Tag: Bible verses about following Jesus

Bible Verse of The Day – 9-16-24

Luke 9:23 (NKJV) 23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.

We often hear this verse quoted as a way of teaching us that following Jesus requires a sacrifice on our part.

It is true. There is a sacrifice required.

And sometimes that sacrifice is great.

But we must also look at another aspect of this!

As we take up that cross and follow Him daily, it moves us closer to Him.

We begin to better understand the sacrifice He made for us on that cross.

We get to feel the discomfort of persecution and making tough choices when we take a stand for His truth.

Our discomfort from carrying that cross puts us in fellowship with Him.

What happens when we move closer to Him and dwell in His presence?

He teaches us the meaning of joy!

Walking closely to our Savior helps us better understand what true joy is.

Psalm 16:11 (NKJV) 11 You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

No longer do we fret and worry about pleasing people.

Instead, our focus is on pleasing Him.

And knowing that we are living to please Him is the most satisfying thing we can do with our lives.

We cannot let the enemy fool us into believing that carrying our cross daily brings nothing but pain and misery.

Once we understand this, we will begin walking in fullness of His joy and pleasures that we never previously recognized.

Amen

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 7-8-24

John 10:10 (NKJV) 10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

As Jesus spoke, He was contrasting Himself with the devil, who He referred to as the thief.

He stated that the devil had come to steal, kill, and destroy, but He had come that we might have life abundantly.

But what exactly is the abundance Jesus was referring to?

Many people will immediately think of monetary wealth or material possessions.

This is a popular viewpoint among some believers and teachers since Jesus didn’t specify the type of abundance He was referring to as He spoke in this situation.

But if we were to look at the teachings of Jesus overall, viewing the bigger picture, we would see that He was not speaking at all about monetary or material abundance.

You see, Jesus spoke frequently about why He had come. Never did He state that He had come to make people wealthy or to help them store up an abundance of material goods.

For anyone to teach that this was His purpose would be terribly incorrect. It would, in fact, be bordering on heresy.

Jesus did speak many times throughout His ministry about riches, wealth, storing up treasures on earth, etc. But not once did He speak of these things in a positive light.

In fact, He stated that the possibility of a rich man entering heaven was as difficult as a camel passing through the eye of a needle.

Matthew 19:23-24 (NKJV)23 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

When His disciples questioned Him further, Jesus told them that with man it is impossible, but with God all things are possible, clarifying that a rich man entering the kingdom of heaven is only possible if that man submits everything about his life to God, including his wealth.

To be clear, the abundance Jesus came to bring was not material wealth. It was spiritual wealth.

It is the redemption and salvation of mankind that He offers to all who will accept it.

It is the healing power that comes by way of faith in Him.

And it is the forgiveness of our sins by the washing of them in His blood, making us new creations in Him.

Any teaching that claims Christ died a cruel, terrible death on the cross for mankind to become wealthy is false and needs to be seen as such.

Turn away from such teachings and embrace the true gospel that states we must take up our cross and deny ourselves.

Luke 9:23 (NKJV) 23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.

And let us find true treasure in our relationship with the one, true God.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-23-22

John 10:27 (NKJV) 27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.

Wow, what a mouthful Jesus spoke here!

This verse is so short that it might appear to the eyes of many readers as being fairly insignificant. But that’s not the case at all.

It was winter in Jerusalem, and the Jews were celebrating the Feast of Dedication, which is known in modern times as Hannukah. We won’t delve into the meaning behind this celebration except to say that it commemorated a very important event in Jewish history.

While in Jerusalem, Jesus walked in the temple.

As He did so, some Jews surrounded Him and asked, ”How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, just tell us”.

Jesus looked at them and said, “I have told you, but you do not believe”.

He then went on to explain that they do not believe because they are not of His sheep. And it was then that He used the words in the verse above, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me”.

These words were not chosen randomly or without purpose. They were used to drive home a point; “if you were my sheep, you would already know who I am. And you wouldn’t need to ask me this question”.

It’s the same today. As His sheep, we recognize who He is.

And just as importantly, we will hear His voice and follow Him.

Hearing His voice doesn’t simply mean hearing the sound of His voice, but heeding that voice and doing (obeying) what it says.

This is what separates the sheep from those who might call themselves sheep but are really imposters.

Imposters may hear the sound of His voice, but will not obey.

True sheep (followers) will obey and follow Him willingly, even if what He says might be hard.

It’s important that we not only hear Jesus, but that we obey Him. This will show us where our heart is, and where our relationship with Him stands.

Let us be sheep that hear Him and follow Him!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-3-22

John 13:33 (NKJV) 33 Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come,’ so now I say to you.

