God’s Promises – Hope for Complete Healing

17 Part 2—Does God Promise to Love Unconditionally?

How often have you heard that God’s love is unconditional? Where does the Bible say this? Some people give vague verses that allude to unconditional love, but nowhere does the Bible state it. This knowledge does not negate the fact that God loves the world and gave His only Son to pay the penalty for our sin so we can be justified by faith and have peace with Him.

Most of God’s promises are conditional; for example, Jeremiah 7:23 states, “But this command I gave them: ‘Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. And walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.’” When we obey God and walk in His ways, then He will abide with us so that it will be well with us. We can trust that God will always be faithful to us. So, how faithful are you to God? Here are a few verses that show God’s love is conditional on our love, obedience, trust, and forsaking evil.

Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations. ̶̶̶ Deuteronomy 7:9

And I said, “O LORD God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments.” ̶ Nehemiah 1:5

Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” ̶ John 14:23

Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD. ̶ Psalm 32:10

But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children. ̶̶̶ Psalm 103:17

As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. ̶̶̶ Psalm 103:13

You may say that you love, obey, trust, and fear God. But what are you filling your mind and heart with? Do you keep your mind on the things above by reading your Bible every day and talking with God? Or do you watch ungodly TV shows or movies that act out every evil, immoral thing God hates?

Does God Hate?

Yes, God does hate, as explained in Proverbs 6:16-19, “There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: ¹⁷haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, ¹⁸a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, ¹⁹a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.” Ask God if you are guilty of any of these things He hates. Remember, our hearts are deceitful, as explained in Jeremiah 17:9 (KJV), “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” And Psalm 11:5 states, “The LORD tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.” Someone who is wicked is evil and immoral. Evil people harm others for their own gain because of sin. Also, Proverbs 8:13 states, “The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.”

Not only are we to turn from doing evil but also watching and enjoying evil and immoral scenes. What kind of books do you like to read? Do the stories you read contain the things God hates? We should hate the same things God hates and avoid filling our minds with such things if we truly love God with all our hearts, soul, strength, and mind. Proverbs 16:6 tells us, “By [God’s] steadfast love and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for, and by the fear of the LORD one turns away from evil.” Psalm 34:16 states, “The face of the LORD is against those who do [think] evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.”

It is evident that God hates evil and all who do evil. The Apostle Peter also wrote, “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil” (1Peter 3:12). A righteous person thinks righteous thoughts and does what is good and right. Romans 6:11-13 teaches, “So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. ¹²Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. ¹³Do not present your members [mind and soul] to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.”

If God’s Love is Unconditional, Then Why Does He Have Wrath

One of the hardest topics to teach is God’s wrath, which also counters the notion that God loves us unconditionally. If you disagree with my thinking and beliefs, please comment and let me know, but please use solid scripture to correct my wrong thinking. John 3:36 states, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” Saying a salvation prayer does not guarantee eternal salvation, obedience to the end does. Ephesians 5:5-6 states, “For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. ⁶Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.”

Romans 1:18 states, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.” We are saved from God’s wrath when we believe in His Son and receive the atonement for our sins that Jesus bought. Then we must love and fear God by obeying His commands, turning from evil, and putting our trust in Him. Romans 5:8-9 states, “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. ⁹Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.”

Conclusion

God’s promises are for everyone. Acts 2:39 states, “For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” I have shared many promises from the Bible, and I am sure there are many more. We can trust that God never lies. Titus 1:2 states, “In hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began.” And we will receive the promised eternal life if we endure to the end and do the will of God (Hebrews 10:36). The mission of this website is to uncover false beliefs and replace them with biblical truth. As much as we want to believe that God has unconditional love, the truth is that He wants our love, obedience, and trust, and to turn from our evil, sinful ways in fear of His wrath.

EVIL—What is it and what is the remedy?

Part 2: How to Overcome Evil with Good.

Are You a Sheep or a Goat?

All verses are from the English Standard Bible. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share the links with your friends and family, hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright protected, and no part of the posts or my book may be reproduced without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom and this website.

Check out my book called Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think. To learn more about my book read: How to Fight Unseen Battles

17—Believers Can’t Be Separated from God’s Love

Have you noticed the huge deficit of love in our world? Hate seems to dominate our politics and our families. Why? The answer is simple, Satan kills, steals, and destroys all that God called good. Because God is love, and we are made in His image, we need love in our lives. Satan causes dysfunction, abuse, discord, and separation in families to destroy love. Many of us grew up in homes where love was not shown or if it was shown, it was selfish. As children, we develop the wrong belief that we must earn love or be a certain way to be loved. This false belief affects our view of God’s love for us. We get married, wanting to be loved sacrificially but not knowing how to give sacrificial love. Often, we marry equally wounded people and then pass on our unhealthy beliefs about love to our children. God’s love is perfect.

Trying to grasp how much God loves us is like trying to understand how He made the Universe. God’s love is so vast and immeasurable, yet 1John 4:12 states, “No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.” This post is not about how to love but how we display the love of God to others. I have written many posts on love because love is the holy grail of Christianity. If you are interested to learn more, read LOVE Issues.

Love is why God sent His only Son into the world to die for our sins and to give us liberty from our sinful nature. Ephesians 3:17-19 states, “So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, ¹⁹and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” How awesome is that? And Romans 8:38-39 states, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Satan may put wrong thoughts in your mind like, “If God loved you, you wouldn’t be going through this,” or “What kind of Father would let his child go through something this hard?” “God doesn’t love you because you disappoint Him.” When we question God’s love, we can’t trust that He has our best interest in mind. Isaiah 54:10 states, “For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you.:” God lets us go through hard things, to refine our hearts and strengthen our faith. Read my posts called Being Thankful During Hardships and 2— God Promises to Deliver Us from Our Troubles.

