God’s Works Are Perfect

The word perfect means being entirely without fault or defect; complete. We can see how God’s works are rightly described as perfect. Here are several verses from the Bible:

He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he. (Deut 32:4 NIV)

As for God, his way is upright; the word of God is pure; he is a shield to all those who take refuge in him. (Ps 18:30 ISV)

And they will say about you, “The Lord always does right! God is our mighty rock.” (Ps 92:15 CEV)

These passages from the Scriptures remind us of how truly awesome and good our God is! His ways are just, and He is faithful and upright.

God’s actions are perfect, and His character traits exhibit justice and mercy, as well as an ability to forgive repeatedly. When the Bible mentions “works,” it is discussing such things as actions, tasks, activities, and results.

Not only that, but God’s word is PURE—which means free from anything different, inferior or contaminating, free from foreign or inappropriate elements.

When we make the Lord our safe haven, He will shield us from evil and all harm.

Several Bible verses remind us that God cannot lie. (Num 23:19; 1 Sam 15:29; Heb 6:18) So in any circumstance or challenge of our lives, we can always rely upon the truth that ‘The Lord always does right!” Be encouraged, strengthened, and emboldened in your faith in Jesus Christ, dear friend.

Control Your Tongue

We all know that it’s important to control what we say, but that doesn’t make it necessarily easy to do! The Scriptures have quite a lot to teach us about this subject.

Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. (Pro 4:24 ESV)

Crooked can mean dishonest, corrupt, twisted or unscrupulous. Devious means sneaky, cunning, or scheming. As followers of Jesus Christ, we can understand why neither of these would be admirable behavior for us. The Holy Spirit would never lead us to act in such a way, particularly in light of Matthew 5:37; Colossians 3:9 and 4:6; and Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. (Eph 4:25 NIV)

All the words of my mouth are in righteousness; there is nothing crooked or perverted in them. (Pro 8:8 NASB)

The psalmist is laying his heart before the Lord concerning the use of his tongue. Let us each remember Psalm 12:6, The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times. (NIV) In imitating our Savior, we should speak pure words, full of righteousness. Short of that, we should choose to be silent.

But now put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and foul talk from your mouth. (Col 3:8 RSV)

This Bible verse (above) clearly tells us what type of behavior and conversation that we should reject. And we are given a clear instruction of what we should communicate in Ephesians 4:29, Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. (NIV) Our words should encourage, comfort, and bless other people. In this way, we become ministers of the love and presence of the Lord to other people.

If you think you are being religious, but can’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is useless. (Jam 1:26 CEV)

In the book of James, we’re reminded that controlling our tongues is a basic requirement for believers who represent the Lord Jesus and the kingdom of God.

Obscene language, silly talk, or vulgar jokes aren’t acceptable for believers. Instead, there should be thanksgiving. (Eph 5:4 CEB)

Thanksgiving is always appropriate. Having an attitude of gratitude will improve our daily lives and generate a pleasant atmosphere for those around us. Being thankful to other people, as well as to God for His many blessings, is always appreciated.

To sum up today’s article, here is one more Bible passage:

Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit . . . (1 Pet 3:10 ESV) May God give you good days and continual blessings!

Teach Us to Number Our Days

Some Bible verses discuss the lifespan of human beings. Why is this important to followers and servants of Jesus Christ? That’s what we’re considering today.

Our time on earth is brief; the number of our days is already decided by you. (Job 14:15 CEV)

So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. (Ps 90:12)

I am gone like a shadow when it lengthens; I am shaken off like a locust. (Ps 109:23)

Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow. (Ps 144:4)

One thing that we have to remember is that our time on earth is limited, and so it’s good to learn to value each day enormously. Once we accept the brevity of life, we will be more inclined to seek God’s wisdom, leading and guidance for living rich, meaningful, and eternally significant lives that will bring glory to God.

