Know this...

"Know therefore today, and take it to your heart, that the LORD, He is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other."--Deuteronomy 4:39.  Moses, after repeating everything that God has done up to this point concludes his statements with the fact that Jehovah (Yahweh) is God and that there is no other.

Know this.  In yesterday mornings blog we looked at God's power as seen in the Scriptures and as seen through creation today.  How can we take all that and not know without a doubt that the Lord is God?

Take a brief moment to consider all the world religions.  Outside of Christianity, there is not a one that has a god that can secure for us eternal life the way the Lord can through His Son Jesus Christ. Know that the Lord, He is God.

Know this.  In yesterday's blog we took a look at God's power through the Scriptures.  How can we look at all that God has done when no other god could and not know that there is a God?

When we look at the Scriptures, what other god had the power to raise the dead so that others might be saved as with Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection? Cf. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4.  Know therefore today, and take it to your heart that the Lord, He is God.

Yesterday we also took a look at God's power through the creation.  What god is there that has the power to create such majesty and glory in that which is created such as in the image below?  Know therefore today, and take it to your heart that the Lord, He is God.

  

Romans 1:19 tells us "Because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God has made it evident to then.  For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse."  The fact is there is no excuse to believe there is no God because evidence of Him is seen all around us.  

Know this.  My encouragement to you today is this.  If you know someone that has been doubting the existence of God, consider describing to them how evidence of God can be seen through what has been created.  If you are reading this and you are doubting the existence of God, take a look at the natural beauty around you and how intricately designed it is.  The evidence of God is there.  

KNOW THEREFORE TODAY, AND TAKE IT TO YOUR HEART, THAT THE LORD, HE IS GOD IN HEAVEN ABOVE AND ON THE EARTH BELOW.  

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!   

Opportunity is knocking...

"When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.  He opened His mouth and began to teach them...-Matthew 5:1-2.  Here we find the opening to what has been called the greatest sermon ever preached, the Sermon on the Mount. This is the first recorded sermon we have from Jesus Himself.  At this point in His ministry, we find in Matthew 4:23-25 that Jesus was teaching and healing all kinds of diseases and ailments causing people from everywhere to follow Him.  Jesus uses this opportunity to teach the people and preach this great sermon. To put it simply Jesus took full advantage when opportunity came knocking.

Opportunity is knocking.  Look at the image below.  For those of us who are a little bit older, the scene in the image is probably a familiar one.  But in case you don't recognize it, the scene is from the movie Forrest Gump.  At this point in the movie, Forrest Gump played by Tom Hanks had gone for a run but he didn't stop. He just kept running and got to looking the way he does in the picture below.  But also notice the crowd in the background.  Some people for their own reasons looked up to what he was doing.  As Forrest puts it in the movie, he was just running and doing his thing but he developed a following until he stopped running and decides to finally return home.  So before I get too far in to this, please know that I am NOT by any means comparing Forrest Gump to Jesus but I am simply using this to show that sometimes we too will just be doing what we think we need to do and before we know it, people are following us.  If this happened to us, what would we do with the opportunity when it comes knocking?

Opportunity is knocking.  Jesus had developed quite the following because of what He was doing, accomplishing what He knew He needed to do in an effort to accomplish the will of the Father.  Also, I am willing to bet the crowd far exceeded the size of the crowd we see in the image.  As opposed to just going ahead of the crowd and moving on to the next town, Jesus stops.  He sits down on the mountain pictured below, the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus is believed to have delivered this sermon, opens His mouth and begins to teach.  Jesus knew He had a following and was not about to let this opportunity escape Him.

Opportunity is knocking.  As a Christian, no doubt you have some pretty special relationships with a lot of people.  You may have people that look up to your example.  Whether you realize it or not, you do have a following.  You may not have a following like Jesus did in this passage.  You may not even have a following that is the size of the crowd that followed Forrest Gump but realize that you do have a following.  If there is one thing I have learned in my walk with Christ it is that whether I realize it or not, people are watching me. I am aware of some of these people but I always have in mind that there could be those that I am unaware of that are also watching me.  But something I ask myself and sometimes fail at is what will I do with this opportunity and the special relationship I have with these people?  One reason I know I have a following is because of you the reader.  This month alone almost 500 people or more have read this blog.  Since January, the number is nearing 3000.  This makes me realize that I have had the privilege and the opportunity to spread God's word and the gospel message to almost 3000 souls.  People have encouraged and critiqued me but one thing that keeps me going through it all is you, my wonderful readers because you are encouraging me and helping me do what the Lord has called us all to do, and that is to teach per Matthew 28:18-20.       

