Wonderful Jesus!

Tag: Abraham

• The Changeless Promise!

  Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on January 25, 2021

  Galatians 3:18 – For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no longer of promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise. NKJV

  

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  Most people have a childhood memory of pinky promises. Promises to be best friends forever. Promises to keep each other secrets no matter what. Promises to never date someone who your friend is interested. Promises and more promises. Yet, I can’t remember any of the promises or people I made pinky promises with. I just remember doing it.

  As humans, we can be a little sloppy with our words, making promises that we have no intentions of keeping. Or making promises we are incapable of keeping. We’ve all experienced the disappointments of broken promises. And we know all too well that the best promise from some people is no promise at all!

  I think that is why living together, without the benefit of marriage, may have come into place. It gives you that sense of, not making a forever promise, so you don’t have to worry about it when the other person leaves. I’m just guessing here, but that’s fear. Fear of being hurt, disappointed, abandoned, and no longer wanted or needed. I get it!

  The thing that has me blogging tonight is this: because our word can be so weak, and our promises even weaker, we have a tendency to think God is the same way. Thinking like this, is what causes us to live beneath our privilege in Christ; and weakens our ability to live to our fullest in Him!

  I can give you example upon example of people not keeping their word. Children go to bed hurt at night because of the parent who didn’t come by to see them or pick them up like it was promised. Spouses cry themselves to sleep because of the other one, who walked away without looking back, although they promised a forever after. Bosses promise promotion that never happens, or raises that never seem to materialize. Companies makes promises with their products that we keep buying, even when we don’t get what they promised. Politicians who run campaigns on promises that they know are unrealistic, unattainable! Don’t you just get tired of it all! And so I get how difficult it may be to trust God at His word! God has this to say about Himself in the word:

  “God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?Numbers 23:19 – NKJV

  We learn about Abraham in Genesis. Abraham was brought up in a polytheistic, multiple gods, culture. He didn’t know who the one true God was, but he must have been interested in Him. One day God called out to him and made him a promise:

  Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” -Genesis 12:1-3 – NKJV

  And yet, in Galatians, Paul is still referring to the promise that God made to Abraham. Not weeks later! Not centuries later! But millennials later! Paul reminds us of the promise God made to Abraham, that we are partakers of! Everything God promised to Abraham happened. Abraham not only became a great nation, but two nations. His name is known, even today, worldwide. Today, all the families of the earth is being blessed because of the promise made to Abraham.

  God was so serious about this promise to Abraham, that it was said:

  For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, “Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you.” Hebrews 6:13-14 – NKJV

  That’s a strong promise! A promise made to Abraham in Genesis 22:16, when Abraham did not withhold Isaac from God on the mount. It was then that God swore by Himself saying that He would surely bless Abraham!

  Our text for today, references the inheritance that was promised to Abraham. The Greek word “kleronomia” means the actual enjoyment of the benefits already promised under the will. That’s powerful all by itself!

  Most people understand the concept of a will. Someone dies and leaves us an inheritance. We all wish we were related to people who are really wealthy, so we can get just a slice of the pie! But the King of Glory, God of the Universe has decreed that we are heirs (kleronomos) with Abraham! And that doesn’t excite most people! Well, it should! I’m getting stirred as I write!

  If you follow Abraham’s life, everything wasn’t easy. As a matter of fact, he didn’t get to see all of what God had promised to him and his descendants while on earth. The reason being, the promise is still being fulfilled. Even though Abraham is no longer on the earth, God’s promise set things in motion for him and He hasn’t changed His mind about that promise. Because Abraham isn’t around to partake of it, his descendants get to enjoy the benefits of this changeless promise.

  And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. Galatians 3:29 – NKJV

  Let’s stop and think about the word promise. In the Greek it is “epangelia”. In the Vine’s dictionary we learn that:

  It frequently stands for the thing “promised,” and so signifies a gift graciously bestowed, not a pledge secured by negotiation…”

  Abraham’s only contribution to receiving this promise was to obey God’s command to leave and to go where he was led. As he did this, he demonstrated his willingness to place his trust in God. Then God blessed Abraham as he promised, and never stopped blessing him. God bestowed favor on Abraham. God bestowed riches on Abraham. God provided protection to Abraham. Every where Abraham turned, he was blessed or getting blessed. Even in his mess ups, they were turned around for his good. Because the blessing from God was upon his life!

