Below are the full scriptures as taken from the
New King James Version for our weekly thoughts.
New King James Version for our weekly thoughts.
Thought For the Week
May 2, 2008
Romans 8
Romans 8
Free from Indwelling Sin
1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the
flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law
of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His
own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 that the righteous
requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live
according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded
is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor
indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not
have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit
is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He
who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
Sonship Through the Spirit
12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live
according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of
bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The
Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of
God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.
From Suffering to Glory
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which
shall be revealed in us. 19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the
sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in
hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious
liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs
together until now. 23 Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan
within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. 24 For we were saved in this
hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for
what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.
26 Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought,
but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 Now He who
searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints
according to the will of God.
28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called
according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His
Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also
called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.
God’s Everlasting Love
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare
His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? 33 Who
shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who
died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or
nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written:
“ For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”
37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that
neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor
height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in
Christ Jesus our Lord.
May 14, 2008
Job 14
1 “Man who is born of woman
Is of few days and full of trouble.
2 He comes forth like a flower and fades away;
He flees like a shadow and does not continue.
3 And do You open Your eyes on such a one,
And bring me to judgment with Yourself?
4 Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?
No one!
5 Since his days are determined,
The number of his months is with You;
You have appointed his limits, so that he cannot pass.
6 Look away from him that he may rest,
Till like a hired man he finishes his day.
7 “For there is hope for a tree,
If it is cut down, that it will sprout again,
And that its tender shoots will not cease.
8 Though its root may grow old in the earth,
And its stump may die in the ground,
9 Yet at the scent of water it will bud
And bring forth branches like a plant.
10 But man dies and is laid away;
Indeed he breathes his last
And where is he?
11 As water disappears from the sea,
And a river becomes parched and dries up,
12 So man lies down and does not rise.
Till the heavens are no more,
They will not awake
Nor be roused from their sleep.
13 “Oh, that You would hide me in the grave,
That You would conceal me until Your wrath is past,
That You would appoint me a set time, and remember me!
14 If a man dies, shall he live again?
All the days of my hard service I will wait,
Till my change comes.
15 You shall call, and I will answer You;
You shall desire the work of Your hands.
16 For now You number my steps,
But do not watch over my sin.
17 My transgression is sealed up in a bag,
And You cover my iniquity.
18 “But as a mountain falls and crumbles away,
And as a rock is moved from its place;
19 As water wears away stones,
And as torrents wash away the soil of the earth;
So You destroy the hope of man.
20 You prevail forever against him, and he passes on;
You change his countenance and send him away.
21 His sons come to honor, and he does not know it;
They are brought low, and he does not perceive it.
22 But his flesh will be in pain over it,
And his soul will mourn over it.”
June 4, 2008
Matthew 6
Do Good to Please God
1 “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have
no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet
before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men.
Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand
know what your right hand is doing, 4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in
secret will Himself reward you openly.[a]
The Model Prayer
5 “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues
and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their
reward. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father
who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.[b] 7 And when you pray,
do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.
8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9 In
this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.[c]
14 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not
forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Fasting to Be Seen Only by God
16 “Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their
faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 17 But you,
when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to
your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.[d]
Lay Up Treasures in Heaven
19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in
and steal; 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where
thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
The Lamp of the Body
22 “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if
your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how
great is that darkness!
You Cannot Serve God and Riches
24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to
the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
Do Not Worry
25 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your
body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of
the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not
of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor
spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God
so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more
clothe you, O you of little faith?
31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32
For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its
own trouble.
June 21, 2008
Jeremiah 29
A Letter to the Exiles
1 This is the text of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders among the
exiles and to the priests, the prophets and all the other people Nebuchadnezzar had carried into exile from
Jerusalem to Babylon. 2 (This was after King Jehoiachin and the queen mother, the court officials and the
leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen and the artisans had gone into exile from Jerusalem.) 3 He
entrusted the letter to Elasah son of Shaphan and to Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah
sent to King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. It said:
4 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to
Babylon: 5 "Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 Marry and have sons
and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons
and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. 7 Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to
which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper." 8 Yes,
this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: "Do not let the prophets and diviners among you
deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. 9 They are prophesying lies to you in
my name. I have not sent them," declares the LORD.
