King James Bible Study – “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.” – Mark 8:34
Date: Sunday, May 12, 2019
Chapters: Psalms 65-67, 69-70
Message: Favor With God Through Reproach
Hello My Friend,
Happy Mother’s Day to all those who are a mom, mom to be, or a mother to many. We do not have to be biologically connected with a child for them to be our children. Perhaps the most memorable mother of all is Mary, the one who bare Jesus, our Saviour. The worldly church paints her out to be a saint, and they are rightfully so, but not in the way that they portray her as. Mary was no different than any other woman, she was not sinless, she was chosen by God because she not only believed in Him she believed in His Word. “And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.” – Luke 1:28-32,38.
“she was troubled at his saying,” Do you know why Mary was troubled by what the angel was saying? She was like every other believer that God chooses to use, she could not understand why she had God’s favor when she was just this poor woman, engaged to marry a carpenter. You see, Mary was no different than any other men and women God used, they believed His Word, and lived it, and therefore, He found favor with her, which means He accepted her. And in case you did not know, as there are many religions who do this, you cannot send prayer to Mary or any other saint, the only person we can send prayer to is God. Often, we do not understand God’s will for our lives, but if we are faithful and allow Him to do His work then we truly have His favor, and be blessed for it. Part of God’s will includes reproach, which means to censure in terms of contempt, to charge with a fault in severe language, upbraid, or suggest blame. Did you ever get blamed and reprimanded for something you did not do? Well, reproach is used by God to purge away sin, and also to remind us that we are sinners saved by grace. David wrote this Psalm as a reminder that we are chosen by God, and reproach comes to all of us.
“To the chief Musician, A Psalm and Song of David. Praise waiteth for thee, O God, in Sion: and unto thee shall the vow be performed. O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come. Iniquities prevail against me: as for our transgressions, thou shalt purge them away. Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple. By terrible things in righteousness wilt thou answer us, O God of our salvation; who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of them that are afar off upon the sea: Which by his strength setteth fast the mountains; being girded with power: Which stilleth the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves, and the tumult of the people.” – Psalm 65:1-7.
“thou shalt purge them away.” And this is why faithful Christians suffer reproach, that we may dwell in God’s house until He brings us home. Yesterday, I was at an event, I cannot praise God enough for allowing me to experience it, but it is among those in the world. I believe that reproaches, chastening, and affliction that I went through over the years, and today is what keeps me from following falling back into the world. Jesus purged all that away when I chose to dedicate my life to Him, and now, I am not going to say that I never sin because I would be lying, but I am going to say only by walking with Christ daily am I able to be in the world, but not of the world. Praise God! I certainly do not miss any part of the world, and finally understand why Jesus keeps us here. “I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.” – John 17:14-19.
“that they also might be sanctified through the truth.” Do you see this? More proof that we are saved by grace, and not of our own works. If you ever wondered why Christians face so much reproach, it is this, while our souls are sanctified in Christ, our flesh needs some work. While He does not make us work for our salvation, He does place reproach in our lives to keep us on our toes so we stay out of trouble.
“To the chief Musician, A Song or Psalm. Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands: Sing forth the honour of his name: make his praise glorious. Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee. All the earth shall worship thee, and shall sing unto thee; they shall sing to thy name. Selah. Come and see the works of God: he is terrible in his doing toward the children of men. He turned the sea into dry land: they went through the flood on foot: there did we rejoice in him. He ruleth by his power for ever; his eyes behold the nations: let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah. Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul. I cried unto him with my mouth, and he was extolled with my tongue. If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me: But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer. Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.” – Psalm 66:1-7,16-20.
“and I will declare what he hath done for my soul.” We, who are faithful to Christ, are walking, talking testimonies, witnesses to what Christ as done in our lives. We are to never be ashamed to proclaim Christ, especially when we have done nothing to shame Him. We cannot avoid reproach, but we can endure it.
“Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face. I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother’s children. For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me. When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach. Thou hast known my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonour: mine adversaries are all before thee. Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. The humble shall see this, and be glad: and your heart shall live that seek God. For God will save Zion, and will build the cities of Judah: that they may dwell there, and have it in possession. The seed also of his servants shall inherit it: and they that love his name shall dwell therein.” – Psalm 69:7-10,19-21,32,35-36.
“When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting,” I swear I feel like I fight with God every day, I find myself arguing with Him over and over again on the same matters, which He has already has told me to trust Him with. Over the years I have come to realize something, God does not care about what others are doing, He cares about what I am doing, He does not care what others think I am doing, He cares what I think. What God has planned for my life is not what He has planned for yours, some things He allows you to have, but does not want me to have, some things He allows you to do, but does not allow me to do. Just like there are no two thumbprints alike, there are no two people alike, therefore, God does not treat two people alike. Yes, there is only one way to salvation, and yes, grace will always stand, but God deals with every one of us individually. Why? Because He knows how much we can handle, and only gives us what we can bear. “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.” – I Chronicles 10:13.
Jesus Christ Magnified: “They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.” – Psalm 69:21.
Today’s Prayer: God, I will admit that I spend a lot of time contending with You, even though I know exactly what is going on. You do not care what others think I am doing, You care what I am doing, and will not allow me to take on what I cannot handle. Sometimes what You do allow me to handle seems unbearable, but I know that You are my strength. Thank You for loving and caring for me, I see Your hand, You taking care of me, providing for me, protecting me, and while I know I fight with You, You know my heart, and You do know what I can handle, and all I can do is wait on You, and praise You while I do. Lord, You put me through the fire, and I know will come forth as gold. I pray this in the name of Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Are You 100% Sure You Are Going To Heaven?: http://readytofollow.com/
Receive The KJB Daily Devotions In Your Email: http://eepurl.com/2WMzT
Missed A Message: http://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/
Visit I’m Following Jesus Missions: http://imfollowingjesus.com/index.html
I’m Following Jesus On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/byhisstrength
Copyright © 2019 I’m Following Jesus, All rights reserved.