Tag Archives: Christianity

The Nativity, God’s Prime “Ornament”

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Photo by Porch of the Lord

Photo by Porch of the Lord

Old, familiar ornaments for our evergreen…and bright, new ornaments we’ve not yet seen–we bring these out before our Christmas tree.  But we’re looking, especially, for the blessed Nativity.

Oh, what a wonderful true story of joy–to know all about Jesus, that heaven-sent boy.  Shepherds of the field, wise men from afar–are part of the Nativity set, and the star.

Mary and Joseph and the baby on the hay–even the animals were “in on” Christmas Day.  Surely, the human heart was meant to receive…the message of Christ’s birth.  It’s so good to believe!

As for the children, each has such a tender heart.  “Let them come” to Jesus before they depart, to one day leave your home to work or study in a distant place.  Then they’ll know the real meaning of Christmas and God’s amazing grace.

P. A. Oltrogge

“Then they brought little children to Him, that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who brought them.  But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, ‘Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God.  Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.'”  Mark 10:13-15 NKJV

Come, as a little child, to our Savior

“…behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (From the account of Jesus’ birth in Luke 2)

A Message and Prayer from a Shepherd in the Field

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I was out in the field with the other shepherds on what seemed like an ordinary night, when we suddenly were surrounded–by an extraordinary, glorious light.

I would never have thought to see an angel, but that’s what I saw appear.  He began to give us a message, saying, first, there was nothing to fear.

He continued, speaking of good tidings of great joy, for all people of the earth–for that day, in the city of David, had been Christ the Lord, the Savior’s birth.

Then the angel spoke of a sign, which would help us to locate this wonder.  He’d be wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger–then I heard what seemed like some thunder.

It turned out to be the sound of many angels–not just a few, but a multitude! They were praising God with great rejoicing, creating a festive mood.

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, good will toward men!”  These were the words they left us with, so we went on to Bethlehem then.

We were eager to follow the heavenly directive given to us that night; and just as the angel had specified, we found the Baby in a manger–God’s “Light.”

We stood in adoration of the Christ child, knowing His destiny was divine…and that He had been born to be our Savior–I knew then also that He was mine.

We thanked Mary and Joseph for this moment, having told them of the visitation in the field…then went on to make known to others the good news, that, to us, had been revealed.

What an amazing night I had experienced–the Lord visiting me in such a way!  And may people of all future generations, receive this heralded Savior, I pray.

P. A. Oltrogge

(from the account in Luke 2)

“I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.”    John 12:46 NKJV

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined.”  Isaiah 9:2 NKJV

What Has Been Purchased For Us

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I’m surrounded by angels and loved by my Father God.  He’s given me a Good Shepherd who guides me with staff and rod.

His sure Word and blood covenant keep me from destruction.  I listen for the Holy Spirit’s voice and heed every instruction.

The blood of Jesus is my defense to keep plagues and trouble out, and I refuse any worries and refute any doubt.

As Jesus is in this world, so then also are we.  The Greater One is within–we can command demons to flee.

“But it can’t be that simple,” may be your thought.  Just realize the truths that Jesus spoke of and what He bought.

So great a salvation and redemption is ours– We’re seated in the heavenly places amidst God’s highest powers.

P. A. Oltrogge

“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”  1 John 4:4 KJV

“Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.”  1 John 4:17 KJV

“Submit therefore to God.  Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”  James 4:7 NASB

“He sent His Word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.”  Psalm 107:20 NKJV

“No evil will befall you, nor will any plague come near your tent.  For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways.”  Psalm 91:10-11 NASB

“…to shepherd the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood.”  (from Acts 20:28) NASB

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 2:4-7 NASB

Believe you receive all that God has for you….

“Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.”  Mark 11:24 NASB

Helpful sites: http://www.awmi.net, http://www.kcm.org and see http://www.billyebrim.org for “The Authority of the Believer and How to Use It” Booklet

 

With Thanksgiving to our God

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Photo by Avia Venefica

Photo by Avia Venefica

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”  James 1:17 (NKJV)

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”  John 3:16 (NKJV)

“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.”   John 1:12 (KJV)

“Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God….” 1 John 3:1 (KJV)

 

 

 

In Everything Give Thanks…

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When it looks to you, at times, like there’s simply no way out,
let thanking God, the Father, be your sure and chosen route.

When it seems that pressing problems have no known solution,
let thanking the Lord turn any worries into a grace revolution.

Paul and Silas were imprisoned but raised their praises high–
then found they were delivered, with praise their only cry.

When the way seems very foggy and you’re tempted to despair,
just know, though you can’t yet see it, the victory is there.

A great principle of the Bible is to walk by faith and not by sight–
so thank God for His presence when it’s dark and you need His light.

Like a pilot relies on instruments through weather good or bad–
let thankfulness be the “instrument” with which your life is clad.

P. A. Oltrogge

Acts 16:23-40:
“But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s chains were unfastened.” (25-26)

“But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” Colossians 3:14-17 NKJV

“For we walk by faith, not by sight.” 2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV and Hebrews 11:1

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
1 Corinthians 15:57 NKJV

http://www.moorelife.org
Series List under Free Downloads:
“Thanksgiving Victory”

A New Creation

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“”Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”  2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)

I like to think of the butterfly, a high-flying creation of beauty…

that once was a lowly caterpillar, but destined for the unique duty,

of submitting to the Creator’s perfect will, and a higher design.

This may be compared to the lives of believers–even yours and mine.

Once, we were living low, though we may not have thought it so…

then recognized our need to be forgiven and be transformed to grow

into new creations with a very high call–to go throughout the earth,

in order to share with others, for God, the joy of obtaining “the new birth.”

