Posts Tagged ‘gifts’
Tuesday, May 14th, 2013
Industriousness, May 14
”I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.
”Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
”You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.
”Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
”I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
”If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.
”If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.
John 15:1-7, www.solascriptura.com
Thank You Jesus for speaking directly to us. Divine instruction, not from the mouths of men, is indeed a treasure. Here You tell us that it is not just You speaking to us but You and the Father are one.
Father, Your word says, “bear fruit” or perish. That sounds harsh but it is only harsh to those who do not seek to bear fruit. We know that You give us different gifts by which to serve You but none of is without a gift. Help us seek to serve You this day, knowing that the tests and challenges of life serve to bring understanding and growth. You “prune” us, as painful as it may be at times, that we might bear more fruit.
Teach us to see the value of difficult times that we might grow and bear more and better fruit. Jesus, without You we can do nothing that glorifies You and without You we can do nothing that endures. In service to You, we pray, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: bear fruit, branch, gifts, Jesus, John 15:1-7, perish
Posted in Christianity, Industriousness, Perseverance, Religion | No Comments »
Thursday, May 2nd, 2013
God’s Gifts, May 2
If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;…
James 1:5-7, www.solascriptura.com
Father, in the beginning, James, the half-brother of Jesus, doubted who Jesus was in terms of His being the Son of God and so did the other half- brothers of Jesus. We know Peter denied Jesus three times. In all cases, these men brought the same sort of weakness to the table as we do. We were not always committed to receiving Your grace and we have not always loved Jesus and acknowledged Him as our Savior.
But now, we have the opportunity to ask You to lead us by the power of the Holy Spirit. We can, in all humility and contrition, ask You for wisdom, for comfort, for forgiveness and for perfect fidelity to You and those You have placed in our lives.
You offer us a stern warning that we “must believe and not doubt”. Father, please help us with the doubts that sometimes come upon us. We feel so imperfect and at times very uninformed. Help us today to realize that is not our perfection that encompasses us when we approach You. We come to You in the righteousness of Jesus, cleansed by Him, led by Him.
Help our belief in You to lead to higher levels of trust in You. Forgive us when we think You have abandoned one of us. You never leave our side. Help us not to doubt that fact! We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: ask, believe, doubt, fault, generously, gifts, God, Lord, sea, wave, wind, wisdom
Posted in Conscience, God's Gift, faith, wisdom | 4 Comments »
Friday, February 15th, 2013
God’s Gifts, February 15
Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
…the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
2 Corinthians 9:15, Galatians 5:22-23, www.solascriptura.com
Father, when Paul uses the word “gift” in this verse, he calls it indescribable. Why would he say “indescribable? One reason may be that you shared some information with Paul that he was told not to share with us. He said they were “inexpressible” words which he was not permitted to utter, after being caught up in what he called “the third heaven”.
Father, if there is a third heaven, is there not a first and second heaven? Paul said he could not tell us but he does say the gift is “indescribable”. O’God, we really do see things “dimly” and we know that what is, is not what will be. The frustrations and difficulties of this life do not compare with the glory You will yet show us.
Father in the midst of the turmoil of this world, Paul reminds us of what we can experience right now. We look forward to no more pain and disabilities for eternity. Here and now You grant us the fruits of the Spirit, freely given to all who seek them; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. No matter how difficult life can be, these promises are to us all, right now. We praise You for Your love for 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: faithfulness, fruit, gentleness, gifts, God, goodness, joy, kindness, love, patience, peace, self-control, Spirit
Posted in Christianity, God's Gift, Holy Spirit, Worship, faith, peace, salvation | 14 Comments »
Saturday, January 19th, 2013
God’s Gifts, January 19
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12, www.solascriptura.com
Father, there may not be another single verse in the Bible that says so much about how powerful the Bible is. Thank You for giving it to us.
Your word is a two edged sword bringing both salvation and judgement. It does cut both ways, revealing truth to Your children and a stern warning to those who doubt You and disobey You.
