Matthew on The Will

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Knowing God’s Will Will Pack the House

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Scripture

Matthew 26:36-39, Acts 16:6-10, 1 Kings 3:5-14, Isaiah 6:1-8, Matthew 6:9-13

Within the Christian community this leads to a prominence of teaching on the will of God and how to know it. Russ Johnston draws upon his own wide experience to remark how this continues to be one of ...

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In His Will is our Peace

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Ecclesiastes 16:2-4, 17-18, Ecclesiastes 4:4-6 , Numbers 12:1-9, Matthew 20:1-16 , John 21:20-22, Psalm 73:2-3, 16-17, 25-26

One of the greatest struggles we face in this life is the temptation to compare ourselves to others. As Teddy Roosevelt famously said, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” But in the final part of ...

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Wholeheartedly Committing to God's Will

Author

Frank Laubach

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Scripture

John 4:14, John 4:1-26, Isaiah 58:11, 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, Psalm 1:3, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Matthew 6:10, Proverbs 16:9, Hebrews 13:20-21, James 1:5, John 6:38-40

Frank Laubach recounts the profound shift in his life that came when he wholeheartedly committed to following God’s will: Before that moment, I was barely alive—like a tree rotting from within. Bu...

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Flourish in Your Will

Author

Steve Garnaas Holmes

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Scripture

Matthew 3:10 , John 15:5-6, Genesis 5:22-23, Hebrews 12:11, Psalm 139:23-24, Jeremiah 17:7-8, Luke 13:6-9

Dearly Beloved, the ax lying at the root of the trees is not for punishment, but pruning. Therefore, trusting in God’s tender mercy, we examine ourselves, that we may see ourselves clearly...

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Sad Will be the Day

Author

John C. Maxwell

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 6:8 , Exodus 3:10-12 , Nehemiah 2:2-5, Philippians 3:12-14, Psalm 42:1-2, Matthew 4:18-20

Phillips Brooks, the author of the famous hymn “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” He wrote: Sad will be the day for every man when he becomes absolutely contented with the life he is living, with the thoug...

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Author

Elisabeth Elliot

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Scripture

Philippians 2:5-8, Matthew 26:36-39, Matthew 4:1-11, Matthew 3:13-17, Luke 4:16-21, John 6:5-14, Matthew 17:1-5

Jesus loved the will of His Father. He embraced the limitations, the necessities, the conditions, the very chains of His humanity as He walked and worked here on earth, fulfilling moment by moment His...

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The Truth Will Set You Free

Author

Colleen Strachan

Keywords

Scripture

John 8:31-47, John 14:6, John 16:13, Luke 11:28, John 15:7, Matthew 7:24

Dallas Willard gave a series of lectures on the kingdom of God. In one, he discussed the popularity of the phrase, “The truth will set you free” by putting it in its proper kingdom context: The whole...

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Author

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Keywords

Scripture

Jeremiah 17:9, Proverbs 16:2, 1 John 1:8, James 1:22-24, Psalm 19:12, Matthew 7:3-5

You will never make yourself feel that you are a sinner, because there is a mechanism in you as a result of sin that will always be defending you against every accusation. We are all on very good term...

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Author

C. S. Lewis

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Scripture

Matthew 16:24-26, Colossians 3:1-3, Romans 8:12-13, Romans 6:18-19, Galatians 2:20, Colossians 3:5, 2 Timothy 2:3-4, 1 Peter 4:1-2, Luke 9:23, Mark 8:34-38, Luke 14:26-28

Give up yourself, and you will find your real self. Lose your life and you will save it. Submit to death, death of your ambitions and favourite wishes every day and death of your whole body in the end...

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Author

Wendell Berry

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 2:16-17 , Exodus 20:8-10 , Job 38:4-11 , Psalm 90:12, Matthew 6:27, 2 Corinthians 12:9

We will have to start over, with a different and much older premise: the naturalness and, for creatures of limited intelligence, the necessity of limits.

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Will It Float?

Author

Ray Johnston

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 40:29-31, Jonah 2:1-6, Proverbs 24:16 , Matthew 14:28-31, Psalm 55:22, 2 Corinthians 4:8-9

David Letterman’s old late-night segment “Will It Float?” once inspired our staff to fill a huge water tank, place it at the front of an auditorium, and ask three thousand people to vote which of a se...

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I will be Good

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 3:10-12, Esther 4:14, 1 Samuel 16:12-13, Luke 15:17-20, 1 Peter 2:9, Psalm 139:14, Matthew 1:

On March 11, 1830, a young English girl was studying a lesson on the royal family with her tutor. As she examined the genealogical chart, she suddenly realized the astonishing truth—she was next in li...

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We Will Still Love You

Author

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 23:4-5, 2 Kings 6:22, Proverbs 25:21-22, Matthew 5:43-44, Romans 12:17-21, Psalm 37:8-9

The Sermon on the Mount contains some of the most difficult ethical injunctions in all of scripture. Many of us do not know how to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. Martin Luther K...

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Your Cell Will Teach You Everything

Author

Thomas Merton

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 46:10, 1 Kings 19:9-18, Matthew 5:5-15, Daniel 3:19-27, Exodus 13:21-22, Mark 1:35-39, Luke 5:16, Matthew 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13, Genesis 32:24-30, Psalm 62:1, Hosea 2:14, Habakkuk 2:1, 1 Samuel 3:1-10, Isaiah 26:3

A certain brother went to Abbot Moses in Scete, and asked him for a good word. And the Elder said to him: Go, sit in your cell and your cell will teach you everything. An elder said: The monk’s ce...

