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breath of God

Worship VIII Day 13 My Victory

March 24, 2021 by Paula Romang Leave a Comment

Read His Words Before Ours!

Ephesians 2:1-10
Colossians 1:15-23
Romans 7:21-8:3
Romans 8:18-39
2 Corinthians 4:7-9

Worship VIII, Day 13

We’ve all heard evangelists preach truth to the lost,
but have you ever preached truth to yourself?

It may sound odd, but it’s a beneficial practice. Reminding ourselves of the truth of Scripture impacts our real, everyday lives.

For example, His great faithfulness is equally true both in times of devoted worship and as we fold laundry. His plans for our hope and future remain, even as we potty-train our toddlers or wait in the car-rider line.

We’re often encouraged in church, yet promptly deflated as we smack headlong into life. Preaching truth to ourselves helps us remain in the confidence of worship and move forward in strength, rather than living in perpetual frustration. Hymns and worship songs provide excellent material for preaching truth to ourselves, and My Victory by Jimmy Needham is no exception.

“Never turning back to the way things were
I’m stronger now than I was before
I hear the sound that freedom brings
It’s ringing loud
Now I am free to lift my eyes
For grace is alive”

The first stanza prompts a glance over our shoulders, recalling life when Christ found us. As I remember from what He’s saved me, I rejoice! My empty life was suddenly infused with the breath of God. What was dead, is now alive!

“You are the hope that broke the dark in me
You are the light that shines when I can’t see
You are, You are, my victory”

Because Jesus is God in human form,
our divine Redeemer,
our death-conquering,
resurrected and ascended King,
He is the only one truly qualified to be our living hope.

Through His death and resurrection, Jesus purchased an all-access pass to the resources we need for a fruitful life in Christ. As believers, we have access to an arsenal of truth, a “truth trifecta,” we can use to fight lies in Jesus’ name. This truth trifecta is Scripture, prayer, and the indwelling Holy Spirit. 

Scripture is our “light when we can’t see,” our battle-sword, and our bedrock of truth. Therefore, Scripture’s words about God’s character, our sinfulness, His grace, and our victory in Christ are absolutely true, regardless of our feelings. Standing upon Scripture is standing upon truth. It is bedrock, especially in the heat of battle.

The Holy Spirit serves as our internal compass and intercessor. Because the Holy Spirit connects us to the same power-source that resurrected Christ, we’re empowered to live fruitful, flourishing lives in enemy territory.

Through the phenomenon of prayer, redeemed humans can enjoy free-flowing communication with God. For example, the psalms illustrate raw, unfiltered conversations with God; the writer is often an open book. Because the astounding privilege of being known and loved by The Ancient of Days is our reality, our deepest heart-cries and most treasured dreams are His immediate concern.

“My weakness Yours, Your mercy mine
My God, You’re not the leaving kind
I sing the song that freedom brings
It’s ringing loud
Now I am free to lift my eyes
My God is alive”

Here, we’re reminded of the paradoxes within Christianity. In our weakness, we are strong. Because we surrender our weakness to Him and in turn, are suffused with His strength. Instead of abandoning us to our sin, He redeems us, bestows riches upon us, and fights for us.

I know this is true, because for years He fought for me, empowering me in my weakness. Preaching Scriptural truth to myself, praying like an open book, and drawing strength from His Spirit sustained me as weighty circumstances threatened to crush me.

My preemie twins needed a skilled, compassionate mother; it was a rewarding yet exhausting and thankless task.

Matthew’s special needs intensified my load and isolation. His medical needs steadily increased, along with his seizures.

My solid (but previously untested) faith was called into action. Throughout our struggles, truth was my ever-present companion, and preaching it to myself, through tears of desperation, became my means of survival. Prayer became my lifeline, often resembling a signal flare launched into the darkness. Truth was my bedrock, prayer sustained me, and the Holy Spirit empowered me to care for my boys well in Jesus’ name.

“In times of trouble
When I’m not able
You are, my God, You are
My chains are broken
Your gates are open
Hallelujah”

How easily we can identify with Needham’s words! A quick scroll on social media screams of a world is in chaos. Covid19, political vitriol, and the “Cancel Culture” exasperate and disorient us.

Yet, He remains our foundation. When Matthew died, I stared numbly into his casket and was engulfed in a swirling fog of grief; yet He shared my burden, lifting my tear-stained face toward eternity and the temporary nature of my affliction.

The truth of Scripture stabilized me throughout my care-giving years and in my grief. For truth remains, no matter the circumstances; what is true in the sunlight is equally true in the pouring rain.

His Spirit gave me steely fortitude in heartbreaking circumstances; His Word and His Spirit spoke of eternity and our blessed hope.  Though we now dwell in enemy territory, building outposts of truth in occupied land, we know how this story ends. Jesus wins! Therefore, “we sing it out, we sing it loud! He is our victory!”

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Worship VIII Week Three! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Worship VIII!

Posted in: Christ, Faithfulness, Freedom, Future, God, Grace, Holy Spirit, Hope, Jesus, Mercy, Redeemed, Scripture, Strength, Worship Tagged: alive, Ascended, breath of God, Devoted, Great, He is, King, preach, rejoice, saved, Truth, victory

Justice Day 2 For Life: Digging Deeper

September 12, 2017 by Rebecca Adams Leave a Comment

Digging Deeper Days...are a pretty big deal at GT!

