Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 18, 2023: SOAP #4975: Isaiah 32-35; James 2

SCRIPTURE:  James (NIV) 2:21 Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. 24 You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.

OBSERVATION:  We are saved by faith, by faith in the power of Jesus’ death on the cross.  Yet if our faith is not strong enough to cause us to do anything, then it is not strong enough to save us.  Our faith must be strong enough for us to confess our sins, confess that He is now Lord of our lives, and thank Him for His forgiveness.  It is like the movement of a child still in its mother’s womb—it is proof of life!  The baby does not stop moving when it is born!  Neither do we as we grow in our new life in Jesus! 

Faith is something inside that only God can see.  Actions/deeds are something that man can see.  Pulse, respiration, and heartbeat prove I am physically alive, deeds are the vital signs that prove my faith is alive.

James gave some specific deeds that were/are signs of faith, but the list of outward expressions of our faith would be too numerous to list. 

APPLICATION:  My deeds are a witness, strong or weak, of the Christ-life within. 

How will people today know I am a Christian?  Will they see or hear evidence of my faith?  Will it be difficult for them to recognize me as a Christian?  I should live my life in such a way that people can clearly see my faith. 

PRAYER:  Lord, may it be easy for others to see you working through me.  Amen

Pastor Leon
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 17, 2023: SOAP #4974: Isaiah 29-31; James 1

SCRIPTURE:  James (NIV) 1:19 My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent…
… and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. 22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

OBSERVATION:  The first section above concerns our words.  How we speak is very important.  I know that actions speak louder than words, but words are more prevalent in our lives.  There is always an abundance of words to reveal our character.  And we often use words to try to control or change others or our circumstances. 

The second section concerns God’s Word.  God’s Word is powerful.  We must accept the truth of God’s Word into our minds and hearts to be saved.  We must believe it and apply its truth to our lives.  Proof of our belief is doing what it says!   The fact that we have accepted His Word is that we “do what it says!” 

APPLICATION:  To hear God’s Word, but not apply God’s Word sets me up for self- deception.  Applying God’s word is the proof that I have entered into a relationship with God!  It demonstrates to God how seriously I take His Word; and it demonstrates to the world that I truly belong to Him!  I am a part of His Kingdom!  

His actions are the proof of His Word and the promises He offers me.  My actions are the proof that I believe His Word and have received His promises! 

PRAYER:  Lord, may my life, my words and my actions, bring you joy.  May I be a witness to others of what a wonderful God I serve!   Amen

Pastor Leon
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 16, 2023: SOAP #4973: Isaiah 25-28; Hebrews 13

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews (NIV) 13: 5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” 6 So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

OBSERVATION:  It is so important to remember what God has said!  When I forget, or do not line up my thoughts and actions with the truth He has spoken to me, I end up living in doubt and worry. 
-Verse 5 above gives us God’s word that he will never leave or forsake us!!!  So, how should that truth affect the way I live?   One way is how I look at money.  I am not desperate for money.  I do not live my life focusing on money.  God is with me; I do not desperately beg others for money. 
-A second way is that I am content with what I have.  I have Jesus and His promise to never leave me.  Why would I want to make Him think that He does not satisfy me?  He is my all.  He is my everything!  His presence is my greatest possession! 
-A third way is that I do not live in fear of what man can do to me!   He can turn what they mean for evil into good for me! 

APPLICATION:  I should make God’s promise, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you,” a banner thought above all other thoughts in my mind.   I will find that the truth of His presence changes how I approach everything!  
-Before I make any decision, I should consider, “God is right here, with me. He has given His word not to leave me or forsake me!”  Before I enter any situation, especially stressful situations, I should read that banner, “God is right here with me…” 

PRAYER:  Lord, today you will be with me in every situation!  I may not be with my family or friends, but I will never be alone; you will be with me!  Amen

Note:  For those who could not be with their loved ones when they died, know that Jesus kept His promise.  He did not leave them nor forsake them!  He was with them, and now they are with HIM! 

Pastor Leon
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 15, 2023: SOAP #4972: Isaiah 22-24; Hebrews 12

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews (NIV) 12:9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! 10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

OBSERVATION:  What a thought: “That we may share in his holiness.”  Of course, God’s discipline is for our good!  It is designed to make us more like Him!

His holiness is imputed to us through the sacrifice of Jesus.  Verse 14 says without it “no man will see the Lord.”  It is His holiness.  Jesus died for our sins and imputes His holiness to us, then the Spirit teaches us to live out that holiness in our daily lives.  The Holy Spirit helps us move holiness from the inside to the outside where it can be seen by others. 

