New Blog for Children

I just want to let everyone know that I have started a new blog. It is especially for children. I know that many children are on the internet and could be blessed by it. The stories are also suitable to be read out loud to children. The blog is Bible Stories for Children  My goal is to tell and post many more Bible Stories to children - I will write as I feel led of the Lord, and I want to be accurate as the Bible tells the stories.  Please share this with parents and children in your life. Please link to the blog for children here:

Bible Stories for Children



God bless you and your children!

The Ten Commandments - Sunday Sermon Review

Our church is studying through the Bible in a year or so. Our pastors are choosing topics to focus on as we go along. This Sunday our pastor spoke on the Ten Commandments. I usually like to take notes as the pastor speaks and then share them with you here. Perhaps you will be blessed as I was.  So we will begin with the verses from our text - Deuteronomy 5: 1-22 Please take time to read the passage, and then I will share my notes that I took as the pastor spoke.

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Deuteronomy 5:1-22And Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep, and do them.2 The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.3 The Lord made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day.4 The Lord talked with you face to face in the mount out of the midst of the fire,5 (I stood between the Lord and you at that time, to shew you the word of the Lord: for ye were afraid by reason of the fire, and went not up into the mount;) saying,6 I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.7 Thou shalt have none other gods before me.8 Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth:9 Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me,10 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.11 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain: for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.12 Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee.13 Six days thou shalt labour, and do all thy work:14 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thine ox, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou.15 And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the Lord thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm: therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day.16 Honour thy father and thy mother, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.17 Thou shalt not kill.18 Neither shalt thou commit adultery.19 Neither shalt thou steal.20 Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour.21 Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour's house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour's.22 These words the Lord spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice: and he added no more. And he wrote them in two tables of stone, and delivered them unto me.

Now I would like to share my notes that I took as Pastor Ben spoke.

The book of Deuteronomy is a farewell speech from Moses. 

The Israelites had come to the Promised Land but due to fear and unbelief, therefore God made them turn back into the wilderness to spend 40 years there.

Now Moses knows that he is about to die and Joshua will lead the people into the Promised Land.

Moses is renewing the Covenant that God made with the people.

For a better understanding of a covenant we can look at marriage. Marriage is a good picture of this - you are pledging your life to one another. It is about loyalty. God is has pledged His loyalty to the people and the people have pledged their loyalty to God.

The core or heart of the covenant is love.

We ask the question - What does it look like to love God?  God uses the Ten Commandments to teach us what this loyal love looks like in action.

The Israelite people prayed Deuteronomy 6:4-5 two times each day. And they still do this today.

Deuteronomy 6:4-5 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:

 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

This is the heart of the covenant. The Bible teaches us what this loyal love looks like - this is what the Ten Commandments are. They flesh out what it looks like to love God. 

The Ten Commandments are not about earning salvation.  The people were saved by grace just as we are today. 

It is a covenant - not a contact. 

A contract is a list of things you must do.

The Ten Commandments diagnose our hearts, the depth of our love for God. 

Deuteronomy 5: 12  Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee.

God wants us to take one day to set apart for Him, a day of rest. Jesus died and then rose on the first day - therefore we take Sunday as a day of rest today. 

When Jesus died and rose, it was a pivotal point in time, everything changed.

There is a principle of rest. We need to rest. God calls us to make rest a regular part of our lives.

Two Reasons For Keeping the Sabbath

1) Because God created the world in 6 days, and rested the 7th day. We are to take one day a week - stop trying to get ahead, from making that next sale. Remember our life and everything we have is a gift from God. 

Giving God a day a week that we rest is an expression of our trust.

How precious is God to us? - Do we treasure Him? Our giving is an expression of our trust in God.

Put God first, Don't have idols.

2) God is concerned about how we treat one another... He wanted the slaves to have a day of rest. ( verse 15 )

Our relationship with others matter to God.

Our covenant with God includes how we treat others - Love God and Love your neighbor as yourself.

The commandments are about diagnosing our hearts. We need to examine ourselves.

Are we honest people?

Integrity, sexual purity, we will not view other people as sexual objects for our own gratification.

The Old Testament deals with issues of justice, how to treat strangers, protection for women in marriage break ups.

Our covenant will propel us into being engaged in bringing justice to our world.

Our Covenant includes:

1) Loyalty to God - our relationship with God

2) Our character

3) Social Justice

Thought for the week - ”Being deeply loved gives you strength; loving deeply gives you courage.” ( Author unknown ) 

We will now take a break from our Through the Bible in one year series and will focus on Romans and then Lent.

