Thursday, October 17, 2024

Celebrate – Everyone Loves a Party

Prayer – Lord, blessed be Your name—from the rising of the sun to its setting, Your name is to be praised! Jesus, You are my Lord and Savior—the light of the world and the source of living water. I rejoice in Your love and care. Jesus, may our shelters stand firm and may You continue to provide protection from the storms of life…hurricanes, tornados and showers of bullets. 

And the LORD said to Moses, "Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. Begin celebrating the Festival of Shelters on the fifteenth day of the appointed month—five days after the Day of Atonement. This festival to the LORD will last for seven days. On the first day of the festival you must proclaim an official day for holy assembly, when you do no ordinary work. For seven days you must present special gifts to the LORD. The eighth day is another holy day on which you present your special gifts to the LORD. This will be a solemn occasion, and no ordinary work may be done that day. (These are the LORD's appointed festivals. Celebrate them each year as official days for holy assembly by presenting special gifts to the LORD—burnt offerings, grain offerings, sacrifices, and liquid offerings—each on its proper day. These festivals must be observed in addition to the LORD's regular Sabbath days, and the offerings are in addition to your personal gifts, the offerings you give to fulfill your vows, and the voluntary offerings you present to the LORD.) Remember that this seven-day festival to the LORD—the Festival of Shelters—begins on the fifteenth day of the appointed month, after you have harvested all the produce of the land. The first day and the eighth day of the festival will be days of complete rest. On the first day gather branches from magnificent trees—palm fronds, boughs from leafy trees, and willows that grow by the streams. Then celebrate with joy before the LORD your God for seven days. You must observe this festival to the LORD for seven days every year. This is a permanent law for you, and it must be observed in the appointed month from generation to generation. For seven days you must live outside in little shelters. All native-born Israelites must live in shelters. This will remind each new generation of Israelites that I made their ancestors live in shelters when I rescued them from the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God." Leviticus 23:33-43

 

Meditate. Consider your own joyous celebrations.

 

Do you know much about Jewish Festivals? Is it time to learn about them?

The Feast of Tabernacles. This festival is from the 15 to the 22 of Tishri or October 16-23 this year. The Feast of Tabernacles or Booths is one of the true God ordained Festivals for the Jews. Its main activity seems to be to build a shelter to commemorate those forty years in the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land and the shelters that the Hebrew people lived in as they traveled. The Jews have done this ever since Moses gave God’s instruction for this as recorded in Leviticus. The “shelter” or sukkah has been built by each family.  It is here in the above passage of Leviticus that the tradition and Festival of the Booths is initiated. Originally it was a Pilgrimage Festival which required the Israelites to travel to the Temple—just as with Passover and Pentecost. Jews today still celebrate this festival. It is a week of rejoicing—a harvest festival to commemorate the successful harvest and to remember the Israelites wandering and living in temporary shelters in the desert after their exodus from Egypt. There is a tradition of using local branches or things like cornstalks for part of their sukkah providing an agricultural element to the shelter. It is important that the structure not be permanent, but that it be sturdy enough for the family to enter and enjoy spending some time there eating, studying and visiting. Sometimes families even sleep out in their shelters and enjoy looking up through the roof at the stars. Using the sukkah for the first night of the Festival of Tabernacles for the family meal is an important element of the tradition. It is a meal often shared with extended family and friends and is a time of rejoicing and hospitality. At this first dinner of the festival they recite a traditional blessing…

Praised are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who has sanctified us through His commandments, commanding us to live in the sukkah. (From The Jewish Holidays by Michael Strassfeld.)

Lemons on a tree at ConCafe in Lisbon, Portugal 
Branches from four species of “godly” trees: the palm, myrtle, willow and citron or lemon used during the week of celebration are lifted up and shaken during the blessing, after reading specific scripture passages. The ritual that involves four species of plants which reminds the Jews of the bounty that God provides. The branches are the palm trees, willows, myrtle and citron. This Feast of Booths is joyous compared to the time of repentance that the Jews have just completed. The important thing is to be hospitable to the poor and homeless, as well as friends, extended family and neighbors that may visit.

In modern times a nice custom has been established to invite honorary guests, like Sarah, Rachel, Rebecca, Leah, Miriam, Abigail and Esther, women of the Old Testament, and create an ornate chair for them. Unlike other holidays there is not a specific food that is associated with the meals served in the Sukkot shelter although wine and cake would be served to guests as the people within the neighborhood visited each other’s Sukkot shelters.

