"Word of God Speak"

December 25, 2011 ( 1 John 1-5)

From the Life Journal of Adam Proux:

Scripture: “Loving God means keeping His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.” 1 John 5:3 NLT

Observation: God is light, God is love, and God is life. John is expressing to believers the fullness of Christ. He is all we need, and He is all we should ever really desire. He is enough. To love Him is to obey and trust Him. Many claim to know God but do not walk according to His commands, so they prove they are liars by their actions. Our actions always speak louder than our words. People will quickly forget what we speak, but they will always remember what we do. This is why it is so important to live out the faith we say we believe. Loving God is more than a profession; loving God is a complete and total commitment to trusting and obeying the teaching of Christ, and this commitment to His commands is not a burden, but rather a privilege.

Application: If we have truly surrendered our life to Christ we will have a desire to learn about Him and His teaching. We will apply His truths and teachings to our lives and experience an abundant life filled with peace that surpasses mans understanding. Loving God and keeping His commandments is not a burden, but rather a privilege. However realize this, it will not be easy! Surrendering ourselves to Christ is not a “one time” event; it is a continual process that starts anew every day. Each day we must crucify our sinful nature and become subjected to Him completely. Loving God is more than accepting His Son as Savior. Because of our love for God we must keep His commands and shine brightly proving to the world our love for our Father.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You for this wonderful day! Thank You for Your mercy and grace that provide and protect me every day. Thank You for Your strong right arm that fights for me and wins! Thank You for Jesus that pleads my case before your throne compelling You to act on my behalf. Lord, give me the wisdom to know what’s right and the courage to do what’s right, even when it’s hard. Help me love You by reminding me of the importance of keeping Your commands. It is an honor and privilege to obey You, in Jesus name, Amen!

December 24, 2011 (John 19-21)

From the Life Journal of Adam Proux:

Scripture: “Then Jesus said, ‘You would have no power over me at all unless it were given to you from above. So the one who handed me over to you has the greater sin.” John 19:11 NLT

Observation: Jesus was the perfect example of how we must embrace and surrender to God’s will. We must except and realize that nothing happens to us without God knowing. No enemy has any power over us except that which God has given them. And if God gives them the power over us, it will ultimately be for our good. Even the power that was given to Pilate and the High Priest Caiaphas came from God. It was all a part of His plan. This part of God’s plan may be difficult to understand, as it is with all suffering, but we must trust completely in our sovereign God who always knows best. Trusting God is not always easy, but in the end it is always best.

Application: Remember the hours Jesus spent in prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane? Those were not just moments of passing prayer, but rather a battle ground of the soul. Those hours prepared Jesus to willingly surrender to the power that God was going to give to the wicked oppressors that sought His life. Because of Christ full surrender to God’s will and plan, He was in complete control through out His death. He trusted His Father completely. He did His Fathers will throughout the entire process. He patiently suffered and endured for my sake and yours. His great love for mankind was revealed through His willingness to surrender and suffer even though He was “Not Guilty”.

Prayer: Dear Lord, Thank You for Jesus! Thank You for His willingness to suffer in my place. Thank You for Your mercy and grace that provide and protect me every day. God I pray You will not give my enemy power over me. I pray that You would set me free from their wrath, however, if it’s Your will that I must suffer give me the strength to endure it with the gracefulness of Christ. I desire Your will, even if it means pain and suffering. I plead for mercy and grace my Lord! Hear my feeble plea for help and rescue me! Give me wisdom to know what’s right and the courage to do what’s right, even when it’s hard. In Jesus name, Amen!

December 23, 2011 (John 15-18)

From the Life Journal of Adam Proux:

Scripture: “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin.” John 15:22 NASB

Observation: The world hated Jesus. Why? Because He did terrible things and hurt people? No, in fact, quite the contrary. Jesus healed people of many diseases and blessed people in miraculous ways. So why did the people hate Him? Jesus was a light that shown in darkness. He preached a message of truth that exposed sin and revealed a persons true condition. Those that loved the darkness were angered because their sin had been exposed and they had no justifiable excuse to continue in it. So the easy answer for them was, kill Him.

Application: Now days we don’t hear to many sermons exposing peoples sins and revealing the true conditions of their soul. Our politically correct sermons are often more of an encouragement to continue in sin, rather than an open honest rebuke exposing and revealing a persons need for Christ and forgiveness. Grace has been reduced to a crutch to lean on and an excuse to justify. But God’s grace is a powerful delivering move of God that empowers one to overcome the temptations of sin and walk uprightly in this present age. Because of Christ and His message, we have no excuse for sin.

Prayer: Father, praise and glory to Your name that is above all names! You are the awesome God of heaven and I love You so much. Help me Father proclaim the message of truth You’ve given me with boldness and confidence knowing that You will work and move upon the lives of those that receive Your word. Reveal and expose any sin in my life so that I can repent and walk clean before You, in Jesus name, Amen!

