The Faithfulness of God

 

 

    While there are only a few verses describing the faithfulness of God, there are many instances in The Bible telling us of God's faithfulness. But, first, what does the word 'faithfulness' really mean? 

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance #530 (faithful, faithfully, faithfulness, responsibility truth): firmness, steadfastness, fidelity

Dictionary: 

• Firmness: the quality of having a solid, almost unyielding surface or structure
• Steadfastness:  the quality of being resolutely or dutifully firm and unwavering:
• Fidelity: faithfulness to a person, cause, or belief, demonstrated by continuing loyalty and support 

    So we can see that the faithfulness of God is unyielding, unwavering and true. While our faithfulness on the other hand is sadly lacking at times. We try but fail Him so many times. Yet, in His grace and mercy, God still loves us and only wants us to keep drawing near to Him, where we find forgiveness and restoration. 

HEART OF MY HEART - Charlie Daniels 

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS - Austin Stone

    Of the more than one-hundred verses using the words 'faithful and faithfulness', thirty-five refer to God's faithfulness to us. The words 'faith and faithfully' are in reference to us and how we behave to God. 

    The first verse in The Bible that tells us of God's faithfulness is in Psalm 36:5

 

and the last verse referring to the faithfulness of God is in Revelation 22:6.

    But what about all those other verses referring to God's faithfulness? Today is just the foundation; the next few days are about the layers. 

Return of The King - Days of Noah

 

Revelation 1:7

Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.

DAYS OF NOAH

Matthew 24:37

As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man.

Genesis 6:5 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great upon the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was altogether evil all the time.

    How was life in the days of Noah that we may know the signs to watch for? Genesis 6:5 gives us an insight: every inclination, every imagination, of mankind's thoughts in his or her heart will be evil ALL THE TIME.

    Matthew 15:18, 19

But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these things defile a man. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies, and slanders.

    Matthew 5:28

But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

    Galatians 5:19-21

Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, witchcraft/sorcery, hatreds, contentions, jealousies, wrath, strife/selfish ambitions, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, carousing and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

    1 Corinthians 6:10

Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts, nor thieves, nor coveters, not drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

    These thoughts will be in every person who is not of God. And because of their hatred for what is holy and righteous they will come against God's people on every platform, including the church.

    Those whose desire is for their itching ears ( 2 Timothy 4:3, 4 ) to be comforted will build their own churches or sneak in and take over ( Acts 20:29, 30 ) the churches who are not paying attention to the divisions within their walls.

    Paul warns the church to be alert and stay on her guard that this does not happen. She is to be spotless, without blemish, without stain: The real church of God is holy and righteous, pure and filled with love for her Bridegroom. She is strong in her Lord and in the power of His might. His church is a light in an ever growing dark world. Though few will flock to her altars, still she will stand: stand on The Word of God.

    We who believe in The Name of The Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation are God's church. BE ALERT! PAY ATTENTION! REPENT AND BE BAPTIZED IN THE NAME OF THE LORD! Personally, this I have done. And it was wonderful. I am a new creation in Christ! The old life I lived is dead and gone. The new life I have in Christ is Christ in me. Come, come to the cross. Come to the Light and Love of God in Christ. Walk with me to the garden and have new life in Christ, for He has conquered death, hell and the grave!

    What is death that we should fear it? What is the darkness of the grave that we should dread it? Hell has no power over the saved of The LORD.

    In the days of Noah, out of all the people who were upon the face of the earth at that time, only EIGHT survived: Noah and his wife, their three sons and their wives. The ark was built big enough to save more but none believed Noah. Though the ark loomed large in the desert landscape, though the animals came by twos and sevens into the ark, though Noah preached while he constructed the ark: no one believed him. That's how it was in the days of Noah:unbelief was in every heart.

PEOPLE GET READY/REPENT & BE BAPTIZED

Isaiah 55:7

Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Zechariah 12:10

Then I will pour out on the house of David and on the people of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and prayer, and they will look on Me, the One they have pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son.

