BELIEVE
Suggested Reading: Genesis 14-15
The view while descending to the lowest point on earth - The Dead Sea. On the far side of the Dead Sea is Jordan and the mountains of Moab.
Key Verse: Genesis 15:6
And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.
The Apostle Paul picks up this story (Romans 4:2-3): “For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness.'” If you have the time, read the entirety of Romans 4. Our works will never gain us a place in Heaven, nor will they guarantee the presence of God here and now. However our actions are noticed by God and can result in God’s action towards us (e.g. Cornelius Acts 10:4b, “Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God”). James 2:20 says, “Faith without works is dead.” Works are only to provide an outward and tangible confirmation of the motivating force behind them, belief and trust in God.
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Father God, thank You for your unconditional love and for Your righteousness given to me as a result of my faith in You. Like Abram (His name was not yet changed) I believe in You. Thank you for Your friend, Abram, who is a great example for me. I pray this in the Name of Jesus Who is the greatest Example. Amen!
100 PERSONAL WORDS:
I’m so impressed by Abram’s attitude toward God and people. Yes, he believed God! He also showed this by works. I hate to admit this, but I think that Abram may have had something in common with an Afgan War Lord. He had a private Army. He was definitely not your average farmer. He risked his own life to rescue his nephew Lot and the other Sodomites. He tried to turn the King of Sodom to God by introducing him to the priest of the most high God, Melchizedek. He paid his tithe. One of our 5 (seven soon) great-grandchildren, Autumn Neilson, is 2 years old. She visited us over the holiday weekend and sang over and over a song based on Philippians 2:5, written by her grandfather, Bruce Stacey, husband of my daughter Elaine: “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.” All of my great-grandchildren know dozens of Bible verses because of these songs. Check out God Rocks Bibletoons scripture songs online at www.godrocks.com. Go to the store to order a CD or download Bibletoons songs for .99 cents per song. The proceeds help support more children’s productions.
Your friend and brother in Christ,
David
P.S. Due to a technical problem, the email for yesterday’s blog post was not sent until early afternoon. Sorry about that. If it happens again, you can always go directly to www.100words.ca and read it online.
This is the difference between the Christian faith and that of other philosophies or religions. It’s not by works that we attain salvation, it is as you aptly stated David, “Works are only to provide an outward and tangible confirmation of the motivating force behind them, belief and trust in God.” Once again, I think the issue of pride comes into play, for many cannot accept the fact that God is so loving that He has fully paid the price of our redemption by taking upon Himself the sins of the world and dying on a cross. Christ made us free; in that one selfless act He provided our salvation. Jesus only asks that we receive Him into our hearts through faith. This truly is the grace of God!
Iove these messages being sent to my in box every day but I have a little favour to ask.. Could you make the message a little narrower? I mean like the way they are now I cannot read the whole line with moving everything over and then back again and over and back again.. A little confusion and not a big deal, but it would be nice if you could squeeze them in a little closer..
Hello Pat. We’re so glad you’re enjoying the daily emails! And thanks for your suggestion. The various computers on which we’ve seen the emails do not have that problem you are describing. Perhaps you can try maximizing your window size or adjusting your display settings. God bless you!
I also have the same problem what i do is use the email to keep me on tack reading the bible but because the email version is ocquard to read i go to the website to read the message from David
Father God
Thank you for your love for me, and that you gave your son to die on the cross for me.
Lianne Hogg
Our behaviour usually dictates our beliefs.