The inspired Box - Complete Joy

 

 

Deuteronomy 16:15

For seven days you shall celebrate a feast to

The LORD your God

in the place He will choose, because 

The LORD your God

will bless you in all your produce

and in the work of your hands,

so that your joy will be complete.

(Berean Study Bible)

    The seven day feast referred to here in this passage is The Feast of Tabernacles, which was to be celebrated with joy for God's providence in their harvests. The first cutting of the harvest was to be brought before The Lord and given to Him joyfully and with a willing heart. 

    This week-long celebration was a remembrance feast, as all such feasts were. A tabernacle is a temporary shelter, like a tent, in which they were to stay for the seven days, remembering a time when they wandered in the desert after leaving Egypt. It is a time for giving God thanks for His caring of them at that time. 

    How does this apply to us today? We who wandered in the darkness of this world also dwelt in temporary structures, but now we reside in Christ. Even when we didn't know God and God's blessings, still God called us out of that darkness and into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9). For this reason we rejoice with holy (sacred) joy. As they were to rejoice daily even after the feast had ended, we, too are encouraged to rejoice every day (1 Thessalonians 5:16). 

    Is my joy complete? Absolutely. I rejoice in The God of my salvation, too (Habakkuk 3:18). I rejoice with words spoken to Him. I rejoice with songs I write about Him. I rejoice with songs I sing about Him and to Him. I rejoice because I can't help it: I Want To Rejoice. I want to please God with my worship. I want Him to receive my worship, so therefore, I must, with all my heart and mind and soul endeavor to do that which pleases Him: obey His Word and receive His Son into my heart, His Holy Spirit into my life. 

    And in so doing The Lord God will bless me and you. He will bless whatever work we put our hands to doing for His service. He will bless our increase. And again, we rejoice in our God. We rise up and bless His holy Name, for it is this Name which saves us. It is this Name which heals us. It is this Name which covers us. It is this Name which we rejoice in. The Name of Jesus Christ the only begotten Son of God. 

    No longer do we wander in the desert of this world, for Christ has become our Tabernacle. This Tabernacle is not temporary, but this body in which my soul and my spirit reside is. Someday I will leave it and be home with Christ evermore. This day when The Tabernacle of God is permanent is coming: Revelation 21:3 "And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, The Tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God." For this cause also, I rejoice. 

    Soon and very soon Jesus will return for His people, His bride. And we will be gone in 'the twinkling of an eye' (1 Corinthians 15:52) and 'as a thief in the night' (2 Peter 3:10). Will you go with us? Or will you be left behind? It's your choice. Just hope you make the right choice. 

10,000 REASONS - Matt Redman 

BLESS GOD - Brooke Ligertwood

BLESS GOD - Cody Carnes

RUN TO THE FATHER - Cody Carnes

Heart & Soul - - Glad Heart/Heavy Heart

 

Isaiah 65:14

My servants will shout for joy with a glad heart, but you will cry out with a heavy heart and wail with a broken spirit.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 2898 & 3511

Glad: joyful, gladness 

From the Hebrew word 'tub' (pronounced toob)

Heavy: pain, suffering (physical/mental), grief, sorrow

From the Hebrew word 'keeb' (pronounced keh-abe')  

By now we know that the Glad Heart is the heart that belongs to Jesus, the heart that lives inside the heart of God.

And the heavy heart is the heart that refuses to believe in, and does not belong to, Jesus. 

GLAD HEART

    Isaiah 51:11

So the redeemed of the LORD will return and enter Zion with singing, crowned with everlasting joy. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee.

    Psalm 40:16

May all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; may those who love Your salvation always say, "The LORD be magnified!"

    Revelation 22:3

No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be within the city, and His servants will worship Him.

HEAVY HEART

    Isaiah 13:6

Wail, for the Day of the LORD is near; it will come as destruction from the Almighty.

    Revelation 1:7

Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him—even those who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. So shall it be! Amen.

    Psalm 112:10

The wicked man will see and be grieved; he will gnash his teeth and waste away; the desires of the wicked will perish.

    Revelation 20:12, 15

And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And there were open books, and one of them was the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their deeds, as recorded in the books.

And if anyone was found whose name was not written in the Book of Life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

    Lord, may our hearts be turned to You. Lead us in Your Word, guide us with Your Holy Spirit. Bring us into Your kingdom, even as we pray for the repentance of they who have not yet done so. May we flourish in Your fields, doing the works which You have prepared for us to do.

