November 12 – Unending Song To Sing

 “I will sing of the steadfast love of the LORD, forever; with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations. For I said, “Steadfast love will be built up forever; in the heavens you will establish your faithfulness.” Psalm 89:1-2 (ESV)

 

Today we look again at a psalm the people of Israel sang to express their feelings of devotion and thanksgiving to God. The Covenant God made with David is the focus of this Psalm. It is not attributed to David but to Ethan the Ezrahite who was a Levitical singer (1 Chronicles 6:42).  Ethan’s wholehearted belief that God is faithful was the basis for his appealing to the Lord in his dilemma. As we think of God's love for us we too can be inspired to sing with real joy.  When we remember how faithful God has been to us, always keeping His promises we can be inspired to share that with others.  This is what and how the psalmists shared God's faithfulness with their mouth.  This is how we too do so when we sing praises, spiritual songs, and hymns.  God's love and His faithfulness are not just temporal but they are eternal and have always been and will always be. Those of us who believe and have received God's gift of salvation know the  blessing of singing about it and the promise that we will continue singing the praises to God in heaven.

 

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May 27– Enduring Love Means Forever

“Give thanks to the LORD of hosts, For the LORD is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting”; Jeremiah 33:11 (NASB)

Our God is an everlasting and eternal God. There have been times in the Old Testament days when God needed to remind His people of this. In the time of Jeremiah the prophet, the situation was very dark. God was allowing His people to suffer the consequences of their disobedience as He had warned them would happen. But, He wanted His people to know that He still  loved them. That's why God told His people through the prophet that a new day would come when people in Jerusalem would sing to the Lord. In chapter 33 of Jeremiah in verse 11 we read what they would sing. Situations change but God never changes. No matter how many times things in Jerusalem changed over and over again, God's love has never changed – it lasts forever and is today just as it was the day the first person was created on this earth. This is the promise we have. Although our situations change, God's love for us remains the same and it can be trusted. God loves you no matter what has happened, is happening, or will ever happen in your life. 

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February 4 – Home Forever

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” -  Psalm 23:6 (ESV)

Such protection, provision and love from God was what brought David to realize that the Lord’s good loyal love would go with him everywhere through all his life. God’s blessings on us, His people, remain on us no matter what the circumstances are in our lives. When we need substance he gives food and water…good calm water. He restores us when we are overspent. He makes sure we know the right path. If the path gets dark and scary we need not fear because He is there with us. And then, God spreads a banquet for us right in front of those who hate us. We are refreshed with anointing oil. All this goodness comes from God, from His promises. When times are up or down, in the darkest night or brightest day God has our back, and front, and both sides. He watches over us with His goodness and His mercy. Our reservation in God’s house is promised and secure. The 'house' is the presence of God, wherever we meet Him and worship. Not a specific building. “I will dwell, there” is our way of saying we’ll be frequently with God returning often to worship Him.  

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January 6 – When Never Means Forever

“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. Matthew 24:35 (ESV)

Notice how that statement has been fulfilled. There was no short-hand reporter following Jesus around taking down His words; there were no papers to print His sermons, and they wouldn’t have printed them if there had been any daily papers. The leaders of the people were against Him. We might see one of our modern freethinkers standing near Christ, and he hears Him say: “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My Words shall not pass away.” We might see a scornful look on his face as he says: “What ignorance!” If you find this difficult to believe, ask yourself this question—has it passed away? Do you know that the sun has shone on more Bibles to-day than ever before in the history of the world? There have been untold numbers of Bibles printed. The complete Bible has been translated into 670 languages according to Wycliffe Global Alliance (2017). They tried to ban it, to burn it, to chain it, and keep it from the nations, but God has preserved it, and sent it to the ends of the earth.  Today’s promise has proven true ever since it was made by Jesus, it will never fail.

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Thanks in part to: A Living Daily Message From The Words of D. L. Moody selected by Emma Moody Fitt, Copyright, 1900, by Fleming H. Revell Company, now in public domain.

