Change…

Change…

God, who is enthroned from of old, who does not change— He will hear them and humble them, because they have no fear of God. (Psalm 55:19)

“I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. (Malachi 3:6)

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. (James 1:17)

The Word of God is consistent regarding this truth: God Does Not Change! God is not human, that He should lie; not a human being that He should change His mind. Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?” (Numbers 23:19) Concerning His Son: “The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind: “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.” (Psalm 110:4) Though God created the heavens and the earth, they will perish. But He will remain the same and endure forever. (Cf. Psalm 102:25-27) The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the Word of God endures forever. (Isaiah 40:8) Yes, the Lord Jesus declared: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.” (Matthew 24:35; Mark 13:31; Luke 21:33) Indeed, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever! (Hebrews 13:8)

God the Father does not change; and yet, He is the agent of change! He changes times and seasons; He deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. (Daniel 2:21) By His Spirit, God changes people and their hearts. He used the Prophet Samuel to anoint the first King of Israel with oil; and Saul was changed into a different person. (Cf. 1 Samuel 10:6-11) And He is in the process of changing each of us. “For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son; that He might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified.” (Romans 8:29-30)

We are called by our Holy Creator to change … to be transformed into His image with ever-increasing glory – which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (Cf. Corinthians 3:16-18) Jesus told His disciples, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of God.” (Matthew 18:3; Mark 10:15; Luke 18:17) Indeed, change is necessary if we want to become like Jesus and live as Jesus did. This is how we will know that we are in Him. (1 John 2:5-6)

My friends, soon there is a great change coming to our lives: “We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52)

Have a Blessed Day!

Your Word Gives Light…

Psalm 119:130 (NIV)

The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.

For our Verse of the Day, we continue in Psalm 119; and again, I will put our verse in its surrounding section for context:

פ Pe

¹²⁹Your statutes are wonderful; therefore I obey them.
¹³⁰The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.
¹³¹I open my mouth and pant, longing for your commands.
¹³²Turn to me and have mercy on me, as you always do to those who love your name.
¹³³Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.
¹³⁴Redeem me from human oppression, that I may obey your precepts.
¹³⁵Make your face shine on your servant and teach me your decrees.
¹³⁶Streams of tears flow from my eyes, for your law is not obeyed.

צ Tsadhe

¹³⁷You are righteous, Lord, and your laws are right.
¹³⁸The statutes you have laid down are righteous; they are fully trustworthy.
¹³⁹My zeal wears me out, for my enemies ignore your words.
¹⁴⁰Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them.
¹⁴¹Though I am lowly and despised, I do not forget your precepts.
¹⁴²Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
¹⁴³Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands give me delight.
¹⁴⁴Your statutes are always righteous; give me understanding that I may live.

As I meditate on these words and the light they bring, I cannot help but imagine the inner feelings of those who penned these Spirit inspired thoughts. I can just sense the intensity of zeal for the Word of God already available to them … for all of its instruction and wisdom in righteousness and order and goodness. Psalm 119 conveys a deep realization that God wants His people to know the truth and that He desires those who love Him to live according to it. And so there is a great hunger and thirst for the Word of God within us. It beckons us to learn and to apply and to be transformed!

Romans 12:2 (NIV)

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.

Hebrews 4:12 (NIV)

For the Word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Father God, we thank you for Your Word … passed down over the millennia! We thank you for instruction in wisdom and the knowledge of righteousness! We praise you for the light you have brought into the world so that we might know you, the only true God. Indeed, we hold fast to your promise of eternal life for those who put their faith in your Son … our Savior … Jesus the Christ. I pray that Your Word will change us … transform us … conform us into His image. I pray that you would direct our footsteps according to your word and let no sin rule over us. May those who love you delight in your commands to do them. Let your grace abound, O Lord, so that we might obey your word. For I ask these things in your Mighty Name. Amen.

So Now You Know…

Have a Blessed Day!

“The days are coming,” declares the Sovereign Lord, “when I will send a famine through the land— not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord. People will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the Lord, but they will not find it.” ~ Amos 8:11-12

His Way Is Perfect…

Psalm 18:30 (NIV)

As for God, His way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless; He shields all who take refuge in Him.