God’s Love Is Everlasting and Steadfast

But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children. ̶̶̶ Psalm 103:17

In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the LORD, your Redeemer. ̶̶̶ Isaiah 54:8

The LORD appeared to him from far away. I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you. ̶̶̶ Jeremiah 31:3

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ̶̶̶ Lamentations 3:22-23

But the LORD was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. ̶̶̶ Genesis 39:21

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! ̶̶̶ 1Chronicals 16:34

They refused to obey and were not mindful of the wonders that you performed among them, but they stiffened their neck and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt. But you are a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and did not forsake them. ̶̶̶ Nehemiah 9:17

Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness, O LORD! ̶̶̶ Psalm 25:7

Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. ̶̶̶ Psalm 36:5

The English Standard Version records God’s steadfast love in 193 verses. We can trust God’s love has no end. The Apostle John said in 1John 4:8 that “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” How is your love toward those around you? 1John 4:11 states, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” We know we are abiding in God by how we love those around us. 1John 4:16-17 states, “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. ¹⁷By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.” Never forget that there will be a judgment, and we will have to give an account of all we did while in the flesh, whether good or evil (2Cor. 5:10).

Conclusion

Love is the central theme of God and Christianity. How do you rate on the love scale? Are you patient with everyone? Are you kind to the unkind? Are you gentle with the harsh? Are you self-controlled when tempted? If you struggle with loving others as God loves them, please read my website book; it will help you identify what controls your unloving thoughts and actions. We can trust that nothing will separate us from God’s love, but nowhere in the Bible does it say His love is unconditional. I will explore that truth in my next post.

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Check out my first book called Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think. To learn more about my book, read: How to Fight Unseen Battles.

16–God Promises to Reward Obedience

It feels good to be rewarded. You get that bonus or raise for your hard work, a party for meeting a goal, and so on. We learned in the last post that God tests us to see if we will obey Him. He also gives rewards for our obedience. According to Dictionary.com (06/30/2022), obedience is being compliant and submitting to the requests of someone in authority. God is the supreme authority. He is all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving, and so on. God established laws as a boundary for the sinful nature we inherited when Adam disobeyed God’s command to not eat from the tree in the middle of the garden.

We have laws in our country to control the self-centered actions of people. For instance, there are many traffic laws we need to obey, and if we don’t, we will suffer a consequence. Many establishments have a code of conduct they expect their employees or customers to follow to maximize a pleasant and safe environment. Otherwise, you have chaos and fear. God’s laws and commands have the same purpose.

Obedience is hard when you want to be self-centered or prideful and don’t think you need to do what someone tells you to do. I had a problem obeying because I did not trust the people in authority. I also struggled to comply because I needed to be in control, which was a trust and pride issue. When I worked through betrayal issues and broke down the betrayal stronghold and the controlling stronghold, I was more willing to obey. To learn more, read Pt. 1: Forsaken? Betrayed? How to Trust Again.

Sometimes you are asked to do something that does not make sense. God the Father planned that His son was to die on a cross to pay the penalty for our sins, which does not make sense to us. Philippians 2:8 states, “And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Do you think it is unreasonable for God to require us to be holy? 1Peter 1:14-16 states, “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, ¹⁵but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, ¹⁶since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’” Dictionary.com (6/30/2022) says that holy is to be spiritually pure, godly, and dedicated or devoted to the service of God. God promises to be our helper, so we can depend on Him to help us be holy. To learn more read Posts About Godliness.

So what are God’s rewards for obedience?

God Promises to Bless Those Who Obey Him

What does it mean to be blessed? Dictionary.com (6/30/2022) says that “blessed” is to be divinely or supremely favored, and favored is to be regarded or treated with preference or partiality and enjoy special advantages. Does this sound like something you would like? The following verses describe how God blesses those who obey and keep His ways:

Proverbs 8:32 “And now, O sons, listen to me: blessed are those who keep my ways.”

Psalm 119:2-3 “Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart, ³who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways!”

James 1:25 “But the one who looks into the perfect law [love], the law of liberty [freedom], and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing [all that you do].”

Luke 11:28 “But he said, ‘Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!’”

Psalm 106:3 “Blessed are they who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times!”

Deuteronomy 11:26-28 “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: ²⁷the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, ²⁸and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside from the way that I am commanding you today, to go after other gods that you have not known.”

Deuteronomy 12:28 “Be careful to obey all these words that I command you, that it may go well with you and with your children after you forever, when you do what is good and right in the sight of the LORD your God.”

Do you know what God requires of you? Do you obey so you can be blessed?

God Promises Eternal life with Him to Those Who Do His Will

Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”

1John 2:17 “And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”

John 14:21 “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”

The will of God is what He expects us to do, namely, that we love Him with all our strength, heart, mind, and soul. By obeying His commands, we prove our love for God. John 14:23 states, “Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” John 14:31 states, “I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father.” God also requires that we love others as Jesus loves them. 1John 3:23 states, “And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.” Loving others is hard because we are all sinners and hurt one another. I discuss this in greater detail in my website book. When we obey the truth found in God’s Word, we purify our souls as we obey and forgive those who hurt us and let go of resentment, then we can love from a pure heart. 1Peter 1:22 states, “Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart.” To learn more about purifying your heart, read Love from a Pure Heart.

Conclusion

Obedience is difficult if you are self-centered, prideful, or don’t trust those in authority. But it is always best to obey God, not just for the rewards, but because He is good and knows our future and what is best for us. I don’t understand why God asked me to write because I never thought I was a good writer and didn’t know how to write. I obeyed, and I am still writing. I pray you are blessed by my writing and choose to obey God so you will be blessed with divine favor and spend eternity with Him.

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If you find this website helpful, you will benefit from the latest book. You can order Breaking Mental Strongholds on Amazon. Also, check out my book called Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think. To learn more about my book, read: How to Fight Unseen Battles.

