Daily Devotional, Year 2 – NOVEMBER 9 (When My Body Becomes My Torture Chamber)

By admin On February 9th, 2021

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Daily Devotional, Year 2 – NOVEMBER 9

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When My Body Becomes My Torture Chamber

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“But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are

partakers of Christ’s sufferings;

that, when His glory shall be revealed,

ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.”

1st Peter 4:13

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There are just some people who seem to get away with mistreating and abusing their body.

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And then, there’s the rest of us!

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Palmer carpenter – wikipedia – public domain

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OUR JUDGMENT NOT SLUMBERING!

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Oh yes, when we were young we thought we were exempt from repercussions from our “youthful indiscretions”. But then, in our 40’s, 50’s, or 60’s, we realized that, “pay-day”, does indeed eventually come around!

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And the proverbial, “Piper”, finally comes by to collect the wages due him! And we finally understand that our judgment was not at all slumbering, but it was merely lingering until the right moment…to spring upon us!

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MANY ACHES, PAINS, ETC…

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And so, what are we to do, now that our body is beginning to torment us?

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Oh you know, the moments when some sharp pain stabs us in the foot or in the side, etc., and feels like somebody just stuck us with a knife.

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Or when our elimination becomes painful.

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Or our arthritis, or our gout, or our hearing, or our vision, or our headaches, or one of the other countless aches and pains or disabling conditions makes life not so bearable!

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What are we to do?

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Photo by Liz Roll – FEMA – Elderly cared for in Louisiana – Wikimedia – US Govt. Public Domain

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GOD STILL IN THE HEAVENS

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The wonderful Good News is that God is still in Heaven and knows everything that we are going through.

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And He will not allow more than we can endure, although at times our pain and suffering may be intense.

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Weeping Woman – Van Gogh – Wikimedia – US Public Domain

Vincent van Gogh – Old Man in Sorrow (On the Threshold of Eternity) – Wikipedia – US Public Domain

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HEALTHY PEOPLE NEED NO PHYSICIAN!

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For one thing, God knows that if He took away all the evil results of sin, then nobody would come to Him for help…

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Listen to Jesus… “But…Jesus…said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.” Matthew 9:12

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**So here we see that God allows sin and suffering to remain in this dark world, to cause us rebels-against-Heaven to soften our hearts and return unto God, pleading for help.**

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Doctors – cropped image – Wikimedia Commons – Share-alike License

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BUT I’M ALREADY A CHRISTIAN!?

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But what about those of us who already have come to Him? What about all our suffering?

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Well, listen to Paul… “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18

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So here we see that God is saying that our present sufferings are nothing in comparison to the glory which shall be revealed in us!

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Second Coming – by Jan Luyken – Wikipedia – Public domain

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BUT WHAT GOOD IS SUFFERING?

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But still, this doesn’t quite answer the question of just why God is allowing us to suffer!

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But listen to this next passage from Paul’s letter to the Philippians…“That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable unto His death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.” Philippians 3:10, 11

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So now it becomes evident in Paul’s letter to the Philippians, that our fellowship in the sufferings which Christ endured, will cause us to die a deeper death to self, resulting in us being made conformable to Christ’s death, and to attain His likeness and resurrected life!

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Paul the Apostle – Artist – Valentin de Boulogne or Nicolas Tournier – circa 1500s – Wikipedia – Public Domain

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WEAKNESS BRINGS STRENGTH!?!

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But here is another statement by Paul which shows the great measure of God’s Spirit given to Paul…“And He said unto me, ‘My grace is sufficient for thee (Paul): for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Most gladly therefore will I (Paul) rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.” 2nd Corinthians 12:9, 10

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WOW! What a statement! And what an attitude! This above passage is worthy of much contemplation and memorization!

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And by this incredible statement from Paul, we are getting a much broader picture of how God works through the sufferings of this present life!

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He actually works within our sufferings to bring about the transformation of our lives, conforming us into the image and likeness of Christ! How incredibly wonderful!

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Paul Shipwrecked – Acts 27:41-44 – www.lavistachurchofchrist.org – Public Domain

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MANY SUFFERINGS

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And thus, Paul, realizing the benefits of these sufferings, actually took pleasure in his sufferings, knowing how they would be used by God to make Paul more Christ-like!

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And let’s face it! During the earlier centuries, God’s elect suffered other kinds of troubles: persecution by the apostate churches, in the form of torture, banishment, and even death of themselves and/or their family members!

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Burned at the stake – Wikimedia – US Public Domain

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SUFFER, ONE WAY OR ANOTHER

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The bottom line is that the Christian is going to endure one type of suffering or another.

