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.
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
- Make the mayo mixture. In a
large bowl, stir together mayonnaise, diced pimiento, Worcestershire
sauce, grated onion, and ground red pepper until blended.
- 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.
- 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.
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
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