  God’s promises to Abraham are just as available as they have always been, to the descendants of Abraham. Our part is the same as Abraham’s part was: we simply believe. We don’t have to negotiate with God, or even look for a better promise. Everything that God promised to Abraham is obtained through Christ! And those promises, called great and precious promises, better promises. are waiting for us today!

  Look at how faithful God was to His promise to Abraham. There was just no stopping that blessing from happening once it was set in motion by God’s decree. God has made some pretty amazing promises to us in His word. It’s up to us to decide if we can trust His word or not! I will trust God and His unchanging promise! What about you? Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Blessing of Abraham, God’s Blessings, inheritance, Jesus | 0 Comments | Tagged Abraham, blessings, Christ, Faith, faithfulness, favor, God, God’s word, Grace, heirs, inheritance, obedience, promise, trust in God, unchanging

• When God Favors You!

  Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on October 28, 2020

  Exodus 3:21 – “And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it shall be, when you go, that you shall not go empty-handed.” NKJV

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  We all know or have heard the account of the Exodus! Both Jews and Gentiles hold this event as an important event in their faith. However, it’s more than just a cute bible story, or a great miracle of deliverance! It’s also a powerful demonstration of what it looks like, when God favors you!

  God favored Abraham. The Bible doesn’t tell us a lot about him before God called him to go to a land that He would show to him, but we do see that God’s favor is immediately upon him. It didn’t matter where Abraham went, or what he did or didn’t do, the “chen” or grace of God was upon his life. This favor was extended to Isaac, and Jacob, and then to Joseph. All of their lives are wonderful pictures of the favor of God, but it’s their descendants that I want to focus on today.

  Joseph, Jacob’s son, was sold into slavery by his brothers. Joseph went from slavery, to prison, because he was falsely accused of attacking Potiphar’s wife. He was put in prison, and while he was in prison, God favored Joseph:

  Genesis 39:21 – But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.

  God caused everything Joseph did to prosper. He ran the prison, even though he was a prisoner. The prison guard didn’t check up on him or tell him what to do. All because God gave Him favor, or chen, which is grace!

  God’s favor didn’t stop there! He had bigger things in store for Joseph. Pharaoh sent two prisoners to the prison where Joseph was in charge. They both had a dream and Joseph shared the outcome of the dreams. Later, Pharaoh had a dream, and the cupbearer, who was restored to his position, remembered Joseph. Joseph was sent for and the next thing Joseph knew, he was no longer a prisoner, but he was second in command. That’s how favor looks! Suddenly, out of nowhere, you are favored by man, because God has favored you! It causes people to look at you and wonder, “how did that happen”?

  Years went by, and Joseph, still flourishing in the land of his captivity, gets the opportunity to once again be with his family. The favor of God, that was upon him, enabled him to extend favor to his family. They were given the best land in Goshen, and were well provided for until Joseph was no longer a memory in the minds of the Egyptians. Then the descendants of those who sent Joseph into slavery, became slaves themselves.

  Approximately 430 years later, God returns to show favor upon the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He sends Moses to tell Pharaoh to let His people go! And then he tells Moses:

  “And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it shall be, when you go, that you shall not go empty-handed.”

  Before the children of Israel are delivered from Egypt, we begin to see the favor of God upon them. There are ten plagues that God puts on the Egyptians. Four of the plagues, the children of Israel endured with the Egyptians, but when the fifth plague hit, God favored His people:

  Exodus 9:4 – And the Lord will make a difference between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt. So nothing shall die of all that belongs to the children of Israel.”’ ”

  The word favor isn’t mentioned, but the concept is still there. For the remainder of the plagues, God made a difference between what happened to the Egyptians, and what happened to His people. But He wasn’t finished yet!

  Remember, He said that He would cause the children of Israel to have favor with the Egyptians! He surely did it!

