God's Promises: Long Life

 

Honor your father and mother, so that you may live long full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you. Exodus 20:12

    The fifth commandment is also a promise.  The first four commandments focus on your relationship with God.  This is the first of his commandments about relationships with other people and setting boundaries.  It is first because of how the family dynamic is a representation to the world your relationship with God.  It is the first commandment with a promise.

    To honor your parents is to honor God.  Later in the new testament it does go into how the parents are responsible in raising their children to be able to honor them and other people.  If the parent's don't do their part, then it can make it harder to understand what it means to honor God and other authority figures.  However, your relationship with God is up to you.  It is your choice to honor your parents even when you don't feel like it.

    Honoring your parents leads to a happier and healthier family unit.  That means less stress.  Less stress typically means a healthier body and mind.  That means you are more likely to live longer, healthier, and productive life.  A healthy family is a unit like a small version of the church.  When life gets hard you have support.  You are not facing it alone.  Failure makes life unnecessarily harder.  You are more likely to make life decisions that will shorten your life span.  

    Another part of the promise is blessed to enjoy the land God has given.  He promised His people specific land.  Today, it is the land that is yours and the lifestyle that you live.  If you live a holy lifestyle, then it will be fruitful in different ways.  You get to enjoy life in a pure way that is healthier and more vibrant.  It could be the ability to travel, own a lot of land, or enjoy the environmental elements of the area you do live.

    This is a commandment and a promise because any boundary that God lays out for you is for your benefit.  If you honor your parents and your parents raise you in the teachings of God, then you are more likely to follow the boundaries that God laid out for you.  If you do not have that structure, then teach yourself how to follow God and love your parents in the way that honors God.  

    Only the stubborn refuse discipline and correction.  Those people set themselves up for their own fate.  Do not let that be you.  Seek wise counsel.  Find elders that you can respect to help you in your journey.  Lean into God if you don't feel safe with your family.  

    God knows that living in this world that things are not perfect.  Trust Him to protect you and do right by you even if your family does not.  As long as you try to honor Him and live a life that is respectful in a way that it shows Him you are trying to obey His commandment, then He will provide a way of protection, love, and structure for you.  He knows the heart that loves and tries to obey.  He will bless you if you decide to do your part even if your family never does try.  Remember your eternal family is in Heaven.  You may not have the loving or caring family now, but follow Jesus and you will.

Exodus 20:12, 23:26, Leviticus 19:3, Deuteronomy 5:16, Jeremiah 35:7-19, Matthew 15:4, 19:19, Mark 7:10, 10:19, Luke 18:20, & Ephesians 6:2

God's Promise: Fight for You

 

"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still"  Exodus 14:14

    God promised his people he would fight for them.  He had just rescued them from decades of slavery and abuse.  The didn't know how to have true hope.  They did not understand freedom and the responsibility it held.  They knew what it was to be given the basics to survive and hardship.  

    They were not all together ready to handle the freedom that God had given them.  He was still holding their hand leading them to safety.  He understood that they needed a little more insurance and He gave it gladly.  He knew that they needed a little extra peace.  They got to see God fight the Egyptians on their behalf.  

    God showed them power that He had never revealed to any other group.  He had shown power in creation.  He shows power in nature or natural disasters.  He never did such a variety of different things.  He never did layer on top of layer of incredible and impossible things before or since.  He did it because it is what had to happen for everyone to trust and rely on Him.  We don't need that today because the world has His Word.  You trust it or you don't. The next time the world see a series of impossible events anywhere close to this will be when the world ends.

    When you are in spiritual warfare, been abused, coming off of addiction, or something else that has oppressed you a long time if not your entire life, you need a little more insurance.  You may not have grown up knowing you were loved.  If you allow God, then He will show you what love really is.  If you are insecure, then He will give you security.  If you need healing, then He will heal you.  