P. A. Oltrogge

” …he who loses his life for My sake will find it.”  …words of Jesus from Matthew 10:39  (NKJV)

“Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God.'”  John 3:3 (NASB)

” ..’Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.'”  …Jesus’ words from Mark 16:15 (NKJV)

Life’s Goodbyes

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Over the years, life brings to us many goodbyes, which is why it’s so important that we become wise, gaining life and death perspectives, as seen through Jesus’ eyes.  He’s Savior, Lord, and King–and He never lies.

He wants us to understand before our lives are done, that there’s a heaven to gain and a hell to shun.  He said heaven could be ours–that it’s a beautiful place–reserved for those who trust in Him and is offered by God’s grace.

“Absent from the body…present with the Lord” is the promise and future that we can look toward, for when the time comes for us to leave the earth.  This is for anyone who has received Him through “the new birth.”

Life in this world is certainly a temporary thing; but, thank God, through Christ’s redemptive work, death has lost its sting.  Seeing Jesus face to face and reunions with loved ones gone…will, one day, follow our own “goodbyes,” a glorious new dawn!

P. A. Oltrogge

“So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”  Psalm 90:12 (NKJV)

“…in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago, but at the proper time manifested, even His Word, in the proclamation with which I was entrusted according to the commandment of God our Savior; to Titus, my true child in a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.” Titus 1:2-3 (NASB)

“In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you.”  John 14:2 (NKJV)

“And Jesus said to him, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.'” Luke 23:43 (NKJV)

“You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate.  The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way.”  Matthew 7:13 (NLT)

See the story of Lazarus and the rich man in Luke 16.

“Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'” John 3:3 (NASB)

“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born not of blood, not of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”  John 1:12-13 (NASB)

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.”  Ephesians 2:8 (NKJV)

“We are confident, I say, and willing to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.”  2 Corinthians 5:8 (NKJV)

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”  1 Corinthians 15:55 (NASB)

Without a Prayer

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How can anyone make the decision not to pray unto the great “I AM,”

who wants to be their Good Shepherd and care for them as His lamb?

Jesus humbly came to earth, as told in the cherished Christmas story,

simply to share God’s love, leaving His home up in Glory

He demonstrated unconditional love, serving those upon earth

and told all of us about our need to experience “the new birth.”

Likewise, we can be blessed…by serving as He leads,

knowing we have peace with God through Him–not by our own deeds.

For by grace we have been saved–His grace has been poured out.

Please don’t be deceived by demonic spirits who spread doubt.

The thief (who is the devil) comes only to kill, destroy, and steal…

Jesus came to die for our sins and, as  Divine Physician, to heal.

I can’t imagine the void in a life of one who can’t seem to pray

to the Father in heaven through Jesus Christ, who had so much to say…

on the goodness of God and how, just like lambs, we can always depend–

upon the Good Shepherd’s love for us, from beginning of life to its end.

So don’t be caught without a prayer, one day, before the throne of God–

Put your faith in our Savior and Shepherd, who bears both staff and rod.

Jesus not only was God’s sacrificial Lamb but also trusted, as a lamb,

his Father in heaven, who, from a burning bush had said to Moses, “I AM
THAT I AM.”

P. A. Oltrogge

During His ministry, Jesus called Himself “I AM”…John 8:58 and that He and the Father are one…John 17:11 and “He who has seen me has seen the Father.” John 14:9

“I am the door.  If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.  The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.  I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep.”  John 10:9-11 NKJV

“For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:16 KJV

“And God said unto Moses, ‘I Am That I Am,’ and He said, ‘Thus shall thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you.'”  Exodus 3:14 KJV

“Jesus said to them, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.” John 8:58 NKJV

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.”  Ephesians 2:8

“Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.  That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.’  Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’  The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it,but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”  (From John 3:1-21) NASB

What Time Is It?

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“I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
Psalm 34:1

When troubles disappoint, overwhelm, or sometimes shock,
Remember, then, what time it is: it’s always Praise o’clock!

As much-loved members of the Good Shepherd’s flock,
His goodness makes us praise Him all around the clock.

After praise and a mighty shout, the walls of Jericho fell down flat…
The people followed Joshua’s instructions, and that was that!

When Daniel faced the lions in their den til morning light,
An angel at Praise o’clock came there to keep their jaws shut tight.

Paul and Silas were imprisoned; their feet were placed in stocks.
But they just sang with all their hearts, and made that prison rock!

If your prayer is for a miracle, but it seems to be “out of stock,”
Don’t give up, don’t give in–look at the time, it’s still Praise o’clock.

Surely when the way seems hard, there’s an answer to any “block,”
For continually and forever, the correct time is Praise o’clock!

P. A. Oltrogge

“Fear not, for I am with you, be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 RSV

Photo/Pixabay

Your Best Investment

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“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” Mark 8:36 (KJV)

How to protect your investments is a popular question these days,
But how to protect your soul is a far more important one to raise.
Have you really considered Jesus, whose words were meant for you?
Have you asked Him to be your Savior and what He would have you do?
No, you can’t work to gain heaven–that ransom was paid by the Lord;
But if He’s the Lord of your life, then He’s one who should not be ignored.
His desire is to be your best friend, and to guide you in all of your ways;
And He offers to take every burden of care, so that all that is left is to praise.
His truths will cause your heart to be more like His, seeking the good of others–
And in following Him, He considers us, He said, to be his true mother and brothers.

P. A. Oltrogge

“He replied to him, ‘Who is my mother, and who are my brothers? Pointing to his disciples, he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers.’” Matthew 12:48-49 (NIV)

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33 (NIV)