Welcome to Mornings with Jesus! I am so glad you are here! Below you will find Promises from the Bible, a short devotion, and a hot chocolate recipe to go along with it. Why? Because I wanted to share my favorite way to start off the morning....Jesus and hot chocolate! I believe the promises we have been given are a gift. A gift to know and cling to in difficult times. A gift of reassurance and of confidence to live out our faith boldly as a child of God. And, well, who doesn't love a little something extra in their hot chocolate? Read on and be rooted in these promises while enjoying some delectable hot chocolate. Have a blessed and happy morning!
The Passage:
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
If your looking for a devotion or a teaching, you won't find it here this week in this post. This one is short and sweet.
I struggled with what to write about regarding this promise. And then I realized why.
Why? Because this verse is stunningly simple and beautiful by itself. What more could I say? It stands profound and explanatory. All the hope and encouragement you need is right there.
To whoever believes, there is salvation.
Whether you knew this verse or you are hearing it for the first time-
Breathe it in. Live in this promise.
Read on for the recipe....
The Recipe:
Red Velvet Hot Chocolate 4 Cups milk (whole preferred) 1/4 cup sugar 10 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips 2 teaspoons red food coloring 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix them all in a pot on low heat, until all the chocolate chips have melted (stir often). Pour into your favorite mugs and top with some whip cream and sprinkles/colored sugar. Then serve and enjoy!
The Promise: John 14:16 NIV "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever -"
But let's not stop there! Let's continue on to verse 17, "-the Spirit of truth. the world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you."
*bolding is mine for emphasis.
Ok, There is so much here I could unpack, but this is just a blog post, so I will try to keep it short and sweet. But I encourage you to dig deeper on your own and at the end of the post you will find a digging deeper section with references to do just that!
Jesus promises us an advocate. A helper. The Greek word in the original text for advocate is parakletos. It means "one who is called beside." See the Spirit isn't just there when we need Him. He lives INSIDE us, beside us through it all. He indwells in us (1 Corinthians 3:16, 2 Timothy 1:14, Romans 8:11).
The Spirit of truth. Notice how the in the bible, the word "Spirit" is capitalized? That's important to take note of. It's capitalized because the Spirit that Jesus promises us IS God. Is Jesus. Is part of the trinity.
The Spirit isn't new here in the New Testament. The Spirit has been alive and active throughout the bible - new and old. In the old testament, the Spirit would dwell in people for a limited time to inspire them, to help them accomplish tasks by strengthening them or giving them gifts, or for prophseying. But the Spirit didn't dwell in these people forever. That is different than what Jesus promised here. And after pentecost, when the promise is fulfilled, the Spirit was staying. Jesus was leaving but He was not leaving the disciples-or us-alone! He promises that the Spirit will be with us forever. And in verse 17, He tells us that the Spirit will be IN us. What a beautiful gift!
One who lives inside us, goes with us everywhere. This is comforting and such a blessing! But it also means He goes with us even into our sin. Ephesians 4:30 tells us not to grieve the Holy Spirit- which means to not cause Him pain by bringing Him into our sin. Stew on that for a moment. As a believer, when we put our faith in Jesus Christ and give him our hearts, and the Spirit dwells inside of us....when we sin, the Spirit is brought into that sin with us. The Spirit isn't just there when we need Him. He is always there. He dwells in us. So when we stumble into lies, into anger, into cheating, adultery, drunkenness, lust, ect, we are bringing the Spirit into it with us. And this causes Him pain.
We will never be perfect, and I am certainly not, but understanding that in my sin, I bring the Spirit with me, has most definately shed a new light on my own sin. How about you?
The good news is that while we may stumble at times and bring the Spirit with us in that stumble, the Holy Spirit does so much more for us! And one of those things is helping destroy the power of sin in our lives! Can I get an Amen?!
But He does so much more than that! He guides, teaches, and comforts. He gives us an assurance of salvation, sanctifies us and makes us aware of that sin in our lives. He speaks truth to us, leads us, and gives us each gifts. And He empowers us. Wow. Now that's a promise. (Read below in digging deeper for the verses on the works of the Holy Spirit)
To have the Spirit, is to have Jesus living inside you. It is to be empowered and to never walk alone. Ask the Spirit each day to rise up in you, embrace His leading and watch what He will do!
