Thanksgiving Holiday (U.S.) 2019

Many associate being thankful with only the "big things" in their lives, sometimes overlooking the "smaller things" that, when it's all said and done, are what really help make a difference.

There isn't a certain size, amount, or expiration date for blessings received from God. Accept them as they come, and give thanks to Him always (Ephesians 5:20; 1 Thessalonians 5:18).

This Thursday, November 28th, is Thanksgiving Day in the U.S. Every year, people gather together and celebrate the holiday with food, family, and fellowship. Our staff, writers, and friends at The Coffeehouse Bible Ministry are no different.

As has been customary during this special holiday time, we will break over the weekend, returning on Monday, December 2nd. Also, we hope that you will take a moment during this time to pray for those less fortunate in the world.

In the spirit of the holiday, I leave you with some food for thought by the great 19th century preacher Charles Spurgeon.

"I think that is a better thing than thanksgiving: thanks-living. How is this to be done? By a general cheerfulness of manner, by an obedience to the command of Him by whose mercy we live, by a perpetual, constant delighting of ourselves in the Lord, and by a submission of our desires to His will."

As always, our blog archives are always available for you to use as God moves you. Now, on behalf of all of us at The Coffee House Bible Ministry, have a safe, spirit-filled holiday weekend!

"Praise the LORD. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever." - Psalm 106:1

~Eve

Concealed Sin Is Not Forgiven!

"Forgiveness is always free. But that doesn't mean that confession is always easy. Sometimes it is hard. Incredibly hard. It is painful to admit our sins and entrust ourselves to God's care."  - Erwin Lutzer

During our lives, we have all done something to make us feel bad or guilty enough to want to cover up, or conceal it. But, we have to ask ourselves, "Are these things truly hidden from view..?" 

God knows all about our sins (Romans 3:23). There's nothing we do, good or bad, that He can't see. There isn't a hole deep enough, or paint thick enough to hide our sins from God (Hebrews 4:13).

Proverbs 28:13 offers some good advice on what we can do about "concealed" sin. Just hiding our sin doesn't free us from it. What we are doing is either denying, or making excuses for sin to continue.

There is no blessing in covering up our sins. It doesn't do us any good to keep them hidden. Rather, we need to drag them out into the bright, light of day and confess them to God.

Trying to conceal, or hide, sin doesn't work. It didn't work for Adam (Genesis 3:12; Job 31:33), Cain (Genesis 4:9), or Saul (1 Samuel 15:19-21). Again, hiding sin does not pay off!

By confessing our sins we can be sure that God not only forgives, but forgets them. I refer you to: David ( 2 Samuel 12:13; Psalm 51:1-9),  Manasseh (2 Chronicles 33:12-13); Nineveh (Jeremiah 18:7-8; Jonah 3:5-10); and the prodigal son (Luke 15:18-24).

Keep in mind, however, that confessing our sins alone isn't enough. We also need to change our attitude about it, that is, we must mend our ways, too. Unless we do, there is no pardon or mercy from sin (1 John 1:8).

Scripture: 1 John 1:9; Psalm 32:5; Acts 3:19; Leviticus 5:5; James 4:8

Prayer: Dear Lord, You know my foolishness, and my sins are not hidden from You. I confess my sins so that in Your loving mercy You will not only forgive, but forget them, as well. Amen.

Love and blessings,

Andrea

Video - Sheila Walsh: Pray About Everything

Do you turn to prayer only as a last resort? Christian vocalist, evangelist, author, and inspirational speaker, Sheila Walsh, points out how prayer should be a first step in every matter of concern. Awesome message everyone should hear!  ~Eve

Revive Your "Spiritually-Dry" Bones

"The risen life of Jesus is the nourishment and strengthening and blessing and life of a Christian." -Alexander MacLaren

How many of you have ever experienced a "dry" season in your relationship with God? Maybe you're not feeling as close to Him as you had in the past at this very moment.

The strong bond you once felt is unraveling, and slipping away. What was once flourishing is now wilting and drying up, and you feel that it may be too late to stop it.

If you're familiar with the Old Testament, Israel's relationship with God went through more wet and dry seasons than any of us ever will in our lifetimes. They challenged Him at every turn.

