. What a glorious sight we find in the skies.  The moon, stars and some planets along with the universe are spread before us.  The display is silent, but if  you listen the silence is deafening. The sky speaks without a sound or a word and it has no voice but the message goes out to the whole world.  The heavens proclaim THE GLORY OF GOD!

Who brought us this show?  Who placed this wondrous display in the heavens?  Who is proclaiming His Glory and craftsmanship?  Who speaks to us night after night and day after day?  Does anyone really believe this a creation of man or a collection of men?  If not men then who did this?  There are many contrived or strained explanations as to how the universe was formed but not one of them is believable and they require more faith than the truth.  The true and correct answer as to how the heavens were formed is that it is THE GLORY OF GOD!   God created the heavens and the earth and He created man.  In there heart they know this is true. 

The Psalms tell us the correct reason for the heavens.  The Holy Bible contains the right answer in so many ways in so many passages.  To those who have never read the Holy Bible, or come to a saving grace and knowledge of God, this may be a puzzle or question.  To believer's this is just the truth of God and we know that the heavens proclaim THE GLORY OF GOD!  My advice to anyone who has a question about their life or why they are here or how they got here is to Look Up.  You can understand your existence if you understand your God and His universe.  Ask God to reveal to you His nature and then read His manual for life.  The Holy Bible.  Tell the truth, there is no mistaking the Glory of God. The heavens proclaim it, day after day and night after night!

WHAT DID YOU SAY?

MATTHEW 15:10-11

"Listen, Jesus said, and try to understand.  It is not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of  your mouth!"

It is not what you eat that defiles you.  It is the words that come out of your mouth that defile you!  Many religious sects have prohibitions about what they can eat and what they can not eat. They spend a great deal of time and a lot of energy worrying about what they eat.  Is it kosher? Does this food product have animal components?  Is this a sea food product that has scales?  Is this an animal that is forbidden to eat?  The threshold question that Jesus is responding to here is that it is not what we eat or put in our mouths that defile us, it is the words that come out of our mouth that defile us!  Try and understand, that out of the abundance of the heart or mind the mouth speaks, that is what defiles you.  That is the truth for today.  

You are not going to be defiled and unclean in the sight of God because of what you ate or let enter your mouth.  It all ends up the same way in the refuse of the body.  What really matters is what is in your heart and what you believe.  Out of the abundance of your heart your mouth will either bring forth blessings or cursing.  Your words will make you unclean or defiled not your food.  This is offensive to many religious leaders and they will be indignant if you attack their traditions and self imposed rules and regulations that give them power and authority.  These traditions and practices are useless because they are not teaching the commands and words of the Lord, but those of men.  

We should disregard those who impose false doctrines.  They are blind guides and teachers and if you follow them they will lead and you will both fall into the ditch.   So the message is to be very careful about what comes out of your mouth.  Your words will defile or bless you, not your diet.  You will be clean or unclean, defiled or undefiled, honored or dishonored by what you say!  When the Lord enters your heart He will clean it up and the words of your mouth will honor Him.  So listen to others and listen to yourself to determine whether the words are defiled or undefiled.  Examine your heart by listening to your mouth.  WHAT DID YOU SAY?

UNBELIEF!

MATTHEW 13:57-58

"A prophet is honored everywhere except in His own hometown and among His own family.  So, Jesus did only a few miracles there because of their UNBELIEF!"

What effect does UNBELIEF have on the possibility of a miracle in your life?  Does your family and church treat you differently than believers that come from outside your circle?  Do we fail to give respect to those closest to us when it comes to prayers and teaching in the Word?  It would not be surprising if this occurred in your life, in that even prophets and the Lord Jesus Christ were not given the honor or respect  they deserved by their own family or hometown. Familiarity they say breeds contempt and in some cases UNBELIEF.  Many question the power and ability of one of their own and withhold the honor due to them!

