Treasures of God

God’s promises are likened to hidden treasure.  Most don’t even know what they are, or their value.  To know what they are means studying God’s Word to open your consciousness to them. With time and effort will come the greatest gifts one could ever want or need. 

Matthew 13:44 (TPT)  44 “Heaven’s kingdom realm can be illustrated like this: “A person discovered that there was hidden treasure in a field. Upon finding it, he hid it again. Because of uncovering such treasure, he was overjoyed and sold all that he possessed to buy the entire field just so he could have the treasure.

10/1//2023

Even the Very Best of Us

Seeing the work before him, Solomon asked God for wisdom. God gave it to him and he used it well.  Despite honoring God most of his life, he lost his humility and turned to sin of all kinds. Even one of the very best of mankind could not resist acting on his sinful nature.

1 Kings 11:1-11 (TLB) 11 King Solomon married many other girls besides the Egyptian princess. Many of them came from nations where idols were worshiped—Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from the Hittites— 2 even though the Lord had clearly instructed his people not to marry into those nations, because the women they married would get them started worshiping their gods. Yet Solomon did it anyway. 3 He had seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines; and sure enough, they turned his heart away from the Lord, 4 especially in his old age. They encouraged him to worship their gods instead of trusting completely in the Lord as his father David had done. 5 Solomon worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom, the horrible god of the Ammonites. 6 Thus Solomon did what was clearly wrong and refused to follow the Lord as his father David did. 7 He even built a temple on the Mount of Olives, across the valley from Jerusalem, for Chemosh, the depraved god of Moab, and another for Molech, the unutterably vile god of the Ammonites. 8 Solomon built temples for these foreign wives to use for burning incense and sacrificing to their gods. 9-10 Jehovah was very angry with Solomon about this, for now Solomon was no longer interested in the Lord God of Israel who had appeared to him twice to warn him specifically against worshiping other gods. But he hadn’t listened, 11 so now the Lord said to him, “Since you have not kept our agreement and have not obeyed my laws, I will tear the kingdom away from you and your family and give it to someone else.

9/24/2023

What is Repentance?

Sin is a breaking of divine law. Divine laws are written in God’s Word. To repent is to want to know these laws and change to God’s better way. The genesis of many human laws have, or should have, a basis in these immutable divine laws.  They are the way to true peace.

Ezekiel 33:12 (TLB) 12 For the good works of a righteous man will not save him if he turns to sin; and the sins of an evil man will not destroy him if he repents and turns from his sins.’

9/17/2023

Depression

 

Heroes of the Bible weren’t always brave and wise. Elijah obeyed God and offended Jezebel. When she threatened him, he fled in panic and that deteriorated to depression.  As a prophet of God you expect he would be above that, but no one is. 

 Kings 19:1-10 (TLB)  19 When Ahab told Queen Jezebel what Elijah had done, and that he had slaughtered the prophets of Baal, 2 she sent this message to Elijah: “You killed my prophets, and now I swear by the gods that I am going to kill you by this time tomorrow night.” 3 So Elijah fled for his life; he went to Beersheba, a city of Judah, and left his servant there. 4 Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day, and sat down under a broom bush and prayed that he might die. “I’ve had enough,” he told the Lord. “Take away my life. I’ve got to die sometime, and it might as well be now.” 5 Then he lay down and slept beneath the broom bush. But as he was sleeping, an Angel touched him and told him to get up and eat! 6 He looked around and saw some bread baking on hot stones and a jar of water! So he ate and drank and lay down again. 7 Then the Angel of the Lord came again and touched him and said, “Get up and eat some more, for there is a long journey ahead of you.” 8 So he got up and ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to travel forty days and forty nights to Mount Horeb, the mountain of God, 9 where he lived in a cave. But the Lord said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 He replied, “I have worked very hard for the Lord God of the heavens; but the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you and torn down your altars and killed your prophets, and only I am left; and now they are trying to kill me too.”

9/10/2023

Called of God

 

Moses, Jeremiah and the Apostles were called by God to represent him.  All felt unworthy and protested. They were indeed capable as God gives those he calls the right things to say, where to go and what to do. He gives you all you require to fulfill your calling.

