Tucked Securely Under God's Wings

God created us in order to share with us His awesome blessings and provision. He gave us Paradise to enjoy and will once again restore the whole earth to this euphoric condition (Revelation 20-21).

The message of the gospel is senseless to those who are lost without Christ as their Savior. In their pride and rebellion, they condemn themselves with their unbelief (John 3:18).

However, for those of us who trust Christ's redemptive work on the cross, it changes our lives (1 Corinthians 1:18-19). God's love gives us a secure foundation on which to place our faith (John 3:16-17).

As we experience and come to understand God's love, we are filled with adoration, gratitude and love for Him (1 John 4:8). As branches, we are nourished through the Vine of Christ by His love, which is our foundational roots (John 15:5).

God inspired the writers of the Bible to relate both the successes and failures of His Saints. By their examples, we learn hope, reassurance and patience (Romans 15:4).

He fills us to overflowing with the presence of His Spirit (Ephesians 3:19), which replaces our carnal nature. We gradually experience His spiritual fruit and divine nature infiltrating our thoughts, choices and feelings.

We need not fear the terror of night or the arrow that flies by day (Psalm 91:5; Ephesians 6:16). In Him we rejoice always, pray continually and see the seed for a miracle in every adventure through which He leads us (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

Prayer:

Father God, we cannot help but shed tears of overwhelming joy as we sit in Your presence. Your love encompasses us on every side (Romans 8:35-38). Your wisdom protects us in every decision (Proverbs 4:5; James 1:5). Your Spirit guides our thoughts, words and deeds (John 16:13). Your angels carry us so that we do not even stub our toe (Psalm 91:12).

Thank You for the fellowship of Your Body and the guidance of Your Word, which comfort us during this life of affliction. Thank You for making us heirs with Christ of Your entire Kingdom. Eternity is not long enough for us to have the time to give You all the praise and gratitude, which You deserve.

Thought for the Day:

We are secure in every circumstance as long as we trust God and are tucked safely under the covering of His wings; even in sickness and death He gives us wisdom, provision and protection. - Psalm 91:4

There is No Condemnation

 

 

Satan loves to use condemnation to defeat God’s Saints. His condemnation causes us to sink into the quicksand of shame with no visible way out. We see our faults and are burdened by our failings. Satan plants lies in our soul during each perceived failing; and we readily believe them, because of our feelings of hopelessness.

 

God, on the other hand, does not condemn us, He convicts us. Conviction reveals our guilt with a desire for repentance. Repentance means to turn away from sin and move toward holiness. Even if we never commit some gross sin of immorality or murder, we are still sinners (Romans 3:23). No amount of good works or self-effort can free us from the penalty of our sins.

 

Trusting in Jesus is our only means of salvation (John 14:6). His Holy Spirit breathes God’s breath of life into us and our spirit is no longer dead in sin. We completely surrendered our goals, dreams and aspiration in life to God’s will for us (Ephesians 2:10). We serve God with authentic devotion each moment of the day. We no longer desire a life of worldly pursuits and willful sin.

 

God’s Spirit converts our sinful nature to the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). We realize that God’s presence is within us and the Holy Spirit is sanctifying us. We are truly saved from hell and going to heaven (2 Corinthians 13:5-6; Lamentations 3:40-42). God removes our condemnation by washing us as clean as snow, and giving us a new heart and spirit within us (Ezekiel 36:25-27). 

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for washing us clean, and giving us righteous desires and Your Spirit to direct us (Colossians 2:13-15). Thank You also that Jesus nailed our sins to the cross and blotted out the charges proved against us. Remind us not to live for You in our human effort. Help us to allow Christ to richly dwell in us as Your Body, so that whatever we do in word or deeds, it is all done for Your glory and honor (Colossians 3:16-18).

 

Thought for the Day:

God took away Satan's power over our life and openly displayed to the whole world the triumph of Christ over Him; so that there is no longer any condemnation for those who love God and who are called to serve Him in His purpose for our life. – Romans 8:1; Colossians 2:15

 

End-Time Events

It is so exciting to live in today's world. Many Biblical prophecies are falling into place all at the same time. In the year of 1948, Israel became a nation, the Roman Empire revised in the European Union, and religious leaders launched The World Council of Churches (Jeremiah 30:1-31:40; Isaiah 11:12; Daniel 2: 41:42). God was lining up everything to set the stage for His end-time events.