Matthew 16:27

For the Son of Man will come in His Father's glory with His angels, and then He will repay each one according to what he has done.

Matthew 24:30

At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.

CHARLIE DANIELS - STEEL WITNESS full album

THE KING IS COMING - Gaithers

    

I Am Christian's Memory

 

JOHN 14:26

But The Helper, The Holy Spirit, Whom The Father will send in My Name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.

    Memories are funny things. Even in our memories we are all different. I may remember my name and forget yours. As our physical bodies age or succumb to various diseases, our memories are affected, too. 

    Faces, names, connections like family and friendships may eventually fade from our memories in this life. But The Word which is planted within us will never fade. We will never forget that we belong to Christ. We have The Helper, The Holy Spirit, reminding us who we are in Christ and Who Christ is in us. I am Christian's memory and The Word will never leave me.

    Even the gospel songs we love to sing may still linger on our lips. Psalm 77:6 "I call to remembrance my song in the night: I commune with my own heart: and my spirit made diligent search." I am Christian's memory and songs that glorify God and praise His Holy Name will always flow from within me. For The Holy Spirit is my Helper. He draws this flowing river of melodies and lyrics from the hidden places in my heart. 

    I am Christian's memory. I remember that God loves me so much He sent His Only Begotten Son to die for me. I remember that Jesus not only died to take my sins away forever, but that He defeated death, hell and the grave. 

    As He died on the cross, the sins of the whole world from the beginning of people until the last person gets saved were laid across His shoulders and He became sin. The weight of it crushed Him. But He stayed on the cross for us, for me. When He took our sins upon Himself, God could not be in His presence, for sin is unholiness and God's holiness had to separate itself from His Only Begotten Son. 

    After He died, His body was laid in the grave, the tomb. But only His body was there. His spirit and soul were in hell. Hell, where He overcame Satan in a battle we know little about. What we do know is that Satan, the devil, can be overcome by The Word and The Spirit, for that is how we overthrow him in this life we're living now. We know He holds the keys of death and hell (Revelation 1:18). 

    We know He overcame the grave because He walked out of it in His new body, His resurrected body was changed from what He looked like before He died. We know this because when Mary Magdalene encountered Him in the garden (John 20:14-16), she thought He was the gardener. [which, if you think about it, He is: He is the Master Gardener]. 

    I am Christian's memory. Because I live in Christ and He lives in me, I, too, will be changed when my body leaves the grave. But know this: my soul will not remain with my body. When I die here, I will take His hand there. As I breathe my last here, I will inhale the perfume of heaven and my soul will be at peace in the eternal presence of my Lord and Savior. I am Christian's memory and I will go with Christian when Christian dies. 

    All the bad memories, all the hard times, will pass from my memory permanently. For God has promised to wipe away all tears. For instance:

    Some time after my son Nick died, I had a dream. In this dream, as his car hit the pickup truck, Nick took hold of Jesus' hand which was extended to him and walked out of this life into his life eternal. He was not alone when he died; he was not afraid. The military chaplain who spoke at his funeral said that Nick was the "most Holy Spirit-filled young man he had ever met". What a testimony. This was the last time I cried. God put all my tears in one of His bottles (Psalm 56:8). 

    I am Christian's memory and I am filled with examples of the love of God, the merciful compassion of Christ, the guarded strength of The Holy Spirit. I may forget your name, your face, your connection to me. But I will never forget my God and my Savior. 

HOPE HAS A NAME - River Valley Worship

The Lord Is Faithful and True

 

REVELATION 19:11

And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He does judge and make war.

    HIS FAITHFULNESS

He Keeps His Promises

Psalm 96:12-13

Let the fields exult, and all that is in them. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the LORD, for He is coming—He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in His faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23

It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.

2 Timothy 2:13

if we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.

