September 29, 2022

POINTING FINGERS

Genesis 3:11-13

Thus He said, “Who said you were naked? Have you eaten from the one tree from which I commanded you not to eat?” Then Adam said, “The woman You gave me, gave me of the tree, and I ate.” So the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

Personal Challenge

It is always someone else's fault. It seems like every child is born with the innate ability to point the finger at someone, or something, else when they are caught doing something that they should not have done. As adults, most of us have mastered this ability. It all started in the garden of Eden when Adam and Eve were challenged about eating the forbidden fruit. They could have confessed the truth, that they had wronged God, but rather than that, they pointed to someone else that made them do it. God's desire is that we run to Him when we have sinned, confess that sin, and seek His forgiveness. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

September 28, 2022

IT IS WRITTEN

Matthew 4:1-11

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”

Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:
‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’
and,
‘In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ”

Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’ ”

Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”

Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”

Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

Personal Challenge

This is a lot of text to read through but is important to get the whole picture. Here is Jesus just having finished fasting in the wilderness for 40 days. He is hungry. He is tired. And now the tempter shows up to tease Him into trusting in the tempter to meet His needs. Jesus defends each attack, each temptation, with a quote from the scriptures. "It is written..." Our personal challenge is to know the scriptures well enough to be able to push back on the temptations that come our way. There is one more very important lesson in here. Even the tempter proclaims, "It is written..." He too knows the scriptures and will twist them to his advantage. We must be careful that we do not do the same and twist the scriptures to mean what we want them to mean. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

September 27, 2022

HIDING FROM GOD

Genesis 3:8-10

Then they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden that afternoon, and Adam and his wife hid themselves within the tree in the middle of the garden from the presence of the Lord God. So the Lord God called Adam and said to him, “Adam, where are you?” He replied, “I heard Your voice as You were walking in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.”

Personal challenge

Adam and Eve both knew, immediately, that their sin, their disobedience, was wrong and that they needed to hide from God. And yet, God came looking for them, lovingly, as He always did, God loves us so much more than our sin can interfere with. Our tendency is to hide from God when we sin, when what we need to do is run to Him and expose ourselves and our wrongdoing so that He can heal and restore us. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

September 26, 2022

FULFILLING ALL RIGHTEOUSNESS

Matthew 3:13-17

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”

But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.

When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Encouraging Words

Jesus was able to live His entire human life without sinning. He did this as a fully human being. So, why did He have John baptize Him. It was imperative for Him to cleanse the humanity of mankind of the sin that was present in it through our choices. Through His baptism, He made it possible for all of us to be baptized into God's righteousness. Through His baptism He also revealed to us the trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Glory be to God!

September 25, 2022

SIN TAINTS OUR VIEW

Genesis 3:7

Then the eyes of the two were opened, and they knew they were naked. So they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

Personal Challenge

There is a very important lesson in this verse about sin. Adam and Eve have just eaten of the forbidden fruit. One of the consequences of this sin was that their eyes were opened to something that they had never seen before. Every sin that we commit does this to us. It opens our eyes to something that will continue to draw us away from our Lord if we choose to keep looking at it. This is why it is so important to never take that first bite. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

September 24, 2022

Saint of the Week

St. Justin Popovich

September 21, 2022

LAMENTATION, WEEPING, AND MOURNING

Matthew 2:18

“A voice was heard in Ramah,
Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children,
Refusing to be comforted,
Because they are no more.”

Personal Challenge

Our God is a loving, caring, and merciful God. His desire is for His creation to walk with Him in His garden as life all started out. He grieves when we do things that are harmful to each other for we have all been created in His image. Our challenge, my challenge, is to be as loving as His Son was and give my life for those whom He brings into my life. Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

September 20, 2022

DAY AND NIGHT

Genesis 1:5

God called the light Day; the darkness He called Night; and there was evening and morning, one day.

