The Purpose of His Will

Thursday, October 31, 2013, 8:26 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with the song “His Name is Wonderful” playing in my mind. I used to sing that in a medley of choruses when I was a teenager many years ago in Akron, Ohio. So, it’s an oldie. The song is based off Isaiah 9:6. Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Ephesians 1 (NIV).

Every Spiritual Blessing

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.

I was sitting at lunch today, beginning to read this passage of scripture again. I didn’t get past the first sentence when I started thinking about all the spiritual blessings I have in Christ Jesus. This list (following) is what initially came to my mind, although I know there are probably hundreds more spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus that I could add to this list: Salvation, faith, forgiveness, knowledge, grace, understanding, encouragement, faithfulness, hope, love, joy, peace, healing, strength, wisdom, counsel, guidance, assurance, truth, the Word of God, Father God, The Son – Jesus Christ, The Holy Spirit, comfort, discernment, patience, kindness, gentleness, mercy, the body of Christ, Christian fellowship, eternal life, and the list goes on and on and on.

I think sometimes we take for granted all that we have in Christ. Other times, when things are going tough in our lives, we forget all that we have in Christ Jesus. The Lord Jesus has blessed me with the gift of writing spiritual songs the past 2.5 years. These songs are for devotional purposes and to encourage the body of Christ, and they encourage me, too. I was listening to some of the most recent ones again this morning, and since they are all based off scripture, they spoke volumes to my heart in the way of encouragement, hope, truth, assurance, God’s faithfulness and all his many spiritual blessings he has provided for me. They encouraged and strengthened my heart that God is absolutely in control of every circumstance in my life, and that he will work out all things for my good. Amen!

So, when things in this life weigh in on us, and we begin to believe Satan’s lies that all is hopeless, or that we somehow have to take matters into our own hands in order to make things work like we think they should, we need to be reminded of who we are in Christ, if we truly are in Christ, and of all the many riches with which God has blessed us. For example, He chose us. He didn’t have to, but he did. But he didn’t choose us just so we could go to heaven one day, as wonderful as that will be. He chose us to be holy and blameless in his sight. The way this happens is that first of all Jesus Christ died on the cross, taking upon himself the sins of the entire world, so that when he died, our sins died with him, and were buried with him, but when he rose again, he conquered death, hell, Satan and sin, triumphing over them by the cross. In other words, he died so we can live, but not just in heaven, but so we could live and walk in his righteousness while we still live on this earth. And, we do this by faith, because his righteousness lives within us.

The Purpose of His Will

In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

I was reminded of this again last night and this morning that God works out everything in my life in conformity with the purpose of his will, so I might be for the praise of his glory. So, what does that mean? I believe it means, for me, that I just need to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ with the circumstances of my life, pray to God for wisdom and understanding, accept that I will not understand everything, but that is ok, then do what he instructs me to do, believe him to work it all out according to his plan and purposes, and then just rest in him. I think sometimes, as humans, we wish God would hurry up and act, but he has his perfect timing and his perfect reasons for doing everything the way he does them when he does them, and I just have to believe him and trust him, even when I don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. And, he will give me the peace and assurance I need to keep going.

As well, when we believed in Christ, we were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit. I hear a lot of people throw out that word “believe” or “faith” rather casually without really explaining what it means to believe or to have faith. What does faith look like? If you were to describe faith, how would you explain it? How does the Bible define it? I believe the Bible teaches that faith is the act of believing God for who he is, for what he has done, and for what he said he will yet do, even when we can’t see the immediate results or the fulfillments of what has been promised to us. This faith or belief is not a mere intellectual assent or acknowledgment or even an emotional realization of such a fact of his salvation, but it is realized in our lives by what we do, i.e. by how we act upon what we know and believe to be true. In other words, if I truly believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross to set me free from sin, and that he came to give me a new life in Christ Jesus so that I could live and walk in freedom and in his righteousness, then faith allows God to work a heart transformation in my life by his grace and does not resist it nor deny it, but submits to the cross in my own life (see Eph. 4:17-24; Lu. 9:23-25; 1 John; Rom. 6; and Gal. 2:20).

Remembering You in My Prayers

For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

Wow! That is some prayer!! What would happen, do you think, if we all began praying for one another like this? I think so often we are good about praying for people when they are sick or in need or in distress or when they are sorrowful and hurting, but how often do we pray with such spiritual depth for our brothers and sisters in Christ? I know this challenges my heart! We, as believers in Jesus Christ, are in a spiritual battle. Satan pulls out all the stops to try to trip us up and to try to get us to fall flat on our faces. We need regular doses of encouragement from the body of Christ, and we need to be praying for one another. And, our prayers need to go beyond the shallow words of “God bless so and so.” Our prayers need to be specific, heart-felt, even passionate, and truly believing God to answer.

We all need regular doses of wisdom. I know I do! We need to know Christ better, no matter how long we have known him or how close of a relationship we have with him, or else we need to be reminded of what we already know and sometimes forget. We need to have enlightened hearts to know the hope to which God has called us. Many believe their hope is solely in their promise of heaven. Oh, how incomplete! Our hope is for this life, too, that we would allow Jesus Christ to live his life in us and out through us into the lives of others that they may come to know and experience him, too, in all his fullness! Our hope is that we would submit to our Lord and to his will for our lives so that his righteousness can be revealed in us. Our hope, too, is that we might live holy lives pleasing to him, victorious over sin and self because of what he did for us on the cross in saving us from our sin - all in his power within us. And, that hope, too, is in believing in the absolute sovereignty of God over our lives, over our circumstances, over the people in our lives, over our world and governments, and in trusting that the Lord has it all worked out according to his plans and his purposes for our good and for his glory. So, we need to pray this for one another!

His Name is Wonderful / Audrey Mieir

…He is the mighty King, master of everything…

He's the great Shepherd, the Rock of all ages,

 Almighty God is He;

 Bow down before Him, love and adore Him,

 His name is Wonderful, Jesus, my Lord.

http://hymnal.calvarybaptistsv.org/254.html

My Concern for All the Churches

Wednesday, October 30, 2013, 5:28 a.m. – When I awoke this morning, the Lord Jesus put the song “Return to Me” in my mind. When I sat down to type up my quiet time with the Lord from today, he put this song in mind, which fits so well with today’s passage:

My Heart’s Desire / An Original Work / June 29, 2013

Based off Rm. 10; Lu. 9:23-26; Ep. 4:20-24

Loved Ones, Oh, my heart’s desire

Is that you might come to Jesus.

Many appear zealous for God,

But they do not trust in Him.

They have not submitted to the One

Who saved them from their sins;

Not forsaken their sins,

Nor have they obeyed their King.

The word of the Lord is near you:

The word of faith we’re proclaiming:

That you must confess your faith

In Jesus as your Lord and King:

Believe in Him as your Lord,

And follow Him where’er He leads.

Share the gospel; be a witness,

And meet others’ needs.