    HIS TRUTH

He speaks Truth because He IS Truth

John 14:6

Jesus saith unto him, I am The Way, The Truth and The Life: no man comes to The Father, but by Me.

John 1:14

 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of The Only Begotten of The Father,) full of Grace and Truth.

Numbers 23:19 (Balaam's response to Balak) 

God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?

    Every promise of God will be fulfilled. Whether to bless the faithful or judge the faithless. There are over 400 prophecies in The Old Testament concerning The One Whom God would send to deliver His people and reign as King. Just as the prophecies are several years apart, so, too, are the promises of God. It hasn't even been 2000 years since Christ, but we're getting close. Still His Name is proclaimed to the nations. Still He saves the sinner seeking His grace and mercy. Still The Holy Spirit is poured out upon they whom The Lord God has chosen to receive Him. 

    The promises of God are many and ALL will be fulfilled at some point in time. When King Jesus returns, according to the detail available in this verse, His Authority will be evident (the white horse - purity). He is not coming for a party, but for war. War against the people who chose not to follow Him and who remain after the event in which His people had been "caught up in the air" (1 Thessalonians 4:17); and after the dead in Christ have risen (1 Thessalonians 4:16). 

    His Name is Faithful (unwavering adherence to the truth, steadfast {committed,  unswerving, unyielding}) and True (in accordance with fact, reality; verifiable, accurate). He is Judge and Jury, for He will war against the unfaithful with His Righteousness: the divine approval of God. 

    So very thankful that this Righteousness covers me. See, it's nothing that I accomplished. But it's through my faith on, my belief in, The Only Name Under Heaven by Which We Must Be Saved, through JESUS CHRIST The Only Begotten Son of God, that I am made approved by God to be God's child. 

    His Righteousness is the spiritual garment I wear. I clothed myself in His Righteousness when I repented of my sins and turned away from a living a sinful life to living a holy life. It's not a perfect life, but a lifetime of small achievements in grace which make me holy. In His Righteousness is where I live. I became a  child of God through God's grace ( Galatians 3:25-27; John 1:12). 

    If you are not already in His Righteousness, it's not too late. As long as you have breath in your body, there's still time to place your faith in Christ Jesus. For the day is fast approaching when the decision to choose wisely will no longer be yours to make; for death will have snatched your soul and the opportunity to choose Christ will be gone from you for ever. 

SPEAK LIFE - TobyMac

JESUS HAVE IT ALL - Jeremy Riddle

NO OTHER NAME BUT JESUS - Victory House Worship

This is Christmas, Too

 

Matthew 2:1-2

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is He that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen His star in the east, and are come to worship Him.

Matthew 2:16

Then Herod, when He saw that He was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.

    As Christians, we celebrate the birth of Christ with joy and festivities. We give each other presents. We read aloud to our families the Christmas story from the Bible. But do we continue to read aloud when it comes to the other factors in the birth of The King? 

    The wise men were two years into their search. They did not show up to the stable to see the baby King in the manger. They found Him in a house (Matthew 2:11). They knew The Word so well that they were looking for the star before the star appeared. We know this because they were wise men from the east. 

    When we go back to the Book of Daniel (Daniel 2:17, 20), we read of the rudiments of education of which the wise men of that time were required. It is God who gives wisdom and knowledge. Should any of us desire such, it is to God we must go to obtain it. As King Solomon did when God approached him (1 Kings 3:5, 9). 

    Thus we know the wise men not only knew The Scriptures, they had more than a basic education. They were learned men: learning was their way of life. Having read The Scriptures, they believed The Scriptures and were searching the night skies looking for the star that would rise which would show them where the new King would be born. Once it appeared, they began their trek across continents to reach Him. But it took them Two Years to get there. 

    No one who comes to Jesus is ever late getting there. Every heart that truly seeks to see His face will find Him. "Ask and you will receive; Seek and you will find; Knock and the doors will be opened to you." Matthew 7:7. 

