Genesis 2:1-2 (KJV) Sabbath or Sunday

Genesis 2:1-2 (KJV)

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.

And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.

 

The Hebrew word "rest" means to cease or desist. STOP. Webster’s 1828 Dictionary says it means, “Quiet; repose; a state free from motion or disturbance; a state of reconciliation to God.”

 

The Jewish people were to observe the seventh day to commemorate the day that God ended His creation. He rested; He stopped, because He was finished.

 

This is exactly the reason Christians observe the first day of the week as our day of worship. Three days and three nights after His death and burial, very early on the morning of the first day of the week, Jesus rose from the grave. This completed, ended, and finished the work of redemption. We worship and serve the Lord on the first day of the week in remembrance that Jesus Christ has finished the work of our salvation. We “rest in the Lord” on the first day of the week, knowing that there is nothing we could have done to earn “a state of reconciliation to God” nor is there anything we must do. Jesus has done it all.

 

Check the doctrine of those who insist today on keeping the Sabbath. None of them believe they are secure in Christ. All of them believe they must work out their own salvation. 

 

They believe they must keep the seventh day of the week because they do not believe Jesus finished His work on the first.

 

#SabbathRest #FinishedWork #ResurrectionDay #RestInChrist #SundayWorship

Sabbath or Sunday: Why Christians Worship on Sunday

Call to Action

• Do you understand the significance of resting in the finished work of Jesus Christ?

• By sharing this post others, we can reinforce the  importance of Sunday worship.

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To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6400 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/

Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more

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Genesis 2:1-2 (KJV) Sabbath or Sunday

1 Corinthians 5:2 (KJV) Liberty and Legalism

1 Corinthians 5:2 (KJV)

And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.

 

Albert Barnes writes, “… so afflicted and troubled as to take the proper means for removing the offence. The word “mourn” here is taken in that large sense. Ye have not been “so much” afflicted - so troubled with the existence of this wickedness, as to take the proper measures to remove the offender - Acts of discipline in the church should always commence with mourning that there is occasion for it. …. He should not, while he continues in this state, be allowed to remain in your communion.”

 

It is a painful thing, an affliction, whenever a person for whatever reason must be taken away from the fellowship of the church. Painful enough that in many instances Christians choose not to do it. 

 

We find ourselves in a time when practicing what Paul preached in this text is considered legalism. People revel in liberty. The “come as you are” mentality is so prevalent that it’s considered unloving and unchristian to expect Christians to live above reproach.

 

We truly are puffed up. We reject affliction and accept anything tends to welcome people into our ranks. This glorying is not good, does not glorify the Lord, and will lead eventually to the doom of the Christian faith as we know it. 

 

The one redeeming fact is that Christ said it would be so and when He comes again, He’ll restore all things to Himself.[1]

 

#ChurchDiscipline #LiveAboveReproach #BiblicalStandards #SpiritualIntegrity #FaithfulLiving

Liberty and Legalism: The Painful Necessity of Church Discipline

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[1] Acts 3:21 (KJV)

Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

Call to Action

• How have you seen the "come as you are" mentality impact your church? 

• Take time to prayerfully consider someone in your church who might need guidance and encouragement to live a life that honors God. Reach out to them, offering support and biblical counsel, demonstrating both love and truth in your approach.

👉 Join our community in studying God’s Word and strengthening your faith.

To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6400 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/

Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more

Let’s have coffee?
The link to Ko-fi  is an opportunity to support this effort to reach a world of souls with the Word of God. I would appreciate any gift you can give. 

1 Corinthians 5:2 (KJV) Liberty and Legalism

1 Corinthians 4:11 (KJV) Sacrificial Service

1 Corinthians 4:11 (KJV)

Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace;

 

Paul had written in verse 6, “And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us …” 

 

Every servant of Christ I know: 

·       Missionary

·       Evangelist

·       Pastor

would claim Paul as the example for their ministry. 

·       Soul winning, 

·       Church planting, 

·       Preaching, 

·       Itinerant ministry, 

·       Raising support, 

·       Faith Promise giving, even 

·       Fund raising for special causes 

find their justification in the example of Apostle Paul. 

 

But wait!

 

How willing are we to follow Paul in this example? 

1 Corinthians 4:10-12

We are fools for Christ's sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are honourable, but we are despised.

Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace;

And labour, working with our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it:

 

What is our general perception of those who do?

 

I am not advocating making choices that unnecessarily create these conditions.[1] But I do think it would be charitable to be much more understanding of those who embrace the ministry in the face of such challenges. 

 

#FaithfulMinistry #ApostolicExample #ServantsOfChrist #GospelDedication #SacrificialService

Sacrificial Service: The Cost of Ministry Commitment

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[1] I find it interesting that the very day I read this passage, meditated on these things, and wrote this devotional, I met a couple I’m sure would place themselves in this camp. They had no money, lived out of a broken-down camper without a working water system, could not afford a camp site with water and bathroom facilities and, after visiting with me, handed me a handwritten gospel message on a 3x4 card. I don’t know their story or doctrinal affiliation, but I can see them following Paul in this text in every way except “labour, working with our own hands.” There’s nothing wrong with working!

