Pathetic Pride 2 Chronicles 26:16-19 Daniel 4:28-35 1 Corinthians 4:7 Psalms 101:5 Proverbs 8:13 Proverbs 11:2 Proverbs 16:18 Proverbs 16:5 1 Peter 5:5-7 10.30.20

 

PATHETIC PRIDE

BREAD

¹⁶ But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the LORD his God, and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense. ¹⁷ Azariah the priest with eighty other courageous priests of the LORD followed him in. ¹⁸ They confronted him and said, “It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD. That is for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who have been consecrated to burn incense. Leave the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful; and you will not be honored by the LORD God.”  ¹⁹ Uzziah, who had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, became angry. While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar in the LORD’s temple, leprosy broke out on his forehead.  2 Chronicles 26:16-19 (NIV)

 

²⁸ All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. ²⁹ Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, ³⁰ he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?”  ³¹ The words were still on his lips when a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. ³² You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like cattle. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes.”  ³³ Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like cattle. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird. ³⁴ At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation. ³⁵ All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: “What have you done?”  Daniel 4:28-35 (NIV)

 

⁷ For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?  1 Corinthians 4:7 (NIV)

 

Whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart, him will I not endure.  Psalms 101:5 (NIV)

 

¹³ To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.  Proverbs 8:13 (NIV)

 

² When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.  Proverbs 11:2 (NIV)

 

¹⁸ Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18 (NIV)

⁵ The LORD detests all the proud of heart.  Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished. Proverbs 16:5 (NIV)

 

“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”  ⁶ Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. ⁷ Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.  1 Peter 5:5-7 (NIV)

 

BUTTER

 

“And if you don’t lie prostrate on the ground before that cross, you have never seen it:  if you are not humbled in the presence of Jesus, you don’t know Him.  You were so lost that nothing could save you but the sacrifice of God’s only begotten.  Think of that, and as Jesus lowered Himself for you, bow yourself in lowliness at His feet.  A sense of Christ’s amazing love to us has a greater tendency to humble us than even the conscious awareness of our own guilt……Pride cannot live beneath the cross.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

“Pride always looks more powerful than humility on the outside. But in reality, it’s not. It’s not even close. Humility is stronger than pride like heaven is stronger than hell. Like the cross was stronger than the Roman Empire. Like the Resurrection and the Life was stronger than the grave. In the same way, thankfulness is stronger than lust, and serving is stronger than exploiting.”  Jon Bloom

“Often fear is the result of what others might think or rejection by others or feelings of not being good enough, not being accepted.  But all those thoughts are reflected on self.  Indeed, fear is self-focused which is basically pride.  While fear needs approval and is self-focused, love needs the person and is others-focused.  When we walk in fear we spend too much time on thoughts of our self and on ‘what ifs’ and not enough time on thoughts of God who loves us with an everlasting love and delights over us with singing.  He always has our best interest at heart even though circumstances may seem contrary to that.  It is His desire for us to rest secure in Him, not being anxious about anything and allowing Him to work in and through us.  May our Lord help us to stand firm in all the will of God mature and fully assured.”  BHY

“One act of war against pride is to marvel at the army of grace at our side, all the other grace-filled, grace-empowered members of the body of Christ.  Pride selfishly sets itself — its wisdom, its gifts, its experience, its potential — above everyone else. It focuses on its own strengths and minimizes its own weaknesses, while at the same time magnifying others’ weaknesses and downplaying their strengths. And when it is confronted, pride tends to cave in on itself in self-consuming introspection and self-pity. Paul won’t allow the proud to retreat into ourselves, though. He draws our eyes, instead, away from ourselves to the awe-inspiring grace God has given to others. True humility does not quietly despise graces that are not its own, but loves them just as much, and even more.”  Marshall Segal

“There is no idol like self…These balloons the devil has blown up with pride, and they are swelled in their own conceit…They build a tower of their own righteousness…Yet there is a crack in their foundation and the need the ‘Rock of Ages’…There is not a more dangerous precipice than self-righteousness…How many does this damn!  How many have perished by being their own saviors!”  Thomas Watson       

