Saving the Uttermost

Scripture:

Hebrews 7:25 "Wherefore also he is able to save to the uttermost them that draw near unto God through him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them".

Observation:

Jesus is our high priest after the order of Melchisedek.  We are told here that Jesus is able to save to the uttermost, those who draw near to Him.  It says we can do this because he ever lives to make intercession for us.  Jesus is always making intercession for us and therefore, even the worst can be saved.

Application:

Not matter who we are praying for, we can rest assured that the "uttermost" can be saved because Jesus is making intercession for them.  When we pray, we must realize that Jesus wants them saved and is interceding with us for their salvation.  We can pray with authority because we know it is God's will for them to be saved and that Jesus Himself is praying for them.

Prayer:

Lord God, I pray with Jesus, for those around me who don't know Christ.  I pray they will draw near to Him and to salvation.  Let everyone I know come to Christ.  Draw people by Your Spirit.  Help me to bring as many people as possible to Christ during my time on this earth.

Yours,
Jeff

The Throne of God

Scripture:

Lamentations 5:19  "Thou, O Jehovah, abidest forever; Thy throne is from generation to generation".

Observation:

In the midst of a lament, we read the words, "Thy throne is from generation to generation".  The author realized that lamenting lasts for a while, but God's throne is permanently positioned and is not going anywhere.

Application:

When we go through trying times, we must remember that our God is faithful and eternal.  He isn't going anywhere tomorrow because of stress today.  He abides forever and nothing will make that go away.  We must trust God more.  He has been around the block a few times and knows what is best for us.  His throne is fixed in heaven and He will rule forever.  We can trust in this.

Prayer:

Father, You are forever and Your throne is from generation to generation.  There has never been a generation when you were off your throne.  There has never been a time when you were out of a position of power.  Help me to trust You more and not to get burdened down by the temporary things of this life.

Your Son,
Jeff

Hearing of love and faith

Scripture:

Philemon 4 "I thank my God always, making mention of thee in my prayers, hearing of thy love, and of the faith which thou hast toward Jesus Christ, and toward all the saints".

Observation:

Paul is writing a letter to Philemon about his slave Onesimus.  Paul opens the letter with a greeting and tells Philemon that he prays for him often because he has heard of his love and faith toward Jesus and all the saints.  Apparently Philemon had a reputation for being loving and full of faith.

Application:

If we want to be known for something, may it not be our money, our influence, our success or anything else.  May it be because of our love and faith toward God and others.  Jesus said the most important things are to love the Lord your God and to love your neighbor.  May my life be remembered for my love for God and people.

Prayer:

Father, I need you right now in my life.  Let my life be known for loving God and loving people.  May my heart remain true in that.  Keep my life simple and let my love for You and others be the motivating factor of my life. 

Yours,
Jeff

God's Battle Axe

Scripture:

Jeremiah 51:20  "Thou art my battle-axe and weapons of war: and with thee will I break in pieces the nations; and with thee will I destroy kingdoms."

Observation:

God is speaking to His people and calls them his battle ax and weapons of war.  He says with them, He will break kingdoms in pieces.  God had allowed the surrounding nations to plunder His people out of punishment for their sins, but his anger is for a moment and his favor is for a lifetime.  When God was done punishing His people, He then judges those who punished them.  He calls his people battle axes and weapons of war.  He was going to use his people to bring judgment on the nations.

Application:

God can use anyone at any time, for any reason He chooses.  God is God and He can do what He wants to do!  There are times when as God's people, He wants us to be His battle axes and times He wants us to walk in peace with our enemies.  Our job is to hear the voice of the Spirit and to be led by Him daily.  Our job is to be ready to be a battle ax or a peacemaker.  Our goal is simply to advance His kingdom in the earth, however He wants to do that.  We must have our ears open to hear what He is saying.