  Exodus 11:2-3 – Speak now in the hearing of the people, and let every man ask from his neighbor and every woman from her neighbor, articles of silver and articles of gold.” And the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people.

  By this time, they could have asked the Egyptians for anything, and they would have gotten it! Not only did God give them favor with the Egyptians, but He scared them to the point of no resistance! They left Egypt filthy rich! How do I know this? In the wilderness they gave Aaron gold to make a golden calf. When asked to provide for the tabernacle they gave so much to the building of the tabernacle that Moses had to tell them to stop giving. And they still had stuff left!

  I’m telling you true, the favor of God is not like the favor of man, although His favor can give you favor with man. His favor, His “chen”, His grace, knows no bounds! It’s excessive! It’s abundant! And when God favors you, you don’t need a tee shirt to announce it! It will be evident!

  Now’s the time to dare to believe that God’s abundance of grace is more than for salvation! It’s for living! He is such an amazing God, His grace can only be amazing! I don’t have to be jealous of the children of Israel or anyone else because God has given His grace to me! And you don’t have to be jealous of me, because His grace is extended to you! We just need to trust in that truth and dare to believe God wants to display His grace in our lives. It won’t look like it did for the Israelites, but you will still recognize it; because when God favors His people, others are left gawking!Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in favor, God, Grace | 5 Comments | Tagged Abraham, favor, God, Grace, Isaac, Joseph, Moses, prison, slavery, the Exodus

• Such Wonderful Grace!

  Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on October 26, 2020

  Genesis 6:8 – “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.” NKJV

  (Photo of the Ark in The Ark Encounter Theme Park)

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  Not only are we living in the dispensation of the Holy Spirit, we are also living in the dispensation of grace. I believe you and I would be hard-pressed to find someone who has not heard the song, “Amazing Grace” because it’s a classic in the world. But just in case there is one:

  Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,
  that saved a wretch like me,
  I once was lost, but now I’m found,
  was blind, but now I see!

  The word “grace” is first mentioned in our key text, where Moses wrote that Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. There are several important events in the Bible where grace is mentioned, and through this study, over the next few blogs, I intend to take a closer look at grace, zeroing in, on the grace of God.

  The word for grace, in this verse is “chen”, the Hebrew word for favor, or, to find favor in the eyes of someone, to be acceptable to him”. If you know what happened to Noah, then you definitely understand this picture of grace.

  God was upset with the human race because all they did and thought about was sin. Genesis 6 gives us a picture of world bent on life without God. But not Noah! Noah was of a different mindset, and in that crazy world in which he lived, he stood out as one who loved God.

  From Adam to Noah, mankind lived ridiculously long lives. Noah was five hundred years old when he started having kids. We can’t imagine this, but he was probably in the prime of his life. In the book of Genesis we learn that Noah was a just man who walked with God, and according to scripture, was perfect. Therefore, he found grace, and was acceptable to God. When God had enough of the violence and corruption that filled the earth, He judged the earth and found it lacking, deciding to flood the earth and destroy it. But because of the favor that God had towards Noah, He chose to save Noah and his family from destruction.

  God, therefore, tasked Noah with building the ark. This ark would keep Noah, his family, and the animals safe from the flood. Everything else had to be destroyed. It took Noah somewhere between 55 to 75 years to build the ark, but after carefully obeying God’s instructions, the ark was complete! When God instructed Noah to build this ark, it was a tangible picture of the grace God extended to Noah. Without this ark, Noah and his family would have also perished in the flood!

  In the book of Hebrews, the writer tells us:

  By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

  Although Noah and his family were the only humans to be saved that day, God’s grace towards mankind was the bigger picture. God had condemned the world, and as such, every man, woman, boy, and girl, deserved His wrath, and thus, death; but because of His great love, mercy was extended when Noah found grace in His eyes.

  Abraham was another person in the Old Testament who found favor in the eyes of the Lord. In Genesis 18:3, Abraham said:

  “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant.

