💥 James 4
14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
16 But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.
17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.
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💥 Luke 19
2 And, behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich.
3 And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature.
4 And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see HIM: for HE was to pass that way.
5 And when Jesus came to the place, HE looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house.
6 And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully.
7 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.
8 And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.
9 And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.
10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
11 And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear.
12 HE said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.
13 And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.
14 But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.
(Some today feel this way about the Bible: "It is too legalistic." They will not have the Bible to rule over them but look for another way. There is only one way, Jesus, who is the Word.)
15 And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading.
16 Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds.
17 And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.
18 And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds.
19 And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities.
20 And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin:
21 For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow.
22 And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow:
23 Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury?
24 And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds.
25 (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.)
26 For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him.
27 But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.
24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;
25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing HIM who is invisible.
2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
34 And when HE had called the people unto HIM with HIS disciples also, HE said unto them, Whosoever will come after ME, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow ME.
35 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for MY sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.
36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
37 Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
21 And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself.
22 And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the LORD, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,
23 That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich:
8 Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.
9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
6 Now these things (in the Bible) were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
7 Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.
9 Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
10 Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
15 And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading.
16 Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds.
17 And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.
18 And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds.
19 And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities.
20 And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin:
21 For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow.
22 And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow:
23 Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury?
24 And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds.
25 (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.)
26 For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him.
27 But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.
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💥 John 18:36 (Jesus said) MY kingdom is not of this world: if MY kingdom were of this world, then would MY servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is MY kingdom not from hence.
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Hebrews 11
23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king's commandment.
(The king had commanded that every male child be killed at birth because there were too many Jewish men in Egypt. Moses would have been killed but his parents hid Moses in the river and Pharaoh's daughter found the Hebrew baby floating in the daubed ark and she took him to raise him as her own child.)
24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;
25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing HIM who is invisible.
Like Moses, we too see HIM who is invisible.
Those things we can see with our natural eye will be burned up, destroyed by God, at the end of this world.
Matthew 24:35 (Jesus says) Heaven and earth shall pass away, but MY words shall not pass away.
We see that which is eternal. The people of this world see that which is temporary.
2 Corinthians 4:18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
(temporal: temporary; restricted by boundaries of time)
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Mark 8 (Jesus says)
35 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for MY sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.
36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
37 Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
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Abraham is an example for us. He wanted his "wealth" to come from God.
Genesis 14
22 And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the LORD, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,
23 That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich:
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As those born of the Spirit of God, we try to do that which is right in the sight of God to other people.
We are not abusers of ourselves with mankind as are those people of this world.
I Corinthians 6
9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
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We have inside of us the way of God as we deal with others, not wanting to take advantage of others to get what we want on this present earth.
We hold fast to personal integrity which comes from doing that which is right in the sight of God. We base our way of life on what is right in the sight of God, living by scripture, living uncompromising lives, building a moral base from scriptures.
In pursuit of money and fame and position in this life, many lose personal integrity, compromising their way of life to get what they want. Integrity is critical for each of us.
Integrity is the practice of being honest and showing a consistent and uncompromising adherence to strong moral and ethical principles and values. Our integrity is based on that which God teaches us from the Holy Bible and on that which God plants in our heart by HIS Holy Spirit.
For our kingdom is not of this world, as is theirs.
That which matters to us is doing that which is right in the sight of God, even when it causes us to suffer worldly loss.
💥 Examples: I have a bed frame which raises and lowers the bed. One of our kittens chewed through the wiring. We set about to have the frame fixed. But when the man from the mattress company came to replace the motor, he found the damage was far more extensive than anticipated so we would be better off to buy a new frame. When I found we needed to do this, all I could think of is being sure we paid the man who came but couldn't do the repair work. When I asked Pam, she said she had already paid him for his trip to our house. Pam and I have the same Spirit, the Spirit of God, not wanting to do harm to others nor cause them to suffer loss. (I Cor. 6:9 (not being) Abusers of themselves with mankind)
Another example: I bought a new leather sofa several years ago. After they delivered the sofa, my cat jumped on the sofa and inspected the addition. When my cleaning lady came to work, she said my cat had damaged the new sofa with one of her claws. I looked at one of the seats and saw the claw mark. Most people would not notice the small scratch. I could have called and told the furniture store I had decided not to buy the sofa. But if I did that someone else would suffer loss. If the furniture store sold the sofa then the customer would have a slightly damaged sofa. Or the furniture store would suffer loss if they discovered the blemish and had to discount the price to sell the item. This is what Paul means when he speaks of being an abuser of themselves with mankind. Is is worth losing your soul?
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I Corinthians 10:12-13 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
In 2019, when I moved to Colorado, I gave that leather sofa to my contractor's son. Tom said his son was so happy to get the sofa.
Do not defraud another person. Suffer the loss. God will repay you.
This is a part of developing integrity.
Also it shows that person and whether or not this world is that person's kingdom.
We must do right by other people.
I Corinthians 10
7 Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.
9 Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
10 Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
(murmur: complain)
11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
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Colossians 3
1 If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.
(What is right in the sight of God in this issue?)
2 Set your affection on things above (pleasing God), not on things on the earth.
3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
2 Set your affection on things above (pleasing God), not on things on the earth.
3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
(At the moment we were born again, we died to this world and the things of this world, for God gave us HIS Spirit to live in us and teach us and guide us in HIS ways. HE delivered us from this world and caused us to follow HIS Spirit. So our goals differ from the goals of this world. Now we serve God doing as God instructs. We are dead to this world but alive to God. And we hold fast to the Word of God in all our ways, doing what is shown us by God through HIS Spirit and the Holy Scriptures.)
4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with HIM in glory.
5 Mortify (put to death) therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:
6 For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:
7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.
8 But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.
9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;
10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of HIM that created him:
11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.
12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;
13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
14 And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.
15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom;
4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with HIM in glory.
5 Mortify (put to death) therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:
6 For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:
7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.
8 But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.
9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;
10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of HIM that created him:
11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.
12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;
13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
14 And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.
15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom;
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The Book of Proverbs is filled with wisdom given to king Solomon from God and we can learn many wonderful things by these verses in this life, seeing the way of God, the way of true godliness for both this life and the next life which is forever.
Our kingdom is not of this world. We see HIM who is invisible!
I often pray over myself the following:
Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
When we brush against this world and the ideas of man, we often take on uncleanness of this world. I depend on God to restore my soul to HIS ways and set me straight from the ways of men of this world. So I ask God to cleanse my heart and spirit that I may serve God and go in HIS way.
After praying this and depending on God, I encounter perfect peace, as God restores me to HIMSELF and His truth and HIS way.
When God cleanses us, we are clean!
Start now with a good heart and lay your foundation in wisdom as presented by God as we spend the next several days looking at the book of Proverbs and allowing God to work in us by HIS Word.
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