Prayer:

Lord God, help me to follow Your voice at all times.  Help me to know when to be a battle ax and when to be a peacemaker.  I want to walk in Your Spirit at all times and not live life on my own, doing my own will.  I have surrendered my heart to You and want to walk in step with You every day.

I am Yours,
Jeff

Don't Mess with the Lord

Scripture:

Jeremiah 48:26  "Make ye him drunken; for he magnified himself against Jehovah: and Moab shall wallow in his vomit, and he also shall be in derision."

Observation:

God speaks about Moab to Jeremiah.  He says that because they magnified themselves against the Lord, they will wallow in their vomit and be in derision like a drink person.  He says that those who lift up, or magnify, themselves against the Lord, will have serious trouble in the future.

Application:

Don't mess with the Lord and His people!  God takes care of His people and when people or nations come against God and his people, they are in serious trouble.  God is a righteous judge and one day everyone who stands against Him will be judged.  I want to be on the side of His blessing and not the side of His judgement.

Prayer:

Father, let my life bring you glory and honor.  Teach me not to  lift myself up, but to trust You more and more each day.  Let me live a life of humility before you every day.  Forgive me to magnifying myself over You at times by only seeing my problems and not submitting to Your ways.  Help me live life well and walk in submission to You day by day.

Yours,
Jeff

God's Heart

Scripture:

Jeremiah 46:28 "Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, saith Jehovah; for I am with thee: for I will make a full end of the nations whither I have driven thee; but I will not make a full end of thee, but I will correct thee in measure, and will in no wise leave thee unpunished."

Observation:

God is speaking through Jeremiah to those who God was punishing because of their unfaithfulness.  God was allowing other nations to come in and capture them.  He was punishing them for the unfaithfulness, but in the process, He lets them know they are still His children and that He will bring them out of the oppression and will deal with the nations that hurt them.  He lets them know they will be punished, but also that their punishment will be in measure, then He will return them to a place of favor when they have surrendered to Him completely.

Application:

God does discipline His children, but His discipline is always for the purpose of restoration.  We can rest assured that when we are being chastened by the Lord, He is doing it for our good and then His favor will come again.  God's heart is to bless His children, but sometimes when we do things our own way instead of His, we block ourselves from His blessing and receive correction from Him.  Even when correction comes, we should be happy because it proves He still loves us.

Prayer:

Lord, thank you for speaking to me this morning.  Your heart is always to bless my life, but sometimes I get off track and move ahead on my own.  Help me to always wait on You instead of plowing ahead.  Your love never fails.  Let me life out of Your love and spread your love everywhere I go.

Yours,
Jeff

Good Intentions

Scripture:

Jeremiah 42:3  "that Jehovah thy God may show us the way wherein we should walk, and the thing that we should do."

Observation:

The people told Jeremiah to go speak to the Lord and to come back and tell them so they could know what to do and how they should walk.  With their mouth, they wanted to follow the Lord, but when it came right to it, they didn't believe the word of the Lord.  They had good intentions of following the Lord, but lacked the follow through when He spoke.

Application:

We are all filled with good intentions.  We all intend to follow the Lord completely, until He speaks and we have to do something we don't want to.  We all have good intentions of doing whatever the Lord speaks to us, but lack the follow through to do what He says.  It we don't do what He says, we shouldn't expect to hear His voice more.

Prayer:

God, give me a pure heart.  I don't want to live out of good intentions, but out of obedience to You.  I want to fulfill Your will for my life.  Speak clearly to me and let me hear.  I want to be a true follower of Yours, not matter what.  I want my life to be a life of surrender to You.

Yours,
Jeff

Nothing is Too Difficult for Thee

Scripture:

Jeremiah 32:17  "Ah Lord Jehovah! behold, thou hast made the heavens and the earth by thy great power and by thine outstretched arm; there is nothing too hard for thee".

Observation:

Jeremiah prayed this prayer to the Lord.  It is a prayer of declaration about who the Lord is and about what He has done and what He is capable of.  He took time to think about the Lord and His awesomeness.  He took time to reflect on how powerful God is.