  This word for favor, is the same word, “chen”, used when Noah found grace. Abraham wasn’t sure if he had found grace, but he said, “If I have…”, and the fact that the angels remained as he requested was a sign that he had found favor, or grace in the eyes of the Lord. It was during this encounter that two significant things happened. The first, was that Abraham and Sarah were told that they would soon have a son. The second, was the news about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

  Here, Abraham pleads for the mercy of God upon the city if there can be found 10 righteous souls. God obviously desired to extend His mercy, but there wasn’t even 10 in the two towns combined.

  Lot was spared because of Abraham, and because he found “favor”, but the others perished. And again, when Lot didn’t want to go to the mountains, he appealed on the basis of grace, which was extended to him.

  Three different incidents of three men who found grace in the eyes of the Lord. Lot! Abraham! Noah! Each time, God’s judgment came into play, and every time there was someone who found grace in His sight.

  God’s grace is abundant grace. The word of God speaks of it in a sense of excessive grace towards us. As I have been meditating in Ephesians, I am awed by how much Paul speaks of the grace of God, using phrases like:

  • Exceeding riches of His grace
  • Abundance of grace
  • Grace abounded
  • All grace
  • Exceeding grace
  • Glory of His grace
  • Riches of His grace
  • Gift of grace
  • According to the grace
  • Throne of grace
  • Fall short of the grace
  • Manifold grace of God

  Yet, it seems that we still have difficulty in realizing how very much God has extended His grace towards us who believe. I look forward to digging into His grace and hope you will join me in the days to come. Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in God, Grace | 0 Comments | Tagged Abraham, abundant grace, exceeding grace, God, Grace, Lot, Noah’s ark

• Jesus, the Seed of Abraham!

  Posted at 9:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on June 23, 2020

  Galatians 3:16 – Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ. NKJV

  

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  Genesis is the book of beginnings! It is in this book that God begins His redemptive plan for mankind. Actually, it was begun before the foundations of the world, but it is in the first book of the Bible that we see the plan begin to unfold. I am going to do a series about Jesus and how He was the spiritual fulfillment of types and shadows in the Old Testament.

  God told Abraham, when He called him out of Ur, that He was going to bless him. Abraham wanted a son more than anything else and God promises to deliver a son. Then when Isaac is deep in Abraham’s heart, God tells him to go and sacrifice Isaac, his only son, to the Lord. Abraham obeys the Lord and as he is about to take Isaac’s life, God stops him. The Lord then tells him:

  Genesis 22:17-18 – “blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” NKJV

  Now, we might say that this referred to Isaac. And you will be correct, because through Isaac, God multiplied Abraham’s seed and they now live all over the earth. But that wasn’t the only thing that God meant. Paul, being intentional, let us know that this seed God referred to was not “seeds” as in descendants, but to a particular seed, as in Jesus, singular.

  When Matthew begins his record of the genealogy of Jesus, he begins with Abraham letting us know that Jesus was the seed of Abraham. This is important because Jesus was a natural descendant of the father of faith, or the patriarch of Israel, Abraham!

  God’s promise, that the nations of the world would be blessed through Abraham’s Seed is therefore, not fulfilled in Isaac, but in Jesus! In the book of Revelation, John wrote, that we are called out of every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people. All because of the spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the salvation that He bestows to all those who believe. Paul also let’s us know that the promise came to Abraham when he had stepped out in faith and obeyed God and that through faith we receive Jesus and have access to the same favor and blessings that Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the children of Israel had access to.

  Not only that, but the promise of the Holy Spirit, which Jesus said was the promise of the Father, was part of that promise made to Abraham. (Galatians 3:14) And Isaac was not capable of bestowing or being party to making that a reality. This promise to Abraham covered every aspect of our lives, natural blessings, salvation, the promise of the Holy Spirit, and access to the Father.

  Jesus, is a fulfillment of the covenant that God made with Abraham. Through Jesus all the nations have an opportunity to be blessed. Through Jesus, Abraham’s Seed, there have been an innumerable, increase in the Body of Christ. Surely we have increased to the point that we are more numerous than the sand in the sea or the stars in the sky. And contrary to polls and naysayers, we are continually growing.

  Also, we are possessing the gates of our enemy. Jesus has given us authority to trample over demons; authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out; and authority over all the works of the devil. Isaac was not able to bring us to the place where we could possess the gates of the enemy!