15—God Promises to Test Us

What are God’s tests like? Tests determine what you learned and how you can apply what you know. Do you like tests? I know I don’t because of the possibility that I could fail. How do you pass a test? As a public-school teacher, I would say to listen to what your teacher teaches and take good notes, know all the material in the required reading, and take the time to study your notes and reading material. One time I gave the final exam out to my students to use as a study guide. You know, most of them never studied or bothered to look at my study guide, so many failed. When they found out how easy it would have been to get an “A,” they were upset with themselves for not putting forth an effort to study. God gave us the Bible to study and learn from. Are you reading and meditating about how you can apply God’s teaching to your life?

Do you remember getting your driver’s license? You studied the driving book front to back because if you didn’t know the rules, you would have an accident. You pass the written test, but then you must take the driving test. I must admit, I failed the driving test twice, even though the driving teacher let me use the little car I practiced in. I finally passed using my friend’s colossal chevy. God is merciful and compassionate toward us; even so, He will test us to see if we can apply what we know. Our Christian driving test is through the trials of life to see how we apply the Word of God. Did you pass the first time, or did you have to go through the troubles again before you passed?

What are God’s tests like?

The Bible is your reading material, and your Bible teacher will tell you what to know and study to pass God’s tests. All we need to do is memorize the material in preparation for the test. The following few Bible passages give us an idea of what God tests for. God gives instructions, which He calls a law, command, statutes, judgments, etc., all are recorded in the Bible. He asks that we obey what He tells us to do; if we don’t obey, it is a sin. Not all instructions are for us today; for example, God said that the Israelites were to gather only enough manna to feed their family for that day. Exodus 16:4 states, “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not.’” But many Israelites did not obey God’s instructions and failed the test. Are you walking according to God’s instructions?

God Tests Our Obedience

Then in Exodus 20:1-17, God gives Moses the Ten Commandments. Note all the promises of success that God gives if you obey these commandments. And God spoke all these words, saying, ²I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

(1) ³“You shall have no other gods before me.

(2) ⁴You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. ⁵You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, ⁶but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

(3) ⁷“You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

(4) ⁸“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. ⁹Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, ¹⁰but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. ¹¹For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

(5) ¹²“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.

(6) ¹³“You shall not murder.

(7) ¹⁴“You shall not commit adultery.

(8) ¹⁵“You shall not steal.

(9) ¹⁶“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

(10) ¹⁷“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Exodus 20:20 states, “Moses said to the people, ‘Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.’” Can you imagine if everyone would obey these ten commandments? Do you think we would have a problem with crime? Jeremiah 9:5-7 describes our present society, “Everyone deceives his neighbor, and no one speaks the truth; they have taught their tongue to speak lies; they weary themselves committing iniquity. ⁶Heaping oppression upon oppression, and deceit upon deceit, they refuse to know me, declares the LORD. ⁷Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, I will refine them and test them, for what else can I do, because of my people?”

God tests our hearts and minds.

I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. ‒1Chronicals 29:17a

Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end, and may you establish the righteous— you who test the minds and hearts, O righteous God! ‒Psalm 7:9

Prove me, O LORD, and try me; test my heart and my mind. ‒ Psalm 26:2

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? ¹⁰“I the LORD search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds. ‒ Jeremiah 17:9-10

Ask God to search your heart and mind and to show you where you do not love Him or others well. Ask if you are being patient, kind, envious, boastful, arrogant, rude, insisting on your way, irritable, resentful, etc. (1Corinthians 13:4- 5). Ask Him to show you where you do not love Him with all your heart and mind (Matthew 22:37).

God Tests Our Faith using Trials.

God uses trials and hardships to test us. 1Peter 4:12 tells us, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.” And the passage most Christians know, James 1:2-4, tells us, “Count it all joy, my brothers [and sisters], when you meet trials of various kinds, ³for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. ⁴And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” And James 1:12 states, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” Will you still love God even when you fail the test and must retake it?

In 2Corinthians 13:5, the Apostle Paul tells us to “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! Do you have Jesus’ attitude of looking out for other people’s interests before your own (Philippians 2:4-5)? Are you a servant like Jesus (Philippians 2:7)? Are you willing to lay down your life for your friends (John 15:13)? If you can’t answer “yes” to these questions, then ask Jesus to come into your life and forgive your sins and help you be more like Him.

The end goal of the tests throughout our life is to be like God. Ephesians 4:20-24 states, “But that is not the way you learned Christ!— ²¹assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, ²²to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, ²³and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” We renew our minds through prayer and applying the Word of God to our lives.

Conclusion

This post was a tough post to write, and I could have written more. If you have more to add, please leave a comment and share what you know. God gave us the Bible to study and learn from. Are you reading and meditating about how you can apply God’s teaching to your life? BIBLE means Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. Rely on the all-powerful and loving God to help you and be with you through the trials of life.

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Check out my first book called Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think. To learn more about my book read: How to Fight Unseen Battles

14—GOD PROMISES TO LEAD US AND BE WITH US

Have you ever wondered where you should live, who you should marry, what job to take, and so on? I have good news, God promises to lead you, “but how,” you might be thinking. Before God can lead you, you need to be sensitive to His leading. When you submit to someone, you are willing to be led by that person. What do you still need to submit to God?

The following scripture reassures us that God leads us:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. ⁶In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. ̶ Proverbs 3:5-6

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. ̶ Psalm 32:8

The steps of a man are established by the LORD, when he delights in his way; ²⁴though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the LORD upholds his hand. ̶ Psalm 37:23-24

It is one thing to hear from God; it is another thing to obey His leading. Be prepared to obey, even if you don’t understand or can’t see why. You are not alone. Abraham did not know why, but he obeyed God’s voice, and God blessed him. Moses heeded the voice of God even though he had no confidence in his ability to speak, so God spoke to Aaron, his brother, to be the voice of Moses. Exodus 4:12 states, “Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” Gideon did not understand why he was chosen to deliver the people from the hand of their enemy, but he obeyed, and God gave Him the victory. Why did God choose these imperfect Bible heroes to be examples of His greatness? Because God wants the glory.

