Another quiet day, Carla is off to work, and I will be puttering around the house after my devotions.

The dynamics of the pets in our house is interesting.  Ozzie stands as the queen.  Poor BaFuzzy is always at the bottom of the pecking order.  None of them like Phantom, who just takes the abuse and then comes back when they are gone, to do whatever he had intended to do.

Blaze is separate.  They cats, except for Phantom, and he are coming to a mutual toleration society.  Ozzie has been trying to get him to be friendlier.  Last night they were both in my chair with me, Blaze on my lap and Ozzie on the arm.  Ozzie started grooming Blaze as she does her kittens.  At first he didn’t like it, but eventually he accepted it – kinda, more just tolerated it.

Don’t know if that will lead to anything, he is still so very skittish and the slightest things will get him upset, we shall see.  

Isaiah 1:16-17   Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;

¹⁷ Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

Mathew 5:6  Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Verse 16-18  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

¹⁷ Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

¹⁸ For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

The actions, reverence, respect, obedience, and everything else God expected from the Jews as written in the Old Testament is also expected of us.  Jesus affirmed God’s love for man, He taught us that everyone can come to Him and have the freedom He offers through Salvation.

But God is God, He didn’t change after Jesus was sacrificed, Jesus reaffirmed both who God is and what He wants with His teachings to both His disciples and to the multitudes.

We have a Savior that the many of the Jews chose to not only disregard, but crucify, but in many ways we are the same.  While they are the chosen people and those that have accepted Christ are, like us, His Bride, the base of Who God is, is the foundation of the entire Creation.

God did not have the Old Testament written because the stories were interesting and shows the history of man, He had them written for all His children to read.  He wants us to apply the lessons learned by these Jewish leaders and prophets to our daily lives just as He wants us to apply the New Testament truths to our daily lives.

Because we have a greater freedom in Christ, we sometimes forget that those freedoms come with a price.  Christ died to fulfill the law, not to abolish it.  While we are not expected to do all the physical things, such as sacrifices, that the Old Testament Jewish people were, we still have to do what God says AND we have the promise of His Love and Grace.

Man is special to God.  We are made in His image, Adam was given life by the very breath of God.  He created us separately and differently than any other creation. 

He wants us to live a life that reflects that special relationship with Him.  We have greater access to Him through Christ.  Our sins are forever forgiven and the promise of eternal life with Him is immediate.  Rather than waiting for the Savior in Abraham’s Bosom we have the gift of immediately being with Him when we die.

Far too many of us proclaim the Love of God through Jesus, we place so much importance on that fact that we forget that God also expects us to obey. 

Being a Christian isn’t a feel good religion, as many try to make it.  Yes, it does give us great Joy and we should be thankful for that.  We are happier with the realization that the Love of God was shown through Christ.

But standing for God has never been easy, many people have lost their jobs, homes and family, they have been incarcerated and they gave up their lives because they refused to disavow their faith.

Jesus told us that living for Him would not be easy:

Mathew 5:10-12   Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

¹² Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Those that would say that we will never suffer, that all things shall be rosy and great wealth will be poured over us have watered down the Word of God.  While God wants us to have all our needs met, while He wants on the best for His children, He also knows that we will have great struggles when we stand for Him.

As we grow in Him, these things become less important.  As we see Him for who He truly is, we realize that what is important is our service to Him; our duty to others in His Name.

My prayer today is that I have a fuller understanding of the majesty of God, His love, His will for my life and my willingness to be obedient and submit to His will shall become the most important thing for me.

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again