A WISH FOR EVERYONE

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Have you ever written a letter or card to someone?

I hope everyone reading this has at one time or another as it’s a wonderful way to communicate with those we care about.

If you are counted in the number of people who have sent correspondence of some kind to another person, how did you end your writing to them?

Usually, we will say something like this:

Hoping all is well there. Love, (fill in your name here)

Or maybe:

Always thinking about you. Love always, (your name)

Or, as I like to write:

Praying the Lord’s richest blessings will be upon you always. In Christ’s Love, Mark

Why the discussion on letter closings?

Because in the last two messages from Paul’s first letter to the Christians in Thessalonica (today’s and tomorrow’s), we’re going to see how the Apostle closed out his very personalized letter.

Today, we see how Paul had a special wish for all his Thessalonian readers. Look at his words here found in verses 23 and 24:

May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.

Did you catch Paul’s wonderful hope for his brothers and sisters in Christ?

It was for holiness through the sanctification that only the God of peace could bring, the God who commands His people, past and present, to be holy as He is holy (Leviticus 19:2).

In other words, God wants Christian believers to intentionally work to model Him and His holiness each and every day.

Now, it’s not as if God didn’t show us what this holiness looks like. Rather, we know He came from Heaven to earth in the way of Jesus through the Great Incarnation and walked alongside His people for 33 years, more than enough time to show everyone how to become blameless because Jesus’ life was the only perfectly blameless life ever lived. It’s up to us, those who have placed their belief in Jesus as Savior, to emulate the way He lived up to the time this worldly life ends or He returns, whichever comes first.

Note how Paul tags this hope for holiness with an assurance. For we serve a God who is faithful and always carries out what He promises. It is His will that we be holy and so we can know that He will help us attain sanctification if we submit our will and way to Him.

Friends, this should be our wish for everyone. We need to follow the lead of Paul and make sure we let all people know how we hope for God to make them holy as He is holy so that their “whole spirit, soul, and body” might “be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ”.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

DO THIS! (PART 12)

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.

1 Thessalonians 5:21b-22

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Today, we reach the final message in this series titled “Do This!” based on a series of commands we find in God’s word as Paul closes out his first letter to the believers in Thessalonica. Here’s a rundown of the prior eleven before we finish with today’s demand from the Lord:

1. Live in peace with one another.

2. Warn those who are idle and disruptive.

3. Encourage the disheartened, help the weak.

4. Be patient with everyone.

5. Don’t pay back wrong for wrong.

6. Always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.

7. Rejoice always.

8. Pray continually.

9. Give thanks in all circumstances.

10. Do not quench the Spirit.

11. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all.

If you have missed any of the previous messages, you can always catch up on them by going to https://The-Christian-Walk.blogspot.com.

And now, let’s look at our twelfth and final command:

Hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil. Vv. 21b-22

You may hear people say that there is a battle raging every day between good and evil, and there is no doubt this is true. Unfortunately, there are many who hold this view that fail to apply any spiritual definition to the problem and in doing so, miss the very essence and solution because as we turn to the word of God, we find a lot of direction.

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:21

Here we find one way to hold onto good and reject evil is to allow the goodness in our lives to transcend evil and when we allow the God of all goodness to be front and center in all that we do, we can be assured He will work things out for our good (Romans 8:28).

Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness. Isaiah 5:20

Sometimes, knowing there are dire consequences for not holding onto good and rejecting evil serves to keep us from falling into sin. Here, we find the prophet Isaiah promising woe (aka the judgment of God) on those who would substitute evil and darkness for good and light. No one should want to willing place themselves in the crosshairs of the Lord’s punishment.

Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil. Proverbs 3:7

Here the matter of doing good is associated with being wise and no one can be wise on their own merit. Apart from the Lord, we are all destined to foolishness and transgression which will lead to evil. In the book of wisdom, we are called to “trust in the Lord” with our whole heart so that He can “make our paths straight” through our submission to His will and way, a will and way that will always lead us to do good.

