Thursday, February 28, 2013

Writing Prophets


Isaiah

2 Chronicles 26:22 - The other events of Uzziah's reign, from beginning to end, are recorded by the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz.

2 Chronicles 32:20 -  King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz cried out in prayer to heaven about this.

2 Chronicles 32:32 -  The other events of Hezekiah's reign and his acts of devotion are written in the vision of the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.

Isaiah 1:1 - The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

Isaiah 66:24  - “And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled 
against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.”

And also please read: 2 Kings 20:1-14

Jeremiah

2 Chronicles 36:12 -  He did evil in the eyes of the LORD his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke the word of the LORD.

Jeremiah 1:1 -  The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin.

Jeremiah 52:34  - Day by day the king of Babylon gave Jehoiachin a regular allowance as long as he lived, till the day of his death.

Lamentations 1:1 How deserted lies the city, once so full of people! How like a widow is she, who once was great among the nations! She who was queen among the provinces has now become a slave.

Lamentations 5:22 -  unless you have utterly rejected us and are angry with us beyond measure.

Ezekiel

Ezekiel 1:1 -  In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.


Things considered vanity


25. Oppression and sin.

Ecclesiastes 8:9-10

9 All this I saw, as I applied my mind to everything done under the sun. There is a time when a man lords it over others to his own hurt.

10 Then too, I saw the wicked buried—those who used to come and go from the holy place and receive praise in the city where they did this. This too is meaningless.

26. Unequal rewards.

Ecclesiastes 8:14

There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: righteous men who get what the wicked deserve, and wicked men who get what the righteous deserve. This too, I say, is meaningless.

27. Man’s cease less work.

Ecclesiastes 8:16-17

16 When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe man's labor on earth—his eyes not seeing sleep day or night—

17 then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot discover its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it.

28. Sameness of life.

Ecclesiastes 9:2-6

2 All share a common destiny—the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the clean and the unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not. As it is with the good man, so with the sinner; as it is with those who take oaths, so with those who are afraid to take them.

3 This is the evil in everything that happens under the sun: The same destiny overtakes all. The hearts of men, moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their hearts while they live, and afterward they join the dead.

4 Anyone who is among the living has hope—even a live dog is better off than a dead lion!
5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten.

6 Their love, their hate and their jealousy have long since vanished; never again will they have a part in anything that happens under the sun.

29. Life itself.

Ecclesiastes 11:8

However many years a man may live, let him enjoy them all. But let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. Everything to come is meaningless.

30. Childhood and youth.

Ecclesiastes 11:9-10

9 Be happy, young man, while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.

10 So then, banish anxiety from your heart and cast off the troubles of your body, for youth and vigor are meaningless.





Strength


2 Corinthians 12:9

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.

Hebrews 11:34

Quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.

Hebrews 12:12 

Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.

1 Peter 5:10 

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

Deuteronomy 11:8 

Observe therefore all the commands I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and take over the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess,

Joshua 1:6-7

6 “Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them.

7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.

Joshua 14:11 

I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I'm just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then.

1 Samuel 30:6 

David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God.

2 Chronicles 15:7 

But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.”


Places where God dwells


1. Now in heaven.

1 Kings 8:30 - Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.

1 Kings 8:39 - then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive and act; deal with each man according to all he does, since you know his heart (for you alone know the hearts of all men),

1 Kings 8:43 - then hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.

1 Kings 8:49 -  then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.

Matthew 6:9 - “This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

John 17:1 After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.

2.  in the new earth when His capital city will be moved here on earth:

Revelation 21:3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.

3. in the sanctuary among Israel:

Exodus 15:17 You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of your inheritance— the place, O LORD, you made for your dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, your hands established.

Exodus 25:8 “Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them.

Exodus 29:45 Then I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God.

46 They will know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of Egypt so that I might dwell among them. I am the LORD their God.

4. in thick darkness:

1 Kings 8:12 Then Solomon said, “The LORD has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud;

2 Chronicles 6:1 Then Solomon said, “The LORD has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud;

5. in great light:

1 Timothy 6:16 who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen.

6. in Jerusalem:

Psalms 135:21 Praise be to the LORD from Zion, to him who dwells in Jerusalem. Praise the LORD.

7. in Zion:

Joel 3:17 “Then you will know that I, the LORD your God, dwell in Zion, my holy hill. Jerusalem will be holy; never again will foreigners invade her.

8. in Christ:

Luke 14:10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests.

9. in men:

2 Corinthians 6:16 What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

10. in believers:

John 14:23 Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.



Bible Women


Deborah (The Nurse)

Genesis 24:59  

So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way, along with her nurse and Abraham's servant and his men.

Genesis 35:8  

Now Deborah, Rebekah's nurse, died and was buried under the oak below Bethel. So it was named Allon Bacuth.

Shipharah and Puah

Exodus 1:15-22  

15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah,

16 “When you help the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.”

17 The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.

18 Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?”

19 The midwives answered Pharaoh, “Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive.”

20 So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous.

21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.

22 Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: “Every boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live.”


Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Be Courageous


God’s tender love for His servants makes Him concerned about our inner feelings. Some think it a small matter for believers to be troubled with double and fears. God does not, and He wants us free from cares and doubts. When depressed, we are victims of a terrible sickness. Do not trifle with this disease. Take it immediately to our beloved Physician.

Our Lord does not want us to remain sad. It was a law of King Ahasuerus that no one could enter the king’s court dressed in morning. This is not the law of King of Kings. We may come sorrowing, but He puts “the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness” on us.

Isaiah 61:3  and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called splendor.

Christians should be courageous. We glorify the Lord when we endure trials in a heroic way. If we are fearful, we dishonor our God. This disease of doubtfulness and discouragement is an epidemic that could spread among the Lord’s flock. One depressed believer can make twenty souls sad.           

