Let Your Words Bring Life Not Death Proverbs 16:24 Colossians 4:6 Proverbs 12:18 2 Timothy 4:1-4 Proverbs 10:19-21 Colossians 3:7-10 Proverbs 15:4 1 Peter 3:15-16 Proverbs 25:15 Psalms 19:14 12.30.19

LET YOUR WORDS BRING LIFE NOT DEATH

BREAD

²⁴ Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.  Proverbs 16:24 (NIV)

⁶ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.  Colossians 4:6 (NIV)

¹⁸ Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. Proverbs 12:18 (NIV)

¹ In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: ² Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction. ³ For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. ⁴ They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.   2 Timothy 4:1-4 (NIV)

¹⁹ When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise. ²⁰ The tongue of the righteous is choice silver, but the heart of the wicked is of little value. ²¹ The lips of the righteous nourish many, but fools die for lack of judgment. Proverbs 10:19-21 (NIV)

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 3:7-10 (NIV)

⁴ The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit. Proverbs 15:4 (NIV)

¹⁵ But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, ¹⁶ keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.  1 Peter 3:15-16 (NIV)

¹⁵ Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, and a gentle tongue can break a bone. Proverbs 25:15 (NIV)

¹⁴ May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.  Psalms 19:14 (NIV)

BUTTER

“No matter how just your words may be, you ruin everything when you speak in anger.”    John Chrysostom

“--Blazingly, Jesus illustrated this with the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4).  No self-respecting Jew of that time would speak to a Samaritan.  But Jesus, caring more for the person than the tradition, knew she had an unquenched thirst.  He sought her out, found common ground -- and the rest is history.  It’s a model I’m seeing lived out all around me - people finding common ground, taking risks, running toward instead of away from threat.  Being brave to love and heal and bless -- no matter the cost to self. Daring to hold back, or to step in to forge a way for peace, stem a destructive tide, or build a river in a desert.  I’m seeing that being salt and light means engaging our world precisely where we are placed. Wherever we find ourselves, there, living simply, profoundly, giving our best at all times for Jesus’ sake.  Upfront or behind the scenes, whether like me you are a helper, or whether you are a leader; a doctor, an executive, a parent, a principal, a granny or a golfer, it matters not -- only that we are givers and love at all times.”   Paula Kirby

“If this story tells us exactly who Jesus is for us today, then it also tells us what the church is. The church is still Peter. That is, the church is a fragile people inspired by God to speak the truth about Jesus. Peter spoke the truth about Jesus; so does the church. But Peter was not infallible. Neither is the church. If Peter spoke the truth, it was because God inspired his words; so it is for the church. Peter was sometimes stupid, selfish, scared, and just plain wrong; so is the church. But Jesus chose Peter. And Jesus still chooses the church. Who are we to differ?”   Samuel Wells

“Before we speak we should put our words through the sieve of:  Is it true?  Is it noble?  Is it right?  Is it pure?  Is it lovely?   Is it admirable?  Is it excellent?  Is it praiseworthy?  Is it necessary????”  BHY  

  

“Just so you know, the need for repentance, redemption, and forgiveness is universal. I don't care if you are a liberal or a conservative, a religious fanatic or a militant atheist, a ‘spiritual’/’religious’ person or someone who runs from all that. It doesn’t matter to me if you listen to Billy Graham or follow Camus—you are in need. No one in the human race is exempt.  It’s in our DNA…When we finally acknowledge our need for forgiveness and come to God in repentance, we find true power; for we now have nothing to hide or protect, we don't care what people say or think about us, we are willing to speak truth gently, and we are enabled to speak with tremendous, supernatural power.”   Steve Brown

“Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.”   Mother Teresa

“Wisdom is knowing when to speak your mind and when to mind your speech.”   Anonymous

“Silence in the face of evil is itself evil….Not to speak is to speak; not to act is to act.”   Dietrich Bonhoeffer

