Philippians 3 - What a perfect message for the day before the New Year begins... my bible titles it "The Goal of Life"!   What is that goal?   To.. "lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus... the goal.. the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."  

Like Paul, it is a goal that lays ahead and so we let go of the past.

 It is goal that cannot be accomplished by our own efforts, genealogy, or righteousness.

 It is a goal that comes by faith alone, realizing that everything else is worthless garbage.

We can only wait for that day.. when He transforms us from "the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself." 

My goal is then to  "worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus.."  
To be found in Him.
To know Him.
To know the "power of His resurrection". 
To know the "fellowship of His sufferings". 
To be "conformed to His death". 

To keep "pressing on". 
To forget" what lies behind". 
To reach "forward to what lies ahead". 
To watch and wait "eagerly" for His coming.

Father in heaven, thank You for the ending of another year and anticipation for a new beginning.
Watch over us.  Keep us in Your loving arms.  Fill us with Your Spirit and draw us closer to Your heart.  Complete in us all the good works that You have planned for us.  For we once again turn our lives over to You and say, "Your will be done".  Amen.

Philippians 1-2 Paul's letter to the Philippians is like to that of Ephesians.. calling out the church to walk the worthy walk, in Christ.   Paul, like a loving father, wants to see his spiritual children persevere and stand firm in their faith.  His prayer and his message for them includes:

Abounding love.
Abounding knowledge and discernment.
Sincerity and blamelessness.
One spirit and mind.
Encouragement in Christ.
Consolation of love.
Fellowship in the Spirit
Unity in thinking, love, and purpose.
Humility of mind, mutual respect and care for one another.
The attitude of Christ in humility and obedience.
Doing all things without "grumbling or disputing".
Being" blameless and innocent children of God."
"Holding fast the word of life."
Rejoicing and sharing joy.

This is a wonderful prayer list!

Father in heaven, strengthen us by Your Spirit in our inner beings, so that we can walk in a worthy manner, following the example of our Precious Lord Jesus.  Fill us with these fruits of Your Spirit, with love, understanding, patience, humility, innocence, and joy as we grow in true knowledge of the Lord, who gave Himself for us.  Thank You for speaking to my heart today.  O how precious You are!

Amen.

Philippians 1: 6  "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus."

I am reading a book of Spurgeon's  communion addresses.  This morning I have been reading a portion of the sermon titled "Redeemed souls freed from Fear" based on the verse in Isaiah 43:1 "Fear not: for I have redeemed thee."   Spurgeon writes about how the fact that we have been redeemed by the sacrifice of the Beloved Son, means that He has redeemed us out of trouble, out of poverty,  and out of our sense of insignificance.   It is in our sense of personal insignificance that we are troubled, Spurgeon writes.  We think we are too small for God to think about.  But we are mistaken!

"I believe that our greatest miseries spring from those little worries which we hesitate to bring to our heavenly Father. Our gracious God puts and end to all such thoughts as these by saying, 'Fear not: for I have redeemed thee.' 

You are not of such small account as you suppose. 

The Lord would never be wasteful of His sacred expenditure.  He bought you with a price, and therefore He sets great store by you.

Listen to what the Lord says, 'Since thou wast precious in My sight, thous hast been honorable , and I have loved thee: therefore I will give men for thee, and people for they life.' 

 It is amazing that the Lord should think so much of us as to give Jesus for us. .. Know ye not that His only-begotten Son entered the world, and became a man? The man Christ Jesus has a name at which every knee shall bow, and He is so dear to the Father, that for His sake, His chosen ones are accepted, and are made to enjoy free access to Him." 

It is because of His great love for us that God sent His son to die for us. Spurgeon writes that God not only foreknew us, but He predestinated us "to be conformed to the image of His Son."  He called us, He justified us, and He glorified us..  "There is no going back on the part of God, and consequently His redemption will redeem, and in redoing it will secure us all things."  And, wonderfully, " We have been bought with too great a price for our Redeemer to let us slip." 

What blessing and grace and joy we have in our Lord Jesus, our Redeemer, and in our Heavenly Father who began a good work in us and WILL perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus." 

