Angels – Page 6 – Praying Pint

In the Beginning

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”

“All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.”

Psa 33:6 By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host. He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; he puts the deeps in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him! For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples. The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

Psalms 148:1 Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens; praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his hosts! Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars! Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the LORD! For he commanded and they were created.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.

2 Peter 3:5 For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God,

Deuteronomy 4:19 And beware lest you raise your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, you be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them, things that the LORD your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven.

Romans 1:25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever!

Job 33:4 The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

In the beginning God!!!! I understand our desire to keep looking for more and more understanding of science but not at the cost of leaving God out of it. How many have dug so deep they are now a quest to prove how everything came into being without God. Theories and more theories abound trying to prove this. The end of this search is more and more searching. Can you imagine what these hearts would be like if that same desire was placed understanding God and thanking Him for His creation. We do well to keep our eyes on the creator.

Eternal Destiny

“He has redeemed my soul from going down into the pit, and my life shall look upon the light.”

” Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels”

“And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Psalms 28:1 To you, O LORD, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me, lest, if you be silent to me, I become like those who go down to the pit. Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy, when I cry to you for help, when I lift up my hands toward your most holy sanctuary. Do not drag me off with the wicked, with the workers of evil, who speak peace with their neighbors while evil is in their hearts. Give to them according to their work and according to the evil of their deeds; give to them according to the work of their hands; render them their due reward. Because they do not regard the works of the LORD or the work of his hands, he will tear them down and build them up no more. Blessed be the LORD! For he has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy. The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. The LORD is the strength of his people; he is the saving refuge of his anointed. Oh, save your people and bless your heritage! Be their shepherd and carry them forever.

Job 33:28 He has redeemed my soul from going down into the pit, and my life shall look upon the light.’

Isaiah 38:18 For Sheol does not thank you; death does not praise you; those who go down to the pit do not hope for your faithfulness.

Matthew 25:41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

Matthew 25:46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Psalms 69:22-24 Let their own table before them become a snare; and when they are at peace, let it become a trap. Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see, and make their loins tremble continually. Pour out your indignation upon them, and let your burning anger overtake them.

In this Psalm David cries out for God to hear him. He asks for to be looked at with mercy. He claims God’s wrath on those who shun God. And then David proclaims God’s promises. There is a difference in the hearts and minds of those who and those who do not. There is also an eternal place reserved for both. Eternal life in heaven await those who believe in, search for, listen to, and obey and trust in God. Eternal punishment await those who do not. Every person is their last breath away from eternity. It is our heart choice now that will determine our eternal destiny. There are no excuses accepted before God.

The Lord knows the way of the righteous, do you?

“Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones,
to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”

Psalms 1:5
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

Malachi 3:18
Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.

Matthew 13:49
So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous

Matthew 25:32
Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

Matthew 25:41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

Matthew 25:46
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

The Lord knows the way of the righteous. What does it mean to be righteous? What comes to your mind when you think about what a righteous life looks like lived out? Do you come up with many “Do’s and Don’ts?” It gets a bit confusing if we put a list together because we soon come to a place of conflict with “Saved by Grace” and “None righteous no not one”. Scripture is full of examples of those either trying to earn their way to God or just not listening at all to Him. What is important to know – we are saved by grace and it is in this grace through Jesus Christ that we are a new creation – a child of the King – adopted into His family – blessed by being in this family. Yes it is by the grace of God. In this grace, this family, and blessings we are called to action. Scripture is full of what this action looks like lived out – here are a few: Listen and obey, meditate on My word day and night, pray to me, love me more than everything that is in the world, be humble, allow your self to be wronged, be kind, be joyful, make disciples, give generously, slow to anger, quick to forgive, honor and glorify Me, write my word on your heart, tell your children of Me, rely on My strength, trust in Me, cling to Me, believe in Me, trust not unto your own understanding….. and the list can go on and on. We are to be righteous IN CHRIST and live our lives (action) in humble thankfulness honoring and glorifying God. We will be held accountable for how we live in light of the grace we have been given.

