The most exciting Promises in the Scriptures

Psalm 89

Ethan the Ezrahite is not a common name, so where can we find him in Scripture?  He was mentioned in 1 Chronicles 15:17,19, shall we begin in verse 16, “David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their fellow Levites as musicians to make a joyful sound with musical instruments: lyres, harps, and cymbals.  So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel; from his relatives, Asaph son of Berekiah; and from their relatives the Merarites, Ethan son of Kushaiah; and with them their relatives next in rank: Zechariah, Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom and Jeiel, the gatekeepers.  The musicians Heman, Asaph, and Ethan were to sound the bronze cymbals.”  I call that information, and it may be of some help now that we know who God used to pen this Psalm.  We need to know where to find it in the Scriptures.  I once more went to my study Bible and found on page 967 in notes the answer I was searching for.  You will find the account in 1 Chronicle 17 and 2 Samuel 7.  

As I read the account of God’s promises to David and how God blesses his kingship, have you thought of the promises God has made to all who are in Christ?

If we begin at the moment you asked Jesus to come into your life and set you free from bondage, you entered into His family, your Father is now God, and you are free from the control of the evil one; Satan or the devil.  Where can I find that written in Scripture?  It is found in Romans 6:12-14, “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions.  Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.  For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.”  You’re free, but let’s not miss that it is all about your choice.  Never forget religion is rules, law, and it is easy to forget what happened to you, not because you were good at rule-keeping, but God extended His grace and set you free from the bondage of sin.

Do you still entertain sinful thoughts, that‘s called the flesh and you can experience victory over it by understanding who you are in Christ?  “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.  Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”

The promise took place the moment you ask Christ into your life, as the Commander and Chief.  That is why if I am not having victory over my thoughts, and in the same way, I often lean on my own understanding and allow the worldly thoughts to rob me of my dependence on the Spirit that lives in me.

So you now should be living in the assurance of being a child of the Lord’s because of this promise in John 6:37, “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.”

Of all the many promises in Scripture, I find that I can have friendship with Christ one of the most exciting.  You will find the words in John 15:14-15, “You are my friends if you do what I command you.  No longer do I call you servants for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.”

I know many of you are living a blessed life, and I also am experiencing such, but that does not mean we are not affected by the acts of sin in our fallen world.  You will find this promise of trials and even persecution in 2 Timothy 3:12-13, ^“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”  If you had kept reading, you would see you are to be the hand and feet of Jesus in a fallen world.

  

I’m going to end with a great promise found in John 15:9-11 on Joy.  ^“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.  Abide in my love.  If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love.  These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Living by Feeling and not by Truth

Psalm 88

 The first three verses set the theme of the chapter, and I’m confident it’s the cry of many in the Church today.  “O Lord, God of my salvation, I cry out day and night before you.   Let my prayer come before you; incline your ear to my cry!  For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol.”

As you read this Psalm, we are looking at a man who has been rejected by his wife and friends; he feels shunned.  He never asks am I the problem?  He sees himself as above reproach and his blame is directed at the Holy One.  If you do not see this reread verse 18, “You have caused my beloved and my friend to shun me; my companions have become darkness.”

You want to have one great pity party.  I believe this man who lived in the day of King Solomon can be a great example.  He could not grasp how God would allow his life to have misfortune.  How would you like living with this guy, he always saw the glass half-empty, everywhere he looked terrible things were happening to him, and he was feeling sorry for himself, not a fun person to live with, much less be around.

Does God love us, and if so, why is he quiet when our lives turn to misery?  A wise person who is a follower of Christ will acknowledge who God is and that He has total authority.  It may be helpful to visit Hebrews 13:5-6, Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”  So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”

If one does not understand that feelings are not the truth, but God is the truth, for Jesus has told us He is Truth, you can find that in John 14:6.  Once we acknowledge this truth, we need to search our hearts and soul by doing as we are told in 2 Corinthians 13:5, by examining ourselves to see if we are living by faith in God’s promises.  A great prayer to pray for yourself; “Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name.”  

If in the examination, you find sin in your life, be quick to run to the Father and confess.  For He has promised that if we confess with a broken heart, He will forgive, but He does not always remove the damage our sins have brought into our lives and others, you will find that promise in 1 John 1:9.

It is so important to understand that in the world we will have troubles and to recall these words from Jesus in John 16:33, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”  It is essential that one understand who they are in Christ, you will find that in 1 John 4:13, “This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit.”  

From the Back Porch, 

Bob Rice

It is all about the Heart

Psalm 86:11 -17  

“Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name.  I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever.  For great is your steadfast love toward me; you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.  O God, insolent men have risen up against me; a band of ruthless men seeks my life, and they do not set you before them.  But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.  Turn to me and be gracious to me; give your strength to your servant and save the son of your maidservant. Show me a sign of your favor, that those who hate me may see and be put to shame because you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.”

