Jennifer A

The author of Hebrews uses strong warnings in an effort to keep true Christians preserving in their faith. God desires that we move with faith from one day to the next. We cannot leave yesterday’s faith behind, as we need to build upon it with today’s faith. Even though we need constant encouragement in faith, we should be comforted to know that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb 13:8), which means that He is our constant and all we need to do is to stop wavering.

With genuine faith in Christ, you and I can overcome fear even in the midst of the darkest trial. “So we can say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?’” (Heb 13:6)

Brother and sisters, we need to be encouraging one another in faith every single day. When we stand in faith together, we are standing with Jesus. When we endure in faith together, we are enduring with Jesus. God is present with us through our faith until the very end.

Hebrews 3:12-14 NLT

12 Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. 13 You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. 14 For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ.

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for coming into my heart and for making me a new creation in You. Help me to continue to grow each day in my faith, and to be a daily encouragement to other believers for their faith. Fill me, Lord Jesus, with Your wisdom and discernment so that I am not deceived by sin. I want my heart to remain filled with Your everlasting light and to never be hardened by this sinful world. I ask all of this in Your Holy Name, Jesus.

Do you find yourself being drawn to a Biblical figure or Biblical moment, to the point where you spend a good portion of time learning and growing from that person or moment? That tends to happen to me, and more recently I have been drawn to the life, heart, and teachings of our brother Paul.

Paul reminds us within 2 Corinthians 5:17, that when someone becomes a Christian, they become a brand-new person inside; and they are no longer the same anymore, because a new life in Christ has begun! It is within this new life, through salvation, that we begin to understand the blessing of divine forgiveness by God’s grace. We must remember that “If we say that we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the Truth. But, if we confess our sins to Him, He can be depended on to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. And it is perfectly proper for God to do this for us because Christ died to wash away out sins.” (1 John 1:8-9).

In today’s Psalm, David expresses the relief that comes from being forgiven of sin. David sinned with Bathsheba, then he sinned by attempting to cover up his crimes. David initially refused to acknowledge his sin, but once he finally confessed his adultery and murder, the Lord graciously forgave him.

Friends, we are no longer the same as we once were, like Paul reminds us, and we are forgiven of our sins, as David reminds us. So, we must remain obedient to God’s Word. Remember, the world is rebellious and enjoys lawlessness against God’s Word, but we are faithful to follow it and to lead others into the loving and forgiving arms of Jesus.

Psalm 32 NLT

A psalm of David.

1 Oh, what joy for those
whose disobedience is forgiven,
whose sin is put out of sight!
2 Yes, what joy for those
whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt,
whose lives are lived in complete honesty!
3 When I refused to confess my sin,
my body wasted away,
and I groaned all day long.
4 Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me.
My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Interlude

5 Finally, I confessed all my sins to you
and stopped trying to hide my guilt.
I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.”
And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone. Interlude

6 Therefore, let all the godly pray to you while there is still time,
that they may not drown in the floodwaters of judgment.
7 For you are my hiding place;
you protect me from trouble.
You surround me with songs of victory. Interlude

8 The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.
I will advise you and watch over you.
9 Do not be like a senseless horse or mule
that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under control.”

10 Many sorrows come to the wicked,
but unfailing love surrounds those who trust the Lord.
11 So rejoice in the Lord and be glad, all you who obey him!
Shout for joy, all you whose hearts are pure!

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for Your unending forgiveness. If there is anything that I need to be forgiven for, that I have not brought to You, please shine a light on it so that I can lay it down at Your feet. I want to live as one with You and to not carry sin. I love You, Lord. I ask all of this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

Today’s devotion is the first part of Hebrews 11. In the previous chapter, a warning and a word of encouragement were given specifically to “those who have faith”; and now a direct definition of faith and examples are given in a letter to the Hebrews, and to all believers.

So, what is faith? Everyone talks about it, but how many people actually live out the true Biblical meaning of godly faith each and every moment of their life?

We read the “definition” of faith within the first three verses of today’s passage; and it’s clear that faith is not simply knowing a few Bible verses and believing that God exists. Rather, godly faith is based on trust. In order to truly trust God, we have to intimately know Him. The only way we do that is by daily growth in His Word, by understanding our direct oneness with God’s Son, Jesus, through our salvation, by growing in the understanding that our existence is not in this world but is eternal in God’s Kingdom, by our obedience to all that God has revealed through warnings and promises in the Word and not picking and choosing how we live, but by living out ALL of the Word for ALL to witness. Once we are on this path, we are growing in our godly faith.

