Wednesday Morning Scripture (Wk3/2022) – Deuteronomy 11:10-25

Rewards of Obedience

10 For the land which you are entering to possess is not like the land of Egypt from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and watered [1]it with your foot like a garden of vegetables.

11 But the land into which you are about to cross to possess, a land of hills and valleys, drinks water from the rain of heaven,

12 a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year.

13 “It shall come about, if you listen obediently and pay attention to My commandments which I command you today—to love the Lord your God and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul [your choices, your thoughts, your whole being]—

14 that [2]He will give the rain for your land in its season, the early [fall] rain and the late [spring] rain, so that you may gather in your grain and your new wine and your [olive] oil.

15 And [3]He will give grass in your fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.

16 Beware that your hearts are not deceived, and that you do not turn away [from the Lord] and serve other gods and worship them,

17 or [else] the Lord’s anger will be kindled and burn against you, and He will shut up the heavens so that there will be no rain and the land will not yield its fruit; and you will perish quickly from the good land which the Lord is giving you.

18 “Therefore, you shall impress these words of mine on your heart and on your soul, and tie them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as [4]bands (frontals, frontlets) on your forehead.

19 You shall teach them [diligently] to your [5]children [impressing God’s precepts on their minds and penetrating their hearts with His truths], speaking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up.

20 You shall write them on the [6]doorposts of your house and on your gates,

21 so that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, as [7]long as the heavens are above the earth.

22 For if you are careful to keep all this commandment which I am commanding you to do, to love the Lord your God, to walk [that is, to live each and every day] in all His ways and to hold tightly to Him—

23 then the Lord will drive out all these nations from before you, and you shall dispossess nations greater and mightier than you.

24 Every place on which the sole of your foot treads shall become yours; your territory shall be from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the river, the river Euphrates, as far as the western sea (the Mediterranean).

25 No man will be able to stand before you; the Lord your God will lay the fear and the dread of you on all the land on which you set foot, just as He has spoken to you.

Deuteronomy 11:10-25 (AMP)

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 11:10 Egyptian crops were watered by irrigation, so this may refer to a simple irrigation device that was operated by the foot, or to the practice of opening and closing small water channels with the foot.
  2. Deuteronomy 11:14 So some ancient versions; MT reads I.
  3. Deuteronomy 11:15 So some ancient versions; MT reads I.
  4. Deuteronomy 11:18 See note 6:8.
  5. Deuteronomy 11:19 Lit sons, also v 21.
  6. Deuteronomy 11:20 See note 6:9.
  7. Deuteronomy 11:21 Lit the days of.

Wednesday Morning Scripture (Wk3/2022) – Matthew 5:13-20

Disciples and the World

13 “You are the [1]salt of the earth; but if the salt has [2]lost its taste (purpose), how can it be made salty? It is no longer good for anything, but to be thrown out and walked on by people [when the walkways are wet and slippery].

14 “You are the light of [Christ to] the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;

15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

16 Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good deeds and moral excellence, and [recognize and honor and] glorify your Father who is in heaven.

17 “Do not think that I came to do away with or undo the [3]Law [of Moses] or the [writings of the] Prophets; I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.

18 For I assure you and most solemnly say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke [of the pen] will pass from the Law until all things [which it foreshadows] are accomplished.

19 So whoever breaks one of the least [important] of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least [important] in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever practices and teaches them, he will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

20 “For I say to you that unless your righteousness (uprightness, moral essence) is more than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 5:13-20 (AMP)

Footnotes

  1. Matthew 5:13 In ancient times salt was often used as a preservative. Similarly, followers of Christ are to preserve both the gospel message and Christian values in the secular world.
  2. Matthew 5:13 The salt from the Dead Sea contains impurities that affect its qualities as a seasoning and as a preservative.
  3. Matthew 5:17 I.e. the Pentateuch.