We don’t want to take the gift of life for granted. We don’t want to waste our days on foolish, selfish pursuits that have no real value. Those would be pursuits that eventually, at their conclusion, can bless no one else but ourselves and that bring pleasure to and minister to no one other than ourselves. Some such ventures might even be sinful or evil.

Once we have accepted Jesus Christ as our savior and Lord, all that we need for daily sustenance will be given to us by the Lord according to Matthew 6:33.

The Lord wants His people to learn, to grow, and to seek His wisdom.

My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding—indeed, if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones. Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you. (Pro 2:1-11 NIV) As we learn to number our days, we regard each day as a precious gift as well as an opportunity to store up treasure in heaven that will please God. Glory!

Keep Away from Evil

As servants of the Living God and followers of Jesus Christ, we should have a sincere desire to stay away from evil in every form: evil thoughts; evil words; evil people; and even occasions to be tempted to commit evil. If we obey the Lord, and obey the Scriptural command to be holy (1 Pet 1:16), this will make sense to us.

By mercy and truth atonement is made for wrongdoing, and by the fear of the Lord one keeps away from evil. (Pro 16:6 NASB) If we have a respectful reverence for the Lord, it will keep us away from doing evil. If we have done evil in some way, and if there is an avenue open to us to make amends for it, God’s gifts of mercy and truth will guide us to the right path. For any sin that we may commit, we need to repent to the Lord and ask Him to forgive us and to cleanse us from unrighteousness. The GOOD news is that He always hears and answers these prayers for forgiveness and cleansing. Praise God!

I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. (Joh 17:15 ESV) I believe Jesus was praying for all who would accept Him as their Lord and Savior and follow Him all of their days. The Lord prayed for His followers (US) to be kept away from the evil one who is satan. The evil one and his works are described in John 8:44.

But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person.” (1 Cor 5:13) This is language similar to Deuteronomy 24:7 regarding excluding people, those who are indulging in evil, from the fellowship of believers.

Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. (Eph 4:31) The Scriptures exhort us to avoid indulging in any of these activities, because they do not honor the Lord nor do they flow from the heart of God.

Let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. (1 Pet 3:11) We must always choose to reject evil actions, and turn to the Lord. When we follow Jesus, the Prince of Peace, we will seek and pursue peace with all of our hearts.

Let us highly value peace in our hearts, in our relationships, and in our lives. The peace of God which passes all understanding (Phil 4:7) encompasses within it wholeness, maturity, and completeness as well as freedom from turmoil and worry. Focus upon serving Jesus and doing good, and you will be blessed. Hallelujah!

Working Hard Has Benefits

We can’t bring any glory to the Lord or to the Kingdom of God by being lazy. There is no honor in laziness, nor is there any glory in being idle. I want to make it clear that I’m NOT talking about people who yearn to work, who have searched rigorously and urgently for employment, but haven’t been able to obtain it. That’s not the same thing.

What these Scriptures are addressing are people who prefer to be idle, and those who choose to engage in gossip and spreading rumors rather than performing true, diligent labor.

All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty. (Pro 14:23 NIV) This verse teaches us that working hard brings us the benefit of being paid for our labor. Those who only talk about working, but who actually do nothing, earn no wages and can buy no groceries.

For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. ¹¹For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busybodies. (2 Thes 3:10-11 NKJV) This excerpt from 2 Thessalonians demonstrates the truth that people who won’t work will have nothing to eat. In addition, when people don’t work they have lots of time on their hands which the enemy can turn into opportunities to sin against God. While all sin is displeasing to God, the sin of gossip displeases the Lord greatly. It is the reason that the Scriptures describe such persons as busybodies.

And besides they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house, and not only idle but also gossips and busybodies, saying things which they ought not. (1 Tim 5:13 NKJV) Here again, the Bible warns us about idle hands and minds being turned toward evil, unrighteous pastimes.

As we see from Proverbs 14:23 (above), the Holy Spirit says that ALL hard work brings financial gain and advantages to the ones who work diligently. The Bible encourages believers to work hard, to be responsible and kind, and to live honorably within our communities so that we are an asset to them. God will reward us with His blessings as we live obediently to His word. Praise His Name!

