1 Thessalonians 5:3 (KJV) Peace and Safety

 

1 Thessalonians 5:3 (KJV)

For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

“When they shall say peace and safety.” Not, “When we shall say….”

That those who are not believers feel themselves to be safe does not mean that those who are Christians and believing followers of the Bible will feel safe.

Our world, I think, believes itself to be generally safe.

• They believe themselves to be safe from the judgment of Christians
• They believe themselves to be safe from biblical standards and teaching
• They believe themselves to be safe from leaders who are guided by the principles of God’s Word
• They believe themselves to be safe from God

But this world is not a safe place. It takes no great effort to see that violence, insubordination, anger, disrespect, and disregard for life are on the rise. As the standards of the Bible are removed from the culture, the animal instincts of the corrupt nature have taken hold. This is not a time of peace and safety. 

Further, when unregenerate men begin to demand some kind of answer to their troubles, this world has options that are far from safe.

• Communism and despotic authority might quell the violence, but they will do it with unimaginable brutality.
• Religious movements such as Islam might seem to provide a solution, but it will come with oppression the world seems blind to these days.

The times and seasons leading up to the coming of the Lord may be more violent than we suppose. They say, “Peace and safety.” That doesn’t mean we say the same.

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.

Donate to Bible Baptist Church every time you make an Amazon purchase through this link, https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1265824

For this and, more than 5500 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 are available at:
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1 Thessalonians 5:3 (KJV) Peace and Safety

Psalms 65:7 (KJV) The Master of the Sea

 

Psalms 65:7 (KJV)

Which stilleth the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves, and the tumult of the people.

I am reminded of Christ’s calming of the storm on the Sea of Galilee[1]

• He stilled the noise of the seas, and the wind ceased
• He stilled the noise of the waves, and calmed the water
• He stilled the noise of the people, and brought them safely to land

Jesus is a fulfillment of this passage.

He is also a demonstration of it.

• He is aware of our circumstances. 
• He is capable of resolving them. 
• He is not slack concerning His promises. 

Though we are often fearful we will perish, He will bring His people safely to that land beyond.

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[1] Mark 4:35-41 (KJV)
And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side.
And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships.
And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.
And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?
And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

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.

Donate to Bible Baptist Church every time you make an Amazon purchase through this link, https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1265824

For this and, more than 5500 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 are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Psalms 65:7 (KJV) The Master of the Sea

Psalms 62:1-2 (KJV) He Only

 

Psalms 62:1-2 (KJV)

Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation.
He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.

I see two important words in these verses:
Truly
There is a vast difference between claiming that our soul waits upon God and the thing being a truth. A claim, in this case, will be useless in a time of trouble.

Greatly
I shall not be greatly moved. The Psalm is realistic. Trouble can shake even the most faithful of us. But the one who truly waits upon the Lord will not be greatly moved. He’ll be where God placed him even after the ordeal is done.

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.

Donate to Bible Baptist Church every time you make an Amazon purchase through this link, https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1265824

For this and, more than 5500 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 are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Psalms 62:1-2 (KJV) He Only

Psalms 60:1 (KJV) A Hopeful Message

 

Psalms 60:1 (KJV)

O God, thou hast cast us off, thou hast scattered us, thou hast been displeased; O turn thyself to us again.

Here is an incredibly hopeful passage.

Most of us have experienced those times when we feel like God has cast us off and scattered us. Any sensitive, Biblically aware believer understands that we cannot please God in the flesh. Our actions must displease Him so often! Praise God, He only sees us as we are in Christ, or we would surely be consumed!

Yet we know. We see. We are fully aware of our failure as Children of God.

• We feel like we deserve to be cast off
• We feel like we deserve to be scattered
• We feel like we deserve God’s displeasure

Further, know of those times that we went out and God did not go out with us.

Here’s the thing. The Psalmist prayed God would turn again to them. Though He felt like he had been left alone in combat, yet he still believed that God would help him in trouble.

Take heart in that and, in whatsoever state you are in, ask God to turn again to you.

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.

Donate to Bible Baptist Church every time you make an Amazon purchase through this link, https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1265824

For this and, more than 5500 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 are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Psalms 60:1 (KJV) A Hopeful Message

Psalms 59:17 (KJV) God Is…

 

Psalms 59:17 (KJV)

Unto thee, O my strength, will I sing: for God is my defence, and the God of my mercy.

