Eternally Minded

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With...

At the Father's side creating the world, now clothing Himself in humanity. Holy and spotless, now taking on the likeness of flawed man. Self existing one, now in need. High above all, exalted one, now lying in a feeding trough in a barn. Wrapped in majesty and glory, now wrapped in swaddling clothes. Ever watching and caring for creation, now sleeping in the care of Mary. Worshiped by angels who ceaselessly cried out holy, holy, holy, now looked at by shepherds who marveled. Worthy of all respect and fear, now rejected and sought after to be put to death. Served by hosts of angels, now serving the sinners around Him. Deserving of every right, now accepting none but giving to those who deserved nothing. Worthy of riches and rewards, now overcoming temptations and trials. Showing kindness to many, now betrayed by His friends. Honored above all, now humiliated before the crowds. Blameless, now sentenced to death. Robed with splendor and beauty, now beate...

...His wives turned away his heart. For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the L ORD his God... For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the L ORD and did not wholly follow the L ORD , as David his father had done. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites, on the mountain east of Jerusalem. And so he did for all his foreign wives, who made offerings and sacrificed to their gods.  And the L ORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the L ORD , the God of Israel...   1 Kings 11:3-9 Take careful note of this passage. What did Solomon do to make God angry? What was his great sin? Idolatry.  I didn't totally realize the concept of this sin until recently. Sure, I ...

" Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof." Matthew 13:31-32 Jesus often spoke in parables to communicate a singular point or truth. A parable is a method of communication like an illustration. The word parable means: to throw something alongside something else. So, Jesus would throw a parable alongside his declarations of truth.  The main thing to keep in mind when trying to interpret a parable is that it isn't usually an allegory. Not every word in a parable has some hidden meaning. In this parable, as in most of His parables, He is communicating a truth about the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, it starts small but it finishes being great. ...

Now the word of the Lord came to Solomon saying, “Concerning this house which you are building, if you will walk in My statutes and execute My ordinances and keep all My commandments by walking in them, then I will carry out My word with you which I spoke to David your father. I will dwell among the sons of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel.” 1 Kings 6:11-13 This is a promise from the L ORD to His chosen people, Israel, while Solomon is building the temple. Intentionally, in chapter 5, we see God fulfilling a promise He made to Solomon,  "The L ORD gave wisdom to Solomon, just as He promised him..." (1 Kings 5:12) But there is a contingency linked to this particular promise in chapter 6: That His people would obey His statutes, rules, and commandments, and to walk in them.  Maybe, if you're like me, this sounds like a lot of what is modernly called 'works religion'.   But the phrase 'walk in them' points to a devotion. ** D...

Has there ever been a moment of passion and zeal where you wish you could do anything and everything for the sake of Christ? Where you've counted the cost and would be willing to loose all, to risk all, to live completely abandoned for Christ? Has eternity ever scorched your mind and make you wonder why you aren't spending every moment pleading with lost? Has the parable of the talents left you striving to make the most every moment (Matthew25)? Does life seem so short, that you feel guilty for resting? Does the promise of eternal rewards make you want to be involved in any ministry, outreach, evangelism available? These are the thoughts that often run through my head, and yet, as much as I try to give up everything and go "all out", I never feel like I'm doing enough. Why? It doesn't seem like I've got bad motives. Yes, I may die younger from exhaustion, but that doesn't seem so bad in light of eternity. Why can't I find fulfilment? The Right ...

I was doing my morning reading through the book of Judges and was shocked at how twisted this man named Micah was. The chapter starts off with him stealing from his mother, then returning the money, then she makes him an idol out of the returned money, and he makes his son the priest of his idols. Later, a Levite comes by and he hires him to be the priest instead of his son and says: "Now know I that the Lord will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest." Judges 17:13 How can this guys definition of right and wrong be so thwarted? How can he think God is pleased with his actions? Sure he hired God's ordained ministers to be his priest (Lev7:35), but he was worshiping a idol! He wasn't even worshiping the one true God! So he wasn't obeying the Levite Priest law, because he broke a much more serious law: "Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in the heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is...