  So let’s look at what we have in Jesus because He is the seed of Abraham:

  • If we are of faith, we are blessed with believing Abraham
  • Jesus has redeemed us from the curse of the law of sin and death
  • Abraham’s blessings are to come upon us through Christ Jesus
  • We will receive the promise of the Spirit through faith
  • We are justified by faith
  • We are sons of God through faith
  • We are heirs according to the promise
  • We’re all one in Christ Jesus

  It was so important to our redemption, that Jesus fulfill the promise of God as the Seed of Abraham! When I read the Old Testament, I marvel at all God did for the children of Israel, but I don’t have to be jealous, for I also am an heir to the same blessings they experienced and so much more! I’m gonna get my blessings, right now! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Blessing of Abraham, Jesus, Promises of God | 2 Comments | Tagged Abraham, Blessing of Abraham, blessings, Galatians, heirs, heirs with Christ, Holy Spirit, Jesus, redemption, Salvation, seed, sons of God

• Don’t Settle For Less

  Posted at 9:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on May 7, 2020

  Genesis 17:17-18 – “Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born to a man who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child? ” And Abraham said to God, “Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!” NKJV

  Everyone wants a word from the Lord! And when we get a word from the Lord we get so excited. I know Abram got excited when God told him that he would not only have a son, but that his seed would be as numerous as the stars in the sky! The Bible tells us that Abram believed God. And believed God. And believed God. Especially since he was 75 years old when the promise was made and 100 when it was fulfilled. I know that he had to have been excited when he told Sarai. They probably thought at first that the baby would be born within the year, but he wasn’t. And for years they kept believing that the baby would come, but it didn’t come. And so their faith began to wane.

  Many people know how Abram and Sarai felt. I know I do! God gives an exciting word to us which will give us the desire of our heart. You will be healed! Your debts will be forgiven! I’ve called you to preach the gospel. Go ahead, and put the word He has given you in the list. And you light upon that word, rehearse that word, confess that word and that word is yet to be fulfilled in your life. Well, Abram and Sarai took matters into their own hands to “help” God fulfill His promise to them.

  One day Sarai suggested to Abram that he take Hagar to have a baby with. And Abram did. And he had Ishmael. He was 86 years old! What a joy Ishmael was to Abram, but not to Sarai. Even though it was her suggestion, she and Hagar didn’t appear to be on the same page with Ishmael. I don’t know many women who would have handled the situation much better. But Abram was a dad! And he was so excited about it! He had what he wanted! A son!

  But Abram didn’t have what God wanted for him. In chapter 17, God visits Abram again and changes his name to Abraham and Sarai’s name to Sarah. Abraham would be the father of many nations and Sarah would be the mother of many nations, and out of her kings would come. Well, by now, Abraham is laughing at this word from God. It’s more impossible now than it was at 75. And since he wanted a son, and he had Ishmael, he felt God had kept His word and all was well. Except, all wasn’t well!

  Sometimes when we are believing God for something we don’t hold out for God’s best. We settle for anything that looks like what He said and go on through life as if it’s okay. You’re not healed, but you feel better, so much better and stop believing for complete and total healing in your body. Your house isn’t paid off yet, but you have the money to pay your mortgage, or whatever bill, and you are just happy that you have the money needed, and it’s ok that your debt isn’t forgiven because it’s manageable. And the list can go on and on…

  Abram wanted a baby with Sarai. He loved her and wanted their posterity to continue, but they got tired of waiting and decided to settle for the next best thing. Ishmael. As a matter of fact, when God told Abraham about Sarah having a baby he reminded God of how old they both were, said that it was okay that he had Ishmael, and asked God to allow Ishmael to live before Him. But that wasn’t what God had planned for Abraham when He spoke to him, and therefore, it was not His will for Abraham’s life!

  God wants us to feel better, but more importantly, He wants us whole! He wants us to pay our bills, but He wants us debt free. He wants us to work in ministry, and adopt kids, and be satisfied and single, but He often has so much more for us than we receive because we are often willing to settle for that which He doesn’t have planned for us.

