Intercession Requires Sacrifice - Job

 

Intercession Requires Sacrifice

Job 42:7-9

After The LORD had spoken these words to Job, He said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you and your two friends. For you have not spoken about Me accurately, as My servant Job has. So now, take seven bulls and seven rams, go to My servant Job, and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. Then My servant Job will pray for you, for I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken accurately about Me, as My servant Job has.”

So now, take seven bulls and seven rams, go to My servant Job, and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. Then My servant Job will pray for you, for I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken accurately about Me, as My servant Job has.”

So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as The LORD had told them; and The LORD accepted Job’s prayer. 

    Let's go over the back story here before we continue. What folly had Job's friends committed that God would need them to sacrifice so many animals in order that they would not be destroyed? Well, God allowed Job to be tested by Satan, knowing that Job trusted Him completely. First, Job's oxen and asses were stolen and his servants killed off, except for the one who reported this bad news to Job. [Job 1:15]

    Second, fire rained down from the heavens, and Job's sheep and the servants tending them were consumed completely, except for one who returned to Job with the bad news. [Job 1:16]

    Third, his camels were stolen and the servants tending them were killed, except for the one servant who came back to the house to tell Job of it.  [Job 1:7]

    Fourth, a great wind out of the wilderness toppled the house in which his sons and daughters were feasting, killing all ten of his children: seven sons and three daughters. Only one servant escaped the disaster and he reported this tragedy to Job, as well.

 [Job 1:2, 18-19]

    And what did Job do? Job 1:20-22 He tore his clothes, shaved his head to mourn his losses, and lay prostrate on the ground worshiping God. He stated that he brought nothing into this world and therefore he could take nothing out (vs 21a). He spoke out loud The Lord gives and The Lord takes away: The Name of The Lord is to be blessed (vs 21b). And The Word tells us that Job did not sin while he mourned and grieved. 

    Then The Lord allowed Satan to physically torment Job, perhaps because He knew that Job's strength was in Him and that this Strength would carry him through. As if that wasn't bad enough, Job's wife told him to just curse God and die because of the sorrow of her heart. ~It is hard enough to bury one child, let alone ten.~ Then in chapter 3 Job cursed the day he born. Such grief! More than a broken heart: an agonizing heart that cried out in unbearable pain. And then his friends came.

    However, this was not so with the three friends who came to sit with him in his time of sorrow. Do you know friends like these three? The first friend, Eliphaz, a descendant of Esau, stated to Job that God was chastening him [Job 4, 5] and then accused Job of not fearing God [Job 15}. Who wants to hear that in their times of mourning? 

    The second friend, Bildad, a descendant of Shuah, son of Abraham, fares no better in comforting Job. The first thing he tells Job is that Job's children must've sinned [Job 6:4], so God had to punish them for their "transgressions". Some friend. Judging Job and his children, when he knew Job was a righteous man and ran/ruled a righteous household. Secondly, Bildad accuses Job of being a wicked man and deserving of these calamities [Job 18]. Thirdly, Bildad calls Job an unrighteous man [Job 25:4].

    And lastly, Job's third friend, Zophar, whose ancestral history is unknown but is himself a well-known wise man of the area of Naamah; a man of wise counsels whom Job listened to. But, this friend accuses Job of an unrepentant heart and that he must repent immediately [Job 11] in order for his wealth to be restored.

    Though Job defends himself against Zophar's biting words in Job 12-19, Zophar attacks Job's righteousness and informs him that the wickedness of his (Job's) heart required retribution on God's part [Job 20]. 

    These are the sins, the follies, of Job's friends. And because of their sin, they could not approach God on His terms. Only Job, being a righteous man and carrying the added expertise of being the priest, could intercede for them. Which he did, but they had to bring the sacrifice (repent, sin offering) [2 Chronicles 29:21; Ezekiel 45:23;  for the burnt offering (atonement)[Leviticus 1:4] which was required for them to be restored into His grace. 

    And when the sacrifices were accomplished according  to the procedures which God had set up with Job, Job prayed for his friends and they were forgiven. This is intercessory prayer. This is love in action at the altar of God where the sacrifices He requires from us are brought? And just what are the sacrifices which God requires form us? 