Praise to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit who leads us into the Truth. 

Amen. 

Ephesians 6  Merry Christmas!  "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ! "  ( 1:3)

We are truly blessed in and by Jesus.  We are redeemed, adopted, forgiven, and given an inheritance!
We have been made a new creation.. His "workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works... " 
We were far away, but we have been "brought near by the blood of Christ." 
We have been LOVED with the "great love" of God.
We have been given the Spirit of God to strengthen us in our "inner man".. so that we can walk a worthy walk.. worthy of His calling.
We have been renewed in our thinking.. so that we can speak truth , control anger, and be imitators of God!

And, because of all these blessings and millions more.. we must be careful how we walk.. we need to be wise, understanding His will for us.

He wills for us to be kept filled with His Spirit.
He wills for us to speak and sing from our hearts.. "to the Lord"
He wills for us to give thanks "for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to God, even the Father." 

He wills for wives to respect and submit to the leadership of their husbands.
He wills for husbands to love and sacrifice for their wives.
He wills for us to have marriages that reflect the love of Christ for His church.

He wills for children to love and respect their parents.
He wills parents to love and discipline and instruct their children in the Lord.
He wills for slaves to be obedient, sincere, rendering service with "good will.. as to the Lord "
He wills for masters to treat their slaves with brotherly love and good will.

And most of all He desires for us to "be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might" so that we can stand firm "against the schemes of the devil". 

So He gives us all the blessings.. armor.. that we need to accomplish this and "to stand firm":
He gives us truth to gird up our loins.
He gives us righteousness as a breastplate of protection.
He gives us peace to shod our feet and prepare us for the message of the Gospel.
He gives us a "shield of faith .. to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one."
He gives us a "helmet of salvation" and a "sword of the Spirit" - the Word of God.

In all of these things.. He asks us to pray.. to pray always,  to pray with perseverance , to pray for boldness.. to pray for the Word of God to be spoken as it ought.  It is the attitude and practice of prayer that we receive from our Lord's Hand all that we need. It is in prayer that we commune and communicate with our Father in heaven and our Lord Jesus.

Father in heaven.. let Your will be done!  I yield to You.  I pray for my family, my church, and my community to seek You and to receive all of the blessings that are theirs in Christ, according to Your great love.  Thank You for the grace You have poured out to us today.  In the Name of the Beautiful One, Jesus Christ the Lord, I pray. Amen.

Ephesians 5  "Therefore"... Paul says, because we want to walk a worthy walk,  as new creations in Christ,  we should "be imitators of God.."   We are called to "walk in love".  We are called to "walk as children of light".   We are called to be "careful how we walk"... walking in wisdom, making the most of our time, and understanding "what the will of the Lord is. " 

We are to allow the Spirit of God to fill us and influence our every act, relationship, and decision.
When we speak, it should be edifying - " speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord."

We are to be thankful - "always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father."

We are to be "subject to one another in the fear of the Lord " -  wives and husbands, children and parents, slaves and masters - every relationship influenced and led by the Spirit of God, according to His will, for His glory - reflecting His Love and sacrifice for us. 

We have been redeemed - from darkness, from immorality, from impurity, from greed, and from selfishness.  Our lives, reflect the light and love and goodness.. the righteousness and truth of our Redeemer!  We cannot do this without the continual filling of His Spirit in us.

I read a post yesterday on Facebook by Ann Voskamp that made me think.  She said something to the effect that " I am a place"  A place where God dwells.. I don't need to worry about what I do or don't do.. I can just be a place for Him to live. O Spirit of God,  come and fill us once again.

Father in heaven,  blessed Redeemer,  I praise You and give You thanks for Your grace to me.
Fill me, mold me, make me, and use me.. according to Your plan and purposes.  You have made me as I am, You have placed me where I am,  and You have chosen me to be Your own child.  I desire to walk a worthy walk, in wisdom, love, light, and truth.  Let Your will be done today. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.

