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Brooksyne Weber
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Monday, April 4,
2022
"Living
For God"
Message
summary: Are you leaving a godly
heritage for those who come behind you? That’s our call, “That
I might live for God”.
“For You have heard my
vows, O God; You have given me the heritage of those who
fear Your name" (Psalm 61:5). "That I might live for God"
(Galatians 2:19).
Yesterday
we had a child dedication in our church service. These are
tender moments when parents publicly declare their intent to
raise their children in the ways of the Lord. Often at a baby/child
dedication an opportunity is given for the
congregation to pledge its support to also help in nurturing
the child through ministries within the church and
otherwise.
But children have a potential for misunderstanding such as a little four-year-old who, after witnessing his baby brother’s dedication, sobbed all the way home in the back seat of the car. His mom and dad asked him three times what was wrong but got no reply, only more sobbing. Finally, the little boy blurted out, "The pastor said he wanted us to be brought up in a Christian home, but I want to stay with you guys!"
But children have a potential for misunderstanding such as a little four-year-old who, after witnessing his baby brother’s dedication, sobbed all the way home in the back seat of the car. His mom and dad asked him three times what was wrong but got no reply, only more sobbing. Finally, the little boy blurted out, "The pastor said he wanted us to be brought up in a Christian home, but I want to stay with you guys!"
Certainly a key to any
dedication is the challenge to raise your children for
Christ, to nurture them in a Christian home and build a
godly heritage. We establish the foundations for building a
godly heritage early in life and this heritage incrementally
expands over the years, one day at a time.
An older minister made an
interesting point regarding his generation’s heritage at a
funeral service: "We’ve given you much to live with,
but we haven’t given you much to live for."
I believe that statement is very accurate and timely for the
current generation as well. *
The very nature of seeking lifelong fulfillment apart from God’s salvation plan and living His purpose for our life will not contribute to a godly heritage. Something new and promising is always around the corner like a bigger, newer model TV, a faster computer or a more feature-laden “smart” phone. Many try to find fulfillment by getting a more prestigious job or higher educational level or being around the "right" people.
Foundationally, as God’s people we are called to build and leave a godly heritage, not a self-aggrandized list of our own accomplishments and possessions. One's heritage is a person's unique, inherited sense of family identity: the values, traditions, culture, and artifacts handed down by previous generations and in turn passed on to the next. Of course godly heritage adds a special dimension to that.
Consider those who left
behind a godly heritage whom you personally know. Most were
not famous and their sphere of influence was probably
relatively small, leaving a spiritual impact on their
family, church and community. A godly legacy is developed
over a lifetime as we choose day after day to "live for
God" (Galatians 2:19).
The Psalmist proclaimed, "You have given me the heritage of those who fear Your name". Fundamentally this heritage includes the truths we receive and then pass on to our own generation and the generations that follow. Right now all over the world those who fear His Name are transmitting the truth of this heritage while they live and even after they pass on.
The Psalmist proclaimed, "You have given me the heritage of those who fear Your name". Fundamentally this heritage includes the truths we receive and then pass on to our own generation and the generations that follow. Right now all over the world those who fear His Name are transmitting the truth of this heritage while they live and even after they pass on.
In the past the Bible
writers did so by writing down the Scriptures which are our
authority for life. However God has also used those
contemporaneous with us who call on the name of the Lord;
those who fear His Name by respecting His authority and
honoring Him with their lives. They have sought to pass on
that spiritual legacy to us. We received this heritage from
our parents, pastors, Sunday school teachers, a bold witness
at work and many, many others who have passed it on. In one
sense we continue to receive and should do so until God
calls us home.
But after we get saved we
are also called to pass a godly heritage on to others. Paul
had been a violent persecutor of the church but after his
marvelous conversion he developed the heritage of those who
fear God's name.
Paul surely had very little to live with,
particularly by our standards, but he had so much to live
for which is a much greater blessing. I purposefully
chose the last part of a Bible verse to highlight a simple
statement made by the apostle Paul, "That I might live
for God".
Paul surely had very little to live with,
particularly by our standards, but he had so much to live
for which is a much greater blessing. I purposefully
chose the last part of a Bible verse to highlight a simple
statement made by the apostle Paul, "That I might live
for God".He went on to write one of
the most memorized portions of Scripture, “I have been
crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ
lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith
in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me”
(Galatians 2:20).
Ask yourself today: What am I living for? Who am I living it for? That’s been the pattern for two thousand years and will most certainly continue until the trumpet sounds. One generation passing the faith on to the next. You’re reading this today and hopefully your faith is centered on Christ. Someone has passed this faith down to you. Are you now passing it on to others? Are you leaving a godly heritage to those who come behind you? That’s our call, “That I might live for God”.
Ask yourself today: What am I living for? Who am I living it for? That’s been the pattern for two thousand years and will most certainly continue until the trumpet sounds. One generation passing the faith on to the next. You’re reading this today and hopefully your faith is centered on Christ. Someone has passed this faith down to you. Are you now passing it on to others? Are you leaving a godly heritage to those who come behind you? That’s our call, “That I might live for God”.