    God meets you where you are.  It is when you give Him everything that has been hurting you that you discover freedom.  You may not be ready for it right away.  You have a couple of options.  First, cling to the promises of God, lean into Him, and pray through it.  Or you could stumble around and get a little bruised up before you give it to God.  Either way, He is there.  He is fighting for you.  He will help you build your confidence to stand bold and fight for what is righteous and true.  You do not have to be afraid because God is victorious.

    Take responsibility for your role in some events in your life.  You are not perfect.  You never deserve to be abused, hurt, or have evil done to you.  However, you sin too.  Take responsibility for your personal sin and repent.  Pray that you can see how God is fighting for you.  He will open your eyes if you want to see to aspects.  You will never have the full scale of how much He does for you, but He will give you enough for you to know how loved you are by Him.  He will give your heart and mind peace.  Hold onto that truth while you let Him quiet your mind.

Exodus 14:14, Deuteronomy 1:30, 3:22, 20:4, Joshua 10:14, 23:3, 2 Chronicles 20:29-30, Nehemiah 4:20, & Isaiah 30:15, 31:4 

God's Promise: Abraham's Covenant

 

2"I will make you a great nation.  I will bless you and make your name great, and you will be a blessing.  3 I will bless those who bless you and whoever curses you I will curse.  All people on earth will be blessed through you."

    Abraham had an open heart to God.  He listened and obeyed revealing His love and respect for God.  I don't know if that is why God chose Abraham to bless unlike anyone else on earth.  Maybe Abraham was created for this blessing, but even then it would not have happened if Abraham did not choose to listen and obey.  

    This promise is a blessing that carries on to every generation after Him.  God formed his nation through Abraham.  Abraham did become famous.  Here hundreds of years later you still know who Abraham is.  Abraham was a blessing unto other people.  He did many things for many people.  He avoided conflict that could negatively affect relationships.  If he could not avoid it, then he found the best solution.  

    Anyone who went against Abraham did not fare well.  Anyone who went against God nation was eventually destroyed.  Anyone who goes against God's people today will be dealt with by God.  You know it does not end well for them.  To live without Jesus is a cursed life.  It will not end well.

    You need to forgive those people now and try to introduce them to Jesus through your lifestyle.  This is how you can carry out the Abraham Covenant today in blessing other people.  Do good where you can do good.  Do not be a push over, but do not go out of your way to make life worse or harder for anyone.  Give what you have to give to those in need.  Trust God to take care of you like He did Abraham and watch the blessings happen.

    God set Abraham for his promise of blessings before Abraham even left his home country.  God knew He would be obedient.  Maybe Abraham needed to have hope before he left everything and everyone he knew other than his wife and nephew, Lot.  Either way God commanded and Abraham obeyed without hesitation.  God know you.  He knows the best way to communicate with you.  You only have to listen and obey like Abraham.  

    This promise that God made to Abraham covers progeny, prominence, and protection.  God never promised wealth, but Abraham got that too.  God only gave him one son, but through Isaac the nation of Israel came about over time.  It was through God's nation came Jesus.  It was Jesus that opened the door for salvation for every person of every nation.  The promised was one based on righteousness and faith not law.  You can see the significance of this promise made by God to one person that affects all people over time.  

Genesis 12:2-3, 17:6-8, 22:16-18, 26:3-4, 28:13-14, Acts 7:2, Romans 4:13, Galatians 3:8-29, & Ephesians 2:12

God's Promise: Redemption after Fall

 

"And I will cause hostility between you and the woman and between your offspring and her offspring.  He will strike his heel." Genesis 3:15

    This is a loaded promise.  A lot is happening here.  There is a promise and a curse happening here.  Curses feel harsh, but they serve a purpose.  God created perfection knowing man would allow evil into the world.  He knew, but He gave them the opportunity to do what was right.  In their desire for more they did as God knew they would giving Satan a place in the world.  

    God had set a clear boundary that Adam and Eve ignored.  They had different roles, but they are equally guilty.  God is good, so He had to enforce the consequences for breaking His boundary.  He only had one back then.  Once evil entered the world He had to create more for the benefit of all people.  Adam and Eve being removed and forbidden to return to Eden was the fall.  It was the fall of mankind to having evil in our lives and hearts.

