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Showing posts with label kingdom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kingdom. Show all posts

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Our Most Important Behavior

Our Most Important Behavior
                                       
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Jesus taught us many behaviors.  
     But, there is only one that is most important.

Our most important behavior is -
     not Being Nice,
     it is not loving our enemy,
     it is not feeding the hungry,
     it is not helping the sick,     rather...
     

Our most important behavior is
  Pursuing a Righteous Relationship with God in
     Seeking His Kingdom,
           Learning to Love and Trust Him more,
             to better understand His will for our lives
              through the Guidance of the Holy Spirit
                Provided by our belief in and salvation of Jesus,

All this to better discern our sinfulness,
      to better understand our need for repentance
           creating a greater internal desire for God's Forgiveness.

Then and only then do we really feel the need to live in submission to God's will and in humility for all He does and provide for us.

In this, we then begin to really Trust God and only in trusting God can we truly come to love Him as we should.

In is only trusting God 
that we can Righteously
 show our True humility by
      helping the sick,
      feeding the hungry,
      loving our enemy,
      being nice and 
           all the other behaviors Jesus taught us.

 Perhaps, best of all, in our Righteous relationship with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, the Fruit of the Spirit descends on us, especially the Peace of Mind that passes all understanding.

Thanks be to God


Scriptural Foundations of 
        Our Most Important Behavior

 We must remember that the words of Jesus was not the words of just any teacher or prophet.  

 Many times He said, "I tell you the truth.....".  His words have  the absolute Ring of Truth because of one thing, 
      His Resurrection.  

 It is in His resurrection that God, the Creator of the Universe, the one True God verified, sanctified, and made Holy the life and teachings of Jesus.  

 Failing to bring into our heart the Holy Spirit to absorb the life and teachings of Jesus and live according to His word is truly a road block of eternal proportions possibly leading to an eternal death.

Seeking God: 
  
Matthew 6:33
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness,                          and all these things will be given to you as well.
                
Love God:   
Matthew 22:37
Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'

Trust Him:   
John 14:1
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me.
God's Will:

·        John 6:40 NIV
For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

·        John 14:23 NIV
Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.

·        Matthew 7:21 NIV
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

·        Mark 8:38 NIV
If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Manwill be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."

·        John 12:26 NIV
Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father willhonor the one who serves me.

·        Matthew 26:42 NIV
[Jesus gives us the example:]  He went away a second time and prayed, "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done."

Guidance of the Holy Spirit:

·        John 14:26 NIV
[Jesus promises the Holy Spirit]  But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

  • Matthew 3:11 NIV 
     [The coming of John:]  "I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.


    Matthew 28:19 NIV
    Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Mark 13:11 NIV

Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.

Luke 10:21 NIV

At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.

Luke 12:12 NIV

for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say."

  • John 14:15 NIV

    [Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit] "If you love me, you will obey what I command.

    John 14:26 NIV
    But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

  • John 20:22 NIV

    And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.


    Belief in and Salvation of Jesus

    • Acts 4:12 NIV

      • 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.
        11 He is " 'the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone. '
        12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."


        Fruit of the Spirit

      Galatians 5:22 NIV
      22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

      23  gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 


  • © lonnie coggins   
Thanks Be to God





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ldcoggins@gmail.com

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intro

We have many opportunities for important behaviors everyday.  Click the link below for some thoughts those behaviors and why they are Truth in our lives.  Share to your fb page as you desire and click the 'Follow' button for notifications on new postings.

http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2013/09/our-most-important-behavior.html

lonnie

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Tuesday, August 27, 2013

"The Pursuit of Happiness"

"The Pursuit of Happiness"
                                       
                                       
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One day in my classroom a young girl said "... my rights are being violated because I am unhappy."  I told her she did not have a "right" to just be happy.  "But, I am guaranteed the right to be happy!"  I asked her, "Where is it written you have a right to happy?"  She vocally responded, "The United States Constitution!"  The class rolled with laughter as I explained that The United States Declaration of Independence references only "the pursuit of Happiness".

