Avad

In translating the bible to English different words were used to translate the same Hebrew word. One such Hebrew word is “avad”, where in some versions of the bible it’s translated as “worship” and in others as “serve”.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me. – Exodus 8:1 (NIV)

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Let My people go, so that they may serve Me. – Exodus 8:1 (AMP)

Same verse, different words; we see this happening throughout the bible depending on the version we read. So, which is it? Is it “worship” or is it “serve”? Because aren’t these two words describing two different things?

According to Google, to worship is the act of showing reverence, honor, devotion, and supreme worth to a divine being, or holding someone or something in deep, extravagant love and admiration, while to serve is to perform duties, work for, or provide something useful to a person, organization, or purpose.

But how does the bible define worship and service?

When it comes to the One True Living God, worship expresses itself in adoration, thanksgiving and service to Him. To worship God is to serve Him and not only by singing songs on a Sunday morning in church. It’s our responding to God with our entire lives.

When we worship God in service to Him, in what ever form that service may take, it demonstrates the depth of our devotion. Jacob’s service to Laban (Genesis 29:27; 30:36) or Joseph’s service to Pharoah (Genesis 41:46) are mere echoes of how we are to serve God.

But maybe you don’t want to serve the Lord. You must choose for yourselves today. Today you must decide who you will serve. Will you serve the gods that your ancestors worshiped when they lived on the other side of the Euphrates River? Or will you serve the gods of the Amorites who lived in this land? You must choose for yourselves. But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord. – Joshua 24:15 (ERV)

“Avad” dominates Joshua’s admonition. This wasn’t a religious puff piece but a wholehearted declaration of allegiance to God.

Look at how Jesus Himself used the word “avad”. 

If anyone serves Me, he must [continue to faithfully] follow Me [without hesitation, holding steadfastly to Me, conforming to My example in living…If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him. – John 12:26 (AMP)

It wasn’t long before early Christians apprehended Jesus’ concept of “avad”.

You see, Hebrew words don’t just describe an action, they also describe the outcome of that action. Serving God isn’t simply about performing a task in church; to serve Him is much deeper than that. God desires for us to encounter His manifest presence through our worship.

God is spirit [the Source of life, yet invisible to mankind], and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. – John 4:24 (AMP)

Beloved, “avad” does not denote passivity, it involves action and though service and worship are distinct, “avad” incorporates them both. The connection between service and worship is undeniable; every day your worship of God should take the form of service.

It’s not enough to worship once a week or serve every now and again, “avad” is about surrendering yourself completely to God in worship and in service.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “Avad” © 2026 October 14, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

His Grace is Sufficient for you

 

Throughout your life you will be faced with difficult circumstances from time to time and when these difficulties arise the Lord does not want you to focus on them, instead He has given you the assurance that His grace is sufficient for you, for His power is made perfect in weakness.

“My grace is sufficient for you [My lovingkindness and My mercy are more than enough—always available—regardless of the situation]; for [My] power is being perfected [and is completed and shows itself most effectively] in [your] weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 AMP)

Beloved, during the difficult times, look away from the difficulty and fix your eyes and keep them fixed on Jesus, for He will empower you with His all-sufficient grace so that you may have the strength needed to endure the temporary hardship.

Amen †

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shelley Johnson “His Grace is Sufficient for you” ©2013 (4-Jun-13) revisited October 14, 2026

There’s more to Grace

 

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To God’s holy people in Colossae, the faithful brothers and sisters in Christ: Grace and peace to you from God our Father. – Colossians 1:1-2 (NIV)

Several New Testament writers, particularly Paul, would begin or end their letters with the blessing of grace.

When it comes to an explanation for grace, two verses taken from Ephesians chapter two are often quoted.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. – Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)

Grace is, therefore, the medium through which God has effected the salvation of all believers. We do nothing to earn or warrant such a gift, it is the degree of favour, God determined to extend to all who have faith in His Son Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour.

For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. – Titus 2:11 (NIV)

Grace has come to signify the unmerited favour of God to us human beings.

But there’s more to grace. Ephesians 2:8 & 9 are the familiar verses but there is another verse that sums it all up.

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. – Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)

Looking at this verse, it may seem to contradict the preceding verses as it says that we are created in Christ Jesus to do good works yet just before, we are told that we aren’t saved by works. It is certainly not a contradiction.

