Love – Page 6 – Praying Pint

15.r. “The very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me”

John 5:31 If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me,

Jesus speaks of three trustworthy witnesses who will testify that He is equal to the Father. Jesus found it important to give them a reason to believe beyond what He said about Himself. The Jewish leaders somewhat accepted the work of John the Baptist. “He said that John was the lamp which burns and shines.” The light John gave off had the function to guide and point men toward repentance and to God. These Jewish leaders were familiar with a coming Messiah and they expected Him to deliver them out of the hands of their oppressors, the Romans. Jesus spoke of spiritual deliverance of infinitely greater importance and they rejected it. The light should expose that which was once dark. It should reveal that which cannot be seen in the dark. They obviously saw the light but immediately closed their eyes to it because what it exposed was not what hey wanted or perceived needed to be exposed.

Jesus tells them that they rejected John but there is another witness, the very works that He was doing. This too is a light shining bright in the miracle of healing the man who had been paralyzed for 38 years. This miracle done for a needy person out of compassion and mercy was not what they were looking for. Their hearts and minds were set on military and political deliverer. They obviously saw this light but immediately closed their eyes to it because what was exposed was not what they wanted or perceived needed to be exposed.

Jesus tells them that God the Father testifies of Him. Jesus Tells them they never saw God or audibly heard Him, but they had His Word. If His Word was abiding in them they would have believed in Jesus. They searched scriptures but searched them with a heart, mind, and soul closed to what it said. They had all the testimony one could have. “Spurgeon,” said; “Jesus made it clear that having life is found in fulfilling the command “come to Me.” “Christ is a person, a living person, full of power to save. He has not placed his salvation in sacraments, or books, or priests, but he has kept it in himself; and if you want to have it you must come to him.” The rejection of Jesus will leave the mind and soul open to deception, lies, and delusion. “Clarke,” said; “The grand obstacle to the salvation of the scribes and Pharisees was their pride, vanity, and self-love. They lived on each other’s praise. If they had acknowledged Christ as the only teacher, they must have given up the good opinion of the multitude; and they chose rather to lose their souls than to forfeit their reputation among men!” It is a very dangerous oneway road to Hell to seek honor and approval of man where the eyes become blind and the ears become deaf to things of God, rather than living to bring honor and glory to Jesus Christ.

14.y.

John 3:8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Ecclesiaasties 11:5 As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

1 Corinthians 12:11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.

Job 37:10-13 By the breath of God ice is given, and the broad waters are frozen fast. He loads the thick cloud with moisture; the clouds scatter his lightning. They turn around and around by his guidance, to accomplish all that he commands them on the face of the habitable world. Whether for correction or for his land or for love, he causes it to happen.

Isaiah 40:28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.

Romans 11:33 “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!”

Jesus’ idea to Nicodemus was “You don’t understand everything about the wind, but you see its effects. That is just how it is with the birth of the Spirit.” Jesus wanted Nicodemus to know that he didn’t have to understand everything about the new birth before he experienced it. The same can be said about Creation, God’s love, mercy, and grace, God’s wrath, anger, and judgment, time and eternity, Holy Trinity (God, Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit), Redemption, salvation, and forgiveness, Earthly and heavenly, etc….we do not fully understand it but we see the effects. The root of the problem of not seeing or denial of these seeing effects (of God) is the lack of or limited faith in God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. The lame were able to walk. The dead were raised back to life. The deaf were able to hear. The sick were healed. Demons were cast out. Water was turned into wine. The sea was calmed. Seas were parted. Armies defeated. Creation (earthly and heavenly). God’s Word. The birth of Jesus. All of this and so much more are the many mysteries and wonders of God. We do not need to fully understand them to see the effects and glorious power, wisdom, and might of God. The writer of Hebrews tried to explain this when he said; “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Faith is the key to beginning to understand things of God, creation, and His grace, mercy, and love. Without this beginning faith creation will be seen as nothing more than a big bang, people healed will be nothing more than a coincidence, the work of the Holy Spirit will be attributed to man’s ability to change, the Word of God will be seen as writings of men, and the wonderful glorious, power, might, strength, and unsearchable wisdom and knowledge of God will be seen as nothing more than a chance and coincidence of nature. Look around with new eyes of faith and begin to see the Hand of God in all of its wonder, glory, and majesty.

12.j. “For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind”

Zachariah 6:15 and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. This will happen if you diligently obey the Lord your God.”