    But in their search for Christ, they met people along the way who sought to kill the new King (Matthew 2:3-8). By this Mary and Joseph were residing in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:11). This is where the wise men found Jesus. To a house in Bethlehem, to The One who was Born King of the Jews, they brought their gifts. Gifts which would pay tribute to Him as King (gold), honor Him as King (gold) and anoint Him as King (myrrh). These gifts would be used immediately.

    For when the wise men did not return to Herod, the nasty king ordered all the young children two years old and under to be killed. Hundreds of babies and toddlers met their deaths at the hands of an unwise man. Parents had their infants yanked from their arms and slaughtered in front of them. The blood of innocents filled the city streets in Bethlehem and in every nearby coastal town (Matthew 2:16-18). 

    This, too, is Christmas. Sadness. Mourning. Weeping: an unending, heartbreaking tearyness which flowed from the broken hearts of the people whose children were dead. Another prophecy fulfilled, albeit a sad one. (Jeremiah 31:15). Not everyone was able to rejoice at the birth of The One who had been born King of the Jews. 

    As stated, the gifts the wise men gave to Jesus were used immediately. Because the order was about to go  out while they were still residing in Bethlehem, the young family needed to leave in a hurry. They left in the night, under cover of darkness and fled the country (Matthew 2:12-14), taking the gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh which we understand helped them on their journey. For they left immediately after the wise men's visit to their home. 

    So, now I ask you, Where is He that is born King of the Jews? Where is that is born King of Kings? For even now some still search for Him. To know The Scriptures is to know The Word; to know The Word is to know Jesus. The wise men from the east knew the prophecies of The Scriptures at that time. They came searching for He who had been BORN King of the Jews. This is a King who at His birth was already a King. All other kings were made kings or they may have been born into the position by reason of lineage. But Jesus was the born King. Lineage had nothing to do with it. He was King from the beginning, from before time/all through time/after time. 

    As He stated in John 8:58, Jesus told the people that He is I AM (Exodus 3:14). And they wanted to kill Him then, but He faded into the crowd. John 1:1-3 tells us Who this King is. He is King before He is born. He is Ruler. He is Sceptre. He is Governor. He is Jesus and waits for you to seek Him out and meet with Him. 

    Revelation 3:20 " Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me." We don't need to wait for Him to come and find us where we are: He knows where we are. He waits for us to answer His knock on our hearts. He waits for us to open the door of our hearts and invite Him in, that The Word may dwell in our hearts. 

    Those who seek Him to destroy His Kingship will fail in their endeavors. Those who seek Him to honor Him as King will find Him. They, we, merely have to open the doors of our hearts and invite Him into our lives. Are you ready to meet Jesus? He's knocking on your heart right now. 

THE GOSPEL - Ryan Stevenson

The Lord Is Present - - Come Near

 

THE LORD IS PRESENT

Present: To Give to, To announce someone's entrance into your presence

Present: Gift given

Presence: In the vicinity of, nearby, close at hand

    Every offering made to The LORD GOD in the Old Testament was made with fire; a sacrifice had to be given with the offering. It is not enough to give The LORD words, actions must back these words up. 

DO OUR GIFTS TO GOD HONOR HIM?

    We say, Lord, Here I am, use me. But when He places us in the midst of trials and temptations, what do we do? Mostly complain. Lord, I didn't ask for this. Lord, get me out of this. How about saying something a little bit (a lotta bit) different? Lord, show me how to be a blessing to you in this trial. Give me Your Word to speak in this temptation. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit that I may remain strong and steadfast, standing against the very thing that wants to take me out or knock me down. 

    The Word says not to promise God we will do something and then not do it. When that happens, we have lied to God and we will have to answer for it. Numbers 30:2; Deuteronomy 23:21; Ecclesiastes 5:4; Psalm 66:13. 

