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Bearingthecross
Saturday, 3 July 2010
Daily Devonational

Today's devontional comes from thebible.net webpage, permission was granted as stated on the site.

Our Dress In Worship
By Ron Boatwright

     Even though worship is not a "dress parade", many times we become sloppy, and revealing in the way we dress for worship.  Our clothes do contribute to the emphasis we place on worship to God.  This does not mean we have to wear fine and expensive clothes.  But the way we dress should be in keeping with the dignity of the occasion.

     God tells us in 1 Timothy 2:9-10, "In like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation…which is proper for women professing godliness with good works."  Modest clothing is the way women who are "professing godliness" dress.  Certainly a woman or man whose clothing is not modest is not professing godliness by the way they dress.  As Christians we should not dress like the world, with their revealing midriff attire.

     A woman who wears clothing that exposes herself to men is contributing to their sin of lust.  Our Lord says in Matthew 5:28, "But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."  She becomes guilty of contributing to his sin of adultery, so she also becomes guilty.  In our actions as well as the clothing we wear, 1 Thessalonians 5:22 says, "Abstain from all appearance of evil."

     Some think they have to follow the style and fashion of the world, regardless of how short and revealing or inappropriate clothing gets.  But we are told in Romans 12:2, "And do not be conformed to this world."  Why?  Because this world is going to be lost, and if we conform ourselves to this world we will also be lost with it.  We are "to keep ourselves unspotted from the world" (James 1:27).

     When we worship we are actually in the presence of the Lord.  He deserves only our very best.  We are told in Romans 12:1, "That you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God".  Our dress should show a moderate opinion of our own value.  Our dress should be pure, proper, chaste, and decent.  It should not call attention to ourselves because it is showy, sloppy or lewd.  Let’s honor the Lord with the way we dress.


 http://www.netbiblestudy.net/bulletin/


Posted by bearingthecross at 9:18 AM EDT
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Friday, 2 July 2010
Daily Devonational

Todays devonational comes from the gospelway.com webpage: permission to use as stated on the webpage.

Why Do People Misunderstand the Bible?

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In Mark 7:14 Jesus said, "Hear Me, everyone, and understand." Yet today people will dismiss plain Bible teaching about moral issues (such as homosexuality, divorce, or abortion) or about salvation from sin or the church because they say the teaching is too confusing or difficult to understand.

Why don't people understand? It is not because the Bible is so unclear. Jesus expected people to understand His teaching, and Paul said: "...do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is" (Ephesians 5:17; see also 2 Timothy 3:16,17).

But some don't understand because they do not study diligently. "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures..." (Matthew 22:29).

Others misunderstand because they accept teachings of men who disagree with the Scriptures. "And in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men" (Matthew 15:9). Such teachings often come from false teachers dressed in sheep's clothing who are really ravenous wolves (Matthew 7:13,14).

But often people do not understand the Bible simply because they do not like what it says. "Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their heart and turn, so that I should heal them" (Matthew 13:15). When the Bible does not say what some folks want to hear, they just conclude it is all too confusing and you cannot really understand it anyway!

People who want to please God must "search the Scriptures daily" with an open mind, like the honest Bereans in Acts 17:11.

To please God, we must know the truth, and that truth is found in God's word.

For more information on this subject, please visit our Bible Instruction web site at www.gospelway.com/instruct/ and study our in-depth articles there about the importance of Bible study, how to study the Bible, and the danger of human authority in religion.

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(c) Copyright David E. Pratte, 2/5/2005

 

 


Posted by bearingthecross at 9:39 AM EDT
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Thursday, 1 July 2010
Daily Devonational

Today's Devonational comes from the truth for the world webpage; "phophesy of peace"

An excerpt: "THE PROPHESY OF PEACE

Peace, perfect peace -- we all seek peace. General Douglas MacArthur once said, "Men since the beginning of time have sought peace. Military alliances, balances of power, leagues of nations -- all, in turn, failed, leaving the only path to be by way of the crucible of war. The utter destructiveness of war now blots out this alternative." Truly the only path to peace, true peace, perfect peace, peace within, is the path that takes us to Jesus Christ.

