Daily Bible Study for Thursday
August 18, 2016
By: Hanny Lynn Stearns
Fish N
Loaves Ministries, Inc.
“Multiplying
God’s Word Around The Globe”
Chapter Reading
for Today: Please read in
your Bible before proceeding. Note that most translations are considered
paraphrases. The Young’s Literal Translation provides a more accurate
translation since he is the one who authored a concordance. Others are helpful
for seeing a different perspective, but we cannot always depend on their
wording. I hope this is helpful to you. If you are studying in another version,
that is fine. I am studying from the KJV, but for the purpose of this study, I
will keep it with the New King James Version.
One final note: I will put the scripture in italics to differentiate from my
own writing. I am adding red to the letters when
it is Jesus talking – just like the Bible. Thank you.
Bible
Gateway Verse of the Day
Philippians 1:21
For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Psalm
100:4
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
and into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless
His name.
Song: Yes and Amen By: Hillsong
Psalm 37
Promises For The Righteous
There’s a list of promises in the Bible about what God will
do for people who choose to do things His way. We could start in the book of
Genesis and proceed through the last line of the book of Revelation and see so
many ways that God said He would bless those who choose to handle life and run
this race on earth according to His instructions and standards. Let’s pray…
Heavenly Father;
Thank You for the many promises that You have given to those
who make the choice to love and obey You. Father, we know from the scriptures
that You are not a man that You could ever lie, and we know that You always
watch over Your word to perform it – it never fails. When all else seems
hopeless, You are true to Your word. Father, show us today what we need to
learn and remember as we study and listen to Your still small voice as we go
along. I ask You to speak through my mind, my heart and my hands to bring out
the exact message and give me the utterance to say what You want said to Your
people. Bring more people to read this study. Cause them to share it with
others who are hungry for Your word and who want to grow up to be mature
Christians. May this go out today unhindered and unchecked by any outside force
or my flesh. Thank You Father for what we will receive. We will purpose in our
hearts to be doers of Your word and not hearers only. Thank in advance in Jesus
name. Amen.
Below is a set up bullet points, if you will, that contain
the main ideas, points and warnings in this wonderful chapter. We will look at
each one individually as the Lord directs and keep them in our hearts as we go
forward. How many know that He commands us to meditate on Him and His word
constantly? He is not just a Sunday or Wednesday God. He is our very precious
24/7 for all eternity, past, present and future Savior, God and Helper. Now
let’s see what we can learn from theses verses.
What God Does
He knows the days of the righteous
Psalm 90:12
So teach us to
number our days, that we may gain a heart of
wisdom.
2 Kings 19:27a
‘But I know your dwelling place, your going out
and your coming in,
He gives the righteous an inheritance that lasts
forever
Joshua 14:9
So Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘Surely the land where your foot has
trodden shall be your inheritance and your children’s forever, because you have wholly followed the Lord my God.’
Hebrews 9:15
And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of
death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that
those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.
He brings forth the deeds of the righteous as a
bright light
Isaiah 58:10 NIV
and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
Proverbs 13:9
The light of the righteous shines brightly,
He causes the righteous man’s judgment to be as
bright as the noon day sun
Daniel 12:3
Those who are wise shall shine Like the
brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever.
He orders the steps of a good man
Proverbs 16:9
A man’s heart plans his way,
But the Lord directs his steps.
He delights in the ways of a righteous man
Psalm 149:4
For the Lord takes pleasure in His
people; He will beautify the humble with salvation.
He holds up the righteous with His hand when they
fall
Proverbs 24:16
For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, but the
wicked shall fall by calamity.
He loves judgment
Psalm 119:39
Turn away my reproach which I dread, for Your judgments are good.
He doesn’t forsake (abandon) His saints
Hebrews 13:5b
For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
He preserves the righteous
Psalm 31:23
Oh, love the Lord, all
you His saints! For the Lord preserves the faithful, and fully repays the proud person.
Psalm 41:2
The Lord will preserve him and keep him alive, and he will be blessed on the earth; You
will not deliver him to the will of his enemies.
