Simply Because…
Deuteronomy 7:7-8 “The Lord did not set his heart on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other nations, for you were the smallest of all nations! Rather, it was simply that the Lord loves you, and he was keeping the oath he had sworn to your ancestors…”
1 Corinthians 4:7 “For what gives you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?” How do you stay humble? Is a strange question to me because how can anyone struggle to be humble? Read the rest of this entry
Don’t Assume
Matthew 20:13&15 “He answered one of them, ‘Friend, I haven’t been unfair! Didn’t you agree to work all day for the usual wage? …Is it against the law for me to do what I want with my money? Should you be jealous because I am kind to others?’”
Romans 12:19 “Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord.” Why do people take revenge? The only reason people take revenge is because they feel entitled. Read the rest of this entry
Through Christ
2 Corinthians 1:20 “For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory.”
John Piper says, “As sinners, the only thing we deserve is God’s judgment.” And this is a very huge punch. I had to really wrestle with this statement for a long time. Piper says, “As sinners [which we all are apart from Christ], the only thing we deserve is God’s judgment“. So, back to the question, Read the rest of this entry
Matter Of Fact
Psalm 100:1-3 “Earth, sing to the Lord! Be happy as you serve the Lord! Come before him with happy songs! Know that the Lord is God. He made us, and we belong to him. We are his people, the sheep he takes care of.” (ERV).
Beginning today, we are going to wrestle with a couple of scriptures. We need to wrestle with the scriptures. Since I got saved, some of these scriptures have been a major point of wrestling for me. Read the rest of this entry
Christ Alone
Psalm 63:3-5 “for your love and kindness are better to me than life itself. How I praise you! I will bless you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer. At last I shall be fully satisfied; I will praise you with great joy.” (LB)
You need to know that your praise does not make God bigger. Your praise does not make God stronger. God is God all by Himself with or without your praise. The truth is that praise is a privilege. And every time you allow entitlement to steal from your praise, it reduces God in your life and the influence of God in your life. Read the rest of this entry
Stand Guard!
John 12:4-6 “But Judas Iscariot… the one who would betray him—said, “That perfume was worth a fortune. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.” Not that he cared for the poor, but he was in charge of the disciples’ funds and often dipped into them for his own use!” (LB)
We will kick off with our final point from yesterday. Isaiah 64:6 “We are unfit to worship you; each of our good deeds is merely a filthy rag. We dry up like leaves; our sins are storm winds sweeping us away.” (CEV). Self-righteousness is the sister of entitlement, and all our self-righteousness counts for nothing before God. Read the rest of this entry
Entitled?
Philippians 2:5-7 “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.” (NKJV)
Entitlement is a belief that I am inherently deserving of certain privileges or special treatment. In other words, with entitlement, you feel that you deserve something. Some say I deserve to have children. After all, children are a blessing from the Lord and the fruit of the womb is His reward. I deserve to have children. Read the rest of this entry
Check Up
Luke 17:10 “Now apply this situation to yourselves. When you’ve done everything I’m telling you to do, just say, “We’re servants, unworthy of extra consideration or thanks; we’re just doing our duty” (The Voice, emphasis added).
Over the next few days, we are going to be looking at Entitlement. We often need reorientation in such fundamental things. One of the many problems that has existed for centuries is entitlement. How is it a problem in our time particularly with children and with adults alike? Read the rest of this entry
Look & Live
John 3:14-15 “And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.”
The eighth example of God leveraging and using innovative energy to transform impossible situations into a testimony for His people is Exodus 17:9-13 (please read). You may or may not really understand what this is all about. But as we go on you will understand it. Read the rest of this entry
Helped By God!
Revelation 12:14&16 “But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle that she might fly… But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.” (NKJV)
Psalm 68:19 “Praise the Lord! Every day he helps us with the loads we must carry. He is the God who saves us.” (ERV, emphasis added). The Voice Translation puts it this way, “Blessed be the Lord who carries our heavy loads every day, the True God who is our salvation.” Read the rest of this entry
