Seek, inquire of and for the Lord, and crave Him and His strength.…
—Psalm 105:4
When King Jehoshaphat heard that a huge army was amassing to attack Judah, he knew what to do. He needed to set himself to seek not the advice of the people, but to seek God and hear directly from Him.
No doubt, Jehoshaphat had been involved in other battles before this one, so why couldn't he use the same methods he had employed in previous situations? No matter how many times something has worked in the past, it may not work to solve a current crisis unless God anoints it afresh. He may anoint an old method and choose to work through it, but He may also give us brand-new direction, instructions we have never heard before. We must always look to God, not to methods, formulas, or ways that have worked in the past. Our focus, our source of strength and supply, must be God and God alone.
Jehoshaphat knew that unless he heard from God, he was not going to make it. The Amplified Bible calls his need to hear God's voice "his vital need." It was something he could not do without; it was vital. It was essential to his life and the survival of his people.
You may be in a situation similar to Jehoshaphat's. You, too, may need a fresh word from God. You may feel that, like a drowning man or woman, you are going under for the last time. You may be desperate for a personal word from God in order to survive.
God wants to speak to you even more than you want to hear from Him. Seek Him by giving Him your time and attention, and you won't be disappointed.
God’s Word for You Today: Be open to hear a fresh word from God today.
A Change of Clothes
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment. And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD stood by.”
Zechariah 3:3–5
Edward Mote grew up in an ungodly home in England where the Bible was not read or the truth taught. But when he was a teenager, Mote heard the gospel and was saved. He worked for many years as a cabinetmaker before becoming a pastor later in his life. One day while he walked to work at the cabinet shop he owned, Mote began composing a hymn in his head. Throughout the day he added verses, and by the end of the day “The Solid Rock” was complete. The last stanza says:
When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found;
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.
There are multiplied benefits of our salvation, but none of them are greater than the fact that our sins are taken away, and we are clothed with a new nature that is righteous in the eyes of God. “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). The standing we have with God is not based in any way on our own merit, for even the best that we can do falls hopelessly short of God’s standard of perfection. But when we put on the perfect righteousness of Jesus in salvation, God views us as fit to enter into His presence.
Zechariah 3:3–5
Edward Mote grew up in an ungodly home in England where the Bible was not read or the truth taught. But when he was a teenager, Mote heard the gospel and was saved. He worked for many years as a cabinetmaker before becoming a pastor later in his life. One day while he walked to work at the cabinet shop he owned, Mote began composing a hymn in his head. Throughout the day he added verses, and by the end of the day “The Solid Rock” was complete. The last stanza says:
When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found;
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.
There are multiplied benefits of our salvation, but none of them are greater than the fact that our sins are taken away, and we are clothed with a new nature that is righteous in the eyes of God. “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). The standing we have with God is not based in any way on our own merit, for even the best that we can do falls hopelessly short of God’s standard of perfection. But when we put on the perfect righteousness of Jesus in salvation, God views us as fit to enter into His presence.
Today’s Growth Principle:
Never forget that God sees you clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
God Speaks a Fresh Word
by Joyce Meyer - posted March 01, 2017Seek, inquire of and for the Lord, and crave Him and His strength.…
—Psalm 105:4
When King Jehoshaphat heard that a huge army was amassing to attack Judah, he knew what to do. He needed to set himself to seek not the advice of the people, but to seek God and hear directly from Him.
No doubt, Jehoshaphat had been involved in other battles before this one, so why couldn't he use the same methods he had employed in previous situations? No matter how many times something has worked in the past, it may not work to solve a current crisis unless God anoints it afresh. He may anoint an old method and choose to work through it, but He may also give us brand-new direction, instructions we have never heard before. We must always look to God, not to methods, formulas, or ways that have worked in the past. Our focus, our source of strength and supply, must be God and God alone.
Jehoshaphat knew that unless he heard from God, he was not going to make it. The Amplified Bible calls his need to hear God's voice "his vital need." It was something he could not do without; it was vital. It was essential to his life and the survival of his people.
You may be in a situation similar to Jehoshaphat's. You, too, may need a fresh word from God. You may feel that, like a drowning man or woman, you are going under for the last time. You may be desperate for a personal word from God in order to survive.
God wants to speak to you even more than you want to hear from Him. Seek Him by giving Him your time and attention, and you won't be disappointed.
God’s Word for You Today: Be open to hear a fresh word from God today.
No comments:
Post a Comment