  I remember years ago, when I was a single woman, I was often teased by my seemingly high standards for the man I wanted to married. Once I was told that I acted like I was waiting for Jesus to come back and marry me. I replied that if He came back and married me I would accept. I did get engaged to a nice young man, but I knew I was settling. Fortunately I got out of that before I had made a big mistake. He wasn’t God’s best for me. Then I was told I would have to change my personality because men would be put off by it. I responded that I wasn’t changing to get a man, because I was better off single if I had to be somebody other than myself. Well, I eventually met the man of my dreams who loved me the way I was. I’ve changed over the years, but I didn’t have to change to get him or to keep him. I changed because of the power of the Spirit working in my life while the word transformed it!

  Now I’m in that place where I am believing God for ministry opportunities. I am so excited about blogging. This blog is being read by people in 44 different countries of the world. That’s amazing to me and I am so grateful to God for that exposure. I’ve already surpassed last year’s totals in views. (Not that they were so numerous, but they were my best at that time). And I found myself getting into that settling mode. I was getting satisfied with the blog and thinking, okay, this may be what the Lord had in mind for me. But today I was challenged by the word to not settle. God has great things in store for me, for you! He isn’t calling us to settle. Yes, be thankful, be content! But don’t become satisfied with today’s success when tomorrow hasn’t even gotten here yet and you don’t know what it holds! It may be many tomorrows as it has already been, as Abraham and Sarah experienced, but if it was a word from God, you can bank on it! It will surely come to pass! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in God’s Blessings, God’s faithfulness, Promises of God | 3 Comments | Tagged Abraham, blessings, encouragement, Faith, Healing, Sarah, trust in God, will of God, word from God

• The Battle For Family!

  Posted at 5:58 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on February 8, 2020

  Genesis 14:14 – “Now when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained servants who were born in his own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.” NKJV

  Family creates an interesting dynamic to the lives of believers. Some of our family members keep us on our knees praying, confessing, and believing God for their deliverance. If it wasn’t for the fact that we know worry is a sin, some of us would live in the place of worry. But this is nothing new! And there is some great news ahead!

  Abram had been given a directive from God to leave his country, his family, and his heritage to go to a place chosen by God (Genesis 12). And he did! Kinda sorta! He took his nephew, Lot, with him. It wasn’t that Lot was some little kid that needed Abram to raise him, but when Terah left Ur, he had taken Lot, so maybe Abram felt responsible for Lot. Whatever the reason, whatever the case, they are together.

  Both men are prosperous. Verse 2, of chapter 13 lets us know that Abram was very rich in livestock, silver and gold. And we find that Lot is prosperous when the herdsmen of Abram and Lot begin arguing over the water and the land. Not only do they have to share with each other this land and water, but we are told that they have to share with the Canaanites and the Perizzites as well.

  This causes them to have to separate from each other. Lot was given a choice by Abram in verse 9, “Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me. If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left.” Lot chooses to go to Sodom. Some translations of the Bible states that Lot moved near Sodom, while others refer to him moving into Sodom. Which ever way it really was, he eventually ended up living in Sodom.

  In chapter 14, a battle is gearing up, and Sodom and Gomorrah joins with three other kings to fight, five agains four. During the battle, Sodom and Gomorrah are overtaken, along with Lot and his goods. Someone escapes and tells Abram, and he gears up for battle. If you have not read this in its entirety, you should do so, because I can only give highlights. In our key verse, Abram, with his trained men, go in pursuit of Lot to recover him and his goods.

  It doesn’t matter to Abram that Lot made his own choice to live in Sodom. It doesn’t matter to Abram that five kings lost to four. It doesn’t even matter to Abram that in helping Lot, he will end up helping Sodom and Gomorrah, whom I am sure he understood the nature of their lives. No! The only thing that mattered to Abram was that his beloved nephew was in trouble and needed his help!

  I’ve lived long enough to know that we all have that family member that can get into some situations. Not always of their own making, it just seems that trouble follows him or her. But family is family! And if you are a believer, your heart for your family is to see every one of them delivered from the enemy, as Abram felt. Abram pursued those kings, rescued Lot and his positions, and all the prisoners and possessions. In other words, they went into that battle and recovered all, returning quite victorious!