“He that is down need fear no fall, he that is low no pride.”   John Bunyan

“God carries His children through this world through a variety of conditions.  Sometimes we lack, and at other times we abound.  This allows our graces to be tested.  We will find that God’s love is stable, certain, and constant in a variety of conditions.  God does not change, and His love is constant however our lives might change.  We must learn not to quarrel with God’s government.  Let God do as He pleases as He brings us to heaven.  It is no matter what the way is like, or how rugged it is, as long as He brings us there.  God’s grace is able to carry His children above all conditions.  A man of grace is not overly dejected with abasement or overly lifted up in abundance, but carries himself in a uniform manner.  He is able to abound or lack without yielding to the temptations of those estates.  He can abound without pride and lack without impatience.  God is His portion…Those that are not brought up in Christ’s school are not able to do this.  If they abound, they are proud, and if they are cast down, they murmur, fret and are dejected, as if there were no providence to rule the world.  This is the excellency of a Christian; he has learned to abound and lack without being trapped by their snares.”  Richard Sibbs

 

“Pride is utter poverty of soul disguised as riches.”   John Climacus

 

“Pride is the devil’s dragnet in which he takes more fish than in any other, except procrastination.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

“The pride that God loathes is not a healthy self-respect or a legitimate sense of personal dignity.  It is the haughty, undue self-esteem out of all proportion to our actual worth.  It is the repugnant egotism that is repulsive to both man and God.  It is that revolting conceit which swaggers before men and struts in the presence of the Almighty.  And God hates it.  Pride may take various forms.  Spiritual pride trusts in one’s own virtue rather than in the grace of God.  Intellectual pride gives its possessor self-confidence rather than God-confidence.  Pride in material things enthrones self and displaces God – secondary things are exalted to the place of first importance.   Social pride manifests itself in arrogance and status.  All forms of pride emanate from the haughty human heart, and pride is the sin that God hates most.”    Billy Graham

“Pride is as safely the sign of destruction as the change of mercury in the weather-glass is the sign of rain; and far more infallibly so than that.  When men have ridden the high horse, destruction has always overtaken them…God hates high looks, and never fails to bring them down.  All the arrows of God are aimed at proud hearts.”   Charles H. Spurgeon  

HEART SAVOR

·         God hates haughty eyes and a proud heart.

·         What do we have that we have not received and if we have received it, why do we boast?

·         Pride goes before a fall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cleanse Those Thoughts Matthew 15:18-20 Philippians 3:17-19 Proverbs 14:15 Proverbs 21:29 1 Corinthians 13:11 1 Chronicles 28:9-10 Psalms 94:11-13 Hebrews 4:12-13 Colossians 3:1-4 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 Philippians 4:8 10.28.20

 

CLEANSE THOSE THOUGHTS

BREAD

¹⁹ For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. ²⁰ These are what make a man ‘unclean’; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him ‘unclean.’”   Matthew 15:18-20 (NIV)

 

¹⁷ Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. ¹⁸ For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. ¹⁹ Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.  Philippians 3:17-19 (NIV)

 

¹⁵ A simple man believes anything, but a prudent man gives thought to his steps.  Proverbs 14:15 (NIV)

²⁹ A wicked man puts up a bold front, but an upright man gives thought to his ways.  Proverbs 21:29 (NIV)

 

¹¹ When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.  1 Corinthians 13:11 (NIV)

 

⁹ “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. ¹⁰ Consider now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.”  1 Chronicles 28:9-10 (NIV)

 

¹¹ The LORD knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile.  ¹² Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD, the man you teach from your law; ¹³ you grant him relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked.  Psalms 94:11-13 (NIV)

 

¹² For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. ¹³ Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.  Hebrews 4:12-13 (NIV)

 

¹ Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. ³ For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.  Colossians 3:1-4 (NIV)

 

¹⁶ Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸ So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.  2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NIV)

