Quote from Forum Archives on May 30, 2001, 8:53 am

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

I have thought like this: "How could anyone do this!" It has
taken a very close look, from the inside out, to realize that I
have done essentially the same thing. Have you ever considered
the Ten Commandments? (Do you know what they are? Many people
have heard of them, few people can recite all of them, even fewer
people, myself included, can recite them in the same order as
they were given). The Ten Commandments, though originally
written in the form of laws, are really more useful when the
underlying principles they lay out are considered. Then they are
valuable, because they serve as a benchmark for us.

One commandment in particular strikes me when I read it, because,
in the context of the message below, I am guity of violating this
command, though as I read it, I would never think of breaking
this command: "Do not kill". Why am I guilty of breaking this
command? I have not murdered anyone, nor have I crippled anyone.

God's word says that the penalty for sin is death. Does my
statement make any sense yet? Perhaps a few more comments will
do it. The Bible says that all have sinned and fall short of the
glory of God. That means you, that means me. Since I have
fallen short, therefore I have sinned. Now the connection: Jesus
Christ was crucified on a cross - a wooden struture - He was
nailed on it, an excruciating way to die. Jesus, Son of God, was
without sin. Therefore, He was the only acceptable sacrifice for
sin. He took our sin - yours and mine - upon Himself. So it is
in this sense that whenever I sin, I also break one of the Ten
Commandments, the commandment not to commit murder, for my sin
has made Christ's sacrifice necessary.

For that reason, I try to think about that, and not take lightly
the sacrifice He made for you and me. The reason that I do think
about such things is that it reminds me to seek God for direction
in all matters, large or small. The attached message talks
about this issue, then offers a brief scripture lesson,
meditation, and prayer.

Brother Brian

Reply-to: Quiet Walk <quietwalk@lists.crosswalk.com>
Subject: Quiet Walk for Tuesday, May 29, 2001
Date: Tue, 29 May 2001 05:00:35 -0400

Q U I E T W A L K D E V O T I O N A L
by Walk Thru the Bible

BIBLE READING

Luke 23:1-25

OVERVIEW
Pilate and Herod try Jesus.

INSIGHT
When we read the account of the crucifixion of Christ
through the lens of the empty tomb, we marvel at the
people's cruelty and blindness. How could these people
treat our Lord so badly? How could they be so inhumane to
anyoneespecially to the Son of God?

Their hearts were flint. If they had any idea who they
were mistreating, they would have fled in terror. Knowing
what we know now, none of us would have treated Him so
cruelly.

There is one very important thing to remember, however:
It was our sin that sent Jesus to the cross. Perhaps we
never would have treated Him so to His face; but every
time we sin, we validate that we are the ones who sent
Him to the cross. Picture the penalty He assumed for you
the next time you are tempted to sin, and see if it gives
you strength to turn from the sin.

PRAYER

* Praise the Lord that His grace is
sufficient for all our needs:

Lord, You have been our dwelling place in
all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
Or ever You had formed the earth and the
world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting,
You are God...
Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy,
That we may rejoice and be glad all our
days! (Psalm 90:1-2,14).

* Now pray this confession to the Lord:

O Lord, I know the way of man is not in
himself;
It is not in man who walks to direct his
own steps.
O Lord, correct me, but with justice;
Not in Your anger, lest You bring me to
nothing (Jeremiah 10:23-24).

* Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your
mind. As you agree with God's will, voice your
affirmation of His Word:

Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path (Psalm 119:105).

* As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray
for:

health and strength to serve Him,

* His will to be done on earth,
a gentle and quiet spirit.

* Now offer this prayer of praise to your mighty God:

... He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the
King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has
immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom
no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and
everlasting power. Amen (1 Timothy 6:15-16)

-----------
This daily devotional is published and distributed by
Crosswalk.com. It is written by Walk Thru the
Bible. Copyright 2001 Walk Thru the Bible. All
rights reserved. See www.walkthru.org/ for more
information about Quiet Walk and other devotionals from
Walk Thru the Bible.

You can purchase the NKJV MacArthur Study Bible Hardcover and other
titles at christianbook.com (Christian Book Distributors - CBD).
< shopping.crosswalk.com/bye/bible_nkj >

Additional devotionals are available from Crosswalk.com:
< devotionals.crosswalk.com >
-----------
To read the Current Feature Story from ReligionToday,
go to religiontoday.crosswalk.com/CurrentFeatureStory/

For today's complete News Summary from ReligionToday,
go to religiontoday.crosswalk.com/CurrentNewsSummary/

-----------
For Copyright Terms go to www.crosswalk.com/info/copyright

____________________SUBSCRIPTION INFO_______________________

* To subscribe, send an email to:
< SUBSCRIBE-quietwalk@lists.crosswalk.com > or go to
< www.crosswalk.com/lists > for a complete list of
our newsletters.
* Copyright 2001 Crosswalk.com, Inc. and its Content
Providers. All rights reserved.

____________________________________________________________

=====
--
Brian Masinick, "The Mas", mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/
The Rules Have Changed...Get Paid to Surf the Web!
www.alladvantage.com/home.asp?refid=BKU-690

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get personalized email addresses from Yahoo! Mail - only $35
a year! personal.mail.yahoo.com/