February 29 – Asking, Sending, Helping, Abiding

“I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.”  -  John 14:16-17 (NASB)

Chapters 13-17 in the Gospel of John are a watershed of promises. Jesus poured out his heart and love for his disciples and His prayer (John 17:20 NASB) establishes that Jesus included all believers in these promises. Today our promises are given by Jesus first to the eleven disciples left with Him.  Satan, having entered Judas Iscariot, is exposed sent out to do his evil deed.  Jesus first ‘asks the Father’ and with this began His priestly and intercessory work on our behalf.  He asks and promises to send to them ‘another’ Helper and the Greek word means “another of the same kind.”  Someone like Jesus Himself who takes His place to do His work. Jesus promises this someone will be a ‘helper.’ This is a kind of helper that is called “alongside to help, to encourage, to exhort.” He promises this helper will be with us forever as he come into us to dwell and abide.  'Abiding' has to do with God's Holy Spirit having permanent residence in all believers. This means Jesus gives us Himself. A powerful promise that God is not only with us, He is in us permanently – that is what ‘forever’ means. 

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July 28 – Eternity Past, Eternity Future

“For such is God, Our God forever and ever; He will guide us until death.” Psalm 48:14 (NASB)

When we look for descriptions of our God to know better what God is like, we find answers in verses like today's verse.  We also find promises because almost every time the Bible describes attributes God and His character, it does so by revealing what He is and what He does for His people.  Sometimes the promises are a blessing and sometimes a warning.  The Psalm we get our promise from today was written by the sons of Korah, decedents of the son of Moses who were singers and song writers during the time of ancient Israel.  This song affirms that our God is eternal and his attributes are eternal.  The promise is that our God from eternity past to eternity future will guide us until we reach our physical and earthly end.  We can be blessed to know if we have believed and trusted in Jesus Christ that we will be a part of God's eternity future after our death because even when we die, we will live with Him.  In the meantime on this earth, God will Guide us, never leave us, never forsake us.  

 

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July 22 – Our Plea Agreement

“...but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.”  Hebrews 7:24-25 (NIV)

In the times of the Old Testament after God had given His Law to the Children of Israel, it was their duty and practice to bring animal offerings of to the priests at appointed times.  This practice resulted in covering their trespasses and sins which were against God's Law – but covered only for a time.  This had to be done over and over, each time a person broke the Law of Moses.  When Jesus came to earth and after he lived a perfect sinless life, He too was sacrificed for sinners.  He was our willing sacrifice.  Jesus became our permanent priest.  We do not need to approach God through any earthly priest because Jesus Himself was offered once and for all and is in heaven taking up our defense before God the Father.  That is why He was willing to die on the cross so that we can go directly to him.  It is our promise that He is our defense attorney pleading for our forgiveness forever – and God the Father accepts this plea of Jesus as our sacrifice. Our forgiveness is granted directly and we are saved completely (once and for all) because Christ has saved all who come to God through Him.     

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June 28 – Once and For All

“Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently.  Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”  Hebrews 7:24-25  (NASB)

Yesterday's promise was about eternal life that comes from accepting Jesus.  He is a wonderful Savior and today we consider that He is a perfect Priest.  Our believing and receiving eternal life is only the beginning of what Jesus is doing for us.  In the Old Testament, God required people to approach Him through appointed priests.  The priests preformed the sacrifices and ceremonies that covered the sins of those who came to them.  It had to be done over and over because the covering and forgiveness was temporary and limited.  After Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and rose again to a new life, it proved his sacrifice was accepted by God as the final blood sacrifice for sin.  What Jesus did for us was to save us forever and what He is doing for us now is interceding for us always.  Jesus is the final Priest and the only one a believer has or needs.  We do not need to approach God through another person because Jesus always lives to make intercession for us.  We who believe and receive Jesus as Savior have a direct connection this is true for all who come to God through His Son Jesus.   

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March 15 – What Lasts Forever

“The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.”   Isaiah 40:8 (NASB)

The messages on this daily blog come from verses in the Bible and they are an important part of this ministry.  The Bible is a means by which God speaks to us and many of these verses we uses are just that – messages from Him.  Today's message is a reminder of this very truth.  What God has spoken, His words, remain true and effective.  Not just for a season or set length of time but forever – a time without end.  This verse give us the assurance of that promise.  While everything around us is temporary and will some day be gone, like the flower that blooms or the grass that grows after a rain. Both will wither and fade away.  We are assured that we can always depend on what we read in the Bible to be true to what it says.  This is why we who believe, use our Bibles each day to guide us in our living.  It is a teacher and and encourages us in how we should then live – even if it was written very long ago.  God's word stands forever and ever, it is an unending source of strength and wisdom.  