I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. Galatians 5:16-17

Finally, we can make sure we meet the requirements of “Do This!” command number twelve by surrendering to the lead of the Holy Spirit. When a Christian believes in Jesus as Savior, they receive the indwelling of this Holy Spirit that will always guide a person away from the desires of their flesh (aka sinful evil) and toward the righteousness and good that the Lord wants you to do. The Spirit opposes and nullifies the flesh and its influence on us but we have to intentionally permit the Spirit to do this in our lives. When we do, we will produce the fruit of the Spirit, all the positive qualities the Lord expects our lives to reflect (Galatians 5:22-23).

The command in this final message is:

Hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil. Vv. 21b-22

We can always make sure we are compliant with this when we allow the goodness of God to reign in our lives, trust in Him with our whole heart so He can make our paths straight, yield to the leading of the Holy Spirit dwelling within, and always remember that the Lord will bring consequences on those who choose to be disobedient to what He has called them to do.

This is the road to the goodness that God expects.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

DO THIS! (PART 11)

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all.

1 Thessalonians 5:20-21a

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Study the Bible enough and you’ll quickly understand the importance of prophesy in the scriptures. In fact, the books that comprise the end of the Old Testament (17 total) reveal this by the way they have been grouped.

Four prophets – Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel - have been labeled the “major” prophets, not that they were any more significant than any of the “minor” prophets but their books are much longer. For example, the Book of Isaiah contains 66 chapters, Jeremiah, who also authored Lamentations, 52, Ezekiel 48, and Daniel 12.

After Daniel, we see the run of the following “minor” prophets:

Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi

Of interest, there is really only one New Testament book considered to be an overall book of prophecy and that is the Book of Revelation which was written by John who also authored one of the four Gospels and three other New Testament letters.

Why were prophets so important?

Plain and simple, they were messengers who spoke on behalf of God.

God chose them and in turn, they submitted themselves to be used by Him to communicate to His people. It was a unique and special responsibility that only a select few got to carry out.

Now, as you can expect, Satan, who is always working to counter anything good that God is trying to accomplish, had people he liked to use to thwart God’s efforts. These false prophets would bring forth messages they would claim were from God but weren’t.

Need an example?

Consider these verses:

Jesus speaking...“At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There He is!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you ahead of time.” Matthew 24:23-25

From the Book of Jeremiah:

Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says concerning the prophets:

“I will make them eat bitter food and drink poisoned water, because from the prophets of Jerusalem ungodliness has spread throughout the land.”

This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they fill you with false hopes.

"They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. They keep saying to those who despise Me, ‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’ And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts they say, ‘No harm will come to you.’”

“But which of them has stood in the council of the Lord to see or to hear his word? Who has listened and heard His word?”

See, the storm of the Lord will burst out in wrath, a whirlwind swirling down on the heads of the wicked. The anger of the Lord will not turn back until He fully accomplishes the purposes of his heart.”

“In days to come you will understand it clearly. I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied.” Jeremiah 23:15-21

And finally from the Law and the Book of Deuteronomy:

The Lord said to me: “What they say is good. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put My words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to My words that the prophet speaks in My name. But a prophet who presumes to speak in My name anything I have not commanded, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, is to be put to death.”

You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the Lord?” If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken (18:17-22).

There are other verses regarding the matter of true and false prophets but you can get the point. We know the Lord chooses people to be His prophets and we also know that there are false prophets out there, those who pronounce their messages are from the Lord when they aren’t. We also know there is a way to discern a prophet’s legitimacy.

With these truths in mind, we turn to the eleventh “Do This!” statement, drawn from the Apostle Paul’s closing words to the church in Thessalonica:

Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all (5:20-21a).

Why this command?

Because it would be easy for a person to just reject all prophecies as a safeguard against being misled. As we find in this order from the Lord, that’s not what He expects from us because He tells us to test all prophecies for legitimacy.

So how can we do this? How can we test messages from people who claim to be speaking on the Lord’s behalf to make sure they are true?

