Friday, March 18, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Be as faithful as Daniel!
Wow, theses verses are awesome:
4 So the governors and satraps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find no charge or fault, because he was faithful; nor was there any error or fault found in him. 5 Then these men said, “We shall not find any charge against this Daniel unless we find it against him concerning the law of his God.”
Daniel had been placed in a high leadership role under King Darius. Because He was a Jew (an outsider) the other leaders did not like him at all. They wanted to come up with a scheme to get him removed from his position. They got together for a brainstorming session to see what they could come up with. Verse 4 tells us they could find no fault or charge against him! Now think about that. Could your enemies come up with any faults against you? Don't think these guys didn't dig deep to come up with something against Daniel! But they could find nothing. Then look what happens in verse 5, they said the only way we can find anything against him is if it concerns the Word of God. Praise God! Can that be said of us? The only way a person could get something against us is because we are so faithful to the Word of God we may violate a man made law! I am praying that all of us are as faithful as Daniel in this area of our lives!
My friends let us be faithful to the truth of God's Word! Never straying so that the only way someone can find fault with us is by our faithfulness to God....what a blessing that would be!
Tom
4 So the governors and satraps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find no charge or fault, because he was faithful; nor was there any error or fault found in him. 5 Then these men said, “We shall not find any charge against this Daniel unless we find it against him concerning the law of his God.”
Daniel had been placed in a high leadership role under King Darius. Because He was a Jew (an outsider) the other leaders did not like him at all. They wanted to come up with a scheme to get him removed from his position. They got together for a brainstorming session to see what they could come up with. Verse 4 tells us they could find no fault or charge against him! Now think about that. Could your enemies come up with any faults against you? Don't think these guys didn't dig deep to come up with something against Daniel! But they could find nothing. Then look what happens in verse 5, they said the only way we can find anything against him is if it concerns the Word of God. Praise God! Can that be said of us? The only way a person could get something against us is because we are so faithful to the Word of God we may violate a man made law! I am praying that all of us are as faithful as Daniel in this area of our lives!
My friends let us be faithful to the truth of God's Word! Never straying so that the only way someone can find fault with us is by our faithfulness to God....what a blessing that would be!
Tom
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
The Master Will Judge
I read this devotion this morning by Oswald Chambers and it really spoke to me so I wanted to share it with you:
We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ . . . —2 Corinthians 5:10
Paul says that we must all, preachers and other people alike, “appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” But if you will learn here and now to live under the scrutiny of Christ’s pure light, your final judgment will bring you only delight in seeing the work God has done in you. Live constantly reminding yourself of the judgment seat of Christ, and walk in the knowledge of the holiness He has given you. Tolerating a wrong attitude toward another person causes you to follow the spirit of the devil, no matter how saintly you are. One carnal judgment of another person only serves the purposes of hell in you. Bring it immediately into the light and confess, “Oh, Lord, I have been guilty there.” If you don’t, your heart will become hardened through and through. One of the penalties of sin is our acceptance of it. It is not only God who punishes for sin, but sin establishes itself in the sinner and takes its toll. No struggling or praying will enable you to stop doing certain things, and the penalty of sin is that you gradually get used to it, until you finally come to the place where you no longer even realize that it is sin. No power, except the power that comes from being filled with the Holy Spirit, can change or prevent the inherent consequences of sin.
“If we walk in the light as He is in the light. . .” (1 John 1:7). For many of us, walking in the light means walking according to the standard we have set up for another person. The deadliest attitude of the Pharisees that we exhibit today is not hypocrisy but that which comes from unconsciously living a lie.
Great words from a godly man this morning....let us listen, learn and apply!
Tom
We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ . . . —2 Corinthians 5:10
Paul says that we must all, preachers and other people alike, “appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” But if you will learn here and now to live under the scrutiny of Christ’s pure light, your final judgment will bring you only delight in seeing the work God has done in you. Live constantly reminding yourself of the judgment seat of Christ, and walk in the knowledge of the holiness He has given you. Tolerating a wrong attitude toward another person causes you to follow the spirit of the devil, no matter how saintly you are. One carnal judgment of another person only serves the purposes of hell in you. Bring it immediately into the light and confess, “Oh, Lord, I have been guilty there.” If you don’t, your heart will become hardened through and through. One of the penalties of sin is our acceptance of it. It is not only God who punishes for sin, but sin establishes itself in the sinner and takes its toll. No struggling or praying will enable you to stop doing certain things, and the penalty of sin is that you gradually get used to it, until you finally come to the place where you no longer even realize that it is sin. No power, except the power that comes from being filled with the Holy Spirit, can change or prevent the inherent consequences of sin.
“If we walk in the light as He is in the light. . .” (1 John 1:7). For many of us, walking in the light means walking according to the standard we have set up for another person. The deadliest attitude of the Pharisees that we exhibit today is not hypocrisy but that which comes from unconsciously living a lie.
Great words from a godly man this morning....let us listen, learn and apply!
Tom
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Handwriting on the wall!
Another example of what your pride before God will cost you!
Daniel 5
1 Belshazzar the king made a great feast for a thousand of his lords, and drank wine in the presence of the thousand. 2 While he tasted the wine, Belshazzar gave the command to bring the gold and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple which had been in Jerusalem, that the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. 3 Then they brought the gold vessels that had been taken from the temple of the house of God which had been in Jerusalem; and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them. 4 They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze and iron, wood and stone.
5 In the same hour the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and wrote opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace; and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. 6 Then the king’s countenance changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his hips were loosened and his knees knocked against each other. 7 The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spoke, saying to the wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing, and tells me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck; and he shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.” 8 Now all the king’s wise men came, but they could not read the writing, or make known to the king its interpretation. 9 Then King Belshazzar was greatly troubled, his countenance was changed, and his lords were astonished.
10 The queen, because of the words of the king and his lords, came to the banquet hall. The queen spoke, saying, “O king, live forever! Do not let your thoughts trouble you, nor let your countenance change. 11 There is a man in your kingdom in whom is the Spirit of the Holy God. And in the days of your father, light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, were found in him; and King Nebuchadnezzar your father—your father the king—made him chief of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers. 12 Inasmuch as an excellent spirit, knowledge, understanding, interpreting dreams, solving riddles, and explaining enigmas[a] were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar, now let Daniel be called, and he will give the interpretation.”
The Writing on the Wall Explained
13 Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king spoke, and said to Daniel, “Are you that Daniel who is one of the captives[b] from Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? 14 I have heard of you, that the Spirit of God is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you. 15 Now the wise men, the astrologers, have been brought in before me, that they should read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, but they could not give the interpretation of the thing. 16 And I have heard of you, that you can give interpretations and explain enigmas. Now if you can read the writing and make known to me its interpretation, you shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around your neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.”
17 Then Daniel answered, and said before the king, “Let your gifts be for yourself, and give your rewards to another; yet I will read the writing to the king, and make known to him the interpretation. 18 O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father a kingdom and majesty, glory and honor. 19 And because of the majesty that He gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whomever he wished, he executed; whomever he wished, he kept alive; whomever he wished, he set up; and whomever he wished, he put down. 20 But when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him. 21 Then he was driven from the sons of men, his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till he knew that the Most High God rules in the kingdom of men, and appoints over it whomever He chooses.
22 “But you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, although you knew all this. 23 And you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven. They have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your lords, your wives and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which do not see or hear or know; and the God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your ways, you have not glorified. 24 Then the fingers[c] of the hand were sent from Him, and this writing was written.
25 “And this is the inscription that was written:
MENE,[d] MENE, TEKEL,[e] UPHARSIN.[f]
26 This is the interpretation of each word. MENE: God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it; 27 TEKEK: You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting; 28 PERES: Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.”[g] 29 Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a chain of gold around his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.
Belshazzar’s Fall
30 That very night Belshazzar, king of the Chaldeans, was slain. 31 And Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being about sixty-two years old.
I usually don't post the whole chapter but to get the full effect of this devotion you need to see what was going on. Ever wondered where the saying "didn't you see the handwriting on the wall?" came from? Now you know. A new King is on the throne! Belshazzar! He decides to throw a party of the elites of his Kingdom. He decides to pull out vessels from the temple in Jerusalem and they began to drink. Wow....using the Lord's vessels for his own use. They also praised the false gods during this party. In the middle of this party the fingers of a hand appeared and wrote a message on the wall for the King. The King was terrified! All his so called wise men were called in and once again they could not interpret for the king. He promised anyone who could interpret the dream royal treatment! The queen remembered Daniel and suggested they call him. Daniel came and interpreted the writing. Daniel told him the reason for the writing in verse 22...the king had not humbled his heart and because of this his kingdom would be divided between the Medes and Persians! Belshazzar commanded his servants to put the royal garment on him and proclaimed him third ruler of the kingdom even though in verse 17 Daniel told the king he did not want anything. That very night the king was killed!
So what can we pull from this? First, we don't want God to write on our walls! We need to be humble servants of our Lord. Second, don't defile the things of God! I think of our bodies and the Word here. Third, like Daniel we should not need to be rewarded to do the work God has for us to do....God may bless us but that is not the heart of why we serve our God!
Take some time to read this chapter and let God speak to your heart!
Tom
Daniel 5
1 Belshazzar the king made a great feast for a thousand of his lords, and drank wine in the presence of the thousand. 2 While he tasted the wine, Belshazzar gave the command to bring the gold and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple which had been in Jerusalem, that the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. 3 Then they brought the gold vessels that had been taken from the temple of the house of God which had been in Jerusalem; and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them. 4 They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze and iron, wood and stone.
5 In the same hour the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and wrote opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace; and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. 6 Then the king’s countenance changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his hips were loosened and his knees knocked against each other. 7 The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spoke, saying to the wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing, and tells me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck; and he shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.” 8 Now all the king’s wise men came, but they could not read the writing, or make known to the king its interpretation. 9 Then King Belshazzar was greatly troubled, his countenance was changed, and his lords were astonished.
10 The queen, because of the words of the king and his lords, came to the banquet hall. The queen spoke, saying, “O king, live forever! Do not let your thoughts trouble you, nor let your countenance change. 11 There is a man in your kingdom in whom is the Spirit of the Holy God. And in the days of your father, light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, were found in him; and King Nebuchadnezzar your father—your father the king—made him chief of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers. 12 Inasmuch as an excellent spirit, knowledge, understanding, interpreting dreams, solving riddles, and explaining enigmas[a] were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar, now let Daniel be called, and he will give the interpretation.”
The Writing on the Wall Explained
13 Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king spoke, and said to Daniel, “Are you that Daniel who is one of the captives[b] from Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? 14 I have heard of you, that the Spirit of God is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you. 15 Now the wise men, the astrologers, have been brought in before me, that they should read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, but they could not give the interpretation of the thing. 16 And I have heard of you, that you can give interpretations and explain enigmas. Now if you can read the writing and make known to me its interpretation, you shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around your neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.”
17 Then Daniel answered, and said before the king, “Let your gifts be for yourself, and give your rewards to another; yet I will read the writing to the king, and make known to him the interpretation. 18 O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father a kingdom and majesty, glory and honor. 19 And because of the majesty that He gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whomever he wished, he executed; whomever he wished, he kept alive; whomever he wished, he set up; and whomever he wished, he put down. 20 But when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him. 21 Then he was driven from the sons of men, his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till he knew that the Most High God rules in the kingdom of men, and appoints over it whomever He chooses.
22 “But you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, although you knew all this. 23 And you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven. They have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your lords, your wives and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which do not see or hear or know; and the God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your ways, you have not glorified. 24 Then the fingers[c] of the hand were sent from Him, and this writing was written.
25 “And this is the inscription that was written:
MENE,[d] MENE, TEKEL,[e] UPHARSIN.[f]
26 This is the interpretation of each word. MENE: God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it; 27 TEKEK: You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting; 28 PERES: Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.”[g] 29 Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a chain of gold around his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.
Belshazzar’s Fall
30 That very night Belshazzar, king of the Chaldeans, was slain. 31 And Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being about sixty-two years old.
I usually don't post the whole chapter but to get the full effect of this devotion you need to see what was going on. Ever wondered where the saying "didn't you see the handwriting on the wall?" came from? Now you know. A new King is on the throne! Belshazzar! He decides to throw a party of the elites of his Kingdom. He decides to pull out vessels from the temple in Jerusalem and they began to drink. Wow....using the Lord's vessels for his own use. They also praised the false gods during this party. In the middle of this party the fingers of a hand appeared and wrote a message on the wall for the King. The King was terrified! All his so called wise men were called in and once again they could not interpret for the king. He promised anyone who could interpret the dream royal treatment! The queen remembered Daniel and suggested they call him. Daniel came and interpreted the writing. Daniel told him the reason for the writing in verse 22...the king had not humbled his heart and because of this his kingdom would be divided between the Medes and Persians! Belshazzar commanded his servants to put the royal garment on him and proclaimed him third ruler of the kingdom even though in verse 17 Daniel told the king he did not want anything. That very night the king was killed!