Message Declared

“For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?”

Joe 2:11
The LORD utters his voice before his army, for his camp is exceedingly great; he who executes his word is powerful. For the day of the LORD is great and very awesome; who can endure it?

Jeremiah 25:30
“You, therefore, shall prophesy against them all these words, and say to them: “‘The LORD will roar from on high, and from his holy habitation utter his voice; he will roar mightily against his fold, and shout, like those who tread grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.

Revelation 18:8
For this reason her plagues will come in a single day, death and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for mighty is the Lord God who has judged her.”

Zephaniah 1:15
A day of wrath is that day, a day of distress and anguish, a day of ruin and devastation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

Nahum 1:6
Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken into pieces by him.

1 Thessalonians 4:15
For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

Malachi
But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?

Hebrews 2:2
For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?

Numbers 24:23 And he took up his discourse and said, “Alas, who shall live when God does this?

Scripture is full of God’s wrath and coming judgement in equal or greater proportion to His grace, mercy and love. We talk about the later and quote scripture “For God so loved the world” “Who can separate us from the love of God” “God has steadfast love” very often about His love. We talk about the what we receive when we come to Him for forgiveness and say “cleansed, peace, joy, hope, love, rest, heaven, eternity” When I think about this aren’t we diluting how great this grace, mercy and love are when we leave out His righteous judgement? Think about what is due us “chaos, lost, darkness, without love, pain, hell, separation, alone, without hope, without peace, restless, joyless, always searching”. Do not lose sight of His coming judgment and what has been freely given to those who choose to come to Him through His son. Christ was willing to go to the cross to save us from this pending judgement and we should be ever mindful and thankful for both the saving from judgement and blessing through His sacrifice. Coming to Christ is not to receive an insurance policy from hell. If this is all that our life reflects we deserve a more severe judgement than those who flat out deny God because we have tasted His grace, love, and mercy and deny it to enter our everyday life.

We are not alone

If God is for us, who can be against us

Oh God, open our eyes that we may see the wondrous work of Your hand. Open our mind that we may understand Your awesome power and might over everything there is. Open our heart to receive and know Your grace, mercy, and love. Open our ears that we may hear Your leading and guidance. Open our mouth with Your words that we may speak of your love, show grace, mercy, kindness, hope and faith.

Matthew 26:53
Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels

2 Kings 6:15
When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha

2 Chronicles 32:7
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah

You Welcomed Me

For we who have believed enter that rest

Having faith and believing in the return of Christ is fundamental to doctrine. How weak is our faith and belief if we claim this to be true but do not live like it is true. If we truly believe in His return and cling to His promise of salvation through trusting in the sacrificial work of Christ on the cross, and tightly grab hold to the promise of eternal life with Him – what should our daily life look like lived out with these in mind. We come to God for forgiveness of sin because at some point He alone made us aware of His righteousness, our sin, the work of Christ on the Cross and the need for forgiveness. This God given grace and mercy is a gift of eternal life to all who believe and a death sentence to all who reject it. So I come back to “how should we be living each day in light of this grace and mercy”? Do we train ourselves to be humble, giving, generous, kind, loving, helpful servants – or do we get lost in the activities of the day that pull us away from serving Him through all of life’s activities. Search your heart and see if this at all applies to how you live. God wants to lead and direct us through the entire day – Why? so that we honor and glorify Him – And How do we do that? – loving Him and living for Him with all our heart, mind and soul. Live for His honor and glory every moment.

Matthew 25:31
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me. ’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you? ’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me

Malachi 3:18
Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him

Ezekiel 34:20
“Therefore, thus says the Lord God to them:Behold, I, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you push with side and shoulder, and thrust at all the weak with your horns, till you have scattered them abroad, I will rescue my flock

Hebrews 4:2
For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have believed enter that rest