God wants to choose you; will you obey? What will happen if you do not obey God? Psalm 81:11-12 states, “But my people did not listen to my voice; Israel would not submit to me. ¹²So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts, to follow their own counsels.” Do not lean on your understanding but obey so all will be in God’s will. Jeremiah 7:23 states, “But this command I gave them: ‘Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. And walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.’”

I was facing a layoff and did not have another job lined up. I asked God, what I was to do, and He said, “Write a book.” “What, I don’t know how to write, and I have no idea what to write.” After about two months of waiting on God to know what He wanted me to write about, He said I had already written it. “What????” I pondered what I had already written. The only thing I wrote was a series of Bible studies for the inmates at the county jail. God said that is it. The book was so large that I had to break it into two books. I published the first book, Fighting Unseen Battles” and will soon publish the second book “Breaking Mental Strongholds.”

God directs our steps in many ways. Here are a few biblical examples.

God Will Speak to You Personally

Genesis 12:1 states, “Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” The Bible has about 275 verses describing how God (the LORD) spoke to people directly but be careful to test the spirits (James 4:1). God would never tell you to do anything that is not in the Bible. For example, God would not tell you to divorce your spouse.

I was driving, and God clearly spoke to me and said I was to go to Radio Shack. I didn’t know why and didn’t have any reason to go to Radio Shack, so I drove by. God spoke to me again to go to Radio Shack. So I turned around and went to the store. I didn’t know why God told me to go to Radio Shack, so I began to talk with the salespeople, and a customer came up and said he needed a UNIX programmer to do some work for him. I happened to know UNIX, and I happened to need trade experience to finish getting my degree to teach computer science/data processing. There you have it, God knew that man would be in the store at that time, and He directed my steps.

God May Use Someone to Tell You

Maybe even an angel will speak to you as for Abraham, Daniel, Zacharia, Mary, and Joseph. The English Standard Bible (e-sword) records 63 times when an angel spoke to someone. God used prophets to speak to people. The ESV Bible had approximately 56 verses when a prophet spoke God’s message. The Bible has many examples of when God led people to talk to someone. Abigail came to my mind when she went to David to dissuade him from killing her husband (1Samuel 25).

When I became a single mother and didn’t have a job, I asked God what I was to do to support myself. My heart’s desire was to be a stay-at-home mother. My friend suggested that I become a seamstress and do sewing for people. I advertised and had no trouble getting enough customers to pay my bills and keep my children at home with me. I believe God spoke through my friend.

He May Speak to You in a Vision or a Dream

Genesis 15:1 states, “After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” Also, Numbers 12:6 states, “And he said, “Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the LORD make myself known to him in a vision; I speak with him in a dream.” And Job 33:14-15 states, “For God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it. ¹⁵In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, while they slumber on their beds.” Pay attention to dreams, especially dreams you remember. Keep a notebook by your bed so you can record them.

He Directs Us Through Circumstances

God used many different circumstances in Jesus’s life to fulfill prophetic scriptures. God also used many events to get me where I am. God used Joseph’s brothers to sell him to traders, who then sold him as an enslaved person. He then ended up in jail for several years because an evil woman lied. In prison, he meets two men who had dreams, and he interprets the dreams. He interpreted dreams for Pharaoh, who then made him second in command. All those circumstances prepared Joseph for his purpose, which was to save his family. He had to endure many hardships to get to where God wanted him to be. We, too, will have to go through problems. We will never know the impact on our lives and the lives of others because of the decisions other people, or we make.

When we follow God’s leading, we will be in His will, though we may have to go through tough times to grow in our faith. Isaiah 43:2 states, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.” And Isaiah 41:10 states, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Conclusion

Are you willing to submit to God’s leading and obey His commands? Be ready to hear God speak to you directly, through someone else, or in your dreams. Be willing to allow the situations in your life, even difficult circumstances to move you in the direction God wants you to go. Both times I was laid off, I wrote a book. I don’t know why, and I don’t know how God will use them, but it is all for His glory.

RECOMMENDED POSTS

Pt. 2: Why You Can and Cannot Trust God?

Trust God to Keep His Promises

POSTS about God’s Promises

Check out my first book called Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think. To learn more about my book read: How to Fight Unseen Battles

13—Part 2—God’s Promise to Heal

The previous post explained the many ways that God heals. He heals with natural remedies and medicine (i.e., Isaiah said to use a fig poultice to bring healing, Jeremiah said to take balm for healing, and Ezekiel said leaves were for our healing.) I explained how we become ill because of what we put into our bodies, and if we return to God’s wellness plan, we will naturally heal many of our illnesses. Then I describe how emotional healing leads to physical healing, which I explain in my book on my website. Next, I discussed the power of regular detoxing to remove the toxins that cause disease. After that, I shared the Bible verses that show how evil spirits cause physical problems, and I ended with Bible passages about how faith brings our healing.

Let’s continue with how faith brings our healing. There are two types of faith, personal faith and the faith of others; both are needed. Hope is central to faith. God’s promises give us hope. My ministry name is “Hope for Complete Healing.” Complete healing includes spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical, which are all interrelated.

• Spiritual healing is to be reconciled to God by believing He sent His son to save us from our sins and His wrath on sin. The evidence of being spiritually healed is humility, love for others, desiring to read your Bible, and going to church.

• Mental healing happens when you set your mind on God’s truths and promises through prayer and meditating on the Bible morning and night. If you are mentally ill with depression, paranoia, or anxiety, it will negatively affect your spiritual, emotional, and physical health. In my experience, the more spiritually healthy I became, the more mentally healthy I became. If your mind is not submitted to God’s truths, then Satan will interject his lies, accusations, and temptations into your mind. This is why we need to take up the shield of faith every day. You can learn more about this in my post called Spiritual Warfare 6: HOW FAITH OFFERS FULL PROTECTION

• Emotional healing takes place through forgiveness. Forgiveness from God for our sins removes guilt and shame. Forgiving others their sins against us removes resentment, anger, hate, bitterness, and so on. Emotionally healthy people can handle disappointment well and love difficult people well. They are not easily offended.

