Humbled

 Philippians 2:8

And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross.

1 Peter 2:21-24

For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His footsteps:  “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth.” / When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly. 

    In Psalm 40 David writes the hope that his enemies, those who are against him, would turn their hearts to God. He does not retaliate, nor seek vengeance upon them. He, like many others who follow God before him and after him, has the love of God -- which includes compassion and mercy -- in his heart and mind. 

    In Matthew 5:1-12 describes the beatitudes of a Christian's behavior as we walk in the power of God's Holy Spirit with Christ. To be humbled is to surrender what we want for what God wants. It is to live a righteous life that glorifies God, and not a selfish life which only glorifies ourselves. 

    MATTHEW 5:1-12

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn,

for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

for they will be filled.

Blessed are the merciful,

for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart,

for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,

for they will be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you."

    To humble ourselves means we choose obedience to God's Word: we choose to walk in love and light. We show mercy where none is deserved for we are given undeserved mercy by God. We speak peace and forgiveness to everyone we interact with, for the peace of Christ and the forgiveness of our sins were given to the believer when we believed on The Name of The Only Begotten Son of God JESUS CHRIST.

    To humble ourselves means we submit our thoughts to His Word, as well. In order to do that, we must fill our hearts and minds with His Word and His worship (the worship we give Him when we sing His praises and testify in word and song of the glorious things which He has done for us). Let His worship and Word and Spirit abound so thoroughly in each of us that Christ fills us up with even more of Himself, leaving no room for anything not of Him. 

    We must choose this side of eternity to humble ourselves. For the day is nearly here when God will forcefully ensure that all will be humbled by Himself (Romans 14:11; Philippians 2:10-11). The believer willingly kneels before God in adoration and worship, testifying by our actions and our words -whether spoken or unspoken-that JESUS CHRIST IS LORD OF ALL, even ourselves. 

    Rebellion against God and His Word and His Spirit is the opposite of humbleness and humility. Rebellion is arrogance, pride, selfishness, evil, wickedness. To deny God is rebellion, for GOD IS. To live a life of "I want what I want when I want it" is rebellion and disobedience to God's Word. One cannot accept the act of communion and then go out and continue to live in sin. For this brings condemnation upon that person. 

    A life of humility is a righteous walk with Christ. It is to live a life of surrender and submission to our heavenly Father. I've read some good books in my time that have helped me in my walk. Too many to list, but I'll give you a couple examples, which are still on my bookshelves:

Good Morning, Holy Spirit - Benny Hinn

The Real Holy Spirit - Cortland Myers, D.D. (read this book for free online)

The Pursuit of Holiness - Jerry Bridges 

    In 2 Chronicles 7:14 God tells us that we must humble ourselves (kneel only to Him), pray (only to Him) and seek His face (His presence), then He will hear us, forgive us and heal the place where we live. Every Word of God is for everyone. In the Old Testament it was for God's elect: the Jew, the Hebrew nation. But since we are now living in New Testament times, it is for the Gentile, as well. A Gentile is anyone who is not born Jewish. But when we all believe that JESUS CHRIST IS LORD, then we are all in God's family. And His Promise is for All Who Believe. 

    Therefore, we must, we absolutely must, willingly and decidedly choose to live lives of humility and humbleness, being aware at all times that Christ is with us; that His Spirit teaches us and guides us in this life in order to prepare us for the life we will live after death. 

    Joshua (Joshua 24:15) wrote that the decision to follow God is personal, it happens to each of us on an individual basis. The call goes out, "Choose this day whom you will serve." For the humble life of the believer has an impact on the soul, the mind, the heart. Choose. This day. Whom you will serve. Yourselves? or God? 

    Are we willing to die for what we believe? If not, then we need to get into the place where we are fully surrendered to a life lived for the glory of God. Absolute Surrender by Andrew Murray is a good place to start. 

COVERED Planetshakers

 I SURRENDER ALL  

TIS SO SWEET TO TRUST IN JESUS 

 

Morning Star/Day Star/Phosphoros

 

PHOSPHOROS

(pronounced foce'-for-os)

MORNING STAR/LIGHT-BRINGER

2 Peter 1:19

We also have the word of the prophets as confirmed beyond doubt. And you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a Lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and The Morning Star rises in your hearts. 

    As this world in which we live gets darker, The Light of Christ within the steadfast believer must shine ever brighter. But in order to do that we must first not only have The Light of Christ within us, but The Spirit of God as well. 

    In the parable of The Ten Virgins who waited for the arrival of the bridegroom, only half of them were ready when he arrived. This may well be the state of the church when Christ arrives for His bride. Many will await His arrival, perhaps even call out, "Come, Lord Jesus, Come!" and still not be prepared when He is sent by The Father to come and get us. 

    Now is the time to increase the oil in our lamps. Now is the hour to be filled with God's Holy Spirit, that we may not only be ready then, but ready now. Before we draw our last breath in this life, there is much work yet to be done. Only God knows when our times are up, so ever alert we must remain. And in His fields we must work.

