Man, Woman, the Fall & the Church (Part 1 of 4)

Hello Friends!

Welcome to a new 4-part Daily Devotions series devoted to my sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ titled “Man, Woman, the Fall & the Church”

 

This series will consider the following 4 points of reference from the Scriptures:

The Creation Account: Man & Woman

The Fall from Grace: Sin & Consequences

The Great Women of the Bible

The Role of Women in the New Testament Church

Note to My Brothers: This will be an excellent series for us Christian men too!

The Bible is and has always been a revolutionary book. It stands like a coastal rock cliff to resist the surging, crashing waves of cultural change. There may be no clearer demonstration of the Bible's immutable word than what it teaches about genuine godly femininity.

With that said, let’s begin our series…

The Creation Account: Man & Woman

From the very first book of the Bible, we are taught that women, like men, bear the stamp of God's own image:

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them – Genesis 1:27

Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh – Genesis 2:24

This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created – Genesis 5:1-2

Far from denigrating women, the Bible promotes feminine freedom, dignity and honor. Scripture paints for every culture the portrait of a truly beautiful woman. True feminine beauty, however, is not about external adornment:

Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel – rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God – 1 Peter 3:3-4

Men and women were created equal. Women play prominent roles in many key biblical narratives. Wives are seen as partners and cherished companions to their husbands – not merely slaves or pieces of household furniture!

Houses and riches are an inheritance from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the Lord – Proverbs 19:14

Live joyfully with the wife whom you love all the days of your vain life which He has given you under the sun, all your days of vanity; for that is your portion in life, and in the labor which you perform under the sun – Ecclesiastes 9:9

In closing:

To continue your own personal journey through God’s Word pertaining to The Creation Account: Man & Woman, please consider these few foundational Scriptures as well as the Genesis chapter 2 account of “Origins” – Creation Mandate – God’s original plan for man and woman.

Thank you for reading! Don’t miss next week’s edition as we investigate the Genesis chapter 3 account of “The Fall from Grace” – Original Sin – to remind us of why there is so much animosity between the sexes today and why we must seek the Lord’s perspective concerning His original intent for humanity… Man and Woman.

May the Lord Jesus Christ continue to bless you with His perfect love, mercy and grace!

Keep looking up and sharing the Gospel while there is still time… Hallelujah and Maranatha – come quickly Lord Jesus!

Blessings!

Shane <><

Pray for Yourself

27 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he said to them. “The Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. 28 Pray to the Lord, for we have had enough thunder and hail. I will let you go; you don’t have to stay any longer.” Exodus 9

Pharaoh was so close!  He recognized that he had sinned and that God was in control.  He even agreed to let the Israelites go with Moses, without conditions.  Granted, he then retracts those statements when the hail stops, but he still missed the mark with his earlier statements.

Pharaoh didn't pray to God for forgiveness.  He tells Moses to do so.  It's unclear as to his motivations for asking Moses to pray to God for him.  The point is, we are called on to have personal relationships with God.  He wants to know us, his children, and he wants us to know him, our Father.

Now, I'm not saying we should never ask our family, friends, and brothers and sisters through Christ to not pray for us.  There is absolutely power in prayer, and it should be encouraged that we are praying for one another.  However, we should not rely solely on the prayers of others to be our only communication with God.  So any time you ask others for prayer, whether it be in person, through an email request, or on your attendance sheet at your church, make sure that you too are praying for your needs. 

More Proof Through Earthquakes

Do you remember where you were and what you were doing when 9/11 happened? What about when some of us experienced the Northeast blackout of 2003? I remember where I was, what I was doing, who was around, etc. Well, have you ever felt an earthquake? I haven’t, but I would assume those who have, probably remember that day well, too.

Did you know there was an earthquake both at Jesus’ death and his resurrection?
Matthew 27:50-54            ⁵⁰ And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. ⁵¹ At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split ⁵² and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. ⁵³ They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people. ⁵⁴ When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”
 
Matthew 28:1-4          After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. ² There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. ³ His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. ⁴ The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
 
Not only were there numerous people who witnessed Jesus’ death and resurrection, but I’m guessing thousands more experienced and remembered the earthquakes! God offered evidence to people who weren’t even looking for proof! I’m sure the guards never forgot either day. Plus, I love how God sent an angel to sit on the stone so that no one could think the empty tomb and earthquake were just coincidence. God was behind it all!   
 
Have you ever had doubts about Jesus’ death and resurrection?
Have you heard other people question it?
How do some of these details increase your confidence?
I pray these details increase our assurance and motivate all of us to praise and exalt God!
  Psalm 46:10    He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”

Alice

Simply Out of Love

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.  If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.  If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.  1 Corinthians 13:1-3 

There is a project that I took on at work this year.  It focuses on helping others see their potential, and the reason I chose to take it on will not result in my getting praise or a promotion, and my passion for pursuing it is not for an expected reward at its completion.   Rather, it is the sincere hope that it makes a difference in the lives of others, and my drive comes from the love I have for my team and organization.  For that reason, the project deserves my best effort and dedication toward its success.

Our love for Christ must be the driving factor for our actions.  Many people believe in faith by works.  They believe that by doing things as written in scripture, they will receive an upper hand in Heaven.  Others take the approach of being saved by confessing of Jesus Christ as Lord by mouth, and then continue their life as if nothing has changed.  Both beliefs are flawed.  While there is some truth in both statements, neither indicates a true relationship with Christ.  I think of my wife and how wonderful she has been to me for all of these years.  My love for her grows continually, and as such, it motivates me to be a better husband to her.  In a similar way, a true love for Christ motivates us to act.  Thus, works are not a driving force toward salvation.  Instead, it is the byproduct of our growing relationship.  Furthermore, confessing Jesus Christ as Lord is something that cannot be an idle moment that just passes us by.  It is a transformative event that like any growing relationship motivates us to change making the relationship better.

To love Jesus is to commit to Him fully and unconditionally.  Jesus said, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching.  My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.” (John 14:23)  This is at times challenging, but all growth, spiritual and otherwise, is.  We strive toward having a wonderfully unyielding relationship with Him.  That is what love for Christ is all about.  How do you measure your love for Christ?  What more can you do to reflect His love?  My prayer is that we grow for Christ simply out of love.  Amen.

Tues Devo: Motive check

John 3:25-30 “Therefore there arose a discussion on the part of John’s disciples with a Jew about purification. And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, He is baptizing and all are coming to Him.” John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent ahead of Him.’ He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine has been made full. He must increase, but I must decrease.” (NASB)

Hello,

Most of the time when we start something new, we start with the right reasons/motives/goals/frame of mind. But, we run into a danger called success. You see, when we have success we are faced with a critical choice. We can keep our focus to where it started – or we can begin to look around and get caught up in the success and begin to carry forward with different motivation than when we started. John the Baptist was having great success – but he didn’t let it change his motivation. He knew his goals and why he was doing what he was doing and stuck to it.

Have you checked your motives lately? Did you start well intentioned, but get derailed with success?

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill