Tag: Creation Principles

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Till the Cows Come Home

NOVEMBER 7

MATTHEW 7:16_or figs of thistles?

Jesus teaches the same simple gardening plan for figs. If you go to pick your figs—you won’t pick them from thistles. There is obviously a point Jesus is making (must be about a way to freedom)!

Thistles are a type of weed. They produce purple flowers which are kind of feathery looking. Some of the flowers have more of a pom-pom look. The stem of the thistle is prickly and full of briars. They really are attractive, but if they grow in your pasture you want to get rid of them. Your livestock would appreciate it. Thistles produce an abundance of seeds and can take over a pasture, greatly reducing your livestock’s grass supply.

If you have thistles growing, you can look on them from now to this time next year and won’t find any figs.

Figs grow on trees—thistles don’t. So what is this all about? And how will it help with our freedom search?  If you want grapes—go to grapevine. If you want figs—go to the fig tree. If you want truth—go to the words of the Christ.

This is the correct path to freedom. 

False teachers lead to false paths. You can follow those paths up and down, left and right, from now till the cows come home—you won’t find any freedom.   

PRAYER

Holy Savior, Help me know I can only find truth in You. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.     

Christ leads me to the path of truth—I find freedom!

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The Great Gardener

NOVEMBER 6

MATTHEW 7:16_Do men gather grapes of thorns…

Since Jesus is the Creator that also makes Him the Great Gardener. And just in case you know nada about gardening, He teaches a simple lesson. 

If you go to your vineyard to pick grapes, you’re not going to pick them from thorn bushes!  Everything about the vine is about the grape. The vine is specifically created to produce grapes, nothing else.  Everything in creation has its purpose. 

This lesson is according to the Christian’s relationship with Jesus. John 15:1-5 (KJV), “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman [gardener]. 2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he [God] taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth [chastens, corrects] it, that it may bring forth more fruit. 3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.”

There it is in plain words.

In order to recognize lies cling to Jesus and His Words, as a grape clings to its vine. If you release yourself from the vine you can do nothing—you are powerless.

PRAYER

True Vine, I am grateful to be a branch of Your vine.  I praise You!  In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.                                                                                                                      

Christ is the True Vine for all Christians—I abide in Him!

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Jesus Lures

AUGUST 27

MATTHEW 6:33_and his righteousness…

Jesus gives you something specific to seek in the kingdom of God, righteousness. God’s righteousness is to obey His principles and live in them.

When you seek God’s kingdom you discover His righteousness. One more example of you can’t have one without the other. You are designed to seek that relationship. Jesus lures you to it.

This relationship has been compared to courtship. Jesus proposes – He hopes you will say yes. When you do, then just like finding gold at the end of the rainbow – you find His righteousness. Notice, the seeking turned from Jesus seeking you to you seeking Him … and His righteousness.

God’s principles are steadfast. They have been since the beginning of time. They do not weaken or fade with time. They are as solid in the book of Genesis as they are in the book of Revelation. They are foundation material – something on which to build your life. 

Deuteronomy 33:27 (KJV), “The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms …”

Wow! The everlasting arms are the foundation material upon which to build your house!

Righteousness is something God rewards, II Samuel 22:21 (KJV) “The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness ….”

You can’t be righteous on your own – seek God’s righteousness!      

PRAYER

Righteous Father, I want Your righteousness for the foundation of my life. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ is righteousness—He will teach me!

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Doubts

AUGUST 16

MATTHEW 6:30_shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?

The basic purpose of Bible study is to get to know God, to learn how He thinks, to learn His heart. The last part of verse 30 teaches something about God. Another part of the I AM. The words much more describe God’s heart perfectly.

A heart which not only sends grass what it needs to survive, but dresses it up as well. Wouldn’t that heart care much more for a human – created in His own image? This is a heart you feel safe to trust. A heart that makes you feel more than just loved, but special.

You can gain understanding of God’s love and provision for His creation right from the get-go – in the very beginning. Genesis 1:28 (KJV), “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”

God loved all of His creation and considered it good, but He set people above anything else. Just like with the animals, God had already created what people would need to live and enjoy the earth. 

Life brings confusing days of doubts. Doubts come from the devil. Don’t listen, don’t be of little faith. 

PRAYER

Omnipresent God, Thank You that if You care for nature, You care more for me. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ gave people dominion on earth—He cares for me!

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The What Ifs

AUGUST 3

MATTHEW 6:27_Which of you by taking thought…

Jesus lets you know where worry, fret, and stress begin – your thoughts.

You have a problem. Your brain creates a scenario of possibilities. What if this happens? Or even worse, what if that happens? And what if the very thing I want the most doesn’t happen at all? Your thoughts rehearse the scenario over and over imagining an abundance of possibilities, none of which are currently reality – and may never become so.

Taking thought allows the brain to fill the heart with stress. Proverbs 4:23 (KJV), “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” God wants your heart to issue life, not stress which brings an abundance of health problems. If envy consumes your thoughts … Proverbs 14:30 (KJV), “A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.” 

God doesn’t want thought patterns to damage your heart, which in turn damage health. God wants things like John 14:1 (KJV) to rule thoughts, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me [Jesus].”

Those what ifs trouble your heart. God wants hearts free to not only believe in Him, but on Him. 

PRAYER

God of My Heart, Help me not allow my thoughts to trouble my heart. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ does not want my heart troubled—He helps me!