Beautiful are the feet of those

Who bring the good news of Jesus:

Anyone who would come to Him

Must deny himself today;

Die to sin and self, and

Let the Spirit transform you in heart;

Put on your new self in Jesus,

Yielding to the cross.

http://originalworks.info/my-hearts-desire/

Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read 2 Corinthians 11 (NIV).

A Godly Jealousy

I hope you will put up with me in a little foolishness. Yes, please put up with me! I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him. ~ 2 Co. 11:1-2

Paul said he was jealous for the church with a godly jealousy. I think sometimes we naturally assume that all jealousy is wrong or evil, but it is not. In Exodus 20:5 we read that we should not worship idols of our own making because our God is a jealous God. So, what does that mean? Well, it means that he created us for his glory, to be in fellowship with him, to love him, to worship him and to be faithful to him only as our only God.

When we accept Jesus Christ into our lives to be Lord and Savior of our lives, he becomes our husband, so in essence we enter into a marriage covenant relationship with him in which, by our faith, we promise fidelity, faithfulness and exclusive devotion to him as our only God. The Bible often compares our relationship with Jesus Christ to that of a wife to her husband, because that is the type of relationship God intended us to have with Jesus Christ. And, we should enter into our relationship with him, by faith, with that belief in mind. In other words, we should be loyal, faithful and committed to Jesus Christ as our only Lord.

Paul said that he, as the church’s spiritual father, much like the father of a bride giving the bride away, promised the church to one husband, to Christ, so he might present the church as a pure virgin to him at his coming. In other words, his desire for the church was that they would be in singleness of mind and heart in relation to Jesus Christ, unadulterated in their devotion to Christ, and fully committed to him as their only Lord and husband. This would be evident in their worship, faith, devotion, conversations, attitudes and actions that Jesus Christ was their only husband and Lord, and that they had undivided hearts.

Paul took God’s calling upon his life seriously, he truly loved the church with a God-like love, and he wanted nothing more than for them to remain faithful to their Lord until his coming. Oh, that we would all love the church to this extent to where we would all have a godly jealousy for the church over the idolatry and spiritual adultery that goes on within the church these days, enough to where we would appeal to the church in like manner as Paul.

Preaching Another Jesus

But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the Spirit you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough. ~ 2 Co. 11:3-4

Wow! Even though Paul gave them the correct teaching and foundation for their faith, i.e. he taught them the true gospel of salvation, there were many other voices speaking to them, too, and some of those sounded very convincing. The “other Jesus” he spoke of was most likely of the Judaizers, but it could just as well have been of the Libertines. The Judaizers added to God’s grace the works of the flesh, adherence to man-made rules, and some carry-overs from the Old Covenant that no longer applied to those in Christ Jesus by faith. And, the Libertines were those who were morally unrestrained, i.e. they did not teach death to our old lives of sin, but rather that the grace of God in forgiving our sins meant we had the freedom to continue in certain sins, in particular sexual sins of many kinds.

I see “another Jesus” being taught in much of today’s modern church movement that has me greatly concerned and burdened for the church, and it tends to fall more in the line of the Libertines theology than it does the Judaizers. I see the modern church of today as very flesh-driven. They focus much of their money, resources, time and affections on the outward show, entertainment, fun, appealing to the likes, wants and desires of humans; focused on marketing schemes, humanistic philosophies, man-made religion, and the teachings of humankind. They often follow man-made business models for how to grow Christ’s church, and thus they market the church just like a business, which naturally tries to please the customer so the customer will keep coming back. Thus, the gospel is reduced to gospel-lite so as not to offend anyone, and to make people more comfortable and relaxed, thus promoting the idea that church should be fun and a place to have a good time.

In this setting (above), the true gospel has no place. It does not fit! - Because the true gospel of salvation teaches death to our old lives of sin, a transformation of heart and mind away from sin and toward God, and that by God’s grace, through faith, we are given completely new lives in Christ Jesus, created to be like Christ in true righteousness and holiness (See Eph. 4:17-24; Rom. 6; Gal. 2:20; Lu. 9:23-25; 1 John; James, et al.).

Yet, many professing Christians in today’s modern church movement easily put up with the false Jesus and the false gospel, which does not teach death to sin and a life committed to Christ Jesus as our only Lord and husband. Thus, they are in grave danger of being deceived by these false teachers of this “other Jesus” and this “different gospel” into believing that faith in Jesus Christ requires nothing of them, demands no faithfulness, does not call for sincere and pure devotion to Christ, and that they can still have their ticket into heaven no matter what. James said that even the demons believe, and they shudder.

Cut the Ground from Under

And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve. 2 Co. 11:12-15

The Lord Jesus reminded me here of what I read in 2 Co. 10 yesterday. Paul said: “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (v. 5). To demolish means to destroy completely. Arguments and pretensions which set themselves up against the knowledge of God and his gospel of salvation can be found in many forms, such as in intellectual debates, deception, manipulation of truth, tricks, cons, schemes and fantasy. We need to study the scriptures so we know what the Word of God teaches regarding our salvation, so that we can refute these false teachings, and so we are not led astray from our pure devotion to Jesus Christ by fine-sounding arguments. Instead, we should take every human device, intellectual thought, idea or notion, which comes against the true gospel of salvation, and we should make it obedient to Christ and his true gospel by exposing the truth and the lies, so that the lies should not take hold of our lives, but so we should obey the truth.

I Inwardly Burn

Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn? ~ 2 Co. 11:28-29

Paul was so concerned for the relationship of the church to her Lord and husband that, not only was he jealous for her with a godly-jealousy, but it pained him greatly to see her corporately or individually led into sin by these false apostles who were teaching another Jesus. James (4:7-10) said: “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.” So, don’t be led astray by a false gospel absent of true repentance and the kind of faith which enters into relationship with Jesus Christ as a bride enters into marriage with her husband, with the full intention of being faithful and to forsaking all others.

Return to Me / An Original Work / September 5, 2013

Based off Jeremiah 31; Cf. Rev. 2-3

I have loved you with an eternal love,

Which I give to you, in my faithfulness.

Keep your voice from weeping,

And your eyes from tearing.

You will be rewarded

With much fruitfulness.

There is hope for you that My family

Will return to Me; live in victory!

Though I discipline in My love for you,

My heart longs for you that you walk in truth.

Turn your thoughts to your Lord.

Choose to walk in His ways.

Turn from your sins daily.

Follow Jesus Christ.

Oh, how long will you wander in your sin?

Give your hearts to Me; be restored within.

I will satisfy ev’ry weary soul

Who repents of sin; is renewed within.

Behold, days are coming;

It will surely happen;

Though I discipline them,

They will thrive again.

I will be their One and their Only God.

They shall walk in white; be in Me, made right.

http://originalworks.info/return-to-me/

Demolish Every Pretension

Tuesday, October 29, 2013, 5:17 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with the song “Who Believes?” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Isaiah 44 and 2 Corinthians 10.

By the humility and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you—I, Paul, who am “timid” when face to face with you, but “bold” toward you when away! I beg you that when I come I may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world. For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ… We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise… ~ 2 Co. 10:1-5, 12

The Standards of this World

Evidently there were those critics of Paul’s ministry who were trying to discredit him and his ministry by accusing him falsely of operating out of the flesh of man rather than from the Spirit of God, so he wrote this to correct their faulty thinking. It was important for Paul to defend his ministry and his calling against his opposition because the credibility of the gospel of Jesus Christ was also at stake and was brought into question by these accusations, since Paul was an appointed minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Then, Paul explained the manner in which he and his fellow apostles conducted themselves as true ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ. They did not live or operate in the flesh or by the standards of this world. Amen! While it was true that they lived in the world, they did not use worldly methods to win a spiritual battle against the flesh, sin and Satan. And, they did not promote the gospel of Jesus Christ using worldly means. Amen! Do you hear what this is saying? Why is it, then, that today’s institutional church here in America relies so heavily upon humanistic philosophy, business marketing schemes and techniques, entertainment, and the teachings of humankind on how to build their “churches”?

We are not supposed to live by the standards of this world. God has called us out from the world to be separate and to not love the world’s system or the things of this sinful world. So, what are some of the standards of this world we might tend to live by? There are many, but some that come to mind are feeling as though we have to lie, cheat, steal, step on people, manipulate, and discriminate based upon human philosophy on how to get ahead and to be successful in this life. There is also the sense or belief that we have to entertain the world with worldly means and methods in order to attract the world to the (worldly) church. We think we have to use gimmicks and advertising techniques and have giveaways and make everything fun, comfortable, and appealing to human likes and wants.

We tend to tolerate sin and are even entertained by it ourselves, because we think we are supposed to be more like the world if we want to win the people of the world to Christ. After all, reason says, “Who will we win if we separate ourselves from the ways of this fallen world? People will think we are holy-rollers, better-than-thous, superior, know-it-alls, crazy, etc., and they won’t want to be associated with us.” We also think we need to make the gospel less offensive and more acceptable so that more people will want to “accept Christ.” But, is Christ really who they are accepting?

The Gospel of Salvation

What does the Bible say concerning the gospel of Jesus Christ and how to win people to Christ? First of all it says that Jesus Christ died on the cross for the sins of the entire world so that the world might be saved from sin and have the hope of eternal life with God. It says that Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven, and that no one comes to the Father except through Jesus Christ. It says that no one can come to Christ, though, unless the Father first draws him, i.e. this is of the Spirit, not of the convincing of man. It says that salvation is a free gift that we receive by faith and it is not of the works of humans, so none of us can boast that we earned our salvation. It says that when we come to faith in Jesus Christ that we are transformed in heart and mind of the Spirit of God, the old life of living for sin and self is crucified with Christ, and we are raised with Christ to newness of life. In other words, this is the work of the Spirit of God, and cannot be accomplished using worldly means, methods or standards.

Yet, we must accept God’s free gift of salvation by faith. Jesus said that if anyone wants to come after him, he must deny his self-life, die daily to sin and self and follow Jesus in obedience and surrender to his will for their lives. He said if we hold on to our old lives of living for self and sin we will lose them for eternity, but if we willingly die to our old lives of sin, for the sake of following Jesus Christ, then we will gain eternal life (See Lu. 9:23-25). Paul said that the way we come to know Christ is by putting off our old lives of sin, by being transformed in heart and mind (of the Spirit of God) and by putting on our new lives in Christ Jesus, “created to be like Christ in true righteousness and holiness” (See Eph. 4:17-24). He also said, “For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been set free from sin” (Rom. 6:6-7). So, faith means death to our old lives of living for sin and self, transformation of heart and mind, and new lives in Christ Jesus – all the work of the Spirit of God as we yield to his work by faith.

Power to Demolish Strongholds

Jesus told his disciples that by the authority of Christ they were to go and to make disciples of Christ of all nations, baptizing them and teaching them to obey Christ’s commands. He also said that when the Holy Spirit comes upon us - I believe in regeneration when we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit of God - that we will be his witnesses throughout all the earth. Although this was spoken to his disciples at those specific times in history, I believe scripture teaches that we, as his disciples today, have also been given a divine commission to spread the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ to people throughout the world. We are told that we should not hide our lights, but that we should let them shine before all people. We are also told that whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death.

Paul was given the commission to open the eyes of the blind and to turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God so they might receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are being sanctified and made holy in Christ Jesus (See Ac. 26:16-18). I believe each and every one of us have been given this commission, for the Spirit dwells within us, and he lives Christ’s life out through us, and that is exactly what Christ would be doing. Jesus Christ said we would do even greater things than he did.

Yet, we don’t do this in our own strength, willpower, and/or knowledge, etc. No weapons against evil, which are fought by this world’s system, have the power of God to demolish the strongholds of sin that have people in bondage. They have no power to wage war against Satan and his evil forces and against his evil schemes which come against us and that come against Christ and his gospel. We may supply people with fun, entertaining, comfortable, non-threatening places of “worship,” but if we don’t preach the true gospel of salvation, in the power of the Spirit of God within us, then we are trying to win people with the standards of this world instead of using the spiritual weapons with which God has supplied us to win this spiritual battle against evil and for God.

So, instead of waging war the way the world does, and rather than conducting our lives by the standards of this world as a means of winning people to Christ, we should demolish (defeat; annihilate) every argument and pretension (trick; con; deception; charade; scheme; gimmick; fantasy – false gospel) which sets itself up against the true knowledge of God found in the scriptures and in the gospel of Jesus Christ. And, we should take every thought – every human device and intellectual thought or idea or notion that comes against the true gospel of salvation, and we should take it as a captive and make it obedient to Jesus Christ, i.e. it should have no sway in our lives.

Who Believes? / An Original Work / October 3, 2013

Based off Isaiah 53

Gospel message, who believes?

Jesus Christ died on a tree,

Saving us from all our sin,

So we might be cleansed within.

Had no beauty found in Him,

That we should desire Him.

Man of sorrows, suffering;

Crushed for our iniquities.

Surely He has borne our griefs;

From our sadness, brings relief.

Bore the stripes; forsaken, He,

So forgiven we might be.

We, like sheep, have gone astray,

Each of us turned his own way.

Jesus calls, “Repent today;

My commandments, now obey.”

Jesus said, to come to him,

We must die to all our sin.

Crucified with Him, we live,

Walking in His righteousness.

Suff’ring servants, we will be,

Taking His identity on us,

When confessing Him

As our Savior, Lord and King.

http://originalworks.info/who-believes/

What Should That Look Like?

