Impurity Poisons Ephesians 4:17-19 Ephesians 5:3-7 Galatians 5:7-10 Colossians 3:5-10 03.30.16

IMPURITY POISONS

BREAD

17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.   Ephesians 4:17-19 (NIV)

3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person--such a man is an idolater--has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not be partners with them.   Ephesians 5:3-7 (NIV)

7 You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? 8 That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. 9 "A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough." 10 I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be.   Galatians 5:7-10 (NIV)

5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.   Colossians 3:5-10 (NIV)

BUTTER

“God's view of sin should be taken seriously. Believers should be imitators of God, not evildoers.”   Bible Knowledge Commentary

“So let us not stay silent with this gospel.  Let’s not allow fear in our culture to muzzle our faith in Christ.  And let’s not enable indecision to rule our lives.  Let’s not permit delay to characterize our days.  We don’t have to ask what the will of God is; He has made it clear.  He wants His people to provide for the poor, to value the unborn, to care for orphans and widows, to rescue people from slavery, to defend marriage, to war against sexual immorality in all its forms in every area of our lives, to love our neighbors as ourselves regardless of their ethnicity, to practice faith regardless of the risk, and to proclaim the gospel to all nations.  Of these things we are sure.”    David Platt  

“In God’s eyes, impurity is one of the most revolting sins, because it twists and distorts one of God’s most precious gifts:  human love.  Impurity drags this gift down to the level of the beast.  Yet impurity – surrounding us as it does in the form of filthy stories, suggestive remarks, open vulgarity; in magazines, on television, in the movies, through the Internet – has a better press agent than purity.  Purity is considered smug, but impurity is considered smart – and the consequences of this vicious sin are played down.  Satan fails to speak of the remorse, the futility, the loneliness, and the spiritual devastation that go hand in hand with immorality…Christ can cleanse you and give you victory over your sin.  Jesus said to the immoral woman, “Go now and leave your life of sin” (John 8:11).  He says that to you as well – and He never told anyone to do something without offering them the power to do it.”   Billy Graham

“We are able to think, choose, create, love and worship; but we are also able to hate, covet, fight and kill.   Human beings are the inventors of hospitals for the care of the sick, of universities for the acquisition of wisdom, and of churches for the worship of God.  But they have also invented torture chambers, concentration camps, and nuclear arsenals.  This is the paradox of our humanness.  We are both noble and ignoble, both rational and irrational, both moral and immoral, both creative and destructive, both loving and selfish, both Godlike and bestial.”   John Stott

“Sin is real rebellion against the good Creator of all things and the final judge of all people. In the end, we are all guilty of rebellion against God.  Not just the pimp in northern Nepal, but you and me.  All of us have turned from God, all of us are guilty before God, and all of us know it.  We feel this guilt, and although we inevitable deny it, we instinctively experience it…Yet guilt remains.  No matter how hard we try, we can’t successfully erase the sense of ‘ought’ that God has written on the human soul.  One need only look in the eyes of a little girl being sold into sex slavery to know that this ‘ought’ not to be, for right and wrong do exist as objective standards for all people in all places at all times.  We cannot remove the reality of guilt before God, and this is why we need Jesus.”  David Platt

“‘Enter ye in at the strait gate.’  We can only get to heaven through Jesus Christ and by no other way; we can only get to the Father through Jesus Christ, and we can only get into the life of a saint in the same way….Heavenly places in Christ Jesus is where God raises us.  We do not get there by climbing, by aspiring, by struggling, by consecration, or by vows; God lifts us right straight up out of sin, inability and weakness, lust and disobedience, wrath and self-seeking – lifts us right up out of all this, ‘up, up to the whiter than snow shine,’ to the heavenly places where Jesus Christ lived when He was on earth, and where He lives to this hour in the fullness of the plenitude of His power.  May God never relieve us from the wonder of it.”   Oswald Chambers  

HEART SAVOR

• ·       Impurity brings death not life to my soul.
• ·       I am never again - no longer – to keep missing the mark in my relationship with God through the power of the Holy Spirit.  That’s what the wording of John 8:11 actually means - "Go now and leave your life of sin."
• ·        I am to put to death whatever belongs to my earthly nature.

