Mt. Sinai and Mt. Zion both are real places, but they are also symbolic. Mt. Sinai is the place Moses received the ten commandments and represents the Law. It represents legalism and works. It represents fear. Mt. Zion is where Christ was crucified. It represents grace. It represents Jesus’ blood that paid for our sins so that we may be forgiven and saved. It represents heaven. Many choose one or the other. Which would you choose? Of course, those who are believers and have accepted the grace that God has given us to be saved, it does not mean we ignore the ten commandments. The difference is we want to honor God and be obedient to Him because of His grace and because we love Him, not so that we can earn favor with Him. We cannot. There is one way to salvation and that is through the cross. It is through Jesus Christ and Jesus alone. Continue reading “Mt. Sinai or Mt. Zion?”
Author: davesdailyscriptures
I lived in the far corner of Northeastern Washington with my beautiful wife for 16 years, but now live in my home state of Wisconsin. God has blessed me tremendously and I am so thankful for His grace, and the people He has put in my life, and for His work in and around me.
Pray for Others
Ezekiel 22:30
So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.
God wants us to be intercessors. To stand in the gap. A city fortified by a wall has a sense of security and protection. But, if there is a breach, a gap, it becomes vulnerable. We too have vulnerabilities. The devil looks for these gaps to attack us. It may be a weakness, a relationship (a bad one, tension within one, heartache), struggles at work, home, church, health, finances, decisions, feeling guilty or pride, lack of confidence, being complacent or rebellious, sin in your life, and the list goes on. Do not be afraid to share that vulnerability with someone. You don’t have to go through it alone. Also, seek those who are struggling and pray for them.
Praying Together
One thing I notice lacking in churches is togetherness and prayer. Sure, there may be some fellowship, “meet and greet” time, potlucks and things like that, but do we get together and really get to know each other? Do we get together and pray? Do we pray for each other? Do we know each other enough to know what to pray for? Not just the superficial stuff like health and “travel mercies,” but also the intimate stuff, the spiritual needs, the struggles, the battles we go through in life. 
I’ve always been an advocate of small groups, where we can gather together in homes and get to know one another, studying God’s word and praying for one another. It is also a time to seek and give godly advice and encouraging one another. We as a church need to be more than just a gathering on Sundays (or Saturdays), but we need to be more like a family, with unity, really, truly caring for one another and loving one another and not just one or two days a week but throughout the week. We as a church need to intercede for those outside of the church, that they would receive knowledge of Jesus Christ and believe the truth. We need to pray for the leaders and people of this country, especially with all the division, hatred, name pointing, biased accusations and covering up truth and all that we see and hear. We need to gather and pray. Together. Continue reading “Praying Together”
When Things Don’t Go as Planned
Last week was a stressful week. Work has already been stressful lately (which has been literally giving me headaches), but with the metal prices low, the company I worked for had to take some measures to reduce costs (I work for a zinc mine). One of those measures included some layoffs. Thank God I was not one of them, but I don’t know what the future holds in the years to come. I have been planning a mission trip to Haiti for some time now. Plans were to leave the end of this month. But, I received a call that there is some civil unrest there and demonstrations were planned for the time I would be going there. So, missionaries decided to cancel any mission trips during that time for obvious safety concerns. The good news is that they are going to have a mission team going there mid-December and they were hoping that I could go then. This was good news, but it also meant rescheduling flights and canceling hotel rooms. All in all, this would add to the cost and I will be sleeping in the airport for the overnight layover because the hotel room was non-refundable. I purchased travel insurance, but it did not cover this circumstance. I know that God always works things out for good and His timing is right, but it did leave me with doubt, frustration, discouragement and wondering what I did wrong, or if He was testing my faith or if the devil was trying to keep me from going or working on my mind to lose faith or be distracted or keep from doing what God wants me to do, or…or…or… Continue reading “When Things Don’t Go as Planned”
Nebuchadnezzar’s Prayer of Praise
Nebuchadnezzar? Praising God? The great king of the Babylonian empire who had a large golden statue of himself be built to worship? Yes, that one. Babylon was one of the greatest empires in history that conquered most of the known world at the time, beginning around 626 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar ruled from 605-562 B.C., being one of the greatest emperors known. He was also ruthless. He destroyed Jerusalem and tore down it’s walls, looted the temple and brought the Israelite people into exile, killing many and enslaving many. When he has his dream, he asked his counselors not only to interpret 
his dreams but to tell him what it was! When they could not, he threatened to cut them all to pieces and burn down their houses. He executed any who would not bow down and worship his image of gold. But, God revealed the dream to Daniel and its interpretation giving him favor with the king. The king let his pride get the best of him, and God brought him down and showed him His majesty and power. When the king was at his lowest he realized how great God was and turned to Him. God used Daniel and used the king’s circumstances to reveal His greatness and to bring him to righteousness. I believe that Nebuchadnezzar was saved at this time. Only God knows for sure. God will use many ways to draw people to Him. He is a God of mercy. No matter what you have done in the past, where you are at in life, He seeks your love and wants you to be saved. He sent His Son to die on the cross, that our sins may be forgiven. He uses other people to be a witness so others would see the truth and turn to him. Sometimes He will allow us to stumble from our own selfishness and pride to a low point to bring us to surrender to Him, so that we can have eternal life. He uses all things for good, so that we can become His children. This is the prayer of Nebuchanezzar (or, more like a proclamation of how great God is) after he was brought down by God and restored. Continue reading “Nebuchadnezzar’s Prayer of Praise”
My Daily Scriptures 