November 14 – Abundance of Positive Matters

“May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.”  2 Peter 1:2 (ESV)

These words are a prayer of blessing written by the Apostle Peter in the second letter he wrote to believers.  What a great difference our lives become when we come to know God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ. “This is a strengthened form of “knowledge” implying a larger, more thorough, and intimate knowledge. The Christian’s precious faith is built on knowing the truth about God (cf. v. 3). Christianity is not a mystical religion, but is based in objective, historical, revealed, rational truth from God and intended to be understood and believed. The deeper and wider that knowledge of the Lord, the more “grace and peace” are multiplied¹." When we accept Jesus as our Savior, God brings us into His family and begins to reveal himself to us.  He wants us to know Him and to keep learning more and more about Him. Our verse today tells us what happens when we learn to know our Lord better. We read that we receive grace and peace in abundance through knowing Him. It will be true as we learn to know Him better. What a benefit is promised to us here.

 

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^[1] John F. MacArthur Jr., The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible., (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2006), 2 Pe 1:2.

 

September 20 – Why To Obey?

“See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, which I am commanding you today; and the curse, if you do not listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from the way which I am commanding you today, by following other gods which you have not known.” – Deuteronomy 11:26-28  (NASB)

To be listening to the commandments of the Lord is to be in obedience to God. The Children of Israel were about to enter the Promised Land and Moses gave these instructions. It drove home the importance of obedience and trust in God. Throughout the Bible we find much about obedience. But we consider obedience to be an infringement on our so-called “free will.” With that free-will it is impossible for one to obey. We need God o obey God as it is a gift of God. It’s not a chore; it’s a blessing. When we obey blessing and joy is poured out into our hearts. We find in Scriptures reasons why obedience to God is important. We looked at one yesterday. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” (John 14:15). A Second reason is Jesus calls us to Obey.  He’s the perfect model of obedience. As God’s children, we follow Christ's example as well as his commands. Our motivation is love just as Jesus obeyed His Father’s commandments. “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” (John 15:10.) 

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February 17 – Happy or Blessed

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,” – Ephesians 1: (NASB)

 

Sometimes common usage of a word might lead to a slightly different meaning that the original intended. Say it often enough or read it frequently and the meanings merge. This results sometimes in losing the significance of what the author intended. And example is the exchange of the English words ‘blessed’ and ‘happy.’  Sometimes a Scripture reference with blessed is read as if it says happy. There certainly is a similarity between the meanings. Our passage today uses forms of the word ‘bless’ three different ways. First is ‘blessed be’ as an adjective which is applied only to God in the New Testament Greek. Second is ‘has blessed’ as a verb and communicates God’s promise that He has already given believers total blessing. Third is “spiritual blessing’ used as a noun and not immaterial as opposed to material blessings, but rather speaks of the work of God as the divine source of all blessings we are receiving, have received, and will receive. It is worth noting that it is “in the heavenly” domain from where all blessings come. We may well have joy and happiness because of this promise but saying were ‘happy’ would use a different word.

 

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September 5 – All the Blessings

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,  just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.”  Ephesians 1:3-4  (NASB)

Imagine that we could actually know the extent, both in quantity and quality, of the blessings which are in the heavenly places and are ours.  We are not able to know exactly, of course or, to comprehend such a wealth of God’s prepared blessings.  In the same way, it is actually not possible for us – the human kind – to comprehend how God chose us before He even created the world.  The Bible says He did so that we would be holy and blameless before him - only way we ever could. Yet we are those whose hope in Christ brings us our salvation and seals it by the Holy Spirit as promises (Ephesians 1:12-13).  We often find the promises from God  are so profound and so beyond our ability to fully grasp, the only thing to do is to simply believe and wait for the day that all will be made clear.  That will happen one day and on that day, we will know just as we have been known in Christ Jesus. Now, let's rejoice in promises we find revealed in the Bible even when we do not fully comprehend how they all work together for our good.  

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January 30 – Dual Citizenship

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places…”  -  Ephesians 1:3  (ESV)

For those who in faith have believed God’s word and become members of His family, we hold a dual citizenship.  It is not in the same way people born in one country of parents from another might have citizenship in both. Christians are citizens of earth where they were born, but they are also citizens of Heaven where they were reborn and adopted into God’s family. If that is our position, we do well to guard against becoming so hooked on the charms of this present world that we fail to look forward to heaven.  The apostle Paul cautions us to set our minds on heavenly things and not earthly things.†  Jesus taught us to store up our treasures in heaven because those treasures will last and are secure forever.‡ God extends to us all the rights and privileges of our heavenly citizenship. Let’s be encouraged by that assurance to live for His glory and rely on His heavenly provisions. Guard against impure ambitions or trivial pursuits which distract us from our heavenly priorities. 

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† Colossians 3:1-2,   ‡ Matthew 6:20


Today's entry is drawn in part from Drawing Near devotional by John MacArthur 1/5/2020 Copyright © 1993.

April 24 – No Disappointment. No Distinction.

“For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.”  For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him;” Romans 10:11-12 (NASB)

Our great God is the one in control of this whole universe.  He has given us all life, no matter where we were born, no matter what our racial background is.  Now that we are living here on this earth, He looks for something from us to determine how He treats us. We read here how we must put our trust in Him – and when we do we will not be let down. We also read here that He blesses those who call on Him. So God's blessing is His special response to the ones who call on Him in faith and trust through belief. Racial and ethnic distinctions make no difference to God and should not make a difference to us. God does not make distinctions that way.  But faith does make a big difference. Let's not miss out on what God has given us. Instead, let's look to Him today because that is where blessings from Him come to us. His promise is we will not be disappointed. 