Defend the Destitute & the Oppressed

The Lord has outlined everything in the Bible that believers need to know about life and godliness. (2 Pet 1:3)

The Scriptures appeal to followers of Jesus to defend the destitute and the oppressed—those who can’t speak for or protect themselves.

Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. (Pro 31:8 NIV)

This verse tells us to uphold (endorse) the rights of the destitute. Destitute means deprived, underprivileged, impoverished, or disadvantaged.

Defend the poor and fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and needy. ⁴Deliver the poor and needy; free them from the hand of the wicked. (Ps 82:3-4)

In the passage above, the psalmist encourages us to defend:

the poor,
the orphaned,
the afflicted and
the needy

. . . from evil, wicked people as well as from wicked factions, lobbies, programs or organizations.

He does not preserve the life of the wicked, but gives justice to the oppressed. (Job 36:6)

God will ensure that all of the oppressed [tyrannized, persecuted, repressed, tormented] people on the earth will receive His justice. We, His servants, must cooperate with and collaborate with the Lord in this undertaking.

Who executes justice for the oppressed, Who gives food to the hungry. The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners. (Ps 146:7)

The Lord achieves justice for the all of the oppressed. Jesus, our Savior, feeds the hungry and liberates the prisoners from every form and every type of imprisonment. Glory to God, most High!

Not Stumbling In Our Words

The Bible tells us something rather surprising in James 3—that the person who does not stumble in word is a perfect man or woman. This person is one who is able to control everything about themselves. Wow!

For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body. ³Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body. (Jas 3:2-3, emphasis added

Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. (Ps 34:13)

Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones. (Pro 16:24)

The words of a man’s mouth are deep waters; the wellspring of wisdom is a flowing brook. (Pro 18:4)

“He who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit.” (1 Pet 3:10)

Controlling our words is one of the most difficult things for human beings. As 1 Peter 3 reminds us, we should refrain from speaking evil. Do you know that “speaking evil” means some different things to God? It means:

Saying anything that is less than 100% true;
Repeating gossip—even if it’s true;
Agreeing with other people who spread lies or say unpleasant things;
Saying negative or bad things about ourselves;
Repeating negative things;
Speaking anything that does not agree with God’s Word.

It surprises people to realize that even if they say something negative about themselves, it is unpleasing to God. God wants us to agree with what HE says about each one of us. He says that His children are:

Fearfully and wonderfully made, (Ps 139:14)
His special treasure, (Ps 135:4)
The apple of His eye, (Zech 2:8)
Chosen and dearly loved, (1 Pet 2:4)
Given His approval, (1 Thes 2:4) and
Accepted in Jesus. (Eph 1:6)

From this list, we can understand that the Lord loves us and has said many wonderful things concerning His children—those who love Him and obey Him. Since our words proceed from our thoughts, a key Scripture to meditate upon regularly is:

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. (Phil 4:8)

As we think about God’s blessings and meditate upon His Words, our own words will begin to change and will correspond to what the Scripture has to say about everything. God bless you!

How Can I Receive a Miracle?

Considering the last blog article, I thought it would be timely to look at Bible verses that help us to understand how to receive a miracle when we need it or whenever someone we care about might need one. Let’s clarify our terms, first. Let’s look at the difference between a blessing and a miracle.

A blessing is unmerited favor or approval; a special favor, mercy or benefit. (Example: The blessing of living in a land of liberty. -or- The blessing of having food and shelter.)

A miracle is a supernatural phenomenon from God in an emergency or time of need; an extraordinary, welcome event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to God.

From time to time, most of us need a miracle at some point in our lives. The God whom we serve is predictable and orderly; He is forever faithful.

