I did nothing.
Well, that isn’t totally true, but you’ll have to read to the end to find out why.
Read Ephesians 1:3-8. It’ll take less than a minute.
I’ll wait.
.
.
.
These six verses tell us about actions God did on His own without our “help.”
God blessed us with every spiritual blessing.
God chose us that we would be holy and blameless before Him.
God adopted us.
Through Jesus Christ we were redeemed and forgiven.
Incredible, isn’t it!
We are to praise Him, and these verses certainly give us a start.
Let’s praise Him for blessing us, choosing us, adopting us, redeeming us, forgiving us.
GOD did it!
Now, what did I do? I repented and believed. (See, for example, John 3:18, 36)
Praise God!
The Living One
Jesus Christ is risen today! Hallelujah!
We recognized Christ’s death on Good Friday. “Good” because His death was planned from eternity (Acts 2:23), because Christ died for believers’ sins (Romans 4:25), and because we (believers) were reconciled to God through Christ’s death (Romans 5:10).
Today we joyously celebrate Jesus Christ’s resurrection, His triumph over death. He is the Living One (Luke 24:5).
Jesus Christ proved He was resurrected.
He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. (Acts 1:3)
Christ’s resurrection fulfilled and proved the truth
He has risen, just as He said. (Matthew 28:6)
Davidlooked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor didHis flesh suffer decay.(Acts 2:31)
Death was conquered.
God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.(Acts 2:24)
Our Savior Christ Jesus abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.(2 Timothy 1:10)
Believers are able to approach God
And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.(Matthew 27:51)
Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.(Hebrews 4:16)
Christ’s resurrection is our resurrection
Christwas delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification.(Romans 4:25)
Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.(Romans 6:4)
Rejoice!
~~~
Father, I praise You for Your glorious plan, Christ, Your mystery who reconciled believers with You. I praise You for raising Him from the dead, with the power of the Holy Spirit, proving Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I praise You, Lord Christ Jesus, for enduring the cross, knowing the joy set before You. I praise You for triumphing over Satan, conquering death. I praise You for making it possible that believers can walk in newness of life. I praise the Living One!
He is risen! He is risen indeed!
Hallelujah!
(There is more! Stay tuned for Christ’s ascension, and Pentecost!)
Harry Durgin Facebook
I’ve been reading through boxes of books I inherited from my parents who went through World War II and were very involved in politics. Many of their books are history, biography, and autobiography. I am enjoying reading them.
As I have been preparing for Easter, I’ve been thinking about Christ’s history.
[This post has a lot of Scripture. I encourage you to take the time to follow the links or look up the verses in your Bible, and read about our awesome Lord!]
Christ’s History
Christ existed from eternity as God. (John 1:1-2)
Christ humbled Himself and was born as a man. (Philippians 2:6-7; Luke 2:10-11)
Christ lived among us, manifesting God. (Hebrews 1:3)
Christ died on the cross for our sins. (Romans 5:8)
Christ was raised from the dead. (Luke 24:5-6; Romans 4:25)
Christ ascended into heaven. (Acts 1:9)
Christ sent the Holy Spirt. (John 14:16-17; Acts 2:1-4)
Christ is exalted at God’s right hand. (Acts 5:31; Philippians 2:9-11)
Christ is interceding for us, ministering to the church. (Romans 8:34; Revelation 1-3)
Christ takes the title deed of the earth. (Revelation 5:5-10)
Christ avenges, judges; reigns and dwells for eternity. (Revelation 5:11-22:21)
Next Sunday we celebrate Christ’s resurrection.
The resurrection is fundamental for us. If Christ wasn’t raised, we are people most to be pitied. (1 Corinthians 15:19)
But, hallelujah! Christ is risen!
Here are a few points about the resurrection to contemplate:
The resurrection proved Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
Jesus Christ our Lordwas declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness. (Romans 1:4)
Jesus Christ triumphed over death at the resurrection
Through death He render[ed] powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil. (Hebrews 2:14)
Jesus Christ proved He was alive and taught about the Kingdom of God for 40 days after His resurrection.
Jesus Christ also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing … over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. (Acts 1:3)
Because of the resurrection, believers:
We [believers] have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. (Romans 6:4)
For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection. (Romans 6:5)
What can we say?
What can we say about this awesome eternity–shaking event?
Praise God!
East Rift Zone from Mauna Kea — Harry Durgin Facebook
We are commanded to praise the Lord.
We often hear or say: “Praise the Lord,” or “PTL.” But are we saying “praise the Lord,” or are we praising the Lord?”
The Lord deserves praise.
We praise Him for who He is. We praise Him for what He does.
Who is like You, O Lord, majestic in holiness, awesome in praises, working wonders? (Exodus 15:11)
The whole crowd of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles which they had seen. (Luke 19:37)
Everyone is to praise Him.
Jesus: At that time Jesus said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants.(Matthew 11:25)
Angels: And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God …(Luke 2:13)
Children: “Do You hear what these children are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, ‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies You have prepared praise for Yourself’? (Matthew 21:16)
All people: “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall give praise to God.” (Romans 14:11)
We are to praise Him continually.
Let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.(Hebrews 13:15)
And my tongue shall declare Your righteousness and Your praise all day long.(Psalm 35:28)
But about midnight Paul and Silas [after having been beaten and thrown into prison] were praying and singing hymns of praise to God. (Acts 16:25)
We are to praise Him with our lips, our lives
He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.(Ephesians 1:5–6)
To the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory. (Ephesians 1:12)
[Christians were] filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. (Philippians 1:11)
Challenging!
The Lord deserves praise from us at all times, regardless of our circumstances, and with our entire lives.
~~~
Lord, I want to praise You as You deserve. Help me do so.
~~~~
Tips to Praise the Lord
Nearly every page of the Bible tells up about our God, who He is, what He does, and, sometimes, why He does what He does. As you read and study God’s word, praise Him.
This post is number 36 in a monthly series of Praise. Three years! See Praise Volume I, and previous months for A-K in Volume II. All of them give ideas on what to praise the Lord for.
Think about what God has done for you spiritually. If God is your Father, He has chosen you, justified you, is making you more like His Son, and will glorify you. He has given you every spiritual blessing. He has given you everything you need for life and godliness. Praise Him for those incredible gifts!
Think about what God has done in the world and what He has done for you. He is the Creator. He works wonders. He has blessed you. Praise Him for that!
I defended myself once in traffic court. It didn’t go so well. I left with several points on my record and a lighter wallet.
I still think I was innocent. I still cannot believe the policeman who testified actually remembered my specific car.
Even if I had represented myself perfectly, I think I still would have lost.
Thank God I do not and will not have to defend myself before Him.
I am guilty. All I can do is to confess and ask for His mercy.
That is what Christians do. We agree with God that we are sinners (confess) and repent before Him. We believe in Christ Jesus and receive Him as Lord and Savior.
And God, in His mercy and grace, declares us, in Christ, righteous. (Romans 8:28-30)
Amazing.
We still sin, and will until heaven, and we are constantly accused by Satan to God.
The immense good news is that:
God is for us. (Romans 8:31)
It is God who justifies. (Romans 8:33)
Christ Jesus is at the right hand of God interceding for us. (Romans 8:34)
NOTHING can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39)
We do not have to represent ourselves!
Chris is our advocate!
Hallelujah!
Jesus said to Peter: “You are … You shall be … ” (John 1:42)
He says that to us as well.
Each of us currently have specific
Levels of Christian growth
Habits
Character traits
Customary ways of dealing with issues
Etc.
Jesus knows this!
But, just as He said to Peter, He says to us: “You shallbe…”
God’s word promises Christians that He will continue His good work in us. (Philippians 1:6).
And! God tells us we WILL be conformed to the image of His Son.
We SHALL BE!
Rejoice!
Praise the King
God is Sovereign now. God is King of all the earth now. However, for a limited period of time, He is allowing rebellion against Himself, but He controls the extent and specifics of that revolt. For believers, the Kingdom of God is inside us, and we have a King.
We eagerly await the time when He reigns over all the world, and pray:
Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6:10)
The King is coming!
The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever. (Revelation 11:15)
We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who are and who were, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign.(Revelation 11:17)
And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:16)
Praise our King
King of kings and Lord of Lords
The only Sovereign
Omniscient
All powerful; Strong and mighty
King over all the earth
Righteous and True
Executes justice and righteousness
King forever and ever
Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.(Revelation 19:6)
~~~
We praise You, our King. We praise You for Your Sovereignty now, and praise You that You will reign in majesty, power, and righteousness over all the earth. We praise You that You will judge the rebellion, and execute justice and righteousness. We praise You that sin and death will be abolished. We eagerly await Your Kingdom, and praise You for Your glorious rule.
Hallelujah!
Has someone encouraged you? Do they know?
Encouragement is an awesome gift. Sometimes someone’s encouraging words keep you going, give you strength in a hard spot, or make the difference between giving up and succeeding. But do they know they helped?
You can encourage the encourager by telling them.
Maybe the encourager thinks what they do doesn’t matter. Maybe they want to give up.
Encouragers won’t know if they had a positive effect on you … unless you tell them.
The Bible tells us to encourage others.
Encourage one another and build up one another. (1 Thessalonians 5:11)
Encourage one another day after day. (Hebrews 3:13)
The Bible also tells us to think about how to encourage.
Consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds. (Hebrews 10:24)
How to be Intentionally Encouraging
One:
We are commanded to encourage others.
The first step is to decide to encourage others.
Two:
We are to consider how.
The second step is to develop a plan.
Encouragement may or may not be something you do routinely. If encouragement isn’t typical for you, develop a plan. (A plan also helps those who often encourage others to be more thoughtful and systematic.)
Pray about how.
Would a calendar reminder help?
Pray that the Lord shows you who to encourage and what to say or do.
Perhaps note cards on top of your desk would make it easier to send a note.
Three:
Press On!
It might not be easy at first. But Press On.
Four:
Obedience always brings blessing.
When you encourage others, you become encouraged yourself.
Decide and Plan to be intentionally encouraging!
Q. When the disciples were in a great storm on the sea, the boat was being covered with waves, and they thought they were perishing, where was Jesus?
A. Jesus was in the boat with them. (Matthew 8:23-27)
Q. When Simon Peter, James, and John had been fishing all night without catching anything, Jesus got into Simon’s boat to teach the crowd. When Jesus had finished speaking, He said: “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” They caught so many fish their nets began to break and their boats began to sink. Where was Jesus?
A. Jesus was in the boat with them. (Luke 5:1-10)
Jesus promised: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)
For believers in Christ, those who trust Him for salvation and have received Him as Lord, Christ is always with us. The Holy Spirit dwells in us. We are never alone.
To do:
Remember His promise.
Look around (and up): Jesus is in your boat with you.
Be encouraged!
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When Storms Come: Will You Be Ready?
When Storms Come: Will You Be Ready? helps Christians not fear bad news, shows them how to handle current trouble, and helps them emerge stronger on the other side.
About me
I'm a Christian, wife, retiree, and author.
I love studying and putting knowledge into action. I'll share what I'm learning, encourage you, and urge all of us to press on to become more like Christ.
Pressing On Together
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