The good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do aren’t of our own doing and the works, so that no one can boast in verse 9 are of our own doing (read Romans 4).

God is the One who equips us with more than enough grace to accomplish the good works of verse 10. Everything we do must be based on and rooted in this gift of grace. The grace of God can overcome any limitation or shortcoming.

Grace takes us from the realm of limitation and works to the realm of no limitation and good works which is the realm of heavenly power.

Paul had a limitation. Three times he pleaded for God to remove it, but God did not, instead He told him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV). Then Paul wrote,

Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

Grace is not only the unmerited favour of God, grace is also an empowerment from God.

We are completely incapable of doing good works without the empowerment of grace. Attempting to do works apart from God is engaging in works of the flesh which do not operate effectively.

It is very important for us to apprehend the empowerment of grace we have been offered through Jesus Christ.

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. – Romans 5:1-2 (NIV)

There’s more to grace, as grace also enables the believer to persevere in the Christian life.

Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. – Acts 20:32 (NIV)

Additionally, grace can refer to the capacity for the reception of divine life.

Regarding this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace [of God] that was intended for you, searched carefully and inquired [about this future way of salvation], seeking to find out what person or what time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He foretold the sufferings of Christ and the glories [destined] to follow. – 1 Peter 1:10-11 (AMP)

Beloved, grace is not merely a one-time gift of God that secures your eternal salvation, there’s more to grace as it is the proverbial gift that keeps on giving.

Grace empowers you to do good works and enables you to persevere and gives you the mental, physical and spiritual ability to receive, experience and maintain your salvation throughout your life.

And now,

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you... (2 Corinthians 13:14 NIV)

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “There’s more to Grace” © 2026 October 12, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

What about Quartus?

 

What’s in a name?

God instituted a timeless tradition when He named the first human Adam. Since then, humans have been given names.

We are all intrinsically unique and being given a name just adds to our individuality and identity. Names once held much greater meaning than they do today and in Old Testament times, names were only given to persons in positions of authority. The person’s name signified that they were appointed a particular position, function or relationship.

For instance, as Rachel lay dying after giving birth, with her last breath, she named her son Benon, “son of my sorrow”, however Jacob, changed his name to Benjamin, “son who will be fortunate” (ref. Genesis 35:18).

Names were often determined by circumstances at the time of birth or changed as one’s status changed.

King Neco made Josiah's son Eliakim king of Judah as successor to Josiah, and changed his name to Jehoiakim – 2 Kings 23:34 (GNT)

God changed Abram’s name to Abraham and Sarai to Sarah, signifying a change to their destiny and in the same way, Jacob became Israel.

Other than position, function or relationship, people were named for animals, tribes, precious things, plants, characteristics, historical events and even for the work that they did. Names were sometimes connected to a promise or an aspiration.

In those days, people were given one name but by New Testament times, there was a slight change to that practice; having a personal and family name became common. Descriptive phrases were added and in this bilingual culture, names were used interchangeably.

Then he took Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “Your name is Simon son of John, but you will be called Cephas.” (This is the same as Peter and means “a rock.”) – John 1:42 (GNT)

Where Cephas is Aramaic, Peter is Greek and both mean “rock”.

Now, Apostle Paul, who was charged with converting the Gentiles had made his way to Corinth, this was his third missionary journey. While there he was compelled to write to the church in Rome which was facing challenges related to Jewish/Gentile issues.

Near the end of his epistle he wrote,

My host Gaius, in whose house the church meets, sends you his greetings; Erastus, the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus send you their greetings. – Romans 16: 23 (GNT)

Here we have three names, Gaius, Erastus and Quartus who all sent their greetings.

Gaius, who we are told, hosted Paul and the Church in Corinth, must have been a Roman citizen since his personal name is of Latin origin, meaning “one who rejoices”.

The city treasurer bore the Greek name, Erastus which means “beloved”. Erastus may have been a freed slave; freedmen were often given positions to steward the city’s properties or manage the city’s financial affairs. Though former slaves, these men were often wealthy.

What about Quartus? While Paul gave brief but pertinent background information on Gaius and Erastus, Quartus is simply identified as, our brother. Quartus is the Roman word for “fourth”.

