Oh, the depth of the riches both of the Wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgements and unfathomable His ways! ROMANS 11;33 NAS There is no understanding the ways of God. Yet of this I am certain …. my life would make no sense without Him. October 23, 2014 Add Bookmark Clean The Closet By Joe Stowell Read: Psalm 139:13-24 Search me, O God, and know my heart. —Psalm 139:23 Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 1-2; 1 Timothy 3 To this day I can still hear my mother telling me to go and clean up my room. Dutifully, I would go to my room to start the process, only to get distracted by reading the comic book that I was supposed to put neatly in the stack. But soon the distraction was interrupted by my mother warning that she would be up in 5 minutes to inspect the room. Unable to effectively clean the room in that time, I would proceed to hide everything I didn’t know what to do with in the closet, make the bed, and then wait for her to come in—hoping that she wouldn’t look in the closet. This reminds me of what many of us do with our lives. We clean up the outside of our lives hoping that no one will look into the “closet” where we have hidden our sins by rationalization and excuses and by blaming others for our own faults. The problem is that while looking good on the outside, we remain well aware of the mess on the inside. The psalmist encourages us to submit to the cleansing inspection of God: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Ps. 139:23-24). Let’s invite Him to inspect and cleanse every corner of our lives. Lord, forgive me for looking good on the outside while attempting to hide my faults and failings. I desire for You to cleanse my life so that I may walk with You in full integrity. We can own up to our wrongs— because we can’t hide them from God anyway. Insight In Psalm 139, David invites us to meditate on the attributes of God. He is omniscient, or all-knowing (vv.1-4); omnipresent, or ever-present (vv.5-12); and omnipotent, or all-powerful (vv.13-18). In today’s text, David writes of the human body as a masterpiece created by the all-powerful Creator. We are “fearfully and wonderfully made” (vv.13-15). Mindful of the wickedness around him (vv.19-22), David closes his psalm with a prayer of loyalty and commitment (vv.23-24). • Bob Hoekstra :: Day By Day By Grace :: October 23rd Enochs Pleasing Walk with God, by Faith By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, and was not found, because God had taken him; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him…. (Hebrews 11:5-6) It is the will of God that we learn to walk in a manner pleasing to the Lord: that you may have a walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him (Colossians 1:10). Again, such godly living can only be developed by faith. Much helpful insight into such a life is provided in Enochs pleasing walk with God, by faith. Enoch was one of our earliest forefathers. Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah (Genesis 5:21). After the birth of Methuselah (who became, at 969 years, the oldest man ever on earth), Enoch began a three hundred year-long journey of close fellowship with God. After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years (Genesis 5:22). After three centuries of spiritual intimacy, Enoch was taken into heaven without experiencing death. And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him (Genesis 5:24). Enochs intimacy with God and his unique homegoing were related to a life of reliance upon the Lord. By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death…for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. Of course, what was so pleasing to God about Enochs walk was his trust in the Lord. But without faith it is impossible to please Him. Enoch is a wonderful reminder of what life is all about-walking with God by faith throughout our days on earth, then walking right on into the presence of God in heaven someday. Many will eventually do this, like Enoch, without facing death. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). Others may face death, but the key ingredient of fellowship on earth right on into heaven is the same. I am continually with You; You hold me by my right hand. You will guide me with Your counsel, And afterward receive me to glory (Psalm 73:23-24). Dear God of heaven and earth, I desire to please You by a life of faith here on earth. Help me to walk closely with You day by day throughout my pilgrimage here below. I eagerly anticipate the day that I will forever be with You in the fullness of Your glorious presence in heaven above, Amen. ________________________________________ Nothing of the Old Life! October 23, 2014 If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new —2 Corinthians 5:17 Our Lord never tolerates our prejudices— He is directly opposed to them and puts them to death. We tend to think that God has some special interest in our particular prejudices, and are very sure that He will never deal with us as He has to deal with others. We even say to ourselves, “God has to deal with other people in a very strict way, but of course He knows that my prejudices are all right.” But we must learn that God accepts nothing of the old life! Instead of being on the side of our prejudices, He is deliberately removing them from us. It is part of our moral education to see our prejudices put to death by His providence, and to watch how He does it. God pays no respect to anything we bring to Him. There is only one thing God wants of us, and that is our unconditional surrender. When we are born again, the Holy Spirit begins to work His new creation in us, and there will come a time when there is nothing remaining of the old life. Our old gloomy outlook disappears, as does our old attitude toward things, and “all things are of God” (2 Corinthians 5:18). How are we going to get a life that has no lust, no self-interest, and is not sensitive to the ridicule of others? How will we have the type of love that “is kind . . . is not provoked, [and] thinks no evil”? (1 Corinthians 13:4-5). The only way is by allowing nothing of the old life to remain, and by having only simple, perfect trust in God— such a trust that we no longer want God’s blessings, but only want God Himself. Have we come to the point where God can withdraw His blessings from us without our trust in Him being affected? Once we truly see God at work, we will never be concerned again about the things that happen, because we are actually trusting in our Father in heaven, whom the world cannot see.
Posted on: Thu, 23 Oct 2014 03:47:17 +0000
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