    Psalm 51:15

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise.

    Hosea 6:6

For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

    1 Samuel 15:22

But Samuel declared: “Does The LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obedience to His voice? Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, and attentiveness is better than the fat of rams."

    Proverbs 21:3

To do righteousness and justice is more desirable to The LORD than sacrifice.

    Ecclesiastes 5:1

Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. 

    

    These are the sacrifices God requires of His people in order to hear their (our) prayers and be forgiven and restored. Let us draw near to our God even now, and bend our knees in worship; open our mouths in praise and thanksgiving to our God for His everlasting mercy and grace which He has bestowed on us. Let us hear His Word in faith and obey His Word in the love with which He has honored us. Let us fill our homes and our churches with worship and gratitude towards our God! 

I Know My Redeemer Lives

 

JOB 19:25

I know my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. 

Psalm 19:14

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Thy sight, O LORD, my Strength, and my Redeemer. 

Isaiah 47:4

Our Redeemer--The LORD of Hosts is His name--is The Holy One of Israel. 

REDEEMER: to act as kinsman, to do the part of next of kin, purchaser

    I Know My Redeemer Lives - Nicole C. Mullen 

I Know My Redeemer Lives in Sign Language 

I Am Redeemed - Big Daddy Weave

    Why do we need a Redeemer? We are born with a sinful nature. It's part of our DNA. You won't find it in any medical textbook, nor will this sinfulness show up in any test. It's a spiritual nature. And having been born with a sinful nature, we live in sin. Until. Until we see our need for a Savior, a Redeemer.    

    We need a Redeemer to buy us back from the one who owns our sinful souls. So God sent His only begotten Son to purchase us with His own blood, "once and for all" (Hebrew 7:24-26). I saw my need and I reached out to Him. I cried in despair for Jesus to help me. He came to my rescue, opened my eyes and came into my heart, where now He lives forever in me and I live in Him. I have a Redeemer! 

    No more do I live in sin. Now I live in Jesus Christ and He lives in me! Salvation is mine! I needed saving and only Jesus could save me. I needed to be loved like God loves me. Oh, friend, do you see your need for a Savior, a Redeemer? He's calling your name right now. He's pleading with you to open the door of your heart. To cry out His Name ---JESUS---- and receive Him into your heart and your life. 

    No more is that sinful nature a part of me for now I am a part of Christ. When He prayed in the garden before His arrest, He prayed for us -- you and I -- to believe in Him that He would live in us as we live in Him. By faith in The Name of The Son of God. By faith in The Only Name Under Heaven by which we can be saved. By faith, by believing without seeing. 

    And when we receive God's only begotten Son into our hearts, God's Holy Spirit begins a new work in us. He begins to make us holy and acceptable to God. The Spirit writes The Word of God on our hearts when we hear it, read it and meditate on it. He is the Stylus and our heart is the tablet. 

    I can say, as Job said, "I know my Redeemer Lives". But why did He feel the need to make such a statement to his friends? In their misguided efforts to mourn with him they had just accused him of being a hypocrite and condemned him: they were judge and jury at a mock trial of their grieving friend (Job 19). I believe that The Spirit rose up in Job and spoke at this time. For it is The Holy Spirit who gives us strength to make our defense when necessary, as well as keeping us silent. 

    I have hope in this life and my hope has a Name. My soul hopes in its Lord. And some day, I will see Him face to face. Will you be with me? As much as I want you there, I can't make that decision for you. Believing in God's plan of salvation is an individual decision.  

HOPE HAS A NAME - River Valley Worship

The Lord Is SongGiver

 

PSALM 42:8

The LORD decrees His loving devotion by day, 

and at night His song is with me as a prayer to the God of my life.

Job 8:21

He will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with a shout of joy. 

    When I first got filled with The Holy Spirit I saw myself as a mountain filled with music. And when the mountain became a volcano, it wasn't lava that flowed, it was Music. New music, new songs. Songs of joy, songs of hope, songs of rejoicing; songs of sorrow, songs of wistfulness, songs of grief. Songs of pain, songs of the love of God and for God; songs of laughter, songs of weeping. 

