Hosea 14:1-2 “Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord; say to him, “Take away all iniquity; accept what is good.”
Continuing Pastor Kyle’s Message on God’s love for us, explaining that our Creator Father God wants every decision in our life to be made with Him; every moment and portion. When tempted to do things the human way, choose God’s way. There is a tendency to try and keep everyone around us appeased and happy, despite God’s way. We have to choose between “chasing after the wind” in the vain pursuit of being in with the “in-crowd” or pursuing what is pleasing in the sight of the Lord.
Ephesians 5:8-10 “For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”
2 Corinthians 5:9 “Whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please Him.
1 Thessalonians 4:1 “Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more.”
With all our technology advances today, it has never been easier to live a life away from God. Cell phones, tablets and laptop computers; the Internet, live-streaming videos, online newsfeed, anytime social media, real-time gaming, YouTube and Googling vie for our attention and add to our busyness with more distractions from God’s love, until a crisis or tragedy arises. When we take our eyes off of God, and onto what everyone else has and are doing, we develop a self-centered, unrealistic expectation of our life. Do not forget God; He’s right there with you always. We must remember what Matthew 1:23 says, “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).” Make the choice to stop “chasing the wind” and lovingly and prayerfully make the choice to gather, praise, worship and live in dedication, devotion and desire for the ways of God’s.
1 Corinthians 15:54-55 “When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
When tempted to do things the old “fallen” way, choose the new “with God” way, which is foreign to the sinful flesh nature and the God-rejecting world system. The devil is a scheming trickster, who tempts and deceives to steal, kill and destroy souls by turning hearts away from God, creating a real “run and grab everything you feel that you need or want” life mentality today in our culture. But, sinful pleasure are both temporary and fleeting at best. And we should know that if we pick a fight with God, you can make a bet on who is going to win. Do not identify with the pre-transformation self, but with the regenerated and post-transformation child of God and citizen of Heaven. Those sinful old ways of the natural man or woman lead to bondage, exile, death and eternal punishment. God’s way leads to godly freedom, real joy, true peace and eternal life. When tempted to think that our lives are bad, remember that God cares. We have a past, but we now have the present and a future, and God wants to live and think by the new forgiven and saved way of life now.
John 15:13 “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.”
We were spiritually dead in sin, but Jesus Christ conquered sin and death for us. God is in the life resurrection business. But, we cannot just model Christ with our life; we must take “words” and tell others of the love of God. It seems like we can do church on our own, but the community of Believers must be working and living the People of God life together and in inter-personal relationships, building the body of Christ, leaning, growing, maturing and impacting our culture and decreasing the population of Hell – all for the glory of God. Remember, live and communicate the love of God.
Hosea 14:9 “Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them; for the ways of the Lord are right, and the upright walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them.”
In Christ, Brian
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