One way we can do this is to pray, turning to God with the prophecy delivered and ask Him to verify of nullify it. We can always be assured that He will hear our request and provide us with the right guidance.

We can also rely on the work of the Holy Spirit in these instances. We know that when we place our belief in Jesus as Savior, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell within us and lead us in the ways of righteousness so our lives can be Christ-like. When we receive a message that a person claims came from God, we can allow the Holy Spirit to reveal whether or not the message is genuine or not. Like the Lord’s counsel through prayer, the Holy Spirit will never lead us astray.

Prophecies have been happening since biblical times and you can be sure they will continue right up to the day when Jesus returns. Today’s “Do This!” command makes it clear that we aren’t to reject these messages but rather test them so to know whether they are from the Lord or not. 

Tomorrow, we will finish this series with message #12. 

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

DO THIS! (PART 10)

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Do not quench the Spirit.

1 Thessalonians 5:19

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

How do you feel every day to be alive in the Lord?

I pray that each day is one filled with joy and excitement, one that leads to an evident enthusiasm that others can see in the way you live and interact with them and others.

Those who choose to live this way have often been labeled as being “on fire” for the Lord and when we look to the scriptures, we see how this “fire” is produced by the Holy Spirit welling up inside the believer. Consider these passages:

You may remember that John the Baptist was talking to his followers about baptism and said this:

“I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” Matthew 3:11

Of course, John was referring to Jesus here but note how a Christian is baptized by the Holy Spirit and fire when they choose to believe in Jesus as Savior.

Before He ascended, Jesus commanded His disciples to go into Jerusalem and refrain from beginning the ministry He called them to until they received the Holy Spirit. When that happened on the day we refer to as Pentecost, here’s what happened:

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Acts 2:1-4

On that amazing day, Jesus’ disciples were baptized with fire and the Holy Spirit. And empowered by this, Peter stands with his fellow disciples and addresses the crowd with the good news of the Gospel. On fire with the Holy Spirit, Peter’s words led to 3,000 people believing in Jesus and finding salvation (Acts 2:14-41).

What a way to kick off Jesus’ Great Commission!

Friends, the good news for us today is that we have also been baptized by fire and the Holy Spirit by believing in Jesus. We all have the same power and potential within us as Peter...and I place an emphasis on potential.

I say this because I am afraid today that too many Christians hold back the fire of the Holy Spirit that is within them. Perhaps they allow worldly things to hold a greater priority but no matter the reason, most believers underachieve in their Gospel sharing responsibilities and this isn’t just a modern day problem.

For as we look at the tenth “Do This!” command in this continuing series, we find five words regarding how we are to treat our special Holy Spirit baptism:

Do not quench the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19

Now, this is the NIV translation of this verse and we can get a deeper understanding of what the Lord is telling us to do by looking at other renderings of this same verse. When we do, here’s what we find:

Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. NLT, HCSB

Don't turn away God's Spirit. CEV

Do not restrain the Holy Spirit. GNT

Don’t suppress the Spirit. The Voice

The Bible may tell you to contain and control certain negative behaviors like lust or anger or misusing the tongue but here we find there are to be no restrictions on allowing the Holy Spirit to dictate all that we do as Christians. And perhaps the other nine “Do This” commands could be better fulfilled by simply adhering to this tenth one.

Friends, the Lord has placed His Spirit within you and He wants you to allow it to run free every day that He blesses you with. It’s the only way that we can ensure that everything we do is in step with His will and way and word.

So don’t quench the Holy Spirit within you and, like Peter and the other disciples, you might be left amazed by the results.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

DO THIS! (PART 9)

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

I formed the following saying some time ago and feel free to use it yourself anytime:

The next most powerful words after “I love you” are “Thank you” and we need to make sure we use them with regularity.

Think about how many opportunities you have to communicate thanks, either verbally or non-verbally.

Someone scans your purchases at the store. Thank them for what they are doing for you.