    All of these flowed from God through His Holy Spirit into me where they flowed out of my pen and my mouth. Many Christian songwriters will tell you that it is not of their imagination from which they write and sing: it is a gift from God meant to be shared with whomsoever God places on our path. 

    Many nights He would waken me and have me write. But I remained rested, for I was with Him and He is my Rest. Sometimes these songs would build up inside me while I was doing something else, like running around the velodrome in the predawn hours with my bestie. Or the time she and I backpacked Ireland (Perfect Replica*)  Sometimes, I'd be sitting in a meeting and the song would start writing itself (No Room*), even though I wanted to wait until the meeting was over, I relented, repented, and let God move through me. No Room I actually wrote before I got baptized in The Spirit, but God was moving in me even then.

    There is coming a day when sad songs will not only be a thing of the past, they won't even be a memory. For in the presence of God is fullness of JOY. In His presence is LIGHT and LOVE. In His presence we sing the song of the redeemed. All together every saint will sing that song. It is the sound of many rushing waters. It is the resounding song of Love for God for this great thing He has done. 

     

*PERFECT REPLICA

I wonder what my God shall see,

When He sees a finished me?

Perhaps I'll be a Daniel,

Content in times of stress.

Or maybe I'll be Lydia

Adorned in purpleness.

Perhaps I'll be Rebekah,

Waiting ever on;

First 'twas by the well,

Then for her two sons.

I wonder what my God shall see

When He sees a finished me?

Perhaps I'll be an Andrew

Who leads my brother to

The One and Only Savior

Who died for me and you.

Perhaps I'll be a vessel,

What let the Son shine in;

Who mirrored God's reflection

To a lost and dying friend.

I wonder what my God shall see

When He sees a finished me?

Perhaps I'll be a fruitful vine

For God to harvest home.

And I shall wear a robe of white

With stars upon my crown.

And when He views the finished me,

I know He'll smile in victory--

"Well done thou good and faithful,

You may enter in,

Here's your gown; here's your crown.

Hello, friend."

I wonder what my God shall see,

When He sees a finished me.

I've gone through the fire,

I've gone through the grind,

I've gone through the waters

Time after time.

God has not forsaken me

In any of my trials.

And when He sees the finished me,
I'll wear a great big smile.

*NO ROOM

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

Can you imagine telling God 

you have no time for Him?

There isn’t any place today for Him to enter in.

To enter in with joy delight,

Communion sweet to share

No room for Jesus, No room anywhere.

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

The temples are empty, no life exists here.

No joyful days, no redeemed souls, 

The faces of the people are shut, blank and cold.

I see forlorn temples, I hear lonely sounds

Heartbeats, no heartbeats, no love of God abounds.

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

No merry hearts, no shining lights

The doors to the temple are shut, slammed in tight

Listening, not hearing; Hearing, not caring.

Heartbeats, no heartbeats, no love of God lives here.

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

Now, when the feastday of the Bride

Arrives and you are there,

Will you hear Jesus say to you,

“You have no place set here.

There is no room for you today,

You’ll have to go, you cannot stay:

I do not know your name you see, 

It isn’t written here.”

No room, no room, no room for you.

No way, no how, not here at this time,

Not now.

    While No Room is the number one requested song that I sing when I sing, this song is one my favorites:

The Ballad of The Body of Christ

I am the eyes That see the need for compassion

I am the hands That do the work of The LORD

I am the feet That go through the doors that are open

I am the heart, The heart of The LORD.

I am the ears That hear the cries of the lonely

I am the arms That carry the grieving and sore

I am the legs That walk the crowded sidewalks

I am the heart, The heart of The LORD.

I am the Body of Christ that was broken/I’ve been asleep for a thousand years it seems/But now I’m awake and I see the needs that aren’t spoken/Gettin’ ready to run, Gettin’ ready to fly / 

Gettin’ the Body back in shape.

It’s God’s desire That no one should be lost

It’s God’s desire That everyone be saved

He can’t make your choices, It’s entirely up to you.

Don’t hesitate, don’t even wait 

Don’t turn and walk ................ the other way!