“The cynics, they can only speak of the dark, of the obvious, and this is not hard. For all it’s supposed sophistication, it’s cynicism that’s simplistic. In a fallen world, how profound is it to see what’s broken?  It’s the brilliant who don’t deny the dark but who always seek the light in everything.”   Ann Voskamp

“God employs His people to encourage one another.  We should delight that God usually works for human beings with other human beings.  It forms a bond of friendship, and being mutually dependent on one another, we are fused more completely into one family.  Work to help others, and especially strive to encourage them.  Talk cheerily to the young and anxious inquirer, lovingly try to remove obstacles out of his way.  When you find a spark of grace in the heart, kneel down and blow it into a flame.  Leave the young believer to discover the roughness of the road by degrees, but tell him of the strength which dwells in God, of the sureness  of the promise, and of the charms of communion with Christ.  Aim to comfort the sorrowful, and to animate the hopeless.  Speak a word in season to him who is weary, and encourage those who are fearful to go on their way with gladness.  God encourages you by His promises; Christ encourages you as He points to the heaven He has won for you, and the Spirit encourages you as He works in you to will and to do of His own will and pleasure.  Imitate divine wisdom, and encourage others according to the Word.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

“Our words have the power to speak life or death over someone.  Watch the face of the hearer.  Think before we speak.  Store up in our hearts His truth before we spout out from our lips our opinions.  Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth will speak.  Be the conduit that life flows freely through to others.  We will then leave the aroma of Christ in our circumstances not the stench of death.”   BHY

HEART SAVOR

·         Let your words bring life to the hearer – not death.  Let them build up others not tear them down.  Let them lead others to the only One Who can change a heart and change the course of a life which is always, only Jesus.

·         Seek for your words to be pleasing to your Savior.

·         Our words are important – make them sweet in case you end up eating them.

 

Unfailing Kindness Psalms 18:50 Psalms 106:6-13 Isaiah 63:7-9 Hosea 11:4 Acts 14:15-17 Lamentations 3:17-26 Exodus 34:10 12.27.19

UNFAILING KINDNESS

BREAD

⁵⁰ He gives his king great victories; he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed, to David and his descendants forever.  Psalms 18:50 (NIV)

⁶ We have sinned, even as our fathers did; we have done wrong and acted wickedly. ⁷ When our fathers were in Egypt, they gave no thought to your miracles; they did not remember your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea. ⁸ Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, to make his mighty power known. ⁹ He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up; he led them through the depths as through a desert. ¹⁰ He saved them from the hand of the foe; from the hand of the enemy he redeemed them. ¹¹ The waters covered their adversaries; not one of them survived. ¹² Then they believed his promises and sang his praise. ¹³ But they soon forgot what he had done and did not wait for his counsel.   Psalms 106:6-13 (NIV)

⁷ I will tell of the kindnesses of the LORD, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the LORD has done for us--yes, the many good things he has done for the house of Israel, according to his compassion and many kindnesses. ⁸ He said, “Surely they are my people, sons who will not be false to me”; and so he became their Savior. ⁹ In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.   Isaiah 63:7-9 (NIV)

⁴ I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love; I lifted the yoke from their neck and bent down to feed them.  Hosea 11:4 (NIV)

¹⁵ “Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them. ¹⁶ In the past, he let all nations go their own way. ¹⁷ Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.”  Acts 14:15-17 (NIV)

¹⁷ I have been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is.  ¹⁸ So I say, “My splendor is gone and all that I had hoped from the LORD.”  ¹⁹ I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. ²⁰ I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. ²¹ Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: ²² Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. ²³ They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ²⁴ I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”  ²⁵ The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; ²⁶ it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.   Lamentations 3:17-26 (NIV)

¹⁰ Then the LORD said: “I am making a covenant with you. Before all your people I will do wonders never before done in any nation in all the world. The people you live among will see how awesome is the work that I, the LORD, will do for you.”  Exodus 34:10 (NIV)

BUTTER

“For the love of God is broader than the measures of man’s mind; and the heart of the Eternal is most wonderfully kind.”   Frederick William Faber