Application:

There are times when we need to think about the awesomeness of God and just how powerful He is.  When we do this, our faith begins to rise and increase.  When we think about the incredible power of God and what He is capable of, our problems appear smaller and smaller.  We need to take time to ponder the awesomeness of God.

Prayer:

Lord, nothing is too difficult for You.  You are incredible!  You spoke and the universe was created.  You opened the Red Sea and brought the children of Israel out of Egypt.  You opened the Jordan River and caused them to walk across.  You have healed me over and over in my life.  You have sustained me in difficulty.  You have worked miracles over and over in my life.  You are all-powerful and I love serving You.

Your Son,
Jeff

I Will Bring Them Up

Scripture:

Jeremiah 27:22 "They shall be carried to Babylon, and there shall they be, until the day that I visit them, saith Jehovah; then will I bring them up, and restore them to this place."

Observation:

Jeremiah gave a word to the people of Judah from the Lord.  He told them that God was going to let them be carried off to Babylon for punishment because of their pride and following after other gods.  Even when God tells them of the their punishment, He is already speaking to them about their restoration.  He says He will bring them up and restore them.

Application:

Psalms tells us that God's anger lasts for a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime.  Even when God gets fed up with people and brings them to a place of punishment, His eye is on the day day He can restore them and raise them up.  He is always working to restore people back to Himself.

Prayer:

Father, You were in Christ reconciling the world to Yourself.  Help me to be doing the work of reconciliation.  Teach me to always be looking for Your restoration in people's lives.  Help me to grasp the fact that, even in your punishment, your eye is on restoration.  Help me to be more like You.

Yours,
Jeff

Thou Hast Persuaded Me

Scripture:

Jeremiah 20:7 "O Jehovah, thou hast persuaded me, and I was persuaded; thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am become a laughing-stock all the day, every one mocketh me."

Observation:

Jeremiah here is telling the Lord about his internal dilemma.  In the next verse he says that because of the word of the Lord, he had become a reproach to the people and in his own mind, he felt like his only message was about the destruction.  He wanted to stop speaking the word of the Lord, but it says here that the Lord persuaded him because the Lord was stronger than he.  He was being laughed at and scorned, but God made him keep going forward.

Application:

Sometimes God asks us to do things that we don't understand.  There will be times when people don't understand what God is asking you to do.  Even so, we must walk in obedience. When Jeremiah wanted to just be quiet, God's word was like a fire shut up in his bones.  We need to walk in obedience, even when it makes us feel uneasy.

Prayer:

Father, help me to walk in obedience.  Help me to walk with You and to fulfill Your will for my life.  Teach me to hear the word of the Lord and to follow completely, even when it doesn't make sense.  You are amazing and I love you.  Help me to trust You, when I don't understand what You are doing.

Yours Forever,
Jeff

The Blessed Life

Scripture:

Jeremiah 17:7-8 "Blessed is the man that trusteth in Jehovah, and whose trust Jehovah is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, that spreadeth out its roots by the river, and shall not fear when the heat cometh, but its leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit".

Observation:

God says here that the man who trusts in the Lord will be like a tree next to the river that doesn't fear heat or drought.  It says he will have strong roots and it will always be green and never cease from bearing fruit. 

Application:

From these verses, I see that when we really walk in a trust relationship with the Lord, we will be very strong and always producing fruit.  When we follow His ways, we get His results, therefore, we need to trust the Lord more and more.  Our strength comes from Him and in Him we become like a tree planted by the water.

Prayer:

Father, I want to be like a tree planted by the water.  I want to trust You more each day.  Help me to follow You completely.  Teach me to trust You more and more.  Let my life be fruitful for You and Your kingdom.  I am Yours.

