S.M. Wibberley’s Blog

So, who is this God we love and serve? The God who left Heaven to live in the corrupt and twisted world as a defenseless babe?

You, Lord Jesus  are glorious,

you are strong,

you are full of wonders,

you are pure,

and positive

and powerful.

We ascribe to you

glory and strength,

we proclaim your

greatness to the nations,

we lift up and magnify your marvelous Name.

You are supreme,

you are superb,

you are sovereign.

We come before you now

with an offering of worship,

placing ourselves and

all you have given us on the altar of praise,

for you are worthy of all honor.

This is the God we worship through obedience!

Picture: Jesus, the Light of the world, and the Light of my life.

O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.” Psalm 96:9

You,  O Lord, are marvelous in your being:

majestic in your might,

glorious in your goodness,

dazzling in your beauty,

astounding in your graces,

awesome in your wisdom,

almighty in your power.

You move with dignity and grace,

majestically doing simultaneously and perfectly

the next hundred million things in your plan.

Prayer:

“We tremble before you,

the Holy God,

the great I AM,

the righteous Judge,

the faithful Father,

the resurrected Lamb.

You are worthy of our submission; so,

we bow before you this day in surrender,

then we rise up to walk in obedience in the light of your presence. Use us today to bring glory to your name. Amen.”

Picture: standing in the light of God

Thinking more on God’s gifts to  us.

Further up: You yourself, Lord God are the ultimate gift to us,

in your perfection and glory,

your goodness and greatness,

your wisdom and righteousness,

your discipline and justice,

your grace and compassion,

your creativity and faithfulness,

and most of all, your great, wonderful, powerful and endless love.

“Splendor and majesty are before you, strength and glory are in your sanctuary” (Ps. 96:6). You, Lord God, are

clothed in light,

brilliantly shining in your holiness,

unapproachable in purity,

radiating glory all around you.

You, Lord God, are our Triune King, worthy of worship, for you are

awesomely powerful,

faithfully holy,

persistently just,

righteously wrathful,

immensely merciful,

eternally right.

And you have shared all of this with us , all of your revelation in the Word and in your Works. The more we know you, the more we are transformed—another gift, as it says in 2 Cor. 3:18:

“And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”

To bow before you is good, wise and positive; to resist you is utter foolishness, for “no wisdom, no insight, no plan can succeed against the Lord” (Pro. 21:30).

Picture: God’s overwhelming glory.(freepick.com

Christmas bringsgifts to mind, and the best Gift  Giver is God Himself.

So, we should thank you, Lord Jesus, our powerful and tender Shepherd, for all You have given us. The list of things I can praise you for is endless. Let’s begin.

Starting on the physical level:

knees that still function,

an eye that sees (I am blind in one eye),

glasses to sharpen my vision,

hands that can flex and grasp,

feet so complex and effective,

hair mostly still in place.

On a higher level:

brains that still work,

thoughts to stimulate,

work to do,

relationships to enjoy,

grace to live,

insights for life.

And higher still:

being your child,

being dearly loved,

being chosen,

and equipped by you for special service,

being created in your image,

being forgiven,

cleansed and transformed,

having meaning in life

and eternal work to do.

More to come tomorrow

Jesus the gift giver: by notesonlife.org

Recently a friend talked to me about his view of the Holy Spirt, saying that, in his understanding, the Spirit was just a force that caused things to happen, not the third Person of the Godhead.
This, of course, is wrong.

And the easiest and most powerful way to refute this is to look at what Jesus had to say about the Spirit. So, I put together the following.

What does Jesus have to say about the Holy Spirit?

“….if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send HIM (not IT) unto you.
Jhn 16:8 And when HE is come, HE will REPROVE the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment….
Jhn 16:13 Howbeit when HE, THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, is come, HE WILL GUIDE you into all truth: for HE SHALL NOT SPEAK OF HIMSELF; but whatsoever HE shall HEAR, that SHALL HE SPEAK: and HE WILL SHEW YOU things to come.
Jhn 16:14 HE SHALL GLORIFY me: for HE SHALL RECEIVE of mine, and SHALL SHOW it unto you.”