Encouraging Words

Throughout the account of the creation story, we are reminded that everything that happens here in our earthly life occurs in seasons. Some are longer and some are shorter, but they all have a beginning and an ending. For those who read the scriptures literally, this account is viewed as seven finite, 24-hour days. For those who read with a move open view, this account is viewed as seven periods of time that God performed His acts of creation. Either way, we are still reminded that our lives are filled with various seasons, all with a beginning, and all with an ending. Our goal, our responsibility, is to seek God throughout each of these seasons and observe His hand at work even in our small lives. Glory be to God!

September 18, 2022

COME!

Revelation 22:17

And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.

Encouraging Words

Even at the end of the great apocalypse of time as called out in the book of Revelation, all are called upon to "Come!" to Jesus, to come and take of the water of life freely. Glory be to God!

September 17, 2022

Saint of the Week

St. Gregory Nazianzen

September 16, 2022

GOD DWELLING WITH US

Revelation 21:3-4

And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

Encouraging Words

This is the culmination of the faith the we, the followers of Christ, have in our lives. Faith that there will be a day when our Lord Jesus Christ will return and physically dwell amongst us. The fulfillment of this promise began when Jesus became God incarnate and set in motion the new covenant between us and God. He destroyed the bondage that death had on us and gave us the Holy Spirit, the Intercessor to dwell within us until His return. Our hope in Him and our faith is in the promise that He will return establishing a kingdom where there will be no more tears, death, sorrow, crying, or pain. Glory be to God!

September 15, 2022

DINING WITH GOD

Revelation 3:20

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.

Encouraging Words

Regardless of what anyone believes or teaches about God being an angry and judgmental God, they are wrong. God is love. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has proclaimed that God so loved the world that He gave up His only son to save the world from eternal death. Jesus, himself, proclaims that He is standing at the door of hearts, knocking and waiting for us to answer and let Him in so that we can dine with Him at His eternal table of life. This is love, God's love. Glory be to God!

September 14, 2022

WALKING IN CHRIST

2 John 1:6

This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it.

Personal Challenge

So! What are these commandments that we are expected to walk according to? They are to love God with all of our heart, soul, and spirit and to love our neighbor as ourself. The essence of God is love. This love comes to us in the form of mercy and grace. God redeems us through His son out of love. He forgives our sins out of love. He gives us eternal life out of love. If we desire to serve Him and be like His Son, we must walk in Him and love. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

September 13, 2022

LIFE IN THE SON OF GOD

1 John 5:10-12

He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.

Encouraging Words

What is life? I have often heard that life boils down to the dash between two numbers. It is indeed much more than that. It is what we do within the span of that dash. The most important thing that we can do in that span is to give our lives over to God through His Son. By doing this, we experience the true gift of life that extends that dash through the eternity that follows. We become children of God, eternally in His family. That is truly life. Glory be to God!

September 12, 2022

ARE WE LIARS?

1 John 4:20

If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?

Personal Challenge

The scriptures are very clear, if we say that we love God and yet spurn those around us in a spirit of hatred, then our proclamation of loving God is a lie. This problem is so prevalent in both our society and our churches today. There are those who side with their political party, viscerally hating the people that side with the other party, and yet they profess to be Christians. There are those who disagree with the choices of others that conflict with their own choices, especially in areas of sexuality, race, abortion, and a myriad of other social issues, who end up hating the offenders, and yet they profess to be Christians. These professing Christians end up as liars in God's eyes. It is clearly our responsibility, our obligation, if we are followers of Christ, to love everyone, no matter what their choices are. We are not to agree with their choices, if they are contrary to God's desire for us, but we are to still love the person as God loves us. This is indeed a difficult challenge to overcome, but one that God promises to see us through. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

September 11, 2022

ABIDING

1 John 4:15-16

Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

Encouraging Words

As followers of Jesus Christ, we eagerly proclaim (confess) that He is the Son of God. We profess it, we believe it, and we stake our eternity on this truth. God promises us that if we do this, He will abide within us and that we will abide within Him. It is in this abiding that we are able to love others as God has loved us. Glory be to God.

