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The Nature of Love

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Reflections   We love him, because he first loved us. If a man say, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar. (I John 4:19-20)   We do not make ourselves disciples – “a taught one” – by loving others. Rather, if we are a disciples – i.e., someone who has learned Jesus Christ – we are going to want to love others. We will love others because we have first received the love that God has for us. There is no other way we can love others. We can only give that which we have first …

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"They are they which testify of me." John 5:39

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  Jesus Christ is the Alpha and Omega of the Bible. He is the constant theme of its sacred pages; from first to last they testify of him. At the creation we at once discern him as one of the sacred Trinity; we catch a glimpse of him in the promise of the woman’s seed; we see him typified in the ark of Noah; we walk with Abraham, as he sees Messiah’s day; we dwell in the tents of Isaac and Jacob, feeding upon the gracious promise; we hear the venerable Israel talking of Shiloh; and in the numerous types …

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Born of the Flesh

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Reflections          That which is born of the flesh is flesh. (John 3:6)   In the final analysis, we are all made of the same flesh – that which belongs to the old creation in Adam. Built into that nature is the same potential for sin. But because each of us are born into a different family, into a different environment, and exposed to different situations – with differing temperaments — we each develop our flesh uniquely. Our personal choices also mold and shape our flesh, but in the end, it IS flesh. We each have a …

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Never Alone

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1 Samuel 21:10–22:2; Psalm 142   1 Samuel 21:10-22:2 10 And David arose and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. 11 And the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? 12 And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. 13 And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself …

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INDULGING WEAKNESSES

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Judges 13:24-25 24 And the woman bare a son, and called his name [a]Samson: and the child grew, and Jehovah blessed him. 25 And the Spirit of Jehovah began to move him in [b]Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.   At the moment of salvation, a person becomes a brand-new creation and is set apart for God’s purposes (2 Cor. 5:17). The heavenly Father has a specific plan for the life of every believer (Eph. 2:10), and He provides each of His children with whatever is needed to accomplish that plan (2 Pet. 1:3). Consider the life of Samson. At the …

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By the Grace of God

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Reflections   Paul said, “I am what I am by the grace of God.” (I Cor. 15:10) In other words, except for the grace of God, Paul would be NOTHING. In this short statement, Paul states what is repeated throughout the NT: All that is of value in a Christian is of Christ — received from above — but now of Christ IN US. No value is of us. If you are born from above, you have life from above — Christ within you. And IN CHRIST — the Christ who is in us — is all that God has …

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HEAVENLY REWARDS

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Luke 14:12-14 2 He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just. Some Christians think it’s wrong to want rewards, but our Creator knows people are motivated by …

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Walking in Victory

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1 Samuel 18:8-15 (KJV) 8 And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom? 9 And Saul eyed David from that day and forward. 10 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul’s hand. 11 And Saul …

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IT IS GOOD TO BE AFFLICTED

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Psalm 119:71-76 71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes. 72 The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver. 73 Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments. 74 They that fear thee will be glad when they see me; because I have hoped in thy word. 75 I know, O Lord, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me. 76 Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for …

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