“When the Bible speaks of ‘following Jesus’ it is proclaiming a discipleship which will liberate mankind from all man-made dogma, from every burden and oppression, from every anxiety and torture which afflicts the conscience.  If they follow Jesus, men escape from the hard yoke of their own laws, and submit to the kindly yoke of Jesus Christ.  But does this mean that we can ignore the seriousness of His command?  Far from it!  We can only achieve perfect liberty and enjoy fellowship with Jesus when His command, His call to absolute discipleship, is appreciated in its entirety.  Only the man who follows the command of Jesus without reserve, and submits unresistingly to His yoke, finds his burden easy, and under its gentle pressure receives the power to persevere in the right way.  The command of Jesus is hard—unutterably hard—for those who try to resist it.”    Dietrich Bonhoeffer

“God is a kind Father.  He sets us all in the places where He wishes us to be employed.”   John Ruskin

“Upon some points a believer is absolutely sure. He knows, for instance, that God sits in the stern-sheets of the vessel when it rocks most. He believes that an invisible hand is always on the world’s tiller, and that wherever providence may drift, Jehovah steers it. That re-assuring knowledge prepares him for everything. He looks over the raging waters and sees the spirit of Jesus treading the billows, and he hears a voice saying, ‘It is I, be not afraid.’ He knows too that God is always wise, and, knowing this, he is confident that there can be no accidents, no mistakes; that nothing can occur which ought not to arise. He can say, ‘If I should lose all I have, it is better that I should lose than have, if God so wills: the worst calamity is the wisest and the kindest thing that could befall to me if God ordains it.’ ‘We know that all things work together for good to them that love God.’ The Christian does not merely hold this as a theory, but he knows it as a matter of fact. Everything has worked for good as yet; the poisonous drugs mixed in fit proportions have worked the cure; the sharp cuts of the lancet have cleansed out the proud flesh and facilitated the healing. Every event as yet has worked out the most divinely blessed results; and so, believing that God rules all, that He governs wisely, that He brings good out of evil, the believer’s heart is assured, and he is enabled calmly to meet each trial as it comes. The believer can in the spirit of true resignation pray, ‘Send me what thou wilt, my God, so long as it comes from Thee; never came there an ill portion from Thy table to any of Thy children.’”   C. H. Spurgeon

“When arrogant people who know they deserve eternal misery tremble before a holy God of passionate wrath, they discover grace.  They encounter the depths of God’s kindness and love, a kindness and love they find nowhere else.  They fall to their knees and worship Christ as their Lord and Savior and as their truest friend, really their only true friend.  They know they don’t deserve a hug, no matter how badly they’re hurting; but they get an eternal one anyway.  That’s the grace that takes their breath away.”   Larry Crabb

“If we will look back upon the past, many of us will find that the very time our heavenly Father has chosen to do the kindest things for us, and given us the richest blessing, has been the time we were strained and shut in on every side.  God’s jewels are often sent us in rough packages and by dark liveried servants, but within we find the very treasures of the King’s palace and the Bridegroom’s love.”    A. B. Simpson

“The invitation to enjoy God is not icing. It is the cake of Christianity. If he is not enjoyed in real measure, then he is not truly believed, trusted, feared, obeyed, or worshiped. God is not seeking disinterested praise, but “worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). He isn’t enlisting dutiful soldiers, but those who will serve with gladness (Psalms 100:2). He is the kind of God, so rich and full, so free and secure, that he will not settle for human compulsion and going through the external motions. He calls, and effects, the willing and eager. He wants, and is worthy, to capture the heart. The trust he wins is not disinterested faith (as if that were really possible), but the kind of faith that enjoys him (2 Corinthians 1:24; Philippians 1:25; Hebrews 11:6).”  David Mathis

“‘On whom dost thou trust?’ We can answer boldly, ‘We trust in him whose power will never be exhausted, whose love will never cease, whose kindness will never change, whose faithfulness will never be sullied, whose wisdom will never be nonplussed, and whose perfect goodness never can know a diminution.’”  Charles H. Spurgeon

