Hello,
There are some things that just cannot be mixed. I guess water and oil may be a very good example. Water is charged positively on the oxygen end, and negatively on the hydrogen end. Oil does not have a charge (it's neutral), so the oil does not mix with the water. In a word, oil cannot form a bond with water. How can a Holy God ever bond with a sinful man. It seems if anything or anybody could not form a bond it would be here. Holiness is a key word in describing the nature of God. The word belongs uniquely to Him. It separates Him from everything else and from everyone else. It is an indispensable word for speaking about God. He never moves from His position or changes in this matter of Holiness. Revelation 15:4a: "Who will not fear You, O Lord, and bring glory to Your name? For You alone are holy." Isaiah 40:25: "To whom will you compare Me? Or who is My equal?" 1 Samuel 6:20 "Who can stand in the presence of the Lord, this holy God?" Hosea 11:9 "I am God, and not man - the Holy One among you." Isaiah 57:15 "For this is what the high and lofty One says - He Who lives forever, Whose name is holy: 'I live in a high and holy place." I cannot encounter God without encountering His holiness. I cannot know Him without becoming aware of His holiness. I cannot have a relationship with Him except in the context of His holiness. God and holiness are inseparable. But God's holiness is not a barrier to our having a loving relationship. Holiness does not eternally separate Him from me. Holiness belongs to God. I, too, can belong to God., And in that way holiness and I can belong together. Impossible? Unreasonable? Self-contradictory? To man's limited understanding, yes. The truth is that God longs to share His holiness with me. He tells us in 2 Peter 1:4 that He enables us "...to become participants of the divine nature." We heard Him say in Isaiah 57:15 above: "He who lives forever, Whose name is holy: 'I live in a high and holy place," however, at the end of the verse He says He also lives with: "....those who are contrite and humble in spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite." No, oil and water may never mix, but God's holiness can transform a sinful man, and bring him into partnership with Himself. We can abide in Him. Astounding!!! Peter refers to this as a precious and very great promise. If you are not experiencing His Holiness in your life, let Him through the power of His Holy Spirit remove anything in your surrendered heart that does not mix, that can not mix, with His holiness, and claim by faith, this precious and very great promise for yourself. God bless, and remember that you are loved!!! Henry
0 Comments
Hi,
"He that gathereth in summer is a wise son" (Prov. 10:5). Earth has her seasons with a time to plant, cultivate, harvest, and store up for the coming winter. The time we have with our children in the shelter of our homes is a precious season of spiritual planting, cultivating, gather and store up. Because the season of winter will come in their lives. No young person can live permanently in such a shelter with mom and dad. It is possible, however, in the quiet days of the home, to gather spiritual resources in the heart so that in the conflicts of the future, the soul can be safe. When men build a great ship to go to sea, they build it with tremendous strength, staunch ribs, immense beams and stays, and heavy steel plates. They make it strong enough to endure the wildest storms. So human lives should be built in the home in the days of youth – not merely for the sweet experiences of the home itself, but to meet the severest testing that the future may bring. Let's understand though, just like the building of the ship, it is not a quick fix. The training should begin at a young age and, hopefully through the years, become a life style. There is a touching story told of a young man who was rapidly and surely losing his eyesight. The physicians told him that he would be able to see for just a few months longer. He asked his sister to travel over Europe with him, taking a last look at the beautiful things, before his eyes would be closed forever. He wanted to have his memory stored with lovely pictures of mountains, lakes, and waterfalls, of fine buildings and works of art, so when the time came that he could no longer see, he might have these beautiful visions in his soul that they may still bring light to his darkened world. Let's walk in the light while we have the light. We should train ourselves and our children to see all the beauty we can find in God’s ways, His works, and His Word. It is better caught than taught. For as they see this pattern is a way of life for us, we can train them to make it a way of life for themselves. Let's gather into our souls all the love, joy, and gladness that we can store there, while we have daylight. Then when the night settles about our lives, and the lives of our children, we all can still have light within. "He that gathereth in summer is a wise son" (Prov. 10:5). May the Lord bless you and yours today, and always remember that you are loved!!! Henry Good morning,