Even so, God never gave up on them, and He won't stop trying with you or I, either. It's not that unusual to periodically slog through a "dry" period during our walk with God.

I know it can be tough, but one can make it through the valley of spiritually dry bones with God's help. In Ezekiel 37, the prophet has a vision of a vast, valley strewn with dead, dry bones.

Here, the bones represented the hopeless state of the dispersed Jews. The bones lying there are "dead." They have long since passed the point of merely drying up (Ezekiel 37:1-2).

Israel had been split up and scattered for so long that any hope of them coming back together and being restored seemed an impossibility. The vision of the dry bones was given to Ezekiel as sign by God (Luke 1:37).

They were in a state of living death. The general feeling was that they were hopelessly separated from God forever. Israel was basically languishing as a nation, their judgment seemingly never-ending (Hosea 6:1).

God, however, restores the bones to life. He resurrects the people from death, and restores them to their own land. And if He can do that for a rebellious nation, God can certainly help restore a sluggish and/or declining faith (John 14:1).

The Christian walk travels not along a smooth, obstacle-free path. Our faith is tested everyday. That, at times, our frail, human spirit is subject to weakening should come as no surprise (Isaiah 40:31). 

We may take comfort in knowing that the resurrection and restoration of a struggling faith is always possible through God. Seek revival of your dry, spiritual, bones through sincere prayer today (Psalm 51:12).

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:10; Mark 11:24; Psalm 71:20-21; Psalm 23:3; Jeremiah 24:7

Prayer: Dear God, give me courage when I am afraid, pick me up when I stumble, and strengthen me when I am weak. You are my salvation and source of restoration, on whom I can always depend, amen.

God bless you, 

Whitney

The Greatest Treasure

"For the Christian, heaven is where Jesus is. We do not need to speculate on what heaven will be like. It is enough to know that we will be forever with Him."  -William Barclay

The Bible generously provides us with an abundance of wonderful, spiritual, food-for-thought. I came across one such example in Matthew 13:44, The Parable of the Hidden Treasure.

In this particular parable, Jesus divulges that "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure..." Immediately after reading this verse, I sank back into my chair and let His words sink in.

The very fact that our Lord is calling the kingdom of heaven a "treasure" makes you wonder what a truly, indescribable, treasure it must be. The thought is simply mind-boggling!

To help us wrap our minds around this, Romans 14:17 offers some guidance. It is there that the Holy Spirit, speaking through Paul, tells us what the kingdom of heaven is.

Here, he says that it is "righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." There is a mutual relationship between Christ and the believer. The believer abides in Christ and Christ abides in him (John 6:56).

Thus, the Christian dwells in the kingdom of heaven, and vice versa. This means that there is a treasure of protection surrounding him and a wealth of experience in him.

Upon discovering this heavenly treasure, the poor sinner surrenders all to gain full possession of it, as nothing else even comes close in comparison.

It is a partnership with God in which one becomes a partaker of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4) to be a partaker of His holiness (Hebrews 12:10).

Consequently, the "righteousness" is God's righteousness (Romans 10:3), the "peace" is God's peace (Philippians 4:7), and the "joy" is the joy of Jesus Christ (John 15:11), which are all apportioned by the Holy Spirit.

Scripture: Matthew 7:21; John 3:3; Acts 14:22; John 14:2; Hebrews 13:14

Prayer: Dear Lord,  You make known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand, amen.   - Psalm 16:11

Love and blessings,

Andrea

By Our Faith In God

"Only in a world where faith is difficult can faith exist."  - Peter Kreeft

We come across the word "faith" many times in the Bible, but what is it really?  Some say it is: belief, dependence, hope, confidence, or expectation. However, there is no "single" definition of it found anywhere in Scripture.

Even so, many examples that demonstrate or describe what faith does in different situations can be found there. While these may not be a one-size-fits-all definition of "faith," they do provide a glimpse of it in action.

Therefore, instead of just talking about faith, let's we examine some Scripture and see what we can discover. Naturally we are limited in what we can accomplish here, but we'll try to do our best under the circumstances.

Let's look at Hebrews 11. It is a wonderful chapter on faith written by an anonymous writer to the Hebrew Christians in Palestine. Here, one can find many examples of "faith" throughout. 

For instance, the first three verses (Hebrews 11:1-3) tell us much about "faith." We learn that it is unseen, and also provides a good description of what it does for us (Hebrews 11:1). 