Eat, drink. It’s all part of the “banquet.” Jesus spoke the words in the scripture passage, John 7:37-38, on the last day of the great Feast of Tabernacles. During that festival water was an important part of the daily ceremony, except on the last day. It was on that day that Jesus offered Himself as the Living Water. “Come to me and you will never thirst again.” Each of the first seven days during the festival it was the tradition during the second Temple Period for the priests to carry water from the Pool of Siloam to the silver basin by the altar of burnt offerings in the Temple. People would line the street to the gate of the Temple and sing the Hallel, Psalms 113-118 and wave palm or willow tree branches. At night huge menorahs were lit that could be seen from all over Jerusalem. At daybreak the priests would face the sun and then turn and face the Temple, proclaiming the Lord as Light and declaring Him as the one true God. The Lord was the light and living water. Jesus, the Light of the World (John 9:5), was right there, but they were not illuminated by Him. Are we now?

Few Christians seem to celebrate or even recognize this festival. Prophetically it is seen as when Christ has His Millennium Reign. The time for that is known only by the Father. So we can just celebrate along with the Jewish people—a time of thanksgiving and remembrance for what the Lord has done for us.

This is the day which the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24.

This week of the Feast of Tabernacles is a week that the Lord has declared for rejoicing. Are you feeling His love, provision and protection? The choice is yours—celebrate!

 

Verse of Salvation ~ But may all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness in you. May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout, "The LORD is great!" Psalm 40:16

 

© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

Revised and reused from October 5, 2020 Banquet With The King blog

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm

 

Books by Mickey M. Hunacek

Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com

 

Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character

Coins in the Bible: New Testament Stories

 

Wednesday, October 16, 2024

Be Changed in the Blink of an Eye

Prayer – Lord, I am eagerly waiting to be transformed—to become like You in yet one more way. Pour out God’s peace and mercy on me—and on my family and friends who love You—as we seek to please You in all ways. 

As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world's interest in me has also died. It doesn't matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation. May God's peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God.  Galatians 6:14-16

 

Meditate on this scripture and God’s peace.

 

The Tomb was empty.
Jesus was resurrected and transformed.
Mortal to immortal.
Are you ready to be transformed?
Glory be to God!

Are you ready to be “transformed” into a new creation?

            Transformed—made fresh. Transformation is defined as a thorough or dramatic change in form, character, or appearance. When Jesus was transformed, He was changed from mortal to immortal after His resurrection. When Mary Magdalene first saw Jesus after His resurrection, she did not recognize Him, thinking that He was the gardener. Were her eyes so filled with tears that she didn’t see Him clearly? Read the account in John 20:11-18. When He spoke her name, she recognized His voice. She knew He was Jesus. How will it be with us when we are transformed from mortal to immortal? Will our family and friends recognize us? It will happen in the twinkling of an eye.

But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. 1 Corinthians 15:51-52

Did you note that we will all be transformed? Those who have died…and those who are alive. Changed. Blink. God is powerful. The transformation of our mind and spirit began when we first followed Jesus as Paul describes in Ephesians.

Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God--truly righteous and holy. Ephesians 4:21-24

Then one day our bodies will be transformed. I think that even our minds will be completely renewed. He who began a good work in us—that is God—will be faithful to complete it. New body, new mind.

I was taught—mostly by doing 4H projects—that it is important to finish what you start. Right now, I am finishing a crazy quilt that my great-grandmother started and my grandmother worked on. I’ll post a picture of it when I finish! That is one OLD project. God is faithful to finish what He started. He promised right after Adam and Eve had their fall from purity that He would rescue mankind from their sins. His plan was to sacrifice His own Son, Jesus. It is finished. That has happened and now we are watching and waiting for more of His plan to be implemented. Part of it will be our transformation from mortal to immortal—pure and undefiled. That is the only way we can ever enter Heaven and stand before God on His throne. Pure and holy. He expects that of us. He wants us to be holy because He is holy (see 1 Peter 1:16). Wait and see. It will be awesome.

Will you be transformed? The choice is yours to believe in Jesus as your Savior—which will guarantee that one day you will be transformed.

 

Verse of Salvation ~ God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. 1 Corinthians 1:30


Feast of Tabernacles - Sukkot Begins at Sunset Today - October 16, 2024

How will you celebrate this Jewish Holiday?

