LORD, I RECEIVE

Luke 1:38- And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

 

To me the verse above is one of the most profound verses in the Scriptures.  Mary agreed to conceive our Lord and Savior.  This humble virtuous woman opened herself to be a vessel used by God.  Blessed and highly favored, Mary took her position as another of the Bible’s characters to be instrumental in bringing salvation to man.  How sad it is that Mary is worshipped as a deity when she should be viewed as a vessel who received the Will of God for her life.  Mary, like each and everyone of us, needed the Word of God.    

 

Mary received God’s spoken Word, and then conceived the Word (John 1:1)!  At the cost of losing her soon to be husband, being stoned to death, remembered to be a disgraced to her family, and the pains and suffering of child birth, Mary received God’s Will even at her own peril.

 

When it comes to doing God’s Will, spend no time thinking of your own fleshly desires and goals.  Let pleasing God be the zenith of your life’s worth.  And although your flesh will not agree with the Word of the Lord say this, “…Be it unto me according to thy Word.”    

ONLY BELIEVE

Luke 1:20- And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.

In the portion of Scripture above we find Gabriel speaking to Zacharias, the soon to be father of John the Baptist.  How sad it was for Zacharias not to believe that God could do the same for him as He did to Abraham in the Old Testament.  Even though he and his wife were old, God choose them to conceive the last prophet of the Old Testament (Luke 16:16). His unbelief cost him nine months of silent.  If he had only believed, he would not have suffered such a stern rebuke and consequence.

It is impossible for the unaided human mind to see the impossible becoming possible.  Without faith, our eyes will continue to see things staying as they are: without any change.  Concerning faith, we have become our own worst enemy.  Unless we believe God, we will suffer stern rebukes and consequences for unbelief.  It may appear as though change will never come, but believe God in spite of what your mind thinks or eyes see.  “For with God nothing shall be impossible” (Luke 1:37).

THE BEST IS IN YOU

John 1:46- “…Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth”? Nazareth was a secluded and obscure place disliked by the Jews and Romans alike in biblical times. Equivalent to certain neighborhoods in our own day that we do our best to avoid, Nazareth was thought to be an unproductive place. A place we know exists, but if it disappeared no one would care. Nathanael found it difficult to believe that it could produce anyone of value to society and definitely not a savior. Finite thinking believes everyone is shaped by the environment they live in. Thank God that His ways and thoughts are far beyond us mortals.

Even in the darkest of times of our lives, something good can be produced out of us. Our environment should not dictate the outcome of our future; rather, we should positively affect our environment. More importantly, it is typical of God to bring goodness out of where man is greatly inclined to believe that it cannot be done. So if our Savior lived in a place which was greatly despised by most of the world—but provided salvation to all of the world, cannot we with Christ in us bring forth the best from an unwanted place (Rom. 8:28)?

LORD, STRENGTHEN MY HEART

For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things (I John 3:20).  

 

As powerful as a condemner the heart is, God is able to free the prisoner from its grip.  For with God nothing shall be impossible (Luke 1:37).  As strong as the heart is, the power of the Holy Spirit is greater.  He empowers our spirit, which gives us stamina and fortitude.  The Lord steps in and helps us overcome the overpowering affect of our conscience. So when pain makes an attempt to take our heart by force, Christ in us will prove that He is mightier!

  

When we have a hurting or broken heart, there is only one quick fix, a Word from the Lord.  This is why it is necessary to be able to navigate your way through the Bible in a way that speaks directly to your needs.  A topical book, also, is helpful.

 

If you are experiencing misery in your heart, remember how David regained his.  Ask God to strengthen your heart.  Keep in mind that you must do your part: Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD (Ps 31:24)

THE SOUL’S RESTING PLACE

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble (Ps 46:1).


In the Old Testament, a place of refuge was a designated place where a person that accidentally killed someone could go to escape the possible revenge of the family of the one he killed (Num. 35:6, 10-27).  Once in this place, an avenger could not touch the manslayer until a trial was set and the evidence weighed.  Once the facts were viewed a decision is made.  If the person was killed by accident, then the slayer would be found innocent.  However if this is not the case, the murderer would be release to the avenger(s) for street justice.  These cities of refuge were spread out around Israel. 

 

David was accustomed to running for his life from his enemies.  Because he did not kill anyone the times he fled, he could not seek to find peace in a city of refuge.  David was being pursued without justifiable cause.  He did manage to find refuge, but not in a conventional place.  Rather, David found a place of refuge in the loving arms of God.  In the Lord David found the peace he needed.    

 

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust (Ps 91:1-2).  There is no better resting place then the arms of our loving savior.  God will give our souls a much need rest from all the foolishness and the mundanity of life, for He restoreth our souls (Ps. 23:3).  Let us go to the Lord for rest; we will find Him to be very accommodating.

SOMETHING GREATER IS HAPPENING

And when the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren. - Genesis 29: 31

 

Our insecurities are in the areas that we feel the most vulnerable in.  Those who say they don’t have any are presently unaware of them, or they are hiding them.  The confident ones, falsely so-called, are to egotistically proud and prideful to admit to having insecurities.  But I speak to those believers who want to keep it real: expose your insecurities and have faith and trust God to help you overcome them.

When God is first, He always brings the best out of a crisis.  There are gifts and talents in you and me waiting to be discovered.  If we would allow God’s Word to work in us, we will give birth to the greatness inside of us.  Let us not despise our tests, trials, or tribulations we are experiencing, for after them is the divine purpose for which they were intended to bring forth.  That’s right.  Something greater is happening!

The Best Investment

I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. - Psalms 34:1

The time invested in things to enhance one’s walk with God is time well spent.  They are investments for which the investor shall receive handsome returns.  And the more rigid one is about their personal time with God, the better.  The investment may not look like much in the beginning, but over the long term one can live off the interest if they keep an interest.

Time spent reading the Word of God, praying, fasting, worshipping, praising, meditating, etc… are moments in time in which we are making deposits.  Just like balancing our checking or savings account, every second of our day must be accounted for.  Our prayers will be heard, if we are investing time in the Word of God to know His Will.  Have you made a deposit today?  

Notes from Sunday service.

Pastor Troy V. Ingram

2 Chronicles: 14

Subject: The fear of the Lord

Thought : how much do I value Gods Word?

Challenge: To know what God is saying to me at all times.

Seek, in the Greek translation: to earnestly pursue, to diligently look, to sincerely search for.

• God will not bless you if your only HALF interested. He wants you to be totally into him.

• God does not want us to be worldly minded.

• God won’t bless those with the wrong motivation.

God’s Word reveals his will. You can’t know God and what he’s saying unless you get in his Word.

If you don’t utilize your time and devote yourself to seeking God, you will not grow in God. You will not be able to learn who God is and what his will is for your life.

God is not near, he’s here! He makes the impossible, possible! All we need to do is obey the Lord and seek him in his Word.

2 Chronicles 14:7 - Let us build- you don’t stop because things are quite, or goof for the time being. That is the time to work! That is the time to build prepare and save! - A watchman needs to alway be alert.

Don’t become complacent less you miss out on the greater things that God can do.

2 Chronicles 14: 7 -So they build and prospered.-

2 Chronicles 14:11 - King Asa called upon the Lord for deliverance. The Lord responded by smiting the Ethiopians.

Seek the Lord and you will find him.

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