November 22, 2024

Blessed Are The Believers

May 9, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.  Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.   Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

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Sticks and stones may break my bones,
But words will never hurt me.
Yet, words hurt me when I am alone,
With no one to help me be
Happy and to be me.

People are going to talk
Behind my back
As I quietly walk
Down the road and back.

Evil will be spoke against me,
And I will try to block it out
As I try to be
My best without any doubt.

There will be those who hate
The belief that I hold dear
But I know my fate
Just as I know theirs.

They will answer one day
For all that they do
And everything they hurtfully say
Yet they have no clue.

Yet I know what that one day
Will bring to me and believers all
Who believe what One has to say
For we answered His call.

Our reward brings joy
To our hearts because it is great
To know that glory
Is now our fate.

Those who went before
Were treated the same
But they knew the score
Was with the one without blame.

We should all smile
And hold our heads high,
As we walk our hard mile
For our reward is nigh.

He will come soon
And end all the hate.
It may be high noon,
But unbelievers will meet their fate.

Believers will have eternal life,
With joyous smiles and eternal glory.
Nonbelievers will have eternal strife,
Within the confines of eternal fury.

The Cross bore the brunt of the hate, but Jesus still won.  He beat the persecution and the evil so that we could live in eternity.  The prophets knew this was coming, and we know that it happened.  We know the joy and the rewards that await in Heaven, and that should get us through these days of hate and pain.

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Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for defeating evil.  Thank You for the opportunity to walk with You and be in a relationship with You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Take Joy

May 7, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.  Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.   Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Ever been accused of doing something you did not do?  It can be an occasion to become angry, confused, and desperate.  Jesus was foreshadowing how His life was going to play out.  Even though He knew the outcome of His life, He still chose to let others in on God’s basic plan.  God wanted His people, Israel to come back to Him.  From the time that Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, they have done nothing but whine and complain.

In the New Testament we have Christ’s example to follow in order to honor Him. We also have the Apostle Paul and John the Baptist as examples of how to live and not become discouraged. Jesus was tasked to show and tell others about His Father in Heaven, about how to get to Heaven, and how to grow in our faith.  Paul showed us through his perseverance during his journey across the Middle East that teaching others about God’s love was more important than his own safety and comfort. While Paul was beaten, whipped, stranded, jailed, and shipwrecked, he never lost his passion and drive to share with others. The zeal he had used to persecute the Christians was the same he used to tell others the good news!

John the Baptist is an example of sacrifice for his beliefs. God sent John to be a messenger for Jesus’ ministry.  John was raised with rules and a different purpose than most other kids.  Being taught Scripture by both parents, he was raised in a strict Nazarene lifestyle—set apart and different.  I am sure he was persecuted for the way he behaved and how he was different while he was young and definitely during his ministry. The Holy Spirit was with John while he preached the coming of the Messiah. He was able to discern the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and other religious leaders when they came to hear him speak.

We all know the outcome of each of their lives. What is more important is how they lived. The desire to serve God was so overwhelming they could not stop themselves. I pray that we, also, would receive a desire like their’s to share the Lord’s love with others as we live our lives.

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Blessed…Even When Persecuted

May 6, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo


Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.  Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.   Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Typically blessed is not a word I would normally tie to persecution, and definitely not a word I would think when harsh words are being spoken about me. Thankfully, I don’t have to rely on what I think, or how I feel.

When I read this verse, the last line jumped out at me “for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”  For myself, it brings me comfort to know that there were those before me who experienced persecution, taunting, false speech, and evil.  It brings me comfort to know that they were blessed, and to read their stories of how, with God at their side, they overcame the figurative—and, at times—literal stones that were thrown at them.  Having the examples of their lives offers hope that we can and we should rejoice and be glad, despite what we may be facing.

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,
let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us,
and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith,
who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross,
despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself,
lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.
Hebrews 12:1-3 NKJV

‘Lest you become weary and discouraged….’   The One who suffered the greatest persecution of all, the One who gave His life so we could live, offers us another example of perseverance in the face of persecution.  He knows the weight that lies on our shoulders, He understands how difficult it is to rejoice, to be glad, and to not become weary or discouraged.  But He also knows that we are capable of these things in these situations.  Not only does He know we can do it, but He has given us the skills to do so.  In these situations I (we) need to remember the examples given to us in His Word—examples of those who walked our path before us.

Let’s Pray: Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for not only offering examples of those who have walked this path before us, but thank You for living the greatest of those examples.  When life begins to weigh down on us and perseverance is not something we think to practice, Your words are a page away and remind us that it can be done.  I pray that we see examples of joy and gladness in our lives and in others.  Just as You and the prophets of old are examples for us, that we may be examples for others.  In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

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Boldness

May 4, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

 

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.  Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.   Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

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Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.  Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Matthew 5:11-12

Last week I wrote about rejecting Christ. Is denying Christ to be accepted by man acceptable in your eyes? Who truly is the Lord of your life? Are you a God-pleaser or is people-pleasing more important? As easy as it can be to point out the negative, it’s only fitting that the positive be addressed. Standing for Christ or having boldness can be scary; it’s one of those things that is better shown through example. And I know exactly where to find some great examples!

Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.
Daniel 6:10

On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the palace, in front of the king’s hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the hall, facing the entrance.
Esther 5:1

The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.
Esther 1:17

Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, let’s go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised men. Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few.”
1 Samuel 14:6

David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.
1 Samuel 17:45

If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and He will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand.
Daniel 3:17

Each of these verses is pulled from a record in the Bible of an ordinary person standing boldly for Christ. Boldness isn’t about our ability, but about our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Boldness is about what He can do—not what we can do. Boldness is saying “No, I won’t cheat” when everyone else is. Boldness is not being different for the sake of being different, but with godly purpose.

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.
A man reaps what he sows.
Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction;
whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
Galatians 6:7-8

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Dear Lord, give me the strength to be bold for Your cause and Your cause alone. In Jesus’ name, we pray.  Amen.

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