Genesis 22:16-18
“and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the LORD, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son — blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
INSIGHT
-Star in Greek is written as astra & is a type of astronomical object consisting of a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its own gravity.
-God made a promise to Abraham & because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, surely blessing I will bless you, & multiplying I will multiply you (Heb 6:13-14). Stars exist in hundreds of thousands & imagery has been used to show the numerous descendants Abraham would be blessed with, whom we are part. Abraham displayed unwavering confidence in God & offered to sacrifice his only son Isaac as commanded, & his faith was accounted to him for righteousness. Even God Himself through His love for us; offered His begotten Son Jesus so that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Through Christ we possess the gates of our enemies for He obtained victory over sin & death for us all, & we continuously receive His divine blessings as promised. God calls us to trust & obey Him for He gives us all good gifts & blesses us abundantly according to His unfailing love.
PRAYER
We thank You Lord for this beautiful day that You have made, we rejoice & are glad in it. You obtained victory for us Jesus & have given us authority to trample on serpents & scorpions, & over all the power of the enemy that nothing shall by any means hurt us. We believe in You Lord & humbly ask You to cover us & families with Your precious blood & hedge of fire. We thank You for Your everlasting love & mercy upon our lives, help us to always be obedient to Your word & bless us according to Your promise. Be with all our children Father & especially those who are preparing for exams, guide them so that they have good success. Lord You are bigger than the universe, we praise Your mighty name forever. Amen
Judges 5:19-21
“The kings came and fought, Then the kings of Canaan fought In Taanach, by the waters of Megiddo; They took no spoils of silver. They fought from the heavens; The stars from their courses fought against Sisera. The torrent of Kishon swept them away, That ancient torrent, the torrent of Kishon. O my soul, march on in strength!”
INSIGHT
-It was not possible in the course of their nature but by the power of God, that stars fought for Israel & against Sisera. By the waters of Megiddo where the final war against the devil will erupt, the kings of Canaan fought for no pay; having no interest in the silver but destruction & death. They fought from the heavens in the spiritual realm & the stars & torrent of Kishon prevailed. Deborah’s song of praise reminds us that we do not wrestle against flesh & blood but against principalities, power, rulers of darkness of this age & against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places (Eph 6:12). Most often without our knowledge, God fights for us for His mercy endures forever. After the Israelites conquered all their enemies, Joshua gave to the tribes of Israel land as a possession according to their divisions (Josh 12:7).
PRAYER
We give thanks to You Lord for Your mercy endures forever. You made the sun to rule by day & the moon & stars to rule by night, Your mercy endures forever. You are ever powerful Almighty God for You command the angels even the stars to fight for us, Your mercy endures forever. You are the God of peace; full of mercy & kindness, we are inadequate without You. You remember us in our lowly state & convert our weakness into strength; Your mercy endures forever. Your love is everlasting Father, go before us & make every crooked path straight. You deliver us from our enemies & give us abundant blessings Lord, Your mercy endures forever. We give You praise everlasting God of heaven for Your mercy endures forever. Amen
Psalms 147:4-5
“He counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by name. Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite.”
INSIGHT
-God is Omnipresent, Omnipotent & Omniscience in nature. He made the heavens & the earth & all that is in them, having infinite understanding. God created the stars, He leads their host by number & calls them all by name because of the greatness of His might & the strength of His power, not one of them is missing (Isa 40:26).
PRAYER
We praise & give thanks to You O Lord, among all the people & sing praises to You among the nations, for Your mercy & loving kindness are great, reaching to the heavens & Your truth & faithfulness to the clouds. You are exalted O God, above the heavens, let Your glory be over all the earth Father. You are mighty in power & infinite in understanding, be exulted over all the heavens & the earth. Amen
1 Corinthians 15:40-42
“There are also celestial bodies and terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption.”
INSIGHT
-Glory has different spheres where celestial bodies; those in heavens, including; the sun, moon, stars etc which differ from terrestrial bodies domicile on earth including; men, beasts, plants etc. Apostle Paul also writes that the glory of one star differs from another thus capturing their unique distinctions & characteristics, probably rooted from Daniel 12:3 that; those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the firmament & those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever & ever. The sun & the moon differ in glory possibly because the sun supplies light to the moon, thus without the glory of the sun, the moon is devoid of glory. This is another similitude, serving to help ones concept on the doctrine of the resurrection of the body; as this might be that the glory of the sun meant the glory of Christ in righteousness, excellent in glory, & supplies glory to His elect, as the sun supplies light to the moon. In the same manner, our corruptible bodies; mortal, born in sin, susceptible to death will be raised in incorruption; fashioned like the glorious body of Christ.
PRAYER
Oh God of all creation we give You all the glory & honor. We humbly ask for Your mercy & forgiveness Lord, that You may cleanse us from all unrighteousness by Your precious blood merciful Father. You have reminded us that we are not citizens of this world, help us Lord to focus on things above for the glory of the name. Fill our hearts with the gifts of faith & wisdom, & through Your everlasting love help us to obtain eternal life with You. May Your kingdom come Lord & will be done on earth as it is in heaven. All glory, power, authority, riches & strength belongs to You Lord; now & forever. Amen
Matthew 2:1-2
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”
INSIGHT
-The wise men were able to rightfully identify Jesus’ authority as King by looking at His star. It is interesting how Jesus had a star not visible to many; which directed the wise men to His birth place & stopped there, & when they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy (Mat 2:10). Jesus in Revelation 22:16 refers Himself as the Bright & Morning Star. Jesus is the Light of the world & as the Morning Star rises in our hearts & removes any form of darkness so that we find sufficient peace & great joy through His everlasting love.
SUMMARY
-Stars are unique celestial objects consisting of luminous spheroids of plasma held together by their own gravity. Deborah in the book of Judges describe how stars were involved in war & fought for Israel under Gods’ instructions & in His great power can do the same for us in the heavens. In His infinite wisdom, God calls all the stars by name which He commands to praise Him for with Him nothing is impossible. He is the Bright & Morning Star & comes to herald the dawn of a new day & the beginning of His Kingdom on earth for us to dwell in love, peace, joy & are called to worship Him.
PRAYER
Our Father Who at in heaven hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread & forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptations but deliver us from all evil. For thine is the Kingdom; the power & the glory; forever & ever. Amen