Commanded to Love

Deuteronomy 11
13 So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today-to love the LORD your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul- 14 then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and oil.  (May God give us the water we need to produce a harvest of righteousness.)

22 If you carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow-to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways and to hold fast to him- 23 then the LORD will drive out all these nations before you, and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you. (May God destroy everything that stands against us, nail it to the cross, and grant us safety.)

God Accepts the Humble Man

Luke 18:13-14  (God Justifies the Humble)
13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

Koina Greek often appears to many as a mystical key to understanding the deep truths found in scripture, yet it is really just another language that happened to be spoke about two thousand years ago when the Bible was written. Koina simply means “common” and so we see that most scholars today merely see that the language of the bible as the common language of the people at that time. Yet today, people have elevated the Greek language and Greek words above a practical level. They have followed the practice of all who value things that they don’t understand or don’t know very much about. Just as people in the past mystified many things that we would laugh at today, so also many times the way Greek is treated, with regard to the Bible, can often become quite ridicules. Nevertheless, Greek is important when it comes to the interpretation of the scriptures because every version of the New Testament is ultimately derived out of this language, but it still must be treated as what it is, a language which people spoke. Koina Greek was a spoken language similar to the languages that people speak today and should be used and interpreted the same way.

“But if you harbor bitter envy and strife in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and strife, there you find instability and every foul-smelling practice.” James 3:14-16

Yelling and fighting has plagued the human race for a long time. People who are new to the faith or have simply not learned to walk in the Spirit, can easily find themselves controlled by their flesh (or earthly nature). Is there hope for these people? Certainly, but only if they truly come to see the depth of their own depravity and repent. For Galatians 5:19-21 clearly places quarreling, envy, strife, anger, and wrath on the same level as drunkenness, sexual immorality, and witchcraft. Those who quarrel and erupt with wrath are just as deep in sin as those who go have sex with prostitutes or who get drunk on the weekends. If someone continues in these things they will end up in hell (Galatians 5:21). Those who have not gained victory over such activities are neither esteemed beyond mere infants in the scriptures nor granted security in their eternal destination (1 Corinthians 3:1-3). Nevertheless, an angry quarreler will find victory through broken humility and ceasing to compare themselves with others.

No one will find God’s solution to a problem by focusing on the problem itself. It is through turning to the Lord, bringing our problems before Him, quieting all our fears, and submissively listening to the gentle whisper of our Father from the throne speaking to us through the indwelt Spirit (John 14:26-27, 16:13-15). Then from our place of rest in Him can we receive the needed direction without the frustrations of our own flesh getting in the way.

The Power to be Changed

People try to change, but Jesus Christ exposes and strips them of wickedness.

Finding grace and mercy in our time of need must become a moment by moment lifestyle, but all too often people settle for something other than these when they need help. As a result, they live weak unfruitful lives that bring shame upon God. The solution to this problem is found in approaching the throne of grace. If we approach the thrown of grace and draw near to the Lord in humility, He is faithful to reveal our hearts to us. He exposes our motives, the foundations of our thoughts, and the roots of our attitudes (Hebrews 4:12-13, 1 Corinthians 4:5). Here in this wonderful place of LIGHT, we find cleansing from sin and transformation of our character through the vast outpouring of God’s grace and mercy (1 John 1:7). Nevertheless, in order to make approaching the throne of grace effective in our lives we must exercise humility through listening, patience, and surrender.

God’s closest friends are the ones
He has found the most trustworthy...

“Koiny, come here, No!” Splash, a spotted dog plunged into the water. Eight year old Alex stood by the creek behind his house in dismay as one of his pets ignored him. “Holly, No!” the white dog stopped dead in her tracks, watching her pack member snorting, barking, and swimming in the cool water of the creek. “Dad, Koiny got into the water again.”

Alex’s dad was a little ways away, kneeling down to see a bug that looked like a twig. “Alex come here, you’ve got to see this!” his dad said with a little thrill in his voice. Alex darted forward through the dancing rays of light pouring out of the green leafy trees above. Coming to the place where his dad was, he knelt down and looked intently.