AFFIRM THAT GLORY

 AFFIRM THE GLORY OF GOD’S GREATNESS

I love Romans 11:36:

“For of Him, and through Him and to Him  are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.”

What an incredible verse of Scripture!

That verse summarizes the history of the world.

It encapsulates the history of the Christian faith.

And of our lives.

We live and move and breathe and find our very being in Him. (Acts 17:24-28)

“Of him” = He is the source, origin, the foundation.

“Through Him” = He is the power, the conduit and grace.

“To Him” = the end of all things. The purpose of man is to know God and enjoy Him forever.

This is my Father’s world.

He created it.

He owns it.

And He sustains it.

This is Discipleship 101.

Bible 101.

Truths that every Christian should know and embrace.

Truths that every Christian should be taught.

Affirm it in your prayer life today!

10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXDGE_lRI0E

CELEBRATE THAT GLORY

 CELEBRATE THAT GLORY

When we understand that God is glorious in all His attributes, it is incumbent upon us to celebrate the absolute wonder of His greatness!

Do you know how smart God really is?

Have you ever tried to contemplate the mind of God?

All of His intellectual intricacies?

God’s wisdom and knowledge are unsurpassably deep and insurmountably high!

Read Isaiah 55:8-9 and 40:12-13. There you will find that God doesn’t think like we do.

He doesn’t reason like we do.

Maybe that is why He doesn’t act like we do.

Do you understand that God really knows what is best for you?

Do you know why He knows best?

Why follow your little wisdom when you have access to His?

You may be smarter than a 5th grader but you are not smarter than God.

Trust Him.

Believe Him. 

Follow Him. 

Serve Him!

Thank Him today that He is not like us.

Thank Him that He doesn’t act the way we do.

Celebrate the utter wonder of God’s greatness!

“God of Wonders”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0M8XK2w7wmw

THE GREATNESS OF GOD'S GLORY

 THE GREATNESS OF GOD’S GLORY

Tucked away in the greatest of all of Paul’s writings you will find one of the most powerful and God honoring doxologies in the Bible. Romans 11:33-36 contains that great passage. It ends this way “For of Him, and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.”

Chapters 1-11 contain lots of doctrine and teachings.

Chapters 12 -16 speak of the way we are to take the doctrine and live.

Doctrine and duty always go hand in hand.

Belief and behavior are brothers of the same family.

People act the way they do because of what they believe.

All behavior is predicated upon belief. True of all human nature.

This is why it is important to study and know doctrine > it gives direction to our lives. This is why it is important to study the Bible. It empowers us to live for Christ. Doctrine and duty always go together and cannot be separated.

God has called us to use our minds. “Christianity is not to be devoid of theological understanding. At the same time it is not to be mere intellectual assent without a life of commitment.”

Romans 11:33-36 speaks of the glory of God's greatness!

“All Glory Be to Christ”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKp_gog-f1o

THE GLORY OF GOD

 THE GLORY OF GOD

Can you define the glory of God?

Do you know what the Bible is talking about when it mentions the glory of God?

There are two aspects to  God’s glory.

1st aspect > Intrinsic glory = is all that God is in and of Himself.

It is who God is. He is a glorious God.

His wisdom is glorious.

His power is glorious.

His justice is glorious.

His holiness is glorious.

His grace is glorious.

Everything about God is glorious.

2nd aspect > ascribed glory. This is glory we offer to God in praise and worship and service.

This is when we acknowledge God as glorious or one of His attributes as glorious.

It is our recognition of the greatness of His glory.

God is glorious,

We merely affirm that glory.

Therefore, in the midst of our learning and living, give glory to God.

In the middle of our sufferings and battles, give glory to God. Even when we do not understand all that God is doing, we have assurance that God is still glorious!  Romans 11:33-36

“Behold our God” 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx9-0v9m2Sg

FORGIVENESS

 FORGIVENESS

We have sinned hundreds of times against our Creator God.

Romans 2:5 speaks of “storing up sins against the wrath of God.”

We have sinned thousands of times against this holy God.

And every one of those sins --- be it a sin of the flesh or the sin of the spirit; be it a sin of omission or a sin of commission; be it a vile, wicked act or a little white lie. 

EVERY SIN is worthy of death and judgment and the wrath of God! Why? Because they were committed against an infinite and holy God. 

Every one of us would “un-god God” if we could.

We would take God off His throne and seat ourselves there! 

Agreed? We would enthrone ourselves as God!

Psalm 130:3-4 asks a stunning question:

“If you, Oh LORD, should mark iniquities, who could stand?

The obvious answer is nobody.

But verse 4 makes a powerful and gracious statement:

“But there is forgiveness with You, that you may be feared.”

How so? I John 1:7, “But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all our sins.”

Did you get that truth? His blood!!!!! ALL our sins!

That, my friends, is forgiveness!

“It Is Well With My Soul” 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaxxtIxXKF0

Seeking the Lord

 SEEKING THE LORD

While salvation is a work of the grace of God, it does not nullify man’s responsibility to seek after God. God is sovereign but man is responsible.

You have a responsibility to seek after God. 

You are commanded to seek after God.

You are commanded to believe and repent.

Isaiah 55:6-7 says “SEEK the Lord while he may be found; call upon Him while He is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.”

Matthew 6:33 “But SEEK you first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.”

John 6:25-27 Jesus said that they were SEEKING Him not because He was the Son of God but because they wanted another piece of bread. For free.

Verse 27: “LABOR not for the meat which perishes but for that bread that endures unto eternal life.”

Seek, labor, strive, exert some effort, be strenuous and zealous. 

I promise you this and the Bible affirms it!

Every person who sincerely seeks God will find Him in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ!

“Seek Ye First”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsBpM9IcBts

A Hard Truth to Learn

 A HARD TRUTH TO LEARN

Sometimes, the most difficult path to grasping a truth is that you have to unlearn some things first. Let me say that again. Sometimes, the hardest thing for us to do is not learn something, but to unlearn an untruth that we have embraced for years! This is seen clearly is what most people understand about being saved.

Many believe that all you have to do is believe and they give you chapter and verse. 

They will give you the three A, B, Cs of salvation:

A = admit you are a sinner.

B = believe on the Lord Jesus Christ

C = confess Jesus as Savior  

And eureka! Bam! You are a Christian! Welcome to the Family of God!

What is wrong with the above?

Do you see any mention of repentance from sin?

Who is Lord Jesus Christ? What did He do? Why did He do it?

Any mention of the Lordship of Christ?

What about the importance of obedience?

What do you have to believe?

How long do you have to believe?

How much do you have to believe?

What does perseverance mean?

Any mention of the sanctification?

Those whom God justifies, He will sanctify!

Salvation is a difficult thing to receive.

You need God’s grace to do it!

“Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NO5Uta2VfWs