Memory Verses Feb 26-Apr 21

 February 26-March 10
 1 John 1:9  “If we confess our sins, he is  faithful and just to forgive us our sins and  to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

First, he gives a command to obey: you must confess your sins. Second, he gives a message to believe: when you confess your sin, God is faithful to forgive and cleanse you….Asking for and believing in God’s forgiveness of our sin and his power to change us is essential to experiencing it. – Heath Lambert
 
When we discover sin in our lives, we are not shocked or astonished, but we nonetheless hate the fact that it is there. We trust Christ, our Advocate, for forgiveness and cleansing. And far from becoming tolerant or comfortable with sin in our lives, we become more and more determined to mortify it. As John says, “I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin” 
 
In other words, a spirit of perpetual repentance ought to permeate and characterize the life of every true believer. The repentance that takes place at conversion begins a progressive, lifelong process of confession and forgiveness (1 John 1:9). That spirit of continual repentance in no way undermines the assurance of a true child of God. On the contrary, it is the very thing that feeds our assurance and keeps it alive. – John MacArthur
 

March 11-24
Phil 4:5b-7 “The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything,  but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

With regard to the problem that is pressing in on you right now, are you “looking unto Jesus” (Hebrews 12:2) and receiving peace from Him? If so, He will be a gracious blessing of peace exhibited in and through you. But if you only try to worry your way out of the problem, you destroy His effectiveness in you, and you deserve whatever you get. We become troubled because we have not been taking Him into account. When a person confers with Jesus Christ, the confusion stops, because there is no confusion in Him. Lay everything out before Him, and when you are faced with difficulty, bereavement, and sorrow, listen to Him say, “Let not your heart be troubled…” (John 14:27). – Oswald Chambers

March 25- April 7
Phil 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Why does Paul give us this command? Because God has provided us a way to free us from our negative compulsive thoughts: by thinking about “these things.” 
 
Okay, but how does Paul’s list help us? The last time you struggled to escape from a compulsive train of thought, how much help were abstract concepts like truth, honor, justice, purity, excellence, etc.? To the degree they remained abstract, probably zero help.
 
But Paul never intended these concepts to remain abstract. That’s why he wrote “whatever is” before each one. Paul knew that giving rise to our negative, sinful thoughts are specific false, dishonorable, unjust, impure, ugly, disgraceful, and detestable functional beliefs. Wherever these functional sinful beliefs (or unbeliefs) exist in us, manifesting in our demanding sinful thoughts and emotions, they must be confronted and replaced with “whatever is” the appropriate, God-dependent belief. We must do the work of taking specific promises God has provided in Scripture and concretely applying them to the specific sinful functional beliefs powering our emotions and fueling our thoughts. – Jon Bloom


April 8 - 21
Num 23:19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
 
We praise God, amid flux and change, that He is immutable. He does not change. Numbers 23:19 says: “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” When even the best of human beings cannot deliver on their promises—time runs out, after all; power ebbs away; change is inevitable—God’s promises stand firm and sure. They are unshakable because the One who has promised is unchanging. Malachi 3:6 says, “For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.” What is the anchor of our confidence for salvation? Why are we not consumed? It’s not that we are wise enough, strong enough, or good enough to escape the wrath to come. It is that God is unchanging. He will not revoke His covenant commitment to save a people for Himself by the blood of His Son. Having sent Him to the cross for us, He will not now dismiss His Son’s perfect work on our behalf on a whim. God is not fickle. He who ordained our redemption and provided our redemption secures and guarantees our redemption. He does not change. We are not consumed. James 1:17 says, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” The good giver of good gifts can be trusted. – David Strain

                                                     
 

No Comments