Answers For Today

Pastor Terry explains that the Christian life must be active, not just Sunday attendance, showing from Psalm 119, 1 John, Jude, and Joshua that walking in God's ways brings fellowship, forgiveness through Jesus' blood, and freedom from sin. He urges daily choices to pray, study Scripture, and follow Jesus' example so believers keep moving forward in faith and are kept in the love of God.

This episode encourages believers to put faith into action by walking in God's ways and allowing Scripture to shape everyday life. Pastor Terry explains passages from Psalm 119 and 1 John, urges keeping oneself in the love of God, and offers three practical steps: pray, study the Bible, and follow Jesus.

It is so good to be with you today. Today we'll be seeing, we'll be looking at the reason why the psalmist was so blessed in Psalm 119 verse 2. We read, Blessed are they that keep his testimonies and that seek him with a whole heart. We notice in verse number 2, in order for him to keep his testimony, it constituted a decision of his will. Our will must be brought into the captivity. We need to be brought into the captivity of the Word of God. We need to ask ourselves, what is navigating our lives? Are we still in control, or are we letting the word of God direct our lives? I'm reminded of the lyrics from a song written by a couple friends of mine, Tommy Coons and Chuck Gerard of the band Love Song, that might be a good way to describe the battle of our wills. The song, the lyrics read, I was running for my master. I trot out every new thing that I could find. My life turned into one disaster. Without the Lord, I almost blew my mind. I was sitting in the front seat, trying really hard to be the driver, thinking I was making real good time, but always winding up the late arrival. But now I've been trying out the back seat, and I find it's a very great relief. Now I'm riding in the back seat. I'm leaving the driving to the chief. To keep God's testimony simply means that to guard and to watch over. Are you treasuring God's word in your heart? If not, you should be. Remember, it's a decision of your will. It's this decision to choose to follow what God's word has to say. To keep God's testimony simply means to guard and to watch over. Secondly, we see in verse number two that the psalmist is seeking God with all of his heart. This is key for us. What are you seeking for in your life? What are you putting your time and energy into? Jesus tells us plainly what you should be putting first in your life when he says in Matthew 6, verse 33, he says, But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. The writers of Hebrew tells us that you are rewarded diligently for seeking after God. As we read in Hebrews 11, verse 6, for without faith it's impossible to please him. He that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he's a rewarder of them that diligently, notice, diligently seek him. Abraham found out the Lord's presence in his life was a great reward that he was looking for. In Genesis 15, verse 1, we read, And these things, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram, I am thy shield, and thy great and exceeding great reward. You know, there isn't anything more rewarding than walking in fellowship with the Lord. And God wants to be that for us. But we need to seek him. How are we to seek God? And we find in verse number two, the psalmist sought God with his whole heart. Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, with all thy soul, and with all thine might. And that's found in Matthew 22, verse 37. If you want to grow in your walk with God, you need to be dedicated to it. You need to give your all to the Lord. Paul summed it up best for us as believers when he wrote, I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God that you present your bodies as living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And then he goes on, he says, And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is good and what is acceptable. Perfect will of God. God wants us to know the things that we should be doing, the things that we are doing are acceptable to him. And how do we do that? It's by seeking him each and every day, by presenting our bodies as delivered sacrifices. And I love the way it tells us there in Romans chapter 12. He says, which is our reasonable service. Otherwise, when you take time to consider what Jesus did for our lives, doesn't it make sense that we at least give our all to him, that we seek him with all of our heart? In Romans 12, verse 1, it tells us that we need to seek to know what the perfect, acceptable will of God is for our lives. It was once said, whatever is worth doing at all is worth doing well, I believe that, certainly when it should ring true to us in our commitment to the Lord. Since God gave everything to us by giving his son and setting for us an example that we should follow, should he expect any less from us? What is the result of choosing and seeking God and to walk in his way? Well, as we see here in this psalm, that we will live a blessed life. As we continue in Psalm 119, we will see how to be freed from the entanglement of sin and the pain that it brings. What should you do if you find yourself out of fellowship with God? As we finish up here today, I believe the key step in following what John tells us in 1 John 1, verse 9, We read, if we confess our sins, notice the plural, if we confess our sins, he is faithful, and that's speaking of Jesus. He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Notice all unrighteousness. He doesn't spell it out what it might be, but he wanted you to notice that the love of God and what Jesus accomplished on the cross. The shed blood is able to cover a multitude of sins. And if we just are willing to seek him, if we're willing to confess our sins unto him, then he will forgive us. I could tell you with certainty, if you turn to God now, he will forgive you and you can start to enjoy walking in fellowship with God. It is my prayer that you will turn to God. And so until next time, this is Pastor Terry. May God richly bless you. Thank you for taking part in today's program. We would love to hear from you. You can email us at terryreynolds at agapechapeloc.org. Again, that's terryreynolds at agapechapeloc.org. Or you can write us at Agape Chapel, P.O. Box 4023, Huntington Beach, California, 92647. May God richly bless you.

In this episode we continue a daily devotion through Psalm 119, exploring what it truly means to be happy. The speaker contrasts fleeting worldly pleasures with the deep, overflowing joy that comes from a right relationship with God, drawing on Scripture including John and the Beatitudes. Practical takeaways include coming to God with humility, hungering and thirsting for righteousness, and allowing God's Word to guide your life. The psalmist shows that lasting happiness flows from fellowship with Christ; the next episode will examine how God's Word should rule three areas of life.

Verse by verse teaching of the Bible

Verse by verse teaching of the Bible

Verse by verse teachings with Pastor Terry

Verse by verse teachings with Pastor Terry

Verse by verse teachings with Pastor Terry

Verse by verse teachings by Pastor Terry

Verse be verse teachings by Pastor Terry

Verse be verse teachings by Pastor Terry

Verse be verse teachings by Pastor Terry

Verse by verse teachings of the Bible