Ephesians 4   Paul's message here focuses on the "worthy walk".. the walk of a new creation.. the follower of Jesus.  The worthy walk is begun when we "lay aside the old self" which is "darkened in their understanding" and "excluded from the life of God....in ignorance and hardness of heart".  The old self is callous, sensual, impure, and greedy.  ( v18-19)

The new creation - this Spirit created, supernatural being that we have  miraculously become by His grace..  will be "renewed in the spirit" of our minds,  in the "likeness of God.. .created in righteousness, and holiness of the truth".   We are therefore called to "all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing forbearance to one another in love..." ; preserving unity in "one body" with "one hope.. one Lord.. one faith, one baptism, one God and Father.. " 

The whole purpose of the church.. is to see that this body built up.. "to attain the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ".   We do this by "speaking truth in love"!

As individual believers in Jesus, transformed by His Spirit, renewed in our thinking, we will produce good fruit... we will speak the truth; we will control our anger; we will not steal from anyone; we will share with those in need; we will control our words - speaking the words that edify, not those that are "unwholesome".  We will not grieve the Holy Spirit of God.  We will "let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander.. and malice" be put away from our lives.  We will "be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also"  forgave us.  

Father, grant us according to the riches of Your glory and grace, the strength that comes from the power of Your Spirit at work in our inner beings.  Christ Jesus, come and dwell in us, rooting our lives in Your great Love, and filling us to the fulness of God. Only then, Lord, can we walk in a manner worthy of our calling, as You have purposed for us.. in righteousness and holiness.. in truth and in love.  Fill us once again, Holy Spirit, continually working the will of the Father in each of us.  We do not want to ever grieve You.  Thank You for the Word of Truth that leads us in the ways of our Lord.  It is in His precious name we pray . Amen.

Ephesians 3   Paul writes that he was given "the stewardship of God's grace".... the privilege of sharing these great truths of God's love- that gave Life to the dead.. to even the Gentiles.   Paul considered this stewardship, itself, a "gift of God's grace".

Paul was blessed with the privilege of sharing the "mystery of Christ"... that "Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow-partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel."...the "unfathomable riches of Christ"  - God's grace  made available to all who will believe.

This mystery, once hidden.. now made known.. "was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord." God brings us all to bold and confident "access through faith" in Jesus.

Paul's prayer for the Ephesians in verses 14-21 is one to memorize and pray for ourselves and for each other.    He prays that God would "grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man ; so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fulness of God. " 

Father, God of grace and glory,
May Your Holy Spirit powerfully work in our inner beings, to strengthen us, that Jesus Christ, Himself will dwell.. abide, settle in, take over, own.. our hearts.  Fix us firmly in Your infinite and marvelous love.  Transform us by the renewing of our minds so that we can comprehend this infinite love and be made full, complete, and perfected in You.  You alone are able to do this great and mysterious work, for it is beyond what we can even think or ask.. but according to Your Word, we pray, asking this in the name of our Savior, Christ Jesus the Lord. Amen.

Ephesians 2

By Grace, God who loved us.. took us.. though we were "dead in our trespasses and sin" and "made us alive together with Christ". 

God raised us up with Jesus.
He seated us with Jesus. " in the heavenly places". 
By grace He saved us.. "through faith... "  which is "the gift of God". 

God determined to create a new product.. in Christ.
He took us.. Gentiles, that were far from Him and Jews, who were supposed to be near Him.. and He removed the barrier that had become a "dividing wall" - the Law.. and became Himself, the peace that unites both groups into one new "man".

The new creation.. "one body".. reconciled "to God through the cross",  brings us all into God's household, with access in "one Spirit to the Father".  We become "one building being fitted together into a holy temple in the Lord".. a "dwelling of God in the Spirit".

None of this was possible through the Law.  None of this is possible through works.  None of this is possible by any other means.. except through grace.. amazing grace.. a gift given to us from God who is "rich in mercy.. because of His great love with which He loved us." 

He has given this great gift.. but we each must receive it from His Hand.  We must participate in this gift exchange... taking hold of His Precious gift.. offered with infinite Love.. and receive it through faith.  And even then, He doesn't leave us lacking.. but provides the faith with which we receive His grace.

Oh, how wonderful, O how marvelous.. is the Savior's love for me.. for you.. for all who are far off and all who are near..

