Shalom!

Today I want to talk a little about the Apostle Paul. He started out as a Pharisee (Saul) who did not believe in this Jesus. He went about securing permission and orders to round up Christians. In the middle of that assignment he came in contact with Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, the Messiah. Saul was forever changed! We see this:

Phil 3:4-6
4 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more:5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.(KJV)

The Amplified Bible says:
4Though for myself I have [at least grounds] to rely on the flesh. If any other man considers that he has or seems to have reason to rely on the flesh and his physical and outward advantages, I have still more!
5Circumcised when I was eight days old, of the race of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew [and the son] of Hebrews; as to the observance of the Law I was of [the party of] the Pharisees,
6As to my zeal, I was a persecutor of the church, and by the Law's standard of righteousness (supposed justice, uprightness, and right standing with God) I was proven to be blameless and no fault was found with me.

Saul had it made! He had honor and respect. He had a position. But, after His encounter with Jesus, this is what Saul thought of all that:

Phil 3:7-8
7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,(KJV)

The Amplified Bible Says it this way:
7But whatever former things I had that might have been gains to me, I have come to consider as [one combined] loss for Christ's sake.
8Yes, furthermore, I count everything as loss compared to the possession of the priceless privilege (the overwhelming preciousness, the surpassing worth, and supreme advantage) of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord and of progressively becoming more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him [of perceiving and recognizing and understanding Him more fully and clearly]. For His sake I have lost everything and consider it all to be mere rubbish (refuse, dregs), in order that I may win (gain) Christ (the Anointed One),

Paul considered nothing in his life, before or after, worthy of being compared to "knowing" Jesus! In fact, in comparison, he considered all of those things to be as rubbish (one translation says "manure"). That should be our heart attitude. Nothing and no one should be more important than, or allowed to interfer with, our time spent with Him because getting to know Him is vital to our life as a believer.

Have a great day getting to know Him and we'll look further at this tomorrow!

Shalom in Him!

Robin

Shalom!

Today we're going to look at Psalm 103 again:

Psalm 103:6-12
6The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.
7He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.
8The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
9He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.
10He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
11For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.
12As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

Verse 6 tells us that it is the Lord, referring to Yehovah, the Eternal, self-existing One, Who has the ultimate responsibility for rightness and justice. It would benefit us greatly to get to know this Lord in a more personal way! That is possible. Verse 7 tells us that Moses knew Him that way! Because he pursued Him, the Lord made known His "ways", His character and manner of life, to Moses. The other children of Israel, though God's chosen people, only understood His deeds, His actions.

Verse 8 shows some of that character, telling us that He is compassionate and full of grace towards us. He is very patient and full of mercy. Verse 9 says that He will not hold or carry a grudge against us.

Hallelujah for verse 10 that says He will not see us through or deal with us over our sin! Those of us who fear Him, who are in reverant and worshipful awe of Him, will see His great mercy!

You can't get any further apart than the distance that separates the East from the West. That's how far He has removed our sin nature from us when we received Jesus as our Lord and personal Savior! In fact, our nature was changed at the moment of our new birth:

2 Cor 5:1717
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.(KJV)
2 Cor 5:2121
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.(KJV)

We were MADE righteous! We don't have to try to BECOME righteous, in right standing with God! That's the work of the Holy Spirit when we believe and receive!

Is there any reason you can't receive Jesus as your Lord and personal Savior right now?

Please pray this prayer right now as you believe with all your heart:

Almighty God, I am a sinner. I believe that Jesus Christ came to this earth, died on the cross for me, was raised from the dead, and is now seated at Your right hand. I accept and receive Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour and I invite Him to come into my heart and become Lord over my life. I thank You now Father, for welcoming me into Your family. You are my Father. I am Your child. Jesus is my Lord! Amen.

