False Love

False Love

2 Samuel 13:1-6, 10-16

Amnon and Tamar
1 In the course of time, Amnon son of David fell in love with Tamar, the beautiful sister of Absalom son of David.

2 Amnon became frustrated to the point of illness on account of his sister Tamar, for she was a virgin, and it seemed impossible for him to do anything to her.

3 Now Amnon had a friend named Jonadab son of Shimeah, David’s brother. Jonadab was a very shrewd man. 4 He asked Amnon, “Why do you, the king’s son, look so haggard morning after morning? Won’t you tell me?”
Amnon said to him, “I’m in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”

5 “Go to bed and pretend to be ill,” Jonadab said. “When your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘I would like my sister Tamar to come and give me something to eat. Let her prepare the food in my sight so I may watch her and then eat it from her hand.’ “

6 So Amnon lay down and pretended to be ill. When the king came to see him, Amnon said to him, “I would like my sister Tamar to come and make some special bread in my sight, so I may eat from her hand.”

10 Then Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food here into my bedroom so I may eat from your hand.” And Tamar took the bread she had prepared and brought it to her brother Amnon in his bedroom. 11 But when she took it to him to eat, he grabbed her and said, “Come to bed with me, my sister.”

12 “Don’t, my brother!” she said to him. “Don’t force me. Such a thing should not be done in Israel! Don’t do this wicked thing. 13 What about me? Where could I get rid of my disgrace? And what about you? You would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel. Please speak to the king; he will not keep me from being married to you.” 14 But he refused to listen to her, and since he was stronger than she, he raped her.

15 Then Amnon hated her with intense hatred. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her. Amnon said to her, “Get up and get out!”

16 “No!” she said to him. “Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me.”
But he refused to listen to her.

—

1. Amnon didn’t show Tamar true love. He didn’t care for her best interest. Instead, his attraction to her was based on lust, selfishness and evil intentions. To start, it was his sister, but also he was impatient and raped her. I think he objectified her, but once he was “satisfied,” he hated her.
2. Amnon hated Tamar afterwards, and I’m not sure why. Perhaps it was his conscience convicting him and making him feel guilt. But in either case, he hated her afterwards.
3. My motivation when expressing love towards others I hope is pure! I think it’s pure, but only God knows. I just pray that He work in me everyday to purify me more and more. Some weaknesses that has made me fall into fleshly desires is impatience, perhaps contempt also. I want to make a strategy with the Holy Spirit to resist all temptation by first consulting with Him and listening to Him and not being impatient. I also need to FORGIVE always!

In short, 1 Peter 1:16 says, “Be holy because I am holy.”

Love = Learn to Respect and Honor One Another

Ephesians 6:1-9, 1 Peter 3:7, Ephesians 5:22-23, 33

Ephesians 6:1-9,
Children and Parents
1Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2″Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise— 3″that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”[a] 4Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
Slaves and Masters
5Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, 8because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.

—

1. My position in the family is as a child and sister. To do according to what God wants, I must obey and honor my parents.
2. To improve the relationship in my family, I must perhaps be patient with my parents, but know that neither I nor they are perfect. Perhaps praying for one another will allow us to be better family members in Christ, and I believe that practicing this at home will also extend to practicing it out in the real world.

9And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.

1 Peter 3:7,
7Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.

Ephesians 5:22-23, 33
22Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.

33However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

Flee from what can dampen your love for God and others

Ephesians 5:1-11 1Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children 2and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. 3But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.[a] 6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7Therefore do not be partners with them. 8For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9(for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10and find out what pleases the Lord. 11Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. — 1. “(Living) a life of love (verse 2)” means that we are pure in our motives. We act kindly, with patience to others but we act because we care and not for alterior motives. I can live in God’s love through my words and decisions (analyzing verses 3-11) by thinking of not just me, but others as well. I need to think of how my deeds will affect others also, and that should make me choose wiser decisions, knowing that I am more than myself. 2. I am learning to choose the people I am close to more carefully. I can be acquaintences with people, but for friends, I want to be in a good community of people who encourage me to be more like Christ and live a life of love. I hope that I am also making a good influence on them, as they also encourage me to be a better person. 3. God’s advice regarding friends is that there “must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.[a] 6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient.” God says in verse 7 to not be partners with them! 0_0

Watching Your Heart Carefully

Proverbs 4:20-26
20 My son, pay attention to what I say;
listen closely to my words.

21 Do not let them out of your sight,
keep them within your heart;

22 for they are life to those who find them
and health to a man’s whole body.

23 Above all else, guard your heart,
for it is the wellspring of life.

24 Put away perversity from your mouth;
keep corrupt talk far from your lips.

25 Let your eyes look straight ahead,
fix your gaze directly before you.

26 Make level [a] paths for your feet
and take only ways that are firm.

—

The condition of my heart these days is okay. It’s not perfect, but God is working in me so that I am more aware and work so that I can keep my heart pure everyday. I can build the habit of guarding my heart and keeping it pure by being on guard and knowing that I shouldn’t take offense of people, but know that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12).”

