Day 3 - Week 26 - Isaiah 26:3 "You will keep in perfect peace the mind that is dependent on You, for it is trusting in You."

Which comes first, dependency or trust?  Our verse indicates that trust does. The mind that is dependent on God has first come to trust Him.  You would never want to depend on someone that you didn't completely trust, would you?

What a perfect relationship God offers us...He tells us to trust Him and He gives us every reason to do so.  He has provided us with every good and perfect gift, He has assured us of His everlasting care, and He has shown us how completely He loves us by sending His Son to bring us His gift of eternal life.  We have no reason not to trust God.  Why is it then that we are hesitant to do so?  Why is it that we fear if we become completely dependent on Him that He will not give us lives that will far exceed the ones that we could plan for ourselves?

Why?  Because as much as God wants our minds to trust in Him and to become dependent on His goodness, Satan wants the opposite.  Satan wants us to continually doubt God's goodness and His love for us.  Just as he told Eve in the garden, he still whispers in our ears today, "Did God really say..." planting the seeds of mistrust of God and twisting our minds to start viewing God's absolute good intentions for us into restrictive limitations.

God calls out to us to keep our trust in Him, to shut our minds off to the voice of the deceiver, and to completely and absolutely rely and depend on His goodness and His love for us. 

Romans 6:8 tells us, "the mind controlled by the Spirit brings life and peace."  We have a choice - we choose to trust and depend on God, or we choose to rely on self.  I know what God has planned for me: life, peace and eternity with Him.  Can I provide that for myself?  Can anything in this world provide that for me? 

Don't be deceived...only God can provide what He has promised for His children.  Trust Him, depend on Him, let Him keep your mind in His perfect peace.

Day 2 - Week 26 - Isaiah 26:3 "You will keep in perfect peace the mind that is dependent on You, for it is trusting in You."

Isn't this an absolutely beautiful verse of assurance?  With all the pressures that our minds are placed under, isn't it wonderfully reassuring to know that God understands the rest that our minds need, and that He is ready to supply us with all that we need for our mental peace?

The KJV expresses this verse and the following in a beautiful way,

Thou wil keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trustest in thee.  Trust ye in the LORD for ever; for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength.

Robert J. Morgan states,

Isaiah 26 was written by Isaiah for the land of Judah as a song of praise for the blessings of the Messiah's kingdom.  Among those blessings is perfect peace.  Verses 3 and 4 go together beautifully and provide one of the most meaningful and memorable passages in the Old Testament.

In describing the couplet, perfect peace, as used in this verse, Mr. Morgan adds,

The original Hebrew says that God will keep in shalom, shalom those whose minds are stayed on Him.  The word shalom means more than a cessation of conflict.  It conveys the idea of wholeness, quietness of spirit, safety, blessing, happiness of heart.  The double use of the word multiplies its intensity.

God's message is consistent - from the prophecies of the Old Testament to Christ's discussion with His disciples...our faith is to produce peace.  Our faith drives our minds to focus on God and on His all-encompassing love for us; that kind of faith develops trust.  I believe that where God wants us to ultimately find ourselves is in a state of complete trust in Him.  When we arrive to the state of that intense and absolute trust, we will also find intense and absolute peace. 

Did you know that the United States and France have the highest rates of depression in the world?  What does that statistic say to the non-Christian world about the peace that our faith brings to us?  (I'm not speaking about the witness that France has, since I do not believe France claims to be a predominantly Christian nation at this point.)  But the United States, even though we are rapidly becoming more and more religiously mixed, still claims a 78% Christian level as of 2009.   So with 78% of the people in our country claiming Christianity as their stated religious belief, we still lead the world in rate of depression.  That doesn't seem to be a correlation that would convince someone that Christian faith promotes mental peace, does it? 

What it tells me is that 21st century, U.S. Christians have done a terribly poor job of developing a dependency and life-affecting trust in God.  We still think that we can solve all our problems and that we can make all things right.  We are very arrogant in our self-confidence...but falsely arrogant.  For deep in the pit of our stomachs, we know we are failing and that we don't have the answers and we become nervous wrecks trying to accomplish it all and to have all the necessary answers.

