Talk of JESUS .com

Tag: corinthians

Blessed be God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
PRAISE & WORSHIP GOD! (as faithful worshipers have blessed God and been blessed by God for generations…)
- Genesis 1:21 And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
- Genesis 5:2 Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created.
- Genesis 9:1 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.
- Genesis 14:19-20 And he [Melchizedek] blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!” And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
- Exodus 18:10 Jethro said, “Blessed be the LORD, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh and has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians.
- Exodus 39:43 (after the building of the Tabernacle for worship of the LORD) And Moses saw all the work, and behold, they had done it; as the LORD had commanded, so had they done it. Then Moses blessed them.
- Leviticus 9:22 Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them, and he came down from offering the sin offering and the burnt offering and the peace offerings.
- Deuteronomy 12:7-9 And there you shall eat before the LORD your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your households, in all that you undertake, in which the LORD your God has blessed you. “You shall not do according to all that we are doing here today, everyone doing whatever is right in his own eyes, for you have not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance that the LORD your God is giving you.
- 2 Samuel 6:18 And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts.
- 2 Chronicles 2:12 Hiram also said, “Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who has given King David a wise son, who has discretion and understanding, who will build a temple for the LORD and a royal palace for himself.
- 2 Chronicles 30:25-27 The whole assembly of Judah, and the priests and the Levites, and the whole assembly that came out of Israel, and the sojourners who came out of the land of Israel, and the sojourners who lived in Judah, rejoiced. So there was great joy in Jerusalem, for since the time of Solomon the son of David king of Israel there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem. Then the priests and the Levites arose and blessed the people, and their voice was heard, and their prayer came to his holy habitation in heaven.
- Nehemiah 8:6 And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.
Psalm 34:8
Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

Matthew 21:9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

Worship the Lord your God!

2 Corinthians 1

English Standard Version (ESV)

Greeting

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

To the church of God that is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia:

2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

God of All Comfort

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. 6 If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. 7 Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort.

1 Peter 1

English Standard Version (ESV)

Greeting

1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:

May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

Born Again to a Living Hope

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 1

English Standard Version (ESV)

Greeting

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus:

2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Blessings in Christ

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known[c] to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

11 In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, 12 so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

15 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

A doxology (from the Greek δόξα [doxa] “glory” + -λογία [-logia], “saying”) is a short hymn of praises to God in various Christian worship services.
Doxology – worship video & music of David Crowder
November 27, 2013
A Higher Presence, a lower self
I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. – 2 Corinthians 12:2

I have let the scripture speak for the most part in this series of posts. In one brief summary from an earlier post:

Worship requires the creature to bow down to it’s Creator. The Apostle John records the worship of the living creatures. Man must also bow down to the Lord our God.

Man ‘adam is that creature.

Man: created by God in His own Image, the very Image of the Son of Man sent to us in Christ Jesus, the very Spirit given to whom He does choose created by Him, the One God Who sits on the Highest Throne of Heaven — man, you and I, must WORSHIP GOD.

The Heavens are Telling the Glory of God – Joseph Hayden

Psalm 19:

The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.

4 Their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.

What is the point of worship?

God created.

He created the heavens and the earth and the creatures of the earth.

God created man ‘adam.

Man must bow down to God.

He created us to worship Him and love one another.

Again, look to the true meaning of worship – shachah –

to bow down to God or before superior in homage

Jesus also speaks of worship – proskyneō – in the NT by kneeling or prostration to do homage (to one) or make obeisance, whether in order to express respect or to make supplication used of homage shown to men and beings of superior rank
1. to the Jewish high priests
2. to God
3. to Christ
4. to heavenly beings
5. to demons
Jesus said: John 4:23

But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him.

Are you willing to bow down to God Almighty as a true worshiper?

NOTHING you can do is worthy of ANY relationship with God.

Yet the Cross of Christ is sufficient for you to be called into the Higher Place and eternal relationship of Perfect Love with God our Father in Heaven.

Daniel and Ezekiel also gave words to the wordless and imagery to the indescribable place of Heaven and the Almighty God of creation. The Apostle John reveals an experience of being brought up to the Throne of the Living God, where the Apostle is given revelation of the completion of the days and the fulfillment of all scripture.

It is a fearful place and awesome Revelation of what is to come!

If you can image beyond the imagery of the describable, Paul’s attempt to describe the third heaven is something like this:
1. We see through the first heaven of the blue atmosphere of this earth.
2. We look into the endless and timeless black heavens at the stars and galaxies of creation.
3. Higher than even this, God IS in a Third Heaven, a dimension beyond time and space and the created mind of man. He IS and was and will always be.
God can and does show certain created men what man cannot know or comprehend.

We are dust. We are a speck of sand on a vast sea of an incomprehensible creation.

Whether from true Prophet or true Apostle, description of our lowly position, requiring worship of God and description of heaven is worth noting.