Below, we see that “by faith” a few Biblical brothers set the example within the Old Testament for us:
· By faith, Abel was commended as righteous (v. 4)
· By faith, Enoch was commended as having pleased God (v. 5)
· By faith, Noah received righteousness (v. 7)

The faith of these men points us directly to our own salvation in Jesus. The only reason anyone can be righteous is because Jesus is righteous and by faith we share in His righteousness. The only way anyone can be pleasing to God, is because Jesus is pleasing to God and by faith, we share in that same spirit of being pleasing to God. Simply put, faith joins us to Jesus. Friends, we want to be joined to Jesus by faith, because in Him and only Him will you and I be carried through the judgment of God. I don’t know about you, but I want my Master to be full of praise and to hear Him say: ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful…’ (Matt 25:21).

Hebrews 11:1-7 NLT
Great Examples of Faith

1 Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. 2 Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation.

3 By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.

4 It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel’s offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith.

5 It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying – “he disappeared, because God took him.” For before he was taken up, he was known as a person who pleased God. 6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

7 It was by faith that Noah built a large boat to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about things that had never happened before. By his faith Noah condemned the rest of the world, and he received the righteousness that comes by faith.

Prayer: Jesus, Thank You for being the One who helps me to grow with You. Please strengthen my faith and keep me focused on eternity with you and make me strong in the spirit against this dark and failing world. I love You, Lord, and I ask this in Your Holy Name, Jesus. Amen.

If today was your last day on earth, what kind of legacy will you leave behind?

The word “legacy” takes on a different meaning for people. Some believe they need to build something grand to leave behind, while others believe they need to preserve something that has been passed down by family. Matthew reminds us that our legacy is a true treasure; “Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” (6:20-21) In other words, our heart will either want our legacy to be of this world and it will ultimately be destroyed; or it will want our legacy to be eternal which will mean that it will be forever connected to Christ.

In today’s passage, Solomon challenges us to consider wisely the legacy we will choose to leave behind for our children and for future generations.

Solomon points us to remember that God is the builder of all things, He watches over all things, and He is the One who gives all things. So, when we take over the building, the watching, and/or the giving, we are doing it all for nothing. “For the Lord gives to His loved ones even while they sleep.” (v.2) If God allows each of our physical systems to operate even while we are sleeping, providing all that is needed to sustain our physical life during rest, why do we not trust Him to provide all that is needed to sustain our physical lives when we are awake? Rather, we often attempt to take the control of our lives in our own hands. God seeks for us to give full control of our lives into His hands.

As you read Psalm 127, remember that these words were written for the community of Israel as they made their way up to Jerusalem and to the temple, it was a reminder to them (and remains a reminder to us today) of God’s covenant promise to His people and His many blessings. We know from history that we must have faith and trust in God to build, watch, and give us each our future plan, because apart from His eternal and perfect plan for each of our lives, our own great worldly achievements are fleeting.

Psalm 127 NLT
God Is Good to His People

1 Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders work for nothing. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the men who watch over it stay awake for nothing. 2 You rise up early, and go to bed late, and work hard for your food, all for nothing. For the Lord gives to His loved ones even while they sleep.

3 See, children are a gift from the Lord. The children born to us are our special reward. 4 The children of a young man are like arrows in the hand of a soldier. 5 Happy is the man who has many of them. They will not be put to shame when they speak in the gate with those who hate them.

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for the plan that You have for my life. Help me, Lord, to submit my own will in order to allow Your will to be done in and through my life. I want to walk out the plan that You have designed especially for me, because I know that it is the best plan. Please forgive me for not always trusting in Your plan for my life. Help to bring me closer to walking out Your desired plan for my life. I want to glorify You, Jesus. I ask all of this in Your Holy Name, Jesus. Amen.

