Choose Jesus and life in His kingdom

New Guest: Like this one, most posts are devotional; those related to CAR BIZ can be found by searching for that title. You might start with 'Welcome,' the first post in the archives, dated November 12, 2008, where I introduce myself and the blog.

Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Devotions: Ps 119:145-76; 128-30; Obadiah 15-21; 1 Pet 2:1-10; Mt 19:23-30

Lord, with my whole heart, I cry to you; please, answer me, Lord! In Your steadfast love, hear and respond; preserve my life and save my family! Deliver me from affliction, to keep Your word. All Your words are true; Your ordinances endure forever. I praise You, God; great peace have all who love Your law. Nothing can make me stumble. Seek me when I wander, Great Shepherd; I do not forget Your commandments. Blessed are all who keep God’s law and walk in His ways. We give thanks and praise God for the bounty He provides. Let God’s peace rest on Israel and all who worship YHWH! Despite affliction, God’s people triumph. We cry to God from the depths of our souls; I wait upon YHWH and long for His coming. With our God is steadfast love and plenteous redemption. He will redeem us from our iniquities.

God’s Day is near us, and He will deliver His own and bring judgment on His enemies. God’s people will administer all the earth—all will belong to the Lord!

Let us set aside all malice, guile, insincerity and envy; let us crave pure spiritual milk, and grow up into our salvation. Come to Him, the Living Stone, and be built into a living, spiritual house, to be holy priests and offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus the Messiah. Scripture says, ‘Behold, I lay in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in Him will not be put to shame.’ Jesus is precious to all who believe; to others, He is rejected, yet become the chief cornerstone; He will make unbelievers stumble and fall—because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. We who believe are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation: God’s own people. And we may declare His deeds, Who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. We had no identity once, but now we are the people of God; we were objects of wrath, but now we have received God’s mercy.

When the rich young man had gone away in sorrow [choosing his worldly wealth over eternal life in following the Messiah], Jesus said to His disciples, ‘I tell you most truly, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven—easier for a camel to squeeze through the Needle’s Eye gate on its knees.’ The disciples were astonished—‘Who can be saved, then?’ they asked. Jesus said, ‘With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.’ Peter responded, ‘Look: we have left everything behind to follow You. What will be our lot?’ Jesus answered, ‘Truly I say this: in the new world, when the Son of man sits on His glorious throne, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Every one who has left houses, brothers, sisters, parents, children or lands behind for My name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold, and will inherit eternal life. Still, many who are now first will then be last, and the last, first.’