“Allow the grace of kindness to pervade your whole nature, mellowing all that would be harsh or austere.  It cost nothing to be kind, yet its benefits are priceless.  And as a child of the King we are bearers of this pleasant fruit.”  BHY

“Depend upon it, you will either serve Satan or Christ, either self or the Savior. You will find sin, self, Satan, and the world to be hard masters, but if you wear the livery of Christ, you will find Him so meek and lowly of heart that you will find rest unto your souls. He is the most magnanimous of captains. There never was His like among the choicest of princes. He is always to be found in the thickest part of the battle. When the wind blows cold He always takes the bleak side of the hill. The heaviest end of the cross lies ever on His shoulders. If He bids us carry a burden, He carries it also. If there is anything that is gracious, generous, kind, and tender, yes lavish and super abundant in love, you always find it in Him.”  Charles H. Spurgeon

HEART SAVOR

·         The heart of the Savior is most wonderfully kind.

·         God shows unfailing kindness to His anointed.

·         His love and compassions never fail - therefore we are not consumed.    

  

From The Cradle To The Cross For Our Sake Luke 2:8-11 Luke 2:25-35 Isaiah 53:1-6 2 Corinthians 5:21 Colossians 2:13-15 Philippians 2:5-8 Romans 8:33-39 12.25.19

FROM THE CRADLE TO THE CROSS FOR OUR SAKE

BREAD

⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.   Luke 2:8-11 (NIV)

²⁵ Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. ²⁶ It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ. ²⁷ Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, ²⁸ Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: ²⁹ “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. ³⁰ For my eyes have seen your salvation, ³¹ which you have prepared in the sight of all people, ³² a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.” ³³ The child's father and mother marveled at what was said about him. ³⁴ Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, ³⁵ so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”  Luke 2:25-35 (NIV)

¹ Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? ² He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. ³ He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.
Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. ⁴ Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. ⁵ But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. ⁶ We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.  Isaiah 53:1-6 (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)

¹³ When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, ¹⁴ having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. ¹⁵ And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.   Colossians 2:13-15 (NIV)

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!   Philippians 2:5-8 (NIV)

³³ Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. ³⁴ Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died--more than that, who was raised to life--is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ³⁶ As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” ³⁷ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans 8:33-39 (NIV)

BUTTER

“Our God is a God who not merely restores, but takes up our mistakes and follies into His plan for us and brings good out of them.”   J.I. Packer

“When God fixes our position for us, we may rest assured that it is a wise and salutary one; and even when we foolishly and willfully choose a position for ourselves, He most graciously overrules our folly, and causes the influences of our self-chosen circumstances to work for our spiritual benefit.”  One Older Commentator of Exodus 14

“The supreme happiness of life,” Victor Hugo said, “is the conviction that we are loved”….Unfortunately, many people go through life feeling unloved – and unlovable…No matter the reason, your feelings aren’t telling you the truth!  God loves you, and if you begin to see yourself the way God sees you, your attitudes will begin to change.  If He didn’t love you, would Christ have been willing to die for you?  But He did!  The Bible says, “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us” (1 John 3:16).  God loves you.  Hammer that truth into your head and mind every day.  It will make all the difference.”    Billy Graham

“The only ground on which God can forgive our sin and reinstate us to His favor is through the Cross of Christ.  There is no other way!  Forgiveness, which is so easy for us to accept, cost the agony at Calvary.  We should never take the forgiveness of sin, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and our sanctification in simple faith, and then forget the enormous cost to God that made all of this ours.  Forgiveness is the divine miracle of grace.  The cost to God was the Cross of Christ.  To forgive sin, while remaining a holy God, this price had to be paid.  Never accept a view of the fatherhood of God if it blots out the atonement.  The revealed truth of God is that without the atonement He cannot forgive – He would contradict His nature if He did.  The only way we can be forgiven is by being brought back to God through the atonement of the Cross.  God’s forgiveness is possible only in the supernatural realm……Once you realize all that it cost God to forgive you, you will be held as in a vise, constrained by the love of God.”  Oswald Chambers