    Let us linger in Your presence, giving our worship to You, gaining strength from You, that we may pursue the lost souls and reach them for You. Be glorified, Lord, in our praise and worship. 

    We the glad of heart rejoice in Your Name and seek Your face. As we humble ourselves and submit to Your will, have Your way in us. Do with us as You choose. We are Your willing vessels, surrendered hearts. 

    Though You call all people everywhere to repentance, we know, Lord, that too many will not choose You, but help us to reach as many as we can. Save our families, our friends, the strangers/foreigners among us and our enemies. 

    Fill each of us with Your Holy Spirit that we might walk this born again life with Your power. Draw us close to You that we might hear Your voice more clearly. 

    We rejoice in Your beauty, Your glory, Your presence, O Lord. For You are our Crown, our Savior, our King. Come, Lord Jesus, and fill this place even  now. 

    In Jesus' Name,

    Amen.

GLAD HEART/HEAVY HEART

At Your Feet

O Come To The Altar

Dead Man

Ocean Floor

Jesus Got Ahold Of My Life

Where We Belong 

The Last Song

Heart & Soul - - A Heart That Rejoices

 

Psalm 28:7

The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices: and with my song will I praise Him.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 5937

Greatly Rejoices: exults, triumphs, is joyful

From the Hebrew word 'alaz' (pronounced aw-laz'). 

    Because of Who The LORD is to me, my heart trusts in Him and He helps me. Because of Who The LORD is to me, my heart greatly rejoices. With my song I will give Him praise.

Psalm 13:5 I rejoice in His salvation  

Psalm 33:21 Our hearts rejoice in Him 

Psalm 105:3 Seekers' hearts rejoice  

Zechariah 10:7 Their hearts will rejoice in the LORD

    The LORD is a personal LORD, a personal GOD. God wants to know as Friend to friend, as Savior to saved, as Father to child. This relationship is to be valued above all other relationships that we may have. Matthew 10:37 "He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me." 

    A heart that rejoices in the God of its salvation, rejoices to its betterment. For a heart that loves God above all else will also be able to love others with the Love of God, a far greater Love than mere familial love or brotherly love.

    A heart that rejoices in its God knows the value of the wisdom of loving God. It is more able to fulfill the second commandment when it has already obeyed the first. (Matthew 22:36-39).

    A heart that rejoices delights itself in the nearness of its God (Psalm 37:4). This heart begins each day in the company of its God. We start with a greeting, "Good Morning, LORD. Welcome, Holy Spirit." Some mornings I wake up with a song in my heart and on my lips. I can't help it, nor would I want to; for the Joy of the LORD is my Strength and He carries me through the day, one day at a time.

    A heart that rejoices celebrates God when the way is rough going, through sorrow and pain, through trials and tribulations, through the shadowiest parts of this valley (Psalm 23:4). For the heart that rejoices in the valley knows that "all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28). 

    So, even the hard places we traverse in life are necessary to grow in the LORD. A heart that rejoices trusts in its LORD and in the knowledge that Father knows best. 

    A heart that rejoices knows the LORD is its Creator and its Redeemer. Isaiah 43:1-2 "Now this is what the LORD says—He Who created you, O Jacob, and He Who formed you, O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze."

     A heart that rejoices in its LORD spends time with its LORD in prayer. The heart speaks not only verbally, but with tears and groans and the Spirit, who speaks for us when words cannot form themselves in our mouths (Romans 8:26). Prayer is the lifeblood of the heart that rejoices. 

    A heart that rejoices declares God is its God, testifies on the goodness of God, blesses God with the songs of its heart.

    Psalm 63:1-8

 O God, You are my God.

Earnestly I seek You;

my soul thirsts for You.

My body yearns for You

in a dry and weary land without water.

So I have seen You in the sanctuary

and beheld Your power and glory.

Because Your loving devotion is better than life,

my lips will glorify You.

So I will bless You as long as I live;

in Your name I will lift my hands.

My soul is satisfied as with the richest of foods;

with joyful lips my mouth will praise You.

When I remember You on my bed,

I think of You through the watches of the night.

For You are my help;

I will sing for joy in the shadow of Your wings.

My soul clings to You;

Your right hand upholds me.

A heart that rejoices in the God of its salvation beats inside of me.

A HEART THAT REJOICES

    

 

 

 

Signs & Wonders of Christ's Arrival - - Fear Not

 

Luke 2:30, 31

And the angel said to her, "Fear not, Mary; for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and you will call His name JESUS."