Jeremiah 1:5-10 TLB) 5 “I knew you before you were formed within your mother’s womb; before you were born I sanctified you and appointed you as my spokesman to the world.” 6 “O Lord God,” I said, “I can’t do that! I’m far too young! I’m only a youth!” 7 “Don’t say that,” he replied, “for you will go wherever I send you and speak whatever I tell you to. 8 And don’t be afraid of the people, for I, the Lord, will be with you and see you through.” 9 Then he touched my mouth and said, “See, I have put my words in your mouth! 10 Today your work begins, to warn the nations and the kingdoms of the world. In accord with my words spoken through your mouth I will tear down some and destroy them, and plant others, nurture them, and make them strong and great.”

9/3/2023

The Parable of the Ten Minas

 

God gives each person talents and abilities and it is a privilege to develop them over time. If you let authority issues and hostility get in your way, you are cutting off your nose to spite your face.  No good ever comes from these kinds of attitudes. Ask God how he can help.

Luke 19:12-27 (TLV) 12 Therefore He said, “A certain nobleman went to a faraway land to receive for himself a kingdom and then return. 13 And calling ten of his own slaves, he gave them ten minas and said to them, ‘Do business until I come back.’ 14 But his citizens detested him and they sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We don’t want this fellow to reign over us!’ 15 When he returned after receiving the kingdom, he called for those slaves to whom he had given the money. He wanted to know how much business they had done. 16 Now the first appeared, saying, ‘Master, your one mina has made ten.’ 17 The master said to him, ‘Well done, good slave! Because you were faithful with so little, take charge over ten cities.’ 18 Also, the second slave came, saying, ‘Your mina, Master, made five.’ 19 Then he also said to this one, ‘You are likewise over five cities.’ 20 But another came, saying, ‘Master, here is your mina. I was keeping it safe in a handkerchief, 21 for I was afraid of you because you are a strict man. You take what you did not make and reap what you did not sow.’ 22 He said to him, ‘By the words of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked slave! You knew that I am strict, taking what I did not make and reaping what I did not sow? 23 Then why didn’t you put my money in the bank, so that when I came back I could have collected it with interest?’ 24 Then to the bystanders he said, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has ten minas.’ 25 But they said to him, ‘Sir, he has ten minas!’ 26 ‘I tell you, to everyone who has, more shall be given. But from the one who doesn’t have, even what he does have shall be taken away. 27 But those hostile to me, who didn’t want me to reign over them, bring them here and execute them before me.’”

8/27/2023

Unfaithfulness to God

 

Metaphors are meant to make you think a little.  Not in Hosea.  God says what the metaphors mean. It is painfully clear how much a lack of respect in marriage, family life and toward God hurts everyone. It deeply and sometimes terminally wounds all involved.

Hosea 1:2 (TLB) 2 Here is the first message: The Lord said to Hosea, “Go and marry a girl who is a prostitute, so that some of her children will be born to you from other men. This will illustrate the way my people have been untrue to me, committing open adultery against me by worshiping other gods.”

8/19/2023

The Unforgiving Servant

 

This parable speaks to the mercy of God. Regardless of how much you owe him, God will forgive your debt as you acknowledge him.  Likewise, you are to be merciful to others who owe you what they cannot repay. If you do not, you are squarely in the path of God's accountability.

Matthew 18:23-35 (TPT) 23 The lessons of forgiveness in heaven’s kingdom realm can be illustrated like this: “There once was a king who had servants who had borrowed money from the royal treasury. He decided to settle accounts with each of them. 24 As he began the process, it came to his attention that one of his servants owed him one billion dollars. So he summoned the servant before him and said to him, ‘Pay me what you owe me.’ 25 When his servant was unable to repay his debt, the king ordered that he be sold as a slave along with his wife and children and every possession they owned as payment toward his debt. 26 The servant threw himself facedown at his master’s feet and begged for mercy. ‘Please be patient with me. Just give me more time and I will repay you all that I owe.’ 27 Upon hearing his pleas, the king had compassion on his servant, and released him, and forgave his entire debt. 28 “No sooner had the servant left when he met one of his fellow servants, who owed him twenty thousand dollars. He seized him by the throat and began to choke him, saying, ‘You’d better pay me right now everything you owe me!’ 29 His fellow servant threw himself facedown at his feet and begged, ‘Please be patient with me. If you’ll just give me time, I will repay you all that is owed.’ 30 But the one who had his debt forgiven stubbornly refused to forgive what was owed him. He had his fellow servant thrown into prison and demanded he remain there until he repaid the debt in full. 31 “When his associates saw what was going on, they were outraged and went to the king and told him the whole story. 32 The king said to him, ‘You scoundrel! Is this the way you respond to my mercy? Because you begged me, I forgave you the massive debt that you owed me. 33 Why didn’t you show the same mercy to your fellow servant that I showed to you?’ 34 In a fury of anger, the king turned him over to the prison.

