MARY, DID YOU KNOW?
Mary, did you know that your baby boy will one day walk on water?
Did you know that your baby boy will save our sons and daughters?
Did you know that your baby boy has come to make you new?
This child that you've delivered will soon deliver you.
Mary, did you know that your baby boy is Lord of all creation?
Did you know that your baby boy will one day rule the nations?
Did you know that your baby boy is heaven's perfect Lamb?
This sleeping child you're holding is the Great I Am.
This is a very famous song written by Mark Lowery that has always been a favorite of mine. I have sung it for years but this year I want to answer the question. I was on Facebook the other day and one of my friends posted these words: “YES Mary knew!”
I believe that the scripture is clear on one thing: Mary knew what she needed to know to be the mother of God’s Son. I’m sure that God did not give her every detail but he gave her enough information for her to grasp what was about to take place. In Luke 1:26-38, the angel Gabriel came to Mary and clearly conveyed to her that she was pregnant with God’s Son. “But the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you will give Him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and HE will reign over the house of Jacob forever; His kingdom will never end (Luke 1: 30-33).” Her response is incredible! She has just been told that she will be pregnant even though she was a virgin. She was looking at the possibility of being banished from her village and driven away from the one she was engaged to, and yet she responds, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said (Luke 1:38).” That is incredible commitment, incredible love and incredible sacrifice! It’s no wonder why God chose her.
We have read of all the things that God has done. We have seen the Living Lord active in our lives. We have seen miracles. We have seen God do the unexplainable. We have felt God’s presence as we worship Him. If that is true, then what is our excuse for not having the same abandonment to His will that Mary had?
Aaron Hodges
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
P-R-A-I-S-E
“I will extol the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips” Psalm 34:1
P Praise God because He is the Provider
Genesis 22:8 “And Abraham said, ‘My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb…’”
1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”
R Praise God because He is Righteous
2 Timothy 4:8 “Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”
1 John 2:1 “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.
A Praise God because He is Able
Ephesians 3:20 "Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above
all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us."
2 Corinthians 9:8 "And God is able to make all grace abound toward you;
that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work."
I Praise God because He is Infinite
Romans 11:33-36 “'O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge
of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? Or, who hath been his counselor? Or, who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things: to Whom be glory for ever. Amen."
S Praise God because He is Savior
Philippians 3:20 “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Jude 24-25 “To Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”
E Praise God because He is EVERLASTING.
Isaiah 40:28 "Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard? That the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of His understanding."
Isaiah 9:6 "...and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
Aaron Hodges
“I will extol the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips” Psalm 34:1
P Praise God because He is the Provider
Genesis 22:8 “And Abraham said, ‘My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb…’”
1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”
R Praise God because He is Righteous
2 Timothy 4:8 “Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”
1 John 2:1 “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.
A Praise God because He is Able
Ephesians 3:20 "Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above
all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us."
2 Corinthians 9:8 "And God is able to make all grace abound toward you;
that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work."
I Praise God because He is Infinite
Romans 11:33-36 “'O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge
of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? Or, who hath been his counselor? Or, who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things: to Whom be glory for ever. Amen."
S Praise God because He is Savior
Philippians 3:20 “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Jude 24-25 “To Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”
E Praise God because He is EVERLASTING.
Isaiah 40:28 "Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard? That the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of His understanding."
Isaiah 9:6 "...and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
Aaron Hodges
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
AIM HIGH!
Aim High!
I grew up in a Christian home. My parents were both believers and taught my sister and I about the Lord. They taught us what was right and what was wrong. There were definite consequences to our actions. We were commended when we made the right decision and reprimanded when we made the wrong decision. Malia and I are trying to instill this in our own children. One thing I remember learning as a child was regardless of whether or not I was in my Dad’s presence, I was still responsible for my actions. Somehow he knew 99% of what I was doing even when I was not in his presence. I never understood how that was possible until I had kids. As an adult I realized there is a Biblical concept at stake. The Scriptures are very clear that everything we do has an impact on the name of Christ therefore making all our daily behavior influential.
Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
2 Corinthians 5:9-10
In this passage Paul is pointing out that our ambition in life should not be a proud selfish ambition but instead it should be striving for excellence in spiritual activity that honors God. He is pointing out that our motivating goal should be pleasing the Lord only. The term translated “well pleasing” is the same one used in Titus 2:9 to describe slaves who were passionate to please their masters. We should have that same passion. God is concerned with how we spend this life serving Him.
Our motivation to please God is also shaped by the understanding that we will be held accountable to God for what we have done and not done. This passage refers to the Judgment Seat of Christ. This judgment has nothing to do with our sins. All of our sins were atoned for at Calvary through the death of Christ. What this does refer to is all those activities believers do in their lifetimes, which refer to their eternal reward and praise from God. Paul was comparing eternal or spiritually valuable activities with useless ones. His point was not to prohibit believers from enjoying the wholesome earthy things of this life, but that they should aim to glorify God in them while spending the better part of their energy and time on what has eternal value.
How high is your aim? What are you spending most of your time doing? Are you spending it on things that are temporary and have no eternal impact? Or, are you spending the bulk of your time on things that have eternal value? May we take the time to aim high looking at our schedules and evaluating where our hearts are.