• Physical healing is when all the systems of your body are functioning as God intended them to work. Understand we live in a fallen world, and we will eventually die through the aging process, which is when our body’s systems gradually become weak, until the day they stop functioning, and we die. But you can still remain in good health.

Based on my experience, physical healing takes place when we obey God’s commands, which are explained in detail in the previous post and summarized below:

Eat according to God’s instructions in Genesis 1:29 and 9:3.
Forgive those who sinned against us to remove the emotional cancer of resentment (Colossians 3:13). My theme verse for my book and website is 3John 2, which states, “Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.” Resentment causes emotional dis-ease in our souls.
Don’t worry and be anxious (Philippians 4:6-7).
Fast to speed healing (Isaiah 58:6-8) because fasting removes many kinds of toxins that causes illnesses.
Command unclean evil spirits of infirmity and disability to be gone (Mark 9:14-29; Luke 13:11-13; and Acts 5:16).
Repent of sins and seek to be anointed by oil and the prayers of elders who have faith (Psalm 38:3 and James 5:14-15).
Fear God and turn from evil (harming someone) and submit to God’s instructions (Proverbs 3:7-9).
Believe that God wants to heal you (Hebrews 11:1; Matthew 9:2, 22, 29; 15:28; and Luke 17:19).

Faith Reminds God of His Promises

Faith believes we will receive the things we hope for and the conviction of things not seen (Heb. 11:1). Faith claims the promises of God and reminds God of His goodness, faithfulness, and lovingkindness. We can also remind God of His promises, such as Psalm 103:3b, which tells us God heals all our diseases, and Psalm 34:19 says that the righteous will suffer afflictions, but God will deliver them out of all of their troubles. The problem is that God’s timing is not our timing, so we need faith. For instance, God promised Abraham and Sarah a son, but they had to wait 15 years before the promise was fulfilled. Romans 8:25 states, “But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” It is hard to wait, isn’t it?

Hope to Experience God’s Promise to Heal

Hope is a challenging topic. Many people feel hopeless because they cannot see how their situation can improve. Despair is the one unseen battle that leads many people to commit suicide. Because everyone goes through hardships, we need the hope Jeremiah describes in Lamentations 3:21–25:

But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:

²²The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

²⁴“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.”

²⁵The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.”

Jeremiah suffered hardships his entire life and learned to put his hope in God’s steadfast (firm, fixed, constant; not changing) love, mercies, and faithfulness.

We know that this life on earth is but a blink of an eye, and then God’s children will spend eternity in heaven. Knowing this fact helps me endure my troubles. Romans 8:18 states, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” And 2Corinthians 4:17–18 states, “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” So, are you focused on your troubles or the eternal glory? Read HOPE: How it Motivates and Inspires BUT God’s Sovereignty… to discover more about hope.

Faith Speaks God’s Promises into Existence

I believed, therefore, I have spoken. –Psalm 116:10a

Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, ‘I believed, and so I spoke,’ we also believe, and so we also speak. –2Corinthians 4:13

Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare [proclaim]; before they spring forth, I tell you of them. –Isaiah 42:9

Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. –Isaiah 43:18–19

God gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. –Romans 4:17b

O LORD my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me. –Psalm 30:2

Jesus in Us is the Power of God to Heal

The Bible says in several places that Jesus not only bore our sins so we can be free from the power of sin, but He also bore our sickness so we could be healed. Matthew 8:17 states, “This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: ‘He took our illnesses and bore our diseases.’” Isaiah 53:5 prophesy, “But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” Also, the Apostle Peter tells us in 1Peter 2:24, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.”

Conclusion

Faith is the key to complete healing because faith gives us hope and helps us believe. God is the one who heals us when we put our faith in Him. Physicians may reverse or cover up symptoms of illness. Surgery or medication may correct damage due to living in a fallen world, but it is God who heals completely. God gives physicians and nurses wisdom and knowledge, and you need to heed their advice, but first make sure you are obeying all of God’s commands. I conclude with my ministry verse: 3John 2, “Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.” Is all well with your soul?

Check out my first book called Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think. To learn more about my book read: How to Fight Unseen Battles

Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com, and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

13—God’s Promises to Heal But…

Of all God’s promises, this promise is the hardest for many. So many people pray for healing and are not healed. Why? I don’t understand why God heals some and not others. I do understand that God is all-knowing and sovereign in our lives. Healing can be physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual. God is interested in our spiritual healing. God wants us all to trust Him fully and be submitted to His will, even when we don’t get what we ask for. I have learned that God heals in different ways. I also learned that we often cause illness and disease and how to reverse it.

We May Need To Use Natural Health Approaches To Help Our Bodies Heal

I am currently 60 years old with no significant health issues, and I do not take any prescriptions. I see the doctor for a yearly physical, and that is it. My journey to being free from illness began when I was about 25 years old when I got the flu. I went to a nutritionist who recommended I take Vitamin C, Zinc, Echinacea, and a liquid Garlic, yuck. I felt better after 24 hours and was able to go back to teaching my students. I was amazed by my recovery and began to research natural health remedies. As soon as I get cold symptoms, I take C, zinc, Echinacea, and sometimes homemade elderberry syrup. I was always a very sickly person, and I always got every sickness my students had.

