Tag: John 10:10
Day 4–Shoes of Peace!
Scripture reading for March 12: Ephesians 6:10-15 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the Gospel of peace.”
As first responders we always need strength and courage to face the dangers of life in this world. God is well aware of the battle that is raging here on earth. There are spiritual forces of darkness behind some of the troubles we deal with. We must always remember that it is not flesh and blood that is our biggest problem, but these fallen angels called demons who seek to kill, steal and destroy. (John 10:10) They oppose those we seek to help and us in helping them.
But our Lord has given us an illustration in this passage of Scripture to help us see how He has provided everything we need in our daily battle with darkness. The equipment is called here ‘the whole armor of God’ and we are told that this armor enables us to stand firm in each incident. The belt of truth is the foundation of our armor. The truth of God’s Word must hold our armor together and protect our vital organs. The breastplate of righteousness guards our heart and midsection. Next come the shoes of readiness given to us through the Good News of peace with God for all who believe. A closer look at these pieces of armor reveals that Jesus Christ provides them all as He is the ‘Truth’, our ‘Righteousness’ and the ‘Good News’ from God the Father.
Prayer: Father God, thank You for providing protection and strength today against the forces of darkness and evil in this world. Help me to draw from my Lord the full armor of God. Let my feet run in readiness with the Good News of Peace through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Your sins have been your downfall!
Scripture reading for September 9: Hosea 12-14
“But I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt. You shall acknowledge no God but me, no Savior except me. I cared for you in the desert, in the land of burning heat. When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot Me. Hosea 13:4-5
For people who have been saved from sin and delivered by God from bondage, God’s love initially is so good and following Him is their heart’s delight. It would appear that such a people would love and follow God forever, enjoying the abundant life and celebrating their deliverance. (John 10:10) In Hosea, God tells how His once faithful and thankful people became proud and satisfied and forgot Him. (Hosea 13:6)
Pride is the sin that caused Satan’s downfall from the highest heavens. Satan desired to be like the Most High and to sit on the throne of God. God’s abundant blessing on his life in making him beautiful and giving him a place of honor brought out iniquity hidden there. (Ezekiel 28:1, 14-17) He was cast down from heaven’s glory to earth. Satan’s sin of pride was his downfall and now he tempts man made in God’s image with forgetting God and His grace!
“Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall! Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to Him: “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously; that we may offer the fruit of our lips.” ” Hosea 14:1-2
God’s mercy reaches toward those whose sins have taken them down! Hosea gave a wonderful altar call of repentance. Repentance is an act of faith in the patience, kindness, love and mercy of our Lord. We can offer Him nothing but ourselves and our words. Life and death are in the power of our tongue and confession brings life! (1st John 1:9) God desires to heal us and repentance restores the flow of His love. Check your heart and attitude today and ask God to expose any pride that could be your downfall.
“I will heal their waywardness and love them freely; for my anger has turned away from them.” Hosea 14:4 “Who is wise? He will realize these things. Who is discerning? He will understand them. The ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them.” Hosea 14:9
The wiles of the devil
Scripture reading for April 18: 1 Chronicles 17-21
We have an enemy who is known to be crafty and who uses schemes and strategy to gain access to God’s people. His motive is to steal from them, kill them, and ultimately destroy their souls in Hell. (John 10:10) Several passages of scripture admonish God’s people to flee temptation and resist the devil. (Matthew 6:13) We are in a cosmic battle with evil forces of darkness and are in need of God’s help.
David was a man after God’s heart but he was also prone to temptation and did not always resist. We all remember the time he stayed back in Jerusalem when his army went to war. (1st Chronicles 20:1) It is interesting to note that the incident with Bathsheba is not mentioned here. But David came and took the crown off the head of the king of the Ammonites who Joab and the army had defeated. This crown weighed around 75 pounds and was full of precious stones. David placed that crown on his own head. (1st Chronicles 20:2)
Right after this, David returned again to Jerusalem and Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census! (1st Chronicles 21:1) This was evil in God’s sight because it was motivated by pride and not by God’s direction. (1st Chronicles 21:7) It appears that Satan gained an inroad in David’s life. We know David was not fighting the Lord’s enemies but stayed home to engage in sexual sin. He had Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband, killed. He took this massive crown belonging to a pagan king and placed it on his own head. After this Satan was able to incite him to sin that cost the lives of 70,000 Israelites! Afterwards, David did repent and he bought the threshing floor of Arunah as a place of sacrifice for his sin. This site became the site of the temple where God’s presence would dwell and where anyone who had sinned could bring a sacrifice with humility and find forgiveness and restoration!
David’s latter Son, Jesus Christ, would offer Himself in this temple to be the final sacrifice for the sins of the world, bringing victory over Satan. Is there a ‘scheme’ of the devil that has hold on your life and is causing death and destruction? Resist the devil today by declaring the victory of Jesus and His blood!
1 Peter 5:8 “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in you faith, . .”
Rejoicing in Real Life!
Scripture reading for February 27th: Deuteronomy 30-33
Key Scriptures: Deuteronomy 30:19-20 “This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His voice and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life, and He will give you many years in the land He swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”
God invited the Israelites to choose life. In doing so, they and their children would enjoy a life of loving God and hearing His voice. He would be their life and bless them with long life in the land of promise! This involved a faith choice, an act of their will. If they failed to choose the curses of sin and death would overtake them!
Rejoicing in real life: Jesus Christ calls all men to repent and choose eternal life through Him! “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” “I (Jesus) am the way, the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 10:10, 14:6)
The schemes of Satan!
Scripture reading for April 19th: 1st Chronicles 17-21
We have an enemy who is known to be crafty and who uses schemes and strategy to gain access to God’s people. His motive is to steal from them, kill them, and ultimately destroy their souls in Hell. (John 10:10) Satan is said to be like a roaring lion prowling around looking for someone to devour. (1st Peter 5:8-9) Several passages of scripture admonish God’s people to flee temptation and resist the devil. (Matthew 6:13) We are in a cosmic battle with evil forces of darkness and are in need of God’s help.
David was a man after God’s heart but he was also prone to temptation and did not always resist. One time he stayed in Jerusalem when his army went to war. (1st Chronicles 20:1) (The incident with Bathsheba is not mentioned in this account.) David came and took the crown off the head of the king of the Ammonites whom Joab and his army had defeated. This crown weighed around 75 pounds and was full of precious stones. David placed that crown on his own head. (1st Chronicles 20:2)
Right after this, David returned again to Jerusalem and Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census! (1st Chronicles 21:1) This was evil in God’s sight because it was motivated by pride and not by God’s direction. (1st Chronicles 21:7) Satan had gained an inroad in David’s life. David was not fighting the Lord’s enemies but stayed home to engage in sexual sin. He had Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband, killed. He took this massive crown belonging to a pagan king and placed it on his own head. This cost the lives of 70,000 Israelites!
David did repent and ended up buying the threshing floor of Arunah as a place of sacrifice to the Lord to stop the plague of death. This site became the site of the temple! The temple was a place where anyone who had sinned could bring a sacrifice with humility and find forgiveness and restoration! David’s latter Son, Jesus Christ, would humbly offer Himself in this temple to be the final sacrifice for the sins of the world defeating Satan and his schemes of death! Ask the Lord to open your eyes to Satan’s schemes! Don’t take a vacation from God or His work!