December 22, 2011 (John 12-14)

From the Life Journal of Adam Proux:

Scripture: “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.” John 14:21 NASB

Observation: The person who has received Christ as Savior and Lord seeks to learn the commandments of Christ. The one who learns His commandments and keeps them is the one who really loves Christ. Those that profess Christ with their lips but deny Him in their actions, do not know Christ or love Him. They are counterfeits. Wolves dressed in sheep’s clothing. Waves tossed about by every wind of doctrine, ever learning but never able to come to understanding. Jesus will reveal Himself to those that truly love Him, He knows who truly loves Him by observing them keep His commandments.

Application: So we learn here, that with love for Christ, comes a responsibility to learn and keep His commandments. To accept Christ as Savior and Lord is to surrender your personal will to Him completely. You are no longer your own but you have been bought with a price. The price paid for your total being was the pure precious blood of a perfect Savior Jesus Christ. The price He paid was for 100% of you, not anything less. The person who truly loves Christ can fully expect for Him to be revealed to them. His commandments are not grievous, His burden is light and His yoke is easy.

Prayer: Dear Lord, praise Your holy name that is above all names! Thank You for Your mercy and grace that provides for me daily. Teach me Your commandments and strengthen me to keep them. When I say “I Love You” I want it to be more than merely words spoken, I want it to be honest and pure love undefiled. Forgive me and create a clean heart within me for Your names sake, in Jesus name, Amen!

December 21, 2011 (John 9-11)

From the Life Journal of Adam Proux:

Scripture: “If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do them, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father” John 10:37-38 NASB

Observation: Jesus had performed many miraculous miracles before the Jews but they still refused to accept that Jesus was the Christ. They were expecting the Christ to be a earthly king, with an earthly kingdom. The works Jesus performed were never intended to bring fame or fortune to Himself, they were meant to glorify God only. Jesus is the perfect example of godliness because His faith in the Father was accompanied by works of righteousness. His faith was proven, and made perfect, by the way He lived.

Application: Do you believe in Jesus? Many are quick to say yes without even considering the evidence of their life. Fact is, many times we are just as guilty as the Jews of not really believing Jesus is the Christ. The actions throughout our lives reveal who we really believe in. Our faith is proven, or exposed, by the fruit we produce. If we truly believe in Christ, our lives will produce works of righteousness, just as the life of Christ did. We can safely trust in Jesus because He is in the Father and the Father is in Him.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You for this day You have created. I love You, I praise and worship Your holiness. I believe in Jesus and know He is the Christ. Born of a virgin to bring salvation to all that will believe in Him. He is the door I enter through and I’m so thankful for the gift You’ve given us in Your Son Jesus, in Jesus name, Amen!

December 20, 2011 (John 7-8)

From the Life Journal of Adam Proux:

Scripture: “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” John 8:44 NASB

Observation: In John chapter 8 Jesus is shucking the scribes and pharisees corn (so to speak). They wanted to kill Jesus because He spoke truth to them. Jesus plainly tells them who their father is and why they were acting the way they were. They were seeking to do the will of their father (the devil). Those that serve satan can’t help but commit evil acts because they are compelled to please their master. As followers of Christ it should be our desire to please our Master.

Application: What would happen if we spoke to people as plainly as Christ did? What if we told the children of satan who their daddy was? What if we preached the truth so boldly that the religious crowd wanted to kill us? What if we were so concerned about pleasing our Father being killed didn’t even matter? Why don’t we start speaking truth, because our nature has been born again, and is born of truth? Then again maybe this explains a lot…..maybe we have been serving our father. Question is…who’s your father?

Prayer: Dear Father, You are my Lord! I seek to please You in all that I do. Forgive me for the many times I fail You. Strengthen me to resist temptation and do what pleases You always. Mold me into the very image of Christ, which I know is Your desire. May the words that come forth from my mouth be Your truth! Fill me with Your Holy Spirit and fan the flame of fire that burns within me, in Jesus name, Amen!

December 19, 2011 (John 5-6)

From the Life Journal of Adam Proux:

Scripture: “As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.” John 6:66 NASB

Observation: Jesus had just preached His most controversial sermon thus far. He told the crowd around Him (John called them disciples) that they must eat His flesh and drink His blood to be a follower of His. Jesus was giving them ample opportunity to consider and understand the cost of discipleship. As a result of the required commitment, many of His disciples withdrew themselves from Him and walked with Him no more. They were not willing to be a follower, they were only interested in Christ, not committed to Him.

Application: The message is still the same today. The cost is still the same too. To be a follower of Christ you must eat His flesh and drink His blood. Only those who have been granted understanding from the Father can comprehend this saying. Many have professed a belief in Christ but never have committed to follow Him. Many have prayed a sinners prayer of no result, continuing in a life of sin. Many have been submerged under water in baptism and the only visible result was wet clothes. Jesus changes lives! He causes that which was dead to come alive! A true follower must surrender their life and will, to Him.

Prayer: Dear Lord thank You for Your marvelous grace and mercy that You bestow on me each day. I surrender my life, and will to You, do with me as You please. I pray to be a vessel that brings You honor and glory through the life I live. Help me accomplish this for Your name sake and Your glory. I eat the flesh of Christ and I drink His blood. May I die to myself, and may He live in me forevermore, in Jesus name, Amen!