Live Today Matthew 6:31-34 John 10:10 Hebrews 3:12-14 Proverbs 27:1 Ephesians 5:15-17 Romans 12:1-2 Psalms 37:23-24 2 Timothy 1:7 Deuteronomy 33:27 Hebrews 13:8 03.28.16

LIVE TODAY

BREAD

31 “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”   Matthew 6:31-34 (NIV)

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.   John 10:10 (NIV)

12 See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. 14 We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.   Hebrews 3:12-14 (NIV)

1 Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.   Proverbs 27:1 (NIV)

15 Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is.   Ephesians 5:15-17 (NIV)

1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. 2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.  Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)

23 If the Lord delights in a man's way, he makes his steps firm; 24 though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.   Psalms 37:23-24 (NIV)

7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.   2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV)

27 The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.   Deuteronomy 33:27 (NIV)

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.   Hebrews 13:8 (NIV)

BUTTER

“If the Lord be with us, we have no cause of fear.  His eye is upon us, His arm over us, His ear open to our prayer, His grace sufficient, His promise unchangeable.”  John Newton

“Memory and hope are meant to fit us for work in the flying moment.  Both should impel us to the keeping of the commandments of God; for both yield motives which should incline us thereto.  A past full of blessing demands the sacrifice of loving hearts and of earnest hands.  A future so fair, so far, so certain, so sovereign, and a hope that grasps it, and brings some of its sweet fragrance into the else scentless air of the poor present, ought to impel to service, vigorous and continual.  Both should yield motives which make such service a delight.”   Alexander MacLaren

“What a fellowship, what a joy divine, Leaning on the everlasting arms! What a blessedness, what a peace is mine, Leaning on the everlasting arms!  Leaning, leaning, Safe and secure from all alarms; Leaning, leaning, Leaning on the everlasting arms.  Oh how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way, Leaning on the everlasting arms!  Oh how bright the path Grows from day to day, Leaning on the everlasting arms.  Leaning, leaning, Safe and secure from all alarms; Leaning, leaning, Leaning on the everlasting arms.  What have I to dread, what have I to fear, Leaning on the everlasting arms?  I have blessed peace with my Lord so near, Leaning on the everlasting arms.  Leaning, leaning, Safe and secure from all alarms; Leaning, leaning, Leaning on the everlasting arms.”   Elisha A. Hoffman

“We have no excuse as Christians for living in mediocrity or defeat, no excuse for living in a life of ups and downs, for this violates the very power we have been given.”   J. D. Watson  

“By reading the scriptures I am so renewed that all nature seems renewed around me and with me.  The sky seems to be a pure, a cooler blue, the trees a deeper green.  The whole world is charged with the glory of God, and I feel fire and music under my feet.”   Thomas Merton

“God, the eternal God, is our support at all times, especially when we are sinking into deep trouble.  There are seasons when we sink quite low….Dear child of God, even when you are at your lowest, underneath are the everlasting arms.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

“However low the people of God are at any time brought, everlasting arms are underneath them to keep the sprit from fainting and the faith from failing, even when they are pressed above measure….everlasting arms with which believers have been wonderfully sustained and kept cheerful in the worst of times.  Divine grace is sufficient.”   Matthew Henry

HEART SAVOR

·       I am not to fret about yesterday or worry about tomorrow rather live to the full today.

·       I am to encourage others as long as it is today so that we will not grow weary and lose heart.

·       God gives me grace and power sufficient to meet my ever need – what have I to fear?

Clean Hands And A Pure Heart Psalms 24:3-6 Isaiah 1:15-20 Jeremiah 4:14 Psalms 139:23-24 Psalms 4:4 Jeremiah 17:10 James 4:7-8 03.25.16

CLEAN HANDS AND A PURE HEART

3 Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. 5 He will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his Savior. 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob.   Psalms 24:3-6 (NIV)

15 When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are full of blood; 16 wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, 17 learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow. 18 “Come now, let us reason together,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land; 20 but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.   Isaiah 1:15-20 (NIV)

14 O Jerusalem, wash the evil from your heart and be saved. How long will you harbor wicked thoughts?   Jeremiah 4:14 (NIV)

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.   Psalms 139:23-24 (NIV)

4 In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent.   Psalms 4:4 (NIV)

10 “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.”   Jeremiah 17:10 (NIV)

7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.   James 4:7-8 (NIV)

BUTTER

“Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance.  We know Your Word says, ‘Woe to those who call evil good,’ but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self-esteem. We have abused power and called it politics. We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and Set us free. Amen!”   Billy Graham

“…Jesus showed us what God really wants to cleanse and purify—our hearts. Christ’s transforming work on the cross helps us to break free from desires that hold us in bondage. As we submit to God, we become like Christ, no longer wanting to offend God. Out of gratitude we obey Him from the inside out.”  Tremper Longman