 

⁸ Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.  Philippians 4:8 (NIV)

 

BUTTER

 

“Consider how carefully you would be if your thoughts were written on your forehead.  O how ashamed you would be if men could see your thoughts!  Is not the eye of God ten thousand times more to be regarded?  Keep a tender conscience to be aware of the smallest sin.  A tender conscience fears evil thoughts and a seared conscience feels nothing.  Cast out sinful thoughts in the beginning, before they settle themselves and make a dwelling in your heart.  They are easier to be resisted at the beginning.  Your heart will allow them to root and grow if you allow them to stay.  Remember your hidden thoughts must one day be brought into the open light.”  Richard Baxter

 

“Don’t meditate excessively on what you’ve done, right or wrong; both of these activities keep your mind on you!  Center your thoughts on Christ.”   Anonymous

“We must be aware of the various ways sin pulls us to wrong thoughts about God, righteousness, grace, ourselves and sin itself. Only the truth of God’s word and meditation in prayer can reveal the deceitfulness of sin.  Sin works against God. Sin will either deceive us into thinking God is a cruel taskmaster, or, if that will not work, will deceive us into thinking He is like a doting grandfather who really does not care what we do. Sin affects every Christian’s view of God and leads us to worship idols, figments of our own imaginations, and not the true God. Sin will deceive us concerning grace. We will either be deceived into thinking it is too good to be true, or we will buy into cheap grace and think that ethics are unimportant.”    Dr. Bob Flayhart  

“We need to keep our heart full of a sense of the love of God. This is the greatest perspective available to us against the power of temptation in the world...Fill your heart with a sense of the love of God in Christ, and apply the eternal design of grace and shed blood to yourselves. Accept all the privileges of adoption, justification, and acceptance with God. Fill your heart with thoughts of the beauty of holiness...then in the ordinary course of walking with God, you will experience great peace and security from temptation.”  John Owen

 

“Her example was the antithesis of complaining, that ‘woe is me’ tendency to grouse, grouch, and grumble. Complainers are usually contentious instead of content, tear down instead of building, and wear others out emotionally. A complainer’s lack of contentment is often caused by a tendency to compare themselves to others. Complainers are often people who relive ugly situations and perceived injustices over and over in their minds. They are unwilling or unable to let past events or hurts go. Complainers keep reloading their minds with negative thoughts and often live in depression, despair, or darkness.  Pastor Harry Reeder puts it like this, ‘Selfish, self-absorbed, self-centered people are despairing, despondent, and depressed.’”  Donna Evans

“Good thoughts and actions can never produce bad results; bad thoughts and actions can never produce good results. This is but saying that nothing can come from corn but corn, nothing from nettles but nettles. Men understand this law in the natural world and work with it; but few understand it in the mental and moral world though its operation there is just as simple and undeviating. A person’s mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, than an abundance of useless seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce their kind.”   James Allen

“Think through me, thoughts of God.”   Amy Carmichael

“As we think so we do.  The action always begins in the mind.  Therefore, it matters greatly what we continually dwell on and we are not to take our thoughts lightly rather captive always making them obedient to Christ.  As believers we are to set our minds on things above rather than the baser things of life.  This must be intentional as the world is loud.  Play your thoughts out.  Where do they lead?  Will you like the results?  You have one life to live.  Don’t waste it.”   BHY

“See God in everything, and God will calm and color all that thou dost see!  It may be that the circumstances of our sorrows will not be removed, their condition will remain unchanged; but if Christ, as Lord and Master of our life, is brought into our grief and gloom, ‘He will compass us about with songs of deliverance’.  To see Him, and to be sure that His wisdom cannot err, His power cannot fail, His love can never change; to know that even His direst dealings with us are for our deepest spiritual gain, is to be able to say, in the midst of bereavement, sorrow, pain, and loss, ‘The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord’.  Nothing else but seeing God in everything will make us loving and patient with those who annoy and trouble us.  They will be to us then only instruments for accomplishing His tender and wise purposes toward us, and we shall even find ourselves at last inwardly thanking them for the blessing they bring us.  Nothing else will completely put an end to all murmuring or rebelling thoughts.”   Hannah W. Smith