I am the voice When God gives the words to be spoken

I am pure silence When I need to be ............... when I need to be

I am the Body of Christ That was broken! / I been asleep for a thousand years it seems / But now I’m awake And I see the needs that aren’t spoken / Gettin’ ready to run, Getting ready to fight / 

Gettin’ the Body back in shape.

I am the fingers That pull the lost from the fire

I am the knees That bend to carry the load

I am the back That bears the marks of the hunter

I am the heart, The heart of The LORD.

I am the Body of Christ that was broken/I’ve been asleep for a thousand years it seems/But now I’m awake and I see the needs that aren’t spoken/Gettin’ ready to run, Gettin’ ready to fly / 

Gettin’ the Body back in shape.

I am the Body of Christ That was broken! / I been asleep for a thousand years it seems / But now I’m awake And I see the needs that aren’t spoken / Gettin’ ready to run, Getting ready to fight / 

Gettin’ the Body back in shape.

You are the Body of Christ That was broken! / You’ve been asleep for a thousand years it seems/ But now you’re awake and you see the needs that aren’t spoken / You’re gettin’ ready to run / Run your endurance race / Gettin’ your body back in shape.

Now, you know my story. Now, you hear my voice. 

The CupBearer & The Cups

 

The CupBearer is God. In His hands are two cups. One cup contains His wrath and one cup contains His blessing. Which cup do you want Him to pour out on you? 

THE CUP OF WRATH

    In the cup of wrath is the wine of God's fury (Revelation 14:10). As told against the nations in Jeremiah's time (Jeremiah 25:15-38), this cup is dreadful and has horrific consequences for those destined to drink it. 

    This cup is the sword of The Lord (Jeremiah 25:16); it brings destruction and madness to the people whom it touches. This sword is blood-bathed in heaven (Isaiah 34:5,6) and brings death with it. It is a devouring sword, this cup of wrath (Deuteronomy 32:42), on God's enemies. 

    Who will drink this cup? The wicked (Job 21:20; Psalm 75:8;) will drink of the cup of wrath. Babylon (Revelation 16:19) and all who participated in Babylon's wickedness (Revelation 18:3). Those who burn incense to idols (Jeremiah 44:8). They who are called by The LORD but refuse to answer Him (Isaiah 65:11,12).

    What is the awful wine they will drink? Destruction, sulfur, fire; drunkenness and vomiting; death. Yet it will taste sweet on the tongue (Psalm 75:8), for it is a fermented intoxicating beverage mixed with spices. But its result is far worse than a hangover and no bloody Mary or hair of the dog will take away the pain of having drunk from this cup. 

    Do you really want to be one of those people who will have to drink from that cup because you rejected The Word of God and refused to believe on The Name of The Only Begotten Son of God? 

THE CUP OF BLESSING

    In the cup of blessing is Life Eternal. In 1 Corinthians 10:16 Paul tells us, "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?". This is the cup from which we should want to drink. 

    In this cup is fellowship with Christ, a commitment to follow Him all the way (Matthew 26:26,27). Jesus has said that all who follow Him must take up their cross. (Don't worry about what your cross is: it will be revealed to you when you really need to know.) We will have many burdens to bear in this life, but we must lay them all down at the feet of Jesus, and let Him take care of them. Let us drink together  this cup of blessing and sacrificial love which The LORD God has prepared for them that love Him and obey His commandments, which are not burdensome (1 John 5:3,4). 

    The psalmist had a few words to speak regarding The LORD's cup. Psalm 16:5 "The LORD is My Chosen Portion and My Cup; You have made my lot secure." and again in 

Psalm 23:5 "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows." And here in 

Psalm 104:15 "Wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil that makes his face to shine, and bread that sustains his heart." 

    Wine that makes the heart happy. Oil that causes our faces to shine. Bread which sustains us. The wine of God's love, His grace and lovingkindness expressed through His only begotten Son Jesus Christ, is what makes the heart happy. 

    The wine is the sacrifice we make when we choose to leave everything we have loved and follow Jesus Christ wherever He leads us. It is bittersweet and costly. Yet it is a greater loss to not drink this wine. John wrote, "He must increase, but I must decrease." It's not about me and what I want: it's about Him and what God wants. 