Sunday, October 27, 2013, 7:50 a.m. – I was awakened this morning by the sound of my husband getting himself ready for the day. We talked for a moment, and then he began telling me about his time in the Word of God this morning, so we resumed to the living room to continue talking. He shared with me that he had asked the Lord several questions this morning, things for which he was seeking answers; that he had then read Isaiah 43, and that he believed the passage of scripture answered at least one of his questions definitely.

The Lord Jesus had put the song “Return to Me” in my mind upon waking this morning, so as he read this passage of scripture from Isaiah 43:16-21, I realized it was to be part of my quiet time with the Lord this morning, because it fit with the song the Lord had put in my mind just before Rick shared with me. I believe God had him share that passage with me for a reason this morning. After we finished talking, I then read Isaiah 43 and my passage in 2 Corinthians 6. I will quote portions from each passage in the NIV.

No Stumbling Block

We put no stumbling block in anyone’s path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything. ~ 2 Co. 6:3-10

A “stumbling block” is an object that causes one to stumble or fall; referring to that which causes material ruin or spiritual downfall; that leads one to fall into error, into sin or into destruction (Net Bible).

We, as servants and witnesses of the Most High God, should be ever so diligent in this matter of not putting a stumbling block in anyone’s path. We must be willing to endure much suffering for the sake of the name of Jesus Christ and for the sake of the gospel of Christ. We must daily put on our spiritual armor of God supplied to us with which to fight off Satan’s evil schemes and attacks against us, such as our sword of the Spirit - the Word of God, the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness and our shield of faith (See Eph. 6). We must resist the devil, flee temptation, and draw near to God in full assurance of faith. We must yield control of our lives to the Spirit of God so that we daily put on his love, kindness, purity – moral uprightness, sensitivity to God’s voice and his will, endurance of injury absent of retaliation, and truthful speech - and all this in the power of God.

We also must be willing to endure patiently during times of dishonor, bad report, false accusations, abandonment and rejection; and during times when we are beaten down for our faith in Jesus Christ; as well as when we are sorrowful, poor in the eyes of mankind, of no account to humankind, and/or lacking in pure love and affection from others towards us. The reality is that we are not lacking in any good thing. God has supplied us with all that we need. He knows the truth. He will give us the strength and power to accomplish his will in and through our lives, we will bear fruit for his kingdom, and we will learn to be content in whatever circumstances God has us in, knowing he will work out all things for our good. In this way our ministry will not be discredited.

Spoken Freely (Cf. Isaiah 43)

We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians, and opened wide our hearts to you. We are not withholding our affection from you, but you are withholding yours from us. As a fair exchange—I speak as to my children—open wide your hearts also.

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will live with them

    and walk among them,

and I will be their God,

    and they will be my people.”

Therefore,

“Come out from them

    and be separate,

says the Lord.

Touch no unclean thing,

    and I will receive you.”

And,

“I will be a Father to you,

    and you will be my sons and daughters,

says the Lord Almighty.” ~ 2 Co. 6:11-18

One of the main reasons the apostles endured such opposition and persecution is because they spoke the truth of the word of God into people’s lives and hearts. And, there were those who did not readily or eagerly accept those truths, and so they possibly withdrew from the apostles and did not respond to what was said, so Paul was making an appeal to them to communicate with him in like manner of love and truthful speech, it appears.

In Isaiah 43, God said something of a similar nature to his chosen people. I believe there is a message in this passage, relating to this passage in 2 Corinthians, which is to be applied to God’s people today, specifically to his spiritually adulterous and idolatrous church. God reminded the people of who he was – their Creator, Savior and Sustainer. He was their Deliverer, Comforter and Protector. He was their Redeemer, Lord and King. And, he reminded them, too, of how he viewed them. They were precious and honored in his sight, i.e. they were valuable to him. He had created them and us for his glory.

Then, he addressed the subject of idolatry with them, and he appealed to their common sense regarding these idols as compared to the One and Only True God. Apart from God there is no Savior. No foreign god could save them. They were to see that he was to be their only God. So, for their sake, he would judge Babylon, for the purpose of delivering his people from captivity in Babylon and for the restoration of his people. And, I believe he will do something similar to this in our world today, and soon, i.e. he will bring judgment upon the world of sin and upon his worldly church in order to deliver his people from slavery to idolatry and their spiritual adultery against the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And, the book of Isaiah tells of this in many places, but specifically in chapter 2.

God Has Made a Way

“Yet you have not called on me, Jacob,

    you have not wearied yourselves for me, Israel.

You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings,

    nor honored me with your sacrifices.

I have not burdened you with grain offerings

    nor wearied you with demands for incense.

You have not bought any fragrant calamus for me,

    or lavished on me the fat of your sacrifices.

But you have burdened me with your sins

    and wearied me with your offenses.” ~ Is. 43:22-24 NIV

Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, not just so we could go to heaven one day. He died to free us from the yoke of slavery to sin so that we might be free of the control of sin day-to-day, and so we could walk daily in the Spirit of God in Christ’s righteousness within us. And, Isaiah 43 foretells of this plan of salvation through Jesus Christ (see vv. 16-21).

Even though Jesus Christ did all this for us, many who profess his name still live like this is not true. They live just like the world. They participate in the deeds of darkness. If Jesus Christ is truly in us, and we have died to sin and self, and we are allowing the Spirit of God to live his life in and out through us, what should that look like? It should look a lot like what Paul described at the beginning of 2 Co. 6. Yet, why do so many not get this? We can’t be partakers of the table of Christ and the table of demons at the same time. There is no harmony between a believer in Jesus and the world of sin. We are not to be idolaters. We are not supposed to be in agreement with the world of sin. We are to come out from the world system (the sinful world) and be truly separate. Yet many, instead of living like Christ is truly living his life in and out through them burden God with their sins and weary him with their offenses, so he is calling out to his adulterous bride to return to him.

Return to Me / An Original Work / September 5, 2013

Based off Jeremiah 31; Cf. Rev. 2-3

I have loved you with an eternal love,

Which I give to you, in my faithfulness.

Keep your voice from weeping,

And your eyes from tearing.

You will be rewarded

With much fruitfulness.

There is hope for you that My family

Will return to Me; live in victory!

Though I discipline in My love for you,

My heart longs for you that you walk in truth.

Turn your thoughts to your Lord.

Choose to walk in His ways.

Turn from your sins daily.

Follow Jesus Christ.

Oh, how long will you wander in your sin?

Give your hearts to Me; be restored within.

I will satisfy ev’ry weary soul

Who repents of sin; is renewed within.

Behold, days are coming;

It will surely happen;

Though I discipline them,

They will thrive again.

I will be their One and their Only God.

They shall walk in white; be in Me, made right.

http://originalworks.info/return-to-me/

Christ's Love Compels Us

Friday, October 25, 2013, 8:02 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with the song “Love Must Be Genuine” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read 2 Corinthians 5:1-6:2 (NIV).