In Hebrews 11:2, the writer notes that their O. T. ancestors received divine approval because they walked by faith and not by sight. This refers back to what was mentioned in verse 1.

If your parents shared a story with you about something they did together before your birth, you would most likely believe they were telling the truth. After all, you weren't around to verify it, or not. The same applies to God.

Hebrews 11:3 gives an account of creation being credited to God. He was the only one who was there when it happened. We accept this fact by faith because none of us were there. Besides, God never lies (Numbers 23:19; Titus 1:2; Hebrews 6:18).

I think you now have a pretty good idea of what to do for the rest of the chapter. Remember that you are probing Hebrews 11 verse-by-verse for any information to help discern what faith is and does according to the circumstances.

Early twentieth-century Scottish Baptist evangelist and teacher, Oswald Chambers, quoted: "Faith is deliberate confidence in the character of God whose ways you may not understand at the time."

To believe in something that cannot be seen goes against our natural instincts. Understandably, for many, their past experiences play heavily into this. But despite that, God understands. The last thing He wants is a coerced or forced faith from us.

To believe in God one must have faith. It doesn't work any other way. On one hand, there's not a thing about God that makes our belief in Him an impossibility. On the other, it's our own will that prevents us from doing so (Mark 11:22). 

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:7; Romans 15:13; John 11:25-26; Romans 1:17; John 6:47 

Prayer: Dear God,  though I have never seen You, I love You, and I believe in You. I rejoice everyday because You offered salvation of my soul in return for my faith, and I gladly accepted it, amen

 May God bless you,

Lainey

In Faith...

"In faith there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don't."  -Blaise Pascal

The word "faith" is used around 336 times in the King James Version, even more in other translations. This alone proves its significance. God placed great importance on it for good reason. Without faith in Him we would be lost (Hebrews 11:6).

It can also be described as: belief, trust, and hope. And while faith may be many other things, I'll tell you what it's not: it isn't a convenient, off-the-shelf, remedy for whatever ails now, then put away until next time (James 1:6).

For those who are accustomed to instant-gratification be forewarned! It isn't a cure-all or a magic bullet, if you will. Faith in Jesus Christ doesn't work this way.  It requires time, patience, and devotion to develop. 

What if you have a strong faith, but you feel it ebbing and flowing from time to time? This is not uncommon, after all, we are only human. The surest treatment for a wobbly faith is earnest prayer (Romans 8:26).

Keep in mind that faith must be tempered by trial and tribulation (1 Peter 4:12). And nothing tests our faith more than fully trusting God to see us through whatever obstacles life may set before us (Romans 12:12; Exodus 14:14).

Let us also not forget that salvation is a gift freely given to us by God's grace through our faith, or belief in Him (Ephesians 2:8). Faith in God relies on our acceptance, it will never be forced on us (2 Peter 3:9).

Martin Luther, the father of the protestant Reformation, said: "Faith is a living, daring confidence in God's grace, so sure and certain that a man could stake his life on it a thousand times."

Certainly God could simply make everyone have faith or believe in Him, but this would defeat its purpose. Hebrews 11:1 tells us: "Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see."

God desires that we first see him with our heart rather than our eyes. And once we have faithfully accepted Him in our hearts and minds, we will surely see the true reward of our faith in Him (2 Corinthians 5:7).

Scripture: Romans 10:17; Luke 17:5; 1 John 5:4; John 3:36; Proverbs 3:5 

Prayer: Dear Lord, by Your grace I have been saved through faith. I trust in You with all my heart and soul, and pray that You will increase my faith all the days of my life, amen.

In Christ,

JoAnna

Make God a Spiritual Necessity!

"The wonderful news is that our Lord is a God of mercy, and He responds to repentance." - Billy Graham

There seems to be a lack of taking our "walk with God" seriously in the world today. This may be the result of seeing Him as something of a convenience rather than a necessity in life.

There can be no proper relationship with God if it is fashioned or cobbled together in a hit-or-miss fashion. And unless we change this attitude we fail to grasp the true meaning and purpose of it.

During the time of the Jewish exile to Babylon Israel's relationship with God had deteriorated badly. The people were heavily into idol worship and pagan religion. So much so, that God had become an afterthought to them.

