Posts Tagged ‘Christ’
Friday, May 11th, 2012
Prayer, May 11
God be merciful to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us.
That Your way may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations.
Let the people praise You, O God; let all the people praise You.
…pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Psalm 67:3, 1Thessalonians 5:17-18, www.solascriptura.com
Father, when You shine upon us You illuminate our hearts and You are truly a light unto our path. Help us never go forward in darkness, without You, Your counsel, and Your love. Father, You give us a clear path of service to you, that Your word might go throughout all the world. We praise You for equipping us to serve You. Help us to move onto the playing field!
We are asked to pray without ceasing. Teach us this day how to implement that teaching. Help us include You in everything we do and think. It is Your will that we enjoy the fruits of Your Holy presence (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control), constantly. Our fleshly instincts take us in the opposite direction, too often. We seek to be like You, more and more. In Jesus Holy name, we pray, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, PO Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: Christ, counsel, Father, gentleness, God, goodness, Holy, Jesus, joy, kindness, love, patience, peace, pray, Psalms 67:3, self-control, service
Posted in Christianity, Hope, Perseverance, Prayer, Religion | 1 Comment »
Thursday, May 10th, 2012
Revenge, May 10
Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men.
If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.
Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Romans 12:17-21, www.solascriptura.com
Jesus, we know that You personally taught Paul the wisdom that he brings to us. What a reassuring thing it is to find complete consistency between his words and Yours.
Here we learn that when we are kind and gentle in the face of someone who is angry with us, it confounds them and our kindness, undeserved, actually disarms them. We take no credit for the fruits of the Spirit manifested in our relationships and we do not seek praise from men for being patient and full of self-control.
Teach us today what it means to say, “I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me”. Help us this day to overcome evil with good. In the name of Jesus, we pray, Amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 3395, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: anger, Christ, gentle, Jesus, patient, self-control, Spirit
Posted in Christianity, Religion, Revenge | 15 Comments »
Wednesday, May 9th, 2012
The Narrow Gate, May 9
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.
Ephesians 1:3-6, www.solascriptura.com
Father, You tell us that You chose us and that You choose to bless us with every spiritual blessing. You have adopted us. We are heirs to Your Kingdom.
Here, Paul teaches us that we were predestined to be adopted as Your sons, by Jesus Christ, and that His will to do so gave Him pleasure. His grace to us brings glory to His name and He has made us acceptable in His sight.
First, Father, we know that You and Jesus are as one and that our election, our predestination was known by You. You would not be omniscient if You did not know that we would respond to Your love for us, personally. You knew we would accept Your invitation, Your grace and Your mercy.
Second, when Jesus came here, His life, His death and His resurrection became a pivotal event in history. Where men had been unable to fulfill the Law of the Old Covenant, You taught us, Jesus, that the New Covenant had replaced the Old. We now stand in the presence of the Father, not based only upon our obedience, but based upon our faith in You and our acceptance of You as savior. Yes, Father the old hymn, Trust and Obey, does sum it up. We can now stand in the presence of the Father, cleansed of our sin, as sons; sons that He knew would choose to have faith in You Jesus. Perfect! Amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: Christ, Ephesians 1:3-6, God, Jesus, Lord, narrow gate, obey, omniscient, predestined, resurrection, sin, trust
Posted in Christianity, Heaven, Holy Spirit, Religion | 16 Comments »
Tuesday, May 8th, 2012
Salvation, June 8
… We who first trusted in Christ…
In Him you also trusted after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
Ephesians 1:12-14, www.solascriptura.com
Father, Paul was a Jew speaking to Jews and here in his letter to the Ephesians, a Gentile area, Paul teaches us that those who love You and obey You are “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise”. Father, for this degree of certainty, we are grateful.
We are Your “purchased possession”. Father, we sometimes forget to focus on what You paid for our salvation. Jesus suffered immeasurably, not just at the Cross, but in his descent into the bowels of hades, which removed him temporarily from Your presence. We know You will not allow sin or sinners into Your presence, but that is exactly why Jesus came…to comingle with us and to save sinners and that includes every human being in history. He paid a great price for our personal salvation.