He doesn’t leave the righteous in the place of
the wicked
Proverbs 24:15
Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous;
Do not plunder his resting place;
He does not condemn the righteous
Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who
do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
He gives salvation to the righteous
Luke 1:69
And has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant
David,
Luke 3:6
And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”
He gives strength to the righteous in times of
trouble
Psalm 46:1
God is our
refuge and strength, a very
present help in trouble.
God is not slow in keeping His promises
2 Peter 3:1-9
Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle (in both of which I stir up your
pure minds by way of reminder), 2 that you may be
mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the
commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior, 3 knowing
this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to
their own lusts, 4 and saying, “Where is the promise of His
coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of
creation.” 5 For this they willfully forget: that
by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water
and in the water, 6 by which the world that then existed perished,
being flooded with water. 7 But the heavens and the
earth which are now
preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and
perdition of ungodly men.
8 But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that
with the Lord one day is as
a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.9 The Lord is not slack
concerning His promise,
as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that
any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
Here is what we can know for certain about all of
God’s promises
2 Corinthians 1:20
For all the promises of God in Him are yes, and in Him amen, to the glory of God
through us.
So how does a person take all
of this? There are many lines of promises here. What next? There are a couple
of reasons that this text is split out with corresponding verses. First of all,
when we study the word of God, it is important to find other corresponding
verses that say basically the same thing or convey the same message. The Bible
says in the mouth of two or three witnesses let every word be established. When
Jesus visited Kenneth E. Hagin and Kenneth was questioning the Lord about
something the “blew his theology”, Jesus told him that He would give Him 4
witnesses, one being Himself, and the other three from verses written by the
disciples in the Bible. Many times people grab one verse out of the Bible and
try to make it say what they think it should say or want it to say, and it
doesn’t line up with the rest of scripture.
Knowing His promises helps to
keep me stable when the boat I am in is rocking violently to and fro. I hope
this helps you as much or even more than it helps me. I only share my thoughts
to encourage you to think about what these promises really mean for you. God’s
word is to be inhaled, deep into our system, our minds and our hearts. The more
we look at it the more encouraged we become. Conversely, the more we watch the
depressing news, the worse we feel. It allows fear to come in, along with worry,
as well as doubt and despair. But I do not want to meditate on that stuff when
I have the powerful and effective word of God to keep my heart and mind focused
right where it should be. Let’s move on.
What Righteous People Do
They understand that to have a little is better
than to have the wealth of many wicked people
Proverbs 13:11
Wealth gained by dishonesty will be diminished, but he who gathers by labor will
increase.
They will not be ashamed during evil times
Psalm 22:5
They cried to You, and were delivered; they trusted in You, and were not ashamed.
Isaiah 66:5
Hear the word of the Lord, You
who tremble at His word: “Your brethren who hated you, Who cast you out for My
name’s sake, said, ‘Let the Lord be
glorified, That we may see your joy.’ But they shall be ashamed.”
They are fed in times of famine
Genesis 41:53-57
53 Then the seven years of plenty which were in the
land of Egypt ended, 54 and the seven years of
famine began to come, as Joseph had said. The famine was in all lands, but in
all the land of Egypt there was bread. 55 So when
all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread. Then
Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph; whatever he says to you,
do.” 56 The famine was over all the face of the
earth, and Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold to the Egyptians.
And the famine became severe in the land of Egypt. 57 So
all countries came to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain, because the famine was severe in all lands.
They show mercy to others
11 And Joseph
situated his father and his brothers, and gave them a possession in the land of
Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had
commanded. 12 Then Joseph provided his
father, his brothers, and all his father’s household with bread, according to
the number in their families.
They are givers
Genesis 47:23-26
23 Then Joseph said to the people, “Indeed I have
bought you and your land this day for Pharaoh. Look, here is seed for you, and you
shall sow the land. 24 And it shall come to pass in
the harvest that you shall give one-fifth to Pharaoh. Four-fifths shall be your
own, as seed for the field and for your food, for those of your households and
as food for your little ones.”
25 So they said, “You have saved our lives; let us
find favor in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s servants.” 26 And
Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt to this day, that Pharaoh should have
one-fifth, except for the land of the priests only, which did not become Pharaoh’s.