The Bible gives several examples of how natural health practices can bring healing. Ezekiel 47:12b states, “Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.” And again, Revelations 22:2b says, “The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” And Isaiah 38:21 states, “Now Isaiah had said, ‘Let them take a cake of figs and apply it to the boil, that he may recover.’” The cake of figs was used as a poultice to draw out infection. Poultices can be made in many different ways. Jeremiah talks about applying a balm for healing. A balm is a mixture of herbs with oil, butter, or wax that is applied to the skin. I make several balms for various health issues from the herbs in my garden. Jeremiah tells us in 8:22, “Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has the health of the daughter of my people not been restored?” And Jeremiah 46:11a tells us, “Go up to Gilead, and take balm.” When you are healed, always praise God because He is the healer, even when you take something to support your body’s healing ability.

Our Illness Maybe Our Doing

If we eat manufactured foods that cause disease and illness, we won’t be healed until we eat the foods that nourish and heal our bodies as God originally intended. When God created humanity, He put them in a garden because He knew what kind of food we needed to eat to be well. Genesis 1:29 and 9:3 “And God said, ‘Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.’” “Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.” So, God said we are to eat plants, fruits, vegetables, and meat, organic is best. All man-made, processed foods do not support life but cause illness. The preservatives and pesticides in packaged foods weaken our cells, and disease develops. Many diseases, including cancer, need sugar to establish. Sugar causes inflammation that leads to heart disease, diabetes, dementia, etc. How can God heal us when we do not obey his instruction?

When Daniel and his friends were captured and taken to Babylonia, Daniel knew that the king’s food was not good for him and his friends. So he asked that they only be given vegetables. Daniel 1:15-16 states, “At the end of ten days it was seen that they were better in appearance and fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate the king’s food. ¹⁶So the steward took away their food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables.”

After I married my first husband, I began eating more junk food and meat. I developed a host of health problems, including endometriosis. Praying for healing was a waste because my illness came from what I was eating. I read the book God’s Way to Ultimate Health by Dr. George Malkamus. I decided to be a raw food vegetarian based on this book and was healed of many of my health issues, especially depression and endometriosis. I still suffered from joint and back pain from the degenerative joint disease I inherited from my mother. So I decided to attend a class that taught how to eat for your blood type, which explained how your blood interacts with the lectins in food to create an auto-immune response in your body. So, I decided to try that diet and gave up corn, wheat, and many other foods. My joint and back pain went away. I always asked for prayer for my back, but my healing came when I stopped eating the foods that caused my back problems.

Emotional Healing

Permanent physical healing in my life occurred when I sought God to heal my painful memories that controlled my emotions. Negative feelings stress our bodies and disrupt our endocrine system, which controls the hormones that keep our body systems in balance. Emotional stress also weakens all the cells of your body, which makes them susceptible to disease. My website book explains how to heal your painful memories to have complete healing. 1–Healing Begins by Transforming Painful Memories. Read the following post to see if you may have a stronghold of infirmity. Sick and Tired? Change Your Destiny! Be Free From the Infirmity Stronghold.

Worry and Digestive issues

Worry and anxiety afflicted my digestive system. I wrote out a prayer about what I am concerned about or anxious about and put it into a “God’s got it” box. When I think about it, I remember that God’s got it. I also follow God’s instructions found in Philippians 4:6-7, which says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” And also 1Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Rejoice always, ¹⁷pray without ceasing, ¹⁸give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Occasional digestive issues occur when I eat foods that irritate my stomach and intestines, which can be remedied using a combination of bromelain, papain, inositol, and cysteine called Bromelain Plus by Biotics Research. Throwing up and diarrhea can be fixed using dietary Charcoal. Constipation can be alleviated by taking Slippery Elm. Occasionally, I take Genexa herbal formula from GNC to alleviate physical anxiety when I have to do something that is stressful.

Detoxing Removes the Toxins That Cause Disease

Toxins, both environmental and emotional, disrupt our immune system and weaken our bodies. Our immune system fights off invaders that come into our bodies, including toxins. Our immune system also fights cancer that often grows as a result of a toxic environment. Toxins come in many forms, such as electromagnetic from electronics and fluorescent lights, chemicals from cleaners, petroleum, additives, and preservatives in food, to name a few. Smoking and alcohol put a huge toxic load on your body.

To help my body detox, I do the following: I eat the foods God created for mankind to eat. The closer the food is to its natural form, the more nourishing it is for your body. I eliminated all manufactured foods found in packages as well as sugary chemical drinks. Once a week, I do a 30-hour vegetable juice fast by drinking barley green or any green drink and carrot or vegetable juice. I also drink bone broth to heal my intestinal system. And I drink detox teas and take burdock root in capsules. I also take a liver purifier from Swanson that contains milk thistle, dandelion, and yellow dock. Removing toxins from your body is vitally important to maintaining good health. . Isaiah 58:6-8 states, “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? ⁷Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? ⁸Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily;”

An Evil Spirit May Cause Illnesses

The Bible tells of people who were afflicted by Satan or demons. God allowed Job to be afflicted by Satan to test him. Job 1:8-12 states,

And the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” ⁹Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason. ¹⁰Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. ¹¹But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” ¹²And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.

A demon also afflicted the Apostle Paul. In 2Corinthians 12:1-10, Paul explains how God gave him a thorn in the flesh, which he pleaded three times with God to remove. In 2Corinthians 12:7, Paul described the thorn in the flesh as “a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited.” About a third of the New Testament healings were because an oppressive or unclean spirit was cast out of the person. Mark 9:14-29 tells a story of a boy possessed by an evil spirit since childhood, and Jesus casts the mute and deaf spirit out, and the boy no longer had convulsions. And Luke 13:11-13 explains, “And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. ¹²When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, ‘Woman, you are freed from your disability.’ ¹³And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God.” In the book of Acts, the Apostles continued the work of healing; Acts 5:16 states, “The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed.”

I forget that we need to command unclean, disabling spirits to leave us for us to see our healing. In addition, the Bible tells us to do the following:

James 5:14-16 “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. ”

Our sin may cause illness. Psalm 38:3 states, “There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin.”