God's prophetic Words are fulfilled more and more rapidly in these last days. Natural disasters increase every year in record number and magnitude (Matthew 24:7; Luke 21:25). Russia made a pact with the Middle East and will come against Israel (Ezekiel 38-39). Technology can broadcast around the world now, and everyone can see events simultaneously, no matter where they live (Revelation 11:9).

A one world government and currency is also discussed in order to unite the world (Revelation 13:2-7). The Anti-Christ is the first of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse (Revelations 6:2). The Anti-Christ will make peace between Israel and the Middle East, which no Politician has ever been able to do. He will set up the one world government and eventually set up His throne in the Jewish Temple and desecrate God's house (Matthew 24:15).

We all experience tribulation in our lives every day; however, the Bible describes these as just "the beginning of sorrows" (Matthew 24:8). Jesus describes the Great Tribulation period in Matthew 24:21. God uses the Great Tribulation Period for three reasons: (1) To judge the ungodly nations (2) To put an end to Satan and his demons, and (3) To save Israel.

Prayer:

Father God, all through the Bible, You warn us about the time of Great Tribulation described as "the day of the Lord", "the day of Jesus Christ", "that great and terrible day", “the day of God’s vengeance”, "the great day of God’s wrath", "the hour of His judgment" or the “time of Jacob’s trouble” (Isaiah 34:8; 63:1-6; Jeremiah 30:7; Revelation 6:17, 14:7). I pray that the casual Bible reader will plainly see these references and realize them as warnings. You never send judgment without warning, because You are a God of compassion and grace. However, You are also a righteous God of justice and You never lie (Numbers 23:19).

Thought for the Day:

God will not pour out His wrath on His Saints. The Lord always delivers His people and reserves the punishment of the unjust until the coming Day of Judgment. - 2 Peter 2:9

The Flip Side of Death

 

 

 

We all lived as children of wrath in the spirit of disobedience (Ephesians 2:2-3). Our father was the devil (John 8:44). We were lost in sin and owed their wages of death, which we could not pay (Romans 3:23, 6:23). Yet, God gave us the free gift of His Son, Jesus, who died to pay our sin debt and to bring salvation to each one of us. By His Spirit, Christ now dwells within our renewed spirit and allows us to partake of His divine nature both now on this earth and for eternity (2 Peter 1:4).

 

Now, the only way Satan has any influence over our life is if we give it to him by submitting our thoughts, words or deeds to him. Jesus defeated Satan at the cross of Calvary and He will come again to take all authority back from Satan, the current god of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4). Jesus will eventually lock the devil in the lake of torment forever. That is the fate of everyone who refuses to come to faith in Christ Jesus (Revelation 20:15).

 

On the other hand, those who surrender to Jesus are now joint heirs with Him (John 8:17), and will inherit everything God has in store for Him. Death is not an end, but the beginning of our true life. Our last breath on this earth is followed by our very next breath in Heaven. We graduate from the school of life and are carried into heaven by the angels to receive our diploma into the eternal Kingdom of God (Luke 16:22). We passed every test, and earned our rewards from the King.

 

God rejoices in the death of His Saints (Psalm 116:15). He is our guide and our refuge, even through death (Psalm 48:14; Proverbs 14:32). The day of our death is actually better than the day of our birth (Ecclesiastes 7:1), because we are no longer separated from God. We dwell in the reality of His Kingdom forever with all the Saints that have gone on before us along with those who will come after us. We will never die, because we take on the immortal aspect of angels, and we are the sons of God, the Body of Christ, whom He raised from death into new life (Luke 20:36).

 

Prayer:

Father God, our body, soul and spirit are filled with joy. We know You will never leave us among the dead. You will not allow Your beloved children to rot in the grave. Thank You for Your many joys in this earthly life, which You bestow on us. Our most exquisite pleasure is to enjoy Your eternal Presence both now and in eternity (Psalm 16:9-11). Create in us a clean heart, and renew our spirit until we come to spend eternity with You (Psalm 51:10).

 

Thought for the Day:

We are confident in the fact that if we are absent from our body, we will undoubtedly be with the Lord. – 2 Corinthians 5:8