Faith Trumps Legalism

New Guest: Like this one, most posts are devotional; those related to CAR BIZ can be found by searching for that label.

Friday & Saturday, January 30 & 31, 2009
Devotions: 40, 51, 54, 55, 138, 139:1-17; Isa 50:1-51:8; Gal 3:15-29; Mk 6:47-7:23

I have waited, and God has answered. I delight to do Your will, Lord; I will not deny You or Your goodness to me. Deliver me, and help me testify to Your goodness! I know my sins offend against You, and I am sorry! Purge me and make me clean, O Lord; fill me with Your joy and gladness; let the bones You have broken be healed. Create in me a clean heart and put an upright spirit in me; uphold me with a willing spirit, Lord! Let my mouth speak Your praise; I give You my broken heart and contrite spirit, Lord. Forgive and bless me, I pray! Vindicate me by Your might; I give myself to You, Lord. Confound my enemies; I cast my burden on God and God will set me free. Great is the glory of the Lord; I walk in trouble, but God keeps me alive and well! Let YHWH fulfill His purpose for me. Lord, You know me completely, and I bow to You. Your thoughts are precious to me, Lord, and nothing is worth as much to me as You Yourself!

God takes care of me; I will walk in His light! Let those who seek deliverance trust in YHWH; trust in God, and He will make you free! I will trust God forever.

The law was given to Moses and pertained until the Christ came; we live under grace, not under the law; we live by faith and by the faithfulness of Christ Himself. We are all one in Him, and heirs with Him of the promises made to Abraham and to all the patriarchs. We are heirs of God, through His grace given in the Messiah Jesus.
After feeding the multitude and extended time in prayer alone, Jesus walked across the surface of the Sea of Galilee to the boat in which His disciples were rowing against the wind. On the other side, the crowds continued to seek Jesus and press upon Him. The scribes and Pharisees continued to challenge Him, noting that His disciples did not perform the ritual ablutions before eating. Jesus answered that His questioners were hypocrites, leaning on human traditions, but ignoring the actual commands of God. For example, they denied their parents in order to make showy gifts to the Temple—making God’s word void through human tradition. Jesus told the people: ‘Nothing outside a person can defile you; you are defiled by what emerges from inside—evil thoughts, fornication, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, envy, license, slander, pride and folly.