10 This is what the LORD says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill
my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the
LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call
upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me
with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity. I will
gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you
back to the place from which I carried you into exile."
15 You may say, "The LORD has raised up prophets for us in Babylon," 16 but this is what the LORD says
about the king who sits on David's throne and all the people who remain in this city, your countrymen who did
not go with you into exile- 17 yes, this is what the LORD Almighty says: "I will send the sword, famine and
plague against them and I will make them like poor figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten. 18 I will pursue
them with the sword, famine and plague and will make them abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth and an
object of cursing and horror, of scorn and reproach, among all the nations where I drive them. 19 For they have
not listened to my words," declares the LORD, "words that I sent to them again and again by my servants the
prophets. And you exiles have not listened either," declares the LORD.
20 Therefore, hear the word of the LORD, all you exiles whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon. 21
This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of
Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you in my name: "I will hand them over to Nebuchadnezzar king of
Babylon, and he will put them to death before your very eyes. 22 Because of them, all the exiles from Judah
who are in Babylon will use this curse: 'The LORD treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon
burned in the fire.' 23 For they have done outrageous things in Israel; they have committed adultery with their
neighbors' wives and in my name have spoken lies, which I did not tell them to do. I know it and am a witness to
it," declares the LORD.
Message to Shemaiah
24 Tell Shemaiah the Nehelamite, 25 "This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: You sent letters
in your own name to all the people in Jerusalem, to Zephaniah son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the other
priests. You said to Zephaniah, 26 'The LORD has appointed you priest in place of Jehoiada to be in charge of
the house of the LORD; you should put any madman who acts like a prophet into the stocks and neck-irons. 27
So why have you not reprimanded Jeremiah from Anathoth, who poses as a prophet among you? 28 He has
sent this message to us in Babylon: It will be a long time. Therefore build houses and settle down; plant
gardens and eat what they produce.' "
29 Zephaniah the priest, however, read the letter to Jeremiah the prophet. 30 Then the word of the LORD
came to Jeremiah: 31 "Send this message to all the exiles: 'This is what the LORD says about Shemaiah the
Nehelamite: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, even though I did not send him, and has led you to
believe a lie, 32 this is what the LORD says: I will surely punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants.
He will have no one left among this people, nor will he see the good things I will do for my people.
August 3, 2008
Philippians 3
No Confidence in the Flesh
1Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a
safeguard for you.
2Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh. 3For it is we who are the
circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the
flesh— 4though I myself have reasons for such confidence.
If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5circumcised on the eighth
day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6as
for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.
7But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a
loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all
things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my
own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God
and is by faith. 10I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his
sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Pressing on Toward the Goal
12Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of
that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But
one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to
win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
15All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too
God will make clear to you. 16Only let us live up to what we have already attained.
17Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern
we gave you. 18For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies
of the cross of Christ. 19Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their
shame. Their mind is on earthly things. 20But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from
there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will
transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
August 10, 2008
Psalm 30
A Psalm. A Song at the dedication of the house of David.
1 I will extol You, O LORD, for You have lifted me up,
And have not let my foes rejoice over me.
2 O LORD my God, I cried out to You,
And You healed me.
3 O LORD, You brought my soul up from the grave;
You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
4 Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of His,
And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.
5 For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for life;
Weeping may endure for a night,
But joy comes in the morning.
6 Now in my prosperity I said,
“I shall never be moved.”
7 LORD, by Your favor You have made my mountain stand strong;
You hid Your face, and I was troubled.
8 I cried out to You, O LORD;
And to the LORD I made supplication:
9 “What profit is there in my blood,
When I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise You?
Will it declare Your truth?
10 Hear, O LORD, and have mercy on me;
LORD, be my helper!”
11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,
12 To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever.
| First Glorious Church Of Love, Inc. Copyright 2007-2008. Artwork/logo courtesy of Nick Sears, images property of First Glorious Church of Love, Inc. Copyright 2007-2008. |