They are never abandoned by the Lord
John 14:18
I will not leave you orphans; I will
come to you.
Their descendants are never left begging for
bread
Psalm 112:2
His descendants will be mighty on earth; The
generation of the upright will be blessed.
They are merciful
Proverbs 14:22
Do they not go astray who devise evil? But mercy and truth belong to those who devise good.
They are lenders
Psalm 112:5
A good man deals graciously and lends; he will guide his affairs with
discretion.
They speak wisdom
Psalm 49:3
My mouth shall speak wisdom, and the meditation of my heart shall
give understanding.
They talk of judgment
Proverbs 31:9
Open your mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of
the poor and needy.
Again we see a list of things that God’s people do, or should
be doing. Isn’t this a wonderful review of God’s word and how we can apply it
to our daily lives. If we had this handy on a clip board or a notebook, we
could look it up by subject rather quickly to see how we, the righteous handle
the matters of life, regardless of what we are talking about. I felt led to
grab those verses in the book of Genesis about Joseph. If ever there was a man
who had every right to be angry and bitter at someone – he did! His brothers
really messed things up for him by tossing him into that pit. That isn’t to say
Joseph didn’t have some responsibility in the matter as well. But after all he
went through, and the long wait in prison, a Christian can learn a lot about
forgiveness, showing mercy, lending to others, and giving grace - lots of it.
According to the Bible Joseph maintained his faith and trust
in the Lord throughout the entire span of his many trials. He maintained his
integrity and always chose the side of right in his decisions. He was willing
to sit in a stinky, dirty jail if it meant that he could honor God. And God had
honored Joseph in a big way by elevating him to the second in command over all
the land of Egypt. And he was a Hebrew – not an Egyptian! What favor! Only the
Lord could pull that off for someone. When we honor Him by behaving in the ways
that we just looked at we can take it all the way to the heavenly bank that God
will turn right back around and honor us – glory to His name forever!
I have seen Him do it in my own life. And I am not finished
watching the amazing things He will bring to pass in the days to come. There is
still more family restoration needed. I believe with all my heart that He is
working on my behalf to bring it to pass. So I wait – patiently. I go about my
life in joy with Him knowing that my Daddy in heaven is at work. Do you know
that? Have you considered the many wonderful benefits of staying on the right
path with the Lord? No one who does will ever regret it – the Bible tells us
so. Hallelujah!
When The Righteous Do This – Here’s
What Happens
Trust in the Lord and do good – will live forever, be fed,
saved, helped and delivered
Delight yourself in the Lord – God will give you the desires
of your heart
Commit your ways to the Lord – He will bring it to pass
Rest (trust) in the Lord, wait for Him, keep His way – He
will exalt you to inherit the earth
If you are a perfect and upright man – You will have an
abundance of peace
Keep God’s law in your heart – Your steps won’t slide
We will not add any verses to this section. Just look it over
again and again in your chapter today. Say it out loud and let the promises
sink deep into you. Be reminded again and again that following the Lord and doing
things His way really pays limitless dividends! The further I go with God, the
more I am seeing it happen for me and those I love. I see it happening in our
church and I stand forever amazed at the goodness of God. I can’t say it enough
– God is so good, all the time!
What Not To Do
Don’t fret (be anxious or agitated), or envy evil
people, or what they do
Philippians 4:6-7
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by
prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to
God; and the peace of God, which
surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ
Jesus.
John 14:27
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives
do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Don’t be angry
Proverbs 16:32
He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who
rules his spirit than he who takes a city.
Avoid Wrath
Romans 12:19
Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
Depart from/avoid all evil
Romans 12:9
Let love be without
hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.
There is nothing but good advice in these verses my friends –
advice we all need to take. Worry is a lack of faith and a sign of submitting
to the spirit of fear. We must resist it. The things Jesus told us not to do –
well, He meant it. It was not a suggestion. He was making a specific command
and it was documented for all people over the course of history to live by.
What is so great about the 12th chapter of the book of Romans is
that it is like a life’s rule book wrapped up into one little chapter. The
Bible has many other examples like it. I remember the day the Lord first
brought this chapter, specifically verses 9-21 to my attention like never
before. He showed me these verses as I was waking and preparing to board a
plane for Lima, Peru.