8/13/2023

Disobedience brings Curses

In the first 14 verses of this passage, God speaks to those motivated by positive promises. In these verses - and notice how many more curses there are than blessings - he speaks to the negatively motivated, those who learn best when threatened with punishment.

Deuteronomy 28:15-68  15-19 “If you won’t listen to the Lord your God and won’t obey these laws I am giving you today, then all of these curses shall come upon you: Curses in the city, Curses in the fields, Curses on your fruit and bread, The curse of barren wombs, Curses upon your crops, Curses upon the fertility of your cattle and flocks, Curses when you come in, Curses when you go out. 20 “For the Lord himself will send his personal curse upon you. You will be confused and a failure in everything you do, until at last you are destroyed because of the sin of forsaking him. 21 He will send disease among you until you are destroyed from the face of the land you are about to enter and possess. 22 He will send tuberculosis, fever, infections, plague, and war. He will blight your crops, covering them with mildew. All these devastations shall pursue you until you perish. 23 “The heavens above you will be as unyielding as bronze, and the earth beneath will be as iron. 24 The land will become as dry as dust for lack of rain, and dust storms shall destroy you. 25 “The Lord will cause you to be defeated by your enemies. You will march out to battle gloriously, but flee before your enemies in utter confusion; and you will be tossed to and fro among all the nations of the earth. 26 Your dead bodies will be food to the birds and wild animals, and no one will be there to chase them away. 27 “He will send upon you Egyptian boils, tumors, scurvy, and itch, for none of which will there be a remedy. 28 He will send madness, blindness, fear, and panic upon you. 29 You shall grope in the bright sunlight just as the blind man gropes in darkness. You shall not prosper in anything you do; you will be oppressed and robbed continually, and nothing will save you. 30 “Someone else will marry your fiancée; someone else will live in the house you build; someone else will eat the fruit of the vineyard you plant. 31 Your oxen shall be butchered before your eyes, but you won’t get a single bite of the meat. Your donkeys will be driven away as you watch and will never return to you again. Your sheep will be given to your enemies. And there will be no one to protect you. 32 You will watch as your sons and daughters are taken away as slaves. Your heart will break with longing for them, but you will not be able to help them. 33 A foreign nation you have not even heard of will eat the crops you will have worked so hard to grow. You will always be oppressed and crushed. 34 You will go mad because of all the tragedy you see around you. 35 The Lord will cover you with boils from head to foot. 36 “He will exile you and the king you will choose to a nation to which neither you nor your ancestors gave a second thought; and while in exile you shall worship gods of wood and stone! 37 You will become an object of horror, a proverb and a byword among all the nations, for the Lord will thrust you away. 38 “You will sow much but reap little, for the locusts will eat your crops. 39 You will plant vineyards and care for them, but you won’t eat the grapes or drink the wine, for worms will destroy the vines. 40 Olive trees will be growing everywhere, but there won’t be enough olive oil to anoint yourselves! For the trees will drop their fruit before it is matured. 41 Your sons and daughters will be snatched away from you as slaves. 42 The locusts shall destroy your trees and vines. 43 Foreigners living among you shall become richer and richer while you become poorer and poorer. 44 They shall lend to you, not you to them! They shall be the head and you shall be the tail! 45 “All these curses shall pursue and overtake you until you are destroyed—all because you refuse to listen to the Lord your God. 46 These horrors shall befall you and your descendants as a warning: 47-48 You will become slaves to your enemies because of your failure to praise God for all that he has given you. The Lord will send your enemies against you, and you will be hungry, thirsty, naked, and in want of everything. A yoke of iron shall be placed around your neck until you are destroyed! 49 “The Lord will bring a distant nation against you, swooping down upon you like an eagle; a nation whose language you don’t understand— 50 a nation of fierce and angry men who will have no mercy upon young or old. 51 They will eat you out of house and home until your cattle and crops are gone. Your grain, new wine, olive oil, calves, and lambs will all disappear. 52 That nation will lay siege to your cities and knock down your highest walls—the walls you will trust to protect you. 53 You will even eat the flesh of your own sons and daughters in the terrible days of siege that lie ahead. 54 The most tenderhearted man among you will be utterly callous toward his own brother and his beloved wife and his children who are still alive. 55 He will refuse to give them a share of the flesh he is devouring—the flesh of his own children—because he is starving in the midst of the siege of your cities. 56-57 The most tender and delicate woman among you—the one who would not so much as touch her feet to the ground—will refuse to share with her beloved husband, son, and daughter. She will hide from them the afterbirth and the new baby she has borne, so that she herself can eat them: so terrible will be the hunger during the siege and the awful distress caused by your enemies at your gates. 58-59 “If you refuse to obey all the laws written in this book, thus refusing reverence to the glorious and fearful name of Jehovah your God, then Jehovah will send perpetual plagues upon you and upon your children. 60 He will bring upon you all the diseases of Egypt that you feared so much, and they shall plague the land. 61 And that is not all! The Lord will bring upon you every sickness and plague there is, even those not mentioned in this book, until you are destroyed. 62 There will be few of you left, though before you were as numerous as stars. All this if you do not listen to the Lord your God. 63 “Just as the Lord has rejoiced over you and has done such wonderful things for you and has multiplied you, so the Lord at that time will rejoice in destroying you; and you shall disappear from the land. 64 For the Lord will scatter you among all the nations from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship heathen gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, gods made of wood and stone! 65 There among those nations you shall find no rest, but the Lord will give you trembling hearts, darkness, and bodies wasted from sorrow and fear. 66 Your lives will hang in doubt. You will live night and day in fear, and will have no reason to believe that you will see the morning light. 67 In the morning you will say, ‘Oh, that night were here!’ And in the evening you will say, ‘Oh, that morning were here!’ You will say this because of the awesome horrors surrounding you. 68 Then the Lord will send you back to Egypt in ships, a journey I promised you would never need to make again; and there you will offer to sell yourselves to your enemies as slaves—but no one will even want to buy you.”