God doesn’t change. God always want to help us; always wants to bless us and to deliver us from evil. You can find these truths right in God’s Word. (Ps 54:4; Isa 41:10; Heb 13:8)

First, know what the Bible says to you. Meditate upon these truths from Scripture:

And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. (Deu 28:13) – God surrounds us with His favor at all times. He gives us the grace and ability to rule in this life.
But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness . . . (Rom 4:5) – Our faith in Jesus Christ is our righteousness in God’s sight.
And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:19) – God’s promises to meet ALL of our needs through Jesus Christ and our faith in Him.
And let them say continually, “Let the Lord be magnified, Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant.” (Ps 35:27b) – God is pleased with our success and our prosperity.
Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. (3 Joh 2) – The Lord’s desire is for us to prosper and to be healthy always.
But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Mt 19:26, see also Mk 10:27; Lk 18:27) – All things are possible to us through our faith in Jesus Christ.
And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. (Joh 14:13) – Jesus says that He will do WHATEVER we pray for in order to bring glory to our Father God through the Son, Jesus.
Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” (Lk 1:38) – When we ask God for something, we place our faith in God and in His Word.

The eight Bible verses shown above are only a sample of the good and precious promises that God has given to every believer. God’s Word is His will. When we ask for something in agreement with His will, we know that God WILL give us whatever we need. (1 Joh 5:14-15)

Know what God’s Word says and understand that it is His will for you.
Sow God’s Word into your heart by reading, memorizing, and meditating upon it daily.
Put your faith in the Word, and ask God for what you need, based upon His Word.
Understand that God’s answer to you is “Yes” and receive your miracle by faith right then. Have confidence that God’s Word will prevail in your life.
Praise and thank God for hearing and answering your prayers, and expect to reap the harvest of your miracle thanks to the seed of the Word of God that you have planted in your heart.
Do not abandon your faith or your testimony. Hold fast; do not waiver in your faith in God.

Following these guidelines should reap untold benefits and wonders. Give God all of the glory, honor, and praise, in Jesus’ holy name.

Jesus, Our Hope

But You have seen, for You observe trouble and grief, to repay it by Your hand. The helpless commits [entrusts] himself to You; You are the helper of the fatherless. (Ps 10:14)

Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy,
¹⁹to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine. (Ps 33:18-19, emphasis added)

When the wicked cannot be restrained by the righteous in society, we must trust in God for ultimate justice. He is our one, True hope.

God sees everything—the evil and the good. Nothing escapes His view, and He alone knows the motives in the hearts of human beings. Therefore, His judgment is based upon knowledge and truth, not suppositions.

In perilous times, the police; government officials; and politicians may be corrupt, evil, or controlled by wicked agendas. So when we place our HOPE in the Lord Jesus, we are placing it in the One who can never be influenced to do evil, and whose plans for mankind are plans for good and not for evil! Praise God!

Here are some Bible verses about hope:

For You are my hope, O Lord God; You are my trust from my youth. (Ps 71:5)

O Israel, hope in the Lord; for with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption. (Ps 130:7)

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. (Jer 17:7)

. . . through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. (Rom 5:2)

Hope (and the God of hope) will not disappoint us! (Rom 5:5)

Light or Darkness

Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! (Isa 5:20)
And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. (Gen 1:4)
Then I saw that wisdom excels folly as light excels darkness. (Ecc 2:13, emphasis added)

These passages from Scripture (shown above) remind us that God calls the light good, and He wants the life that’s within each one of us to emanate from the Light Who is Jesus Christ within us. (Jo 1:4; 8:12) Jesus Christ is the Light and He is good. We must make the decision about whether we want to obey the Lord, and to allow His light within us to shine!

Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness. (Lk 11:35)

Even as Jesus was sent into the world as a light for all of mankind, He wants us now to show forth His light so that more people may receive salvation through Jesus Christ.

For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Cor 4:6)

So how may we shine the light of salvation into the darkening world around us? Yes, the Bible gives us answers to that as well!

If you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday. The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. (Isa 58:10-11)

By doing good works, by sharing the Good News of the gospel with all people, and by living obediently to the Word of God, we shine the Light of Jesus Christ and His salvation into the darkness.

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