God is saying, "Depend on Me - trust in Me - and I will relieve your fretful minds."

Depend on - Trust in - Depend on - Trust in - Depend on - Trust in...who is that dependable and trustworthy?  Any human being?  NEVER!  Everlasting and all powerful God?  FOREVER!

Day 1 - Week 26 - TUESDAY is here again! What new treasure will we find this week?

Here we are starting the second quarter of our journey of 100 Bible verses.  We have 25 behind us!  Wow! Amazing!  After this week's review, we will drop the Romans Road to Salvation.  So let's make sure we have it down pat!  And do you still remember your Four Corners of the Bible?  Hope you're keeping those four foundational verses refreshed in your mind so that they stay firm!

Here we go...

Romans Road to Salvation (5)

Romans 3:23  For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Romans 6:23  For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus, our Lord.

Romans 5:8    But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 10:9  If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord', and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Romans 12:1  Therefore, dear brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.  This is your spiritual worship.

The Gift of Scripture (6)

2 Timothy 3:16  All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correction, and for training in righteousness.

Joshua 1:8   This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth, you are to recite it day and night so that you may carefully observe everything written in it.  For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do.

Psalm 119:11  I have treasured Your words in my heart so that I may not sin against You.

Deuteronomy 6:4-6  Listen, O Israel, the Lord your God, the Lord is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength.  These words I am giving you today are to be in your heart.

Deuteronomy 6:7  Repeat them to your children, talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 

Hebrews 14:12  The Word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating as far as to divide joints, marrow, soul and spirit.  It is a judge of the ideas and thoughts of the mind.

The Gift of Prayer (3)

Hebrews 4:16  Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time.

1 John 5:14  Now this is the confidence we have before Him, whenever we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.

1 John 5:15   And if we know that He hears whatever we ask, we know we have what we have asked Him for.

The Gift of Assurance (10)

1 John 5:11  And this is the testimony:  God has given us eternal life, and that life is in His Son.

1 John 5:12-13  The one who has the Son has life, the one who doesn't have the Son of God does not have life.  I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know you have eternal life.

John 14:1  Your heart must not be troubled.  Believe in God, believe also in Me.

John 14:2   In my Father's house are many mansions, if it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you.

John 14:3  And if I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come back to receive you to Myself, so that where I am, you may be also.

John 14:6  Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth and the life; no man comes to the Father except through Me."

John 14:27  Peace I leave with you.  My peace I give to you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

I don't know about you, but I am feeling much more peaceful within myself with these verses taking hold in my heart.  It is true....Jesus came to bring us peace.  Did you realize there were so many Scriptures to assure us to place our confidence in Jesus and what He has done for us?  And that we have no reason to be fearful or lead lives characterized by anxiety and angst?  Jesus seems to really want to get across to us that He is taking care of things...our future has been secured....we just need to place our trust in Him and rely on His ability to transport us into our Father's eternal home.

That leads perfectly into our next verse of assurance to add to our list...here is Number 8 of our set of 10 of wonderful assurances given to us...

Isaiah 26:3   You will keep in perfect peace the mind that is dependent on You, for it is trusting in You.

Lord God, give me a mind of perfect peace...help me to trust You with every aspect of my life.  I know that that kind of trust leads to peace, because You take away all anxiety.  Your care removes fear and brings comfort.  Let me rest in You, knowing that You are taking care of me.  Thank You Lord for all of your wonderful gifts, but tonight I thank You for Your gift of peace.  Help me to completely accept this gift and live in it every day.  It's only because of Jesus that I can ask these things and it is completely and absolutely in His name that I pray.  Amen.

'

Day 7 - Week 25 - John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let not your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

What is the thing you're most afraid of?  Spiders? Snakes? Speaking in front of an audience?

I would challenge your answer with the answer that I think is truest for all of us....death.  I believe that at the core of all of our fears lies the base fear of death.  Our death and the deaths of those we love. 

For death is the great unknown. 

Betty White was interviewed recently and asked if she feared death... 

Couric: "Are you afraid of dying?"

White: "No, not at all. Not at all. My mother had the most wonderful outlook on death. She would always say, 'Nobody knows. People think they do, you can believe whatever you want to believe what happens at that last moment, but nobody ever knows until it happens.' But, she said, it's a secret. So, all growing up, whenever we'd lose somebody, she'd always say, 'Now, they know the secret.'"

I'm not quite sure what has relieved Betty White's fear of dying...she did not share her faith or what she believes about Jesus Christ.  Just having a good attitude about death wouldn't take my fear away.

I know that for me, without the knowledge that Jesus Christ has died for me, paid the price for my sins, has been resurrected by the power of God, and has gone to His Father to prepare the way for me to join Him there...I would be terrified!  In fact, the fear of death was key to my conviction in my acceptance of Jesus as my personal Savior.  As a child I was terribly afraid of dying in my sleep.  But one night while wrestling with my overly fearful mind vs.the logic of my belief in Jesus (this was when I was 9 or 10), I realized that IF I died, I would wake up in a wonderful place with my wonderful Jesus.  With that realization, I had a peace that I had never had before.  I don't think I ever worried about dying after that.  Later I came to realize that Romans 14:8 expressed the truth that I had worked out in my head,

If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

I think Betty is right - death is a secret.  But I think Jesus has told us not to be afraid of the secret.  To live our lives out with a peacefulness in our hearts because we know that He has done what He needed to do for us to live with Him forever.

So if I'm right, if death is your ultimate fear, hear Jesus' words...do not be afraid.  The secret is that Jesus will be there waiting for you and for me, and for all who believe in Him as the One who has taken away all of our fears.

Day 6 - Week 25 - John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

What do you think Jesus was trying to convey with His statement, "I do not give to you as the world gives."? 

In John Gill's Exposition of the Bible, he explains the differences --- examine how different the gift from Christ is from that of the world.  Christ's gift's attributes are in the light shade of red, while the world's are highlighted in blue.

The peace Christ gives is true, solid, and substantial; the peace the world, the men, and things of it give, is a false one; and whilst they cry, "peace, peace, sudden destruction is at hand": the peace of the world is at best but an external one, but the peace Christ is the giver of, is internal; the peace the world affords is a very transient, unstable, and short lived one, but the peace of Christ is lasting and durable; the peace of the world will not support under the troubles of it, but the peace which Christ gives, cheerfully carries his people through all the difficulties and exercises of this life: and as these differ in kind, so likewise in the manner of giving, and in the persons to whom they are given; the world gives peace in words only, Christ in deed; the world gives feignedly, Christ heartily; the world gives it for its own advantage, Christ for his people's sake; the world gives its peace to the men of it, to the ungodly, none to the godly, whom it hates; Christ gives his; not to the wicked, for there is no peace to them, but to the saints, the excellent in the earth.

So...would you rather have a gift that is true, solid, substantial, internal, lasting and durable, carries you through all the difficulties of life, given in deed and heartily from Christ, and given for our sake----

Or... a gift that is false, external, very transient and short-lived, will not support in times of trouble, gives peace in words only, and is given only for the advantage of the giver.

What differences we see between the gift of Christ and the gift of the world.  Don't be deceived by the appeal of the world's gifts...the major difference that I see is that Christ's gift is not only for this life, but goes with us into eternity.  The world's gifts, however enticing they are now, are false gifts, promising peace, but not delivering, and they will not survive.  Any gift that you accept apart from Christ will be temporary, for it will be destroyed along with everything else of this world.

2 Peter 3:10, The day of the Lord will come like a thief--it will be a day on which the heavens will pass away with a rushing noise, the elements be destroyed in the fierce heat, and the earth and all the works of man be utterly burnt up.

Satan would have us believe that the world's gifts will give us comfort and peace, but they do not.  More often than not, they create tension and frustration for us.  They create in us a need for more and more, and that kind of insatiable appetite for the world's gifts develops a lifestyle that is anything but peaceful.  In contrast, it is full of anxiety.

Choose the gift that is given with sincerity by the Giver that loves you. His gift is good and it will be with you forever.