September 10, 2022

Saint of the Week

St. Theophan the Recluse

September 9, 2022

LOVED

1 John 4:10-12

In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.

Personal Challenge

We have such a misconstrued understanding of love in our culture today.. We love our spouse and children and yet at the same time we love our pet, our favorite sport team, or a myriad of other things with the same fervor. The scriptures try to teach us that godly love far surpasses any of the temporal love that we are so familiar with. Deeper studies into the Greek that the new testament scriptures were written in reveals that there were multiple words used for love: philia, agape, eros, and storge. To understand the scriptural teachings on love and how to live a godly life of love, we must understand this. God has shown us His agape love for us and expects us to do the same to those in our lives. It is only through doing this that we will see God abiding in us. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

September 8, 2022

HE IS GREATER

1 John 4:4

You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

Encouraging Words

There are many who proclaim that they follow Christ and yet they do not know Him or follow His ways. God has promised us that if we follow Him, submit to Him, and strive to love like Jesus loved, that we are in Him and that through Him we will overcome those who oppose Him. This is true because He is greater than those who are in the world. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me the sinner!

September 7, 2022

TAKE ACTION

1 John 3:18

My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

Personal Challenge

John does not mince any words about the Christian's responsibility to love others. He clearly reminds us that we cannot just talk about loving others. We must, if we are truly followers of Christ, demonstrate His love for others the way that He would. This means that if they make us uncomfortable by their choices, or do things that we disagree with, or they stand for issues that are in opposition to what we believe, or whatever ,we still love them. Love is a choice followed by an action. Sometimes that love is demonstrated by backing away from toxic situations so that we do not stir up others, and do that in love. Being a true follower of Christ is a verb and never a noun. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

September 6, 2022

KNOWING LOVE

1 John 3:16

By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

Personal Challenge

We know and appreciate the true value of real love by recognizing that Jesus loved us so much that He laid down His life for us. This is the truth that we base our entire life on. This truth also leads us to do the same for Him and those whom He brings into our lives. We are to love one another as Christ loved us. Living this way is always a challenge in this world, but we do it for Him. Glory be to God!

September 4, 2022

CHILDREN OF GOD

1 John 3:1

Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.

Encouraging Words

The faithful followers of Christ are deemed to be called children of God. We have God's love bestowed upon us to the point that we are His children, His offspring. What a blessing this is to be considered a part of God's eternal family. This also brings the challenge that if we strive to live as His children, the world will not know us any longer and even shun us. This is such a small price to pay in order to be accounted as a child of God. Glory be to God!

September 3, 2022

Saint of the Week

St. Mark the Ascetic

September 2, 2022

ABIDING FOREVER

1 John 2:17

And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

Personal Challenge

This world is a challenging place to live. And for those who are trying to live godly lives and follow in the footsteps of Christ find it even more challenging. The world does not want Christ and therefore does not want His followers. By the grace #God, however, we will prevail. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

September 1, 2022

OUR COMMANDMENT

1 John 2:7

Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning.

Encouraging words

Jesus fulfilled all of the commandments, the law, of the old covenant. He taught that the essence of that law could be boiled down into two commandments, love our God with all our heart, soul, body, and spirit, and love our neighbor as ourselves. John has been reiterating this new covenant, and reminding us that he is not teaching us something new, but reinforcing what Jesus taught. Our lives should not only be informed by love, but transformed be love. We should be striving to be as loving as Jesus was. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

August 31, 2022

ARE WE IN HIM

1 John 2:4-6

He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

Personal Challenge

It has been said that we are known by the company that we keep. John challenges us to understand that just saying that we know Jesus is not enough. Do we keep company with Him enough that people see Jesus in us and in our actions. Are we followers of Jesus in word only or has our life been changed enough that we are being identified as "in Him"? The core essence of being "in Him" is love. Love for our God. Love for our neighbor. This love must be evidenced in how we show our love to others. Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!