Father, Chuck Smith, one of Your more effective servants offers the following clarification about this complex thought of Jesus being separated from You. “Through the eternity past, He has always been one with the father, never separated. But when God laid on Him the iniquities of us all, because God can not look in agreement upon sin, there came that separation, as He tasted for a moment that separation from God, in order that you would not have to be separated from God eternally. God laid on Him the iniquities of us all. And when the sin’s of the world were laid on Jesus, He was forsaken of God. And thus that cry, that rang out; my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me.”
We are Your purchased possession, cleansed by Jesus. You, Father, are the guarantor of our salvation. Perfect! Amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: believed, Christ, Ephesians 1:12-14, glory, Gospel, Holy Spirit, inheritance, possession, promise, purchased, redemption, salvation, sealed, trusted, truth, word
Posted in Christianity, Forgiven, Holy Spirit, Religion, salvation | 11 Comments »
Thursday, April 19th, 2012
Joy, April 19
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Do not quench the Spirit.
Do not despise prophecies.
Test all things; hold fast what is good.
Abstain from every form of evil.
1Thessalonians 5:16-22, www.solascriptura.com
Father, in 5 sentences, Paul teaches us the basics of our faith. We are equipped by You to rejoice always, in good times and in bad times. It is Your Holy presence with us and in us that enables us to raise our eyes and hearts to you when everything around us seems to be a severe weight upon our shoulders.
We often fail to pray unceasingly but here we see it is Your will that we never stop acknowledging Your presence in every small and every large event of our lives. Not a hair falls from our head that You do not notice. Help us observe You with equal attention and ask You into every circumstance of our lives.
We do not always give thanks when we are being challenged but again, it is Your will we do so because You are allowing us to be tested. We do not enjoy the test but we do look forward to an eternal victory as You lead us through what sometimes feels like an unsolvable problem.
We know that to quench the Spirit is to remove You from the situations we encounter. Father, we acknowledge that absent the presence of the Spirit, we are depending upon ourselves. In such cases we are going it alone. We pray that is never the case.
Father, despising teaching is the path of a self centered, self directed person. Help us learn from the prophets and from You Jesus. Your word is truth and it abides forever.
Help us this day to abstain from evil, to flee from it, never to gaze upon that which is sinful. It feels so good to do the right thing and we feel so weak, so impotent when we allow sin to fill our mind and our eyes. We feel tricked by Satan, the great deceiver, when we entertain sin. We simply want to be as You Jesus. In Your Holy name, we pray, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: abstain, Christ, despise, evil, God, Jesus, pray, prophecies, quench, rejoice, Spirit, test, thanks
Posted in Christianity, Courage, Hope, Prayer, faith, joy, peace | 8 Comments »
Friday, April 13th, 2012
Peace, April 13
For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.
Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus,
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Romans 15:4-5, Hebrews 13:8, www.solascriptura.com
Father, this says that whatever was written in the Scriptures was written for our learning. Oh how we need to read Your word as persons dying of thirst for more knowledge of You. Your prophets tell us that the day will come when the Word is no longer available. Here it is at our fingertips Lord. Help us, today, to commit to a plan of reading Your word daily.
You tell us that it is the Scriptures that give us hope. Would it be true Father that if we do not have Your word stored in our heart that, in times of need for Your instruction, we would be without hope? We all have some knowledge of the Scriptures, Father, but we know You would not have us remain as babes in that regard.
Strengthen our resolve to “listen to You” and to speak with You many times a day. You are the same, yesterday, today and forever. You are our Light, You are the Word in our hearts. Bless us we pray, in Jesus’ name, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: Christ, God, Jesus, learning, patience, peace, Romans 15:4-5, Scriptures, written
Posted in Christianity, God's Gift, Providence of God, faith, peace | 6 Comments »
Wednesday, April 11th, 2012
God’s Children, April 11
My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.
He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.
He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
I write to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.