    At last count the whole Holy Bible had been translated into 736 languages. The New Testament has been translated into 1,658 and portions of The Bible into 1,264 languages. Until the whole world hears, until the last person who has heard the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ has heard it and believed it, we must continue to share the gospel with everyone we meet. 

    Have you received Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior? Do you believe that Jesus Christ is God's only begotten Son? that He died on the cross in your place, taking the punishment meant for you? that He conquered death, hell and the grave and walked out of the grave? Do you believe that God loves you so very much that He sent His only begotten Son to do this so that you and I would not perish in our sins? 

    Today is your day of salvation. Today is the day The Morning Star can arise in your hearts and begin to remove all the darkness from within it: every sin-stain, every blemish, every dark thought and action that has separated you from God. Today is your day of repentance, your day of forgiveness, your day of becoming a child of God. 

    John 3:14-18

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must The Son of Man be lifted up: That whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. 

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

For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believes on Him is not condemned: but he that believes not is condemned already, because he has not believed in The Name of The only begotten Son of God.

IF WE'VE EVER NEEDED YOU -Casting Crowns

HERE I AM TO WORSHIP - Hillsong

The Law of The Lord is Perfect

 

THE LAW OF THE LORD IS PERFECT 

Psalm 19:7

The Law of The Lord is perfect, converting the soul: The Testimony of The Lord is simple. 

Perfect: unblemished, complete, whole, blameless 

2 Timothy 3:16, 17

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 

That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. 

    Though the word "perfect" is used to describe both Scripture and people, the meaning is nearly the same. We are to live lives of moral integrity: our personal ethics and principles by which we live must reflect The Word of God which is in us. Do people see Christ in us when they interact with us, or even recognize that we are believers in Christ, though they have never met us? 

    Let's say you go shopping and pay for the things you set near the register. On your way out the door, you realize you left an item in your cart. Do you take it back and pay for it, give it to the clerk and explain your mistake, or do you just keep on walking and consider it a "freebie". If you do the latter, that's theft, which would make you a thief. A thief's heart is not God's heart. When we live a life of integrity, we stand out from among the crowd because the Light of Christ shines through us. 

    THE LAW OF THE LORD IS PERFECT 

    As Christ is without blemish and perfect in every way, God chose Him to be the sacrificial Lamb required to take away the sins of the world once and for all. From the first people to the last, anyone who has chosen to follow The LORD God regardless of the cost to themselves, is covered by this blood. 

    He is Eternal Life to the believer and in Him we are made perfect. We are in a constant state of change, as the stream flows from the rocks and over the landscape, it is in perpetual motion from being filled with the rains. This is our life in Christ. Over and over and over again we are being made more perfect in Him daily, when we choose to let Him lead us where He wants us to go. He never leaves us: our GOD is  faithful. 

    The church Christ is coming for must be perfect. She must live a perfect life and her heart must be made perfect through her obedience to The Law of The Lord. 

Hebrews 4:12

For The Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 

    God knows our hearts and our thoughts. When we delve into the Scriptures, seeking to know God better with a deeper understanding of Who He Is and His great love for people, we draw closer to Him. Our yearning for His presence is an act of devotion to The Desire of Nations (Haggai 2:7).  We say, "Come, Lord Jesus. Come and take Your perfect church to the place which You  have prepared for her." But at the same time, we pray that our families, our friends, our enemies come with us. 

    Have you made that decision yet? To put down your own life, take up your cross and follow Jesus wherever He may lead you? Now is the time to make that decision. "The Spirit and the bride, we say, 'Come. Come and see The Savior Who died for you, fought death, hell and the grave, for you. Come and meet The One Who walked out of the grave for you. To save you, to give you eternal life, that you might dwell forever with Him'. 

    Is today your day to give your heart and your life to Christ Jesus? Come. Come to Jesus. And live. 

YOU HAVE WON THE VICTORY

    

The Law of The Lord Is Refreshing To The Godly

 

Psalm 1:1

Blessed (the happiness which comes from being in a right relationship with God) is the one who does not listen to ungodly advice, nor live life accordingly (to that ungodly advice), nor keeps company with sinners (who deliberately live ungodly lives), nor sits with scorners and mockers (who rail against godly wisdom).

THE LAW OF THE LORD 

Psalm 1:2

But his delight is in The Law of The Lord;

On His Law he meditates day and night. 

Delight: the inclinations of the heart 

    The Law of The LORD is The Word of God. We more than lean towards The LORD's presence: we yearn to be as close to Him as He desires to be close to us. We are trees of righteousness yielding to The Righteousness of God. We are clothed with that which is more beautiful than the flowers of the field: Jesus Christ. 

    The Law of The LORD is Eternal: permanent, neverending, everlasting, without end. It is Life; not just any life, but an abundant Life in Christ and Christ in us. 

    Have you believed The Law of The LORD for your own salvation? The LORD GOD is calling everyone to repentance, to godly sorrow which leads to a changed heart and life. Are you ready for The Law of The LORD to clean your hearts and change the course of your life? Better get ready. Come to Jesus. It's the most important decision you will ever make. 