So what can we pull from this? First, we don't want God to write on our walls! We need to be humble servants of our Lord. Second, don't defile the things of God! I think of our bodies and the Word here. Third, like Daniel we should not need to be rewarded to do the work God has for us to do....God may bless us but that is not the heart of why we serve our God!
Take some time to read this chapter and let God speak to your heart!
Tom
Monday, March 14, 2011
God will bring your pride down!
To give you a little back ground on this verse for today, King Nebuchadnezzar had another dream and again none of his ungodly advisers could tell him what it meant. Daniel was called in and He interpreted the dream for the King. It was not good news. Basically the dream told the King that because of his pride before God he would be brought down. His Kingdom would be taken from him for a time and he would live among the animals but when he would come to his senses and humble himself before God his kingdom would be restored. Guess what it happened just as predicted. This was the Kings response after he came to his senses!
Daniel 4:37
37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down.
What can we learn from this? First if we don't have God in the proper place on our priority list he will bring us to our knees sooner or later. If we humble ourselves before God on this side of heaven He will restore us as we accept and worship His Son. If we do not we will bow in judgment as he casts us into hell. Secondly we need to be praising the King of heaven for everything! He is truth and his ways are justice...surrender and follow with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength!
Take time and read Daniel 4...some very good things from God's work to think about!
Tom
Daniel 4:37
37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down.
What can we learn from this? First if we don't have God in the proper place on our priority list he will bring us to our knees sooner or later. If we humble ourselves before God on this side of heaven He will restore us as we accept and worship His Son. If we do not we will bow in judgment as he casts us into hell. Secondly we need to be praising the King of heaven for everything! He is truth and his ways are justice...surrender and follow with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength!
Take time and read Daniel 4...some very good things from God's work to think about!
Tom
Friday, March 11, 2011
Prayers for Earthquake and Tsunami folks
This morning let us lift our hearts in prayers for those in Japan and around the world who will be effected by the earthquake and Tsunami.
Psalm 5:11-12 (New King James Version)
11 But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You;
Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them;
Let those also who love Your name
Be joyful in You.
12 For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous;
With favor You will surround him as with a shield
God please protect and shield those in the in this disaster. We are praying for protection of life. Please surround them with your shield as you say in these verses in Psalm. God we love you and praise you even in the storms of life. Please be with us today.
Tom
Psalm 5:11-12 (New King James Version)
11 But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You;
Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them;
Let those also who love Your name
Be joyful in You.
12 For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous;
With favor You will surround him as with a shield
God please protect and shield those in the in this disaster. We are praying for protection of life. Please surround them with your shield as you say in these verses in Psalm. God we love you and praise you even in the storms of life. Please be with us today.
Tom
Thursday, March 10, 2011
The unbelievers notice when you stand for God!
Well the three Jews were ordered out of the fire as Jesus had protected them through it. The scriptures says there was no hint of even being in the fire...no smell, no burns, nothing. Look at the King"s response to the three Jews:
Daniel 3:28-29
28 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God! 29 Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this.”
The King noticed the faith of the three Jews. Even though they had disobeyed his command to bow to the golden image. He noticed their unwavering commitment to God as he stated in verse 28 "and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God!" Brothers and sisters there will come times in our lives where we must stand for our God no matter what even if we are facing death! Unbelievers notice when we stand!
Look what the King did next! He praised God! "There is no other God who can deliver like this." He even made a decree that whoever says anything bad about God would be killed and houses burnt! Wow!
We have to make a stand for our God, not all will turn and follow who are unbelievers but atleast they will know how much we love and trust our God !
Tom
Daniel 3:28-29
28 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God! 29 Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this.”
The King noticed the faith of the three Jews. Even though they had disobeyed his command to bow to the golden image. He noticed their unwavering commitment to God as he stated in verse 28 "and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God!" Brothers and sisters there will come times in our lives where we must stand for our God no matter what even if we are facing death! Unbelievers notice when we stand!
Look what the King did next! He praised God! "There is no other God who can deliver like this." He even made a decree that whoever says anything bad about God would be killed and houses burnt! Wow!
We have to make a stand for our God, not all will turn and follow who are unbelievers but atleast they will know how much we love and trust our God !
Tom
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