You may also be interested in a post I wrote sometime ago titled  " Overview of the Ten Commandments" Please link to post here - Overview of Ten Commandments

Missed Opportunities....Sunday Sermon Review

”Being deeply loved gives you strength; loving deeply gives you courage.
( author unknown )




My home church is studying through the Bible in a year. There are reading plans available and our pastors are choosing topics of discussion as we go. We are in the book of Numbers.

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Numbers 21:4-9 And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way. And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.

 And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

Pastor Ben was preaching this Sunday. I usually take notes as I listen to the sermon. I like to share my notes here with you, perhaps you will be blessed as you read.

Sermon Review

The book of Numbers is about missed opportunities - how the Israelites missed out on God's blessing. They rejected God and missed out.

We too have missed opportunities. We too have missed out on God's blessings.

The Israelite people were slaves in Egypt. God has set them free. God brought them into the wilderness in order to bring them into relationship with Him and to bring them into the Promised Land. The land is excellent - "a land flowing with milk and honey".

But there are problems - The Israelite people rebel, they refuse to enter the Promised Land. They refuse God's rest. We need to take note of this and not follow their example.

We can be saved and yet resist God and as a result end up living a life of tragedy.

How is it possible that they resist God after seeing how God set them free?

They whine and complain constantly. This is their mode of operation. This is how they are living.

Their complaining hardens them to disobedience to God.

They look to their past, to what they gave up and not at what God has saved them from.

They remember the food they ate but seem to have forgotten that their babies were killed ( Moses was spared by his mother - you remember the story).

Numbers 11: 5-6 We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick:

 But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.

Are we any better than the Israelite people? - no

We complain about the present, we keep looking back to what once was, and we also refuse to be thankful as we should.

Look to what God will do in the future.

This life here is a temporary stop.

We are on our way to the Promised Land ( heaven ).

God is leading us into our future!

Complaining people are filled with jealousy

- they/ we are poisoned by jealousy

- jealous because someone else has what we want

- you cannot be thankful for what you have when you are jealous of other people and their stuff

The Israelites now believe God is out to kill them

They think God has played a joke on them!

Numbers 14: 2-3 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!

 And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?

The Israelites believe God has brought them into the wilderness to kill them.

They cannot imagine or remember that God actually cares for them and loves them.

God is on their side, and His goal is to bring good into their lives.

Are we convinced that God wants what is best for us, that He is on our side and wants to bring us to a place of rest?

How to change - so that we do not harden our hearts.

1) Worship -  our worship is tied to our understanding of God and who He is.

Worship personally during the week.

Remind yourself that God cares for you.

2) Be Thankful - Give thanks in all circumstances.

Make thankfulness your natural attitude.

Look for things to be thankful for.

Using prayers written by others can help to bring us into a spirit and state of thankfulness.

3) Encourage others - Encourage others daily

Be thankful to others.

Bless others every day in big and in small ways.

Hebrews 3: 12-13 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

Holiness Embraces the Good

Leviticus 19:2 Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the Lord your God am holy.

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Our church pastors are preaching through the Bible this year. We started our studies in Genesis and now have come to Leviticus. The pastors are choosing the topics of discussion as we go. This Sunday's topic was holiness. I usually take notes as the pastor preaches and so I like to post my notes here - maybe just maybe you will be blessed as you read.
First I will post a portion of Scripture from Leviticus that the sermon was based upon. Then I will share my notes.

Leviticus 26:1-13 Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am theLord your God.2 Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord.3 If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them;4 Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.5 And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.6 And I will give peace in the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land.7 And ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword.8 And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.9 For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you.10 And ye shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new.11 And I set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you.12 And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people.13 I am the Lord your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, that ye should not be their bondmen; and I have broken the bands of your yoke, and made you go upright.

Pastor Ben was our speaker today. Here are the notes I took down as I listened to the sermon:

Sometimes we are not sure what to do with portions of the book of Leviticus. There are rules and regulations about mold, mildew, sores, clean and unclean etc.

Others are more straightforward. Leviticus 19:11  Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another.

We must remember that Leviticus is part of the bigger story. God is moving to bring people back into relationship with Him. Leviticus is part of the Exodus story.

God is teaching His people to be a people who are "set apart", that is that they are not to follow the pagan culture of their neighbors.

What does it mean to be God's people? We are to be a holy people!

Leviticus 19:1-2 says And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

 Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the Lord your God am holy.

Hebrews 12:14 says Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:

and 1 Peter 1:15-16 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;

 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

So we see that God is calling his people to be holy - and it is right through the Bible - Old and New Testament.