Those in Jesus hometown knew He was the carpenters son and they knew His mother and brothers and sisters.  When Jesus displayed His power and Wisdom and performed miracles they were often not accepted by by those closest to Him.  Many scoffed and could not believe that one that lived among them had such power and authority.  They were prevented from accepting the truth because of their UNBELIEF.   He could not be seen differently than what they had come to know and they refused to believe in Him.  This diminished His Miracles.

What should we learn from this truth for today?  The divine mission of some of our fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers and those closest to us can be affected by our lack of faith and our UNBELIEF.   If a prophet, teacher, Sheppard or healer is raised up from among us we must give them the respect and honor that is due to them.  They do not deserve to be scoffed at or ridiculed because of their familiarity.  It is not up to us to question how they obtained their knowledge or ability and learned of God's Wisdom.  We can not refuse to believe in them because we are familiar with them.  If we do we will be like those in Jesus hometown and those of His own family.  We should not diminish and hinder the effect and power of their ministry by our own UNBELIEF.  We could miss a miracle of the Lord Jesus in our own life.      

SEE, LISTEN, UNDERSTAND!

MATTHEW 13:13

"For they look, but they do not really SEE.  They hear, but they do not really LISTEN, or UNDERSTAND."

The prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled when Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables.  Those who were not listening carefully had what little they understood taken away from them.  Isaiah had said that, "you shall indeed hear, but never grasp and understand.  You shall look but never see and perceive".  Matthew tells us about this same thing when he tells us that the Lord said, "whoever has ears to hear, let them listen and consider,  then perceive and comprehend by hearing".  There is a big difference between hearing and listening, looking and seeing.  Believer's of Jesus Christ can see Him and they listen to Him.  Why is it that non believer's can not see and do not listen or understand the Lord?

There is a big difference between hearing what someone has to say and listening to what they say.  In order to comprehend and understand you have to truly consider what they are saying. You have to fully grasp and digest what they are trying to tell you.  It is not enough to just hear the noise of their speech.  When someone is talking to you there is a responsibility to pay attention and care about what they are saying.  You should be able to both comprehend what they are saying and repeat back to them what you have heard.  This proves that you have both listened and understood.  

Just because you look at something with your eyes does not mean that you really see it or comprehend what you are looking at.  Just because something is brought to the attention of  your senses does not mean that you will understand it.  Just because you hear something does not mean you have truly listened and understood.  The big difference is you.  Did you really pay close attention?  Did you look at the detail or listen for the nuances?  Do you give your full attention to the matter before you?  Do you try with your whole heart to understand.  That is the truth  for today.  Your eternal life depends on the way you can answer this question.  When it comes to the message of the Lord, do you harden your heart and just receive the message in a cursory way or do you give what He is saying your whole attention and comprehension?  When you see the evidence of the Lord are just looking or are you able to see?  Pray today that you will be able to see, not just look for the Lord.  Pray today that you will be able to hear, and then understand and listen to the Lord.  SEE, LISTEN, UNDERSTAND!

HIS POWER IS ABSOLUTE!

PSALM 147:5

"How great is our Lord!   HIS POWER IS ABSOLUTE!  His understanding is beyond  comprehension.!

Have you been told or have you heard that there are no absolutes?  Did you buy into this lie?  It is a deception of the devil to try and have people believe there are no absolutes!  Would it be an absolute to believe there are no absolutes?  Is there anything infinite with no beginning and no ending?  Is it possible for our finite understanding and comprehension to even properly consider something infinite or absolute?  If you believe the Word of God you know that HIS POWER IS ABSOLUTE!

We each have a choice in this question of absolute power.  We can choose to believe men, whose understanding is limited and is exhausted by human frailty and death.  We can believe the devil who is the father of all lies and tries to deceive every man or woman.   We can conclude that man is not capable of comprehending and understanding anything as absolute or powerful as our Lord God.  What then can we believe in and on?  The Word of God is the truth and it tells us of the mind of God.  His mind and His ways are beyond our ways and can be unfathomable to us.  Many have concluded that man is limited in every possible way, but God is not limited in any way!  I choose to accept the Word of God written and inspired by God!