  I am from a large family. I had seven sisters and two brothers. All with families of their own. So we have seen some things. I also married into a good sized family. My husband had five siblings. So our families combined with siblings, with nieces, nephews and cousins are quite extensive. We’ve fought many battles over the year. We’ve lost some (seemingly in the natural), we’ve won all (in the spirit), and we find that we have become trained warriors. There is no sitting back on our family members saying that they got themselves into that, or it’s their lifestyle, or we are tired of them. We fight for our family!

  My mother died from lupus while in her forties, leaving all of us very young. Many years later when my sister was in her forties, they diagnosed her with lupus. She called me and told me about it, saying that she was going die in her forties like mama. Something rose up on the inside of me, we know it was the Holy Ghost, and I decreed the devil is a liar! I prayed for her on that phone and continued to pray until I felt the victory. She went back to the doctor and they couldn’t find it! Glory!!! She’s in her sixties. Another time, she was about to lose her job (not sure why she keeps coming to mind) because a patient lied on her. I want you to know we got to praying and she never did lose that job! Years later, she is still on it!! God is such a good God! We’ve gone to battle against sickness and diseases, financial attacks, legal battles, setups, and put downs, and we find that there is nothing God won’t do!

  I have friends, church members, acquaintances, with similar victories. As a believer, I have noticed that when the devil really gets messy, he starts attacking our family members when he wants to get at us. But we have to have the same mind Abram had, “not my family” knowing that God will go with us! Abram had no fear of losing his life or the battle. God had made a promise to him about inheriting the land of Canaan. He couldn’t inherit it if he was dead. So he went out sure of his victory. God has made us similar promises. Promises of victory! Promises that greater is He that is with us, then he that is in the world! A promise that we are more than a conqueror! A promise of household salvation! A promise of generational blessings!

  Don’t you quit on your family! Even if you believe or know you are the only one praying, the only one standing on the promises, the only one who believes! God cares about your family, because He loves them more than you do! I believe this is the first physical battle mentioned in the Bible and it’s about family! What does that say? God is aware that family can get into some altercations, but He is for you and your family! Don’t accept drug addiction, alcohol addiction, unemployment, sickness and disease, and no other lying attack the devil comes up with! This is your family! Fight, for you are inked in as the winner! Wonderful Jesus!!

  Posted in Battle plans, Believers, Christian, Spiritual warfare, Victorious Living | 4 Comments | Tagged Abraham, Believer, Christian, consequences, encouragement, Family, Genesis 14:14, hard times, Prayer, Spiritual warfare, Victorious Living, victory

• He’s Already Provided!

  Posted at 1:00 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on August 7, 2019

  Genesis 22:13-14 -Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. And Abraham called the name of the place, The- Lord -Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”

  One day I was reading an article about a miraculous provision from God. In the article the missionary shared how he and the children were praying for a need for the mission and as they were praying, one of the little girls prayed for a baby doll. Now this has been a while and I don’t remember all the details of why they were praying, but I remember she prayed for a baby doll.

  Well, not long after they prayed, a box came to him from his sister. She would send boxes of things to him, but usually they were needs. However, in this box was a baby doll. Now since she had mailed the box to him weeks before they prayed, there was no way for her to know the girl prayed for a doll. But lo and behold, a doll was in the box. She explained it by saying that as she packed the box she saw the doll and felt impressed to add it! She had no way of knowing that a little girl would pray for a doll, but God knew. (If you have read this and I didn’t tell it completely accurately, don’t be offended! I just want to get the point across!)

  Another time I was reading, could have been the same article, not sure, but I was reading when I read about a missionary who had lost his glasses. He was really at a disadvantage without his glasses and had no way of getting another pair where he was at. So he asked God for some new glasses. Again, a box came in with a pair of glasses with the perfect prescription for him! They got in the box because a packer of the box dropped them accidentally in the box and they were mailed off. Apparently the person who lost his glasses had access the missionary didn’t have to a new pair of glasses. (Surmising here!) But God sent those glasses in the mail, before the need arrived and provided for it in advance!