GOD GIVES GOOD GIFTS

    We give gifts to each other with the intent that the recipient would be pleased with the gift being given and receive it with grace. God gives us wonderful gifts. He gives us life and then promises life eternal if we choose His only begotten Son as our Lord and Savior, for that is the Gift God gives each one who believes. Christ is the Gift of Grace, the Gift of Lovingkindness, the Gift of Mercy promised to a thousand generations. Jesus is the Gift of Hope, the Gift of Wisdom. The Holy Spirit is the Gift of Understanding, the Gift of Revelation, the Gift of Guardianship. 

    God gives us beauty. He has created the universe: the stars, the moon, the sun, the planets, the galaxies, the Milky Way, the comets, the nebulae, for His pleasure. God has created the earth and everything in it because it makes Him happy. He is still creating: people are constantly finding new animals and plants; though they call them evolutionary developments, adaptations to a changing world. 

    God gives us Himself. He wrapped His Word in a fragile package of flesh and bone (John 1:14) and had His Holy Spirit place it in a young virgin, whom He found faithful to Him. (Luke 1:35). That's Love. His plan of Salvation would soon be fulfilled. The Gospel of repentance and faith would soon be among us. In fact, even now, The Lord is Present. 

COME AND SEE 

    Are you aware of The Presence of God? Can you hear Him calling you to enter into His presence? Come, come and see The King of The Jews. Come, come and see the tomb is empty, for He has risen. Come, come and rejoice over the lost sheep that has been found. The Spirit and the Bride, they say, Come, come and hear. God is calling you to be near Him. That's a Wonderful Gift to be given to mere mankind. Our heavenly Father wants us to be near Him, with Him, forever and ever. 

    Come, come and see the Newborn King (Luke 2:8-20). Come, let us go up to the mountain of The LORD (Micah 4:2). Come, let us enter His courts with thanks giving and praise (Psalm 100:4 ). Come, let us sing for joy to The LORD (Psalm 95:6). Come and see Jesus (John 4:29; John 1:46; John 1:29-34). 

    So, I say now, this day: Come, come and see Jesus. Contemplate and consider The WORD of GOD. Believe that this JESUS the CHRIST, the MESSIAH, is indeed The Lamb of God which takes away the sins of the world! Come, come and see for yourself, with the eyes of your heart, with the ears of your understanding. Come, come and see JESUS. And stay near to Him all the days of your life.  

THE LORD IS NEAR 

ABIDE IN ME 

ABBA

The Lord Is Mighty In Battle

 

Psalm 24:8
Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, The LORD Mighty in Battle.

Exodus 15:3

The LORD is a Warrior, The LORD is His Name.

Exodus 15:6

Your right hand, O LORD, is majestic in power; Your right hand, O LORD, has shattered the enemy.

Psalm 76:3

There He shattered the flaming arrows, the shield and sword and weapons of war. Selah

Exodus 14:14

The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.

Revelation 19:11

Then I saw heaven standing open, and there before me was a white horse. And its rider is called Faithful and True. With righteousness He judges and wages war.

Exodus 14:13

And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of The LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever."

2 Chronicles 20:15

And he said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what The LORD says: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army, for the battle does not belong to you, but to God.'"

Zechariah 9:14

Then The LORD will appear over them, and His arrow will go forth like lightning. The Lord GOD will sound the ram's horn and advance in the whirlwinds of the south.

Zechariah 12:9

So on that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

Zechariah 14:3

Then The LORD will go out to fight against those nations, as He fights in the day of battle. 

Isaiah 66:15

For behold, The LORD will come with fire--His chariots are like a whirlwind--to execute His anger with fury and His rebuke with flames of fire.

THE BATTLE BELONGS TO THE LORD - Maranatha! Music

VICTORY CHANT - Songs 4 Worship - Bob Fitts 

EVERY PRAISE - Hezekiah Walker

        Fear The LORD: be in awe of, wonder at, revere and honor Him. Set Him on high above all else and above all others. There is none other to fear when we fear The LORD as we ought to. 