It was a common Roman practice to name children based on their order of birth, especially those children born to enslaved mothers. It is believed that Quartus was such a child. Under Roman rule, he was neither considered a citizen nor worthy of a proper name as the child of an enslaved woman. As far as Rome was concerned, a number was good enough.

Similarly, numerical names like Primus, “first”, Secundus “second” and Tertius “third”, were all derived from this Roman naming tradition.

Whoever was Quartus’ owner at birth, could never have imagined that this child identified only by a number meant to relegate him to a life of obscurity, would have lived on for thousands of years in the pages of the bible.

Quartus, like so many others in the bible, is only mentioned once but once is more than enough to validate him. The mere fact that the apostle considers him a brother speaks volumes. Quartus undoubtedly was a valued member of the Corinthian Christian community.

Beloved, your name is integral to who you are. The name that you now bear has meaning to God and even if others don’t know your name, God knows your name.

The gatekeeper opens the gate for him; the sheep hear his voice as he calls his own sheep by name, and he leads them out. – John 10:3 (GNT)

Your name distinguishes you just as Quartus’ name, though meant to identify him as a nobody, still distinguished him as somebody. God also knew his name and if you didn’t before, now you know his name too.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “What about Quartus?” © 2026 October 11, 2026

 

 

Blessed

 

Question: “How are you?”

Answer: “Blessed”

How many times have you asked someone that question and that was their answer? And, how many times have you been asked that question and that was your answer?

When persons say that they are blessed, what do they mean?

Do they claim to be blessed because they consider themselves better off than others?

Is their answer “Blessed” because they think it demonstrates godliness?

Do people say that they are blessed because they believe it’s a right response?

Is giving “Blessed” as the answer to that question simply trendy?

When persons answer “Blessed”, is it because they honestly believe that they are blessed?

Here are some verses from the Word,

The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed – Proverbs 11:25 (MSG)

When was the last time you truly blessed someone? Not with lip service but with genuine words and actions.

“Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” – Luke 11:28 (ESV)

Have you been hearing the Word and keeping it?

Jesus said that it’s the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, who are blessed, and He also said, when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account, you’re blessed (see Matthew 5:1-11)

Do any of these relate to you? Are you the peacemaker?

Be agreeable, be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that’s your job, to bless. You’ll be a blessing and also get a blessing. – 1 Peter 3:8-9 (MSG)

Again, do you fit the bill? Do you bless rather than retaliate?

remember the words of the Lord Jesus: ‘You will have a greater blessing when you give than when you receive.’” – Acts 20:35 (ERV)

Are you hard-pressed to give but looking to get? Are you reluctant to donate but seeking favour? Are you receiving a salary but dropping only a dollar into the collection basket? Do you respond to people’s needs, or do you just ask God to bless you by responding to your needs?

If you don’t give of yourself in any way, how can you expect to receive a greater blessing?

Seeking God and walking in His ways leads to His blessings.

Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way. – Genesis 1:24 (NIV)

So the Lord blessed Job in the second half of his life – Job 42:12 (NLT)

Beloved, to be blessed is a divine pronouncement of favour and the assurance of grace that God bestows upon you, so when you answer “Blessed” be sure that you know what being blessed entails.

“Blessed” carries great responsibility.

Much is required from those to whom much is given, for their responsibility is greater. – Luke 12:48 (TLB)

“Blessed” is not a word to be bandied about for your good pleasure; contrary to what many believe, it’s rarely tied to things that are visible.

Let us give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! For in our union with Christ he has blessed us by giving us every spiritual blessing in the heavenly world. – Ephesians 1:3 (GNT)

“Blessed” speaks of a life lived at a much higher level from a place within you at a much deeper level.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “Blessed” © 2026 October 10, 2026

 

 

 

What about Azubah?

 

Azubah, not a familiar name to most I’m sure, but for me and my family, we knew that name well. Azubah was the name of one of my aunts.

The name Azubah appears in 1 Chronicles 2:18-19, as the name of Caleb’s wife, and in 1 Kings 22:42 and 2 Chronicles 20:31, king Jehoshaphat’s mother.

Neither of these women is afforded any extraordinary accolades, however, the influence the king’s mother must have had on him must not be overlooked.

Jehoshaphat ruled over the country of Judah. He was 35 years old when he became king, and he ruled 25 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi. – 2 Chronicles 20:31 (ERV)

You see, king Jehoshaphat was outstanding for his godliness and he, understanding the importance of knowing the only true God, sent out princes, priests and Levites to teach the people the Law of the Lord.