A person pays you a compliment, either in person or virtually. Thank them for their kindness.

You read a social media post that inspires or helps you. Thank the poster with a quick comment.

You receive a gift from someone on your birthday, a holiday, or sometimes just because. Take the time to send them a handwritten or electronic thank you card with your words of gratitude.

You are out driving and a person yields the right away to you. Raise your hand toward them which is understood as a universal signal of thanks.

You get the point. If we’re intentional about the matter of showing appreciation for the things people do, then it becomes habit and we say “Thank you” as much as we say “I love you” which means we refrain from taking people for granted.

Why go into this?

Because it nicely fits the theme of today’s ninth “Do this!” command from God as we continue this series from the fifth chapter of Paul’s letter to the Thessalonian Christians. Here’s what the scriptures demand from us:

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus (5:18).

Now, giving thanks can come pretty easy for us and many of you reading today might think to yourself that you already do well in expressing gratitude to others. But note here how the Lord ups the ante on thanksgiving for we are ordered to “give thanks in all circumstances” because it is “God’s will” for us “in Christ Jesus”.

In other words, the matter of giving thanks, no matter what, is not optional. All circumstances means just that, all circumstances. The Lord expects us to give thanks in bad times as well as good.

When we experiencing hardship of some kind, we are to give thanks.

When we are sick or diseased, even if death is knocking on our door, we are to give thanks.

When we are in the throes of a broken relationship and its associated heartbreak, we are to give thanks.

And when we are thrown into grief from the loss of someone dear, we are to give thanks.

Friends, this isn’t easy, is it? In fact, one might say that it’s impossible for them to find ways to be thankful while in the depths of difficulty and suffering. But we need to remember that the Lord will never call us to do something that we can’t accomplish, not by our own strength and wisdom but through Him helping us.

When we go through hardship, we can give thanks that God has promised to see us through and provide our needs while refining our faith in Him along the way.

When we are sick, we can give thanks that He cares for us and serves as our Great Physician, the One who knit us together in our mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13) and knows every operational part in our body because He designed it. There’s nothing He can’t fix and make well. We need to remember this.

If death is imminent, we need to give thanks for the life the Lord has provided and the glorious eternal life to come. Death has lost its sting and through our belief in Jesus, we gain the victory over the grave. We need to show God our utmost gratitude for His salvation gift through His Son.

If we’re in the midst of a broken relationship and heartbreak, we can give thanks for the opportunity to love someone at all. Not every relationship lasts forever because not every person we think we want to be with is the person the Lord wants us to be with. Sometimes, the Lord brings a break up to rescue us from future pain and we should never discount how He watches over us and is always working to save us from ourselves.

And when we suffer loss of a loved one, we can always give thanks for the life lived by them and the memories we are left with. If the loved one was suffering, we can feel gratitude that the suffering has now ended. If the person is in Christ, we have the added blessing of knowing they are secure in their salvation and on their way to glory, something we should rejoice over.  

Friends, this command isn’t one that is negotiable. We are called to give thanks in all circumstances and we can if we always seek the Lord’s help and guidance. When we do, He’ll always reveal a reason to express gratitude, even in the toughest of times.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

DO THIS! (PART 8)

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Pray continually.

1 Thessalonians 5:17

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

We have now covered a week of “Do This!” statements taken from the fifth chapter of Paul’s first letter to the church in Thessalonica. Before we move on, let’s recap these first seven commands from God in regard to the way Christians are to live:

1. Live in peace with one another.

2. Warn those who are idle and disruptive.

3. Encourage the disheartened, help the weak.

4. Be patient with everyone.

5. Don’t pay back wrong for wrong.

6. Always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.

7. Rejoice always.

This leads us to today’s eighth exhortation found in verse 17:

Pray continually.

Now, I don’t think there are many, if any, Christian believers out there who don’t incorporate prayer into their walk of faith. But how many Jesus followers can say that they pray continually outside of church leaders.