I John 2:1-6;12, www.solascriptura.com
Father, we come to You, cleansed of our sin because Jesus, our Advocate, has made it all possible. We know there is no other way to be in Your presence except at the nomination of ourselves by Jesus.
Our Advocate, the One who appeals to You, Himself, paid the price for our sins. This is true of no one else, therefore all judgment has been assigned to Jesus. We can boldly enter into Your presence because our faith is based on the gift of the Holy Spirit, the gift of a new heart and a completely new start.
The Apostle John speaks plainly about obedience. “He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” Keeping Your commandments is not easy. We know our walk with You is a little “uphill” but each day of obedience makes the next day’s hill, easier. John says, “walk just as He walked.” That is our prayer today. Help us be more like you every day. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: advocate, children, Christ, commandments, Father, Forgiven, Jesus, liar, love, perfected, propitiation, righteous, sin, truth
Posted in Christianity, Forgiven, God's Children, Hope, faith, peace, salvation | 28 Comments »
Tuesday, April 10th, 2012
The Narrow Gate, April 10
In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace
which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence,
having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,
that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him.
Ephesians 1:7-10, www.solascriptura.com
Jesus, some recoil from the notion that blood must be shed for the forgiveness of sin. Help us learn what You have taught us, many times. Sin is deserving of death or at the very least, it prevents entry into the presence of our Holy Father. Sacrifices of animals, to cover the sins of a believer, were a very serious way of allowing a substitute to die in the place of a sinner.
Jesus, You became the final “substitute” for our sins, because as the Scriptures teach, your blood was shed for the remission, the cleansing, the removal of our sins. No more sacrifices are needed or wanted, by You. Your shed blood has paid the price for our salvation. You have died for our sins, in our place, and now You are at the right hand of the Father, awaiting our arrival, our redemption.
You have now implanted the truth upon our hearts; all wisdom and prudence are available to us by the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. You have revealed the mystery of Your will to us. We who worship You in truth and in Spirit will be gathered unto You. How wonderful these words are Jesus. May they become a reality in all of our lives this day, we pray. Amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: blood, Christ, dispensation, earth, forgiveness, grace, Heaven, mystery, prudence, redemption, sins, wisdom
Posted in Christianity, Heaven, Perseverance, faith, salvation, wisdom | 8 Comments »
Sunday, April 8th, 2012
Temple of God, April 8
… you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,
having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone,
in whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,
in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
Ephesians 2:19-22, www.solascriptura.com
Father, it is sometimes difficult to admit it, but we were all once strangers and foreigners to You. That was our condition before we learned of Your grace to us and of salvation from Jesus. But now we are citizens of heaven with all of the other saints, we are members of Your household. We are family!
As we learn from the apostles, prophets and Jesus, we build a foundation for our inner temple, where we are able to know You better every day and trust You more every day. Your word says we are the dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
Help us Father to be an effective witness of Your love. Let our Joy in You be evident to all, all of the time. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: Apostles, Christ, corner stone, God, Jesus, members, prophets, saints, Spirit, strangers, Temple
Posted in Christianity, God's Children, Religion, Temple of God | 31 Comments »
Friday, April 6th, 2012
Forgiven, April 6
… as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering;
bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.
Colossians 3:12-13, www.solascriptura.com
Father, it is so right to bear the fruits of the Holy Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control) and so wrong to be the opposite of these words. We do not need anyone to tell us when we are bearing bad fruit, those behaviors which are clearly not within Your will for our lives.
If we yield the fruits of the Holy Spirit, we will be as “sanctified”, a posture we seek but which eludes us too often. Father, we need to be more consistent. We know, Jesus, that being like You, in our relationships, is Your desire for us. You equip us to do so when we ask. For Your forgiveness and empowerment, we are grateful.
Help us today to be forgiving towards people just as you are constantly there for us, always forgiving. In Jesus’ Holy name, we pray, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: beloved, Christ, elect, forgave, forgiving, God, Holy, Humility, kindness, meekness, mercies, tender
Posted in Christianity, Forgiven, peace, salvation | 8 Comments »