Shut in and Sealed

I was reading my first section for Reading the Bible in 90 Days and came to this:

Genesis 7:16 "....and then the Lord shut him in." 

I was led to pause after those words and the following was impressed on my thoughts. 

These are the closing words following the story of Noah building the ark, filling it with all of the creatures of the earth, food for those creatures, food for him and for his family that were also loaded onto the ark. "And then the Lord shut him in."

Up to this point God had told Noah exactly how to build the ark, but Noah had to obey and do the work.  When the danger he had been warned about came upon him, Noah had his place of refuge.  (Psalm 31:1-2)

When Noah needed to find security and safety in that place of refuge though, all he had to do was follow the path God laid before him, into the ark and the 'THE LORD SHUT HIM IN'.  He sealed Noah in and provided complete protection. 

I was struck at how this mirrors our walk with Christ.  God tells us how to receive salvation, how to come into fellowship with Him and find refuge, but we must obey and do the 'work' required.  Not 'works' to earn our salvation but 'the work' of obedience.  'The work' of coming to Him with a repentant heart and submitting our life to His will.  We must obey and then we are sealed with the blood of Christ. 

Just as God was very specific in His instruction for Noah in building the ark that would provide him a place of refuge, God is very specific in His instruction for us to find redemption and refuge in fellowship with Him.  I'm so glad He made it so clear that all I had to do was obey. 

Prayer:

Father God, You are my rock, my refuge, my shelter in the storm.  You give me peace when peace cannot be found.  You opened the door, I entered and you shut me in.  Though storms may come and flood waters may rise around me, I am shut in by Your redeeming love.  I am safe.  I live.  Thank You Lord for Your perfect plan of redemption.  Thank You Lord for shutting me in.  I am safe in the arms of the one that went to the cross for me.  And it is in His name I pray.  Amen. 

Highly Favored

[This is the first in a series devotionals of exploring and learning from Mary's walk with God as written in the book of Luke. To see the entire series, click HERE ]

Luke 1:28 ~ The angel went to her (Mary) and said

"Greetings to you who are highly favored.  The Lord is with you."

Have you ever wondered why God chose Mary to carry His son?

Was she walking in her faith perfectly, without any sin?  Was that it? 
~No, scripture tells us 'for all have sinned and fall short'. 

So did she pray more; do more 'good' things?
Why is it God favored Mary and how can we also be favored?

If we look a little deeper at the Greek word used here for 'favor' we discover it is the work 'charitoo' and means "filled with grace".  Further study reveals that this word is used only once more in the New Testament-
Ephesians 6:1 To the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves.  This tells us that believers in Christ are 'filled with grace'.  Not because we do good things, pray enough or walk a perfect walk.  We are 'filled with grace' by the blood of Christ.  God chose to favor us with the ultimate gift of life. 

So just like Mary, we (Christians) are highly favored.

And just like Mary, not only are we highly favored, the Lord is with us.

Matthew 1:23 ~ The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel (which means 'God with us')

Mary was chosen to physically carry the son of God
to be born into the world

so we could have a way to salvation
and be highly favored / filled with grace.

~  ~  ~

We are chosen to carry the name of God
 into the world

so others can hear the way to salvation
 and be highly favored / filled with grace. 

Mary did what God called her to do.  The question we have to ask ourselves is are we doing what we have been called to do?  I love remembering the birth of Christ every December, but I love to remember the result of that birth more.  This is a wonderful time to reflect on how that result is being carried out in our lives. 

Prayer:
Thank you Lord that I am highly favored as a child of God.  I come before You during this season when thoughts are turned towards the birth of Your Son and ask that You make me mindful of more than the event, but of the result of that event.  Because You chose to send Your Son to earth in the form of a baby, I am able to live a life freed from sin.  I have done nothing to deserve this favor; I have not acted perfectly, prayed perfectly or even done good deeds to earn this favor.  I am filled with Your grace and You are with me because a child, Your only son, was born to live a life that would take Him to a cross where He would be the only perfect sacrifice that could bring me into fellowship with You.  Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!  Praise to God the Father.  I rejoice in the name of Jesus Christ, Emmanuel ~ God with us! Amen and Amen!



[NEXT: Luke 1:34-38 ~ A Servant's Response: I Don't Understand How This Can Be, But May It Be As You Have Said]

 God Bless and Keep You,

Take the Seed out of Your Pocket and Yield a Crop!

My last post was on Colossians 2:6 : As you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him.

I couldn't stop thinking about how we are told to be rooted in Him. It made me think about the parable of the sower:

Matthew 13:6 says: Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn't put down roots, 6 so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly. "Later in Matthew 13:20-21 it says: "The seed cast in the gravel—this is the person who hears and instantly responds with enthusiasm. 21 But there is no soil of character, and so when the emotions wear off and some difficulty arrives, there is nothing to show for it. "(MSG)

This parable and the verse from Colossians are so intertwined.