Maybe we don’t want to really answer that question, right?

My fear is that prayer for most Christians has become an exercise only associated with personal need. In other words, a person turns to God only when they need Him in a time of personal crisis. Outside of that, they are more prone to communicate with everyone else but Him.

I wonder how God feels about this kind of prayer behavior, especially when His blessings and goodness overflow on people daily. I’m sure He is less than pleased about it, especially when we see today’s “Do This!” demand to “pray continually”.

Okay, I think we can all agree that we need to do better when it comes to praying with more frequency. Let me share an idea with you, one that you may have heard before but it is worth reiterating. This method uses the five fingers on a hand with each finger representing a prayer subject to focus in on.

The thumb is praise (Psalm 146:1-2) as we express our wonder and awe over who God is and what He has done and is doing in our lives through our prayers.

The pointer finger represents thanksgiving (Ephesians 5:20) and it’s self explanatory. Count all the many ways the Lord has blessed you and those you love. This should easily allow you to lift up prayers of gratitude.

The middle finger signifies intercession (Ephesians 6:18-19). We should always get outside of ourselves and pray over others who are going through difficult times. We can do this for those we know and those we don’t.

The ring finger denotes petition (Philippians 4:6-7), which is simply asking for God to help you with your needs and everyone has needs so this form of prayer, along with prayers of intercession, should occur regularly.

Finally, the small (or pinky) finger stands for confession (1 John 1:9). We know that all people are sinners who fall short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23) and so we all have transgressed. The Lord expects us to confess and repent of our sins through prayer so we need to make these prayers a priority if we’re going to remain in His favor and out of His punishment.

This eighth command is to pray continually and we can do this by making sure we pray in regard to all the ways we’re called to by the scriptures. Not only will we see our prayer life improve but we’ll foster a stronger relationship with our God.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

DO THIS! (PART 7)

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Rejoice always.

1 Thessalonians 5:16

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Rejoicing.

It’s an action a person chooses with intent, not coercion.

Maybe you have been there before, in a place where people were celebrating in unity over something that happened but you weren’t in that same place. In fact, the last thing you felt like doing was being jubilant. Sometimes life’s circumstances can bring us to that place, to a place where we feel unable to rejoice even if we should.

Our enemy Satan loves it when he successfully drags our spirits away from gladness because it’s the complete opposite direction from what the Lord wills and wants. We know this because of today’s simple two word command, the seventh command found in this series titled “Do This!” drawn from Paul’s closing words in his first letter to the Thessalonian Christians. The Apostle writes:

Rejoice always (5:16a).

Note here that the Lord isn’t saying we should rejoice only when we feel like it. He is demanding that we always be in a spirit of rejoicing.

And always means always. No gaps. No compromises. We are expected to rejoice at all times and in all circumstances.

Now, this isn’t the first place were the scriptures speak about the requirement for God’s people to celebrate non-stop. Consider these verses:

Sing to Him, sing praise to Him; tell of all His wonderful acts. Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. 1 Chronicles 16:9-10

Let all who take refuge in You be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Psalm 5:11

Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart! Psalm 32:11

We wait in hope for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. In Him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in His holy name. Psalm 33:20-21

All people will fear; they will proclaim the works of God and ponder what He has done. The righteous will rejoice in the Lord and take refuge in Him; all the upright in heart will glory in Him! Psalm 64:9-10

Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim You, who walk in the light of Your presence, Lord. They rejoice in Your name all day long; they celebrate Your righteousness. For You are their glory and strength.” Psalm 89:15-17

Rejoice in the Lord, you who are righteous, and praise His holy name. Psalm 97:12

I will give You thanks, for You answered me; You have become my salvation. The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. The Lord has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad. Psalm 118:21-25

For the Lord takes delight in His people; He crowns the humble with victory. Let His faithful people rejoice in this honor and sing for joy on their beds. May the praise of God be in their mouths. Psalm 149:4-6

The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; He will remove His people’s disgrace from all the earth. The Lord has spoken.