Your Son,
Jeff

Don't Pray for this People

Scripture:

Jeremiah 14:11-12 "And Jehovah said unto me, Pray not for this people for their good.  When they fast, I will not hear their dry; and when they offer burnt-offering and meal-offering, I will not accept them, but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence."

Observation:

In this passage, God tells Jeremiah to quit praying for the good of his people, because He was not going to bless them.  He told Jeremiah that this people could offer all kinds of offerings, but He would not accept them because they had rejected His ways.  There was coming a harvest of the seed they had sown and nothing would change that.

Application:

God is more interested in our obedience, than our sacrifice.  He wants us to walk in obedience to His ways more than He wants us to do our religious duties.  Sometimes, we are praying for people who have sown terrible seeds.  Those seeds will have a harvest that will not be favorable, but if they start sowing good seeds, the harvest will turn around.  My spiritual father told me many times, "You can't rebuke a harvest".

Prayer:

Father, help me to sow good seed and to walk according to Your ways.  You are amazing and I want to serve You well.  Teach me to follow you completely and with a pure heart.

Yours,
Jeff

In These Things I Delight

Scripture:

Jeremiah 9:23-24 "Thus saith Jehovah, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches; but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he hath understanding, and knoweth me, that I am Jehovah who exerciseth lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith Jehovah."

Observation:

Jeremiah tells his people that they should glory in the things they have.  They shouldn't glory in their wisdom, their might, nor their wealth, but in having understanding and knowing God.  God said that in this He delights. 

Application:

God delights in us when we glory in Him.  He wants to be the center of our lives and desires for us to put our trust in Him and Him alone.  When we realize He is smarter, richer, and mightier than us, we will humble ourselves and at that point, we are right where God wants us to be.  Our glory is totally in Him.  He is the one who demonstrates lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness.  God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble.  He delights in our humility and blesses it.

Prayer:

Father, let my life bring You praise and glory.  Help me not to trust in anything of myself, but to trust in You alone.  I can't do anything without You.  You are my source and my resource.  You are my strength and my deliverer.  You are my everything.  Guide me today and let me hear Your voice clearly.

Yours,
Jeff

Forward not Backward

Scripture:

Jeremiah 7:24  "But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward".

Observation:

In the verse prior to this is says, "Hearken unto my voice... and it will be well with you".  Here we see God telling His people He wants to be their God and for them to be His people, but they would not incline their ears, not hearken to His voice.  Therefore, they went backward and not forward.

Application:

When we are hearing from God and doing what He says, we will see our lives moving forward.  When we are not inclining our ears and listening to the Word of the Lord, we can expect our lives to go backwards.  We need to hear the voice of our God and walk with Him as friend with friend.  Then we will always be moving forward. 

Prayer:

Lord God Almighty, You are faithful and You are true.  Help me to incline my ears to Your voice.  Help me to tune in and hear what You are speaking to me.  I'm tired of not moving forward in some areas of my life.  I want to move forward, but I need to hear from You.

Your Son,
Jeff

What Will Ye Do in the End?

Scripture:

Jeremiah 5:31 "the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?"

Observation:

God is speaking through Jeremiah and tells him the prophets are speaking falsely and the priests are doing their own things.  He says the people love it that way.  He asks the question, "what will ye do in the end thereof?"  In other words, "where does all this lead?"

Application:

It is a powerful thing to ask yourself, "Where does all this lead?"  or "What will ye do in the end thereof?"  When I as that question, it helps me focus in on what is really important.  When I am working for the kingdom, I have to ask myself, "where does all this lead?"  What will be the long-term outcome if I do this?  Thinking long is really important and asking, "if I take this direction, where will I end up?" is really important in life.

Prayer:

Father, You know my long term goal in this life is to hear the words, "Well done good and faithful servant".  Help me to evaluate the things I do in light of that day.  Teach me to think long and look at the end of things.  Teach me to think about where things ultimately lead.  Help me to lead Your people well.

