Recipe for Disaster! Part 3

Good day. Today we are posting Part 3 of a newsletter series Recipe for Disaster! written by our dear brother, fellow steward and ambassador of the mystery of Christ, Larry Gazelka. Our prayer is that you will be blessed and encouraged by this newsletter series. Have a very blessed and prosperous day in Christ Jesus our Lord. ***You can download a copy of the writing for personal use only by clicking on the Built Anew Ministries Archive page link above and scroll to the year 2024.

Recipe for Disaster!
V27 No. 1
Part 3
 
          How often do people start the new year with promises or resolutions that they hope to keep during the coming year? What ingredient is missing in this recipe for success? What is it that inspired that person to seek these changes in their life?
 
Matthew 6:33-34 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. (KJV)
 
          We are or should be, seeking first the kingdom of God. But also, the verse says, “and His righteousness.” How many people are aware of what God’s righteousness is, and what it entails? It is little details like this that people miss or ignore but are vital requirements for the recipe to produce the proper results.
 
          BC, or before Jesus Christ, one was instructed to follow the ten commandments, and in doing so, that they themselves acknowledged that they had strayed from what was required of them. Yet, it was not able to bring a person into personal relationship with God, because the price had not yet been paid for man’s sins. So, in essence, it was a recipe without the final ingredient. It made one aware that they had done wrong, but with no way to alleviate sin, as there had not yet been a price paid for that ransom.
 
          We should no longer be listening to or following old recipes; ones that have been around either by the old covenant or wives’ fables and such and are not able to or capable of procuring the ingredient necessary for a new life in the Spirit. So, we should be starting to see that there is an essential ingredient that is required for acquiring and maintaining a spiritual relationship with the Father.
 
John 5:39 You keep searching the scriptures, for you yourselves suppose that you will get possession of eternal life through them; but they are witnesses that testify of me, but you refuse to come to me to get possession of life. (William’s New Testament)
 
One can do many things by modifying the ingredients in a recipe. However, if one omits the main or primary ingredient, it will always be a failure for obtaining the proper results.
 
Psalms 119:103-105 How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! 104 Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. 105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. KJV
 
          Is His Word sweet or bitter to you? Do you blame God for your shortcomings and failures? Would you make a daily diet of things that taste horrible to you?
 
How sweet are thy words unto my taste! Who had a spiritual one; and could discern perverse things, and could taste how good and gracious the Lord is: and so his words were sweet unto him; the doctrines of grace, the truths of the Gospel, were delightful and pleasant to him; like unadulterated milk, desirable by him: like good wine, that goes down sweetly; like good food, that is exceeding palatable; or like honey, and even sweeter than that, as follows. (John Gill commentary)
 
          We not only need a diet that tastes good to us, but it also must be nutritionally good for us as well. Just as the old covenant could tell you what you were doing wrong, yet there was not a permanent solution for correcting those sins.
 
1Corinthians 1:20-23 Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: 23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; KJV
 
Man has attempted to alter God’s Word to where it suits that which they proclaim. They find ways to hold people captivated by their good words and fair speeches. In other words, they attempt to alter that proper recipe essential for the new birth and a relationship with Him.
 
How often do we see man try to dictate to God what they believe should be the terms for a relationship with Him?
 
Romans 16:17-18 But I beg you, brothers, to keep on the lookout for those who stir up divisions and put hindrances in your way, in opposition to the instruction that you had, and always avoid them. 18. For such men are really not serving our Lord Christ but their own base appetites, and by their fair and flattering talk they are deceiving the hearts of unsuspecting people. (William’s New Testament)
 
          In real life, how often will one return to a restaurant that serves food that does not taste good? Will one keep using a recipe that does not please you or your family? This is why one must study the Word of God for themselves. So that they get to know His voice and His Word, so that one may not be able to be tricked or fooled by men who are trying to deceive you.
 
Next issue we will conclude Recipe for Disaster.
 
 
That you may know Him,
In the service of Jesus Christ.
Larry Gazelka©2024