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February 7 – Our Rock Forever

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.  Trust in the Lord forever,  for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.”  Isaiah 26:3-4   (ESV)

We have considered the promise found in the third verse of Isaiah 26 previously.  It is a blessing and encouragement to  know that if we keep our minds on God, the result from Him is perfect peace.  Today we look at the next verse and promise.  God is telling not just to keep our minds on Him but to trust Him and do that forever.  That means we are never to stop trusting our Lord and what He has called us to, doesn't it?  If we come to God through our belief in Jesus Christ and if we have received forgiveness for our sins leading to eternal life we begin to trust Him and His word.  Why?  Because the Lord God is an everlasting rock.  Described as a rock, He is the foundation of our faith and trust that will last forever and we can put our faith and trust in Him for as long as He is our rock.  He promises to always be our Rock, our Stronghold, and our Refuge.  We find this promise throughout His Word the Bible.  

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January 23 – A Forever Rock

“Trust in the Lord forever,  for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.”  Isaiah 26:4 (ESV)

We hear a phrase often that goes something like, “Things change,” or “Times have changed.”  There is truth in this but it does not mean that our faith and trust in our God has to change. We who have accepted Jesus as our Savior have received eternal life which has come to us by faith and so, we live by faith each day.  This is a reminder that we live by trusting in the Lord day after day and year after year no matter what else changes around us.  As our culture changes in many ways, and unacceptable behavior becomes acceptable, our attitude of trusting God should never end.  Our faith in our Lord God goes on forever because we are His children for eternity.  He has promised to be with us always as long as we live here on earth.  When our life on earth is over God will bring us to live with Him in heaven forever.  He has never and will never change.  God wants us to change by growing in faith and trust according to His word. He is a rock, an everlasting rock.  What he commanded and promised at the beginning of time has not ended or gone out of style.  

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January 8 – Promising Forever Promises

“He has remembered His covenant forever, The word which He commanded to a thousand generations, The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His oath to Isaac.”  Psalm 105:8 (NASB)

Our verse today from the Book of Psalms specifically mentions the covenants, the promises, God made with Abraham and Isaac.  When this psalm was written both Abraham and Isaac were ancient history to the psalmist.  They were long gone but the covenants were being remember as a forever lasting promise God made.  If we think of the many centuries that have passed since this psalm was written we can be impressed with how it is for us ancient history as well.  But God's word never changes and His covenants that He makes with His people are forever kept for a thousand generations.  God's promises which we take just a few seconds each day to consider have lasted and will  last for a long time.   They will each be fulfilled.   So many centuries have passed since God made these covenants and it is good for us to remember that it is just as if He made them to us today.  They are still good.  He promises that His promises will be forever.  

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November 22 – Thanksgiving Day (USA)

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.  Give thanks to the God of gods, for his steadfast love endures forever.  Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his steadfast love endures forever; to him who alone does great wonders, for his steadfast love endures forever;”  Psalm 136:1-4 (ESV)

The reasons we have to give thanks to God are clear in these verses.  Many listed here in this song which has been sung by many for generations.  God is good.  God is the only God and the God of all  other so called gods.  God is the Lord over all lords.  God is the only one who does great wonders.   God's love is steadfast and endures forever.  God's love will never end.  That is so significant that the declaration is stated four times, once in each verse.   Today, spend some time putting these promises in your mind in the midst of the hustle and bustle and all the distraction.   

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November 12 – Singing Forever

“I will sing of the lovingkindness of the Lord forever; To all generations I will make known Your faithfulness with my mouth.”  Psalm 89:1 (NASB)

Today we look again at a psalm the people of Israel sang to express the their feelings of devotion and thanksgiving to God.  As we think of God's love for us we too can be inspired to sing with real joy.  When we remember how faithful God has been to us, always keeping His promises we can be inspired to share that with others.  This is what and how the psalmists shared God's faithfulness with their mouth.  This is how we too do so when we sing praises, spiritual songs, and hymns.  God's love and His faithfulness are not just temporal but they are eternal and have always been and will always be. Those of us who believe and have received God's gift of salvation know the  blessing of singing about it and the promise that we will continue singing the praises to God in heaven. 