Our Verse of the Day can also be found at 2 Samuel 22:31. In fact, 2 Samuel 22 captures Psalm 18 in its entirety … for those of you interested in bible trivia. This Psalm is prefaced with these words:

For the director of music. Of David the servant of the Lord. He sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said:

¹I love you, Lord, my strength. ²The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. ³I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I have been saved from my enemies….

Psalm 18 – Excerpts

¹⁶He reached down from on high and took hold of me; He drew me out of deep waters. ¹⁷He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me. ¹⁸They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the Lord was my support. ¹⁹He brought me out into a spacious place; He rescued me because He delighted in me.

²⁵To the faithful you show yourself faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless, ²⁶to the pure you show yourself pure, but to the devious you show yourself shrewd. ²⁷You save the humble but bring low those whose eyes are haughty.

³⁰As for God, His way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless; He shields all who take refuge in Him. ³¹For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God? ³²It is God who arms me with strength and keeps my way secure. ³³He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; He causes me to stand on the heights.

Oh, may each of us remember that our Heavenly Father is perfect in all of His ways! May we embrace the truth of His Word: “The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.” (Cf. Psalm 12:6) “Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.” (Cf. Proverbs 30:5) Yes, God is our refuge and places a hedge of protection around those who love Him … a spiritual barrier around those who trust in Him! I fervently pray that we all embrace the truths His Word has proclaimed….

So Now You Know…

Have a Blessed Day!

But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed His steps; I have kept to His way without turning aside. I have not departed from the commands of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my daily bread. ~ Job 23:10-12

God’s Final Word…

Hebrews 1:1-2 (NIV)

In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom also He made the universe.

Our Verse of the Day has been cited quite often in various commentaries over the past year, and now it is our verse to consider on its own. Yesterday, we examined the prologue of the gospel account written by the Apostle John … and I think that the inspired writer of the Book of Hebrews simply affirms this truth. In John 1:14 he wrote: “The Word (Jesus) became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” And Hebrews 1:1 asserts that Jesus spoke the final words revealing the will of God and asserts His ordained authority to do so….

As I think about the revelation of God Jesus communicated as His Son, I think it is important to observe what Jesus said about the words He spoke to the disciples … and shared with the Jewish people … even with us who believe in Him based upon their eyewitness testimony and anointed remembrance. (Cf. John 14:26) Jesus is quite direct about the gravity of hearing His Words … following His teachings … and putting them into practice. In fact, Jesus declares that His Words will judge us on the last day….

John 5:24-26 (NIV)

²⁴“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. ²⁵Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. ²⁶For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son also to have life in Himself. ²⁷And He has given Him authority to judge because He is the Son of Man.

John 12:44-50 (NIV)

⁴⁴Then Jesus cried out, “Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the One who sent me. ⁴⁵The one who looks at me is seeing the One who sent me. ⁴⁶I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. ⁴⁷“If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. ⁴⁸There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day. ⁴⁹For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken. ⁵⁰I know that his command leads to eternal life. So, whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”

John 14:10-11 (NIV)

Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing His work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves.

John 14:23-25 (NIV)

Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. “All this I have spoken while still with you.But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

Mark 8:37-38; Luke 9:25-26 (NIV)

What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their soul? Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when He comes in His glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

Luke 6:46-49 (NIV)

⁴⁶“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? ⁴⁷As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. ⁴⁸They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. ⁴⁹But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”

Not only has Father God spoken to us through the Prophets … beginning with Moses … He has clearly spoken to us through His Son, our Lord Jesus! And it is imperative that we listen to His voice … hear His words … and obey them! This is how we demonstrate our love for Him. As Jesus said: “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. (Cf. John 15:7-8) Indeed, His Word must remain in us through the Holy Spirit in order for us to be effective and productive in the Kingdom of God. So, let us keep ourselves in His Word each day. Yes, let us do our best to present yourselves to God as ones approved, workers who do not need to be ashamed and who correctly handle the word of truth.” (Cf. 2 Timothy 2:15)

A Final Thought:

John 5:36-40 (NIV)

“I have testimony weightier than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to finish—the very works that I am doing—testify that the Father has sent me. And the Father who sent me has Himself testified concerning me. You have never heard His voice nor seen His form, nor does His word dwell in you, for you do not believe the One He sent. You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.

So Now You Know…

Have a Blessed Day!