“God looked on Christ as if Christ had been sin; not as if He had taken up the sins of His people, or as if they were laid on Him, though that were true, but as if He Himself had positively been that noxious—that God-hating—that soul-damning thing, called sin. When the Judge of all the earth said, ‘Where is Sin?’ Christ presented himself…what a grim picture that is, to conceive of sin gathered up into one mass—murder, lust and stealing, and adultery…and the Father looked on Christ as if He were that mass of sin. He was not sin, but the Father looked on upon Him as made sin for us. Christ stands in our place, assumes our guilt, takes on our iniquity and God treats Him as if He had been sin…How can any punishment fall on that man who ceases to possess sin, because his sin was cast upon Christ and Christ has suffered in his place? Oh, glorious triumph of faith to be able to say, whenever I feel the guilt of sin, whenever conscience pricks me, ‘Yes, it is true but my Lord is answerable for it all, for He has taken it all upon Himself and suffered in my place.”  Charles Spurgeon

“This knowledge [of our own sinfulness], though it strikes man with terror and overwhelms him with despair, is nevertheless necessary for us in order that, stripped of our own righteousness, cast down from confidence in our own power, deprived of all expectation of life, we may learn through the knowledge of our own poverty, misery and disgrace to prostrate ourselves before the Lord, and by the awareness of our own wickedness, powerlessness, and ruin may give all credit for holiness, power and salvation to him.”  John Calvin

“Costly grace is the Gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock.  Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ.  It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life.  It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner.  Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son.  ‘Ye were bought at a price,’ and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us.  Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us.  Costly grace is the incarnation of God.”   Dietrich Bonhoeffer

“If the Sovereign, Omnipotent, Omniscient God is on our side, as His child, seriously, what do we have to fear?  He, Who loves us with an everlasting love, Who ever has His eye upon us, Who never leaves us nor forsakes us, Who not only died to save us but has also given us the Grand Deposit of the precious Holy Spirit to empower us to walk in a manner worthy of our high calling all the way Home – this God, this very God is for us and not against us.  No matter what the circumstances of your life may be bellowing out.  The world shouts fear while God whispers peace.  He will never let the righteous fall and we can trust Him with our lives and with the lives of all we love and hold dear.”  BHY

     

“Against me earth and hell combine, But on my side is power divine; Jesus is all, and He is mine!”  Charles H. Spurgeon

“We will never put God in a nice little convenient proverbial box of our own makings and imaginations.  He is so totally other – His thoughts are not our thoughts neither His ways our ways.  His paths for us are always perfect and pleasing and have our best interest at heart though unimaginatively hard.  His ways may not lead us into comfort and painlessness.  Indeed, His children should not expect to be carried into heaven on a bed of down though He can do so if He so desires.  More often than not, His ways lead us into circumstances ‘far beyond our ability to endure’ to demonstrate to the unbelieving world (and to ourselves for that matter) His power in our lives whether it be by miraculously changing our circumstances or just as  miraculously (or even more so), by changing our hearts through the circumstances. His good ways will always lead us on paths of conformation to the fullness of His precious Son – that’s the purpose.  He wants us to be like Jesus – whatever it takes - and we want that too.  That is the abundant life.”   BHY

HEART SAVOR

·         If God is for us, who can be against us?

·         He didn’t save us because we were cuddly, clean and perfect little things, He saved us when we were tromping through His creation wallowing in filth, helpless and hopeless.  For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  We all need a Savior and praise Jesus we have One!  

·         We were bought with a price and we are to honor God with our bodies.

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM ME TO YOU!