Opportunity is knocking.  Jesus was not about to neglect the crowds that were following Him.  Whether we realize it or not, we always have the opportunity to teach people.  Take a look at how many Facebook friends you have.  No matter what the number is those are souls that you can teach.  How many members are at your congregation?  No matter what the number, whether it's 15 like a crowd at a congregation I visited recently or 300 which is about the size of my home congregation here in Denver, the Bear Valley Church of Christ.  Whatever the number of your congregation, that number is the souls you have the God given power to reach.  

Opportunity is knocking.  So given that Christ took full advantage of the opportunity He had, we too must follow the example and make an effort to teach the crowds that surround us, whether it's at our church or the crowds we find ourselves in out there in the world.  Included in this could also be our own families.  You are blessed if your whole family are members of the the Lord's church but with most families including mine, this is not the case.  

Opportunity is knocking.  My encouragement to you tonight is this.  Take some time to think of the people that you know, whether they are Christians or not, go out of your way to teach them in some way if they are Christians and if they are not, talk to them about God in some form or fashion even if it means sitting down and studying the Bible with them.  Earlier this evening, me and my friend Rachel were talking about the fact that we as Christians tend to keep God's love to ourselves as opposed to sharing it with people that need it like Christ has called us to do.  Let's make it a point to be more proactive about teaching people about God both in word and deed.  And if you are reading this and need to come back to God or if you have been contemplating obeying the gospel, your opportunity is knocking.  Will you answer the door?  

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!      

Nothing like it...

"Indeed, ask now concerning the former days which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and inquire from one end of the heavens to the other.  Has anything been done like this great thing, or has anything been heard like it?"--Deuteronomy 4:32.  At this point in time, Israel had seen God's power at work time and time again.  They had seen His power to save and His power to destroy.  God was the power behind it all.  And when it comes to God's power, there is nothing like it.

Nothing like it.  As we read from Genesis and through the pages of the Old Testament, we see God's power at work constantly.  The very first sentence of the Bible tells us that God has the power to create.  He has the power to give life.  He has the power to take life.  In Genesis 6, we see God's control over nature.  And as we read further in to the Old Testament we see God's power over what seems to be like insurmountable odds and we even see God's power over childbirth when He allows otherwise barren women to bear children.

In today's blog, we are going to take a look at God's power and that when we look at God's power, there is in fact nothing like it.

Nothing like it.  I am blessed to live in the great state of Colorado.  I have enjoyed living here because I have the privilege of seeing the results of God's power in the beautiful Rocky Mountains that surround me.  Above is a shot from Lookout Mountain outside of Golden, Colorado.  Below is a shot I took when I was traveling back here to Denver after visiting my family back in California. I don't think we can look at something as beautiful as that and suggest that it just got there by chance.

What about the image below? Can we honestly say that the life we see below would form into a human being simply by chance? No, God's power is at work in the smallest and in the grandest of ways. 

God has the power to work in everything we see around us and in every area of our lives.  As we get into the New Testament, we see another instance of God's power and that is His power to save us from our sins and that power is demonstrated in the image below. 

Throughout the pages of Scripture God has demonstrated His power to show us that He really is the one and only Almighty God.  But it was in Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection that demonstrated God's power to destroy even the very sin in our lives.  1 Corinthians 15:3-4 gives us the fundamental facts of the gospel message, the good news that Jesus Christ came to save us from our sins through His death, burial, and resurrection.  And friends, there is absolutely nothing else like this power that God has to give us a chance at eternal life.  Paul tells us plainly in Romans 1:16--"I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the POWER of God for salvation to everyone who believes..." If we believe and obey the gospel, then God's power can save us from our sins if we make a choice to commit our lives to Him.  

God's power.  There is nothing like it.  My encouragement to you is this.  Next chance you have take some time to go out for a hike or if you live in a coastal area take some time to go to the beach and consider how God's power created the beautiful scenery around you.  Below is a shot I took from when I lived in California and went to the beach.  Just another instance of God's power shown through His creation. 

So I hope this has served as just a simple reminder that there is nothing quite like God's power.  Nothing that man can do or create will ever measure up to the awesomeness of God's power.  The list of how God's power works is not limited to what we have looked at.  Take some time also to write down some other ways God's power is demonstrated in what we see around us.  Why? Because when it comes to God's power, there is nothing like it. 

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS! 

Called...

"Going on from there He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and He called them.  Immediately they left the boat and their father."--Matthew 4:21-22.  Jesus, at the beginning of His ministry calls James and John who would also become apostles.  I find it interesting here that we are not told what was said.  All we know is that James and John left everything they knew simply because they were called. 

Called.  I am willing to bet that there have been times in your life where you have had to drop everything in order to tend to something that was far more important.  Maybe it was having to change your plans because a friend needed help.  Maybe it was something as simple as having to change your plans because you got called into work earlier than scheduled.  As far as myself, my latest example was just this last weekend.  I had planned on going hiking to relieve some stress but my roommate, Ethan, was sick and needed to go to the doctor so we ended up spending all of last Saturday morning at the local Urgent Care followed by going to pick up his prescription.  By the time that was all done, it was too hot to go for a hike and I still had homework to do.  It was on this day that I was called to serve. 

But the story does not end there. In my being called to serve, two very cool things happened.  What I did not know was that through dropping my plans, I would find myself in the process of setting up two possible Bible studies.  One was with a man I met at the doctor's office and the other with the girl who cut my hair that afternoon.  This was all because I was called. 

I bring this all out because whether we realize it or not, as Christians we have been called.  God has called us to something bigger and better than we have ever imagined. 

Called.  Put yourself in the shoes (or sandals :-) ) of James and John.  We are not told in this text what Jesus said to them except that He called them.  But regardless, they dropped everything and followed Jesus.  It is highly unlikely that they knew what they were getting themselves into. They may not have known they would end up spending the next three years of their lives with Jesus.  They may not have known that they would end up being two of twelve individuals who would be responsible for sharing the gospel message with the entire known world.  But whatever they did or did not know, they knew what they were being called to was far more important than spending the rest of their lives as fishermen.  They were called. 

Called.  I don't know where you were in your life when you became a Christian.  Maybe you were fortunate enough to grow up in the Lord's church.  But maybe you are like me who did not come to an obedience of the gospel until later in your life.  Either way though, when you made the greatest decision that one person could ever make, what was your feeling? The last person that I witnessed get baptized into Christ, Lily, described her feeling simply as "overjoyed." Me, I was excited but I knew my life was changing forever.  I found myself changing in ways that I had never previously imagined.  I quite literally began to hate the life that I was living because I knew it wasn't pleasing God.  I wish I could say I changed my lifestyle overnight but even though I had been baptized, it took me three years to really turn my life around and give it over completely to God.  But looking back, I might do things a little differently but I would not change one thing about my experiences.  But at the end of the day, everything that has happened to me since has happened because I was called.  

Called.  Again I ask, what was your feeling before you gave your life over to Christ?  Were you overjoyed? Scared maybe in knowing that you would have to change some things in your life or that it might mean you would have to sever previous relationships?  Look at James and John.  They did not only leave behind their profession but their very father.  I know from personal experience how hard both of these are.  Prior to my moving out to Colorado, I left behind my ability to find a secular job with my Business Management degree but I also left a very sick father who went on to his reward this last December.  I am thankful I was able to be by his side though when he was taking his last breaths.  I did all this because I was called to devote my life to the Lord's service beginning here at the Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver.  Since then, I have had some of the best experiences I could ever ask for and God has opened so many doors of opportunity for me to continue to do His work full time. And this all because I was called. 

Called.  So as I have already mentioned, as a Christian you too have been called.  I am not saying you necessarily have to give up your job and leave your family behind to go do the Lord's work.  All I am saying is that all of us including you and me have been called to a task to do the Lord's work whether it's at home, the workplace, or out in the mission fields, at home or overseas.  We all have been called. 

Called.  So my encouragement to you tonight is this.  Consider James and John who dropped everything to follow Jesus.  First, take some time to write down some of the experiences you have had since giving your life to Christ that you may not have had otherwise.  Secondly, take some time off, whatever you can do to get more involved with some aspect of the Lord's work even if it is taking a short term mission trip.  

