Seize the Moment – Day 947
Pray the Promises of God!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Thursday, October 20.
Who taught you how to pray? Was your prayer life taught or caught?
If you want to learn how to pray powerful prayers, then you need to spend time with God and learn from Him. Study the Word of God, write down the great prayers of the Bible, then pray those ancient prayers for today’s situations. Pray the Promises!
Some of the great prayers of the Bible are found in situations where God’s people found themselves in great peril. King Asa was focused on fortifying his kingdom when Zerah the Ethiopian came up against him with an army of a million men (1-9). Asa went out to battle, outnumbered nearly 2:1, and prayed in 2 Chronicles 14:11:
Lord, there is no one besides You to help in the battle between the powerful and those who have no strength; so help us, O Lord our God, for we trust in You, and in Your name have come against this multitude. O Lord, You are our God; let not man prevail against You.
What a powerful prayer, and it worked – “the Lord routed the Ethiopians…” (12-15)! His was a sincere prayer, filled with faith. Learn from King Asa to pray powerful prayers that believe the promises of God. Asa was essentially praying back to God the promise of 2 Chronicles 6:34-35, “When Your people go out to battle against their enemies, … then hear from heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.” Asa knew that the only victory to be won that day was by God. Like the great people of faith before him, he fervently cried out for help (James 5:16b-18). We pray to the same God today!
Seize the moment and pray the promises of God given to us in the Bible. These are the prayers that God loves to answer (Psalm 138:2; Joshua 23:14; 2 Corinthians 1:20; 2 Peter 1:4).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Seize the Moment – Day 946
God’s Got Your Six!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, October 19.
Have you ever noticed that the “full armor of God,” taught by Paul in Ephesians 6:10-18, provides no protection for your backside? If that’s the case, then whose got your six?
The idiom “I’ve got your six!” was first used in World War I by fighter pilots who were telling their wingman that they would watch behind the airplane for an enemy attack. Like on a clock, twelve o’clock is directly in front of you, three is to your right, nine is to your left, and six is directly behind you.
Whose covering your six?
King Abijah, the new king of Judah, was outnumbered by Jeroboam’s army 2:1 (vs 3). The odds were against him, and he knew it, so Abijah gave a long compelling speech in verses 4-12, attempting to avoid a fight by convincing Jeroboam and Israel to repent of their rebellion and apostasy. Jeroboam, like the bad guy in a movie, didn’t interrupt Abijah’s monologue because he was setting a trap. In 2 Chronicles 13:13-16, Abijah learned that God had his six:
But Jeroboam had set an ambush to come from the rear, so that Israel was in front of Judah and the ambush was behind them. When Judah turned around, behold, they were attacked both front and rear; so they cried to the Lord, and the priests blew the trumpets. Then the men of Judah raised a war cry, and when the men of Judah raised the war cry, then it was that God routed Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. When the sons of Israel fled before Judah, God gave them into their hand.
Judah should have been destroyed that day! But God… God had their six, and He’s got yours too!
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
Videos are posted about a week after the devotion appears in the blog.
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Seize the Moment – Day 945
Humble Yourself Before God!
2 Chronicles 12
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, October 18.
Do you believe that you can learn something from anyone? It is easy to disregard people when you don’t like the decisions they have made, but we need to adopt a humble mindset that we can learn from anyone.
King Rehoboam is a good example of this truth. He was the king of Judah for seventeen years and even though he did evil in the sight of God (2 Chronicles 12:1-2, 14), there was something positive we can learn from his life – the power of humbling ourselves before God. Paradoxically, for a guy who forsook God’s Law, he listened to His prophet. Twice, we watch Rehoboam listen to Shemaiah, and both times he was rewarded for it. The first instance is found in 2 Chronicles 11:2-4 when Jeroboam rebelled. In response, Rehoboam raised up a large army to pursue the northern ten tribes, but the prophet told him to send the army home. The king surprisingly obeyed the prophet.
The second instance was when God sent Egypt against Jerusalem because of his unfaithfulness. In 2 Chronicles 12:5-6, we watch Rehoboam respond to the prophet’s rebuke with humility:
Then Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the princes of Judah who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak, and he said to them, “Thus says the Lord, ‘You have forsaken Me, so I also have forsaken you to Shishak.’” So the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is righteous.”
The power of humility is emphasized by the Chronicler in verse 12, “And when [Rehoboam] humbled himself, the anger of the Lord turned away from him, so as not to destroy him completely.” If God responded favorably to the humility of an evil king, He would do the same for you!
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
Videos are posted about a week after the devotion appears in the blog.
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Seize the Moment – Day 944
Defined by Faithful Worship!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, October 17.
At the onset of the Divided Kingdom, the priests and Levites of the rebellious northern ten tribes returned to King Rehoboam, the son of Solomon. This is expressed clearly in 2 Chronicles 11:13-16 where we learn that Jeroboam’s rebellion was against more than just the house of David:
Moreover, the priests and the Levites who were in all Israel stood with him from all their districts. For the Levites left their pasture lands and their property and came to Judah and Jerusalem, for Jeroboam and his sons had excluded them from serving as priests to the Lord. He set up priests of his own for the high places, for the satyrs and for the calves which he had made. Those from all the tribes of Israel who set their hearts on seeking the Lord God of Israel followed them to Jerusalem, to sacrifice to the Lord God of their fathers.
Jeroboam rebelled against God and led the people in false worship. He established golden calves and satyrs (goat demons) for worship (cf. 1 Kings 12:25-33). He rejected the priestly line of the Levites and appointed his own priests. His idolatry set the northern tribes on their path to destruction, and, in doing so, the name of Jeroboam became forever synonymous with the sin of idolatry and a byword for a king who walked in evil ways (e.g.,1 Kings 15:34; 16:1-4, 19, 26; 2 Kings 14:24; 15:24).
Once again, the Chronicler emphasized the centrality of the temple system located in Jerusalem. Israel was to be defined, not by the unfaithfulness of a king, but by the people’s faithful worship of their God. The same is true for us as His church today!
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
Videos are posted about a week after the devotion appears in the blog.
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Train to Live on Mission – Week 32
Battle Drill #32:
Get a Grip on your Appetites before they take hold of you!
Proverbs 23:1-5 (NAS95)
Today, we are going to walk through the four action steps of a soldier’s training routine to learn the next battle drill – “Get a Grip on your Appetites before they take hold of you!” Appetites come in many shapes and sizes. Speaking of which, so do we! Soldiers of Jesus Christ are a diverse group of people, and, in fact, often it is our diversity that highlights our unity in Christ more than anything else. Often what threatens our unity is when our appetites take hold of us, and we no longer want what God wants for us. We are to desire holiness above all else, but what happens when our appetites for sensual pleasures, worldly success, or wealth take over our agendas and calendars? What happens when congregations lose their focus on godliness in the name of the mission, or for the good of their community, and pastors drift away from their first love as they strive to serve their people, or their careers? We must get a grip on our appetites before they take hold of us! Let’s turn to the Field Manual and take the first step of a soldier’s training routine to live on mission.
Action Step #1) Know the Field Manual.
When you sit down to dine with a ruler, consider carefully what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are a man of great appetite. Do not desire his delicacies, for it is deceptive food. Do not weary yourself to gain wealth, cease from your consideration of it. When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For wealth certainly makes itself wings like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.
This is what the Field Manual says, let’s now take the second action step to learn how to apply it to our everyday lives as good soldiers of Jesus Christ.
Action Step #2) Train together as one unit.
Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to abstain from wickedness.” Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.
Paul taught Timothy that if we are to be “useful to the Master” then we must “flee from youthful lusts and pursue faith, love and peace.” In the same way, a good soldier of Jesus is not to be distracted from the mission (2 Timothy 2:4). The Christian life is not one of sin management! That is a frustrating and distracting way to live, one that doesn’t lead to fruitfulness and effectiveness! Quite the opposite, the life of a good soldier of Jesus is a positively focused life, as Galatians 5:16 states as an introduction to the fruit of the Spirit, “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.”
What are you focusing on – your sin or God’s Spirit? We are to walk in the freedom of the Spirit, not in slavery to sin. Both seek to rule your every impulse and thought, but only one for your good and God’s glory! Allow me to further demonstrate from 2 Peter 1:2-11, the supernatural reality of how self-control works in the life of a good soldier of Jesus:
Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.
Did you hear that promise? “As long as you practice these things, you will never stumble!” We must train the promises of God into our lives, such as 1 Corinthians 10:13-14:
No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.
Are you stuck in a negative sin-management mindset? Have you allowed your appetites to take a hold of your life? Do you have idols you need to flee from today?
What are idols in our culture? We do not normally go to a pagan temple and serve the pagan god by making offerings. But, what do we bow down to (or submit to) when it makes a demand on our lives? Is there something that belongs only to God, that we give to someone (or something) else? To help you understand, here is a parallel question: Is there something that belongs only to our spouse, that we give to someone (or something) else? Idolatry is spiritual adultery! Just like with adultery, an idol overpromises and underdelivers. Idols, and the sin that manifests from them, hold no power except what we feed them. Therefore, as Paul said, make no room for idols in your life – Flee from idolatry! There is a better way to live and that brings us to the third action step of a good soldier of Jesus.
Action Step #3) Seek the Commander’s approval.
When someone struggles with addiction they habitually and repeatedly expose themselves to a substance or behavior that alters their brain chemistry, until the brain and body become dependent on either that substance (e.g., drugs, alcohol, or other chemicals) or the effect of that behavior on their brain chemistry (e.g., dopamine release from screens or activities). Addiction causes that substance or activity to become rooted into the physiology and psychology of the person, and that must be addressed wholistically – spiritually, but also emotionally, mentally, physically, and many times with body chemical adjustments that should be provided and monitored through your medical provider. Today, I’m addressing the spiritual reality of it.
There are two areas of addiction that many people in our culture struggle with and are named in today’s chapter from Proverbs: sensuality (specifically food and drink) and wealth. Both, your senses and wealth, are gifts from God when they under the blood, but without the mastery of the Holy Spirit they can destroy your life. Let’s deal with sensuality first. In this category we find the issues of food and drink as mentioned in our battle drill, Proverbs 23:1-3, and throughout Proverbs 23, such as in verses 20-21, “Do not be with heavy drinkers of wine, or with gluttonous eaters of meat; for the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe one with rags.” This calls for self-control, just as we see prescribed in Proverbs 23:29-35:
Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaining? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who linger long over wine, those who go to taste mixed wine. Do not look on the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly; at the last it bites like a serpent and stings like a viper. Your eyes will see strange things and your mind will utter perverse things. And you will be like one who lies down in the middle of the sea, or like one who lies down on the top of a mast. “They struck me, but I did not become ill; they beat me, but I did not know it. When shall I awake? I will seek another drink.”
In the same way that God calls us to self-control in our food and drink for our own good, He does in our sexuality. Paul teaches in 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8:
Finally then, brethren, we request and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God (just as you actually do walk), that you excel still more. For you know what commandments we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God; and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.
Please realize that God is not trying to rain on your parade! Quite the opposite, He is wanting to reign over your life so that you can experience abundant life of Jesus Christ through the sanctification of the Holy Spirit (John 10:10).
The second place God calls us to self-control is with our wealth, as our battle drill teaches us in Proverbs 23:4-5, “Do not weary yourself to gain wealth, cease from your consideration of it. When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For wealth certainly makes itself wings like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.” Jesus made this clear in Matthew 6:19-24:
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
The only solution is to get to the heart of the problem – mistrust of God! John says in 1 John 5:21, “Little children, guard yourselves from idols.” While this seems to come out of nowhere in his triumphant letter, it is the perfect conclusion because idolatry is a lack of faith in God. Because we don’t believe God will keep His promises on time every time, we put our hope and faith in lesser things to meet our needs. For example, an ungodly desire for wealth reveals a lack of faith that God is Jehovah-Jireh. This is a faith issue, the root of idolatry is not money, but the love of it (1 Timothy 6:10) – it’s the failure to realize that everything we own has been given to us by the grace of God. God is the provision, and He meets our every need. We rest and live in an effective and fruitful life when we trust that this is true, when we believe God; that is saving faith! This leads us to the final action step of our soldier’s training regime.
Action Step #4) Live on mission.
But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place – unless you repent.
You must invite the refiner’s fire – the Holy Spirit – to purify your heart and lead you into repentance! Paul taught his protégé in 2 Timothy 1:7, “For this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline [sound mind, self-control].”
The mission of God requires the soldiers to be focused on the mission. In combat, a distracted soldier is a dead one! You must train yourself to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit who gives you all you need for life and godliness, from love to self-control and everything in between so that you can live on mission – “For this is the will of God, your sanctification” (1 Thessalonians 4:3a; cf. Romans 8:29). James 1:12-17 teaches us how to do this:
Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.
Outside of Jesus’ nail-scarred hands, your sin will take hold of your life and keep you weak and ineffective. To be useful to God, you must crucify you flesh and walk in the freedom of the faith God has given you (Galatians 2:20). Are your appetites under the blood of Jesus Christ or are they still wreaking havoc on your mind and heart, distracting you at every turn? Get a grip on your appetites today by bringing them to the throne of grace and know that in God’s hands you are forgiven of your sin and cleansed from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9; Hebrews 4:16).
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FOOTNOTES:
[1] John D. Barry et al., Faithlife Study Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016), Pr 23:2.
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Seize the Moment Day 942
Take My Life
Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.”
The original hymn was written in 1876 by Frances Havergal. The daughter of an Anglican minister, she was referred to as the ‘consecrated poet’, striving to live her life that was fully dedicated to Christ, always sensitive to the needs of others. She gave the hymn a sense of prayerful petition by starting each verse with the compulsory verb of “take”.
In May of 2013, Chris Tomlin and Louie Gigglio put a modern twist on the hymn, making sure to keep the integrity and meaning of the verses, while adding a new chorus that reiterated the consecration and personal commitment to the Lord. Like Frances, these two men convey the message of the song with strong conviction and invitation for others to do the same.
Take my life and let it be, consecrated Lord to Thee
Take my moments and my days, let them flow in ceaseless praise.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Ken reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
If you would like to listen to this song, click on this link:
Take My Life
consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days;
let them flow in endless praise,
let them flow in endless praise.
at the impulse of thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
swift and beautiful for thee,
swift and beautiful for thee.
always, only, for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
filled with messages from thee,
filled with messages from thee.
not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
every power as thou shalt choose,
every power as thou shalt choose.
it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is thine own;
it shall be thy royal throne,
it shall be thy royal throne.
at thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be
ever, only, all for thee.
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Seize the Moment – Day 941
Rebellion is Knocking at the Door!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, October 14.
How close to rebellion are you? All sin, each sin, is rebellion against God. The nation of Israel had recently experienced its golden era during the reigns of David and Solomon, but rebellion was only one bad decision away – it was knocking at the door of the kingdom! It always is…
That one bad decision occurred in 2 Chronicles 10. King Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, dismissed the wise counsel of the elders and gave a negative response to the people’s request (1-15; cf. 1 Kings 12:1-15). The nation of Israel was divided henceforth as the northern ten tribes of Israel rebelled against the house of David, as recorded in verses 16-20:
When all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them the people answered the king, saying, “What portion do we have in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. Every man to your tents, O Israel; Now look after your own house, David.” So all Israel departed to their tents. But as for the sons of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. Then King Rehoboam sent Hadoram, who was over the forced labor, and the sons of Israel stoned him to death. And King Rehoboam made haste to mount his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.