Proverbs 3:7-8 “Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. ⁸It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.”

These verses outline conditions we must meet. We must call on the elders to pray for us and get anointed with oil. We must not think we know it all and do things our way but fear God and turn away from evil and repent of our sins. Do you do these things?

Need Faith to Be Healed

What is faith? Hebrews 11:1 tells us, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” The following scriptures demonstrate how faith brings about healing.

Matthew 9:2 states, “And behold, some people brought to him a paralytic, lying on a bed. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.’”

Matthew 9:22 states, “Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, ‘Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.’ And instantly the woman was made well.”

Matthew 9:29 states, “Then he touched their eyes, saying, ‘According to your faith be it done to you.’”

Matthew 15:28 states, “Then Jesus answered her, ‘O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.’ And her daughter was healed instantly.”

Luke 17:19 states, “And he said to him, ‘Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.’”

Conclusion

This post is longer than usual, but there is so much more I could have said about healing. If you have anything else you would like to share, please leave a comment, I would love to hear your story. I have learned that God heals in different ways. I also learned that we often cause illness and disease and how to reverse it. There are many books you can read, and I have many, but my two go-to books are Prescription for Nutritional Healing by Phyllis Balch, CNC and Dr. James Balch, M.D. and Be Your Own Doctor by Rachel Weaver.

Check out all my posts about the promises of God in POSTS about God’s Promises. And 13—Part 2—God’s Promise to Heal

Check out my first book called Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think. To learn more about my book read: How to Fight Unseen Battles

12—God Promises to Prosper You

The promises to prosper us can be exciting and depressing at the same time. The big question is, if these are promises, then why are there so many poor people and starving people around the world? The only answer to that question is sin. We live in a sinful world with sinful people who prevent or pervert God’s promises. Prosperity also looks different to those in less affluent countries than in the U.S. Even the poorest person in America is more affluent than many who live in economically depressed countries. Yet God promises to bless and prosper everyone, which will look different to each person. I may not have material wealth, but I feel blessed by what I have, and I am not in want of anything. Because my husband and I have chosen to live a simple lifestyle, we are prospering and have no worries, even when we lose our jobs.

Most of God’s promises come with conditions. You may not be perfect, but God knows how you strive to please Him.

Do you do what God says you are to do?

1Kings 2:3 “Keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn.” Are you reading your Bible to know what God says you are to do? All that God asks us to do is embodied in what Jesus says in Luke 10:27, “And he answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.’” Jesus tells us in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”

Do you shun counsel from sinners but delight in God’s instructions and meditate on them day and night?

Psalm 1:1-3 “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; ²but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. ³He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.” Do you listen to or read your Bible morning and night and meditate on what it says? Do you avoid hanging out with sinners?

Do you meditate on God’s instructions day and night and obey His commands?

Joshua 1:8 “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” I am tempted to look at the sinner who appears to be prospering in material wealth, so why are they prospering, and I am not? Prospering also includes being spiritually rich, being content and happy with the blessing God has given, having good health, etc. Read my application of this verse in Three Ways to Have Good Success in The New Year

We will succeed when we display love and kindness to those around us.

Proverbs 3:3-4 “Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; [NAS-Do not let kindness and truth leave you] bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart. ⁴So you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man.” Are you faithful and speak the truth to others? You may not be perfect, but do you strive to be loving and kind?

Do you delight in the Lord?

Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” To delight is to feel joy and pleasure. When someone is a delight to you, you find pleasure in spending time with them and talking with them. Or do you go to church on Sunday, then forget about your savior and friend the rest of the week?

Do you do or say hurtful things?

1Peter 3:10-11 “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; ¹¹let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.” To not speak evil is not to say hurtful things. How are you doing? With the help of the Holy Spirit in you, you can control your speech when you set your mind on the things of the Spirit and not on your sinful desires. The person who seeks peace is a child of God (Matt. 5:9).

Are you giving 10% of your income to the church?

Malachi 3:10 “Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, …. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.” Even when I was a single mother with two toddlers, I tithed, and God provided for all my needs in amazing ways.

Are you generously giving to those in need?

Proverbs 11:25 (KJV) “The liberal [generous] soul shall be made fat [prosper]: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.” Proverbs 28:27 “Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse.” (Condition: are you giving to those in need?) Proverbs 19:17 “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will repay him for his deed.”

Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”

2Corinthians 9:8 “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.”

Conclusion:

Many people seemingly do not prosper, but how do you measure prosperity? I am not wealthy by USA standards, but I feel that God has prospered me in many other ways, and I am thankful. So why are wicked people wealthy? The Bible says in Proverbs 13:22, “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous.” Keep in mind that God is sovereign, and our minds are to be set on what He tells us to do and not on what others have that we don’t have. Envy is a sin. 1Timothy 6:6-7 states, “But godliness with contentment is great gain, ⁷for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.”

I hope and pray that you are encouraged and blessed by this post.

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Posts About Godliness

Posts About God’s Promises

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11—God Promises to Give You Peace and Rest

Would you agree that we live in a world full of chaos and hate? Does the world news make you anxious? Do you feel stressed by the pressures of life? If so, God promises to give you rest and peace. Imagine that you are lying in a hammock under a shady tree, relaxing by a pool or lake somewhere, or sitting on a porch swing reading a captivating book. Sounds relaxing, doesn’t it? God promises to give you everlasting rest and peace that rivals the ultimate relaxation situation.

What do you need rest from?

We need rest from carrying our worries and responsibilities. Jesus tells us in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” When our eyes are on Jesus, and we pray about everything, we will stop striving and feeling weighed down by the world’s concerns. 1Peter 5:7 states, “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” King David said in Psalm 55:22, “Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.” So when you pray and give your cares to God, He promises to sustain you, and you won’t be moved, that is, to be provoked. The Apostle Peter tells us in 1Peter 3:12, “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” Doing evil is disobeying God.

