“…And none shall appear before Me empty-handed” (Exodus 34:20 NKJV)

February 12, 2015

God gave Moses and the Israelites instructions on how to offer worship that honored Him. True worship might be described in two moves: 1) Recognizing God’s worth and 2) Giving God His worth. We are to bring our worship into God’s house with us, not come hoping to respond to the worship of others. It’s called a church “service,” because we are called to come and serve, not be served. Stop coming before God “empty-handed.” Bring your worship with you!

“Sing to Him a new song; Play skillfully with a shout of joy” (Psalm 33:3 NKJV)

February 11, 2015

I love the old hymns. Hymns like “Amazing Grace,” written in 1779 by John Newton and later joined with the tune “New Britain” in a hymnbook published in 1847. Yet, I also love to sing a new song written by a new generation of believers. As a generation gets older it is easy to reject anything new. We cling to that which moved us when we were young. But I especially love when modern artists combine the old and new, like Chris Tomlin’s version of “Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone).” Tomlin “skillfully” brought the old song into the present giving it new life. We have to be careful not to worship the old songs, rather than the Lord of which they were written to praise. Our goal should be to “sing to Him” and to “play skillfully” to Him. Every culture and generation should yearn to sing new songs and to play them with excellence because our Lord is the One who inspires our worship.

“But Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest’s courtyard. And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end” (Matthew 26:58 NKJV)

February 10, 2015

When Jesus was arrested, Peter tried to blend in as one of the crowd, following Jesus from a distance. This, after following so close must’ve been unbearable. Following Jesus at church is one thing, but following Him in the public square is another. Do you try to blend in with the crowd? Are you trying to follow Jesus from a distance? When will you go public with your devotion?

“Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41 NKJV)

February 9, 2015

Trials and temptations often come in pairs. We can’t avoid the former, but we can watch and pray, so that we avoid falling into the latter. Be alert to that which tempts. Pray in advance for strength so you won’t be led into its trap. Pray as Jesus taught us, “Lead us not into temptation…”

“Make Your face shine upon Your servant; Save me for Your mercies’ sake” (Psalm 31:16 NKJV)

February 8, 2015

A psalm of David, asking God for salvation based on God’s character of mercy rather than any sense of his own deserving it. It is a bold request, asking for God’s face to “shine upon” him, knowing that the Lord could rightfully look at his sinful life with a face darkened by wrath and displeasure. Yet, like a son seeking his father’s attention, David cried out, “Lord, look at me and let your face show your divine mercy and radiant joy towards me!” God answered David’s prayer, but at great cost. For in turning His face towards David in mercy, He later turned His face away from the Christ, the Son of David, while He died upon the cross for our sins.

“His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord'” (Matthew 25:21 NKJV)

February 7, 2015

First, learn to do the little things. Then, perhaps God will promote you to greater responsibility. If you’re unfaithful with a little, you’d be unfaithful with a lot. The Lord is not looking for successful stewards, He is looking for faithful ones. Stop saying, “If only I had more, then I would serve Him with it.” Be faithful with whatever you have. The Lord will soon return, asking for an account.

“And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord” (Exodus 24:4 NKJV)

February 6, 2015

How the Bible came to be: God spoke and men wrote. Paradoxically both fully human and fully divine. Sixty-six books written by over 40 God-inspired human authors of various cultures and backgrounds, over a period of 1600 years in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek to form one book, the Bible, God’s Word. There’s no other book like it. Heaven and earth will pass away, but the Word of God never will!

“And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14 NKJV)

February 5, 2015

This was a part of Jesus’ answer to the disciples questions concerning end times. The Greek word translated “nations” is ethnos (ἔθνος). It might also be translated every race/culture/tongue. According to Wycliffe Bible Translators, there are still 350 million people in the world who do not have a Scripture translation in their heart language. And according to the www.joshuaproject.net 43% of the world’s people groups are still unreached. Most of these are in the 10/40 window. There are still “ethnos” who have not heard the gospel. God is still asking, “Whom shall I send and who will go for us?” (Isa.6:8).

“And God spoke all these words, saying:” (Exodus 20:1 NKJV)

February 4, 2015

Before God wrote the ten commandments down onto two stone tablets, He actually spoke them aloud from Mount Sinai before all the Israelites. The Scripture actually refers to them as “words” (Hebrew: הַדְּבָרִ֥ים ha-Dabarim “the words”). The Jews therefore refer to them as the Ten Words or Ten Sayings (Hebrew: עֲשֶׂ֖רֶת הַדְּבָרִֽים Aseret ha-Dabarim). These ten words are beautifully organized into two tablets, the first tablet of words being about how we should love and relate to the Lord God and the second tablet of words are about how we should love and treat our fellow man. This is why Jesus could summarize all the commands with “Love God and love your neighbor as yourself.” There are around 613 commandments given to the Israelites by God. Yet, all of them are found within the “ten words,” that appear like chapter headings in a table of contents in the beginning of a book. For instance, all the commandments concerning feasts and holidays, might be considered under the “Keep the Sabbath” heading. And all the laws concerning human sexuality might be implied under the “You shall not commit adultery” word. The wisdom and righteousness of God is revealed in these ten words. But the only way to satisfy them is to have them written on our hearts by believing in the Christ and receiving His righteousness in exchange for our sin.

“But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant” (Matthew 23:11 NKJV)

February 3, 2015

Jesus not only taught, but modeled the art of servant leadership. He showed that true greatness was not about exalting oneself, but being humble enough to wash another’s feet. This is the Kingdom leadership model that turns the world upside down. The servant leader descends to greatness. By choosing to serve, the Lord lifts him up.