Meanwhile We Groan

For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

For those of us who are in Christ Jesus, by his grace through our faith, we have the hope of eternal life with God in glory. Right now we must still live in earthly bodies (tents) which get sick, hurt, injured, sorrowful, tired, weak, and which are tempted to sin. Yet one day - Praise Jesus - we will get to trade in these earthly bodies for heavenly bodies which will no longer have pain, sorrow, and sickness, and which will never sin again. Amen! Oh, how I long for that day! I praise the Lord for this promise and hope of heaven, and for his Holy Spirit dwelling within me as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

Away from the Lord

Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

Though it is true that while we still live in these earthly bodies that we are physically away from the Lord, I see another meaning here. I believe the Lord has quickened my heart here and has given me this understanding: As long as we feel “at home” in our earthly bodies, we are spiritually away from the Lord. In other words, as long as the “lord” of our lives is our own flesh and the sinful pleasures this world has to offer, we are spiritually away from the Lord, i.e. we cannot be in true fellowship with him. If we say we have fellowship with him, and yet we continue to walk in darkness, the Bible says we are liars (See 1 John 1).

If we believe we have come to faith in Jesus Christ, for instance, and thus we believe we have the hope of heaven, and yet our lives are never transformed by the Spirit of God, then we don’t have the hope we thought we did. We cannot enter into eternal life with God with dirty clothing - partying, playing with fire and with no thought or care in mind of being clothed with Christ’s righteousness and purity. Jesus Christ died for our sins, not just so we could go to heaven one day, but so we would be delivered from the bondage (slavery) of sin, and so we could walk in freedom day-to-day. Jesus said that if we want to come after him, we must deny ourselves, die daily to sin and self and follow him in obedience. He said if we hold on to our old lives, we will lose them for eternity, but if we die to our old lives of living for sin and self, by his grace through faith, we will gain eternal life (See Lu. 9:23-25).

On the other side of this thought: Although heaven is promised to us, and it is our hope, yet for those of us still in these earthly bodies it is not yet a present and physical reality for us. We cannot physically see God or heaven, so we walk by faith and not by sight. We long for our heavenly dwelling, yet while we are still on the face of this earth we make it our goal to please our Lord. Again, we are not saved just so we have heaven to look forward to. We are saved so that we can walk in Christ’s righteousness and holiness day-by-day while we still live here on this earth. So, if you are counting on heaven as your ultimate destiny, and yet your goal while still on this earth is not to please your Lord in every way, but it is to enjoy this earthly life while you can, being “at home” in your body, then maybe your life was not ever transformed by the Spirit of God from your old life of living in sin to a new life of walking in Christ’s righteousness and holiness. Don’t play with fire! Judgment is sure!

The Fear of the Lord

Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart. If we are “out of our mind,” as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

Do we truly know what it is to fear the Lord? I believe this is lost in today’s modern church movement. I see an entitlement mindset being catered to in today’s institutional church, instead of the fear (awe, respect and honor) of God. Much of today’s church leadership follow humanistic philosophy over the word of God; marketing schemes and gimmicks in place of the Holy Spirit power; and a diluted gospel created to appeal to the flesh of humans in order to make it more appealing and acceptable. The institution of church is a business run by humans rather than a spiritual entity with Christ as its head. Entertainment is often the focus of the church services and programs, in order to appeal to the sinful world. God is often reduced to a doting grandfather in the sky granting our every request, who only doles out blessings, but who never corrects, rebukes or disciplines his children. And, the flesh of man rules instead of the Spirit of God, and so the fear of God is lost in the shuffle.

Yet, to know the fear of the Lord means we see God for who he truly is and who scripture teaches he is. Jesus did not just go around giving nicey-nice feel-good messages, pat people on the back, and console them in their sin. He spoke the truth in love, confronted sin in sinful humans, called for humility and repentance (turning from sin to God), and he said we must die to sin if we want to live for eternity. He spoke such strong words that many of his “followers” deserted him never to follow him again. And many hated him, mostly the religious leaders of his day. Why did they hate him? Jesus said that he was hated because he told the sinful world that what they did was evil. He must not have taken marketing 101. He must not have read the right books. That is not the way to win people over and to get them in our churches! Yet, he didn’t come here to make people like him. He came to save them, and that meant telling them the truth about their sin and of his remedy for their sin.

Jesus Christ loved us so much that he told us the truth, and he was willing to be hated and killed because he told the truth. Jesus Christ died that those of us who live in him should no longer live for ourselves – being “at home” in our flesh bodies – but for him who died for us and who was raised again to give us NEW LIFE! This is the purpose of his grace, which teaches us to say “No!” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age…” (See Titus 2:12).

And, because of what Jesus Christ did for us in saving us from slavery to sin and in freeing us to walk in his righteousness, his love compels us to try to persuade others to turn from their lives of sin and to walk in Christ’s righteousness, all in the power and working of God within us. And, when we do that, the sinful world and the worldly church and its leaders will hate us, too, and think we are crazy, and they will discard us like garbage (See 1 Co. 4:9-13). Yet, we are to rejoice that we are counted worthy to suffer for the sake of Christ.

Be Reconciled to God

So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

As God’s co-workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain. For he says,

“In the time of my favor I heard you,

    and in the day of salvation I helped you.”

I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.

Have you ever read a sentence, and then read it again with a different inflection or with putting emphasis on a different word and found the second time reading it you saw something you didn’t see the first time? Well, when I read v. 17 this time that happened to me. I think sometimes we get this backwards. We assume that if we prayed some prayer that we are now in Christ and thus positionally the old is no longer charged to our account because Jesus, by his Spirit, has made us new. While that is what happens when we accept Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives, I think sometimes we read this backwards.

In other words, rather than making an assumption that we are in Christ, when we may not be, and so we presume our positional standing before Christ, I think that we should read this to say that IF we are in Christ, that there should be such a heart transformation of the Spirit of God within us that truly it should be apparent that the old has gone and that we have been made new creatures in Christ Jesus. For instance, we read in scripture that the way we come to know Christ is by putting off our old lives of sin, by being transformed in heart and mind of the Spirit of God, and by putting on our new lives in Christ, created to be like Christ in true righteousness and holiness (See Eph. 4:17-24).

Yet, all this is from God, i.e. this is the work of the Spirit in our hearts as we cooperate fully with that work. We cannot earn our salvation nor have we done anything to deserve it. It is a free gift from God that must be received by faith; by receiving Christ Jesus to be LORD and SAVIOR of our lives, which involves us willingly giving up our old lives and allowing the Spirit of God to transform us and to make us new in Christ; changed in character and conduct. In other words, this receiving of this reconciliation means that we also receive into our lives - in thought, word, and deed - all that Jesus Christ accomplished on the cross for us in saving us from our sins, so that we submit to his Lordship over our lives, and we surrender our wills to him, making him truly LORD of our lives. If we do not do this, then it is possible that we may have received (acknowledged) God’s grace to no effect (in vain) in our lives. Jesus Christ reconciled us to give us NEW LIVES, not cleaned up old lives. Make sure of your salvation today! Our love for Christ must be genuine, based on truth.

