From: Beverly French [frenchb@vcss.k12.ca.us]
Sent: Sunday, January 18, 2004 6:58 AM
To: Heritage
Subject: January 18th Greetings

"So the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God for our good always and for our survival, as it is today." Deuteronomy 6:24

The commands of the Lord are for our good and our survival.  How can we live in this present day without His Word -- His Christ?  Without Christ is to exist.  With Him is life, and that abundant and full of glory.

The key is obedience:
"What does the Lord your God require from you, but to fear (reverence), the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul."  Deuteronomy 10:12

Obedience secures entrance into God's kingdom, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven."  Matthew 7:21

Obedience brings blessings, "But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he does." James 1:25

In His farewell discourse to His disciples, Jesus says, "...I do as the Father has commanded Me, so that the world may know (be convinced) that I love the Father and that I do only what the Father has instructed Me to do.  [I act in full agreement with His orders.]..." John 14:31  The Amplified Bible

To be obedient we must KNOW the Lord, know His will and have an intimate personal relationship with Him; we can't just know about Him.  It takes surrendering (giving freely) all to Jesus,  "to let Him touch our lives, to set our hearts afire, to know that all that comes our way" is from God's hand to accomplish His purpose in the life of each sanctified (set
apart) one.

And who are they?  The Apostle Paul's letter to the Corinthians makes it clear; "...To those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling with all who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ..." 1 Corinthians 1:2

The Amplified Bible states it as follows:
"...To those consecrated and purified and made holy in Christ Jesus, [who are] selected and called to be saints (God's people), together with all those who in any place call upon and give honor to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours."

We are set apart from all else -- in this world, BUT not of it!  As our opening Scripture says, "for our good always and our survival" we are in a safe place!  For we are "...Hidden with Christ in God."  Colossians 3:3

Hallelujah!