River of Life

Jer. 17:8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river,…

Drought comes to everyone, Times of distress and unbearable heat. The survival of a plant will depend on it’s source of water. The plant whose roots can tap the water that flows underground, or the plant that can draw from a river near by can survive the heat. The heat of the pressures of life, the heat of conflict, the heat of loss, or the heat of temptation. A tree that reaches the true source of life, and touches the fountain of living water is able to survive the testing of trust. Those who put their trust is God, and not in man’s ingenuity, God will not only keep them from withering  away, but they will continue to bear fruit, and their lives will show the radiance of God’s glory. The heat is indiscriminate, it will affect the ungodly and the godly. Bad things do happen to godly people, but the godly have been planted by the source of living water. They will survive, they will overcome, they will flourish. don’t let the heat of this world destroy you, spread your roots and tap into the River of Life.

The Sheep and Goats

Matt. 25: 40 …Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

What separates the goats from the sheep? The goats put themselves 1st before anyone else. They will do it their way, no matter who it hurts or how it is done. They have little regard to the needs of others because they are engross with their own needs. They have not humbled themselves at the feet of Jesus and allowed Christ to become Lord of their lives. The sheep see humanity through the eyes of God. Helpless and needy. Their righteous exceeds that of the pharisee, their hearts live to please God in everything they do. They treat people with kindness and understanding, going the second mile without expecting compensation. These are the sheep who follow the shepherd. They will hear the call at the day of judgment, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”

Dwelling in the House of God

Psalm 27:4 One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple.

Dwelling in the house of God is more than going to a building were we gather together to sing and hear the word of God preached. To dwell in God’s house is to live in His presence, to behold the glory of God in the world around us. I don’t always feel like going to church. There are days, I would rather be alone with my thoughts, contemplating the things of God. We call it the house of God because it is a place we come to worship, but the true temple of God resided in our hearts. It is from this temple that we seek and desire to behold His beauty. To worship Him in the beauty of His holiness. The thing I desire and enquire most in life is to know that my life is pleasing to God and that my priorities in life are inline with His perfect will. It is important to seek God in the place we gather together and asked that He come and meet with us, and we should not forsake the assemble of God’s people, but make no mistake, going to church will not grant you eternal life. We our the temple of God, He must dwell in us. 

He is Faithful

1 Thess 5:23,24 …your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless…Faithful is he that calls you, who also will do it.

Standing before God without blame. Without guilt or fault seems like an impossibility considering our human frailties. We are so prone to give in to our human weakness and taking sides against ourselves does not come natural. God has called us to live a life that is without sin. It is a standard that seems to be unreachable considering the world we live in with all the bad influences we are surrounded with each day. How is this possible? Is it just something we strive for, or is it a life we can actually live? The scripture indicates that such a life is possible only when we submit ourselves to the Holy Spirit. The Spirit leads and empowers the believer to trust in God and guides them into truth. If we quench not the Spirit, He is faithful to keep us blameless, without spot or wrinkled. It is the blood of Christ that atones for our sin, but our will must stay submitting when the Spirit leads us. To refuse the Spirits, is to quench the Spirit. The Faithfulness of God will always be there, but we must believe that He is faithful.

Gentle Shepherd

Isaiah 40:11 1 He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.

“Gentle Shepherd, come and lead us, help us find our way” We live in a world where on every side we are bombarded with conflicting opinions. The authority of God’s Word continues to be challenged by skeptics and by those who desire to be a god unto themselves. On the right, are those who would bind us with chains of legalism and have you live according to a set of rules beyond what God requires. On the left is the ever danger of every man doing what is right in their own eyes, living to please and satisfy the lust of the flesh. Without a shepherd to guide and led us, we are easily led astray to follow a path that will led us to destruction. If there is ever a day that we need a shepherd, today is the day. “Gentle Shepherd, there is no other who can show us the way and lead us into life eternal” 

The Book of Life

Rev. 3:5  He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.

Names in the book of life are inscribe there when we confess our sins through Christ, and give our hearts to God. But scripture seems to indicate that it is possible to have our names removed. What a tragedy to have walked with God and to have known forgiveness of sin to end life with your name no longer found in the book of life. In that great judgement day, the books will be open, and our names will be called. “Enter in thou good and faithful servant”. Words that will ring out through eternity. Keeping our names in the Book of Life requires that we be overcomers. An overcomer is someone who has yield their lives in full consecration to the Holy Spirit. One who walks in the Spirit and depends wholly on the power of God to resist temptation, using the shield faith to deflect the darts of the enemy. An overcomer cannot do this in his own human determination or strength. It is not by works that we are saved, but by His grace. His grace extends to where our will allows God to work. Keep your name in the book of life, say yes to the will of God. 

The Might of God

Judges 6:14, 16 And the Lord looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might… And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.

It does seem at time that the task before us is greater than us. We go forward in our might trying figure out how to solve the problem. The issues in our life seem to overwhelm us and obtaining victory over them looks to be impossible. The reality is, it is impossible. In our own might, we are not able to overcome the obstacles that are before us. The promise of Jesus, that He will be with us, He sent the Holy Spirit that we might overcome the situations in our life that are difficult and hard. He saids, “surely I will be with you.. even to the ends of the world” 

My Heart is Fixed

Psalm 57:7  My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.

As a tree's roots are planted deep by the waters, so is my heart fixed on you Lord. As David was in the cave of despair, he knew that the God that he served watched over him with love and mercy. David gave up on those around him, but he would not give up on serving and praising God. His heart was fixed on the eternal God who was exalted above the heavens. We all have moments where we just want to quit trying and walk away. The load of responsibility and the weight of doing without seeing any gain is discouraging. It is easy to get your eyes fixed on the circumstances that are happening around you and forget that we live to serve and worship the Creator. We serve others because we know it is right, and by doing so, we serve God. Yes, there will be times, that we will feel we are doing it all alone, and the pain of loneliness is real, but if we keep our heart fixed on God, He will meet our needs.