Love Must be Genuine / An Original Work

October 22, 2013 / Based off Romans 12:9-21

Love must be genuine.

Hate what’s evil; cling to good.

Love each other with affection.

Show respect for ev’ryone.

Never lack in your zeal.

Serve the Lord with diligence.

Rejoice in steadfast hope.

In affliction, patient be.

Keep on praying; share with others.

Practice hospitality.

Bless those who persecute.

Feel with others sympathy.

Be not filled with conceit.

Daily sit at Jesus’ feet.

Live in harmony with others.

Live at peace with ev’ryone.

Repay not to someone

With the evil he begot.

Do not take your revenge;

Leave it to the wrath of God.

If your enemy is thirsty,

Give to him something to drink.

Do what’s right for mankind.

Evil: overcome with good.

http://originalworks.info/love-must-be-genuine/

Love Must be Genuine

Love must be sincere, honest, truthful, and genuine, as opposed to being pretentious, disingenuous, fake or phony. True love, thus, speaks the truth in love and does not use false flattery, nor does it willfully deceive. In fact, it hates what is evil, mainly because of how evil destroys lives, homes, families, communities, church congregations and nations. Instead, it binds itself to what is good – wholesome, right, just, honest, pure and unadulterated.

It demonstrates respect for people, and it gives of oneself to meet the legitimate needs of others, self-sacrificially. It does good to its persecutors, and does not practice retaliation. It is not conceited. It seeks to do what is right by people. It works at trying to bring about reconciliation where an offense or discord has taken place, and it makes the effort to bring about peaceful solutions, where possible, to difficult situations.

True love is always hopeful. It prays for wisdom, understanding, guidance and direction. It seeks the good of others. It is continuous, persevering, and diligent in its zeal for the Lord and for his service. And, it is not overcome by evil, but it overcomes evil with good.

Love Must be Genuine / An Original Work

October 22, 2013 / Based off Romans 12:9-21

Love must be genuine.

Hate what’s evil; cling to good.

Love each other with affection.

Show respect for ev’ryone.

Never lack in your zeal.

Serve the Lord with diligence.

Rejoice in steadfast hope.

In affliction, patient be.

Keep on praying; share with others.

Practice hospitality.

Bless those who persecute.

Feel with others sympathy.

Be not filled with conceit.

Daily sit at Jesus’ feet.

Live in harmony with others.

Live at peace with ev’ryone.

Repay not to someone

With the evil he begot.

Do not take your revenge;

Leave it to the wrath of God.

If your enemy is thirsty,

Give to him something to drink.

Do what’s right for mankind.

Evil: overcome with good.

http://originalworks.info/love-must-be-genuine/

Do You Lose Heart?

Thursday, October 24, 2013, 6:30 a.m. – When I sat down to have my quiet time alone with the Lord Jesus this morning, he put the song “Oh, To Be Like Thee” in my mind. Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read 2 Corinthians 4 (NIV).

Set Forth Truth Plainly

Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.

This is an awesome passage of scripture, and so encouraging, too! Thank you Jesus!

Paul, who was once called Saul, was a Pharisee and a persecutor of followers of Jesus Christ when the Lord Jesus called him to his service. Then, the Lord called a man named Ananias to go place his hands on Saul so that Saul could receive his sight. Jesus said: “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” And, suffer for the name of Jesus and for the sake of the gospel he did. He suffered because Jesus had given him the divine commission to open spiritually blinded eyes, to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they could receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ (See Ac. 26:16-18); and because Satan does not give up without a fight.

Paul, and perhaps the other apostles, too, had evidently been accused falsely of being deceitful and manipulative, so Paul refuted these apparently hateful charges against him. He countered all false accusations with the truth that he and his fellow workers for the gospel of Christ had renounced secretive and shameful ways; they did not use deception, nor did they distort the word of truth. Instead, they set forth the truth plainly. I can identify. Paul continued by stating that if the gospel was being covered-up, hidden or distorted in the minds of people that it was not the doing of the apostles, but it was because Satan, the god of this age, had blinded the minds of unbelievers so that they could not see the light of the gospel. Lies, deception and distortions of truth are some of Satan’s greatest weapons against people, including against those who profess Christ Jesus as Lord and as Savior. This is why we have to seek out the truth, so that we know the truth, so that when Satan throws his fiery darts against us that we can refute his lies with the truth.

Jars of Clay

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.

A jar of clay is an earthen vessel. A vessel can be merely a container of some sort, or it can be a ship on water or in the sky or on land that is used to transport something or someone from one place to another, or that distributes or conveys something, such as Christ’s servants and witnesses carrying within them and communicating to others Christ and his gospel of salvation. It can also be “somebody seen as the recipient or embodiment of a quality” (Encarta), such as believers in Jesus Christ as the recipients of God’s divine grace, or of us as the body of Christ, his temple - Christ living within us. A vessel can also be an instrument of some sort used for a specific purpose, such as Paul was called to be Christ’s instrument in proclaiming Jesus Christ and his gospel to the Gentiles, their kings and to the people of Israel. So, what we learn from this is that we are all chosen instruments of God’s divine grace to carry the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world around us.

The vessel is made of clay, i.e. it is of this earth. In other words, we are fragile, weak and easily broken. We get hurt. We bleed. We fall down, but we get back up. We get tired. We have finite minds, which are limited. We cry. We run out of energy. We, in ourselves, lack the wisdom, knowledge, understanding, strength, endurance, patience and perseverance to keep going sometimes. Yet, that is the beauty of it all! It is not us doing it, but Christ living within us. Amen! I can attest to you that Christ in me is the only thing that keeps me going many days! Why? - Because I am an earthen vessel.

When I am hard pressed, perplexed, persecuted and struck down, it is hard to get back up. I don’t just naturally, in my earthenness, bounce right back. I must rely daily upon the strength and wisdom of the Lord Jesus within me, living out his life through me, in order to keep doing what I do each day. Yet this is to show that the power of the Spirit of God within me, which keeps me going, and which keeps me doing what I do each day, is not from me, but is only from God! Praise Jesus! Because of HIM and his mercy and grace to me, I am not crushed, I am not in despair, I am not completely abandoned, and I am not destroyed, because my hope is not in the flesh of humans but in Christ alone! Hallelujah! So, even though I am daily being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, it is so that his life may also be revealed in me, i.e. in this earthen vessel. In other words, suffering produces good stuff!

It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

I love this, don’t you?! It is all so hopeful and encouraging! Thank you Jesus!

So, even though we get sick and tired, we are weak and frail, we hurt and we cry, we bleed, and we go through times of distress, heartache, false accusations, rejection, and abandonment, inwardly Jesus Christ is renewing us day by day, if we will let him. We hold on to the hope that we know is ours in Christ Jesus, and we believe one day we will see the fruit of it all, as we daily see the fruit of Christ’s inward renewals in our own lives.