  Well, recently, I had a similar thing happen to me. Our daughter had a washer and dryer in her apartment, in another state, that she needed to have moved because it was sitting in her living room. We decided to go and visit her, but we would go in our truck so that we could bring it back home and store it in our basement until she decided what she wanted to do with it. You guessed it, my washer died on me suddenly. And yes! He had already provided a washer for me! Sitting in my basement ready for use!

  He is good like that! He knows what we have need of before we ask and often times He just provides it without us asking or sends it to us before we even know we have the need.

  That’s what happened with Abraham. He went to obey God and offer up his son, knowing the promise God had given him concerning Isaac! I think Abraham was expecting to see his first resurrection. When he told his servants that he and his son was going to worship and would return, he was fully expecting God to give him a miracle. God watched as Abraham was ready to obey Him and in the moment of complete obedience God stopped him and showed him the ram! He had already provided!

  Peter wrote: “as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,” (2 Peter 1:3). As Christians we spend half of our lives begging God to provide to us that which He has already provided! Every thing we need that pertains to life and godliness has been given to us already. Now we trust and believe that He has provided it and will get it to us! This isn’t an easy transition to make-going from begging, to praying and trusting, but it’s a necessary transition.

  What do you have need of today? What are you asking Him for? Can you believe that He has already provided? If you can, He has! Now believe and receive it! Not name it and claim it and blab it and grab it! But trust that your Heavenly Father truly wants to bless you with all that He has provided! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in encouragement, God’s Blessings, Jehovah Jireh, provision | 0 Comments | Tagged Abraham, encouragement, provision

• Step On the Grasshoppers!

  Posted at 3:55 am by wonderfuljesus8, on April 8, 2018

  There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
  Numbers 13:33

  If you are unfamiliar with this verse, let me give you a little background.

  Moses and the children of Israel have crossed the Red Sea and are ready to go into Canaan to possess the land. But before they go in, Moses sends 12 spies to check the land out. When they return, the Bible states that 10 of the men gave an evil report and 2 (Joshua and Caleb) gave a good report.

  The evil report had to do with the size of the people and the obstacles ahead of them, but the good report focused on the victory promised them from God. But no matter what Joshua and Caleb had to say, the 10 won the people over to their side when they said, “we were like grasshoppers in our sight, and so we were in their sight.”

  God had Moses send the 12 to spy out the land and I can imagine when they left they were excited. Finally, they have arrived to the Promised Land given to them and their descendants because of Abraham! And since it was the Promise Land given to them by God, surely everything would go smoothly. When they arrived the place was beautiful, but as they venture across the land they see giants. And as they come across the giants, the fire begins to dim.

  Life is full of giants. But how we view the giants make all the difference in our outcome. The way we view ourselves and think others view us will also affect the end result.

  I recently taught my students about the “frame of reference” people write from, make decisions from, etc. We were actually discussing the Ancient Israelites in World History. The “frame of reference” came into play as we discussed the ways that the Jews, Christians, and Islamic faiths tend to view Abraham. And then we talked about the author’s frame of reference and how diligently he tried to ignore the God of Abraham. You can’t correctly teach about Abraham and the children of Israel without speaking of God.

  Anyway, when we look at a situation in life, our frame of reference will determine our outcome in the situation. The ten spies frame of reference was what they saw and how they saw themselves; Joshua and Caleb’s frame of reference was-God will be with us, so we are well able to take the land. God was pleased with Joshua and Caleb and displeased with the ten and their ability to lead millions to their death instead of their inheritance.

  What is your frame of reference today? Are you looking at your problems and situations through the lens of the word of God, the promises of God; or are you looking at the size of your problems, how you see yourself or how you feel others are viewing you. I know sometimes I have fallen in that trap of thinking that the promise of God couldn’t happen in my own life because of this, that and the other. But I challenge you today, as I have challenged myself, to change your frame of reference to what God has promised and step on those grasshoppers as you cross over into your promise! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Faith, Victorious Living | 0 Comments | Tagged Abraham, Faith, frame of reference, Grasshopper, hard times

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