 

© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm

 

Books by Mickey M. Hunacek

Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com

 

Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character

Coins in the Bible: New Testament Stories

Tuesday, October 15, 2024

Transformed?

Prayer – Lord, reveal to us this mystery of transformation. It is so exciting that we have this promise for our mortal bodies to be transformed into immortal bodies—just like Yours was, Jesus. Immortal! We will live forever—forever serving You. What can I do to get ready? Come quickly, Jesus. Glory be to the Father...and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.  

The Scriptures tell us, "The first man, Adam, became a living person." But the last Adam—that is, Christ—is a life-giving Spirit. What comes first is the natural body, then the spiritual body comes later. Adam, the first man, was made from the dust of the earth, while Christ, the second man, came from heaven. Earthly people are like the earthly man, and heavenly people are like the heavenly man. Just as we are now like the earthly man, we will someday be like the heavenly man. What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever. But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: "Death is swallowed up in victory….(Isaiah 25:8)" 1 Corinthians 15:45-54 (Underlined for emphasis.)

 

Meditate. Transformation.

 

Transformed...from a caterpillar to a butterfly.
Will you be transformed,,,
 in the blink of an eye?
Believe in Jesus as your Savior.
Prepare to be changed.

Have you ever considered your own transformation?

            Transformed! Changed from mortal to immortal. No more dying. How can that be? With God, all things are possible. How and when this transformation will take place is still a wonderful secret. God has revealed to us that we will be changed…in the blink or twinkling of an eye. So fast that we won’t even know it is happening, but we will know that we are changed. Even the dead in Christ will be transformed to immortal—raising first. Will we see them? Probably, since we will perhaps be living still. God has told us—promised it. The twinkling of an eye is just a moment of time. From mortal bodies that will die or are dead—to immortal bodies that will last forever.

Will transformation happen without any planning or preparation for all the believers? Jesus told His disciples and us to…be prepared for we don’t know just when exactly all this will happen. Read Mark 13 to obtain more clues as to the end times that Jesus described.

And since you don't know when that time will come, be on guard! Stay alert! Mark 13:33

When we are changed, will we be just like Jesus was after His resurrection? I think so. God requires purity—to come before Him. Even the priests in the earlier Temple days could not touch or go near a dead body. As immortals we will be pure, like those priests and like resurrected Jesus. We will also have the righteous character and eternal qualities of Jesus Christ—with the pure and blameless lives that we strive for now.

Our transformation to an immortal spiritual body will be an enormous step for us in God’s eternal plan for mankind. He has revealed this mystery to us—the secret is out. Are you listening?  We will live through our transformation to immortality. Is there a family member or friend that you still need to tell about Jesus? Will you be ready if our transformation happens tomorrow, the next day, or next year? The choice is yours.

 

Verse of Salvation ~ And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment, so also Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him. Hebrews 9:27-28

 

© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm

 

Books by Mickey M. Hunacek

Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com

 

Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character

Coins in the Bible: New Testament Stories

Monday, October 14, 2024

Don’t Be Deceived

Prayer – Lord God, thank you for Your faithfulness to mankind…not giving up on us over the years. Help us to be faithful to You…as our days are numbered. 

Don't be deceived.
Prickly cactus bloom beautifully...
but they are still dangerous.
Warn others.
Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. You must warn each other every day, while it is still "today," so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ. Remember what it says: "Today when you hear his voice, don't harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled." Hebrews 3:12-15

 

Meditate. Today when you hear his voice, don't harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled. Psalm 95:7-8

 

Are you hearing God’s voice? Are you listening to Him? Do you hear Him in His word or the messages from other believers?

               Again, we are challenged to not be deceived. The author of Hebrew encourages us to interact with other Christians…and to…warn each other every day, while it is still "today," so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. We don’t want to ignore God and have our hearts hardened. Once again…LISTEN. Use the ears that God has given you.

Ears to hear and eyes to see—both are gifts from the LORD. Proverbs 20:12

But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. Matthew 13:16

Will you be faithful to the end? We don’t know when the end will come…but for any one of us it could be any day. God has numbered our days.

LORD, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered--how fleeting my life is. Psalm 39:4

Trust God. He has a plan…and if you believe in Him and are faithful to the end then as God promised we will share in Christ’s reward…an eternity in Heaven. God adopts His believers as His own children (Romans 8:15). Listen to His message.