To read the full article go to:  http://www.tftw2.org/Articles/prophesyofpeace.htm


Posted by bearingthecross at 11:39 AM EDT
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Wednesday, 30 June 2010
Daily Devonational

Today's Devonational is part 2 of the lesson from Truth for the world" goodness of God"

An excerpt: "Oh that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!" That expression is a worthy wish for the world, that all might recognize the goodness of God and respond to it in loving obedience. In our study together last time, we looked at the goodness of God as it is depicted to us by the Psalmist in Psalm 107. As we concluded, we were examining the verse we just noticed, where the Psalmist expressed the desire that all would praise the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works. This expression is repeated four times in Psalm 107. Last time we noticed it in verse 8, and then we looked at the verse that followed it, where the psalmist declared: "For he satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness" (v. 9).

Read the rest of the article here: http://www.tftw2.org/Articles/goodnessofGod2.htm


Posted by bearingthecross at 11:19 AM EDT
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Tuesday, 29 June 2010
Daily Devonational

Today's Devonational comes from the truth for the world webpage, entitled: goodness of God.
Its a two part lesson, so today will part1, and tomorrow will be part2

An Excerpt from part 1: "Every new day gives us reason for expressing our gratitude to our God, Who is truly alive and has made possible all things worth having in this life and in the life to come. Many may respond to the goodness of God in various ways, yet the Scriptures tell us the goodness of God should lead us to repentance (Rom. 2:4). In Psalm 107, the Psalmist expresses some very beautiful and meaningful thoughts that ought to remind us of the goodness of God and what our response to that goodness should be: "O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good: for His mercy endures for ever."
Read the rest here: http://www.tftw2.org/Articles/goodnessofGod1.htm

 


Posted by bearingthecross at 11:01 AM EDT
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Monday, 28 June 2010
Daily Devonational

Todays Devonational comes from the Gospel Minute Newsletter dated: Aug 14, 2009


An excerpt: "When God Speaks, Listen!
No man has truly faced the realities of his
existence who has not wondered about his reason
for being here. Surely
God had a far more noble
purpose for our creation
than for us merely to
occupy a little space for a
short time, and vanish
into oblivion."

To read the rest of the article go to: http://www.wfcoc.org/WFCoC/Minutes_2009_files/gm081409.pdf
(its in PDF format)


Posted by bearingthecross at 11:12 AM EDT
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Sunday, 27 June 2010
Daily Devonational

Today's devonational comes from thebible.net article entitled: A father's love;

An excerpt from the article: "Seeing our terrible plight, the Heavenly Father did NOT abandon us, but rather He sent His Son to our rescue. The Son of God reached out to us urging us to cling to Him for our salvation. In order to rescue us from our sins, the Son of God gave His life. He died - so that we might live!

Read the rest of the story on their page: http://www.thebible.net/study/articles/AFathersLove-das.html


Posted by bearingthecross at 10:38 AM EDT
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Saturday, 26 June 2010
Daily Devonational

To Resolve Conflict--START
by Robert J. Young
©, 2003, Robert J. Young
[permission is given to reprint with credit noted]
The first step in resolving conflict is to disagree with respect and communication. Here are five easily remembered helps. Other words in each step are boldened to suggest alternate words you may wish to remember as part of the acronym. Why not START today to resolve the conflicts of your life?

1. Stop. Take a moment to breathe deeply. Take a moment to pray. Slow down the process. This will give you time to redirect and keep yourself from responses that will only intensify the conflict. This is the first step toward controlling temper and avoiding whining, nagging, arguing, challenging, excusing, or blaming.

2. Think. Put your mind in gear. Why is it important to resolve this conflict? What kinds of talk will be appropriate? What are your motives? What words will be most helpful?