 Life is not easy and it was not planned by God to be easy.  Jesus many times indicated and told people to "...take up your cross and follow me" (*4).  His way is not easy and Jesus never spoke of happiness; never is it recorded in the Gospels that He spoke the word 'happy'.  But, He spoke of Joy(*3), often.

 In a life of Seeking the Kingdom we are promised Joy but not happiness.  I am sorry but 'happy' is not a fruit of the Spirit(*1)  and the word 'happy' in the Greek is never found on the lips of Jesus, but, Praise God, we do find Joy in a life with Christ and Joy as a fruit of the Spirit- a Gift of God!  There will be days of happiness in our current circumstances, but Trusting God, Living in Christ, Seeking the Spirit brings eternal Joy. 

 In that Joy we find Peace of Mind and Contentment, and 
The key to Joy and the other Spiritual fruits is
not the "Pursuit of Happiness", but
 the Pursuit of God's Kingdom for our daily lives.

Seeking the Kingdom

In Matthew 6:33 Jesus tells us that our primary pursuit is in seeking the Kingdom, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness,..."(*2).  
Which then brings us to the point of this writing.  What is the primary process and behaviors in 'Seeking the Kingdom"?  Bible Study is of great importance in Seeking the Kingdom, but for this message, I emphasize what Jesus taught us.

After accepting Jesus as Our Lord and Savior,
perhaps the single most important behavior we do
 to Seek God's Kingdom in our lives is 
Obedient Patient Persistent Praying
for Solutions of our Needs.
In this behavior, we will indeed find
Joy in the Kingdom
and
maybe some Happiness along the way.

Prayer and asking others to pray for issues in our lives shows Trust in God.  

In our Prayers,
     In our communications with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, 
we come
to know and Trust God, 
     Love Jesus, and 
         Seek the Holy Spirit;
            leading to maturing in our faith.  

We can read the Bible as we should, but without prayer 
    we will never totally understand the words and
        see the vision of the words for our lives.  
    We can do the behaviors as Jesus taught, 
        we can love others as He taught us, 
             we can even believe in the resurrection, But.  
 But, without prayer 
       we will never know Him as we can, 
           we can never feel the true Joy of serving others,
              we can never feel God in our lives as He desires for us, 
                we can never love Jesus as we can,
                 we can never understand 
                   the leadings, 
                    pushings, 
                    and nudgings of the Holy Spirit as we should;
        All of this comes best through our prayers,
            our prayers for others,
            and the prayers of others that we ask for.

Pray daily, often, and Know the Joy of the Kingdom in your life and seek the Kingdom through the Guidance of the Holy Spirit.
To fully have the Holy Spirit in your heart,
  "you must pray, and pray, and pray,..... everyday".
Pray for the Holy Spirit to Guide you and
   in that Guidance you live to His Glory in His Will for your life. 

            Living in God's will for your life is 
            where we truly find the Kingdom.

Thanks Be to God.
                          
© lonnie coggins

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REFERENCES:
*1    Galations 5:
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.26Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.
*2    Matthw 6Do Not Worry

6:25-33pp -- Lk 12:22-31

25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life ?28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
*3  Joy
*4  Cross








Sharing these messages

You are welcome to share these messages.  You can send the links to your friends,  copy and insert the link on FB or you can print the message and share it with your friends.

You can print the message including this sharing message only for your friends and for non-profit.  You will have to copy and paste the message to a word processing document.   After you copy and paste add the following at the end of the message:

© Lonnie Coggins
ldcoggins@gmail.com

If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission.  Typically, I will most likely give permission.

Please email me if you find any broken links in this message.


lonnie

Publication  0171






intro

HAPPINESS IS AN EARTHLY SITUATION that is here one moment and gone the next.  But, Joy is a different story, it is a Gift of the Holy Spirit that we can depend on in Seeking the Kingdom.  Click the link for more on Seeking the Kingdom.  Please share the message on your Fb page as you like, and if you like, click the FB 'Follow' button to have notifications of these publications.  For other messages like this, visit my FB page, or on FB visit-"A Daily Thought Group".
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-pursuit-of-happiness.html



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