If you do not keep your courage, Satan will be too much for you. Let your spirit be joyful in God your Savior.

Nehemiah 8:10 “Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

Friends, moreover, labor is easy to those of a cheerful spirit; success waits on cheerfulness. The ones who work while rejoicing in God and believing with all their hearts have guaranteed.
If you sow in hope, you will reap in joy. Therefore, “be strong and very courageous.”

    

Facts regarding the Father


Righteous

John 17:25

“Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me.

Holy

John 17:11

I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name—the name you gave me—so that they may be one as we are one.

Heavenly

Matthew 6:14

For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

Matthew 6:26

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Matthew 6:32

For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.

Father of Mercies

2 Corinthians 1:3

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,

Father of Glory

Ephesians 1:17

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

Father of Spirits

Hebrews 12:9

Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!

Lord of Heaven

Matthew 11:25

At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

God’s Verse for God’s people


Isaiah 26:12

 LORD, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us.

By His great adoration and tender mercy, the God of the Universe presents His unfailing peace and great strength to His children. He established His peace in us through the beautiful resurrection of His only Son, Christ Jesus. He wipes away our transgressions allowing us to be used to further the kingdom of God. Therefore, we have been enabled to enter into His rest and become His righteous children.

Psalms 121:7

The LORD will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life;

While tragedy may beset us while we travail in this present age, our assurance is firm: our great God and Father shall prevent our downfall until that glorious day when we shall stand evermore in victory ultimate in the name of Christ Jesus our Lord. Praise Him till He returns and then praise Him throughout eternity!



Things considered vanity


19. Love of money.

Ecclesiastes 5:10

Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.

20. Riches saved by others.

Ecclesiastes 5:13-17

13 I have seen a grievous evil under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owner,

14 or wealth lost through some misfortune, so that when he has a son there is nothing left for him.

15 Naked a man comes from his mother's womb, and as he comes, so he departs. He takes nothing from his labor that he can carry in his hand.

16 This too is a grievous evil: As a man comes, so he departs, and what does he gain, since he toils for the wind?

17 All his days he eats in darkness, with great frustration, affliction and anger.

21. No power to enjoy blessings of life.

Ecclesiastes 6:1-2

1 I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on men:

2 God gives a man wealth, possessions and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires, but God does not enable him to enjoy them, and a stranger enjoys them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil.

22. Bringing up a large family and dying a pauper.

Ecclesiastes 6:3-6

3 A man may have a hundred children and live many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he cannot enjoy his prosperity and does not receive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he.

4 It comes without meaning, it departs in darkness, and in darkness its name is shrouded.

5 Though it never saw the sun or knew anything, it has more rest than does that man—

6 even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?

23. Desires and appetites never satisfied.

Ecclesiastes 6:7-9

7 All man's efforts are for his mouth, yet his appetite is never satisfied.

8 What advantage has a wise man over a fool? What does a poor man gain by knowing how to conduct himself before others?

9 Better what the eye sees than the roving of the appetite. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

24. Continual questions about life.

Ecclesiastes 6:10-12

10 Whatever exists has already been named, and what man is has been known; no man can contend with one who is stronger than he.

11 The more the words, the less the meaning, and how does that profit anyone?

12 For who knows what is good for a man in life, during the few and meaningless days he passes through like a shadow? Who can tell him what will happen under the sun after he is gone?


A Blessing for Focus.


Today may you see Jesus and him only. May the Father have mercy upon you. Hear his voice, see his hand, and be aware that he is calling each of us home in everything he does.

“The Lord your God is with you; the mighty One will save you. He will rejoice over you. You will rest in his love; he will sing and be joyful about you.” Zephaniah 3:17

Because He Redeems All Things.

God has given as a means for man’s recovery, restoration, reviving, redemption, and refreshing.

Evangelism

It seems that the word “peace” is being used more now than at any other time in history. Peace conferences are held almost daily by governments, civic organizations, and churches. But the Scripture teaches that peace and safety will not come in any lasting way until the Prince of Peace, the Messiah, Jesus Christ, comes and rules and reigns in our world.  ……Billy Graham

Earthly things to taste

Things of the world

Colossians 2:21

“Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch”?

Examples of Liberality

Surely in the Lord I have righteousness and strength-

Isaiah 45:24

They will say of me, ‘In the LORD alone is righteousness and strength.’” All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame.





Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Come near to God


Matthew 23:25 

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.

26  Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.

Matthew 15:2 

“Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don't wash their hands before they eat!”

Matthew 12:33 

“Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit.

Hosea 6:1-2 

1 “Come, let us return to the LORD. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds.

2  After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence.

Ezekiel 36:25-27 

25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.

26  I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

27  And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.

Ezekiel 18:31 

Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel?

Genesis 18:23 

Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked?

Job 16:17 

Yet my hands have been free of violence and my prayer is pure.

Job 9:30 

Even if I washed myself with soap and my hands with washing soda,

Things considered vanity


14. Hard life ending only in judgment.

Ecclesiastes 2:24-26

24 A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God,

25 for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?

26 To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

15. Weary round of life.

Please read Ecclesiastes 3:1-22.

16. Oppression of poor.

Ecclesiastes 4:1-4

1 Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun: I saw the tears of the oppressed— and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors— and they have no comforter.

2 And I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive.

3 But better than both is he who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.

4 And I saw that all labor and all achievement spring from man's envy of his neighbor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

17. Miser’s life.

Ecclesiastes 4:7-8

7. Again I saw something meaningless under the sun:

8 There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless— a miserable business!

18. No justice  or lasting pleasure.


Ecclesiastes 4:13-16

13 Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to take warning.

14 The youth may have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in poverty within his kingdom.

15 I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king's successor.

16 There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.