    The anointing of His Holy Spirit shines the reflection of God's love from within the born again believer that the whole world cannot help but notice, there's something different about that person. And we know that the difference noted is the indwelling of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ through the power of The Holy Spirit. That's what you see when you see a real Christian. 

    Bread to sustain, strengthen, the heart. Not just any bread, but the Bread of Heaven, taken in daily when we read and study and pray over it, asking The Holy Spirit to apply it to our hearts and help us to live it the way God wants us to live it. 

    That's what's in the cup of blessing. I'm drinking from that cup. And I'm holding on to it with all my strength, no matter how much I struggle daily, because that's my blessing. And I'm not letting go. 

WHICH CUP WILL YOU CHOOSE?

    We can't drink from both cups, we have to choose one or the other. 

Paul writes in the letter to the church in Corinth:

    1 Corinthians 10:21 "You cannot drink of the cup of The Lord, and the cup of demons: you cannot be partakers of The Lord's table, and of the table of demons."

    And Joshua told the people they had to choose which god to serve and which God he chose to serve:

    Joshua told the people in his time (Joshua 24:15), "If it seems evil to you to serve The LORD, choose you this day whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve The LORD." 

    Paul reminds the church in Corinth (and us) in his second letter to them that unequal partnerships will fail and cannot intermingle. Where light is darkness cannot remain. 

  2 Corinthians 6:14-16 reminds us to be equal partners in righteousness and communion. That we are the temple of God: He lives in us, walks in us: The LORD is our God and we are His people. 

THE CUPBEARER & THE CUP

Behold The Lamb - Stuart Townend

My Portion - Isla Vista Worship

Fill My Cup - Andrew Ripp

Drinking From My Saucer - Michael Combs

Fill My Cup, Lord - (Hymns of Faith)

Where You Go, I Go - Jesus Culture

Lay It All Down - Will Reagan, United Pursuit

Just As I Am - (Hymns of Faith)

The Lord Is....June 2023

 

HUPERBALLO CHARIS

(pronounced hoop-er-bal'-lo khar'-ece)

SURPASSING GRACE

2 Corinthians 9:14

And as they pray on your behalf, they will have deep affection for you because of the Surpassing Grace of God in you.

1 Timothy 1:15

And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.

ANEKDIEGETOS DOREA

(pronounced an-ek-dee-ay'-gay-tos do-reh-ah')

INDESCRIBABLE GIFT

2 Corinthians 9:15

Thanks be to God for His Indescribable Gift!

Romans 5:15

But the free Gift [of God] is not like the trespass [because the Gift of Grace overwhelms the fall of man]. For if many died by one man’s trespass [Adam’s sin], much more [abundantly] did God’s grace and the Gift [that comes] by the Grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, overflow to [benefit] the many. 

ED

(pronounced ayd)

WITNESS

SAHED

(pronounced saw-hade')

ADVOCATE

Job 16:19

“Even now, behold, my Witness is in heaven, And my Advocate [who vouches and testifies for me] is on high."

KURIOS THERISMOS

(pronounced koo'-ree-os ther-is-mos')

THE LORD OF THE HARVEST

Luke 10:2

And He told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask The Lord of The Harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest."

1 Corinthians 3:7

So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.

John 15:1,2

“I am The True Vine, and My Father is The Keeper of the Vineyard. He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, and every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes to make it even more fruitful." 

Intentional Worship -- Job

 Job had just lost everything: his cattle and servants, his sheep and the shepherds, his camels and the servants who took care of them, his children: gone in a day.

Job 1:20, 21

Then Job stood up, tore his robe, and shaved his head. He fell to the ground and worshiped, saying: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”

Job himself is struck with boils from the top of his head to the soles of his feet (Job 2:7).

But does he deny God? No, even yet, Job worships God and testifies to his wife of God's wisdom.

Job 2:10

“You speak as a foolish woman speaks,” he told her. “Should we accept from God only good and not adversity?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

Job had three friends who came to grieve with him in his time of loss. They sat quietly, not speaking, for seven days on the ground beside him. Until Job spoke. In their efforts to comfort him, they ended up speaking against him. 