There are two extremes - legalism and carelessness.

Holiness is not Legalism - Being holy is not keeping a list of rules, of do and don'ts. Holiness is not about external behavior.

Holiness does matter, we are not to live carelessly. When we think nothing matters or that we only want to talk of God's love, - then we are not being true to Scripture.

Holiness is about a wholeness or a completeness in our life. It is from within our heart that we obey God.

We are living in what is blessed of God, It is understanding and knowing God personally.

God saves us, then He builds relationship with us, we worship Him, we live in Him, He works holiness in us.

Exodus 34: 6-7 describes the character of God - And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,

Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation

Holiness means we are "set apart".

We are set apart for God's own use.

Jesus makes us holy, 

He has chosen me, It is something God does, God makes me holy, therefore I am holy. He sets me apart as His own and I follow Him.

We must live this  out ( being set apart )

We are a light to those around us. 

We are to be different from the people of the world around us.

God calls us to be loyal to Him - in our goals, our objectives.

He calls us to be loyal to Him in our priorities, and in our attitudes. Attitudes come from the heart.

In the area of finances - making money is not our ultimate purpose or goal in our jobs.

We are to love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength.

If our attitudes and goals are the same as the people of the world - there is a problem. We are to be different!!

Holiness requires discernment. We must be able to discern good from evil, evil from good.  What is pure and what is impure. This applies in all areas of life, including media and entertainment.

We need daily personal discernment in our life. The New Testament gives a few lists as to what is pure or impure. Lists are fine. We need to learn.

We need to be holy in our choices . We need to exercise discernment.

Holiness embraces the good, and rejects the bad.

Holiness is embracing what honors God, that which is pure and excellent and clean. And it rejects such that dishonors God, such as is an abomination in His sight.

Worship - a study from Exodus

The Children of Israel cross through the Red Sea on dry ground. ( ubdavid.org )

Our church is studying through the entire Bible this year. Our pastors are choosing topics and points of discussion as we go along. Today's sermon was based out of Exodus.

Exodus 15:21 And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

I usually take notes as I listen to the sermon. Pastor Ben was preaching today and so now I would like to share my notes with you here:


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We are looking at the big picture of the drama of the Scriptures.
The Israelites have been enslaved in Egypt. God moved to rescue and deliver them.

God has revealed himself as Yahweh - The LORD - that is His personal name.
Names have meaning and the name Yahweh means that He has all authority, all power. He has all the power and there is no other God.

By bringing each of the ten plagues on Egypt, God is destroying each one of the Egyptian gods. Each plague represents one of their gods.

The LORD is present to act, to save and to deliver!

The last plague kills all the firstborn in each of the Egyptian households - not only of the human family but also the animals.
God offered a way to avoid this plague. The offer was for all the Israelites and also for the Egyptians. A way out of this disaster was offered.
At this point Pharoah sends out the Israelites. The people of Israel plunder the Egyptians of their gold and wealth. 
Pharoah has a change of mind and wants to bring the Israelites back but ...
God parts the Red Sea so the Israelites could cross. Pharaoh and his army attempt to cross as well but are drowned in the Red Sea.
The children of Israel are free - no longer slaves!

At mount Sinai the people enter into relationship with God. God makes a covenant with them.  " I will be your God - you are my people."

And today, God still wants to be in relationship with us.
Not only does He answer our prayers but He seeks relationship with us.

How should we respond? By worshiping God.

What is Worship?

1) Worship involves proclaiming who God is. This must be done as individuals at home, and as community with our church family.

Keep reminding yourself of God's character and who God is.
As you are praying begin by proclaiming who God is - He is holy, awesome, great, all powerful, almighty, creator of all things etc..

2) As a group - Remind ourselves and each other about who it is we are worshiping. In our song we proclaim God's justice, holiness, He is merciful, and mighty etc..

3) We pledge allegiance to God - we become loyal to God. He is first in all our thoughts, actions and life.
It is a pledge to be loyal to Him. You will be our God and we will be your people.
Remind yourself everyday that you belong to God.

By attending church you are pledging loyalty to God. You are saying I am on God's side, I am doing this public. Be in public what you are in private.

4) We are retelling what God has done.  Retell the story how God has saved you, how he has set you free.  Repeat the stories of the Bible, repeat the stories of how God has worked in your life and in the life of people you know.

God required the children of Israel to retell the Exodus story every year. Our Communion comes from Passover. Jesus was participating in Passover before He died.
Jesus came to show who God is, and to set people free. He says to remember. We remember at Communion - this do in remembrance of Me.

