Follow wisdom so you can accomplish your dreams.
Proverbs 13 ~
18 If you ignore criticism, you will end in poverty and disgrace;
if you accept correction, you will be honored.
19 It is pleasant to see dreams come true,
but fools refuse to turn from evil to attain them.
This is hard for me to believe but it’s in the Bible more than just in these following verses, so it’s true. Psalm 89:3-4 says God vowed that the descendents of David would be royalty for eternity. As Christians and because of Jesus we are spiritual descendents of King David. Jesus is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Christians are royalty and Jesus rules over us even as we live on this earth.
Psalm 89 ~
1 I will sing of the Lord’s unfailing love forever!
Young and old will hear of your faithfulness.
2 Your unfailing love will last forever.
Your faithfulness is as enduring as the heavens.
3 The Lord said, “I have made a covenant with David, my chosen servant.
I have sworn this oath to him:
4 ‘I will establish your descendants as kings forever;
they will sit on your throne from now until eternity.’”
Religious leaders were trying to catch Jesus in speaking falsely and then arrest Him. They sent men to Him to trick Him but instead the men ended up being amazed.
Today we need Christians who speak like Jesus and impact the listeners so much that their lives are changed.
And, so I pray ~
Heavenly Father, raise up Christians all across the world to bring revival who will speak and teach what is right and are not influenced by what others think but that they would powerfully teach the way of God so that even sceptics would admit to themselves God is truth.
Luke 21 ~
20 Watching for their opportunity, the leaders sent spies pretending to be honest men. They tried to get Jesus to say something that could be reported to the Roman governor so he would arrest Jesus. 21 “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you speak and teach what is right and are not influenced by what others think. You teach the way of God truthfully. 22 Now tell us—is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
23 He saw through their trickery and said, 24 “Show me a Roman coin.[a]Whose picture and title are stamped on it?”
“Caesar’s,” they replied.
25 “Well then,” he said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”
26 So they failed to trap him by what he said in front of the people. Instead, they were amazed by his answer, and they became silent.
God never fails to keep His promises. It’s important as Christians to always follow what God wants us to do.
Joshua 21 ~
So the Lord gave to Israel all the land he had sworn to give their ancestors, and they took possession of it and settled there. 44 And the Lord gave them rest on every side, just as he had solemnly promised their ancestors. None of their enemies could stand against them, for the Lord helped them conquer all their enemies. 45 Not a single one of all the good promises the Lord had given to the family of Israel was left unfulfilled; everything he had spoken came true.
Joshua 22 ~
1Then Joshua called together the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. 2 He told them, “You have done as Moses, the servant of the Lord, commanded you, and you have obeyed every order I have given you.3 During all this time you have not deserted the other tribes. You have been careful to obey the commands of the Lord your God right up to the present day. 4 And now the Lord your God has given the other tribes rest, as he promised them. So go back home to the land that Moses, the servant of the Lord, gave you as your possession on the east side of the Jordan River. 5 But be very careful to obey all the commands and the instructions that Moses gave to you. Love the Lord your God, walk in all his ways, obey his commands, hold firmly to him, and serve him with all your heart and all your soul.” 6 So Joshua blessed them and sent them away, and they went home.
Leaders in Jerusalem wanted Jesus dead. But it was difficult to manage a plan because all who listened to Jesus were captivated by His every word!
When Jesus was tempted by satan Himself, He counteracted the temptations as He spoke from the Old Testament and said we should live by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
I love to hear Holy Spirit driven preaching. If I had been alive when Jesus walked this earth I would’ve followed Him everywhere and been near Him taking in all I could.
Jesus was the Word of God in human form when He walked on this earth.
Luke 19 ~
47 After that, he taught daily in the Temple, but the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the other leaders of the people began planning how to kill him. 48 But they could think of nothing, because all the people hung on every word he said.
People who went to the temple in Jesus’ day would buy animal sacrifices that were used to show honor to God and acknowledge sin. Many were being taken advantage of and forced to pay extra money to get the sacrifices they needed. Jesus came into the temple and stopped the merchants by turning over their tables. He warned them that God’s house would be a house of prayer not a den for thieves.
Luke 19 ~
45 Then Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the people selling animals for sacrifices. 46 He said to them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be a house of prayer,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.”[a]
Jesus was entering the town of Jerusalem where He would suffer on the cross and then conquer death and Hell. People were praising Him as king. The religious leaders wanted them to stop. Jesus told them the rocks would cry out if the people were silent. Jesus will be praised because He is the Ruler of all creation.
Luke 19 ~
36 As he rode along, the crowds spread out their garments on the road ahead of him. 37 When he reached the place where the road started down the Mount of Olives, all of his followers began to shout and sing as they walked along, praising God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen.
38 “Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord!
Peace in heaven, and glory in highest heaven!”[a]
39 But some of the Pharisees among the crowd said, “Teacher, rebuke your followers for saying things like that!”
40 He replied, “If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!”
I’m with the Jews. God said they are His special possession. I respect that and I also respect the literal land of Israel. But in my mind sometimes I wonder if I am at their level with God…Yes, yes I am! The Bible says so.
Psalm 87 ~
Regarding Jerusalem[a] it will be said,
“Everyone enjoys the rights of citizenship there.”
And the Most High will personally bless this city.
6 When the Lord registers the nations, he will say,
“They have all become citizens of Jerusalem.”
Zaccheaus was a rich tax collector who wanted to meet Jesus. When I was young I learned the lighthearted kid song that talked about Zaccheaus being short. That song did not do justice to the meaning of this Bible story.
Jesus told Zaccheaus He would come to his house on that day. It sounds rude, that out of the blue, Jesus says I will visit your house today but Jesus already knew Zaccheaus’ heart. The people gossiped because Zaccheaus had a bad reputation as a tax collector. But Jesus saw the man’s heart. Zaccheaus was glad Jesus would be an ‘uninvited guest’ to his home because he had already fully and excitedly given Jesus full ownership of his heart’s home.
Luke 19 ~
19 Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2 There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3 He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.
5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”
6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.
8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”
9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man[a] came to seek and save those who are lost.”
The descendents of Joseph needed more of the Promised Land because there were so many of them. Joshua told them they could have more land but they had to go clear it out. Their mindset was, the people in the land were too strong for them because they had iron chariots. (This was the same negative attitude most of the Israelites had when they scouted out the land in the beginning. Joshua, their fearless leader, went ahead and gave them the land and told them they would go in and take it even though the inhabitants were strong.
Joshua 17 ~
15 Joshua replied, “If there are so many of you, and if the hill country of Ephraim is not large enough for you, clear out land for yourselves in the forest where the Perizzites and Rephaites live.”
16 The descendants of Joseph responded, “It’s true that the hill country is not large enough for us. But all the Canaanites in the lowlands have iron chariots, both those in Beth-shan and its surrounding settlements and those in the valley of Jezreel. They are too strong for us.”
17 Then Joshua said to the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, the descendants of Joseph, “Since you are so large and strong, you will be given more than one portion. 18 The forests of the hill country will be yours as well. Clear as much of the land as you wish, and take possession of its farthest corners. And you will drive out the Canaanites from the valleys, too, even though they are strong and have iron chariots.”
Linda's Thoughts 