“Thank God for the new thing that He is doing in your life.  Present to him the clean empty vessel of your life to fill with his Spirit.  Pray always the prayers of Moses:  Let me know your ways.  Show me your glory.  Go among us.”    Sylvia Gunter

“The more willing you are to own up to your sin, the more willing God is to forgive you.  When you come clean, God will clean your record.  If you are willing to use your lips for confession, you will find your Father willing to use His lips to kiss you.”   Paraphrased, Charles Spurgeon

“Clean is the one who is righteous, if not in the sight of men, yet in the sight of God.”    Augustine  

“One reason we don’t grow in ordinary, grateful obedience as we should is that we’ve got amnesia; we’ve forgotten that we are cleansed from our sins. In other words, ongoing failure in sanctification (the slow process of change into Christlikeness) is the direct result of failing to remember God’s love for us in the gospel. If we lack the comfort and assurance that his love and cleansing are meant to supply, our failures will handcuff us to yesterday’s sins, and we won’t have faith or courage to fight against them, or the love for God that’s meant to empower this war. If we fail to remember our justification, redemption, and reconciliation, we’ll struggle in our sanctification.”    Elyse Fitzpatrick

“Every attribute of God should become a fresh ray in the sunlight of our gladness.  That He is wise should make us glad, knowing as we do our own foolishness.  That He is mighty should cause us to rejoice who tremble at our weakness.  That He is everlasting, should always be a theme of joy when we know that we wither as the grass.  That He is un-changing, should perpetually yield us a song, since we change every hour.  That He is full of grace, that He is overflowing with it, and that this grace in covenant He has given to us; that it is ours to cleanse us, ours to keep us, ours to sanctify us, ours to perfect us, ours to bring us to glory – all this should tend to make us glad in Him.  This gladness in God is as a deep river; we have only as yet touched its brink, we know a little of its clear sweet, heavenly streams, but onward the depth is greater, and the current more impetuous in its joy.”   Charles H. Spurgeon  

HEART SAVOR

• ·       Create in me a clean heart O Lord and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
• ·       The condition of my heart and hands matter to my God.
• ·       Help me to submit to you O Lord – The Almighty - and resist the evil one.  

Selflessness 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 2 Corinthians 5:21 Philippians 2:3-11 Luke 9:23-25 Matthew 20:25-28 03.23.16

SELFLESSNESS

BREAD

14 For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.   2 Corinthians 5:14-15 (NIV)

21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.   2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)

3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.   Philippians 2:3-11 (NIV)

23 Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. 25 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?”   Luke 9:23-25 (NIV)

25 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave-- 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”   Matthew 20:25-28 (NIV)

BUTTER

“Remember Whose you are and Whom you serve.”    Oswald Chambers

“Maturity is for ministry! We grow up in order to give out. It is not enough to keep learning more and more. We must act on what we know and practice what we claim to believe. Impression without expression causes depression. Study without service leads to spiritual stagnation. Most of the time we’re more interested in ‘serve us’ than service. We say, ‘I’m looking for a church that meets my needs and blesses me,’ not ‘I’m looking for a place to serve and be a blessing.’ We expect others to serve us, not vice versa. But as we mature in Christ, the focus of our lives should increasingly shift to living a life of service. The mature follower of Jesus stops asking, ‘Who’s going to meet my needs?’ and starts asking, ‘Whose needs can I meet?’”   Rick Warren

“A primary qualification for serving God with any amount of success, and for doing God’s work well and triumphantly, is a sense of our own weakness.  When God’s warrior marches forth to battle, strong in his own might, when he boasts, ‘I know that I shall conquer, my own right arm and my conquering sword shall get unto me the victory’, defeat is not far distant.  God will not go forth with that man who marches in his own strength.  He who reckoneth on victory thus has reckoned wrongly, for ‘it is not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, satin the Lord of hosts’.  They who go forth to fight, boasting of their prowess, shall return with their gay banners trailed in the dust, and their armour stained with disgrace.  Those who serve God must serve Him in His own way, and in His strength, or He will never accept their service.  That which man doth, unaided by divine strength, God can never own.  The mere fruits of the earth He casteth away; He will only reap that corn, the seed of which was sown from heaven, watered by grace, and ripened by the sun of divine love.  God will empty out all that thou hast before He will put His own into thee; He will first clean out the granaries before He will fill them with the finest of the wheat……Your emptiness is but the preparation for your being filled, and your casting down is but the making ready for your lifting up.”   C. H. Spurgeon 

“To love God, to serve Him because we love Him, is…our highest happiness…Love makes all labor light.  We serve with enthusiasm where we love with sincerity.”   Hannah More

