Month: December 2020

Advent 2020                              Page 4

I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice. Genesis 22:17-18

The proof is in the blessing.  God’s people will live blessed to be a blessing.  We can see the proof of a relationship with God in His blessing.  Abraham lived in that blessing by believing in God to the extent that he would surrender and obey God at all costs.  And God said that his offspring would possess the gates of his enemies and bless the nations. Jesus did that and still does that.  Those who believe in Him and obey Him will live in that blessing.  We are blessed in Jesus to live blessed and to be a blessing and through Him and we too will possess the gates of our enemies.  That’s what blessed people do.

Advent 2020                      Day 3

Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.    Isaiah 7:14

Sometimes God will speak the biggest things in the smallest remarks.  We must be listening.  Here Isaiah had just prophesied to King Ahaz that shortly his two adversaries would burn out and he would not have to fear them.  Ahaz could not believe so Isaiah told him to ask for a sign, any sign, anything from heaven to hell but Ahaz would not.  So, Isaiah said that God would give him a sign.  A virgin would give birth to a son and His name would be Immanuel.  God would send His Son, through the kingly line, to man into man’s mess.  It is no problem for God to speak and show up in man’s problems.  Christmas is God’s sign to us that God is greater than our greatest fears and failures.  Gabriel would tell Mary that “nothing is impossible with God.”  The king could not and would not believe but the young virgin could and did believe.  Believe!  We serve a God of the impossible.

Advent 2020                                      Day 2

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. Micah 5:2

A ruler was to be born in Bethlehem.  Micah prophesied that it would happen 700+ years before Jesus was born.  He wouldn’t come from the most significant city, but that which is insignificant.  God doesn’t need the strongest hand but the weakest heart to accomplish His will.  From the humblest beginnings God does the most honorable things.  A ruler would come from Bethlehem and He would be the ruler of all creation.  He would be God, the ancient of days, and He would be born in Bethlehem, the city of David.  God can begin His work in the smallest and weakest of places.  That’s why it only takes a small decision to see the biggest demonstration of God’s passion and power.  Christ comes to the humblest places to do the honorable work.  Remember that and just start with believing Him.

Advent 2020                                      Day 1

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:15

The first prophecy about Christmas came directly from God.  Speaking to the serpent, our new leader at the time, God speaks to us.  Your day is coming because I am coming someday.  A prophetic word instead of permanent judgment.  The universe was set up to operate through honest decisions, not hurtful deception.  Satan would reap what he sowed and so would man, but a Savior would come to crush the head of the deceiver and deliver the deceived.  Man would be given the opportunity to choose differently and to chose what is good and right and true.  For deception to rule it must continue to deceive.  Truth was coming and He would crush the head of the serpent and the poison of the serpent at the same time.  A serpent holds its poison in its head and delivers that poison into ours.  It would cost Him His life, but it would give us ours back.

The Kitchen Table            1 John Day 25

And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.  Little children, keep yourselves from idols                                      1 John 5:20-21

We live in what we know.  We live in the confidence and understanding of what we love.  Those who have been born of God know the love of God.  And this is what we know.  We know that we have been born of God and that the evil one cannot touch us.  That’s what the love of God does for us.  And we now know that the world lives in darkness and does not know what it means to be loved.  And we know Him who is the true light, life, and love.  We no longer must live in the lies of this world, but we will need to deal with the lust of our flesh.  Keep yourself from idols, things that steal your love.  Fall in love with Jesus and the lusts of the flesh will fall away from you.  Live loving God and you’ll live the life of love.

The Kitchen Table            1 John 5       Day 24

And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

 1 John 5:14-15

Those who live in God’s love ask for God’s love to live in.  The will of God is in the love of God and those who know God’s love will continually ask for God’s love to live in.  They intercede in, with, and for God’s love.  God gives us what He loves as we ask for it.  But there are those who reject God’s love and live in sin that leads to death.  We can’t over-rule their choice and we can’t stop the death of their choices.  We can pray from love for love to come to them.  God loves all men and desires that all would be saved.  Those who are born of God receive the love of God for their lives.  But those who do not receive God’s love cannot know God’s love because they do not believe in God’s love and that brings death into their lives.  We can pray for and possess the life of God if we receive the love of God, but we can’t possess the life of God if we don’t receive the love of God.

The Kitchen Table            1 John 5       Day 23

And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. ¹² Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

1 John 5:11-12

Let there be a testimony.  This life in Jesus is more than thoughts and talk, it’s a testimony of life.  Those who have the testimony of Christ will be a testimony of Christ to the seen and unseen worlds.  Jesus had a testimony.  He testified at His baptism, through His blood and in the breath of the Holy Spirit.  Jesus is legit!  Those three testify that Jesus is the Son of God.  Whoever has that testimony will live that testimony.  The words of our mouths and the walk of our lives will testify to the work of His presence in our lives.  We have life because we have Him and we have Him because we love Him.  There will be a testimony in the house because His testimony is in the heart.

The Kitchen Table            1 John Day 22

For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 1 John 5:4

There it is!  Those who love God overcome the world.  It’s those who love God that overcome.  Therein lies the problem to the victorious Christian life.  We struggle with what we love.  Our struggle with the world is a “love” struggle that impacts our “faith” walk.  You see, we tend to believe or want to believe in the persons and pleasures we love.  The Bible says that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil.  (John 3:19)  Our struggle is with what we love.  We leverage life through what we love.  We put our hope and faith in what we love.  It’s that struggle with what we love that leaves us alive but alone and afraid in a dark world.  Fall in love with God today.  Let His love give you hope that inspires your faith and live in His love today.  The secret to your victory is your love.  Love it all, all He said, He did, and He wants.  Those who love God win.