Our Church body has been led in a study on the book of James, the writer is the Holy Spirit and the person He used to pen it is the half-brother of Jesus.  It’s been an excellent study, for James is challenging us to put our faith into action.  Have you been guilty of just volunteering to teach or lead out because you believe it was the right thing to do, but not by faith in God but in self?  Jan and I have, and it was one tough year, my prayer is we get direction and permission before ever doing that again.

God tells us often in the Scriptures that He looks at the heart and not our acts of what we believe are a good thing.  It is the attitude of the heart, not the action of our hands that please our Father.  Verse eleven is I think the true desire of the heart for any believer, and a prayer I’m praying for my two grandsons, and myself.  “Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name.”   Often, I find my ways are far from Jesus in attitude and actions.  My fear derives not from people who live around me; no, it comes from evil men and women in the Congress and Senate of our Government.  People who have no fear of the Lord’s will; not having wisdom or knowledge.  You will find that in Proverbs 9:10, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”  Pray for me that my ways will be pleasing to the Lord, and my life will be centered on God’s truth, and His hand will guide my actions.  My heart desires to learn my Lord’s way and to walk in integrity before God and man.  

We did not touch on God’s love for me, but my life has often been a life of rebellion, wanting the Father’s blessing but on my terms.  And even in my defiance that brought about His discipline, He has desired to restore fellowship with this son.  What love He has shown to me, for what son does the Father not discipline the son He loves.  My life on planet earth is a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes, but not into the grave forever.   No, we have a promise from God and it comes with two choices, to accept with all our hearts and minds the love of the Father who sent His Son to pay for your sins and mine, or to reject Jesus and by doing make a decision to spend eternity in total darkness and pain.  The life on planet earth is just a vapor, it has a time limit, but the life you choose for eternity never ends.  My prayer is you ponder on Psalm 86:11 and make the right choice.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

David states he is faithful

Psalm 86:2-10

“Guard my life, for I am faithful to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God; have mercy on me, Lord, for I call to you all day long.  Bring joy to your servant, Lord, for I put my trust in you.  You, Lord, are forgiving and good,
abounding in love to all who call to you.  Hear my prayer, Lord; listen to my cry for mercy.  When I am in distress, I call to you, because you answer me.  Among the gods, there is none like you, Lord; no deeds can compare with yours.  All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, Lord; they will bring glory to your name.  For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God.”

Did you get what king David said; not what many of us often say; Lord my heart's desire is to be faithful, no, David states he is faithful?  This morning I met with a man who walks with the Lord, and in our conversation, Paul said, without the fear of the Lord, there is no wisdom.  He told me where God’s Word states that in Proverbs 9:10, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”  It is so right that King David had a healthy fear of the Lord.  I have shared with you, I have weak faith in a massive God,  and I have a great fear of His holiness and power.  I understand that He alone is God, Creator, Maker of all that has been made, and I, like all mankind, is His creation, my heart's desire is for our leaders to have wisdom.

A person with wisdom understands what David is praying is absolute; “You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you.”  What the world calls a wise man, without the fear of God has no understanding of God’s goodness and love.  Many a foolish person will ask where was God when a mass shooting happened?  Let me be very clear, He is not shocked by man’s evil, and He was the same place as He was when they put His Son, His only Son on a cross.

David was not only a King He was often a prophet, in that he talked about things that will happen is what you and I refer to as future.  This is a prophetic statement; “All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, Lord; they will bring glory to your name.  For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God.”  If you want to do a study on what is being said by David, go to these Scriptures; Philippians 2:10-11, Romans 14:11, Isaiah 45:23, Revelation 1:7, 5:13.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Breaking Fellowship with the Father

Psalm 85

“Lord, you were favorable to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob.  You forgave the iniquity of your people; you covered all their sin. (Selah)
You withdrew all your wrath; you turned from your hot anger.  Restore us again, O God of our salvation, and put away your indignation toward us!  Will you be angry with us forever?  Will you prolong your anger to all generations?   Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?  Show us your steadfast love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation.  Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.  Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.  Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other.  Faithfulness springs up from the ground, and righteousness looks down from the sky.  Yes, the Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.  Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps away.”

We the Church need to acknowledge and confess that like Israel, God has shown favor to us as a nation and as a people.  We that put our hope in Christ are forgiven of our iniquity, and the blood of Jesus Christ has covered our sins.  The Church is grafted into a good vine, we are the source of the plant, and the lower part of the rootstock is God.  We were of wild stock, our vine had no value to anyone, we could not produce good fruit, and that’s how we became a member of the family of God.

We, like Israel, can break fellowship with the Father by sinning and not being willing to confess and agree with the Lord that we have sinned.  God’s anger is against sin, all sin was taken out on Jesus as He hung on a cross and paid the full penalty for our sins.  Sin does cause the loss of fellowship, but never our relationship, just as it did with Israel, but they will always be the Chosen People of God.