WHOM SHALL I FEAR? = Chris Tomlin

The Lord Is Ever Present

 

Psalm 139:7-10

Where shall I go from your Spirit? or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will lay hold of me. 

Proverbs 15:3

The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.

2 Chronicles 16:9a

For the eyes of The LORD roam to and fro over all the earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are fully devoted to Him. 

Ezekiel 1:15-21 speaks of the four wheels within wheels, covered with eyes, that goes where The Spirit goes. 

Jeremiah 23:24

Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? said the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? said the LORD. 

Hebrews 4:13

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to Whom we must give account.

Job 34:22

There is no darkness or deep shadow where the workers of iniquity can hide.

Revelation 6:16

And they said to the mountains and the rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb."

Colossians 1:15-17

The Son is the image of The invisible God, The Firstborn over all creation.

For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.

God even sees us when we are being created in our mothers' wombs. He is with us from the beginnings of life to the end of life.

Psalm 139:13-16

For You formed my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works, and I know this very well. 

My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all my days were written in Your book and ordained for me before one of them came to be. 

Nothing Else - Cody Carnes 

Storm (All Around You) - Jon Thurlow @Forerunner Music

Spirit Lead Me - Michael Ketterer 

Give Thanks With A Grateful Heart

 

Romans 7:25

2 Corinthians 9:15

Romans 6:17

1 Corinthians 15:57

Ezra 3:11

Revelation 4:9

Revelation 7:12

1 Thessalonians 5:18

Colossians 4:2,3

Psalm 139:14

Psalm 57:9

Psalm 108:3

Psalm 145:10

1 Chronicles 16:8

1 Chronicles 16:34

Psalm 105:1

Psalm 107:1

Psalm 118:1

Psalm 136

Psalm 100:4

These are the verses I came up with to fill my board. What verses have you found in addition to these?

GIVE THANKS

The Lord's Voice Is Powerful

 

Psalm 29:4

The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.

Psalm 68:33

To Him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which were of old! Indeed, He sends out His voice, a mighty voice. 

    The Voice of God is as a sound of thunder to those who cannot hear Him clearly:

1 Samuel 7:10

As the Philistines drew near to fight against Israel, Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering. But that day The LORD thundered loudly against the Philistines and threw them into such confusion that they fled before Israel.

Exodus 20:18,19

Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.”

    The Voice of The Lord can be soft, too, and still be powerful. It is heard with the spirit of the one who hears Him speak. God spoke the world and everything in it, on it, under it, over it and around it into existence. That's a powerful Voice.

    God's Voice is the Voice of Wisdom in The Book of Proverbs. It is the sound of the wind rushing into the upper room, the sound of confusion to His enemies, the sound of comfort to the grieving and mournful. The Voice of The Lord still speaks.

    He speaks in our hearts if we are willing to open up our hearts and listen to His Voice. He is speaking even now. Are you going to open up your hearts and let Him in so He can speak as Friend to friend?? Or are you going to shut the door of your hearts and not let Him in? Your choice. Choose wisely. For the days are short and getting shorter. 

    Revelation 3:20

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

INDIE FOLK WORSHIP 2

Cup of Wrath

 Part Three of The CupBearer & The Cups

    Revelation 14:9,10

And another, a third angel, followed them, saying in a loud voice, "If anyone worships the beast and its image, and receives a mark on his forehead or upon his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the anger of God, having been mixed undiluted in The Cup of His Wrath; and he will be tormented in fire and brimstone before the holy angels and before The Lamb."

    Such is the dreadful future of the unbelieving soul, the unrepentant heart. In Sodom and Gomorrah fire fell from heaven and utterly destroyed both cities for their wicked evil ways (Genesis 1924). 

    Psalm 75:8 tells us: For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup, and the wine is red; it is full of mixture; and He pours out of the same: but the dregs thereof, all the wicked of the earth shall wring them out, and drink them. 

    Jeremiah 25:15,16 For thus says the LORD God of Israel to me: “Take this wine cup of fury from My hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send you, to drink it. And they will drink and stagger and go out of their minds, because of the Sword that I will send among them.”

    What is in the wine of God's fury, God's anger? Well, Jeremiah 25:16 says there is a Sword in God's wine; a Sword of ruin (vs 17). In this Cup is a Sword of judgment against Jerusalem and Judah and all the nations around them; against all the kingdoms on the face of the earth (vs 18-26). Isaiah 66:16 says many will be slain by The Sword of The LORD. 

    It is the Sword of war: destruction and desolation lay in its path. Whomever it touches dies and their bodies lay untouched, unmourned, unburied. Where they drop they remain until the birds of prey and wild animals devour their remains. 

    Jeremiah also tells us this Sword will first be poured out on Jerusalem (The City of Peace) and Judah (People of Praise). Judgment, The Word tells us in 1 Peter 4:17, begins in the house of God. Many who claim to be Christians, will receive their reward, their punishment, for the wickedness they brought into God's house. 

    Those who have set up carved images, idols, will be judged for their impudence against God and disregard for His Word. They who turn their hearts against God's Word and do not believe The TRUTH, who insist on listening to lies and fables, whose lives are guided by demonic spirits, will find the sword in their midst, destroying and tearing down everything it touches. 

    Witches, both "good" and evil, astrologers and they who follow them, occultists will be killed. The sexually immoral: fornicators, adulterers, homosexuals, etc. will find that what they believed to be "good enough" is not even close to being good in God's eyes. Liars, thieves and braggards (the proud) will see that they were wrong. The Sword of The LORD will slay even these if they remain unrepentant and unchanged. 

   

    What is this Sword which is in the wine of God's Wrath? Ephesians 6:17 "And take the helmet of salvation and the Sword of the Spirit, which is The Word of God." And Zechariah 4:6 "Then he said to me, “This is The Word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says The LORD of Hosts."

    The SWORD OF THE SPIRIT is THE WORD OF THE LORD. From the passage in Revelation 19:11-16 we find Revelation 19:15 "And out of His mouth goes forth a sharp Sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations; and He will shepherd them with a rod of iron. And He treads the press of the wine of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty."

    The Sword of The LORD is fluid but not flexible. It is alive and capable of separating soul from spirit; it discerns our thoughts and knows our intents (Hebrews 4:12). It is a double-edged Sword (Revelation 2:12). It is sharp (Revelation 19:15). It is capable of dividing families: believers from unbelievers (Luke 12:51-53). All who war against God will be killed by The Sword (Revelation 19:21).

    While the believer lives and dies by The Sword of The LORD (Philippians 1:20; Romans 14:8), it is the unbeliever who will suffer most in the hands of The Living God Who wields The Sword.   

Blessed Be The Name of The LORD.

    In this Cup is wine made from rotten fruit (Joel 3:12,13), which will be poured out on all nations. Revelation 14:18,19 "Still another angel, with authority over the fire, came from the altar and called out in a loud voice to the angel with the sharp sickle, "Swing your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the vine of the earth, because its grapes are ripe." So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and gathered the grapes of the earth, and he threw them into the great winepress of God's wrath."

    This Cup is not for me. I drink from the Cup of Blessing. Here am I to warn you, "Don't drink from the Cup of Wrath. Now is the time to take stock of your life and your soul. Today is the day to give your heart to God and believe that His only begotten Son Jesus Christ died on the cross, rose from the dead and ascended into heaven. Today is your day to repent of all your wickedness and pray The Spirit to show you in The Word of God how to turn your life around. Today is all we have for tomorrow is not a given. 

     Hebrews 3:7 But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are His house, if we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope of which we boast. 

Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear His voice,

do not harden your hearts, as you did in the rebellion, in the day of testing in the wilderness."