For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God's one and only Son. John 3:16-18

Believe and tell others about this good news of Jesus and eternal life. Warn others not to be deceived. The choice is yours.

 

Verses of Salvation ~ He called you to salvation when we told you the Good News; now you can share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. With all these things in mind, dear brothers and sisters, stand firm and keep a strong grip on the teaching we passed on to you both in person and by letter. 2 Thessalonians 2:14-15

 

© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

Revised from September 13, 2021 Banquet With The King blog.

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm

 

Books by Mickey M. Hunacek

Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com

 

Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character

Coins in the Bible: New Testament Stories

Sunday, October 13, 2024

Were You Obedient to Your Parents?

Prayer – Lord Jesus, I seek first a kingdom relationship with You and with our Heavenly Father, to live in an obedient and righteous way that is pleasing to You (Matthew 6:33). 

While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence for God. Even though Jesus was God's Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey himHebrews 5:7-9

 

Meditate on obedience.

 

Were you obedient to your parents?

           

Were you obedient to your parents?
A Canadian goose teaching obedience.
Jesus was the ultimate example of obedience to His Father. The author of Hebrews states that Jesus learned obedience from the things he suffered. I think that Jesus’ obedience was initially demonstrated when He first came as a baby human to Bethlehem. His submission continued as He grew and was found in the Temple as a twelve-year old, then as He was baptized, as He was tempted by Satan, as He often spent time in prayer, and in His ministry with His twelve disciples and other followers. Jesus was continually obedient showing respect to His Father—all the way to the cross and then in the resurrection. Without His obedience we would have no salvation. Our response to His sacrifice should be our obedience. There is no greater way for us to show our respect for God—the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—than for us to obey Him. Our obedience to Jesus is noted to be the source of our eternal salvation.

            Are you choosing to obey God?

 

Verse of Salvation ~ Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don't take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. Psalm 51:10-12

 

© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm

 

Books by Mickey M. Hunacek

Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com

 

Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character

Coins in the Bible: New Testament Stories

Saturday, October 12, 2024

Are You Listening?

Prayer – Lord, speak to me. I am listening. I understand that You, God, bless the one who reads the words of the prophecy to the church, and You bless all who listen to its message and obey what it says, for the time is near.  From Revelation 1:3 

…you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless thousands of angels in a joyful gathering. You have come to the assembly of God's firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God himself, who is the judge over all things. You have come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven who have now been made perfect. You have come to Jesus, the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks of forgiveness instead of crying out for vengeance like the blood of Abel. Be careful that you do not refuse to listen to the One who is speaking. For if the people of Israel did not escape when they refused to listen to Moses, the earthly messenger, we will certainly not escape if we reject the One who speaks to us from heaven! Hebrews 12:22-25 (Underlined for emphasis.)

 

Meditate and consider how can you apply this passage to your life.

 

Are you listening to God?

            The author of Hebrews was writing here to the Hebrew people who believed in Jesus as their Savior. They are the firstborn of God’s chosen, His children.  He is reminding the people that God is the judge and will be judging them. He is warning these people warning to listen. They should listen to God. for when God speaks, He expects people to listen to Him—just as He expected them to listen to Moses, His spokesperson.   

Do you realize how privileged we are to be part of God’s family? If you are listening to God and obeying Him…you are especially blessed. Just like the Hebrews people, God expects us to listen. Listen and obey. That is a reoccurring theme throughout the Bible, beginning with Moses telling the Hebrew people about listening to God’s commandments and how they must obey.

And now, Israel, listen carefully to these decrees and regulations that I am about to teach you. Obey them so that you may live, so you may enter and occupy the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. Deuteronomy 4:1 (Underlined for emphasis.)

God blessing us from His Heaven.
Aurora borealis on October 10, 2024.


God is in Heaven…and offers us a home with Him if we believe in His Son as our Savior…saving us from sin—sin results in death and that endangers all of us…for all have sinned and not met God’s standards. (See Romans 3:23.) But there is hope since Jesus died on the cross for those very sins that plague our lives. (See Romans 5:8.) The hope is secured because God keeps His promises and because Christ rose from the dead. The power of death and the grave couldn’t keep Him there. Hope continues with the promise that because God so loved the world and gave His only Son as a sacrifice for our sin, those who believe in His Son will have eternal life. (John 3:16) Eternal life. Life forever with God the Father, worshipping Him in His heavenly home. He speaks to us from that home…from Heaven everyday as we pray and read His word.