“God has chosen each of His children to build a temple of their bodies to be a sanctuary for His glory.  And just as David said to his son Solomon, he says to us: ‘Be strong and do the work’.”  BHY

HEART SAVOR

• ·         I am to set my heart and mind on things above dwelling on what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy.
• ·         I am to take my thoughts captive making them obedient to Christ.
• ·         My mind is to be set on things above not on earthly things.

Watch Your Words Luke 6:45 Matthew 15:10-11 Psalms 141:3 Proverbs 10:19-21 Proverbs 11:9-13 Proverbs 16:23-24 Proverbs 22:11-12 Ecclesiastes 12:11 Ephesians 4:29 Colossians 4:6 1 Timothy 4:12 Psalms 19:14 10.26.20

 

WATCH YOUR WORDS

BREAD

⁴⁵ “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.”  Luke 6:45 (NIV)

 

¹⁰ Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. ¹¹ What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’”  Matthew 15:10-11 (NIV)

³ Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips.  Psalms 141:3 (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)

 

⁹ With his mouth the godless destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge the righteous escape.  ¹⁰ When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices; when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy.  ¹¹ Through the blessing of the upright a city is exalted, but by the mouth of the wicked it is destroyed. ¹² A man who lacks judgment derides his neighbor, but a man of understanding holds his tongue. ¹³ A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy man keeps a secret.  Proverbs 11:9-13 (NIV)

²³ A wise man’s heart guides his mouth, and his lips promote instruction. ²⁴ Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.  Proverbs 16:23-24 (NIV)

¹¹ He who loves a pure heart and whose speech is gracious will have the king for his friend.
¹² The eyes of the LORD keep watch over knowledge, but he frustrates the words of the unfaithful.  Proverbs 22:11-12 (NIV)

 

¹¹ The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails--given by one Shepherd.  Ecclesiastes 12:11 (NIV)

 

²⁹ Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.  Ephesians 4:29 (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)

 

¹² Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.  1 Timothy 4:12 (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

“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

“Each day offers us an opportunity to build or to tear down. We do both with our actions, attitudes, and most of all, with our words. Wherever you are today, the critical question to ask yourself is, ‘Am I building or am I tearing down?’ We build our legacy one choice and one day at a time. Hudson Taylor once wrote that there are three phases to any impossible project, ‘Impossible...difficult...done!’”  Donna Evans

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

“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

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

“Our words and works are always an overflow of what is in our  hearts and thoughts.  If you desire right speech and actions, work on your heart and mind.”  BHY

“The most important thing in life isn’t what we think about ourselves or what others think about us, but what God thinks about us. He is the final Judge. When He examines and evaluates our motives, words, and actions, are we commended, as was Abel, or are we condemned, as was his brother Cain? ‘The Lord does not look at the things man looks at,’ God told the prophet Samuel. ‘Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart’ (1 Sam. 16:7).   Warren Wiersbe

“Cold words freeze people, hot words scorch them, and bitter words make them bitter.”   Blaise Pascal

“Kind words also produce their image on men’s souls; and a beautiful image it is.”   Blaise Pascal

“Though it might be easier to say nothing, how much better to say something. To get our focus off ourselves and on others. To look for ways to lift up rather than tear down. To whisper words from God and bring refreshment to a parched soul.”   Liz Curtis Higgs

“One of the most powerful blessings you can bestow on another person is well-timed words. It is our job to declare God’s praises and pronounce God’s blessings. Life-giving words are pure oxygen.  The right words at the right time can change everything.  They can even change the direction of a life.”  Mark Batterson

“Don’t underestimate the power of words. While shaming words can take courage out of a soul, encouraging and affirming words can put courage back in.  When you offer critique to another soul, do it gently. When you offer encouragement to another soul, do it fiercely.”  Scott Sauls

“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  

“The person who manifests God's goodness thinks good thoughts, speaks good words, and performs good deeds. What the person thinks lines up with what he speaks, and what he speaks lines up with what he does. He is consistent in the integrity of his life.”  Michael Youssef

“Many of us carry around great pain and sorrow. True companions cut those sorrows in half, often with just their mere presence and the rightly placed words.”   Drew Hunter

“Only speak words that make souls stronger.”   Ann Voskamp

HEART SAVOR

·         Pleasant words are as honeycomb, both pleasing and healing to the hearer.