We recently read a story of two men who shared a hospital room. Only the one next to the window was able to set up for a hour or so each afternoon. The two shared their lives with each other, talking for hours on end of their families, wives, jobs, military service, and vacations they had enjoyed. The one next to the window would also share each afternoon what he could see from the window. His roommate would live for those times each day, to hear of the ducks and swans on the water, while little children played with their toy sail boats. Young lover walked arm and arm among the flowers of every color. There was a fine view of the skyline in the distance. The recipient of all of this would close his eyes and imagine the scenes. One warm afternoon the man by the window described in detail a parade passing by, while the other, though he could not hear the bands, could picture them in his minds eye, as well as the old cars, clowns, balloons, horses, etc. One morning the nurse came to find that the man next to the window had peacefully past away during the night. After an appropriate amount of time had passed, the man ask if he could be moved next to the window. After this was granted, he struggled and struggled to raise himself up on an elbow to see out the window. He found nothing but a blank wall looking back at him. I'm convinced that there are many ways God would want us to encourage each other. "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing." 1 Thessalonians 5:9 Have a blessed day, encourage someone in their faith today, and know that you are loved!!! Henry Hello,
This older fellow bought himself a new car with many new devises. Edwin was amused to hear the soft female voice gently remind him that his seat belt wasn't fastened. ... Edwin affectionately called this voice the 'little woman.' He soon discovered his little woman was programmed to warn him about his gasoline. 'Your fuel level is low,' she said one time in her sweet voice. ... He figured he still had enough to go another fifty miles, so he kept on driving. But a few minutes later, her voice interrupted again with the same warning. And so it went over and over. Although he knew it was the same recording, Edwin thought her voice sounded harsher each time. Finally, he stopped his car and crawled under the dashboard. After a quick search, he found the appropriate wires and gave them a good yank. He was still smiling to himself a few minutes later when his car began sputtering and coughing. He ran out of gas! Somewhere inside the dashboard, Edwin was sure he could hear the little woman laughing. As Christians, we have the "still small voice" of the Holy Spirit speaking to us, and at times checking us or directing us. How important is it to pickup on His voice above all others; hear and then adhere to His words? We saw a church's yard sign this past week that read: "SUCCEED AT HOME FIRST". The family is just about the place that I want to succeed the most. In fact, I feel that if I fail here, my life will be a failure in spite of anything else that I might accomplish, and if I can succeed here, it will somehow atone for other failures in my life. My most often and fervent prayer is that I will be a successful father and grandfather. For a while fathers can make decisions for their young children, but there will come a time when life requires it of them to process information placed before them, and make their own choices. To train our children in this matter, is nothing less than sharing with them how we consider the 'still small voice" in our life choices as we study God's ways and pray. If our children are made aware of family circumstances, even family problems, and then see how we lean on the Holy Spirit in our decision making to solve problems, this is training. And this just may be the greatest accomplishment a father could strive for. We want none of ours to deal with God in the way Edwin dealt with his monitor; but we want ours to always keep the connection with the Lord unbroken. "He did what was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in all the way of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right or to the left." 2 Kings 22:2 Our Prayer today: "Lord, help us to always listen to Your voice, obey You, and then train our children to do the same." God bless you and yours today, and please know that you are loved!!! Henry Good morning,
Please let me share with you a devotional thought from A.W. Tozer. "The nearer we draw to the heart of God the less taste we will have for controversy. The peace we know at God's side is so sweet that it is very natural that we want to keep it unbroken to enjoy as fully and as long as possible. The Spirit-filled Christian is never a good fighter. He is at too many disadvantages. The enemy is always better with an abusive word than he will allow himself to be. The devil has the damaging vocabulary, and his followers have no conscience about using it. The Christian is always more at home, blessing than he is opposing. He is, moreover, much thinner-skinned than his adversaries. He shrinks from an angry countenance and draws back from bitter words. They are symbols of a world he has long ago forsaken for the quiet of the kingdom of God where love and good will prevail. All this is in his favor, for it marks him out as a man in whom there is no hate and who earnestly desires to live at peace with all men. In spite of his sincere longing for peace, however, there will be times when he dare not allow himself to enjoy it. There are times when it is a sin to be at peace. There are circumstances when there is nothing to do but to stand up and vigorously oppose. To wink at iniquity for the sake of peace is not a proof of superior spirituality; it is rather a sign of a reprehensible timidity which dare not oppose sin for fear of the consequences. For it will cost us heavily to stand for the right when the wrong is in the majority, which is 100 percent of the time." "So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter." 2 Thessalonians 2:15 "There is a place of quite rest, Near to the heart of God. A place where sin cannot molest, Near to the heart of God." May the Prience of Peace bless you today, and never forget that you are loved!!! Henry |
Henry DeatonHenry D. is from Southern Indiana and writes these wonderful daily devotionals to encourage those at the Dogwood Community Church located in Paoli, Indiana. Henry has graciously agreed to share these wonderful devotionals here at Without Excuse Ministries to encourage you our valued guest! Archives
January 2013
|