We search God's Word together, ask questions as we read, dig around to find the original intentions at the time of writing, and then make some applications to our everyday lives.
Along the way, we hope you'll pick up some new tools to study Scripture and you'll see truth in a new and accessible way!
Dig In!

The Passage

Looking for yesterday’s
Journey Study?
Check out For Life!

Genesis 2:7 English Standard Version (ESV)

…then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.

The Questions

1) What is the significance of “dust”?

2) What is important about God “breathing” into Adam?

3) What is significant about becoming a “living being”?

The Findings for Intention

1) What is the significance of “dust”?
One of the definitions given for “dust” in the Strong’s concordance is “rubbish”. It’s good for nothing, blows in the wind, is the meanest or lowest state of the earth as it is simply walked on by the rest of creation. It’s meaningless, as “dust in the wind”, and transient, being here one moment and gone the next.

2) What is important about God “breathing” into Adam?

Utterly unlike the insignificance of dust, which is entirely a product of the earth, God’s breath comes explicitly from His own Being straight into man’s nostrils. What is made from the earth’s elements, will one day pass away and return to the earth as dust (Ecclesiastes 12:7). But the soul, the living essence of God’s vitality, is His own and will one day return to Him (Ecclesiastes 12:7). The psalmist sings, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” The Hebrew word for “breath” in this psalm is exactly the same as the one here in our verse in Genesis 2:7. Its meaning is not a physical composition of oxygen and nitrogen, but of the very breath of the Living God. The psalmist is reiterating the solid truth that this “breath”, our “souls”, belong to their Maker, the Lord God. What we do with our souls, and how we steward that gift, is of utmost importance!

3) What is significant about becoming a “living being”?
The body would be lifeless without the soul. Before God breathed His breathe into the body formed from dust, it was undoubtedly a masterpiece, but still a lifeless shell nonetheless. The body is a temporary tent for the soul to dwell (2 Corinthians 5:1-10). As such, the soul utilizes the tent or body to accomplish works while in the body. When God breathed into Adam, He gave mankind the gift of life itself, just as He Himself is life. He gave humanity the ability to live, and move, and work, and create, and think. Paul, in 1 Corinthians, says that, “The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 15:45) Meaning that while Adam was awakened to physical life, Christ (the second Adam), awakens our souls to real life as it was meant to be lived: for the glory and praise of God.

The Everyday Application

1) What is the significance of “dust”?
Even in this one verse, we see the actions of the Creating God to be already painting the glory of the gospel! We, taken from a state of meaninglessness and hopelessness by being enslaved to Sin, fills us with Himself, shapes us by His design, and gives us meaning and purpose and fulfillment. We have no purpose apart from God, we are simply, “but dust”. (Psalm 103:14) But with Him, we are indeed His workmanship! (Ephesians 2:10)

2) What is important about God “breathing” into Adam?
The gospel of Mark records Jesus as saying, “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul? For what can man give in return for his soul?” (Mark 8:36-37) The significance of not only having a soul, but knowing who created the soul, and who owns the soul should change our perspective on what we do with our life. One day, when our bodies have returned to dust and we die, our souls will live on forever, just as God is an eternal Being. He has given over to us the care and keeping of our soul and permitted us the choice on how to steward such an incredible gift. How are you caring for your soul? Check here for great resources on what it means to have good soul care!

3) What is significant about becoming a “living being”?
It would be a serious mistake to live only for the fading, fleeting body and its desires and emotions and passions, when it is only the soul that will last forever. It’s like buying eggs, and throwing away the eggs so you can attempt to eat the carton. The carton will not come close to satisfying our need for food like an omelet would. Jesus came to renew our soul, to give us a new heart and passions that reflect His, as the author of the soul in the first place. We will only find satisfaction in both this life and the life to come, when we allow Him to remake us. Only He who has made the soul, has the ability to bring newness to it, which is why nothing we craft with our own hands or hearts will ever fill us up.
Only He who made the soul is able to re-new or re-make it.

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I Can Do That!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read through it (always more than a verse or two).
3) Write down your questions as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God in your everyday!

The Community!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Justice Week One!
Don’t miss out on the discussion – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

The Tools!

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources.  Just type in the verse you’re looking at and Boom! It’s right in front of you in English and Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament), which are the original languages the Bible was written in.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Find super awesome stuff like “origin”, “definition”, and even all the different ways that single word has been translated into English! If you want to be geeky, you can even click the word and hear its original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want to get more background on a word or phrasing or passage? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

The Why!

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus.
Download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!
Tap and hold on your mobile device to save.

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
See all past studies in Justice!

Posted in: Birth, Digging Deeper, Dignity, Emptiness, Enough, Faith, Fullness, God, Gospel, Handiwork, Hope, Inheritance, Jesus, Legacy, Life, Made New, Meaning, Peace, Purpose, Redemption, Transformation, Truth Tagged: alive, breath of God, changed, life, renewed, soul, soul care, Spirit of God, transformation, Truth

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And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14