We share in it because (first) Jesus is imputed to us, and (second) the Holy Spirit enables us to live it.  As we grow in Christ, the carnal ways that once dominated our flesh are being replaced by spiritual ways in line with the nature and character of Jesus! 

APPLICATION:  Accepting Jesus into my life makes a big change.  I begin to see things differently—from His point of view.  As I am faithful to read and listen to His word, He reveals things to me that need changing.  The Holy Spirit is my resident tutor.  He reveals God’s word to me.  He teaches me, He corrects me.  He makes sure I learn the lesson when God disciplines me.  He becomes to me like Jesus was to the disciples—only better.  He is with me 24 hours every day! 

PRAYER:  Heavenly Father, thank you for loving me enough to discipline me.  Help me be mature enough to know that it is for my good.  I want to respond in a way that brings the greatest good into my life and the greatest glory to the Father!  Amen

Pastor Leon
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 14, 2023: SOAP #4971: Isaiah 19-21; Hebrews 11

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews (NIV) 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him….
13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. 14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

OBSERVATION:  From the world’s perspective, many of the heroes mentioned in this chapter of faith, were failures.  Some of them died.  Some of then did not accomplish very much.  People of the world might have considered them failures.  But they succeeded in the greatest and most worthy task afforded mankind:  they pleased God!!! 

And even more, in verse 16 we read:  “God is not ashamed to be called their God…”  God liked to be known as their God.  It brought Him joy when they were recognized as His people.  Their actions did not bring God any grief. 

APPLICATION:  Here is a worthy goal for me.  I do not want to make God ashamed of me because of my responses to things around me, or my attitudes, or my comments.  May He not be ashamed to be known as Leon’s God. 

PRAYER:  Holy Spirit, there are times I really need your righteous input into my heart and mind.  Help me respond with a sweet spirit when I think I am being mistreated.  May the kindness and gentleness of Jesus, along with His strength, be seen in me.  Amen

Pastor Leon
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 13, 2023: SOAP #4970: Isaiah 15-18; Hebrews 10

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews (NIV) 10:35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. 36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. 37 For in just a very little while, “He who is coming will come and will not delay.

OBSERVATION:  My faith in God reaches two ways.  It reaches to the past, where just as God promised, He sent His son to die for my sins.  God’s promises were true, and He kept His word.  My faith reaches back into the past and brings the truth of what Jesus did into my present.  I am NOW a child of God.  My sins ARE forgiven! 

My faith also reaches to the future.  God has promised a heavenly home.  He has promised me a place in His heavenly kingdom.  God’s promises are true.  God is a promise keeper.  My faith reaches forward into the future and brings the truth of what God has promised into my present!   I NOW live as though this world is not my home and I am just passing through! 

APPLICATION:  In Christ I live in great appreciation for the past joined with great anticipation for the future.  The things of this world loose their attraction when viewed with the perspective of what Jesus did and what God has for me in eternity. 

Sharon and I lived for 10+ years in Hawaii.  When we speak of that time, people often say, “I sure would like to go to Hawaii.”  I always tell them, “If you are going to heaven, you will not feel like you have missed a thing!” 

I am going to heaven; how about you?  If you would like to, pray with me… 

PRAYER:  Lord, looking back over my life, I confess that I have many sins for which I am sorry.  But looking further back, I see that you died for my sins.  I ask, and receive, the forgiveness you provided by bleeding and dying on that cross.  Thank you for forgiving me.  I make you the Lord of my life.  And now I look forward to living eternally with you and those who have set their hearts to live for you here on earth.  Amen

Pastor Leon
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 12, 2023: SOAP #4969: Isaiah 11-14; Hebrews 9

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews (NIV) 9:24 For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. 25 Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. 26 Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

OBSERVATION:  My heart is broken as I consider the terrible suffering Jesus endured for me on the cross.  Also the suffering of the Roman whipping.  But for Jesus that was only a small part of His suffering.  From the cross He cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”  He who had never known sin, who had never sinned, was bearing the sins of the world.  The punishment would not be complete without breaking His fellowship with the Father!  The eternal, loving relationship of the God the Father and God the Son was broken.  Was this the reason He cried in the garden, “Father if it is possible let this pass.”  But, no—the full consequence of sin had to be experienced for Jesus to be the perfect sacrifice. 

APPLICATION:  Yes, my heart is broken, BUT MY HEAERT ALSO REJOICES!   It is over!!!  He only needed to suffer ONCE!!! 