    This promise starts with a curse, but He always gives His people hope.  When you sin, you will have to face the consequences.  It will make your life more difficult, but you also have a way out.  You have eternal hope.  You may battle temptation, bit if you follow Jesus, then it doesn't control you like it did before your encounter with him.

    This is God's first written promise.  He cast Adam and Eve out of perfection to keep them from corrupting it, but He also promised redemption.  It was not know then, but He was promising Jesus.  Jesus is the one that will strike Satan and remove evil from the world for good.  It is a promise of victory for Jesus.  You do not need to doubt that Jesus will defeat Satan.  You can look at it as if it has already happened because it is that certain.      

    This promise is the first good news that the world received.  Up until this point they did not need it.  Life was perfect.  There was no stress, laborious work, or a broken relationship with God.  This was a gift that they did not know that they would need.  Like most people they probably focused on the punishment until they needed the promise.  

    When Satan and temptation is gone you will have complete redemption.  Until then, you can rely on God to fight on your behalf.  You can trust Jesus' love to become the opportunity to have a relationship with God.  You have the Holy Spirit to guide you and help you in the hard time.  If you work with God, then you will have redemption now where you can break sinful habits, strongholds, and find freedom from the power of death.

Genesis 3:15, Micah 5:3, Matthew 1:23-25, Luke 1:31-35, Romans 16:20, Galatians 4:4-5, Colossian 2:15, Hebrews 2:14, 1 John 5:5, & Revelations 12:7-9 

Promises of God

 

    I am starting a series on the promises of God.  You may hear or read to hold onto the promises of God in hard times, but people rarely tell you what the promises are.  The truth is you have to get into God's Word to really know what they are and how they are given.  It did get me interested though.  I wanted to know how many there were and how many I read over without realizing that they are actually promises of God.  I found out that there are 2,403 promises of God.  It would take years to cover them all, so I am going to hit the highlights, but basically anything that God says will be is a promise.

    Promises are declarations of things you will do and will not do.  Promises of God are done deals.  You never have to worry about Him changing his mind or manipulating the deal.  They are forever.  Some promises are for your benefit now.  Some are eternal.  His promises cover eternal life, unfailing love, provision, and His presence.  The teach you about how to prepare, be loved, forgiveness, strength, and hope.  They are meant to provide comfort, peace, or guidance in your daily life.  He is providing everything you need.

    You have promises from the beginning to the end of the Bible.  It is in God's promises that you really learn His character.  It gives you security in life and hope for the eternal life.  This is a deeper topic than some may think.  You are digging in to really get to know God. 

    If you are struggling with anxiety, spiritual warfare, or something else that is stealing your peace, then come along with me in this journey to understand God better.  If I do this right, then you should be able to see God in His glory, experience His faithfulness, and be empowered to follow Him.  I will always encourage you to read the scriptures I provide, but go deeper.  Never take my perspective over what comes directly from God's Word.  Reading it for yourself may allow God to speak to you directly in a different way.

2 Corinthians 1:17-20 & 2 Peter 1:3-4

Christianity isn't Convenient

 

    Christianity is citizenship in Heaven.  It is stepping out in faith believing in something that could not happen unless God did it.  Jesus is real.  His life was real.  He still lives.  That is the root of faith and salvation.  When you believe and start declaring the truth you are claiming your salvation and the citizenship in Heaven.  

    Salvation is a free gift offered to every single person that has ever lived.  To accept the gift puts you in a position of compliance to God that gives you authority in the world.  You have a the title Child of God to live up to.  That means you die to your earthly desires every day to submit to God's authority over your life.  You are committing to an eternal relationship that makes you an ambassador for God.  You become a disciple that follows Jesus throughout your life.  That is not convenient, but it is an honor.

    Christianity is not convenient because you deny yourself for a life of service.  Living out your faith is sacrificial.  You sacrifice your comfort and an easy going life to honor God.  You do this because you love God and appreciate being His adopted child.  By embracing this life you learn to develop righteous character through trials, tribulation, perseverance, steadfastness, and self-control.  