Be
encouraged today, (Hebrews 3:13)
Stephen
& Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father, You have
called on us, Your children, to be
reliable in giving a solid witness of our
faith in You. We are to live godly lives
so that we faithfully model that which we
also teach to our children and all whom we
are privileged to influence. We realize
that there is no neutral position; we
either live for You or we live for
the world. Fix our eyes on Jesus as we
journey below so that we fulfill the
calling to be faithful and influence
others for the kingdom of God, whether in
life or in death. In Jesus’ name we pray.
Amen.
We had a much higher than normal amount of feedback from our message last Friday titled, "The Foolishness Of This Age". There's no shortage of examples of insane foolishness such as the new designation, "birthing parent" instead of mother. Consider this text, "they invent ways of doing evil" (see Romans 1:30). These attempts to alter language are a direct example of rebellion against God. The Scripture establishes marriage and family here: "That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh" (Genesis 2:24) and "Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living" (Genesis 3:20).
Daily
prayer: Father, You have
called on us, Your children, to be
reliable in giving a solid witness of our
faith in You. We are to live godly lives
so that we faithfully model that which we
also teach to our children and all whom we
are privileged to influence. We realize
that there is no neutral position; we
either live for You or we live for
the world. Fix our eyes on Jesus as we
journey below so that we fulfill the
calling to be faithful and influence
others for the kingdom of God, whether in
life or in death. In Jesus’ name we pray.
Amen.* “We’ve
given you so much to live with, but we
haven’t given you very much to live for.”
While acknowledging the overall value of
this statement and the importance of
passing on a godly heritage, each
individual and each generation ultimately
stands on the basis of his or her own
faith and obedience to God. I could see
some using this sentiment as an excuse to
blame the previous generation for their
problems. There are those who’ve had the
benefit of a godly heritage but choose to
walk away from it. There are others who
never had that benefit yet make a decision
to follow Christ and in their generation
build a godly heritage.
We had a much higher than normal amount of feedback from our message last Friday titled, "The Foolishness Of This Age". There's no shortage of examples of insane foolishness such as the new designation, "birthing parent" instead of mother. Consider this text, "they invent ways of doing evil" (see Romans 1:30). These attempts to alter language are a direct example of rebellion against God. The Scripture establishes marriage and family here: "That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh" (Genesis 2:24) and "Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living" (Genesis 3:20).
An Australian reader
wrote: The world is tired and
worn, we are waiting for the return
of the Lord. He said, "For as it
was in the days of Noah, so it
will be at the coming of the Son
of Man" (Matthew
24:37). I
think its fair to say those days are
here. I recall as a child 70s/80s
thinking the world isn't that bad I
hope Jesus doesn't return yet. Wow
when I look how degraded it has
become over the last 10 years I can
hardly believe it. The arrogance
with which these gender agendas are
being driven is mortifying. With
their own eyes they can see the
difference between male and female
yet they deny it! Utter insanity.
A Canadian reader
sent me an article about
gender-themed liturgies in her
former church, including a blessing
on gender transition. She informed
me that she had left this
denomination after witnessing its
drifting to liberalism and
non-Biblical teaching in the past 60
years.
Today's
Suggested
Music and Supplemental Resources
"Take
My Life and Let It Be" Video
Vineyard Music
"A
Thousand Hallelujahs" Video From
our church service yesterday at
Calvary Church
Brooksyne's
note: I raised my hands to the
Lord in worship yesterday morning as
we were singing the words of this
chorus:
A
thousand hallelujahs
God we lift unto Your Name
A thousand hallelujahs
God we lift up once again
All creation lifts its voice
Declaring 'til the end
Oh Lord, how great You are
The Spirit spoke to me
that I’ve not only sung “hallelujah”
possibly a thousand or more times, but
I’ve also lifted my hands in worship a
thousand or more times. As a child I’d
see adults raise their hands in
worship but was rather shy about that
as a child or youth until I attended
Youth Camp and witnessed hundreds of
teens worshiping the Lord with
upraised hands. It spurred me on to do
likewise and what joy there is in
practicing the verse: “Thy
lovingkindness is better than life.
My lips shall praise Thee, thus will
I bless Thee. I will lift up my
hands unto the Lord” (Psalm 63).
I quietly sang these words instead in
the first two lines, “A thousand hands
to You God, I lift them to Your name.”
God we lift unto Your Name
A thousand hallelujahs
God we lift up once again
All creation lifts its voice
Declaring 'til the end
Oh Lord, how great You are
"So
I Can Tell" Video
Cheri Keaggy
"Hymn
Of Heaven" Video
Phil
Wickham We have so enjoyed this
song and agree with this comment:
"Chills... even a little bit of tears,
thinking about standing beside the
heroes of faith, a thousand
generations, declaring Holy, Holy is
the Lord, along with the angels. I
know there won't be crying in the
Kingdom, but I bet for the first
10,000 years of eternity I will have
tears of joy."
Finally
today:
In our
Sunday School class yesterday we had a
humorous reminder of how limitations
in second language comprehension can
cause problems in communication. A
class member with limited English
answered a question our teacher asked.
He responded with a hearty "Right on!"
The limited English student was not
familiar with this expression. With a
baffled expression on her face she
looked around as if she had been
rebuked until the teacher, seeing her
consternation quickly clarified,
"You're correct"!
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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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