“From God, great and small, rich and poor, draw living water from a living spring, and those who serve Him freely and gladly will receive grace answering to grace.”  Thomas a Kempis

“We are taught from the Word of God and from the church creeds that the chief end of man is to glorify God. And how do we do this? We do so by making sure our actions reflect well on our Savior. When people gain a taste of heaven by sampling the righteous deeds and attitudes we serve up, Jesus is glorified.” David Jeremiah

“The person who serves selflessly, lovingly, without complaint, and without seeking recognition is highly regarded in the kingdom of God. The world will estimate your importance by the number of people serving you. God is more concerned with the number of people you are serving.”   Henry Blackaby, Richard Blackaby

“If thou makest a profession of being a child of God, if thou art a believer, and thinkest and believest religion is the best, the service of God most desirable, I do not come to plead with thee because of any advantage thou wouldst get by being holy; it is on this ground that I put it, that the Lord is God; and if he be God, it is thy business to serve him. If his gospel be true, and thou believest it to be true, it is thy duty to carry it out.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

HEART SAVOR

• ·        Jesus came to serve and as His follower, I am to serve as well.   “This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.”  1 John 2:5-6 (NIV)
• ·       The Christian posture stoops rather than elevates self.
• ·       As a Christian I am to no longer live for myself but for Him Who died for me.

Gloriously Redeemed Psalms 49:7-8 Job 33:28 Romans 5:6-9 Galatians 4:4-5 1 Peter 1:17-19 Galatians 3:10-14 Titus 2:11-14 03.21.16

GLORIOUSLY REDEEMED

BREAD

7 No man can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for him-- 8 the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough--    Psalms 49:7-8 (NIV)

28 He redeemed my soul from going down to the pit, and I will live to enjoy the light.  Job 33:28 (NIV)

6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him!   Romans 5:6-9 (NIV)

4 But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, 5 to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.   Galatians 4:4-5 (NIV)

17 Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear. 18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.  1 Peter 1:17-19 (NIV)

10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law." 11 Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, "The righteous will live by faith." 12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, "The man who does these things will live by them." 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree." 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit. Galatians 3:10-14 (NIV)

11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. 12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.  Titus 2:11-14 (NIV)

BUTTER

“You know to what extent You have already changed me, You who first healed me of the lust of vindicating myself, so that You might forgive all my remaining iniquities, and heal my diseases, and redeem my life from corruption, and crown me with loving-kindness and tender mercies, and satisfy my desire with good things.”  St. Augustine 

“What if believing meant there’s no way you could stop telling the Good News because it’s more sensational than gossip that parades as news?  What if shying away from the word sin so as not to offend, offends a Holy God — and what if being culturally correct leads a whole generation a wrong shy of heaven? What if breaking this addiction of talking about problems could break new ground of talking about our Provider?  That we couldn’t stop sharing about how we’ve been saved, rescued, redeemed, revived?”   Ann Voskamp

“It becomes every person who purposes to give himself to the care of others, seriously to consider the four following things:  First, that he must one day give an account to the Supreme Judge of all the lives entrusted to his care.  Second, that all his skill and knowledge and energy, as they have been given him by God, so they should be exercised for His glory and the good of mankind, and not for mere gain or ambition. Third, and not more beautifully than truly, let him reflect that he has undertaken the care of no mean creature; for, in order that he may estimate the value, the greatness of the human race, the only begotten Son of God became himself a man, and thus ennobled it with His divine dignity, and far more than this, died to redeem it.  And fourth, that the doctor being himself a mortal human being, should be diligent and tender in relieving his suffering patients, inasmuch as he himself must one day be a like sufferer.”   Thomas Sydenham

“Living for Jesus, a life that is true.  Striving to please Him in all that I do.  Yielding allegiance, glad hearted and free.  This is the pathway of blessing for me.  Living for Jesus Who died in my place, bearing on Calvary, my sin and disgrace.  Such love constrains me, to answer His call, follow His leading and give Him my all.  Living for Jesus, wherever I am.  Doing each duty in His holy name.  Willing to suffer affliction or loss.  Deeming each trial a part of my cross.  Living for Jesus, through earth’s little while, my dearest treasure, the light of His smile.  Seeking the lost ones, He died to redeem.  Bringing the weary to find rest in Him.”   Thomas O. Chisholm

“What we feed our minds and hearts on will determine whether we live a life of faith or a life of fear. …The more time we spend with God and His Word, the more our faith develops and our fear diminishes….Faith in God conquers fear every time. The God who has redeemed us and cares for us is trustworthy. Our Creator God will never abandon us, and He has our best interests at heart. ‘God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging’ (Psalm 46:1-3).”   Michael Youssef

HEART SAVOR

·       No man can redeem a life of another – no payment is ever enough.  Christ alone.

