Leviticus 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement. In order for God to forgive sin, He required a life of an animal to be lost in substitution for the person asking forgiveness. This allowed the repentant person to be in unity and harmony with God. In the…
Acts 1:8 but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth. After Jesus rose from His grave, He met with His disciples. He told them to wait in the city until they were baptized with the Holy Spirit. He told them at that time they would receive power. They were to open…
I John 2:20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know. The apostle John writes this letter to believers to warn them of deceivers in their midst who he calls anti-christs; ones who professed to be believers but who had gone away from them and the faith. Those false believers said only a select few had on inside track to God through special knowledge. They were called Gnostics. John tells the believers they have a…
Psalm 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. The one true God is our refuge; our shelter from whatever storm we experience. He is our place of safety from any danger. He is mightier than all other forces that come against us. He is always available, no matter what trouble or distress we face. When David wrote the Psalms, he intended them to be sung. Maybe he knew we remember things better if there…
Jeremiah 33:6 Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, I will heal them; I will reveal to them an abundance of peace and truth. Jeremiah received this word from the Lord while he was being held in the court of the guard. He told the king they would be hauled off to Babylon. The king didn’t want to hear it so he threw Jeremiah in jail. God promises to bring healing and restoration, health and a sound mind….
Psalm 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds. This scripture not only refers to individuals. It also includes nations. Do you know any person or nation that is a wreck; is crushed or ruptured? Some come to mind immediately. They need more than a band-aid and a couple of aspirin. They need a major overhaul. No amount of human effort is going to bring healing to these wounds. Only Jesus, the All-powerful God, can restore, heal, bind…
Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” I never cease to be amazed what you can learn by going back to the original Hebrew language in the Old Testament or the Greek in the New Testament to find out new…
3 John 2 Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers. At first glance, this scripture looks like a promise for prosperity—if your soul is prospering. Let’s look deeper. The word “prosper” in Greek means “to lead by a direct and easy way; to be successful.” In other words not walking a crooked, rocky path. “Good health” is obviously referring to good health—but there is a deeper meaning…
Ephesians 2:10 tells us “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for Good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” That word “workmanship” in the original Greek is “poiema.” That’s the word that our word poem comes from. We have been carefully crafted as a poet crafts a poem to carry a message. What message are you carrying?
My attention was directed recently to the account of Jesus calling Zacchaeus down from the sycamore tree as he passed through Jerico. 1. He didn’t just say, “You there.” He called Zacchaeus by name. Has Jesus called your name to come to Him? 2. Jesus bid him to come down. Have you left your old way of living; your old habits, wrong paths, evil thoughts, to come walk the right way of Jesus? 3. Jesus invited Himself to dine with…