Pure Inside and Outside

Matthew 23:23-28

23″Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

25″Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.

27″Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. 28In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.

—

1. Jesus rebuked the teachers of religious law and Pharisees because they were so nitpicky with the laws but ignored “the more important aspects of the law — justice, mercy and faith (v. 23).” It’s more important than tithes and offerings, although of course, I also shouldn’t ignore these things!
2. Yes, I have definitely felt like a hypocrite before when I sinned because I am a Christian, yet why have I disobeyed God? To avoid myself from becoming a hypocrite, I need to flee from sin and reject the devil and its temptations. I need to instead turn to God and depend fully on Him.

Climbing Out of the Pit, Part 3

By: Mary Southerland (my answers below -scroll down to very bottom)

Today’s Truth
“I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.  He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD.” Psalm 40:2-3 (NIV)

Friend To Friend
At some point in life, we all will find ourselves in some kind of pit, the darkness settling around us like a paralyzing blanket of hopelessness.  That deep, dark pit may have many names, but easily becomes a prison from which escape seems impossible.  The journey out is a process of steps uniquely planned by your Father.  He is the Guide for this step-by-step journey.

Step One:      Wait for God.
Step Two:      Cry out for help.
Step Three:   Count on God.

In this world, there are few certainties.  God is one.  His promises are true and we can wholly trust Him to keep His Word, to do exactly what He promises to do.  In the key passage today, we find an impressive set of promises.  God promises to free us — direct us — restore us — give us joy and invites us to join Him in Kingdom work.  Wow!  That is quite an impressive “to do list” when you are sitting at the bottom of an ugly pit, with the shattered pieces of your life scattered around you.  But God’s ways are not our ways.

In Romans 11:33, Paul writes “Oh, what a wonderful God we have! How great are his riches, wisdom, and knowledge. How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his methods.” (NIV)

God is drawn to brokenness.  What an amazing truth, that He turns first to the broken.  Psalm 40:1 says “He turned to me.”  Notice it does not say that David, the author, turned to God.  I don’t think that David could turn to God!  Knowing the desire of David’s heart and understanding his weakness, God heard his cry and turned to David just like God will hear your cry and turn to you!

During the darkest hours, I questioned God continually.  I flung my anger at Him like a spear.  My heart and soul were filled with fear and confusion instead of faith and trust.  Yet, He never turned away from me.  He knew every tear that I cried.  Out of those tears and brokenness has come the most effective and powerful chapter of my life!  I am convinced that the more we are broken, the more we are used.  You can count on God.  You can credit His grace to your account!

Mercy is when we don’t get what we deserve.

Justice is when we get what we do deserve.

Grace is when we get what we do not deserve.

We are trophies of God’s grace and we can count on Him.

Step Four:  Be patient.

Psalm 40:1 “I waited patiently for the Lord.”

In this verse, “patiently” literally means “without tiring” or “with perseverance”.  Be patient with yourself.  Don’t give up on you.  No one gets depressed overnight and no one conquers depression overnight.  It is a marathon, not a fifty yard dash!  On my journey, it took 45 years to hit rock bottom.  It has taken me four years to climb out … this far.  I am still climbing!  We must be patient.  We must be willing to persevere.  Don’t give up!  Just give in and allow God to take control.  He will turn that pit into an altar on which your broken spirit can be laid as a sweet sacrifice of praise.

Step Five:  Don’t give up.

Philippians 1:6  “And I am sure that God who began the good work within you will keep right on helping you grow in his grace until his task within you is finally finished on that day when Jesus Christ returns.”

God is at work!  The very fact that you are reading this devotion is proof that the Father has ordered your steps so that you can hear my story.  That may be because you are in a pit and you need help or maybe because someone you love is in that pit and you need to help them.  God wants you to experience restoration and then to be a vessel of restoration for others.

Years ago, in a large southeastern city, the great pianist, Paderewski, was scheduled to perform.  The city was alive with excitement and the day finally came.  In the crowd at the concert was a young mother clutching the hand of her small son.  Hoping to inspire him to practice, she had brought him to hear the master perform.  As they sat and waited for the concert to begin, she turned her head to look at the people as they filled the auditorium. The little boy saw his chance to escape.  He quietly slipped from his seat, walking down the aisle toward the stage.  Just as he reached the orchestra pit, a spotlight hit the grand piano and he gasped at the beauty of the instrument.  No one noticed the little boy as he slipped up the side stairs to the stage and climbed up on the piano stool.  No one noticed him at all, until he began to play “Chopsticks”.  The concert hall fell silent.  Then people began to shout.  “Get him away from that piano!” Backstage, the Master heard the crowd and grabbing his coat, rushed to the little boy’s side.  Without a word, he bent down and, placing his hands on either side of the boy’s, began to compose a beautiful counter melody to “Chopsticks”.  As they played together, he whispered in the little boy’s ear, “Don’t stop! Keep on!  Don’t quit!”