 In that day they will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in Him, and He saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in Him; let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.” Isaiah 25:8-9

Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven. Matthew 5:12

Rejoice that your names are written in heaven. Luke 10:20b

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Philippians 4:4

I think we can easily say that we are to rejoice and do so always for there are so many reasons to do so, reasons that transcend any inclination to not. And yet, this isn’t easy, right? It’s far easier to say we are supposed to rejoice always than it is to actually make it happen.

This is where we need the Lord’s help because none of us are capable to rejoice always when left to our own devices. We don’t have that kind of strength or perseverance in the midst of our humanity.

But through God, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). He always makes the improbable probable and the unattainable attainable.

And so when we feel like we can’t rejoice, we turn to Him. We remember all His wonderful works in our lives and the lives of those we know. We remember that He is our refuge and very present help in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1). We remember He is always with us, no matter what. We remember that He is perfectly right, just, and good in His dealings with us. And we remember the salvation He brought to us out of love, unwilling to allow us to perish and so He brought us a chance for victory instead of defeat, a victory that leads to the reward of Heaven and eternal life (John 3:16).

Friends, when we step back each day and take full account of all our God has done, is doing, and is yet to do, how can we not rejoice always?

To not do so would be nothing short of a sin.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

DO THIS! (PART 6)

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

...but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.

1 Thessalonians 5:15b

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

We’re not to pay back a wrong for a wrong, removing the privilege for judgment for wrongdoing from the Lord.

This was the fifth “Do this!” command from the word of God found in 1 Thessalonians, chapter 5.

Today, we see what we’re to do instead of adopting an attitude of revenge or retaliation:

...but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else (v.15b).

You remember from yesterday’s message that words from 1 Peter, chapter 3 call us to “repay evil with blessing” (v.9), an action that will result in a blessing inheritance. The Apostle Paul states this a different way in his letter to the Romans:

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (12:21).

These verses reinforce the matter of doing good, not just against those who would oppose us, but for “each other and everyone else”. But here’s the thing. This is easier said than done, right? Can a person be perfectly good to everyone all the time?

The answer is “no” but with a caveat.

For left to our own devices, we don’t have a chance to be good in the way God calls us to be. We’re imperfect people, sinners who fall short of the Lord’s glory (Romans 3:23).

Our Savior Jesus verified this when He said this:

As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone.”

Mark 10:17-18

On the surface, this seems a bit contradictory, right?

We know God came to earth in human form in the way of Jesus. It was what we call the Great Incarnation.  

So why would God, in the form of Jesus, say that He isn’t good and then turn around and say that only He is good?

At the heart of this encounter between Jesus and the young rich man was the matter of a person earning goodness on their own merit. The young man calls Jesus a good teacher as if Jesus earned the label of being good through His teaching, a notion that Jesus rebukes before reminding the man of the commandments that God had called His people to follow.

Pridefully unwilling to admit he was flawed in the matter of goodness, the young man claims to have not violated any of God’s commands since he was a boy. Jesus could have challenged him on this but instead, He proposed that the young man still needed to do one thing:

“One thing you lack,” He said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

The order was one that the young man was unwilling to carry out. He went away sad because “he had great wealth” and wasn’t willing to sacrifice what he had to follow Jesus and gain the “treasure in heaven”.

You see, being good means we need to surrender ourselves to the full will and way of God, the only One who is good. We need to sell out for Him because He sold out for us. It’s why He, in the form of Jesus, was willing to bear our sins in the worst suffering possible and die to ensure we could live. He willingly laid down His life for us as a good Shepherd lays down His for His sheep (John 10:1-18). Indeed, as a wonderful Christian song proclaims, He is our “good, good Father”, our perfectly good God.

Our sixth “Do this!” statement calls us to “always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else”. We can only do this if we allow that perfect goodness of our perfect God to come and dwell within, then share that goodness with others.

You may have heard it said, “God is good, all the time”. We can be too but only through Him.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com