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Let us receive the light and we will

Author

Clement of Alexandria

Keywords

Scripture

John 8:12-20, Psalm 136:, Psalm 27:, Isaiah 60:1, Psalm 119:105, John 9:5, Matthew 4:12-17, John 12:35

Let us receive the light and we will receive God. Let us receive the light and become disciples of the Lord. Sing. O Word; reveal the Creator to us. Your words will save us and your songs will teach u...

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You are our strength, Lord, we will

Author

Moucan

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 15:27, Psalm 18:1-2, Psalm 57:1, Mark 10:47, Ephesians 1:18

You are our strength, Lord, we will love you, under the shadow of your wings, protect us. Jesus, son of David, have mercy on us, that you may open the eyes of our hearts. We shall call to you with the...

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Author

C. S. Lewis

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 6:33, Colossians 3:1-2, Mark 8:36, Philippians 3:20, 1 Timothy 6:7, Hebrews 11:10

Aim at Heaven and you will get Earth 'thrown in': aim at Earth and you will get neither.

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Author

C. S. Lewis

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Proverbs 24:16, James 1:12, Philippians 3:13-14, Psalm 103:13-14, Hebrews 4:15-16, Matthew 25:14-30, Luke 18:1-8, Exodus 16:, Mark 5:25-34, Romans 5:3-5

God knows our situation; He will not judge us as if we had no difficulties to overcome. What matters is the sincerity and perseverance of our will to overcome them.

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Christ Will Hold Me Fast

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 121:3-4, Matthew 14:22-33, Romans 8:38-39, Philippians 1:6, John 10:27-29, 2 Timothy 2:13

Robert Harkness (1880-1961) was an Australian pianist influential in the transition in churches from organ to piano music. Early on, he traveled with evangelist R. A. Torrey and played at his evangeli...

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Will I Meet People Like Jesus?

Author

Mark Labberton

Keywords

Jesus

Scripture

Colossians 1:15-17, 2 Corinthians 3:18, John 13:34-35, 1 John 2:6, Luke 10:30-37, Matthew 25:35-40

His tattoos were flames that licked their way up his neck to his cheekbones. I had caught sight of him only from a distance while I was preaching, a visitor I’d not yet had a chance to meet. But this ...

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Author

D. L. Moody

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 12:2, 1 Peter 1:15-16, Matthew 5:14-16, Ephesians 5:8, Philippians 2:14-15, 1 Timothy 4:12, 2 Corinthians 7:1

A holy life will make the deepest impression. Lighthouses blow no horns, they just shine.

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Author

Brennan Manning

Keywords

Scripture

Acts 9:1-19, John 4:1-26, Luke 19:1-10, Luke 5:1-11, John 6:44, Ephesians 2:8-9, Matthew 4:19

We cannot will ourselves to accept grace. There are no magic words, preset formulas, or esoteric rites of passage. Only Jesus Christ sets us free from indecision. The Scriptures offer no other basis f...

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Author

A. W. Tozer

Keywords

Scripture

Philippians 4:6-7, Isaiah 26:3-4, 2 Corinthians 5:7, Matthew 6:33, Psalm 37:5

The man of pseudo faith will fight for his verbal creed but refuse flatly to allow himself to get into a predicament where his future must depend upon that creed being true. He always provides himself...

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Author

Max Lucado

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 33:11, Romans 12:2, Matthew 6:10, Jeremiah 29:11, 1 John 5:14, Romans 8:28

Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want. It is the belief that God will do what is right.

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Author

Eleanor Doan

Keywords

Scripture

1 John 4:7-8, Luke 19:1-10, Matthew 8:5-13, Proverbs 25:21-22, Romans 12:20-21, Luke 6:27-28, Matthew 5:43-44

Love your enemy-it will drive him nuts.

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Author

John Milton

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 5:5, Jeremiah 9:23-24, Galatians 5:19-21, 1 Peter 3:9, Philippians 2:3-4, Romans 12:19, Proverbs 16:18

But what will not Ambition and Revenge Descend to? Who aspires must down as low As high he sor’d, obnoxious first or last To basest things.

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The Heart in Scripture

Author

J. Stowell

Keywords

Scripture

Hebrews 4:12, Psalm 51:10, Romans 10:9-10, Matthew 6:21, Ezekiel 36:26, Jeremiah 17:9-10, Proverbs 4:23

The heart is used in Scripture as the most comprehensive term for the authentic person. It is the part of our being where we desire, deliberate, and decide. It has been described as “the place of cons...

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Speak, Lord, for your servant

Author

Christina Rossetti

Keywords

Scripture

1 Samuel 3:1-21, Psalm 119:18, Matthew 21:28-32, Isaiah 6:8

Speak, Lord, for your servant hears. Grant us ears to hear, Eyes to see, Wills to obey, Hearts to love; Then declare what You will, Reveal what You will, Command what You will, Demand what You will.

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The Hand will Be the First to Burn

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Daniel 3:, Job 1:, Matthew 10:32-33, 2 Timothy 1:7, Psalm 31:24

Thomas Cranmer (1489–1556), the archbishop of Canterbury from 1532 to 1556, played a pivotal role in the English Reformation. A key figure in Henry VIII’s break with the Roman Catholic Church, Cranmer...

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Fearing to Want

Author

Jen Pollock Michel

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 5:18-21, Proverbs 20:1, 1 Corinthians 10:23-24, Colossians 3:5, James 1:12-15, Matthew 6:19-24, Ecclesiastes 6:9

In her thought-provoking book, Teach us to Want , Jen Pollock Michel describes the tension in listening to our deepest desires: some of them these desires are integral to our identity, but they a...

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