Orange Moon Wednesday, April 30, 2025 “Generosity and Sacrifice”

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe

"Generosity and Sacrifice"  

    

      

    Generosity is measured by sacrifice.

    "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have  everlasting life" (John 3:16).

    How giving and beneficent is our Lord?  Look to Calvary where we see His generous heart on full display as the Son of His love became, for our sakes, the object of His wrath.

    "He hath made Him to be sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him" (II Corinthians 5:21).

     "He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him freely give us all things?" (Romans 8:32).

    God loves to give.  In fact, a primary reason for our existence involves His desire to provide for others.  All creation requires His eternally ongoing supply.  "By Him all things consist… He giveth to all life and breath and all things" (Colossians 1:27; Acts 17:25).  This especially includes the human race made in His image.  It greatly pleases Him to provide for us as we look to Him in faith and submission to His place in our existence.  Thereby, we honor Him by the recognition of our utter need to trust Him, and His abundant generosity revealed as we do.  Moreover, that He freely gives us all things through the Christ He "spared not" reveals how greatly He desires to be and do all we require regarding "life and breath and all things."

    We must know God in this glorious light of generosity, measured by sacrifice.  Scripture plainly states the truth.  The Holy Spirit bears witness.  Our lives reveal a God whose graciousness even eternity will not fully display.  Yes, our Lord loves to give.  We exist to serve as beneficiaries of His generosity.  The better we know this truth about Him and ourselves, the more we will trust Him and experience the truth of who He is, and who we are.  Most importantly, we will glorify Him and serve as the brightest of all lights that shine upon His glorious heart of generosity, as measured by sacrifice…

"But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved) alnd hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus."

(Ephesians 2:4-7)

"My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."

 (Philippians 4:19).

Weekly Memory Verse 

   For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

 (Ephesians 2:10)

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Orange Moon Tuesday, April 29, 2025 "I Did Not Know"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe

"I Did Not Know"  

    

      

    I did not know.

    "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now" (Philippians 1:3-5).

    When I trusted the Lord Jesus Christ in September, 1975, I realized my sins were forgiven, God had become my Father, Heaven was assured, and the Lord Jesus Christ promised to be and do all I would ever need as my Savior and Master.  I did not know, however, that trusting the Savior involved being born again into a family, "the whole family of Heaven and earth" (Ephesians 3:15).  

    "As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name" (John 1:12).

  

    I quickly discovered the wonder of having brothers and sisters, a grace perhaps particularly pertinent to me because I had grown up as an only child.  Soon into my walk with the Lord, I realized my journey also involved walking heart in heart, hand in hand with fellow believers in the Lord Jesus.  I became amazed by such grace exhibited in those who shared the same Lord and the same faith, so much so that nearly a half century later, I literally shudder to imagine what my life would have been life without Christ and His people.  Indeed, it would not have been life.

   For each of us, the body of Christ includes those with whom we live closely, that is believers in our family, church, neighborhood, workplace, school, and other venues.  It also includes those we meet along the way, some perhaps just for a moment in time, but in which God imparts a marvel of eternity that will impact us forever.  Either way, God's gift to us of each other includes many people we would not have known apart from His saving grace in Christ, and many ways in which we would not have known Him as revealed in His people.

   Such things come to heart and mind every time I write one of these devotionals.  I cannot imagine the last 27 years without your fellowship and friendship in Christ.  I have not had direct contact with all of you, of course, but I sense your fellowship nonetheless.  For those of you I have come to know through this endeavor, well, they have not made words to express what you have meant to me.  I will say it as I often do, and as I expressed to a friend yesterday: "I would not have wanted to have lived without having known you."

    We encounter the Lord Jesus in each other as He dwells in us, and as He shines through us to one another.  We will understand this better by and by.  For now, let us believe it because it is true, and because in those times of blessedness together, the remembrance of the One who comes to us through each other enhances our gratitude, appreciation, wonder, and love.  I did not know such things when first I became a believer.  I did not know that the gift of Christ would include a family for which I could never begin to give enough thanks.  I know it now, but not as much as I should and must, and not as much as I will forevermore in the direct presence of our Lord and His people.

"Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments, as the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forevermore."

(Psalm 133:1-3)

Weekly Memory Verse 

   For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

 (Ephesians 2:10)

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Orange Moon Monday, April 28, 2025 "Who?... What?"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe

"Who?… What?"  

    

      

    If we don't know "Who?," we will not know "What?"

    "For with Thee is the fountain of life.  In Thy light shall we see light" (Psalm 36:9).

   

    Why do we exist?  Make it personal.  Why do I exist?  The answer shining forth from the pages of Scripture tells us: "It is He that hath made us, and not we ourselves" (Psalm 100:3).  We did not will ourselves in tobeing, nor do we maintain our existence.  "By Him all things consist" (Colossians 1:17).  The "Who?" of our life must therefore be established within our hearts and minds as paramount.  "He is thy life" declared Moses in the Old Testament.  "Christ is our life" affirmed the Apostle Paul in the New (Deuteronomy 30:20; Colossians 3:4).

     "What?" matters greatly.  God made us us to do in heart, mind, and body.  "Be ye doers of the Word, and not hearers only" (James 1:22).  Active engagement of our humanity will characterize the lives of believers through the presence of a God Himself so actively engaged in His creation that He "worketh all things after the counsel of His own will" (Ephesians 1:11).   No genuine relationship with Him exists that does not include His ongoing motivation in us "to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13).  This abides as true in our present lifetime, and will be even more our experience in eternity when what we do will perfectly express the reality of the great Doer's presence in us.  "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10).  Yes, "What?" matters greatly.

    "Who?" nevertheless matters most.  God made us for relationship and fellowship with Himself forevermore.  "This is life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent" (John 17:3).  "Who art Thou, Lord?" asked Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus upon first encountering the risen Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 9:5).  As the Apostle Paul, he doubtless sked the same question throughout the remainder of his earthly lifetime.  Paul doubtless continues the inquiry even more in the direct presence of the eternal, infinite God who can never be fully known by created beings.  Among believers, no greater doer of the works of God ever lived than Paul.  He would tell us, however, that his life flowed along the river of "What?" because he discovered its source and headwaters as "Who?"

    Let us diligently apply ourselves to what the Lord would have us to do in this day and throughout our lives.  Let us also realize that who He is, and our knowledge thereof, determines the quality and quantity of our doings.  This includes our thoughts, attitudes, words, actions, and relating to God and people.  "What will You have me to do, Heavenly Father?"  The question matters so very much, far more than we begin to realize.  However, the greater inquiry - "Who are You, Lord?" matters first and most.  The sequence - "Who?… What?" must never be reversed in our hearts and minds as we seek to honor the God we know, and the God with whom we walk.

"This is life eternal, that they that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent."

 (John 17:3)

Weekly Memory Verse 

   For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

(Ephesians 2:10)

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