 Praise and thanksgiving to the Lord, God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!  Blessed be the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, in whom we live ! Come fill us once again with Your Spirit, that we might comprehend these great truths and walk in the good works that You have prepared  for us to do.
All glory and honor we give to You. Amen and amen.

Ephesians 1: 3   " Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.. "  

He "chose us".
He "predestined us to adoption as sons".
He "freely bestowed"  grace on us.
He redeemed us.
He forgave our trespasses.
He "lavished" upon us the "riches of His grace."
He "made known to us the mystery of His will." 
He has given us an "inheritance". 
He "sealed" us in "Him with the Holy Spirit of promise."
  

Why?
Because He loves us.
Because He is kind.
Because He is rich in grace.
Because of His wisdom and insight.
Because He has kind intentions for us.
Because..  "according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will." 
Because "He put all things in subjection under His ( Jesus') feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, and the fulness of Him who fills all in all." 

"But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive with Christ.. " ( 2:4)

Spurgeon writes.. " Regard every spiritual mercy as an assurance of the Lord's communion with thee....Look then, on every motion of grace in thine heart as a pledge and sign of the moving of thy Savior's heart towards thee.  There is His whole heart in the bowels of every mercy which He sends thee. He has impressed the kiss of love upon each gift, and He would have thee believe that every jewel of mercy is a token of His boundless love.  Look on thy adoption, justification, and preservation, as sweet enticements to fellowship... like the ringing of the bells.. inviting thee to come to the banquet of His love."

Father in heaven, You are the Father of glory and we ask that You would give to us "the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.. "  Enlighten the eyes of our hearts.. to know the "hope of His calling"; the "surpassing greatness of His power";  and riches of His glory. May we know more and more His boundless love and Your great glory and blessings.
For it is in the name that is above all names, the name of Jesus Christ the Lord, that we come. Amen.

Galatians 6  Paul gives some examples of what a Spirit led life looks like as we live it out in the church:

v1- We will have a "spirit of gentleness" when encountering a brother "caught in sin"; conscious of and honestly aware of our own difficulties with temptation...

v2 - We will  "bear one another's burdens",  fulfilling the "law of Christ" - with love.

v3 - We will be careful of what we think about ourselves- as Paul wrote in Romans 12:3 ".. I say to every man among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgement.. " 

v4 - We will examine our own work.. not comparing ourselves to others in order to boast.

v5 - We will bear our own loads.

v6 - We will share "good things" with those who share the Word with us.

v7 - We will live by the principle that " whatever a man sows, this he will also reap". 

v8 - We will sow to the Spirit and reap "eternal life" ; we will not "sow to the flesh.". 

v9 - We will keep doing good, knowing that "we shall reap if we do not grow weary."

v10 - We will do good while we have the opportunity.. to all men, but especially to our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Like Paul, we boast only in the fact that Jesus Christ died for our sins.. for  nothing else is really worth boasting about!

Father in heaven,  we lift grateful hearts to You, thanking You for every blessing that is ours in Christ Jesus.  Fill us with Your Spirit once again, to do a fresh work in our inner beings, teaching us of Your great love and grace, that we might live out these truths for Your glory.  Let Your peace and mercy be upon us as we yield ourselves fully to Your will in all parts of our lives.  We ask this in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Galatians 4  We are "children of promise".. known by God, redeemed by the Son of God.  At the right time He came, was born of a woman, under the Law, " in order that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons." 

As heirs.. sons of God,  we are free.  We are not slaves to the Law.  We are blessed.  We are received by Him.

Chapter 5 - Paul warns those who were turning back to the Law that they had "fallen from grace." 

In Christ, the only thing that matters, that means anything is " faith working through love."  It is by faith, Paul says, that we "are waiting for the hope of righteousness."   This is walking in the truth.
This is the freedom that we are called into.

When we live by the Spirit, walk in the Spirit, and are being  led by the Spirit..  we will fulfill the Law.. "For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'" Are lives will be characterized by love!

Gone are the lusts of the flesh which bear the fruits of immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing.. for the flesh and its passions have been crucified.

Instead, our lives will be characterized by the fruit of God's Spirit.. love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control...

This will only happen when we walk in constant communication.. constant communion.. with our Lord, to whom we belong.. It is in receiving His gift.. His Spirit that produces love, joy, peace.. etc. in our lives.. that we can do what He calls us to do. We receive from His Spirit the grace, the power, and the freedom to live as the children of God.

Father in heaven, give me eyes to see and ears to hear this message of truth. Help me to live in communion and fellowship with You.. every day and every hour.  Fill me, Holy Spirit, with all Your gifts of grace..may Christ be fully formed in me.  Amen.

Galatians 3   The life we live in the flesh.. we live by faith in the Son of God, who loves us and who delivered Himself up for us.. ( 2:20)  The church was being foolish, in that they had listened to the false teachers who were preaching the Law, forgetting the message that Paul had preached... It is faith, not works, by which we live... faith in Christ Jesus.. crucified.

It is "hearing with faith" that enables us to receive the Spirit of God. ( v2)
It is by the Spirit that we are "being perfected".  ( v3)
It is "by hearing with faith " that the Spirit comes and that God does miraculous works among us. (v5)
It is by faith that Abraham was "reckoned" righteous, and those who are "of faith" are his sons. (6-7)
God chooses to justify by faith... all nations;  "So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer." (8-9)

No one can be justified by the Law.. for no one can abide by all of it.  If one chooses to live by the Law, he is not living by faith.

Jesus came to redeem us from "the curse of the Law".  He became "a curse for us." (13)
It is in Christ Jesus that the blessing of Abraham comes to us.. that we might "receive the promise of the Spirit through faith." (14)

The Law was given.. to "lead us to Christ". 
It convicted us all of sin.
Faith came according to the promise.. that all who believe in Christ Jesus are justified and become the "sons of God". 
We believe and are "baptized into Christ" and "clothed with Christ".  We belong to Christ and we are "Abraham's offspring".. and "heirs according to promise." 

Father in Heaven, holy, holy, holy, Almighty God, I give You praise and thanksgiving.  You chose to redeem us by sending Your Beloved Son, who gave Himself up for us.. for me.  I believe that I cannot be saved or justified by any works that I have done.. or not done.  I believe that it is only by putting faith in Jesus Christ, the One who died.. who became a curse.. who  set us...me free from sin and the Law.. that I am justified.  O, how marvelous.. O how wonderful.. is my Savior's love for me.  Thank You Lord Jesus.  Praise to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. amen.

Galatians 1-2

 Praise to our God and Father who gives grace and peace, and Who sent Jesus Christ our Lord according to His will.  Thanks be to Jesus who "gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us out of this present evil age... " and who was raised from the dead to give us life.

This is the gospel of grace.. the only gospel that we receive or preach..  It is the gospel, not according to men, but a revelation of Jesus Christ, Himself.  This gospel took Paul from being a persecutor of the church and called him by grace to be a messenger of the truth.  This gospel is what Paul preached and lived by.

The gospel was being distorted by those who "had sneaked in to spy out... the liberty we have in Christ Jesus" Paul wrote.  This distortion would bring the Gentile believers into bondage, the bondage of the Law, which cannot save.

Paul clarifies the truth of the gospel -  "a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus ..."   We must also be crucified... dying to the Law, that we might live to God.

" I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and delivered Himself up for me."  It is all of GRACE.

Have we ... have I.. in any way distorted the true gospel?  Have I added any "works of the Law" that cannot justify me, to the gospel of grace?  Do I live by faith in Christ, the one Who loves me and gave Himself up for me?

Father, search my heart today.  Lead me in truth and grace that I might have true peace in every part of my life.. to the glory of Your Name.  Amen.

Malachi 1-4  Written in the time of Nehemiah, after the return from exile, and after the rebuilding of the temple, this message addresses the priests and leaders and exhorts them to turn from their sinful ways and truly worship and honor God. 

The Lord addresses the failure of Israel to worship Him:

1.  Israel doubted that God loved them. (1:2-5)  They didn't see the truth that they were His chosen people.  They didn't recognize that the demise of Edom was the Lord's work on their behalf.

2. Israel failed to honor God appropriately. (1:6-14)  The laws and ordinances of the Lord were very clear.  Offerings and sacrifices were supposed to be from their best... unblemished and pure.  Instead, they offered "defiled food",  blind, sick  and lame sheep or stolen goods.  Their offerings were unfit for human kings or governors.. let alone for the Holy Father and Master of Israel.  " I am not pleased with you...  Should I receive that from your hand?"   The Lord tells them, ".. I am a great King .. and my name is feared among the nations." 

3. The priests failed to fulfill their responsibilities. ( 2:1-9)  Their hearts were not given over to the Lord or to the covenant that was made with Levi's house.  " My covenant with him was one of life and peace, and I gave them to him as an object of reverence; so he revered Me, and stood in awe of My name."  The priests were to give "true instruction" in the Word;  they were to walk in "peace and uprightness" and they were to turn "many back from iniquity.. For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge and men should seek instruction from his mouth; for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts. "   Instead, the priests were "turned aside from the way";  they caused the people to "stumble by the instruction";  and they "corrupted the covenant of Levi;" 

4. The men of Israel failed to obey God in their marriages. ( 2:10-17)   It was an "abomination " to the Lord that the men of Israel "married the daughter of a foreign god".  God would not accept their offerings because of this duplicity.  They also broke their marriage vows.. " the Lord has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. "  Malachi writes that the Lord "hates divorce", and that it is proof that they do not have even a "remnant of the Spirit".   God had grown weary of their words.. weary of their calling evil, good.. weary of them asking Him for justice, while they did injustice to their wives.

5.  Israel was guilty of robbing God. (3:8-12)  Their tithes and offerings were not only blemished, but they withheld all that they should have given. Because of this their crops were sparse and the fruit fell off before it was ready.  God challenged His people to "bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there is food in My house, and test Me now in this.. if I will not open for you the windows of heaven, and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows."

 Israel was arrogant against God.  They questioned the value of serving the Lord. They did not fear Him.  They did not believe Him.  They did not honor Him.  The Lord called the people to repent.. and  some did!  They wrote a "book of remembrance", a new covenant, if you will, to serve the Lord.

Nehemiah 9:5-38 records the words of a document that was written after Israel heard the Law read by Ezra.  They repented and confessed their sins and" worshiped the Lord" ( Neh. 9:3)  This document exalted the Lord, recalled His works from Abraham through Moses, remembered the many times that He rescued them from enemies, and acknowledged their humble position  before Him.  They signed this document and committed themselves to obey the Law, pay their tithes,  and not neglect the house of the Lord.

Malachi ends his message and the whole old testament with a word of hope.  God was going to send His messenger.. His Elijah.. to prepare the way for the One who was to come.  The One, His anointed would come to refine and to cleanse.. to restore righteousness.  But after that.. the "great and terrible day of the Lord" will come.

Father in heaven, give us ears to hear and hearts to obey.  Like Israel, we need to humble ourselves before You and be obedient to Your word.  Help us to know Your great love for us and never doubt.  Help us to honor Your Holy Name in all that we do..  especially in what we give to You.  May we be faithful to speak Truth and not cause any to stumble by our lifestyles.  May we be faithful in our marriages and in our ministries.  Father, strengthen us by Your Spirit to do all things.. to glorify You and bring You honor.  Spirit of God, make us bold, not timid,  living according to Your power, love, and holiness.  Thank You Jesus, for coming to refine and cleanse us by Your own blood, that we might be fully Yours.  Amen.

Zechariah 1-14   This book is full of prophecies about Jesus.  Here are a few:

2:10 "Sing for joy and be glad, O daughter in Zion; for behold I am coming and I will dwell in your midst.." 

3:8-9  ".. for behold, I am going to bring in My servant, the Branch... and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day..."

6:12 " .. Behold, a man whose name is Branch, for He will branch out from where He is; and He will build a temple of the Lord. Yes, it is He who will build the temple of the Lord, and He who will bear the honor and sit and rule on His throne. Thus He will be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two offices. " 

9:9 " Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Jerusalem.. behold your King is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, humble and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.."

9:10 ".. And He will speak peace to the nations; and His dominion will be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth." 

