Bud-and-Flourish

  Photo by  Ben White  on  Unsplash 1 Peter 1:13-16 NKJV 13 Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 14 as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; 15 but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”

Amos 5:21-24 21  “I hate, I despise your religious festivals;    your assemblies are a stench to me. 22  22 Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,   I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,      I will have no regard for them. 23  23 Away with the noise of your songs!      I will not listen to the music of your harps. 24  24 But let justice roll on like a river,      righteousness like a never-failing stream! God is Love but, His love is not without standards.  We cannot worship God any kind of way and expect Him to accept it.  More than the location of where we worship is how we worship.  The heart of the worshiper is what matters most to God right along with worshiping God according to His standard.   John 4:19-24 NKJV Putting on a mask, pretending to be someone we are not is extremely off putting to ...

Isaiah 66:1-2 Thus says the Lord: “Heaven is My throne, And earth is My footstool. Where is the house that you will build Me? And where is the place of My rest? 2 For all those things My hand has made, And all those things exist,” Says the Lord. “But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, And who trembles at My word Fear of the LORD means we give God great reverence, respect, honor and awe of who He is as well as great reverence for His word.  Do you tremble (reverence the word) or scoff at the word of God?  Do you feast on it, being nourished by all that it provides or has it become tasteless, dull and boring to you?  Do you obey it?  While we are not perfect, as we all fall short of God's glory (Romans 3:23), we should indeed be intentional about our relationship with God. Who do we really fear?  Are we fearful of what others say and think?  Remember, Proverbs 29:25 teaches that The fear of man brings a snare, But whoever tr...

Has your walk with the LORD become gilded? Gilded- having a pleasing or showy appearance that conceals something of little worth. Based on pretense, deceptively pleasing 1 of 4 link   Deception Proverbs 26:23  KJV Burning lips and a wicked heart are like a potsherd covered with silver dross. Burning Lips; fervent lips in some translations Potsherd- broken earthen vessel;  broken piece of pottery Dross- impurities, waste, worthless matter, scum or from the melting process of metals Likened to a piece of pottery covered with silver to mask the brokenness and impurities by which it is truly covered. Part 2 -Hypocrisy  Hypocrisy- pretense of piety, insincerity; a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue; a pretender : pretending, masquerading, and acting like something you are not.  It’s being two-faced, putting on a show.  Hypocrisy and deception go hand in hand and it is an   act  that always displeases God. In Matthew 23 Jesus confront...

Jesus Cleanses the Temple (John 2:13-17) 13  Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  14  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers  [ b ] doing business.  15  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables.  16  And He said to those who sold doves,  “Take these things away! Do not make   My Father’s house a house of merchandise!”   17  Then His disciples remembered that it was written,  “Zeal for Your house   [ c ] has eaten Me up.”

Hosea 4:12 My people consult a wooden idol,     and a diviner’s rod speaks to them. A spirit of prostitution leads them astray;     they are unfaithful to their God. When we give our lives to Jesus Christ we enter into a holy matrimony with God through Jesus.  We are the bride of Christ.  What we must understand is, God's love is unconditional but it's not without standards.  He commands us to be fully devoted and faithful to Him and not have any other god's before Him. Exodus 20:1-6 Though there are those who believe in open marriages, and practice polygamy, there is no such thing as an open marriage with the LORD.   Idoaltry is likened to spiritual adultery.  The children of Israel were no strangers of chasing and worshipping false gods and steeped in various forms of idolatry as many of us are today.  Enticed by the nations around them, the children of Israel became captive to a spirit of prostitution.  The diving rod was ju...

Jeremiah 1:1-31 NKJV  “Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem; See now and know; And seek in her open places If you can find a man, If there is anyone who executes [a]judgment, Who seeks the truth, And I will pardon her. 2 Though they say, ‘As the Lord lives,’ Surely they swear falsely.” 3 O Lord, are not Your eyes on the truth? You have stricken them, But they have not grieved; You have consumed them, But they have refused to receive correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; They have refused to return. 4 Therefore I said, “Surely these are poor. They are foolish; For they do not know the way of the Lord, The judgment of their God. 5 I will go to the great men and speak to them, For they have known the way of the Lord, The judgment of their God.” But these have altogether broken the yoke And burst the bonds. 6 Therefore a lion from the forest shall slay them, A wolf of the deserts shall destroy them; A leopard will watch over their cities. Everyone who goes...