Your Son,
Jeff

Whatsoever I Command

Scripture:

Jeremiah 1:7  "But Jehovah said unto me, Say not, I am a child; for to whomsoever I shall send thee thou shalt go, and whatsoever I shall command thee thou shalt speak".

Observation:

When God called Jeremiah, He made it clear that Jeremiah was to go wherever God sent him and to speak whatever God told him to speak.  Jeremiah was commissioned to hear the voice of the Lord and to speak what He was saying. 

Application:

I want to clearly hear the voice of the Lord and I want to speak what He is saying at all times.  I want to speak the words of the living God and not words from my own spirit.  I need to continue to seek the Lord and consecrate my life to Him. 

Prayer:

Father, direct my steps and open the right doors in front of me.  I gave you my life a long time ago and I ask You to lead me, guide me and let me hear Your voice more clearly.  Teach me to walk with you as friend with friend.  Open my ears to hear what You are speaking.  I want to represent You well.

Yours,
Jeff

Set in Order and Appoint

Scripture:

Titus 1:5  "For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that were wanting, and appoint elders in every city, as I gave thee charge".

Observation:

Paul tells Titus the reason he left him in Crete was to set things in order that needed it and to appoint elders in every city.  He also tells him, "as I gave thee charge".  In others words, he had already told him what to do and was putting it in writing.

Application:

I need to set some things in order right now in our ministry.  There are some things "wanting" and I feel like the Lord wants me to take some time of setting in order and appointing people to do what needs done for the Kingdom.

Prayer:

Father, help me to set the house in order and do what needs done for the advancement of Your kingdom.  Give me strength to make hard decisions and to communicate well to those You have put around me.

Your Son,

Jeff

Enlarge the Place of Thy Tent

Scripture:

Isaiah 54:2-3  "Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of they habitations; spare not: lengthen thy cords, and strengthen they stakes.  For thou shalt spread abroad on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall possess the nations, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited".

Observation:

Isaiah gives a word to Israel here that they should enlarge the place they live.  He tells them to stretch the curtains and to "spare not".  They are told they will stretch out on the right and left and that their seed shall possess the nations and desolate cities will be inhabited.

Application:

The application was definitely for Israel, but I believe we can apply this to our own individual lives.  There are times and seasons in God.  There are times of enduring difficult things.  There are season of development, but there are seasons of growth.  When we come to that season, we must prepare by expanding the place where we live and strengthen our stakes.  I feel like this is a word to me today about expanding the place we meet as a church and to strengthen the stakes of our ministry.  I believe God is saying we will send people to the nations.

Prayer:

Father, I hear Your voice this morning.  Help me to walk by faith and do all that You put in my heart.  Thank You for speaking to me clearly.  I love it when You do that.  Let Word of Life possess the nations and make cities of uninhabited places.

Yours,
Jeff

Joy and Gladness

Scripture:

Isaiah 51:11 "And the ransomed of Jehovah shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads: they shall obtain gladness and joy; and sorrow and sighing shall flee away".

Observation:

Isaiah is speaking to God's people and he tells them that the people of God will return to Zion one day and that when they do, they will get gladness and joy instead of sorrow and sighing.  He tells them of a day when things will be better and when their joy will return to them.  Joy is promised to God's people, yet few walk in it.

Application:

The second fruit of the Spirit is joy.  Joy is central to the Gospel.  Everywhere the Gospel was preached, there was joy in the city.  Joy should be part of serving Jesus, but most Christians are not walking in His joy.  I know I get burdened down at time with the cares of life and my joy tends to run low.  I need a good dose of joy in my life at the present time. 

Prayer:

Father, I need Your joy.  You said that joy would be upon your people's heads and that they would obtain gladness and joy.  I want to walk in Your joy.  You are amazing and there is no reason why I should be downcast.  You are faithful and always deliver me.  You are my strength and song.  Help me to walk in  You joy.

Your Son,
Jeff