8/6/2023

Obedience brings Blessings - Part 1

These verses are a listing of your blessings when doing things God’s way. Verses 15-68 are the opposite - curses, regrets and failures if you don’t. The brain finds it easier to do “what” vs. "what not,” so if you are motivated by positive things, these verses are for you.  

Deuteronomy 28:1-14 (TLB) 28 “If you fully obey all of these commandments of the Lord your God, the laws I am declaring to you today, God will transform you into the greatest nation in the world. 2-6 These are the blessings that will come upon you:

Blessings in the city, Blessings in the field; Many children, Ample crops, Large flocks and herds; Blessings of fruit and bread; Blessings when you come in,

Blessings when you go out.

7 “The Lord will defeat your enemies before you; they will march out together against you but scatter before you in seven directions! 8 The Lord will bless you with good crops and healthy cattle, and prosper everything you do when you arrive in the land the Lord your God is giving you. 9 He will change you into a holy people dedicated to himself; this he has promised to do if you will only obey him and walk in his ways. 10 All the nations in the world shall see that you belong to the Lord, and they will stand in awe. 11 “The Lord will give you an abundance of good things in the land, just as he promised: many children, many cattle, and abundant crops. 12 He will open to you his wonderful treasury of rain in the heavens, to give you fine crops every season. He will bless everything you do; and you shall lend to many nations, but shall not borrow from them. 13 If you will only listen and obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I am giving you today, he will make you the head and not the tail, and you shall always have the upper hand. 14 But each of these blessings depends on your not turning aside in any way from the laws I have given you; and you must never worship other gods. 

7/30/2023