I am amazed that One so great went to such extreme lengths to save me.  He must really love me!   He must have some plan for me that is greater than any of my dreams. 

PRAYER:  Lord, I have been cleansed by your blood.  I have been filled with your Holy Spirit.  Use me for your glory, I pray.  Amen

Pastor Leon
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 11, 2023: SOAP #4968: Isaiah 8-10; Hebrews 8

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews (NIV) 8:8 But God found fault with the people and said: “The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah….
10 This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people….
13 By calling this covenant “new”, he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete, and ageing, will soon disappear.

OBSERVATION:  The old covenant had been completed.  On the cross, Jesus said, “It is finished!” …and IT WAS FINISHED!!!   No more sacrifice of animals; the perfectly holy sacrifice for sin had been completed!  Now God could move forward in His plan—the plan He had for man when He created him in the garden!   Now God could do a NEW thing!  More than living among them; He would live IN them!   This was a BIG change!  This was NEW! 

APPLICATION:  The more I understand about God’s plan, the more I am amazed at God’s willingness to share His life, His fellowship, His purpose, His work, His joy, His sense of accomplishment—all this He shares with me!  

He lives in me!  I have the life of God in me!  

PRAYER:  Lord, I want to live my life showing my appreciation for what I have on the inside.  It is my great honor to have you alive in me.  May my attitudes, my words, and my actions communicate the great esteem I have for you.  Speak through me, Lord.  Touch through me.  Be glorified in me, I pray,  Amen.

Pastor Leon
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 10, 2023: SOAP #4967: Micah 5-7; Hebrews 7

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews (NIV) 7:11 If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come—one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron?
12 For when there is a change of the priesthood, there must also be a change of the law.
13 He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, and no-one from that tribe has ever served at the altar. 14 For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.

OBSERVATION:  Jesus came to fulfill the Old Testament law.  Once fulfilled, new changes were brought into the worship of Creator God. 

Especially for the Jews, this was a BIG change.  The priesthood had changed. From the tribe of Levi to the tribe of Judah.  The sacrifices had changed, from many animals to one human.  The calendar had changed from daily, monthly, annual to once-for-all.  The location had changed, from the tabernacle to the world.  The worshippers had changed, from only Israelites to gentiles now included.  The worshippers had changed, from those bringing animal sacrifices to those who worship in Spirit and truth.

APPLICATION:  …and the changes continue in my life!  From knowing about God, to knowing God.  From a special place of worship once a week, to an ongoing, seven-days-a-week walk with God living inside me!  From relying on my own efforts to be good enough to please God to relying on what Jesus did to please God for me!  From living to please myself to living to please God.  From evaluating things according to how they affect me to evaluating them according to what does God think about them.  YES, the changes continue…

PRAYER:  Lord, after all you have done for me, it is only right that I should want my life to bring you joy.  Holy Spirit, continue to work your changes into my life.  Amen.

Pastor Leon
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 09, 2023: SOAP #4966: Micah 1-4; Hebrews 6

SCRIPTURE:  Micah (NIV) 4:11But now many nations are gathered against you. They say, “Let her be defiled, let our eyes gloat over Zion!” 12 But they do not know the thoughts of the LORD; they do not understand his plan, he who gathers them like sheaves to the threshing-floor.
Hebrews (NIV) 6:16 Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument.17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. 18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged.

OBSERVATION:  In creation, God’s character traits can be seen everywhere—except His love.  God prepared the world to be inhabited by man, his unique creation created to make choices.  He was designed to be susceptible to temptation.  Satan would be allowed to tempt man to sin and when that happened the Jesus, God the Son, would come and demonstrate God’s ability to love.  He would be the sinless sacrifice that holiness demanded to cover the sins of man!  Jesus would come as one person to one family in one nation—that nation, Israel. 

In Micah’s prophecy, the nations gathered against Israel do not know God’s promises, plans, and purposes for Israel.  But Hebrews assures us that God’s promises are a solid foundation for our faith!   First: they are His word, which has the foundation of His character.  Second:  He gave them with an oath sworn on Himself (since there was no higher power to call as a witness.) 

APPLICATION:  My sins are forgiven based on the promises in God’s Word!  I have the promise of His presence now and the promise of eternity in heaven with the Lord!  I am blessed!  I miss so much when I do not live by His promises!

PRAYER:  Lord, thank you for your promises!   They are a solid foundation!  Help me know them and build my life on them.   Amen

Pastor Leon
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