Colossians 1:10

That you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.

Our first goal as Christians is to learn what pleases the Lord. We are to be imitators of Jesus on this earth. We learn how to do that when we read the bible. When we do this, we start to plant a good seed of faith that we learn from God. We then bear fruit in our lives, relationships, and every good work we do. God then reveals more and more to us as we draw closer to Him.

Matthew 10: 38-39

And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

We all have a before and after from when Jesus came into our lives. Living for Jesus means dying to our sinful past and letting go of the pain it caused. Losing that old life means nothing as compared to the gain with fellowship with God. We find a life with Jesus when we follow after Him and take up our cross.

Matthew 10:32

Whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 

We, as Christians, should not be ashamed to confess Jesus before men. The reason being that when we share our faith with someone who doesn’t believe we open the door for that person to be saved. The devil wants to stop the spreading of the gospel aided by our confessing our faith to others. We are the best witnesses to the power of God. When we confess the name of Jesus, He will confess our name to the Father in heaven.   

Ezekiel 36:26-27

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.

Jesus came to this earth to help us heal from pain, offense, and unforgiveness. A heart becomes stone when circumstances in life become too much to bear, and the heart hardens. We were never meant to have to take on the pressures of life alone. Our new spirit from God connects us to divine wisdom, protection, and peace during the trials of life. 

1 Peter 1:23

Having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever.

A seed has everything in it to get it started for growth. Any corruption of the seed stops the growth of the seed and its ability to produce. Jesus, the word comes inside us and makes us into an incorruptible seed. Being born again gives us a chance every day to grow in the word of God. The bible says when we do that, the word takes root and causes us to grow and flourish.

2 Corinthians 3:4-5

We have such trust through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God.

We trust what we know. The bible is our guide book to build up our trust in God and His way of provision. By confessing the word, we build our faith for the provision to come from God. We speak what is in our hearts and believe what we speak. Our words can tear down the barriers in our lives, or our words can create obstacles. We chose what kind of life we have with our word

Leviticus 17:11

For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.

Jesus was sent for the atonement of our souls. He became the sacrifice for our sins by the shedding of His blood. We will be forever grateful for the love shown to us by God. We show our gratitude to God when we share the love with those in need, remembering the love offered on our behalf before we were even born.

Luke 5:32

I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.  

What is the purpose of sin? Sins’ goal is to create a division between God and us.  Sin leads us down a path that is a dead end.  When we are lost, we need that voice of God to call us back.  A sinner repents because the error is revealed.  Most people sin because they lack knowledge from God of how to do better. 

Proverbs 8:17

I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently will find me.

Sometimes we need to stoke the fire for the love of God.  When it feels like we are out in the wilderness searching check and see if we still have the love fire burning.  God will never leave us or forsake us, but we have to keep up our end also.  We can’t be running from God and expect to find Him.  Every day is a good day to tell God we love Him and need Him in our lives. 

Psalm 96:8

Give to the Lord the glory due His name; bring an offering, and come into His courts.

An attitude of gratitude toward God and everything He has done for us opens the door to a closer relationship with Him.  We could never repay the cost of Jesus dying on the cross, but we can thank God for it. Our blessings in our lives are poured out from God in heaven.  Praise God today for all He has done for us with worship and song.  Draw closer to God and give Him the glory He is due.