Job 4 & 5: Eliphaz rebuked him for his lack of faith.

Job 8: Bildad accuses Job of being less than perfect before God and that God was asleep while these calamitous events occurred.

Job 11: Zophar accuses Job of hypocrisy and having hidden sins; he wants God to speak against Job.

Job reiterates his trust in God.

Job 13:15

Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him: but I will maintain my own ways before Him (defend myself, plead my cause). 

Job's response to his accusers is classic: Job 16:2 "I have heard many such things: miserable comforters are you all." (italics mine) 

I would think that with friends like those I'd much rather grieve alone. Wouldn't you?

But they didn't get up and leave; they stayed with Job the entire time. In verse 7 he tells his friends that they have made him feel 'desolate'. In verse 8 he tells them their words 'have given him wrinkles' (aged him). In verse 9 he is even more graphic in how their 'comfort' has made him feel: tearing at him, gnashing upon him with their teeth, focusing their gaze upon him. The scorn they feel for him in his hour of grief is so evident that it feels to Job as if they were wild beasts and enemy archers coming against him to tear him to pieces. (v. 10-13). 

In verse 30 he hoped for a true friend, for a  friend who would intercede for him before God, but he did not have one. 

Job begins to believe that there is no wrong in his heart, that his righteousness is great and that he does not deserve what is happening to him. (Job 19-31) But then Elihu speaks up. Who is this fourth man who is not introduced in the beginning of our saga? 

He is the grandson of Nahor (Genesis 22:20, 21), Abraham's brother, making him Abraham's great-nephew. But who is he to Job? One of Job's young friends, who also thought Job needed to repent for some wickedness in his life which he believed was the reason Job had lost everything and was stricken with this illness (the boils). But Elihu, too, was mistaken. 

For we know, having read in the beginning that God had challenged Satan, that Job had done nothing wrong, that sin was not why he was being tested. We know that Job's faith and trust in God was at stake. And we see that Job came through these spiritual waters and fires with his faith intact. 

Job 38-41 The LORD speaks to Job regarding Job's ignorance of God's ways; God blesses him and Job repents. The LORD also speaks to Job's friends regarding their wicked words against his servant Job and has Job intercede for them. 

This, too, is intentional worship. Job not only heard the LORD, but saw Him (Job 42:5). After Job prayed for his friends, the LORD reversed the tragedies against him and increased his losses doubly, except for his children. He didn't give him twice as many children, but He did give him another brood (v. 15) to raise. He did right by his daughters and gave them an equal share of the inheritance. 

Job 42:16, 17

"After this lived Job 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, even four generations. And Job died, being old and full of days."

A generation is 40 years. After the LORD gave him children, he lived to see his sons mature and have children of their own, and he saw their children and their children's children. That's a long time to live. And in all those days I believe Job shared what the LORD had done for him with all of his family. 

Intentional worship is to worship God with all of our hearts, our minds, our souls (Mark 12:30; Deuteronomy 6:5). It is loving the LORD God with everything within us even when we don't understand the why of what is happening to us at the time it happens. As Job said, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him."

 

Today's Word - Wisdom

 1 CORINTHIANS 3:19-20

For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight. As it is written, "He catches the wise in their craftiness." And again, "The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile."

The 'wisdom of this world' died in the flood because they did not believe God. 

The 'wisdom of this world' is restrictive to the soul, the mind and the body; it enchains and entices and kills. 

The 'wisdom of this world' denies the power of God and seeks power for itself. 

The 'wisdom of this world' is unkind, unloving and untruthful. It is hard-hearted, hateful and a liar. 

I would much rather be wise in the ways of the Lord than wise according to the substandards of this world, this age. What does it mean to be wise in the Lord?

Job 28:28

And He said to man, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.'"

Psalm 111:10

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His precepts gain rich understanding. His praise endures forever!

Proverbs 9:10 

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. 

Proverbs 1:7

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Reverent fear acknowledges the awesome greatness of God, The LORD God. This fear is the beginning of being wise. I want to be wise. Don't you?

The LORD Is.....Month of August

 

ELYONE

MOST HIGH

Lamentations 3:38

Do not both adversity and good come from the mouth of the Most High?