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November 2 – Before, Now, Forever

“... to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.” Jude 25 (NASB)

The letter written by Jude, who was a half-brother to Jesus, is short and not divided into chapters.  Three books are shorter than Jude in the New Testament.  We read today the last verse of Jude's letter which we often hear as a closing benediction.  This, of course is how Jude brought his letter to a close by praising God.  There is never a time when it is not right to praise God.  Jude, however is instructing us how we should acknowledge God our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Ascribe glory and majesty and dominion and authority to God always and not simply at the closing of a service or time of prayer.  It has been right to do before all time and is right to do now and is right to do forever in the future.  Jude, in his letter, is warning his readers that people will mock God and so mock those who follow God in faith believing.  He warns of those who seek ungodly lusts, cause division, seek only the things of the world.  Remembering God in  the frame Jude gives us, is  our way of affirming a promise of who God truly is and we can rejoice in confirming this truth in our hearts and minds.  

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June 15 – Revealed For Us Forever

“The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”  Deuteronomy 29:29 (ESV)

When Moses was nearing the end of his life he spoke to the Children of Israel. Our verse is from that time. God has revealed many wonderful truths to us in the Bible. We realize that He is an infinite God who knows all things. We recognize that God knows more than what He has revealed to us. We do not know what God has not revealed and kept secret but we do have and can know the things He has revealed. As Moses said then, it forever for all to know. So what should our attitude be to this? We should be so grateful to God for what He has revealed to us. Our verse tells us that the truths He's revealed do belong to us today and that is His promise to us and all  who believe forever. We should treasure these truths and follow what God has shown us through them. We should obey what He has revealed to us. 

May 27 – Enduring Love Means Forever

“Give thanks to the Lord Almighty, for the Lord is good; his love endures forever.” Jeremiah 33:11 (NIV)

Our God is an everlasting and eternal God. There have been times in the Old Testament days when God needed to remind His people of this. In the time of Jeremiah the prophet, the situation was very dark. God was allowing His people to suffer the consequences of their disobedience as He had warned them would happen. But, He wanted His people to know that He still  loved them. That's why God told His people through the prophet that a new day would come when people in Jerusalem would sing to the Lord. In chapter 33 of Jeremiah in verse 11 we read what they would sing. Situations change but God never changes. No matter how many times things in Jerusalem changed over and over again, God's love has never changed – it lasts forever and is today just as it was the day the first person was created on this earth. This is the promise we have. Although our situations change, God's love for us remains the same and it can be trusted. God loves you no matter what has happened, is happening, or will ever happen in your life. 

January 22 – Forever to the End

“For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.” Psalm 48:14b (NIV)

There are two concepts in this verse. First of all is the concept of eternity. The great God of the universe is eternal.* We can state our determination to claim Him as our God for ever and our desire to maintain our allegiance to Him for ever. When we accept Jesus as our Savior God gives us eternal life. We can look forward to an eternal relationship with Him – He has promised us that.   The second part of our verse teaches us that our God is our guide to the end.  This can be applied to our earthly lives which will come to an end. He will guide us as long as we live here on this earth. We can also take this as a promise applied to other earthly activities. Whatever you're involved in right now, He will guide you to the end of it. Trust Him today to give you direction in your decisions and choices. He is our God forever. 

* God has no beginning.

January 11 – Praised Forever

“Blessed be the name of the Lord From this time forth and forever. From the rising of the sun to its setting The name of the Lord is to be praised.” Psalm 113:2-3 (NASB)

Many of the Psalms in the Bible are songs of  praise to God. Our choice of a verse today comes from one of the Hallel Psalms – “hallel” means praise and these songs were sung on the night of the Passover. We are reminded in these verses that the Lord deserves to be praised at all times and in every place. We praise the Lord for who He is and for what He does. He is what He is and has always been that way. He will not change and that is a promise we can depend on. We praise Him today for who He is just as His people have always done. Our ancestors praised Him and our descendants will also always praise Him. God has made us all and no matter where we live in this world, He wants people everywhere to praise Him.  He wants them all to hear about Him and about His goodness. We can be glad that the message has gone out and that there are people across this world who are praising Him – He is worthy.

September 12 – Enduring Love

“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!” Psalm 118:1 (ESV)

This is the first verse of Psalm 118 as it lifts up our voices in thanks to the Lord because of His goodness and His steadfast love.  It is interesting that this psalm ends with the same words in verse 29. There is a reason why the psalmist opens and closes this song with the same words of thanksgiving. They are important to us too.  It is good to always remember the promise that God is good and his love is steadfast and endures forever. Never will God's love end and never will we be without it. It endures forever. What a promise to walk with today. Let's give thanks indeed for the Lord is good, so very good.