·         It is easy to be critical – we all have enough flaws in us to keep a critical tongue busy.  It is much more difficult to search for the good and zero in on affirming that in a life.  That is breathing oxygen into their soul.  Be an encourager!

·         What comes out of our mouths is in our hearts.  Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks (or erupts, I might add!).  Deal with your heart and thoughts – that will change your speech.    

Go Tell It On The Mountain Isaiah 40:9-10 Isaiah 52:7 Isaiah 61:1-3 John 1:6-9 Acts 13:32-33 1 Timothy 4:9-10 1 Timothy 4:16 Jude 1:22-23 Acts 1:8 Matthew 28:18-20 10.23.20

 

GO TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAIN

BREAD

⁹ You who bring good tidings to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!” ¹⁰ See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power, and his arm rules for him.  See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him.  Isaiah 40:9-10 (NIV)

⁷ How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!”  Isaiah 52:7 (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)

 

⁶ There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. ⁷ He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. ⁸ He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. ⁹ The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.  John 1:6-9 (NIV)

 

³² “We tell you the good news: What God promised our fathers ³³ he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm: ‘You are my Son; today I have become your Father’.”   Acts 13:32-33 (NIV)

 

⁹ This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance ¹⁰ (and for this we labor and strive), that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe.  1 Timothy 4:9-10 (NIV)

 

¹⁶ Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.  1 Timothy 4:16 (NIV)

 

²² Be merciful to those who doubt; ²³ snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear--hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.  Jude 1:22-23 (NIV)

 

⁸ “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”  Acts 1:8 (NIV)

¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”  Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV)

 

BUTTER

 

“Never, for fear of feeble man, restrain your witness.”   C.H. Spurgeon

 

“Anyone who witnesses to the grace of God revealed in Christ is undertaking a direct assault against Satan’s dominion.”   Thomas Cosmades

 

“A witness in a court of law has to give evidence; a Christian witness has to be evidence.”   Geoffrey R. King

“Let us in the same way show to the people of the world who think our religion to be slavery, that it is a delight and a joy; that it is no more a burden to us to pray than it is for the fish to swim; that it is no more bondage for us to serve God than for a bird to fly. True godliness is our natural element now that we have a new nature given us by the Spirit of God. On that matter be witnesses for God.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

“In this life, we will never know the full impact we have had on others. We may never know if that person we witnessed to ever committed himself to Christ. We may not realize the true impact of the money we gave to spread the Gospel. We may not discover the effect we have as a Bible study teacher, a small group leader, or a nursery worker. But we will in heaven. In heaven, we will meet those people who learned of God's love because of something we did.”   Michael Youssef

“If you want to make an impact for Christ, you cannot blend with the world.”  BHY

“Jesus’ whole life was a witness to his Father’s love, and Jesus calls his followers to carry on that witness in his Name. We, as followers of Jesus, are sent into this world to be visible signs of God's unconditional love. Thus we are not first of all judged by what we say but by what we live. When people say of us: ‘See how they love one another,’ they catch a glimpse of the Kingdom of God that Jesus announced and are drawn to it as by a magnet.  In a world so torn apart by rivalry, anger, and hatred, we have the privileged vocation to be living signs of a love that can bridge all divisions and heal all wounds.”   Henri Nouwen