Still growing in Christ and aiming high,
Aaron Hodges
I grew up in a Christian home. My parents were both believers and taught my sister and I about the Lord. They taught us what was right and what was wrong. There were definite consequences to our actions. We were commended when we made the right decision and reprimanded when we made the wrong decision. Malia and I are trying to instill this in our own children. One thing I remember learning as a child was regardless of whether or not I was in my Dad’s presence, I was still responsible for my actions. Somehow he knew 99% of what I was doing even when I was not in his presence. I never understood how that was possible until I had kids. As an adult I realized there is a Biblical concept at stake. The Scriptures are very clear that everything we do has an impact on the name of Christ therefore making all our daily behavior influential.
Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
2 Corinthians 5:9-10
In this passage Paul is pointing out that our ambition in life should not be a proud selfish ambition but instead it should be striving for excellence in spiritual activity that honors God. He is pointing out that our motivating goal should be pleasing the Lord only. The term translated “well pleasing” is the same one used in Titus 2:9 to describe slaves who were passionate to please their masters. We should have that same passion. God is concerned with how we spend this life serving Him.
Our motivation to please God is also shaped by the understanding that we will be held accountable to God for what we have done and not done. This passage refers to the Judgment Seat of Christ. This judgment has nothing to do with our sins. All of our sins were atoned for at Calvary through the death of Christ. What this does refer to is all those activities believers do in their lifetimes, which refer to their eternal reward and praise from God. Paul was comparing eternal or spiritually valuable activities with useless ones. His point was not to prohibit believers from enjoying the wholesome earthy things of this life, but that they should aim to glorify God in them while spending the better part of their energy and time on what has eternal value.
How high is your aim? What are you spending most of your time doing? Are you spending it on things that are temporary and have no eternal impact? Or, are you spending the bulk of your time on things that have eternal value? May we take the time to aim high looking at our schedules and evaluating where our hearts are.
Still growing in Christ and aiming high,
Aaron Hodges
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
A NEW COMMANDMENT I GIVE TO YOU
LOVING GOD, LOVING EACH OTHER
Loving God, loving each other, making music with my friends;
Loving God, loving each other, and the story never ends.
They pushed back from the table to listen to His words, His secret plan before He had to go. It’s not complicated, don’t need a lot of rules; This is all you need to know…Loving God, loving each other, making music with my friends;
Loving God, loving each other, and the story never ends.
We tend to make it harder, build steeples out of stone; Fill books with explanations of the “The Way”. But if we stop and listen and break a little bread,
we would hear the Master say…Loving God, loving each other, making music with my friends;Loving God, loving each other, and the story never ends.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another;
as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
By this all will know that you are my disciples,
if you have love one for another.”
John 13:34-35
The Bible is full of commandments which on the surface look easy to fulfill but in practice they are impossible without the Holy Spirit. Jesus told us to, “Love one another.” That shouldn’t be hard, right? It is easy to say but not always easy to do.
I have been recently reminded that the love we show for one another is a direct reflection of the love we have for God. Let me explain: If I say I love God and yet hate my brother, then I do not love God to the extent He requires. If I show hate toward my brother, or even my enemies, the world will never know that I love the Lord. In turn if I don’t love my neighbor, then I do not love God, and therefore, my worship is empty.
As the Worship Team at First Baptist Church of Canton, Georgia, let’s apply this truth right where we live. As a worship team on any given Sunday morning, how can we on the one hand say we love Christ, when on the other hand we hold ill feelings toward our brother? It is impossible. Sure I can put on a false front and make people think I love God as I should, but that is a lie and plays right into the hand of Satan himself. In order for my worship to be pleasing to my Savior, I must first love my fellow believer.
May we offer the forgiveness and grace that was extended to us on Calvary. May we never think we are above forgiving and loving God’s people. This is what the Lord requires: love one another, as I have loved you.
Loving God, loving each other, making music with my friends;
Loving God, loving each other, and the story never ends.
They pushed back from the table to listen to His words, His secret plan before He had to go. It’s not complicated, don’t need a lot of rules; This is all you need to know…Loving God, loving each other, making music with my friends;
Loving God, loving each other, and the story never ends.
We tend to make it harder, build steeples out of stone; Fill books with explanations of the “The Way”. But if we stop and listen and break a little bread,
we would hear the Master say…Loving God, loving each other, making music with my friends;Loving God, loving each other, and the story never ends.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another;
as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
By this all will know that you are my disciples,
if you have love one for another.”
John 13:34-35
The Bible is full of commandments which on the surface look easy to fulfill but in practice they are impossible without the Holy Spirit. Jesus told us to, “Love one another.” That shouldn’t be hard, right? It is easy to say but not always easy to do.
I have been recently reminded that the love we show for one another is a direct reflection of the love we have for God. Let me explain: If I say I love God and yet hate my brother, then I do not love God to the extent He requires. If I show hate toward my brother, or even my enemies, the world will never know that I love the Lord. In turn if I don’t love my neighbor, then I do not love God, and therefore, my worship is empty.
As the Worship Team at First Baptist Church of Canton, Georgia, let’s apply this truth right where we live. As a worship team on any given Sunday morning, how can we on the one hand say we love Christ, when on the other hand we hold ill feelings toward our brother? It is impossible. Sure I can put on a false front and make people think I love God as I should, but that is a lie and plays right into the hand of Satan himself. In order for my worship to be pleasing to my Savior, I must first love my fellow believer.
May we offer the forgiveness and grace that was extended to us on Calvary. May we never think we are above forgiving and loving God’s people. This is what the Lord requires: love one another, as I have loved you.
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