The Kingdom of God

 

The Kingdom of God is made without human hands and includes every person who humbles him or herself under the mighty hand of God (1 Peter 5:6-9; James 4:10).

Salvation gives us the keys to the Kingdom, as coheirs with Christ (Matthew 16:19; Romans 8:17). We inherit everything God gave to Jesus through His obedience on the cross.

Kingdom living affords us serenity and contentment, in spite of our trials. We learn to give thanks to God our Father regardless of our circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18; Philippians 4:12, James 1:2).

Dwelling in the Kingdom of God on this earth guarantees that we will flourish in the true riches of life. We love the Lord our God with our whole heart, soul, body and strength; and He works out every issue for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28). 

In God's Kingdom, Christ loves the church as a husband should love his wife (Ephesians 5:22-32). Our marriage vows signify to both mates an indissoluble pledge, which divorce-proofs our relationship.

This way, our children recognize our genuine faith and see the hand of God in our life. This causes them to want these same blessings in their life as well.

They marry Godly mates and raise our grandchildren in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4; Psalm 145:11-13). They enjoy the continual blessings of living in God's Kingdom.

Often, God will lead us by His Spirit in ways that do not make human sense. His ways are higher than ours and He has an eternal purpose for us regardless of our earthly circumstances.

This requires that we relinquish our human effort and understanding in order to continue doing His Kingdom work. When we please God in all of our ways, He makes even our enemies to dwell in peace with us (Proverbs 16:7).

Prayer:

Father God, You rule over all the kingdoms of this world from Your throne in Heaven (Psalm 47:7-8). All greatness, power, glory, honor, victory and majesty belong to You. Everything in heaven and on earth belong to You. You provide us with esteem and wealth, power and productivity, strength and success (1 Chronicles 29:11-12).

We are so glad that Your Kingdom abides forever and ever, and that we will spend eternity in Your physical presence as well as Your spiritual presence, which we enjoy now (Psalm 9:7, 45:6, 103:19). Thank You for Christ in us and for placing us in Christ, to completely surround and immerse us in His presence.

Thought for the Day:

God's dominion is from generation to generation since the beginning of time and His everlasting Kingdom endures forever and ever. - Daniel 4:34-35

God is Our Defense

There is little to no peace or security in our current world economy and civilization. We never know what catastrophe the news will publicize with the rising of the sun. The atrocities we humans perpetrate on one another are unthinkable; yet, they happen every day. Since sin entered the picture through Adam and Eve, wickedness abounds (Matthew 24:12).

The pride, selfishness and rebellion of the human heart allow sin to perpetuate throughout every generation (Romans 8:6). In some twisted way, people who are hurting will hurt other people to try to alleviate their own pain. Even if we distance our self from those who hurt us, we will only find true peace when we surrender our life to Jesus Christ and forgive our enemies (Philippians 4:4-8).

Trusting God, with gratitude in our heart and on our lips for all He already did for us, will allow us to transcend the daily grind of life and move us into the realm of viewing life from an eternal perspective. Then the peace of God, which cannot be found in the world or by thinking about carnal aspects of life, will flood our soul with serenity (John 14:27).

We will experience peace, even in the most horrific earthly trials, as we draw near to God and put our complete faith in His faithfulness (1 Peter 2:23). We gain our perspective by focusing on Jesus' example through His betrayal, persecution, crucifixion and resurrection. He teaches us to suffer victoriously and He reminds us that Heaven awaits us in all of its glory (Hebrews 12:2).

God is our defense, no matter what we experience or how people treat us. If we trust in Him, live for Him and love Him with our whole being, He turns everything around for our ultimate good (Psalm 94:22; Romans 8:28). As we experience God's will in the mundane circumstances of our day, we will also sense His presence during our trials. Christ in us will overcome obstacles for us and He will get all of the glory (1 Corinthians 10:31).

Prayer:

Father God, Your family is not a select race of perfectly mature and spiritual people, but it includes the outcast, the weak, the broken-hearted and the infirmed. You do not exclude anyone who calls on Your name for salvation, regardless of our human heritage or accomplishments. We are no longer strangers, but are included in Your family (Ephesians 2:19-22). The weary and distressed find rest under the shadow of Your wings (Psalm 91: 1,4).

Thought for the Day:

God is our only defense and our rock of refuge. - Psalm 94:22

The High Praises

 

As we praise the Lord, we exalt Him and bless His name each moment of our day, for as long as we live and then on into eternity. He is great and so worthy of all of our adoration. His greatness is incomprehensible to our finite mind (Psalm 145:1-3). His name will endure for eternity and every generation will know Him as Lord (Psalm 135:13).

Everyone that has breath praises Him in worship, in nature, with musical instruments and with dancing (Psalm 150:1-6). Each generation will communicate His works to the next, and they will declare His mighty acts to each individual, as well as to the nations, which He blesses (Psalm 145:4-6, 21).