Some rebellious, religious elders approached Ezekiel, a prophet living in Babylon during the exile, to seek information from the Lord. He was quite familiar with the corruption and sin of the people (Ezekiel 20).

However, the elder's relationship with God was so corrupt that they showed no remorse or guilt for their sins before entering the temple. Ezekiel, at God's command and being His ambassador, refused to help them (Ezekiel 20:3).

There are a couple of things to point out here. First, the people were aware they had a legitimate prophet of God living among them, but only sought him out when things became so bad they had no other options.

Secondly, sin had such control over their lives that they had no guilt or shame about it. They walked around proudly with it comfortably entrenched in their lives. It became as normal to them as eating and drinking.

Ezekiel was ordered by God not to help them because of their sporadic faith. They showed no respect or honor toward God prior to entering the temple. There impenitence demonstrated their complete lack of devotion to Him.

Neither can we expect God to answer our supplications if we do not leave our sins at the door. The importance of earnest self-examination and self-condemnation prior to our asking God for anything cannot be stressed enough.

In addition, we must demonstrate to God that He means much more to us than a trifle convenience to be used whenever the severity of a situation leaves us no other choice. We must make Him a spiritual necessity, and not a supplement.

Scripture: 2 Peter 3:9; Acts 17:30; 1 John 5:4; Psalm 34:4; Psalm 9:10

Prayer: Dear God, help me walk in Your light, and never steer away from Your path. Keep me steady always, that no sin may overcome me, amen.

Stay blessed,

Becky Lynn

Video - J. L. Packer : Are You Taking God Seriously?

There's no question that Christians, like most, live busy, jam-packed lives today. Our lives are practically non-stop with work, family, and other obligations. As such, it's very easy to let God slip to the back of the line of priorities in our lives.

In this video clip, the well-respected  theologian J. L. Packer poses the question: "Are you taking God seriously?" I agree that we should all take pause and reflect on this. Our faith depends on how we answer it!  ~Eve

Don't Just Sample Christ!

"Since no man is excluded from calling upon God the gate of salvation is open to all. There is nothing else to hinder us from entering, but our own unbelief."  - John Calvin

You've probably been grocery shopping and have seen those small booths, or tables set up by vendors offering free samples of their products in order to familiarize customers with it.

They know that most people can't pass up an offer of food, especially if it's free! This is meant to grab our attention, and maybe some new customers. Mass marketing such as this has worked well over the for companies for years.

While it may work to promote, get people to sample, and perhaps buy their merchandise, there are certain individuals who have no real interest in actually committing to the product itself, only in the"free meal."

In John 6, Jesus ran into this sort of problem with the Jews after the feeding of the five thousand (John 6:1-15). Following this miracle, Jesus and his disciples ended up on the other side of the lake in Capernaum. 

The next day the crowd, whom Jesus had fed, soon found him and wanted to know when he got there. He knew that they hadn't pursued him out of interest, but because of the "free meal" he had provided to them (John 6:25-26).

The Jews had seen Jesus perform miracles, yet they asked for a sign in order to verify his claims, and legitimatize their belief in him (John 6:29, 30). This, even though they had already seen the greatest sign of all, Jesus (John 6:36).

Jesus had given the people free sample after sample hoping to of get them to see that he was the Son of God. However, the more "freebies" he gave them the more they wanted. 

Many choose to follow Jesus this way. They have no sincere regard for coming to, believing in, and committing themselves to Him; only in what they can get. They're just tagging along for the "free meal."

God offers that if we believe on Jesus Christ we will be saved, but we must approach Him in repentance and faith. It's up to us to accept it or not. He will never force it on us. 

No one who comes to God through Christ will ever be turned away. Still, some will never take Him up on his offer. Which are you? Are you one who only follows Christ for the "freebies," or are you ready to fully commit to Him?

Scripture: John 10:28, 29; Acts 16:31; Psalm 119:130; Romans 5:8; John 3:16 

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You for Your offer of salvation. I know it was made possible at a high cost, one I could never pay on my own, but that You paid unselfishly, in full, with Your own blood. It has made all the difference in my life, amen.