The Apostle Paul began his letter to the church in Colossae by giving thanks in prayer for these faithful brothers and sisters in Christ. Paul had not met these Christians, but he still wanted to be an encouragement to them. He believed it was important for them to know that the same Good News that came to them through their salvation in Christ was going out all over the world and changing lives, just as it had changed their lives. (1:6) He wanted them to know that he and Timothy were continuously praying for their knowledge of God’s will for their lives and for God’s spiritual wisdom and understanding to grow within them. (1:9) He shared in detail about Christ’ supremacy (1:15-20) and reminded them that although they were once far away from God, they now know the Truth and so they must stand firmly on it and allow their roots to grow deeper and deeper to ensure that they never drift away from their relationship and faith in Christ Jesus. (1:21-23)

Today we pick up from that point within Paul’s letter and we see more of his shepherd heart, and how he is suffering for their sake and for the sake of all Christians to come (including you and me). Paul also shines a light on the “mystery of God”: how God has always wanted everyone for His Kingdom (1:26-27) because Christ Himself is God’s mysterious plan, for “In Him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (2:3). Friends, that means that you and I embody the treasures of God’s wisdom and His knowledge because we embody the Spirit of Christ! So, we must hold firm to this Truth and grow each day to deepen our understanding of it so that no one can deceive us, because our hearts are One with Christ! (2:5)

When you and I are born into this world our human-self innately hates to suffer. However, when we are born again in Christ, we have a new life in Him, and we must begin to grow-up in that life. Our Biblical understanding of Christ and His True Gospel message for our lives is crucial, and that is why we need to be in His Word every day. As our faith grows strong in the Truth (2:7), we begin to spiritually understand that all suffering is used by the Lord, He doesn’t want it for us, but we must trust Him to use it for the good of His Kingdom. (Rom 8:28)

Colossians 1:24-2:7 (NLT)
Paul’s Work for the Church

24 I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church. 25 God has given me the responsibility of serving his church by proclaiming his entire message to you. 26 This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God’s people. 27 For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.

28 So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect[a] in their relationship to Christ. 29 That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me.

2:1 I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at Laodicea, and for many other believers who have never met me personally. 2 I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. 3 In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

4 I am telling you this so no one will deceive you with well-crafted arguments. 5 For though I am far away from you, my heart is with you. And I rejoice that you are living as you should and that your faith in Christ is strong.

Freedom from Rules and New Life in Christ

6 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Prayer: Jesus, You are supreme over all of creation. Help me to trust You to reign over all aspects of my being and of my life. I want to continue to grow in my relationship with You so that I can trust You more when times of suffering occur. I want to grow in my spiritual wisdom and knowledge so that I am more firmly rooted in You. I stand against the enemy and anyone or circumstance that he attempts to use to deceive me. May My faith is in You, and You alone, Jesus. I pray all of this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

Happy 4th of July! Today we celebrate our independence as a country, but you and I know that as Christians we should be celebrating our full dependence on the Lord each day. Far too often we like to think that we are independent and can navigate a situation or a period of time within our life without the Lord. But, for those of us who are honest enough to admit that we’ve done that, we know all too well that it never works out. When life is really hard and when we’ve sinned or stepped away from God and the path He has for our life, we need to be quick to respond like David does in today’s passage. David goes right to the heart of the matter, and he does not make any excuses or attempts to justify his own innocence. Rather, he humbly comes before the Lord in fervent prayer and seeks the Lord’s forgiveness, compassion, healing, restoration, and love.

Psalm 6 is one of seven penitential psalms. These are psalms that express confession and seek repentance. We do not know the specific incident in David’s life that is ascribed to this psalm, it could be King Saul wanting to assassinate him (1 Samuel 19:1), or his sin with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 12:9), or the rebellion of his son, Absalom (2 Samuel 15:13). Regardless, the situation is dire enough that David understands that it connects with his physical suffering, and his fear for his own life. Despite a time of fear (v. 6-7), David has faith that God will rescue him and respond to his enemies.

Remember, when life seems too hard, God still loves you beyond measure and He does not want you to helplessly wander anymore. He wants to gently nudge you to grow more and more like Him. So, get on your knees and pour out your heart and soul to the Lord like David did, and then get up and move forward with Jesus in confident assurance of His love and care for your life.

Psalm 6
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by an eight-stringed instrument.

1 O Lord, don’t rebuke me in your anger
or discipline me in your rage.
2 Have compassion on me, Lord, for I am weak.
Heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.
3 I am sick at heart.
How long, O Lord, until you restore me?

4 Return, O Lord, and rescue me.
Save me because of your unfailing love.
5 For the dead do not remember you.
Who can praise you from the grave?

6 I am worn out from sobbing.
All night I flood my bed with weeping,
drenching it with my tears.
7 My vision is blurred by grief;
my eyes are worn out because of all my enemies.

8 Go away, all you who do evil,
for the Lord has heard my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my plea;
the Lord will answer my prayer.
10 May all my enemies be disgraced and terrified.
May they suddenly turn back in shame.

Prayer: Lord, we come before You seeking Your forgiveness, Your compassion, Your healing, Your restoration, and Your love. Thank You for being our guide all of the time, and especially during difficult times. Help us, Lord, to be fully dependent on You every second of every day. We ask this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

We are picking up from Friday in the Book of Ephesians, which we know is about God’s eternal plan in bringing all things together in Christ Jesus. The Apostle Paul does an amazing job of explaining how this plan works, and he includes how God has brought us together as the church and how we are called to a place of “unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son” (v. 13).

You might be thinking, how can I be united with everyone at church when I can’t even begin to relate to some of the people who attend Sunday morning worship? Well, my friends, your differences with people at church are by design; and today’s passage says that our diversity as a church is for a purpose: God’s purpose, which is for all of us, as a united church, to be “mature in the Lord” (v. 13).

Paul is not writing about us just becoming mature individually. Rather, he’s writing about the maturity that the church reaches as a body. Once we reach this place of maturity in the Lord, Paul tells us that “we will no longer be immature like children” (v. 14). As a mature church, “we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church” (v. 15).

When you and I come together, with everyone else in the church, as one united body, Jesus “makes the whole body fit together perfectly” (v. 16). Each of us plays our own part, but our part helps the other parts, so together we are growing and full of the love of Christ Jesus.

Pastor Mary preached yesterday about how we all need to come together in unity as the church for this coming year. If you missed yesterday’s sermon at the park, there is a link to it at the bottom of this devotion.

Ephesians 4:7-16 NLT
Unity in the Body

7 However, he has given each one of us a special gift through the generosity of Christ. 8 That is why the Scriptures say,

“When he ascended to the heights,
he led a crowd of captives
and gave gifts to his people.”

9 Notice that it says “he ascended.” This clearly means that Christ also descended to our lowly world. 10 And the same one who descended is the one who ascended higher than all the heavens, so that he might fill the entire universe with himself.

11 Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. 13 This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.

14 Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. 15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. 16 He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.

Prayer: Jesus, we thank You for being the head of our body, the church. Help us, Lord, to work together to grow in our faith, as Your church, so that we can mature in You. We want to be equipped to do Your work. We ask all of this in Your Holy Name, Jesus. Amen.

Click Here for Sunday Worship at Seminole City Park

Friends, we are going to wrap up the week and there will still be some discussion about the Spirit; only, now it is not just about your life in the Spirit, it’s about how all believers are bound together in the Spirit.

In chapters 1 – 3 in Ephesians, Paul teaches about the believers’ new status as the children of God: how we are forgiven, adopted into God’s Family, we are redeemed from the slavery of sin, loved by God, strengthened with His power, and we are recipients of the riches of Christ Jesus.

So, when Paul begins today’s passage with “therefore” we know that what he is saying comes in light of what he has already spoken (in chapters 1-3). Paul now urges us, as believers, to walk in a new way. He is connecting our faith to practice. He is basically saying of course you know the message of Jesus, now you need to also know the person of Jesus. Knowing Jesus, means we are able to get closer and closer to walking out our faith and putting it into practice. Also, we need to do this together, as the body (or church) of believers. This is our commissioned way of living as one body and one Spirit, in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 4:1-6 NLT
Unity in the Body

1 Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. 2 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. 3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. 4 For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future.

5 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
6 one God and Father of all,
who is over all, in all, and living through all.

Prayer: Thank You, Jesus, for loving each of us despite our faults. Thank You for Your forgiveness. Help us, Lord, to be one united body in Your Spirit. Help us to be patient with one another, and to put our love for each other ahead of anything else. We ask this in Jesus’ Name. Amen