12:10 " And I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him, like the bitter weeping over a first-born." 

14:4  "And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west.. "

14:9 "And the Lord will be king over all the earth; in that day the Lord will be the only One, and His name the only one. " 

Zechariah reminds us of  the call that our Shepherd delivers that we might be ready for His coming.. .


" Thus had the Lord of hosts said, ' Dispense true justice, and practice kindness and compassion each to his brother: and do not oppress the widow or the orphan, the stranger or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another.'" ( 7:9-10)

"These are the things which you should do: speak the truth to one another; judge with truth and judgement for peace in your gates. Also let none of you devise evil in your hearts against another, and do not love perjury; for all these things I hate, declares the Lord. " ( 8:16-17)

Father in heaven, fill us with Your Spirit that we might live out Your will among the nations. Draw the lost to the Savior that they might also find redemption and salvation in Him.  We long to see the day when the King of Glory comes to rule over all the earth!  Come quickly Lord Jesus.
Amen.

Haggai 1-2  This short book contains 4 prophecies, all within a 4 month period.  The first and third messages ( 1:1-15; 2:10-19) rebuked the Israelites for neglecting the rebuilding of the temple.  They were not prospering because they were not honoring God.  "Consider your ways!" the Lord instructs them.

Everything they did was in vain:
"You have sown much, but harvest little; you eat, but there is not enough to be satisfied; you drink, but there is not enough to become drunk; you put on clothing, but no one is warm enough; and he who earns, earns wages to put into a purse with holes." ( v6)

The leaders, Zerubbabel, the governor, and Joshua, the high priest,  heard Haggai and responded in obedience. " So the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel.... and the spirit of Joshua.. and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and worked on the house of the Lord." 

The 2nd and 4th prophecies were words of  encouragement and assurance.  The Lord proclaimed His presence with them and the glory that He was going to bring to His temple and to His people.  God was going to bless their vines, fig tress, pomegranates, and olive trees... with fruit.  He was going to "overthrow the thrones of kingdoms and destroy the power of the kingdoms of the nations.. " 

Zerubbabel was given a great word of blessing, " I will make you like a signet right, for I have chosen you,"  the Lord declared.   Matthew 1:12 lists Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, in the lineage of Jesus.
What a privilege and blessing he had when he chose to put God first in humble obedience.

Father in heaven, help us each to consider our ways today.. to be obedient to Your holy word.  To put You first and to seek You always. Stir up our spirits with the power of Your Spirit in us, that we might walk in Your ways and glorify Your Name in all we do.  I ask this in the Name of the Savior, Jesus Christ. amen.

Zephaniah 1-3  "... the day of the Lord is near.."  Zephaniah proclaimed.  Judgement was poured out on Israel and Judah, as well as on Moab and other surrounding nations.   Yet, the final judgement,  the Day of the Lord, is yet to come, when all of Zephaniah's prophecies are fulfilled.  The Lord will "completely remove all things from the face of the earth."  He will "remove man and beast; .. birds of the sky and the fish of the sea, and the ruins along withe wicked;" He declares, " I will cut off man form the face of the earth." (1:2-3)

The immediate judgement was on Judah because of the idolatry, their violence, and their deceit.  God's hand is stretched out against ".. those who have turned back from following the Lord, and those who have not sought the Lord or inquired of Him."  ( 1:4-6)

" A day of wrath is that day, a day of trouble and distress, a day of destruction and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of trumpet and battle cry.. and I will bring distress on men, so that they will walk like the blind, because they have sinned against the Lord. " ( 1:15-17)

When God judges.. a person or a nation... He judges with justice and righteousness.  
He judges the heart of each man - "And it will come about at that time that I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish men who are stagnant in spirit, who say in their hearts, 'The Lord will not do good or evil.'" ( 1:12)

He judges fully.. "Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them on the day of the Lord's wrath; and all the earth will be devoured in the fire of His jealousy, for He will make a complete end."  ( v18)

There is only one hope.. " Seek the Lord, all you humble of the earth who have carried out His ordinances; seek righteousness, seek humility.  Perhaps you will be hidden in the day of the Lord's anger." (2: 3)

There will be a remnant that is saved.  It will be the humble and lowly, who take refuge in the Lord. It will be the lame and the outcast, whose shame will be turned "into praise and renown". 