Your word is alive, it is dynamic. The more we learn of You the more we realize there is so much more to know and to experience. It is powerful, persuasive and permanently true. At the same time, it is gentle, loving and comforting.
Your word pierces to the depth of our soul, it discerns our thoughts and measures the intent of our hearts. What a tragedy it would be to have our Bibles taken from us, something You promise will happen during the Great Tribulation. Will we have stored Your word in our hearts?
Help each of us commit to spending more and more time in Your Holy, inspiring word this day and 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: discerner, gifts, God, heart, Hebrews 4:12, living, marrow, piercing, powerful, sharper, soul, Spirit, sword, word
Posted in Christianity, God's Gift, Inspirtation, Law of God, Providence of God | 16 Comments »
Wednesday, December 19th, 2012
God’s Gifts, December 19
In the multitude of my anxieties within me, Your comforts delight my soul.
But the LORD has been my defense, and my God the rock of my refuge.
Psalm 94:19, 22, www.solascriptura.com
Father, these brief words remind us that most of us have a multitude of anxieties which distract us from the comfort of Your presence. When, in the midst of anxiety, we are able to step back and remember the transitional nature of most circumstances, we can find comfort in our eternal relationship with You.
You have taught us that everything that is physical will pass away, including us, and that everything of the Spirit will endure forever. We get so caught up in worrying about the present that we sometimes lose sight of the promises of eternity.
Help us learn today that the present is vitally important in terms of our service to You and to those we meet. Let us not be anxious about what we can not change and to work diligently to change everything that needs changing, as prescribed by You.
You are truly our Rock, our place of refuge in good times and bad times. Help us look up when our hearts are heavy and to know You are totally aware of our needs. What a wonderful fact upon which we can rely.
Bless us, this day, in Jesus’ Holy name.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O.Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: anxieties, gifts, God, Lord, refuge, rock, soul
Posted in Christianity, Courage, God's Gift, faith, peace | 16 Comments »
Saturday, December 1st, 2012
God’s Gifts, December 1
Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.
Psalm 100:3-5, www.solascriptura.com
Father God, You have chosen to make us in Your image. We know, for those that love and obey You, that we are not yet what we will become. Life can seem so long when we are hurting yet You have prepared an eternal place of perfection for us all where we will be neither young nor old and certainly not ill. We look forward to something so perfect that it escapes our ability to fully describe it.
Thank You for the hints about how wonderful it will be to be in Your midst with Your people, rejoicing with the saints of the present and the past. We will truly enter into Your gates with thanksgiving. Our despair and our deficiencies will be behind us and we will be forever joyful as we celebrate perfection.
You alone are good and You alone will be our constant Light. Your mercy to us is too great for us to grasp but thanks be to You, Jesus, for coming to us and making it possible to stand in the presence of our Lord, as if we had never sinned, cleansed and full of joy. Perfect! Amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O.Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: courts, gifts, God, Lord, mercy, praise, sheep, thanksgiving, truth
Posted in Christianity, God's Children, God's Gift, Inspirtation, Perseverance | 6 Comments »
Monday, November 19th, 2012
God’s Gifts, November 19
We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.
Not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has?
But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.
And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.
Romans 8:22-27, www.solascriptura.com
Father, You know how we love life and all of its opportunities yet we also look forward to perfection, an eternal life without sin and suffering. We who love You and have committed ourselves to Your service await the moment in time when we finally see all that You have prepared for us. You tell us that eye has not seen nor has mind imagined that which You have prepared for us.
It is this hope that leads to our faith in You Jesus and to our redemption, all made possible by God’s grace and mercy.
Paul teaches here that Your Spirit intercedes for us and pleads for us with words that are inexpressible by ourselves. There is no one that is able to present us to the Father in such a manner as this but You Jesus.
