A daily, Bible-based message of hope and encouragement.
 The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. <Previous Message · Archives · Archive edition Thursday, October 7, 2010  We think these mums look nice set with the dry, ready to harvest corn in the background.  Listen to this message on your audio player."Full Assurance Of Faith" "Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith" (Hebrews 10:22). Twelve times in the book of Hebrews the author introduces a phrase with the gentle invitation, "Let us." When I read or hear a preacher use this invitation I am especially encouraged, as it seems the author or preacher is leading me. By including himself he's not pointing a finger at me, he's not pushing, and he's not exalting himself in his position. He's indicating, "We're in this together." In fact I try to preach my messages this way. One of the first sermons I ever preached when we planted a church in northern Pennsylvania was based on a selection of passages in Hebrews that began with, "Let us". Following the message a friend from the congregation told me, "You ought to call that the Salad Sermon." He was referring to the repetitive use of "Let us [lettuce]!" Actually it is technically known as the hortative voice. Interestingly HORTatory and exHORTive both have the sense of encouraging. Today's short portion is so very encouraging and greatly needed. By repeating it over and over it can be memorized in a fairly short time. You can draw strength from the writer's encouraging invitation throughout the day. There are so many distractions, so many issues that beckon our attention, creating stress and anxiety. Let us break it down phrase by phrase: 1) "Let us draw near to God." The Psalmist declared, "But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works" (Psalm 73:28). James taught us about the warm reciprocating nature of this relationship, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you" (James 4:8). The call to draw near is a lifelong call and a deliberate choice we make, day after day. Far too many have a tendency to be rather casual about their relationship with God which can easily lead to a falling away from the one true God. As the saying goes, "If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything." 2) "With a sincere heart." There is no room for counterfeit or deceit when we come into the holy of holies to meet with God. "Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account" (Hebrews 4:13). Our relationship with God is foundationally taught in Scripture to be expressed from the heart, our innermost being. But the writer of Hebrews specifies a necessary quality of the way our heart needs to be, "sincere". Other versions translate this "true". 3) "In full assurance of faith." Assurance is one of the greatest blessings we have. In fact one of the great hymns of the church declares, "Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine." Assurance comes from the word sure and means that we can fully depend and rely on God's promises. The relationship is faith-based as God ordained. "Without faith it is impossible to please God" (Hebrews 11:6). Oh, how we need to draw near to God! And by God's glorious grace we can do so "with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith." Let us draw near to God today! Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily prayer: Father, we draw near to you with a clear conscience because our hearts are sprinkled with the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ. Because of His sacrificial death we can approach Your throne with full assurance and have audience with a holy God. We can bring nothing artificial nor can we cover up that which is within our hearts because You see everything. So we draw near to You with sincere hearts, fully assured, that You also draw near to us. Amen. Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources Click on the link to open and play.(In some cases you may also need to click again to start the song.) "Draw Me Close To You" Video "Draw Me Nearer" Video "Jesus, Draw Me Nearer" Video Kristyn Getty "Blessed Assurance" Video "Blessed Assurance" Audio from the Lifespring Hymnstory podcast. This is one of Fanny Crosby's most beloved hymns. This version has the story as well as a nice version of the hymn.  Fanny Crosby tombstone in Bridgeport Connecticut 1820-1915 |
  Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. Would you please consider a financial offering to support us in this daily encouragement ministry? Donations are tax deductible and will be receipted directly by my chaplaincy endorsing ministry. Thanks! See here for details.2010 YTD financial offerings as of 10/6/10 $11,203.00 SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? If you desire you can receive your own free! To receive these "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. This newsletter is never sent by us unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR a friend forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the rss feed or as an email subscription through feedburner.Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If you no longer desire to receive these messages you can remove your address from the list by merely using the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each email message. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Weekly Version: The weekly version is intended for those who may not check their email regularly or who may desire less frequent mailings. It is Friday's message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. Reader Survey: Please take a few minutes to assist us in improving our ministry effectiveness by filling out this online reader survey. To take the survey click here. Please feel free to pass these messages on! "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "A Little Foolishness" - Humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) Last updated with the story of Mildred Swanson, who joyfully discovers her "spiritual gift" is sending forwarded emails! (Note: This material is satire!) "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. (Actually this is my intent but I haven't done much with it!) "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. All of these songs are also available for download on the site.  Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com. Any orders placed to Christian Book Distributers using this link or any specific product link to a recommended resource in a daily encouragement message will help our Daily Encouragement ministry through a small commission on the sale. Thank you for using these links when purchasing online through CBD!Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."  How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. © Copyright 2010 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us  Endorsed chaplain "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net |
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