Isaiah 58:10-14    if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.  And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.  And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to dwell in.  “If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly;  then you shall take delight in the LORD

Romans 16:26    but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—

2 Peter 1:5-10    For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge,  and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness,  and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.  For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.

Do you ever wonder if you are giving you all to Jesus Christ? Are you being obedient? Are you desiring and seeking Him with all your heart, mind, and soul? Are your ears hungering to hear His Word? Are you totally surrendered to go where He says? Do what He asks? Is your life more about honoring self or Jesus? Are you more concerned about striving for self-gain than Jesus’s honor, glory, and kingdom? Are you listening and obedient? Are you diligent in obedience??????

We lose sight and focus when our lives are lived in compromise with the world and what it has to offer. Are we to expect God will bless us and our country when we neglect full surrender and humble honor and glory to Jesus Christ? Are we to expect God will bless us when we intentionally choose to be complacent in service to Him and being satisfied and content with what this world has to offer? Being diligent means there is a conscious choice to being zealous, dedicated, committed, driven, persistent, untiring, attentive, and tireless in our want to be obedient to Jesus Christ. The world will tell us that a casual nod toward things of God is enough. The world will tell us that is all we need to do to be in favor of God? God’s Word says to be faithful, serve Him with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength, obedient, trusting, relying upon and in full surrendered to Him. Does this at all sound like something that can be taken lightly or that being lukewarm toward God is fulling His rightful honor, glory, worship, and praise? We are not going to be blessed as a person or a nation when our hearts and minds are being consumed by what this world has to offer. Take a close look at the state of the world and our nation right now. Fear, division, uncertainty, anxiousness, worry, hatred…… are the norm. God is not God of these things, Satan is. It seems as though he has captured the hearts and minds of millions of people and very few are seeing it for what it is, an attack on faith, trust, and reliance in Jesus Christ. Do you think for one second that all of this just happens apart from the hand of God allowing it? God is allowing those with eyes to see and ears to hear demonic influences being spewed out through leaders and media outlets. When you see that which is wrong being applauded as being right, know that Satan is behind it and God is allowing it.

12.e. “He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”

Zechariah 2:10 “Shout and be glad, Daughter Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,” declares the Lord. “Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day and will become my people. I will live among you and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. The Lord will inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land and will again choose Jerusalem. Be still before the Lord, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.

Leviticus 26:12   And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.

Ezekiel 37:27    My dwelling place shall be with them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Zephaniah 3:17   The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

John 1:14     And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Revelation 21:3    And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.

Some would say that they think God does not exist or that if He does, He is absent and not active in His creation. Nothing could be further from the truth. He knows the cattle on a thousand hills and every hair on our head. A bird does not fall from the sky without Him knowing. He knows our thoughts and actions. He knew of our birth before time began. He knows our beginning and ending. He is the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last. He has sent His Holy Spirit to indwell those who listened and acted (repented, turned away from their sinful nature, and trusted in the blood of Jesus Christ to cleanse their crimson sinful heart to white as snow) on salvation through Jesus Christ. Upon this act of faith, the Holy Spirit indwells the believer and is forever there to guide, convict, encourage, and lead, the believer in what humble service to Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. This indwelling of the Spirit of God is a foretaste of what is to come, God dwelling with mankind. The words to “I can only imagine”

I can only imagine what it will be like

When I walk, by your side

I can only imagine what my eyes will see

When you face is before me

I can only imagine

Surrounded by You glory

What will my heart feel

Will I dance for you Jesus

Or in awe of You be still

Will I stand in your presence

Or to my knees will I fall

Will I sing hallelujah

Will I be able to speak at all

I can only imagine

I can only imagine when that day comes

When I find myself standing in the Son

I can only imagine when all I would do is forever

Forever worship You

I can only imagine

Surrounded by Your glory

What will my heart feel

Will I dance for You, Jesus

Or in awe of you be still

Will I stand in your presence

Or to my knees will I fall

Will I sing hallelujah

Will I be able to speak at all

I can only imagine

I can only imagine hey ya ah

Surrounded by Your glory

What will my heart feel

Will I dance for You, Jesus

Or in awe of you be still

Will I stand in Your presence

Or to my knees will I fall

Will I sing hallelujah

Will I be able to speak at all

I can only imagine

I can only imagine when all I will do

Is forever, forever worship You

I can only imagine

12.y.O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you”

Zephaniah 3:14 Sing, Daughter Zion; shout aloud, Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, Daughter Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away your punishment, he has turned back your enemy. The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you; never again will you fear any harm. On that day they will say to Jerusalem, “Do not fear, Zion; do not let your hands hang limp. The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” “I will remove from you all who mourn over the loss of your appointed festivals, which is a burden and reproach for you. At that time I will deal with all who oppressed you. I will rescue the lame; I will gather the exiles. I will give them praise and honor in every land where they have suffered shame. At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes,” says the Lord.

Psalms 42:2-4    My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?  My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all the day long, “Where is your God?”

Psalms 63:1-2   O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Jeremiah 31:9    With weeping they shall come, and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back, I will make them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble, for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.

Romans 11:25-26    Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.  And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”;

Even in our trials and troubles, God is with us. “Be glad and rejoice with all your heart”. “The Lord is with you”, “I will rescue”, “I will gather”, “I will bring you home”, “I will give”, and “I will restore”. These are all from God. When all around us may be failing and falling apart, God has not changed and His promises are true, His grace, mercy, and love are steadfast, His presences is ever-present, His power to do more than we ask or can imagine is never limited, and all His foes, defiers, and deniers will be defeated and their plans destroyed. Our God is greater. Our God is all-powerful, Our God is all-knowing. Our God is all-in-all. He is our God. Do not allow fear, confusion, and worry place a cloud over you, blocking you from standing in the light of Our God, savior, redeemer, and King of kings. He is God Almighty.

6.m. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live;

Revelation 4:1  After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”

Matthew 11:28 Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.

Isaiah 55:1-3    “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.  Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.  Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.

John 6:37     All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.

John 7:37     On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.

Revelation 22:17    The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.

Matthew 7:13 “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way.

“a door standing open in heaven!” Do you ever give thought to what it means to have the door open and an invitation to come? The invitation is to come through the door. The one giving the invitation is Jesus Christ. The Son of God opens the door to forgiveness of sin, faith, hope, joy, healing, peace, rest, love, heaven, and eternity. He may reach out and get your attention, tap you on your shoulder, whisper into your conscience, or with the sound of a trumpet, but He will not pull you through the door. He gives the invitation to come and He is holding the door open for you to come in. When He says come, it is with the same open invitation like follow Me, listen to Me, obey Me, trust in Me, love Me, have faith in Me. None of these will be forced upon anyone. These invitations are offers from Jesus Christ the Son of God and require a willing humble desire. Do you ever wonder if we take His invitations serious? Imagine getting an invitation from a celebrity and know they are waiting at the door, with it open and waiting for you. Would you go? Would you tell others? Would you be excited? Would you be happy to see this celebrity waiting at the door for you? What value does this celebrity offer should you willing to accept their offer to come?

The truth is they can offer worldly things but nothing that will last for eternity. They can offer no forgiveness of sin, faith, hope, joy, healing, peace, rest, love, heaven, and eternity. And yet, we seem to think this is a very big deal should we receive their invitation, when in fact, we should be willingly, excitedly, humbly, and with reverence accepting the invitations from the Son of God.

6.k. ‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot.”

Revelation 3:15 “‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.

Matthew 24:12    And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.

Deuteronomy 5:29    Oh that they had such a heart as this always, to fear me and to keep all my commandments, that it might go well with them and with their descendants forever!

Psalms 81:11-13     “But my people did not listen to my voice; Israel would not submit to me.  So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts, to follow their own counsels.  Oh, that my people would listen to me, that Israel would walk in my ways!

1 Kings 18:21   And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word.

Do you ever stop to wonder what the Christians in Laodicea were like and how we compare to them? What were their daily lives like? How did they speak, think, and act? What was their worship like? Where did they place God in their lives? What influence did culture have on how they reverenced God? The big question that comes to my mind is how close are we to acting, living, thinking, and speaking like the Christians in Laodicea. Notice how it says they prospered which led them to think they needed nothing. They are called wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. They sought comfort, ease, and became content with their lives apart from God. How many times do prosperity and ease lead people down paths apart from God? For this very reason, you need to make every effort to live in fear, reverence, and thankfulness of the redeeming salvation through Jesus Christ. We are to live as though we are sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father. Sons and daughters who live to honor, glorify, worship, follow, trust and obey their Father. Sons and Daughters who never forget from that which they were saved. Sons and daughters who remember and love Jesus Christ because they remember that which they have been forgiven. Sons and daughters who live each day with Jesus Christ being first in their life. Sons and daughters who deny self and live no longer being self-centered and self-reliant.

How do you compare to the Christians of Laodicea? Are you living lukewarm? Repent and intentionally choose to live each moment of every day honoring Jesus Christ. What are you tolerating in your life that you shouldn’t? What are you doing that you know you shouldn’t but you do because other Christians are doing it? REPENT!!!!!!

6.d. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says

Revelation 2:18 “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: ‘The words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze. “‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works. But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden. Only hold fast what you have until I come. The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’

What defines a good church? One might include a definition with ministry to others, loyalty, love, patience, faith, and maturity. These would all be good for someone to say about a church corporately and as an individual within that church. The church is made up of individual people who have individual faith in Christ and to hear that corporately they are living out their faith in Jesus Christ in a way that honors Him is a testimony to their individual intentional choice(s). Thyatira was such a church but some had allowed false teaching to pull them into sexual immorality. Some had tolerated a false teacher and self-proclaimed prophetess. In this toleration, they were seduced into following her. Jesus declares they were given time to repent but they chose not too.

Do you ever wonder what each of us might be tolerating in our lives and walk with Jesus Christ? Do you ever wonder if you might be disregarding warnings from the Holy Spirit? Do you ever wonder if you have shut your ears to hear those whispers of repent, turn away, and confess? Do you ever wonder if your eyes have been blinded by cultural tolerances? Do you ever wonder if you have stepped over the line and don’t know it?

Each of us will do well to seek and desire to honor Jesus Christ. David put it like this; “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” When our heart’s desire is to be faithful and Jesus honoring, our ears and eyes being open to hear and see both what we should do and what we should not. Listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to your heart, mind, and soul.

175. Seek to show hospitality

2 Kings 4:8 One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food. And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I know that this is a holy man of God who is continually passing our way. Let us make a small room on the roof with walls and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.”

Isaiah 32:8     But he who is noble plans noble things, and on noble things he stands.

Matthew 10:41-42    The one who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and the one who receives a righteous person because he is a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward.  And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.”

Matthew 25:40    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.’

Mark 9:41     For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.

Romans 12:13     Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

Hebrews 13:2    Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

1 Peter 4:9-10    Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.  As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace:

Hebrews 10:24   And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,

We are encouraged to be hospitable and to do it out of a heart of love, without grumbling. Hospitality is something everyone can do. Some have been given the gift of this but others have to work at it. Those with the gift of hospitality do not even see it as being hospitable but rather see it as a kindness that they want to share. Others see it as an inconvenience and burden. Their heart only seems to find the negative in wherever they are. So, when they have opportunity to show hospitality it is not with kindness but more like bitterness. To be hospitable requires our heart to want to honor God through it. When we remove negative thoughts of how this is affecting my schedule, my time, my space….. and replace them with thoughts like “Jesus please open my eyes to see opportunity to be hospitable with today.”, “Jesus please change my heart to be more hospitable”, “Jesus remove these thoughts of selfishness and replace them with a willing and wanting heart desire to show Your love through me”, “Jesus, soften me from the inside”, “Jesus guide me on paths that bring honor and glory to you”, Jesus everything I have is because of your blessing – show me how to be hospitable with it.”

Being hospitable is not hard but can be when our heart, mind , and soul, does not see it as an opportunity to show and share the love of Jesus Christ.

151. And his heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God,

1 Kings 15:1 Now in the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam the son of Nebat, Abijam began to reign over Judah. He reigned for three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. And he walked in all the sins that his father did before him, and his heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father.

2 Chronicles 25:2 And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, yet not with a whole heart.

2 Chronicles 31:20-21 Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and right and faithful before the LORD his God. And every work that he undertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandments, seeking his God, he did with all his heart, and prospered.

When walking down the paths of; 1. And he walked in all the sins that his father did before him, and his heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God. 2. he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, yet not with a whole heart. 3. seeking his God, he did with all his heart and prospered.

There are dangers we face that are self-induced and none so dangerous as not giving God our whole heart. When God does not get our whole heart then we get influenced and driven by our own sinful desires or those of others. When we separate our heart to serve other things more wholly than God we jump on a very wide deceiving path of influence, illusions, deception, false hopes, and fleeting satisfaction. Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” This is true in more than just money. If we try to manage our time with God in an attempt to satisfy both our self and God we most certainly will side with self. When that happens the word of God becomes less and less, serving Him becomes a burden, honoring Him becomes counterfeit, following Him becomes more of performing art than the desired walk, and obeying Him becomes at best a guess of what society deems ok. See what Peter says about slipping away from God and it’s the outcome: 2 Peter 1:3-10 “ His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble,”

Serving God half-hearted will lead to acceptance and tolerance of sin in our lives. It will rob us or true joy, peace, rest, hope, and faith.