Blessings, Elizabeth
Keep reading for the hot chocolate recipe!
Want to dig deeper? ~Read the entirety of John chapters 14,15,16, Luke 24, and Acts 2. ~Read the following verses on the work of the Holy Spirit: 1 John 2:27 Acts 8:29 2 Thessalonians 2:13 John 16:18 Acts 1:8, 4:31 Romans 8:2-6 Galatians 5: 16,25 1 Corinthians 12:4-11
The Promise: Matthew 5:11-12 "(11)God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. (12)Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way. "
As always, may we be thankful for the promises the Lord gives us, and grateful that he has written them down for us to know and understand.
The promise in Matthew 5:12 reminds us that our joy comes from the Lord. That our happiness and contentment should not be in earthly rewards. This verse says "be happy" and "be glad". This means to rejoice!! For in this life there will be trials, but be comforted in knowing that when you are judged, challenged, or persecuted because of your faith, it is not only unnoticed by God, it is rewarded! When in faith, we face opposition we not only are rewarded an eternal reward, but there are earthly rewards as well: lessons of strength, growth, and conviction. And in these moments our faith can be a light to others to seek and find Christ. What a blessing!
Let's not forget that God's greatest prophets faced persecution as well. Let them be a light and example to us in times when we face challenging circumstances while standing in faith.
I encourage you to read about Elijah, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Amos, Micah and Daniel. They were: Rejected. Ridiculed. Told to be quiet. Imprisoned. Challenged. Threatened with death. Kept in chains.
But great was their reward!
And God was with them! For God says:
He is always with us. (Joshua 1:9, Deuteronomy 31:6) He is our shield. (Genesis 15:1, Deuteronomy 33:29) He fights for us. (Exodus 14:14) He will strengthen us. (Isaiah 41:10)
Jesus gives us this promise in Matthew 5:12 so that we can focus on things above, we can be comforted and we can be strengthened!
Rejoice, my friend! Celebrate the challenges our faith brings us, and count it all joy! (James 1:2-3) Blessings, Elizabeth
The Recipe: Pumpkin Spice Hot Chocolate Make your usual hot chocolate recipe (4 cups)
Add the following: 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice 4 teaspoons either honey or caramel sauce
Top with: Whipped cream, add a cinnamon stick if desired, and enjoy!
Twixted Hot Chocolate and John 6:37
The Promise: John 6:37 "All that the father gives me will come to me and the one who comes to me I will certainly not cast out."
Take a moment to really soak that verse in. Wow. Are you hearing what Jesus is promising us?
"All that the father gives me..." Not only is this a beautiful reminder that we have been chosen (see Ephesians 1:4-5), but let's take a closer look at the word "gives". The definition of the word gives is to present, to provide with, to hand over. When we come willingly with a changed and grateful heart, we are given to Jesus. We, yes, you and me. And the word "gives" is in present tense. It is a handing over that is not past tense, but an eternal presentation, which does not end.
"will come to me..." I'd like to note here, that "come" in this verse, means to serve. And to serve willingly. The father presents to Jesus the willing and changed hearts that long to faithfully serve Him.
"and the one who comes to me I will certainly not cast out." Here again we have the present tense. And I find this profound. Not has come or will come, but the one who comes to me. And to the one who comes to Him, He will not cast out. To cast out means to reject, refuse to save. This is to assure us that when we come to Him with willing, humble hearts, we will be saved. We will not be rejected today or tomorrow. To the one who comes, there is no going back to a place of rejection. We have arrived, we have been presented, and we have been welcomed; we will never be cast out.
We may struggle, stumble, and fall at times, but we will not be rejected by the one we have been willingly given to. What a beautiful promise! A promise to cling to in storms, a promise to cling to in every day disappointments, and a promise to cling to in our sin. Write this promise down and write it on the tablet of your heart with certainty.
Blessings, Elizabeth
The Recipe: Twixted Hot Chocolate 4 cups of your base hot chocolate 2 Twix bars, 1 crushed 1 tbsp of caarmel topping 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract Whipped topping
Use whatever base hot chocolate recipe you usually use, add the vanilla (if not included in base) and caramel topping. Stir. Top with whipped cream, and crushed Twix bar. Drizzle with caramel topping. Serve with the extra Twix bar! Enjoy!