We also need to enter God’s eternal rest. Hebrews 4:1, 6, 11 explains, “Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it.” 6) “Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience.” 11) “Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.” These verses encourage us to strive to obey God, so we don’t lose our eternal rest. In my last post, I explained how God promises to rescue us from His wrath when we obey Him and do what is right. Hebrews 4:1 says we are to “fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it [His rest].” This type of fear is forsaking evil and not giving in to our sinful nature and lustful desires but turning to God and obeying His commands.

How do you achieve peace in a world full of troubles and chaos?

I found that peace resides in my heart when I look to Jesus and give Him my concerns. My favorite go-to Scripture verse is Isaiah 26:3, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” I wrote a series of posts about trust because trust is so hard to do, and we become disappointed when our expectations are shattered. Understanding God’s promises help us trust Him. 2Corinthians 1:20 states, “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.” God keeps His promises because it brings Him glory.

Troubles Are Inevitable, but Peace Is a Choice We Make

Jesus said in John 16:33, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” Jesus has overcome the world, but how do we overcome the world? 1John 5:4 explains, “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.” Because we have faith that God keeps His promises, we don’t have to carry the cares and troubles of the world. The Apostle Paul encourages us in Philippians 4:7-8, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” If you don’t give God the issues that cause you anxiety and worry, then you choose not to have peace.

When We Obey God, We Will Have Peace

I don’t know about you, but I feel miserable and guilty when I sin. I have no peace when I say or do something that hurts another person. But when I repent and ask forgiveness, I also must ask God to take my guilt to feel peace again. Proverbs 3:1-2 tells us, “My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments, ²for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you.” And Isaiah 57:21 states, “There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked.” Wicked people do not have peace, which is why our world has so much chaos and hate.

Conclusion

I hope you have been blessed by this post, and I pray you will have peace and rest during these troubling times. Keep your focus on the things of God and not on the issues of our world. There is nothing that escapes God’s notice. 2Chronicals 16:9 tells us, “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him [completely His].” God keeps His promises; you can trust Him.

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10—God Promises to Deliver Us from Wrath

How can a God who is love also deal out wrath? Will I incur the wrath of God? What is the wrath of God? The Bible says in Romans 1:18, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.” We only need to fear the wrath of God if we continue to live ungodly, disobedient, and unrighteous lives. Also, John 3:36 says, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” So when we believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, we will be saved and have eternal life, but we also have to obey. God’s grace saves us from the His wrath, but our obedience sanctifies us and makes us holy, which is the only way we can be present with God.

God is also holy and does not sin. Our sin (evil, disobedience, ungodliness, and unrighteousness) separates us from God, and the punishment for sin is eternal separation. Not everyone goes to heaven to spend eternity with God, not even those who call themselves Christian because they live an ungodly lifestyle. 1John 3:10 states, “By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.” Read my post on this topic; Are You a Sheep or a Goat? For this reason, I believe that over half the church will miss the rapture and have to go through the wrath of God during the tribulation.

What incites the wrath of God?

The Bible clearly shows us the things that incite the wrath of God. The Apostle Paul tells us that our sinful, hard heart stores up the wrath of God.

Romans 2:5 states, “But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.” Ask God to show you if you have a hard heart? Is your heart fully submitted to God and obedient to His Word? Romans 13:5 states, “Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience.”

Ezra 8:2b states, “The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him.” Are you seeking God through prayer and reading your Bible? Or do you forsake God to follow your fleshly desires and worldly allurements?

Ephesians 5:5-6 explains, “For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. ⁶Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.” Ask God to examine your heart; are you sexually immoral or impure? Are you coveting things others have? Do you seek to please your sinful flesh and not please God?

Colossians 3:5-6 also explains, “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. ⁶On account of these the wrath of God is coming.” Again, go to God in prayer and ask Him to show you any sexual sins (lustful thoughts, etc.), immorality (dishonesty; harmful intentions, etc.) of any kind, impurity, passion, evil desires, and covetousness or idolatry. I wrote a series of posts on idolatry.

The good news is that Jesus Christ came to earth as a baby and suffered every temptation known to man. He did not sin and died to take our punishment and God’s wrath for sin. Hebrews 2:17-18 states, “Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. ¹⁸For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”

God Promises to Save Us from His Wrath

Meditate on each passage and seek understanding. Let these verses go deep into your heart and let them replace wrong beliefs. Deliberately read each word out loud.

1Thesselonians 5:9 tells us, “For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Romans 5:9 states, “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.”

Romans 6:22-23 “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification [set apart as holy] and its end, eternal life. ²³For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

God Promises to Forgive Us Our Sins So We Don’t Incur His Wrath.

2Chronicles 7:14 explains, “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

1John 1:9 tells us, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Act 10:43 states, “To him [Jesus] all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

Psalm 103:10-12 “He [God] does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. ¹¹For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; ¹²as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.”

Matthew 6:14-15 “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, ¹⁵but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Forgiving others who sin against you is done out of obedience to God. So if you do not forgive others who did you wrong, then God can’t forgive you because you sinned against Him. See my post called WHY MUST YOU FORGIVE.

Conclusion:

John 8:31-32 tells us, “So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, ‘If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, ³²and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’” If you are not reading your Bible and going to church, you are not abiding in Jesus Christ, and you will not know the truth. The Bible is our guidebook for this life so that we can enter into eternal life with God. The wrath of God is on those who are disobedient. We will always struggle with our sinful nature, but the Spirit of God has given us a new life through believing in Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection, which we learned in the last post.

I pray that this series on the promises of God has been helpful and comforting to you. Leave a comment if you have anything additional you would like to add. I try to keep my word count low out of respect for your time, so much more can be said about this topic.

May God’s grace and mercy be with you always.

Joyce

RELATED POSTS

Posts about God’s Promises

Posts About Godliness

Check out my first book called Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think.