The bottom line is that we have been called.  We have been called by Jesus. Will we be like James and John who immediately left everything to follow Jesus? 

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!  

A God of compassion...

"For the Lord your God is a compassionate God; He will not fail you nor destroy you nor forget the covenant with your fathers which He swore to them."--Deuteronomy 4:29.  Here we find Moses reminding the people that god is a compassionate God and will relieve them from their distress if they would simply remain faithful to Him.  We find here that our God is a God of compassion.

A God of compassion.  God is a God of compassion.  He comes to our aid in our distress.  I think this is most exemplified in the shortest verse of the Bible which is found in the New Testament, John 11:35--Jesus wept.

A God of compassion.  It is the most comforting thing to know that the Creator of this whole universe cares about each and every individual.  This is evident in God's desire to bring His people out of Egypt and into the Promised Land.

A God of compassion.  Further evidence of God's compassion is found in 2 Peter 3:9 where we are told that God is not wishing for any to perish but for ALL to come to repentance. Because of His promises, God wishes for all to come to repentance.

Our God is a God of compassion.  He will keep to the promise He has made.  All He asks is that we remain faithful to Him by keeping His commands as given by Jesus and the apostles.

A God of compassion.  Ultimately though, God's compassion was demonstrated through the cross on which our Savior died giving us hope to spend eternity with Him if we would just remain faithful to Him.

So if their is some sin in your life that you need forgiveness for, realize that God is a God of compassion and He is always willing to forgive WHATEVER sin that might be.   There is no unforgivable sin.  I just want to leave you with the reminder that our God is a God of compassion and wishes for all to come to repentance and to an obedience of the gospel of His Son Jesus Christ.

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!

Seeking...

"But from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul."--Deuteronomy 4:29.  In the context, Moses is still urging Israel to keep the law of God when they go into the Promised Land.  He tells them what will happen if they go into idolatry.  Terrible things would happen but it is from there that the people would go back to seeking the Lord with all their heart and soul.

Seeking.  Have you ever wanted something so bad that you would do just about anything to get it? Has there ever been a time where you just needed to know something because something has happened and you needed answers?  To be this determined usually requires something pretty drastic to happen.  Before we get in to exploring this verse, this was much of the reason I wound up here in Colorado.  Back in California, there was a lot of negative things going on around me.  I was having problems in my ministry and at my job.  I had some financial troubles and to top it all off I had a very sick dad that was creating a lot of tension in my family.  Bottom line is I found myself in a negative atmosphere and I began to ask myself if this is what God really wanted for me, for me to stay and tough this situation out.  In my search for answers, I explored the opportunity to come to the Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver.  Six months before completing my college degree, I jumped on the website (that you can visit by clicking the highlighted link), and I realized I had no reason not to come.  Despite the frustrations, I could no longer ignore the fact that ministry is what God wanted me to do.  I was looking for answers and through a series of negative circumstances, God provided them.  I was seeking.

Seeking.   It is unfortunately that negative circumstances would cause Israel to seek after God through a negative series of circumstances.  Much of these, if not all of these would be of their own making and could have been avoided by obeying but this still prompted them to seek after God.

Sometimes circumstances are beyond our control and not always our fault.  Most other times though the negative circumstances around us are of our own making.  Most of the time getting out of these circumstances requires us to look for something "beyond ourselves." The sad thing is that some people will turn to drugs or alcohol which bring temporary relief.  However, there are those that realize the only person they really have to turn to is God so they start seeking.

The encouragement I would like to give you is simply this.  If you are going through a rough time, seek after God with all your heart and soul especially through prayer.  Luke 11:9 tells us that if we seek, we will find.  This chapter is talking about prayer and being persistent in prayer.

Furthermore though we must remember that there are people out there that still need to obey the gospel.  Many of those people are ready to do so but they are seeking for someone to help them realize it.  This is where you and I come in.  A lot of these people are in circumstances they don't think they can get out of.  It is up to us to help them out of those circumstances beginning with bringing them to an obedience of the gospel.  I know it's easier said than done but it's not impossible.

So if you know someone who is seeking, go to that person and help them find God and His Son, our Savior Jesus Christ.  But if you are reading this and you are the one seeking, feel free to email me at davidmalleyg@gmail.com and I would be happy to help answer any questions you may have about God, His Son Jesus or what it means to obey the gospel.

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!

Fishing...

"Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.  And He said to them, 'Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men.'"--Matthew 4:18-19.  At this point we are still in the opening stages of Jesus' ministry.  In Matthew 4:18-22, Jesus selects His first disciples.  The first two were Peter and Andrew.  We will look at the other two in my next blog.  But as we have read in Matthew 4:18-19, Jesus selects Peter and Andrew.  These two men were already fishing but Jesus tells them to follow Him.  Their response? Well Matthew 4:19 tells us that they immediately left their nets and followed Jesus.  They followed Jesus to go fishing for men. 

Fishing.  It's kind of funny this is the subject of tonight's blog because no more than 36 hours ago, I was invited by my good friend and brother in Christ Dustin Campbell to go fishing this weekend.  For actual fish though, not for men :-).  Unfortunately I had to decline because I already had prior plans to go hiking with another friend of mine Nolan and his wife.  It was right when I began to write that I remembered this actually happened.  So this is why I think it is really cool that Jesus essentially invited Peter and Andrew to go fishing.  The difference of course is that Peter and Andrew would no longer be fishing for fish but they would be fishing for men. I will come back to the illustration I gave in just a moment.

But my question for you tonight is quite simple.  When is the last time you went fishing for men?  To lay a little groundwork something we have to understand is that fishing for fish is all Peter and Andrew really knew but when Jesus said for them to follow Him, it does not seem that they even gave following Jesus a second thought so they left their fishing nets and followed Him.  But why? The text doesn't give us specifics but whatever the case was, they knew Jesus had something bigger and grander to offer. And Jesus did.  Peter and Andrew would be selected as two of the twelve apostles in Matthew 10:1-4.  

So again I ask when is the last time you went fishing, fishing for men? We see that Peter and Andrew did not think twice about responding to Jesus' "invitation to go fishing." Something we have to realize is that as Christians our invitation to go fishing for men is a standing invitation.  How will we respond to it?  Going fishing for men is a command we find (though not in those words) in Matthew 28:18-20.  However, it is also an invitation in the fact that Jesus gives us the choice whether not we follow this command.  

Fishing.  Let me return to the illustration I gave at the beginning.  Me and Nolan had to turn down the invitation we received to go fishing because we had other plans.  Now let's carry that over into yours and my walk with Christ.  A lot of the time people will turn down the command to go fishing for men because they too "have other plans."  For example, in Matthew 8:18-22, one man CHOOSES not to follow Jesus because he had to go "bury his father." Now the language of this to us would suggest his father was actually dead but this man's father was simply very sick but not dead so Jesus rebukes the man by telling him to let the dead (spiritually dead) bury their own dead.  I can relate to this circumstance because this very same situation was something I wrestled with prior to coming to school here at the Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver a year ago.  However, I knew that this is where Jesus wanted me to be to better equip me to be a fisher of men.  that being said, I decided to follow Him. My dad did pass away though at the end of my first semester but God was gracious enough to allow me to return home to California to say good bye and bury my father.  I am forever thankful for that. 

Returning to the subject though, I ask again when is the last time you went fishing for men?  Me and Nolan turned Dustin down to go fishing due to other plans.  However, when it comes to fishing for men, what excuse do we have not to accept the invitation to go fishing for men from Christ Himself?  Other plans? Got too much homework?  Not enough time? You don't think you can do it? (Place Excuse here)? Excuses there is thousands.  But when we look at the Scriptures, I think one thing we quickly realize is that there is no room for excuses.  Christ has given every single one of us Christians a job to do and He expects us to do everything we can to get the job done.  Think of it this way, if you work a job or are in school, you know you won't keep your job or stay in school if you don't get the job done or make the grade.  There is no excuse. 

Fishing.  So when it comes to fishing for men, my encouragement to you in two words is this GO FISHING! Go fishing by getting past any fear you might have of simply inviting your neighbor to church services.  Go fishing by teaching a Bible class or even preaching a sermon.  Shoot, we can go fishing by posting things of God on our Facebook walls or by writing a blog such as this one.  Christ has given us the fishing rod, bait and tackle.  He has given us all our equipment with His Word and fellow Christians to help us along.  So now the only thing left to do is to GO FISHING! 

So in closing, I want to ask you the same question that was asked of me and Nolan yesterday. Want to go fishing? But of course here I mean it in the way Christ did to GO FISHING for men.

GO FISHING! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!