Fw: three sacrifices

There are three kinds of sacrifice made on our behalf and there are three kinds of sacrifice that we make for others. Some sacrifices are from fruit, some are from the routine of life and some are ultimate sacrifices, made once through death.  Think of three kinds of natural clothing materials: cotton, wool and leather.  Cotton is the fruit of a living plant, wool is from the seasonal shearing of sheep and leather is the product of a slaughtered animal's skin.  Each is fashioned into a covering but they come from different sources, have different qualities and reflect different costs.

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When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, God slew an animal to make skins to cover them.  When Jesus died on the Cross his physical life became the sacrifice that still covers the believer today.  As we live out our lives there is material that comes from the routine of our days that can become refreshing cover for others.  As we invest ourselves in good works of service there will be fruit that also provides a cover for others' needs.  And as our energy fades and we eventually pass to the next dimension of life eternal...we can look back at the sum of our lives for the cover...the shelter...the refuge...the comfort we experienced from the living God and then shared with others.

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From the routine, from the fruit, from the very life...coverings of love.

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Genesis 1:21 And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

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"Death is inevitable.  Life is a choice!"

John 11:25

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live."

Fw: Three characters

Psalm 28:

7 The Lord is my strength and my shield;
    in him my heart trusts, and I am helped;
my heart exults,
    and with my song I give thanks to him.

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The Psalms, at least the first 28 Psalms, seem to have three main characters that show in each one: the writer, who is in need of deliverance, protection, comfort, and provision.....the enemy and the evil ones who seek to harm the writer and/or to bend circumstances and the lives of others to their own self-centered purposes...and God, who alone resolves evil, provides protection and all that the writer needs.  Perhaps that is the essential drama that each of us face.  We may be the writer, who seeks to follow and trust in God...or perhaps we are the enemy, who has no regard for God and lives for self.

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But, whether we are writer or the enemy we are certainly not God.  Our choice is either to bow before and trust Him...or ignore His mighty power and presence for the few years we walk the planet, only to face Him eventually.  We are either for Him or we are against Him and our choice will make all the difference...the wonder is that the enemy can be changed to become the writer and the song that David writes of above and the heart that is full can be a heart that has been changed from one to the other.

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Only God can transform the heart.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

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"Death is inevitable.  Life is a choice!"

John 11:25

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live."

Fw: Waiting and keeping

Psalm 25 has a lot to say about 'waiting and keeping'.  It seems that waiting for the Lord means that if we trust Him to help, to guide, and to deliver and patiently expect Him to show up...He will not only meet the pressing need we feel, He will guide us into His paths...His ways:

-WAITING

Psalm 25:3 Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame;
    they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.

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5 Lead me in your truth and teach me,
    for you are the God of my salvation;
    for you I wait all the day long.

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21 May integrity and uprightness preserve me,
    for I wait for you.

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KEEPING

10 All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness,
    for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.

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Waiting leads to keeping when we wait for Him!

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blessings,

Rob Smith

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"Death is inevitable.  Life is a choice!"

John 11:25

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live."

Fw: the suffering savior

Psalm 22 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

    Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?

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(fulfilled) Matthew 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" that is, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

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Psalm 22, written about 1000 years before the time of Christ, by David, seems a clear foretelling of Jesus' suffering on the Cross for you and me.  The words and the picture painted by them is too similar to be a coincidence.  Here are a few other passages from the psalm with their fulfillment from the gospels:

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8 "He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him;
    let him rescue him, for he delights in him!"

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(fulfilled) Matthew 27:42 "He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, 'I am the Son of God.'"

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Psalm 22:

16 For dogs encompass me;
    a company of evildoers encircles me;
they have pierced my hands and feet—

18 they divide my garments among them,
    and for my clothing they cast lots.

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(fulfilled) Mark 15: 24 And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take.

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Psalm 22:27 All the ends of the earth shall remember
    and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
    shall worship before you.
28 For kingship belongs to the Lord,
    and he rules over the nations.

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Has this been fulfilled yet in your life?  Have you recognized the One who suffered on the Cross for you.  He saw the coming suffering long before He experienced it and He sees you also.  Now is the time to accept His sacrifice on your behalf that you might join with the "families of the nations" who worship before him.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

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"Death is inevitable.  Life is a choice!"

John 11:25

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live."

Fw: universal language

Psalm 19 The heavens declare the glory of God,

    and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
    and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
    whose voice is not heard.
4 Their voice goes out through all the earth,
    and their words to the end of the world.

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If you think about it, God is almost shouting at us every day through His creation!  Think about the appearance of Mars or the surface of the moon (which God also made) and then think about Earth.  We have a blue sky to look up to and not the blackness of space.  We have lush and infinitely varied plants and trees that adorn the land.  Innumerable species of creatures ranging from the microscopic to the magnificent crawl, wiggle, trot, climb and roam about. Vast oceans provide moisture for a temperate atmosphere to support our lives and separate land from land to provide ages of exploration and formation of civilization.  In man He has fashioned a creature in His own image...who feels deeply, thinks creatively and can choose to act with or without wisdom.  And because He has made all this we ought to pay attention to His words (also from Psalm 19):

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7 The law of the Lord is perfect,
    reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure,
    making wise the simple;
8 the precepts of the Lord are right,
    rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure,
    enlightening the eyes;

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His Creation is the context for His words and.....

Psalm 19: 10 More to be desired are they than gold,
    even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey
    and drippings of the honeycomb.
11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
    in keeping them there is great reward.

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As precious and amazing as Creation is...God's word is even more desirable!

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blessings,

Rob Smith

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"Death is inevitable.  Life is a choice!"

John 11:25

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live."

Fw: nothing between

Psalm 16:

5 The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
    you hold my lot.....

8 I have set the Lord always before me;
    because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.....

11 You make known to me the path of life;
    in your presence there is fullness of joy;
    at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

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Nothing between...my Lord and I...,

Nothing but Him...my choice to see...

Nothing to block His view of me...

Nothing to share my energy.

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Nothing stopped Him from finding my soul!

Nothing escaped His ransom's control...

Nothing can block my knowledge of Him...

Nothing remains of my damaging sin.

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Nothing between our bond is direct...

Honest and clean, your touch is now felt.

Your words to my ear, from Heaven now sent...

My pains and unknowns to you I uplift.

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Nothing can stop what you have begun...

Eternity's ours, past...the final...rising sun.

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Nothing between you, Lord, and me.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

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"Death is inevitable.  Life is a choice!"

John 11:25

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live."