Friday February 3, 2017
“That we may bless Him”
1 Bless the Lord, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy
name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits: - Psalm 103:1-2
The Plan of Grace
Practical repercussions – (cont.)
a. Deeper Humility
b. Steadier Assurance
c.
Worship
13 In Him
you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your
salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit
of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of
the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. –
Ephesians 1:13-14
For the beggar
who finds bread, he is grateful and overjoyed. For the blind man who regains
his sight, he is exuberant. And for the countless number of people who
encountered Jesus in his earthly ministry, they found the end of their search
in total satisfaction and joy. Many threw themselves at the feet of the God-man; they worshipped him from a grateful heart.
In wrapping
up our topic of the Plan of Grace,
we discussed how the plan of salvation and understanding the work of God should
lead us to deeper humility. The awesomeness of the work of God brings us to
our knees and we fall on our faces in total humility for it is only by his
grace that we are saved. In addition, it leads us to a steadier assurance as we
rest and lean on the Rock of Ages. Again, we do not look at what we can do to
sustain our own salvation (good works) but we look to the cross and the
finished work of Christ. I am weak but he is strong. I waiver but he is the
rock in the tower that I run to. All these wonderful and immeasurable benefits
of being in Christ leads me to worship; to bless his name forever.
To bless, literally means to speak well of him. Furthermore, we find loving him to be
our greatest delight and serving him to be the most satisfying thing in the
world.
To the Name
of our salvation
laud and
honor let us pay,
Which for
many a generation
hid in God’s
foreknowledge lay
but with
holy exultation
we may sing
aloud today
Jesus is the
Name exalted
over every
other name
in this
name, whenever assaulted
we can put
our foes to shame
strength to
them who else had halted
Eyes to
blind, and feet to lame
Therefore
we, in love adoring
this most
blessed Name Revere
Holy Jesus,
thee imploring
so to write
it in us here
that
hereafter, heavenward soaring
we may sing
with angels there
(15th
century hymn – John M Neale)
Challenge:
Take time to worship (meditate, pray, sing) God today. Whatever your situation,
worship Him for what you Already have, rather than what you wished to have
(materially).
“Turn your
eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in
His wonderful face,
And the
things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light
of His glory and grace.”
This Day in Christian History:
February 3, 1825 – death of HENRIK SCHARTAU – Lutheran Pastor who was an effective evangelist
in Sweden. The most famous of Schartau’s sermons, titled “Jesus Only,”
encapsulated his theory of faith. “It is
in sanctification that the power of our Lord Jesus Christ is best shown, for it
is Jesus who provides the power to put off the old man and put on the new,”
he said. “Love for Jesus is the chief
motive unto sanctification in a converted soul.”
Memory Verse:
In Him also we have
obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of
Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will
- Ephesians 1:11
‘io, ‘i
He‘ene ‘Afio ‘a ia ne fai ‘iate ia foki homau fili mōno
tofi‘a, ‘o toka tu‘utu‘uni kimautolu ki
ai, ‘o fakatatau ki he finangalo ‘o ‘Ene ‘Afio, ‘a ia ‘oku ne
ngāue‘i ‘a e ngaahi me‘a kotoa pē ‘i he ‘alunga ‘o e fakakaukau ‘o hono
finangalo – ‘Efeso
1:11
Bible Reading Plan: (52 weeks; 5 days a week)
Week
5 – Exodus 1-15; Psalm 105, 114; Gal 5-6; Eph 1-3
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