May God lead your path,

Lee

Reading and Understanding the Bible

“Reading and understanding the Bible involves lots and lots of interpretation. Not just in light of the world and culture around us, but in reference to other parts of the Bible.”  -John Piper

Problems culminating from the improper reading and comprehension of information is nothing new. Most of us learned this early on in our own education. However, this also applies to the study of Scripture.

The careful examination and analysis of  scriptural facts and details is crucial to our profit from doing so. There are too many underlying and secondary elements and factors that can otherwise be missed.  

For instance, Jewish priests living during the time of Jesus mistakenly believed that fulfillment of spiritual and religious requirements could be satisfied by simply "reading" the words of Scripture.

They were so focused on comprehending the "text" of the Old Testament that they missed the fundamental "message," which was: the coming of Christ. This bigger picture, hidden in the details, was overlooked.

Additionally, they missed the connection between the coming Messiah in the Old Testament and Jesus. Even with the Scriptures in their hands the Jewish scholars couldn't see that Jesus was the Promised One (2 Corinthians 3:15).

We, too, can sometimes put much time and energy on the reading of the text, and fail to probe deeper under the surface of Scripture. Many times the answer we seek is right there in front of us, but like the Jewish priests we can't see the forest for the trees.

Understand that there is nothing wrong with reading the Bible, all responsible Christians should do so consistently and diligently. However, if we only "read" the words, we won't "understand" the Word.

As the prominent, 19th century evangelist Dwight L. Moody, said: "Merely reading the Bible is no use at all without we study it thoroughly, and hunt it through, as it were, for some great truth."

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:16; Jeremiah 15:16; Matthew 4:4; Proverbs 2:1-5; Psalm 119:105

Prayer: Dear Lord, I ask for your wisdom as I draw near to Your word. Help me to truly understand it, and not just read it, amen.

Joyfully in Christ,

Abby

Succinct Scripture Studies: Do I Matter to the Church..?

The feeling that one is left out means: to feel that one is not included in something. In other words, someone may feel neglected, excluded, ignored, cast aside, and even shut out. No matter what, feeling left out is never good.

Maybe you've experienced this at some time in your life at school, work, or even among family or friends. This can also happen to Church members, making it difficult for those who've been affected to feel purposeful among the others.

Introspection: Can you recall an incident when, either you,or someone else, was "left out" of being part of a group (Church or other)? Do you think that the feelings associated with being "left out" can cause or promote division or separation?

A. Reading: Familiarize yourself with 1 Corinthians 12:12-17; 24b-27 before moving ahead to the following questions.

Questions:

1. What is the analogy or comparison Paul uses to show what the Church is like?

2. Based on this passage, how important is each individual in the Church?

3. How distinguished or skilled does a person have to be in order to find a rightfully significant place in the Church?

B. Reading: Familiarize yourself with Matthew 18:19, 20 before moving ahead to the following questions.

Questions:

1.  In accordance to Jesus, what benefits is there to praying with another--especially in a Church discipline (correction) situation in the context of this particular passage?

2. Do you think God listens to the prayers of an individual more than a group, or does He listen to a group more than a person? Yes or No?

3. Can you recall any occasion when God would be looking for the prayer of members of a group rather than the prayer of a specific individual? 

C. Reading: Familiarize yourself with Romans 15:1-7, 13 before moving ahead to the following questions.

1. On the basis of this passage, what resources are accessible to the Christian to help them minister to others? Refer to the specified verses.

a)____________________________________________________________________ (verse 1)

b)____________________________________________________________________ (verse 3)

c)____________________________________________________________________  (verse 4)

d)____________________________________________________________________  (verse 5)

e)____________________________________________________________________ (verse 7)

f)____________________________________________________________________ (verse 13)

2. What things has God already equipped us to do in the Church, particularly our neighbors?

3. Recall Romans 15:5-7. What things is God looking for from the Church body?

4. Does every member in the Body of Christ need to participate in order to turn these commands into reality?

D. Is harmony (unity, agreement) in the Body of Christ a given, or automatic? If not, what is required of each one of us to preserve it?  Read: Ephesians 4:3; Philippians 1:27, 2:2

E. Taking into account our study, make a listing of some of the reasons needs each of us to perform our duty as part of the Church today.

A Prayer to Grow On... Pray about one thing you could do this coming week that would help you to feel more like an active, contributing member of the Body of Christ.

Brightest blessings,

Jonna