It will not be the princes - for they were like "roaring lions" - destructive and violent.
It will not be the judges - for they were like "wolves at evening". 
It will not be the prophets who were "reckless, treacherous men". 
It will not be the priests who "profaned the sanctuary.. and have done violence to the law."

It will be those who revere the Lord and who accept instruction. 
Those who "wait" for Him. 
Those who receive "purified lips" so that they "call on the name of the Lord "
Those who "tell no lies," and do not have a "deceitful tongue". 
The Lord will remove His judgements, clear away their enemies, and bring them into peace. 

"The Lord your God is in your midst,
A victorious warrior, 
He will exult over you with joy,
He will be quiet in His love, 
He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy."  ( 3:17)


Our God, the King of Israel, the Lord of all... will be forever in our midst.. Oh what a day that will be.  But only if we are among those who are hidden.. hidden in Jesus Christ our Savior, our Redeemer,  our Righteousness.

"Oh, safe to the Rock that is higher than I

My soul in its conflicts and sorrows would fly.

So sinful, so weary, 

Thine, Thine I would be!

Thou blest Rock of Ages, 

I'm hiding in Thee. 

Hiding in Thee, 

Hiding in Thee, 

Thou blest Rock of Ages, 

I'm hiding in Thee."

Father, God of all creation, You will one day bring judgement on this whole earth.  We humble ourselves before You now, fearfully and reverently seeking that precious hiding place in Jesus Christ our King.  May we stay is this place of refuge and peace.  May we exult in the salvation of our Lord!  With thankful hearts we praise You, our everlasting Father.  In Jesus we abide. Amen. 

Habakkuk 1-3 When Habakkuk complains to the Lord about the injustice and violence in Judah, God responds with an appalling answer.. He will bring judgement... at the hands of the Babylonians!  A nation known for its terrible destruction and wickedness would be the Hand of God's judgement on His own people.  Habakkuk is horrified, but he chooses to wait on the Lord and to walk by faith.

What stands out to me most in this book is the prayer/ psalm that Habakkuk offers in chapter 3.
" Lord, I have heard the report about Thee and I fear." A proper reactions...

 Habakkuk begins to describe the Lord:

"His splendor covers the heavens, and the earth is full of His praise.
His radiance is like the sunlight; He has  rays flashing from His hand, and there is the hiding of His power.
Before Him goes pestilence and plague comes after Him.
He stood and surveyed the earth;
He looked and startled the nations.
Yes, the perpetual mountains were shattered.
The ancient hills collapsed. 
His ways are everlasting. "  3: 3-6

The Lord rages against rivers and seas.  He cuts through the earth.  He melts the mountains.  He makes the sun and moon stop moving.  Habakkuk reminds us all that the God we serve is the God who created all things, and will ultimately wipe it all away.. indeed all heaven and earth will pass away.. but He will not! He is the God of salvation, who will "remember mercy".. even in His wrath.

Our God is worthy of our worship and trust. We walk by faith in Him, no matter how bad things are.. in our lives.. in our nation.. or in our world.  As Habakkuk proclaims:

"Though the fig tree should not blossom,
And there be no fruit on the vines,
Though the yield of olives should fail,
And the fields produce no food,
Though the flock should be cut off from the fold,
And there be no cattle in the stalls, 
Yet I will exult in the Lord,
I will rejoice in the God of my salvation." ( 3: 17-18)

Father in heaven,  You are The Almighty God and there is none like You! Your faithfulness surrounds You. You are merciful and gracious.  You are slow to anger and great in lovingkindness.  You are to be praised.  We can walk by faith as we put our trust in You, our mighty God who never fails, even when everything else does.. .  Let us learn to keep walking in faith, even as the world around us seems to get worse.. wickedness and violence, rebellion and injustice abound....yet, You are in control and You will judge with righteousness and truth.  Thank You for the salvation that You have provided in Christ Jesus the Lord.
Keep us in Your will and strengthen us to walk on heights with You.  We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.