A warning is needed: If you can sin, that is living life under your desires, with no regard for worship or the things of God.  You need to examine yourself to see if you're in the faith, it's my understanding from Scripture, that you are not.  Do you see the hand of God in your daily life?  That’s what Israel desired, but they were not willing to submit to God’s authority, and often the Church has that same issue. 

Romans 13:11, “Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.”  The insight from my Study Bible; “The old age is passing, and the new is dawning.  We long for the new age to fully come, and we recognize that our Salvation will soon be completed.”

We the Church may find the answer hidden in verse 8, ^“Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.”  Turn off the noise, be still and listen, for He is speaking to His people.  We the Church must turn back from our folly, but maybe that is not a word we understand.  Defining the word folly: “lack of good sense; foolishness: an act of sheer folly. • a foolish act, idea, or practice: the follies of youth.”  I’ve often been guilty of folly, and as a member of the body, I’m sure I’m not alone!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Poor & Needy

Psalm 86:1

A prayer of David, and listen to what David the King is confessing to the Lord; “Incline your ear, O Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.”  Since it is only you and me that are going to see this, let me be honest, I’m a long way from having anyone envy me for the material stuff I have, but I also do not see myself as weak and needy.  King David saw himself in that way before God, could that be a big problem in my life and the life of many others who are like me?

Was David rich by the world’s standards, the answer has to be yes, very rich, and powerful, not only over Judea and Israel but many people and lands that his army had conquered.  He had riches one can only dream about, and yet he was aware that his riches and power were only for a season and his soul was poor and needy.  

As we awaken to that truth, we like David are the only manager of what has been given to us, in stuff, talents, family, and friends, and the boss, the owner of all that has been or will be created, is the one our souls long for.  Could it be said of the Church today, you and I and many others are closer to the church at Laodicea than we want to admit?  These are the words of Jesus talking about the church at Laodicea,  ^“You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.”

I believe the world culture and especially in what I call the up and outers, those who have used the skills and talents God has given them, yes, most have worked long hours and been diligent in how they have managed their resources, and now enjoy the fruits of their labor.  The Church is full of them, I am one of them, and yet many in and out of the church buy into this attitude; I’ve worked hard, and now I’m going to enjoy the fruits of my labor, and there is nothing wrong with doing so if you get permission from the One who is your life.  There is a danger of allowing the culture to give you an attitude, “I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.”

Now you will never admit that to yourself or to your friends, and never in a Bible study, is there not some truth found in these words?  Let me ask some questions that I’ve been asking myself; do you ask God before buying what you want, or do you go and get it?  Are you looking to the needs of others, and are you just concerned about number one?  Are you a good manager of what God has entrusted to you?  Now that’s very personal and yet it’s a conversation for you to have with the Lord, not one like myself that often muddles up my life on planet earth.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Is todays Church engaging in Folly?

Psalm 85

“Lord, you were favorable to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob.  You forgave the iniquity of your people; you covered all their sin. (Selah)
You withdrew all your wrath; you turned from your hot anger.  Restore us again, O God of our salvation, and put away your indignation toward us!  Will you be angry with us forever?  Will you prolong your anger to all generations?   Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?  Show us your steadfast love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation.  Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.  Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.  Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other.  Faithfulness springs up from the ground, and righteousness looks down from the sky.  Yes, the Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.  Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps away.”

We the Church need to acknowledge and confess that like Israel, God has shown favor to us as a nation and as a people.  We that put our hope in Christ are forgiven of our iniquity, and the blood of Jesus Christ has covered our sins.  The Church is grafted into a good vine, we are the source of the plant, and the lower part of the rootstock is God.  We were of wild stock, our vine had no value to anyone, we could not produce good fruit, and that’s how we became a member of the family of God.

We, like Israel, can break fellowship with the Father by sinning and not being willing to confess and agree with the Lord that we have sinned.  God’s anger is against sin, all sin was taken out on Jesus as He hung on a cross and paid the full penalty for our sins.  Sin does cause the loss of fellowship, but never our relationship, just as it did with Israel, but they will always be the Chosen People of God.

A warning is needed: If you can sin, that is living life under your desires, with no regard for worship or the things of God.  You need to examine yourself to see if you're in the faith, it's my understanding from Scripture, that you are not.  Do you see the hand of God in your daily life?  That’s what Israel desired, but they were not willing to submit to God’s authority, and often the Church has that same issue. 

Romans 13:11, “Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.”  The insight from my Study Bible; “The old age is passing, and the new is dawning.  We long for the new age to fully come, and we recognize that our Salvation will soon be completed.”

We the Church may find the answer hidden in verse 8, ^“Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.”  Turn off the noise, be still and listen, for He is speaking to His people.  We the Church must turn back from our folly, but maybe that is not a word we understand.  Defining the word folly: “lack of good sense; foolishness: an act of sheer folly. • a foolish act, idea, or practice: the follies of youth.”  I’ve often been guilty of folly, and as a member of the body, I’m sure I’m not alone!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice