Devotional Song: ... Go to this link … Please take the time to take in a video of an anonymous praise group singing the 18th century hymn … Rock of Ages, praying and singing of the reality of those who surrender their lives to the THE ROCK of all ages, our Lord and Savior, Who shed His blood that we build our lives on Him … forever.
Highlight Passage Matthew 7: 24-25 [NKJV] …
24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. … "
… Jesus preaches how to build a life on Him as our Rock. …
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Highlight Context - Matthew 7: 21-27 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK …
… Building a life on the rock solid foundation of Christ
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Reference Passage #1 - John 14: 21 [NKJV] …
21 "... He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
… Jesus - only those who follow His commandments will manifest Him in their lives.
Reference Passage #2 - James 2: 19-20, … 26 [NKJV] …
19 You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! 20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?
… 26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
… James, Jesus’ brother, on how our faith must be built on something besides just believing. It is our works which show our faith.
My Journal for Today: Today’s Our Daily Bread devotional entry, authored by Bill Crowder, admonishes his readers (me) to build our lives on solid ground. He writes: Earthquakes are prevalent in the Pacific Rim region known as the “Ring of Fire.” Ninety percent of the world’s earthquakes and 81 percent of the world’s largest earthquakes occur there. I learned that many buildings in the city of Hong Kong have been built on granite, which could help minimize damage in the event of an earthquake. The foundation of buildings is especially important in earthquake-prone regions of the world.
This was the message Jesus conveyed to His followers gathered on that hillside near Capernaum in His most message message to believers (and non-believers). It was the Gospel message that only those who built their lives on Him would ultimately find their way into the Kingdom of God. It was the message that those who faced the storms of life, having built their lives on “THE ROCK OF AGES,” would survive and be with Him forever. However, it was also the stark message that many, who call Jesus, “lord, lord,” would not be welcome in His Kingdom because they had built their lives on sand, not really following and believing in their Messiah.
Jesus’ message still is as stark and strong today as it was written and voiced by Him on that hillside and later by the Apostles after Jesus was raised from the dead. It screams the question: "On what are we building our lives?"
You must answer that for yourself; but as with Joshua (see Joshua 24: 15b), … “As for me and my house, … we will serve the Lord!”
My Prayer Today: Lord, help all those here with me today who call themselves “Christian” ... to build our lives on nothing but You as our “Rock of Ages.” Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled Our Daily Bread, distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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