Repentance and Following GOD

I’ve caught up on my Bible readings, I usually read 4 chapters a day, 1 NT, 1 Proverbs, 1 Psalm & 1 OT; via Project345.com . But with the devotions I’ve been writing, I’ll start on a chapter and usually during the reading, I’ll get what I believe is to be my devotion, and I stop my daily reading and begin reading and researching on the scripture for my devotion. So today, I’ve caught up on Revelation 4-9 and 2 Kings 15-20, what I’ve noticed in both of these OT & NT readings, is repentance and following what GOD has instructed us. 

In 2 Kings, the Kings of Judah repeatedly had this said about them, “He did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight, just as his father, Amaziah, had done. But he did not destroy the pagan shrines, and the people still offered sacrifices and burned incense there.” (2 Kings 15:3-4 NLT).  Each one of these Kings continued to leave these pagan shrines up, kind of like, turning a blind eye to what the people were doing. Today’s thinking is, ‘If I don’t see what’s going on, it’s not really happening’. When we don’t listen to what GOD tells us we are sinning, in the case of the pagan shrines, GOD made it perfectly clear: “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. You must not have any other god but me. You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord you God, am a jealous god who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected- even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.” (Exodus 20:2-6 NLT)

“Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.” (James 4:17 NLT).  You see, by failing to remove the shrines, the Kings were passing their sins upon their children; these same children grew to be the Kings, and committed the same sins. Leaving these pagan shrines also opened the availability for sinning against GOD, a foothold that can become a stronghold of sin. In other words, this is the sin of rebellion, knowing what should be done, but refusing to do it; just like in the devotion I wrote yesterday about hardening your hearts.

Repentance is knowing you have sinned and then seeking forgiveness. The key to repentance is once you have confessed your sin; you must not continue to commit that same sin. Do you remember this example:  “ ’Teacher,’  they said to Jesus, ‘this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?’ They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, ‘All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!’ Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.  When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, ‘Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?’  ‘No, Lord,’ she said. And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I. Go and sin no more.’ “ (John 8:4-11 NLT).

The key to a truly repentant heart, is to NOT desire to sin again. Our flesh is weak, but our spirits are stronger, so we can overcome the sin, because “Greater is He who is in me, than he who is of this world.” (1 John 4:4b) and “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13 NKJV).  I’m not saying that if it’s a sin that has been in your life for years, that you would instantly be removed of that burden (although this is absolutely possible and has happened to many, many believers!). It’s the desire to sin no more, the desire to please GOD and truly be remorseful of that sin and continue trying to break free of that stronghold of sin. It’s a battle of faith and perseverance and one can be victorious over what once was a stronghold of sin. It can be turned into a stronghold of faith if one continues to cling to their faith and believe for freedom from that which bondaged them in sin.

In Revelations, I was reading about the events to come, great destruction will befall on the earth, people will see signs, wonders, and amazing destruction; but they will refuse to turn from their sins and acknowledge GOD as Lord. Why would they be so resistant to turn, because those sins have caused a stronghold in their lives, their hearts had hardened and they refused to believe or repent.  You can’t turn on the news today without seeing images and hearing stories about atrocities happening today, don’t you believe people’s hearts are being hardened, being de-sensitized to the human condition. We live in a world where GOD is being pushed out and flesh is being promoted, Christians are not the minority, but they are being treated as though they were. As an American we live in a country where we can still go to the church of our choosing, we can read our Bibles without fear, we can worship GOD and not be afraid of the consequences. But there are more countries in the world now, that don’t allow this worship, than countries that do allow this freedom.

Morals have been left behind, sins are not only being allowed, but are promoted in the name of progress. Some believers are trying to make areas that are black and white, gray, so they can fit into their lifestyle. Christians are not to judge, we are to encourage and love each other, we cannot condemn, but we cannot allow what we are taught in the Bible as a sin, to be accepted either. Does this mean we are to judge, yell, and scream at one another; no, we would be falling into the same category of the unbelievers, we cannot show love when we are condemning. Yet, we can say we do not agree with this or that, and if possible, vote or ban against. We must always use GOD’s word to be our conscience, the Holy Spirit lives inside us to guide us, but only if we will allow HIM to. Some believers have stopped listening to the Holy Spirit and started listening to the lies of the enemy, by trying to reason their way into believing what they want to, slowly hardening their hearts and stiffening their necks. But, if we keep our hearts tender and repentant we won’t allow a foothold to become a stronghold of the enemy.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving week is upon us, Thanksgiving is an American tradition where we acknowledge all that we’re thankful for.  It’s become a tradition that many people don’t realize that it was natural in the days of the Pilgrims to have a day of Thanksgiving after a harvest, it was a custom to give thanks to GOD for their blessings. So much was it custom for people to recognize where their bounty came from that during the Civil war, Abraham Lincoln instituted Thanksgiving as national holiday. Below is part of the Proclamation that President Lincoln wrote when he issued our national observation of Thanksgiving day:

"The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God…..

