Where Does Life Begin? Part One

 A life lived without God in it, is a life lived in the arms of death. But a life lived with God in it is a life lived in the shadow of death. 

The psalmist writes in Psalm 23:4, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for You are with me." He wasn't talking to himself, he was talking to God, for the psalmist knew God on a personal level and was thus able to say confidently that he only walked 'through' the valley, he didn't live there. His confidence came from knowing God, not knowing about God or of God, but knowing who his God is and that His God walked with him.

There has been much discussion on the origin of life, the beginning of life, per se. Since God creates all life, God is the origin of life. When God created Adam, God breathed life into Adam.  But what about babies? Where does life begin in a baby? 

Where do we go for the beginning of life? Conception? Heartbeat? Intelligent awareness? This is not enough. We must go further back to than mere conception. Jeremiah 1:4-5 speaks of when 'the Word of God' came to Jeremiah and spoke to him, saying "before I created you in the womb, I knew you'. And, 'before you were born, I knew you'". What do we learn from this verse? Life begins with God. 

A life lived with this knowledge is the beginning of a life lived with God. Mere knowledge is not enough. To knowledge must be added faith/belief. Belief that God not only Is, but also Was and Will Be. God is the Creator of all life at all times in all ages (eras). God is Preserver of life. Apart from God there is no life, physical or spiritual. 

John 1:1-4 asserts this knowledge to us who not only read, but believe: (1) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (2) He was with God in the beginning. (3) Through Him all things were made, and without Him nothing was made that has been made. (4) In Him was life, and that life was the light of men. Therefore, in the beginning is The Word and that Word is Life. We accept this knowledge of  the origin of Life because we believe God's Word to be Faithful and True (Revelation 19:11). Life begins with God.

The Godly Wife

 

It is not the woman's job to go looking for a husband: it is the man's job. Proverbs 18:22 "He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD." 

The wife complements the husband. Adam went looking for the one who could fill the empty place in his heart, but could not find one. So God created Eve from one of Adam's ribs, that Adam would have the one who would complete him.

While Eve remains the one who was created in this way for Adam, God still creates godly women for godly men. Proverbs 31 does not describe the perfect woman, it describes the aspects of being a godly wife. 

*Noble character (excellent morals and ethics)

*Trustworthy (dependable, reliable)

*Industrious (skillful, diligent, hard-working)

*Thoughtful of Others (considerate, kind)

*Financially Wise

*Strengthens Herself In The Lord

*She is Filled with The Holy Spirit

*She keeps her hands busy

*Generous heart and hands to the less fortunate

*Family is clothed well

*She is clothed in glory

*(cf. Proverbs 31:23 with Proverbs 12:4) She brings honor to her husband

*What she creates by her industry, she also sells

*(cf. Proverbs 31:25 with 1 Timothy 2:9-10) Self-discipline and self-control are evident in her

*Speaks the Word wisely, honestly and faithfully

*Watchful in prayer over her household

*Her children defend her honor and declare her righteousness in the Lord

*(cf. Proverbs 31:29 with Ephesians 5:27) Lives an overcoming life in the Word

*Fears the Lord 

*Soul-winner (cf. Proverbs 11:30)

The godly wife is the foreshadow of the Bride of Christ. As the wife is, so the church is.

 

Redeeming Israel

 

REDEEM ISRAEL

Psalm 25:22

Redeem Israel, O God, from all its distress.

Psalm 14:7

Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come from Zion! When the LORD restores His captive people, let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad!

Psalm 122:6-7

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May those who love you prosper. May there be peace within your walls, and prosperity inside your fortresses.”

Jeremiah 24:7

I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the LORD. They will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with all their heart.

Romans 25:26-27

I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you will not be conceited: A hardening in part has come to Israel, until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.

And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer will come from Zion; He will remove godlessness from Jacob."

Romans 8:10

For this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord. I will put My laws in their minds and inscribe them on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people.

This covenant is JESUS CHRIST. He is the New Testament through which GOD saves all who believe on His name.

John 3:16-17

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

Romans 10:12-13

For there is no difference between Jew and Greek: The same Lord is Lord of all, and gives richly to all who call on Him, for, "Whoever shall call upon the name of the Lord will be saved."

Joel 2:32

And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.

Acts 2:21

And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. 

You. Me.  It is for you and me that God sent His Son to die on the cross, taking the punishment for our sins. Jesus Christ is our Deliverer, Redeemer, Savior, Messiah, Friend. 

I know my Redeemer lives. And I know His Name. Do you?

Preserved

 

 

Psalm 25:21

Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait on You.

Psalm 41:12

In my integrity You uphold me and set me in Your presence forever.

Psalm 7:8

The LORD shall judge the people: judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness, and according to mine integrity that is in me.

Integrity is a big deal. It is more than honesty and a fine reputation. Integrity of soul is completeness, finished-ness.

And how do we obtain this Integrity? this completeness?

In Christ Jesus.

John 17:20-21

"I am not asking on behalf of them alone, but also on behalf of those who will believe in Me through their message, 

that all of them may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I am in You. May they also be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me."

1 Corinthians 1:8

He will sustain you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Peter 1:3

His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.

I have this Integrity. Do you?

The Repentant Heart

 

REPENTANT HEART

Psalm 25:17-18

The troubles of my heart increase; free me from my distress.

Consider my affliction and trouble, and take away all my sins.

The Spirit of God is evident in the Old Testament as well as the New Testament, for it is the Spirit of God that convicts a person of the sins in their heart. It is the hardened heart, the heart which refuses to acknowledge the Holy God and God's Holy Word, that turns away from God. Only the repentant heart listens to the Holy Spirit of God and turns to Him in distress, seeking forgiveness and mercy.  

It is the Spirit of God who turns a sinner's heart to God. It is the Spirit of God who leads a person to see God and God's Son. It is the transformative power of God by His Holy Spirit through His Holy Son which changes the heart of the sinner into the heart of the redeemed. This is amazing Grace. 

Listen to that Spirit and turn to God this day. 

Seeker Seeking Mercy

 

SEEKER SEEKING MERCY

Psalm 25:15-16

My eyes are always on the LORD, for He will free my feet from the mesh. Turn to me and be gracious, for I am lonely and afflicted.

When the enemy of our souls lays a trap to try and snare us in his clutches, God will surely make a way for us to escape.

Psalm 119:32

Turn to me and show me mercy, as You do to those who love Your name.

God will show favor to we  who seek Him and deliver us out of the traps/snares. Why? Because of His great love for us, because His mercy endures for ever. The Bible tells me so: Psalm 136.

Isaiah 55:6

Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. 

"Call on Him while He is near" for the time will come when He is no longer near. Though God is always near the believer, He will not always be near enough to the unbeliever to hear his cries for deliverance and mercy. 

"To day is the day of your salvation." To day is the only day to answer God's call on your heart and life, because tomorrow is not promised to any of us. Don't wait, don't hesitate, don't delay. 

The love of God has been extended to us through His mighty right arm, "the right hand of His righteousness", Jesus Christ. 

Faith is believing the impossible, the improbable. Who but God can turn His Word into a baby who would grow up to be a Savior for the whole world? No one. Improbable. Impossible. And, yet. God did.