The Advantage Of The Believer

On the night before he was to be brought before the people, God sent an angel to Peter in prison. Asleep and chained to a soldier on each side, his chains fell off as the angel freed him.

Acts 12:7 And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands.

Every believer has an advantage over the world and all the trouble it brings. We have the benefit of faith.

Those who are in Christ are secure within His mighty hand. The world can bring nothing against us that our Lord doesn’t allow.

He is more than able to keep us through whatever adversity or trial we face.

He loved us enough to die for our sins on Calvary. He isn’t about to abandon us on the journey of life.

We serve an amazing God.

The Excellence Of God

Growing up, I picked enough strawberries at a nearby farm to buy firecrackers in July. I’m pretty sure I know an excellent strawberry, at least in Southwest Missouri.

The Psalmist speaks of the excellent name and lovingkindness and greatness of the Lord. How do you accurately define the excellence of God?

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary App led me through a sea of definitions and I picked a few.

Awesome, blu-chip, classic, divine, fabulous, fantastic, marvelous, prime, sensational, and splendid are super words, but seem to make cheap fodder to describe my Lord and Savior.

I believe the definition of the Psalmist is most accurate.

• Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. Psalm 8:1
• How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. Psalm 36:7
• Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Psalm 150:2

The prophet Isaiah issues an excellent description of the coming Messiah.--- Ch 9:6  ---
"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

Be Of Good Cheer

The Roman guards are coming to arrest Jesus, and the disciples are about to face turmoil. As The Lord is lead away for trial, the disciples scatter like scared rabbits into the night. He said they would.

John 16:32-33 Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me. These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world

Following His death, burial, and miraculous resurrection, faith of the disciples is renewed. Jesus gives them peace during intense persecution for sharing the Gospel and tells them to “be of good cheer” because He has overcome the world.

Trials and difficulties appear in various forms, but we can be assured that the Lord will never leave us or forsake us when we trust Him. Jesus has overcome the world and He will make us overcomers when we believe.

Joy In The Lord

I’ll never be rich or famous but I promise you, I have a joy in my soul that this world does not know.

There’s a difference in happiness and joy. Happiness is an emotion that is often short lived. Real joy is being satisfied in Jesus.
 
The joy I have can’t be found in material possessions but in the riches of my Heavenly Father.

The greatest joy is being where the Lord wants you to be --  whether the mountain or the valley.

Psalm 16:11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

Praise Him! Praise Him!

If our Lord’s grace and provision doesn’t stimulate an attitude of worship and praise for believers, I know of nothing that will.  I’m compelled to praise the Lord because  - - - -

• Of His forgiveness of sin
• I’m reconciled to God
• I’m placed within the body of Christ
• I’m promised eternal life
• I’m a child of the King
• He loved me when I was unlovable
• He gave me grace when I didn’t deserve grace
• He keeps me within His hand of grace
• He showers me with blessings
• He answers my prayers
• He gives me peace and understanding.
• I could go on . . .

Are we not blessed beyond measure? Has the Lord not been faithful to meet our needs in every situation? Praise Him.

Psalm 33:21  For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name.

The Truth Of Commitment

 When Jesus began to talk about  commitment, many walked away. Why? They only wanted the miracles -- the sensational. Not everyone can handle the truth of commitment.

John 6:66-67  From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?

Peter answers for the group, expressing total commitment. His life had changed forever when he left his fishing nets to follow Jesus. Oh, he had a time of weakness, but he never walked away and the Lord restored Him to fellowship.

Once you’ve felt the powerful touch of Almighty God, walked in the light of His glory, and experienced His best;  you will never be satisfied with substitutes and imitations.

We should examine the level of our commitment to the Lord, to be sure that we are where God wants us to be. It may require confession of sin or a rededicated heart.

The Faith

The relationship of the believer with Christ is often described as: The Faith. Faith is essential to the Christian.

• God says, "I will lead you."  Faith responds, "I will follow."
• God says, "I will feed you."  Faith says, "I will eat."
• God says, "I will meet your need."  Faith says, "It is done."

Faith is always based on the Word Of God – the promises of God.

The person who walks by faith never walks through life blind. He or she trusts God for what is ahead.

Faith enables faithfulness, while faithfulness enhances faith. We can’t please Christ without faith.

Heb.11:6 – But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.