 No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union."

What I love about Thanksgiving, is so many people publicly acknowledge what they are thankful for, even on Facebook, people have been posting everyday a different reason for their thanks. Being thankful is so important, when we stop and give thanks we are no longer focusing on our problems, situations, issues or anything negative that we are experiencing. Instead our focus is now on, what we have received as a blessing, and when your focus is on the positive your heart is able to be enlarged.

When we give thanks, we allow our hearts to soften and not harden. If you’ve read my devotions before, you've read about the dangers of hardening your hearts.  I quoted my Pastor on my Facebook page, Stir Me Up Lord, ‎"When you have confidence in GOD, you focus on the potential and not the problem". When we focus on GOD; our thanksgiving will increase, when we acknowledge GOD as our source, when we give HIM all the praise and thanksgiving that HE deserves, that’s how and when everything falls into place. I love the Message translation of 2 Corinthians 9:8-9, “God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you’re ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done. As one psalmist puts it, He throws caution to the winds, giving to the needy in reckless abandon. His right-living, right-giving ways never run out, never wear out.”

“Let them praise the Lord for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them. Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving and sing joyfully about his glorious acts.” (Psalm 107:21-22 NLT).Here the Bible tells us to offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, a sacrifice means giving up something of value. The ‘value’ means that our thanksgiving is of ‘value’ to HIM. The fact that we are ‘giving up’ something is the part where it’s not easy on our part, which makes it all the more valuable to GOD. When we stop and give thanks to GOD, we are acknowledging HIM, we are putting our focus on HIM, and we are giving our time to HIM.  

When our hearts are hardened we are no longer able to give thanks, we begin to have the mindset that everything we have is of our own merit and our own hard work.  Our focus is negative, unable to see the light in any situation. We begin to become callous and stiff, unable to see the good, instead we start focusing on the bad and develop a poor attitude towards life and everyone around. We think we are owed; that we deserve this or that, to the point where giving anything, much less offering thanks becomes almost impossible.

There is only one incurable condition in the whole Bible; that is the heart that has become so hardened that it will no longer listen, it is full of rebellion, stubbornness, and self-righteousness. Pharaoh was a good example of a man so full of himself and his pride; he refused to listen to any wisdom or counsel. How many plagues were set upon Egypt and he kept his heart hardened, Exodus 8:15 “But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not heed them, as the Lord had said.” Each time a plague was delivered, Pharaoh would tell Moses that he would let his people go if GOD would stop the plague, GOD would end the plague and Pharaoh would forget the ‘source’ of his relief and go back on his word. Pharaoh was seeing miracles, he would even admit that the events were from GOD himself, and yet he would stiffen his neck, rebel against all that he saw and believed, yet still he refused to obey GOD.  This constant hardening of his heart, led to Pharaoh’s destruction, “He who is often rebuked, and hardens his neck, will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.” (Proverbs 29:1 NKJV)

The key to being tenderhearted is thanksgiving, if we are continually thanking GOD we are keeping our hearts pliable, moldable, and we are able to enlarge our hearts for GOD.   “Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name.” (Hebrews 13:15) I’ve written before on this verse and the act of sacrifice, but right now I just want to point out that we are to ‘continually’ offer thanksgiving of praise to GOD.  Continually, means we are always offering thanksgiving, not just once a year, or even just at meal times (saying grace).

A good start to continually giving thanksgiving, is to practice this, Psalm 119:164 (MSG), “Seven times each day I stop and shout praises for the way you keep everything running right.”  My pastor’s wife, said when she started doing this, at first it wasn’t natural to her to do this seven times a day, but after a while it became habit and just second nature for her.  Today is my first day to undertake this task, they say after 21 days most people are able to form a habit from a routine, so hopefully I will be posting that in 21 days the results of my new ‘habit’. If you are not in the habit of always thanking GOD (not just when things are going right, but during the typical day to day activities, and even the tougher times), would you consider joining me in giving thanksgiving to the Lord seven times a day?