Just like we compared "receiving Christ as Lord" to receiving a gift, the seed is received in the parable.

And just as we recognized that the Greek word used for 'receive' means 'to take charge of', the parable shows how the seed was received but not 'taken charge of.

It is like the person receives this gift of the seed, but does not take charge of it in their lives…or take it with them as that Greek word tells us to.

Picture yourself receiving a gift that you have desired for a while. You are so excited to get it, and you are so thankful to the giver. There is much joy in that moment. But time goes by, the newness of the gift wears off and you may even forget you have it. Eventually you may start looking for joy in something else.

This is the same as the parable. Both the parable and the verse in Colossians is telling us to be ROOTED in the word.

The parable ends with this: Matthew 13: 23 ~ ‘But the seed falling on good soil refers to people who hear the word and understand it. They produce a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown’.

The gift we receive through the blood of Christ is one we are told to take with us and never lose sight of. Colossians tells us this will build us up in Him. The parable tells us it will cause us to yield a crop for Him.

Just as a healthy plant produces fruit for the nourishment of others, just as a healthy body can provide strength and support for those around them, a healthy soul produces fruit of God that shows others the way to a life in Christ. We are to be alive in Christ, bearing much fruit.


I couldn't get that comparison out of my mind so I thought I'd share it! What do you think about?

God Bless and Keep You,
Tami

Take God Out of Your Pocket and Put Him in Charge

My Friend Paula over at Paula's Ponderings asked a question today about slipping into default mode. It got me to thinking about why we do that; default down to our own level when we should be lifted up to the full power and authority given to us in Jesus Christ.

Colossians 2:6 says:

As you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him.

Have you received Christ? The Greek word used for received is paralambano meaning ‘to take with you , to take charge of, to receive’.
I couldn't help but think about how I can receive a gift and then put it away. Even a precious gift, like expensive jewelry or such. I receive it and then put it in its place or tuck it away in a safe place, not to be used except on special occasions or when the gift is needed in my daily life. Is this what I do with the gift of salvation?



But this word says to receive it and take with you…to take charge of it.

Salvation is not receiving Christ and then setting that gift aside in ‘its place’. It is receiving and taking it with us. I find it easy to pull that gift out when things are hard, confusing or I’m at church…but God is telling me to carry that gift with me all the time. And not just holding it in a pocket, but actually taking charge of that gift in my daily life.
This thought is expanded by the rest of that verse, saying “continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him”.

Rooted is the greek word rhizoo, meaning ‘to be rooted, with the associative meaning that a rooted object is strong and healthy’. I love that image. Not only am I to be rooted in the Word of God, I am told that doing so will make me strong and healthy.

We have explored the concept of being strong and healthy by feeding our souls with balanced meals instead of junk. This verse is another visual image given to us by God to drive home this same concept of being strong and healthy by the word of God.


And the third point is that we are to be built up in Him. Think about a healthy physical body that is built up (or as we say… ‘bulked up’). When we fill our body with healthy food and exercise our body…we get built up in physical strength. By the same token, when we fill our soul with healthy food, the word of God, and then work out our life using that knowledge, we are built up (or bulked up) in Him.

I used to think I couldn’t serve God until I was a mighty woman of faith…bulked up in Him if you will. At some point I realized that God wasn’t asking me to become a Christian wonder woman before I could be used by Him. I realized that that the wonder woman in me was the power of the Holy Spirit and He was asking me to feed myself on His word to draw more on that power in my day to day life.

So we should go out today and everyday, ready to draw on the strength of Christ to be a testimony to the awesome power of His working in us. It doesn’t matter where we are, who we are, what we are or how we are. God’s word for us here says that no matter where, who, what or how…if we receive Him, taking Him with us at all times, we are strong and built up in the power of the Holy Spirit. And with Him, nothing is impossible. So Paula, I am with you ~ let's stop living in default mode and shift into high gear of the power and authority of God!


PRAYER:
Lord, You planted a seed in me that took root the day I submitted my life to You. I received the gift of that seed with great joy. Lord, I confess that there have been times when I tucked that gift away into a ‘safe place’, sometimes walking around without even remembering I had it. Forgive me Lord, and help me remember that when I received this gift, Your expectation is that I take it with me and use it in my daily life. Nudge me Lord when I have slipped it into my pocket for a moment. Remind me to pull it out and let it take charge of my life. I acknowledge that in my flesh I am weak, but in You I am strong. Let me use this strength to Your glory. May I increase in wisdom and stature as I work out my salvation with You leading the way. Amen.

God Bless and Keep You,
Tami