Tag: honor the Son

49.u. Wilderness – 14. “I am the LORD your God”

Deu 5:6-7  “‘I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “‘You shall have no other gods before me.

 Matthew 4:10   Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’”

 John 5:23   that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.

 Deuteronomy 4:4    But you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today.

Before God commanded anything of man, He declared who He was and what He did for Israel (who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage). The foundation was clear: because of whom God was and what He did for His people, He has the right to tell us what to do – and we have the obligation to obey Him.  The first commandment logically flows from understanding who God is and what He has done for us. Nothing is to come before God and He is the only God we worship and serve. No other gods before Me: This did not imply that it was permissible to have other gods, as long as they lined up behind the true God. Instead the idea is that there are to be no other gods before the sight of the true God in our life. This means God demands to be more than “added” to our lives. We don’t just add Jesus to the life we already have. We must give Him all our lives. (Guzik)

Try to wrap your mind around the Holiness, Power, Might, Knowledge, and Understanding of God. If we dedicate our entire lives toward learning and understanding and growing in our knowledge of God we will only be catching a glimpse of the depth and width of it. Though our minds might seem full, we will only have a single drop out of the ocean of His awesomeness. 

This is the God we know, trust, and rely upon. Serve Him with a desire to grow and understand Him more and more so that you might better honor and glorify Jesus Christ in all thoughts, words, and actions.

 

Lying lips of slander

Psalms 120:1   In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me.   Deliver me, O LORD, from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue.  What shall be given to you, and what more shall be done to you, you deceitful tongue?  A warrior’s sharp arrows, with glowing coals of the broom tree!  Woe to me, that I sojourn in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!  Too long have I had my dwelling among those who hate peace.  I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war!

Ezekiel 2:6    And you, son of man, be not afraid of them, nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you sit on scorpions. Be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house.

Matthew 10:16     “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Titus 3:3     For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.

“When we are slandered it is a joy that the Lord knows us, and cannot be made to doubt our uprightness he will not hear the lie against us, but he will hear our prayer against the lie.” (Spurgeon)

“It is of little use to appeal to our fellows on the matter of slander, for the more we stir in it the more it spreads; it is of no avail to appeal to the honour of the slanderers, for they have none, and the most piteous demands for justice will only increase their malignity and encourage them to fresh insult.” (Spurgeon)

This is eternal life

“And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you.”

“know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.”

John 17:1  When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.  And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.  I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do.  And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.  “I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word.  Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you.  For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.

John 5:21     For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will.  For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son,  that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.  Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.  “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.  For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.  And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man.  Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice  and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

Jeremiah 9:23     Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches,  but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”

God searches all hearts and knows the thoughts and plans of man.  He knows the sinful nature that rules or is trying to rule each of our lives, and yet, He sent His Son to redeem us from this life of destruction.  If we seek Him, He will be found.  Scripture says: For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.   His love for us is demonstrated in the fact that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.  While we gave no thought to Him and were only thinking about ourselves He sent Jesus Christ to redeem all who would believe.  To believe means to cling to, rely on, and trust in Him alone for forgiveness of our sin.  This redeeming act, when believed, results in a new life filled with the Helper (Holy Spirit).  His word is given so that we might know Him more and live to honor and glorify Him.  Do not neglect His word but rather spend time in it and training yourself to be a workman of God that needs not to live ashamed.  Apart from His word we walk in darkness.  In His word we walk in light of our Redeemer.