   

Fear Not Luke 2:14 Isaiah 41:10 Isaiah 41:13-14 1 John 4:18 Psalms 34:4 Proverbs 29:25 Isaiah 35:3-4 Psalms 27:1-3 Psalms 91:1-16 Exodus 33:14 12.23.19

FEAR NOT

BREAD

⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”  ¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”  Luke 2:14 (NIV)

¹⁰ So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  Isaiah 41:10 (NIV)

¹³ “For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. ¹⁴ Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob, O little Israel, for I myself will help you,” declares the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.  Isaiah 41:13-14 (NIV)

¹⁸ There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.  1 John 4:18 (NIV)

⁴ I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. Psalms 34:4 (NIV)

²⁵ Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe.  Proverbs 29:25 (NIV)

³ Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; ⁴ say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.”  Isaiah 35:3-4 (NIV)

¹ The LORD is my light and my salvation-- whom shall I fear?  The LORD is the stronghold of my life-- of whom shall I be afraid? ² When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. ³ Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident. Psalms 27:1-3 (NIV)

¹ He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. ² I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”  ³ Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. ⁴ He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. ⁵ You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, ⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. ⁷ A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. ⁸ You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. ⁹ If you make the Most High your dwelling-- even the LORD, who is my refuge--¹⁰ then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. ¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; ¹² they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. ¹³ You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. ¹⁴ “Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. ¹⁵ He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. ¹⁶ With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation.” Psalms 91:1-16 (NIV)

¹⁴ The LORD replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”  Exodus 33:14 (NIV)

BUTTER

“The doctrine of God's Word is that all who are in union with Christ are safe, that all the righteous shall keep to the path, that those who have committed their souls to the care of Christ will find Him to be a faithful and unchanging protector.”  Charles H. Spurgeon

“Jesus!  The Name that charms our fears, that bids our sorrows cease.”   Charles Wesley

“Abandon the worries....and Abide in the Word.  Abandon the fears...and Abide in the Father.  Abandon the hurts...and Abide in His heart.  Abandon the cares...because Christ will never abandon you.  It’s what I self-preach again and again to the fearful sinner who is me: Abandon and Abide.”    Ann Voskamp

“He was the most balanced and perhaps the most beloved being ever to enter the society of men.  Though born amid most disgusting surroundings, the member of a modest working family, He bore Himself always with great dignity and assurance.  Though He enjoyed no special advantages as a child, either in education or employment, His entire philosophy and outlook on life were the highest standards of human conduct ever set before mankind.  Though He had no vast economic assets, political power or military might, no other person ever made such an enormous impact on the world’s history.  Because of Him……..people have come into a life of decency and honor and noble conduct………He came to set men free from their own sins, their own selves, their own fears.  Those so liberated loved Him with fierce loyalty.  It is this One who insists that He was the Good Shepherd, the understanding Shepherd, the concerned Shepherd who cares enough to seek out and save and restore lost men and women.”   Phillip Keller

“Never dread any consequence resulting from absolute obedience to His command.  Never fear the rough waters ahead, which through their proud contempt impede your progress.  God is greater than the roar of raging water and the mighty waves of the sea.  ‘The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord is enthroned as King forever’ (Psalm 29:10).  A storm is simply the hem of His robe, the sign of His coming, and the evidence of His presence.  Dare to trust Him!  Dare to follow Him!  Then discover that the forces that blocked your progress and threatened your life become at His command the very materials He uses to build your street of freedom.”  F. B. Meyer

“The seed of unnecessary fear in the heart of a Christian is forgetfulness — an inability to remember and trust what the God of the universe has said and done. No one has ever had any grounds to accuse God of not following through on his word. Not even one phrase in any sentence in any statement He has ever made has failed (Joshua 21:45). We will only be truly content with what we have when we know that we have Him. And we will remember that we have him when we hear and believe his voice.”  Marshall Segal

“For whatever God sends upon us, it is not for the lessening, but for the increase, of faith.  Our faith should never yield to fear.”   K. H. Von Bogatzky 

“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

“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

“May God bring home to you a sense of your safety in Christ Jesus! May He assure you that your name is graven on His hand and whisper in your ear the promise, ‘Fear not, for I am with you.’”  Charles H. Spurgeon

HEART SAVOR

·        Perfect love drives out fear.

·       God tells us not to be afraid because He is with us and really, what more do we need?  He is a “with us” God.

• ·         ¹³ May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you  may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Romans 15:13 (NIV)