Lion Bites – Global Prophetic Alliance – Children of Light

So don’t hide your light! Let it shine brightly before others, so that your commendable works will shine as light upon them, and then they will give their praise to your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16 (TPT)

I have called you to be a people of the light. Did I not take you out of the kingdom of darkness and transfer you into my kingdom, the kingdom of my beloved Son, the kingdom of light? I have put my light within you; my light that overwhelms the darkness; my light that cannot be overcome. You are mine, children of light. Live as those who are consumed by the light and overcome by the light. Live as ones who carry the light and do not try to hide it. My light is so bright, so luminous, so radiant that it is foolish to try and keep it hidden. Allow me to fill you and overwhelm you with my light to drive out every vestige of darkness from within you. As you do, you will find that my light overcomes not only the darkness within you but also around you without having to make a conscious effort. Let my light shine from you. Let it out; allow it to show.

Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colours in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.”

Matthew 5:14-16 (MSG)

Activation:

You might like to pray a prayer of submission to the work of the Holy Spirit’s work in that expunging of darkness from your life, giving him access to all areas of your life, asking him to shine his light on any hidden areas that need attention. You might like to ask him to show you anywhere you have tried to “hide your light” and the reasons behind that.

Pray

“God I choose to let your light shine in, around and through me. I will not keep it hidden.”

#lionbites

Tuesday Morning Scripture (Wk4/2022) – Ephesians 4

Unity of the Spirit

1 So I, the prisoner for the Lord, appeal to you to live a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called [that is, to live a life that exhibits godly character, moral courage, personal integrity, and mature behavior—a life that expresses gratitude to God for your salvation],

2 with all humility [forsaking self-righteousness], and gentleness [maintaining self-control], with patience, bearing with one another [1]in [unselfish] love.

3 Make every effort to keep the oneness of the Spirit in the bond of peace [each individual working together to make the whole successful].

4 There is one body [of believers] and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when called [to salvation]—

5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism,

6 one God and Father of us all who is [sovereign] over all and [working] through all and [living] in all.

7 Yet grace [God’s undeserved favor] was given to each one of us [not indiscriminately, but in different ways] in proportion to the measure of Christ’s [rich and abundant] gift.

8 Therefore it says,

“When He ascended on high,

He led captivity captive,

And He bestowed gifts on men.”

9 (Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also had previously descended [from the heights of heaven] into the lower parts of the earth?

10 He who descended is the very same as He who also has ascended high above all the heavens, that He [His presence] might fill all things [that is, the whole universe]).

11 And [His gifts to the church were varied and] He Himself appointed some as apostles [special messengers, representatives], some as prophets [who speak a new message from God to the people], some as evangelists [who spread the good news of salvation], and some as pastors and teachers [to shepherd and guide and instruct],

12 [and He did this] to fully equip and perfect the saints (God’s people) for works of service, to build up the body of Christ [the church];

13 until we all reach oneness in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, [growing spiritually] to become a mature believer, reaching to the measure of the fullness of Christ [manifesting His spiritual completeness and exercising our spiritual gifts in unity].

14 So that we are no longer children [spiritually immature], tossed back and forth [like ships on a stormy sea] and carried about by every wind of [shifting] doctrine, by the cunning and trickery of [unscrupulous] men, by the deceitful scheming of people ready to do anything [for personal profit].

15 But speaking the truth in love [in all things—both our speech and our lives expressing His truth], let us grow up in all things into Him [following His example] who is the Head—Christ.

16 From Him the whole body [the church, in all its various parts], joined and knitted firmly together by what every joint supplies, when each part is working properly, causes the body to grow and mature, building itself up [2]in [unselfish] love.

Ephesians 4:1-16 (AMP)

Footnotes

  1. Ephesians 4:2 The key to understanding this and other statements about love is to know that this love (the Greek word agape) is not so much a matter of emotion as it is of doing things for the benefit of another person, that is, having an unselfish concern for another and a willingness to seek the best for another.
  2. Ephesians 4:16 See note v 2.