So, although we may not always see, in this life, what God is doing, and what we do see may be disheartening to our earthen vessels, we purposefully choose to not focus on the things that are of this world and that are temporary, but we fix our eyes on what is unseen, i.e. on the hope we know we have in him and on his many promises to us. The trials of this life are here only for a short period of time. What God produces in us and through us into other people’s lives, as we allow him to change our hearts and to make us more like Jesus, and as we willingly submit ourselves to his plans and purposes for our lives in being his chosen instruments in carrying the gospel to the ends of the earth, is eternal. The eternal rewards thus far outweigh whatever trials we may have to go through in this life. Amen!

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer

Thomas O. Chisholm / W. J. Kirkpatrick

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,

This is my constant longing and prayer;

Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,

Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

Oh, to be like Thee! full of compassion,

Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,

Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,

Seeking the wandering sinner to find.

O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,

Holy and harmless, patient and brave;

Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,

Willing to suffer others to save.

O to be like Thee! Lord, I am coming

Now to receive anointing divine;

All that I am and have I am bringing,

Lord, from this moment all shall be Thine.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,

Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;

Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,

Fit me for life and Heaven above.

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,

Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;

Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;

Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrYhiK2nQBg

Christ's Triumphal Procession

Wednesday, October 23, 2013, 9:29 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me this morning with the song “Who Believes?” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read 2 Corinthians 2:12-17 (NIV).

Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me, I still had no peace of mind, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia.

But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. And who is equal to such a task? Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, as those sent from God.

Captives to do God’s Will

As followers of Jesus Christ, we are slaves to Christ’s righteousness (See Rom. 6), i.e. we are his bond-servants, willing captives to do God’s will. A bondservant is “simply following your master to complete disregard of your own will, emotions, desires.” “To put it into contrast of being a Bondservant of Christ, it means a complete and utter devotion to God, His word, and His will.  It is disregarding your own desires and will in all things to lay your life at the Cross and follow Christ” - http://thebondservant.org/?page_id=68. We can then be led of Christ because we have surrendered our will to his will to follow him in his ways.

The Triumphant March

As Christ’s servants and witnesses, he thus leads us in Christ’s triumphal procession. A procession is a march (walk; advance; campaign; progression). We are his soldiers; his army; his servants, and we march according to the orders of our commanding officer. Yet, it is he who leads us, and it is his triumphal procession, not of our own accord. In other words, this advance with the gospel is generated by him, equipped by him, and carried out by him, as we allow him to live his life out through us for his glory. We take no credit, for this is a spiritual work, not of humankind or of human origin.

This march is triumphant. Why? Because Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, he crucified our sins with him, buried them with him, and then he rose from the grave victorious over death, hell, Satan and sin. Amen! It is triumphant because this is a work of grace by God, i.e. it is of God and it is spiritual. Because of what Christ did for us on the cross we are able, by faith in him, to be set free from slavery to sin and to become willing bondservants of Jesus Christ, ready to do his will. And, as a result of that faith, we have been given eternal life with God, beginning at the point we receive him by faith.

The Pleasing Aroma of Christ

As Christ’s bondservants - captives; slaves; servants - he then uses us to spread the pleasing aroma of Christ everywhere. An aroma is a smell or it can be a subtle impression or quality – Encarta. An aroma can also be a scent – detection, sense, perception, and/or a distinctive quality or characteristic trait. This aroma is the knowledge of Christ, but not just head knowledge, but the ability to know Christ in all his fullness – in all his love, grace, mercy, kindness, compassion, justice, passion, desires, commands, and judgments. Not only does God use us to spread this aroma everywhere, but we ourselves are the aroma of Christ to those who are being saved and to those who are perishing. Our very lives serve to show forth Christ’s love (even his tough love), his grace and his kindness toward us.

Death and Life

To those who are perishing, we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. How so? So many who share what they consider to be the gospel today give an impression of the gospel which no longer speaks of death to the perishing. In other words, the gospel is whitewashed to the point to where it no longer resembles the gospel preached by the apostles. Jesus’ death for our sins and his resurrection are still preached, in most cases, yet faith in Christ is often reduced to a mere acknowledgment of what he did for us. In other words, the gospel is soft-pedaled to make it more appealing and acceptable to the sinful world. So, it no longer has the smell of death to the perishing, but it has a pleasing aroma that is attractive to the flesh of humankind. Yet, that is not the true gospel, for if it was, the unsaved world would not be attracted to it.

The true gospel of Jesus Christ does not placate sin. It does not entertain sin with more sin. It confronts sin in sinful humans. Jesus told his brothers that the reason the world hated him was because he told the world that what they did was evil. Jesus didn’t mince words. He told it like it was, yet he spoke the truth in love. And, the apostles did not mince words, either. They told us that faith in Jesus Christ means we have to die to our old way of living for self and sin, that we have to be transformed in heart and mind of the Spirit of God, and that we have to put on our new lives in Christ, created to be like Christ in true righteousness and holiness (See Eph. 4:17-24; cf. Lu. 9:23-25; Ro. 6; 1 John; Gal. 2:20). They told us that if we do not come to Christ in genuine faith, we will die in our sins and that we will spend eternity in eternal fire. And, they warned us that many will come to Christ on the Day of Judgment and will ask to be let into God’s heaven, but God will say he never knew them. This is the reality of it all. Without Christ we will die. With Christ we will live.

The good news, though, is that to those who are being saved, we are an aroma that brings life. Amen! Yet, Jesus did not die on the cross for our sins just so we could be positionally saved and then one day go to heaven. He came to give us abundant and Spirit-filled lives while we still live on the face of this earth. That is why he sent us the Holy Spirit to teach us all things and to counsel, encourage, comfort, inspire, direct and spur us on in our walks of faith with Jesus Christ. He called us, not just so we could go to heaven one day or so we could live religious and moral lives on the earth, but he called us to his righteousness and holiness and to godly living, free from slavery to sin, and free to walk in Christ’s righteousness. And, that is the Good News!

If we have not truly surrendered our lives to Christ, made him Lord of our lives, and allowed him to transform us in heart and mind and to make us new creatures in Christ Jesus, then we don’t have good news, and we don’t have life, because we are still enslaved to our sin. We, as Christ’s ambassadors, are the aroma that brings life to those who are being saved. Amen! So, we must share the true gospel of salvation which opens the eyes of the blind, and which turns a sinner from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that he can receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are being sanctified in Christ Jesus (See Ac. 26:16-18). Let us not dilute the gospel to make it more appealing, but let us be that aroma that brings death to the perishing, so that the perishing will be conscious of their sin and of their need of true salvation from sin. Amen!

Who Believes? / An Original Work / October 3, 2013

Based off Isaiah 53

Gospel message, who believes?

Jesus Christ died on a tree,

Saving us from all our sin,

So we might be cleansed within.