You have now become a child of the One, True, Most-high, Living, Almighty God of the Bible! You need to dig into His Word to find out all that He has provided for you and to get to know and understand Him. You should start by finding a good, Bible teaching church. Click on The Spoken Word Church link and contact us so we can help you find a church in your area that teaches the uncompromising Word of God. You'll be forever glad you did!

Shalom in Him!

The Scriptures I want to share with you today are from the Book of Psalms. The Psalms (Hebrew : TeHillim=Praises) are a living testimony of God's people as a nation (Israel) and as individuals. They reflect the hardships and struggles of life, and how the people conquered despair through faith in the living God. We find a reference to that concerning David:

1 Sam 30:66
And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.(KJV).

I believe that David used the Psalms to remind himself of the faithfulness of God to His people and His promises. Today we want to look at :

Ps 103:1-5
1 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.(KJV)

The Amplified Bible gives a clearer picture of these verses:

Psalm 103
[A Psalm] of David.
1 Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul; and all that is [deepest] within me, bless His holy name!
2Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul, and forget not [one of] all His benefits--
3Who forgives [every one of] all your iniquities, Who heals [each one of] all your diseases,
4Who redeems your life from the pit and corruption, Who beautifies, dignifies, and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercy;
5Who satisfies your mouth [your necessity and desire at your personal age and situation] with good so that your youth, renewed, is like the eagle's [strong, overcoming, soaring]!

He IS the God who has done all of these things for you! As you study and meditate on the Word of God, you will begin to realize all that the Lord has provided for you. When that becomes REAL to you, you won't be able to stop the praises from flowing!

Have a great, blessed day filled with praises of thanksgiving for Who He is and for all He's done!

Shalom in Him!

Shalom!

By way of explanation, I want to share with you something that a precious sister in the Lord posted on her blog a few months ago:

The meaning of the word "Shalom"
By David Silver

The Hebrew word SHALOM is understood around the world to mean peace. But peace is only one small part of the meaning of the word SHALOM. Here in Israel, even though we don't have much in the way of peace, we use the word SHALOM on a daily basis. We use it to greet people with, and we use it to bid farewell to people. However, SHALOM means much more than peace, hello or goodbye.

Strong's Concordance 7965 - Hebrew Shalom ..... A word study in the New King James version for SHALOM says: Completeness, wholeness, health, peace, welfare, safety soundness, tranquility, prosperity, perfectness, fullness, rest, harmony, the absence of agitation or discord.

Shalom comes from the root verb Shalam meaning to be complete, perfect and full. In modern Hebrew the obviously related word Shelem means to pay for, and Shulam means to be fully paid.

Sar SHALOM (Prince of Peace) is one of the descriptive names the Bible uses to indicate the ministry and personality of the Messiah: Isaiah 9:6 - The Son of God is completely perfect in all things.

So in essence, when you speak out the word SHALOM - you are not only proclaiming peace, but all the above meanings of the word over that person - that's a mighty blessing!!!

Remember what the word of God says - "there is life or death in the power of the tongue".

We recently heard someone on a Christian TV program say: "No wonder the Jewish people are so blessed, because every time they say Shalom to one another, they are also allowing the full meaning (see above) of SHALOM to be pronounced over them. He humorously proceeded to say that this greeting word would be much more beneficial to the American people if they greeted each other with SHALOM instead of their usual "Hi" or "Howdy" greeting. As Josie and I adapted to life in Israel, we adapted to the SHALOM habit over the "Hi" habit....As Messianic Jews, we are called to bless you and we take that very seriously, by praying for you and by greeting you with SHALOM. Therefore, from now on, when we or someone says SHALOM to you, you should receive it as a tremendous blessing. And bless them back with a hearty SHALOM!

"Numbers 6:24-26: The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up His face upon you and give you SHALOM. In the name of SAR SHALOM - the Prince of Peace.

(The above was borrowed from OUT of ZION Ministries.)

So say Shalom to everyone you want to bless today! You will really be a blessing to them!

Shalom in Him!