It was to be my first mission trip back in 2010. The Lord was
giving me my traveling instructions. I never forgot them. It brought me to
tears. How precious I thought that was of Him. At the same time a song came on
the radio which I normally never turned on at that hour of the morning that
said these words, “I’ll be by your side wherever you are.” And the radio
station played the same song twice! How often do you see that happen? Another
flood of tears welled up.
He knew that when I stepped off the plane in Peru, I was
going to experience a world that I had never known. It would be vastly
different than anything I had ever encountered. God’s word is here for us so we
can learn the do’s and don’ts of Christian living. They are words we can stand
on, act on and believe in. But if we leave the Bible on a coffee table
somewhere collecting dust, well, as that Bible collects dust, so will our souls
turn to dust. We will not prosper. In order to be real Christians in a real
dark world, we must feed on His word every single day and night – just like He
told us to. Our Bibles should be wearing out so we will not.
What Happens To The Wicked
Cut down
Cut off
Broken
Shot in the heart with their own arrows
The descendants will be cut off
Perish in front of the righteous
Consumed as in a fire
Be removed from sight
The verses mentioned in today’s chapter about the demise of
the wicked (17 in my Bible to be precise) say much that a lot of people will
not want to hear. This short but not so sweet section pretty much says it all
when it comes to the ending for those who practice evil. The Bible has much to
say on the subject of evil and God will deal with those who choose the evil
path. Fortunately, that does not describe you and me. Hallelujah! We are
heading for paradise with our Bridegroom. We are heading to a wedding feast
that will beat every other wedding feast that ever was. We are going to our
mansions that the Groom is preparing now, and the darkness we now experience
will be like the wicked people – no more. We will look but not find them. They
will be gone forever to the opposite place of where we are going. The Lord does
not want anyone to go to hell. And He does not send people there. They choose
to go all on their own. That is terribly SADD-U-CEE. Why? Because they all had
the same chances that we did to repent from their sinful lifestyles and ask
Jesus Christ to be their Lord and Savior – but they are choosing not to.
Because of that, they cannot be where God is because He is perfect, pure and
holy. Only people who have been washed clean by the blood of the Lamb can enter
into the room where the feast will take place. The rest will be thrown out into
outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Here’s a few closing verses to consider:
Acts 7:10
“And the patriarchs, becoming
envious, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was with him and delivered him out of all his troubles, and gave him favor
and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; and he made him governor
over Egypt and all his house.
Friends, we may go through some tests and trials in this life, but if we
follow God and His ways, we will be like Joseph and end up on top. That’s the
best way to go if we want life, and life abundantly and eternal.
2 Peter 3:11-12
Therefore, since all these
things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in
holy conduct and godliness, looking
for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens
will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?
Questions:
List the things that God does that speaks to you the most
right now.
What things from the list of things righteous people do
describes your behavior?
What promises in this chapter encourage you the most?
In ways can you improve according to the “what not to do”
list?
What did you learn the most from Joseph’s experiences?
What encouraged you the most overall in today’s study?
What changes do you plan to make as a result of this chapter?
There are three main points to
consider from today’s study…
God does many wonderful things for
those who love Him
The righteous display many of the
characteristics of the Lord when they follow His precepts
The benefits of following the Lord
far outweigh the struggles
Let’s
pray…
Heavenly Father,
Thank You Lord for showing us more about the wonderful
things You do for those who love You. I also want to thank You for showing me
what to do and what to avoid so that I can be a genuine Christian in all areas
of my life. Father, I ask You to show me where I need to make corrections. Help
me to be clear on what I need to do to come up higher in my walk with You. As
You show me Lord I will make it my aim to do it with Your strength which is
perfect in my weakness. Thank You in advance for all You will do in response to
this prayer. I believe I have already received it by faith in Jesus name. Amen!
How
can you use these promises to encourage you each day?
And God Said… You fill in the blanks.
1 Corinthians 1:4-8
4 I thank my God always concerning you for the
grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, 5 that you were
enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, 6 even as the
testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, 7 so that you come
short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will also
confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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