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. (Matthew 24:35; Mark 13:31; Luke 21:23)

His Word Endures Forever…

1 Peter 1:24-25 (NIV)

For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the Word of the Lord endures forever.” And this is the Word that was preached to you.

Our Verse of the Day has a great observation and commentary from the Apostle Peter concerning the eternal and unchanging nature of God’s Word. To me, it provides an interesting contrast that Peter uses here to support his point, and I would like to explore it further….

1 Peter 1:22-25 (NIV)

²²Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from a pure heart. ²³For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring Word of God. ²⁴For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, ²⁵but the word of the Lord endures forever.” (Citing Isaiah 40:6-8) And this is the Word that was preached to you.

I believe the context of our passage is anchored by Verse 23. Here we find reference to the born-again experience that Jesus discussed with Nicodemus. The Apostle John records this conversation, and I will reprint it here:

John 3:5-15 (NIV)

⁵Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. ⁶Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. ⁷You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ ⁸The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” ⁹“How can this be?” Nicodemus asked. ¹⁰“You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things?¹²I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? ¹³No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. ¹⁴Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, ¹⁵that everyone who believes may have eternal life in Him.”

With this in mind (being born of the Spirit), I believe we can infer from the premise made by Peter that the Word of God is what the Spirit uses to “effectuate” the new birth experience. He asserts that “we have been born again … through the living and enduring Word of God. And this “word” is unchanging … it is eternal. And this is the word that was preached to you. And this is consistent with what Paul asserted when he penned: “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing comes by the Word of God.” (Cf. Romans 10:17) I cannot explain how this happens; I only know from personal experience that it does. When we allow the “thoughts” of God to penetrate and indwell our hearts, we WILL come to faith in Jesus Christ … which IS the born-again experience being presented here. Jesus said, “This is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. (Cf. Luke 22:20), and it was declared through the Prophet Jeremiah when he prophesied:

Jeremiah 31:31-34 (NIV)

³¹“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. ³²It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord. ³³“This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. ³⁴No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”

(You will see the new covenant declaration quoted in the Hebrews 8 as well. And in Hebrews 9, you will find its theological development and the requirement for the sacrificial blood of Jesus to “seal” or “enforce” the covenant. So, I encourage you to read those fascinating chapters.)

Now for emphasis, Peter quotes the Prophet Isaiah regarding the temporal nature of man in contrast to the eternal nature of God’s Word. The Word of God is “living” and its truth endures forever in comparison to the brevity of our own lives. Perhaps Peter wanted to assure believers that the Word living in them affirms the Lord’s promise of our resurrection and eternal life with God. As we noted in Hebrews 4:12, “The Word of God is alive and active!” So, when we are born-again of the Spirit through the imperishable, living, and enduring Word of God, our physical lives may end but our souls will live forever. Jesus affirmed, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live … even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (Cf. John 11:25-26)

It is certain each of us will face physical death. The statistics have remained unchanged at 100% since humans have been on the earth. Even Jesus died a physical death…. But Jesus taught us that faith in Him would overcome the power of death. When we are alive in Jesus … when we abide in Him … our physical death here will not be final. And this is why Jesus said, “You must be born again – born of water (the Word) and the Spirit – in order to enter the Kingdom of God.

As I meditate on these passages, I think I will conclude with this passage from the Gospel of John because Jesus can explain this better than anyone else:

John 6:63-69 (ESV)

⁶⁰Many of His disciples said, “This is very hard to understand. How can anyone accept it?” ⁶¹Jesus was aware that His disciples were complaining, so He said to them, “Does this offend you? ⁶²Then what will you think if you see the Son of Man ascend to heaven again? ⁶³The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are full of the Spirit and life. ⁶⁴But there are some of you who do not believe me.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning which ones didn’t believe, and He knew who would betray Him.) ⁶⁵Then He said, “That is why I said to you that no one can come to me unless it has been granted to them by the Father.” ⁶⁶At this point many of His disciples turned away and deserted him. ⁶⁷Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, “Are you also going to leave?” ⁶⁸Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. ⁶⁹We believe, and we know you are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”

So Now You Know…

Have a Blessed Day!

Look at how much I love your precepts. Preserve my life, Lord, in accordance with your faithful love. All of Your Word is truth, and all Your righteous judgments endure forever. ~ Psalm 119:159-160