In Psalm 141 we see one of many things a true disciple of Christ should do. David by the Holy Spirit in verses three and four cries out to God for help in controlling his tongue.

Prayer is no magic wand or fast food service, nor is it a way to force God to do what we want Him to do.

“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

16 For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham.

17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people."–Hebrews 1:14-17.

There are so many great bands in the Classic Rock Genre and many of them get their due but as far as I am concerned Blue Oyster Cult is one of the under appreciated bands from the Classic Rock Era. To me, their best album was their live album Some Enchanted Evening. In this article, I explain why.

“And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, YHWH appeared to Abram, and said unto him, ‘I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect’” (Genesis 17:1). YHWH as Christ told His hearers (Matthew 5:48), which includes today’s true disciples, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” This is a tough target to hit, but because YHWH came in the flesh to redeem us, provided He dwells in us and we in Him, there is power to follow through.

You cannot earn or buy salvation but there is a price to be paid for following Christ. In some cases we can look at it as the devil, society, or our own body and soul fining us in various ways if we choose to follow The Way. But, the reward we gain will definitely be worth it.

"For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water," is the sad indictment against God’s people recorded in Jeremiah 2:13. While it would be good to develop a message on this whole verse, I would like to take the last part to address the need of some sincere Christians that often get tripped up by sin.

If you run a search in the book of Proverbs on the word "blessed" or "happy" translated from the Hebrew word ‘esher you will see that ‘esher occurs eight times in Proverbs. More interesting though is that two of these occurrences happen very near each other in chapter 8, which tells me to sit up and take notice of something.

God presents a number of indictments against His people in the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi. It is a very “hard hitting" book. However, it is not without promises of hope.

I will not forget that moment when a load of fear, shame, and guilt was removed from me and was replaced by the most tremendous peace.