Tell the stories of God in your life.
Parents - do our kids know why you are a Christian? Tell them.

How often do we really remember to thank God for answered prayer?  It is important we do.

Tell what God has done in the past, and what He is doing in the world and in your life!!

God's Covenant Promises - Moses and the Exodus

Exodus 3:14  And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you.


Our church is studying through the Bible in one year. Our Pastors are preaching on the stories and topics of their choice. This Sunday our sermon focused on Moses and the Exodus. Pastor Ben preached a good sermon. He began with some review and just telling the early stories of the Israelites in bondage to the Egyptians and how God led them out of Egypt. A day or two after Sunday I was reading in my Bible and I happened to read Psalm 105 and I thought to myself how incredibly fitting it would have been if Pastor Ben had read from Psalm 105. Therefore I want to post it here before I begin with my notes that I took from listening to the sermon. Please do read the following verses from Psalm 105.

Psalm 105: 4-45 (KJV from Biblegateway )
  4 Seek the Lord, and his strength: seek his face evermore.

5 Remember his marvellous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;

6 O ye seed of Abraham his servant, ye children of Jacob his chosen.

7 He is the Lord our God: his judgments are in all the earth.

8   He hath remembered his covenant for ever, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations.

9 Which covenant he made with Abraham, and his oath unto Isaac;

10 And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law, and to Israel for an everlasting covenant:

11 Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance:

12 When they were but a few men in number; yea, very few, and strangers in it.

13 When they went from one nation to another, from one kingdom to another people;

14 He suffered no man to do them wrong: yea, he reproved kings for their sakes;

15 Saying, Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.

16 Moreover he called for a famine upon the land: he brake the whole staff of bread.

17 He sent a man before them, even Joseph, who was sold for a servant:

18 Whose feet they hurt with fetters: he was laid in iron:

19 Until the time that his word came: the word of the Lord tried him.

20 The king sent and loosed him; even the ruler of the people, and let him go free.

21 He made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his substance:

22 To bind his princes at his pleasure; and teach his senators wisdom.

23 Israel also came into Egypt; and Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.

24 And he increased his people greatly; and made them stronger than their enemies.

25 He turned their heart to hate his people, to deal subtilly with his servants.

26 He sent Moses his servant; and Aaron whom he had chosen.

27 They shewed his signs among them, and wonders in the land of Ham.

28 He sent darkness, and made it dark; and they rebelled not against his word.

29 He turned their waters into blood, and slew their fish.

30 Their land brought forth frogs in abundance, in the chambers of their kings.

31 He spake, and there came divers sorts of flies, and lice in all their coasts.

32 He gave them hail for rain, and flaming fire in their land.

33 He smote their vines also and their fig trees; and brake the trees of their coasts.

34 He spake, and the locusts came, and caterpillers, and that without number,

35 And did eat up all the herbs in their land, and devoured the fruit of their ground.

36 He smote also all the firstborn in their land, the chief of all their strength.

37 He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes.

38 Egypt was glad when they departed: for the fear of them fell upon them.

39 He spread a cloud for a covering; and fire to give light in the night.

40 The people asked, and he brought quails, and satisfied them with the bread of heaven.

41 He opened the rock, and the waters gushed out; they ran in the dry places like a river.

42 For he remembered his holy promise, and Abraham his servant.

43 And he brought forth his people with joy, and his chosen with gladness:

44 And gave them the lands of the heathen: and they inherited the labour of the people;

45 That they might observe his statutes, and keep his laws. Praise ye the Lord.

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Okay so now to my notes:

We are walking through the Bible.

We are seeing how God is involved.

We went through Genesis and now we are in Exodus.

God is not distant/

God made promises in Genesis 12 and it marked a shift in human history.

God to Abraham -- descendants, blessing, and land.

These promises carry through throughout the Bible and even today - they are everlasting promises.

God delivers the people out of slavery in Egypt.

Jacob has 12 sons and 1 daughter. One of his sons, namely Joseph is sold into Egypt. A famine hits Egypt. Jacob and his family move to Egypt. Jacob is named Israel and his descendants are the Israelites.

Pharoah enslaves the Israelites - he decides to destroy all the baby boys. Moses escapes this death when Moses mother hides him for three months, then puts the baby Moses in a basket out on the Nile River. The Egyptian princess finds him and claims him as her own son. Thus Moses life is spared.

The Israelites are oppressed and cry out to God. God heard their cries. He sends Moses to Pharoah. and a showdown begins between God and Pharoah!