Can you imagine spending time with Jesus for 2-3 years, and then having Him suddenly tell you, “where I am going you cannot come.”?

I can’t even imagine what Peter was feeling, but I can understand him asking, “why can’t I follow you?”.

John 13:37 (NKJV) 37 Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.”

I can understand Peter’s heart for Jesus and saying he will lay down his life for Him.

Peter loved Him. And in the moment, he really thought he would do anything for Him. Peter had good intentions.

Sometimes we too have good intentions, but when we start to feel the pressure of it all, we run. We deny. And we hide.

Jesus knew Peter better than Peter knew Himself.

Isn’t that the way it is with us?

We would love to do certain things, but when we are faced with what it takes to do it, we change our minds. We just don’t want to go through what it takes to get there.

Jesus was about to face crucifixion. Peter would soon find out that his words of laying down his life for Him were shallow, and he would ultimately deny knowing Him, not just once, nor twice, but three times.

John 13:38 (NKJV) 38 Jesus answered him, “Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times.

My heart aches for us, the body of Christ, when we have to learn what we are really made of versus what we think we are.

Wow. 3 times denying Someone we just said we would lay down our life for. That was truly a humbling moment for Peter.

But the reality of it all is that Jesus knows us. If we truly want to follow Him, let Him show us what we can handle.

We need to trust Him and not try to tell Him what we are capable of. He already knows. Listen to His guidance.

Amen.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 1-14-22

Luke 9:23 (NKJV) 23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.

Take up his cross. Wow, this is a huge statement.

What is our cross? And how do we take it up daily?

Jesus’ cross was literal, and it led to His death by crucifixion.

He took it up and walked it out to the end. When He was done, His Father was completely pleased with Him.

What is our cross?

We each have a personal cross to take up. Whether we will do it or not is the question.

Will we get serious with Christ and follow His lead for our life?

That is our daily cross; to follow His leading, pushing our fleshly desires aside and letting His desires rise above ours.

This will cause us to deny what we want, saying no to our flesh, and starving ourselves from earthly cravings that aren’t good for us.

Money and material wealth will take a back seat when carrying our cross.

Jesus was our example. He gave His life daily to us, teaching, healing, and delivering, and then ultimately dying for us. He carried His cross with everything in Him!

Can we take up our cross and follow through, not looking back, shutting doors that need to be closed, and putting first those things that matter most to Him?

Only we can answer that question.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 7-21-21

John 8:12 (NKJV) 12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

In Monday’s devotional, we used this verse to reinforce the fact that Jesus was the light of the world.

Today, let’s look at it to see what it means to us, as believers.

Look at what Jesus said about those who follow Him; they “shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life”.

That’s some significant stuff right there.

Why is it significant?

Because it tells us exactly who we are supposed to be and what our lives should look like.

Let’s break it down.

1. Those who follow Me.

What does He mean by the word, “follow”?

Jesus was very clear on several occasions regarding those who follow Him. In another scripture (John 10:27), he said that His sheep would know His voice, and they would follow Him.

Following Him means more than just knowing who He is, or having a casual knowledge of Him.

It means to put our complete faith and trust in Him, and to walk that faith out in every aspect of our lives. It is not something that rises and falls based on our emotions or our daily moods. We are no longer our own. We belong wholly to Him.

2. They shall not walk in darkness.

This isn’t referring to natural light. This is a reference to how our lives are conducted. We live in the light of the Holy Spirit, and that light shines through us, onto to those around us and into the dark world that we live in.

Our lives reflect that light, and it should be visible in everything that we do.

Will we be perfect in executing that? Not as long as we are living here on earth, walking in the fleshly body that we inhabit. But as we allow His Spirit to teach us and guide us, He will become more and more obvious in our actions.

3. They shall have the light of life.

1 John 1:7 tells us to walk in the light as He is in the light.

As we allow Him to guide our steps, darkness will slowly be pushed out of our lives, and light will dominate.

The things we say and do will more clearly represent the kingdom of God (light), and the ways of darkness (evil) will eventually fade into the distant background.

Ephesians 5:8 (NKJV) 8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light…

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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Bible Verse of The Day – 7-2-21

John 10:27 (NKJV) 27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.

This is a familiar verse to most of us. We’ve probably heard or read it many times in the past.

And we have probably all read it and moved on, thinking very little about the depth of it.

I did that, too, until recently, when the Holy Spirit showed me something that I had missed.

Look at those last 4 words; “and they follow me”.

God clearly showed me that most of us miss the importance of those 4 words.

You see, we often state that we believe in Jesus. We put our faith in Him. We trust Him.

But Jesus said that His sheep “follow Him”.

There is a big difference between believing in someone and following them!

Now that caught my attention.

To believe in someone conveys that we have some kind of confidence in them as a person of significance, or a leader; someone of great importance.

But to follow them indicates that we do far more than just believe in them. We trust them with everything; our life, our eternal destiny, our very soul.

It also means that we obey them! We do what they say we should do.

That is probably the biggest outward sign of following Jesus; that we obey Him in the way we live and the actions we take in our day to day lives.

We live like He lived. And we live the way He instructed us to.

Why? Not simply because it seems like the right thing to do. But because we love Him.

Remember the exchange between Peter and Jesus?

Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him. By the third time, Peter was frustrated. But Jesus was trying to make a point; that He wanted Peter to understand what it meant to love Him.

And then He told Peter to do something that was significant, but seemed rather odd at the time; feed My sheep.

It was then that Peter started to get it. It “clicked”, and he understood the depth of what it means to follow Jesus.

And that level of loving and following Jesus ultimately cost Peter his life, as He literally followed Jesus to his death years later.

John 21:17 (NKJV) 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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Bible Verse of The Day – 5-22-21

John 15:18-19 (NKJV) 18 “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

Making a decision to follow Jesus may cause us to leave behind some people, things and places that we are used to having around.

They may be a part of our usual routines and habits.

This is part of getting serious about heavenly things and letting go of worldly things.

When we become His child, don’t expect certain people to be happy about it. They may flat out reject us, or even hate us for it.

We have now been accepted into the arms of a righteous Father. Our outlook on life will change.

Even though salvation is free for all of us, through the blood of Jesus Christ, the walk that follows will cost us some things.

But, to encourage you, know that it will be worth it all.

We may give up some things, but we will be blessed in a way we never expected. God is faithful to give us joy, peace and continued love. What more could we ever ask for?

Come out from the worldly lifestyle and walk in His peace, as He leads us and shows us the way we should go. Amen.

Thank you, Father God and Lord Jesus. We are forever grateful! Amen.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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Bible Verse of The Day – 2-13-21

John 13:37-38 (NKJV) 37 Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.” 38 Jesus answered him, “Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times.

Boy, it’s hard to believe that Peter had one thought and Jesus had another.

Peter thought, “I will die for You Lord”. But Jesus said, “no, you will deny Me”.

So sad to think that Peter really meant it at the time, only to find out what he was really made of a short time later. How disappointed he must have been.

Who are we kidding when we tell ourselves that we would have done things differently than Peter did? We are human and we have weaknesses.

Just as Peter really wanted to do what he said, it was harder than he thought when he was face to face with it. And Jesus knew it.

How many of us will say yes to Jesus, but when it comes down to doing it, we are weak and do just the opposite at that time?

Never mind about laying our life down for Him, like Peter said he would do. How about just giving to Him from our firstfruits, tithing from what He has already blessed us with?

That’s all Jesus is looking for; a willingness to obey even in the simple things.

We are not going to be perfect in this. But if we are willing to obey, we will see God’s goodness.

Isaiah 1:19 (NKJV) 19 If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land…

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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Bible Verse of The Day – 11-30-19

Mark 16:17-18 (NKJV) 17 And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

Who will these signs follow? Those who believe in Jesus!

They will cast out demons, speak with new tongues, take up serpents, drink anything deadly and it will not hurt them. They will lay hands on the sick and the people will be healed.

Some believers today have not seen any of these signs. Why? Because they lack understanding. Either they were not taught that they can do these things, or they just don’t want to. Maybe they are uncomfortable and unsure of themselves.

Of course, we are only going to do what we have been taught or what we are comfortable doing. That’s just how we are as human beings.

Comfort can bring a false sense of security, even within the body of Christ.

But we have not been called to be comfortable. We are called to serve.

In other words, we are called to do what needs to be done in any given situation, as God leads. As long as it lines up with God’s word, and He is prompting us, then we need to step out in faith and serve.

1 Corinthians 9:19 (NKJV) 19 For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more;

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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Bible Verse of The Day – 6-9-18

John 12:26 (NKJV) 26 If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.

Jesus is saying here, “if anyone serves Me, let him follow Me”.

Part of being a good servant is following Jesus. So, when we obey Him and we do the things He asks us to do in His word, we are serving Him. And when we do this, His Father, God Almighty, watches and He will honor us for it.

What a beautiful relationship we can have as we receive and follow Christ.

Jesus is not hard to love. Look at everything He is. Loving, kind, compassionate, faithful, sincere, forgiving! He heals, He delivers, He gives us eternal life, etc. What other person in our life will be all of this for us?

Following Jesus can be hard if we don’t truly want to surrender in certain areas of our life. But if we do surrender, it can be easy.

Matthew 11:30 (NKJV) 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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