Unearthly Pleasurable Crowns Proverbs 17:6 Proverbs 10:6 Proverbs 4:5-9 Proverbs 12:4 Proverbs 16:31 Isaiah 61:1-3 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 Zechariah 9:14-17 James 1:12 Revelation 3:11 05.10.17

UNEARTHLY PLEASURABLE CROWNS

BREAD

6 Children's children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children. Proverbs 17:6 (NIV)

6 Blessings crown the head of the righteous, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.  Proverbs 10:6 (NIV)

5 Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or swerve from them. 6 Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you. 7 Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. 8 Esteem her, and she will exalt you; embrace her, and she will honor you. 9 She will set a garland of grace on your head and present you with a crown of splendor.   Proverbs 4:5-9 (NIV)

4 A wife of noble character is her husband's crown, but a disgraceful wife is like decay in his bones.   Proverbs 12:4 (NIV)

31 Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained by a righteous life.   Proverbs 16:31 (NIV)

1 The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, 2 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion-- to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.   Isaiah 61:1-3 (NIV)

24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.   1 Corinthians 9:24-27 (NIV)

14 Then the Lord will appear over them; his arrow will flash like lightning. The Sovereign Lord will sound the trumpet; he will march in the storms of the south, 15 and the Lord Almighty will shield them. They will destroy and overcome with slingstones. They will drink and roar as with wine; they will be full like a bowl used for sprinkling the corners of the altar. 16 The Lord their God will save them on that day as the flock of his people. They will sparkle in his land like jewels in a crown. 17 How attractive and beautiful they will be!   Zechariah 9:14-17 (NIV)

12 Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.    James 1:12 (NIV)

11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.   Revelation 3:11 (NIV)

BUTTER

“They who are Christ’s are kings. Take care that you wear your crown, by reigning over your lusts. Be a king in the midst of all that would lead you astray. Christ Jesus has broken the neck of your sin; put your foot upon it; keep it under; subdue it. In the world at large act a king’s part. If any would tempt you to betray Christ for gain, say, ‘How can I? I am a king. How shall I betray Christ?’ Let the nobility of your nature come out in your actings. Forgive in a royal manner, as a king can forgive. Be ready to give to others as God has helped you, as a king gives. Let your liberality of spirit be right royal. Let your actions never be mean, sneaking, cowardly, dastardly. Do the right thing, and defy the worst. Dare all your foes in the pursuit of that which is right, and let men see while they look upon you that there is a something under your homely appearance which they cannot understand. Men make a deal of fuss about the blood of the aristocracy; I dare say it is not very different from the blood of crossing-sweepers. But there is a great deal of difference between the lifeblood of the saints and the lifeblood of the proudest prince; for they who love Christ have fed upon his flesh, and have drunk of his blood, and have been made partakers of the divine nature. These are the royal ones; these are the aristocrats; these are the nobility, and all are mean beside. Christians, perhaps some of you have not reigned as kings during the last week. You have been either murmuring, like poor whining beggars, or you have been scraping, like dunghill rakers, with your covetousness, or you have been sinning, like idle boys in the street, who roll in the mire. You have not lived up to your kingship.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

“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

“God hath in Himself all power to defend you, all wisdom to direct you, all mercy to pardon you, all grace to enrich you, all righteousness to clothe you, all goodness to supply you, and all happiness to crown you.”   Thomas Brooks

“Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it! Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb; Redeemed through His infinite mercy, His child and forever I am.  Redeemed, and so happy in Jesus, No language my rapture can tell; I know that the light of His presence With me doth continually dwell. I think of my blessed Redeemer, I think of Him all the day long:  I sing, for I cannot be silent; His love is the theme of my song.  I know I shall see in His beauty The King in whose law I delight; Who lovingly guardeth my footsteps, And giveth me songs in the night. I know there’s a crown that is waiting In yonder bright mansion for me, And soon, with the spirits made perfect, At home with the Lord I shall be.”  Frances J. Crosby

“Faith in God will always be crowned.”  William S. Plummer

“The Via Crucis is the way of safety; don’t be afraid to tread its thorny paths…..Carry your cross, and by the power of the Spirit of God you will soon be so in love with it, that like Moses, you would not exchange the reproach of Christ for all the treasures of Egypt.  Remember that Jesus carried it, and it will smell sweetly; remember that it will soon be followed by the crown, and the thought of the coming weight of glory will greatly lighten the present heaviness of trouble.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

  

“The devil tempts that he may ruin; God tests that He may crown.”  Ambrose

“No pain, no palm; no thorns, no throne; no gall, no glory; no cross, no crown.”  William Penn

“He that rides to be crowned will not think much of a rainy day.”   John Trapp

“God always has something for you that is greater than what you presently know, what you presently do, and what you presently experience. For now, you walk the pathway of a pilgrim, but one day you will actually arrive at your glorious destination. For now, you live a life of faith and believe in many things that you do not yet see, but one day you will enter faith’s full reward. For now, you are learning how to face difficulties and walk through hard times, but one day you will wear a victor’s crown. For now, you experience sorrows and shed many tears, but one day every tear will be wiped away. For now, you are living by faith, but one day you will see Him face to face.”   Roy Lessin

“Lord, high and holy, meek and lowly, You have brought me to the valley of vision, where I live in the depths but see You in the heights; hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold Your glory. Let me learn by paradox that the way down is the way up, that to be low is to be high, that the broken heart is the healed heart, that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit, that the repenting soul is the victorious soul, that to have nothing is to possess all, that to bear the cross is to wear the crown, that to give is to receive, Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from deepest wells, and the deeper the wells the brighter Your stars shine; Let me find Your light in my darkness, Your life in my death, Your joy in my sorrow, Your grace in my sin,  Your riches in my poverty, Your glory in my valley.”   From:  The Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions

HEART SAVOR

• ·       I am a child of the King and I am to live as such.
• ·       Crucified with Christ is the only way to have the life of Christ living in me – it is the way to crowning glory.
• ·       When God crowns mere flesh with his presence, it makes pale any earthly crowns.