Jesus does not call the Spirit an “it” (a thing) but “he” (a person) and says that the Spirit does things only a person can do: reprove, guide, speak, hear, show, glorify, receive.

We should always go to the Word (word) which clarifies things nicely.

Picture: The Spirit illuminated by the Word

Lord, your all-encompassing compassion inspires

love,

trust,

transparency

and joy.

Together these nurture

worship,

self-denial

and obedience.

Seeing this perfect balance in your character brings

security,

rest

and contentment.

For, in you we belong,

in you we have worth,

in you we have competence.

Yes, Lord, are our wonderful God:

High and Mighty,

Wise and Wonderful,

Pure and Powerful,

Eternal and Effective.

In you all is brought together in marvelous balance. May we live there with you consistently.

Prayer: “Therefore

I bow before you in worship, Lord;

I rise up before you to obey.

Help me to see myself as you see me:

being your beloved son while being a sinner I can’t trust.

Help me to trust you instead.

May you be glorified in my life today as I live in this positive and constructive tension, resting in your love. Amen.”

Picture: Obeying the Father as Jesus did!

“While we were still sinners, Christ died for us… we have now been justified by his blood….” Romans 5:8,9

The perfect balance of God’s character (mentioned in yesterday’s post) also reminds us of the positive tension that He  desires in us, the remembrance of:

where we have come from (out of the dominion of darkness where we were condemned criminals before the court of Heaven, trapped in net of the enemy,  and in our natural depravity.)

And who we now are in Jesus (the beloved children of the King, adopted and brought into the Kingdom of Light, living in your love and grace). In Jesus we are cleansed, forgiven, justified, equipped for special service, accepted, dearly loved, and delighted in.

Keeping both in mind means we are able to be truly humble—that is, seeing ourselves as you see us. This protects us from being depressed in the negative and from being proud in the positive.

Only you, Lord Jesus, could bring us to such a balance, lifting us from the level of natural thinking to heavenly seeing, from a self-centered viewpoint to a Christ-centered understanding.

This is the wonderful Christmas gift you came to give us!

Picture : we are now in the Kingdom of light with King Jesus (from internet)

Christmas”

Triggering the Implementation of God’s great plan!

This wonderful plan is laid out in Colossians 1:12,13

1.  “…the Father, who has qualified you 

2. “to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.

3. “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness

4. “and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,

5. “in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

All flowing from the birth of a baby!

Picture: the light of Jesus penetrating the dominion of darkness.

“The LORD Almighty is with us;

the God of Jacob is our fortress.” Psalm 46:11

What a full-orbed God you are!

On one side you are

pure and perfect,

high and holy,

the hater of sin..

On the other, you are

loving and merciful,

gracious and gentle,

kind and forgiving.

This balance helps us respond to you well.

Your unbending justice inspires a holy fear of you:

awe,

respect,

caring deeply what you think,

having a fear of firm consequences if we sin.

And your all-encompassing compassionate side inspires

love,

trust,

transparency

and joy.

Seeing this perfect balance in your character brings security, rest and contentment.. Let’s live in the light of these Truths.

joy to your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.”

Psalm 86:3,4

I praise you, Lord Jesus, for your warm and loving heart

which makes it possible to always come to you and tell you:

what is bothering me,

where I have failed,

where I am uncertain,

when I am angry,

upset and

hurting.

You are pleased when your children transparently pour out their hearts to you. And with you we can be fully honest, “for you are good and ready to forgive and plenteous in mercy to all those who call upon you” (Ps. 86:5).

Nothing surprises you, nothing shocks you, for you know it all already.

Honesty, transparency and repentance please you.

Thankfulness, praise and trust honor you.

Prayer, confession, and surrender bring you joy.

Picture: Jesus is always ready to listen.