Job 2:10

"You speak as a foolish woman speaks," he told her. "Should we accept from God only good and not adversity?" In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

Isaiah 45:7

I form the light and create the darkness; I bring prosperity and create calamity. I, the LORD, do all these things.

The LORD GOD MOST HIGH Is Supreme. He is above all, over all and His throne is so far from us as to be beyond our sight. The LORD GOD MOST HIGH Is Omnipresent (everywhere at the same time), Omniscient (knows all, sees all) and Omnipotent (all powerful).

The Omnipresent God:

Psalm 139:7 Where shall I go from your spirit? or where shall I flee from your presence?

Proverbs 15:3 The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.

The Omniscient God:

1 Chronicles 28:9 And you, Solomon my son, know you the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searches all hearts, and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts: if you seek him, he will be found of you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off for ever.

Romans 11:33 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!

The Omnipotent God:

Psalm 90:2 Before the mountains were born or You brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God.

Psalm 93:2 Your throne is established from of old; You are from everlasting.

JEHOVAH CHECED

The LORD Is My Steadfast Love

Psalm 144:2

He is my steadfast love and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer. He is my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.

Steadfast Love: goodness of God, lovingkindness

Micah 7:18-19

Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity and passes over the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance—who does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in Loving Devotion?

He will again have compassion on us; He will vanquish our iniquities. You will cast out all our sins into the depths of the sea.

This is my God. The God Who forgives sins and forgets sins. 

Isaiah 43:25

I, yes I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake and remembers your sins no more.

Hebrews 8:12

For I will forgive their iniquities and will remember their sins no more.

The LORD Is My Steadfast Love.

 JEHOVAH GAAL

The LORD Redeemer

Isaiah 48:17

Thus says the LORD your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: "I am the LORD your God, who teaches you for your benefit, who directs you in the way you should go."

Psalm 32:8

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you [who are willing to learn] with My eye upon you.

Psalm 73:2

You guide me with Your counsel, and later receive me in glory.

ELOHIM MACHSEH OZE

God Is Our Refuge & Strength

Psalm 46:1

For the choirmaster. 

Of the sons of Korah. 

According to Alamoth. 

A song. 

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble.

Deuteronomy 4:7

For what nation is great enough to have a god as near to them as the LORD our God is to us whenever we call on Him?

Psalm 32:6

Therefore let all the godly pray to You while You may be found. Surely when great waters rise, they will not come near.

EL YAAQOB

THE GOD OF JACOB

Psalm 146:5-6

Happy is he that has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. He remains faithful forever.

Psalm 71:5

For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O LORD, from my youth.

When I .....

 

I don't live my life according to the stars. Nor do I seek what the future holds. (Leviticus 19:31; Leviticus 20:6; Isaiah 8:19)

God is my life-giver, life-sustainer, new life in Christ through God's grace God. (Acts 17:28; Job 12:10; Psalm 36:9)

It is to God I go for direction. Whether we take the high road up in the mountains and hills, or whether we take the low road down in the valleys and waysides. I will follow Jesus Christ, Son of The Living God. 

When I have questions, I go to God. And He answers me.(Matthew 7:7)

When I have fears, I trust in God. And He comforts me.

(Isaiah 41:10)

When I have doubts, I lean on God. And He upholds me with His right hand. (Psalm 18:35; Psalm 63:8)

When I am discouraged, He lifts me up. 

(Joshua 10:25; Ephesians 6:10)

When I am oppressed, I turn to Him for strength. And He fights for me. (Psalm 42:9-11; Psalm 18:2; Psalm 14:6)

When my soul agonizes in prayer, He meets me where I am.

(Psalm 88:9; Job 11:13-19; Psalm 24:6)

When my heart is overwhelmed, He covers me with His wings. 

(Psalm 91:3-5)

When I need God, and I ALWAYS need GOD, He is near: just a whisper away. (1 Kings 19:12)

When I cry out, He hears my voice. (Psalm 28:2; 62:8)

When I am silent before Him, God speaks. And I listen. 

(Psalm 46:10; Habakkuk 2:20; Isaiah 41:1)