Paul reminds us again that we are saints, awaiting redemption, and that You search our hearts and intercede for us. Those are powerful facts and promises that we can not easily grasp. Help us O’God to experience the depth of Your love this day and 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: childbirth, creation, gifts, God, hearts, Hope, intercedes, pray, redemption, saints, saved, sons, Spirit
Posted in Christianity, Hope, Prayer, faith, peace | 10 Comments »
Monday, November 5th, 2012
God’s Gifts, November 5
…we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all-how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Romans 8:28-31, www.solascriptura.com
Father, our vision is as limited as our certainty of our life span. We can not see very far ahead and we are uncertain of whether we will even be alive tomorrow. We always want to hedge our statements about what we are going to do by saying “Lord willing” I will do such and such. How else could it be? We do not control outcomes yet here You promise us that You do. We can trust in You to lead us if we live “according to Your purpose”.
We also can see that if we do not live according to Your purpose we can not be assured that all things will work out as You had willed. You do allow us to run away from Your perfect will. Yet, in the next verse You teach us that we are “predestined” to be as Jesus. Father, we know that You know who will respond to Your ever-present call.
We also know that it is by Your grace that we are saved and not of our own works. Merit badges will not open the door of the kingdom for one who does not know You. It is our faith in Jesus’ redemptive act, our cleansing by His shed blood and our will to seek to be like Jesus that saves us, all made possible by Your grace and mercy.
Since You are omniscient Father, knowing all things from the Alpha to the Omega, the beginning and the end, You knew who would place their hand in Yours and become heirs to the kingdom. Yet, in Deuteronomy 31:19, You say: …I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.
O’God, we thank you for Jesus, our Redeemer, our Friend and Comforter. We choose life Father, that each of us and each of our children may live. Amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O.Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: foreknew, gifts, glorified, God, justified, predestined, Son
Posted in Christianity, God's Children, God's Gift, Religion, faith, peace | 17 Comments »
Saturday, November 3rd, 2012
God’s Gifts, November 3
Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.
Psalm 100:3-5, www.solascriptura.com
Father God, You have chosen to make us in Your image. We know, for those that love and obey You, that we are not yet what we will become. Life can seem so long when we are hurting yet You have prepared an eternal place of perfection for us all where we will be neither young nor old and certainly not ill. We look forward to something so perfect that it escapes our ability to fully describe it.
Thank You for the hints about how wonderful it will be to be in Your midst with Your people, rejoicing with the saints of the present and the past. We will truly enter into Your gates with thanksgiving. Our despair and our deficiencies will be behind us and we will be forever joyful as we celebrate perfection.
You alone are good and You alone will be our constant Light. Your mercy to us is too great for us to grasp but thanks be to You, Jesus, for coming to us and making it possible to stand in the presence of our Lord, as if we had never sinned, cleansed and full of joy. Perfect! Amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O.Box 302, Franklin TN 37064
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Tags: courts, gifts, God, Lord, mercy, pasture, sheep, truth
Posted in Christianity, God's Gift, Hope, Providence of God | 56 Comments »
Saturday, October 13th, 2012
God’s Gifts, October 13
Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name,
among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;
To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 1:5-7, www.solascriptura.com
Father, Paul reminds us once again that it is Your grace, extended to each of us, that enables us to be apostles of obedience, witnessing of Your love to all the nations.
We are told that we are “called” by Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. O’God, how could we refuse this invitation to eternal life and being full of peace and joy forever? Strengthen our resolve to seek You this day.
Paul says we are called to be “saints”. Father, You know how frail and impotent we feel, at times. Help us today, to know that when we are full of the Holy Spirit seeking to be as You Jesus, that we are, in that moment, saints. Not because we, in our own nature, deserve that kind of designation but when we are wrapped in Your righteousness, we are as You. That is our goal Jesus, to be as You. 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: faith, gifts, grace, Jesus Christ, obedience, Rome, saints
Posted in Christianity, Fidelity, God's Gift, Mind of Christ, faith | 83 Comments »