Had no beauty found in Him,

That we should desire Him.

Man of sorrows, suffering;

Crushed for our iniquities.

Surely He has borne our griefs;

From our sadness, brings relief.

Bore the stripes; forsaken, He,

So forgiven we might be.

We, like sheep, have gone astray,

Each of us turned his own way.

Jesus calls, “Repent today;

My commandments, now obey.”

Jesus said, to come to him,

We must die to all our sin.

Crucified with Him, we live,

Walking in His righteousness.

Suff’ring servants, we will be,

Taking His identity on us,

When confessing Him

As our Savior, Lord and King.

http://originalworks.info/who-believes/

Participants with Demons

Monday, October 21, 2013, 7:10 a.m. – the song title “Wake the World” was brought to mind this morning. The song artist is Todd Fields. Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read 1 Corinthians 10:1-22 (NIV).

Under the Cloud

For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.

The Israelites were miraculously delivered by God from physical slavery in Egypt, and they were on their way to the Promised Land. They were under a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. These were symbols of God’s divine power, protection and guidance. God appointed Moses to be their leader. He was their mediator between them and God. And, they were to follow his leadership. God provided for them and blessed them in many ways, both physically and spiritually. Christ Jesus, God the Son, existed always. He is our creator. He was with God the Father from the beginning. So, Christ was with them, and he provided for them physical and spiritual nourishment for their bodies and souls.

The same God, who physically delivered the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, has provided spiritual deliverance from slavery to sin for us via Jesus’ shed blood on the cross for our sins. Through faith in Jesus Christ, as our Lord and Savior, we have the hope and promise of eternal life with God in glory (our Promised Land). We are on our way to heaven. Jesus Christ is now our mediator between us and the Father, and we are to follow his leadership (See Lu. 9:23-25; Jn. 10). We have been given the Holy Spirit within us as a seal of that promise of eternal life with God. The Holy Spirit serves to convict of sin, counsel, lead, guide, teach us all things, intercede for us in prayer, empower and equip us to do God’s will in service to him; protect us spiritually, comfort and encourage us, nurture us, and to live out Christ’s life through us as we cooperate fully with his work.

Examples for Us

Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.” We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. We should not test Christ, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel.

We read in 2 Timothy 3:16-17: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” And, we read in Hebrews 4:12-13: “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

In other words, the whole of scripture is for our benefit. It is not just a collection of historical events, stories, liturgy, poetry, prophecy and Biblical instruction in godly living. There is something that can be learned in principle from even the Old Testament books, because the people then were people just like us, who experienced many of the same things we still experience today. Our culture may be different, and our relationship with God under the New Covenant is somewhat different from that of the Old Covenant relationship God had with his people, yet God never changes. He is the same yesterday, today and forever! His word, too, is alive, and God still speaks to our hearts, so he can speak to us even through these stories of the Israelites’ trek to the Promised Land, because there are many parallels between their relationship with God and our relationship with Christ today.

Even though God provided for them all that they needed physically and spiritually, still many of them turned against him and his appointed leadership, they went their own way, and they refused to repent time and time again, so God was not pleased with most of them. And, even though God’s grace has provided us with all we need to live godly and holy lives in this present world, many of us have sinned against him or are presently involved in willful acts of sinful rebellion against God. And, God is not pleased. He is still a jealous God! We were promised to one husband – Jesus Christ. So, we should no longer run after “other lovers,” i.e. after the “gods” of this world. We should not participate in immorality and wickedness in any shape or form – either in physical or mental participation, or in giving approval to such things through allowing ourselves to be entertained by the sins of others.

No Temptation

These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come. So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

Jesus Christ set us free from slavery to sin, so we should not live in sin any longer. His grace is not a license to continue in sin! His grace teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and wickedness. It slays the sinner; it does not entertain him or placate his sin. When we come to true faith in Jesus Christ, we die to our old lives of living for self and sin; we are crucified with Christ so that “I” no longer live, but Christ now lives in me and through me. We are transformed in heart and mind of the Spirit of God away from sin and toward God, like being changed from a caterpillar into a butterfly. We put off that old body of flesh, and we put on our new selves, “created to be like Christ in true righteousness and holiness” (See Eph. 4:17-24). So, God has provided the way out for us so that we don’t have to give in to the temptations to sin that come into our lives. He settled the issue of sin at Calvary. He is greater than any temptation we might face, and he has given us all we need to resist the devil and to flee temptation, so don’t believe the lie that says you can’t help it.

The Lord’s Jealousy

Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf.

Consider the people of Israel: Do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar? Do I mean then that food sacrificed to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. Are we trying to arouse the Lord’s jealousy? Are we stronger than he?

We are to flee (bolt from; run away from) idolatry in its various forms. An idol can be a hero, an obsession; something admired and loved to excess, or something that is worshiped as a god. Worship involves loyalty, commitment, faithfulness, fidelity, a vow (pledge), dedication, steadfastness, devotion, love, reverence, respect, honor and/or adoration. So, what do we worship? What gets our heart, time, energies, devotion, commitment, and faithfulness, etc.? What are we passionate about? What stirs us emotionally? What is uppermost on our minds when we arise in the morning and when we go to bed at night? What do we feel we could not live without? There are many things that could be our idols, such as vehicles, houses, possessions, “toys,” games, entertainment, careers, people, etc. Basically, whatever gets our hearts, passion, desires, thoughts, time, etc. has the potential of becoming an idol, especially if it is “worshiped” over and above God/Jesus Christ.

When we come to faith in Jesus Christ, we participate in his death – in his body and blood – through death to our old lives of sin. And, we participate in his resurrection through being transformed in heart and mind and putting on our new selves in Christ Jesus. We, as believers in Christ, are now the body of Christ. And, we are now in daily fellowship with him. We, thus, partake in Christ day-to-day through our times of prayer, worship, and our times of sitting at his feet, listening to him speak, and then following him in obedience and surrender to his will, as well as just through having his Spirit living within us. So, when we follow after the idols of men instead of following our Lord Jesus, in submission to his will, it is like breaking faith. We can’t be in fellowship with the world of sin and with the Lord Jesus at the same time. We can’t fill our minds with the trash of this world and then expect to enter into times of sweet fellowship with our Lord. The two don’t mix.

God is calling his church to come out from the world of sin, to no longer partake in its delicacies, and to put on the full armor of God with which to fight off the devil’s schemes against us. He has called us to be a holy people, committed to him. He is a jealous God! He does not want to share us with other lovers. So, if you are eating and drinking at the table of demons through idolatry, sexual immorality, greed, gossip and the like, I pray that you will turn from your sins, and that you will make the Lord your only God today.

Wake the World / Todd Fields

Wake the world

Shine the light

There is one way, truth, and life

Perfect love

Born to die

Son of God, Jesus Christ

Wake the world

http://www.invubu.com/lyrics/show/Todd_Fields/Wake_The_World.html