The horrifying reality is that each of us are one bad decision away from rebelling against God and the rightful authority He has placed over our lives. And the consequence of our rebellion is a divided kingdom in our hearts! There is only one solution, and it comes down to which knock you respond – your disappointments in life or your faith in God.
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
Videos are posted about a week after the devotion appears in the blog.
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Seize the Moment – Day 940
God keeps His Promises!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Thursday, October 13.
Solomon’s story has come to an end, just as each of our stories will come to an end one day. The Chronicler went to great lengths to demonstrate that God was faithful to keep His promises to Solomon, as given in 2 Chronicles 1:11-12. The final chapter on Solomon’s life emphasizes the omnipotence of God, not the power of God’s servant.
The Queen of Sheba served as a foreign witness to the truth about Solomon. After testing him with difficult questions and inspecting every aspect of his kingdom, she testified about Solomon in 2 Chronicles 9:5-8:
It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. Nevertheless I did not believe their reports until I came and my eyes had seen it. And behold, the half of the greatness of your wisdom was not told me. You surpass the report that I heard. How blessed are your men, how blessed are these your servants who stand before you continually and hear your wisdom. Blessed be the Lord your God who delighted in you, setting you on His throne as king for the Lord your God; because your God loved Israel establishing them forever, therefore He made you king over them, to do justice and righteousness.”
God received glory by keeping his promises to Solomon, as commended in verses 22-23, “So King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. And all the kings of the earth were seeking the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom which God had put in his heart.” God was glorified through Solomon’s life just as He intends to be glorified through your life.
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Seize the Moment – Day 939
Protect the Purity of the Temple!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, October 12.
The Chronicler’s account of King Solomon’s concern for ritual purity is juxtaposed with the 1 King’s account of how his foreign wives led him into covenant unfaithfulness. This perspective was clearly stated in 1 Kings 11:1, 6-8:
Now King Solomon loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, … Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not follow the Lord fully, as David his father had done. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable idol of Moab, on the mountain which is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the detestable idol of the sons of Ammon. Thus also he did for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
The Chronicler’s account of Solomon’s life was told in a more positive light than that of the account told in 1 Kings. Regardless of the Chronicler’s intentions for how he told Solomon’s story it was always the temple that was the focus of his story. The temple, just like the tabernacle before it, was at the center of Israel’s worship because that is where the presence of God manifested in Israel. Whereas David and Solomon played their parts in the story, God was always the main character of Israel’s story!
In the same way, the church is at the center of worship in the New Covenant, but not a building made with human hands, like the temple. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit; therefore, we must protect the purity of God’s house (1 Corinthians 6:15-20).
Seize the moment and glorify God in your body. What do you need to deal with in your life today so that God’s story is declared without distraction through your story?
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Seize the Moment – Day 938
The Four Steps of Repentance!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, October 11.
To repent is to turn away from sin by turning back to God. It’s a change of mind! Just like when making a U-turn on the street, repenting in life requires both intentional deliberation and conscientious effort. It is a decision you make and an action you take! In 2 Chronicles 7:12-14, God was responding to Solomon’s dedicatory prayer with both a reaffirmation of the covenant and the provision for how His people could return to Him when they broke it:
I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
God would not be surprised by His people’s violation of His covenant. He provided a way of escape for them through the following four steps of repentance:
- Humble yourself (James 4:6-10).
- Pray to God (Matthew 6:9-13).
- Seek God’s face (John 14:13-14; 1 John 5:14-15).
- Turn from your wicked ways (Luke 3:8; Acts 3:19).
God assures His people in verse 14, “then I will hear from heaven, will forgive [your] sins and will heal [your] land.” This is still God’s desire for His people, according to 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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