No man or collection of men could ever place the stars in the heavens or create the heavens and the earth.  The power that brought this into to being is absolute.  As men we can not even create dirt from nothing.  The understanding of all this is beyond human comprehension.  We see only through a glass darkly.  Praise the Lord that He left us an explanation that we can comprehend.  The explanation of His Word is for us all to glimpse His Glory and our future. We can get a taste of how sweet the Lord is and How much He loves us.  We have no alternative but to worship our God, HIS POWER IS ABSOLUTE!

A GOOD HEART!

MATTHEW 12:35

"A good person produces good things from the treasury of A GOOD HEART,  an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart."

The bible tells us that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.  Are good things coming out of  your mouth?  Are evil things constantly coming out of  your mouth?  What does that say about your heart?  What about your thoughts, are they good or evil?  Anyone can tell where your heart is by listening to your words and what you say.  What will we hear if we listen to you?  Is your heart good or evil?

The bible tells us that at the day of  judgement we will have to give account for everything that we have said and thought.  We will be justified and acquitted, or we will be condemned and found guilty based on what was in our hearts and what our mouths spoke!  If the words of our mouth come out of the abundance of the heart, then the state of our heart is critical.  How can we be assured of a clean heart and a good heart?  The bible says that Jesus Christ stands at the door to our hearts and knocks.  Anyone who hears and opens the door to their heart will have Him come in and dwell with them.  The answer lies therein.  

A good tree brings forth good fruit.  A bad tree brings forth bad fruit.  A person, like a tree, is known by their fruit.  A good person produces good fruit.  A bad person produces bad fruit. We also know from the Word of God that "no one is good, no not one".  How then do we become a good person with a good heart?  The answer is to open the door to your heart and invite the Lord Jesus Christ to come in and dwell with you.  Jesus will give you a new heart that is clean and good and you will share your life with Him for eternity.  The words you speak to invite the Lord into your heart come from a sinful man with a sinful heart that is full of evil. God will hear your prayer and come in and dwell with you and start to clean things up.  He will give you a new heart and you will become a new creation, a good person.  You will put away evil things that came from your evil heart and instead your new good heart will bring forth good things from the treasury of A GOOD HEART!  Ask the Lord to come into your heart today, your eternal life is at stake.    

COME AND REST!

MATTHEW 11:28

"Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest."

Are you tired and weary?  Do you feel that life has given you a heavy burden to carry?  Are  you working  hard and not getting satisfaction for your effort?  Do  you feel that the yoke you are under is harsh, and pressing you to your limit?  Would you like a good long rest that will refresh your soul?  So  many people feel that they are in a whirlwind and they are getting no where. They spend each day trying hard to catch up to yesterday or tomorrow.  They are marching as hard as they can but they are not getting anywhere.  They are always anxious about life and never feel that they can stop and just rest.  Is there an answer to their dilemma?

When you hear the Lord calling you to come to Him, and listen, then you will have your answer.  When you give the burdens of your life to the Lord Jesus Christ you will achieve relief. When you are yoked to the Lord you will find that He does the heavy pulling and He is the power in your team.  The Lord wants to ease your burdens and refresh your soul.  There is an important part that you must play to allow that to happen.  You must let go of your burdens and give them to Him.  The Lord will give you rest if you will just let Him.  The Lord is humble of heart, gentle and meek and He wants your life to be peaceful and quiet.  Come to Jesus, He will give you rest!

To find this rest we must learn to take His yoke upon us and join with Him in allowing our burdens to be carried.  His yoke is strong and it never fails.  With the Lord next to us there is no burden to heavy or hard.  When we are coupled with God, all burdens become pleasant and easy to bear.  It is so reassuring to know that God is yoked to us for all of our tasks and burdens.  He does the heavy lifting and makes it light and easy for us if we just accept and understand the principal of teamwork.  If you come to Him you will hear him say; COME AND REST!