3. Accept. Accept the situation as it is. Thinking clearly about the situation will help you appeal to the other person in an honorable way. Use an appropriate voice, aware of body language, and be ready to listen to the other person's viewpoint.

4. Response. The relationship that enables genuine resolution is characterized by humility and understanding. The goal in conflict resolution is the reestablish relationship. Relationship does not depend upon agreement. It is important to realize that whether or not agreement is reached concerning a particular point, the relationship can remain healthy.

5. Thanksgiving. Remember to include God in the process again. Among Christians, a most helpful conclusion to the process is the opportunity to pray together.

 


Posted by bearingthecross at 11:14 AM EDT
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Friday, 25 June 2010
Daily Devonational

A Word To The House of Israel
Kevin Cauley

And God said unto Ezekiel “Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them. For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel” (Ezekiel 3:4,5). And God said unto Jeremiah “Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak” (Jeremiah 1:7). And God said moreover to Jeremiah “Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD…” (Jeremiah 2:2). And God said through Isaiah, “Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me” (Isaiah 1:2). And God said through Jeremiah “O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD” (Jeremiah 22:29). And God said to Ezekiel “Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the LORD” (Ezekiel 13:2).

And God said concerning his word to the Israelites through Isaiah “This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear” (Isaiah 28:12). So, God said through Jeremiah that he would send destruction upon the Israelites “Because they have not hearkened to my words, saith the LORD, which I sent unto them by my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but ye would not hear, saith the LORD” (Jeremiah 29:19). And God, through Ezekiel, tells us why he would do such a thing. “Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not: for they are a rebellious house” (Ezekiel 12:2).

And God explains more about this rebellious people, “That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD” (Isaiah 30:9). God said, “I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts” (Isaiah 65:2). God further says, “But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone” (Jeremiah 5:23). And God says to Ezekiel “Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day” (Ezekiel 2:3).

Brethren, we are spiritual Israel (Romans 9:6-13; Galatians 6:16). Is it a wonder that the Holy Spirit through Paul would charge Timothy and all other gospel preachers until the end to “Preach the word; be urgent in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure the sound doctrine; but, having itching ears, will heap to themselves teachers after their own lusts; and will turn away their ears from the truth, and turn aside unto fables” (2 Timothy 4:2-4). Brethren, that time has come. “Preach the


From the preacherfiles.com webpage with permission to use as stated on the site.


Posted by bearingthecross at 10:05 AM EDT
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Thursday, 24 June 2010

Now Playing: Daily Devonational

Doing God’s Will
By Ron Boatwright
     How do we make sure that we are among the few who are saved and not among the many who are lost (Matthew 7:13-14)?  Jesus says in Matthew 7:21-23, "Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven.  Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?  And then will I declare to them, I never knew you, depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness".  If we believe and call Jesus, "Lord, Lord", we are still lost if we have not done God’s will.

     On Judgment Day many will be pleading with Jesus, calling him Lord, Lord, and reminding him of the many wonderful works that they had done in His name, but He will say unto them, "I never knew you, depart from Me you who practice lawlessness".  Why?  Why?  They had not done the will of the Father in heaven.  The worst thing that will ever be said to an individual is when the Lord on Judgment Day says to the majority of people, "Depart from Me, I never knew you".  There will be no appeal to this decision.  We have to get it right the first time.

     These people in the above scripture seemed to be honest, but they were honestly mistaken as the majority of people are today.  Apparently they were good people, because they had "done many wonderful works".  But they had not done the will of the Father, which is in heaven.  No single condition, that God imposes, can be ignored.  God has no non-essential commands.  When we fail to obey a command of God, we have just broken it.  We must obey God by doing what God says to do, when God says to do it, how God says to do it, and for the reason God says to do it.  Nothing is more important than pleasing God by doing His will so that we can go to Heaven.  God’s will is found right in our Bibles.

 

From the:  http://www.netbiblestudy.net/bulletin  
With permission to use from author as stated on the webpage.


Posted by bearingthecross at 10:23 AM EDT
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