April 6 – Brought Near

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” Ephesians 2:13 (ESV)

Just a week has passed since we were thinking especially of the death of Jesus on the cross. It is a theme that carries throughout the New Testament and we are reminded often of the importance of that event and sacrificial act by Jesus. We know that Jesus came and He died because God loved us and because He wanted us to be drawn close to Him. When we accept what Jesus did for us on the cross we are brought into the family of God.  The experience of being brought near to God begins when we believe in Jesus but it continues on through our lives.  We can experience the blessing of nearness to God every day. When we sense that nearness today lets thank God again for what Jesus had done and is doing and let us thank Him for making the way possible for us to become members of God's eternal family. 

November 14 – Abundance that Matters

“Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” 2 Peter 1:2 (NIV)

These words which are a blessing or prayer written by the Apostle Peter in the second letter we have in the Bible.  What a great difference it makes in our lives when we come to know God and His Son Jesus Christ. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, God brings us into His family and begins to reveal himself to us.  He wants us to know Him and to keep learning more and more about Him. Our verse today tells us what happens when we learn to know our Lord better. We read that we receive grace and peace in abundance through knowing Him. It will be true as we learn to know Him better. What a benefit is promised to us here. 

October 21 – Overflowing Grace

“Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given.” John 1:16 (NIV)

We all want to be showered with unending blessings from God each day. Today's verse is the promise of that. It is from the Apostle John's record of how Jesus came out of eternity to spend time as a human being here on earth. Jesus the Son was with God the Father at the creation of the world. John wrote in the Gospel of John recording how Jesus spent nearly 33 years living as a human and walking among His human creatures. In this verse we are reminded how much Jesus has provided for us. He speaks of grace upon grace which is the abundance of our blessing when we have trusted in Jesus. Through Him we have become children of God. He gives joy and peace and the assurance of His presence. 

September 23 – Faithful Forever

“Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God.  He is the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them—he remains faithful forever.” Psalm 146: 5-6 (NIV)

We find in today's verse a promise of a special blessing specifically given for certain people. Those who are looking to God to help them with an attitude and expectancy that is based in the one who is the Maker of heaven and earth. Again we find here that the people have hope in the Lord. Remember, that the biblical meaning of hope is expectation and not wishful thinking. We believe and have hope that God is our help because we expect His promise to be true. All this is based on the greatness of our God who is the Creator of all things in the universe and even beyond the limits of our knowledge. 

September 11 – Steady and Strong

“But his bow remained steady, his strong arms stayed limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob, because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,”  Genesis 49:24 (NIV)

Our verse today brings us the words spoken by Jacob about his sons – specifically about Joseph, although he said much more than just these words. Joseph had become a very important and powerful man in Egypt after being sold into slavery by his brothers and unjustly accused of sexual assault and thrown into prison. Jacob recognized that God should have the credit for Joseph's accomplishments.  Jacob's words of blessing and his commendation were really words of praise to God and that was very fitting. God deserves and must have our praise for His work in our lives too. Lets recognize today how much He is helping us each day and give Him the credit. 

March 12 - Strength and Peace

“The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace.” Psalm 29:11 (NIV)

The last three days we have read of promises from God given to us in the book of Psalms.  The promise we received from yesterday’s scripture verse is underscored in the one we have for you today. There are two promises in this verse. They are both promises for God’s own people. If you have accepted God’s Son, Jesus Christ as your Savior you belong to Him and these promises are for you. Yes, God does promise to give us strength and we need strength each day to live for God as we should. When we face difficult situations we need God’s strength and that’s what he promises. The other promise is for a blessing of peace. Doesn’t that sound good to you? Isn’t that what we all need and want every day? Strength and peace – it’s a promise of a wonderful blessing we hope you are experiencing today. 

June 7

“Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, Lord.”  Psalm 89:15 (NIV)

We notice that a special blessing is promised to those who have learned a lesson which God is anxious to teach us. And what is the lesson we need to learn? We need to learn to acclaim God, to praise Him, to give Him the honor which He deserves. We are so apt to give ourselves the credit for things we do. When we do that we lose the blessing that God has promised. He is the One who is working in our lives. He gives us wisdom. He gives us abilities. He helps us live in the way that pleases Him. He even helps us to acclaim Him. Let us keep this promise in mind and look to God to help us give Him the honor He deserves.

March 8

“The Lord remembers us and will bless us…He will bless those who fear the Lord—small and great alike.”  Psalm 115:12a-13 (NIV)

Are you looking for a blessing from the Lord today? This is a promise of blessing for those who have the proper attitude toward Him. It’s for those who respect Him and revere Him. We know that when the Bible speaks of fearing God it does not mean to be afraid of Him the way we usually think of fear. We remember that He is a God of love and compassion. We must not be afraid of approaching Him, but it must always be with an attitude of respect. So let’s be respectful and reverent, giving Him the honor He deserves. Then we can expect His blessing.

March 7

“Let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in him, for he shields him all day long, and the one the Lord loves rests between his shoulders.”  Deuteronomy 33:12 (NIV)

This is the blessing which Moses promised would come to one of the tribes of Israel, the tribe of Benjamin. This promise is not however, restricted to this one tribe of Israel. It is a statement of fact regarding all those whom God loves. Actually, it states twice that the one who God loves can rest in Him. Do you believe that God loves you? If you are sure of His love, doesn’t that help you to relax? No matter what situation you face, you can be sure He will take care of you. That means that you can rest in His promise.