“No one who really wants to count for God can afford to play at Christianity.  He must make it the great business of his life.  Whether he is set apart for special ministry – as a missionary who is going to a foreign land, a laborer in the gospel in home fields, or whether he remains in business (or home) and seeks to witness for Christ there – he needs to give himself entirely to a life of devotion to the Lord.”  H. A. Ironside

“Witnessing is not something we do; it is something we are.”   Anonymous

“If you compromise the message of Jesus, the world will love you. But if you proclaim Jesus and His Gospel without compromise, the world will hate you. Proclaim it anyway, just as the witnesses in Revelation 11 proclaimed the Gospel. For when we do, we share the saving grace and love of Christ. It is a message everyone needs to hear. It is a message the Holy Spirit will guide us in sharing, and one He will quicken hearts to receive.”   Michael Youssef

“The Christian life is a joyful life.  Christianity was never meant to be something to make people miserable.  The ministry of Jesus Christ was one of joy.  The Bible teaches that a life of inward peace and outward victory is a Christian’s birthright.  ‘What a witness to the world Christians would be,’ wrote Amy Carmichael, ‘if only they were more evidently very happy people.’  Joy is one of the marks of a true believer.  Will others see the joy of Christ in your life today?”   Billy Graham

“God has not left us without a witness to that which is true. That witness is the witness of His Word both written and Incarnate.”   Donna Evans

“The person who merely skims the Book of God will not profit from it; we must dig and mine until we obtain the treasure. The door of the Word only opens to the key of diligence. The Scriptures demand to be searched. They are the writings of God, bearing the divine stamp and imprimatur—who shall dare to treat them casually? To despise them is to despise the God who wrote them.  It is full of surprises. Under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, to the searching eye, it glows with splendor of revelation, like a vast temple paved with gold and roofed with rubies, emeralds, and all manner of gems. There is no merchandise like the merchandise of scriptural truth. Finally, the Scriptures reveal Jesus: ‘They that bear witness about me.’ No more powerful motive can be urged upon Bible readers than this: He who finds Jesus finds life, heaven, and all things. Happy are they who, in searching the Bible, discover their Savior.”  C. H. Spurgeon revised by Alistair Begg

 

“Taking a stand for Christ is increasingly unpopular in our pagan and pluralistic society.  If you believe that God created the world, that He is a God of both love and holiness, that Jesus died and rose again for our sins and is the only way to heaven, and that we have a responsibility to take that message to a needy world – those beliefs will vilify you in many segments of our society.  Our world is determined to intimidate, marginalize, and silence Christians.  But our goal isn’t popularity; it’s to know Him and make Him known.  We shouldn’t be needlessly offensive, but we shouldn’t be afraid of the ‘offense of the cross’.  These are exciting days in which to bear a witness for our Savior!”  Robert J. Morgan

“Acts 1:11 says, ‘This same Jesus, . . . will come back.’ What a motivation! The one who loves us is coming back. Perhaps He will look you in the face and ask, ‘How did you use the opportunities I gave you to witness for Me? Did you keep quiet with your coworkers, neighbors, and friends, or did you tell them about My salvation for you—for all people?’  While we wait for the Lord, we are to work diligently and wholeheartedly for the Great Commission, the mission of God, and our very purpose. God will bring the harvest as we are faithful.”  Michael Youssef

“There is a satanic lullaby playing, even in churches, across the West. Why else are we so lethargic in the midst of such relative freedom and unprecedented prosperity? Where is our collective Christian sense of urgency? Where are the tears over the perishing? Where is the groaning? Where is the fasting and prevailing intercession for those we love and those we live near and those we work with, not to mention the unreached of the world who have no meaningful gospel witness among them?”  Jon Bloom

HEART SAVOR

·         “Rescue the perishing, care for the dying, snatch them in pity from sin and the grave;  weep o’er the erring one, lift up the fallen, tell them that Jesus is mighty to save.”  Fanny Crosby

·         In Him is life.  Without Him there is no life.

·         Christians are to walk in a manner worthy of the Gospel – our lives a stirring testimony to His amazing grace – through His power for His glory.