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 5399

Fear: to put to flight, terrify, frighten; dread, reverence

From the Greek word 'phobeó' (pronounced fob-eh'-o). To be struck with fear, to be seized with alarm. The act of being startled at strange sights or occurrences.

FEAR NOT

It is this same frame of mind the shepherds were in when the angel appeared to them and "the glory of the Lord shone round about them" (Luke 2:10). In the previous verse, we learned that the angel suddenly appeared among them. This angel was not in the night skies to deliver the message from God. I'm sure I may have been just as terrified. My heart would have been racing and my breath would first be taken away and then my legs would have buckled under me. 

But they are both told to "Fear Not". Don't be afraid. Take courage. Strengthen your resolve to stay here. And listen to what God has to say to you. Fear is not from God: Peace is from God. Fear is a spirit that wants to defeat us (2 Timothy 1:7). Fear restrains and prevents a person from being fully obedient to God. But the Peace of God fills God's people with God's Love, God's Power and God's Prudence. See also John 14:27).

In Luke 1:13, the angel tells Zacharias, "Fear not". Daniel knew this fear in Daniel 10:11, for he was 'trembling' (shaking with fear, quaking) while the angel spoke with him. Both are encouraged to know that God has heard their prayers and He is answering them. Moses saw a burning bush and went towards it, but stopped in fear when he heard God's voice speaking from it (Exodus 3:6). He, too, is encouraged by God to stop and listen and hear. 

In Revelation 1:17 John knew this fear: He saw Jesus in all His glory and "fell down as dead" (fainted dead away). "And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am The First and The Last."

FAVOR WITH GOD

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 5485

Favor: grace, kindness, gratitude; a gift or blessing brought to man by Jesus Christ

From the Greek word 'charis' (pronounced khar'-ece). As the concordance states, "is preeminently used of the Lord's favor – freely extended to give Himself away to people (because He is "always leaning toward them").

Mary is not the first person to find "favor with God". In Genesis 6:8 Noah found favor: "Noah, however, found favor in the eyes of the LORD." Out of all the people populating the earth in Noah's time, he is the only one who found grace in God's eyes. The result of that being that only Noah and his family boarded the ark before God shut the door (Genesis 7:1, 16). 

To "find favor" with God is to be the man or woman who knows God's heart, God's will, and follows it. David was such a man. Even before he was king. 1 Samuel 13:14 (when the prophet Samuel rebukes King Saul), "But now your kingdom shall not continue. The LORD has sought out a man after his own heart, and the LORD has commanded him to be prince over his people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you.”

THE MESSAGE

The message to Moses was "Go back to Egypt and deliver God's people". The message to Noah was "Build an ark to save you and your family and the animals I have chosen". 

The message to David was shown by Samuel "anointed to be King of Israel". 

The message to Daniel was "a response from God to understand the visions he had been given". 

The message to Zacharias was "you will have a son and he will be great in the sight of the Lord, filled with the Holy Spirit in the womb, make ready a people prepared for the Lord". 

The message to Mary was "you will conceive a Son, and you will call His name JESUS". 

Moses: Go and be the Deliverer of My people.

Noah: Build and Save My people.

David: Rule over My people.

Daniel: Warn My people.

Zacharias: Prepare My people

Mary: Your Child will Save My people.

The Lord has a message for His people today and every day given them thereafter. 

REPENT

Ezekiel 14:6

Matthew 4:17

REPENT & BE BAPTIZED

Acts 2:38

BELIEVE ON HIS NAME

Acts 16:31

1 John 3:3

1 John 5:13

RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT

John 20:22

Acts 1:8

Acts 2:1-4

PREACH THE GOSPEL

Mark 16:15

1 Corinthians 9:16

2 Timothy 4:2

TAKE UP YOUR CROSS

Matthew 16:24

Mark 8:34

1 Peter 2:21

FOLLOW ME

Matthew 4:19

Mark 1:17

REJOICE

Matthew 5:11,12

Luke 6:22, 23

1 Peter 4:12-14

The joy we are to have as God's people is the same joy experienced by the shepherds after they had seen the baby JESUS. Exultant, exuberant, loud, noisy, REJOICE: to have joy in such abundance that it cannot be contained, but must be expressed in such a way as to draw people to the sound and sight of such excitement. And to hear what caused such Joy to be felt in the first place. Let us express our Joy in the Savior every day that we might fulfill His will for us. 

FEAR NOT MY CHILD by Carman

GRACE OF GOD by Passion

GOD WITH US by MercyMe

EMMANUEL by Hannah Kerr