Right now, right where you are, understand that your Father is standing beside you, with His arms wrapped around you.  Listen as He gently speaks, “Don’t stop!  Keep on!  Don’t quit!”

I know that the music of your darkened soul may be filled with chaos and dissonance, but even now, the Master is composing the “rest” of your song.  One day very soon, it will be a song of beauty and light! One day, you will come out of the dark!

Let’s Pray
Oh God, right now I choose to wait on You, crying out for Your hand of mercy and love to deliver me from this pit of darkness.  I abandon myself to You and am counting on You to be my Redeemer and Friend.  Give me the courage to share my pain with others and ask for help.  Now, in the presence of my enemies of darkness and depression, I celebrate the victory.  Thank you, Father!

In Jesus’ name,
Amen.

Now It’s Your Turn
Memorize Psalm 40:1-3.  Accept these promises as a gift from God for every pit — past, present and future — in your life.  Ask yourself the following questions:

·         What is the first step you should take in order to climb out of this pit? Realize that I’m in a pit and it’s most likely my ego that put me there. Realize that I need help from God and to be honest with myself and with others, and actively seek reconciliation.

·         What do you need to leave behind or step over in order to take this first step?  I need to leave behind my ego and thinking I’m always right, in order to try to see things from someone else’s perspective.

*  What does it mean when it says that God is your lamp?  How does that change your perspective of life? In Proverbs it says His Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. This means He will show me the way, step by step, where I must go.

* Examine the deepest desires of your heart.  Do you really want to escape this pit of darkness?  Does the freedom frighten you?  Why?
Yes, I want to escape. The freedom in a way can be frightening because it’s a change. I’d have to get our of my comfort zone and learn not to hide things, but be open, honest and learn to truly love. If we hide things, I believe that’s not out of love, but out of fear. But I will overcome this and chase after God’s will and freedom He wants for me.

Taking Care of Your Conscience: Don’t Compromise with Sin

Daniel 1:1-6, 12-13, 16-18

Daniel’s Training in Babylon
1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the articles from the temple of God. These he carried off to the temple of his god in Babylonia [a] and put in the treasure house of his god.

3 Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility- 4 young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians. [b] 5 The king assigned them a daily amount of food and wine from the king’s table. They were to be trained for three years, and after that they were to enter the king’s service.

6 Among these were some from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.

12 “Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.”

16 So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.

17 To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds.

18 At the end of the time set by the king to bring them in, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar.

—

1. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah requested not to defile themselves with the foreign king’s food and to eat vegetables instead.
2. The kinds of situations that tempt me to sin are those when I’m by myself with no moral support like if those close to me do bad things

Wait with the Lord and on the Lord

“I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry.”  Psalm 40:1 (NIV)

I learned about how when we wait on the Lord, He will restore us. Sometimes we buy into the lie aka the devil’s deception that we need to earn love and acceptance. God is not like that at all! And neither are those who matter – our family and those who are truly our friends. They love us no matter what. God loves us even if we are ugly, tattered and worn, and He will restore us – only if we come to Him. I believe that He would love us even if we didn’t do a single thing. I think sometimes if we feel busy or stressed, it’s a sign that we should slow down and just be alone with the Lord. In fact, the busier we are, the more we should spend time in solitude with God. We need it so we can gain the right perspective in life. It’s not what we do that saves us, but we must KNOW GOd.

Your Conscience

1 Peter 3:8-15

Suffering for Doing Good 8Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. 9Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 10For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech. 11He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it. 12For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”[a] 13Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear what they fear[b]; do not be frightened.”[c] 15But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

—

1. Since I was called to be a blessing, to bless the people around me, I should live out a life in truth and righteousness and harmony with others, prepared to give a “freason for the hope that I have, but with gentleness and respect.”

2. To guard my conscience to stay pure, I need to stay focused on God and be sensitive to what He tells me to do.

Don’t Harden Your Heart

Hebrews 3:7-15

Warning Against Unbelief
7So, as the Holy Spirit says:
“Today, if you hear his voice,
8do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the desert,
9where your fathers tested and tried me
and for forty years saw what I did.
10That is why I was angry with that generation,
and I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray,
and they have not known my ways.’
11So I declared on oath in my anger,
‘They shall never enter my rest.’ “[a]

12See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. 14We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first. 15As has just been said:
“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion.”

—

1. When I am confronted or asked to do something by my parents, head of the family, spiritual leader and someone in authority, I thinkI act okay – obediently. If I still don’t understand, I may ask for clarification, but for the most part I cooperate and try not to have any motivations of rebelliousness.
2. I think I’m considered an obedient person.
3. What causes someone to be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness (v.12-13) is that they don’t want to be ordered around. They feel they know best and that they don’t want direction from someone else. Or maybe they are power-hungry. Or maybe they have a sinful, unbelieving heart.