God sends the plagues - ten plagues.  Each one of the ten plagues represent one of the Egyptian gods which have no power against the LORD God Almighty.

God moves to set the Israelites free. 

God reveals his personal name - Yahweh,  Jehovah.  In the Bible when you see LORD in all capitals, this refers to the personal Name of God. 

Exodus 6:2-3 And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the Lord:

And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name Jehovah was I not known to them.

Names carry meaning in the Bible - What does Yahweh mean? - Exodus 3:14 has the answer - And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you.

It means I AM THAT I AM.

This means that He is the ONLY GOD!

We see that God never struggles at all in any of the plagues that He sends upon Egypt. He sends the plagues and He lifts them again at a given time.

This is still true today! No power or system can compete with God. If He wants to do something, He will!!

We are praying to the Great I AM!

There is One God and none equal to Him!

He says - I AM with you.

Yahweh is present here with us!

The Great I AM is not distant!

He is here to act, not just to watch!

He brings deliverance!

He works with us - He chooses to use us to fulfill His purposes/

The cries have reached Him!

He responds to the prayers of His people!

Have you cried out to Him?

God works through people - He sent Moses. Moses was a man of no influence or power.

God is doing more and bigger than we can imagine!

The LORD has all power and authority!!

The Everlasting Covenant with Abraham

Genesis 12:1 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.


Our church is preaching through the Bible this year. It is not a thorough study but rather more of an overview and touching on topics that the preacher chooses to preach on. This past Sunday the focus was mostly on Abraham and the everlasting covenant that God has made to him and his descendants. 

I like to take notes as the preacher delivers his message so I will post my notes below the Bible reading from Genesis 12:1-8

 Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:

2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:

3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

4 So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.

5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.

6 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.

7 And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto theLord, who appeared unto him.

8 And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord.

Pastor Ben was preaching and here are the notes that I took from his sermon:

We are looking at the big picture story of the Bible. 

God created the world and all of humanity and He said that it is very good.

But humanity rejected God and turned against Him.

God made a promise to Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 12. He starts enacting this plan in order to combat and wage war against the evil that has enveloped his creation. God is looking to draw humanity back into relationship with Him. The covenant promise is an act of mercy and grace.

God is Holy. He is robed in majesty and power. Humanity rejected and betrayed Him. It is not surprising that there is judgement. God destroyed most of humanity in the flood of Noah's day and spared only Noah and his family. God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah but spared Lot and his daughters. We can think of the tower of Babel when God confused the language of the people. 

The surprising thing is that God is so merciful and gracious. In judgement God shows mercy and grace.

Genesis 12 is a major shift in history - a change in how God relates to humanity. 

Verse 2 - And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:

We are blessed through Abraham. The Scripture is written by a descendant of Abraham. Jesus our Savior is a descendant of Abraham.

What are the promises to Abraham in Genesis 12?

1) Descendants - a great nation 

2) He will be blessed and be a blessing

3) A promised land

Will God be faithful to these promises? Can we trust God to fulfill His Word?

Absolutely YES!!

Genesis 1-11 describes how humanity fails and are not faithful to God. People reject Him time and time again.

But God is showing that He can be trusted and He is faithful.

God does provide children to Abraham. Isaac is born - a miracle baby. Genesis 12 is a blessing to Isaac.

Then we see Jacob getting the promise of Genesis 12. Jacob has 12 sons and so they become the 12 tribes of Israel. God does give them children and they become a great nation and even to this day!!

Laban is on the receiving end of the blessing when Jacob lives with him. Laban recognizes this to be true. God is constantly fulfilling his promise.

God's promise invites us to respond, to change and to live a new life in Christ.

Just as God called Abraham to leave his old place behind him, so God calls us to leave our old ways behind and he invites us to come to Him - to change and to follow Christ.

We need to trust Him. We need to come to Him in repentance and faith.

Will you trust Him?

God has promised provision. He has promised to take care of us. He will provide for us.

This allows us to live in a new way. We do not need to cling to our possessions, to our bank accounts or retirement fund.  We hold our possessions with a free hand because God is our provider.

God has promised to be in relationship with us. We don't use people in our to get ourselves ahead. We don't need to worry because  we are resting in the promise of God.

Hebrews 11:6  But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Our well being does not come by living for ourselves. Society says "me first" .

The Bible says "me first" is a recipe for disaster.

We are learning to trust God and to live in His promises.

Thought for the week - "When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, I used everything you gave me." Erma Bombeck