The Psalmist said that God was:
His strength
Not man, or armies, or wealth, or his skill. His strength was His God.

His defense
Every offense must have a good defense. As he, in the power of the Lord, moved forward he knew it was God who had his back.

His mercy

In withholding judgment. Consider, even as it was God who strengthened him to defeat his enemies and protected him from his enemies, he knew he was no better than his enemies.

To sing to God in worship and thanksgiving is the very least he could do – the very least any of us who know God in this way can do.

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.

Donate to Bible Baptist Church every time you make an Amazon purchase through this link, https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1265824

For this and, more than 5500 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 are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Psalms 59:17 (KJV) God Is…

Psalms 56:10 (KJV) Only In God

 

Psalms 56:10 (KJV)

In God will I praise his word: in the LORD will I praise his word.

Here is a simple but plain truth. Only as we are “in God” can we praise His Word.

There are those who study the Bible but who are not professing Christians. They may enjoy their work, but it is not because they actually praise His Word. 

There are those who are professing Christians who clearly do not praise His Word. 

It is not their meditation day and night. They may force themselves to maintain some form of devotional exercise. Perhaps they read a book about the Bible. Maybe they mark off where they are on their assigned reading schedule—none of these amounts to delighting in or in praising His Word.

That’s because the flesh of man simply cannot delight in it. It is as foreign to the flesh as air is to a fish. In order to praise His Word, a man must be made new.

Before we will ever be able to say, “In God, I will praise His Word,” we must first be able to say, “In God have I put my trust.”[1]

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[1] Psalms 56:11 (KJV)
In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.

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.

Donate to Bible Baptist Church every time you make an Amazon purchase through this link, https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1265824

For this and, more than 5500 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 are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Psalms 56:10 (KJV) Only In God

Psalms 55:22 (KJV) Will You Do That?

 

Psalms 55:22 (KJV)

Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

Keywords in this verse are:

• Sustain
• Suffer and
• Moved

The word sustain has to do with a measure
God has a ruler on our burdens. 

• 
  
  He knows how heavy they are. 
• He knows how far we can carry them. 
• He knows how strong they will make us.

The word suffer is said to have a great deal of latitude
The primary meaning is to give. Another term used would be to cause. God would never cause the one who has cast his burden on the Lord to be moved.

The word moved has to do with wavering.
When we cast our burden upon the Lord, we can be sure He measures its weight. He will not cause that burden to bring us to wavering in our faith. Its purpose is our growth, not our destruction.

But we do need to cast that burden upon the Lord. We have to throw it away. We must abandon the burden in favor of the Lord.

Will you do that?

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.

Donate to Bible Baptist Church every time you make an Amazon purchase through this link, https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1265824

For this and, more than 5500 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 are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Psalms 55:22 (KJV) Will You Do That?

Colossians 2:1 (KJV) What Great Conflict

 

Colossians 2:1 (KJV)

For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh;

The term conflict, in this case, means anxiety. It has to do with being led to a place of contest, like in a Roman coliseum.

Paul wishes these believers: many of whom have never met him, to know his terrible concern and care for them. Circumstances had led him to the place where, instead of having gratitude for their faith,[1] he was burdened that they might be spoiled doctrinally.

I wish people understood the heart and the care of the preacher for them. He is utterly powerless to force them to walk in Christ. He wouldn’t if he could. But it is his heart and soul’s deepest longing. He preaches. He warns. He teaches. He does all of this because he wishes them to know his concern for them. So often, those he is most concerned about are the very ones who grow most irritated at his concern.

Would to God the children of the Lord would love their pastor for so loving them.[2]

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[1] Which I am sure he did.

[2] And we are always thankful for those who do.

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.

Donate to Bible Baptist Church every time you make an Amazon purchase through this link, https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1265824

For this and, more than 5500 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 are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Colossians 2:1 (KJV) What Great Conflict

Colossians 1:12-14 (KJV) What Delights!

 

Colossians 1:12-14 (KJV)

Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

What delights belong to the believer through the Lord

• 
  
  An inheritance
• A deliverance
• A translation
• A redemption and, on top of all that
• Forgiveness

How could we ever not rejoice in all of this?[1]

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[1] Colossians 1:11 (KJV)
Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;

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.

Donate to Bible Baptist Church every time you make an Amazon purchase through this link, https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1265824

For this and, more than 5500 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 are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Colossians 1:12-14 (KJV) What Delights!