·       While I was yet powerless Christ died for me.

·       It is not the Law which redeems rather Love.

Justice Deuteronomy 32:4 2 Chronicles 19:7 Psalms 9:7-9 Psalms 101:1 Psalms 33:4-5 Isaiah 56:1-2 Psalms 37:28-29 Psalms 97:10-11 Revelation 19:11-16 Isaiah 61:8 03.18.16

JUSTICE

BREAD

4 He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.   Deuteronomy 32:4 (NIV)

7 Now let the fear of the Lord be upon you. Judge carefully, for with the Lord our God there is no injustice or partiality or bribery.   2 Chronicles 19:7 (NIV)

7 The Lord reigns forever; he has established his throne for judgment. 8 He will judge the world in righteousness; he will govern the peoples with justice. 9 The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.   Psalms 9:7-9 (NIV)

1 I will sing of your love and justice; to you, O Lord, I will sing praise.   Psalms 101:1 (NIV)

4 For the word of the Lord is right and true; he is faithful in all he does. 5 The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love.   Psalms 33:4-5 (NIV)

1 This is what the Lord says: “Maintain justice and do what is right, for my salvation is close at hand and my righteousness will soon be revealed. 2 Blessed is the man who does this, the man who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath without desecrating it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”  Isaiah 56:1-2 (NIV)

28 For the Lord loves the just and will not forsake his faithful ones. They will be protected forever, but the offspring of the wicked will be cut off; 29 the righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever.   Psalms 37:28-29 (NIV)

10 Let those who love the Lord hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. 11 Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart.   Psalms 97:10-11 (NIV)

11 I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. 14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. 15 Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter." He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND Lord OF LordS.   Revelation 19:11-16 (NIV)

8 “For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and iniquity. In my faithfulness I will reward them and make an everlasting covenant with them.”   Isaiah 61:8 (NIV) 

BUTTER

“Sin is the dare of God’s justice, the rape of His mercy, the jeer of His patience, the slight of His power, and the contempt of His love.”  John Bunyan

“The quality of justice is the consistent, unwavering decision to do what is right.”  Chuck Swindoll

“Immortal, invisible, God only wise, In light inaccessible hid from our eyes, Most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days, Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.  Unresting, unhasting and silent as light, Nor wanting, nor wasting, Thou rulest in might; Thy justice like mountains high soaring above Thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.”   Walter C. Smith

“God’s justice guarantees that ultimately all that is unfair will be dealt with.”   Joseph Stowell

“Where is the folly of true religion? Is it a folly to be providing for the world to come? ‘Oh, no.’ Is it a folly to make the Author of your being its first end? ‘No, no.’ Is it altogether a folly to believe that there is such a thing as justice? I think not. And that, if there be such a thing as justice, it involves punishment? There is no great folly there. Well, then, is it any folly to perceive that there is no way of escaping from the effects of our offences except justice be satisfied? Is that folly?  And if it be the fact that Christ has satisfied justice for all who trust in him, is it folly to trust him? If it be a folly to escape from the flames of hell, then let us be fools. If it be folly to lay hold of him who gives us eternal life—oh, blessed folly! Let us be more foolish still. Let us take deep dives into the depths of this foolishness. God forbid that we should do anything else but glory in being such fools as this for Christ’s sake! What, sirs, is your wisdom? Your wisdom dwells in denying what your eyes can see—a God; in denying what your consciences tell you—that you are guilty; in denying what should be your best hope, what your spirit really craves after—redemption in Christ Jesus. Your folly lies in following a perverted nature, instead of obeying the dictates of one who points you to the right path. You are wise and you drink poison; we are fools and we take the antidote. You are wise and you hunt the shadow; we are fools and we grasp the substance. You are wise, and you labour and put your money into a bag which is full of holes, and spend it for that which is not bread, and which never gives you satisfaction; and we are fools enough to be satisfied, to be happy, to be perfectly content with heaven and God.”  Charles H. Spurgeon

“When Christians stand up for righteousness and justice, they evidence the power of the living God.”   Charles Colson

HEART SAVOR

• ·       Out God is a God of justice.  It is rooted in His character.
• ·       With Him there is no favoritism.  25 Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.   Colossians 3:24-25 (NIV)
• ·       I am to maintain justice and do what is right.  It is always better to do the hard right in lieu of the easy wrong.