Therefore, we should sing praises to the Lord our God, while we live (Psalm 146:1-2). The Lord longs to be gracious to His people. He makes every effort to show compassion to us. He is the God of justice and mercy, and we are blessed if we wait for His timing in everything we say and do (Isaiah 30:18). Singing His praises is good and beautiful.

God is the stability of all times, and we can trust in Him. He is a wealth of wisdom, provision and deliverance to those who put all of their faith in Him. Honoring the Lord is the key to receiving this treasure (Isaiah 33:6). We praise Him for His great mercy, which He gave us through His new birth; and for His living hope, which He provided through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. (Psalm 147:1).

Prayer:

Father God, we bless You, because You hear our prayers. You are our strength and protection. Our soul trusts in You, because You are always ready to help us. Our heart exceedingly rejoices in the beauty of Your holiness and we give thanks to You in continual praises (Psalm 28:6-7). You are enthroned between the angels and You alone are the God over every kingdom and nation of this earth, which You created (Isaiah 37:16).

Thought for the Day:

The high praises of God are in our mouth, and His Holy Word is in our hands, as we hide it within our heart. - Psalm 119:11, 149:6; Hebrews 4:12

Giving God Control

 

There are people who live in every generation who want to know God. They explore several venues provided by Satan and his minions, and many are taken captive by empty philosophies and spiritual sounding half-truths, which come from human traditions and the god of this world, rather than from God Himself (Colossians 2:8). These people stop short of the truth; and, instead, cheerfully believe a lie.

Then there are those who claim to know Christ as their Savior, but they have not made Him the Lord of their life. He is their helper and their insurance policy in times of trouble; they trust Him and they believe in Him, but He is not their Master and King. They have not yet come to a place of absolute surrender of every known area of their life to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

However, if we want to live in a place of perfect peace, we will keep our mind constantly in tune with the Spirit of God (Isaiah 26:3). We will do the works, which God created for us to do. We will seek His pleasure in all things, rather than to seek our own pleasure in this life (Ephesians 2:10). Believers realize that the temporal, earthly aspects of this life are all passing away and only the eternal components will last.

Believers are living stones, fitted together into the dwelling place of God (1 Peter 2:5). We walk worthy of the calling He gives us (Ephesians 4:1). We avoid sin and deprivation by walking toward the Light of life (John 1:4; Matthew 5:16). Jesus died in our place and gives us the victory over both sin and death (1 Corinthians 15:57). We have faith in His faithfulness and walk in His divine power within us (2 Peter 1:3).

Prayer:

Father God, I totally surrender every part of my life to You. I want You to have it all. I want to walk in Your divine will and to do the works You created for me before I was ever born (Ephesians 2:10). I devote my every waking moment to You to use at work, at home and at play. Fill my heart with Your love for those You want to love through me.

Thought for the Day:
Everything in our life, which we surrender to God’s control, will come back to us refined and renewed.

God in the Darkest Hour

Our human will drives us to retain control of our life and to live as we choose, rather than to live in submission to anyone else. We often feel the need to manage our own life, as well as the life of all those who have influence over our existence in any way. We do not want anyone to disturb the orderly peace we create in our sphere of reality. If anyone tries to disrupt our serenity, we fight them with our whole being.

In reality, we can never attain any amount of true peace through our own vigilance over the order of our life. Our only victory is in submission to God. He teaches us to respond in kindness to those who attempt to abuse us, because we rest in the fact that God will use all of our trials for His glory. When the situation is impossible to bear, we can remove our self from an unsafe or unsavory situation. There, we wait on God to work out everything for our benefit (Romans 8:28).

There is absolutely no reason to divorce another person, even for sexual infidelity. God allows divorce in this case because of uncleanness; but if possible, we simply move out in order to have some space and protection from the situation. God desires reconciliation in every case, where both parties submit to one another and do His will. However, if one person does not want to reconcile, God will always protect His Saints in their darkest hour.

God will influence the offender’s decisions, but He will never force His will on them. He has unconditional patience, giving the hardened person plenty of time to repent and to reconcile. Even Believers, who are imprisoned for their faith and unable to escape, find that He sustains them from the inside out. He gives us His supernatural comfort and joy in our darkest hour, which surpasses all of life's horrifying circumstances, which we are forced to experience (Philippians 4:6-8).

Prayer:

Father God, teach us to submit to You rather than to attempt to control our own life. Help us to bear the unsavory circumstances we encounter in this life and to be a witness for You through it all. We will walk by Your Spirit on the narrow road to Heaven. Through Christ in us, help us to influence this generation, which is walking on a wide road that leads to destruction. Use us in our sphere of influence to point people to Jesus, so they will choose to end their life of abuse, addictions, divorce and devastation.

Thought for the Day:

Authentic Christians live in quietness and confidence, which is our strength; and we dwell in peace and safety forever, regardless of our circumstances. – Isaiah 30:15, 32:17-18