Nehemiah 4
14 After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don't be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.”
The story of Nehemiah and the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem is a great story. These men were being attacked on every side, but they persevered and trusted the Lord, who they knew to be great and awesome, and who had allowed them to return to their home land and rebuild it.
God fought for this group of people that longed to see the city of God returned to its glory. They wanted it for the right reasons and I believe this is why God put His hand upon the project. It must have seemed like an impossible task because of the amount of work, and the opposition. Nehemiah however knew God's had was upon the work, and that He would deliver them through the persecution, and that ultimately they would be successful. I wish I had this kind of faith.
Hosea 14
1 Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God.
Your sins have been your downfall!
2 Take words with you
and return to the Lord.
Say to him:
“Forgive all our sins
and receive us graciously,
that we may offer the fruit of our lips.
“the fruit of our lips” offered up to God after He has forgiven us and graciously accepted us... Christ' work on the cross completed this, thus we can offer up the fruit of our lips at all times. Nice opening for a praise and worship set sometime...
4 “I will heal their waywardness
and love them freely,
for my anger has turned away from them.
Dear Heavenly Father, heal my waywardness. My heart wanders Lord. I am drawn away by my selfishness, self interest, and personal pity. Love me freely Lord... Thank you so much that your anger is turned from me Lord and that I am forgiven.
9 Who is wise? He will realize these things.
Who is discerning? He will understand them.
The ways of the Lord are right;
the righteous walk in them,
but the rebellious stumble in them.
1 Thessalonians 3
5 For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless.
6 But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.7 Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith.8 For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord.9 How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?
1 Thessalonians 4
3 It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality;4 that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable,5 not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God;6 and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you.7 For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.
8 Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.
A lesson in self control and an area for all believers to differentiate ourselves from unbelievers. Not in some prideful, holier than thou way. But in a way that is quiet and not “in your face” as it goes on to say in verse 11....
11 Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, 12 so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody
lead a quiet life, and mind your own business... 2 things I am not good at doing, as well as a good portion of the Christian community I think. Let your daily life win the respect of outsiders... let your life, submitted to God, be proof that you believe what you say, and that it is all true.
I am drawn again to the way that Christ confronted sin differently with those outside the church, “the sinners”, and those inside the church, the Pharisees and religious hierarchy of the day. To “the sinners” he was loving, and gentle, and he drew out their sin in a way that was firm and truthful, but he had a way of doing it that didn't make them think he was just some judgmental jerk. He had a way of doing it that made them understand their need for saving and made them want it. To the religious people, he took them to task and came right after them calling them a brood of vipers, and hypocrites. Hypocrites is a pretty strong word which according to the dictionary means “a person who pretends to be something he is not”. It gives you the feeling that the people outside the church are safer from the wrath of God than the people within the church because we are being judged by the standard we profess to believe. We aren't being judged by a standard we had no idea existed.
13 Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.14 We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.15 According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
18 Therefore encourage each other with these words.
Be encouraged today, that we who have believed that Jesus died and rose again will be raised to life eternal with the Lord forever.
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