Seek First - Seek His Kingdom, His Righteousness

 

MATTHEW 6:33

But seek first the kingdom of God and His Righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.

What is the kingdom of God and how do we find it? 

Romans 4:17

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in The Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 4:20

For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power. 

    To find the kingdom of God we must first seek out His Holy Spirit and be baptized by The Spirit, that we may receive every good and perfect gift which God has prepared for us. 

    When the disciples were baptized with The Holy Spirit, they received the power to preach the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ with boldness and fearlessness. Being eager to share immediately what they had received from Christ and The Spirit, they began to speak from the rooftop of the building where they had gathered in fellowship and prayer. 

    When Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus, he was temporarily blinded, until a saint prayed for him and he was filled with The Holy Spirit. From being a persecutor of Christians to being a most faithful minister of God's Word, Paul began to speak with power and wisdom and knowledge. For The Word which he knew became clearer to him; he could now share what he knew to be The Truth of the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ. 

    What are we waiting for? Seek out God's Holy Spirit, if you do not know Him. God is Father. Jesus Christ is Son. The Holy Spirit is Breath. When God breathes on you, you will know it is God giving you His Spirit. When God first breathed on me, I could sing in The Spirit, which I still do. Then God breathed on me and I studied in ministry and became a preacher of The Word of God. 

    God will give you His Holy Spirit, if you are in the right place to receive Him. I saw The Holy Spirit at work in a little country church and knew that I needed that. But it took almost three years before I was ready and in the right place in my walk with Christ. 

    The Kingdom of God can only be found when we are seeking God in His Word and in prayer with Him. There's no other way. 

Paul's Prayer to the Church in Ephesus:

    Ephesians 3:16-19

I ask that out of the riches of His glory He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 

    What is God's Righteousness?

James 4:8

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Isaiah 1:16, 17

Wash and cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil! / Learn to do right; seek justice and correct the oppressor. “Defend the fatherless and plead the case of the widow.”

Micah 6:8

 He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does The LORD require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?

     To achieve the Righteousness of God we must believe in our hearts, and confess with out mouths, that JESUS CHRIST IS LORD. For Christ is our Righteousness. He is The Righteousness we "put on" when we come to faith in what He has done for us on the cross, in the grave and in the garden. He died for our sins, fought and overcame death, hell and the grave, and walked out in newness of life. He was completely changed, for no one recognized Him when first they met Him after He rose from the dead. Until He spoke their names.

    The Holy Spirit and the church call out now to all who will hear, all who will listen, all who desire a closer walk with Jesus Christ to come to the cross. See The Servant of God taking our punishment, for God had laid the sins of the whole world from all of time upon His shoulders. The weight alone must have been near unbearable. And then, God had to turn His face from His only begotten Son, for God is holy and sin cannot be in God's holy presence. 

    We need to repent of the wickedness in our hearts and lives. Turn our hearts to God and give Him control ( the right to rule with grace and love) of our lives. Daily we meet with our God to receive that which He wants to give us. Sometimes we fail in our walk; we stumble, we fall. But we get right back up and keep on walking. 

    We who believe have The Righteousness of God upon us and we are helping Him to build His kingdom one soul at a time. Are you that soul that is longing for a loving, merciful God? Come to Jesus. And walk with us. 

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

THERE'S A HOLY AND BEAUTIFUL CITY

JESUS MADE THE DIFFERENCE 

GIVE ME A HEART LIKE THINE

Seek First - Seek My Face

 

PSALM 27:8

My heart said, "Seek His Face." Your Face, O LORD, I will seek.

    I ended the year 2024 with the phrase "By Faith" for moving forward in my life. I am beginning 2025 with "Seek First" added to it. 

    You would think the longer a person walks with God the easier it is to walk with God. Not so. Life is still life and there are always distractions to tempt us away from walking out our faith on this Way of Holiness. 

    When David wrote this psalm, he was praising God for deliverance. Both his age and his circumstances at that time are unknown. Here he reveals his own heart that the saints may be encouraged in The LORD and strengthened in their commitment and desire to seek out God's presence at all times. 

    We, too, can praise God for the deliverance He has given us in these New Testament times. For the deliverance with which He has blessed us in His own Son, Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God. Our deliverance came by way of the cross on which He died. Our eternal life came by way of the empty tomb, where His body once lay as He Himself fought hell and won, for He holds the keys of death, hell and the grave. 

    No more would death be feared, for The King of Kings and Lord of Lords, The Ruler of All Nations, had conquered them all and made a Way to reach God and live forever in His presence. But in order to receive this wonderful deliverance we first have to believe that Jesus Christ is Lord. 

    Though the saints of the Old Testament had not yet seen The Promise of God, they lived their lives believing God, even when they stumbled in their walk, they repented and moved ahead. By faith. Seeking God's divine will first and then following in obedience to that will. 

    So, today, as this new year has begun, let us by faith enter into a divine relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and daily seek His face, His presence. Not asking anything, just wanting to spend time with Him: in prayer, in Bible study, in worship. For there is no better way than The Way to get through what we are about to go through. 

WALK WITH ME - Jesus Culture