Another study about diligence...

As you know, my theme for January is diligence.

Here's a verse I love in the KJV: Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless. 2 Peter 3:14-15a The context (2 Peter 3:1-15) is Peter's inspired explanation of the coming of the end of the world in God's good timing. Since we are looking forward to God's coming, we are to live lives of holy conduct and godliness; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation."

The word diligence in that verse comes from a Greek word, spoudavzw, which means to hasten, make haste, to exert oneself, to endeavor, to give diligence.

I've been thinking a lot of diligence in my personal life. That is important, because how I live in my home and in my personal life either brings glory to God or not. Yet, how much even more should I be diligent about all the things that God desires, especially in building up his church and loving my neighbor?

Love for Christ shows itself in a diligent obedience to all of his commands -- in the little everyday things that no one but God sees and in the more visible ways we set about to do the will of our loving Lord and Savior. Such loving obedience is intimately connected with faith and with our gratitude for what Christ has done for us, as well as with our recognition of God's sovereignty and holiness. It is wholehearted, diligent, and generous without measure, not slack or done with a "check an item off the list" mentality. It is the set of the heart to love the Lord with all of the heart, soul, mind and strength and to love others as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us.

Here are a few verses that have challenged me today:

Luke 11:27-28 "As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, "Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you."He replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it."

Luke 6:46 "Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say?"

John 14:15-16 "If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—

John 14:21 "Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."

John 14:23 "Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him."

John 14:24 "He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me."

John 15:9-11"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete."

I John 2:2-4 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

Romans 1:5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name's sake,

Matthew 7:21 Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Acts 5:32"We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him."

Romans 6:15-17 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted.

Romans 16:26: but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him—

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (The phrase diligently seek in this verse comes from a word that means to seek out, search for, investigate, scrutinize, beg, crave, etc.)

Hebrews 5:8-10 Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

Enjoy!

Elizabeth

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