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No true Christian will escape suffering…“For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Captain of their Salvation perfect through sufferings.” Hebrews 2:10

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Yes, Christ suffered on our behalf! And He says of us…“But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.” Hebrews 12:8

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And so, if we are truly God’s people, then we can expect chastisement. And sometimes our chastisement can be very painful! Maybe physically, or mentally, or emotionally painful.

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Sign of the Son of Man Constellation – made of the various constellations on this website

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THE GOOD NEWS!

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But the Good News is, that time travels faster and faster as we grow older. Yes, time travels like a speeding train!

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Especially when we grow older, time seems to speed up like a train racing down the tracks!

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And whether we sleep, or whether we awake, time never stops, day, nor night!

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It never stops, that is, until it reaches, “the station”, so to speak!

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Train locomotive – Hans Baluschek Anfahrender Schnellzug – 1909 – Wikimedia – Public Domain

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“SORROW AND MOURNING SHALL FLEE AWAY!”

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And soon, very soon, we will cross that River Jordan in the sky, and we will enter into the, “Land that is fairer than day”!

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And then, our sorrows and pains and sufferings will finally give sway to peace, contentment, and everlasting joy, as this picture attempts to portray!

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And then, the saying will be brought to pass…“And I heard a great voice out of Heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” Revelation 21:3, 4

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River of Water of Life – H. Melville – Wikimedia – US Public Domain

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TO READ PART 2, CLICK HERE…

NOVEMBER 20 (When My Body Becomes My Torture Chamber, Part 2: The Garden of Eden Remedy)“

Jan Brueghel – Garden of Eden – Wikimedia – Public Domain

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TODAY’S PRAYER…

“Dear Lord, I pray that Thou would give to me the same mind-set that the Apostle, Paul, had. Oh that I might look upon my trials and tribulations and troubles and yes, even my sufferings as a wonderful gift from a God that wants me to become a representative Christ for all time and eternity…

Girl Praying – Wikimedia – Public Domain

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THE END

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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN

Info & pics of constellations on this site from Wikipedia & International Astronomical Union (click here)

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A SIGN IN HEAVEN

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“And there appeared a great wonder (sign) in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:” Revelation 12:1

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You see, God has placed in the heavens, the symbol of His bride, the Church-Faithful. In the summer night-sky, she appears as the woman-in-travail. This is the constellation, Ursa Major. And this article will introduce you to this amazing sign of Heaven, and what it means to you and to me.

DOUBLE ENTENDRE OF REVELATION 12 WOMAN

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“For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the Church: and He is the Savior of the body.” Ephesians 5:23

This page concerns the constellation which is commonly known as “The Big Dipper” and the “Great Bear”. It actually appears in the summer months as a woman travailing in child-birth. God has purposely given her no head. But God did this to present a very important concept.

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Yes, this woman represents the Church, the “Jerusalem above, which is free, and is the mother of us all” (see Galatians 4:26).

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You see, the single star she is giving birth to typifies the Christ child. Reading in Ephesians that Christ is the “head” of the Church, this single star is logically going to become her head. But how will that be accomplished?

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WOMAN FLIPS AROUND IN WINTER

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Now, if this Woman-in-Travail were all that the Lord created in the heavens, it would be nothing short of amazing! But God, in His infinite power and majesty, has made this a great sign in Heaven, just as Revelation 12 proclaims. Because as the summer passes, this constellation begins to slowly flip around, until the stars representing her arms now become her legs. And the stars that once represented her legs now become her arms. And finally, it appears as the Fleeing Woman of Revelation 12. And at that point, this single little star in her womb-area, representing the Christ-child, now becomes her head! And of course, this reminds us of the passage… “And He (Christ) is the head of the body, the Church…” Colossians 1:18.

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ABOVE STAR-CHART: Ursa Major – IAU.svg – Star-Chart – Wikipedia – Share-Alike License

Ursa Major Star-Chart with woman drawn in by this website – Wikipedia – share-alike license

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TOMORROW

NOVEMBER 10 (The Psalms’ Power Over Evil Spirits)

David-plays-before-King-Saul-Wikimedia-Public-Domain-e1447204515456

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END OF THE CHURCH AGE STUDIES ON AUDIO

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ALL ‘NOBLE BEREANS’ (open-minded seekers of Bible truth) ARE INVITED AND ENCOURAGED TO LISTEN TO THE FOLLOWING AUDIO BIBLE STUDY BY THE LATE HAROLD CAMPING.

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THIS STUDY IS PART 6, CONCERNING “THE END OF THE CHURCH AGE”

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Click on image credit links below each photo, for licensing names, details, and tags, etc.. Most Images cropped & reduced in size.

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Signs Of Heaven