Jesus warned His followers that as they faced a hostile world they would also face persecutions, imprisonments, and be brought before rulers for His Names sake, (see Luke 21:12). He had already told them in Matthew 5:11-12 that under such circumstances they should “Rejoice and be exceedingly glad.” In Acts 16 Paul and Silas find […]
We are invited to “come, behold the works of the Lord” in Psalm 46:8-9. As we do so we note that He does many “great things” Psalm 126:3. Today we will focus on two aspects of His works. The first thing we see in Psalm 46:8 is that He makes “desolations” (Hebrew ruin or consternation) […]
“I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth” says David in Psalm 34:1. And in Psalm 68:19 he also seems to capture the thought of continual praise when he says, “Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loads us with benefits, The God of our salvation! Selah” (This […]
Singing is usually a sign or an overflow of what is in the heart. The “world” around us has many songs expressing sadness, brokenness, disappointments, and failed dreams; these are the lot of a “world” fallen into sin and apart from God. But those who have returned to Him through Jesus Christ are given a […]
God is a God of unity. We see this manifest in Himself as early as Genesis 1:26 where He refers to Himself as “Us”; then the New Testament in 1 John 5:7 says, there is “the Father, the Word (Jesus, John 1:14) and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one.” We also see it […]
In John 14:23 Jesus said “…the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth…” There is so much more to worship than three songs in a Sunday morning church service accompanied by loud music! True worship that is acceptable to the Father has to do with the attitude of the heart. The word […]
“Blessed be the Lord, who daily loads us with benefits, the God of our salvation! Selah” Psalm 68:19. By dropping the two words “with benefits” which are not in the original manuscripts, but were added by translators in an effort to clarify, we can see a whole different picture here. Now don’t get me wrong, […]
In John 10:3-4, Jesus, portraying Himself as a shepherd leading his sheep, says, “he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And … he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.” We are like sheep that when left to wonder on their own become disoriented, scattered, […]
The Bible points us to a path of praise and thanksgiving even when going through dark and difficult places, even before we see the answer to our cry and prayers for deliverance! The Bible says He is “enthroned in the praises of Israel” (extended His people) Psalm 22:3; the original Greek here means He sits […]
Praise, the Bible says, is beautiful coming from the upright; yes, it is suitable and proper for the righteous to rejoice and offer praise. In fact Isaiah 61:3 says the anointing upon Jesus gives us “the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” When we think of praise probably the first thing we think […]