What does it mean to ‘bow down?’ Paul describes it in relation to other men of God and to God our Father.

2 Corinthians 10

I, Paul, myself entreat you, by the meekness and gentleness of Christ—I who am humble when face to face with you, but bold toward you when I am away!

7 Look at what is before your eyes. If anyone is confident that he is Christ’s, let him remind himself that just as he is Christ’s, so also are we. 8 For even if I boast a little too much of our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be ashamed.

13 But we will not boast beyond limits, but will boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us, to reach even to you.

17 “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” 18 For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.

2 Corinthians 11: 30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying.

2 Corinthians 12

ESVEnglish Standard Version (ESV)

Paul’s Visions and His Thorn

12 I must go on boasting. Though there is nothing to be gained by it, I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. 3 And I know that this man was caught up into paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—4 and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter. 5 On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses— 6 though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth; but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me.

11 I have been a fool! You forced me to it, for I ought to have been commended by you…

And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you. For children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. 15 I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls. If I love you more, am I to be loved less?

It is in the sight of God that we have been speaking in Christ, and all for your upbuilding, beloved.

2 Corinthians 13

He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. 4 For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live with him by the power of God.

5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

No, Paul’s description is not of the Higher third heaven, but of the lower self. The Apostle describes a Power in Christ to which we have claim, and a humility of the Cross to which our Lord submitted even Himself, as He sacrificed His mortal life for the Immortality from which He descended to those He loved.

The love of God our Father in the Place of the Highest Heaven is high above and well beyond the heights of our imagination and the depths of the understanding of our created mind.

That God would die on a lowly cross for His created ones is a grace well worthy of our worship.

Worship and bow down to Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Amen.
November 9, 2013
Growing into Christ
The Christian community is built with fellowship, the Christian heart with prayer.

Let’s consider the community of believers we call ‘church’ for a moment. Paul addresses some of the ‘issues’ of worship style in his letter to the Corinthians [ch.14] and his first direction of guidance instructs: “Pursue love… agapē.”

1 Corinthians 14:20 Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature.

John writes to the churches in Asia a similar caution:

1 John 1: 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

Peter in his first letter addresses Christians of churches in an even larger area:

1 Peter 3:8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.

The King James Version states: Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:
- be of one mind
- have compassion one of another – sympathēs
- love as brothers – philadelphos
Do these words of the Apostles instruct any to be a lone chrisitian? Certainly not. The instruction to Christians is for fellowship.

The Apostles teach the nurturing of a loving community, believers who spend time with one another, who worship together, and believers who truly love each other as Christ Jesus loves us.

The Christian community is built with fellowship…

How is it that most of our busy 21st century churches don’t get this?

Does it take just a little more than an hour on a Sunday to build a relationship? to build a community? to establish a church in the love and fellowship of our Lord, Christ Jesus?

“christians” we call ourselves. Is your relationship and community with your fellow brothers in the Lord (your fellow sisters in the Lord) a loving commitment such as this?

The Christian community is built with fellowship, the Christian heart with prayer.

So let us repent of the busyness of our public lives and sacrifice a little more Christ-like love to embrace His love through the relationships of our church.

Which brings us now to our private lives:

How is your prayer life?

I must confess that I have never been one to think of prayer sufficiently. It was not until recently (by measure of years) that I finally engaged God in conversation through prayer every morning and throughout my day.

Do you suppose the mention of “prayer” 114 times plus “pray” 96 times in the ESV suggests its importance? Of course.

IF Jesus is our Lord and Master, we being His servants: certainly we must be obedient to His command:

Mathew 6:6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Jesus said: “when you pray,” not ‘IF you pray.”

Jesus said: “bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” – Luke 6:28 I have a hard time with that one.

I remind myself: Pray without ceasing.

Jesus encourages us in Luke 18: And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.

Do you “loose heart” in your daily life? I do. Consider that in losing heart you have likely neglected prayer.

Our failing flesh is one thing, but our heart is quite another. Jesus points out that the flesh is weak, but for the heart He directs us to prayer. Our heart (Hebrew) is: the inner man, mind, will, heart, soul, understanding and much more – kardia in the Greek.

How will our spirit dwell with the Holy Spirit if not through prayer?

… the Christian heart is built with prayer.

And oh, so tender, our torn-up hearts.

How broken our Christian lives. How broken our Christian families. How broken our Christian homes.

How broken our Christian husbands and how broken our Christian wives. How broken our Christian children and how broken our Christian youth.

What, then, must Christians do? (For in fact, our brokenness looks no different than the brokenness of so many who do not even know the love of Christ Jesus.)

The unturned pages of our Bibles tell an answer we claim as our ‘Good News.’ (Gospel.)

Have you been too busy to get the answers from God through prayer?

Have you been too busy to share your love with other Christians?

The Christian community is built with fellowship,

the Christian heart with prayer.
October 30, 2013