Are you listening to Him? Be careful that you do not refuse to listen to the One who is speaking. The choice is yours.

 

Verse of Salvation ~ While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence for God. Even though Jesus was God's Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him. Hebrews 5:7-9 (Underlined for emphasis.)

 

© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

Revised and reused from November 4, 2021 Banquet With The King blog.

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm

 

Books by Mickey M. Hunacek

Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com

 

Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character

Coins in the Bible: New Testament Stories

Friday, October 11, 2024

Don’t Slip Back Into Your Old Ways

Prayer – Lord God, You have a plan…For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus. 2 Timothy 1:9. Thank You for including me in Your Plan. 

So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God's obedient children. Don't slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn't know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, "You must be holy because I am holy." 1 Peter 1:13-16

 

Meditate on these verses.

 

Do you consider yourself holy? Do you think God considers you to be holy?

God is pure and holy.
Water Lily in the Yakima River. 

       Living your life like Jesus? That is a tall order. Jesus was sinless—and although we can never be truly sinless, we can make choices that result in holiness. God had rules for living a pure life—that included what the Israelites were to eat and how they were to treat each other. We would do well to observe that advice, too. Peter wrote about holiness in this focus passage today, which applies to us, too.

Holy. That is just what God is…and what He expects of us. He doesn’t say that we have to make ourselves be holy…because I don’t think we can do that. It takes the power of the Holy Spirit to create in us a clean heart, to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. But it takes an effort on our part to humble and submit ourselves to the Lord—to live according to His standards. Live in fear—respect—of the Lord.

Peter warns us that we need to not allow ourselves slip back into our old ways living to please ourselves. We ought to be living to please God—to be righteous—to live sanctified lives. That means to be set apart and live exceptional lives now here on earth. We don’t have to wait until we get to Heaven to be pleasing to God. It is our choice to live for Him now. Today and tomorrow. Prepare for the future.

 Sometimes when I am reading scripture I just get caught up in verse after verse. I think that is a God thing. He wants us to treasure His word. May a share a few more verses with you? We can never have too many reminders about God’s love for us…and Christ’s sacrifice for our sin.

And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time as "foreigners in the land." For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but he has now revealed him to you in these last days. Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory. You were cleansed from your sins when you obeyed the truth, so now you must show sincere love to each other as brothers and sisters. Love each other deeply with all your heart. For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God. 1 Peter 1:17-23

Are we in the last days? We should live like every day is our last day—honoring Christ always. Peter’s words remind us that eternal life is just that. Eternal. It will last forever—and my question for you today is…where will you spend eternity? I have the assurance that as a believer, I will be with Jesus forever. If you believe in Jesus Christ as your Savior—you’ll be spending eternity with Him. Holiness unto the Lord. Live your life today as Jesus did. The choice is yours.

 

Verse of Salvation ~ Keep a close watch on how you live and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right for the sake of your own salvation and the salvation of those who hear you. 1 Timothy 4:16

 

Friday’s Feast at the King’s Table

Have you had the Chick Fil A Pimento Cheese Sandwich? Here’s a recipe for the Pimento Cheese, also called Palmetto Cheese, that is used in that sandwich. This blended cheese is one of my favorite foods to eat when we visit South Carolina. You can find it in some grocery stores up north…but not always.

 

Palmetto Cheese

Ingredients

1½ cups mayonnaise, such as Hellmann's or Duke's

1 (4-oz.) jar diced pimiento, drained

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon finely grated onion

1 teaspoon ground red pepper

1 (16 oz.) block sharp Cheddar cheese (can use ½ portion extra sharp Cheddar cheese)

Celery sticks and assorted crackers

Directions

  1. Make the mayo mixture. In a large bowl, stir together mayonnaise, diced pimiento, Worcestershire sauce, grated onion, and ground red pepper until blended.
  2. Shred the cheese. Using the small side of a box grater, finely shred half of the cheese. Then use the large side of the grater to coarsely shred the remainder of cheese. Fresh cheese makes a difference.
  3. Stir and enjoy. Add shredded cheeses to mayo mixture, stirring until blended. You can store it in the refrigerator up to 1 week. Serve with celery sticks and assorted crackers, or make a grilled pimento cheese sandwich in a skillet or panini press. It is a tasty addition to a burger or grilled chicken sandwich.

 

© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

Adapted from December 29, 2021 and September 27, 2023 Banquet With The King blogs.

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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