    Hebrews 3:12,13 Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; But encourage one another every day, while it is called today, so that not one of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

CUP OF WRATH (songs I listened to while I studied)

    

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)

Guard Your Heart - - Guard Your First Love

 

Matthew 24:12

And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 458

Iniquity: lawlessness, disobedience, sin

From the Greek word ' anomia' (pronounced an-om-ee'-ah). 'The utter disregard for God's law (His written and living Word).  Includes the end-impact of law breaking – i.e. its negative influence on a person's soul (status before God).'

    Iniquity is both contempt for and violation of God's law. And according God's Christ "it will abound". Abound: multiply, increase upon increase. And many who think they are Christians - Christ's followers - will leave the faith they think are and be revealed as the faithless that they really are: the unfaithful.

Revelation 2:4

But I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first.

FIRST LOVE

    Remember how you felt when you fell in love with your sweetheart? Our eyes would tend to glaze over, getting that starry-eyed effect, when we thought of them or spoke of them. 

    We wanted to be with them all the time, do what they wanted to do, go where they wanted to go. We listened to the same songs, watched the same movies, read the same books, attended the same church. Their world was our world. 

    But after awhile, if the stars in our eyes became tears, then was it ever true love after all? The things we used to do together were no longer appealing to us as a couple. Our hearts fell out of love. It was not an enduring love. Our first love had faded. 

ENDURING LOVE

    A love that endures will make it through the bad times as well as the good times. In this life we will know pain as well as pleasure, sorrow as well as joy, death as well as life. 

    Enduring love will make it all the way to the end. From the first "I love you" to the last breath taken. From "I do" to "Good-bye". Enduring love perseveres, overcoming obstacles and gaining ground in its endeavor to remain faithful to each other and to cross the finish line of life. 

    If the first love we have for one another remains strong then it becomes an enduring love, a faithful love. As it is in our personal relationships, so it is in our spiritual relationship. And how do we maintain a Faithful, Enduring first love relationship in Christ? When we love Him like He loves us: through and through. 

AGAPE LOVE

    Jesus tells us to "A new commandment I give to you, that you should love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another." (John 13:34). How has Christ loved us? With a beneficial love. 

    An all-encompassing love which overlooks faults in each other, forgiving each other every time there is an offense against us. A to-the-death love, an I-would-die-for-you love which Jesus proved He had when He died on the cross. But this love will wax cold, will wane in a person's heart until the flicker of love that was there goes out.

    This love wrongs no one (Romans 13:10). This love holds no grudges against anyone, nor does it seek revenge on wrongs (Leviticus 19:18). This love seeks the betterment of its enemies and prays for its persecutors (Matthew 5:44). This love honors others before itself (Romans 12:10). 

    To sum it up, this love carries no hate towards others, even if by rights one person could hate another for a legitimate reason, such reasons do not exist in Christ's love. Even on the cross, when He could have condemned the people who nailed Him there, He forgave them. (Luke 23:34).

LOVE-LETTER

    The whole Bible, the written Word of God, is a Love-letter from God to His people, for only His people will be able to understand what is written on its pages. We know this because when an unsaved person reads the Bible, they  see only the words on the pages, the surface or letter of the law written therein. And there is no understanding in their hearts, no knowledge, no love of God. 

    Wisdom writes the Word on the hearts of those who believe the Word to be God's Word. It is, after all, Faithful and True (Revelation 21:5, 19:11). The Spirit of God by the power of God is written with love on the hearts of they (we) who love God (2 Corinthians 3:3). 

    Faithfulness to God's Word requires diligence on our part. Reading this Book together strengthens our bond, for we read to learn of God's love and how to put it into practical application in us. Faithfulness to God's Word demands holiness on our part: righteous living from the inside-out, not just lip service which is only seen and heard, but heart-service which is known by God in secret and revealed by God when His timing is apparent. 

BORN AGAIN LOVE

    We are the beloved, the born of God, the born again: "We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. That is how we know the Spirit of Truth and the spirit of deception. Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." 1 John 4:6-8. 

GUARD YOUR FIRST LOVE MEDLEY