Call to Action

• How can we better support and encourage those who endure hardships for the sake of their ministry today?

• Be sure to participate in your church's Faith Promise and other giving ministries.

👉 Join our community in studying God’s Word and strengthening your faith.

To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6400 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/

Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more

Let’s have coffee?
The link to Ko-fi  is an opportunity to support this effort to reach a world of souls with the Word of God. I would appreciate any gift you can give. 

1 Corinthians 4:11 (KJV) Sacrificial Service

Genesis 1:1 (KJV) Ancient Text or Divine Truth?

Genesis 1:1 (KJV)

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

 

Students of the Bible often comment that the Bible begins with God. Not an explanation of God, but with God. God is the explanation of everything else. We would then move on to claim that the wisest of people begin with God.

 

But it’s no wonder that the corrupt mind of man struggles with this. The Bible is brash, bold, beyond us.

 

How can this be?

 

Consequently, the mind of man has derived several approaches to the Word of God - beginning with the beginning of the Word.

Denial: Men have denied it altogether. In this instance, they simply say it’s all hogwash, baloney. They mock it, scoff at it, or else just ignore it completely.

 

Relegation to a Fairy Tale: They view it as fiction, “Once upon a time.” They consider it ancient literature akin to the Tales of Narnia. They study it as classic literature, respect it as such, but hold no value in its message.

 

Superstition: They include it in the many superstitions of a people less evolved than we are supposed to be these days. Mythology and pantheism were rampant in the days of old. The Bible, they would say, is just one of the many examples of this myth.

 

Reconciliation with Modern Science: They believe that science cannot be denied, but instinctively know they must not deny the Bible. They attempt to explain the Bible in light of “what we now know to be true.”

 

Acceptance of its Truth: A few men have simply chosen to take the Word of God at its word. We believe it to be absolutely true. We interpret it literally, that is, historically and grammatically. We accept it for what it claims to be - the very words of God, by Him, for us.

 

#InTheBeginning #GodsWord #BibleTruth #FaithInAction #GenesisOneOne

Ancient Text or Divine Truth?: The Bible- Denied, Doubted, or Believed

 

Call to Action

• Are you among those who dismiss or doubt, or do you embrace the Bible as the absolute truth?

• Stand firm in the truth of God's Word today!

👉 Join our community in studying God’s Word and strengthening your faith.

To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6400 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/

Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more

Let’s have coffee?
The link to Ko-fi  is an opportunity to support this effort to reach a world of souls with the Word of God. I would appreciate any gift you can give. 

Genesis 1:1 (KJV) Ancient Text or Divine Truth?

Malachi 4:6 (KJV) Reclaiming Biblical Family Values

Malachi 4:6 (KJV)

And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

 

American culture glorifies, almost deifies, the idea of a child growing up, becoming independent, and going in a direction different from his or her parents. To make our own way, in American mentality, is the ideal. Our system trains children early to become independent of parents. We send them young to a school filled with teachers who think differently than the parents. The parents develop life habits that do not include the children. The children develop dependencies upon friends, leaders, and peer groups that hold more sway than their parents ever could. Even if the parents become concerned and try to teach their kids a different course, what no one considers is that the child knows survival depends, not on what the parents teach, but on what the people they spend the bulk of their time with practice.

 

It seems to me that the Bible teaches something quite opposite. The Bible teaches that it is a curse for the child’s heart to be turned from the father and the father’s from his children. I know the Bible teaches that a man and wife are to leave their parents and cleave to one another. I also know that the book of Zechariah tells the Jews not to be like their fathers. But these things must be taken in balance with the whole teaching of the Word of God.

 

As Moses led the children of Israel out of slavery in Egypt[1] and as the prophetic Elijah would point the way to Christ,[2] the blessing of God on a people is discovered when the whole family has a heart for God, who is our eternal Father.

 

#FamilyInFaith #BiblicalParenting #GodlyHeritage #TurnHeartsToGod #StrengthenFamilyBonds

Reclaiming Biblical Family Values: The Clash Between Culture and Scripture

 

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[1] Malachi 4:4 (KJV)

Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.

[2] Malachi 4:5 (KJV)

Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:

Call to Action

• What steps can you take today to strengthen the bond within your family and align more closely with biblical teachings?

• Spend dedicated time in prayer and Bible study with your family each week to nurture a shared faith and strengthen your bond.

👉 Join our community in studying God’s Word and strengthening your faith.

To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6400 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/

Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more

Let’s have coffee?
The link to Ko-fi  is an opportunity to support this effort to reach a world of souls with the Word of God. I would appreciate any gift you can give. 

Malachi 4:6 (KJV) Reclaiming Biblical Family Values