During the third year of Jehoshaphat’s rule, he sent his leaders to teach in the towns of Judah…These leaders, Levites, and priests taught the people in Judah. They had the Book of the Law of the Lord with them. They went through all the towns of Judah and taught the people. – (2 Chronicles 17:7&9 (ERV)

It’s no secret that mothers, by far, have the most influence on their children and just as my Aunt Azuba impacted the lives of her children, there is no doubt that Jehoshaphat’s mother, Azubah, would have impacted his.

Other than being the mother of Jehoshaphat, the wife of king Asa and the daughter of Shilhi, we aren’t told much more about Azubah. So, everything else we can garner about her is pure supposition based solely on the uprightness of her son.

Taking a cue from Jehoshaphat, we can easily attribute the godly characteristics he displayed to his mother Azubah.

Azubah was not in the spotlight but to be the wife of a king who fought against idolatry and the mother of a king who destroyed all the pagan places of worship and the symbols of the goddess Asherah in Judah (2 Chronicles 17:6 GNT) and ensured that the Law of the Lord was taught throughout the land, says a great deal about this woman without saying a word about her.

This barely mentioned woman was a queen who birthed a legacy by raising a son who walked by faith at all costs, obeyed godly counsel, was unyielding in his commitment to righteousness, unwavering in his dependence on God, and trusted wholeheartedly in God’s faithfulness to provide, to protect and to give victory.

Jehoshaphat’s prayer, recorded in 2 Chronicles 20 gives credence to his faith in God.

O our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless against this great multitude which is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You. – 2 Chronicles 20:12 (AMP)

Surely, Azubah would have been the one to instil all these virtues into her son; she must’ve been the one to teach him not to give into failure, defeat or limitations.

Azubah must have been the one who taught Jehoshaphat about God and the importance of developing and maintaining a sound relationship with Him.

As the mother of a future king, Azubah would have prepared her son to carry the weight of a nation, not from a military standpoint but through compassion, love and treating people fairly no matter their social standing.

Beloved, the bible did not give us much to work with regarding Azubah, but the fact that she was named let’s us know that she played an essential role in the reformation and reshaping of Judah as a wife and a mother of kings.

Azubah must have possessed a silent strength and resilience. There is much we can learn from such a woman who left us a great example of godliness in her son, Jehoshaphat.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “What about Azubah?” © 2026 October 9, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

Entirely for God’s glory

 

photo courtesy Tricia Stephens-Joseph

The first seven verses of John chapter nine recounts Jesus’ healing of a man who was born blind. When asked by His disciples the cause for the man’s condition, Jesus responded with, he was born blind in order that the workings of God should be manifested (displayed and illustrated) in him (John 9:3 AMPC).

The cause of his blindness was entirely for God’s glory.

Not only was this man born blind to display the indescribable workings of God, but Isaiah 43:7 is very clear in that, we were all created for God’s glory.

Even everyone who is called by My name, whom I have created for My glory, whom I have formed, whom I have made. (AMPC)

We know the importance of giving God glory (see Revelation 4:10-11), but we must also know the importance of bringing Him glory.

As Apostle Paul told the Corinthians,

So then, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you may do, do all for the honor and glory of God. (1 Corinthians 10:31 AMPC)

Everything you do, no matter what it is, must be done entirely for God’s glory.

Our finite minds cannot truly grasp the awesomeness that is the glory of God. When the apostle, in his letter to the Ephesians speaks of the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints (1:18), do we, even as God’s people, comprehend its profoundness?

The thing is, whether we get it or not, we can understand that each of us has a part to play in God’s eternal plan. You and I were created entirely for God’s glory – for His glory to be manifested, displayed and illustrated in and through us.

We must do our part to bring God glory.

If you preach, ensure that whatever you say is entirely for God’s glory.

If you evangelize, make sure that your sharing is entirely for God’s glory.

If you are a missionary, ensure that your service is entirely for God’s glory.

Whatever your ministry may be, make sure that it is entirely for God’s glory.

Beloved, the heavens declare the glory of God (Psalm 19:1a) and so should you in all that you do. You are called by His name, created for His glory.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “Entirely for God’s glory” © 2026 October 8, 2026