    A Christian life is not always easy.  You face challenges, trials, suffering, persecution, and opposition that you would not face otherwise, but it develops your faith making you more like Jesus.  It is not convenient or easy sometimes, but it is worth it.  Your eyes are opened to the truth.  You are no longer easily decieved.

    If you expect life to get easy, comfortable, and entitled when you become a Christian, then reality will hit you hard.  It is an honor.  It is something that gives so much more than it takes, but it is not something that can be explained on paper.  Faith is not something that can be identified in this world.  It is something you have to do to be able to understand.

    A relationship with God requires effort and energy.  You have to prioritize Him in your everyday life.  It may sound like a big ask or something hard to do, but in reality God has met you over half-way.  He is just asking to have a relationship with you in return.  

    God gives you more than you can ever give back.  You should not feel entitled, but you should feel loved, special, and unique to be loved by God in that way.  The only way you can is to accept it and give back what you have.  The more you listen to the Holy Spirit and lean on God the more you have the capability to give back.  Learn to be patient and you will be able to see and experience more than you could ever imagine.  It all starts with a faith commitment and grows into an intimate relationship full of holy and righteous love.

Judges 8:27-35, Mark 8:34-38, Luke 9:23-27, 14:33, John 16:31-33, Romans 5:3-5, 12:1-2, Philippians 1:27-30, 3:12-21, & 2 Timothy 3:10-13

Am I the Problem?

 

    When your life is going badly ask yourself "am I the problem?".  Sometimes God will let things go wrong in your life to redirect your.  You insisted going your way, but His path for you is better.  Sometimes times you are living life for God and Satan attacks you to silence you.  Take it as a compliment.  It means Satan sees you as a threat.  Sometimes things happen because you live in the fallen world and God allows it for a purpose, possibly for someone else other than yourself.

    When Satan attacks you this is when you need to lean into God more.  If you try to do it on your own, you will have a really hard time and you will eventually fail.  There will be long term consequences like burn out.  It can take two to three years to recover from burn out.  It is better to avoid that route if possible.  God will lead you down the safest path even if it may look like the scariest path.  He will protect you and meet most of Satan's attacks on your behalf.

    Reality is you are your own worst enemy.  You cause more struggles in your own life than you think.  Most of it is in your head and you allow it to lead to conflict when no conflict was ever needed.  You are self-destructing when you choose sin over trusting God.  This is when you have to stop being the victim and start taking responsibility.  

    When life is not as you expected, wanted, or just bad take a look in the mirror.  Get into God's Word and ask yourself some uncomfortable questions.  Some questions are am I the problem in this situation?  Do I steal God's credit?  Do I give God the recognition He deserves?  What do I value and why?  Am I passionate for God?  How easily or often do I fall for temptation?  Do I even fight against temptation?  Am I willing to put in the work to have a close relationship with God?

    Take the time to self-reflect and if you find sin in your life repent so you can receive God's grace.  That is important step.  To stop doing what you can't stop doing alone you have to accept the grace and love from God.  You may know it, but that does not mean you have allowed it into your heart, mind, and life.  

    If you hold onto your shame, then you are not allowing God to heal you from your path.  Allow God to do what He is trying to do in your life and you will find true freedom from the strongholds.  It may take time for some people, but never stop pursuing what you know is right.  Seek God for wisdom in this journey.

    It takes courage to really dig deep and admit you are the problem in your life.  It take boldness to face it and decide you will change.  It takes self-discipline to change how you think and allow God to change perspectives that don't reflect His perfection.  It takes humility to see yourself the way God sees you.  You are loved by God, but when you choose the world over Him, you are also His enemy.  It takes humility to face the truth and want to change.  It take love to redirect your life.    

Judges 8:21-32, 1 Samuel 7:5-6, Psalm 37:23-24, 115:1-8, 139:23-24, Proverbs 28:13, John 1:16-18, Romans 8:1-4, James 1:5-21, & 1 John 4:11-12